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Hustle
- Physical moves do 50% more damage at the cost of 20% accuracy. Increases wild encounter rate with higher level Pokemon.
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Level 100 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
72
|
- |
285 |
348 |
- |
| Atk |
85
|
185 |
206 |
269 |
295 |
| Def |
70
|
158 |
176 |
239 |
262 |
| SpA |
65
|
149 |
166 |
229 |
251 |
| SpD |
70
|
158 |
176 |
239 |
262 |
| Spe |
58
|
136 |
152 |
215 |
236 |
Overview
In a deep dark alley, there is a monster lurking, waiting to be tamed by any dragon master that dares enter its home. This monster is Zweilous. With its ability, Hustle, Zweilous packs the most fearsome Outrage of all Dragon-types, which is powered by the equivalent of base 152 Attack. This, along with Eviolite to boost its defenses, and its Dark / Dragon typing, Zweilous is a force to be reckoned with in the NU tier. There are a few things holding Zweilous back though; it has a very poor base 58 Speed, which means that several opponents will outpace and slay this beast regardless of how powerful it is. Another drawback is that it only unleashes its mighty power when it aims straight; Hustle gives Zweilous a solid power boost at the cost of its accuracy. Unfortunately, Zweilous's movepool is barren, and outside of Outrage, Crunch, and the elemental fangs, it doesn't have much else. If you are a true Dragon master, you might be able to tame the beast, and it will unleash its frightening power on all who tremble before it.
With Eviolite boosting its defenses to respectable levels and its excellent Dark / Dragon typing, Zweilous has all the tools it needs to be a great bulky attacker. Outrage is its most powerful attack, and destroys almost everything in its path. Crunch crushes Ghost- and Psychic-types without locking Zweilous into an attack, and allows it to beat Duosion more easily. Substitute is used to block status, and gives Zweilous more chances to attack in the event that it misses. In addition, it also gives Zweilous a cushion to take incredibly powerful attacks. Dragon Tail works hand in hand with entry hazards, forcing Pokemon to switch out and take damage. However, keep in mind that it only has 72 percent accuracy due to Hustle, making it a less reliable option. Fire Fang is used to hit the rare Mawile and Metang, because Intimidate variants wall Zweilous otherwise.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
There are many options that can be used in place of Fire Fang; these include Ice Fang, Thunder Fang, and Return. Thunder Wave gets a special mention, as it allows Zweilous to outrun faster opponents and KO them. The Speed EVs outrun Weezing and allow Zweilous to set up a Substitute before it can use Will-O-Wisp. Zweilous can be used on a Trick Room team with its low Speed and incredible power; if you're using Zweilous on a Trick Room team, be sure to move the Speed EVs to HP, lower Zweilous's Speed IV to zero, and give it a Brave nature. When using Zweilous, Pokemon that can switch into its weaknesses are a good idea, especially to the common Ice- and Fighting-type moves. Ghost-types, such as Misdreavus and Haunter, work well with Zweilous; their immunity to Fighting-type moves and Rapid Spin make them fine choices, and they work great in tandem with Dragon Tail. Thanks to Zweilous's resistances and decent bulk, it can pull off a decent Choice Band set, switching into resisted attacks and breaking walls with ease. When using Zwelious, entry hazards are recommended to weaken certain defensive Pokemon, and they work well if it's running Dragon Tail.
With a Choice Scarf equipped, Zweilous can outpace and KO foes it never could before. With a Jolly nature, Zweilous can outrun everything up to Pokemon with base 110 Speed, which is essentially everything in the tier. Even without an Attack-boosting nature, Zweilous still reaches an impressive 405 Attack, more than enough to obliterate its foes. Once again, Outrage is the main attack Zweilous will be using, as it 2HKOes the entire tier, with the exception of a few very bulky Pokemon. Crunch allows Zweilous to take on Misdreavus and Duosion who are able to handle an Outrage. Fire Fang allows Zweilous to take on Mawile and Metang, who would hard counter this set otherwise. Dragon Tail works well with entry hazards, weakening the opponent's team for other Pokemon to clean up later; however, its negative priority makes it paradoxical to use with a Choice Scarf. Return has no purpose outside of filling a moveslot. Despite Zweilous's average bulk, its many resistances come in handy when switching in to wreck the opposing team with Outrage.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
If you need a wallbreaker, you could equip a Choice Band on Zweilous, which gives it enough power to 2HKO the entire metagame, although it is rather slow without its fancy Scarf. Entry hazards are important on this set, as Jolly Zweilous, while powerful, is not strong enough to KO certain threats without hazard support. Dual screens are also a good idea, which allow Zweilous to switch in nearly unharmed and start spamming Outrage. Zweilous is weak to Fighting- and Bug-type moves, so a Pokemon such as Misdreavus that can take on threats, such as Sawk and Pinsir, is a good teammate.
Other Options
Zweilous has very few other moves it can use. The other elemental fangs are always options, but they don't hit anything notable. Head Smash has poor accuracy with Hustle, but it provides extra coverage against Flying-, Fire-, and Bug-types. Body Slam can be used for its higher paralysis rate, but Zweilous's other moves are usually superior. You can give Zweilous a Wide Lens, but then it loses most of its bulk, with little-to-no positive effect. Zweilous can be used alongside Hone Claws Ninjask to attempt a sweep, but Zweilous is easily picked off by priority, and is still outsped by Choice Scarf users, making it an inferior option.
Checks and Counters
There is little that can switch in on Zweilous without risking being KOed by Outrage, but there are a few options available. The best route to go if beating Zweilous is to revenge kill it. Sawk makes a pretty good check, as Sturdy can save it from being KOed if there are no entry hazards up, and Sawk can strike back with a Close Combat for the KO. Bulky Fighting-types, such as Throh and Machoke, are good choices when attempting to slay this two-headed monster. Gurdurr gets a special mention, as it can tank an Outrage and Drain Punch Zweilous to get its HP back, or just use Mach Punch for the KO. Probopass and Mawile are the only Pokemon that can switch into Zweilous and wall it. Furthermore, Mawile also has Intimidate, which effectively neuters Hustle's Attack boost. Bastiodon can also wall Zweilous, but can't do anything back to it. Physically defensive Murkrow can come in and lower Zweilous's Attack with FeatherDance, as well as denting it a little with Brave Bird. Perhaps the greatest downfall of Zweilous is its own ability; it often makes the two-headed Dragon's attacks miss at inappropriate times, which can shorten its lifespan considerably.
