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Overview
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After being deemed too powerful for RU, Tornadus is back for another round in UU. Thanks to its good Speed and mixed attacking stats, it is still a very strong offensive threat. Its ability Defiant lets it act as a wonderful Defog deterrent and gives it a niche in entry hazard-stacking offensive teams. Tornadus has a great physical movepool containing Acrobatics, Superpower, and the newly buffed Knock Off. On the special side, it can hit very hard with the strongest Hurricane in the tier and coverage moves like Heat Wave and Grass Knot. It can also take a more supportive role and support its team with Prankster Rain Dance and Taunt. That, along with Hurricane, makes it a staple on rain offense teams.
Unfortunately, Flying Gem is not released, forcing Tornadus to go without an item on physical sets, and Hurricane has bad accuracy outside of rain, hindering its special sets. It is also quite frail, weak to Stealth Rock, and slower than prominent threats such as Starmie, Aerodactyl, Azelf, and Raikou that can easily keep it in check.
Defiant Attacker
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name: Defiant Attacker
move 1: Acrobatics
move 2: Knock Off
move 3: Superpower / Heat Wave
move 4: U-turn
ability: Defiant
item: none
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Jolly / Naive
Moves
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Acrobatics is the strongest physical STAB move Tornadus has, and it deals heavy damage to offensive Pokemon such as Mienshao that it checks. Knock Off is very useful to weaken common switch-ins such as Swampert early-game, removing their precious Leftovers recovery. Superpower rounds off Tornadus's coverage, hitting Rock- and Steel -types and OHKOing Empoleon with a Defiant boost, though Heat Wave is usable to OHKO Forretress if Sturdy is broken and do a bit more damage to Mega Aggron, but be sure to use a Naive nature and move the 4 Special Defense EVs to Special Attack. U-turn gives your team momentum and deals chip damage to Slowbro and Mega Ampharos, Pokemon that Tornadus can't hope to break through. Grass Knot is a viable move in the last slot to hit Swampert, which otherwise would be a safe switch-in. Taunt can also be used over Grass Knot to prevent dangerous threats such as Rhyperior from setting up Stealth Rock, but it is very risky as your opponent can just attack Tornadus right off the bat.
Set Details
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The EVs and nature maximize Speed and power, allowing Tornadus to outspeed base 110 Speed Pokemon such as Froslass to 2HKO or U-turn on them, preventing them from setting up more than one layer of Spikes. With a positive Speed nature, Tornadus can also outspeed non-Choice Scarf Mienshao and Galvantula. Running no item gives Acrobatics maximum power; in any case, Flying Gem is unreleased. Defiant lets Tornadus take advantage of opposing Defoggers to get a +2 Attack boost to punish the opposing team. Prankster can be used if running Taunt, but it is the inferior option in most cases, as Defiant is the primary reason to use Tornadus on your team.
Usage Tips
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Tornadus's high Speed, offensive stats, and Flying typing lets it deal with a lot of threatening Pokemon for offensive teams, such as Mienshao and Shaymin. Acrobatics is the most powerful move Tornadus has, and it can be used to sweep late-game if the opposing team is weakened enough or break special walls expecting a special attack. Knock Off is usually the best move to go for early-game, especially if the opponent has Mega Ampharos or Rhyperior, as it helps to wear down switch-ins by removing their Leftovers and making them prone to being worn down by entry hazards. U-turn is the best move to use if the opponent has a hard counter, as staying in will give Rhyperior a free turn to set up Stealth Rock, limiting Tornadus's scouting capabilities while also stripping off a quarter of its health. Tornadus can switch into a Mew that is using Defog or Knock Off, but you must be careful of Will-O-Wisp. Tornadus also likes switching into bulky Defog Flygon as it usually only carries Earthquake as an attacking move, essentially forcing something to eat a +2 Acrobatics. Be careful against Crobat, Aerodactyl, and Empoleon, as they can do heavy damage with their STAB attacks or burn Tornadus if they predict correctly. The former two are particularly dangerous as they can outspeed and heavily damage (or OHKO in Aerodactyl's case) Tornadus, even if it switches into Defog.
Team Options
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This Tornadus set is a good choice on entry hazard-stacking teams to put pressure on most defensive Defog users, so entry hazard setters such as Froslass and Roserade are good partners. Electric-types such as Jolteon, Mega Ampharos, and Raikou scare the Defog users Tornadus can't beat, such as Aerodactyl and Crobat, and can form a VoltTurn core. Offensive Ground-types like Krookodile and Nidoking are good partners as they can come in after Tornadus uses U-turn against Electric-, Rock-, and Steel-types and fire off their STAB moves. These Pokemon also appreciate the Spikes support that is found on most teams using Tornadus.
Life Orb Attacker
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name: Life Orb Attacker
move 1: Hurricane / Air Slash
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Grass Knot
move 4: Tailwind / Knock Off / U-turn
ability: Prankster / Defiant
item: Life Orb / Expert Belt
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
nature: Timid / Naive
Moves
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Hurricane is the strongest move in Tornadus's arsenal and hits extremely hard coming off a base 125 Special Attack. However, it has awful accuracy outside of rain, so Air Slash is an acceptable alternative due to its flinch chance and decent power. Heat Wave hits Steel-types such as Mega Aggron and Metagross for decent damage, 2HKOing most of them as they switch in. Grass Knot rounds off the coverage, hitting Rock-types that resist Tornadus's other moves, and it is also the best option against bulky Water-types such as Swampert and Suicune. Tailwind in the last slot is an awesome option with Prankster, especially on offensive teams, as it is an emergency button against a Speed-boosting sweeper or an opportunity to clean late-game with a slower wallbreaker like Nidoking or Life Orb Krookodile. Knock Off is another good option in the last slot, as it deals heavy damage to Jirachi, which would otherwise easily wall this Tornadus variant, and Metagross, while crippling them by removing their item. U-turn is also really useful to get momentum against the aforementioned Pokemon, especially if running Expert Belt. It is used only for the momentum it provides, so feel free to use a Timid nature to let Tornadus take resisted special hits a bit better. Superpower hits Umbreon and Snorlax harder than any other move on the set, though it is not very strong without any investment and leaves Tornadus prone to priority moves. Taunt is always good on Prankster users, and Tornadus is no exception. However, most offensive teams Tornadus is used on appreciate Tailwind more.
Set Details
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The EVs maximize Tornadus's overall damage output and Speed. A Timid nature should be used with Tailwind or Taunt, while Naive with the 4 Defense EVs moved to Attack should be used if using Knock Off or U-turn. Life Orb is the preferred item to increase Tornadus's damage output. The recoil doesn't matter, as Tornadus folds against most strong neutral attacks anyway, but Expert Belt can be used as it lets Tornadus lure and 2HKO some Pokemon such as Rhyperior with the combination of Hurricane and the appropriate coverage move. Prankster is the preferred ability with Tailwind or Taunt, though Defiant should be used if running a physical move because of the potential boosts Knock Off and U-turn receive if Tornadus switches in on Defog.
Usage Tips
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This Tornadus usually acts as a wallbreaker, firing off powerful Hurricanes at the opposing team. Pokemon that resist Flying usually don't have reliable recovery, making them prone to being worn down by repeated Hurricanes and entry hazards, so feel free to spam it early-game. Use coverage moves only on predicted switches, as they are not powerful enough to OHKO healthy targets. Use U-turn if you predict a special wall like Umbreon or Florges coming in to maintain offensive momentum.
Team Options
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Rain Dance support allows Tornadus to fire off 100% accurate Hurricanes, so rain setters such as Sableye and Uxie are good partners. Be sure to also use some Swift Swim sweepers and Thunder users such as Kingdra, Kabutops, and Mega Ampharos to take advantage of that. Tornadus is great on these kinds of teams, thanks to its ability to hit Grass-types super effectively. Ground-types such as Nidoqueen, Nidoking, and Krookodile are good partners, as Tornadus has difficulty dealing with Electric-types; the former two also help against Florges. Powerful physical wallbreakers like Choice Band Heracross are useful partners as they can plow through special walls and benefit from Tornadus weakening physical walls.
