Ground Control: Zapdos's Influence on LGPE OU

By Eve. Released: 2021/11/04.
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Art by Albatross

Art by Albatross.

Zapdos is one of the absolute best Pokémon in LGPE OU for numerous reasons. Its defensive profile, between its resistance-laden typing that lets it pester Melmetal, good bulk, and access to reliable recovery in Roost, is one of the best available, even with its vulnerability to Stealth Rock and Toxic. Its STAB Thunderbolt is shockingly powerful and has very few good switch-ins, making it quite a potent offensive threat that demands respect when it's given one of its many switch-in opportunities. It even has access to U-turn to bring its teammates in on its checks!

To show off its defensive utility, here's a few examples of high-profile Pokémon Zapdos helps with handling:

Melmetal

Zapdos is one of the best defensive responses to Melmetal available, while it's far from a perfect answer, as it can switch in on Double Iron Bash, Earthquake, and Thunder Wave comfortably and do whatever it wants. This could be threatening heavy damage with Thunderbolt, setting up Reflect to wall it entirely, using Roost to recover on a predicted switch or Ice Punch, or using U-turn if healthy to maintain momentum.

Mega Gyarados

Zapdos isn't actually a very good Mega Gyarados answer, as the latter's STAB attacks deal roughly as much as Roost heals and it can apply further pressure with Earthquake and Dragon Tail—however, between Zapdos's ability to keep itself alive throughout the game and it threatening heavy damage with Thunderbolt, it's definitely one of the better answers available.

Mew

Zapdos going one-on-one with Mew by roughly matching its power and longevity is an underappreciated yet vitally important part of its viability, especially if Zapdos is packing Toxic. Zapdos's U-turn getting a scary teammate like Gengar in to threaten Mew can't be ignored either.

Dragonite

Zapdos paired with Melmetal is one of Agility Dragonite's most consistent headaches to face, as Zapdos is entirely immune to Dragonite's Earthquake and takes neglible damage from Fire Blast, thus forcing it to use Outrage to KO Zapdos and immediately fall victim to Melmetal while it is locked into the move. Some unconventional Dragonite sets can potentially work around this issue, but they're often far less threatening overall and can usually be handled without preparation.

While this should have made it clear that Zapdos is extremely valuable and prominent, it's not all stormclouds and downpours for our feathered friend—it has an extremely shallow offensive movepool, with most sets only wielding Thunderbolt and U-turn as damaging moves. Beyond that, it has the options of Toxic and Drill Peck for dealing damage (as well as the occasional gimmicky Substitute + Sky Attack set), but there's nothing else of note. While some Grass-type Pokémon can function as checks, they're food for uncommon Drill Peck variants and most are battered by repeated Thunderbolts and U-turns—however, Ground-type Pokémon truly ruffle Zapdos's feathers, and as such they are practically a requirement on LGPE OU teams. Let's look at some of the best Zapdos checks around and see how they bring it down to earth.

Rugged Ground-type Pokémon

Nidoqueen is a great Pokémon, in large part because of how well it shuts Zapdos down. It's one of the three Ground-type Pokémon that are totally immune to both Thunderbolt and Toxic, meaning the average Zapdos can only tickle it with U-turn for damage. This means that, if Nidoqueen gets in on Zapdos doing anything else, it gets a free turn to do whatever it wants; it could set up Stealth Rock, shred Zapdos or whatever it pivots into with a nasty Super Fang, land a Toxic, or spread Stealth Rock damage around with Dragon Tail. All of these options help it to greatly bypass the passivity you may assume from looking at its offensive stats. Nidoqueen's main shortcomings are its lacking Speed and difficulty with threatening Psychic-type Pokémon or picking off weakened Pokémon due to its low power, but don't let those minor drawbacks deceive you—Nidoqueen rules.

Alolan Dugtrio is unique as a Zapdos check because it outspeeds the bird, letting it threaten Zapdos with a Rock Slide or set up a Substitute that Zapdos cannot break before it can even pivot out with U-turn or set up Reflect. This same Speed stat, paired with a workable base 100 Attack, makes Alolan Dugtrio quite a fabulous offensive cleaner, as it makes full use of a tried-and-true strategy; click fast Earthquake. Some players may not dig Alolan Dugtrio's frailty and inability to effectively use Stealth Rock, but a Stealth Rock Mew or regular Aerodactyl easily compensates for this, and the benefits it provides to offensive teams are well worth it.

Nidoking is significantly frailer than Nidoqueen and lacks the extremely threatening Super Fang, making it a less popular choice. Where Nidoking distinguishes itself from its generally superior sister is with its impressive firepower, as its Megahorn royally batters Mew and its Earthquake leaves significant dents in pretty much everything. Sludge Bomb is a cool option that has popped up in recent times, allowing Nidoking to threaten Reflect Zapdos much more effectively. Nidoking's expansive movepool and solid attacking stats mean it can really pack coverage for whatever you want, so it can be great for keeping opponents on their toes.

Rhydon is the first Ground-type here that's affected by Toxic, which can be a letdown at times versus, well, Toxic Zapdos. While its physical tanking capabilities are great, it's generally hindered by absolutely awful weaknesses and pitiful Special Defense, which mean it gets OHKOed by almost any Water- or Grass-type move. This level of vulnerability, which is only worsened by its poor Speed, can make it a pretty awful Pokémon to rely on for Stealth Rock a lot of the time, but Rhydon is still a threat; it can 2HKO almost everything in the metagame, and many popular Pokémon, including the incredibly bulky Mew, don't need much prior damage to be in OHKO range. This level of destruction is enough to drill fear into the heart of any Zapdos planning on using Thunderbolt, as its power is still impressive even when fighting through Reflect. Substitute is a great last move, as it allows Rhydon to further undermine Zapdos lacking Toxic and ram through the opposing team without having to predict switch-ins.

Golem plays very similarly to Rhydon, exchanging some bulk and power for Explosion. While blowing up your Ground-type isn't exactly ideal for handling Zapdos, Explosion can effectively become an extremely powerful slow pivoting move that enables some threatening follow-ups. As a result, Golem is very specifically suited to volatile offensive playstyles that can keep up the momentum it generates and don't mind sacrificing their primary Zapdos answer early.

Sandslash is unique as a Ground-type Pokémon, as it's... just Ground-type. While this makes it a worse Zapdos answer, as it doesn't pack a Toxic immunity or threatening STAB move for it, it also means it lacks several weaknesses that other Ground-type Pokémon have, most importantly not being weak to the same Earthquakes they love to cause. This makes it a very reliable Stealth Rock setter and often just a thorn in the opponent's side. It does have fewer resistances and pretty mediocre stats compared to the other Ground-type Pokémon in this list, and it struggles to really wall or threaten much as a result, but Sandslash remains a solid pick for shrewd players. Sandslash also boasts unique access to Swords Dance among Ground-types, but unfortunately it rarely gets opportunities to use it given its aforementioned awkward defensive profile and mediocre Speed.

Resilient Grass-type Pokémon

While they may not be fond of the occasional Drill Peck or Sky Attack Zapdos and don't enjoy repeated U-turn and Stealth Rock damage, Grass-type Pokémon do quite well versus standard Toxic or Reflect variants.

Mega Venusaur is a very effective Zapdos check, repelling Thunderbolts all day with its fetid flowers and not caring much about U-turn damage. It is a very potent Pokémon in general, with its great bulk, power, and disruption via Leech Seed and Sleep Powder, and this is made even more evident when it is given effectively free entry on Zapdos. Sludge Bomb in particular really snuffs out Zapdos's sparks, dealing massive damage and threatening additional damage through its 30% poison chance.

Alolan Exeggutor is hit fairly hard by U-turn and doesn't enjoy being afflicted with Toxic, but any other move from Zapdos is an egg-sploitable opportunity to crack some holes in the opposing team. This towering beast has amazing coverage between its STAB moves and Flamethrower, letting it rain down pain on any foes unfortunate enough to end up in its shadow. Dragon Tail even lets it force out switch-ins and build up Stealth Rock damage on Pokémon that would prefer to avoid it, including Zapdos itself.

Final Thoughts

While Zapdos certainly has its checks, none of them are invincible, and most teams can only fit one. Even with its checks present, it will always provide value thanks to its fantastic traits as a defensive pivot. Make no mistake—Zapdos is great in LGPE OU, and that is unlikely to change any time soon!

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