Jolteon
status: written, gp me plz
cute, fast, and powerful...what more could you want???
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[Overview]
<p>Thanks to its amazing Speed and high Special Attack, Jolteon can function as a great special attacker. While Jolteon's poor defenses and shallow movepool let it down sometimes, it compensates for these drawbacks with its powerful STAB Thunderbolt and immunity to Electric-type attacks. With its high Speed stat and Volt Change, Jolteon can also be an excellent scout, and cancsignificantly boost your team's offensive momentum. The good news stops here, however. Many common Pokemon, such as Venusaur, Garchomp, and Excadrill, are resistant or immune to Electric-type moves, so Jolteon must be cautious when using Thunderbolt. Additionally, Jolteon's frailness makes it an easy target for priority attacks and Choice Scarf users. Despite these drawbacks, if you play to Jolteon's strengths, you will discover a strong and fast special attacker that can clean up weakened teams in the blink of an eye.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Volt Change
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Specs
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Jolteon is a natural candidate for a Choice Specs set due to its incredibly high Speed and fantastic Special Attack stat. Though Jolteon cannot switch in on any moderately powerful attacks (with the exception of Electric-type moves) for fear of being KOed, it can easily come in after a kill and proceed to damage the opposing team with its powerful STAB Thunderbolt.</p>
<p>Thunderbolt is Jolteon's main STAB move, denting any Pokemon that doesn't resist it and easily cleaning up weakened teams. Shadow Ball is for super effectively hitting Ghost- and Psychic-type foes, such as Chandelure, Victini, and Reuniclus. Volt Change works similarly to the infamous Choice Band Scizor's U-turn, as it allows Jolteon to keep the opponent under constant pressure; however, the move will fail if a Ground-type switches in on it. The final slot is dedicated to your choice of Hidden Power; Hidden Power Ice lets Jolteon OHKO common Dragon-types like Salamence, and also OHKOes Gliscor, while Hidden Power Grass allows it to promptly eliminate Swampert, Gastrodon, and Quagsire, who otherwise wall Jolteon with ease. Ultimately, the Hidden Power type that you choose comes down to which Pokemon your team is capable of taking on.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Baton Pass can be used in place of Volt Change so that Jolteon can safely scout Ground-type counters, such as Excadrill and Hippowdon, but Volt Change is better in almost every other scenario, making it the more solid choice. Signal Beam can be used over Shadow Ball in order to hit Tyranitar and Celebi switch-ins harder, but has no use outside of that. Hidden Power Fighting can be used in the final moveslot so that Jolteon can super effectively hit Tyranitar, Ferrothorn, and Excadrill switch-ins, but the Hidden Power types listed above are generally more useful options. As far as the EV spread goes, it's quite simple: 252 Special Attack EVs are used for maximum power, while 252 Speed EVs and a Timid nature allow Jolteon to outspeed practically any Pokemon that isn't holding a Choice Scarf.</p>
<p>As far as teammates go, it's a good idea to pack Pokemon that can beat bulky Ground-types, as any Ground-type can switch in on one of Jolteon's STAB moves with the utmost ease, forcing it out. Good examples of such teammates include Jellicent, Starmie, and Shaymin, who can pound Ground-types with their STAB Water- and Grass-type moves. Additionally, it's a good idea to pair Jolteon with a Water-type, as they draw Electric-type moves that Jolteon can switch in on for free. Vaporeon is a great teammate in this regard, as she can also pass gargantuan Wishes to extend Jolteon's lifespan. Gyarados is a wonderful partner as well, since Electric attacks are one of the few ways to OHKO it. Stealth Rock support is highly beneficial to this set as it allows Jolteon to secure several key OHKOs and 2HKOs. Any fast Choice Scarf user who can switch in on Jolteon safely will be able to dispose of him, so it would be smart to use teammates that can take on common Choice Scarf users, especially Garchomp.</p>
[SET]
name: Boosting Sweeper
move 1: Charge Beam / Work Up
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
move 4: Shadow Ball
item: Life Orb
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While the Choice Specs set gives Jolteon great power right off the bat, this set aims to increase Jolteon's damage output over time to insane levels. Thanks to Life Orb, Jolteon packs plenty of power while still having the freedom to switch attacks. Couple this with Jolteon's respectable type coverage, and you'll find a threatening Pokemon on your hands after a Special Attack boost or two.</p>
<p>Charge Beam is the primary option in the first moveslot, as it allows Jolteon to deal damage while often boosting its Special Attack; this is particularly useful when Jolteon is picking off a weakened Pokemon, as it will be able to not only KO the Pokemon, but raise its Special Attack in the process. Work Up can be used instead, as while it does no damage, it is a surefire way to raise Jolteon's Special Attack, and is particularly useful when an opposing Pokemon switches out to a counter or Ground-type. As with the above set, Thunderbolt is Jolteon's STAB move, while your Hidden Power of choice is employed to hit specific targets. When selecting Jolteon's Hidden Power, keep in mind that your choice will affect which Pokemon Jolteon can and cannot take on. Shadow Ball is used in the final moveslot to eliminate Ghost-types such as Gengar. However, it is mostly filler, as Thunderbolt hits almost all potential targets about as hard as Shadow Ball does, and now that Rotom-A has lost its Ghost-typing, Shadow Ball isn't as necessary.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Volt Change can be used in place of Shadow Ball if you're interested in scouting, but this will remove Jolteon's Special Attack boosts, making it a less-than-desirable option on a set that is somewhat focused on raising Jolteon's stats. Signal Beam can also be used to hit Tyranitar and Celebi harder, but aside from this it sees almost no use, as all of Jolteon's other attacks deal more consistent damage. Balloon can be used to rid Jolteon of its only weakness and help it set up more easily, but Jolteon will sorely miss the additional power that Life Orb provides. However, if you're using Jolteon as more of a clean-up Pokemon, then Balloon makes a fine option.</p>
<p>Blissey is a big pain for Jolteon to take on, as she can sponge its attacks with tremendous ease, badly poison it with Toxic, and wear it down with Seismic Toss. As such, packing a bulky Fighting-type that can take out Blissey, such as Conkeldurr, is a good idea. Bulky Ground-types also wall Jolteon, though boosted Hidden Power will hurt them. In order to deal with such Pokemon, a Water- or Grass-type teammate, like Vaporeon or Celebi, can be employed. Water-type teammates are especially beneficial, as they attract Electric-type moves, which Jolteon can easily switch in on thanks to its immunity. Stealth Rock and Spikes support are very helpful for Jolteon, as they enable it to nab several important KOs, and simply allow it to be more destructive to the opposing team. Just like on the first set, Choice Scarf revenge killers such as Garchomp will be able to dispose of this set with extreme ease, so play cautiously.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Jolteon has a few other useful tricks up its sleeve. A Baton Pass set with Agility and/or Substitute can be used to moderate success, but it is shut down by common priority moves such as Mach Punch and ExtremeSpeed. A Yawn + Protect set could be useful as it enables Jolteon to get past some of its common switch-ins, but Jolteon's frailty will often let it down when using such a set, so Jolteon is really better off as an attacker. As far as alternative moves go, Jolteon has access to Wish, but its poor defenses and HP makes Jolteon a sub-par user of the move. On a rain team, alongside Drizzle Politoed, Jolteon can abuse its 100% accurate STAB Thunder, which also has a nifty 30% paralysis rate. While this is a true blessing on a rain team, Thunder's poor accuracy means that it sees little use outside of such teams. Finally, Jolteon can run Substitute on the second set to provide a buffer against status and critical hits, but it is often better off simply attacking, as Jolteon is already immune to Thunder Wave and isn't severely harmed by burns, making Substitute's status-protection utility somewhat redundant.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Depending on Jolteon's Hidden Power type, there are a variety of potential counters. Sets that lack Hidden Power Grass are destroyed by Pokemon such as Swampert, while sets without Hidden Power Ice are easily taken down by foes like Garchomp and Gliscor. Porygon2 can use its ability, Trace, to copy Jolteon's Volt Absorb and gain an Electric immunity, then force Jolteon out. Though uncommon, Dugtrio can switch in on Jolteon's STAB Thunderbolt for free, trap it with its Arena Trap ability, and then OHKO with Earthquake (or possibly set up with Claw Sharpen). Due to Jolteon's poor defensive stats, priority attacks, such as Conkeldurr's Mach Punch and Lucario's ExtremeSpeed, will heavily damage it. Choice Scarf users that outspeed Jolteon, like the infamous Garchomp and Hydreigon, can surprise and nab a quick KO on the lightning Pokemon. Overall, any Pokemon that can take a hit from Jolteon and strike back with a moderately powerful attack will often be able to beat it.</p>
[Dream World]
<p>Jolteon's Dream World ability is Quick Feet. While Quick Feet is by no means a bad ability, Jolteon is already quite fast, and the Electric-type immunity that Volt Absorb grants Jolteon allows it to switch in much more easily than it would be able to otherwise.</p>
