DPP Jirachi (Full Revamp)

cim

happiness is such hard work
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Seven Deadly Sins and I will be taking care of this revamp.

Basically, Jirachi changed a lot in Platinum, gaining Trick and stuff, and having a new really popular Scarf set. While we were here though we thought we'd touch up the rest of the analysis.

  • Sub / Calm Mind works well with Flash Cannon / HP Ground as a choice in attacks to ward off Heatran / Mamoswine / Tyranitar.
  • Adding Iron Head Scarf Lead.
  • Merging generic support set and Body Slammin' Counter into one set as Body Slam is awesome.
  • Minor changes to the Rain Dance set
  • Adding a Dual Screen set.
  • Touching up the Choice Sets

So that I remember, I'm writing the Sub / CM set, Rain Dance, Dual Screen, Support, EVs, and Other Options, and SDS is doing the other stuff. Analysis will be on next post
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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[SET]
name: Substitute + Calm Mind Sweeper
move1: Substitute
move2: Calm Mind
move3: Flash Cannon / Psychic
move4: Thunderbolt
item: Leftovers
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 80 SpA / 176 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Easily Jirachi's most potentially dangerous set, the combination of a 101 HP Substitute and Calm Mind is lethal to almost anything that tries to stall this Jirachi out. While Jirachi has lost the niche of being able to beat Blissey one-on-one with this set due to the tendency of Blissey to run more Special Defense EVs as well as the increased use of Seismic Toss, it can still effortlessly beat 252/252 Bold variants or Seismic Toss-less variants and pose a major threat to many teams.</p>

<p>While Psychic has been the preferred choice for Calm Mind Jirachi in the past, Flash Cannon is now more effective for a number of reasons. First, Flash Cannon + Thunderbolt boasts excellent neutral coverage, being resisted only by Swampert, Gastrodon, and Electric-types, the latter of which are beaten due to their propensity to use Special attacks that will not break boosted Substitutes. Magnezone is especially notable, as Specs variants are the only ones that can reliably beat Jirachi, so you can set up on it repeatedly until you can beat it with Thunderbolt. Second, Latias resists the entirety of the old set, while Flash Cannon allows you to set up and eventually beat any Latias variant. Third, Flash Cannon provides reliable power with which to batter Celebi, arguably the best counter to CM Jirachi variants with Perish Song. Finally, access to reliable Steel-type STAB means that Tyranitar is no longer such an end-all be-all threat, and indeed, Jirachi can wear down and eventually beat the Tyranitar that terrorizes Psychic-based sets. Psychic can also be used as your main STAB, as it has more neutral power against some notable targets, such as Kingdra, Lucario, and some Electric-types, as well as giving you the ability to hit Swampert effectively. It also allows you to eliminate the more sturdy fighting-types such as Machamp and Heracross as well as immediately finish off Infernape if you're behind a Substitute.</p>

<p>Thunderbolt is the best second attack for coverage, as it boasts excellent neutral coverage with both STAB attacks. However, if you're itching for coverage, there are other options that have the potential to work well. If you're using Flash Cannon, HP Ground works well in tandem to eliminate opponents such as Heatran and Magnezone, but leaves you open to potent threats such as Gyarados, Skarmory, and Bronzong. If you use Psychic, you have the option of using Signal Beam in tandem with it to hit notable threats such as Celebi, Latias, and Tyranitar, though 404/236 variants of Tyranitar take 23% max from unboosted Signal Beam and 35% from +1, so you won't be beating Tyranitar with Signal Beam Jirachi any time soon. However, you sacrifice the ability to hit Skarmory, Heatran, and other potent counters, so it's a choice of who you think your team is more able to beat. Note that with either coverage move, you lose the ability to hit Skarmory, which largely ruins Jirachi's ability to fulfill its role as best stall-breaker in the metagame.</p>

<p>One generally plays Jirachi in the mid to late stages of battle, sending him in on his plethora of resistances or on attacks from less offensively apt Pokémon and Substituting on the switch to its counter. If the opponent switches to something like Heatran, Mamoswine, or Tyranitar that are too threatening to Calm Mind against, Jirachi should dent them with an attack as the threat breaks the Substitute, then come back in later when they are sufficiently weakened or dead. Mamoswine will go down on the second switch-in, while once Tyranitar is at roughly 50% health Jirachi can Calm Mind as the Substitute is broken and pick it off with Flash Cannon. Ideally, though, your opponent will send in Blissey, a bulky Water, or a general Special attacker. Against most special attackers, you can simply Calm Mind until their attacks fail to break your substitutes. At this point you can simply alternate Sub and Calm Mind until you have enough boosts to sweep your opponent's team. Leftovers allows Jirachi to make plenty of Substitutes, as each Substitute loses Jirachi a net of 12.5% HP against an opponent that cannot break it.</p>

<p>Wish is a viable alternative to Substitute for a number of reasons, most notably the ability to stall Seismic Toss Blissey infinitely as well as other Special Attackers. However, Wish variants suffer from a number of crippling issues that make it nearly unusable. The first is the tendency of Blissey to carry Thunder Wave, which means that once it realizes you don't have Substitute, it'll just cripple you and go to something else that can easily kill you. Substitute also ensures that Jirachi wins Calm Mind wars by protecting against Critical Hits, something that Wish cannot do. Finally, Substitute allows Jirachi to scout and hammer away at opponents that threaten it, while Wish is helpless as soon as a counter comes in.</p>

<p>The given EVs allow Jirachi to hit 308 Speed, outpacing Adamant Salamence and Jolly Lucario. This is to stop Jirachi from being potentially revenge killed with Earthquakes or Close Combats when sufficiently weakened. 252 HP EVs (and a 31 HP IV if used in game) is absolutely <i>required</i> on Substitute Jirachi in order to set up on Seismic Toss Blissey. The remaining 80 EVs are put into Special Attack. Alternately, one can drop Jirachi's Speed to 280 or 244 and boost his Defense stat instead, allowing Jirachi to set up on weaker physical attackers like Bronzong.</p>

[SET]
name: Offensive Calm Mind
move1: Calm Mind
move2: Psychic
move3: Thunderbolt / Grass Knot
move4: Signal Beam / Hidden Power Fire
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
nature: Timid
evs: 80 HP / 252 SpA / 176 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Where the last set was focused on setting up to a massive degree before sweeping unhindered by foes such as Blissey, this set concentrates more on getting one or two Calm Mind boosts before blasting apart anything in its path with its great type coverage. Psychic serves as main STAB, and is the most powerful attack that Jirachi can boast. The second move is for primary coverage- Thunderbolt takes out bulky water-types such as Suicune and Milotic as well as some steel-types such as Skarmory that are weak to Electric, as well as boasting excellent neutral coverage. Grass Knot also covers bulky Water-types, but also hits Swampert. It also has the especially notable distinction of hitting Tyranitar super-effectively, a Pokemon that can prove troublesome for Jirachi to defeat.</p>

<p>The final attack is for coverage. Hidden Power Fire is best used with Grass Knot, and allows Jirachi to hit Pokemon such as Celebi, Metagross, Scizor, and especially Magnezone which can pose a threat to Jirachi, or at least wall it. If Thunderbolt is your chosen move, then Signal Beam also makes an excellent alternative, as it strikes Tyranitar and Celebi super-effectively. Hidden Power Ground or Fighting are also reasonable alternatives for hitting Heatran, which plagues Jirachi, but being unable to hit Celebi effectively is often more damaging than a weakness to Heatran.</p>

<p>Leftovers gives more survivability and can let this Jirachi get more Calm Minds, but Life Orb can provide much needed power, which reduces Jirachi's need to get as many Calm Minds.</p>

[SET]
name: Anti-Lead
move1: Iron Head
move2: Trick
move3: Stealth Rock
move4: U-turn
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Jolly
evs: 80 HP / 252 Atk / 176 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With the advent of suicide leads such as Azelf and Aerodactyl, this Jirachi can find itself hampering many of the most popular leads in the current metagame. The most common suicide leads, Azelf and Aerodactyl, are both cleanly 2HKOed by Iron Head, and with Jirachi's Serene Grace booting Iron Head's flinch rate, this means that 60% of the time these leads won't have the chance to lay down their Stealth Rock, and the remainder of the time, they won't be able to do anything otherwise such as attack, lay down a screen, or explode. Against slower leads such as Tyranitar, Hippowdon, and Bronzong, Trick will significantly reduce their usefulness by hampering them with a Choice Scarf that is useless to them. After Tricking the scarf, or later in the game, Jirachi is free to lay down Stealth Rock of its own. U-Turn is excellent as a last move to scout or to escape from Magnezone should the need arise.</p>

[SET]
name: Physical Choice
move1: Iron Head
move2: Fire Punch/Zen Headbutt
move3: Thunderpunch/Zen Headbutt
move4: U-turn
item: Choice Scarf/Choice Band
nature: Jolly
evs: 80 HP / 252 Atk / 176 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Diamond/Pearl granted Jirachi a great boon in the form of a massively improved physical movepool to match its Base 100 attack stat. Iron Head is the primary move on the set, as it boasts a 60% chance to flinch, and is the primary draw of this set. There are three primary moves for the next two moveslots. Fire Punch and Thunderpunch are available to hit Steel-types and Water-types respectively, two main resistors of Iron Head. Alternately, Zen Headbutt provides secondary STAB, a 40% chance of Flinch, and a way of dealing with bulky versions of Machamp and Hariyama. Finally, U-Turn is fantastic as always as a primary scouting move, allowing you to scout for your opponent's Jirachi counter and possibly avoid being trapped by Magnezone.</p>

<p>Physical Jirachi is a phenomenal Pokemon to beat many of the primary threats in the current metagame. Iron Head threatens Tyranitar even after a Dragon Dance, and its 60% flinch chance makes it a huge threat to anything that doesn't resist it. Fire Punch deals with Scizor handily, as well as 2HKOing Lucario and dealing plenty of damage to Metagross. Thunderpunch takes out Gyarados, and with a Choice Scarf, Jirachi outspeeds even Jolly +1 Gyarados. Ice Punch, while not listed on the set due to not providing effective coverage with Jirachi's main STABs, is still a possibility for dealing with once Dragon Danced Salamence as well as offensive variants of Gliscor. It also outspeeds the standard Adamant Choice Scarf Flygon and Dragon Dancing Dragonite.</p>

<p>Choice Scarf is the preferred item, as Iron Head's flinch requires you to be faster than your opponent, but Choice Band can provide a boost in power, as Jirachi's base 100 attack is rather lacking without a boost.</p>

[SET]
name: Special Choice
move1: Psychic
move2: Thunderbolt
move3: Grass Knot
move4: Hidden Power Ground / Hidden Power Ice / Trick
item: Choice Specs / Choice Scarf
nature: Timid
evs: 80 HP / 252 SpA / 176 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Jirachi is now well known for its physical choice sets, Jirachi still has the stats and fantastic movepool to back up a special choice set. Choice Specs is the preferred item, as the physical set is more useful for Scarf due to its impeccable coverage, Serene Grace Iron Head, and fast U-turn. However, the higher base power of Jirachi's special attacks makes it a fine choice for a fast revenge killer.</p>

<p>Psychic provides basic STAB, and is the strongest attack that Jirachi is capable of using. After that, everything else is for coverage. Thunderbolt is used to hit bulky water-types as well as the very threatening Gyarados. Grass Knot is very useful for covering Swampert, Tyranitar, Hippowdon, and various other threats that can switch in on the first two attacks. The final attack is filler, and is meant to cover various threats. Hidden Power Ground is the best attack that Jirachi can muster against Heatran, while Hidden Power Ice can hit Celebi, which resists this Jirachi's entire moveset, as well as Salamence and other dragons. Trick, on the other hand, is very efficient for crippling common switchins to this set, such as Celebi, Bronzong, and most importantly Blissey, none of which appreciate a Choice Scarf or Specs.</p>

[SET]
name: Wish Support
move 1: Wish
move 2: U-turn
move 3: Body Slam / Thunder Wave / Thunder
move 4: Iron Head / Ice Punch
item: Leftovers
nature: Impish
evs: 240 HP / 160 Def / 76 SpD / 32 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>A general supporting tank Jirachi, this set is tailored to use Jirachi's resistances and great defenses to pass Wishes around to other members of one's team. The general strategy is to Wish, then U-turn to scout out a threat (or take a hit from a faster one) while healing something else on the team. If the opponent is faster and will KO Jirachi, such as Mamoswine, one should opt to switch rather than use U-turn. Jirachi is best used to nurse Pokémon that resist his Fire and Ground weaknesses back to health, such as Salamence and Gyarados.</p>

<p>The other moves on this set allow Jirachi to provide even more support while beating certain threats. Body Slam is an awesome move on Jirachi, dealing some damage with a 60% chance of paralyzing anything but Ghost-types. This is especially annoying if you paralyze something like Mamoswine or Flygon, whom normally don't have to worry about losing their Speed. Thunder Wave is still available if you want to guarantee paralysis, but Body Slam is usually better. Thunder is an even lesser option that only paralyzes non-Ground types 42% of the time (factoring in accuracy), but it is a nasty surprise for Skarmory, easily 2HKOing it.</p>

<p>The fourth slot gives this Jirachi a little offensive power. Iron Head provides basic STAB, as well as allowing for effective Paraflinch after a successful Paralysis from the third move. On the other hand, Ice Punch can deal massive damage to Salamence. Jirachi always survives two Adamant +1 LO Outrages, even with SR, and Ice Punch can allow Jirachi to deal with Salamence directly, without relying on Wish or Paralysis.</p>

<p>240 HP EVs hits 401, allowing Jirachi optimal Leftovers recovery as well as granting him the ability to take 5 consecutive Seismic Tosses. 32 Speed EVs beats Jolly Tyranitar and Timid Magnezone, allowing this Jirachi to escape Specs Magnezone's clutches unharmed. The rest of the EVs are split between the defenses, with enough physical defense to not be 2HKOed by Adamant Salamence's Life Orb Outrage after a Dragon Dance. </p>


[SET]
name: Dual Screen
move 1: Light Screen
move 2: Reflect
move 3: U-turn
move 4: Wish
item: Light Clay
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 100 Def / 156 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Jirachi is a fantastic user of the Dual Screen strategy. Bring in Jirachi during the middle of the game on something that it can force out, such as a CB Tyranitar that used Stone Edge. The process from there, depending on your team, is very linear. It is recommended you Light Screen first, as most Pokemon that threaten Jirachi attack from the Special side of the spectrum. Use Reflect next, and U-turn to a Baton Passer such as Celebi or Gliscor, or a set up sweeper such as Dragon Dance Tyranitar. Thanks to Light Clay boosting the length of both Reflect and Light Screen to 8 turns instead of 5, your set up, and your attempted sweep, should be much easier to accomplish.</p>

<p>Jirachi differs from other Dual Screen users because of Wish and U-turn. When used with no Speed EVs, U-turn becomes a great method of insuring that your chosen target comes into the field taking as little damage as possible. Wish completes the set, as it is a great method for Jirachi to support itself or the team.</p>

<p>The given EVs make Choice Scarf Heatran's Flamethrower a 3HKO after Light Screen is up, and also gives good physical bulk after a Reflect as well. No Speed EVs are recommended on this set to get the maximum benefit out of U-turn, and allow Jirachi to be as bulky as possible. While some may feel that more Speed EVs are necessary, remember that Jirachi will often be one link in a chain, and that it is often better to get your Baton Passer or set up sweeper at full health than to have them take a hit that will reduce their chances at getting off a successful sweep.</p>

[SET]
name: Rain Support
move1: Rain Dance
move2: U-turn
move3: Wish
move4: Thunder / Water Pulse
item: Damp Rock
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 80 SpA / 176 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Jirachi is one of the best Rain Dance supporters and transition Pokémon in the game.</p>

<p>The idea is to send in Jirachi on a resistance, then Rain Dance on the switch. Not only does thins nullify common switch-ins like Heatran, this is exactly the kind of support Kabutops or Kingdra may need. From there, use U-turn to scout the opponent. This is Jirachi's main advantage over Bronzong, and if the opponent switches to Tyranitar to change the weather you can just send in Dugtrio and be done with him. </p>

<p>Wish and Thunder are the obvious extra moves on this set. Wish allows Jirachi to support the entire team and possibly even fake a non-Rain set if you're interested in mindgames. Thunder OHKOs Skarmory and has a 60% chance of paralyzing anything, a great way to cripple things like Heatran. Water Pulse is a lesser option in this slot to do damage to Ground-types coming in on Jirachi, but is less useful than Thunder.</p>

[SET]
name: Uberachi
move1: Wish
move2: U-turn
move3: Toxic
move4: Protect
item: Leftovers
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 40 Def / 216 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>A pure utility set, this set takes advantage of Jirachi's natural defensive bulk as well as its excellent typing in Ubers. Steel/Psychic typing means it is neutral to Fighting, Bug, Ghost, Dark, Electric, and Water, while resisting Dragon and Ice. In addition, the ubiquity of Kyogre means that the ever-common rain removes Jirachi's Fire weakness.</p>

<p>Protect is the magic of this set. Toxic/Protect and Wish/Protect are two very effective combinations, as Jirachi can use them in tandem to whittle away at the HP of common Ubers threats, especially those on the special side. For example, Kyogre's Rain-boosted Modest Surf does a meager 52.23% - 61.88% damage, which can easily be stalled out with Wish/Protect and Toxic. Many other threats can also be dealt with in a similar fashion, including Palkia, Darkrai, and special variants of Giratina-O. U-turn serves as scouting as well as a ways of making it easier to pass Jirachi's Wishes.</p>

<p>The EVs listed give excellent resistance against the high-powered special attacks in Ubers, and especially against Dialga and Palkia's tendency to run Fire Blast to cover Steel-types. It also provides protection against Life Orb Rayquaza running Overheat. As a side note, the defensive EVs ensure that Jirachi will always survive an Adamant Rayquaza's Life Orb Earthquake, even with Stealth Rock down, as well as surviving Choice Scarf Garchomp's Earthquake 80% of the time. The high Special Defense and neutrality to Dark also means that this Jirachi can be an excellent counter to any Darkrai not carrying Nasty Plot.</p>

[EVs]
<p>Timid/Jolly nature with 176 Speed EVs reaches 308 Speed, outpacing all Base 100s with a neutral nature as well as Jolly Lucario and Porygon-Z, and is the preferred speed for beating the threats that Jirachi is tailor-made to beat. After that, stick 252 EVs into whichever attacking stat Jirachi is using, and stash the last 80 EVs into HP for survivability. The SubCM set reverses the HP and Attack EVs to craft the ever-important 101 HP subs needed to survive a single Seismic Toss. Rain Support uses the same EVs to provide the most survivability in order to come in and provide Rain as many times as possible. 252 HP/100 Def/156 SpD with a Careful Nature allows the Dual Screen Jirachi to survive a Timid Heatran's Fire Blast 85% of the time, and survive two of them 96% of the time with a Light Screen up. 240 HP / 76 Def / 160 SpD / 32 Spe with Impish on the support set gives considerable defenses on both sides, as well as giving 244 Speed, which outpaces Timid Magnezone and Jolly Tyranitar. Alternately, a 252 HP/80 Def/176 Spe Jolly spread can be used to outspeed Jolly/Timid Lucario and paralyze it so something else can take care of it.</p>

[OTHER OPTIONS]
<p>Jirachi boasts an absolutely phenomenal movepool, and the numerous sets above fail to cover all of Jirachi's usable options. On the offensive side, Doom Desire can be used for an odd mono-attacking set, but is rarely usable outside of gimmick use. Icy Wind can be used to hit and slow down Dragon-types and 2KO them. Charge Beam combines with Serene Grace to provide a 100% chance of boost (90% after accuracy), but struggles to find its way onto a set due to access to Calm Mind and Thunderbolt. Drain Punch provides Fighting-type coverage as well as some small healing for Jirachi, but its low power is rather off-putting. Signal Beam can provide a powerful hit to cover both Celebi and Tyranitar at the same time, but provides little coverage outside of the two of them.</p>

<p>On the defensive/supportive side, Jirachi boasts some interesting possibilities. Cosmic Power boosts both Jirachi's Defense and Special Defense simultaneously, which combines with Jirachi's excellent defensive typing to create an opponent that can be incredibly difficult to break. Safeguard can be pseudo-passed along with Wish to provide coverage against status for other Pokemon. Gravity is an interesting attack that can be used to set up for a sweeper with powerful Ground-type STAB such as Rhyperior, Mamoswine, or Flygon and allow them to beat Skarmory easily without depending on prediction.</p>

[OPINION]

<p>Jirachi was not a bad Pokemon in Advance, but the transition to the latest generation was extremely kind to it. Where it was generally relegated to the role of Calm Mind Sweeper in Advance, a niche often occupied by the powerful Raikou or bulky Suicune, the advent of Choice Scarf, as well as its much improved physical movepool and STAB Flinching moves with Serene Grace, make Jirachi an incredibly versatile Pokemon in the current OU metagame. It can effectively run a ridiculous amount of equally effective sets, from the incredibly efficient Calm Mind sets of Advance, to powerful or speedy Choiced sets hitting from either side of the spectrum, to extremely useful Support sets in the form of Wishpassing, Paralysis support, and Screen Support. Throw in its fantastic Steel/Psychic typing and Jirachi can find itself a niche in almost any part of the metagame, making it a top candidate for any team.</p>

<p>Jirachi also has the distinction of not only being an incredibly effective Calm Mind user, but also being immune to Toxic Spikes and Sandstorm, something that sets it apart from other Calm Mind users such as Suicune and Raikou. Combine that with the ability to produce 101 HP Substitutes, as well as 100/100/100 defenses and 100 base Speed, and Jirachi is a top-notch Calm Minder with the ability to sweep straight through teams if it's given a chance.</p>

[COUNTERS]

<p>It's impossible to find a 100% counter to Jirachi given its ridiculous versatility. That said, each set is entirely counterable, just that each requires a separate set of counters.</p>

<p>The SubCM sets are arguably the most difficult to counter. Even the end-all be-all counter to Special offense, Blissey, is unable to stop Jirachi, given its 101 HP substitutes and Serene Grace for the possibility of Special Defense drops. Perish Song Celebi is undoubtedly the best counter to SubCM Jirachi, given that Perish Song goes through Substitute, forcing Jirachi to switch out or die as Celebi recovers in its face. Celebi also resists the most common moveset of Psychic/Thunderbolt. Barring that, the most efficient counter depends on Jirachi's choice of moves. Psychic-based movesets are mainly countered by Tyranitar, which is immune to Psychic and resists its filler with its excellent Special Defense in Sandstorm. Specs Magnezone can also easily trap and beat Psychic-based sets, though Scarf Magnezone simply doesn't boast enough power, and in fact becomes setup fodder for Jirachi. Flash Cannon/HP Ground sets have an entirely different set of counters. Skarmory can come in and Whirlwind it away. Likewise, Zapdos can come in and do the same. Blissey also boasts a much better chance of beating Flash Cannon sets, though it still has the same problem of being unable to break Jirachi's substitutes in a single turn. </p>

<p>The offensive CM set without Substitute has the potential to be more destructive, but also has its problems. Blissey easily beats this set with its infinite HP and Special Defense. Likewise, Snorlax can come in and threaten Jirachi with either a powerful Fire Punch or paralysis from Body Slam, as well as Earthquake. Tyranitar fails to be OHKOed by any attack from Jirachi, even after a Calm Mind boost, and threatens with a powerful Earthquake. Sets without Thunderbolt can be Whirlwinded away by Skarmory. Without Hidden Power Ground/Fighting, Magnezone also comes in, resists the entire moveset, traps and then kills Jirachi. Perish Song Celebi poses the same threat to this set as to the Substitute set, though it falls easily to Signal Beam.</p>

<p>Choiced sets have a few more notable counters. The Physical Choice set's biggest counter is Magnezone, which resists its entire moveset barring Fire Punch, traps it, and kills it. Bulky Water-types in general are very effective at beating Physical Jirachi variance, but fear switching into Thunderpunch. Swampert takes it one step further by boasting an immunity to Thunderpunch, thus resisting the entire moveset with the exception of Zen Headbutt and U-turn. Hippowdon lacks the Fire and Steel resists, but its gargantuan physical defense and access to reliable healing lets it shrug off Jirachi's blows easily. Skarmory resists Iron Head, Zen Headbutt, and U-turn, and can easily heal off damage, though swapping into Banded Fire Punch and Thunderpunch can be hazardous. Tyranitar once again boasts excellent physical durability and immunity to Zen Headbutt, though it fears Iron Head and U-Turn. Heatran resists everything Jirachi can throw at it besides a neutral Thunderpunch, and threatens with STAB Fire Blast. Metagross also boasts high physical durability, though it fears Fire Punch. Gyarados also resists Fire Punch, Iron Head, and U-turn, but fears Thunderpunch.</p>

<p>Special Choice sets are different to counter. Once again, Magnezone comes in, resists most of the set, traps Jirachi, and kills it with Thunderbolt. Blissey once again acts as a one-size-fits-all counter to Special attackers, though it risks being disabled by Trick. Sets not carrying Hidden Power Ice/Fire or Signal Beam find themselves walled by Celebi. Heatran resists Jirachi's STAB and threatens back with its own STAB Fire Blast. Metagross resists Psychic, Grass Knot, and Hidden Power Ice, and only fears Hidden Power Ground and possibly Thunderbolt. Tyranitar is immune to Psychic and isn't especially scared of anything other than Grass Knot or possibly Trick.</p>
 
I went in and corrected some of the grammar that I saw off-hand. I'll go more in-depth tomorrow. One thing that bothered me was that the write-up for the Anti-Lead seems rather rushed. If you could elaborate a little, that would be great.
 
I guess I'm a little shocked that Psychic / Thunderbolt isn't the main option on SubCalm Mind? Flash Cannon / HP Gorund seems too overspecialized. It gives inferior type coverage and the main STAB is... 11% weaker, and the secondary attack is a Hidden Power... Yes, Flash Cannon and HP Ground take care of Magnezone, Heatran, and Tyranitar... but so does a Dugtrio. Magnezone loses to 1 v. 1 to Jirachi anyway, and you can try your luck with Thunderbolt's 20% chance of paralyzing that annoying Scarf Heatran before switching out. Mamoswine doesn't even deserve a mention since Jirachi is faster and has a 100% chance to 2HKO with unboosted Psychic with Stealth Rock. I don't think the commonality of Tyranitar, Heatran and Magnezone are enough to completely change a set that has been such a dominant staple for so long. With 80 SpA, Jirachi is just missing the 2HKO on Blissey as it is with Psychic (40-47% at +6) and you want to make it weaker (35-41% with Flash Cannon)?? Psychic + Thunderbolt has both superior coverage and power, regardless of what do you do to your "counters."
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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I don't see why I should be forced to carry a Dugtrio when I can simply use this set and not be countered by these things. The set listed here is, simply put, the best stand-alone set that Jirachi can run, as it handles Magnezone, Heatran, and Tyranitar handily, something the original set could never do, and as far as I'm concerned less counters is always better than more counters. Also, if you run the calculations, Specs Magnezone (which you have long touted as the best Magnezone build) will always break Jirachi's substitutes with Thunderbolt until Jirachi is +3, at which point it still has a 50% chance to break the Substitute. I don't know about you, but I'm totally cool with not losing my Jirachi every time Specs Magnezone shows up on the scene.

The end result is that if you really want to support your Jirachi with Dugtrio (and hope that Magnezone doesn't come in and rape you up and down) you can use Psychic/Thunderbolt. If you'd rather have a Jirachi that supports itself and can take on the majority of threats in the metagame except foes that can PHaze it out, use Flash Cannon/HP Ground.

And about Blissey: You simply will not beat Blissey without a Special Defense drop from your primary STAB, and after a Special Defense drop, both Flash Cannon and Psychic 2KO Blissey.
 
I don't see why I should be forced to carry a Dugtrio when I can simply use this set and not be countered by these things.
That set doesn't "require" you to carry anything. Everyone knows that Psychic / T-Bolt / Sub / CM Jirachi is one of the most reliable stand-alone sweepers in the game as it is. Flash Cannon / HP Ground opens Jirachi up to a myriad of more common threats that I would rather not have to switch out on, namely Gyarados / Zapdos / Rotom / Suicune / Skarmory / should I keep going because there are plenty more? Hell, the main reason why Jirachi is so deadly is because the two most common phazers, Skarm and Suicune, couldn't stay alive long enough to phaze it!
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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Skarmory and Suicune are far less common as PHazers in the current metagame, and of the Pokemon you listed, only Gyarados actually poses a threat to you, and would never even dream of coming in on a Calm Mind Jirachi. Non-physical threats will simply never beat a Calm Mind Jirachi except by PHazing it, and even then, they need to take damage on the way out and risk something else much more threatening to them come in.

EDIT: Only 24% of Suicune carry Roar, and the other 76% of them are pure setup fodder. If Suicune has less Calm Minds than you, its Surfs can never break your Substitutes, meaning you can CM Sub against it all day long and it will never beat you. You, on the other hand, have Special Defense drops and Critical Hits on your side, something Suicune cannot boast. You are also faster than it, which is pretty neat, and you 3HKO it, meaning Rest can't save it.
 
?????? Skarmory always runs Whirlwind?

SDS, CM Jirachi has a reputation for being able to single handedly dismantle stall teams. But letting it be walled by Skarmory is a serious, serious issue.

There are plenty of other ways to deal with Heatran and Tyranitar (magnezone really isn't that much of a threat, because Specs Magnezone still isn't used very much). One of the most common tactics not to long ago was Toxic Spikes + Calm Minder, which means Tyranitar isn't walling Jirachi anyway. Sacrificing power and coverage to independently remove counters is something we don't normally see standard sets that work so well. For that reason, you don't see Stone Edge / Ice Punch / Bullet Punch / Swords Dance Lucarios, or Quick Attack / Return / Night Slash Scizors...


EDIT:
Only 24% of Suicune carry Roar, and the other 76% of them are pure setup fodder. If Suicune has less Calm Minds than you, its Surfs can never break your Substitutes, meaning you can CM Sub against it all day long and it will never beat you. You, on the other hand, have Special Defense drops and Critical Hits on your side, something Suicune cannot boast. You are also faster than it, which is pretty neat, and you 3HKO it, meaning Rest can't save it.
I'm not so sure... back when I used Psychic / Thunderbolt Rachi, I would struggle to win Calm Mind wars against Suicune. I would always win thanks to Thunderbolt, but Suicune took a lot out of him.

Well if you want to look at statistics...

86% of Skarmory are carrying Whirlwind, and 8.8% are carrying Roar, so you lose against 95% of Skarms.

24% of Suicune are carrying Roar, 10% of Suicune are carrying Substitute (good luck breaking Suicunes Substitute with Hidden Power! when he has Surf which is twice as powerful!) 30% are carrying max attack, indicating offensive Suicune. Well, If you are one stage higher than Cune, a Life Orbed Cune is going to always break your substitute, doing a minimum of 26% damage. And again, you have to resort to using Hidden Power. That means your going to lose against about 65% of Suicunes. They are hardly "set-up fodder" as they will outgun you.

Also, less than 10% of Magnezone are specs, so those 90% of other Magnezones won't be beating you anytime soon.

In all seriousness, Flash Cannon / HP Ground is too weak. Again, doesn't have the coverage or firepower that Psychic / Thunderbolt has. Flash Cannon / HP Ground as the main option is promoting lazy team building... you are picking an inferior option just to take out two pokemon, which is the same problem with the whole "lets use HP Fire Magnezone." In ridding yourself of two counters, you've effectively opened up more counters, and will probably be missing out on quite a few once KOs due to your 11% overall drop in power on your main STAB, and the ~25% power drop on your secondary attack (not to mention the 20% paralysis that may just screw over Heatran anywa).
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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Explain to me how Tyranitar fails to wall Jirachi again? Because it can still just repeatedly Earthquake the shit out of you before it dies to Toxic damage.

The sets you listed for Lucario and Scizor aren't used because they are VASTLY less effective than the main sets due to lack of STAB, low base power, etc. The Jirachi set listed not only completely prevents you from being manhandled by Magnezone, Heatran, and Tyranitar, but also provides simply the best stand-alone coverage that Jirachi can get, with a marginal sacrifice of power.

As for Skarmory, being "walled" isn't anywhere near the right term. Skarmory takes 27.84% - 33.23% from a +1 Flash Cannon (which still has the chance of a -1 SDef), and any more than 1 Calm Mind starts threatening Skarmory severely. And to be honest, I'd rather be "countered" (not killed, just PHazed) by the #19 Pokemon instead of absolutely manhandled by the #2 and #4 Pokemon and 100% dead by the most effective set of the #36 Pokemon (something I see changing rapidly due to this Suspect Test showing just how amazing Magnezone + Dragon is in this metagame). Besides, it's not like we said "HEY, DON'T USE THIS." It's just that if you are using Jirachi stand-alone, this set is the one to use to beat the majority of the metagame. Both sets have their merits, but I'd rather use the set with less common solid counters. Also, most competent stall teams will use Perish Song Celebi (the staple of Obi Stall) which will 100% maul you, but with Flash Cannon, Jirachi is far more capable of dealing damage to Celebi, something the standard Jirachi simply cannot do.
 
I agree with RaikouLover. Psychic/Thunderbolt really is the best option.
Flash Cannon + HP Ground gets walled by a lot more things, really. Suicune/Zapdos/Gyarados/Scizor/Skarmory/Moltres/Swampert (can't take Psychis for ever) and more things I don't remember.

missing the OHKO on Infernape is pretty bad also.

Flash Cannon + HP Ground actually would be a good option on Superachi with Grass Knot/Thunderbolt. Except for maybe Skarm and Pert depending of what 3rd move you are using and Celebi (which will cripple you regardless with T-wave if Signal Beam is absent). Too slashy though, maybe other options.

the anti-lead in my opinion should have Fire Punch slashed with SR, since a lot of things learn SR and it isn't obligatory on the set. Fire Punch on the other hand, gives more insurance against Magnezone, Lucario and Scizor. Jirachi is an awesome revenge killer against the last two even without Scarf.
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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I've been playtesting Flash Cannon + HP Ground, and you'd be surprised just how much retard power it packs. Plus, I've found plenty of times where people just bring Heatran, Tyranitar, or Magnezone in as I Substitute, only to be absolutely demolished by my unorthodox set. When it comes to time to start sweeping and thrashing stuff, Flash Cannon isn't much worse than Psychic.

EDIT: What I'm saying here is that this Jirachi beats the most common counters. If you look down the counters section, you see the same stuff come up: Tyranitar, Metagross, Heatran, Celebi, and most importantly Magnezone. The Jirachi listed puts the beatdown on all of them. The counters to the Flash Cannon/HP Ground set are so different from the counters to every single other set that it's simply the best way to use Jirachi right now.
 
I agree with what you just said there SDS, but once that is the standard then the set won't be so effective. What you're saying is it is the surprise factor that does it and makes it so useful. Once you have written up the analysis then this will be the new standard set rendering it less useful than the original Thunderbolt / Psychic as it won't have the surprise factor that it needs. Everyone will then start to view Jirachi as Gyarados set up fodder, something that you really don't want it to be.

I agree that the set "works" but it should not be the standard as in the long term Thunderbolt / Psychic works better, similarly to Heatproof Bronzong, who works occasionally (or situationally), but as soon as it becomes the "standard" it so much easier to deal with than levivate.
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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They're equally viable options. Neither one is "better" than the other. They have completely different counters, and I'd rather be countered by any Pokemon other than the number 2 and the number 4 Pokemon in usage currently. When Skarmory or Suicune break the top ten, I'll craft sets that don't lose to them.

However, that's not really the argument there. At no point have I said that you shouldn't use Psychic/Thunderbolt. Why does everyone just assume slash one = MUST USE. This is way too trivial to be an argument. At this point in time, Flash Cannon / HP Ground is the better choice, and as time goes on, the two may be equally viable. Hell, if mine becomes the standard (not a chance in hell, most people are so used to Psychic/Thunderbolt that they'll run to that most often), then Psychic/Thunderbolt will be the new surprise set that everyone runs.

Bottom line, quit arguing. The order REALLY doesn't matter. It's like Crunch versus Fire Punch on Curselax. Neither one is really better, and the order simply doesn't matter. Besides, there are so many more sets for Jirachi that I'd really have more input on the others than random bickering about options that actually are on the set.
 
I just like to point out that Blissey has a chance of beating the Sub+Calm Mind set if she's carrying Calm Mind of her own or Psych up. Jirachi must rely on SpDef drops to win.

Steelix and Claydol also deserve a mention for being able to counter the Psychic+T-Bolt variant. Claydol is also immune to Hidden Power Ground.
 

Seven Deadly Sins

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Calm Mind Blissey hasn't been good in about forever, and Claydol can't do a damn thing to Jirachi unless it's packing Earthquake, which it usually doesn't. Steelix is an interesting one, but as long as Skarmory exists, Steelix gets left in UU. Also, Calm Mind Bliss loses even harder to Jirachi, because as soon as Jirachi gets a critical hit, Blissey finds itself scraping little pink bits off the wall, and it will NEVER even come close to breaking Jirachi's substitutes with Thunderbolt, and Ice Beam is a stunning 4HKO on Jirachi's substitutes. If Blissey is one Calm Mind behind Jirachi, its Thunderbolt is a 3HKO on its subs. After that, it's Defense Drops and crits.
 
Psychic + Thunderbolt has way better coverage. So Magnezone and Heatran can come in, all you need is a Dugtrio to take care of that.

With Hidden Power Ground + Flash Cannon you are walled by Bronzong, Zapdos, Gyarados, Skarmory and you can't just carry one little Dugtrio to take care of all of those.

Plus, beating Blissey is like... IMPORTANT! That's the main reason you have Substitute, so Seismic Toss won't break your subs. And now you have a 20% chance to beat the Blissey? No, that's bad.
 

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Did you miss the part where Psychic doesn't 2HKO 0 HP/176 SpD Calm Blissey? Psychic needs the 20% as well, but doesn't die horribly to Heatran, Tyranitar, and Magnezone. Also, I'm not switching Dugtrio in on Heatran in a million years, and you can't switch out of Magnezone, so "lol dugtrio" isn't the end-all be-all, and even if it is, it doesn't change the fact that Dugtrio is a mediocre Pokemon. Besides, Magnezone beats the great majority of those (EQless Gyara can't beat Magnezone, and Bronzong/Skarmory just immediately get killed, plus Bronzong can still EQ you into submission if you're using Thunderbolt), and Zapdos gets the old Calm Mind/Sub treatment until its Thunderbolts don't break the sub (defensive builds like the common Bold Zapdos or SubRoost Toxic make this a lot easier) and you're sitting on a +6 Jirachi like the set is intended to be. Flash Cannon does 53.13% - 62.50% to 252/0 Bold Zapdos with +6 (which isn't hard against said Zapdos), and that's without Special Defense drops. Offensive sets with Heat Wave could cause some problems, but that's a given regardless of the set you're running due to just being Jirachi. After one Calm Mind, 0 SpA (which is the most common Zapdos) fails to break Jirachi's Substitutes with Thunderbolt. Heat Wave fails after 2 Calm Minds.

Of the Pokemon you've named, Gyarados is the only one that Jirachi is actually *scared* of that the standard one isn't. Bronzong will beat you regardless if it comes in on your Substitute and packs Earthquake, so that's out. Gyara can of course DD on you, but most Gyara won't be coming in on Jirachi anyway. Standard 0 SpA Zapdos gets thrashed by Jirachi regardless, and Skarmory not only fails to do anything but PHaze you, but also is loath to come in on SubCM Jirachi anyway, as its first instinct is to flee at the sight of Substitute, allowing you to get a free CM or two as they swap to a different counter, probably one you can handle. By the time Skarmory comes in, Jirachi probably poses a massive threat to it.
 
I've actually never encountered a Skarmory that fled from Jirachi and I used the set for months. They try to whirlwind you because a +1 Thunderbolt I actually don't think is a gurenteed KO on Skarm. Better yet, if you Sub first, it certainly isn't a KO. Remember that Skarmory is a safe switch on quite a few Jirachi to begin with....

I'm really more concerned with Suicune since its most likely gonna whoop your ass when you use Hdden Power (a lot of people try to engage in CM wars with Cune / Jirachi).

Flash Cannon / HP Ground is still kinda gimmicky IMO. Psychic / Thunderbolt hits everything except Magnezone and Celebi in OU for neutral coverage, and you beat Magnezone anyway.
 

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Just try Flash Cannon / HP Ground. You'll be pleasantly surprised by the results, I believe.

EDIT: +1 Thunderbolt is a 100% OHKO on Skarmory with SR, but +0 does 59-70%. For the most part, if Skarmory switches in on your Substitute, you're not going to win this one.
 

cim

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SDS has been so kind as to do all the arguing for me here.

When I took a look at Calm Mind Jirachi, Psychic / Thunderbolt was always the standard from RS onward and it was better than Psychic / Fighting or Psychic Bug every time. Yet it still had some problems:
  • Tyranitar comes in completely for free without several CMs and forces Jirachi out more often than not.
  • Heatran does the same thing as Tyranitar unless it's Serene Grace Paralyzed or some bullshit like that.
  • Phazers like Skarmory and Suicune (runs Roar 20% of the time) don't come in on Jirachi in fear of Thunderbolt.
So then when doing this revamp, SDS and I discussed the set briefly and we both independently had come up with Flash Cannon as primary STAB, with the old still-useful standard as a slash. It's a slash because it's still useful. It's _still there_.

Anyhow, one by one.
It gives inferior type coverage and the main STAB is... 11% weaker, and the secondary attack is a Hidden Power...
Roughly the same number of things resist both, actually. Weaker moves is annoying but in every calc we could run that mattered, things stayed the same.

Magnezone @ Specs (a good set that is only not used, RL, because it wasn't hyped by you last month) is one secondary reason to run HP Ground.

That set doesn't "require" you to carry anything. Everyone knows that Psychic / T-Bolt / Sub / CM Jirachi is one of the most reliable stand-alone sweepers in the game as it is. Flash Cannon / HP Ground opens Jirachi up to a myriad of more common threats that I would rather not have to switch out on, namely Gyarados / Zapdos / Rotom / Suicune / Skarmory / should I keep going because there are plenty more?
Sure you want to stick with that story? I'm pretty sure Jirachi can quite easily set up on (defensive) Zapdos, Rotom (Sub to make Overheat plummet), Suicune... just because it resists your STAB doesn't mean you somehow have to switch out of it. I mean come on you just said that Magnezone without Specs loses to Jirachi, the same thing applies here!

SDS, CM Jirachi has a reputation for being able to single handedly dismantle stall teams. But letting it be walled by Skarmory is a serious, serious issue.
Half of the reason Calm Mind Jirachi with Flash Cannon is here is because stall is less popular, indicating that for now FLash Cannon is better. And since when has a stall team not packed Perishbi? Jirachi isn't an unsupported stallkiller.

psychic/thunderbolt CM jirachi is probably the thing i fear most. if i saw flash cannon/hp ground, i would probably just laugh
You've convinced me!

I agree with RaikouLover. Psychic/Thunderbolt really is the best option.
Flash Cannon + HP Ground gets walled by a lot more things, really. Suicune/Zapdos/Gyarados/Scizor/Skarmory/Moltres/Swampert (can't take Psychis for ever) and more things I don't remember.
Suicune doesn't wall it most of the time. Zapdos doesn't wall it. Gyarados does. Scizor isn't walling this Jirachi more than Thunderbolt Jirachi, that's pure bullshit right there. Skarmory has been mentioned. You must be joking about Moltres. Swampert can phase the normal CM Jirachi and beat it anyway.

tl;dr you didn't think your post through so I won't bother with the rest.

I just like to point out that Blissey has a chance of beating the Sub+Calm Mind set if she's carrying Calm Mind of her own or Psych up. Jirachi must rely on SpDef drops to win.

Steelix and Claydol also deserve a mention for being able to counter the Psychic+T-Bolt variant. Claydol is also immune to Hidden Power Ground.
You've obviously not played OU anytime within the last year, as Calm Mind Blissey is used less than 2% of the time IIRC (Psych Up is never used, I don't even think in Ubers it's that common). You're just trying to find theorymon counters.

Steelix and Claydol are uncommon, but I guess I'll have then thrown in Counters.

With Hidden Power Ground + Flash Cannon you are walled by Bronzong, Zapdos, Gyarados, Skarmory and you can't just carry one little Dugtrio to take care of all of those.

Plus, beating Blissey is like... IMPORTANT! That's the main reason you have Substitute, so Seismic Toss won't break your subs. And now you have a 20% chance to beat the Blissey? No, that's bad.
Bronzong doesn't really do much to this set at all unless it packs Earthquake, and if it commonly does you can run the super bulky evs to stop it.

Obviously beating Blissey is important, we're not stupid. Neither move 2HKOs Blissey without a drop (that's 20% chance _per turn_, not once), but both do after one, so I fail to see how this is relevant at all.

Again, let me emphasize this. The Psychic, Thunderbolt CMer is still a slash and the reasons for using it over the "standard" set are emphasized in the set comments. One is currently slightly better than the other. I'm sure people using Smogon's dexes will be smart enough to figure out to switch if they have a team that works well with Psychic / Thunderbolt or whatever.
 

cim

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Planning on putting it in Other Options, as Substitute has been consistently better for both me and Seven Deadly Sins. Status and protection from CHs is more important I think. Still, more easily beats Bliss I guess. Could be worth yet another set.
 
List Gyarados and Suicune as counters to Flash Cannon / HP Ground Jirachi.

Skarmory resists Iron Head, Zen Headbutt, and U-turn, and can easily heal off damage, though swapping into Banded Fire Punch and Thunderpunch can be hazardous.
Fire Punch does 37% - 44%, so it's not too much of a risk.

Swampert takes it one step further by boasting an immunity to Thunderpunch, thus resisting the entire moveset.
Except U-turn and Zen Headbutt.

Tyranitar once again boasts excellent physical durability and immunity to Zen Headbutt, though it fears Iron Head and U-Turn.
I'm not entirely convinced Tyranitar even warrants a mention, considering that it takes a minimum of 74% from Iron Head with a 252 HP spread.
 

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