Bronzong is an excellent Stealth Rock user as well as an excellent wall of both physical and special attacks. With its above average defenses and plethora of resistances, Bronzong can set up rocks and put its foe to sleep with ease. Despite its mediocre Attack, Bronzong's incredibly low Speed, combined with a STAB Gyro Ball, allows it to deal respectable damage to any sweeper, and easily OHKO fast sweepers like Weavile and Scarf Gengar and 2HKO others such as Tyranitar. Earthquake allows Bronzong to hit Pokémon that resist Gyro Ball - mainly Infernape, Magnezone and Heatran (though none are OHKOed) - which would otherwise be able to take out Bronzong with little difficulty. If you have another Stealth Rock user on your team, you can forgo Stealth Rock for the powerful finishing move Explosion. This will allow Bronzong to act as a check against any Pokemon which gives your team problems, since there are few Pokemon in OU which will not be KOed or severely crippled after being on the receiving end of what is for all intents and purposes a 500 base power attack. Alternatively, Reflect or Light Screen can be used if you feel that your team could use the support. Lum Berry is also a decent option over Leftovers if you are using Bronzong as a lead, as it will allow Bronzong to deal with sleep leads such as Gengar and Yanmega. Charge Beam is also a fine choice for the last slot, as it hits Gyarados, Yanmega, and a number of other Pokémon for super effective damage. Hidden Power Ice can also be used in the last spot to hit Salamence and Dragonite, though some Special Attack investment is needed to 2HKO them.
Similar to the previous set, except Trick is being used instead of Hypnosis. While the sets are similar, they play entirely differently. Macho Brace cuts Bronzong's Speed by fifty percent, which in turn powers up Gyro Ball to extraordinary levels now that Bronzong has a 31 Speed stat. More importantly, however, is Bronzong's ability to cripple incoming sweepers by robbing them of their item and shredding any speed advantage they ever had over your other team members. For example, Bronzong will tend to draw in sweepers like Heatran or Gyarados anticipating a weak Gyro Ball. However, to their dismay, they will be forced to give up their held item in exchange for the rather limiting Macho Brace. Choice Band is also a decent option to cripple wall switch-ins such as Swampert or Dusknoir and also provides Bronzong with quite a bit of power. If you opt for Choice Band, you may want to just maximize Attack to make Bronzong a more offensive threat. The remaining portion of the set is identical to the previously discussed wall set. The item Lagging Tail forces the holder to always move last and is a viable option over Macho Brace; however, it will not boost the power of Gyro Ball like Macho Brace will. Iron Ball is an interesting option as you can Trick it onto something with a Ground immunity and make them vulnerable to Spikes and Toxic Spikes, although it does come at the cost of Bronzong's own Levitate being nullified while it's holding it.
Bronzong is arguably one of the best transition Pokémon in the game, able to come in on his multitude of resists and force many Pokémon to switch out. This set is designed specifically to benefit the team by using every switch in to set up an 8 turn screen for the team. As far as attacks go, Gyro Ball will allow Bronzong to easily defeat fast opponents, such as Gengar and Yanmega, all of whom will struggle to do damage with the appropriate screen in place. Earthquake is always a favorable option on Bronzong for nailing Heatran, Infernape, and Magnezone switch-ins. Explosion rounds out the set by allowing a teammate a free switch in after a screen is in place. Stealth Rock can be used in the third slot if you are in need of it, but generally an attacking move is the best option.
The standard Bronzong is capable of setting up a variety of supporting moves and doing decent damage on many Pokémon with its attacking moves and good Attack stat. Usually, a supporting Bronzong is used as a leading Pokémon, as its excellent set of resistances and immunities mean it can easily set up a layer of Stealth Rock or sleep an opponent with Hypnosis before anything else. Hypnosis' reliability can be an issue at times, as it will miss nearly as much as it hits. Because of this, you may opt to use another supporting move in place of Hypnosis. Reflect and Light Screen are both excellent choices, and will give your Trick Room sweepers more peace of mind against foes they cannot OHKO and priority attacks. Gyro Ball is the reason this Bronzong is recommended to be as slow as possible; at a meager 63 Speed, Gyro Ball strikes at near-maximum power on common opposing leads such as Weavile or Gengar. Not too much is capable of withstanding a couple of STAB boosted attacks with over 120 base power, even if Bronzong's Attack stat may leave a bit to be desired. Explosion will prove the most useful attacking choice in the final slot unless you fear Magnezone to a great extent. That way, you'll be able to hopefully cause a KO on the opponent then proceed to sweep under Trick Room.
While Bronzong makes a fantastic wall with its ample resistances and many support moves, it does however lack a recovery move. This set remedies that problem. Rest and Sleep Talk allow Bronzong to become the status absorber of the team while retaining its walling abilities. Rest and Sleep Talk are, obviously, the core moves of this set, allowing Bronzong to recover any damage and detrimental status it may have acquired. With its abysmal Speed, Gyro Ball can often function at maximum base power against sweepers like ScarfGar. Earthquake gives Bronzong good type coverage with its STAB move, letting it hit Pokémon that resist Gyro Ball, namely Heatran. It should be noted that this set isn't perfect; Bronzong cannot inflict much damage to many of the common sleep inducers. These include Breloom, Yanmega, Milotic, Tangrowth, and other Bronzong. The EVs are almost identical to the first moveset. However, if you feel like this Bronzong should be your counter to the OU Dragons, use Hidden Power Ice over Earthquake. You will need 24 EVs (which you can take from Defense) and add them to Special Attack to guarantee a 2HKO on Salamence and Dragonite (though Dragonite is only 2HKOed with Stealth Rock damage). Sassy is the preferred nature for this moveset because while Relaxed is also beneficial to Bronzong by lowering the amount of damage it takes from physical attacks, Sassy is much more helpful. For example, while Relaxed lowers the amount of damage taken from Breloom's Focus Punch, it is still a 2HKO, just as it is when using Sassy nature. Also, when using Sassy, Bronzong is able to survive SpecsMence's Fire Blast, where Relaxed is unable to do so.
Very rarely is a Pokémon perfectly suited to provide almost exactly what a particular style of team requires. Then again, not many Pokémon have the utility capacity that Bronzong possesses. The EVs are set to give Bronzong more physical bulkiness, as Rain Dance will allow it to survive most Fire Blasts and Flamethrowers, the common special attacks thrown at it. 128 Attack is given to give a boost to Explosion, allowing it to always OHKO 252 HP / 0 Def Snorlax, a common deterrent to Rain Dance teams. Rain Dance teams require a few factors to be ultimately successful: long lengths of Rain Dance, Stealth Rock, and a safe switch in for sweepers to allow them to wreak havoc. Bronzong sets up Rain Dance for 8 turns with Damp Rock, allows efficient switching in by Exploding (possibly on a counter), can lessen the threat of priority attacks with Reflect, and sets up Stealth Rock, so Kingdra can get that guaranteed OHKO on Metagross and Kabutops can get that guaranteed OHKO on other Bronzong. Hypnosis' reliability is once again questionable, and generally the off chance of sleeping a threat is not worth the reliable protection Reflect affords. The reason Gyro Ball and Hidden Power Ice are ignored here is that this Bronzong isn't supposed to be an attacker or last a long time, so these moves are unnecessary. The sole purpose of this Bronzong is to come in sometime in the early to middle parts of battle (note it is not an effective lead), set up Stealth Rock, use Rain Dance, possibly set up Reflect or Hypnotize the opponent, and then Explode away, leaving 6 turns of Rain for sweepers such as Kingdra, Ludicolo, Kabutops, or Omastar.. Other OptionsA Calm Mind + Block set is somewhat viable but you'll usually be Blocking your opponents counter to Bronzong, such as Heatran or Infernape, neither of whom you'll be able to Calm Mind against. However, Bronzong does have a good special move pool, including Charge Beam, Psychic and Grass Knot, the latter of which can be used for massive damage against Rhyperior, Hippowdon and Swampert. Due to the Special Defense boost in Sandstorm though, Gyro Ball is still a better option against Tyranitar. With its many resistances and above-par defenses, Bronzong can effectively use Toxic to stall down opponents, though a lack of recovery hurts. Thanks to Magnet Pull, Bronzong fears Magnezone (and the lesser seen Probopass) if it doesn’t have Earthquake to stop it, and even that can be foiled by Magnet Rise, so using Shed Shell as your item can prove useful. Heatproof is a decent ability to fool an opponent, though you wouldn't be able to switch into Earthquake, and any Fire-type attack will tip off an opponent that you are using Heatproof. Also, switching into Spikes will give away your ability because you would not take damage while using Levitate. Leftovers is usually the preferred item, however, Lum Berry is viable so Bronzong can take a Hypnosis from fast sleep inducers, recover from sleep, and hit back with its own Hypnosis. EVsThe EVs listed for the Standard Wall and TrickZong sets may look a bit strange, however, they fully maximize Bronzong's potential. The HP is maximized because not only does it help Bronzong's below average base HP get a boost, but it allows Bronzong to take four Seismic Tosses (with Leftovers recovery). The Attack EVs allow Bronzong to OHKO Scarfed Gengar and Weavile and 2HKO Tyranitar with Gyro Ball. The Special Defense and Defense EVs maximize Bronzong's defenses, allowing it to not be OHKOed by MixApe's Flamethrower or +Speed Nature Heatran's Fire Blast. It also survives a SpecsMence's Fire Blast. Other sets use variations of the first EV spread, with either more offensive or defensive EVs depending on the style of the set. You'll want Bronzong's Speed to be as low as possible to increase the power of Gyro Ball, thus a -Speed nature along with a zero (or two in the case of Hidden Power Ice) Speed IV. OpinionWith its many common resistances, and only one weakness, Bronzong can make a fantastic support Pokémon. Its resistances to Rock, Dragon, Ice, and Ground make it a good counter against Pokémon like Weavile, Tyranitar, and Flygon, as it resists their STAB moves. Though Bronzong can take attacks like Salamence's Draco Meteor, it cannot take repeated powerful attacks due to lack of recovery. Because of this, it is recommended to have a Pokémon with Wish to help Bronzong recover HP. CountersThanks to Magnet Pull, Bronzong fears Magnezone if it doesn’t have Earthquake to stop it, and even that can be foiled by Magnet Rise. The Rotom formes are also great counters as they resist Gyro Ball and are also immune to Explosion and Earthquake. Gyarados Intimidates and resists Gyro Ball, but can be Hypnotized or hit by Charge Beam. In fact, most bulky Waters can switch in on Bronzong and slowly wear it down with Surf. Suicune is especially dangerous because it can get a Calm Mind sweep going if Bronzong is foolish enough to stay in. If Bronzong has Rest, it can outstall some Water-types though. Infernape can also switch in on a Gyro Ball and can finish off a weakened Bronzong. Heatran is in a similar boat, except it takes practically nothing from Gyro Ball thanks to lower Speed, good defenses, and a 4x resistance to Steel. It needs to be able to OHKO Bronzong or it will get slapped by an Earthquake, assuming Bronzong stays in. Moltres can come in on Bronzong pretty much regardless of what it uses, with the exception of Hypnosis and Explosion. Pressure will eat up two of Gyro Ball's precious 8 PP, and Moltres has STAB Fire attacks to hit back. Moltres also often carries Substitute to block any attempts at Hypnosis once it gets in. Charizard can use Bronzong as a way to set up a Belly Drum sweep as it usually lacks anything to really damage Charizard with, aside from Explosion (and Charizard often packs Substitute). Interestingly enough, Bronzong's most common switch-ins will dislike being Tricked a Macho Brace or Choice Band so one should always be prepared for that. Gastrodon makes an interesting counter with a resistance to Gyro Ball and Sticky Hold to prevent Trick. Flamethrower Blissey can wear Bronzong down, assuming Bronzong doesn't have Explosion. Calm Mind Blissey is much of the same, except that it can actually set up something. Celebi can use Leech Seed and easily PP stall, as even Explosion won't OHKO Celebi. Even if Celebi doesn't have Leech Seed, most sets will have more PP than Bronzong does, so they will win a PP war if it comes down to that. Celebi could also Calm Mind up and either overpower Bronzong or Baton Pass out of there. Skarmory can come in on anything Bronzong does and set up Spikes. Skarmory does have to fear receiving a Choice Band from Trick as this will essentially neuter its walling abilities. |
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