http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/rayquaza
Okay, I'm not doing the whole "highlight the changes" thing, as I rewrote a significant amount of the sets. I also removed both the Choice Specs and the Choice Band set, as they are genarlly out classed by other Ubers. Special thanks to Misaki-Chi for fixing my crappy grammar and spelling! (P.S.: If anyone has objections to the removel of the CB Set, please find someone else to write it.)
[SET]
name: Dragon Dancer
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Outrage
move 3: Earthquake / Stone Edge
move 4: Overheat
item: Life Orb
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 32 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is a huge threat once it sets up. After a Dragon Dance, Jolly Rayquaza outspeeds every non-Scarfed Pokémon except Deoxys-S. Outrage is extremely powerful, OHKOing almost every Pokémon that doesn't resist it. Before using Outrage, it is best to scout the opponent's team. This is because early in the game, your opponent may have Pokémon like Forretress to take the Outrage and explode. For this very reason, Overheat is included to OHKO it. Overheat also has the additional use of OHKOing Skarmory, who would otherwise wall the entire moveset. Earthquake is here to KO Metagross and Dialga (although Dialga needs a heavy defensive investment to live through Outrage).</p>
<p>While Jolly is often the preferred nature, Adamant is still a viable nature that has some adavatages over Jolly for Dragon Dance Rayquaza. The reason Jolly Rayquaza is normally the better choice is because it will always outspeed and OHKO Timid Choice Scarf Dialga after one Dragon Dance. This is important because Choice Scarf Dialga will often switch into Rayquaza, expecting the Swords Dance set. When using Jolly, it is important to note that a +1 Outrage only has around a 66% chance of OHKOing the standard Bold 252 HP / 52 Def Lugia after it takes damage from Stealth Rock. This makes Stone Edge a viable alternative to either Earthquake or Overheat when using Jolly Rayquaza, as a +1 Stone Edge guarantees a OHKO on Lugia after it takes damage from Stealth Rock. Adamant Rayquaza has the advantage of not needing to use Stone Edge to have a 100% chance of KOing Lugia, as it has a 100% chance of KOing Lugia with Outrage providing Stealth Rock is in play. Adamant Rayquaza will unfortunately be outsped by Deoxys-A, even after a Dragon Dance. Because of this, ExtremeSpeed is recommended over Earthquake or Overheat to OHKO Deoxys-A. When using ExtremeSpeed with either nature, it is best to use maximum speed, so Rayquaza will have a chance of revenge killing an opposing Swords Dance Rayquaza.</p>
<p>Rayquaza has issues with unusually bulky Lugia and Scarf users with over 95 base Speed, such as Palkia, Darkrai, Mewtwo, and Garchomp. Wobbuffet makes an excellent partner for Rayquaza, as it can switch into all of these Choiced attacks (except Darkrai's Dark Pulse) as they attempt to revenge kill Rayquaza. Wobbuffet can then KO them with Mirror Coat or Counter. It can also clear the path for setting up by Encoring a support or Ground-type move. If you would rather have a separate answer to Lugia, after five Tickles from Wobbuffet, a 100+ Attack Adamant Life Orb Scizor KOs it with Pursuit as it switches out. Scizor also complements Rayquaza well, switching into Choice Scarf Dragon and Ice attacks and threatening them with STAB U-turn or Pursuit. Scizor can also take on two rare but deadly Pokémon that cause Rayquaza problems: Choice Scarf Gengar attempting to use Hidden Power Ice, and any Weavile. Lastly, Thunder Wave Kyogre lures out and cripples the common Dragon Dance Rayquaza revenge killer, Choice Scarf Palkia.</p>
[SET]
name: Swords Dancer
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: ExtremeSpeed
move 3: Dragon Claw / Waterfall
move 4: Earthquake / Overheat
item: Life Orb
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Dragon Dance is often used to compensate for Rayquaza's below average Speed, boosting its Attack along the way. However, Swords Dancing will let Rayquaza boast a massive Attack score of 876; unfortunately, it has no way of boosting its mediocre Speed. However, this set is a monstrously powerful physical sweeper thanks to Rayquaza'a priority move, ExtremeSpeed. ExtremeSpeed always OHKOs Darkrai, and with help from Stealth Rock, a +2 Life Orb ExtremeSpeed has around a 87% chance of OHKOing 4 HP / 0 Def Timid Palkia and a 79% chance of OHKOing 4 HP / 0 Def Mewtwo, all of which are significant KOs.</p>
<p>Dragon Claw or Waterfall are the best options for the next slot. Dragon Claw is a good STAB attack for Rayquaza that allows it to OHKO Giratina after a Swords Dance, while being able to do severe damage to other slower Pokémon. While it may seem harsh to forget STAB on any Pokémon, Waterfall can be a good choice over Dragon Claw to hit Groudon much harder (don't worry about the weather, as Air Lock negates this). It also comes with a handy 20% flinch rate, should one find themself in a tight spot. In the last moveslot, Earthquake or Overheat are the best choices for the last slot. Earthquake is best for taking out Steel-types that would ruin your sweep, such as Metagross. Overheat can easily OHKO Forretress, Skarmory (who walls you otherwise) and Scizor.</p>
<p>Rayquaza should usually be using an Adamant nature, since ExtremeSpeed will be its most commonly used attack. If one is paranoid of an opposing Rayquaza's ExtremeSpeed, Jolly could be used over Adamant. Jolly should also be used if Rayquaza finds itself with Swords Dance and Outrage on the same set. However, Outrage is not recommended as it makes Rayquaza a very easy Pokémon to revenge kill, especially in Ubers. It does have the benefit of OHKOing both Groudon and Lugia after an Swords Dance. The main problem with using Jolly Swords Dance Rayquaza is that ExtremeSpeed has a much lower chance of KOing Mewtwo and Palkia after Stealth Rock. Only use Jolly Swords Dance Rayquaza if your team has no other way to beat Lugia.
<p>Swords Dance Rayquaza is very vulnerable to Lugia, due to having no way of boosting its speed and the lack of Outrage. Because of this, Wobbuffet is highly recommended as a partner for Swords Dance Rayquaza for a number of reasons. Wobbuffet can use Tickle on trapped Lugia; after four, Choice Band Scizor can OHKO Lugia as it flees with Pursuit. With Lugia out of the picture, Rayquaza can easily sweep a team. Additionally, Choice Band Scizor can OHKO Gengar with either Bullet Punch or Pursuit, as well as OHKOing Weavile with Bullet Punch.Another way many teams deal with Swords Dance Rayquaza is to use Steel-types with Choice Scarf and super effective moves to revenge kill it. The most common Pokémon that does this is Choice Scarf Dialga, but other Steel Pokémon that can be seen using Choice Scarf are Metagross and Heatran. Wobbuffet can switch into these threats as they try to KO Rayquaza, and use either Counter or Mirror Coat to KO them. Wobbuffet can also help set up Rayquaza if it encores a Ground-type attack or support move. Garchomp can be a bit trickier to deal with than usual, because while Wobbuffet can beat the Choice Scarfer, Choice Band Garchomp will 2HKO both Wobbuffet and Scizor. Garchomp does not need Choice Scarf to revenge kill Rayquaza, and Rayquaza only has a 7% chance of KOing Garchomp with ExtremeSpeed after Garchomp takes damage from Stealth Rock. Choice Scarf Metagross can be a good way to beat Garchomps that lack a Choice Scarf, because Metagross resists the Dragon attacks aimed at Rayquaza, and will OHKO Garchomp with Ice Punch 100% of the time after it takes damage from Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Entry hazards are key to Swords Dance Rayquaza's success, as they are required to gain KOs on important Pokémon such as Palkia and Mewtwo. Deoxys-S can be an excellent lead, as it can not only lay down Stealth Rock, but it can also use Spikes. With Stealth Rock and Spikes, not only will Mewtwo and Palkia be OHKOed 100% of the time by a +2 ExtremeSpeed, but Garchomp will have a 92% chance of being KOed by the same move as well! If Deoxys-S is not a good option for your team, then a support Groudon and Forretress should be considered. Groudon not only lays down Stealth Rock, but also lures Lugia in. Once a Lugia switches in, Groudon can cripple it with Toxic. Forretress can switch in on Ice Beams used by Pokémon like Lugia and set up Spikes. Forretress also has the ability to use Rapid Spin, which can give Rayquaza a much easier time switching in and out of battle.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixquaza
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: ExtremeSpeed
move 4: Outrage / Brick Break
item: Life Orb
nature: Hasty / Naive
evs: 40 Atk / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set takes advantage of Rayquaza's often overlooked base 150 Special Attack in order to cripple the standard Rayquaza switch-ins. Draco Meteor is obviously your main form of attack and is what you should be leading off with most of the time. Your opponent will be shocked when their Rayquaza counter is met with a Draco Meteor off of 518 Special Attack. Rayquaza's main counters, Groudon and Lugia, are both maimed by this set. Only the most defensive of Groudon will survive the first hit while standard Lugia will always be 2HKOed with Stealth Rock on the field.</p>
<p>Fire Blast takes care of the common Special Defense Steels, such as Metagross and Jirachi, that attempt to wall Draco Meteor after you reveal it. Fire Blast is listed over Flamethrower since the set relies on sheer power to avoid taking any damage so while missing 15% of the time might be a negative, the extra power is almost a must. ExtremeSpeed lets you clean up weakened Pokémon who threaten to ruin your fun. However the main reason for using ExtremeSpeed is for the OHKO on Deoxys-A (though watch out for Focus Sash if it hasn't taken any damage yet). </p>
<p>The best two options for the last slot are Outrage and Brick Break. Outrage is still a very powerful attack, even with only 40 Attack EVs. For example, it can still 2HKO Kyogre. Brick Break can 2HKO Blissey, and break Light Screen and Reflect. This is very useful because if Rayquaza has Brick Break, it has a chance at beating Baton Pass Mew. After breaking Reflect and Light Screen, Rayquaza can KO Mew with a combination of Draco Meteor followed by ExtreemeSpeed.</p>
<p>216 Speed EVs with a positive nature outspeeds all base 90 speed Ubers and Lugia who sit at 307 in order to do the same. However, it's perfectly fine to move those Attack EVs into Speed in order to attempt a speed tie with other max Speed Rayquaza or if you are simply paranoid that Lugia may be running a few extra Speed EVs. Also if you decide to run both ExtremeSpeed and Outrage, you could move some Special Attack EVs into Attack in order to hit harder from the physical side.</p>
<p>Mixquaza's best teammates are the ones that benefit from the removal of Groudon and Lugia. A prime example of this is Lucario. Lucario often has problems sweeping when Lugia is around. If Rayquaza eliminates Lugia, Lucario will often have a much easier time sweeping with its Swords Dance set. Rayquaza also resists all of Lucario's weaknesses. For example, if the opponent switches in Choice Band Garchomp to KO Lucario, you can switch Rayquaza in on the Earthquake and launch off more powerful assaults. Another Pokémon that will appreciate Lugia's absence is SubSalac Groudon with Swords Dance. Thanks to Groudon's Substitute, Giratina will have a hard time with Groudon unless it has Roar. Without Lugia, stall teams can crumble to SubSalac Groudon. If Rayquaza KOs Groudon, Bulk Up Dialga is a great teammate. This is because many teams' (especially stall teams) only hope of beating Bulk Up Dialga is Groudon. With Groudon out of the picture, Dialga has the potential to sweep. Finally, Jirachi is a useful teammate for mixed Rayquaza, as Groudon's absence enables it to pass Wish more effectively. Body Slam Jirachi is useful as well, as some offensive teams resort to sending out fast sweepers like Garchomp to remove it; if Jirachi paralyzes them with Body Slam, Rayquaza can take them out later. Finally, Dragon Dance Tyranitar can easily destroy a whole team with Scizor and Groudon gone, as most teams lack any other reliable Dragon Dance Tyranitar checks aside from Garchomp. All the problems that Swords Dance Rayquaza and Dragon Dance Rayquaza face are similar here; Scizor is still a useful switch-in against Choice Scarf Palkia, and Wobbuffet takes care of most Scarfed opponents</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Choice Band Rayquaza is viable, but generally outclassed by Choice Band Garchomp, which gets STAB Earthquake, resists Stealth Rock, has higher base Speed, and still gets similar KOs; the only real advantage other than higher base Attack Rayquaza has is priority. A Choice Specs set is a viable option on Rayquaza, as it can surprise its usual switch ins. Generally, Dialga and Palkia are better choices for this, as Rayquaza can destroy Lugia with its Mixquaza set just as easily, in addition to Palkia and Dialga lacking Rayquaza's weakness to Stealth Rock. Thunder Wave can cripple Pokémon like Choice Scarf Dialga switching into you, but you shouldn't really be focusing on this and you should focus more on setting Rayquaza up. Ice Beam is pretty useless with Draco Meteor, but you can knock down Groudon without suffering a Special Attack drop. Rayquaza is capable of producing 101 HP Substitutes if you want to block any attempts to Seismic Toss or status you. Beware, however, because Blissey / Deoxys-D may carry Ice Beam just for this, or just for Rayquaza in general. Bulk Up is rather novelty but you can use this move to survive a Choice Banded Stone Edge from Groudon and OHKO back with Outrage if you're holding a Life Orb. Toxic can poison Lugia and Cresselia on the switch, making them useless at tanking, but once again you should be more focused on the sweeping part. Sleep Talking an Outrage doesn't get you locked, so it's worth a shot. Rest can be used for defensive purposes, but it is rather novelty because Rayquaza dies very quickly. Crunch is a reasonable option on the Dragon Dance set, as it can hit the Psychic-type Ubers hard without resorting to Outrage.</p>
<p>Focus Sash lets Rayquaza survive a powerful hit, and then pull off a Dragon Dance and Outrage to almost guarantee at least one KO on the opponent. It makes a good lead because it destroys both Mewtwo and Kyogre, and does not fear Sandstorm thanks to Air Lock. However, you should watch out for Metagross switching into you when you try and Outrage these leads. Haban Berry is a reasonble choice for both Dragon Dance Rayquaza and Swords Dance Rayquaza if you have Rapid Spin support, as this will allow Rayquaza to survive attacks from common Choice Scarf revenge killers such as Garchomp, Dialga and Palkia. Rayquaza can then OHKO them with a boostes Super Effective attack in return.</p>
[EVs]
<p>All EVs are included within their respective sets. Coincidentally, 216 Speed EVs give Rayquaza 280 on the neutral Speed (outspeeding neutral base 90s), and 308 on the +Speed ones (outspeeding +Speed Groudon/Kyogre). For the Dragon Dance set, you can run max Speed if you want to try to outrun other Rayquaza, and you feel the HP is unnecessary due to Life Orb Recoil. The remaining 4 EVs should go to anything else besides HP; with odd HP, Rayquaza can switch into Stealth Rock five times, and gets maximum amount of attacks with Life Orb. For the Swords Dance set, an alternate EV spread can be used if you don't mind losing Speed ties with other Rayquaza: 112 HP / 252 Atk / 144 Spe. The EV spread hits a good HP number that rounds down Life Orb and Stealth Rock while also outspeeding minimum Lugia.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Rayquaza should always be used with Stealth Rock, as almost every set benefits from it in some way. Dragon Dance Rayquaza can beat Lugia with Stealth Rock, Swords Dance Rayquaza has an easier time KOing Pokémon with ExtremeSpeed, and Mixquaza can 2HKO Lugia with Draco Meteor as long as Stealth Rock is on the field. Additionally, Rayquaza can really benefit from Rapid Spin support, due to its weakness to Stealth Rock. With Stealth Rock gone, Rayquaza will have a much easier time switching into moves it resists (such as Choice Scarf Surfs from Palkia), and thus a much easier time setting up. The main Rapid Spinner of Ubers, Forretress, just so happens to form an excellent defensive combination with Rayquaza. Forretress can take many of the Ice and Dragon attacks aimed at Rayquaza, and use the time to set up Spikes. Meanwhile, Rayquaza resists Forretress's only weakness, Fire.</p>
<p>Rayquaza 'checks' tend to fall into 3 categories: Choice Scarf Pokémon that have a base speed higher than 95 (Garchomp, Mewtwo, Darkrai, Palkia), Steel-type Pokémon with a Choice Scarf (Dialga, Metagross, Heatran), and defensive Pokémon that attempt to counter Rayquaza (only Lugia can really pull this off). Wobbuffet easily takes care of almost all the Choice Scarf revenge killers that go after Rayquaza, with the exception of Darkrai. Darkrai can be handled by Sleep Talk Kyogre, which also scares off Heatran. Sczior can switch into the following Choice Scarf Pokémon with little worry: Garchomp, Mewtwo, Darkrai, and Palkia. This is because most of the attacks that these Choice Scarf Pokémon will use on Rayquaza are resisted by Scizor. Scizor can then threaten to do a huge amount of damage to them with STAB U-turn. Scizor also OHKOs both Gengar and Weavile with a Choice Band Bullet Punch; both are rare but effective Rayquaza checks. Taunt + Calm Mind Mewtwo can be a good offensive partner for any Rayquaza, mainly because Mewtwo easily sets up on Lugia. Darkrai can also take advantage of Lugia, by putting it to sleep and setting up Nasty Plots.</p>
<p>Rayquaza does well defensively with any Pokémon that resists Ice and Dragon (Rock to a lesser extent). A good example of this is Jirachi. Jirachi can use Wish to restore Rayquaza's health, in addition to having the potential to paralyze threats such as Garchomp with Body Slam. Jirachi and Rayquaza cover each other very well, as Rayquaza resists Fire, and is immune to Ground moves, while Jirachi resists all of Rayquaza's weaknesses. Scizor works in a similar manner defensively, only trading the Rock resistance for much more Attack and STAB U-turn. While Kyogre might not resist Dragon, not only does it resist Ice moves, Rayquaza also sports a 4x resist to Grass. While Lucario's defenses are subpar, the most common way of beating Lucario is to use Choice Scarf Dialga. Thanks to Lucario and Rayquaza covering each other's weaknesses, Rayquaza can switch into Dialga's Aura Spheres and Fire Blasts (aimed at Lucario) with little issues, and start setting up (preferably Dragon Dance in this case).</p>
<p>Interestingly enough, when looking at the commonly used partners of Rayquaza's checks, it can show just how fearsome Rayquaza is. For example, let us look at the most common teammates for Lugia; Kyogre, Palkia, Dialga, Groudon, and Darkrai. All of Lugia's most common partners with the exception of Kyogre can all be Rayquaza checks in some way. The problem is, none of these Pokémon can counter Rayquaza 100% of the time. For example, Dragon Dance Rayquaza would rip through Dialga, and have the potential to beat Lugia as well. Palkia and Darkrai require Choice Scarfs to beat Dragon Dance Rayquaza, while Groudon requires a heavy investment in HP and Defense to comfortably live through Outrage. Wobbuffet will easily take care of Choice Scarf Palkia via Mirror Coat, while Choice Scarf Darkrai will have some serious problems with Scizor. Finally, defensive Groudon will be hard-pressed to stay in a battle with a Kyogre of any kind. If we choose Swords Dance Rayquaza for this scenario, the checks change dramatically. Darkrai and Palkia can no longer check Rayquaza, as a +2 ExtremeSpeed will often KO both after they switch into Stealth Rock. Groudon is also playing a risky game if it thinks it can counter Swords Dance Rayquaza, as the standard support Groudon that is Adamant with 252 HP EVs and 32 Defense EVs takes 99% minimum from a +2 Waterfall from a Rayquaza with Life Orb. Thus, the checks in this set of partners would be Dialga (only if it has a Choice Scarf) and Lugia. Dialga would once again be beaten by Wobbuffet, and Lugia loses to the Tickle Wobbuffet and Pursuiter combo. When looking at the arguably most consistent Rayquaza check, Garchomp, we see that the only two Pokémon that are commonly seen with it that can give Rayquaza any trouble are Darkrai and Groudon, both of which will fall to a Swords Dancer with Waterfall and ExtremeSpeed.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Rayquaza is one of the most threatening forces in the Uber metagame, and as such should always be considered when making a team. With one Dragon Dance, it is capable of sweeping half a team until Outrage confuses it or if Life Orb recoil destroys it. With Swords Dance, Rayquaza becomes a hellish priority sweeper that can force teams to use Choice Scarf Steel-types or Garchomp. Rayquaza even has the ability to be a deadly mixed attacker that rips through its most common switch-ins. More often than not, the disadvantageous Pokémon that faces Rayquaza will have to stay in; otherwise one Dragon Dance or Swords Dance on their switch will lead to their demise, and it's better to hit it hard before it does that.</p>
<p>Rayquaza does have a flaw though: it is not an easy Pokémon to switch in. The combination of an environment full of extremely powerful offensive Pokémon, its average defenses (by Uber standards anyways), and its weakness to Stealth Rock means that Rayquaza will have a hard time switching into neutral attacks without taking a large amount of damage. In general, Rayquaza's main switch-ins are done by using its resistances and the opponent's Choice items. Despite having a hard time switching in, Rayquaza is still a fearsome threat that can rip unprepared teams apart.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Cresselia can survive Outrage with its high HP / Defense and OHKO with Ice Beam when Life Orb damage is taken into account, but is severely dented by the mixed set. Skarmory can come in on Rayquaza without Overheat / Fire Blast and laugh at it. Lugia can also switch in and OHKO with Ice Beam, but it will need a lot of HP and Defense to survive a hit from Dragon Dance Rayquaza, and Stone Edge will hurt Lugia. Also, Stealth Rock will severely hinder Lugia's ability to wall you. Thankfully, Lugia can easily outspeed Swords Dance Rayquaza. Lugia must be careful about switching into Rayquaza though, as Hasty mixed Rayquaza can outspeed and 2HKO it with Draco Meteor if Stealth Rock is out. Metagross can switch in on Outrage / Draco Meteor and KO back with Ice Punch or maybe Meteor Mash.</p>
<p>If you're running Adamant, a Hasty Deoxys-A will outspeed you and KO you, even if you Dragon Danced, with Ice Beam or Ice Punch, and often with Choice Banded Rock Slide. Pokémon with a base speed above 95 can carry a Choice Scarf to revenge kill Dragon Dance Rayquaza. The prime examples being Mewtwo, Palkia, and Darkrai. Steel-types with Choice Scarf and a super effective move can revenge kill Swords Dance Rayquaza. The best examples of these Pokémon are Dialga, Metagross, and Heatran (with Hidden Power Ice). Gengar has the interesting ability to revenge kill both Swords Dance and Dragon Dance Rayquaza (as long as Gengar has a Choice Scarf), thanks to Gengar's 110 base Speed and the Normal immunity granted by Gengar's Ghost-typing. The same goes for Choice Scarf Garchomp as well, as it will not only outspeed Rayquaza after a Dragon Dance, it will also only have a 7% chance of getting KOed by an Adamant Rayquaza's +2 ExtremeSpeed with Life Orb. Weavile is able to OHKO Rayquaza with STAB Ice Shard; the only Rayquaza that can handle it is a Dragon Dance Rayquaza with ExtremeSpeed. Extremely defensive Groudon can survive Outrage and KO back with Stone Edge.</p>
