Rotom-Wash [SINGLES] (QC: 0/3)

[ethan06]

[OVERVIEW]

+Good defensive typing and ability
+Strong STABs and access to Volt Switch
+Arguably the most reliable Talonflame counter in the game
+Good blanket check for physical attackers with Will-o-Wisp
-Lack of reliable recovery; easy to wear down
-Has to rely on Hydro Pump for Water-type STAB
-Defensive stats are not high enough to withstand some of the format's stronger hits

[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Volt Switch / Thunderbolt
move 3: Will-o-Wisp
move 4: Rest / Thunderbolt
item: Sitrus Berry / Leftovers / Chesto Berry
ability: Levitate
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Hydro Pump is Water STAB for clearing out mons like Mamoswine, Garchomp and Roosting Talonflame
• Volt Switch is a useful pivoting move for predicting switches into Pokémon like Serperior and gaining switch initiative; Thunderbolt does more damage and doesn't force Rotom to switch
• Will-o-Wisp is the main reason to use Rotom-W; it neutralises many physical attackers and allows Rotom to wall them
• Rest is best used with Chesto Berry to allow Rotom to heal all damage taken as well as a status affliction, making it Rotom's best option for one-time healing; however, healing can be foregone completely and replaced with Thunderbolt for a more reliable Electric-type move
• Pain Split can also be used but synergises poorly with HP investment/healing items and is generally kinda bad

Set Details
========

• Full physically defensive spread for taking hits from the likes of Talonflame as well as possible
• Chesto Berry if running Rest; Leftovers or Sitrus if not

Usage Tips
========

• Best used as a blanket switch-in for most physical attackers
• Don't use Rotom to try and check Mega Kangaskhan! Double-Edge does around 80%, meaning that Rotom can't take two even if Will-o-Wisp connects
  
• Abuse Rotom's resists to the fullest; great switch-in to Azumarill, Talonflame, Mamoswine and Scizor
  
• Exercise care when checking Suicune as the CM Rest set beats it 1-on-1; Mirror Coat is also a thing

Team Options
========

• Weak to Grass and Dragon types
• Aegislash, Scizor can beat the above but struggle with Hydreigon; Heatran is a nice partner for its ability to wall most Dragons and Grass-types sans Breloom; Mega Mawile is a fantastic partner for Rotom if you can spare the mega slot because of its raw power and improved matchup vs. Dragons
  
• Serperior can absorb Spore, spread para and beat up Dragons with boosted Dragon Pulse
• Gengar can beat down slower special attackers and checks Kangaskhan

[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Volt Switch / Thunderbolt
move 3: Hidden Power Ice / Thunderbolt
move 4: Trick
item: Choice Specs
ability: Levitate
nature: Modest
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Hydro Pump is Rotom's only available Water STAB, but it hits really hard with Specs
• Volt Switch allows Rotom to pivot on predicted switches; however, Thunderbolt hits harder and allows Rotom to stay in if it needs to. They can be used together
• Hidden Power Ice broadens Rotom's type coverage significantly and allows it to damage Dragon-types such as Garchomp and Hydreigon much more than it can with Hydro Pump
• Trick allows Rotom to pass its Choice Specs onto the opponent, crippling Pokémon that rely on their item to function such as Chansey and Porygon2.

Set Details
========

• More offensive approach than the Will-o-Wisp set
• Choice Specs, SpA investment and Modest nature maximise Rotom's damage output
• 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe Timid is an option for outspeeding and hitting certain threats such as Breloom but it compromises your bulk considerably

Usage Tips
========

• Specs Rotom has middling bulk while still occupying an awkward speed tier so it must be played carefully against faster teams
  
• Bring Rotom against defensive teams and Pokémon such as Porygon2 to cripple them with Trick
• Abuse your access to Hidden Power [Ice] to the fullest to beat threats such as Garchomp and Mega Salamence

Team Options
========

• While Rotom is no longer held back by its lack of coverage, it's now slow and relatively frail so pairing it with answers to offensive threats that damage Rotom heavily like Garchomp, Thundurus, Kangaskhan and Blaziken are a good idea
• Pokémon with a good matchup against offense include Greninja, Weavile, Talonflame, Thundurus, Mega Lopunny and Mega Lucario
• The loss of Will-o-Wisp on this set makes Ferrothorn a threat (on top of the other Grass-type threats) so a strong Fire- or Fighting-type is recommended to beat it. Talonflame, Heatran, Entei and Conkeldurr are all solid partners for Specs Rotom

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

• Pain Split: Can be useful but synergizes poorly with HP investment and healing items such as Leftovers, and is generally unreliable
• Thunder Wave: Useful for teams that need speed control more than they need burn support
• Dual Screens: Allows Rotom to support its team with field effects - however, it's a massive suck on moveslots and

Checks and Counters
===================

**Grass-types**: Serperior is Rotom-Wash's greatest fear thanks to the power and spammability of Leaf Storm. Be very wary of Serperior when Rotom is your only Glare switch-in. Mega Venusaur is capable of taking any of Rotom's hits and recovering off all of the damage before retaliating with a super-effective STAB Giga Drain. Breloom and Ferrothorn can also be threatening if they have ways of dodging Will-o-Wisp and Trick.

**Dragon-types**: Certain Dragon-types, such as Latios, Hydreigon and Lum Berry Dragonite, can switch in on Rotom's STABs and Will-o-Wisp and weaken it severely with their powerful STAB Dragon-type moves. They can, however, be defeated by Hidden Power [Ice].

**Mold Breaker**: Excadrill, Haxorus and Mega Gyarados are able to either weaken or outright KO Rotom-W with Mold Breaker Earthquake, which bypasses Rotom's Levitate for a super-effective hit.

**Charizard**: Both Mega Charizard X and Mega Charizard Y are capable of taking advantage of Rotom-Wash, with Y being able to significantly weaken even bulky variants with Solar Beam, and X being able to abuse its Fire / Dragon typing to set up Dragon Dances on Rotom.

**Offensive Pressure**: Due to Rotom's lack of reliable recovery, it is very prone to being worn down by repeated neutral hits. It can lose a lot of value as a switch-in against threats such as Aegislash, Kangaskhan and Hydreigon, and the offensive sets border on frailty: Scarfed Rotom is 2HKOed by Choice Band Talonflame's Brave Bird, losing its utility as a check completely.

 

[cant say]

Ok so I know this is still WIP but... according to the PGL modest is the overwhelming popular nature (56%) and you don't have it as a standalone set or even a slash on the choiced set. I would actually have it as the main nature on the choice set with specs as the main item, and use the slower, bulkier spread (max HP + SpA). You can leave a mention in set details that you should use a faster spread with a Scarf

 

[Jibaku]

1st set should have Thunderbolt slashed in on the Rest/Pain Split slot as neither are reliable enough as a recovery move that the extra Thunderbolt will often prove just as useful.

Be careful when switching Defensive Rotom-W into Suicune. Calm Mind Suicune can actually beat Rotom-W 1v1 if it is faster and the situation becomes even more of a disaster for Rotoms switching in. Mirror Coat is also annoying.

Split Specs/Scarf

 

[ethan06]

Thanks guys. I don't have a ton of experience with the Choiced sets so I kind of played that one by ear in the five minutes I had before going to work... Will implement suggestions. Splitting Specs and Scarf into separate sets seems like a good idea to differentiate between EVs and nature. I sort of disagree with making Thunderbolt the main slash on the Defensive set over any recovery move - while Pain Split is really terrible, I've found Chesto Rest to be actually really reliable in the format for keeping Rotom around to check the things it needs to without risk of failure. I'll make the slash Rest/Thunderbolt with a set comment for Pain Split.

 

[ethan06]

After going over some things with cant say, I've added a little more and clarified some things and I think it's good enough to open to QC. Go nuts guys ^^

 

[NOVED]

um it looks like you forgot some stuff. usage on specs, and team options are blank. unless you're still working on this, sorry for bringing it up if thats the case lol

but i dont think hex should be in oo, its not exactly something common on the pgl top 10 even and it seems really really situational

 

[ethan06]

oops gdi, thanks. I'm getting sloppy in my old age lol

Agreed on Hex, it's really just there as filler but I agree that it's pretty bad and probably doesn't deserve a mention. I'll get rid of it :]

 

[ethan06]

Bumping because I'd really like some checks in here

cant say NOVED Hulavuta Montsegur Theorymon DragonWhale Jibaku

 

[Hulavuta]

Sup ethan06

For the first set:

If Will-o-Wisp is the main reason for the set, then it should probably be moved to the first slot since it's in order of importance. Hydro Pump doesn't really need to refer to Roosting Talonflame as that's kind of specific and it takes care of non-Roosting Taloflame anyway. You could expand on Thunderbolt a bit because really it's Rotom's safest move. Volt Switch forces a switch and Hydro Pump has low PP and accuracy, but Thunderbolt has 100 so it's the most reliable choice.

For Pain Split, I'd move it to other options. It really is not a good option like you said, and it's not a popular move so it doesn't really warrant much mention.

I'd add Landorus-T to the team options and make sure you mention U-turn for both it and Scizor, as obviously U-turn and Volt Switch together are pretty good. Scarfed versions can also take care of Hydreigon as long as its not scarfed as well. Could add Landorus to the list of things Rotom can switch into as well.

Second set:

Might want to go into a little explanation with Volt Switch vs. Thunderbolt and mention sometimes with only 3 Pokemon on a team, forcing a switch with Volt Switch can be a bad thing if your teammate loses to your opponent's Pokemon.

Could add Salamence to the list with Garchomp and Hydreigon too, since it's a big threat.

Trick not only hurts Pokemon that rely on their items, but also set-up attackers and lots of defensive Pokemon. Calm Mind Suicune doesn't like having Choice Specs (even though it does boost it a little) and defensive Pokemon like Hippowdon or Gyarados don't like being locked into one move. It also highly cripples any sort of physical attacker as they obviously don't get the boost from it. Something like Azumarill or Garchomp doesn't like having Specs. It also makes it easier for your team as it removes that uncertainty as you know what your opponent is going to do.

For the EV spread, might be worth it to put the 4 EVs into Special Defense for Porygon2 Download. 4 don't really make a big difference anyway.

Other Options:

Choice Scarf is actually the third most common item so maybe you should go into a little more detail on it. Just mention that its use is a little bit different, it's mainly to take out certain threats rather than take hits itself. Most of these other options besides Pain Split are pretty common and good so a few sentences for each would work.

Finally, could add Venusaur to the Grass-type checks. It's immune to Trick too!

 

[Theorymon]

Alright, finally checking this mofo!

-I'd argue that Choice Scarf should actually be added as its own set (as the third set). Yeah, its certainly the frailest Rotom-W set, and doesn't have Specs's power, but I think its the third most common item for a reason: Its probably the most disruptive Rotom-W set around! Trick is already huge on Specs, but on Scarf it's even bigger. Even more Pokemon really dislike having a Choice Scarf tricked, while the extra speed is great at picking off foes such as Garchomp, unboosted Mega Salamence, and non Scarf Landorus-T. Another big selling point is that Choice Scarf also gives Rotom-W the potential to Trick new threats that were more risky in the past, such as Zapdos, Thundurus (watch out for that taunt), defensive Rotom-W, Sylveon, and Aegislash!

For Scarf, I'd make its set pretty similar to the Specs set, except I wouldn't make Hidden Power Ice a slash in, since picking off weakened Garchomp and Mega Salamence is just too good to give up on a Scarf set. For teammates, I'd mention stuff that likes having walls crippled, such as Mega Kangaskhan, Azumarill, Offensive Porygon2, etc. As for strategy, I'd talk about being weary about just rushing in to bring Rotom-W, since its the most frail Rotom-W, and Choice Scarf can have a very nasty game changing surprise value when used right! Scarf also has similar problems as Specs btw, so talk about stuff like "beat that god damn Ferrothorn into the ground" if you wish.

Alright, onto other smaller nitpicks.

-I'd make Thunder Wave a set comments mention in the first set. Yeah Will-O-Wisp is totally better, but Rotom-W's Water typing slams Ground-types, which makes it a particularly good user of Thunder Wave. Usually, you'll see Thunder Wave Rotom-W on teams with Pokemon that massively benefit from speed control such as Mega Mawile and Mamoswine.

-For Grass types, I'd totally throw Mega Salamence around as a teammate. It also helps that Rotom-W helps Mega Salamence against the dreaded Mamoswine. Talonflame is also a good mention, and has good synergy with Rotom-W's typing with the grass resist, while Rotom-W can handle Water-types better.

-In Specs team options, I'd have a similar section to Scarf about teammates for Tricking stuff. In general, I find Trick to be a huge asset on Choiced Rotoms, so I think that needs to be focused on more. Of course, watch out for Tricking stuff like Aegislash or Zapdos lol.

-In other options, I'd mention Light Clay and Dual Screens. Not too common, but Rotom-W has the stats to pull it off.

 

[ethan06]

Sweet, thanks guys. Going to summarise for convenience's sake:

• Readd Choice Scarf. Though frail, it's handy for picking things off and Tricking fat mons that would otherwise benefit from receiving a Specs. Don't slash HP Ice, elaborate more on Trick, talk about surprise value and frailty relative to other Rotom sets. I'll probably need a bit of guidance on usage tips as I tend to avoid using this set
  
• Landorus-T and Mega Salamence to team options, talk about VoltTurn
  
• Mega Venusaur to C&C. Not too sure on Mega Salamence as depending on the set Rotom can check it, making their relationship pretty neutral. I'm fairly sure it goes on a set-by-set basis, more opinions here would certainly be appreciated
• Dual Screens and Pain Split to OO, elaborate more on everything but Pain Split as it's garbage
• For Defensive: Will-o-Wisp to first slot, elaborate on Thunderbolt, change Roosting Talonflame mention to regular Talonflame, T-Wave mention in set comments
• Elaborate on Volt Switch/Thunderbolt on all sets

Did I miss anything?

 

[Theorymon]

Yep that sounds about right ethan06. I'll help you out with Scarf Rotom-W usage tips if you want.

 

[cant say]

Yo ethan06 you still updating this? I'll check it when it's ready

 

[DragonWhale]

Choice Scarf:

You definitely need some HP investment on the scarf set. It only has base 50 HP and getting 2HKO'd by Banded Talonflame is definitely not the way to go. 76HP and 20Def lets you survive this with minimum EV investment. Timid with 212 speed let's you outspeed +1 base 80's (scarf Mamo, Blaziken, DD mega Altaria, DD Dragonite, scarf Togekiss) and base 145s (mega Sceptile and mega Beedrill). 220 if you want to outspeed +1 DD (mega) Gyarados. Remainder in SpA and 4 in SpD to optimize the spread should give you the following: 76 HP / 20 Def / 196 SpA / 4 SpD / 212 Spe, or 8 from SpA into Spe. Whichever one you see fit.

Choice Specs:

Volt Switch is pretty much indispensable for this set and should not be slashed with Thunderbolt. The primary reason behind this is that in every battle, specs Rotom's first course of action is scouting out the opponent's switch-in against it. From there, you get valuable information for when Rotom is sent in the second time: trick incoming bulky pokemon or simply attack if the switch-in is a mega or would benefit from specs. Trust me I use this thing a lot lol.

Checks and Counters:

Add Mega Gyarados in Mold Breaker. This thing outspeeds non-scarf, tanks tbolt from non-specs, and has a good chance to OHKO non-bulky with earthquake. You won't win 1v1 unless you're 220 scarf and gyarados decides to DD, or if you're specs and you get lucky with rolls (both of you are rolls if gyara is adamant).

Mega Venusaur in Grass Types. It's relatively common and the toughest opponent for Rotom to beat.

Charizard. Both forms. Investment is needed to survive Y Solarbeam and X can setup against it (though specs hydro pump has a slight chance to OHKO non-invested MCX)

**offensive pressure** is a bit too vague imo. Also, you're not talking about Rotom switching into these threats, but rather these threats switching into Rotom. You're also confusing the terms 'check' and 'counter'. If Brave Bird is a 2HKO then it's still a check, just not a counter.

EDIT: I'm having second thoughts on gyara in CC actually because it sounds kinda situational. I'll leave it up to you.