This was just a terrific analysis. There is no other way to say this. This is probably one of the best analysis I've ever seen on smogon, and i've been here a while.Alright, I would like to thank Rising_Dusk for considering me for this analysis, honor taken. Let's hope we can all get busy with this little guy!
Status: Awaiting GP Stamps
QC Approvals: (3/3) (Iconic) (PK Gaming) (Eo Ut Mortus)
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Politoed
[Overview]
<p>Upon its debut, Politoed has been considered a depressingly outclassed Pokémon, with only a few niche moves to spare its welfare. Accommodated with other superior Water-type competitors, especially Suicune, Starmie, Milotic, and even Golduck, Politoed befell into one of the most forgettable existences in Pokémon history. Three generations later, things began looking bright for Politoed.</p>
<p>The emergence of the Dream World brought Politoed one of the most game-changing abilities in the game: Drizzle, previously exclusive to the forever-banished Kyogre. With its prized ability, Politoed now provides valuable team support in the form of eternal rain and some of its classic options, including Perish Song and Encore. As a bulky Water-type Pokémon, Politoed isn't a slouch either with rewarding defenses. Its bulk, combined with a sufficing Special Attack, makes Politoed extremely difficult to defeat despite an average Speed. With Drizzle and its Water-typing, it also has the ability to neuter other common weather teams upon releasing rain, even with the existences of other weather inducers. Politoed can even function offensively with a boosting item to puncture holes in almost any team, with one of the most powerful Hydro Pumps in OU. While this zero-to-hero will encounter obstacles in threats such as Ferrothorn and opposing bulky Water-types, Politoed should be an extremely fundamental part of any team with the correct support.</p>
<p>Politoed’s new liberties in the fifth generation, however, did it several limitations. A complex ban was implemented on the combined ban of Drizzle and Swift Swim users, limiting Politoed’s usage with its most valued offensive teammates. Politoed, nevertheless, is still a key factor in the success of Drizzle teams. On the bright side, Politoed is allowed to be paired with other rain abusers, opening doors to different types of rain-oriented teams. The fact that Drizzle was banned with Swift Swim goes to show that Politoed is indeed an influential force in OU.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Specs
nature: Modest / Timid
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[Set Comments]
<p>A Politoed wielding Choice Specs is by no means a gimmick. While Politoed admittedly lacks the usual traits of traditional Choice Specs users, having easily questionable Special Attack and Speed stats, its real boon is, amongst other things, Drizzle. More specifically, one of the reasons why Politoed is such an effective Choice Specs user is its ability to fire off mighty blows while simultaneously providing support in the form of rain. Factoring in torrential weather and STAB, Politoed’s Hydro Pump is essentially <em>the</em> golden arrow in OU, surpassing even Choice Specs Latios’ Draco Meteor with a base power of 270. Even Surf, the lesser yet more reliable option, is relatively comparable to similar attacks. Unlike other Choice Specs users, Politoed should be played like a tank. With good defensive bulk Water-typing allows it to sponge even some super effective attacks, granting the user a fairly robust attacker. Politoed rarely ever has to switch moves, as Hydro Pump or Surf boosted by Choice Specs deals significant numbers to even those who resist it.</p>
<p>Since the primary reason for using this set is to abuse a ridiculously powerful Water-type move, the other moveslots are essentially coverage filler. Ice Beam allows Politoed to check opposing Dragon- and Ice-type foes, both of whom resist Politoed’s Water-type move. Focus Blast is actually quite useful, as it promptly eliminates certain potential foes, especially Ferrothorn and Tyranitar. The last slot is given to Hidden Power Grass. While this particular move is a tad specific, it is Politoed’s other best coverage option against Storm Drain Gastrodon, Quagsire, Rotom-W, and other opposing Water-types. Please keep in mind that a neutral Hydro Pump will deal more damage than Politoed’s other x2 super effective moves.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>To illustrate the power that Choice Specs Politoed delivers, some calculations assuming a Modest nature, Hydro Pump, and Rain are listed below:</p>
<ul class="damage_calculations">
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP Bold Blissey: 40.5% - 47.9%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 216 SpD Adamant Scizor: 103.2% - 121.5%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Bold Reuniclus: 101.9% - 120.1%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Bold Reuniclus (with a Calm Mind boost): 67.8% - 79.9%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 4 HP Jolly Garchomp: 120.1% - 141.3%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 224 SpD Careful Jirachi: 68.6% - 80.9%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 4 SpD Timid Ninetales (in Sun): 87.8% - 103.1%</li>
<li> Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252 SpD Careful Tyranitar (in Sandstorm): 59.9% - 71.3%</li>
</ul>
<p>While Politoed is used as a tank, there are many ways to tweak its performance according to the team’s preferences. Maximum Special Attack is quite necessary in any case, as Politoed requires all the power it needs to break through teams. With maximum Speed investment with the choice of a Modest or Timid nature, Politoed will not have to worry about being outrun and ruined by potential Pokemon, such as Scizor and standard Specially Defensive Jirachi. Investing in general bulk clearly has its merits as well, since Politoed will not be outspeeding much even after Speed investment. Instead of investing in Speed, all the EVs can be relocated to HP for extra bulk. This is especially beneficial to boost Politoed’s tanking capabilities. Alternatively, any number of EVs can be invested into Speed to outrun a certain Speed tier or threat, such as Blissey or Scizor.</p>
<p>While Politoed can be extremely hazardous to switch into considering its ridiculously powerful Hydro Pump or Surf, there are definitely some hard counters to it. Water Absorb users come to mind as the best Choice Specs Politoed counters, capable of switching effortlessly into any of Politoed’s attacks while wasting Hydro Pump’s precious PP. In this respect, Gastrodon also absorbs and heals off damage from any of Politoed’s moves except the rarely used Hidden Power Grass. Politoed should also be wary of wasting Hydro Pump’s PP against other specially defensive opponents, such as Blissey and Celebi. One important thought to keep in mind is that since Politoed will be summoning eternal rain, the very common Ferrothorn will be incredibly difficult to defeat due to its resistance to Hydro Pump and its Fire-type weakness halved in rain. In return, Ferrothorn can do horribly irritating things ranging from Thunder Wave, Leech Seed, or Power Whip. Every team who is considering using Choice Specs Politoed will have to find a way to keep Ferrothorn and the Water Absorb users in check.</p>
<p>Because Politoed will be using Hydro Pump or Surf most of the time, it might not have time to use its other coverage options against these threats; therefore, alternative ways of eliminating Politoed’s hard checks and counters are extremely recommended. Politoed is also lacking in the Speed department, making paralysis support a dramatically helpful possibility by the likes of Jirachi, Togekiss, Thundurus, Dragonite, and Lanturn. With Jirachi and Togekiss in mind, they can also whittle Politoed’s counters with fairly hard-hitting Iron Head and Air Slash, respectively. Finally, taking the above calculation into consideration, with at least a few layers of Spikes or Stealth Rock, Politoed is able to achieve OHKOes and 2HKOes is could have never attained before. This is especially true for Garchomp, Blissey, and Jirachi. In the case of Ferrothorn, Breloom and Toxicroak are Politoed's next-to-best teammates, as they set up on Ferrothorn easily with Substitute and takes advantage of the rainstorm in their own ways. Particularly, to put the opposition in an awkward position, Breloom can use Spore against Ferrothorn or its switch-ins, and proceed to puncture holes with a STAB Focus Punch or Seed Bomb.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Modest / Timid
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
<p>At first glance, Politoed may seem like a quite peculiar user of Choice Scarf. While Choice Scarf can fix up Politoed's average base 70 Speed, it still may seem outclassed in the revenge killing department by similar, faster Choice Scarf users, especially Starmie. Unsurprisingly, the real value of using Choice Scarf Politoed is its prized ability, Drizzle. Though a base 70 Speed doesn't quite help Politoed against common boosted opponents such as Salamence, Drizzle allows Politoed to disrupt the flow of other weather teams, instantly changing the weather to stormy skies. With a Choice Scarf, many Pokemon that fall under the category of a "weather abuser" are instantly eliminated by a fast, appropriate move. With the notoriety of sun- and sandstorm-based teams in the metagame, all Politoed needs to do is switch in to activate Drizzle, and proceed to revenge kill the common weather abusers with the appropriate move, commonly Excadrill, Garchomp, Venusaur, and Sawsbuck.</p>
<p>Fortunately, Politoed still has a powerful weapon to work with when operating in the field: a rain-boosted STAB move. Though the damage output in comparison to Choice Specs is quite comparable, Politoed is still able to OHKO and 2HKO many non-resistant threats with a wicked Hydro Pump or Surf. Whereas Hydro Pump is the more powerful option to compensate for the lack of Choice Specs, Surf is generally more beneficial against weather abusers, in which a miss by Hydro Pump might cause trouble. As usual, Ice Beam, Focus Blast, and Hidden Power Grass completes this set's coverage, allowing Politoed to check some threats that resist Hydro Pump and Surf. Alternatively, since Hidden Power Grass is a less useful move on this set due to a significantly lowered damage output, it can be replaced with a utility move. Though the inaccurate Hypnosis may sound impractical on a choiced set in an environment following Sleep Clause, it can potentially shut down one of Politoed's checks, such as Ferrothorn, for the rest of the game due to the new sleep mechanics. Surf may also be put as a secondary STAB move in place of Hidden Power Grass for more reliability against a wider range of teams.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Toying with the EVs isn't necessary since Choice Scarf Politoed will require as much power and speed as possible to be able to revenge kill threats. Therefore, simply maximize Special Attack and Speed to get the best out of Politoed. Politoed's nature, however, is up to the user's preference. Again, one of the only reasons to ever use Choice Scarf Politoed is its ability to put a stop to other weather teams with Drizzle. Otherwise, with base 70 Speed, Politoed will be revenge killing little to few boosted threats such as Dragonite. Therefore, a Modest nature is primary to outspeed all unboosted common weather abusers in the rain, including Venusaur, Excadrill, and Sawsbuck. If one decides to use Politoed as a general revenge killer, a Timid nature is the lesser option in order to outspeed more threats.</p>
<p>Though Politoed still operates with a powerful Water-type STAB, the number of Pokemon that can switch into and survive its attacks has unfortunately risen. The Choice Specs set's normal defensive counters, especially Jellicent and Ferrothorn, can now sponge Politoed's moves more easily than before and retaliate against the switch-in. Even Reuniclus, who can be checked with Choice Specs Hydro Pump, easily sets up Calm Mind in front of this Politoed. Though some of Politoed's faster checks can be removed now that it is equipped with Choice Scarf, Politoed cannot continually switch into powerful attacks often due to the lack of defensive investment.</p>
<p>When opting to use Choice Scarf Politoed, it is important to keep in mind that defeating its defensively-oriented counters is now even more of a priority, since they can easily set up in front of an inaccurate choice-locked Hydro Pump or other attack. Breloom makes an appearance again as a wonderful teammate, capable to setting up in front of bulky Water-types and Ferrothorn with Spore and Substitute. Breloom is also able to check many of Politoed's original counters with a powerful STAB Seed Bomb or Focus Punch. Toxicroak can be used in the same vein with its standard Bulk Up set, with the benefit of Dry Skin keeping it in battle longer. Offensively, Starmie, Thundurus, Tornadus, and other rain abusers make sure that the opposing team is battered treacherously enough so that Politoed's checks and counters are unable to withstand anymore assaults. Particularly, a team that originally had problems contending against other weather abusers such as Excadrill would absolutely enjoy having Politoed for a temporary stop to this problem.</p>
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Scald
move 2: Hypnosis / Toxic
move 3: Encore / Perish Song
move 4: Ice Beam / Focus Blast
item: Leftovers
nature: Bold
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[Set Comments]
<p>Besides utilizing offensive sets, Politoed can opt to reminisce a more defensive role, while still providing Rain support with Drizzle. While Politoed is by no means the best bulky Water-type or support Pokemon, its more-or-less sturdy defenses allow it to withstand and stall multiple attacks while vexing the opponent with status and its other support options. Unlike the offensive sets, this Politoed is designed to survive for as long as possible until potential threats, such as other weather inducers, have been eliminated. During and after this process, Politoed can switch into many common attacks, such as Fire Blast and Bullet Punch, and retaliate.</p>
<p>Like on similar bulky Water-type competitors, Scald is quite obligatory due to its 30% to burn the opponent. When burned, Pokemon that potentially rely on physical attacks will struggle imminently against Politoed. The rest of the moveslots depend on the user’s preferences. Toxic can be used to soften other walls and tanks, such as Jellicent and Dusclops. While Hypnosis does have a rather disappointing accuracy to deal with, the possibility of potentially shutting down a threat and abusing the new sleep mechanics is real. In the third slot, whereas Encore causes many slower Pokemon to struggle to do anything, Perish Song is an excellent option on stall teams to stop possible set up threats, such as Calm Mind Jirachi, Calm Mind Reuniclus, and Baton Pass teams.</p>
<p>Finally, the last slot is reserved for another attacking move. Because of Politoed’s bulk, it is capable of surviving boosted assaults by some Dragon-types, making Ice Beam a good option to counter the likes of Dragonite and Salamence. Specifically, Focus Blast gives Politoed a means of fending off Ferrothorn, who otherwise plagues this entire set. Alternatively, Protect can be used in this slot alongside Toxic and Perish Song for a more stall-oriented strategy. Politoed is also granted an extra turn of Leftovers healing and ability to scout with Protect.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Maximum HP and Defense EV investment with a Bold nature is required to shelter Politoed’s just decent Defense, while Politoed is still able to sponge many special attacks with its naturally high Special Defense. On the other hand, Politoed can exploit its higher defense by becoming specially defensive. Politoed, in this case, has to rely more on Scald in order to protect itself from stronger physical assaults.</p>
<p>Politoed is usually a good choice for teams that require a general defensive Pokemon and weather changer to counter other weather teams. While sometimes uncommon, foes with powerful Grass- and Electric-type attacks can check even a healthy Politoed. Like most other defensive Pokemon, Politoed struggles to survive in a Toxic Spikes-infested battlefield, especially when it can’t access an instant recovery move. Additionally, there are several Pokemon that can set up on Politoed and plague the entire team, such as Thundurus, Sigilyph, Reuniclus, Jirachi, and Togekiss. Physical stat boosters can set up as well, though they generally risk a burn from Scald. For a direct and fairly quick way of addressing set up threats, some of Politoed's offensive Rain abusers, such as Starmie, Thundurus, and Tornadus, can put multiple dents in any team with simply devastating attacks. Additionally, Thundurus can use Prankster Thunder Wave to instantly paralyze any threat before the team is doomed. Jirachi compliments Politoed fairly well due to its ability to set up on many defensive threats with its standard Calm Mind sets, or alternatively, using its support sets to provide support in forms of Wish and paralysis. With the use of Perish Song and Encore, Politoed also forces many switches, making entry hazard users like Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Forretress (all three whom have their Fire-weakness halved by Rain) optimal.</p>
<p>To keep Politoed well and healthy, Toxic Spikes must be eliminated to prevent Toxic poison. Again, Starmie is a fantastic teammate in this respect due to its access to Rapid Spin and ability to abuse eternal rain. Finally, since Politoed lacks an instant recovery move, Wish healing from the likes of Blissey, Eviolite Chansey, and Jirachi are appreciated to preserve Politoed's health.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Politoed generally does not have many viable options left, besides the ones listed above. Every Politoed user should be aware that if Politoed chooses to use a move exclusive to the fourth generation, such as Sleep Talk or Icy Wind, it cannot have Drizzle as its ability. Since Drizzle Poliwag is only available in the Dream World, an area limited to the fifth generation, Politoed may not learn any of its fourth generation tutor or TM attacks without being outclassed. Using Damp or Water Absorb as abilities will inevitably brand Politoed bettered by the likes of Vaporeon and other fellow bulky Water-types.</p>
<p>Politoed’s only other notable support option is Haze. Taking its good defenses and typing into account, Haze actually has some value to erase the stat boosts of the foe immediately, unlike Perish Song. Politoed will struggle to find a moveslot for Haze due to the existing combination of Protect and Perish Song.</p>
<p>Offensively, Politoed does have access to Belly Drum, but lacks the Attack and Speed to utilize a set around it. Poliwrath is a better choice for such a set with a slightly more advantageous Attack and dual STAB attacks to use. Endeavor is also a surprise option against defensive threats; with low health, Politoed is able to weaken slower threats, such as Ferrothorn and Reuniclus, into KO range for another teammate before fainting. This is a highly situational option due to moveslot syndrome and low base Speed, but a nasty surprise nonetheless. Politoed may also use an all-out offensive set with a non-choice item, such as Life Orb or Leftovers, but this is generally better left to Politoed's offensive rain teammates.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Being a bulky Water-type Pokémon, Politoed’s worst enemies usually include other Water-, Electric-, and Grass-types in general, as even with a decent Special Attack, Politoed won’t do significant damage to them without a boosting item. In return, these foes can set up or straight-out attack Politoed with few problems. However, set up can usually be stopped with Perish Song or Encore. A counter also risks being crippled by Hypnosis; with the new sleep mechanics of Black and White, a Pokémon can be considered practically useless if it is asleep. All around, Suicune is one of the best Politoed counters, as it can use Calm Mind, Rest, and Sleep Talk to shrug off anything non-Perish Song Politoed does to it. If Politoed isn’t faster, Suicune usually does not mind Encore either. Jellicent and Vaporeon, both having decent Special Defense and Water Absorb, sponges every attack Politoed can throw at them except for Toxic. An Electric- or Grass-type with a strong STAB, such as Jolteon, Rotom-W, Ferrothorn, Shaymin and Celebi, can usually check Politoed in one hit. Like the other bulky Water-types, Politoed is extremely susceptible to Toxic and Toxic Spikes, which bunkers its bulk significantly.</p>
<p>Pokémon with decent Special Defense, like the aforementioned counters, also make decisive counters to Politoed. Both Latias and Latios usually brush off Ice Beam with their high Special Defense and set up Calm Minds easily against non-Perish Song Politoed. Like Latias and Latios, Jirachi and Mew can easily set up on Politoed with their respective boosting moves: Calm Mind and Nasty Plot. Additionally, Blissey and Chansey wall Politoed’s usual attacks eternally, and automatically heals any status done to them with Natural Cure.</p>
<p>Since many rain teams rely on Politoed as their source of power, other forms of weather are technically checks to Politoed as well. It would be foolish to try sending in a weather inducer early in the game, only to be defeated by Politoed or its teammates. Abomasnow, with its Ice- / Grass-typing and good Special Defense, is the only weather inducer that is actually capable of defeating Politoed one-on-one. Notably, if the opposing team happens to own a Swift Swimmer, most commonly Kingdra, Politoed will have to find a way around it without making too many sacrifices. As for other inducers, the best thing to do is to try defeating Politoed as quickly as possible. Due to Team Preview, this may be difficult to execute, but since Politoed lacks recovery and can be crippled with Toxic, it will soon fall with repeated hits.</p>
Female Dream World Poliwag DO exsist, and you can have egg moves such as Encore, which I've seen used pretty well.
Ah, okay. I understand, and I've even researched for evidence to prove it: Female Shiny Swift Swim Poliwag.
Alright, I would like to thank Rising_Dusk for considering me for this analysis, honor taken. Let's hope we can all get busy with this little guy!
Status: Done!
QC Approvals: (3/3) (Iconic) (PK Gaming) (Eo Ut Mortus)
GP Approvals: (2/2) (Gen. Empoleon <3) (Calm PokeMaster <3)
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Politoed
[Overview]
<p>Since its debut, Politoed had been considered a depressingly outclassed Pokemon, with only a few niche moves to spare its welfare to give it any sort of competitive interest. Accommodated Confronted with steep competition from other superior Water-types competitors, especially including Suicune, Starmie, Milotic, and even Golduck, Politoed became fell into one of the most forgettable existences in Pokemon history. Three generations later, things began looking bright for Politoed.</p>
<p>The emergence of the Dream World brought Politoed one of the most game-changing abilities in the game: Drizzle, previously exclusive to the forever-banished Kyogre. With its prized ability, Politoed now provides valuable team support in the form of eternal rain and in addition to some of its classic options, including Perish Song and Encore. As a bulky Water-type Pokemon, Politoed isn't a slouch either with rewarding impressive defenses. Its bulk, combined with a sufficing sufficient Special Attack stat, makes Politoed extremely difficult to defeat despite having average Speed. With Drizzle and its Water typing, it also has the ability to neuter other common weather teams upon by releasing rain, even with the existence of and matches up well against other weather inducers. Politoed can even function offensively with a boosting item to puncture punch holes in almost any team, with one of the most powerful Hydro Pumps in OU. While this zero-to-hero will encounter obstacles in threats such as Ferrothorn and opposing bulky Water-types, Politoed's rain-based teams are extremely effective should be an extremely fundamental part of any team with the correct support.</p>(A weather inducer is not a Pokemon that can "go on any team," it's a Pokemon that DETERMINES the overall team strategy)
<p>Politoed's new liberties outstanding qualities in the fifth generation, however, did brought it several limitations. A complex ban was implemented on using the combination of Drizzle with Swift Swim users, limiting prohibiting Politoed's usage with alongside the most lethal rain sweepers its most valued offensive teammates. Politoed, nevertheless, is still a key factor in the success of Drizzle teams. On the bright side, Politoed is still allowed to be paired with other rain abusers, opening doors to different types of rain-oriented teams. The fact that Drizzle was banned with Swift Swim goes to show that Politoed is indeed an influential force in OU.</p> (Watch the curly apostrophes)
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Specs
nature: Modest / Timid
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[Set Comments]
<p>A Politoed wielding Choice Specs is by no means a gimmick. While Politoed admittedly lacks the usual traits of traditional Choice Specs users, having easily questionable Special Attack and Speed stats, Drizzle makes it an undeniable threat. Considering its real boon is, amongst other things, Drizzle. More specifically, one of the reasons why Politoed is such an effective Choice Specs user is its ability to fire off mighty blows while simultaneously providing support in the form of rain, Politoed is an undeniably impressive Choice Specs user. Factoring in torrential weather rain's boost to Water attacks and STAB, Politoed's Hydro Pump is essentially <em>the</em> golden arrow of OU, surpassing even the mighty Choice Specs Latios's Draco Meteor with a Base Power of 270. Even Surf, the lesser weaker yet more reliable option, is relatively powerful compared to similar attacks. Unlike other Choice Specs users, Politoed should be played like a tank. Water-type gives it few weaknesses, and with good defensive bulk, it can s Water typing allows it to sponge even some super effective attacks, granting the user a fairly robust attacker. Politoed rarely ever has to switch moves, as Hydro Pump or Surf boosted by Choice Specs deals significant numbers to even those who resist it.</p>
<p>Since the primary reason for using this set is to abuse a ridiculously powerful Water-type move, the other moveslots are essentially coverage options. Ice Beam allows Politoed to check opposing Dragon- and Grass-type foes, both of whom resist who resist Politoed's Water-type moves. Focus Blast is actually quite useful, as it promptly eliminates certain potential foes, especially notably Ferrothorn and Empoleon. The last slot is given to Hidden Power Grass. While this particular move is a tad specific, it is Politoed's other best coverage option against Storm Drain Gastrodon, Quagsire, Rotom-W, and other opposing Water-types. Please keep in mind that a neutral Hydro Pump will deal more damage than Politoed's other 2x super effective moves.</p>(If you are going to write in Word Perfect, change the settings to turn off curly apostrophes)
[Additional Comments]
<p>To illustrate the power that Choice Specs Politoed delivers, some calculations assuming a Modest nature, Hydro Pump, and Rain are listed below:</p>
<ul class="damage_calculations">
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP Bold Blissey: 40.5% - 47.9%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 216 SpD Adamant Scizor: 103.2% - 121.5%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Bold Reuniclus: 101.9% - 120.1%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Bold Reuniclus (with a Calm Mind boost): 67.8% - 79.9%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 4 HP Jolly Garchomp: 120.1% - 141.3%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 224 SpD Careful Jirachi: 68.6% - 80.9%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 4 SpD Timid Ninetales (in Sun): 87.8% - 103.1%</li>
<li>Modest Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 252 SpD Careful Tyranitar (in Sandstorm): 59.9% - 71.3%</li>
</ul>
<p>While Politoed is used as a tank, there are many ways to tweak its performance according to the team's preferences. Maximum Special Attack is quite necessary in any case, as Politoed requires all the power it needs to break through teams. With maximum Speed investment and the choice of a Modest or Timid nature, Politoed will not have to worry about being outrun and ruined by potential Pokemon major threats, such as Scizor and standard Specially Defensive Jirachi. Investing in general bulk clearly has its merits as well, since Politoed will not be outspeeding much even after Speed investment. Instead of investing in Speed, all the EVs can be relocated to HP for extra bulk. This is especially beneficial to boost Politoed's tanking capabilities. Alternatively, any number of EVs can be invested into Speed to outrun a certain Speed tier or threat, such as Blissey or Scizor.</p>
<p>While Politoed can be extremely hazardous treacherous to switch into considering its ridiculously powerful Hydro Pump or Surf, there are definitely some hard counters to it. Water Absorb users come to mind as the best Choice Specs Politoed counters, capable of switching effortlessly into any of Politoed's attacks while wasting Hydro Pump's precious PP. In this respect, Gastrodon also absorbs and heals off damage from any of Politoed's moves except the rarely used Hidden Power Grass. Politoed should also be wary of wasting Hydro Pump's PP against other specially defensive opponents, such as Blissey and Celebi. One important thought to keep in mind is that since Politoed will be summoning eternal rain, the very common Ferrothorn will be incredibly difficult to defeat due to its resistance to Hydro Pump and Fire-type weakness being halved in rain. In return, Ferrothorn can do horribly irritating things ranging from Thunder Wave, Leech Seed, or Power Whip. Every team which that is considering using Choice Specs Politoed will have to find a way to keep Ferrothorn and the Water Absorb users in check.</p>
<p>Because Politoed will be using Hydro Pump or Surf most of the time, it might not have time to use its other coverage options against these threats Considering the unimpressive power of Politoed's non-STAB attacks (which lack rain boost), trying to rely on coverage moves and prediction can be a shaky strategy to say the least; therefore, alternative ways of methods for eliminating Politoed's hard checks and hard counters are extremely recommended. Politoed is also lacking in the Speed department, making paralysis support by from the likes of Jirachi, Togekiss, Thundurus, Dragonite, and Lanturn a dramatically helpful possibility. With Jirachi and Togekiss in mind, they can are also capable of whittling away Politoed's counters with fairly hard-hitting Iron Heads and Air Slashes, respectively. If restoring Hydro Pump's precious PP is desired, a Dual screen Cresselia is able to heal and support Politoed fully provides terrific support for Politoed with Lunar Dance and Thunder Wave, softening the enemy attacks, spreading paralysis, and restoring Politoed's health and precious Hydro Pump PP. Finally, taking the above calculations into consideration, with at least just a few layers of Spikes or Stealth Rock, Politoed is able to achieve some important OHKOes and 2HKOs, with it could have never attained before This is especially true for Garchomp, Blissey, and Jirachi being particularly noteworthy examples. In the case of Against Ferrothorn, Breloom and Toxicroak are Politoed's next-to-best teammates, as they set up on Ferrothorn easily with Substitute and take advantage of the rain in their own ways. Particularly, to put the opposition in an awkward position, Breloom can use Spore against Ferrothorn or its switch-ins, and proceed to puncture holes with STAB Focus Punch or Seed Bomb.</p> (If we're going to talk so much about Ferrothorn, why isn't there a single mention of Magnezone in the whole analysis? It even has STAB non-missing thunder and resists both of Politoed's weaknesses! Magnet Rise Thunder Zone also beats Bronzong, which is one of the biggest threats to Latios and Tornadus, who are both fantastic threats under rain)
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Modest / Timid
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
<p>At first glance, Politoed may seem like a quite peculiar user of Choice Scarf. While Choice Scarf does fix up Politoed's average base 70 Speed, Politoed still may seem outclassed in the revenge killing department by similar, faster Choice Scarf users, especially Starmie. Unsurprisingly, the real value of using Choice Scarf Politoed is its prized ability, Drizzle. Though a base 70 Speed doesn't quite help Politoed against common boosted opponents such as Salamence, Drizzle allows Politoed to disrupt the flow of other weather teams, instantly changing the weather to stormy skies. With a Choice Scarf, many Pokemon that fall under the category of a "weather abuser" are instantly eliminated by a fast, appropriate attack Politoed can eliminate many enemy weather abusers with fast super effective attacks or its powerful Water-type attacks. With the notoriety popularity of sun- and sandstorm-based teams in the metagame, all Politoed needs to do is switch in to activate Drizzle, and proceed to revenge kill common weather abusers, such as Excadrill, Garchomp, Venusaur, and Sawsbuck with the appropriate moves.</p>
(There's a joke somewhere it Eyeshield 21 where Monta says "I will regain my notoriety!!!", and Hiruma says, "Who would want to get notoriety... you would want to get rid of notoriety and regain your popularity." Yeah, you made my day man :D)
<p>Fortunately, even without a Choice Specs boost, Politoed still has a powerful weapon to work with when operating in the field: a rain-boosted STAB move. Though the damage output in comparison to Choice Specs is unimpressive, Politoed is still able to OHKO and 2HKO many non-resistant threats with a wicked Hydro Pump or Surf. Whereas Hydro Pump is the more powerful option to compensate for the lack of Choice Specs, Surf is generally more beneficial against weather abusers, where a miss by Hydro Pump might cause trouble. As usual, Ice Beam, Focus Blast, and Hidden Power Grass complete this set's coverage, allowing Politoed to check some threats that resist Hydro Pump and Surf. Alternatively, since Hidden Power Grass is a less useful move on this set due to a significantly lowered damage output, it can be replaced with a utility move. Though the inaccurate Hypnosis may sound impractical on a choiced set in an environment following Sleep Clause, it can potentially shut down one of Politoed's checks, such as Ferrothorn, for the rest of the game due to the new sleep mechanics. Surf may also be utilized as a secondary STAB move in place of Hidden Power Grass for more reliability against a wider range of teams used alongside Hydro Pump, allowing Politoed to choose between power and accuracy based on the situation.</p> (Wait, you're going to mention Hypnosis, but not mention Toxic? Since HP Grass's biggest function is in shutting down enemy Water-types like Gastrodon and Vaporeon, Toxic seems like a much more natural replacement)
[Additional Comments]
<p>Toying with the EVs isn't necessary, since Choice Scarf Politoed will require as much power and Speed as possible to be able to revenge kill threats. Therefore, simply maximize Special Attack and Speed to get the best out of Politoed. Politoed's nature, however, is up to the user's preference. Again, one of the only reasons to ever use Choice Scarf Politoed is its ability to put a stop to other weather teams with Drizzle. Otherwise, with base 70 Speed, Politoed will be revenge killing little to few boosted threats such as Dragonite With its middling 70 base speed, Politoed will be generally unable to outrun speed boosting threats such as Dragon Dance and Quiver Dance users. Therefore, a Modest nature is primarily used to outspeed all unboosted common weather abusers in the rain, including Venusaur, Excadrill, and Sawsbuck, while maximizing Special Attack. If one decides to use Politoed as a general revenge killer, a Timid nature is can be used as the lesser option in order to outspeed more threats.</p> (Really?? is Timid that inferior? Timid outruns +1 Adamant Dragonite! It also outruns the 115 base Speed group, including STARMIE, where Modest fails to do so. Timid also ensures you outrun Scarf Tyranitar (and DDtar), who will ALWAYS be running Jolly max speed to eliminate Starmie and Azelf. In a battle between weathers, where Scarftar can 2HKO you with Stone Edge, I'd say Timid would be extremely valuable!)
<p>Though Politoed still operates with a powerful Water-type STAB, the number of Pokemon that can switch into and survive its attacks has unfortunately risen there are many enemy threats that can easily switch into the Scarf set that would be intimidated by the Choice Specs set's power. The Choice Specs set's normal defensive counters, especially Jellicent and Ferrothorn, can now sponge Politoed's moves more easily than before and retaliate against the switch-in. Even Reuniclus, who can be checked with Choice Specs Hydro Pump, easily sets up Calm Mind in front of this Politoed. Though some of Politoed's faster checks can be removed now that it is equipped with Choice Scarf, Politoed cannot continually switch into powerful attacks often due to the lack of defensive investment.</p>
<p>When opting to use Choice Scarf Politoed, it is important to keep in mind that the task of defeating its defensively-oriented counters is now even more of a priority must be well executed by its teammates, since they Politoed's counters can easily set up in front of an relatively weak inaccurate choice-locked Hydro Pump or other attack. Breloom makes an appearance again as a wonderful teammate, capable of setting up in front of bulky Water-types and Ferrothorn with Spore and Substitute. Breloom is also able to check many of Politoed's original counters with a powerful STAB Seed Bomb or Focus Punch. Toxicroak can be used in the same vein with its standard Bulk Up set, with the benefit of Dry Skin keeping it in battle longer. Offensively, Starmie, Thundurus, Tornadus, and other rain abusers make sure that the opposing team is battered treacherously heavily enough so that Politoed's checks and counters are unable to withstand anymore assaults to ensure that Politoed's checks and counters will have a hard time switching into even the Choice Scarf set's weaker attacks. Particularly, a Assuming these defensively-oriented threats can be dealt with, a team that originally had problems contending against other weather abusers such as Excadrill would absolutely enjoy having Choice Scarf Politoed for a quick stop to this problem.</p>
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Scald
move 2: Hypnosis / Toxic
move 3: Encore / Perish Song
move 4: Ice Beam / Focus Blast
item: Leftovers
nature: Bold
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[Set Comments]
<p>Besides utilizing offensive sets, Politoed can opt to reminisce for a more defensive role, while still providing rain support with Drizzle. While Politoed is by no means the best bulky Water-type or support Pokemon, its more-or-less relatively sturdy defenses allow it to withstand and stall multiple attacks while vexing the opponent with status and its other support options. Unlike the offensive sets, this Politoed is designed to survive for as long as possible until potential threats, such as other weather inducers, have been eliminated. During and after this process, Politoed can switch into many common attacks, such as Fire Blast and Bullet Punch, and retaliate.</p>
<p>Like on similar bulky Water-type competitors rivals, Scald is quite obligatory due to its 30% chance to burn the opponent. When burned, Pokemon that potentially rely on physical attacks will struggle imminently against Politoed. The rest of the moveslots depend on the user's preferences. Toxic can be used to soften other walls and tanks, such as Jellicent and Dusclops. While Hypnosis does have a rather disappointing accuracy to deal with, the possibility of potentially shutting down a threat and abusing the new sleep mechanics is real definitely worth considering. In the third slot, whereas The third moveslot is a toss-up between two extremely useful utility moves. Encore causes many slower Pokemon to struggle to do anything, while Perish Song is an excellent option on stall teams to stop possible threats that set up, such as Calm Mind Jirachi, Calm Mind Reuniclus, and Baton Pass teams.</p>
<p>Finally, the last slot is reserved for another attacking move. Because of Politoed's bulk, it is capable of surviving boosted assaults by some Dragon-types, making Ice Beam a good option to counter the likes of Dragonite and Salamence. Specifically Focus Blast gives Politoed a means of fending off Ferrothorn, who otherwise plagues this entire set. Alternatively, Protect can be used in this slot alongside Toxic and Perish Song for a more stall-oriented strategy. Politoed is also granted an extra turn of Leftovers healing and the ability to scout with Protect.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Investing maximum EVs in HP and Defense with a Bold nature is required to shelter Politoed's just decent weaker Defense, while Politoed is still able to sponge many special attacks with its naturally high Special Defense. On the other hand, Politoed can exploit its higher Special Defense and become something of a special wall by being specially defensive. Without investment in Defense, Politoed, in this case, has to rely more on Scald in order to protect itself from stronger physical assaults.</p>
<p>Politoed is usually a good choice for teams that require a general defensive Pokemon and weather inducer to counter other weather teams. While sometimes uncommon, foes with powerful Grass- and Electric-type attacks can check even a healthy Politoed. Like most other defensive Pokemon, Politoed struggles to survive in a Toxic Spikes-infested battlefield, especially when it can't access an instant recovery move. Additionally, there are several Pokemon that can set up on Politoed and plague the entire team, such as Thundurus, Sigilyph, Reuniclus, Jirachi, and Togekiss. Physical stat boosters can set up as well, though they generally risk a burn from Scald. For a direct and fairly quick way of effective method for addressing setup threats, some of Politoed's offensive Rain abusers, such as Starmie, Thundurus, and Tornadus, can put multiple dents in batter any team with simply devastating attacks. Additionally, Thundurus can use priority Thunder Wave to instantly paralyze any threat before the team is doomed fast non-Ground-Type enemy threats, notably Dragon and Quiver Dance users. Jirachi compliments Politoed fairly well due to its ability to set up on many defensive threats with its standard Calm Mind sets, or alternatively, use its support sets to provide support in forms of with Wish and paralysis. With the use of Perish Song and Encore, Politoed also forces many switches, making entry hazard users such as Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Forretress (all three of whom have their Fire-type weakness halved by rain appreciate the damper on Fire-type attacks) optimal teammates.</p>
<p>To keep Politoed well and healthy, Toxic Spikes must be eliminated to prevent Politoed from getting badly poisoned. Again, Starmie is a fantastic teammate in this respect due to its access to Rapid Spin and ability to abuse while abusing eternal rain. Finally, since Politoed lacks an instant recovery move, Wish healing from the likes of Blissey, Eviolite Chansey, and Jirachi are appreciated to preserve Politoed's health.</p> (What, no mention of Toxicroak's ability to absorb Toxic Spikes? O.o)
[Other Options]
<p>Politoed generally does not have many viable options left, besides outside the ones listed above. Every Politoed user should be aware that if Politoed chooses to use a move directly exclusive to the fourth generation, it cannot have Drizzle as its ability. Using Damp or Water Absorb as abilities will inevitably brand Politoed bettered by the as inferior to the likes of Vaporeon and other fellow bulky Water-types. However, Politoed may obtain certain egg moves, such as Encore, with a female Dream World Poliwag as a parent.</p>
<p>Politoed's only other notable support option is Haze. Taking its good defenses and typing into account, Haze actually has some value to erase the stat boosts of the foe immediately, unlike Perish Song. However, Politoed will struggle to find a moveslot for Haze due to the existing combination of Protect and Perish Song is generally more useful. Another noteworthy defensive set that Politoed can use is the combination of Sleep Talk (obtained via Dream World Poliwag) and Rest, which grants Politoed a method of recovery.</p>
<p>Offensively, Politoed does have access to Belly Drum, but lacks the Attack and Speed to utilize a set based around it. Poliwrath is a better choice for such a set with a slightly more advantageous better Attack stat and dual STAB Fighting-type attacks attacks to use. Endeavor is also a surprise option against defensive threats; with low health, Politoed is able to weaken slower threats, such as Ferrothorn and Reuniclus, into KO range for another teammate before fainting. This is a highly situational option due to Politoad's moveslot syndrome and low base Speed, but a nasty surprise nonetheless. Politoed may also use an all-out offensive set with a non-choice item, such as Life Orb or Leftovers, but this is generally better left to Politoed's offensive rain teammates. If using Psychic is desired to eliminate Toxicroak, who otherwise walls Politoed, it should take the place of Hidden Power Grass on any set.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Being a bulky Water-type Pokemon, Politoed's worst enemies usually include other Water-, Electric-, and Grass-types in general, as even with a decent Special Attack, Politoed won't do significant damage to them without a boosting item. In return, these foes can set up or straight-out attack Politoed with few problems. However, setup can usually be stopped with Perish Song or Encore. A counter also risks being crippled by Hypnosis; with the new sleep mechanics of Black and White, a Pokemon can be considered practically useless if it is asleep. All around, Suicune is one of the best Politoed counters, as it can use Calm Mind, Rest, and Sleep Talk to shrug off anything non-Perish Song Politoed does to it. If Politoed isn't faster, Suicune usually does not mind Encore either. Jellicent and Vaporeon, both having decent Special Defense and Water Absorb, sponge every attack Politoed can throw at them except for Toxic. An Electric- or Grass-type with a strong STAB attack, such as Jolteon, Rotom-W, Ferrothorn, Shaymin and Celebi, can usually check Politoed in a pinch. Like the other bulky Water-types, Politoed is extremely susceptible to Toxic and Toxic Spikes, which bunkers hinders its bulk significantly.</p>
(bunker: 1 a large container or compartment for storing fuel, 2 a reinforced underground shelter, 3 a hollow filled with sand used on a golf course)
<p>Pokemon with decent Special Defense, such as the aforementioned counters, also make decisive counters to Politoed. Both Latias and Latios usually brush off Ice Beam with their high Special Defense and set up Calm Mind easily against non-Perish Song Politoed. Like Latias and Latios, Jirachi and Mew can easily set up on Politoed with their respective boosting moves: Calm Mind and Nasty Plot. Additionally, Blissey and Chansey wall Politoed's usual attacks eternally completely, and automatically heal any status inflicted upon them with Natural Cure.</p>
<p>Since many rain teams rely on Politoed as their source of power, other forms of weather are technically checks to Politoed as well. It would be foolish to try sending in a weather inducer early in the game, only to be defeated by Politoed or its teammates. Abomasnow, with its Ice / Grass typing and good Special Defense, is the only weather inducer that is actually capable of defeating Politoed one-on-one. Notably, if the opposing team happens to own a Swift Swim user, most commonly Kingdra, Politoed will have to find a way around it without making too many sacrifices. As for When using other inducers, the best thing to do is to try defeating Politoed as quickly as possible. Due to Team Preview, this may be difficult to execute, but since Politoed lacks recovery and can be crippled with Toxic, it will soon fall with repeated hits.</p>
It was hard to swallow and process, but...I've done the changes.Additions in bold, removals in red.
[Overview]
<p>Since its debut, Politoed had been considered a depressingly outclassed Pokemon, with only a few niche moves to give it any sort of competitive interest. Confronted with steep competition from other superior Water-types, including Suicune, Starmie, Milotic, and even Golduck, Politoed became one of the most forgettable competitive Pokemon existences in Pokemon history. Three generations later, everything changed. things began looking bright for Politoed.</p>
<p>The emergence of the Dream World brought Politoed one of the most game-changing abilities that exist: in the game: Drizzle., previously Previously exclusive to the forever-banished Kyogre,. With its prized this ability, allows Politoed now to provides valuable team support in the form of eternal rain. in addition to some of its classic options, including Perish Song and Encore. As a bulky Water-type Pokemon, Politoed isn't a no slouch either with impressive defenses;. Its its bulk, combined with a sufficient decent Special Attack stat and double-STAB Water-type attacks thanks to rain, makes Politoed extremely difficult to defeat. despite having average Speed. With Drizzle and its Water typing, it also has the ability to neuter other common weather teams by releasing rain, and matches up well against other weather inducers. Politoed can even function offensively with a boosting item to punch holes in almost any team, with one of the most powerful Hydro Pumps in OU. While this zero-to-hero will encounter obstacles in threats such as Ferrothorn and opposing bulky Water-types, Politoed's rain-based Politoed-powered rain teams are extremely effective.</p>
<p>Politoed’s new outstanding qualities in the fifth generation, however, brought it several limitations. Despite that Swift Swim teammates and Politoed is probably the first thing you want to try, it's important to note that a A complex ban was implemented that disallows that combination of abilities on any team. on using the combination of Drizzle with Swift Swim users, limiting Politoed’s usage alongside the most lethal rain sweepers. Politoed, nevertheless, is still a key factor in the success of many rain abusers, such as Pokemon weak to Fire-type attacks, Pokemon that can abuse Water-type attacks, and Pokemon with an assortment of other rain-driven abilities like Dry Skin or Rain Dish. Politoed is a huge influence on BW OU, and has aided tremendously in shaping the metagame. Drizzle teams. On the bright side, Politoed is still allowed to be paired with other rain abusers, opening doors to different types of rain-oriented teams. The fact that Drizzle was banned with Swift Swim goes to show that Politoed is indeed an influential force in OU.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Specs
nature: Modest / Timid
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[Set Comments]
<p>A Politoed wielding Choice Specs is by no means a gimmick. While Politoed admittedly lacks the usual traits of traditional Choice Specs users—most notably high Special Attack and Speed stats—, having questionable Special Attack and Speed stats, Drizzle makes it a potent an undeniable threat. Considering its ability to fire off mighty blows while simultaneously providing support in the form of rain, Politoed is an undeniably impressive Choice Specs user. Factoring in rain's boost to Water-type attacks in addition to STAB, Politoed’s Politoed's double-STAB Hydro Pump is <em>the</em> golden arrow of OU, powering through even many Pokemon that resist Water-type attacks. surpassing even the mighty Choice Specs Latios’s Draco Meteor with a Base Power of 270. Even Surf, the weaker yet more reliable option, is relatively powerful compared to similar attacks. Unlike other Choice Specs users, Politoed should be played like a tank. Water-type Water typing gives it few weaknesses, and with good defensive bulk, it can sponge even some super effective attacks, granting the user a fairly robust attacker. Politoed rarely ever has to switch moves, as Hydro Pump or Surf boosted by Choice Specs deals significant numbers to even those who resist it.</p>
<p>Since the primary reason for using this set is to abuse a ridiculously powerful Water-type move, the other moveslots are essentially coverage options. The Water-type attack chosen is Politoed's main weapon; all other attacks are just coverage for use based on circumstance. Ice Beam allows Politoed to check opposing Dragon- and Grass-type foes, who resist Politoed’s Politoed's Water-type moves. Focus Blast is actually quite useful, as it promptly eliminates certain potential foes, notably for smashing Ferrothorn and Empoleon. The last slot is given to Hidden Power Grass to cover Water Absorb Jellicent, Rotom-W, Storm Drain Gastrodon, and the rare Water Absorb Quagsire. While this particular move is a tad specific, it is Politoed’s other best coverage option against Storm Drain Gastrodon, Quagsire, Rotom-W, and other opposing Water-types. Please keep Keep in mind when using Politoed that a neutral Hydro Pump will deal more damage than Politoed’s other 2x super effective coverage moves.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>To illustrate the power that Choice Specs Politoed packs delivers, some calculations assuming a Modest nature, Hydro Pump, and Rain are listed below:</p>
((JUST REPLACE THIS WHOLE SECTION BELOW))
<ul class="damage_calculations">
<li>Hydro Pump (rain) vs. 252/4 Blissey: 40.5% - 47.9%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (rain) vs. 252/216 Scizor: 103.2% - 121.5%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (rain) vs. 252/252 Reuniclus: 101.9% - 120.1%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (rain) vs. 252/252 +1 Reuniclus: 67.8% - 79.9%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (rain) vs. 4/0 Garchomp: 120.1% - 141.3%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (rain) vs. 252/224+ Jirachi: 68.6% - 80.9%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (sun) vs. 0/4 Ninetales: 87.8% - 103.1%</li>
<li>Hydro Pump (sandstorm) vs. 252/252+ Tyranitar: 59.9% - 71.3%</li>
</ul>
<p>While Politoed is used as a tank, there are many ways to tweak its performance according to the team’s preferences. Maximum Special Attack EV investment is quite necessary in any case, as Politoed needs the power. requires all the power it needs to break through teams. With maximum Maximum Speed investment and the choice of a Modest or Timid nature, allows Politoed will not have to worry about being to outrun and ruined by major threats, such as Scizor and standard Specially Defensive specially defensive Jirachi. Investing in general bulk can be useful, however, and clearly has its merits as well, since Politoed will not be outspeeding much even after Speed investment. Instead of investing in Speed, all of the EVs can be relocated to HP for extra bulk. This is especially beneficial to boost Politoed’s tanking capabilities. Alternatively, EVs can be invested into Speed to outrun a certain Speed tier or threat, such as Blissey or Scizor.</p>
<p>While Politoed can be extremely hazardous to switch into considering its ridiculously powerful Hydro Pump or Surf, there are definitely some hard counters to it. Water Absorb users are excellent checks to come to mind as the best Choice Specs Choice-locked Politoed. counters, capable of switching effortlessly into any of Politoed’s attacks while wasting Hydro Pump’s precious PP. In this respect, Gastrodon and Jellicent also absorbs and heals off damage from any of Politoed’s moves except the rarely used will fare well against all but Hidden Power Grass. Politoed should also be wary of wasting Hydro Pump’s Pump's PP against other specially defensive opponents very specially bulky foes, such as Blissey and Celebi. One important thought to keep in mind is that since Politoed will be summoning eternal rain, the very common Ferrothorn will be incredibly difficult to defeat due to its resistance to Hydro Pump and Fire-type weakness being halved in rain. In return, Ferrothorn can do horribly irritating things ranging from Thunder Wave, Leech Seed, or Power Whip. Every team which is considering using Choice Specs Politoed will have to find a way to keep Ferrothorn and the Water Absorb users in check.</p>
((MERGE THESE PARAGRAPHS))
<p>Because Politoed will be using Hydro Pump or Surf most of the time, it might not have time to use its other coverage options against these threats; therefore, Having alternative ways of eliminating methods to handle Politoed’s Politoed's hard checks and counters are is extremely recommended important. Magnezone supports Politoed spectacularly by taking out Ferrothorn, and simultaneously appreciates rain support to reduce Fire-type damage. Politoed is also lacking in the Speed department, making paralysis Paralysis support by from the likes of Jirachi, Togekiss, Thundurus, Dragonite, and Lanturn Rotom-W is also appreciated to compensate for Politoed's low Speed. a dramatically helpful possibility. All of these Pokemon also greatly appreciate rain support; Jirachi takes pitiful damage from Fire-type attacks in rain, Thundurus can sweep with STAB Thunder in rain, Dragonite can abuse Thunder and Hurricane, and Rotom-W can sweep with its double-STAB Hydro Pump and STAB Thunder. With Jirachi and Togekiss in mind, they can also whittle Politoed’s counters with fairly hard-hitting Iron Head and Air Slash, respectively. If restoring Hydro Pump's precious PP is desired, a dual screen Cresselia is able to heal and support Politoed fully with Lunar Dance and Thunder Wave. Finally, taking the above calculations into consideration, with at least a few layers of Spikes or Stealth Rock, With entry hazard support, Politoed is able to achieve OHKOes and 2HKOs it could have never attained before. Ferrothorn, with its 4x Fire-type weakness, loves playing in the rain and can set up Spikes or Stealth Rock depending on what the team needs. It also matches up well against many Pokemon that otherwise bother Politoed, like Latios. This is especially true for Garchomp, Blissey, and Jirachi. In the case of Ferrothorn, Breloom and Toxicroak are Politoed's next-to-best teammates, as they set up on Ferrothorn easily with Substitute and take advantage of the rain in their own ways. Particularly, to put the opposition in an awkward position, Breloom can use Spore against Ferrothorn or its switch-ins, and proceed to puncture holes with STAB Focus Punch or Seed Bomb. Magnezone </p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Modest / Timid
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
<p>At first glance, Politoed may seem like a peculiar user of Choice Scarf. While Choice Scarf does fix up Politoed's average base 70 Speed, Politoed still may seem outclassed in the revenge killing department by similar, faster Choice Scarf users, especially Starmie. Unsurprisingly, the real value of using Choice Scarf Politoed is its prized ability, Drizzle. Though a base 70 Speed doesn't quite help Politoed against common boosted opponents such as Salamence, Drizzle allows Politoed to disrupt the flow of other weather teams, instantly changing the weather to stormy skies. With a Choice Scarf, Politoed can eliminate many enemy weather abusers with fast super effective attacks or its powerful STAB Water-type attacks. With the popularity of sun- and sandstorm-based teams in the metagame, all Politoed needs to do is switch in to activate Drizzle, and proceed to revenge kill common weather abusers, such as Excadrill, Garchomp, Venusaur, and Sawsbuck with the appropriate moves.</p>
<p>Fortunately, even without a Choice Specs boost, Politoed still has a powerful weapon to work with when operating in the field: a rain-boosted STAB move. Though the damage output in comparison to Choice Specs is unimpressive, Politoed is still able to OHKO and 2HKO many non-resistant threats with a wicked Hydro Pump or Surf. While weak stat-wise, the extra damage from rain makes Hydro Pump and Surf as powerful as is needed for revenge killing. Whereas Hydro Pump is the more powerful option to compensate for the lack of Choice Specs, Surf is generally more beneficial against weather abusers where reliability matters most., where a miss by Hydro Pump might cause trouble. As usual, Ice Beam, Focus Blast, and Hidden Power Grass complete this set's coverage, allowing Politoed to check some threats that resist Hydro Pump and Surf. Alternatively, since Hidden Power Grass is a less useful move on this set due to a significantly lowered damage output, it can be replaced with a utility move. Though the inaccurate Hypnosis may sound impractical on a choiced set in an environment following Sleep Clause, it can potentially shut down one of Politoed's checks, such as Ferrothorn, for the rest of the game due to the new sleep mechanics. Surf may also be used alongside Hydro Pump over Hidden Power Grass, allowing Politoed to choose between power and accuracy based on the situation.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Toying with the EVs isn't necessary, since Choice Scarf Politoed will require as much power and Speed as possible to be able to revenge kill threats. Therefore, simply mMaximize Politoed's Special Attack and Speed with the available EVs as nothing else matters for this particular Politoed. to get the best out of Politoed. Politoed's nature, however, is up to the user's preference. Again, one of the only reasons to ever use Choice Scarf Politoed is its ability to put a stop to other weather teams with Drizzle. With its middling 70 base speed, Politoed will be generally unable to outrun speed boosting threats such as Dragon Dance and Quiver Dance users. Therefore, a A Modest nature is primarily used to help Politoed's Special Attack while still allowing it to outspeed all common unboosted common weather abusers in the rain, including Venusaur, Excadrill, and Sawsbuck, while maximizing Special Attack. If one decides to use Politoed as a general revenge killer, though, a Timid nature can be used as the lesser option in order to outspeed a wider range of threats. A Timid nature ensures that Politoed outruns +1 Adamant Dragonite, Choice Scarf Tyranitar, and positive-natured base 115 Speed Pokemon such as Starmie and Raikou.</p>
<p>Though Politoed still operates with a powerful Water-type STAB, there are many enemy threats that can easily switch into the Scarf set that would be intimidated by the Choice Specs set's power. The Choice Specs set's normal defensive counters, especially Jellicent and Ferrothorn, can now sponge Politoed's moves more easily thanks to great special bulk and advantageous typing. and retaliate against the switch-in. Even Reuniclus, who can be checked with Choice Specs Hydro Pump, easily sets up Calm Mind in front of this Politoed. This Politoed also has issues against bulky Calm Mind boosters such as Reuniclus. Though some of Politoed's faster checks can be removed, Politoed cannot continually switch into powerful attacks often due to the lack of defensive investment.</p>
((MERGE THESE PARAGRAPHS))
<p>When opting to use Choice Scarf Politoed, it is important to keep in mind that the task of defeating its defensively-oriented counters must be well executed by its teammates, since Politoed's counters can easily set up in front of a relatively weak choice-locked Hydro Pump or other attack. Breloom makes an appearance again as a wonderful teammate, capable of setting up in front of bulky Water-types and Ferrothorn with Spore and Substitute. Breloom is also able to check many of Politoed's original counters with a powerful STAB Seed Bomb or Focus Punch. Toxicroak can be used in the same vein with its standard a Bulk Up set, with the benefit of Dry Skin keeping it in battle longer. Offensively, Starmie, Thundurus, Tornadus, and other extremely powerful rain abusers are good options for a team using Choice Scarf Politoed because they can switch in and dole out massive damage against Politoed's traditional checks. make sure that the opposing team is battered heavily enough to ensure that Politoed's checks and counters will have a difficult time switching into even the Choice Scarf set's weaker attacks. Assuming these defensively-oriented threats can be dealt with, a team that originally had problems contending against weather abusers such as Excadrill would enjoy having Choice Scarf Politoed for a quick stop to this problem.</p>
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Scald
move 2: Hypnosis / Toxic
move 3: Encore / Perish Song
move 4: Ice Beam / Focus Blast
item: Leftovers
nature: Bold
ability: Drizzle
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[Set Comments]
<p>Besides utilizing offensive sets, Politoed can opt for a more defensive role, while still providing rain support with Drizzle. While Politoed is by no means the best bulky Water-type or support Pokemon, face it, you'll consider using Politoed for its ability, Drizzle. its relatively sturdy defenses allow it to withstand and stall multiple attacks while vexing the opponent with status and its other support options. Unlike the offensive sets, this Politoed is designed to survive for as long as possible until threats—most notably other weather starters—are potential threats, such as other weather inducers, have been eliminated. During and after this process, Politoed can switch into many common attacks, such as Fire Blast and Bullet Punch, and retaliate.</p>
<p>Like on similar bulky Water-type rivals Pokemon, Scald is quite obligatory due to the primary STAB attack for its 30% chance to burn the opponent. When burned, Pokemon take crippling damage per turn and physical sweepers lacking Guts are neutered. that potentially rely on physical attacks will struggle imminently against Politoed. The rest of the moveslots depend on the user’s preferences. Toxic can be used to soften other walls and tanks, such as Jellicent and Dusclops. While Hypnosis does have a rather disappointing accuracy to deal with, the possibility of potentially shutting down a threat and abusing the new sleep mechanics is definitely makes it worth considering. The third moveslot is a toss-up between two extremely useful utility moves. Perish Song is an excellent option on stall teams to stop possible threats that set up, such as Calm Mind Jirachi, Calm Mind Reuniclus, and Baton Pass teams. Meanwhile, Encore can be used to force out a threat that attempts to set up on Politoed. In the last moveslot, either Ice Beam or Focus Blast should be used. These moves are coverage for specific threats, most notably Dragon-types and Gliscor in the case of Ice Beam and Tyranitar and Ferrothorn for Focus Blast.</p>
<p>Finally, the last slot is reserved for another attacking move. Because of Politoed’s bulk, it is capable of surviving boosted assaults by some Dragon-types, making Ice Beam a good option to counter the likes of Dragonite and Salamence. Focus Blast gives Politoed a means of fending off Ferrothorn, who otherwise plagues this entire set. Alternatively, Protect can be used in this slot alongside Toxic and Perish Song for a more stall-oriented strategy. Politoed is also granted an extra turn of Leftovers healing and the ability to scout with Protect.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Investing maximum EVs in HP and Defense with a Bold nature is required to shelter Politoed’s weaker Defense, while Politoed is still able to sponge many special attacks with its naturally high Special Defense. On the other hand, Politoed can exploit its higher Special Defense and become something of a special wall by being specially defensive. Without defensive investment, Politoed, has to rely more on Scald in order to protect itself from stronger physical assaults.</p>
<p>There is little to be gained from investing in anything other than Politoed's Defense and HP stats. A specially bulky variant of this set can be used with max Special Defense instead of Defense if the needs of your team call for it.</p>
<p>Politoed is usually a good choice for teams that require a general defensive Pokemon and weather inducer to counter other weather teams. While sometimes uncommon, foes with powerful Grass- and Electric-type attacks can check even a healthy Politoed. Like most other defensive Pokemon, Politoed struggles to survive in a Toxic Spikes-infested battlefield, especially when it can’t access an instant recovery move. Additionally, there are several Pokemon that can set up on Politoed and plague the entire team, such as Thundurus, Sigilyph, Reuniclus, Jirachi, and Togekiss. Physical stat boosters can set up as well, though they generally risk a burn from Scald. ((ALL OF THAT GOES IN CHECKS AND COUNTERS, NOT HERE)) For a direct and effective method for addressing setup threats, offensive Powerful, offensive Rain rain attackers abusers, such as Starmie, Thundurus, and Tornadus, can batter any team with simply their devastating attacks. Additionally, Thundurus can use priority Thunder Wave to instantly paralyze fast non-Ground-type enemy threats, notably Dragon-types and Quiver Dance users. Jirachi compliments Politoed fairly well due to its ability to set up on many defensive threats with its standard Calm Mind sets, or alternatively, use its support sets to provide support with Wish and paralysis. With the use of Perish Song and Encore, Politoed also forces many switches, making entry hazard users such as Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Forretress (all three of whom appreciate the damper on Fire-type attacks) optimal teammates.</p>
((MERGE THESE PARAGRAPHS))
<p>To keep Politoed well and healthy, Toxic Spikes must be eliminated to prevent Politoed from getting badly poisoned. Like most defensive Pokemon, Politoed hates dealing with Toxic Spikes. Using Dry Skin Toxicroak takes care of the Toxic Spikes problem while simultaneously has many benefits in this area; in addition to absorbing Toxic Spikes, Toxicroak also keeps keeping Ferrothorn and Politoed's other counters other problem Pokemon in check. Again, Starmie, while an amazing offensive threat in its own right, is also a fantastic teammate due to its access able to use Rapid Spin and clear the field of all hazards. while abusing eternal rain. Finally, since Politoed lacks an instant recovery move, Wish healing from the likes of Blissey, Eviolite Chansey, and Jirachi are appreciated to preserve Politoed's health.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Politoed generally does not have many viable options left outside the ones listed above. Every Politoed user should be aware that if Politoed chooses to use a move directly exclusive to the fourth generation, it cannot have Drizzle as its ability. Using Damp or Water Absorb as abilities will inevitably brand Politoed as inferior to the likes of Vaporeon and other fellow bulky Water-types. However, Politoed may obtain certain egg moves, such as Encore, with a female Dream World Poliwag as a parent.</p>
<p>Don't use any of Politoed's other abilities, as if you do, you may as well use a better Water-type like Jellicent or Vaporeon. Politoed’s only other notable support option is Haze. Politoed can also use the RestTalk strategy to keep itself healthy, and this can be particularly annoying combined with Scald's burn chance. Politoed can also forgo Sleep Talk on such a set and pack a Chesto Berry for a one-time no-penalty full heal. Taking its good defenses and typing into account, Haze actually has some value to erase the stat boosts of the foe immediately, unlike Perish Song. However, the combination of Protect and Perish Song is generally for useful. Another noteworthy defensive set that Politoed can use is the combination of Sleep Talk (obtained via Dream World Poliwag) and Rest, which grants Politoed a method of recovery.</p>
<p>Offensively, Politoed does have access to Belly Drum, but lacks the Attack and Speed to utilize a set based around it. Also, quite frankly, you don't want to sacrifice 50% of your weather starter's HP for a sweep that will almost assuredly fail. Politoed can also use Endeavor for a surprise, but in most cases one of its coverage options is the better choice. Poliwrath is a better choice for such a set with a better Attack stat and STAB Fighting-type attacks to use. Endeavor is also a surprise option against defensive threats; with low health, Politoed is able to weaken slower threats, such as Ferrothorn and Reuniclus, into KO range for another teammate before fainting. This is a highly situational option due to Politoed's moveslot syndrome and low base Speed, but a nasty surprise nonetheless. Politoed may also use can run an all-out offensive set with a non-choice item, such as Life Orb or Leftovers, but this is generally better left to Politoed's offensive rain teammates. Lastly, Psychic can be used on any set for screwing with Toxicroak, which otherwise walls Politoed entirely. If using Psychic is desired to eliminate Toxicroak, who otherwise walls Politoed, it should take the place of Hidden Power Grass on any set.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Being a bulky Water-type Pokemon, Politoed’sworst enemies usually include other Water-, Electric-, and Grass-types in general, as even with a decent Special Attack, Politoed won’t do significant damage to them without a boosting item. In return, these foes can set up or straight-out attack Politoed with few problems. However, setup can usually be stopped with Perish Song or Encore. A counter also risks being crippled by Hypnosis; with the new sleep mechanics of Black and White, a Pokemon can be considered practically useless if it is asleep. Politoed's best switch-ins are those with Water Absorb, a resistance to Water-type attacks, or amazing special bulk. These switch-ins should be mindful of burns from Scald and sleep from Hypnosis, however. All around, Suicune is one of the best Politoed counters checks, as it can use Calm Mind, Rest, and Sleep Talk to shrug off anything non-Perish Song Politoed does to it. If Politoed isn’t isn't faster, Suicune usually does not mind Encore either. Jellicent and Vaporeon, both having decent solid Special Defense special bulk and Water Absorb, can sponge everything Politoed throws at them bar Toxic. attack Politoed can throw at them except for Toxic. An Electric- or Grass-type Pokemon with a strong STAB attack, such as Jolteon, Rotom-W, Ferrothorn, Shaymin, and Celebi, can usually check Politoed in a pinch. Like the other bulky Water-types, Politoed is extremely susceptible to Toxic and Toxic Spikes, which hinders its bulk longevity significantly. Both Latias and Latios can brush off Ice Beam with their special bulk, and Latias with enough defensive investment can take boosted Hydro Pumps as well. Latias can Calm Mind against Politoed, while Latios outright maims it with Draco Meteor if it stays in. Both should be mindful of Ferrothorn switch-ins, though, and prepare accordingly. Magnezone is a great weapon against a Ferrothorn and Politoed core, with STAB Electric-type attacks for Politoed and Magnet Pull for Ferrothorn.</p>
<p>Pokemon with decent Special Defense also make decisive counters to Politoed. Both Latias and Latios usually brush off Ice Beam with their high Special Defense and set up Calm Mind easily against non-Perish Song Politoed. Like Latias and Latios, Jirachi and Mew can easily set up on Politoed with their respective boosting moves: Calm Mind and Nasty Plot. Additionally, Blissey and Chansey wall Politoed’s usual attacks completely, and automatically heal any status inflicted upon them with Natural Cure.</p>
<p>Since many rain teams rely on Politoed as their source of power, other forms of weather are technically checks to Politoed as well. It would be foolish to try sending in a weather inducer early in the game, only to be defeated by Politoed or its teammates. Abomasnow, with its Ice / Grass typing and good Special Defense, is the only weather inducer that is actually capable of defeating Politoed one-on-one. Notably, if the opposing team happens to own a Swift Swim user, most commonly Kingdra, user—most commonly Kingdra—Politoed will have to find a way around it without making too many sacrifices. When using other inducers, the best thing to do is to try defeating Politoed as quickly as possible. Due to Team Preview, this may be difficult to execute, but since Politoed lacks recovery and can be crippled with Toxic, it will soon fall with repeated hitsgo down to constant pressure.</p>
Mac Daddy Dusk has results, yo. This really had massive issues with "trying to sound really smart and not sounding smart at all". Big words don't necessarily do the analysis justice when the prose makes no sense as a result. I've gone through and removed a lot of text as well because it was just too long before and at times you ranted about silly things. Please follow every change I've made to the letter, and then I will consider this (Done).
Cheers.
GP Check 4/4
