* Gliscor's solid natural bulk and defensive typing let it check threats like Garchomp, Ferrothorn, Excadrill, Choice Scarf Terrakion, and defensively inclined Landorus-T. With Special Defense investment, it can also check special attackers like Gengar, Mega Alakazam, and Tornadus-Therian.
* Its unique ability, Poison Heal, combined with Toxic Orb, restores 1/8th of its HP each turn and effectively makes it immune to status, letting it check or defeat a host of defensive Pokemon such as Clefable, Toxapex, Chansey, and Mega Sableye.
* A 4x weakness to Ice and 2x weakness to Water leave it easily KOed by threats like Weavile, Greninja, and Mamoswine.
* It's outclassed by Landorus-T in many defensive and offensive roles.
* It tends to get overwhelmed by powerful attacks from the likes of Mega Metagross and Mega Pinsir, as well as by setup sweepers like Zygarde and Scolipede.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Knock Off / Facade
move 4: Roost
item: Toxic Orb
ability: Poison Heal
nature: Careful
evs: 244 HP / 168 SpD / 96 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Swords Dance gives Gliscor the power to beat down defensive Pokemon like Clefable, Toxapex, and Chansey.
* Earthquake is a STAB move that hits most things for decent damage.
* Gliscor's second attack is primarily so that it cannot be walled by Flying-types or Pokemon with Levitate. Knock Off deprives opponents of their items, which makes it pretty spammable early-game, and is a good tool for scouting, as it will let you know whether common switch-ins like Landorus-T are carrying a Z-Move or a different item. It also removes Shed Shell from Skarmory and Celesteela, which is useful if Gliscor is paired with Magnezone.
* Facade can be used over Knock Off, as it does more damage in general and makes beating certain targets such as Tapu Bulu and Buzzwole easier. It also deals much more damage to Pokemon whose items can't be removed, such as Mega Pinsir and Mega Charizard as well as Z-Move users such as Landorus-T and Salamence.
* Roost is obligatory to prevent Gliscor from being worn down.
Set Details
========
* 96 Speed EVs let Gliscor outspeed Adamant Max Speed Tapu Bulu, removing its Choice Band or hitting it with Facade before it can strike back.
* 244 HP EVs gives Gliscor a Poison Heal number, meaning it recovers as much as possible each turn.
* The remaining EVs are invested in Special Defense, which lets Gliscor check Tornadus-T, Gengar, Clefable, Nihilego, and Toxapex, among other threats.
* A spread with less Speed can be used to still check specific slower threats while having greater bulk overall.
Usage Tips
========
* Be wary of Knock Off and Will-O-Wisp users before Toxic Orb activates.
* Use Knock Off to wear down and scout the opponent's team early-game, especially if it has solid switch-ins like Landorus-T.
* It could be worthwhile to scout for Hidden Power Ice on Pokemon that occasionally carry it like Zapdos.
* If faced with a defensive Pokemon that Gliscor can't immediately break through, use Swords Dance, but watch out for Foul Play users like Mega Sableye and Mandibuzz.
* Against offensive teams Swords Dance isn't typically worth using; they'll usually have an offensive Pokemon that can revenge kill Gliscor, so it might be best just to use Roost and attack.
Team Options
========
* A bulky Water-type that can easily switch in on Water- and Ice-type attacks makes an ideal partner for Gliscor. Rotom-W, Toxapex, or Slowbro are fine examples of this.
* Mega Scizor is a solid partner that checks Weavile, Mamoswine, and Mega Metagross, and can Pursuit trap them as well as troublesome wallbreakers like Tapu Lele. It can also check some variants of Tapu Bulu, which don't care about anything Gliscor can throw at it.
* Magnezone can remove Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Mega Scizor, and Celesteela, all of which can be hard for Gliscor to break through, and it appreciates Shed Shells being Knocked Off.
* A Grass-type like Mega Venusaur or Ferrothorn could make a good partner, as it can check Water-types that Gliscor is afraid of. Ferrothorn in particular appreciates Gliscor's ability to check Fighting-types and Heatran if need be and provides hazard support in turn, while Mega Venusaur is a better check to Keldeo and Tapu Fini. It can also deal with Tapu Bulu to an extent.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* A set based around Taunt can work as a somewhat effective stallbreaker that can prevent troublesome setup sweepers like Zygarde from setting up as well as keep support Pokemon such as Skarmory or Chansey from setting up entry hazards or healing.
* Protect can be run on any set so that Gliscor can activate your Toxic Orb in the face of a status user as well as scout for potential Ice coverage while getting a free turn of recovery. However, Gliscor usually prefers having much more sizeable recovery in Roost.
* Substitute + Toxic is a classic set that functions well against certain kinds of offensive teams, but it has too many counters, such as Skarmory, Celesteela, and Mega Sableye, to be effective in most matchups.
* Ice Fang can be used to defeat opposing Gliscor and get a strong hit on Landorus-T, Garchomp, Zygarde, and Salamence as they set up, but it's otherwise very weak and Gliscor already beats potential targets such as defensive Garchomp and defensive Landorus-T.
* Baton Pass can be used to pass Swords Dance or Agility boosts to a teammate, but Gliscor must give up two moveslots to do so, leaving it unable to either heal or sweep on its own.
* Stealth Rock can be used if you want a Stealth Rock setter that is difficult to wear down.
* Acrobatics can be used to deal a modest amount of damage to Buzzwole and Tapu Bulu. However, it's quite weak unless run alongside Fling, which costs a valuable moveslot that Gliscor can't really afford to give up, or unless you switch Gliscor into a predicted Knock Off, which is prediction- and matchup-reliant.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Ice-types**: Ice-types like Weavile, Mamoswine, and Kyurem-B can easily OHKO Gliscor with their STAB Ice-type attacks.
**Water-types**: Water-types, especially special attackers like Keldeo, Greninja, and Rotom-W, can 2HKO or OHKO Gliscor with their Water-type moves.
**Ice-type Coverage**: Most Ice-type coverage moves are able to 2HKO Gliscor at worst. Pokemon like Tapu Koko, Greninja, Thundurus, Buzzwole, and Porygon-Z can swiftly dispatch Gliscor with such moves.
**Grass-types**: Gliscor struggles to do much damage with Earthquake to Grass-types, and they can usually heal up on or break through Gliscor. Mega Venusaur can break through with Giga Drain, as Gliscor loses its Flying typing as it uses Roost. Serperior can switch in on an Earthquake and proceed to 2HKO with Leaf Storm. Tapu Bulu takes halved damage from Earthquake thanks to Grassy Terrain, is tough to wear down thanks to the passive healing, and can easily OHKO with a Choice Band Wood Hammer or simply spam Horn Leech until Gliscor is forced to switch out. Amoonguss can remove Gliscor's boosts with Clear Smog, but it does take some decent damage from a boosted Earthquake. Tangrowth can use its physical bulk and Regenerator to check Gliscor throughout the match.
**Setup Sweepers**: Gliscor's bulk is not extremely impressive, and it can be set up on by a number of threats such as Double Dance Landorus-T, Swords Dance Garchomp, and Mega Pinsir, which can then proceed to break through Gliscor thanks to its inability to do much back.
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