[OVERVIEW]
* Dialga's niche in Ubers as a Stealth Rock user when compared to Necrozma-DM comes from its offensive presence against the majority of Defog users in the tier, such as Arceus-Water, Arceus-Dragon, and both formes of Giratina.
* A decent Steel / Dragon typing of paired with great natural bulk makes it hard to take down Dialga in general. Its handy immunity to Toxic also allows it to switch into passive foes and set Stealth Rock multiple times throughout the match.
* A wide array of coverage and status moves available for Dialga makes it very hard to defensively handle without dedicated special walls.
* Despite these strengths, Dialga faces competition with a lot of other threats in the metagame; as an offensive Pokemon, Palkia and Zekrom are better offensive checks to Primal Kyogre, have better offensive typings, and can run lure sets to defeat their conventional checks. As a Stealth Rock user, Dialga faces heavy competition with Necrozma-DM, which is more resilient to super effective moves thanks to Prism Armor and has reliable recovery to consistently set entry hazards throughout the match.
* Dialga's defensive typing leaves it unable to check Xerneas. This forces Dialga's team to acquire a check to Xerneas by employing another Steel-type, stacking weaknesses while doing so.
* Dialga also falls prey to very common threats like Primal Groudon, Arceus-Ground, Marshadow, and Mega Lucario due to its weakness to Ground- and Fighting-types. Although Shuca Berry allows Dialga to survive a hit and retaliate against Ground-type threats and Earthquake users, its matchup against the aforementioned threats are risky nonetheless.
* Lastly, Dialga suffers from four-moveslot syndrome; it is mandated to carry Stealth Rock to fulfill its role and therefore lacks moveslots to fit all coverage and status moves it needs.
[SET]
name: Offensive Utility
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Draco Meteor
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Thunder / Toxic
item: Life Orb / Shuca Berry
ability: Pressure
nature: Modest
evs: 104 HP / 252 SpA / 152 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Stealth Rock greatly benefits setup sweepers such as Xerneas, Mega Salamence, Rayquaza, and Arceus by wearing down the opposing team. The move also allows threats like Primal Groudon and Necrozma-DM to run more offensive sets.
* Draco Meteor is a very powerful STAB move that puts a dent on most targets that do not resist it. It comes at a cost of a drastic drop in Special Attack, however.
* Fire Blast punishes Steel-types such as Celesteela, Ferrothorn, Magearna, and defensive Necrozma-DM that resist Draco Meteor.
* Thunder does heavy damage to Arceus-Water, Primal Kyogre, Ho-Oh, Lugia, and Celesteela, but it sometimes tends to be unreliable due to its shaky accuracy.
* Toxic punishes foes that hope to take Draco Meteor and Fire Blast from Dialga, such as Arceus formes, Ho-Oh, and Lugia, by putting them on a timer. It also punishes Xerneas if it tries to set up on Dialga.
* Ice Beam is an alternative to Draco Meteor that does not force Dialga to switch out, hits Arceus-Ground, and still OHKOes Zygarde-C with Life Orb. This is a plausible option if reserving momentum is more important than access to a powerful STAB move.
Set Details
========
* The given EV spread allows Dialga to outspeed Adamant Necrozma-DM, letting it reliably score a 2HKO with Fire Blast.
* Full Special Attack investment with a Modest nature maximizes Dialga's damage output to the point where Draco Meteor forces a recovery move from Arceus formes by taking away around half of their health.
* Life Orb increases Dialga's damage output at the cost of its longevity and allows Dialga to OHKO offensive Primal Groudon with Draco Meteor after Stealth Rock, OHKO Celesteela and 2HKO defensive Necrozma-DM with Fire Blast, and 2HKO bulky Ho-Oh with Thunder.
* Shuca Berry allows Dialga to survive a Precipice Blades from Primal Groudon and take Earthquake from various threats, such as Mega Salamence, Ultra Necrozma, and Rayquaza, that rely on said move to defeat Dialga. Shuca Berry can be paired with an alternative EV spread of 240 HP / 16 Def / 252 SpA in order to survive +1 Tectonic Rage from Zygarde-C from full HP.
Usage Tips
========
* Dialga should avoid leading against the likes of Excadrill, Cloyster, and Deoxys-S, since they can either remove entry hazards or prevent Dialga from setting hazards in the first place.
* Draco Meteor is best used against neutral targets to either heavily damage them or force them to use a recovery move so Dialga can potentially gain a turn to set Stealth Rock, use Toxic to put them on timer, or switch into a counter.
* Toxic is a great way to punish Defog users that are able to take Dialga's attacks, such as Arceus-Ground and Arceus-Water. The former especially is inclined to switch into Dialga to heal off the damage taken while forcing it out, so it is best to use Toxic on it as it switches in.
* Switching into Toxic from predictable users of the move like Lugia and Arceus-Water allows Dialga to easily grab an opportunity to set entry hazards or fire attacks, since it forces out said foes due to them not being able to do much in return.
* Dialga is quite reliant on predictions to punish switch-ins with its moves. Draco Meteor shouldn't be used recklessly when Steel-types are likely to switch in, and Toxic should be used when Arceus formes are the most likely switch-ins. This is especially important if Dialga has to avoid taking hits to preserve its health while utilizing its moveset to full potential.
* It is important to make right decisions about whether to use Dialga early-game as a dedicated lead or preserve it to check sweepers that it can at full health. For instance, if Dialga holds Shuca Berry and is the only reliable answer to dangerous sweepers like Mega Salamence and Rayquaza, it should be preserved and left healthy so it can deal with them later in the match. If Dialga does not have to stay healthy to handle a specific threat that none of its teammates can't already, it should set Stealth Rock as early as possible to start pressuring the opposing team.
Team Options
========
* Checks to Primal Groudon are necessary, since Dialga cannot handle it alone, even with Shuca Berry. Support Arceus formes mostly do a sufficient job handling Primal Groudon and are able to occasionally run Fire Blast to free Dialga of a moveslot to run a different move. Lugia is able to prevail against setup variants of Primal Groudon while handling Mega Lucario.
* Primal Groudon and Necrozma-DM appreciate the Stealth Rock support Dialga provides. They benefit from said entry hazard when attempting to sweep and are free to use more offensively oriented sets that they could not use otherwise when dedicating their movesets to set the hazard themselves. The former checks Fairy-types and threatens Steel-types for Dialga in the event Dialga does not run Fire Blast and appreciates Dialga switching into Toxic while using Toxic of its own to put support Arceus formes on timer. The latter is also a strong check to Fairy-types and enjoys Steel-types weakened from Dialga's Fire Blast.
* Xerneas enjoys Stealth Rock support, which weakens Ho-Oh and removes Multiscale from Lugia, and appreciates Dialga luring Steel-types and denting them with Fire Blast. In return, Xerneas resists Fighting-type moves and threatens any Defog users that Dialga cannot handle by threatening to set up Geomancy on them.
* Yveltal is an offensive powerhouse that pairs well with Dialga. It provides a Ground immunity to the team, which Dialga appreciates, and is able to use Taunt to prevent Defog and shut down special walls like Chansey. Choice Scarf variants are good checks to Marshadow and Lunala.
* Marshadow meets a lot of important benchmarks with Stealth Rock up and appreciates Dialga threatening support Arceus formes. In return, Marshadow can switch into predicted Fighting-type attacks, block Rapid Spin, and destroy most special walls in the tier.
* Mega Salamence appreciates Stealth Rock support as well as Dialga weakening support Arceus forms with powerful attacks or Toxic. In return, Mega Salamence acts as a good check to Primal Groudon and provides a Ground-type immunity for Dialga, letting it avoid unwanted matchups and preserve Shuca Berry.
