Hey all, with this RMT I want to showcase what might possibly be my last RMT here, although hopefully isnt the end of my journey here altogether. This team is probably one of my most enjoyable teams that I’ve made, and while it probably isnt my most memorable I’d like to think its my best and most consistent this generation. I got the idea and rough skeleton for this team from hidin ages ago, and without that i definitely would not have even started on this, so huge thanks to him <3. This team in my opinion best encapsulates the current meta, as well as showcases the diversity in terms of sets and ’mons that work in the tier. When picking an album with to go with this team, I thought of all the lovely people I have met thus far on this site, as well as the close friendships I have made, so this one is for all my dogs. Also because i, hoping this is going to be AOTY material inshallah.
And with that, lets get into the team!
Introduction
This team was built around the core of Choice Specs Tapu Lele + Pursuit Mega Tyranitar wearing down their shared checks (Steels), as well as taking advantage of each others checks in return (Fightings for MTar, and Special walls for Lele). The general idea of the team is very simple, get Tapu Lele in as many times as possible and click your STABs, proceed to win!. Toxapex + Great Tusk + AV Torn T is the main defensive core, with a strong Regen Core and hazard control, Scarf Ghold is the speed control and the cleaner, as well as lures in pesky Kingambits or ruins setup sweepers and walls with a Trick. 90% of the time the Tera is Tapu Lele or Gholdengo, and the other 20% are the other 3 Pokemon. You’ll rarely ever use the defensive Tera since the things they need it for are just emergencies or very niche MUs, as well as the immense value you’ll get from Tera-ing your main breaker / cleaner.
The Team
DRIZZY DRAKE (Tapu Lele) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Psyshock / Focus Blast
The star of the team, Choice Specs Tapu Lele is probably my second favourite breaker in the tier behind Dragapult, and with Tera Fairy it has almost no real defensive counterplay. With no / low SpD invest, even bulky Steels take upwards of 40% post Tera, and every time it comes in most likely something is being sacked. Set overall is standard, Tera Fairy in my opinion is miles better than Tera Psychic with Kingambit in the tier, making Moonblast much more spammable. I think Psyshock and Focus Blast are both solid 4th options on it, but I prefer Psyshock for KO on AV Torn T, but Focus Blast is fine if you are that worried about Heatran.
6 GOD (Tyranitar-Mega) @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Rock
EVs: 164 HP / 252 Atk / 92 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Crunch
- Ice Punch / Superpower
- Pursuit
Mega Tyranitar is the Yin to Tapu Lele’s Yang in this team, being a check to the Ghosts that annoy the latter and Pursuiting them, forcing a Tera in the case of Gholdego or removing them outright. It does the same to special walls like Heatran, AV Tornadus T and Slowking Galar, allowing Tapu Lele to freely spam Moonblast. MTar sports a standard Pursuit set with a minor difference from the norm, which is having Ice Punch over stone edge to instead lure and KO Grounds like Lando T, Gliscor, and Garchomp, as well as heavily chip Great Tusk on the switch in. Superpower is also an option that allows it to lure and wear down or KO Ferrothorn and Kingambit. Everything else is standard on it, its also the teams Rocker, which means it lures in Tusk, which a well timed Lele double can take advantage of well.
CHAMPAGNE PAPI (Gholdengo) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Good as Gold
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 132 HP / 136 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Make It Rain
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
- Trick
Choice Scarf Gholdengo as previously mentioned is the speed control and cleaner of the team, however with Tera in some matchups it can be a scary breaker as well, especailly if it manages to lure and KO Kingambit with a well-timed Focus Blast. This Gholdengo set is my favourite and probably one of the things I will miss most if Ghold gets banned. This set compresses Gholdengos amazimg defensive utility in being a pivot for Psychics, Fairys, and Fightings not named Mega Lopunny, while still being annoying offensively. The spread allows it to outspeed Dragapult, take 2 Choice Specs Tapu Lele Psyshocks, with the rest dumped into SpA. I really recommend everyone try out this set, its criminally underrated as a glue, and while it wont be the broken wincon the Nasty Plot set is, it sure is really solid.
MR OVO (Toxapex) @ Eject Button
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 48 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Scald
- Haze
- Toxic
Eject Button Toxapex is in my opinion the best Toxapex set on anything that isnt fat, just because of the combined offensive and defensive utility it provides. Specifically for this team, it helps Mega Tyranitar in checking things like non DD Dragapult by giving it a free switch in as they U-Turn or even Draco Meteor, which it can eat if well and bring in Mega Tyranitar for a free Pursuit Trap, preventing the latter for being worn down. On the other hand, bringing in Specs Tapu Lele for free on things like Zamazenta, opposing Toxapex Scald, Defensive Landorus Earthquake and so on is key to enabling the core to work well, and is defenitely something that is constantly taken advantage of with this team if you arent using it to trap something. The set overall is standard, with Tera Dragon for a nice neutral type alongside an Electric, Fire, and Water resist if encountering stuff like Nasty Plot Rotom Wash which can catch you off guard, or getting a Toxic off on Psychic Volcarona. EVs maximise physical bulk while surviving 2 Mega Charizard Y Scorching Sands, which is important for Mons like MLop, the Rain breakers, even stuff like Kingambit post button, as no item means Knock Off becomes incredibly weak, so you can Haze it, fish for Scald burns, and even Toxic it if Tera-ed.
CANADA (Tornadus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 248 HP / 44 SpD / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Heat Wave
Assault Vest Tornadus completes the Regen core for this team alongside Toxapex, and forms a more solid secondary buffer against speciall attackers like Tapu Lele, Gholdengo, Iron Valiant, and Dragapult, while also checking Ground types like Great Tusk. AV Torn T here is fairly straight forward, since Toxapex isnt something like Boots, it can easily get worn by repeated hits and Spikes, so having a Torn T as a buffer to these threats is really useful. EVs are standard, allowing it to outspeed Iron Valiant with the remainder in SpD to take hits better, and Tera Steel to as a emergency button if things like Tapu Lele or Mega Diancie get out of hand.
THE BOY (Great Tusk) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Headlong Rush
- Close Combat
- Rapid Spin
- Ice Spinner
Last but not least, Great Tusk rounds off the team as the obligatory Ground type and Kingambit check needed on all good teams. Great Tusk here is the standard offensive set with Heavy Duty Boots since getting worn down by Spikes and not being able to spin on TSpikes sure is dire for him. I initially went with Earthquake since it was annoying sometimes in the lategame being forced to switch out since the defense drops put him in range of Gambit or other things if he got massively misplayed prior, but I just couldnt back away after seeing how good the rolls were, especially vs Clefable. Great Tusk is also my hazard control here since I have a Rocker already in Mega Tyranitar, and my Torn T is AV. Overall very obvious choice for a 6th slot, filled up all the niches I needed. Tera Water allows for suprise KOs on Rain breakers if I do get overrun, as well as forcing a trade on things like SD Urshifu RS which can get out of hand.
Threatlist
With Torn T as my Ground immune and no Skarm in sight, and Pex as my water, Offensive Grounds such as Icium Z Tusk and, SD Garchomp and Gliscor, are definitely a hassle to deal with, and require generally good doubles, minimising misplays as much as possible, and proper conservation of Mons. Against teams with these Pokemon, your best bet is breaking early and exerting as much pressure before they can. For example, Gliscor teams are generally bulkier builds that get heavily troubled by Specs Lele + Mega Tar Pursuiting the Ghold, so being proactive with Lele is key in securing this matchup so that SD Gliscor doesnt tear apart the team. In terms of Z Tusk, baiting out the Z is the main part as it becomes much less threatening, especially vs Torn with the Z gone, and it can generally also be messed up with good reads and Teras such as Teraing Ghold to trade some HP for the KO/chip damage. SD Garchomp (and Lando, by extension) are definitely the hardest matchups for this team to face. Luring all these grounds with Ice Punch Mega Tyranitar is also probably the most common out since generally they predict a switch and try to setup / use coverage, and worst case it can eat a hit from their Ground STAB and either KO or chunk them back
This is a mon which on paper looks extremely threatening, but in practice its much more dealable. Mega Tyranitar pretty much always forces a Tera, and early game this Mon isnt much of a nuisance. Depending on how well the opponent / or the user of this team plays however, this can get extremely dire quickly, as if on the backfoot, NP Ghold starts to become really scary. Offensive sets are the main issue since they outspeed and can KO Mega Tyranitar, but Defensive sets as well can still be annoying if they get all the turns wrong or dont play aggressively enough with Lele. Knocking it with Torn T early on, wasting recovers with HWave, as well as making solid doubles with Tusk / Tar are what make this matchup not as bad in practice. Overall an annoying mon to handle but after some games you’ll get used to dealing with it.
This is a mon that you have to dance around your Pokemon with, or hopefully lure early on with a good Tera on Tusk to deal with. Mega Diancie does this with most teams though lol so I dont think its that big of a problem. Generally you can dance around long enough with Ghold / Torn / Pex to win / sweep lategame, but your main piece in this matchup is always going to be Ghold, and if its (even worse) Mega Diancie + Kingambit, you better hope to bluff Defensive and lure it in with a Focus Blast, or get all your turns perfect. Dealable matchup but definitely requires proper doubles and lack of misplays as that can easily cost you.
SD Urshifu RS, or even choiced sets with Future Sight support is incredibly scary for this team, and relies on you keeping Toxapex ever healthy and playing extremely prosctive with Ghold and Tapu Lele. MTar is often just somewhat of a lure to maintain momentum in these matchups, at least until you have gotten a solid upper hand, but if you play the early game well in this matchup then the mid to late game is a breeze. Doing stuff like luring Gambit with Superpower or Focus Blast is often game ending for the Shifu player as Ghold tends to walk over these teams ATP.
Requires careful positioning but nothing too special.
Replays
NDWC W1
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1854686822-nq9je4xui8pegnri2mfu44xszxc4saypw
Led Lele because I didnt expect SpD Ferro here, and thought that outside of Pult or Ferro lead it cleared everything, minor misplay as it revealed SpD, and I got the turns wrong leading to be being on the backfoot as he whipped my Lele double since I didnt think he would riskt Ferro dying to Tusk. He did end up sacking Ferro though, and after that it was just swapping to the right mon as Pex Torn Tusk walled everything, and my Tusk pressured his team a lot as his sole switchin was Lando which is 2hkoed by Spinner. and in the end Lele cleans everything up.
Ladder
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1909145495
Fairly straightforward game, Ghold traded with AV Pex to wear it down so it could be Pursuit trapped by Mega Tar, making spamming Moonblast with Lele much easier. Later on Torn baits a Tera on Tusk to steel and hitting it with Heat Wave, removing one more obstacle for Lele, and eventually game ends in a forfeit when the opponents only way to make progress in NP Hydreigon dies to AV Torn T.
ok im ngl i thought i had more but i realised i probably played those on my random alts, so i shall find and edit them in as well as hopefully see if my friends who have used the team have some good ones i can add LOL
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1854686822-nq9je4xui8pegnri2mfu44xszxc4saypw
Led Lele because I didnt expect SpD Ferro here, and thought that outside of Pult or Ferro lead it cleared everything, minor misplay as it revealed SpD, and I got the turns wrong leading to be being on the backfoot as he whipped my Lele double since I didnt think he would riskt Ferro dying to Tusk. He did end up sacking Ferro though, and after that it was just swapping to the right mon as Pex Torn Tusk walled everything, and my Tusk pressured his team a lot as his sole switchin was Lando which is 2hkoed by Spinner. and in the end Lele cleans everything up.
Ladder
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9nationaldex-1909145495
Fairly straightforward game, Ghold traded with AV Pex to wear it down so it could be Pursuit trapped by Mega Tar, making spamming Moonblast with Lele much easier. Later on Torn baits a Tera on Tusk to steel and hitting it with Heat Wave, removing one more obstacle for Lele, and eventually game ends in a forfeit when the opponents only way to make progress in NP Hydreigon dies to AV Torn T.
ok im ngl i thought i had more but i realised i probably played those on my random alts, so i shall find and edit them in as well as hopefully see if my friends who have used the team have some good ones i can add LOL
thank you to my day ones til the end R8 vstra and my day whatever many who are just as amazing, u know who u are <3
bai
DRIZZY DRAKE (Tapu Lele) @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Psyshock
6 GOD (Tyranitar-Mega) @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Rock
EVs: 164 HP / 252 Atk / 92 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Crunch
- Ice Punch
- Pursuit
CHAMPAGNE PAPI (Gholdengo) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Good as Gold
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 132 HP / 136 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Make It Rain
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
- Trick
MR OVO (Toxapex) @ Eject Button
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 48 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Scald
- Haze
- Toxic
CANADA (Tornadus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 248 HP / 44 SpD / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Heat Wave
THE BOY (Great Tusk) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Headlong Rush
- Close Combat
- Rapid Spin
- Ice Spinner
Ability: Psychic Surge
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Psyshock
6 GOD (Tyranitar-Mega) @ Tyranitarite
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Rock
EVs: 164 HP / 252 Atk / 92 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Crunch
- Ice Punch
- Pursuit
CHAMPAGNE PAPI (Gholdengo) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Good as Gold
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 132 HP / 136 SpA / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Make It Rain
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
- Trick
MR OVO (Toxapex) @ Eject Button
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 248 HP / 212 Def / 48 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Scald
- Haze
- Toxic
CANADA (Tornadus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 248 HP / 44 SpD / 216 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hurricane
- U-turn
- Knock Off
- Heat Wave
THE BOY (Great Tusk) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Headlong Rush
- Close Combat
- Rapid Spin
- Ice Spinner
(please drop your comeback album drake PLEASW i heard the verse on meltdown i know u got it in u aubrey graham i am impatiently waiting)
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