[OVERVIEW]
Dragon
========
With great Attack and Special Attack backed by a fantastic movepool, Kyurem-B is Dragon's most powerful mixed wallbreaker. It uses BoltBeam coverage to hit almost the entire tier at least neutrally and is particularly effective at ripping apart the Flying defensive core of Skarmory, Zapdos, and Mantine as a result. In addition to beating Flying, Kyurem-B also rips apart Steel teams with the use of Earth Power and Hidden Power Fire. Access to Roost also improves its longevity throughout a match and supplements its defensive utility thanks to its great bulk and Ice typing making it the only legal Ice switch-in for Dragon teams. While the Ice typing helps Kyurem-B take on Ice-types, it's quite poor defensively otherwise and gives Kyurem-B a host of weaknesses including a weakness to common Fighting- and Rock-type coverage moves. Its Speed, while great for a wallbreaker, is still unimpressive, leaving it quite vulnerable to offense and faster Pokemon such as Mega Lopunny that outspeed and KO it. Because it is typically a mixed attacker, Kyurem-B struggles with beating mixed walls like Chansey and Mega Sableye.
[SET]
name: Life Orb Wallbreaker (Dragon)
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Fusion Bolt
move 3: Earth Power / Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Roost / Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Teravolt
nature: Naive
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Ice Beam is Kyurem-B's most reliable STAB attack, dealing huge damage to almost any Pokemon that doesn't resist it and serving as its primary move for wallbreaking. Fusion Bolt forms the powerful BoltBeam coverage combination with Ice Beam to enable Kyurem-B to break Flying and Water defensive cores. As it deals physical damage, it combines with Ice Beam to let Kyurem-B break both physical and special walls. Earth Power is the most useful coverage move, able to 2HKO Steel-type Pokemon such as Klefki and Jirachi that can otherwise switch into Kyurem-B's attacks. Roost gives Kyurem-B longevity, letting it heal the Life Orb recoil and chip damage that it may take from walls like Skarmory. For an all-out attacker moveset, Hidden Power Fire is very useful for breaking offensive Steel teams, especially when used in conjunction with Earth Power. It can also simply replace Earth Power instead, sacrificing perfect anti-Steel coverage for Roost's utility.
Set Details
========
Maximum Speed investment and a Naive nature make Kyurem-B as fast as possible, outspeeding certain Pokemon including Nidoking and Suicune. Because its Special Attack is much lower than its Attack, Kyurem-B prefers to have 252 Special Attack EVs to improve its STAB Ice Beam's damage output. Life Orb's boost makes Kyurem-B even stronger and lets it wallbreak, making sure it can OHKO threats like Tapu Koko and offensive Mega Scizor with its coverage moves. With Teravolt, Kyurem-B is able to ignore defensive abilities such as Mega Venusaur and Mamoswine's Thick Fat, Skarmory and Forretress's Sturdy, and Rotom-W's Levitate.
Usage Tips
========
With its decent bulk, Kyurem-B is capable of switching into walls that lack status moves like Skarmory to proceed to force them out with the threat of its powerful attacks. Kyurem-B also serves as a decent switch-in to Ice-type attacks from Pokemon like Mamoswine and Tapu Koko, but it should be careful of the possibility of super effective damage, as Mamoswine can carry Superpower and Tapu Koko occasionally uses Dazzling Gleam. Try to keep entry hazards off the field for Kyurem-B, as even with Roost, the residual damage can wear it down very quickly when combined with Life Orb recoil. Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes are especially threatening to Kyurem-B's longevity. For a similar reason, while walls are rarely able to actually damage Kyurem-B seriously, all forms of status are crippling to it, and they should be avoided. Preserving Kyurem-B's health is especially necessary for matchups against Pokemon with strong Ice-type attacks, such as Choice Scarf Greninja, where it is needed to reliably check these threats. Once in play, because Kyurem-B has very few switch-ins, it's typically quite safe to just fire off whatever attacks are strongest against the current foe. Even if the opponent switches out, as long as Kyurem-B is faster, it should still be a huge threat to almost anything that comes in. Kyurem-B is very capable of taking out walls like Toxapex that can stop its teammates from sweeping. As a result, it's important to try to bring it in as often as possible early-game through free or double switches. In some matchups, especially against Flying where Kyurem-B's BoltBeam combination is critical to winning, it's even more important to keep it safe, as getting afflicted by Toxic can lead to the foes beating Kyurem-B in ways that aren't otherwise possible, such as being stalled by Substitute Zapdos. In the Steel matchup, your opponent will try to scout Kyurem-B's moveset; because they don't know what combination of coverage moves to expect, try to use that knowledge to your advantage.
Team Options
========
Stealth Rock damage is very useful for putting some walls such as Alolan Muk into range of Kyurem-B's attacks, so Garchomp is a fantastic partner. While offensive Garchomp is also capable of breaking Steel-types alongside Kyurem-B, defensive sets can serve as a check to threats like Mega Scizor that Kyurem-B may be unable to pressure without Hidden Power Fire. Choice Band Dragonite's incredibly powerful Outrage can break even walls such as Porygon2 and Mega Sableye that Kyurem-B is unable to get past. Together, they form a strong wallbreaking core that very few teams can handle. Hydreigon is another wallbreaking option that can also use Taunt to be a stallbreaker; while not as generally useful as Dragonite, it is more specialized and able to break types such as Psychic and Steel with its strong Dark Pulse and coverage moves. Setup sweepers such as Kommo-o, Mega Latias, and Mega Altaria all greatly appreciate Kyurem-B's wallbreaking presence, as it is capable of taking out Pokemon such as Toxapex and Skarmory that check them. Due to Kyurem-B's poor Speed, a Choice Scarf user such as Latios or Latias is ideal for revenge killing faster Dragon-types and other fast attackers that force Kyurem-B out. They both also have Defog to keep Kyurem-B safe from entry hazards. In exchange, with Earth Power, Kyurem-B can beat walls such as Alolan Muk and Klefki that wall them. While weaker than Latios, Latias brings the much appreciated Healing Wish, which can give Kyurem-B a second chance to finish off remaining walls. If Kyurem-B lacks Roost, Healing Wish becomes even more valuable.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Dragon
--------
Kyurem-B can opt for a BoltBeam + SubRoost set to be more useful against offense and faster threats, but the lack of coverage makes it much less useful against the threats Kyurem-B typically beats. Freeze Shock can be used with Icium Z for a one-time Subzero Slammer that can at least cripple if not OHKO the bulkiest of walls including Mega Sableye and Chansey, making sure Kyurem-B is definitely capable of taking out a wall. Unfortunately, it tends to be unreliable, as Freeze Shock is a two-turn attack and should not be used otherwise, and its other moves will be much weaker. Choice Band boosts Kyurem-B's Attack to unparalleled levels, with Outrage notably being able to 2HKO even Porygon2. However, even if this makes Kyurem-B a wallbreaker that can't be defensively countered, one of Kyurem-B's greatest strengths is in its coverage and being able to switch moves, which Choice Band prevents. Choice Scarf surprises opponents by letting Kyurem-B outspeed Pokemon such as Mega Diancie that otherwise threaten it. The lack of power is noticeable, though, and Kyurem-B will be almost unable to wallbreak at all.
Checks and Counters
===================
Dragon
--------
**Mixed Walls**: Because Kyurem-B spreads its offenses across both physical and special attacks to beat specialized walls, mixed walls such as Porygon2 and Mega Sableye have no problem walling it. They do need to be careful of the rare physically oriented variants that are able to 2HKO them, though.
**Faster Pokemon**: Due to Kyurem-B's middling Speed, it is outsped by many Pokemon, and those with super effective STAB attacks, such as Terrakion and Latios, can OHKO it before it can attack. Even those that cannot OHKO it, such as Mega Swampert, can typically take at least one hit in order to 2HKO it.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-types with STAB attacks can typically either outspeed Kyurem-B, like Mega Diancie and Mega Gardevoir, to OHKO it or force it out. Clefable is able to recover off damage taken from Kyurem-B's Ice Beam with Soft-Boiled and make it take Life Orb recoil to put it in range of Moonblast.
**Steel-types**: While they need to be careful around the possibility of Hidden Power Fire + Earth Power, if Kyurem-B does not carry both, Steel-types that are not weak to the move it does have are able to at least check if not counter it. Without Hidden Power Fire, Mega Scizor can set up on Kyurem-B, and without Earth Power, Magnezone can beat it.
**Residual Damage**: By compounding with Life Orb recoil, residual damage from entry hazards and status can wear down Kyurem-B and make it very easy to take out with either priority or a revenge killer.
**Status**: Status can completely prevent Kyurem-B from wallbreaking, as paralysis will let many walls outspeed it, notably allowing Flying-types to now check it, burns will make its Fusion Bolt very weak, and poison lets some walls stall it out.
Dragon
========
With great Attack and Special Attack backed by a fantastic movepool, Kyurem-B is Dragon's most powerful mixed wallbreaker. It uses BoltBeam coverage to hit almost the entire tier at least neutrally and is particularly effective at ripping apart the Flying defensive core of Skarmory, Zapdos, and Mantine as a result. In addition to beating Flying, Kyurem-B also rips apart Steel teams with the use of Earth Power and Hidden Power Fire. Access to Roost also improves its longevity throughout a match and supplements its defensive utility thanks to its great bulk and Ice typing making it the only legal Ice switch-in for Dragon teams. While the Ice typing helps Kyurem-B take on Ice-types, it's quite poor defensively otherwise and gives Kyurem-B a host of weaknesses including a weakness to common Fighting- and Rock-type coverage moves. Its Speed, while great for a wallbreaker, is still unimpressive, leaving it quite vulnerable to offense and faster Pokemon such as Mega Lopunny that outspeed and KO it. Because it is typically a mixed attacker, Kyurem-B struggles with beating mixed walls like Chansey and Mega Sableye.
[SET]
name: Life Orb Wallbreaker (Dragon)
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Fusion Bolt
move 3: Earth Power / Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Roost / Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Teravolt
nature: Naive
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Ice Beam is Kyurem-B's most reliable STAB attack, dealing huge damage to almost any Pokemon that doesn't resist it and serving as its primary move for wallbreaking. Fusion Bolt forms the powerful BoltBeam coverage combination with Ice Beam to enable Kyurem-B to break Flying and Water defensive cores. As it deals physical damage, it combines with Ice Beam to let Kyurem-B break both physical and special walls. Earth Power is the most useful coverage move, able to 2HKO Steel-type Pokemon such as Klefki and Jirachi that can otherwise switch into Kyurem-B's attacks. Roost gives Kyurem-B longevity, letting it heal the Life Orb recoil and chip damage that it may take from walls like Skarmory. For an all-out attacker moveset, Hidden Power Fire is very useful for breaking offensive Steel teams, especially when used in conjunction with Earth Power. It can also simply replace Earth Power instead, sacrificing perfect anti-Steel coverage for Roost's utility.
Set Details
========
Maximum Speed investment and a Naive nature make Kyurem-B as fast as possible, outspeeding certain Pokemon including Nidoking and Suicune. Because its Special Attack is much lower than its Attack, Kyurem-B prefers to have 252 Special Attack EVs to improve its STAB Ice Beam's damage output. Life Orb's boost makes Kyurem-B even stronger and lets it wallbreak, making sure it can OHKO threats like Tapu Koko and offensive Mega Scizor with its coverage moves. With Teravolt, Kyurem-B is able to ignore defensive abilities such as Mega Venusaur and Mamoswine's Thick Fat, Skarmory and Forretress's Sturdy, and Rotom-W's Levitate.
Usage Tips
========
With its decent bulk, Kyurem-B is capable of switching into walls that lack status moves like Skarmory to proceed to force them out with the threat of its powerful attacks. Kyurem-B also serves as a decent switch-in to Ice-type attacks from Pokemon like Mamoswine and Tapu Koko, but it should be careful of the possibility of super effective damage, as Mamoswine can carry Superpower and Tapu Koko occasionally uses Dazzling Gleam. Try to keep entry hazards off the field for Kyurem-B, as even with Roost, the residual damage can wear it down very quickly when combined with Life Orb recoil. Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes are especially threatening to Kyurem-B's longevity. For a similar reason, while walls are rarely able to actually damage Kyurem-B seriously, all forms of status are crippling to it, and they should be avoided. Preserving Kyurem-B's health is especially necessary for matchups against Pokemon with strong Ice-type attacks, such as Choice Scarf Greninja, where it is needed to reliably check these threats. Once in play, because Kyurem-B has very few switch-ins, it's typically quite safe to just fire off whatever attacks are strongest against the current foe. Even if the opponent switches out, as long as Kyurem-B is faster, it should still be a huge threat to almost anything that comes in. Kyurem-B is very capable of taking out walls like Toxapex that can stop its teammates from sweeping. As a result, it's important to try to bring it in as often as possible early-game through free or double switches. In some matchups, especially against Flying where Kyurem-B's BoltBeam combination is critical to winning, it's even more important to keep it safe, as getting afflicted by Toxic can lead to the foes beating Kyurem-B in ways that aren't otherwise possible, such as being stalled by Substitute Zapdos. In the Steel matchup, your opponent will try to scout Kyurem-B's moveset; because they don't know what combination of coverage moves to expect, try to use that knowledge to your advantage.
Team Options
========
Stealth Rock damage is very useful for putting some walls such as Alolan Muk into range of Kyurem-B's attacks, so Garchomp is a fantastic partner. While offensive Garchomp is also capable of breaking Steel-types alongside Kyurem-B, defensive sets can serve as a check to threats like Mega Scizor that Kyurem-B may be unable to pressure without Hidden Power Fire. Choice Band Dragonite's incredibly powerful Outrage can break even walls such as Porygon2 and Mega Sableye that Kyurem-B is unable to get past. Together, they form a strong wallbreaking core that very few teams can handle. Hydreigon is another wallbreaking option that can also use Taunt to be a stallbreaker; while not as generally useful as Dragonite, it is more specialized and able to break types such as Psychic and Steel with its strong Dark Pulse and coverage moves. Setup sweepers such as Kommo-o, Mega Latias, and Mega Altaria all greatly appreciate Kyurem-B's wallbreaking presence, as it is capable of taking out Pokemon such as Toxapex and Skarmory that check them. Due to Kyurem-B's poor Speed, a Choice Scarf user such as Latios or Latias is ideal for revenge killing faster Dragon-types and other fast attackers that force Kyurem-B out. They both also have Defog to keep Kyurem-B safe from entry hazards. In exchange, with Earth Power, Kyurem-B can beat walls such as Alolan Muk and Klefki that wall them. While weaker than Latios, Latias brings the much appreciated Healing Wish, which can give Kyurem-B a second chance to finish off remaining walls. If Kyurem-B lacks Roost, Healing Wish becomes even more valuable.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Dragon
--------
Kyurem-B can opt for a BoltBeam + SubRoost set to be more useful against offense and faster threats, but the lack of coverage makes it much less useful against the threats Kyurem-B typically beats. Freeze Shock can be used with Icium Z for a one-time Subzero Slammer that can at least cripple if not OHKO the bulkiest of walls including Mega Sableye and Chansey, making sure Kyurem-B is definitely capable of taking out a wall. Unfortunately, it tends to be unreliable, as Freeze Shock is a two-turn attack and should not be used otherwise, and its other moves will be much weaker. Choice Band boosts Kyurem-B's Attack to unparalleled levels, with Outrage notably being able to 2HKO even Porygon2. However, even if this makes Kyurem-B a wallbreaker that can't be defensively countered, one of Kyurem-B's greatest strengths is in its coverage and being able to switch moves, which Choice Band prevents. Choice Scarf surprises opponents by letting Kyurem-B outspeed Pokemon such as Mega Diancie that otherwise threaten it. The lack of power is noticeable, though, and Kyurem-B will be almost unable to wallbreak at all.
Checks and Counters
===================
Dragon
--------
**Mixed Walls**: Because Kyurem-B spreads its offenses across both physical and special attacks to beat specialized walls, mixed walls such as Porygon2 and Mega Sableye have no problem walling it. They do need to be careful of the rare physically oriented variants that are able to 2HKO them, though.
**Faster Pokemon**: Due to Kyurem-B's middling Speed, it is outsped by many Pokemon, and those with super effective STAB attacks, such as Terrakion and Latios, can OHKO it before it can attack. Even those that cannot OHKO it, such as Mega Swampert, can typically take at least one hit in order to 2HKO it.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-types with STAB attacks can typically either outspeed Kyurem-B, like Mega Diancie and Mega Gardevoir, to OHKO it or force it out. Clefable is able to recover off damage taken from Kyurem-B's Ice Beam with Soft-Boiled and make it take Life Orb recoil to put it in range of Moonblast.
**Steel-types**: While they need to be careful around the possibility of Hidden Power Fire + Earth Power, if Kyurem-B does not carry both, Steel-types that are not weak to the move it does have are able to at least check if not counter it. Without Hidden Power Fire, Mega Scizor can set up on Kyurem-B, and without Earth Power, Magnezone can beat it.
**Residual Damage**: By compounding with Life Orb recoil, residual damage from entry hazards and status can wear down Kyurem-B and make it very easy to take out with either priority or a revenge killer.
**Status**: Status can completely prevent Kyurem-B from wallbreaking, as paralysis will let many walls outspeed it, notably allowing Flying-types to now check it, burns will make its Fusion Bolt very weak, and poison lets some walls stall it out.
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