[OVERVIEW]
Rotom-W has a smorgasbord of qualities that give it a unique role in the OU metagame. An amazing defensive typing, Levitate removing a key Ground weakness, numerous status inflicting moves in Will-O-Wisp, Thunder Wave, and Toxic, pivoting in Volt Switch, and a form of recovery in Pain Split all allow it to function as an optimal defensive pivot. Unlike other Electric-types that struggle with Ground-types like Zeraora, Tapu Koko, and Magnezone, Rotom-W is able to safely switch into them without fear thanks to Levitate. This synergizes well with its access to STAB Hydro Pump, giving it the ability to wash them away without difficulty. Rotom-W doesn't just have to capitalize on its defensive prowess; it can also use its impressive STAB combination and its access to Nasty Plot to become a bulky setup sweeper that can still switch in on Pokemon like Melmetal, Landorus-T, and Weavile. Despite this, Rotom-W does have some notable flaws. Its recovery is limited to Pain Split, which is entirely dependent on the HP of its opponent, and Leftovers, which gets removed by Knock Off from Pokemon it commonly checks like Landorus-T, Weavile, and Tornadus-T. Rotom-W also faces steep competition from Slowbro, another physically defensive bulky Water-type pivot, with Slowbro having access to more reliable recovery options such as Regenerator and Slack Off instead of Pain Split and Leftovers, access to Future Sight to offensively support its teammates, better physical bulk, and slow pivoting with Teleport to bring frailer teammates in safely.
[SET]
name: Defensive Pivot
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Volt Switch
move 3: Will-O-Wisp / Thunder Wave / Toxic
move 4: Pain Split
item: Leftovers
ability: Levitate
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 124 Def / 132 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Hydro Pump is Rotom-W's main way of cleaning Ground-types like Landorus-T and Excadrill that are immune to Volt Switch and can prevent it from grabbing momentum. Will-O-Wisp lets Rotom-W cripple hard-hitting physical attackers like Melmetal, Weavile, and Garchomp and nullifies Ferrothorn's Leftovers recovery and weakens its attacks. Thunder Wave is able to slow down fast offensive threats like Dragapult, Volcarona, and Tapu Lele. Toxic whittles down defensive walls that can outlast Rotom-W like Gastrodon and Zapdos. Pain Split and Leftovers serve as Rotom-W's semi-reliable forms of recovery, helping it check offensive threats like Garchomp and Heatran and take Stealth Rock chip damage more easily. 132 Speed EVs allow Rotom-W to outspeed positive Speed nature Aegislash and neutral Speed nature Volcanion and Bisharp.
Team Options
========
Rotom-W fits best on VoltTurn balance and bulky offense teams that appreciate its ability to maintain and generate momentum against multiple different threats like Heatran, Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, Weavile, and Sand Rush Excadrill. Corviknight is an amazing teammate for it on teams like this, since both of them work in tandem with their respective pivoting moves. Corviknight can patch up its matchups against Grass-type wallbreakers like Kartana and Rillaboom, while Rotom-W takes on Fire-types like Heatran and Victini for it. Dragapult is an offensive pivot that is able to lure in Pokemon like Tapu Fini, Heatran, Landorus-T, and Tyranitar in for Rotom-W, and Rotom-W can lure in Pokemon like Galarian Slowking and Ferrothorn for it. Landorus-T is another pivot that works well with Rotom-W, since it appreciates Rotom-W being able to switch into Weavile's Ice-type STAB moves as well as checking Tornadus-T, which is able to heavily chip Landorus-T with Hurricane or remove its item, and Volcanion for it. Landorus-T is also able to threaten out Galarian Slowking, one of Rotom-W's best checks, and can check Dragapult and Tapu Koko for it. Melmetal appreciates Rotom-W threatening the likes of Corviknight and Slowbro, while Melmetal can check powerful attackers like Tapu Lele and Choice Band Tyranitar that can overwhelm Rotom-W. Tornadus-T is another great teammate for Rotom-W, being able to take on threats such as Rillaboom and Kartana that force out Rotom-W. It also alleviates the pressure off of Tornadus-T to check Ground-types like Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Excadrill. Clefable is a nice teammate, too, since it can help check threats like Weavile and Urshifu-R that can overwhelm Rotom-W and has utility in Stealth Rock, Knock Off, and Trick + Sticky Barb, which can gradually wear down opposing Rotom-W checks such as Ferrothorn and Galarian Slowking. Heatran fits well with Rotom-W because it checks threats such as Dragapult and Tapu Lele while also possessing Stealth Rock. In return, Rotom-W is able to check Ground- and Water-types like Landorus-T, Slowking, and Garchomp.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Rotom-W is able to slot in Defog over Pain Split because its typing and ability allow it to safely use Defog on Heatran and Landorus-T, giving it a valuable niche over other common Defoggers. Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of a status move, since it needs Pain Split for recovery; this massively limits its ability to check threats like Garchomp and Weavile. Rotom-W can opt for a Choice Scarf set with Trick to punish common specially defensive switch-ins such as Ferrothorn and Blissey, running maximum Speed investment in order to outspeed Pokemon like Tornadus-T, +1 Speed Dragonite, and Choice Scarf Tapu Fini. However, Rotom-W really appreciates the additional bulk that it has to forego in order to invest in Speed, so it won't be able to take as many attacks. Another hindrance is that Choice Scarf Rotom-W is slower than other common Choice Scarf Pokemon in the tier like Tapu Lele, Kartana, and Blacephalon, making it much easier to revenge kill compared to the previous threats mentioned.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types**: Offensive Grass-types like Kartana and Rillaboom can stomach Rotom-W's attacks and threaten it out but fear Will-O-Wisp. Ferrothorn is a defensive Grass-type that can repeatedly stomach any of Rotom-W's attacks and restore all the chip damage taken through Leftovers and Leech Seed recovery, but it also strongly dislikes Will-O-Wisp neutering its attacking moves, preventing it from inflicting meaningful damage on the threats it wants to check.
**Dragon-types**: Depending on Rotom-W's status condition of choice, offensive Dragon-types are able to switch in safely and set up on it. If running Thunder Wave, Garchomp can come in and threaten it with Swords Dance + Scale Shot. If running Will-O-Wisp, Choice Specs Dragapult can come in and fire off Shadow Balls and Draco Meteors without consequence.
**Special Walls**: Blissey, Galarian Slowking, Gastrodon, and Ferrothorn are all Pokemon that have excellent special bulk, allowing them to easily switch into Rotom-W even when severely chipped. However, Ferrothorn is prone to getting its Leftovers recovery nullified by Will-O-Wisp, and Gastrodon's longevity is greatly squandered by Toxic.
**Strong Attackers**: Physical attackers like Urshifu-R and Blaziken can overwhelm Rotom-W with Close Combat, and Choice Band Tyranitar mauls it with both of its STAB options. Special attackers like Dragapult, Tapu Lele, and Blacephalon can 2HKO it with strong neutral hits.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/alkazoth.518682/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gambit_gamin.652656/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/slowpoke-fan.617219/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Rotom-W has a smorgasbord of qualities that give it a unique role in the OU metagame. An amazing defensive typing, Levitate removing a key Ground weakness, numerous status inflicting moves in Will-O-Wisp, Thunder Wave, and Toxic, pivoting in Volt Switch, and a form of recovery in Pain Split all allow it to function as an optimal defensive pivot. Unlike other Electric-types that struggle with Ground-types like Zeraora, Tapu Koko, and Magnezone, Rotom-W is able to safely switch into them without fear thanks to Levitate. This synergizes well with its access to STAB Hydro Pump, giving it the ability to wash them away without difficulty. Rotom-W doesn't just have to capitalize on its defensive prowess; it can also use its impressive STAB combination and its access to Nasty Plot to become a bulky setup sweeper that can still switch in on Pokemon like Melmetal, Landorus-T, and Weavile. Despite this, Rotom-W does have some notable flaws. Its recovery is limited to Pain Split, which is entirely dependent on the HP of its opponent, and Leftovers, which gets removed by Knock Off from Pokemon it commonly checks like Landorus-T, Weavile, and Tornadus-T. Rotom-W also faces steep competition from Slowbro, another physically defensive bulky Water-type pivot, with Slowbro having access to more reliable recovery options such as Regenerator and Slack Off instead of Pain Split and Leftovers, access to Future Sight to offensively support its teammates, better physical bulk, and slow pivoting with Teleport to bring frailer teammates in safely.
[SET]
name: Defensive Pivot
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Volt Switch
move 3: Will-O-Wisp / Thunder Wave / Toxic
move 4: Pain Split
item: Leftovers
ability: Levitate
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 124 Def / 132 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Hydro Pump is Rotom-W's main way of cleaning Ground-types like Landorus-T and Excadrill that are immune to Volt Switch and can prevent it from grabbing momentum. Will-O-Wisp lets Rotom-W cripple hard-hitting physical attackers like Melmetal, Weavile, and Garchomp and nullifies Ferrothorn's Leftovers recovery and weakens its attacks. Thunder Wave is able to slow down fast offensive threats like Dragapult, Volcarona, and Tapu Lele. Toxic whittles down defensive walls that can outlast Rotom-W like Gastrodon and Zapdos. Pain Split and Leftovers serve as Rotom-W's semi-reliable forms of recovery, helping it check offensive threats like Garchomp and Heatran and take Stealth Rock chip damage more easily. 132 Speed EVs allow Rotom-W to outspeed positive Speed nature Aegislash and neutral Speed nature Volcanion and Bisharp.
Team Options
========
Rotom-W fits best on VoltTurn balance and bulky offense teams that appreciate its ability to maintain and generate momentum against multiple different threats like Heatran, Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, Weavile, and Sand Rush Excadrill. Corviknight is an amazing teammate for it on teams like this, since both of them work in tandem with their respective pivoting moves. Corviknight can patch up its matchups against Grass-type wallbreakers like Kartana and Rillaboom, while Rotom-W takes on Fire-types like Heatran and Victini for it. Dragapult is an offensive pivot that is able to lure in Pokemon like Tapu Fini, Heatran, Landorus-T, and Tyranitar in for Rotom-W, and Rotom-W can lure in Pokemon like Galarian Slowking and Ferrothorn for it. Landorus-T is another pivot that works well with Rotom-W, since it appreciates Rotom-W being able to switch into Weavile's Ice-type STAB moves as well as checking Tornadus-T, which is able to heavily chip Landorus-T with Hurricane or remove its item, and Volcanion for it. Landorus-T is also able to threaten out Galarian Slowking, one of Rotom-W's best checks, and can check Dragapult and Tapu Koko for it. Melmetal appreciates Rotom-W threatening the likes of Corviknight and Slowbro, while Melmetal can check powerful attackers like Tapu Lele and Choice Band Tyranitar that can overwhelm Rotom-W. Tornadus-T is another great teammate for Rotom-W, being able to take on threats such as Rillaboom and Kartana that force out Rotom-W. It also alleviates the pressure off of Tornadus-T to check Ground-types like Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Excadrill. Clefable is a nice teammate, too, since it can help check threats like Weavile and Urshifu-R that can overwhelm Rotom-W and has utility in Stealth Rock, Knock Off, and Trick + Sticky Barb, which can gradually wear down opposing Rotom-W checks such as Ferrothorn and Galarian Slowking. Heatran fits well with Rotom-W because it checks threats such as Dragapult and Tapu Lele while also possessing Stealth Rock. In return, Rotom-W is able to check Ground- and Water-types like Landorus-T, Slowking, and Garchomp.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Rotom-W is able to slot in Defog over Pain Split because its typing and ability allow it to safely use Defog on Heatran and Landorus-T, giving it a valuable niche over other common Defoggers. Unfortunately, this comes at the cost of a status move, since it needs Pain Split for recovery; this massively limits its ability to check threats like Garchomp and Weavile. Rotom-W can opt for a Choice Scarf set with Trick to punish common specially defensive switch-ins such as Ferrothorn and Blissey, running maximum Speed investment in order to outspeed Pokemon like Tornadus-T, +1 Speed Dragonite, and Choice Scarf Tapu Fini. However, Rotom-W really appreciates the additional bulk that it has to forego in order to invest in Speed, so it won't be able to take as many attacks. Another hindrance is that Choice Scarf Rotom-W is slower than other common Choice Scarf Pokemon in the tier like Tapu Lele, Kartana, and Blacephalon, making it much easier to revenge kill compared to the previous threats mentioned.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Grass-types**: Offensive Grass-types like Kartana and Rillaboom can stomach Rotom-W's attacks and threaten it out but fear Will-O-Wisp. Ferrothorn is a defensive Grass-type that can repeatedly stomach any of Rotom-W's attacks and restore all the chip damage taken through Leftovers and Leech Seed recovery, but it also strongly dislikes Will-O-Wisp neutering its attacking moves, preventing it from inflicting meaningful damage on the threats it wants to check.
**Dragon-types**: Depending on Rotom-W's status condition of choice, offensive Dragon-types are able to switch in safely and set up on it. If running Thunder Wave, Garchomp can come in and threaten it with Swords Dance + Scale Shot. If running Will-O-Wisp, Choice Specs Dragapult can come in and fire off Shadow Balls and Draco Meteors without consequence.
**Special Walls**: Blissey, Galarian Slowking, Gastrodon, and Ferrothorn are all Pokemon that have excellent special bulk, allowing them to easily switch into Rotom-W even when severely chipped. However, Ferrothorn is prone to getting its Leftovers recovery nullified by Will-O-Wisp, and Gastrodon's longevity is greatly squandered by Toxic.
**Strong Attackers**: Physical attackers like Urshifu-R and Blaziken can overwhelm Rotom-W with Close Combat, and Choice Band Tyranitar mauls it with both of its STAB options. Special attackers like Dragapult, Tapu Lele, and Blacephalon can 2HKO it with strong neutral hits.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/alkazoth.518682/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gambit_gamin.652656/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/slowpoke-fan.617219/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Last edited:
