do spare some patience, I've never done this before but all comments are appreciated
[SET]
Support (Groudon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD or 252 HP / 144 SpD / 112 Spe
Sassy / Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Claw
- Thunder Wave / Lava Plume
- Stealth Rock
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
For all of Groudon's offensive merits, its defenses are instrumental in enabling sets that lack immediate power; finding opportunities to leverage its incredible bulk proves rather easy. Groudon makes for a fantastic Stealth Rock user, as it leverages its bulk to set entry hazards against the more passive Pokemon in the tier and frees up a moveslot for other Pokemon like Blissey and Heatran. With Groudon's Attack, Earthquake does solid damage to even neutral targets such as Kyogre, Mewtwo, Darkrai, and Scizor, aided greatly help of the Stealth Rock that Groudon finds so many chances to set up. Dragon Claw is the primary coverage on Groudon to not get walled out by the likes of Giratina-O, Latios, Latias, and Rayquaza. Thunder Wave brings out the best of Groudon's talents as a supporting team member, with the capacity to shut down potential faster switch-ins that take advantage of the lack of Speed and power on this set. Paralysis support can also be leveraged by other teammates that don't quite have enough Speed to sweep through fairly healthy teams, giving them openings to break offensive structures far more effectively. Lava Plume is a great tool for messing with Steel-types like Bronzong and Skarmory while still giving Groudon the option to make progress against Giratina, and it is typically run over Thunder Wave.
There are some other move options that can be explored on this set; one of Groudon's best traits is its flexibility. Roar is great on entry hazard-stacking teams looking for a way to mess with mixed attackers with setup moves like Rayquaza, as well as giving the teams that appreciate support Groudon another way to deal with the ever-irritating Ho-Oh. Protect functions well alongside Toxic Spikes to allow Groudon to even wear down some of its counters, and Toxic can be more immediately helpful against opposing Groudon or Giratina, which might carry Will-O-Wisp. Rock Slide is an alternative option to Dragon Claw to turn Groudon into a great Ho-Oh lure, but it can also be used to deal with Lugia, as allowing Lugia to freely use Substitute against bulkier teams can be fatal once Blissey is either removed or weakened.
Set Details
========
Fully specially defensive Groudon is the standard choice for a support set, as it is particularly suited for the metagame due to its preference for taking special attacks. Groudon uses its rather impressive Special Defense to check a myriad of special attackers, including Giratina-O, non-Choice Specs Dialga, and Darkrai if a teammate is already asleep. Additionally, sun further accents Groudon's defensive traits by weakening the common Surf used by Kyogre and Palkia, and even a Grass Knot from Latios and Latias doesn't threaten an OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. Activating sun is also made easier with special bulk and makes winning the weather war more consistent. When opting for the main EV spread, a Sassy nature best fits a set running Lava Plume. As an alternative EV option, 112 Speed EVs with a neutral nature allow Groudon outrun Jolly Tyranitar. This can be used when pairing Groudon with a lead Deoxys-S or Deoxys-A as a reliable method of revenge killing Tyranitar, as well as giving Deoxys forms the flexibility to fit another move onto its set, since Groudon can set up Stealth Rock instead.
Usage Tips
========
Support Groudon's Achilles' heel is its lack of reliable recovery, often relying on either Wish support or pivoting into a potential Thunder or expected switches. As a result, one should be careful not to let it switch into too many big hits, especially with multiple entry hazards set, as it serves as the glue for many bulky teams that can't afford to take hits with rain active or simply need an Electric immune teammate. Bringing it in to switch the weather is often a risky proposition, as rain teams aren't short of ways to hit Groudon hard, so positioning your team to send it into Pokemon like Bronzong and support Dialga that can't threaten it easily is key. Additionally, the turn when Groudon uses Stealth Rock is very important, as it will either sponge a hit in doing so or let in a Pokemon like Kyogre that can put on far more pressure when given a free turn to switch in. The damage it takes is again difficult to heal off, so the Groudon user often finds themself trying to create turns to generate recovery through Leftovers, though this is made somewhat easier due to Groudon's Stealth Rock resistance allowing it to net gain health two turns after switching into Stealth Rock. Support Groudon is at its best when facilitating other teammates through spreading paralysis and getting damage on key targets; this set should be used as an enabler and not a wall.
Team Options
========
Groudon is markedly usable on many different team structures. Sun offense structures can be built around Groudon and take advantage of sun beneficiaries such as Ho-Oh, Shiftry, and Victreebel, and unlike Kyogre for its rain teams, Groudon's Stealth Rock resistance is key in being able to set up sun or pivot into other Pokemon several times throughout a battle. Forretress and Skarmory make for great partners, as their Spikes is one of the most reliable methods of wearing down Kyogre and its many teammates; having other entry hazard setters on the team eases up Groudon's job and makes winning the weather war an easier task. Heatran is also a fantastic partner due to its immunities to burn and poison, two ways of crippling Groudon, and switches into the Ice-, Grass-, and even Water-type moves that Groudon would be hesitant to soak up, with its Fire-type moves doing respectable damage without investment in sun. Jirachi works well in providing Wish support to remedy Groudon's lack of reliable healing and can potentially take a hit from Pokemon like Latios or Palkia lacking a Fire-type move in order to spread paralysis, and Groudon can help check Pokemon such as Lucario, Rayquaza, and Garchomp that Jirachi would run from. Kyogre is a surprisingly good teammate as well, as it appreciates Groudon's ability to weaken or remove Dialga, one of Kyogre's biggest enemies, and Kyogre can help with Skarmory or Bronzong, which non-Lava Plume Groudon struggles to deal with. Groudon is also the backbone of sun stall teams, which have become very prominent in recent years along with the rise of specially defensive Groudon sets. Cresselia greatly appreciates sun, as its Moonlight coupled with Leftovers heals a massive 73%, and Blissey enjoys having a teammate that can handily respond to physical attackers. Groudon also serves as a decent answer to mixed Giratina-O, which is otherwise very threatening to stall structures. Rayquaza works well on more offensive structures for its ability to remove Steel-types that most Groudon sets don't appreciate dealing with, and it can help against rain teams by picking off weakened Kyogre or beating Swift Swim sweepers thanks to its Air Lock. Latias is used as the Kyogre check on sun teams, as most structures don't require Latios's immediate power, but Latios can also accompany Groudon if the team being used is more fast-paced. Additionally, Groudon is rarely seen without Giratina-O, as it can spinblock and helps Groudon by chipping checks such as Latios and Mewtwo with its Shadow Sneak.
[SET CREDITS]
Written By:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/dbj2024.666776/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/inspirited.127823/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/lasen.273339/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/adorluigi.528364/
[SET]
Support (Groudon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Drought
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD or 252 HP / 144 SpD / 112 Spe
Sassy / Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Claw
- Thunder Wave / Lava Plume
- Stealth Rock
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
For all of Groudon's offensive merits, its defenses are instrumental in enabling sets that lack immediate power; finding opportunities to leverage its incredible bulk proves rather easy. Groudon makes for a fantastic Stealth Rock user, as it leverages its bulk to set entry hazards against the more passive Pokemon in the tier and frees up a moveslot for other Pokemon like Blissey and Heatran. With Groudon's Attack, Earthquake does solid damage to even neutral targets such as Kyogre, Mewtwo, Darkrai, and Scizor, aided greatly help of the Stealth Rock that Groudon finds so many chances to set up. Dragon Claw is the primary coverage on Groudon to not get walled out by the likes of Giratina-O, Latios, Latias, and Rayquaza. Thunder Wave brings out the best of Groudon's talents as a supporting team member, with the capacity to shut down potential faster switch-ins that take advantage of the lack of Speed and power on this set. Paralysis support can also be leveraged by other teammates that don't quite have enough Speed to sweep through fairly healthy teams, giving them openings to break offensive structures far more effectively. Lava Plume is a great tool for messing with Steel-types like Bronzong and Skarmory while still giving Groudon the option to make progress against Giratina, and it is typically run over Thunder Wave.
There are some other move options that can be explored on this set; one of Groudon's best traits is its flexibility. Roar is great on entry hazard-stacking teams looking for a way to mess with mixed attackers with setup moves like Rayquaza, as well as giving the teams that appreciate support Groudon another way to deal with the ever-irritating Ho-Oh. Protect functions well alongside Toxic Spikes to allow Groudon to even wear down some of its counters, and Toxic can be more immediately helpful against opposing Groudon or Giratina, which might carry Will-O-Wisp. Rock Slide is an alternative option to Dragon Claw to turn Groudon into a great Ho-Oh lure, but it can also be used to deal with Lugia, as allowing Lugia to freely use Substitute against bulkier teams can be fatal once Blissey is either removed or weakened.
Set Details
========
Fully specially defensive Groudon is the standard choice for a support set, as it is particularly suited for the metagame due to its preference for taking special attacks. Groudon uses its rather impressive Special Defense to check a myriad of special attackers, including Giratina-O, non-Choice Specs Dialga, and Darkrai if a teammate is already asleep. Additionally, sun further accents Groudon's defensive traits by weakening the common Surf used by Kyogre and Palkia, and even a Grass Knot from Latios and Latias doesn't threaten an OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. Activating sun is also made easier with special bulk and makes winning the weather war more consistent. When opting for the main EV spread, a Sassy nature best fits a set running Lava Plume. As an alternative EV option, 112 Speed EVs with a neutral nature allow Groudon outrun Jolly Tyranitar. This can be used when pairing Groudon with a lead Deoxys-S or Deoxys-A as a reliable method of revenge killing Tyranitar, as well as giving Deoxys forms the flexibility to fit another move onto its set, since Groudon can set up Stealth Rock instead.
Usage Tips
========
Support Groudon's Achilles' heel is its lack of reliable recovery, often relying on either Wish support or pivoting into a potential Thunder or expected switches. As a result, one should be careful not to let it switch into too many big hits, especially with multiple entry hazards set, as it serves as the glue for many bulky teams that can't afford to take hits with rain active or simply need an Electric immune teammate. Bringing it in to switch the weather is often a risky proposition, as rain teams aren't short of ways to hit Groudon hard, so positioning your team to send it into Pokemon like Bronzong and support Dialga that can't threaten it easily is key. Additionally, the turn when Groudon uses Stealth Rock is very important, as it will either sponge a hit in doing so or let in a Pokemon like Kyogre that can put on far more pressure when given a free turn to switch in. The damage it takes is again difficult to heal off, so the Groudon user often finds themself trying to create turns to generate recovery through Leftovers, though this is made somewhat easier due to Groudon's Stealth Rock resistance allowing it to net gain health two turns after switching into Stealth Rock. Support Groudon is at its best when facilitating other teammates through spreading paralysis and getting damage on key targets; this set should be used as an enabler and not a wall.
Team Options
========
Groudon is markedly usable on many different team structures. Sun offense structures can be built around Groudon and take advantage of sun beneficiaries such as Ho-Oh, Shiftry, and Victreebel, and unlike Kyogre for its rain teams, Groudon's Stealth Rock resistance is key in being able to set up sun or pivot into other Pokemon several times throughout a battle. Forretress and Skarmory make for great partners, as their Spikes is one of the most reliable methods of wearing down Kyogre and its many teammates; having other entry hazard setters on the team eases up Groudon's job and makes winning the weather war an easier task. Heatran is also a fantastic partner due to its immunities to burn and poison, two ways of crippling Groudon, and switches into the Ice-, Grass-, and even Water-type moves that Groudon would be hesitant to soak up, with its Fire-type moves doing respectable damage without investment in sun. Jirachi works well in providing Wish support to remedy Groudon's lack of reliable healing and can potentially take a hit from Pokemon like Latios or Palkia lacking a Fire-type move in order to spread paralysis, and Groudon can help check Pokemon such as Lucario, Rayquaza, and Garchomp that Jirachi would run from. Kyogre is a surprisingly good teammate as well, as it appreciates Groudon's ability to weaken or remove Dialga, one of Kyogre's biggest enemies, and Kyogre can help with Skarmory or Bronzong, which non-Lava Plume Groudon struggles to deal with. Groudon is also the backbone of sun stall teams, which have become very prominent in recent years along with the rise of specially defensive Groudon sets. Cresselia greatly appreciates sun, as its Moonlight coupled with Leftovers heals a massive 73%, and Blissey enjoys having a teammate that can handily respond to physical attackers. Groudon also serves as a decent answer to mixed Giratina-O, which is otherwise very threatening to stall structures. Rayquaza works well on more offensive structures for its ability to remove Steel-types that most Groudon sets don't appreciate dealing with, and it can help against rain teams by picking off weakened Kyogre or beating Swift Swim sweepers thanks to its Air Lock. Latias is used as the Kyogre check on sun teams, as most structures don't require Latios's immediate power, but Latios can also accompany Groudon if the team being used is more fast-paced. Additionally, Groudon is rarely seen without Giratina-O, as it can spinblock and helps Groudon by chipping checks such as Latios and Mewtwo with its Shadow Sneak.
[SET CREDITS]
Written By:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/dbj2024.666776/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/inspirited.127823/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/lasen.273339/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/adorluigi.528364/
Last edited:
