nap time
QC 3/3 (Cynara, Minority, Serial EKiller)
GP 2/2 (Fireflame479, The Dutch Plumberjack)
[OVERVIEW]
* Darkrai is a frail special attacker that differs from Yveltal with its higher Speed tier, access to strong utility moves, and different coverage options.
* Darkrai's inconsistency should be stressed, however; without landing Hypnosis, it can end up doing very little in a match. This alone is the greatest reason that players avoid using it when aiming for consistent teams.
* On the flip side, if Darkrai's moves hit their targets, it can be a very difficult Pokemon to handle. Simply the threat of playing with the odds can force the opponent to react defensively to Darkrai, even if luck does not favor it.
* Darkrai's stats and overall playstyle limit it to offensive teams, and it faces competition from Yveltal in this role, as Darkrai offers very little defensively in comparison.
* While base 125 Speed is high, allowing Darkrai to outspeed Arceus formes and Mega Salamence and Speed tie with Marshadow, Darkrai still has to be wary of faster threats such as Mega Gengar, Ultra Necrozma, Deoxys-A, Mewtwo formes, and Choice Scarf Xerneas.
* Even when accuracy is removed from the situation, Darkrai may lack the ideal coverage against Fairy-types or damage against Ho-Oh, Yveltal, and Primal Kyogre. Magearna also heavily threatens Darkrai once something else is asleep, meaning that considerable effort and team support is required to get the most out of Darkrai's abilities.
[SET]
name: Special Attacker
move 1: Hypnosis
move 2: Nasty Plot
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Thunder / Sludge Bomb
item: Life Orb
ability: Bad Dreams
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Hypnosis may lack in accuracy, but it threatens the opponent with the danger of losing a Pokemon to sleep. This gives Darkrai the ability to freely set up a Nasty Plot and make use of its ability to get bonus chip damage on an enemy Pokemon.
* Nasty Plot is another key separation that Darkrai has over Yveltal, having more power than it at +2. This can make Darkrai a threatening wallbreaker or sweeper depending on the situation.
* Dark Pulse is Darkrai's main attack and does respectable damage to the majority of the tier. A boost from Nasty Plot makes Dark Pulse far more threatening to weakened Pokemon.
* Thunder targets Ho-Oh, Yveltal, and Primal Kyogre but comes with more accuracy concerns. While Ho-Oh and Primal Kyogre do not resist Dark Pulse, their high Special Defense allows them to take hits without too much trouble, meaning that a boosted Thunder will be far more threatening to them.
* Sludge Bomb targets Fairy-types and is a clear advantage that Darkrai has over Yveltal when combined with its Speed tier. With the threat of a +2 Sludge Bomb, Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy are much shakier checks. It also ensures that Darkrai has another accurate attack to rely on.
* An alternative coverage option is Focus Blast, which is Darkrai's best option against the likes of Tyranitar and Magearna, which are otherwise very effective checks. Dark Pulse and Focus Blast coverage misses out on a lot of important Pokemon such as Fairy-types and Ho-Oh, however.
Set Details
========
* Maximum Special Attack and Speed investment with a Timid nature gets the most out of Darkrai's important stats, outspeeding key threats such as Arceus formes and Mega Salamence while maximizing damage output.
* Life Orb adds the best overall damage to Darkrai's attacks, as without it, it can lose out on OHKOing Ho-Oh at +2 with Thunder and will also fall short of OHKOing Arceus-Fairy and Xerneas with +2 Sludge Bomb. Dark Pulse also gains guaranteed OHKOs on Ultra Necrozma and Mewtwo with the boost from Life Orb.
Usage Tips
========
* Darkrai's low bulk and high Speed mean that it is best brought in on free switches against slower, bulkier Pokemon.
* If Darkrai can force a switch, this gives the chance to use Hypnosis twice if the switch-in is slower, increasing the odds to 84% of gaining a free Nasty Plot or attacking against a sleeping target. This can somewhat offset the annoying accuracy issues that come with Hypnosis.
* Be aware of what Darkrai isn't capable of beating based on its coverage. Without Sludge Bomb, Darkrai needs Fairy-types to be fairly weakened before a boosted Thunder will take them down. Without Thunder, Ho-Oh, Yveltal, and Primal Kyogre will need to be worn down before Darkrai can beat them. Magearna is nearly impossible to break if running Sludge Bomb as the coverage option and will need to be dealt with by Darkrai's teammates.
* Darkrai is capable of dealing with its own checks with Hypnosis, but the opponent is not likely to give Darkrai the chance to put its own check to sleep and will likely fodder something less useful or a Pokemon that isn't that bothered of being asleep before pivoting back to a Darkrai check. This can be taken advantage of by using Nasty Plot or attacking and keeping the threat of Hypnosis around.
* Darkrai is capable of being effective against many different types of teams, but keep in mind that ultimately, there will be some reliance on luck going your way to achieve the best results from this set.
* It should be noted that Darkrai's high Speed and access to sleep-inducing moves can make it an effective anti-lead against slower entry hazard-focused Pokemon such as Cloyster, Smeargle, and Excadrill.
Team Options
========
* For Darkrai to avoid being completely outclassed by Yveltal on a team, the overall structure of it should aim to be offensive in nature.
* Reliable entry hazard setting is a requirement to keep the pressure on the opponent and chip foes into the range of Darkrai's attacks. This can come from dedicated leads such as Cloyster, Deoxys-S, and Excadrill. Primal Groudon also stands out as a Stealth Rock setter and generally reliable teammate. In return, Darkrai can pressure enemy Defog users or even put them to sleep, keeping entry hazards up.
* Choice Scarf Xerneas stands out as a great partner, as it can threaten to revenge kill many of the Pokemon that are faster than Darkrai while also getting chip damage onto Magearna to put it in range of Darkrai's attacks. In return, Darkrai puts pressure onto other Xerneas checks such as Primal Groudon and support Necrozma-DM.
* Primal Groudon can use a variety of sets, with all of them able to check Fairy-types and Tyranitar for Darkrai. Some variants can be used to pressure Primal Kyogre and Ho-Oh, covering many bases for Darkrai in a single teammate. In return, Darkrai can pressure Giratina and Lugia for Primal Groudon making it an effective partner.
* Necrozma-DM can take advantage of Fairy-types for Darkrai and make use of Darkrai's ability to pressure Ho-Oh.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Darkinium Z is a possibility that allows Darkrai to land surprise OHKOs on bulky Pokemon such as Ho-Oh and Primal Kyogre at +2, but +2 Thunder with Life Orb is capable of doing the same thing while providing a consistent damage boost.
* Firium Z combined with Incinerate turns Darkrai into an effective Magearna lure for a teammate, as a +2 Inferno Overdrive is capable of OHKOing it. This comes with the large opportunity cost of using up the team's Z-Move and making Darkrai very matchup reliant to be somewhat useful, though.
* Substitute and Leftovers takes advantage of Darkrai's ability to force switches and safely chip away at enemy Pokemon, but this set lacks in coverage and damage overall, making it easier to handle than more offensive sets.
* Psychium Z alongside Hypnosis increases Darkrai's Speed, avoiding retaliation from the faster attackers that would normally avoid being weak to Dark Pulse by hitting Darkrai first. However, this set has a large opportunity cost as well as a reliance on facing the right Pokemon that the set intends to beat, such as Deoxys-A, Mewtwo, and Ultra Necrozma.
* A Choice Scarf set with Ice Beam is plausible to work as a revenge killer against Dragon Dance Mega Salamence, Zygarde-C, and Rayquaza. Haze can also be used to remove the boosts from Geomancy Xerneas in a pinch, and the Choice Scarf can be switched to cripple a Pokemon with Trick, but ultimately, a set of this nature has too many downsides to be worth it.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Magearna**: Magearna is the best answer to Darkrai, assuming that Darkrai wasn't able to put it to sleep. With a resistance to Dark Pulse, an immunity to Sludge Bomb, and the ability to cleanly OHKO Darkrai with Fleur Cannon, Magearna fears only a boosted Thunder if it is sufficiently weakened.
**Fairy-types**: Arceus-Fairy and Xerneas act as good Darkrai checks with their high bulk, meaning that a Darkrai lacking Sludge Bomb will need them to be weakened into range of a boosted Thunder. However, due to being slower than Darkrai, these Pokemon are at high risk of being OHKOed by +2 Sludge Bomb should Darkrai be running it. Choice Scarf Xerneas avoids this concern and will always threaten to revenge kill Darkrai if given the chance.
**Faster Attackers**: While base 125 Speed is relatively high by Ubers standards, Darkrai is still slower than many offensive Pokemon such as Ultra Necrozma, Mewtwo, Mega Gengar, and Deoxys-A, which are all able to threaten to revenge kill it with various moves.
**Blissey and Chansey**: The very high special bulk of Blissey and Chansey makes them suitable Darkrai answers. It should be noted that these Pokemon are not capable of absorbing sleep for a teammate due to Natural Cure, however, and if they stay in against Darkrai while asleep, they risk Darkrai boosting with Nasty Plot to a point where it is able to win against them. If another Pokemon is already asleep, Blissey and Chansey are able to stall Darkrai out with Toxic poison.
**Tyranitar**: A resistance to Dark Pulse and Sludge Bomb when combined with Tyranitar's high Special Defense courtesy of sand make it a good check to Darkrai, fearing only Focus Blast. Tyranitar can whittle Darkrai down with STAB attacks, Toxic, and residual damage from sand.
**Bulky Attackers**: If Darkrai is lacking Thunder, Ho-Oh and Primal Kyogre can take a boosted attack from Darkrai and retaliate with heavy damage from their STAB attacks.
**Priority Attacks**: Extreme Speed from the likes of Arceus and Rayquaza as well as Bullet Punch from Mega Lucario and Mega Scizor are capable of bypassing Darkrai's Speed advantage and taking it down if Darkrai is weakened.
Last edited: