shaian
you love to see it
dos
[OVERVIEW]
Thanks to a fantastic stat spread and a wonderful defensive typing, Zapdos finds itself as one of the premier offensive support Pokemon in the Doubles OU metagame. Zapdos's Electric / Flying typing provides it with both excellent defensive utility in a metagame dominated by the likes of Mega Salamence and Landorus-T and decent offensive utility, allowing it to be amongst the most consistent checks to the ever-present Tapu Fini. In a highly offensive metagame, Zapdos exists as the most consistent Tailwind user, facing competition only from the likes of Mega Salamence. Zapdos's defensive typing and access to consistent recovery in the form of Roost allows it to set Tailwind over and over, almost always giving its teammates the speed advantage. Zapdos's primary hindrance is that it typically invests very little into its own speed and offense, leaving it outrun by a large portion of the metagame, though the latter is mitigated due to its naturally high Special Attack. Overall, Zapdos is a very notable Pokemon that works well on almost every team composition, with a good matchup against some of the most threatening and prevalent Pokemon in the metagame.
[SET]
name: Tailwind Roost
move 1: Tailwind
move 2: Roost
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Hidden Power Ice
item: Misty Seed / Psychic Seed
ability: Static
nature: Bold
evs: 244 HP / 136 Def / 80 SpD / 48 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Tailwind provides Zapdos and its allies with consistent speed control, doubling their Speed for three turns. Timed well, Tailwind can provide a significant momentum shift in a battle, allowing bulkier, middling-Speed Pokemon to outrun frailer, faster foes. Roost is utilized in order to increase the longevity of Zapdos, allowing it to set Tailwind repeatedly throughout the course of a battle. However, Roost does remove Zapdos's Flying type temporarily, which allows it to be hit by now-super effective Ground-type moves. Thunderbolt does a decent amount of damage on most common Pokemon, notably 2HKOing most Tapu Fini. For the most part Zapdos will be using Thunderbolt to soften opposing Pokemon to be within KO range of Zapdos's partner. Hidden Power Ice is the most common fourth move, working to check the ever-common Zygarde, Mega Salamence, and Landorus-T.
Set Details
========
The given EV spread allows Zapdos to survive a Psychic Terrain-boosted Psycho Boost from a Modest Deoxys-A if Zapdos has already consumed its Misty Seed to get to +1 Special Defense. The Speed investment allows Zapdos to outrun all common Choice Scarf users in the metagame in Tailwind as well as +1 analysis Mega Salamence. The remaining EVs are dumped into Defense to increase overall bulkiness and, with a Bold nature, hit a jump point to gain an additional defense point. The standard ability on Zapdos is Static, as it can be used to get the occasional paralysis on foes using contact moves on Zapdos. Pressure is another option with niche uses, such as gauging Speed tiers and PP stalling late-game.
An alternative spread of 252 HP / 68 Def / 92 SpA / 52 SpD / 48 Spe with a Modest nature ensures that a spread Rock Slide from an Adamant Life Orb Tyranitar is a 3HKO, and that a Rock Slide and one turn of sand damage does less than 50% to Zapdos, allowing Zapdos to Roost off the damage. It also allows Zapdos to survive an initial, non-super effective Thousand Arrows and the following super effective Thousand Arrows from standard Zygarde. The HP and Special Defense investment allows Zapdos to survive a Psychic Terrain-boosted Shattered Psyche from a Modest Tapu Lele if Zapdos has already consumed its Misty Seed to get to +1 Special Defense. The Speed investment allows Zapdos to outrun a +1 analysis Mega Salamence, given that Tailwind is active. This investment also ensures that Zapdos outruns all common Choice Scarf users in the metagame in Tailwind. The remaining EVs are dumped into Special Attack to increase overall damage, in particular, increasing the odds of Hidden Power Ice securing the OHKO on Landorus-T.
The ideal item is Misty Seed, which provides Zapdos with a Special Defense boost in Misty Terrain; however, due to the nature of Terrains, Zapdos can also make use of Psychic Seed if the team is using Tapu Lele to utilize the same effect. Zapdos can also utilize a Grassy Seed or Electric Seed to bolster its Defense if it finds itself on the same team as a Tapu Bulu or Tapu Koko, though it is rarely on the same team as those two. Another key element of Zapdos is that its EVs generally should be tailored to the team it is being utilized in; the Speed investment in particular should be adjusted to ensure proper speed tuning.
Usage Tips
========
Zapdos's primary responsibility is to set Tailwind as quickly as possible in order to ensure its team the speed advantage and proceed to soften up the opposing team as needed. That being said, Tailwind should not be used blindly, such as against opposing Trick Room teams, against obvious Taunt users, or in instances where a KO needs to be secured as soon as possible. Roost can be used liberally, though remaining cognizant of potential risks is a must, as the move can fall in to similar traps as Tailwind. If Zapdos can secure a key KO at the cost of fainting to the target's partner's move, as opposed to Roosting and surviving the turn, then you should weigh the costs of attacking versus Roosting. In late-game situations, Roost can also be a powerful tool to "stall" out the opposing Pokemon. Though Zapdos is less passive than conventional support Pokemon, if Zapdos is in a position where it is proving to be offensive dead weight, such as against an opposing Amoonguss, it should be switched out to a more appropriate Pokemon. As Static provides a chance of paralysis on contact, Zapdos can be an interesting switch-in on Pokemon that frequently use contact moves, such as on a Landorus-T using U-turn or a Mega Salamence using Double-Edge.
Team Options
========
Zapdos is a Pokemon that is usable on nearly every common team archetype, being least viable, to the point of being non-viable, on Trick Room compositions; though certain hybrid builds may find Zapdos to be a worthwhile addition, it is not a recommended choice. The only true constant is that Zapdos requires an island guardian to make full use of its abilities. The first and most common choice is Tapu Fini, with the two having reasonable type synergy, as Tapu Fini is a reliable check to Ground- and Rock-type Pokemon and has Misty Terrain to activate Zapdos's Misty Seed. In this core, Zapdos is used to provide Tapu Fini with a means to outrun opposing Pokemon more consistently, and the two are utilized in a more defensive manner than a conventional offensive pairing. The next most common is Tapu Lele, which works in a more aggressive fashion than Tapu Fini. With Tailwind up, Tapu Lele can begin to deal out significant amounts of damage to large portions of the metagame, securing OHKOs on Pokemon such as Mega Gengar and Mega Salamence, both of which are capable of OHKOing Tapu Lele should they outrun it. In this pairing, Zapdos is once again used primarily as the means to gain the speed advantage, but afterwards it is relegated to bringing foes to Tapu Lele's KO range and picking off the odd threat.
Other Pokemon that have particularly good synergy with Zapdos include Zygarde and Mega Salamence. Zapdos can provide them room to operate, due to being a reliable way of checking Tapu Fini, and speed control. Mega Gengar is also a decent partner due to its unique trapping abilities, letting it pick and choose opposing Pokemon to trap and KO. With Zapdos providing speed control, Mega Gengar can pick its targets from an even larger group of Pokemon, as Tailwind removes the issue of faster Choice Scarf users and the odd Speed tie. Steel-type Pokemon such as Heatran, Aegislash, and Ferrothorn have interesting defensive synergy with Zapdos, and all check key threats to Zapdos. Heatran is a reliable method of beating Grass-type Pokemon, notably Amoonguss, which can redirect Zapdos's moves with relative ease; Aegislash is amongst the best Rock-type switch-ins in the game; and Ferrothorn also reliably beats Rock-types. Pokemon such as Tyranitar and Landorus-T also make useful partners. Both can make excellent use of Tailwind to start using their spread moves, and both appreciating a reliable method of beating Water-type Pokemon.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Zapdos can make good use of pinch Berries such as a Mago Berry as an alternative to Terrain Seeds. Though Terrain Seeds are optimal in most cases, pinch Berries do offer a few upsides, such as not having their effect undone if Zapdos switches out, and they are not specific to a particular Terrain being active. Zapdos is amongst the few Pokemon in the Doubles OU metagame that typically do not utilize Protect, as it typically cannot afford to drop one of its core moves. That being said, if it finds itself not needing to use Hidden Power Ice, then Protect is a fully viable alternative that affords it more defensive utility. Toxic and Roar can be used to hinder opposing setup Pokemon, most notably Snorlax, which can reliably set up on Zapdos otherwise. Heat Wave is a niche choice that allows Zapdos to be less dead weight against opposing Ferrothorn and Amoonguss, though it has minimal use outside of those two matchups. Volt Switch is a useful pivoting option, and as Zapdos is typically slower than the opposing foes when not in Tailwind, it can be used to safely pivot to a more immediately threatening teammate. Thunder Wave is a possible option on teams that do not feature Tapu Fini, though the frequency of Tapu Fini in the metagame does not make it a particularly attractive option.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types*: Grass-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, and Tapu Bulu all take minimal damage from Zapdos's main STAB move and can proceed to force it out in one way or another. Ferrothorn can use Zapdos as a means to begin a Leech Seed stall, Amoonguss can use Rage Powder to redirect Zapdos's attacks with ease, and Tapu Bulu, which frequently carries Stone Edge, can 2HKO it.
**Ice-types**: Though Ice-type Pokemon are typically rare, they do still pose significant threat to Zapdos. Pokemon such as Mega Abomasnow have little to fear from Zapdos and can easily 2HKO it back. The frequency of Ice-type moves as coverage can pose a threat to Zapdos as well.
**Rock-types**: Rock-type Pokemon such as Diancie, Tyranitar, and the uncommon Terrakion can all safely 2HKO Zapdos with their spread STAB moves. Tyranitar and Terrakion can also OHKO Zapdos if they opt to utilize Stone Edge or Rockium Z. Pokemon such as Assault Vest Tapu Bulu and Landorus-T also frequently carry Rock-type moves and can do significant damage to Zapdos, though Landorus-T has to be wary of Hidden Power Ice.
**Taunt**: As Zapdos relies heavily on two non-attacking moves, Roost and Tailwind, Taunt can greatly diminish its impact on the field. Faster Taunt users such as Tapu Koko and Tapu Lele can Taunt Zapdos to prevent it from using Tailwind or Roost and threaten it out.
**Trick Room**: Trick Room is able to circumvent the speed advantage of Tailwind, and Zapdos typically has to rely on its teammates to deal with Trick Room. Additionally, common Trick Room setters, such as Hoopa-U, Victini, and Diancie, all have little to fear from Zapdos's moves and can do significant damage to it in return.
**Zygarde**: Though Zygarde does have to fear Hidden Power Ice, it remains the only Ground-type Pokemon that can consistently attack Zapdos with a Ground-type move. Though Thousand Arrows does not do super effective damage on the initial attack, every subsequent one will do super effective damage.
[OVERVIEW]
Thanks to a fantastic stat spread and a wonderful defensive typing, Zapdos finds itself as one of the premier offensive support Pokemon in the Doubles OU metagame. Zapdos's Electric / Flying typing provides it with both excellent defensive utility in a metagame dominated by the likes of Mega Salamence and Landorus-T and decent offensive utility, allowing it to be amongst the most consistent checks to the ever-present Tapu Fini. In a highly offensive metagame, Zapdos exists as the most consistent Tailwind user, facing competition only from the likes of Mega Salamence. Zapdos's defensive typing and access to consistent recovery in the form of Roost allows it to set Tailwind over and over, almost always giving its teammates the speed advantage. Zapdos's primary hindrance is that it typically invests very little into its own speed and offense, leaving it outrun by a large portion of the metagame, though the latter is mitigated due to its naturally high Special Attack. Overall, Zapdos is a very notable Pokemon that works well on almost every team composition, with a good matchup against some of the most threatening and prevalent Pokemon in the metagame.
[SET]
name: Tailwind Roost
move 1: Tailwind
move 2: Roost
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Hidden Power Ice
item: Misty Seed / Psychic Seed
ability: Static
nature: Bold
evs: 244 HP / 136 Def / 80 SpD / 48 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Tailwind provides Zapdos and its allies with consistent speed control, doubling their Speed for three turns. Timed well, Tailwind can provide a significant momentum shift in a battle, allowing bulkier, middling-Speed Pokemon to outrun frailer, faster foes. Roost is utilized in order to increase the longevity of Zapdos, allowing it to set Tailwind repeatedly throughout the course of a battle. However, Roost does remove Zapdos's Flying type temporarily, which allows it to be hit by now-super effective Ground-type moves. Thunderbolt does a decent amount of damage on most common Pokemon, notably 2HKOing most Tapu Fini. For the most part Zapdos will be using Thunderbolt to soften opposing Pokemon to be within KO range of Zapdos's partner. Hidden Power Ice is the most common fourth move, working to check the ever-common Zygarde, Mega Salamence, and Landorus-T.
Set Details
========
The given EV spread allows Zapdos to survive a Psychic Terrain-boosted Psycho Boost from a Modest Deoxys-A if Zapdos has already consumed its Misty Seed to get to +1 Special Defense. The Speed investment allows Zapdos to outrun all common Choice Scarf users in the metagame in Tailwind as well as +1 analysis Mega Salamence. The remaining EVs are dumped into Defense to increase overall bulkiness and, with a Bold nature, hit a jump point to gain an additional defense point. The standard ability on Zapdos is Static, as it can be used to get the occasional paralysis on foes using contact moves on Zapdos. Pressure is another option with niche uses, such as gauging Speed tiers and PP stalling late-game.
An alternative spread of 252 HP / 68 Def / 92 SpA / 52 SpD / 48 Spe with a Modest nature ensures that a spread Rock Slide from an Adamant Life Orb Tyranitar is a 3HKO, and that a Rock Slide and one turn of sand damage does less than 50% to Zapdos, allowing Zapdos to Roost off the damage. It also allows Zapdos to survive an initial, non-super effective Thousand Arrows and the following super effective Thousand Arrows from standard Zygarde. The HP and Special Defense investment allows Zapdos to survive a Psychic Terrain-boosted Shattered Psyche from a Modest Tapu Lele if Zapdos has already consumed its Misty Seed to get to +1 Special Defense. The Speed investment allows Zapdos to outrun a +1 analysis Mega Salamence, given that Tailwind is active. This investment also ensures that Zapdos outruns all common Choice Scarf users in the metagame in Tailwind. The remaining EVs are dumped into Special Attack to increase overall damage, in particular, increasing the odds of Hidden Power Ice securing the OHKO on Landorus-T.
The ideal item is Misty Seed, which provides Zapdos with a Special Defense boost in Misty Terrain; however, due to the nature of Terrains, Zapdos can also make use of Psychic Seed if the team is using Tapu Lele to utilize the same effect. Zapdos can also utilize a Grassy Seed or Electric Seed to bolster its Defense if it finds itself on the same team as a Tapu Bulu or Tapu Koko, though it is rarely on the same team as those two. Another key element of Zapdos is that its EVs generally should be tailored to the team it is being utilized in; the Speed investment in particular should be adjusted to ensure proper speed tuning.
Usage Tips
========
Zapdos's primary responsibility is to set Tailwind as quickly as possible in order to ensure its team the speed advantage and proceed to soften up the opposing team as needed. That being said, Tailwind should not be used blindly, such as against opposing Trick Room teams, against obvious Taunt users, or in instances where a KO needs to be secured as soon as possible. Roost can be used liberally, though remaining cognizant of potential risks is a must, as the move can fall in to similar traps as Tailwind. If Zapdos can secure a key KO at the cost of fainting to the target's partner's move, as opposed to Roosting and surviving the turn, then you should weigh the costs of attacking versus Roosting. In late-game situations, Roost can also be a powerful tool to "stall" out the opposing Pokemon. Though Zapdos is less passive than conventional support Pokemon, if Zapdos is in a position where it is proving to be offensive dead weight, such as against an opposing Amoonguss, it should be switched out to a more appropriate Pokemon. As Static provides a chance of paralysis on contact, Zapdos can be an interesting switch-in on Pokemon that frequently use contact moves, such as on a Landorus-T using U-turn or a Mega Salamence using Double-Edge.
Team Options
========
Zapdos is a Pokemon that is usable on nearly every common team archetype, being least viable, to the point of being non-viable, on Trick Room compositions; though certain hybrid builds may find Zapdos to be a worthwhile addition, it is not a recommended choice. The only true constant is that Zapdos requires an island guardian to make full use of its abilities. The first and most common choice is Tapu Fini, with the two having reasonable type synergy, as Tapu Fini is a reliable check to Ground- and Rock-type Pokemon and has Misty Terrain to activate Zapdos's Misty Seed. In this core, Zapdos is used to provide Tapu Fini with a means to outrun opposing Pokemon more consistently, and the two are utilized in a more defensive manner than a conventional offensive pairing. The next most common is Tapu Lele, which works in a more aggressive fashion than Tapu Fini. With Tailwind up, Tapu Lele can begin to deal out significant amounts of damage to large portions of the metagame, securing OHKOs on Pokemon such as Mega Gengar and Mega Salamence, both of which are capable of OHKOing Tapu Lele should they outrun it. In this pairing, Zapdos is once again used primarily as the means to gain the speed advantage, but afterwards it is relegated to bringing foes to Tapu Lele's KO range and picking off the odd threat.
Other Pokemon that have particularly good synergy with Zapdos include Zygarde and Mega Salamence. Zapdos can provide them room to operate, due to being a reliable way of checking Tapu Fini, and speed control. Mega Gengar is also a decent partner due to its unique trapping abilities, letting it pick and choose opposing Pokemon to trap and KO. With Zapdos providing speed control, Mega Gengar can pick its targets from an even larger group of Pokemon, as Tailwind removes the issue of faster Choice Scarf users and the odd Speed tie. Steel-type Pokemon such as Heatran, Aegislash, and Ferrothorn have interesting defensive synergy with Zapdos, and all check key threats to Zapdos. Heatran is a reliable method of beating Grass-type Pokemon, notably Amoonguss, which can redirect Zapdos's moves with relative ease; Aegislash is amongst the best Rock-type switch-ins in the game; and Ferrothorn also reliably beats Rock-types. Pokemon such as Tyranitar and Landorus-T also make useful partners. Both can make excellent use of Tailwind to start using their spread moves, and both appreciating a reliable method of beating Water-type Pokemon.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Zapdos can make good use of pinch Berries such as a Mago Berry as an alternative to Terrain Seeds. Though Terrain Seeds are optimal in most cases, pinch Berries do offer a few upsides, such as not having their effect undone if Zapdos switches out, and they are not specific to a particular Terrain being active. Zapdos is amongst the few Pokemon in the Doubles OU metagame that typically do not utilize Protect, as it typically cannot afford to drop one of its core moves. That being said, if it finds itself not needing to use Hidden Power Ice, then Protect is a fully viable alternative that affords it more defensive utility. Toxic and Roar can be used to hinder opposing setup Pokemon, most notably Snorlax, which can reliably set up on Zapdos otherwise. Heat Wave is a niche choice that allows Zapdos to be less dead weight against opposing Ferrothorn and Amoonguss, though it has minimal use outside of those two matchups. Volt Switch is a useful pivoting option, and as Zapdos is typically slower than the opposing foes when not in Tailwind, it can be used to safely pivot to a more immediately threatening teammate. Thunder Wave is a possible option on teams that do not feature Tapu Fini, though the frequency of Tapu Fini in the metagame does not make it a particularly attractive option.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types*: Grass-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, and Tapu Bulu all take minimal damage from Zapdos's main STAB move and can proceed to force it out in one way or another. Ferrothorn can use Zapdos as a means to begin a Leech Seed stall, Amoonguss can use Rage Powder to redirect Zapdos's attacks with ease, and Tapu Bulu, which frequently carries Stone Edge, can 2HKO it.
**Ice-types**: Though Ice-type Pokemon are typically rare, they do still pose significant threat to Zapdos. Pokemon such as Mega Abomasnow have little to fear from Zapdos and can easily 2HKO it back. The frequency of Ice-type moves as coverage can pose a threat to Zapdos as well.
**Rock-types**: Rock-type Pokemon such as Diancie, Tyranitar, and the uncommon Terrakion can all safely 2HKO Zapdos with their spread STAB moves. Tyranitar and Terrakion can also OHKO Zapdos if they opt to utilize Stone Edge or Rockium Z. Pokemon such as Assault Vest Tapu Bulu and Landorus-T also frequently carry Rock-type moves and can do significant damage to Zapdos, though Landorus-T has to be wary of Hidden Power Ice.
**Taunt**: As Zapdos relies heavily on two non-attacking moves, Roost and Tailwind, Taunt can greatly diminish its impact on the field. Faster Taunt users such as Tapu Koko and Tapu Lele can Taunt Zapdos to prevent it from using Tailwind or Roost and threaten it out.
**Trick Room**: Trick Room is able to circumvent the speed advantage of Tailwind, and Zapdos typically has to rely on its teammates to deal with Trick Room. Additionally, common Trick Room setters, such as Hoopa-U, Victini, and Diancie, all have little to fear from Zapdos's moves and can do significant damage to it in return.
**Zygarde**: Though Zygarde does have to fear Hidden Power Ice, it remains the only Ground-type Pokemon that can consistently attack Zapdos with a Ground-type move. Though Thousand Arrows does not do super effective damage on the initial attack, every subsequent one will do super effective damage.
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