QC 3/3 (daddy's kisses, Finchinator, p2 )
GP 0/1
[OVERVIEW]
* Keldeo has a great offensive and defensive typing, checking Dark-types such as Weavile, Gyarados after Mega Evolution, and Mega Sharpedo to name a few; Steel-types such as Scizor and Celesteela; and Fire-types such as Heatran and Alolan Marowak while hitting hard and being fast.
* It hits an unusually high speed tier for a Choice Scarf user.
* Despite playing the role of a revenge killer, Keldeo still does work early- and mid-game by burning switch-ins with Scald and wearing them down; Water is not a bad type to be locked into either. It can also sweep weakened teams late-game with its STAB combination.
* It lost a bit of its shine due to the introduction of Toxapex and Tapu Fini and the buff to Mantine, which all wall both of its STAB attacks, as well as the reduction of burn damage to 6% in SM.
* Choice Specs Keldeo is still viable, but the newly introduced Fairy-types and bulky Water-types make it hard for it to leave a permanent mark on teams.
* It also has a limited movepool, and strong STAB attacks like Hydro Pump and Focus Blast have shaky accuracy and should be avoided if possible.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Scald
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hydro Pump
move 4: Hidden Power Electric / Icy Wind
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* While having decently high Base Power, Scald is generally a low-risk move to spam due to its typing and 30% chance to burn, which allows Keldeo to cripple its switch-ins and soften them up for a sweep late-game. Scald is the preferable risk-free move to sweep weakened teams with.
* Secret Sword is the second STAB move with great a offensive typing in Fighting; it damages Pokemon based on their Defense stat, so Chansey can't switch in safely.
* Hydro Pump is over 30% stronger than Scald and needs to be used if it's not enough to revenge kill, but should be avoided whenever possible due to its accuracy.
* Due to the presence of Mantine and Tapu Fini, Hidden Power Electric should be used in the fourth moveslot to dent them early-game or surprise them late-game. Hidden Power Electric also avoids fifty-fifty situations against a Gyarados that has yet to Mega Evolve. However, a viable alternative is Icy Wind, which hits Latios super effectively while lowering the latter's speed, so it can be used to 2HKO a sufficiently weakened Latios on the switch-in. Landorus and Garchomp take 4x damage from it too; it also prevents setup from Mega Charizard X and Mega Gyarados as it keeps their Speed stat low.
Set Details
========
* A Timid nature in tandem with maximum Speed investment allows Keldeo to be as fast as possible while outpacing other Choice Scarf users such as Garchomp, Genesect, and Jirachi.
Usage Tips
========
* Keldeo should be brought in early-and mid-game to revenge kill or force out certain threats like Heatran, Landorus, and Alolan Marowak spam Scald; and wear down its switch-ins.
* While not exactly being a sweeper, it can overwhelm offensive teams late-game with Spikes and Stealth Rock on the field. Wearing down Keldeo's checks is essential to bring them in the KO rage of its STAB attacks.
* Avoid taking hits if possible; Keldeo might need to take a Bullet Punch, Extreme Speed or Sucker Punch late-game, so preserving its HP stat is necessary.
* Try not to lose Keldeo's item, as the Speed is needed. There should be a second option on the team to take Knock Offs.
* Note that Keldeo can sap momentum and potentially be setup fodder for Pokemon like Toxapex, Ferrothorn, and Suicune.
Team Options
========
* Keldeo likes Pursuit trappers as they can remove one of its best checks from the game. Mega Metagross can trap Latios and Latias with Pursuit while being able to switch into Latios once or twice. Tyranitar has the bulk to switch into Latios once and can remove it from the game. Weavile is frail but has stronger Dark STAB and is the more offensive solution.
* Steel types like Celesteela, Ferrothorn, and Skarmory help soften up special attackers like Latios, Tapu Lele, and Alakazam for Keldeo to clean up later with Scald.
* Pokemon that can come in on bulky Water and Grass types repeatedly, like Latios, help Keldeo switch out and beat its checks.
* Keldeo appreciates hazard support in the form of Spikes, which wear down teams. Notable hazard setters are Ferrothorn, Klefki, Skarmory, and Greninja, which can be tailored to pressure Keldeo's checks.
* Fire types can switch into the Grass-types which wall Keldeo, especially Venusaur, Amoonguss and Tangrowth. Heatran and Alolan Marowak are good examples; Bloom Doom Heatran in paricular is an excellent partner as it removes bulky Water-types for Keldeo. wall Grass types and exploit their switchin. Bloom Doom Heatran is an excellent partner as it removes bulky water types for Keldeo
* Magearna is one of its best partners, as it resists Flying, Psychic, Dragon, and Grass moves. It can come in on Keldeo's checks and do heavy damage with its attacks, whereas Keldeo takes advantage of Magearna's Ground and Steel type checks.
* Strong wallbreakers which are difficult to deal with, like Tapu Lele or Tapu Bulu make good partners
* Hoopa-U takes advantage of Water- and Psychic-types like Toxapex, Latios, and Mantine, which like to switch into Keldeo.
* Manaphy shares not only Water typing with Keldeo but also checks and counters, which it can break through with Tail Glow-boosted STAB attacks or coverage in Psychic, to hit Toxapex and Venusaur for example. They both form a Water spam core.
* Tail Glow Electrium-Z Xurkitree can punch holes into the opponent's Keldeo answer, like Venusaur, Amoonguss, Chansey, or Ferrothorn and pave the way for a sweep.
* Lastly, while Tapu Koko shares similar checks in Grass-types, it can beat bulky Water-types and dent Venusaur, Amoonguss, and Tangrowth with a Life Orb boosted Brave Bird.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Scald
move 2: Hydro Pump
move 3: Secret Sword
move 4: Hidden Power Electric / Icy Wind
item: Choice Specs
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Scald should be spammed whenever possible early- and mid- game, due to its typing and 30% chance to burn, to cripple switch-ins and soften them up for other Pokemon late-game.
* Secret Sword is the second STAB move with great offensive typing in Fighting, damaging Pokemon based on their Defense stat. It does almost 50% to Latios, forcing it to recover and thus making it easier to trap.
* Hydro Pump is insanely strong with Choice Specs, doing around 35% to uninvested Toxapex.
* Due to the presence of Toxapex, Mantine, and Tapu Fini, Hidden Power Electric should be used in the fourth moveslot to dent them early-game or surprise them late-game. However, if these threats aren't a concern, Icy Wind can be used to hit Latios super effectively while lowering its speed, meaning it can 2HKO a sufficiently weakened Latios on the switch. Landorus and Garchomp take 4x damage from it too.
* Focus Blast can potentially be used to hit even Pokemon that resist it hard in conjunction with the Choice Specs boost, but it suffers from low accuracy.
Set Details
========
* A Timid nature is necessary to outspeed some dangerous Pokemon like Landorus, Genesect, Choice Specs Tapu Lele, Nihilego, Garchomp, and maximum Speed base 100 Pokemon.
* Maximum Special attack investment ensures that Keldeo's attacks hit as hard as possible; in particular, it allows Keldeo to wear down opposing walls with Scald.
Usage Tips
========
* Try to bring Keldeo in as often as possible to break through the opponent's team, or at least soften up their defensive walls with Scald burns. This can be done by predicting aggressively or through VoltTurn support.
* Having entry hazards up early in the game helps this set utilize its STAB moves.
* Ensure you preserve Keldeo's Choice Specs, as the power boost is crucial to its success. Be careful of Knock Off users like Weavile and Bisharp.
Team Options
========
* Keldeo likes Pursuit trappers as they can remove one of its best checks from the game. Mega Metagross can trap Latios and Latias with Pursuit while being able to switch into Latios once or twice. Tyranitar has the bulk to switch into Latios once and can remove it from the game. Weavile is frail but has stronger Dark STAB and is the more offensive solution.
* Steel-types like Celesteela, Ferrothorn, and Skarmory help Keldeo deal with special attackers like Latios, Tapu Lele, and Alakazam that outspeed and OHKO it.
* Pokemon that can come in on bulky Water- and Grass-types repeatedly, like Latios, help Keldeo switch out and beat its checks.
* Keldeo appreciates hazard support in the form of Spikes, which wears down teams. Notable hazard setters are Ferrothorn, Klefki, Skarmory, and Greninja, which pairs well with Keldeo as it can be tailored to pressure Keldeo's checks.
* Fire types can to switch into the Grass types that wall Keldeo, especially Venusaur, Amoonguss and Tangrowth. Heatran and Alolan Marowak are good examples; Bloom Doom Heatran in particular is an excellent partner as it removes bulky Water-types for Keldeo.
* Magearna is one of its best partners, as it resists Flying, Psychic, Dragon, and Grass moves. It can come in on Keldeo's checks and do heavy damage with its attacks, whereas Keldeo takes advantage of Magearna's Ground- and Steel-type checks.
* Manaphy can make use of Keldeo's wallbreaking capabilities and set up with Z-Rain Dance
* Psychium-Z Xurkitree can also benefit from Keldeo's wallbreaking power to set up with Hypnosis and sweep.
* Lastly, while Tapu Koko shares similar checks in Grass-types, it can beat bulky Water-types and dent Venusaur, Amoonguss, and Tangrowth with a Life Orb boosted Brave Bird.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Toxic can be used in the last moveslot to hit Latios and Mantine, but it will have no effect on Toxapex.
* Hidden Power Fire can be run on the Choice Scarf set if Scizor is problematic for the team; Scizor can tank Scalds, and Keldeo has to hope for Scald to burn.
* Hidden Power Flying will hit Mega Venusaur, Amoonguss and Tangrowth on the switch, but the latter two can switch out to heal off the damage with Regenerator.
* Substitute + Calm Mind is also a possibility but this struggles to break through Toxapex carrying Haze. A Calm Mind set with three attacks will allow Keldeo to run one more coverage move, but can't avoid status.
* Expert Belt can be used to bluff Choice items and may catch the opponent off-guard.
* A set with Rest and Sleep Talk in combination with Leftovers has more longevity and fares better against defensive teams, but loses coverage and power. An all-out attacker set with Life Orb can be used to hit harder and switch moves, but Keldeo will then get worn down easily and fail to check Steel- and Dark-types in the long run.
* Endeavor can be a last-resort option to break down an unsuspecting counter when low on HP. It can also be used in tandem with Substitute, but instead of Calm Mind.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Bulky Water-types**: Toxapex can take any of Keldeo's hits bar a Choice Specs Hidden Power Electric, it can switch out and heal off the damage with Regenerator. Tapu Fini resists both of its STAB moves and can fire off Nature's Madness or remove entry hazards. Mantine can only be significantly damaged by Hidden Power Electric, doesn't fear Scald thanks to Water absorb, and can potentially dent Keldeo back with Air Slash. Gastrodon, Alomomola and Slowbro check it and can fire off Scalds.
**Latios and Latias**: Just like in ORAS, Latios and Latios still wall Keldeo. With burn damage halved, they don't fear Scald as much and can switch in a little more freely. They still need to watch out for Choice Specs-boosted Icy Wind, though.
**Grass-types**: Mega Venusaur, Amoonguss, and Tangrowth can take hits while in return being able to put a Pokemon to sleep, or do damage with Sludge Bomb, or remove items with Knock Off. Ferrothorn can switch into a Choice-locked Water-move and proceed to set up Spikes or Leech Seed.
**Fairy-types**: Tapu Bulu can come in on both STAB attacks, although it is scared of Scald burns. Tapu Lele can survive a hit and KO back, while Tapu Koko outspeeds and KOes non-Choice Scarf variants of Keldeo.
**Faster Pokemon**: Mega Alakazam and Pheromosa can outspeed non-Choice Scarf Keldeo and can OHKO it.
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