QC checks: TheCanadianWifier, Punchshroom, Montsegur
GP checks:
Overview
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Altaria is one of the many bulky Pokemon in the NU tier. Its Dragon/Flying typing gives it 5 resistances and 1 immunity and has good natural bulk in the form of 75/90/105 as well as having the Ability Natural Cure, which removes all status upon switching out. Altaria's movepool also boosts its defensive power by having access to a wide range support moves such as Haze, Perish Song, Heal Bell and Tailwind. As well as having a plethora of support moves, it also comes with an offensive movepool that provides amazing coverage; Earthquake, Draco Meteor, Fire Blast and Moonblast to name just a few.
Spec. Defensive
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name: Spec. Defensive
move 1: Dragon Pulse
move 2: Flamethrower
move 3: Roost
move 4: Toxic / Roar
ability: Natural Cure
item: Leftovers
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD (0 attack IVs)
nature: Calm
Moves
========
Altaria uses Dragon Pulse as it's main STAB to hit most of the tier neutrally, and with the combination of Flamethrower allows it to hit the whole tier with unresisted coverage. Roost is mandatory on this set; Altaria needs to stay as healthy as possible for it to consistently switch in and out on special attacks. When it comes to it's last move slot, it comes down to team structure; Roar if you want to phaze your opponent out to rack up potential hazard damage or prevent set-up and Toxic allows you to slowly wear the opponent down, even if Altaria happened to faint.
Set Details
========
Altaria needs to be fully invested in SpD so it maximises the bulk it has. 248 HP so it can survive more Stealth Rock switch-ins as well as allow Altaria to recover more HP with Leftovers. The remaining EVs go into Def to slightly increase the bulk. Natural Cure is recommended as Altaria can remove any status it has upon switching out, keeping it a lot healthier.
Usage Tips
========
Keeping Flamethrower a secret from your opponent can catch them off guard when they try to switch in their Steel-types like Ferroseed or Steelix and severely weakened them, making Altaria able to keep them checked. Stealth Rocks hurt it, so a hazard remover allows it to not keep relying to Roost to keep it constantly healthy.
Team Options
========
Pairing it with Steel-types, like Ferroseed or Probopass gives a good defensive core, as they cover each other's weaknesses with good type synergy. Hazards are important as it allows Altaria to wear down your opponent much faster and therefore, provide the support it's fellow team members need.
Dragon Dance
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name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Roost
ability: Natural Cure
item: Life Orb / Dragon Fang
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
Altaria doesn't have the greatest attack stat, so Outrage is preferred over Dragon Claw so you can hit harder, but if you do not want to be locked in, Dragon Claw is always a viable option. For coverage, Earthquake is the best option for it; as it provides amazing coverage, only being walled by Togetic. Aerial Ace should not be sued as, not only is it weaker than than Earthquake, even with STAB calculated, it does not provide any better coverage than Earthquake can give. Dragon Dance is the main move on this set, giving it the Attack and Speed it needs to become a dangerous threat and Roost allows it to remain healthy whilst setting up.
Set Details
========
Altaria needs to have max investment in Atk/Spe so it can perform the role as a set-up sweeper. With this, you outspeed Modest Accelgor by one point. The remaining 4 EVs go into SpD so it has some very slight extra bulk. Life Orb provides Altaria with it's much needed extra firepower so that it can either clean up late game or start to break your opponent's team. However, if you do not want the Life Orb residual damage, then Dragon Fang is another option, but it means that it's Earthquakes are much weaker.
Usage Tips
========
Keeping Altaria healthy is key for this set to do work so trying to set up whilst they have a Fairy-type on their team is not advised as Altaria will be forced to switch out, not wanting to get OHKO'd. Alongside this, do not lock yourself into Outrage if they have a healthy Steel-type or Fairy-type; giving your opponent a free turn(s) is incredibly detrimental and should not be done under any circumstances.
Team Options
========
A more balanced team would benefit from Dragon Dance Altaria as it's natural bulk + rare coverage can greatly support the team well. Since Altaria does not appreciate Fairy-type Pokemon, using Poison and Steel-type Pokemon, like Vileplume and Probopass, can deal with Altaria's counters and make it easier to Altaria to set up. One of Altaria's problems is being weak to rocks, so hazard removal is recommended to prevent Altaria taking too much residual damage. However, as an alternative approach, lead hazard setters like Archeops or Crustle can provide a lot of initial pressure on your opponent, forcing multiple switches which can provide enough damage for Altaria to clean up.
Other Options
########
Anti set-up moves can be used on the defensive set. Haze and Perish Song are great if you require a defensive Pokemon that can deal with set-up sweepers. With the Dragon Dance set, Fire Blast can be used over Roost if you need a way to deal with the physically defensive Steel-types in the tier, but you do lose recovery. The Specially Offensive sets both require a Modest Nature as that's makes up for it's mediocre SpA stat. Draco Meteor and Dragon Pulse are absolutely mandatory, as it's the only way Altaria can hit extremely hard, due to it's Flying STABs being extremely weak, however, it does have very good coverage options to make up for this, which are generally stronger anyways.
Checks & Counters
########
**Fairy-type Pokemon**: All Fairy-type Pokemon in the NU tier can easily switch in as they are immune to Altaria's main STAB and take very little damage from it's coverage options, in particular Togetic, wall Altaria and can severely dent, if not KO it, with their STAB options.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Audino and Lickilicky completely wall Altaria's defensive sets, can easily switch in on any of Altaria's moves and can use the opportunity to cleric the team or Knock Off it's Leftovers.
**Ice-type Pokemon**: With Altaria being x4 weak to Ice, any Ice-type Pokemon can come in as most of them have a good amount of bulk and/or outspeeding and OHKO it with its STAB options or force a switch out, giving your opponent momentum.
**Physically Defensive Pokemon**: Pokemon like Ferroseed, Steelix and Weezing can easily switch in on the Dragon Dance set and force a switch out, wasting the boosts Altaria may have and can then use the opportunity to get up hazards, applying more pressure.
GP checks:
Overview
########
Altaria is one of the many bulky Pokemon in the NU tier. Its Dragon/Flying typing gives it 5 resistances and 1 immunity and has good natural bulk in the form of 75/90/105 as well as having the Ability Natural Cure, which removes all status upon switching out. Altaria's movepool also boosts its defensive power by having access to a wide range support moves such as Haze, Perish Song, Heal Bell and Tailwind. As well as having a plethora of support moves, it also comes with an offensive movepool that provides amazing coverage; Earthquake, Draco Meteor, Fire Blast and Moonblast to name just a few.
However, Altaria does come with some drawbacks. Despite it having this range of support moves, it does not get access to one of the best support moves in this generation, Defog, meaning that it would need another Pokemon on the team to remove hazards in order for it to function well. Also, its attacking stats are pretty mediocre, especially for a fully evolved Dragon-type.
Spec. Defensive
########
name: Spec. Defensive
move 1: Dragon Pulse
move 2: Flamethrower
move 3: Roost
move 4: Toxic / Roar
ability: Natural Cure
item: Leftovers
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD (0 attack IVs)
nature: Calm
Moves
========
Altaria uses Dragon Pulse as it's main STAB to hit most of the tier neutrally, and with the combination of Flamethrower allows it to hit the whole tier with unresisted coverage. Roost is mandatory on this set; Altaria needs to stay as healthy as possible for it to consistently switch in and out on special attacks. When it comes to it's last move slot, it comes down to team structure; Roar if you want to phaze your opponent out to rack up potential hazard damage or prevent set-up and Toxic allows you to slowly wear the opponent down, even if Altaria happened to faint.
Set Details
========
Altaria needs to be fully invested in SpD so it maximises the bulk it has. 248 HP so it can survive more Stealth Rock switch-ins as well as allow Altaria to recover more HP with Leftovers. The remaining EVs go into Def to slightly increase the bulk. Natural Cure is recommended as Altaria can remove any status it has upon switching out, keeping it a lot healthier.
Usage Tips
========
Keeping Flamethrower a secret from your opponent can catch them off guard when they try to switch in their Steel-types like Ferroseed or Steelix and severely weakened them, making Altaria able to keep them checked. Stealth Rocks hurt it, so a hazard remover allows it to not keep relying to Roost to keep it constantly healthy.
