Shieldon
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[OVERVIEW]
<p>When we first take a glance at Shieldon, we will find those enormous defenses hard to ignore. Oftentimes, however, its mediocre Speed and offenses prevent it from taking on a truly threatening role on a team. But whoever said this was an entirely bad thing? Shieldon’s defensive prowess and access to supporting moves such as Stealth Rock and Rain Dance make the little Shield Pokemon an excellent supporting player on most Little Cup teams.</p>
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Stealth Rock / Stone Edge
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Ice Beam
move 4: Thunderbolt / Magnet Rise
item: Oran Berry / Shed Shell
nature: Sassy
evs: 196 HP / 20 Atk / 52 Def / 20 SpA / 212 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Shieldon's sturdy defenses and access to a great supporting move, Stealth Rock, allow it to effectively play the role of a supporter on most Little Cup teams. Shieldon can also check many strong and common threats of the Little Cup metagame, such as Dragon Dance Dratini, and this should definitely be taken into account when deciding whether or not to reserve a spot for Shieldon on your team.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Although Stealth Rock is usually found as a staple on supporting variants of Shieldon, it should be noted that Stone Edge can be used over Stealth Rock if if you want Shieldon to do decent damage to Snover, who would otherwise wall the entire set. Flamethrower can be used for the same reason and possesses better accuracy, but it isn't boosted by STAB. Earthquake is used to easily KO even the bulkiest of Houndour, and the EVs guarantee that Shieldon will survive a combination of Crunch and Fire Blast from the standard MixDour set. Earthquake also takes down Magnemite, who will often switch into Shieldon, expecting an easy kill. Ice Beam allows Shieldon to take down offensive variants of Dratini and Thunderbolt is used to super effectively hit Water-types as well as forming the deadly BoltBeam combination with Ice Beam. It should be noted though that Magnet Rise is a viable option over Thunderbolt as it will allow dealing with Diglett much easier. Oran Berry is the recommended item, as it will help extend Shieldon's longevity, but a Shed Shell can be used if Shieldon fears being trapped by Diglett and Wynaut. Shed Shell can also help Shieldon evade Magnemite, although it is easily dealt with even without the use of Shed Shell.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>If you are using Shieldon, it is almost necessary to include Hippopotas as a teammate, as the Special Defense boost gained through sandstorm greatly increases Shieldon's durability in a battle. Also, any Pokemon benefiting from Stealth Rock support and the possible removal or weakening of Dragon Dance Dratini, Diglett, and Magnemite are generally good Pokemon to use alongside Shieldon. Mantyke is a great example, as it has decent synergy with Shieldon, resisting all of its weaknesses while greatly benefiting from Stealth Rock support as it breaks Focus Sashes, which Mantyke hates when it is attempting to pull off a sweep.</p>
[Optional Changes]
<p>Due to Shieldon's mediocre offenses and Speed, it doesn’t have many options when it comes to its offensive capabilities in the tier, although it does have access to a couple of decent offensive stat-up moves. Rock Polish can help cure Shieldon of its mediocre Speed, but this is not recommended as Shieldon would still possess lackluster offenses. Similarly, a Metal Sound or Metal Burst set can be utilized, but again, when you factor in Shieldon's poor offenses, these options are lackluster. If you wish to include other forms of STAB in Shieldon's moveset, moves such as Iron Head and Flash Cannon can be used, but they offer redundant coverage. Other than providing Stealth Rock support, Shieldon can also provide Rain Dance support which can be a valuable asset to teams revolving around sweepers such as Horsea, Mantyke, and Omanyte.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Diglett, Magnemite, and even Wynaut are all effective counters to Shieldon as they can easily OHKO or 2HKO it with their STAB or super effective attacks, provided that they don't switch into a super effective attack themselves. In Wynaut's case, prediction is especially necessary to win. Chinchou is also a great counter, as not only is it immune to Thunderbolt, but it is also resistant to Ice Beam and Flamethrower so it can annihilate any Shieldon set foolish enough to not carry Earthquake. Similar to Chinchou, Munchlax can also wall Shieldon courtesy of its gargantuan HP and above-average defenses.</p>
