[OVERVIEW]
Tirtouga has many things going for it: great bulk, a good movepool, two good abilities, and decent typing. It can successfully pull off a number of sets and will almost always pull its weight. Thanks to its abilities Solid Rock and Sturdy, Tirtouga is perhaps the best Shell Smash user in Little Cup simply due to its ability to find many setup opportunities. After a boost, Tirtouga packs quite the punch with its awesome coverage and is a menace for all team archetypes—especially if provided minimal support. Tirtouga can also completely flip its roles from a sweeper to a wall, completely hindering most Flying-types and providing the team with Stealth Rock support and Eviolite removal. Unfortunately, two common Pokemon in Croagunk and Ferroseed completely counter Tirtouga, limiting its utility when one is present.
[SET]
name: Offensive Shell Smash
move 1: Shell Smash
move 2: Aqua Tail / Waterfall
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Aqua Jet / Earthquake
item: Splash Plate / Oran Berry
ability: Sturdy
nature: Adamant
evs: 84 HP / 212 Atk / 12 Def / 180 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Shell Smash doubles Tirtouga's lackluster Speed and good attacking stats, giving it the ability to sweep quite easily. Aqua Tail is the Water-type STAB move of choice, netting a significant OHKO on Mienfoo in conjunction with Splash Plate. However, Waterfall can be used in place of Aqua Tail for its reliability, though it does not secure the same OHKOs even with Splash Plate and therefore Tirtouga should run Oran Berry instead to mitigate hail damage and weaker priority. A set with Waterfall also requires more support than Aqua Tail sets, making it sometimes a fair tradeoff for some teams. Stone Edge is Tirtouga's most powerful attack and hits almost everything that Aqua Tail doesn't extremely hard. Aqua Jet can be used to help fend off faster Choice Scarf Pokemon and OHKO Sand Rush Drilbur, though generally its use is limited. Earthquake can be used instead to obliterate one of this set's common switch-ins, Croagunk, allowing for Tirtouga to sweep later on in the match.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
The EV spread maximizes Tirtouga's Attack to allow for it to dish out the most damage possible while also letting Tirtouga hit 22 Speed after a Shell Smash. 22 Speed is an important benchmark for Tirtouga, as it outpaces all unboosted Pokemon in the tier, as well as many common Choice Scarf users by one point, including Snover. The remaining EVs are invested into HP and Defense in an effort to give Tirtouga the most changes to set up. Sets running a Splash Plate are able to secure an OHKO on Mienfoo without entry hazard support, though Oran Berry sets require Spikes for the same OHKO and general sweeping potential.
Some of Tirtouga's best teammates are those that can defeat its most common checks: Ferroseed and Croagunk. For example, Drilbur beats Croagunk and does a large amount of damage to Ferroseed while providing hazard removal to preserve Sturdy. Wynaut can easily trap Croagunk and KO it while also providing setup opportunities with Encore. Similarly, Magnemite can trap and defeat Ferroseed with Hidden Power Fire and deal a lot of damage to Croagunk with Volt Switch and Thunderbolt, and it can also weaken Lileep into the KO range of Tirtouga's Stone Edge. Larvesta is another great partner, as it can comfortably switch into both Ferroseed and Croagunk, OHKOing Ferroseed and 2HKOing Croagunk. Misdreavus pairs well with Tirtouga, as it can weaken Lileep, Porygon, and Ferroseed into the KO range of Tirtouga's attacks. Misdreavus can also benefit from Tirtouga breaking down Lileep and Porygon, and in return it helps keep up Stealth Rock for Tirtouga's sweeps. Mienfoo can Knock Off Slowpoke's Eviolite while checking Ferroseed. It does struggle versus Croagunk, but High Jump Kick does substantial damage after removing Croagunk's Eviolite with Knock Off. In general, Fighting-types pair well with Tirtouga, as they manhandle Porygon and Lileep, which usually are problematic for Tirtouga. Sometimes, using multiple Shell Smash users on a team allows for one of them, such as Tirtouga, to sufficiently weaken the others' counters, letting another user such as Omanyte, Shellder, or Clamperl sweep. If Oran Berry is being used in place of Splash Plate, Pokemon with access to Spikes—such as Ferroseed and Shelmet—are able to help Tirtouga secure the KOs it would otherwise miss.
[SET]
name: Bulky Shell Smash
move 1: Shell Smash
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Earthquake / Aqua Jet
item: Eviolite
ability: Solid Rock
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 212 Atk / 12 Def / 76 SpD / 180 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Due to this set's great bulk, Tirtouga is able to wallbreak for itself or another sweeper early on in the match and still be healthy enough to set up later on. At the expense of Splash Plate's power, Tirtouga now has far more survivability with an Eviolite. An Eviolite alongside Solid Rock allows Tirtouga to stomach Croagunk's Vacuum Wave and Timburr's Mach Punch even with lowered defenses. An Eviolite also grants Tirtouga far more bulk, giving it far more chances to set up than Oran Berry or Splash Plate would. Once it uses one of its many chances to set up, its two STAB moves in Waterfall and Stone Edge, which have nearly unresisted coverage, will hit extremely hard. Earthquake rounds off this coverage, OHKOing Croagunk and doing decent damage to Ferroseed. Aqua Jet is also useful, however, as even at +2, Tirtouga is outsped by many common Choice Scarf users.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
Due to this set's lack of Splash Plate, Pokemon with access to Spikes are a valuable asset to Tirtouga. Shelmet is able to provide Tirtouga with both its desired Spikes and a decent switch-in to Fighting-types. On the other hand, Dwebble has access to Stealth Rock and Spikes, allowing for additional pressure on opposing teams. Ferroseed can also lay Spikes while providing a sturdy check to most other bulky Grass-types. Mienfoo provides somewhat unique support with Knock Off, getting Croagunk, other Mienfoo, and Timburr into Tirtouga's KO range without the need for Spikes. Both Mienfoo and Timburr completely beat two common Tirtouga counters: Porygon and Lileep. Foongus is a rather useful companion for Tirtouga, as it can put one of Tirtouga's counters to sleep with Spore and forces Snover to use Blizzard, giving Tirtouga free turns to use Shell Smash. Foongus also excels at handling Fighting-types and can help weaken them. Magnemite is able to trap and remove Ferroseed and Pawniard for Tirtouga while dealing hefty damage to Lileep and Porygon, making it rather excellent at supporting Tirtouga. Misdreavus is able to weaken nearly all of Tirtouga's checks with Will-O-Wisp. Nasty Plot Misdreavus can benefit from a failed Tirtouga sweep due to a number of shared counters between the two.
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Scald
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Knock Off / Aqua Jet
item: Eviolite
ability: Solid Rock
nature: Relaxed
evs: 164 HP / 52 Atk / 12 Def / 16 SpA / 236 SpD / 20 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Tirtouga has the tools to take on a supportive role thanks to a great movepool and the ability Solid Rock. With the given EV spread, Tirtouga becomes extremely bulky and can reliably set up Stealth Rock to help its team secure needed KOs. Scald is extremely helpful, as it allows Tirtouga to check Ponyta and Larvesta, which are immune to burns, while burning other common switch-ins. Rock Slide is very useful for hitting Flying- and Bug-types super effectively, allowing Tirtouga to switch in and handle all of them easily. Knock Off is great, as it allows Tirtouga to weaken many Pokemon by removing their Eviolite and consequently give many sweepers an easier time sweeping. However, Aqua Jet is rather helpful due to its priority allowing Tirtouga to pick off weakened Pokemon without suffering damage from an attack.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
Eviolite makes Tirtouga's already impressive bulk even more solid, while the ability Solid Rock and and the given EV spread allow Tirtouga to take almost every hit well. A Relaxed nature maximizes Tirtouga's Defense while not weakening any of its attacks. Protect is a decent move to force High Jump Kick users to lose 50% of their HP, scout moves, and avoid Fake Out chip damage. Because Tirtouga's best switch-in is Croagunk, Earthquake is a good option for removing it.
Larvesta is an excellent Tirtouga partner, as it covers Tirtouga's Fighting- and Grass-type weaknesses, while Tirtouga handles Flying-types for Larvesta. Foongus covers Tirtouga's Grass- and Electric-type weaknesses, while Tirtouga handles Foongus's Fire- and Flying-type weaknesses and provides Stealth Rock to help rack up damage as Foongus forces switches. Ferroseed and Tirtouga handle most of each other's weaknesses as well. The core can either stack entry hazards or free up a moveslot on Tirtouga for Earthquake, though it is weak to Fighting-types and Magnemite. Hippopotas can provide sand to boost Tirtouga's Special Defense, but it does share weaknesses with Tirtouga, making it less than ideal despite handling Fighting-types. Fortunately, only one of the two needs to run Stealth Rock, allowing Tirtouga to run Earthquake for Croagunk or Hippopotas to run a coverage move.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A mixed Shell Smash set with an EV spread of 132 Atk / 252 SpA / 100 Spe, a Rash nature, and Hydro Pump is somewhat viable, though it fails to accomplish anything that the Splash Plate set does not and is thus often inferior, though it does have the bonus of being able to take advantage of Oran Berry's recovery. Knock Off can be used over Aqua Jet to cripple counters, though this leaves Tirtouga weak to being revenge killed by Choice Scarf Pokemon and Sand Rush sweepers. Liechi Berry can be rather useful on Tirtouga for the added power to all of its moves, though this set requires Tirtouga to be under 25% of its health. Tirtouga's natural bulk often causes Tirtouga to be just outside of consuming the Liechi Berry, and is thus the item far less reliable than Splash Plate. Choice Band Tirtouga hits hard without taking a turn to set up while having four attacks to choose from, helping to wallbreak for other Pokemon such as Timburr while still being a solid switch-in to Flying-type moves. Sturdy Tirtouga can choose to run Flail in order to take out some of the bulkiest Pokemon that normally wall Tirtouga, such as Porygon, allowing Pokemon that appreciate Porygon gone to sweep. Its usefulness is limited, however, as Stone Edge is most often more than adequate for dealing with everything besides Porygon.
Checks and Counters
===================
Ferroseed and Croagunk are Tirtouga's best answers; Ferroseed can take multiple hits from Tirtouga, even at +2, and can retaliate back with Bullet Seed and OHKO it through Sturdy. Ferroseed is less successful against support Tirtouga due to Scald burns and Knock Off, however, but Ferroseed still succeeds at adequately weakening Tirtouga via Bullet Seed. Croagunk is immune to Water-type attacks and has Vacuum Wave to easily revenge kill the offensive Shell Smash set. Croagunk easily switches into non-Earthquake Tirtouga, making it a generally safe answer. Lileep is also immune to Water-type attacks, though it takes a lot of damage from Stone Edge. Stone Edge will not OHKO even with Stealth Rock up, however, allowing for Lileep to KO back with Giga Drain. Slowpoke beats Shell Smash sets rather easily and doesn't get weakened easily like other checks might thanks to Regenerator. Cottonee can Encore Tirtouga into Shell Smash and can KO with Giga Drain. Faster Choice Scarf users such as Mienfoo, Misdreavus, and Chinchou are able to outspeed a +2 Tirtouga and survive a +2 Aqua Jet, though they need to be kept fairly healthy. Timburr has to watch out for Aqua Jet but has Mach Punch to KO Tirtouga after a Shell Smash, though it is generally a subpar answer because it needs to be kept rather healthy to survive Aqua Jet. However, Timburr beats the support set rather well, as Scald burns only make Timburr stronger due to Guts and Drain Punch allows Timburr to stay healthy. Abra can generally check Tirtouga due to the combination of Magic Guard + Focus Sash, though Tirtouga's Waterfall can make it flinch. Foongus is another decent Tirtouga check, as it readily beats the support set with STAB Giga Drain and survives a boosted Stone Edge if hazards are not up.
Tirtouga has many things going for it: great bulk, a good movepool, two good abilities, and decent typing. It can successfully pull off a number of sets and will almost always pull its weight. Thanks to its abilities Solid Rock and Sturdy, Tirtouga is perhaps the best Shell Smash user in Little Cup simply due to its ability to find many setup opportunities. After a boost, Tirtouga packs quite the punch with its awesome coverage and is a menace for all team archetypes—especially if provided minimal support. Tirtouga can also completely flip its roles from a sweeper to a wall, completely hindering most Flying-types and providing the team with Stealth Rock support and Eviolite removal. Unfortunately, two common Pokemon in Croagunk and Ferroseed completely counter Tirtouga, limiting its utility when one is present.
[SET]
name: Offensive Shell Smash
move 1: Shell Smash
move 2: Aqua Tail / Waterfall
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Aqua Jet / Earthquake
item: Splash Plate / Oran Berry
ability: Sturdy
nature: Adamant
evs: 84 HP / 212 Atk / 12 Def / 180 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Shell Smash doubles Tirtouga's lackluster Speed and good attacking stats, giving it the ability to sweep quite easily. Aqua Tail is the Water-type STAB move of choice, netting a significant OHKO on Mienfoo in conjunction with Splash Plate. However, Waterfall can be used in place of Aqua Tail for its reliability, though it does not secure the same OHKOs even with Splash Plate and therefore Tirtouga should run Oran Berry instead to mitigate hail damage and weaker priority. A set with Waterfall also requires more support than Aqua Tail sets, making it sometimes a fair tradeoff for some teams. Stone Edge is Tirtouga's most powerful attack and hits almost everything that Aqua Tail doesn't extremely hard. Aqua Jet can be used to help fend off faster Choice Scarf Pokemon and OHKO Sand Rush Drilbur, though generally its use is limited. Earthquake can be used instead to obliterate one of this set's common switch-ins, Croagunk, allowing for Tirtouga to sweep later on in the match.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
The EV spread maximizes Tirtouga's Attack to allow for it to dish out the most damage possible while also letting Tirtouga hit 22 Speed after a Shell Smash. 22 Speed is an important benchmark for Tirtouga, as it outpaces all unboosted Pokemon in the tier, as well as many common Choice Scarf users by one point, including Snover. The remaining EVs are invested into HP and Defense in an effort to give Tirtouga the most changes to set up. Sets running a Splash Plate are able to secure an OHKO on Mienfoo without entry hazard support, though Oran Berry sets require Spikes for the same OHKO and general sweeping potential.
Some of Tirtouga's best teammates are those that can defeat its most common checks: Ferroseed and Croagunk. For example, Drilbur beats Croagunk and does a large amount of damage to Ferroseed while providing hazard removal to preserve Sturdy. Wynaut can easily trap Croagunk and KO it while also providing setup opportunities with Encore. Similarly, Magnemite can trap and defeat Ferroseed with Hidden Power Fire and deal a lot of damage to Croagunk with Volt Switch and Thunderbolt, and it can also weaken Lileep into the KO range of Tirtouga's Stone Edge. Larvesta is another great partner, as it can comfortably switch into both Ferroseed and Croagunk, OHKOing Ferroseed and 2HKOing Croagunk. Misdreavus pairs well with Tirtouga, as it can weaken Lileep, Porygon, and Ferroseed into the KO range of Tirtouga's attacks. Misdreavus can also benefit from Tirtouga breaking down Lileep and Porygon, and in return it helps keep up Stealth Rock for Tirtouga's sweeps. Mienfoo can Knock Off Slowpoke's Eviolite while checking Ferroseed. It does struggle versus Croagunk, but High Jump Kick does substantial damage after removing Croagunk's Eviolite with Knock Off. In general, Fighting-types pair well with Tirtouga, as they manhandle Porygon and Lileep, which usually are problematic for Tirtouga. Sometimes, using multiple Shell Smash users on a team allows for one of them, such as Tirtouga, to sufficiently weaken the others' counters, letting another user such as Omanyte, Shellder, or Clamperl sweep. If Oran Berry is being used in place of Splash Plate, Pokemon with access to Spikes—such as Ferroseed and Shelmet—are able to help Tirtouga secure the KOs it would otherwise miss.
[SET]
name: Bulky Shell Smash
move 1: Shell Smash
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Earthquake / Aqua Jet
item: Eviolite
ability: Solid Rock
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 212 Atk / 12 Def / 76 SpD / 180 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Due to this set's great bulk, Tirtouga is able to wallbreak for itself or another sweeper early on in the match and still be healthy enough to set up later on. At the expense of Splash Plate's power, Tirtouga now has far more survivability with an Eviolite. An Eviolite alongside Solid Rock allows Tirtouga to stomach Croagunk's Vacuum Wave and Timburr's Mach Punch even with lowered defenses. An Eviolite also grants Tirtouga far more bulk, giving it far more chances to set up than Oran Berry or Splash Plate would. Once it uses one of its many chances to set up, its two STAB moves in Waterfall and Stone Edge, which have nearly unresisted coverage, will hit extremely hard. Earthquake rounds off this coverage, OHKOing Croagunk and doing decent damage to Ferroseed. Aqua Jet is also useful, however, as even at +2, Tirtouga is outsped by many common Choice Scarf users.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
Due to this set's lack of Splash Plate, Pokemon with access to Spikes are a valuable asset to Tirtouga. Shelmet is able to provide Tirtouga with both its desired Spikes and a decent switch-in to Fighting-types. On the other hand, Dwebble has access to Stealth Rock and Spikes, allowing for additional pressure on opposing teams. Ferroseed can also lay Spikes while providing a sturdy check to most other bulky Grass-types. Mienfoo provides somewhat unique support with Knock Off, getting Croagunk, other Mienfoo, and Timburr into Tirtouga's KO range without the need for Spikes. Both Mienfoo and Timburr completely beat two common Tirtouga counters: Porygon and Lileep. Foongus is a rather useful companion for Tirtouga, as it can put one of Tirtouga's counters to sleep with Spore and forces Snover to use Blizzard, giving Tirtouga free turns to use Shell Smash. Foongus also excels at handling Fighting-types and can help weaken them. Magnemite is able to trap and remove Ferroseed and Pawniard for Tirtouga while dealing hefty damage to Lileep and Porygon, making it rather excellent at supporting Tirtouga. Misdreavus is able to weaken nearly all of Tirtouga's checks with Will-O-Wisp. Nasty Plot Misdreavus can benefit from a failed Tirtouga sweep due to a number of shared counters between the two.
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Scald
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Knock Off / Aqua Jet
item: Eviolite
ability: Solid Rock
nature: Relaxed
evs: 164 HP / 52 Atk / 12 Def / 16 SpA / 236 SpD / 20 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Tirtouga has the tools to take on a supportive role thanks to a great movepool and the ability Solid Rock. With the given EV spread, Tirtouga becomes extremely bulky and can reliably set up Stealth Rock to help its team secure needed KOs. Scald is extremely helpful, as it allows Tirtouga to check Ponyta and Larvesta, which are immune to burns, while burning other common switch-ins. Rock Slide is very useful for hitting Flying- and Bug-types super effectively, allowing Tirtouga to switch in and handle all of them easily. Knock Off is great, as it allows Tirtouga to weaken many Pokemon by removing their Eviolite and consequently give many sweepers an easier time sweeping. However, Aqua Jet is rather helpful due to its priority allowing Tirtouga to pick off weakened Pokemon without suffering damage from an attack.
[ADDITIONAL SET COMMENTS]
Eviolite makes Tirtouga's already impressive bulk even more solid, while the ability Solid Rock and and the given EV spread allow Tirtouga to take almost every hit well. A Relaxed nature maximizes Tirtouga's Defense while not weakening any of its attacks. Protect is a decent move to force High Jump Kick users to lose 50% of their HP, scout moves, and avoid Fake Out chip damage. Because Tirtouga's best switch-in is Croagunk, Earthquake is a good option for removing it.
