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[OVERVIEW]
The first thing that stands out about Rampardos is its absolute brute power, and it has respectable enough coverage to take advantage of its strength. It has two useful abilities that grant it its niches as either a lead/anti-lead or a wallbreaker. That's where the good news ends though, as being both frail and slow means Rampardos's offensive potential is heavily diminished. It's not so much that Rampardos is 'bad' at its job(s), it's just that there are more effective leads in the tier , such as Archeops, Crustle, Barbaracle, and even Mold Breaker Pinsir, while Rampardos's wallbreaking potential isn't exactly new considering the presence of faster heavyhitters such as Sawk, Magmortar, and Zangoose. Always consider if Rampardos is a better fit on your team than other Pokemon that can replicate its role, because it rarely is.
[SET]
name: Lead
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Endeavor
move 4: Earthquake
ability: Mold Breaker
item: Focus Sash
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
nature: Jolly
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
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Stealth Rock is standard fare on this Rampardos, which functions primarily as a lead. Stone Edge OHKOes Crustle and defensive Xatu. Endeavor lets Rampardos bring a foe down to 1 HP when Rampardos has been knocked down to its Focus Sash, leaving the foe as easy pickings for any faster attack. Earthquake allows Rampardos to strike Steel-types, such as Magneton, Intimidate Mawile, and Klinklang, which can otherwise take advantage of Rampardos, and covers additional targets such as Rhydon, Garbodor, and Weezing.
Superpower is an option to hit Rhydon and Klinklang with, but it also hits Pokemon such as Ferroseed and Cradily, although Superpower targets are rare in comparison to Earthquake targets. Head Smash allows Rampardos to KO itself to deny Defog or to quickly let its teammates enter battle, though Rampardos's sluggishness makes it a much less effective user of the move than Archeops.
Set Details
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While Jolly is not needed to outrun Crustle, maximum Speed is still favored to outrun as much as Rampardos possibly can, most notably Pawniard and positive-natured Exeggutor and Cacturne. Mold Breaker gives Rampardos its niche, letting it OHKO Crustle right through Sturdy and ignore Xatu's Magic Bounce when setting up Stealth Rock.
Usage Tips
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While this Rampardos functions as a lead, it prefers to face off against slower foes first so that it can set up Stealth Rock and get an Endeavor off, as it only gets to choose one of those actions against faster foes. That said, Archeops and Barbaracle tend to be more effective at setting up Stealth Rock and using Endeavor on foes while carrying Taunt, while Pinsir also carries Mold Breaker Stealth Rock and doesn't become irrelevant outside of early-game, unlike Rampardos. Rampardos's only real advantage over them is the combination of Mold Breaker Stealth Rock as well as more favorable matchups against Xatu and particularly Crustle. Rampardos's purpose is to set up Stealth Rock and disrupt the foe as much as possible afterward, so there is hardly any need to conserve it.
Team Options
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Offensive teams can take quick advantage of Rampardos's mostly successful Stealth Rock and hole punching ability. Offensive teams can also apply the pressure necessary to deter opponents from Defogging Rampardos's work away, as spending the turn to use Defog can sacrifice the opposing team's momentum and create openings for attack. Rotom makes for a good partner, as its Ghost typing blocks Rapid Spin and its Electric STAB type allows it to ward off Defoggers; Rotom's access to Volt Switch also allows it to take advantage of Stealth Rock itself. Other powerful offensive Pokemon that force switches, such as Pyroar, Sawk, Zangoose, and Scyther, appreciate the extra damage to land OHKOs or 2HKOs.
[SET]
name: Wall Breaker
move 1: Rock Slide
move 2: Zen Headbutt
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Superpower
ability: Sheer Force
item: Life Orb
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Rock Slide receives the Sheer Force boost and prevents Life Orb recoil. Zen Headbutt smacks Fighting-types such as Hariyama, Gurdurr, and Poliwrath, and hits the likes of Vileplume and Weezing for harsh damage. Fire Punch allows Rampardos to hit Steel-types such as Ferroseed, Klinklang, and Mawile and bulky Grass-types such as Torterra, Gourgeist, and Tangela super effectively. Superpower rounds off the set's coverage by hitting Rhydon and Carracosta, which shrug off Rampardos's other attacks; Superpower also nails bulky targets such as Bouffalant and Piloswine for a hefty amount of damage and is Rampardos's best hope against Quagsire despite usually failing to 2HKO. Fire Blast can be used over Fire Punch for a chance to KO Tangela after it switches into Rock Slide, but Fire Punch hits harder against a majority of targets. Fire Blast does retain power even if Rampardos is burned, which is particularly helpful against Gourgeist.
