Zapdos (Tradebacks OU) WIP

[BT89]

bird moment

[OVERVIEW]

Largely unchanged, Zapdos is a definitive offensive threat in Tradebacks OU thanks to its stellar stats and potent STABs. With new advantageous matchups into the likes of Vaporeon, Zapdos is able to find ample opportunity to set up a late-game sweep with Agility. In addition to this incredible offensive potential, Zapdos boasts an very solid defensive profile thanks to its impeccable stat spread allowing it to naturally tank hits from threats like Tauros and Alakazam. This means that Zapdos is one of the few Pokemon that are able to go face-to-face with Tauros and end up winning. It also means that Zapdos is less vulnerable going against faster threats like Alakazam and Starmie. In addition to its defensive profile, Zapdos boasts access to Thunder Wave, giving it a layer of utility in paralyzing Pokemon such as Tauros and Chansey, opening up both itself and other teammates to more easily sweep late-game.

However, Zapdos is unable to reach its fullest potential due to the presence of Rhydon and Golem acting as hard stops to Zapdos’s success. These Pokemon take little to nothing from anything Zapdos can throw at them, and in return, can heavily threaten Zapdos with Rock Slide. Jolteon’s newfound access to Growth also ends up as a major point of concern for Zapdos, as Jolteon is able to capitalize off of Zapdos’s presence by using it as set up fodder. Despite the presence of these counters, Zapdos still retains its status as one of the premier offensive Electric-types in the tier, and a threat that every viable team must be able to at least somewhat check.

[SET]
name: Agility
move 1: Agility
move 2: Thunderbolt
move 3: Drill Peck
move 4: Thunder Wave

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========

Zapdos's classic Agility set sees nothing new in Tradebacks OU, and retains its awesome offensive capabilities. Thunderbolt and Drill Peck have

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Due to how vital Zapdos’s STAB attacks and Thunder Wave are for both its offensive and defensive capabilities, Zapdos will always drop Agility when using another move. Hyper Beam makes for an interesting option, being able to revenge kill threats like Chansey, Alakazam, and Hypno, while also being Zapdos’s strongest option versus checks like Jolteon and Chansey. In addition, the latter can even be 2HKOed by a critical hit Drill Peck followed by Hyper Beam, giving Zapdos major offensive momentum. Light Screen gives Zapdos a better matchup against common threats like Alakazam, Starmie, and Chansey. However, Light Screen is rendered ineffective by critical hits, making these superior matchups somewhat questionable. Thunder is Zapdos’ strongest STAB, boasting the same power level as Articuno’s Blizzard. Thunder boasts the power to 3HKO Snorlax and 2HKO Tauros, the latter even being OHKOed by a critical hit. However, Thunder’s accuracy leaves it to be a rather unreliable option. Keep in mind that any of these options will lower Zapdos’s capabilities to act as a late-game cleaner.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Ground-types**: Rhydon and Golem are Zapdos’s most common and most efficient answers, as they take very little from anything Zapdos may throw at them and can respond with their STAB Rock Slide. Nidoqueen and Nidoking can pivot in on Zapdos and start setting up with Amnesia. However, they both are unable to eat a critical hit Drill Peck, as they are both prone to being 2HKOed by it.

**Electric-types**: Jolteon is another excellent answer to Zapdos, as it can switch in on it with ease and either paralyze it with Thunder Wave or start setting up Growth, diminishing Zapdos’ Thunderbolt. However, Jolteon is vulnerable to Thunder Wave, making its offensive potential much less potent. Electabuzz is similarly able to switch into Zapdos and paralyze it. However, outside of a critical hit Ice Punch, Electabuzz struggles to do much damage to it. Zapdos itself makes for a solid check to itself, as its natural bulk means it can solidly eat Drill Peck. However, it is neutral to Thunderbolt and dislikes Thunder Wave.

**Chansey**: Reflect Chansey is able to check Zapdos thanks to its gargantuan bulk letting it stomach Thunderbolt and strike back with paralysis or Ice Beam. However, it is vulnerable to Drill Peck due to Zapdos’s critical hit rate, meaning it is a much more risky check.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[BT89, 487308]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]

 

[Plague von Karma]

Some helpful stuff to note;

• The big thing to emphasise is just how strong a late-game Zapdos can be if played well. While players love to sing tales, they aren't just tales: many an SPL replay will show Zapdos going into a favoured matchup and just winning. Hell, it's as big an asspull as Tauros sometimes, a critical hit from Zapdos can be miles more impactful.
• Jolteon is a bigger counter than in standard OU, as it can sometimes run Growth.
• Zapdos is one of few Pokemon capable of switching in on Tauros one-on-one and having a genuine shot at winning.
• Zapdos being slower than Alakazam/Starmie/etc is a bit of a bother sometimes, but it's bulky enough to not care that much.
• Hyper Beam, Thunder, and Light Screen are all fair OOs. Definitely better than what you noted. Don't forget that Agility is the only droppable option so we don't have idiots dropping Thunder Wave like it's candy. Here's some info on each...
  • Hyper Beam lets Zapdos snipe Chansey and Alakazam at low HP, a strong surprise option. Has applications against Amnesia Hypno for obvious reasons.
  • Thunder hits as hard as an Articuno Blizzard - truly nothing to scoff at - and has a couple of better calcs in tandem with Thunderbolt. Thunder + Thunderbolt has veeeery good odds to 2HKO Tauros, OHKOes on a critical hit Thunder too actually. It also guarantees the Snorlax 3HKO but have fun hitting 3 of this in a row.
  • Light Screen is weird, but effective against Alakazam, Starmie, and BoltBeam Chansey. From what I recall it gets a very serious chance of beating them head-on with it, but obviously critical hits ruin your day.
  • Reflect is for Snorlax, Enigami was testing it more recently if I recall correctly.
  • Rest is diet Jolteon
  • Honestly, while it's pre-paraslam ancient, this resource may be helpful for you. It's from a time when Zapdos's last move was a very big debate. You see mentions of Toxic, Mimic, and a few others down there, not sure whether these would be worth it though. I've used Toxic Zapdos once on Wrap teams if that means anything. Anyway, give that a read and you should be able to write one of the best OO sections you possibly could for Zapdos.

 

[Enigami]

Reflect is for Snorlax, Enigami was testing it more recently if I recall correctly.

My idea with Reflect Zapdos was for Ubers where it helps against the much more common pure physical Snorlaxes and SD Mews, and I haven't tested that yet. Reflect isn't very useful if Snorlax is running an Ice move, since Ice Beam 4HKOs Zapdos the same as Body Slam, so Reflect would be bad on Zapdos in standard OU. If Ice coverage is common for Snorlax in Tradebacks OU, I'd just leave Reflect out of OO.

 

[Sabelette]

Locking cause this is ancient and unfinished.