Rain Support
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name: Rain Support
move 1: Rain Dance
move 2: Hurricane
move 3: Taunt / Grass Knot / Superpower
move 4: U-turn / Grass Knot / Superpower
ability: Prankster
item: Damp Rock
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
nature: Timid / Naive
Moves
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Rain Dance is the key move here because Tornadus is one of the most reliable rain setters in the tier thanks to Prankster. Hurricane is a strong STAB move that is super effective on Grass-types, a common defensive type that gives headaches to a lot of rain teams. Taunt stops entry hazard setters such as Froslass and Galvantula from doing their job, though this might be risky as most of them have a STAB move to hit Tornadus hard. Grass Knot is a great move to hit Swampert and bulky Water-types that threaten rain teams really hard, as well as Rock-types and the only other common weather setter, Hippowdon, for super effective damage on their special side. Superpower also has good coverage with Hurricane and hits Steel-types for great damage. For the last slot, U-turn is useful to bring in a rain sweeper in on predicted switches, but Knock Off is very useful to remove the item from common switch-ins like Jirachi and Metagross, which can generally take hits from Tornadus with ease. Tailwind is still a decent support option, but Rain Dance already doubles the Speed of Swift Swim users, so it's usually unnecessary.
Set Details
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Maximum Speed and Special Attack investment along with either a Timid or a Naive nature allow Tornadus to outspeed base 110 Pokemon like Froslass while still letting Tornadus hit as hard as possible. Timid should be used if not running Superpower, but if it is, a Naive nature should be used. Prankster is the best ability on this set as it almost guarantees that rain will be set up. Damp Rock is the preferred item to give eight turns of rain to your sweepers, though Life Orb is completely viable if your team has other rain setters.
Usage Tips
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Rain Dance is usually the first move to go for as it makes Hurricane 100% accurate and is the reason for using this set. Use Taunt if you are sure the opponent is going to use a support move or against Sableye to completely shut it down, but you should be careful of Knock Off as it will remove Damp Rock, and consequently, three turns of rain. Try not to waste rain turns attacking with Tornadus, and bring your sweepers in as soon as possible.
Team Options
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Swift Swim users are a priority in any rain team, so Kingdra, Kabutops, and Ludicolo are the best choices for this role, although Seismitoad can be used to deal with opposing Electric-types more easily. Electric-types can utilize the rain Tornadus summons to fire off off powerful Thunders, so Raikou and Mega Ampharos are good teammates as well. All these Pokemon also appreciate STAB Hurricane as it weakens their common counters, Grass-types. Other rain setters like Uxie, which can also set up Stealth Rock, and Sableye, which has Prankster Rain Dance, are good partners to make sure you have weather control throughout the game.
Other Options
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Choice Specs is usable to hit harder, but Tornadus really likes switching moves to break walls, and Hurricane is powerful enough with a Life Orb. Focus Blast might seem like a good option, but it is outclassed by Superpower as it is weaker against special walls and has awful accuracy. Substitute + Bulk Up is usable, but Tornadus finds setting up difficult and really likes to spam Knock Off early-game.
Checks & Counters
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**Electric-types** Bulky Electric-types such as defensive Mega Ampharos can take any hit Tornadus can dish out and OHKO it with a STAB move. More offensive ones like Raikou can take any hit, outspeed, and OHKO Tornadus, but they are more prone to being worn down throughout the game.
**Physical Walls** Defensive walls like Slowbro, Suicune, and Hippowdon can take multiple hits from the physical set, and the former even has Regenerator to make up for the loss of Leftovers and entry hazard damage.
**Special Walls** Florges and Mew are never 2HKOed by Hurricane without many entry hazards on the field, and they can stall it out with their reliable recovery moves. Umbreon and Snorlax are in the same boat, but they must be careful of Superpower.
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