[OVERVIEW]
* A solid stat spread and amazing type combination make Excadrill a great utility Pokemon or offensive threat.
* Sand Rush's Speed boost gives it an edge against entire teams, which also lets it check dangerous setup sweepers.
* It provides valuable Rapid Spin support and can set up Stealth Rock as well.
* Its typing lets it check several dangerous threats, including Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele and Magearna.
* It's walled by common bulky Flying-types; Pokemon like Skarmory and Celesteela can usually switch in for free.
* Its Speed is lacking outside of Sandstorm, making it incredibly susceptible to being revenge killed.
[SET]
name: Sand Rush
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Iron Head
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Swords Dance / Rapid Spin
item: Life Orb / Steelium Z / Air Balloon
ability: Sand Rush
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* STAB Earthquake is devastatingly powerful, especially if Excadrill is using Life Orb.
* Iron Head hits almost as hard as Earthquake and complements it nicely, doing a hefty amount of damage to most Pokemon that resist Ground.
* Rock Slide rounds out Excadrill's coverage, scoring super effective hits on Flying-types and allowing Excadrill to harm Pokemon that resist the combination of Earthquake and Iron Head.
* The last moveslot is a toss up. Swords Dance can potentially end matches quickly with a sweep. It can also be used to let Excadrill muscle its way through walls.
* Rapid Spin, on the other hand, is incredibly useful for clearing entry hazards, in addition to being effective against teams that are dependent on entry hazards.
Set Details
========
* A Jolly nature lets Excadrill get the jump on some key Pokemon within the base 77-86 Speed range outside of sand, including Tapu Lele, Rotom-W and Heatran. It even lets you get the drop on neutral nature base 100 Speed Pokemon.
* An Adamant nature is really powerful, granting Excadrill a clean 2HKO on Ferrothorn with Earthquake for instance. That said, you lose out on outrunning the Pokemon in the aforementioned Speed tiers, and Excadrill will always be outsped by opposing Jolly Excadrill.
* Life Orb grants Excadrill a major power boost, often allowing it to OHKO most non-defensive Pokemon after they've taken a bit of prior damage. Steelium Z grants Excadrill extreme power, allowing it to easily break through most of its conventional checks and counters. Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Tangrowth, Buzzwole, Gliscor, Hippowdon, Mew, defensive Garchomp, and Tapu Fini all risk getting OHKOed by +2 Corkscrew Crash.
* Air Balloon gives Excadrill the ability to avoid taking damage from Ground-types and even set up on them, in addition to avoiding grounded entry hazards like Spikes and Sticky Web. Leftovers can be used to give Excadrill more longevity, and is best used with Rapid Spin.
* Sand Rush is obviously the ability of choice, granting Excadrill the ability to outspeed nearly the entire metagame during Sandstorm. That said, Mold Breaker can be used if your team isn't sand-based, allowing Excadrill to destroy Levitate users and cancel out Multiscale. However, Sand Rush is still generally the better choice.
Usage Tips
========
* Sand Rush Excadrill is purely offensive; as such, it should not be switched into Pokemon carelessly. Don't even think about switching it into something like Tapu Lele unless it's absolutely necessary because Psychic is going to do a significant amount of damage. Similarly, Excadrill can take one Return from Mega Pinsir at most despite its typing.
* Switch it in on Electric-types that can't threaten it as well as Ground-types if running Air Balloon. It can also be brought in via U-turn or Volt switch, after an ally has fainted to revenge KO, or by a well-played double switch. From there, you have the choice of attacking, setting up a Swords Dance or using Rapid Spin.
* Sandstorm should give it the ability to revenge kill or check just about the entire metagame, so keeping Excadrill around for the entire match is imperative.
* Excadrill should sweep in the late-game provided its main checks are out of the way. Keeping it as healthy as possible, even at the detriment of your other Pokemon is usually worth it; patience is key.
* On the other hand, you can have Excadrill set up early-game to weaken or even take out checks such as Landorus-T and Ferrothorn.
Team Options
========
* Sandstorm support is mandatory on this set. Tyranitar and Hippowdon are the best providers, and it's recommended that they carry Smooth Rock. Choice Band Tyranitar in particular is really good at wearing down physical walls, as even Skarmory struggles to switch in on it.
* Pokemon that can deal with bulky Flying-types are useful. Electric-types such as Tapu Koko and Magnezone are recommended due to their ability to threaten the likes of Skarmory and Celesteela with their STAB moves, as well as threaten Landorus-T with Hidden Power Ice and Flash Cannon. Magnezone in particular is also capable of potentially trapping Skarmory and Celesteela, but it shares weaknesses with Excadrill, so be mindful of that.
* If Swords Dance is used, +2 Earthquake is a big threat to even bulky Water-types, though Rotom-W is immune to it and Slowbro is durable enough to tank it even at +2. Pokemon that can deal with these Pokemon such as Latios, Serperior, Tangrowth, and Amoonguss are good partners.
* The aforementioned bulky Grass-types are especially useful to have as teammates if Excadrill isn't using Swords Dance or doesn't yet want to set up. Tangrowth and Amoonguss stand out for their ability to effortlessly and consistently switch into bulky Water-types and even take Aqua Jet and Mach Punch from Azumarill and Breloom, respectively.
* Pokemon that lure and take out Excadrill's checks and counters are good partners. Swords Dance Garchomp with Firium Z can annihilate Skarmory and Celeesteela, and it can either cripple or outright KO most of the walls that plague Excadrill. As a bonus, Garchomp also potentially benefits from Sandstorm.
[SET]
name: Offensive Spinner
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Iron Head
move 4: Stealth Rock
item: Leftovers
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Rapid Spin gives Excadrill immense utility, allowing it to remove entry hazards on your side of the field.
* STAB Earthquake hits extremely hard even without an item boost, making it highly effective even against neutral targets.
* STAB Iron Head gives Excadrill important coverage, specifically the ability to target nearly all of those that resist Ground for at least neutral damage.
* Stealth Rock gives your team an immediate edge in battle, applying passive pressure to your opponent's team.
Set Details
========
* Attack and Speed are fully invested to give Excadrill as much of an offensive presence as possible, capable of outspeeding everything below base 70 Speed such as maximum Speed Tapu Bulu and Heatran.
* Mold Breaker slams Levitate users and prevents Mega Sableye from blocking Stealth Rock.
* Leftovers gives passive recovery; it's particularly useful since this variant of Excadrill lacks defensive investment, instead relying on its typing and naturally high HP to take hits.
Usage Tips
========
* This set trades durability for offensive power, giving up less momentum than its bulkier Rapid Spin set.
* It should switch into Pokemon it can naturally beat and set up Stealth Rock or use Rapid Spinning when needed.
* Due to its lower bulk, it cannot be switched carelessly into certain Pokemon. Its typing and natural bulk makes it a decent switch-in to something Tapu Lele once at most, and it's incapable of taking Earthquake or Hammer Arm from Mega Metagross.
* While it struggles to directly switch into certain Pokemon, it's effective at taking on most Pokemon when it's healthy, making it a good emergency check to Pokemon such as Tapu Lele and Magearna.
* Leading with it and wearing down common checks such as Tapu Fini and Landorus-T is a viable option, especially if those Pokemon trouble your team.
* This variant of Excadrill works well on teams that depend on entry hazards being removed from your side of the field, but not the opponent's.
Team Options
========
* Pokemon that can deal with Celesteela and Skarmory, are good partners. Electric-types such as Tapu Koko, Rotom-W, and Thundurus work well.
* Pokemon that can deal with Defog users such as Tapu Fini, Mantine, and Skarmory are recommended, since Excadrill struggles mightily against them. The aforementioned Electric-types work splendidly here, and lures such as Protean Greninja and Swords Dance Garchomp can power through most of them.
* Grass-types such as Serperior, Tapu Bulu, and Tangrowth can be used to take on the bulky Ground- and Water-types that tend to switch into Excadrill.
* The plethora of Stealth Rock-weak Pokemon in the tier appreciate having Excadrill remove entry hazards. Examples range from Volcarona and Charizard to even Pokemon that take neutral damage from Stealth Rock, but want to maximize the amount of turns they can stay in, such as Life Orb Greninja, Pheromosa and Tapu Koko.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Iron Head
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Rapid Spin
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake is Excadrill's STAB move of choice, hitting hard even without a boost and netting Excadrill KOs on dangerous threats such as Tapu Koko and Mega Metagross (though the latter needs some prior damage).
* Iron Head gives coverage against notable Fairy-types, such as Tapu Lele, Tapu Bulu, and Mimikyu, in addition to cleanly OHKOing Pheromosa.
* Rock Slide lets Excadrill strike the myriad of Flying-types (many of which resist Iron Head) for super effective damage. Such Pokemon include Gyarados, Mega Charizard-Y, Thundurus and Tornadus-T.
* Rapid Spin might seem like an odd choice on a Choice Scarf user, but the ability to remove entry hazards is always useful and Excadrill is great at forcing switches. Just keep in mind you'll be forced to switch after using it.
Set Details
========
* Attack and Speed are maximized to give Excadrill the highest possible offensive effectiveness. Unlike the Sand Rush set, Excadrill absolutely cannot afford to go with an Adamant nature as it misses out on outspeeding several prominent threats, including Pheromosa, Mega Alakazam, and +1 Gyarados.
* Mold Breaker is similarly indispensable for its ability to strike Levitate users.
Usage Tips
========
* This set is better-suited to revenge killing, sweeping in the late-game, or performing a Rapid Spin rather than dishing out heavy hits like the Sand Rush set.
* Switch Excadrill in on predicted Electric-type moves or resisted moves it can afford to take. It's usually not as valuable as the Sand Rush set, so you can afford to switch into more Pokemon. That said, don't be reckless; it's still not worth taking a lot from Tapu Lele's Psychic just to force it out one time.
* Choice Scarf's Speed Boost lets it revenge kill Pokemon more consistently, but the limitations of Choice Scarf are worth keeping in mind, especially when using Earthquake, which can be taken advantage of.
* Choice Scarf gives it enough Speed to use Rapid Spin against nearly anything, making it especially useful for removing entry hazards in a pinch. If you find yourself in a situation where entry hazards are wrecking your team, it might be worth sacrificing Excadrill to remove them.
* Rapid Spin completely kills your momentum, so be sure to use it only when you know your opponent can't really capitalize on it.
Team Options
========
* Since Choice Scarf Excadrill pretty much has no way of getting past its checks or counters, you'll want to lean on teammates more than ever to deal with them.
* Pokemon that can beat bulky Ground-types are a given, such as Rotom-W, Celesteela, and Manaphy. Manaphy deserves special mention for its wallbreaking abilities.
* Physically bulky Grass-types can be dealt with almost solely by Heatran. Heatran can also lure in and KO the bulky Water-types that give Excadrill trouble.
* Bulky Grass-types of your own such as Mega Venusaur, Tangrowth, and Amoonguss can deal with bulky Water-types.
* Wallbreakers in general are good partners for Choice Scarf Excadrill. Pokemon such as Swords Dance Garchomp, Kyurem-B, and Hoopa-U can lure in and weaken or outright KO Pokemon that tend to switch into Excadrill.
[SET]
name: Bulky Spinner
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Iron Head
move 4: Toxic / Stealth Rock
item: Leftovers
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Rapid Spin is fairly self-explanatory, removing entry hazards whenever there's an opportunity to.
* Earthquake provides Excadrill with a strong Ground STAB, preventing it from being passive and still doing a ton of damage without investment.
* Iron Head provides a secondary STAB move and is particularly useful against most Fairy-types.
* Toxic gives Excadrill an edge against some of its common checks such as physical walls and bulky Flying- and Water-types. Notably, Excadrill is capable of landing a Toxic on Mega Sableye due to Mold Breaker, which is amazing since Sableye is notorious for its near-immunity to status.
* If you need Stealth Rock support, Excadrill can easily provide it. Excadrill is notably capable of setting up Stealth Rock on Mega Sableye without having them bounced back.
Set Details
========
* A Careful nature and maxium HP and Special Defense investment maximize Excadrill's special bulk, letting it to take on a ton of the metagame's strongest special attackers.
* Mold Breaker let's Excadrill smack Levitate users and completely bypass Magic Bounce.
* Leftovers provides Excadrill with passive healing and gives it significantly more staying power.
* Protect can be used to scout for attacks and improve Excadrill's staying power by letting it pick up some extra healing from Leftovers. It also works really well with Toxic in wearing down opponents.
Usage Tips
========
* Excadrill is an answer to the many powerful special attackers that roam the tier. Use it as a pivot to switch into Pokemon it beats, such as Tapu Koko, Magearna and Magnezone, then proceed to attack, Rapid Spin, or set up Stealth Rock when needed.
* Maximizing Leftovers recovery is really important; for instance, Excadrill is one of the few Pokemon that can actually switch into Tapu Lele, but it can only do so 2-3 times at most. Picking up Leftovers recovery via double switches or switching into Electric-types is extremely useful for helping it stay healthy.
* You can also use this set to lure in bulky Flying- and Water-types and cripple them with Toxic.
* Excadrill's typing occasionally makes it a decent check to certain physical attackers such as Choice Scarf Jirachi and Mega Scizor, but make sure to weigh the risk of using in that manner. Excadrill is a special tank first and foremost; avoid using it recklessly.
Team Options
========
* Excadrill appreciates having Pokemon that can deal with annoying bulky Flying-types. Electric-types such as Thundurus and Tapu Koko are generally a good fit, and Magnezone in particular is notable for its ability to trap and KO Skarmory and Celesteela. It's worth noting, however, that Magnezone is slow and shares weaknesses with Excadrill; make sure your team is built around that unless you want to be overwhelmed by offense.
* Pokemon that can take advantage of bulky Water-types such as the aforementioned Electric-types (careful not to directly switch them into a Water-type move, though!), durable Grass-types such as Tapu Bulu and Tangrowth, and Dragon-types such as Latias are good partners.
* Excadrill can't beat bulky Ground-types on its own, so anything that can take on the likes of Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Hippowdon are strongly recommended. Bulky Water- and Grass-types as well as Landorus-T with Hidden Power Ice work best here.
* Excadrill itself is an amazing team option for the plethora of Stealth Rock-weak Pokemon in the format. Pokemon such as Thundurus, Charizard, Kyurem-B, Volcanion, and the like love having Excadrill backing them up with Rapid Spin support.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Focus Sash Excadrill with Stealth Rock functions as a decent lead.
* Damage-reducing berries such as Chople Berry, Shuca Berry, and Occa Berry can be a nice surprise for your opponent.
* Return on the Swords Dance set nets nice neutral damage against Rotom-W.
* Rockium Z-boosted Rock Slide can OHKO 252 HP / 0 Def Rotom-W and it has a small chance of OHKOing Celesteela after Stealth Rock damage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Bulky Flying-types**: By far the most annoying Pokemon for Excadrill to deal with; Skarmory, Celeestela, Landorus-T, and Gliscor fear nothing from non-boosting sets and can generally switch in on Excadrill for free. They can also check the Swords Dance set fairly easily, though Air Balloon gives the Ground-types trouble and +2 Life Orb Rock Slide can be dangerous for Skarmory and Celeesta if they're weakened (especially if they get flinched).
**Bulky Water-types**: Bulky Water-types can be a huge pain for all Excadrill variants, especially if they have reliable recovery such as Slowbro or are immune to Ground and resist Steel such as Mantine and Rotom-W. However, Mantine is easily KOed by Rock Slide from the Sand Rush set and even non-physically defensive Rotom-W can't take a +2 Life Orb Rock Slide with prior damage. Azumarill can't directly switch in, but it can do massive damage to Excadrill with Aqua Jet.
**Physical Walls**: Durable physical walls like Tangrowth and Hippowdon are able to consistently take on Excadrill with their high Defense and consistent recovery.
**Revenge Killers**: Revenge KOing Excadrill isn't too difficult outside of sand. There are many faster Pokemon with coverage that's super effective on Excadrill, such as Earthquake Mega Metagross, Hydro Pump Greninja, and High Jump Kick Pheromosa. Excadrill can be much trickier to deal with if Sandstorm is up, especially in the late-game, so stalling out Sandstorm turns is the best way of dealing with it.
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