[OVERVIEW]
Dugtrio is one of the most influential Pokemon in RBY UU. Its fantastic Speed tier, respectable damage output, and Thunder Wave immunity make it one of the strongest offensive Pokemon in the entire tier. Dugtrio also has the worst defensive stats in the tier, however; almost any Pokemon in the metagame can OHKO Dugtrio easily, which heavily limits how often it can come on the field.
[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Rock Slide
move 3: Slash / Substitute
move 4: Toxic
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
STAB Earthquake is excellent given Tentacruel's prominence, both 2HKOing it and supporting your own Tentacruel by 2HKOing all of its counters save Persian. Many of these targets can be put in KO range with a small amount of chip damage or a critical hit. Dugtrio also outspeeds all threats to Tentacruel besides opposing Dugtrio, which lets it worry less about its frailty. Earthquake's high power combined with Dugtrio's high critical hit chance makes Dugtrio an effective wallbreaker and general attacker. Through Rock Slide, Dugtrio can hit all Flying-types for super effective damage, further limiting how often the opponent can let Dugtrio come on the field before they start losing Pokemon. The next move is commonly Slash, which stops Tangela from completely walling Dugtrio and can act as a safe midground option to avoid reading whether opponents will switch to a Flying-type or not. Substitute is another option for Dugtrio's third move to make it an even more effective late-game sweeper. Dugtrio can set up a Substitute while the opponent switches to sacrifice a team member at low health, and it can then close out the game against a weakened team that can't break the Substitute and force Dugtrio out. The last moveslot is dedicated to Toxic, as it prevents Dragonite from freely coming in on Earthquake and setting up Agility safely.
Dugtrio acts as a late-game sweeper and a potent offensive threat. Using Dugtrio optimally is a delicate balancing act of making the most of its limited opportunities to come onto the field while also keeping it as healthy as possible, a balance that often separates novice players from veterans. Partial-trapping moves—most commonly Wrap—are one of the primary ways Dugtrio can be brought onto the field safely, since they both provide the chip damage needed to bring targets into OHKO range and allow Dugtrio to switch in while the opposing Pokemon is unable to attack. Therefore, Wrap users such as Dragonite and especially Tentacruel make for excellent Dugtrio partners. Tentacruel is the best Dugtrio partner in the game; not only does it provide Wrap support and benefit from Dugtrio KOing primary answers to it after minor chip damage, such as opposing Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu, but it takes very little damage from Blizzard and Surf aimed at Dugtrio. The opponent's Tentacruel using Wrap is another common way Dugtrio can get onto the battlefield safely, as Dugtrio takes relatively little chip damage from Wrap while outspeeding and KOing the opposing Tentacruel if it is sufficiently weakened. A teammate using Explosion or fainting is another common entrance point for Dugtrio, as its high Speed and damage output allow it to act as an effective revenge killer. Other good opportunities for Dugtrio to enter the battlefield include sleeping Pokemon, a predicted switch, a recovery move that doesn't let the foe escape Dugtrio's KO range, and Electric-type moves such as Thunder Wave and Thunderbolt. Frequently, Dugtrio will be able to clean up teams that have been weakened to the point where it can OHKO every remaining Pokemon; this is a relatively common win condition in RBY UU that should always be kept in mind over the course of the game. Learning to capitalize on opportunities to set up this endgame while simultaneously hindering an opponent carrying Dugtrio from doing the same is an important skill for UU players to learn.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Generally, Dugtrio doesn't need any moves outside of its main set. Body Slam can be nice to paralyze checks such as the relatively uncommon Aerodactyl, but the only Pokemon you will commonly see that Dugtrio doesn't naturally outspeed is opposing Dugtrio. Even worse, Body Slam is only useful against opposing Dugtrio on the switch, as either Dugtrio can 2HKO the other with Earthquake one-on-one. Another severe downside of using Body Slam is its damage output in comparison to Slash: whereas Slash can do 30% to Gyarados, Body Slam does half that. Where Slash lets Dugtrio 4HKO Tangela and potentially catch it at half health while it switches in, Body Slam can't even reliably 6HKO Tangela. Sand Attack could be used to pray for misses in desperate scenarios, like when Dodrio is about to set up and run over your team or Dugtrio is your last Pokemon left and needs to land multiple critical hits. It can also stop Dragonite from setting up Agility and sweeping through your team with Wrap, but it's less reliable than Toxic and has its effect nullified by switching. It can technically be used to severely reduce Tentacruel's Wrap accuracy, though the only time Dugtrio should be facing Tentacruel is if it is in Earthquake KO range anyway.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Paralysis**: Dugtrio relies heavily on its Speed to stop foes from capitalizing on its weak defenses, which makes paralysis so deadly for it. Dugtrio is immune to Thunder Wave, but Stun Spore—used commonly by Tangela and the rare Venomoth—and Body Slam—from attackers like Kangaskhan, Gyarados, and opposing Dugtrio—can cripple Dugtrio for the rest of the game.
**Strong Attacks**: In general, Dugtrio is unable to take more than one attack without fainting, so any strong attack—such as Kangaskhan's Body Slam and Hypno or Kadabra's Psychic—hitting it should enable any other Pokemon to pick it off. Even worse, many common special attacks, such as Articuno's Blizzard and Surf from Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, are super effective and will OHKO Dugtrio.
**Flying-types**: Flying-types are most teams' main defensive answers to Dugtrio, as they can switch into its Earthquake and threaten it out with heavy damage, if not an outright OHKO. Dragonite is best at dealing with Dugtrio, as the threat Dragonite poses with Agility and Wrap is so significant that Dugtrio often has to stay in and use Toxic, which can come at the cost of Dugtrio taking a Blizzard and being put at 20% health or lower. Gyarados is similar in its ability to answer Dugtrio, and while it lacks the threat of Agility + Wrap to keep Dugtrio from switching out, it is much harder for Dugtrio's teammates to force out due to its superior defensive typing. Dodrio and Articuno are the last two common Flying-types that teams use to check Dugtrio. While they are significantly frailer than Dragonite and Gyarados, respectively 3HKOed and 2HKOed by Rock Slide, they can both OHKO Dugtrio with their STAB attacks and threaten to run through its team after an Agility boost.
**Bulky Water-types**: Bulky Water-types like Vaporeon, Poliwrath, and the rare Dewgong can take Earthquake multiple times while KOing Dugtrio with their STAB Surf and using Rest to remain healthy and answer Dugtrio over the course of a match. However, Dugtrio's critical hit rate can allow it to bypass these answers if they are below 75% health, and Dewgong cannot switch into repeated Rock Slide without being forced to use Rest.
**Tangela and Venusaur**: Tangela is one of the best Dugtrio answers in RBY UU, taking almost no damage from Earthquake and threatening Dugtrio in return with Sleep Powder or Stun Spore. Tangela can also heal off any chip damage it sustains on the way in with Mega Drain, and it can potentially use Dugtrio as an opportunity to begin accumulating boosts with Growth. Venusaur is similar in this regard, coming in on Earthquake and threatening to put Dugtrio or a teammate to sleep with Sleep Powder or OHKO Dugtrio with Razor Leaf. However, Venusaur is worse at checking Dugtrio than Tangela due to its worse bulk and Ground neutrality.
**Kangaskhan**: If Kangaskhan is healthy, it can switch into Dugtrio's Earthquake and threaten to cripple or KO Dugtrio with its STAB Body Slam or Hyper Beam.
**Persian and Hypno**: While they can't switch in, Hypno and Persian can win the one-on-one matchup with Dugtrio from full health if it doesn't land a critical hit.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Shellnuts, 491544], [Plague von Karma, 236353]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [phoopes, 96315]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [CryoGyro, 331519]]
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