"Rising Kyurem" [OU Hail Team]

[TaBuu]

Hey guys! The TaBuu here with my first RMT. Since it is my first time, excuse any errors that I make and kindly point it out in the comments section below ^^.

Why Kyurem?
To be honest, I justed wanted to make an RMT around some underrated Pokemon out there and it was tough. But I'm involved in this amazing group known as SCO (Smogon Creators Organization) and I was able to select Kyurem. Why not Kyurem-B you ask? Well Kyurem gets a higher SpA stat by a margin and also has a stronger Blizzard it can spam. All in all, this was a tough challenge but I'm satisfied with the results.
Plus. Kyurem just looks cooler.

How does this Team function?
There are several key factors with this team and several goals that must be accomplished in order for a win to be secured:

• Keep Hail Up
• Remove Steel Types
• No Stealth Rocks
• Blow Open Holes
• Kyurem Sweep

It's a little difficult at times but if you remember these key factors during the battle and implement it into your battle strategy, a win is sure to come by!

Team Overview Please!

**********************************************

B-B-Break it Down!

TheTaBuu (Kyurem) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Blizzard
- Draco Meteor
- Earth Power or Focus Blast
- Dragon Pulse or Focus Blast

Here it is! The star of the team, Scarfed Kyurem. Anyways, it's pretty self explanatory. Blizzard is the key move in the set, as it is Kyurem's only serious cleaning option. It can sweep, damage, freeze unlucky opponents, has STAB and cures cancer. Abuse it. No stat drops, perfect accuracy in Hail, STAB and high base power make for a great late-game sweep move. Draco Meteor is rarely used but it is great for simply punching things a little harder than Blizzard can. Earth Power is sadly, not all that great. It's weak and it annoys me when it cannot kill Volcarona. Focus Blast becomes a viable alternative ; however, be ready to receive some unlucky misses thanks to its low accuracy. Dragon Pulse is the last move and just like Earth Power, it isn't all too powerful. However thanks to STAB, it is a better alternative sweep move compared to Earth Power. Regardless of these shortcomings, Kyurem has been able to net me so many wins! Since Kyurem can outspeed the entire unboosted metagame, if there remaining Scarfer cannot touch me, Kyurem wins! Kyurem is seriously a threat late-game as it can clean quite well with Blizzard.

Frosty (Abomasnow) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Snow Warning
EVs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Ice Shard
- Wood Hammer
- Protect
- Leech Seed

All Hail the Hail Inducer, Abomasnow! This set earns its merit over Expert Belted Mix Abomasnow because of Leech Seed. With Leech Seed it allows me to wear down opposing Ninetales and weather starters, and also it can allow my other teammates to negate the Hail damage. Once again, this is a standard set so not much can be said. Wood Hammer can be replaced with Earthquake at the price of losing out on the ability to smash Politoed and bulky Water-Types. Earthquake has its merit of crippling a Ninetales switch-in but the price of losing STAB Wood Hammer isn't really worth it. Ice Shard is a great move, as it can spell W-I-N against things such as weakened Scarfed Garchomps. Protect is great for racking damage and scouting what the opponent will do.

iZone (Magnezone) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Magnet Pull
EVs: 84 Spd / 172 HP / 252 SAtk
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SAtk / 30 Spd
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt

100 Gigabytes of pure fun. This thing can seriously shock up some teams with its electrifying STAB. It's an absolute turn on! *Stupid Jokes end here*. Magnezone is a crucial member for the team. It is the only Steel Type Pokemon and the only real Steel Type Killer of the team as well. This team revolves hugely around the absence of opposing Steel Type Pokemon as they can pose a threat to the team. Magnezone is also a great pressure Pokemon as it is always forcing the opponents to carefully use and quickly withdraw their Steel Type Pokemon. Magnezone is also a great match-up against Politoed because an OHKO is everywhere with Specs, STAB Thunderbolt. Volt Switch and Thunderbolt are similar in typing but function differently. Volt Switch attempts to damage and gain momentum. Thunderbolt should only be used to seriously cripple or outright KO something. Hidden Power Fire is a must as it is the only option for KOing Steel Types. Flash Cannon is STAB and allows Magenzone to hack through various Pokemon such as Mamoswine.

F_ckHazard (Tentacruel) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 Spd
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rapid Spin
- Toxic
- Scald
- Protect

This thing is so hideous that opposing Pokemon can't even set-up their hazards. I mean just look at it! Honestly speaking though, Tentacruel finds itself in a shaky position. Tentacruel isn't useless but never really finds itself in the MVP position much. A good majority of the team, I find myself not even touching Rapid Spin on Tentacruel. The pressure from Kyurem, Magnezone and Latios is usually more than enough to prevent Stealth Rocks and Spikes from being set down. Ironically, Tentacruel finds itself just tanking Fighting Type moves and sitting there until something dangerous walks in. Tentacruel is my most dispensable here, and I'm wondering if Starmie will be a better alternative.
Regarding the set, it's really standard. It's a bit more Stall Oriented with Toxic and Protect but whatever. Other than tanking Close Combats, absorbing Toxic Spikes and occasionally spinning itself in circles, it does nothing else really...

Trash You (Latios) (M) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Surf
- Psyshock
- Trick

Kyurem may be the center and star of the team, but Specs Latios is the motherf_cking MVP of this entire team. Specs Draco is a huge threat to any Pokemon. With weakened Steels or none at all, the opposing team will lose something guarenteed. Draco Meteor is a great option to use against opposing weathers as it can either KO the inducer or one of its abusers. Rarely do I ever click anything else. TBH, if you're a bit ballsy, go on Pokemon Showdown and just have Draco Meteor in a slot. Surf, Psyshock and Trick might be used once every 15 years but the hell with it. LOL, I'm so sorry for this little description but in all honesty, Specs Latios doesn't require any explanations. Just remember that Magnezone is Latios' best friend. And no. Latias is not a viable alternative at all.

Survivor (Landorus-Therian) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 200 HP / 64 Atk / 244 Def
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Superpower

Eye of the Tiggggeeeeerrrrrrr....and that is how Landy-T got his name.
Landorus-T has to be one of my favorite Pokemons. It's strong, bulky and has utility. Stealth Rock is important because it can stop certain threats to my team such as Volcarona and Dragonite. U-Turn is for momentum and scouting purposes. Earthquake will nail anything that doesn't fly or float while Superpower will kill a lot of things except for Casper and friends.
Landorus-T is also my answer to Terrakion a serious problem to any member on my team ... except for Latios maybe. Once again, this is a very standard set and therefore is self-explanatory. However one word of advice. If Landorus-T cannot KO the opposing threat it's probably in your best interest not to risk losing Landorus-T. Without Landorus-T this team will seriously crumble faster than the Twin Towers and you can pretty much kiss any chance of winning Good-Bye. Landorus-T is the glue of the team so its important to preserve him...I mean, his name is Survivor.

What Threatens this Team?
To be honest, I'm not that great at identifying threats LOL. This is where you guys will come in to help me! Please look through this team, maybe test it and make sure to identify key threats, so this team can grow and become better!

Shout-Outs!

• My favorite group, SCO! I love all you guys, and I know I couldn't have made this without your support!
• Gary 2346, for giving advice on how to use Kyurem correctly. This man's like my older brother and he seriously knows how to battle.
• Halcyon of Light, for battling my team and just being a pal!
• Don Honchkrorleone. This guy is just so funny, has the best accent and actually gave me some viable inputs for the team. Thanks!
• FalseSense, for leading out such a great group!
• You guys, for taking the time to read this and rate my first RMT ever!

Import/Export

Hide

TheTaBuu (Kyurem) @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Pressure
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Blizzard
- Draco Meteor
- Earth Power
- Dragon Pulse

Frosty (Abomasnow) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Snow Warning
EVs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Ice Shard
- Wood Hammer
- Protect
- Leech Seed

iZone (Magnezone) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Magnet Pull
EVs: 84 Spd / 172 HP / 252 SAtk
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SAtk / 30 Spd
- Volt Switch
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt

F_ckHazard (Tentacruel) @ Black Sludge
Trait: Rain Dish
EVs: 252 HP / 236 Def / 20 Spd
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rapid Spin
- Toxic
- Scald
- Protect

Survivor (Landorus-Therian) (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Intimidate
EVs: 200 HP / 64 Atk / 244 Def
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Superpower

Trash You (Latios) (M) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 SDef
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Surf
- Psyshock
- Trick

Make sure to Rate, Comment and Luv Disk it if you liked it!

 

[Gary]

Nice team Tabuu! I'm happy to see another player actually using Kyurem! It's such an underrated threat, and in hail it turns into a killing machine. I find it quite interesting that you're trying out the Scarf set, as I've never seen anyone use that before. I definitely wouldn't change that!

Alright, looking at the team as a whole, I've noticed that it's very solid, and you seem to have an answer to most of the common threats out there. Although the pink blobs can wall the majority of your team, I like how you opted on running Superpower on Landorus-T to surprise them. There are a few things that I feel you could probably change for the better though. First off, I would run Focus Blast over Dragon Pulse on Kyurem. Although Dragon Pulse is a great move to have on the Specs set for a reliable Dragon-type STAB outside of Draco Meteor, it's quite weak on the Scarf sets, and it has redundant coverage with the rest of Kyurem's moves. Focus Blast + Earth Power + Blizzard hits everything that Dragon Pulse would hit, and it gives Kyurem amazing coverage to hit pretty much everything in the metagame for neutral damage. Focus Blast is a guarantee KO on Tyranitar, and deals huge damage to Ferrothorn and Balloon Heatran.

Next off, I would think about replacing Latios with Life Orb Latias. As of now, Sun teams are a huge problem to this team, and you have no reliable switch-in to most sun boosted attacks. Latias is incredibly bulky, and with a bit of HP investment, Latias can not only wall, but also hit hard. It can switch-in on Fighting-type attacks, Fire Blasts, Hydro Pumps, you name it. Besides, Specs Latios is a bit redundant on your team seeing as you already have Magnezone who carries Specs. Although you may miss the drop in power, you'll appreciate the bulk and the defensive/offensive pressure that Latias puts on a lot of teams. As of now, the only defensive pressure you have is Landorus and Tentacruel, the latter not really being a reliable check to anything.

Anyways, test out these changes for me, and see how you like it. Hope you enjoy! Good team.

Latias

Latias @ Life Orb
Trait: Levitate
EVs: 72 HP / 184 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Surf
- Psyshock
- Recover

tl;dr

Dragon Pulse ----> Focus Blast

Specs Latios ----> Life Orb Latias

 

[Jukain]

Cool team man, so props. At first glance this team appeared to be incredibly solid, but I am noticing one issue: you can't break past walls. Your team has literally no viable method of breaking down walls. Any good defensive core can give your team hell. I actually find Latios to be simply the wrong secondary Dragon-type for this team. Draco Meteor and its Speed are its only selling points. While I don't disregard them, I find Volcarona a much better choice for your team. This might seem an odd choice, so I'll explain. Your team needs a powerful Pokemon that gives stall teams a hard time. Volcarona epitomizes that due to the fact that you have spin support. It can dismantle common Celebi + Water-type cores. It destroys Politoed and Tyranitar, which you desperately need removed. All the while, it retains the ability to check Breloom and sun -- set up on them even. If Volcarona doesn't complete the job, then you have Kyurem to clean up. I honestly can't find a better fit for your team.

To be honest, I think this team could use some Toxic Spikes over Toxic on Tentacruel. This isn't something I would normally recommend, but your team needs a better way of breaking down the blobs, which Toxic doesn't really accomplish thanks to Natural Cure. Toxic doesn't really do anything. It might do better on a team with time to send in Tentacruel and Toxic stall, but with such an offensive team you can't worry about that. I'd also recommend Hidden Power [Electric] over Protect so that Tentacruel can actually hit the Keldeo it's supposed to check. Protect doesn't provide much on a hail team due to the fact hail cancels out Leftovers recovery.

tl;dr

- Latios -> Volcarona

- Toxic / Protect -> Toxic Spikes / Hidden Power [Electric] on Tentacruel

Volcarona

Volcarona @ Leftovers
Trait: Flame Body
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Quiver Dance
- Fire Blast
- Bug Buzz
- Giga Drain

Notes: This is just standard offensive Volcarona. If you prefer, you can run Fiery Dance over Fire Blast for its perfect accuracy, but to me more power is worth the accuracy drop so I'd always pick the latter.

Good luck!

 

[TaBuu]

Thanks so much for your rates guys! I'll definitely go and try it out!
Latios will be sorely missed but on second though LO Latias sounds more promising.
Volcarona is an interesting addition I must admit ... But I was missing some sort of Pokemon to set-up and sweep once the opposing team was weakened so Volcarona will be tested as well!