SO THICC
hootie / gary / tdk
p squared
[OVERVIEW]
+ Tapu Fini is a great blanket check to a large number of threats in the tier including Dragon-, Fire-, Fighting-, and Dark-types thanks to its typing and bulk. This includes Garchomp, Latios, non-Bloom Doom Heatran, Keldeo, Weavile, Hoopa-U, and Hydreigon.
+ Its large support movepool including moves such as Nature's Madness, Taunt, and Defog make it a very solid glue on many teams.
+ Misty Terrain is great and allows Tapu Fini to shield itself and its grounded teammates from status moves and effects.
+ Low offenses mean it can be taken advantage of by common threats such as Tapu Koko, Genesect, Kartana, and Greninja with Gunk Shot.
+ Tapu Fini also lacks reliable recovery, often relying on Leftovers to heal.
+ Despite its great defensive typing, common Electric- and Grass-types such as Tapu Koko, Thundurus, Mega Venusaur, and Tapu Bulu all hurt its effectiveness.
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Scald
move 2: Moonblast
move 3: Taunt
move 4: Nature's Madness / Defog
item: Leftovers
ability: Misty Surge
nature: Calm
evs: 248 HP / 192 Def / 16 SpD / 52 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
+ Scald hits many Pokemon neutrally and can still potentially burn Flying-types or Levitate users such as Celesteela and Rotom-W. Scald can also burn Tapu Bulu that attempt to override Misty Terrain with Grassy Terrain.
+ Moonblast hits Grass- and Dragon-types such as Tapu Bulu, Garchomp, Latios, and Hydreigon as well as Dark- and Fighting-types such as Weavile, Hoopa-U, Terrakion, and Keldeo.
+ Taunt shuts down defensive Pokemon such as Chansey and Skarmory, preventing them from setting up entry hazards or healing.
+ Nature's Madness is a useful option that halves the HP of bulkier Pokemon such as Mega Venusaur, Mega Metagross, Chansey, Mega Charizard X, and Celesteela.
+ Defog is another option that can be used to clear entry hazards for Tapu Fini's teammates.
Set Details
========
+ 52 Speed EVs let Tapu Fini outspeed defensive Landorus-T.
+ 16 Special Defense EVs along with a Calm nature hit a jump point.
+ The remaining EVs are placed into HP and Defense to round out Tapu Fini's bulk, improving its matchup against threats such as Garchomp.
+ 248 HP / 252 Def with a Bold nature is a viable option too, handling Pokemon such as Garchomp and Mega Charizard X a lot more easily.
+ Leftovers provides Tapu Fini with passive recovery, helping it stick around, especially with Misty Surge protecting it from status.
+ Tapu Fini can also run a faster EV spread of 248 HP / 48 Def / 16 SpA / 196 Spe with a Timid nature. This allows it to outspeed Heatran and 2HKO it with Scald.
Usage Tips
========
+ Tapu Fini is pretty straightforward to use; switch it into threats it can beat such as Keldeo and Latios, but be aware of super effective coverage such as Hidden Power Electric or Grass and Thunderbolt.
+ Use Taunt to shut down slower Pokemon that may try to set up or use status moves such as Chansey.
+ If predicting the opponent to send in a Pokemon immune to Terrains such as Rotom-W, Scald is usually an optimal play so that said Pokemon can be burned and broken down with Taunt + Nature's Madness a lot more easily.
+ Avoid making Tapu Fini take needless damage, as it will struggle to recover because it relies purely on Leftovers for recovery.
+ Keep in mind how many turns of Misty Terrain there are left; this just ensures Tapu Fini's teammates have enough turns to set up without risk of getting crippled.
+ Also keep in mind that Tapu Fini's teammates can't status opposing Pokemon affected by Misty Terrain.
Team Options
========
+ Tapu Fini fits well on teams that are weak to Water-types such as Keldeo, Mega Gyarados, and Greninja lacking Gunk Shot, making it a great partner for Rock- and Ground-types such as Tyranitar, Terrakion, Excadrill, Garchomp, and Landorus-T. Excadrill in particular is great, as it handles common Electric-types and also frees up the hazard removal moveslot on Tapu Fini.
+ If Tapu Fini is running Defog, Fire-, Flying-, Ice-, and Bug-types such as Mega Charizard X, Mega Pinsir, Kyurem-B, Volcarona, and Gyarados all make for good teammates, as Tapu Fini is one of the most solid Defog users in the tier.
+ Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, and Tapu Bulu can all appreciate Tapu Fini setting up Misty Terrain so that they can reset it on their own when they come back in.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Scald
move 3: Moonblast
move 4: Taunt
item: Leftovers
ability: Misty Surge
nature: Bold
evs: 248 HP / 248 Def / 12 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
+ Calm Mind boosts Tapu Fini's Special Attack and Special Defense, allowing it to set up on weak attackers such as Heatran lacking Bloom Doom, Keldeo, and Latios lacking Thunderbolt.
+ Scald hits many Pokemon neutrally and has a nifty chance to burn Pokemon immune to Misty Terrain such as Rotom-W, Celesteela, and Skarmory.
+ Moonblast hits Dragon-types such as Latios, Kyurem-B, and Dragonite.
+ Taunt shuts down slower Pokemon and prevents the likes of Skarmory and Ferrothorn from setting up entry hazards.
Set Details
========
+ Maximum HP and Defense investment allows Tapu Fini to set up on physical attackers such as Mega Gyarados while Calm Mind boosts its uninvested Special Defense.
+ Leftovers provides Tapu Fini with passive recovery, making it harder to wear down.
+ 12 Speed EVs allow Tapu Fini to outspeed Rotom-W lacking Speed investment, allowing it to use Calm Mind before Rotom-W uses Volt Switch.
Usage Tips
========
+ Setting up with Calm Mind should be saved until late-game when opposing Grass- and Electric-types have been dealt with, providing easy setup opportunities for Tapu Fini.
+ Otherwise, it should be played similarly to its defensive set, utilizing Taunt, Scald, and Moonblast to apply pressure to the opposing team.
Team Options
========
+ Wallbreakers such as Tapu Lele and Mega Alakazam appreciate the pressure Tapu Fini applies to slower teams, weakening Pokemon such as Chansey and Skarmory to the point where they can pick it off more easily.
+ Celesteela is a great Tapu Fini teammate, as it covers Grass-types and annoys Electric- and Poison-types with Leech Seed, while Tapu Fini can take on Fire-types such as Heatran and Mega Charizard X.
+ Ground-types such as Excadrill, Choice Scarf Landorus-T, and Choice Scarf Garchomp are all good options for taking on Electric-types, which can shut down Tapu Fini easily.
+ Setup sweepers usually shut down by status such as Bisharp, Mega Scizor, and Genesect can all benefit from Misty Terrain, which prevents them from being burned by Scald or crippled by Thunder Wave.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
+ Offensive sets with Life Orb or Choice Specs are possible, but these are overshined by other offensive Fairy-types such as Tapu Lele, Primarina, and Tapu Koko.
+ Haze is an option, but Tapu Fini struggles to afford the moveslot for it. Icium Z can also be used alongside Haze to provide Tapu Fini with a one-time use 100% recovery move.
+ Refresh along with Normalium Z has the same Z-move effect as Haze, but this allows Tapu Fini to cure itself of status; however, it will rarely get hit by a status move because of Misty Terrain.
+ Brine alongside Nature's Madness takes advantage of Tapu Fini lowering the foe's HP below 50%, giving it a very high-Base Power Water-type move to use.
+ Misty Terrain allows Tapu Fini to maintain its Terrain even after it ends, but this comes at the cost of a valuable moveslot. Terrain Extender can work too, as it increases the length of the Terrain, but opposing Terrain resetters are very common and it forces Tapu Fini to forgo Leftovers.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types**: Grass-types such as Mega Venusaur, Amoonguss, Tangrowth, Tapu Bulu, Serperior, Ferrothorn, and Kartana don't really care about Tapu Fini and can switch in and threaten it out easily. Grass-types that rely on sleep-inducing moves to shut down opposing Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Tangrowth can easily stall out Misty Terrain.
**Electric-types**: Electric-types such as Tapu Koko, Rotom-W, Xurkitree, and Magnezone can all switch into Tapu Fini easily and threaten it out with their high-powered STAB moves.
**Poison-types**: Poison-types such as Toxapex, Gengar, Nihilego, and Nidoking all pose a massive threat to Tapu Fini, as Toxapex can stall out Misty Terrain and proceed to Toxic Tapu Fini while the latter three can OHKO after little prior damage.
**Massive Offensive Pressure**: Typically, Tapu Fini can take on Dragon-types such as Garchomp and Dragonite, but these can utilize sets such as Swords Dance + Life Orb and Choice Band or Thunder Punch, respectively, which can lure and significantly weaken Tapu Fini.
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