Gen 3 Deoxys-A (Ubers)

Minority

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Tremble before pointy tentacle forme

[Overview]

Deoxys-A is the best cleaner and revenge killer in Ubers, with the offense to 2HKO most Pokemon in the tier and the Speed to outspeed them all, besides weather sweepers. Its relative ease to keep hidden in the back of a team, combined with the stark variation between its three potential held items, keeps opponents guessing. To back up these traits, Deoxys-A also has an exotic and powerful movepool with everything from Ice Beam to Superpower and Extreme Speed. Extreme Speed's priority, especially, is scarce and invaluable for extra protection against some of the tier's greatest endgame threats, such as Salac Berry Groudon, Salac Berry Kyogre, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. However, Deoxys-A remains the ultimate glass cannon, with zero defensive utility outside of priority. It therefore requires revenge killing or smart pivots to get it into play. Additionally, teams explicitly structure themselves against Deoxys-A's movepool by combining Normal-types, Steel-types, and a Fighting-resistant Pokemon, thereby forcing prediction when using a Choice Band or Superpower.

[SET]
name: Spell Tag
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Rock Slide / Fire Punch / Thunder
item: Spell Tag
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Spell Tag gives a small power boost to Deoxys-A's Shadow Ball, which lets Deoxys-A always OHKO Latios and substantially increases its chance at KOing a chipped Latias, while still allowing it to switch between moves. This lets it unleash a surprise coverage move and clean or wallbreak more flexibly. Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, Omastar, Qwilfish, Kabutops, Exeggutor, Shiftry, and opposing Deoxys-A. In addition to Latios and Latias, Shadow Ball also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops. Superpower is how Deoxys-A smacks Normal- and Steel-types and is Spell Tag Deoxys-A's strongest move. Rock Slide is great for teams that need to more easily handle Ho-Oh, and it can fish for free turns when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch pairs with sun teams to deal major damage to conventional Deoxys-A checks such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Thunder is a good counterpart for rain teams, making surprising use of Deoxys-A's high Special Attack against Pokemon such as Kyogre and Skarmory. Solar Beam is also an option for teams that really need Deoxys-A to blast through Groudon, and Pursuit helps it securely revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other Deoxys-A. Extreme Speed can be potentially dropped for another coverage move on teams that don't necessarily need the extra revenge killing potential. A Jolly nature may be used to provide additional protection against opposing Deoxys-A. Run a Lonely nature if using a special attack such as Fire Punch, Thunder, Solar Beam, or Pursuit.

Spell Tag Deoxys-A fits on a wide range of teams, from hyper offense to bulky offense and balance teams, and it requires no specific support. Because Spell Tag Deoxys-A is somewhat customizable in regards to what threats it can bypass, its teammates more often determine the set than the other way around. Common major obstacles for Deoxys-A are Steel-types, most notably Pursuit Metagross, so Magneton and Dugtrio are good choices to trap them, and they make a move choice such as Rock Slide more appealing. A full-health Kyogre or Groudon is an effective check when not running Thunder or Solar Beam, so Spikes setters such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, and Qwilfish are highly effective, and they double as a way to get residual damage on Steel-types. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, and/or Steel-types are also good partners, such as Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, and Choice Band users such as Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, and Lugia. Deoxys-A also appreciates a team structure that can combat opposing weather sweepers, so running Groudon, Kyogre, or both is highly recommended.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Double-Edge / Rock Slide
item: Choice Band
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Choice Band maximizes Deoxys-A's power to bust through bulky threats, especially Kyogre and Groudon, when cleaning or wallbreaking. Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. Shadow Ball is mainly for Latios and Latias, but it also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops, and it is fairly spammable if Normal-types have been eliminated. Superpower is how Deoxys-A breaks through Normal- and Steel-types, but it can be unfavorable to lock into due to Ghost-types, Latios, Latias, and the Attack drops. Double-Edge is the strongest reliable move available to Deoxys-A, dealing high damage to key targets such as Kyogre, Groudon, and Ho-Oh without locking Deoxys-A into Superpower or Shadow Ball, moves which more common foes are resistant or immune to. Rock Slide is for teams that need to more easily bypass Ho-Oh, and it can fish for free turns when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch can be used on sun teams to surprise typical Choice Band Deoxys-A switch-ins, such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Pursuit is also a worthy option to securely revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other Deoxys-A. A Jolly nature may be used to provide additional protection against opposing Deoxys-A. Run a Lonely nature if using a special attack such as Fire Punch or Pursuit.

Choice Band Deoxys-A fits on hyper offense and bulky offense teams as the most immediately powerful cleaner around. The major obstacles for its cleaning are Pokemon that deny it from easily clicking Double-Edge or Shadow Ball, which are primarily Steel-types, especially Pursuit Metagross. Magneton, Dugtrio, and Spikes setters, such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, and Qwilfish, are highly effective at trapping and removing them or chipping them down. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, and/or Steel-types are also good partners, softening up these targets for Deoxys-A to clean; Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, and Choice Band users such as Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, and Lugia all accomplish this. Some of the few Pokemon that can outspeed Deoxys-A are weather sweepers, so running Groudon, Kyogre, or both is highly recommended to help keep the weather in your favor. Blissey is also a notable partner, as it can stonewall most Latios and Latias sets, giving Deoxys-A a safe switch into these threats if it's locked into Superpower.

[SET]
name: SubPetaya
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunder
move 4: Superpower
item: Petaya Berry
ability: Pressure
nature: Mild / Hasty
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
ivs: 30 HP

[SET COMMENTS]

Substitute eases Deoxys-A's reliance on prediction and also allows it to activate Petaya Berry, which turns it into a powerful specially-based cleaner. BoltBeam covers most of the tier, and with maximum Special Attack investment, Ice Beam even OHKOes Latios when boosted. Superpower bypasses BoltBeam checks such as Blissey, Snorlax, Tyranitar, Regice, and Umbreon. A Hasty nature allows Deoxys-A to outspeed standard Salac Berry Groudon and Heracross at the cost of some power, which is notable for teams weak to these threats. 30 HP IVs are utilized to activate Petaya Berry on the third Substitute. Thunderbolt can be used instead of Thunder if using this set without rain support, but it is substantially less likely to secure KOs on Kyogre and Ho-Oh.

This set functions best when using Thunder, which entails a rain team with Kyogre, and like with physical Deoxys-A, this set also appreciates Kyogre helping neutralize sun sweepers. A rain sweeper such as Omastar or Qwilfish can provide a defense against opposing Deoxys-A. SubPetaya Deoxys-A cannot hit Shedinja, so Spikes support from Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or Qwilfish is essential, and this also helps pressure Steel-types. Steel-types that take neutral damage from Superpower and Thunder, like Metagross, are also effective checks to this set, so running Magneton or Dugtrio to trap them is also effective.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====

Physical Deoxys-A has a fourth moveslot that is rather flexible, but most of the other moves it gets, such as Psycho Boost, Focus Punch, Spikes, and Knock Off, are far less useful that what's already been discussed.

Checks and Counters
====

**Steel-types**: Metagross and Jirachi resist most of Deoxys-A's moves, and they can take a Superpower or Thunder. Metagross is one of the few Deoxys-A switch-ins, boasting good bulk and the ability to KO or even Pursuit trap it. Jirachi has slightly less physical bulk and lacks Pursuit. Forretress and Skarmory share most of their resistances, are also neutral to Superpower, and have high physical bulk, but a +1 Thunder KOes them. Skarmory can also phaze Substitute variants.

**Defensive Kyogre and Groudon**: Although they struggle against the SubPetaya set, defensive Kyogre and Groudon can comfortably tank physical Deoxys-A's attacks, being major obstacles for a successful clean.

**Pursuit**: In addition to Metagross, Pokemon such as Dusclops, Tyranitar, and opposing Deoxys-A can threaten it with Pursuit, and the former two can switch into some of Deoxys-A's attacks.

**Defensive Ho-Oh and Lugia**: Defensive Ho-Oh and Lugia have the physical bulk to take most physical attacks and are effective against Petaya Berry Deoxys-A in sun, but they can fall to Rock Slide and/or Thunder.

**Defensive Latias**: It does take major damage from a Choice Band-boosted Shadow Ball, but defensive Latias can tank any Deoxys-A attack and KO back with Dragon Claw.

**Swampert**: Bulky and difficult for Deoxys-A to hit effectively, especially for the SubPetaya set, Swampert can tank Deoxys-A's attacks and KO back.

**Revenge Killers*: Extreme Speed users such as Rayquaza and opposing Deoxys-A, as well as Deoxys-S and weather sweepers such as Omastar, Exeggutor, Kabutops, Qwilfish, and Shiftry, are the only Pokemon that can attack before Deoxys-A. Omastar and Kabutops especially resist Extreme Speed and have good physical bulk.

**Protect**: Although a somewhat uncommon move, Protect can scout out Choice Band Deoxys-A's moves, allowing for a safe response.

[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/minority.222996/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/inspirited.127823/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/exiline.246168/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/adeleine.517429/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/aurora.109385/
 
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Inspirited

There is usually higher ground.
is a Contributor Alumnus
Overview:
It is not only the arguable best cleaner but also uses its stats and movepool to break important team pieces pretty often. It is also one of the best revenge-killers. You mention these traits in the pieces that make up the physical set so I think a bit about it here would be appropriate. Selling Deoxys as just the best cleaner isn't doing it justice for me. Everything else here is well put.

Physical Attacker:
I'm personally not the biggest fan of Double-Edge band/tag Deoxys as while its health isn't important when it comes to taking hits in general (other than weak Pursuits), it is really important when you factor in Spikes vs stall. In the same vein, Rock Slide is one of the most useful moves in the Stall matchup mostly because of its common partner Snorlax paralyzing Lugia at some point (not guaranteed but I digress). It lets a player using offense pin the stall player between the weather member / Forretress taking Superpower (this damage is a big leverage point usually) and anything else taking Rock Slide. Dusclops complicates this but we're getting pretty matchup specific here so I'll stop. Rock Slide also has decent utility in the matchups like Metagross-less rain or even just typical rain offense as Metagross is often overworked on those teams to begin with. Superpower + Rock Slide compliments Superpower + Shadow Ball so well that I'm going to ask that it be slashed before Double-Edge. I get the strength of Double-Edge (120 power move that trashes most Superpower resists without too much downside), but I do think the extra utility of Rock Slide makes the latter better in more cases.

I also dabble in the dark art of Pursuit on physical Deoxys to give me the option of taking small Latios- and Mewtwo-related advantages against when they are forced out instead of always having to aim for what is switching in. These advantages aren't super intuitive to utilize while also taking some finesse to fully realize, but this is strong enough to be mentioned imo. I have also used it to end other banded Deo-A by showing my opponent enough to inflate the value of the banded Deoxys so that I can remove it from the game due to a threatened ESpeed revenge-kill. It makes selling a well set up story of value worth it to the player and you don't have to aim for other Deo-A for this to be the case. It's hard enough to utilize that I am obligated to tag steelskitty just to make sure I am still in-bounds on this, but I do think this move is viable to the point of mentioning at the very least (actually oo might be a better fit though I do think it is more viable than anything else mentioned there).
tl;dr:
Physical Attacker:
move 4: Rock Slide / Double-Edge

Extremespeed: A point about how it helps protect a team from salac cross, don, and ogre is warranted imo. Priority to help stop these terrors is very scarce and this is the best source of it.

Rock Slide: add more about its utility (makes Spikes nightmarish among other things I mentioned above) and downside (lets in suit gross if used at an improper time). If this part isn't applicable until the write up then just make sure it is implemented when that happens.

(add) Thunder: This can be nasty on Spell Tag in particular if you partner Deoxys with CM Kyogre or an Omastar.

- CB Deoxys-A can also be put on what I call stall in order to help accelerate a game when possible in order to minimize the amount of attacks (potential crits / paras / fp) the core needs to take while also being a looming endgame threat.
- I would give offensively inclined Curse Snorlax a bit of a special mention as a mon that strains steels and the weather guys. It can aggressively force steels to explode at +2 and up, paralyzes Lugia pretty reliably, Groudon hates fighting Curse boosted Snorlax when Deoxys is around, Kyogre is one of the few mons that can handle boosted lax but has trouble doing much afterwards, lax can carry coverage for steels etc all of which really help Deoxys.

Sub Petaya:

I want to go over where people are at with this set on the discord before I write anything else here. The set itself overall looks good.

OO:

Pursuit might end up here.

I really don't like Focus Punch on Deoxys-A ever to be honest. To me, it is too high maintenance for band as you get no reward from it basically and Spell Tag has a whole host of other nasty coverage it would like here instead of doubling down on Superpower for a lil extra bp.

I don't like Psycho Boost for similar reasons and it lets in Deoxys's foil for no real benefit I can see

I like the rest.

C&C:
Separating the steels might be a good idea in the write up. This is the order I would use:
Metagross > Forretress > Skarmory > Jirachi

Add Dusclops somewhere after weather guys as it comes in on the CB Deo's favorite move (Superpower) and gets to play a Pursuit vs Shadow Ball game with the rest of the sets.

I'm excited to see where you take this.
 
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Minority

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There's several reasons I don't like slashing Rock Slide before Double-Edge.

The first is that you give up a lot of power against your two most important targets in the tier (Kyogre and Groudon) as well as some cleaning potential for a move that grants (questionable) advantage in a fringe / suboptimal application (more on this in the next paragraph). There's also an argument to be made that pinning your opponent's anti-Deo-A core with Double-Edge is just as valid if not more so than with Rock Slide. Edge is a far scarier move for Kyogre, Groudon, Latios, and Latias than Rock Slide is. Not only are these the four most important mons in the tier, but they always make up the Deo-A defense in some way, and just as importantly Double Edge is interchangable between them all as opposed to being stuck between Superpower and Rock Slide. The only mon Rock Slide is really punishing is Ho-Oh (which doesn't take DE well either) as all other Spikes immunes (important from an offense perspective) either die to DE anyway, actually take Rock Slide easier, or are so physically bulky (Skarm, Lugia) it won't actually matter in the long term. It should also go without saying that if your only weapon vs. stall is to paraflinch through Lugia / Skarm your teambuilding has structure issues far beyond the scope of this analysis. The only exception here might be Gengar, but that's a dangerous play that an opponent likely can't get away with for long (I'll gladly take Spikes damage for a 50% chance to OHKO Gar) and Deoxys-A takes no recoil from clicking DE even if it gets the predict wrong. As for dealing with Spikes coming from Forry or Skarm, Rock Slide doesn't really help with clicking Superpower vs. these (slightly if they have Ho-Oh, but that's already granted), and you're much better off just trapping them with Mag if you're concerned with that matchup. I really can't undersell how important it is for Deoxys-A to be able to clean through Kyogre and Groudon, as well as Latios and Latias without having to lock into Shadow Ball, much less Superpower, because they are more often than not the flag you must capture before the game can be won.

Another point is that for the most part Deoxys-A is just too valuable to risk as an intermediate breaker anyway, a role better left to the likes of parallel offensive mons such as Mewtwo, Metagross, Snorlax, weather sweepers, or other boomers. To use Deoxys-A early in a match, while situationally valid, is more an act of desperation than one of control over the game. Deoxys-A is just much better equipped as cleaner and revenge killer than a breaker because it has to rely on a CB / single use item / Superpower to reach its full damage output, which is matched against the reality that every team in the tier structures itself with 3+ Pokemon that collectively check it. The issue of Spikes on the field is also resolved (for Deo-A) when you treat it this way and you even minimize your risk of getting trapped by Pursuit. In short, the most lethal time to bring out Deoxys-A is when that anti-Deo-A core has be damaged or dismantled, not while it's still intact.

A final point, but more valid than people give it credit for is that Rock Slide will miss. For some Pokemon like Groudon, Metagross, or Ho-Oh using moves that will miss is unavoidable, but for Deoxys-A it's a choice. Things are made that much worse with Deoxys-A because it's a Pokemon you absolutely cannot afford to miss with as having zero defensive utility typically means it can only come into play when the opponent gets a kill (permanent game progression), or by switching in (a risk). Taking a risk to get a guaranteed punish is one thing, but taking a risk just to have a chance at another risk is diminishing returns.


Agree with all other points and updated the analysis accordingly.
 
I'm pretty sure my opinions regarding Deo-A qualify as controversial so I'll try to explain my reasoning for my arguments as much as possible.

I believe CB Deo-A and Spell Tag Deo-A should be two separate sets. While their movesets are mostly similar, I believe their playstyle and typical team compositions are different enough to warrant the separation.

Honestly, I don't think CB Deo-A is a very good set compared to Spell Tag. It is constantly 50/50ing (or worse) even when it is in a favorable position because there are so many staple resists and immunities to its two main clicks. The gamestates where you aren't guessing take too much work to be worth talking about. CB is better, though, at getting clean KOs without (much) extra work, which allows it to serve as a better stopgate to CurseLax and Mono Latias specifically. Blissey teams appreciate CB Deo-A because Blissey creates a lot of opportunities for a safe switch against Mono Latias and Spell Tag Deo-A often falls short of actually getting the KO.

Double-Edge is the best 4th on CB, imo, because it's a lot harder to midground vs Dedge/Super than it is to vs Sball/Super. Furthermore, Dedge doesn't have to worry about the popular and dangerous immunity that Sball has to deal with in the form of Snorlax. Not to mention how exploitable it is mid/late game to force CB into locking into a move that you can setup/kill off of.

If your team doesn't have an answer to Spikes and relies on CB Deo-A as your key breaker then your Stall matchup just isn't salvageable. The high risk, hard read random coverage filler 4th isn't going to enough to save you outside of papermons.

I don't think I would ever run Dedge on Spell because your random coverage filler 4th is so much easier and safer to take advantage of. Between Rock Slide, Solar Beam, Sun Fire Punch, Thunder, etc. your opponent has to either scout or just cross their fingers that their Ho-Oh, Groudon, Metagross, Rain Skarmory, etc. actually checks your Spell Deo or not. Things are even harder if the Spell Deo can afford to drop Espeed utility for an extra filler coverage.

Fat Ho-Oh should very much be in CC, imo. Lugia mostly works, too, vs Spell. Might be worth having two lists of counters since there are a lot more pinch Sub Petaya checks you can mention that don't work much at all vs Physical sets. Also, Protect scouting is great vs CB.

Hasty is very much worth slashing on the Sub Petaya set since it lets you pick off Adamant Salac Groudon/Heracross and the set functions mostly the same in spite of the loss of power.

I would put Extreme Speed as 3rd slash on the Spell set (assuming you do split the two). I wouldn't slash anything with it but I would mention in set details that you can potentially drop it for extra coverage if you don't need the RK utility vs pinch berry mons and don't care about the speed tie. It's not something that comes up often but I think it is worth knowing about.
 

Minority

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After some serious consideration I've decided to separate Spell Tag and Choice Band into several sets. I've also implemented most of the above feedback.
 

Inspirited

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is a Contributor Alumnus
I am personally more of a band > tag guy but the info here is more than good enough for a 1/2
 

Exiline

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good to go for me, maybe we could add a little part saying how very present pursuit metagross is in offenses nowadays and that you should aim to only bring deo-a once meta is weakened/gone as it basically wins by itself once metagross is KO'ed versus offenses.
this could also go into the teamoptions thingy, saying that deo-a really appreciates mon that can lure and weaken metagross outside of spikes(mainly thinking snorlax here, but magneton can work too...there is also CB rayquaza that also allows it to run solar beam + thunder if you're into cheesier stuff).
I know that the current analysis already talk about metagross, steeltype and bringing deo-a along other physical monster or w.e but I think adding a little paragraph about pursuit metagross would be very beneficial because of how much the pursuit metagross / deo-a interactions define the offense match-up in today's meta.
 

UT

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Appeals + C&C Lead
add remove conjecture
[Overview]

Deoxys-A is the best cleaner and revenge killer in Ubers with 180 base offenses that 2HKO most Pokemon in the tier and 150 base Speed which makes it faster than everything that isn't a weather sweeper thanks to its ability to 2HKO almost all relevant Pokemon and outspeed everything other than weather sweepers. Its relative ease to keep hidden in the back of a team combined with and the stark variation between its three potential held items keep opponents guessing. To backup these traits In addition, Deoxys-A also has an exotic a wide and powerful movepool with everything from Ice Beam, to Superpower, to Superpower to Extreme Speed. Priority especially is scarce and invaluable for giving teams its team extra protection against some of the tier's greatest endgame threats such as Salac Groudon, Salac Kyogre, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. However, (comma) Deoxys-A remains the ultimate glass cannon with zero defensive utility outside of priority, thereby requiring revenge killing or smart pivots to get it into play utility, so it can only come in on a smart pivot or after a teammate faints. Additionally, teams often unless every good team does? don't know the meta explicitly structure themselves against Deoxys-A's movepool by combining Normal-types, Steel-types, and a Fighting-type resistance, thereby forcing prediction with a Normal-type, a Steel-type, and a Pokemon that resists Fighting to force Deoxys-A to make smart predictions when utilizing a Choice Band or Superpower.

[SET]
name: Spell Tag
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Rock Slide / Fire Punch / Thunder
item: Spell Tag
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

A Spell Tag gives Deoxys-A a small power boost to its Shadow Ball, which is key for KOing Latios and Latias, (comma) while still allowing it to switch between moves to pack a huge surprise or potentially increase cleaning or intermediate breaking potential moves and surprise its switch-ins that expected a Choice Band set I assume, this sentence was vague and I am trying to make it more specific. Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, Omastar, Qwilfish, Kabutops, Exeggutor, Shiftry, and opposing Deoxys-A Rayquaza, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. In addition to Latios and Latias, Shadow Ball also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops long list, pick the three most relevant. Superpower is how Deoxys-A smacks Normal- and Steel-types that resist Ghost and is Spell Tag Deoxys-A's strongest overall move. Rock Slide is great for teams that want to bypass Ho-Oh, (comma) and it can fish for hax flinches when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch pairs well with sun teams to deal major damage to conventional Deoxys-A checks such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Thunder is a good counterpart option for rain teams to make surprising use of Deoxys-A's strong Special Attack against Pokemon such as beat Kyogre and Skarmory. Solar Beam is also an option for teams that really need Deoxys-A to blast through Groudon, and Pursuit aids to helps revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other opposing Deoxys-A to ensure they can't switch away that might try to switch out. Extreme Speed can be potentially dropped for one of its second additional coverage moves on teams that do not necessarily need the extra revenge killing potential. Run a Lonely Nature if using a speical A Lonely nature is recommended if using a special attack such as Fire Punch, Thunder, Solar Beam, or Pursuit. you have Adamant and Jolly slashed on the main set, but do not explain why you would use one over the other. Are there any particularly relevant KOs that Adamant gets that Jolly doesn't?

Spell Tag Deoxys-A fits on a wide range of teams from hyper offense, to bulky offense, offense to bulky offense to balance and requires no specific support. Because Spell Tag Deoxys-A is somewhat customizable in regards to what threats it wants to bypass beat, its teammates more often determine the set rather than the other way around. Common major obstacles for Deoxys-A are Steel-types Deoxys-A struggles to beat Steel-types, most notably Pursuit Metagross, so Steel-type trappers Pokemon that can trap and remove them such as Magneton or and Dugtrio are good choices and make a move choice such as Rock Slide more appealing teammates; they also allow Deoxys-A to forgo coverage for Steel-types, making Rock Slide sets more appealing. A full-health Kyogre or Groudon is an effective check when not running Thunder or Solar Beam, so Spike Spikes setters such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or and Qwilfish are highly effective, and double as a way to get residual damage on Steel-types. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive pressure Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, or and Steel-types are also good partners, such as Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, (comma) and Choice Band users such as including Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, or and Lugia this list is too long, pick the 3-4 most relevant and go with those. Deoxys-A also appreciates a team structure that is able to combat opposing weather sweepers, so a Groudon, Kyogre, or both are highly recommended.


I started to GP this, but noticed that the Choice Band set had a very high degree of overlap with the Spell Tag set, in many places being word-for-word. I would recommend either combining them into one set if they are that similar, or re-writing one (or both) to better differentiate them. I have also included the check I had so far for the overview and first set, please feel free to ping or tag me directly once you have had a chance to re-work the set(s) and I will finish the check!
 

Minority

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I started to GP this, but noticed that the Choice Band set had a very high degree of overlap with the Spell Tag set, in many places being word-for-word. I would recommend either combining them into one set if they are that similar, or re-writing one (or both) to better differentiate them. I have also included the check I had so far for the overview and first set, please feel free to ping or tag me directly once you have had a chance to re-work the set(s) and I will finish the check!
I've gone ahead and updated these two sets to have far more variation between them. Should be different enough now to check.
 

Adeleine

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[Overview]

Deoxys-A is the best cleaner and revenge killer in Ubers with 180 base offenses that Ubers, with the offense to 2HKO most Pokemon in the tier and 150 base Speed which makes it faster than everything that isn't a weather sweeper. and the Speed to outspeed them all, besides weather sweepers. Its relative ease to keep hidden in the back of a team, (AC) combined with the stark variation between its three potential held items, (AC) keep keeps opponents guessing. To backup back up these traits, (AC) Deoxys-A also has an exotic and powerful movepool with everything from Ice Beam, to Superpower, to Beam to Superpower and Extreme Speed. Priority especially Extreme Speed's priority, especially, is scarce and invaluable for giving teams extra protection against some of the tier's greatest endgame threats, (AC) such as Salac Berry Groudon, Salac Berry Kyogre, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. However, (AC) Deoxys-A remains the ultimate glass cannon, (AC) with zero defensive utility outside of priority, thereby requiring priority. It therefore requires revenge killing or smart pivots to get it into play. Additionally, teams explicitly structure themselves against Deoxys-A's movepool by combining Normal-types, Steel-types, and a Fighting-type resistance, Fighting-resistant Pokemon, thereby forcing prediction when utilizing using a Choice Band or Superpower.

[SET]
name: Spell Tag
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Rock Slide / Fire Punch / Thunder
item: Spell Tag
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

A Spell Tag gives Deoxys-A a small power boost to its Deoxys-A's Shadow Ball, which is key for KOing Latios and Latias, (AC) (also, it's not clear how spell tag is key for koing them. does it enable or gurantee ohkos? are latis often chipped into range where spell tag will ko but no item deo wouldn't? could you clarify that somehow) while still allowing it to switch between moves to pack a huge surprise or potentially increase cleaning or intermediate breaking potential. moves. This lets it unleash a surprise coverage move and clean or wallbreak more flexibly. (I imagine this makes sense?) Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, Omastar, (would guess expeed not doing a lot to it, and maybe kabutops either, but up to you if you wanna keep them mentioend) Qwilfish, Kabutops, Exeggutor, Shiftry, and opposing Deoxys-A. In addition to Latios and Latias, Shadow Ball also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops. Superpower is how Deoxys-A smacks Normal- and Steel-types and is Spell Tag Deoxys's strongest overall move. Rock Slide is great for teams that need to more easily handle Ho-Oh, (AC) and it can fish for hax free turns when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch pairs with sun teams to deal major damage to conventional Deoxys-A checks such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Thunder is a good counterpart for rain teams to make teams, making surprising use of Deoxys-A's strong high Special Attack against Pokemon such as Kyogre and Skarmory. Solar Beam is also an option for teams that really need Deoxys-A to blast through Groudon, and Pursuit aids to helps it securely revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other Deoxys-A to ensure they can't switch away. Extreme Speed can be potentially dropped for one of its second coverage moves another coverage move on teams that do not don't necessarily need the extra revenge killing potential. (is jolly just for opposing deo-a? some elaboration could help) Run a Lonely Nature nature if using a speical special attack such as Fire Punch, Thunder, Solar Beam, or Pursuit.

Spell Tag Deoxys-A fits on a wide range of teams, (AC) from hyper offense, to bulky offense, to balance and offense to bulky offense and balance teams, and it requires no specific support. Because Spell Tag Deoxys-A is somewhat customizable in regards to what threats it wants to can bypass, its teammates more often determine the set rather than the other way around. Common major obstacles for Deoxys-A are Steel-types, most notably Pursuit Metagross, so Steel-type trappers such as Magneton or Magneton and Dugtrio are good choices and to trap them, and they make a move choice such as Rock Slide more appealing. A full-health Kyogre or Groudon is an effective check when not running Thunder or Solar Beam, so Spike Spikes setters such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or Qwilfish are highly effective, and they double as a way to get residual damage on Steel-types. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, and/or (I imagine?) Steel-types are also good partners, such as Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, (AC) and Choice Band users such as Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, or Lugia. Deoxys-A also appreciates a team structure that is able to can combat opposing weather sweepers, so a running Groudon, Kyogre, or both are is highly recommended.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Double-Edge / Rock Slide
item: Choice Band
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Choice Band maximizes Deoxys-A's power to bust through bulky threats, especially Kyogre and Groudon, when cleaning or wallbreaking. Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, (same not as before re omastar and kabutops) Omastar, Qwilfish, Kabutops, Exeggutor, Shiftry, and opposing Deoxys-A. Shadow Ball is mainly for Latios and Latias, but it also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops while also serving as a fairly clickable move Dusclops, and it is fairly spammable if Normal-types have been eliminated. Superpower is how Deoxys-A breaks through Normal- and Steel-types, but it can be an unfavorable move to be locked unfavorable to lock into due to Ghost-types, Latis, Latios, Latias, and the Attack drops. Double-Edge is the strongest reliable move available to Deoxys-A, which deals dealing high damage to key targets such as Kyogre, Groudon, and Ho-Oh without being locked between locking Deoxys-A into Superpower or Shadow Ball, both moves which the opposing team likely has one or more immunities and resistances to. more common foes are resistant or immune to. (I imagine this makes sense? bc i imagine many teams have at least one steel-type that resists dedge) Rock Slide is for teams that need to more easily bypass Ho-Oh, and it can fish for hax free turns when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch can be used on sun teams to surprise typical Choice Band Deoxys-A switch-ins, (AC) such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Pursuit is also a worthy option when seeking to securely revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other Deoxys-A to ensure they can't escape. (same deal with adamant/jolly as prior set) Run a Lonely Nature nature if using a speical special attack such as Fire Punch or Pursuit.

Choice Band Deoxys-A fits on hyper offense and bulky offense teams that are looking for as the most immediately powerful cleaner around. The major obstacles for Choice Band Deoxys-A's ability to clean its cleaning are Pokemon which that deny it from easily clicking Double-Edge or Shadow Ball, which are primarily Steel-types, especially Pursuit Metagross. Steel-type trappers such as Magneton or Dugtrio as well as Spike Magneton, Dugtrio, and Spikes setters, (AC) such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or Qwilfish, (AC) are highly effective at trapping and removing them or chipping down Deoxys-A's largest obstacle, which makes them great offensive teammates. them down. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, and/or (I imagine?) Steel-types are also good partners, (AC) as they soften softening up these targets for Deoxys-A to clean them; (alternatively "finish them off" etc) Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, (AC) and Choice Band users such as Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, or Lugia all accomplish this. One Some of the few Pokemon that can outspeed Deoxys-A are opposing weather sweepers, so a Groudon, Kyogre, or both are running Groudon, Kyogre, or both is highly recommended to provide options for keeping help keep the weather in your favor. Blissey is also a notable partner, (AC) as it can full stop stonewall most Latios and Latias sets, (AC) and allows Doexys-A a safe switch-in while Choice Band Deoxys-A actually has the power to eliminate Latios and Latias consistently. giving Deoxys-A a safe switch into these threats if it's locked into Superpower. (this was a bit unclear. fix "if it's locked into Superpower" if that's wrong or misleading, but im also not sure how deo a having the power to eliminate latis makes it a good teammate w blissey. you can re-add that part if you clarify what's going on a bit)

[SET]
name: SubPetaya (removed space in between)
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Superpower (would prefer either spower listed last bc its sentence in set comments is last. or you could change things around in set comments, just dont literally paste the superpower sentence up bc it wouldnt make sense without boltbeam as context)
move 3: Ice Beam
move 4: Thunder
item: Petaya Berry
ability: Pressure
nature: Mild / Hasty
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
ivs: 30 HP

[SET COMMENTS]

Substitute eases Deoxys' Deoxys's reliance on prediction and also allows it to activate a Petaya Berry to turn Berry, which turns it into a powerful specially-based cleaner. Boltbeam BoltBeam covers most of the tier, and with maximum Special Attack investment, (AC) Ice Beam even OHKOs OHKOes Latios when boosted. Superpower bypasses bolltbeam BoltBeam checks such as Blissey, Snorlax, Tyranitar, Regice, and Umbreon. A Hasty nature allows Deoxys-A to outspeed standard Salac Berry Groudon and Heracross at the cost of some power, which is notable for teams weak to these threats. 30 HP IVs are utilized to activate Petaya Berry on the third substitute. Substitute. Thunderbolt can be used instead of Thunder if the set is to be used using this set without rain support, but misses important benchmarks against it fails to (2HKO? add whatever specific benchmark(s) is/are appropriate) Kyogre and Ho-Oh.

This set functions best when using Thunder, meaning that it will be featured on which entails a rain team with Kyogre, and like with physical Deoxys-A, this set also appreciates a team structure that is able to combat opposing weather Kyogre helping neutralize sun (i imagine?) sweepers. Substitute Petaya A rain sweeper such as Omastar or Qwilfish can provide a defense against opposing Deoxys-A. SubPetaya Deoxys-A cannot hit Shedinja, so Spikes support from Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or Qwilfish is essential and essential, and this also helps pressure Steel-types. A rain sweeper such as Omastar or Qwilfish is also helpful for providing a defense against opposing Deoxys-A. Steel-types that take neutral damage from Superpower or and (optional) Thunder are also effective checks to this set, like Metagross, (I imagine? v changeable) so a Steel-type trapper such as running Magneton or Dugtrio to trap them is also effective.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====

Physical Deoxys-A has a 4th fourth moveslot that is rather flexible, but most of the other moves it gets, (AC) such as Psycho Boost, Focus Punch, Spikes, or and Knock Off, (AC) are far less useful that what's already been discussed.

Checks and Counters
====

**Metagross**: The first of four steel-type Pokemon that take neutral damage from Superpower, Metagross is one of the few Pokemon that can switch into Deoxys-A thanks to its typing and good bulk and threaten a KO in return or even trap it with Pursuit.

**Forretress**: Forretress also has high physical bulk and key resistances against parts of Deoxys-A's movepool, but can be KOed by +1 Thunder.

**Skarmory**: Similar to Forretress but is threatened more by its Electric-type attacks while having the option to phaze if it tries to Sub.


**Jirachi**: Similar to Metagross but slightly less physically bulky and without the option to Pursuit.

**Steel-types**: Metagross and Jirachi resist most of Deoxys-A's moves, and they can take a Superpower or Thunder. Metagross is one of the few Deoxys-A switch-ins, boasting good bulk and the ability to KO or even Pursuit trap it. Jirachi has slightly less physical bulk and lacks Pursuit. Forretress and Skarmory share most of their resistances, are also neutral to Superpower, and have high physical bulk, but a +1 Thunder KOes them. Skarmory can also phaze Substitute variants. (I imagine this generally makes sense? changeable, of course)

**Defensive Kyogre and Groudon**: Although they struggle against the Substitute Petaya SubPetaya set, both defensive Kyogre and Groudon can comfortably tank a physical Deoxys-A's attacks and are a major obstacle attacks, being major obstacles for a successful clean.

**Other Pursuit Users**: Pokemon such as Dusclops, Tyranitar, and opposing Deoxys-A have the potential to switch into certain Deoxys-A attacks and / or threaten them with Pursuit if they attempt to switch out. **Pursuit**: In addition to Metagross, Pokemon such as Dusclops, Tyranitar, and opposing Deoxys-A can threaten it with Pursuit, and the former two can switch into some Deoxys-A attacks. (I imagine "the former two" makes sense?)

**Defensive Ho-Oh and Lugia**: Both Defensive Ho-Oh and Lugia have the physical bulk to take most physical sets attacks and are effective against Petaya Berry Deoxys-A in Sun, but sun, but they can fall to certain coverage moves or offensive support. Rock Slide and/or Thunder. (I imagine this generally made sense? not sure what offensive support is meant to reference - you can readd it if you clarify a bit)

**Defensive Latias**: It does take major damage from a Choice Band-boosted (added hyphen) Shadow Ball, but defensive Latias can tank any Deoxys-A attack and KO back with Dragon Claw.

**Swampert**: Bulky and awkward to hit, ("awkward to hit" is a bit unclear. could you clarify a bit?) especially for the Substitute Petaya set, Swampert can also tank Deoxys-A's attacks and KO back.

**Revenge Killers*: Extreme Speed users such as Rayquaza and opposing Deoxys-A, (AC) as well as Deoxys-S and weather sweepers such as Omastar, Exeggutor, Kabutops, Qwilfish, and Shiftry, (AC) are the only Pokemon capable of outspeeding that attack before Deoxys-A. (worth noting omastar and kabutops decent physbulk and espeed resist? up to you)

**Protect**: Although a somewhat uncommon move, Protect can scout out Choice Band Deoxys-A's moves, allowing for a safe response.

[CREDITS] (remember new credits format and to add me https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/c-c-announcements.3718045/#post-9579751)
- Written by: [[Minority, userid1]]
- Quality checked by: [[Inspirited, userid1], [Exiline, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
 
Last edited:

aurora

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Tremble before pointy tentacle forme

[Overview]

Deoxys-A is the best cleaner and revenge killer in Ubers, with the offense to 2HKO most Pokemon in the tier and the Speed to outspeed them all, besides weather sweepers. Its relative ease to keep hidden in the back of a team, combined with the stark variation between its three potential held items, keeps opponents guessing. To back up these traits, Deoxys-A also has an exotic and powerful movepool with everything from Ice Beam to Superpower and Extreme Speed. Extreme Speed's priority, especially, is scarce and invaluable for extra protection against some of the tier's greatest endgame threats, such as Salac Berry Groudon, Salac Berry Kyogre, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. However, Deoxys-A remains the ultimate glass cannon, with zero defensive utility outside of priority. It therefore requires revenge killing or smart pivots to get it into play. Additionally, teams explicitly structure themselves against Deoxys-A's movepool by combining Normal-types, Steel-types, and a Fighting-resistant Pokemon, thereby forcing prediction when using a Choice Band or Superpower.

[SET]
name: Spell Tag
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Rock Slide / Fire Punch / Thunder
item: Spell Tag
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Spell Tag gives a small power boost to Deoxys-A's Shadow Ball, which ensures lets Deoxys-A’s ability to always OHKO Latios and substantially increases it’s its chance at KOing a chipped Latias, while still allowing it to switch between moves. This lets it unleash a surprise coverage move and clean or wallbreak more flexibly. Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, Omastar, Qwilfish, Kabutops, Exeggutor, Shiftry, and opposing Deoxys-A. In addition to Latios and Latias, Shadow Ball also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops. Superpower is how Deoxys-A smacks Normal- and Steel-types and is Spell Tag Deoxys-A's strongest move. Rock Slide is great for teams that need to more easily handle Ho-Oh, and it can fish for free turns when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch pairs with sun teams to deal major damage to conventional Deoxys-A checks such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Thunder is a good counterpart for rain teams, making surprising use of Deoxys-A's high Special Attack against Pokemon such as Kyogre and Skarmory. Solar Beam is also an option for teams that really need Deoxys-A to blast through Groudon, and Pursuit helps it securely revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other Deoxys-A. Extreme Speed can be potentially dropped for another coverage move on teams that don't necessarily need the extra revenge killing potential. A Jolly nature may be used to provide additional protection against opposing Deoxys-A. Run a Lonely nature if using a special attack such as Fire Punch, Thunder, Solar Beam, or Pursuit.

Spell Tag Deoxys-A fits on a wide range of teams, from hyper offense to bulky offense and balance teams, and it requires no specific support. Because Spell Tag Deoxys-A is somewhat customizable in regards to what threats it can bypass, its teammates more often determine the set than the other way around. Common major obstacles for Deoxys-A are Steel-types, most notably Pursuit Metagross, so Magneton and Dugtrio are good choices to trap them, and they make a move choice such as Rock Slide more appealing. A full-health Kyogre or Groudon is an effective check when not running Thunder or Solar Beam, so Spikes setters such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or and Qwilfish are highly effective, and they double as a way to get residual damage on Steel-types. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, and/or Steel-types are also good partners, such as Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, and Choice Band users such as Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, or and Lugia. Deoxys-A also appreciates a team structure that can combat opposing weather sweepers, so running Groudon, Kyogre, or both is highly recommended.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Extreme Speed
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Double-Edge / Rock Slide
item: Choice Band
ability: Pressure
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Choice Band maximizes Deoxys-A's power to bust through bulky threats, especially Kyogre and Groudon, when cleaning or wallbreaking. Extreme Speed grants some protection against the few Pokemon capable of revenge killing Deoxys-A, such as Rayquaza, weather sweepers, and opposing Deoxys-A. Shadow Ball is mainly for Latios and Latias, but it also hits Mewtwo, Lugia, Gengar, Shedinja, and Dusclops, and it is fairly spammable if Normal-types have been eliminated. Superpower is how Deoxys-A breaks through Normal- and Steel-types, but it can be unfavorable to lock into due to Ghost-types, Latios, Latias, and the Attack drops. Double-Edge is the strongest reliable move available to Deoxys-A, dealing high damage to key targets such as Kyogre, Groudon, and Ho-Oh without locking Deoxys-A into Superpower or Shadow Ball, moves which more common foes are resistant or immune to. Rock Slide is for teams that need to more easily bypass Ho-Oh, and it can fish for free turns when paired with paralysis spreaders. Fire Punch can be used on sun teams to surprise typical Choice Band Deoxys-A switch-ins, such as Forretress, Skarmory, Metagross, and Jirachi. Pursuit is also a worthy option to securely revenge kill Pokemon such as Latios, Latias, Mewtwo, and potentially other Deoxys-A. A Jolly nature may be used to provide additional protection against opposing Deoxys-A. Run a Lonely nature if using a special attack such as Fire Punch or Pursuit.

Choice Band Deoxys-A fits on hyper offense and bulky offense teams as the most immediately powerful cleaner around. The major obstacles for its cleaning are Pokemon that deny it from easily clicking Double-Edge or Shadow Ball, which are primarily Steel-types, especially Pursuit Metagross. Magneton, Dugtrio, and Spikes setters, such as Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or and Qwilfish, are highly effective at trapping and removing them or chipping them down. Physical attackers that place strain on defensive Kyogre, Groudon, defensive Latias, and/or Steel-types are also good partners, softening up these targets for Deoxys-A to clean; Curse Snorlax, offensive Groudon sets, and Choice Band users such as Metagross, Snorlax, Ho-Oh, Heracross, Rayquaza, or and Lugia all accomplish this. Some of the few Pokemon that can outspeed Deoxys-A are weather sweepers, so running Groudon, Kyogre, or both is highly recommended to help keep the weather in your favor. Blissey is also a notable partner, as it can stonewall most Latios and Latias sets, giving Deoxys-A a safe switch into these threats if it's locked into Superpower.

[SET]
name: SubPetaya
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunder
move 4: Superpower
item: Petaya Berry
ability: Pressure
nature: Mild / Hasty
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
ivs: 30 HP

[SET COMMENTS]

Substitute eases Deoxys-A's reliance on prediction and also allows it to activate a Petaya Berry, which turns it into a powerful specially-based cleaner. BoltBeam covers most of the tier, and with maximum Special Attack investment, Ice Beam even OHKOes Latios when boosted. Superpower bypasses BoltBeam checks such as Blissey, Snorlax, Tyranitar, Regice, and Umbreon. A Hasty nature allows Deoxys-A to outspeed standard Salac Berry Groudon and Heracross at the cost of some power, which is notable for teams weak to these threats. 30 HP IVs are utilized to activate Petaya Berry on the third Substitute. Thunderbolt can be used instead of Thunder if using this set without rain support, but it is substantially less likely to secure KOs on Kyogre and Ho-Oh.

This set functions best when using Thunder, which entails a rain team with Kyogre, and like with physical Deoxys-A, this set also appreciates Kyogre helping neutralize sun sweepers. A rain sweeper such as Omastar or Qwilfish can provide a defense against opposing Deoxys-A. SubPetaya Deoxys-A cannot hit Shedinja, so Spikes support from Forretress, Skarmory, Omastar, or Qwilfish is essential, and this also helps pressure Steel-types. Steel-types that take neutral damage from Superpower and Thunder, like Metagross, are also effective checks to this set, like Metagross, so running Magneton or Dugtrio to trap them is also effective.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====

Physical Deoxys-A has a fourth moveslot that is rather flexible, but most of the other moves it gets, such as Psycho Boost, Focus Punch, Spikes, and Knock Off, are far less useful that what's already been discussed.

Checks and Counters
====

**Steel-types**: Metagross and Jirachi resist most of Deoxys-A's moves, and they can take a Superpower or Thunder. Metagross is one of the few Deoxys-A switch-ins, boasting good bulk and the ability to KO or even Pursuit trap it. Jirachi has slightly less physical bulk and lacks Pursuit. Forretress and Skarmory share most of their resistances, are also neutral to Superpower, and have high physical bulk, but a +1 Thunder KOes them. Skarmory can also phaze Substitute variants.

**Defensive Kyogre and Groudon**: Although they struggle against the SubPetaya set, defensive Kyogre and Groudon can comfortably tank physical Deoxys-A's attacks, being major obstacles for a successful clean.

**Pursuit**: In addition to Metagross, Pokemon such as Dusclops, Tyranitar, and opposing Deoxys-A can threaten it with Pursuit, and the former two can switch into some of Deoxys-A's attacks.

**Defensive Ho-Oh and Lugia**: Defensive Ho-Oh and Lugia have the physical bulk to take most physical attacks and are effective against Petaya Berry Deoxys-A in sun, but they can fall to Rock Slide and/or Thunder.

**Defensive Latias**: It does take major damage from a Choice Band-boosted Shadow Ball, but defensive Latias can tank any Deoxys-A attack and KO back with Dragon Claw.

**Swampert**: Bulky and difficult for Deoxys-A to hit effectively, especially for the Substitute Petaya SubPetaya set, Swampert can tank Deoxys-A's attacks and KO back.

**Revenge Killers*: Extreme Speed users such as Rayquaza and opposing Deoxys-A, as well as Deoxys-S and weather sweepers such as Omastar, Exeggutor, Kabutops, Qwilfish, and Shiftry, are the only Pokemon that can attack before Deoxys-A. Omastar and Kabutops especially resist Extreme Speed and have good physical bulk.

**Protect**: Although a somewhat uncommon move, Protect can scout out Choice Band Deoxys-A's moves, allowing for a safe response.

[CREDITS]
- Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/minority.222996/
- Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/inspirited.127823/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/exiline.246168/
- Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/adeleine.517429/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/aurora.109385/


GP Team done
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