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qc: iVid, Paleo, Eien
gp: Pilobacon {amcheck}, Haund {gp 1/2}, GatoDelFuego {gp 2/2}
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[OVERVIEW]
**Water:**
Volcanion's unique Fire / Water typing brings several advantages to the table for Water-type teams. Its half Fire typing allows it to revenge kill most Grass-types that threaten Water, including Whimsicott and Serperior. It also gives Water a Fairy-type switch-in other than Empoleon. Furthermore, it effectively checks Bug-types, which are very threatening to Water teams. Its stats are generally good as well; its decent 80 / 120 / 90 bulk, decent Speed for its bulk, very high Special Attack, and good Attack make it a premier choice on Water teams. Volcanion is able to run a range of sets, such as Choice Scarf, Choice Specs, Assault Vest, and even defensive. Its Choice Scarf set provides it with Speed and allows it to revenge kill Diancie, Gengar, Serperior, and Galvantula. Its most powerful set, Choice Specs, makes it a threatening wallbreaker that is able to break past defensive Grass cores with its signature move, Steam Eruption, and Fire Blast. It's also immune to Will-O-Wisp and functions as a Scald switch-in thanks to Water Absorb, providing great support for its teammates. One of its most notable traits is its ability to 2HKO Mega Venusaur, which walls Water teams.
However, Volcanion is quite slow and is outsped and threatened by Diggersby, Dragonite, and Mamoswine; even with a Choice Scarf, it's outsped by Mega Alakazam and Mega Manectric. It also can't take full advantage of its good Attack stat due to lacking a physical Water-type STAB move, and it's weak to common attacking types in Electric, Rock, and Ground. Due to lacking reliable recovery, it can get worn down very easily. Finally, it is weak to Stealth Rock and therefore requires Defog and Rapid Spin support if it wants to switch in and out more often.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf (Water)
move 1: Steam Eruption
move 2: Sludge Wave
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Rock Slide
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Water Absorb
nature: Naive
evs: 40 Atk / 216 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Despite Steam Eruption's low PP, it is chosen over Scald due to its insane power, which can cripple the foe and allow Volcanion to muscle past and beat some of its counters. Sludge Wave hits Fairy-types such as Azumarill, which would otherwise switch into Volcanion with ease, and Gardevoir, whose ability Trace allows it to copy Water Absorb and become immune to Steam Eruption. Fire Blast is Volcanion's secondary STAB move, while slightly inaccurate, and hits Ferrothorn, which doesn't take much from Volcanion's other moves and can otherwise set up entry hazards with ease. It also hits Grass- and Bug-types, preventing them from safely switching into Volcanion. Rock Slide is used to hit Mega Charizard Y, one of Water's biggest threats, and rounds off the coverage.
Set Details
========
Choice Scarf Volcanion checks a lot of threats to Water-type teams, including Breloom, Serperior, and Mega Charizard Y. With it equipped, it is able to outspeed +1 Adamant Mega Gyarados and Dragonite, as well as Weavile. 40 EVs are put into Attack so that Volcanion gets the guaranteed KO on Mega Charizard Y with Rock Slide. The remaining EVs are put into Speed and Special Attack for speed and power. A Naive nature is chosen over Timid to boost the power of Rock Slide; it is also chosen over a Hasty nature to help Volcanion take physical priority moves.
Usage Tips
========
Because this set functions as a revenge killer, it's vital that you keep Volcanion as healthy as possible and not let it get worn down by status ailments or entry hazards. Otherwise, it becomes vulnerable to being revenge killed itself. Steam Eruption's PP is limited, so using the move sparingly is important and helps you spread burns more efficiently. Only use it against Pokemon that pose a major threat to your team and will be very hard for a teammate to deal with. Another way to preserve Steam Eruption's PP is to use Volcanion's other coverage moves when necessary: use Sludge Wave against Azumarill and Breloom to reliably take them out, and against Volcarona and Mega Charizard Y, use Rock Slide. Send Volcanion out early-game to spread a few burns with Steam Eruption and weaken checks with Fire Blast, as well as to use its coverage to deal with threats to your team. You can also send it out late-game to clean up after its teammates have done the hole punching.
Team Options
========
Stealth Rock support from Swampert and Empoleon is appreciated to break opposing Focus Sashes and allow Volcanion to safely check Breloom without the fear of it taking a hit. Volcanion appreciates hazard removal to assuage its Stealth Rock weakness, so Starmie, Tentacruel, and Empoleon are good partners. Tentacruel also provides Toxic Spikes support, Empoleon can take on some Dragons for Volcanion, and Starmie is Water's best offensive spinner. Lanturn and Swampert are good partners too, as they help mitigate Volcanion's Electric weakness, with the former also being able to cleanse Volcanion from status. It can also help spread burns with Scald, allowing Volcanion to save up Steam Eruption's PP. Keldeo can help deal with special walls such as Chansey, which eat up all of Volcanion's attacks with ease. Physically defensive walls like Swampert, Slowbro, and Rotom-W, which can also spread burns, are appreciated to take Earthquakes for Volcanion. Gyarados is a good partner in a similar manner, as it can switch into Ground-type moves thanks to its immunity to them. Azumarill can help Volcanion deal with the Dragon-types it fails to touch. Rotom-W and Lanturn both are able to bring Volcanion in through slow Volt Switch, thus generating momentum. Mega Gyarados and Mega Sharpedo appreciate Volcanion's ability to deal with Fairy- and Grass-types.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs (Water)
move 1: Steam Eruption
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Sludge Wave
move 4: Hidden Power Grass / Earth Power
item: Choice Specs
ability: Water Absorb
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Steam Eruption is Volcanion's best STAB move thanks to its high Base Power, accuracy, and chance to burn, which is extremely useful to cripple the foe. Despite its low PP, its ability to decimat Pokemon that don't resist Water is highly beneficial. Sludge Wave hits Fairy-types for super effective damage, though it is not the only move used to do so; Fire Blast can be used against Klefki and Mawile and Steam Eruption KOes Mega Diancie, preventing any Fairy-type from safely switching into Volcanion. Fire Blast is another powerful STAB move, hitting Bug- and Grass-types, most notably Ferrothorn. Ground-types immune to Water are the only Pokemon not hit neutrally by the above moves, so Hidden Power Grass is a viable coverage option. Alternatively, Earth Power can be used to hit opposing Volcanion, but it doesn't really offer unique coverage.
Set Details
========
Choice Specs turns Volcanion into a threatening wallbreaker, giving it immense power and the ability to destroy teams. Maximum Speed EVs alongside a Timid nature are used so that Volcanion Speed ties with Breloom, a huge threat to Water. However, a Modest nature can be used for extra power, though Volcanion will be unable to Speed tie with Breloom and fails to outspeed Adamant Mega Scizor and Diggersby.
Usage Tips
========
Switch Volcanion in on passive Pokemon that can't do much to it, such as Skarmory, and begin firing off attacks. Do not switch Volcanion in on strong attackers, as it becomes difficult to wallbreak at low HP. Instead, get it in on free switches or through a slow Volt Switch or U-turn. You can also switch it in on predicted Scalds or Will-O-Wisps aimed at a partner such as Azumarill. Be conscious of what move you click; don't use up all of Steam Eruption's PP to take out a Pokemon that can be dealt with using a different coverage move, as PP is limited and therefore should be preserved to deal with more important threats. Volcanion has an easy time against physical walls, so they should be Volcanion's main targets to eliminate. Make sure you play wisely when up against teams carrying Pokemon immune to one of Volcanion's coverage moves, as being locked into a move that deals no damage to the foe is useless and saps a lot of momentum. For example, against Steel, instead of using Fire Blast—if they are carrying a Heatran on their team—use Steam Eruption in case they switch into it. Send Volcanion out early-game to punch as many holes in the opposing team as possible and break through bulky cores such as Slowbro + Mew, since spreading burns early-game creates opportunities for a setup sweeper to set up and sweep later on.
Team Options
========
As with any hazard-weak Pokemon, entry hazard removal is mandatory and highly appreciated by Volcanion to allow it to switch in and out of the field easily. This can be provided by Empoleon, which provides Stealth Rock as a bonus. Starmie and Tentacruel also provide Rapid Spin support. Hazard support from Swampert in the form of Stealth Rock, which also provides an Electric immunity, and Tentacruel in the form of Toxic Spikes is appreciated to break Focus Sashes and ease wallbreaking. Volcanion breaks through physically defensive walls, so setup sweepers such as Dragon Dance Mega Gyarados and Belly Drum Azumarill make for good partners, as they can easily clean the opposing team late-game. Lanturn and Rotom-W make for good teammates, as they serve as Electric checks and can spread burns with Scald. Lanturn can also use Heal Bell to rid Volcanion of status ailments like poison and paralysis, thus preventing it from being worn down. In addition, Lanturn and Rotom-W can use slow Volt Switches to bring Volcanion in safely. Keldeo breaks through Chansey, which walls Volcanion, with Secret Sword, making it a good partner. Choice Band Azumarill can break past Chansey as well. Manaphy is a good stallbreaker and can put a lot of pressure on special walls if it has multiple boosts under its belt.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
**Water:**
A specially defensive RestTalk set can be used with Steam Eruption and either of Flamethrower or Fire Blast to effectively cripple physical attackers, spread burns easily, and switch into Grass-type attacks. A defensive variant of this set can be used to serve as a Breloom switch-in. Assault Vest can be used for more special bulk. The downside of said sets, however, is that Volcanion's lacks power with them, which it really cannot afford to give up. Life Orb, while making Volcanion slightly weaker, allows it to switch between moves, which can be very useful. Hidden Power Ice can be used to prevent Dragon-types from walling Volcanion, though it's weak and doesn't hit anything else that Volcanion's other coverage moves already deal with. Expert Belt can be used to bluff Choice Specs and give Volcanion the freedom to switch between moves; however, it doesn't give Volcanion a reliable boost in power. Air Balloon gives Volcanion an immunity to Ground to mitigate its weakness and give Water another Ground-immune Pokemon. Finally, a Choice Scarf set that utilizes a Modest nature can be used to outspeed base 113 Speed Pokemon, most notably Serperior. However, Volcanion is slower than Weavile, Whimsicott, Raikou, Mega Pidgeot, and Alakazam if it runs this.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water:**
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Chansey's incredibly high Special Defense allows it to tank all of Volcanion's moves with ease while it recovers its health with Soft-Boiled and cripples Volcanion with Toxic or Thunder Wave or sets up Stealth Rock. Jellicent is immune to Steam Eruption thanks to Water Absorb and can also cripple Volcanion with Toxic. Due to the Choice Scarf set lacking as much power as the Choice Specs set, Pokemon like Cradily and Gastrodon are also threats.
**Dragon-types**: Dragon-types such as Latias and Latios resist all of Volcanion's coverage moves; Latias and Latios can use Roost to heal off the damage they take and can wear Volcanion down with Psyshock or a coverage move. Garchomp can fire off super effective Earthquakes and OHKO Volcanion before it even has a chance to attack.
**Faster Super Effective Attackers**: Pokemon that carry super effective coverage moves and are faster than Volcanion pose a threat to it. Rock-type coverage from the likes of Mega Diancie, Electric-type coverage from the likes of Raikou and Mega Manectric, and Ground-type coverage from Excadrill and Garchomp are all threatening to Volcanion.
**Entry Hazards**: Due to Volcanion's lack of reliable recovery, it is worn down extremely fast by entry hazards, most notably Stealth Rock, due to its typing, and Toxic Spikes, due to the accumulating damage from Toxic.
**Bulky Water-types**: Bulky Water-types like Jellicent, Slowbro, and Gastrodon all wall the Choice Scarf set and any non-Hidden Power Grass variant and can cripple Volcanion by inflicting it with a status condition.
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