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Levitate
- The wielder is immune to Ground-type moves.
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Level 50 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
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Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
50
|
- |
125 |
157 |
- |
| Atk |
65
|
76 |
85 |
117 |
128 |
| Def |
107
|
114 |
127 |
159 |
174 |
| SpA |
105
|
112 |
125 |
157 |
172 |
| SpD |
107
|
114 |
127 |
159 |
174 |
| Spe |
86
|
95 |
106 |
138 |
151 |
Overview
Rotom-W's excellent typing and stats allow it to function as both an offensive and defensive threat in VGC 2012. Through its Electric / Water dual typing, and the ability Levitate, Rotom-W has merely one weakness in the form of Grass-type attacks. Its typing and ability also allow it to resist common spread moves such as Surf, Heat Wave and Blizzard while being immune to Earthquake. These many advantages make Rotom-W an excellent team player and a threat to any team not prepared for it.
This set takes advantage of Rotom-W's incredible power and bulk, also allowing it to act as a supporter with Thunder Wave. Thunderbolt and Hydro Pump are Rotom-W's primary STAB attacks, doing solid damage to opponents which do not resist them. However, you may opt to use Discharge over Thunderbolt, as it hits both opponents and has a higher chance to inflict paralysis upon the foe. Be aware, however, that Discharge will also hit your teammate, and it is thus recommended that Rotom-W's teammate is either immune to Discharge, or packs Protect. Thunder Wave allows Rotom-W to instantly paralyze anything that is not immune to it, enabling it and its teammate to outspeed their opponents without any EV investment. Hidden Power Fire and Hidden Power Ice are also options for the third moveslot; the former gives it a way of dealing with Abomasnow and Ferrothorn who otherwise both wall this set, while the latter hits the omnipresent Dragon-type enemies super effectively. Protect is a staple in the VGC metagame and allows Rotom-W to avoid taking damage while its teammate takes out the threat.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
A Modest nature and 252 Special Attack EVs allow Rotom-W to hit its enemies as hard as possible, while 252 HP EVs maximize Rotom-W's bulk, increasing its longevity on the field. Investment in Speed is unnecessary for Rotom-W as it will outspeed nothing significant, and is thus better off maximizing its bulk. Rotom-W has excellent synergy with Ground-type Pokemon such as Mamoswine and Garchomp, taking advantage of their immunity to Electric-type attacks to spam Discharge while allowing them to do the same with Earthquake, thanks to Levitate. Mamoswine also eliminates the Grass- and Dragon-types which wall Rotom-W with its powerful STAB Ice-type attacks, making a particularly good partner.
Choice Rotom-W is the most straightforward way to use Rotom-W, as it simply aims to either outspeed or overwhelm the opponent with its powerful STAB moves. The choice of item (no pun intended) is mostly speed versus power. When equipped with a Choice Scarf, Rotom-W's wash cycles shoot up from 151 to 227 RPM, allowing Rotom-W to wash away tough stains such as weakened Dragon-types and Terrakion, not to mention those tough Focus Sash users that are a real pain to get out of your blue jeans. On the other hand, when equipped with Choice Specs, Rotom-W gains the power to wring out the annoying 252 HP Tyranitar, freeing your undergarments from that awful chafing Sand Stream 70% of the time, assuming Rotom-W has a Modest nature and sandstorm is in effect. If that weren't enough, a Modest Rotom-W's Thunderbolt absolutely electrifies 252 HP Jellicent, max SpD Togekiss, 4 HP Kingdra, and any Politoed foolish enough to even step out of the swamp without a Wacan Berry. Hidden Power and Trick are mostly fillers, though that doesn't necessarily mean they aren't useful. Trick may be a quirky move to use in VGC, but it discourages Protect, cripples Pokemon that can't use Rotom's item, and scouts what set (or at least what item) the opponent has elected to use. Hidden Power Ice is useful for the ever-present Dragon-types, though Hidden Power Fire is usable if you feel your team is too vulnerable to Ferrothorn, Abomasnow, or hail in general.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
On its own, Choice Rotom-W will often find itself in a messy situation. As it is unable to use Protect, Follow Me users, such as Togekiss, make excellent teammates to redirect any Grass-type moves aimed at Rotom-W. Fake Out users can also buy Rotom a little time to shuffle items or clean the opponent's clock with its mighty Hydro Pump. Toxicroak is a good teammate in this regard, as it not only takes very little damage from Grass-types, but also knocks in heads with Poison Jab or Ice Punch. If you're feeling gutsy, you can even elect to target Toxicroak with Rotom-W's Hydro Pump to restore its HP. Politoed's everlasting rain and Rotom-W's Hydro Pump is a match seemingly made in the heavens, and while it's raining, you can elect to use Thunder to secure OHKOs, but wait, there's more! Thunder even comes with the added bonus of a 30% chance of paralysis, and you won't have to worry about the rare-but-annoying Moody Smeargle or Minimize users quite as much. Lastly, Garchomp, Metagross, and general Earthquake users like having Rotom around so they can spam Earthquake to their hearts' content while Rotom smites anything that is immune.
Other Options
Rotom gets Will-O-Wisp, which allows it to cripple physical attackers, especially those who utilize Rock Slide and Earthquake. Signal Beam allows it to hit Psychic-, Grass- and Dark-type Pokemon super effectively such as Latios, Hydreigon and Whimsicott. Thunder is a viable alternative to Discharge or Thunderbolt, but only if you are running a rain team. Water and Electric Gems can also be used as the boost to Rotom-W's STAB move gives them immense power. An alternate EV spread of 252 HP / 160 SpA / 96 SpD allows Rotom-W to survive at least two Dragon Pulses from Kingdra and two Thunderbolts from Timid Zapdos, which is particularly useful if Rotom-W is needed to combat rain teams.
Checks and Counters
Abomasnow resists both of Rotom-W's STAB moves and can either hit it super effectively with its STAB Giga Drain or Grass Knot, or stall it out with Leech Seed and hail, fearing only Hidden Power Fire. Latios, Latias, and Hydreigon also resist both of its STAB moves while doing major damage with their Dragon-type STAB moves. Amoonguss resists both of Rotom-W's STAB attacks and does not really fear a super effective Hidden Power. It can easily draw away Rotom-W's attacks with Rage Powder or retaliate with a super effective Giga Drain. Gastrodon is immune to both of Rotom-W's STAB attacks, but can only hurt it back in return through Toxic. Latios resists both of Rotom-W's STAB attacks, is faster, and can quickly dispatch Rotom-W with Draco Meteor, but must be wary of Thunder Wave. Ludicolo can withstand a Thunderbolt, outspeeds Rotom-W in the rain, and hits it very hard with its STAB Grass-type attacks. However, like Latios, Ludicolo must be wary of Thunder Wave, as paralysis cripples it.
