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Latias

Introduction to Latias

Typing: /
Base Stats

HP: 80
Min: 301/ Max: 364

Attack: 80
-Min: 176/ Min: 196/ Max: 259/ +Max: 284

Defense: 90
-Min: 194/ Min: 216/ Max: 279/ +Max: 306

Special Attack: 110
-Min: 230/ Min: 256/ Max: 319/ +Max: 350

Special Defense: 130
-Min: 266/ Min: 296/ Max: 359/ +Max: 394

Speed: 110
-Min: 230/ Min: 256/ Max 319/ +Max: 350

*Note: All stats factor 31 IVs

Abilities:
Levitate: The pokemon is immune to Ground-type moves, Spikes, and Toxic Spikes. This ability is nullified by Gravity.

Why use Latias?
Latias is an omnipresent and highly versatile threat in today’s metagame. Because of Latias' versatility, she can be a difficult pokemon to counter. Her excellent Dragon STAB is only resisted by one type, which can be easily covered by her other three moveslots. She can be an efficient revenge killer with a Choice Scarf, destroy her switch-ins with Choice Specs, attempt a sweep with a Life Orb or Calm Mind set, use Trick to cripple walls, act as team support by phasing or setting up screens, or just act as a decent special wall that still packs a punch. Latias is so versatile that she can find a space on almost any team.

Movesets:

Life Orb Sweeper:
Latias @ Life Orb
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spd
-Dragon Pulse
-Surf
-Thunderbolt
-Recover
Set Description:
If you are looking for immediate power and the ability to take down a pokemon or two, this is the set for you. Latias has a multitude of useful resistances that allow her to come in easily and start firing off STAB Dragon Pulses--an attack that most things will have a hard time switching into--while simply using Recover to regain any health lost during her assault. However, there is a small minority of pokemon that will have no trouble switching in on Latias’ main attack: Steel types. The remaining two moveslots are best used to address this problem. Surf and Thunderbolt are the recommended attacks, because alongside Dragon Pulse, they hit everything in the game for at least neutral damage, except the extremely rare Shedinja. They are also two strong and accurate moves with which to hit the Steel types that resist your STAB. However, there are a number of other options which can be considered if you wish to counter specific threats.

For example, if Latias is going to be switching in and out a lot, you could use Draco Meteor instead of Dragon Pulse, which will heavily damage anything that doesn’t resist it and is not named Blissey. Or you could replace either Surf or Thunderbolt with Grass Knot; it will do a minimum of 50% to max HP Tyranitar, one of Latias’ most common switch-ins, in Sandstorm--always a 2HKO after Stealth Rock--in addition to OHKOing Swampert. You could make use of Hidden Power Fire to deal with Scizor, another common switch in. Finally, Latias also has access to Ice Beam, however this is not recommended as it gets fairly bad coverage alongside Dragon Pulse.


Choice Specs:
Latias @ Choice Specs
Timid/Modest Nature (+Spd/SAtk, -Atk)
EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spd
-Draco Meteor
-Surf
-Thunderbolt
-Trick
Set Description:
This is probably Latias’ most destructive set. Run Modest over Timid, and prediction will all but vanish as virtually anything in the game will be 2HKOed by Draco Meteor. However, you will still have 3 free moveslots, and the best way to fill these is with coverage moves which can be used to hit various Steel-types that resist Draco Meteor. However, note that a neutral STAB Draco Meteor will do more than a super-effective Surf or Thunderbolt, and a not very effective Draco Meteor will do more than a neutral Surf or Thunderbolt, although as a result of the Special Attack drop, this will not be the case the second time you use it. Regardless, this means that the only time it is not a good idea to use Draco Meteor is if you are certain that you will be hitting a Steel-type which is also weak to one of your other moves, (i.e. Empoleon, Skarmory, Heatran etc.). The best option for the last moveslot is Trick, as without it Latias has no way of getting past Blissey.

