[SET]
name: Choice Band (Normal)
move 1: Return
move 2: Earthquake / High Horsepower
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Choice Band
ability: Huge Power
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
With a Choice Band attached, Diggersby's already great power rises to astronomical levels, making it capable to heavily dent most of the metagame right off the bat. Return is Diggersby's most reliable weapon, which, thanks to its power, 2HKOes everything that doesn't resist or is immune to it at least, bar very sturdy physical walls like Avalugg and Mega Slowbro. Earthquake is Diggersby's best Ground-type STAB move, denting the Rock-, Steel-, and Ghost-types that resist or are immune to Return like Tyranitar, Melmetal, and Galarian Corsola. Alternatively, High Horsepower scores the same significant KOes while being unaffected by the power drop from Grassy Terrain; because of that, it can 2HKO both Rillaboom and Tapu Bulu, meaning Diggersby gets to be more effective against Grass and Fairy. However, it isn't perfectly accurate, and makes Diggersby vulnerable to poisoning from Toxapex's Baneful Bunker and the Attack drop from Aegislash's King's Shield. Fire Punch OHKOes Ferrothorn and Mega Scizor, and deals major damage to the likes of Celesteela, Skarmory, and Corviknight who are immune to Diggersby's Ground-type moves and easily soak its Return. Last but not least, Quick Attack is a form of priority that can dispose of frailer Pokemon like Greninja and Tapu Koko once they're weakened enough. Maximum investments in Attack and Speed alongside an Adamant nature and Huge Power are necessary for Diggersby to become as threatening as possible while outspeeding the majority of defensive Pokemon. The leftover EVs are put in Special Defense for Download users like Porygon2 to get an Attack boost instead.
Choice Band Diggersby is a viable choice on teams that run another Z-Move user or prefer its ability to immediately blast through most walls rather than the freedom to change between moves. Hence, Z-Conversion Porygon-Z is an excellent offensive teammate for Diggersby because it has the power to blast through Pokemon Diggersby can't defeat as easily, such as Slowbro, Celesteela, and Galarian Corsola. In return, Diggersby's massive offenses allows it to OHKO special walls Porygon-Z cannot touch, like Tyranitar and Alolan Muk. Blissey is a stellar partner; it absorbs troublesome status aliments with its Natural Cure, provides crucial Stealth Rock support, and can bring Diggersby safely into the field via Teleport. With its Choice Scarf set, Ditto is able to revenge kill faster Pokemon that KO Diggersby, like Nidoking and Garchomp. In case of a misprediction, it may also serve as a safe switchin versus walls such as Celesteela and Mandibuzz. Mega Lopunny's high Speed stat and powerful coverage also allows it to beat offensive threats to Diggersby, like Hydreigon and Dragonite. Particularly, its wallbreaking set is very good alongside Diggersby because it heavily weakens the defensive cores that this Diggersby set needs accurate predictions to deal with otherwise, such as Steel's Immunity Core or Dark's backbone of Mega Sableye + Mandibuzz + Tyranitar. Defensive Staraptor comfortably takes the physical Fighting- and Grass-type attacks directed at Diggersby from users like Heracross and Tapu Bulu. It can also remove crippling Spikes and Toxic Spikes for Diggersby, and help getting it unscathed into battle with its U-turn. Similarly, Porygon2 shrugs off most neutral attacks aimed at Diggersby due to its gigantic bulk, and is able to reliably pivot to it by using Teleport. With its Hurricane + Heat Wave coverage, Mega Pidgeot helps pressure Grass-, Steel-, and Fighting-types like Rillaboom, Melmetal, and Kommo-o for Diggersby. On more offensive Normal teams, Smeargle's access to Sticky Web is greatly appreciated so Diggersby can outrun and nuke a wider range of threats, such as Suicune and Urshifu-S.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance (Normal)
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Return
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Normalium Z
ability: Huge Power
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Swords Dance boosts Diggersby's power to monstrous levels, making it able to nail walls like Toxapex and Hippowdon with its attacks. Return is Diggersby's most reliable STAB move, dealing sizable damage against everything that doesn't resist it after a Swords Dance boost. With Normalium Z, Return turns into a one-time use 160 BP Breakneck Blitz that defeats offensive Pokemon like Hydreigon while unboosted and one-shots physical walls like Mega Venusaur and Mandibuzz at +2. Earthquake complements Return by heavily damaging the Rock-, Steel-, and Ghost-types that shrug Return with ease, such as Tyranitar, Heatran, and Mega Sableye. It also hits common Fire-, Electric-, and Poison-types like Torkoal, Magnezone, and Toxapex super effectively. Quick Attack rounds off the set as a revenge killing tool that picks off faster threats such as Greninja and Alolan Raichu. After a Swords Dance boost, it enables Diggersby to sweep weakened teams late-game. The Attack and Speed EVs alongside a Jolly nature are primordial for Diggersby to be as powerful and as fast as possible. A Jolly nature is preferred for this set, letting Diggersby outrun offensive Heatran and Adamant Dragonite; however, if the extra speed isn't a need, Adamant can be used instead for more firepower overall. The remaining 4 EVs are poured into Special Defense so Download Porygon2 does not get a Special Attack boost from Diggersby.
Diggersby's wallbreaking capabilities are greatly appreciated by balanced Normal teams, since they tend to struggle against bulkier Pokemon it beats, like Toxapex, Mega Sableye, and Mandibuzz. Blissey is a great partner for Diggersby, as it provides Stealth Rock support, absorbs status thanks to its Natural Cure, and can safely bring it into the field by using Teleport. In return, Diggersby beats annoying Pokemon to Blissey such as Alolan Muk and Aegislash. All-Out Attacker Mega Lopunny is Diggersby's best offensive teammate, outpacing and beating threats such as Kyurem, Hydreigon, and Dragonite that outspeed and can OHKO Diggersby while being able to pivot into it via U-turn. Conversely, Diggersby deals with some of the walls that stop Mega Lopunny cold, like physically defensive Hippowdon and Mega Venusaur, therefore forming a formidable offensive core with it. Choice Scarf Ditto can revenge kill faster Pokemon like Zeraora and Gengar that threaten Diggersby. It also serves as a fallback versus walls Diggersby cannot easily bypass, such as Celesteela and Mega Slowbro. Defensive Staraptor switches into physical Grass- and Fighting-type attacks that are aimed at Diggersby from the likes of Terrakion and Rillaboom. Aside from that, it preserves Diggersby's durability by removing entry hazards from the field and is able to get Diggersby in comfortably with its U-turn. Porygon2's sheer bulk allows it to switch into most assaults directed at Diggersby, most notably priority moves like Mamoswine's Ice Shard or Infernape's Mach Punch. It shrugs them off with relative ease and can pivot back to Diggersby with Teleport. Mega Pidgeot's powerful Hurricane + Heat Wave coverage allows it to defeat offensive threats like Keldeo and Bisharp while severely damaging physical walls like Gastrodon and Ferrothorn, thus taking pressure off of Diggersby.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Normal
--------
Stone Edge over Return with Rockium Z and an Adamant nature is an option on the Swords Dance set that is able to lure in and beat the three hard checks to it in Celesteela, Skarmory, and Corviknight with a +2 Continental Crush after Stealth Rock. After a boost, it also retains most of Breakneck Blitz's kills against physically defensive Pokemon, and can deal with bulky Flying-types like Pelipper, Mandibuzz, and Staraptor without wasting the Z-Move. However, Return and Breakneck Blitz's immediate power against frailer, offensive targets is usually favored as it allows Diggersby to be more threatening right off the bat. Mega Kick can be used on either set over Return; on the Swords Dance set, the increased power of Breakneck Blitz OHKOes Mega Slowbro as well as Porygon2 at +2, and on the Choice Band set, Mega Kick is able to 2HKO all neutral targets in the metagame. Nonetheless, the poor accuracy is a big letdown for what should be Diggersby's most spammable move, and Return is largely just as effective.
Checks and Counters
===================
Normal
--------
**Status**: Status aliments heavily compromise Diggersby's effectiveness. Burns strip its Attack stat, making it borderline useless as a wallbreaker, while Toxic poison wears it down extremely fast, making it easier to revenge kill.
**Ground-immune Pokemon**: Pokemon immune to Ground-type attacks like Landorus, Rotom-W, and Crobat toughen up Diggersby's wallbreaking duties against their respective types as they force it to predict around, especially if it's running Choice Band.
**Physical Walls**: Although Diggersby's insane power lets it get past most physical walls, extremely bulky ones like Mega Slowbro, Porygon2, and Avalugg aren't 2HKOed by any move on its Choice Band set, can shrug even a +2 Breakneck Blitz, and are able to retaliate with their super effective attacks. Similarly, the likes of Skarmory, Celesteela, and Corviknight are able to comfortably wall most of Diggersby's attacks, bar Fire Punch from its Choice Band set or the rare Swords Dance-boosted Continental Crush, and damage it back with Body Press or Heavy Slam.
**Faster Pokemon**: Revenge killers like Zeraora and Greninja outspeed and easily take down Diggersby with their super effective attacks due to its relative frailty. They do need to be wary of Quick Attack should they be weakened enough, though.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Mateeus, 321991]]
- Normal analysis by: [[Mateeus, 321991]]
- Quality checked by: [[Maple, 473171], [maroon, 305839]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]
name: Choice Band (Normal)
move 1: Return
move 2: Earthquake / High Horsepower
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Choice Band
ability: Huge Power
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
With a Choice Band attached, Diggersby's already great power rises to astronomical levels, making it capable to heavily dent most of the metagame right off the bat. Return is Diggersby's most reliable weapon, which, thanks to its power, 2HKOes everything that doesn't resist or is immune to it at least, bar very sturdy physical walls like Avalugg and Mega Slowbro. Earthquake is Diggersby's best Ground-type STAB move, denting the Rock-, Steel-, and Ghost-types that resist or are immune to Return like Tyranitar, Melmetal, and Galarian Corsola. Alternatively, High Horsepower scores the same significant KOes while being unaffected by the power drop from Grassy Terrain; because of that, it can 2HKO both Rillaboom and Tapu Bulu, meaning Diggersby gets to be more effective against Grass and Fairy. However, it isn't perfectly accurate, and makes Diggersby vulnerable to poisoning from Toxapex's Baneful Bunker and the Attack drop from Aegislash's King's Shield. Fire Punch OHKOes Ferrothorn and Mega Scizor, and deals major damage to the likes of Celesteela, Skarmory, and Corviknight who are immune to Diggersby's Ground-type moves and easily soak its Return. Last but not least, Quick Attack is a form of priority that can dispose of frailer Pokemon like Greninja and Tapu Koko once they're weakened enough. Maximum investments in Attack and Speed alongside an Adamant nature and Huge Power are necessary for Diggersby to become as threatening as possible while outspeeding the majority of defensive Pokemon. The leftover EVs are put in Special Defense for Download users like Porygon2 to get an Attack boost instead.
Choice Band Diggersby is a viable choice on teams that run another Z-Move user or prefer its ability to immediately blast through most walls rather than the freedom to change between moves. Hence, Z-Conversion Porygon-Z is an excellent offensive teammate for Diggersby because it has the power to blast through Pokemon Diggersby can't defeat as easily, such as Slowbro, Celesteela, and Galarian Corsola. In return, Diggersby's massive offenses allows it to OHKO special walls Porygon-Z cannot touch, like Tyranitar and Alolan Muk. Blissey is a stellar partner; it absorbs troublesome status aliments with its Natural Cure, provides crucial Stealth Rock support, and can bring Diggersby safely into the field via Teleport. With its Choice Scarf set, Ditto is able to revenge kill faster Pokemon that KO Diggersby, like Nidoking and Garchomp. In case of a misprediction, it may also serve as a safe switchin versus walls such as Celesteela and Mandibuzz. Mega Lopunny's high Speed stat and powerful coverage also allows it to beat offensive threats to Diggersby, like Hydreigon and Dragonite. Particularly, its wallbreaking set is very good alongside Diggersby because it heavily weakens the defensive cores that this Diggersby set needs accurate predictions to deal with otherwise, such as Steel's Immunity Core or Dark's backbone of Mega Sableye + Mandibuzz + Tyranitar. Defensive Staraptor comfortably takes the physical Fighting- and Grass-type attacks directed at Diggersby from users like Heracross and Tapu Bulu. It can also remove crippling Spikes and Toxic Spikes for Diggersby, and help getting it unscathed into battle with its U-turn. Similarly, Porygon2 shrugs off most neutral attacks aimed at Diggersby due to its gigantic bulk, and is able to reliably pivot to it by using Teleport. With its Hurricane + Heat Wave coverage, Mega Pidgeot helps pressure Grass-, Steel-, and Fighting-types like Rillaboom, Melmetal, and Kommo-o for Diggersby. On more offensive Normal teams, Smeargle's access to Sticky Web is greatly appreciated so Diggersby can outrun and nuke a wider range of threats, such as Suicune and Urshifu-S.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance (Normal)
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Return
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Normalium Z
ability: Huge Power
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Swords Dance boosts Diggersby's power to monstrous levels, making it able to nail walls like Toxapex and Hippowdon with its attacks. Return is Diggersby's most reliable STAB move, dealing sizable damage against everything that doesn't resist it after a Swords Dance boost. With Normalium Z, Return turns into a one-time use 160 BP Breakneck Blitz that defeats offensive Pokemon like Hydreigon while unboosted and one-shots physical walls like Mega Venusaur and Mandibuzz at +2. Earthquake complements Return by heavily damaging the Rock-, Steel-, and Ghost-types that shrug Return with ease, such as Tyranitar, Heatran, and Mega Sableye. It also hits common Fire-, Electric-, and Poison-types like Torkoal, Magnezone, and Toxapex super effectively. Quick Attack rounds off the set as a revenge killing tool that picks off faster threats such as Greninja and Alolan Raichu. After a Swords Dance boost, it enables Diggersby to sweep weakened teams late-game. The Attack and Speed EVs alongside a Jolly nature are primordial for Diggersby to be as powerful and as fast as possible. A Jolly nature is preferred for this set, letting Diggersby outrun offensive Heatran and Adamant Dragonite; however, if the extra speed isn't a need, Adamant can be used instead for more firepower overall. The remaining 4 EVs are poured into Special Defense so Download Porygon2 does not get a Special Attack boost from Diggersby.
