Lugia (Ubers) [QC 0/2]

steelskitty

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https://www.deviantart.com/rndm-nm/art/Lugia-Sprite-321669285
[OVERVIEW]

- Lugia's absurd Defense and Special Defense make it nearly impossible to OHKO; its walling potential should be self-evident.
- Lugia is also a strong offensive Pokemon in the right circumstances—it's a big reason why many Ubers teams will opt for Zapdos/Raikou, and teams without either require a different check to it.
- An excellent speed tier makes it very easy for Lugia to get that first Curse up. This same Speed tier also gives Lugia slower phazing than many of its checks once it has used Curse once or twice.
- Given its generally unkillable nature, Lugia wracks up chip damage well by phazing the opponent around forever with Spikes up.
- Lugia is very one-note—you see it and you almost certainly know what it'll do.
- 8 Aeroblast PP is just not enough for a Pokemon that wants to attack as much as Lugia does.

- A plethora of great Flying resistances sit on Earthquake-less Lugia indefinitely. Running Earthquake, however, deprives it of Whirlwind's defensive utility.
- A lack of immediate firepower very often leaves Lugia vulnerable to status—a stray Toxic, Thunder Wave, Lovely Kiss, or Sacred Fire can very easily nullify its effectiveness.

[SET]
name: Big Bird
move 1: Curse
move 2: Recover
move 3: Aeroblast
move 4: Whirlwind
item: Leftovers

[SET COMMENTS]

- Curse is key to prevent the Pokemon Lugia walls from overpowering it through setup. After multiple uses, it also can boost Lugia's Attack to dangerous levels.
- Recover is mostly what makes Lugia so difficult to take down; it's a serious boon for it because it has twice as much PP and is far more reliable than Rest. Don't leave home without it!
- Aeroblast is Lugia's preferred STAB move; though its PP and infuriatingly imperfect accuracy are sometimes letdowns, its Base Power and 25% Critical Hit rate let it sometimes break through even bulky resists if Lugia nabs enough Curses.
- Although Lugia has remarkable longevity through Curse and Recover, Aeroblast's low PP makes it a risky prospect to engage in prolonged Curse wars. Whirlwind is particularly good for its capacity to phaze Curse Snorlax and Mewtwo, and if Lugia already has enough Curses it can end some Curse wars before they even start. The move's also great to put a halt to Mew sweeps, not to mention its utility in wearing down most Lugia answers when paired with Spikes support.
- Earthquake is an option over Whirlwind. This shifts Lugia to a more offensive role, trading much of its utility in checking Mew and Snorlax for the ability to break through common checks like Tyranitar, Raikou, and Golem.

- Lugia appreciates Spikes more than almost any other Pokemon in GSC. If the opponent's Rapid Spinner is incapacitated or nonexistent, Lugia can very often collect a few Curses and phaze the opponent around at its leisure, wracking up chip damage on its own checks as well as checks its teammates might share with it. Forretress or Cloyster are not just encouraged as teammates; one or the other is borderline required.
- Because Lugia's most common checks are Electric-types, it loves having teammates that can wall or otherwise punish them. On the Defensive side, Pokemon like Celebi, Blissey, and ResTalk Snorlax serve as hard counters to the Raikous and Zapdoses that try to halt Lugia's sweeps, with Blissey and Celebi being particularly effective due to their ability to Heal Bell away any stray status Lugia may have caught. On the offensive side, Marowak, Steelix, and Belly Drum Snorlax can switch into Thunders and pose an immediate threat to the opponent.
- Although Forretress, Cloyster, and Steelix have already been mentioned as teammates, anything with a strong Explosion or Self-Destruct can greatly aid a potential Lugia sweep. Mewtwo, Gengar, Exeggutor, and anything else an opponent might carelessly switch a Zapdos or Raikou in on can take out the opponent's Lugia check in a well-timed trade.
- Given that Lugia is most effective with Spikes up, and given that it lacks the immediate offensive presence to pose a serious threat to most Rapid Spinners, it enjoys teammates that can lure in or force trades with Golem, Cloyster, and Forretress. A mixed Snorlax with one or multiple of Surf, Thunder, and Fire Blast can be a boon here, as can surprise Fire moves in general on Pokemon like Mew, your own Golem, and Tyranitar. Trapping sets on Pokemon like Umbreon, Gengar, and Misdreavus can also stop Rapid Spinners in their tracks, with Misdreavus and Gengar being particularly notable due to their Spinblocking potential.
- Lugia works symbiotically with strong Physical attackers. Mew, Curse Tyranitar, Rhydon, Heracross, and many more Pokemon share Lugia's checks. Lugia can wear out grounded checks to these Pokemon with constant phazing and Critical Hits from Aeroblast, and these Pokemon can in turn wear down Lugia's checks through their strong offensive presence.



[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====

- Ice Beam is a reasonable option in the fourth slot to fish for Freezes in Curse wars and hit some checks—namely Rhydon, Golem, and Zapdos.
- Psych Up can function over Curse as an aggressive way to play Lugia. Although Curse is more consistent, stealing a Belly Drum boost or multiple Curses can make Lugia immediately threatening.
- Return has far more PP than Aeroblast, but it's significantly weaker and leaves Lugia walled by Misdreavus and Gengar unless it opts for Earthquake alongside it.
- Substitute can block status and fish for Thunder misses, but giving up Lugia's fourth slot for it is a challenge.
- Thunder 2HKOs Skarmory, giving it some utlity as a fourth move. It also may Paralyze some Lugia switch-ins and aid in Curse wars.
- A defensive Lugia set with Recover, Whirlwind, and two coverage moves or a coverage plus status move may have some viability. Although this would be passive, it could give Lugia more utility in some matchups than a Curse set.

Checks and Counters
====

**Flying resists**: Though some Flying resists take a decent amount of damage from Earthquake, essentially all of them still serve as good Lugia answers. Skarmory and Zapdos in particular are counters; Zapdos can 2HKO Lugia with Thunder, fish for Paralysis with Thunderbolt, or neutralize Lugia with Thunder Wave. Skarmory, meanwhile, can Curse up alongside it, Whirlwind it out, and shrug off even Critical Hit Aeroblasts. Other Flying resists that dislike Earthquake yet still check Lugia include Steelix, Tyranitar, Raikou, and Rhydon.

**Mewtwo**: Although Mewtwo has to be wary of an untimely Critical Hit from Aeroblast, it can generally force Lugia out with the threat of Thunder. A +6 Attack Lugia also has only 11.1% odds to 2HKO a Barrier Mewtwo with a Defense boost under its belt.

**Pokemon that can lower Lugia's Attack stat**: Umbreon's Charm, MIltank's Growl, and Dragonite's Haze all have more PP than Aeroblast and neutralize Lugia's Attack boosts, ensuring that even Critical Hit Aeroblasts do low enough damage to comfortably heal off. Removing Lugia's boosts also opens up the door for other teammates to step in and bring Lugia down.

**PP stall**: Although the prospect of a fast Pokemon with absurd Defenses, the ability to raise its Attack, and a very strong STAB move sounds terrifying on paper, the reality of the situation is that you only need to stall a few Aeroblast PP out to prevent Lugia from ransacking your team. The majority of Ubers-viable Pokemon hit neutrally by Aeroblast have at least fair odds to live one from a +6 Attack Lugia without Spikes or a Critical Hit; in the absolute worst-case scenario, you may be able to fodder a Pokemon or two to Lugia to stop it from singlehandedly beating your team. More realistically though, forcing it into scenarios where it feels inclined to click Aeroblast, such as in Curse wars or when trying to hax a check, can stall it out of PP to the point where its attacks will do little to no lasting damage.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[steelskitty, 191831]]
- Quality checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
 

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