QC: 2/3 (sparktrain, Exclaimer, sparktrain)
GP: 2/2 (Snobalt, Haund)
[OVERVIEW]
Naviathan was engineered to make use of two different boosting moves, Calm Mind and Dragon Dance. Naviathan's solid set of resistances and an immunity from its Water / Steel typing, along with its decent physical bulk and access to Scald, give Naviathan the ability to set up on a plethora of Pokemon, including top-tier threats such as Mega Scizor and Talonflame. Naviathan was also designed to be wholly resistant to status through an immunity to Poison and a resistance or immunity to burn damage through Heatproof or Water Veil, which greatly contribute to its ability to set up on passive walls. Besides its Calm Mind and Dragon Dance sets, Naviathan's general resistance to chip damage, access to reliable recovery, and a Taunt faster than most defensive Pokemon allow Naviathan to function as a decent stallbreaker.
Despite these favorable traits, Naviathan is limited in its setup oppurtunities by its lackluster Special Defense. This particularly hinders the effectiveness of the Calm Mind set against powerful special attackers. Additionally, Naviathan's Dragon Dance set faces stiff competition from other Dragon Dance users such as Feraligatr and Mega Gyarados, both of which posses greater power and coverage. Naviathan's Dragon Dance set is, in fact, always walled by some metagame threat due to the lack of perfect neutral coverage between its STAB and coverage moves, although Naviathan's immunity to Scald burns and ability to shrug off Talonflame give the Dragon Dance set a notable niche.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Slack Off
move 3: Scald
move 4: Taunt / Hidden Power Ground
item: Leftovers
ability: Heatproof / Water Veil
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Calm Mind allows Naviathan to serve as a powerful wincon by setting up on and beating Pokemon such as Slowbro and Ferrothorn. Slack Off provides reliable recovery and significantly increase Naviathan's longevity, which is vital for accumulating Calm Mind boosts. Scald is Naviathan's most reliable STAB move on this set, and its burn chance helps Naviathan break through bulky Pokemon such as Chansey and Latias, as well as neuter physical attackers such as Mega Scizor. In the last moveslot, Taunt allows Naviathan to stallbreak effectively and set up on common walls such as Clefable, Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Chansey, and Pyroak with ease. Taunt also allows Naviathan to avoid phazing moves such as Roar and Whirlwind. If Naviathan's ability to stallbreak is not needed, Hidden Power Ground allows Naviathan get to past Mollux and, to some extent, Plasmanta, which would otherwise wall it completely, and it also helps handle grounded Electric-types such as Cyclohm and Magnezone.
Set Details
========
The given EV spread grants Naviathan as much physical bulk as possible, allowing it to set up on Pokemon such as Talonflame and Mega Scizor with ease. Naviathan's lackluster special bulk is mitigated by consecutive Calm Mind boosts. A much faster spread of 252 HP / 124 Def / 132 Spe lets it outpace positive-natured base 70 Speed Pokemon at a significant cost of bulk. This prevents Breloom from crippling Naviathan with Spore, allowing Naviathan to outlast and beat it unless it gets multiple high Bullet Seed rolls, and it lets Naviathan attempt to land a Scald burn on Bisharp before it can use Knock Off. Leftovers is the item of choice to provide passive recovery. Heatproof gives Naviathan a pseudo Fire-type resistance and eases setup on Pokemon such as Heatran and Talonflame while decreasing the amount of residual damage dealt by burns so that it can be negated by Leftovers. Water Veil can be used to avoid burns altogether to keep Leftover's residual recovery no matter what.
Usage Tips
========
Naviathan is best used on bulkier teams as a wincon against opposing stall or balanced teams. Naviathan can be used on offensive teams as their main stallbreaker because it can check Talonflame more consistently than Manaphy. Use passive Pokemon such as Chansey, Ferrothorn, Pyroak, and Clefable as setup bait. If lacking Taunt, be wary of Thunder Wave from Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Clefable, as the reduced Speed will severly hinder Naviathan's effectiveness. Keep Hidden Power Ground hidden until you can guarantee that the opposing Mollux or Plasmanta will stay in; even consider switching out of them several times in order to trick your opponent into predicting Taunt. If your opponent still has checks to Naviathan in play, spam Scald to burn any potential switch-ins, such as Latias.
Team Options
========
Ground-types and other Pokemon that can remove Mollux and Plasmanta from play are essential teammates to Naviathan, especially if it lacks Hidden Power Ground. Colossoil in particular can switch into either Pokemon with relative ease and gradually remove them from play through Pursuit. Garchomp can switch into Mollux, only fearing a burn from Lava Plume, and proceed to use it as Stealth Rock fodder. Other Ground-types such as Hippowdon also check the Electric-types that can pressure Naviathan. Mega Sableye can check Fighting-types that trouble Naviathan as well as spread burn damage. Checks to Keldeo, such as Mollux and Latios, are appreciated by Naviathan, as Keldeo can switch into Scald safely and threaten Naviathan with Secret Sword. In return, Naviathan can use Talonflame as setup fodder. Special walls such as Clefable can help handle special attackers that would otherwise overwhelm unboosted Naviathan.
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Iron Head / Wild Charge
move 4: Wild Charge / Icicle Crash / Drill Peck
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Water Veil
nature: Jolly
evs: 8 HP / 252 Atk / 8 Def / 240
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Dragon Dance is needed to give Naviathan a chance to sweep opposing teams, allowing it to KO weakened Pokemon after a boost. Waterfall is Naviathan's most powerful Water-type STAB move and gives Naviathan good neutral coverage against threats such as Aurumoth and Mega Scizor. Iron Head allows Naviathan to get past Fairy-types such as Mega Altaria and Unaware Clefable, which would otherwise stop it cold. Wild Charge can be used over Iron Head if Unaware Clefable is not a concern for the team, as it allows Naviathan to force its way past bulky Water-types that would otherwise wall it, as well as Mollux. It also has provides pseudo-BoltBeam coverage in tandem with Icicle Crash. If Iron Head is used, Wild Charge should be used in the last slot to target bulky Water-types. Icicle Crash gives Naviathan a way to damage Cyclohm and is Naviathan's most powerful option against Plasmanta and Grass-types such as Serperior and Necturna. Drill Peck can be used instead to retain coverage on Grass-types while allowing Naviathan to threaten Fighting-types such as Tomohawk, Mega Lopunny, and Keldeo.
Set Details
========
The EV spread and a Jolly nature allow Naviathan to outspeed anything up to Choice Scarf Volkraken while giving Naviathan maximum Attack. The rest of the EVs are put into HP for extra bulk. Life Orb gives Naviathan a needed boost to its damage output, notably allowing it to 2HKO Cyclohm with Icicle Crash after a boost, 2HKO defensive Tomohawk with Drill Peck, and OHKO Keldeo with Wild Charge. It also allows Naviathan to OHKO offensive Tomohawk with all three of Wild Charge, Icicle Crash, and Drill Peck. Leftovers can be used to help recover chip damage on Naviathan, allowing it to take priority moves better after a boost at the cost of the OHKOs and 2HKOs mentioned above, not to mention hitting for significantly less damage in general. Likewise, Expert Belt can be used to compromise between power and mitigating residual damage, while Lum Berry can be used to ease setup versus Thunder Wave users, such as Clefable, and to prevent Thundurus and Klefki from crippling Naviathan.
Usage Tips
========
Use Naviathan on as wincon on offensive teams that are particularly susceptible to Talonflame. Naviathan functions best in the late-game once Pokemon such as Ferrothorn, Rotom-W, and Cyclohm have been removed or severely weakened. Set up on Fairy-types such as Clefable or Fire-types such as Talonflame. Take advantage of Naviathan's burn immunity to set up on bulky Water-types that rely on Scald such as Slowbro and Manaphy.
Team Options
========
Due to the coverage issues Dragon Dance Naviathan has, it requires team synergy to be used effectively. Therefore, Naviathan functions best with partners that can deal with its checks and counters to allow it a chance to sweep. Power Herb + Solar Beam Heatran can surprise and heavily damage Rotom-W, Arghonaut, and Keldeo, all of which can give Naviathan trouble. Hidden Power Fire Latios and Mega Diancie can remove Ferrothorn, which tanks every move Dragon Dance Naviathan has to throw at it. Offensive Water-types such as Azumarill, Keldeo, and Crawdaunt can help batter down Naviathan's checks; Jolly Belly Drum Azumarill and Swords Dance Crawdaunt in particular can put Cyclohm into KO range for Naviathan. Offensive Steel-types such as Mega Scizor and Mega Metagross can help weaken Cyclohm and other Naviathan checks. In return, Naviathan can set up on and threaten the Fire-types they fear. Ground-types such as Colossoil, Landorus-T, and Garchomp can provide entry hazard control and check opposing Electric-types and Mollux, which would otherwise give Naviathan trouble. Grass-types such as Serperior appreciate Naviathan's ability to set up on Talonflame. Powerful wallbreakers such as Mega Gardevoir and Hoopa-U can help break down defensive cores and weaken teams so that Naviathan can sweep late-game.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
An offensive Calm Mind set utilizing Hydro Pump, Ice Beam, Flash Cannon, and even Hurricane can be used to put more immediate pressure on the opposing team, but it can't stallbreak well. Flash Cannon can be used on the Calm Mind set to get past Clefable, but Taunt does this already. Ice Punch and Thunder Punch can be used instead of Icicle Crash and Wild Charge, respectively, at a serious cost of power in exchange for their higher accuracy and lack of recoil. Icicle Spear can be used for Ice-type coverage as well, since it is perfectly accurate and can break through Focus Sash and Substitute, and on average it hits as hard as Ice Punch, although it can hit for significantly less or more damage depending on the number of hits. Iron Defense can be used on the Calm Mind set to better set up on physical attackers at the cost of stallbreaking ability and coverage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Electric-types**: Mega Manectric, Plasmanta, Cyclohm, and Thundurus can all OHKO an unboosted Naviathan, and Mega Manectric and Plasmanta can take any one hit from the Dragon Dance set and OHKO back. Thundurus has trouble tanking hits but can cripple Dragon Dance sets with Thunder Wave. Cyclohm is a very dependable check to Dragon Dance Naviathan but is unable to threaten Calm Mind Naviathan after it attains multiple boosts outside of Discharge paralysis and Roar. Rotom-W counters the Dragon Dance set but is unable to break through the Calm Mind set due to the overall low damage output of Volt Switch and Naviathan's resistance to burn damage.
**Fighting-types**: Keldeo, Breloom, Conkeldurr, and Arghonaut can all OHKO or heavily damage Naviathan with their STAB moves. None of them can take Drill Peck, however, and Keldeo and Breloom also fear Wild Charge and Icicle Crash, respectively. Arghonaut in particular can check the Dragon Dance set well thanks to Unaware, but it hates burns from Scald, while Choice Scarf Keldeo is a foolproof check to either set.
**Ground-types**: Faster Ground-types such as Garchomp, offensive Landorus-T, and Colossoil can outspeed and threaten to OHKO Calm Mind Naviathan, while Choice Scarf Garchomp can outspeed and OHKO either set. None of those Pokemon enjoy switching into Scald, Waterfall, or Icicle Crash, though.
**Grass-types**: Bulky Grass-types such as Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur can wall the Dragon Dance set, although Mega Venusaur does not appreciate Drill Peck. Serperior can outdamage and outboost Calm Mind sets with Contrary Leaf Storms, but it has trouble beating boosted Dragon Dance sets.
**Powerful Special Wallbreakers**: Hoopa-U, Mega Gardevoir, and Mega Charizard Y can all overwhelm Calm Mind Naviathan before it sets up, and the latter two can outspeed and OHKO Dragon Dance Naviathan. None of them can afford to switch into a boosted Naviathan, though.
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