Diggersby's wallbreaking capabilities are greatly appreciated by balanced Normal teams, since they tend to struggle against bulkier Pokemon it beats, like Toxapex, Mega Sableye, and Mandibuzz. Blissey is a great partner for Diggersby, as it provides Stealth Rock support, absorbs status thanks to its Natural Cure, and can safely bring it into the field by using Teleport. In return, Diggersby beats annoying Pokemon to Blissey such as Alolan Muk and Aegislash. All-Out Attacker Mega Lopunny is Diggersby's best offensive teammate, outpacing and beating threats such as Kyurem, Hydreigon, and Dragonite that outspeed and can OHKO Diggersby while being able to pivot into it via U-turn. Conversely, Diggersby deals with some of the walls that stop Mega Lopunny cold, like physically defensive Hippowdon and Mega Venusaur, therefore forming a formidable offensive core with it. Choice Scarf Ditto can revenge kill faster Pokemon like Zeraora and Gengar that threaten Diggersby. It also serves as a fallback versus walls Diggersby cannot easily bypass, such as Celesteela and Mega Slowbro. Defensive Staraptor switches into physical Grass- and Fighting-type attacks that are aimed at Diggersby from the likes of Terrakion and Rillaboom. Aside from that, it preserves Diggersby's durability by removing entry hazards from the field and is able to get Diggersby in comfortably with its U-turn. Porygon2's sheer bulk allows it to switch into most assaults directed at Diggersby, most notably priority moves like Mamoswine's Ice Shard or Infernape's Mach Punch. It shrugs them off with relative ease and can pivot back to Diggersby with Teleport. Mega Pidgeot's powerful Hurricane + Heat Wave coverage allows it to defeat offensive threats like Keldeo and Bisharp while severely damaging physical walls like Gastrodon and Ferrothorn, thus taking pressure off of Diggersby.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Normal
--------
Stone Edge over Return with Rockium Z and an Adamant nature is an option on the Swords Dance set that is able to lure in and beat the three hard checks to it in Celesteela, Skarmory, and Corviknight with a +2 Continental Crush after Stealth Rock. After a boost, it also retains most of Breakneck Blitz's kills against physically defensive Pokemon, and can deal with bulky Flying-types like Pelipper, Mandibuzz, and Staraptor without wasting the Z-Move. However, Return and Breakneck Blitz's immediate power against frailer, offensive targets is usually favored as it allows Diggersby to be more threatening right off the bat. Mega Kick can be used on either set over Return; on the Swords Dance set, the increased power of Breakneck Blitz OHKOes Mega Slowbro as well as Porygon2 at +2, and on the Choice Band set, Mega Kick is able to 2HKO all neutral targets in the metagame. Nonetheless, the poor accuracy is a big letdown for what should be Diggersby's most spammable move, and Return is largely just as effective.
Checks and Counters
===================
Normal
--------
**Status**: Status aliments heavily compromise Diggersby's effectiveness. Burns strip its Attack stat, making it borderline useless as a wallbreaker, while Toxic poison wears it down extremely fast, making it easier to revenge kill.
**Ground-immune Pokemon**: Pokemon immune to Ground-type attacks like Landorus, Rotom-W, and Crobat toughen up Diggersby's wallbreaking duties against their respective types as they force it to predict around, especially if it's running Choice Band.
**Physical Walls**: Although Diggersby's insane power lets it get past most physical walls, extremely bulky ones like Mega Slowbro, Porygon2, and Avalugg aren't 2HKOed by any move on its Choice Band set, can shrug even a +2 Breakneck Blitz, and are able to retaliate with their super effective attacks. Similarly, the likes of Skarmory, Celesteela, and Corviknight are able to comfortably wall most of Diggersby's attacks, bar Fire Punch from its Choice Band set or the rare Swords Dance-boosted Continental Crush, and damage it back with Body Press or Heavy Slam.
**Faster Pokemon**: Revenge killers like Zeraora and Greninja outspeed and easily take down Diggersby with their super effective attacks due to its relative frailty. They do need to be wary of Quick Attack should they be weakened enough, though.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Mateeus, 321991]]
- Normal analysis by: [[Mateeus, 321991]]
- Quality checked by: [[Maple, 473171], [maroon, 305839]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]
Last edited:
