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Published on May 20th, 2015 | by Serapis

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Storms on the Horizon: A Guide to Sand in VGC ’15

Of the many viable strategies in VGC, Sand is at the same time one of the least common and most powerful.  Still, like all strategies, Sand has both weaknesses and strengths.  The goal of this article is to help you learn everything you need to know about Sand, including both how to use it and how do beat it.

Sand Effects

• Lasts for 5 turns (unless inducer holds a Smooth Rock, in which case it lasts for 8 turns)
• Effects of other weather conditions are overridden
• All Pokemon except Rock, Steel, and Ground types lose 1/16th of their total health at the end of each turn (Overcoat, Sand Veil, Sand Rush, Sand Force, Magic Guard and the Safety Goggles all negate this effect)
• Weather dependent healing moves (Morning Sun, Synthesis, and Moonlight) recover only 1/4th of the user’s total HP
• Pokemon with Sand Veil have their Evasion increased by 25%
• Pokemon with Sand Rush have their Speed doubled
• Pokemon with Sand Force deal an extra 30% damage when using a Rock, Ground, or Steel type move
• Weather Ball becomes Rock type and its Base Power is doubled from 50 to 100
• All Rock type Pokemon receive a 50% boost to Special Defense

The Summoners

Hippowdon is the same as ever, a slow tank that is for the most part outclassed by both Tyranitar formes, but it does have the slowest Weather ability in VGC discounting Mega-Abomasnow.  This means it is near guaranteed to set up Sand, but it is often left with nothing to do after it has asserted its weather dominance.

Tyranitar is an interesting Pokemon, with good stats everywhere except Speed.  In its regular forme, Tyranitar can use a Choice Scarf to execute dreaded fast Rock Slides with their infernal flinch chance, or it can opt for a slower, bulkier spread.  Scarf variants make use of Tyranitar’s excellent coverage, often running Rock Slide, Crunch/Dark Pulse, Ice Punch/Ice Beam and Low Kick/Superpower, although there are several other options like Fire Blast and Earth Power for special sets.  Slower Tyranitar are often seen abusing the Weakness Policy or the Assault Vest, while Lum Berry and Chople Berry are occasionally selected.  The moveset remains about the same, with the 4th move usually changing to Protect.

While simply a different forme of Tyranitar, Mega Tyranitar is worthy of its own section for several reasons.  First and foremost, its ability remains Sand Stream after it Mega Evolves, which can be surprisingly useful to reset the weather to Sand without being forced to switch out.  Mega Tyranitar almost always run Rock Slide, Crunch, Dragon Dance and Protect, but occasionally the moves will deviate depending on the team.  While regular Tyranitar focuses on supporting its teammates, Mega Tyranitar is just the opposite.  Often it will be paired with redirection (such as Amoonguss, Clefairy, Clefable, or Togekiss) in order to allow it to set up Dragon Dances and then sweep with Rock Slide.

Sand Attackers

Sand Rush

Excadrill on Sand teams almost always run Sand Rush, but occasionally Scarf Excadrill with Sand Force makes an appearance on Sand teams.  Or, if you happen to be Randy Kwa, you can ignore your own Sand and just run Mold Breaker, which is still incredibly useful for its ability to deal massive damage to the Rotom formes.  Excadrill, powerful as it is, suffers from a bit of a shallow movepool.  Almost all sets will consist of Earthquake, Rock Slide, Iron Head and Protect, although Substitute sets can occasionally turn up.  Offensive Excadrill usually run Life Orb, while the more defensive sets that abuse Sand’s residual damage are more drawn to Leftovers or Sitrus Berry.

This guy is nostalgic for me, seeing as I ran a Safeguard Sandslash quite a while back.  Yeah, I didn’t win many games with it.  Sandslash is a cool Pokemon, don’t get me wrong, and on Sand team it can abuse Sand Rush to get off fast damage, but overall it is inferior to Excadrill.  The only things that make it stand out are its access to the aforementioned Safeguard, Knock Off, and Super Fang.  I suppose Sand Rush Super Fang is something to watch out for, assuming you ever see a Sandslash, but I doubt you will.

Ah, Stoutland.  I must thank Haylay Aldworth for giving me an excuse to include this guy.  For those who don’t know, Haylay managed to place 11th at the California Winter Regionals with a Stoutland Sand team.  Stoutland, unlike Excadrill, actually has a decent movepool.  Stoutland sets usually consist of some combination of Return, Iron Head, Play Rough, Superpower, Helping Hand and Protect.  Finally, as a note, Stoutland gets After You, which it can use to deadly effect thanks to Sand Rush.  Well, as deadly of an effect as After You can create anyways.

Sand Force

Excadrill does have Sand Force, but that’s already been covered.

Lagging far behind its Therian Forme, Sand Force Landorus is desperately clinging to what little use it has.  It can actually be pretty deadly though, sporting a fast base 101 Speed and a good base 125 Attack, which is effectively driven even higher with Sand Force.  Landorus all the same moves you’d expect to see on its Therian Forme, but it will often carry Protect over U-Turn unless you’re facing that guy who figured that making his Choice Scarf Landorus the Incarnate Forme would make it cooler.  Assume Life Orb unless proven otherwise.

Now THIS is where the fun really starts.  What’s worse than a base 170 Attack stat?  A base 170 Attack with a free Life Orb boost to that Pokemon’s strongest STAB.  Can it get worse?  Yeah, that STAB attack is spread.  Mega Garchomp boasts by far the strongest Earthquake in VGC, and its other attacks (Dragon Claw, Rock Slide, Iron Head, or Fire Blast and Draco Meteor for mixed sets) deal massive damage too.  Mega Garchomp’s main issue is its base 92 Speed, but that can easily be fixed by Tailwind support.  Its second main issue is the existence of Landorus-T and its Intimidate, which isn’t as easily solved.  Mega Garchomp is a Pokemon that wields extreme power, but requires quite a bit of support to function.

This just keeps getting better and better.  Mega Steelix is like Garchomp, except both of its STABs receive the Sand Force boost.  What’s the catch?  Mega-Steelix is as slow as the ton of iron it is, has a noticeably inferior attack stat when compared to the Super Saiyan Land Shark, and is weak to the common Fire, Water, Fighting, and Ground moves that permeate the VGC 2015 metagame.  In order to have any chance of doing anything, Mega Steelix requires Trick Room support.  I suggest Reuniclus, seeing as Magic Guard blocks Sand damage, but of course Cresselia is always an option with its obscene bulk and Levitate to dodge friendly fire Earthquakes.  Mega Steelix usually runs Earthquake, Heavy Slam/Iron Head/Gyro Ball, Rock Slide and Protect.

Sand Veil

Not much explanation is needed here. Sand Veil is pretty much only going to be seen occasionally on Garchomp, although if you’re running Heliolisk and want to be even more unusual Sand Veil is an option.  Cacturne gets Sand Veil, but Cacturne on Sand teams usually prefer Water Absorb anyways.

Sand Supporters

Storm Drain

Cradily is an interesting case on Sand teams.  It is a repeat Rock type (unless you’re using Hippowdon), but on the other hand it benefits from the 50% Special Defense increase.  Its main job is, of course, to redirect Water type attacks, but it can also be useful as a hard Rain counter.  Cradily usually run special sets to maximize Storm Drain’s potential, the moves usually being Giga Drain, Ancient Power, Recover and Protect, with some people opting for Energy Ball’s extra power.

Gastrodon does many of the same things as Cradily, but there are two big differences.  First and foremost, Gastrodon can function as a Landorus-T counter, which is the most threatening Pokemon to Sand teams.  On the other hand, it’s a less solid answer to Rain than Cradily is simply because Ludicolo’s Giga Drain hits it for 4x super effective damage.  Gastrodon can be run offensively or defensively, and information on all of that can be found here.  Cassie’s article is several years old, but all of the information it presents remains relevant today.  Finally, the one thing Cassie overlooks is Gastrodon’s Sand Force ability.  It does fit in on Sand teams, but honestly a boosted Earth Power is far less useful than Water redirection and immunity.  Storm Drain is definitely the superior ability among the two.

Other Good Sand Pokemon

Scizor mainly fits onto Sand teams due to its Steel typing and subsequent immunity to residual Sand damage, but it also appreciates the extra damage Sand causes to opponents and the breaking of Focus Sashes that Sand provides.  Scizor can easily come in towards the end of a game and clean up Sand-weakened Pokemon with its powerful Technician Bullet Punch.  Scizor is also fortunate enough to be one of the few Steel types to take neutral damage from Earthquake, so you aren’t compounding your Landorus-T weakness too much if you add it, although it is still plenty susceptible to Intimidate.

Honestly, I’m not sure where Ferrothorn went.  It was common in 2014, but then VGC 2015 arrived and the strange steel plant just straight up vanished.  Probably a result of all the new Fire types in this metagame, honestly.  Fortunately for Ferrothorn, if Sand can do one thing it’s beat Fire types.  Tyranitar, Garchomp, Excadrill, Hippowdon, and almost all classic Sand Pokemon have a way to deal with Fire types.  Ferrothorn is in a similar boat to Scizor with Earthquake hitting it neutrally, and it is still vulnerable to Intimidate, but not quite as much due to its defensive nature.  Ferrothorn’s Grass typing also allows it to deal with the Rain teams that can be such a pain for Sand’s main sweepers.

Aegislash is an interesting Pokemon in the Sand.  While it is weak to Ground type attacks unlike Scizor and Ferrothorn, Aegislash has something those two could only dream of – Wide Guard.  Wide Guard is a massive threat to Sand teams, but it can also be an invaluable asset.  With almost all Sand Pokemon being weak to Earthquake, having a reliable way to stop enemy Landorus-T from spamming it can be priceless.  Aegislash also adds some special attacking power into the primarily physical Sand teams.  Finally, Aegislash walls Breloom, which otherwise gives Sand teams issues.  Of course, Breloom will just Spore Aegislash, so it isn’t all good for the ghostly sword.

Another Pokemon that makes it onto the threats list with Aegislash, Expert Belt Swampert is fully content to be a double agent and help Sand out if it’s recruited.  With immunity to Sandstorm and the ever valuable Wide Guard, Swampert functions similarly to Aegislash with a few key differences.  First and foremost, Swampert has better coverage, and besides simply offering Wide Guard against Landorus-T it also has Ice Beam and Scald to strike back.  Unfortunately, Swampert’s excellent defensive typing is a little wasted on Sand teams, as many Sand teams find themselves weak to Grass as it is.  And, while Aegislash has to worry about Breloom’s Spore, Swampert has bigger issues with Bullet Seed.  Unfortunately, -2 Attack Breloom Bullet Seed is a 100% OHKO onto 252 HP 20 Defense Swampert.

Threats

Landorus-T is almost certainly the best Sand counter, as it is immune to Earthquake, takes neutral damage from Rock Slide, and is the premier Intimidate shuffler in the format.  The fact that its own Earthquake deals massive damage to most all Sand Pokemon is just icing on the cake.  Anyone serious about running Sand needs an answer to this monster, and anyone looking to counter Sand needs look no farther.  Of course, other counters do still have merit as Sand teams are less likely to be prepared for them.

Two words – Mach Punch.  While Breloom dislikes the fact that Sand removes its Focus Sash, it’s happy enough to OHKO Excadrill with Mach Punch, cripple Tyranitar, and Spore anything else that feels like getting in its way.  It also has Bullet Seed for the Gastrodon Sand teams might run to beat Landorus-T.  Breloom is just a good Pokemon, and the ability to counter Sand is just something it naturally has.

Conkeldurr is similar to Breloom, but different.  While it makes use of the same Fighting STAB to wreck its way through Sand teams, Conkeldurr also carries Ice Punch for Landorus-T and Garchomp.  Beyond that, Conkeldurr has bulk that Breloom can only dream of but loses out on quite a bit of Speed in exchange.  Still, as long as Conkeldurr survives long enough to get its Drain Punches off, against Sand teams it could really care less.

Now this one is out of the blue.  Well, not entirely.  Altaria is the only Pokemon that can claim to have a viable Cloud Nine, although I suppose Golduck and Lickilicky are lurking in the shadows.  Cloud Nine negates the effects of weather that Sand (well, all weather) teams value so much.  At the same time, Altaria is unspeakably underwhelming before Mega Evolution, and weak to Rock Slide too.  Once it Mega Evolves, it loses the Rock Slide weakness but picks up a Steel weakness, so Excadrill or another Steel type can pick it off just fine.  Sand teams may not fear Altaria, but it is certainly something of which to be aware.

Or any other bulky Water type

Azumarill is scary, heck, all bulky waters are. They’re even scarier when a large portion of your team is weak to them, which tends to describe Sand teams.  Gastrodon can help against Azumarill and other Water types, but if the sea rabbit manages to set up a Belly Drum that’s probably game over.  Sand teams should carry a way to deal with bulky waters (Safety Goggles Zapdos, anyone?) or else Azumarill and its buddies will have a field day.

Some More Things to Watch

Sand teams often focus around spread moves, namely Rock Slide and Earthquake, so Wide Guard can be extremely dangerous.  Aegislash in particular can give Sand teams issues if left unchecked, and the less common Expert Belt Wide Guard Swampert is even worse.

Trick Room can threaten Sand, as it robs Sand sweepers of the speed on which almost all of them depend. I TOLD you Mega-Steelix was the call, IT’S not weak to Trick Room!  But in all seriousness, because of the offensive nature of most VGC Sand teams, losing the speed advantage for four turns can often mean defeat right there.  Taunt is a pretty good solution, but Mental Herb Trick Room setters are depressingly common.  In order to truly counter Trick Room you may need to get more creative (like Ashton Cox’s Roar Terrakion).

Finally, other weather inducers, especially Politoed, threaten Sand because of their ability to remove it from the field.  Of course, Charizard can only be so threatening to a Sand team, and Abomasnow fears Rock Slides and Iron Heads, so the main competing weather that you have to watch out for is Rain.  Rain is the most common dedicated weather strategy too, which is unfortunate.

Conclusion

Sand teams are capable of exerting nearly peerless offensive pressure, but at the same time they often suffer from bad matchups against the omnipresent Landorus-T and the Rain that never seems to go away.  Still, if you are able to play around the Pokemon that threaten Sand, you will have the full force of the desert on your side.  I wish you all good luck, and I hope that some of you give Sand a shot.

About the Author

Serapis

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