Look at my arms. LOOK AT THEM! They are fabulous.
Status: DONE
QC: shrang / Fireburn / Sweep
GP: GatoDelFuego / Kingler12345
Overview
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Possessing a blistering 180 Attack and Special Attack, combined with a high base 150 Speed and one of the most powerful STAB moves in the game, Deoxys-A is no slouch in the Ubers metagame. Thanks to its expansive movepool, it is able to hit almost every Pokémon in the tier like a truck. Offense isn't the only thing Deoxys-A can do; it has the ability to function as a great lead, which can lead to some very interesting mind games with the opponent during Team Preview, and it's also capable of putting in work against all playstyles.
However, there are a few things holding Deoxys-A back from outright destroying the metagame. First, one would have to use an electron microscope to be able to see its defenses, meaning almost any move the opponent uses is sure to OHKO it. Second, even though its movepool is expansive, Deoxys-A cannot run everything at once, and it will miss out on something that it could have gained were it to run another move. And, thanks to Mega Evolutions that have Magic Bounce, Deoxys-A's lead role is somewhat diminished.
All-Out Attacker
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name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Psycho Boost
move 2: Superpower / Low Kick
move 3: Knock Off / Ice Beam
move 4: Extreme Speed / Knock Off / Hidden Power Fire
ability: Pressure
item: Life Orb / Focus Sash
evs: 68 Atk / 252 SpA / 188 Spe
nature: Naive / Rash
Moves
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Equipped with a Life Orb and four offensive moves, Deoxys-A becomes the epitome of mass destruction. Its main STAB move, Psycho Boost, puts a major dent into every Pokémon that isn't a Dark-, Psychic-, or Steel-type. Superpower handles many of the Pokémon in the tier that Psycho Boost cannot, and deals considerable damage to Klefki, but causes an Attack and Defense drop as well. Low Kick can be used as an alternative to Superpower if the stat drop is worrisome, hitting many of the Pokémon in the tier with 120 Base Power. Knock Off is a great move that hits Psychic-types hard and cripples any Pokémon that heavily relies on an item to succeed; specifically, specially defensive Giratina, Latios and Latias, and Lugia. Ice Beam can be used to handle many of the Flying- and Dragon-types in the tier, most notably Yveltal and Mega Salamence.
There are a number of options for the last move. Extreme Speed is a great priority move to finish off weakened foes, and, combined with Psycho Boost, is able to achieve some nice KOs on many threatening Pokémon. Knock Off is another option that can be used in the last slot if not already on the moveset. Hidden Power Fire is also helpful for dealing with Mega Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Forretress, although it does sacrifice a little power and lowers Deoxys-A's Speed IV. Dark Pulse works off of its higher Special Attack stat (after factoring in EVs), getting more consistent damage and a chance to make the opponent flinch, but it offers less utility than Knock Off and should not be used in conjunction with it. Fire Punch is good for dealing more overall damage than Hidden Power Fire, but it does not achieve an OHKO on Mega Scizor and Forretress.
Set Details
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As this is an all-out attacking set, the natural item of choice is the Life Orb, boosting all of Deoxys-A's attacks and making it that much more powerful. However, if survival for more than one turn is necessary, then Focus Sash is a viable alternative. Focus Sash also enables Deoxys-A to carry out a lead role, or potentially bluff a lead set if opting to save it for later. The choice of nature is up to the user: a Naive nature makes Deoxys-A faster and able to outspeed more Choice Scarf users, while Rash can be used instead to give it an edge in power. It is also recommended to use Naive over Hasty and Rash over Mild as to enable Deoxys to survive more than one Rapid Spin, and there aren't any special attacks that don't outright OHKO it anyway.
In terms of EVs, the recommended spread is 68 Atk / 252 SpA / 188 Spe to make Deoxys-A able to outspeed everything up to and including Choice Scarf Xerneas with a neutral nature, while simultaneously providing Psycho Boost as much of a damage output as it is capable of achieving, and giving an extra edge to Deoxys-A's physical moves. An alternate spread for a Naive nature is maximized Special Attack and Speed, with the last four EVs dumped into Attack; this spread can be used to get a Speed tie with opposing Deoxys-A running maximal Speed investment, but other than that it doesn't have much practical use.
Usage Tips
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Deoxys-A is best used as a sweeper or late-game cleaner on offensive teams in need of a strong attacker. Send out teammates to weaken opposing threats, then bring out Deoxys-A to KO the rest with Psycho Boost or the appropriate move. Even though Deoxys-A's field time is short, it is not advisable to send it out into damaging weather, entry hazards, or when an opponent is expected to inflict a status condition, especially if holding a Focus Sash. It is also recommended to take care of its checks and counters before sending it out, or Deoxys-A will not be able to do anything useful in the battle.
Team Options
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Deoxys-A does not need much team support, as it has enough power by itself, and it can usually accomplish its task before being easily KOed. Variants without Hidden Power Fire will be at a loss when facing Pursuit Scizor, and in such an instance, having Hidden Power Fire Mega Gengar as a teammate is recommended. When running Focus Sash, a Defogger such as Latios, Latias, Giratina, or support Arceus is a good idea, but Deoxys-A is usually played as a lead in this case. Damaging weather, although quite uncommon, and status conditions severely inhibit Deoxys-A's lifespan and offensive ability. For this reason, Primal Groudon is a great teammate, removing weather on the switch and absorbing Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave. Pokémon with Magic Bounce, such as Mega Diancie and Mega Sableye, are also helpful in bouncing back status conditions. Deoxys-A also needs to be able to battle without having to worry about its checks and counters. Therefore, Pokémon capable of handling Extreme Killer Arceus and Xerneas, such as Yveltal and Mega Scizor, respectively, are good options to consider.
Suicide Lead
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name: Suicide Lead
move 1: Stealth Rock / Spikes
move 2: Psycho Boost
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: Extreme Speed / Taunt
ability: Pressure
item: Focus Sash
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
nature: Naive
Moves
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This set aims at exploiting Deoxys-A's high base 150 Speed in order to make an effective lead. The choice of entry hazard is up to the player: Stealth Rock is useful to have on any team, as it is able to damage any and every Pokémon that switches in, while Spikes, although not as universally useful as Stealth Rock, is able to deal more consistent damage to grounded Pokémon, can be set up in multiple layers, and can be used if there is already a Pokémon with Stealth Rock on the team. What sets apart Deoxys-A from most suicide leads is that, after using its high Speed to set up hazards, it can use its even higher offensive stats and STAB Psycho Boost to deal major damage to opponents. Knock Off can be used to cripple opposing Pokémon, and it serves as an anti-lead measure in certain cases. For the final moveslot, Extreme Speed allows Deoxys to get a hit on faster threats before going down, while Taunt can be used to inhibit Pokémon that rely heavily on status moves. Taunt is also useful in stopping early-game Defog attempts and setup opportunities.
Set Details
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The lead set requires as much Speed as possible, even to the point of creating a Speed tie with opposing Deoxys-A if necessary, so a Naive nature and 252 Speed EVs are optimal. The rest of the EVs are put into Special Attack to increase the damage output from Psycho Boost. As with all suicide leads, a Focus Sash is mandatory to ensure at least one layer of entry hazards is set up.
Usage Tips
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This set is best used as a lead on offensive and hyper offensive teams. Because Deoxys-A is always going out first, and usually staying out until it gets knocked out, there is really no need to do anything else with it. However, if it is already able to get its entry hazards set up without breaking its Focus Sash, and it could prove useful later, feel free to switch it out. This should only be done sparingly, however, and usually it's best to keep it out until it faints.
Team Options
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As this set is a lead that doesn't care about getting knocked out, there isn't any truly obligatory team support. However, it is always useful to have Pokémon that help prevent Deoxys-A's setup from being ruined. There are still plenty of viable Pokémon with access to Rapid Spin, so a Ghost-type such as Mega Gengar or Ghost Arceus is helpful. Primal Groudon is also worth a mention, as its Desolate Land removes opposing weather and its typing grants it an immunity to Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave.
Other Options
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Because Deoxys-A is extremely frail, there is little else it can do besides the aforementioned roles. Magic Coat can provide some utility on the lead set, but Deoxys isn't really afraid of any moves the opponent might throw at it, and it has plenty of attacking options if it ever gets Taunted. Pursuit can also be used to trap Latios and Latias from fleeing safely, although Knock Off has a generally higher Base Power and the added effect of removing an item from the opponent.
Checks & Counters
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**Psychic-types**: Psychic Arceus, Mewtwo and Mega Mewtwo Y, and Mega Metagross all resist Deoxys-A's STAB and coverage moves with the ability to KO back. They should watch out for Dark Pulse and Knock Off, though, and Metagross can also be knocked out with Hidden Power Fire.
**Priority**: Deoxys-A is very susceptible to priority attacks; Extreme Killer Arceus, Steel-type Mega Evolutions, and pretty much any other Pokémon with priority attacks can take it out with relative ease.
**Prankster**: Klefki can be a big hindrance with Thunder Wave and Toxic. Sableye is a potent anti-lead threat, having access to both Prankster and Magic Bounce simultaneously on the turn it Mega Evolves.
**Residual Damage**: Stealth Rock, status conditions, sandstorm, and hail are all harmful to offensive Deoxys running Focus Sash, slowly chipping away at it while also breaking its Sash.
**Choice Scarf Users**: Slower threats, when equipped with a Choice Scarf, become much faster and are able to KO Deoxys-A.
**Yveltal**: Bulky Yveltal variants can take any of Deoxys-A's moves bar Ice Beam. Against offensive sets, Yveltal is able to KO with Sucker Punch. Against lead sets, it can use a combo of Toxic or Dark Pulse and Sucker Punch to land a knockout.
**Pursuit**: Although the Pokémon that commonly use Pursuit in Ubers can all be taken out with the appropriate coverage move, Mega Scizor, Tyranitar, Aegislash, and Mega Metagross can all pose a serious threat, being able to knock out Deoxys-A at no cost to them.
**Ghost-types**: Not all Ghost-types are able to handle Deoxys-A, but Ghost Arceus, Giratina-O, and Mega Sableye are all unfazed by Knock Off, tank a Psycho Boost (or, in the case of Sableye, have an immunity to it altogether), and KO back.
Overview
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+ Sky-high offenses
+ High 150 base speed
+ Great coverage
+ Able to fulfill more than one distinct role; increases complexity in team preview
+ No team support necessary (unless running Focus Sash on the Offensive set)
– Pitiful defenses
– Slight 4MSS
– High counts of new Magic Bounce users leave less viability for lead set
Life Orb
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name: Offensive
move 1: Psycho Boost
move 2: Superpower / Low Kick
move 3: Knock Off / Ice Beam / Dark Pulse
move 4: Extreme Speed / Knock Off / Hidden Power Fire
ability: Pressure
item: Life Orb / Focus Sash
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
nature: Naive / Rash
Moves
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name: Lead
move 1: Stealth Rock / Spikes
move 2: Psycho Boost
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: Extreme Speed / Taunt
ability: Pressure
item: Focus Sash
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
nature: Naive
Moves
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**Psychic Types**: Arceus w/ Mind Plate, (Mega) Mewtwo (Y), Bronzong/Jirachi/Metagross, all resist its STAB and coverage moves with the ability to KO back. They should watch out for Knock Off and Dark Pulse, though, and steel types can be KOed with Fire Punch/HP Fire
**Priority**: ExtremeKiller, Steel-type Mega Evolutions, Birdspam
**Prankster**: Klefki can provide a big hindrance with Thunder Wave/Toxic. Sableye is a potent anti-lead, having both Prankster and Magic Bounce simultaneously.
**Indirect damage**: Stealth Rock, Will-O-Wisp/Toxic, Sand Stream/Snow Warning
**Geomancy Xerneas**: Once set up, outspeeds Deoxys and KO's
**Choice Scarf**: Slow threats now become fast and can KO
**Yveltal**: Can take any move bar Ice Beam. Against Offensive, KOs with Sucker Punch. Against lead, can use a combo of Toxic/Dark Pulse and Sucker Punch to KO.
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+ Sky-high offenses
+ High 150 base speed
+ Great coverage
+ Able to fulfill more than one distinct role; increases complexity in team preview
+ No team support necessary (unless running Focus Sash on the Offensive set)
– Pitiful defenses
– Slight 4MSS
– High counts of new Magic Bounce users leave less viability for lead set
Life Orb
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name: Offensive
move 1: Psycho Boost
move 2: Superpower / Low Kick
move 3: Knock Off / Ice Beam / Dark Pulse
move 4: Extreme Speed / Knock Off / Hidden Power Fire
ability: Pressure
item: Life Orb / Focus Sash
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
nature: Naive / Rash
Moves
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- Psycho Boost is insanely powerful, dealing massive damage to anything that doesn't resist it
- Low Kick is strong against many of the Pokémon in the Uber tier with no recoil, as most of the Pokémon mass to more than 200.0 kg (440.9 lbs)
- Superpower is an alternative with more consistent damage, but also more consistent stat drops for the user
- Ice Beam handles many of the Flying- and Dragon-types in the tier, most notably Yveltal and MegaMence
- Knock Off provides great utility, and cripples Pokémon reliant on items without -ite in their name
- Dark Pulse works off of the higher Special Attack stat (after EVs), and gets more consistent damage and a chance to make the opponent flinch
- Extreme Speed provides great priority, meaning Deoxys will definitely be able to hit something before going out
- Knock Off can go in the last slot if you want both it and Ice Beam
- Hidden Power fire nabs Mega Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Forretress
- Not listed, but Fire Punch can be used instead to deal more overall damage than HP Fire, but unable to nab the OHKO on MScizor
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- Pressure is mandatory
- Life Orb is the preferred item, giving and already powerful Pokémon even more power
- Focus Sash can be used instead if you prefer a lead role, or just to increase Deoxys' life span slightly
- Maximum investment in Speed and Special Attack to make it as fast as possible and make Psycho Boost as powerful as possible
- 4 EVs in Attack to increase the power of Physical moves, as there is no point in raising defenses
- Naive for outspeeding opposing Deoxys-A (Naive preferred over Hasty to survive multiple Rapid Spins if need be), while Rash can be used for even more power to Psycho Boost
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- Field needs to clear, especially if running Focus Sash. Deoxys' lifespan is already short, and there is no need to make it even shorter than necessary.
- Best used as a late-game sweeper/cleaner, where nabbing KO's with Psycho boost shouldn't be too problematic
- Works well on offensive teams that want a strong, fast Mixed Sweeper
- Deoxys' checks and counters should be taken care of first, for if they switch in later, Deoxys must either switch or be KO'd
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- Defog support for clearing hazards. This includes Giratina-O, Support Arceus types, and Mega Scizor
- Pokémon capable of handling Extreme Killer and Xerneas. Yveltal and Mega Scizor/Metagross, respectively, are good options to consider.
- If running Focus Sash, Status conditions are scary. Running a Magic Bouncer alongside like Mega Diancie or Mega Sableye is a good idea.
- Also along Focus Sash lines, running a Primal Reversion to cancel weather effects is greatly appreciated. Primal Groudon can also absorb Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave, which is nice.
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name: Lead
move 1: Stealth Rock / Spikes
move 2: Psycho Boost
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: Extreme Speed / Taunt
ability: Pressure
item: Focus Sash
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SAtk / 252 Spe
nature: Naive
Moves
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- Deoxys-A is fast, and can set up entry hazards with ease; the choice of hazard is up to the user
- Psycho Boost for dealing heavy damage after laying hazards
- Knock off to cripple opposing leads/item-reliant Pokémon
- Extreme Speed is great for outspeeding opposing Pokémon with Priority
- Taunt severely inhibits Pokémon with a majority of status moves
- Spikes can be run alongside Stealth Rock for dual hazards setup strategies.
- Ice Beam can be run to deal with Ice-Weak Pokémon
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- Lead does not need power as much as it needs Speed, so Naive is the only necessary nature
- Focus Sash is a staple for all lead-oriented Pokémon, to ensure survival and at least one layer of hazards up
- Maximum Speed investment, maximum Special Attack investment in order to deal a lot of damage from Psycho Boost when the hazard setting is done
- Pressure because only ability
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- Used as a lead, most optimally on Offensive/Hyper Offensive teams
- It's okay to switch out/back in later if need be, as long as the Focus Sash is intact. However, don't do this too excessively, and usually it's just better to let Deoxys get KO'd
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- Doesn't require much team support, as it is used as a lead and doesn't care about fainting.
- Ghost types are helpful to block against Rapid Spin.
- Since any indirect damage can break Focus Sash, bringing a Primal Reversion to cancel weather effects is greatly appreciated. Primal Groudon can also absorb Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave, which is nice.
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- Not much else it can do, given its frailty
- Magic Coat can be used on the lead set, but Deoxys isn't really afraid of any status moves the opponent throws at it
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**Psychic Types**: Arceus w/ Mind Plate, (Mega) Mewtwo (Y), Bronzong/Jirachi/Metagross, all resist its STAB and coverage moves with the ability to KO back. They should watch out for Knock Off and Dark Pulse, though, and steel types can be KOed with Fire Punch/HP Fire
**Priority**: ExtremeKiller, Steel-type Mega Evolutions, Birdspam
**Prankster**: Klefki can provide a big hindrance with Thunder Wave/Toxic. Sableye is a potent anti-lead, having both Prankster and Magic Bounce simultaneously.
**Indirect damage**: Stealth Rock, Will-O-Wisp/Toxic, Sand Stream/Snow Warning
**Geomancy Xerneas**: Once set up, outspeeds Deoxys and KO's
**Choice Scarf**: Slow threats now become fast and can KO
**Yveltal**: Can take any move bar Ice Beam. Against Offensive, KOs with Sucker Punch. Against lead, can use a combo of Toxic/Dark Pulse and Sucker Punch to KO.
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