Set Details
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The EVs maximize Rampardos's power and speed, allowing it to outrun walls and slow attackers and punish them hard. Sheer Force and Life Orb allow Rampardos to do major damage without taking any recoil.
Usage Tips
========
Rampardos functions almost solely as a hole puncher, as its low Speed and frailty mean it cannot be expected to sweep foes. Rampardos's main benefit as a wallbreaker is that it deals incredible damage without wearing itself down. Rampardos is very frail and cannot risk switching into nearly anything; Rampardos is best brought in to avenge a fallen teammate or via a double switch. Bring Rampardos in either against something slower and physically vulnerable, such as Audino or Mantine, or against something it can tank a hit from, such as defensive Xatu or Cryogonal. Rampardos works best against slower, defensive teams, as it can use its power and coverage to pick cores apart. However, Rampardos can contribute very little against opposing offensive teams due to its woeful Speed and typing, unlike other wallbreakers such as Samurott, Sawk, Zangoose, and Magmortar, so keep that in mind. Rampardos, at the very least, rarely presents itself as setup fodder, so you can try to punish greedy opponents instead of trying to preserve Rampardos if you've assessed that Rampardos would not be contributing much else.
Team Options
========
Offensive or balanced teams can make use of Rampardos's wallbreaking abilities or its ability to lure out bulky Steel-, Grass-, and Fighting-types to their untimely demise. Physical sweepers can benefit substantially from Rampardos's support: Samurott and Klinklang appreciate having Poliwrath, Gourgeist, and Ferroseed weakened or taken out, and Swellow, physical Mesprit, and Scyther like having Mawile and Rhydon out of the way. Rampardos's partners should aim to do well against offense, as Rampardos has bulkier teams covered but falters greatly against faster foes. Speed-boosting sweepers such as Klinklang and Lilligant, priority attackers such as Kangaskhan and Kecleon, and bulky tanks such as Hariyama and Bouffalant can pick up the slack against offensive teams.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
========
A mixed set with moves such as Fire Blast and Thunderbolt is good for surprising physical walls, while packing Head Smash to dent special walls that try to stop it afterward. However, it has less neutral power than physical Rampardos and doesn't really cover much that the physical set does not already. Rampardos can use Surf to swamp Rhydon and Sandslash, but Superpower has more targets in comparison and isn't super weak against neutrally hit foes. While Earthquake on the wallbreaker set seems like a natural fit alongside Rampardos's Rock-type STAB move, most targets are already covered by Fire Punch and Superpower. Iron Head hits Mega Audino slightly harder while Crunch lands a stronger hit on Claydol, but both moves have minimal use outside of that. Swords Dance boosts Rampardos's power to insane levels but tends to be unnecessary and eats up a moveslot that is better used for a coverage move, which is especially useful and relevant when Rampardos is attacking unboosted. Rampardos does have Rock Polish to remedy its poor Speed, but it is outdone by Shell Smash sweepers such as Carracosta and Barbaracle. While Choice Scarf seems appealing on Rampardos, it is still overall less efficient than Archeops as an all-out sweeper, which has comparable power and speed while being able to switch moves.
Checks & Counters
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**Faster Attackers**: Rampardos's poor Speed and bulk leave it vulnerable to an enormous list of Pokemon. This is not helped by its typing, which holds weaknesses to Water, Grass, Ground, and Fighting, all of which are popular offensive types in the NU metagame. The likes of Sawk, Kabutops, Ludicolo, Samurott, Lilligant, Archeops, and Tauros can make short work of Rampardos.
**Bulky Ground-types**: Quagsire can easily wall Rampardos, although switching into Superpower can sting because the next one will not be weakened by virtue of Quagsire's Unaware. Claydol resists most of Rampardos's attacks and can either outspeed Rampardos or invest enough bulk to withstand its blows. Sandslash sports huge Defense and a lack of weaknesses to Rampardos's attacks bar Surf and Ice Beam, which are highly situational. These Ground-types can even beat the lead set with Scald burns and a Rapid Spin KO respectively.
**Pivot Switching**: While Rampardos's coverage is hard to wall, it needs to hit the switch-in with the right move to continue putting pressure on the opponent. If Tangela and Gourgeist do not walk into a Fire Blast or Fire Punch, respectively, or Gurdurr into Zen Headbutt, they can force Rampardos out, while Rampardos will be hard-pressed to be put into a situation to find another opportunity to threaten to KO again, given the difficulty of bringing it into battle safely.
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