[SET]
name: Primordial Sea
move 1: Hurricane
move 2: Thunder / Weather Ball
move 3: U-turn / Weather Ball
move 4: Roost
item: Heavy Duty Boots
ability: Primordial Sea
nature: Modest
evs: 184 HP / 252 SpA / 72 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Zapdos fills the role of a bulky Flying-type able of both offensively and defensively checking many Pokemon in the AAA metagame, such as Talonflame, Desolate Land Heatran, Volcarona, and Moltres, as well as most Fighting-types including Kommo-o. Zapdos's Electric- and Flying-type STAB moves allow it to hit almost every relevant Pokemon for at least neutral damage while also having a 30% chance to cripple something with paralysis or confusion. Weather Ball is another attacking option, most notably hitting Desolate Land Heatran for significant damage. U-turn allows Zapdos to pivot out on a predicted switch to a counter, which is a great trait to have in a momentum-reliant tier like AAA and allows it to still make progress against teams with reliable answers to it. Roost gives Zapdos significant longevity and allows it to absorb hits over the course of a longer battle. Zapdos's EVs are very customizable and can be changed depending on what a team needs it to do. Thise given spread maximizes Zapdos's bulk and power while still outspeeding Modest Heatran.
Zapdos can fit on many different team archetypes because of its ability to take neutral hits while threatening powerful attacks back. If Zapdos is not running Weather Ball, it is very weak to Desolate Land users such as Heatran, as it resists Hurricane and takes neutral damage from Thunder, as well as lowering the accuracy of both of those moves to 50% due to the harsh sun. Thus, Zapdos appreciates Pokemon such as Assault Vest Silvally-Dragon that can switch in on the Fire-types safely and then pivot out. Zapdos pairs very well with Pokemon that can threaten specially defensive Pokemon such as Blissey and Assault Vest Swampert that take neutral damage from its STAB attacks. Good partners for this include Zarude and Terrakion. These attackers pair very well with U-turn, as they are able to take advantage of the momentum Zapdos creates. In return, Zapdos can threaten their walls such as Corviknight and Kommo-o.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Zapdos does not have any other viable coverage moves other than Weather Ball. Volt Switch can be used over Thunder, as it allows Zapdos to run Weather Ball. Zapdos's EVs can vary significantly, mostly depending on what it wants to outspeed. As mentioned above, 72 Speed EVs allows Zapdos to outspeed Modest maximum Speed investment Heatran, allowing Zapdos to either pivot out via U-turn or deal a large amount damage with Weather Ball, while 56 Speed EVs allow Zapdos to outspeed Adamant Tapu Bulu and then KO it with Hurricane. Maximum Speed investment can also be run on Zapdos to help its team's matchup against Tapu Lele, Genesect, and Adamant Zarude. Additionally, Zapdos can opt to run a more defensive spread to better fit into its role as a check to physical attackers such as Talonflame. Defog can also be run on Zapdos, but it is usually not a good option, as Zapdos already struggles with fitting all of the moves it wants.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Blissey**: Blissey, one of the tier's most common special walls, is very problematic for Zapdos, as it takes very little damage from both Hurricane and Thunder. This means that without an extreme amount of luck, Zapdos is never able to break it.
**Desolate Land Users**: Many Desolate Land users are able to comfortably switch in on Zapdos, taking its rain away and reducing the accuracy of its STAB attacks to 50% while also changing Weather Ball from a super effective hit to a resisted one.
**RegenVest**: Pokemon holding Assault Vest are difficult for Zapdos to break, as they take very little damage from Zapdos's attacks and can heal themselves easily thanks to Regenerator. Most of them, such as Silvally-Dragon, Swampert, and Jirachi, resist or are immune to either Thunder or Hurricane, allowing them to slowly pivot out against Zapdos and bring in a powerful breaker that threatens Zapdos.
**Offensive Rock- and Ice-types**: While Zapdos is bulky enough to take neutral hits without much investment, it is still weak to powerful breakers with super effective STAB moves such as Terrakion and Mamoswine that usually outspeed and OHKO it.
**Volt Absorb Corviknight**: Zapdos has a very hard time breaking Volt Absorb Corviknight, as it either resists or is immune to both of its STAB moves and can slowly pivot against Zapdos with U-turn to bring in a breaker that threatens Zapdos out.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[DuckeryDoodle, 525446]]
- Quality checked by: [[UT, 523886], [Osake, 524664]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Kris, 241023]]
name: Primordial Sea
move 1: Hurricane
move 2: Thunder / Weather Ball
move 3: U-turn / Weather Ball
move 4: Roost
item: Heavy Duty Boots
ability: Primordial Sea
nature: Modest
evs: 184 HP / 252 SpA / 72 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Zapdos fills the role of a bulky Flying-type able of both offensively and defensively checking many Pokemon in the AAA metagame, such as Talonflame, Desolate Land Heatran, Volcarona, and Moltres, as well as most Fighting-types including Kommo-o. Zapdos's Electric- and Flying-type STAB moves allow it to hit almost every relevant Pokemon for at least neutral damage while also having a 30% chance to cripple something with paralysis or confusion. Weather Ball is another attacking option, most notably hitting Desolate Land Heatran for significant damage. U-turn allows Zapdos to pivot out on a predicted switch to a counter, which is a great trait to have in a momentum-reliant tier like AAA and allows it to still make progress against teams with reliable answers to it. Roost gives Zapdos significant longevity and allows it to absorb hits over the course of a longer battle. Zapdos's EVs are very customizable and can be changed depending on what a team needs it to do. Thise given spread maximizes Zapdos's bulk and power while still outspeeding Modest Heatran.
Zapdos can fit on many different team archetypes because of its ability to take neutral hits while threatening powerful attacks back. If Zapdos is not running Weather Ball, it is very weak to Desolate Land users such as Heatran, as it resists Hurricane and takes neutral damage from Thunder, as well as lowering the accuracy of both of those moves to 50% due to the harsh sun. Thus, Zapdos appreciates Pokemon such as Assault Vest Silvally-Dragon that can switch in on the Fire-types safely and then pivot out. Zapdos pairs very well with Pokemon that can threaten specially defensive Pokemon such as Blissey and Assault Vest Swampert that take neutral damage from its STAB attacks. Good partners for this include Zarude and Terrakion. These attackers pair very well with U-turn, as they are able to take advantage of the momentum Zapdos creates. In return, Zapdos can threaten their walls such as Corviknight and Kommo-o.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Zapdos does not have any other viable coverage moves other than Weather Ball. Volt Switch can be used over Thunder, as it allows Zapdos to run Weather Ball. Zapdos's EVs can vary significantly, mostly depending on what it wants to outspeed. As mentioned above, 72 Speed EVs allows Zapdos to outspeed Modest maximum Speed investment Heatran, allowing Zapdos to either pivot out via U-turn or deal a large amount damage with Weather Ball, while 56 Speed EVs allow Zapdos to outspeed Adamant Tapu Bulu and then KO it with Hurricane. Maximum Speed investment can also be run on Zapdos to help its team's matchup against Tapu Lele, Genesect, and Adamant Zarude. Additionally, Zapdos can opt to run a more defensive spread to better fit into its role as a check to physical attackers such as Talonflame. Defog can also be run on Zapdos, but it is usually not a good option, as Zapdos already struggles with fitting all of the moves it wants.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Blissey**: Blissey, one of the tier's most common special walls, is very problematic for Zapdos, as it takes very little damage from both Hurricane and Thunder. This means that without an extreme amount of luck, Zapdos is never able to break it.
**Desolate Land Users**: Many Desolate Land users are able to comfortably switch in on Zapdos, taking its rain away and reducing the accuracy of its STAB attacks to 50% while also changing Weather Ball from a super effective hit to a resisted one.
**RegenVest**: Pokemon holding Assault Vest are difficult for Zapdos to break, as they take very little damage from Zapdos's attacks and can heal themselves easily thanks to Regenerator. Most of them, such as Silvally-Dragon, Swampert, and Jirachi, resist or are immune to either Thunder or Hurricane, allowing them to slowly pivot out against Zapdos and bring in a powerful breaker that threatens Zapdos.
**Offensive Rock- and Ice-types**: While Zapdos is bulky enough to take neutral hits without much investment, it is still weak to powerful breakers with super effective STAB moves such as Terrakion and Mamoswine that usually outspeed and OHKO it.
**Volt Absorb Corviknight**: Zapdos has a very hard time breaking Volt Absorb Corviknight, as it either resists or is immune to both of its STAB moves and can slowly pivot against Zapdos with U-turn to bring in a breaker that threatens Zapdos out.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[DuckeryDoodle, 525446]]
- Quality checked by: [[UT, 523886], [Osake, 524664]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Kris, 241023]]
Last edited:
