Aldaron
geriatric
UPDATED October 7, 2009.
K, I deleted this team because I simply didn't want to update it with the real, completely competitively viable version I used about a month after posting this (It replaced Hitmontop with Choice Scarf Infernape and Life Orb Heatran with Life Orb Salamence).
But, I was sifting through my files on my old computer and found an updated version I had planned on posting before getting lazy and just deleting this lol. Note, I'm editing stuff in now based solely on memory, so some things could possibly seem anachronistic due to changes from DP -> DPP and now DPPHGSS. So remember that this team was meant SOLELY for DP; it wasn't meant for DPP or Garchomp-less at all (Note the HP Ice on Gengar AND Infernape).
Surprisingly, I actually tried out this version of the team with Choice Scarf Rotom-h with Thunderbolt, Shadow Ball, Will-O-Wisp, and Trick in place of Gengar on standard ladder and went 8 for 8 lol. Of course, the battles weren't particularly challenging, as the hardest was simply an average player using a standard good team, so I was able to outbattle them all, not necessarily out team them all.
I was talking to MoP recently and we both noted how incredibly boring "good" rmts had become. Just standard teams with 1 or 2 changes, boring explanations, and incredibly banal (and bordering on arrogant) threat lists. I decided that I would judge an rmt's quality based not only on how well it did competitively, but also its effect on the metagame. Did it change how people view the game? Did it change how people play the game? Did it change Pokemon usage? Did it introduce a significant new competitive strategy?
That's partly why I'm undeleting this team, to show what it introduced into the metagame circa late November 2007 to early February 2008, and what lasting effects it has had on the metagame even up until now. I think these are the rmts that really should be shown, not the ones that use a bog standard team to get to #1 on the ladder.
Anyway, around the time I built this team, copies of Obi-stall were running all over ladder. Stall in general was being utilized non stop and the game was becoming EXTRAORDINARILY slow. I wish I could describe just how much stall was on the ladder, but I'm not sure I could without approaching the realm of hyperbole. So Obi stall with its Hippowdon, Blissey, Skarmory and Celebi was all over the place, and I thought..."how do I beat this." Also, you had to deal with the standard offensive stuff at that time, like Mix Infernape, offensive Dragon Dance Gyarados, and Starmie.
The answer, over a long period of time (including after posting the initial version of the team), came pretty simply: Toxic Spikes and Life Orb Salamence give Stall trouble, and Stealth Rock and 2 (at the time) "surprise" Choice Scarfers in Gengar and Infernape would help keep offense in check.
So, here is the initial version of the team (with some explanation edits)
I'd also like to add that a lot of good players commented that this was a gimmick team due to hitmontop. I acknowledge that; hitmontop definitely was only on there because I love it and wanted to use it lol. Still, you'd be surprised how many of these "haters" lost to THAT version of this team (not the updated, better version, but the hitmontop version). I also have (and should get the rest hopefully soon :P) logs to prove this >;)
So that was the initial version of the team. Here is the "improved" version of the team I was planning on posting a few months later. I also deleted most of the explanations and added my thoughts based on hindsight (mostly to prevent repetition from above):
Roserade@Focus Sash
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 Def / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, - Atk)
- Grass Knot
- HP Fire
- Sleep Powder
- Toxic Spikes
I ended up sticking with Hidden Power Fire as the main move, to deter stall (Skarmory / Forretress primarily) from setting up after allowing a Pokemon to absorb sleep. I also settled on Sleep Powder + Toxic Spikes over Grass Whistle + Spikes because Sleep Powder's accuracy was much more appealing and 1 layer of Toxic Spikes is just a little worse than 1 later of Spikes for the initial switch in.
Swampert@leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP / 216 Def / 52 SpDef
Relaxed nature (+ Def, - SpD)
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Hydro Pump
I stuck with Hydro Pump to help me deal more damage to Skarmory again (note the beat stall pattern lol). The EVs help me survive a +2 Outrage from neutral attack nature Garchomp and 2 Life Orb Shadow Balls from Gengar, even after Stealth Rock damage.
Gengar@choice scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Timid nature (+ Spd, - Atk)
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
- Thunderbolt
- HP Ice
Note the Hidden Power Ice lol. Garchomp was _that_ much of an issue. Also helped against Dragon Dancing Salamence, I guess, but before Platinum they weren't too much of an issue.
Lucario@life orb
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant nature (+ Atk, - SpAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Bullet Punch
- Extreme Speed
The main point of this team. Note that while I generally advocate Crunch as the main move for Lucario, on this team I settled on Bullet Punch to help me deal with Aerodactyl and Gengar, both of whom annoy me more than Celebi (or Cresselia / Dusknoir).
Infernape@Choice Scarf
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 156 Atk / 232 Spd / 120 SpAtk
Naive nature (+Spd, -SpDef)
- Close Combat
- Fire Blast
- ThunderPunch
- Hidden Power Ice
Hidden Power Ice again, lol. Damn, Garchomp must have been a bitch. This reaches 341 Speed without the Scarf, to allow me to outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Dugtrio and Dragon Dancing Salamence / Gyarados and all Choice Scarf Garchomp. The Special Attack reaches 274, or enough to ohko 4 hp / 0 spdef Garchomp after SR + 1 Toxic Spike turn damage on average. Rest are put into attack so I can deal more damage with Close Combat. In Platinum I would probably dumb ThunderPunch for U-turn and Hidden Power Ice for Stone Edge (as I have for Choice Scarf Infernape on my other teams).
Salamence@Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 76 Atk / 180 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Rash nature (+SpAtk, - SpDef)
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
- Brick Break
- Roost
Woooo! Have loved this set since the beginning of DP, and love it now in HG / SS. Classic Mixmence, my second favorite Salamence set (after bulky DD Roost :P). This team needs something to help deal with general stall, and there isn't much of a better pokemon than Classic MixMence to do that lol. I didn't have an explanation in my word document, so my best guess regarding the EVs is that I reach 280 speed to get Heatran and Lucario, max Special Attack and dump the rest into Attack.
(You'll notice a significant psychic weakness that...means nothing lol. For a team like this it is important to have typing advantages, but against Psychic it is irrelevant)
SO, back to the original point about RMTs and their effects on the metagame. I give this team and myself credit for 3 significant changes to the metagame around that late november 2007 - early february 2008 time period:
1.) Introducing / Making Swords Dance Lucario popular.
At that time, everyone was getting on my ass for Swords Dance Lucario (including Smogon badged members, lol). The statement "Choice Specs Lucario is better" was thrown at me so often that I laughed every time it swept. Some people may have tried out bulky version of SD Luke or even variations of that, but no one used it consistently or made an effort to popularize it.
2.) Introducing / Making non Choice Scarf Lead Roserade popular.
People constantly asked, "why Toxic Spikes (or spikes initially) on such a frail Pokemon?" I don't think people ask that anymore. I actually give credit to MoP for giving me the initial idea of Roserade. He ran a Choice Scarf Roserade lead on one of his best DP offensive teams, and I figured I would give her a try because I needed entry hazards. Worked out in the end =)
3.) Removing the idea that super fast Pokemon were "wasted" with Choice Scarf.
Boy was this a popular one. Apparently it was a waste to Choice Scarf Gengar and Infernape and give them Speed boosting natures at that. Note that Choice Scarf Alakazam and Weavile were scene, but both were neutral Speed nature and also thought of as gimmicks. But people eventually came to realize that giving Choice Scarf to speedy Pokemon with great coverage moves allowed them to generalize purpose on their teams, instead of become too specific and lose to random threats. Choice Scarf Gengar and Infernape help become general checks against offense, helping me not against only Garchomp, Salamence, and Gyarados, but also Agility Empoleon / Metagross, Kabutops in rain, and Choice Specs Jolteon.
So, instead of bragging about how well this did on ladder (as I initially did lol), I'd rather mention the lasting effects this team had on the metagame. Swords Dance Lucario is one of the most popular offensive options right now, and various good players can attest to the utility of Lead Roserade. People now also extremely liberal with Choice Scarf and Choice Scarf +nature Gengar is semi popular.
There it is, the second most popular (in terms of views) at the time RMT of the DP generation =)
Enjoy.
(note all commentary in this thread is for the hitmontop / heatran version of the team that was posted in 2007)
K, I deleted this team because I simply didn't want to update it with the real, completely competitively viable version I used about a month after posting this (It replaced Hitmontop with Choice Scarf Infernape and Life Orb Heatran with Life Orb Salamence).
But, I was sifting through my files on my old computer and found an updated version I had planned on posting before getting lazy and just deleting this lol. Note, I'm editing stuff in now based solely on memory, so some things could possibly seem anachronistic due to changes from DP -> DPP and now DPPHGSS. So remember that this team was meant SOLELY for DP; it wasn't meant for DPP or Garchomp-less at all (Note the HP Ice on Gengar AND Infernape).
Surprisingly, I actually tried out this version of the team with Choice Scarf Rotom-h with Thunderbolt, Shadow Ball, Will-O-Wisp, and Trick in place of Gengar on standard ladder and went 8 for 8 lol. Of course, the battles weren't particularly challenging, as the hardest was simply an average player using a standard good team, so I was able to outbattle them all, not necessarily out team them all.
I was talking to MoP recently and we both noted how incredibly boring "good" rmts had become. Just standard teams with 1 or 2 changes, boring explanations, and incredibly banal (and bordering on arrogant) threat lists. I decided that I would judge an rmt's quality based not only on how well it did competitively, but also its effect on the metagame. Did it change how people view the game? Did it change how people play the game? Did it change Pokemon usage? Did it introduce a significant new competitive strategy?
That's partly why I'm undeleting this team, to show what it introduced into the metagame circa late November 2007 to early February 2008, and what lasting effects it has had on the metagame even up until now. I think these are the rmts that really should be shown, not the ones that use a bog standard team to get to #1 on the ladder.
Anyway, around the time I built this team, copies of Obi-stall were running all over ladder. Stall in general was being utilized non stop and the game was becoming EXTRAORDINARILY slow. I wish I could describe just how much stall was on the ladder, but I'm not sure I could without approaching the realm of hyperbole. So Obi stall with its Hippowdon, Blissey, Skarmory and Celebi was all over the place, and I thought..."how do I beat this." Also, you had to deal with the standard offensive stuff at that time, like Mix Infernape, offensive Dragon Dance Gyarados, and Starmie.
The answer, over a long period of time (including after posting the initial version of the team), came pretty simply: Toxic Spikes and Life Orb Salamence give Stall trouble, and Stealth Rock and 2 (at the time) "surprise" Choice Scarfers in Gengar and Infernape would help keep offense in check.
So, here is the initial version of the team (with some explanation edits)
Code:
[IMG]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpffsa/dpffsa407.png[/IMG]
[B]Roserade[/B]@Focus Sash
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 Def / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, - Atk)
- Leaf Storm
- HP Fire / HP Ground / HP Ice
- Sleep Powder / Grasswhistle
- Toxic Spikes / Spikes
Top ten leads are Gyarados, Hippowdon, Salamence, Gengar, Tyranitar, Bronzong, Weavile, Swampert, Infernape and Abomasnow. Roserade sleep powders Gyara, Mence (with 300 Speed), Bronzong, Gengar and Abomasnow. It leaf storms Hippowdon, Tyranitar and Swampert. The only 2 that force a guaranteed switch are Weavile and Infernape.
But as every seasoned veteran knows, your opponent has the opportunity to switch as well, so this “plan” rarely works. Still, at 300 Speed, Roserade is outspeeding 100 Base pokes, putting them to sleep, and setting up. People always ask me, why have Toxic Spikes on such a fragile poke? I say, does fragility matter if they can’t hit me? Sleep powder nets me one free turn of Toxic Spikes; later, when they bring in their ground/water? Another free turn of Toxic Spikes. Generally, the most common switch in is Blissey, which just makes me happy, especially since it is always first turn. They get put to sleep, which just gives me more opportunities to set up Toxic Spikes. And should they have been patient and switched after the sleep, in comes literally the perfect complement to Roserade, Swampert.
Point of concern here is the spikes vs. toxic spikes argument.
[IMG]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpmfa/dpmfa260.png[/IMG]
[B]Swampert[/B]@leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP / 216 Def / 52 SpDef
Relaxed nature (+ Def, - SpD)
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Hydro Pump / Surf
I switch Swampert in when the typical Heatran, Blissey, or Weavile come in. Set up Stealth Rock, and see what happens. Blissey toxic me? No problem, I switch to Lucario. Heatran switches to Ludicilo? No problem, I switch back to Roserade. This is a pretty standard MixPert, so I’m sure all of you know how clutch it is.
My real area of concern is the Hydro pump vs. Surf argument. Now, with 0 attack and 0 special attack evs, I don’t really hit the opponent hard, or even fast for that matter. Swampert is the necessary defensive rock of my team that allows it to work, so I can’t even switch some of those defensive evs over to the offensive stats. Hydro Pump’s average BP is 96, while surf is 95. Hydro pump also has the advantage of simply hitting way harder. Also, I use hydro pump when I predict Skarmory or Forretress switch ins, so I want it to hit harder.
[IMG]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpmfa/dpmfa094.png[/IMG]
[B]Gengar[/B]@choice scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Timid nature (+ Spd, - Atk)
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
- Thunderbolt
- HP Ice
Ahhh, scarf gar. How many times have those 264 gyarados dragon danced and arrogantly fallen to you? What about those scarf chomps? Or those predicted Weaviles? Or the ko’s on scarf cross by not switching out from pursuit? Or even better, blocked rapid spin by Starmie, or come in on a grass knot from Azelf, and proceeded to ko with shadow ball? The results speak for themselves. This gengar is what I like to call a metagame specific pokemon: I developed him solely to counter the major threats.
[IMG]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpmfa/dpmfa485.png[/IMG]
[B]Heatran[/B]@life orb/shed shell
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Naïve nature (+ Spd, - SpDef)
- Fire Blast
- Taunt/Dragon Pulse/metal sound
- Explosion
- Earth Power
Heatran is a monster. Takes care of Cresselia, hits everything hard, and helps my team immensely. Just as a note for how great the typing arrangements are, here is a common example: First turn, Roserade is facing an Infernape. Infernape uses fire move while I switch to Heatran, and I then switch to Swampert to take the Close Combat and the defense drops. Then, I switch to Gengar to take the grass knot, and ko it with shadow ball. This is not an arbitrary example; happens around 5 times a day. Another example: Roserade is sent out against Gengar. I sleep powder, if I miss or if he uses hypnosis, I switch to Heatran to take a shadow ball, and then switch to Gengar to take the focus blast or thunderbolt. Again, not an arbitrary example. Heatran, Swampert and Gengar give me a myriad of options for dealing with the rare leads that Roserade cannot take care of, which is the beautiful part of this team. I can maintain a consistent offense while simultaneously supporting and taking minimum damage.
This is also, however, the pokemon that could use the most altering, as I have no narrowed view on what would be the most effective. Fire Blast + life orb helps me ohko Hippowdon, Gliscor, and gives me the great help of potential burn. Taunt is to scare those thunder waving Blissey or Cresselia, or even those Umbreon. And while it has served me a great purpose late game, early game, taunt is kind of worthless, at least with explosion. I think explosion is necessary because it helps me deal with annoying pokes like Cresselia, Togekiss or Suicune.
The other issue here is the item. Is life orb necessary with taunt? Wouldn’t I prefer leftovers, some people ask? I’ve actually considered shed shell, with the recent influx of Dugtrio.
[IMG]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpmfa/dpmfa237.png[/IMG]
[B]Hitmontop[/B]@life orb
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spd
Adamant nature (+ Atk, -SpAtk)
- Fake Out
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Punch
- Close Combat
Hitmontop?! Technician?! 3 priority moves?! No toxic/Bulk Up?! N00b!!! This has happened way too many times. I just don’t understand it. Fake Out + mach punch is a guaranteed 60 BP flinching move off of 317 attack and life orb, followed by Mach punch, 90 BP, or Bullet Punch, 60 BP. That is a lot of damage, guaranteed. With Stealth rocks, two Bullet Punches ko Gengar, btw. Again, I’d like to emphasize that on non counters, this is a guaranteed 50% minimum damage. Guaranteed, 50%, minimum. Run that through your mind. Note that spikes and stealth rocks are added guaranteed damage. Note that I have a team to give tougher pokes residual damage.
There have been various times where I have been down 4 to 1, and Hitmontop can come in to save the day. Obviously I am not doing much to Gliscor, Cresselia, Starmie, Gyarados etc. That isn’t his point. He is solely late game, and solely to wreak annoying priority havoc.
[B][IMG]http://www.pokemonelite2000.com/sprites/dpmfa/dpmfa448.png[/IMG][/B]
[B]Lucario[/B]@life orb
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant nature (+ Atk, - SpAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Bullet Punch / Crunch / Stone Edge
- Extreme Speed
Now, here is the interesting slot. I was thinking about using this for my next team, but a conversation with Tenchi suddenly made me think…why not use it now? This hits sooo hard. On max HP/max defense + impish Skarm, swords dance + close combat does 85%-100%; on Hippowdon, 76%- 90%. What does this mean? If I get stealth rock and one layer of toxic spikes down, I am taking out the physical tank. If this doesn't run Bullet Punch, this has trouble with Aerodactyl, Gengar and Mismagius. If this doesn't run Stone Edge, this has trouble with Zapdos, Gyarados, and Salamence. If this doesn't run Crunch, this has trouble with Celebi, Cresselia, and Dusknoir. I choose Bullet Punch because Extremespeed still hits all of the Stealth Rock weak Pokemon that Stone Edge takes care of pretty hard and because Celebi is less of a threat than Gengar and Aerodactyl, especially to the team.
[B]Ok, so that’s my team. Let’s take a step back and view it in a very general sense. I setup up toxic spikes/stealth rock, and hurt the opponent hard and fast, while still being able to switch effectively. That is the purpose of the team. [/B]
It also utilizes the element of surprise, and effectively at that. No one expects, currently, a vicious little Hitmontop, or a scarf gar. If, late game, I have Hitmontop and Gengar alive together, it is usually a guaranteed win. Additionally, the main physical counter to this team, Gliscor, is taken care of 4 ways with Roserade, Swampert, Heatran and Gengar. Special counters are a joke, as they will just allow Lucario to set up.
The main pokes that annoy me are bulky Zapdos, a really lucky Togekiss, reflect Cresselia, Gliscor and Gardevoir. Those five are the main issues. Otherwise, I can pretty much take care of everything on the standard threat list without too much trouble. Even for those five, besides the really specific Gardevoir, Heatran + Lucario + stealth rocks and spikes are clutch, so it isn’t too big an issue.
Alright well, that should be it for now. Note that even with the slight confusion at some parts, such as the placing of evs or Heatran’s moveset, this team is set for now with what I have. So while you are encouraged to critique and offer possible replacements for Lucario and if absolutely necessary, Swampert, I also encourage you to comment or ask for clarification on certain parts. I tried to put a lesser emphasis on damage calculations, but I can do them per request.
Also, I would like to just briefly state what caused me to make this team. It was the influx of stall, and my hatred of boring, drawn out battles. I designed this to counter stall extremely well, while still play other teams as well as possible. But stall is my number one enemy, lol.
So that was the initial version of the team. Here is the "improved" version of the team I was planning on posting a few months later. I also deleted most of the explanations and added my thoughts based on hindsight (mostly to prevent repetition from above):
Roserade@Focus Sash
Ability: Natural Cure
EVs: 4 Def / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Timid nature (+Spd, - Atk)
- Grass Knot
- HP Fire
- Sleep Powder
- Toxic Spikes
I ended up sticking with Hidden Power Fire as the main move, to deter stall (Skarmory / Forretress primarily) from setting up after allowing a Pokemon to absorb sleep. I also settled on Sleep Powder + Toxic Spikes over Grass Whistle + Spikes because Sleep Powder's accuracy was much more appealing and 1 layer of Toxic Spikes is just a little worse than 1 later of Spikes for the initial switch in.
Swampert@leftovers
Ability: Torrent
EVs: 240 HP / 216 Def / 52 SpDef
Relaxed nature (+ Def, - SpD)
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Hydro Pump
I stuck with Hydro Pump to help me deal more damage to Skarmory again (note the beat stall pattern lol). The EVs help me survive a +2 Outrage from neutral attack nature Garchomp and 2 Life Orb Shadow Balls from Gengar, even after Stealth Rock damage.
Gengar@choice scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 4 Def / 252 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Timid nature (+ Spd, - Atk)
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast
- Thunderbolt
- HP Ice
Note the Hidden Power Ice lol. Garchomp was _that_ much of an issue. Also helped against Dragon Dancing Salamence, I guess, but before Platinum they weren't too much of an issue.