* Arceus-Ground appreciates Dialga luring Steel-types like Celesteela and punishing them with Fire Blast. This allows Arceus-Ground to sweep easily with Swords Dance. Defensive variants of Arceus-Ground serve as strong checks to Primal Groudon and Mega Lucario, which Dialga struggles with.
* Ho-Oh resists Fighting-, Fairy-, and Steel-types that Dialga might have trouble with if it does not have appropriate coverage against them. It also appreciates Dialga using Toxic on support Arceus formes and threatening Giratina and Zygarde-C with Draco Meteor.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Dialga is the most potent when it is used as an offensive Stealth Rock setter while functioning as either a Life Orb attacker or an offensive check to certain threats with Shuca Berry. Other dedicated offensive sets are mostly outclassed by Palkia due to it threat having a better offensive typing and Speed tier.
* Flash Cannon punishes Fairy-types that attempt to switch into Draco Meteor, but it doesn't do much else and thus has a hard time fitting in Dialga's already strapped moveset.
* Trick Room is an interesting option to utilize Dialga's mediocre Speed, but the prevalence of Arceus formes, lack of a setup move, and reliance on a Z-Crystal to KO foes make this difficult to function well in practice.
* Roar prevents Dialga from being setup fodder after it has used Draco Meteor and can potentially allow Dialga to lure Xerneas and waste its Power Herb if it sets up Geomancy expecting Dialga to either switch or be too weak to do much back.
* Thunder Wave is an alternative status move available but is mostly inferior to Toxic due to its inability to punish Defog users.
* Chople Berry surprises Marshadow and Mega Lucario and allows Dialga to KO them back with Draco Meteor and Fire Blast, respectively. However, Dialga can handle much more significant and a wider array of threats with Shuca Berry instead.
* Leftovers provides passive recovery but comes at the cost of power from Life Orb or extreme vulnerability to Ground-type foes and Ground-type attacks by forgoing Shuca Berry.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Ground-types**: Arceus-Ground has enough bulk to shake off damage taken from Dialga's attacks, Recover to keep itself healthy, Defog to remove Stealth Rock from the field, and Judgment to at worst rid Dialga of Shuca Berry. Primal Groudon, while losing the majority of its health from Draco Meteor, easily 2HKOes Dialga with its STAB moves or sets Stealth Rock of its own while Dialga is forced out. Despite this, it is important to note that both Arceus-Ground and Primal Groudon despise switching into Toxic. Landorus, although it struggles taking most attack from Dialga in general, can at worst weaken Dialga with their super effective STAB attacks.
**Fighting-types**: Marshadow, Mega Lucario, Mega Blaziken, and Mega Mewtwo X easily OHKO Dialga with their super effective STAB moves. However, the former three are OHKOed by Draco Meteor or Fire Blast if they carelessly switch into Dialga.
**Fairy-types**: Without employing Flash Cannon, the best Dialga can do against Fairy-types such as Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy is setting them on a timer with Toxic. They can switch into any Dialga variant lacking those moves with ease thanks to their immunity to Draco Meteor.
**Specially Defensive Walls**: Ho-Oh switches into Dialga without much concern thanks to its huge special bulk and is resilient to most damage taken thanks to Regenerator, although it takes heavy damage from Thunder. Lugia and most support Arceus formes have enough bulk to take on Dialga, and support Arceus formes in particular often carry Defog to clear away entry hazards. Chansey and Blissey are impossible for Dialga to surmount due to their enormous special bulk and Nature Cure, which removes Toxic poison upon switching out. However, Ho-Oh and Lugia cannot switch into Dialga without risk when Stealth Rock is up and are put on a timer by Toxic, and support Arceus formes also have their defensive capabilities greatly hindered by Toxic.
**Entry Hazard Removers**: Excadrill threatens Dialga with Earthquake and uses Rapid Spin to remove Stealth Rock while setting said hazard itself. Some Xerneas variants carry Defog and are able to remove hazards while forcing out Dialga.
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