LC Spotlight: Zigzagoon

By Aaron's Aron and Goddess Briyella. Art by Andrew.

Type: Normal
Abilities: Pickup, Gluttony, Quick Feet
Base stats: 38 HP / 30 Atk / 41 Def / 30 SpA / 41 SpD / 60 Spe

Zigzagoon's Beginning

Zigzagoon was a subpar Pokémon when it was first introduced, cursed with its only claim to fame being that it was the HM slave of choice in the Hoenn games. It has had access to Belly Drum since its introduction, and it also got Extreme Speed via an event in Generation III. The two moves were compatible, but Zigzagoon's real problem was being able to set up with Belly Drum without being easily defeated after cutting its health in half, as it didn't have the bulk to survive any decently powerful attacks, especially after using Belly Drum. In DPP LC, Smogon's first generation of Little Cup as a competitive metagame, all Zigzagoon had to assist it with setting up was Oran Berry, an item that restores a mere 10 HP. The prevalence of Focus Sash, Gastly, Guts Taillow with Quick Attack, and even Rock Polish Aron kept Zigzagoon from really being able to pull off a successful sweep, and so this strategy never achieved any real fruition in DPP.

When BW rolled around, there were a few significant changes for Zigzagoon. Extreme Speed was buffed to have +2 priority as opposed to its original +1; this allowed Zigzagoon to be able to strike before faster priority users, such as the aforementioned Guts Taillow's Quick Attack. A wildly popular item was introduced to Little Cup in BW as well: Eviolite. This granted a +1 boost to the defenses of every Little Cup Pokémon (like an auto-Cosmic Power boost), which assisted greatly with survivability. However, Misdreavus was also unbanned, and was even more problematic than Gastly was in DPP, especially for Zigzagoon. As a result, Zigzagoon was a little better off than it was in the previous generation, but still wasn't quite viable enough to make a difference.

Becoming Little Cup's Speed Demon

With XY and the start of Generation VI, some key changes arrived that worked out in Zigzagoon's favor. Berry Juice, an item that restores 20 HP when a Pokémon's health falls to or below 50% of its max HP, was unbanned, and became legal in Little Cup for Zigzagoon to abuse. With Berry Juice, Zigzagoon could use Belly Drum much more safely, as Berry Juice guarantees that Zigzagoon will return to maximum health upon activation, whereas the previously relied on Oran Berry did not. However, despite this huge improvement to Zigzagoon's survivability and ease in setting up, it was still cast aside at the beginning of XY and forgone in favor of Pokémon that were more immediate threats and had an easier time setting up. As time went on, Tangela and Yanma were banned from the tier for being much too powerful, but even with these two powerhouses removed from Little Cup, Zigzagoon still had no chance to shine.

Swirlix ran rampant in the tier, abusing the same Belly Drum strategy Zigzagoon had, except that it had Unburden to double its Speed after consuming Berry Juice, and it also had a wide assortment of powerful coverage moves if it were to go special with Calm Mind, meaning it wasn't reliant on just one attack after setting up, as Zigzagoon was. Swirlix greatly outclassed Zigzagoon in every possible way, and it wasn't until after Swirlix was banned with Gligar that Zigzagoon began to see a light of hope for its viability. Murkrow and Meditite were met with the banhammer in the next suspect round, and this helped Zigzagoon as well, but what really opened up a door for Zigzagoon was the ban of Misdreavus. The strongest, bulkiest, and most significant Ghost-type in the tier was a huge detriment to any Normal-type offense in Little Cup and was seen on almost every team, which made it very difficult for Zigzagoon to find a spot on a team of its own, and now that problem is gone.

Most players have switched to Gastly in attempt to fill in the hole left by Misdreavus, though it has a handful of problems that Misdreavus didn't have, which generally makes it easier for Zigzagoon's teammates to eradicate the opposing Normal immunity so that Zigzagoon can sweep. Put simply, with most of the huge offensive threats gone and the key Normal-immune Pokémon banned, it is now easier than ever for Zigzagoon to pull off a successful sweep with Belly Drum and STAB Extreme Speed.

Playing With Zigzagoon

While Zigzagoon on its own is indeed powerful, it's a total waste of a teamslot if it does not set up successfully, which is why it will usually require team support to assure that it is effective. A teammate with Memento gives Zigzagoon a free opportunity to set up, by effectively halving the offensive stats of a foe and making them sit there with the disadvantage while Zigzagoon gets to come in for free. Ideal teammates for using Memento for this purpose are Diglett and Cottonee; the former has a blistering 20 Speed and can trap the right enemy to hit with Memento courtesy of its Arena Trap ability, and the latter can use Memento with +1 priority, and almost always get the move off as a result, thanks to Prankster.

However, even with this kind of team support that sacrifices a teammate for a Zigzagoon sweep, there are still important Pokémon that need to be dealt with before this can be successfully pulled off. Pawniard is a huge threat that not only has Defiant to turn Memento's effect into a free +2 Attack boost, but it is also resistant to Zigzagoon's Extreme Speed and will not be taken down by it even after being boosted by Belly Drum. Archen is another important Pokémon that resists Extreme Speed and can beat Zigzagoon one on one, if it's in high health, even after Zigzagoon sets up. Gastly is obviously an issue for Zigzagoon, being totally immune to Normal-type attacks and easily overwhelming Zigzagoon with force. Standard Spritzee with Eviolite miraculously survives Zigzagoon's Belly Drum-boosted Extreme Speed after Stealth Rock damage, and can hit back with Moonblast. These four important Pokémon will need to be defeated or significantly weakened in order for Belly Drum Zigzagoon to work, so its team will need to be designed to handle them. Zigzagoon can run Thief for incoming Ghost-types or to steal an item from an enemy after its Berry Juice has been consumed. Seed Bomb is an option that OHKOes Omanyte and Tirtouga if they attempt to tank an Extreme Speed with their resistance to Normal, and Gunk Shot is an option that allows Zigzagoon to bring Spritzee down if it's healthy and has its Eviolite intact, though Iron Tail can be used to hit both Spritzee as well as Archen on the switch-in. Knock Off support is great for softening the opposing team up to be beaten down by Zigzagoon's Extreme Speed. Chespin is an ideal partner that beats Gastly fairly easily in most circumstances, due to the immunities to Shadow Ball and Sludge Bomb provided to it by the new Bulletproof ability.

Playing Against Zigzagoon

Zigzagoon itself is not a difficult enemy to bring down, but Zigzagoon with team support is a totally different story. When you see Zigzagoon and Memento users at Team Preview before the battle starts, your win condition(s) should become perfectly clear immediately. You need to keep your Normal resist(s) alive and healthy at all costs. Zigzagoon is a threat that does not enter battle until later in the match after it's free to sweep, so keeping up offensive pressure might seem like a good idea that would prevent the opponent from attempting to set it up, but it's not anywhere near as important as simply keeping your Ghost-, Steel-, and/or Rock-types handy so that it doesn't get that open opportunity. Opposing Diglett, a usual partner for Zigzagoon, is a wild card that not only has Memento, but also assists Zigzagoon with Stealth Rock support and has Arena Trap to remove grounded Normal-resistant Pokémon with its fast Earthquake, so be sure that you can play around that by exploiting Diglett's pitiful bulk and barely decent damage output. Remember that having Gastly still alive on your team, no matter how much health it has left, guarantees that Zigzagoon cannot sweep; even if Zigzagoon manages to get one KO, it can't set up successfully a second time if it switches out of Gastly afterward.

An underrated means of pressuring teams designed around Belly Drum Zigzagoon is team shuffling. Using Roar, Whirlwind, Dragon Tail, or Circle Throw to force the opponent's team to switch into undesired positions while being dragged through hazards is a great way to mess up the strategy, especially because Zigzagoon does not want to be exposed to damage at all until after one of its teammates makes it safe to come in by sacrificing itself with Memento. If you manage to pull Zigzagoon into battle prematurely, the opponent will likely switch it back out to save it, which gives you a free turn to do whatever you please, including continuing the team shuffle to further inconvenience the opponent.

Summary

Zigzagoon is one of those generic Normal-types found in the first Route that everyone believes is total garbage as far as competitive battling goes. However, after being given a handful of useful qualities and now that a lot of things that give it trouble have been banned, Zigzagoon has risen up from the depths of low usage with a vengeance and is now shredding through Little Cup with its direction-impaired bursts of maximum-power Extreme Speed.

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