[OVERVIEW]
Nidoking manages to find a niche in the Stadium OU metagame as a mixed sweeper thanks to Focus Energy. The move boosts its critical hit rate to a fearsome 62%, which, alongside its perfect coverage and decent attacking stats to back them up, allows it to deal huge damage. In addition, Nidoking has a solid Speed tier that enables it to outpace everything up to Articuno. Its typing isn't entirely without merit, either, as it walls Jolteon and grants it an important immunity to Thunder Wave, a trait that is unique among viable Focus Energy users.
Nidoking has its drawbacks, though. Its horrid defensive typing burdens it with weaknesses to Psychic, Ice, and Ground and leaves it without a resistance to Flying, making it a shakier Zapdos check than Rhydon and Golem. To make matters worse, it's outsped by metagame staples such as Alakazam, Starmie, and Tauros, all of which 2HKO Nidoking. This fragility makes paralysis support a necessity to get the most out of Nidoking. On that note, while Nidoking itself is immune to Thunder Wave, it still hates paralysis and can be crippled by Body Slam or Stun Spore. Additionally, Nidoking is unreliable, as it requires setup and, even after setting up, scoring a critical hit is inconsistent. Nevertheless, with the proper support, it can be an effective addition to a team.
[SET]
name: Focus Energy Sweeper
move 1: Focus Energy
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Blizzard
move 4: Thunderbolt
[SET COMMENTS]
Focus Energy significantly boosts Nidoking's critical hit rate, making it very difficult to switch into. Earthquake is Nidoking's most powerful attack; it needs just one critical hit to OHKO Alakazam and 2HKO Starmie and Chansey. Nidoking 2HKOes Tauros and Snorlax as well if it scores two critical hits, but it only has a 38.4% chance to do so. Blizzard is necessary in the third moveslot, as it gives Nidoking the best shot at muscling through Rest Exeggutor before it can retaliate. It has other uses besides this; a critical hit is guaranteed to OHKO Rhydon and Golem and will usually let Nidoking 2HKO Zapdos, and it has a small freeze chance, letting it KO Pokemon it normally would not be able to as a last resort. Finally, with a single critical hit, Thunderbolt 2HKOes Slowbro and OHKOes the rare Cloyster after a little chip damage.
For Nidoking to fulfill its role effectively, it should be kept away from damage and status whenever possible, and faster Pokemon such as Alakazam and Starmie should be paralyzed before it attempts to set up for a sweep. This is easier said than done due to Team Preview, meaning your opponent will know that you have Nidoking on your team and will try to keep these Pokemon as healthy as is feasible so they can keep it in check. Getting Nidoking on the field is not a simple task either due to its horrific defensive typing allowing it to be hit for super effective damage by most metagame staples, but it still has some decent opportunities to switch in and set up with Focus Energy. The most obvious would be the aforementioned Jolteon, which is unable to do anything meaningful to it. Once again, though, your opponent will be aware of Nidoking and will be able to prepare for it by switching out. Another good chance to switch in is on a predicted Rest from Pokemon like Exeggutor. There is also an element of risk here, as most Rest users can predict the switch and deal major damage with their coverage moves, preventing Nidoking from setting up.
Slowbro and Starmie are good partners for Nidoking, as they resist Ice, Psychic, and Water and provide paralysis support for it. Slowbro in particular is adept at drawing in enemy Starmie to paralyze it. In return, Nidoking can protect them from Electric-type moves. Exeggutor is another Pokemon that can spread paralysis, but it differentiates itself from Slowbro and Starmie with a handy resistance to Ground that can make the Rhydon matchup easier.
Thanks to its immense movepool, Nidoking has plenty of room for customization. Substitute can be used in order to protect it from status and critical hits, but it can be difficult to set up alongside Focus Energy, and it puts Nidoking in OHKO range of Rhydon, Alakazam, and Exeggutor. Ice Beam is a more accurate alternative to Blizzard, but it requires an additional critical hit to 2HKO Exeggutor and almost never OHKOes Rhydon and Golem even with a critical hit. Thunder has poor accuracy, but it can be used instead of Thunderbolt; the greater power allows a critical hit to OHKO Cloyster and KO Starmie and Slowbro after minimal chip damage. Body Slam can paralyze switch-ins like Starmie. Rock Slide OHKOes the rare Articuno and Moltres with a critical hit, but Nidoking is OHKOed and 2HKOed by their Blizzard and Fire Blast and requires paralysis support to reliably outspeed them. Surf reliably KOes Rhydon and Golem without needing a critical hit if they are not at full health and has perfect accuracy, but it is inferior to Blizzard otherwise.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Mikon, 535276]]
- Quality checked by: [[Ctown6, 509438], [Oiseau Bleu, 431020]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Estronic, 240732]]
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