Tom's Teams: Gen II Kanto/Johto's Elite 4 Reimagined: Will
First thing's first, this week will be the last Tom's Team post for a couple of weeks. I'm getting married and going on my honeymoon, so I won't have access to a computer for the next two Mondays.
Alright, for the next few teams, I'm going to do something a little different. I'm going to reimagine the Elite 4 and Champion from the GSC generation and try to make their teams formidable to the competitive battler as well as the RPG player. I know I had a lot of difficulty taking on this incarnation of the E4 when I made my first run-through in Silver, but now, I could probably wax them in my sleep. That comes with experience as well as with the shitty AI that the Gen II games invariably had. The first member of this generation's Championship gauntlet was none other than Will:
Will trains Psychic-type Pokémon, which would have made him a god one generation prior. Now, though, the Psychic-type is a good type but not a saintly one. Not that it would matter, since every single one of Will's Pokémon have a secondary type that can be exploited. Here's a rundown of his team as of now:
Xatu, Jynx, Exeggutor, Slowbro, Xatu
A solid lineup from jump if you discount the fact that he's doubled up on Xatu, a quite frail and relatively soft-hitting option amongst its Psychic brethern, even at the time of Generation II. In reimagining Will's team, I'll keep one of the Xatu around, but the other will need to be dropped favor of something else to shore up this team's frightful weakness to Dark-type attacks. In keeping with the flavor of the team, each one of Will's critters will have a secondary type. Let's get started.
NOTE: For these teams, Species and Item Clauses will be ignored, since in RPG play, they are not enforced. Also, these teams will be reimagined as if they were being implemented now rather than in the generation they debuted. While that won't mean the teams will be wholly restocked with "foreign" Pokémon, don't be surprised to see a Gen III or IV critter on any of the teams in this series.
Xatu @ Focus Sash
Timid Nature, 252 EVs in SpAtk and Spd
- Thunder Wave
- Confuse Ray
- Psychic/Future Sight
- Wish
Ah yes, ParaFusion, the great annoyance standby. It's a damn shame and a baffling decision on GameFreak's part that Xatu doesn't gain access to Dark Pulse, or else it could have its own ParaFlinchax set with better coverage (hey, NVE damage is better than no damage at all on Darks, right, amirite?). Wish support works well here given the probability of no-attack on any turn. Since it can't get DP, Will will definitely opt for the best STAB option available, or if he'd like to deal typeless damage that you wouldn't mind waiting a turn for, Future Sight's an option I suppose. I wouldn't go for it personally though.
Jynx @ Wide Lens
Timid Nature, 252 EVs in SpAtk and Spd
- Lovely Kiss
- Focus Blast
- Blizzard
- Psychic
Jynx will need the Wide Lens to sharpen up her accuracy with her insurance move (Focus Blast) and her all-important status inducer (Lovely Kiss). LK has a 75% accuracy, and FB 70%. Blizzard is on there over Ice Beam because since Will will be going to want more power against less accuracy and need the Wide Lens anyway, why not? Psychic as a reliable second STAB move that gets the "easy" kills is the best way to go for that last slot.
Medicham @ Expert Belt
Impish Nature, 252 EVs in Spd, 176 in Atk, 80 in Def
- Psycho Cut
- Ice Punch
- Hi Jump Kick/Brick Break
- Recover
Medicham might not seem like such a tanky Pokémon, but its neutrality to Dark type attacks plus Fighting STAB helps it act as a stopgap against strong Dark-type attackers such as Weavile and Tyranitar. With Pure Power as its ability, it can do some major damage with the attacks listed. Recover is a nice bonus it gets in Gen IV, and with an investment in Defense, it can take a few physical hits and provide Will's team with some phsycial offensive firepower. The Fighting move is preference, although HKJ's accuracy isn't terrible enough for it to be relegated to disuse. Yep, Medicham is worth the short trip to Sinnoh or Hoenn to get.
Metagross @ Shuca Berry
Adamant Nature, 252 EVs in HP and Atk
- Meteor Mash
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
- Iron Defense/Agility
With all the physical threats running around against a Psychic-type that on the whole has crappy physical defenses, Will should definitely place a phone call to Steven Stone to get himself a Beldum he can raise into a fine, fine Metagross. As fine a Ghost-repellant as one could get, Metagross has the defenses to stand up to folks like Gengar and Dusknoir as well as access to Pursuit to nail them on the switch. Meteor Mash is a fine STAB attack and EQ is great for coverage. Iron Defense is there to further shore up Metagross' staying power as a physical beast, although Agility can work fine for Will should he want to bring up the Speed and make Metagross into a sweeping machine.
Slowbro @ Colbur Berry
Calm Nature, 252 EVs in HP, 200 in SpDef, 56 in Def
- Amnesia
- Slack Off
- Surf
- Psychic/Flamethrower
Even without a single Amnesia, this halfwitted sponge can take physical and special hits with equal aplomb. Amnesia is there for Will to be able to up this beast's Special Defense to levels where even Gengar and Starmie can't hurt it at all. Slack Off is for staying power, and as long there aren't any Hazers or Roar/Whirlwind users left, it can make for an annoying and frustrating time for trainers just arriving out of Victory Road. The last attack there is another preference deal. Psychic provides strong STAB, while Flamethrower gives an awful suprise to Grass-types that think can come in and wear down this Slowbro.
Exeggutor @ Leftovers
Calm Nature, 252 EVs in SpDef, 156 EVs in Def, 100 in SpAtk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Grass Knot
- Psychic
Last, but not least, Exeggutor. Will might be tempted to run a Chlorophyll set here, seeing as he has access to an ability he didn't have in Gen II, but that would ruin the mojo of at least two other members on his team (Jynx and Slowbro directly, and Metagross by giving the Fire-types more ammo against it). Rather than doing that, he opted for the SubSeeding set. No max HP build so that Seed + Lefties can give the giant palm frond a greater percentage of its energy back. As with the other, two STAB attacks are the order of the day.
As always, all feedback, criticisms, questions, complaints, comments, mockings of grammar nazis, etc. are not only welcomed, but encouraged.
Alright, for the next few teams, I'm going to do something a little different. I'm going to reimagine the Elite 4 and Champion from the GSC generation and try to make their teams formidable to the competitive battler as well as the RPG player. I know I had a lot of difficulty taking on this incarnation of the E4 when I made my first run-through in Silver, but now, I could probably wax them in my sleep. That comes with experience as well as with the shitty AI that the Gen II games invariably had. The first member of this generation's Championship gauntlet was none other than Will:
Will trains Psychic-type Pokémon, which would have made him a god one generation prior. Now, though, the Psychic-type is a good type but not a saintly one. Not that it would matter, since every single one of Will's Pokémon have a secondary type that can be exploited. Here's a rundown of his team as of now:
Xatu, Jynx, Exeggutor, Slowbro, Xatu
A solid lineup from jump if you discount the fact that he's doubled up on Xatu, a quite frail and relatively soft-hitting option amongst its Psychic brethern, even at the time of Generation II. In reimagining Will's team, I'll keep one of the Xatu around, but the other will need to be dropped favor of something else to shore up this team's frightful weakness to Dark-type attacks. In keeping with the flavor of the team, each one of Will's critters will have a secondary type. Let's get started.
NOTE: For these teams, Species and Item Clauses will be ignored, since in RPG play, they are not enforced. Also, these teams will be reimagined as if they were being implemented now rather than in the generation they debuted. While that won't mean the teams will be wholly restocked with "foreign" Pokémon, don't be surprised to see a Gen III or IV critter on any of the teams in this series.
