The real SAND KING!!!
[Overview]
<p>In BW2, a reliable way to keep rain off the field is more important than ever, and this is where Hippowdon comes in. Hippowdon is the single most durable weather inducer, as it has titanic physical bulk and reliable recovery. Unlike Tyranitar, Hippowdon doesn't fear Dugtrio, making it even harder for the opponent's weather team to take Hippowdon down. Aside from being a useful asset in weather wars, Hippowdon is one of the best physical walls in OU, capable of going toe-to-toe with some of the most notorious physical attackers in OU such as Terrakion, Dragonite, and Lucario.</p>
<p>Despite its defensive prowess and ability to combat weather teams, Hippowdon is not without its flaws. Its mediocre special bulk and weaknesses to common special attacking types, namely Water, Grass, and Ice, leave it exposed to Pokemon with such attacks. Hippowdon is also quite slow and will need to take two hits when switching in before he gets a chance to do anything, limiting the amount of switch-in opportunities it gets. Finally, even though Hippowdon's Attack is big for a defensive Pokemon, it is easy to set up on with Pokemon that have Taunt or don't mind Earthquake.</p>
<p>All in all, Hippowdon is a superb defensive Pokemon that provides valuable team support with few weaknesses that can be covered by its teammates and can cause big trouble to any team not prepared for it.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Wall
move 1: Slack Off
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stealth Rock
move 4: Whirlwind / Ice Fang
item: Leftovers
ability: Sand Stream
nature: Careful / Impish
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Hippowdon has excellent physical bulk even when uninvested, so with the added special bulk Hippowdon becomes a great mixed wall that is difficult for many special attackers to OHKO without a strong STAB move. This set is also probably the best counter to any Calm Mind Jirachi, which is annoying for any team to deal with, and can switch into defensive variants of Ninetales and Politoed with relative ease, giving fierce competition in the weather war. Despite the lack of Defense investment, Hippowdon can still handle many physical attackers, such as Dragonite, unboosted Terrakion, and Toxicroak, well. Earthquake, backed up by a good base 112 Attack and STAB, hits any Pokemon without lot of physical bulk and not resistant or immune to it hard. Stealth Rock is a necessity for any team, and Hippowdon finds ample opportunities to set it up against the multitude of Pokemon that it walls. Everything that doesn't mind Earthquake is phazed by Whirlwind, making it very hard for stat boosters to set up in front of Hippowdon, but Ice Fang allows Hippowdon to immediately take care of Pokemon that it checks, such as Dragonite, Salamence, and Landorus-T; it also allows Hippowdon to break the Air Balloon that many Heatran carry.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>A Careful nature is the best choice to avoid certain OHKOs and 2HKOs from specific Pokemon—Volcarona, Latias, Thundurus-T, and Jolteon—but Impish is a perfectly viable option for teams that have those threats covered. Sand Force can be used for any team that doesn't want sandstorm, such as sun teams, where Hippowdon handles many of the Pokemon that give them trouble, including Terrakion and physical Dragon-types. Toxic cripples many popular switch-ins to Hippowdon, such as Landorus-T, Rotom-W, and defensive Politoed, making it a good option if Hippowdon has a moveslot to spare. Rock Slide and Stone Edge are decent alternatives to Ice Fang as they still hit most Flying-types for good damage, while being particularly useful against Thundurus-T and Volcarona, two Pokemon that Hippowdon checks well. Rock Slide is more reliable and has more PP, whereas Stone Edge can OHKO most Volcarona after sandstorm damage and Thundurus-T after sandstorm and Stealth Rock damage.</p>
<p>Hippowdon's best teammates are those that can take strong Water-, Ice-, and Grass-type attacks as well as very powerful special attacks such as Latios's Draco Meteor. Specially defensive Celebi is a great partner, as it counters most Water-types as well as Breloom, Life Orb Latios, and Sheer Force Landorus. Latias has similar resistances to Celebi and handles most of the Pokemon that Celebi does, making it an equally valuable partner for Hippowdon. Rapid Spin support is essential for Hippowdon because most hazard setters, namely Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Forretress, easily set up on it. Starmie and Forretress both have decent defensive synergy with Hippowdon and protect the team from hazards. This set also appreciates Pokemon that can take hits from or at least check powerful physical attackers that can break through Hippowdon, such as Choice Band Terrakion and Swords Dance Lucario, so Gengar, Jellicent, and defensive Gyarados pair well with Hippowdon. Spikes and Toxic Spikes setters are natural candidates for teammates of Hippowdon, as its ability to easily switch in and start phazing with Whirlwind quickly racks up entry hazard damage. Forretress, Ferrothorn, and Roserade are all good Pokemon for this role and have good overall synergy with Hippowdon. Finally, a Ghost-type Pokemon to protect those hazards is useful, and Jellicent is the best Pokemon for this role, covering Hippowdon's weaknesses, except for Grass-type attacks, well.</p>
[SET]
name: Physical Wall
move 1: Slack Off
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stealth Rock
move 4: Ice Fang / Whirlwind
item: Leftovers
ability: Sand Stream
nature: Impish
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set trades the ability to handle some special Pokemon and to fare better against weather inducers to become the most physically bulky Pokemon in OU. Hippowdon is able to wall the strongest physical attackers in OU, such as non-Choice Band Terrakion, Dragon Dance Dragonite, and Swords Dance Lucario. Earthquake hits many of the Pokemon that Hippowdon walls for super effective damage and is a strong attack that prevents any offensive Pokemon not resistant or immune to it from setting up on Hippowdon. Hippowdon can force many Pokemon out and has reliable recovery, thus making for a very reliable Stealth Rock setter. Ice Fang hits what Earthquake can't, including Dragonite, Salamence, and Landorus-T, while Whirlwind prevents anything that doesn't care about Hippowdon's attacks from setting up and works well with entry hazards.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Toxic is useful for crippling Rotom-W, Politoed, and Landorus-T, all of which are common switch-ins to Hippowdon. Sand Force can be used on teams that don't want sandstorm, such as alternate weather teams. This set doesn't need any other dedicated physical walls as teammates, as it covers the physical side very well. What it needs are partners that can deal with the few physical Pokemon that can get past Hippowdon, namely Gyarados, Mamoswine, and Breloom. Rotom-W covers the first two Pokemon and has good defensive synergy with Hippowdon, while specially defensive Celebi counters Breloom, checks Gyarados with Perish Song, and handles most special attacks aimed at Hippowdon. Speaking of Celebi, Pokemon that can sponge special attacks are obligatory teammates, so specially defensive Ferrothorn and Amoonguss are good choices as well. Lastly, Rapid Spin support greatly aids Hippowdon, as the common entry hazard setters all easily set up on it, hindering its effectiveness as a physical wall. Starmie and Forretress are the best options; Starmie can take some weaker Water-type attacks and check Gyarados and Mamoswine, while Forretress checks Mamoswine and sets up entry hazards that Hippowdon can take advantage of with Whirlwind.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Hippowdon can take the role of a tank and take advantage of its Dream World ability, Sand Force, by using a set with max Attack and HP and a moveset of Earthquake, Stone Edge, Ice Fang or Superpower, and Slack Off, but it is usually outclassed by Landorus-T and Garchomp, both of which can actually outspeed Pokemon and are better at keeping momentum. Rock Slide or Stone Edge can be used on the physically defensive set to deal with Gyarados, Volcarona, and Thundurus-T better, but this set has no business staying in against them anyway. Finally, Stockpile makes Hippowdon very difficult to OHKO after a few boosts, but powerful special attackers still 2HKO it, and defensive Pokemon can Toxic it or phaze it out while Hippowdon itself can't do much damage back, making Stockpile a gimmick at best.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Xatu is probably the best counter to Hippowdon, as it is immune to Earthquake, bounces back Stealth Rock, and has Toxic to put Hippowdon on a timer. The easiest way to bring Hippowdon down is with special Water-, Ice-, and Grass-type attacks. Rotom-W, Celebi, Breloom, Taunt Gyarados, defensive Politoed, and SubRoost Kyurem-B can all switch into Hippowdon with ease and force it out. There are more special attackers that can dent Hippowdon, if not OHKO it, such as Keldeo and offensive Starmie, but they have to avoid Earthquake, which does serious damage to them. Other problematic Pokemon for Hippowdon are those that don't mind its attacks and can set up hazards or cripple it with Toxic such as Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Forretress, and Bronzong. Hippowdon is often the target of lure strategies due to its resilience and difficulty to bring down, so using mixed attackers, such as Salamence, Ice Beam Tyranitar, and Grass Knot Thundurus-T, is a good way to eliminate or weaken Hippowdon. Finally, Trick, Toxic, burns, and accumulated damage from Spikes are all good ways to hamper Hippowdon's ability to function as a wall.</p>
