[SET]
name: Fast Substitute + Dragon Dance
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Dragon Dance
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Earthquake
item: Leftovers / Ground Gem
ability: Anticipation
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Greater investment in Speed makes Whiscash more offensive and better able to sweep other offensive teams while retaining its amazing defensive role on offense. Substitute enables Whiscash to set up more easily on passive walls like Will-O-Wisp Solrock and Toxic Wormadam-S. Substitute also protects Whiscash from revenge killers, shutting down Slaking, guarding against Persian's Fake Out, and avoiding Sucker Punch from Pawniard. Waterfall has very good neutral coverage as a STAB move, threatening the most common physical wall in ZU, Solrock, while possessing a flinch chance that lets it brute force down soft checks like Mienfoo, Clefairy, and opposing Whiscash trying to take an attack and trade damage back. Earthquake is Whiscash's strongest STAB move and lets it blast past Muk and Lairon as well as Grumpig after a Dragon Dance. As alluded to earlier, this STAB Earthquake complements Whiscash’s great bulk and defensive typing, allowing it to switch directly into and set up on Muk and Lairon, which is a uniquely valuable role for offensive teams. Leftovers is valuable passive recovery and enables Whiscash to set up multiple Substitutes. Alternatively, Ground Gem gives Whiscash a one-time nuke with a good chance to eliminate bulkier foes; uninvested Walrein is guaranteed to be OHKOed after Stealth Rock, as are Staryu, Glaceon, and Kingler. Anticipation is the least worst of Whiscash's niche abilities, as it can scout for coverage moves like Seed Bomb on Arbok and Giga Drain on Ivysaur to help determine if Whiscash can safely set up or stay in on these foes. With a Jolly nature at +1, Whiscash reliably outspeeds faster Pokemon like Emolga, Simisear, and Raichu. Whiscash can use an Adamant nature for more power with the trade-off of no longer outspeeding Emolga and Simisear, though Simisear has difficulty dealing significant damage to Whiscash without Hidden Power Grass.
Fast Dragon Dance Whiscash is a great choice for offensive teams in need of a setup sweeper that improves their defensive backbone against foes like Lairon, Muk, and Simisear. Whiscash will almost never break past Leafeon and Meganium without substantial chip damage, so partners like Muk, Arbok, and Simisear complement Whiscash by dealing with them. Raichu can form a great offensive core with Whiscash, as it threatens walls like Vullaby and Pelipper, while Whiscash threatens Muk in return. Meganium and Leafeon greatly appreciate Whiscash as a partner to handle Muk, Arbok, and Simisear, and they can support Whiscash with cleric moves or break holes in teams with Swords Dance for Whiscash to clean up. Partners like Ice Gem Raichu, U-turn Vibrava, and Kingler can lure in and break down Grass-types to enable Whiscash to sweep. Whiscash cannot outspeed Persian even with a Jolly nature and +1 Speed, so partners that handle it like Lairon, Solrock, and Wormadam-S are greatly appreciated, and they can all set Stealth Rock, which helps Whiscash secure KOs against foes like Walrein and Grumpig. Clefairy and Lopunny can further support Whiscash with Healing Wish to give it a second chance to sweep while absorbing status and being a speedy threat, respectively.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Stone Edge is a tempting coverage move for Whiscash to better power through Pelipper, Vullaby, and Walrein, but it benefits more from Waterfall to break through Clefairy and Solrock and reliably hit Emolga, and Whiscash struggles to drop Substitute given its defensive value for setup. Bounce can turn the tables on Grass-types like Leafeon and Meganium, but it's very specific, suffers from the same trade-offs as Stone Edge, and still doesn't OHKO either of them even when at +1 with maximum investment and an Adamant nature. Whiscash's high HP might make a Substitute + Toxic set appealing, but this is generally done better by Walrein, which is stronger and can overwhelm Clefairy with Ice Beam freezes and Encore while not giving an opportunity to Leafeon or Meganium to use Heal Bell or Aromatherapy. Whiscash's defensive typing and Scald might make a more defensive set appear interesting. However, other Water-types like Staryu, Frillish, and Pelipper tend to perform this defensive role better thanks to having reliable recovery and additional utility.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types**: Meganium and Leafeon shrug off even boosted attacks from Whiscash and easily OHKO it with their STAB moves. Ivysaur and Gloom have to be a bit more wary of being worn into range of Ground Gem-boosted Earthquake from fast Dragon Dance Whiscash, but both of them can OHKO Whiscash with Giga Drain. If Ivysaur doesn't run Giga Drain, however, it can be used as setup fodder for Whiscash.
**Faster Revenge Killers**: Slower Whiscash sets can be revenge killed by Simisear with Hidden Power Grass, Emolga, and Mr. Mime. Persian and common Choice Scarf users like Mienfoo, Grumpig, and Kingler outspeed any Whiscash set that's at +1 Speed. However, Whiscash's Substitute and natural bulk are often obstacles to revenge killing it.
**Flying-type Walls**: Pelipper and Vullaby don't take much damage even from boosted Waterfalls, and Pelipper can break Whiscash's Substitute with Scald, while Vullaby has Foul Play to punish Whiscash for boosting. However, Vullaby can be overwhelmed by Waterfall flinches, and both it and Pelipper can be worn down by repeated damage from Stealth Rock.
**Encore and Taunt**: Emolga can lock Whiscash into Earthquake, Dragon Dance, or Substitute and proceed to take advantage of it. Clefairy can turn the tables on even bulky Whiscash looking to set up by locking it into a setup move, although it's more dependent on its teammates to take care of Whiscash. Mienfoo, Emolga, and Bibarel can Taunt Whiscash to prevent it from setting up.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/5dots.543866/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/missangelic.452572/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/monai.482455/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/autumn.384270/
name: Fast Substitute + Dragon Dance
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Dragon Dance
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Earthquake
item: Leftovers / Ground Gem
ability: Anticipation
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Greater investment in Speed makes Whiscash more offensive and better able to sweep other offensive teams while retaining its amazing defensive role on offense. Substitute enables Whiscash to set up more easily on passive walls like Will-O-Wisp Solrock and Toxic Wormadam-S. Substitute also protects Whiscash from revenge killers, shutting down Slaking, guarding against Persian's Fake Out, and avoiding Sucker Punch from Pawniard. Waterfall has very good neutral coverage as a STAB move, threatening the most common physical wall in ZU, Solrock, while possessing a flinch chance that lets it brute force down soft checks like Mienfoo, Clefairy, and opposing Whiscash trying to take an attack and trade damage back. Earthquake is Whiscash's strongest STAB move and lets it blast past Muk and Lairon as well as Grumpig after a Dragon Dance. As alluded to earlier, this STAB Earthquake complements Whiscash’s great bulk and defensive typing, allowing it to switch directly into and set up on Muk and Lairon, which is a uniquely valuable role for offensive teams. Leftovers is valuable passive recovery and enables Whiscash to set up multiple Substitutes. Alternatively, Ground Gem gives Whiscash a one-time nuke with a good chance to eliminate bulkier foes; uninvested Walrein is guaranteed to be OHKOed after Stealth Rock, as are Staryu, Glaceon, and Kingler. Anticipation is the least worst of Whiscash's niche abilities, as it can scout for coverage moves like Seed Bomb on Arbok and Giga Drain on Ivysaur to help determine if Whiscash can safely set up or stay in on these foes. With a Jolly nature at +1, Whiscash reliably outspeeds faster Pokemon like Emolga, Simisear, and Raichu. Whiscash can use an Adamant nature for more power with the trade-off of no longer outspeeding Emolga and Simisear, though Simisear has difficulty dealing significant damage to Whiscash without Hidden Power Grass.
Fast Dragon Dance Whiscash is a great choice for offensive teams in need of a setup sweeper that improves their defensive backbone against foes like Lairon, Muk, and Simisear. Whiscash will almost never break past Leafeon and Meganium without substantial chip damage, so partners like Muk, Arbok, and Simisear complement Whiscash by dealing with them. Raichu can form a great offensive core with Whiscash, as it threatens walls like Vullaby and Pelipper, while Whiscash threatens Muk in return. Meganium and Leafeon greatly appreciate Whiscash as a partner to handle Muk, Arbok, and Simisear, and they can support Whiscash with cleric moves or break holes in teams with Swords Dance for Whiscash to clean up. Partners like Ice Gem Raichu, U-turn Vibrava, and Kingler can lure in and break down Grass-types to enable Whiscash to sweep. Whiscash cannot outspeed Persian even with a Jolly nature and +1 Speed, so partners that handle it like Lairon, Solrock, and Wormadam-S are greatly appreciated, and they can all set Stealth Rock, which helps Whiscash secure KOs against foes like Walrein and Grumpig. Clefairy and Lopunny can further support Whiscash with Healing Wish to give it a second chance to sweep while absorbing status and being a speedy threat, respectively.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Stone Edge is a tempting coverage move for Whiscash to better power through Pelipper, Vullaby, and Walrein, but it benefits more from Waterfall to break through Clefairy and Solrock and reliably hit Emolga, and Whiscash struggles to drop Substitute given its defensive value for setup. Bounce can turn the tables on Grass-types like Leafeon and Meganium, but it's very specific, suffers from the same trade-offs as Stone Edge, and still doesn't OHKO either of them even when at +1 with maximum investment and an Adamant nature. Whiscash's high HP might make a Substitute + Toxic set appealing, but this is generally done better by Walrein, which is stronger and can overwhelm Clefairy with Ice Beam freezes and Encore while not giving an opportunity to Leafeon or Meganium to use Heal Bell or Aromatherapy. Whiscash's defensive typing and Scald might make a more defensive set appear interesting. However, other Water-types like Staryu, Frillish, and Pelipper tend to perform this defensive role better thanks to having reliable recovery and additional utility.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types**: Meganium and Leafeon shrug off even boosted attacks from Whiscash and easily OHKO it with their STAB moves. Ivysaur and Gloom have to be a bit more wary of being worn into range of Ground Gem-boosted Earthquake from fast Dragon Dance Whiscash, but both of them can OHKO Whiscash with Giga Drain. If Ivysaur doesn't run Giga Drain, however, it can be used as setup fodder for Whiscash.
**Faster Revenge Killers**: Slower Whiscash sets can be revenge killed by Simisear with Hidden Power Grass, Emolga, and Mr. Mime. Persian and common Choice Scarf users like Mienfoo, Grumpig, and Kingler outspeed any Whiscash set that's at +1 Speed. However, Whiscash's Substitute and natural bulk are often obstacles to revenge killing it.
**Flying-type Walls**: Pelipper and Vullaby don't take much damage even from boosted Waterfalls, and Pelipper can break Whiscash's Substitute with Scald, while Vullaby has Foul Play to punish Whiscash for boosting. However, Vullaby can be overwhelmed by Waterfall flinches, and both it and Pelipper can be worn down by repeated damage from Stealth Rock.
**Encore and Taunt**: Emolga can lock Whiscash into Earthquake, Dragon Dance, or Substitute and proceed to take advantage of it. Clefairy can turn the tables on even bulky Whiscash looking to set up by locking it into a setup move, although it's more dependent on its teammates to take care of Whiscash. Mienfoo, Emolga, and Bibarel can Taunt Whiscash to prevent it from setting up.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/5dots.543866/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/missangelic.452572/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/monai.482455/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/autumn.384270/
Last edited:
