Current Status: COMPLETED, in need of proofreading
Note: Credit also goes to franky for assisting me with this update.
http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/donphan
____________
Changes:
[SET]
name: Rapid Spin
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Assurance
move 4: Stealth Rock / Ice Shard / Stone Edge
item: Leftovers
nature: Adamant
evs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Def
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Donphan is one of the few viable spinners in UU, with several key traits that make using it advantageous over using Hitmontop and Claydol, such as the monstrous base 120 Attack and Defense stats and the ability to hurt Ghost-types with either Earthquake or Assurance. Donphan, being so physically defensive, also acts as a counter to some of the major physical threats in the metagame, such as Swords Dance Drapion, Swords Dance Toxicroak, and physical variants of Honchkrow (assuming you are running either Ice Shard or Stone Edge in the fourth moveslot).</p>
<p>This set revolves around Rapid Spin, which removes any entry hazards your opponent might have laid down during the match, in particular Spikes and Stealth Rock. Earthquake is the main STAB move of choice, as even incoming Spiritomb (a common switch-in to this set) is obliterated by it, possibly being 2HKOed after Stealth Rock damage. Assurance prevents Levitating Ghost-types, namely Rotom and Mismagius, from coming in freely, as even the most defensive of Rotom and Mismagius will lose at least 75% of their health from a 100 Base Power Assurance, with Stealth Rock already factored in, of course. Finally, the last moveslot is up to preference. Stealth Rock is a useful support option on Donphan, as it gets many opportunities to switch in and cause further trouble for the opponent. Ice Shard allows Donphan to hit Flying-types for a decent amount of damage and allows you to pick off weakened Dragon Dance Altaria and Rock Polish Torterra. Despite Stone Edge's higher Base Power, its mediocre accuracy makes it slightly inferior to Ice Shard.</p>
<p>The EVs for this set are rather straightforward. Max Attack is used on Donphan as it needs the ability to immediately threaten Ghost-types who attempt to switch in to block Rapid Spin. 56 HP / 204 Def gives Donphan the ability to take physical hits about 5% better than by simply maxing out HP. The old standard of 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe can also be run on this set, along with the possible support options of Roar, Rest, or Knock Off, but the lower physical Defense of Pokémon in UU makes maxing out Attack a better option, as Donphan now has the chance of threatening counters instead of simply stalling them out.</p>
<p>Donphan is best paired with teammates that can switch into the most common attacking types aimed at Donphan, such as Water, Ice, and Grass. Milotic is a useful partner that can switch into Water- and Ice-type attacks, and its access to recovery along with largely superior defenses allows Milotic to also counter some other special attackers that can give Donphan trouble, such as Life Orb Blaziken and Calm Mind Mismagius; granted, they are unlikely to switch into Donphan to begin with. Grass-type attacks are easily covered by Yanmega and Moltres, both of which pack a 4x resistance. Although both are dangerously weak to Stealth Rock, pairing either Yanmega or Moltres with Donphan is extremely beneficial because of Donphan's ability to spin away Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>If you want to use Donphan on a more defensive team, there are several noteworthy teammates you can consider for Donphan. Chansey is a useful partner for Donphan because it can switch into the special attacks that threaten Donphan and can heal Donphan with Wish, who otherwise lacks recovery of its own. Roserade is a useful partner for laying down Spikes, but the entry hazards layed down by Roserade are most effective when Donphan is running Roar. Roserade also has the benefit of carrying a resist to the Grass- and Water-type attacks normally directed at Donphan.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Assurance
move 3: Stone Edge / Ice Shard
move 4: Rapid Spin / Ice Shard
item: Choice Band
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although Donphan is normally seen as a defensive tank that focuses on taking hits, this set instead focuses on Donphan's base 120 Attack stat and its great STAB move in Earthquake. Choice Band provides Donphan with an Attack stat of 558, which is simply overwhelming against some of the previous set's counters. For example, Spiritomb is always outsped and 2HKOed by Earthquake, while Rotom and Mismagius are always OHKOed by a 100 Base Power Assurance after Stealth Rock damage. Simply put, coupled with an already great physical Defense and an even higher Attack (with Choice Band equipped), Donphan is capable of putting large holes in the opponent's team with little effort.</p>
<p>Earthquake is Donphan's primary attacking option, and it puts a serious hurt on anything that doesn't resist or is not immune to it. Assurance is needed to hit Levitating Ghost-types like Rotom and Mismagius, both of whom enjoy switching into Donphan to block any attempts to Rapid Spin and setting up themselves. The third moveslot gives Donphan an option to hit Flying-types who are immune to Earthquake. Stone Edge has a much higher Base Power that Ice Shard, making it the preferred option, despite the shaky accuracy; nevertheless, Ice Shard is a useful option for its 100% accuracy and ability to prevent Torterra from walling you with ease. For the last moveslot, Rapid Spin is quite a useful option for eliminating the opponent's entry hazards, which is capitalized by this set's ability to beat any Ghost-type one-on-one. If your team does not have much of an issue with entry hazards, then Ice Shard can be used over Rapid Spin as well.</p>
<p>The EVs maximize Donphan's offensive capabilities. Max Attack is obvious, while the rest of the EVs are dumped into HP since Donphan doesn't need to ourtun anything with the mediocre base 50 Speed. The given 4 Speed EVs allow Donphan to outspeed base 50's, such as Chansey and Registeel, that do not have any investment in Speed. However, you can instead run 20 Speed EVs, which can be taken from HP, to outspeed variants of Azumarill that run 16 Speed EVs, which include the Choice Band and Substitute + Focus Punch sets.</p>
<p>This set's teammates should handle Flying-types, Torterra, and Milotic, all of which can switch into Donphan's Earthquake with impunity. Registeel counters most of the Flying-types of UU and can set up Stealth Rock to cripple the ones it doesn't. It also provides support with Thunder Wave to allow Donphan to outspeed and 2HKO Pokemon it normally couldn't, though Earthquake will no longer 2HKO Milotic with Marvel Scale activated. Roserade is a good teammate for countering Milotic if your team does not have paralysis support, as it can switch into Milotic's Water-type attacks with ease and threaten it with a STAB Leaf Storm or Energy Ball or set up Spikes as Milotic deals mediocre damage. Spikes, in particular, is a very useful strategy since Donphan is great at forcing switches. Torterra is a bit trickier to handle, as not many Pokémon can switch into Torterra without the risk of getting outsped after a Rock Polish; however, having a Pokémon that can bypass Torterra's Speed with priority, such as Hitmontop, or simply having a revenge killer, such as Choice Scarf Rotom with Hidden Power Ice, is often the best response to Torterra. Defensive versions are easier to handle since you don't have to worry about taking too much damage from either Earthquake / Wood Hammer and getting outsped, but it's often best if you can just force Torterra to switch out by switching in a Pokémon likely to carry an Ice-type move. Moltres is an overall good counter to Torterra, provided it doesn't carry a Rock-type move, and can even benefit from Donphan's ability to spin away Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Offensively, many of the Pokémon that paired well with the previous set still pair well with the Choice Band set. Choice Specs Yanmega is one of the best partners to this set, as it can usually sweep through a team that has been weakened by Donphan's Earthquakes and hopeful entry hazard support. As mentioned many times before, Donphan even has the ability to spin away Stealth Rock, meaning Yanmega has little reason to worry about taking any damage as it switches in. Mismagius carrying Taunt is also an interesting option for an offensive partner, as with Calm Mind, it also gets multiple opportunities to benefit from the holes in the opponent's team made by Donphan and sweep. For example, Milotic, normally a counter to Mismagius, will often be weakened enough by Donphan's Earthquake to where it can no longer switch in and Haze away Mismagius's (possible) stat boosts.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Donphan is a Pokémon that certainly appreciates entry hazards support since it forces many switches. Donphan is capable of setting up Stealth Rock on its own; however, Donphan can be paired with other Stealth Rock users, such as Uxie, if you'd rather have the fourth moveslot open for another attack. Spikes support works even better than Stealth Rock, since incoming foes will lose a quarter of their health max each time upon switching in, provided they aren't part Flying or have the Levitate ability. Roserade is a good choice to consider for laying down Spikes, since it has no difficulty switching into the bulky Water-types that normally switch into Donphan. Dual screens support could be of use for both of the sets, but it is largely unneeded as Donphan already has a massive Defense stat and won't be switching into special attacks anytime soon anyways.</p>
<p>Offensively, Donphan has trouble getting past bulky Water-types like Milotic, Flying-types, who can switch into Earthquake, and Torterra, a common deterrent to all of the main sets. Milotic is best handled by a Grass-type such as Roserade and Venasaur, both of which have no problem coming into Milotic's Water-type attacks and forcing it to switch out. Roserade can either take the opportunity to set up Spikes, use Sleep Powder to incapacitate Milotic, or simply launch an all-out attack with Leaf Storm, capable of inflicting a large amount of damage to even those Pokémon that pack a resistance to Grass. Swords Dance Venasaur is also an interesting choice to consider, as it can easily plow through most of Donphan's counters after a Salac Berry boost, while Donphan is capable of handling the common priority users that can put an end to a Venasaur sweep. A combination of a Water-type and Steel-type on your team will ensure that you can take on the majority of Flying-types. Defensive Milotic is a good choice to consider for the bulky Water-type role, as Ice Beam can handle Altaria with no problem at all, and Moltres will not enjoy taking a STAB Surf; Hidden Power Grass is an added bonus to taking on the aforementioned Water-types as well. Registeel ensures both Swellow and Yanmega, other UU Flying-types, are stopped cold. Registeel can even provide paralysis support, making it easier for Donphan to weaken opponents who could previously outspeed, and Registeel even does a nice job of luring in Water- and some Flying-types as well. Torterra can be best checked by a Scarfed Pokémon running an Ice-type attack, such as Rotom, as long as it is capable of outpacing max Speed Adamant Torterra after a Rock Polish; be careful when switching into Wood Hammers though. Weezing is the best counter to Torterra in UU for its immunity to Ground-type attacks and resistance to Grass-type attacks along with the ability to use Will-O-Wisp, so if you are running a slower paced team, it is certainly a worthy option to consider as well.</p>
<p>Defensively, Donphan has trouble taking Grass-, Water-, and Ice-type attacks that often bypass Donphan's poor Special Defense stat and 2HKO or OHKO. Grass-type attacks are easily resisted by Steel-, Poison-, Fire-, and Flying-types, so pretty much anything works here. However, the most common Grass-type, Roserade, also had Sludge Bomb in its arsenal, so it is often best to consider a Pokémon that can survive one Life Orb-boosted Sludge Bomb, outrun Roserade, and KO in return. Yanmega is a decent choice here as long as Stealth Rock is out of the picture, but its horrible Special Defense stat means that a Life Orb-boosted Leaf Storm, even though 4x resisted, can deal up to 45%, and Sludge Bomb always 2HKOes, but since you outpace Roserade, the damage taken is less of an issue. It should also be emphasized that Yanmega can also pair well with Donphan offensively, as Yanmega can easily sweep through holes created by Donphan on the opponent's team. For example, Donphan's Earthquake can wear down defensive Steel-types, while Assurance and Stone Edge wears down Flying-types that give Yanmega trouble. Drapion is also a good choice to combat Roserade as it resists both Grass- and Poison-type attacks, and it can utilize Taunt to prevent Roserade from using Sleep Powder or Synthesis / Rest, while your STAB attack of choice can hit Roserade on its lower Defense stat as well. Water- and Ice-type attacks are best handled by a Water-type of your own, such as Milotic. Milotic has Hidden Power Grass to hit other Water-types for super effective and Haze negates any unwanted boosts from your opponent. Chansey is an effective partner for taking on any special attack that can give Donphan trouble; Wish, in particular, complements Donphan perfectly, as Donphan lacks recovery outside of Leftovers and Rest.</p>
<p>Milotic and Roserade are often paired together on the same team. Chansey is the best option in taking on both at once, but if your team can afford it, you can dedicate two team slots to countering Milotic and Roserade. Possible teammates apart from Chansey have been addressed in the previous paragraph. Other common teammates seen with both Milotic and Roserade are Registeel and Mismagius. Registeel is easily countered by Donphan as long as you avoid Toxic, as even the base 150 Defense stat won't save it from Donphan's 100 Base Power STAB Earthquake. Curse variants of Registeel could potentially outstall Donphan though, but will hardly do anything in return without a few boosts. The best way to counter Mismagius depends on the moveset it is running. Calm Mind variants running Hidden Power Fighting are easily stopped in their tracks by Milotic with Haze, while Thunderbolt variants are easily countered by Steelix and Registeel. Taunt + Will-O-Wisp Mismagius is a bit trickier to handle. Life Orb Moltres is a good counter because it doesn't take much from Shadow Ball and can immediately threaten Mismagius. Moltres, like Yanmega, greatly benefits from Donphan's ability to spin away Stealth Rock. Torterra, a counter previously addressed, is most commonly seen paired with Uxie. Uxie is often seen in the lead position, so any good Pursuit user that can outspeed defensive variants, such as Honchkrow and Absol, is a decent choice in dealing with it. Hitting Uxie with status is an alternative option in wearing it down, since it poses no immediate offensive threat and is quite easily stalled out itself.</p>
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Using Donphan effectively on a team largely depends on your ability to predict, as Donphan is a Pokémon that can easily lose the momentum on a mistimed Earthquake or Rapid Spin, and to make it worse, the lack of recovery means Donphan will get limited switch-ins if Spikes are present on your side of the field. When using Donphan, especially on the standard set, it is a good idea to attack first before using Rapid Spin, as it is essential in getting Ghost-types out of the way before attempting to clear the field of entry hazards.
[Other Options]
<p>Donphan does not have many competitively viable options outside of what has already been mentioned. A combination of Rest + Sleep Talk can be utilized if your team is in essential need of a defensive tank that is guaranteed to last, but the poor type coverage between Earthquake and either Assurance and Stone Edge is not enough in consideration of the amount of Pokémon that can potentially set up on Donphan while asleep. Donphan can run Toxic in the fourth moveslot of either of the two sets, but Toxic is largely unneeded when Donphan can simply eliminate common switch-ins with Earthquake or Assurance. A Rock Polish set can be considered, but Donphan lacks the Speed and type coverage to pull off a sweep most of the time. Body Slam can be used to paralyze opponents if you're lucky, but the lack of power is noticeable. Poison Jab can hit Tangrowth for super effective, but its massive Defense stat makes it a worthless option. Counter can nab a surprise kill against physical attackers like Altaria. Endeavor and Flail are gimmicky options at best.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Most of the time, you will just want to run what is provided. An Adamant nature is recommend over Impish in UU as Donphan can effectively wear down its counters by maximizing the damage output from Earthquake and still have enough defense to beat most physical attackers with ease. However, an Impish nature can be considered if you want Donphan to last a bit longer at the cost of some attacking power. The defensive EV investment 52 HP and 204 Defense EVs allow Donphan to take physical hits marginally better than by simply maximizing HP.</p>
<p>On the Choice Band set, 20 Speed EVs can be used to outpace 16 Spe Azumarill and 2HKO with Earthquake. Running max Speed allows you to outrun minimum Speed Milotic and 2HKO with Earthquake.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Donphan is one of the more reliable Pokémon to consider for any balanced team for its ability to spin away entry hazards. The common presence of Stealth Rock and even Spikes in UU will surely lead to Donphan being used more and more on teams. Another interesting thing to note about Donphan is its ability to beat just about every Ghost-type you are likely to encounter in UU, ranging from Spiritomb to Rotom. However, the lack of recovery really does hamper Donphan's ability to tank hits repeatedly, and outside of Stealth Rock, Donphan has very few support moves to take advantage of. The sturdy elephant is not the most spectacular Pokémon around, but he is a solid and reliable supporter who can also hit hard when the need arises.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Most Water-types are capable of switching into Donphan with ease and threatening it with a STAB Surf. Both Milotic and Slowbro have enough physical Defense to withstand an Earthquake or two, with the former outpacing Donphan. Ludicolo resists Earthquake and can threaten Donphan with either of its STAB. Azumarill can survive one Earthquake and deal heavy damage with boosted Waterfalls. Even Blastoise can come in a few times and KO Donphan with Surf, although the lack of recovery hurts. Poliwrath can also switch into Earthquake with little trouble and KO with Waterfall in return.</p>
<p>Flying-types are capable of switching into Donphan's Earthquake with impunity and threaten Donphan with boosted attacks, provided Donphan does not have Stone Edge or Ice Shard in the fourth moveslot. Moltres can scorch Donphan with a Life Orb-boosted Fire Blast, amd Swellow can easily wear down Donphan with a Guts-boosted, STAB Facade, while Altaria can set up on Donphan with Dragon Dance and proceed to deal heavy damage with Outrage.</p>
<p>Torterra and Tangrowth can switch into any of Donphan's sets with ease due to their mighty physical Defense and KO with a super effective Grass-type attack or stall out Donphan with Leech Seed. Venasaur, while it doesn't resist Earthquake, can switch in and KO Donphan with Leaf Storm, set up Swords Dance, or put something to sleep with Sleep Powder. Roserade can switch into Impish variants, but Adamant Donphan's Earthquake is capable of KOing Roserade with no defensive investment after Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Outside of Torterra and Tangrowth, Weezing is the most reliable counter to Donphan, as its high Defense and immunity to Earthquake means that Donphan will hardly be able to land a scratch. Will-O-Wisp also shuts down Donphan completely, further nullifying its attempts to weaken you down. With some EV investment in Special Attack, Weezing can even 3HKO Donphan with Flamethrower or Fire Blast.</p>
<p>Any Pokémon that can switch into Donphan's Earthquake and hit it on its weaker Special Defense stat is a solid overall counter.</p>
____________
Updates:
Additional Credits:
I will attempt to get this update completed in a timely manner. I appreciate everyone's patience and cooperation while working on this.
Note: Credit also goes to franky for assisting me with this update.
http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/donphan
____________
Changes:
- Rewrite of individual sets, reflecting changes to the UU metagame
- Addition of Team Options for each set, in regards to the UU metagame
- Addition of Team Options section for UU play
- Team support options will be written in purple
- Some EV spreads may receive a change
[SET]
name: Rapid Spin
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Assurance
move 4: Stealth Rock / Ice Shard / Stone Edge
item: Leftovers
nature: Adamant
evs: 52 HP / 252 Atk / 204 Def
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Donphan is one of the few viable spinners in UU, with several key traits that make using it advantageous over using Hitmontop and Claydol, such as the monstrous base 120 Attack and Defense stats and the ability to hurt Ghost-types with either Earthquake or Assurance. Donphan, being so physically defensive, also acts as a counter to some of the major physical threats in the metagame, such as Swords Dance Drapion, Swords Dance Toxicroak, and physical variants of Honchkrow (assuming you are running either Ice Shard or Stone Edge in the fourth moveslot).</p>
<p>This set revolves around Rapid Spin, which removes any entry hazards your opponent might have laid down during the match, in particular Spikes and Stealth Rock. Earthquake is the main STAB move of choice, as even incoming Spiritomb (a common switch-in to this set) is obliterated by it, possibly being 2HKOed after Stealth Rock damage. Assurance prevents Levitating Ghost-types, namely Rotom and Mismagius, from coming in freely, as even the most defensive of Rotom and Mismagius will lose at least 75% of their health from a 100 Base Power Assurance, with Stealth Rock already factored in, of course. Finally, the last moveslot is up to preference. Stealth Rock is a useful support option on Donphan, as it gets many opportunities to switch in and cause further trouble for the opponent. Ice Shard allows Donphan to hit Flying-types for a decent amount of damage and allows you to pick off weakened Dragon Dance Altaria and Rock Polish Torterra. Despite Stone Edge's higher Base Power, its mediocre accuracy makes it slightly inferior to Ice Shard.</p>
<p>The EVs for this set are rather straightforward. Max Attack is used on Donphan as it needs the ability to immediately threaten Ghost-types who attempt to switch in to block Rapid Spin. 56 HP / 204 Def gives Donphan the ability to take physical hits about 5% better than by simply maxing out HP. The old standard of 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe can also be run on this set, along with the possible support options of Roar, Rest, or Knock Off, but the lower physical Defense of Pokémon in UU makes maxing out Attack a better option, as Donphan now has the chance of threatening counters instead of simply stalling them out.</p>
<p>Donphan is best paired with teammates that can switch into the most common attacking types aimed at Donphan, such as Water, Ice, and Grass. Milotic is a useful partner that can switch into Water- and Ice-type attacks, and its access to recovery along with largely superior defenses allows Milotic to also counter some other special attackers that can give Donphan trouble, such as Life Orb Blaziken and Calm Mind Mismagius; granted, they are unlikely to switch into Donphan to begin with. Grass-type attacks are easily covered by Yanmega and Moltres, both of which pack a 4x resistance. Although both are dangerously weak to Stealth Rock, pairing either Yanmega or Moltres with Donphan is extremely beneficial because of Donphan's ability to spin away Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>If you want to use Donphan on a more defensive team, there are several noteworthy teammates you can consider for Donphan. Chansey is a useful partner for Donphan because it can switch into the special attacks that threaten Donphan and can heal Donphan with Wish, who otherwise lacks recovery of its own. Roserade is a useful partner for laying down Spikes, but the entry hazards layed down by Roserade are most effective when Donphan is running Roar. Roserade also has the benefit of carrying a resist to the Grass- and Water-type attacks normally directed at Donphan.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Assurance
move 3: Stone Edge / Ice Shard
move 4: Rapid Spin / Ice Shard
item: Choice Band
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although Donphan is normally seen as a defensive tank that focuses on taking hits, this set instead focuses on Donphan's base 120 Attack stat and its great STAB move in Earthquake. Choice Band provides Donphan with an Attack stat of 558, which is simply overwhelming against some of the previous set's counters. For example, Spiritomb is always outsped and 2HKOed by Earthquake, while Rotom and Mismagius are always OHKOed by a 100 Base Power Assurance after Stealth Rock damage. Simply put, coupled with an already great physical Defense and an even higher Attack (with Choice Band equipped), Donphan is capable of putting large holes in the opponent's team with little effort.</p>
<p>Earthquake is Donphan's primary attacking option, and it puts a serious hurt on anything that doesn't resist or is not immune to it. Assurance is needed to hit Levitating Ghost-types like Rotom and Mismagius, both of whom enjoy switching into Donphan to block any attempts to Rapid Spin and setting up themselves. The third moveslot gives Donphan an option to hit Flying-types who are immune to Earthquake. Stone Edge has a much higher Base Power that Ice Shard, making it the preferred option, despite the shaky accuracy; nevertheless, Ice Shard is a useful option for its 100% accuracy and ability to prevent Torterra from walling you with ease. For the last moveslot, Rapid Spin is quite a useful option for eliminating the opponent's entry hazards, which is capitalized by this set's ability to beat any Ghost-type one-on-one. If your team does not have much of an issue with entry hazards, then Ice Shard can be used over Rapid Spin as well.</p>
<p>The EVs maximize Donphan's offensive capabilities. Max Attack is obvious, while the rest of the EVs are dumped into HP since Donphan doesn't need to ourtun anything with the mediocre base 50 Speed. The given 4 Speed EVs allow Donphan to outspeed base 50's, such as Chansey and Registeel, that do not have any investment in Speed. However, you can instead run 20 Speed EVs, which can be taken from HP, to outspeed variants of Azumarill that run 16 Speed EVs, which include the Choice Band and Substitute + Focus Punch sets.</p>
<p>This set's teammates should handle Flying-types, Torterra, and Milotic, all of which can switch into Donphan's Earthquake with impunity. Registeel counters most of the Flying-types of UU and can set up Stealth Rock to cripple the ones it doesn't. It also provides support with Thunder Wave to allow Donphan to outspeed and 2HKO Pokemon it normally couldn't, though Earthquake will no longer 2HKO Milotic with Marvel Scale activated. Roserade is a good teammate for countering Milotic if your team does not have paralysis support, as it can switch into Milotic's Water-type attacks with ease and threaten it with a STAB Leaf Storm or Energy Ball or set up Spikes as Milotic deals mediocre damage. Spikes, in particular, is a very useful strategy since Donphan is great at forcing switches. Torterra is a bit trickier to handle, as not many Pokémon can switch into Torterra without the risk of getting outsped after a Rock Polish; however, having a Pokémon that can bypass Torterra's Speed with priority, such as Hitmontop, or simply having a revenge killer, such as Choice Scarf Rotom with Hidden Power Ice, is often the best response to Torterra. Defensive versions are easier to handle since you don't have to worry about taking too much damage from either Earthquake / Wood Hammer and getting outsped, but it's often best if you can just force Torterra to switch out by switching in a Pokémon likely to carry an Ice-type move. Moltres is an overall good counter to Torterra, provided it doesn't carry a Rock-type move, and can even benefit from Donphan's ability to spin away Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Offensively, many of the Pokémon that paired well with the previous set still pair well with the Choice Band set. Choice Specs Yanmega is one of the best partners to this set, as it can usually sweep through a team that has been weakened by Donphan's Earthquakes and hopeful entry hazard support. As mentioned many times before, Donphan even has the ability to spin away Stealth Rock, meaning Yanmega has little reason to worry about taking any damage as it switches in. Mismagius carrying Taunt is also an interesting option for an offensive partner, as with Calm Mind, it also gets multiple opportunities to benefit from the holes in the opponent's team made by Donphan and sweep. For example, Milotic, normally a counter to Mismagius, will often be weakened enough by Donphan's Earthquake to where it can no longer switch in and Haze away Mismagius's (possible) stat boosts.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Donphan is a Pokémon that certainly appreciates entry hazards support since it forces many switches. Donphan is capable of setting up Stealth Rock on its own; however, Donphan can be paired with other Stealth Rock users, such as Uxie, if you'd rather have the fourth moveslot open for another attack. Spikes support works even better than Stealth Rock, since incoming foes will lose a quarter of their health max each time upon switching in, provided they aren't part Flying or have the Levitate ability. Roserade is a good choice to consider for laying down Spikes, since it has no difficulty switching into the bulky Water-types that normally switch into Donphan. Dual screens support could be of use for both of the sets, but it is largely unneeded as Donphan already has a massive Defense stat and won't be switching into special attacks anytime soon anyways.</p>
<p>Offensively, Donphan has trouble getting past bulky Water-types like Milotic, Flying-types, who can switch into Earthquake, and Torterra, a common deterrent to all of the main sets. Milotic is best handled by a Grass-type such as Roserade and Venasaur, both of which have no problem coming into Milotic's Water-type attacks and forcing it to switch out. Roserade can either take the opportunity to set up Spikes, use Sleep Powder to incapacitate Milotic, or simply launch an all-out attack with Leaf Storm, capable of inflicting a large amount of damage to even those Pokémon that pack a resistance to Grass. Swords Dance Venasaur is also an interesting choice to consider, as it can easily plow through most of Donphan's counters after a Salac Berry boost, while Donphan is capable of handling the common priority users that can put an end to a Venasaur sweep. A combination of a Water-type and Steel-type on your team will ensure that you can take on the majority of Flying-types. Defensive Milotic is a good choice to consider for the bulky Water-type role, as Ice Beam can handle Altaria with no problem at all, and Moltres will not enjoy taking a STAB Surf; Hidden Power Grass is an added bonus to taking on the aforementioned Water-types as well. Registeel ensures both Swellow and Yanmega, other UU Flying-types, are stopped cold. Registeel can even provide paralysis support, making it easier for Donphan to weaken opponents who could previously outspeed, and Registeel even does a nice job of luring in Water- and some Flying-types as well. Torterra can be best checked by a Scarfed Pokémon running an Ice-type attack, such as Rotom, as long as it is capable of outpacing max Speed Adamant Torterra after a Rock Polish; be careful when switching into Wood Hammers though. Weezing is the best counter to Torterra in UU for its immunity to Ground-type attacks and resistance to Grass-type attacks along with the ability to use Will-O-Wisp, so if you are running a slower paced team, it is certainly a worthy option to consider as well.</p>
<p>Defensively, Donphan has trouble taking Grass-, Water-, and Ice-type attacks that often bypass Donphan's poor Special Defense stat and 2HKO or OHKO. Grass-type attacks are easily resisted by Steel-, Poison-, Fire-, and Flying-types, so pretty much anything works here. However, the most common Grass-type, Roserade, also had Sludge Bomb in its arsenal, so it is often best to consider a Pokémon that can survive one Life Orb-boosted Sludge Bomb, outrun Roserade, and KO in return. Yanmega is a decent choice here as long as Stealth Rock is out of the picture, but its horrible Special Defense stat means that a Life Orb-boosted Leaf Storm, even though 4x resisted, can deal up to 45%, and Sludge Bomb always 2HKOes, but since you outpace Roserade, the damage taken is less of an issue. It should also be emphasized that Yanmega can also pair well with Donphan offensively, as Yanmega can easily sweep through holes created by Donphan on the opponent's team. For example, Donphan's Earthquake can wear down defensive Steel-types, while Assurance and Stone Edge wears down Flying-types that give Yanmega trouble. Drapion is also a good choice to combat Roserade as it resists both Grass- and Poison-type attacks, and it can utilize Taunt to prevent Roserade from using Sleep Powder or Synthesis / Rest, while your STAB attack of choice can hit Roserade on its lower Defense stat as well. Water- and Ice-type attacks are best handled by a Water-type of your own, such as Milotic. Milotic has Hidden Power Grass to hit other Water-types for super effective and Haze negates any unwanted boosts from your opponent. Chansey is an effective partner for taking on any special attack that can give Donphan trouble; Wish, in particular, complements Donphan perfectly, as Donphan lacks recovery outside of Leftovers and Rest.</p>
<p>Milotic and Roserade are often paired together on the same team. Chansey is the best option in taking on both at once, but if your team can afford it, you can dedicate two team slots to countering Milotic and Roserade. Possible teammates apart from Chansey have been addressed in the previous paragraph. Other common teammates seen with both Milotic and Roserade are Registeel and Mismagius. Registeel is easily countered by Donphan as long as you avoid Toxic, as even the base 150 Defense stat won't save it from Donphan's 100 Base Power STAB Earthquake. Curse variants of Registeel could potentially outstall Donphan though, but will hardly do anything in return without a few boosts. The best way to counter Mismagius depends on the moveset it is running. Calm Mind variants running Hidden Power Fighting are easily stopped in their tracks by Milotic with Haze, while Thunderbolt variants are easily countered by Steelix and Registeel. Taunt + Will-O-Wisp Mismagius is a bit trickier to handle. Life Orb Moltres is a good counter because it doesn't take much from Shadow Ball and can immediately threaten Mismagius. Moltres, like Yanmega, greatly benefits from Donphan's ability to spin away Stealth Rock. Torterra, a counter previously addressed, is most commonly seen paired with Uxie. Uxie is often seen in the lead position, so any good Pursuit user that can outspeed defensive variants, such as Honchkrow and Absol, is a decent choice in dealing with it. Hitting Uxie with status is an alternative option in wearing it down, since it poses no immediate offensive threat and is quite easily stalled out itself.</p>
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Using Donphan effectively on a team largely depends on your ability to predict, as Donphan is a Pokémon that can easily lose the momentum on a mistimed Earthquake or Rapid Spin, and to make it worse, the lack of recovery means Donphan will get limited switch-ins if Spikes are present on your side of the field. When using Donphan, especially on the standard set, it is a good idea to attack first before using Rapid Spin, as it is essential in getting Ghost-types out of the way before attempting to clear the field of entry hazards.
[Other Options]
<p>Donphan does not have many competitively viable options outside of what has already been mentioned. A combination of Rest + Sleep Talk can be utilized if your team is in essential need of a defensive tank that is guaranteed to last, but the poor type coverage between Earthquake and either Assurance and Stone Edge is not enough in consideration of the amount of Pokémon that can potentially set up on Donphan while asleep. Donphan can run Toxic in the fourth moveslot of either of the two sets, but Toxic is largely unneeded when Donphan can simply eliminate common switch-ins with Earthquake or Assurance. A Rock Polish set can be considered, but Donphan lacks the Speed and type coverage to pull off a sweep most of the time. Body Slam can be used to paralyze opponents if you're lucky, but the lack of power is noticeable. Poison Jab can hit Tangrowth for super effective, but its massive Defense stat makes it a worthless option. Counter can nab a surprise kill against physical attackers like Altaria. Endeavor and Flail are gimmicky options at best.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Most of the time, you will just want to run what is provided. An Adamant nature is recommend over Impish in UU as Donphan can effectively wear down its counters by maximizing the damage output from Earthquake and still have enough defense to beat most physical attackers with ease. However, an Impish nature can be considered if you want Donphan to last a bit longer at the cost of some attacking power. The defensive EV investment 52 HP and 204 Defense EVs allow Donphan to take physical hits marginally better than by simply maximizing HP.</p>
<p>On the Choice Band set, 20 Speed EVs can be used to outpace 16 Spe Azumarill and 2HKO with Earthquake. Running max Speed allows you to outrun minimum Speed Milotic and 2HKO with Earthquake.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Donphan is one of the more reliable Pokémon to consider for any balanced team for its ability to spin away entry hazards. The common presence of Stealth Rock and even Spikes in UU will surely lead to Donphan being used more and more on teams. Another interesting thing to note about Donphan is its ability to beat just about every Ghost-type you are likely to encounter in UU, ranging from Spiritomb to Rotom. However, the lack of recovery really does hamper Donphan's ability to tank hits repeatedly, and outside of Stealth Rock, Donphan has very few support moves to take advantage of. The sturdy elephant is not the most spectacular Pokémon around, but he is a solid and reliable supporter who can also hit hard when the need arises.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Most Water-types are capable of switching into Donphan with ease and threatening it with a STAB Surf. Both Milotic and Slowbro have enough physical Defense to withstand an Earthquake or two, with the former outpacing Donphan. Ludicolo resists Earthquake and can threaten Donphan with either of its STAB. Azumarill can survive one Earthquake and deal heavy damage with boosted Waterfalls. Even Blastoise can come in a few times and KO Donphan with Surf, although the lack of recovery hurts. Poliwrath can also switch into Earthquake with little trouble and KO with Waterfall in return.</p>
<p>Flying-types are capable of switching into Donphan's Earthquake with impunity and threaten Donphan with boosted attacks, provided Donphan does not have Stone Edge or Ice Shard in the fourth moveslot. Moltres can scorch Donphan with a Life Orb-boosted Fire Blast, amd Swellow can easily wear down Donphan with a Guts-boosted, STAB Facade, while Altaria can set up on Donphan with Dragon Dance and proceed to deal heavy damage with Outrage.</p>
<p>Torterra and Tangrowth can switch into any of Donphan's sets with ease due to their mighty physical Defense and KO with a super effective Grass-type attack or stall out Donphan with Leech Seed. Venasaur, while it doesn't resist Earthquake, can switch in and KO Donphan with Leaf Storm, set up Swords Dance, or put something to sleep with Sleep Powder. Roserade can switch into Impish variants, but Adamant Donphan's Earthquake is capable of KOing Roserade with no defensive investment after Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Outside of Torterra and Tangrowth, Weezing is the most reliable counter to Donphan, as its high Defense and immunity to Earthquake means that Donphan will hardly be able to land a scratch. Will-O-Wisp also shuts down Donphan completely, further nullifying its attempts to weaken you down. With some EV investment in Special Attack, Weezing can even 3HKO Donphan with Flamethrower or Fire Blast.</p>
<p>Any Pokémon that can switch into Donphan's Earthquake and hit it on its weaker Special Defense stat is a solid overall counter.</p>
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Updates:
- 8/18/09 - Thread posted, awaiting further edit
- 8/19/09 - Updated with some set comments for the "Rapid Spin" set, Implemented franky and whistle's edits
- 8/24/09 - Rapid Spin and Choice Band set comments updated
- 8/29/09 - Team Options, Other Options, EVs, Opinion, and Counters section updated
- 8/30/09 - Added in franky and JabbaTheGriffin's suggestions, implemented Eo Ut Mortus's proofread edit
- 9/3/09 - Added in franky and umbarsc's revised edits
Additional Credits:
- LonelyNess, for proving suggestions on the "Rapid Spin" set
- Eo Ut Mortus, for helping me test the Choice Band set
I will attempt to get this update completed in a timely manner. I appreciate everyone's patience and cooperation while working on this.