ZU Bellossom [QC 3/3] [GP 2/2]

[OVERVIEW]
Bellossom thrives in the ZU metagame for its unique characteristics as a Quiver Dance sweeper; namely, it is a Grass-type that has a great support movepool, including Safeguard and Strength Sap, and solid bulk that allows it to be a reliable late-game sweeper. This is not to say Bellossom does not have its weaknesses; it suffers from crippling four-moveslot syndrome, often having to pick between utility and coverage. Furthermore, Bellossom is pressured by Steel-type Pokemon such as Bronzor and Metang and specially defensive walls carrying Toxic such as Lickilicky and Komala if it does not have Safeguard, and it generally loses to most Pokemon that have a type advantage against it, such as Oricorio-E, Oricorio-F, and Muk. Lastly, Bellossom loses to common wallbreakers such as Pinsir, Rapidash, and Bouffalant.

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Safeguard / Moonblast / Sleep Powder
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Giga Drain is the preferred STAB attack for Bellossom; it provides reliable damage and recovery, giving Bellossom staying power. Strength Sap allows Bellossom to pressure common physical attackers such as Electivire and provides unmatched recovery. Safeguard is used to beat out specially defensive walls Bellossom might otherwise have trouble with, such as Lickilicky and Komala with Toxic. It also gives your Pokemon an immunity to status for five turns, which is a nice perk for setup sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle. Moonblast is an option to deal with Altaria, which Bellossom typically cannot beat without it, 2HKOing it after a Quiver Dance boost. Additionally, Moonblast allows Bellossom to bypass Sap Sipper on Pokemon such as Sawsbuck and Zebstrika to hit them for neutral damage. Sleep Powder is a way for Bellossom to cripple Pokemon that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Choice Scarf Rapidash and Silvally-Poison.

Set Details
========
This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding positive-natured base 99 Speed Pokemon, including maximum Speed Swanna, maximum Speed Silvally formes, and maximum Speed Electivire. After two Quiver Dances, Bellossom outspeeds Pokemon such as Adamant +2 Huntail, Choice Scarf Shiftry, and Zebstrika. Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140-Base Power Bloom Doom. This is specifically useful for dealing with Swanna, as Bloom Doom has a 50% chance to OHKO Swanna after Stealth Rock. Alternatively, when boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap and boosts Defense by one stage. This can be particularly nifty in matchups against Pokemon such as mixed Electivire, and it complements Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts.

Usage Tips
========
Bellossom is played as a tanky late-game sweeper that can come in on passive walls like Lickilicky or on resisted hits and set up. Naturally, this means Bellossom performs at its best when it has enough HP to tank as many hits as possible, so it is paramount to Bellossom's success to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. Similarly, this makes Bellossom terrified of Toxic and Toxic Spikes, as it cannot continue to sponge hits and set up if it is on a timer. While Toxic can be dealt with by using Safeguard, it is essential to Bellossom's success that Toxic Spikes be removed before it comes in. Early- and mid-game, Bellossom should generally switch in on resisted hits from Pokemon such as Silvally-Water and threaten with super effective Giga Drains. Additionally, Sleep Powder sets can spread status early- and mid-game. While Strength Sap is primarily a recovery move, the Attack reduction it provides can give Bellossom opportunities to safely switch out to a strong wallbreaker or another setup sweeper, providing them support as well. Bellossom benefits from Z-Strength Sap greatly if looking to stay in longer and sweep, being able reduce moves such as Choice Band Komala's STAB Return to 3HKOs.

Team Options
========
Pokemon that can trap Bronzor are arguably Bellossom's best partners. Choice Band Alolan Golem traps Bronzor using Magnet Pull and reliably disposes of it using Fire Punch. It also resists all of Bellossom's weaknesses, bar Ice and Bug. Bellossom complements Alolan Golem by eliminating Ground-types that might otherwise trouble it. Silvally-Dark can also significantly pressure and weaken Bronzor with its STAB Dark-type coverage, 2HKOIng specially defensive Bronzor with Multi-Attack. Pursuit also 2HKOes and acts as a pseudo-trapping method against Bronzor, especially when it is weakened. Silvally-Dark is also vulnerable to status due to a lack of reliable recovery, which Bellossom's Safeguard can mitigate. Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric and Grass, which are common Water-type weaknesses. Mareanie is arguably the best Water-type to partner Bellossom with; not only is it one of the best Monferno and Combusken checks in ZU, it also absorbs Toxic Spikes for Bellossom. Other solid Water-types that Bellossom pairs well with are Silvally-Water and Corsola, which form great defensive cores with Bellossom. Silvally-Water can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep while simultaneously checking Bellossom checks such as Monferno, Combusken, andChoice Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. Corsola is one of the few defensive Water-types able to handle Oricorio-F and Chatot due its resistance to their STAB moves, being able to 2HKO both of them after Stealth Rock with Scald. Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users. Bellossom is a great foil to sweepers and wallbreakers; Pokemon like Huntail and Combusken appreciate its utility. Strength Sap gives both Huntail and Combusken setup opportunities. Huntail can take advantage of Safeguard’s status immunity or Sleep Powder and setup on Pokemon that might poison it, such as Bronzor, which happens to be one of Bellossom’s best counters. At +2, Darkinium Z Huntail OHKOes a Bronzor with a 140-Base Power Black Hole Eclipse. Combusken is arguably the best sweeper and wallbreaker to pair with Bellossom; Life Orb Combusken deals with Bronzor, specially defensive Komala, and Abomasnow. Bellossom can help Combusken by eliminating pesky Water-types such as Silvally-Water and Politoed. Sleep Powder aids wallbreakers and sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle and Combusken by incapacitating possible checks to them such as Rapidash.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Substitute can be used in conjunction with Leftovers to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom's Substitute breaks to most fixed damage, such as Seismic Toss from Lickilicky, and it has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB moves, so it generally is not worth it.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Forgoing Safeguard leaves Bellossom incredibly threatened by Toxic, since it limits Bellossom's tanking and sweeping potential, and common Toxic users such as Lickilicky, Komala, and Tangela can tank boosted Giga Drains, recover, and win against Bellossom. Bronzor hard walls Bellossom's main set, even at +6, and forces it to switch through Psywave and Toxic pressure. Curse Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab while sponging any hits, boosted or not, that Bellossom throws its way.

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A mono-attacking Bellossom set that only carries a Grass-type STAB move cannot touch Sap Sipper Sawsbuck and Zebstrika. If Bellossom is not running Moonblast, these matchups are an automatic loss. One should note Sap Sipper Bouffalant will generally beat Bellossom regardless of it carrying Moonblast or not.

**Poison-types**: Silvally-Poison can force a switch from Bellossom with Multi-Attack, which can 2HKO a Z-Strength Sap-boosted Bellossom while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. As previously mentioned, Curse Muk is barely touched by a +6 Giga Drain or Moonblast and can threaten to 2HKO Bellossom with STAB Poison Jab. Additionally, Muk learns Sleep Talk, which can make Muk good sleep fodder for the enemy team, should Bellossom be packing Sleep Powder. While status is generally a problem for any Bellossom not running Safeguard, Toxic Spikes is specifically problematic, as it activates before Bellossom can use Safeguard or Substitute, stunting its sweeping potential.

**Flying-types** Toucannon’s STAB Brave Bird devastates Bellossom, even through Strength Sap, making it a decent offensive Bellossom check. Calm Mind Oricorio-F and Oricorio-E can both come in on Bellossom and impel it to switch, as they both resist Bellossom's Giga Drain and will inevitably win in a Calm Mind war. Choice Specs Oricorio-F also does not fear Bellossom's typical attacking moves, resisting all of them, and can OHKO an unboosted Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane. Furthermore, the Oricorio formes' Dancer ability means that, as long as they alive in the game, Bellossom cannot set up with Quiver Dance, or it might risk whichever Oricorio switching in and copying the boost.

**Steel-types** As previously mentioned, Bellossom generally cannot win against Bronzor, as Bronzor can tank and PP stall Bellossom to its demise. Metang also puts heavy pressure on Bellossom, between Toxic and STAB Meteor Mash being a 3HKO. Additionally, Metang's Clear Body ability means it does not lose Attack whenever Bellossom uses Strength Sap on it.

**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers that have Taunt or can Encore Bellossom into a utility move can force Bellossom to switch out. For example, Vigoroth can use Taunt and Bulk Up on Bellossom, provided Bellossom is not at +3, as Giga Drain from Bellossom can 2HKO the typical Vigoroth set. Simisear pressures Bellossom, as it outspeeds Bellossom at +1, can OHKO it with Flare Blitz, and can tank its attacks until Bellossom has boosted three times. A Taunt + Nasty Plot set shuts Bellossom down especially hard, as it cannot recover or set up, while Simisear can use Nasty Plot and OHKO Bellossom with the same number of Special Defense boosts as Nasty Plot boosts with Fire Blast. Chatot and Mr. Mime can lock Bellossom into a utility move using Encore and force it to use its Z-Move or risk dangerous moves such as Chatter and Psyshock, respectively, putting Bellossom in a lose-lose scenario should it opt to stay in.

**Fire-types**: Rapidash can OHKO Bellossom with STAB Flare Blitz, outspeeds +1 Bellossom, and is able to take a couple of boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts. Physical Monferno and Combusken both threaten to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz, and special Monferno and Combusken 2HKO Bellossom with Fire Blast. However, both get 2HKOed by Bellossom's Moonblast after two Quiver Dances. Simisear is one of Bellossom's biggest checks, being able to outspeed Bellossom and OHKO it with Flare Blitz on a physical set and Fire Blast on a special set. It also can Taunt Bellossom, rendering all of its utility options useless. Flyinium Oricorio-F threatens to OHKO +1 Bellossom with a 185-Base Power Supersonic Skystrike. Bulky Oricorio-F can Taunt and Toxic stall Bellossom, provided it has not yet boosted. Finally, Choice Specs Oricorio-F can OHKO Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane while resisting Bellossom’s Giga Drain and Moonblast.

**Abomasnow** Abomasnow resists Bellossom's Giga Drain, and Bellossom's Moonblast does not threaten to 2HKO Abomasnow until it reaches +3 on the main set, while Life Orb Abomasnow threatens to 2HKO Bellossom with hail's passive damage and STAB Blizzard at +3. Hidden Power Fire is the only way for Bellossom to win against Abomasnow, assuming it has enough boosts to outspeed it.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[Diagnostic, 447557], [Froasty, 446575], [5gen, 296755]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Fireflame479, 231476], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
 
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[OVERVIEW]
============
  • Arguably the best Quiver Dancer in ZU, Bellossom in ZU functions as a tanky lategame Special sweeper. (You do not have to mention ZU as the sample set will be listed under the tier's category regardless. Please find another way to rephrase "tanky lategame Special Sweeper" and add a note on how it compares to other Quiver Dancers in the tier and what allows it to be the "best" at its role)
  • Bellossom has a nice support movepool, including Sleep Powder, and the rare Strength Sap. (Please add details on what these support utility options do and make sure that you include its other notable options)
  • Sporting solid 75/95/100 bulk and passable Grass-typing, Bellossom can tank a hit or two from some of the meta's most popular physical attackers, such as Floatzel or Electivire, and Strength Sap back to full health. (Please mention the speed tiers that Bellossom can outpace after specific stages of Quiver Dance along with this portion)
  • Sleep Powder and Strength Sap hinder opposing Pokemon, giving Bellossom a turn to set-up, or switch-out. (Add other utility options such as Safeguard that allows it to support itself and its teammates)
  • Z-Strength Sap further boosts Bellossom's already-good bulk, making it a menace if not stopped early.
  • Bellossom is threatened by many Specially Defensive walls who carry Toxic, and Fire/Poison/Flying-types in general.
  • Bellossom has extreme 4MSS, having to pick between Sleep Powder, and Moonblast (for hitting things like Altaria). (4MSS for Bellossom is generally due to whether you value hitting Sap Sippers users or beating defensive checks such as Bronzor and Lickilicky and bypass your status-weakness with Safeguard)
  • Bellossom requires a reasonable amount of team support in order to sweep, such as needing Steels removed. (Please briefly mention Bellossom's disadvantages for a teamslot, which would include: Below Average base Speed, Low offensive stats prior to Quiver Dancing, reliance on removing Steel-types along with pokemon that check relevant Sap Sippers, etc).

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Sleep Powder / Moonblast (This should be Safeguard / Moonblast since that allows you to set up on passive pokemon that tend to capitalize on statusing you, including Altaria, Bronzor, and others that would otherwise be a losing MU. It should also be noted that Sleep Powder does not prove helpful against checks that can utilize RestTalk such as Muk. Move Sleep Powder to OO unless there is provided evidence that it helps Bellossom beat out archetypes that normally threaten it, else have it as a third slash to the fourth moveslot since Sleep Powder can force a pokemon to switch into a "sleep fodder" to preserve checks.)
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Quiver Dance is Bellossom's boosting move, increasing its Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. In conjunction with Strength Sap, it is what makes Bellossom with a threat.
  • Giga Drain is arguably the most reliable STAB Bellossom has. It can recover a lot of HP when boosted by Quiver Dance.
  • Strength Sap is what makes Bellossom uniquely scary. It is a recovery move that lowers the enemy Pokemon's Attack, giving Bellossom an opportunity to pivot out or set-up.
  • Sleep Powder, like Strength Sap, is used to give Bellossom an opportunity to pivot out or set-up. (Replace this portion with information regarding Safeguard)
  • Moonblast hits Altaria, which Bellossom typically cannot beat without it. It can 2HKO Altaria after a Quiver Dance boost. (Add the fact that Moonblast also has the added affect of being able to hit all relevant Sap Sippers in the tier for at least neutral damage including Bouffalant, Zebstrika, Sliggoo, Sawsbuck*, Gogoat*, and others. Being able to hit Altaria is just one pokemon of importance.)

Set Details
========
  • This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding Pokemon such as plus-natured max Speed Swanna, plus-natured max Speed Silvally, and plus-natured max Speed Electivire. (It should be noted that +1 Bellossom is outsped by positive-natured max Speed base 100's by 1 point. Everything under that benchmark is outpaced and +0 positive-natured max speed Swanna is currently the fastest pokemon under that benchmark for our tier.)
  • Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140 base power Bloom Doom. (Without heavy SpA investments, Pyukumuku can never be 2HKO'd by Bellossom and Grassium-Z is one way to prevail against Soak variants while using the current spread listed above)
  • When boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap, and boosts Defense by one stage. This compliments Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts, and makes it generally annoying to deal with.

Usage Tips
========
  • Bellossom is played as late-game sweeper who can come in on Pokemon it can tank hits from, and Strength Sap on.
  • Bellossom can beat physical attackers, such as Floatzel and Electivire, by spamming Strength Sap on them.
  • Strength Sap also can be used to provide switch-in opportunities for teammates.
  • Bellossom struggles against Specially Defensive walls such as Bronzor and Komala, and strong Choice attackers such as Rapidash and Toucannon, so it is optimal to eliminate them before switching-in. (Bellossom does not lose against SpD Walls if it's running Safeguard since bulky Komala relies on Knock Off / Toxic and Bronzor's main way to break through Bellossom is spamming Psywave after Toxic is up)
  • Using Sleep Powder, Bellossom can cripple, and pivot out on, checks who could be dangerous for it deal with. (Remove this and replace this with Safeguard utility information)

Team Options
========
  • Probopass is arguably Bellossom's best partner; it resists all of Bellossom's weaknesses except for Fire-types, traps Steel-types who would normally give Bellossom trouble, such as Bronzor, and disposes of them. Additionally, Probopass provides Stealth Rock, which chunks Fire-types, Flying-types, and Bug-types who would otherwise check Bellossom. (The same can be said for Golem-Alola, which resists Fire-types, has a 4x Flying-type resist along with resisting Bellossom's weaknesses bar Ice/Bug-types, traps Bronzor more reliably while threatening Altaria, and more. In general, this portion should be dedicated to Magnet Pull users and not just Probopass, since they allow Bellossom to forgo having to use coverage to deal with Bronzor long term)
  • Altaria is a good partner to Bellossom, as it covers Bellossom's Bug-type and Fire-type weaknesses. Altaria typically stalls out Pokemon that threaten Bellosom, such as Rapidash, with Toxic. However, it should be noted that Pokemon like Special Monferno, Special Combusken, Floatzel, and Silvally commonly carry Ice-type coverage, which can make them a problem to both Altaria, and Bellossom. (Make sure to clear up typos with Bellossom's name. Special Monferno should not be listed here and "Special" Combusken is just Life Orb Combusken that utilizes Hidden Power Ice to deal with Altaria, which can only threaten you if you lack Quiver Dance boosts. The threatlist should match up to the things that Altaria walls which is Monferno, Combusken, Non-Ice Punch Floatzel, Rapidash, Taunt Simisear, and other things of that nature)
  • Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric-types and Grass-types, which are common Water-type weaknesses. In particular, Silvally-Water and Corsola form great defensive cores with Bellossom. The former can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep, while simultaneously checking Bellossom checks such as Monferno, Combusken, and Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. The latter has near-perfect type synergy with Bellossom; a BellosSola core is only weak to Fighting and Poison. Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom, and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users. (Rock-types resist Poison-type attacks)
  • Sweepers and powerful wallbreakers such as Electivire, Floatzel, and Komala appreciate Strength Sap and/or Sleep Powder's effects. (Offensive pokemon that are prone to status appreciate Bellossom's ability to set Safeguard while Sleep Powder can potentially cripple a check if you pair it with a pokemon to break down specific checks. Please make sure to include what pokemon these moves usually assist with and explain why X offensive partner beats pokemon that would normally be annoyances to Bellossom)

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Bellossom has extreme 4MSS as is, so fitting unconventional moves on a set is difficult.
  • Bellossom has the option of teching specific variations of Hidden Power to hit specific things; Ground is optimal, as it 2HKOs many Pokemon that would otherwise wall Bellossom after one Quiver Dance, such as Probopass and Mawile, while hitting Fire-types, Poison-types, and Electric-types super-effectively. (HP Ground is not optimal, especially when it's walled by Bronzor and Altaria while Muk has an easy time taking even boosted HP Grounds and forcing it out with constant Poison-Jab spam. It should also be mentioned that Abomasnow resists both of these coverage options and can chip away at it with Hail and Ice STAB)
  • Hidden Power Fighting is an alternative to Hidden Power Ground, but the only notable difference is OHKOing Pawniard after a Quiver Dance. (Please remove this as well since Pawniard dislikes boosted Giga Drains, can be OHKO'd by a boosted Z-Giga Drain, and dislikes Hidden Power Fire, which is also used to hit resists such as Abomasnow and Bronzor in one slot)
  • Hidden Power Fire can OHKO Abomasnow after Stealth Rock and a Quiver Dance. (Bronzor is the biggest reason for Hidden Power Fire and this should be noted along with the various steel-types that could take hits and punish it back with Toxic, such as Metang)
  • The problem with teching Hidden Power on Bellossom is that Hidden Power lacks initial power on set EV'd for bulk. (The problem with Bellossom in general is that it lacks the power to actually beat many of the pokemon that can check it without multiple boosts. Another issue is that it highly dislikes pokemon such as Choice Scarf Rapidash which outspeeds it at +2 and threatens it for the OHKO)
  • Safeguard or Substitute can be used to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB that it generally is not worth it. (Remove this. Safeguard is the optimal move for beating out the defensive checks that rely on status to beat it. Substitute should only be noted if you include it being used with Leftovers variants. Sleep Powder is typically the best option for OO moveslots)
  • Stun Spore can be used over Sleep Powder, though it is generally less reliable. (Stun Spore's reliability is not the issue here, remove this. Stun Spore's main purpose is to cripple offensive switch-ins such as Choice Scarf Rapidash, Taunt Kadabra, and others but is generally not preferred due to not being able to touch Zebstrika and Altaria, which are common checks to it due to Sap Sipper and Natural Cure, respectively.
  • Bellossom can choose to run an offensive SunnyBeamer set with Sunny Day, Solar Beam, Hidden Power Fire and a filler move, but Bellossom is outsped by common Choice Scarf Pokemon such as Swanna and revenge killed with no bulk. (Remove this. Offensive Belossom that relies on using the sun to boost its own speed does not have the moveslot to utilize setting Sunny Day itself)
  • Lastly, an offensive set can be run with Life Orb as an item, Leaf Storm, Hidden Power, Moonblast, and Strength Sap, but it faces problems similar to the SunnyBeamer set. (Remove mentions of the SunnyBeamer set. Solar Beam should be the primary move on Sunny Day attackers with Growth being the primary slash over Strength Sap due to the additional special attack boosts that it grants under the Sun. Giga Drain is the secondary attack on this variant as it provides you with an recovery option that is not passive)
  • Mention Synthesis as the OO recovery option.
Checks and Counters
===================

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Specially Defensive Tangela, Specially Defensive Komala, and Specially Defensive Bronzor with Toxic can wall, recover on, and whittle down Bellossom fairly easy. Without Moonblast, Altaria hard-walls Bellossom, and forces it to switch through Toxic. Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab, while sponging any hits Bellossom throws its way. (This only applies when Bellossom is not running Safeguard as it can actually beat out the passive pokemon mentioned above using boosted Giga Drains when Toxic is no longer a factor. Muk and Bronzor are good mentions as specially defensive pokemon that wall it due to being able to force it to recover while constantly pressuring it with Poison Jab and Psywave respectively)

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A Bellossom who only carries a mono-attacking Grass-type set literally cannot touch a Sap Sipper Sawsbuck, Bouffalant, Zebstrika, Sliggoo, or Girafarig, This makes these matchups an automatic L. (Mention that this only applies when it is not using a secondary coverage option to hit said pokemon above.)

**Type-advantaged Pokemon**: Most type-advantaged Pokemon can outright wall Bellossom, regardless of bulk. Offensive Roselia can shrug off hits and threaten Bellossom at +1 with Sludge Bomb. Scarf Abomasnow can switch-in on Bellossom at +1 and threaten to 2HKO it with Blizzard. Silvally-Poison can threaten Bellossom with Multi-Attack, while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. Choice Band or Firium-Z Fire-type Pokemon such as Rapidash, Combusken, and Simisear all threaten to OHKO Bellossom with their STAB. Oricorio's Hurricane 2HKOs Bellossom after a Quiver Dance, and is barely touched by Giga Drain or Moonblast. Toucannon threatens to OHKO Bellossom with Brave Bird. (This should be separated into different categories. Poison-types such as Muk, Roselia, and Silvally-Poison threaten it with X. Fire-Types such as Rapidash, Combusken, Monferno, Simisear threaten it with X. Abomasnow should have its own category as Hail + resists chip away at Bellossom and it has the STAB Ice-attack options to force it out if Bellossom is weakened. Flying-Types are typically not threats unless they are utilizing Choice Scarf and Physical-based attacks after Quiver Dance boosts are applied, although Oricorio resists all of Belossom's standard attacking options and can be noted for such. Please note that frail resists that cannot punish Bellossom on the physically defensive side do not typically win the 1v1 if Quiver Dance boosts are already applied.)

(Please add another section regarding Taunt users that can swap into Bellossom such as Simisear and force it out. Stallbreakers such as Vigoroth also don't fear Bellossom and can win 1v1 due to disabling its recovery, boosting, and utility options while taking little from Giga Drain. Toxic Spikes should be another mention since getting status on Bellossom before it can set up Safeguard or Substitute is detrimental to its sweeping capabilities if its checks are not removed. Encore users such as Chatot and Mr.Mime are dangerous since they can lock Bellossom into one move and force it to use its Z-move and can harm it with attacks such as Chatter and Psyshock, putting it at a disadvantaged scenario. Opposing offensive Grass-types such as Jumpluff / Roselia / and Sawsbuck cannot be affected by Powder-moves while resisting Giga Drain and can threaten it out using Super-Effective coverage or powerful physical attacks)

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
QC 1/3 once these changes are implemented. Keep up the great work!
 
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I think that diagnostic may have implied this, but I just tested it and Bellossom simply cannot beat Bronzor. Psywave does way too much damage while strength sap and Giga Drain heal almost nothing and Safeguard keeps needing to be reapplied. Bronzor isn't even 3hkoed at +6 by Giga drain, so it can even pp stall Bellossom if Bellossom doesn't get crtis. Altaria can be beaten with safeguard because Bellossom has way more pp than most Altaria, but the fight can still force Bellossom to use up a decent amount of its Giga Drains, especially if Altaria ultimately scores a critical hit. At least two flamethrower crits will let Altaria win I believe, and that happens about 26.4% of the time if my math is right. Altaria can also pair up with something else that can take +6 Giga Drains like Tangela to beat Bellossom, because Safeguard Bellossom can only win by pp-stalling (+6 Giga does like 20% to phys def Altaria).

Also, I think Bellossom's set could slash Moonblast with Giga Drain as well as with safeguard for a non-Stab fairy monoattacker. It's weaker and doesn't recover, but way less resists fairy than grass. I also think that sludge bomb could go in other options as a way of beating sap sippers, other grass types, and fire types better.

Maybe also mention that Bellossom is a decent Kecleon check/counter, since not even Ice Beam does much damage and Bellossom outspeeds and nearly fully heals with Strength Sap.
 
[OVERVIEW]
============
  • Unique for being the only non-Stealth Rock weak Quiver Dancer in ZU, Bellossom functions as a bulky lategame Special sweeper.
  • Bellossom has a nice support movepool, including Safeguard, Stun Spore, Sleep Powder, and the rare Strength Sap. Safeguard allows Bellossom to beat Toxic stallers who would otherwise beat it, such as Specially Defensive Komala. Stun Spore, Sleep Powder and Strength Sap hinder opposing Pokemon, giving Bellossom a turn to set-up, or switch-out. Strength Sap can also be used for recovery (Because Stun Spore and Sleep Powder are not on the main set they do not get mentioned in the overview.)
  • Sporting solid 75/95/100 bulk and passable Grass-typing, Bellossom can tank a hit or two from some of the meta's most popular physical attackers, such as Floatzel or Electivire, and Strength Sap back to full health. (You should specify which Floatzel set or sets.)
  • After a Quiver Dance with Timid nature and max Speed, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding everything under base 100 Speed. This notably includes plus-natured max Speed Swanna, plus-natured max Speed Sawsbuck, plus-natured max Speed Electivire. After two Quiver Dances with Timid nature and max Speed, Bellossom reaches 436 Speed, outspeeding things such as Scarf Monferno, Scarf Shiftry, and Zebstrika.
  • Z-Strength Sap further boosts Bellossom's already-good bulk, making it a menace if not stopped early.
  • Bellossom can be threatened by many Specially Defensive walls who carry Toxic, and Fire/Poison/Flying-types in general.
  • Bellossom has extreme 4MSS, having to pick between utility or coverage. For example, one might run Safeguard on Bellossom if they would prefer to beat defensive Bellossom checks like Toxic Komala or Tangela. Conversely, Bellossom can run Moonblast to hit Altaria and Sap Sipper Pokemon such as Sawsbuck. (Tangela doesn't really have a way to actually break Bellossom that involves status, since Toxic is at most OO on it. Lickilicky would actually be a preferable example here.)
  • Bellossom has several glaring disadvantages in practice, such as needing Steels removed, its relatively low Speed tier, requiring several boosts to break things, and needing team support to deal with Pokemon with Sap Sipper.
You should list this section in order of pros and then cons.

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Safeguard / Moonblast
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Quiver Dance is Bellossom's boosting move, increasing its Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. In conjunction with Strength Sap, it is what makes Bellossom with a threat.
  • Giga Drain is arguably the most reliable STAB Bellossom has. It can recover a lot of HP when boosted by Quiver Dance.
  • Strength Sap is what makes Bellossom uniquely scary. It is a recovery move that lowers the enemy Pokemon's Attack, giving Bellossom an opportunity to pivot out or set-up. It is what allows Bellossom to take hits from Pokemon like Choice Band Ice Punch Floatzel or Choice Scarf Electivire.
  • Safeguard is used to beat out Specially Defensive walls Bellossom might otherwise have trouble with, such as Specially Defensive Tangela (Different example, since Tangela doesn't use Toxic outside of OO.) and Specially Defensive Komala with Toxic. It also gives your Pokemon an immunity to status for five turns, which is a godsend to set-up sweepers such as Bulk Up Floatzel who are otherwise threatened by status. (I would use a different example here as well, possibly Crustle or Pinsir. Floatzel is immune to Gourgeist-Super's Will-O-Wisp, so it needs less protection from status.)
  • Moonblast hits Altaria, which Bellossom typically cannot beat without it. It can 2HKO Altaria after a Quiver Dance boost. Additionally, Moonblast allows Bellossom to bypass Sap Sipper on Pokemon such as Sawsbuck, Sliggoo, Zebstrika, and Gogoat to hit for neutral damage.

Set Details
========
  • This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding positive-natured base 99 Speed Pokemon, such as Gourgeist-Small, by one point. Other notable Pokemon Bellossom outspeeds at +1 are plus-natured max Speed Swanna, plus-natured max Speed Silvally, and plus-natured max Speed Electivire.
  • Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140 base power Bloom Doom. Most notably, Physically Defensive Pyukumuku can be 2HKO’d by a Bloom Doom and Giga Drain, before Soak.
  • When boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap, and boosts Defense by one stage. This compliments Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts, and makes it generally annoying to deal with.

Usage Tips
========
  • Bellossom is played as late-game sweeper who can come in on Pokemon it can tank hits from, and Strength Sap on.
  • Bellossom can beat physical attackers, such as Floatzel and Electivire, by spamming Strength Sap on them. (Same as above, you should specify which Floatzel set.)
  • Strength Sap also can be used to provide switch-in opportunities for teammates.
  • Bellossom struggles against strong Choice attackers such as Rapidash and Toucannon, so it is optimal to eliminate them before switching-in. (Toucannon doesn't use a Choice item outside of OO, and for Rapidash only Choice Scarf really sees use, which Rapidash outspeeds a +1 Bellossom even without. I really can't think of any good substitutes for this point at the time being, so it would probably be best to remove this point.)
  • Using Safeguard, Bellossom can stall and beat Pokemon who might otherwise put its life on a timer with Toxic. This includes Specially Defensive Tangela and Specially Defensive Komala. Safeguard is also useful for supporting other sweepers, as it makes your Pokemon impervious to status for five turns. (Same thing as above with Tangela.)

Team Options
========
  • Magnet Pull users are arguably Bellossom's best partners, as they allow Bellossom to bypass Bronzor with ease. Probopass resists all of Bellossom's weaknesses except for Fire-types, traps Steel-types who would normally give Bellossom trouble, such as the aforementioned Bronzor, and disposes of them. Additionally, Probopass provides Stealth Rock, which chunks Fire-types, Flying-types, and Bug-types who would otherwise check Bellossom. Similarly, Choice Band Golem-Alola traps Steel-types using Magnet Pull and, compared to Probopass, more reliably disposes of Bronzor. It resists all of Bellossom’s weaknesses, bar Ice-types and Bug-types. Bellossom compliments both of these Pokemon by eliminating Ground-types who might otherwise trouble them. (Silvally-Dark also slides somewhat decently into this section if it is re-phrased to focus on Pokemon that trap Bronzor, as it can significantly weaken or eliminate Bronzor for Bellossom with Pursuit while enjoying that Safeguard makes Bronzor completely unable to touch it, and on top of that it can also Defog to remove the Stealth Rock that Bronzor might put up.)
  • Altaria is a good partner to Bellossom, as it covers Bellossom's Bug-type and Fire-type weaknesses. Altaria typically stalls out Pokemon that threaten Bellossom, such as Rapidash, Monferno, Combusken, Taunt Simisear, and Floatzel, with Toxic and Roost. However, it should be noted that many of these Pokemon, such as Monferno, Combusken, and Floatzel, can opt for Ice-type coverage, which can make them a problem to both Altaria, and Bellossom. (This is a rather weak point, since most or all of these Pokemon can break through Altaria. It would probably be best to remove this or focus on another way in which Altaria might support Bellossom.)
  • Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric-types and Grass-types, which are common Water-type weaknesses. In particular, Silvally-Water and Corsola (Corsola tends to take super effective damage from many Pokemon that also threaten Bellossom, like Abomasnow and Combusken, and also has weaknesses to common moves used next to coverage for Grass types. This makes it a poor partner outside of paper for Bellossom. Mareanie would be a better example of a partner, offering resistances to 4 of Bellossom's 5 weaknesses while also being immune to Toxic and benefiting from Bellossom checking Ground types for it.) form great defensive cores with Bellossom. The former can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep, while simultaneously checking Bellossom checks such as Monferno, Combusken, and Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. The latter has near-perfect type synergy with Bellossom; a BellosSola core is only weak to Fighting-types and Bug-types. Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom, and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users.
  • Bellossom is a great foil to sweepers and wallbreakers; Pokemon like Electivire and Floatzel appreciate Bellossom’s utility. Strength Sap gives both Floatzel and Electivire switch-in opportunities. Floatzel can abuse Safeguard’s status immunity and set-up on Pokemon who might status and threaten it otherwise, such as Bronzor, who happens to be one of Bellossom’s hard-counters. (Floatzel has Taunt, so this isn't particularly the case. Floatzel also doesn't like taking Psywaves.) Floatzel also threatens Fire-types, Ice-types, and Flying-types through its coverage, which includes Hydro Pump, Liquidation, Focus Blast Low Kick, Ice Beam, and Ice Punch. Electivire can assist Bellossom by eliminating Fire-types, Flying-types, Bug-types, Poison-types and/or Ice-types through its vast coverage, including Earthquake, Ice Punch, Flamethrower, and Cross Chop. Bellossom can help Electivire by eliminating pesky Ground-types such as Physically Defensive Golem and Sandslash. Sleep Powder aids most wallbreakers and sweepers by incapacitating possible checks to them. (This part should be rewritten to express primary focus on how Bellossom benefits from sweepers and wallbreakers as teammates, with only brief mentions of how they benefit from it.)

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Bellossom has extreme 4MSS as is, so fitting unconventional moves on a set is difficult.
  • Bellossom can tech Hidden Power to hit specific things; Ground is an option, as it 2HKOs many Pokemon that would otherwise wall Bellossom after one Quiver Dance, such as Probopass and Mawile, while hitting Fire-types, Poison-types, and Electric-types super-effectively. However, Muk can typically tank boosted Hidden Power Ground, and the common Altaria and Bronzor also negate Hidden Power Ground entirely. Abomasnow notably resists Ground-type damage too, and can easily wear down Bellossom with Hail and Ice-type STAB.
  • Hidden Power Fire can OHKO Abomasnow after Stealth Rock and a Quiver Dance. Fire also notably 2HKOs Metang and Specially Defensive Bronzor under sun with a 252 Special Attack Life Orb set, and one Quiver Dance boost.
  • The problem with teching Hidden Power on Bellossom is that Bellossom lacks the power to beat many of its checks, even with several boosts. Additionally, Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Rapidash benefit from Hidden Power Fire, and still beat Bellossom at +2, with Flare Blitz having a chance to OHKO Bellossom.
  • Substitute can be used in conjunction with Leftovers to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB that it generally is not worth it.
  • Sleep Powder can be used to put the opponent’s Pokemon to sleep, giving Bellossom a chance to set-up or pivot out on would be checks such as Choice Scarf Rapidash and Taunt Kadabra.
  • Lastly, an offensive set can be run on Sunny Day archetypes with Life Orb as an item, Leaf Storm, Hidden Power, Moonblast, Strength Sap/Synthesis, and/or Growth, but this set faces competition from Shiftry and Weepinbell, who have a far better Speed tier than Bellossom and better coverage options.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Abomasnow** Abomasnow resists Bellossom’s Giga Drain, which can be problematic for the flower. Additionally, Bellossom’s Moonblast does not threaten to 2HKO Abomasnow until it reaches +3 on the main set, while Life Orb Abomasnow threatens to 2HKO Bellossom with Hail’s passive damage and STAB Blizzard at +3. Essentially, Hidden Power Fire is the only way for Bellossom to win against Abomasnow, assuming it has enough boosts to outspeed it.

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Bronzor hard-walls Bellossom’s main set, even at +6, and forces it to switch through Psywave and Toxic pressure. Curse Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab, while sponging any hits, boosted or not, that Bellossom throws its way. On another note, when Bellossom chooses to forgo Safeguard for coverage, it is bullied by Specially Defensive walls with Toxic, such as Komala and Tangela.

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A Bellossom who only carries a mono-attacking Grass-type set literally cannot touch a Sap Sipper Sawsbuck, Bouffalant, Zebstrika, Sliggoo, or Girafarig, If Bellossom is not running Moonblast, these matchups an automatic L.

**Poison-types**: Offensive Roselia cares less about boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts, frightening Bellossom with a super-effective Sludge Bomb, which 2HKOs a Bellossom with one Quiver Dance boost and has a chance to poison. Roselia also can set up Toxic Spikes, which greatly limits a Bellossom’s sweeping potential, as Toxic Spikes proc before Safeguard can be activated. Silvally-Poison can force a switch from Bellossom with Multi-Attack that can 2HKO a Z-Strength Sap-boosted Bellossom,, while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. As previously mentioned, Curse Muk is barely touched by a max boost Bellossom’s Giga Drain, Moonblast, or Hidden Power Fire, and can threaten to 2HKO the Flower Pokemon with STAB Poison Jab. Additionally, Muk learns Sleep Talk, which can make Muk good sleep fodder for the enemy team, should Bellossom be packing Sleep Powder.

**Fire-types**: Rapidash can OHKO Bellossom with STAB Flare Blitz while outspeeding +1 Bellossom while being able to take a couple of boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts. Physical Monferno and Combusken both threaten to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz, but Special Monferno and Combusken 2HKO Bellossom with Fire Blast. Both get two-shot by a Bellossom’s Moonblast, after two Quiver Dances. Simisear is one of Bellossom’s biggest checks, being able to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz on a physical set while outspeeding +1 Bellossom, and OHKOing Bellossom with Fire Blast on a special set. It also can Taunt Bellossom, rendering all of its utility options useless. Flyinium Oricorio also drags Bellossom, threatening to OHKO a +1 Bellossom with a 185 BP Supersonic Skystrike. Bulky Oricorio can Taunt and Toxic stall Oricorio, provided it has not yet boosted. Finally, Choice Specs Oricorio can OHKO Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane, while resisting Bellossom’s common attacking moves (Giga Drain and Moonblast).

**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers who have Taunt or can Encore Bellossom into a utility move can force Bellossom to switch out. For example, Vigoroth can Taunt and Bulk Up on Bellossom, provided it is not at +3, as Giga Drain from Bellossom can 2HKO the typical Vigoroth. As stated previously, Simisear pressures Bellossom, as it outspeeds Bellossom at +1, can OHKO it with Flare Blitz, and can tank its attacks until Bellossom has boosted three times. A Taunt + Nasty Plot set shuts Bellossom down especially hard, as it cannot recover or set-up, while Simisear can click Nasty Plot and OHKO a Bellossom with the same number of Special Defense boosts with Fire Blast. Chatot and Mr. Mime can lock Bellossom into a utility move using Encore and force it to use its Z-Move or risk dangerous moves such as Chatter or Psyshock, respectively, putting Bellossom in a lose-lose scenario should it opt to stay in.

**Toxic Spikes**: While status is generally a problem for any Bellossom not running Safeguard, Toxic Spikes is specifically problematic, as it activates before Bellossom can use Safeguard or Substitute, stunting its sweeping potential. In addition, Roselia, one of the more common Toxic Spikes users, deals with Bellossom pretty well through the overarching threat of a super-effective Sludge Bomb, while resisting most of Bellossom's typical attacks.

Flying types should also get a section. Toucannon can nuke Bellossom through Strength Sap, Oricorio-Baile double resists Giga Drain and resists Moonblast as well as having super effective STAB, Oricorio-Pom-Pom can come right in on Bellossom and go into a Calm Mind war with it that Oricorio-Pom-Pom will win. Swanna doesn't like taking the hits from Giga Drain, but neither does Bellossom like Hurricane.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
It was a nice read overall, a few things just need correcting. QC 2/3 when fully implemented.
 

Xayah

San Bwanna
is a Community Contributoris a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
Also wanna note, before you move to writeup, QC agreed to slash Sleep Powder after Moonblast (so 4th move is Safeguard / Moonblast / Sleep Powder). This is not 3/3, just a simple note.
 
QC 2 done. JSYK, I will be gone from the 23rd to the 31st, so please don't think I'm inactive, I am simply on vacation with family. Q_Q
 

Aaronboyer

Something Worth Fighting For
is a Contributor to Smogon
[OVERVIEW]
============
Bellossom strives strives? do you mean thrives? if you meant strives, what does it strive for? in the ZU metagame for its unique characteristics as a Quiver Dancer; namely, it is the only Quiver Dancer in the tier that is Grass-type How does this separate it from other Quiver Dance users (lack of weakness to SR). Bellossom also has a great support movepool including Safeguard and Strength Sap, and solid 75/95/100 users who are reading this analysis can see Bello's stats above, so you don't have to be specific with numbers. bulk that, in conjunction with what?, allow it to be a nearly-unstoppable tank Bello is less of a tank and more of a win-con. lategame. This is not to say Bellossom does not have its weaknesses; it suffers from crippling 4MSS, often having to pick between utility and coverage. Furthermore, Bellossom is pressured by Steel-type Pokemon such as Bronzor and Metang, Specially Defensive walls carrying Toxic such as Lickilicky and Komala if it does not have Safeguard, and generally loses to most Pokemon who have a type advantage against it name some specific examples (PS I think Oricorio-E should be a specific example you should consider due to its Flying-typing + Dancer ability).

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Safeguard / Moonblast / Sleep Powder
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Giga Drain is the preferred choice of STAB for Bellossom; it provides reliable damage and recovery, giving Bellossom staying power. Strength Sap is Bellossom's bread and butter; not only does it pressure common physical attackers such as Electivire, but it also provides unmatched recovery. Safeguard is used to beat out Specially Defensive walls Bellossom might otherwise have trouble with, such as Specially Defensive Lickilicky and Specially Defensive Komala with Toxic. It also gives your Pokemon an immunity to status for five turns, which is a godsend to set-up sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle who are otherwise threatened by status. Safeguard support is far from being a "godsend," especially considering its short duration. Moonblast is an option to deal with Altaria, who Bellossom typically cannot beat without it. It can 2HKO after a Quiver Dance boost. Additionally, Moonblast allows Bellossom to bypass Sap Sipper on Pokemon such as Sawsbuck, Sliggoo, Zebstrika, and Gogoat Sliggoo and Gogoat are irelevant mons. to hit for neutral damage. Sleep Powder is an avenue for Bellossom to cripple Pokemon that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Choice Scarf Rapidash and Taunt Kadabra. It also gives Bellossom safe set-up and switch-out opportunities, providing easy pressure. Explain more indepth on "providing easy pressure" with specific examples.

Set Details
========
This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding positive-natured base 99 Speed Pokemon, such as Gourgeist-Small, by one point.Gourgeist-Small is Usually Useless. Take this line out, Geist-Small is irrelevant. Other notable Pokemon Bellossom outspeeds at +1 are plus-natured max Speed Swanna, plus-natured max Speed Silvally, and plus-natured max Speed Electivire. Fix this sentence now that you don't need "Other"After two Quiver Dances, Bellossom reaches 436 Speed, outspeeding things such as Scarf Monferno, Scarf Shiftry, and Zebstrika.Scarf Monferno is bad, change it out for a different example such as Adamant +2 Huntail or something. Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140 base power Bloom Doom. Most notably, Physically Defensive Pyukumuku can be 2HKO’d by a Bloom Doom and Giga Drain, before Soak. When boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap, and boosts Defense by one stage. This compliments Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts, and makes it generally annoying to deal with. You gave a specific scenario where Bloom Doom + Giga Drain is useful, mention a specific scenario where using Z-Strength Sap is applicable.

Usage Tips
========
Bellossom is played as late-game sweeper who can come in on Pokemon it can tank hits from, and set-up on. Naturally, this makes Bellossom terrified of Toxic and Toxic Spikes. What Pokemon can it setup on? How does this "Naturally make it scared of poison recoil? Other bulky win-cons such as BU Komala and CroMuk dont have to worry. I don't get that comparison between those two ideas. While Toxic can be dealt with by using Safeguard, it is essential to Bellossom's success that Toxic Spikes be removed before it comes in. While Strength Sap is primarily a recovery move to Bellossom, it can double as a safe switch-out into a strong wallbreaker or another set-up sweeper. Explain more in-depth on this last point.

I have absolutely no idea how this analysis received 2 QC checks so far with this section being as barebones as it is. Please beef this section up. This is not an extensive list of what should be added, but rather a list of ideas to help you get going...

  • Bellossom is a Z-Move user, therefore when should Bellossom most optimally use its Z-Move?
  • Despite its primary focus on being a late-game win-con, how does Bellossom play early- to mid-game? (Ex. Inducing status?)
  • Mention keeping Bellossom at a sustainable amount of health.
Team Options
========
Pokemon who trap Bronzor are arguably Bellossom's best partners. Probopass resists all of Bellossom's weaknesses except for Fire-types, traps Steel-types who would normally give Bellossom trouble, such as the aforementioned Bronzor, and disposes of them. Additionally, Probopass provides Stealth Rock, which chunks Fire-types, Flying-types, and Bug-types who would otherwise check Bellossom. Similarly, Choice Band Golem-Alola traps Steel-types using Magnet Pull and, compared to Probopass, more reliably disposes of Bronzor. This entire section is all about Probopass when it should rather be all about Golem-A. Redo this section about Steel-trapping. Also, there are a few other Steel-types besides just Bronzor that Bello appreciates being removed. Specifically mention the reasoning why Bello appreciates them being removed. It resists all of Bellossom’s weaknesses, bar Ice-types and Bug-types. Bellossom compliments both of these Pokemon by eliminating Ground-types who might otherwise trouble them. Silvally-Dark can also significantly pressure and weaken Bronzor with its STAB Dark-type coverage, 2HKOIng Specially Defensive Bronzor with Multi-Attack. Pursuit also 2HKOs and acts as a pseudo-trapping method against Bronzor, especially when it is weakened. Silvally-Dark is also prone to status, due to having no reliable recovery, which Bellossom’s Safeguard can eliminate. Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric-types and Grass-types, which are common Water-type weaknesses. Mareanie is arguably the best Water-type to partner Bellossom with; not only is it the undisputed Monferno and Combusken check of ZU, This isnt necessarily true. Altaria checks them both pretty well too, just that it doesnt pair well with Bello. Just change it up to where it isn't the "undisputed best check in all of ZU" to these mons. but it also absorbs Toxic Spikes, eliminating a huge threat to the Flower Pokemon. Over and above that, Mareanie resists Ice, Poison, Fire, and Bug; four of the five types Bellossom is weak to. Likewise, Bellossom resists Electric-type and Ground-type coverage, harmonizing with Mareanie nicely. Other solid Water-types that Bellossom pairs well with are Silvally-Water and Corsola form great defensive cores with Bellossom. The former can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep, while simultaneously checking Bellossom checks such as Monferno, Combusken, and Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. The latter has near-perfect type synergy with Bellossom; a BellosSola This isn't gonna fly by with GP, letting you know ahead of time. core is only weak to Fighting-types and Bug-types. Corsola is also one of the few defensive Water-types able to handle Oricorio and Chatot, due to resisting their STABs, and being able to 2HKO both of them after Stealth Rock with Scald. Regenerator also allows it to pivot, giving it multiple switch-in opportunities. Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom, and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users. Bellossom is a great foil to sweepers and wallbreakers; Pokemon like Huntail and Combusken appreciate Bellossom’s utility. Strength Sap gives both Huntail and Combusken set-up opportunities. Huntail can abuse Safeguard’s status immunity or Sleep Powder and set-up on Pokemon who might poison it, such as Bronzor, who happens to be one of Bellossom’s hard-counters. At +2, Darkinium Huntail OHKOs a Bronzor with a 140 BP Black Hole Eclipse. Furthermore, Huntail has nice typing synergy with Bellossom. Combusken is arguably the best sweeper/wallbreaker to pair with Bellossom; a Life Orb Combusken deals with Bronzor, Specially Defensive Komala, Roselia, and Abomasnow, due to its amazing Fire/Fighting-type dual STAB. Bellossom can help Combusken by eliminating pesky Water-types such as Silvally-Water and Politoed. Sleep Powder aids most wallbreakers examples of wallbreakers that appreciate sleep support and sweepers by incapacitating possible checks to them examples of checks to the examples of wallbreakers.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Bellossom can tech Hidden Power to hit specific things; Ground is an option, as it 2HKOs many Pokemon that would otherwise wall Bellossom after one Quiver Dance, such as Probopass and Mawile, while hitting Fire-types, Poison-types, and Electric-types super-effectively. I think this should be reworded to Steels such as W, Fires such as X, Poisons such as Y, and Electrics such as Z. However, Muk can typically tank boosted Hidden Power Ground, and the common Altaria and Bronzor negate Hidden Power Ground entirely meaning Bellossom can no longer break through Altaria. Brnzor beats Bellossom anyways, so I would remove this example. Abomasnow notably resists Ground-type damage too, and can easily wear down Bellossom with Hail and Ice-type STAB. Hidden Power Fire can OHKO Abomasnow after Stealth Rock and a Quiver Dance. Fire also notably 2HKOs Metang and Specially Defensive Bronzor under sun with a 252 Special Attack Life Orb set, and one Quiver Dance boost. The problem with teching Hidden Power on Bellossom is that Bellossom lacks the power to beat many of its checks, even with several boosts. Additionally, Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Rapidash benefit from Hidden Power Fire, and still beat Bellossom at +2, with Flare Blitz having a chance to OHKO Bellossom. Mention the stiff competition it faces with other Chlorophyll users on sun teams and that sun hyper offense is no where near a relevant playstyle. Substitute can be used in conjunction with Leftovers to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB that it generally is not worth it. Mention that Pokemon such as Lickilicky with fixed damage output moves always break the sub anyways. Lastly, an offensive set can be run on Sunny Day archetypes with Life Orb as an item, Leaf Storm, Hidden Power, Moonblast, Strength Sap/Synthesis, and/or Growth, but this set faces competition from Shiftry and Weepinbell Remove Weepinbell, its unranked., who have a far better Speed tier than Bellossom and better coverage options.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Abomasnow** Abomasnow resists Bellossom’s Giga Drain, which can be problematic for the flower. Additionally, Bellossom’s Moonblast does not threaten to 2HKO Abomasnow until it reaches +3 on the main set, while Life Orb Abomasnow threatens to 2HKO Bellossom with Hail’s passive damage and STAB Blizzard at +3. Essentially, Hidden Power Fire is the only way for Bellossom to win against Abomasnow, assuming it has enough boosts to outspeed it.

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Bronzor hard-walls Bellossom’s main set, even at +6, and forces it to switch through Psywave and Toxic pressure. Curse Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab, while sponging any hits, boosted or not, that Bellossom throws its way. On another note, when Bellossom chooses to forgo Safeguard for coverage, it is bullied by Specially Defensive walls with Toxic, such as Komala and Tangela.

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A Bellossom who only carries a mono-attacking Grass-type set literally cannot touch a Sap Sipper Sawsbuck, Bouffalant, Zebstrika, Sliggoo, or Girafarig, Take out Sliggoo and Girafarig. If Bellossom is not running Moonblast, these matchups an automatic L. loss, spell out everything

**Poison-types**: Offensive Roselia cares less about boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts, frightening Bellossom with a super-effective Sludge Bomb, which 2HKOs a Bellossom with one Quiver Dance boost and has a chance to poison. Roselia also can set up Toxic Spikes, which greatly limits a Bellossom’s sweeping potential, as Toxic Spikes proc before Safeguard can be activated. Silvally-Poison can force a switch from Bellossom with Multi-Attack that can 2HKO a Z-Strength Sap-boosted Bellossom,, while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. As previously mentioned, Curse Muk is barely touched by a max boost Bellossom’s Giga Drain, Moonblast, or Hidden Power Fire, and can threaten to 2HKO the Flower Pokemon with STAB Poison Jab. Additionally, Muk learns Sleep Talk, which can make Muk good sleep fodder for the enemy team, should Bellossom be packing Sleep Powder.

**Fire-types**: Rapidash can OHKO Bellossom with STAB Flare Blitz while outspeeding +1 Bellossom while being able to take a couple of boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts. Physical Monferno and Combusken both threaten to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz, but Special Monferno and Combusken 2HKO Bellossom with Fire Blast. Both get two-shot by a Bellossom’s Moonblast, after two Quiver Dances. Simisear is one of Bellossom’s biggest checks, being able to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz on a physical set while outspeeding +1 Bellossom, and OHKOing Bellossom with Fire Blast on a special set. It also can Taunt Bellossom, rendering all of its utility options useless. Flyinium Oricorio-Baile also drags Bellossom, threatening to OHKO a +1 Bellossom with a 185 BP Supersonic Skystrike. Bulky Oricorio can Taunt and Toxic stall Oricorio, provided it has not yet boosted. Finally, Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile can OHKO Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane, while resisting Bellossom’s common attacking moves (Giga Drain and Moonblast).

**Flying-types** Toucannon’s STAB Brave Bird devastates Bellossom, even through Strength Sap, making it a decent offensive Bellossom check. Calm Mind Oricorio-Baile and Oricorio-Pom-Pom can both come in on a Bellossom and impel it to switch, as the Oricorios both resist Bellossom’s Giga Drain, and will inevitably win in a Calm Mind war. Specifically mention Dancer. Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile also does not fear Bellossom’s typical attacking moves, resisting all of them, and can OHKO an unboosted Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane.

**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers who have Taunt or can Encore Bellossom into a utility move can force Bellossom to switch out. For example, Vigoroth can Taunt and Bulk Up on Bellossom, provided it is not at +3, as Giga Drain from Bellossom can 2HKO the typical Vigoroth. As stated previously, Simisear pressures Bellossom, as it outspeeds Bellossom at +1, can OHKO it with Flare Blitz, and can tank its attacks until Bellossom has boosted three times. A Taunt + Nasty Plot set shuts Bellossom down especially hard, as it cannot recover or set-up, while Simisear can click Nasty Plot and OHKO a Bellossom with the same number of Special Defense boosts with Fire Blast. Chatot and Mr. Mime can lock Bellossom into a utility move using Encore and force it to use its Z-Move or risk dangerous moves such as Chatter or Psyshock, respectively, putting Bellossom in a lose-lose scenario should it opt to stay in.

**Toxic and Toxic Spikes**: While status is generally a problem for any Bellossom not running Safeguard, Toxic Spikes is specifically problematic, as it activates before Bellossom can use Safeguard or Substitute, stunting its sweeping potential. In addition, Roselia, Roselia is no longer in the tier one of the more common Toxic Spikes users, deals with Bellossom pretty well through the overarching threat of a super-effective Sludge Bomb, while resisting most of Bellossom's typical attacks.
I think you could just remove this section and talk about Toxic Spikes in the Poison-types section.

Reorder Checks and Counters like so:

  • Sp Def Walls
  • Sap Sipper users
  • Poison-types
  • Flying-types
  • Steel-types (New Section, Add it in)
  • Stallbreakers
  • Fire-types
  • Abomasnow.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[Diagnostic, 447557], [Froasty, 446575], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
This is NOT QC 3/3 due to Usage Tips being such a barebones section. In addition to the changes above, please take out all other examples of unranked and UU mons from the analysis. (I think I caught them all :blobshrug: ) They don't belong in an analysis like this. Tag me when everything above has been implemented so I can look over it again. Other than UT, I think you did a really good job though!
 
Last edited:

5gen

jumper
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnus
comments in bold
[OVERVIEW]
============
Bellossom thrives in the ZU metagame for its unique characteristics as a Quiver Dancer; namely, it is the only Quiver Dancer in the tier that is not weak to Stealth Rock. Wormadam-Trash also isn't rocks weak. Just say Grass-type Quiver Dance user with (merge with following sentence). Bellossom also has a great support movepool including Safeguard and Strength Sap, and solid bulk that allows it to be a nearly-unstoppable lategame win-con. "nearly-unstoppable" exaggerates its capabilities. Replace that. This is not to say Bellossom does not have its weaknesses; it suffers from crippling 4MSS, often having to pick between utility and coverage. Furthermore, Bellossom is pressured by Steel-type Pokemon such as Bronzor and Metang, Specially Defensive walls carrying Toxic such as Lickilicky and Komala if it does not have Safeguard, and generally loses to most Pokemon who have a type advantage against it, such as Oricorio-Pom-Pom, Oricorio-Baile, and Muk.

Would also mention its weak to common wallbreakers such as Pinsir, Rapidash, Bouffalant, and Swanna.

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Safeguard / Moonblast / Sleep Powder
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Giga Drain is the preferred choice of STAB for Bellossom; it provides reliable damage and recovery, giving Bellossom staying power. Strength Sap is Bellossom's bread and butter; not only does it pressure common physical attackers such as Electivire, but it also provides unmatched recovery. Safeguard is used to beat out Specially Defensive walls Bellossom might otherwise have trouble with, such as Specially Defensive Lickilicky and Specially Defensive Komala with Toxic. It also gives your Pokemon an immunity to status for five turns, which is a nice perk for set-up sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle who are otherwise threatened by status. Moonblast is an option to deal with Altaria, who Bellossom typically cannot beat without it. It can 2HKO after a Quiver Dance boost. Additionally, Moonblast allows Bellossom to bypass Sap Sipper on Pokemon such as Sawsbuck and Zebstrika to hit for neutral damage. Sleep Powder is an avenue for Bellossom to cripple Pokemon that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Choice Scarf Rapidash and Taunt Kadabra. Taunt Kadabra would effectively shut it down and outpaces it even after 1 QD. Use a different example like Silvally-Poison.

Set Details
========
This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding positive-natured base 99 Speed Pokemon, including plus-natured max Speed Swanna, plus-natured max Speed Silvally, and plus-natured max Speed Electivire. After two Quiver Dances, Bellossom reaches 436 Speed, outspeeding things such as Adamant +2 Huntail, Scarf Shiftry, and Zebstrika. Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140 base power Bloom Doom. Most notably, Physically Defensive Pyukumuku can be 2HKO’d by a Bloom Doom and Giga Drain, before Soak. When boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap, and boosts Defense by one stage. This can be particularly nifty in matchups such as Choice Band Electivire, and it compliments Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts. Just say mixed Electivire because CB is not really a set.

Usage Tips
========
Bellossom is played as a tank/late-game sweeper who can come in on passive walls like Lickilicky, or resisted hits, and set-up. Naturally, this means Bellossom performs at its best when it has enough HP to tank as many hits as possible, so it is paramount to Bellossom's success to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. Similarly, this makes Bellossom terrified of Toxic and Toxic Spikes, as it cannot continue to sponge hits and set-up if its life is on a timer. While Toxic can be dealt with by using Safeguard, it is essential to Bellossom's success that Toxic Spikes be removed before it comes in. Early and mid game, Bellossom should generally switch in on resisted hits from Pokemon such as Silvally-Water and threaten with super-effective Giga Drains. Additionally, Sleep Powder sets can spread status early and mid game. While Strength Sap is primarily a recovery move to Bellossom, the Attack reduction it provides can give Bellossom opportunities to safely switch out into a strong wallbreaker or another set-up sweeper, providing them support as well. While Bellossom benefits from Z-Strength Sap greatly if looking to stay in long term and sweep, being able reduce threats such as Choice Band Komala's STAB Return to 3HKOs, don't be afraid to use Grassium Z offensively. Besides beating Pyukumuku, a Bloom Doom from Bellossom has a 50% chance to OHKO Swanna after Stealth Rock.

