ORAS PU Cactus & Puppy: Dynamic Wallbreaking Duo

BP

Upper Decky Lip Mints
is a Contributor to Smogon


Hey everyone I'm Broken Phobias and this is my first RMT ever actually so bear with me here as it might be a bumpy ride. I started playing PU just recently frankly I've fallen in love with the metagame. So deeply in fact that I made a dope team that I've had a lot of success and fun with.




The Process




First off, I knew I wanted a prominent pokemon from the metagame that I actually liked. My first thought was Golduck because it's my favorite pokemon but then I realized I hated Rain teams. So I went with my favorite Generation 3 Pokemon Cacturne. I knew I wanted a Hyper Offensive team so I decided Mixed Cacturne would be the best option. Cacturne hits so many other Pokemon with this set it's not even funny.




Next I added one of tiers most prominent wallbreakers, Stoutland. Stoutland hits so many things just as Cacturne does so now I have two solid wall breakers; one mixed and the other Physical. This allows me to hit a lot of the tier as it is.




I needed something to eat a burn as both Cacturne and Stoutland can potentially be crippled. At this point I was becoming very power hungry and went with the one and only Floatzel. With Access to Water Veil I knew it was the perfect option for my team. It has a perfect junction of Special Attack and Speed.




Every Hyper Offensive team needs a Stealth Rocker to get clean OHKOs. I first looked at Stunfisk and realized Stunfisk is actually complete trash on offensive teams. I then looked at Prinplup as it gets Hazard Removal and Hazards. It also has great defensive capabilities with Eviolite. Prinplup fits the role perfectly




What better Pokemon to go with Prinplup than another heavy hitter? Golem was the obvious choice here as it can act as a wincon with Sturdy and Choice Band. Choice Band leaves Golem with a monstrous attack power greater than that of Choice Band Stoutland which makes for a terrific late game wincon.




With the team almost completed I realized I need a user that could get some chip damage. I needed a user with U-Turn or Volt Switch. I first began to look at Monferno but then I asked myself, "Do I really need another Physical attacker?" I then looked at the best switcher in the PU, Zebstrika. Zebstrika get's great coverage and can finish of any Steel types that aren't already dead with a nice Overheat.




The Team




Cacturne (M) @ Life Orb
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Superpower
- Dark Pulse
- Giga Drain



Cacturne plays a huge roll in the team. It has both Special Attacking and Physical Attacking Capabilities which make it a Prime contender. Cacturne is able to pressure a handful of Pokemon that give provide trouble for the team such as Probopass, and Metang. It can also switch in on Water moves and recover hazard damage and or Life Orb recoil.





Stoutland (M) @ Choice Band
Ability: Scrappy
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Facade
- Return
- Pursuit
- Superpower


Stoutland is able to distance itself from a lot of PU Physical Attackers because of it's great ability, moveset, and its incredible attack stat. Scrappy allows Stoutland to hit a majority of PU's pesky Ghost types such as Gourgeist, and Misdreavus. It's also able to pursuit trap extremely well which I found to be a fantastic asset to the team. Choice Band enables Stoutland to get an even bigger attack boost which it doesn't necessarily need but honestly the more attack the better.




Floatzel @ Life Orb
Ability: Water Veil
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 1 Atk / 30 SpA
- Hydro Pump
- Hidden Power [Electric]
- Ice Beam
- Baton Pass




Floatzel is a personal and PU favorite. It has a fantastic speed stat that lets it outspeed a lot of my teams threats. Life Orb allows it to hit harder than it already does. The reason Specs was not an option was because Baton Pass is a must to get a quick switch. Floatzel doesn't appreciate damage that doesn't come from it's Life Orb. Hidden Power Electric allows it extra coverage as it often finds itself in on other water types. Ice beam and Hydro Pump provide extra coverage which allow it to take down other threats.





Prinplup @ Eviolite
Ability: Torrent
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Defog
- Stealth Rock
- Scald
- Toxic



Prinplup is probably my favorite Stealth Rock setter in the whole tier. It's Defense and Special Defense are raised a considerable amount thanks to Eviolite which makes it a lot harder to put down. Toxic can punish incoming Pokemon. Scald puts a lot of pressure on Physical attackers who cannot take a burn. Prinplup thankfully also gets Defog which provides it a great double role.




Golem (M) @ Choice Band
Ability: Sturdy
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Sucker Punch
- Explosion



Golem can probably be considered this teams beating heart. Golem's Choice Band and it's access to Study is one of its greatest assets as it allows it to OHKO Pokemon that can end up causing the team trouble. If there is zero hazards on your side of the field Golem's Sturdy allows it to survive a hit that would otherwise OHKO it giving Golem the delight of getting a move in. Usually Golem's move demolishes the said Opposing Pokemon easily. It really is one of the best Pokemon on the team.




Zebstrika (M) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Sap Sipper
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Overheat
- Hidden Power [Ice]



Zebstrika's main goal is to get in and get out and it can do this quite easily with it's high speed stat and access to the move Volt Switch. For a greater damage just use throw down an easy Thunderbolt. For pesky steel types like Pawinard just show em' who's boss with Overheat. Finally because of Ground types like Gabite just use Hidden Power Ice. All of Zebstrika's attacks due a good chunk of damage due to its great Special Attack stat. The reason Zebstrika is running Choice Scarf is because the rest of the team is a bit lacking in the Speed stat and can easily be crippled by another Choice Scarf user.


Conclusion

This team team is extremely fun to use and I hope you guys like it as much I do. Have fun!


Threat List



Golem can provide the team with a lot of issues if Prinplup is already knocked out. Golem can punish anyone on the team if it's able to get off any moves at all.




Regigigas is can cause some serious hair pulling situations if it is able to get a substitute up. Once it gets that up and spams Thunder Wave and Confuse Ray you may as well click X if you want to maintain your sanity. Although Regigigas is seldom a sight in matches.




Electrode is lightning fast and can cause a lot of headaches if Golem is already defeated. The only other option is to wear down Electrode with Zebstrika but that is not always a reliable option.



Roselia is probably one of the hardest pokemon to get rid of. It's hard to switch into and it's hard to KO. It's great Special Defense makes Overheat a 2HKO. Roselia is best handled by Golem as Earthquake provides a clean OHKO but Roselia is faster and will break Golem's Sturdy Ability.


Replays:
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/pu-467533555
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/pu-467508366
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/pu-467504548
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/pu-467424085


Shoutouts:
snake_rattler: Thanks man for being a bomb ass dude in the CAP room 24/7
Bionic Puppy: Thanks BP for being my best Showdown Bud
Exclaimer: Thanks for teaching me what good sets consist of. I hope this RMT reflects what I have learned.
boxofkangaroos Thanks For making me the bomb as Avi!​
 
Hey, this looks pretty solid. However, I do have two suggestions...

I. Focus Blast > Superpower on Cacturne
Cacturne's set could benefit from some alteration. In every way asides from accuracy, Focus Blast is superior to Superpower. The attack/defense drop cuts off Sucker Punch and forces you to switch if going against a slower physical attacker. Focus Blast gives you some stronger and more concrete chances at getting some relatively crucial KOs. Most importantly, Focus Blast gives you a little more legroom, especially when hazards are down (this applies differently to both sides). I strongly recommend trying it out.

Niche note: Focus Blast can help you v. Regigigas. You won't have to deal w/ the attack drops, and you'll have a better shot at getting it chipped down if you're forced to keep Cacturne in against it.

VS Soutland
4 Atk Life Orb Cacturne Superpower vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Stoutland: 278-328 (89.3 - 105.4%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Cacturne Focus Blast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Stoutland: 372-439 (119.6 - 141.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
Note: the calcs are the same for Sand Rush variants.

VS Golem (lead)
4 Atk Life Orb Cacturne Superpower vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Golem: 203-239 (55.9 - 65.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Life Orb Cacturne Focus Blast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Golem: 486-575 (161.4 - 191%) -- guaranteed OHKO

VS Golem (tank)
4 Atk Life Orb Cacturne Superpower vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Golem: 203-239 (67.4 - 79.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Cacturne Focus Blast vs. 248 HP / 240 SpD Golem: 359-424 (98.8 - 116.8%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO

VS Vullaby
4 Atk Life Orb Cacturne Superpower vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Vullaby: 73-87 (21.2 - 25.3%) -- 0.1% chance to 4HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Cacturne Focus Blast vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Eviolite Vullaby: 161-190 (46.9 - 55.3%) -- 71.1% chance to 2HKO

II. Weakness Policy Golem > Choice Band Golem
Golem @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock / Explosion
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Sucker Punch

I've been trying Weakness Policy Golem out, and I think your team will benefit from it greatly. Golem suffers from being locked into the Band because of his speed. Weakness Policy can give you the power you had the Band, but it can also give you more speed control with an open Sucker Punch. WP Golem can face off against other non-WP Golems, which should help clear up your problem a bit. It does require some predicting, but you'll win in a 1v1 scenario every time. If you choose to run Stealth Rocks, you'll not only be able to lean off Prinplup a bit, increasing its longevity, but you'll also be giving Cacturne an easier time sweeping. Prin can often be outplayed by opposing Defog/Spinners throughout the game. Explosion can also be used if you'd prefer, but you'll generally want to be using Sucker Punch when at low health.

If you do try either of these out, let me know how it goes. o/
 

Anty

let's drop
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Hi, nice team, I think I have played it on the ladder before.

The threats on your threatlist do look annoying, however I think a bigger weakness to your team is strong Sucker Punch users, particularly Pawniard and Cacturne, as the former could potentially sweep after a boost and the latter has a lot of natural strength, and can only be stopped by your own Cacturne. I think your team would appreciate Rapidash over Floatzel, as Will-o-Wisp provides your team with a crucial way to stop Sucker Punch users, and Rapidash can also OHKO the most common ones. Additionally, Rapidash can still provide revenge killing and similar wallbreaking support that Floatzel did, while also checking Roselia and luring and burning Golem, making it easier to deal with (though with Cacturne and Prinplup your team seems decent against it.

I agree with the above that Focus Blast on Cacturne is more useful than Superpower, specially for Monferno and Vullaby, and you should also consider Energy Ball over Giga Drain due to the increased power, which is actually useful against Pokemon such as Mawile.

Lastly, I think you should try Choice Scarf Mr Mime over Zebstrika. It still provides crucial revenge killing support, however it is notably stronger than Zebstrika and gives you a bit more defensive utility, in that it can easily take Monferno's Mach Punch in case Prinplup gets warn down. Healing Wish is also a nice addition to your team as Stoutland and Golem get warn down easily.

Rapidash @ Charcoal
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Wild Charge
- Will-O-Wisp
- Morning Sun

Mr. Mime @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Soundproof
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam
- Focus Blast
- Healing Wish

Cacturne
Superpower ---> Focus Blast
Giga Drain ---> Energy Ball
 

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