Gen 9 OU Team Examples: Review Sets and Format Legality

These are illustrative team-building examples, not tested or tournament-ready rental teams. They preserve several older sets so you can learn to identify legality and role problems. Some Pokémon in these examples are banned or unavailable in standard Scarlet/Violet OU.

Do not ladder with these six-Pokémon lists without revising them. Check the official SV OU banlist, validate each set in Pokémon Showdown, then use the Metamons team builder to inspect coverage. Metamons does not enforce the full species banlist.

Team 1: Standard Bulky Offense (beginner-friendly)

This is a useful structure to study: a hazard setter, removal, pivots, offensive pressure, and a late-game cleaner. Its listed spreads are starting points to verify, not evidence of a tested win rate.

The lineup

Great Tusk — Physical wall + hazard removal + offensive pressure

• Item: Leftovers
• Ability: Protosynthesis
• Nature: Impish
• EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
• Moves: Headlong Rush, Ice Spinner, Rapid Spin, Stealth Rock

Great Tusk sets Rocks, removes the opponent's hazards with Rapid Spin, and threatens Ground-weak Pokémon. The physical bulk lets it switch into most physical attackers at least twice.

Gholdengo — Special wallbreaker + spinblocker

• Item: Air Balloon
• Ability: Good as Gold
• Nature: Timid
• EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Shadow Ball, Make It Rain, Nasty Plot, Recover

Gholdengo blocks Rapid Spin (keeping your Rocks up), sets up with Nasty Plot on passive turns, and threatens every non-Dark-type in the tier. Air Balloon gives it a free switch into Ground moves aimed at Great Tusk.

Dragapult — Fast special sweeper

• Item: Choice Specs
• Ability: Infiltrator
• Nature: Timid
• EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Shadow Ball, Draco Meteor, Flamethrower, U-turn

Dragapult outspeeds nearly everything unboosted. Specs Draco Meteor OHKOs most neutral targets. U-turn keeps momentum against switches into Fairy- and Steel-types.

Kingambit — Late-game cleaner

• Item: Leftovers
• Ability: Supreme Overlord
• Nature: Adamant
• EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
• Moves: Kowtow Cleave, Sucker Punch, Iron Head, Swords Dance

Kingambit is your win condition. Save it for the end game where Supreme Overlord stacks boosts for every fallen teammate. A +2 Sucker Punch from Kingambit with three Supreme Overlord boosts OHKOs most of the tier.

Toxapex — Special wall + status spreader

• Item: Black Sludge
• Ability: Regenerator
• Nature: Calm
• EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
• Moves: Scald, Toxic, Haze, Recover

Toxapex walls almost every special attacker and spreads Toxic. Haze resets setup sweepers. Regenerator means it heals just by switching out, which makes it the most durable special wall in OU.

Landorus-Therian — Pivot + Ground immunity

• Item: Choice Scarf
• Ability: Intimidate
• Nature: Jolly
• EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Earthquake, U-turn, Stone Edge, Knock Off

Scarf Landorus-T outspeeds most unboosted Pokémon and pivots with U-turn. Intimidate weakens physical attackers on entry. Earthquake is your Ground STAB, Stone Edge hits Flying-types, and Knock Off removes items.

Why this team works

Every slot has a clear job. Great Tusk and Toxapex form a physical/special wall core. Gholdengo and Dragapult break through walls. Kingambit cleans late game. Landorus pivots between them all. The team has hazard control, a Ghost resist (Dragapult), a Ground immunity (Landorus), and an answer to setup sweepers (Toxapex's Haze).

Team 2: Historical hyper offense example (not legal in current SV OU)

Legality warning: Roaring Moon and Volcarona are banned from standard SV OU. This historical example demonstrates a hyper-offense structure only; replace those slots with currently legal attackers before using it.

This team wins fast or loses fast. Send hazards, apply pressure, and don't let the opponent breathe.

The lineup

Glimmora — Suicide lead

• Item: Focus Sash
• Ability: Toxic Debris
• Nature: Timid
• EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
• Moves: Stealth Rock, Earth Power, Energy Ball, Mortal Spin

Glimmora sets Stealth Rock on turn one. Toxic Debris poisons physical attackers that hit it. Mortal Spin removes hazards if the opponent sets their own. After Glimmora goes down, you deploy your sweepers.

Roaring Moon — Physical sweeper

• Item: Booster Energy
• Ability: Protosynthesis
• Nature: Jolly
• EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Dragon Dance, Knock Off, Acrobatics, Earthquake

One Dragon Dance plus Protosynthesis boost makes Roaring Moon faster than everything. Knock Off removes items. Acrobatics hits Fighting-types for double damage after Booster Energy is consumed. Earthquake covers Steel-types.

Iron Valiant — Mixed wallbreaker

• Item: Booster Energy
• Ability: Quark Drive
• Nature: Naive
• EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
• Moves: Close Combat, Moonblast, Knock Off, Thunderbolt

Iron Valiant's mixed offenses mean no single wall handles it. Close Combat and Moonblast cover STAB. Knock Off removes Leftovers and Heavy-Duty Boots. Thunderbolt hits Toxapex and Corviknight.

Volcarona — Special setup sweeper

• Item: Heavy-Duty Boots
• Ability: Flame Body
• Nature: Timid
• EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Quiver Dance, Fiery Dance, Bug Buzz, Giga Drain

Volcarona sweeps after one Quiver Dance. Fiery Dance has a 50% chance to boost SpAtk each use. Giga Drain recovers HP against Water- and Ground-types. Heavy-Duty Boots ignores Stealth Rock so Volcarona can switch in freely.

Great Tusk — Offensive spinner

• Item: Booster Energy
• Ability: Protosynthesis
• Nature: Jolly
• EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Headlong Rush, Ice Spinner, Rapid Spin, Close Combat

Offensive Tusk is a different beast. Booster Energy on Attack makes Headlong Rush and Close Combat nearly unwallable. Rapid Spin gives it a Speed boost, turning it into a secondary sweeper.

Gholdengo — Spinblocker + revenge killer

• Item: Choice Scarf
• Ability: Good as Gold
• Nature: Timid
• EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Moves: Shadow Ball, Make It Rain, Trick, Thunderbolt

Scarf Gholdengo outspeeds boosted sweepers and revenges them. Trick cripples walls by locking them into one move with a Choice Scarf. Thunderbolt hits Corviknight and Water-types.

Why this team works

Glimmora guarantees Rocks. After it faints, you have five sweepers, each capable of taking six KOs with the right setup turn. The opponent has to answer Roaring Moon, Iron Valiant, Volcarona, and offensive Great Tusk in succession — most teams can't handle all four.

Team 3: Historical balance example (not legal in current SV OU)

Legality warning: Ferrothorn is unavailable in Scarlet/Violet OU; it is a National Dex option, not a standard SV OU team member. Replace that slot with a legal hazard setter and re-check defensive synergy before playing.

Balance teams win by grinding favorable trades. This one has tools for everything and rewards consistent play.

The lineup

Ferrothorn — Physical wall + hazard setter

• Item: Leftovers
• Ability: Iron Barbs
• Nature: Impish
• EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
• Moves: Stealth Rock, Leech Seed, Power Whip, Knock Off

Ferrothorn sets Rocks, seeds walls for passive recovery, and punishes physical contact with Iron Barbs. Power Whip threatens Water- and Ground-types.

Slowking-Galar — Special wall + pivot

• Item: Assault Vest
• Ability: Regenerator
• Nature: Calm
• EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
• Moves: Sludge Bomb, Psychic, Flamethrower, Chilly Reception

Assault Vest Slowking-Galar tanks any special hit and pivots with Chilly Reception, which switches out and sets snow. Regenerator restores HP on switch. Flamethrower covers Steel-types.

Dragapult — Fast pivot + cleaner

• Same set as Team 1 (Specs).

Zapdos — Defensive pivot

• Item: Heavy-Duty Boots
• Ability: Static
• Nature: Bold
• EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Spe
• Moves: Hurricane, Volt Switch, Roost, Heat Wave

Zapdos punishes physical attackers with Static and pivots with Volt Switch. Hurricane threatens Grass- and Fighting-types. Roost keeps it alive through repeated switches.

Kingambit — Late-game cleaner

• Same set as Team 1 (Leftovers + Swords Dance).

Great Tusk — Hazard removal + offensive presence

• Same set as Team 1 (Defensive with Leftovers).

Why this team works

Three pivots (Landorus replaced by Zapdos for a bulkier profile) keep momentum through the entire game. Ferrothorn sets Rocks and walls physical attackers. Dragapult and Kingambit provide offensive pressure. Slowking-Galar and Zapdos handle special and physical threats respectively. The team has answers for everything in OU and wins by outlasting the opponent.

How to use these teams

1. Import into the Metamons team builder. Select OU as the format and paste any team.
2. Run the AI rater. The AI coach will flag meta-specific threats that have emerged since this guide was written.
3. Export to Showdown. One click and you're ready to ladder.
4. Iterate. After 10 games, identify which Pokémon on the opponent's team gave you the most trouble and adjust one slot.

Start by checking Team 1 in Showdown's validator and adjust any outdated move or item choices. For Team 2, rebuild the banned sweeper slots; for Team 3, replace Ferrothorn. Treat the examples as exercises in evaluating teams, not as proven or ready-to-use lineups.