Fairy
========
Tapu Koko is the fastest Pokemon available to Fairy teams, being able to outspeed almost all of the unboosted metagame. It also works as a fantastic offensive pivot, as it is able to gain momentum with U-turn. Due to its great Speed, it is also a fantastic revenge killer, which allows it to take on typical threats to Fairy such as Landorus, and Taunt allows it to shut down nearly every wall and prevent them from recovering off damage or prevent Pokemon such as Jirachi from setting up Stealth Rock. It is also blessed with a great offensive typing, allowing it to take on key threats to Fairy such as Celesteela. Tapu Koko is extremely valuable in the Water- and Flying-type matchup, as it can take on common threats such as Toxapex, Mantine, and Celesteela. However, Tapu Koko's Special Attack is lackluster when it isn't using Electric STAB moves, as it can't even OHKO Pokemon such as Gliscor with Hidden Power Ice, leaving it reliant on Thunderbolt to get across notable damage. Its lackluster bulk also leaves much to be desired, allowing it to be revenge killed rather easily by priority move users like Dragonite, faster Pokemon like Mega Aerodactyl, or bulky attackers that can take it on like Kyurem-B.
[SET]
name: Pivot (Fairy)
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Hidden Power Ice
move 3: U-turn
move 4: Taunt
item: Magnet
ability: Electric Surge
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Thunderbolt is Tapu Koko's most spammable attack, as it hits very hard, OHKOing threats to Fairy like Celesteela and potentially 2HKOing Zapdos under Electric Terrain. Hidden Power Ice rounds out Thunderbolt's coverage and allows Tapu Koko to hit Ground-type Pokemon such as Gliscor, Garchomp, and Landorus. U-turn allows Tapu Koko to pivot out of Pokemon it cannot handle such as Hippowdon in order to bring in more ideal teammates such as Tapu Bulu. Taunt prevents walls from recovering off damage or spreading status, prevents entry hazard setters from setting up their hazards, and prevents Pokemon such as Mega Scizor from setting up.
Set Details
========
Maximum EVs in Special Attack and Speed alongside a Timid nature allow Tapu Koko to hit as hard and fast as possible, outspeeding threats such as Alakazam and non-Choice Scarf Greninja. 4 Defense EVs allows Tapu Koko to always take uninvested Gliscor's Earthquake from full health. Electric Surge sets Electric Terrain, boosting the power of its Electric-type moves. Magnet slightly increases the power of Tapu Koko's Electric-type attacks, allowing Thunderbolt to pick up some 2HKOs in Electric Terrain such as Zapdos.
Usage Tips
========
Due to Tapu Koko's great natural Speed, it should be used as a lead, as it can use Taunt to prevent other leads like Cobalion from setting entry hazards, safely pivot out with U-turn, or fire off a powerful attack. Thanks to its function as an anti-lead, it is also a fantastic revenge killer that can clean late-game against teams such as Water once its checks such as Swampert have been removed from battle. At the same time, Tapu Koko should use Taunt to make sure that walls such as Chansey can't recover off damage and setup sweepers such as Mega Gallade can’t set up. If you plan to keep Tapu Koko healthy to use as a sweeper late-game, you should try to keep it as healthy as possible. Therefore, do not let it take unnecessary damage, and avoid status conditions such as burn and poison. Tapu Koko applies an insane amount of pressure against Water and Flying teams and as such should be preserved in those matchups. It should spam Thunderbolt once all Ground-type Pokemon have been removed, namely Gliscor, Landorus-T, Swampert, and Gastrodon. In the Water matchup, Tapu Koko should always pivot out of battle with U-turn while Swampert or Gastrodon still around to bring in Tapu Bulu to better deal with them.
Team Options
========
Mega Diancie and Tapu Koko form a very deadly Flying breaker core, as Tapu Koko can take on threats to Diancie such as Celesteela, while Mega Diancie can spam Diamond Storm and Moonblast against threats such as Zapdos and Dragonite. Mega Diancie can also provide Stealth Rock support, which gives Tapu Koko an easier time to break Pokemon such as Porygon2 late-game. Tapu Bulu takes care of troublesome Ground-type Pokemon for Tapu Koko such as Hippowdon and Swampert, while Tapu Koko can get rid of annoying Flying-types for Tapu Bulu such as Mandibuzz and Celesteela. Swords Dance Tapu Bulu also can break past Poison-type Pokemon for Tapu Koko such as Mega Venusaur with a boosted Zen Headbutt. Mimikyu can break past Psychic-type Pokemon that wall Tapu Koko such as Mega Latias and can sweep late-game against Psychic teams with boosted Shadow Sneak once Tapu Koko has weakened key threats. Mimikyu can also break past special walls that Tapu Koko cannot deal with such as Chansey. Klefki provides Spikes, which wears down Tapu Koko's checks each time they switch in, letting it clean more easily late-game. Tapu Koko also appreciates Klefki's ability to switch into Poison-type attacks such as Mega Venusaur's Sludge Bomb and Nihilego's Sludge Wave, as well as its dual screens support, since Tapu Koko's natural bulk is rather poor. Azumarill is a fantastic partner for Tapu Koko, as its ability to set up and sweep helps in many matchups Tapu Koko struggles in such as the Ground matchup and allows it to clean late-game with priority Aqua Jet. Clefable can provide Stealth Rock support, wearing down Tapu Koko's checks such as Zapdos and Gliscor on Flying teams and letting Tapu Koko clean more easily late-game. It also can provide some support against Steel-types, as it is able to check Swords Dance-boosted Mega Scizor with Babiri Berry.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Fairy
--------
Tapu Koko has a ton of other options, making it rather unpredictable. It can run Choice Specs, which allows it to act as a fantastic special wallbreaker, allowing it to OHKO Pokemon like Gliscor with Hidden Power Ice and enabling it to effectively run Dazzling Gleam in order to take on Pokemon that would otherwise wall it such as Kyurem-B. However, in matchups such as Flying, being locked into a move can leave it taken advantage of, making it less reliable. Shuca Berry allows Tapu Koko to take on Ground-types such as Gliscor, Garchomp, and Landorus-T by letting it take one Ground-type attack and 2HKO them in return with Hidden Power Ice. Grass Knot allows Tapu Koko to take on Water- and Ground-type Pokemon such as Hippowdon, Swampert, and Gastrodon for its team. However, if Tapu Koko runs Grass Knot, it forgoes using Taunt, which allows walls such as Chansey and Mega Venusaur to easily recover off their health against it.
Checks and Counters
===================
Fairy
--------
**Ground-types**: Ground-types such as Excadrill, Gastrodon, and Swampert are immune to Tapu Koko's strongest attack and can OHKO it with their STAB attacks. However, other Ground-types such as Garchomp, Landorus, and Gliscor need to be wary of Hidden Power Ice.
**Electric-type Answers**: Electric-, Grass-, and Dragon-type Pokemon all resist Tapu Koko's Thunderbolt, which it relies on for dealing any notable damage. Many bulky Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon such as Mega Venusaur, Cradily, and Mega Latias can also easily tank Tapu Koko's other attacks.
**Special Walls**: Special walls such as Chansey and Tyranitar can easily switch into any of Tapu Koko's attacks. However, they need to be wary of Taunt, as Chansey will not be able to recover off damage, and neither will be able to set up Stealth Rock.
**Revenge Killers**: Faster Pokemon such as Mega Aerodactyl, Choice Scarf Landorus-T, and Choice Scarf Greninja can outspeed Tapu Koko and revenge kill it with their coverage moves such as Earthquake and Gunk Shot. Priority users such as Dragonite can easily pick off Tapu Koko with slight chip damage due to its lackluster defensive stats.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Fairy analysis by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Quality checked by: [[Havens, 391540], [Decem, 362454], [Moosical, 215618]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Estronic, 240732], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
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