Darksafadao
best of the second options
[OVERVIEW]
Diancie finds its niche in the tier by making use of its useful Rock / Fairy typing to check Dragon- and Flying-types. It can take advantage of its typing, bulk, and decent offensive stats to punish Defoggers like Hydreigon and Moltres and keep Stealth Rock up. Diancie can also act as a cleric, making use of the safe turns it gets on the field to aid its partners. It can also prevent Pokemon such as Latias from setting up on it with its STAB moves or the threat of Toxic. Its typing and bulk allow Diancie to take hits such as Moltres's Supersonic Skystrike. However, its low HP, weaknesses to common types such as Water, Ground, and Steel, lack of reliable recovery, and poor Speed make it easily checked by common Pokemon in the tier like Primarina, Mamoswine, Scizor, and Cobalion. Diancie also doesn't have great offensive stats and can't threaten Steel-types efficiently, meaning it faces competition from Rock-type Stealth Rock users that aren't as passive, such as Nihilego.
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Stealth Rock / Diamond Storm
move 2: Heal Bell / Diamond Storm
move 3: Toxic
move 4: Moonblast
item: Leftovers / Normalium Z
ability: Clear Body
nature: Calm / Sassy
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Stealth Rock punishes other teams' switches and is vital for any competitive team, while Heal Bell, which is mainly appreciated by bulkier squads, supports Diancie's teammates as well as itself by healing status. Diancie is able to get opportunities to easily make use of both these moves against foes such as Moltres and Crobat. Diamond Storm is a Rock-type STAB attack that hits specially bulky Pokemon like Nihilego and Tentacruel hard and lets Diancie better check threatening Flying- and Fire-types such as Moltres and Rotom-H. Also, a+2 Defense boost from Diamond Storm lets Diancie better take hits from Mega Aerodactyl, Terrakion, and even Cobalion and makes it difficult to take down overall. Toxic punishes bulky switch-ins to Diancie such as Hippowdon as well as setup sweepers like Latias that neither Moonblast nor Diamond Storm punish hard enough. Toxic also allows Diancie to pressure Flying-types like Togekiss without having to worry about the PP of Diamond Storm.
Set Details
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Diancie's spread lets it be a good special wall, dealing with Pokemon such as Mega Manectric well while also helping it wall the Pokemon it's supposed to, such as Hydreigon, Rotom-H, and Kyurem. A Calm nature enhances its special bulk, while Sassy is used when Diamond Storm is part of the set. Meanwhile, Leftovers is used to passively get health back, help Diancie fulfill its goal as a wall, and improve its longevity. Normalium Z is an option over Leftovers if there isn't a teammate already holding a Z-Crystal, allowing Heal Bell to fully restore Diancie's HP once while also healing its party of status.
Usage Tips
========
Bring Diancie in on resisted or weak hits and on Dragon- or Flying-types that it can beat, such as Hydreigon and Moltres, and use such turns to set Stealth Rock early, fire off attacks, or heal status ailments. Use Toxic when you expect bulky foes such as Hippowdon to switch in. Diancie doesn't have a reliable recovery move, so don't make reckless plays like setting Stealth Rock against foes that threaten Diancie, such as Slowbro and Amoonguss, as you can end up with a weakened and inefficient Diancie. If not running Heal Bell, watch out for status, as that cripples Diancie's longevity. Also, beware of strong wallbreakers that can come in for free on Diancie, such as Nidoking. In such scenarios, the best course of action for Diancie is usually double switching out. Don't stay in with Diancie on Pokemon that can set up and aren't really threatened by it, such as Snorlax, as Diancie gives free turns away to them. Use Heal Bell to support its partners on optimal turns, such as when faced with a Pokemon that Diancie walls. If running Normalium Z, be sure to use Z-Heal Bell before Diancie is too weak to take another hit in order to give it additional longevity. Be careful to conserve the PP of Heal Bell and Diamond Storm throughout the match.
Team Options
========
Diancie fits well on balance and bulky offense builds that value its resistances and role compression. Diancie struggles with Steel-types, as they don't really mind its STAB moves or Toxic and can even keep Stealth Rock off the field in the case of Empoleon. Because of this, Pokemon that deal with them, such as Rotom-H and Infernape, are appreciated. Pokemon such as Amoonguss, Scizor, and Cobalion appreciate Diancie's ability to take on Fire- and Flying-types, such as Chandelure and Crobat. Wallbreakers enjoy how Diancie can set Stealth Rock up to help them secure KOs. In particular, Tsareena and Moltres pair well with Diancie, as they can break bulky Ground- and Steel-types, such as Hippowdon and Mega Aggron. Ground-immune Pokemon such as Rotom-H, Moltres, and Hydreigon support Diancie, as a myriad of Ground-types can force it out, such as Nidoking and Hippowdon. They also deserve a special note for resisting Grass moves, which also threaten Diancie. Pokemon that don't like status appreciate being paired with Diancie. For example, Slowbro has good defensive synergy with Diancie due to its great physical bulk and resistances to Water and Steel, and it appreciates Diancie's resistance to Dark. Other than that, partners with Wish, such as Blissey and Alomomola, can help circumvent Diancie's lack of a reliable recovery move. Allies such as Rotom-C and Tentacruel help Diancie exert its role, removing the entry hazards that really hinder its Leftovers recovery.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Power Gem can be run over Diamond Storm due to it having more PP and punishing Defoggers such as Mantine, Togekiss, and Moltres more reliably. However, Diamond Storm is still usually preferred due to its greater damage output against Calm Mind users and specially bulky Pokemon and great secondary effect. Rock Tomb is an option to defeat Togekiss more easily, as Diancie can eventually outspeed and hit it before it can use Roost. A set with Diamond Storm and Heal Bell and without Toxic is also possible, compressing the roles of a Stealth Rock user and a cleric while not being harmless versus Flying-types and Scizor lacking Roost, although it comes with the drawback of a worse Latias and Togekiss matchup. Protect can be run to maximize Leftovers recovery as well as scout what move Pokemon with Choice items lock themselves into, such as Hydreigon, Scizor, and Krookodile. However, forgoing Toxic or Heal Bell for this isn't the common choice, as playing Diancie safely is usually enough to keep it healthy. Earth Power can be run to punish common Diancie switch-ins such as Empoleon, Nidoking, and Stakataka, but keep in mind that it lowers Diancie's utility, as Diancie has to run it over Toxic or Heal Bell. Trick Room can be run on Diancie on teams fully invested in Trick Room, as Diancie has good bulk and helps them deal with strong Dark-types like Hydreigon. However, Diancie usually does better with the listed set, as common Pokemon can stop it from setting Trick Room, such as Scizor and Mega Aggron.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-types**: Steel-types such as Mega Aggron, Scizor, and Empoleon can threaten Diancie with their STAB attacks and usually OHKO it, with some of them being able to switch into Diancie's attacks with no big problems. Empoleon is especially troublesome, as it can switch into Diancie and remove Stealth Rock.
**Ground-types**: Ground-types like Hippowdon, Nidoking, and Nidoqueen can hit Diancie with super effective STAB moves and don't care much about Diancie's attacks. The latter two are also immune to Toxic, and they can all set entry hazards against it.
**Grass-types**: Amoonguss doesn't mind Moonblast and can take advantage of Diancie switching out to use Spore. Tsareena can threaten Diancie out with Power Whip, Rotom-C can severely damage it with Leaf Storm, and Celebi doesn't mind status and can start setting up as Diancie switches out, although none of them switch in as well.
**Water-types**: Bulky Water-types like Rest Suicune can switch into Diancie reliably and hit it hard with Scald, potentially burning it and making Diamond Storm a lot weaker. Meanwhile, offensive Water-types like Volcanion and Crawdaunt can't necessarily switch into Diancie, but they can use their offensive capabilities to force it out with their strong Water-type STAB moves.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Specially defensive Pokemon such as Blissey, Amoonguss, Bronzong, and Rest Snorlax don't really mind Toxic or Diancie's offensive moves and can take advantage of it as they feel like.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Darksafadao, 3641781]]
- Quality checked by: [[Nuked, 382658], [Hilomilo, 313384], [martha, 384270]]
- Grammar checked by: [[A Cake Wearing A Hat, 388157], [Eyan, 226777]]
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