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Keldeo is one of the premier Rain abusers in DW OU, and for good reason too. It occupies the same Speed tier as other fellow OU Fighting-type compatriots Terrakion, Infernape, and Virizion. However, Keldeo also boasts a 129 base Special Attack. If a Pokemon doesn't have a Water resistance alongside decent Special bulk, or an outright immunity, and isn't named Chansey or Blissey, chances are they are going to go down to Hydro Pump. What complicates this is that Keldeo has access to a signature move, Secret Sword, which is a slightly more powerful Fighting-type Psyshock. This means that even widely regarded Special walls have difficulty walling the kind pony.
Base Stats:
HP: 91
Atk: 72
Def: 90
SpA: 129
SpD: 90
Spe: 108
Perhaps the only thing holding Keldeo back is its shallow movepool. But it already has most of the tools it needs. It has access to a wickedly powerful Rain boosted Hydro Pump, and a signature STAB move, Secret Sword, which grants it coverage allows it to bypass many dedicated Special walls. It also has Calm Mind to burgeon its ridiculous Special Attack to sky-high levels. While it must rely on Hidden Power for further coverage, Keldeo is still a threat to be reckoned with. Oh yeah, and a resisted Rain boosted Hydro Pump does about as much as a super effective Hidden Power. Here are its most prominent sets.
Keldeo @ Life Orb / Leftovers
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Hydro Pump / Surf / Scald
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Ice
And here we have one of the most powerful Calm Mind sweepers in the tier. Offensive Calm Mind Keldeo can power through all but a select few Pokemon, such as Latias and Celebi, with just its two STAB moves and a Hidden Power for coverage. The Life Orb variant just punches holes left and right, and with Rain support, a +1 Hydro Pump can blast through many Water-resists as well. Secret Sword is just icing on the cake, as Blissey and Chansey, the bane of most Special sweepers, are swiftly disposed of. Leftovers, Surf, and Scald are all inferior options offensively, but allow the user to play it more safely.
Keldeo @ Choice Specs
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk) or Modest Nature (+SpA, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Surf / Scald
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Ice
Power, power, power. That's what this set is all about. Although it retains the same coverage moves as the Offensive Calm Mind variant, 9/10 times you'll just be clicking Hydro Pump. Very few Pokemon in the tier can survive a 2HKO from a Rain boosted Specs Hydro Pump, coming off 129 base Special Attack. Secret Sword is pretty much exclusively for the pink blobs, while Hidden Power is used to hit those that can take both of Keldeo's STAB moves.
Keldeo @ Leftovers
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Substitute
- Hydro Pump / Surf / Scald
- Secret Sword
So Keldeo is very difficult to tank hits from. With great coverage and Special Attack, you would probably be better off trying to status Keldeo and cut its effectiveness. This is where Substitute comes in. Although Keldeo loses coverage in Hidden Power, keep in mind that a resisted Rain boosted Hydro Pump is not much weaker than a super effective Hidden Power. While Keldeo is now walled cold by Jellicent, the ability to dodge status ailments could prove clutch.
Counters:
Latias: Latias is about as close as you can get to a true counter to Keldeo. Thanks to its impressive Special bulk and a defensive typing that grants it resistances to both Water and Fighting, it is one of few Pokemon in the tier that can come in and take Keldeo's hits comfortably. Latias can also Roar out the blue pony should it accumulate too many Calm Mind boosts.
Celebi: Celebi is in much the same boat as Latias. Its stats and typing allow it to take most of what Keldeo can throw at it, while it can respond with a powerful Grass STAB of its own. Celebi can also defeat last man stat-upper Keldeo in a pinch with Perish Song if need be.
Jellicent: Jellicent may wall most of Keldeo's sets, thanks to an immunity to both its STABs, the problem is it can't do much in return. So yeah, Jellicent could probably burn it or something with Scald or Will-O-Wisp, but beyond that, it becomes a waiting game.
Sun: This is probably the best way to stop the merry go round. Without its precious Rain, Keldeo's combat prowess becomes severely limited. Whereas the powerful Chlorophyll sweepers commonly found on Sun teams can make mincemeat out of it. However, keep in mind that Keldeo users wont let Politoed go down that quickly.
Discuss
Base Stats:
HP: 91
Atk: 72
Def: 90
SpA: 129
SpD: 90
Spe: 108
Perhaps the only thing holding Keldeo back is its shallow movepool. But it already has most of the tools it needs. It has access to a wickedly powerful Rain boosted Hydro Pump, and a signature STAB move, Secret Sword, which grants it coverage allows it to bypass many dedicated Special walls. It also has Calm Mind to burgeon its ridiculous Special Attack to sky-high levels. While it must rely on Hidden Power for further coverage, Keldeo is still a threat to be reckoned with. Oh yeah, and a resisted Rain boosted Hydro Pump does about as much as a super effective Hidden Power. Here are its most prominent sets.
Keldeo @ Life Orb / Leftovers
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Hydro Pump / Surf / Scald
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Ice
And here we have one of the most powerful Calm Mind sweepers in the tier. Offensive Calm Mind Keldeo can power through all but a select few Pokemon, such as Latias and Celebi, with just its two STAB moves and a Hidden Power for coverage. The Life Orb variant just punches holes left and right, and with Rain support, a +1 Hydro Pump can blast through many Water-resists as well. Secret Sword is just icing on the cake, as Blissey and Chansey, the bane of most Special sweepers, are swiftly disposed of. Leftovers, Surf, and Scald are all inferior options offensively, but allow the user to play it more safely.
Keldeo @ Choice Specs
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk) or Modest Nature (+SpA, -Atk)
- Hydro Pump
- Surf / Scald
- Secret Sword
- Hidden Power Ghost / Hidden Power Ice
Power, power, power. That's what this set is all about. Although it retains the same coverage moves as the Offensive Calm Mind variant, 9/10 times you'll just be clicking Hydro Pump. Very few Pokemon in the tier can survive a 2HKO from a Rain boosted Specs Hydro Pump, coming off 129 base Special Attack. Secret Sword is pretty much exclusively for the pink blobs, while Hidden Power is used to hit those that can take both of Keldeo's STAB moves.
Keldeo @ Leftovers
Trait: Justified
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
- Calm Mind
- Substitute
- Hydro Pump / Surf / Scald
- Secret Sword
So Keldeo is very difficult to tank hits from. With great coverage and Special Attack, you would probably be better off trying to status Keldeo and cut its effectiveness. This is where Substitute comes in. Although Keldeo loses coverage in Hidden Power, keep in mind that a resisted Rain boosted Hydro Pump is not much weaker than a super effective Hidden Power. While Keldeo is now walled cold by Jellicent, the ability to dodge status ailments could prove clutch.
Counters:
Latias: Latias is about as close as you can get to a true counter to Keldeo. Thanks to its impressive Special bulk and a defensive typing that grants it resistances to both Water and Fighting, it is one of few Pokemon in the tier that can come in and take Keldeo's hits comfortably. Latias can also Roar out the blue pony should it accumulate too many Calm Mind boosts.
Celebi: Celebi is in much the same boat as Latias. Its stats and typing allow it to take most of what Keldeo can throw at it, while it can respond with a powerful Grass STAB of its own. Celebi can also defeat last man stat-upper Keldeo in a pinch with Perish Song if need be.
Jellicent: Jellicent may wall most of Keldeo's sets, thanks to an immunity to both its STABs, the problem is it can't do much in return. So yeah, Jellicent could probably burn it or something with Scald or Will-O-Wisp, but beyond that, it becomes a waiting game.
Sun: This is probably the best way to stop the merry go round. Without its precious Rain, Keldeo's combat prowess becomes severely limited. Whereas the powerful Chlorophyll sweepers commonly found on Sun teams can make mincemeat out of it. However, keep in mind that Keldeo users wont let Politoed go down that quickly.
Discuss