Overview
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Politoed has an irreplaceable niche of being the only Drizzle user in the metagame, making it the best answer in the game to Mega Charizard Y and other Fire-types. Drizzle confers small benefits to any team, such as preventing chip damage from sandstorm and weakening Fire-type moves. With a vast array of support moves, the above-mentioned advantages, and a powerful Scald, Politoed is a good pick for teams that want a defensive Water-type. In addition, it makes the Water-types, Thunder users, and Swift Swim users that utilize the rain it provides (notably Ludicolo, Mega Ampharos, Mega Manectric, and Kingdra) to some of the best all-out attackers in the tier. Kingdra's Muddy Water also functions as a devastating spread move in rain. However, Politoed's typing is redundant with the other Water-types it aims to support, making it difficult for dedicated rain teams to beat one of the three typings in general: Water, Grass and Dragon.
Rain Setter
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name: Rain Setter
move 1: Scald
move 2: Icy Wind / Encore / Perish Song
move 3: Helping Hand / Encore / Perish Song
move 4: Protect
ability: Drizzle
item: Leftovers / Sitrus Berry
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
nature: Bold
Moves
========
Scald is the main STAB option of choice, with great neutral coverage and a nifty 30% burn chance that can cripple physical attackers. Hydro Pump can be used instead if you prefer power over reliability. For the second and third moveslots, Politoed can viably run any of the following four moves in whatever combination the user wants: Icy Wind, Encore, Perish Song, and Helping Hand. Each move supports the team in a different way. Although Icy Wind doesn't even do satisfactory damage to Grass- and Dragon-types unless it is 4x super effective, the Speed drop for both opponents can be game-changing. Perish Song can be used to force the opponent to make certain plays: for instance, to KO in last-two situations or when you have Mega Gengar, and to force out opponents that use boosting moves or Substitute. Helping Hand is useful to boost the damage of your allies in a pinch and put the opponent under a lot of pressure; it also functions as a good suicide move. Encore is a great move for forcing plays and reducing predictions, as it will neutralize opposing status abusers; setup sweepers; and users of Fake Out, Protect, Tailwind, and Substitute by locking them into the same move for two or more turns. Finally, Protect is used in the last moveslot to shield Politoed from damage, scout for opponent's attacks, and stall out harmful field conditions.
Set Details
========
The given EV spread and nature provides maximum physical bulk to Politoed. A physically defensive set is preferred to a specially defensive set, as Politoed's weaknesses are mainly specially attacking types, meaning it is generally better off switching to a teammate that can sponge said special attacks instead of trying to sponge them itself. Leftovers is recommended as it provides continuous passive recovery, instead of being more one-and-done like Sitrus Berry. However, both are viable options.
Usage Tips
========
Politoed's objective is usually to provide support for its teammates while also having strong Water-type STAB. Hence, you should try to keep it alive and healthy for as long as possible. When you see that your opponent has many threatening Pokemon that are faster than yours, Icy Wind is a good way to turn the tables against them. Just don't use Icy Wind on Bisharp, as Defiant will result in a painful backlash. If Politoed doesn't have much to damage a Pokemon with, using Scald to fish for a burn can be a decent idea. Helping Hand can be used strategically to boost the damage of a faster teammate, and it is great to help the likes of Kingdra achieve two KOes with one Muddy Water. Encore is preferably used to lock a faster opponent into Substitute or a boosting move, but using it on an attack is not a bad idea either, as this can prevent the use of Protect. For more dedicated rain teams, it is important to play cautiously and keep Politoed alive as long as possible. This also helps for cleaning with Perish Song.
Team Options
========
Swift Swimmers such as Ludicolo and Kingdra love rain a lot as they have their STAB options (Hydro Pump and Muddy Water, respectively) boosted. Electric-types can reliably use Thunder under rain, putting much more offensive pressure on the opponent.
As far as synergy is concerned, Pokemon such as Latios and Kyurem-B can handle Grass- and Electric-types and are useful teammates for Politoed. Meanwhile, Pokemon such as Excadrill and Landorus-T appreciate Politoed's ability to switch into Water-type attacks. Additionally, anything that is weak to Fire immediately loves Politoed, due to rain neutralizing their Fire weakness. These include Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Heracross. Finally, teammates that beat bulky Grass-types like Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur without relying on Fire-moves are a necessity for rain teams.
Other Options
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For less dedicated rain teams, Politoed can viably run a Choice Specs set, as a rain-boosted Hydro Pump hits extremely hard. Choice Scarf is also an interesting option to get the jump on opponents that would otherwise outspeed and KO Politoed. On more dedicated rain teams, Rain Dance can be used to reset rain turns and also disrupt opposing weather setters. Damp Rock is a great item choice to lengthen the amount of turns of rain on the field.
Politoed has an extremely vast movepool of offensive options, but they don't have nearly enough power to be worth considering on a defensive set. However, offensive sets can use Politoed's coverage options to beat some of its normal switch-ins. Ice Beam can be used to hit Dragon- and Grass-types hard. Focus Blast can be used to deal heavy damage to Tyranitar, but its inaccuracy may be off-putting. Hypnosis is a great utility move to put the opponent to sleep, but is also quite inaccurate. Hidden Power Grass can come in handy against Rotom-W, which otherwise walls Politoed.
Checks & Counters
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**Offensive Typing Advantage**: Grass-types such as Ferrothorn, Shaymin-S, and opposing Ludicolo can take Politoed's STAB attacks with ease and retaliate with their deadly Grass-type STAB. Additionally, opposing Ludicolo can easily switch in and utilize the free rain from Politoed. Thundurus, Zapdos, and Rotom-W can strike Politoed with a powerful Thunderbolt. Furthermore, Rotom-W also resists both of the moves commonly carried by Politoed, and Thundurus has Taunt to shut down Politoed's support moves. Abomasnow doesn't mind Water-type attacks or whatever coverage Politoed commonly carries, and it has Giga Drain or Wood Hammer to deal a huge amount of damage to Politoed. Additionally, it can disrupt Politoed's rain by setting up its own hail.
**Attack Control**: Jellicent completely walls most Politoed, as it's immune to Scald and takes very little from Ice Beam. Amoonguss is a major threat; it can redirect Politoed's moves with Rage Powder, put it to sleep with Spore, hit Politoed super effectively with Giga Drain, and shrug off any damage taken in the process with Regenerator.
**Opposing Weather**: Opposing weather setters such as Tyranitar, Mega Charizard Y, and Abomasnow are extremely annoying due to their own ability to set up their own weather and thus weaken Scald immediately.
########
Politoed has an irreplaceable niche of being the only Drizzle user in the metagame, making it the best answer in the game to Mega Charizard Y and other Fire-types. Drizzle confers small benefits to any team, such as preventing chip damage from sandstorm and weakening Fire-type moves. With a vast array of support moves, the above-mentioned advantages, and a powerful Scald, Politoed is a good pick for teams that want a defensive Water-type. In addition, it makes the Water-types, Thunder users, and Swift Swim users that utilize the rain it provides (notably Ludicolo, Mega Ampharos, Mega Manectric, and Kingdra) to some of the best all-out attackers in the tier. Kingdra's Muddy Water also functions as a devastating spread move in rain. However, Politoed's typing is redundant with the other Water-types it aims to support, making it difficult for dedicated rain teams to beat one of the three typings in general: Water, Grass and Dragon.
Rain Setter
########
name: Rain Setter
move 1: Scald
move 2: Icy Wind / Encore / Perish Song
move 3: Helping Hand / Encore / Perish Song
move 4: Protect
ability: Drizzle
item: Leftovers / Sitrus Berry
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
nature: Bold
Moves
========
Scald is the main STAB option of choice, with great neutral coverage and a nifty 30% burn chance that can cripple physical attackers. Hydro Pump can be used instead if you prefer power over reliability. For the second and third moveslots, Politoed can viably run any of the following four moves in whatever combination the user wants: Icy Wind, Encore, Perish Song, and Helping Hand. Each move supports the team in a different way. Although Icy Wind doesn't even do satisfactory damage to Grass- and Dragon-types unless it is 4x super effective, the Speed drop for both opponents can be game-changing. Perish Song can be used to force the opponent to make certain plays: for instance, to KO in last-two situations or when you have Mega Gengar, and to force out opponents that use boosting moves or Substitute. Helping Hand is useful to boost the damage of your allies in a pinch and put the opponent under a lot of pressure; it also functions as a good suicide move. Encore is a great move for forcing plays and reducing predictions, as it will neutralize opposing status abusers; setup sweepers; and users of Fake Out, Protect, Tailwind, and Substitute by locking them into the same move for two or more turns. Finally, Protect is used in the last moveslot to shield Politoed from damage, scout for opponent's attacks, and stall out harmful field conditions.
Set Details
========
The given EV spread and nature provides maximum physical bulk to Politoed. A physically defensive set is preferred to a specially defensive set, as Politoed's weaknesses are mainly specially attacking types, meaning it is generally better off switching to a teammate that can sponge said special attacks instead of trying to sponge them itself. Leftovers is recommended as it provides continuous passive recovery, instead of being more one-and-done like Sitrus Berry. However, both are viable options.
Usage Tips
========
Politoed's objective is usually to provide support for its teammates while also having strong Water-type STAB. Hence, you should try to keep it alive and healthy for as long as possible. When you see that your opponent has many threatening Pokemon that are faster than yours, Icy Wind is a good way to turn the tables against them. Just don't use Icy Wind on Bisharp, as Defiant will result in a painful backlash. If Politoed doesn't have much to damage a Pokemon with, using Scald to fish for a burn can be a decent idea. Helping Hand can be used strategically to boost the damage of a faster teammate, and it is great to help the likes of Kingdra achieve two KOes with one Muddy Water. Encore is preferably used to lock a faster opponent into Substitute or a boosting move, but using it on an attack is not a bad idea either, as this can prevent the use of Protect. For more dedicated rain teams, it is important to play cautiously and keep Politoed alive as long as possible. This also helps for cleaning with Perish Song.
Team Options
========
Swift Swimmers such as Ludicolo and Kingdra love rain a lot as they have their STAB options (Hydro Pump and Muddy Water, respectively) boosted. Electric-types can reliably use Thunder under rain, putting much more offensive pressure on the opponent.
As far as synergy is concerned, Pokemon such as Latios and Kyurem-B can handle Grass- and Electric-types and are useful teammates for Politoed. Meanwhile, Pokemon such as Excadrill and Landorus-T appreciate Politoed's ability to switch into Water-type attacks. Additionally, anything that is weak to Fire immediately loves Politoed, due to rain neutralizing their Fire weakness. These include Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Heracross. Finally, teammates that beat bulky Grass-types like Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur without relying on Fire-moves are a necessity for rain teams.
Other Options
########
For less dedicated rain teams, Politoed can viably run a Choice Specs set, as a rain-boosted Hydro Pump hits extremely hard. Choice Scarf is also an interesting option to get the jump on opponents that would otherwise outspeed and KO Politoed. On more dedicated rain teams, Rain Dance can be used to reset rain turns and also disrupt opposing weather setters. Damp Rock is a great item choice to lengthen the amount of turns of rain on the field.
Politoed has an extremely vast movepool of offensive options, but they don't have nearly enough power to be worth considering on a defensive set. However, offensive sets can use Politoed's coverage options to beat some of its normal switch-ins. Ice Beam can be used to hit Dragon- and Grass-types hard. Focus Blast can be used to deal heavy damage to Tyranitar, but its inaccuracy may be off-putting. Hypnosis is a great utility move to put the opponent to sleep, but is also quite inaccurate. Hidden Power Grass can come in handy against Rotom-W, which otherwise walls Politoed.
Checks & Counters
########
**Offensive Typing Advantage**: Grass-types such as Ferrothorn, Shaymin-S, and opposing Ludicolo can take Politoed's STAB attacks with ease and retaliate with their deadly Grass-type STAB. Additionally, opposing Ludicolo can easily switch in and utilize the free rain from Politoed. Thundurus, Zapdos, and Rotom-W can strike Politoed with a powerful Thunderbolt. Furthermore, Rotom-W also resists both of the moves commonly carried by Politoed, and Thundurus has Taunt to shut down Politoed's support moves. Abomasnow doesn't mind Water-type attacks or whatever coverage Politoed commonly carries, and it has Giga Drain or Wood Hammer to deal a huge amount of damage to Politoed. Additionally, it can disrupt Politoed's rain by setting up its own hail.
**Attack Control**: Jellicent completely walls most Politoed, as it's immune to Scald and takes very little from Ice Beam. Amoonguss is a major threat; it can redirect Politoed's moves with Rage Powder, put it to sleep with Spore, hit Politoed super effectively with Giga Drain, and shrug off any damage taken in the process with Regenerator.
**Opposing Weather**: Opposing weather setters such as Tyranitar, Mega Charizard Y, and Abomasnow are extremely annoying due to their own ability to set up their own weather and thus weaken Scald immediately.
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