[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Rock Slide / Iron Head
move 4: Rapid Spin
item: Leftovers / Air Balloon
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
tera type: Dragon / Ground / Electric
[SET COMMENTS]
Whem using Swords Dance, Excadrill acts as both an excellent utility Pokemon with Rapid Spin and a dangerous wallbreaker and cleaner all in one set. Rock Slide is preferred over Iron Head to let Excadrill more easily beat Zapdos, Mandibuzz, and Tornadus-T; however, Iron Head allows Excadrill to break past Hydrapple and Sinistcha. Rapid Spin is used both for its ability to remove entry hazards and also the crucial Speed boost it gives that lets Excadrill outrun the unboosted metagame. Tera Dragon lets Excadrill flip weaknesses to common moves used to check it like Greninja's Surf, Azumarill's Aqua Jet, and Hisuian Arcanine's Flare Blitz, while Tera Ground gives it a strong power boost on Earthquake, letting it OHKO Slowking at +2; this also sheds its weakness to opposing Excadrill's Earthquake. Tera Electric is useful on Iron Head sets to let Excadrill beat Zapdos despite lacking coverage to hit it. These are the main choices, but Excadrill can viably run a lot of Tera types; Tera Fire lets it set up on Skeledirge, Tera Fairy and Tera Ghost give it a resistance to moves like Mienshao's Close Combat while Tera Fairy also lets it resist Mandibuzz's Foul Play, Tera Flying lets it beat opposing Excadrill more consistently, and Tera Water helps with Greninja while retaining a stronger Scizor and Mamoswine matchup. Leftovers lets Excadrill play more flexibly mid-game before it goes for a sweep, but Air Balloon lets Excadrill beat opposing Excadrill and act as a more reliable hazard remover against Spikes teams, particularly those using Sandy Shocks.
Excadrill fits on just about any team you can think of thanks to its remarkable offensive capabilities and utility. Hydrapple is a huge roadblock for Excadrill so partners like Lokix, Tornadus-T, and Enamorus-T make for wonderful partners capable of pressuring it. Excadrill in return is great at supporting these Pokemon if they forgo Heavy-Duty Boots to alleviate their weakness to Stealth Rock by removing them from the field with Rapid Spin. It appreciates support from entry hazard setters like Tinkaton and Hisuian Arcanine; with the help of Knock Off users like the aforementioned Tornadus-T and Lokix, Excadrill can much more easily cleave through checks like Zapdos and Slowking. Tinkaton and Assault Vest Tornadus-T are also great pivots into Latios, which is appreciated by Excadrill because it doesn't take Draco Meteor well without bulk investment. Slowking makes for an effective partner, as it can check Latios while also helping with Iron Crown, which Excadrill can often struggle with despite its type advantage. Excadrill has few defensive checks, but teammates like Scizor and Mamoswine that can threaten or weaken checks like Hydrapple and Zapdos are extremely appreciated. Excadrill can be revenge killed by foes like Greninja, Azumarill, and Lokix, so checks like Keldeo, Zapdos, and Rotom-W make for helpful teammates.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/lily.481709/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/twilight.344575/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/monky25.515132/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/autumn.384270/
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Rock Slide / Iron Head
move 4: Rapid Spin
item: Leftovers / Air Balloon
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
tera type: Dragon / Ground / Electric
[SET COMMENTS]
Whem using Swords Dance, Excadrill acts as both an excellent utility Pokemon with Rapid Spin and a dangerous wallbreaker and cleaner all in one set. Rock Slide is preferred over Iron Head to let Excadrill more easily beat Zapdos, Mandibuzz, and Tornadus-T; however, Iron Head allows Excadrill to break past Hydrapple and Sinistcha. Rapid Spin is used both for its ability to remove entry hazards and also the crucial Speed boost it gives that lets Excadrill outrun the unboosted metagame. Tera Dragon lets Excadrill flip weaknesses to common moves used to check it like Greninja's Surf, Azumarill's Aqua Jet, and Hisuian Arcanine's Flare Blitz, while Tera Ground gives it a strong power boost on Earthquake, letting it OHKO Slowking at +2; this also sheds its weakness to opposing Excadrill's Earthquake. Tera Electric is useful on Iron Head sets to let Excadrill beat Zapdos despite lacking coverage to hit it. These are the main choices, but Excadrill can viably run a lot of Tera types; Tera Fire lets it set up on Skeledirge, Tera Fairy and Tera Ghost give it a resistance to moves like Mienshao's Close Combat while Tera Fairy also lets it resist Mandibuzz's Foul Play, Tera Flying lets it beat opposing Excadrill more consistently, and Tera Water helps with Greninja while retaining a stronger Scizor and Mamoswine matchup. Leftovers lets Excadrill play more flexibly mid-game before it goes for a sweep, but Air Balloon lets Excadrill beat opposing Excadrill and act as a more reliable hazard remover against Spikes teams, particularly those using Sandy Shocks.
Excadrill fits on just about any team you can think of thanks to its remarkable offensive capabilities and utility. Hydrapple is a huge roadblock for Excadrill so partners like Lokix, Tornadus-T, and Enamorus-T make for wonderful partners capable of pressuring it. Excadrill in return is great at supporting these Pokemon if they forgo Heavy-Duty Boots to alleviate their weakness to Stealth Rock by removing them from the field with Rapid Spin. It appreciates support from entry hazard setters like Tinkaton and Hisuian Arcanine; with the help of Knock Off users like the aforementioned Tornadus-T and Lokix, Excadrill can much more easily cleave through checks like Zapdos and Slowking. Tinkaton and Assault Vest Tornadus-T are also great pivots into Latios, which is appreciated by Excadrill because it doesn't take Draco Meteor well without bulk investment. Slowking makes for an effective partner, as it can check Latios while also helping with Iron Crown, which Excadrill can often struggle with despite its type advantage. Excadrill has few defensive checks, but teammates like Scizor and Mamoswine that can threaten or weaken checks like Hydrapple and Zapdos are extremely appreciated. Excadrill can be revenge killed by foes like Greninja, Azumarill, and Lokix, so checks like Keldeo, Zapdos, and Rotom-W make for helpful teammates.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/lily.481709/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/twilight.344575/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/monky25.515132/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/autumn.384270/
Last edited by a moderator: