[OVERVIEW]
Chansey's monstrous HP and high Special Defense stats make it the bulkiest special wall in the tier, boasting the ability to reliably handle the majority of the special attackers that the OU tier has to offer. To further accentuate its defensive prowess, Chansey has access to a plethora of viable utility moves such as Stealth Rock, Toxic, Thunder Wave, and Heal Bell, which makes it a must on almost all stall teams. On the flipside, while Chansey's measly Defense stat is somewhat covered for by its gargantuan HP stat combined with heavy EV investment, Chansey is still troubled by many physical attackers. Chansey's defensive typing is also interesting; while a Normal typing grants it only a single weakness, it also means Chansey has no resistances and only a single immunity. Furthermore, as is the case for many defensive Pokemon, Chansey is relatively slow and somewhat passive, relying heavily on Seismic Toss or status moves in order to inflict damage, meaning it can be relatively easily exploited by a number of offensive Pokemon. Lastly, Chansey is heavily reliant on Eviolite, as without it, Chansey is significantly less bulky and greatly struggles to check some of the more powerful offensive threats that it is usually tasked to handle.
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Seismic Toss
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Stealth Rock / Heal Bell
move 4: Soft-Boiled
item: Eviolite
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Bold
evs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Seismic Toss is Chansey's sole attacking move, ensuring that it is not entirely passive. It deals a consistent 100 HP of damage, effectively chipping away at most Pokemon, especially those without recovery. Toxic cripples and wears down Pokemon that try to use Chansey as setup fodder or those that can outlast its Seismic Toss. Stealth Rock chips away at all Pokemon without Magic Guard and is a staple for every team. Chansey is an especially effective Stealth Rock user, as its ability to reliably handle almost every special attacker gives it an ample number of opportunities throughout a game to set up the entry hazard. If Stealth Rock has already been accounted for, Chansey can opt to run Heal Bell instead, providing cleric support to its teammates. This option is most commonly found on stall teams without Heal Bell Clefable. Soft-Boiled gives Chansey a reliable means of recovery, and is what enables it to be the top-tier defensive Pokemon that it is.
Set Details
========
Maximum HP and Defense investment allows Chansey to best handle mixed attackers such as Greninja and Kyurem-B and Psyshock users such as Tapu Lele, Hoopa-U, and Latios. Eviolite gives Chansey a 1.5x boost to both of its defensive stats, greatly increasing its bulk and giving it the ability to check many of the powerful offensive Pokemon that it is relied upon to check. Natural Cure rids Chansey of any status ailment it may be suffering from when it switches out, ensuring that Chansey isn't worn down by Scald burns or Toxic damage.
Usage Tips
========
Chansey requires near full health in order to reliably deal with powerful special attackers such as Mega Charizard Y and Choice Specs Latios, so make sure Chansey is recovering often in order to remain healthy throughout the duration of the match. Be wary of Knock Off, as Eviolite is what allows it to be the powerful defensive threat that it is. There are a wide number of Pokemon such as Clefable, Mega Venusaur, Tangrowth, Tornadus-T, and Alomomola that utilize Knock Off for defensive utility. Try not to switch to Chansey in situations such as these until you are confident that it is safe to do so.
Team Options
========
Mega Sableye is one of the best partners for Chansey, as it is able to bounce back entry hazards and Taunt while also providing a switch-in to Knock Off. Mega Sableye also checks some of the bigger threats to Chansey such as Mega Medicham and Gengar. Unaware walls such as Clefable and Quagsire ensure that Chansey's team will not be overwhelmed by boosted threats such as Coil Zygarde and Swords Dance Garchomp. Hazard removal from Pokemon such as Skarmory, Zapdos, and Mantine is highly useful when supporting Chansey, making up for Chansey's lack of passive recovery by ensuring that it does not take much in the way of hazard damage. Dugtrio can also be a good partner for Chansey, trapping and removing threats such as Hoopa-U, Tapu Lele, and Heatran.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
An EV spread of 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD can be used to maximize Chansey's mixed bulk, enabling it to better handle special attacking threats such as Nasty Plot Thundurus and Calm Mind Tapu Koko. A set utilizing both Wish and Soft-Boiled, with Wish usually in the place of Stealth Rock, can be used to support more offensively minded teams, as Chansey can pass big Wishes to teammates such as Landorus-T and Tapu Lele in order to keep them healthy. Thunder Wave is a viable filler move on Chansey, although most offensive Pokemon still outspeed Chansey even when paralyzed, severely limiting the move's effectiveness. Combine this with Thunder Wave's 90 percent accuracy, and Thunder Wave just isn't that valuable of an option.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Attacks**: Chansey's incredibly low Defense stat means that it is threatened by most powerful physical attacks, as well as Keldeo's Secret Sword.
**Losing Eviolite**: The removal of Eviolite is a big problem for Chansey, severely diminishing its bulk, which makes it far tougher for it to handle many of the offensive threats that it would usually be able to deal with. Knock Off users such as Clefable, Tornadus-T, and Alomomola can lure Chansey in and remove its Eviolite. Trick users such as Latios, Gengar, and Hoopa-U can be even more devastating, as not only do they remove Chansey's Eviolite, but they also lock it into a single move, which heavily limits its effectiveness.
**Taunt Users**: Seismic Toss is Chansey's only attacking move, meaning that most of its moveset is useless if it gets Taunted, making it near impossible for Chansey to perform its role effectively.
Chansey's monstrous HP and high Special Defense stats make it the bulkiest special wall in the tier, boasting the ability to reliably handle the majority of the special attackers that the OU tier has to offer. To further accentuate its defensive prowess, Chansey has access to a plethora of viable utility moves such as Stealth Rock, Toxic, Thunder Wave, and Heal Bell, which makes it a must on almost all stall teams. On the flipside, while Chansey's measly Defense stat is somewhat covered for by its gargantuan HP stat combined with heavy EV investment, Chansey is still troubled by many physical attackers. Chansey's defensive typing is also interesting; while a Normal typing grants it only a single weakness, it also means Chansey has no resistances and only a single immunity. Furthermore, as is the case for many defensive Pokemon, Chansey is relatively slow and somewhat passive, relying heavily on Seismic Toss or status moves in order to inflict damage, meaning it can be relatively easily exploited by a number of offensive Pokemon. Lastly, Chansey is heavily reliant on Eviolite, as without it, Chansey is significantly less bulky and greatly struggles to check some of the more powerful offensive threats that it is usually tasked to handle.
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Seismic Toss
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Stealth Rock / Heal Bell
move 4: Soft-Boiled
item: Eviolite
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Bold
evs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Seismic Toss is Chansey's sole attacking move, ensuring that it is not entirely passive. It deals a consistent 100 HP of damage, effectively chipping away at most Pokemon, especially those without recovery. Toxic cripples and wears down Pokemon that try to use Chansey as setup fodder or those that can outlast its Seismic Toss. Stealth Rock chips away at all Pokemon without Magic Guard and is a staple for every team. Chansey is an especially effective Stealth Rock user, as its ability to reliably handle almost every special attacker gives it an ample number of opportunities throughout a game to set up the entry hazard. If Stealth Rock has already been accounted for, Chansey can opt to run Heal Bell instead, providing cleric support to its teammates. This option is most commonly found on stall teams without Heal Bell Clefable. Soft-Boiled gives Chansey a reliable means of recovery, and is what enables it to be the top-tier defensive Pokemon that it is.
Set Details
========
Maximum HP and Defense investment allows Chansey to best handle mixed attackers such as Greninja and Kyurem-B and Psyshock users such as Tapu Lele, Hoopa-U, and Latios. Eviolite gives Chansey a 1.5x boost to both of its defensive stats, greatly increasing its bulk and giving it the ability to check many of the powerful offensive Pokemon that it is relied upon to check. Natural Cure rids Chansey of any status ailment it may be suffering from when it switches out, ensuring that Chansey isn't worn down by Scald burns or Toxic damage.
Usage Tips
========
Chansey requires near full health in order to reliably deal with powerful special attackers such as Mega Charizard Y and Choice Specs Latios, so make sure Chansey is recovering often in order to remain healthy throughout the duration of the match. Be wary of Knock Off, as Eviolite is what allows it to be the powerful defensive threat that it is. There are a wide number of Pokemon such as Clefable, Mega Venusaur, Tangrowth, Tornadus-T, and Alomomola that utilize Knock Off for defensive utility. Try not to switch to Chansey in situations such as these until you are confident that it is safe to do so.
Team Options
========
Mega Sableye is one of the best partners for Chansey, as it is able to bounce back entry hazards and Taunt while also providing a switch-in to Knock Off. Mega Sableye also checks some of the bigger threats to Chansey such as Mega Medicham and Gengar. Unaware walls such as Clefable and Quagsire ensure that Chansey's team will not be overwhelmed by boosted threats such as Coil Zygarde and Swords Dance Garchomp. Hazard removal from Pokemon such as Skarmory, Zapdos, and Mantine is highly useful when supporting Chansey, making up for Chansey's lack of passive recovery by ensuring that it does not take much in the way of hazard damage. Dugtrio can also be a good partner for Chansey, trapping and removing threats such as Hoopa-U, Tapu Lele, and Heatran.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
An EV spread of 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD can be used to maximize Chansey's mixed bulk, enabling it to better handle special attacking threats such as Nasty Plot Thundurus and Calm Mind Tapu Koko. A set utilizing both Wish and Soft-Boiled, with Wish usually in the place of Stealth Rock, can be used to support more offensively minded teams, as Chansey can pass big Wishes to teammates such as Landorus-T and Tapu Lele in order to keep them healthy. Thunder Wave is a viable filler move on Chansey, although most offensive Pokemon still outspeed Chansey even when paralyzed, severely limiting the move's effectiveness. Combine this with Thunder Wave's 90 percent accuracy, and Thunder Wave just isn't that valuable of an option.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Attacks**: Chansey's incredibly low Defense stat means that it is threatened by most powerful physical attacks, as well as Keldeo's Secret Sword.
**Losing Eviolite**: The removal of Eviolite is a big problem for Chansey, severely diminishing its bulk, which makes it far tougher for it to handle many of the offensive threats that it would usually be able to deal with. Knock Off users such as Clefable, Tornadus-T, and Alomomola can lure Chansey in and remove its Eviolite. Trick users such as Latios, Gengar, and Hoopa-U can be even more devastating, as not only do they remove Chansey's Eviolite, but they also lock it into a single move, which heavily limits its effectiveness.
**Taunt Users**: Seismic Toss is Chansey's only attacking move, meaning that most of its moveset is useless if it gets Taunted, making it near impossible for Chansey to perform its role effectively.
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