
[SET]
name: Offensive Paralysis Spreader
move 1: Thunder Wave / Thunderbolt / Thunder
move 2: Surf
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Thunder / Light Screen / Reflect
item: Leftovers
[SET COMMENTS]
Dragonair has a very unique place in GSC NU by virtue of its excellent movepool and completely exclusive Dragon typing. Its coverage is among the best in the tier, which allows it to punish teams that lack bulky Normal-types and spread paralysis to a variety of foes. Its Dragon typing also gives it useful resistances to Fire, Water, and Electric, letting it take on key metagame threats such as Rapidash, Magmar, and Magnemite. Dragonair works quite well as a lead, taking on Rapidash leads and spreading paralysis early in the game, while its coverage lets it act as an anti-lead against Pokemon like Pineco. Access to Light Screen and Reflect can also be useful for teams with setup Pokemon such as Farfetch'd and Lickitung. Unfortunately, Dragonair is not very bulky, so any strong attacker that can hit it neutrally can 3HKO it. Its low Special Attack also means that it struggles to break past foes that aren't weak to its coverage moves, such as Wigglytuff and Lickitung, and as such foes commonly use Rest, they aren't as afraid of Thunder Wave. While Dragonair resists Thunder from Pokemon like Chinchou and Magnemite, it doesn’t appreciate Thunder paralysis, and its lack of recovery leaves it susceptible to Toxic and being worn down by Spikes.
Thunder Wave is very useful for crippling faster Pokemon such as Stantler and supporting slower teammates, while Thunderbolt or Thunder is useful for hitting Pokemon like Xatu, Kingler, Dewgong, and Octillery. The choice between Thunderbolt and Thunder comes down to consistency versus power. Surf hits Graveler, Pupitar, Dugtrio, and Fire-types quite hard, and Fire Blast hits Pineco, Magnemite, and Gloom. Thunder Wave in the first slot and Thunder in the last slot is the standard, but if not running Thunder Wave then one of Light Screen or Reflect is an option in the last slot. Screens support is very useful for powerful setup Pokemon such as Farfetch'd, Kingler, and Curse Stantler, as they lack the bulk to take strong hits otherwise.
Dragonair fits quite well on offensive teams, especially those with slower wallbreakers such as Lickitung, Flareon, Graveler, and Kingler that appreciate paralysis support. Baton Pass teams highly appreciate Dragonair's excellent supporting capabilities with Light Screen, Reflect, and Thunder Wave, so it commonly appears on those teams. Another good way of using Dragonair is as a Growth pass recipient due to its excellent coverage and unique resistances, meaning Flareon is a good partner. Chinchou is a good partner for Dragonair, as Dragonair can struggle against Water-types such as Dewgong and Ice Beam Octillery, even if running Thunder. Hitmonlee and Primeape are good partners, as they threaten bulkier Normal-types that Dragonair struggles against such as Wigglytuff and Lickitung. Dragonair can also paralyze Gloom and Weezing to help the Fighting-types have a better shot getting past their checks.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Reeece, 508601]]
- Quality checked by: [[cherryb0ng, 421511], [Earthworm, 15210]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Muk, 33374]]
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