AG Arceus-Ghost [GP: 1/1]

[Guard]

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Shadow Force
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: Stone Edge / Extreme Speed / Avalanche
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost carves itself a niche in AG as a potent wallbreaker and late-game cleaner on offensive teams that also Imposter-proofs Ditto once the opponent has expended their Dynamax. Furthermore, its Ghost typing gives Arceus-Ghost great offensive presence due to how few Pokemon resist its STAB move and allows it to serve as a spinblocker. Shadow Force Imposter-proofs Arceus-Ghost against Ditto due the move’s two-turn nature and has the power to always OHKO Ho-Oh and defensive Primal Kyogre after a boost with Max Phantasm, as well as taking out even an untransformed Zygarde-C and Primal Groudon after chip damage. Shadow Claw is too weak to hit any of these benchmarks. Because Max Phantasm also lowers the foe's Defense, Arceus-Ghost can use it to break through the bulkiest of threats, including Zygarde-C and support Arceus formes, even without a Swords Dance boost. Brick Break offers unresisted coverage alongside Shadow Force, hitting Normal- and Dark-types such as Arceus, Arceus-Dark, and Tyranitar for super effective damage. Moreover, Max Knuckle boosts Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking prowess to even higher levels due to the additional Attack boosts. Stone Edge rounds out the set by OHKOing Yveltal after a boost. Notably, even Dynamaxed Yveltal cannot escape the OHKO from a boosted Max Rockfall after Stealth Rock damage. Stone Edge also allows Arceus-Ghost to eliminate Ho-Oh after minimal chip damage, which prevents the latter from Defogging away entry hazards and saves Arceus-Ghost from having to Dynamax. Extreme Speed may be used to finish off threats like Mega Rayquaza and Xerneas after they have taken a boosted hit, preventing them from potentially setting up and stealing back momentum. It also makes Arceus-Ghost more Imposter proof, as Ditto will fail to revenge kill even a maximally weakened Arceus-Ghost without expending Dynamax. Avalanche is another option that, under Dynamax and after a boost, always OHKOes Zygarde-C and non-Dynamax Yveltal. An Adamant nature is preferred for maximal damage output. Alternatively, a Jolly nature may be used to outspeed Jolly Mega Rayquaza, which may otherwise pose a significant threat to Sticky Web teams that Arceus-Ghost is often a part of.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on hyper offense teams in need of a potent partially Imposter-proof wallbreaker and a spinblocker against the likes of Smeargle and Excadrill. Suicide leads such as Smeargle and Deoxys-S can set entry hazards on these teams. Smeargle's Sticky Web lets Arceus-Ghost outspeed faster threats such as Zacian-C, Eternatus, and Marshadow, and Deoxys-S's Stealth Rock lets Max Phantasm land more OHKOs after a boost. In return, Arceus-Ghost spinblocks and severely pressures the metagame's Defog users in Ho-Oh, support Arceus forms, and even the rare Lunala. Zacian-C is a particularly troublesome revenge killer to this set, as it is able to KO Arceus-Ghost even during Dynamax after minimal chip damage, making Sticky Web support from Smeargle all the more important. If you're running Arceus-Ghost on a more balanced team lacking Sticky Web, sturdy Zacian-C checks such as Necrozma-DM and Primal Groudon are extremely important. Even though Arceus-Ghost has coverage to hit Yveltal hard, it still requires a boost to OHKO it, which lets Yveltal Dynamax on an unboosted Arceus-Ghost and cripple its team beyond repair. Xerneas is therefore a very effective partner because it severely punishes Yveltal for Dynamaxing and threatens a great Arceus-Ghost check in defensive Zygarde-C. Other partners that can harshly pressure Zygarde-C such as Swords Dance Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma, and Eruption Primal Groudon are also great teammates. The aforementioned Xerneas, Mega Rayquaza, and Ultra Necrozma, as well as Yveltal, are capable of forcing the opponent's Dynamax, thwarting Ditto's only method of revenge killing Arceus-Ghost. However, in situations where Ditto Dynamaxes and wins the Speed tie or pivots in during the first turn of Shadow Force, it will succeed in revenge killing Arceus-Ghost. Thus, it is often a good idea to also Imposter-proof Arceus-Ghost via a separate Pokemon, by including the likes of Arceus and Yveltal.

[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Judgment
move 3: Refresh
move 4: Recover
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost can become an entirely different type of Imposter-proof wallbreaker from physical sets with a very potent Calm Mind set. Contrary to physical sets, this set is entirely Imposter proof because Judgment is a Normal-type move for Ditto and becomes Max Strike during Dynamax. Arceus-Ghost is capable of taking advantage of almost the entire defensive metagame, only being forced out by Whirlwind Ho-Oh, Foul Play Tyranitar, Chansey, and Perish Song Arceus formes. Calm Mind exploits Pokemon that are unable to force Arceus-Ghost out thanks to its great bulk, such as the ubiquitous Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, non-Dark support Arceus formes, and Ferrothorn. Refresh is essential in order to cure Arceus-Ghost of status ailments inflicted by the likes of Ho-Oh and Zygarde-C, essentially turning them into setup bait. Recover allows Arceus-Ghost to continuously take advantage of the aforementioned passive Pokemon by neutralizing any potential damage, allowing it to overwhelm them eventually. The given EV spread is used to outspeed neutral-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. 124 Speed EVs may be run instead in order to outpace positive-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. Alternatively, a 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe spread alongside a Modest nature may be run to maximize Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking potential, notably allowing it to OHKO Zygarde with Max Phantasm after a boost in most instances before it uses Haze. A Timid nature may also be run to outpace Jolly Mega Rayquaza and opposing Arceus formes if deemed necessary. This alternate spread leaves Arceus-Ghost with way fewer opportunities to set up and increased vulnerability to being revenge killed, however.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on balance and bulky offense teams that can support it as a prospective wincon. Most importantly, this support includes eliminating Yveltal or weakening it in range of Judgment. Strong Yveltal counterplay in Mega Tyranitar, specially defensive Ho-Oh, Chansey, Arceus-Fairy, Arceus-Dark, or Diancie is therefore required. A strong means of pressuring Tyranitar through the likes of Zacian-C, Dragon Dance Zygarde-C, Primal Groudon, or Focus Blast Yveltal is also recommended, as Tyranitar can waste Recover PP with Foul Play. Whirlwind Ho-Oh is another threat that can limit Arceus-Ghost's progress by forcing it out as long as Arceus-Ghost is not the last remaining Pokemon on the team. Therefore, Eternatus and Mega Diancie as well as the aforementioned Mega Tyranitar are helpful teammates for their ability to immensely pressure Ho-Oh. Zacian-C is one of the very few Pokemon that can directly force Arceus-Ghost out with offensive pressure. Thus, satisfactory counterplay to it in the form of Rocky Helmet Necrozma-DM, defensive Primal Groudon, Ditto, or defensive Zygarde-C is recommended as well. If Arceus-Ghost hasn't collected enough Calm Mind boosts to soak up special attacks and pose a threat to wallbreakers, it is prone to being overwhelmed by various strong attackers such as Xerneas, Primal Kyogre, and Mega Rayquaza. Thus, pairing Arceus-Ghost with a strong defensive backbone, consisting of the likes of Ho-Oh, Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, Zygarde-C, and Ditto, is a sensible choice. Normal-types such as Arceus and Chansey completely wall this set, so checks to Arceus such as Zygarde-C, Necrozma-DM, and Zacian-C are useful partners. These checks also naturally take advantage of Chansey. Mega Gengar may also be used to trap and remove such Normal-types, but it may be ineffective on the whole, as it stacks weaknesses. Whirlpool + Perish Song Arceus-Dark and Arceus-Water lure, trap, and eliminate Chansey and don't stack weaknesses like Mega Gengar does, so they can prove to be good teammates.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Guardsweeper, 360582]]
- Quality checked by: [[ice-master-523, 464176], [Geysers, 426798]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]

 

[Icemaster]

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Shadow Force
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: Stone Edge / Extreme Speed / Avalanche (I'd consider putting Espeed first for its revenging potential and fully improofing)
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost carves itself a niche in AG as a potent wallbreaker and late-game cleaner in offensive teams that is also semi-Imposter proof. Furthermore, a Ghost-typing gives Arceus-Ghost great offensive presence as it has very few resistances, and it also allows Arceus-Ghost to serve as a spinblocker. Shadow Force is the STAB move of choice, as it proofs Arceus-Ghost against Ditto due the move’s two-turn nature, and is significantly more powerful than Shadow Claw, notably allowing Arceus-Ghost to always OHKO Ho-Oh and defensive Primal Kyogre after a boost with Max Phantasm, as well as even an untransformed Zygarde-C and Primal Groudon in some instances. Max Phantasm also lowers the opponents Defense, allowing it break through the bulkiest of threats such as Zygarde-C and support Arceus forms, even without a Swords Dance boost. Brick Break offers unresisted coverage alongside Shadow Force, hitting Normal- and Dark-types such as Arceus and Tyranitar for super effective damage. Moreover, Brick Break grants Arceus-Ghost access to Max Knuckle under Dynamax, boosting its wallbreaking prowess to even higher levels due to the additional Attack boosts. Stone Edge rounds out the set by OHKO’ing Yveltal after a boost. Notably, even under Dynamax, Yveltal cannot escape the OHKO from Max Rockfall after Stealth Rock damage. Stone Edge also allows Arceus-Ghost to eliminate Ho-Oh after minimal chip, which allows it to keep hazards up and save Dynamax. Extreme Speed may be used to KO threats like Mega Rayquaza and Xerneas after they have taken a boosted hit, preventing them from potentially setting up and stealing back momentum. It also strengthens the matchup against Ditto, as Ditto will fail to revenge kill even a severely weakened Arceus-Ghost without expending Dynamax, due to Brick Break and Extreme Speed having no effect. Avalanche is another option that, under Dynamax and after a boost, always OHKO’s Zygarde-C and non-Dynamax Yveltal. An Adamant nature is preferred for maximal damage output. Alternatively, a Jolly nature may be used to outspeed Jolly Mega Rayquaza, which may otherwise pose a significant threat to Sticky Web teams.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on hyper offensive teams in need of a potent semi-Imposter proof wallbreaker that is also capable of spinblocking against the likes of Smeargle and Excadrill. However, if Ditto Dynamaxes and wins the Speed tie or pivots in during the first turn of Shadow Force, it can pose a threat and so it may be a good idea to pair this set with improof such as Yveltal or Subsitute Zacian. Suicide leads such as Smeargle and Deoxys-Speed can set entry hazards, helping Arceus-Ghost in picking up more KOs and, in Smeargle's case, with outpacing faster threats such as Zacian-C, Eternatus, and Marshadow. In return, Arceus-Ghost severely pressures the metagame's Defog users in Ho-Oh and Lunala and dealing immense damage to other defoggers such as support Arceus formes. Zacian-C is an extremely troublesome check to this set, able to KO even during Dynamax with minimal chip, and if equipped with Substitute can nullify Shadow Force and so the support provided by the aforementioned Smeargle in Sticky Webs makes it a prime partner. If you're running Swords Dance Arceus Ghost on a more balanced team, sturdy Zacian checks such as Necrozma-Dusk-Mane and Groudon-Primal are extremely important. Even though Arceus-Ghost has coverage to hit Yveltal hard, it does still require a boost to OHKO it, which might give Yveltal an opportunity to use Dynamax and cripple Arceus-Ghost's team beyond repair. As such, Xerneas is an extremely clutch partner due to its ability to severely punish Yveltal for Dynamaxing and threaten the main check to SD Ghostceus: Zygarde-Complete. Furthermore, Arceus-Ghost struggles to break through Zygarde-C without Avalanche. Thus, partners that can harshly pressure Zygarde-C, such as Swords Dance Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma, and Eruption Primal Groudon are great teammates. Primal Groudon can also set up Stealth Rock, as well as serve as a soft-check to Zacian-C, which otherwise troubles Arceus-Ghost if Sticky Web is not up. Moreover, the aforementioned Xerneas, Mega Rayquaza, and Ultra Necrozma, as well as Yveltal are capable of forcing the opponent's Dynamax, thwarting Ditto's only chance at revenge killing Arceus-Ghost.

[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Judgment
move 3: Refresh
move 4: Recover
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe I think bulk may be better for this set (252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe)

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost is also capable of taking an entirely different route in being an Imposter-proof wallbreaker with a very potent Calm Mind set. Contrary to the Swords Dance set, this set is entirely Imposter-proof due to Judgment being a Normal-type move for Ditto. It is also capable of taking advantage of almost the entire defensive metagame, only being forced out by Whirlwind Ho-Oh, Foul Play Tyranitar, Chansey, and Amoonguss. Calm Mind is Arceus-Ghost's main tool to exploit Pokemon that are unable to force it out, such as the omnipresent Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, support Arceus forms, and Ferrothorn. It makes use of Arceus-Ghost's great bulk by setting up on these Pokemon and posing a threat to the majority of the metagame after a couple of boosts. Refresh is essential in order to cure Arceus-Ghost from status ailments inflicted by the likes of Necrozma-DM, Ho-Oh, and Zygarde-C, essentially turning them into setup bait. Recover allows Arceus-Ghost to continuously take advantage of the aforementioned passive Pokemon by neutralizing any potential damage, allowing it to overwhelm them eventually. A Modest nature is preferred in order to almost always OHKO an untransformed Zygarde-C with Max Phantasm after a boost, which might otherwise greatly annoy it with Haze. Alternatively, a Timid nature may be run to outpace Jolly Mega Rayquaza and Arceus forms if deemed necessary.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on balance and bulky offensive teams capable of providing it with the proper support to get it into a winning position. A few conditions need to be met for Arceus-Ghost to turn into a wincon. Most importantly, Yveltal must either be eliminated or weakened in range of Judgment. Strong Yveltal counterplay in Mega Tyranitar, specially defensive Ho-Oh, and Diancie is therefore required. Furthermore, a strong means of pressuring Tyranitar through the likes of Zacian-C, Dragon Dance Zygarde-C, and Focus Blast Yveltal is also recommended, as Tyranitar can waste Recover PP with Foul Play. Whirlwind Ho-Oh is another threat that is capable of limiting Arceus-Ghost's progress by forcing it out as long as Arceus-Ghost is not the last remaining Pokemon on a team. Therefore, the aforementioned Mega Tyranitar, in addition to Eternatus and Mega Diancie, are helpful teammates for their ability to immensely pressure Ho-Oh. Zacian-C is one of the very few Pokemon that can directly force Arceus-Ghost out with offensive pressure. Thus, satisfying counterplay to it in the form of Rocky Helmet Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, and defensive Zygarde-C is recommended as well. In situations where Arceus-Ghost hasn't collected enough Calm Mind boosts to soak up special attacks and pose a threat to wallbreakers, it is prone to being overwhelmed by various strong attackers such as Xerneas, Primal Kyogre, and Mega Rayquaza. Thus, pairing Arceus-Ghost with a strong defensive backbone, consisting of the likes of Ho-Oh, Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, Zygarde-C, and Ditto, is a sensible choice. Chansey, and other normal types such as Arceus-Normal completely wall this set and can take advantage of this. Hence strong Arceus checks which can threaten Chansey such as Zygarde-Complete, Necrozma-Dusk-Mane and Zacian-Crowned are useful partners. Mega-Gengar can also be used to trap and kill them, but may be ineffective as both it and Arceus-Ghost are weak to Tyranitar's Pursuit.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Guardsweeper, 360582]]
- Quality checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]

yep. QC 1/2. Good job.

 

[Geysers]

add remove [comment]

amqc

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Shadow Force
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: Stone Edge / Extreme Speed / Avalanche
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost carves itself a niche in AG as a potent wallbreaker and late-game cleaner in offensive teams that is also semi-Imposter proof. Furthermore, a Ghost-typing gives Arceus-Ghost great offensive presence as it has very few resistances, and it also allows Arceus-Ghost to serve as a spinblocker. Shadow Force is the STAB move of choice, as it proofs Arceus-Ghost against Ditto due the move’s two-turn nature, and is significantly more powerful than Shadow Claw, notably allowing Arceus-Ghost to always OHKO Ho-Oh and defensive Primal Kyogre after a boost with Max Phantasm, as well as even an untransformed Zygarde-C and Primal Groudon in some instances. Max Phantasm also lowers the opponents Defense, allowing it break through the bulkiest of threats such as Zygarde-C and support Arceus forms, even without a Swords Dance boost. Brick Break offers unresisted coverage alongside Shadow Force, hitting Normal- and Dark-types such as Arceus and Tyranitar for super effective damage. Moreover, Brick Break grants Arceus-Ghost access to Max Knuckle under Dynamax, boosting its wallbreaking prowess to even higher levels due to the additional Attack boosts. Stone Edge rounds out the set by OHKO’ing Yveltal after a boost. Notably, even under Dynamax, Yveltal cannot escape the OHKO from Max Rockfall after Stealth Rock damage. Stone Edge also allows Arceus-Ghost to eliminate Ho-Oh after minimal chip, which allows it to keep hazards up and save Dynamax. Extreme Speed may be used to KO threats like Mega Rayquaza and Xerneas after they have taken a boosted hit, preventing them from potentially setting up and stealing back momentum. It also strengthens the matchup against Ditto, as Ditto will fail to revenge kill even a severely weakened Arceus-Ghost without expending Dynamax, due to Brick Break and Extreme Speed having no effect. Avalanche is another option that, under Dynamax and after a boost, always OHKO’s Zygarde-C and non-Dynamax Yveltal. An Adamant nature is preferred for maximal damage output. Alternatively, a Jolly nature may be used to outspeed Jolly Mega Rayquaza, which may otherwise pose a significant threat to Sticky Web teams.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on hyper offensive teams in need of a potent semi-Imposter proof wallbreaker that is also capable of spinblocking against the likes of Smeargle and Excadrill. Suicide leads such as Smeargle and Deoxys-Speed can set entry hazards, helping Arceus-Ghost in picking up more KOs and, in Smeargle's case, with outpacing faster threats such as Zacian-C, Eternatus, and Marshadow. In return, Arceus-Ghost severely pressures the metagame's Defog users in Ho-Oh, Lunala, and support Arceus forms. Zacian-C is an extremely troublesome revenge killer to this set, as it is able to KO Arceus-Ghost even during Dynamax after minimal chip, making Sticky Web support from Smeargle all the more important. If you're running Arceus-Ghost on a more balanced team, sturdy Zacian-C checks such as Necrozma-DM and Primal Groudon are extremely important. [Potentially mention that it's also really important to have a reliable stop to Yveltal]Even though Arceus-Ghost has coverage to hit Yveltal hard, it does still require a boost to OHKO it, which might give Yveltal an opportunity to use Dynamax and cripple Arceus-Ghost's team beyond repair. As such, Xerneas is an extremely clutch effective [lol]partner due to its ability to severely punish Yveltal for Dynamaxing and threaten a great Arceus-Ghost check in defensive Zygarde-C. As Arceus-Ghost struggles to break through Zygarde-C without Avalanche, additional partners that can harshly pressure Zygarde-C, such as Swords Dance Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma, and Eruption Primal Groudon are great teammates. Moreover, the aforementioned Xerneas, Mega Rayquaza, and Ultra Necrozma, as well as Yveltal are capable of forcing the opponent's Dynamax, thwarting Ditto's only chance at revenge killing Arceus-Ghost. However, in situations where Ditto Dynamaxes and wins the Speed tie or pivots in during the first turn of Shadow Force, it will succeed in revenge killing Arceus-Ghost. Thus, it is often a good idea to proof your team against Ditto regardless, with the likes of Arceus and Yveltal.

[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Judgment
move 3: Refresh
move 4: Recover
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost is also capable of taking an entirely different route in being an Imposter-proof wallbreaker with a very potent Calm Mind set. Contrary to the Swords Dance set, this set is entirely Imposter-proof due to Judgment being a Normal-type move for Ditto. It is also capable of taking advantage of almost the entire defensive metagame, only being forced out by Whirlwind Ho-Oh, Foul Play Tyranitar, Chansey, Arceus-Dark, and Amoonguss. Calm Mind is Arceus-Ghost's main tool to exploit Pokemon that are unable to force it out, such as the omnipresent Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, non-Dark support Arceus forms, and Ferrothorn. It makes use of Arceus-Ghost's great bulk by setting up on these Pokemon and posing a threat to the majority of the metagame after a couple of boosts. Refresh is essential in order to cure Arceus-Ghost from status ailments inflicted by the likes of Necrozma-DM, [Don’t you force this out anyway?]Ho-Oh, and Zygarde-C, essentially turning them into setup bait. Recover allows Arceus-Ghost to continuously take advantage of the aforementioned passive Pokemon by neutralizing any potential damage, allowing it to overwhelm them eventually. The given EV spread is preferred in order to drastically increase the amount of setup opportunities and decrease the chances of Arceus-Ghost being revenge killed, while still outspeeding neutral-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. Alternatively, a 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe alongside a Modest nature may be run to maximize Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking potential, notably allowing it to OHKO an untransformed Zygarde-C with Max Phantasm after a boost in most instances, which might otherwise greatly annoy it with Haze. A Timid nature may also be run to outpace Jolly Mega Rayquaza and opposing Arceus forms if deemed necessary.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on balance and bulky offensive teams capable of providing it with the proper support to get it into a winning position. A few conditions need to be met for Arceus-Ghost to turn into a wincon. Most importantly, Yveltal must either be eliminated or weakened in range of Judgment. Strong Yveltal counterplay in Mega Tyranitar, specially defensive Ho-Oh, Chansey, Arceus-Fairy, Arceus-Dark, or and Diancie is therefore required. Furthermore, a strong means of pressuring Tyranitar through the likes of Zacian-C, Dragon Dance Zygarde-C, Primal Groudon, or and Focus Blast Yveltal is also recommended, as Tyranitar can waste Recover PP with Foul Play. Whirlwind Ho-Oh is another threat that is capable of limiting Arceus-Ghost's progress by forcing it out as long as Arceus-Ghost is not the last remaining Pokemon on a team, although Dynamax can be used to prevent Whirlwind use and enable Arceus-Ghost to force out or outright KO Ho-Oh. Therefore, the aforementioned Mega Tyranitar, in addition to Eternatus and Mega Diancie, are helpful teammates for their ability to immensely pressure Ho-Oh. Zacian-C is one of the very few Pokemon that can directly force Arceus-Ghost out with offensive pressure. Thus, satisfying counterplay to it in the form of Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, and or defensive Zygarde-C is recommended as well. In situations where Arceus-Ghost hasn't collected enough Calm Mind boosts to soak up special attacks and pose a threat to wallbreakers, it is prone to being overwhelmed by various strong attackers such as Xerneas, Primal Kyogre, and Mega Rayquaza. Thus, pairing Arceus-Ghost with a strong defensive backbone, consisting of the likes of Ho-Oh, Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, Zygarde-C, and Ditto, is a sensible choice. Normal-types such as Arceus and Chansey completely wall this set. Hence, strong checks to Arceus such as Zygarde-C, Necrozma-DM, and Zacian-C are useful partners. These are also capable of naturally taking advantage of Chansey. Mega Gengar may also be used to trap and remove them, but may be ineffective on the whole as it stacks weaknesses and is also weak to Tyranitar. [consider mentioning perishpool arcs here, since they can also effectively trap & remove Chansey.]

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Guardsweeper, 360582]]
- Quality checked by: [[ice-master-523, 464176], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]

Wooo 400th post

Making this official since I'm QC now!
QC 2/2

 

[Adeleine]

ok i'm going to am check this, but i'm not actually sure how the imposter-proofing works here.

if ditto can dynamax and does, whether it wins depends on speed tie. i get that.

if ditto can't dynamax and uses shadow force... what happens? does arceus-ghost switch to a normal-type teammate? does it switch to some other, more general wall?

i assume arceus-ghost doesn't merely click an attack/click dynamax, because if it makes the wrong choice, it could still lose if the Speed tie doesn't go how it is expected to

thanks

 

[Adeleine]

this is now a complete am check. an implemented verison is also available in a later post.

Hide

AM Check :)
Remove Add Comment BREAK between corrections

Hide

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Shadow Force
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: Stone Edge / Extreme Speed / Avalanche
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost carves itself a niche in AG as a potent wallbreaker and late-game cleaner in offensive teams that is also semi-Imposter proof also Imposter-proofs Ditto once the opponent has expended their Dynamax (after reading through the more of the analysis, I think this elaboration is important to start with, even though "Imposter-proofs Ditto" is technically redundant in AG). Furthermore, a Ghost-typing its Ghost typing gives Arceus-Ghost great offensive presence as it has very few resistances, and it also due to how few Pokemon resist its STAB moves and (our most direct concern is what stands up to Ghostceus and not what resists a type, and this is also a bit more clear, and it lets us have parallelism with the spinblocking part) allows Arceus-Ghost it to serve as a spinblocker. Shadow Force is the STAB move of choice, as it proofs Arceus-Ghost against Ditto Remove Comma), due the move’s two-turn nature (Remove Comma), and is significantly more powerful than Shadow Claw, notably allowing Arceus-Ghost (Add Semicolon); the move's two-turn nature results in Ditto attempting to damage Arceus-Ghost while the latter is invulnerable after using Shadow Force itself (Add Period). (Clear explanation of possibly confusing gameplan) Shadow Force also has the power to always OHKO Ho-Oh and defensive Primal Kyogre after a boost with Max Phantasm, as well as even an (awkwardness, I thought about "and even untransformed" but "as well as" transitions better) untransformed Zygarde-C and Primal Groudon in some instances. after chip damage. (I assume that is what the circumstance would be.) [BREAK] Shadow Claw is too weak to hit any of these benchmarks. Max Phantasm also lowers the foe's Defense, allowing it to break through the bulkiest of threats such as (Add Comma), including Zygarde-C and support Arceus formes, even without a Swords Dance boost. Brick Break offers unresisted coverage alongside Shadow Force, hitting Normal- and Dark-types such as Arceus and Tyranitar for super effective damage. Moreover, Brick Break grants Arceus-Ghost access to Max Knuckle under Dynamax, (comma is not removed) [BREAK] boosting which boosts its wallbreaking prowess power ("prowess" could imply the coverage or KO benchmarks are the focus, when they are not) to even higher levels due to the additional Attack boosts. Stone Edge rounds out the set by OHKOing Yveltal after a boost. Notably, even under Dynamax, Yveltal even Yveltal under Dynamax (makes hyper clear Yveltal is the one Dynamaxing and not you) cannot escape the OHKO from Max Rockfall after Stealth Rock damage. Stone Edge also allows Arceus-Ghost to eliminate Ho-Oh after minimal chip, which allows it to keep hazards up is important because Arceus-Ghost can't spinblock Ho-Oh's Defog (Add Comma), (ties into mention as a spinblocker, forming a combined picture of "blocks spin + kills defogger to keep hazards up for team) and save the higher damage saves (clarity) [BREAK] Arceus-Ghost from having to Dynamax to accomplish this. Extreme Speed may be used to KO finish off (makes clear from the beginning that it is a follow-up, not a raw KO option) threats like Mega Rayquaza and Xerneas after they have taken a boosted hit, preventing them from potentially setting up and stealing back momentum. It also strengthens the matchup against Ditto, makes Arceus-Ghost more Imposter-proof by (We're mentioning Ditto immediately after anyway, and name-dropping Imposter-proof is good to help with this trickier concept) [BREAK] (Remove Comma), as Ditto will fail to revenge kill even a severely weakened Arceus-Ghost without expending Dynamax due to Brick Break and Extreme Speed having no effect. forcing Ditto to Dynamax to have any chance of stopping Arceus-Ghost, as Shadow Force cannot revenge kill Arceus-Ghost and running Extreme Speed leads to all of Ditto's other attacks having no effect. (clarity) Avalanche is another option that, under Dynamax and after a boost, always OHKO’s Zygarde-C and Yveltal that has not Dynamaxed [BREAK]. An Adamant nature is preferred for maximal damage output. Alternatively, a A Jolly nature may be used to outspeed Jolly Mega Rayquaza, which may otherwise pose a significant threat to Sticky Web teams that Arceus-Ghost is often a part of. (You haven't mentioned Webs yet so I'll connect this back to Ghostceus)

Arceus-Ghost fits best on hyper offense teams in need of a potent semi-Imposter proof partially Imposter-proof wallbreaker that is also capable of spinblocking and a spinblocker (sounds extremely specific as an individual need, so I split into the two needs Ghostceus helps fill) against the likes of Smeargle and Excadrill. Suicide leads such as Smeargle and Deoxys-S [BREAK] can set entry hazards for these teams, (making it immediately obvious why you want suicide leads and not any hazard lead) helping Arceus-Ghost in picking boosted Max Phantasm pick (more specific explanation on why SR particularly helps Ghostceus. also why KO->OHKO later) up more KOs OHKOs and (Add Comma), in Smeargle's case, with outpacing also helping Arceus-Ghost outpace ("also" is clarity that Smeargle sets damaging hazard+web) faster threats such as Zacian-C, Eternatus, and Marshadow. In return, Arceus-Ghost blocks Rapid Spin and (I didn't just say "spinblock" to make clear you aren't spinblocking the Defoggers. I mentioned it at all because the true idea here is "Ghostceus keeps hazards up generally", which this gets at) severely pressures the metagame's Defog users in Ho-Oh, Lunala, and support Arceus formes. Zacian-C is an extremely troublesome revenge killer to this set (Remove Comma), as it is able to KO Arceus-Ghost even during Dynamax after minimal chip, making Sticky Web support from Smeargle all the more important. If you're running Arceus-Ghost on a more balanced team lacking Sticky Web, (making crystal clear why this is now more important) sturdy Zacian-C checks such as Necrozma-DM and Primal Groudon are extremely important. Even though Arceus-Ghost has coverage to hit Yveltal hard, it does still require still requires (moderate awkwardness in moderately long sentence) a boost to OHKO it, which might give Yveltal an opportunity to use Dynamax lets Yveltal Dynamax on an unboosted Arceus-Ghost and cripple Arceus-Ghost's its team beyond repair. As such, Xerneas is therefore a very effective partner due to its ability to severely punish because it severely punishes (awkwardness, especially with second part because you'd need "abilities") Yveltal for Dynamaxing and threaten threatens a great Arceus-Ghost check in defensive Zygarde-C. As Arceus-Ghost struggles to break through Zygarde-C without Avalanche, additional Other (we already called Zygarde-C a good check, so this can be assumed) partners that can harshly pressure Zygarde-C (Remove Comma), such as Swords Dance Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma, and Eruption Primal Groudon are also great teammates. Moreover, the The aforementioned Xerneas, Mega Rayquaza, and Ultra Necrozma, as well as and also (better separation for the one we haven't listed as a teammate yet) Yveltal (Add Comma), are capable of forcing the opponent's Dynamax can force the opponent to expend their Dynamax just to check them, (clarity) thwarting Ditto's only chance at method of revenge killing Arceus-Ghost barring a coverage move after heavy chip damage. (I assume) However, in situations where Ditto Dynamaxes and wins the Speed tie or pivots in during the first turn of Shadow Force, if Ditto is able to Dynamax, (clarity) it will can (don't want to imply that Dynamax = instant success) succeed in revenge killing Arceus-Ghost if it wins the initial Speed tie or pivots into the first turn of Shadow Force. Thus, it is often a good idea to proof your team against Ditto regardless, to also Imposter-proof Arceus-Ghost via a separate Pokemon, (clarifies that you should do this even though Ghostceus partially proofs itself, and technically you are proofing a Pokemon, not a team) [BREAK] with including the likes of Arceus and Yveltal.

[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Judgment
move 3: Refresh
move 4: Recover
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost is also capable of taking an entirely different route in being an can become an entirely different type of (clarifies that we're still wallbreaking/imposter-proofing, and eases awkwardness in phrasing) Imposter-proof wallbreaker from the Swords Dance set physical sets (we technically don't want to cross-reference specific analysis sets. Whether you use physical STAB or Judgment determines how well you can imposter-proof Ditto, so I used that to differentiate.) with a very potent Calm Mind set. Contrary to physical sets, this set is entirely Imposter-proof because Judgment is a Normal-type move for Ditto and becomes Max Strike after Dynamax. [BREAK] It is also Calm Mind Arceus-Ghost is ("being proof" isn't really an "action" so I removed 'also') capable of taking advantage of almost the entire defensive metagame, only being forced out by Whirlwind Ho-Oh, Foul Play Tyranitar, Chansey, Arceus-Dark, and Amoonguss. Calm Mind is Arceus-Ghost's main tool to exploit exploits (I just name-dropped "Arceus-Ghost" before and after for unrelated reasons, so this would be awkward) Pokemon that are unable to force it Arceus-Ghost out thanks to its great bulk, such as the omnipresent Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, non-Dark support Arceus formes, and Ferrothorn. It makes use of Arceus-Ghost's great bulk by setting up on these Pokemon and posing a threat to the majority of the metagame after a couple of boosts. Refresh is essential in order to cure Arceus-Ghost of status ailments inflicted by the likes of Ho-Oh (Remove Comma), and Zygarde-C, essentially turning them into setup bait. Recover allows Arceus-Ghost to continuously take advantage of the aforementioned passive Pokemon by neutralizing any potential damage, allowing it to overwhelm them eventually. The given EV spread is preferred in order to drastically increase the amount of setup opportunities and decrease the chances of Arceus-Ghost being revenge killed, while still outspeeding is used to outspeed (already obvious info. I make it count more in context at the end of this paragraph) neutral-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. Alternatively, a 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe spread alongside a Modest nature may be run to maximize Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking potential, notably allowing it to OHKO Zygarde with Max Phantasm after a boost in most instances (Remove Comma), which might otherwise greatly annoy it with before it uses Haze to greatly annoy Arceus-Ghost. (prevents "which" lack of clarity) A Timid nature may also be run to outpace Jolly Mega Rayquaza and opposing Arceus formes if deemed necessary. This alternate spread leaves Arceus-Ghost with many fewer opportunities to set up and more vulnerability to being revenge killed, however.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on balance and bulky offense teams capable of providing it with the proper support to get it into a winning position. that can support it as a prospective wincon. (prevents obvious information and some awkwardness, while immediately clear what Arceus-Ghost actually does on these teams.) [BREAK] A few conditions need to be met for Arceus-Ghost to turn into a wincon. (Because I already say it is a possible wincon earlier) Most importantly, Yveltal must either be eliminated or weakened this support includes eliminating Yveltal or weakening it in range of Judgment. Strong Yveltal counterplay in Mega Tyranitar, specially defensive Ho-Oh, Chansey, Arceus-Fairy, Arceus-Dark, or Diancie is therefore required. Furthermore, a A (redundant with "also") strong means of pressuring Tyranitar through the likes of Zacian-C, Dragon Dance Zygarde-C, Primal Groudon, or Focus Blast Yveltal is also recommended, as Tyranitar can waste Recover PP with Foul Play. Whirlwind Ho-Oh is another threat that is capable of limiting can limit (awkwardness in longer unbroken sentence) Arceus-Ghost's progress by forcing it out as long as Arceus-Ghost is not the last remaining Pokemon on the team. Therefore, the aforementioned Mega Tyranitar, in addition to Eternatus and Mega Diancie, are helpful teammates for their ability is a helpful teammate for its ability to immensely pressure Ho-Oh. Zacian-C is one of the very few Pokemon that can directly force Arceus-Ghost out with offensive pressure. Thus, satisfying satisfactory counterplay to it in the form of Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, or defensive Zygarde-C is recommended as well. In situations where If (awkwardness in long sentence) Arceus-Ghost hasn't collected enough Calm Mind boosts to soak up special attacks and pose a threat to wallbreakers, it is prone to being overwhelmed by various strong attackers such as Xerneas, Primal Kyogre, and Mega Rayquaza. Thus, pairing Arceus-Ghost with a strong defensive backbone, consisting of the likes of Ho-Oh, Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, Zygarde-C, and Ditto, is a sensible choice. Normal-types such as Arceus and Chansey completely wall this set. Hence, this set, so (lowering the whiplash of that "complete walling" complete stop) strong checks to Arceus such as Zygarde-C, Necrozma-DM, and Zacian-C are useful partners. These are also capable of naturally taking checks also naturally take (awkwardness especially after adding "checks" and factoring in the suspense of wondering how this relates to Chansey) advantage of Chansey. Mega Gengar may also be used to trap and remove them such Normal-types, but it may be ineffective on the whole as it stacks weaknesses and is also weak to like Tyranitar. Whirlpool + Perish Song Arceus-Dark and Arceus-Water can also prove to be good teammates, as they are capable of luring, trapping, and eliminating Chansey. lure, trap, and eliminate Chansey and don't stack weaknesses like Mega Gengar does, so they can prove to be good teammates. (Contrast between one trapper and others)

 

[Guard]

ok i'm going to am check this, but i'm not actually sure how the imposter-proofing works here.

if ditto can dynamax and does, whether it wins depends on speed tie. i get that.

if ditto can't dynamax and uses shadow force... what happens? does arceus-ghost switch to a normal-type teammate? does it switch to some other, more general wall?

i assume arceus-ghost doesn't merely click an attack/click dynamax, because if it makes the wrong choice, it could still lose if the Speed tie doesn't go how it is expected to

thanks

hi there, thank you v much for your effort
so what basically happens is:

Scenario 1:
Ditto has Dynamax available, so it Dynamaxes, wins the Speed tie and KO's Arceus-Ghost with Max Phantasm. This is the only way Ditto can revenge kill Arceus-Ghost.

Scenario 2:
Ditto has Dynamax available, so it Dynamaxes, but loses the Speed tie, meaning Arceus-Ghost Shadow Forces first and evades the Max Phantasm. Then it comes to another Speed tie; either Ditto goes first and uses Max Phantasm, which is avoided again because Arceus-Ghost is invulnerable during Shadow Force, after which Arceus-Ghost uses Shadow Force and takes Ditto out, or Arceus-Ghost goes first and takes Ditto out with Shadow Force. In other words, if Ditto Dynamaxes but loses the first Speed tie, it fails to revenge kill Arceus-Ghost and is taken/forced out at all times (even if it clicks Max Guard since Shadow Force goes through that for whatever reason).

Scenario 3:
Ditto doesn't have Dynamax available, so it's forced to click Shadow Force. It goes first because of Choice Scarf, after which Arceus-Ghost also uses Shadow Force. Since Ditto is the faster one, it Shadow Forces first but misses because Arceus-Ghost is semi-invulnerable. After that, Arceus-Ghost completes its Shadow Force and takes Ditto out. In other words, if Ditto doesn't have Dynamax available, it can never revenge kill Arceus-Ghost.

So regardless of any mindgames Ditto has to play, Arceus-Ghost can just click Shadow Force and only fears the revenge-kill in scenario 1.

lmk if this looks like a random ramble lol

 

[Adeleine]

This makes a lot more sense now! I had forgotten that Ditto could have Choice Scarf yet still speed tie Ghostceus, and it's possible because Dynamax turns null the effects of Choice items. Thanks!

I've finished the check and updated the post with the hide tag to have it. Because this is a kind of tricky analysis, I implemented the changes myself so I could get a better look at the whole thing before finalizing that, so I put the implemented version below should it make your life easier. You should still check the comments on the AM check especially to make sure I didn't make any meta knowledge-type mistakes.

Hide

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Shadow Force
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: Stone Edge / Extreme Speed / Avalanche
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost carves itself a niche in AG as a potent wallbreaker and late-game cleaner in offensive teams that also Imposter-proofs Ditto once the opponent has expended their Dynamax. Furthermore, its Ghost typing gives Arceus-Ghost great offensive presence due to how few Pokemon resist its STAB moves and allows it to serve as a spinblocker. Shadow Force proofs Arceus-Ghost against Ditto; the move's two-turn nature results in Ditto attempting to damage Arceus-Ghost while the latter is invulnerable after using Shadow Force itself. Shadow Force also has the power to always OHKO Ho-Oh and defensive Primal Kyogre after a boost with Max Phantasm, as well as untransformed Zygarde-C and Primal Groudon after chip damage. Shadow Claw is too weak to hit any of these benchmarks. Max Phantasm also lowers the foe's Defense, allowing it to break through the bulkiest of threats, including Zygarde-C and support Arceus formes, even without a Swords Dance boost. Brick Break offers unresisted coverage alongside Shadow Force, hitting Normal- and Dark-types such as Arceus and Tyranitar for super effective damage. Moreover, Brick Break grants Arceus-Ghost access to Max Knuckle, which boosts its wallbreaking power to even higher levels. Stone Edge rounds out the set by OHKOing Yveltal after a boost. Notably, even Yveltal under Dynamax cannot escape the OHKO from Max Rockfall after Stealth Rock damage. Stone Edge also allows Arceus-Ghost to eliminate Ho-Oh after minimal chip, which is important because Arceus-Ghost can't spinblock Ho-Oh's Defog, and the higher damage saves Arceus-Ghost from having to Dynamax to accomplish this. Extreme Speed may be used to finish off threats like Mega Rayquaza and Xerneas after they have taken a boosted hit, preventing them from setting up and stealing back momentum. It also makes Arceus-Ghost more Imposter-proof by forcing Ditto to Dynamax to have any chance of stopping Arceus-Ghost, as Shadow Force cannot revenge kill Arceus-Ghost and running Extreme Speed leads to all of Ditto's other attacks having no effect. Avalanche is another option that, under Dynamax and after a boost, always OHKO’s Zygarde-C and Yveltal that has not Dynamaxed. A Jolly nature may be used to outspeed Jolly Mega Rayquaza, which may otherwise pose a significant threat to Sticky Web teams that Arceus-Ghost is often a part of.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on hyper offense teams in need of a partially Imposter-proof wallbreaker and a spinblocker against the likes of Smeargle and Excadrill. Suicide leads such as Smeargle and Deoxys-S set entry hazards for these teams, helping boosted Max Phantasm pick up more OHKOs and, in Smeargle's case, also helping Arceus-Ghost outpace faster threats such as Zacian-C, Eternatus, and Marshadow. In return, Arceus-Ghost blocks Rapid Spin and severely pressures the metagame's Defog users in Ho-Oh, Lunala, and support Arceus formes. Zacian-C is an extremely troublesome revenge killer as it is able to KO Arceus-Ghost even during Dynamax after minimal chip, making Sticky Web support from Smeargle all the more important. If you're running Arceus-Ghost on a more balanced team lacking Sticky Web, sturdy Zacian-C checks such as Necrozma-DM and Primal Groudon are extremely important. Even though Arceus-Ghost has coverage to hit Yveltal hard, it still requires a boost to OHKO it, which lets Yveltal Dynamax on an unboosted Arceus-Ghost and cripple its team beyond repair. Xerneas is therefore a very effective partner because it severely punishes Yveltal for Dynamaxing and threatens a great Arceus-Ghost check in defensive Zygarde-C. Other partners that can harshly pressure Zygarde-C such as Swords Dance Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma, and Eruption Primal Groudon are also great teammates. The aforementioned Xerneas, Mega Rayquaza, and Ultra Necrozma, and also Yveltal, can force the opponent to expend their Dynamax just to check them, thwarting Ditto's only method of revenge killing Arceus-Ghost barring a coverage move after heavy chip damage. However, if Ditto is able to Dynamax, it can succeed in revenge killing Arceus-Ghost if it wins the initial Speed tie or pivots into the first turn of Shadow Force. Thus, it is often a good idea to also Imposter-proof Arceus-Ghost via a separate Pokemon, including the likes of Arceus and Yveltal.

[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Judgment
move 3: Refresh
move 4: Recover
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost can become an entirely different type of Imposter-proof wallbreaker from physical sets with a very potent Calm Mind set. Contrary to physical sets, this set is entirely Imposter-proof because Judgment is a Normal-type move for Ditto and becomes Max Strike after Dynamax. Calm Mind Arceus-Ghost is capable of taking advantage of almost the entire defensive metagame, only being forced out by Whirlwind Ho-Oh, Foul Play Tyranitar, Chansey, Arceus-Dark, and Amoonguss. Calm Mind exploits Pokemon that are unable to force Arceus-Ghost out thanks to its great bulk, such as the omnipresent Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, non-Dark support Arceus formes, and Ferrothorn. Refresh is essential in order to cure Arceus-Ghost of status ailments inflicted by the likes of Ho-Oh, and Zygarde-C, essentially turning them into setup bait. Recover allows Arceus-Ghost to continuously take advantage of the aforementioned passive Pokemon by neutralizing any potential damage, allowing it to overwhelm them eventually. The given EV spread is used to outspeed neutral-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. Alternatively, a 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe spread alongside a Modest nature may be run to maximize Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking potential, notably allowing it to OHKO Zygarde with Max Phantasm after a boost in most instances before it uses Haze to greatly annoy Arceus-Ghost. A Timid nature may also be run to outpace Jolly Mega Rayquaza and opposing Arceus formes if deemed necessary. This alternate spread leaves Arceus-Ghost with many fewer opportunities to set up and more vulnerability to being revenge killed, however.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on balance and bulky offense teams that can support it as a prospective wincon. Most importantly, this support includes eliminating Yveltal or weakening it in range of Judgment. Strong Yveltal counterplay in Mega Tyranitar, specially defensive Ho-Oh, Chansey, Arceus-Fairy, Arceus-Dark, or Diancie is therefore required. A strong means of pressuring Tyranitar through the likes of Zacian-C, Dragon Dance Zygarde-C, Primal Groudon, or Focus Blast Yveltal is also recommended, as Tyranitar can waste Recover PP with Foul Play. Whirlwind Ho-Oh is another threat that can limit Arceus-Ghost's progress by forcing it out as long as Arceus-Ghost is not the last remaining Pokemon on the team. Therefore, the aforementioned Mega Tyranitar, in addition to Eternatus and Mega Diancie, is a helpful teammate for its ability to immensely pressure Ho-Oh. Zacian-C is one of the very few Pokemon that can directly force Arceus-Ghost out with offensive pressure. Thus, satisfactory counterplay to it in the form of Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, or defensive Zygarde-C is recommended as well. If Arceus-Ghost hasn't collected enough Calm Mind boosts to soak up special attacks and pose a threat to wallbreakers, it is prone to being overwhelmed by various strong attackers such as Xerneas, Primal Kyogre, and Mega Rayquaza. Thus, pairing Arceus-Ghost with a strong defensive backbone, consisting of the likes of Ho-Oh, Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, Zygarde-C, and Ditto, is a sensible choice. Normal-types such as Arceus and Chansey completely wall this set, so strong checks to Arceus such as Zygarde-C, Necrozma-DM, and Zacian-C are useful partners. These checks also naturally take advantage of Chansey. Mega Gengar may also be used to trap and remove such Normal-types, but it may be ineffective on the whole as it stacks weaknesses like Tyranitar. Whirlpool + Perish Song Arceus-Dark and Arceus-Water lure, trap, and eliminate Chansey and don't stack weaknesses like Mega Gengar does, so they can prove to be good teammates.

E: Removed the comma after "inflicted by the likes of Ho-Oh"

 

[Zrp200]

no ghostium z mention for sd? it's overall worse, but it can be really useful to save dynamax capability for another mon.

 

[Lumari]

remove add / fix (comments); (AC=add comma; RC=remove comma; SC=semicolon)
GP 1/1

check

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Shadow Force
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: Stone Edge / Extreme Speed / Avalanche
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost carves itself a niche in AG as a potent wallbreaker and late-game cleaner in on offensive teams that also Imposter-proofs Ditto once the opponent has expended their Dynamax. Furthermore, its Ghost typing gives Arceus-Ghost great offensive presence due to how few Pokemon resist its STAB move and allows it to serve as a spinblocker. Shadow Force Imposter-proofs Arceus-Ghost against Ditto due the move’s two-turn nature and has the power to always OHKO Ho-Oh and defensive Primal Kyogre after a boost with Max Phantasm, as well as taking out even an untransformed Zygarde-C and Primal Groudon after chip damage. Shadow Claw is too weak to hit any of these benchmarks. Because Max Phantasm also lowers the foe's Defense, Arceus-Ghost can use it to break through the bulkiest of threats, including Zygarde-C and support Arceus forms formes, even without a Swords Dance boost. Brick Break offers unresisted coverage alongside Shadow Force, hitting Normal- and Dark-types such as Arceus and Tyranitar for super effective damage. Moreover, Brick Break grants Arceus-Ghost access to Max Knuckle under Dynamax, which boosts its Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking prowess to even higher levels due to the additional Attack boosts. Stone Edge rounds out the set by OHKO’ing OHKOing Yveltal after a boost. Notably, even Dynamaxed Yveltal under Dynamax cannot escape the OHKO from Max Rockfall after Stealth Rock damage. Stone Edge also allows Arceus-Ghost to eliminate Ho-Oh after minimal chip damage, which prevents the latter from Defogging away entry hazards and saves Arceus-Ghost from having to Dynamax. Extreme Speed may be used to finish off threats like Mega Rayquaza and Xerneas after they have taken a boosted hit, preventing them from potentially setting up and stealing back momentum. It also makes Arceus-Ghost more Imposter proof, (RH) as Ditto will fail to revenge kill even a maximally weakened Arceus-Ghost without expending Dynamax. Avalanche is another option that, under Dynamax and after a boost, always OHKO’s OHKOes Zygarde-C and non-Dynamax Yveltal. An Adamant nature is preferred for maximal damage output. Alternatively, a A Jolly nature may be used to outspeed Jolly Mega Rayquaza, which may otherwise pose a significant threat to Sticky Web teams that Arceus-Ghost is often a part of.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on hyper offense teams in need of a potent partially Imposter-proof wallbreaker and a spinblocker against the likes of Smeargle and Excadrill. Suicide leads such as Smeargle and Deoxys-S can set entry hazards on these teams. Smeargle's Sticky Web lets Arceus-Ghost outspeed faster threats such as Zacian-C, Eternatus, and Marshadow, and Deoxys-S's Stealth Rock lets Max Phantasm land more OHKOs after a boost. In return, Arceus-Ghost spinblocks and severely pressures the metagame's Defog users in Ho-Oh, support Arceus forms, and even the rare Lunala. Zacian-C is a particularly troublesome revenge killer to this set, as it is able to KO Arceus-Ghost even during Dynamax after minimal chip damage, making Sticky Web support from Smeargle all the more important. If you're running Arceus-Ghost on a more balanced team lacking Sticky Web, sturdy Zacian-C checks such as Necrozma-DM and Primal Groudon are extremely important. Even though Arceus-Ghost has coverage to hit Yveltal hard, it still requires a boost to OHKO it, which lets Yveltal Dynamax on an unboosted Arceus-Ghost and cripple its team beyond repair. Xerneas is therefore a very effective partner because it severely punishes Yveltal for Dynamaxing and threatens a great Arceus-Ghost check in defensive Zygarde-C. Other partners that can harshly pressure Zygarde-C such as Swords Dance Mega Rayquaza, Ultra Necrozma, and Eruption Primal Groudon are also great teammates. The aforementioned Xerneas, Mega Rayquaza, and Ultra Necrozma, and also as well as Yveltal, are capable of forcing the opponent's Dynamax, thwarting Ditto's only method of revenge killing Arceus-Ghost. However, in situations where Ditto Dynamaxes and wins the Speed tie or pivots in during the first turn of Shadow Force, it will succeed in revenge killing Arceus-Ghost. Thus, it is often a good idea to also Imposter-proof Arceus-Ghost via a separate Pokemon, by including the likes of Arceus and Yveltal.

[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Judgment
move 3: Refresh
move 4: Recover
item: Spooky Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Arceus-Ghost can become an entirely different type of Imposter-proof wallbreaker from physical sets with a very potent Calm Mind set. Contrary to physical sets, this set is entirely Imposter proof (RH) because Judgment is a Normal-type move for Ditto and becomes Max Strike during Dynamax. Arceus-Ghost is capable of taking advantage of almost the entire defensive metagame, only being forced out by Whirlwind Ho-Oh, Foul Play Tyranitar, Chansey, Arceus-Dark, and Amoonguss. Calm Mind exploits Pokemon that are unable to force Arceus-Ghost out thanks to its great bulk, such as the omnipresent ubiquitous Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, non-Dark support Arceus formes, and Ferrothorn. Refresh is essential in order to cure Arceus-Ghost of status ailments inflicted by the likes of Ho-Oh and Zygarde-C, essentially turning them into setup bait. Recover allows Arceus-Ghost to continuously take advantage of the aforementioned passive Pokemon by neutralizing any potential damage, allowing it to overwhelm them eventually. The given EV spread is used to outspeed neutral-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. 124 Speed EVs may be run instead in order to outpace positive-natured Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre. Alternatively, a 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe spread alongside a Modest nature may be run to maximize Arceus-Ghost's wallbreaking potential, notably allowing it to OHKO Zygarde with Max Phantasm after a boost in most instances before it uses Haze. A Timid nature may also be run to outpace Jolly Mega Rayquaza and opposing Arceus formes if deemed necessary. This alternate spread leaves Arceus-Ghost with many way fewer opportunities to set up and more increased vulnerability to being revenge killed, however.

Arceus-Ghost fits best on balance and bulky offense teams that can support it as a prospective wincon. Most importantly, this support includes eliminating Yveltal or weakening it in range of Judgment. Strong Yveltal counterplay in Mega Tyranitar, specially defensive Ho-Oh, Chansey, Arceus-Fairy, Arceus-Dark, or Diancie is therefore required. A strong means of pressuring Tyranitar through the likes of Zacian-C, Dragon Dance Zygarde-C, Primal Groudon, or Focus Blast Yveltal is also recommended, as Tyranitar can waste Recover PP with Foul Play. Whirlwind Ho-Oh is another threat that can limit Arceus-Ghost's progress by forcing it out as long as Arceus-Ghost is not the last remaining Pokemon on the team. Therefore, Eternatus and Mega Diancie as well as the aforementioned Mega Tyranitar, in addition to Eternatus and Mega Diancie, are helpful teammates for their ability to immensely pressure Ho-Oh. Zacian-C is one of the very few Pokemon that can directly force Arceus-Ghost out with offensive pressure. Thus, satisfactory counterplay to it in the form of Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, or defensive Zygarde-C is recommended as well. If Arceus-Ghost hasn't collected enough Calm Mind boosts to soak up special attacks and pose a threat to wallbreakers, it is prone to being overwhelmed by various strong attackers such as Xerneas, Primal Kyogre, and Mega Rayquaza. Thus, pairing Arceus-Ghost with a strong defensive backbone, consisting of the likes of Ho-Oh, Necrozma-DM, Primal Groudon, Zygarde-C, and Ditto, is a sensible choice. Normal-types such as Arceus and Chansey completely wall this set, so checks to Arceus such as Zygarde-C, Necrozma-DM, and Zacian-C are useful partners. These checks also naturally take advantage of Chansey. Mega Gengar may also be used to trap and remove such Normal-types, but it may be ineffective on the whole, (AC) as it stacks weaknesses. Whirlpool + Perish Song Arceus-Dark and Arceus-Water lure, trap, and eliminate Chansey and don't stack weaknesses like Mega Gengar does, so they can prove to be good teammates.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Guardsweeper, 360582]]
- Quality checked by: [[ice-master-523, 464176], [Geysers, 426798]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]