[OVERVIEW]
- Keldeo has consistently been a top threat in the current generation of UU, possessing immensely powerful STAB attacks, granted access to the new Flip Turn, and an incredible speed tier that allows it to outrun incredible threats such as Jirachi, Nihilego, and Victini, and allows it to speed tie the terrifying Terrakion.
- Keldeo's variety of sets and offensive utility not only allow it to fit onto nearly any offensive team, but make it an instant threat from team preview, with multitudes of ways to bypass its defensive answers with its raw damage output.
- Choice Specs Keldeo is incredible for blasting through teams with ease, sporting the insane damage of its STAB attacks that leave the majority of the tier shaken, with reliable switchins being very far and few inbetween, but come in the form of threats such as Amoonguss, Primarina, Tapu Bulu, and Slowking.
- Calm Mind allows Keldeo to set up in the face of many typical answers such as Amoonguss, creating incredibly early threats to sweep through teams.
- Choice Scarf allows Keldeo to trade some of its power for an incredible speed tier, letting it outrun the likes of Alakazam, Terrakion, and Zeraora.
- Keldeo, however, can be reliably answered by threats such as Starmie and Slowking, who can threaten it back with their respective STAB moves.
- Threats that can outpace it such as Alakazam and Zeraora reliably revenge kill it as well, making it unable to stick around after a KO.
- Keldeo's movepool is also quite shallow, leaving it reliant on its special attack to muscle through most checks.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Air Slash / Icy Wind
move 4: Flip Turn
Item: Choice Specs
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Keldeo's STAB moves in Hydro Pump and Secret Sword allow Keldeo to wreck havoc on the UU metagame, with Secret Sword allowing Keldeo to cleanly answer specially defensive walls such as Chansey, Gastrodon, and Rotom-W. Choice Specs allow Keldeo to 2HKO Tapu Bulu and Salamence with Hydro Pump.
- Air Slash is another option for nailing Grass-type Pokemon harder such as Amoonguss, while OHKOing Tapu Bulu and 2HKOing Assault Vest Tangrowth
- Icy Wind allows Keldeo to hit Ice-type weak Pokemon such as Salamence and Tangrowth, while providing a speed drop that allows Keldeo to cleanly outspeed and KO Clangorus Soul Kommo-o, preventing it from getting away with setup.
- Flip Turn allows Keldeo to create momentum against switchins such as Amoonguss and Slowking, and bring in its teammates such as Zeraora to threaten Keldeo's checks.
- Toxic is an alternative option that allows Keldeo to pressure its checks with status, making it harder to consistently check over longer games.
- Surf is also a decent STAB option, while passing on the insane damage of Hydro Pump, the more reliable accuracy and higher PP can be favorable.
- Keldeo naturally fits onto virtually any offensive team, due to its incredible offensive presence with its powerful STABs and access to a pivot move in Flip Turn.
- Keldeo's power can also allow it to cleanly fit into some balance teams as a late game cleaner.
- Keldeo enjoys support from Grass-types such as Amoonguss and Tapu Bulu to make solid resists for Electric-type threats such as Zeraora and Rotom-W.
- Pivot support from Scizor, Jirachi, and Zeraora also create great opportunity for Keldeo, as it can threaten the checks such as Chandulure and Krookodile with its powerful STAB, while Scizor and Jirachi in turn can check Tapu Bulu, with Zeraora being able to check Azumarill and Primarina.
- Dark-types such as Galarian Moltres and Krookodile can take advantage by switching into the Psychic- and Ghost-type threats looking to take down Keldeo such as Alakazam, while halting setup of Polteageist. This allows Keldeo to freely click Secret Sword to clean up teams late game.
- Rain from Drizzle Politoed can turn Keldeo into a different beast of its own, elevating the damage output of its STAB Hydro Pump to absolutely ridiculous numbers, letting it rip through and 2HKO many resists such as Kommo-o, Rotom-W, Tentacruel, and Amoonguss.
- Slowking can support with Future Sight to provide additional damage onto Keldeo's already incredible output, making otherwise safe pivots such as Amoonguss unable to enter, while forcing in opposing Dark-types such as Umbreon that Slowking would use Teleport to pivot out of.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Scald
move 3: Secret Sword
move 4: Substitute
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Calm Mind allows Keldeo to set up, with only a couple boosts being needed to let it break through checks such as Amoonguss and Tangrowth.
- Scald is Keldeo's primary Water-type STAB, allowing Keldeo to not only do great amounts of general damage, but inflict burn on switchins such as Amoonguss and Tapu Bulu.
- Secret Sword allows Keldeo to break through Specially Defensive targets such as Chansey, Gastrodon, and Rotom-W.
- Substitute allows Keldeo to break up passive teams with ease, making it much more immediately threatening by getting substitute up in front of threats such as Chansey, Future Sight Slowking, and Gastrodon.
- Keldeo fits onto Offense and Balance teams well as a breaker, due to its ability to threaten sweeps early.
- Poison- and Steel-types such as Amoonguss and Celesteela are great for getting rid of the Fairy-type threats such as Azumarill, Primarina, and Hatterene wanting to stop it from setting up, while Keldeo threatens back the Ground-types such as Mamoswine and Nidoqueen that threaten them.
- Keldeo appreciates the Electric-type immunity from Ground-types such as Nidoqueen and Krookodile that allow them to switch into Electric-type threats such as Zeraora and Rotom-H. Ground types can also provide hazard support, chipping away at checks such as Tapu Bulu.
- Pairing Keldeo with other breakers such as Kyurem and Bisharp is great for weakening teams quickly, as Keldeo most common Keldeo switchins such as Amoonguss and Slowking cannot risk taking hits from Keldeo’s teammates, giving it more room to setup cleanly.
- Victini can remove bulky Grass-types such as Tangrowth and Amoonguss, while overwhelming Slowking, and giving it entry through U-Turn to find opportunity against Victini checks such as Rhyperior.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Icy Wind / Toxic
move 4: Flip Turn
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Paragraph 1
- Keldeo uses it's STAB Hydro Pump to grab revenge kills on fast threats such as Terrakion and Lycanroc-Dusk, with Surf being a good alternative option due to it's reliable accuracy and higher PP.
- Icy Wind is important coverage for Keldeo, allowing it to score KOs on threats such as Grass-types in Tangrowth and Tapu Bulu, alongside an OHKO on the Dragon-type Salamence.
- Flip Turn allows Keldeo to bring in teammates such as Mamoswine, and Bisharp who can pressure Keldeo checks such as Amoonguss and Slowking.
- Toxic allows Keldeo to put passive damage on threats such as Slowking, Tangrowth, and Tapu Bulu, making it more difficult for Keldeo to be walled over long games.
- Choice Scarf gives Keldeo the speed tier to outrun the entire unboosted metagame, making it an incredible cleaner for late game scenarios.
- Keldeo’s Choice Scarf set functions incredibly well as a late game cleaner for offense teams, with its damage being more than enough to KO many threats such as weakened Zeraora, Scizor, and Krookodile.
- Keldeo appreciates offensive support from hazards, such as Stealth Rock from Krookodile and Jirachi, as it chips opponents over games to make Keldeo’s job in cleaning up matches easier.
- Bulky switchins such as Tapu Bulu and Rotom-W can be troublesome for Keldeo, so pivoting into Pokemon that can check them such as Amoonguss make for solid teammates.
- Dragon Dance Gyarados is obnoxious for Keldeo, so threats that can check it such as Skarmory make for solid options as well. Lycanroc-Dusk can revenge kill Gyarados as well, making it a good offensive teammate.
- Fire-types such as Chandelure also make for great teammates, being able to pressure out Grass-types such as Amoonguss and Tapu Bulu, while packing coverage for handling Water-types such as Rotom-W, Primarina, and Gastrodon.
- Thundurus can help break Slowking, who otherwise counters Keldeo.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
- Focus Blast is an optional STAB to better threaten physically defensive threats such as Physically Defensive Gastrodon and Tangrowth looking to switch into Secret Sword, but is often not used because of it's shaky accuracy, and can be typically better handled by Keldeo's standard coverage.
- A stallbreaking set can be attempted with Taunt + Toxic, but is not suggested due to being outclassed by Keldeo’s Calm Mind in terms of breaking power.
- Calm Mind + 3 Attacks is good for additional coverage, but lacks the safety of setting up behind Substitute.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Mixed Walls**: Mixed Walls such as Amoonguss, Slowking, and Kommo-o can cleanly switch into STAB attacks from Keldeo, and threaten it back if it is choice locked. However, these Pokemon must be incredibly careful not to switch into Keldeo’s coverage attacks as they can easily make work of them. Slowking, however, does not fear this, and can switch freely into Keldeo.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-type Pokemon such as Hatterene, Azumarill, and Primarina can cleanly switch into Keldeo’s fighting STAB, and threaten it with their STAB attacks, with Azumarill and Primarina also being able to switch into Hydro Pump in some occasions, but they all must be careful not to get chipped down over games, as Keldeo can break through these checks when chipped.
**Faster Revenge Killers**: With the exception of Keldeo’s Choice Scarf set, Keldeo is prone to being revenge killed by faster threats such as Alakazam, Thundurus, and Zeraora, who can quickly remove him from play. These checks however cannot directly switch in.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[SBPC, 468904]]
- Quality checked by: [[Twilight, 344575]], [username2, userid2], [username3, userid3]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
- Keldeo has consistently been a top threat in the current generation of UU, possessing immensely powerful STAB attacks, granted access to the new Flip Turn, and an incredible speed tier that allows it to outrun incredible threats such as Jirachi, Nihilego, and Victini, and allows it to speed tie the terrifying Terrakion.
- Keldeo's variety of sets and offensive utility not only allow it to fit onto nearly any offensive team, but make it an instant threat from team preview, with multitudes of ways to bypass its defensive answers with its raw damage output.
- Choice Specs Keldeo is incredible for blasting through teams with ease, sporting the insane damage of its STAB attacks that leave the majority of the tier shaken, with reliable switchins being very far and few inbetween, but come in the form of threats such as Amoonguss, Primarina, Tapu Bulu, and Slowking.
- Calm Mind allows Keldeo to set up in the face of many typical answers such as Amoonguss, creating incredibly early threats to sweep through teams.
- Choice Scarf allows Keldeo to trade some of its power for an incredible speed tier, letting it outrun the likes of Alakazam, Terrakion, and Zeraora.
- Keldeo, however, can be reliably answered by threats such as Starmie and Slowking, who can threaten it back with their respective STAB moves.
- Threats that can outpace it such as Alakazam and Zeraora reliably revenge kill it as well, making it unable to stick around after a KO.
- Keldeo's movepool is also quite shallow, leaving it reliant on its special attack to muscle through most checks.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Air Slash / Icy Wind
move 4: Flip Turn
Item: Choice Specs
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Keldeo's STAB moves in Hydro Pump and Secret Sword allow Keldeo to wreck havoc on the UU metagame, with Secret Sword allowing Keldeo to cleanly answer specially defensive walls such as Chansey, Gastrodon, and Rotom-W. Choice Specs allow Keldeo to 2HKO Tapu Bulu and Salamence with Hydro Pump.
- Air Slash is another option for nailing Grass-type Pokemon harder such as Amoonguss, while OHKOing Tapu Bulu and 2HKOing Assault Vest Tangrowth
- Icy Wind allows Keldeo to hit Ice-type weak Pokemon such as Salamence and Tangrowth, while providing a speed drop that allows Keldeo to cleanly outspeed and KO Clangorus Soul Kommo-o, preventing it from getting away with setup.
- Flip Turn allows Keldeo to create momentum against switchins such as Amoonguss and Slowking, and bring in its teammates such as Zeraora to threaten Keldeo's checks.
- Toxic is an alternative option that allows Keldeo to pressure its checks with status, making it harder to consistently check over longer games.
- Surf is also a decent STAB option, while passing on the insane damage of Hydro Pump, the more reliable accuracy and higher PP can be favorable.
- Keldeo naturally fits onto virtually any offensive team, due to its incredible offensive presence with its powerful STABs and access to a pivot move in Flip Turn.
- Keldeo's power can also allow it to cleanly fit into some balance teams as a late game cleaner.
- Keldeo enjoys support from Grass-types such as Amoonguss and Tapu Bulu to make solid resists for Electric-type threats such as Zeraora and Rotom-W.
- Pivot support from Scizor, Jirachi, and Zeraora also create great opportunity for Keldeo, as it can threaten the checks such as Chandulure and Krookodile with its powerful STAB, while Scizor and Jirachi in turn can check Tapu Bulu, with Zeraora being able to check Azumarill and Primarina.
- Dark-types such as Galarian Moltres and Krookodile can take advantage by switching into the Psychic- and Ghost-type threats looking to take down Keldeo such as Alakazam, while halting setup of Polteageist. This allows Keldeo to freely click Secret Sword to clean up teams late game.
- Rain from Drizzle Politoed can turn Keldeo into a different beast of its own, elevating the damage output of its STAB Hydro Pump to absolutely ridiculous numbers, letting it rip through and 2HKO many resists such as Kommo-o, Rotom-W, Tentacruel, and Amoonguss.
- Slowking can support with Future Sight to provide additional damage onto Keldeo's already incredible output, making otherwise safe pivots such as Amoonguss unable to enter, while forcing in opposing Dark-types such as Umbreon that Slowking would use Teleport to pivot out of.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Scald
move 3: Secret Sword
move 4: Substitute
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Calm Mind allows Keldeo to set up, with only a couple boosts being needed to let it break through checks such as Amoonguss and Tangrowth.
- Scald is Keldeo's primary Water-type STAB, allowing Keldeo to not only do great amounts of general damage, but inflict burn on switchins such as Amoonguss and Tapu Bulu.
- Secret Sword allows Keldeo to break through Specially Defensive targets such as Chansey, Gastrodon, and Rotom-W.
- Substitute allows Keldeo to break up passive teams with ease, making it much more immediately threatening by getting substitute up in front of threats such as Chansey, Future Sight Slowking, and Gastrodon.
- Keldeo fits onto Offense and Balance teams well as a breaker, due to its ability to threaten sweeps early.
- Poison- and Steel-types such as Amoonguss and Celesteela are great for getting rid of the Fairy-type threats such as Azumarill, Primarina, and Hatterene wanting to stop it from setting up, while Keldeo threatens back the Ground-types such as Mamoswine and Nidoqueen that threaten them.
- Keldeo appreciates the Electric-type immunity from Ground-types such as Nidoqueen and Krookodile that allow them to switch into Electric-type threats such as Zeraora and Rotom-H. Ground types can also provide hazard support, chipping away at checks such as Tapu Bulu.
- Pairing Keldeo with other breakers such as Kyurem and Bisharp is great for weakening teams quickly, as Keldeo most common Keldeo switchins such as Amoonguss and Slowking cannot risk taking hits from Keldeo’s teammates, giving it more room to setup cleanly.
- Victini can remove bulky Grass-types such as Tangrowth and Amoonguss, while overwhelming Slowking, and giving it entry through U-Turn to find opportunity against Victini checks such as Rhyperior.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Icy Wind / Toxic
move 4: Flip Turn
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Paragraph 1
- Keldeo uses it's STAB Hydro Pump to grab revenge kills on fast threats such as Terrakion and Lycanroc-Dusk, with Surf being a good alternative option due to it's reliable accuracy and higher PP.
- Icy Wind is important coverage for Keldeo, allowing it to score KOs on threats such as Grass-types in Tangrowth and Tapu Bulu, alongside an OHKO on the Dragon-type Salamence.
- Flip Turn allows Keldeo to bring in teammates such as Mamoswine, and Bisharp who can pressure Keldeo checks such as Amoonguss and Slowking.
- Toxic allows Keldeo to put passive damage on threats such as Slowking, Tangrowth, and Tapu Bulu, making it more difficult for Keldeo to be walled over long games.
- Choice Scarf gives Keldeo the speed tier to outrun the entire unboosted metagame, making it an incredible cleaner for late game scenarios.
- Keldeo’s Choice Scarf set functions incredibly well as a late game cleaner for offense teams, with its damage being more than enough to KO many threats such as weakened Zeraora, Scizor, and Krookodile.
- Keldeo appreciates offensive support from hazards, such as Stealth Rock from Krookodile and Jirachi, as it chips opponents over games to make Keldeo’s job in cleaning up matches easier.
- Bulky switchins such as Tapu Bulu and Rotom-W can be troublesome for Keldeo, so pivoting into Pokemon that can check them such as Amoonguss make for solid teammates.
- Dragon Dance Gyarados is obnoxious for Keldeo, so threats that can check it such as Skarmory make for solid options as well. Lycanroc-Dusk can revenge kill Gyarados as well, making it a good offensive teammate.
- Fire-types such as Chandelure also make for great teammates, being able to pressure out Grass-types such as Amoonguss and Tapu Bulu, while packing coverage for handling Water-types such as Rotom-W, Primarina, and Gastrodon.
- Thundurus can help break Slowking, who otherwise counters Keldeo.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
- Focus Blast is an optional STAB to better threaten physically defensive threats such as Physically Defensive Gastrodon and Tangrowth looking to switch into Secret Sword, but is often not used because of it's shaky accuracy, and can be typically better handled by Keldeo's standard coverage.
- A stallbreaking set can be attempted with Taunt + Toxic, but is not suggested due to being outclassed by Keldeo’s Calm Mind in terms of breaking power.
- Calm Mind + 3 Attacks is good for additional coverage, but lacks the safety of setting up behind Substitute.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Mixed Walls**: Mixed Walls such as Amoonguss, Slowking, and Kommo-o can cleanly switch into STAB attacks from Keldeo, and threaten it back if it is choice locked. However, these Pokemon must be incredibly careful not to switch into Keldeo’s coverage attacks as they can easily make work of them. Slowking, however, does not fear this, and can switch freely into Keldeo.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-type Pokemon such as Hatterene, Azumarill, and Primarina can cleanly switch into Keldeo’s fighting STAB, and threaten it with their STAB attacks, with Azumarill and Primarina also being able to switch into Hydro Pump in some occasions, but they all must be careful not to get chipped down over games, as Keldeo can break through these checks when chipped.
**Faster Revenge Killers**: With the exception of Keldeo’s Choice Scarf set, Keldeo is prone to being revenge killed by faster threats such as Alakazam, Thundurus, and Zeraora, who can quickly remove him from play. These checks however cannot directly switch in.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[SBPC, 468904]]
- Quality checked by: [[Twilight, 344575]], [username2, userid2], [username3, userid3]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
Last edited:
