Gastrodon (Ground)
QC: Eien / Vid / terrors
GP: Omicron
[OVERVIEW]
Ground
========
* Gastrodon plays an important role on Ground-type teams because of its Water immunity thanks to its ability Storm Drain.
* Its superb defensive typing, including a neutrality to Ice-type attacks, improves Gastrodon's defensive capability, which allows it to counter major threats to Ground-type teams such as Keldeo and Mamoswine.
* Gastrodon has access to reliable recovery in Recover, which is is very important for Gastrodon to function as a wall.
* It has decent but not outstanding overall bulk which leaves Gastrodon vulnerable to wallbreakers and setup sweepers.
* Gastrodon has a major Grass weakness which leaves it vulnerable to Grass-type Pokemon and foes with said coverage.
* Gastrodon has a very low Speed stat along with a weak offensive presence making it very susceptible to Taunt users such as Mew.
* Gastrodon drains momentum from more offensively oriented teams due to its lackluster offensive presence.
* It competes with Seismitoad as a Water-type counter, as Seismitoad has a superior offensive movepool and is fast enough to check threats such as Azumarill and Crawdaunt.
[SET]
name: Defensive (Ground)
move 1: Scald
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Recover
move 4: Toxic / Acid Armor
item: Leftovers
ability: Storm Drain
nature: Relaxed
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Scald is Gastrodon's primary Water-type STAB attack and can potentially burn them.
* Earthquake is an important Ground-type STAB move that allows Gastrodon to target Pokemon that resist Scald such as Tentacruel. It is used over Earth Power to guarantee breaking through Calm Mind Keldeo's Substitutes.
* Recover allows Gastrodon to stay healthy and properly function as a wall. It is also necessary for stalling out opponents with Toxic or setting up with Acid Armor.
* Toxic is used to wear down opposing walls that are not immune to Poison such as Slowbro and Zapdos.
* Acid Armor is a particularly useful option for efficiently countering physical threats such as Weavile and Mamoswine as well as setup sweepers such as Dragon Dance Mega Gyarados and Calm Mind Keldeo. Curse works similarly to Acid Armor, but trades a higher defense boost for the ability to break through opposing walls such as Chansey lacking Toxic thanks to the Attack boost.
Set Details
========
* Storm Drain is required for the Water-type immunity and it also boosts Gastrodon's Special Attack when hit by a Water-type move which allows Scald to hit harder.
* Maximum HP and Defense investment along with a Relaxed nature allows Gastrodon to be as bulky as possible and efficiently counter physical attackers, including threats such as Weavile. It also allows Gastrodon to counter Keldeo, as even with Choice Specs it cannot 2HKO Gastrodon with Secret Sword unless Stealth Rock is active.
* Leftovers provides valuable passive recovery and is the most useful item overall.
* A specially defensive spread of 252 HP / 252 SpD along with a Sassy nature can be used to take on special attacking threats such as Kingdra, Hydreigon, and most notably any variant of Greninja without Grass Knot; however, it leaves Gastrodon unable to counter mixed or physical attackers such as Dragonite. Special attackers that carry moves that hit on the physical side such as Gardevoir and Keldeo can also bypass its weaker Defense.
Usage Tips
========
* Gastrodon functions as a reliable switch-in for Water-type attacks, but it should be cautious of lures such as Greninja with Grass Knot.
* Scald is spammable and can effectively cripple physical attackers that switch in on Gastrodon by burning them. Be careful of letting walls such as Slowbro switch into Gastrodon's Scald, however, as it may prefer to use Toxic on them instead.
* Gastrodon is easily worn down by Toxic so try to avoid opposing status users.
* As the team's Water-type counter, Gastrodon should usually be preserved as long as opposing Water-type threats remain in battle.
* Toxic + Recover can be very effective for stalling out foes lacking reliable recovery or the capability to heal status.
* Acid Armor can be used late-game to potentially wall any remaining physical attackers, so unless necessary, try not to set up unless Gastrodon's checks have been eliminated or weakened.
* Gastrodon has poor synergy with its teammates and drains momentum from the team so it should be used cautiously. Utilize Gastrodon's ability to switch into Water moves and pivot into a favorable matchup with double switches if threats such as Mega Charizard Y are still present on the opponent's team.
Team Options
========
* Hippowdon works well with Gastrodon in a defensive core, as it can effectively counter powerful physical attackers and phaze setup sweepers that beat Gastrodon such as Dragonite.
* Gliscor's neutrality to Grass and solid bulk let it form a defensive core with Gastrodon, who can take Water-type and Ice-type attacks for it. It also serves as a great status absorber thanks to Poison Heal and can easily stallbreak against many walls by Taunt or Swords Dance.
* Mamoswine is a great partner to Gastrodon as it is capable of checking Grass-type threats such as Breloom and can also take on threatening walls such as Chansey.
* Pokemon that provide Fire-type coverage such as Garchomp and Nidoking are necessary in order to check Ferrothorn.
* Offensive wallbreakers such as Landorus-I can be important for dealing with threats such as Mega Venusaur.
* Pokemon that check Azumarill and Crawdaunt such as Mega Garchomp are important to have as Gastrodon struggles against their powerful secondary STAB moves.
* Dugtrio is a decent option for trapping and checking Greninja and other threats such as Kyurem-B.
* Excadrill's Rapid Spin helps remove entry hazards for Gastrodon. With Toxic Spikes active in particular, Gastrodon is easily worn down and has a much harder time switching into foes
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Ground
--------
* Rindo Berry is an option to survive a Grass-type move once and can be used in tandem with Mirror Coat to lure threats such as Mega Charizard Y with Solar Beam, but the passive recovery from Leftovers is almost always superior.
* Clear Smog can be used to prevent Pokemon from setting up such as Swords Dance Gliscor or Dragon Dance Dragonite, but it has little use compared to other utility moves and Gastrodon struggles to find room for it.
* Ice Beam can be used to hit Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon along with Gliscor, although without Special Attack investment it is very weak.
* Stockpile boosts both of Gastrodon's defenses but is inferior to Acid Armor's capability of countering set up sweepers.
Checks and Counters
===================
Ground
--------
**Grass-types**: Grass-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur completely counter Gastrodon, although they do fear Scald burns on the switch in. Many offensive Grass-type threats can easily switch into and take advantage of Gastrodon such as Serperior or Tapu Bulu, although the latter also fears Scald burns.
**Lures / Coverage**: Many Pokemon carry Grass-type coverage moves that allow them to KO Gastrodon, such as Grass Knot Tapu Koko and Thundurus or Energy Ball Latios. Freeze-Dry on Pokemon such as Alolan Ninetales is also something to watch out for as it is a 4x super effective move.
**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers and Pokemon with taunt such as Mew can easily take advantage of Gastrodon and force it out, as Gastrodon is completely shut down. Mew's Sychronize ability also prevents Gastrodon from using Toxic since it will be affected by Toxic as well.
**Powerful Attackers**: Wallbreakers and other strong attackers such as Kyurem-B and Choice Specs Meloetta can easily tear through Gastrodon's subpar defenses.
**Walls / Status**: Gastrodon is easily countered by opposing walls such as Chansey and Celesteela due to its nonexistent offensive presence, and is shut down by Pokemon that aren't affected by status as well such as Pokemon with Natural Cure and Poison Heal Gliscor. Gastrodon is also crippled by status such as Toxic, which can wear it down very fast.
QC: Eien / Vid / terrors
GP: Omicron
[OVERVIEW]
Ground
========
* Gastrodon plays an important role on Ground-type teams because of its Water immunity thanks to its ability Storm Drain.
* Its superb defensive typing, including a neutrality to Ice-type attacks, improves Gastrodon's defensive capability, which allows it to counter major threats to Ground-type teams such as Keldeo and Mamoswine.
* Gastrodon has access to reliable recovery in Recover, which is is very important for Gastrodon to function as a wall.
* It has decent but not outstanding overall bulk which leaves Gastrodon vulnerable to wallbreakers and setup sweepers.
* Gastrodon has a major Grass weakness which leaves it vulnerable to Grass-type Pokemon and foes with said coverage.
* Gastrodon has a very low Speed stat along with a weak offensive presence making it very susceptible to Taunt users such as Mew.
* Gastrodon drains momentum from more offensively oriented teams due to its lackluster offensive presence.
* It competes with Seismitoad as a Water-type counter, as Seismitoad has a superior offensive movepool and is fast enough to check threats such as Azumarill and Crawdaunt.
[SET]
name: Defensive (Ground)
move 1: Scald
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Recover
move 4: Toxic / Acid Armor
item: Leftovers
ability: Storm Drain
nature: Relaxed
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Scald is Gastrodon's primary Water-type STAB attack and can potentially burn them.
* Earthquake is an important Ground-type STAB move that allows Gastrodon to target Pokemon that resist Scald such as Tentacruel. It is used over Earth Power to guarantee breaking through Calm Mind Keldeo's Substitutes.
* Recover allows Gastrodon to stay healthy and properly function as a wall. It is also necessary for stalling out opponents with Toxic or setting up with Acid Armor.
* Toxic is used to wear down opposing walls that are not immune to Poison such as Slowbro and Zapdos.
* Acid Armor is a particularly useful option for efficiently countering physical threats such as Weavile and Mamoswine as well as setup sweepers such as Dragon Dance Mega Gyarados and Calm Mind Keldeo. Curse works similarly to Acid Armor, but trades a higher defense boost for the ability to break through opposing walls such as Chansey lacking Toxic thanks to the Attack boost.
Set Details
========
* Storm Drain is required for the Water-type immunity and it also boosts Gastrodon's Special Attack when hit by a Water-type move which allows Scald to hit harder.
* Maximum HP and Defense investment along with a Relaxed nature allows Gastrodon to be as bulky as possible and efficiently counter physical attackers, including threats such as Weavile. It also allows Gastrodon to counter Keldeo, as even with Choice Specs it cannot 2HKO Gastrodon with Secret Sword unless Stealth Rock is active.
* Leftovers provides valuable passive recovery and is the most useful item overall.
* A specially defensive spread of 252 HP / 252 SpD along with a Sassy nature can be used to take on special attacking threats such as Kingdra, Hydreigon, and most notably any variant of Greninja without Grass Knot; however, it leaves Gastrodon unable to counter mixed or physical attackers such as Dragonite. Special attackers that carry moves that hit on the physical side such as Gardevoir and Keldeo can also bypass its weaker Defense.
Usage Tips
========
* Gastrodon functions as a reliable switch-in for Water-type attacks, but it should be cautious of lures such as Greninja with Grass Knot.
* Scald is spammable and can effectively cripple physical attackers that switch in on Gastrodon by burning them. Be careful of letting walls such as Slowbro switch into Gastrodon's Scald, however, as it may prefer to use Toxic on them instead.
* Gastrodon is easily worn down by Toxic so try to avoid opposing status users.
* As the team's Water-type counter, Gastrodon should usually be preserved as long as opposing Water-type threats remain in battle.
* Toxic + Recover can be very effective for stalling out foes lacking reliable recovery or the capability to heal status.
* Acid Armor can be used late-game to potentially wall any remaining physical attackers, so unless necessary, try not to set up unless Gastrodon's checks have been eliminated or weakened.
* Gastrodon has poor synergy with its teammates and drains momentum from the team so it should be used cautiously. Utilize Gastrodon's ability to switch into Water moves and pivot into a favorable matchup with double switches if threats such as Mega Charizard Y are still present on the opponent's team.
Team Options
========
* Hippowdon works well with Gastrodon in a defensive core, as it can effectively counter powerful physical attackers and phaze setup sweepers that beat Gastrodon such as Dragonite.
* Gliscor's neutrality to Grass and solid bulk let it form a defensive core with Gastrodon, who can take Water-type and Ice-type attacks for it. It also serves as a great status absorber thanks to Poison Heal and can easily stallbreak against many walls by Taunt or Swords Dance.
* Mamoswine is a great partner to Gastrodon as it is capable of checking Grass-type threats such as Breloom and can also take on threatening walls such as Chansey.
* Pokemon that provide Fire-type coverage such as Garchomp and Nidoking are necessary in order to check Ferrothorn.
* Offensive wallbreakers such as Landorus-I can be important for dealing with threats such as Mega Venusaur.
* Pokemon that check Azumarill and Crawdaunt such as Mega Garchomp are important to have as Gastrodon struggles against their powerful secondary STAB moves.
* Dugtrio is a decent option for trapping and checking Greninja and other threats such as Kyurem-B.
* Excadrill's Rapid Spin helps remove entry hazards for Gastrodon. With Toxic Spikes active in particular, Gastrodon is easily worn down and has a much harder time switching into foes
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Ground
--------
* Rindo Berry is an option to survive a Grass-type move once and can be used in tandem with Mirror Coat to lure threats such as Mega Charizard Y with Solar Beam, but the passive recovery from Leftovers is almost always superior.
* Clear Smog can be used to prevent Pokemon from setting up such as Swords Dance Gliscor or Dragon Dance Dragonite, but it has little use compared to other utility moves and Gastrodon struggles to find room for it.
* Ice Beam can be used to hit Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon along with Gliscor, although without Special Attack investment it is very weak.
* Stockpile boosts both of Gastrodon's defenses but is inferior to Acid Armor's capability of countering set up sweepers.
Checks and Counters
===================
Ground
--------
**Grass-types**: Grass-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur completely counter Gastrodon, although they do fear Scald burns on the switch in. Many offensive Grass-type threats can easily switch into and take advantage of Gastrodon such as Serperior or Tapu Bulu, although the latter also fears Scald burns.
**Lures / Coverage**: Many Pokemon carry Grass-type coverage moves that allow them to KO Gastrodon, such as Grass Knot Tapu Koko and Thundurus or Energy Ball Latios. Freeze-Dry on Pokemon such as Alolan Ninetales is also something to watch out for as it is a 4x super effective move.
**Stallbreakers**: Stallbreakers and Pokemon with taunt such as Mew can easily take advantage of Gastrodon and force it out, as Gastrodon is completely shut down. Mew's Sychronize ability also prevents Gastrodon from using Toxic since it will be affected by Toxic as well.
**Powerful Attackers**: Wallbreakers and other strong attackers such as Kyurem-B and Choice Specs Meloetta can easily tear through Gastrodon's subpar defenses.
**Walls / Status**: Gastrodon is easily countered by opposing walls such as Chansey and Celesteela due to its nonexistent offensive presence, and is shut down by Pokemon that aren't affected by status as well such as Pokemon with Natural Cure and Poison Heal Gliscor. Gastrodon is also crippled by status such as Toxic, which can wear it down very fast.
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