The Most Complete and Comprehensive Guide to Balanced Hackmons

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The Complete and Comprehensive Guide to Balanced Hackmons


Introduction:

Balanced Hackmons, usually referred to as BH, is an interesting tier where any ability or move is allowed on any Pokemon. Naturally, as suggested by the word 'balanced in the title, there are a small handful of bans placed on the Pokemon, moves, and abilities in the tier, these being Huge Power, Pure Power, Wonder Guard, Arena Trap, Shadow Tag, and OHKO moves. With these bans in place to differentiate the tier from regular Hackmons, Balanced Hackmons is a very diverse and rapidly changing metagame with creativity is at its finest. Despite the almost infinite possibilities allowed in the tier, the metagame is very stable overall, with some sets and Pokemon valued more highly than others.

This is a guide for you, the reader, presumably someone who would like to either get into or improve at balanced hackmons. It will give you some of our best tips and tricks, and provide an in depth analysis on many facets of the tier. Ultimately though, we'd like to let you know that Balanced Hackmons is a unique tier that is constantly shifting, and gives you the choice allows you to be creative. If anything, we greatly encourage you to think out of the box - pick the pokemon you like, the moves you think you need and just have fun! This guide might help you, but do not be limited by what we say; this text shows you a window into the tier at this point in time, and because of the shifting nature of the tier, it may soon become obsolete, so do not be bound by exactly what is written here, as that would be missing out on one of the most important and beautiful qualities of Balanced Hackmons relative to the other tiers - it allows you to do nearly anything you desire.

Table of Contents:

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1. Metagame Defining Abilities
-Magic Bounce
-Imposter
-Prankster
-Unaware
-Mold Breaker
-Poison Heal
-Magic Guard
-Contrary
-Weather Inducing Abilities
-Drizzle
-Sand Stream
-Drought
-Snow Warning
2. Noteworthy Abilities
-Insomnia
-Scrappy
-Sturdy
-Multitype
-Regenerator .
-Sheer Force
-Tinted Lens
-Adaptability
-Magnet Pull
-No Guard
-Normalize
-Immunity abilities
-Illusion
-Suction Cups
-Harvest
-Serene Grace
3. Support Moves
-Rapid Spin
-Aromatherapy
-Knock Off
-U-Turn
-Spore
-Magic Coat
-Heart Swap
-Dragon Tail
-Gastro Acid
-Recovery
-Trick
-Perish Song
-Whirlwind
-Hazards
-Imprison
-Destiny Bond
-Psycho Shift
-Curse
-Destiny Bond
-Skill Swap
-Substitute
-Leech Seed
-Taunt
-Copycat
-Trapping Moves
-Recycle
-Baton Pass
4. Notable Offensive Moves
-Judgment
-Nature Power
-Psytrike / Secret Sword
-Facade
-Facade
5. Common Sets and Threats
-Arceus
-Archeops
-Blissey
-Chansey
-Cresselia
-Darmanitan
-Deoxys-A
-Deoxys-S
-Dialga
-Escavalier
-Ferrothorn
-Gengar
-Giratina
-Gliscor
-Groudon
-Heatran
-Ho-Oh
-Jellicent
-Jirachi
-Kyogre
-Kyurem-B
-Kyurem-W
-Landorus-T
-Lati@s
-Lugia
-Meloetta-P
-Mewtwo
-Palkia
-Rayquaza
-Regigigas/Slaking
-Regirock
-Registeel
-Reshiram
-Rhydon
-Shaymin-S
-Shedinja
-Skarmory
-Shuckle
-Terrakion
-Thundurus
-Virizion
-Zekrom
-Weedle
7. Summary and Credits

Abilities:

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Magic Bounce

Magic Bounce is an omnipresent force in Balanced Hackmons. It's usually mandatory on every team and is responsible for the keeping of moves like Stealth Rock and Spore at bay. Magic Bounce is used so much that Mold Breaker is used almost solely to negate it. For most teams you will want a tanky Magic Bounce wall with some form of recovery and the move Aromatherapy. This is because the ability to cure status for other team members is invaluable in a tier with no sleep clause and spore running wild, and Magic Bounce walls are the least likely to get slept, unless of course you use insomnia. You will also need a recovery move to keep your bouncer alive. The other 2 moves on a Magic Bounce wall are generally filler moves and are up to the user. Things like hazards, Dragon Tail, Knock Off, Perish Song, substitute and U-turn are common moves on these Pokemon. Pretty much any bulky Pokemon can effectivly run a Magic Bounce set, however of particular note are flying pokemon such as Lugia and Skarmory, as Prankster Nature Power (which becomes Earthquake) + Spore is a common sight in the metagame. Another thing to look for in a Magic Bounce wall is a bulky Steel type that can take Facades from a Poison Heal Regigigas. There is a popular Regigigas set which uses a combination of Spore, Dragon Tail, and Facade to sleep any non-Bounce walls and wound the Magic Bouncers with Facade. Popular Magic Bounce walls include Lugia, Skarmory, Dialga, and Giratina.

Imposter

While it is limited in use when confined to the base 48HP Ditto in standard tiers, in Balanced hackmons Imposter can be used on higher base HP Pokemon (Chansey and Blissey) to almost game-breaking effect. Chansey is usually the better choice, boasting a still-active Eviolite after transformation and hence sporting massive bulk using its HP and the opponent's defences. Blissey however is still an option, should the player desire to win speed ties via a choice scarf or use another item, although Chansey can often surprise foes by using an item other than eviolite. Imposter is great because it acts as a safety net in many situations, allowing you to copy an opposing sweeper while maintaining colossal bulk, in many situations reversing a potential sweep. Imposter is usually the reason why most players find it mandatory to have hard counters for their own Pokemon and also the reason why many sweepers run Substitute. Subsitute causes Chansey to fail to transform on switch-in, however Chansey can also run Skill Swap, which goes through Subsitute and turns the opposing Pokemon into Chansey, crippling them. Chansey will also fail to transform if facing a Pokemon with Illusion. Often, a Pokemon using illusion will boost its attack and use ExtremeSpeed. This is why it is highly recommended to run Fake Out, which has higher priority and can break the Illusion so it can be copied on a different switch in. The aforementioned Skill Swap is also useful, and recovery finds it's way onto many an Imposter Chansey set.
Using an Imposter Chansey brings many interesting strategies to the table. If you ever find yourself lacking a utillity move such as Rapid Spin or Aromtherapy, you can always transform Chansey into an opponents support Pokemon, and use their copy. Imposter Chansey is also notorious for being able to infinitely PP stall. By attacking/healing with the 5 PP Chansey gets with each move and then switching out constantly, Chansey can slowly wear down an entire team without ever running out of PP. the epitome of this concept is in double Chansey teams where, after exhausting your PP with one Chansey you switch to the other and start the process over again. 200 turns later your opponent has run out of recovers and quits out of sheer frustration. Despite her extreme versatility, all is not lost when facing the fat pink demon as there are a multitude of options to circumvent Imposter and its death grip on the tier. First of all Imposter, does not copy items, meaning that Judgment from an Eviolite Chansey will be normal type. This fact allows pokemon such as Arceus-Ghost or Giratina to be armed with a Spooky or Draco Plate and be completely immune to counter-attacks from imposter Chansey. Another method is to use attacks that you are immune to but an imposter is not, for example spore on a Poison Heal Pokemon, Knock Off on an Arceus forme, or Fire Spin on a Shed Shell Pokemon. Additionally, Happiness rating on a Pokemon is not copied. This can lead to using Frustration on a Pokemon to make a Happy Imposter have a move with nearly 1 BP. It's also worth noting that Chansey is only as good as it's opponent, and as such can sometimes not pull it's weight within a team.


Prankster

Prankster is an interesting ability which had the misfortune of being given to Pokemon who could not completely take advantage of it. In Balanced Hackmons, however this completely changes as Prankster and every move to abuse it are available on every Pokemon. Of particular note are the moves Nature Power, Spore, Destiny Bond, Substitute, and Heart Swap. Nature Power is a non-attacking move that when used turns into Earthquake, meaning that it is essentially a priority earthquake. Anybody that has faced either Breloom or Amoonguss know that Spore is an extremely powerful move. This is even more true when it is a priority spore and is able to stop sweepers in their tracks. Heart Swap is a move most people have never seen before in standard tiers. This is because it is Manaphy's signature move and is completely unsuited for Manaphy. It swaps the stat boosts of you and you opponent. With Prankster this allows you to steal boosts from opposing sweepers and put them to use for yourself or baton pass to another teammate. Destiny Bond nabs a kill against an overzzealous sweepers who try to kill the Destiny Bond Pokemon right away, taking them down with it. Common Prankster users are pokemon that can take adantage of STAB Earthquake such as Groudon, Landorus-t, and Rhydon, however many other walls such as Lugia, Giratina, and Escalavier can take advantage of Prankster using a variety of other moves like Destiny Bond, Haze, and Copycat. Of particular note is the ability to use Prankster Whirlwind and Copycat in conjunction, allowing easy pseudohazeing against opponents lacking magic coat or magic bounce.

Unaware

Unaware was a once overlooked ability that now dominates Balanced Hackmons play. There is no better or more reliable defence aginst setup sweepers than an Unaware wall. In case you are not familiar with it, Unaware Pokemon ignore all opposing stat boosts and drops besides speed. This allows them to wall and force out even completely set up sweepers. These pokemon commonly carry Recover as it is necessary to stay healthy as well as the move Perish Song. Perish Song allows an otherwise offense lacking wall such as Shuckle or Chansey to force out virtually any sweeper found. It goes through both Subsitute and Magic Bounce and forces the would be sweeper to decide between switching or dying. While Recover and Perish Song are standards on virtually every Unaware wall, the other 2 moveslots are certainly not. Magic Coat, Foul Play, Whirlwind, Spider Web, Fire Spin, Metal Burst (on Chansey), and U-Turn are all useful choices which serve unique purposes on a set. Pokemon that are often times used as Unaware walls include Chansey, Cresselia, Lugia, Arceus-Normal, Shuckle (in sand), and Jirachi(in rain). Unaware also sees uses in PP stall strategies such as the infamous PP stall Shuckle, running a set that consists of Substitute, Protect, Recycle Leppa Berry and a filler move Shuckle can easily PP stall a lot of the metagame if he the opponent can succesfully Baton Pass an Ingrain and an Aqua Ring, however this strategy is not reccomended.

Mold Breaker / Teravolt / Turboblaze

Mold Breaker is a powerful ability that allows one to bypass common defensive abilities such as Magic Bounce and Sturdy. This lets the user of said ability set up spore or stealth rocks almost all the time. Due to the 5th gen sleep mechanics changes, and the lack of sleep clause it is possible to lock down an entire team by simply using Spore+Stealth Rock+Whirlwind in combination with Mold Breaker. This is a common set that is applicable on a wide range of Pokemon, such as Deoxys-S, Giratina, and Lugia. To counter this, people run Magic Guard or Poison Heal Pokemon with the appropriate status orbs, or the move Magic Coat which reflects many non attacking moves for a turn. Mold Breaker also happens to bypass Unaware, making Mold Breaker sweepers highly destructive, they can also abuse Spore, so nothing is safe after a few boosts, the most common Mold Breakers are Shell Smash Giratina-O/Mewtwo/Jirachi, and Belly Drum Extreme Speed Slaking/Regigigas, although Prankster Destiny Bonders such as Ferrothorn can stop a boosted Mold Breaker sweeper.

Poison Heal

Offering great recovery and immunity to status, Poison Heal maintains its status as one of the best abilities in Balanced Hackmons. Due to a great stat distrubution, Regigigas is probably the best abuser of Poison Heal. Poison Heal Regigigas is usually used with Facade, Knock Off/Shift Gear, Spore and Dragon tail, thus making it an extremely deadly sleep inducer (and sweeper if it is using Shift Gear) that is immune to its own Spores which prevents Magic Bouncers from puting it to sleep. Since the original Regigigas is poisoned, and the Imposter is not, you can Spore it, Knock Off its Eviolite and phaze it with Dragon Tail. It is also often used with Mold Breakers (to go through Magic Bounce) and Pranksters since they can easily stop a sweeper from accomplishing its goal

Magic Guard

Magic Guard is an ability of polar opposites. On one end of the spectrum you have highly offensive users of it such as Archeops with Head Smash or Ho-oh with Flare Blitz, on the other you have walls such as Giratina and Lugia with Flame Orb Psycho Shift (which induces the burn status through Magic Bounce). Defensive Magic Guard Pokemon generally use a status orb to prevent the opponent from putting them to sleep, and as such make excellent status absorbers while offensive Magic Guard Pokemon have the option of using life orb to increase their attacking power by 30% with no drawbacks.

Contrary

Contrary is one of the few abilities in the game that lets you attack with very strong base 140 power moves and boost your stats at the same time. Contrary Pokemon can snowball out of control quickly and are one of the primary reasons why Unaware walls are so highly prized. Contrary Pokemon are not faultless thoughl; if you're not careful, Imposter can and will turn your sweep back around on you. Contrary Pokemon do have a varity of techniques at their disposal to avoid this fate. First of all Subsitute is an easy way to prevent Imposter from ruining your day, in addition V-Create may be used to bolster the Subsitute's defences. Many Contrary Pokemon such as Kyurem-w and Reshiram carry a Choice Scarf, thereby virtually guranteeing they will outspeed any Imposters foolish enough to switch in. Additionally in the case that your opponent does not carry Imposter Chansey the scarf may be tricked onto an Unaware wall that is giving you trouble. Contrary Pokemon can be brutally powerful under the right circumstances, but they are usually hard walled by most Unaware Pokemon.


Drizzle

Every weather condition is helpful in its own way. In Ubers and OU, weather wars are everywhere, and for good reason. Drizzle (Rain) increases the damage of Water type moves and decreases the damage of Fire type moves, helping Forretress and Ferrothorn. It also gives Thunder and Hurricane 100% accuracy. An abuser of this tactic is Drizzle Palkia with Choice Specs or Lustrous Orb using Water Spout. Drizzle Palkia is a completely metagame defining force and one who every team must be prepared for. An often used team archtype is Palkia rain with Sturdy Shedinja. The Idea behind this is that very little can acutally take Palkia's attacks other than Shedinja. Shedinja itself is notoriously weak to sand teams, however Palkia rain is also incredibly strong aginst the same sand teams. Besides Shedinja there are other rain abusers which take the advantage of the rain provided by Palkia to sweep teams remarkably easily, the most used being Swift Swim Palkia with Tail Glow. With the speed boost provided by Rain and having it's Water STAB boosted by both Tail Glow and the said weather, Palkia can tear through unprepared teams or weakened ones with ease due to the fact that imposters cannot touch it without running a Draco Plate. Another very powerful rain abuser in the metagame is Dry Skin Heatran; With it's newfound Water immunity it can stop Palkias cold (barring a Secret Sword variant) and proceed to Perish Trap it with the aid of it's signature move: Magma Storm. It's also noteworthy that this Heatran is capable of defeating Sturdy Shedinja.

Sand Stream

As the second most common weather, sandstorm is a great weather condition. It damages all Pokemon that aren't Steel, Ground or Rock types for 6.25% of their health every turn and also gives a 50% boost to Special Defence for Rock types, making them great special walls. Some great users of Sand Stream are Ferrothorn and Regirock. Ferrothorn is used as a sort of anti-rain Pokemon because it can wall Palkia exceptionally well (barring Magma Storm and Secret Sword Palkias) and is also very slow, which means that it will almost always induce the weather after everyone. On the other hand, Regirock makes great use of the sand itself with its gigantic base 200 Defence and decent base 100 Special Defence that is boosted by 1.5x in the sand as well as gaining the ability to handle sun. Like Ferrothorn, Regirock has a low base speed which makes it very dependable at winning the weather war. Other Pokemon that are notably stronger in sand include Shuckle and Rhydon. Shuckle is one of the strongest Unaware walls in the sand due to the special defence boost it gets on top of its already impressive defences. Rhydon also becomes incredibly tanky due to the double boosts of sand and eviolite, giving you the opportunity to switch into attacks such as Dialga Draco Meteors and threatening it with a super effective Nature Power.

Drought

Sun is pretty much the polar opposite of Rain. It decreases the damage of Water type moves and increases the damage of Fire type moves. It also makes it so that Solarbeam doesn't have to charge under the sun, although unlike Hurricane and Thunder, Solarbeam is more risky because of other weathers interrupting it, making it a shaky option as a Grass coverage move. The main abuser of Drought is Drought Reshiram with Choice Specs or Choice Scarf, using Eruption (Palkia's sun counterpart). Another common user of Drought is Drought Mail Blissey, who can easily shrug off all of Palkia's attacks (barring Secret Sword.) while maintaining the ability to batter Sand Stream Ferrothorn with fire moves.

Snow Warning

And then there's Hail. Hail, similarly to sand, hail alsocauses 6.25% of every Pokemon's health to be chipped away every turn, unless the Pokemon is an Ice Type. Hail is probably the least used weather condition, because it lacks a signifigant advantage. However, there are several annoying cases where hail can be used effectively. Most notably, hail completely removes the opponent's weather, allowing you to disable their weather reliant abilities/moves. Hail also creates a monster in Kyurem-W, due to STAB Blizzard having perfect accuracy and coming from a Pokemon with base 170 Special Attack, making even dedicated special walls take heavy damage. However, the lack of abilities that take advantage of hail (Hail is the only weather without a 2x speed ability) as well as a lack of uber ice types apart from the terrifying Kyurem mean that hail's full potential this generation has yet to be fully tapped into.


Other Noteworthy Abilities:

Insomnia / Vital Spirit

Insomnia and Vital Spirit are two of the few solutions to Spore, but are bested by Magic Bounce by far, due to only affecting Sleep. Using spore on Insomnia sets themselves is generally a good idea as you do not have to fear having it reflected on yourself. The merit in these two abilities is that not even mold breaker spore can succeed in putting these Pokemon to sleep, (Spore hits but the Pokemon instantly wakes up.) making them a sure-fire counter to any spore shenanigans the opponent can throw your way.

Scrappy

In Balanced Hackmons Scrappy Rapid Spin is available as an option to completely stop hazard based stratagies. A handful of Pokemon such as Meloetta-P and Arceus are able to take advantage of scrappy as a tool to help them both spin and sweep. Another route one can take with this ability is to use a Pokemon that is highly resistant to the entry hazards it wants to spin away, such as Gliscor or Skarmory. Scrappy users can also stall for a very long time given that Rapid Spin has 64PP.

Sturdy

Usually regarded as one of the most controversial Pokemon in the tier, Sturdy Shedinja is the definition of risk vs. reward. Being outright immune to most movesets, Shedinja can act as the ultimate anti-sweeper, leaving attackers stumped on how to beat it. Shedinja can also abuse Endeavor to its full potential, bringing anything lacking a ghost type clinging to life only to be erased the next turn with priority. Shedinja can also beat imposter Chansey extremely easily in every situation as long as it carries an attacking move, something very few Pokemon can boast. It's also a godly spinblocker and can usually completely block anything that doesn't carry scrappy. To top it all off, it has a low base 40 speed and forces many switches, allowing you to to usually switch in frail sweepers for free using volt switch. Now you might be wondering why Shedinja isn't on every team. The same 1HP that grants it invincibility to all attacks takes back what it gives, by instantly killing Shedinja should it be faced with any of these: Stealth Rock, Spikes, Toxic, Will-O-Wisp, Sand, Hail, Leech Seed, Curse, Rocky Helmet, Mold Breaker, Fire Spin and co., Struggle. This is essentially what makes so many players dislike Shedinja, as it is inconsistent. However, most of these flaws can be overcome through team support, and once they are, Shedinja can and will show its face as the most infuriating Pokemon you will ever face. Almost all of these flaws are instantly fixed by having a reasonably bulky Magic Bounce user, which denies hazards and other utility moves. A scrappy spinner such as arceus is usually also a good idea, guaranteeing hazards will never permanantly show their ugly face on your side of the field. Finally, to defeat sand (Hail is extremely rare) you should have weather of your own in the form of rain/sun which is usually equipped to do well against sand. While hardly mandatory, Suction Cups is also a nice thing to have, making sure you aren't phazed into Shedinja
in an inconvenient moment.

Multitype

Despite the freedom to put multitype on any pokemon it still only works on its original host, Arceus. Additionally since Arceus needs to have both Multitype and the corresponding plate to actually change forme, the Arceus formes are in most cases outclassed in defensive roles. Several of the formes however are perfect offensive sweepers as they already have plate Judgement to get past Imposter. In particular Arceus-Ghost is an ideal tail glow sweeper as it can abuse perfect coverage with Judgment+Aura Sphere while being completely immune to non-Plate Imposters. Another Arceus forme of note is Arceus-Rock in sandstorm. Mono-Rock provides decent coverage and a resistance to Imposter judgments. Futhermore Arceus-Rock is incredibly tanky in sand and can set up Tail Glows on a wide variety of Pokemon, and act as a pivot and wall by using recover on the same set. Another interesting use of Multitype pokemon holding a plate is that they are immune to Trick and Knock off, unless the opponent is using a Mold Breaker Trick Pokemon. They are also immune to the uncommon but potentially devastating skill swap. As a cherry on top, you can choose whatever Arceus sprite you so desire to mask your Arceus, so you can easily play some mindgames with the opponent by faking a certain type. (For example switching in Arceus-Steel on a Regigigas Facade to make them think it's the far more common Arceus-Rock.)

Regenerator

In standard tiers, mostly walls and Pokemon unable to take hits have Regenerator. In Balanced Hackmons, however, Regenerator can be used to its full potential when used by fast/bulky and offensive pivots such as Soul Dew Latios/Latias, Terrakion in the sand, and Escavalier as it allows you to not waste a moveslot on a healing move such as Slack Off. Regenerator also has fantastic synergy with teams that have U-turn/Volt-Switch support. Another big niche Regenerator has is the ability to waste the foes PP of Dragon Tail by repeatedly switching and healing everything in the switch if it takes less than 32% HP. Regenerator is an amazing ability to bolster, but it needs to be on the right Pokemon for it to be successful. As I said earlier, pivots are usually the most feasible, so give it a try. Regenerator is one of the most unexplored abilities, you might just find a killer set.

Sheer Force

Works just like its UU Nidoking counterpart, except now you can expand it to any poke and any move, that's pretty much it. Bolt Strike, most notably, can deal absurd damage to almost anything if it's backed up by STAB, 2HKOing most unaware users. Zekrom, most notably, can do over 75% to Unaware Shuckle. Because of this, Sheer Force is best used on physical electric types, though it can be used on the special side as well. Ice Beam, Shadow Ball, Fire Blast, ect. are all good moves to receive a power boost on.

Tinted Lens

A niche ability that doubles an attack that is not very effective, which can be useful for your sweeper to deal with common switch-ins. Tinted Lens is best used with Dragons, as their STAB becomes completely unresisted.

Adaptability

An ability that doubles each Pokemon's STAB moves, this can be useful for closing the gap between an OHKO and a 2HKO on certian Pokemon or if you just feel like hitting harder with your sweeper.

Magnet Pull

A niche ability that traps Steel types, useful to deal with Pokemon your team otherwise has trouble with. For example, should your rain team be hard-walled by Ferrothorn, a dedicated Magnet pull user can easily remove it for you. In addition, the fact that steel typed Pokemon commonly carry support sets, you can elliminate key parts of your opponent's team fairly easily.

No Guard

Nothing ever misses. Sadly you are not allowed to use this with OHKO moves in BH, but you can still spam annoyances such as Inferno, Zap Cannon, DynamicPunch, Hurricane, Focus Blast and Blizzard. You can use it as support or as a serious sweeper, and as a plus these statuses can't be bounced or coated, they can burn through your opponents' Heal Bells like butter.

Normalize

Primarily seen on Gengars who skill swap it onto you so none of your moves can affect it. That's the only real relevance it has in the tier so make sure you watch out for it. It should be noted that as Multitype cannot be skill swapped Arceus formes make solid counters to this sort of set.

Immunity abilities: Sap Sipper, Storm Drain, Dry Skin, Flash fire, Volt Absorb, etc.)

Use these abilities on Pokemon that will target things you're weak to. If your hail team needs a way to beat Reshiram, you can use Flash Fire. Depends on the scenario and the team, although you can use them on standalone Pokemon for surprise factor to gain momentum. It's worth noting if someone knows you have it, though, these abilities usually won't perform up to par with others.

Illusion

Like the immunity abilities above, this can also be used for surprise factor by posing as what you're weak to, or posing as a pokemon who's weaknesses you cover precisely, and in turn when opponent tries to attack the illusioned pokemon, you can set up and fight back, usually while the opponent is still saying "oh" as the illusion breaks. Illusion also stops Transform while the Illusion is intact (which is often a great way to counter Imposter.)

Suction Cups

Useful if you want an easy counter to Dragon Tail or Whirlwind, two of the most obnoxious moves in the tier. Suction Cups is best used alongside Pokemon that you really don't want to get dragged in when rocks are up such as Ho-oh and Shedinja, and can easily be used as spinners themselves since Giratina won't be able to force you out. This is also an ability of note on Perish Song+trapping Pokemon, to prevent the Pokemon that they would want to trap from PHazing them and escaping.

Harvest

100% berry pick up in sun and 50% out of it can be extremely useful, if you're running things like lum for instant rest wakeups, or sitrus for instant healing. Harvest is interesting because it doesn't need to wait for a turn to activate; you may pick up two berries, leaving you at a very good amount of HP at the end of the turn should you use Sitrus. Beware of Knock Off though, because once it's gone, it's not coming back.

Serene Grace

It's like Jirachi on steroids, with all the 30% moves and above to use such as Sacred Fire and Fiery Dance (both 100%) and Seed Flare (80%), the flinch moves, and any other move with high chance, which can all be put together on one Pokemon. Serene Grace is very useful for dealing with Unaware, as an almost guaranteed double special defence drop won't be leaving the opponent in a very good situation.

Support Moves:

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Rapid Spin

Rapid Spin is mandatory in the metagame. Without it, hazards will quickly deteriorate your team. Rapid Spin is often used with Scrappy to spin against the great ghost Giratina (Who always likes to Spin Block). Additionally, all spinners barring Scrappy spinners should threaten Giratina some way or else Giratina will comfortably stop you from spinning.

Heal Bell / Aromatherapy

Since status is a powerful tool, all good teams have a cleric. Spore, Sacred Fire, No Guard Inferno/Zap Cannon/Dynamic Punch run rampant in the tier and the addition of a cleric is a giant step forward is neutering their use. It only has 8PP though, so it should be used wisely.

Knock Off

Unlike in the standard tiers, Knock Off is a very promising move. It can do lots of things such as knock off a held plate (Which can make the victim almost unable to sweep) and turns any Pokemon into a solid Imposter crippler. Since Balanced Hackmons is a very defensive metagame, taking out the opponent's Leftovers can make a huge difference, especially under sand.

U-turn / Volt Switch

U-turn is an incredibly useful scouting move which also happens to deal damage. It also is worth noting that if you have a slower U-turn user, such as Escavalier, the new Pokemon that comes in will be unscathed. U-turn gives you a huge advantage in the battlefield, If the foe switches, you can switch to a better matchup, if he doesn't you can still switch a better matchup. Additionally, since trapping is common whether it is through Magnet Pull or Spider Web, U-turn allows you to safetly switch to a teammate avoiding the Perish-Trap entirely. It's worth noting, however, that unlike in OU, U-Turning is used more defensively in Balanced Hackmons since momentum isn't as imporant.

Spore

Spore is the only 100% accurate sleep inducing move in the game. Because of Black and White's sleep mechanics and the removal of Sleep Clause, Spore can be used to devastatating effect. Spore is often used with Status Orb users or other Pokemon that are completely unaffected by the move such as Poison Heal Regigigas, Hydration users and agressive sap sippers, so as to get around a Magic Bounce switch in. Spore is also at its best when used with mold breaker, as Magic Bounce, the only thing keeping it in check, is completely negated and as such means bouncers can no longer make spore backfire. The only reliable way to beat spore users in general is poison heal, and even that isn't safe if you fail to activate the orb first.

Magic Coat

One of the best ways to stop status moves such as Stealth Rock and Spore is to use Magic Coat. You might be thinking why Magic Coat is used if all teams have Magic Bounce, but the reason is because Mold Breakers bypass Magic Bounce and that many Mold Breakers often try to kill common Magic Bouncers, so even if you can bounce it back, you can't wall it. Mold breaker Deoxys-S is also half the lead metagame, so it's usually mandatory on a lead.

Heart Swap

Heart Swap, the signature move of Manaphy. Heart Swap swaps all of the user's stat changes with the target's. This makes it incredibly effective alongside Prankster, which can actually allow you to sweep with the foe's boosts. Popular users include: Rhydon, Lugia, Groudon and Landorus-T.

Dragon Tail

Dragon Tail is the single most spammable move of all time. Does your Giratina need an attack? Use Dragon Tail. Skarmory doing no damage to bouncers with Whirlwind? Spam Dragon Tail. Phazing+damage can be quite powerful especially when used in combination with entry hazards. Good use of Dragon Tail can prevent opponents from ever setting up and sleeping Pokemon from ever waking up. One important thing to note about Dragon Tail is that the phazing effect is blocked by using Subsitute, and as such Subsitute allows sweepers to set up on Pokemon that rely solely on Dragon tail, taking advantage of its negative priority.


Gastro Acid / Worry Seed / Simple Beam

Gastro Acid is a useful move, as it nullifies the opponent's ability. It can be used on Magic Bounce abusers, such as Skarmory and Giratina, since it negates Mold Breaker/Teravolt/Turboblaze from bypassing Magic Bounce. Additionally, Prankster Simple Beam could be used to stop a Contrary from gaining huge boosts. These moves are also useful against Sturdy Shedinja, making it killable. The big problem with these moves is that they are all blocked by Magic Bounce and Magic Coat. Worry Seed disables Rest users, although these tend to be rare.

Recovery Moves / Wish

Healing Moves such as Milk Drink are often used on almost every team member. This is because the Balanced Hackmons metagame is leaning towards defence in high levels of play (don't get me wrong, offense is just as viable), which means that without healing moves long term damage will quickly chip out your HP.

Trick / Switcheroo

Trick is one of the most annoying and crippling moves in the tier due to the fact that it can make most pokemon on the opposing team almost useless. Like in standard tiers, trick is most often used with a choice item (usually scarf) over items like status orbs in order to better cripple pivots. When considering trick that are a few things one should keep in mind; one being that Steel and Poison type Pokemon are the best suited for it (especially heatran)because they can receive a toxic orb with no drawbacks while Heatran can take both status orbs. Secondly, it is important to watch out for Pokemon that are immune to trick via Sticky Hold, Multitype, mail, or something like a Griseous Orb. Thirdly once you trick one of your opponent's pokemon always assume that he will switch back to that pokemon to take another trick (be smart and predict). Try to avoid making all your pokemon have trick as it's usually to your advantage to have a few team members that can set up on tricked Pokemon. Moreover, giving one of your pokes Mail will really help counter any opposing tricks

Perish Song

Perish Song is usually used on Unaware Pokemon. Unlike Whirlwind, Magic Bounce does not influence Perish Song. Because both Magic Bounce and substitute sweepers are often used, Perish Song is a great option for Unawares, granting a certain switch at the cost of waiting 3 turns. Perish Song is also used with trapping moves/abilities to form the infamous "Perish Trap" strategy.

Whirlwind (Don't use Roar, Roar is blocked by Soundproof)

Whirlwind has a lot of potential in this metagame, especially when used with Bulky or Prankster Pokemon. A Bulky Pokemon can force switches when foes are setting up and can send them into unwanted weather or hazards. A Prankster Pokemon can use the powerful Riolu shuffle strategy, which involves using Whirlwind, then Copycat with Prankster to continuously cause your opponent to shuffle, hopefully through hazards wearing down their HP. Whirlwind can be deflected or stopped by Magic Bounce/Coat and Suction Cups.

Hazards

The presence of hazards can be game changing in many ways. Stealth Rock is easily the best hazard as it hits all types, dealing up to 50% HP to certain key threats. It should be given to a Pokemon that can lay it time and time again, because with Scrappy Rapid Spin, even mightly spinblockers like Giratina can't keep Stealth Rock up. Spikes are a good option for racking up damage on non flying types, but laying them is even more difficult with Magic Bounce users everywhere who will switch in on the 2nd layer. Toxic Spikes are very threatening because the only usable Poison type in the tier is Gengar, meaning they will stay in until spun out. This leads to the ultimate hazard combination, Stealth Rock with Toxic Spikes, with Spikes as a nice bonus. Another reason to use hazards is the extremely dangerous Sturdy Shedinja, which can devastate teams without hazards or weather. Hazards are often used with Moldbreaker to bypass Magic Bounce, making it even easier to set up.

Imprison

Imprison is an underrated move that has huge potential when used correctly. If used on a Pokemon with Contrary, it will become Immune to Imposters who switch in to try to be the better version of your Pokemon, only to find that all three of your moves are unusable. The biggest drawback of Imprison is the setup, as a single turn is taken to activate it. It also costs a moveslot on a sweeper. Another weakness the move has is although it can be Baton Passed, it no longer works when passed to a friendly Pokemon. Occasionally, a certain strategy is used where you Imprison and then use Transform, making the foe be forced to struggle.

Destiny Bond

While Unaware and Prankster Heart Swap can oftentimes stop opposing sweepers, sometimes they can't handle the force attacking them. There is one move that can save you from this mess, and that move is Destiny Bond. Destiny Bond is usually used with Prankster to outspeed the opponent before it KO's you. It's a good idea to use it on a Pokemon that resists or is immune to ExtremeSpeed so that you won't be outsped and killed without him being punished.

Baton Pass

Baton Pass is a fantastic choice for Pranksters with Substitute. Baton Passing a quick Substitute can do wonders as it blocks Imposter, Status, Dragon Tail Phazing, and can possibly take hits. Sub-Pass is easy to pull off in the metagame with defensive Pokemon such as Ferrothorn, Lugia, and Giratina. It is also a great way to gain momentum for your team (If the foe tries to hit X, Y Baton Passes to a resist, keeping the Substitute.) Another use of Baton Pass is to pass on stat changes to teammates. Usually ineffective, it can potentially be used on a Baton Pass receiver that does not care about Prankster Heart Swap or can outspeed it.

Psycho Shift

It is often extremely difficult to spread status with actual status moves. While Mold Breaker is usually used to induce sleep and set up hazards, Psycho Shift bypasses Magic Bounce and is a great way to induce Toxic Poison and Burn. Psycho Shift is usually used with a status orb and for good reason, the orb attempts to induce status at the end of every turn, which means that if you Psycho Shift status, the orb will induce it again. Obviously, Poison Healers such as Toxic Orb Regigigas often use it to poison counters such as Giratina, whereas Magic Guarders such as Ho-Oh and Giratina can induce status too (the latter being burn and the former being poison.) Be wary though, because if the status orb is knocked off, Psycho Shift will remain mostly ineffective for the rest of the match.

Substitute

A pretty standard move, working just like it does in the standard metagame. There are a few advantages of using substitute exclusive to BH, such as the ability to block not only status moves but attacks repeatedly like Dragon Tail, or normal moves with prankster since you'd have a higher priority, and it also prevents the omnipresent imposter from turning into you. Overall, A decent move, but not for everything, since you usually need to have recovery in your slot somewhere, and you're still vulnerable to Whirlwind.

Leech Seed

Leech Seed isn't as useful as it is in standard tiers due to the prevalence of Magic Bounce, but the lack of viable grass types in the tier means that once those die it will usually be unblockable. Leech Seed is also useful for killing Shedinja and wearing down Chansey.

Taunt

An invaluable move for sweepers. The Balanced Hackmons meta is so defensive and leaning towards indirect damage that taunt can be the difference between a win and a loss. You can completely cripple phazers that have no attacks, or Dragon Tail, and set up on them. It is also a great way to counteract pesky Unawares who tend to perish trap your powerful sweeper and keep healing. Finally, it can ward off frequent prankster users such as Groudon and Rhydon who rely on non-attacks to deal damagae (Nature Power, Copycat) if you can predict the switch in (Thus granting you another free switch in).

Copycat

Copycat is normally used with Prankster, allowing you to both revenge kill with priority by say, copying Contrary Latios' Draco Meteor and killing it, or stealing someone's recovery move should you not have the room for it. Copycat is also useful on slow Prankster users such as Escavalier that can attack second during the first turn, and then use copycat to attack first the next turn, firing 2 very strong attacks in quick succession (Gyro ball, in this case.) Copycat is always priority with Prankster, which means that it's possible to prioritize Whirlwind/Roar, but not Dragon Tail/Circle Throw. Keep in mind, however, that phazing moves are stopped by Magic Bounce.

Curse

Curse is a move that works differently for Ghosts and non-Ghosts, but will only be analyzed for the ghost application because Bulk Up / Coil is a similar / superior move (except for Gyro Ball). Curse is best used on the bulkiest Ghost Pokemon, Giratina using the ability Prankster. When used with Substitute, Spore and Recover, this can be an effective way to take down Pokemon even behind Subs. A weakness that curse has is Magic Guard, which completely stops Curse.

Skill Swap

Skill Swap is an underrated ability that is unblockable aside from the Multitype Arceus. This gives it many uses, usually it works best when swapping a weather ability (such as Drizzle) with any other ability giving your Pokemon the upper hand and keeping the weather unchanged. Skill Swap is a fantastic move at crippling Poison Heal/Magic Guard, especially with the Toxic status, because the poison damage will build up while the user is immune to it, but if it loses its Ability, the Poison Heal Regigigas can lose most or all of it's HP in a single turn by the buildup.

Trapping Moves

Trapping moves such as Mean Look / Spider Web / Block and Fire Spin / Whirlpool / Sandtomb can be used with the ability Unaware to trap even the strongest of foes and bring them down. Using Mean Look or an equivalent on a non Magic Bouncer, then using Perish Song and switching out with U-Turn or Shed Shell. Fire Spin or an equivalent is effective because it can trap Magic Bouncers who don't have Whirlwind or Substitute. This method is more difficult however because partially trapping moves only last five turns max, so Perish Song must be used immediately after for it to work.

Recycle

Recycle is a niche move that has some usefulness in combination with Leppa Berry or Red Card. The former lets a Pokemon infinitly PP stall out opponents, while the latter forces out any would-be attackers.

Notable Offensive Moves:

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Judgment

Words cannot describe how useful this one move is if you are into the offensive side of things (good for you). It is THE move of choice for a special attacking sweeper. I remember the old Normalize Gengars, which are now obsolete, carrying them and thinking, "Man, I can't use my Chansey on this.." and then came the somewhat less clear thought of expanding it to other pokes. With a plate, you become instantly imposter proof. You can be a Giratina and carry a Draco Plate, and Chansey would have a normal Judgment - so you have a STAB + 20% boost SE move on him while he does nothing to you due to you being ghost type. Of course,this naturally depends heavily on you keeping your plate - be wary of Tricksters. If you keep Multitype Arceus, you're not completely safe! Mold Breaker trick still works and will make you almost a sitting duck if you lost your main source of power and are scarfed and your main attack becomes a normal type.

Nature Power

In the video games, this move is more of a novelty; you can see it transform into different moves depending on terrain. However, in PokemonShowdown, nature power is always translated into earthquake, which really didn't affect much in the normal metas. This changes in Balanced Hackmons. Nature Power is a "special" category move, not an attack. This let's it take advantage of the prankster ability, which in effect translates into a +1 priority earthquake - a very useful move on common prankster threats such as rhydon in sand, and groudon. Just watch out for taunt, which blocks usage of it.

Psystrike/Secret Sword

These moves are useful for sp attacking sweepers who encounter an unaware wall who's defense is less than their special defense such as Chansey or a rock type in sand. A nice stab with your normal sp atk should wear them out by itself, but watch out for damaging return moves like metal burst.

Foul Play

A move that when used with the ability Unaware completely destroys any boosting physical attackers. Using the opponent's Attack stat, this move is good on any Pokemon, especially Shuckle with it's own low attack stat. It is highly recommended to lower the attack EVs on Pokemon who don't use their physical attack whatsoever, as this usually means foul play will do little damage with your fully invested physical defence.

Facade

The mechanics of this move make it quite interesting to apply in BH. It doubles only when the user has status, which a smart player can take advantage of by using poison heal or magic guard. It also helps as a chansey check since the opponent will not have the same status boost that you do unless you give it to them. It is especially effective on PH Regigigas/Slaking since the boost and STAB gives it 200+ Base Power which usually leaves a dent unboosted or not.

Common Threats and Sets:

ARCEUS

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Arceus can use its great 120 base speed in conjunction with fantastic bulk and passable offenses to fulfill a variety of support roles. It can also change its type though this requires giving up both its ability and item slot.

Arceus-Normal (Scrappy Sweeper / Spinner)

Arceus-Normal @ Leftovers
Trait: Scrappy
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Rapid Spin
- ExtremeSpeed
- Belly Drum

Arceus-Normal (Unaware Wall)

Arceus-Normal @ Leftovers/Shed Shell
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Perish Song
- Magic Coat / Fire Spin / Spider Web / Whirlwind
- Return / Extremespeed

Arceus-Rock / Arceus-Ghost (Tail Glow Sweeper)

Arceus-Rock / Arceus-Ghost @ Stone Plate / Spooky Plate
Trait: Multitype
Nature: Timid
- Judgment
- Tail Glow
- Aura Sphere / Taunt / Recover
- Aura Sphere / Taunt / Recover

ARCHEOPS

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Archeops can abuse STAB Head Smash coming off base 140 attack with almost no drawbacks to plow through most Unaware users despite being frail.

Archeops (Magic Guard)

Archeops @ Toxic Orb / Life Orb / Wide Lens
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Head Smash
- Shell Smash/Shift Gear/Substitute
- Wood Hammer / Hi Jump Kick / Brave Bird / Flare Blitz / Recover
- Wood Hammer / Hi Jump Kick / Brave Bird / Flare Blitz / Recover


Archeops (Trick)

Archeops @ Choice Band / Choice Scarf / Toxic Orb
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
- Head Smash
- Trick
- Wood Hammer
- Hi Jump Kick

BLISSEY

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Blissey, unlike Chansey, can use an item slot, making it a far more efficient SubPasser with Leftovers. Leads can also use Mail to avoid Trick.


Blissey (Imposter)

Blissey @ Leftovers / Choice Scarf / Spooky Plate / Lum Berry
Trait: Imposter
Nature: Bold
- Fake Out
- Recover
- Skill Swap
- Final Gambit

Blissey (Drought)

Blissey @ Mail
Trait: Drought
Nature: Bold
- Recover
- Magic Coat
- Lava Plume
- Stealth Rock / Knock Off

Blissey (SubPass)

Blissey @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Bold
- Transform/Heart Swap
- Subsitute
- Spore
- Baton Pass

CHANSEY

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Chansey is the bulkiest Imposter with an Eviolite, and at the same time, an excellent Unaware wall. it can abuse Metal Burst very well with its large HP stat, and can also use a variety of sets with different abilities such as Prankster.

Chansey (Imposter)

Chansey @ Eviolite / Choice Scarf / Spooky Plate
Trait: Imposter
Nature: Bold
-Fake Out
-Recover / Aromatherapy
-Skill Swap
-Final Gambit

Chansey (Unaware Wall)

Chansey @ Eviolite
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Calm / Impish
- Recover
- Perish Song
- Magic Coat/Whirlwind
- Metal Burst/Foul Play

Chansey (SubPass)

Chansey @ Eviolite
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Calm / Impish
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Spore
- Recover

CRESSELIA

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Cresselia can use its excellent overall bulk to act as an excellent Unaware user. It falls short to Gengar and Arceus-Ghost, however.

Cresselia (Unaware Wall)

Cresselia @ Leftovers
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Calm
- Recover
- Perish Song
- Magic Coat / Fire Spin / Spider Web / Whirlwind
- Foul Play / U-turn

Cresselia (Magic Bounce)

Cresselia @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Calm
- Roost
- Perish Song
- Aromatherapy
- Stealth Rock / Toxic Spikes

COBALION

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Cobalion is one of the few counters to Shift Gear Poison Heal Regigigas and Swords Dance Poison Heal Arceus by walling them and hitting hard with fighting STAB moves.

Cobalion (Regigigas Slayer)

Cobalion @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce / Insomnia
Nature: Bold / Jolly / Timid
- Low Kick / Aura Sphere
- Aromatherapy
- Heal Order
- Entrainment / Taunt / Gastro Acid / Worry Seed

DARMANITAN

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Darmanitan abuses V-Create in sun, OHKOing or 2HKOing almost the entire metagame.

Darmanitan (Sub Spore)

Darmanitan @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Adamant
- Subsitute
- Spore
- Copycat / Destiny Bond
- V-create

Darmanitan (Wallbreaker)

Darmanitan @ Choice Band
Trait: Chlorohyll / Tinted Lens
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
- V-Create
- Trick
- Close Combat
- Sacred Fire

DEOXYS-A

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Deoxys-A is usually inferior to other attackers due to its horrid bulk, but base 150 speed sets it apart from other glass cannons.

Deoxys Attack (Contrary Sweeper)

Deoxys-Attack @ Lum Berry / Focus Sash
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Lonely / Naughty
- V-create
- Psycho Boost
- Superpower / ExtremeSpeed
- Draco Meteor

Deoxys Attack (Simple Sweeper)

Deoxys-Attack @ White Herb / Focus Sash
Trait: Simple
Nature: Timid
- Substitute
- Shell Smash
- Stored Power
- Aura Sphere

DEOXYS-S

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Mold Breaker Deoxys-S can efficiently lay hazards and Spore at the start of the game, the only counters being Rapid Spinners that aren't afraid of Mold Breaker Spore, or a lead with Magic Coat.

Deoxys-S (Standard Lead)

Deoxys-Speed @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid
- Trick
- Spore
- Magic Coat / Taunt
- Stealth Rock

Deoxys-S (Imprison Lead)

Deoxys-Speed @ Lum Berry / Mail
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid
- Imprison
- Spore
- Magic Coat
- Stealth Rock

Deoxys-S (WhirlCoat)

Deoxys-Speed @ Lum Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid
- Spore
- Whirlwind
- Magic Coat
- Copycat

Deoxys- S (No Guard Lead)

Deoxys-Speed @Lum Berry
Trait:No Guard
- Magic Coat/Skill Swap
- Inferno
- Zap Cannon
- Blizzard / Hazards

DIALGA

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Dialga has an excellent typing that gives it both a neutrality to Dragon and Dragon STAB, making it a great defensive pivot. It is somewhat held back by base 90 speed, however.

Dialga (Contrary)

Dialga @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat / V-Create/Leaf Storm
- Subsitute/Gastro Acid / Taunt / Rapid Spin
- Recover

Dialga (Magic Bounce)

Dialga @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Timid
- Dragon Pulse
- Aromatherapy / Entrainment
- Rapid Spin
- Recover

Dialga (Offensive Prankster)

Dialga @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Timid
- Dragon Pulse
- Copycat/Spore
- Heart Swap
- Recover

Dialga (Suction Cups Spinner)

Dialga @ Draco Plate / Leftovers
Trait: Suction Cups
Nature: Modest
- Dragon Pulse / Draco Meteor
- Rapid Spin
- Roost
- Dragon Tail

ESCAVALIER

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A very low 20 base speed means that Escavalier will usually be able to use a powerful Gyro Ball coming from a 135 base attack stat. On top of this, it has decent bulk

Escavalier (Weather Lead)

Escavalier @ Lum Berry
Trait: Drizzle / Sand Stream / Drought / Snow Warning
Nature: Brave
- Magic Coat / Stealth Rock
- Roost / Stealth Rock
- Extremespeed
- Gyro Ball

Escavalier (Support)

Escavalier @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Brave
- Aromatherapy
- U-Turn / Stealth Rock / Magic Coat / Spore
- Gyro Ball
- Recover

Escavalier (Offensive Prankster)

Escavalier @ Lum Berry / Leftovers
Trait: Prankster / Magic Bounce
Nature: Brave
- Copycat
- Gyro Ball
- Recover/ Stealth Rock / Magic Coat / Subsitute
- V-Create / U-Turn/ Megahorn

Escavalier (Regenerator)

Escavalier @ Life Orb / Mail
Trait: Regenerator
Nature: Brave
- Gyro Ball
- U-Turn
- Recover / Magic Coat
- V-Create

Escavalier (Flash Fire)

Escavalier @ Lum Berry
Trait: Flash Fire
Nature: Brave
- Gyro Ball
- Recover / Magic Coat
- V-Create / Extremespeed / Earthquake
- V-Create / Extremespeed / Earthquake

FERROTHORN

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Ferrothorn is one of the best walls in the metagame, sporting an excellent typing. It walls many threats such as Palkia.

Ferrothorn (Weather Lead)

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Trait: Sand Stream / Drizzle
Nature: Careful
- Gyro Ball / Dragon Tail
- Heal Order
- Stealth Rock
- Magic Coat

Ferrothorn (Prankster)

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Impish
- Substitute
- Leech Seed / Gyro Ball / Spore / Dragon Tail / Taunt / Heal Order
- Destiny Bond / Taunt
- Baton Pass

Ferrothorn (Magic Bounce)

Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Impish
- Roost
- Gyro Ball
- Aromatherapy
- Perish Song / Dragon Tail

GENGAR

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Gengar is the fastest viable user of Normalize Skill Swap, giving it a niche over other Ghosts. Outside of this it is however generally not viable.

Gengar (Normalize Swap)

Gengar @ Spooky Plate
Trait: Normalize
Nature: Timid
-Judgment
-Aura Sphere / Secret Sword
-Shell Smash
-Skill Swap


Gengar (Mold Breaker)

Gengar @ Spooky Plate
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid
-Judgment
-Aura Sphere / Secret Sword
-Tail Glow
-Spore

GIRATINA / GIRATINA-O

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Giratina can use its fantastic bulk and typing to spinblock and wall most of the metagame.

Giratina (Magic Bounce Support)

Giratina @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Dragon Tail
- Aromatherapy / Heal Bell
- Entrainment / Gastro Acid


Giratina (Curse Prankster)

Giratina @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Substitute
- Baton Pass / Spore
- Curse
- Recover

Giratina (Harvestina)

Giratina @ Sitrus Berry
Trait: Harvest (In Sun)
Nature: Bold
- Substitute
- Thunder Wave / Magic Coat/Gastro Acid
- Curse
- Dragon Pulse

Giratina (Hydratina)

Giratina @ Leftovers / Mail
Trait: Hydration (In rain)
Nature: Bold
- Substitute
- Rest
- Baton Pass
- Dragon Pulse

Giratina (Prankster Spore Tail)

Giratina @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Tail
- Spore
- Substitute

Giratina (Prankster Support)

Giratina @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Dragon Tail
- Haze / Heart Swap
- Destiny Bond

Giratina (Offensive Prankster)

Giratina @ Draco Plate
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Quiet / Timid
- Heal Order
- Judgment
- Copycat
- Destiny Bond

Giratina (Weather Sweeper)

Giratina @ Draco Plate
Trait: Sand Rush / Swift Swim / Chlorophyll
Nature: Timid
- Recover
- Judgment
- Tail Glow
- Substitute

Giratina (Burn Shift)

Giratina @ Flame Orb
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Psycho Shift
- Whirlwind
- Dragon Pulse / Knock Off / Stealth Rock

Giratina (Mold Breaker)

Giratina @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Stealth Rock
- Spore
- Whirlwind

Giratina (Rain Sub Pass)

Giratina @ Leftovers / Mail
Trait: Hydration
Nature: Bold
- Spore
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Rest

Giratina (Sand Veil Minimize)

Giratina @ Brightpowder / Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Sand Veil
Nature: Bold/ 0 Evs Att
- Minimize
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Milk Drink

Giratina (Moldy Sweeper)

Giratina @ Draco Plate / Spooky Plate
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid/ 0Evs Att
- Shell Smash
- Substitute / Spore
- Judgment
- Aura Sphere / Spore / Substitute

GLISCOR

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With Gliscor's typing, all common Nature Powder users are walled, additionally, it has decent physical bulk.

Gliscor (Magic Bounce)

Gliscor @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Impish
- Earthquake
- Aromatherapy
- Knock Off / Stealth Rock / Taunt / Whirlwind
- Heal Order / Roost

GROUDON

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Groudon abuses a STAB Nature Power off 150 Attack to devastating effect. It also has usable physical bulk, allowing it to wall opposing physical attackers.

Groudon (Prankster Support)

Groudon @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Recover
- Nature Power
- Spore
- Heart Swap / Bolt Strike

Groudon (Prankster Copycat)

Groudon @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Adamant/(Dont run Jolly)
- Substitute
- Nature Power
- Copycat
- Icicle Crash

Groudon (Prankster Sweeper)

Groudon @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Swords Dance / Copycat
- Nature Power
- Bolt Strike / Whirlwind
- Subsitute

Groudon (Trick Band)

Groudon @ Choice Band
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Nature Power
- Bolt Strike / Head Smash
- Wood Hammer
- Trick

Groudon (Gravity Drum)

Groudon @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Nature Power
- Belly Drum
- Gravity
- Spore / Roost

HEATRAN

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Heatran is usually used as a wall, with its great typing, it can use many different abilities such as Dry Skin to wall Palkia, and Magic Bounce to bounce back hazards and whatnot.

Heatran (Magic Bounce)

Heatran @ Leftovers / Rocky Helmet / Mail
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Calm / Bold
- Lava Plume
- Heal Order
- Aromatherapy / Knock Off /Entrainment
- Entrainment / Dragon Tail

Heatran (Perish Trap)

Heatran @ Shed Shell / Leftovers
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Calm
- Recover
- Perish Song
- Spider Web
- Magma Storm

Heatran (Dry Skin)

Heatran @ Mail
Trait: Dry Skin
Nature: Calm
- Recover
- Dragon Pulse
- Substitute
- Tail Glow

HO-OH

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Ho-oh can abuse its Fire STAB in sun off a solid base 130 Attack while sporting fantastic special bulk. Base 90 speed holds it back somewhat.

Ho-Oh (Magic Guard Sweeper)

Ho-Oh @ Toxic Orb / Life Orb
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Brave Bird
- Sacred Fire / Flare Blitz
- Substitute / Shift Gear / Psycho Shift

Ho-Oh (Sun SubHarvest)

Ho-Oh @ Sitrus Berry
Trait: Harvest
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
- Shift Gear
- Substitute
- Brave Bird
- Sacred Fire / Flare Blitz

Ho-Oh (Mixed Contrary)

Ho-Oh @ Leftovers / Leppa Berry
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Brave
- V-Create
- Draco Meteor
- Substitute
- Roost

JELLICENT

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While usually outclassed by Giratina, Jellicent has a rare typing which allows it to tank types that Giratina cannot.

Jellicent (Magic Bounce)

Jellicent @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Calm
- Recover
- Rapid Spin
- Aromatherapy
- Ice Beam

Jellicent (Scrappy)

Jellicent @ Leftovers
Trait: Scrappy
Nature: Calm
- Roost
- Rapid Spin
- Scald
- Dragon Tail

JIRACHI

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Jirachi can abuse its great typing to act as an Unaware user in the rain, though V-Create and Nature Power severely dent it.

Jirachi (Rain Unaware)

Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Bold
- Perish Song
- Recovery Move
- Toxic / Spider Web/ Whirlpool
- Magic Coat / Spore

Jirachi (Chansey Lure)

Jirachi @ White Herb / Leftovers
Trait: Simple
Nature: Modest / Timid
- Stored Power
- Shell Smash / Quiver Dance
- Substitute
- Move that your dark-type magnet pull user is also immune to (ex: Secret Sword for spiritomb, Thunder for Krookodile)

Jirachi (Prankster)

Jirachi @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Recover
- Dragon Tail
- Haze / Spore
- Destiny Bond / Substitute

Jirachi (Mold Breaker)
Jirachi @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid
- Heal Order/Spikes
- Spore
- Stealth Rock
- Whirlwind

Jirachi (Mold Breaker Sweeper)
Jirachi @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Timid
- Shell Smash
- Stored Power
- Substitute
- Spore/Taunt/Gastro Acid

KYOGRE

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Kyogre is usually outclassed by Palkia, but usable special bulk and a lack of a weakness to Dragon make it more ideal for a defensive role.

Kyogre (Drought Lead)

Kyogre @ Mail / Leftovers
Trait: Drought
Nature: Calm
- Lava Plume
- Magic Coat
- Roost
- Stealth Rock / Knock Off

Kyogre (Unaware Wall)

Kyogre @ Leftovers
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Calm
- Scald / Lava Plume (In sun)
- Roost
- Quiver Dance
- Ice Beam / Dragon Pulse

Kyogre (Defensive Drizzle)

Kyogre @ Mail / Leftovers
Trait: Drizzle
Nature: Calm
- Scald
- Magic Coat
- Milk drink
- Stealth Rock / U-turn / Skill Swap / Knock Off

Kyogre (Burn Shift)

Kyogre @ Flame Orb
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Calm
- Psycho Shift
- Roost
- Dragon Tail / Quiver Dance
- Surf

KYUREM-B

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Kyurem-B can use a great base 95 Speed alongside base 170 Attack to severely dent the opponent with more rarely seen physical moves.

Kyurem-B (Sheer Force)

Kyurem-B @ Life orb
Trait: Sheer Force
Nature: Jolly
- Substitute
- Shell Smash
- Bolt Strike
- Icicle Crash

Kyurem-B (Prankster Shuffler)

Kyurem-B @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Spore
- Sleep Talk
- Dragon Tail
- Fusion Bolt / Icicle Crash

Kyurem-B (Skill Link)

Kyurem-B @ Lum Berry / Life Orb / Leftovers / King's Rock
Trait: Skill Link
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Shell Smash
- Substitute
- Icicle Spear
- Rock Blast / Bone Rush / Bullet Seed

KYUREM-W

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Kyurem-W has a nice 95 base Speed, which means that it will outspeed common base 90 threats. Coupled with a huge 170 base Special Attack to dent opponents, it can be hard to wall. It also has above average bulk, but a poor defensive typing.

Kyurem-W (Scarf Contrary)
Kyurem-W @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Modest / Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat
- Trick
- Leaf Storm

Kyurem-W (Hail Lead)

Kyurem-W @ Lum Berry / Choice Scarf / Choice Specs
Trait: Snow Warning
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Blizzard
- Secret Sword / Trick
- Volt Switch / Recover

Kyurem-W (Sub Spore)

Kyurem-W @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature:Modest / Timid
- Substitute
- Spore
- Baton Pass
- Ice Beam / Blizzard

LANDORUS-I

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Landorus makes for a great anti-Nature Power by using a status orb, it can also destroy teams with its high speed and attack. It faces competition from its alternate form, but the Incarnate form has the advantage of higher mixed sweeping stats in special attack and speed.

Landorus-I (Poison Heal)

Landorus-I @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Jolly
- Shell Smash
- Dragon Tail
- Earthquake/Nature Power
- Spore

Landorus-I (Mixed Prankster)

Landorus-I @ Icicle Plate
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Naive
- Nature Power
- Judgment
- Shell Smash / Spore
- Substitute / Spore

Landorus-I (Offensive Magic Bounce)

Landorus (M) @ Icicle Plate
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Naive
- Judgment
- Shell Smash
- Taunt/Recover
- Earthquake

LANDORUS-T

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Landorus-T separates himself as a Nature Power user because it cannot be stopped by imposters, making it sweep teams with ease.

Landorus-T (Prankster Sweeper)

Landorus-T @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
- Subsitute / Recover / Destiny Bond / Heart Swap / Spore
- Nature Power
- Bolt Strike
- Swords Dance

Landorus-T (Anti-Imposter Sweeper)

Landorus-T @ Leppa Berry
Trait: Harvest
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
- Shell Smash
- Earthquake
- Bolt Strike
- Taunt / Recover

Landorus-T (Trick Band)

Landorus-T @ Choice Band
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
- Nature Power
- Bolt Strike
- Brave Bird
- Trick

LATI@S

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Latias and Latios phenomenal Spa Spd, and Spe. The only problem is that they depend on Soul Dew, so beware of item-affecting moves.

Lati@s (Contrary)

Latios @ Soul Dew
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat
- Subsitute / V-Create / Leaf Storm
- Gastro Acid / Taunt / Rapid Spin / Recover


Lati@s (Regenerator)

Latios @ Soul Dew
Trait: Regenerator
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Searing Shot / Magma Storm
- Psystrike / Rapid Spin
- Volt Swtich / Secret Sword / Earth Power / Magic Coat

Lati@s (Drought)

Lati@s @ Soul Dew
Trait: Drought
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Searing Shot / Magma Storm
- Magic Coat
- Roost

Lati@s (Tinted Lens)

Latios @ Soul Dew
Trait: Tinted Lens
Nature: Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Psystrike
- Roost
- Spore / Magic Coat

LUGIA

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Lugia is one of the best walls, with high defenses, a great speed stat, and an extremely valuable Flying typing. Lugia walls a large amount of the metagame with a variety of sets.

Lugia (Magic Bounce Support)

Lugia @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Calm
- Roost
- Perish Song / Dragon Tail
- Aromatherapy
- Stealth Rock / Knock off

Lugia (Prankster Sub-Pass)

Lugia @ Leftovers
Trait: Baton Pass
Nature: Jolly
- Roost
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Spore

Lugia (Prankster Sporetail)

Lugia @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Tail
- Subsitute
- Spore

Lugia (Mold Breaker)

Lugia @ Leftovers
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Jolly
- Roost
- Stealth Rock
- Spore
- Whirlwind

Lugia (Unaware Wall)

Lugia @ Leftovers / Shed Shell
Trait:Unaware
Nature: Jolly / Timid
- Roost
- Perish Song
- Whirlpool / Fire Spin / Magic Coat
- Foul Play / U-Turn

Lugia (Quiver Dance Sweeper)

Lugia @ Leftovers / Shed Shell
Trait:Unaware / Magic Bounce
Nature: Timid
- Roost
- Quiver Dance
- Subsitute
- Stored Power

Lugia (Burn Shift)

Lugia @ Flame Orb
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Jolly
- Roost
- Psycho Shift
- Whirlwind
- Rapid Spin / Knock Off / Stealth Rock

MELOETTA - P

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Meleoetta-P has a fantastic base 128 speed that allows it to outpace almost all of the metagame. Scrappy also allows it to make use of its STAB combination effectively.

Meloetta-Pirouette (Scrappy Spin)

Meloetta-Pirouette @ Choice Band
Trait: Scrappy
Nature: Jolly
- Trick
- Rapid Spin
- Close Combat
- Roost

Meloetta-Pirouette (Steel Killer)

Meloetta-Pirouette @ Choice Band
Trait: Magnet Pull
Nature: Jolly
- Trick
- Close Combat
- U-Turn / Dragon Claw
- Frustration / Sacred Fire

MEWTWO

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With great Spe and Spa, Mewtwo is an interesting Pokemon, it usually struggles to make an impact with a bad typing, but it's still very powerful with the right set.

Mewtwo (Prankster Support)

Mewtwo @ Leftovers / Rocky Helmet
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Timid
- Heart Swap / Destiny Bond
- Spore
- Copycat / Recover
- Psystrike / Ice Beam

Mewtwo (Sheer Force)

Mewtwo @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
Nature: Timid
- Psychic
- Ice Beam
- Focus Blast
- Magic Coat / Recover / Tail Glow

Mewtwo (Poison Heal)

Mewtwo @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Timid
- Spore
- Quiver Dance
- Psystrike / Stored Power
- Aura Sphere / Secret Sword

Mewtwo (No Guard)

Mewtwo @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: No Guard
Nature: Timid
- Inferno / Magma Storm
- Zap Cannon
- Blizzard / DynamicPunch
- Recover / Magic Coat

PALKIA

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Palkia abuses a stellar base 100 speed to make for a fantastic nuke with great Water/Dragon coverage. Rain makes it extremely threatning.

Palkia (Specskia)

Palkia @Choice Specs
Trait: Drizzle
Nature: Timid
- Water Spout
- Draco Meteor
- Secret Sword
- Magma Storm / Sleep Talk / Switcheroo

Palkia (Lustrous Orb)

Palkia @ Lustrous Orb
Trait: Drizzle
Nature: Timid
- Water Spout
- Draco Meteor
- Secret Sword
- Magic Coat / Softboiled

Palkia (Rain Sweeper)

Palkia @ Draco Plate
Trait: Swift Swim
Nature: Timid / Modest
- Tail Glow
- Judgment
- Water Spout / Surf
- Softboiled

Palkia (Non-Drizzle Specskia)

Palkia @ Choice Specs
Trait: Tinted Lens
Nature: Timid / Modest
- Water Spout
- Trick
- Secret Sword
- Draco Meteor

RAYQUAZA

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Rayquaza is very powerful, capable of switching against Nature Power pokemon and hitting hard with its 150 base offenses while having a good 95 base speed.

Rayquaza (Mixed Contrary)

Rayquaza @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Naughty / Brave / Naive
- Draco Meteor
- Recover
- V-Create
- Subsitute


Rayquaza (Offensive Prankster)

Rayquaza @ Draco Plate
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Timid
- Judgment
- Copycat
- Destiny Bond
- Roost


Rayquaza (Unburden Acrobatics)

Rayquaza @ Flight Gem
Trait: Unburden
Nature: Timid
- Acrobatics
- Dragon Pulse / Draco Meteor
- Sacred Fire
- Subsitute


Rayquaza (Magic Guard)
Rayquaza @ Life Orb / Toxic Orb
Trait: Magic Guard
Nature: Adamant / Timid
- Brave Bird
- Draco Meteor
- Flare Blitz / Hi Jump Kick / Rapid Spin
- Subsitute / Roost / ExtremeSpeed

REGIGIGAS / SLAKING

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Regigigas/Slaking are both very strong physical attackers that perform extremely well with Poison Heal to abuse Facade, and in addition, they have a high base 100 speed.

(These sets may be interchangable for both pokemon depending on what kind of defensive spead you would rather have. Gigas is special while Slaking is physical. Slaking can also be used for mixed sets though this isn't recommended.)

Regigigas (Spore Tail)

Regigigas @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Jolly
- Facade
- Knock Off / Sacred Fire / Protect / Shift Gear
- Dragon Tail
- Spore

Slaking (Frustration)

Slaking @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Jolly
Happiness: 0
- Frustration
- Shadow Claw
- Shift Gear / Spore
- Softboiled

Regigigas (PH Sweeper)

Regigigas @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Jolly
- Facade
- Swords Dance
- Icicle Crash / Ice Punch
- ExtremeSpeed

Slaking (Belly Sweeper)

Slaking @ Lum Berry / Silk Scarf / Sitrus Berry
Trait: Mold Breaker / Magic Bounce
Nature: Jolly
- Belly Drum
- ExtremeSpeed
- Crunch
- Spore

REGIROCK

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Regirock is a great sand setter that can take physical attacks with ease, while covering some weaknesses that other setters like Ferrothorn have.

Regirock (Sand Stream)

Regirock @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Sand Stream
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Dragon Tail / U-turn / Skill Swap
- Magic Coat
- Stealth Rock / Knock Off

Regirock (Poison Heal Wall)

Regirock @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Psycho Shift
- Dragon Tail / U-turn
- Stealth Rock / Knock Off / Spore

Regirock (Unaware)

Regirock @ Leftovers
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Careful
- Recover
- Sacred Fire
- Perish Song
- Whirlpool / Magic Coat

REGISTEEL

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Registeel has great defenses and a great typing, making it a decent supporter or wall, especially in the rain.

Registeel (Unaware Wall)
Registeel @ Leftovers
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Calm / Impish
- Recover
- Perish Song
- Magic Coat / Fire Spin / Spider Web / Whirlwind
- Foul Play / U-turn


Registeel (Magic Bounce)
Registeel @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Dragon Tail / Whirlwind
- Aromatherapy
- Stealth Rock / Knock off / Entrainment

Registeel (Prankster)
Registeel @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Dragon Tail / Whirlwind
- Spore / Haze / Heart Swap
- Destiny Bond / Leech Seed / Subsitute

RESHIRAM

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Reshiram excels in the sun, using unresisted dual STABs to break through most Pokemon. Base 90 speed and a Stealth Rock weakness must be taken into account however.

Reshiram (Scarf Contrary)

Reshiram @ Choice Scarf
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Modest / Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Overheat
- Trick
- Leaf Storm

Reshiram (Mixed Contrary)

Reshiram @ Leftovers / Lum Berry
Trait: Contrary
Nature: Modest / Timid
- Draco Meteor
- Recover
- V-Create
- Subsitute

Reshiram (Chlorophyll Sweeper)

Reshiram @ Draco Plate
Trait: Chlorophyll
Nature: Modest / Timid
- Judgment
- Eruption
- Tail Glow
- Recover / Taunt

RHYDON

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Rhydon with an eviolite is the bulkiest physical tank in the entire Balanced Hackmons metagame. Its unique typing makes it ideal for both Prankster and Sand Stream

Rhydon (Tankster)

Rhydon @ Eviolite
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Adamant / Relaxed
- Recover
- Nature Power
- Spore / Me First / Baton Pass / Copycat
- Heart Swap / Head Smash

Rhydon (Dry Skin)

Rhydon @ Eviolite
Trait: Dry Skin
Nature: Relaxed / Impish
- Roost
- Earthquake
- Head Smash
- Protect / Dragon Tail

Rhydon (Sand Stream)

Rhydon @ Eviolite
Trait: Sand Stream
Nature: Adamant
- Roost
- Magic Coat / Head Smash
- Earthquake
- Knock Off / Stealth Rock

SHAYMIN-S

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Shaymin-S has both the rare grass type and an excellent speed tier, meaning that it is (ironically) the best user of serene grace seed flare. However, its special attack is fairly weak by BH standards and it suffers from a 4x weakness to ice.


Shaymin-Sky (Rain Abuser)

Shaymin-Sky @ Choice Specs
Trait: Adaptability / Serene Grace
Nature:Timid
-Hurricane
-Seed Flare
-Secret Sword
-Trick


Shaymin-Sky (Bounce Sweeper)

Shaymin-Sky @ Icicle Plate
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature:Timid
- Quiver Dance
- Judgment
- Leech Seed
- Giga Drain / Seed Flare

SHEDINJA

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(Explained in Sturdy)

Shedinja (Sturdinja)

Shedinja @ Lum Berry
Trait: Sturdy
Nature: Brave
EVs: 0 Def; 0 Spdef; 0 Spe
- Endeavor
- Ice Shard / ExtremeSpeed
- Volt Switch
- Magic Coat / Recycle / Attack Order / Sacred Fire

SKARMORY

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Skarmory has a unique typing that has very few weaknesses, along with it's very strong physical bulk. Can switch into Nature Power users who don't have high attack and Bolt Strike to dent it.

Skarmory (Magic Bounce)

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Dragon Tail / Whirlwind / Baton Pass
- Aromatherapy
- Stealth Rock / Knock off / Entrainment

Skarmory (Spinner)

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Scrappy
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Dragon Tail / Whirlwind
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock / Knock off

Skarmory (Mold Breaker)

Skarmory @ Leftovers
Trait: Mold Breaker
Nature: Impish / Careful
- Recover
- Whirlwind
- Spore
- Stealth Rock

SHUCKLE

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In progress

TERRAKION

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Terrakion brings great physical attacking power with Close Combat or High Jump Kick paired with Stone Edge or Head Smash alongside a solid base 129 attack and great base 108 speed.

Terrakion (Poison Heal)

Terrakion @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Jolly
- Subsitute
- Swords Dance / Coil
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge / Rock Blast / Head Smash

Terrakion (Regenerator)

Terrakion @ Life Orb / Choice Band
Trait: Regenerator
Nature: Jolly
- U-Turn
- V-Create / Trick
- Close Combat
- Stone Edge / Rock Blast / Head Smash

Terrakion (Scrappy)

Terrakion @ Choice Band
Trait: Scrappy
Nature: Jolly
- Close Combat
- Rapid Spin
- Trick
- Stone Edge / Recover

THUNDURUS-THERIAN

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Thundurus can easily abuse its STABs in the rain, benefitting from a fully accurate Thunder and Hurricane that can destroy various opponents.


Thundurus-T (Speed Boost)

Thundurus-T @ Lum / Leftovers
Trait: Speed Boost
Nature: Timid / Modest
- Subsitute
- Tail Glow
- Electro Ball
- Ice Beam

TYRANITAR

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Tyranitar's unique typing allows it to be practically invincible outside of fighitng attacks in sandstorm. Powerful STAB crunch makes it an excellent spinner and counter to common threats.

Tyranitar (Vital Spirit)

Tyranitar @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Trait: Vital Spirit
Adamant Nature
- Crunch
- Spikes
- Rapid Spin
- Softboiled

VIRIZION

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Virizion can stop almost all Nature Power users since it resists it. On top of this, it has a high speed stat and can hurt foes with strong fighting type moves.

Virizion (Magic Bounce)

Virizion @ Fist Plate
Trait: Magic Bounce
Nature: Timid
- Recover
- Judgment
- Aromatherapy
- Leech Seed / Stealth Rock / Ice Beam / Giga Drain

ZEKROM

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Zekrom can abuse a very strong bolt strike and dragon rush to dent most foes, though its use is rather limited outside of these two moves.

Zekrom (Sheer Force)

Zekrom @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Shell Smash
- Substitute
- Bolt Strike
- Dragon Rush

Zekrom (No Guard)

Zekrom @ Lum Berry / Leftovers
Trait: No Guard
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Dragon Rush
- Zap Cannon
- Dynamic Punch
- Bolt Strike / Roost

Zekrom (Prankster Shuffler)

Zekrom @ Lum Berry / Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly / Adamant
- Spore
- Substitute
- Coil
- Dragon Tail

Zekrom (Poison Heal Shuffler)

Zekrom @ Toxic Orb
Trait: Poison Heal
Nature: Jolly / Adament
- Spore
- Dragon Tail
- Bolt Strike
- Recover / Rapid Spin / Dragon Claw / Whatever you want on it

WEEDLE*

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Weedle outclasses every other reviewed poke in every role they can do (I mean srsly slap on 6 Weedles with whatever moves you already have on your pokes and you'll automatically do better lol). It is usually banned in most BH games, which is why you won't see it often. Between its ability to absorb Toxic Spikes, grab momentum with U-Turn, and abuse pain split to the fullest, it's easy to see why Weedle is a metagame defining force.




Weedle (Standard)

Weedle @ Black Glasses
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Serious
- Poison Sting
- Gastro Acid
- Blast Burn
- Lick

Standard Weedle. Poison Sting means that anything switching into this behemoth will surely be poisonned and quickly die an agonizing death (How many Nuzlockes have YOU lost because you never made it out of Viridian forest?) Gastro Acid deals with pesky Poison Heal users that attempt to counter your toxic schemes, while Blast Burn covers Steel types. Finally, Lick keeps the immortal wall Giratina at bay with powerful super-effective damage while sporting a great chance of paralysis. Serious nature and Black Glasses because this Weedle does not fuck around.

Weedle (Sheer Force)

Weedle @ Life Orb
Trait: Sheer Force
Nature: Naughty
- Poison Sting
- Lick
- Contrict
- Struggle Bug

Nothing can make the opponent shit themselves more than a LO and Sheer Force boosted poison sting and lick. Furthermore, this set allows Weedle to go mixed aswell, using a boosted struggle bug to shovel through the opposition. Contrict allows you to choke your counters to death should they pose too much of a threat. Because of his ability to choke, this Weedle set is also ideal for you should you be a sadomasochist.

Weedle (Unaware)

Weedle @ Insect Plate
Trait: Unaware
Nature: Modest
- Quiver Dance
- Judgment
- Milk Drink
- Roar of Time

When an individual looks at an Unaware wall, they normally choose Lugia, Cresselia, Shuckle or Jirachi. However, Weedle has many distinct advantages over standard Unaware walls which includes a gigantic base 20 SpA, a resistance to Leaf Storm, and godly 40/30/20 defenses. Quiver Dance does not only help it tank hits;it also allows it to sweep on its own with a STAB Insect Plate Judgment. Roar of Time hits Giratina tremendously hard and Milk Drink greatly increases its longevity.

Weedle (Pat's Weedle / Indiana Jones)

Weedle @ Rocky Helmet
Trait: Analytic
Nature: Brave
- Power Whip
- ExtremeSpeed
- Switcheroo
- Sweet Kiss

So basically this Weedle is an action hero. He is very real. Brave nature of course to allow him to do tasks that would normally send Weedles crying back to their mommys. Since most of these adventures are in caves of some sort with dangerous booby traps, this Weedle always rocks his stylish, yet useful Rocky Helmet to protect him. Also, his Analytic ability allows Indy Weedle to disable these booby traps saving him from sure death. Indy Weedle has all the moves that he would ever need to be a badass hero. He has ExtremeSpeed to allow him to win car chases and out run giant boulders, He has Switcheroo to allow him to switch rocks for precious treasures and then Sweet Kiss because being this heroic, Weedle gets all the hoes. Then of course his signature move is Power Whip and he basically just whips everything and everyone, take a look at this:
252 Atk Weedle Power Whip vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Arceus-Dark: 1387-1633 (312.38 - 367.79%) -- guaranteed OHKO
WOW that POWER. A lot of people say this Weedle is OP and they are right. Watch out for this set, If you see it just forfeit and save yours

Weed

Weedle @ Bright Powder/Quick Powder
Trait: White Smoke
Nature: High (+ All)
- Smokescreen
- Powder Snow
- Calm Mind
- Twineedle

This Weedle knows how to live life, he smokes all day with Smoke Screen making not only himself high, but also his opponents. Powder Snow is for that extra oomph of sweeeeet Coke, Calm Mind because you know, Weed Smokers stay calm, and of course, Twineedle is the real deal when he wants to inject some Heroin into his body. Counters include police dogs such as Stoutland and Growlithe, Bouffalant the pusher makes for a great partner because there was a Bouffalant soldier in the heart of america! Bright Powder And Quick Powder are useful when he runs out of Powder Snow, Bright Powder affects his enemies accuracy, whereas Quick Powder is good if he wants a quick sniff. The latter is better, because there's less mess, and they're less likely to get caught by police dogs such as Houndoom

*These sets may not be viable for actual use

Summary

-Always carry a Magic Bounce Pokemon
-Always have a Rapid Spin user.
- Because of the point above, you should pack a spinblocker too, if you can.
-Aromatherapy is good especially on Magic Bounce Pokemon, use it.
-Imposter Chansey is a god.
-Always be able to counter your own Pokemon
-If you are having sweeper problems I feel bad for you son, Unaware has 99 problems but Contrary ain't one
-Use recovery on every Pokemon you can afford to
-Carrying a Poison Heal or Magic Guard Pokemon with a status orb Helps tremendously against Spore based stratagies
-Arceus can be disguiseed as any form the player chooses, but is only really a different type if it has Multitype+Plate
-Perish Song is extremely helpful. It can force out nearly any Pokemon and is certain death for ingrained or last Pokemon
-Mail is useful on certain Pokemon because it can't be tricked away.
-Your team should have at least one Shedinja check, whether in the form of weather, rocky helmet, or entry hazards. Remember that Shedinja can abuse U-turn, Baton Pass, and Volt Switch.


We hope you enjoy the tier as much as we have and that this guide will help you get better and even beat the likes of us and give us many things to learn from in return!


Good luck!




Credits


Adrian Marin
E4 Flint
Gtfo and Cry%
Kumiromi
Kl4ng
Magatsu Izanagi
MLG ST0RM
nyan kat
Playful
Sugarhigh
YoungKingPat
Asterat
Mewtwo
bottle o rum

Special thanks to Arcticblast

Thanks for reading!

 

[Adrian Marin]

Everyone, be sure to post your own sets in here too! If all of us (the creators of the guide) approve of it, it's going to be in this thread!

Example:

Virizion @ Fist Plate
Trait: Magic Bounce
Timid Nature
- Judgment
- Leech Seed
- Aromatherapy
- Heal Order

Virizion has the stats and typing it needs to be an amazing bouncer, especially in the rain. With a resistance to Stealth Rock, and Earthquake, it counters Groudon and Rhydon splendidly since it takes minimal damage from their Earthquakes. STAB Super Effective Judgment is also very strong, Having a chance to 2HKO Normal Arceus, Dialga, Kyurem-W, Kyurem-B, and Rhydon. Its high special defense and speed helps a lot, acting as a fantastic pivot turning the tides of battle in a moments notice.
Anything with a flying move or V-create can kill it.

So come on folks, start posting new sets, it may end up in here!

 

[TheCommadore]

I am glad that we finally got this posted. I would like to point out that we will be updating this guide weekly to keep up with new sets and metagame trends. This means that if anybody finds something that needs to be changed or is not well explained, then they can simply post their suggestions in this thread and changes will be made. Also if you see any of the authors on PS feel free to talk to us and ask questions. The BH ladder has a small tight-knit community and we certainly like to both help newer players get into the tier and discuss it with more experienced ones.

 

[Mulan15262]

Everyone, be sure to post your own sets in here too! If all of us (the creators of the guide) approve of it, it's going to be in this thread!

Example:

Virizion @ Fist Plate
Trait: Magic Bounce
Timid Nature
- Judgment
- Leech Seed
- Aromatherapy
- Heal Order

Virizion has the stats and typing it needs to be an amazing bouncer, especially in the rain. With a resistance to Stealth Rock, and Earthquake, it counters Groudon and Rhydon splendidly since it takes minimal damage from their Earthquakes. STAB Super Effective Judgment is also very strong, Having a chance to 2HKO Normal Arceus, Dialga, Kyurem-W, Kyurem-B, and Rhydon. Its high special defense and speed helps a lot, acting as a fantastic pivot turning the tides of battle in a moments notice.
Anything with a flying move or V-create can kill it.

So come on folks, start posting new sets, it may end up in here!

Why not use Aura Sphere and give it a more beneficial item? You are only sacrificing 10 Base Power for a useful item, a good trade in my opinion.

 

[Snaquaza]

Why not use Aura Sphere and give it a more beneficial item? You are only sacrificing 10 Base Power for a useful item, a good trade in my opinion.

To prevent Imposter Chansey/Blissey from using the attack as they won't have to plate needed to use that type of Judgment

 

[BLOOD TOTEM]

Awesome guide, kudos to everyone who worked on it.

I'd love to try out some of these sets, especially the imposter lure jirachi, if only I had more time :3

 

[Redless]

We are considering adding a team archetypes section. If you have an idea for a team archetypes, please post it! So far, we have double Chansey pp stall and some weather.

 

[asterat]

Why not use Aura Sphere and give it a more beneficial item? You are only sacrificing 10 Base Power for a useful item, a good trade in my opinion.

It's actually 30 base power, which is pretty significant. Disallowing importers from using judgment is pretty minor because it only really hits things it's super effective to for serious damage. Leftovers could be used in conclusion but fist plate gives Virizion a STAB to do something with. I might try knock off or volt switch or even ice beam over leech seed if you are looking for other options.


Also pretty big update coming as soon as I get home.

 

[Mulan15262]

It's actually 30 base power, which is pretty significant.

What do you mean? Judgement has 100 power, Aura Sphere has 90. Furthermore, Aura Sphere will not miss (only matters when against a Moody user or a pokemon that will lower your accuracy, so not major) and has twice as much PP, so it can be used more.

 

[Klang]

What do you mean? Judgement has 100 power, Aura Sphere has 90. Furthermore, Aura Sphere will not miss (only matters when against a Moody user or a pokemon that will lower your accuracy, so not major) and has twice as much PP, so it can be used more.

He's factoring in the fist plate you'll be losing, which also provides a 20% boost. I do agree however that aura sphere is a better option though it's a matter of preference on whether you want power or leftovers recovery.

 

[Adrian Marin]

You must remember that Fist Plate Judgment turns 3HKO's into 2HKO's, Aura Sphere won't 2HKO Arceus-Normal for example, Judgment can.

EDIT: Meant 2HKO, not one

 

[Mulan15262]

You must remember that Fist Plate Judgment turns 3HKO's into OHKO's, Aura Sphere won't 2HKO Arceus-Normal for example, Judgment can.

3HKOs into OHKOs? If First Plat Judgement deals exactly 100%, then Aura Sphere will do about 76%. Both would be OHKOs after stealth rock.

Furthermore, both score a guaranteed 2HKO on Normal Extremekiller Arceus.

 

[Vincent]

Is allowed theorymoning in this topic?

Deoxys-Speed @ King's Rock
Trait: Serene Grace
Nature: Jolly
- Beat Up
- Magic Coat
- Recover
- ???

I'm not sure now if King Rock's flinch rate works for each hit or for each use of Beat Up (that's why it's theorymoning), but if it gets for each hit then this is already better than Icicle Spear + Skill Link (since you got one more hit than Icicle Spear without needing an ability for that, but be careful with status or letting your pokemons faint, because Beat Up depends on how much of your pokemons are healthy). Serene Grace doubles King Rock's flinch rate, so you got 20% flinch rate six times in a row! Deoxys-S because it is the fastest pokemon alive, so you can flinch everybody before they hit you, but if you want STAB or something, go with Darkrai that is the fastest dark pokemon.

Giratina @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Dragon Tail
- Psycho Shift
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Always wanted to put those damn Magic Bouncers to sleep with Prankster instead of Mold Breaker? Always wanted to gives priority to Dragon Tail like Prankster Copycat gives to Whirlwind? Now both of your problems are solved with the RestTalk combo! The problem here is Sleep Talk selecting Rest, but that's the only way of self-induce sleep since you can't rely on your opponent throwing Spore at you. If some Sleep version of Flame/Toxic Orb existed, it would be perfect for this moveset. And now is possible to put to sleep even those Magic Guard/Poison Heal strategies if your Sleep Talk select Psycho Shift, followed by healing yourself from the status you shifted with Rest.

Steelix @ Life Orb/Muscle Band/Earth Plate/Iron Plate/Focus Sash/Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 SDef
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Copycat
- Gyro Ball
- Nature Power
- Power Trick

Use Power Trick then start to spam priority Earthquake with 200 base attack right off the bat. If your adversary is flying or has levitate, then click on Gyro Ball followed by Copycat spam. Muscle Band is there because it powers up both of your attacks without recoil (Life Orb), but you can choose Earth or Iron Plate to power up even more just one of your attacks. Focus Sash is there to make you survive while you setup (since now your base Defense will drop to 85), and Lum Berry works in a similar way to help you setup against Burn and Sleep. Shuckle could run a similar set, but it doesn't have a priority STAB as Steelix has on Nature Power, though it could run Copycat Head Smash or Megahorn (though it would probably die quickly of recoil with Head Smash).

That's it for now :p

 

[Mulan15262]

Is allowed theorymoning in this topic?
Deoxys-Speed @ King's Rock
Trait: Serene Grace
Nature: Jolly
- Beat Up
- Magic Coat
- Recover
- ???

I'm not sure now if King Rock's flinch rate works for each hit or for each use of Beat Up (that's why it's theorymoning), but if it gets for each hit then this is already better than Icicle Spear + Skill Link (since you got one more hit than Icicle Spear without needing an ability for that, but be careful with status or letting your pokemons faint, because Beat Up depends on how much of your pokemons are healthy). Serene Grace doubles King Rock's flinch rate, so you got 20% flinch rate six times in a row! Deoxys-S because it is the fastest pokemon alive, so you can flinch everybody before they hit you, but if you want STAB or something, go with Darkrai that is the fastest dark pokemon.

Serene Grace has no effect on a King's Rock. So you only get a little under a 47% chance of flinching.

 

[Vincent]

But on Smogon's site (Black & White Moves section) says it turns King's Rock into 20% flinch rate.

 

[Magatsu Izanagi]

Deoxys-Speed @ King's Rock
Trait: Serene Grace
Nature: Jolly
- Beat Up
- Magic Coat
- Recover
- ??? I'm not sure now if King Rock's flinch rate works for each hit or for each use of Beat Up (that's why it's theorymoning), but if it gets for each hit then this is already better than Icicle Spear + Skill Link (since you got one more hit than Icicle Spear without needing an ability for that, but be careful with status or letting your pokemons faint, because Beat Up depends on how much of your pokemons are healthy). Serene Grace doubles King Rock's flinch rate, so you got 20% flinch rate six times in a row! Deoxys-S because it is the fastest pokemon alive, so you can flinch everybody before they hit you, but if you want STAB or something, go with Darkrai that is the fastest dark pokemon.

Giratina @ Leftovers
Trait: Prankster
Nature: Jolly
- Dragon Tail
- Psycho Shift
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Always wanted to put those damn Magic Bouncers to sleep with Prankster instead of Mold Breaker? Always wanted to gives priority to Dragon Tail like Prankster Copycat gives to Whirlwind? Now both of your problems are solved with the RestTalk combo! The problem here is Sleep Talk selecting Rest, but that's the only way of self-induce sleep since you can't rely on your opponent throwing Spore at you. If some Sleep version of Flame/Toxic Orb existed, it would be perfect for this moveset. And now is possible to put to sleep even those Magic Guard/Poison Heal strategies if your Sleep Talk select Psycho Shift, followed by healing yourself from the status you shifted with Rest.

Steelix @ Life Orb/Muscle Band/Earth Plate/Iron Plate/Focus Sash/Lum Berry
Trait: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 SDef
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spd
- Copycat
- Gyro Ball
- Nature Power
- Power Trick

Use Power Trick then start to spam priority Earthquake with 200 base attack right off the bat. If your adversary is flying or has levitate, then click on Gyro Ball followed by Copycat spam. Muscle Band is there because it powers up both of your attacks without recoil (Life Orb), but you can choose Earth or Iron Plate to power up even more just one of your attacks. Focus Sash is there to make you survive while you setup (since now your base Defense will drop to 85), and Lum Berry works in a similar way to help you setup against Burn and Sleep. Shuckle could run a similar set, but it doesn't have a priority STAB as Steelix has on Nature Power, though it could run Copycat Head Smash or Megahorn (though it would probably die quickly of recoil with Head Smash).

Very interesting sets Vincent especially the giratina one, psycho shifting sleep is a cool idea and having the 1/3 chance to pull off a dragon tail with priority is nice, but it's pretty much useless againist substitute and pokemon that are already statused have nothing to fear from that set such as poison heal regigigas and other toxic orb users, about the steelix set it's very interesting to see someone employ the rather gimmicky power trick to give steelix some attacking power although i must say steelix has a very bad special defense stat which might make hard to find a good chance to set up and due to it's newfound frailness after power trick (in cases either your sash was broken by hazards or you were running some other item) other common prankster pokemon can take him out with their own faster priority nature powers, about the deoxys-s i don't think serene grace boosts king's rock flinch rate because serene grace applies to the moves regular effects and not to item induced ones but still it's very annoying to be flinched to death the only real thing it should worry about are prankster nature powers and weather based abilities pokemon (like the swift swim palkia) i really like the idea of flinching someone to death ^-^.
i'll post some of my own sets tommorow.

 

[Mulan15262]

But on Smogon's site (Black & White Moves section) says it turns King's Rock into 20% flinch rate.

Oops, I missed that, probably because everywhere else says otherwise. In that case, it has about a 74% chance of flinching the target (assuming no teammates are inflicted with status/fainted). It is nothing I'd rely on, but it actually isn't that bad.

Although Smogon's description of the King's Rock is in the Black & White items section, not the Black & White moves section.

 

[Arcticblast]

Let's try to keep theorymon discussion in the main thread and not here - this isn't the place.

EDIT: Mostly pure theorymon - bringing up a proven set here is totally fine.

 

[voidzone]

great article, gj ;) there are a few things that come to my mind

- on the Unware Sweeper Lugia, Leech Seed might be an option > Roost, simply to prevent it from becoming complete imposter bait. Since Imposters usually sport a higher base hp, it gives Lugia an edge over them. Magic Coat or Spore are useful additional options over substitute in that case. sure i'm aware of the fact, that substitute is usually a strong move vs. imposters, but Lugia 4x resists its own attack, which will result in a very time consuming war of substitutes and roosts vs. chansey. From my personal experience leech seed and the lack of a n instant recovery move will shorten this a lot. The downside is, that Lugia is easier to take down itself. So another option would be running taunt > substitute alongside with mental herb, which forces the imposter to use stored power right away, while we have the option to continue raising speed/power and recovering health.
- Normalize Gengar, hmm, I admin that the provided set has usage and some sort of use as well, but I believe a more stallbreakerish Set could be mentioned as well, with Entrainment / Curse / Recover / Snatch or Taunt, Gengar is capable of effectively stalling most defensive pokemon in bh with little effort, being a hard counter to slower, more bulky sweeper builds like Slaking, Regigigas or Palkia, and/or forcing switches to rack up passive damage. I consider such a set more effective and flexible in its department, than the more offensive Skill Swap Normalize Build imo, which runs out of fuel quickly and is lot easier to counter.
- I would suggest Garchomp as a viable Prankster+Nature Power user as well. It has basespeed 102, which means, it can effectively taunt nearly any other prankster user preventing their moves - putting other abusers like Groudon oder Rhydon instantly on struggle mode, and yet still having STAB on Nature Power coming from a 130 base attack.

 

[EV]

I'm curious about Lava Plume on some of the sets (Drought Blissey and Kyogre). Why not Searing Shot? PP stall?

 

[Magatsu Izanagi]

Landorus (M) @ Icicle Plate
Trait: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 SDef / 252 Spd
Naive Nature
- Judgment
- Shell Smash
- Taunt/Recover
- Earthquake

with a shell smash under it's belt landorus manages to outpace swift swim palkia due to it's awkward speed tier and thanks to judgment ice he can defeat imposters with ease, although it's slower than lugia and somewhat weak compared to the powerhouses roaming the tier landorus has decent mixed sweeping stats to use with shell smash, Earthquake is there mostly because it's a STAB move that prevents landorus from being shutdown by steel type pokemon and due to judgment giving coverage on the only type immune to earthquake landorus gets a pretty good coverage on most pokemon in a tier crowded with dragons, on the third moveslot taunt is there to stop any Deestiny bonds and prevents walls from healing up.

 

[Klang]

I'm curious about Lava Plume on some of the sets (Drought Blissey and Kyogre). Why not Searing Shot? PP stall?

Lava Plume has much more PP which is better than the 20 higher base power when you're using it in a defensive role. Searing shot is better however when you're using an offensive Poke and you want a high chance to burn.

 

[Adrian Marin]

Be sure to suggest about team archetypes, sets, and anything you'd like! This is a community project.

 

[Cryptis]

I open with an Illusion Slaking that will usually kill a poke or two, and often sweeps entire teams. Just put a Shedinja as your last poke.

Slaking @ Lum Berry
Trait: Illusion
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 SDef / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Belly Drum
- Extremespeed
- Crunch
- Drain Punch

 

[sugarhigh]

Omg this was finally posted yay! I'm so glad so many people already posted more sets :3. Be free to ask me for help in this stuff also.