[overview]
**Draft Order**: Round 6 onwards
**Price Range**: 5-6 points
**Overview**: Regidrago's massive HP stat, great offensive ability in Dragon's Maw, and passable dual offenses may make it an enticing Dragon-type wallbreaker addition to a draft. However, paper-thin defenses and the lack of reliable recovery blunt the effectiveness of an incredible base 200 HP, and a base 80 Speed makes it difficult for Regidrago to trade evenly with an opposing team, often needing to take hits while setting up or trying to take KOs. While Regidrago can play both an offensive and defensive role on a draft, it finds itself outclassed in its cost bracket when teams need only specifically one or the other. It gets completely walled by Fairy-types and many Steel-types, lacking coverage that can do meaningful damage unless it is made a Tera Captain, making it near impossible to bring to most matchups due to the prevalence of these Pokemon.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
========
**Choice Item Wallreaker**: Whether it's using a Choice Scarf to patch up its Speed or one of the offensive Choice items to provide more bite to an otherwise unremarkable base 100 attacking stat, Regidrago can serve as a hammer, bashing dents and holes into an opposing team until a teammate can come in for the sweep. Dragon Energy works particularly well on these sets early-game, especially when paired with teammates that can beat opposing Fairy-types.
**Dragon Dance Sweeper**: With so few things able to OHKO Regidrago, it can run Dragon Dance and attempt to sweep late-game. After a boost and the removal of Choice Scarf users, Regidrago can do significant damage to anything already chipped by its teammates.
**Dual Screens Setter**: With the difficulty of 2HKOing Regidrago, it can provide Light Screen and Reflect to its team, either switching out to attempt to do so again later or keeping momentum up with Explosion to bring in a teammate to set up. With the limited moveslot space, however, Regidrago cannot both set the screens and make use of them by setting up itself.
**Wall**: Despite a lack of recovery outside of Rest, an invested Regidrago can effectively sponge hits from powerful attackers thanks to its HP stat and large selection of useful resistances.
Common Moves
========
**Primary STAB Moves**: Dragon Energy, Draco Meteor, Outrage, Dragon Pulse, Dragon Claw
**Setup Moves**: Dragon Dance, Scale Shot
**Utility Moves**: Substitute, Light Screen, Reflect
**Coverage**: Crunch, Earth Power, Earthquake, Fire Fang, Hammer Arm, Ice Fang, Tera Blast, Thunder Fang
Niche Moves
========
**Explosion**: Explosion is an option to deal a large amount of damage while also allowing a teammate to come in and pick up the momentum created by Regidrago's sacrifice.
**Rest and Sleep Talk**: Regidrago's only healing option, Rest, allows it to maintain longevity, while Sleep Talk avoids the passivity associated with Rest. Chesto Berry can be used alongside Rest to serve as a one-time full heal.
Common Items
========
**Sitrus Berry**: With a sky-high HP stat, Sitrus Berry can provide it with a large amount of healing, allowing it to remain in play for longer.
**Choice Band / Choice Specs**: The two offense-boosting Choice items can turn a respectable, if underwhelming, offensive Regidrago into something that can dismantle the defensive backbone of an opposing team, especially if any opposing Fairy-type Pokemon have taken reasonable amounts of damage from teammates or its coverage.
**Choice Scarf**: With a Choice Scarf, Regidrago can outspeed most unboosted Pokemon, dispatching them with a powerful STAB Dragon Energy or a super effective coverage move.
**Light Clay**: Should Regidrago attempt a utility-focused dual screens setup role, the lack of a necessary item allows it to run Light Clay effectively, increasing the utility it provides with Light Screen and Reflect.
**Heavy-Duty Boots**: With Regidrago wanting to switch in multiple times during a game to check threats or deal damage, avoiding the chip from hazards is beneficial to its longevity.
Niche Items
========
**Resist Berries**: Regidrago can use resistance Berries such as the Haban and Yache Berries to potentially lure and remove a dangerous foe.
**Rocky Helmet**: Against physical wallbreakers, Regidrago can rely on a large HP value to tank multi-hit and pivoting contact moves, returning the damage in turn.
**Loaded Dice**: If Scale Shot is Regidrago's boosting move of choice, Loaded Dice increases the consistency and effectiveness of Scale Shot.
**Eject Button / Red Card**: With the ability to take hits, Regidrago can serve as either a pivot option, safely bringing in allies unscathed, or an emergency stop to an ascending sweeper.
**Chesto Berry**: Without reliable healing, Regidrago needs to rely on Rest to heal itself up, and it can use Chesto Berry to limit the negative side effects of Rest for one use.
Tera
========
Regidrago is not the best user of Terastallization, though it does not entirely waste it, either. Using Tera Dragon can allow it to pull additional damage out of its STAB options, while other Tera types can make it difficult to counter or allow it to defensively check a threatening foe. Tera Steel specifically can be used to gain an upper hand against Fairy- and Ice-types that may be tasked with its removal, while Tera Poison works well as another defensive option that can target Fairy-types. With stronger coverage thanks to Tera Blast, Dragon Dance sets can more reliably muscle through their counters.
Draft Strategy
========
Regidrago is a multi-faceted tool that, while not always effective, can provide a secondary or tertiary option for teams in defensive, offensive, and utility roles. When it's evaluated individually in any of those roles, Regidrago is unlikely the best option on a draft board for its price range, but its ability to serviceably handle multiple roles allows it to help teams in need of flexibility. It should not be the star of the show, though it does appreciate certain other tools being present.
**Entry Hazard Control**: Unable to avoid any hazards itself and always appreciative of the chip damage on its foes to secure KOs, Regidrago strongly enjoys having an advantage in the hazard game. Corviknight, Galarian Weezing, and Great Tusk can all bring Defog or Rapid Spin to the table, while Klefki, Landorus-T, and Gliscor can provide Spikes, Stealth Rocks, or both.
**Offensive Poison- and Steel-types**: Regidrago appreciates teammates that can threaten the Fairy- and Steel-types that block it from making progress. Pokemon like Sneasler and Gholdengo can provide Regidrago with a way around its most prescient threats.
Checks and Counters
========
**Fairy-types**: Without coverage to hit them super effectively, Fairy-types like Iron Valiant or Clefable are the one stop shops to countering Regidrago, disabling its powerful STAB options and threatening back with super effective STAB options of their own.
**Fast Wallbreakers**: With Choice Scarf users potentially overcoming even boosted Regidrago and most Pokemon being faster than it naturally, a weakened Regidrago can be KOed by anything able to hit with a strong enough neutral hit. Few things can outright KO Regidrago, let alone without a super effective STAB option, but Regidrago's defenses can only go so far once it has been sufficiently damaged.
**Chip Damage**: Regidrago's health is not infinite and lacks recovery outside of Rest, so switching into entry hazards and pivoting moves or taking status ailments can quickly whittle away at Regidrago, making it much harder for it to effectively sponge actual hits.
**Bulky Steel-types**: Without a standout offensive stat, many Steel-types like Corviknight and Jirachi are able to stomach Regidrago's hits even if they mispredict the attacking stat of choice. Bulky Steel-types like Jirachi can even successfully take Regidrago's Ground-type coverage well.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-fairy.57965/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/theuncultured.629845/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-blue-banana.649096/
**Draft Order**: Round 6 onwards
**Price Range**: 5-6 points
**Overview**: Regidrago's massive HP stat, great offensive ability in Dragon's Maw, and passable dual offenses may make it an enticing Dragon-type wallbreaker addition to a draft. However, paper-thin defenses and the lack of reliable recovery blunt the effectiveness of an incredible base 200 HP, and a base 80 Speed makes it difficult for Regidrago to trade evenly with an opposing team, often needing to take hits while setting up or trying to take KOs. While Regidrago can play both an offensive and defensive role on a draft, it finds itself outclassed in its cost bracket when teams need only specifically one or the other. It gets completely walled by Fairy-types and many Steel-types, lacking coverage that can do meaningful damage unless it is made a Tera Captain, making it near impossible to bring to most matchups due to the prevalence of these Pokemon.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
========
**Choice Item Wallreaker**: Whether it's using a Choice Scarf to patch up its Speed or one of the offensive Choice items to provide more bite to an otherwise unremarkable base 100 attacking stat, Regidrago can serve as a hammer, bashing dents and holes into an opposing team until a teammate can come in for the sweep. Dragon Energy works particularly well on these sets early-game, especially when paired with teammates that can beat opposing Fairy-types.
**Dragon Dance Sweeper**: With so few things able to OHKO Regidrago, it can run Dragon Dance and attempt to sweep late-game. After a boost and the removal of Choice Scarf users, Regidrago can do significant damage to anything already chipped by its teammates.
**Dual Screens Setter**: With the difficulty of 2HKOing Regidrago, it can provide Light Screen and Reflect to its team, either switching out to attempt to do so again later or keeping momentum up with Explosion to bring in a teammate to set up. With the limited moveslot space, however, Regidrago cannot both set the screens and make use of them by setting up itself.
**Wall**: Despite a lack of recovery outside of Rest, an invested Regidrago can effectively sponge hits from powerful attackers thanks to its HP stat and large selection of useful resistances.
Common Moves
========
**Primary STAB Moves**: Dragon Energy, Draco Meteor, Outrage, Dragon Pulse, Dragon Claw
**Setup Moves**: Dragon Dance, Scale Shot
**Utility Moves**: Substitute, Light Screen, Reflect
**Coverage**: Crunch, Earth Power, Earthquake, Fire Fang, Hammer Arm, Ice Fang, Tera Blast, Thunder Fang
Niche Moves
========
**Explosion**: Explosion is an option to deal a large amount of damage while also allowing a teammate to come in and pick up the momentum created by Regidrago's sacrifice.
**Rest and Sleep Talk**: Regidrago's only healing option, Rest, allows it to maintain longevity, while Sleep Talk avoids the passivity associated with Rest. Chesto Berry can be used alongside Rest to serve as a one-time full heal.
Common Items
========
**Sitrus Berry**: With a sky-high HP stat, Sitrus Berry can provide it with a large amount of healing, allowing it to remain in play for longer.
**Choice Band / Choice Specs**: The two offense-boosting Choice items can turn a respectable, if underwhelming, offensive Regidrago into something that can dismantle the defensive backbone of an opposing team, especially if any opposing Fairy-type Pokemon have taken reasonable amounts of damage from teammates or its coverage.
**Choice Scarf**: With a Choice Scarf, Regidrago can outspeed most unboosted Pokemon, dispatching them with a powerful STAB Dragon Energy or a super effective coverage move.
**Light Clay**: Should Regidrago attempt a utility-focused dual screens setup role, the lack of a necessary item allows it to run Light Clay effectively, increasing the utility it provides with Light Screen and Reflect.
**Heavy-Duty Boots**: With Regidrago wanting to switch in multiple times during a game to check threats or deal damage, avoiding the chip from hazards is beneficial to its longevity.
Niche Items
========
**Resist Berries**: Regidrago can use resistance Berries such as the Haban and Yache Berries to potentially lure and remove a dangerous foe.
**Rocky Helmet**: Against physical wallbreakers, Regidrago can rely on a large HP value to tank multi-hit and pivoting contact moves, returning the damage in turn.
**Loaded Dice**: If Scale Shot is Regidrago's boosting move of choice, Loaded Dice increases the consistency and effectiveness of Scale Shot.
**Eject Button / Red Card**: With the ability to take hits, Regidrago can serve as either a pivot option, safely bringing in allies unscathed, or an emergency stop to an ascending sweeper.
**Chesto Berry**: Without reliable healing, Regidrago needs to rely on Rest to heal itself up, and it can use Chesto Berry to limit the negative side effects of Rest for one use.
Tera
========
Regidrago is not the best user of Terastallization, though it does not entirely waste it, either. Using Tera Dragon can allow it to pull additional damage out of its STAB options, while other Tera types can make it difficult to counter or allow it to defensively check a threatening foe. Tera Steel specifically can be used to gain an upper hand against Fairy- and Ice-types that may be tasked with its removal, while Tera Poison works well as another defensive option that can target Fairy-types. With stronger coverage thanks to Tera Blast, Dragon Dance sets can more reliably muscle through their counters.
Draft Strategy
========
Regidrago is a multi-faceted tool that, while not always effective, can provide a secondary or tertiary option for teams in defensive, offensive, and utility roles. When it's evaluated individually in any of those roles, Regidrago is unlikely the best option on a draft board for its price range, but its ability to serviceably handle multiple roles allows it to help teams in need of flexibility. It should not be the star of the show, though it does appreciate certain other tools being present.
**Entry Hazard Control**: Unable to avoid any hazards itself and always appreciative of the chip damage on its foes to secure KOs, Regidrago strongly enjoys having an advantage in the hazard game. Corviknight, Galarian Weezing, and Great Tusk can all bring Defog or Rapid Spin to the table, while Klefki, Landorus-T, and Gliscor can provide Spikes, Stealth Rocks, or both.
**Offensive Poison- and Steel-types**: Regidrago appreciates teammates that can threaten the Fairy- and Steel-types that block it from making progress. Pokemon like Sneasler and Gholdengo can provide Regidrago with a way around its most prescient threats.
Checks and Counters
========
**Fairy-types**: Without coverage to hit them super effectively, Fairy-types like Iron Valiant or Clefable are the one stop shops to countering Regidrago, disabling its powerful STAB options and threatening back with super effective STAB options of their own.
**Fast Wallbreakers**: With Choice Scarf users potentially overcoming even boosted Regidrago and most Pokemon being faster than it naturally, a weakened Regidrago can be KOed by anything able to hit with a strong enough neutral hit. Few things can outright KO Regidrago, let alone without a super effective STAB option, but Regidrago's defenses can only go so far once it has been sufficiently damaged.
**Chip Damage**: Regidrago's health is not infinite and lacks recovery outside of Rest, so switching into entry hazards and pivoting moves or taking status ailments can quickly whittle away at Regidrago, making it much harder for it to effectively sponge actual hits.
**Bulky Steel-types**: Without a standout offensive stat, many Steel-types like Corviknight and Jirachi are able to stomach Regidrago's hits even if they mispredict the attacking stat of choice. Bulky Steel-types like Jirachi can even successfully take Regidrago's Ground-type coverage well.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-fairy.57965/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/theuncultured.629845/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-blue-banana.649096/
Last edited:
