Just updating my Ubers Cresselia analysis to meet the requirements of the new analysis format.
Status: DONE
http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/cresselia
[Overview]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>Cresselia is a physical tank who excels at preventing physical threats, most prominently Groudon, Rayquaza, and Garchomp, from annihilating one’s team. While one would normally consider Lugia for such a role, Cresselia lacks a Rock-type weakness, meaning she takes less damage from Stealth Rock and Stone Edge, while sporting roughly the same physical durability. Due to no Stealth Rock weakness, she can reliably defeat Dragon Dance Rayquaza, unlike Lugia, making her the pre-ultimate physical wall. Cresselia also makes a great dual screener with only three weaknesses, titanic defenses, and a passable Speed that with a Timid nature is capable of outrunning the many 90 base speed Ubers without a Speed-boosting nature, and perhaps most importantly Lunar Dance, which enables a sweeper to come back into play at full health.</p>
<p>However, Lugia often out shadows Cresselia, due to her limited movepool, overall inferior stats, and the need for sunlight support in order to have reliable recovery in the form of Moonlight (with less PP too). As a dual screener, she also faces significant competition, though Lunar Dance makes her unique in her role. Nevertheless, these are only limiting factors. Cresselia’s movepool is more than enough to adequately support her teammates, her stats enable her to carry out her purpose, and Groudon’s constant presence on the battlefield makes Moonlight more reliable in Ubers than in the sandstorm-dominated OU metagame.</p>
[SET]
name: Ubers Wall
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Moonlight
move 3: Reflect
move 4: Toxic / Thunder Wave / Hidden Power Fire
item: Leftovers / Shed Shell
nature: Bold
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Cresselia is often compared to Lugia in terms of physical walling, she lacks the weaknesses associated with the Flying-type. She doesn't fear Stone Edge and Stealth Rock, and cannot shed her Ground-immunity with Roost. Hence, she can more reliably counter Groudon, Rayquaza, and Garchomp, the three main physical powerhouses in Ubers, and take less damage from the ever-common Ice Beam and Thunder. Even +4 Life Orb Groudon's Stone Edge will never OHKO Cresselia. Also, in the sun, Moonlight heals 66.7% of her HP, which is more efficient than Lugia's Roost.</p>
<p>Ice Beam is needed to counter Rayquaza, Groudon, and Garchomp. Reflect halves the power of physical attacks, and is especially helpful against enemy Pursuiters or if rain is on the field, severely reducing Moonlight's effectiveness. Toxic is recommended for the last slot; Ice Beam does little damage to any Pokémon without a 4x Ice weakness. Furthermore, it deals more damage over time to Groudon than a single Ice Beam. Thunder Wave can hit incoming sweepers on the switch, and the two most common Pokémon in Ubers who are immune to Thunder Wave, Groudon and Garchomp, will never switch into Cresselia. Hidden Power Fire prevents Forretress from using Cresselia as set up bait and Scizor from using U-turn. Hidden Power Fire is also Cresselia's most powerful attack in the sunlight.</p>
<p>The EVs guarantee an OHKO on 4 SpD Rayquaza with Ice Beam after Stealth Rock damage and Life Orb recoil, and net a 2HKO on Garchomp. If you are using Hidden Power Fire, the EVs also net a 2HKO on max/max Forretress after Stealth Rock damage in the sun, though in the rain, it may not even 4HKO thanks to Leftovers recovery. The HP and Defense EVs provide Cresselia with great bulk. Cresselia can survive a +1 Adamant Rayquaza's Outrage after Stealth Rock damage, and will never be 2HKOed by an unboosted Outrage from Jolly Rayquaza after Stealth Rock damage and Leftovers recovery. Cresselia will even survive a +2 Jolly Rayquaza's Outrage around 47% of the time after Stealth Rock damage (or 100% of the time without Stealth Rock). Leftovers is the preferred item choice for the HP recovery, reducing the number of times Cresselia will have to resort to using Moonlight's precious PP. However, Shed Shell enables Cresselia to switch out of Wobbuffet.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Cresselia is offensively inept with her pathetic base 75 Special Attack. As such, she should only be used on stall teams; she is dead-weight on any offensive team. Cresselia should always be used alongside Groudon, setting up the sun so Moonlight will heal 66.7% of Cresselia's HP, and removing rain when necessary. Blissey as a teammate can absorb special assaults directed at Cresselia, who in return can take physical attacks aimed at Blissey, forming a pseudo SkarmBliss combo. Blissey can also provide Aromatherapy support to rid Cresselia of a poison or burn, or use Wish to heal Cresselia should there be rain on the field. In return, Blissey will more than appreciate the support provided by Reflect. An allied Latias acts similarly to Blissey. However, Latias shares all three of Cresselia's weaknesses. When using these two together, one of them should use Hidden Power Fire to deal with Scizor. Cresselia hates Toxic, so an ally who is either immune to Toxic, such as Dialga, Forretress, or Scizor, or can take advantage of it like Heracross is recommended.</p>
<p>Kyogre is Cresselia's main nemesis. Cresselia cannot dent it without status, while its ability, Drizzle, reduces Moonlight's recovery to only 25%. Timid Kyogre can 2HKO with Surf after Stealth Rock damage over 97% of the time (and Choice Specs Kyogre can OHKO Cresselia with Water Spout). Kyogre can also use Cresselia as set up bait with Calm Mind. Latias can handle all Kyogre sets, and can set up Calm Mind alongside Kyogre. Tyranitar can also reduce Moonlight's recovery and severely dent Cresselia with Crunch or Pursuit. Fortunately, Groudon handles Tyranitar. Darkrai can block any status attempts with Substitute or Taunt, set up Nasty Plot and remove Cresselia with Dark Pulse. Heracross and Primeape counter Darkrai without fearing Dark Void, but should sleep clause be activated, Scizor or revenge killers like Scarf Palkia or Dialga can check Darkrai too. Without Hidden Power Fire, Scizor and Forretress can comfortably switch into Cresselia and U-turn or set up entry hazards respectively. Ho-Oh, Dialga, and Groudon can roast them with Sacred Fire, Fire Blast, and Fire Punch respectively, while taking little damage from U-turn. If Cresselia lacks a Shed Shell, Wobbuffet can easily switch in, trap Cresselia with its ability, Shadow Tag, and use the Encore + Tickle combination to lower Cresselia's Defense to the point that an opposing Pursuit user, such as Tyranitar and Scizor, can easily OHKO Cresselia. Alternatively, Wobbuffet can enable a powerful sweeper to switch in for free. Unfortunately, Cresselia cannot switch out of Wobbuffet due to Shadow Tag. As most Pursuit users are Choiced, an allied Scizor or Dialga can come in after Cresselia is fainted, and in Scizor's case, use U-turn to scout the opponent's switch-in (Dialga has a myriad of options available to it, like Fire Blast and Bulk Up). Scizor also deals heavy damage to Wobbuffet with U-turn, but it won't OHKO. However, if a Ghost-type switches in after U-turn, Wobbuffet's Counter fails, and the switch-in takes no damage.</p>
[SET]
name: Ubers Dual Screener
move 1: Light Screen
move 2: Reflect
move 3: Lunar Dance
move 4: Thunder Wave / Moonlight / Ice Beam
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Spe / 24 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Switch Cresselia in on a Pokémon who can do little to harm Cresselia, such as Blissey, Lugia, Giratina, Groudon, or even Forretress if you do not mind your opponent setting up entry hazards. Then proceed to set up dual screens. Late-game, use Lunar Dance to fully heal one of your sweepers, under the protection of dual screens. The last move is up to user preference. Thunder Wave provides extra team support, paralyzing Pokémon to support a late game sweep. Additionally, by paralyzing faster opponents, Cresselia can set up a screen before they attack her. Moonlight can keep Cresselia healthy and is useful if you want to set up dual screens more than once. Ice Beam enables Cresselia to check Rayquaza, Garchomp, and Groudon without Toxic. Even with no Defense EVs, Cresselia makes a comfortable counter for Swords Dance Rayquaza, outspeeding Adamant Rayquaza and always surviving +2 Jolly Life Orb Dragon Claw after Stealth Rock damage. However, keep in mind that +1 Jolly Rayquaza's Outrage is likely to OHKO Cresselia after Stealth Rock damage, so Cresselia is not a reliable Dragon Dance Rayquaza counter. One should not use Ice Beam for the sole purpose of not Struggling when Taunted, because all the common Taunt users have nothing to fear from Cresselia's Ice Beam and can easily use a Taunted Cresselia as set-up bait.</p>
<p>The Speed EVs enable Cresselia to outrun Adamant Rayquaza and the many base 90 Speed Ubers without a +Speed nature, so she can set up a screen before being attacked, enabling her to easily set up dual screens against Groudon, Dialga, Ho-Oh, and Rayquaza. Against these foes, you should only switch Cresselia in on them after a KO, so that you are not attacked without a screen. One may also give Cresselia a Bold or Calm nature, and put all the Speed EVs into Defense and Special Defense respectively, to better protect Cresselia from one side. This is helpful for setting up against Pokémon who are always faster than Cresselia, like Choice Scarf Dialga and Garchomp.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Cresselia will rarely be on the offensive, if at all. She should be paired alongside a late-game sweeper who benefits from dual screen support, such as Calm Mind Giratina-O, Mewtwo, or Rock Polish Groudon with Swords Dance. Giratina-O can also switch into Brick Break and attempt a sweep, but any screens will still be broken. Cresselia may be paired with Mew, as the dual screen protection can help it set up and Pass the boosts to a late-game sweeper. Lunar Dance also enables Mew to Baton Pass boosts twice, as Mew often loses a lot of HP after Baton Passing the first time. You should have teammates who both lure out Pokémon who Cresselia can easily set up on and benefit from dual screens themselves, like Groudon to lure out Lugia or Giratina. Scizor lures in Pokémon that Cresselia can easily set up on (for example, Groudon, Giratina, Forretress, and Skarmory) and can also check many fast Choice Scarf Pokémon like Darkrai and Shaymin-S who can revenge kill your late-game sweepers.</p>
<p>Few Pokémon can switch in on Cresselia and prevent her from setting up dual screens. Choice Specs Kyogre 2HKOes with Water Spout if Light Screen is up, while Choice Band Tyranitar 2HKOs with Crunch after Stealth Rock damage and one turn of sandstorm damage if Reflect up unless Cresselia invests in Defense or Special Defense EVs. Palkia and Latias can switch in on Choice Specs Kyogre, while Groudon or Scizor can switch in on Tyranitar's Crunch or Pursuit. Scizor also comfortably handles Mewtwo, Mew, Darkrai, and Deoxys-S, the most common users of Taunt, who would otherwise completely shut down Cresselia. However, Scizor must avoid Fire Blast from Mewtwo and Darkrai's Nasty Plot boosted Focus Blast.</p>
[Team Options]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>When using Moonlight, always use Groudon. Its ability, Drought, allows Cresselia to heal 66.7% of her HP with Moonlight. It can also set up Stealth Rock, which is a must, as it enables Cresselia to OHKO Rayquaza with Ice Beam. Opposing Groudon, Lugia, and even Garchomp may attempt to use Toxic on Cresselia as it switches in, which greatly hinders her walling capabilities. Aromatherapy Blissey can easily solve this issue. An ally with Light Screen support can enable Cresselia to stand up to many special attackers as long as the sun is out, meaning that Cresselia can stall them with Moonlight, while the opponent loses HP from Cresselia's Toxic or Toxic Spikes if you have Forretress to set them up. Blissey can once again provide this support, however, it may be redundant in such a scenario, as Blissey walls many different special attackers without the need for Light Screen.</p>
<p>Cresselia has trouble handling the high-powered special attacks that are common in Ubers. Kyogre is the most threatening, as it removes the sunlight needed to make Moonlight worth using, while rain boosted STAB Water-type attacks hit very hard. The next biggest threats are those that can easily set up on Cresselia, especially if they have Substitute or Taunt to block Toxic and Thunder Wave, like Darkrai and Mewtwo. Darkrai behind a Substitute can easily put a would-be counter to sleep with Dark Void, making it even more threatening. Blissey can wall Darkrai, Mewtwo, and non-Rest Kyogre who aren't locked into Water Spout, and retaliate with status or Seismic Toss. However, Darkrai can cripple Blissey with Dark Void or a +2 Focus Blast, and Mewtwo can beat Blissey if it has 101 HP Substitutes. Scizor can easily dispatch of Mewtwo without Fire Blast, but fortunately, any Mewtwo with Substitute or Taunt rarely carries Fire Blast. Scizor also handles Darkrai well, as long as it avoids a +2 Life Orb Focus Blast. Ho-Oh comfortably handles Darkrai and Mewtwo, as long as sleep clause has been activated and Mewtwo doesn't have Thunder. Ho-Oh also has the benefit of luring in Kyogre and then severely denting it with Brave Bird. Tyranitar is one of the few physical attackers whom Cresselia cannot stand up to thanks to its super effective Dark-type attacks and Sand Stream removing the sunlight. Fortunately, Groudon easily disposes of it, and Scizor also deals severe damage to it with Bullet Punch and U-turn. Wobbuffet can Encore Cresselia without Lunar Dance or Shed Shell and either give an opposing sweeper a free switch in, or Tickle Cresselia so an enemy Pursuit user can OHKO Cresselia. While Wobbuffet has no counters (thanks to Shadow Tag), if one predicts a Wobbuffet switch-in, they can send in Darkrai, whom can hit Wobbuffet super effectively with Dark Pulse while possessing an immunity to Mirror Coat thanks to its Dark-type.</p>
<p>The Pokémon who threaten Cresselia most, Kyogre, Mewtwo, Darkrai, and Tyranitar, are generally paired with an offensive Dragon-type such as Palkia, Dialga, Rayquaza, or Garchomp. Blissey can take the special attacks of special orientated Dragon-type Pokémon. Fortunately, Cresselia handles Rayquaza and Garchomp herself with Ice Beam. If she doesn't have Ice Beam, Lugia or Groudon can handle physical Dragon-type attackers, including Bulk Up Dialga, who uses Cresselia as set-up bait. Mix attacker Dragons such as Palkia and Mixquaza require prediction to beat, but otherwise, they are easily revenge killed by any faster Pokémon with a super effective attack, like Mewtwo or Scarf Dialga, Palkia, and Metagross.</p>
[Optional Changes]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>Rest can be used in place of Moonlight, but it requires cleric support. Sleep Talk provides reliable recovery alongside Rest, but Cresselia needs to immediately Ice Beam Rayquaza to reliably counter it, as Rayquaza threatens to 2HKO, and Sleep Talk will only select Ice Beam 1/3 of the time. While Rest and Sleep Talk make Cresselia effective at PP stalling, they make Cresselia even larger set-up bait, and almost anything with a set-up move will beat Cresselia 1v1.</p>
<p>Light Screen is an option on the Ubers Wall for extra team support. Grass Knot hits most Ubers harder than Ice Beam, in particular Groudon, Kyogre, and Tyranitar. However, Cresselia will still deal very little damage with her pathetic base 75 Special Attack, and she still cannot stand up to Kyogre and Tyranitar. Cresselia's Special Attack also makes Calm Mind a poor option, as it takes many Calm Minds for Cresselia to actually dent the opposing Pokémon. Even +6 Cresselia is easily walled by Blissey, Kyogre, or Latias, while they can also set up alongside her with Calm Mind and beat Cresselia 1v1 thanks to PP stalling Moonlight. Also, Lugia generally makes better use of Calm Mind thanks to its higher base stat total.</p>
<p>Cresselia also gains access to Trick Room and Gravity. When using Trick Room, use a -Speed nature and 0 IVs to ensure you are slower than neutral nature Tyranitar. Keep in mind that under Gravity, Cresselia cannot counter Swords Dance Groudon, as she can be hit by Groudon's Earthquake, and it will deal too much damage with a Swords Dance boost.</p>
[Counters]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>Kyogre turns the weather into rain, reducing Moonlight's recovery to a pathetic 25%, and threatens Cresselia with STAB boosted Water-type attacks. Tyranitar also removes the sunlight, and can severely dent Cresselia with STAB Crunch or Pursuit. Scizor, Heracross, and Weavile can also hit Cresselia hard with their STAB attacks while only fearing Hidden Power Fire (and Thunder Wave in Weavile's case). Blissey with Toxic also has no problems against Cresselia without Rest. However, Cresselia can easily set up dual screens and finish off with Lunar Dance against Blissey. Forretress will easily set up on Cresselia that lack Hidden Power Fire (and will easily set up regardless in the rain), however Forretress itself is set up on by Dual Screen Cresselia. Wobbuffet shrugs off Ice Beam and can trap Cresselia with Shadow Tag, Encore any attack, and use Tickle until Cresselia loses enough Defense to be OHKOed by an opposing Pursuit user. Lunar Dance Cresselia can, however, escape from Wobbuffet by sacrificing herself. Cresselia can also carry Shed Shell to escape Wobbuffet's grasp.</p>
<p>Anything with Taunt will beat Cresselia, as her pathetic 75 base Special Attack means she cannot hit hard unless she hits for 4x super effective damage. The most common users of Taunt in Ubers, Mewtwo, Mew, Heatran and Deoxys (any forme), all but Heatran easily use Cresselia as set-up bait. They just need to avoid Toxic and Thunder Wave when switching in. The same applies for Substitute users whose Substitutes can withstand an Ice Beam, like Mewtwo and Darkrai once again. However, Substitute does not stop Cresselia from setting up dual screens and using Lunar Dance.</p>
<p>It's also important to note that while Cresselia handles physical variants of Rayquaza well, Mixed Rayquaza will often 2HKO her with the combination of Draco Meteor and Outrage after Stealth Rock damage, and as such, Mixed Rayquaza makes a great Cresselia lure.</p>
Status: DONE
http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/cresselia
[Overview]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>Cresselia is a physical tank who excels at preventing physical threats, most prominently Groudon, Rayquaza, and Garchomp, from annihilating one’s team. While one would normally consider Lugia for such a role, Cresselia lacks a Rock-type weakness, meaning she takes less damage from Stealth Rock and Stone Edge, while sporting roughly the same physical durability. Due to no Stealth Rock weakness, she can reliably defeat Dragon Dance Rayquaza, unlike Lugia, making her the pre-ultimate physical wall. Cresselia also makes a great dual screener with only three weaknesses, titanic defenses, and a passable Speed that with a Timid nature is capable of outrunning the many 90 base speed Ubers without a Speed-boosting nature, and perhaps most importantly Lunar Dance, which enables a sweeper to come back into play at full health.</p>
<p>However, Lugia often out shadows Cresselia, due to her limited movepool, overall inferior stats, and the need for sunlight support in order to have reliable recovery in the form of Moonlight (with less PP too). As a dual screener, she also faces significant competition, though Lunar Dance makes her unique in her role. Nevertheless, these are only limiting factors. Cresselia’s movepool is more than enough to adequately support her teammates, her stats enable her to carry out her purpose, and Groudon’s constant presence on the battlefield makes Moonlight more reliable in Ubers than in the sandstorm-dominated OU metagame.</p>
[SET]
name: Ubers Wall
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Moonlight
move 3: Reflect
move 4: Toxic / Thunder Wave / Hidden Power Fire
item: Leftovers / Shed Shell
nature: Bold
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Cresselia is often compared to Lugia in terms of physical walling, she lacks the weaknesses associated with the Flying-type. She doesn't fear Stone Edge and Stealth Rock, and cannot shed her Ground-immunity with Roost. Hence, she can more reliably counter Groudon, Rayquaza, and Garchomp, the three main physical powerhouses in Ubers, and take less damage from the ever-common Ice Beam and Thunder. Even +4 Life Orb Groudon's Stone Edge will never OHKO Cresselia. Also, in the sun, Moonlight heals 66.7% of her HP, which is more efficient than Lugia's Roost.</p>
<p>Ice Beam is needed to counter Rayquaza, Groudon, and Garchomp. Reflect halves the power of physical attacks, and is especially helpful against enemy Pursuiters or if rain is on the field, severely reducing Moonlight's effectiveness. Toxic is recommended for the last slot; Ice Beam does little damage to any Pokémon without a 4x Ice weakness. Furthermore, it deals more damage over time to Groudon than a single Ice Beam. Thunder Wave can hit incoming sweepers on the switch, and the two most common Pokémon in Ubers who are immune to Thunder Wave, Groudon and Garchomp, will never switch into Cresselia. Hidden Power Fire prevents Forretress from using Cresselia as set up bait and Scizor from using U-turn. Hidden Power Fire is also Cresselia's most powerful attack in the sunlight.</p>
<p>The EVs guarantee an OHKO on 4 SpD Rayquaza with Ice Beam after Stealth Rock damage and Life Orb recoil, and net a 2HKO on Garchomp. If you are using Hidden Power Fire, the EVs also net a 2HKO on max/max Forretress after Stealth Rock damage in the sun, though in the rain, it may not even 4HKO thanks to Leftovers recovery. The HP and Defense EVs provide Cresselia with great bulk. Cresselia can survive a +1 Adamant Rayquaza's Outrage after Stealth Rock damage, and will never be 2HKOed by an unboosted Outrage from Jolly Rayquaza after Stealth Rock damage and Leftovers recovery. Cresselia will even survive a +2 Jolly Rayquaza's Outrage around 47% of the time after Stealth Rock damage (or 100% of the time without Stealth Rock). Leftovers is the preferred item choice for the HP recovery, reducing the number of times Cresselia will have to resort to using Moonlight's precious PP. However, Shed Shell enables Cresselia to switch out of Wobbuffet.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Cresselia is offensively inept with her pathetic base 75 Special Attack. As such, she should only be used on stall teams; she is dead-weight on any offensive team. Cresselia should always be used alongside Groudon, setting up the sun so Moonlight will heal 66.7% of Cresselia's HP, and removing rain when necessary. Blissey as a teammate can absorb special assaults directed at Cresselia, who in return can take physical attacks aimed at Blissey, forming a pseudo SkarmBliss combo. Blissey can also provide Aromatherapy support to rid Cresselia of a poison or burn, or use Wish to heal Cresselia should there be rain on the field. In return, Blissey will more than appreciate the support provided by Reflect. An allied Latias acts similarly to Blissey. However, Latias shares all three of Cresselia's weaknesses. When using these two together, one of them should use Hidden Power Fire to deal with Scizor. Cresselia hates Toxic, so an ally who is either immune to Toxic, such as Dialga, Forretress, or Scizor, or can take advantage of it like Heracross is recommended.</p>
<p>Kyogre is Cresselia's main nemesis. Cresselia cannot dent it without status, while its ability, Drizzle, reduces Moonlight's recovery to only 25%. Timid Kyogre can 2HKO with Surf after Stealth Rock damage over 97% of the time (and Choice Specs Kyogre can OHKO Cresselia with Water Spout). Kyogre can also use Cresselia as set up bait with Calm Mind. Latias can handle all Kyogre sets, and can set up Calm Mind alongside Kyogre. Tyranitar can also reduce Moonlight's recovery and severely dent Cresselia with Crunch or Pursuit. Fortunately, Groudon handles Tyranitar. Darkrai can block any status attempts with Substitute or Taunt, set up Nasty Plot and remove Cresselia with Dark Pulse. Heracross and Primeape counter Darkrai without fearing Dark Void, but should sleep clause be activated, Scizor or revenge killers like Scarf Palkia or Dialga can check Darkrai too. Without Hidden Power Fire, Scizor and Forretress can comfortably switch into Cresselia and U-turn or set up entry hazards respectively. Ho-Oh, Dialga, and Groudon can roast them with Sacred Fire, Fire Blast, and Fire Punch respectively, while taking little damage from U-turn. If Cresselia lacks a Shed Shell, Wobbuffet can easily switch in, trap Cresselia with its ability, Shadow Tag, and use the Encore + Tickle combination to lower Cresselia's Defense to the point that an opposing Pursuit user, such as Tyranitar and Scizor, can easily OHKO Cresselia. Alternatively, Wobbuffet can enable a powerful sweeper to switch in for free. Unfortunately, Cresselia cannot switch out of Wobbuffet due to Shadow Tag. As most Pursuit users are Choiced, an allied Scizor or Dialga can come in after Cresselia is fainted, and in Scizor's case, use U-turn to scout the opponent's switch-in (Dialga has a myriad of options available to it, like Fire Blast and Bulk Up). Scizor also deals heavy damage to Wobbuffet with U-turn, but it won't OHKO. However, if a Ghost-type switches in after U-turn, Wobbuffet's Counter fails, and the switch-in takes no damage.</p>
[SET]
name: Ubers Dual Screener
move 1: Light Screen
move 2: Reflect
move 3: Lunar Dance
move 4: Thunder Wave / Moonlight / Ice Beam
item: Light Clay
nature: Timid
EVs: 252 HP / 232 Spe / 24 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Switch Cresselia in on a Pokémon who can do little to harm Cresselia, such as Blissey, Lugia, Giratina, Groudon, or even Forretress if you do not mind your opponent setting up entry hazards. Then proceed to set up dual screens. Late-game, use Lunar Dance to fully heal one of your sweepers, under the protection of dual screens. The last move is up to user preference. Thunder Wave provides extra team support, paralyzing Pokémon to support a late game sweep. Additionally, by paralyzing faster opponents, Cresselia can set up a screen before they attack her. Moonlight can keep Cresselia healthy and is useful if you want to set up dual screens more than once. Ice Beam enables Cresselia to check Rayquaza, Garchomp, and Groudon without Toxic. Even with no Defense EVs, Cresselia makes a comfortable counter for Swords Dance Rayquaza, outspeeding Adamant Rayquaza and always surviving +2 Jolly Life Orb Dragon Claw after Stealth Rock damage. However, keep in mind that +1 Jolly Rayquaza's Outrage is likely to OHKO Cresselia after Stealth Rock damage, so Cresselia is not a reliable Dragon Dance Rayquaza counter. One should not use Ice Beam for the sole purpose of not Struggling when Taunted, because all the common Taunt users have nothing to fear from Cresselia's Ice Beam and can easily use a Taunted Cresselia as set-up bait.</p>
<p>The Speed EVs enable Cresselia to outrun Adamant Rayquaza and the many base 90 Speed Ubers without a +Speed nature, so she can set up a screen before being attacked, enabling her to easily set up dual screens against Groudon, Dialga, Ho-Oh, and Rayquaza. Against these foes, you should only switch Cresselia in on them after a KO, so that you are not attacked without a screen. One may also give Cresselia a Bold or Calm nature, and put all the Speed EVs into Defense and Special Defense respectively, to better protect Cresselia from one side. This is helpful for setting up against Pokémon who are always faster than Cresselia, like Choice Scarf Dialga and Garchomp.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Cresselia will rarely be on the offensive, if at all. She should be paired alongside a late-game sweeper who benefits from dual screen support, such as Calm Mind Giratina-O, Mewtwo, or Rock Polish Groudon with Swords Dance. Giratina-O can also switch into Brick Break and attempt a sweep, but any screens will still be broken. Cresselia may be paired with Mew, as the dual screen protection can help it set up and Pass the boosts to a late-game sweeper. Lunar Dance also enables Mew to Baton Pass boosts twice, as Mew often loses a lot of HP after Baton Passing the first time. You should have teammates who both lure out Pokémon who Cresselia can easily set up on and benefit from dual screens themselves, like Groudon to lure out Lugia or Giratina. Scizor lures in Pokémon that Cresselia can easily set up on (for example, Groudon, Giratina, Forretress, and Skarmory) and can also check many fast Choice Scarf Pokémon like Darkrai and Shaymin-S who can revenge kill your late-game sweepers.</p>
<p>Few Pokémon can switch in on Cresselia and prevent her from setting up dual screens. Choice Specs Kyogre 2HKOes with Water Spout if Light Screen is up, while Choice Band Tyranitar 2HKOs with Crunch after Stealth Rock damage and one turn of sandstorm damage if Reflect up unless Cresselia invests in Defense or Special Defense EVs. Palkia and Latias can switch in on Choice Specs Kyogre, while Groudon or Scizor can switch in on Tyranitar's Crunch or Pursuit. Scizor also comfortably handles Mewtwo, Mew, Darkrai, and Deoxys-S, the most common users of Taunt, who would otherwise completely shut down Cresselia. However, Scizor must avoid Fire Blast from Mewtwo and Darkrai's Nasty Plot boosted Focus Blast.</p>
[Team Options]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>When using Moonlight, always use Groudon. Its ability, Drought, allows Cresselia to heal 66.7% of her HP with Moonlight. It can also set up Stealth Rock, which is a must, as it enables Cresselia to OHKO Rayquaza with Ice Beam. Opposing Groudon, Lugia, and even Garchomp may attempt to use Toxic on Cresselia as it switches in, which greatly hinders her walling capabilities. Aromatherapy Blissey can easily solve this issue. An ally with Light Screen support can enable Cresselia to stand up to many special attackers as long as the sun is out, meaning that Cresselia can stall them with Moonlight, while the opponent loses HP from Cresselia's Toxic or Toxic Spikes if you have Forretress to set them up. Blissey can once again provide this support, however, it may be redundant in such a scenario, as Blissey walls many different special attackers without the need for Light Screen.</p>
<p>Cresselia has trouble handling the high-powered special attacks that are common in Ubers. Kyogre is the most threatening, as it removes the sunlight needed to make Moonlight worth using, while rain boosted STAB Water-type attacks hit very hard. The next biggest threats are those that can easily set up on Cresselia, especially if they have Substitute or Taunt to block Toxic and Thunder Wave, like Darkrai and Mewtwo. Darkrai behind a Substitute can easily put a would-be counter to sleep with Dark Void, making it even more threatening. Blissey can wall Darkrai, Mewtwo, and non-Rest Kyogre who aren't locked into Water Spout, and retaliate with status or Seismic Toss. However, Darkrai can cripple Blissey with Dark Void or a +2 Focus Blast, and Mewtwo can beat Blissey if it has 101 HP Substitutes. Scizor can easily dispatch of Mewtwo without Fire Blast, but fortunately, any Mewtwo with Substitute or Taunt rarely carries Fire Blast. Scizor also handles Darkrai well, as long as it avoids a +2 Life Orb Focus Blast. Ho-Oh comfortably handles Darkrai and Mewtwo, as long as sleep clause has been activated and Mewtwo doesn't have Thunder. Ho-Oh also has the benefit of luring in Kyogre and then severely denting it with Brave Bird. Tyranitar is one of the few physical attackers whom Cresselia cannot stand up to thanks to its super effective Dark-type attacks and Sand Stream removing the sunlight. Fortunately, Groudon easily disposes of it, and Scizor also deals severe damage to it with Bullet Punch and U-turn. Wobbuffet can Encore Cresselia without Lunar Dance or Shed Shell and either give an opposing sweeper a free switch in, or Tickle Cresselia so an enemy Pursuit user can OHKO Cresselia. While Wobbuffet has no counters (thanks to Shadow Tag), if one predicts a Wobbuffet switch-in, they can send in Darkrai, whom can hit Wobbuffet super effectively with Dark Pulse while possessing an immunity to Mirror Coat thanks to its Dark-type.</p>
<p>The Pokémon who threaten Cresselia most, Kyogre, Mewtwo, Darkrai, and Tyranitar, are generally paired with an offensive Dragon-type such as Palkia, Dialga, Rayquaza, or Garchomp. Blissey can take the special attacks of special orientated Dragon-type Pokémon. Fortunately, Cresselia handles Rayquaza and Garchomp herself with Ice Beam. If she doesn't have Ice Beam, Lugia or Groudon can handle physical Dragon-type attackers, including Bulk Up Dialga, who uses Cresselia as set-up bait. Mix attacker Dragons such as Palkia and Mixquaza require prediction to beat, but otherwise, they are easily revenge killed by any faster Pokémon with a super effective attack, like Mewtwo or Scarf Dialga, Palkia, and Metagross.</p>
[Optional Changes]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>Rest can be used in place of Moonlight, but it requires cleric support. Sleep Talk provides reliable recovery alongside Rest, but Cresselia needs to immediately Ice Beam Rayquaza to reliably counter it, as Rayquaza threatens to 2HKO, and Sleep Talk will only select Ice Beam 1/3 of the time. While Rest and Sleep Talk make Cresselia effective at PP stalling, they make Cresselia even larger set-up bait, and almost anything with a set-up move will beat Cresselia 1v1.</p>
<p>Light Screen is an option on the Ubers Wall for extra team support. Grass Knot hits most Ubers harder than Ice Beam, in particular Groudon, Kyogre, and Tyranitar. However, Cresselia will still deal very little damage with her pathetic base 75 Special Attack, and she still cannot stand up to Kyogre and Tyranitar. Cresselia's Special Attack also makes Calm Mind a poor option, as it takes many Calm Minds for Cresselia to actually dent the opposing Pokémon. Even +6 Cresselia is easily walled by Blissey, Kyogre, or Latias, while they can also set up alongside her with Calm Mind and beat Cresselia 1v1 thanks to PP stalling Moonlight. Also, Lugia generally makes better use of Calm Mind thanks to its higher base stat total.</p>
<p>Cresselia also gains access to Trick Room and Gravity. When using Trick Room, use a -Speed nature and 0 IVs to ensure you are slower than neutral nature Tyranitar. Keep in mind that under Gravity, Cresselia cannot counter Swords Dance Groudon, as she can be hit by Groudon's Earthquake, and it will deal too much damage with a Swords Dance boost.</p>
[Counters]
<h4>Uber</h4>
<p>Kyogre turns the weather into rain, reducing Moonlight's recovery to a pathetic 25%, and threatens Cresselia with STAB boosted Water-type attacks. Tyranitar also removes the sunlight, and can severely dent Cresselia with STAB Crunch or Pursuit. Scizor, Heracross, and Weavile can also hit Cresselia hard with their STAB attacks while only fearing Hidden Power Fire (and Thunder Wave in Weavile's case). Blissey with Toxic also has no problems against Cresselia without Rest. However, Cresselia can easily set up dual screens and finish off with Lunar Dance against Blissey. Forretress will easily set up on Cresselia that lack Hidden Power Fire (and will easily set up regardless in the rain), however Forretress itself is set up on by Dual Screen Cresselia. Wobbuffet shrugs off Ice Beam and can trap Cresselia with Shadow Tag, Encore any attack, and use Tickle until Cresselia loses enough Defense to be OHKOed by an opposing Pursuit user. Lunar Dance Cresselia can, however, escape from Wobbuffet by sacrificing herself. Cresselia can also carry Shed Shell to escape Wobbuffet's grasp.</p>
<p>Anything with Taunt will beat Cresselia, as her pathetic 75 base Special Attack means she cannot hit hard unless she hits for 4x super effective damage. The most common users of Taunt in Ubers, Mewtwo, Mew, Heatran and Deoxys (any forme), all but Heatran easily use Cresselia as set-up bait. They just need to avoid Toxic and Thunder Wave when switching in. The same applies for Substitute users whose Substitutes can withstand an Ice Beam, like Mewtwo and Darkrai once again. However, Substitute does not stop Cresselia from setting up dual screens and using Lunar Dance.</p>
<p>It's also important to note that while Cresselia handles physical variants of Rayquaza well, Mixed Rayquaza will often 2HKO her with the combination of Draco Meteor and Outrage after Stealth Rock damage, and as such, Mixed Rayquaza makes a great Cresselia lure.</p>
