What is a solid counter for Zacian - Crowned?

Question

Question says it all.

Comments

What about Groudon and P-don?

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Both get 2hkoed by close combat after stealth rock.

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But they can OHKO him with a Precipice Blades

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Nobody with half a braincell would switch their Zacian-Crowned into Groudon, or stay in against it if it's at full hp without having the intention to sack it.

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While technically genderless, Zacian's dex entry says that there is a theory that Zacian is Zamazenta's elder sister so even if you were to assign gender, it should be 'she'.

Answer 1

First of all, I'll need to define "counter" here.

Pokémon A counters Pokémon B if Pokémon A can manually switch into Pokémon B and still win every time, even under the worst-case scenario, without factoring in hax.

Source

By the above, we get to know if Pokémon A can switch into Pokémon B, survive a hit, and win against Pokémon B, then Pokémon A is dubbed as a counter to Pokémon B.
So now, what Pokémon can switch into a powerhouse like Zacian-Crowned, survive an attack, and win? The list is very short, but I'll be going through it here.

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Necrozma-Dusk Mane

• The best Pokémon to counter Zacian-Crowned is Necrozma-Dusk Mane. With its gargantuan bulk, great typing, and access to reliable recovery, Necrozma-DM shines as a Zacian counter. Almost every team in SS AG (which is not Hyper Offense or Stall) utilises Necrozma. It can go for Rocky Helmer as an item, so that it chips Zacian every time it switches onto it, making it difficult for Zacian to break through, especially with heavy pivoting between the Yen core. It also has fantastic utility moves in Knock Off, Stealth Rock, Toxic, Thunder Wave and more, which it can use in different setups. It can also utilize Dragon Dance on defensive sets, turning Zacian and opposing Necrozma-DM into setup fodder for it.
• But there's a catch here: if hazards are on your side of the field, and if you switch-in the Necrozma onto an Assurance, they can pick you off with relative ease in the next turn. Therefore, teammates such as Yveltal who can Defog away the hazards are also recommended. Otherwise, you can run Heavy-Duty Boots, but missing out on the slow chip damage is not a choice many new players can make.
• Overall, Necrozma-DM has justified its role as one of the best Pokémon in SS AG, and it flourishes well as a reliable counter to Zacian. Piloting it well is a skill you'll need to master, though.

Quagsire

• Quagsire is usually seen on Stall teams, as they don't have the luxury of running Necrozma-DM. Nevertheless, Quagsire acts as a very good Zacian-Crowned counter, as it resists Behemoth Blade, and has Unaware to take care of Zacian's attack boosts. It also has a passable bulk, which requires a bit of maintenance, though. Outside Stall, it's usually outclassed by Necrozma-DM, which is on the whole a better Pokémon than Quagsire, and a better Zacian counter.
• Quagsire can also employ Haze, which can help against Zacian's automatic Intrepid Sword boosts and other setup sweepers, such as Zekrom from setting up and potentially sweeping. Zekrom can also surpass its Unaware with Teravolt, and so Haze helps a lot against it. Scald is another useful move which can conceivably burn a Zacian, so it can't always switch freely into it or stay in the battle. Quagsire can also, in some niche cases, make use of Curse, as it can set-up on non-Toxic variants of Necrozma-DM and others, and pull off a late-game sweep.
• Rocky Helmet is the preferred item on Quagsire too. Chipping Zacian every turn makes it easier for Quagsire to check it long-term. But, because it is affected by every entry hazard, Heavy-Duty Boots also suffices as a good enough item. The prevalence of Spikes and Toxic Spikes can pose a huge issue in the long run.

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This was mostly about SS AG, but in NatDex AG, Necrozma-DM would be your best bet to counter Zacian-C.

Hope it helped.

Comments

ayo even Groudon-Primal counters Zacian-Crowned with 248 HP / 36 Def. Survives the 2HKO from CC, so it's winning the 1v1 always, even if it's coming on a manual switch.

e: wrote the as thr ;;

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That's a check, not counter. It can just switch out till you are in low HP or using Rest.

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>  so it's winning the 1v1 always
Do you know 1v1

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"counters". It should be "checks"

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> When we discuss whether something checks or counters something else, we think about a hypothetical situation in which both Pokémon are completely healthy, and after both Pokémon enter the battlefield, whether by free or manual switch, neither is allowed to switch out. Under these conditions, we think about which Pokémon wins, and from this we can determine what checks or counters what.

Bruh.

Answer 2

I’ll use this is Gen 8/NatDex AG, but the answer is similar for both.

Necrozma-Dusk Mane
One of Gen 8 and NatDex AG’s best Pokémon. It can take hits from Zacian-C, heal off with morning sun, and hit Zacian hard with a Sunsteel Strike or even an Earthquake (which is used more in Gen 8 AG). However, Zacian-C can break it. If Zacian-C uses swords dance on the switch and swords dance again, it can threaten to OHKO, and the OHKO is guaranteed if NDM has suffered minor chip. However, Zacian-C would have to suffer large damage from Sunsteel Strike/Earthquake, as well as the possibility of Rocky helmet damage, as well as the defense drops. This makes it vulnerable to revenge killing. Another way Zacian-C can break NDM is by use of assurance, which doubles in damage and is super effective if NDM switches in and steps on Rocks/Spikes. Followed that by a close combat and NDM goes down. Sometimes, although rarely, NDM runs Heavy-Duty Boots to counter Assurance.

Quagsire
A Pokémon usually used on stall due to Necrozma-Dusk being a better Pokémon in the meta, Quagsire is pretty much the only true Zacian-C counter. With unaware, it can shrug off close combats and play roughs, recover, and hit with Earthquake or try to burn with Scald. However, if the opponent has stacked a lot of hazards, Zacian-C can 2HKO on the switch, so Quagsire occasionally runs Heavy-Duty boots. Other times, it runs Leftovers for more healing or a Rocky Helmet to damage Zacian and other physical attackers more.

Well, these are the two best. Hope this helps!

(Also, I’d like to mention Ditto. It cannot switch in to Zacian, so it’s not a counter, but if Zacian-C faints a Pokémon, it can be brought in. It gets a second Intrepid Sword boost, so it has 2+ attack, plus a Scarf boost. It’s even stronger if the opposing Zacian has used swords dance before. Close Combat from it can break NDM, so you’re almost guaranteed to take out atleast one Pokémon. Ditto-Zacian’s only 100% reliable switchin is Quagsire until it choice locks itself on to a move.)

Comments

sniped ;;

E: The question asked for counters and Ditto can't counter it.

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I know, I just thought it would be good to mention as it can deal with Zacian-C.

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DoN'T fOrGeT sAsH MaRsHaDoW StEaLs BoOsTS aN AlSo CoUnTeRs XeRn ANd CAlYrEX-s

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oH oF coUrSe!!!! So oP!!!

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Sash Marsh can't counter Xern, and it can't counter Sash Rex...
It checks them, though.
But Sash Marsh = bad Marsh.

Answer 3

This might sound like a joke, but I've gotten extremely consistent results with Corsola-Galar. With max defense and Eviolite, it can eat 3 Zacian crunches and still live, and tanks Behemoth Blade even better than that.

Using strength sap on Zacians very balanced 170 base attack will almost always heal you back to full hp and consistently weaken the incoming attacks, not to mention using will-o-wisp on it will halve its damage on top of that.

Haze is a really nice option in case they run Swords Dance. As for damage, Night Shade is your best option, since it will outdamage most moves when used with low attacking stats. The only thing you need to really be scared for is Knock Off, since without Eviolite it won't tank as many hits (though admittedly, it is still rather tanky).

Comments

This is definitely a niche counter, but then you factor opportunity cost and role compression in, and there seems to be no reason to use Corsola-G over NDM.

Answer 4

NATIONAL DEX:

In my opinion, the best Pokémon to switch into against Crowned Zacian is Primal Groudon. It resists both Steel and Fairy, and can wreck it with Precipice Blades, especially if Crowned Zacian uses Close Combat, which Primal Groudon can survive.

Comments

What about Skeledirge, Quagsire, etc.?

Answer 5

Ho-oh
Ho-oh can switch into Zac-C without any fear of taking any real damage from behemoth blade, sacred sword, play rough or fire fang. With sacred fire it can then OHKO or 2HKO Zac-C. Even if Zacian does somehow survive, rocky helmet can chip away at it or leftovers can heal Ho-oh. A better item, however, would be heavy duty boots for stealth rock. With toxic, thunder wave, and/or defog, Ho-oh can be used for utility and with recover and regenerator it can stall brilliantly. Ho-oh is, of course, threatened by any rock type but the only real rock type threats are Landorus and the occasional sand team, which won't normally come with a Zacian.
Ho-oh causes Zac-C a lot of trouble and can pretty much stall forever so I would definitely advise it.

Hope I Helped!

Comments

Ho-Oh gets OHKOed by Wild Charge after any of its moves. And Landorus isn't even a rock-type and no one uses Sand in AG lmao

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No one uses fire fang on ZC.

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With Landorus I meant that it often has stone edge

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fire is neutral to zacian so ho-oh bad option

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The question is asking about Zacian-Crowned, which is hit super-effectively by Sacred Fire.