this happens to be my 20th analysis i just realized that
bull
[Overview]
<p>Tauros is a straightforward, dangerous physical attacker in NU, capable of threatening a wide variety of teams. The reason for this should be fairly obvious—it's one of the fastest Pokemon in the tier, packs plenty of power, and has a good amount of coverage in its decent movepool. This is combined with an excellent ability in Sheer Force, which pushes its attacking prowess even further, and it has ways to work around Pokemon that other Normal-types would typically struggle with. Tauros's main flaw is that it usually struggles with prominent physical walls. It also has competition with Kangaskhan, who has Scrappy and several priority moves to work with.</p>
[SET]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Rock Climb
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Zen Headbutt
move 4: Substitute
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is the set Tauros is best known for, offering impressive coverage that is augmented by its high Attack and Speed. Like any other Pokemon that utilizes Sheer Force, Tauros has the advantage of ignoring Life Orb recoil while still obtaining all the benefits of the item, meaning outpredicting it will not wear it down as quickly as other Pokemon. Rock Climb is the strongest STAB move Tauros gets that is affected by Sheer Force, and is thus used on this set. Although not boosted by the ability, Earthquake is essential for coverage against Steel- and Rock-types. Zen Headbutt gets a super effective hit on Fighting-types such as Gurdurr and is the only way Tauros can hit most of the Ghost-types in the tier, including Haunter, Misdreavus, and Drifblim. Zen Headbutt also gets the bonus of 2HKOing Weezing. Because the above three moves offer excellent coverage, Tauros has room to run Substitute. With a Substitute, it can ease prediction and protect itself from status, as well as defeat defensive variants of Misdreavus without Foul Play as it is immune to Misdreavus's Ghost STAB. Substitute also allows Tauros to avoid revenge killers and hit them hard before they are able to damage it.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Tauros should always run maximum Speed and a Jolly nature in order to take advantage of itsexcellent Speedstat, as it outspeeds all but a handful of NU Pokemon. Because Rock Climb's imperfect accuracy can be fairly annoying at times, Return is a suitable replacement, although note that it is not only weaker, but also causes Tauros to take recoil damage from its Life Orb. Rock Slide could be used over Zen Headbutt to hit Drifblim harder and get a very strong hit on foes such as Braviary, but Zen Headbutt and Rock Climb already hit both targets very hard, respectively, and without Zen Headbutt, Tauros becomes much more vulnerable to Gurdurr, Weezing, and Throh.</p>
<p>Despite the fact that it has Zen Headbutt, the most common Fighting-types in the tier are still threats to Tauros. This is because Gurdurr and Throh have the bulk to take a hit and retaliate, while Primeape, and to a lesser extent Sawk, often utilize Choice Scarf, allowing them to outspeed and OHKO Tauros with Close Combat. Bulky Psychic-types such as Musharna can wall and defeat a majority of the Fighting-types in the tier, while Ghost-types such as Misdreavus are immune to their STAB moves and can burn them, although note that a few of them have Guts as an ability. In an unlikely scenario in which Tauros gets afflicted by a status condition and has its offensive prowess severely cut, both of them also have Heal Bell. Many prominent physical walls, such as Alomomola and Tangela, have a relatively easy time dealing with Tauros as a result of it not having any way to cripple them. Sawsbuck and Electabuzz are capable of defeating both of them; Sawsbuck absorbs a majority of Tangela's attacks thanks to Sap Sipper and can hit Alomomola hard with Horn Leech, while Electabuzz's Electric STAB and Vital Spirit allow it to take on both walls as well. Finally, although Tauros has Earthquake, most Rock-types can take a hit or two thanks to their extremely high Defense stats and potentially defeat it. This makes Tangela a good partner, taking on Rock-type attacks with its high Defense and dispatching them with Giga Drain. Tangela also does well against Golurk,who is another Pokemon that threatens Tauros.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Double-Edge
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Pursuit / Retaliate
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although it might seem like a waste to give a Choice Scarf to a Pokemon as fast as Tauros, this excessive Speed is in large part why it makes such an effective Choice Scarf user. Because Tauros is so fast, it can afford to run an Adamant nature and still be capable of revenge killing weather sweepers. More importantly, however, even Adamant Tauros can outspeed almost all other prominent Choice Scarf users in the tier, most notably ones at base 95 Speed, such as Primeape and Jynx. Double-Edge is the strongest reliable STAB Tauros has, and it is the move it will be using in nearly every situation. Earthquake is primarily for hitting Rock- and Steel-types who can switch into Double-Edge, for a solid amount of damage. Stone Edge allows Tauros to OHKO Drifblim, and it is the best optionithas against Misdreavus. The final move is used for specific situations. Pursuit practically checkmates Jynx, Haunter, and Kadabra to an extent, OHKOing them if they switch out and still dealing a substantial amount of damage even if they don't. Retaliate, on the other hand, is an interesting option that goes well with Tauros's role as a revenge killer—it usually finishes off the opponent in this case due to its high power. Note that neither move is particularly good to be locked into though, however, as both are fairly weak most of the time.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Although Adamant is the preferred nature for this particular Tauros, a Jolly nature allows it to outspeed the few Pokemon that can possibly outspeed it otherwise, including Choice Scarf Charizard and Modest Choice Scarf Zebstrika, as well as Timid Victreebel and Ludicolo in their respective weathers. Intimidate is the only ability that Tauros can benefit from on this set and does offer it a few additional switch-ins. Return could be used in the last moveslot for an alternative STAB move, or even over Double-Edge, although the power drop is notable. Toxic is useful in the case of a predicted switch into a Pokemon that Tauros struggles against; Rock-types, Golurk, Misdreavus, Tangela, and Alomomola do not enjoy getting poisoned, but it is a rather bad move to get locked into and relies almost completely on prediction.</p>
<p>Ghost-types are particularly dangerous against this set because Double-Edge is usually used more than other moves, and many also do not mind Tauros's other moves. Skuntank is a good partner as a result, as it can do a good job against them thanks to Pursuit and its arsenal of other Dark-type moves, although it must be careful around Golurk due to Earthquake. Steel- and Rock-types will also often get free switch-ins due to Tauros's reliance on Double-Edge, and they typically haveDefense stats high enough to tank its attacks. Due to this, strong Fighting-types such as Sawk make good partners, as they can power through most of them with their STAB moves. Finally, Alomomola and Tangela can switch into anything Tauros has other than Toxic and wall it entirely, so Pokemon that can deal with both of these, such as Electabuzz, make good teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Substitute + Endeavor
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Endeavor
move 3: Rock Climb
move 4: Zen Headbutt
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 8 HP / 248 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although this set might look somewhat gimmicky at first, it makes Tauros an excellent lure for Pokemon that would typically wall it with ease, opening up the way for other sweepers to have a much easier time. The goal of this set is to use Substitute as many times as possible,(comma)and then use Endeavor to bring the opponent down to very low HP, leaving it able to be finished off by just about any move and irreparably damaged if it lacks recovery. Among the Pokemon that this set can wear down immensely are Regirock, Carracosta, and Metang. To an extent, it can also wear down Pokemon such as Alomomola and Tangela as well, although they have recovery to compensate for the loss of HP. This set is still capable of doing damage to its foes outside of this strategy—Rock Climb alongside Sheer Force and a Life Orb is still strong enough to make it a hard-hitting physical attacker. Finally, Zen Headbutt is the best move Tauros has to hit Ghost-types, which are immune to Endeavor.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>8 HP EVs are used in order to allow Tauros to make four Substitutes while at full health, with the last one leaving it with 1 HP remaining. Sheer Force and a Life Orb is recommended so that Tauros does not depend too much on Endeavor to deal damage. Leftovers is a subpar option to restore HP lost using Substitute, allowing it to cripple a few extra foes, as this is somewhat counterproductive due to Endeavor. With Leftovers, be sure to use Intimidate and Return in order to maximize the damage output from Tauros's Normal STAB. Earthquake is also a decent option in order to hit Steel- and Rock-types hard; however, it will not come in handy too often because Endeavor already cripples them, and Earthquake forces Tauros to take recoil damage from Life Orb, unlike Zen Headbutt.</p>
<p>As this variant of Tauros is made to work around its typical counters, not very many partners are needed for it to function at its best. However, this set still struggles with Ghost-types because they are immune to Endeavor, so Skuntank support can come in handy due to its STAB Pursuit and other Dark-type moves. If there are entry hazards on the field, Tauros might no longer be able to make Substitutes at a higher than intended health, and if Toxic Spikes is on the field, it is practically incapable of doing its job. For this reason, a Rapid Spin user might be worth using—Torkoal and Armaldo in particular enjoy the absence of Rock-types because both are weak to their STAB. Finally, physical attackers that struggle with breaking through walls make good partners, as they can take advantage of Tauros's ability to remove them. Kangaskhan is a good example of this, as it can do a lot more damage without the opponent's Rock-type being able to easily switch into its Normal STAB, and it can hit Ghost-types thanks to Scrappy, making up for Tauros's inability to cripple them. Pokemon that struggle against Alomomola and Tangela, such as Gurdurr, also make good partners, but beware that, due to Regenerator and their instant recovery, Tauros will need to be able to do enough damage to finish them off before they recover their HP.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Even though Tauros has a relatively generous movepool, most of it is unusable, and it lacks very many other options. Despite its terrible Special Attack, Sheer Force allows it to use Fire Blast and Thunder to 2HKO Tangela and Alomomola. However, these moves have limited use outside of this because they do not inflict a lot of damage against most targets, and Thunder in particular has horrid accuracy. Iron Head is boosted by Sheer Force and hits Rock-types harder than anything else Tauros has, but its coverage otherwise is fairly bad, making Earthquake the superior option most of the time. Earthquake also hits Steel-types such as Metang much harder than Iron Head. Tauros's only setup option is Work Up, but in the end, a +1 boost is rarely enough to take advantage of, especially for a Pokemon that rarely has space to run it. Wild Charge can OHKO Drifblim and deals a heavy blow on other Flying-types and doesn't have any chance of missing, but the recoil damage can be fairly annoying. Finally, Tauros can utilize a Choice Band with Intimidate to make a decent offensive pivot, but with Sheer Force canceling out Life Orb recoil on most moves, the main advantage of Choice Band is somewhat wasted. In fact, because of its reliance on Double-Edge, a Choice Band set often takes more recoil damage than a Life Orb set!</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Tauros has several ways to get around many Pokemon that would usually counter it, leaving few Pokemon that can reliably take on all variants. Any Misdreavus with Foul Play over Shadow Ball is the best way to take on Tauros, as it is immune to its STAB, can burn it with Will-O-Wisp,and has an attack that can break its Substitutes. It also has Heal Bell to take any surprise Toxics. Golurk is also immune to Normal-type attacks and isn't weak to anything Tauros has. It can hit back hard with Drain Punch and Earthquake. Although Gurdurr is 2HKOed by Zen Headbutt, it has Drain Punch to heal off the damage and get out of range of this, Mach Punch to finish Tauros off, and the bulk to switch into any other attack. Alomomola can wall Tauros almost completely and stall it out due to Wish, and it can usually break its Substitutes with Waterfall. Additionally, recoil from Double-Edge takes a large toll on Tauros due to Alomomola's high HP. It must be careful around Endeavor, although Regenerator and Wish help it regain lost HP. Tangela is in a similar boat in regards to walling, although its Giga Drain will always break Tauros's Substitutes.</p>
<p>There exist more shaky checks to Tauros that need to be careful around coverage moves or Endeavor due to lack of reliable recovery. Regirock is a prime example of this despite being able to cripple Tauros with Thunder Wave and wear it down with Drain Punch while keeping itself healthy. It has a high enough Defense to sponge an Earthquake, but it still must be careful around Tauros. Defensive variants of Carracosta have Solid Rock to mitigate damage from Earthquake and can wear down Tauros over time. Weezing gets 2HKOed by Zen Headbutt, but it can wall Tauros otherwise and burn it with Will-O-Wisp. Finally, Tauros can be revenge killed by faster Pokemon such as Swellow and Choice Scarf Primeape, although this is only if Tauros doesn't have a Choice Scarf of its own and isn't behind a Substitute.</p>
[Overview]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Rock Climb
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Zen Headbutt
move 4: Substitute
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Double-Edge
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Pursuit / Toxic
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
name: Substitute + Endeavor
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Endeavor
move 3: Rock Climb
move 4: Zen Headbutt
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 8 HP / 248 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Your straightforward dangerous physical attacker
- Very Fast
- Strong
- Great abilities
- Kangaskhan gives it competition thanks to Scrappy
- Can't do much to get past prominent physical walls, though it does get Endeavor to cripple them.
name: Life Orb
move 1: Rock Climb
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Zen Headbutt
move 4: Substitute
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- One of the more fearsome physical attackers in the tier
- Like any other Pokemon with Sheer Force, Tauros can hit very hard while not needing to worry about LO recoil.
- Rock Climb is the strongest STAB Tauros gets that is affected by Sheer Force.
- Earthquake is for Steels and Rocks.
- Zen Headbutt is for Fighters and is the only way to hit most of the Ghosts in the tier.
- Tauros pretty much covers everything with the above moves, so it has room to run a substitute. A substitute eases prediction, protects it from status, and allows it to defeat non-Foul Play Misdreavus one on one.
- Return for accuracy
- Rock Slide for Drifblim although Zen Headbutt already does plenty.
- Despite having Zen Headbutt Fighting-types are still dangerous, with Gurdurr and Throh having the bulk to take a hit and Primeape, and to an extent Sawk, are often scarfed. Psychic-types such as Musharna can wall them and defeat them, while Misdreavus is immune to their STABs and can burn them, though note a few run Guts. Both also have Heal Bell to recover Tauros from status, which completely destroys Tauros.
- Many prominent physical walls have a relatively easy time dealing with Tauros, including Alomomola and Tangela. Sawsbuck can take on the two, absorbing sleep moves from Tangela and hitting Alomomola hard with Horn Leech - Electabuzz is in a similar boat.
- Earthquake can hurt Rock-types, but their generally very high physical defense means they can deal with Tauros at a high enough health, potentially defeating it. This means, ironically, Tangela makes a good partner, as it can hit Rock-types hard and take little damage in return from them. Tangela also does well against Golurk.
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Double-Edge
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Pursuit / Toxic
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- It may seem redundant with such a high speed, but that is a big factor of why Tauros is good scarfer.
- Can revenge kill weather sweepers, and more importantly, other Choice Scarf users while still maintaining a good amount of power.
- Double-Edge for STAB - usually you won't be using any move that is not Double-Edge.
- Earthquake for Steels and Rocks primarily
- Stone Edge is the best it can do against Drifblim and Misdreavus.
- Pursuit pretty much checkmates Jynx, Haunter, and to a lesser extent Kadabra, OHKOing them if they switch and doing around 70% if they don't.
- Toxic cripples many typical switch ins for Tauros, including Rock-types, Golurk, Misdreavus, Alomomola, and Tangela.
- Retaliate for the revenge killing, but its not that much stronger than Double-Edge and its a bad move to be locked into.
- Similarly, Return could be used alongside or over Double-Edge in case a consistent STAB is needed
- Adamant is preferred because it still gets the jump on base 95s (Primeape and Jynx in particular), but Jolly allows it to outspeed Modest Scarf Zebstrika, Timid Victreebel and Ludicolo in their respective weathers, and Scarf Charizard (basically everything in the tier)
- Intimidate is the only ability that actually helps this set, and it can find switch-ins using it.
- Ghost-types are particularly dangerous against this set due to the prominence of Double-Edge. Skuntank does a decent job of dealing with them with its arsenal of Dark moves, although it be careful with Golurk due to its Ground STAB.
- Honestly, ANYTHING that resists Normal typically gets a free switch in, because the Tauros wants to spam Double-Edge without worry. Fighting-types such as Sawk take care of a majority of the Steel- and Rock-types in the metagame.
- Alomomola and Tangela are jerks (unless you catch them with Toxic) so Sawsbuck or Electabuzz are good partners for the reasons stated before.
name: Substitute + Endeavor
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Endeavor
move 3: Rock Climb
move 4: Zen Headbutt
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 8 HP / 248 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Takes advantage of the Pokemon that Tauros normally can struggle with, such as Regirock, Carracosta, and to an extent Alomomola
- Substitute + Endeavor gets many Pokemon to a very low HP, which is irreparable harm for Pokemon without recovery. A prime example of this is Regirock, who is prone to getting worn down.
- Rock Climb is a generally hard hitting move and ignores Life Orb recoil.
- Zen Headbutt is the best possible move against Ghosts.
- I'm fairly positive 8 HP EVs are required to make 4 substitutes with the last one being at 1 HP remaining.
- Sheer Force + Life Orb is preferred to make it hit harder so it doesn't depend entirely on a weakish move when it isn't using Endeavor.
- Leftovers is an OK option to restore HP, but this can be counterproductive with Endeavor. With Leftovers be sure to use Return and Intimidate.
- Earthquake can hit Steels and Rocks hard but Endeavor is made to cripple them.
- Because this set is made to work around typcial counters, many partners are not needed. However, this set struggles with Ghost-types because of their Endeavor immunity, so Skuntank support can come in handy.
- If there are entry hazards on the field Tauros will have substitutes at 12.5% health or something, which isn't as good as 1 HP. Rapid Spinners are useful in this regard, and Torkoal and Armaldo in particular appreciates the absence of Rock-type Pokemon.
- Physical Attackers that appreciate the absence or cripple of Rock and Steel-types, such as Kangaskhan make good partners. Gurdurr is also a good partner because it struggles with Alomomola and Tangela, whom are also crippled by this set, and other Pokemon who also struggle against these two work as well, but beware Regenerator because it means they may not be crippled forever.
- Fire Blast to 2HKO Tangela
- Thunder to 2HKO Alomomola
- Iron Head
- Work Up
- Choice Band
- Golurk isn't weak to anything Tauros has, and can hit it back hard with Drain Punch, or if it doesn't have that, Earthquake.
- Misdreavus does very well against Choiced sets and can burn them, but beware of a Substitute. Fortunately, Misdreavus has Foul Play to work around even that.
- Gurdurr is (barely) 2HKOed by Zen Headbutt, but has Mach Punch and Drain Punch to take on Tauros and heal off the damage from the said headbutt.
- Alomomola walls it almost completely and can stall it out. It can usually break its substitutes with Waterfall, and Tauros may end up killing itself from Double-Edge on a choiced set. It does need to be careful with Endeavor though.
- Tangela is on a similar boat, and can wear it down with repeated Giga Drains.
- Regirock takes a bit of damage from Earthquake, but it can keep itself healthy with Drain Punch or paralyze Tauros. Needs to watch out for Endeavor due to a lack of recovery.
- Defensive variants of Carracosta take even Earthquake well thanks to Solid Rock, and can wear down Tauros.
- If Tauros lacks Zen Headbutt (2HKO), Weezing can wall it and burn it.
- If it isn't behind a substitute or it doesn't have a Choice Scarf, it is possible to revenge kill it with faster Pokemon such as Swellow or Scarf Primeape/Sawk.
bull
[Overview]
<p>Tauros is a straightforward, dangerous physical attacker in NU, capable of threatening a wide variety of teams. The reason for this should be fairly obvious—it's one of the fastest Pokemon in the tier, packs plenty of power, and has a good amount of coverage in its decent movepool. This is combined with an excellent ability in Sheer Force, which pushes its attacking prowess even further, and it has ways to work around Pokemon that other Normal-types would typically struggle with. Tauros's main flaw is that it usually struggles with prominent physical walls. It also has competition with Kangaskhan, who has Scrappy and several priority moves to work with.</p>
[SET]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Rock Climb
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Zen Headbutt
move 4: Substitute
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is the set Tauros is best known for, offering impressive coverage that is augmented by its high Attack and Speed. Like any other Pokemon that utilizes Sheer Force, Tauros has the advantage of ignoring Life Orb recoil while still obtaining all the benefits of the item, meaning outpredicting it will not wear it down as quickly as other Pokemon. Rock Climb is the strongest STAB move Tauros gets that is affected by Sheer Force, and is thus used on this set. Although not boosted by the ability, Earthquake is essential for coverage against Steel- and Rock-types. Zen Headbutt gets a super effective hit on Fighting-types such as Gurdurr and is the only way Tauros can hit most of the Ghost-types in the tier, including Haunter, Misdreavus, and Drifblim. Zen Headbutt also gets the bonus of 2HKOing Weezing. Because the above three moves offer excellent coverage, Tauros has room to run Substitute. With a Substitute, it can ease prediction and protect itself from status, as well as defeat defensive variants of Misdreavus without Foul Play as it is immune to Misdreavus's Ghost STAB. Substitute also allows Tauros to avoid revenge killers and hit them hard before they are able to damage it.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Tauros should always run maximum Speed and a Jolly nature in order to take advantage of itsexcellent Speedstat, as it outspeeds all but a handful of NU Pokemon. Because Rock Climb's imperfect accuracy can be fairly annoying at times, Return is a suitable replacement, although note that it is not only weaker, but also causes Tauros to take recoil damage from its Life Orb. Rock Slide could be used over Zen Headbutt to hit Drifblim harder and get a very strong hit on foes such as Braviary, but Zen Headbutt and Rock Climb already hit both targets very hard, respectively, and without Zen Headbutt, Tauros becomes much more vulnerable to Gurdurr, Weezing, and Throh.</p>
<p>Despite the fact that it has Zen Headbutt, the most common Fighting-types in the tier are still threats to Tauros. This is because Gurdurr and Throh have the bulk to take a hit and retaliate, while Primeape, and to a lesser extent Sawk, often utilize Choice Scarf, allowing them to outspeed and OHKO Tauros with Close Combat. Bulky Psychic-types such as Musharna can wall and defeat a majority of the Fighting-types in the tier, while Ghost-types such as Misdreavus are immune to their STAB moves and can burn them, although note that a few of them have Guts as an ability. In an unlikely scenario in which Tauros gets afflicted by a status condition and has its offensive prowess severely cut, both of them also have Heal Bell. Many prominent physical walls, such as Alomomola and Tangela, have a relatively easy time dealing with Tauros as a result of it not having any way to cripple them. Sawsbuck and Electabuzz are capable of defeating both of them; Sawsbuck absorbs a majority of Tangela's attacks thanks to Sap Sipper and can hit Alomomola hard with Horn Leech, while Electabuzz's Electric STAB and Vital Spirit allow it to take on both walls as well. Finally, although Tauros has Earthquake, most Rock-types can take a hit or two thanks to their extremely high Defense stats and potentially defeat it. This makes Tangela a good partner, taking on Rock-type attacks with its high Defense and dispatching them with Giga Drain. Tangela also does well against Golurk,who is another Pokemon that threatens Tauros.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Double-Edge
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Pursuit / Retaliate
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although it might seem like a waste to give a Choice Scarf to a Pokemon as fast as Tauros, this excessive Speed is in large part why it makes such an effective Choice Scarf user. Because Tauros is so fast, it can afford to run an Adamant nature and still be capable of revenge killing weather sweepers. More importantly, however, even Adamant Tauros can outspeed almost all other prominent Choice Scarf users in the tier, most notably ones at base 95 Speed, such as Primeape and Jynx. Double-Edge is the strongest reliable STAB Tauros has, and it is the move it will be using in nearly every situation. Earthquake is primarily for hitting Rock- and Steel-types who can switch into Double-Edge, for a solid amount of damage. Stone Edge allows Tauros to OHKO Drifblim, and it is the best optionithas against Misdreavus. The final move is used for specific situations. Pursuit practically checkmates Jynx, Haunter, and Kadabra to an extent, OHKOing them if they switch out and still dealing a substantial amount of damage even if they don't. Retaliate, on the other hand, is an interesting option that goes well with Tauros's role as a revenge killer—it usually finishes off the opponent in this case due to its high power. Note that neither move is particularly good to be locked into though, however, as both are fairly weak most of the time.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Although Adamant is the preferred nature for this particular Tauros, a Jolly nature allows it to outspeed the few Pokemon that can possibly outspeed it otherwise, including Choice Scarf Charizard and Modest Choice Scarf Zebstrika, as well as Timid Victreebel and Ludicolo in their respective weathers. Intimidate is the only ability that Tauros can benefit from on this set and does offer it a few additional switch-ins. Return could be used in the last moveslot for an alternative STAB move, or even over Double-Edge, although the power drop is notable. Toxic is useful in the case of a predicted switch into a Pokemon that Tauros struggles against; Rock-types, Golurk, Misdreavus, Tangela, and Alomomola do not enjoy getting poisoned, but it is a rather bad move to get locked into and relies almost completely on prediction.</p>
<p>Ghost-types are particularly dangerous against this set because Double-Edge is usually used more than other moves, and many also do not mind Tauros's other moves. Skuntank is a good partner as a result, as it can do a good job against them thanks to Pursuit and its arsenal of other Dark-type moves, although it must be careful around Golurk due to Earthquake. Steel- and Rock-types will also often get free switch-ins due to Tauros's reliance on Double-Edge, and they typically haveDefense stats high enough to tank its attacks. Due to this, strong Fighting-types such as Sawk make good partners, as they can power through most of them with their STAB moves. Finally, Alomomola and Tangela can switch into anything Tauros has other than Toxic and wall it entirely, so Pokemon that can deal with both of these, such as Electabuzz, make good teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Substitute + Endeavor
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Endeavor
move 3: Rock Climb
move 4: Zen Headbutt
item: Life Orb
ability: Sheer Force
nature: Jolly
evs: 8 HP / 248 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although this set might look somewhat gimmicky at first, it makes Tauros an excellent lure for Pokemon that would typically wall it with ease, opening up the way for other sweepers to have a much easier time. The goal of this set is to use Substitute as many times as possible,(comma)and then use Endeavor to bring the opponent down to very low HP, leaving it able to be finished off by just about any move and irreparably damaged if it lacks recovery. Among the Pokemon that this set can wear down immensely are Regirock, Carracosta, and Metang. To an extent, it can also wear down Pokemon such as Alomomola and Tangela as well, although they have recovery to compensate for the loss of HP. This set is still capable of doing damage to its foes outside of this strategy—Rock Climb alongside Sheer Force and a Life Orb is still strong enough to make it a hard-hitting physical attacker. Finally, Zen Headbutt is the best move Tauros has to hit Ghost-types, which are immune to Endeavor.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>8 HP EVs are used in order to allow Tauros to make four Substitutes while at full health, with the last one leaving it with 1 HP remaining. Sheer Force and a Life Orb is recommended so that Tauros does not depend too much on Endeavor to deal damage. Leftovers is a subpar option to restore HP lost using Substitute, allowing it to cripple a few extra foes, as this is somewhat counterproductive due to Endeavor. With Leftovers, be sure to use Intimidate and Return in order to maximize the damage output from Tauros's Normal STAB. Earthquake is also a decent option in order to hit Steel- and Rock-types hard; however, it will not come in handy too often because Endeavor already cripples them, and Earthquake forces Tauros to take recoil damage from Life Orb, unlike Zen Headbutt.</p>
<p>As this variant of Tauros is made to work around its typical counters, not very many partners are needed for it to function at its best. However, this set still struggles with Ghost-types because they are immune to Endeavor, so Skuntank support can come in handy due to its STAB Pursuit and other Dark-type moves. If there are entry hazards on the field, Tauros might no longer be able to make Substitutes at a higher than intended health, and if Toxic Spikes is on the field, it is practically incapable of doing its job. For this reason, a Rapid Spin user might be worth using—Torkoal and Armaldo in particular enjoy the absence of Rock-types because both are weak to their STAB. Finally, physical attackers that struggle with breaking through walls make good partners, as they can take advantage of Tauros's ability to remove them. Kangaskhan is a good example of this, as it can do a lot more damage without the opponent's Rock-type being able to easily switch into its Normal STAB, and it can hit Ghost-types thanks to Scrappy, making up for Tauros's inability to cripple them. Pokemon that struggle against Alomomola and Tangela, such as Gurdurr, also make good partners, but beware that, due to Regenerator and their instant recovery, Tauros will need to be able to do enough damage to finish them off before they recover their HP.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Even though Tauros has a relatively generous movepool, most of it is unusable, and it lacks very many other options. Despite its terrible Special Attack, Sheer Force allows it to use Fire Blast and Thunder to 2HKO Tangela and Alomomola. However, these moves have limited use outside of this because they do not inflict a lot of damage against most targets, and Thunder in particular has horrid accuracy. Iron Head is boosted by Sheer Force and hits Rock-types harder than anything else Tauros has, but its coverage otherwise is fairly bad, making Earthquake the superior option most of the time. Earthquake also hits Steel-types such as Metang much harder than Iron Head. Tauros's only setup option is Work Up, but in the end, a +1 boost is rarely enough to take advantage of, especially for a Pokemon that rarely has space to run it. Wild Charge can OHKO Drifblim and deals a heavy blow on other Flying-types and doesn't have any chance of missing, but the recoil damage can be fairly annoying. Finally, Tauros can utilize a Choice Band with Intimidate to make a decent offensive pivot, but with Sheer Force canceling out Life Orb recoil on most moves, the main advantage of Choice Band is somewhat wasted. In fact, because of its reliance on Double-Edge, a Choice Band set often takes more recoil damage than a Life Orb set!</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Tauros has several ways to get around many Pokemon that would usually counter it, leaving few Pokemon that can reliably take on all variants. Any Misdreavus with Foul Play over Shadow Ball is the best way to take on Tauros, as it is immune to its STAB, can burn it with Will-O-Wisp,and has an attack that can break its Substitutes. It also has Heal Bell to take any surprise Toxics. Golurk is also immune to Normal-type attacks and isn't weak to anything Tauros has. It can hit back hard with Drain Punch and Earthquake. Although Gurdurr is 2HKOed by Zen Headbutt, it has Drain Punch to heal off the damage and get out of range of this, Mach Punch to finish Tauros off, and the bulk to switch into any other attack. Alomomola can wall Tauros almost completely and stall it out due to Wish, and it can usually break its Substitutes with Waterfall. Additionally, recoil from Double-Edge takes a large toll on Tauros due to Alomomola's high HP. It must be careful around Endeavor, although Regenerator and Wish help it regain lost HP. Tangela is in a similar boat in regards to walling, although its Giga Drain will always break Tauros's Substitutes.</p>
<p>There exist more shaky checks to Tauros that need to be careful around coverage moves or Endeavor due to lack of reliable recovery. Regirock is a prime example of this despite being able to cripple Tauros with Thunder Wave and wear it down with Drain Punch while keeping itself healthy. It has a high enough Defense to sponge an Earthquake, but it still must be careful around Tauros. Defensive variants of Carracosta have Solid Rock to mitigate damage from Earthquake and can wear down Tauros over time. Weezing gets 2HKOed by Zen Headbutt, but it can wall Tauros otherwise and burn it with Will-O-Wisp. Finally, Tauros can be revenge killed by faster Pokemon such as Swellow and Choice Scarf Primeape, although this is only if Tauros doesn't have a Choice Scarf of its own and isn't behind a Substitute.</p>
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