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-
Solid Rock
- Reduces damage from super effective hits by 25%.
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Sturdy
- If the wielder is at full HP, it will survive any attack. OHKO moves will fail.
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Swift Swim
- Speed doubles in rain.
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Level 5 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
54
|
- |
21 |
25 |
- |
| Atk |
78
|
12 |
14 |
17 |
18 |
| Def |
103
|
14 |
16 |
20 |
22 |
| SpA |
53
|
9 |
11 |
15 |
16 |
| SpD |
45
|
9 |
11 |
14 |
15 |
| Spe |
22
|
7 |
8 |
11 |
12 |
Overview
Tirtouga, being the cutest and arguably the most powerful Shell Smash user in Little Cup, is certainly a force to be reckoned with. While you're distracted by its cuteness, Tirtouga will either be sweeping your team with its Shell Smash set or walling your Murkrow with its support set. Thanks to its unique and cute combination of Shell Smash, Sturdy, and good bulk, Tirtouga can find a lot of sweeping opportunities. In addition, the same good bulk combined with Solid Rock and Eviolite allows Tirtouga to be a formidable defensive pivot as well. Unfortunately, Tirtouga is countered by two very common Pokemon in the metagame, Croagunk and Ferroseed. Both of the aforementioned counters also have STAB super effective moves to deal with our cute turtle.
Shell Smash Tirtouga is easily the most common Shell Smash user in Little Cup. After a Shell Smash, Tirtogua is free to destroy most teams once its checks are weakened or removed. Aqua Tail is the STAB move of choice, as it is needed for some significant OHKOs in conjunction with Splash Plate. Stone Edge coupled with Aqua Tail gives you pretty good neutral coverage, hitting Pokemon, such as Staryu and Chinchou, which resist Aqua Tail, as well as being able to smash Lileep. Aqua Jet rounds off the set by enabling Tirtouga to defeat Sucker Punch Murkrow and Drilbur in sand, as well as being a good move in general for defeating weakened Pokemon.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The Speed EVs let Tirtouga hit 22 Speed after a Shell Smash, thus letting it outspeed all unboosted Pokemon in the tier as well as many common Choice Scarf users by one point, including Snover. The HP and Defense EVs are to ensure that Tirtouga can check Murkrow efficiently throughout the match while the Attack EVs are necessary to do as much damage as possible. Splash Plate may seem gimmicky, but its power boost to Aqua Tail enables Tirtouga to OHKO standard Mienfoo at +2. Although Mienfoo is very common—and OHKOing it before it can KO Tirtouga with Hi Jump Kick is very valuable—Oran Berry is a very viable option over Splash Plate, especially with Spikes support. With Spikes, Tirtouga can still OHKO standard Mienfoo at +2 and can survive priority moves that plague Tirtouga with a Splash Plate thanks to the healing. Additionally, Oran Berry can help Tirtouga obtain even more opportunities to set up Shell Smash, check Murkrow, and sweep. As for other move options, Earthquake can be used over Aqua Jet to OHKO Croagunk at +2, as Croagunk normally walls Tirtouga, while Hidden Power Fire is useful for OHKOing Ferroseed, who would also otherwise wall Tirtouga.
Some of Tirtouga's best teammates are those who can defeat its most common checks: Ferroseed and Croagunk. Magnemite is an excellent partner, as it can trap and defeat Ferroseed with Hidden Power Fire and deal a lot of damage to Croagunk with Volt Switch and Thunderbolt, thus enabling Tirtouga to sweep with greater ease. Larvesta is another great partner, as it can comfortably switch into both Ferroseed and Croagunk, OHKO Ferroseed, and 2HKO Croagunk. If you're not running Oran Berry, entry hazards are a big problem for Tirtouga; for that reason, Staryu, Natu, and Drilbur are great teammates for their ability to get rid of or bounce back entry hazards. Ferroseed has great synergy with Tirtouga and can set up Spikes for its turtle friend, thus making sweeping a much less daunting task for Tirtouga. Finally, Hippopotas is a good partner for beating Croagunk, setting up Stealth Rock, and using its Sand Stream ability to boost Tirtouga's Special Defense.
As with any Shell Smash Tirtouga set, this one uses its power and STAB coverage to tear through weakened teams or dent the opposing team early-game for another Pokemon to sweep later on. Eviolite Shell Smash Tirtouga is an effective spin on the standard Splash Plate variant, trading power for survivability. While this set fails to net some useful OHKOs that a Splash Plate-boosted Aqua Tail does, notably on Mienfoo, it has its own unique merits, such as unparalleled setup ability. Tirtouga switches in with defensive stats of 22 HP, 25 Defense, and 18 Special Defense, which, coupled with Solid Rock, give Tirtouga an easy setup on almost any Pokemon. For example, Tirtouga can boost in the face of powerful physical and special attackers and have enough HP left to survive many turns of hail damage. In fact, while Sturdy Tirtouga is automatically hindered by hail because it will finish off Tirtouga after Sturdy activates, this set has no fear of hail. Take a look at these impressive damage calculations:
- 80 SpA Murkrow Hidden Power Grass: 68.18% - 81.82%
- 236+ Atk Drilbur Earthquake: 59.09% - 81.82%
- 236 Atk Mienfoo Hi Jump Kick: 68.18% - 86.36%
- 76 Atk Mienfoo Drain Punch: 40.91% - 45.45%
Tirtouga is also one of the very few Pokemon that can set up in the face of Murkrow, as Brave Bird does negligible damage and Sucker Punch can be evaded with Aqua Jet once Tirtouga reaches +2 Speed. Additionally, Tirtouga can choose to strike Murkrow either before or after it uses Roost depending on whether or not Tirtouga attacks with Aqua Jet, which makes predicting the moves of opposing Murkrow much easier.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Helpful teammates for Tirtouga, as with any sweeper, are those that can weaken or KO its checks. Unlike the Splash Plate Shell Smash set, this Tirtouga cannot OHKO defensive Mienfoo and Timburr; pairing Tirtouga with Shelmet provides Tirtouga with Spikes support as well as a counter to Fighting-types. Support from Mienfoo is favorable, as Mienfoo can cripple Tirtouga's checks with Knock Off. Without an Eviolite, Lileep and Porygon both have a small chance of being OHKOed by Stone Edge, and with Stealth Rock down, it becomes a dangerous 74.36%. Mienfoo can also do heavy damage to the aforementioned Tirtouga checks with its Fighting-type STAB moves. Murkrow, a Pokemon Tirtouga loves setting up on, is a common switch-in to Mienfoo and can be lured in for Tirtouga to set up on. Foongus is another solid teammate for Tirtouga, as it can put one of Tirtouga's checks to sleep as well as bait a Blizzard from Snover or a Brave Bird from Murkrow for Tirtouga to come in on. Foongus also does a good job of checking Timburr, as it takes minuscule damage from all of its attacks and can reset any Bulk Up boosts via Clear Smog. Another solid teammate is Magnemite, which can exterminate opposing Steel-types, namely Pawniard and opposing Magnemite trying to put an end to Tirtouga's sweep.
As far as alternate options go, Tirtouga does not have many. Aqua Tail can be used for general higher damage output against Pokemon that resist Stone Edge, but it does not score any notable KOs that Waterfall does not without Splash Plate and lacks Waterfall's useful flinch effect. Earthquake is another option to hit Croagunk and Steel-types, such as Magnemite and Pawniard, but Tirtouga will usually want both STAB coverage and priority, and as a result it is often hard to find room for Earthquake.
Unlike the Shell Smash set, Tirtouga forgoes a powerful boosting move in this set in order to support its team. Stealth Rock is a must on nearly all Little Cup teams, punishing your opponent for switching and stripping twenty-five percent of Murkrow's HP every time it switches in. Scald is an excellent STAB move that deals considerable damage and also has a chance to burn Mienfoo, a common Tirtouga switch-in. Rock Slide is very useful for hitting Murkrow, Larvesta, and Shelmet super effectively. Although the situation may not commonly occur due to Tirtouga's medicore Speed stat and a Relaxed nature, Rock Slide's chance to flinch an opponent is worth mentioning. Knock Off is a great overall move in Little Cup for further lessening the defensive and even offensive prowess of Tirtouga's switch-ins, removing Eviolites, Life Orbs, and Choice Scarfs. Aqua Jet is a useful priority move that can be used to take out weakened Pokemon as well as to 2HKO Life Orb Drilbur, a top threat in Little Cup.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Eviolite is mandatory on nearly all Stealth Rock users in Little Cup, ensuring that Tirtouga will find many chances to not only set up Stealth Rock, but also check common threats, such as Murkrow and Larvesta. Solid Rock, Special Defense investment, and a naturally good Defense stat ensures that Tirtouga will be taking even super effective hits well. Don't be too afraid of taking a Thunderbolt from a Chinchou or another prominent special attacker if need be, as the given set gives Tirtouga impressive 25 / 26 / 21 defenses. Relaxed is needed to take physical hits repeatedly. For example, in the later parts of a match, Tirtouga will need to be able to check SubRoost Murkrow even if Tirtouga has already been checking it earlier in the game, and the increased Defense from its nature will make a big difference. As far as other move options, Protect is an interesting option for scouting for random super effective moves, status, Fake Out, and making your opponent cry as their Hi Jump Kick misses. Because Tirtouga's best switch-ins are Croagunk and Ferroseed, Earthquake and Hidden Power Fire, respectively, are good options for luring and taking them out.
As far as teammates go, Pokemon that can take advantage of or defeat Croagunk and Ferroseed make good Tirtouga partners. Larvesta is an excellent Tirtouga partner, as it covers Tirtouga's Fighting-type weakness and can switch into and demolish Croagunk and Ferroseed with relative ease, while Tirtouga in turn covers Larvesta's Flying-type weakness. Ferroseed has near perfect synergy with Tirtouga, can switch into powerful Water-type attacks, and can set up entry hazards alongside opposing Ferroseed. When using Ferroseed in conjunction with Tirtouga, make sure that you have a very efficient way of dealing with Fighting-types. Hippopotas can provide sand to boost Tirtouga's Special Defense, take on the Fighting-type attacks that Tirtouga hates, and can relieve Tirtouga of its Stealth Rock duties, thus freeing up a moveslot for Tirtouga to deal with its own checks.
Other Options
Tirtouga isn't blessed with many other viable options. A mixed Shell Smash set with the EVs 132 Atk / 252 SpA / 100 Spe, a Rash nature, and Hydro Pump, Shell Smash, Stone Edge, and Aqua Jet is somewhat viable; however, it doesn't accomplish anything that the Shell Smash set couldn't already do. Also, a mixed Shell Smash set lacks consistency, as it relies on two moves with 80% accuracy. A bulky Choice Band set may be viable, as it still serves as an excellent check to Murkrow, but now has an extra moveslot to deal with Croagunk in the form of Earthquake.
Checks and Counters
One of Tirtouga's largest flaws is that it's efficiently checked by two common Pokemon in the metagame: Ferroseed and Croagunk. Ferroseed is arguably Tirtouga's best check, as it can take any hit, even after a Shell Smash, and either retaliate with Bullet Seed, which OHKOes Tirtouga even through Sturdy, or set up entry hazards. Croagunk's immunity to Water-type attacks due to Dry Skin, resistance to Rock-type attacks, and access to powerful STAB Fighting-type moves and priority make it an excellent Tirtouga check. However, Ferroseed and Croagunk will fall to any Shell Smash Tirtouga with Hidden Power Fire or Earthquake, respectively. Although Ferroseed is an excellent check to Shell Smash Tirtouga, it must be wary of an untimely Scald burn versus the support Tirtouga. Although less efficient checks than Croagunk and Ferroseed, Lileep and Slowpoke both do a decent job of checking Shell Smash Tirtouga; Lileep has Giga Drain to swiftly OHKO the Shell Smash set, while Slowpoke's Regenerator ability ensures that it's able to consistently check Tirtouga throughout the match. Other than dedicated walls, Choice Scarf users that can take a boosted Aqua Jet and outspeed +2 Tirtouga make good checks to it; for example, Chinchou resists Aqua Jet and can use Thunderbolt to destroy Tirtouga.
