
DTC wanted somebody to take over the write-up, so I'm filling in here
ready for second check
Overview
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Porygon returns to Little Cup as a catch-all answer to common threats such as Misdreavus, Murkrow, and Carvanha. It can function as a bulky offensive Pokemon, a physical wall, or an Agility sweeper. This is due to its astounding physical and special bulk and single weakness. It possesses great coverage, high Special Attack, and Download, letting it stand out as a bulky offensive threat. Download is also legal with Tri Attack now, so Porygon is no longer forced to use Trace on offensive sets. Porygon also packs Recover, giving it reliable recovery so it can consistently wall threats with an Eviolite, an advantage it poses over Lickitung and Munchlax. However, Porygon has no resistances except a Ghost immunity, forcing it to Recover constantly to remain healthy. This can give a free switch-in to Fighting-types and Knock Off users such as Pawniard or Mienfoo. Porygon also has mediocre Speed, which can make it difficult for it to Recover at low health. This makes it more difficult for Porygon to handle Fighting-types and Steel-types, so it must hit them on the switch or rely solely on team support.
Bulky Attacker
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name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Tri Attack
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Psychic / Hidden Power Fighting
move 4: Recover
ability: Download
item: Eviolite
evs: 236 HP / 36 Def / 236 SpA
nature: Modest
Moves
========
Tri Attack is a reliable STAB that hits hard with a Download boost. Shadow Ball hits some Pokemon that resist or are immune to Tri Attack, namely Misdreavus and Honedge. Psychic and Hidden Power Fighting allow Porygon to hit some of its main switch-ins; Psychic hits Fighting-types, while Hidden Power Fighting usually lands an OHKO on Pawniard before a Download boost, even if it has an Evolite. Hidden Power Fighting also hits other Steel-types harder than Porygon's other moves. Recover is used to keep Porygon healthy.
Set Details
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236 EVs go into Special Attack with a Modest nature to maximize power, while the rest goes into HP and Defense to maintain Porygon's bulk. Eviolite is chosen to give Porygon more bulk; it also goes well with Recover. If you use Hidden Power Fighting, the EVs you use should be 236 HP / 240 SpA. Note that you lose 2 points in Defense (factoring in Eviolite) by doing this. An alternate EV spread of 236 HP / 196 Def / 76 SpD with a Calm nature is viable if you prefer to give Poygon more bulk.
Usage Tips
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Try to get a Special Attack boost from Download whenever possible as it greatly enhances Porygon's power. Porygon should primarily be using Tri Attack, as it hits many Pokemon hard; the Pokemon that resist it usually can be handled the next turn by one of Porygon's coverage moves. Because of this, not much prediction is necessary. Unlike other bulky attackers, Porygon has reliable recovery. Remember to keep it healthy, as its low Speed might keep Porygon from healing when it really needs it.
Team Options
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The best partners for this set are Pokemon that can handle Porygon's checks. Larvesta synergizes really well with this set because it beats Fighting-types, checks Pawniard, and can help Porygon get the Special Attack boost from Download via U-turn. Misdreavus is a nice offensive partner as both Porygon and Misdreavus can easily weaken each other's checks; it also beats Fighting-types and Munchlax depending on which set it uses. Timburr can switch into and break through Steel-types, Munchlax, and Misdreavus for Porygon, as well as Frillish if Porygon is not using Shadow Ball.
Wall
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name: Wall
move 1: Recover
move 2: Tri Attack
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Thunder Wave
ability: Trace
item: Eviolite
evs: 236 HP / 196 Def / 76 SpD
nature: Calm
Moves
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Recover keeps Porygon healthy throughout the match so it can consistently handle threats, such as Carvanha and Misdreavus. Tri Attack is a strong STAB move that lets Porygon maintain offensive presence. Thunder Wave is chosen as Porygon is a good paralysis spreader and can easily take advantage of it with its low Speed, crippling offensive Pokemon that switch in. Shadow Ball hits Misdreavus and other Pokemon like Meditite on the switch. Charge Beam is an option for a semi-reliable Special Attack-boosting move, but it is quite a niche option.
Set Details
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Eviolite is the best item because of Porygon's reliable recovery and its desire for extra bulk. The given EVs and a Calm nature give Porygon 26 HP, 16 Defense, and 16 Special Defense before Eviolite, which is superb. Trace lets Porygon copy the ability of an opposing Pokemon, letting Porygon perform as a situational counter to Pokemon with abilities such as Flash Fire or Water Absorb.
Usage Tips
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Porygon can switch into most offensive Pokemon that are not Fighting-types or Pawniard, but make sure it has near-full HP before doing so. It is not recommended to switch Porygon into defensive Pokemon unless they are weak to one of its moves, as Porygon is not that strong and is vulnerable to status moves. Porygon can switch in to certain Pokemon to abuse Trace. It can switch in on Chinchou's Volt Switch and recover health thank's to Chinchou's Volt Absorb; other examples include Flash Fire Ponyta's Flare Blitz or some other Fire-type move, copying Slowpoke's Regenerator, and switching in on Prankster abusers and abusing Prankster. Be sure to maintain Porygon's health with Recover as much as possible so it can check big threats like Murkrow later on in the match.
Team Options
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Pokemon that beat either Fighting-types or Pawniard are excellent partners. Cleric support is also a bonus. Slowpoke counters Fighting-types while Porygon patches up most of Slowpoke's Special Defense weaknesses, but this combination is weak to Pawniard. Spritzee and Snubbull beat most Fighting-types handily and have Heal Bell. Note that Porygon cannot provide much support to Spritzee and Snubbull back, and that this combination is also vulnerable to Pawniard. Fighting-types such as Timburr and Mienfoo can defeat Pawniard, Munchlax, and Steel-types.
Agility
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name: Agility
move 1: Agility
move 2: Tri Attack
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Hidden Power Fighting / Shadow Ball
ability: Download
item: Berry Juice
evs: 36 Def / 240 SpA / 200 Spe
nature: Modest
Moves
========
Agility is the primary move of this set and is used to boost Porygon's Speed. Tri Attack is the main STAB and is very powerful with a Download boost. Psychic hits Fighting-types, OHKOing standard Mienfoo after a Special Attack boost. Hidden Power Fighting hits Steel-types, namely Pawniard and Magnemite. Shadow Ball can hit Steel- and Ghost-types such as Misdreavus, but otherwise isn't really needed.
Set Details
========
The given EVs maximize Porygon's Special Attack and Speed to increase its sweeping potential. A Modest nature is used because Porygon is already fast enough after an Agility. Berry Juice is used to give Porygon an easier time setting up, as the recovery helps make Porygon bulkier without Recover. An alternate EV spread of 156 HP / 40 Def / 240 SpA / 40 Spe can be used to give Porygon more bulk. However, this spread does not outspeed Choice Scarf Pawniard after +2 and underspeeds a lot of common Pokemon unboosted.
Usage Tips
========
Try to set up Agility against Pokemon Porygon gets a Special Attack Download boost from. This condition is pretty specific, but Porygon does not always need a Download boost to sweep, such as when the opposition is properly weakened (Steel-types, Munchlax, and certain very specially bulky Pokemon) and Porygon can get an Agility boost. Note that Porygon can still avoid a OHKO from most non-Fighting-type attacks even without Eviolite or defensive investment.
Team Options
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The best partners for Porygon help it set up and weaken its checks. A slow U-turn / Volt Switch / Baton Pass user such as Larvesta or Chinchou is very useful for assisting Porygon in setting up; while Porygon is not frail, it has very specific sweeping conditions in that it could really use a Special Attack boost from Download for sweeping. Misdreavus wears down a lot of Porygon's checks, such as Munchlax and Fighting-types, depending on its set. Pawniard can lure physical walls as well as Knock Off Eviolites, making it easier for Porygon to sweep. Timburr helps weaken Steel- and Normal-types for Porygon.
Other Options
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Porygon has several other decent options. Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, and Discharge have a chance to OHKO Fletchling, but they don't provide much notable coverage otherwise. A Choice Scarf set (3 attacks + Trick) revenge kills Chlorophyll Pokemon but otherwise isn't that great because it does not get to take advantage of Porygon's awesome coverage, Recover, or Agility. Trick Room can be used instead of Agility, but the short duration of Trick Room may cut Porygon's sweep short. Recycle + Berry Juice can be used on the bulky attacker or wall set. Berry Juice gives Porygon 7 more HP than Recover as well as a one-time passive heal, but Porygon usually prefers the additional bulk granted by Eviolite, and Recover healing is usually sufficient enough. Life Orb with Agility can be used for extra power, but it makes Porygon too frail and makes it lose any defensive utility it would otherwise have.
Checks & Counters
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**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types are the best Pokemon for breaking through Porygon, but they will take a lot of damage if they switch directly into a boosted Tri Attack or Psychic. Timburr is good candidate as it is also fairly bulky and has Mach Punch to stop an Agility Porygon's sweep.
**Pawniard**: Pawniard does not take much damage from anything besides Hidden Power Fighting and massively cripples Porygon with Knock Off.
**Munchlax**: Munchlax doesn't directly beat Porygon, but can easily switch in and withstand its assaults. From there, Munchlax can constantly use Body Slam against Porygon until it gets paralyzed or use either Whirlwind or Toxic on Porygon and then switch into a Fighting-type when it forces Porygon to use Recover.
**Magnemite**: Berry Juice Magnemite works similarly to Munchlax; it wears down Porygon until Porygon is forced to Recover and then switches into a Fighting-type when Porygon uses Recover.
**Lickitung**: Lickitung can wall even a +1 Porygon and Dragon Tail it out or pass a Wish to a Fighting-type so the Fighting-type can beat Porygon.
**Ferroseed**: Ferroseed does not take much damage from most of Porygon's attacks and can set up entry hazards or use Leech Seed on Porygon.
**Status**: Toxic and Will-O-Wisp in general will really wear Porygon down. Users include Ponyta and Larvesta.
**Bronzor**: Bronzor either sets up or uses Toxic on Porygon sets that lack Shadow Ball.
**Frillish**: Frillish also counters sets that lack Shadow Ball.

DTC got
Overview
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- Ability Capsule makes Tri Attack with Download legal.
- Great coverage + 19 Special Attack + Download makes Porygon a powerful threat that is also bulky at the same time
- Good catch-all answer to many Little Cup Pokemon, such as Misdreavus, Murkrow, and Carvanha. It can do this because of its astounding physical and special bulk and weakness to only 1 type.
- Reliable recovery in Recover. However, because Porygon does not have any resistances besides a Ghost immunity, it needs to maintain its health by using Recover a lot, which opens way for a free switch-in to a Fighting-type.
- Its extremely low Speed makes it hard to Recover when at low HP.
- Patches up a lot of annoying holes in one teamslot.
- Makes for a good sweeper with Agility backed by good bulk to set it up, great coverage, and a nice 19 Special Attack.
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name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Tri Attack
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Psychic / Hidden Power Fighting
move 4: Recover
ability: Download
item: Eviolite
evs: 236 HP / 36 Def / 236 SpA
nature: Modest
Moves
========
- Tri Attack is STAB and hits pretty hard when backed by a Download boost
- Shadow Ball hits Misdreavus, Bronzor, and Honedge
- Psychic hits Timburr, Mienfoo, and Croagunk hard on the switch.
- Hidden Power Fighting usually OHKO's Eviolite Pawniard before a Download boost, and always OHKO's Pawniard when it is using Berry Juice or when Porygon is at +1. Hidden Power Fighting also hits Ferroseed and Magnemite harder than Porygon's other moves.
- Recover keeps Porygon healthy
- Download is used to give Porygon more power
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- 236 EVs in SpA and a Modest nature to maximize Special Attack, rest goes in HP and Defense to keep Porygon.
- Eviolite gives Porygon more bulk which goes well with Recover
- If you use Hidden Power Fighting, the EVs you use should be 236 HP / 240 SpA. Note that you lose 2 points in Defense (factoring in Eviolite) by doing this.
- An alternate EV spread of 236 HP / 196 Def / 76 SpD and a calm nature is viable if you want to give Poygon more bulk.
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- Try to acquire Special Attack Download boosts whenever possible, as they massively increase Porygon's power.
- Tri Attack should be the move used most often, as it hits many Pokemon hard and the few Pokemon that resist it are generally destroyed by the other moves.
- Not much prediction is needed, as most of the Pokemon that switch into Tri Attack will lose the next turn to its coverage moves.
- Remember, Porygon, unlike some other bulky attackers, has a way to consistently heal its health back up. Make sure to keep Porygon healthy, as it may not be able to heal itself back up when it really needs to because of its terrible Speed.
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- Larvesta synergizes really well with this set because it beats Fighting-types, checks Pawniard, and can help Porygon get the Special Attack boost from Download via U-turn
- Misdreavus is a nice offensive partner as they can easily weaken each others checks, and Misdreavus also beats Fighting-types and Munchlax depending on its set.
- Timburr can switch into and break through Steel-types, Munchlax, and can break through Misdreavus/Frillish if Porygon is not using Shadow Ball
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name: Wall
move 1: Recover
move 2: Tri Attack
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Thunder Wave
ability: Trace
item: Eviolite
evs: 236 HP / 196 Def / 76 SpD
nature: Calm
Moves
========
- Recover keeps Porygon healthy so it can consistently beat threats
- Tri Attack is a decently strong STAB move
- Porygon makes for a good paralysis spreader with Thunder Wave, crippling many offensive Pokemon that may want to try to take advantage of Porygon.
- Shadow Ball hits Misdreavus, and a few other assorted Pokemon like Meditite on the switch as well as Abra and Honedge.
- Trace has cool situational usage, notably for Regenerator Slowpoke, Volt Absorb Chinchou, and Flash Fire Ponyta.
- Charge Beam can be used to raise Special Attack and do a little bit of damage at the same time.
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- EVs and a Calm nature give Porygon a very bulky 26 HP / 16 Defense / 16 Special Defense before Eviolite
- Eviolite is the best item because Porygon has reliable recovery and wants the extra bulk.
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- Porygon can be switched into most offensive Pokemon that are not Fighting-types or Pawniard, but make sure it has near full HP before doing so.
- It is not recommended to switch Porygon into defensive Pokemon unless they are weak to one of Porygon's moves as Porygon is not that strong and is vulnerable to status.
- Maintain Porygon's health with Recover as much as possible so it can check big threats like Murkrow later on in the match.
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- Porygon wants teammates that beat either Fighting-types or Pawniard. Cleric support is also a bonus.
- Slowpoke counters Fighting-types while Porygon patches up most of Slowpoke's Special Defense weaknesses, but this combination is weak to Pawniard.
- Spritzee and Snubbull beat most Fighting-types handily and have Heal Bell. Note that Porygon can not provide much support to Spritzee and Snubbull back, and that this combination is vulnerable to Pawniard.
- Fighting-types like Timburr and Mienfoo can beat Pawniard, Munchlax, and Steel-types
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name: Agility
move 1: Agility
move 2: Tri Attack
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Hidden Power Fighting / Shadow Ball
ability: Download
item: Berry Juice
evs: 36 Def / 240 SpA / 200 Spe
nature: Modest
Moves
========
- Agility boosts Porygon's Speed so it can sweep
- Tri Attack is STAB
- Psychic hits Fighting-types, OHKO'ing standard Mienfoo after a Special Attack boost
- Hidden Power Fighting hits Pawniard and Magnemite
- Shadow Ball hits Steel- and Ghost-types besides Pawniard along with Misdreavus, but otherwise isn't really needed.
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- EVs maximize Porygon's Special Attack and Speed
- Modest nature is used because Porygon is already fast enough after an Agility
- Berry Juice is used so Porygon has an easier time setting up + extra bulk is always great.
- An alternate EV spread of 156 HP / 40 Def / 240 SpA / 40 Spe can be used for more bulk. However, this spread does not outspeed Choice Scarf Pawniard after +2, and underspeeds a lot of common Pokemon unboosted.
========
- Try to set up Agility vs Pokemon you get the Special Attack Download boost from.
- This set up condition is pretty specific, but Porygon does not always need a Download boost to sweep, as long as the opposition is properly weakened (Steel-types, Munchlax, and certain very specially bulky Pokemon) and Porygon can get an Agility boost, it should be fine.
- Note Porygon can still avoid the OHKO from most non Fighting-type attacks even without Eviolite or defensive investment.
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- A slow U-turn/Volt Switch/Baton Pass Pokemon such as Larvesta or Chinchou is very useful for assisting Porygon in set up; while Porygon is not frail, it has very specific sweeping conditions in that it could really use a Special Attack boost from Download for sweeping.
- Misdreavus wears down a lot of Porygon's checks
- Pawniard can bait physical walls as well as Knock Off Eviolite's for Porygon to sweep
- Timburr
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- Thunderbolt and Discharge are decent moves but don't provide much notable coverage
- Choice Scarf (3 attacks + Trick) revenges Chlorophyll Pokemon but otherwise isn't that great because it does not get to take advantage of Porygon's awesome coverage, Recover, or Agility
- Trick Room can be used instead of Agility, but the short duration of Trick Room may cut Porygon's sweep short.
- Ice Beam hits certain Pokemon like Murkrow harder but otherwise isn't needed.
- Recycle + Berry Juice can be used on the bulky attacker or wall set. Berry Juice gives Porygon 7 more HP than Recover, and gives Porygon a one-time passive heal, but Porygon usually prefers the additional bulk granted by Eviolite, and Recover healing is usually sufficient enough.
- Life Orb with Agility can be used for extra power, but it makes Porygon die too fast and makes it lose any defensive utility it would otherwise have.
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- Fighting-types are the best Pokemon for breaking through Porygon, but they will take a lot of damage if they switch directly into a boosted Tri Attack or Psychic. Meditite is the best Fighting-type for switching in, as it can live a Tri Attack with some HP to spare, outspeed Porygon, and then Drain Punch Porygon to regain most of its HP back. Fake Out + Bullet Punch Meditites can get some decent chip damage against Agility Porygon. Timburr is another good candidate as it is also pretty bulky, and has Mach Punch to stop an Agility Porygon's sweep.
- Pawniard does not take much from anything besides Hidden Power Fighting, and massively cripples Porygon with Knock Off.
- Munchlax doesn't directly beat Porygon, but can easily switch in and withstand its assaults. From there, Munchlax can Body Slam Porygon until paralysis, or Whirlwind/Toxic Porygon, and then switches into a Fighting-type when it forces Porygon to Recover.
- Berry Juice Magnemite undergoes a similar procedure as Munchlax; it wears down Porygon until Porygon is forced to Recover, and then switches into a Fighting-type while Porygon uses Recover.
- Lickitung can wall even Download Porygon and Dragon Tail it out, or pass a Wish to a Fighting-type so the Fighting-type can beat Porygon.
- Ferroseed does not care about most of Porygon's attacks and can set up hazards and Leech Seed on Porygon.
- Toxic/WoW in general will really wear Porygon down
- Bronzor either sets up or uses Toxic on Porygon sets that lack Shadow Ball
- Frillish also counters sets that lack Shadow Ball
- Forfeiting the match and then using Porygon yourself
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