is duck
[Overview]
<p>Porygon2's good natural bulk combined with its access to Recover makes it one of the best Eviolite users in the game. Unlike many other Eviolite users, Porygon2 also has a decent Special Attack stat alongside BoltBeam coverage to give it some offensive capability. The Virtual Pokemon is also blessed with two amazing abilities in Trace and Download to assist it both offensively and defensively Porygon2 even has access to Trick Room and, due to its decent power, coverage, and bulk, makes for one of the best Trick Room supporters for dedicated Trick Room teams.</p>
<p>On the flipside, Porygon2 no resistances to take advantage of, and only possesses an immunity to Ghost, a real hindrance for a defensive Pokemon. While it only has one weakness, that weakness happens to be to Fighting, a common and powerful offensive type in OU. Porygon2's reliance on Eviolite prevents it from holding Leftovers, making passive damage even more harmful. Despite these flaws, Porygon2 still makes for a great niche counter to many popular Pokemon with Trace, and it provides an excellent combination of Trick Room support and sweeping for Trick Room teams.</p>
[SET]
name: Defensive Duck
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Toxic / Hidden Power Fire / Thunder Wave
move 4: Recover
item: Eviolite
ability: Trace
nature: Calm
evs: 252 HP / 32 Def / 224 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Porygon2's excellent bulk and access to the rare Trace ability make it a great switch-in to a variety of offensive threats. Trace allows Porygon2 to shut down Intimidate users such as Gyarados and Landorus-T, trap Dugtrio with its own Arena Trap, use Dragonite's Multiscale against it, wall Heatran and Jolteon (and Thundurus-T lacking Focus Blast) with their immunity abilities, and even heal its status with Natural Cure from Celebi or Starmie. Thunderbolt provides strong Electric coverage for better handling Pokemon such as Gyarados. Ice Beam completes the BoltBeam combination, allowing Porygon2 to hit every OU Pokemon for neutral damage bar Magnezone and Thick Fat Mamoswine. It also gives Porygon2 much appreciated coverage against Pokemon such as Dragonite, Garchomp, and Landorus-T. Toxic gives Porygon2 a great status weapon to use against bulkier Pokemon that do not fear its BoltBeam coverage. Hidden Power Fire, on the other hand, lands a much harder hit against Magnezone, Ferrothorn, and Scizor, which all generally give Porygon2 trouble. Thunder Wave is also an option in case you feel the ability to cripple offensive Pokemon with paralysis is more important than Toxic poison or Fire-type coverage. Finally, Recover is essential for keeping Porygon2 alive throughout the match, letting it switch in and wall opposing threats more effectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EV spread and nature places an emphasis on special bulk and lets Porygon2 take a wide variety of special attacks, such as Latios's Draco Meteor and Gengar's Focus Blast more effectively. Specifically, the Special Defense investment ensures that Focus Sash Alakazam will never 2HKO Porygon2 with Focus Blast after Stealth Rock, and the Defense EVs give it enough physical bulk to always survive two hits from Choice Specs Latios's Psyshock after Stealth Rock. Due to Porygon2's great mixed defenses, however, a more physically defensive spread is very viable. With a Bold nature and a spread of 252 HP / 244 Def / 12 SpD, Porygon2 will still have enough special bulk to never be 2HKOed by Choice Scarf Politoed's rain-boosted Hydro Pump and will have much more physical bulk. For example, this ensures that +1 non-Life Orb Salamence's Outrage will never 2HKO Porygon2 from full health, and that +2 Garchomp can never OHKO Porygon2 after Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>There are a couple of other moves that could be used on this set. Tri Attack is Porygon2's most powerful STAB move, and so it can be used in the third slot. While the reliable status or Fire-type coverage is generally more important than the extra power, Tri Attack does give Porygon2 a method of beating Substitute Kyurem-B. Discharge can also be used alongside Toxic instead of Thunderbolt if you want the potential for dual status. However, the 30% paralysis rate of Discharge has the potential to clash with Toxic in the event that Porygon2 paralyzes a Pokemon you would have rather poisoned, and Thunder Wave is much more reliable for paralysis in general.</p>
<p>Due to its reliance on Eviolite, Porygon2 is unable to hold Leftovers, making residual damage from entry hazards, poison, and burns more dangerous. These factors also prevent Porygon2 from always successfully utilizing Dragonite's Multiscale, a great application of Trace. Starmie and Tentacruel make good partners in this regard as they cover Porygon2's Fighting weakness and offer Rapid Spin support. Celebi offers similar defensive synergy and Heal Bell support, greatly assisting Porygon2 in case it gets burned or poisoned. Although not mandatory, Stealth Rock support helps by securing OHKOs against targets such as Gyarados and Dragonite. Landorus-T is a prime example of a partner that synergizes well defensively with Porygon2 while serving as a reliable Stealth Rock supporter.</p>
[SET]
name: Trick Room
move 1: Trick Room
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Hidden Power Fire / Tri Attack / Recover
item: Eviolite
ability: Download / Trace
nature: Quiet
evs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Def
ivs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Porygon2 shines as one of the best Trick Room supporters for dedicated Trick Room teams, and it's capable of taking advantage of the move itself when given the chance. While there are much better standalone Trick Room sweepers, Porygon2's excellent bulk with Eviolite gives it plenty of opportunities to switch in and reliably set up Trick Room. The combination of Thunderbolt and Ice Beam gives Porygon2 great BoltBeam coverage, helping it make the most of Trick Room by hitting most Pokemon at least neutrally before they have time to react. Hidden Power Fire covers Scizor and Ferrothorn, two major threats to many Trick Room teams, as well as Pokemon such as Forretress and Magnezone. Tri Attack is Porygon2's best STAB and its most powerful move. It also lets Porygon2 net a OHKO or 2HKO on Pokemon such as Mamoswine, Kyurem-B, Rotom-W, and Volcarona with entry hazard support, a feat Porygon2's other moves fail to accomplish. Recover can also be used to keep Porygon2 healthy throughout the match, bolstering its great bulk and letting it set up Trick Room more often to support its teammates.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>With a Quiet nature and minimum Speed IVs, Porygon2 has the best chance of outspeeding opposing Pokemon under Trick Room. Full Special Attack investment is used to make the most of Porygon2's good base 105 Special Attack and great neutral coverage, and the remaining EVs are pumped into Porygon2's HP to reinforce its natural bulk. Download is the primary ability because, while not guaranteed, it can possibly provide Porygon2 with a Special Attack boost and make its offensive coverage even more threatening. The boost also assists with a few KOs in particular, such as the OHKO on Thundurus-T with Ice Beam and a possible OHKO on Ferrothorn with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock. Trace, on the other hand, gives Porygon2 more freedom switching in and out to set up Trick Room by letting Porygon2 switch in easily on Pokemon such as Heatran, Intimidate users, and Dragonite (provided entry hazards are not present).</p>
<p>Entry hazard support is well appreciated as it provides extra passive damage to assist sweeps by Porygon2 and its teammates. For example, with Stealth Rock, a layer of Spikes, and a Download Special Attack boost, Porygon2's Hidden Power Fire will always OHKO standard Ferrothorn in clear weather and will almost always OHKO Choice Band Scizor in rain. Forretress and Ferrothorn can offer Stealth Rock and Spikes support while also taking advantage of Trick Room themselves. Forretress also offers Rapid Spin support, which is always appreciated by a Pokemon without Leftovers like Porygon2. Because Porygon2 is a Trick Room supporter first and a sweeper second, other slow Pokemon that can take advantage of Trick Room also make great partners. Sheer Force Conkeldurr is one of the better Trick Room sweepers in OU, hitting physically while Porygon2 hits specially. Reuniclus can take Fighting attacks aimed at Porygon2 while doubling as a second Trick Room supporter and sweeper. Several lower-tier Pokemon make good partners to Porygon2 on Trick Room teams as well. Slowbro and Cofagrigus cover Porygon2's Fighting weakness and can set up Trick Room themselves. Bronzong can also set up Trick Room and offers Stealth Rock support.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Hidden Power Fighting hits Magnezone and Ferrothorn harder than Thunderbolt and Ice Beam do, and it also nails Mamoswine, one of the few Pokemon to resist the BoltBeam combination. Likewise, Hidden Power Ground hits Magnezone very hard, hits Heatran far harder than Thunderbolt does, and synergizes well with Ice Beam. As with Trick Room, Porygon2 can serve as a reliable Gravity supporter for teams based on the move. Porygon2 can also take advantage of Gravity itself by using Thunder and Blizzard over Thunderbolt and Ice Beam. Even without Gravity, Porygon2 can use Thunder and Blizzard in rain and hail, respectively. However, rain is generally the better of the two options as hail damage causes Porygon2 to be worn down much more quickly than it would be otherwise. Defensive Porygon2 sets can also use Magic Coat to bounce back disruptive support moves such as Taunt and Toxic.</p>
<p>Porygon2 has very little in the way of boosting moves, and so Psych Up can be used to steal boots from opposing sweepers. However, Porygon2 can only really take advantage of Calm Mind boosts, and many Calm Mind sweepers such as Reuniclus and Keldeo have ways to beat Porygon2 regardless. Porygon2 could try to boost its Special Attack with Charge Beam, but the move is initially very weak and somewhat unreliable. A set with Agility can be used to boost Porygon2's Speed and works similarly to one with Trick Room. While such a set would have less bulk than the Trick Room set and will still be outsped by faster Choice Scarf users such as Terrakion and Keldeo, it would not be restricted by a timer nor constrain teambuilding as much. While it doesn't boost any of Porygon2's stats itself, Icy Wind offers Ice coverage and the ability to lower the Speed of the opponent's sweepers. However, it's generally more effective to paralyze opponents with Thunder Wave and use the more powerful Ice Beam for coverage.</p>
<p>Although Eviolite is almost mandatory for Porygon2, a Choice Specs set is feasible due to the boost it offers to Porygon2's already great coverage. Porygon2 also learns Trick which works well in conjunction with Choice Specs, enabling Porygon2 to cripple many bulky switch-ins. Analytic works well with Porygon2's low Speed by giving it a 30% power boost to all of its attacks whenever it attacks second. However, Trace offers much better utility for defensive sets, and the main offensive set that Porygon2 should be running, the Trick Room set, will rarely attack second and appreciates the possible Special Attack boost from Download.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Magnezone resists Porygon2's BoltBeam coverage and Tri Attack and is immune to Toxic, making it a great switch-in to the defensive sets. Substitute sets in particular can set up on defensive Porygon2 lacking Hidden Power Fire and offensive sets lacking either Tri Attack and Hidden Power Fire or a Download Special Attack boost. Mamoswine also resists BoltBeam and so can handle Porygon2 without Tri Attack, KOing even defensive Porygon2 with Earthquake followed by Superpower. Fighting-type Pokemon in general threaten Porygon2 with super effective STAB attacks. Breloom, Keldeo, and Terrakion are a few examples of powerful Fighting-type Pokemon capable of forcing out or KOing Porygon2. Conkeldurr not only threatens Porygon2 with its STAB Fighting-type attacks, but it can also take advantage of status with Guts and outspeed Porygon2 under Trick Room.</p>
<p>Besides the offensive Pokemon mentioned earlier, there are a few other ways of handling Porygon2. Blissey, Chansey, and specially defensive Celebi fear very little from Porygon2; even Toxic can just be healed away with Heal Bell or Natural Cure. Although most Heatran sets are walled by Porygon2, specially defensive Heatran with Toxic is capable of beating it one-on-one. Due to its lack of Leftovers, passive damage harms Porygon2 more than it does other walls. Various sources of passive damage such as Toxic, Toxic Spikes, Will-O-Wisp, Sand Stream, and Snow Warning are good ways of wearing Porygon2 down and keeping it in check.</p>
[OVERVIEW]
[SET]
name: Defensive Duck
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Toxic / Hidden Power Fire / Thunder Wave
move 4: Recover
item: Eviolite
nature: Calm
ability: Trace
evs: 252 HP / 32 Def / 224 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
[SET]
name: Trick Room
move 1: Trick Room
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Hidden Power Fire / Tri-Attack / Recover
item: Eviolite
nature: Quiet
ability: Download / Trace
evs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Def
ivs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- One of the best abusers of the Eviolite out there due to its naturally good defensive stats
- Really bulky with the Eviolite, and reliable recovery to take advantage of it
- Decent base 105 SpA with BoltBeam coverage
- Trace and Download are both fantastic abilities, giving it defensive and offensive potential
- Fantastic Trick Room supporter for dedicated Trick Room teams and capable of abusing the move itself
- No resistances, only immunity is Ghost
- Common Fighting weakness
- Still, great niche counter with Trace, and great Trick Room supporter as well
[SET]
name: Defensive Duck
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Toxic / Hidden Power Fire / Thunder Wave
move 4: Recover
item: Eviolite
nature: Calm
ability: Trace
evs: 252 HP / 32 Def / 224 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
- Insane bulk + Trace makes Porygon2 a great switch-in to a variety of offensive threats
- Takes on Intimidate Gyarados/Salamence/Landorus-T, traps Dugtrio with its own Arena Trap, uses Dragonite's Multiscale against it, walls Heatran and Jolteon (and Thundurus-T lacking Focus Blast), uses Celebi/Starmie/Blissey's Natural Cure for its own healing, and much more!
- Thunderbolt give Porygon2 Electric coverage that lets it check Pokemon such as Gyarados much more effectively
- Ice Beam, alongside Thunderbolt, offers the BoltBeam coverage that hits pretty much everything in OU for neutral damage, bar Magnezone and Thick Fat Mamoswine
- Toxic helps wear down bulkier opponents and cripples walls and gives Porygon2 a second status to throw around
- Hidden Power Fire can also be used to hit Pokemon such as Ferrothorn, Scizor, and Magnezone much harder, who would otherwise cause trouble for Porygon2
- Thunder Wave provides a reliable way to paralyze opposing offensive Pokemon
- Porygon2 is blessed with Recover, which will keep it healthy as it switches into various Pokemon throughout the match
- The given nature and SpD investment gives Porygon2 enough special bulk to always survive 2 hits from Sash Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rock while also helping with other powerful special attacks such as Latios's Draco Meteor and Gengar's Focus Blast. The remaining EVs are placed into Def, and they ensure that Specs Latios's Psyshock will never 2HKO after Stealth Rock.
- A more physically defensive EV spread can be used as well to better handle powerful physical attacks. A 252 HP / 244 Def / 12 SpD spread with a Bold nature gives Porygon2 just enough special bulk to always survive Scarf Politoed's Hydro Pump in the rain from full health, and the rest is focused on physical bulk. This ensures that +1 Salamence without Life Orb will never 2HKO full-health Porygon2 with Outrage, +2 Garchomp can never OHKO Porygon2 after Stealth Rock, etc.
- Tri-Attack is Porygon2's most powerful STAB move, and it can be used over Toxic, Hidden Power Fire, or Thunder Wave. While the reliable status and Fire coverage are generally more useful than the extra power Tri-Attack provides, the move does give Porygon2 a way to truly threaten Substitute Kyurem-B, who is checked quite nicely by Porygon2.
- Discharge offers the same coverage as Thunderbolt and, although weaker, might also paralyze opponents. The paralysis might clash with Toxic, however, and Thunder Wave is more reliable if you really need paralysis.
- Reliance on Eviolite means no Leftovers, so entry hazards and burns/poison hurt even more. Such passive damage also prevents Porygon2 from successfully Tracing and abusing Dragonite's Multiscale.
- Starmie and Tentacruel make great partners since they can take Fighting-type attacks for Porygon2 and spin away hazards, while Celebi offers similar synergy while healing status with Heal Bell
- Although not mandatory, Stealth Rock support is helpful for enabling Porygon2 to net OHKOs against certain threats, such as Gyarados and Dragonite. The extra damage that Porygon2 racks up by forcing switches is also appreciated.
- Landorus-T can set up Stealth Rock reliably while taking Fighting type attacks aimed at Porygon2.
[SET]
name: Trick Room
move 1: Trick Room
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Hidden Power Fire / Tri-Attack / Recover
item: Eviolite
nature: Quiet
ability: Download / Trace
evs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 Def
ivs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
- Porygon2 makes a good and consistent Trick Room supporter for dedicated Trick Room teams that can abuse the move itself whenever it gets the chance.
- While there are far better standalone Trick Room sweepers, Porygon2 shines on Trick Room teams due to its great bulk, letting it switch in and set up Trick Room very reliably.
- BoltBeam coverage allows Porygon2 to make the most of Trick Room by nailing faster Pokemon with the appropriate move before they have time to react
- Hidden Power Fire hits Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Forretress much harder, the former two being major threats to many Trick Room teams
- Tri-Attack is Porygon2's best STAB move, giving it a powerful move to assist a possible Trick Room sweep. It also enables Porygon2 to OHKO or 2HKO Pokemon such as Mamoswine, Kyurem-B, Rotom-W, and Volcarona with hazard support, which Porygon2's other moves would fail to do.
- Recover helps Porygon2 to stay healthy throughout the match, letting it set up Trick Room more often to support its teammates
- A Quiet nature and minimum Spe IVs give Porygon2 the best chance out outspeeding opposing Pokemon under Trick Room
- Max SpA makes the most of Porygon2's good base 105 SpA, letting it hit as hard of possible with its great neutral coverage
- Although not guaranteed, Download can give Porygon2 a SpA boost, making its offensive coverage even more threatening. The boost also helps net a few KOs in particular, such as the OHKO on Thundurus-T with Ice Beam and a possible OHKO on Ferrothorn with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock.
- Trace offers Porygon2 more freedom switching in and out to set up Trick Room by letting Porygon2 switch in easily on Pokemon such as Heatran, Dragonite (provided hazards are gone), and Intimidate users.
- Extra entry hazard damage gives Porygon2 and its teammates a much better chance at sweeping.
- Forretress and Ferrothorn can offer Stealth Rock and Spikes while also taking advantage of Trick Room themselves. Forretress can also use Rapid Spin, which is appreciated support for a Pokemon like Porygon2 with no Leftovers.
- Porygon2 is a Trick Room supporter first and an abuser second, so other slow Pokemon that can abuse Trick Room make great partners
- Sheer Force Conkeldurr abuses Trick Room very well while hitting from the opposite side of the offensive spectrum as Porygon2
- Reuniclus takes Fighting attacks aimed at Porygon2 very well while doubling as a second Trick Room abuser and supporter
- Slowbro, Cofagrigus, and Bronzong are all capable of setting up Trick Room themselves as well. Slowbro and Cofagrigus also help by covering Porygon2's Fighting weakness while Bronzong can also offer Stealth Rock support.
- Hidden Power Fighting can still hit Pokemon like Magnezone and Ferrothorn harder than Porygon2's main moves, but it also hits Mamoswine, one of the few Pokemon to resist BoltBeam
- Hidden Power Ground does massive damage to Magnezone, hits Heatran much harder than Thunderbolt, and synergizes well with Ice Beam
- Like Trick Room, Porygon2 can be a good and reliable Gravity supporter. It can also abuse the effects of Gravity by using Thunder and Blizzard instead of Thunderbolt and Ice Beam.
- Thunder and Blizzard can also be used if Porygon2 is used on a rain or hail team, respectively. Thunder in rain is the more reliable of the two since hail has the potential to wear down Porygon2 more quickly.
- Psych Up lets Porygon2 steal opposing boosting moves. However, Calm Mind boosts are the only ones that Porygon2 can really take advantage of, and many Calm Mind users (such as Reuncilus and Keldeo) have moves such as Psyshock and Secret Sword to beat Porygon2 with.
- Charge Beam can be used to boost Porygon2's SpA while also dealing a bit of damage as well. However, it is initially weak and not exactly reliablle.
- Icy Wind offers the same coverage as Ice Beam while also dropping the opponent's speed. It's usually more beneficial to just paralyze opponents with Thunder Wave and use the stronger Ice Beam for coverage, though.
- Similar to Trick Room, Porygon2 can use Agility to outspeed many offensive Pokemon and potentially sweep. Such a set would be less bulky than a Trick Room set and still outsped by faster Scarf users, but it wouldn't come with a timer or potential to hurt fast teammates like Trick Room would.
- Eviolite is very important, but Choice Specs can be used for the power boost. Porygon2 also learns Trick to compliment this and cripple some bulky switch-ins.
- Analytic works well with Porygon2's low speed, offering a 30% power boost with each hit. Trace is far more effective for the defensive sets, however, and offensive Trick Room sets will rarely attack last and will appreciate the possible SpA boost of Download.
- Magnezone fears none of Porygon2's main moves, including Toxic. Substitute sets in particular can setup up on defensive sets and offensive sets lacking either Tri-Attack or a Download SpA boost.
- Fighting-type Pokemon can threaten Porygon2 with their STAB moves. Breloom and Terrakion are examples of powerful Fighting-type Pokemon that Porygon2 is unable to handle.
- Conkeldurr not only threatens Porygon2 with its STAB Fighting attacks, but it takes advantage of status with Guts and "outspeeds" Porygon2 under Trick Room.
- Blissey, Chansey, and specially defensive Celebi can handle Porygon2's attacks while healing off status with Natural Cure
- Specially defensive Heatran with Toxic can beat Porygon2 one-on-one, but without Toxic Heatran will be easily walled
- Sets without Tri-Attack are handled fairly well by Mamoswine since it resists BoltBeam and can KO even defensive Porygon2 with Earthquake followed by Superpower
- Porygon2 hates passive damage due to its dependence on Eviolite, so sources of passive damage such as Toxic, Toxic Spikes, Will-O-Wisp, and Sandstream/Snow Warning are good ways of wearing Porygon2 down and keeping it in check.
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