[OVERVIEW]
Xatu has a niche in the OU metagame as the best Magic Bounce user and one of the best sources of entry hazard control. Xatu is able to completely shut down passive Pokemon like Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Hippowdon while also being a soft check to most Ground- and Grass-types. However, it has mediocre base stats, a shallow offensive movepool, and an exploitable defensive typing that makes it vulnerable to a lot of the metagame's offensive threats, including very effective Stealth Rock users like Garchomp, Heatran, and Jirachi. Once these Pokemon set Stealth Rock, Xatu's Stealth Rock weakness becomes a thorn in its side.
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Roost
move 2: Night Shade
move 3: Reflect / Feather Dance
move 4: U-turn / Toxic
item: Rocky Helmet
ability: Magic Bounce
nature: Impish / Bold
evs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Roost is Xatu's best recovery move and can help it by removing its Volt Switch weakness. Night Shade breaks Substitute and does good damage to the vast majority of the metagame. Reflect and Feather Dance have basically the same function: weaken Tyranitar so it can't Pursuit trap Xatu. They also have the utility of softening physical offensive pressure for Xatu's teammates. Reflect has more PP and helps Xatu's teammates even if the foe switches out, so it's generally superior, but Feather Dance never needs renewal turns and can be stacked, helping Xatu stall out Tyranitar that get Crunch Defense drops or use moves that don't activate Rocky Helmet like Stone Edge and Ice Beam. Feather Dance is also less exploitable by Swords Dance sweepers like Gliscor and Breloom. U-turn is Xatu's best option to keep momentum and avoid being setup fodder, since it is a bit frail and passive, but Toxic can be used to remove a bit of Xatu's passivity if its teammates don't care about the momentum U-turn generates. However, Toxic makes Xatu vulnerable to Reuniclus and Celebi. Rocky Helmet, alongside Reflect or Feather Dance, lets Xatu outstall a Tyranitar that tries to Pursuit trap it, as well punish Landorus-T's U-turn, Breloom's Facade, Skarmory's Brave Bird, and Ferrothorn's Gyro Ball.
Set Details
========
252 HP and 184 Defense EVs let Xatu never be 2HKOed by standard Tyranitar's Crunch, even with sand damage, after Reflect or Feather Dance. 72 Speed EVs make Xatu faster than all Tyranitar. Impish is the prefered nature if U-turn is being used. An alternative spread of 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 SpD with 30 Speed IVs can be used to underspeed utility Gliscor so it can't set Stealth Rock after Xatu's U-turn, and to never be 2HKOed by Naive Landorus-T's Hidden Power Ice, even with sand up, but this spread makes Xatu susceptible to being trapped by fast offensive Tyranitar.
Usage Tips
========
Xatu's main function is to prevent entry hazards, so don't be afraid of sending Xatu out against hazard setters. Play smart with switches, U-turn, and Night Shade so opposing Pokemon can't grab momentum or use Xatu as setup fodder. Use Roost when Xatu must be active to block a crucial entry hazard that can prevent its teammates from setting up or Choice Scarf cleaning. If facing Tyranitar, use Reflect or Feather Dance as soon as possible to avoid being KOed by Crunch or Pursuit. Be wary of Knock Off users like Ferrothorn and Seismitoad, since they can effectively lure Xatu in and remove its item, allowing it be trapped by Tyranitar.
Team Options
========
Xatu fits best in balance teams. In those structures, it's common to see bulky Water-types or Water-immune Pokemon like Seismitoad, Jellicent, and Slowking as well bulky Steel-types, like Heatran and Ferrothorn. Offensive Ground-types like Excadrill, Gliscor, Garchomp, Mamoswine, and Landorus-T use the offensive momentum Xatu can generate with U-turn. Excadrill in particular is an awesome option, as it can use Xatu's Magic Bounce to drop Rapid Spin for a setup move in Substitute or Swords Dance. Pokemon that love having Spikes users neutered, like Hippowdon, Jirachi, Scizor, Amoonguss, and Celebi, are also valuable teammates, since they can cover some of Xatu's type weaknesses. Xatu also finds itself as a central piece of most sun-oriented teams. In those, Pokemon like Ninetales, Cresselia, Chansey, and Blissey are very good defensive partners. More offensively, Pokemon like Victini, Dragonite, Kyurem-B, Kyurem, Salamence, and Ditto love Xatu's hazard control. Xatu's most ingenious partner, however, is Volcarona, which despises Stealth Rock and can use Reflect for more setup opportunites.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Xatu needs Reflect or Feather Dance to stand a chance against Tyranitar, so other moves should only be considered over U-turn or Toxic. Heat Wave is Xatu's best way to damage Ferrothorn, Skarmory, Excadrill, Scizor, and Forretress but has very low utility in general, especially in rain matchups. Hidden Power Ice can better deal with Gliscor, Garchomp, and Landorus-T, but it's very weak outside of those targets. Psychic and Air Slash are Xatu's best STAB options, and they can be used as emergency Breloom answers, but they are normally very weak. Protect can be used to scout Choice-locked Pokemon, but it lets Tyranitar easily Pursuit trap Xatu even with Reflect or Feather Dance, so you may as well run it in that moveslot. Skill Swap can be used to defeat any variation of Poison Heal Gliscor and make Xatu an emergency check to Poison Heal Breloom and badly poisoned Reuniclus, but losing Magic Bounce enables the opposing team's entry hazards. Thunder Wave, Light Screen, and Wish are Xatu's other support options for more defensive builds, but Toxic is generally the preferred move in those teams. Leftovers can be used if the extra damage of Rocky Helmet isn't needed, but this turns Xatu into a very passive Pokemon and lets Tyranitar fish for Crunch Defense drops. A set with dual screens, U-turn, and Light Clay is also possible, but this is done better by Espeon because of its base Speed.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Offensive Stealth Rock users**: Xatu's biggest issue is its Stealth Rock weakness, so Stealth Rock users that can KO or threaten it out are problematic. Heatran can heavily damage Xatu with Magma Storm or Lava Plume, effectively defeating it or scaring it away to use Stealth Rock. Terrakion threatens an immediate KO with Stone Edge, letting it freely set up Swords Dance, Substitute, or Stealth Rock. Jirachi can threaten to KO Xatu with Thunder or Iron Head flinches to safely set up Stealth Rock, but sets reliant on the latter must be wary of Reflect + Rocky Helmet. Offensive Ground-types like Garchomp, Mamoswine, and Excadrill scare Xatu away with strong attacks or setup moves in order to safely use Stealth Rock. Mold Breaker Excadrill in particular can set up Stealth Rock freely.
**Rain Pokemon**: Politoed loves using Xatu as a way to safely activate Drizzle, and it 2HKOes Xatu with Scald. With rain up, Tentacruel and Starmie can freely use Rapid Spin or their STAB moves with almost no penalty against it. Tornadus threatens Xatu out with Hurricane, so it can grab momentum with Substitute, Tailwind, or U-turn. Keldeo also threatens an immediate KO with its Water-type attacks in rain. Jirachi can freely set up a 101 HP Substitute on Xatu and threaten it with perfect accuracy Thunder.
**Setup Sweepers**: Reuniclus can use Xatu to set up Calm Mind or Trick Room with almost no penalty, and it threatens Xatu with Thunder, Hidden Power Ice, or Shadow Ball; however, chip damage from Night Shade and U-turn can force Reuniclus to spend a turn healing. Volcarona can use Xatu to safely set up Quiver Dance, but it needs to watch out for Toxic if it's lacking Lum Berry. Gliscor can set up Swords Dance on Xatu with almost no penalty, since it can outstall Feather Dance's PP and heal Night Shade damage with Protect + Poison Heal, but it must be wary of the rare Hidden Power Ice or Skill Swap. Poison Heal Breloom can use Xatu to set up Swords Dance or Bulk Up, as it can use Protect + Poison Heal to negate Night Shade damage; however, Xatu wins if sand or hail is up, or if it's carrying Skill Swap or a STAB move.
**Tyranitar**: Choice Scarf Tyranitar can heavily damage Xatu before it can set up Reflect, effectively defeating it. Slower Tyranitar can also defeat Rocky Helmet Xatu by using Ice Beam or Stone Edge, or a non-Rocky Helmet variant with a Crunch Defense drop, opening opportunities to set up Stealth Rock.
**Dragon-types**: Powerful Dragon-types like Latios, Kyurem-B, and Hydreigon threaten an immediate KO with their STAB moves. Pokemon like Dragonite, Latias, Kyurem, and Salamence can use Xatu as setup fodder for Substitute, Calm Mind, or Dragon Dance.
**Electric-types**: Rotom-W can heavily damage Xatu with Hydro Pump or steal offensive momentum via slow Volt Switch. Magnezone scares Xatu away immediately with Thunderbolt or Volt Switch. Thundurus-T can force Xatu out to safely set up Substitute or Agility.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Caetano93, 394051]]
- Quality checked by: [[Excal, 456373], [We Three Kings, 246992]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [CryoGiro, 331519]]
Xatu has a niche in the OU metagame as the best Magic Bounce user and one of the best sources of entry hazard control. Xatu is able to completely shut down passive Pokemon like Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Hippowdon while also being a soft check to most Ground- and Grass-types. However, it has mediocre base stats, a shallow offensive movepool, and an exploitable defensive typing that makes it vulnerable to a lot of the metagame's offensive threats, including very effective Stealth Rock users like Garchomp, Heatran, and Jirachi. Once these Pokemon set Stealth Rock, Xatu's Stealth Rock weakness becomes a thorn in its side.
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Roost
move 2: Night Shade
move 3: Reflect / Feather Dance
move 4: U-turn / Toxic
item: Rocky Helmet
ability: Magic Bounce
nature: Impish / Bold
evs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Roost is Xatu's best recovery move and can help it by removing its Volt Switch weakness. Night Shade breaks Substitute and does good damage to the vast majority of the metagame. Reflect and Feather Dance have basically the same function: weaken Tyranitar so it can't Pursuit trap Xatu. They also have the utility of softening physical offensive pressure for Xatu's teammates. Reflect has more PP and helps Xatu's teammates even if the foe switches out, so it's generally superior, but Feather Dance never needs renewal turns and can be stacked, helping Xatu stall out Tyranitar that get Crunch Defense drops or use moves that don't activate Rocky Helmet like Stone Edge and Ice Beam. Feather Dance is also less exploitable by Swords Dance sweepers like Gliscor and Breloom. U-turn is Xatu's best option to keep momentum and avoid being setup fodder, since it is a bit frail and passive, but Toxic can be used to remove a bit of Xatu's passivity if its teammates don't care about the momentum U-turn generates. However, Toxic makes Xatu vulnerable to Reuniclus and Celebi. Rocky Helmet, alongside Reflect or Feather Dance, lets Xatu outstall a Tyranitar that tries to Pursuit trap it, as well punish Landorus-T's U-turn, Breloom's Facade, Skarmory's Brave Bird, and Ferrothorn's Gyro Ball.
Set Details
========
252 HP and 184 Defense EVs let Xatu never be 2HKOed by standard Tyranitar's Crunch, even with sand damage, after Reflect or Feather Dance. 72 Speed EVs make Xatu faster than all Tyranitar. Impish is the prefered nature if U-turn is being used. An alternative spread of 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 SpD with 30 Speed IVs can be used to underspeed utility Gliscor so it can't set Stealth Rock after Xatu's U-turn, and to never be 2HKOed by Naive Landorus-T's Hidden Power Ice, even with sand up, but this spread makes Xatu susceptible to being trapped by fast offensive Tyranitar.
Usage Tips
========
Xatu's main function is to prevent entry hazards, so don't be afraid of sending Xatu out against hazard setters. Play smart with switches, U-turn, and Night Shade so opposing Pokemon can't grab momentum or use Xatu as setup fodder. Use Roost when Xatu must be active to block a crucial entry hazard that can prevent its teammates from setting up or Choice Scarf cleaning. If facing Tyranitar, use Reflect or Feather Dance as soon as possible to avoid being KOed by Crunch or Pursuit. Be wary of Knock Off users like Ferrothorn and Seismitoad, since they can effectively lure Xatu in and remove its item, allowing it be trapped by Tyranitar.
Team Options
========
Xatu fits best in balance teams. In those structures, it's common to see bulky Water-types or Water-immune Pokemon like Seismitoad, Jellicent, and Slowking as well bulky Steel-types, like Heatran and Ferrothorn. Offensive Ground-types like Excadrill, Gliscor, Garchomp, Mamoswine, and Landorus-T use the offensive momentum Xatu can generate with U-turn. Excadrill in particular is an awesome option, as it can use Xatu's Magic Bounce to drop Rapid Spin for a setup move in Substitute or Swords Dance. Pokemon that love having Spikes users neutered, like Hippowdon, Jirachi, Scizor, Amoonguss, and Celebi, are also valuable teammates, since they can cover some of Xatu's type weaknesses. Xatu also finds itself as a central piece of most sun-oriented teams. In those, Pokemon like Ninetales, Cresselia, Chansey, and Blissey are very good defensive partners. More offensively, Pokemon like Victini, Dragonite, Kyurem-B, Kyurem, Salamence, and Ditto love Xatu's hazard control. Xatu's most ingenious partner, however, is Volcarona, which despises Stealth Rock and can use Reflect for more setup opportunites.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Xatu needs Reflect or Feather Dance to stand a chance against Tyranitar, so other moves should only be considered over U-turn or Toxic. Heat Wave is Xatu's best way to damage Ferrothorn, Skarmory, Excadrill, Scizor, and Forretress but has very low utility in general, especially in rain matchups. Hidden Power Ice can better deal with Gliscor, Garchomp, and Landorus-T, but it's very weak outside of those targets. Psychic and Air Slash are Xatu's best STAB options, and they can be used as emergency Breloom answers, but they are normally very weak. Protect can be used to scout Choice-locked Pokemon, but it lets Tyranitar easily Pursuit trap Xatu even with Reflect or Feather Dance, so you may as well run it in that moveslot. Skill Swap can be used to defeat any variation of Poison Heal Gliscor and make Xatu an emergency check to Poison Heal Breloom and badly poisoned Reuniclus, but losing Magic Bounce enables the opposing team's entry hazards. Thunder Wave, Light Screen, and Wish are Xatu's other support options for more defensive builds, but Toxic is generally the preferred move in those teams. Leftovers can be used if the extra damage of Rocky Helmet isn't needed, but this turns Xatu into a very passive Pokemon and lets Tyranitar fish for Crunch Defense drops. A set with dual screens, U-turn, and Light Clay is also possible, but this is done better by Espeon because of its base Speed.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Offensive Stealth Rock users**: Xatu's biggest issue is its Stealth Rock weakness, so Stealth Rock users that can KO or threaten it out are problematic. Heatran can heavily damage Xatu with Magma Storm or Lava Plume, effectively defeating it or scaring it away to use Stealth Rock. Terrakion threatens an immediate KO with Stone Edge, letting it freely set up Swords Dance, Substitute, or Stealth Rock. Jirachi can threaten to KO Xatu with Thunder or Iron Head flinches to safely set up Stealth Rock, but sets reliant on the latter must be wary of Reflect + Rocky Helmet. Offensive Ground-types like Garchomp, Mamoswine, and Excadrill scare Xatu away with strong attacks or setup moves in order to safely use Stealth Rock. Mold Breaker Excadrill in particular can set up Stealth Rock freely.
**Rain Pokemon**: Politoed loves using Xatu as a way to safely activate Drizzle, and it 2HKOes Xatu with Scald. With rain up, Tentacruel and Starmie can freely use Rapid Spin or their STAB moves with almost no penalty against it. Tornadus threatens Xatu out with Hurricane, so it can grab momentum with Substitute, Tailwind, or U-turn. Keldeo also threatens an immediate KO with its Water-type attacks in rain. Jirachi can freely set up a 101 HP Substitute on Xatu and threaten it with perfect accuracy Thunder.
**Setup Sweepers**: Reuniclus can use Xatu to set up Calm Mind or Trick Room with almost no penalty, and it threatens Xatu with Thunder, Hidden Power Ice, or Shadow Ball; however, chip damage from Night Shade and U-turn can force Reuniclus to spend a turn healing. Volcarona can use Xatu to safely set up Quiver Dance, but it needs to watch out for Toxic if it's lacking Lum Berry. Gliscor can set up Swords Dance on Xatu with almost no penalty, since it can outstall Feather Dance's PP and heal Night Shade damage with Protect + Poison Heal, but it must be wary of the rare Hidden Power Ice or Skill Swap. Poison Heal Breloom can use Xatu to set up Swords Dance or Bulk Up, as it can use Protect + Poison Heal to negate Night Shade damage; however, Xatu wins if sand or hail is up, or if it's carrying Skill Swap or a STAB move.
**Tyranitar**: Choice Scarf Tyranitar can heavily damage Xatu before it can set up Reflect, effectively defeating it. Slower Tyranitar can also defeat Rocky Helmet Xatu by using Ice Beam or Stone Edge, or a non-Rocky Helmet variant with a Crunch Defense drop, opening opportunities to set up Stealth Rock.
**Dragon-types**: Powerful Dragon-types like Latios, Kyurem-B, and Hydreigon threaten an immediate KO with their STAB moves. Pokemon like Dragonite, Latias, Kyurem, and Salamence can use Xatu as setup fodder for Substitute, Calm Mind, or Dragon Dance.
**Electric-types**: Rotom-W can heavily damage Xatu with Hydro Pump or steal offensive momentum via slow Volt Switch. Magnezone scares Xatu away immediately with Thunderbolt or Volt Switch. Thundurus-T can force Xatu out to safely set up Substitute or Agility.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Caetano93, 394051]]
- Quality checked by: [[Excal, 456373], [We Three Kings, 246992]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [CryoGiro, 331519]]
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