[SET]
Darkrai @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Name: Nasty Plot
Ability: Bad Dreams
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
IVs: 0 Atk
Timid Nature
- Nasty Plot
- Dark Pulse
- Ice Beam / Hypnosis
- Focus Blast / Thunder / Hypnosis
[SET COMMENTS]
Darkrai, with its access to Nasty Plot, great offensive stats, and a colorful coverage pool, makes for a very threatening wallbreaker, being faster than threats like the Ogerpon formes, Meowscarada, and Tornadus-T. Darkrai's remaining moves, aside from Dark Pulse, depend on the matchups it wants to excel in. Ice Beam and Focus Blast provide the best general coverage, letting Darkrai heavily pressure Dark, Water, Dragon, and Steel teams. Focus Blast breaks through special walls such as Ting-Lu, Empoleon, and Hisuian Goodra. Ice Beam is nearly mandatory, as it OHKOes Gliscor and Assault Vest Tornadus-T at +2 after Stealth Rock damage and 2HKOes Clodsire at +2. Thunder can be used over Focus Blast, as this lets Darkrai pressure bulkier Flying teams. At +2, it nearly OHKOes Articuno and OHKOes Corviknight while also being able to OHKO Empoleon and Toxapex. Hypnosis temporarily incapacitates checks like Hisuian Goodra, Alolan Muk, and Assault Vest Iron Hands, providing Darkrai with more room to set up or a safe switch in for teammates that deal with these threats, but it has worse accuracy than Darkrai's other moves. Heavy-Duty Boots is preferred, as it allows Darkrai to come in more freely against Steel, Dark, and Flying teams, which usually set multiple entry hazards.
Greninja and Meowscarada make a fantastic offensive core when paired with Darkrai. Either threat can use multiple sets to complement Darkrai's chosen coverage. Choice Specs Greninja deals with Fighting-, Fairy-, and Grass-types like Iron Hands, Primarina, and Ogerpon-W with its coverage, while Choice Band Meowscarada obliterates Flying and Water teams after minimal chip damage from their other teammates. Alternatively, Choice Scarf Meowscarada is able to revenge kill faster threats such as Dragapult, Choice Scarf Gholdengo, and opposing Choice Scarf Greninja, while Choice Scarf Greninja cleans up Flying and Dragon teams after Darkrai has eliminated Articuno and Hisuian Goodra. Hisuian Samurott greatly helps the Dragon matchup through its coverage and access to priority, which lets it remove Hisuian Goodra and Dragapult, respectively, and it sets Spikes to chip down walls like Hisuian Goodra and Ting-Lu for Darkrai to OHKO late-game. In return, Darkrai removes Archaludon, Moltres, and Toxapex. Mandibuzz is a Ground-immune teammate that checks faster physical threats such as Choice Scarf Sneasler and Sand Rush Excadrill and provides slow pivoting with U-turn. Ting-Lu is able to switch into strong special attackers such as Choice Scarf Flutter Mane, Enamorus, and Hatterene while threatening them back with Heavy Slam; it is also able to set a wide array of entry hazards, which makes Darkrai's job of wallbreaking or sweeping easier. Hoopa-U is a mixed wallbreaker that complements Darkrai by dealing with walls like Toxapex, Hisuian Goodra, and Iron Hands that Darkrai struggles with without the correct coverage. Darkrai threatens annoying U-turn users such as Corviknight, Tornadus-T, and Cinderace that hinder Hoopa-U. Sableye and Alolan Muk are also plausible defensive teammates, as Sableye is able to wear down specially defensive Pokemon such as Clodsire and Corviknight with access to Knock Off and Will-O-Wisp while also being able to use Encore against threatening setup sweepers such as Volcarona and Iron Hands, all while providing an invaluable Fighting immunity. Alolan Muk can switch into Fairy-type attacks while also providing further utility with Knock Off and Poison Touch. Swords Dance Bisharp provides useful resistances, is immune to Toxic, and deals with Fairy- and Poison-types like Hatterene and Alolan Muk, and in return, Darkrai removes Moltres and Archaludon, both of which check Bisharp
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Darkrai can opt to use Sludge Bomb or Psychic over the second coverage move, with Sludge Bomb dealing with Iron Valiant and Ogerpon formes and Psychic blasting Toxapex, Iron Hands, and Iron Valiant, all of which are troublesome for Dark teams. However, these coverage moves are quite niche and other teammates like Greninja and Hoopa-U can be used to handle these threats instead.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sasha.510532/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/neko.542526/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/boomp.637295/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/neko.542526/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/pengairxan.622813/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sunny004.197240/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Set(s) by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/therealbigc.532450/
