SM Ubers Finale

Team quality?


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RNGIsFatal

Banned deucer.
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Finale

Introduction

It has been a while since I have been lurking in Ubers forum. I personally enjoy this meta a lot because who doesn't like using legendaries? 1500 ladder AG players all say "lmao all legend you suck ass" and proceed to click X
Anyways, while my ladder performance has not been superb, I had fun time testing many teams and gradually learning the metagame (or "learning", in some veterans' perspective). Hyperoffense, balance, and stall are all fun to execute in Ubers due to the variety of 'mons available in the metagame. Hyperoffense felt too situational and mind-game-reliant to me, and stall teams forced me to spend centuries for each game to finish. This eventually made me stick to balance teams.

As much as I write RMT's for various metagames, this RMT is not a showcase of a high ladder player / peak celebration. It is a shameless display of the team with my fond memories and at the same time, it is for asking for help and possible improvements. With that said, let's move on.

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Teambuilding Process



Every Ubers team starts with Primal Groudon. There is 0 reason not to run this when it is the best Stealth Rock user, one of the fewest switch-ins for Xerneas, Primal KYogre and Marshadow, and can run tons of different sets and lures. What I decided to do with Primal Groudon is making a Restalk set to gain increased longevity and consistently switch into aforementioned threats.




Then I have decided the team will be built around Mega Salamence. I had Mega Gengar taken into consideration because it appreciates Primal Groudon's ability to spread burns using Lava Plume and could be good cleaner with Hex. However, Mega Salamence was much more consistent Mega Stone user that could pose threat to more teams simply with the infamy of Dragon Dance set. It also appreciates Primal Groudon's ability to check Dialga, Zekrom, and rare Tyranitar which would stop Mega Salamence cold.




Celesteela stepped in at this moment. Arceus-Ground is a huge issue for Primal Groudon and Mega Salamence due to it heavily investing in defense to take on both and carrying Ice Beam to OHKO the latter. Also Swords Dance Arceus, although it took a huge hit after Marshadow has been released, could threaten this team once Primal Groudon has been sufficiently weakened. At the same time, Celesteela switches into Toxic which forces Primal Groudon to use Rest in undesired situations and effectively handles most support Arceus formes lacking Fire Blast. The biggest selling point of Celesteela is Leech Seed, which annoys the hell out of switch-in and helps Primal Groudon and Giratina-O stay healthy.




Next up is the defogger. As mentioned, Giratina-O greatly appreciates Leech Seed from Celesteela. Opposing Primal Groudon tends to switch into Celesteela to set Stealth Rock or use Rock Polish, and if Celesteela seeds it, Giratina-O can handle it much easier. I normally don't prefer using Giratina-O in general due to it lacking recovery and having take a lot of damage, but Celesteela's Leech Seed helps maximizing the longevity. It could also handle weakened foes like Xerneas and Gengar with powerful Shadow Sneak while denting neutral targets with Shadow Force, and very few Defog users in the tier are able to afford this much offensive presence.


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Zygarde-C, especially rest variant would be a pain in the butt to deal with, since Celesteela has to basically PP stall it. Mewtwo with Choice Specs could lock Zygarde-C and other problematic walls with Trick or simply OHKO it using appropriate moves. Also the team was a little slow, and it seemed like nothing in the world is wrong with having fast and powerful wallbreaker. Zekrom was used couple times but it was almost helpless against offense and I later added Arceus-Fairy for better offensive Yveltal check.




Despite I have defensive Primal Groudon and Celesteela, Marshadow could still be a pain to deal with once they have been weakened. Also my team had no switch-in's for Yveltal, and I decided to have a dedicated check for both Marshadow and Yveltal. Arceus-Dark seemed decent but it was greatly annoyed by Yveltal's U-turn and also made my team even more vulnerable to Marshadow. Arceus-Fairy turned out to fit the best in this role thanks to the virtue of the typing and stellar bulk. It could also handle mixed Life Orb Rayquaza with V-create which would otherwise be an immense threat. Thanks to Giratina-O having Defog, Arceus-Fairy can set Stealth Rock. Besides all these, it carries Toxic to lure and put timer on Primal Groudon and Ho-oh.




I realized I have no switch-in for Mega Lucario and Lunala, and once opposing Arceus formes start setting up Calm Mind, my team can't stop it, since they often carry Fire Blast. I decided to remove Mewtwo because the team was naturally becoming a bulky offense and it was very easily forced out.




Nothing else than Ho-oh fit this role. Outsides handling aforementioned threats, it excels at pressuring opposing teams, checking Xerneas in emergency, and punishing most Arceus formes with Toxic.


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The Team


Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
EVs: 248 HP / 56 Def / 176 SpD / 28 Spe
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Lava Plume / Fire Punch
- Rest
- Roar / Sleep Talk

I was looking for ideal EV spread, and about the time I was about to use 248 HP / 252 SpD with Sassy nature, but I found a good EV spread copied from Ubers sample teams thread. I frankly don't know what exacly EV sets do, but so far I found out that it handles Dragonium Z Zekrom and Bulk Up Marshadow. 176 SpD turned out to keep Primal Groudon outsides the range of getting KO'd by Xerneas' +2 HP Ground after Stealth Rock damage as well as handling Primal Kyogre much better. I don't understand what 28 Speed EV's are for, but I assumed that they are to creep Giratina-O, Sassy Primal Groudon, and Bold Primal Kyogre. Impish Nature with Lava Plume might seem counterproductive but the objective of the move is discouraging the likes of Rayquaza from switching in, and it does pitiful damage to the likes of Giratina and Arceus-Water anyway.
For movesets, I have chosen Earthquake over Precipice Blades because missing a move when handling Marshadow, Xerneas, or slower Primal Groudon could be very critical. Also this Primal Groudon is not offensively oriented, and Earthquake still does a considerable chunk to neutral targets. Lava Plume is used to discourage switch-in's from coming for free. Fire Punch can be used if I desire to put Arceus-Ground on timer with Ho-oh's Toxic, but when it comes to SD variants Lava Plume is better. Rest is the crux of this set; it delivers a pain to defensive teams that would like Primal Groudon down at any moment. It helps with Primal Kyogre, it helps with Xerneas, and it helps with PP war. Roar is the move that can be used to phaze out Power Herb variants of Xerneas and Mega Salamence, but since my team is heavily prepared for them, I sometimes use Sleep Talk to keep Hex Mega Gengar from trapping it.



Ho-Oh @ Life Orb
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 224 HP / 212 Atk / 72 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Sacred Fire
- Recover
- Toxic

Standard Life Orb set. I did not invest in Speed and chose the power to make better rolls against the likes of Power Herb Xerneas and various support Arceus formes. Simply by existing, Ho-oh pressures the opposing team and punishes any switch-in with nasty burn chance from Sacred Fire or Toxic. EV spread, for those who coludn't tell, are optimized to let Ho-oh survive +2 Thunder from Xerneas while keeping HP at odd number. Honestly nothing much to say here.



Salamence @ Salamencite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Def / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Double-Edge
- Facade
- Roost
- Dragon Dance

Double-Edge & Facade Salamence seemed very gimmicky to me at first, but I realized Mega Salamence is suffering from the metagame it has shaped - Zekrom, Dialga, and Tyranitar carries Shuca Berry to check it. Also status is becoming increasingly prevalent - some Arceus formes carry Will-O-Wisp, and Salamence sometimes has to switch into opposing Ho-oh in emergency and has to risk taking burn from Sacred Fire. Also Mega Salamence does much more when it is used to clean up late game so I decided to ditch Earthquake and get Facade. Facade helps so much more against support Arceus formes and Zygarde before transformation. EV spread is to outspeed Choice Scarf Xerneas at +1, maximizing Attack, keeping HP at specific value to let Salamence switch in to Stealth Rock one extra time, and helping it take on Primal Groudon with ease.



Celesteela @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 248 HP / 24 Atk / 160 Def / 76 SpD
Impish Nature
- Heavy Slam
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Protect

Celesteela handles the most dangerous sweepers called Z-Geomancy Xerneas, Mega Salamence, Arceus-Ground, and Arceus. EV's are set to take down Z-Geomancy Xerneas with Leech Seed and Heavy Slam while maximizing bulk while surviving two Moonblast from +3 0 SpA Xerneas. Leech Seed helps Primal Groudon to not be too reliant on Rest while keeping Giratina-O longer with appropriate switch plays. Substitute was chosen over Toxic to punish arrogant players who tries to predict Protect and set up on it. Many replays below show Celesteela's would-be-checks being harshly punished by Substitute + Leech Seed + Protect.



Giratina-Origin @ Griseous Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Force
- Shadow Sneak
- Dragon Tail
- Defog

I usually don't like just copying and pasting the set from Smogon Dex page not because I don't like them, but because I tend to come up with my unique sets with unique EV spread. However, nothing else seemed better than this set. Physical Giratina-O has unmatched utility compared to other Defog users. It has notable presence against offense thanks to Shadow Sneak picking off Deoxys-A and Mega Gengar after little prior damage, and it almost never ends up being a setup fodder for anything. Dragon Tail is spammed when Giratina-O is weakened to keep setups, and Shadow Force + Shadow Sneak severely dents Power Herb Xerneas variants, and should it try to set up on Giratina-O, it has to risk getting KO'd if it has taken Stealth Rock damage. Leech Seed from Celesteela help alleviating Giratina-O's problem with longevity and lets it contribute to the team much longer.



Arceus-Fairy @ Pixie Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 252 HP / 132 Def / 124 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Judgment
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Recover

Arceus-Fairy the offensive Zygarde-C check and Stealth Rock setter. It also switches into a myriad of dangerous attackers such as Rayquaza, Yveltal, and Marshadow. EV spreads were not set to outspeed Mega Lucario because Ho-oh and Primal Groudon can handle it. Speed EV's were given to outspeed +Spe nature Rayquaza and others. It also helps Arceus-Fairy to use Toxic on Ho-oh before it sets Substitute.


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Threat List

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Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
- Eruption
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Eruption 2HKOs Giratina-O and HP Ice destroys Salamence. It is very dangerous to send Ho-oh to Primal Groudon in the first place so this variant of Primal Groudon ends up wrecking havoc.

*

Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
- Swords Dance
- Precipice Blades
- Dragon Claw

This set OHKO's Giratina-O at +2 after Stealth Rock. Celesteela can handle this with with right predictions but sending Celesteela to Primal Groudon is never a good idea in general. So this set ends up wrecking havoc as well.

*

Mewtwo-Mega-X @ Mewtwonite X
Ability: Steadfast
- Low Kick
- Ice Beam
- Stone Edge
- Taunt

Celesteela can't use Leech Seed, Mega Salamence falls to Ice Beam, Ho-oh is obliterated by Stone Edge, and Primal Groudon takes huge chunks from 120 BP Low Kick. Usually MMX carries Zen Heatbutt, but it still dents Ho-oh and I need to keep Stealth Rock off the field for Ho-oh to check non-Stone Edge variants.

*

Lunala @ Choice Specs
Ability: Shadow Shield
- Moongeist Beam
- Psyshock
- Focus Blast
- Ice Beam

Ho-oh can't handle Psyshock, and once Stealth Rock is up, the intense mind game starts. Moongeist Beam is very spammable on my team (or towards the Ubers meta in general) and if I don't set Stealth Rock at the right time, revenge killing Lunala will be painful business.

*

Lunala @ Psychium Z
Ability: Shadow Shield
- Moongeist Beam
- Focus Blast
- Hypnosis
- Calm Mind

This set is even more devastating. Celesteela needs to play very serious mind games with Lunala to safely seed it and set Substitute to stall it out. Also if this Lunala starts setting up when Stealth Rock is up, I can just assume counterplay against this guy is nonexistent.

I think many more threats pressure my team, so please feel free to point out any threats that I have missed out.


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Importable
Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
EVs: 248 HP / 56 Def / 176 SpD / 28 Spe
Impish Nature
- Precipice Blades
- Lava Plume
- Rest
- Roar

Ho-Oh @ Life Orb
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 224 HP / 212 Atk / 72 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Brave Bird
- Sacred Fire
- Recover
- Toxic

Salamence @ Salamencite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Def / 204 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Double-Edge
- Facade
- Roost
- Dragon Dance

Celesteela @ Leftovers
Ability: Beast Boost
EVs: 248 HP / 24 Atk / 160 Def / 76 SpD
Impish Nature
- Heavy Slam
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Protect

Giratina-Origin @ Griseous Orb
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Force
- Shadow Sneak
- Dragon Tail
- Defog

Arceus-Fairy @ Pixie Plate
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 252 HP / 132 Def / 124 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Judgment
- Toxic
- Stealth Rock
- Recover


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Replays

These are for readers who are willing to comment on my team's systemic performance and my style of playing Ubers. Some replays have Mewtwo / Zekrom / Arceus-Dark (by accident) but they should give general idea about how this team works.

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ubers-645941343
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ubers-645744865
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ubers-646562498
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ubers-646272687 - Celesteela PP stalling Zygarde-C, winning game in RNG hell


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Conclusion

Thanks for reading, I would greatly appreciate any comments. I would also prefer helps to prepare for Pokemon in Threatlist and fix systemic issues on my team. Have a good night!

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