However, as in most sets, there are more than four options. Hidden Power Fire and Grass Knot can be used for reasons stated in the previous set. Finally, Dragon Pulse can be used if you want consistent STAB and the ability to sweep lategame once all the opponent's Steel-types have been removed. The choice between Modest and Timid is a difficult one, as without Timid, Latias loses the ability to outrun Infernape. However, without Modest, Latias cannot 2HKO Scizor and all but the bulkiest of Tyranitar with Draco Meteor.


Choice Scarf:
Latias @ Choice Scarf
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spd
-Draco Meteor
-Surf
-Thunderbolt
-Trick
Set Description:
This set is very similar to the previous set, except instead of boosting her attack power, Latias is boosting her speed, enabling her to outspeed many of the metagame’s top threats post set up. The main selling point of this set is that it can revenge kill Agility SubPetaya Empoleon, DD Salamence, DD Gyarados, DD Tyranitar, Agility Metagross, and the list goes on. Also Latias will always outspeed everything in OU that is not holding a Choice Scarf, bar Ninjask. Other than that, this set is more or less the same as the Choice Specs one. However one of the main questions is 'Why use Latias instead of another scarfer with over base 100 speed? (as without a Choice Scarf, anything with base 100 speed or lower will not outspeed Salamence after a Dragon Dance)' The answer lies in Latias' defensive capabilities and movepool. Gengar, for example, has a similar movepool, the same Speed and better Special Attack, but he lacks the Dragon STAB and resistances that Latias offers. This makes it much harder for Gengar to switch into battle. Starmie is a similar case, only with higher speed, better typing than Gengar and worse offensive capabilities. However it is unfortunate but true that almost everything in OU with base speed over 100 is pursuit weak. For this reason, one must be careful about using Scarf Latias when there may be concealed steel types with access to Pursuit in the opponent's team. It is also possible to capitalise on this by using a set-up sweeper that resists Pursuit that is able to use the Choice-locked Dark move as set-up fodder. Lucario is a prime candidate for this.


Offensive Calm Mind:
Latias @ Life Orb/Leftovers
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spd
-Calm Mind
-Dragon Pulse
-Surf
-Recover
Set Description:
Calm Mind Latias is a threat every team needs to be prepared for. With max special attack and a Life Orb, she is a force to be reckoned with, but by further boosting her already impressive offensive and defensive capabilities, she can become almost unstoppable once her counters have been removed from the opponent’s team. Surf is the recommended second attack because of the excellent neutral coverage it provides alongside Dragon Pulse: all pokemon outside of Shedinja and Empoleon are hit neutrally by the combination. For those who like numbers: with just one turn of set up, this Latias can hit with 1.184(857142 recurring) times the power of Modest Choice Specs Latias, and 1.3 times the power of Timid Choice Specs Latias, as well as 1.5 times the power of Life Orb Latias.

Substitute has a similar function, except instead of curing status, you are blocking it altogether, possibly saving you some turns when setting up on pokemon such as Blissey or Vaporeon with Toxic. Additionally, the move blocks Trick and Explosion, two attacks commonly used to stop bulky set-up sweepers. Substitute also gives you a better chance at beating Tyranitar by allowing you to escape from Pursuit or stall it out if Toxic Spikes are on the field. However, the obvious disadvantage is the 25% health loss and the fact that Substitutes can be broken, while the move Refresh cannot. For example, if you were facing a Blissey with Seismic Toss and Toxic, all the opposing player must do is break all your Substitutes with Seismic Toss until your health is so low that you cannot make another, then simply use Toxic as you Recover, sealing Latias' fate. Toxic Spikes are recommended when using Substitute. Substitute Latias also appreciates Spikes support, as it limits the number of times most Steel pokemon can switch in and halt her attempts at a sweep.

Similarly to the other sets, this Latias often utilizes coverage moves other than Surf. Some opt for Thunderbolt, Hidden Power [Fire], or Grass Knot. It is also not unheard of for Calm Mind Latias to forego Recover in favor of one of these moves. These options are generally only good if your team deals particularly well with the pokemon that Surf would be hitting (Steels, in other words). Dragon Pulse and Thunderbolt means you are walled by Steelix and Magnezone, Dragon Pulse and Hidden Power Fire means you are walled by Heatran, and Dragon Pulse and Grass Knot means you are walled by the majority of Steels.

Defensive CM:
Latias @ Leftovers
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
EVs: 204 HP/52 Def/252 Spd
-Calm Mind
-Dragon Pulse
-Recover
-Refresh/Substitute/Reflect/Roar
Set Description:
This set functions very similarly to the previous set. However, its aim is not to get just one Calm Mind up, but two or three. Because of the more defensive EVs, this Latias can take much more punishment than the previous sets.

If you choose to run Refresh on this set, you are looking at one of the only sets in existence that is able to run through stall teams with minimal support. It can set up on a number of pokemon commonly found in stall teams. Once it’s started, few things can stop it, since most stall teams utilize status effects such as paralysis and poison to halt a Latias sweep. This is not a problem for CM+Refresh Latias. Another method commonly seen on stall teams to stop set up sweepers is the use of Whirlwind and Roar to phaze stat changes. However, this is nothing more than a temporary solution, and once your other 5 pokemon are gone, you are free to set up wherever you want. Not only that, but this Latias is also one of the only special based attackers that can set up on and beat Blissey.

The EVs and nature can be tweaked to suit each team’s individual needs. The given EVs outrun max speed Infernape with a boosting nature. However, there are other options. For example:
-252 EVs and a +speed nature lets you at least speed tie with other non-Scarf base 110s e.g. Latias and Gengar
-240 EVs and a +speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured Infernape.
-176 EVs and a +speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured base 100s e.g. Salamence and Celebi
-208 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non- scarf +speed natured base 90s e.g. Lucario and Roserade
-176 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf neutral speed natured base 100s e.g. Salamence and Celebi
-160 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured Heracross
-128 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured Gyarados
-96 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf neutral speed natured base 90s e.g. Lucario and Roserade.
And you really shouldn’t be running any fewer speed EVs than that.

However many speed EVs you choose to run, putting the leftover EVs into Defense is recommended.


Rain Dance:
Latias@Damp Rock/Leftovers/Life Orb
Timid nature (+Spd, -Atk)
EVs: 4 HP/252 SAtk/252 Spd
-Dragon Pulse
-Surf
-Rain Dance
-Recover
Set Description:
Latias fits excellently into almost all Rain Dance teams, having many resists that are often invaluable on a rainy battlefield (as many rain sweepers are weak to Electric, Grass or Ground attacks, all of which Latias takes minimal damage from). She also has access to instant recovery, giving her increased longevity and enabling her to set up rain time and time again. Unlike a number of other rain setters, Latias can actually abuse the rain that she creates. Surf will always 2HKO Scizor in rain, and if a Tyranitar with anything other than max HP comes in on the Rain Dance, you have a large chance to OHKO it with Surf. Latias' STAB, Dragon Pulse, works beautifully in conjuction with Surf. It can also be used for lategame sweeping if there is no need to set up Rain.

Support:
Latias@Leftovers
Timid/Modest nature (+Spd/SAtk, -Atk)
EVs: 252 HP/ 4 Defense/ 252 Spe
-Dragon Pulse
-Recover/Wish
-Roar/Thunder Wave/Reflect/Protect
-Roar/Thunder Wave/Reflect/Protect
Set Decription:
Though she often acts as a potent offensive threat, Latias has a myriad of support options at her disposal. She can set up Dual Screens and can pass Wishes, the latter of which she does especially well due to her excellent typing and synergy with Steel-types. As with all the other sets, Latias makes good use of her Dragon STAB by having Dragon Pulse in the first slot, as it can be used to hit most pokemon for at least neutral damage. The other three moveslots should be tailored to suit your team's individual needs. Reflect and Roar allows you to beat common Pursuit-trappers one on one, but Thunder Wave can be useful for spreading paralysis around an opponent's team to aid slow but powerful set up sweepers (Bulk Up Machamp, Swords Dance Heracross or Nasty Plot Togekiss for example,) in their sweep. Protect is useful for scouting an opponent's choiced move and gaining instant recovery from Wish if you choose to run that, but has little utility otherwise. Be aware that most Wishpassers run the risk of becoming predictable with Protect on the moveset.

There are other options which should be considered when using this set, but it should be noted that they are generally inferior to the ones listed above. Toxic can be used to beat numerous miscellaneous threats such as Blissey and Zapdos one on one. Psycho Shift is good for opponents that rely solely on status to take Latias down. Or it can be used in conjunction with a Flame Orb to burn Scizor or Tyranitar switch-ins. Safeguard can protect the rest of your team from status, however there is almost always a better option. If you need a cleric, Blissey or Celebi usually do it better than Latias, and if you need to protect Latias from status, Refresh will typically be better.

The recommended spread simply speed ties with opposing non-scarf Latias and Gengar, but as with many of the other sets, it can be altered to be more defensive if your team demands it. To reiterate what was mentioned before:
-240 EVs and a +speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured Infernape.
-176 EVs and a +speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured base 100s e.g. Salamence and Celebi
-208 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non- scarf +speed natured base 90s e.g. Lucario and Roserade
-176 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf neutral speed natured base 100s e.g. Salamence and Celebi
-160 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured Heracross
-128 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf +speed natured Gyarados
-96 EVs and a neutral speed nature lets you always outrun non-scarf neutral speed natured base 90s e.g. Lucario and Roserade.
And you really shouldn’t be running any fewer speed EVs than that.


Novelty:
Latias has a good physical movepool (Outrage, Earthquake, Waterfall, Body Slam, Sucker Punch, Shadow Claw, Zen Headbutt, Double Edge), but a subpar attack stat with which to use it. Despite this, a Choice Band or physical Choice Scarf set can be used if you are desparate for originality. A mixed set is also viable.

Psychic is an option for secondary STAB, however it gives lackluster coverage in OU and provides Tyranitar with an opportunity to switch in and Pursuit or Crunch you.

Counters:
True Counters:
Latias has no 'true counters' because she possesses ways to beat almost, if not every pokemon in the game. However, the pokemon listed here will be able to come in safely on the majority of sets, and immediately threaten to KO or halt Latias' sweep. Blissey is an exception, as she cannot immediately threaten to KO.
-- Blissey: Blissey, that special walling behemoth is listed here because Latias, being a special attacker, has little in her arsenal that Blissey fears. Trick is the only move she cannot come in on, but no Latias user worth their salt is going to use Trick without sufficient knowledge of the opponent's team. Blissey is only a counter in that she can still endlessly wall Latias and use Toxic or Ice Beam to slowly wear her down. (Of course, this means that Blissey is beaten by Calm Mind + Refresh Latias.)
-- Tyranitar: With Tyranitar's ability, Sand Stream, boosting his already decent special defense to very high levels, Tyranitar can come in on nearly anything other than Surf or Grass Knot and immediately threaten to KO with Crunch or Pursuit. Tyranitar commonly uses Choice items, which negate Trick, and if holding a Choice Scarf, Tyranitar can outspeed all but Scarf Latias.
-- Scizor: Pursuit is commonly seen on Scizor, as it takes advantage of Scizor's excellent ability, Technician. Scizor also resists both of Latias' STAB attacks, and is neutral to her coverage moves. The only problem is that Latias run Hidden Power Fire from time to time solely to deal with Scizor. Scizor's Special Defense also leaves a lot to be desired, as he is 2HKOed by Specs or Life Orb Thunderbolt and Surf without abnormal investment.
-- Metagross: Metagross is in a similar boat as Scizor--he resists both of Latias' STABs and can trap her with a super effective Pursuit, or just capitalise on her weak physical Defense and bring a Meteor Mash crashing down on her.

Checks:
-- Forretress: If it invests in Special Defense, Forretress can withstand a couple of Surfs or Thunderbolts and hit back with a super effective Payback. Forretress, being steel type, also resists both of Latias' STABs.
-- Jirachi: Choice Scarf Jirachi is the most common set out there, and it outspeeds all Latias that aren't holding a Choice Scarf of their own. Jirachi can abuse Latias' below average physical Defense inflict heavy damage with Iron Head. There may be nothing Latias can do about it, thanks to Serene Grace boosting Iron Head's flinch chance.
-- Flygon: Again, Scarf Flygon is easily the most used set, which will outspeed all but Scarf Latias. Flygon immediately threatens a OHKO with Outrage or significant damage with U-Turn.
-- Weavile: Weavile outspeeds and OHKOes with either of his STABs. However, he finds it nigh impossible to switch in due to his Stealth Rock weakness and near-total lack of bulk.
-- Snorlax: Snorlax can take most Special attacks with ease, and Latias' are no exception. Snorlax also has access to Pursuit and Crunch to threaten a OHKO. However, unless he is holding a Choice Band, he will not appreciate Trick, and Dark-type moves are not commonly seen on Curselax, the most common Snorlax set.
-- Bronzong: Bronzong, again being of the steel type, resists both of Latias' STAB attacks and can hit back with a high-powered Gyro Ball or Explosion. Additionally, he can take the time to set up screens, lay Stealth Rock, or put Latias to sleep.
-- Gengar: If Gengar wins the speed tie with Latias, he will do significant damage with Shadow Ball. However, Gengar is frail, and Shadow Ball is not a OHKO. There is also a 50% chance of losing the speed tie.
-- Rotom-A: Rotom has above average Special Defense and possesses a STAB Shadow Ball strong enough to 2HKO Latias. Rotom is also a frequent user of Choice Scarf, which enables him to outspeed Latias.

This Pokemon Counters:
-- Infernape: Latias takes little damage from anything Infernape can throw at her. Mixed sets can attempt to hit a Latias switch-in with Hidden Power Ice. U-Turn will hit harder than any of Infernape's other options, but it is incredibly rare. Latias outspeeds and threatens a quick OHKO with Surf.
-- Heatran: Heatran is primarily a special attacker, and though it has access to Dragon Pulse, it will do little to Latias thanks to her excellent Special Defense. As a result, Latias can take anything Heatran can dish out and hit back with a super effective Surf. Latias must be wary of Explosion, though.
-- Zapdos: Again, Zapdos is a purely special pokemon, which rarely employs moves that Latias doesn't resist. Latias can easily come in on Thunderbolt or Heat Wave and threaten with Dragon Pulse. However, Latias needs Special attack investment to 2HKO Zapdos; otherwise she can be PP stalled with Pressure and Roost. Latias must also be wary of Toxic, a common move on Substitute sets.
-- Breloom: Latias resists the only two attacks ever seen on SubPunch Breloom (the most common set)--Focus Punch and Seed Bomb. Also, due to Breloom's frailty, Latias threatens a 2HKO with Dragon Pulse. However, she must be careful not to come in on Spore. Focus Punch, though resisted, still dents her.
-- Gliscor: Gliscor usually only has one attack: Earthquake. Latias is, of course, immune to this, so she can usually come in with relative impunity and OHKO with Surf. However, some Gliscor carry Toxic, which Latias will not appreciate.
-- Hippowdon: Similarly to Gliscor, Hippowdon often utilizes Earthquake as its sole attack. This allows Latias to switch in with impunity and prey upon Hippowdon's lackluster Special Defense stat.
-- Skarmory: Thunderbolt, a common sight on Latias, will OHKO most Skarmory. However, Skarmory does resist both of Latias’ STABs. That said, there is very little Skarmory has in its arsenal that will bother Latias, although the Calm Mind sets can be phazed.
-- Roserade: Roserade is like Zapdos in that she rarely carries anything that Latias doesn’t resist. However, she is also like Breloom in that Latias must be careful not to come in on Sleep Powder.
-- Suicune: Latias can carry Roar to rid Suicune of any Calm Minds it may have set up, or use Calm Mind herself and set up alongside it. However, once the two pokemon are at +6, it becomes a case of ‘whoever gets the first crit will 6-0’, as Latias will not 3HKO CroCune at +6 unless it has significant investment or a Life Orb, and Suicune can just Rest off any damage and Pressure stall.
-- Tentacruel: Latias resists everything Tentacruel commonly utilises except Ice Beam, which will not do much at all. Latias can threaten Tentacruel with Thunderbolt, Trick or Dragon STAB, as Tentacruel lacks recovery.
-- Vaporeon: Very few Vaporeon invest in Special Attack, meaning Ice Beam, Vaporeon's best bet against Latias, will still do very little. Vaporeon is similar to Tentacruel in that regard. However, since Vaporeon has access to reliable recovery, the more defensive Latias sets will have slightly more trouble taking her down.
-- Swampert: Most Swampert are defensive, leaving few leftover EVs to invest in Attack. As a result, most Latias will not take extreme damage from Ice Beam and Ice Punch. Latias also has recovery, something Swampert lacks. However, the rare Choice Band Swampert will inflict heavy damage on Latias if the user correctly predicts a switch-in.

Team Options:
It's very easy to find a space for Latias in a team, as she can perform almost any role she needs to. Latias is also able to check a significant portion of the metagame and possesses methods of getting past most, if not all her best counters. Magnezone is a perfect partner to Latias due to the fact that the two pokemon together resist every attacking type in the game. Magnezone is also able to trap and kill Scizor, a frequent thorn in Latias' side, in addition to a number of other Steel types that stand in the way of a Calm Mind Latias sweep. Latias also appreciates having something to remove or handle Tyranitar. Machamp is perfect for this: he fits nicely into a team alongside Magnezone and Latias, as Dragon Dance Tyranitar is able to get past them both, but is stopped dead by Machamp. Synergy-wise, Latias makes a wonderful partner to not just Magnezone, but Steels in general. Latias resists Fire, Fighting and is immune to Ground attacks, Steel's three weaknesses. Latias is also fantastic Pursuit-bait for a team based around Swords Dance Lucario, as a Choice Band Tyranitar locked into Pursuit is a free turn for Lucario, which can be game-changing as it allows Lucario to get that crucial Swords Dance and proceed to sweep your opponent's team. Additionally, Latias + Lucario together resist every type in the game with the exception of Flying. Another good Steel-type to pair Latias with is Substitute Petaya Empoleon, as Offensive Calm Mind Latias and Empoleon can be very difficult to stop when paired with Toxic Spikes. While on the subject of Toxic Spikes, Forretress is also ideal for setting them up on a team with Latias on, due to the fact that he is the only Steel-type with Toxic Spikes, and therefore has great synergy with Latias.

Conclusion
When all is said and done, it is important to bear in mind that Latias is a top tier OU threat which was once Uber. She is a pokemon that has excellent typing and ability, providing her with a multitude of resistances and an immunity. Add to that her incredible special and support movepool and excellent base stats, and you have an incredibly versatile, destructive and unpredictable pokemon. However, Latias' weakness to Pursuit is often abused, and is arguably the only thing stopping her from becoming Uber. As stated earlier, it is very easy to find a place for Latias in a team, and one can rest assured that she will fulfill her role perfectly, whatever it may be.