In DA Zone
Banned deucer.
[OVERVIEW]
Politoed acts as a lead in the ADV OU metagame that softens up special walls for its partners using Thief and Hypnosis, while offering some defensive utility due to its good defensive typing and acceptable bulk. While a niche pick, with the proper support it has a lot to offer. Sand support is mandatory for it and spikes support is excellent too, as they help to make the impact of Thief be felt on the opponent's special walls. Special attackers such as Zapdos or Moltres make great partners as they can take advantage of special walls being crippled. It matches up well against a lot of common leads, such as Tyranitar, Metagross, Salamence, and Suicune, although Zapdos forces it out.
A number of other Pokemon have similar things to offer, and should be considered before adding politoed to your team. Jynx also offers the combination of Thief and a sleep move, targeting special walls and bulky waters, however it offers fewer defensive benefits and has different strengths and weaknesses in the lead slot. It is worse against Metagross and Tyranitar, two extremely common leads, but fares better versus Zapdos and Celebi. Milotic is another bulky Water-type with access to Hypnosis. It is less disruptive since it doesn't have access to Thief, but it is far more reliable defensively since it has access to Recover. Vaporeon is another disruptive Water-type lead, however it uses very different tools to do its job. Rather than directly wearing down the checks and counters of its partners, Vaporeon uses Substitute in conjunction with its high HP stat, Baton Pass, and its immense Special Attack stat to pass Substitutes to its teammates, letting them take advantage of the protection Substitute provides.
[SET]
name: Disruptor
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Thief
move 3: Hypnosis
move 4: Ice Beam
item:
ability: Damp / Water Absorb
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
This set puts pressure on against common leads in order to disrupt the opposing team's special walls and bulky Water-types. Politoed wants to see favourable lead matchups as often as possible, so that it can sooner begin disrupting the opposing team. To ensure a favourable lead matchup as often as possible, Politoed should run 252 Spe EVs with Timid, as this gives it the best chance of outspeeding opposing Suicune, and it should run 252 SpA EVs to give it the best shot of OHKOing Tyranitar - it has a nearly 40% chance to OHKO Tyranitar lacking HP investment with Hydro Pump. Fully investing in Special Attack also lets it 2HKO Choice Band Metagross quite reliably. Ice Beam is used to threaten Salamence, another common lead, OHKOing even defensive variants, and also lets it hurt Grass-types in a pinch. Without any defensive investment, Politoed has enough bulk to survive attacks from Pokemon such as Choice Band Tyranitar, Salamence, and Metagross, which is all that it needs to be an effective lead, although secondary checks to each of these should be used as Politoed cannot switch into them repeatedly throughout a game. Damp is the preferred ability as it lets Politoed restrict the options of Explosion users such as Metagross and Claydol, which can be used to help protect Politoed's most valuable teammates. Water Absorb is an alternative worth some consideration too, however, as it lets Politoed wall some common variants of Suicune.
Team Options
========
Tyranitar is a necessary teammate. Its ability Sand Stream sets up Sandstorm, making Politoed's Thief far more punishing. For example, it can force a thieved Blissey to recover its HP with Soft-boiled sooner, or force a Snorlax to Self-Destruct prematurely. A spikes setter is also very synergistic, as it helps to rack up more passive damage on the opposing team, and Skarmory is an excellent choice in the role. Not only is it the tier's premier Spikes setter, but because Politoed has Damp and resists Meteor Mash, Choice Band Metagross is very unlikely to be able to use Explosion to OHKO Skarmory before it is unable to set up a layer of Spikes. Special attackers such as Zapdos, Calm Mind Celebi, and Calm Mind Jirachi are all good partners as they appreciate special walls being worn down more quickly thanks to Politoed. Other Pokemon that can also disrupt special walls such as Gengar and Dugtrio are viable partners too. Finally, physical attackers such as Metagross that can switch in to special walls and exert pressure also have some merit, although Tyranitar should already provide a physical presence for any team Politoed finds itself on.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
There is little else to recommend from Politoed's movepool, as its access to both Thief and Hypnosis in tandem with its typing is what makes it stand out.
Checks and Counters
===================
Politoed is hardly the tier's most threatening Pokemon, but there are a few Pokemon you could use to really match up well against it. Zapdos deserves a special mention as an overall effective lead that anti-leads politoed exceptionally well. Other Electric- or Grass-types such as Jolteon, Venusaur, and Celebi can also put Politoed on the back foot on turn 1. Beyond the lead slot, Starmie resists Politoed's attacks, has Natural Cure to absorb Hypnosis, and isn't very reliant on its item to function, making it a great response. Celebi is also a good check, resisting Hydro Pump and having Natural Cure, though it values its Leftovers quite a bit so is not a perfect response. Of course, most special walls and most of the tier's Electric- and Grass-types are perfectly good switch-ins, however they are Politoed's Thief targets too. Politoed is never going to be the most threatening Pokemon on any team it finds itself on, and should very rarely find itself in a position to sweep - the best preparation for it is simply understanding what it does and doing your best to ensure that your special tanks can function in spite of potentially losing their item.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[In DA Zone]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
Politoed acts as a lead in the ADV OU metagame that softens up special walls for its partners using Thief and Hypnosis, while offering some defensive utility due to its good defensive typing and acceptable bulk. While a niche pick, with the proper support it has a lot to offer. Sand support is mandatory for it and spikes support is excellent too, as they help to make the impact of Thief be felt on the opponent's special walls. Special attackers such as Zapdos or Moltres make great partners as they can take advantage of special walls being crippled. It matches up well against a lot of common leads, such as Tyranitar, Metagross, Salamence, and Suicune, although Zapdos forces it out.
A number of other Pokemon have similar things to offer, and should be considered before adding politoed to your team. Jynx also offers the combination of Thief and a sleep move, targeting special walls and bulky waters, however it offers fewer defensive benefits and has different strengths and weaknesses in the lead slot. It is worse against Metagross and Tyranitar, two extremely common leads, but fares better versus Zapdos and Celebi. Milotic is another bulky Water-type with access to Hypnosis. It is less disruptive since it doesn't have access to Thief, but it is far more reliable defensively since it has access to Recover. Vaporeon is another disruptive Water-type lead, however it uses very different tools to do its job. Rather than directly wearing down the checks and counters of its partners, Vaporeon uses Substitute in conjunction with its high HP stat, Baton Pass, and its immense Special Attack stat to pass Substitutes to its teammates, letting them take advantage of the protection Substitute provides.
[SET]
name: Disruptor
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Thief
move 3: Hypnosis
move 4: Ice Beam
item:
ability: Damp / Water Absorb
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
This set puts pressure on against common leads in order to disrupt the opposing team's special walls and bulky Water-types. Politoed wants to see favourable lead matchups as often as possible, so that it can sooner begin disrupting the opposing team. To ensure a favourable lead matchup as often as possible, Politoed should run 252 Spe EVs with Timid, as this gives it the best chance of outspeeding opposing Suicune, and it should run 252 SpA EVs to give it the best shot of OHKOing Tyranitar - it has a nearly 40% chance to OHKO Tyranitar lacking HP investment with Hydro Pump. Fully investing in Special Attack also lets it 2HKO Choice Band Metagross quite reliably. Ice Beam is used to threaten Salamence, another common lead, OHKOing even defensive variants, and also lets it hurt Grass-types in a pinch. Without any defensive investment, Politoed has enough bulk to survive attacks from Pokemon such as Choice Band Tyranitar, Salamence, and Metagross, which is all that it needs to be an effective lead, although secondary checks to each of these should be used as Politoed cannot switch into them repeatedly throughout a game. Damp is the preferred ability as it lets Politoed restrict the options of Explosion users such as Metagross and Claydol, which can be used to help protect Politoed's most valuable teammates. Water Absorb is an alternative worth some consideration too, however, as it lets Politoed wall some common variants of Suicune.
Team Options
========
Tyranitar is a necessary teammate. Its ability Sand Stream sets up Sandstorm, making Politoed's Thief far more punishing. For example, it can force a thieved Blissey to recover its HP with Soft-boiled sooner, or force a Snorlax to Self-Destruct prematurely. A spikes setter is also very synergistic, as it helps to rack up more passive damage on the opposing team, and Skarmory is an excellent choice in the role. Not only is it the tier's premier Spikes setter, but because Politoed has Damp and resists Meteor Mash, Choice Band Metagross is very unlikely to be able to use Explosion to OHKO Skarmory before it is unable to set up a layer of Spikes. Special attackers such as Zapdos, Calm Mind Celebi, and Calm Mind Jirachi are all good partners as they appreciate special walls being worn down more quickly thanks to Politoed. Other Pokemon that can also disrupt special walls such as Gengar and Dugtrio are viable partners too. Finally, physical attackers such as Metagross that can switch in to special walls and exert pressure also have some merit, although Tyranitar should already provide a physical presence for any team Politoed finds itself on.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
There is little else to recommend from Politoed's movepool, as its access to both Thief and Hypnosis in tandem with its typing is what makes it stand out.
Checks and Counters
===================
Politoed is hardly the tier's most threatening Pokemon, but there are a few Pokemon you could use to really match up well against it. Zapdos deserves a special mention as an overall effective lead that anti-leads politoed exceptionally well. Other Electric- or Grass-types such as Jolteon, Venusaur, and Celebi can also put Politoed on the back foot on turn 1. Beyond the lead slot, Starmie resists Politoed's attacks, has Natural Cure to absorb Hypnosis, and isn't very reliant on its item to function, making it a great response. Celebi is also a good check, resisting Hydro Pump and having Natural Cure, though it values its Leftovers quite a bit so is not a perfect response. Of course, most special walls and most of the tier's Electric- and Grass-types are perfectly good switch-ins, however they are Politoed's Thief targets too. Politoed is never going to be the most threatening Pokemon on any team it finds itself on, and should very rarely find itself in a position to sweep - the best preparation for it is simply understanding what it does and doing your best to ensure that your special tanks can function in spite of potentially losing their item.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[In DA Zone]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
Last edited: