Josh
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[OVERVIEW]
Aerodactyl is one of the best Stealth Rock setters in STABmons; not only is it one of the fastest Pokemon in the metagame, it also has decent offensive presence. In STABmons, Aerodactyl is able to make excellent use of Rock Head, as it can take advantage of two insanely powerful STAB attacks in Brave Bird and Head Smash. With its access to Earthquake, it has nearly perfect neutral coverage. Unfortunately, Aerodactyl is very frail and offers almost no defensive synergy, although it can switch into Ground-type attacks in certain situations. In addition, despite having very powerful STAB attacks, they're only coming off a base 105 Attack stat so they don't hit overly hard. Aerodactyl also loses to nearly all priority users, and has a weakness to Stealth Rock.
[SET]
name: Offensive Support
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Head Smash
move 3: Brave Bird
move 4: Taunt / Earthquake
item: Focus Sash / Life Orb
ability: Rock Head
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Due to Aerodactyl's extremely high Speed stat and possible Focus Sash, it is nearly guaranteed to set up Stealth Rock. Head Smash's excellent 150 Base Power makes up for Aerodactyl's average Attack stat. STABmons gives Aerodactyl access to a good Flying-type STAB attack in Brave Bird as well. Because Rock Head makes Aerodactyl immune to recoil damage, Brave Bird becomes a perfectly accurate, 120 Base Power STAB move with no drawbacks. There are a few options for the fourth moveslot. Taunt is very useful for anti-leading other entry hazard setters, as it prevents them from getting their hazards up. Earthquake gives Aerodactyl perfect neutral coverage and allows it to hit a lot of its would-be counters, such as Heatran hard, possibly OHKOing them. Aerodactyl can hit nearly all of its checks or counters hard with the right move, which is another one of its good characteristics.
Set Details
========
The givens EVs maximize Aerodactyl's power and speed. Aerodactyl has terrible bulk, so investing in it would waste EVs. Running a Jolly nature instead of an Adamant one is important to let Aerodactyl outspeed and OHKO Jolly Talonflame without getting burned by Will-O-Wisp, as well as outspeed Thundurus, another common threat. Focus Sash nearly guarantees that Aerodactyl will set Stealth Rock up and allows it to survive a hit if it Taunts a foe that turns out to be attacking, such as Ferrothorn. Besides, Aerodactyl will get OHKOed by almost any powerful neutral hit, so Focus Sash allows it to survive the attack and get another move off. Life Orb is useful as well because Aerodactyl's base 105 Attack is not impressive, so it really appreciates the power boost.
Usage Tips
========
Aerodactyl is usually a good choice for a lead, especially if it has Focus Sash, as it can toss Stealth Rock out early. If you do choose to lead with Aerodactyl, going for Stealth Rock or Taunt first is generally the smartest choice. Aerodactyl usually has terrible matchups against Magic Bounce users because they bounce back both Stealth Rock and Taunt and can either OHKO Aerodactyl in Mega Diancie's case or burn it with Will-O-Wisp in Mega Sableye's case; therefore, you should switch Aerodactyl out of them. However, if Aerodactyl is holding Life Orb, it does OHKO on Mega Diancie with Earthquake. Aerodactyl usually has trouble switching in because of its terrible bulk, but it can switch into Ground-type attacks during certain situations. You'll also want to avoid switching Aerodactyl in too often with Stealth Rock up because it loses a quarter of its health upon switching into it.
Team Options
========
Aerodactyl works excellently with entry hazard control because it is weak to Stealth Rock. Latios and Latias are great options, as they resist Electric- and Water-type attacks, which Aerodactyl is weak too. Spinners are particularly good teammates, as they allow Aerodactyl's entry hazards to remain on the field. Starmie and Mega Blastoise work very well, as they can also deal with some of Aerodactyl's biggest checks, such as bulky Ground-types, particularly Landorus-T. Excadrill is also a potential spinner. Grass-, Water-, and Ground-types such as Serperior, Quagsire and Landorus-T make for good teammates too, as they cover Aerodactyl's weaknesses to Water, Electric, and Rock and can help defeat its checks and counters. Prankster users such as Thundurus and Whimsicott are decent teammates because they beat a lot of threats to Aerodactyl, such as Sableye, Skarmory, and Quagsire. Defiant and Competitive users function perfectly with Aerodactyl, as they can deter Defog, snagging a free +2 boost to their Attack or Special Attack upon the foe's attempt to remove entry hazards. Powerful Fire-types such as Heatran and Talonflame have great synergy on the offensive side with Aerodactyl; they deal with most of Aerodactyl's biggest checks, such as Skarmory and Ferrothorn.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Ice Fang is a niche option, but it does offer a bit more coverage to hit Flying- and Ground-types super effectively and allows Aerodactyl not to be setup bait for Landorus-T and Garchomp. Fire Fang is also an option, as it 2HKOes foes such as Skarmory and Ferrothorn; however, it really doesn't hit much else. Aqua Tail covers Heatran while also hitting Ground-types such as Landorus-T hard, but it's not as powerful and misses out on a lot of OHKOs. Choice Band is an option to turn Aerodactyl into a wallbreaker, but it is not recommended because Aerodactyl is too frail. Roost is an option, but again, due to Aerodactyl's terrible bulk it just won't be surviving enough hits for Roost to be viable in most situations. A Hone Claws set is worth a mention, but opportunities to set up are rare due to Aerodactyl's lack of bulk.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Walls**: Aerodactyl dislikes dealing with physical walls, especially ones with Intimidate such as Landorus-T and ones with Rough Skin or Iron Barbs such as Garchomp and Ferrothorn. Mega Slowbro is also annoying for Aerodactyl to face, although it is somewhat Taunt bait; Jirachi is also a counter if Aerodactyl doesn't run Earthquake. Scizor, Tyranitar, and Porygon2 are able to either counter or check Aerodactyl.
**Status Conditions**: Aerodactyl obviously can't perform well when asleep, burned, or paralyzed. Prankster status spreaders are the biggest problems, namely Sableye and Whimsicott, but any other status spreader that survives a hit can cripple Aerodactyl with Thunder Wave or Will-O-Wisp.
**Priority Attackers**: Nearly every form of priority OHKOes or 2HKOes Aerodactyl. Bullet Punch, Water Shuriken, and Ice Shard will all OHKO Aerodactyl; common users include Scizor, Azumarill, and Weavile. Even Fake Out + Extreme Speed users will often KO Aerodactyl; in particular, Kangaskhan, Braviary, Stoutland, and Ursaring will get the 2HKO.
Aerodactyl is one of the best Stealth Rock setters in STABmons; not only is it one of the fastest Pokemon in the metagame, it also has decent offensive presence. In STABmons, Aerodactyl is able to make excellent use of Rock Head, as it can take advantage of two insanely powerful STAB attacks in Brave Bird and Head Smash. With its access to Earthquake, it has nearly perfect neutral coverage. Unfortunately, Aerodactyl is very frail and offers almost no defensive synergy, although it can switch into Ground-type attacks in certain situations. In addition, despite having very powerful STAB attacks, they're only coming off a base 105 Attack stat so they don't hit overly hard. Aerodactyl also loses to nearly all priority users, and has a weakness to Stealth Rock.
[SET]
name: Offensive Support
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Head Smash
move 3: Brave Bird
move 4: Taunt / Earthquake
item: Focus Sash / Life Orb
ability: Rock Head
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Due to Aerodactyl's extremely high Speed stat and possible Focus Sash, it is nearly guaranteed to set up Stealth Rock. Head Smash's excellent 150 Base Power makes up for Aerodactyl's average Attack stat. STABmons gives Aerodactyl access to a good Flying-type STAB attack in Brave Bird as well. Because Rock Head makes Aerodactyl immune to recoil damage, Brave Bird becomes a perfectly accurate, 120 Base Power STAB move with no drawbacks. There are a few options for the fourth moveslot. Taunt is very useful for anti-leading other entry hazard setters, as it prevents them from getting their hazards up. Earthquake gives Aerodactyl perfect neutral coverage and allows it to hit a lot of its would-be counters, such as Heatran hard, possibly OHKOing them. Aerodactyl can hit nearly all of its checks or counters hard with the right move, which is another one of its good characteristics.
Set Details
========
The givens EVs maximize Aerodactyl's power and speed. Aerodactyl has terrible bulk, so investing in it would waste EVs. Running a Jolly nature instead of an Adamant one is important to let Aerodactyl outspeed and OHKO Jolly Talonflame without getting burned by Will-O-Wisp, as well as outspeed Thundurus, another common threat. Focus Sash nearly guarantees that Aerodactyl will set Stealth Rock up and allows it to survive a hit if it Taunts a foe that turns out to be attacking, such as Ferrothorn. Besides, Aerodactyl will get OHKOed by almost any powerful neutral hit, so Focus Sash allows it to survive the attack and get another move off. Life Orb is useful as well because Aerodactyl's base 105 Attack is not impressive, so it really appreciates the power boost.
Usage Tips
========
Aerodactyl is usually a good choice for a lead, especially if it has Focus Sash, as it can toss Stealth Rock out early. If you do choose to lead with Aerodactyl, going for Stealth Rock or Taunt first is generally the smartest choice. Aerodactyl usually has terrible matchups against Magic Bounce users because they bounce back both Stealth Rock and Taunt and can either OHKO Aerodactyl in Mega Diancie's case or burn it with Will-O-Wisp in Mega Sableye's case; therefore, you should switch Aerodactyl out of them. However, if Aerodactyl is holding Life Orb, it does OHKO on Mega Diancie with Earthquake. Aerodactyl usually has trouble switching in because of its terrible bulk, but it can switch into Ground-type attacks during certain situations. You'll also want to avoid switching Aerodactyl in too often with Stealth Rock up because it loses a quarter of its health upon switching into it.
Team Options
========
Aerodactyl works excellently with entry hazard control because it is weak to Stealth Rock. Latios and Latias are great options, as they resist Electric- and Water-type attacks, which Aerodactyl is weak too. Spinners are particularly good teammates, as they allow Aerodactyl's entry hazards to remain on the field. Starmie and Mega Blastoise work very well, as they can also deal with some of Aerodactyl's biggest checks, such as bulky Ground-types, particularly Landorus-T. Excadrill is also a potential spinner. Grass-, Water-, and Ground-types such as Serperior, Quagsire and Landorus-T make for good teammates too, as they cover Aerodactyl's weaknesses to Water, Electric, and Rock and can help defeat its checks and counters. Prankster users such as Thundurus and Whimsicott are decent teammates because they beat a lot of threats to Aerodactyl, such as Sableye, Skarmory, and Quagsire. Defiant and Competitive users function perfectly with Aerodactyl, as they can deter Defog, snagging a free +2 boost to their Attack or Special Attack upon the foe's attempt to remove entry hazards. Powerful Fire-types such as Heatran and Talonflame have great synergy on the offensive side with Aerodactyl; they deal with most of Aerodactyl's biggest checks, such as Skarmory and Ferrothorn.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Ice Fang is a niche option, but it does offer a bit more coverage to hit Flying- and Ground-types super effectively and allows Aerodactyl not to be setup bait for Landorus-T and Garchomp. Fire Fang is also an option, as it 2HKOes foes such as Skarmory and Ferrothorn; however, it really doesn't hit much else. Aqua Tail covers Heatran while also hitting Ground-types such as Landorus-T hard, but it's not as powerful and misses out on a lot of OHKOs. Choice Band is an option to turn Aerodactyl into a wallbreaker, but it is not recommended because Aerodactyl is too frail. Roost is an option, but again, due to Aerodactyl's terrible bulk it just won't be surviving enough hits for Roost to be viable in most situations. A Hone Claws set is worth a mention, but opportunities to set up are rare due to Aerodactyl's lack of bulk.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Walls**: Aerodactyl dislikes dealing with physical walls, especially ones with Intimidate such as Landorus-T and ones with Rough Skin or Iron Barbs such as Garchomp and Ferrothorn. Mega Slowbro is also annoying for Aerodactyl to face, although it is somewhat Taunt bait; Jirachi is also a counter if Aerodactyl doesn't run Earthquake. Scizor, Tyranitar, and Porygon2 are able to either counter or check Aerodactyl.
**Status Conditions**: Aerodactyl obviously can't perform well when asleep, burned, or paralyzed. Prankster status spreaders are the biggest problems, namely Sableye and Whimsicott, but any other status spreader that survives a hit can cripple Aerodactyl with Thunder Wave or Will-O-Wisp.
**Priority Attackers**: Nearly every form of priority OHKOes or 2HKOes Aerodactyl. Bullet Punch, Water Shuriken, and Ice Shard will all OHKO Aerodactyl; common users include Scizor, Azumarill, and Weavile. Even Fake Out + Extreme Speed users will often KO Aerodactyl; in particular, Kangaskhan, Braviary, Stoutland, and Ursaring will get the 2HKO.
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