Overview
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When looking at Cresselia's stats, you'll be astonished to find that she's sporting very impressive 120 / 120 / 130 defenses that are capable of shrugging off hits from even some of the mightiest forces in OU, such as Landorus, Mega Medicham, Latios, Mega Charizard Y, Thundurus, Talonflame, and Keldeo, just to name a few. With Deoxys-D officially banned from OU, Cresselia may yet find usage on hyper offensive teams, though she already had some uses a niche over Deoxys-D, namely having overall better defenses and Lunar Dance to give a crippled sweeper a second chance at sweeping.
But she has a few flaws that prevent her from truly shining in OU, but her Cresselia's most crippling flaw is her Psychic typing, which leaves her with weaknesses to Bug, Ghost, and Dark weaknesses, meaning the likes of Bisharp, (Mega) Tyranitar, and Mega Scizor can be quite bothersome. Her lack of significant offensive power is also a problem when facing teams, as she has to use Toxic to reliably wear opponents down. Finally, she doesn't have too much variety to her name, as her movepool is somewhat slim.
Sure, her flaws are apparent, and they might even be glaring to some extent, but rest assured, Cresselia is excellent at the job given to her, as she can wall some big names that others can't do to the extent that she can. (fluff)
Special Wall
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name: Special Wall
move 1: Psychic / Moonblast
move 2: Moonlight
move 3: Reflect
move 4: Ice Beam / Thunder Wave
ability: Levitate
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Def
nature: Calm
Moves
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Psychic is the Cresselia's most common more commonly used method for damaging foes attack, (RC) due to its STAB boost powering it up. However, Moonblast allows Cresselia to threaten Dark-types, (AC) such as Bisharp and Tyranitar, (AC) at the cost of STAB. Moonlight keeps Cresselia alive throughout a fight, and is the reason why she can take on the threats that she can. Reflect supports the team when they need to take by weakening physical attacks hits, and also allows Cresselia to live any Pursuit. Ice Beam allows Cresselia to threaten several threats that would have free turns against her otherwise, such as Landorus, Dragonite, and Gliscor. Thunder Wave provides paralysis support that slower teammates, (AC) such as Mega Heracross and Breloom, (AC) appreciate, and makes it difficult for offensive teams to approach Cresselia.
Set Details
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252 EVs in both HP and Special Defense maximize her special walling potential bulk, pretty straightforward. Thunder Wave can be used to cripple sweepers, but Ice Beam is needed to threaten the above mentioned Pokemon that would otherwise have free turns against Cresselia, as she otherwise Cresselia becomes setup bait otherwise.
Usage Tips
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Cresselia is designed to be the go-to wall for against offensive and balanced teams, and shouldn't be used against stall. Cresselia is able to take on Life Orb Latios, non-Dark Pulse-lacking Greninja, Landorus, Talonflame, Terrakion, Kyurem-B, Mega Manectric, Thundurus, Keldeo, and Mega Charizard Y, and can switch into them all reliably except for the latter two.
Team Options
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Mega Charizard Y can be considered a good teammate, as he threatens some Pokemon that can handle Cresselia, such as (Mega) Scizor, Bisharp, and Ferrothorn, but also provides sun support, (AC) which lets Moonlight heal 66% two-thirds of Cresselia's health. Fighting-types such as Conkeldurr, Terrakion, Mega Heracross, and Breloom can take care of Dark-types that threaten Cresselia, such as Tyranitar and Bisharp. Chansey is a good partner, as she absorbs who status for Cresselia and has Heal Bell to rid Cresselia of any status. Jirachi can ward off Clefable nicely thanks to its resistances to Moonblast and Psyshock, (RC) as well as having and STAB Iron Head to hit Clefable hard. Gliscor absorbs status after Toxic Orb activates, (RC) and can also take care of Bisharp and Mega Heracross nicely through Earthquake and Toxic, respectively.
Trick Room
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name: Trick Room
move 1: Trick Room
move 2: Light Screen / Reflect
move 3: Lunar Dance
move 4: Moonblast / Psychic / Moonlight
ability: Levitate
item: Light Clay / Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Def
nature: Bold
Moves
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Trick Room is the obvious choice here, as it provides bulky teams with a means of outspeeding every sweeper without priority in the game. Light Screen or Reflect are there to provide some defensive support for teammates when they switch in. Lunar Dance provides a safe switch after setting up Trick Room, and can give a crippled teammate a second chance in a battle. The fourth move is a toss up; Moonblast hits most Dark- and Dragon-types that think you'll Cresselia be setup fodder, Psychic is a generally stronger attack due to STAB, and Moonlight can be used when you want to keep Cresselia for more Trick Room setup opportunities to set up Trick Room.
Set Details
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252 HP and Defense EVs ensure that Cresselia is as bulky as possible. Light Clay is the superior option most of the time, as the extra turns that Reflect / Light Screen (add spaces) stay up for can matter, though Leftovers can be used if you wish for Cresselia to have a little more longevity.
Usage Tips
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Use Reflect / Light Screen (add spaces) first, and then Trick Room, so you don't have to waste a Trick Room turn setting up a screen. Cresselia can set up Trick Room at least once per battle given her incredible bulk, so unless your opponent has Taunt, there will always be at least one successful setup opportunity. While Cresselia doesn't exactly have much longevity with this set and thus sometimes sees usage as a suicide lead of sorts, saving her for an emergency Lunar Dance later on for the match can really save you in a pinch, whether it's (add apostrophe) used to patch up a teammate or for providing a safe switch in to a teammate.
