sexy lady in the house
[Overview]
<p>With above-average bulk, a unique defensive typing that provides her with a resistance to Fighting-type attacks and an immunity to Electric-type attacks, and an excellent support movepool, Nidoqueen is easily one of the best support Pokemon in the entire tier. Taking Sheer Force into consideration, Nidoqueen also sports an effective base 112 Special Attack, preventing her from being setup fodder for opposing Pokemon. This Special Attack allows Nidoqueen to run a very viable offensive set, shocking opponents who expect a more defensive one. Unfortunately, the queen is weak to the very common Ground-, Psychic-, Water-, and Ice-type attacks. Those weaknesses aside, Nidoqueen is a valuable asset to any team, and should not be overlooked when teambuilding!</p>
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Toxic Spikes
move 2: Earth Power
move 3: Flamethrower / Ice Beam
move 4: Dragon Tail / Roar
item: Leftovers
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is Nidoqueen's bread-and-butter support set. With her great bulk, excellent defensive typing, resistance to Stealth Rock, and ability to absorb Toxic Spikes, Nidoqueen can switch in multiple times throughout the match to set up hazards or just to take a hit. Toxic Spikes is the crux of the set, as the passive damage provided cripples many Pokemon and allows for easier KOs. Earth Power, with Sheer Force, is a reliable STAB move that actually hits quite hard. It hits many Pokemon in the tier, such as Nidoqueen's loving husband Nidoking, Registeel, Houndoom, Victini, and Cobalion, for super effective damage. In the next slot, Nidoqueen has a choice between two moves: Flamethrower and Ice Beam. Flamethrower is primarily used to hit Bronzong and Escavalier for super effective damage; however, Ice Beam allows Nidoqueen to hit Flygon, which otherwise counters the set. The final moveslot is a question of phazing moves. Generally, Dragon Tail is the better option, as even weak damage really adds up with Toxic Spikes already draining opposing Pokemon of their HP. However, if Pokemon with Substitute, such as Mismagius or Cobalion, pose a threat, Roar makes a perfectly acceptable option as well, bypassing their bean bags completely and forcing them out.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The provided EV spread maximizes Nidoqueen's physical bulk, making her one of the most effective checks to the many Fighting-type Pokemon in the tier, such as Cobalion, Machamp, and Heracross. Her otherwise good bulk allows her to tank hits in general, and her Poison / Ground typing makes her one of the greatest counters to Hidden Power Grass Raikou in the tier. As a testament to Nidoqueen's bulk, she is never OHKOed by Adamant Choice Band Victini and always OHKOes in return with Earth Power (assuming a little prior damage).</p>
<p>Nidoqueen has access to Stealth Rock as well; this would be a great option if it was not illegal with Sheer Force, which is necessary to prevent her from being offensively useless. However, if you cannot do without putting Stealth Rock on Nidoqueen, you can simply change her ability to the less useful, but still effective, Poison Point. At that point, you should replace any special attacks on the set with their physical counterparts, as Nidoqueen's base Attack is higher than her Special Attack. If you don't take this option, partners that can set up Stealth Rock are particularly helpful for Nidoqueen. Hippopotas and Bronzong make excellent partners; Hippopotas is able to bring in the sand, adding even more passive damage in conjunction with Toxic Spikes, while Bronzong adds a welcome Ground-type immunity to the table, as well as checking threats such as Roserade that deter Nidoqueen. Furthermore, Nidoqueen's job is significantly easier with Wish support, as she does not have her own source of recovery. Pokemon such as Togekiss and Umbreon are great partners, taking full advantage of Toxic Spikes while being able to switch in on many Pokemon that threaten Nidoqueen, such as Roserade. Nidoqueen's unique role as a relatively strong Pokemon that can both set up and absorb Toxic Spikes allows her to fit on offensive and defensive teams alike.</p>
[SET]
name: Special Attacker
move 1: Earth Power
move 2: Sludge Wave
move 3: Ice Beam
move 4: Fire Blast / Thunderbolt / Focus Blast
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Modest
evs: 240 HP / 216 SpA / 52 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Offensive Nidoqueen comes as a surprise to most opponents expecting a bulky support set. Nidoqueen, with Sheer Force and a Life Orb, hits almost as hard as her hunky spouse, compromising Speed for the ability to tank a hit. Earth Power is an excellent STAB move that can OHKO dangerous Pokemon such as Darmanitan, Victini, Chandelure, Rhyperior, and Cobalion. It even 2HKOes specially defensive Registeel through Leftovers, which is an impressive feat. Nidoqueen complements Earth Power with a secondary STAB move in Sludge Wave. Sludge Wave is the strongest move in Nidoqueen's repertoire, and is primarily used to hit Rotom-H for neutral coverage. It has poor coverage when compared to the rest of Nidoqueen's moves, but is essential nonetheless for the power it brings. Ice Beam is able to absolutely decimate Flygon that think they have a free switch-in, and even OHKOes 252 HP Zapdos after Stealth Rock. Finally, Nidoqueen can choose between a few moves in the last slot. Fire Blast is the preferred option to OHKO Bronzong after Stealth Rock and 252 HP Roserade without prior damage; it also easily takes care of Escavalier. Thunderbolt, on the other hand, hits Water-type Pokemon such as Azumarill, Milotic, Suicune, and Blastoise for super effective damage, securing 2HKOes on all of them. However, Sludge Wave hits them all for neutral damage anyways. Finally, Focus Blast can be used to hit Umbreon, Snorlax, and Clefable for super effective damage, but its low accuracy is rather unsettling.</p>
<p>Before taking her out of the kitchen, it's important to note what separates her from her faster, more powerful husband. Nidoqueen possesses significantly higher bulk than her frail counterpart and can easily tank hits from Pokemon such as Heracross and Stoutland. She can also check Calm Mind Raikou and Life Orb Zapdos, both of which are unable to secure OHKOes on Nidoqueen with Hidden Power Ice. Life Orb Shaymin also fails to OHKO with Earth Power, and is taken out by a Fire Blast to the face. Nidoqueen's excellent bulk is the primary reason she should be used in this role over Nidoking.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EV spread provides Nidoqueen good bulk to complement her power, as well as the ability to outspeed 8 Speed Milotic. However, an alternate spread of 176 HP / 216 SpA / 116 Spe allows her to outspeed specially defensive Roserade and easily 2HKO it before it gets down two layers of Spikes. Nidoqueen also appreciates hazards in order to easily secure more KOs and to turn many 2HKOs into OHKOs; such support can come from basically any Pokemon that can set up entry hazards, such as Deoxys-D, Bronzong, Rhyperior, Froslass, Qwilfish, or Roserade. Bronzong makes a particularly good partner due to its synergy with Nidoqueen and its ability to tank any hit Ninoqueen cannot. Nidoqueen can also choose between moves that weren't listed. Flamethrower can be used if Fire Blast's accuracy is unappealing, but it loses the OHKO on Bronzong and is weaker in general. Shadow Ball can be used to handle Deoxys-D and Mismagius. Unfortunately, Pokemon such as Umbreon, Deoxys-D, and Snorlax are generally very problematic for this set. Accordingly, partners such as Heracross, Krookodile, Cobalion, and Weavile come in handy to take care of these threats and allow Nidoqueen to wreak havoc on the opposing team.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Nidoqueen doesn't have many other options that aren't listed. She has access to Taunt, but is too slow to use it well. Toxic can hit Flying-types and Levitate Pokemon, but they are hit by Nidoqueen's coverage moves, so Toxic Spikes and even Poison Point are better options. A physical set can be used, but the lower Base Power moves and Nidoqueen's common weaknesses make it unappealing. Finally, Nidoqueen has access to Counter, but once again it is not particularly useful when compared to her other moves.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Nidoqueen faces many Pokemon that want nothing more than to do her harm. Though they have difficulty switching in, powerful attackers such as Victini, Chandelure, and Darmanitan are easily able to overpower Nidoqueen. Pokemon with super effective STAB moves, such as Rhyperior, Flygon, Deoxys-D, Mew, and Azelf all pose huge problems for Nidoqueen, as they are easily able to OHKO it. Roserade is able to switch in on many of Nidoqueen's attacking options, absorb Toxic Spikes, and threaten to outspeed and hit very hard with a Life Orb Leaf Storm. Rotom-H is able to switch in on anything bar Sludge Wave and threaten her with Overheat, Hidden Power Ice, and Trick. Bulky Water-type Pokemon such as Suicune and Milotic can easily dispatch Nidoqueen, even with Toxic Spikes down. Rest variants are even more difficult, as Nidoqueen cannot break through them with anything. Togekiss can outspeed Nidoqueen and threaten her with Air Slash, hitting her lower Special Defense. Weavile's Ice-type attacks and Sharpedo's Water- and Ice-type attacks also pose huge problems for Nidoqueen. Finally, setup sweepers such as Raikou can pose a problem to offensive Nidoqueen, as she lacks Dragon Tail or Roar.</p>