Team Options
========
Pairing it with Steel-types, like Ferroseed or Probopass gives a good defensive core, as they cover each other's weaknesses with good type synergy. Hazards are important as it allows Altaria to wear down your opponent much faster and therefore, provide the support it's fellow team members need.
Dragon Dance
########
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Roost
ability: Natural Cure
item: Life Orb / Dragon Fang
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
Altaria doesn't have the greatest attack stat, so Outrage is preferred over Dragon Claw so you can hit harder, but if you do not want to be locked in, Dragon Claw is always a viable option. For coverage, Earthquake is the best option for it; as it provides amazing coverage, only being walled by Togetic. Aerial Ace should not be sued as, not only is it weaker than than Earthquake, even with STAB calculated, it does not provide any better coverage than Earthquake can give. Dragon Dance is the main move on this set, giving it the Attack and Speed it needs to become a dangerous threat and Roost allows it to remain healthy whilst setting up.
Set Details
========
Altaria needs to have max investment in Atk/Spe so it can perform the role as a set-up sweeper. With this, you outspeed Modest Accelgor by one point. The remaining 4 EVs go into SpD so it has some very slight extra bulk. Life Orb provides Altaria with it's much needed extra firepower so that it can either clean up late game or start to break your opponent's team. However, if you do not want the Life Orb residual damage, then Dragon Fang is another option, but it means that it's Earthquakes are much weaker.
Usage Tips
========
Keeping Altaria healthy is key for this set to do work so trying to set up whilst they have a Fairy-type on their team is not advised as Altaria will be forced to switch out, not wanting to get OHKO'd. Alongside this, do not lock yourself into Outrage if they have a healthy Steel-type or Fairy-type; giving your opponent a free turn(s) is incredibly detrimental and should not be done under any circumstances.
Team Options
========
A more balanced team would benefit from Dragon Dance Altaria as it's natural bulk + rare coverage can greatly support the team well. Since Altaria does not appreciate Fairy-type Pokemon, using Poison and Steel-type Pokemon, like Vileplume and Probopass, can deal with Altaria's counters and make it easier to Altaria to set up. One of Altaria's problems is being weak to rocks, so hazard removal is recommended to prevent Altaria taking too much residual damage. However, as an alternative approach, lead hazard setters like Archeops or Crustle can provide a lot of initial pressure on your opponent, forcing multiple switches which can provide enough damage for Altaria to clean up.
Other Options
########
Anti set-up moves can be used on the defensive set. Haze and Perish Song are great if you require a defensive Pokemon that can deal with set-up sweepers. With the Dragon Dance set, Fire Blast can be used over Roost if you need a way to deal with the physically defensive Steel-types in the tier, but you do lose recovery. The Specially Offensive sets both require a Modest Nature as that's makes up for it's mediocre SpA stat. Draco Meteor and Dragon Pulse are absolutely mandatory, as it's the only way Altaria can hit extremely hard, due to it's Flying STABs being extremely weak, however, it does have very good coverage options to make up for this, which are generally stronger anyways.
Checks & Counters
########
**Fairy-type Pokemon**: All Fairy-type Pokemon in the NU tier can easily switch in as they are immune to Altaria's main STAB and take very little damage from it's coverage options, in particular Togetic, wall Altaria and can severely dent, if not KO it, with their STAB options.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Audino and Lickilicky completely wall Altaria's defensive sets, can easily switch in on any of Altaria's moves and can use the opportunity to cleric the team or Knock Off it's Leftovers.
**Ice-type Pokemon**: With Altaria being x4 weak to Ice, any Ice-type Pokemon can come in as most of them have a good amount of bulk and/or outspeeding and OHKO it with its STAB options or force a switch out, giving your opponent momentum.
**Physically Defensive Pokemon**: Pokemon like Ferroseed, Steelix and Weezing can easily switch in on the Dragon Dance set and force a switch out, wasting the boosts Altaria may have and can then use the opportunity to get up hazards, applying more pressure.
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