[OVERVIEW]
Porygon's extremely poor stats make it unappealing at first sight, but its access to Recover and Thunder Wave alongside its immunity to Body Slam paralysis gives it a niche. Porygon can switch into the omnipresent Snorlax and use its 32 Recover PP to stall Snorlax out of its 24 Body Slam PP. Non-Amnesia Snorlax sets can only hope to land multiple critical hits in a row or freeze with Ice Beam if Porygon is not carrying Substitute. Porygon can also act as a pseudo-check to other Pokemon unable to reliably status it such as Tauros, Persian, Cloyster, and Gengar, but their higher Speed and likewise higher critical hit rates make switching in a risky proposition.
The biggest issue with Porygon is its passivity. Pokemon like Chansey and Exeggutor take minimal damage and threaten to paralyze Porygon, forcing it to switch out, as paralysis makes it incapable of reliably walling Snorlax. Porygon also struggles heavily against the common Amnesia Snorlax; Porygon can only temporarily stall it with Substitute or attempt to freeze it with Ice Beam. To make things worse, Cloyster gives Porygon strong competition as a more reliable check to Amnesia Snorlax and other Normal-types.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Recover
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Ice Beam
move 4: Thunderbolt / Double-Edge
[SET COMMENTS]
Recover and Thunder Wave are both essential for walling Snorlax and threatening paralysis on switch-ins, so Porygon should never drop either of these moves. Ice Beam is Porygon's main attacking move, as it does decent damage, has a chance to freeze, and prevents Rhydon from using Porygon as free entry. Thunderbolt pairs well with Ice Beam as coverage, notably threatening Starmie and Cloyster with a 3HKO, and its 24 PP can be useful in PP stalling. Double-Edge can be used instead of Thunderbolt to threaten Chansey and Alakazam, but it only 3HKOes Alakazam and has a chance to 3HKO Chansey while dealing significant recoil to Porygon. When using Thunderbolt or Double-Edge against Chansey, Starmie, Alakazam, and Slowbro, Porygon should only attack on the switch or if the foe is in KO range, as these Pokemon have Thunder Wave. Porygon can use Blizzard over Ice Beam for high odds of 3HKOing Exeggutor and always 2HKOing Rhydon, but it only has 8 PP, so Porygon needs to play more conservatively than it would with Ice Beam. Psychic can force out Snorlax with repeated Special drops but gives completely free entry to the many Psychic-types that can paralyze Porygon. Thunder can be used as a stronger alternative to Thunderbolt that 2HKOes Cloyster and has a chance to 2HKO Starmie, but its poor accuracy makes this unrealistic. Lastly, Conversion can be used to copy a foe's typing, but this is only useful if Snorlax is already dealt with, as Porygon is extremely likely to take paralysis when using this move.
The key to making this set work is paralyzing Snorlax, preferably before Porygon switches in so it doesn't have to risk a critical hit when using Thunder Wave. Once Snorlax is paralyzed, Porygon should use Recover every time Snorlax attacks and only attack when Snorlax is fully paralyzed. Porygon needs to remain unparalyzed to wall Snorlax effectively, so it should almost always switch out when facing Pokemon that can paralyze it. Once Snorlax is forced to use Rest, the Porygon user can bring in a strong special attacker to force Snorlax out. If the opposing Snorlax has Amnesia, Porygon should paralyze it and switch to a teammate that can handle it, such as Starmie, Slowbro, or one's own Amnesia Snorlax. Once the opposing Snorlax is revealed to have Amnesia, Porygon can be used as a weaker Chansey to check an opposing Chansey or Starmie. At full HP, Porygon can also threaten Thunder Wave on faster Pokemon like Tauros and Zapdos, but a critical hit attack puts it in range of being KOed by a non-critical hit attack, making switching in extremely risky.
[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Recover
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Substitute
move 4: Ice Beam / Double-Edge
[SET COMMENTS]
Porygon makes use of the buffed Stadium Substitute to block status moves and create free turns against paralyzed foes. Snorlax's Ice Beam fails to break Substitute, giving Porygon a free turn and dissuading Snorlax from trying for a freeze. Substitute also makes Recover more efficient, as it allows Porygon to dip below 50% HP risk-free as long as it maintains enough HP to heal out of range of a critical hit Body Slam. Recover and Thunder Wave are crucial, as Recover enables Porygon to stall with Substitute, and paralysis is Porygon's main way of threatening Pokemon that otherwise don't mind switching in and gaining free turns. Ice Beam is the most common choice of attack for its ability to threaten freeze and its solid coverage, hitting Exeggutor, Rhydon, and Zapdos super effectively. Double-Edge is Porygon's strongest reliable STAB move and has more PP than Ice Beam. It does decent damage against most Pokemon, but it does almost nothing to Rhydon, Reflect Snorlax, and Cloyster while dealing recoil damage to Porygon.
Substitute Porygon greatly appreciates paralysis support, especially against Snorlax so that Porygon does not have to risk a critical hit when paralyzing it. After Snorlax has been paralyzed, Porygon can use Recover and Substitute to fish for full paralysis and use these opportunities to attack. Depending on the opponent's team, Porygon may not want to reveal its only attack, so it can also PP stall and limit switches with Thunder Wave. This set should be paired with counters for the Pokemon that wall its only attack; for example, Chansey is on nearly every team and supports Porygon greatly, helping against the strong Psychic-types and other special attackers while paralyzing them with Thunder Wave. Slowbro is another great teammate, as it handles Amnesia Snorlax and helps check and paralyze foes that can trouble Porygon such as Exeggutor, Alakazam, Cloyster, and opposing Slowbro. Exeggutor is good for handling Rhydon, making it a great teammate for Double-Edge sets. Porygon can also drop its Speed stat by a single point to underspeed Rhydon, allowing Porygon to constantly use Recover and stall out Earthquake. Unfortunately, Rhydon is still heavily favored to win this matchup, as its Earthquake usually does over 50% to Porygon and OHKOes it with a critical hit, while Ice Beam seldom 2HKOes in return. However, being able to waste Earthquake PP can be quite useful, and Porygon is unlikely to gain anything from speed tying Rhydon if it lacks Ice Beam anyway.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/toxin-boost.538519/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Porygon's extremely poor stats make it unappealing at first sight, but its access to Recover and Thunder Wave alongside its immunity to Body Slam paralysis gives it a niche. Porygon can switch into the omnipresent Snorlax and use its 32 Recover PP to stall Snorlax out of its 24 Body Slam PP. Non-Amnesia Snorlax sets can only hope to land multiple critical hits in a row or freeze with Ice Beam if Porygon is not carrying Substitute. Porygon can also act as a pseudo-check to other Pokemon unable to reliably status it such as Tauros, Persian, Cloyster, and Gengar, but their higher Speed and likewise higher critical hit rates make switching in a risky proposition.
The biggest issue with Porygon is its passivity. Pokemon like Chansey and Exeggutor take minimal damage and threaten to paralyze Porygon, forcing it to switch out, as paralysis makes it incapable of reliably walling Snorlax. Porygon also struggles heavily against the common Amnesia Snorlax; Porygon can only temporarily stall it with Substitute or attempt to freeze it with Ice Beam. To make things worse, Cloyster gives Porygon strong competition as a more reliable check to Amnesia Snorlax and other Normal-types.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Recover
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Ice Beam
move 4: Thunderbolt / Double-Edge
[SET COMMENTS]
Recover and Thunder Wave are both essential for walling Snorlax and threatening paralysis on switch-ins, so Porygon should never drop either of these moves. Ice Beam is Porygon's main attacking move, as it does decent damage, has a chance to freeze, and prevents Rhydon from using Porygon as free entry. Thunderbolt pairs well with Ice Beam as coverage, notably threatening Starmie and Cloyster with a 3HKO, and its 24 PP can be useful in PP stalling. Double-Edge can be used instead of Thunderbolt to threaten Chansey and Alakazam, but it only 3HKOes Alakazam and has a chance to 3HKO Chansey while dealing significant recoil to Porygon. When using Thunderbolt or Double-Edge against Chansey, Starmie, Alakazam, and Slowbro, Porygon should only attack on the switch or if the foe is in KO range, as these Pokemon have Thunder Wave. Porygon can use Blizzard over Ice Beam for high odds of 3HKOing Exeggutor and always 2HKOing Rhydon, but it only has 8 PP, so Porygon needs to play more conservatively than it would with Ice Beam. Psychic can force out Snorlax with repeated Special drops but gives completely free entry to the many Psychic-types that can paralyze Porygon. Thunder can be used as a stronger alternative to Thunderbolt that 2HKOes Cloyster and has a chance to 2HKO Starmie, but its poor accuracy makes this unrealistic. Lastly, Conversion can be used to copy a foe's typing, but this is only useful if Snorlax is already dealt with, as Porygon is extremely likely to take paralysis when using this move.
The key to making this set work is paralyzing Snorlax, preferably before Porygon switches in so it doesn't have to risk a critical hit when using Thunder Wave. Once Snorlax is paralyzed, Porygon should use Recover every time Snorlax attacks and only attack when Snorlax is fully paralyzed. Porygon needs to remain unparalyzed to wall Snorlax effectively, so it should almost always switch out when facing Pokemon that can paralyze it. Once Snorlax is forced to use Rest, the Porygon user can bring in a strong special attacker to force Snorlax out. If the opposing Snorlax has Amnesia, Porygon should paralyze it and switch to a teammate that can handle it, such as Starmie, Slowbro, or one's own Amnesia Snorlax. Once the opposing Snorlax is revealed to have Amnesia, Porygon can be used as a weaker Chansey to check an opposing Chansey or Starmie. At full HP, Porygon can also threaten Thunder Wave on faster Pokemon like Tauros and Zapdos, but a critical hit attack puts it in range of being KOed by a non-critical hit attack, making switching in extremely risky.
[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Recover
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Substitute
move 4: Ice Beam / Double-Edge
[SET COMMENTS]
Porygon makes use of the buffed Stadium Substitute to block status moves and create free turns against paralyzed foes. Snorlax's Ice Beam fails to break Substitute, giving Porygon a free turn and dissuading Snorlax from trying for a freeze. Substitute also makes Recover more efficient, as it allows Porygon to dip below 50% HP risk-free as long as it maintains enough HP to heal out of range of a critical hit Body Slam. Recover and Thunder Wave are crucial, as Recover enables Porygon to stall with Substitute, and paralysis is Porygon's main way of threatening Pokemon that otherwise don't mind switching in and gaining free turns. Ice Beam is the most common choice of attack for its ability to threaten freeze and its solid coverage, hitting Exeggutor, Rhydon, and Zapdos super effectively. Double-Edge is Porygon's strongest reliable STAB move and has more PP than Ice Beam. It does decent damage against most Pokemon, but it does almost nothing to Rhydon, Reflect Snorlax, and Cloyster while dealing recoil damage to Porygon.
Substitute Porygon greatly appreciates paralysis support, especially against Snorlax so that Porygon does not have to risk a critical hit when paralyzing it. After Snorlax has been paralyzed, Porygon can use Recover and Substitute to fish for full paralysis and use these opportunities to attack. Depending on the opponent's team, Porygon may not want to reveal its only attack, so it can also PP stall and limit switches with Thunder Wave. This set should be paired with counters for the Pokemon that wall its only attack; for example, Chansey is on nearly every team and supports Porygon greatly, helping against the strong Psychic-types and other special attackers while paralyzing them with Thunder Wave. Slowbro is another great teammate, as it handles Amnesia Snorlax and helps check and paralyze foes that can trouble Porygon such as Exeggutor, Alakazam, Cloyster, and opposing Slowbro. Exeggutor is good for handling Rhydon, making it a great teammate for Double-Edge sets. Porygon can also drop its Speed stat by a single point to underspeed Rhydon, allowing Porygon to constantly use Recover and stall out Earthquake. Unfortunately, Rhydon is still heavily favored to win this matchup, as its Earthquake usually does over 50% to Porygon and OHKOes it with a critical hit, while Ice Beam seldom 2HKOes in return. However, being able to waste Earthquake PP can be quite useful, and Porygon is unlikely to gain anything from speed tying Rhydon if it lacks Ice Beam anyway.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/toxin-boost.538519/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Last edited:
