MANAPHY
Manaphy. What comes to mind when hearing "Manaphy"?
1 Pure Water typing.
2 Base stats of 100.
3 Small movepool.
4 Treathening Tail Glow sweeper.
5 Hydration.
6 Almost never used in its tier. Used frequently in Suspect.
Now let's go deeper into it.
TYPING
Manaphy has a pure Water typing. Its typing has adventages and disadventages. On the offensive side, Manaphy has Water STAB. This is good because the most common Uber (Kyogre) means it is raining often. This boosts Manaphys STAB. Unfortunately, Dragons (Dragon is a very common type in Ubers) and Kyogre (The most common Pokémon) resist its STAB. On the defensive, its typing gives Manaphy an useful Water resistance, and an Ice resistance too. Choiced Kyogre locked into Ice Beam or Surf are good chances to switch in. Specs Water Spout is too strong. A Fire and a Steel resistance are also a benefit. A downside is an Electric weakness, and Electric moves (Thunder) are common in the Uber tier. Its Grass weakness is less problematic, Grass is less common. Manaphy is leight too, so Grass Knot won't do too much. Shaymin-S' Seed Flare is a problem for Manaphy, but Shaymin-S isn't common. Overall, a typing that is both good and bad.
ABILITY
This is a good thing. Hydration heals Manaphy from status problems in the rain. This means Rest without Sleep Talk is a possibility as long as you use Kyogre (Rain) and/or Rain Dance on Manaphy. Then you use Rest. At the end of the same turn, Manaphy wakes up if it is Raining. This is named Rain-Resting. Manaphy has no recovery barring Rest, so it is very useful. However, there is a risk. If a Groudon, Tyranitar, Hippowdon or Abomasnow switches in when Manaphy uses Rest, there is no Rain, so Manaphy will sleep for two turns. Rayquaza has Air Lock to make Manaphy sleep for two turns. Knowing the opponents team and predicting is important when using this strategy. Rain-Rest might be risky, but very useful.
STATS
All stats are 100. This means both offensive and defensive sets are possible as for Manaphys movepool allows it. 100 is not very high for Uber standards, but also definitely not low. Its HP means 101 Substitutes are possible. Its Speed means most Ubers (base 90, Rayquaza base 95) can be outran. A speed tie with Palkia is possible, although nobody uses max Speed Manaphy.
MOVEPOOL
Useful moves.
- Acid Armor.
- Calm Mind.
- Grass Knot
- Heal Bell.
- Heart Swap.
- Hidden Power.
- Ice Beam.
- Icy Wind.
- Knock Off.
- Light Screen.
- Psych Up.
- Rain Dance.
- Reflect.
- Rest.
- Return.
- Safeguard.
- Shadow Ball.
- Signal Beam.
- Skill Swap.
- Sleep Talk.
- Substitute.
- Surf.
- Tail Glow.
- Toxic.
- U-Turn.
- Waterfall.
- Whirlpool.
As you see, I noted every single move that is reasonably useful. Some of them are never used by Manaphy. This might be useful for ideas for new movesets. Some examples: Whirlpool trap, Screen setup, Heart Swap abuse, Skill Swapping useful abilities of the opponent. There are more ideas. Be creative and try to make up a new set! That is what this thread is about.
On the offensive, Manaphy has a small movepool, but it is enough for good coverage. Water+Grass/Ice offers great coverage. Hidden Power if you really want to hit a certain Pokémon for 4* effective damage. For 2* damage, it isn't worth it because Surf is almost as strong as a 2* effective Hidden Power. With Tail Glow, Manaphy can double its Special Attack in one turn. Calm Mind is almost never used on Manaphy, but is good too. With a physically defensive EV spread, it is sturdy. Its Special Defense will be boosted by Calm Mind and its Special Attack too. Ice Beam is good because Dragons are so common. This is a good move to make a set about. Going physically offensive isn't smart. The only Physical move that is useful is U-Turn, and that has nothing to do with power.
On the defensive/supportive, Acid Armor and a special defensive EV spread makes Manaphy bulky. Manaphy can use both screens to lower damage done to itself and teammates. Heal Bell makes Manaphy a cleric.
There is much more than this. Manaphy has a small movepool, is an Uber that is overlooked, but maybe this thread might change this. It would be very nice if you make up a set and popularize it making Manaphys usage go up. If you think your set is good but are bad at teambuilding or want to check if you want to know if your team is good, you could make a RMT. If that one is good, Manaphy can be popularized. So do your best.
USEFUL TEAMMATES
- Kyogre, to provide rain support. Can also Thunder Wave Latias, Latios, Dialga and Palkia, which Kyogre lures in.
- Deoxys-S, Spikes and Stealth Rock to help Tail Glow Manaphy.
- Dialga, sets up Stealth Rock and checks Kyogre. Resists Manaphys weaknesses.
- Latias, checks non-Scarfed Palkia and Kyogre.
- Scizor, checks Mewtwo, Darkrai, Shaymin-S, Latios, Latias and Garchomp locked into Outrage
- Metagross, much like Scizor.
- Blissey, Wish support and taking most special attacks.
- Lugia, to check Rayquaza and Groudon.
- Something to set up screens.
COUNTERS/CHECKS
Blissey, Dialga, Palkia, Latias, Latios, Rayquaza, Kyogre, Groudon, Tyranitar, Shaymin-S, faster revenge killers not named before in this section (like Garchomp).
SETS FROM THE ANALYSIS
These are the sets from the Manaphy analysis, with copied description. Maybe you want to make up a new set by changing a standard. Maybe you want to make sure your set is original. Maybe you want to change an EV spread and nothing more.
Manayphy @ Leftovers/Life Orb
Ability: Hydration
EVs: 80 HP/252 SAtk/176 Spe
Nature: Timid
- Rest
- Tail Glow
- Surf
- Ice Beam/Grass Knot
This is Manaphy’s best sweeping set, allowing it to easily increase its Special Attack to astronomical levels with Tail Glow, Rest off the damage, wake up instantly thanks to Hydration, and sweep. Make sure you are packing rain support when using this set, as that is what makes Manaphy truly shine.
Ice Beam is generally the better option in the last slot, giving Manaphy an easy OHKO on Rayquaza, who can negate rain's side-effects with Air Lock, making Hydration useless. It also helps against the other Dragon-types, like Giratina, Latias, and Latios. Grass Knot ensures an OHKO on Kyogre, hits Palkia harder than Ice Beam, and can hit Groudon and Tyranitar who may come in to stop the rain. Neither option leaves you entirely helpless against certain foes, however. For example, if you go with Ice Beam, you can still 2HKO Kyogre with Surf, thanks to boosts from Tail Glow, Life Orb, and Drizzle. If you opt for Grass Knot, then you can still 2HKO Rayquaza with a Life Orb Surf after a Tail Glow boost. Latios can also be 2HKOed by boosted Surfs in rain, even accounting for Soul Dew (his more defensive sister will usually survive two hits though).
The choice of item depends on your personal preference. Leftovers makes for a sturdier Manaphy and can ease set-up. Life Orb gives it some extra kick, and the 10% recoil can be made up for with Rest, especially with Hydration.
The EVs are fairly straightforward. Max Special Attack is necessary to inflict as much damage as possible. The Speed EVs allow Manaphy to outrun all base 90s who do not hold a Choice Scarf, including Kyogre, Groudon, and Dialga, while also letting Manaphy beat Max Speed Adamant Rayquaza. The HP EVs give Manaphy decent bulk to assist in setting up, while also minimizing Life Orb recoil. One could also elect to pull EVs from HP to increase the Speed to 319 (Timid, 216 EVs), if you are paranoid about Jolly Rayquaza.
Manaphy needs to mainly watch out for powerful attackers who are faster than it and resist Surf. Palkia has a 4x resistance to Water-type attacks, is not particularly weak to Ice Beam or Grass Knot, and will fry Manaphy with Thunder. Latios and Latias also defeat Manaphy in a similar fashion, but must watch out for Ice Beam. Dialga is not weak to any of Manaphy’s assaults, and it also has Thunder to hit Manaphy. Kyogre will also make mincemeat out of those Manaphy running Ice Beam over Grass Knot and can even set up on poor Manaphy with Calm Mind. Manaphy will be unable to get past Blissey if it has Calm Mind or Psych Up. While they can’t switch in on a boosted attack, Rayquaza, Groudon, and Tyranitar can come in on the turn Manaphy uses Rest, forcing it to sleep for two turns, while all of them can employ their own stat-boosting moves to prepare for a sweep of their own. Finally, Manaphy is also vulnerable to being revenge killed from Pokemon such as Garchomp, Mewtwo, Shaymin-S, and Darkrai. Blissey can take any special attack thrown at Manaphy and respond with debilitating status, such as Toxic or Thunder Wave. A Choice Scarf Palkia makes a good check to all of these threats (except opposing Choice Scarf Palkia), destroying them all with its powerful Dragon-type attacks. Wobbuffet can trap and KO all of these threats, sans Choice Specs Kyogre or Darkrai, or employ Encore and Safeguard to turn these Pokemon into set-up bait for Manaphy. A specially defensive Dialga provides resists Manaphy's Grass and Electric weaknesses and can cripple the above threats with Thunder Wave, making them less of a threat for Manaphy. Thunder Wave Kyogre, while sharing weaknesses with Manaphy, acts as a great lure for Manaphy’s counters, so it can render them useless by paralyzing them. A Latias of your own is also a great partner, as it is capable of taking down Kyogre and most Palkia with relative ease, although it cannot switch in directly for fear of Spacial Rend or Outrage, while also being able to take any Electric- or Grass-type move thrown at Manaphy. Choice Scarf Garchomp can also provide Manaphy with an Electric-type immunity and will outspeed and KO all of these threats with its powerful Earthquake or Outrage. Scizor is also a good teammate to deal with Mewtwo, Darkrai, Shaymin-S, Latios, and Latias, all of whom may try to revenge kill Manaphy, with Bullet Punch or U-turn. Scizor can also take on Choice Scarf Garchomp locked into Outrage.
Manaphy @ Leftovers
Ability: Hydration
EVs: 240 HP/164 SAtk/104 SDef
Nature: Calm
- Rest
- Surf
- Ice Beam/Grass Knot
- Toxic
This set is designed to abuse Toxic and Rest. Poison your foes and stall them out with Rest, while they slowly die from the intensifying damage. Ice Beam is present to kill off Rayquaza, lest he spoil your fun with Air Lock. Grass Knot will hit Kyogre and also takes a big chunk out of Groudon. Light Screen and Reflect are options in the final two slots for more stalling potential and team support. Heart Swap could also be used here to prevent foes from setting up on you.
Since this is a defensive set, the EVs should reflect it. You'll want this Manaphy to be slow so it can take hits, as even Thunder Choice Scarf Kyogre fails to OHKO, barring a critical hit. The Special Attack EVs ensure you will always OHKO minimum HP Rayquaza and then can Rest up to full health. Because Manaphy still has a slight chance to OHKO Rayquaza even with minimum Special Attack, it is possible, although not recommended, to switch the Special Attack EVs to either of the defensive stats. You can also opt to simply max out HP and Special Defense. This gives you a chance to survive a Thunder from Modest Choice Specs Kyogre, as Manaphy will always survive a hit from Timid versions.
This Manaphy, while being able to outstall some of its common counters with Toxic, still needs to watch out some for the above threats, more specifically Choice Specs Kyogre, Calm Mind Latias and Latios, and Dialga (especially Bulk Up variants), as they can set up on you now that Dialga does not have to fear boosted Ice Beams and is immune to Toxic. Rest + Sleep Talk Kyogre with Calm Mind can set up on Manaphy without Grass Knot and can Rest off Toxic. Choice Scarf Garchomp is once again a great partner, as it is able to switch in on Thunder aimed at Manaphy, outrun all of these threats, and KO them with strong Dragon- and Ground-type strikes. Latias can CM alongside Kyogre and defeat it with Grass Knot.
Again, this set fears opposing weather changers, such as Groudon, Tyranitar, and Rayquaza, from coming in on Rest and setting up a sweep that could spell doom for your team. Choice Scarf Palkia is a nice check for these threats, able to severely hurt or KO them all with a powerful Draco Meteor (or Aura Sphere for Tyranitar). You can also use Choice Scarf Dialga, who makes a better check to Swords Dance Rayquaza, but will be outsped by Jolly variants of Rayquaza after a single Dragon Dance, meaning you will be unable to revenge kill it. Make sure to use Kyogre to replace the rain after these threats are eliminated.
MANAPHY OVERVIEW
Stats: Good stats allowing it to be offensive and defensive.
Movepool: Small, but enough to provide it with most of what it needs.
Ablilty: Good, but abusing it is risky.
Typing: Has adventages and disadventages.
IDEAS
If you don't know where to start when making your new Manaphy set, here are some ideas to make a set around.
- New EV spread for a standard set.
- Choice Manaphy.
- U-Turn/Protect scout.
- Sleep Talk/RestTalker.
- Whirlpool trapping.
- Calm Mind.
- Heal Bell.
- Heart Swap.
- Psych Up.
- Acid Armor.
- Icy Wind.
- Knock Off.
- Screen support.
- Utility/specific counter for what you want it to counter.
I know RestTalk seems stupid with Hydration, but this might allow Manaphy to deal with Rayquaza and Groudon. Or even a CroPhy. Then Manaphy is less dependant on the rain. I don't think it is good, but testing will be the only way to be sure.
CLOSING WORDS
Now you read all this, I hope you can make up new Manaphy set. If you can't or don't want to make up new sets, I hope you learned about Manaphy and/or want to use Manaphy.
Thank you for reading this and I hope you enjoyed it.
Altaria
Manaphy. What comes to mind when hearing "Manaphy"?
1 Pure Water typing.
2 Base stats of 100.
3 Small movepool.
4 Treathening Tail Glow sweeper.
5 Hydration.
6 Almost never used in its tier. Used frequently in Suspect.
Now let's go deeper into it.
TYPING
Manaphy has a pure Water typing. Its typing has adventages and disadventages. On the offensive side, Manaphy has Water STAB. This is good because the most common Uber (Kyogre) means it is raining often. This boosts Manaphys STAB. Unfortunately, Dragons (Dragon is a very common type in Ubers) and Kyogre (The most common Pokémon) resist its STAB. On the defensive, its typing gives Manaphy an useful Water resistance, and an Ice resistance too. Choiced Kyogre locked into Ice Beam or Surf are good chances to switch in. Specs Water Spout is too strong. A Fire and a Steel resistance are also a benefit. A downside is an Electric weakness, and Electric moves (Thunder) are common in the Uber tier. Its Grass weakness is less problematic, Grass is less common. Manaphy is leight too, so Grass Knot won't do too much. Shaymin-S' Seed Flare is a problem for Manaphy, but Shaymin-S isn't common. Overall, a typing that is both good and bad.
ABILITY
This is a good thing. Hydration heals Manaphy from status problems in the rain. This means Rest without Sleep Talk is a possibility as long as you use Kyogre (Rain) and/or Rain Dance on Manaphy. Then you use Rest. At the end of the same turn, Manaphy wakes up if it is Raining. This is named Rain-Resting. Manaphy has no recovery barring Rest, so it is very useful. However, there is a risk. If a Groudon, Tyranitar, Hippowdon or Abomasnow switches in when Manaphy uses Rest, there is no Rain, so Manaphy will sleep for two turns. Rayquaza has Air Lock to make Manaphy sleep for two turns. Knowing the opponents team and predicting is important when using this strategy. Rain-Rest might be risky, but very useful.
STATS
All stats are 100. This means both offensive and defensive sets are possible as for Manaphys movepool allows it. 100 is not very high for Uber standards, but also definitely not low. Its HP means 101 Substitutes are possible. Its Speed means most Ubers (base 90, Rayquaza base 95) can be outran. A speed tie with Palkia is possible, although nobody uses max Speed Manaphy.
MOVEPOOL
Useful moves.
- Acid Armor.
- Calm Mind.
- Grass Knot
- Heal Bell.
- Heart Swap.
- Hidden Power.
- Ice Beam.
- Icy Wind.
- Knock Off.
- Light Screen.
- Psych Up.
- Rain Dance.
- Reflect.
- Rest.
- Return.
- Safeguard.
- Shadow Ball.
- Signal Beam.
- Skill Swap.
- Sleep Talk.
- Substitute.
- Surf.
- Tail Glow.
- Toxic.
- U-Turn.
- Waterfall.
- Whirlpool.
As you see, I noted every single move that is reasonably useful. Some of them are never used by Manaphy. This might be useful for ideas for new movesets. Some examples: Whirlpool trap, Screen setup, Heart Swap abuse, Skill Swapping useful abilities of the opponent. There are more ideas. Be creative and try to make up a new set! That is what this thread is about.
On the offensive, Manaphy has a small movepool, but it is enough for good coverage. Water+Grass/Ice offers great coverage. Hidden Power if you really want to hit a certain Pokémon for 4* effective damage. For 2* damage, it isn't worth it because Surf is almost as strong as a 2* effective Hidden Power. With Tail Glow, Manaphy can double its Special Attack in one turn. Calm Mind is almost never used on Manaphy, but is good too. With a physically defensive EV spread, it is sturdy. Its Special Defense will be boosted by Calm Mind and its Special Attack too. Ice Beam is good because Dragons are so common. This is a good move to make a set about. Going physically offensive isn't smart. The only Physical move that is useful is U-Turn, and that has nothing to do with power.
On the defensive/supportive, Acid Armor and a special defensive EV spread makes Manaphy bulky. Manaphy can use both screens to lower damage done to itself and teammates. Heal Bell makes Manaphy a cleric.
There is much more than this. Manaphy has a small movepool, is an Uber that is overlooked, but maybe this thread might change this. It would be very nice if you make up a set and popularize it making Manaphys usage go up. If you think your set is good but are bad at teambuilding or want to check if you want to know if your team is good, you could make a RMT. If that one is good, Manaphy can be popularized. So do your best.
USEFUL TEAMMATES
- Kyogre, to provide rain support. Can also Thunder Wave Latias, Latios, Dialga and Palkia, which Kyogre lures in.
- Deoxys-S, Spikes and Stealth Rock to help Tail Glow Manaphy.
- Dialga, sets up Stealth Rock and checks Kyogre. Resists Manaphys weaknesses.
- Latias, checks non-Scarfed Palkia and Kyogre.
- Scizor, checks Mewtwo, Darkrai, Shaymin-S, Latios, Latias and Garchomp locked into Outrage
- Metagross, much like Scizor.
- Blissey, Wish support and taking most special attacks.
- Lugia, to check Rayquaza and Groudon.
- Something to set up screens.
COUNTERS/CHECKS
Blissey, Dialga, Palkia, Latias, Latios, Rayquaza, Kyogre, Groudon, Tyranitar, Shaymin-S, faster revenge killers not named before in this section (like Garchomp).
SETS FROM THE ANALYSIS
These are the sets from the Manaphy analysis, with copied description. Maybe you want to make up a new set by changing a standard. Maybe you want to make sure your set is original. Maybe you want to change an EV spread and nothing more.
Manayphy @ Leftovers/Life Orb
Ability: Hydration
EVs: 80 HP/252 SAtk/176 Spe
Nature: Timid
- Rest
- Tail Glow
- Surf
- Ice Beam/Grass Knot
This is Manaphy’s best sweeping set, allowing it to easily increase its Special Attack to astronomical levels with Tail Glow, Rest off the damage, wake up instantly thanks to Hydration, and sweep. Make sure you are packing rain support when using this set, as that is what makes Manaphy truly shine.
Ice Beam is generally the better option in the last slot, giving Manaphy an easy OHKO on Rayquaza, who can negate rain's side-effects with Air Lock, making Hydration useless. It also helps against the other Dragon-types, like Giratina, Latias, and Latios. Grass Knot ensures an OHKO on Kyogre, hits Palkia harder than Ice Beam, and can hit Groudon and Tyranitar who may come in to stop the rain. Neither option leaves you entirely helpless against certain foes, however. For example, if you go with Ice Beam, you can still 2HKO Kyogre with Surf, thanks to boosts from Tail Glow, Life Orb, and Drizzle. If you opt for Grass Knot, then you can still 2HKO Rayquaza with a Life Orb Surf after a Tail Glow boost. Latios can also be 2HKOed by boosted Surfs in rain, even accounting for Soul Dew (his more defensive sister will usually survive two hits though).
The choice of item depends on your personal preference. Leftovers makes for a sturdier Manaphy and can ease set-up. Life Orb gives it some extra kick, and the 10% recoil can be made up for with Rest, especially with Hydration.
The EVs are fairly straightforward. Max Special Attack is necessary to inflict as much damage as possible. The Speed EVs allow Manaphy to outrun all base 90s who do not hold a Choice Scarf, including Kyogre, Groudon, and Dialga, while also letting Manaphy beat Max Speed Adamant Rayquaza. The HP EVs give Manaphy decent bulk to assist in setting up, while also minimizing Life Orb recoil. One could also elect to pull EVs from HP to increase the Speed to 319 (Timid, 216 EVs), if you are paranoid about Jolly Rayquaza.
Manaphy needs to mainly watch out for powerful attackers who are faster than it and resist Surf. Palkia has a 4x resistance to Water-type attacks, is not particularly weak to Ice Beam or Grass Knot, and will fry Manaphy with Thunder. Latios and Latias also defeat Manaphy in a similar fashion, but must watch out for Ice Beam. Dialga is not weak to any of Manaphy’s assaults, and it also has Thunder to hit Manaphy. Kyogre will also make mincemeat out of those Manaphy running Ice Beam over Grass Knot and can even set up on poor Manaphy with Calm Mind. Manaphy will be unable to get past Blissey if it has Calm Mind or Psych Up. While they can’t switch in on a boosted attack, Rayquaza, Groudon, and Tyranitar can come in on the turn Manaphy uses Rest, forcing it to sleep for two turns, while all of them can employ their own stat-boosting moves to prepare for a sweep of their own. Finally, Manaphy is also vulnerable to being revenge killed from Pokemon such as Garchomp, Mewtwo, Shaymin-S, and Darkrai. Blissey can take any special attack thrown at Manaphy and respond with debilitating status, such as Toxic or Thunder Wave. A Choice Scarf Palkia makes a good check to all of these threats (except opposing Choice Scarf Palkia), destroying them all with its powerful Dragon-type attacks. Wobbuffet can trap and KO all of these threats, sans Choice Specs Kyogre or Darkrai, or employ Encore and Safeguard to turn these Pokemon into set-up bait for Manaphy. A specially defensive Dialga provides resists Manaphy's Grass and Electric weaknesses and can cripple the above threats with Thunder Wave, making them less of a threat for Manaphy. Thunder Wave Kyogre, while sharing weaknesses with Manaphy, acts as a great lure for Manaphy’s counters, so it can render them useless by paralyzing them. A Latias of your own is also a great partner, as it is capable of taking down Kyogre and most Palkia with relative ease, although it cannot switch in directly for fear of Spacial Rend or Outrage, while also being able to take any Electric- or Grass-type move thrown at Manaphy. Choice Scarf Garchomp can also provide Manaphy with an Electric-type immunity and will outspeed and KO all of these threats with its powerful Earthquake or Outrage. Scizor is also a good teammate to deal with Mewtwo, Darkrai, Shaymin-S, Latios, and Latias, all of whom may try to revenge kill Manaphy, with Bullet Punch or U-turn. Scizor can also take on Choice Scarf Garchomp locked into Outrage.
Manaphy @ Leftovers
Ability: Hydration
EVs: 240 HP/164 SAtk/104 SDef
Nature: Calm
- Rest
- Surf
- Ice Beam/Grass Knot
- Toxic
This set is designed to abuse Toxic and Rest. Poison your foes and stall them out with Rest, while they slowly die from the intensifying damage. Ice Beam is present to kill off Rayquaza, lest he spoil your fun with Air Lock. Grass Knot will hit Kyogre and also takes a big chunk out of Groudon. Light Screen and Reflect are options in the final two slots for more stalling potential and team support. Heart Swap could also be used here to prevent foes from setting up on you.
Since this is a defensive set, the EVs should reflect it. You'll want this Manaphy to be slow so it can take hits, as even Thunder Choice Scarf Kyogre fails to OHKO, barring a critical hit. The Special Attack EVs ensure you will always OHKO minimum HP Rayquaza and then can Rest up to full health. Because Manaphy still has a slight chance to OHKO Rayquaza even with minimum Special Attack, it is possible, although not recommended, to switch the Special Attack EVs to either of the defensive stats. You can also opt to simply max out HP and Special Defense. This gives you a chance to survive a Thunder from Modest Choice Specs Kyogre, as Manaphy will always survive a hit from Timid versions.
This Manaphy, while being able to outstall some of its common counters with Toxic, still needs to watch out some for the above threats, more specifically Choice Specs Kyogre, Calm Mind Latias and Latios, and Dialga (especially Bulk Up variants), as they can set up on you now that Dialga does not have to fear boosted Ice Beams and is immune to Toxic. Rest + Sleep Talk Kyogre with Calm Mind can set up on Manaphy without Grass Knot and can Rest off Toxic. Choice Scarf Garchomp is once again a great partner, as it is able to switch in on Thunder aimed at Manaphy, outrun all of these threats, and KO them with strong Dragon- and Ground-type strikes. Latias can CM alongside Kyogre and defeat it with Grass Knot.
Again, this set fears opposing weather changers, such as Groudon, Tyranitar, and Rayquaza, from coming in on Rest and setting up a sweep that could spell doom for your team. Choice Scarf Palkia is a nice check for these threats, able to severely hurt or KO them all with a powerful Draco Meteor (or Aura Sphere for Tyranitar). You can also use Choice Scarf Dialga, who makes a better check to Swords Dance Rayquaza, but will be outsped by Jolly variants of Rayquaza after a single Dragon Dance, meaning you will be unable to revenge kill it. Make sure to use Kyogre to replace the rain after these threats are eliminated.
MANAPHY OVERVIEW
Stats: Good stats allowing it to be offensive and defensive.
Movepool: Small, but enough to provide it with most of what it needs.
Ablilty: Good, but abusing it is risky.
Typing: Has adventages and disadventages.
IDEAS
If you don't know where to start when making your new Manaphy set, here are some ideas to make a set around.
- New EV spread for a standard set.
- Choice Manaphy.
- U-Turn/Protect scout.
- Sleep Talk/RestTalker.
- Whirlpool trapping.
- Calm Mind.
- Heal Bell.
- Heart Swap.
- Psych Up.
- Acid Armor.
- Icy Wind.
- Knock Off.
- Screen support.
- Utility/specific counter for what you want it to counter.
I know RestTalk seems stupid with Hydration, but this might allow Manaphy to deal with Rayquaza and Groudon. Or even a CroPhy. Then Manaphy is less dependant on the rain. I don't think it is good, but testing will be the only way to be sure.
CLOSING WORDS
Now you read all this, I hope you can make up new Manaphy set. If you can't or don't want to make up new sets, I hope you learned about Manaphy and/or want to use Manaphy.
Thank you for reading this and I hope you enjoyed it.
Altaria