[OVERVIEW]
After a few generations of terrorizing singles tiers, Chansey has established itself as a very competent Pokemon in Doubles OU. Serving a similar role in DOU as it does in OU, Chansey's main job is to absorb damage while providing passive support for its team. This is especially possible in DOU due to the specially oriented nature of the metagame; Chansey thrives on the skewed number of common special attackers in the tier due to its monstrous Special Defense and very weak Defense. Its incredibly wide movepool provides it with a large number of options when it comes to exacting that support, but it also leads to pretty significant four-moveslot syndrome. No matter what move Chansey forgoes, it will leave itself open to being exploited in one way or another. However, in the right hands, Chansey is quite capable of leaving its pink mark on any Doubles OU battle.
[SET]
name: Bulky Utility
move 1: Seismic Toss
move 2: Soft-Boiled
move 3: Icy Wind / Stealth Rock / Ally Switch
move 4: Toxic / Stealth Rock / Ally Switch
item: Eviolite
ability: Healer / Natural Cure
nature: Bold
evs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Seismic Toss prevents Chansey from being completely passive, dealing a set 100 damage to any non-Ghost-type Pokemon. While it will take a few turns to knock out an opposing Pokemon with Seismic Toss alone, Chansey can use this move to prime its partner for a KO or finish off something at low HP. Soft-Boiled is the second of two all-but-mandatory moves on Chansey's set, allowing it to remain healthy. Given that a large portion of common attacks in the tier will fail to deal more than 50% to Chansey, this is an invaluable tool that can turn Chansey into a late-game wincon. The final two moveslots are highly variable, and while two moves tend to be the best options in a vacuum, various teams tend to appreciate different types of support. Icy Wind provides Chansey's team an extra mode of speed control that conveniently cannot be stopped by Taunt. Toxic allows Chansey to put opposing bulky Pokemon on a timer and more effectively close out games on its own, as one Toxic is often enough for Chansey to play a stall endgame. Stealth Rock punishes opponents' switches and is easy to fit over either Icy Wind or Toxic should it not fit anywhere else on Chansey's team. Finally, Ally Switch can allow Chansey to soak up attacks aimed at its partner, possibly giving them a free turn to attack or set up.
Set Details
========
Chansey's EV spread is quite simple and, in conjunction with a Bold nature, aims to maximize Chansey's poor Defense, since its monstrous Special Defense requires no assistance. 248 HP / 8 SpD is used over 252 HP / 4 SpD because this allows Chansey to survive a Shattered Psyche from neutral-natured Deoxys-A in Psychic Terrain should Chansey lose its Eviolite. Speaking of which, Eviolite is the only acceptable item choice on Chansey thanks to the much-needed boost to Chansey's Defense it provides. The ability choice is largely one of personal preference. Healer further enhances Chansey's supportive capabilities by providing a way for its allies to lose their harmful status conditions, while Natural Cure does the same for Chansey itself. This choice can be largely inconsequential, however, as status moves are relatively uncommon in Doubles OU.
Usage Tips
========
Chansey is most effective when it can stay healthy throughout an entire battle. Since it very rarely carries Protect in its moveset, Chansey can be prone to being double targeted. As such, keeping Chansey healthy at all times lowers the chance that it can be knocked out by a combination of two attacks in one turn. Chansey should avoid Knock Off, since losing its Eviolite makes it much more vulnerable to taking large amounts of damage, especially from physical attacks. Additionally, Chansey needs to be careful about being hit by Z-Moves; these strong, one-time-use attacks are a great way to power through the wall that is Chansey, but they can be played around either by switching or using Soft-Boiled to counteract the damage. If Chansey runs out of support options near the end of a battle, it can act as a checkmate on its own when the opponent's remaining Pokemon cannot deal significant damage to it. When playing with this endgame in mind, you should prioritize eliminating physical attackers before special attackers, as Chansey will have a much easier time closing out games when it only has to rely on its Special Defense.
Team Options
========
One must be careful about letting the team surrounding Chansey become too passive; Chansey is the very definition of passive support, so slow-paced teammates like Amoonguss can provide opponents with too much time to enact their plan. In general, Pokemon with the potential to output large amounts of damage right off the bat, such as Mega Charizard Y and Tapu Lele, make great partners. Means to deter setup, such as Taunt and Haze, help Chansey by eliminating one of the best means of muscling through its defenses. When running Toxic, Chansey also appreciates an Island Guardian by its side that can override Misty Terrain; any of Tapu Koko, Tapu Bulu, and Tapu Lele will fill this role effectively. Finally, Pokemon with Intimidate like Incineroar and Landorus-T help further bolster Chansey's Defense against opposing physical attacks, allowing it to remain on the field much longer. All things considered, Chansey's vast arsenal of support options lends it to being useful on just about any team.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Psywave is an option over Seismic Toss that allows Chansey to damage Ghost-types like Aegislash. However, the vulnerability to more common Dark-type Pokemon and inconsistent damage make Seismic Toss a better choice in most situations. Heal Pulse and Wish can both be used to keep Chansey's teammates in various ways, with Wish getting a special mention thanks to its synergy with Ally Switch. Counter can punish physical attacks sent Chansey's direction, but it depends on Chansey being hit with a physical attack and can be played around once revealed. Finally, Incinerate is a niche option that can remove Berries from opposing Pokemon while significantly damaging one of Chansey's best checks in Kartana.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Knock Off**: Losing its Eviolite is pretty detrimental for Chansey, since its entire purpose relies on its bulk. The lack of a boost to its defenses means that the amount of damage it takes becomes much more significant, especially from physical attacks.
**Physical Attacks**: As mentioned, Chansey's Defense is much lower than its Special Defense. This means that physical attackers like Mega Metagross and Kartana are much more effective at taking Chansey down, and removing such threats should be prioritized.
**Setup**: Chansey can tend to be setup bait, especially if it doesn't carry Toxic to punish passive turns. Examples of setup Pokemon that can exploit Chansey include Dragon Dance Zygarde and Calm Mind Tapu Fini, the latter of which also prevents Toxic thanks to Misty Surge.
**Taunt**: Taunt users like Tapu Koko and Tapu Lele shut down a majority of Chansey's support options and prevent it from staying healthy with Soft-Boiled.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-type Pokemon such as Scrafty and Kommo-o can deal significant damage to Chansey with their STAB attacks and should be avoided. Additionally, Pokemon like Tapu Bulu and Kartana almost always carry Fighting-type coverage moves in the form of Superpower and Sacred Sword, respectively. Both of these Pokemon also have ways to boost their already good Attack via either Swords Dance or a Z-Move and should be handled before trying to win a game with Chansey.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[MajorBowman, 188164]]
- Quality checked by: [[talkingtree, 232101], [n10sit, 267148]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216], [talkingtree, 232101]]
After a few generations of terrorizing singles tiers, Chansey has established itself as a very competent Pokemon in Doubles OU. Serving a similar role in DOU as it does in OU, Chansey's main job is to absorb damage while providing passive support for its team. This is especially possible in DOU due to the specially oriented nature of the metagame; Chansey thrives on the skewed number of common special attackers in the tier due to its monstrous Special Defense and very weak Defense. Its incredibly wide movepool provides it with a large number of options when it comes to exacting that support, but it also leads to pretty significant four-moveslot syndrome. No matter what move Chansey forgoes, it will leave itself open to being exploited in one way or another. However, in the right hands, Chansey is quite capable of leaving its pink mark on any Doubles OU battle.
[SET]
name: Bulky Utility
move 1: Seismic Toss
move 2: Soft-Boiled
move 3: Icy Wind / Stealth Rock / Ally Switch
move 4: Toxic / Stealth Rock / Ally Switch
item: Eviolite
ability: Healer / Natural Cure
nature: Bold
evs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Seismic Toss prevents Chansey from being completely passive, dealing a set 100 damage to any non-Ghost-type Pokemon. While it will take a few turns to knock out an opposing Pokemon with Seismic Toss alone, Chansey can use this move to prime its partner for a KO or finish off something at low HP. Soft-Boiled is the second of two all-but-mandatory moves on Chansey's set, allowing it to remain healthy. Given that a large portion of common attacks in the tier will fail to deal more than 50% to Chansey, this is an invaluable tool that can turn Chansey into a late-game wincon. The final two moveslots are highly variable, and while two moves tend to be the best options in a vacuum, various teams tend to appreciate different types of support. Icy Wind provides Chansey's team an extra mode of speed control that conveniently cannot be stopped by Taunt. Toxic allows Chansey to put opposing bulky Pokemon on a timer and more effectively close out games on its own, as one Toxic is often enough for Chansey to play a stall endgame. Stealth Rock punishes opponents' switches and is easy to fit over either Icy Wind or Toxic should it not fit anywhere else on Chansey's team. Finally, Ally Switch can allow Chansey to soak up attacks aimed at its partner, possibly giving them a free turn to attack or set up.
Set Details
========
Chansey's EV spread is quite simple and, in conjunction with a Bold nature, aims to maximize Chansey's poor Defense, since its monstrous Special Defense requires no assistance. 248 HP / 8 SpD is used over 252 HP / 4 SpD because this allows Chansey to survive a Shattered Psyche from neutral-natured Deoxys-A in Psychic Terrain should Chansey lose its Eviolite. Speaking of which, Eviolite is the only acceptable item choice on Chansey thanks to the much-needed boost to Chansey's Defense it provides. The ability choice is largely one of personal preference. Healer further enhances Chansey's supportive capabilities by providing a way for its allies to lose their harmful status conditions, while Natural Cure does the same for Chansey itself. This choice can be largely inconsequential, however, as status moves are relatively uncommon in Doubles OU.
Usage Tips
========
Chansey is most effective when it can stay healthy throughout an entire battle. Since it very rarely carries Protect in its moveset, Chansey can be prone to being double targeted. As such, keeping Chansey healthy at all times lowers the chance that it can be knocked out by a combination of two attacks in one turn. Chansey should avoid Knock Off, since losing its Eviolite makes it much more vulnerable to taking large amounts of damage, especially from physical attacks. Additionally, Chansey needs to be careful about being hit by Z-Moves; these strong, one-time-use attacks are a great way to power through the wall that is Chansey, but they can be played around either by switching or using Soft-Boiled to counteract the damage. If Chansey runs out of support options near the end of a battle, it can act as a checkmate on its own when the opponent's remaining Pokemon cannot deal significant damage to it. When playing with this endgame in mind, you should prioritize eliminating physical attackers before special attackers, as Chansey will have a much easier time closing out games when it only has to rely on its Special Defense.
Team Options
========
One must be careful about letting the team surrounding Chansey become too passive; Chansey is the very definition of passive support, so slow-paced teammates like Amoonguss can provide opponents with too much time to enact their plan. In general, Pokemon with the potential to output large amounts of damage right off the bat, such as Mega Charizard Y and Tapu Lele, make great partners. Means to deter setup, such as Taunt and Haze, help Chansey by eliminating one of the best means of muscling through its defenses. When running Toxic, Chansey also appreciates an Island Guardian by its side that can override Misty Terrain; any of Tapu Koko, Tapu Bulu, and Tapu Lele will fill this role effectively. Finally, Pokemon with Intimidate like Incineroar and Landorus-T help further bolster Chansey's Defense against opposing physical attacks, allowing it to remain on the field much longer. All things considered, Chansey's vast arsenal of support options lends it to being useful on just about any team.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Psywave is an option over Seismic Toss that allows Chansey to damage Ghost-types like Aegislash. However, the vulnerability to more common Dark-type Pokemon and inconsistent damage make Seismic Toss a better choice in most situations. Heal Pulse and Wish can both be used to keep Chansey's teammates in various ways, with Wish getting a special mention thanks to its synergy with Ally Switch. Counter can punish physical attacks sent Chansey's direction, but it depends on Chansey being hit with a physical attack and can be played around once revealed. Finally, Incinerate is a niche option that can remove Berries from opposing Pokemon while significantly damaging one of Chansey's best checks in Kartana.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Knock Off**: Losing its Eviolite is pretty detrimental for Chansey, since its entire purpose relies on its bulk. The lack of a boost to its defenses means that the amount of damage it takes becomes much more significant, especially from physical attacks.
**Physical Attacks**: As mentioned, Chansey's Defense is much lower than its Special Defense. This means that physical attackers like Mega Metagross and Kartana are much more effective at taking Chansey down, and removing such threats should be prioritized.
**Setup**: Chansey can tend to be setup bait, especially if it doesn't carry Toxic to punish passive turns. Examples of setup Pokemon that can exploit Chansey include Dragon Dance Zygarde and Calm Mind Tapu Fini, the latter of which also prevents Toxic thanks to Misty Surge.
**Taunt**: Taunt users like Tapu Koko and Tapu Lele shut down a majority of Chansey's support options and prevent it from staying healthy with Soft-Boiled.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-type Pokemon such as Scrafty and Kommo-o can deal significant damage to Chansey with their STAB attacks and should be avoided. Additionally, Pokemon like Tapu Bulu and Kartana almost always carry Fighting-type coverage moves in the form of Superpower and Sacred Sword, respectively. Both of these Pokemon also have ways to boost their already good Attack via either Swords Dance or a Z-Move and should be handled before trying to win a game with Chansey.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[MajorBowman, 188164]]
- Quality checked by: [[talkingtree, 232101], [n10sit, 267148]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216], [talkingtree, 232101]]
Last edited:
