Jolteon
[Overview]
<p>Jolteon has always been a staple throughout the generations, but sadly, it takes a step back in this metagame. Known for its high Special Attack and insane Speed stat, Jolteon still plays as an effective and speedy attacker, but the emergence of Thundurus has dampened its presence somewhat. Its movepool is also very shallow; Jolteon must rely on Hidden Power for a secondary attack. Nevertheless, with the right support, Jolteon can be very difficult to stop, and this merits its use on most teams in VGC 2012.</p>
[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Thunderbolt
move 2: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Grass
move 3: Thunder Wave / Signal Beam
move 4: Protect
item: Focus Sash / Electric Gem
nature: Timid
ability: Volt Absorb
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set aims to take advantage of Jolteon's high Speed and Special Attack. Thunderbolt is Jolteon's main way of dealing damage, and is a reliable, powerful STAB move hitting Tornadus, and the omnipresent Politoed and rain teams for super effective damage. Hidden Power is the best way to get some coverage with Jolteon's regrettably lackluster movepool; Hidden Power Ice hits Ground-types that wall Jolteon, such as Garchomp, as well as the ever popular Dragon-types, Hidden Power Grass eliminates threats such as Swampert and Gastrodon which otherwise wall Jolteon. Thunder Wave is great for team support, crippling weather abusers such as Ludicolo and allowing your teammates to outspeed threats. However, If you run a Trick Room team, or already have a teammate who can inflict status, Signal Beam is good for hitting Pokemon such as Cresselia and Tyranitar for higher damage than Thunderbolt. Protect is a staple on any VGC 2012 Pokemon, and Jolteon is no exception, allowing a teammate to take out a counter.</p>
<p>Focus Sash is by far Jolteon's best item option due to its frailness; however, due to item clause, if another teammate is running Focus Sash, you may opt to use Electric Gem in order to boost Thunderbolt's strength.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>252 Speed EVs and a Timid nature are used in order to outspeed threats such as Scarf Chandelure, Abomasnow, and Jellicent and Starmie. 252 Special Attack EVs maximize the damage Jolteon's damage output. A Modest nature is an option in order to boost Jolteon's Special Attack further; nevertheless, the ability to outspeed the enemies listed above is far more important. Focus Sash is by far Jolteon's best item option due to its frailness. However, due to item clause, if another teammate is running Focus Sash, you may opt to use Electric Gem in order to boost Thunderbolt's strength.</p>
<p>Volt Absorb is Jolteon's ability of choice as it gives it an immunity to Electric-type attacks, allowing it to switch in on Zapdos, Rotom-W and others. This is truly a godsend, as Joleon's frailty doesn't give it too many opportunities to switch in. Also, if you're running a rain team, Thunder is recommended over Thunderbolt for the added power, although you must watch out for weather changers such as Tyranitar and Ninetales, which can leave Jolteon with an inaccurate STAB attack.</p>
[OTHER OPTIONS]
<p>Jolteon's offensive movepool is admittedly lackluster, but it has a variety of support options to consider, including Light Screen, Reflect, Helping Hand, Rain Dance, and even Agility with Baton Pass. Cresselia is arguably better at setting up dual screens and using Helping Hand due to its bulk; however, due to Jolteon's Speed, dual screens may be a viable option. Jolteon also has the highest Speed out of all Rain Dance users, allowing it to act as an effective Rain Dance supporter.</p>
<p>Although it is already faster than most pokemon in the VGC 2012 metagame, Jolteon's Dream World ability Quick Feet can be used in conjunction with a Flame or Toxic Orb in order to outspeed everything in the game, making it a very good Tailwind counter. However, the loss of Focus Sash hampers Jolteon's longevity by a good deal, and since it already outspeeds most of the metagame anyways, Jolteon is better off just using Volt Absorb. </p>
<p>Discharge can work as an Electric-type STAB move, allowing Jolteon to hit both opponents, but unless you are running a Ground-type or a pokemon with the ability Telepathy as a partner, Thunderbolt is typically better, as it doesn't hit Jolteon's partner. Volt Switch is an option that allows Jolteon to switch out of its counters while still dealing decent damage, but Ground-types will render it useless.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Jolteon's biggest weaknesses are fast physical priority attacks, and Earthquake. Enemies such as Hitmontop, Toxicroak, and others who possess a priority physical attack do massive damage bypassing Jolteon's high Speed. Status also cripples it, especially paralysis; Pokemon such as Whimsicott thus make great checks, as they can Stun Spore Jolteon, crippling it. However, take note that Jolteon is immune to Thunder Wave due to Volt Absorb. Attacks that lower Jolteon's Speed, such as Icy Wind, will also cripple it. Perhaps its biggest counter is Trick Room, where Jolteon becomes the slowest Pokemon on the field; slow, bulky Ground-types such as Gastrodon and Rhyperior can now outspeed and KO it.</p>
