Other Metagames Dual Ho-Oh Dual Zygarde Balance (2036 ELO, 94.2% GXE)

Icemaster

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The team at a glance:



I wanted to build a team which was as dynamax independent as possible - to be able to sweep without dynamax and more importantly to be able to defeat opposing dynamax without having to resort to my own dynamax very often. It was intended to be a meme team.

:Ho-Oh: :Ho-Oh:
As such I started with dual Ho-Oh as it would be able to hold out against quite a few dmaxers for a few turns by regen spam. Ho-Oh is also just a great pivot in general and a dual regen core is able to stall many things for example Life Orb Eternatus while being able to handle non rock move post dmax yveltal and being able to safely use defog even if the opposing mon has knock off. It also can indefinitely conserve pp in stall matches if it gets to that.

:Necrozma-Dusk-Mane:
Next I added Necrozma-Dusk-Mane because I needed a GeoMax Xerneas check and rocker while having a reliable Zacian switchin throughout the match. It also importantly switches in a defeats a lot of setup sweepers by using it's dynamax for example Swords Dance Zacian, Mega Ray, Ekiller. This is vital for me as I'm not carrying a ditto, and my Defensive Zyg cannot deal with these always. I can usually freely use my dynamax too in this way if needed as my team doesn't miss it terribly.

:Groudon-Primal:
Groudon was next added as my team so far was quite naturally weak to Kyogre. I also needed some breaking power to chew through the common core - NDM/PDon/Ho-Oh and with the set it has it also single-handedly breaks stall. PDon while being a good breaker is also a pretty sturdy wall - eats a hit from everything pretty much regardless of defense invest.

:Zygarde-Complete:
I then added a Defensive Zygarde as Glare support is pretty helpful for PDon. It's also a great defensive mon to have alongside ndm/hooh as it switches into PDon and rock moves quite comfortably while also improofing my PDon.

:Zygarde-Complete:
I then added another Zygarde for fun, but it ended up working pretty well. Spamming subs with glare support is pretty strong after all, and it's one of the best non dynamax reliant sweepers yet can also use dynamax itself pretty well. It's also got some defensive utility, I can dmax it to kill mega ray in a pinch for example, so its a pretty good flexible mon to have on my team.

Sets:

Ho-Oh @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Sacred Fire
- Defog
- Whirlwind
- Protect​

SpDef Ho-Oh is criminally underused. I wouldn't say this is a set I invented as probably other people used it before, but I use it because it perfectly fits this team's idea of defeating dynamax without using it myself. This can help stall dynamax turns importantly from both non rock slide Yveltal and Xerneas, Scarf/Specs Kyogre (it does live a geyser without rain, so you get to go PDon, then Ho-Oh then protect, which is good as otherwise choice kyogre is pretty scary), Calm Mind Arceus formes and Zygarde Complete with the support of my other Ho-Oh. Being able to do this is extremely important as it effectively wastes their dynamax - their strongest breaking tool and strongest tool to stop me sweeping. Whirlwind is important to get rid of Yveltal/Xerneas after dynamax has finished, as it loses speed boosts and the opponent loses momentum (unless Whirlwind brings in something unfavourable), while preventing Ho-Oh from being setup fodder for anything. It also removes Metronome buffs on Eternatus which would otherwise break my team. Stalling turns is immensely powerful as I can run down the clock on Toxic/Burns or remove screens. Additionally, vs stall teams, if it comes to that I can infinitely switch. Protect also lets me scout the move of Choice users eg, Rayquaza-Mega and Yveltal. Sacred Fire is obviously needed, and I opt for Defog over Toxic as it improves my MU vs offense: webs or screens. Min Speed lets me get the fog up after NDM and PDon which is nice. Whirlwind is helpful for Gothitelle too.



Ho-Oh @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Sacred Fire
- Defog
- Whirlwind
- Toxic​

Standard Ho-Oh. This serves as an emergency check to Zacian if at full HP, Mega Rayquaza and other prominent physical attackers. This completes my Regen core - allowing me to more easily stall dynamax and stall out Eternatus, and provides me a second Defogger, as I have more Defog PP then they would have of Stealth Rock, I can defeat most Stall teams by just infinitely swapping if I lose my breakers. Two Defoggers may seem excessive on a team which is extremely resistant to Stealth Rocks, but it is important as it completely invalidates Knock Off, which is pretty damn common on NDM and Ferrothorn and is an absolute pest if it lands on Ho-Oh. I don't need Protect on this one as it isn't as important to stall dynamax (my game plan vs Yveltal for example is to send this out turn 1, then SpDef Ho-Oh turn 2 and then Protect with SpDef Ho-Oh for example), so I opt for Toxic. Whirlwind is also used here to prevent the opponent from setting up, as before. Two Whirlwinders together is useful too as it makes me less liable to get cheesed by Baton Pass/Smashpass and better vs Vivillon. I did run protect on this too at one point but the benefit was minimal and so I swapped back to Whirlwind.



Necrozma-Dusk-Mane @ Leftovers
Ability: Prism Armor
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Sunsteel Strike
- Moonlight
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic

Standard. Toxic is nice as it lets me abuse more stuff with my double regen core. It's my Dynamancy Xerneas check and rocker while having a reliable Zacian switchin throughout the match. It also importantly switches in a defeats a lot of setup sweepers by using it's dynamax for example Swords Dance Zacian, Mega Ray, Ekiller. This is vital for me as I'm not carrying a ditto, and my Defensive Zyg cannot deal with these always. I can usually freely use my dynamax too in this way if needed as my team doesn't miss it terribly as it is pretty dynamax independent (I've probably said that too many times).



Groudon-Primal @ Red Orb
Ability: Desolate Land
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Eruption
- Rest
- Stone Edge
- Precipice Blades

This is an extremely underrated set. It is an extremely powerful non dynamax wallbreaker capably of completely dismantling common cores eg: Ho-Oh/NDM/PDon and can massively nuke Zygarde-Complete - it is capable of killing it in 3 hits, and of 1v1ing an offensive variant on the switch. Fire/Rock/Ground coverage is immensely difficult coverage to handle - literally only Defensive Zygarde-Complete can handle it. The gameplan is (if they have a Zygarde-Complete) to generally force the opposing Zygarde-Complete to Rest using my own offensive Zygarde and then this is able to kill it with Eruption and proceed to break. Max Speed is chosen as it allows me to outspeed Support Groundceus and so kill it on the switch or to eliminate one at sub 80% hp - and since PDon and Zygarde have shared checks in Support Arceus and Defensive Zygarde-Complete this forms a formidable offensive core as I can use one of the two to break down the aforementioned checks. I opt for Hasty as my Primal Kyogre and Kyogre matchup is a little shaky. Rest and Eruption completely crumbles stall and fatter builds while allowing me to pretty much blow up any team late game given their offensive mons are gone. It works well with my Defensive Zygarde-Complete too as it can provide Glare support, helping its speed but also allowing me to parahax through mons like Arceus-Water which can only spam Recover on Primal-Groudon. Defensive Zygarde-Complete also improofs it.



Zygarde-Complete @ Leftovers
Ability: Power Construct
EVs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 Spe
Impish Nature
- Glare
- Haze
- Thousand Arrows
- Rest

This provides me with a blanket and back up physical wall to Necrozma-Dusk-Mane, capable of absorbing status from stuff like Ho-Oh pretty well and standing in front of Primal Groudon. Haze is useful in destroying annoying ladder strats such as SmashPass/Baton Pass while also countering Dynamax NDM, Ultra Necrozma, and Dynamax EKiller/Ghostceus enabling me to defeat them without resorting to my own Dynamax. It is also a pretty good Zacian/Mega Rayquaza switchin, as doubling from them and then to Ho-Oh or NDM lets me scout their sets, and if they don't have the right coverage I can just wall them later with it. It also kinda Dragon Dance Dragon-Tail Zyg and beats out Coil sets. I did run Safety Goggles on this if I saw a lot of Baton Pass/Spore strategies on the ladder.



Zygarde-Complete @ Leftovers
Ability: Power Construct
EVs: 16 HP / 220 Atk / 36 Def / 236 Spe
Impish Nature
- Substitute
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Tail
- Thousand Arrows

The star of the show, this thing just wins me games right from the beginning sometimes. This set completely abuses the common PDon/Zyg/Ho-Oh/NDM cores and sets up with ease with the given sample spread. You can easily bring this in on NDM or a resting Zygarde or other things, just ensure that it doesn't get statused at all costs - if it does then the chances of winning may fall drastically as it is literally the main wincon. It can also revenge Primal Kyogre/Base Kyogre as by Dynamaxing you live 2 Ice Beam hits while being able to 2HKO back, which is actually very important for this team as it can remove one of the greatest threats in a pinch. It also doesn't require dynamaxing much, unless needing to defeat a Yveltal or Support Arceus. Also dynamax Zygarde is just stupid good, max quake buffs up it's special defense allowing it to easily tank ice beams, so you can quite easily muscle through supportceus. Max Wyrmwind comes in use to as it lets this Zygarde stand as an emergency check to Dynamax Zekrom and Mega Rayquaza by using my own Dynamax.
Threatlist:


Yveltal: What balance doesn't get 6-0ed by this? Ok jokes aside, I do have a pretty good way of dealing with it - much better than most non Tyranitar teams - in however Rock Slide Yveltal is extremely difficult for me to deal with, I must somehow stall out it's dynamax with a combination of protect, switches to ultimately damage control and then revenge it with my Physical Defense Ho-Oh. :Eternatus: Eternatus gets a mention here because it's a prime partner for Yveltal to have to status and chip my Ho-Ohs for Yveltal to later come in and punch some holes.


Dragon Dance Dragon-Tail Zygarde: What balance doesn't get 6-0ed by this? Ok jokes aside, I have an alright way of dealing with this in using my Haze Zygarde repeatedly until it forces out my other Zygarde with Dragon Tail and then I can setup alongside it (1 DDance) and then pop the DMax. Even if it spams subs, it will lose a huge chunk of HP and will have 3 attack drops - it must switch out next. I am also creeping other Zygarde's by one speed so more often than not, I should outspeed them.




Kyogre & Primal Kyogre: What balance doesn't get 6-0ed by this? Ok jokes aside, this mu is actually pretty dogshit as I don't have either Ferrothorn, Defensive PDon, Mega Ray or some sort of Supportceus to check it and so I have to end up doing a lot to deal with these. For example, I must first gauge the set if it is normal Kyogre by going into Primal Groudon. If they dynamax, I go into spdef hooh after this as it will live one geyser and another behind protect. I must continually get the predicts right if their dmax is gone, and also predict the turn they dmax. Not good. Primal Kyogre is a bit easier, I go into Primal Groudon and Precipice. On the third turn of Kyogre Primal being out, they will either switch or stay in. If they stay in, I hope they're not timid and if they are, that they lose the speedtie. If they don't, or manage to get through Primal Groudon otherwise while having Primal Kyogre still alive, I must dynamax my Offensive Zygod to defeat it. This is doable and I have done it a few times; especially as noone expects Zygarde to dynamax and their Kyogre and defeat it.



Gothitelle: What balance doesn't get 6-0ed by this? It traps common balance components like my Defensive Zygarde and Necrozma-Dusk-Mane which just allows it's friends like Xerneas and Zacian to go to town. This is an extraordinarily difficult MU, and my advice would be to just outplay lol. Luckily, I haven't ever encountered a single Gothitelle on the ladder in the few hundred games I've played so you won't find this much.



Non Dynamax Breaker and a Dynamax Sweeper: Ok, so for Non Dynamax Breakers such as SD/DD Mega Ray, SD Zacian, Mega Gengar and Nasty Plot MMY, my main recourse is to use my own Dynamax in order to stop them. However, this puts me in an awkward situation late game vs Dynamax Sweepers such as Xerneas, Zekrom, Zygarde and Yveltal to a lesser extent as I would normally use my own Dynamax to stop them.


Rock, Ice & Ground Coverage: As I don't have a Supportceus of my own or a Ferrothorn or something bulky which isn't weak to any of it's attacks, the uncommon set of Defensive Groundceus with Stone Edge, Ice Beam and Judgment is pretty unstoppable for my team, I must use my defensive Ho-Oh to try burn it or poison it (or use my NDM for that - both live a hit), and then repeatedly pivot in an out, or use my offensive zygarde to dynamax and kill it sets can quite well sweep my team - I need to use my Haze Zygarde given it's not chipped and is Complete and Groundceus must only have 1 buff. If it Dynamaxes itself, I can only hope to stall it's turns out. This is what the calcs look like, they're not pretty:
0 Atk Arceus-Ground Max Rockfall vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Ho-Oh: 340-400 (81.7 - 96.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Arceus-Ground Max Hailstorm vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Zygarde-Complete: 456-540 (71.6 - 84.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (OHKOs base)
0 SpA Earth Plate Arceus-Ground Max Quake vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Prism Armor Necrozma-Dusk-Mane: 271-321 (68 - 80.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Earth Plate Arceus-Ground Max Quake vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Groudon-Primal: 428-506 (125.5 - 148.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO hmm
Luckily, this is the only mon which (infrequently) runs this wacky coverage combo


2036eloag94.2gxe.PNG

I also used this team to qualify for AGLT and I did at 1931 Elo.

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1069681223-lx0pxjiukwbdat3ffaj9ohnvxemvihnpw vs DD D-Tail Zygarde and Gengar. This was with Coil Defensive Zygarde as it was an early version of the team
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1069692511-l9aq7vva74h42n8sew80gwlg02ek5pbpw vs Primal Kyogre, Webs, and Vivillon. It also showcases what Ho-Oh does very well to Yveltal - stalls it once the dmax is gone
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1071653895-fqivaodlwfokwuv8368ls09d17xkynnpw Rest and Eruption PDon breaking a stall
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1074215982-d7gvr9d6jm04eo44mbylxu2m2oa3g37pw Glare and Eruption combo
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1072333968-98a6pmyr7wkufw3tha5o6vc4d43f7r3pw Dual Ho-Oh stalling an Eternatus and then a Zyg sweep.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1072298756-6glstz6gdayq8oc7ihmmsu7jv7s0ko8pw Zyg sweep
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nationaldexag-1072396591-jsj99opby8wsnfbmwpqwtqqzjdyo5xtpw vs Cancer webs

Conclusion:
Thanks for reading, you're probably sceptical about this team however I urge you to try use it or feel free to send me a challenge on showdown, the team might just surprise you. Also, I encourage everyone who plays National Dex AG to experiment with the Species Clause, and definitely with Protect as Protect is just extremely potent vs Scarfers/Banders like Ditto and Mega Ray and in stalling Dynamax turns. Cheers
 
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