In-battle formes
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| HP: | 80 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Attack: | 100 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defense: | 200 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sp. Atk: | 50 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sp. Def: | 100 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Speed: | 50 |
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Strategies
- en
Overview
Regirock's immense physical bulk and useful resistances to Normal-, Flying-, and Poison-type attacks from common Pokemon such as Kangaskhan, Oricorio-E, and Skuntank allow it many opportunities to cripple foes with Toxic or support its teammates by setting up Stealth Rock. Furthermore, given its access to Sunny Day and a useful ability in Sturdy that allows it to set up the move consistently, Regirock is adept in providing support to weather-based sweepers that are dependent on Chlorophyll being activated, making it an essential component of Sunny Day-based teams. Regirock is not without fault, however: its low Speed stat and weakness to ubiquitous Water-, Ground-, Grass-, and Fighting-type coverage moves leave it easily checked by offensive Pokemon like Jellicent, Golurk, Victreebel, and Gurdurr. Additionally, its inherently passive nature as a defensive Stealth Rock setter means that it can be overly reliant on Toxic to deal significant damage to Pokemon that have a type advantage over Regirock like Gastrodon. Regirock's lack of reliable recovery and vulnerability to entry hazards are detrimental to its longevity, which can in turn disallow Regirock to switch into the Pokemon that it is meant to check.
Stealth Rock
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Moves
Stone Edge is a more powerful alternative to Rock Slide, but its accuracy and PP make it somewhat unreliable and it can be PP stalled by Pokemon such as Articuno. Drain Punch lets Regirock threaten Ice-types like Alolan Sandslash and Aurorus and Normal-types like Kangaskhan, and it gains notable recovery from the aforementioned targets as well as Primeape with lowered Defense. Earthquake is an alternative that deals more damage to targets like Aggron and Skuntank and can be used to threaten Qwilfish upon switch-in, but it notably worsens Regirock's hail matchup. Toxic is used to cripple Regirock's regular switch-ins and places a timer on setup sweepers that might attempt to take advantage of Regirock's passive nature. Toxic is also Regirock's most reliable means of dealing significant damage to bulky Ground-types like Mudsdale and other physically defensive Pokemon with recovery like Jellicent and Tangela. Protect can be used over Toxic to scout for Choice-locked Pokemon like Primeape and Stoutland and stall for extra Leftovers recovery.
Set Details
Clear Body is Regirock's ability of choice, as it blocks Parting Shot from Silvally formes and Alolan Persian. A Chople Berry can be used to reduce the damage of super effective Fighting-type moves, such as Primeape’s Close Combat. Maximum HP investment and 180 EVs in Defense along with an Impish nature prevent Regirock from being 2HKOed by Adamant Aggron's Choice Band-boosted Head Smash and Primeape’s unboosted Close Combat from full. Additionally, Regirock has a high chance to survive Zangoose's Close Combat, even after tanking its high-powered Facade. Its remaining EVs are allocated toward its Special Defense, which helps Regirock check Pokemon such as Oricorio-E.
Usage Tips
Use Regirock's massive Defense stat and Rock typing to pivot into resisted attacks from Pokemon like Kangaskhan and physically offensive Skuntank in order to set up Stealth Rock. If Stealth Rock is already on the field, Regirock can use this opportunity to attack or to weaken its switch-ins with Toxic. Even with Special Defense investment, Regirock can still be overrun by powerful wallbreakers such as Choice Specs Drampa so it is best to either use Protect to ease prediction against these Pokemon or switch out altogether. It is generally good practice with Regirock to switch out against incoming status moves, as effects like Toxic will severely reduce its longevity and consequently disallow Regirock to switch into the Pokemon that it was meant to check. Protect should be used when Regirock either has an opportunity to stall out foes afflicted with Toxic or is at risk of being KOed. However, be careful of using Protect too often, given its frequent use can supply Regirock's foes with free turns to set up and sweep or to lay entry hazards that would be detrimental to Regirock's longevity.
Team Options
In general, Regirock fits on balanced and bulky offensive teams and is effective in aiding sweepers and wallbreakers that function optimally with Stealth Rock support. For example, offensive partners that are able to pivot into and threaten Grass-types for Regirock by virtue of their typing or ability such as Drampa and Oricorio-G perform at their peak when Stealth Rock is up. Additionally, Drampa is able to use Regirock's weakness to Grass-type moves to gain momentum and fire off powerful attacks. Other Pokemon that resist Grass-type moves for Regirock, like Lurantis and Skuntank, remove entry hazards for it via Defog, which is crucial in preserving Regirock's longevity given its lack of reliable recovery. Skuntank in particular is effective in this capacity, as it absorbs Toxic Spikes for Regirock upon switching in. Checks to Ground-types share excellent synergy with Regirock; for example, Eelektross absorbs Ground-type moves via Levitate and checks Mudsdale and Simisear on Regirock's behalf. Given Regirock counters physically offensive Skuntank, Psychic-, Ghost-, and Grass-types that appreciate Skuntank's absence are ideal teammates.
Sunny Day
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Moves
Regirock's main use is to set up Sunny Day. Explosion inflicts heavy damage on anything without a resistance to it while KOing Regirock in the process. Explosion's purpose is twofold: not only does Regirock KOing itself prevent Stealth Rock from being removed by slower users of Defog and Rapid Spin, but this also allows partners that take advantage of sun to enter battle safely. Regirock's Attack-invested STAB Stone Edge is effective for dealing with the Fire-, Bug-, Ice-, and Flying-types such as Simisear, Scyther, Jynx, and Oricorio-E that pose a threat to the Grass-types found on Sunny Day teams and can be utilized in matchups where it is better to preserve Regirock than to use Explosion.
Set Details
Sturdy guarantees that Regirock will be able to set up either Stealth Rock or Sunny Day. Heat Rock increases the number of turns that Sunny Day is active, thereby increasing the time sun sweepers are functioning at peak performance.
Usage Tips
Given that Sturdy is key to successfully setting up with Stealth Rock and Sunny Day, Regirock should be brought out early-game before the opponent can deactivate the ability via entry hazards. Switch Regirock out of Pokemon like Sableye and Jellicent that can either burn it with Will-O-Wisp or prevent it from supporting its teammates via Taunt. The momentum Regirock's Explosion provides is conducive to bringing in frail Chlorophyll sweepers like Victreebel and Shiftry for free, and it is generally a more effective method than hard switching into resisted attacks for starting a sweep. Regirock should use Explosion on the turn immediately following Sunny Day in order to maximize the number of turns its teammates can operate with sun in play, unless Regirock should be kept alive to combat Normal- or Flying-types like Kangaskhan and Oricorio-E. Kangaskhan in particular is important for sun teams to beat, as it wastes turns of Sunny Day via Fake Out. It can be advantageous to prioritize Sunny Day's use over Stealth Rock or vice versa; it is best to determine first whether the opposing team is weaker to sun sweepers or Stealth Rock and act accordingly. Sunny Day also has some defensive utility in matchups against offensive Water-types, as it reduces the damage of Water-type moves for Regirock and its Fire-type teammates.
Team Options
Sunny Day Regirock is intended to complement Chlorophyll-reliant sweepers and Fire-types that can use Sunny Day to maximum effect; therefore, this variant of Regirock only fits on dedicated sun-based teams. Fire-types like Simisear are most threatening when played in sun, as Sunny Day boosts the power of their STAB moves significantly. Additionally, Sunny Day effectively negates Simisear's weakness to Water-type attacks and enables the use of a single-turn Solar Beam against bulky Rock-types that would otherwise counter them, such as Carbink. In return, Simisear checks Grass- and Steel-types for Regirock, such as Tangela and Metang. Powerful Grass-type sweepers like Shiftry, Exeggutor, Victreebel, Sawsbuck, and Leafeon all capitalize on Regirock's Sunny Day by doubling their Speed via Chlorophyll, and they become much more difficult to revenge kill as a result. Additionally, Regirock further bolsters their effectiveness by laying Stealth Rock, which limits the number of times that opposing Fire-, Bug-, and Flying-types can pivot into these sweepers' Grass-type attacks. Given that Regirock uses Explosion after setting Sunny Day early-game, mid- and late-game setters of Sunny Day are required to provide sun-based teams with continued support. Prankster Volbeat and Liepard fulfill this role by setting up Sunny Day with priority. Volbeat in particular shares excellent synergy with Regirock due to its ability to pivot into Grass-, Ground-, and Fighting-type moves from Pokemon such as Bellossom, Alolan Dugtrio, and Hitmonchan. Lastly, Sunny Day setters with access to self-KOing moves like Memento and Healing Wish are useful partners to Regirock. For example, Alolan Dugtrio equipped with Sunny Day and Memento eases the setup of sun-based sweepers like Victreebel and Turtonator. Furthermore, it can use its STAB moves to threaten Pokemon that are problematic to sun-based teams such as Snow Warning Aurorus and Abomasnow.
Other Options
Regirock can run Thunder Wave over Toxic to potentially generate free turns of Leftovers recovery and decrease the Speed of faster attackers like Victreebel, but doing so would leave Regirock without a means to damage its defensive answers like Mudsdale. A more offensive Stealth Rock set consisting of Rockium Z, Stone Edge, Drain Punch, and Ice Punch can pressure common switch-ins like defensive Jellicent while still functioning as a reliable answer to Pokemon like Oricorio-E and Cryogonal, but it still struggles against common threats like Mudsdale and the lack of Leftovers recovery makes it otherwise less reliable as a Stealth Rock setter. Sturdy can be run on Stealth Rock Regirock in order to avoid being OHKOed by Pokemon such as Crabominable, but so few Pokemon are capable of OHKOing Regirock that it is rarely worth using over Clear Body.
Checks and Counters
Water-types: Pyukumuku only fears Toxic from Regirock and is able to outlast it thanks to its access to Recover. Offensively inclined Water-types like Poliwrath and Omastar can tank any hit from Regirock and retaliate with their STAB moves.
Grass-types: Bulky Grass-types like Lurantis are able to take any attack that Regirock can dish out. Additionally, Lurantis is able to use Regirock as setup fodder to boost its Special Attack via Contrary Leaf Storm. Grass-type sweepers like Shiftry and Ludicolo are able to threaten Regirock and force it to switch out, which grants them the opportunity to boost their offensive capabilities.
Ground-types: Ground-types like Torterra and Mudsdale take very little damage from Regirock's attacks and is able to Earthquake Regirock in return. However, they must be wary of being crippled by Toxic when switching into Regirock directly.
Fighting-types: Strong Fighting-types such as Gurdurr, Hitmonchan, and Primeape resist Regirock's STAB Rock-type moves, and the latter two are able to heal off any HP lost in the encounter via Drain Punch. Gurdurr in particular is able to capitalize on Regirock's attempts at spreading status by boosting its Attack via Guts.
Special Wallbreakers: Even with Regirock's Special Defense investment, strong specially offensive wallbreakers such as Choice Specs Drampa and Fightinium Z Alolan Raichu are able to break through its defenses with a boosted Focus Blast.
Faster Taunt Users: Sableye and defensive variants of Jellicent can prevent Regirock from setting up Stealth Rock or Sunny Day for its teammates or from using Toxic in Sableye's case. Furthermore, Sableye and Jellicent have enough Defense to switch into Regirock directly and burn it on the following turn with Will-O-Wisp.
Residual Damage: Given Regirock's lack of reliable recovery, passive sources of damage like Toxic and entry hazards can limit its ability to pivot into attacks for its teammates.