Xatu @ Focus Sash
Timid Nature, 252 EVs in SpAtk and Spd
- Thunder Wave
- Confuse Ray
- Psychic/Future Sight
- Wish
Ah yes, ParaFusion, the great annoyance standby. It's a damn shame and a baffling decision on GameFreak's part that Xatu doesn't gain access to Dark Pulse, or else it could have its own ParaFlinchax set with better coverage (hey, NVE damage is better than no damage at all on Darks, right, amirite?). Wish support works well here given the probability of no-attack on any turn. Since it can't get DP, Will will definitely opt for the best STAB option available, or if he'd like to deal typeless damage that you wouldn't mind waiting a turn for, Future Sight's an option I suppose. I wouldn't go for it personally though.
Jynx @ Wide Lens
Timid Nature, 252 EVs in SpAtk and Spd
- Lovely Kiss
- Focus Blast
- Blizzard
- Psychic
Jynx will need the Wide Lens to sharpen up her accuracy with her insurance move (Focus Blast) and her all-important status inducer (Lovely Kiss). LK has a 75% accuracy, and FB 70%. Blizzard is on there over Ice Beam because since Will will be going to want more power against less accuracy and need the Wide Lens anyway, why not? Psychic as a reliable second STAB move that gets the "easy" kills is the best way to go for that last slot.
Medicham @ Expert Belt
Impish Nature, 252 EVs in Spd, 176 in Atk, 80 in Def
- Psycho Cut
- Ice Punch
- Hi Jump Kick/Brick Break
- Recover
Medicham might not seem like such a tanky Pokémon, but its neutrality to Dark type attacks plus Fighting STAB helps it act as a stopgap against strong Dark-type attackers such as Weavile and Tyranitar. With Pure Power as its ability, it can do some major damage with the attacks listed. Recover is a nice bonus it gets in Gen IV, and with an investment in Defense, it can take a few physical hits and provide Will's team with some phsycial offensive firepower. The Fighting move is preference, although HKJ's accuracy isn't terrible enough for it to be relegated to disuse. Yep, Medicham is worth the short trip to Sinnoh or Hoenn to get.
Metagross @ Shuca Berry
Adamant Nature, 252 EVs in HP and Atk
- Meteor Mash
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
- Iron Defense/Agility
With all the physical threats running around against a Psychic-type that on the whole has crappy physical defenses, Will should definitely place a phone call to Steven Stone to get himself a Beldum he can raise into a fine, fine Metagross. As fine a Ghost-repellant as one could get, Metagross has the defenses to stand up to folks like Gengar and Dusknoir as well as access to Pursuit to nail them on the switch. Meteor Mash is a fine STAB attack and EQ is great for coverage. Iron Defense is there to further shore up Metagross' staying power as a physical beast, although Agility can work fine for Will should he want to bring up the Speed and make Metagross into a sweeping machine.
Slowbro @ Colbur Berry
Calm Nature, 252 EVs in HP, 200 in SpDef, 56 in Def
- Amnesia
- Slack Off
- Surf
- Psychic/Flamethrower
Even without a single Amnesia, this halfwitted sponge can take physical and special hits with equal aplomb. Amnesia is there for Will to be able to up this beast's Special Defense to levels where even Gengar and Starmie can't hurt it at all. Slack Off is for staying power, and as long there aren't any Hazers or Roar/Whirlwind users left, it can make for an annoying and frustrating time for trainers just arriving out of Victory Road. The last attack there is another preference deal. Psychic provides strong STAB, while Flamethrower gives an awful suprise to Grass-types that think can come in and wear down this Slowbro.
Exeggutor @ Leftovers
Calm Nature, 252 EVs in SpDef, 156 EVs in Def, 100 in SpAtk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Grass Knot
- Psychic
Last, but not least, Exeggutor. Will might be tempted to run a Chlorophyll set here, seeing as he has access to an ability he didn't have in Gen II, but that would ruin the mojo of at least two other members on his team (Jynx and Slowbro directly, and Metagross by giving the Fire-types more ammo against it). Rather than doing that, he opted for the SubSeeding set. No max HP build so that Seed + Lefties can give the giant palm frond a greater percentage of its energy back. As with the other, two STAB attacks are the order of the day.
As always, all feedback, criticisms, questions, complaints, comments, mockings of grammar nazis, etc. are not only welcomed, but encouraged.