Ubers Spotlight: Zygarde
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Art by DatHeatmor.
Introduction
Zygarde has been one of the best Pokémon in Ubers from the introduction of its Complete Forme in SM. Varying perspectives on Zygarde have existed and developed over the course of the generation, and they contributed to many variants of Zygarde in the current metagame, all of which are viable at their own right. Let's take a look at Zygarde's history and see how it ended up as one of the premier threats in Ubers today.
Expectations Before BST Reveal
When Zygarde-C's sprite was revealed before SM's release, the first impression players had on it was that it would be a much more powerful version of regular Zygarde, and most expected a significant improvement in bulk and Attack due to its significant increase in size and menacing appearance. Some Ubers players feared that they might have to face another situation where they would have to deal with a Pokémon as threatening as Mega Rayquaza. There was also a possibility that Zygarde could enter the battle in its Complete forme, with an ability that wouldn't be as horrendous as Aura Break. Most predictions on Zygarde-C before its stats were revealed assumed that it would essentially be an upgraded version of regular Zygarde in all aspects; however, it turned out that Zygarde needed to undergo Power Construct to achieve its Complete Forme and would gain massive HP stat and lose a bit of Speed after transformation, rather than gain any extra power.
Zygarde in SM and USM
Zygarde-C became one of the centers of attention after SM's introduction, and it was met with higher expectations than SM's cover legendaries, Solgaleo and Lunala. A physically defensive set was commonly used in SM, as the drastic increase in HP stood out the most to the players after Zygarde's Complete Forme was revealed, and it became one of the safest switch-ins to Ho-Oh and a rare defensive check to extremely powerful wallbreakers like Swords Dance Primal Groudon. What made defensive Zygarde-C so popular in SM despite its tendency to be passive was its ability to punish the majority of its checks. Glare punished almost all offensive checks that attempted to take advantage of or switch into Zygarde, and this became one of its best selling, along with its obscene bulk after transformation to bulkier balance teams. Though Zygarde-C maintained its popularity and secured its place very high on the Viability Ranking, its full potential was yet to be discovered.
Prior to USM, many users overlooked Zygarde-C's offensive potential. Despite its access to one of the best attack moves in the game, Thousand Arrows, base 100 Attack made Zygarde-C seem like a rather underwhelming offensive threat that takes too long to set up. However, Zygarde-C turned out to be more than capable of pulling off a few Dragon Dances thanks to its ability to justify Substitute in its moveset very easily due to Thousand Arrows's fantastic coverage leaving more room for Zygarde-C to run a variety of other moves. Zygarde-C's immense bulk also means most defensive foes will struggle to break Substitute in one hit, and lets it easily overwhelm weakened teams once its checks have been dealt with. Due to its flexible moveset, Zygarde-C can overcome its lack of initial power by taking advantage of various team support. Groundium Z variants or others that lack much team support can invest a lot in Attack while variants that benefit from more specialized team support like Spikes and Toxic Spikes can invest more in bulk to fully take advantage of Leftovers recovery and increase the overall chance for the setup to be successful. Even against its checks, Zygarde-C can punish them with Dragon Tail, Glare, or even Thousand Waves to counteract against them appropriately.
About Dragon Dance Sets
- Commonly Used Moves: Dragon Dance, Thousand Arrows, Substitute, Dragon Tail, Glare
- Rarer Moves: Outrage, Extreme Speed, Thousand Waves, Rest, Protect
Dragon Dance Zygarde has a very high number of variations due to the number of EV spreads it can viably opt for and its wide movepool that enables it to punish its checks in different ways. That said, Dragon Dance, Thousand Arrows, and Substitute are mandatory for any Zygarde attempting to sweep to avoid status moves and safely activate Power Construct, with the exception of Zygarde using Thousand Waves instead. What makes Zygarde so versatile even when running offensive sets is its ability to use its fourth moveslot to fit in one of its coveted coverage moves. Dragon Tail and Glare are the most commonly used supplements, while other moves like Protect, Thousand Waves, Coil, Extreme Speed, and others can be situationally used. Dragon Tail is very useful with wearing down Zygarde's checks, phazing Pokémon like Lugia and Skarmory before they phaze Zygarde, and checking Primal Groudon and Extreme Killer Arceus in emergency. Spreading paralysis via Glare proves to be useful with slowing down support Arceus formes and other problematic foes like Xerneas, potentially buying a free turn to set up or attack, and generally discouraging many foes from taking advantage of unboosted Zygarde. Glare also serves as Zygarde's very effective countermeasure against Choice Scarf Xerneas, which is becoming increasingly common, forcing it to lock itself into Aromatherapy or lose its ability to outspeed threats.
Though Dragon Dance Zygarde's EV spreads have many variations, it is generally recommended to keep 232 Speed EVs if possible, as this enables regular Zygarde to outspeed neutral-natured base 90 Speed Pokémon, and most importantly, Mega Gengar after a Dragon Dance and transformation. While this may not seem absolutely necessary due to Zygarde's general advantageous matchup against Mega Gengar, outspeeding it will help Zygarde avoid potential Will-O-Wisp, Destiny Bond, or even other moves like Icy Wind. If truly desired, 244 Speed EVs can be run for +1 Zygarde-C to outspeed Rash Deoxys-A. When it comes to Attack investments, Adamant nature is almost always mandatory to give Zygarde a needed boost in power.
Speaking of bulk investment, there are a few essential benchmarks needed to survive some common attacks. 48 Special Defense EVs are mostly needed to survive an uninvested Ice Beam from support Arceus, and 56 Special Defense EVs are needed if Zygarde is using Groundium Z instead of Leftovers and is running 30 HP IVs to make Power Construct activate after using Substitute twice. 12 HP, 56 Defense, and 48 Special Defense EVs is typically a safer pick if running a bulkier version of Zygarde, as this enables regular Zygarde to survive an Ice Beam from support Arceus, +2 Sunsteel Strike and +2 Photon Geyser from Necrozma-DM and Ultra Necrozma, and reliably set up on specially defensive Necrozma-DM after transforming by making a Substitute that blocks at least one attack.
When it comes to choice of an item, Zygarde mostly prefers Leftovers or Groundium Z. Leftovers is helpful with setting Substitute multiple times and recovering from entry hazard damage or attacks that Zygarde pivots into. Especially with Glare or Toxic Spikes support, Zygarde will have more chance to recover itself behind Substitute if the luck allows it. Groundium Z, while it does not provide Zygarde much-needed longevity like Leftovers, can be used to do one-time burst damage to the likes of support Arceus formes or Xerneas. Tectonic Rage is also immensely powerful against other neutral targets and can OHKO a decent portion of the neutral targets in the tier at +1 with Stealth Rock on the field. Other items to consider are Dragonium Z, which gives Zygarde an immediate way to hit opposing Zygarde, Mega Salamence, and Giratina-O while improving an occasional matchup against Ditto due to Devastating Drake lacking Dragon Tail's negative priority. Outrage can be used in tandem with Dragonium Z to have a significantly more powerful burst damage attack against support Arceus formes as well. Earth Plate can be used for a consistent boost in power and to potentially 2HKO support Arceus formes and OHKO Marshadow after a little prior damage.
Overall, be thoughtful about Zygarde's EV spread and choice of an item. Depending on the Attack investment or availability of Z-Crystal or Earth Plate, Zygarde may need multiple layers of entry hazards, status ailments afflicted to its checks, or other support.
Defensive Set
- Commonly Used Moves: Rest, Sleep Talk, Thousand Arrows, Dragon Tail, Glare
- Rarer Moves: Coil, Haze, Toxic
The most common variant of Zygarde in SM remains a relevant set despite Dragon Dance sets having significantly more use in USM. With maximum investment in HP and Defense, defensive Zygarde aims to be one of the most durable physical walls in the tier, being one of the better answers to Pokémon like Primal Groudon and Ho-Oh that balanced teams have difficulty handling properly. Zygarde's unmatched physical bulk after transformation makes it a check to other physical setup users like boosted Mega Salamence and Extreme Killer Arceus as well. While Zygarde may seem easy to take advantage of with lack off offensive capabilities that will come from other sets, no Pokémon, with an exception of Xerneas with Aromatherapy, likes switching into Glare, and Shadow Tag users like Mega Gengar and Gothitelle cannot effectively deal with Zygarde due to Thousand Arrows and Dragon Tail. Being strapped for moveslots still leaves defensive Zygarde with some downsides, however. Uninvested Thousand Arrows does pitiful damage to neutral foes that tend to switch into Zygarde, and this means Zygarde will often rely on its status options to meaningfully punish its switch-ins or on racking up damage using Dragon Tail with entry hazards up. As a result, Zygarde will struggle against bulkier teams where clerics are present and Mega Sableye is often employed. Substitute users like Arceus-Ground and Extreme Killer Arceus can also pose problems should Zygarde lack Coil, as Zygarde's uninvested attacks aren't strong enough to break their Substitutes in one hit.
Further concerns when using defensive Zygarde include a condition that it must fulfill to safely transform and gain the bulk it needs: safely going through Power Construct. Activating Power Construct requires Zygarde to be below half of its health by the end of the turn. This forces Zygarde to switch into physical attackers while carefully managing its health and keeping track of damage it takes. While holding Leftovers makes this somewhat easier to accomplish, regular Zygarde's bulk is decent at best, and it will have to be wary about not taking too much prior damage to be overpowered by boosted attacks from threats like Primal Groudon, Necrozma-DM, and Mega Lucario. As a check to Primal Groudon, defensive Zygarde also competes with other checks like Giratina-O and support Arceus formes, as they are also somewhat capable of pivoting into Primal Groudon but more importantly, can remove its Stealth Rock with Defog, limiting Primal Groudon's overall effectiveness.
General Team Options
Mega Gengar is one of the best choices for a Mega Stone user in any team with Zygarde for numerous reasons. Mega Gengar and Zygarde synergize extremely well, as both have advantageous matchups against Pokémon that the other struggles to beat to offensively, threatening a large portion of the tier together. Zygarde's most conventional checks, Fairy-types, have to take on Zygarde with extreme caution after Gengar has Mega Evolved to avoid getting trapped, and Zygarde can exploit this concern by using Substitute to ease predictions. Any Zygarde with Glare can greatly assist Hex variants of Mega Gengar as well, and Mega Gengar can benefit from Zygarde's ability to apply pressure or check foes like Primal Groudon and Ho-Oh. Mega Gengar can additionally ease Zygarde's setup by crippling a foe with Will-O-Wisp and Taunt or potentially force a trade with a problematic foe that the team cannot effectively take down otherwise. It is also worth noting that Mega Gengar and Zygarde can both fit in certain types of balanced teams that can provide team support like Toxic Spikes.
Seeing as Zygarde may struggle against offensive teams due to the pressure they apply with various threatening Pokémon, Choice Scarf Xerneas benefits it by functioning as a great revenge killer. Zygarde can take advantage of many Pokémon in slower and bulkier teams that Xerneas may struggle to do much against while benefiting from Aromatherapy. In more offensive teams, Geomancy Xerneas can have better conditions to sweep with Zygarde threatening Steel-types and paralyzing foes with Glare to prevent Xerneas from taking too much damage before it sets up Geomancy. Xerneas's ability to pivot into Dragon-type attacks and soft check foes like Yveltal and Marshadow is also helpful to any teams built around Zygarde.
Steel-types with entry hazards compress abilities and can pivot into Toxic, check Fairy-types, and assist Zygarde-C in wearing down its checks with Dragon Tail. Defensive Necrozma-DM can pivot into and set Stealth Rock or spread Toxic against most support Arceus formes, and Ferrothorn and Skarmory can do the same except they can set Spikes to further pressure Zygarde's common switch-ins. Zygarde with Dragon Tail especially appreciates Spikes as, with a layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock, a +1 Zygarde can hit max HP support Arceus formes with Dragon Tail and KO them with Thousand Arrows the next time they come in, and Groundium Z variants can do this with just Spikes up. Furthermore, should they wish to avoid taking excessive damage from entry hazards and use Defog, it will only give Zygarde a free turn to buy an extra turn to set up Substitute or Dragon Dance.
Magearna and Mega Scizor are other Steel-types that can also pivot into support Arceus formes for Zygarde while letting Zygarde safely enter the field with their pivoting moves against setup targets like slow Steel-types, passive Pokémon, and in Mega Scizor's case, Primal Groudon.
Essentially most Steel-types pair well with Zygarde to help check support Arceus formes, pivot into Toxic, spread Toxic, and benefit from Zygarde checking Fire-types and threatening bulkier teams.
Cloyster makes a great lead on offensive teams, and the Toxic Spikes support it can provide the team with is just amazing for Zygarde. Any Pokémon that is immune to Toxic Spikes has to avoid dealing with Zygarde, which forces many teams to have their grounded checks poisoned on the switch to keep Zygarde in check, and Zygarde can simply stall the poison damage with Substitute and even Protect until they are weakened enough to be taken out by a boosted Thousand Arrows. Similarly to in OU, a Zygarde that has successfully set up with Toxic Spikes up can be a great win condition against many teams.
As Zygarde tends to lack immediate power, strong powerhouses can be great teammates. Primal Groudon, Yveltal, and Primal Kyogre can all run effective countermeasures against defensive foes that Zygarde cannot take advantage of and overpower support Arceus formes that tend to get in the way of a sweep. Any serious damage that these kind of Pokémon can net on defensive cores can ease Zygarde's attempts to set up.
Should support Arceus formes prove too problematic for Zygarde, Gothitelle and Gothorita can do what they are good at: trapping, neutralizing, and removing them. Thousand Waves Zygarde in particular can prevent Arceus formes from switching out and immediately switch into Gothitelle and Gothorita and let them handle what happens next.
Get Out There!
This Pokémon is just magnificent, isn't it? It can perform variety of roles and offensive sets can do anything they want to deal with different checks they desire to bypass. The Ubers playerbase calls Zygarde-C "Big Boss" after it became a greater threat in USM as the metagame developed; why not try "Big Boss" and see it rampaging through many teams with appropriate support?
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