It's me again, isn't it?
Gen 9 National Dex Bird Bait
Great Tusk @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe OR 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Head Smash
- Headlong Rush
- Ice Spinner / Close Combat
We all hate birds. They poop on us, then they fly away. As the great JATP once said, "just shoot them with a gun at that point." However, fear not, as we have a prehistoric elephant that does just that.
EVs and item are all standard; Boots is preferred as to let Tusk do its normal Spinning duties undeterred by existing hazards. Head Smash is the kicker here; this move basically annihilates most the Flying types in the metagame. The big ones are Moltres and Zapdos, two major roadblocks to physical sweepers due to their Flame Body and Static abilites, respectively, along with Mega Charizard Y. Now, I do know that Zard Y outspeeds Tusk, so you can opt to use an EV spread that boosts Speed with Protosynthesis (or just try and get a Rapid Spin boost). Headlong Rush's Ground coverage is very valuable in the metagame right now, and most of its resists/immunities just gets throttled by Head Smash, and it achieves the coveted EdgeQuake coverage (now renamed the RushSmash coverage). Ice Spinner helps remove the birds (or, I guess, honorary birds) that Head Smash can't easily remove, notably the Ground/Flying duo of Gliscor and Landorus-T. Alternatively, Close Combat provides a tad more firepower against the likes of Ting-Lu, Ferrothorn, and Corviknight. Honorable mention goes to Bulk Up, which is terrifying on Sticky Webs teams for being able to dismantle even Alomomola (after Booster Energy provides an Attack boost). The best part about this set is that nobody expects Head Smash, so something like Moltres could easily switch in and get absolutely decimated, leaving a gap for teammates.
This set wants teammates that appreciate the removal of these pesky birds. For example, Kartana struggles against every Flying-type in the game; however, after they are removed, Z Kartana in general becomes nigh unstoppable, with Grassium Z providing nuclear power and Fightinium Z hitting the Steels harder, which are likely the remaining Grass resists after the birds have bit the dust. Mega Scizor also has great hatred for the birds, but its 3 Attack Swords Dance set become a lot more terrifying after Moltres is unable to stop its boosted Bullet Punch, and Close Combat and Knock Off can cleave through the remaining resists. Great Tusk's teammates could also be those that just appreciate its hazard removal. For example, Substitute Volcarona doesn't run Boots, instead opting for Leftovers for longevity or Buginium Z to partner with Swarm. Not only do the removal of its natural predators enable Buginium Z to smack pretty much everything, it doesn't have to worry about Rocks and Spikes removing a large portion of its health, something already in high demand thanks to Substitute.
