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[Overview]
<p>When looking at Latios's disappointing base stats, particularly his subpar bulk and below-average Special Attack, one might question why he should be used in Ubers. Latios's typing grants him weaknesses to the Dragon-, Ice-, Ghost-, and Bug-type attacks rampant in the metagame, and only offer resistances to Grass-, Electric-, Water-, Fire-, Psychic-, Fighting-, and Ground-type attacks in return; his STABs also have little offensive synergy. He lacks the ability to hit Steel-types hard, and he is forced to use the weather-reliant Surf, Hidden Power Fire, and Thunder for coverage.</p>
<p>Then what is it that makes him one of the most deadly sweepers in the game? The answer is simple: Soul Dew. The boost Soul Dew provides to Latios's mediocre stats allows him to smite his fellow dragons with ease. Raising Latios's bulk to respectable levels and boosting his Special Attack, Soul Dew allows him to take full advantage of his Speed, ability, and resistances and rival the titans that terrorize the Ubers metagame. However, Soul Dew will not make Latios perfect however; his movepool remains barren, and his physical defense feeble. He also faces competition from Latias, who boasts better Defense and who too can benefit from Soul Dew. Not all is lost for Latios though. By taking advantage of his colossal Special Attack and an ironically distinguished support movepool, Latios can remind all of his forgotten power.</p>
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psyshock
move 3: Dragon Pulse
move 4: Surf / Thunder / Roost
item: Soul Dew
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Latios's respectable Special Defense, huge Speed, and monstrous Special Attack allows him to effectively run a Calm Mind set. Calm Mind is the crux of the set; by powering up his already high Special Attack while bolstering his defenses, it makes him less prone to being revenge killed. Psyshock and Dragon Pulse form the bread-and-butter of the set, and allow Latios to essentially go mixed, while also providing the dragon Latios with a way to severely dent the pink blobs that might try to stop his sweep.</p>
<p>However, if you feel that Psyshock provides little coverage and your team has a way around Blissey and Chansey, you can opt to use either Surf, Thunder, or Roost in the second moveslot. In the rain, Surf brings down Excadrill, Heatran, and Steel Arceus. Thunder hits Steel-types neutrally, while also giving Latios a handy 30% chance to instantly cripple a Pokemon for the rest of the match. However, if you feel that neutral coverage on Steel-types is unnecessary, then you can opt to use Roost which lengthens Latios's longevity and easily allows him to gain more than one Calm Mind boost.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This Latios set appreciates Stealth Rock and Spikes support, as said entry hazards can push some of his enemies into OHKO range of one of his moves. Ferrothorn and Forretress can easily set up the coveted hazards, while also being able to switch into the one move Latios loathes: Outrage. In exchange, Latios synergizes nicely with these entry hazard layers, as he resists Fire-type moves aimed at Ferrothorn or Forretress.</p>
<p>Latios also enjoys dual screen and Wobbuffet support. Light Screen and Reflect patch up his weak defenses, allow him to set up multiple Calm Mind boosts, and make him less prone to being revenge killed. Courtesy of its access to Encore and Shadow Tag, Wobbuffet can virtually guarantee that Latios will always be able to safely set up one Calm Mind. Furthermore, Wobbuffet can also provide invaluable trap support for Latios by instantly removing its revenge killers with Counter and Mirror Coat.</p>
<p>Lastly, Latios pairs well with Kyogre. Not only does Kyogre power up Surf, increase Thunder's accuracy, and maim Ferrothorn and Chansey, it can also effectively combat Tyranitar, who can otherwise trap and Pursuit Latios to his doom. If one wants to avoid this scenario without running Kyogre support, then Grass Knot is an option in the fourth slot over other moves to 2HKO Tyranitar in sand. However, this is not recommended as Latios will struggle to damage Steel-types.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Thunder / Grass Knot
move 3: Surf / Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Psyshock / Roost / Dragon Pulse
item: Soul Dew
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This Latios variant attempts to take advantage of the free Calm Mind boost offered by Soul Dew to instantly bombard the enemy with powerful special attacks. Draco Meteor's power is enormous, and boasts the ability to OHKO virtually everything that doesn't resist it not named Blissey or Chansey. Thunder allows Latios to ruin Kyogre and Manaphy, while also providing decent coverage, but its reliance on rain might render it useless on certain teams. Grass Knot is a suitable alternative; while it is incapable of dealing damage to Manaphy and enemy Steel-types, it can take an enormous chunk of health out of opposing Groudon, Kyogre, and Tyranitar, regardless of the weather.</p>
<p>The third move allows Latios to hit Steel-types: Hidden Power Fire maims enemy Forretress, Ferrothorn, and Excadrill in the sun at the cost of losing the Speed tie with other Latios and Latias. On the other hand, Surf keeps Latios's ability to Speed tie with these Pokemon in exchange for leaving him at the mercy of enemy Ferrothorn. The last slot lets Latios use a STAB move that doesn't instantly cripple him. Dragon Pulse is a strong, reliable STAB, while Psyshock gives Latios the ability to damage Blissey and Chansey. However, if you feel that an extra STAB move is unnecessary, you can opt to use Roost to heighten Latios's longevity.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Similarly to the Calm Mind set, Latios finds Groudon and Kyogre to be great teammates. Not only do they make Latios's Hidden Power Fire and Surf more destructive, respectively, they provide fabulous offensive and defensive synergy as well. Kyogre can crush any Ferrothorn, Chansey, and Tyranitar that might stand in the way of Latios with a powerful Choice Specs Water Spout, while Latios is easily capable of destroying the few Pokemon that can switch into the dreaded Water Spout—namely Giratina, Latias, and Gastrodon—with a STAB and Soul Dew-boosted Draco Meteor. Groudon too makes short work of the aforementioned threats with Fire Punch and Earthquake, and can also provide Latios with Stealth Rock support to help it beat down Multiscale Lugia and Regenerator Ho-Oh.</p>
<p>Latios appreciates Spikes and Toxic Spikes support as well. As with the Calm Mind set, Ferrothorn and Forretress are wonderful partners thanks to their defensive synergy with Latios and ability to instantly litter the field with entry hazards.</p>
<p>However, these partners can also become Latios's worst enemies. If Latios doesn't pack Hidden Power Fire, Ferrothorn will have little trouble absorbing Latios's attacks. It can then set up Spikes and recover all the damage it takes with Leech Seed. Chansey is an even more terrifying foe than Ferrothorn, capable of tanking Psyshock, as it is not even 4HKOed by Psyshock after Latios has crippled himself with Draco Meteor. Latios's aversion to these Pokemon makes Ho-Oh and Blaziken very nice partners, as they boast the ability to severely dent, if not OHKO, Ferrothorn, Forretress, and Chansey with their STAB moves. In return, Latios can punch holes in Giratina and Lugia so that Blaziken and Ho-Oh can more easily sweep the enemy's team later.</p>
(Combine these two paragraphs)
[SET]
name: Dual Screens
move 1: Light Screen
move 2: Reflect
move 3: Draco Meteor / Roost
move 4: Memento
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Latios's typing, ability, high base Speed, and access to Memento enable him to distinguish himself as an exceptionally talented dual screen user. Light Screen and Reflect enable Latios to cushion both himself and his team from the enemies' attacks for eight turns. With Memento in his arsenal, Latios can sacrifice himself to lower the offensive stats of an enemy even further, allowing a teammate a free switch-in. The third moveslot choice depends on what the team needs. If Latios's only goal is to cripple an opponent, Draco Meteor lets him do heavy damage before lowering its attacking stats. In addition, Draco Meteor prevents Latios from being destroyed by Taunt and stops Rayquaza from setting up on him. Alternatively, Latios can easily set up screens more than once a match, and Roost enables him to heal himself to do so even more reliably.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The listed EV spread allows Latios to avoid a 2HKO on average from Timid Choice Scarf Palkia's Spacial Rend, and Speed tie with other Latios and Latias. If one feels that these Pokemon are simply too uncommon and wishes to increase Latios's bulk, a spread of 252 HP / 64 SpD / 192 Spe lets it outrun all non-Choice Scarf (all non-Choice Scarf what?), while 252 HP/ 160 SpD / 96 Spe enables it to outspeed all base 90s while retaining a fairly high amount of special bulk.</p>
<p>Latios can run moves besides Draco Meteor, or use a healing move for team support. Thunder Wave enables Latios to further cripple his enemies by cutting their Speed and the chance of full paralysis can even help his teammates get an extra boost. Tailwind enables Latios to double the Speed of his team. In particular, it can be used in conjunction with Memento for a teammate to take advantage of the boosts to both bulk and Speed. Finally, Latios can run Dragon Pulse as an option for more reliable STAB. However, Dragon Pulse is fairly weak and incapable of breaking even the Substitutes of a 252 / 0 Ho-Oh or Lugia.</p>
<p>As Latios's main purpose is to help a teammate sweep, it is a good idea to pair him up with stat-boosting teammates, such as Dragon Dance Rayquaza and Shell Smash Cloyster. In particular, Latios enjoys support from Mew and Gorebyss. They are capable of easily accumulating many boosts to pass to a teammate, who can further use the protection provided by dual screens to pave the way for a bulky sweep.</p>
[SET]
name: Special Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Dragon Pulse
move 3: Thunder / Grass Knot
move 4: Psyshock / Surf / Hidden Power Fire
item: Soul Dew
ability: Levitate
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Using Dragon Dance on a specially based Latios might sound absurd, but it provides a useful Speed boost that allows him to outrun and KO almost everything in the metagame. Latios's unique typing is an advantage in this case, as it allows him to take advantage of a stray Surf or Fire Blast to set up with Dragon Dance. These unique traits allow Latios to become a potent cleaner more than capable of striking fear into all teams late-game.</p>
<p>Dragon Pulse is strong, reliable STAB that will dent everything barring Chansey and Steel-types after Stealth Rock. Thunder assuages Latios's issues with Steel-types in the rain, and provides nice coverage to complement Dragon Pulse. Grass Knot, while incapable of hurting Steel-types, maims Tyranitar, Groudon, and Ground Arceus, scoring OHKOes on the latter two Pokemon and 2HKOes on Tyranitar. The last slot further improves Latios's coverage. With Psyshock, Latios gains the ability to muscle past Chansey, as the move will 2HKO after Stealth Rock. Psyshock, however, leaves Latios vulnerable to both Excadrill and Ferrothorn, two Pokemon that have little trouble stomaching the rest of Latios's attacks. Surf easily takes care of Excadrill, OHKOing it in rain, while Hidden Power Fire will OHKO Ferrothorn and Excadrill in sun. These moves also have nice coverage alongside Thunder and Grass Knot, respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Latios should only switch in late-game, by which time the opposition should be sufficiently weakened when the opposition has been weakened. Therefore, it enjoys entry hazard support; Stealth Rock, Spikes, and Toxic Spikes can all weaken enemies so that Latios can more easily sweep late-game. Ferrothorn and Forretress again excel at this role not only for their ability to set up entry hazards, but also for their ability to handily wear down the enemy via Leech Seed, Toxic, and Pain Split. These Pokemon also lure out Fire-type moves that Latios can switch in on and use to set up a free Dragon Dance on.</p>
<p>The level of prediction it takes to set up is quite high. If you feel uneasy switching Latios into threatening Pokemon or just want to guarantee a setup opportunity, you can use Wobbuffet. Wobbuffet's access to Encore and Shadow Tag eases Latios's setup, and allows him to setup on otherwise dangerous Pokemon, such as Dialga locked into Stealth Rock or Palkia locked into Surf.</p>
<p>Weather support is near-mandatory when using Latios, as his only options for hitting Steel-types rely on the weather for sufficient power. For example, a Hidden Power Fire in rainy weather will fail to 2HKO Ferrothorn and Excadrill, while a Surf in sunny weather will fail to 3HKO Heatran. If you simply cannot afford to put Kyogre or Groudon on your team, then it would be beneficial to pack extra insurance against these Pokemon. Magnezone can serve as insurance for removing these Pokemon from the match due to its unique typing and access to Magnet Pull.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Latios lacks any noteworthy options to use outside of those already listed. If you have an enormous aversion to Tyranitar and wish to maul his body around the battlefield like the fate of Hector, you can run Hidden Power Fighting. As it can also hit Ferrothorn, Excadrill, and Heatran, regardless of weather, it is not completely situational. It's not recommended, though, as it is fairly weak even against targets it hits super effectively.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Like many other Ubers Pokemon, Latios has no true "counter". There are, however, some that stand out from the pack. Chansey, Ho-Oh, and Lugia are not 2HKOed by any of unboosted Latios's moves if Stealth Rock is not up.</p>
<p>You can also look to taking advantage of Latios's reliance on weather to hit enemy Steel-types. For example, Ferrothorn and Heatran are all capable of walling a Latios in detrimental weather because Latios cannot 3HKO Heatran with a sun-weakened Surf or 2HKO Ferrothorn with a rain-weakened Hidden Power Fire. Excadrill distinguishes itself from the other Steel-types by being able to actually remove Latios from the match via Mold Breaker Earthquake if Latios is in the wrong weather. Jirachi does a similar job, but doesn't really care about which weather it is in, as it can avoid an OHKO from sun-boosted Hidden Power Fire and annoy Latios with the combination of Thunder Wave and Iron Head.</p>
<p>If you find yourself unable to pack any of these Steel-types on a team, then you might as well resort to revenge killing Latios. While Latios's Speed is high, it is susceptible to priority and faster Pokemon, particularly Swift Swim and Chlorophyll users. Users of strong physical moves, such as Kyurem-B, Garchomp, Genesect, Kabutops, and Kingdra, can patch up their low Speed stat via Choice Scarf or rain and remove non-Dragon Dance Latios from the field by targeting its weak Defense stat. Additionally, although Latios can normally cushion special attacks thanks to Soul Dew, he is hardly impervious to them in any way; strong special attacks can still plow through his sky-high Special Defense. Choice Scarf Dialga and Palkia can revenge kill Latios that lack a Calm Mind or Light Screen boost with STAB Draco Meteor.</p>
<p>Ghost, Dark, Rock, and Steel Arceus are all capable of stomaching incoming Draco Meteors, and can easily set up Calm Mind or outright KO Latios with their strong physical STABs. They must be wary of Latios utilizing dual screens or opposing Calm Mind Latios though, as they will be setup bait instead. Calm Mind Latios can be taken down by adding Roar to any of Calm Mind Arceus's movesets. Dark Arceus and physically inclined Arceus can beat Calm Mind Latios too; the former is immune to Psyshock, while the latter can OHKO Latios regardless of the number of Calm Minds he has amassed.</p>
<p>All Latios variants share a crippling weakness to Dark-type moves, Pursuit in particular. Should you be able to switch a Pursuit user into Latios, it will be able to checkmate Latios. Tyranitar and Scizor distinguish themselves with their ability to not only threaten Latios with their STAB, but also to tank a Draco Meteor with ease.</p>
<p>Lastly, Wobbuffet can easily annoy every Latios variant that exists. It turns the Calm Mind, Dragon Dance, and dual screens sets into setup bait, and boasts the ability to revenge kill Latios that have already used their STAB Draco Meteor.</p>
<p>When looking at Latios's disappointing base stats, particularly his subpar bulk and below-average Special Attack, one might question why he should be used in Ubers. Latios's typing grants him weaknesses to the Dragon-, Ice-, Ghost-, and Bug-type attacks rampant in the metagame, and only offer resistances to Grass-, Electric-, Water-, Fire-, Psychic-, Fighting-, and Ground-type attacks in return; his STABs also have little offensive synergy. He lacks the ability to hit Steel-types hard, and he is forced to use the weather-reliant Surf, Hidden Power Fire, and Thunder for coverage.</p>
<p>Then what is it that makes him one of the most deadly sweepers in the game? The answer is simple: Soul Dew. The boost Soul Dew provides to Latios's mediocre stats allows him to smite his fellow dragons with ease. Raising Latios's bulk to respectable levels and boosting his Special Attack, Soul Dew allows him to take full advantage of his Speed, ability, and resistances and rival the titans that terrorize the Ubers metagame. However, Soul Dew will not make Latios perfect however; his movepool remains barren, and his physical defense feeble. He also faces competition from Latias, who boasts better Defense and who too can benefit from Soul Dew. Not all is lost for Latios though. By taking advantage of his colossal Special Attack and an ironically distinguished support movepool, Latios can remind all of his forgotten power.</p>
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psyshock
move 3: Dragon Pulse
move 4: Surf / Thunder / Roost
item: Soul Dew
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Latios's respectable Special Defense, huge Speed, and monstrous Special Attack allows him to effectively run a Calm Mind set. Calm Mind is the crux of the set; by powering up his already high Special Attack while bolstering his defenses, it makes him less prone to being revenge killed. Psyshock and Dragon Pulse form the bread-and-butter of the set, and allow Latios to essentially go mixed, while also providing the dragon Latios with a way to severely dent the pink blobs that might try to stop his sweep.</p>
<p>However, if you feel that Psyshock provides little coverage and your team has a way around Blissey and Chansey, you can opt to use either Surf, Thunder, or Roost in the second moveslot. In the rain, Surf brings down Excadrill, Heatran, and Steel Arceus. Thunder hits Steel-types neutrally, while also giving Latios a handy 30% chance to instantly cripple a Pokemon for the rest of the match. However, if you feel that neutral coverage on Steel-types is unnecessary, then you can opt to use Roost which lengthens Latios's longevity and easily allows him to gain more than one Calm Mind boost.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This Latios set appreciates Stealth Rock and Spikes support, as said entry hazards can push some of his enemies into OHKO range of one of his moves. Ferrothorn and Forretress can easily set up the coveted hazards, while also being able to switch into the one move Latios loathes: Outrage. In exchange, Latios synergizes nicely with these entry hazard layers, as he resists Fire-type moves aimed at Ferrothorn or Forretress.</p>
<p>Latios also enjoys dual screen and Wobbuffet support. Light Screen and Reflect patch up his weak defenses, allow him to set up multiple Calm Mind boosts, and make him less prone to being revenge killed. Courtesy of its access to Encore and Shadow Tag, Wobbuffet can virtually guarantee that Latios will always be able to safely set up one Calm Mind. Furthermore, Wobbuffet can also provide invaluable trap support for Latios by instantly removing its revenge killers with Counter and Mirror Coat.</p>
<p>Lastly, Latios pairs well with Kyogre. Not only does Kyogre power up Surf, increase Thunder's accuracy, and maim Ferrothorn and Chansey, it can also effectively combat Tyranitar, who can otherwise trap and Pursuit Latios to his doom. If one wants to avoid this scenario without running Kyogre support, then Grass Knot is an option in the fourth slot over other moves to 2HKO Tyranitar in sand. However, this is not recommended as Latios will struggle to damage Steel-types.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Thunder / Grass Knot
move 3: Surf / Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Psyshock / Roost / Dragon Pulse
item: Soul Dew
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This Latios variant attempts to take advantage of the free Calm Mind boost offered by Soul Dew to instantly bombard the enemy with powerful special attacks. Draco Meteor's power is enormous, and boasts the ability to OHKO virtually everything that doesn't resist it not named Blissey or Chansey. Thunder allows Latios to ruin Kyogre and Manaphy, while also providing decent coverage, but its reliance on rain might render it useless on certain teams. Grass Knot is a suitable alternative; while it is incapable of dealing damage to Manaphy and enemy Steel-types, it can take an enormous chunk of health out of opposing Groudon, Kyogre, and Tyranitar, regardless of the weather.</p>
<p>The third move allows Latios to hit Steel-types: Hidden Power Fire maims enemy Forretress, Ferrothorn, and Excadrill in the sun at the cost of losing the Speed tie with other Latios and Latias. On the other hand, Surf keeps Latios's ability to Speed tie with these Pokemon in exchange for leaving him at the mercy of enemy Ferrothorn. The last slot lets Latios use a STAB move that doesn't instantly cripple him. Dragon Pulse is a strong, reliable STAB, while Psyshock gives Latios the ability to damage Blissey and Chansey. However, if you feel that an extra STAB move is unnecessary, you can opt to use Roost to heighten Latios's longevity.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Similarly to the Calm Mind set, Latios finds Groudon and Kyogre to be great teammates. Not only do they make Latios's Hidden Power Fire and Surf more destructive, respectively, they provide fabulous offensive and defensive synergy as well. Kyogre can crush any Ferrothorn, Chansey, and Tyranitar that might stand in the way of Latios with a powerful Choice Specs Water Spout, while Latios is easily capable of destroying the few Pokemon that can switch into the dreaded Water Spout—namely Giratina, Latias, and Gastrodon—with a STAB and Soul Dew-boosted Draco Meteor. Groudon too makes short work of the aforementioned threats with Fire Punch and Earthquake, and can also provide Latios with Stealth Rock support to help it beat down Multiscale Lugia and Regenerator Ho-Oh.</p>
<p>Latios appreciates Spikes and Toxic Spikes support as well. As with the Calm Mind set, Ferrothorn and Forretress are wonderful partners thanks to their defensive synergy with Latios and ability to instantly litter the field with entry hazards.</p>
<p>However, these partners can also become Latios's worst enemies. If Latios doesn't pack Hidden Power Fire, Ferrothorn will have little trouble absorbing Latios's attacks. It can then set up Spikes and recover all the damage it takes with Leech Seed. Chansey is an even more terrifying foe than Ferrothorn, capable of tanking Psyshock, as it is not even 4HKOed by Psyshock after Latios has crippled himself with Draco Meteor. Latios's aversion to these Pokemon makes Ho-Oh and Blaziken very nice partners, as they boast the ability to severely dent, if not OHKO, Ferrothorn, Forretress, and Chansey with their STAB moves. In return, Latios can punch holes in Giratina and Lugia so that Blaziken and Ho-Oh can more easily sweep the enemy's team later.</p>
(Combine these two paragraphs)
[SET]
name: Dual Screens
move 1: Light Screen
move 2: Reflect
move 3: Draco Meteor / Roost
move 4: Memento
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Latios's typing, ability, high base Speed, and access to Memento enable him to distinguish himself as an exceptionally talented dual screen user. Light Screen and Reflect enable Latios to cushion both himself and his team from the enemies' attacks for eight turns. With Memento in his arsenal, Latios can sacrifice himself to lower the offensive stats of an enemy even further, allowing a teammate a free switch-in. The third moveslot choice depends on what the team needs. If Latios's only goal is to cripple an opponent, Draco Meteor lets him do heavy damage before lowering its attacking stats. In addition, Draco Meteor prevents Latios from being destroyed by Taunt and stops Rayquaza from setting up on him. Alternatively, Latios can easily set up screens more than once a match, and Roost enables him to heal himself to do so even more reliably.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The listed EV spread allows Latios to avoid a 2HKO on average from Timid Choice Scarf Palkia's Spacial Rend, and Speed tie with other Latios and Latias. If one feels that these Pokemon are simply too uncommon and wishes to increase Latios's bulk, a spread of 252 HP / 64 SpD / 192 Spe lets it outrun all non-Choice Scarf (all non-Choice Scarf what?), while 252 HP/ 160 SpD / 96 Spe enables it to outspeed all base 90s while retaining a fairly high amount of special bulk.</p>
<p>Latios can run moves besides Draco Meteor, or use a healing move for team support. Thunder Wave enables Latios to further cripple his enemies by cutting their Speed and the chance of full paralysis can even help his teammates get an extra boost. Tailwind enables Latios to double the Speed of his team. In particular, it can be used in conjunction with Memento for a teammate to take advantage of the boosts to both bulk and Speed. Finally, Latios can run Dragon Pulse as an option for more reliable STAB. However, Dragon Pulse is fairly weak and incapable of breaking even the Substitutes of a 252 / 0 Ho-Oh or Lugia.</p>
<p>As Latios's main purpose is to help a teammate sweep, it is a good idea to pair him up with stat-boosting teammates, such as Dragon Dance Rayquaza and Shell Smash Cloyster. In particular, Latios enjoys support from Mew and Gorebyss. They are capable of easily accumulating many boosts to pass to a teammate, who can further use the protection provided by dual screens to pave the way for a bulky sweep.</p>
[SET]
name: Special Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Dragon Pulse
move 3: Thunder / Grass Knot
move 4: Psyshock / Surf / Hidden Power Fire
item: Soul Dew
ability: Levitate
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Using Dragon Dance on a specially based Latios might sound absurd, but it provides a useful Speed boost that allows him to outrun and KO almost everything in the metagame. Latios's unique typing is an advantage in this case, as it allows him to take advantage of a stray Surf or Fire Blast to set up with Dragon Dance. These unique traits allow Latios to become a potent cleaner more than capable of striking fear into all teams late-game.</p>
<p>Dragon Pulse is strong, reliable STAB that will dent everything barring Chansey and Steel-types after Stealth Rock. Thunder assuages Latios's issues with Steel-types in the rain, and provides nice coverage to complement Dragon Pulse. Grass Knot, while incapable of hurting Steel-types, maims Tyranitar, Groudon, and Ground Arceus, scoring OHKOes on the latter two Pokemon and 2HKOes on Tyranitar. The last slot further improves Latios's coverage. With Psyshock, Latios gains the ability to muscle past Chansey, as the move will 2HKO after Stealth Rock. Psyshock, however, leaves Latios vulnerable to both Excadrill and Ferrothorn, two Pokemon that have little trouble stomaching the rest of Latios's attacks. Surf easily takes care of Excadrill, OHKOing it in rain, while Hidden Power Fire will OHKO Ferrothorn and Excadrill in sun. These moves also have nice coverage alongside Thunder and Grass Knot, respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Latios should only switch in late-game, by which time the opposition should be sufficiently weakened when the opposition has been weakened. Therefore, it enjoys entry hazard support; Stealth Rock, Spikes, and Toxic Spikes can all weaken enemies so that Latios can more easily sweep late-game. Ferrothorn and Forretress again excel at this role not only for their ability to set up entry hazards, but also for their ability to handily wear down the enemy via Leech Seed, Toxic, and Pain Split. These Pokemon also lure out Fire-type moves that Latios can switch in on and use to set up a free Dragon Dance on.</p>
<p>The level of prediction it takes to set up is quite high. If you feel uneasy switching Latios into threatening Pokemon or just want to guarantee a setup opportunity, you can use Wobbuffet. Wobbuffet's access to Encore and Shadow Tag eases Latios's setup, and allows him to setup on otherwise dangerous Pokemon, such as Dialga locked into Stealth Rock or Palkia locked into Surf.</p>
<p>Weather support is near-mandatory when using Latios, as his only options for hitting Steel-types rely on the weather for sufficient power. For example, a Hidden Power Fire in rainy weather will fail to 2HKO Ferrothorn and Excadrill, while a Surf in sunny weather will fail to 3HKO Heatran. If you simply cannot afford to put Kyogre or Groudon on your team, then it would be beneficial to pack extra insurance against these Pokemon. Magnezone can serve as insurance for removing these Pokemon from the match due to its unique typing and access to Magnet Pull.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Latios lacks any noteworthy options to use outside of those already listed. If you have an enormous aversion to Tyranitar and wish to maul his body around the battlefield like the fate of Hector, you can run Hidden Power Fighting. As it can also hit Ferrothorn, Excadrill, and Heatran, regardless of weather, it is not completely situational. It's not recommended, though, as it is fairly weak even against targets it hits super effectively.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Like many other Ubers Pokemon, Latios has no true "counter". There are, however, some that stand out from the pack. Chansey, Ho-Oh, and Lugia are not 2HKOed by any of unboosted Latios's moves if Stealth Rock is not up.</p>
<p>You can also look to taking advantage of Latios's reliance on weather to hit enemy Steel-types. For example, Ferrothorn and Heatran are all capable of walling a Latios in detrimental weather because Latios cannot 3HKO Heatran with a sun-weakened Surf or 2HKO Ferrothorn with a rain-weakened Hidden Power Fire. Excadrill distinguishes itself from the other Steel-types by being able to actually remove Latios from the match via Mold Breaker Earthquake if Latios is in the wrong weather. Jirachi does a similar job, but doesn't really care about which weather it is in, as it can avoid an OHKO from sun-boosted Hidden Power Fire and annoy Latios with the combination of Thunder Wave and Iron Head.</p>
<p>If you find yourself unable to pack any of these Steel-types on a team, then you might as well resort to revenge killing Latios. While Latios's Speed is high, it is susceptible to priority and faster Pokemon, particularly Swift Swim and Chlorophyll users. Users of strong physical moves, such as Kyurem-B, Garchomp, Genesect, Kabutops, and Kingdra, can patch up their low Speed stat via Choice Scarf or rain and remove non-Dragon Dance Latios from the field by targeting its weak Defense stat. Additionally, although Latios can normally cushion special attacks thanks to Soul Dew, he is hardly impervious to them in any way; strong special attacks can still plow through his sky-high Special Defense. Choice Scarf Dialga and Palkia can revenge kill Latios that lack a Calm Mind or Light Screen boost with STAB Draco Meteor.</p>
<p>Ghost, Dark, Rock, and Steel Arceus are all capable of stomaching incoming Draco Meteors, and can easily set up Calm Mind or outright KO Latios with their strong physical STABs. They must be wary of Latios utilizing dual screens or opposing Calm Mind Latios though, as they will be setup bait instead. Calm Mind Latios can be taken down by adding Roar to any of Calm Mind Arceus's movesets. Dark Arceus and physically inclined Arceus can beat Calm Mind Latios too; the former is immune to Psyshock, while the latter can OHKO Latios regardless of the number of Calm Minds he has amassed.</p>
<p>All Latios variants share a crippling weakness to Dark-type moves, Pursuit in particular. Should you be able to switch a Pursuit user into Latios, it will be able to checkmate Latios. Tyranitar and Scizor distinguish themselves with their ability to not only threaten Latios with their STAB, but also to tank a Draco Meteor with ease.</p>
<p>Lastly, Wobbuffet can easily annoy every Latios variant that exists. It turns the Calm Mind, Dragon Dance, and dual screens sets into setup bait, and boasts the ability to revenge kill Latios that have already used their STAB Draco Meteor.</p>
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