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[overview]
**Draft Order**: Round 6 onwards
**Price Range**: 9-11 points
**Overview**: Hoopa-U is a wallbreaker that uses its gargantuan Attack and Special Attack stat offensive stats and unpredictable coverage options to make become an almost impossible Pokemon to switch into. With a respectable Special Defense stat as well, Hoopa-U it can serve as a special tank that does not require much investment in its offensive stats to muscle through teams. Hoopa-U's immediate power is most appreciated in more bulky offense teams that benefit from a Pokemon that does not require turns to set up (rh). Keeping all of this in mind, however, its slow Speed stat and debilitating weakness to U-turn limits it greatly, resulting in a cheap Pokemon that needs to be craftily built around.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
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**Wallbreaker**: With vast coverage options and disruptive tools like Trick and Taunt, Hoopa-U serves best as a wallbreaker. Its ability to break walls on both the physical and special side on the same side both physically and specially is unrivaled by any other Pokemon, and by far it is its most useful role on a team. (filler / already mentioned) Its strong offensive STAB combination coupled with fantastic coverage makes it near impossible to switch into, (ac) and it still has special setup options to muscle past anything that could potentially switch into it. This set typically relies on Choice Scarf, since Hoopa-U's Speed is incredibly average, but in some scenarios, damage-boosting items can be effective.
**Special Wall**: With an Assault Vest, Hoopa-U can sponge multiple special attacks, (ac) and with access to Drain Punch, (ac) it has a way to recover any health lost back.
Common Moves
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**Primary STAB Moves**: Knock Off, Hyperspace Fury, Dark Pulse, Psychic, Psyshock, Zen Headbutt, Psychic Noise
**Setup Moves**: Calm Mind, Nasty Plot
**Utility Moves**: Trick, Taunt, Thunder Wave, Light Screen, Reflect, Brick Break, Substitute
**Coverage**: Drain Punch, Energy Ball, Fire Punch, Focus Blast, Grass Knot, Gunk Shot, Ice Punch, Rock Tomb, Thunderbolt, Thunder Punch
Niche Moves
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**Future Sight**: Hoopa-U is an incredibly strong Future Sight user, (ac) and it fits well in tandem with Hoopa-U's role as a wallbreaker.
**Focus Punch**: If the relatively weak Drain Punch or and inaccurate Focus Blast are not reliable enough to deal with the Dark-types that are not concerned about either of Hoopa-U's STAB options, Hoopa-U can take it can use Focus Punch by taking advantage of the fact that Pokemon will often switch out against it.
**Trick Room**: Hoopa-U's Speed stat is in an interesting place where it is not fast enough to outspeed most offensive threats but is able to outspeed most uninvested defensive Pokemon. A Trick Room set can be used as a preventative measure from being revenge KOed killed while having multiple turns to get strong attacks off, but it must be aware of slower Pokemon that can then outspeed it. (Reorganized this part a bit to put more emphasis on slower mons outspeeding afterwards)
**Endure**: With a Custap Berry, Hoopa-U can successfully use Endure to get a powerful final attack off.
**Destiny Bond**: Although Hoopa-U is too slow for Destiny Bond to always be effective, with a Custap Berry it can be used with Custap Berry as a surprise way to trade Pokemon KOs.
Common Items
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**Damage-boosting Items**: Although it may not seem like it needs it, Hoopa-U's efficacy is fully realized when it has something available to an item that can boost its damage output. Seeing as it has coverage for practically every type, it arguably takes advantage of Expert Belt more than Life Orb, Choice Band, or and Choice Specs, however anything is but all of them are viable.
**Choice Scarf**: Hoopa-U's Speed stat is good enough that it can lets it outspeed most unboosted Pokemon with a Choice Scarf and serve as a niche revenge killer, and with Trick, (ac) it can give the Choice Scarf away to walls in order to benefit it and its teammates.
**Assault Vest**: Hoopa-U's special bulk is naturally good enough that it can safely tank a hit or two, but with an Assault Vest, (ac) it becomes something your opponent opponents has to seriously consider, especially if Hoopa-U it is a Tera Captain and can shed its mediocre typing.
Niche Items
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**Eject Pack**: Using Hyperspace Fury to lower its own Defense stat and get a free switch out with Eject Pack, Hoopa-U can further enable its teammates while also freeing up its item slot to potentially steal an enemy's item with Magician.
**Heavy-Duty Boots**: In matchups where Hoopa-U is expected to hit the field multiple times or tank multiple hits, being able to safely ensure Heavy-Duty Boots ensures it does not take excess damage from entry hazards.
**Custap Berry**: Used in Endure sets, or even without it if properly played around, Custap Berry can allow for Hoopa-U to deliver a final attack (rc) while also having the potential to steal the foe's item with Magician afterwards, since the Custap Berry will have been eaten.
**Light Clay**: Hoopa-U typically likes attacking more often than not, however but a Light Clay + with dual screens set can be used to enable both its teammates and itself to tank more hits.
Tera
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Hoopa-U has an incredibly mediocre defensive typing, and being a secondary Tera Captain gives it the option to fix this. It is a great mid-tier option that can use Tera types like Tera Poison to strengthen its Gunk Shot while turning both of its weaknesses, including its dual major weakness to Bug-type, into resistances. Tera Fairy with Tera Blast gives it a more powerful option than its Fighting-type coverage against most Dark-types while also getting rid of that pesky Bug-type weakness, ensuring it does not have to worry about being free U-turn food. Tera Dark and Psychic to can boost its STABs work STAB moves as well, with Tera Dark deserving a special shoutout for enabling a much more spammable Hyperspace Fury.
Draft Strategy
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While Hoopa-U theoretically fits in a large variety of draft compositions, bulky offense is usually able to support it best, giving enough tools to it so that it does not need to be the sole damage dealer on a team. Hoopa-U's Its weaknesses are easily exploitable, (ac) and as a result, (ac) all of them need to be patched up in order to effectively use it.
**Defensive Pivots**: Hoopa-U greatly appreciates Pokemon that can switch into U-turn without losing too much momentum such as Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Great Tusk.
**Slow Pivots**: Slower Pokemon that can get Hoopa-U on the battlefield safely, (ac) like Scizor, Empoleon, and Rotom-W, (ac) are important in making sure Hoopa-U is able to safely get attacks off. Pokemon that can punish U-turn with contact effects, (ac) like Garchomp, Zapdos, and Rocky Helmet users, (ac) are a bonus.
**Setup Sweepers**: Pokemon like Iron Valiant, Salamence, and Annihilape that do not necessarily have as much of an immediate field presence as Hoopa-U immediately does appreciate it softening up the field for them.
**Speed Control**: Hoopa-U's middling Speed means that it needs a couple of fast Pokemon such as Iron Bundle and Sneasler to serve as revenge killers, and additionally other speed control options like Thunder Wave Gholdengo or and Glare Serperior can also make Hoopa-U's its job much easier. Sticky Web users such as Vikavolt and Ribombee are useful supplementary speed control options that may force your opponent opponents to slightly shift their attention away from Hoopa-U.
Checks and Counters
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**U-turn**: If it is not a Tera Captain, Hoopa-U's one true archenemy (rh) if not a Tera Captain, is U-turn, since foes can deal huge damage to it while maintaining positive momentum. (rc, ap) and it It constantly has to be wary of being knocked out by stray U-turn users (rc) like Cinderace, Urshifu-S, and Sneasler, and many more. ("many more" is implied)
**Faster Physical Threats**: Physical attackers that naturally outspeed Hoopa-U, (ac) such as Ogerpon-W, Gouging Fire, and Excadrill, (ac) have no problem taking advantage of its feeble physical defense to get a KO on it.
**Fairy-types**: Although they have to fear Hoopa-U's Gunk Shot, Fairy-types like Clefable, Iron Valiant, and Tinkaton can still switch into Hoopa-U's its Dark-type STAB moves and threaten it back, especially if it is Choice-locked.
**Dark-types**: Dark types like Ting-Lu, Zarude, and Hisuian Samurott are not concerned with either of Hoopa-U's STAB options and can threaten it back, however but they have to be wary of its Fighting-type coverage options.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/drizzle.313217/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/scribble.356084/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
Grammar checked by:
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