[OVERVIEW]
Keldeo is one of the most prominent and important Pokemon in the metagame. Its offensive typing is fantastic, having great neutral coverage and letting it beat common Water-type checks like Ferrothorn and Rotom-W with its powerful Secret Sword while also beating common switch-ins to Fighting-type moves like Gliscor and Landorus-T. It can also run a Hidden Power type to get around checks like Dragonite, Jellicent, and Gastrodon. Its typing, (add comma) in tandem with its decent bulk, (add comma) lets it check common Pokemon on sand teams like Gliscor, Heatran, and Tyranitar as well as a lot of Pokemon found on hyper offense, like Scizor, Cloyster, and Volcarona. Its Speed tier aids in this, outspeeding prominent offensive threats like Dragonite, Garchomp, Landorus-T, Volcarona, and Thundurus-T, and Speed tying Terrakion. Keldeo can also run a wide variety of sets, including Choice Specs, Choice Scarf, All-Out Attacker, Toxic + Protect, and Calm Mind. These sets have differing counterplay and can fit on both sand and rain teams, making Keldeo a hard-to-predict Pokemon that can punish some of its conditional checks very effectively. (add period) However, Keldeo is easily revenge killed by faster Pokemon in Latios, Alakazam, and Starmie. The same is true for Choice Scarf users like Garchomp should Keldeo lack a Choice Scarf itself. It's also vulnerable to passive damage from Spikes and sandstorm if lacking Leftovers, making it easy to wear down. While its different sets can demand specific counterplay, most teams use checks that cover most sets, like Jellicent, Tentacruel, Gastrodon, Latios, and Celebi.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hidden Power Grass
move 4: Surf
item: Choice Specs
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hidden Power Grass hits Gastrodon and Jellicent, which can take Keldeo's Water STAB even under rain. Surf is a less risky Water-type move given its higher PP and accuracy; it 2HKOes Reuniclus and Tyranitar outside of rain and Breloom, Jirachi, and Latios in rain. It also OHKOes Scizor, Magnezone, Gliscor, and offensive Heatran outside of rain and Thundurus-T, Garchomp, and Reuniclus in rain.
Set Details
========
A Timid nature is necessary for outspeeding Garchomp and Timid Volcarona and Speed tying with Terrakion and opposing Keldeo.
Team Options
========
Choice Specs Keldeo is best used on rain teams, since Hydro Pump becomes nearly impossible to handle given it can wear down and take out common stops to rain in Ferrothorn, Tyranitar, Tentacruel, and Rotom-W. Politoed is a mandatory partner to bring rain and provides a switch-in to Pokemon like Landorus-T and Gliscor. It can also cripple Keldeo checks like Tentacruel, Amoonguss, and Jellicent with status. Choice Scarf Latios can outspeed and check threats that can take advantage of Keldeo like Alakazam, Rotom-W, Breloom, and boosted Dragonite while benefitting from Keldeo breaking holes in opposing walls and threatening Latios checks in Tyranitar, Jirachi, and Ferrothorn. Tentacruel uses Rapid Spin to improve Keldeo's longevity and spreads status on Keldeo's checks in a similar manner to Politoed. Thundurus-T can sweep late-game with a Substitute + Agility set or wallbreak alongside Keldeo with a Substitute 3 attacks set, both of which take advantage of Grass-types that switch into Keldeo's attacks, like Celebi and Ferrothorn. Ferrothorn can switch into Dragon- and Psychic-types like Latios, Dragonite, and Alakazam while also setting entry hazards and removing Leftovers to let Keldeo more easily break through its checks. Jirachi can act similarly while also pivoting Keldeo in safely with U-turn. Landorus-T can set Stealth Rock, pivot with U-turn, and switch into Electric- and Ground-type moves from Thundurus-T and Garchomp. Mamoswine is able to take out Grass-types like Breloom and Celebi and Keldeo revenge killers like Dragonite, Latios, Choice Scarf Garchomp, and damaged Focus Sash Alakazam with Ice Shard.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Surf / Scald
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hidden Power Ice makes Keldeo able to revenge kill Garchomp, weakened Latios and Breloom, and boosted Pokemon like Dragonite and Salamence. Surf is a reliable move and best for sweeping late-game given its higher PP and accuracy. Scald can be used instead to deter Pokemon like Tentacruel, Politoed, and Rotom-W from switching in with the threat of a burn while still OHKOing Gliscor and defensive Landorus-T outside of rain.
Set Details
========
Timid Choice Scarf Keldeo outspeeds +2 Adamant Dragonite, +1 Volcarona, and every Choice Scarf user besides Latios.
Team Options
========
Choice Scarf Keldeo works well on rain teams, where it can threaten to sweep with Water-type moves, answer fast threats to rain in Dragonite and Choice Scarf Garchomp, and threaten bulkier stops in Ferrothorn and Tyranitar. Politoed is a mandatory partner to bring rain and provides a switch-in to Pokemon like Landorus-T and Gliscor. It can also cripple checks like Tentacruel, Amoonguss, and Jellicent with status and use Encore to stop bulkier setup sweepers that may take advantage of Keldeo like Reuniclus, Gyarados, and Dragonite. Choice Specs and Calm Mind Latios appreciate Keldeo answering Tyranitar and can check threats like Breloom, Rotom-W, and Celebi so Keldeo can more easily clean late-game. Tentacruel uses Rapid Spin to improve Keldeo's longevity and spreads status on Keldeo's checks in a similar manner to Politoed. Thundurus-T can take advantage of Grass-types Keldeo checks like Celebi, Breloom, and Ferrothorn with a Substitute + 3 attacks set and then wallbreak for easier Keldeo sweeping. Ferrothorn can switch into Dragon- and Psychic-types like Latios, Dragonite, and Alakazam while also setting entry hazards and using Knock Off to remove Leftovers to let Keldeo more easily sweep. Jirachi can act similarly while also pivoting Keldeo in safely with U-turn. Landorus-T can set Stealth Rock, use U-turn, and switch into Electric- and Ground-type moves from Thundurus-T and Garchomp. Choice Band Dragonite can break holes, check Celebi and Breloom, and use Extreme Speed to pick off sweepers that set up on Keldeo like Dragonite, Gyarados, and Calm Mind Latios. This set also works on sand teams thanks to it improving their difficult hyper offense matchup and still working well if rain teams win the weather war. Tyranitar can Pursuit trap many of Keldeo's checks, like Latios, Reuniclus, Jellicent, and Alakazam, if holding a Chople Berry. It can also set Stealth Rock and use Thunder Wave to cripple the Pokemon that try to set up on Keldeo, like Dragonite and Gyarados. Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Latios, and Alakazam can punish Tentacruel and Amoonguss, appreciate appreciate it threatening Tyranitar and Steel-types, and provide more help against offensive teams. Focus Sash Alakazam, in particular, can handle setup sweepers like Dragonite and Gyarados through Encore or hitting them hard with Hidden Power Ice and Psychic. Heatran beats Amoonguss and Celebi, sets Stealth Rock, and spreads status. It can also run Magma Storm to trap Keldeo's checks while appreciating it checking Tyranitar and Ground-types and providing a better matchup against offensive teams. Excadrill can use Rapid Spin to remove entry hazards, which helps Keldeo's longevity immensely, and handle Jirachi and Reuniclus lacking Focus Blast. It benefits from Keldeo beating Ground- and Steel-types like Gliscor, Hippowdon, and Ferrothorn and its good matchup against rain and hyper offense teams. Ferrothorn and Skarmory can get up entry hazards to wear Keldeo's switch-ins down. Ferrothorn switches into Latios and can even use Knock Off to remove Leftovers from the Pokemon that can switch into Keldeo, while Skarmory switches into Ground-types, phases out Dragonite and Gyarados, and prevents Spikes with Taunt.
[SET]
name: Leftovers Attacker
move 1: Scald
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Bug
move 4: Protect
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Scald is chosen over Hydro Pump and Surf due to its solid power, reliability, and ability to burn common switch-ins like Latios, Tentacruel, Rotom-W, and Politoed. Hidden Power Ice beats Dragonite and hits Garchomp, Latios, and Breloom hard. Hidden Power Ghost lets Keldeo more easily make progress against teams with Jellicent while also better threatening Celebi, Reuniclus, and Starmie and maintaining a way to hit Latios. Hidden Power Bug hits the same Psychic-types while also hitting Celebi much harder. However, this leaves Keldeo walled by Jellicent as well as Hidden Power Ice targets like Dragonite. Protect allows Keldeo to rack up burn and sand damage on the opponent, scout Choice-locked moves, and, if sand isn't up, recover health with Leftovers.
Set Details
========
Leftovers lets Keldeo not get worn down by the sand often accompanying this set, making it more able to check threats like Gliscor, Heatran, and Tyranitar.
Team Options
========
This set works well on sand teams thanks to it giving a better matchup against problematic hyper offense teams, not being worn down by sand while its checks are, and being able to check opposing sand teams with its STAB combination and typing. Tyranitar can set Stealth Rock and Pursuit trap many of Keldeo's checks, like Latios, Reuniclus, Jellicent, and Alakazam, if holding a Chople Berry. Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Latios, and Alakazam can punish Tentacruel and Amoonguss and enjoy Keldeo dealing with Tyranitar and Steel-types. Choice Scarf Latios, in particular, can outspeed and check Pokemon like Breloom, Alakazam, Rotom-W, and Celebi while also being able to cripple bulky Pokemon Keldeo can't beat easily with Trick. Heatran beats Amoonguss and Celebi and can set Stealth Rock and spread status. It can also run Magma Storm to trap Keldeo's checks while appreciating Keldeo checking Tyranitar and Ground-types and providing a better matchup against offensive teams. Excadrill can use Rapid Spin to remove entry hazards, which helps Keldeo's longevity immensely, and handle Jirachi and Reuniclus lacking Focus Blast. It benefits from Keldeo beating Ground- and Steel-types like Gliscor, Hippowdon, and Ferrothorn and its good matchup against sand and hyper offense teams. Ferrothorn and Skarmory can get up entry hazards to wear Keldeo's switch-ins down. Ferrothorn switches into Latios and can even use Knock Off to remove Leftovers from the Pokemon that can switch into Keldeo, while Skarmory switches into Ground-types and prevents Spikes with Taunt. Choice Scarf users like Latios, Garchomp, and Tyranitar provide a better matchup against faster offensive threats and enjoy Keldeo potentially burning bulkier threats with Scald and wearing down bulky threats like Ferrothorn, Gliscor, and Heatran. Grass-types like Celebi and Ferrothorn are better able to answer Water-types like Jellicent, Gastrodon, opposing Keldeo, and Rotom-W while benefitting greatly from Keldeo beating Fire- and Steel-types.
[SET]
name: Toxic + Protect
move 1: Toxic
move 2: Protect
move 3: Scald
move 4: Secret Sword
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Toxic lets Keldeo punish and wear down many of its switch-ins like Latios, Jellicent, and Politoed. It's especially potent alongside the sandstorm that Tyranitar provides. Protect allows Keldeo to rack up Toxic and burn damage, scout Choice-locked moves, and, if sand isn't up, recover health with Leftovers. Scald lets Keldeo potentially cripple switch-ins immune to Toxic like Tentacruel and Amoonguss, and provides it with a spammable STAB attack that can still cripple other Pokemon. Secret Sword gives Keldeo a secondary STAB move and lets it punish switch-ins resistant to Scald and certain Toxic absorbers that Scald isn't effective against, like Ferrothorn and Chansey.
Set Details
========
Keep Keldeo healthy so it can check the Pokemon it's supposed to like Heatran, Gliscor, and Tyranitar. If you predict a switch to a Pokemon that hates taking a burn, but absorbs Toxic, such as Tentacruel and Amoonguss, use Scald on the switch to fish for a burn. However, if you predict your opponent to switch to a Pokemon that hates taking Toxic, use Toxic as they switch in. Try to keep sand up, as the chip damage it provides is part of what makes this set so hard to deal with in the first place. Get up entry hazards with a hazard setter when given the opportunity so you can further chip down the Pokemon that switch into Keldeo and make switching into Keldeo even harder. Don't use Protect on Pokemon that can take advantage of it, like Spikes or Stealth Rock Ferrothorn and Toxic Spikes or Substitute Tentacruel. Use Protect to scout what move a Pokemon potentially holding a Choice item will lock into as well as accumulate more residual damage alongside Toxic or burn.
Team Options
========
Tyranitar, especially the Chople Berry variant, is an excellent partner for Keldeo, since it can Pursuit trap many of Keldeo's checks and counters, like Latios, Alakazam, and Reuniclus, while getting up Sandstorm; as the chip damage it provides is a big component of what makes this set work to begin with. Tyranitar can also get Stealth Rock up to punish switch-ins further. Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Latios, and Alakazam can all punish Tentacruel and Amoonguss while appreciating the fact that Keldeo can check Tyranitar and Steel-types and the constant chip damage from sand and the status effects Keldeo can spread. Heatran beats Amoonguss, has good defensive synergy with Keldeo, and can even use Magma Storm to trap Pokemon as well as accrue additional chip in addition to status and sand. It also appreciates Keldeo checking Tyranitar and spreading status to make Pokemon faint to residual damage more quickly. Excadrill can use Rapid Spin to remove entry hazards, which helps Keldeo and its teammates come in much more easily while handling Jirachi and Reuniclus lacking Focus Blast. It benefits from Keldeo beating Ground- and Steel-types like Gliscor, Hippowdon, and Skarmory as well. Ferrothorn and Skarmory can get up Spikes, which punishes switch-ins even further on top of the residual damage that Keldeo generates. Ferrothorn switches into Latios and can even use Knock Off to remove potential Leftovers from the Pokemon that can switch into Keldeo, while Skarmory switches into Ground-types and prevents Spikes from going up on your side of the field with Taunt.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Hydro Pump / Scald
move 3: Secret Sword
move 4: Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Dark / Substitute
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Calm Mind allows Keldeo to boost its Special Attack to ridiculous levels, letting it muscle through common checks like Tentacruel and Politoed, more easily than other variants. Hydro Pump is the preferred Water-type STAB move on this set due to its greater power than Scald allowing it to net some notable KOs, specifically against Garchomp and Reuniclus. Secret Sword is a consistent Fighting-type STAB move that allows Keldeo to heavily damage specially defensive Pokemon like Chansey and Ferrothorn that can switch into Hydro Pump. For the last slot, Hidden Power Ghost or Hidden Power Dark is the preferred coverage move of choice due to the ability to hit both Gastrodon and Latios, two of Keldeo's most common checks. Hidden Power Dark has the added benefit of not lowering Keldeo's IVs in exchange for being less effective against fringe targets, namely Toxicroak. If Hydro Pump's poor accuracy is unappealing, Scald can be used instead as a more consistent STAB move that can cripple common answers to Keldeo like Amoonguss and Tentacruel with a burn, but the power decrease is quite noticeable. Substitute can be used over Hidden Power Ghost alongside Toxic Spikes from another teammate, but the lack of immediate power against Hidden Power Ghost's targets is very noticeable, specifically against Jellicent and Gastrodon. Alternatively, Hidden Power Grass can be run to hit Gastrodon, Rotom-W, and Jellicent at the same time, but the coverage is sorely missed against Latios.
Set Details
========
Leftovers increases Keldeo's longevity over the course of the match, counteracting damage taken from sand and entry hazards, allowing it to check Pokemon like Tyranitar and Gliscor more consistently. Alternatively, Lum Berry or Water Gem can be used to bluff a Choice Scarf set, making it easier to set up Calm Mind, and have their own useful effects in giving a buffer against status or a one-time powerful attack in rain.
Usage Tips
========
This set is fairly straightforward, functioning as a wallbreaker that performs particularly well against balance teams. Use rain-boosted Hydro Pump and Secret Sword to wear down the opposing team early-game. Then, once the opposing team has been adequately weakened, send in Keldeo on a Pokemon that it threatens, such as Excadrill or Gliscor, and either use Calm Mind or Substitute on the switch or scout depending on the situation and sweep if possible. It should be noted that Calm Mind and Substitute can be used in a similar fashion early-game to break the opposing team, but they aren't necessarily as efficient as attacking in some of those situations, particularly because Keldeo's HP can be essential for checking key threats like Gliscor and Tyranitar.
Team Options
========
Keldeo fits well on both rain and sand teams that want an effective wallbreaker to break down defensive Water- and Grass-types. Politoed makes for an excellent partner, as rain boosts Hydro Pump's power significantly and makes it very dangerous to switch into without an immunity. If using Substitute, Toxic Spikes Tentacruel is an amazing partner, as Toxic Spikes can wear down Pokemon like Jellicent and Gastrodon that are problematic for Keldeo to deal with otherwise. Agility Thundurus-T is an effective partner, as it appreciates Keldeo's ability to break down Grass-types like Amoonguss and Ferrothorn that would trouble it otherwise. If opting for a coverage move over Substitute, Keldeo fits particularly well on offensive sand teams due to its ability to punch holes in teams and put pressure on Latios, making Tyranitar less required to check it. Late-game cleaners like Calm Mind Reuniclus and Choice Scarf Garchomp also appreciate Keldeo's ability to pun
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Expert Belt can be used with Hydro Pump, Secret Sword, Icy Wind, and Hidden Power Grass or Hidden Power Bug to hit most of the metagame hard. However, it gets worn down in sand, it is still walled by some threats depending on what Hidden Power type it drops, and proper team support can similarly pressure Keldeo checks. Other Hidden Power types can be used on the Choice item sets, namely Hidden Power Psychic on Choice Specs to hit Tentacruel, Amoonguss, and Toxicroak and Hidden Power Electric on the Choice Scarf set to revenge kill Gyarados. However, Keldeo and its teammates can already overwhelm Poison-types, while Hidden Power Electric's utility is very situational. Aqua Jet over Protect on the Leftovers attacker set can let Keldeo finish off faster weakened targets, mainly Alakazam and boosted Volcarona, and also break Alakazam's Focus Sash for teammates so they can finish it off. Roar can be used over Protect to let Keldeo force entry hazard damage on many foes and punish the many switches it forces. However, a lot of switch-ins to Roar Keldeo, like Latios, Reuniclus, and Rotom-W, are immune to the Spikes that justify Roar's use in the first place.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Pokemon**: Latios, Alakazam, Starmie, Choice Scarf variants of Garchomp and Rotom-W, and boosted Dragonite outspeed and do a lot of damage to Keldeo, at worst 2HKOing it. However, they must be careful switching in, and only Choice Scarf Latios outspeeds Choice Scarf Keldeo.
**Bulky Pokemon**: Bulky Pokemon that resist at least one of Keldeo's STAB moves, like Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, Tentacruel, Gastrodon, Latios, Rotom-W, and Jellicent, can take a hit and do something impactful back. However, Pokemon like Ferrothorn and Rotom-W are hit hard by Secret Sword, Tentacruel, Gastrodon, and Amoonguss can be easily overwhelmed by Choice Specs in rain or used as setup fodder by the Calm Mind set, and Jellicent is hit very hard by Hidden Power Grass from the Choice Specs set and is unable to take on the Calm Mind variant if it's running Hidden Power Grass, Ghost, or Dark.
**Residual Damage**: Keldeo is very vulnerable to residual damage from sand and entry hazards as a result of its Choice item sets lacking any recovery, while Leftovers sets can't heal in the sand they're often accompanied by. It's also crippled by burn and Toxic from Pokemon like Politoed, Tentacruel, Jellicent, and Heatran.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Ophion, 433215], [Mannat, 144451]
- Quality checked by: [[BluBirD252, 347088], [Links, 487106]]
- Grammar checked by: [[CryoGyro, 331519], [dex, 277988]]
Keldeo is one of the most prominent and important Pokemon in the metagame. Its offensive typing is fantastic, having great neutral coverage and letting it beat common Water-type checks like Ferrothorn and Rotom-W with its powerful Secret Sword while also beating common switch-ins to Fighting-type moves like Gliscor and Landorus-T. It can also run a Hidden Power type to get around checks like Dragonite, Jellicent, and Gastrodon. Its typing, (add comma) in tandem with its decent bulk, (add comma) lets it check common Pokemon on sand teams like Gliscor, Heatran, and Tyranitar as well as a lot of Pokemon found on hyper offense, like Scizor, Cloyster, and Volcarona. Its Speed tier aids in this, outspeeding prominent offensive threats like Dragonite, Garchomp, Landorus-T, Volcarona, and Thundurus-T, and Speed tying Terrakion. Keldeo can also run a wide variety of sets, including Choice Specs, Choice Scarf, All-Out Attacker, Toxic + Protect, and Calm Mind. These sets have differing counterplay and can fit on both sand and rain teams, making Keldeo a hard-to-predict Pokemon that can punish some of its conditional checks very effectively. (add period) However, Keldeo is easily revenge killed by faster Pokemon in Latios, Alakazam, and Starmie. The same is true for Choice Scarf users like Garchomp should Keldeo lack a Choice Scarf itself. It's also vulnerable to passive damage from Spikes and sandstorm if lacking Leftovers, making it easy to wear down. While its different sets can demand specific counterplay, most teams use checks that cover most sets, like Jellicent, Tentacruel, Gastrodon, Latios, and Celebi.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hidden Power Grass
move 4: Surf
item: Choice Specs
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hidden Power Grass hits Gastrodon and Jellicent, which can take Keldeo's Water STAB even under rain. Surf is a less risky Water-type move given its higher PP and accuracy; it 2HKOes Reuniclus and Tyranitar outside of rain and Breloom, Jirachi, and Latios in rain. It also OHKOes Scizor, Magnezone, Gliscor, and offensive Heatran outside of rain and Thundurus-T, Garchomp, and Reuniclus in rain.
Set Details
========
A Timid nature is necessary for outspeeding Garchomp and Timid Volcarona and Speed tying with Terrakion and opposing Keldeo.
Team Options
========
Choice Specs Keldeo is best used on rain teams, since Hydro Pump becomes nearly impossible to handle given it can wear down and take out common stops to rain in Ferrothorn, Tyranitar, Tentacruel, and Rotom-W. Politoed is a mandatory partner to bring rain and provides a switch-in to Pokemon like Landorus-T and Gliscor. It can also cripple Keldeo checks like Tentacruel, Amoonguss, and Jellicent with status. Choice Scarf Latios can outspeed and check threats that can take advantage of Keldeo like Alakazam, Rotom-W, Breloom, and boosted Dragonite while benefitting from Keldeo breaking holes in opposing walls and threatening Latios checks in Tyranitar, Jirachi, and Ferrothorn. Tentacruel uses Rapid Spin to improve Keldeo's longevity and spreads status on Keldeo's checks in a similar manner to Politoed. Thundurus-T can sweep late-game with a Substitute + Agility set or wallbreak alongside Keldeo with a Substitute 3 attacks set, both of which take advantage of Grass-types that switch into Keldeo's attacks, like Celebi and Ferrothorn. Ferrothorn can switch into Dragon- and Psychic-types like Latios, Dragonite, and Alakazam while also setting entry hazards and removing Leftovers to let Keldeo more easily break through its checks. Jirachi can act similarly while also pivoting Keldeo in safely with U-turn. Landorus-T can set Stealth Rock, pivot with U-turn, and switch into Electric- and Ground-type moves from Thundurus-T and Garchomp. Mamoswine is able to take out Grass-types like Breloom and Celebi and Keldeo revenge killers like Dragonite, Latios, Choice Scarf Garchomp, and damaged Focus Sash Alakazam with Ice Shard.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Surf / Scald
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hidden Power Ice makes Keldeo able to revenge kill Garchomp, weakened Latios and Breloom, and boosted Pokemon like Dragonite and Salamence. Surf is a reliable move and best for sweeping late-game given its higher PP and accuracy. Scald can be used instead to deter Pokemon like Tentacruel, Politoed, and Rotom-W from switching in with the threat of a burn while still OHKOing Gliscor and defensive Landorus-T outside of rain.
Set Details
========
Timid Choice Scarf Keldeo outspeeds +2 Adamant Dragonite, +1 Volcarona, and every Choice Scarf user besides Latios.
Team Options
========
Choice Scarf Keldeo works well on rain teams, where it can threaten to sweep with Water-type moves, answer fast threats to rain in Dragonite and Choice Scarf Garchomp, and threaten bulkier stops in Ferrothorn and Tyranitar. Politoed is a mandatory partner to bring rain and provides a switch-in to Pokemon like Landorus-T and Gliscor. It can also cripple checks like Tentacruel, Amoonguss, and Jellicent with status and use Encore to stop bulkier setup sweepers that may take advantage of Keldeo like Reuniclus, Gyarados, and Dragonite. Choice Specs and Calm Mind Latios appreciate Keldeo answering Tyranitar and can check threats like Breloom, Rotom-W, and Celebi so Keldeo can more easily clean late-game. Tentacruel uses Rapid Spin to improve Keldeo's longevity and spreads status on Keldeo's checks in a similar manner to Politoed. Thundurus-T can take advantage of Grass-types Keldeo checks like Celebi, Breloom, and Ferrothorn with a Substitute + 3 attacks set and then wallbreak for easier Keldeo sweeping. Ferrothorn can switch into Dragon- and Psychic-types like Latios, Dragonite, and Alakazam while also setting entry hazards and using Knock Off to remove Leftovers to let Keldeo more easily sweep. Jirachi can act similarly while also pivoting Keldeo in safely with U-turn. Landorus-T can set Stealth Rock, use U-turn, and switch into Electric- and Ground-type moves from Thundurus-T and Garchomp. Choice Band Dragonite can break holes, check Celebi and Breloom, and use Extreme Speed to pick off sweepers that set up on Keldeo like Dragonite, Gyarados, and Calm Mind Latios. This set also works on sand teams thanks to it improving their difficult hyper offense matchup and still working well if rain teams win the weather war. Tyranitar can Pursuit trap many of Keldeo's checks, like Latios, Reuniclus, Jellicent, and Alakazam, if holding a Chople Berry. It can also set Stealth Rock and use Thunder Wave to cripple the Pokemon that try to set up on Keldeo, like Dragonite and Gyarados. Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Latios, and Alakazam can punish Tentacruel and Amoonguss, appreciate appreciate it threatening Tyranitar and Steel-types, and provide more help against offensive teams. Focus Sash Alakazam, in particular, can handle setup sweepers like Dragonite and Gyarados through Encore or hitting them hard with Hidden Power Ice and Psychic. Heatran beats Amoonguss and Celebi, sets Stealth Rock, and spreads status. It can also run Magma Storm to trap Keldeo's checks while appreciating it checking Tyranitar and Ground-types and providing a better matchup against offensive teams. Excadrill can use Rapid Spin to remove entry hazards, which helps Keldeo's longevity immensely, and handle Jirachi and Reuniclus lacking Focus Blast. It benefits from Keldeo beating Ground- and Steel-types like Gliscor, Hippowdon, and Ferrothorn and its good matchup against rain and hyper offense teams. Ferrothorn and Skarmory can get up entry hazards to wear Keldeo's switch-ins down. Ferrothorn switches into Latios and can even use Knock Off to remove Leftovers from the Pokemon that can switch into Keldeo, while Skarmory switches into Ground-types, phases out Dragonite and Gyarados, and prevents Spikes with Taunt.
[SET]
name: Leftovers Attacker
move 1: Scald
move 2: Secret Sword
move 3: Hidden Power Ice / Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Bug
move 4: Protect
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Scald is chosen over Hydro Pump and Surf due to its solid power, reliability, and ability to burn common switch-ins like Latios, Tentacruel, Rotom-W, and Politoed. Hidden Power Ice beats Dragonite and hits Garchomp, Latios, and Breloom hard. Hidden Power Ghost lets Keldeo more easily make progress against teams with Jellicent while also better threatening Celebi, Reuniclus, and Starmie and maintaining a way to hit Latios. Hidden Power Bug hits the same Psychic-types while also hitting Celebi much harder. However, this leaves Keldeo walled by Jellicent as well as Hidden Power Ice targets like Dragonite. Protect allows Keldeo to rack up burn and sand damage on the opponent, scout Choice-locked moves, and, if sand isn't up, recover health with Leftovers.
Set Details
========
Leftovers lets Keldeo not get worn down by the sand often accompanying this set, making it more able to check threats like Gliscor, Heatran, and Tyranitar.
Team Options
========
This set works well on sand teams thanks to it giving a better matchup against problematic hyper offense teams, not being worn down by sand while its checks are, and being able to check opposing sand teams with its STAB combination and typing. Tyranitar can set Stealth Rock and Pursuit trap many of Keldeo's checks, like Latios, Reuniclus, Jellicent, and Alakazam, if holding a Chople Berry. Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Latios, and Alakazam can punish Tentacruel and Amoonguss and enjoy Keldeo dealing with Tyranitar and Steel-types. Choice Scarf Latios, in particular, can outspeed and check Pokemon like Breloom, Alakazam, Rotom-W, and Celebi while also being able to cripple bulky Pokemon Keldeo can't beat easily with Trick. Heatran beats Amoonguss and Celebi and can set Stealth Rock and spread status. It can also run Magma Storm to trap Keldeo's checks while appreciating Keldeo checking Tyranitar and Ground-types and providing a better matchup against offensive teams. Excadrill can use Rapid Spin to remove entry hazards, which helps Keldeo's longevity immensely, and handle Jirachi and Reuniclus lacking Focus Blast. It benefits from Keldeo beating Ground- and Steel-types like Gliscor, Hippowdon, and Ferrothorn and its good matchup against sand and hyper offense teams. Ferrothorn and Skarmory can get up entry hazards to wear Keldeo's switch-ins down. Ferrothorn switches into Latios and can even use Knock Off to remove Leftovers from the Pokemon that can switch into Keldeo, while Skarmory switches into Ground-types and prevents Spikes with Taunt. Choice Scarf users like Latios, Garchomp, and Tyranitar provide a better matchup against faster offensive threats and enjoy Keldeo potentially burning bulkier threats with Scald and wearing down bulky threats like Ferrothorn, Gliscor, and Heatran. Grass-types like Celebi and Ferrothorn are better able to answer Water-types like Jellicent, Gastrodon, opposing Keldeo, and Rotom-W while benefitting greatly from Keldeo beating Fire- and Steel-types.
[SET]
name: Toxic + Protect
move 1: Toxic
move 2: Protect
move 3: Scald
move 4: Secret Sword
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Toxic lets Keldeo punish and wear down many of its switch-ins like Latios, Jellicent, and Politoed. It's especially potent alongside the sandstorm that Tyranitar provides. Protect allows Keldeo to rack up Toxic and burn damage, scout Choice-locked moves, and, if sand isn't up, recover health with Leftovers. Scald lets Keldeo potentially cripple switch-ins immune to Toxic like Tentacruel and Amoonguss, and provides it with a spammable STAB attack that can still cripple other Pokemon. Secret Sword gives Keldeo a secondary STAB move and lets it punish switch-ins resistant to Scald and certain Toxic absorbers that Scald isn't effective against, like Ferrothorn and Chansey.
Set Details
========
Keep Keldeo healthy so it can check the Pokemon it's supposed to like Heatran, Gliscor, and Tyranitar. If you predict a switch to a Pokemon that hates taking a burn, but absorbs Toxic, such as Tentacruel and Amoonguss, use Scald on the switch to fish for a burn. However, if you predict your opponent to switch to a Pokemon that hates taking Toxic, use Toxic as they switch in. Try to keep sand up, as the chip damage it provides is part of what makes this set so hard to deal with in the first place. Get up entry hazards with a hazard setter when given the opportunity so you can further chip down the Pokemon that switch into Keldeo and make switching into Keldeo even harder. Don't use Protect on Pokemon that can take advantage of it, like Spikes or Stealth Rock Ferrothorn and Toxic Spikes or Substitute Tentacruel. Use Protect to scout what move a Pokemon potentially holding a Choice item will lock into as well as accumulate more residual damage alongside Toxic or burn.
Team Options
========
Tyranitar, especially the Chople Berry variant, is an excellent partner for Keldeo, since it can Pursuit trap many of Keldeo's checks and counters, like Latios, Alakazam, and Reuniclus, while getting up Sandstorm; as the chip damage it provides is a big component of what makes this set work to begin with. Tyranitar can also get Stealth Rock up to punish switch-ins further. Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Latios, and Alakazam can all punish Tentacruel and Amoonguss while appreciating the fact that Keldeo can check Tyranitar and Steel-types and the constant chip damage from sand and the status effects Keldeo can spread. Heatran beats Amoonguss, has good defensive synergy with Keldeo, and can even use Magma Storm to trap Pokemon as well as accrue additional chip in addition to status and sand. It also appreciates Keldeo checking Tyranitar and spreading status to make Pokemon faint to residual damage more quickly. Excadrill can use Rapid Spin to remove entry hazards, which helps Keldeo and its teammates come in much more easily while handling Jirachi and Reuniclus lacking Focus Blast. It benefits from Keldeo beating Ground- and Steel-types like Gliscor, Hippowdon, and Skarmory as well. Ferrothorn and Skarmory can get up Spikes, which punishes switch-ins even further on top of the residual damage that Keldeo generates. Ferrothorn switches into Latios and can even use Knock Off to remove potential Leftovers from the Pokemon that can switch into Keldeo, while Skarmory switches into Ground-types and prevents Spikes from going up on your side of the field with Taunt.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Hydro Pump / Scald
move 3: Secret Sword
move 4: Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Dark / Substitute
item: Leftovers
ability: Justified
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Calm Mind allows Keldeo to boost its Special Attack to ridiculous levels, letting it muscle through common checks like Tentacruel and Politoed, more easily than other variants. Hydro Pump is the preferred Water-type STAB move on this set due to its greater power than Scald allowing it to net some notable KOs, specifically against Garchomp and Reuniclus. Secret Sword is a consistent Fighting-type STAB move that allows Keldeo to heavily damage specially defensive Pokemon like Chansey and Ferrothorn that can switch into Hydro Pump. For the last slot, Hidden Power Ghost or Hidden Power Dark is the preferred coverage move of choice due to the ability to hit both Gastrodon and Latios, two of Keldeo's most common checks. Hidden Power Dark has the added benefit of not lowering Keldeo's IVs in exchange for being less effective against fringe targets, namely Toxicroak. If Hydro Pump's poor accuracy is unappealing, Scald can be used instead as a more consistent STAB move that can cripple common answers to Keldeo like Amoonguss and Tentacruel with a burn, but the power decrease is quite noticeable. Substitute can be used over Hidden Power Ghost alongside Toxic Spikes from another teammate, but the lack of immediate power against Hidden Power Ghost's targets is very noticeable, specifically against Jellicent and Gastrodon. Alternatively, Hidden Power Grass can be run to hit Gastrodon, Rotom-W, and Jellicent at the same time, but the coverage is sorely missed against Latios.
Set Details
========
Leftovers increases Keldeo's longevity over the course of the match, counteracting damage taken from sand and entry hazards, allowing it to check Pokemon like Tyranitar and Gliscor more consistently. Alternatively, Lum Berry or Water Gem can be used to bluff a Choice Scarf set, making it easier to set up Calm Mind, and have their own useful effects in giving a buffer against status or a one-time powerful attack in rain.
Usage Tips
========
This set is fairly straightforward, functioning as a wallbreaker that performs particularly well against balance teams. Use rain-boosted Hydro Pump and Secret Sword to wear down the opposing team early-game. Then, once the opposing team has been adequately weakened, send in Keldeo on a Pokemon that it threatens, such as Excadrill or Gliscor, and either use Calm Mind or Substitute on the switch or scout depending on the situation and sweep if possible. It should be noted that Calm Mind and Substitute can be used in a similar fashion early-game to break the opposing team, but they aren't necessarily as efficient as attacking in some of those situations, particularly because Keldeo's HP can be essential for checking key threats like Gliscor and Tyranitar.
Team Options
========
Keldeo fits well on both rain and sand teams that want an effective wallbreaker to break down defensive Water- and Grass-types. Politoed makes for an excellent partner, as rain boosts Hydro Pump's power significantly and makes it very dangerous to switch into without an immunity. If using Substitute, Toxic Spikes Tentacruel is an amazing partner, as Toxic Spikes can wear down Pokemon like Jellicent and Gastrodon that are problematic for Keldeo to deal with otherwise. Agility Thundurus-T is an effective partner, as it appreciates Keldeo's ability to break down Grass-types like Amoonguss and Ferrothorn that would trouble it otherwise. If opting for a coverage move over Substitute, Keldeo fits particularly well on offensive sand teams due to its ability to punch holes in teams and put pressure on Latios, making Tyranitar less required to check it. Late-game cleaners like Calm Mind Reuniclus and Choice Scarf Garchomp also appreciate Keldeo's ability to pun
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Expert Belt can be used with Hydro Pump, Secret Sword, Icy Wind, and Hidden Power Grass or Hidden Power Bug to hit most of the metagame hard. However, it gets worn down in sand, it is still walled by some threats depending on what Hidden Power type it drops, and proper team support can similarly pressure Keldeo checks. Other Hidden Power types can be used on the Choice item sets, namely Hidden Power Psychic on Choice Specs to hit Tentacruel, Amoonguss, and Toxicroak and Hidden Power Electric on the Choice Scarf set to revenge kill Gyarados. However, Keldeo and its teammates can already overwhelm Poison-types, while Hidden Power Electric's utility is very situational. Aqua Jet over Protect on the Leftovers attacker set can let Keldeo finish off faster weakened targets, mainly Alakazam and boosted Volcarona, and also break Alakazam's Focus Sash for teammates so they can finish it off. Roar can be used over Protect to let Keldeo force entry hazard damage on many foes and punish the many switches it forces. However, a lot of switch-ins to Roar Keldeo, like Latios, Reuniclus, and Rotom-W, are immune to the Spikes that justify Roar's use in the first place.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Pokemon**: Latios, Alakazam, Starmie, Choice Scarf variants of Garchomp and Rotom-W, and boosted Dragonite outspeed and do a lot of damage to Keldeo, at worst 2HKOing it. However, they must be careful switching in, and only Choice Scarf Latios outspeeds Choice Scarf Keldeo.
**Bulky Pokemon**: Bulky Pokemon that resist at least one of Keldeo's STAB moves, like Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, Tentacruel, Gastrodon, Latios, Rotom-W, and Jellicent, can take a hit and do something impactful back. However, Pokemon like Ferrothorn and Rotom-W are hit hard by Secret Sword, Tentacruel, Gastrodon, and Amoonguss can be easily overwhelmed by Choice Specs in rain or used as setup fodder by the Calm Mind set, and Jellicent is hit very hard by Hidden Power Grass from the Choice Specs set and is unable to take on the Calm Mind variant if it's running Hidden Power Grass, Ghost, or Dark.
**Residual Damage**: Keldeo is very vulnerable to residual damage from sand and entry hazards as a result of its Choice item sets lacking any recovery, while Leftovers sets can't heal in the sand they're often accompanied by. It's also crippled by burn and Toxic from Pokemon like Politoed, Tentacruel, Jellicent, and Heatran.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Ophion, 433215], [Mannat, 144451]
- Quality checked by: [[BluBirD252, 347088], [Links, 487106]]
- Grammar checked by: [[CryoGyro, 331519], [dex, 277988]]
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