Darkrai @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Name: Nasty Plot
Ability: Bad Dreams
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
IVs: 0 Atk
Timid Nature
- Nasty Plot
- Dark Pulse
- Ice Beam / Hypnosis
- Focus Blast / Thunder / Hypnosis
[SET COMMENTS]
Darkrai, with its access to Nasty Plot, great offensive stats, and a colorful coverage pool, makes for a very threatening wallbreaker, being faster than threats like the Ogerpon formes, Meowscarada, and Tornadus-T. Darkrai's remaining moves, aside from Dark Pulse, depend on the matchups it wants to excel in. Ice Beam and Focus Blast provide the best general coverage, letting Darkrai heavily pressure Dark, Water, Dragon, and Steel teams. Focus Blast breaks through special walls such as Ting-Lu, Empoleon, and Hisuian Goodra. Ice Beam is nearly mandatory, as it OHKOes Gliscor and Assault Vest Tornadus-T at +2 after Stealth Rock damage and 2HKOes Clodsire at +2. Thunder can be used over Focus Blast, as this lets Darkrai pressure bulkier Flying teams. At +2, it nearly OHKOes Articuno and OHKOes Corviknight while also being able to OHKO Empoleon and Toxapex. Hypnosis temporarily incapacitates checks like Hisuian Goodra, Alolan Muk, and Assault Vest Iron Hands, providing Darkrai with more room to set up or a safe switch in for teammates that deal with these threats, but it has worse accuracy than Darkrai's other moves. Heavy-Duty Boots is preferred, as it allows Darkrai to come in more freely against Steel, Dark, and Flying teams, which usually set multiple entry hazards.
Greninja and Meowscarada make a fantastic offensive core when paired with Darkrai. Either threat can use multiple sets to complement Darkrai's chosen coverage. Choice Specs Greninja deals with Fighting-, Fairy-, and Grass-types like Iron Hands, Primarina, and Ogerpon-W with its coverage, while Choice Band Meowscarada obliterates Flying and Water teams after minimal chip damage from their other teammates. Alternatively, Choice Scarf Meowscarada is able to revenge kill faster threats such as Dragapult, Choice Scarf Gholdengo, and opposing Choice Scarf Greninja, while Choice Scarf Greninja cleans up Flying and Dragon teams after Darkrai has eliminated Articuno and Hisuian Goodra. Hisuian Samurott greatly helps the Dragon matchup through its coverage and access to priority, which lets it remove Hisuian Goodra and Dragapult, respectively, and it sets Spikes to chip down walls like Hisuian Goodra and Ting-Lu for Darkrai to OHKO late-game. In return, Darkrai removes Archaludon, Moltres, and Toxapex. Mandibuzz is a Ground-immune teammate that checks faster physical threats such as Choice Scarf Sneasler and Sand Rush Excadrill and provides slow pivoting with U-turn. Ting-Lu is able to switch into strong special attackers such as Choice Scarf Flutter Mane, Enamorus, and Hatterene while threatening them back with Heavy Slam; it is also able to set a wide array of entry hazards, which makes Darkrai's job of wallbreaking or sweeping easier. Hoopa-U is a mixed wallbreaker that complements Darkrai by dealing with walls like Toxapex, Hisuian Goodra, and Iron Hands that Darkrai struggles with without the correct coverage. Darkrai threatens annoying U-turn users such as Corviknight, Tornadus-T, and Cinderace that hinder Hoopa-U. Sableye and Alolan Muk are also plausible defensive teammates, as Sableye is able to wear down specially defensive Pokemon such as Clodsire and Corviknight with access to Knock Off and Will-O-Wisp while also being able to use Encore against threatening setup sweepers such as Volcarona and Iron Hands, all while providing an invaluable Fighting immunity. Alolan Muk can switch into Fairy-type attacks while also providing further utility with Knock Off and Poison Touch. Swords Dance Bisharp provides useful resistances, is immune to Toxic, and deals with Fairy- and Poison-types like Hatterene and Alolan Muk, and in return, Darkrai removes Moltres and Archaludon, both of which check Bisharp
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Darkrai can opt to use Sludge Bomb or Psychic over the second coverage move, with Sludge Bomb dealing with Iron Valiant and Ogerpon formes and Psychic blasting Toxapex, Iron Hands, and Iron Valiant, all of which are troublesome for Dark teams. However, these coverage moves are quite niche and other teammates like Greninja and Hoopa-U can be used to handle these threats instead.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sasha.510532/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/neko.542526/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/boomp.637295/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/neko.542526/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/pengairxan.622813/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sunny004.197240/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Set(s) by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/therealbigc.532450/
Last edited:
