[SET]
name: Physically Defensive
move 1: Roost
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Heat Wave / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Hidden Power Grass / Roar
item: Leftovers
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With only two weaknesses, good stats overall, Roost for recovery, and Pressure to waste opponents' PP, this Zapdos makes a great tank. You can come in with relative safety on many of the top OU sweepers, including Metagross, Heracross, Lucario, and Gyarados, and various tanks and walls like Hippowdon and Gliscor. They can all pack super-effective moves though (a Stone Edge from Heracross, Gyarados, or Lucario is the most threatening), but Zapdos will still survive at least one hit at full health and can Roost off the damage incurred. Make sure that slower Pokemon like Hippowdon and Metagross don't catch on and Earthquake on the same turn Zapdos Roosts, though.</p>
<p>With Heat Wave, Zapdos can run Hidden Power Grass over Hidden Power Ice, losing super-effective coverage on Dragonite, Gliscor, and Salamence, but gaining the ability to beat its biggest counter, Swampert. Heat Wave hits Steel-types such as Magnezone, Scizor, and Metagross for super-effective damage. However, if you wish to use only two attacks and a support move such as Roar in the last slot, it is warned to use Hidden Power Ice to obtain better coverage with only two moves. Be advised that to beat Scizor, Heat Wave is needed, or Scizor can Roost off the damage dealt by a neutral Thunderbolt. As for other support options that are viable over Heat Wave, Zapdos has access to Thunder Wave, Light Screen, Toxic, and U-turn, all of which are about equally useful, depending on what your team needs. Discharge is a decent option over Thunderbolt to incur status on your opponent's team, especially considering that Zapdos's handy bulkiness allows it to attack quite often.</p>
<p>The EV spread is focused on Defense to absorb hits from the Pokemon mentioned in the opening paragraph. This makes Zapdos one of the most reliable Scizor counters, resisting all of its standard attacks and hitting back with a super-effective Heat Wave.</p>
[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Roost
move 4: Sleep Talk / Light Screen
move 2: Thunderbolt / Discharge
move 3: Heat Wave / Hidden Power Ice
item: Leftovers
nature: Calm
evs: 252 HP / 220 SpD / 36 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is similar to the Defensive Roost set mentioned above, but due to a spread focused more on Special Defense, it plays much differently. This makes switching into Shaymin-S and Heatran much easier, sponging neutral or resisted attacks then Roosting off the damage. Be careful of Seed Flare's Special Defense drops from Shaymin-S, though, as you will be worn down eventually before you can stall it out of PP. In addition to Heatran and Shaymin-S, Zapdos also makes a good switch-in to special threats such as Yanmega, Gengar, Milotic, Roserade, and Togekiss. In particular, Gengar will fail to 2HKO with Life Orb Hidden Power Ice or Choice Specs Shadow Ball. Likewise, Zapdos can take attacks from Shaymin-S with ease, with its Hidden Power Ice 3HKOing even after Stealth Rock damage.</p>
<p>With a specially defensive spread, Zapdos can come in on many common sleep inducers with very little risk, making Sleep Talk a great option. The list includes Yanmega, Gengar, Milotic, Roserade, Bronzong, and Breloom (watch out for the occasional Stone Edge, though). If Sleep Talk doesn't appeal to you, a support move such as Thunder Wave, Roar, or Toxic can work in that slot; Light Screen gets special mention as it can work to sponge special attacks even better. Roost is Zapdos's best option for healing, as it is a quite reliable method of recovery. </p>
<p>Discharge is a pretty good alternative over Thunderbolt on this Zapdos. The low damage output doesn't really hinder Zapdos much as it isn't sweeping anything with a set like this anyway, and the 30% paralysis rate is welcome. Stick with Thunderbolt if your team is carrying Toxic Spikes though. Heat Wave is useful on this set to allow to to beat Steel-types, the aforementioned, sleep-inducing Pokémon, and prominent special attackers such as Shaymin-S. Hidden Power Ice can be used, as it hits many of Zapdos's Fire-weak targets as well, but Heat Wave's ability to hit threats such as Scizor in a pinch makes it a more practical option. </p>
[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Offensive Zapdos can be quite a threat to teams that expect a weaker, more defensive Zapdos. The given attacks provide surprisingly good coverage in OU and with Zapdos's massive Special Attack can wreak quite some havoc. Add in the fact that Zapdos is already pretty bulky and has the ability to Roost off damage it takes and you'll find it surprisingly difficult to beat Zapdos.</p>
<p>Life Orb is the recommended item for the extra power, but Leftovers is somewhat viable as well for the extra bulk. If Swampert is of little concern Hidden Power Grass can be dropped for Hidden Power Ice for a psuedo-BoltBeam combo.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
move 3: Heat Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Choice Scarf / Choice Specs
nature: Timid
evs: 80 HP / 252 SpA / 176 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Scarf Zapdos is meant to lead, and is meant to give issues to common leads like Gyarados, Salamence, Gengar, Yanmega, and Ninjask (if they decide not to Protect first turn). If the opposing lead is not a great match up, Zapdos can U-turn away to the appropriate counter. Hidden Power Ice is chosen because it complements the Electric STAB well, and offers the chance to revenge kill Dragonite and Salamence. If defeating Swampert, Rhyperior, and Gastrodon is of absolute importance, Hidden Power Grass can be chosen in this slot as well.</p>
<p>With Heat Wave, Zapdos has a reliable way of revenge killing Scizor, Magnezone, Lucario, and Metagross, as opposed to relying on Thunder Wave to cripple them or just U-turning out.</p>
<p>The EVs given outspeed give 462 Speed, enough to outspeed +Speed Choice Scarf Pokemon with a Base 90 Speed stat, in addition to Jolly Ninjask before a boost. 80 HP allows Zapdos to retain an odd HP stat of 341 to allow it 4 switches into Stealth Rock with 1 HP left over, assuming it doesn't take a hit.</p>
<p>Choice Specs is a viable item on this set, because 349 Special Attack is nothing to scoff at when its boosted by Choice Specs. 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe would be more ideal EVs for a Choice Specs set, allowing it to outspeed everything up to neutral Base 112 Pokemon.
[SET]
name: SubRoost
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Roost
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Toxic / Hidden Power Ice / Baton Pass
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 160 SpD / 96 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Zapdos's best way of annoying the opponent is stalling them out with Substitute and Roost when Toxic Spikes are up, and it does quite a good job at it. The primary aim of this set is to be used in conjunction with Toxic Spikes, rack up poison damage on some of Zapdos's usual switch-ins, and waste your opponent's PP, while taking advantage of Pressure. This includes Sleep Talk Heatran, non-Cleric Blissey, some Snorlax, and Tyranitar. Substitute and Roost used wisely will keep you at high health while blocking status.</p>
<p>Almost all Flying Pokemon immune to Toxic Spikes will fall to Zapdos' STAB Thunderbolt, or in Gliscor's case, Toxic or Hidden Power Ice. However, if you don't use Toxic or Hidden Power Ice, you can Baton Pass to get in another Pokemon that can beat Gliscor. Toxic has additional usefullness in poisoning those Pokemon immune to Toxic Spikes. Few Steel Pokemon can reliably switch in (with the exception of Sleep Talking Lava Plume Heatran and Special Defense oriented Jirachi), as Adamant Life Orb Lucario is outsped and 2HKOed provided he attacks, Bronzong and Forretress cannot touch Zapdos, Metagross without Ice Punch can be outstalled and worn down with Thunderbolt, and Empoleon stands very little chance.</p>
<p>This version of Zapdos outspeeds Adamant Lucario and can take multiple hits from it. It's the same story with Choice Heracross, as long as you don't switch into Stone Edge. As long as one of Tyranitar's Stone Edges misses, Zapdos can outstall Tyranitar; however, don't rely on the miss. Zapdos does a good job outstalling most walls and outspeeding many Pokemon. It also gets a free Substitute if it comes in on a locked Earthquake from Choice Band Tyranitar, Snorlax, or Mamoswine. The same goes for Heatran's Choiced Earth Power.</p>
<p>Finally, with its Pressure ability, Zapdos can handle the "safer" switch-ins like Cresselia, Cleric Blissey and Sleep Talking Snorlax by PP stalling them until they Struggle.</p>
[SET]
name: Agility Sweeper
move 1: Agility
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Heat Wave / Roost / Baton Pass
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Pressure
nature: Modest
evs: 140 HP / 252 SpA / 116 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although Zapdos has superb Special Attack and better-than-average defenses, its mediocre Speed can cause it some trouble in a metagame filled with faster threats and enemy Pokemon equipped with Choice Scarf. This slight problem, however, can be fixed with the use of Agility, allowing it to outspeed virtually every threat in the metagame.</p>
<p>Thunderbolt serves as Zapdos's most reliable attack. Ground-types are hit for super effective damage with both Hidden Power Grass and Hidden Power Ice. Although it may seem that Ice should be the better choice thanks to high usage of threats such as Salamence and Shaymin-S, Salamence is already 2HKOed by Thunderbolt, meaning it is usually better to hit Swampert, who would otherwise be Zapdos's number one counter. Shaymin-S, along with Scizor, Metagross, and Bronzong, are hit by Heat Wave, which gives good coverage with Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Grass. Hidden Power Ice is still an option over Hidden Power Grass; however, it is slightly inferior because of the coverage you lose in exchange for hitting Salamence and Shaymin-S harder. Hidden Power Ice makes a better two-move combination with Thunderbolt if you want to opt for a support move in Zapdos's last slot. Roost is viable and can help recover lost HP due to Life Orb, weather effects, and Stealth Rock. When you are done with sweeping with Zapdos, Baton Pass is a decent option in the last slot so that your Agility can be put to better use by a teammate.</p>
<p>Life Orb is generally the most useful item in order to maximize damage, although Leftovers can be used for a slightly bulkier Zapdos. For a balance between power and bulk, Expert Belt is a decent choice, especially since Zapdos gets good coverage with the given moveset. The given EVs provide Zapdos with 265 Speed, allowing it to outspeed Modest Choice Scarf Shaymin-S after an Agility, as well Timid Choice Scarf Gengar. Only 108 Speed EVs are actually necessary to beat Timid Choice Scarf Gengar, but as Scarf Shaymin-S only requires an investment of 8 more EVs, the cost is very much worth it; the 8 EVs would seldom be as significant in HP. Special Attack is then maxed out with a Modest nature, with the remaining EVs dumped into HP. Be warned that the given HP EVs, Zapdos ends up with 356 HP, which is divisible by 4, meaning that Zapdos would faint on the fourth switch-in to Stealth Rock. That situation, however, is rare thanks to Life Orb or Leftovers and the prevalence of Sandstorm.</p>
[SET]
name: Agility Baton Passer
move 1: Agility
move 2: Baton Pass
move 3: Thunderbolt / Charge Beam
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
item: Leftovers
nature: Modest
evs: 252 HP / 132 Def / 84 SpA / 40 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Set up an Agility while your opponent switches to a Zapdos counter, then Baton Pass to a threatening sweeper that could use help in the Speed department. Good examples would be Rampardos, Marowak, Rhyperior, and Metagross. Physical attackers are often the best choices as they scare off Blissey, who is a very common switch into Zapdos, and do well against generic Electrics like Jolteon, which also commonly switch into Zapdos. Should you attempt a pass to a special attacker, Charge Beam is an option over Thunderbolt, because if you manage to get that Special Attack boost, you can Baton Pass that as well.</p>
<p>Note that Hidden Power Grass is listed here, as it will maim Swampert, who will otherwise wall you easily and Roar away your boosts.</p>
<p>Roost can be used over Hidden Power for two main reasons. The first one is that getting a good Baton Pass Zapdos from XD is a pain to begin with, and one with a decent Hidden Power can drive you mad. The second is that you might want to allow Zapdos to pull off more Baton Passes.</p>
<p>This set has a defensive set-up. You can afford to cut down on Speed here because you will be outspeeding everything after Agility except things like Speed Boosted Ninjask/Yanmega, or Choice Scarfed Pokemon that are already very fast. The 40 Speed EVs recommended allow you to beat Jolly Tyranitar even if your Speed IV is 30 (because of Hidden Power). The Defense is here so you can take some hits from Pokemon like Gyarados or Metagross, but you can shift it to Special Defense so you stand a better chance against Starmie, Suicune, and other special attackers.</p>
[SET]
name: Substitute Baton Passer
move 1: Thunderbolt / Charge Beam
move 2: Substitute
move 3: Baton Pass
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
item: Leftovers
nature: Modest
evs: 252 HP / 52 SpA / 204 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The same idea as above, but with Substitute: set it up while your opponent switches out, then Baton Pass to something that benefits greatly from it. For example, if your opponent brings in a Blissey that lacks Calm Mind and a bunch of Special Attack EVs, you can Baton Pass to Focus Punch Gengar. Ice Beam will not break the Substitute and you are free to Focus Punch away. Another situation could be your opponent bringing in a Swampert without Rock Slide or Stone Edge, where you can Baton Pass to Gyarados, Intimidate Swampert and get a risk-free Dragon Dance in. Roost can be used over Hidden Power, for the same reasons mentioned in the Agility Baton Passing set.</p>
<p>The EVs have been shifted to Speed to make sure you can Baton Pass out before your opponent attacks Zapdos and breaks his Substitute. Timid with 152 Speed EVs is a good option as well as it beats any Salamence without a Speed boosting nature. The other important stat to boost for this kind of Zapdos is HP, because it will make for larger Substitutes.</p>
[SET]
name: MS Dos
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Hidden Power Ice
move 3: Metal Sound
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb
nature: Modest / Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Zapdos makes a splendid tank and support partner, one should not easily forget about its good 100 base Speed and extremely threatening 125 base Special Attack. The idea of this set is pretty simple: stay safe until late-game, kill or wear down Zapdos' counters if your opponent has them, then come in on an Earthquake or after a KO and start dishing out damage. Pretty much like any other sweeper, really. Metal Sound is here because after one use, Thunderbolt averages about 40% or 47% damage to Blissey, depending on her EV spread. That means that with some residual damage (Stealth Rock, Spikes, and/or Sand Stream), Zapdos may actually manage to beat Blissey. Calm Mind and/or Ice Beam will make it a lot tougher though.</p>
<p>Hidden Power Ice is highly recommended on this Zapdos, as it provides superior type coverage when compared to its Grass equivalent. Swampert, (the main target of Hidden Power Grass) is 2HKOed (60 - 70% damage against standard Swampert) by Hidden Power Ice after Metal Sound. Most Celebi are OHKOed by HP Ice after a Metal Sound.</p>
<p>Roost is as good as ever for restoring lost HP during a botched sweep attempt if you want Zapdos to retreat to the backlines, so it can come back later to try again. Obviously, it helps to regain HP lost from Life Orb too. Substitute can help you check what your opponent is doing or wait out Poison damage. Roar can be used if you've got Stealth Rock or Spikes down on the opponent. It actually works pretty well if your opponent isn't staying in after you use Metal Sound—Roar on their switch for double pleasure.</p>
<p>Life Orb is suggested to beef up Zapdos' power, and Roost can help to get back lost HP. Leftovers is a good alternative if you want your Zapdos to be a little bulkier.</p>
<p>EVs are focused in Special Attack and Speed to increase sweeping potential. Modest gives more power, while Timid guarantees Zapdos will outrun the likes of Porygon-Z and Electivire. You can drop some Speed EVs for more HP if you wish. 270 (Adamant Heracross) or 280 (Adamant Lucario) are good benchmarks, although you can go as low as 244/245 to beat Jolly Tyranitar.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>As mentioned before, Zapdos' movepool is bigger than that of most Electrics, but nothing to write home about. The only other moves worth mentioning have been put into sets, but are worth considering in others if you find yourself having some extra space.</p>
<p>Thunder Wave is good as ever to support a slower team, and Light Screen can help in the Special Defense department. It in no way makes up for having no good counter to any Special Attacker, but it can help as an emergency move or additional coverage.</p>
<p>Thunder can be used over Thunderbolt, most notably in defensive sets that can afford to miss once in a while. The 30% paralysis rate is welcome, but the 70% accuracy is less spectacular. It also has less PP than Thunderbolt, which is why using it on the Sleep Talk set is not a bad idea. The same 30% paralysis rate is what makes Discharge a pretty good move, especially for a Zapdos that is planning on living for a while (those with Roost or Rest/Sleep Talk). Thunder can be especially useful on a set designated to set up Rain Dance for a Rain Dance-themed team. With a Damp Rock equipped, Zapdos can set up Rain Dance for 8 turns helping both itself, as Thunder has perfect accuracy under Rainy weather, and its teammates </p>
<p>A Choice Band set is viable, though not recommended. With only Drill Peck, U-turn, Steel Wing, and the usual Normal-types moves Zapdos doesn't have the movepool to use CB effectively. The best you can hope for is getting in a more powerful than usual hit with U-turn against an incoming Tyranitar.</p>
[Hidden Power: Ice vs. Grass]
<p>Although it has been touched upon a few times during the analysis, the decision of which Hidden Power to use on Zapdos bears closer examination. Grass is generally the superior choice in terms of coverage. When using Heat Wave, Zapdos gets great coverage with Hidden Power Grass and Thunderbolt. When considering that on offensive Zapdos, Thunderbolt 2HKOs Salamence, the only coverage that you lose by switching to Grass is Gliscor, who is not a big problem for Zapdos due to Gliscor's mediocre Special Defense. When using a set with room for three offensive moves, Thunderbolt, Heat Wave, and Hidden Power Grass is usually the best choice; likewise, on a set with room for two offensive moves, Hidden Power Ice is generally a better option to pair with Thunderbolt. Hidden Power can even be dropped altogether on a two-attack set in order to beat Roost Scizor, a feat only possible with Heat Wave. Grass is even acceptable on a defensive set, especially one with Baton Pass, in order to beat Swampert with Roar, who obviously ruins your attempts to Baton Pass.</p>
<p>If you're tearing your hair out trying to get a good Hidden Power Grass or Ice Zapdos for WiFi battles, there are a few acceptable (although admittedly inferior) alternatives if your patience is wearing thin. Water hits Camerupt and Steelix, although both are rare in OU battles, and you still get a super effective hit on the likes of Donphan and Hippowdon and a neutral attack on Magnezone. Ground is an unpleasant surprise for Electric-types like Electivire and Magnezone, and it dents Steelix, Rhyperior, Camerupt and Lanturn. Hidden Power Fighting smacks Tyranitar and Weavile around, and also hurts Steelix, Magnezone, Mamoswine, and Rhyperior. Flying will hurt Grass-types more than Ice thanks to the STAB boost and will also do acceptable damage to most Ground-types, who usually have poor Special Defense.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Generally, you'll want a defensive Zapdos to have maxed out HP and a ton in either of his defenses. If you're not sweeping or Baton Passing a Substitute, you should have a minimum stat of 245 in Speed so you can finish off a worn down Tyranitar at any time (unless it has a Dragon Dance in of course).</p>
<p>On sweeping sets, you should invest in Speed. 270 outspeeds Adamant Heracross, while 296 beats Jolly ones, however if you're going to invest that much Speed you may as well go for 299 to tie with Salamence and other 100 base Speed Pokémon that don't use +Speed natures. The Agility Sweeper is quite content with reaching 263 or 265 to beat Timid Choice Scarf Gengar or Modest Choice Scarf Shaymin-S, respectively, after an Agility. When using Timid, you should have a minimum of 307 Speed, enabling Zapdos to outrun max Speed Lucario and Porygon-Z. Beyond that, Zapdos can't hit any other significant "magic numbers" for Speed, besides 318 to outrun rarely +Speed natured Electivire. Obviously stack Special Attack if you're using the more attack minded sets (Special Sweeper, Choice Specs), but you don't need that if you're going defensive or using Baton Pass.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Zapdos has tremendous typing, which includes resistances or immunities to the most common moves of top-tier OU threats such as Scizor and Shaymin-S. Although its Electric / Flying typing also forces it to swallow 25% damage every time he comes in when Stealth Rock is on the field, Roost makes up for that loss. Physically defensive Zapdos is one of the best Scizor counters, while specially defensive variants counter Shaymin-S quite well. Zapdos can also try its hand at countering Gyarados with a bunch of defensive investment, and in the meantime take on some other annoying physical hard-hitters, though it must be wary of Stone Edge or a boosted Ice Fang. </p>
<p>Despite a few flaws, Zapdos is still a very effective Pokemon. Whether it is used as a tank, Baton Passer, or special attacker, the electric bird is a fantastic asset to a team.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Blissey stops any kind of Special Attacking done by Zapdos cold, and Snorlax to a lesser extent; although both must be careful with the rare Metal Sound user. Regice can do well against sets that do not carry Heat Wave, threatening STAB, super effective Ice Beams. Electivire, Jolteon, and Lanturn can benefit from coming into Thunderbolt or Thunder Wave from Zapdos and get rid of him with their neutral Thunderbolts (or in Lanturn's case, Ice Beam) while Zapdos is stuck to using Heat Wave (in Electivire's and Jolteon's case) or Hidden Power (in Lanturn's case) against them. Other Electrics like Raikou and Ampharos work with this principle as well, but they don't benefit from being Thunderbolted.</p>
<p>Flygon and Gliscor have a relatively easy time against a Zapdos without Hidden Power Ice. Swampert and Rhyperior can wall a Zapdos without Hidden Power Grass. Camerupt does a fair bit of damage to Zapdos with Fire or Rock moves and really only cares about Hidden Power Water. Grass-types such as Celebi or Meganium can do well against some Zapdos, but the prevalence of Heat Wave and U-turn means they need to watch out. Steelix also does alright against versions that lack Heat Wave, and even boasts an immunity to Toxic.</p>
<p>With Sand Stream boosting its Special Defense, Tyranitar makes an excellent counter, particularly the specially defensive versions. Although Zapdos can conceivably stall out Stone Edge's low PP (Pressure only gives Tyranitar 4 chances to use it), Tyranitar will beat Zapdos by using Crunch. Initially, Crunch approximately breaks even with Roost's healing, but once Tyranitar obtains a Defense drop, it wins the matchup. Regirock in a sandstorm performs similarly, though Tyranitar is more efficient due to its Sand Stream ability.</p>
<p>While walling Zapdos is nice, you will usually need some decent power behind a super effective move to win the war against one with Roost or Rest though, because Pressure will bite you. Better hope you're using Ice Beam against a Bold Zapdos or Ice Punch against a Calm one too. Earthquake helps against Zapdos if it's using Roost.</p>
name: Physically Defensive
move 1: Roost
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Heat Wave / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Hidden Power Grass / Roar
item: Leftovers
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 220 Def / 36 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With only two weaknesses, good stats overall, Roost for recovery, and Pressure to waste opponents' PP, this Zapdos makes a great tank. You can come in with relative safety on many of the top OU sweepers, including Metagross, Heracross, Lucario, and Gyarados, and various tanks and walls like Hippowdon and Gliscor. They can all pack super-effective moves though (a Stone Edge from Heracross, Gyarados, or Lucario is the most threatening), but Zapdos will still survive at least one hit at full health and can Roost off the damage incurred. Make sure that slower Pokemon like Hippowdon and Metagross don't catch on and Earthquake on the same turn Zapdos Roosts, though.</p>
<p>With Heat Wave, Zapdos can run Hidden Power Grass over Hidden Power Ice, losing super-effective coverage on Dragonite, Gliscor, and Salamence, but gaining the ability to beat its biggest counter, Swampert. Heat Wave hits Steel-types such as Magnezone, Scizor, and Metagross for super-effective damage. However, if you wish to use only two attacks and a support move such as Roar in the last slot, it is warned to use Hidden Power Ice to obtain better coverage with only two moves. Be advised that to beat Scizor, Heat Wave is needed, or Scizor can Roost off the damage dealt by a neutral Thunderbolt. As for other support options that are viable over Heat Wave, Zapdos has access to Thunder Wave, Light Screen, Toxic, and U-turn, all of which are about equally useful, depending on what your team needs. Discharge is a decent option over Thunderbolt to incur status on your opponent's team, especially considering that Zapdos's handy bulkiness allows it to attack quite often.</p>
<p>The EV spread is focused on Defense to absorb hits from the Pokemon mentioned in the opening paragraph. This makes Zapdos one of the most reliable Scizor counters, resisting all of its standard attacks and hitting back with a super-effective Heat Wave.</p>
[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Roost
move 4: Sleep Talk / Light Screen
move 2: Thunderbolt / Discharge
move 3: Heat Wave / Hidden Power Ice
item: Leftovers
nature: Calm
evs: 252 HP / 220 SpD / 36 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is similar to the Defensive Roost set mentioned above, but due to a spread focused more on Special Defense, it plays much differently. This makes switching into Shaymin-S and Heatran much easier, sponging neutral or resisted attacks then Roosting off the damage. Be careful of Seed Flare's Special Defense drops from Shaymin-S, though, as you will be worn down eventually before you can stall it out of PP. In addition to Heatran and Shaymin-S, Zapdos also makes a good switch-in to special threats such as Yanmega, Gengar, Milotic, Roserade, and Togekiss. In particular, Gengar will fail to 2HKO with Life Orb Hidden Power Ice or Choice Specs Shadow Ball. Likewise, Zapdos can take attacks from Shaymin-S with ease, with its Hidden Power Ice 3HKOing even after Stealth Rock damage.</p>
<p>With a specially defensive spread, Zapdos can come in on many common sleep inducers with very little risk, making Sleep Talk a great option. The list includes Yanmega, Gengar, Milotic, Roserade, Bronzong, and Breloom (watch out for the occasional Stone Edge, though). If Sleep Talk doesn't appeal to you, a support move such as Thunder Wave, Roar, or Toxic can work in that slot; Light Screen gets special mention as it can work to sponge special attacks even better. Roost is Zapdos's best option for healing, as it is a quite reliable method of recovery. </p>
<p>Discharge is a pretty good alternative over Thunderbolt on this Zapdos. The low damage output doesn't really hinder Zapdos much as it isn't sweeping anything with a set like this anyway, and the 30% paralysis rate is welcome. Stick with Thunderbolt if your team is carrying Toxic Spikes though. Heat Wave is useful on this set to allow to to beat Steel-types, the aforementioned, sleep-inducing Pokémon, and prominent special attackers such as Shaymin-S. Hidden Power Ice can be used, as it hits many of Zapdos's Fire-weak targets as well, but Heat Wave's ability to hit threats such as Scizor in a pinch makes it a more practical option. </p>
[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Offensive Zapdos can be quite a threat to teams that expect a weaker, more defensive Zapdos. The given attacks provide surprisingly good coverage in OU and with Zapdos's massive Special Attack can wreak quite some havoc. Add in the fact that Zapdos is already pretty bulky and has the ability to Roost off damage it takes and you'll find it surprisingly difficult to beat Zapdos.</p>
<p>Life Orb is the recommended item for the extra power, but Leftovers is somewhat viable as well for the extra bulk. If Swampert is of little concern Hidden Power Grass can be dropped for Hidden Power Ice for a psuedo-BoltBeam combo.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
move 3: Heat Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Choice Scarf / Choice Specs
nature: Timid
evs: 80 HP / 252 SpA / 176 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Scarf Zapdos is meant to lead, and is meant to give issues to common leads like Gyarados, Salamence, Gengar, Yanmega, and Ninjask (if they decide not to Protect first turn). If the opposing lead is not a great match up, Zapdos can U-turn away to the appropriate counter. Hidden Power Ice is chosen because it complements the Electric STAB well, and offers the chance to revenge kill Dragonite and Salamence. If defeating Swampert, Rhyperior, and Gastrodon is of absolute importance, Hidden Power Grass can be chosen in this slot as well.</p>
<p>With Heat Wave, Zapdos has a reliable way of revenge killing Scizor, Magnezone, Lucario, and Metagross, as opposed to relying on Thunder Wave to cripple them or just U-turning out.</p>
<p>The EVs given outspeed give 462 Speed, enough to outspeed +Speed Choice Scarf Pokemon with a Base 90 Speed stat, in addition to Jolly Ninjask before a boost. 80 HP allows Zapdos to retain an odd HP stat of 341 to allow it 4 switches into Stealth Rock with 1 HP left over, assuming it doesn't take a hit.</p>
<p>Choice Specs is a viable item on this set, because 349 Special Attack is nothing to scoff at when its boosted by Choice Specs. 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe would be more ideal EVs for a Choice Specs set, allowing it to outspeed everything up to neutral Base 112 Pokemon.
[SET]
name: SubRoost
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Roost
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Toxic / Hidden Power Ice / Baton Pass
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 160 SpD / 96 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Zapdos's best way of annoying the opponent is stalling them out with Substitute and Roost when Toxic Spikes are up, and it does quite a good job at it. The primary aim of this set is to be used in conjunction with Toxic Spikes, rack up poison damage on some of Zapdos's usual switch-ins, and waste your opponent's PP, while taking advantage of Pressure. This includes Sleep Talk Heatran, non-Cleric Blissey, some Snorlax, and Tyranitar. Substitute and Roost used wisely will keep you at high health while blocking status.</p>
<p>Almost all Flying Pokemon immune to Toxic Spikes will fall to Zapdos' STAB Thunderbolt, or in Gliscor's case, Toxic or Hidden Power Ice. However, if you don't use Toxic or Hidden Power Ice, you can Baton Pass to get in another Pokemon that can beat Gliscor. Toxic has additional usefullness in poisoning those Pokemon immune to Toxic Spikes. Few Steel Pokemon can reliably switch in (with the exception of Sleep Talking Lava Plume Heatran and Special Defense oriented Jirachi), as Adamant Life Orb Lucario is outsped and 2HKOed provided he attacks, Bronzong and Forretress cannot touch Zapdos, Metagross without Ice Punch can be outstalled and worn down with Thunderbolt, and Empoleon stands very little chance.</p>
<p>This version of Zapdos outspeeds Adamant Lucario and can take multiple hits from it. It's the same story with Choice Heracross, as long as you don't switch into Stone Edge. As long as one of Tyranitar's Stone Edges misses, Zapdos can outstall Tyranitar; however, don't rely on the miss. Zapdos does a good job outstalling most walls and outspeeding many Pokemon. It also gets a free Substitute if it comes in on a locked Earthquake from Choice Band Tyranitar, Snorlax, or Mamoswine. The same goes for Heatran's Choiced Earth Power.</p>
<p>Finally, with its Pressure ability, Zapdos can handle the "safer" switch-ins like Cresselia, Cleric Blissey and Sleep Talking Snorlax by PP stalling them until they Struggle.</p>
[SET]
name: Agility Sweeper
move 1: Agility
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Heat Wave / Roost / Baton Pass
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Pressure
nature: Modest
evs: 140 HP / 252 SpA / 116 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although Zapdos has superb Special Attack and better-than-average defenses, its mediocre Speed can cause it some trouble in a metagame filled with faster threats and enemy Pokemon equipped with Choice Scarf. This slight problem, however, can be fixed with the use of Agility, allowing it to outspeed virtually every threat in the metagame.</p>
<p>Thunderbolt serves as Zapdos's most reliable attack. Ground-types are hit for super effective damage with both Hidden Power Grass and Hidden Power Ice. Although it may seem that Ice should be the better choice thanks to high usage of threats such as Salamence and Shaymin-S, Salamence is already 2HKOed by Thunderbolt, meaning it is usually better to hit Swampert, who would otherwise be Zapdos's number one counter. Shaymin-S, along with Scizor, Metagross, and Bronzong, are hit by Heat Wave, which gives good coverage with Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Grass. Hidden Power Ice is still an option over Hidden Power Grass; however, it is slightly inferior because of the coverage you lose in exchange for hitting Salamence and Shaymin-S harder. Hidden Power Ice makes a better two-move combination with Thunderbolt if you want to opt for a support move in Zapdos's last slot. Roost is viable and can help recover lost HP due to Life Orb, weather effects, and Stealth Rock. When you are done with sweeping with Zapdos, Baton Pass is a decent option in the last slot so that your Agility can be put to better use by a teammate.</p>
<p>Life Orb is generally the most useful item in order to maximize damage, although Leftovers can be used for a slightly bulkier Zapdos. For a balance between power and bulk, Expert Belt is a decent choice, especially since Zapdos gets good coverage with the given moveset. The given EVs provide Zapdos with 265 Speed, allowing it to outspeed Modest Choice Scarf Shaymin-S after an Agility, as well Timid Choice Scarf Gengar. Only 108 Speed EVs are actually necessary to beat Timid Choice Scarf Gengar, but as Scarf Shaymin-S only requires an investment of 8 more EVs, the cost is very much worth it; the 8 EVs would seldom be as significant in HP. Special Attack is then maxed out with a Modest nature, with the remaining EVs dumped into HP. Be warned that the given HP EVs, Zapdos ends up with 356 HP, which is divisible by 4, meaning that Zapdos would faint on the fourth switch-in to Stealth Rock. That situation, however, is rare thanks to Life Orb or Leftovers and the prevalence of Sandstorm.</p>
[SET]
name: Agility Baton Passer
move 1: Agility
move 2: Baton Pass
move 3: Thunderbolt / Charge Beam
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
item: Leftovers
nature: Modest
evs: 252 HP / 132 Def / 84 SpA / 40 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Set up an Agility while your opponent switches to a Zapdos counter, then Baton Pass to a threatening sweeper that could use help in the Speed department. Good examples would be Rampardos, Marowak, Rhyperior, and Metagross. Physical attackers are often the best choices as they scare off Blissey, who is a very common switch into Zapdos, and do well against generic Electrics like Jolteon, which also commonly switch into Zapdos. Should you attempt a pass to a special attacker, Charge Beam is an option over Thunderbolt, because if you manage to get that Special Attack boost, you can Baton Pass that as well.</p>
<p>Note that Hidden Power Grass is listed here, as it will maim Swampert, who will otherwise wall you easily and Roar away your boosts.</p>
<p>Roost can be used over Hidden Power for two main reasons. The first one is that getting a good Baton Pass Zapdos from XD is a pain to begin with, and one with a decent Hidden Power can drive you mad. The second is that you might want to allow Zapdos to pull off more Baton Passes.</p>
<p>This set has a defensive set-up. You can afford to cut down on Speed here because you will be outspeeding everything after Agility except things like Speed Boosted Ninjask/Yanmega, or Choice Scarfed Pokemon that are already very fast. The 40 Speed EVs recommended allow you to beat Jolly Tyranitar even if your Speed IV is 30 (because of Hidden Power). The Defense is here so you can take some hits from Pokemon like Gyarados or Metagross, but you can shift it to Special Defense so you stand a better chance against Starmie, Suicune, and other special attackers.</p>
[SET]
name: Substitute Baton Passer
move 1: Thunderbolt / Charge Beam
move 2: Substitute
move 3: Baton Pass
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
item: Leftovers
nature: Modest
evs: 252 HP / 52 SpA / 204 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The same idea as above, but with Substitute: set it up while your opponent switches out, then Baton Pass to something that benefits greatly from it. For example, if your opponent brings in a Blissey that lacks Calm Mind and a bunch of Special Attack EVs, you can Baton Pass to Focus Punch Gengar. Ice Beam will not break the Substitute and you are free to Focus Punch away. Another situation could be your opponent bringing in a Swampert without Rock Slide or Stone Edge, where you can Baton Pass to Gyarados, Intimidate Swampert and get a risk-free Dragon Dance in. Roost can be used over Hidden Power, for the same reasons mentioned in the Agility Baton Passing set.</p>
<p>The EVs have been shifted to Speed to make sure you can Baton Pass out before your opponent attacks Zapdos and breaks his Substitute. Timid with 152 Speed EVs is a good option as well as it beats any Salamence without a Speed boosting nature. The other important stat to boost for this kind of Zapdos is HP, because it will make for larger Substitutes.</p>
[SET]
name: MS Dos
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Hidden Power Ice
move 3: Metal Sound
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb
nature: Modest / Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Zapdos makes a splendid tank and support partner, one should not easily forget about its good 100 base Speed and extremely threatening 125 base Special Attack. The idea of this set is pretty simple: stay safe until late-game, kill or wear down Zapdos' counters if your opponent has them, then come in on an Earthquake or after a KO and start dishing out damage. Pretty much like any other sweeper, really. Metal Sound is here because after one use, Thunderbolt averages about 40% or 47% damage to Blissey, depending on her EV spread. That means that with some residual damage (Stealth Rock, Spikes, and/or Sand Stream), Zapdos may actually manage to beat Blissey. Calm Mind and/or Ice Beam will make it a lot tougher though.</p>
<p>Hidden Power Ice is highly recommended on this Zapdos, as it provides superior type coverage when compared to its Grass equivalent. Swampert, (the main target of Hidden Power Grass) is 2HKOed (60 - 70% damage against standard Swampert) by Hidden Power Ice after Metal Sound. Most Celebi are OHKOed by HP Ice after a Metal Sound.</p>
<p>Roost is as good as ever for restoring lost HP during a botched sweep attempt if you want Zapdos to retreat to the backlines, so it can come back later to try again. Obviously, it helps to regain HP lost from Life Orb too. Substitute can help you check what your opponent is doing or wait out Poison damage. Roar can be used if you've got Stealth Rock or Spikes down on the opponent. It actually works pretty well if your opponent isn't staying in after you use Metal Sound—Roar on their switch for double pleasure.</p>
<p>Life Orb is suggested to beef up Zapdos' power, and Roost can help to get back lost HP. Leftovers is a good alternative if you want your Zapdos to be a little bulkier.</p>
<p>EVs are focused in Special Attack and Speed to increase sweeping potential. Modest gives more power, while Timid guarantees Zapdos will outrun the likes of Porygon-Z and Electivire. You can drop some Speed EVs for more HP if you wish. 270 (Adamant Heracross) or 280 (Adamant Lucario) are good benchmarks, although you can go as low as 244/245 to beat Jolly Tyranitar.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>As mentioned before, Zapdos' movepool is bigger than that of most Electrics, but nothing to write home about. The only other moves worth mentioning have been put into sets, but are worth considering in others if you find yourself having some extra space.</p>
<p>Thunder Wave is good as ever to support a slower team, and Light Screen can help in the Special Defense department. It in no way makes up for having no good counter to any Special Attacker, but it can help as an emergency move or additional coverage.</p>
<p>Thunder can be used over Thunderbolt, most notably in defensive sets that can afford to miss once in a while. The 30% paralysis rate is welcome, but the 70% accuracy is less spectacular. It also has less PP than Thunderbolt, which is why using it on the Sleep Talk set is not a bad idea. The same 30% paralysis rate is what makes Discharge a pretty good move, especially for a Zapdos that is planning on living for a while (those with Roost or Rest/Sleep Talk). Thunder can be especially useful on a set designated to set up Rain Dance for a Rain Dance-themed team. With a Damp Rock equipped, Zapdos can set up Rain Dance for 8 turns helping both itself, as Thunder has perfect accuracy under Rainy weather, and its teammates </p>
<p>A Choice Band set is viable, though not recommended. With only Drill Peck, U-turn, Steel Wing, and the usual Normal-types moves Zapdos doesn't have the movepool to use CB effectively. The best you can hope for is getting in a more powerful than usual hit with U-turn against an incoming Tyranitar.</p>
[Hidden Power: Ice vs. Grass]
<p>Although it has been touched upon a few times during the analysis, the decision of which Hidden Power to use on Zapdos bears closer examination. Grass is generally the superior choice in terms of coverage. When using Heat Wave, Zapdos gets great coverage with Hidden Power Grass and Thunderbolt. When considering that on offensive Zapdos, Thunderbolt 2HKOs Salamence, the only coverage that you lose by switching to Grass is Gliscor, who is not a big problem for Zapdos due to Gliscor's mediocre Special Defense. When using a set with room for three offensive moves, Thunderbolt, Heat Wave, and Hidden Power Grass is usually the best choice; likewise, on a set with room for two offensive moves, Hidden Power Ice is generally a better option to pair with Thunderbolt. Hidden Power can even be dropped altogether on a two-attack set in order to beat Roost Scizor, a feat only possible with Heat Wave. Grass is even acceptable on a defensive set, especially one with Baton Pass, in order to beat Swampert with Roar, who obviously ruins your attempts to Baton Pass.</p>
<p>If you're tearing your hair out trying to get a good Hidden Power Grass or Ice Zapdos for WiFi battles, there are a few acceptable (although admittedly inferior) alternatives if your patience is wearing thin. Water hits Camerupt and Steelix, although both are rare in OU battles, and you still get a super effective hit on the likes of Donphan and Hippowdon and a neutral attack on Magnezone. Ground is an unpleasant surprise for Electric-types like Electivire and Magnezone, and it dents Steelix, Rhyperior, Camerupt and Lanturn. Hidden Power Fighting smacks Tyranitar and Weavile around, and also hurts Steelix, Magnezone, Mamoswine, and Rhyperior. Flying will hurt Grass-types more than Ice thanks to the STAB boost and will also do acceptable damage to most Ground-types, who usually have poor Special Defense.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Generally, you'll want a defensive Zapdos to have maxed out HP and a ton in either of his defenses. If you're not sweeping or Baton Passing a Substitute, you should have a minimum stat of 245 in Speed so you can finish off a worn down Tyranitar at any time (unless it has a Dragon Dance in of course).</p>
<p>On sweeping sets, you should invest in Speed. 270 outspeeds Adamant Heracross, while 296 beats Jolly ones, however if you're going to invest that much Speed you may as well go for 299 to tie with Salamence and other 100 base Speed Pokémon that don't use +Speed natures. The Agility Sweeper is quite content with reaching 263 or 265 to beat Timid Choice Scarf Gengar or Modest Choice Scarf Shaymin-S, respectively, after an Agility. When using Timid, you should have a minimum of 307 Speed, enabling Zapdos to outrun max Speed Lucario and Porygon-Z. Beyond that, Zapdos can't hit any other significant "magic numbers" for Speed, besides 318 to outrun rarely +Speed natured Electivire. Obviously stack Special Attack if you're using the more attack minded sets (Special Sweeper, Choice Specs), but you don't need that if you're going defensive or using Baton Pass.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Zapdos has tremendous typing, which includes resistances or immunities to the most common moves of top-tier OU threats such as Scizor and Shaymin-S. Although its Electric / Flying typing also forces it to swallow 25% damage every time he comes in when Stealth Rock is on the field, Roost makes up for that loss. Physically defensive Zapdos is one of the best Scizor counters, while specially defensive variants counter Shaymin-S quite well. Zapdos can also try its hand at countering Gyarados with a bunch of defensive investment, and in the meantime take on some other annoying physical hard-hitters, though it must be wary of Stone Edge or a boosted Ice Fang. </p>
<p>Despite a few flaws, Zapdos is still a very effective Pokemon. Whether it is used as a tank, Baton Passer, or special attacker, the electric bird is a fantastic asset to a team.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Blissey stops any kind of Special Attacking done by Zapdos cold, and Snorlax to a lesser extent; although both must be careful with the rare Metal Sound user. Regice can do well against sets that do not carry Heat Wave, threatening STAB, super effective Ice Beams. Electivire, Jolteon, and Lanturn can benefit from coming into Thunderbolt or Thunder Wave from Zapdos and get rid of him with their neutral Thunderbolts (or in Lanturn's case, Ice Beam) while Zapdos is stuck to using Heat Wave (in Electivire's and Jolteon's case) or Hidden Power (in Lanturn's case) against them. Other Electrics like Raikou and Ampharos work with this principle as well, but they don't benefit from being Thunderbolted.</p>
<p>Flygon and Gliscor have a relatively easy time against a Zapdos without Hidden Power Ice. Swampert and Rhyperior can wall a Zapdos without Hidden Power Grass. Camerupt does a fair bit of damage to Zapdos with Fire or Rock moves and really only cares about Hidden Power Water. Grass-types such as Celebi or Meganium can do well against some Zapdos, but the prevalence of Heat Wave and U-turn means they need to watch out. Steelix also does alright against versions that lack Heat Wave, and even boasts an immunity to Toxic.</p>
<p>With Sand Stream boosting its Special Defense, Tyranitar makes an excellent counter, particularly the specially defensive versions. Although Zapdos can conceivably stall out Stone Edge's low PP (Pressure only gives Tyranitar 4 chances to use it), Tyranitar will beat Zapdos by using Crunch. Initially, Crunch approximately breaks even with Roost's healing, but once Tyranitar obtains a Defense drop, it wins the matchup. Regirock in a sandstorm performs similarly, though Tyranitar is more efficient due to its Sand Stream ability.</p>
<p>While walling Zapdos is nice, you will usually need some decent power behind a super effective move to win the war against one with Roost or Rest though, because Pressure will bite you. Better hope you're using Ice Beam against a Bold Zapdos or Ice Punch against a Calm one too. Earthquake helps against Zapdos if it's using Roost.</p>
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