QC: Hack / Nayrz / Fireburn
GP: Fireflame479
[OVERVIEW]
* Arceus-Poison is considerably tough to build a team around due to it taking up an Arceus slot over more consistent Arceus formes.
* Arceus-Poison has trouble breaking past the many Ghost-types in the tier such as Giratina-O, Giratina, Mega Sableye, Lunala, and Arceus-Ghost, which is problematic considering the prevalence of Ghost-types.
* Arceus-Poison finds itself hard-walled by many other Pokemon in the metagame such as Celesteela, Ferrothorn, Skarmory, Zygarde-C, and Arceus-Ground.
* Arceus-Poison is deemed useless if it is statused by a burn or a paralysis, as it needs its Attack and Speed stats intact in order to properly function.
* However, Arceus-Poison is one of the hardest checks to Xerneas in the game thanks to a Poison-typing that grants it a resistance to Moonblast as well as most of Xerneas's standard coverage moves outside of Thunder.
* Arceus-Poison also counters standard Lugia as well as checking other support Pokemon that rely on Toxic for dishing out damage thanks to its immunity to poison.
* Arceus-Poison serves as a Fighting-type check as well, coming in on Pokemon such as Mega Lucario, Pheromosa, and Buzzwole.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Poison Jab
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Recover
item: Toxic Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Swords Dance allows Arceus-Poison to bolster its Attack stat to much higher levels, which will at +2 Attack and with a boost from Toxic Plate, enable it to 2HKO support Arceus formes who are neutral to Poison Jab after Stealth Rock.
* Poison Jab is Arceus-Poison's main STAB attack with a nice 30% chance to Poison a target as well as doing heavy damage to Fairy-types such as Xerneas, Tapu Lele, and Arceus-Fairy.
* Earthquake allows Arceus-Poison to dent Primal Groudon and Mega Gengar as well as Steel-types such as Magearna, Solgaleo, Dialga, Excadrill, and Mega Lucario.
* Recover enables Arceus-Poison to keep itself healthy throughout the match to continue checking Xerneas and Lugia.
Set Details
========
* 252 Attack EVs are used to maximize Arceus-Poison's offensive presence, which allows it to muscle through Ubers's bulkier Pokemon such as Z-Geomancy Xerneas and support Arceus formes that are hit neutrally by Poison Jab.
* 252 Speed EVs and a Jolly Nature ensure that Arceus-Poison Speed ties with opposing Arceus formes and Mega Salamence while outpacing Pokemon such as Mega Lucario and Mega Metagross.
* Toxic Plate keeps Poison Jab relatively strong throughout the match, allowing Poison Jab to 2HKO Arceus formes that are neutral to it at +2.
* Poisonium Z can be used instead to turn Poison Jab into a 160-Base Power Acid Downpour, which at +2 Attack, is capable of getting the OHKO on defensive Yveltal after Stealth Rock as well as getting the OHKO on Mega Salamence after Stealth Rock at +1 Attack after factoring in Intimidate. However, this means that Poison Jab will become significantly weaker without the boost from Toxic Plate, so it's generally not preferred.
Usage Tips
========
* Don't try to set up Swords Dance if Arceus-Poison's checks and counters are still alive. During the early- and mid-game, use Poison Jab to fish for the 30% chance to poison to potentially start whittling down Arceus-Poison's checks such as Giratina-O and Arceus-Ghost. Set up Swords Dance late-game when all of Arceus-Poison's checks are either eliminated entirely or are within range of being knocked out.
* Freely switch in on Xerneas whenever possible, as Arceus-Poison checks it pretty hard thanks to its Poison typing granting it resistances to a lot of Xerneas's common attacking moves. Take note that Arceus-Poison's Poison Jab will break just about any variant of Xerneas, as it has a very high chance to, without a Swords Dance boost, 3HKO Z-Geomancy Xerneas when it's at +1 Defense.
* Also, freely switch in on support Pokemon such as Lugia and Arceus-Water, as both of these rely on Toxic to wear down their opponents, which is something Arceus-Poison is completely immune to. This allows Arceus-Poison to use these two as setup fodder.
* Keep Arceus-Poison away from status conditions. Will-O-Wisp users such as Mega Sableye, Giratina-O, Mega Gengar, and Arceus-Rock as well as Thunder Wave users such as Klefki and Mega Slowbro will cripple Arceus-Poison and render it useless for the rest of the match.
Team Options
========
* Xerneas is a great partner to Arceus-Poison, as it takes on many of its checks such as Mega Salamence, Zygarde-C, Giratina-O, and Yveltal.
* Mega Gengar is a nice teammate, since it's able to trap and remove Arceus-Poison's more problematic counters, such as Skarmory, Mega Slowbro, and Bronzong.
* Fire-types such as Primal Groudon and Ho-Oh make excellent teammates to Arceus-Poison, as they incinerate the many Steel-types that wall Arceus-Poison such as Ferrothorn, Skarmory, Bronzong, and Celesteela. Primal Groudon, in particular, is also immune to burn and paralysis. In return, Arceus-Poison helps Primal Groudon out by checking Lugia and Arceus-Water and is capable of absorbing Toxic Spikes for it. Meanwhile, Ho-Oh is able to check Ground-types such as opposing Primal Groudon and variants of Arceus-Ground that lack Rock-type coverage.
* Yveltal, Giratina-O, Mega Salamence, and Zygarde-C pair nicely with Arceus-Poison. Yveltal is immune to both of the types of Pokemon that Arceus-Poison is weak to and is a nice switch-in to Pokemon such as Primal Groudon and Lunala. Meanwhile, Zygarde-C, Giratina-O, and Mega Salamence are also able to take on Primal Groudon as well as checking Extreme Killer Arceus. To return the favor, Arceus-Poison takes on the Fairy-types that scare off these four Pokemon such as Xerneas, Tapu Lele, and Arceus-Fairy.
* Dialga is able to counter Mega Salamence and set up Stealth Rock for Arceus-Poison. Meanwhile, Arceus-Poison resists Fighting-type attackers such as Mega Lucario and Pheromosa.
* Dugtrio works very well with Arceus-Poison, as it's capable of trapping Primal Groudon and Mega Metagross and finishing both of them off with either an Earthquake or a Tectonic Rage.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Ice Beam enables Arceus-Poison to dish out significant damage to Mega Salamence and Zygarde-C, but has little use outside of hitting these two.
* Extreme Speed can help pick off faster Pokemon such as Deoxys-A and Dugtrio, but not only is Deoxys-A commonly paired with Tapu Lele, which summons the priority-nullifying Psychic Terrain, but Arceus-Poison also has issues fitting Extreme Speed in to its moveset when Recover and Earthquake are crucial moves for it.
* Fire Blast can be used to scorch the many Steel-types that give Arceus-Poison trouble, but it has a hard time fitting in on its moveset, and Fire Blast provides mediocre coverage when used alongside Poison Jab.
* A fully special set with Calm Mind can be used instead of Swords Dance thanks to a nifty Toxic immunity and access to a plethora of special coverage moves that can enable it to beat its normal checks and counters, but running a special set over a physical one can make it more difficult to break a Geomancy-boosted Xerneas. Also, it has a bit of four-moveslot syndrome as Calm Mind, Recover, and Judgment (or Sludge Bomb if running Poisonium Z) are essentially required moves, which leaves room for only one coverage move.
* Shadow Claw or Shadow Force can be used to help Arceus-Poison break through Ghost-types that resist its Poison Jab such as Arceus-Ghost, Giratina-O, and Lunala, but it's difficult to fit in Arceus-Poison's moveset.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-types immune to Earthquake**: Pokemon such as Skarmory, Bronzong, and Celesteela are borderline impossible for Arceus-Poison to break down, as they're immune to Poison Jab and Earthquake. Celesteela, in particular, is much harder for a teammate like Mega Gengar to trap, unlike Skarmory and Bronzong, due to its Heavy Slam guaranteeing a 2HKO while Mega Gengar can only 3HKO back with Shadow Ball and Focus Blast.
**Ghost-types**: Pokemon such as Arceus-Ghost, Mega Sableye, Lunala, and Giratina-O resist Arceus-Poison's STAB Poison Jab and take little or no damage from Earthquake. Giratina-O can still be hit hard by Ice Beam, however.
**Ground-types**: Primal Groudon, Arceus-Ground, Dugtrio, and Zygarde-C can slam Arceus-Poison with super effective Ground-type attacks. However, Primal Groudon must be wary of Earthquake, especially when it's boosted by Swords Dance, and Zygarde-C must scout for Ice Beam.
**Status**: Users of Will-O-Wisp and / or Thunder Wave such as Mega Gengar, Mega Sableye, Arceus-Rock, Giratina-O, Klefki, and Mega Slowbro are detrimental to Arceus-Poison, as it doesn't want its Attack and Speed stats crippled.
**Psychic-types**: Pokemon such as Deoxys-A, Lunala, Solgaleo, Mega Metagross, and Mewtwo are capable of denting Arceus-Poison with super effective Psychic-type attacks. Deoxys-A must watch for Extreme Speed, however, as Arceus-Poison OHKOes with it unboosted. Mega Metagross must also be wary of coming in on an Earthquake, which is capable of 2HKOing on the switch.
GP: Fireflame479
[OVERVIEW]
* Arceus-Poison is considerably tough to build a team around due to it taking up an Arceus slot over more consistent Arceus formes.
* Arceus-Poison has trouble breaking past the many Ghost-types in the tier such as Giratina-O, Giratina, Mega Sableye, Lunala, and Arceus-Ghost, which is problematic considering the prevalence of Ghost-types.
* Arceus-Poison finds itself hard-walled by many other Pokemon in the metagame such as Celesteela, Ferrothorn, Skarmory, Zygarde-C, and Arceus-Ground.
* Arceus-Poison is deemed useless if it is statused by a burn or a paralysis, as it needs its Attack and Speed stats intact in order to properly function.
* However, Arceus-Poison is one of the hardest checks to Xerneas in the game thanks to a Poison-typing that grants it a resistance to Moonblast as well as most of Xerneas's standard coverage moves outside of Thunder.
* Arceus-Poison also counters standard Lugia as well as checking other support Pokemon that rely on Toxic for dishing out damage thanks to its immunity to poison.
* Arceus-Poison serves as a Fighting-type check as well, coming in on Pokemon such as Mega Lucario, Pheromosa, and Buzzwole.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Poison Jab
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Recover
item: Toxic Plate
ability: Multitype
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Swords Dance allows Arceus-Poison to bolster its Attack stat to much higher levels, which will at +2 Attack and with a boost from Toxic Plate, enable it to 2HKO support Arceus formes who are neutral to Poison Jab after Stealth Rock.
* Poison Jab is Arceus-Poison's main STAB attack with a nice 30% chance to Poison a target as well as doing heavy damage to Fairy-types such as Xerneas, Tapu Lele, and Arceus-Fairy.
* Earthquake allows Arceus-Poison to dent Primal Groudon and Mega Gengar as well as Steel-types such as Magearna, Solgaleo, Dialga, Excadrill, and Mega Lucario.
* Recover enables Arceus-Poison to keep itself healthy throughout the match to continue checking Xerneas and Lugia.
Set Details
========
* 252 Attack EVs are used to maximize Arceus-Poison's offensive presence, which allows it to muscle through Ubers's bulkier Pokemon such as Z-Geomancy Xerneas and support Arceus formes that are hit neutrally by Poison Jab.
* 252 Speed EVs and a Jolly Nature ensure that Arceus-Poison Speed ties with opposing Arceus formes and Mega Salamence while outpacing Pokemon such as Mega Lucario and Mega Metagross.
* Toxic Plate keeps Poison Jab relatively strong throughout the match, allowing Poison Jab to 2HKO Arceus formes that are neutral to it at +2.
* Poisonium Z can be used instead to turn Poison Jab into a 160-Base Power Acid Downpour, which at +2 Attack, is capable of getting the OHKO on defensive Yveltal after Stealth Rock as well as getting the OHKO on Mega Salamence after Stealth Rock at +1 Attack after factoring in Intimidate. However, this means that Poison Jab will become significantly weaker without the boost from Toxic Plate, so it's generally not preferred.
Usage Tips
========
* Don't try to set up Swords Dance if Arceus-Poison's checks and counters are still alive. During the early- and mid-game, use Poison Jab to fish for the 30% chance to poison to potentially start whittling down Arceus-Poison's checks such as Giratina-O and Arceus-Ghost. Set up Swords Dance late-game when all of Arceus-Poison's checks are either eliminated entirely or are within range of being knocked out.
* Freely switch in on Xerneas whenever possible, as Arceus-Poison checks it pretty hard thanks to its Poison typing granting it resistances to a lot of Xerneas's common attacking moves. Take note that Arceus-Poison's Poison Jab will break just about any variant of Xerneas, as it has a very high chance to, without a Swords Dance boost, 3HKO Z-Geomancy Xerneas when it's at +1 Defense.
* Also, freely switch in on support Pokemon such as Lugia and Arceus-Water, as both of these rely on Toxic to wear down their opponents, which is something Arceus-Poison is completely immune to. This allows Arceus-Poison to use these two as setup fodder.
* Keep Arceus-Poison away from status conditions. Will-O-Wisp users such as Mega Sableye, Giratina-O, Mega Gengar, and Arceus-Rock as well as Thunder Wave users such as Klefki and Mega Slowbro will cripple Arceus-Poison and render it useless for the rest of the match.
Team Options
========
* Xerneas is a great partner to Arceus-Poison, as it takes on many of its checks such as Mega Salamence, Zygarde-C, Giratina-O, and Yveltal.
* Mega Gengar is a nice teammate, since it's able to trap and remove Arceus-Poison's more problematic counters, such as Skarmory, Mega Slowbro, and Bronzong.
* Fire-types such as Primal Groudon and Ho-Oh make excellent teammates to Arceus-Poison, as they incinerate the many Steel-types that wall Arceus-Poison such as Ferrothorn, Skarmory, Bronzong, and Celesteela. Primal Groudon, in particular, is also immune to burn and paralysis. In return, Arceus-Poison helps Primal Groudon out by checking Lugia and Arceus-Water and is capable of absorbing Toxic Spikes for it. Meanwhile, Ho-Oh is able to check Ground-types such as opposing Primal Groudon and variants of Arceus-Ground that lack Rock-type coverage.
* Yveltal, Giratina-O, Mega Salamence, and Zygarde-C pair nicely with Arceus-Poison. Yveltal is immune to both of the types of Pokemon that Arceus-Poison is weak to and is a nice switch-in to Pokemon such as Primal Groudon and Lunala. Meanwhile, Zygarde-C, Giratina-O, and Mega Salamence are also able to take on Primal Groudon as well as checking Extreme Killer Arceus. To return the favor, Arceus-Poison takes on the Fairy-types that scare off these four Pokemon such as Xerneas, Tapu Lele, and Arceus-Fairy.
* Dialga is able to counter Mega Salamence and set up Stealth Rock for Arceus-Poison. Meanwhile, Arceus-Poison resists Fighting-type attackers such as Mega Lucario and Pheromosa.
* Dugtrio works very well with Arceus-Poison, as it's capable of trapping Primal Groudon and Mega Metagross and finishing both of them off with either an Earthquake or a Tectonic Rage.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Ice Beam enables Arceus-Poison to dish out significant damage to Mega Salamence and Zygarde-C, but has little use outside of hitting these two.
* Extreme Speed can help pick off faster Pokemon such as Deoxys-A and Dugtrio, but not only is Deoxys-A commonly paired with Tapu Lele, which summons the priority-nullifying Psychic Terrain, but Arceus-Poison also has issues fitting Extreme Speed in to its moveset when Recover and Earthquake are crucial moves for it.
* Fire Blast can be used to scorch the many Steel-types that give Arceus-Poison trouble, but it has a hard time fitting in on its moveset, and Fire Blast provides mediocre coverage when used alongside Poison Jab.
* A fully special set with Calm Mind can be used instead of Swords Dance thanks to a nifty Toxic immunity and access to a plethora of special coverage moves that can enable it to beat its normal checks and counters, but running a special set over a physical one can make it more difficult to break a Geomancy-boosted Xerneas. Also, it has a bit of four-moveslot syndrome as Calm Mind, Recover, and Judgment (or Sludge Bomb if running Poisonium Z) are essentially required moves, which leaves room for only one coverage move.
* Shadow Claw or Shadow Force can be used to help Arceus-Poison break through Ghost-types that resist its Poison Jab such as Arceus-Ghost, Giratina-O, and Lunala, but it's difficult to fit in Arceus-Poison's moveset.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-types immune to Earthquake**: Pokemon such as Skarmory, Bronzong, and Celesteela are borderline impossible for Arceus-Poison to break down, as they're immune to Poison Jab and Earthquake. Celesteela, in particular, is much harder for a teammate like Mega Gengar to trap, unlike Skarmory and Bronzong, due to its Heavy Slam guaranteeing a 2HKO while Mega Gengar can only 3HKO back with Shadow Ball and Focus Blast.
**Ghost-types**: Pokemon such as Arceus-Ghost, Mega Sableye, Lunala, and Giratina-O resist Arceus-Poison's STAB Poison Jab and take little or no damage from Earthquake. Giratina-O can still be hit hard by Ice Beam, however.
**Ground-types**: Primal Groudon, Arceus-Ground, Dugtrio, and Zygarde-C can slam Arceus-Poison with super effective Ground-type attacks. However, Primal Groudon must be wary of Earthquake, especially when it's boosted by Swords Dance, and Zygarde-C must scout for Ice Beam.
**Status**: Users of Will-O-Wisp and / or Thunder Wave such as Mega Gengar, Mega Sableye, Arceus-Rock, Giratina-O, Klefki, and Mega Slowbro are detrimental to Arceus-Poison, as it doesn't want its Attack and Speed stats crippled.
**Psychic-types**: Pokemon such as Deoxys-A, Lunala, Solgaleo, Mega Metagross, and Mewtwo are capable of denting Arceus-Poison with super effective Psychic-type attacks. Deoxys-A must watch for Extreme Speed, however, as Arceus-Poison OHKOes with it unboosted. Mega Metagross must also be wary of coming in on an Earthquake, which is capable of 2HKOing on the switch.
Last edited:
