temp
legacy
mind = blown
Yay, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon is out! And with every new meta, there's always someone to abuse HO at the start. This team focuses around the 2 new mons, Naganadel and Blacephalon, and Ribombee's new tool of Sticky Web. I can't wait for the USM meta to further develop for OU, and I do expect a Naganadel suspect test given the current outrage in the community. Do I want it banned? No. Do I expect it to be banned? No. I feel it's just like when Tapu Lele, Xurkitree, etc. were introduced. Pretty stats = ban it!! People have to wait for the meta to change and need to adapt with their movesets and team choices. Adaption is something people in this community can't accept, as they feel adapting a Pokemon's moveset to handle a top threat lowers its overall viability. Blacephalon is fine, too. I see OU or BL in its future, similarly to Xurkitree and Kartana. Ribombee, imo, has fair competition with Shuckle as a webber. Both outclass Smeargle given that Shuckle has an actual defensive backbone with Ribombee having an offensive presence. Anyways, enjoy this RMT!
Teambuilding ProcessNaganadel is the current outrage, so I want to cash in before a potential suspect test. This thing's cleaning abilities are amazing.
To assist Naga in sweeping lategame, I want to accompany it with a solid wallbreaker in Blacephalon. It also fits a theme of the 2 new UBs (Stakataka is wack). Blace is a great spinblocker as well, forcing out most Rapid Spin users afterward. Both struggle against Tyranitar, though.
Ribombee acts as a Sticky Web user with an offensive presence. It can even cripple Ground types such as Excadrill or Garchomp with a Stun Spore. It doesn't break past much in the meta, but it does about 40% to a lot of Pokemon, which is particularly helpful for Naganadel.
Mega Pinsir is another wallbreaker alongside Blacephalon. It can do massive damage to Tyranitar for it, and can weaken Magearna for Naganadel. It abuses the Sticky Webs excellently, outspeeding threats such as Tapu Koko or Ash Greninja.
Excadrill sets up Stealth Rock and can Rapid Spin them away. It can Toxic Mega Sableye for Naganadel and Blacephalon especially and targets Tyranitar, Heatran, Rotom-Wash, etc. Its Electric immunity lets it be a solid pivot to Tapu Koko at times, too.
Magearna caps the team off—giving the team two steel types for fairies and providing an additional win condition. Thanks to Blacephalon and Mega Pinsir, Magearna has an easy time picking mons off to snowball.
In-depth
Naganadel @
Beast Boost
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe | Timid | 0 Atk
Draco Meteor
Moves
Firstly, Draco Meteor is an amazing STAB option. It's not the best for sweeping, but it works well in conjunction with Nasty Plot. A Draco Plate increases the power to 156, allowing you to nuke Mew and Toxapex at +2, Landorus, etc. This is your primary killing tool. Fire Blast targets the many Steel-types that would otherwise wall Naganadel; Ferrothorn, Celesteela, Scizor, Skarmory. It doesn't hit Heatran, but a +2 Draco hits hard enough. Nasty Plot will mostly be used when Naga forces a switch, which is does quite often. Given its amazing and near-perfect coverage (excluding Heatran), Naganadel makes many 50/50s in the battle. You can opt for an aggressive play and Nasty Plot, and after you get your KO, you start to get Speed boosts instead of Special Attack. This is what allows Naganadel to act as such a potent sweeper. Sludge Wave gets a STAB boost as well and primarily targets Fairies such as Tapu Fini or Unaware Clefable that would otherwise wall you. With a Life Orb or even a Toxic Plate, Sludge Wave 100% OHKOs Unaware Clefable.
Misc. [item(s), EVs, IVs, ability, nature]
A Draco Plate is the preferred item of choice on this team given that Blacephalon has occupied the Z-move. Otherwise, a Dragonium Z would be used to OHKO no investment Heatrans at +2 50% of the time. Life Orb is suitable as well, giving an all around boost to every move; meeting the aforementioned benchmark of a Sludge Wave OHKO on Unaware Clef. Toxic Plate has merit, too, but Naganadel is going to be abusing its main kill move in Draco Meteor. The EVs, IVs, and nature are straightforward. Beast Boost, with max Speed investment, gives a Speed boost. For a Special Attack boost, you can opt for 168 Spe instead (still outspeeding Base 111s and below), but it's quite unnecessary on this Nasty Plot set.
Blacephalon @
Beast Boost
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe | Timid | 0 Atk
Substitute
Moves
Substitute allows Blacephalon to punish switches. It lets Blace remain safe vs. Tyranitar, making it so that the sub gets Pursuit trapped instead. Mind Blown shouldn't be used unless Fire Blast won't KO. When you're using Firium Z, always click Mind Blown for a 200 BP STAB move. Fire Blast is a far more spammable move than Mind Blown, given that Mind Blown does 50% to you every time. Shadow Ball is for Toxapex, Diancie, etc., as it does massive damage at +1 to resists too. Psychic is an option over Mind Blown with Psychium Z for Toxapex specifically, but Pinsir and Excadrill will mitigate its abilities in the battle.
Misc.
Firium Z allows Blacephalon to do over 50% to almost everything that isn't fully SpDef invested. You can try Leftovers or Expert Belt to free up a Z-move slot for Nagandel. As said above, Psychium Z can be used in conjunction with Psychic specifically for Toxapex. Use Blace as a spinblocker as often as possible and Substitute on Sucker Punch users such as Mawile or Bisharp in hopes of winning the 50/50. Blacephalon has pitiful bulk, too, so don't expect it to switch into much. Its subpar speed tier of 344 leaves it slower than Keldeo and above, so be wary of Scarf Kartana, Terrakion, Keldeo, etc. even with Sticky Web. Beast Boost gives a Special Attack boost for Blacephalon, and running minimal SpA EVs for a Speed boost is a really terrible option.
Ribombee @
Shield Dust
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe | Timid | 0 Atk
Stun Spore
Moves
Stun Spore is what sets Ribombee apart from the other new Sticky Web users in my eyes. Ribombee can now cripple Ground-types like Lando-T or lead Excadrill. It has middling accuracy, but against Ground- or Steel-types, I'd rather Stun Spore first then follow up with a Sticky Web. Moonblast does solid damage even when neutral, usually about 40%, 60% min. when super effective. It has a secondary effect of -1 SpA, which is nice against Mega Diancie, Zapdos, and other slower Special Attackers. Sticky Web has fallen in grace unfortunately, but I feel that with the introduction of Blacephalon, webs teams will have a solid spinblocker that isn't Mimikyu. Bug Buzz is another STAB move for Ribombee, and its usage is fairly textbook: use it if you're trying to hit what Moonblast won't. You can opt for Quiver Dance over Stun Spore or Bug Buzz for even more of an offensive presence, but you're almost never being able to set up webs and then set-up.
Misc.
Focus Sash guarantees Sticky Webs are up on the field unless it's a multi-hit attack like Rock Blast, but there aren't any fast Pokemon that run it. Shield Dust is amazing for a lead, as it prevents flinches from Fake Out. Always try to sneak a Moonblast or Stun Spore against Mega Lopunny turn 1 in hopes that they choke and Fake Out. Ribombee isn't common by any means, so not many players know what Shield Dust does. You can lead with Ribombee or with Exca, as both form a "SashSpam" core.
Pinsir @
Hyper Cutter >> Aerilate
252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe | Jolly
Quick Attack
Moves
Any Normal-type move on Mega Pinsir becomes Flying-type. Quick Attack picks off low HP threats or does quick damage, ~44%, to Nagnadel, which is a pretty sizable threat. Swords Dance gives a massive boost in attack, allowing you to OHKO AV Magearna, Tyranitar, Heatran, and much more with Earthquake. Return still does massive damage to resists at +2 thanks to Aerilate. Close Combat is always available to hit Celesteela and Skarmory, and Stone Edge can target Zapdos primarily.
Misc.
Of course, the Pinsirite allows Pinsir to Mega Evolve and gain access to Aerilate. Aerilate, as I said, changes any Normal-type move to a Flying-type move, allowing QA and Return to gain STAB. Jolly is used over Adamant to ensure that Pinsir outspeeds Jolly Lando-T and Jolly base 100s.
Excadrill @
Mold Breaker
252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe | Jolly
Stealth Rock
Moves
Thanks to Mold Breaker, Excadrill can Stealth Rock and Toxic against Magic Bounce users (relevant ones being Mega Sableye and Diancie—the latter you'd want to EQ). Earthquake will also target Rotom-W, who is obviously going to have a surge in usage at the start of USM thanks to Defog. Excadrill leads up pretty nicely vs. Lando-T builds, as it can Toxic it and then Stealth Rock. If the Landorus got up its own rocks as you Toxic it, you can Rapid Spin in the following turn if rocks off of the field is more important than your own rocks in the game.
Misc.
Focus Sash allows Excadrill to avoid the OHKO from Landorus' EQ, allowing you to Toxic it. It can also revenge kill Naganadel and Blacephalon given that the Sash isn't broken. Mold Breaker ignores the opponent's ability, so it achieves the above goals as well as the ability to hit Mimikyu through Disguise, etc. Jolly makes Exca outspeed 290 Mew/Adamant Lando/Zygarde/base 100s. A Scarf variant of Exca makes you lose out on rocks unless you truly intend on running Scarf rocks Exca, but it makes revenge killing slightly easier. I don't recommend it on this team.
Magearna @
Soul-Heart
4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe | Timid | 0 Atk
Calm Mind
Moves
Double Dance Magearna is hilarious. Once you get in that chip damage, Magearna easily cleans lategame. Now, unfortunately, this team's ways of breaking Chansey are limited to forcing it switch with Blacephalon and Mega Pinsir (Chansey can't touch Sub Blace), so Magearna won't have many opportunities vs. stall or general Chansey builds. CM increases SpDef and SpA, improving its overall bulk. BoltBeam is an amazing combo of moves with solid neutral coverage, only being resisted by Magnezone and Mamoswine and Rotom-Heat. Shift Gear allows Magearna to reach a 502 Speed benchmark, outspeeding Scarf Garchomp and below. Pain Split has some merit, but fits literally no where on this set unless you want to give up BoltBeam / Calm Mind boosts.
Misc.
Leftovers let Magearna stay in the game, recovering HP as it gets its boosts / KOs. This makes it harder to pick off with priority and works well with CM boosting SpDef. Timid gives Magearna 251 Speed, which reaches that aforementioned 502 benchmark at +2. Shuca Berry is a viable option to abuse Zygarde or Lando-T for a free Shift Gear (unless you get hit by a critical hit). Air Balloon leaves Magearna completely immune to Ground-type attacks, but pops against any direct damage, so it's unreliable. Sitrus or Iapapa Berries are solid, too, giving immediate recovery (at 1/2 HP for the former, 1/4 HP for the latter).
Replays
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661325810 [TR losing turn 1 to Blacephalon]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661464710 [HO losing to Blacephalon]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661469305 [vs. Veil]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661471166 [choke -> Blacephalon wins]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661474437 [web v web]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661477230 [1600 peak]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661464710 [HO losing to Blacephalon]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661469305 [vs. Veil]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661471166 [choke -> Blacephalon wins]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661474437 [web v web]
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-661477230 [1600 peak]
Threatlist
Hazard Control - This team has some solid ways of punishing hazard control, such as Sub Blacephalon, but sometimes it can really mess you up if your win condition was webs on the field. This team has no Bisharp to punish Defoggers, either.
Conclusion
Webs, and HO builds in general, are very fun at the start of a new meta. I hope Naganadel doesn't get banned personally, but it is a pretty amazing Pokemon. Blacephalon has a solid place in the meta as a wallbreaker and cleaner depending on your set, and I feel it works brilliantly with webs up. I hope you guys like this team and enjoyed the RMT!