Pokémon Goodra [REVAMP]

[Nubbins]

There aren't many grass pokemon in OU. And zero that are as offensive as goodra.

The x1.5 atk boost is irrelevant. What matters to me is a pokemon that can disrupt smeargle on the switch-in and a counter to subseeders. And personally, my team is already well equipped to handle most physical threats. Sap sipper is far more valuable to me.

Dragon tail is hardly inconsistent. If your opponent switches in their best answer to goodra and you DT it, the new poke will always be a pokemon less equipped to handle goodra. Rotom-w voltswitches are amazing bait for DT. As is the ability to completely halt weaknite and other bulky stat-up sweepers who think they can set up on goodra. It's a decent answer to BP teams without resorting to extremely obvious moves like switching in talonflame into scolipede.

I'm not saying sap sipper is better than gooey. I'm saying both have their own merits and should be chosen based off of team composition. And don't look down on dragon tail.

 

[Kairyu_Gen1]

Grass types are common enough that Sap Sipper is a fantastic ability to have. Ferrothorn's a pain, and having a poke that can switch in easily and KO with fire blast or something is incredibly useful. MVenusaur's getting popular, though I'm not sure if Goodra really threatens it offensively. I'll look up some calcs in the morning, but knowing that you can switch Goodra in on any sleep powder or leech seed for a +1 atk is very helpful. There's also spores from Breloom and Smeargle, but Breloom hits you on your weak side, and he can hit you knowing you don't have gooey, so that doesn't always end particularly well. Still Grass Type moves are obviously a common enough thing that Sap Sipper is undoubtedly a great ability to have.

 

[Hrothgar]

Of the top 25 in usage:

14 resist grass. That's more than half.

Of those 14, 9 have a 4x resistance.

4 pokemon in the top 25 are already immune to spore, powders and leech seed, and that doesnt include fast taunters.

So please explain again why you would want a situational ability that's most likely already covered and that gives you a boost to a stat you shouldnt really be using due to lack of good stab, as opposed to an ability that will always provide value vs contact moves.

 

[Nubbins]

I don't want a resist. I want a immunity to attacks like leech seed and spore which can majorly slow down my offensive team. And I get my grass immunity on a dragon pokemon whose standard set has the same special attack stat as timid latios. I don't need to "waste" my mega slot on venusaur and I don't need to use a pokemon with zero offensive presence.

Taunt is not enough vs disruptive grass moves because it requires you to already be switched in. You can't switch in your taunter into mvenu's leech seed and multiple switches against a pokemon with as much potential momentum as sash smeargle is asking for trouble. Goodra switches in, says no, and forces them to do something suboptimal.

In a similar vein, what's the use of gooey when I'm just revenge killing virtually every sweeper with CB talonflame??? And my goodra is already set-up proof with dragon tail.

Your insistence than sap sipper is situational while gooey is not is hilarious. Both are situational. Goodra is only taking contact moves in dire circumstances.

 

[Hrothgar]

Yeah, that's why i didn't include fast taunters. And using gooey as a pseudomemento effect is not situational. You intentionally force the speed drop as death fodder. It doesn't learn recover and is slow, so its easy to sac.

Look, I didn't say gooey was a phenomenal ability, in fact i started by saying that all three of its abilities are really weak and typically go against what it wants to be doing. I just think gooey is the prettiest piece of crap in the toilet.

Using sap sipper on goodra feels like you're trying really hard to not use ferrothorn. Goodra is already questionably effective as it is...why would you give it an ability that a really solid pokemon already does, plus alot more?

 

[pharaohcalvin]

Because Goodra has more offensive power then Ferrothorn? I honestly don't see how you are having such problems understanding this. Both Sap Sipper and Gooey have there uses. If you team wants that Grass immunity, and having more offensive power then most grass types bring then yes, it works for that team. Not to mention getting that grass immunity without being grass type itself is something very nice.

 

[Quaily]

because ferrothorn is nothing like goodra, mostly. what are you even going on about? I mean, why would you use azumarill when sylveon is also immune to dragon! goodra has offensive presence on both sides of the spectrum as well. 100 attack with potential sap sipper boosts is nothing to sneer at, mixed sets are totally viable.

 

[Punchshroom]

because ferrothorn is nothing like goodra, mostly. what are you even going on about? I mean, why would you use azumarill when sylveon is also immune to dragon! goodra has offensive presence on both sides of the spectrum as well. 100 attack with potential sap sipper boosts is nothing to sneer at, mixed sets are totally viable.

The only physical attack Goodra would consider running is Earthquake for Heatran; Power Whip does hit Rotom-W, but the latter is faster and can burn you / escape with Volt Switch so you'd be better off smacking it with Dragon moves. Sap Sipper's only real value is the Grass immunity, the Attack boost is either a bonus or is just a waste (hell, it could even backfire in the face of Foul Plays).

 

[TheDoctor1]

so I am trying out curse goodra or cursedra (just throwing that name out there) and I like it. the two moves i am running atm are dragon tail and eq. does that seem right or is there something else I should be using on him?

 

[Hrothgar]

I was simply trying to illustrate that gooey gives goodra a niche and sap sipper doesn't, as more than half of the meta doesn't care about grass attacks, several better pokemon are immune to grass statuses, and the attack boost doesn't matter. But the convo is getting stupid and flamey now so I'll say no more.

I just wanted to engage in an intellectual process to pass the time at work. :/

 

[Tressed]

I was simply trying to illustrate that gooey gives goodra a niche and sap sipper doesn't, as more than half of the meta doesn't care about grass attacks, several better pokemon are immune to grass statuses, and the attack boost doesn't matter. But the convo is getting stupid and flamey now so I'll say no more.

I just wanted to engage in an intellectual process to pass the time at work. :/

Neither Sap Sipper nor Gooey provide niches, they're just little bonuses to using Goodra. Pick the one you find more useful to your team and use it, because there's no obviously best answer.

Also, does your workplace pay you to discuss Pokemon? Do you have any openings?

 

[Quaily]

power whip is an option but I was thinking dragon tail

 

[Turbopasta]

I don't know if it's been posted yet, but I've got an unusual Goodra set that I've been running in 3v3 wifi for a while now with pretty good success.

DoNotPassGoo (Goodra) @ Choice Band
Ability: Sap Sipper
Nature: Adamant
252 Atk 252 Sp Def
- Power Whip
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail

It's important to note that I typically run this Goodra with 252 HP 252 Def impish Quagsire. These two were pretty much made for each other.

Quagsire has a x4 weakness to grass. The two things that kill my Quagsire more than anything else are special attacks and grass attacks. Goodra covers both of these weaknesses at the same time with sap sipper and massive Sp Def bulk. Granted, grass isn't all too common in OU, but there are times where it really pays off, like vs Greninja, Mega Gardevoir, Smeargle, Sometimes Breloom, Mega Venusaur, and Ludicolo, among lots of other things. Predicting incorrectly can be really bad however, especially in the case of something like Breloom, who might focus punch Goodra on the switch if he sees it coming. Most people assume Goodra is running special attack moves, so sometimes I can catch something completely off guard for a free kill.

If I DO get lucky and absorb a grass move, Goodra turns into a powerhouse. There aren't many pokemon who aren't faries that can take a +2 Outrage from an Adamant 252 Atk Goodra.

I've tried assault vest in the past, but honestly the boost in special defensive seems trivial when you have so much of it already. If you're taking 20% damage from something special, assault vest only cuts it by 25%, to 15% total damage to Goodra, which isn't worth it in most scenarios. The only special attacks that really threaten Goodra are strong fairy attacks from stuff like Gardevoir and Gengar, and all-or-nothing dragon attacks, like Latias/Hydregon specs boosted Draco Meteor. Best case scenario, having AV equipped turns a potential OHKO on Goodra to a 2HKO, or a 2HKO to a 3HKO. Not to say that's bad, or anything, it really depends on what the rest of your team comp looks like tbh.

I feel most comfortable using Choice Band on Goodra because the most typical attack I'll be using is Outrage, and I'm going to be locked into outrage with or without a choice item, so I might as well put on one and get the extra damage. If the opponent has fairy types on their team, I simply won't use Goodra at all unless I can hit it for super effective damage using some other attacks (IE, Earthquake on Carbink and Klefki). I can also pull off some tricky strategies this way, such as predicting a Slyveon to switch in and using earthquake to typically 2HKO it since I'll be faster.

If physical Goodra doesn't have a sap sipper boost OR any kind of attack boosting item, he really doesn't hit for much at all. Choice Band ensures that at the very least I can get some damage off before he dies, worst-case scenario.

Dragon Tail is the only move I'm unsure about. I don't run hazards on my team, so I mostly just use it for forcing things out. It works well sometimes, but the lack of Fire Blast/Flamethrower means I get walled hard by, most typically, Scizor and Ferrothorn. I don't have any fire attackers on my current team either. I might trade out Dragon Tail for Fire Blast, but I feel pretty silly considering something like that on a choice band set.

Actually, I just ran some calcs, and uninvested Fire Blast only does a max 92% damage to 252 HP 0 Sp Def Ferrothorn, which is somewhat depressing. Life orb might be better, I think, brings it up to 100% damage minimum

 

[jackhawk24]

I don't know if it's been posted yet, but I've got an unusual Goodra set that I've been running in 3v3 wifi for a while now with pretty good success.

DoNotPassGoo (Goodra) @ Choice Band
Ability: Sap Sipper
Nature: Adamant
252 Atk 252 Sp Def
- Power Whip
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail

It's important to note that I typically run this Goodra with 252 HP 252 Def impish Quagsire. These two were pretty much made for each other.

Quagsire has a x4 weakness to grass. The two things that kill my Quagsire more than anything else are special attacks and grass attacks. Goodra covers both of these weaknesses at the same time with sap sipper and massive Sp Def bulk. Granted, grass isn't all too common in OU, but there are times where it really pays off, like vs Greninja, Mega Gardevoir, Smeargle, Sometimes Breloom, Mega Venusaur, and Ludicolo, among lots of other things. Predicting incorrectly can be really bad however, especially in the case of something like Breloom, who might focus punch Goodra on the switch if he sees it coming. Most people assume Goodra is running special attack moves, so sometimes I can catch something completely off guard for a free kill.

If I DO get lucky and absorb a grass move, Goodra turns into a powerhouse. There aren't many pokemon who aren't faries that can take a +2 Outrage from an Adamant 252 Atk Goodra.

I've tried assault vest in the past, but honestly the boost in special defensive seems trivial when you have so much of it already. If you're taking 20% damage from something special, assault vest only cuts it by 25%, to 15% total damage to Goodra, which isn't worth it in most scenarios. The only special attacks that really threaten Goodra are strong fairy attacks from stuff like Gardevoir and Gengar, and all-or-nothing dragon attacks, like Latias/Hydregon specs boosted Draco Meteor. Best case scenario, having AV equipped turns a potential OHKO on Goodra to a 2HKO, or a 2HKO to a 3HKO. Not to say that's bad, or anything, it really depends on what the rest of your team comp looks like tbh.

I feel most comfortable using Choice Band on Goodra because the most typical attack I'll be using is Outrage, and I'm going to be locked into outrage with or without a choice item, so I might as well put on one and get the extra damage. If the opponent has fairy types on their team, I simply won't use Goodra at all unless I can hit it for super effective damage using some other attacks (IE, Earthquake on Carbink and Klefki). I can also pull off some tricky strategies this way, such as predicting a Slyveon to switch in and using earthquake to typically 2HKO it since I'll be faster.

If physical Goodra doesn't have a sap sipper boost OR any kind of attack boosting item, he really doesn't hit for much at all. Choice Band ensures that at the very least I can get some damage off before he dies, worst-case scenario.

Dragon Tail is the only move I'm unsure about. I don't run hazards on my team, so I mostly just use it for forcing things out. It works well sometimes, but the lack of Fire Blast/Flamethrower means I get walled hard by, most typically, Scizor and Ferrothorn. I don't have any fire attackers on my current team either. I might trade out Dragon Tail for Fire Blast, but I feel pretty silly considering something like that on a choice band set.

Actually, I just ran some calcs, and uninvested Fire Blast only does a max 92% damage to 252 HP 0 Sp Def Ferrothorn, which is somewhat depressing. Life orb might be better, I think, brings it up to 100% damage minimum

Awesome idea I just have two problems with it first is outrage. I don't think it is useful anymore because of fairies like azumarrill who are given time to set up and outspeed goodra. Maybe try replacing outrage with fireblast for special coverage? Secondly I would say to keep dragon tail it has a base 135 power with band and the only things that can take a dragontail is Fairy and steel. I love the idea of your set though!
Here's what I would run

Goodra @ choice band
brave nature (because you aren't gonna be keeping goodra it on physical attackers anyway)
Ability sap sipper
moves:
fire blast
dragon tail
earthquake
power whip

252 attack. 252 spd

 

[Toramizu]

I've been thinking a lot about Goodra and I've been thinking about what kind of build it should have and this is what I came up with.

Natures: Bold
Ability: Gooey
Item: Leftovers

Move Set:
Dragon Pulse / Draco Meteor
Fire Blast / Flamethrower
Rest
Sleep Talk

EV set up:
4 HP / 0 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 0 SpD / 0 Spe

This build provides Goodra enough Defense to survive most attacks and It already has over 300 special defense to survive most moves. It's better stat lies in special attack not attack so the bold nature is chosen. The gooey ability slows opponents and allows for goodra to let sweepers to come in and do their job.

 

[Jaroda]

Awesome idea I just have two problems with it first is outrage. I don't think it is useful anymore because of fairies like azumarrill who are given time to set up and outspeed goodra. Maybe try replacing outrage with fireblast for special coverage? Secondly I would say to keep dragon tail it has a base 135 power with band and the only things that can take a dragontail is Fairy and steel. I love the idea of your set though!
Here's what I would run

Goodra @ choice band
brave nature (because you aren't gonna be keeping goodra it on physical attackers anyway)
Ability sap sipper
moves:
fire blast
dragon tail
earthquake
power whip

252 attack. 252 spd

Lots of choiced pokemon have moves where certain types have an immunity. Ground and Fighting being the most prevalent. You know what you do in a 3v3 if you see a Fairy? Don't click Outrage. You know what you do all the other time?.. Profit. I don't understand this strong aversion to Outrage simply because now Fairies. With team preview you should always know when its a good idea to use the move and besides, Dragon Claw sucks. It never does enough damage.

Any way choiced Dragon Tail, particularly on a 3v3 team without hazards is a waste. If going all physical Aqua Tail is still an option, but I personally think solely physical Goodra is lacking. It can bust through lots of threats way better mixed. Thunderbolt being great for Skarmory, Togekiss and Azumarill for instance. You might just want to use Expert Belt because of the good coverage you get and you don't want the recoil from Life Orb to maintain some bulkiness. You'll appreciate the ability to switch moves and able to get through physical walls.

 

[Adar]

Maxing out physical bulk with and assault vest or leftovers and gooey could make make a good counter to physical setup sweepers

 

[jackhawk24]

Maxing out physical bulk with and assault vest or leftovers and gooey could make make a good counter to physical setup sweepers

there's no point though just make him specially bulky because there are much more better physical walls than goodra

 

[Photofluid]

Maxing out physical bulk with and assault vest or leftovers and gooey could make make a good counter to physical setup sweepers

there's no point though just make him specially bulky because there are much more better physical walls than goodra

Plus Gooey is never something you want to rely on.

edit: oh, so it is a 100%, better off now, you may want some speed investment though.

 

[Lord Ghetsis]

Gooey IMO is pretty reliable speed lowering, but Earthquake is a pain because it doesn't make contact.

 

[Toosuto]

Anyone know much about the EV/nature spread of the two Goodras used at VGC Oregon this past weekend? Was stoked to see two of them in the finals, considering I have used my 6IV Shiny Goodra NON-STOP since release.

 

[Adar]

there's no point though just make him specially bulky because there are much more better physical walls than goodra

True. I suppose a set like that would lack the power to stop most anything in OU with the stat spilt.

 

[ModelT]

So I'm looking for a bit of help with Goodra. I'm running Mega Mawile with Mienshao Scouting and Defensive Gliscor. I need something that can deal with the fire/ice/water/psychic moves that are going to be thrown at the rest of my party, and I was thinking about picking Goodra to handle those threats and to compliment Gliscor's Defense with Goodra's Sp. Def. I like the idea of Sap Sipper sets, since MegaVenasaur is annoying (And really kicks Gliscor's a$$ w/ Venoshock), and if they don't open w/ Smeargle I don't have a reliable switch in for the Spore. With that being said, what would a good EV, Item and Move set be?

 

[jackhawk24]

So I'm looking for a bit of help with Goodra. I'm running Mega Mawile with Mienshao Scouting and Defensive Gliscor. I need something that can deal with the fire/ice/water/psychic moves that are going to be thrown at the rest of my party, and I was thinking about picking Goodra to handle those threats and to compliment Gliscor's Defense with Goodra's Sp. Def. I like the idea of Sap Sipper sets, since MegaVenasaur is annoying (And really kicks Gliscor's a$$ w/ Venoshock), and if they don't open w/ Smeargle I don't have a reliable switch in for the Spore. With that being said, what would a good EV, Item and Move set be?

First of all watch out for
physical ice types like cloyster. They will demolish goodra. You may want to put Simone resistant to physical ice moves on the team.
anyways though
252 Attack/ 252 SpD/ 4 ul
this helps goodras sap supper while also making him a total SpD wall
you want AV on him too
For the moveset
body slam/ return/rock slide
Power whip
Dragon tail
Fire blast

Yes I know fire blast is special on a physical set but goodras SpA is still base 110. Plus its his best coverage for ice if u predict it.

Hope I helped!

 

[Vamja]

Not 100% sure about the EVs but I've tried this before and it's utterly ridiculous as long as they don't have a fairy on their team. Having hazards out helps a lot but isn't necessary because once you max Def/Att with Curse Dragon Tail packs a punch all on it's own. Don't remember what item I had when I ran this but you can't go wrong with Leftovers, Red Card, or a Leppa Berry. The idea is to max your Def/Att with Curse then Dragon Tail the team which destroys, shuffles the team, and prevents being set-up on. RestTalk when needed.

Goodra @ ?
Nature: Careful
Ability: Gooey
EVs: 252 Def / 252 SpD / 4 Att

Dragon Tail
Curse
Sleep Talk
Rest