Larvesta is an excellent Tirtouga partner, as it covers Tirtouga's Fighting- and Grass-type weaknesses, while Tirtouga handles Flying-types for Larvesta. Foongus covers Tirtouga's Grass- and Electric-type weaknesses, while Tirtouga handles Foongus's Fire- and Flying-type weaknesses and provides Stealth Rock to help rack up damage as Foongus forces switches. Ferroseed and Tirtouga handle most of each other's weaknesses as well. The core can either stack entry hazards or free up a moveslot on Tirtouga for Earthquake, though it is weak to Fighting-types and Magnemite. Hippopotas can provide sand to boost Tirtouga's Special Defense, but it does share weaknesses with Tirtouga, making it less than ideal despite handling Fighting-types. Fortunately, only one of the two needs to run Stealth Rock, allowing Tirtouga to run Earthquake for Croagunk or Hippopotas to run a coverage move.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A mixed Shell Smash set with an EV spread of 132 Atk / 252 SpA / 100 Spe, a Rash nature, and Hydro Pump is somewhat viable, though it fails to accomplish anything that the Splash Plate set does not and is thus often inferior, though it does have the bonus of being able to take advantage of Oran Berry's recovery. Knock Off can be used over Aqua Jet to cripple counters, though this leaves Tirtouga weak to being revenge killed by Choice Scarf Pokemon and Sand Rush sweepers. Liechi Berry can be rather useful on Tirtouga for the added power to all of its moves, though this set requires Tirtouga to be under 25% of its health. Tirtouga's natural bulk often causes Tirtouga to be just outside of consuming the Liechi Berry, and is thus the item far less reliable than Splash Plate. Choice Band Tirtouga hits hard without taking a turn to set up while having four attacks to choose from, helping to wallbreak for other Pokemon such as Timburr while still being a solid switch-in to Flying-type moves. Sturdy Tirtouga can choose to run Flail in order to take out some of the bulkiest Pokemon that normally wall Tirtouga, such as Porygon, allowing Pokemon that appreciate Porygon gone to sweep. Its usefulness is limited, however, as Stone Edge is most often more than adequate for dealing with everything besides Porygon.
Checks and Counters
===================
Ferroseed and Croagunk are Tirtouga's best answers; Ferroseed can take multiple hits from Tirtouga, even at +2, and can retaliate back with Bullet Seed and OHKO it through Sturdy. Ferroseed is less successful against support Tirtouga due to Scald burns and Knock Off, however, but Ferroseed still succeeds at adequately weakening Tirtouga via Bullet Seed. Croagunk is immune to Water-type attacks and has Vacuum Wave to easily revenge kill the offensive Shell Smash set. Croagunk easily switches into non-Earthquake Tirtouga, making it a generally safe answer. Lileep is also immune to Water-type attacks, though it takes a lot of damage from Stone Edge. Stone Edge will not OHKO even with Stealth Rock up, however, allowing for Lileep to KO back with Giga Drain. Slowpoke beats Shell Smash sets rather easily and doesn't get weakened easily like other checks might thanks to Regenerator. Cottonee can Encore Tirtouga into Shell Smash and can KO with Giga Drain. Faster Choice Scarf users such as Mienfoo, Misdreavus, and Chinchou are able to outspeed a +2 Tirtouga and survive a +2 Aqua Jet, though they need to be kept fairly healthy. Timburr has to watch out for Aqua Jet but has Mach Punch to KO Tirtouga after a Shell Smash, though it is generally a subpar answer because it needs to be kept rather healthy to survive Aqua Jet. However, Timburr beats the support set rather well, as Scald burns only make Timburr stronger due to Guts and Drain Punch allows Timburr to stay healthy. Abra can generally check Tirtouga due to the combination of Magic Guard + Focus Sash, though Tirtouga's Waterfall can make it flinch. Foongus is another decent Tirtouga check, as it readily beats the support set with STAB Giga Drain and survives a boosted Stone Edge if hazards are not up.
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add all this and ill give my 1/3
