Tornadus
[Overview]
[SET]
name: Defiant Attacker
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Taunt / Tailwind / U-turn
move 4: Protect
item: Flying Gem
ability: Defiant
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
name: Tailwind Support
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Superpower / Taunt / Substitute
move 3: Tailwind
move 4: Taunt / Protect / Substitute
item: Flying Gem
ability: Prankster
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
[Other Options]
[Checks and Counters]
- Acts as a great physical attacker thanks to Defiant
- Works with several support options such as Tailwind, Rain Dance and Taunt
- One of the few Flying types with reliable Flying STAB outside of Hidden Power
- Benefits from solid 111 base speed
- Is frail, and weak to common attacking types in Rock, Ice, and Electric
[SET]
name: Defiant Attacker
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Taunt / Tailwind / U-turn
move 4: Protect
item: Flying Gem
ability: Defiant
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Flying Gem Acrobatics is an incredibly powerful attack, even more so after a Defiant boost
- Superpower provides great coverage, hitting common Flying-resists like Tyranitar for heavy damage
- Taunt or Tailwind can provide helpful team support, U-turn is an option over them if you don't need more support
- Substitute and Crunch are other options for the third slot, though both are usually inferior to the above options
name: Tailwind Support
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Superpower / Taunt / Substitute
move 3: Tailwind
move 4: Taunt / Protect / Substitute
item: Flying Gem
ability: Prankster
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Prankster allows it to generally get a guaranteed Tailwind up, at the sacrifice of being hurt by Intimidate
- Taunt allows you to shut down opposing Taunts, Trick Room, and Thunder Waves, all of which Tailwind hates, giving it a large supporting role for its team.
- Like Rain support, this set can run a bulkier spread, and could run a set like Icy Wind / Taunt / Tailwind / Swagger with 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD for EVs, though bulky Prankster sets like this one are usually better left to Thundurus
[Other Options]
- Icy Wind
- Crunch
- Situational Resist Berries (Yache, Wacan, Charti)
- Air Slash
- Heat Wave
- Foul Play
- Grass Knot
- Role Play
- Swagger
- Sky Drop
- Special Attacking Set w/ Hurricane & Rain Dance
[Checks and Counters]
- Electric types like Thundurus, Zapdos, and Rotom-Wash in particular, they can OHKO it with Electric STAB, and non-Prankster sets can be shut down by a Thundurus Thunder Wave
- Scarf Cloyster, Weavile, Abomasnow, and Mamoswine can either outspeed it or nail it with Ice Shard, dealing heavy damage
- Rock types that can live a Superpower/Focus Blast, such as Chople Tyranitar, make good checks
- Non-Defiant, physically-based sets will also hate Intimidate
- Kyurem and Kyurem-Black
- Steel types that aren't weak to Superpower, like Metagross and Jirachi, can tank hits and hit back hard
[Overview]
<p>Tornadus is often overlooked in the Doubles metagame, even though it is one of the best physical attackers in the tier, courtesy of Defiant. Its other ability, Prankster, is also effective, allowing it to use support options such as Tailwind with priority. This is further backed by the fact it is one of only a few Flying-types with access to Flying-type STAB outside of Hidden Power in Acrobatics, which along with Defiant, allows it to rip through common Fighting-types such as Hitmontop. Additionally, Tornadus has good offensive stats, and its base 111 Speed allows it to outspeed and OHKO Latios, the fastest Dragon-type in the Doubles metagame.</p>
<p>While its strengths may make it seem like a true terror to face on the battlefield, it has weaknesses to three common attacking types, Electric, Ice, and Rock, and it is further crippled by mediocre 79/70/80 defenses. This leaves Tornadus completely open to common spread moves, such as Blizzard and Rock Slide, and common threats such as Thundurus. Fortunately, the raw power of Acrobatics and the pressure Defiant can apply to the opponent more than makes up for whatever flaws Tornadus may have.</p>
[SET]
name: Defiant Attacker
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Taunt / Tailwind / U-turn
move 4: Protect
item: Flying Gem
ability: Defiant
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is Tornadus's defining set. Defiant allows it to laugh at Intimidate, which will only give its attacks more power. It can also gain power from Icy Wind, though the loss of Speed still hurts it. A Flying Gem-boosted Acrobatics is incredibly powerful; anything that doesn't resist it is going to take a lot of damage, and frail resists such as Thundurus will still take heavy damage as well. Superpower rounds out Tornadus's coverage, nailing Rock-types such as Tyranitar, who resist Acrobatics, very hard. The choice of moves in third slot is a difficult one. Taunt is generally the most common choice, stopping Trick Room, Tailwind, and more unfriendly status. Tailwind is also an option, allowing your team to move faster than the opposition, which can be very useful. U-turn stands out as an offensive option if your doesn't need any support, and also lets Tornadus switch out while doing some damage. Protect is in the fourth slot, as it allows Tornadus to guard itself against opposing attacks while its partner on the field handles things.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The spread is simple, with maximum Speed and Attack investment. For moves, Tornadus doesn't really have many other options. The third slot can be filled by Substitute, but this counteracts the effects of Defiant, and Tornadus has better options. Bulk Up can be used to boost Tornadus's power to higher levels and increase its Defense so that it doesn't have to worry as much about priority, but it is pretty situational, even with Rage Powder support, because Tornadus is weak to spread attacks such as Rock Slide and Blizzard.</p>
<p>This set pairs well with Steel-types, as they can switch in to dangerous Ice- and Rock-type attacks, emerge without a scratch, and blow the opposition to the ground with STAB moves. Metagross and Scizor are particularly useful, nailing threats to Tornadus, Tyranitar in particular, with Bullet Punch. Jirachi gets a mention, as it can use Follow Me to redirect Electric-type attacks; it also resists common spread moves that trouble Tornadus, such as Blizzard and Rock Slide. Heatran is another good choice, especially against Ice-types, though it rarely runs a Steel-type STAB move. Lightningrod is an ability Tornadus can work well with, redirecting Electric-type attacks away from it. Unfortunately, very few Pokemon have this ability, and the best users of it are Rhyperior, Rhydon, and Manectric, who have some crippling weaknesses; Rhyperior also prefers Solid Rock in most cases. Ground-types that are not deathly weak to Rotom-W are good teammates as well, since they can freely spam STAB Earthquake to deliver heavy damage to Rock- and Steel-types. Mold Breaker Excadrill and Garchomp are the best Pokemon to pair with Tornadus that fit the bill. Mold Breaker Excadrill, in particular, ignores Rotom-W's ability and can easily dispose of it with an Earthquake; making a solid team with Mold Breaker Excadrill is very difficult, though. This set works well with anything that hates Intimidate, as it will make Intimidate Pokemon risky to send in, allowing Tornadus's partners to work without worry of their attacks being weakened. Fighting-types have good offensive synergy with Tornadus as well; Terrakion, Hitmontop, Conkeldurr, Breloom, and others work very well with it, taking out potentially hazardous Ice- and Rock-types with their Fighting-type STAB attacks. Hydreigon can be useful, as it is able to deal heavy damage to bulkier Pokemon such as Cresselia and Rotom-W with a Dark Pulse and Draco Meteor, respectively.</p>
[SET]
name: Tailwind Support
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Superpower / Taunt
move 3: Tailwind
move 4: Protect / Substitute
item: Flying Gem
ability: Prankster
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set aims to make the most of Tornadus's other ability: Prankster. Thanks to Prankster, Tailwind goes up with priority, meaning Tornadus will almost always get Tailwind up. It also gives Tornadus access to priority Taunt, which helps shut down opposing Trick Room and Thunder Wave users, which a Tailwind team hates, making Tornadus a great team supporter. Acrobatics is the STAB attack of choice, dealing heavy damage to a variety of threats. Superpower can be used in slot 2, rounding out coverage, but Taunt is an option here as well. Substitute is useful on this set because it does not have Defiant, and most opponents would not dare to bring in their Intimidate-user on the turn Tornadus sets up a Substitute.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Rain Dance is an option here, allowing Tornadus either support a rain team or mess with opposing weather. While you may want to use Hurricane on this set, Acrobatics does not rely on rain to hit, and thus it is the better option, especially due to the fact that it can OHKO Amoonguss and Latios while Hurricane can't. In general, this set pairs well with Pokemon with middling Speed; Heracross, Chandelure, and Mamoswine all appreciate Tailwind support. Steel-type attackers also make good teammates. Pokemon such as Scizor, Metagross, Bisharp, and Heatran resist Rock- and Ice-type attacks that Tornadus hates, and can strike Ice- and Rock-types back with high-powered Steel-type attacks. Fighting-type attackers such as Terrakion, Hitmontop, and Breloom will also make great teammates; Breloom particularly loves a Tailwind boost, as it allows Breloom to cripple dangerous threats with Spore. Hitmontop can also provide Fake Out support, allowing Tailwind to be set safely. Tornadus also pairs well with Ground-types, such as Garchomp and Mold Breaker Excadrill, both of which can spam Earthquake without worrying about injuring Tornadus. They both greatly appreciate the Speed boost to outrun the likes of Latios and Terrakion, and have effective offensive synergy with Tornadus's Acrobatics. Hydreigon is also a good option, as it can take out threats to Tornadus with a Dragon Gem-boosted Draco Meteor and dent Trick Room setters such as Cresselia with Dark Pulse.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Tornadus has a variety of options. Icy Wind can be used to slow the opposition down. Unfortunately, Tailwind provides more Speed control, and there is little need for both in most cases. Air Slash, Heat Wave, and Grass Knot are all viable special attacking options, though in general, Tornadus's role is one of a physical attacker. Foul Play could see use on a bulkier set, dealing heavy damage to opposing attackers, but a bulky support set is outclassed by Thundurus in most cases. Role Play and Swagger are two great options for the Prankster set; Role Play can copy Drizzle, Sand Stream, or another ability off of a partner, resetting weather and helping your team in a weather war, but it can only be used once before Tornadus has to switch out. Swagger is a great move choice because it can give the opposition a lot of trouble from confusion, but it is basically a 50/50 coin flip, and is often as risky as it is rewarding. Still, it can be used on a partner with a Lum Berry or Persim Berry, essentially giving them a free +2 Attack boost before their assault. Yache Berry, Wacan Berry, and Charti Berry can be used to offset its weaknesses, but Tornadus prefers holding a Flying Gem for Acrobatics.</p>
<p>An entirely different set involving Prankster Rain Dance and Hurricane can be used. This is probably one of the best special sets Tornadus can run; utilizing a moveset of Hurricane / Focus Blast / Rain Dance / Tailwind, with an EV spread of 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe and a Timid Nature. Flying Gem and Damp Rock are both decent item choices for this set. Unfortunately, Thundurus outclasses this set too, and in general, Tornadus is best used as a physical attacker, since that is a role Thundurus, its life-long rival, cannot fill.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>The easiest way to beat Tornadus is by using an Electric-type. Bulky Thundurus is probably the best, as it can nail Tornadus with a Prankster Thunder Wave (assuming Tornadus is running a Defiant set) and finish it off with a Thunderbolt. Rotom-W and Zapdos are also great choices to put a stop to Tornadus's shenanigans, as they can both OHKO it with a Thunderbolt. Ice-types such as Kyurem and Kyurem-Black are also great choices to put a stop to Tornadus. Faster Ice-types, such as Weavile, Choice Scarf Cloyster, and Choice Scarf Abomasnow, can take out Tornadus before it can hit back; Mamoswine and Abomasnow can also deal heavy damage through Ice Shard, though Abomasnow will need to watch out for Acrobatics. Cloyster and Mamoswine additionally get special mentions, as Icicle Spear will tear through a Prankster Tornadus's Substitute.</p>
<p>Rock-types that can tank a Superpower will also work out nicely if they get a safe switch in; Chople Tyranitar is an example of this. Like Ice-types, speedy Rock-types, such as Scarf Tyranitar and Aerodactyl, can take Tornadus down before it can attack. Terrakion can also be a large issue, especially if it is holding a Choice Scarf, though it will need some investment to tank a Flying Gem Acrobatics or Superpower. A less efficient way to beat Tornadus is Intimidate, which can weaken Prankster sets; however, you have to be sure that Tornadus is using Prankster, as Defiant sets will gain a boost from Intimidate and put you in a very bad situation. Additionally, Steel-types that can tank Superpower, such as Metagross and Jirachi, will also put a stop to Tornadus, as they can tank its attacks and hit hard in return.</p>
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