Marowak | Leavanny | Dusknoir | Ninetales | Politoed | Cryogonal
Introduction
Yo dawg I heard you liked out-speeding, so I put a move that (almost) guarantees out-speeding on your Pokémon the out-speeds so you can out-speed while out-speeding.
Essentially the premise of the team. I wanted to use Marowak, who is a slow Pokémon, so I paired it with a fast Sticky Web setter to try and build an offensive/hyper offensive team that benefits from having slower opponents so they can more easily harass, sweep, and clean up.
The Team
Mamawak (Marowak) (F) @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Bonemerang
- Knock Off
- Double-Edge
- Substitute
Marowak, the one who started it all. Marowak's a heavy hitter; with the Thick Club, its base attack is doubled to an insane 160, and it has access to Bonemerang, giving it a move that hits twice for a total of 100 BP, breaking through substitutes and KOing pretty much anything weak to ground along with lots of Pokémon who take it neutrally but aren't physically tough. Knock Off gets a boost from the ubiquity of items and can mess up switch-ins while Double Edge hits ground resisters at no penalty thanks to Rock Head. In a good match, Marowak can switch in and threaten its opponent, forcing it to switch out and letting it get a Substitute up, enabling it to take a free hit. Unfortunately, Marowak is useless if its Club is knocked off, as its Attack returns to a much less impressive Base 80, and without Sticky Web on the field it can't out-speed most of its targets.
Ladybug (Leavanny) (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Sticky Web
- Leaf Storm
- Knock Off
- Electroweb
Fully invested, Leavanny out-speeds most other lead hazard setters, such as Golem or Gigalith, and the Focus Sash guarantees that it gets Sticky Web up - unless it's Prankster Taunted, in which case Leavanny can't do much. When faced with opposing leads such as Gigalith or Golem, however, Leavanny is often able to do more offensive damage then its counterpart, Ariados, using Leaf Storm to KO Rock types or dent opponents, with Knock Off annoying or crippling others. As a suicide lead, Leavanny serves its role; unfortunately, should Sticky Web be Rapid Spun or Defogged away, the game quickly turns into a 5 on 6 without much to show for it.
Of Smogon Past (Dusknoir) @ Spell Tag
Ability: Frisk
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Earthquake
- Focus Punch
- Will-O-Wisp
It's imperative that Sticky Web stay on the field for Marowak's sake, so Dusknoir acts as a Spin Blocker. Though it's less bulky than Eviolite Dusclops, it can still take hits (not super effective ones, though), and it has more offensive presence with Shadow Sneak, which can revenge kill weakened foes for an effective clean up in the endgame. Will-O-Wisp cripples physical attackers in the early game, and Earthquake provides coverage. When Sticky Web is up, Dusknoir can out-speed foes and use Earthquake to land powerful hits. There's a bit of a story behind Focus Punch; awhile ago, there was a Retaliate Slaking on the ladder, and I was trounced by that same team twice, after which I added Dusknoir to my roster and finally defeated that team through Focus Punching the loafing Slaking. I acknowledge, however, that Focus Punch is a highly situational move, and it doesn't always deal enough damage even when predicted correctly.
Silver Fox (Ninetales) (M) @ Passho Berry
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Nasty Plot
- Fire Blast
- Energy Ball
- Dark Pulse
Unfortunately for Marowak, Sticky Web can still be eliminated through Defog, and Flying types or Levitate users don't even care about Sticky Web. To alleviate that, Ninetales is a fast teammate that can use its powerful attacks and high base Special Attack to revenge kill or set up a sweep. Fire Blast is a powerful STAB while Energy Ball and Dark Pulse provide coverage. The Passho Berry keeps Ninetales from being Revenge Killed itself through Aqua Jet, though it's still a bit frail, and it doesn't like to be walled, as that costs momentum.
Life Finds a Way (Politoed) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpA
Modest Nature
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Electric]
- Encore
Even with the Passho Berry, Ninetales is vulnerable to Water type attacks if it can't OHKO the opponent. With Water Absorb, Politoed is able to absorb such attacks. As perhaps the least offensive member of the team, Politoed is more of a pivot, forcing a switch with Encore or otherwise walling the opponent. Leftovers gives it much needed passive recovery, Scald has a burn chance, and Ice Beam and HP Electric provide coverage. Unfortunately, even fully invested, Politoed's attacks have a low BP and don't pack too much of a punch, making only super effective hits meaningful. Additionally, its bulk, while respectable, doesn't stand up to super effective attacks very well.
Primary Crafts (Cryogonal) @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Freeze-Dry
- Rapid Spin
- Recover
- Hidden Power [Fighting]
With such an emphasis on offense, the team has no recovery whatsoever, making hazards a threat. Cryogonal can use Rapid Spin to eliminate hazards without removing Sticky Web, and Levitate makes it immune to Spikes and Toxic Spikes. Unfortunately, being weak to Stealth Rocks is a problem, even with Recover, and its tremendous physical frailty makes it easy to threaten. Freeze-Dry is the STAB move of choice, as it hits Water types as well, and HP Fighting provides coverage on Rock and Steel types, as well as OHKOing Pawniard.
Overview
The strategy is straightforward: have Leavanny set up Sticky Web, use its moves until its KO'd, and send in the necessary Pokémon to attack, attack, attack. Dusknoir goes in to stop Rapid Spin, and Cryogonal gets rid of hazards on my side of the field. If Marowak can get a Substitute up, a sweep is likely, and same is true if Ninetales gets a free Nasty Plot.
Concerns
The straightforwardness of the team opens it up to exploitation, unfortunately, as Leavanny is often played around, as its has no real answer to Defog leads outside of the low-power Electroweb, and without Sticky Web up, Marowak and Dusknoir are far less potent.
Stealth Rock is difficult to approach, as it weakens Ninetales too much. Cryogonal is also threatened by many Stealth Rock setters due to its Rock and Steel weaknesses and physical frailty.
Scarf Raichu isn't slower than Marowak even after Sticky Web, and HP Ice is a OHKO. After that, Raichu can typically sweep the team if Ninetales doesn't land a OHKO in return. The same can be said of any super-fast Pokémon with psuedo BoltBeam coverage, such as Electrode.
Pawniard is bothersome because of the combination of Defiant and Sucker Punch, as it's just boosted after being hit with Sticky Web since its priority ignores speed. Dusknoir's Will-O-Wisp helps, but if Pawniard goes for another move instead of Sucker Punch, Dusknoir can be weakened quite a bit.
Furfrou. Oh my gosh, why can't I power through Furfrou? Its physical bulk makes it nearly impossible for either Marowak or Dusknoir to punch through, especially after Cotton Guard, and Cryogonal's HP Fighting does little better. Ninetales can KO after a few hits, but it's too frail to take Furfrou's attacks. Burning with Will-O-Wisp or Scald is the only real hope of beating a defensive Furfrou, but it it's a set with Rest, it can be game over if Ninetales has been KO'd already. Other physical walls can also pose a similar problem.
Knock Off messes up Marowak a lot, and it weakens Dusknoir's Shadow Sneak significantly. Losing passive recovery hurts Cryogonal and Politoed, and Ninetales dislikes the loss of protection. There's not really anyone to absorb the move.
Conclusion
Sticky Web enables unlikely Pokémon to sweep, but the team is vulnerable to astoundingly fast BoltBeam Pokémon, hazards, and some defensive walls. I'd like to retain the offensive slant of the team, but having an answer to some of these threats would be helpful. Thank you for taking the time to read, and I hope to be able to learn more about this tier's metagame!
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