Lucario@life orb
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Adamant nature (+ Atk, - SpAtk)
- Swords Dance
- Close Combat
- Bullet Punch
- Extreme Speed
The main point of this team. Note that while I generally advocate Crunch as the main move for Lucario, on this team I settled on Bullet Punch to help me deal with Aerodactyl and Gengar, both of whom annoy me more than Celebi (or Cresselia / Dusknoir).
Infernape@Choice Scarf
Ability: Blaze
EVs: 156 Atk / 232 Spd / 120 SpAtk
Naive nature (+Spd, -SpDef)
- Close Combat
- Fire Blast
- ThunderPunch
- Hidden Power Ice
Hidden Power Ice again, lol. Damn, Garchomp must have been a bitch. This reaches 341 Speed without the Scarf, to allow me to outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Dugtrio and Dragon Dancing Salamence / Gyarados and all Choice Scarf Garchomp. The Special Attack reaches 274, or enough to ohko 4 hp / 0 spdef Garchomp after SR + 1 Toxic Spike turn damage on average. Rest are put into attack so I can deal more damage with Close Combat. In Platinum I would probably dumb ThunderPunch for U-turn and Hidden Power Ice for Stone Edge (as I have for Choice Scarf Infernape on my other teams).
Salamence@Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 76 Atk / 180 Spd / 252 SpAtk
Rash nature (+SpAtk, - SpDef)
- Draco Meteor
- Fire Blast
- Brick Break
- Roost
Woooo! Have loved this set since the beginning of DP, and love it now in HG / SS. Classic Mixmence, my second favorite Salamence set (after bulky DD Roost :P). This team needs something to help deal with general stall, and there isn't much of a better pokemon than Classic MixMence to do that lol. I didn't have an explanation in my word document, so my best guess regarding the EVs is that I reach 280 speed to get Heatran and Lucario, max Special Attack and dump the rest into Attack.
(You'll notice a significant psychic weakness that...means nothing lol. For a team like this it is important to have typing advantages, but against Psychic it is irrelevant)
SO, back to the original point about RMTs and their effects on the metagame. I give this team and myself credit for 3 significant changes to the metagame around that late november 2007 - early february 2008 time period:
1.) Introducing / Making Swords Dance Lucario popular.
At that time, everyone was getting on my ass for Swords Dance Lucario (including Smogon badged members, lol). The statement "Choice Specs Lucario is better" was thrown at me so often that I laughed every time it swept. Some people may have tried out bulky version of SD Luke or even variations of that, but no one used it consistently or made an effort to popularize it.
2.) Introducing / Making non Choice Scarf Lead Roserade popular.
People constantly asked, "why Toxic Spikes (or spikes initially) on such a frail Pokemon?" I don't think people ask that anymore. I actually give credit to MoP for giving me the initial idea of Roserade. He ran a Choice Scarf Roserade lead on one of his best DP offensive teams, and I figured I would give her a try because I needed entry hazards. Worked out in the end =)
3.) Removing the idea that super fast Pokemon were "wasted" with Choice Scarf.
Boy was this a popular one. Apparently it was a waste to Choice Scarf Gengar and Infernape and give them Speed boosting natures at that. Note that Choice Scarf Alakazam and Weavile were scene, but both were neutral Speed nature and also thought of as gimmicks. But people eventually came to realize that giving Choice Scarf to speedy Pokemon with great coverage moves allowed them to generalize purpose on their teams, instead of become too specific and lose to random threats. Choice Scarf Gengar and Infernape help become general checks against offense, helping me not against only Garchomp, Salamence, and Gyarados, but also Agility Empoleon / Metagross, Kabutops in rain, and Choice Specs Jolteon.
So, instead of bragging about how well this did on ladder (as I initially did lol), I'd rather mention the lasting effects this team had on the metagame. Swords Dance Lucario is one of the most popular offensive options right now, and various good players can attest to the utility of Lead Roserade. People now also extremely liberal with Choice Scarf and Choice Scarf +nature Gengar is semi popular.
There it is, the second most popular (in terms of views) at the time RMT of the DP generation =)
Enjoy.
(note all commentary in this thread is for the hitmontop / heatran version of the team that was posted in 2007)