Team Options
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Conkeldurr works as a decent partner, as his Fighting typing scares off Dark-types, and he also works as a status absorber for Cresselia, and his low Speed and high Attack are excellent for Trick Room sweeping. Rhyperior can take physical hits very well for Cresselia, and is a very powerful Trick Room sweeper. Jirachi is a good partner that can handle Clefable more reliably and can absorb Toxic. Gliscor makes for a great partner, thanks to his status immunity after Toxic Orb activates and the ability to take on Bisharp and Mega Heracross. Victini can abuse Trick Room very nicely with V-Create, providing an excellent offensive presence for Cresselia.
Dual Screens
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name: Dual Screens
move 1: Reflect
move 2: Light Screen
move 3: Lunar Dance
move 4: Thunder Wave
ability: Levitate
item: Light Clay
evs: 252 HP / 252 SpD / 4 Def
nature: Calm
Moves
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Reflect and Light Screen provide the team with extra bulk for switching in and taking hits. Lunar Dance provides important cleric support, and provides a safe switch in when needed. While being largely filler, Thunder Wave can potentially scare checks and counters into switching out.
Set Details
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252 HP and Special Defense EVs make Cresselia exceptionally bulky, allowing her to take hits while setting up Reflect and Light Screen more easily. Light Clay is the mandatory item here, as the extra turns provided by it of screens it provides are is more important than getting a little more health with Leftovers's passive recovery.
Usage Tips
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Cresselia should be used as a lead, as you want the screen support as soon as possible. It's possible to stay in on Pokemon that hit Cresselia super-effectively (remove hyphen) after setting up either Reflect or Light Screen, given her already excellent bulk. Cresselia is able to endure Pursuits from the likes of Bisharp and Choice Band Tyranitar, and if you use Reflect, you can switch out while avoiding the 2HKOs from their Pursuits.
Team Options
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Setup sweepers enjoy the extra bulk that Cresselia's dual screen support brings them, as they can set up with a lower risk of getting KOed before getting the chance to attack, or and can even set up twice, (AC) depending on the circumstances. Mega Gyarados in specific particular is an excellent partner for Cresselia, as the extra bulk provided by dual screen support easily provides setup opportunities, and is a great check to Tyranitar, Heatran, and Bisharp.
Calm Mind
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name: Calm Mind
move 1: Rest
move 2: Sleep Talk
move 3: Calm Mind
move 4: Psyshock / Psychic
ability: Levitate
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
nature: Bold
Moves
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Rest is Cresselia's method of recovery here, not only fully recovering her HP, but also removing status conditions, such as Toxic poison and burns. Sleep Talk allows Cresselia to fight back while she's asleep, and protects her from status moves aside from Taunt. Calm Mind turns Cresselia into a powerful tank if given enough boosts, making her a massive threat to offensive and defensive teams alike. Psyshock is Cresselia's method of attacking, and lets her threaten special walls. Psychic can be used if you aren't concerned with hitting special walls harder than physical walls.
Set Details
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252 HP and Defense EVs with a Bold nature make Cresselia as bulky as possible, with the remaining 4 EVs going to Special Defense to minutely increase her special bulk.
Usage Tips
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This set can come in on nearly every stall-oriented (add hyphen) Pokemon and proceed to set up. As long as If your opponent has either any Dark-types and or Jirachi are on your opponent's team, Cresselia can't do anything without being hard countered.
Team Options
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Terrakion makes for a good teammate, (RC) thanks to its his ability to handle Dark- and Steel-types, (RC) as well as being able to set up and access to Stealth Rock for passive entry hazard damage support. Choice Scarf Landorus-T can take on Bisharp, Tyranitar, Jirachi, and Heatran, but he must be wary of Tyranitar using an Ice-type move, (RC) and can't switch into Heatran, (AC) since it could use Will-O-Wisp on the switch.
Other Options
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Hidden Power Fire allows Cresselia to threaten Steel-types, such as Scizor and Ferrothorn. For the support sets, Psyshock can be used on the support sets to damage special walls more, but the damage difference is rather minuscule.
Checks & Counters
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**Dark-types**: Dark-types, (AC) such as Tyranitar, Bisharp, and Mandibuzz, (AC) are relatively unaffected by Cresselia's attacks, and the former two can threaten her with Pursuit or their strongest STAB moves, whileereas the latter can Taunt and proceed to Toxic stall. (add period)
**Clefable**: Clefable is able to set up on Cresselia quite easily with Calm Mind, (AC) and can heal off all damage Cresselia can inflict to her. (add period)
**Toxic**: Toxic will drastically impede Cresselia's ability to wall opponents, and must rely on Rest to rid herself of it. (add period)
**Taunt**: Users of Taunt users will force Cresselia out frequently if not constantly, with notable users being Heatran, Sableye, Mega Gyarados, Mandibuzz, Mew, Victini, and Gliscor. (add period)
**Steel-types**: Steel-types in general force Cresselia to switch out constantly, as they only have to fear Thunder Wave and weak Hidden Power Fires, with Heatran being the best of the bunch, since Flash Fire protects against the latter move. (add period)
**Rain and Sand**: Rain and sand nerfs Moonlight, Cresselia's best means of recovery, so weather sweepers such as Excadrill, Tyranitar, Kabutops, and Kingdra can easily wear her down, though only the former is safe from Thunder Wave. (add period)
**Calm Mind Sweepers**: Calm Mind sweepers, (AC) such as Raikou, Suicune, and Manaphy, (AC) can threaten non-Toxic-lacking variants of Cresselia. (add period)[/quote]