The Fires of Mount Vesuvius

[Equinox]

Introduction​

It all started when a friend of mine showed me a Heatran set, with Eruption. I kind of thought it was useless considering Heatran can only have Eruption whilst having a Quiet nature. Later, he showed me some calcs and I thought to myself, "Holy crap, what is this, I don't even!" So, it grew on me. Andgrewonme Andgrewonme Andgrewonme until I thought up this team, which, since creation, has only been defeated once, and a record of 14 (14-1). I've found the success of this team odd, as it either wins with a higher amount of Pokemon (4 to 5), or, in the end, win with about two to three Pokemon. Either way, I've found quite a bit of success, and I know this team can definitely be improved, so, now, The Fires of Mount Vesuvius!​

[align=center]At A Glance​

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Up Close​

Ninetales (M) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 120 SDef / 136 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Flamethrower
- Will-O-Wisp
- Substitute
- Protect

What's a Sun team without it's Drought user? I needed survivability for my team so A.) I could win weather wars and B.) make sure I could harass as many Pokemon in any way, and Nintetales fulfills both aspects thanks to this set. Flamethrower automatically packs a huge punch the turn you send in Ninetales, which helps Ninetales also not become Taunt bait. Will-O-Wisp is the second move I chose on Ninetales, to cripple fast Ground-types that perhaps won't be paralyzed. Substitute is a definite need on Ninetales, as Substitute eases prediction for Ninetales, letting it burn Tyranitar or others safely as its Substitute is broken. Protect is an amazing move for scouting, whether it's a U-Turn or priority move, as well as stalling out a Burn.

Heatran (M) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 116 HP / 252 SAtk / 140 Spd
Quiet Nature (+SAtk, -Spd)
- Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]

This Heatran set. OhMyRaptorJesus. While I can't freely switch Heatran in as much as I'd like to get Eruption's fullest effects, I can still scare paralyzed Pokemon away, and thanks to this ability, I can either make a huge dent in the opposing Pokemon, or OHKO it with Eruption. I know Eruption works full well, as it OHKOs Latios, as well as Rotom-W, a common counter to Heatran. Flamethrower works pretty well as a secondary attack, in case Heatran is lower on health. Earth Power takes out what Eruption can't; other Heatrans. Without Earth Power, this Heatran could not tough other Heatrans. The last move on the set, Hidden Power [Ice], takes care of Dragons that Eruption might not be able to KO on.

Forretress (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SDef (0 Speed IVs)
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Gyro Ball

With Eruption abuse and hazards abound in this Metagame, I needed a spinner, and not only that, a hazards setter that would enable Eruption to score more than normal KOs, the remedy? Forretress. I went with a special defensive EV spread, as Rain is the most common weather in the game, and I needed something that could handle most of the attacks that come from it. Rapid Spin is a keeper, why? So Spikes/Stealth Rock don't ruin Heatran's Eruption sweep by lowering his health. Stealth Rock is also a must-keep, so Heatran can score OHKOs. Spikes is an interesting option, although just a bonus I use. It helps score KOs even more, but I only use it when I freely can, because Rapid Spin and getting Stealth Rocks up is priority #1. Gyro Ball is the last move on this set, which keeps Forretress from becoming total Taunt bait.

Volbeat (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SDef
Hardy Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Substitute
- Confuse Ray
- Encore

Volbeat...probably one of the weirdest Pokemon one may see, but, thanks to Prankster, Volbeat is now a God send. With an arsenal of support moves, Volbeat can easily cripple and make the opponent switch Pokemon. Thunder Wave is a must on Volbeat so I can score Paralysis on faster, foes, boosted in speed, or Choice Scarf'd, Prankster makes dealing with the foe's Pokemon so much easier. Substitute is an amazing way of scouting my foe, and when used in conjunction with Encore, makes a very hard time for the foe. Confuse Ray keeps the odds of Volbeat's substitute from being broken low, as well as making things easier to spread paralysis by making the opponent switch Pokemon.

Togekiss (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Body Slam
- Roost
- Air Slash
- Flamethrower

Togekiss, what can I say? It paralyzes some of the very common Ground-types in today's metagame thanks to Body Slam. I chose a full 252 HP 252 Speed so it can outspeed the likes of some (most) Gliscor, and Landorus-T and paralyze. Roost is a definite want, as Togekiss is definitely bulky, and as such, is used as a wall of sorts, and all walls need recovery. Air Slash belongs, no needs to be on Togekiss, thanks to the 60% Flinch chance, as well as the fact that this is perhaps the most recognized move of Togekiss's arsenal. Body Slam is something I refuse to replace on Togekiss, seeing as how it's the only way to take care of Ground-types that cannot be paralyzed otherwise. Flamethrower I chose due to the forever going Drought, which is something that is not abused enough on this team, as well as takes out Steel-types who otherwise Togekiss cannot hit.

Chansey (F) @ Eviolite
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spd
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Thunder Wave
- Softboiled
- Seismic Toss
- Counter

The last, and oldest Pokemon on my team, Chansey! She comes in when the likes of other Heatran, other special attackers trying to come in on Forretress and try and stop him. Thunder Wave is used over Toxic, due to the fact that Chansey can also cause switches, and with prediction can easily cripple that predicted Terrakion coming in. Softboiled is used over Wish for instant healing, making sure Chansey can stay alive throughout the match. Counter is a unique option, one that is not used enough, for reasons I don't understand. Thanks to the combined bulk of Chansey's own, as well as Eviolite, Chansey is granted more physical bulk, which Counter can be abused. Thanks to the new mechanics as well, the popular U-Turn on Chansey can turn into a major hit on the Pokemon coming in, resulting in a huge portion of health taken away, or a KO for the opposing team. Seismic Toss is used in the case that Counter cannot be used.

Export:​

Spoiler

Ninetales (M) @ Air Balloon
Trait: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 120 SDef / 136 Spd
Calm Nature (+SDef, -Atk)
- Flamethrower
- Will-O-Wisp
- Substitute
- Protect

Heatran (M) @ Choice Specs
Trait: Flash Fire
EVs: 116 HP / 252 SAtk / 140 Spd
Quiet Nature (+SAtk, -Spd)
- Eruption
- Flamethrower
- Earth Power
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Forretress (F) @ Leftovers
Trait: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SDef
Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spd)
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Spikes
- Gyro Ball

Volbeat (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SDef
Hardy Nature
- Thunder Wave
- Substitute
- Confuse Ray
- Encore

Togekiss (M) @ Leftovers
Trait: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Body Slam
- Roost
- Air Slash
- Flamethrower

Chansey (F) @ Eviolite
Trait: Natural Cure
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spd
Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
- Thunder Wave
- Softboiled
- Seismic Toss
- Counter

Threat List​

Color key:​

- Minor threat (defensive Pokemon, Pokemon that can sometimes be quite a threat; something like Unaware Quagsire, etc.) -
- Medium threat (can take some turns to properly be a threat, can at times be speedy attackers like Latios) -
- Major threat (can easily take my team down, is a bad problem) -
​

Gliscor - He can hastle my team with Substitute, and if I cannot play around with Togekiss/Volbeat, than he can be a pain.​

 

[One Approved]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Fighting-types. They eat you. Terrakion, Conkelderp, and all those stuff are going to set up and run through you. Forretress is the only thing that can stop them, but Gyro Ball doesn't OHKO Conkeldurr, and at +2, Terrakion only needs some residual damage to knock it out.

I'm also confused to what you're supposed to do against rain stall teams. Chansey is the only thing that can take special water-type attacks easily. Jellicent is not going to be a fun match, as it toxics whatever comes in, and nothing you have can really touch it. Your best bet would be to paralyze it with either Volbeat or Chansey, and then attempt to flinch it to death with Togekiss, which probably isn't going to happen bewteen Air Slash's imperfect accuracy, and Jellicent's massive special defense.

Speaking of special defense, Chansey and Blissey. Even sun-boosted Eruption isn't going to 2HKO without nabbing a Flash Fire boost.

I like the creativity of Heatran, although your entire team is based around it. Spreading paralysis and such to set up what appears to be a heatran sweep. In reality, Choice Specs pokemon are normally used to punch holes in your opponent's teams, not run through them for a sweep. Examples include Latios, Hydreigon, and Politoed. None of these pokemon sweep through entire teams when they're holding choice specs. They significanly weaken teams to make it easier for something else to sweep. I would suggest using some kind of special sweeper behind Heatran so you can have a more consistant sweeper.

Nasty Plot Togekiss might be a legitamate option to look at. Nasty Plot/Air Slash/Flamethrower/Roost can be very threatening. Otherwise Volcarona and Latios are perfectly acceptable options. Heck, even Alakazam might be a Pokémon to look at, as it can use Psyshock to get around CHansey and Blissey.

I think Volbeat is hindering you more than helping you. Its main niche is its abilitiy to Baton Pass an immediate +3 special attack with Tail Glow. Spreading paralysis can be done by a handful of Pokémon, like Jirachi, Chansey, Togekiss, etc. I think if you replaced Volbeat with whatever special sweeper you decide on, you'd be better off.

I'll add in other stuff later i have to go to class. But I'm just noticing that Dragonite is also going to be extremely problamatic for you, so adding something like Mamoswine might not be a bad idea.

 

[PG24]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Rock Polish Sheer Force Landorus eats this team. You really have no safe options for it as even Chansey will get beaten.

Volbeat is complete deadweight and isn't even fulfilling its main niche. You're better off using Whimsicott or something.

Heal Bell Celebi, Aromatherapy Blissey/Chansey, and rain offense will completely ruin your strategy. The popular combo of Genesect + Dugtrio also completely dismantles your strategy.

Yeah, any Fighting-type will be a problem, especially Conkledurr who loves paralysis more than a burn or toxic.

 

[Alan]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Well, this team is pretty much all support and Heatran. Have you tried Ninjask instead of Volbeat? it can mak up for Heatran's lost speed and also adds a bit more offense to this team. Everything bar Fortress is a special attacker or uses a base damage move, so you could use some more physical power. If you do this, I recommend you switch Body Slam to Thunder Wave on Togekiss. Also, Aura Sphere is better on Togekiss so you hit Tyranitar hard and don't get walled by it. It also hits Heatran SE, who will love getting FF and sun boosts.

The last sentence in the first paragraph makes me think of just how poor your coverage is. Almost all your offensive moves are Fire types. And although uncommon, Chandelure will destroy this team.

 

[Equinox]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Well, this team is pretty much all support and Heatran. Have you tried Ninjask instead of Volbeat? it can mak up for Heatran's lost speed and also adds a bit more offense to this team. Everything bar Fortress is a special attacker or uses a base damage move, so you could use some more physical power. If you do this, I recommend you switch Body Slam to Thunder Wave on Togekiss. Also, Aura Sphere is better on Togekiss so you hit Tyranitar hard and don't get walled by it.

Actually, if Heatran is the center of my team, I'd rather not run Baton Pass Shedinja due to the fact that weather wars are very common, and all that setting up would go for nothing. Also, I suggest all of you try Volbeat's set, I've found it to be quite trollish. Body Slam is irreplaceable. Aura Sphere doesn't hit near as hard on TTar as you'd think, by the way.

Jellicent has been...a bit of a problem yes. Fighting-type Pokemon don't really give this team as many problems as you all think. If the foe has a Conkeldurr, I could just as easily notice it from wifi clause, and, Togekiss takes perfect care of it. I have Volbeat for a reason I stated on its explanation as well; to take care of faster threats, Like Terrakion.

