[OVERVIEW]
Celebi’s main niche in BW OU is as a bulky pivot due to its good resistances, bulk, and utility movepool. Celebi is especially effective against rain teams, as it walls Keldeo unless it runs the otherwise inferior Hidden Power Bug while also being able to shrug off attacks from Latios and Thundurus-T. Celebi is also unique in that it doesn’t mind Scald burns due to Natural Cure, letting it take strong hits, heal, and U-turn out to gain momentum. Additionally, Celebi is probably the best Breloom answer in the game, as it takes even Gem- and Swords Dance-boosted attacks well. Celebi also helps shore up teams against Alakazam and Reuniclus lacking Signal Beam, as it is able to safely pivot in a Pursuit user like Tyranitar with U-turn. Celebi has a huge support movepool and can run options such as Nasty Plot, Thunder Wave, Worry Seed, Stealth Rock, and Perish Song. However, Celebi is uncommon because of several crippling flaws, primarily its propensity to getting forced out by common Pokemon like Volcarona and Heatran, weakness to common moves like U-turn and Ice Beam, susceptibility to being worn down by Spikes, and vulnerability to Pursuit. Although Celebi walls most Pokemon on rain teams, Ferrothorn walls it and can use it to set up entry hazards while pressuring it with Knock Off. This issue, in tandem with its vulnerability to entry hazards, necessitates Rapid Spin support, making the team structures Celebi fits on quite limited. Being a Stealth Rock user so weak to Volcarona is also a huge vulnerability, as it can come in easily and start setting up without having to take Stealth Rock damage.
[SET]
name: Bulky Pivot
move 1: Recover
move 2: U-turn
move 3: Grass Knot / Psychic
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Stealth Rock
item: Leftovers
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Calm
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Celebi’s primary purpose is to tank rain boosted Water-type attacks and pivot out with U-turn. U-turn lets Celebi pivot in teammates safely, wears down Tyranitar a bit, and breaks Alakazam’s Focus Sash. Grass Knot is preferred for hitting Tyranitar and Gastrodon and doing reliable damage to most Pokemon. However, Psychic OHKOs Breloom, hits Rotom-W harder than Grass Knot, and lets Celebi avoid getting completely walled by Volcarona. Hidden Power Ice 2HKOes Dragonite, physically defensive Gliscor, and Garchomp while preventing Thundurus-T from setting up Substitute with impunity. Celebi can run Stealth Rock due to its ability to wall Tentacruel and pressure it with Psychic, letting it keep Stealth Rock up well against rain teams.
Set Details
========
Full investment in Special Defense lets Celebi match up as well as possible into the special attackers it is tasked with checking. 32 Speed EVs can be run to outpace positive nature Tyranitar. Celebi can also run a Sassy nature and no speed IVs for a slower U-turn.
Team Options
========
Celebi fits primarily on sand teams as the primary answer to strong Water-type attacks. Excadrill is an almost mandatory partner since it spins the entry hazards Celebi often lets get on the field and checks Pokemon like Tyranitar and Reuniclus. Celebi switches in well to prominent Excadrill answers such as Water-types, offensive Breloom, and Gliscor while even potentially setting up Stealth Rock. Tyranitar can keep Volcarona under control with Tanga Berry, a Rock-type move, or Thunder Wave while Celebi opens up some flexibility for Tyranitar by handling Psychic-types like Reuniclus and Alakazam lacking Signal Beam throughout the game while also dealing with rain sweepers. Celebi needs backup against rain teams since they often have Pokemon that pressure it. Rotom-W and Gastrodon are fantastic choices, as Rotom-W can form a VoltTurn core with Celebi, answer Tornadus, and burn checks like Ferrothorn, and it appreciates Celebi acting as a more reliable Keldeo answer. Gastrodon is a good check to Volcarona lacking Giga Drain and provides a backup answer against Water-type attacks if Celebi is too weakened or is eliminated by Pursuit. Heatran answers Volcarona and Latios, can set up Stealth Rock, and benefits from Celebi answering Water- and Fighting-types like Rotom-W and Terrakion. Celebi appreciates Magnezone support, as it permanently eliminates Skarmory and Ferrothorn so entry hazards can't be set again after being removed. Celebi can easily pivot to Magnezone with U-turn, providing it with good trapping opportunities. Specially defensive Swords Dance Gliscor works well alongside Celebi and Magnezone in particular, as Gliscor provides a good answer to Psychic-types lacking Hidden Power Ice, acts as a better check to Terrakion, and loves Magnezone support. Keldeo answers Fire- and Dark-types like Volcarona and Tyranitar while having a better matchup against the hyper offense teams Celebi often struggles with.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Celebi has access to Nasty Plot and Swords Dance to set up on the common Pokemon it walls. However, it can struggle to find setup opportunities, and most teams can easily handle it. Celebi has many utility moves that potentially have use, such as Worry Seed or Sucker Punch to break Alakazam’s Focus Sash, Thunder Wave to prevent Pokemon such as Volcarona from setting up on it, Perish Song to force out Calm Mind Reuniclus, or Healing Wish to fully heal Tyranitar after it has been worn down. However, giving up the coverage of Hidden Power Ice or the superior role compression and utility of Stealth Rock means Celebi is even greater setup bait.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Fire-types**: Heatran, and especially Volcarona, are extremely dangerous to Celebi since they can easily KO it with their Fire-type STAB moves. Heatran can take advantage of it to set up Stealth Rock or Substitute, while Volcarona can use Celebi as setup fodder with Quiver Dance.
**Entry Hazards**: Celebi is very vulnerable to entry hazards and easily allows Skarmory and Ferrothron to set them up. This severely limits Celebi’s longevity and limits when it can switch in and wall threats.
**Tyranitar**: Tyranitar can force Pursuit mindgames while doing a lot of damage with Crunch should Celebi decide to stay.
**Steel-types**: Celebi is completely walled by a myriad of Steel-types. Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Jirachi set up entry hazards freely in front of it. Scizor is particularly dangerous since Choice Scarf variants can outspeed and OHKO Celebi with U-turn and Swords Dance sets can use it as setup fodder.
**Dragon-types**: Without Hidden Power Ice, Celebi is setup fodder for Garchomp, Dragonite, and Salamence. Kyurem-B doesn’t care about any of Celebi’s offensive options while Latios deals a ton of damage with Draco Meteor and doesn't take much damage from Hidden Power Ice.
**Super Effective Coverage**: Pokemon Celebi should answer, such as Keldeo and Alakazam, can run Bug-type coverage to lure in and KO Celebi.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [johnnyg2, 57904]]
- Quality checked by: [[Ophion, 433215], [Zokuru, 263906]]
- Grammar checked by: [[dex, 277988]]
Celebi’s main niche in BW OU is as a bulky pivot due to its good resistances, bulk, and utility movepool. Celebi is especially effective against rain teams, as it walls Keldeo unless it runs the otherwise inferior Hidden Power Bug while also being able to shrug off attacks from Latios and Thundurus-T. Celebi is also unique in that it doesn’t mind Scald burns due to Natural Cure, letting it take strong hits, heal, and U-turn out to gain momentum. Additionally, Celebi is probably the best Breloom answer in the game, as it takes even Gem- and Swords Dance-boosted attacks well. Celebi also helps shore up teams against Alakazam and Reuniclus lacking Signal Beam, as it is able to safely pivot in a Pursuit user like Tyranitar with U-turn. Celebi has a huge support movepool and can run options such as Nasty Plot, Thunder Wave, Worry Seed, Stealth Rock, and Perish Song. However, Celebi is uncommon because of several crippling flaws, primarily its propensity to getting forced out by common Pokemon like Volcarona and Heatran, weakness to common moves like U-turn and Ice Beam, susceptibility to being worn down by Spikes, and vulnerability to Pursuit. Although Celebi walls most Pokemon on rain teams, Ferrothorn walls it and can use it to set up entry hazards while pressuring it with Knock Off. This issue, in tandem with its vulnerability to entry hazards, necessitates Rapid Spin support, making the team structures Celebi fits on quite limited. Being a Stealth Rock user so weak to Volcarona is also a huge vulnerability, as it can come in easily and start setting up without having to take Stealth Rock damage.
[SET]
name: Bulky Pivot
move 1: Recover
move 2: U-turn
move 3: Grass Knot / Psychic
move 4: Hidden Power Ice / Stealth Rock
item: Leftovers
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Calm
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Celebi’s primary purpose is to tank rain boosted Water-type attacks and pivot out with U-turn. U-turn lets Celebi pivot in teammates safely, wears down Tyranitar a bit, and breaks Alakazam’s Focus Sash. Grass Knot is preferred for hitting Tyranitar and Gastrodon and doing reliable damage to most Pokemon. However, Psychic OHKOs Breloom, hits Rotom-W harder than Grass Knot, and lets Celebi avoid getting completely walled by Volcarona. Hidden Power Ice 2HKOes Dragonite, physically defensive Gliscor, and Garchomp while preventing Thundurus-T from setting up Substitute with impunity. Celebi can run Stealth Rock due to its ability to wall Tentacruel and pressure it with Psychic, letting it keep Stealth Rock up well against rain teams.
Set Details
========
Full investment in Special Defense lets Celebi match up as well as possible into the special attackers it is tasked with checking. 32 Speed EVs can be run to outpace positive nature Tyranitar. Celebi can also run a Sassy nature and no speed IVs for a slower U-turn.
Team Options
========
Celebi fits primarily on sand teams as the primary answer to strong Water-type attacks. Excadrill is an almost mandatory partner since it spins the entry hazards Celebi often lets get on the field and checks Pokemon like Tyranitar and Reuniclus. Celebi switches in well to prominent Excadrill answers such as Water-types, offensive Breloom, and Gliscor while even potentially setting up Stealth Rock. Tyranitar can keep Volcarona under control with Tanga Berry, a Rock-type move, or Thunder Wave while Celebi opens up some flexibility for Tyranitar by handling Psychic-types like Reuniclus and Alakazam lacking Signal Beam throughout the game while also dealing with rain sweepers. Celebi needs backup against rain teams since they often have Pokemon that pressure it. Rotom-W and Gastrodon are fantastic choices, as Rotom-W can form a VoltTurn core with Celebi, answer Tornadus, and burn checks like Ferrothorn
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Celebi has access to Nasty Plot and Swords Dance to set up on the common Pokemon it walls. However, it can struggle to find setup opportunities, and most teams can easily handle it. Celebi has many utility moves that potentially have use, such as Worry Seed or Sucker Punch to break Alakazam’s Focus Sash, Thunder Wave to prevent Pokemon such as Volcarona from setting up on it, Perish Song to force out Calm Mind Reuniclus, or Healing Wish to fully heal Tyranitar after it has been worn down. However, giving up the coverage of Hidden Power Ice or the superior role compression and utility of Stealth Rock means Celebi is even greater setup bait.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Fire-types**: Heatran, and especially Volcarona, are extremely dangerous to Celebi since they can easily KO it with their Fire-type STAB moves. Heatran can take advantage of it to set up Stealth Rock or Substitute, while Volcarona can use Celebi as setup fodder with Quiver Dance.
**Entry Hazards**: Celebi is very vulnerable to entry hazards and easily allows Skarmory and Ferrothron to set them up. This severely limits Celebi’s longevity and limits when it can switch in and wall threats.
**Tyranitar**: Tyranitar can force Pursuit mindgames while doing a lot of damage with Crunch should Celebi decide to stay.
**Steel-types**: Celebi is completely walled by a myriad of Steel-types. Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Jirachi set up entry hazards freely in front of it. Scizor is particularly dangerous since Choice Scarf variants can outspeed and OHKO Celebi with U-turn and Swords Dance sets can use it as setup fodder.
**Dragon-types**: Without Hidden Power Ice, Celebi is setup fodder for Garchomp, Dragonite, and Salamence. Kyurem-B doesn’t care about any of Celebi’s offensive options while Latios deals a ton of damage with Draco Meteor and doesn't take much damage from Hidden Power Ice.
**Super Effective Coverage**: Pokemon Celebi should answer, such as Keldeo and Alakazam, can run Bug-type coverage to lure in and KO Celebi.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [johnnyg2, 57904]]
- Quality checked by: [[Ophion, 433215], [Zokuru, 263906]]
- Grammar checked by: [[dex, 277988]]
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