Tapu Lele is done so I'll take Deoxys-Defense.
QC 2/3
Overview
Deoxys-Defense @ Leftovers / Sitrus Berry
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Iron Defense
- Amnesia
- Recover
Set Comments
Moves
Other Options
Checks and Counters:
QC 2/3
Overview
- Massive 160 base Def and SpDef stats allow you to be extremely bulky with only investment into HP.
- A respectable base 90 speed tier allows you to outspeed certain slower pokemon like Mega-Venusaur, Chansey, and Mega-Gyarados.
- Its ability Pressure reduces the opponent's attacking PP by 2 instead of 1, allowing you to reduce the opponent's PP to 0 twice as fast as normal, making causing the opponent to Struggle a viable strategy.
- Its Psychic-typing gives it only 3 weaknesses, of which only Dark and Ghost are relevant in 1v1. This allows it to take on a wide variety of different pokemon.
- Psychic-type gives it few useful resistances, on the flipside, making it take neutral hits from most pokemon.
- Has a relatively wide movepool, with access to Taunt, Recover, Counter, Mirror Coat, Iron Defense and Amnesia letting it take on both Physical and Special attackers. It also learns other useful moves, like Cosmic Power, Mudslap and Seismic Toss.
Deoxys-Defense @ Leftovers / Sitrus Berry
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Iron Defense
- Amnesia
- Recover
Set Comments
Moves
- Taunt prevents set-up, status, and opposing Taunts from slower pokemon. This prevents pokemon like Mega-Gyarados from Taunting Deoxys-D, stall pokemon like Chansey and Quagsire from using Toxic and set-up from pokemon like Mega-Gyarados and Crustle, which would be able to boost alongside Deoxys-D and eventually KO through Recover.
- Iron Defense is used against physical pokemon, like Mega-Pinsir and Golem, so that Deoxys-D takes minimal damage from them and can PP stall them.
- Amnesia is used against special pokemon, like Magearna and Mega-Blastoise, to reduce the damage Deoxys-D takes so that it can PP stall them.
- Recover lets Deoxys-D heal off the weak hits it will be taking after it boosts its defenses, to let it stall out its opponent's PP.
- 252 HP EVs are to maximize bulk.
- 252 Speed EVs and a Timid nature are to outspeed as many pokemon as possible so that Deoxys-D can Taunt set-up and status moves. It also allows it to get in an Iron Defense or Amnesia before a slower opponent attacks, which increases your survivability more than any EV spread.
- 4 SpDef Evs causes Genesect to get an Atk boost instead of a SpA boost, allowing Deoxys-D to beat Genesct spreads other than Timid Specs spreads.
- Leftovers provides the most health over time, preventing Deoxys-D from being whittled down, saving Recover PP and keeping it above the HP where a critical hit would KO you. Sitrus Berry helps in living two turns against very strong attackers, like Banded Dragonite and Garchomp, which would otherwise 2HKO through one boost.
- The intention of this set is to reduce your opponent's attacking move PP to zero, causing them to use Struggle and KO themselves with the recoil.
- Taunt set-up pokemon slower than you, like Gyarados-Mega and Crustle. Also Taunt Stall pokemon like Chansey and Quagsire to prevent them from using Toxic. If you can afford to, Taunt pokemon that you don't expect to carry a status move, as sometimes people run status moves on unusual pokemon, and against some pokemon there is no reason to take a risk.
- Use Iron Defense or Amnesia against set-up pokemon faster than you, like Mega-Pinsir and Charizard-X, or against pokemon that will attack no matter what, like Genesect and Mega-Metagross.
- Recover up to high HP frequently against pokemon that won't use up all Recover PP to play around critical hits.
- Deoxys-Defense pairs well with many pokemon as it acts as a sort of blanket check to either Physical or Special pokemon.
- As long as your team counters Tapu Koko and Mega-Slowbro, Deoxys-Defense can fit it in with most pokemon. Tapu Koko has a fast Taunt and can OHKO Deo-D after a Charge. Mega-Slowbro is immune to Taunt as regular Slowbro and can PP stall with Rest. The counters to these pokemon can usually cover other less common counters to Deoxys-Defense, like Hoopa-Unbound and Leftovers Jumpluff.
- Mega-Gyarados, Mimikyu, and Aegislash all make good partners for Deoxys-Defense as they can eliminate its counters and if EV'd for the mirror, counter themselves, so that Deoxys-Defense doesn't have to face them.
- Groundium-Z Golem does well against the common Trick pokemon Victini and Porygon-Z which can shut down Deo-D. It also does well vs all three of the common Ghost-types, Mimikyu, Mega-Gengar, and Aegislash.
- Choice Specs Magnezone is another pokemon that does well against the Trick pokemon while also beating Tapu Koko and Mega-Slowbro. Either Magnezone or Deoxys-Defense will be able to beat Gyarados, as very few Gyarados run both Crunch and Earthquake.
Other Options
- Instead of using Amnesia and Iron Defense, Deoxys-Defense can instead use Counter and Mirror Coat to defeat Special and Physical attackers. A slower EV spread that lives specific attacks, such as a +1 Mega-Gyarados Crunch or a Modest Charizard Y Blast Burn should be used, in order to live and get a return kill with Counter or Mirror Coat. Counter/Coat is very strong against Choiced Pokemon, as they have no choice but to attack. A slower EV spread puts you at risk of status moves and set-up moves from a wider range of pokemon, however.
- Sitrus Berry can be used in order to live attacks from faster pokemon that can 2HKO through +2 defenses.
- Z-Cosmic Power can be used to boost both Special Defense and Defense at the same time, albeit more slowly than either Iron Defense or Amnesia. Boosting both Special Defense and Physical Defense in one move opens up additional options, such as Protect and Mud Slap which can help reduce the chance of being Critical Hit, by causing your opponent to use PP without actually hitting Deo-D. Very strong physical attacks become more difficult to wall with Cosmic Power, as it only boosts Defense by +1 every use. An additional benefit to using a Z-Crystal is that Z-Crystals cannot be Tricked. In combination with an attack, it can also occasionally beat faster Taunt users, as Z-Moves can't be Taunted either.
Checks and Counters:
- Critical Hits: Although just about every pokemon has to fear being crit, Deoxys-D gets hit so many times, especially with the PP stall sets, that its chance of being crit is much higher than average. Because crits ignore stat changes, any pokemon that can OHKO Deoxy-Defense with a crit will always have the chance to KO, even if it is boosted to +6.
- Dark and Ghost moves: Pokemon such as Mimikyu, Aegislash, and Greninja all have very strong attacks that can do heavy damage to Deoxys-D. Special Dark pokemon and physical Ghost pokemon have the added advantage of being immune to Mirror Coat and Counter respectively.
- Fast Taunt, Status, and Trick: Any pokemon faster than Deoxys-D that can Taunt or Toxic it dominate Deoxys-D. Trick can lock Deoxys-Defense into one move, preventing it from using Recover.
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