Brains Over Brawn: Calm Mind In OU - Part II

By Albacore and DarkNostalgia. Art by Vederation.
« Previous Article Home Next Article »
Mega Gardevoir by Vederation

Introduction

Calm Mind is well known for its ability to give defensive threats some offensive presence; however, the opposite isn't exactly true. Indeed, defensive threats benefit from being able to both increase their defenses, which makes them harder to defeat, and become more offensively threatening, which makes it harder to set up on them and enables them to pose a greater immediate threat. On the other hand, pure defense-boosting moves are rarely seen in competitive play: while they do make a Pokémon bulkier, they don't allow it to do anything else besides lengthen the battle before eventually being critted or used as setup fodder. This is why Calm Mind and Bulk Up see usage whereas Amnesia and Iron Defense do not, even on Pokémon that get both of these.

But offensive threats rarely benefit from an increase in defenses due to simply not needing to take hits. As a result, most offensive Calm Mind users would much rather use Nasty Plot: indeed, not a single Pokémon that learns both of these moves will opt for Calm Mind rather than Nasty Plot for an offensive set. For offensive Pokémon, Calm Mind is usually a compromise.

However, this does not mean that the bulk increase gained by using Calm Mind is completely irrelevant for an offensive threat, nor does it mean that offensive Calm Mind users are nonexistent in OU. Here, we will cover the most important ones in the OU metagame, as well as a few other Calm Mind users that weren't deemed relevant or effective enough to get a full mention.

Raikou

Raikou

In late XY and early ORAS, Raikou was mainly known for all-out attacking sets with either Choice Specs or Assault Vest. But it always struggled to set itself apart from Mega Manectric, which is faster, more powerful, and sports better coverage. That being said, there is one thing it can do which Manectric cannot: use Calm Mind. And it's something it would do increasingly frequently as the ORAS metagame developed, eventually becoming its most popular set. While Calm Mind Raikou lacks the immediate power of its Choice Specs set, not being locked in a move makes it less reliant on prediction, and while the Assault Vest set may seem like a better special tank and check to Electric-types, Leftovers recovery helps Raikou handle Volt Switch users more effectively, not to mention that Calm Mind Raikou is capable of much more offensively.

Calm Mind not only gives Raikou the ability to hit quite hard after a boost but also boosts its bulk, which makes it much harder to break with special attacks. This helps it muscle past Pokemon like Heatran, Mega Venusaur, non-Unaware Clefable, and Mew, which would otherwise check it. This is especially true when running Substitute, a very useful move that prevents it from being afflicted by status effects from the aforementioned Heatran, Venusaur, and Mew, as well as Rotom-W, Mega Sableye, Talonflame, Ferrothorn, and more. But despite Substitute's many merits, Volt Switch is usually preferred, as odd as it may sound on a Calm Minder. The purpose of running Volt Switch is obviously not to set up repeatedly before firing off a very powerful but ultimately wasteful Volt Switch but rather to act as a pivot early on in the battle all the while wearing down Raikou's checks and only setting up once they have been sufficiently weakened.

How Raikou is meant to be played depends on which move it decides to run in its last slot. If Volt Switch is chosen, Raikou should just be used as an offensive pivot throughout most of the battle, switching into the Electric- and Water-types it checks, getting teammates in safely, playing around Ground-types (especially Hippowdon, which will cause huge problems for any Raikou set if it's still active and healthy), and wearing down special walls and Electric-resistant foes. Once Raikou is in a position to clean, set up a Calm Mind (preferably on something that can't threaten it like Thundurus) and attempt to clean with it. If you use Substitute, you should only attempt to sweep with Raikou if there are few Pokémon on the opposing team that can wall or revenge kill it. If this is the case, avoid sending Raikou in too early on in the battle, as it needs to be as healthy as possible in order to sweep.

Once it's able to do so, try to set a Substitute up on a status user, and then set up and clean from there. Otherwise, just use Raikou as any fast attacker, using Substitute to ease prediction and protect Raikou from status ailments. Whether using Volt Switch or Substitute, don't be too greedy when setting up, as Raikou may need to take a hit afterwards and must be relatively healthy to do so. You should also attempt to weaken or remove bulky Ground-types, through either offensive pressure or chip damage, particularly from Toxic Spikes, which provides great support for Raikou.

Keldeo

Keldeo

Possessing a great base 129 Special Attack and 108 Speed, many, at first glance, will classify Keldeo as a powerful offensive Pokémon that utilizes items like Choice Specs, Choice Scarf, and Life Orb. However, the combination of Substitute and Calm Mind is perfectly viable as well. When compared to its other sets, SubCM Keldeo loses out on Choice Specs Keldeo's sheer wallbreaking power, as well as Choice Scarf Keldeo's ability to revenge kill offensive threats. It also misses out on secondary coverage moves like Icy Wind, Hidden Power Electric, and Hidden Power Bug, which would enable it to remove its checks. However, not being Choice locked gives Keldeo much more flexibility, makes it far less prediction reliant, and gives it the ability to sweep more easily. Substitute allows Keldeo to handle balanced playstyles, as its good defensive typing allows it to set one up on a variety of Pokémon commonly found on those teams, such as Heatran, Starmie and Mew lacking Psychic coverage, Suicune, and Mandibuzz, as well as check the likes of Bisharp, Tyranitar, Weavile, Scizor, and Mega Gyarados.

Another perk of Substitute is easing prediction against more offensively-inclined teams, as well as letting Keldeo avoid Sucker Punch from Toxicroak and Bisharp. When behind its Substitute, Keldeo can spam Scald extremely freely, crippling a lot of its checks that would want to switch in on it via a burn, such as Gyarados, Mega Venusaur, Latios, Latias, Tornadus-T, and Slowbro. Putting Calm Mind into the equation makes the combination particularly potent, letting Keldeo become bulkier and stronger after every use, and after a boost or two, Keldeo can even take on the likes of Gengar, Manaphy, and Assault Vest Raikou and tear apart bulky defensive Pokémon such as Chansey, Clefable, and Rotom-W.

Early on in the battle, Keldeo should attempt to weaken its checks via Scald burns. Substitute should be used against status users like Heatran, Sableye, and Mew and against Pokémon that can't threaten Keldeo in general, such as Tyranitar and Scizor. It can also be used to ease prediction, but be careful to not use it too much: Keldeo prefers to be kept healthy, and Scald is usually the optimal move regardless. Substitute can also be used repeatedly against burned Pokémon in order to chip away at their health. There are certain situations where using Calm Mind early on in the battle is a good idea (for instance, if your opponent's answer to Keldeo is a slightly weakened Clefable), but for the most part, it's better to only use it when most of Keldeo's checks are gone. If a faster attacker is still present at that point, make sure Keldeo sets up a Substitute before it is sent out.

Latios

Latios

Latios isn't usually seen with Calm Mind, and it's easy to see why: in order to do so, it must sacrifice either Defog, one of its main draws, or a secondary coverage move to hit Steel-types, which otherwise wall Latios. But if neither of these is required for your team, Latios can act as a strong offensive Calm Minder. Despite being very powerful, Latios can struggle against certain defensive Pokémon, as its only truly powerful move, Draco Meteor, causes a Special Attack drop and forces Latios to switch out. Calm Mind fixes this problem by enabling Latios to set up on these Pokémon and hit them extremely hard the following turn. Thanks to its good defensive typing and access to reliable recovery, Latios can set up on various Pokémon such as Keldeo, offensive Heatran, Hippowdon, Mega Charizard Y, and Celebi and subsequently break past defensive Pokémon it would not otherwise be able to beat, most notably Clefable, but also the likes of Chansey, Tangrowth, and Slowking. Psyshock enables it to break past special walls, as well as opposing Calm Minders like Clefable and Suicune. And while the Special Defense increase is somewhat useful for taking special attacks from the likes of Clefable, this set is almost exclusively offensive.

The main point of Calm Mind Latios is not to use its bulk to stack repeated Calm Mind boosts, which Latios's high vulnerability to status prevents it from being able to do, but rather to set up once, preferably using the element of surprise, and then hit extremely hard. This strategy works because most Latios checks either only have the bulk to take neutral hits from it or lack reliable recovery and cannot take repeated powerful hits from it. This is why Calm Mind Latios runs Life Orb and Draco Meteor: it is more concerned about raw damage output and severely weakening its checks than durability and staying power. As counterproductive as Draco Meteor seems on a Calm Minder, it fits with Latios's hit-and-run nature, notably netting an OHKO on Bisharp after a boost. That being said, Dragon Pulse can still be used so that Latios can take advantage of its Calm Mind boost longer, while Hidden Power Fire and Surf can be chosen over Roost for coverage on certain Steel-types, but it's rarely worth sacrificing recovery.

Unlike most Calm Minders, Latios should not wait until its checks are weakened to use Calm Mind. Rather, it should use it on forced switches in order to severely damage whatever it faces. However, it should not attempt to set up against offensive teams, which employ fast attackers or priority users to check Latios, but against balanced teams, whose Latios checks are usually slower. Once Latios has set up, Draco Meteor is a safe move to use, as it almost guarantees high amounts of damage, unless Latios is facing a Fairy-type, in which case it should use Psyshock.

Mega Gardevoir

Mega Gardevoir

Mega Gardevoir is notorious for being a devastating wallbreaker thanks to its extremely powerful Pixilate Hyper Voice and great additional coverage, with Psyshock hitting Poison-types and breaking through special walls and Focus Blast dealing heavy damage to Steel-types, which resist its STAB moves. Because it needs nothing else offensively, it is free to choose a non-offensive move in its fourth moveslot. Usually, this would either be Will-O-Wisp, which lets Gardevoir cripple Steel-types like Scizor, Metagross, and Jirachi, which otherwise counter it, or Taunt, which enables it to break through Chansey and other walls by disabling their recovery. But Calm Mind is another good option, helping Gardevoir break through defensive teams even more easily.

While Taunt does this too and, crucially, prevents walls from poisoning or paralyzing Gardevoir, Calm Mind has much more of a lasting effect. A Special Attack boost makes it harder for anything to take a single hit from Gardevoir, thus making it easier for Gardevoir to completely clean slower teams once it has set up. Compared to Will-O-Wisp and Taunt, Calm Mind is usually safer and less likely to backfire against slower threats, as it guarantees that Gardevoir will at least be able to deal high damage to them. It also helps it break through Focus Blast targets such as Ferrothorn and weakened Skarmory, as it no longer needs to hit two neutral Focus Blasts but rather only one boosted Focus Blast, which it is more likely to succeed in doing.

For Mega Gardevoir, Calm Mind is much more of a secondary move than the actual purpose of the set. It should never be used against offensive teams, and even against most balanced teams, it's usually much better to just launch powerful Hyper Voices than worry about setting up. Agaiants stall teams, however, Gardevoir should attempt to set up, but only later on in the battle, after its checks have been sufficiently weakened: up until that point, just use it as an all-out attacker.

Mega Alakazam

Mega Alakazam

Mega Alakazam is, in a lot of ways, very similar to Mega Gardevoir in how it uses Calm Mind. For one, Calm Mind is relatively uncommon on it, as people usually prefer Encore's ability to take advantage of any non-offensive moves used by the foe in order to gain free turns; Substitute to dodge Bisharp's Sucker Punch, block status ailments, and ease prediction against offensive teams; or even Taunt, helping Alakazam break past various defensive Pokémon. But there is one major difference: while Gardevoir uses Calm Mind as a tool that helps it do its main job of wallbreaking even better, Alakazam instead uses it to improve its effectiveness against teams it struggles to threaten. Alakazam is primarily an anti-offense Pokémon, and while using Calm Mind makes it less threatening to these teams than Encore or Substitute, primarily because it leaves it open to being easily revenge killed by Bisharp, it helps a lot against defensive teams, many of which it has trouble against. This is why Alakazam usually carries Psychic as opposed to Psyshock: Chansey is far from the only Pokémon seen on stall that can handle Alakazam, so it generally prefers Psychic's higher Base Power, even on a Calm Mind set.

Like Gardevoir, Alakazam can take advantage of the switches it causes by boosting its offensive power, which helps it break through Focus Blast targets and makes it easier for it to clean teams. The second of these is even more true for Alakazam than Gardevoir, as the former is significantly faster than the latter and any team without a priority user or a Choice Scarf user is slower than Mega Alakazam and thus needs to have at least one Pokémon that can take at least one hit from it at +1. And while it is very powerful, Mega Alakazam can still fall short of KOing various threats such as Latios, Slowbro, and Gliscor, and Calm Mind helps it get the extra boost it needs to break past them. Again, like for Mega Gardevoir, the Special Defense boost Mega Alakazam receives by setting up isn't too important, but it does help it set up against special attackers like Manaphy, Keldeo, Latios, and Serperior, all of which are slower than it and will only be able to attack after Alakazam sets up, unless they happen to be using a Choice Scarf.

As stated above, Calm Mind Alakazam should be used just like Calm Mind Gardevoir: don't attempt to set up unless revenge killers are gone and everything is weakened to a point where Alakazam can clean after a boost, and up until then, just use its offensive moves. The main difference here is that it's much easier to remove Alakazam's revenge killers than Gardevoir's, but it's also much harder to weaken everything enough for Alakazam to clean. Calm Mind is mainly to be used against balanced teams, as a boost is rarely needed against offensive teams, and stall teams can usually handle Alakazam even after a boost regardless.

Honorary mentions

Mega Latias

While not a bad Calm Minder by any means, Mega Latias is still very uncommon, and while its Calm Mind set can be devastating for certain teams to handle, it is stopped cold by Dark-types and status users. A pure defensive set is generally preferred on Mega Latias, as it can provide more immediate utility and isn't as easy to stop.

Mega Diancie

Much like Mega Sableye, Mega Diancie has access to Magic Bounce, which means it cannot be stopped by status ailments, Taunt, or phazing, especially given that its typing makes it immune to Dragon Tail. While this may seem to make it an ideal Calm Minder, its typing, average bulk, and lack of recovery make it difficult for it to set up, and running Calm Mind comes at the cost of losing the ability to go mixed.

Slowbro

Slowbro, much like its Mega counterpart, can run a Calm Mind set that lets it act as a decent wincon for balanced and defensive teams. But unlike Mega Slowbro, it isn't immune to critical hits and doesn't have the raw bulk to sweep offensive teams quite as easily, and it's still extremely vulnerable to status ailments.

Celebi

Celebi is usually used to pass Nasty Plot boosts, but it has the option to pass Calm Mind boosts as well. While Nasty Plot boosts are more beneficial for offensive teammates, bulkier ones such as Heatran and Slowbro may appreciate the boost in special bulk, and said boost will also help Celebi set up and pass it.

Sylveon

Sylveon, much like Celebi, can run a Calm Mind + Baton Pass set; however, this leaves it with only two remaining moveslots, meaning it cannot run both Wish and Protect, which in turn means it lacks a reliable way to gain its health back. This makes it a less reliable Calm Mind passer than Celebi.

Conclusion

There is a very wide variety of Calm Minders in OU. Some are offensive, some are defensive, some can beat status users, some can beat setup sweepers, some can afford to weaken their checks throughout the battle, and some can't. So when you want to use a Calm Minder, think about what you want it to be able to do, because chances are there exists a Calm Minder that can do exactly that.

« Previous Article Home Next Article »