Other Metagames Tenta Webs (AG) (Peak 2034, #1)

[Tic-Tac-Toe Guru]

This team has been a staple of mine for over a year and a half and has served me quite well. I built the first version of this team back in early 2017 in a meta where offense and sticky web ran wild (and Marshadow wasn’t around to ruin the serenity of it). Webs offense was fairly common back then on the ladder, so I figured why not put a rapid spinner on one of my own? That’s where Tentacruel came in, and has worked out brilliantly for me; not only was it able to repel hazards on my side, it was also a hazard setter of its own with Toxic Spikes as well as a thorn in the side of Baton Pass teams due to Haze. Also, since Dusk Mane Necrozma hadn’t been invented yet, a Calm Mind Arceus-Steel was in its place. The team did me very well, peaking at #1 upon defeating the great F6Tornado.

Once Marshadow came into the mix, the team’s success came to a halt; the speed and type matchup against my team proved too much when I couldn’t keep my hazards up. I ended up finding a solution that both gave me Steel coverage and the ability to outspeed Marshadow – Dusk Mane Necrozma with Ultranecrozmium Z. This adjustment improved the team significantly and vaulted me to new heights, including my first eclipse of the 2000 ELO threshold.

As I am typing this, I am sitting at #5 using an alt which exclusively uses this team.

Shuckle @ Mental Herb
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sticky Web
- Stealth Rock
- Infestation
- Encore​

Shuckle is the normal lead for the team and is used to set up both Sticky Web and Stealth Rock. Infestation is a very useful move for dealing residual damage and trapping support mons. It pairs very well with encore, which I can use to manipulate support Pokémon by trapping them into Defog or a move that allows me a safe switch-in in order to start dealing damage. By running max HP and Defense, I can safely take one Sunsteel Strike from Dusk Mane Necrozma. I’ve seen the Babiri Berry variants which allow it to take a Searing Sunraze Smash, but I still prefer Mental Herb as my hold item of choice so that I can’t get taunted immediately by a lead Deoxys-Speed or maybe even Yveltal.

Tentacruel @ Focus Sash
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rapid Spin
- Toxic Spikes
- Scald
- Haze ​

Tentacruel is the standout Pokémon of the team. Clear Body allows it to evade the speed drop from opposing webs, giving it an easier time to Rapid Spin. Focus Sash allows it to take a hit from setup sweepers and haze the boosts away; this helps especially versus Smeargle spam and Baton Pass. Scald is pretty much an offensive option in case of a Taunt and can also be used to try and inflict burns. Toxic Spikes is an underrated entry hazard that helps out a lot, especially against bulkier balance teams.

Rayquaza-Mega @ Life Orb
Ability: Delta Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Ascent
- Extreme Speed
- Earthquake ​

Mega Rayquaza is obviously one of the best Pokémon in the game; it’s attacking capabilities are near unmatched. The Dragon Ascent/Extreme Speed/Earthquake combination is very potent at taking out a lot of Pokémon, especially when boosted. I chose Dragon Dance over Swords Dance for a couple reasons: I don’t have a taunt user, so if I do get my hazards removed, the extra speed boost comes in great handy, and I hate speed ties with other Rayquazas, so the extra speed helps out in those situations as well.

Kyogre-Primal @ Blue Orb
Ability: Primordial Sea
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Water Spout
- Thunder
- Ice Beam
- Origin Pulse​

I don’t get why more people don’t use Primal Kyogre on webs teams; Water Spout in the rain is absolutely destructive and one-shots most support mons. This Pokémon is an amazing partner to all the physical sweepers this team has, as it can deal with physically bulky Arceus forms relatively easily with Water Spout or Origin Pulse. It can also serve as a means to deal with Yveltal, since it’s naturally bulky on the special side and has two moves that hit it for super-effective damage.

Arceus-Ghost @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Shadow Force
- Extreme Speed
- Stone Edge ​

Arceus-Ghost is a quintessential webs teammate; a +2 Shadow Force or Never-Ending Nightmare hits insanely hard to pretty much anything it hits. I also decided to forego Brick Break due to the fact that Extreme Killer Arceus isn’t all that common anymore. This prompted me to replace it with Stone Edge to better hit Yveltal specifically but also to hit Ho-oh without having to waste my Z-move on it.
Some calcs:
+2 252 Atk Arceus-Ghost Stone Edge vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Yveltal: 428-504 (108.9 - 128.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252 Atk Arceus-Ghost Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Yveltal: 306-362 (67.1 - 79.3%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
+0 252 Atk Arceus-Ghost Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Ho-Oh: 336-396 (80.7 - 95.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Note how, even though I can’t reliably one-shot a defensive Yveltal at +2, I can easily revenge kill after. As for Ho-oh, I likely either have a Swords Dance up or Ho-oh already has some sort of damage on it when it comes in, so Stone Edge can usually clean house in that situation. I run the risk of missing, of course, but Stone Edge has come in pretty good use, much moreso than Brick Break ever did post-Marsh.

Necrozma-Dusk-Mane @ Ultranecrozium Z
Ability: Prism Armor
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Photon Geyser
- Sunsteel Strike
- X-Scissor​

Dusk Mane Necrozma is an extremely good Pokémon; I don’t think anybody can argue with that. The fact that it can go from Psychic-Steel to Psychic-Dragon with the push of a button is pretty spectacular. I can stay in Dusk Mane forme when I want to better deal with Pokémon such as Arceus-Fairy and Xerneas or want to provide myself with better bulk, or I can Ultra Burst when I need to outspeed faster Pokémon such as Marshadow or Rayquaza. Having a second option for a Z-move is pretty handy too; even if I don’t use Light That Burns The Sky as much as I do Never-Ending Nightmare, having that option at the ready if need be is very nice. I had Earthquake on this thing over X-Scissor for the longest time, but Arceus-Dark was giving me too many issues, so I made the switch, and it hasn’t been a hinderance as I had feared it might be. While it may not one-shot an Arceus-Dark at +2 most of the time, the roll is usually around 80% for bulkier variants, and that give me plenty of room to revenge kill. X-Scissor is also useful against other Ultra Necrozmas, since I normally can’t one-shot them with a Sunsteel Strike.

​

Mega Sableye is easily the best Magic Bouncer in the game, and it can be a real pain when the goal of the team is to set up hazards and sweep. Kyogre can deal with it 1-on-1, but when used on a stall team or when partnered with Ferrothorn or Chansey or Blissey, it can be real trouble.

Yveltal in general is a problem Pokémon for this team due to its typing alone; Dark hits 2 of my Pokémon for super-effective damage, and its Flying typing means it is immune to webs. The offensive variant can be handled by Mega Rayquaza and Kyogre 1-v-1, but it isn’t fun to switch into. The defensive variant, especially a defogging one, is a pain, since Kyogre is really the only Pokémon to deal with it effectively. It can, a lot of the time, but it most surely isn’t a fun time.

Arceus-Dark is still a bit of a problem Pokemon for this team; Kyogre is the only thing that deals with it comfortably, but if it’s paired with Primal Groudon or Ferrothorn, it can be a hard pill to swallow. A Calm Mind set can be especially frustrating if I can’t keep webs on the field. Putting X-Scissor on Necrozma gives me a bit of an easier time dealing with it, but it’s by no means a complete fix to this problem.

Yeah, this thing scares me… a lot. Even if I can get Tentacruel in to Rapid Spin opposing webs away, it can’t stop Vivillon at all. I have to be extremely precarious when facing Vivillon webs so that I don’t fall into the trap of this Demonic Butterfly of Doom.

Replays

http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-832538701 (vs Zenithial)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-766454638 (vs Wallik)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-765813438 (vs MDB)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-764603764 (vs Jaytin)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-731015464 (vs Lavaclaw)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-828061664 (vs LitheBreeze)
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-671622764 (vs bdov)
(I swear I have other better replays too but I’ve been unable to find them; for instance, I have one where I beat BaconEatinAssassin’s stall.)

Importable

Shuckle @ Mental Herb
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sticky Web
- Stealth Rock
- Infestation
- Encore

Tentacruel @ Focus Sash
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rapid Spin
- Toxic Spikes
- Scald
- Haze

Rayquaza-Mega @ Life Orb
Ability: Delta Stream
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Ascent
- Extreme Speed
- Earthquake

Kyogre-Primal @ Blue Orb
Ability: Primordial Sea
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Water Spout
- Thunder
- Ice Beam
- Origin Pulse

Arceus-Ghost @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Multitype
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Shadow Force
- Extreme Speed
- Stone Edge

Necrozma-Dusk-Mane @ Ultranecrozium Z
Ability: Prism Armor
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Photon Geyser
- Substitute
- X-Scissor

Well I hope you guys enjoyed this. Please leave constructive criticism if any, and please don’t bash the shit out of me like how I feel certain people will do. Also, if the criticism involves replacing Tentacruel, I won’t listen to it, as Tentacruel is the novelty behind this team and I love it.

 

[Kate]

Ayyyyy, Thanks for putting me in (even if it's one of those times I lose to this team.)
Might I suggest making Ultra special? Not only does this allow, at plus 1, for you to take a darkceus judgment, but dpulse 2HKO's the defensive variant. This also eases the matchup vs celesteela, which walls you, bar pogre, if it's the sub set. Not only that, but it alleviates the pressure that zygarde can do to your team and gives you a means to immediately OHKO opposing mray's. As you said, this team can struggle with ferrothorn plus darkceus. Bluffing physical can allow for you to break through the core. Making this change doesn't really downgrade your MU's vs anything, except stall (But let's face it, most of the time you lose vs stall anyway).

Also, if we're being honest, stone edge is a terrible option for you since you'll miss it half the time.


Solid team, works well vs. common playstyle's. Faced it many a times and won around half of them, so I can attest to this being a consistently good team.

Not gonna knock you on tenta, just glad you finally RMT'ed it. (Now actually build a new, good team for once.)

 

[Tic-Tac-Toe Guru]

Ayyyyy, Thanks for putting me in (even if it's one of those times I lose to this team.)
Might I suggest making Ultra special? Not only does this allow, at plus 1, for you to take a darkceus judgment, but dpulse 2HKO's the defensive variant. This also eases the matchup vs celesteela, which walls you, bar pogre, if it's the sub set. Not only that, but it alleviates the pressure that zygarde can do to your team and gives you a means to immediately OHKO opposing mray's. As you said, this team can struggle with ferrothorn plus darkceus. Bluffing physical can allow for you to break through the core. Making this change doesn't really downgrade your MU's vs anything, except stall (But let's face it, most of the time you lose vs stall anyway).

Also, if we're being honest, stone edge is a terrible option for you since you'll miss it half the time.


Solid team, works well vs. common playstyle's. Faced it many a times and won around half of them, so I can attest to this being a consistently good team.

Not gonna knock you on tenta, just glad you finally RMT'ed it. (Now actually build a new, good team for once.)

I can't take out fairies as easily otherwise; trust me, I've considered the special variant. Without that, fairyceus and xerneas immediately become big problems.

Also, I've tried building other teams, but they all suck, and I suck, so it isn't worth it.

 

[Tic-Tac-Toe Guru]

Also I've recently replaced Sunsteel Strike with Substitute on Necrozma to better deal with Smeargle and Vivillon. It has not proved to be a major hindrance thus far and I plan to keep this edit.

Edit (3/24/19): This edit is now in the importable.