 

[Alan]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Actually, if Heatran is the center of my team, I'd rather not run Baton Pass Shedinja due to the fact that weather wars are very common, and all that setting up would go for nothing. Also, I suggest all of you try Volbeat's set, I've found it to be quite trollish. Body Slam is irreplaceable. Aura Sphere doesn't hit near as hard on TTar as you'd think, by the way.

Jellicent has been...a bit of a problem yes. Fighting-type Pokemon don't really give this team as many problems as you all think. If the foe has a Conkeldurr, I could just as easily notice it from wifi clause, and, Togekiss takes perfect care of it. I have Volbeat for a reason I stated on its explanation as well; to take care of faster threats, Like Terrakion.

I'm sure it does more than Flamethrower in the sand.

What if they don't hurt themselves? or they don't get paralyzed? then its dead. Unless you switch in on a locked CC, then maybe you'll live (to lazy to calc)

Try Thunderbolt or Shadow Ball on something. Gengar is a good HP Fire user, maybe he'd be a good addition? it is immune to fighting moves as well. Just brainstorming.

 

[Equinox]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

I'm sure it does more than Flamethrower in the sand.

What if they don't hurt themselves? or they don't get paralyzed? then its dead. Unless you switch in on a locked CC, then maybe you'll live (to lazy to calc)

Try Thunderbolt or Shadow Ball on something. Gengar is a good HP Fire user, maybe he'd be a good addition? it is immune to fighting moves as well. Just brainstorming.

Reguardless, I wouldn't keep Togekiss in on Tyranitar due to Stone Edge..

 

[One Approved]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Actually, if Heatran is the center of my team, I'd rather not run Baton Pass Shedinja due to the fact that weather wars are very common, and all that setting up would go for nothing. Also, I suggest all of you try Volbeat's set, I've found it to be quite trollish. Body Slam is irreplaceable. Aura Sphere doesn't hit near as hard on TTar as you'd think, by the way.

Jellicent has been...a bit of a problem yes. Fighting-type Pokemon don't really give this team as many problems as you all think. If the foe has a Conkeldurr, I could just as easily notice it from wifi clause, and, Togekiss takes perfect care of it. I have Volbeat for a reason I stated on its explanation as well; to take care of faster threats, Like Terrakion.

If I wanted something with Prankster Confuse Ray and Thunder Wave, i'd sooner use Sableye than I would Volbeat. It has Recover and Taunt which is far superior to Substitute and Encore. Volbeat might troll things, but it's still deadweight. IT doesn't support anything after Thunder Wave. If you keep it in for a confuse ray, you're just hoping the hax turns your way, there are plenty of better options which I listed in my previous post.

Togekiss is a check to Conkeldurr at best. It can't switch into anything Conkeldurr has. Guts Drain Punch And/Or Stone Edge are going to do massive amounts of damage to togekiss. Latias and Latios would do a better job of checking this Pokémon as all they fear is Payback, but they still have a chance to OHKO with Psychic/Psyshock/Draco Meteor, in addition to recover.

 

[Shivershaft]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Personally, I'd drop chansey or Togekiss. Yes togekiss will help with pokemon like Conkeldurr, but you need physical defense. Forretress isn't cutting it either. You may be better suited to swap Forretress for someone like Claydol, who can still rapid spin, fend off pokemon like breloom (psychic), opposing heatran (Earth Power), Conkeldurr (Psychic), and then still setup SR. You could also go physical using Zen Headbutt and Earthquake, but you run the risk of getting donked by Bulk Up variants. Try something like this

Claydol@Leftovers
Careful (iirc is -Atk +SpD)
EV's: 252 HP 156 Def 92 Spe 8 SpA
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock
- Psychic
- Earth Power/Hidden Power Fire

The last moveset works great, you can either handle fire types, and be walled by grass pokemon, or be walled by fire types such as opposing heatran (in which you just go to heatran for the boost) and somewhat fend off grass types and bugs such as scizor who you can nail on the switch in by surprise.

For an anti setup. You choose them based on your choices with Claydol. Personally I'd go with HP fire to handle the grass types, that way you can run a phazer like Poliwrath, who can soak multiple fire based attacks, and force switches. Not only that but you can run Water absorb if you want to use him as a direct bulky water counter from Heatran, or you can run Swift Swim as a rain counter. The set i'd recommend is:

Poliwrath@Leftovers
Impish
EV's 252 HP 112 Def 92 Spe 52 Atk
- Circle Throw
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Waterfall/Payback

Circle throw will let SR rack up, you have an answer to TTar and Scizor, many setup pokemon for that matter. Just watch out for ghost types, they will give you trouble here. Grass pokemon such as ferrothorn will give you trouble, which is great because Heatran has even more value.


EDIT:

Reading through again, i realized with claydol now in the mix it may be best for you to get offensive. You need someone to handle Jellicent, badly. Right now with the whole fire theme going on, Shiftry and other chlorophyllers would be a great addition. An all out mixed set like this would work wonders:

Shiftry@ Life Orb
Hasty
EV's 112 Atk 220 SpA 176 Spe
- Leaf Storm
- Sucker Punch
- Low Kick
- Hidden Power Ice

You can find this in the OU section on Smogon. The previous two sets I made for you.

 

[The Yoshi]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Maybe drop Volbeat for an Offensive Mamoswine? It could help with your Scarfed Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Tyranitar (somewhat) problems. It may also even help with Chansey and Blissey. If you want to try it over Volbeat, try this set:

Mamoswine @ Choice Band / Life Orb
Thick Fat | Adamant / Jolly
4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
-Ice Shard
-Icicle Crash/Superpower
-Stone Edge
-Earthquake

Superpower if you need help with Tyranitar, but I see some other changes you could make to handle Tyranitar easier. You don't have to remove Volbeat if you still think you have a problem with Scarfed Terra, but you might want to try Sableye over Volbeat due to it being immune to Close Combat. Hope this helped.

Edit: And why does your Volbeat have a Hardy Nature?

 

[bacon]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Possible changes:

Ninetales, Heatran, Forretress, all fine. Never seen the Ninetales set but I like it, maybe you'd like to exchange Protect for Pain Split to keep her healthy though. Forretress would appreciate Volt-Switch over Spikes. It's just an oddly useful move for him, but in particular it allows you to a) Escape the clutches of Magnezone and Gothitelle, and b) Provide a safe entry for Heatran. If you've never tried it, give it a whirl. To be honest I never feel like Forretress needs the SDef EVs in Sun teams, and I prefer the maximum defensive bulk for checking Terrakion, but that's your call.

Alright, Volbeat. No. Terrible Pokemon. If you really want a Prankster spammer, I really recommend Sableye, who actually manages to be useful (!!!!!) and spin blocks effectively in the Sun thanks to its new found Water resistance. But only go with Sableye if you keep the Spikes on Forretress, as obviously you don't need a spin blocker otherwise. If you don't need Sableye, then Cresselia is a really cool option for Sun teams. She has superb physical bulk and ridiculous Moonlight recovery in the Sun (you can tank a Genesect +1 Bug Buzz, recover most of the damage, and switch to the appropriate response afterwards). Go with Psychic and Ice Beam to cover Dragons and randoms like Specs Keldeo, Moonlight for recovery, and something else depending on what you feel you need.

 

[Emvee]

RE: The Fires of Mount Vesuvius (OU)

Good advice bacon!

So yeah if you'd rather keep Spikes over Volt Switch then you should give Shed Shell to Forretress since it's very useful for escaping stuff. Volbeat and Togekiss can be replaced with Venusaur and Dragonite respectively. Venusaur will help you abuse the sun to your own advantage alongside Heatran and gives you something to take Water hits with. Dragonite also helps you gain a lot of resistances and works very well on Sun teams. There are a lot of sets to choose from. Since you've got both SR and Spikes, and T-Wave support on Chansey, a Para-Shuffle set might be a good idea.