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Cresselia [QC: 1/3]

trc

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Overview
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With some of the highest defensive stats in the game, Cresselia is chalked down as one of the first choices on most modern defensive teams, from balanced to full stall. Because of it's relatively sound typing from a defensive standpoint and its access to recovery as well as Thunder Wave, Cresselia is consistently able to use its great bulk to check a large array of Pokemon in the tier, including common threats such as Mega Sceptile, offensive Moltres, Mega Pidgeot, Slowking, non-SubCM Meloetta, Virizion, Jolteon, and Druddigon, with its defensive set. It can also use a SubCM set which acts as a win condition for balance and semi-stall teams, which finds setup opportunities against many defensive Pokemon. Additionally, somewhat uncharacteristically for a defensive Pokemon, Cresselia has quite a high Speed tier, which allows it to reach 237 Speed without incredibly excessive investment, a feature that most common defensive Pokemon (outside of Golbat) lack. This allows Cresselia to outspeed Pangoro, one of the hugest threats to stall teams and defensive teams in general, and OHKO it with Moonblast with minimal prior damage. This also aids it in getting up Substitutes against slower defensive Pokemon, like Alomomola and Amoonguss. Cresselia doesn't have it all though; it only has 8 PP on its recovery move, meaning over long games Cresselia will eventually be less effective as strong Pokemon can muscle through it. It's also very well prepared for, with common checks seen on all different styles of play including Escavalier, Durant, Curse Registeel, and Taunt users like Drapion, Jellicent, and Gligar.

Defensive
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name: Defensive
move 1: Moonlight
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Moonblast
move 4: Psyshock / Toxic
ability: Levitate
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 84 Def / 48 SpD / 124 Spe
nature: Bold

Moves
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This set is a common tool on defensive teams which has the aim of checking various dangerous attackers. Moonlight is used to keep Cresselia alive so that it can consistently beat various Pokemon. To deter setup sweepers from trying to force themselves through Cresselia, Thunder Wave cripples them. It also makes it easier for Cresselia to stall them out due to it now being faster. Moonblast is a mandatory move for Pangoro, a Pokemon which typically fares very well against the defensive teams Cresselia is usually found on. It also hits most Dark-types (like Spiritomb) for decent damage, though it doesn't do that much to specially defensive Drapion or Skuntank due to their secondary Poison-typing. Psyshock is the main option in the final slot as it is a stronger move to be used against Virizion to deter its setup, as most Virizion use Lum Berry to avoid paralysis from Thunder Wave. It also OHKOes Hitmonlee, and does more damage to Moltres. However, Toxic can be used to cripple troublesome Pokemon such as Moltres and Fletchinder as Roost variants can't be beaten with just Thunder Wave. It is also one of the ways to beat bulkier Pokemon like Meloetta lacking Substitute, as they can be Toxic stalled.

Set Details
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  • spread seems convoluted but basically 124 speed hits 237 to outspeed jolly pangoro at 236, max hp + 48 spd means cress is never 2hkoed by lo moltres after sr and lefties and the rest (84 evs) is in defense with bold.
  • an alternative of 252 hp / 168 def / 48 spd / 40 spe timid might seem tempting but it actually has 7 less defense points than the first spread at the gain of nothing
  • you can also run 60 spa to hit 201 to always ohko 0/0 pangoro with moonblast after sr but usually pangoro will have switched into to sr twice already or will of at least have obtained some prior damage
  • leftovers is to be expected on the majority of defensive pokemon and cress is no exception, enjoying it to turn 2hkos to 3hkoes, like the aforementioned moltres
  • 252 hp / 152 def / 104 spd bold avoids 2hko from adamant lo hitmonlee after rocks but loses to pangoro
  • 252 hp with 252 def or 252 spd can be used for better insurance vs a wide range of pokemon but beating pangoro is usually better
  • likewise, you can run max hp, 124 spe, and then the rest in def or spd if you don't specifically want to hit the benchmarks mentioned
Usage Tips
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  • switch into mons you wall.
  • wall them hello?
Team Options
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  • typical stallmons. it's hard to completely say "cover what cresselia loses to" because most of those beat stall anyway pretty well. however escavalier and durant can be dealt with among things like gligar, hitmontop + alomomola, or a fire-type, which isn't so much of an issue against durant as it is for spdef resttalk sd escavalier which is a huge thread to stall so being able to one-shot it is hugely desired. otherwise you can rely on taunt wisp jellicent if either of its stabs are its attacking move; knock off gives a harder time but is less common and can be pp stalled by something like granbull. quagsire works for some boosting sweepers like slurpuff and sd drapion. also cb pangoro usually has some bulk investment so tspikes is nice to get it into moonblast range and even to break lum against lum sd as well, drapion works here. drapion also taunts escavalier.
SubCM
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name: SubCM
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Substitute
move 3: Moonblast
move 4: Moonlight / Psyshock
ability: Levitate
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 132 Def / 124 Spe
nature: Bold