Team Options
========
Pokemon who trap Bronzor are arguably Bellossom's best partners. Choice Band Golem-Alola traps Bronzor using Magnet Pull and reliably disposes of it using Fire Punch. It resists all of Bellossom’s weaknesses, bar Ice-types and Bug-types. Likewise, Probopass resists all of Bellossom's weaknesses except for Fire-types, and a Groundium Z set can deal with Bronzor fairly well. Additionally, Probopass provides Stealth Rock, which chunks Fire-types, Flying-types, and Bug-types who would otherwise check Bellossom. However, it should be noted that Probopass has more trouble with Bronzor than Golem-Alola, as it can be 2HKO'd by two consecutive max roll Psywaves after Stealth Rock. This strategy also requires a team to sacrifice a Z-Move, which isn't always optimal while building. Would just remove Probo entirely because it's a worse trapper and Bellossom needs the Z-move. Bellossom compliments both of these Pokemon Golem-A by eliminating Ground-types who might otherwise trouble them. Silvally-Dark can also significantly pressure and weaken Bronzor with its STAB Dark-type coverage, 2HKOIng Specially Defensive Bronzor with Multi-Attack. Pursuit also 2HKOs and acts as a pseudo-trapping method against Bronzor, especially when it is weakened. Silvally-Dark is also prone to status, due to having no reliable recovery, which Bellossom’s Safeguard can eliminate. Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric-types and Grass-types, which are common Water-type weaknesses. Mareanie is arguably the best Water-type to partner Bellossom with; not only is it one of the best Monferno and Combusken checks of ZU, but it also absorbs Toxic Spikes, eliminating a huge threat to the Flower Pokemon. Over and above that, Mareanie resists Ice, Poison, Fire, and Bug; four of the five types Bellossom is weak to. Likewise, Bellossom resists Electric-type and Ground-type coverage, harmonizing with Mareanie nicely. Fluff Other solid Water-types that Bellossom pairs well with are Silvally-Water and Corsola form great defensive cores with Bellossom. The former can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep, while simultaneously checking Bellossom checks such as Monferno, Combusken, and Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. The latter has near-perfect type synergy with Bellossom; a core of the two is only weak to Fighting-types and Bug-types. Fluff Corsola is also one of the few defensive Water-types able to handle Oricorio and Chatot, due to resisting their STABs, and being able to 2HKO both of them after Stealth Rock with Scald. Regenerator also allows it to pivot, giving it multiple switch-in opportunities. Fluff Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom, and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users. Bellossom is a great foil to sweepers and wallbreakers; Pokemon like Huntail and Combusken appreciate Bellossom’s utility. Strength Sap gives both Huntail and Combusken set-up opportunities. Huntail can abuse Safeguard’s status immunity or Sleep Powder and set-up on Pokemon who might poison it, such as Bronzor, who happens to be one of Bellossom’s hard-counters. At +2, Darkinium Huntail OHKOs a Bronzor with a 140 BP Black Hole Eclipse. Furthermore, Huntail has nice typing synergy with Bellossom. Fluff Combusken is arguably the best sweeper/wallbreaker to pair with Bellossom; a Life Orb Combusken deals with Bronzor, Specially Defensive Komala, and Abomasnow, due to its amazing Fire/Fighting-type dual STAB. Fluff Bellossom can help Combusken by eliminating pesky Water-types such as Silvally-Water and Politoed. Sleep Powder aids wallbreakers and sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle and Combusken by incapacitating possible checks such as Rapidash to them.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Bellossom can tech Hidden Power to hit specific things; Fire is an option, as it can OHKO Abomasnow after Stealth Rock and a Quiver Dance. Fire also notably 2HKOs Metang and Specially Defensive Bronzor under sun with a 252 Special Attack Life Orb set, and one Quiver Dance boost. Too niche to be mentioned. The problem with teching Hidden Power on Bellossom is that Bellossom lacks the power to beat many of its checks, even with several boosts. Additionally, Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Rapidash benefit from Hidden Power Fire, and still beat Bellossom at +2, with Flare Blitz having a chance to OHKO Bellossom. Just say that it's more exploitable and limits it's utlity options. An offensive set can be run on Sunny Day archetypes with Life Orb as an item, Leaf Storm, Hidden Power Fire, Moonblast, Strength Sap/Synthesis, and/or Growth, but this set faces competition from other Sunny Day abusers, such as Shiftry who have a far better Speed tier than Bellossom and better coverage options. Moreover, hyper offensive Sunny Day teams are mediocre at best in the tier. Not worth using in the current meta because Sun is not good and Shiftry gives it stiff competition. Lastly, Substitute can be used in conjunction with Leftovers to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom's subs break to most fixed damage, such as a Seismic Toss from Lickilicky, and it has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB that it generally is not worth it.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Forgoing Safeguard leaves Bellossom incredibly threatened by Toxic, not only because it limits Bellossom's tanking and sweeping potential, but because of common Toxic users such as Lickilicky, Komala, or Tangela who can then tank boosted Giga Drains, recover, and win against Bellossom. Bronzor hard-walls Bellossom’s main set, even at +6, and forces it to switch through Psywave and Toxic pressure. Curse Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab, while sponging any hits, boosted or not, that Bellossom throws its way.

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A Bellossom who only carries a mono-attacking Grass-type set literally cannot touch a Sap Sipper Sawsbuck or Zebstrika. If Bellossom is not running Moonblast, these matchups an automatic loss. One should note Sap Sipper Bouffalant will generally beat Bellossom regardless of it carrying Moonblast or not.

**Poison-types**: Silvally-Poison can force a switch from Bellossom with Multi-Attack that can 2HKO a Z-Strength Sap-boosted Bellossom,, while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. As previously mentioned, Curse Muk is barely touched by a max boost Bellossom’s Giga Drain, Moonblast, or Hidden Power Fire, and can threaten to 2HKO the Flower Pokemon with STAB Poison Jab. Additionally, Muk learns Sleep Talk, which can make Muk good sleep fodder for the enemy team, should Bellossom be packing Sleep Powder. While status is generally a problem for any Bellossom not running Safeguard, Toxic Spikes is specifically problematic, as it activates before Bellossom can use Safeguard or Substitute, stunting its sweeping potential.

**Flying-types** Toucannon’s STAB Brave Bird devastates Bellossom, even through Strength Sap, making it a decent offensive Bellossom check. Calm Mind Oricorio-Baile and Oricorio-Pom-Pom can both come in on a Bellossom and impel it to switch, as the Oricorios both resist Bellossom’s Giga Drain, and will inevitably win in a Calm Mind war. Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile also does not fear Bellossom’s typical attacking moves, resisting all of them, and can OHKO an unboosted Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane. On a related note, the Oricorios having the Dancer ability means as long as they alive in the game, Bellossom cannot set up with Quiver Dance, or it might risk whichever Oricorio switching in and copying the boost.

**Steel-types** As previously mentioned, Bellossom generally cannot win against Bronzor, as Bronzor can tank and PP stall Bellossom to its demise. Metang puts heavy pressure on Bellossom, between Toxic and STAB Meteor Mash being a 3HKO. Additionally, Metang's Clear Body ability means it does not lose Attack whenever Bellossom uses Strength Sap on it.

**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers who have Taunt or can Encore Bellossom into a utility move can force Bellossom to switch out. For example, Vigoroth can Taunt and Bulk Up on Bellossom, provided it is not at +3, as Giga Drain from Bellossom can 2HKO the typical Vigoroth. As stated previously, Simisear pressures Bellossom, as it outspeeds Bellossom at +1, can OHKO it with Flare Blitz, and can tank its attacks until Bellossom has boosted three times. A Taunt + Nasty Plot set shuts Bellossom down especially hard, as it cannot recover or set-up, while Simisear can click Nasty Plot and OHKO a Bellossom with the same number of Special Defense boosts with Fire Blast. Chatot and Mr. Mime can lock Bellossom into a utility move using Encore and force it to use its Z-Move or risk dangerous moves such as Chatter or Psyshock, respectively, putting Bellossom in a lose-lose scenario should it opt to stay in.

**Fire-types**: Rapidash can OHKO Bellossom with STAB Flare Blitz while outspeeding +1 Bellossom while being able to take a couple of boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts. Physical Monferno and Combusken both threaten to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz, but Special Monferno and Combusken 2HKO Bellossom with Fire Blast. Both get two-shot by a Bellossom’s Moonblast, after two Quiver Dances. Simisear is one of Bellossom’s biggest checks, being able to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz on a physical set while outspeeding +1 Bellossom, and OHKOing Bellossom with Fire Blast on a special set. It also can Taunt Bellossom, rendering all of its utility options useless. Flyinium Oricorio-Baile also drags Bellossom, threatening to OHKO a +1 Bellossom with a 185 BP Supersonic Skystrike. Bulky Oricorio can Taunt and Toxic stall Bellossom, provided it has not yet boosted. Finally, Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile can OHKO Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane, while resisting Bellossom’s common attacking moves (Giga Drain and Moonblast).

**Abomasnow** Abomasnow resists Bellossom’s Giga Drain, which can be problematic for the flower. Additionally, Bellossom’s Moonblast does not threaten to 2HKO Abomasnow until it reaches +3 on the main set, while Life Orb Abomasnow threatens to 2HKO Bellossom with Hail’s passive damage and STAB Blizzard at +3. Essentially, Hidden Power Fire is the only way for Bellossom to win against Abomasnow, assuming it has enough boosts to outspeed it.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[Diagnostic, 447557], [Froasty, 446575], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
qc 3/3 once implemented
 

Fireflame

Silksong when
is a Top Contributoris a Smogon Media Contributoris a Social Media Contributor Alumnus
Remove Add Comments (AC)= add comma (RC)= remove comma (AH)= add hyphen (RH)= remove hyphen
[OVERVIEW]
============
Bellossom thrives in the ZU metagame for its unique characteristics as a Quiver Dancer Dance sweeper; namely, it is a Grass-type Quiver Dancer who that has a great support movepool,(AC) including Safeguard and Strength Sap, and solid bulk that allows it to be a reliable late-(AH)game win-con wincon. This is not to say Bellossom does not have its weaknesses; it suffers from crippling 4MSS four-moveslot syndrome, often having to pick between utility and coverage. Furthermore, Bellossom is pressured by Steel-type Pokemon such as Bronzor and Metang,(RC) and specially defensive walls carrying Toxic such as Lickilicky and Komala if it does not have Safeguard, and it generally loses to most Pokemon who that have a type advantage against it, such as Oricorio-Pom-Pom Oricorio-E, Oricorio-Baile Oricorio-F, and Muk. Lastly, Bellossom loses to common wallbreakers such as Pinsir, Rapidash, and Bouffalant.

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Safeguard / Moonblast / Sleep Powder
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Giga Drain is the preferred choice of STAB move for Bellossom; it provides reliable damage and recovery, giving Bellossom staying power. Strength Sap is Bellossom's bread and butter; not only does it (fluff) pressures common physical attackers such as Electivire,(RC) but it also and provides unmatched recovery. Safeguard is used to beat out specially defensive walls Bellossom might otherwise have trouble with, such as Specially Defensive Lickilicky and Specially Defensive Komala (these are examples you gave for specially defensive walls, so it's redundant to say that it's specifically the specially defensive sets of these Pokemon) with Toxic. It also gives your Pokemon an immunity to status for five turns, which is a nice perk for set-up setup sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle who that are otherwise threatened by status. Moonblast is an option to deal with Altaria, who which Bellossom typically cannot beat without it. It can 2HKO after a Quiver Dance boost. Additionally, Moonblast allows Bellossom to bypass Sap Sipper on Pokemon such as Sawsbuck and Zebstrika to hit them for neutral damage. Sleep Powder is an avenue for Bellossom to cripple Pokemon that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Choice Scarf Rapidash and Silvally-Poison.

Set Details
========
This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding positive-natured base 99 Speed Pokemon, including plus-natured maximum Speed Swanna, plus-natured maximum Speed Silvally (this just means "Silvally-Normal"; add "formes" if there's more than one Silvally forme you're talking about. Otherwise, ignore comment), and plus-natured maximum Speed Electivire. After two Quiver Dances, Bellossom reaches 436 Speed, outspeeding things Pokemon such as Adamant +2 Huntail, Choice Scarf Shiftry, and Zebstrika. Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140-(AH)Base Power Bloom Doom. Most notably, physically defensive Pyukumuku can be 2HKOed by a Bloom Doom and Giga Drain, before Soak. Besides beating Pyukumuku, a Bloom Doom a 50% chance to OHKO Swanna after Stealth Rock. When boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap,(RC) and boosts Defense by one stage. This can be particularly nifty in matchups against Pokemon such as mixed Electivire, and it complements Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts.

Usage Tips
========
Bellossom is played as a tank/late-game tanky late-game sweeper who that can come in on passive walls like Lickilicky, or resisted hits, and set-up set up. Naturally, this means Bellossom performs at its best when it has enough HP to tank as many hits as possible, so it is paramount to Bellossom's success to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. Similarly, this makes Bellossom terrified of Toxic and Toxic Spikes, as it cannot continue to sponge hits and set-up set up if its life it is on a timer. While Toxic can be dealt with by using Safeguard, it is essential to Bellossom's success that Toxic Spikes be removed before it comes in. Early-(AH) and mid-(AH)game, Bellossom should generally switch in on resisted hits from Pokemon such as Silvally-Water and threaten with super-(RH)effective Giga Drains. Additionally, Sleep Powder sets can spread status early-(AH) and mid-(AH)game. While Strength Sap is primarily a recovery move to Bellossom, the Attack reduction it provides can give Bellossom opportunities to safely switch out into a strong wallbreaker or another set-up setup sweeper, providing them support as well. While Bellossom benefits from Z-Strength Sap greatly if looking to stay in long term and sweep, being able reduce threats moves such as Choice Band Komala's STAB Return to 3HKOs is useful, so don't be afraid to use Grassium Z offensively. Besides beating Pyukumuku, a Bloom Doom from Bellossom has a 50% chance to OHKO Swanna after Stealth Rock. (moved to set details where you talk about Pyukumuku)

Team Options
========
Pokemon who trap Bronzor are arguably Bellossom's best partners. Choice Band Golem-Alola Alolan Golem traps Bronzor using Magnet Pull and reliably disposes of it using Fire Punch. It resists all of Bellossom’s Bellossom's (some words has curly apostrophes, which need to be changed to straight ones) weaknesses, bar Ice-types and Bug-types Ice and Bug. Bellossom complements Golem-Alola Alolan Golem by eliminating Ground-types who that might otherwise trouble them it. Silvally-Dark can also significantly pressure and weaken Bronzor with its STAB Dark-type coverage, 2HKOing specially defensive Bronzor with Multi-Attack. Pursuit also 2HKOes and acts as a pseudo-trapping method against Bronzor, especially when it is weakened. Silvally-Dark is also prone to status,(RC) due to having no reliable recovery, which Bellossom’s Bellossom's Safeguard can eliminate. Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric-types and Grass-types Electric and Grass, which are common Water-type weaknesses. Mareanie is arguably the best Water-type to partner Bellossom with; not only is it one of the best Monferno and Combusken checks of in ZU, but it also absorbs Toxic Spikes,(RC) eliminating a huge threat to the Flower Pokemon for Bellossom. Other solid Water-types that Bellossom pairs well with are Silvally-Water and Corsola,(AC) which form great defensive cores with Bellossom. The former Silvally-Water can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep,(RC) while simultaneously checking Bellossom's checks such as Monferno, Combusken, and Choice Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. The latter Corsola is one of the few defensive Water-types able to handle Oricorio (specify which forme, but make sure to use Oricorio-E, Oricorio-F, Oricorio-G, or Oricorio-P. If it's all formes, then say "all Oricorio formes") and Chatot,(RC) due to resisting their STABs STAB moves, and being able to 2HKO both of them after Stealth Rock with Scald. Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom,(RC) and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users. Bellossom is a great foil to sweepers and wallbreakers; Pokemon like Huntail and Combusken appreciate Bellossom’s its utility.(period),(AC) as Strength Sap gives both Huntail and Combusken set-up setup opportunities. Huntail can abuse Safeguard’s utilize Safeguard's status immunity or Sleep Powder and set-up set up on Pokemon who that might poison it, such as Bronzor, who which happens to be one of Bellossom’s hard-counters Bellossom's best counters. At +2, Darkinium Z Huntail OHKOs a OHKOes Bronzor with a 140-(AH)Base Power Black Hole Eclipse. Combusken is arguably the best sweeper/wallbreaker sweeper and wallbreaker to pair with Bellossom; a Life Orb Combusken deals with Bronzor, specially defensive Komala, and Abomasnow. Bellossom can help Combusken by eliminating pesky Water-types such as Silvally-Water and Politoed. Sleep Powder aids wallbreakers and sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle and Combusken by incapacitating possible checks to them such as Rapidash to them.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Substitute can be used in conjunction with Leftovers to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom's subs break Substitute breaks to most fixed damage, such as a Seismic Toss from Lickilicky, and it has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB that moves,(AC) so it generally is not worth it.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Forgoing Safeguard leaves Bellossom incredibly threatened by Toxic, not only because since it limits Bellossom's tanking and sweeping potential, but because of and common Toxic users such as Lickilicky, Komala, or and Tangela who can then tank boosted Giga Drains, recover, and win against Bellossom. Bronzor hard-(RH)walls Bellossom’s Bellossom's main set, even at +6, and forces it to switch through Psywave and Toxic pressure. Curse Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab,(RC) while sponging any hits, boosted or not, that Bellossom throws its way.

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A mono-attacking Bellossom who set that only carries a mono-attacking Grass-type set literally STAB move cannot touch a Sap Sipper Sawsbuck or and Zebstrika. If Bellossom is not running Moonblast, these matchups are an automatic loss. One should note Sap Sipper Bouffalant will generally beat Bellossom regardless of it carrying Moonblast or not.

**Poison-types**: Silvally-Poison can force a switch from Bellossom with Multi-Attack,(AC) which that can 2HKO a Z-Strength Sap-boosted Bellossom,(RC),(RC) while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. As previously mentioned, Curse Muk is barely touched by a max boost Bellossom’s +6 Giga Drain, Moonblast, or Hidden Power Fire,(RC) and can threaten to 2HKO the Flower Pokemon Bellossom with STAB Poison Jab. Additionally, Muk learns Sleep Talk, which can make Muk good sleep fodder for the enemy team, should Bellossom be packing Sleep Powder. While status is generally a problem for any Bellossom not running Safeguard, Toxic Spikes is specifically problematic, as it activates before Bellossom can use Safeguard or Substitute, stunting its sweeping potential.

**Flying-types** Toucannon’s STAB Brave Bird devastates Bellossom, even through Strength Sap, making it a decent offensive Bellossom check. Calm Mind Oricorio-Baile and Oricorio-Pom-Pom Oricorio-F and Oricorio-E can both come in on a Bellossom and impel it to switch, as the Oricorios they both resist Bellossom’s Bellossom's Giga Drain,(RC) and will inevitably win in a Calm Mind war. Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile Oricorio-F also does not fear Bellossom’s Bellossom's typical attacking moves, resisting all of them, and can OHKO an unboosted Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane. On a related note Furthermore, the Oricorios Oricorio formes having the Dancer ability means as long as they are alive in the game, Bellossom cannot set up with Quiver Dance,(RC) or it might risk whichever Oricorio switching in and copying the boost.

**Steel-types** As previously mentioned, Bellossom generally cannot win against Bronzor, as Bronzor can tank and PP stall Bellossom to its demise. Metang puts heavy pressure on Bellossom, between Toxic and STAB Meteor Mash being a 3HKO. Additionally, Metang's Clear Body ability means it does not lose Attack whenever Bellossom uses Strength Sap on it.

**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers who have Taunt or can Encore Bellossom into a utility move can force Bellossom to switch out. For example, Vigoroth can use Taunt and Bulk Up on Bellossom, provided it Bellossom is not at +3, as Giga Drain from Bellossom can 2HKO the typical Vigoroth set. As stated previously,(RC) (this was the first mention of the mon) Simisear pressures Bellossom, as it outspeeds Bellossom at +1, can OHKO it with Flare Blitz, and can tank its attacks until Bellossom has boosted three times. A Taunt + Nasty Plot set shuts Bellossom down especially hard, as it cannot recover or set-up set up, while Simisear can click use Nasty Plot and OHKO a Bellossom with the same number of Special Defense boosts as Nasty Plot boosts with Fire Blast. Chatot and Mr. Mime can lock Bellossom into a utility move using Encore and force it to use its Z-Move or risk dangerous moves such as Chatter or and Psyshock, respectively, putting Bellossom in a lose-lose scenario should it opt to stay in.

**Fire-types**: Rapidash can OHKO Bellossom with STAB Flare Blitz,(AC) outspeeds while outspeeding +1 Bellossom,(AC) and is while being able to take a couple of boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts. Physical Monferno and Combusken both threaten to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz, but and special Monferno and Combusken 2HKO Bellossom with Fire Blast. However,(AC) both get two-shot 2HKOed by a Bellossom’s Bellossom's Moonblast,(RC) after two Quiver Dances. Simisear is one of Bellossom’s Bellossom's biggest checks, being able to OHKO outspeed Bellossom and OHKO it with Flare Blitz on a physical set while outspeeding +1 Bellossom, and OHKOing Bellossom with and Fire Blast on a special set. It also can Taunt Bellossom, rendering all of its utility options useless. Flyinium Z Oricorio-F threatens Oricorio-Baile also drags Bellossom, threatening to OHKO a +1 Bellossom with a 185-(AH)Base Power Supersonic Skystrike. Bulky Oricorio-(AH)F can Taunt and Toxic stall Bellossom, provided it has not yet boosted. Finally, Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile Oricorio-F can OHKO Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane,(RC) while resisting Bellossom’s common attacking moves (Giga Drain and Moonblast) Bellossom's Giga Drain and Moonblast.

**Abomasnow** Abomasnow resists Bellossom’s Bellossom's Giga Drain, which can be problematic for the flower. Additionally,(RC) and (fluff) Bellossom’s Bellossom's Moonblast does not threaten to 2HKO Abomasnow until it reaches +3 on the main set, while Life Orb Abomasnow threatens to 2HKO Bellossom with Hail’s hail's passive damage and STAB Blizzard at +3. Essentially,(RC) Hidden Power Fire is the only way for Bellossom to win against Abomasnow, assuming it has enough boosts to outspeed it.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[Diagnostic, 447557], [Froasty, 446575], [5gen, 296755]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
GP 1/2
 

Lumari

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is a Site Content Manageris a Top Social Media Contributoris a Member of Senior Staffis a Community Contributoris a Top Contributoris a Top Smogon Media Contributoris an Administrator Alumnus
TFP Leader
remove add / fix (comments); (AC=add comma; RC=remove comma; SC=semicolon)
GP 2/2
[OVERVIEW]
============
Bellossom thrives in the ZU metagame for its unique characteristics as a Quiver Dance sweeper; namely, it is a Grass-type that has a great support movepool, including Safeguard and Strength Sap, and solid bulk that allows it to be a reliable late-game wincon sweeper. This is not to say Bellossom does not have its weaknesses; it suffers from crippling four-moveslot syndrome, often having to pick between utility and coverage. Furthermore, Bellossom is pressured by Steel-type Pokemon such as Bronzor and Metang and specially defensive walls carrying Toxic such as Lickilicky and Komala if it does not have Safeguard, and it generally loses to most Pokemon that have a type advantage against it, such as Oricorio-E, Oricorio-F, and Muk. Lastly, Bellossom loses to common wallbreakers such as Pinsir, Rapidash, and Bouffalant.

[SET]
name: Bulky Quiver Dance
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Giga Drain
move 3: Strength Sap
move 4: Safeguard / Moonblast / Sleep Powder
item: Grassium Z
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Giga Drain is the preferred STAB attack for Bellossom; it provides reliable damage and recovery, giving Bellossom staying power. Strength Sap allows Bellossom to pressure common physical attackers such as Electivire and provides unmatched recovery. Safeguard is used to beat out specially defensive walls Bellossom might otherwise have trouble with, such as Lickilicky and Komala with Toxic. It also gives your Pokemon an immunity to status for five turns, which is a nice perk for setup sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle that are otherwise threatened by status. (seems implied) Moonblast is an option to deal with Altaria, which Bellossom typically cannot beat without it, (comma) It can 2HKOing it after a Quiver Dance boost. Additionally, Moonblast allows Bellossom to bypass Sap Sipper on Pokemon such as Sawsbuck and Zebstrika to hit them for neutral damage. Sleep Powder is an avenue a way for Bellossom to cripple Pokemon that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Choice Scarf Rapidash and Silvally-Poison.

Set Details
========
This EV spread is designed to take advantage of Bellossom's natural bulk and sweeping potential. After one Quiver Dance, Bellossom reaches 327 Speed, outspeeding positive-natured base 99 Speed Pokemon, including plus-natured maximum Speed Swanna, plus-natured maximum Speed Silvally formes, and plus-natured (all implied) maximum Speed Electivire. After two Quiver Dances, Bellossom reaches 436 Speed, outspeeding outspeeds Pokemon such as Adamant +2 Huntail, Choice Scarf Shiftry, and Zebstrika. Grassium Z allows Bellossom to muscle past potential threats one time with a 140-Base Power Bloom Doom. Most notably, physically defensive Pyukumuku can be 2HKO’d 2HKOed by a Bloom Doom and followed by Giga Drain, before Soak. (clarify this a bit imo, if it needs soak to survive it'll always use soak unless it mispredicts i.e. not a relevant condition, and it doesn't make sense in my mind that pyukumuku would switch in on bellossom) Besides beating Pyukumuku, a Bloom Doom has a 50% chance to OHKO Swanna after Stealth Rock. Alternatively, when boosted by Grassium Z, Strength Sap becomes Z-Strength Sap and boosts Defense by one stage. This can be particularly nifty in matchups against Pokemon such as mixed Electivire, and it compliments complements Bellossom's Quiver Dance boosts.

Usage Tips
========
Bellossom is played as a tanky late-game sweeper that can come in on passive walls like Lickilicky (RC) or on resisted hits (RC) and set up. Naturally, this means Bellossom performs at its best when it has enough HP to tank as many hits as possible, so it is paramount to Bellossom's success to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. Similarly, this makes Bellossom terrified of Toxic and Toxic Spikes, as it cannot continue to sponge hits and set up if it is on a timer. While Toxic can be dealt with by using Safeguard, it is essential to Bellossom's success that Toxic Spikes be removed before it comes in. Early-(space)and mid-game, Bellossom should generally switch in on resisted hits from Pokemon such as Silvally-Water and threaten with super effective Giga Drains. Additionally, Sleep Powder sets can spread status early-(space)and mid-game. While Strength Sap is primarily a recovery move, the Attack reduction it provides can give Bellossom opportunities to safely switch out into to a strong wallbreaker or another setup sweeper, providing them support as well. While Bellossom benefits from Z-Strength Sap greatly if looking to stay in long term and sweep, being able reduce moves such as Choice Band Komala's STAB Return to 3HKOs is useful, so don't be afraid to use Grassium Z offensively. (this doesn't make much sense tbh, you're mentioning multiple pros of using z-strength sap then add a usage tip that reads like "use bloom doom")

Team Options
========
Pokemon who that can trap Bronzor are arguably Bellossom's best partners. Choice Band Alolan Golem traps Bronzor using Magnet Pull and reliably disposes of it using Fire Punch. It also resists all of Bellossom's weaknesses, bar Ice and Bug. Bellossom compliments complements Alolan Golem by eliminating Ground-types that might otherwise trouble it. Silvally-Dark can also significantly pressure and weaken Bronzor with its STAB Dark-type coverage, 2HKOing specially defensive Bronzor with Multi-Attack. Pursuit also 2HKOes and acts as a pseudo-trapping method against Bronzor, especially when it is weakened. Silvally-Dark is also prone vulnerable to status due to having no a lack of reliable recovery, which Bellossom's Safeguard can eliminate mitigate. Bulky Water-types can form a solid defensive core in tandem with Bellossom, as Bellossom resists Electric and Grass, which are common Water-type weaknesses. Mareanie is arguably the best Water-type to partner Bellossom with; not only is it one of the best Monferno and Combusken checks in ZU, but it also absorbs Toxic Spikes for Bellossom. Other solid Water-types that Bellossom pairs well with are Silvally-Water and Corsola, which form great defensive cores with Bellossom. Silvally-Water can run Parting Shot to give Bellossom an opportunity to sweep while simultaneously checking Bellossom checks such as Monferno, Combusken, and Choice Scarf Swanna with its wide movepool. Corsola is one of the few defensive Water-types able to handle Oricorio-F and Chatot due to resisting its resistance to their STAB moves, being able to 2HKO both of them after Stealth Rock with Scald. Additionally, Corsola provides Stealth Rock for Bellossom and generally deals with chip damage well due to Regenerator and the option of Rocky Helmet threatening U-turn users. Bellossom is a great foil to sweepers and wallbreakers; Pokemon like Huntail and Combusken appreciate its utility. Strength Sap gives both Huntail and Combusken set up setup opportunities. Huntail can abuse take advantage of Safeguard’s status immunity or Sleep Powder and set up (RH) on Pokemon that might poison it, such as Bronzor, which happens to be one of Bellossom’s best counters. At +2, Darkinium Z Huntail OHKOes a Bronzor with a 140-Base Power Black Hole Eclipse. Combusken is arguably the best sweeper and wallbreaker to pair with Bellossom; Life Orb Combusken deals with Bronzor, specially defensive Komala, and Abomasnow. Bellossom can help Combusken by eliminating pesky Water-types such as Silvally-Water and Politoed. Sleep Powder aids wallbreakers and sweepers such as Shell Smash Crustle and Combusken by incapacitating possible checks to them such as Rapidash.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Substitute can be used in conjunction with Leftovers to prevent status and to threaten stall. However, Bellossom's Substitute breaks to most fixed damage, such as Seismic Toss from Lickilicky, and it has enough trouble dealing damage with Grass-type STAB moves, so it generally is not worth it.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Specially Defensive Walls**: Forgoing Safeguard leaves Bellossom incredibly threatened by Toxic, since it limits Bellossom's tanking and sweeping potential, and common Toxic users such as Lickilicky, Komala, and Tangela can tank boosted Giga Drains, recover, and win against Bellossom. Bronzor hard(space)walls Bellossom's main set, even at +6, and forces it to switch through Psywave and Toxic pressure. Curse Muk can PP stall Bellossom and fish for poison if it is carrying Poison Jab while sponging any hits, boosted or not, that Bellossom throws its way.

**Sap Sipper Pokemon**: A mono-attacking Bellossom set that only carries a Grass-type STAB move cannot touch Sap Sipper Sawsbuck and Zebstrika. If Bellossom is not running Moonblast, these matchups are an automatic loss. One should note Sap Sipper Bouffalant will generally beat Bellossom regardless of it carrying Moonblast or not.

**Poison-types**: Silvally-Poison can force a switch from Bellossom with Multi-Attack, which can 2HKO a Z-Strength Sap-boosted Bellossom while tanking Giga Drain and Moonblast at +6. As previously mentioned, Curse Muk is barely touched by a +6 Giga Drain or Moonblast and can threaten to 2HKO Bellossom with STAB Poison Jab. Additionally, Muk learns Sleep Talk, which can make Muk good sleep fodder for the enemy team, should Bellossom be packing Sleep Powder. While status is generally a problem for any Bellossom not running Safeguard, Toxic Spikes is specifically problematic, as it activates before Bellossom can use Safeguard or Substitute, stunting its sweeping potential.

**Flying-types** Toucannon’s STAB Brave Bird devastates Bellossom, even through Strength Sap, making it a decent offensive Bellossom check. Calm Mind Oricorio-F and Oricorio-E can both come in on Bellossom and impel it to switch, as they both resist Bellossom's Giga Drain and will inevitably win in a Calm Mind war. Choice Specs Oricorio-F also does not fear Bellossom's typical attacking moves, resisting all of them, and can OHKO an unboosted Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane. Furthermore, the Oricorio formes' having the Dancer ability means that, as long as they alive in the game, Bellossom cannot set up with Quiver Dance, (AC) or it might risk whichever Oricorio switching in and copying the boost.

**Steel-types** As previously mentioned, Bellossom generally cannot win against Bronzor, as Bronzor can tank and PP stall Bellossom to its demise. Metang also puts heavy pressure on Bellossom, between Toxic and STAB Meteor Mash being a 3HKO. Additionally, Metang's Clear Body ability means it does not lose Attack whenever Bellossom uses Strength Sap on it.

**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers who that have Taunt or can Encore Bellossom into a utility move can force Bellossom to switch out. For example, Vigoroth can use Taunt and Bulk Up on Bellossom, provided Bellossom is not at +3, as Giga Drain from Bellossom can 2HKO the typical Vigoroth set. Simisear pressures Bellossom, as it outspeeds Bellossom at +1, can OHKO it with Flare Blitz, and can tank its attacks until Bellossom has boosted three times. A Taunt + Nasty Plot set shuts Bellossom down especially hard, as it cannot recover or set up, while Simisear can use Nasty Plot and OHKO Bellossom with the same number of Special Defense boosts as Nasty Plot boosts with Fire Blast. Chatot and Mr. Mime can lock Bellossom into a utility move using Encore and force it to use its Z-Move or risk dangerous moves such as Chatter and Psyshock, respectively, putting Bellossom in a lose-lose scenario should it opt to stay in.

**Fire-types**: Rapidash can OHKO Bellossom with STAB Flare Blitz, outspeeds +1 Bellossom, and is able to take a couple of boosted Giga Drains and Moonblasts. Physical Monferno and Combusken both threaten to OHKO Bellossom with Flare Blitz, and special Monferno and Combusken 2HKO Bellossom with Fire Blast. However, both get 2HKOed by Bellossom's Moonblast after two Quiver Dances. Simisear is one of Bellossom's biggest checks, being able to outspeed Bellossom and OHKO it with Flare Blitz on a physical set and Fire Blast on a special set. It also can Taunt Bellossom, rendering all of its utility options useless. Flyinium Oricorio-F threatens to OHKO +1 Bellossom with a 185-Base Power Supersonic Skystrike. Bulky Oricorio-F can Taunt and Toxic stall Bellossom, provided it has not yet boosted. Finally, Choice Specs Oricorio-Baile Oricorio-F can OHKO Bellossom with a STAB Hurricane while resisting Bellossom’s Giga Drain and Moonblast.

**Abomasnow** Abomasnow resists Bellossom's Giga Drain, and Bellossom's Moonblast does not threaten to 2HKO Abomasnow until it reaches +3 on the main set, while Life Orb Abomasnow threatens to 2HKO Bellossom with hail's passive damage and STAB Blizzard at +3. Hidden Power Fire is the only way for Bellossom to win against Abomasnow, assuming it has enough boosts to outspeed it.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Aleccat, 226950]]
- Quality checked by: [[Diagnostic, 447557], [Froasty, 446575], [5gen, 296755]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
 

Rabia

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pls remove the ============ under the overview tag, or the analysis will make the dex very upset when trying to upload (both gpers commented on this fwiw)
 

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