OU Spotlight: Keldeo

Overview

In the musketeer quartet, there are many different faces. There is Terrakion the brute, Virizion the sage, and Cobalion the brave. The fourth—Keldeo—has no better description than PONY. You can see the resolve in its stance and eyes; it's as if you had no chance all along. Keldeo needs no shining armor to tear apart OU. Keldeo has no frills and is all power. Yet, it has only been around for a very short time. While some had come to know it from the Dream World OU metagame, it was still unreleased in standard OU. However, with BW2 on the horizon, Game Freak decided to unveil Keldeo to the world officially. No one knew that the OU metagame would never be the same. It had been obscure in the Dream World metagame and seemed overshadowed by its rain sweeper peers. Everything was about to change.

When Keldeo was first released, it was a very obscure threat. It received little-to-no usage. In a metagame with Genesect and the newly released Therian genies, Keldeo was barely OU! The tide didn't seem to be changing, not to mention the suspect process was beginning again. The focus was all on Garchomp for more than a month while Rough Skin and Sand Veil were tested to ensure the issue concerning Garchomp's banning went to rest. In Kyurem-B's suspect metagame, rain teams were choosing to use a Genesect + Tornadus-T + Dugtrio offensive core instead of one with Keldeo. Even after Genesect's suspect test, things stayed that way for Keldeo. Everyone was now ready to deal with rain, and Keldeo even got suspected! However, no one gave it a second thought with Tornadus-T on the forefront, so it still had little usage. It was only after the Tornadus-T suspect test that people finally started using Keldeo. Realizing its massive potential, Keldeo's usage shot up during the Deoxys-D suspect test and beyond. People were finally tapping into Keldeo's true potential. Today, it is a premier rain and sand offensive threat that can tear apart much of the OU tier.

Meet Keldeo

Let's meet our finely-trained friend. Be warned, however, that listening to Keldeo braying can have some nasty side effects. These include but are not limited to hypertension, heart attacks, death, hatred of OU, and Pokémon withdrawal. With that, it's time to get to know Keldeo. Fortunately, I had the foresight to bring a translating device, so you'll be hearing this in cold hard English.

When my research team and I met up with Keldeo, it seemed rather timid. After quite a bit of poking and ah...nudging, I suppose you could say, we got it to talk about its stats. Keldeo has a massive base 129 Special Attack. This is more than enough to smash apart pretty much every threat Keldeo finds itself against. Even without a boosting item, Keldeo still boasts massive power. It gave us a demonstration by blasting one of my research attendants with a stream of water. I assure you that he survived the blast, though he apparently had a near-death experience invoking Arceus. In any case, few Pokémon can stand up to Keldeo's might without falling to rain-boosted attacks. As we soon learned, Keldeo is also rather quick. With a blazing base 108 Speed, Keldeo must have no trouble burning pounds. This Speed also happens to be enough to allow Keldeo with a Choice Scarf to outrun many boosted sweepers and non-Choice Scarf variants to outrun much of the unboosted OU tier, including key threats such as Landorus and Garchomp. Unfortunately, my acquaintances were too scared to, as they said, "get dumped on by that infernal pony!"

After experiencing severe trauma, many of my teammates, using their foul language, "pussied out" of the move testing. I managed to convince one undecided member to help me continue our research. We first asked about the Hydro Pump technique, which Keldeo fortunately did against a rock. Like much of OU, that rock went flying. Keldeo's Hydro Pump, especially when boosted by rain, is one of the most fearsome attacks in the OU tier. Choice Specs Hydro Pump can even OHKO Dragonite after Stealth Rock, comes close to 2HKOing Ferrothorn, and does a lot to even Tentacruel and Latios. Its auxiliary Water-type STAB—Surf—wasn't quite as powerful, but many of the OU Pokémon we had brought for testing subjects were still roaring in pain. For Secret Sword, we asked that it please not slice us, so it turned to a giant red sequoia. Much to our horror, the tree fell straight down. Being a slightly more powerful Psyshock equivalent, Secret Sword means Keldeo can't be stopped by special walls. The blobs—bless their poor souls—weren't strong enough. Tyranitar was also found fainted.

After getting through with its STABs, we checked out Icy Wind, which, much to the surprise of my Latios, KOed it in two hits upon switching in while it didn't even get a chance to move. Icy Wind is also helpful for Latias and to free up a moveslot for a Hidden Power other than Ice. It also made the air quite frigid, but it was nothing our toaster oven, Rotom-H (don't ask), couldn't handle. We then tested Keldeo for its Hidden Power, which was unfortunately Ghost. Ghost is useful for the Lati twins, Celebi, and Jellicent. Luckily, I had brought some "chemicals" along. Keldeo is apparently a lover of sniffing substances; these substances happened to change its Hidden Power. Keldeo first chose Hidden Power Electric, which does quite a bit to bulky Water-types, such as Jellicent and Tentacruel. Hidden Power Ice also made an appearance, though it's only used on offensive Calm Mind variants. Hidden Power Psychic and Flying were other interesting options we had brought along; the former is most useful for Toxicroak and Tentacruel, while the latter does good damage to Toxicroak, Breloom, Celebi, and opposing Keldeo. Finally, we tested out Calm Mind and proved my hypothesis that it makes Keldeo a fearsome sweeper. Who would have thought?

Sets to Use

With our research done, I left to complete my report. Having witnessed its techniques in person, I was finally qualified to comment on its sets, as like all OU Pokémon, Keldeo has a couple prominent sets. Well, more than a couple. Keldeo has resistances and usable bulk that make it a total monster. It is usually found on offensive rain and sand teams, the latter solely because of the potency of Choice Band Tyranitar and Keldeo paired together; it should be no surprise that Keldeo is often found on rain teams. With that, let's get on to the sets.

Keldeo @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Surf
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power Ice

Keldeo is most commonly seen running a Choice Scarf set. As previously mentioned, Keldeo still has massive power without a boosting item. Usually, you'll find this set on rain teams. It is played like a revenge killer early- to mid-game—a job which it is very proficient at. Keldeo can outrun foes such as +1 Dragonite, +2 Cloyster, and Tornadus. Generally, you'll find Keldeo doing the revenge killing and Thundurus-T or Landorus doing the sweeping. However, there is another aspect to Choice Scarf Keldeo, and that is late-game cleaning. If a team's main sweeper falls short, Keldeo creates another win condition. The moves are rather standard; just note that Surf is the main move of the set.

Keldeo @ Choice Specs
Ability: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Secret Sword
- Icy Wind
- Surf / Hidden Power Electric

Another common set is a Choice Specs one. Rather than opting for a revenge killing role, this Keldeo attempts to punch holes into opposing teams. If you haven't already gotten the memo, that's Keldeo's specialty. Nothing is safe from Choice Specs Keldeo other than Pokémon immune to Water. Actually, screw that, only Jellicent and Celebi can successfully defend against this Keldeo. You'll want to play very aggressively with this set. Making double switches and getting in on weak or ineffective moves is how Keldeo does best. Its blazing Speed and frightening Hydro Pumps leave everything running. The blobs and Gastrodon fear Secret Sword, while Tentacruel is 2HKOed by Hydro Pump. You check Keldeo, you don't counter it. You change the weather. You revenge kill it. Good luck!


Keldeo @ Life Orb Ability: Justified EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk) - Hydro Pump - Secret Sword - Icy Wind - Hidden Power Electric	Keldeo @ Expert Belt Ability: Justified EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk) - Hydro Pump - Secret Sword - Icy Wind - Hidden Power Electric

Keldeo is also seen using a four attacks set. While you lose the raw effectiveness of a Choice item, versatility gained with the ability to switch moves makes up for it. One variant of this set is Life Orb. Boasting power comparable to Choice Specs, Life Orb allows Keldeo to hit many foes hard and switch moves. It is used to punch holes and as an all-purpose attacker. Hidden Power Electric does quite a bit to Jellicent, but unlike on Choice sets, it doesn't make Keldeo setup fodder after use. Expert Belt allows Keldeo to bluff a Choice item. With Expert Belt, Keldeo can nail Celebi with Hidden Power Bug as it comes in expecting to take an attack comfortably. Expert Belt variants must be played much more cautiously, but a well-executed bluff can turn the tides in the Keldeo user's favor.

Keldeo @ Life Orb
Ability: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Surf
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power Ice / Substitute

The final Keldeo set seen in this metagame is the Calm Mind sweeper. It plays very similar to other full-out offensive sweepers, such as Rock Polish Landorus and Swords Dance Terrakion. The goal is to get Keldeo in on a Pokémon it can force out and then set up. Unfortunately, this doesn't always work out in practice, as Keldeo is vulnerable to revenge killing from pretty much every Choice Scarf user in OU. However, Keldeo is very powerful after just one boost, which more than makes up for this rather minor issue. You remove Pokémon that can beat Keldeo and let it sweep. A rarer variant of this set uses Substitute, which makes revenge killing it impossible. While it does suffer some coverage issues, it's still the powerful Keldeo we've all come to know and love (or hate).

Supporting Keldeo

Unfortunately, Keldeo cannot beat everything on its own; only almost everything. 2HKOing Water resists is no small feat, but it doesn't work all the time. As such, partners to deal with certain threats are necessary. Before we get to that, let's talk about weather. Pokémon live and die in OU based on their weather preference; just ask Venusaur. Luckily for Keldeo, it is a denizen of the deep. With its stature resembling somewhat that of a hippocampus, it should come to no surprise that Keldeo's preferred weather is rain. Rain makes Keldeo insanely powerful to the point where it has but one counter, Celebi, and Hidden Power Bug can make even Celebi a non-issue. Sand is also acceptable for Keldeo, but only if Choice Band Tyranitar is the summoner, as Tyranitar can remove Celebi, Jellicent, Gengar, the Lati twins, and other Pokémon that are troublesome for Keldeo. Scizor also works to an extent, but its Pursuit is much less powerful. However, it does have the perk of a much easier time against most Gengar. Weavile is another interesting option, as it can actually deal with every Pokémon we know that counters Keldeo; Celebi, Jellicent, Latias, Tentacruel, and Amoonguss are some examples. Sun is harmful to Keldeo for obvious reasons, while hail generally requires a bulky Water-type instead of an offensive one such as Keldeo.

As with all offensive Pokémon, Keldeo appreciates entry hazard support. The residual damage provided can wear down foes such as Celebi and Jellicent to the point where they really can't counter Keldeo anymore. Additionally, Keldeo isn't all that bulky, so OHKOing on the first shot is often necessary; otherwise Keldeo will often die. Garchomp is by far the best choice. The main reason for this is the great synergy it has with Keldeo—both offensively and defensively. On the defensive side, Garchomp is immune to Electric, while Keldeo is resistant to Ice. For attacking purposes, Keldeo can smash most physically bulky walls, such as Hippowdon and Skarmory, to pieces while Garchomp can deal heavy damage to Tentacruel, Jellicent, and Celebi. This allows Keldeo and Garchomp to form a devastating offensive core that doesn't allow any harmful Spikes to be set up; fortunately, Stealth Rock isn't an issue as both resist it. However, if hazard-setting Garchomp isn't to your taste, you still have the options of Terrakion and Ferrothorn; the main reason to use Terrakion is to prevent any hazards from being set up, as it otherwise just adds another liability against Celebi. Ferrothorn's main perk is the ability to handle Latias and set up both Stealth Rock and Spikes.

The main issue that has been discussed regarding supporting Keldeo is the removal of Keldeo's few counters. While the aforementioned support is very helpful, there are a few more Pokémon to consider. The foremost of these is Choice Specs Gothitelle, as it can customize itself to remove all of Celebi, Jellicent, Amoonguss, Tentacruel, and whatever other Pokémon you care to name. The preferred moveset in this case is Psyshock / Thunderbolt / Signal Beam / Trick to most optimally handle these Pokémon. Trick is most useful to give Keldeo switch-in opportunities. Kyurem-B is also a very useful offensive partner. It's similar to Garchomp, but it forgoes Speed for much more bulk. Kyurem-B has the power to smash apart Celebi, Jellicent, Rotom-W, and other annoyances for Keldeo. It can do all this with a simple Ice Beam / Earth Power / Fusion Bolt / Roost set; Substitute is also an option, over Roost of course. Kyurem-B's immense bulk makes it difficult to break down; it can even survive a +1 Dragon Pulse from Calm Mind Latias. An interesting lure for Celebi is special Landorus with U-turn. This particular set has gained in popularity lately and utilizes the surprise factor of lacking Rock Polish to kill Celebi; U-turn also offers good opportunities to bring Keldeo in.

If you use any of the support mentioned above, using Keldeo will yield amazing results. Failing to have adequate responses for Keldeo's counters is, however, not acceptable. In short, it is imperative to have a Pokémon or two to handle Celebi, Latias, Latios, Jellicent, Amoonguss, and Tentacruel to use Keldeo to its fullest potential.

Beating Keldeo

While Keldeo is indeed a total monster with the right support, beating it actually isn't that hard, as Keldeo has a few hard counters. The best counter to Keldeo is Celebi, as there is nothing Keldeo can do, other than use Hidden Power Bug, that actually hurts Celebi. Meanwhile, Celebi can do as it pleases against Keldeo. It can Recover up to full health, paralyze Keldeo, or kill it with Psychic or Giga Drain. It isn't much of a hardship to use Celebi in this metagame either, as it offers a counter to special Landorus and Thundurus-T, two big threats; Celebi could almost be seen as a staple. The Lati twins also fare well, particularly Latias. Latias has a lot of special bulk and can stall out Hydro Pumps and such with Roost while killing Keldeo with Dragon Pulse. Latios is more of a check, as it can be 2HKOed by a rain-boosted Hydro Pump. Jellicent is also a good counter, only fearing Choice Specs Hidden Power Electric. Boasting immunities to both of Keldeo's STABs, Jellicent is guaranteed to trouble Keldeo. Toxicroak is another great choice to combat Keldeo, as it is immune to Water and resists Fighting; it can set up on and KO Keldeo. Amoonguss is also a great counter to Keldeo. It can take just about any attack, put Keldeo to sleep, and wear it down with Giga Drain. However, a Choice Specs-boosted Hydro Pump in the rain has a chance to 2HKO Amoonguss after Stealth Rock, showcasing Keldeo's power. Finally, Tentacruel has enough bulk to sponge every one of Keldeo's attacks and can Toxic stall Keldeo to death.

While almost every team is beginning to carry one of these Pokémon, it is necessary to have a backup plan against Keldeo, as you might just find Latias or Celebi Pursuited to death. For this reason, most good teams carry at least two Water resists, including their Keldeo counter. Some go so far as to carry more, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Carrying Pokémon that resist Water is vital in this metagame anyway and makes battles against Keldeo so much easier. Revenge killers are also standard fare in this metagame; Latios, Thundurus-T, and Jolteon are the best choices. Another good way to fight Keldeo is to play around it with Fighting and Water resists. While you will need proper prediction skills to guess which move Keldeo will use, the freedom gained by doing so is immensely helpful against Keldeo.

Get Out There!

As you can see, Keldeo is a very powerful pony. Go out on the ladder and use it and you are guaranteed to achieve excellent results!

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