Tapu Koko Analysis



The fastest of the four Tapu Pokemon, Tapu Koko arguably takes the crown as the best Tapu. With 130 base Speed and Electric Terrain, Tapu Koko has the option of firing off an incredibly powerful Gigavolt Havoc before opponents can react. Yet because of its diverse movepool, Tapu Koko can also act as support Pokemon using Assault Vest.



Pros
*Electric Terrain both powers up Electric type moves and prevents Pokemon from falling Asleep
*Base 130 Speed allows Tapu Koko to hit 200 Speed, tying with Mega Gengar and outspeeding most non-Choice Scarf Pokemon
*Excellent movepool allowing Tapu Koko the flexibility to either provide support or deal damage
Cons
*70 / 85 / 75 Bulk is terrible; Tapu Koko is very vulnerable to KO’s by simple STAB moves
*Choice Specs Moonblast Tapu Fini can often OHKO a Tapu Koko
*Being the fastest Tapu means that Electric Terrain often will not be up; other Tapus will underspeed and set terrain
*While Tapu Koko has a decent 115 Attack stat, most of its offensive movepool is Special Attack oriented
*95 Special Attack is underwhelming when outside of  Electric Terrain or not hitting Super Effective targets
*An increase in viable Lightning Rod users (Raichu, Manectric) severely limit Tapu Koko’s offensive presence
*Speed Ties with Mega Gengar, which can easily OHKO Tapu Koko
*Landorus-T is back in the format, threatening monstrous Earthquakes that KO Tapu Koko, even at -1
Set #1 - Electrium Z
Tapu Koko @ Electrium Z  
Ability: Electric Surge  
Level: 50  
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe  
Timid Nature  
IVs: 0 Atk  
- Thunderbolt
- Dazzling Gleam  
- Volt Switch / Taunt / Hidden Power Ice
- Protect
*When running Electrium Z, Tapu Koko aims to nuke an opponent with Gigavolt Havoc
*Mega Metagross, Mega Salamence, and Mega Gengar all fall to 252 SpA Tapu Koko Gigavolt Havoc in Electric Terrain
*Thunderbolt can be replaced with Thunder if on a rain team for extra damage with Z Move
*Generally, Thunderbolt is favorable even when running rain, as rain is not always guaranteed to stay up
*Dazzling Gleam provides STAB coverage against Dragon / Fighting types, as well as Lightning Rod users
*KO’s Kommo-o BEFORE +1 boost; afterwards it’s a 2HKO
*The third slot more often than not should run Volt Switch to allow Tapu Koko to reposition and reset terrain
*Taunt can be run if the team sorely needs a Trick Room answer or to stop Pokemon such as Volcarona, Whimsicott, and Snorlax dead in their tracks
*Hidden Power Ice can be run if a team is weak to Landorus, however HP Ice is a 2HKO at best; Assault Vest Variants are often a 3HKO
*Though Gigavolt Havoc is powerful, be careful not to Z Move into Lightning Rod, or when the opponent has Landorus-T possibly in the back
Set #2 - Assault Vest
Tapu Koko @ Assault Vest  
Ability: Electric Surge  
Level: 50  
EVs: 148 HP / 4 Def / 4 SpA / 164 SpD / 188 Spe  
Timid Nature  
IVs: 0 Atk  
- Volt Switch  
- Nature's Madness  
- Electroweb  
- Sky Drop
*My best guess of Ashton Cox’ Assault Vest Tapu Koko from Oceania Internats, this set aims at providing speed control with Electro Web while Sky Dropping opponents to allow partners to set up
*Volt Switch is used as a pivot, and in Electric Terrain it can deal nice amounts of Chip damage
*Nature’s Madness is the attack of choice on Assault Vest Tapu Koko for multiple reasons;
*This move is essentially a super fang, allowing Tapu Koko to deal much more damage than it otherwise might with Thunderbolt or Dazzling Gleam
*Nature’s Madness allows your ally to follow up with a Z Move or STAB move to potentially pick up quick KO’s
*Because this Tapu Koko runs little to no offensive investment, Nature’s Madness will generally do more damage than Thunderbolt or Dazzling Gleam
*Electroweb allows Tapu Koko to implement some form of Speed Control
*Essentially an Icy Wind for Electric types, does not affect Ground types like Landorus
*Sky Drop is arguably the reason why Assault Vest sets are used
*With added bulk, Tapu Koko can often Sky Drop foes that threaten its Ally multiple times, allowing the ally to set up
*Sky Drop can be used on Landorus and other Flying types to negate their moves for a turn; however, Sky Drop will not deal any damage
*148 / 164 Special Defense combined with Assault Vest allows Tapu Koko to survive
*+252 SpA Tapu Lele Z Psychic (Not in Psychic Terrain, Tapu Koko can switch into this)
*+252 SpA Ludicolo Z Hydro Pump in the Rain
*252 SpA Mega Charizard Y Overheat in the Sun
*252 SpA Life Orb Naganadel Sludge Bomb
*252 SpA Mega Gengar Sludge Bomb
*+164 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Fini is a 3HKO, Muddy Water is a 4HKO
*188 Speed allows Tapu Koko to hit 191 Speed, outspeeding Naganadel and Mega Salamence
*Allows Tapu Koko to either Volt Switch away or Sky Drop either
Using Tapu Koko
*The only Pokemon to fulfill the niche of Electric and Fairy typing, Tapu Koko naturally finds itself incorporated on man teams
*Electric Terrain is also incredibly useful to neuter the effectiveness of Amoonguss
*Char Y teams incorporate Tapu Koko to nuke pesky bulky water types
*However, having just Tapu Koko for Bulky Water / Celesteela coverage is not enough, as Tapu Koko can not reliably get its Z Move to hit the correct target
*While it may seem silly, Z Moving into opposing Tapu Koko is often a good idea
*People typically do not protect their own Tapu Koko in a mirror, and you can chunk Koko for ~80% or catch a switch in
*Assault Vest Tapu Koko is paired with the likes of Cresselia, Snorlax, Salamence, and Azumarill
*If Tapu Koko uses Sky Drop on a Pokemon and Cresselia sets up Trick Room on the same turn, said Pokemon will remain trapped until the end of the next turn
*Allows Cresselia to safely set up Trick Room and switch into a sweeper
*Snorlax, Azumarill, and Salamence can set up Dragon Dance, Belly Drum, or Tailwind to begin sweeping
*Tapu Koko obviously matches up poorly against Sand and the common Metagross Archetype
*Metagross teams have few to no targets for Gigavolt Havoc, which can be redirected by Amoonguss or switched into by Landorus

*Also matches up poorly against Hard Trick Room, as Tapu Koko is near useless if not faster than opponents

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