[SET]
Swords Dance (Rayquaza) @ Life Orb
Ability: Air Lock
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Dragon Ascent
- Earthquake
- Extreme Speed
[SET COMMENTS]
Swords Dance Rayquaza is a powerful offensive force that can function as both a wallbreaker and a potential late-game cleaner. Dragon Ascent is resisted by very few Pokemon in the tier, and with a Life Orb boost, it can 2HKO many common neutral targets such as Ho-Oh, Giratina-O, Eternatus, and most Arceus formes. Earthquake hits most Pokemon resistant to Flying for super effective damage, notably having a chance to OHKO Miraidon and Zacian-C and dealing significant damage to Necrozma-DM. Extreme Speed allows Rayquaza to pick off weakened foes and get the jump on anything faster than it. Tera Normal transforms Rayquaza into a potent win condition with Extreme Speed. After a Swords Dance, a Tera Normal-boosted Extreme Speed can crucially OHKO Koraidon and Miraidon. A Jolly nature is preferred to outspeed most Arceus formes and -1 Speed Zacian-C, which Adamant Rayquaza fails to do. Life Orb is the best item for Rayquaza to deal as much damage as possible, as without it, the aforementioned 2HKOs and OHKOs become more difficult to achieve.
Rayquaza shines on hyper offense teams that can capitalize on its great offensive profile. Sticky Web support helps mitigate Rayquaza's mediocre Speed, allowing it to outspeed Zacian-C, Miraidon, and Koraidon if the latter two Pokemon are not running Choice Scarf. Physical attackers like Zacian-C, Koraidon, and Arceus-Ground make great teammates, as together they can overwhelm their shared checks—such as Ho-Oh, Landorus-T, and defensive Arceus formes—and clear the way for each other to sweep. Zacian-C is an especially fantastic teammate, since it can handle any super effective attacks thrown at Rayquaza, as well as Extreme Speed from Arceus, and together they wear down Necrozma-DM, which resists their STAB moves. Miraidon appreciates Rayquaza's ability to punish the passive Ground-types that commonly switch into it, such as Ting-Lu. Rayquaza is forced to take Life Orb recoil damage and defense drops from Dragon Ascent, making it very susceptible to priority users like Extreme Speed Arceus and Kingambit; as such, a reliable answer like Zacian-C or a Tera Ghost user, such as Koraidon, Miraidon, or Arceus, is needed as a teammate.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/lillianofficial.547277/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/corvere.306317/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/taka.595062/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/aurora.109385/
Swords Dance (Rayquaza) @ Life Orb
Ability: Air Lock
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Dragon Ascent
- Earthquake
- Extreme Speed
[SET COMMENTS]
Swords Dance Rayquaza is a powerful offensive force that can function as both a wallbreaker and a potential late-game cleaner. Dragon Ascent is resisted by very few Pokemon in the tier, and with a Life Orb boost, it can 2HKO many common neutral targets such as Ho-Oh, Giratina-O, Eternatus, and most Arceus formes. Earthquake hits most Pokemon resistant to Flying for super effective damage, notably having a chance to OHKO Miraidon and Zacian-C and dealing significant damage to Necrozma-DM. Extreme Speed allows Rayquaza to pick off weakened foes and get the jump on anything faster than it. Tera Normal transforms Rayquaza into a potent win condition with Extreme Speed. After a Swords Dance, a Tera Normal-boosted Extreme Speed can crucially OHKO Koraidon and Miraidon. A Jolly nature is preferred to outspeed most Arceus formes and -1 Speed Zacian-C, which Adamant Rayquaza fails to do. Life Orb is the best item for Rayquaza to deal as much damage as possible, as without it, the aforementioned 2HKOs and OHKOs become more difficult to achieve.
Rayquaza shines on hyper offense teams that can capitalize on its great offensive profile. Sticky Web support helps mitigate Rayquaza's mediocre Speed, allowing it to outspeed Zacian-C, Miraidon, and Koraidon if the latter two Pokemon are not running Choice Scarf. Physical attackers like Zacian-C, Koraidon, and Arceus-Ground make great teammates, as together they can overwhelm their shared checks—such as Ho-Oh, Landorus-T, and defensive Arceus formes—and clear the way for each other to sweep. Zacian-C is an especially fantastic teammate, since it can handle any super effective attacks thrown at Rayquaza, as well as Extreme Speed from Arceus, and together they wear down Necrozma-DM, which resists their STAB moves. Miraidon appreciates Rayquaza's ability to punish the passive Ground-types that commonly switch into it, such as Ting-Lu. Rayquaza is forced to take Life Orb recoil damage and defense drops from Dragon Ascent, making it very susceptible to priority users like Extreme Speed Arceus and Kingambit; as such, a reliable answer like Zacian-C or a Tera Ghost user, such as Koraidon, Miraidon, or Arceus, is needed as a teammate.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/lillianofficial.547277/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/corvere.306317/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/taka.595062/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/aurora.109385/
Last edited:
