Introduction
Nidoking is the premier special wallbreaker of May 2025 with coverage galore. Although its special attack is lower than even Heatmor at 85, it makes up for this with Sheer Force. Using Life Orb as its item and plenty of special moves boosted by Sheer Force, Nidoking is able to blast open a hole in any team.
Movepool/Set
Its wide movepool includes Sludge Wave and Earth Power which are amazing STABs to have that are only resisted/don’t affect Claydol and Skarmory, Fire Blast/Flamethrower to hit Skarmory and bulky Venusaur, Thunderbolt/Thunder to deal with flying types and Politoed, Shadow Ball to help break through specially defensive Cofagrigus, Ice beam to hit fellow ground types Mudsdale and Claydol, and Ice Punch is a staple on many sets to break through Assault Vest Goodra. Stealth rock is an option to set up hazards for free as Nidoking is able to force out quite a few Pokemon. Nidoking is also able to forgo using Sludge Wave to slot in a different coverage move. There is also the option of using Focus Sash instead of Life Orb to win a Nidoking mirror matchup or to survive a hit from a faster threat and OHKO it in return which helps remove some offensive presence from the opposing team, though it does require you to give up some of its overall wallbreaking potential.
Role
Nidoking is singlehandedly able to enable many offensive threats with the raw power and coverage that it brings to any team. It can easily OHKO Tangrowth, allowing Barraskewda to click banded Liquidations for free or for Drednaw to easily sweep after using Shell Smash. Nidoking is also able to deal with Cofagrigus which enables Mienshao, especially Reckless sets, to use High Jump Kick with less worry about recoil damage or to guarantee damage on something with Close Combat. It’s also able to get rid of Skarmory, removing one of the few checks to Lokix. But that’s not where this beast’s offensive presence ends; not only does it put pressure on defensive cores, but it also puts pressure on the opposing player to make correct predictions. Nidoking has plenty of middle ground options and opportunities to take kills on Pokemon that decide to stay in, leaving players to constantly make predictions on what it might do which can sometimes lead to mistakes that are easy to capitalize on. It also forces many spinners and defoggers out, leaving hazards on the field to deal plenty of chip damage from the amount of switching that Nidoking can force which further enables itself and its teammates.
Shortcomings
While it is able to dish out a lot of damage, Nidoking gets outsped by many common offensive Pokemon like Barraskewda, Mienshao, and Swellow that are all able to OHKO it. This makes Nidoking easy to revenge kill after it has taken a kill on another Pokemon, especially since its defences are fairly poor. Nidoking is also unable to kill specially defensive Empoleon or Assault Vest Goodra before being killed itself if it hasn’t hit them super effectively on the switch in. Finally, it is also very dependent on Life Orb to effectively deal damage and becomes less effective if knocked or tricked.
Teamates
To help alleviate some of these issues, Nidoking appreciates teammates that are able to check faster Pokemon whether offensively like Barraskewda, Lokix, and scarfed Mienshao or defensively like Tangrowth or Empoleon. Slow pivots or offensive Pokemon that can use a move like U-turn to pivot out of a defensive check switching in are also great to help Nidoking hit the field safely, but aren’t totally necessary as it is able to find plenty of opportunities to switch in on a wall like Skarmory or Cofagrigus. The latter option is especially great as it lets Nidoking start wreaking havoc on the opposing team’s defensive checks. Mienshao in particular is able to fill these roles as it is able to outspeed anything that isn’t Barraskewda under rain or Drednaw after using Shell Smash by using Choice Scarf while being able to threaten the few walls capable of taking on Nidoking. Nidoking also enables Mienshao to tear through the opposing team by removing its checks like Cofagrigus, Skarmory, and Tangrowth. Barraskewda is also a good partner because it can lure in a Skarmory or Tangrowth, Flip Turn out, and let Nidoking destroy those walls which lets Barraskewda click banded Liquidations for free. Lokix is another notable option as it has U-turn and Knock Off to further make progress while First Impression is able to deal with the faster, frailer Pokemon that threaten Nidoking, especially when using Choice Band or after some chip damage. Pairing it with webs is also another option as it helps it outspeed everything except for scarfed Mienshao, Swift Swim Barraskewda under rain, or Swellow.
Counterplay
Although Nidoking might be one of the most oppressive forces this month, there are still ways to navigate around it in the teambuilder and during games. As mentioned above, it is defensively checked by specially defensive Empoleon and Assault Vest Goodra which are able to switch into a non-supereffective attack, survive an Earth Power or Ice Beam respectively, and OHKO with Surf or Hydro Pump though it does require Empoleon to be holding a Shuca Berry while Goodra has a 50% chance of dying to Ice Punch after taking a Sludge Wave or Earth Power. Specially defensive Politoed can be used as it can survive a hit from Thunderbolt and kills Nidoking in return with Hydro Pump or rain boosted Scald. It can also use Water Absorb to stop Barraskewda, one of Nidoking’s potential teammates, from freely clicking Liquidation or Flip Turn. Cofagrigus is another option as it is reliably able to take 3 Earth Powers before dying. It can also potentially stall out Nidoking by burning it with Will-o-Wisp and using Pain Split to recover some HP. Burning Nidoking allows Goodra to better take it on as it won’t be taking as much damage from Ice Punch. Similar to Cofagrigus, specially defensive Mudsdale is able to take 3 Ice Beams before dying and walls Ice Punch sets even better. But unlike the coffin, Mudsdale is able to immediately threaten an OHKO by using Earthquake and can still set up Stealth Rock if Nidoking decides to switch out.
Claydol is also able to be used as a Nidoking check as it resists Sludge Wave, is immune to electric coverage, and dodges Earth Power with Levitate which gives it opportunities to switch in against Nidoking. By holding a Yache Berry, Claydol is able to comfortably take an Ice Beam or Ice Punch while firing back a 252+ Psychic or Earth Power. If Nidoking decides not to stay in on Claydol, it can still clear hazards using Rapid Spin, set up its own hazards, or use Teleport to gain momentum, giving it a unique role compression niche. Specially defensive Frosmoth also deserves a special mention as it only takes 1/4th of its health against any of Nidoking’s non-fire attacks while still being able to OHKO with Ice Beam. It also gets Defog to clear hazards, Stun Spore to paralyze another Pokemon if Nidoking decides to switch out, and U-turn to generate momentum which gives it role compression similar to Claydol. Kecleon is also very bulky on the special side, and though it doesn’t have hazard clear or pivoting like Claydol and Frosmoth do, it has access to Recover which gives it much needed longevity and Knock Off to hinder Nidoking’s damage.
On the offensive side, there are plenty of Pokemon that are able to outspeed and OHKO Nidoking. Barraskewda is able to outspeed even after webs if Swift Swim is activated and OHKO with Liquidation, Mienshao’s Choice Scarf sets can ignore the speed drop from webs and use Triple Axel, and Swellow can ignore webs entirely to OHKO with either Guts boosted Facade or specs Boomburst. Outside of Sticky Web teams, Choice Specs Ribombee and Inteleon are able to outspeed and OHKO with Psychic and Snipe Shot respectively. Cincinno and Maushold are also able to kill with Tail Slap and Population Bomb, but are heavily punished by Rocky Helmet Skarmory and Tangrowth, a problem that Barraskewda also faces. Scarfed Pinsir is also able to OHKO Nidoking with Earthquake, but it faces the same problem as offensive Ribombee as both are taking 25% if Stealth Rock is set and neither have the reliable recovery that Swellow has which makes both require some extra help with hazard control. Lokix is another decent check to Nidoking as it can easily revenge kill it using banded First Impression or Life Orb boosted Knock Off after a bit of chip damage. It can also slot in Leech Life to mitigate some of the damage taken from hazards if it’s not carrying Heavy-Duty Boots or from Life Orb recoil. Quite a few Pokemon are also able to use Knock Off or Trick to remove Nidoking’s Life Orb which reduces its impact on defensive cores, allowing your defensive checks to handle it better.
Written by AlfrexFrostStaff
Quality Checked by Turtle12