The main reason you would use this set is with Sunny Day support, boosting Tropius to 402 Speed. With a Swords Dance, Tropius' stats are essentially 340 HP / 516 Atk / 202 Def / 210 SpD / 402 Spe, which could definitely sweep an unprepared team. Leaf Blade gives Tropius a powerful attack, while Aerial Ace and Earthquake provide useful coverage. This will probably not work in OU, though. If you want Tropius to last a little longer, Roost works well—Tropius will lose or ameliorate a number of weaknesses while still hanging on to a Ground resist.
This set is not as dependent on Sunny Day, but it still really likes it, as sun will raise Tropius' special attack to 400, which Specs will then raise to 600. Further, it boosts Hidden Power Fire, making Steel-types fear this set. Chlorophyll is still an option for this set, as Tropius won't complain about being very fast.
Tropius has very good defensive stats, especially when combined with Leech Seed and Roost. That alone makes Tropius a very sturdy wall. Although an offensive Solar Power Tropius is very powerful and usually the preferred choice, the defensive side of this Pokemon should not be overlooked. This set is best executed by switching Tropius into an attack that it resists or is immune to, Leech Seeding the incoming Pokemon, and Roosting or attacking accordingly. It is recommended that Sunny Day support is used alongside this set. In the sun, Tropius receives a speed boost and Solar Beam no longer requires a turn in order to charge. Energy Ball is a viable alternative if Sunny Day support is not available. The choice between Air Slash and Substitute is a tough. Substitute gives Tropius an immunity to status. Roost and Leech Seed heal the damage taken in order to set up a Substitute, so Tropius can utilize this move more effectively. On the other hand, Air Slash kills any Grass-types who are immune to Leech Seed. Air Slash also gives Tropius a secondary STAB attack while greatly improving its type coverage. Because Tropius already has gargantuan HP, EVs should be focused primarily on the defenses. With a lower HP stat, Leech Seed will heal more HP percentage wise, giving Tropius more chances to set up a Substitute or switch into Stealth Rock. Other OptionsYou can try to set up Sunny Day yourself, but chances are you'll be kicked out immediately after setting it up. It's best to let somebody else do your dirty work for you, particularly with Heat Rock. EVsIf you are choosing to use Tropius offensively just maximize Speed and the attacking stat of choice. If you opt to use Tropius defensively you'll want to invest in its defenses as opposed to HP as this will be more useful in taking attacks. OpinionTropius is a unique Pokémon that certainly got a lot of new options in DP—3/5 moves in the SD set, and 3/4 moves in the Choice Specs set, not to mention Swords Dance and Choice Specs themselves, as well as Solar Power, are all completely new. Whether these options are enough to make Tropius usable is another story; low speed, a crippling Ice weakness, and average STAB are problematic. Still, Sunny Day support works to make Tropius a good consideration. CountersThe Swords Dancer is a difficult set to counter primarily because it has decent coverage. Flying-types such as Altaria, Articuno, Drifblim, and the Levitating Weezing are the most suitable counters as they can survive boosted Leaf Blades and only really fear Aerial Ace if it's used at all. If Aerial Ace is absent it makes Grass and Bug-types also safe counters as long as they can pack a super effective move. The Specs set is best countered by Pokemon that have good Special Defense. Think Hypno, Grumpig, Altaria, Articuno, and Noctowl. All five of these have the best chance of walling most of Tropius's attacks. Beware of Solar Power as the boost can put Articuno, Hypno, and Grumpig into a little more trouble with either the boosted Hidden Power Fire (Articuno) or Energy Ball / Leaf Storm (Hypno and Grumpig). Fire-types can also take advantage of the sun at times and wall everything albeit Air Slash. The Tropic Roost set is more difficult to counter; however, Steel-types have the best advantage here barring Aggron who is still vulnerable to Energy Ball and has a low Special Defense. Clefable is best counter in this situation as it is completely immune to Leech Seed and doesn't fare badly against Energy Ball and Air Slash. Swalot takes neutral damage from Air Slash and can easily abuse its Liquid Ooze ability and shut Tropius down with STAB Sludge Bomb or Gunk Shot if needed. Tropius is extremely slow so anything that has decent Speed can scare off Tropius easily as he also has an abundance of weaknesses. Stealth Rock also takes quite a toll on the leafy dinosaur. |
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