Taken over from Sceptross 5th August 2020
[OVERVIEW]
Rhydon possesses a very important place in RBY OU thanks to a fairly unique typing and formidable Attack stat; moreover, its Earthquake is the most powerful physical attack in the game without a drawback. Rhydon's typing gives it a good amount of defensive utility, such as switching in to force and punish Hyper Beam recharges, taking Explosions, staving off Thunder Wave, and stonewalling Zapdos and Jolteon. Thanks to the immense Attack stat it has, Rhydon can hit very high damage ranges, the most notable one being a guaranteed 2HKO on Chansey. It's also capable of KOing Tauros after two Body Slams from other Tauros. This power makes it very difficult to switch into, with would-be checks such as Exeggutor taking surprising damage. While initially slow, Rhydon is also a very scary foe for paralyzed teams to fight, often folding to it outright by virtue of its immense power. Naturally, this also means it appreciates paralysis support from teammates such as Chansey. It can still outspeed Slowbro and Snorlax, however, allowing it to force damage on non-Reflect variants of the two.
Golem has competed with Rhydon for a place on teams for many years. This is primarily due to the fact that it has the second strongest Explosion in the game, only beaten by Snorlax, along with higher Speed to win against Rhydon specifically. However, its low HP leaves it without access to 101-HP Substitutes. This makes it significantly worse against Chansey, as they will break against its Seismic Toss. It also has little reward for the increased Speed, only gaining the ability to outrun Rhydon. The lower damage output also causes Golem to lose out on some very valuable ranges, notably losing to the aforementioned Reflect Chansey more often than not, which Rhydon excels against. Due to these factors, Rhydon is generally favored over Golem in the metagame.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Rock Slide
move 3: Body Slam
move 4: Substitute
This is the set one should expect when seeing Rhydon. Rhydon's Earthquake is the strongest physical move in the game with no drawbacks, hitting anything that doesn't resist it extremely hard. Rock Slide is mostly used for Zapdos and hitting Pokemon such as Exeggutor, Cloyster, and Lapras harder. Body Slam is extremely valuable for Rhydon's success, as it allows Rhydon to generate its own paralysis support against the likes of Exeggutor, Starmie, Alakazam, and Lapras. Substitute is a complex move on Rhydon's moveset and one that is generally hard for inexperienced players to understand the true potential of, but it can single-handedly win games; its ability to create a 103-HP Substitute means that they can't be broken by Seismic Toss Chansey, which gives Rhydon the edge in the one-on-one against it. This also means that Rhydon can create Substitutes versus Pokemon that can't significantly damage it, such as Zapdos and Jolteon, giving it a free hit against whatever comes in afterwards, which can either instantly mean a win for the Rhydon user or dealing a huge chunk of damage to a replacement like Tauros. Substitute is also extremely helpful against paralyzed Starmie, giving Rhydon time to fish for full paralysis to stay in. Rhydon can then go for the uncommon 2HKO with Earthquake or even a possible OHKO with a critical hit. Should Starmie be paralyzed by Body Slam switching in, Rhydon is in a very good position to go for this.
Despite being slow, it's very hard to switch into Rhydon if you lack Exeggutor, making it one of the key reasons for Exeggutor's success in RBY OU. It's an absolute nightmare for players to deal with Rhydon if they have a paralyzed team, as Rhydon will easily rampage through it. It's a very viable strategy in RBY OU to build a team around Rhydon, providing it with the paralysis support it needs to clean up the mess. Its key immunity to Electric-type moves, namely Thunder Wave, means that it's very hard to reliably paralyze Rhydon and also gives it switch-in opportunities on Pokemon such as Alakazam and Chansey. It is also the premier counter to Zapdos and Jolteon, two Pokemon that can be very dangerous in its absence—especially Zapdos—due to the few Electric-resistant Pokemon in RBY OU. Rhydon also resists Normal-type moves, which means it can switch into a predicted Explosion or Hyper Beam.
Despite all of the advantages, Rhydon is heavily reliant on opposing Pokemon being paralyzed to get in safely. It has very poor Special; this and its typing can make it easy prey for almost every special attacker in the tier. As a result, Rhydon tends to struggle one-on-one against non-paralyzed threats, notably Tauros, Starmie, and Exeggutor.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Out of all of Rhydon's moves, the most replaceable would be Rock Slide. This is because the coverage provided by it is rather specific, while the other moves add key utility that is pivotal to Rhydon's success. When dropping Rock Slide, be wary of the fact that Earthquake is a 4HKO on Cloyster and a 3HKO on Lapras, and you'll have a much harder time versus Moltres and Articuno, though the two legendary birds are not that common. Should these qualities be useful, however, Body Slam can be dropped instead. In this case, though, Rhydon can't set up paralysis for itself, causing it to become much more reliant on teammates. This makes matchups against threats such as Starmie noticeably worse.
Rest can be used to give Rhydon more longevity, but it's hard to wake up due to being 2HKOed by Tauros. It's generally used on more defensive teams to better handle Zapdos and Jolteon throughout a game, but it does have uses outside of this. Rest can be extremely helpful against Reflect Chansey, enabling Rhydon to be more aggressive and burn free Rest turns behind Substitute. It also helps against Snorlax without coverage, as Rhydon despises being paralyzed by Snorlax on switch-in. Another option to consider is Leer; this allows Rhydon to beat Reflect Chansey much more reliably and gives it a way to get past Reflect Snorlax. However, these Pokemon can switch out to get rid of the Defense drops. This also gives faster Pokemon the opportunity to switch in on the Leer while taking no damage, which can give the opponent opportunities to play around Rhydon's usual sweeping. When spamming Earthquake, on the other hand, a critical hit would ruin Reflect Chansey and Snorlax, and switching out would still likely force damage on whatever comes in. Counter can be used to more heavily punish Hyper Beam and Explosion usage, flipping the situation on the opponent. Bringing in Rhydon after an opponent's Explosion and using Counter after forcing their switch-in out can usually lead to a free KO. While gimmicky, Bubble Beam could be used for other Rhydon or Golem, which can lead to a Speed drop, guaranteeing a KO with Earthquake. It can also allow Rhydon to move first against Exeggutor on switch-in, which can allow Rhydon to situationally win the interaction should it be worn down.
[CHECKS AND COUNTERS]
**Exeggutor**: Exeggutor is the best check for Rhydon in the game. It resists Earthquake and doesn't take much damage from Rock Slide, which is only a 4HKO. However, it must watch out for Body Slam. In fact, most variants of Rhydon will use Body Slam expecting an Exeggutor switch-in if it's still healthy. A paralyzed Exeggutor won't be able to reliably check Rhydon anymore, as two Rock Slides will deal upwards of 55% of damage to it.
**Tauros**: Tauros is only 3HKOed by Earthquake and can 2HKO Rhydon with Blizzard in return, which, when combined with Tauros's absurdly high critical hit rate and the chance of freeze, means that Rhydon is almost always forced out, and even if it doesn't switch out, there's a respectable chance that it does absolutely nothing in return. However, Tauros doesn't appreciate being damaged, especially if the Tauros on Rhydon's team is still at full HP. Rhydon will usually be forced out after KOing a Pokemon due to this, which gives Tauros ample opportunity to start exerting its sweeping prowess.
**Cloyster**: Cloyster is only 4HKOed by Earthquake and 3HKOed by Rock Slide, and it can OHKO a third of the time in return with Blizzard. It even packs Clamp for denying a free move to Rhydon when it's staying behind a Substitute, as Clamp will always break the Substitute and render Rhydon immobile in the process.
**Starmie and Chansey**: These two Pokemon are able to switch in on Rhydon and duel it, but only if they are not paralyzed, and Chansey requires Reflect. Chansey is 2HKOed by Earthquake, and Starmie, while very rarely 2HKOed by Earthquake, can be paralyzed by Body Slam on the switch or on a predicted Recover, turning the tides in Rhydon's favor. The paralysis factor makes these matchups extremely variable.
**Victreebel**: Victreebel outspeeds and OHKOes Rhydon with Razor Leaf. However, it takes a huge chunk of damage from Earthquake, with a likely roll to 2HKO.
**Slowbro**: Slowbro threatens to OHKO Rhydon with Surf, and with Reflect, it can effortlessly set up Amnesia against it. Thunder Wave can also be used on a switch prediction to worsen the situation. However, it does take significant damage coming in, making it a check at best.
**Lapras and Jynx**: These Pokemon can OHKO Rhydon with their Ice-type moves, but they struggle to switch in because of the threat of Rock Slide, as it will almost always 2HKO Lapras and always OHKO Jynx. Paralyzing them also turns these two Ice-type Pokemon into prey for Rhydon to feast on.
**Golem**: Golem outspeeds Rhydon and 2HKOes it with Earthquake. However, Rhydon also 2HKOes Golem with its own Earthquake, meaning Golem cannot switch in at all.
**Reflect Snorlax**: While Rhydon is only 3HKOed by Earthquake and Ice Beam, it struggles heavily when actually KOing Snorlax without critical hits if Reflect is active. Earthquake can deal up to 38% before Reflect goes up, but after that, the damage is negligible at best. Reflect Snorlax does give Rhydon a good amount of opportunities to fish for critical hits, so this matchup can be quite volatile. Snorlax also has issues switching in, making it a check at best.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [Sceptross, 123746]]
- Quality checked by: [[Amaranth, 265630], [FriendOfMrGolem120, 424525]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Kris, 241023], [Estronic, 240732]]
[OVERVIEW]
Throughout most of RBY's lifespan, Golem and Rhydon were compared - while some favoured Rhydon's superior sweeping capabilities, others preferred Golem's wallbreaking ability in the form of Explosion. However, the discovery that Body Slam can't paralyze normal types led to changes in the metagame that proved much more beneficial for Rhydon than for Golem - the most notable of those being the rise of Reflect Chansey, a set that Golem struggles immensely with, whereas Rhydon beats it most of the time. Rhydon possesses an insanely high Attack stat that allows it to hit damage ranges Golem can only hope of achieving, the most notable being the guaranteed 2HKO on Chansey and the ability to KO a Tauros that has been hit by 2 Tauros Body Slams. Rhydon also does much more damage to Exeggutor, its premier check, than Golem, and can realistically expect to take it out of comission after a couple switch-ins from Exeggutor.
Rhydon is also one of the best wallbreakers and sweepers of the tier. Despite being slow, it's very hard to switch into it if you lack Exeggutor, making it one of the key reasons to Exeggutor's success in RBY OU. It's an absolute nightmare to deal with Rhydon with a paralyzed team, as Rhydon will easily rampage through it. It's a very viable strategy in RBY OU to build a team around Rhydon, providing it the paralysis support it needs to clean up the mess. Its key immunity to electric moves - namely, Thunder Wave - means that it's very hard to reliably paralyze Rhydon and also gives it switch-in opportunities on Pokemon such as Alakazam and Chansey. It is also the premier counter to Zapdos and Jolteon, two Pokemon that can be very dangerous in its absence - especially Zapdos, because of its immunity to Earthquake. It also resists Normal moves, which means it can switch into a predicted Explosion or Hyper Beam.
Unfortunately, despite being the offensive behemoth that it is, Rhydon is not without its cripping flaws. It is 2HKO'd by Tauros, the hardest Pokemon to switch into in RBY OU. This means that everytime Rhydon KOs a Pokemon, it's giving free pass to the last Pokemon you want to give a free turn to. Secondly, it is also very frail in the special side of the spectrum, which added to the fact that it's weak to Ice means that it can be OHKO'd by strong Ice moves such as Lapras, Cloyster, Jynx or Articuno's Blizzard as well as 2HKO'd by the aforementioned Tauros, Starmie and Chansey (if they are packing an Ice move). In fact, Rhydon struggles so much with special moves that any special attack that is not an electric move can be a big problem. Exeggutor, Starmie, Jynx and Alakazam's Psychic do huge chunks of damage, and the latter's can even OHKO the rock rhino if it lands a critical hit. Lastly, it struggles to get past Reflect Snorlax, a very common sight in RBY OU, as it commonly carries Ice Beam or Earthquake as its coverage move.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Rock Slide
move 3: Body Slam
move 4: Substitute
This is the set you should expect when you see Rhydon. Rhydon's Earthquake is the strongest physical move in the game with no drawbacks and hits ruthlessly hard anything that doesn't resist it. Rock Slide is mostly used for Zapdos and for hitting Pokemon such as Exeggutor, Cloyster and Lapras harder. Contrary to what would be expected, Body Slam is used more than Rock Slide throughout the game, as it allows Rhydon to generate its own paralysis support against the likes of Exeggutor, Starmie, Alakazam or Lapras. Substitute is a complex move on Rhydon's moveset, and one that is generally hard for inexperienced players to understand the true potential of, but it can single-handedly win games - its ability to create 103 HP substitutes means that they can't be broken by Seismic Toss Chansey, which gives Rhydon the edge on the 1v1 versus the aforementioned Pokemon. It also means it can create substitutes versus Pokemon that can't significantly damage it - such as Zapdos and Jolteon, giving it a free hit against whatever comes in afterwards, which can instantly mean a win for the Rhydon user or at least deal a huge chunk of damage to something like Tauros.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Rest can be used to give Rhydon more longevity, but it's hard to wake up due to being 2HKO'd by Tauros. It's generally used in stallier teams. If you do opt for Rest, don't drop Substitute, though, as Substitute is key to Rhydon's success (and it also provides it opportunities to wake up more easily). Since Body Slam's paralysis effect is really useful and Rhydon still 1v1's Zapdos with Body Slam, the ideal move to drop would be Rock Slide. Just beware of the fact that Earthquake is a 4HKO on Cloyster and a 3HKO on Lapras, and you'll have a much harder job versus Moltres and Articuno, although the two legendary birds are not that common. Another option to consider is Leer. Leer allows Rhydon to beat Reflect Chansey much more reliably and gives it a way to get past Reflect Snorlax. However, these Pokemon can just switch out to get rid of the defense drops, and unlike when using Earthquake, you are not proactively trying to defeat those Pokemon (for example, when using Earthquake, a critical hit will ruin both Pokemon's pretentions). Once again, don't even consider dropping Substitute - Rock Slide or to a lesser extent Body Slam are the moves to drop should you opt for Leer.
[CHECKS AND COUNTERS]
**Exeggutor**: Exeggutor is the best check in the game for Rhydon. It resists Earthquake and doesn't take much damage from Rock Slide - it's only a 4HKO. However, it must watch out for Body Slam. In fact, most Rhydons will use Body Slam expecting an Exeggutor switch-in, if it's still healthy. A paralyzed Exeggutor won't be able to reliably check Rhydon anymore, as two Rock Slides will deal upwards of 55% of damage to the pine tree.
**Tauros**: Tauros is only 3HKO'd by Earthquake and 2HKOs with Blizzard in return - which, added to Tauros' absurdely high crit chance and the threat of freeze, means that Rhydon is almost always forced to switch out and even if it doesn't, there's a respectable chance that it does absolutely nothing in return. However, Tauros doesn't appreciate being damaged, especially if the other Tauros is still at full HP.
**Cloyster**: Cloyster is only 3HKOd by Rock Slide and can OHKO in return with Blizzard - it's an unlikely range, though. It even packs Clamp for denying a free move to Rhydon when it's staying behind a substitute, as Clamp will always break the substitute and render Rhydon immobile in the process.
**Starmie, Chansey**: These two Pokemon are able to 1v1 Rhydon, but only if they are not paralyzed. Chansey is 2HKO'd by Earthquake, and Starmie, while very rarely 2HKO'd by Earthquake can be paralyzed by Body Slam on the switch or on a predicted Recover, turning the tides in Rhydon's favor.
**Lapras, Jynx**: These three Pokemon can OHKO Rhydon with their Ice moves, but struggle to switch in because of the threat of Rock Slide, as it will almost always 2HKO Lapras and always OHKO Jynx. Paralyzing them also turns these two Ice Pokemon into Rhydon prey.
**Golem**: Golem outspeeds Rhydon and 2HKOs it with Earthquake. It's also hard to paralyze due to its immunity to Thunder Wave. However,, Rhydon also 2HKOs it, and an eventual paralysis from Body Slam will severely cripple Golem.
**Victreebel**: Victreebel outspeeds and OHKOs Rhydon with Razor Leaf. However, it takes a huge chuck of damage from Earthquake, it being a likely roll to 2HKO.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sceptross, 123746]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
Throughout most of RBY's lifespan, Golem and Rhydon were compared - while some favoured Rhydon's superior sweeping capabilities, others preferred Golem's wallbreaking ability in the form of Explosion. However, the discovery that Body Slam can't paralyze normal types led to changes in the metagame that proved much more beneficial for Rhydon than for Golem - the most notable of those being the rise of Reflect Chansey, a set that Golem struggles immensely with, whereas Rhydon beats it most of the time. Rhydon possesses an insanely high Attack stat that allows it to hit damage ranges Golem can only hope of achieving, the most notable being the guaranteed 2HKO on Chansey and the ability to KO a Tauros that has been hit by 2 Tauros Body Slams. Rhydon also does much more damage to Exeggutor, its premier check, than Golem, and can realistically expect to take it out of comission after a couple switch-ins from Exeggutor.
Rhydon is also one of the best wallbreakers and sweepers of the tier. Despite being slow, it's very hard to switch into it if you lack Exeggutor, making it one of the key reasons to Exeggutor's success in RBY OU. It's an absolute nightmare to deal with Rhydon with a paralyzed team, as Rhydon will easily rampage through it. It's a very viable strategy in RBY OU to build a team around Rhydon, providing it the paralysis support it needs to clean up the mess. Its key immunity to electric moves - namely, Thunder Wave - means that it's very hard to reliably paralyze Rhydon and also gives it switch-in opportunities on Pokemon such as Alakazam and Chansey. It is also the premier counter to Zapdos and Jolteon, two Pokemon that can be very dangerous in its absence - especially Zapdos, because of its immunity to Earthquake. It also resists Normal moves, which means it can switch into a predicted Explosion or Hyper Beam.
Unfortunately, despite being the offensive behemoth that it is, Rhydon is not without its cripping flaws. It is 2HKO'd by Tauros, the hardest Pokemon to switch into in RBY OU. This means that everytime Rhydon KOs a Pokemon, it's giving free pass to the last Pokemon you want to give a free turn to. Secondly, it is also very frail in the special side of the spectrum, which added to the fact that it's weak to Ice means that it can be OHKO'd by strong Ice moves such as Lapras, Cloyster, Jynx or Articuno's Blizzard as well as 2HKO'd by the aforementioned Tauros, Starmie and Chansey (if they are packing an Ice move). In fact, Rhydon struggles so much with special moves that any special attack that is not an electric move can be a big problem. Exeggutor, Starmie, Jynx and Alakazam's Psychic do huge chunks of damage, and the latter's can even OHKO the rock rhino if it lands a critical hit. Lastly, it struggles to get past Reflect Snorlax, a very common sight in RBY OU, as it commonly carries Ice Beam or Earthquake as its coverage move.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Rock Slide
move 3: Body Slam
move 4: Substitute
This is the set you should expect when you see Rhydon. Rhydon's Earthquake is the strongest physical move in the game with no drawbacks and hits ruthlessly hard anything that doesn't resist it. Rock Slide is mostly used for Zapdos and for hitting Pokemon such as Exeggutor, Cloyster and Lapras harder. Contrary to what would be expected, Body Slam is used more than Rock Slide throughout the game, as it allows Rhydon to generate its own paralysis support against the likes of Exeggutor, Starmie, Alakazam or Lapras. Substitute is a complex move on Rhydon's moveset, and one that is generally hard for inexperienced players to understand the true potential of, but it can single-handedly win games - its ability to create 103 HP substitutes means that they can't be broken by Seismic Toss Chansey, which gives Rhydon the edge on the 1v1 versus the aforementioned Pokemon. It also means it can create substitutes versus Pokemon that can't significantly damage it - such as Zapdos and Jolteon, giving it a free hit against whatever comes in afterwards, which can instantly mean a win for the Rhydon user or at least deal a huge chunk of damage to something like Tauros.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Rest can be used to give Rhydon more longevity, but it's hard to wake up due to being 2HKO'd by Tauros. It's generally used in stallier teams. If you do opt for Rest, don't drop Substitute, though, as Substitute is key to Rhydon's success (and it also provides it opportunities to wake up more easily). Since Body Slam's paralysis effect is really useful and Rhydon still 1v1's Zapdos with Body Slam, the ideal move to drop would be Rock Slide. Just beware of the fact that Earthquake is a 4HKO on Cloyster and a 3HKO on Lapras, and you'll have a much harder job versus Moltres and Articuno, although the two legendary birds are not that common. Another option to consider is Leer. Leer allows Rhydon to beat Reflect Chansey much more reliably and gives it a way to get past Reflect Snorlax. However, these Pokemon can just switch out to get rid of the defense drops, and unlike when using Earthquake, you are not proactively trying to defeat those Pokemon (for example, when using Earthquake, a critical hit will ruin both Pokemon's pretentions). Once again, don't even consider dropping Substitute - Rock Slide or to a lesser extent Body Slam are the moves to drop should you opt for Leer.
[CHECKS AND COUNTERS]
**Exeggutor**: Exeggutor is the best check in the game for Rhydon. It resists Earthquake and doesn't take much damage from Rock Slide - it's only a 4HKO. However, it must watch out for Body Slam. In fact, most Rhydons will use Body Slam expecting an Exeggutor switch-in, if it's still healthy. A paralyzed Exeggutor won't be able to reliably check Rhydon anymore, as two Rock Slides will deal upwards of 55% of damage to the pine tree.
**Tauros**: Tauros is only 3HKO'd by Earthquake and 2HKOs with Blizzard in return - which, added to Tauros' absurdely high crit chance and the threat of freeze, means that Rhydon is almost always forced to switch out and even if it doesn't, there's a respectable chance that it does absolutely nothing in return. However, Tauros doesn't appreciate being damaged, especially if the other Tauros is still at full HP.
**Cloyster**: Cloyster is only 3HKOd by Rock Slide and can OHKO in return with Blizzard - it's an unlikely range, though. It even packs Clamp for denying a free move to Rhydon when it's staying behind a substitute, as Clamp will always break the substitute and render Rhydon immobile in the process.
**Starmie, Chansey**: These two Pokemon are able to 1v1 Rhydon, but only if they are not paralyzed. Chansey is 2HKO'd by Earthquake, and Starmie, while very rarely 2HKO'd by Earthquake can be paralyzed by Body Slam on the switch or on a predicted Recover, turning the tides in Rhydon's favor.
**Lapras, Jynx**: These three Pokemon can OHKO Rhydon with their Ice moves, but struggle to switch in because of the threat of Rock Slide, as it will almost always 2HKO Lapras and always OHKO Jynx. Paralyzing them also turns these two Ice Pokemon into Rhydon prey.
**Golem**: Golem outspeeds Rhydon and 2HKOs it with Earthquake. It's also hard to paralyze due to its immunity to Thunder Wave. However,, Rhydon also 2HKOs it, and an eventual paralysis from Body Slam will severely cripple Golem.
**Victreebel**: Victreebel outspeeds and OHKOs Rhydon with Razor Leaf. However, it takes a huge chuck of damage from Earthquake, it being a likely roll to 2HKO.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sceptross, 123746]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
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