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QC 3/3 (Fireburn, dice, Level 56)
GP 1/1 (Mr. Uncompetitive)
[OVERVIEW]
* Zekrom acts as a soft check to Pokemon such as Primal Kyogre, Mega Salamence, and Ho-Oh. It can also force out most Dragon-, Flying-, and Water-types.
* It generally finds itself on more offensive teams that require a method to lure and break Primal Groudon, but it can also scare out a lot of Pokemon commonly used on balance teams.
* Z-Outrage gives Zekrom an additional method of putting a hole into or outright KOing its common answers when coupled with the boosts from Hone Claws.
* Zekrom's matchup against common answers to physical attackers such as Lugia, Arceus-Water, and Giratina-O is pretty good overall.
* Zekrom has very strong STAB moves, but very common Pokemon in the SM Ubers metagame in Xerneas and Primal Groudon are immune to Dragon and Electric, respectively.
* A fair few of Zekrom's targets have methods of hitting it hard as it comes in, namely Water-types carrying Ice Beam and Flying-types carrying Earthquake.
* Having base 90 Speed can be a big letdown for a Pokemon like Zekrom who has easily exploited weaknesses.
[SET]
name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Hone Claws
move 2: Outrage
move 3: Bolt Strike
move 4: Dragon Claw / Draco Meteor
item: Dragonium Z / Shuca Berry
ability: Teravolt
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Hone Claws makes Zekrom's wallbreaking possible with the Attack boost while also giving a nice accuracy boost to an otherwise risky move in Bolt Strike.
* The Attack boost from Hone Claws, when combined with the 190 BP Z-Outrage, makes Zekrom capable of OHKOing every common Primal Groudon set from full HP—a crazy showcase of damage output.
* The Attack and Accuracy boost to Bolt Strike also helps against neutral targets—Magearna is OHKOed at +1, as are Pokemon such as Extreme Killer Arceus. It tends to be useful for situations where using the Dragonium Z is a waste.
* Bolt Strike is a very strong STAB move, capable of 2HKOing maximum HP Arceus formes unboosted, even without Stealth Rock damage.
* Dragon Claw is a standard STAB move, as Zekrom's viable other options are limited. It can be useful in situations where Outrage is a bad idea, such as taking out a weakened Pokemon.
* Draco Meteor is an alternative option and can be more effective against switch-ins such as Landorus-T than any of the physical attacks Zekrom uses. Draco Meteor can also bypass Salamence's Intimidate and do the most unboosted damage possible to Zygarde and other Ground-types, avoiding the usage of Outrage against them.
Set Details
========
* Maximum Attack and Speed investment is used to get the most out of Zekrom's offensive potential.
* An Adamant nature is ideal for getting vital OHKOs on Primal Groudon and maximum HP Arceus formes.
* Jolly is a viable possibility that allows Zekrom to speed tie at worst with other maximum base 90 Speed Pokemon and Pokemon up to base 100 Speed if they are running neutral Speed natures, as well as likely outspeeding Lugia and support Arceus. Jolly does fall short of crucial damage benchmarks that Adamant can reach as noted previously, making it a lesser option.
* If Zekrom is running Draco Meteor, the ideal nature would be Naughty, to avoid lowering Draco Meteor's damage output.
* Dragonium Z allows the use of Z-Outrage, Zekrom's wall-busting nuke.
* Shuca Berry is still a viable option if Zekrom's team is a little on the Ground-weak side. Taking 136 EVs from Speed and putting them into HP go best with a Shuca Berry, allowing Zekrom to survive a +2 Arceus-Ground Earthquake if necessary.
Usage Tips
========
* The main thing to note is that using Z-Outrage does not result in Zekrom being confused or locked into a move. Zekrom can still throw out a +1 Outrage afterwards.
* Zekrom should generally not be the first switch-in to dangerous threats such as Ho-Oh and Primal Kyogre, as Ho-Oh can potentially burn Zekrom with Sacred Fire and ruin its potential, while Primal Kyogre's Ice Beam can also deal upwards of 80% damage, which Zekrom should not be risking.
* Zekrom is best brought in after a Pokemon it heavily threatens has taken down a teammate or if Zekrom is given an otherwise free switch. It can then throw out attacks or use Hone Claws and OHKO a predicted incoming Primal Groudon.
* Z-Outrage can be rather prediction-reliant. If attempting to break through Primal Groudon, there is always the chance that the opponent will see the attack coming and switch to a Pokemon resistant to Dragon, or even a Fairy-type such as Xerneas. Devastating Drake is only a one-time attack, even if it hits a Pokemon immune to it or using Protect, so keep this in mind.
* Z-Outrage doesn't necessarily have to be boosted by Hone Claws to pose a threat. It mainly acts as Zekrom's one-time KO button, and it has a good chance to OHKO most Extreme Killer Arceus spreads with Stealth Rock damage factored in, even without any boosts if they are ever greedy enough to try to set up on Zekrom.
* After the use of Z-Outrage, Zekrom is still a threat with the +1 Attack, but most teams will have a way to revenge kill Zekrom in the form of a faster attacker. Making the trade is usually not worth it, as Zekrom is very likely to still be useful against other Pokemon on the enemy team, such as a Mega Salamence.
Team Options
========
* Primal Kyogre enjoys having Zekrom around to weaken or take out enemy Primal Groudon.
* Xerneas also appreciates the damage Zekrom is able to do to Primal Groudon, allowing a potential sweep later in the game.
* Giratina-O can help deal with any Ground-types that Zekrom may struggle against and also help against Extreme Killer Arceus.
* Primal Groudon can check Xerneas, threaten Ferrothorn, and help against Primal Kyogre for Zekrom while also providing Stealth Rock to help Zekrom break down the enemy team.
* Pokemon such as Mega Lucario, Mega Salamence, and Ho-Oh can all put plenty of pressure on Ferrothorn. Ho-Oh will require Defog support from the likes of a support Arceus or Giratina-O to be fully effective, however.
* Mega Gengar can trap and remove Ferrothorn for Zekrom and also deal with Fairy-types such as Arceus-Fairy that may get in Zekrom's way of using Z-Outrage freely.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Substitute can be used in the fourth moveslot to let Zekrom bypass Ferrothorn by itself with the help of Hone Claws if needed.
* Tailwind on a Life Orb set can allow Zekrom to have a better matchup against very offensive teams with the Speed boost from Tailwind, but Zekrom can run into some issues with stopping threats from setting up on it.
* Electrium Z grants the usage of Gigavolt Havoc for a stronger Bolt Strike, but it is mostly outclassed by Devastating Drake in terms of what it can help Zekrom break past. A +1 Bolt Strike is usually all that is needed for other threats, leaving Gigavolt Havoc less feasible. It does help against Xerneas sets with heavy Defense investment, however.
* Volt Switch allows Zekrom to pivot out of Fairy-types into a teammate such as Mega Gengar, but it falls completely flat against Ground-type switch-ins.
* Choice Scarf can make Zekrom a threatening revenge killer but runs into very large issues of being prediction-reliant against any team with both a Ground- and a Fairy-type.
* Choice Band falls under a similar line of thinking as the Choice Scarf set, but it is also mostly outclassed in damage output by the Z-Outrage set.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Ferrothorn**: Ferrothorn is able to switch into and wall Zekrom very easily, for the most part. Zekrom has the option of using Hone Claws to boost to +2 Attack and 2HKO Ferrothorn, but it will take a lot of damage in the process.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-types such as Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy are big threats to Zekrom, as they have the potential to outspeed and OHKO Zekrom with their STAB attacks. They can also nullify Z-Outrage completely by switching into a predicted usage of it, which really lowers Zekrom's threat level. Magearna also threatens an unboosted Zekrom, but it can fall to a +1 Bolt Strike. Tapu Lele can revenge kill Zekrom with Moonblast, as it is usually faster than it.
**Excadrill**: Excadrill is immune to Bolt Strike and can survive a +1 Outrage from Zekrom while also threatening to nearly OHKO with Earthquake. Shuca Berry sets can take on Excadrill, and a +1 Z-Outrage can OHKO it, but this is generally a waste of either item.
**Ground-types**: Arceus-Ground and Landorus-T are faster than Zekrom and can always threaten to OHKO it with their STAB attacks, while Zekrom's counterplay to them is limited. Primal Groudon can be threatening to an unboosted Zekrom, but it is likely to fall to a +1 Z-Outrage. Shuca Berry sets can fare better against these Ground-types.
**Revenge Killers**: Most offensive threats that are faster than Zekrom can take advantage of its exploitable type weaknesses to hit it hard and revenge kill it.
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