Muh team:
Which types does this type have a disadvantage against?
Well, my team struggles with Fighting, ironically enough as I have one Flying move on my whole team :I. Especially Trick Room Fighting. One of my main strategies is to paralyze everything then hax with bulky Togekiss lol, so they don't care about the speed drop. My team struggles with Trick Room in general, as my Pokemon are decently fast, I spread status a ton, and nothing is slow enough to outslow them lmao. Sash Froslass can also be a problem, but Togekiss usually handles it fairly well or Char X does OK with Flare Blitz/WoW and being bulky. Mega Diancie was a problem until I changed Skarmory. Ground is also a problem as they are predominately physical, carry EdgeQuake to murder my team, Skarmory is roasted by Fire Blast chomp, or Flamethrower/T-Bolt by Nidoking, and they can't be Thunder Waved. Thundurus-I is a godsend in this matchup (even if his Prankster T-Wave does nothing) as with HP Ice/Grass Knot it can outspeed and kill Gastrodon, Hippowdon, Landorus, and Mega Garchomp, or just non-Scarf Garchomp. Mamoswine and Excadrill are the biggest threats, with Ice Shard/Stone Edge/EQ/Scarf and Rock Slide/EQ/Sand Rush respectively, as they outspeed and hit hard. Basically, if I don't eliminate Hippo quickly, I'm doomed. Once Hippo is gone, however, I can stall out Sand, and then Lando-I can handle Excadrill. Skarmory is almost as important in this matchup for being able to LO stall Excadrill, or simply wall it until Sand is gone. It also walls Mamoswine, and Iron Head/Roost will usually win. ScarfChomp is walled by Skarmory or Char X depending on the move it chooses (Fire Blast: Char X. Edge/Quake/Dragon STAB: Skarm). Nidoking is usually Scarfed, so you can wall whatever move it is locked into: Sludge Wave is Skarm, Flamethrower/T-Bolt/Ice Beam is Char X, and Zapdos can also take T-Bolt. Anything but Char X takes Earth Power lol. If it is LO, Lando-I outspeeds and Earth powers it. Steel can also be a problem, but Lando-I/Char X usually handle steel pretty effectively. I mostly just hate Fighting Steel because it is so common and so generic lol. Mega Sableye is a threat if Char X is dead. Otherwise, Char X 2HKOs after Rocks with Flare Blitz (one of the reasons I run Flare Blitz over EQ or Fire Punch even though it is BulkyZard), so I have to preserve Char X. Kyurem-W isn't a problem for me as I run Prankster T-Wave Thundy-I. If it is Sub though, I generally have to sack Landorus to break the Sub while it kills it, then bring in Thundurus to cripple it, allowing Togekiss flinchax or Char X Dragon Claw to clean up. Kyurem-B is dealt with in the same manner. Other than that this team does pretty well, and it can even beat these threats. It's pretty anti-meta and has won a couple of tourneys, when I've bothered to A) Try B) Not use some weird gimmick team and C) Not have to leave halfway through. Lol.
Which types does this type have an advantage against?
I personally find I have a relatively time against Fairy. Char X walls Gardevoir, Mega Gardevoir, and Sylveon, Skarmory walls Azumarill (whirlwinds while it BDs :3) and Mega Diancie, Lando-I can sweep with Sludge Wave once scarves are gone (2 shots pretty much everything, and outspeeds everything except ScarfKiss, ScarfGarde, and Mega Diancie after Mega evolution). Also OHKOs Mega Diancie (it outspeeds it before it Mega evolves) and can 2HKO Klefki through Light Screen (unless crithax fall in your favour, then it is OHKO :P) and Klefki can't T-Wave it, Spikes vs. Flying is lol, and Foul Play doesn't do much. I usually win those matchups. It also is pretty good against Grass (it was better when I had Psychic on Lando-I:
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/monotype-194550013 but still usually wins--Togekiss paraflinchax beats Mega Venusaur (and reg)/Contrary Serperior/Roserade pretty easily), Electric (lol, but it's true), Ghost, Dark, Rock (now that I've made a couple changes), and Bug.
Which Pokemon help cover this type's weaknesses?
Electric:
Landorus-Therian is immune and is a good physical wall, and has EQ. Landorus-Incarnate is immune and is an excellent special wallbreaker and has Earth Power. Mega Altaria resists, and is a good D-Dance sweeper, or a bulky Heal Beller (either physical or special) and learns EQ. Mega Charizard X resists and is a great special wall that can kill stuff, or is a good D-Dance sweeper and learns EQ. Zapdos is neutral and is a great wall (physical or special) and can Toxic stall. Thundurus-Therian is immune and gets healed because of Volt Absorb, and is a good Choice or LO special attacker with excellent 145 SpA. Gliscor is immune and is an excellent defensive wall/staller with Poison Heal and has EQ. Also absorbs status like a boss :3. Dragonite, Noivern, and Salamence also are neutral to electric, Salamence/Dragonite commonly carry EQ to kill them, and Noivern simply hits like a truck with Specs and is really fast. Lol, I think electric is covered. Gyarados/Mega Gyarados also get EQ (Mega is OK with EQ to hit Electric types such as Rotom-W but regular Gyarados is 4x weak so it shouldn't really be staying in on too many electric types unless it already has a couple Dragon Dances under its belt and can one shot them).
Ice:
Skarmory is amazing, and takes every physical Ice hit. Icicle Crash, Ice Shard, Ice Punch, they do nothing and it Roosts off damage. It has Iron Head to nail them back (unless you run the generic Brave Bird). Both Mega Charizards take Ice neutrally and are capable of running effective special wall sets to tank all the Ice Beams (I prefer Char X because it combines good attack, good defense, and good special defense in an awesome combination that resists Thunderbolt and is neutral to Ice Beam so it can tank BoltBeam). Char X nails back with a Tough Claws boosted Flare Blitz/Fire Punch and Char Y's Fire Blasts/Heat Waves/Flamethrowers in sun hurt. Gyarados is neutral to Ice and can run a neat parashuffling RestTalk set, or SubDD. Also has Intimidate or Moxie. Mega Gyarados resists Ice and can run many sets: bulky RestTalk shuffler with Waterfall/Crunch/T-Wave, DDance+3 attacks sweeper, SubDD, RestTalk DD Waterfall, etc. Sets with only Waterfall are viable as Mold Breaker bypasses Storm Drain/Water Absorb. Articuno is PU and underrated (talk to
ArVaDa- lol). It is also neutral to Ice and is an amazing special wall. It does have a crippling Stealth Rock weakness, but if you can learn to play around that, Articuno is an amazing addition to most defensive Flying teams. Landorus-I gets Focus Blast, Lando-T gets Stone Edge, Dragonite gets Fire Punch, Togekiss gets Fire Blast/Flamethrower, Staraptor gets Close Combat, Noivern gets Flamethrower, Aerodactyl/Mega Aerodactyl get Stone Edge, Hawlucha gets HJK, Mega Bird Jeezus (aka Mega Pidgeot) gets unmissable Heat Wave, Honchkrow gets Superpower, and Thundurus/Noivern/Tornadus get Focus Blast to hit them for SE damage. I think Ice is covered too :3.
Rock:
Skarmory is neutral to Rock and is generally amazing (it is a centerpiece in just about all of my matchups as my sole defensive wall lol) and takes every Stone Edge, Diamond Storm, or Rock Blast ever. Iron Head is SE on Rock. Gliscor is also a great defensive wall with excellent stalling ability through Poison Heal offering double the lefties recovery, access to Roost, Toxic, and Protect for longevity, as well as other moves such as Knock Off (removes items), Earthquake (STAB, SE on Rock), Stealth Rock (hazards!!!), or Defog (hazard removal :3). It also has a neat SD set with wide coverage, or Baton Pass to pass boosts if you feel so inclined (passing +2 speed from Agility to Lando-I is a niche set I tried for a bit that was pretty cool, unless they have strong priority). Lando-I is still here, awesome special wallbreaker/sweeper and neutral to Rock. Lando-T is once again a cool defensive tank with Intimidate and a neutrality to another of Flying's weakness--Rock. Earth Power or EQ from them hits Rock for SE damage. Lando-I also has Focus Blast. Hawlucha is also neutral to Rock, and HJK 130 Base Power STAB hurts. Mega Altaria is neutral to Rock and has EQ. Mega Gyarados is neutral to Rock and has EQ/Waterfall. Mega Char X, regular Gyarados, Dragonite, Aerodactyl/MegaDactyl, and Salamence all have EQ, Staraptor has Close Combat, and Tornadus/Thundurus/Noivern have Focus Blast to hit Rock for SE damage. Rock is covered too :P.
To conclude this section, Flying has multiple Pokemon that are immune to, resist, or are neutral to all of its weaknesses. They have a wide selection of walls that can be combined to form an effective core that defensively covers its natural weaknesses. They also have a wide selection of attackers that can hit their weaknesses for SE damage.
What plays can you make to win against threats to your team of this type?
Hax helps rof. Double switches to walls, good scouting, spreading status, then finishing up with hax (Togekiss), or some power (Thundy/Lando/Char X) is my usual strategy. Setting Rocks, phazing, and forcing switches weakens opponents and makes them easy to kill. My battles generally go something like this, regardless of the matchup: first 25 or so turns I stall, set Rocks, and status EVERYTHING (if fast, Thunder Wave. If stally, Toxic. If dangerous physical attacker, WoW). Get some chip damage. After that, it starts to depend on playstyle more than type. If they are stally, outstall them, occasionally hitting hard with Lando/Thundy/Char X to finish off weakened Pokemon. If offensive, hax with Togekiss or Lando/Thundy can sweep.
My main strategy is to hope for critical hits, flinchax, and parahax.
What sets can be run to check certain threats?
If you find you are struggling with fast threats, such as Scarf Terrakion, Scarf Kyurem, and Scarf Heracross, I recommend using Thundy-I. Prankster T-Wave does wonders, and Togekiss can proceed to hax them or your other Pokemon can hit hard. AgilityPass Gliscor is also an option to something like Landorus-I, Thundurus, or Honchkrow. Running Dazzling Gleam on Togekiss is an option to hit Mega Sableye harder, but I would recommend changing to a Nasty Plot or Specs/Scarf set if you want to do this. Those are a couple of changes I have considered making, other than that, it kinda depends on your playstyle and what you have found threatens you. Feel free to PM if you want me to help you beat a threat ^_^
What different EV spreads are used to help against certain types/Pokemon?
Um. Speed creep I guess? Maybe some more investment into defenses to tank a hit or two from a threat and retaliate, or more offense if they got a KO. My advice is to play around with the EVs a bit, but don't needlessly add EVs to random stats, for example, Skarmory doesn't need 200 speed or anything like that, as it's purpose is to wall stuff. On offensive Pokemon/scarfed Pokemon, you can always ask people in the monotype room who will give you a number of speed tiers you can hit with different EV investment. I run 20 Atk on Skarm for something, I just can't remember what. Other than that my speedcreep is (usually) either generic, or someone recommended it to me for a reason I thought was good. Ask me again when Bug and Dark come up and I'll have a better answer to this question :3. Also: I'm the scrub who runs 92 speed Mega Venusaur to outspeed full speed Aggron/Mega Aggron to Leech Seed them before they Taunt me. It is useful in 1v1 (as proven yesterday when I did a battle for fun when I was bored) but old habits die hard lol. At least it could help against Mega Mawile, now even that is gone lol. This would apply more to Flying if you chose to use Yanmega and want to know what it outspeeds at +1 and +2.
How does this type fare in the monotype metagame?
Flying fares extremely well in monotype as shown by its high usage (used more than any other type. Source:
http://monotypeps.weebly.com/stats.html). It covers its weaknesses very well, and has a dual typing with every other type. This allows it to hit every type in the metagame with a STAB if you choose, and it has wide type diversity. It has access to tremendous offensive Pokemon (both physical and special, wallbreakers and sweepers, set up Pokemon and Pokemon that hit hard right away) as well as amazing defensive Pokemon (physical and special walls, as well as hard-hitting tanks). There are many viable options, and Flying is overall a dominant type in the monotype metagame. I explained in more detail my view on what makes a type viable in monotype over on the ladder thread, if you're interested here is the link:
http://www.smogon.com/forums/thread...-tiering-updates.3493087/page-57#post-6017329.
Explanation of my team:
Skarmory @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Sturdy
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 240 HP / 20 Atk / 248 Def
Impish Nature
- Iron Head
- Stealth Rock
- Roost
- Whirlwind
Skarmory is my physical wall and usually my go-to lead. It sets Rocks, then proceeds to wall every physical hit while getting chip damage in through Rocky Helmet and occasionally Iron Head. Iron Head helps me in the disadvantageous Rock and Ice matchups, and specifically helps it beat Terrakion, Mega Diancie, Mamoswine, and Weavile/Froslass (who may quickly Taunt it). It also phases out threats I let set up, and can't be OHKOed if Sturdy is intact (barring Mold Breaker). Roost is obviously recovery as I lack Leftovers. 20 Atk is good cuz reasons. They were good ones too, I just can't remember them :P. Other options: Defog is good for hazard removal, and it can just reset Rocks afterwards. Brave Bird is the generic attack on Skarmory and is a 120 BP Flying STAB. Spikes can be used over Stealth Rock if you prefer hazard stacking or if you have another Stealth Rock setter, but generally Rocks is preferred. Leftovers is another item option if you prefer passive recovery over residual damage for opponents making contact.
Landorus @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Earth Power
- Focus Blast
- Sludge Wave
- Gravity
Landorus-Incarnate is one of the best special wallbreakers in the game, and is also capable of sweeping. It is my usualy wincondition. Every move activates Sheer Force, so my total LO recoil is 0--it is basically a free 1.3x boost to all of my attacks. When combined, Sheer Force and LO give a 1.729x boost to my attacks, which is more than Choice Specs does on its own. Earth Power is STAB. Focus Blast nails Ice, Rock, and Dark types hard. Sludge Wave murders Fairies and Grass types. Gravity helps in the mirror matchup, allowing you to kill Skarmory, Zapdos, and Thundurus easier. It also hits key targets in other matchups, such as every Electric type, every Rock type, and every Steel type with Earth Power. Other Options: Psychic also activates Sheer Force and LO, hitting Mega Venusaur, Weezing, and Fighting types hard, I used to use this and it was really successful. Knock Off deprives Chansey/Porygon2 of their Eviolites, while also neutering other walls that rely on items. Note that you will take recoil damage from LO when using Knock Off. Calm Mind can be used to boost. Rock Slide is another coverage move. It is chosen over Stone Edge as they are approximately the same power (Rock Slide gets Sheer Force, Stone Edge doesn't) but Rock Slide doesn't take LO recoil while Stone Edge does.
Thundurus @ Leftovers
Ability: Prankster
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 30 Atk / 30 Def
- Thunder Wave
- Grass Knot
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Ice]
I use Thundurus-Incarnate over its generic Therian forme. Why? Prankster Thunder Wave. I have Electric covered pretty well with Lando-I/Char X/Zapdos giving me an immunity, a resistance, and a neutrality so I chose to run the crippler over the immunity dude. It turned out to be a good decision as I have not struggled with Electric, but I have been in situations where a Scarfers or boosted Pokemon can outspeed and dent my whole team. Thunder Wave stops them, allowing me to outspeed them and deal with them accordingly. Thunderbolt is a STAB. Grass Knot/HP Ice are coverage that greatly help me against Ground. Thundurus is my wincondition vs. Ground and in a couple of other matchups. It is also very helpful against Water. Other Options: Focus Blast is coverage. Volt Switch is momentum. Prankster Taunt cripples hazard leads and passive Pokemon. I used it effectively for a while. Nasty Plot makes you hit like a truck and gets Prankster so you can outspeed Taunters who want to stop you from setting up. Life Orb is an option for more power, but as I use it mainly as a way to beat Hippowdon and is my usual wincon vs. Ground, I prefer Leftovers negating the sandstorm damage. It also gives it slightly more longevity in other battles, as it recovers health rather than stripping it. You can use it if you want though. Choice Scarf is an item because you gotta go fast. I recommend using Volt Switch or Focus Blast over Thunder Wave, and potentially Thunderbolt if you go this route, but generally Thundy-Therian outclasses it as a Scarf user.
Charizard-Mega-X @ Charizardite X
Ability: Tough Claws
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 228 HP / 252 SpD / 28 Spe
Careful Nature
- Will-O-Wisp
- Roost
- Dragon Claw
- Flare Blitz
Mega Charizard X is my Mega. I run the specially bulky WoW set to wall BoltBeam and cripple physical attackers simultaneously. WoW is burns. Roost is Roost. Dragon Claw is STAB that gets the Tough Claws boost. Flare Blitz is also a STAB that gets the Tough Claws boost. You might be wondering why I run a move with recoil on a bulky Pokemon that is supposed to tank hits. The answer is because I need the power. Mega Char X is my best answer to Mega Sableye, and Flare Blitz is a guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock. If I didn't run Flare Blitz, the power drop is very noticeable, and I would have to rely on Landorus-I and crits to kill Mega Sableye. Mega Char X is still usually bulky enough to tank a hit, and can Roost off the damage afterwards.
Zapdos @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Roost
- Discharge
- Toxic
Zapdos is one of my 3 special walls and takes Thunderbolts really well so I can save Char X for later. It is also my Defogger, which is necessary on a Flying team, as they are weak to Rocks. Defog is hazard removal. Roost is still Roost. Discharge is a STAB which has a cool 30% chance to paralyze for more status. Toxic is poisoning that puts walls on a timer. Pressure is a cool ability for a wall, as it can PP stall Pokemon (such as Hydro Pumps and other 8 PP moves in 4 turns, rather than 8). Other Options: Heat Wave is used to nail Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Forretress hard. It hits Steel types not named Heatran or Emploeon for SE damage. I used to use this, and it was very good (I just wanted ebun moar status :]). Thunderbolt/Volt Switch are alternate STABs. Thunderbolt hits harder, and Volt Switch is momentum, but generally Discharge is preferred for the para chance. It won me a game against Spectre Knight when it paralyzed a Medicham switch in--apparently it was his wincon, so he forfeited. A physically defensive spread for Zapdos is also viable to let it take the physical Electric and Steel hits that Togekiss hates.
Togekiss @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 232 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD / 16 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Air Slash
- Thunder Wave
- Roost
- Heal Bell
Togekiss! Based Fairy burd OP and haxy. Thunder Wave keeps up with my status everything motto. Air Slash is STAB and haxes everything late game. It is my wincon through haxiness in many matchups :]. Heal Bell is very important as it allows me to outstall the opponent--the status I spread stays, while my Pokemon are cured. Roost is still Roost. Other Options: a Nasty Plot set is viable. A Scarf or Specs set is viable too. Fire Blast is an option to hit Steels hard. Dazzling Gleam hits Mega Sableye hard. Both of these could be used over Heal Bell if you run Heal Bell Articuno or Gliscor as a status absorber, but are generally preferred on a Choice or boosting set. It also has Aura Sphere, Grass Knot, and Psyshock for other special moves.
Anyway, I hope I added something, this seems like a really cool thread! I look forward to seeing how this turns out!