Double Battle Strategies - Overview for VGC Rules

[Red5bv06]

With the recent announcement of the Video Game Championships (link), I started seriously looking at competitive Double Battle teams in the Pokémon: Platinum video game. Much to my chagrin, I noticed there wasn't much of a community for this important part of Pokémon battling.

Double Battle Strategies: A Brief Overview

by Bryan Varnell
April 26, 2009
Format: VGC Rules: Double Battle, Lv. 50, Restricted Legendaries

I. Introduction
Most online battling focuses on Single Battles, and not much information has been compiled with Wi-Fi or Pokémon Battle Revolution data for the Double Battle system. Simply put, Double Battles aren't very popular. I sort of knew this going in, but I was shocked at how little even hardcore video game sites had to say on the matter. Sure, there is a thread here or there or a RMT buried on the forums, but there is really no metagame. I will attempt to analyze the Double Battle metagame and provide an overview of the major strategies both to use and look out for in that metagame. Most of this is hypothetical, but I hope that a broader understanding among the video game community will allow for deeper and more fun battling.

II. History
Double Battles (DB) were first introduced in Pokémon: Ruby and Sapphire. They were largely a novelty with very little use in the actual story except for one Gym. In Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl, DBs were kept around. This time, they were given an expanded role. Instead of one Gym, DBs were used in several semi-side quests where the hero would team up with another trainer to battle their way through a forest or cave. DBs were still largely ignored in the core gaming front and therefore on the competitive front.

So why aren't Double Battles as popular? The obvious reason is that they are so radically different from Single Battles. Most trainers who enjoy the highly competitive Single Battle metagame don't devote time to training an entirely different team. That isn't to say that DBs aren't as competitive or strategic as Single Battles. Instead, I will attempt to prove the opposite.

III. The Basics
This section will detail the major differences that set Double Battling apart from its Singles counterpart.

Firstly and most obviously, since two Pokémon battle at once, there is less emphasis placed on type coverage on more on support and power. This leads into the primary DB rule, two Pokémon often team up to be more devastating than they could be alone. This will be the crux of this article. DBs also tend to go by much more quickly than Single Battles. This is due to the fact that two Pokémon are vunerable at once and only four Pokémon are used total. This has several far-reaching effects. Switching isn't as common, so Spikes and Stealth Rock are negligible. Also total field effects (weather, trick room, etc) last a larger portion of the battle and are exponentially more popular. Defenses also become more important in DBs. Instead of the standard EV investment, a few EVs added to the defenses can change a 1HKO to a 2-3HKO. Lastly, I previously mentioned support, but support moves (like Protect, Follow Me, Helping Hand, and Trick Room) are used to extend the battle and setup a sweeper much more effectively than in Singles.

These are the main things to know about DBs.

IV. Strategies
Next, I will list the major strategies I have observed and read about, followed by the common Pokémon used in that strategy.

1. Trick Room
   Trick Room swaps the battle order so that the slowest Pokémon goes first. This can be used as part of a couple of strategies. Dusknoir is the most common Pokémon to use Trick Room.
   1. Low Speed - Anything that would traditionally be disadvantaged by speed is instantly made better. This includes slow attackers like Rhyperior and Metagross as well as defenders like Dusknoir itself. An important subset of this strategy is the low level Smeargle who's wide variety of attacks will allow it to be extra dangerous when attacking first. (See Focus Sash/Endeavor/Extremespeed).
   2. Quick Exploders - Anything with extra high attack can get a quick Explosion in before the opponent has time to react. Common slow exploders are Azelf, Metagross, or anything with a big attack.
2. Explosion
   This has already been mentioned above, but Explosion is also a popular move without Trick Room. Often the exploder's partner will use protect to shield itself from the explosive damage. Common exploders are Metagross, Snorlax, Licklicky, and Gengar. Watch out for the ability Damp on a Golduck, as it will prevent exploding.
   1. Endure - As mentioned above, Pokémon in pairs require a great deal of synergy. This is where the Endure/Explosion combo comes in. The Pokémon who endures the explosion is set for a sweep with a move like Reversal and a Salac Berry. This is true for Heracross and Lucario.
   2. Ghosts - Exploders are often paired with Ghosts since they are not affected by Explosion. Also, the Ghost can usually turn right around and blow itself up. Gengar and Dusknoir are the obvious choices.
   3. Setup - Often the Exploder can be setup to allow for the maximum attack. This is often used with Trick Room, Protect, or Follow Me support. Belly Drum Snorlax while the partner uses Follow Me is a prime example. Snorlax is then free to explode at maximum attack. Using Swagger on a Lickylicky with the Own Tempo ability effectively doubles its explosion for free.
3. Weather
   Weather is huge DBs. I will discuss each effect in as much detail as possible. There are also two ways to start each weather effect. Either with an auto-starter or the specialized attack.
   1. Rain - Rain is the most used of the weather effects. The primary strategy behind most of the other weather effects are anti-Rain. And there is a good reason Rain is the most common: it has the most available strategies. Rain must be activated by the Rain Dance since Kyogre isn't available in this set of rules.
      1. Speed - Anything with Swift Swim is important to the Rain strategy. Swift Swim turns something with mediocre speed into a viable sweeper. Kingdra, Ludicolo, and sometimes Golduck are common users.
      2. HP Abuse - Several Pokémon can abuse the Rain with the Water Absorb or Dry Skin ability. Since Surf hits all Pokémon, it can simultaneously hurt the opponents and heal the partner in the Rain. The great defense-oriented Vaporeon, Lapras, and Toxicroak all abuse this Rain Dance strategy.
      3. Electric - Anything with Thunder benefits from the 100% accuracy afforded by Rain Dance. Most notably is probably Jolteon and Zapdos.
   2. Hail - Hail is mainly sent out to disrupt the rain. It also benefits from having an auto-starter in Abomasnow, but can also be started with the move Hail. It also gives Blizzard 100% accuracy which can be deadly to Flying, Ground, and Dragon types. Glaceon is another common Pokémon to benefit from Hail.
   3. Sun - Sun must be called with Sunny Day without Groudon, so it is less used in DBs. The strategy with Sun is similar to the HP Abuse Rain strategy using Heat Wave and Flash Fire. There is some Solarbeam abuse also.
   4. Sand - Sand can be auto-called with Hippowdon in this format (but losses the beastlyTyranitar). Using Sandstorm an alternative to Hippowdon or to keep the sand around if Hippowdon is KO'ed. This is probably the least used of the weather effects since not many Pokémon benefit from it. The notable exception is Garchomp. Since Garchomp is allowed in this format (it is considered an Uber in Singles), it gets added evasion in the sand.
4. Skill Swap
   Skill Swap is an attractive looking attack in DBs, but is often too complicated to actually pull off. It is important to mention none-the-less.
   1. Self - It can be used to get rid of a harmful ability or add a useful ability on yourself. This can be seen when removing Traunt from Slaking, No Guard from Machamp onto something that needs the added accuracy more, moving Serene Grace onto an effective flincher, and many other random combos.
   2. Disruption - Skill Swap can also give a useless ability to the opponent or remove a helpful ability like Levitate.
5. Follow Me
   Follow Me is important to discuss because it has no use in Singles, but is extremely useful in DBs. Follow Me draws all attacks to the user. The most common Follow Me users are Togekiss and Clefable for their high defenses. While the opponent is busy attacking the Follow Me user, the partner is free to set up and sweep. However, attacks that hit multiple opponents will still hit the non-user.
6. Lightning Rod
   Lightning Rod is also important to mention. Rhyperior and Marowak are common for their ability to provide protection to a Water or Flying partner.
7. Motor Drive
   Motor Drive is similar to the Water Absorb and other abilities, but is much more specialized on Electrivire. Often used with Zapdos/Discharge.
8. Perish Song
   This is a very risky attack that can pay off huge in doubles. Perish Song can potentially KO half of the opponent's team in three turns. There are a couple of ways to effectively use Perish Song without also crippling your team.
   1. Exploder - Exploding sure is a common strategy, right? At least in my book it is. By leading with an exploder, ideally you can take out two of your opponent's Pokémon. Then the Perish Singer can be brought in the exploder's spot and set up the song with no way for the opponent to switch out. They are basically destined to perish unless they can KO all of your Pokémon in those three turns. Attacks like Protect and Endure can hopefully stall long enough for the Perish Song to win out.
   2. Shadow Tag/Arena Trap - This is similar to above, but Shadow Tag and Arena Trap are abilities that guarantee the opponent can't switch out. They are unique to Wobbuffet and Dugtrio, respectively, in the fully evolved category. The downside is that they, too, must go down with the count, but it could be worth it.
   3. Soundproof - This ability on your partner makes the song lopsided since it will not be affected at all by Perish Song. You still have to keep the opponent from switching out, though.
9. Anti-Setup
   As you can see from above, most of these strategies involve a few turns to setup before they are effective. As a result, anti-setup is a huge factor to consider. Several moves are common.
   1. Taunt - Taunt doesn't let the opponent use any non-attacking moves. So Protect, Follow Me, Trick Room, Rain Dance, stat uppers, etc are unusable.
   2. Imprison - Mainly used on Dusknoir, Imprison doesn't let the opponent use any moves that the user has. So a Dusknoir with Imprison/Protect/Trick Room/Shadow Sneak can shut down several popular strategies.
   3. Fast Power - The main example is Fake Out. A lot of Pokémon on DB teams pack Fake Out because it basically gives your partner a free turn of setup. Fake Out is guaranteed to flinch, so it can neutralize the biggest threat to its partner for that all important one turn. Anything fast with a high flinch rate like Aerodactyl/Rock Slide is also popular.
10. Straight Attacking
    There are also of course the pure attack teams. These teams will have up to 8 different attack types in both Physical and Special to cover just about everything. These are usually teams cannibalized from Single Battles. This isn't as effective as most straight attacking duos are outclassed by the more creative DB combos above.

V. Conclusion
That is a lot of strategies! I hope to have proved that Double Battles are just as deep and fun as Single Battles. Also, I want to encourage greater competition in the format for the upcoming Video Game Championship. Lastly and most importantly, I wanted to generate a conversation about the Double Battle format so that the metagame can be refined and become as popular as the Single Battles.

Please comment below. I encourage comments about why my strategies are wrong, inclusions/ommisions I can make in each strategy above, and new strategies to add. Mainly I want discussion!

[Regis_Neo]

Good basic overview of doubles, I like.

Garchomp is perfectly fine for here, and imo he was banned for dumb reasons anyways (even if it's 1 less threat to worry about in OU). Don't mention Serebii, just for the simple fact people will laugh you off if you mention it being competitive.

Regarding Sand teams, Sandstorm is also TM still; granted, I personally think it's worthless to set up in doubles, but it's an option if the Hippo doesn't fit in your team.

One of my more favorite (but gimmicky and hard-to-pull off) strategies is to get the opponent down to 2 Pokes, then use Perish Song (obviously with a Soundproof Pokemon on board, or ability to switch) and wait out 3 turns to win. Absolute fun if you can do it. Also, one I personally used before is dual screens (Reflect + Light Screen); just about no Pokemon runs Brick Break here, so they're relatively safe to set up, and having a what...25%? damage reduction is nice for 5-8 turns.

[ultimatedra]

Very well done!
Sticky'd!

[soxrcol]

Originally Posted by Red5bv06

Rhydon and Marowak are common for their ability to provide protection to a Water or Flying partner.

you mean Rhyperior?

[mine is cooler]

Great article!

Good job!

[Red5bv06]

Originally Posted by Regis_Neo

Regarding Sand teams, Sandstorm is also TM still; granted, I personally think it's worthless to set up in doubles, but it's an option if the Hippo doesn't fit in your team.

One of my more favorite (but gimmicky and hard-to-pull off) strategies is to get the opponent down to 2 Pokes, then use Perish Song (obviously with a Soundproof Pokemon on board, or ability to switch) and wait out 3 turns to win. Absolute fun if you can do it. Also, one I personally used before is dual screens (Reflect + Light Screen); just about no Pokemon runs Brick Break here, so they're relatively safe to set up, and having a what...25%? damage reduction is nice for 5-8 turns.

Thanks for the positive review. Regarding Sandstorm, I didn't mention it just because it is not common. I didn't mean to imply Hippowdon was the only option, just the most popular one. I will edit that section slightly.

I was going to say something about Perish Song, but I thought it was a little too specialized and risky. I personally like the strategy though, so I'll add it in somewhere.

Dual screens is a good strategy, but I don't really have much to say about it. Heh. It's not that much different from Single Battles, just quicker.

Originally Posted by ultimatedra

Very well done!
Sticky'd!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by soxrcol

you mean Rhyperior?

Yes, I meant Rhyperior. I'm still stuck in the 3rd (and mainly 1st) generation. I forget about all these new-fangled evolutions.

Keep the comments coming.

[CyberManectric]

Were you thinking about mentioning Entry Hazards? I really think Entry Hazards should be touched on in this thread.

Stealth Rock is reasonably popular. Depending on the opponent's type determines how much HP is chipped off. Pokemon double weak to Rock attack (ie: Bug/Flying) instantly lose half of thier max HP. Single weakness lose one Forth, nuetral loses one eighth, resistant loses 1/16, and double resistant loses 1/32 max HP. Aerodactyl, Gliscor, Swampert, and Skarmory are the most common pokemon using said move.

Spikes and Toxic Spikes are feasible, but hardly ever used compared to Stealth Rock since the Spikes require more then one "layer" to be most effective. Plus, Stealth Rock hits Levitators while the two different Spikes moves don't. Tentacruel and Omastar are two good candidates for Toxic Spikes and they both can slide into a Rain Dance team.

Entry Hazards can be abused by having a pokemon knowing Roar or Whirlwind on team. Roar is also a TM, making it available to almost every pokemon out there. Using an attack will force the oppent to switch and be hit with an Entry Hazard once more. Skarmory and Aerodactyl are two good candidates to use these moves in combination with Entry Hazards.

If one wishes to counter Entry Hazards, any pokemon knowing Rapid Spin will do. Starmie, Forretress, and Donphan are the most popular Rapid Spinners out there.

Hope this info helps. Feel free to copy, paste, and/or edit this into the first post if you want to Red5bv06
~Cyber~

[Red5bv06]

Originally Posted by CyberManetric EX

Were you thinking about mentioning Entry Hazards? I really think Entry Hazards should be touched on in this thread.

I mentioned them in the "basics" section. I considered them, but entry hazards aren't as effective in DBs since there are usually a lot less switching simply because there are less Pokémon and many more options available to a resistant Pokémon than switching to another attacker. You may get two or three damages from Stealth Rock and Spikes, but not the 10-15 in a Single Battle team. I might expand on that in the basics section. Just what I summed up here. Give it it's own paragraph, but I don't think it is one of the best strategies in DBs. Singles is a whole different story though.

Wow, I like the comments. Keep 'em coming. I'll probably post a few teams in a couple days to get rated. I'm looking at a rain team and a disruption team.

[bulbasnore]

Off to the front page with you! Excellent overview. Now, let the comments continue the excellence!

[Jaeger]

Comeing from a guy who has tried 3 times to complete Diamond/Platinum and still hasn't, not enough free time. This video game battleing is far more complicated than I gave it credit for. Back in my day you just cloned your Mewtwo 6 times and won. How times have changed.

[Chompy]

Slaking + Claydol/Espeon using Skill Swap= SEXINESS

[Rai]

Originally Posted by CHOMPY

Slaking + Claydol/Espeon using Skill Swap= SEXINESS

Only if you want Espeon/Claydol to go down really fast (...which in Claydol's case might be alright. Explosion anyone?) :/

I think a bit of thought should be spent towards the value of attacks that hit multiple pokemon (IE: Surf, Discharge, Blizzard, Earthquake) as opposed to ones that only hit single pokemon (for comparison: Hydro Pump, Thunder/Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, and... uh... There's really not a counterpart to the amazing Earthquake XD)

Helping Hand might be worth mentioning too. Boosting your partner's power is probably useful when using multiple-opponent hitting moves. Not to mention quite a few pokemon learn it (Notably Eevee-lutions, Latias/Latios, Blissey, Electivire, Pixie Trio, Cresselia) so it can be used in interesting ways...

[Absoltrainer]

Good article. I havn't done much with the new DS games, but in the GBA games, Baton Pass was always a BIG move, power up a pokemon, then Baton Pass the power ups to the already powered up Pokemon.

[Regis_Neo]

Originally Posted by Absoltrainer

Good article. I havn't done much with the new DS games, but in the GBA games, Baton Pass was always a BIG move, power up a pokemon, then Baton Pass the power ups to the already powered up Pokemon.

The only thing is, it's hard to do with doubles, since you'll then risk your incoming Pokemon to damage, maybe even a KO. Not very viable here as it was in singles (even isn't that viable in singles anymore due to the buttload of damage SR and/or Spikes can do).

[darkartisan]

Golduck isn't commonly used in Rain dance, although Ludicolo is, and Lapras, especially for DB's. Also look into Obi mode.

Not to mention you could even add commonly used DB pokemon, such as Smeargle, who are usually staples in DBs.

[Dragon100]

pokemon vgs is only for 9-14 years
Garchomp is the best

[Red5bv06]

Originally Posted by bulbasnore

Off to the front page with you! Excellent overview. Now, let the comments continue the excellence!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by CHOMPY

Slaking + Claydol/Espeon using Skill Swap= SEXINESS

I made a whole section about Skill Swap. It can be "sexiness" but it is hard to pull off. Since usually your opponent will be able to see that strategy a mile away and stop you. If you can get it set up though, let the good times roll.

Originally Posted by Rai

I think a bit of thought should be spent towards the value of attacks that hit multiple pokemon

I was thinking of making a section with the common moves, but I dunno the value. I could add a line about it like you suggested, though.

Originally Posted by Rai

Helping Hand might be worth mentioning too. Boosting your partner's power is probably useful when using multiple-opponent hitting moves. Not to mention quite a few pokemon learn it (Notably Eevee-lutions, Latias/Latios, Blissey, Electivire, Pixie Trio, Cresselia) so it can be used in interesting ways...

I should mention Helping Hand. I know a lot more than Minun/Plusle get it ;) I think a lot of new Pokémon can learn it through breeding in Platinum, right?
I'll look into a Helping Hand section. And thanks for all your good comments, Rai.

Originally Posted by darkartisan

Golduck isn't commonly used in Rain dance, although Ludicolo is, and Lapras, especially for DB's. Also look into Obi mode.

Not to mention you could even add commonly used DB pokemon, such as Smeargle, who are usually staples in DBs.

I mentioned Golduck because it is a Swift Swimmer, but I forgot about Ludicolo. I'll definitely add it in. Is Swift Swim or Rain Dish more common on Ludi, though? I may have to add it in a couple of places. I also need to mention that Golduck is used more for its Damp ability, since exploding is so common in Doubles. I'll make those changes.

And I mentioned Smeargle in my Trick Room discussion. I know Smeargle is a common one online, but I just don't know how common it will be IRL since it is so hard to get the right moves on it. Also, is Dark Void a legal move on Smeargle in the VGC format? I know that is a common move for Smeargle (since it disables half of the opponent's team), but I'm not sure how you would even get it to learn it.

I appreciate your input, shoot me some more detail on Smeargle and I'll definitely add more. Maybe even a whole section since it is such an interesting Pokémon (and one of my favorites).

Originally Posted by Dragon100

pokemon vgs is only for 9-14 years
Garchomp is the best

I'm not going to pick on you, but I hope I've shown that the video games have more to offer to a competitive older group (just like the TCG) and the younger crowd. Jaeger and others seem to agree with me.

And although I'm not sure how much Garchomp will influence the format, I do not think its the best, since there is even more to threaten it with the type coverage available from 2 opponents.

I hope to make this article better with your input. Keep it coming.

[PkmnManiac]

You wouldn't happen to know some basic Double teams, would ya? (pardon the pun)
I have Metagross, Magnezone, Gyarados, Vaporeon, and I might have Flygon some time in the near future.
I do have Gengar, but he's 2wice the level requirement.

[yoyofsho16]

Originally Posted by Red5bv06

I mentioned them in the "basics" section. I considered them, but entry hazards aren't as effective in DBs since there are usually a lot less switching simply because there are less Pokémon and many more options available to a resistant Pokémon than switching to another attacker. You may get two or three damages from Stealth Rock and Spikes, but not the 10-15 in a Single Battle team. I might expand on that in the basics section. Just what I summed up here. Give it it's own paragraph, but I don't think it is one of the best strategies in DBs. Singles is a whole different story though.

Wow, I like the comments. Keep 'em coming. I'll probably post a few teams in a couple days to get rated. I'm looking at a rain team and a disruption team.

Stealth Rock is easily one of the best attacks in the game. It might not be as good in DB, but it is still worth having at least 1 anti-meta with Stealth Rock.

Back to back posts merged. The following information has been added:

Originally Posted by Red5bv06

Also, is Dark Void a legal move on Smeargle in the VGC format? I know that is a common move for Smeargle (since it disables half of the opponent's team), but I'm not sure how you would even get it to learn it.

Under the move restricitons in the rules, it says:

By Smeargle’s “Sketch” move (limited to the above moves learned by Pokémon between 001 and 492)

So yes, Smeargle can use Dark Void.
Simple. When you go to battle Darkrai, save beforehand just in case, like you always would with a legendary.
Give Smeargle a Chesto Berry so he can immediately wake up from Dark Void, then use Sketch.

[Prodigiosus]

Entry Harzards are not as good as they are in Singles as they are in VGS Style.
You're only running 4 Pokemon, and most people don't switch out.
Common teams like TR also are Resistant to it, and also have Leftovers to heal that 3% damage.

[Red5bv06]

Originally Posted by yoyofsho16

So yes, Smeargle can use Dark Void.
Simple. When you go to battle Darkrai, save beforehand just in case, like you always would with a legendary.
Give Smeargle a Chesto Berry so he can immediately wake up from Dark Void, then use Sketch.

When do you battle Darkrai? They haven't given out the Member Pass yet. Have they in Japan? Either way, I doubt we will get it in the next month.

[PkmnManiac]

Originally Posted by Red5bv06

When do you battle Darkrai? They haven't given out the Member Pass yet. Have they in Japan? Either way, I doubt we will get it in the next month.

That's EASY.......he has the Toys R Us OOOOR the Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia Darkrai.

Also, can anybody please answer my question? What are some easy double team pkmn to get together?

[Red5bv06]

Originally Posted by PkmnManiac

That's EASY.......he has the Toys R Us OOOOR the Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia Darkrai.

Also, can anybody please answer my question? What are some easy double team pkmn to get together?

I didn't know you battled it.

Well, given the Pokémon you listed as what you want to use, you have the beginnings of a rain dance team. Let Vaporeon and Gyarados be your Rain Dance setups. Then use accurate thunders with Metagross and Magnezone. Couple Gyarados with Metagross so it can use EQ freely. Feel free to come up with your own strategies based on the article.

[PkmnManiac]

1. Yea, say you do a Double Team w/Smeargle and Aipom in PBR or in a free fight. That way you can Sketch.
2. I like the sound of that idea...

[Magic_Umbreon]

Very helpful guide. You are missing a few cruicial points that may also help players prepare for the VGS.

Shedinja

Saw some use in Japan. 4 pokémon and protect as a common move together with weather moves / trick room heavily limit the attack variety present on teams. If only one of your pokémon can stop Shedinja, you are taking a big gamble.

Shedinja tactic is to keep it secret and focus on KOing their pokémon that may have the moves to beat it. Many popular pokémon do not have anti-Shedinja moves, such as Kingdra and Lati@s, so you may well get a clean sweep just with Shedinja.


Level 50 EVs

EVs work differently to how they do in L100 battles. Instead of 4 EVs = 1 stat point, 8 EVs = 1 stat point. As 504 is a multiple of 8, 6 of your EVs are useless, much like 2 of the EVs in L100 pokémon.

In each stat, you are restricted to 255 max EVs. In L100 battles, the last 3 are redundant. In L50 battles, it is the last 7. Putting more than 248 EVs in a stat is waste, like putting more than 252 in L100.

If you are aiming to max out two stats like the 252/252/4 spreads in L100, you will need to use 248/248/8. If you put 252 into the stats, the 8 EVs you waste mean you lose out on the final stat point.

OK that's a wall of text for a single stat point, but I think it's important to know. And for people who wish to put 4 EVs into speed to outspeed the same pokémon... you need 8 not 4!.


L1 Kangaskhan

Very similar to Smeargle, but Kangaskhan's Scrappy ability allows it to use Fake Out and Endeavour on the ghosts that counter Smeargle. Kangaskhan and Smeargle share the same minimum speed of 5 points.

Kangaskhan doesn't get the sleep moves and every move in the game, but it gets enough to be very useful.

Swinub does the same but has snow cloak. the advantages of each need to weighed up if this is a strategy you are considering.


Anti-setup

Crobat and/or Weavile can get a fast Taunt in to stop Rain Dancers. Anything with Taunt can stop Trick Room because is it is a low priority move. Your taunter may be fake out'd though. Jolteon is a good choice for setting up Rain Dance due to its speed, but it has its own share of vulnerabilities too.


Psych Up

Share your stat boosts or steal your opponent's. Useful for calm mind and belly drum, or perhaps with swagger. Swagger is a very useful move in Doubles, as little switching occurs and soon they have nothing to switch to anyway. You can swagger your own pokémon that has a persim/lum berry too.


Weather bluffing

You can put Thunder, Solarbeam, fire moves, water moves on pokémon in a team without weather. Those moves can be used after they set up weather but you didn't have to wait the turn. One team from Japan had a sunny day / solarebeam Ludicolo, that can get the best of either weather.


Common Sense

Just my opinion here about a few of the points being made. Switching should only occur if you have clear reasons for it, I don't think there is any advantage to entry hazards. That turn you spend on doing very minimal not even instant damage allows them to setup.