NU Hail Teams

With the addition of Snover, hail teams have become a viable strategy in NU. Although we no longer have Walrein, other NU Pokemon undoubtedly benefit from the hail. I've listed a few benefits that hail teams share:

-No Shedinja problems. With Shedinja everywhere, teams can't afford to mess around with it. Hail instantly OHKO's, essentially causing your opponent to play with five Pokemon should they fail to change the weather.

-No worries about Focus Sashes. In NU, just one turn of set-up can often be devastating to a team, partially due to the lack of what I call "super walls" (Skarmory, Blissey, Forretress, Shuckle, etc.). A sash can grant this turn of stat boosting to your opponent--except in hail. Only an ice type will be able to use a sash. Stealth Rock has the same effect, except that you need to manually set it up (in an NU hail team, simply use Snover!).

-No more dragons. Now that NU has a handful of viable dragons, expect to see them everywhere--as support, as walls, as sweepers, etc. etc. Thankfully, none of these are defensive enough to take repeated super-effective attacks. But the problem lies in their typing--they're only weak to dragon and ice! Having STAB ice attacks on a team can really help in the new NU tier.

-Great coverage. A 100% accurate Blizzard attack is a great thing to have in any tier. No Pokemon is totally immune to ice and it hits a lot of types for super-effective or at least neutral damage. Combine Blizzard with an electric attack for the amazing coverage of BoltBeam.

-Indirect damage. In NU, Life Orb tends to be abused much more than Choice items (a lot of Pokemon can't afford to be stuck in a move). When you combine Life Orb recoil with hail (and entry hazards), the damage really begins to add up. Indirect damage can also be devastating for enemy stall teams who now lose out on leftovers recovery.

Of course, no strategy is without it's problems.

-Pokemon restriction. You need to be careful about what you place on your team, as the majority of Pokemon are hit by hail. You have to select Pokemon that don't mind this extra damage or perhaps even abuse it.

-Weaknesses. Rock and Fire are arguably two of the best attack types in NU. Unfortunately, most hail teams have multiple Pokemon weak to those types. Combine that with a Fighting weakness and a lack of resistances, and you might start to have some problems. Make sure you can cover for your weakness and you should be alright.

-Snover. Snover isn't the greatest Pokemon stat-wise, even for NU. Having him on your team (preferably as a lead) can give you a disadvantage, yet he is basically necessary for a successful hail team. Try to be realistic about his stats and give him a moveset that he'll actually get to use.

-Stealth Rock. Stealth Rock really kills hail teams, so it's recommended that you run a spinner. However, you can't always count on rapid spinning with all of the ghosts around.

-Obvious strategy. When you send out that Snover, your opponent immediately knows that you're using a hail team and can begin trying to counter it. Don't be predictable; make your team unique and try out new Pokemon and movesets.

This thread is for all discussions of NU hail teams, including team-building and counters. Also, let me know if I should change/add anything to the pros/cons list =).

Pro - Stall teams lose leftovers recovery. At least mention this under the "indirect damage" section

Added the benefit of preventing stall teams from getting leftovers recovery.

Am I the only person so far to try a hail team? XD

Sasami wrote:Added the benefit of preventing stall teams from getting leftovers recovery.

Am I the only person so far to try a hail team? XD

No, but you're probably the only one to have a successful one so far.

Shine wrote:

Sasami wrote:Added the benefit of preventing stall teams from getting leftovers recovery.

Am I the only person so far to try a hail team? XD

No, but you're probably the only one to have a successful one so far.

Well, did you try the one we made?

Send me the stats so I can test it. *forgot*

Shine wrote:

Sasami wrote:Added the benefit of preventing stall teams from getting leftovers recovery.

Am I the only person so far to try a hail team? XD

No, but you're probably the only one to have a successful one so far.

I looked and I don't have any records of anyone else using a hail team. So I guess I am the only one, haha.

Sasami wrote:

Shine wrote:

Sasami wrote:Added the benefit of preventing stall teams from getting leftovers recovery.

Am I the only person so far to try a hail team? XD

No, but you're probably the only one to have a successful one so far.

I looked and I don't have any records of anyone else using a hail team. So I guess I am the only one, haha.

I'll start using one now.

¬_¬

Har har, Charmeleon = win

=)

Sami knows =K

This is pertinent, by the way.

Ninja wrote:Har har, Charmeleon = win

=)

Sami knows =K

This is pertinent, by the way.

The team Shine and I built has an lolcounter, which was to cover Magmar... wtf Charmeleon?

:O