Moves
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  • calm mind allows cresselia to become a fearsome late-game win condition for stall teams. because of cresselia's natural bulk augmented by its ev spread, cresselia finds many opportunities to setup.
  • substitute prevents cresselia primarily from being toxiced and having its health depleted by pokemon like quagsire, but also protects against critical hits and other forms of status such as sleep.
  • moonblast is used because even though it does not gain stab, it has no immunities, meaning cresselia is never unable to damage an opponent.
  • moonlight recovers off damage gained setting up or by making substitutes.
  • psyshock can be used over moonlight as a second move since it's stronger than moonblast due to stab and can allow cresselia to win cm wars.
Set Details
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  • the ev spread outspeeds jolly pangoro with the rest invested into physical bulk - hp first for maximum benefit. modest exploud is at 235 so cresselia can get a cm before it attacks which is also nice.
  • you can drop the speed to 84 evs for minimum speed drapion but it isn't recommended; you can also creep this a bit for drapion deciding to creep you, but this is optional and not endorsed.
Usage Tips
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  • setup subs on stallmons or w/e.
  • start cming and then recover off lost health and then sweep lel ez.
Team Options
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  • pretty much the same as above (ill talk about this in writeup) but you also want tspikes a lot.
  • subtoxic moltres.
Other Options
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  • screens
  • lunar dance
  • trick room
  • colbur xd
Checks & Counters
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  • taunt drap
  • taunt skunk
  • taunt jellicent
  • spd resttalk escavalier
  • lum hc durant
  • sd doublade
  • inflitrator toxic golbat
  • probably other stuff
 
Last edited:
do you really need the 60 spa? it a) kills itself with LO recoil after a Moonblast or b) fails to KO with Lum and the extra Defense on Cresselia, iirc
 
quick look cuz im in bed but

"you can also creep this a bit for drapion deciding to creep you, but this is optional and not endorsed."

creep shouldn't be in analysis
 
yeah ik but I wasnt endorsing it I was letting people know tha they can creep, not giving it as a specific option and I referenced it in a way that makes it a tip for the reader
 
personally i have a beef with analyses not letting people know at all about the possibility of creep when it can be relevant to how a Pokemon plays

but currently you still can't mention it and, well, i think i'll go try to change that right now, but until then Dx
 
there are probably better examples than tauntless cobalion but eh just nitpicking

"252 hp / 152 def / 104 spd bold avoids 2hko from adamant lo hitmonlee after rocks but loses to pangoro"
How does it lose to pangoro? Oo nevermind just noticed 104 speed not 124 my bad

Usage tips needs work like seriously, "just wall them hello" isn't acceptable lol. i know you'll probably write something decent in the write-up but still. when do u use toxic rather than t-wave? watch out for random knock offs? what mons to watch out for? pursuit? etc.

"otherwise you can rely on taunt wisp jellicent if either of its stabs are its attacking move; knock off gives a harder time but is less common and can be pp stalled by something like granbull."
huh? it's also not less common

mention examples of fire-types, readers want those. mega camerupt? moltres?

on subcm:
remove that slight mention of creep, or remove the 84 speed bit in general because "minimum speed drapion" is 44 according to its analysis anyway.

usage tips again lol. mention that it needs to watch out for taunt, toxic golbat, stuff like that, and that it can't sweep as long as something like doublade is on opposing team.

otherwise not bad, this is mostly stuff that you probably were planning on doing in the write-up but I can't know that for sure so. they're still important imo.


do the above and consider it QC approved 2/3
MBapOSO.gif
 
Last edited:
Addressed most of this stuff on PS, mostly a misunderstanding and stuff I was planning on doing in the write-up 9.9

I'll get on writing this.
 
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