"How sad. To work so hard, for so little."
QC: Nayrz / Dominatio / Fireburn
GP: Fireflame479
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[OVERVIEW]
* Landorus-T is blessed with an excellent typing and an even better ability in Intimidate, allowing it to soft check Pokemon such as offensive Primal Groudon, Ho-Oh, some Swords Dance Arceus formes, and Excadrill.
* Ground is a decent offensive typing in Ubers, hitting most of the tier for neutral damage backed by a solid base 145 Attack stat.
* Base 91 Speed, while not perfect for Ubers standards, allows Landorus-T to be fast enough to outspeed powerhouses such as Ho-Oh, Primal Groudon, Dialga, and Primal Kyogre.
* Landorus-T's only Flying-type STAB move is Fly, which is not the most optimal choice. However, when paired with Flyinium Z, Landorus-T can make use of a one-time nuke that can get most of its checks out of the way.
* Landorus-T faces competition from Primal Groudon as a Stealth Rock setter and sponge, as it is bulkier, stronger, and able to check a larger portion of the metagame.
* Landorus-T's Special Defense is quite low, meaning that most special moves will either OHKO or 2HKO it.
* Even though Landorus-T possesses a solid base 145 Attack, it still fails to 2HKO support Arceus formes and is bait to common Levitate and Flying-type Pokemon if not carrying the proper coverage.
* Landorus-T finds very few opportunities to switch in, as most attacks are too powerful for its bulk to handle.
[SET]
name: Flyinium Z Stealth Rock
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Fly
move 3: Stealth Rock
move 4: Swords Dance
item: Flyinium Z
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
Evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake is the strongest STAB move Landorus-T can run, dealing consistent damage across the tier.
* Fly is run in order to use Supersonic Strike, which when boosted by Swords Dance, can OHKO every relevant Defogger in the tier, such as Arceus-Water and Giratina.
* Stealth Rock is used not only to open up Primal Groudon's possible moveset, but since this sets capitalizes on defeating most Defoggers, being able to do so while setting it up is great.
* Swords Dance is used to power up Landorus-T moves, specifically Fly (and therefore Supersonic Strike), allowing Landorus-T to dish out enormous damage.
Set Details
========
* 252 Attacks EVs are used to allow Landorus-T to hit as hard as possible.
* 252 Speed EVs are used to make Landorus-T faster than everything slower than neutral-natured base 90 Speed, such as Primal Kyogre, Primal Groudon, Zekrom, Ho-Oh, and Excadrill.
* Adamant is chosen over Jolly because it grants Landorus-T better odds at OHKOing Giratina after Stealth Rock damage. However, Jolly may still be run to get a jump on some slower Arceus formes and Jolly Ho-Oh, for example.
* Flyinium Z is used to allow Fly to become Supersonic Skystrike.
Usage Tips
========
* This set main's purpose is to defeat common checks to Landorus-T such as Arceus and Giratina formes, Salamence, and Zygarde by severely crippling them with a powerful Supersonic Skystrike.
* However, the most common defensive Arceus formes are likely to be faster and may just OHKO Landorus-T first, it's important to scout for their Speed tier beforehand.
* Landorus-T lacks any form of recovery, so it must be played smartly to avoid taking unnecessary damage if it has to check Primal Groudon and physically offensive Arceus formes.
* It should be noted that mixed Primal Groudon, Ice Beam from Extreme Killer Arceus and Mega Mewtwo X, as well as Z-Moves from the likes of Arceus-Steel and Arceus-Dragon are able to OHKO Landorus-T on the spot.
* Even with Intimidate and passable bulk, Landorus-T cannot switch in most physical attacks in the tier due to how powerful they are. Try to bring it forth by using U-turn, predicting Ground- and Electric-type moves, double switching, and after a Pokemon has fainted.
* Be careful when using Supersonic Strike, as even though Fly is still powerful at +2, it requires a charge turn and doesn't deal as much damage to walls such as Zygarde-C, Giratina, and defensive Arceus formes.
Team Options
========
* Pokemon such as Mega Lucario, Extreme Killer Arceus, Arceus-Ground, Mega Salamence, and Primal Groudon all appreciate Arceus and Giratina formes, Salamence, and Zygarde being gone from the match, so they make for excellent partners.
* Mega Gengar can trap most of Landorus-T's checks and appreciates Landorus-T's immunity to Ground and ability to dent through Primal Groudon.
* Shuckle and Smeargle are great partners to Landorus-T, setting up Sticky Web and allowing it to be faster than every Defogger in the tier bar the rare defensive Mega Salamence. They also both appreciate not being forced to run Stealth Rock, freeing a slot for a better utility move.
* Xerneas enjoys Landorus-T's ability to get rid of Primal Groudon and most Steel-types, ensuring Xerneas can sweep easier later in the game. However, this is tricky considering Landorus-T cannot switch into any of them.
* Ferrothorn and Celesteela can threaten common defensive staples in the tier, tanking moves from support Arceus formes and Primal Kyogre while crippling them with Toxic and Leech Seed.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Choice Scarf can be used, as it does a good job at pressuring teams with decent coverage in EdgeQuake, U-Turn, and Intimidate. However, Ubers is full of Pokemon that are able to take advantage of a Choice-locked Landorus-T due to common Levitate and Flying-type Pokemon around, and therefore it's outclassed by both Xerneas and Lunala.
* Outrage and Dragonium Z may be run instead of Fly and Flynium Z, but Devastating Drake only hits Zygarde-C, Salamence, Arceus-Dragon, and the Giratina formes, missing out the broader amount of Pokemon Supersonic Strike covers. However, +2 Devastating Drake is a guaranteed OHKO on physically defensive Zygarde-C.
* Landorus-T can also act as a bulky Stealth Rock setter, being able to switch into physical attacks a little easier. A set consisting of Earthquake,(AC) Stealth Rock,(AC) Toxic,(AC) and Stone Edge can emergency check a lot of the physical threats in the tier. In spite of this, it becomes far more passive, and this role is indefinitely better done by Primal Groudon.
* Rockium Z can be used to turn Stone Edge into a 180 Base Power Continental Crush, which may OHKO the likes of Lugia, defensive Yveltal, and Mega Salamence (even with Intimidate drop) after Stealth Rock damage. Sadly, it doesn't hit anything else.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Foes**: Landorus-T only possesses a middling Speed tier, and faster Pokemon will scare Landorus-T off, as its bulk is by no means stellar, and it also lacks recovery. Therefore, virtually every special or mixed attacker in Ubers is able to dispose of Landorus-T without problems.
**Skarmory, Celesteela, and Bronzong**: Sharing an immunity to Ground and taking little damage from Landorus-T coverage moves, these Pokemon can comfortably cripple Landorus-T with Toxic, Leech Seed, or setting entry hazards.
**Giratina formes**: Giratina and Giratina-O can check Landorus-T by either sheer physical bulk or Levitate, being able to shrug off most of the damage done by Landorus with ease. However, Landorus-T's Supersonic Skystrike OHKOes both Giratina formes after Stealth Rock damage and a Swords Dance boost. This can be mitigated by smart prediction, though.
**Support Arceus Formes**: Support Arceus formes such as Water, Ground, Grass, Dragon, Fairy, and Dark are bulky enough to avoid the 2HKO from Landorus-T's Earthquake. However, none can tank a +2 Supersonic Skystrike.
**Zygarde-C**: Zygarde's physical bulk is incomparable in the tier, being able to shrug damage done by even a boosted Landorus-T and can proceed to phaze it out or paralyze it. However, Landorus-T can deal severe damage with its available Z-Moves and can OHKO it with a boosted Devastating Drake.
**Flying-type Pokemon**: By being immune to Landorus-T's Earthquake, Lugia, defensive Yveltal, and defensive Mega Salamence are all able to wall Landorus-T throughout the match. However, Landorus-T possesses coverage options to deal with these Pokemon considering they are all crippled by Stealth Rock.
**Water- and Ice-type Pokemon**: Even though none can switch in directly, Primal Kyogre, Palkia, Mega Gyarados, Arceus-Ice, Kyurem-W, and Cloyster are bulky enough to take an unboosted Earthquake and can OHKO Landorus-T with their stabs.
**Mega Sableye**: Mega Sableye can burn Landorus-T, prevent it from setting Stealth Rock, deal insane damage with Foul Play, and recover the damage taken from Landorus-T's Earthquake. However, it must be wary of a boosted Earthquake, which may OHKO it with little chip damage.
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