[SET]
name: Physical Shell Smash Sweeper
move 1: Spore / Dark Void / Stealth Rock / Taunt
move 2: Shell Smash
move 3: Thousand Arrows
move 4: King's Shield / V-create
item: Leftovers / Lum Berry / Mental Herb
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Spe
in-battle alt: Primal
[SET COMMENTS]
With its amazing physical bulk, incredible offensive typing, ridiculous Attack stat, nifty immunity to the otherwise problematic Will-O-Wisp, and great synergy with other metagame titans, Primal Groudon is the single most threatening offensive Pokemon in the metagame. Every team must prepare for Primal Groudon heavily in the teambuilder, and most teams use one defensive check and one offensive check. Spore or Dark Void allows Primal Groudon to set up against its most common switch-in, Giratina; Spore has 100% accuracy and allows for Imposter-proofing with Safety Goggles Prankster Giratina, while Dark Void affects opposing Safety Goggles users. Stealth Rock is another option, as Primal Groudon forces numerous switches and can use the free turn to set entry hazards. Taunt lets Primal Groudon consistently beat Giratina, which almost always runs four status moves, but is far less useful against its other checks like Primal Kyogre. Shell Smash allows Primal Groudon to boost both its Attack and Speed in a single turn, synergizing well with disruption in Spore, Dark Void, or Taunt. Thousand Arrows is virtually unresisted in the metagame, meaning Primal Groudon can often run a single attack and have tremendous flexibility with its moveset. King's Shield creates mind games with opposing revenge killers, often rendering them null as a threat; V-create is another good choice that allows Primal Groudon to immediately threaten bulky unresisted foes, such as Wonder Guard Slaking, Mega Audino, and Cresselia, much more effectively, forcing them out more often. Primal Groudon has several options for its item; Leftovers synergizes particularly well with King's Shield and increases Primal Groudon's longevity, Lum Berry potentially gifts Primal Groudon a free turn to set up, and Mental Herb allows Primal Groudon to set up against Prankster Giratina lacking Glare or Spore much more easily, nearly always forcing a sack. Mold Breaker allows Primal Groudon to ignore Wonder Guard, allowing it to take full advantage of Thousand Arrows's amazing neutral coverage. The given spread maximizes physical bulk while allowing Primal Groudon to outspeed Pokemon with 150 base Speed, such as Deoxys-Attack and Mega Aerodactyl, after a Shell Smash; an Adamant nature further increases Primal Groudon's offensive prowess, allowing it to 2HKO Giratina after Shell Smash.
Primal Groudon fits on nearly every team structure, as its combination of base stats, great STAB moves, and ability to threaten other top metagame threats' checks make it too good to forgo. Prankster Giratina is Primal Groudon's best partner, as it can Imposter-proof Primal Groudon and use Will-O-Wisp or Glare to grant Primal Groudon more opportunities to set up. Giratina also has the option of running Destiny Bond, which is especially useful against Huge Power Mega Gyarados, a common switch-in to Primal Groudon. Despite its impressive bulk, Primal Groudon appreciates being brought in safely by Substitute + Baton Pass users like Wonder Guard Xerneas and Magic Bounce Giratina. Specially offensive Mold Breaker users like Mega Diancie, Choice Specs Mega Rayquaza, and Dialga are great partners to threaten Giratina. In particular, Dialga is an excellent partner, as it can check Gale Wings users and Mega Gyarados lacking Sucker Punch, two common revenge killers to Primal Groudon. Offensive Wonder Guard users, like Xerneas, Mega Gardevoir, and Mega Lucario, are also quite good at forcing out most revenge killers that otherwise take full advantage of unboosted Primal Groudon. As Giratina is Primal Groudon's greatest obstacle, Huge Power Mega Gyarados is a great partner; it can also potentially force out a chipped Imposter user. Physically defensive Wonder Guard Primal Kyogre, as well as Wonder Guard Mega Swampert, are good partners as well due to their ability to check unboosted Imposter users; the latter can also run a Substitute + Baton Pass set to allow offensive teammates to set up more easily.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Primal Groudon can use Glare, Nuzzle, or Thunder Wave as disruption, as once opposing Giratina is fully paralyzed, Primal Groudon usually grabs a KO; however, running paralysis makes properly Imposter-proofing more difficult. Sheer Cold is another option; while it is inherently luck-dependent, over the course of a game it has a good chance of eliminating opposing Giratina, making Primal Groudon much more threatening for the rest of the game. Precipice Blades and Diamond Storm are fringe options that can be run on the last two moveslots. Having a stronger Ground-type STAB move allows Primal Groudon to OHKO Mega Tyranitar and Primal Groudon after Stealth Rock, and Primal Kyogre, Xerneas, and offensive Arceus after Shell Smash; Diamond Storm, on top of potentially increasing Primal Groudon's physical bulk, is then necessary to hit Flying-types like Mega Rayquaza, Ho-Oh, and Yveltal, all of which it can OHKO after Shell Smash. However, the additional utility gained from having 3 support moves makes running these moves not worth it most of the time. Sacred Fire is an option over King's Shield or V-create, spreading burns against offensive switch-ins as well as OHKOing Substitute + Baton Pass Wonder Guard Xerneas after a Shell Smash, but does not synergize well with Spore or Dark Void and only slightly helps against opposing Giratina. Running Knock Off allows Primal Groudon to threaten Giratina not running Griseous Orb harder when boosted, and synergizes well with Spore by removing Safety Goggles; however, this leaves Primal Groudon exceptionally difficult to Imposter-proof. Primal Groudon can opt to invest more in Speed at the cost of bulk; 56 Speed EVs allow Primal Groudon to outspeed Choice Scarf Shadow Tag Primal Groudon after a Shell Smash, 148 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed Deoxys-S after a boost, and maximum Speed investment (with an Adamant nature) allows Primal Groudon to outspeed opposing Mega Mewtwo Y, Mega Mewtwo X, and Mega Gengar after a Shell Smash and V-create. Lastly, Shadow Tag Mega Mewtwo X is a good partner, as with bulk investment it can survive Huge Power Mega Gyarados's Sucker Punch and OHKO back with a Fighting-type attack.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Prankster Giratina**: Prankster Giratina can check Primal Groudon well in tandem with a revenge killer that threatens Primal Groudon, especially when running Safety Goggles. It can then severely diminish Primal Groudon's offensive presence with Glare, force it out with Encore, or predict a switch and chip opposing switch-ins with Curse. However, Primal Groudon running Dark Void can power through Giratina, so running Prankster Giratina as the only check isn't recommended.
**Imposter users**: Due to its general reliance on Thousand Arrows, Primal Groudon is notoriously difficult to Imposter-proof. Without an exceptionally powerful revenge killer such as Huge Power Mega Gyarados or a healthy Prankster Giratina, opposing Imposter users can make progress and potentially countersweep; however, teams running Dark Void Primal Groudon are susceptible to Imposter countersweeps, even with a healthy Giratina. Choice Scarf Imposter users are slightly more manageable, as they are stuck using Thousand Arrows or V-Create, but are still very threatening nonetheless.
**Huge Power Mega Gyarados**: Mega Gyarados is bulky enough to come in on unboosted Primal Groudon, and can force 50-50s with Water Shuriken and a Huge Power-boosted Pursuit; however, this mindgame is somewhat eased if Primal Groudon runs King's Shield, and Mega Gyarados is incentivized into using Water Shuriken, as Primal Groudon staying in on Pursuit would prove disastrous.
**Other Revenge Killers**: Other Revenge Killers can also threaten Primal Groudon, though they struggle to do so to the same extent that Mega Gyarados is able to. Although they dislike switching into Primal Groudon multiple times, Refrigerate Mega Abomasnow and Kyurem-B, Aerilate or Gale Wings Mega Rayquaza, and Huge Power Slaking or Regigigas running Water Shuriken can force unboosted Primal Groudon out. However, all but Mega Abomasnow and special Gale Wings Mega Rayquaza, and Slaking or Regigigas with Water Shuriken and a boosting item, will fail to reliably force out boosted Primal Groudon with King's Shield. Some Choice Scarf No Guard users, like Mega Mewtwo Y, Mega Aerodactyl and Deoxys-S, outspeed any Primal Groudon even after a Shell Smash, so they can reliably force Primal Groudon out after either coming in on a prediction, with pivoting support, or after a teammate has fainted. Additionally, Choice Scarf Shadow Tag users, like Mega Rayquaza and Mega Mewtwo Y, can outspeed slower Primal Groudon sets even after a boost and OHKO with a special Water-type move.
**Faster Hard Hitters**: In a 1v1 scenario, faster Pokemon that are sufficiently strong, such as Huge Power Mega Mewtwo X, Protean Mega Latios, or Choice Specs Mega Mewtwo Y or Mega Rayquaza, can force Primal Groudon out. Additionally, offensive Shadow Tag users running moves that can threaten unboosted Primal Groudon, such as Mega Latios running Earth Power or Surf, Mega Mewtwo Y running Surf, or Choice Scarf Mega Rayquaza or Choice Band Mega Aerodactyl with Crabhammer, will usually trap and eliminate it if it is unboosted. However, none these Pokemon, bar Choice Scarf Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Rayquaza, can take on a boosted Primal Groudon, and cannot reliably switch in on unboosted Primal Groudon.
**Water Coverage**: Pokemon that Primal Groudon often switches in on, like Xerneas, Wonder Guard Mega Mewtwo Y, and Mega Manectric, can run Water-type moves to catch it off guard and OHKO it.
**Grass-type Defensive Pokemon**: While very rare, Primordial Sea Grass-types like Leavanny, Tangrowth, and Chesnaught can come in on standard Primal Groudon and wall it easily. However, some Grass-types, like Leavanny, are susceptible to being Pursuit trapped by Mega Gyarados.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Mbouchon, 515077]]
- Quality checked by: [[NToTheN, 569731], [Ransei, 235009]]
- Grammar checked by: [[UT, 523866]]
name: Physical Shell Smash Sweeper
move 1: Spore / Dark Void / Stealth Rock / Taunt
move 2: Shell Smash
move 3: Thousand Arrows
move 4: King's Shield / V-create
item: Leftovers / Lum Berry / Mental Herb
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Spe
in-battle alt: Primal
[SET COMMENTS]
With its amazing physical bulk, incredible offensive typing, ridiculous Attack stat, nifty immunity to the otherwise problematic Will-O-Wisp, and great synergy with other metagame titans, Primal Groudon is the single most threatening offensive Pokemon in the metagame. Every team must prepare for Primal Groudon heavily in the teambuilder, and most teams use one defensive check and one offensive check. Spore or Dark Void allows Primal Groudon to set up against its most common switch-in, Giratina; Spore has 100% accuracy and allows for Imposter-proofing with Safety Goggles Prankster Giratina, while Dark Void affects opposing Safety Goggles users. Stealth Rock is another option, as Primal Groudon forces numerous switches and can use the free turn to set entry hazards. Taunt lets Primal Groudon consistently beat Giratina, which almost always runs four status moves, but is far less useful against its other checks like Primal Kyogre. Shell Smash allows Primal Groudon to boost both its Attack and Speed in a single turn, synergizing well with disruption in Spore, Dark Void, or Taunt. Thousand Arrows is virtually unresisted in the metagame, meaning Primal Groudon can often run a single attack and have tremendous flexibility with its moveset. King's Shield creates mind games with opposing revenge killers, often rendering them null as a threat; V-create is another good choice that allows Primal Groudon to immediately threaten bulky unresisted foes, such as Wonder Guard Slaking, Mega Audino, and Cresselia, much more effectively, forcing them out more often. Primal Groudon has several options for its item; Leftovers synergizes particularly well with King's Shield and increases Primal Groudon's longevity, Lum Berry potentially gifts Primal Groudon a free turn to set up, and Mental Herb allows Primal Groudon to set up against Prankster Giratina lacking Glare or Spore much more easily, nearly always forcing a sack. Mold Breaker allows Primal Groudon to ignore Wonder Guard, allowing it to take full advantage of Thousand Arrows's amazing neutral coverage. The given spread maximizes physical bulk while allowing Primal Groudon to outspeed Pokemon with 150 base Speed, such as Deoxys-Attack and Mega Aerodactyl, after a Shell Smash; an Adamant nature further increases Primal Groudon's offensive prowess, allowing it to 2HKO Giratina after Shell Smash.
Primal Groudon fits on nearly every team structure, as its combination of base stats, great STAB moves, and ability to threaten other top metagame threats' checks make it too good to forgo. Prankster Giratina is Primal Groudon's best partner, as it can Imposter-proof Primal Groudon and use Will-O-Wisp or Glare to grant Primal Groudon more opportunities to set up. Giratina also has the option of running Destiny Bond, which is especially useful against Huge Power Mega Gyarados, a common switch-in to Primal Groudon. Despite its impressive bulk, Primal Groudon appreciates being brought in safely by Substitute + Baton Pass users like Wonder Guard Xerneas and Magic Bounce Giratina. Specially offensive Mold Breaker users like Mega Diancie, Choice Specs Mega Rayquaza, and Dialga are great partners to threaten Giratina. In particular, Dialga is an excellent partner, as it can check Gale Wings users and Mega Gyarados lacking Sucker Punch, two common revenge killers to Primal Groudon. Offensive Wonder Guard users, like Xerneas, Mega Gardevoir, and Mega Lucario, are also quite good at forcing out most revenge killers that otherwise take full advantage of unboosted Primal Groudon. As Giratina is Primal Groudon's greatest obstacle, Huge Power Mega Gyarados is a great partner; it can also potentially force out a chipped Imposter user. Physically defensive Wonder Guard Primal Kyogre, as well as Wonder Guard Mega Swampert, are good partners as well due to their ability to check unboosted Imposter users; the latter can also run a Substitute + Baton Pass set to allow offensive teammates to set up more easily.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Primal Groudon can use Glare, Nuzzle, or Thunder Wave as disruption, as once opposing Giratina is fully paralyzed, Primal Groudon usually grabs a KO; however, running paralysis makes properly Imposter-proofing more difficult. Sheer Cold is another option; while it is inherently luck-dependent, over the course of a game it has a good chance of eliminating opposing Giratina, making Primal Groudon much more threatening for the rest of the game. Precipice Blades and Diamond Storm are fringe options that can be run on the last two moveslots. Having a stronger Ground-type STAB move allows Primal Groudon to OHKO Mega Tyranitar and Primal Groudon after Stealth Rock, and Primal Kyogre, Xerneas, and offensive Arceus after Shell Smash; Diamond Storm, on top of potentially increasing Primal Groudon's physical bulk, is then necessary to hit Flying-types like Mega Rayquaza, Ho-Oh, and Yveltal, all of which it can OHKO after Shell Smash. However, the additional utility gained from having 3 support moves makes running these moves not worth it most of the time. Sacred Fire is an option over King's Shield or V-create, spreading burns against offensive switch-ins as well as OHKOing Substitute + Baton Pass Wonder Guard Xerneas after a Shell Smash, but does not synergize well with Spore or Dark Void and only slightly helps against opposing Giratina. Running Knock Off allows Primal Groudon to threaten Giratina not running Griseous Orb harder when boosted, and synergizes well with Spore by removing Safety Goggles; however, this leaves Primal Groudon exceptionally difficult to Imposter-proof. Primal Groudon can opt to invest more in Speed at the cost of bulk; 56 Speed EVs allow Primal Groudon to outspeed Choice Scarf Shadow Tag Primal Groudon after a Shell Smash, 148 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed Deoxys-S after a boost, and maximum Speed investment (with an Adamant nature) allows Primal Groudon to outspeed opposing Mega Mewtwo Y, Mega Mewtwo X, and Mega Gengar after a Shell Smash and V-create. Lastly, Shadow Tag Mega Mewtwo X is a good partner, as with bulk investment it can survive Huge Power Mega Gyarados's Sucker Punch and OHKO back with a Fighting-type attack.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Prankster Giratina**: Prankster Giratina can check Primal Groudon well in tandem with a revenge killer that threatens Primal Groudon, especially when running Safety Goggles. It can then severely diminish Primal Groudon's offensive presence with Glare, force it out with Encore, or predict a switch and chip opposing switch-ins with Curse. However, Primal Groudon running Dark Void can power through Giratina, so running Prankster Giratina as the only check isn't recommended.
**Imposter users**: Due to its general reliance on Thousand Arrows, Primal Groudon is notoriously difficult to Imposter-proof. Without an exceptionally powerful revenge killer such as Huge Power Mega Gyarados or a healthy Prankster Giratina, opposing Imposter users can make progress and potentially countersweep; however, teams running Dark Void Primal Groudon are susceptible to Imposter countersweeps, even with a healthy Giratina. Choice Scarf Imposter users are slightly more manageable, as they are stuck using Thousand Arrows or V-Create, but are still very threatening nonetheless.
**Huge Power Mega Gyarados**: Mega Gyarados is bulky enough to come in on unboosted Primal Groudon, and can force 50-50s with Water Shuriken and a Huge Power-boosted Pursuit; however, this mindgame is somewhat eased if Primal Groudon runs King's Shield, and Mega Gyarados is incentivized into using Water Shuriken, as Primal Groudon staying in on Pursuit would prove disastrous.
**Other Revenge Killers**: Other Revenge Killers can also threaten Primal Groudon, though they struggle to do so to the same extent that Mega Gyarados is able to. Although they dislike switching into Primal Groudon multiple times, Refrigerate Mega Abomasnow and Kyurem-B, Aerilate or Gale Wings Mega Rayquaza, and Huge Power Slaking or Regigigas running Water Shuriken can force unboosted Primal Groudon out. However, all but Mega Abomasnow and special Gale Wings Mega Rayquaza, and Slaking or Regigigas with Water Shuriken and a boosting item, will fail to reliably force out boosted Primal Groudon with King's Shield. Some Choice Scarf No Guard users, like Mega Mewtwo Y, Mega Aerodactyl and Deoxys-S, outspeed any Primal Groudon even after a Shell Smash, so they can reliably force Primal Groudon out after either coming in on a prediction, with pivoting support, or after a teammate has fainted. Additionally, Choice Scarf Shadow Tag users, like Mega Rayquaza and Mega Mewtwo Y, can outspeed slower Primal Groudon sets even after a boost and OHKO with a special Water-type move.
**Faster Hard Hitters**: In a 1v1 scenario, faster Pokemon that are sufficiently strong, such as Huge Power Mega Mewtwo X, Protean Mega Latios, or Choice Specs Mega Mewtwo Y or Mega Rayquaza, can force Primal Groudon out. Additionally, offensive Shadow Tag users running moves that can threaten unboosted Primal Groudon, such as Mega Latios running Earth Power or Surf, Mega Mewtwo Y running Surf, or Choice Scarf Mega Rayquaza or Choice Band Mega Aerodactyl with Crabhammer, will usually trap and eliminate it if it is unboosted. However, none these Pokemon, bar Choice Scarf Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Rayquaza, can take on a boosted Primal Groudon, and cannot reliably switch in on unboosted Primal Groudon.
**Water Coverage**: Pokemon that Primal Groudon often switches in on, like Xerneas, Wonder Guard Mega Mewtwo Y, and Mega Manectric, can run Water-type moves to catch it off guard and OHKO it.
**Grass-type Defensive Pokemon**: While very rare, Primordial Sea Grass-types like Leavanny, Tangrowth, and Chesnaught can come in on standard Primal Groudon and wall it easily. However, some Grass-types, like Leavanny, are susceptible to being Pursuit trapped by Mega Gyarados.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Mbouchon, 515077]]
- Quality checked by: [[NToTheN, 569731], [Ransei, 235009]]
- Grammar checked by: [[UT, 523866]]
Last edited:
