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Nidoqueen is a reliable setter of entry hazards because of its above average bulk, ability to force switches, and good matchup versus hazard removers such as Salamence and Rotom-H. Earth Power and Sludge Wave are mandatory, powerful STAB moves that OHKO bulkier Pokemon such as Primarina, Cobalion, and Tangrowth. Fire Blast is an excellent coverage move and the best pick for the last slot, as it wipes out Scizor, almost OHKOes Amoonguss, and cleanly 2HKOes Celesteela. The given Speed EVs lets Nidoqueen outspeed and heavily damage Autotomize Celesteela, with the remaining EVs towards HP to better take on Cobalion and Scizor. Nidoqueen best fits on offensive builds that appreciate an additional wallbreaker on top of a Stealth Rock setter. Tangrowth pairs very well with Nidoqueen, taking on dangerous Water-types like Keldeo and Starmie. It also heavily threatens Hippowdon. Physical cleaners like Swords Dance Scizor and Cobalion appreciate Nidoqueen's good matchup versus Amoonguss and Tangrowth and can wipe out specially defensive walls like Chansey and Mandibuzz in exchange. They both can also overwhelm Slowking for Nidoqueen. Pivots like Slowking, Thundurus-T, Rotom-H, and Noivern can bring Nidoqueen in against foes like Tangrowth, Nihilego, and Primarina. Slowking can also check faster threats to Nidoqueen like Keldeo and Azelf and let it enter the field safely with Teleport. Entry hazard removal from the likes of Salamence and Rotom-W can keep Nidoqueen from being worn down by Spikes.

Nidoqueen provides stellar role compression with its amazing support movepool and ability to check Terrakion and most Tapu Koko variants in a single teamslot. It avoids the 2HKO from both of Terrakion's STAB moves and the 3HKO from all of Tapu Koko's attacks and threatens them back with Earthquake. Toxic Spikes exerts tremendous pressure on opposing teams, quickly wearing down grounded offensive attackers and putting extra strain on walls. Stealth Rock is an option, but given the much more limited distribution of Toxic Spikes, it is generally easier to have a teammate supply it. Taunt and Super Fang further pressure opposing defensive cores, reliably reducing their health even with no Attack investment and denying recovery and Defog from foes like Corviknight and Mandibuzz. Poison Fang is an option in either of the last two slots to hit Levitate Tapu Koko and poison foes immune to Toxic Spikes, but the pressure exerted by Taunt + Super Fang is generally preferred. Black Sludge is the preferred item to increase Nidoqueen's longevity, but Rocky Helmet can be used to further accumulate chip damage on opponents and is especially punishing against opposing U-turn users. 36 Speed EVs allow Nidoqueen to outpace Mandibuzz so that it can deny its Defog and Roost. Nidoqueen is an excellent addition to balance teams looking to win the entry hazard war and shore up weaknesses to Terrakion and Tapu Koko. It pairs exceedingly well with walls such as Kommo-o, Heatran, and Skarmory that struggle with one or both of these threats; additionally, all of them can provide Stealth Rock or Spikes to compliment Nidoqueen's Toxic Spikes. Nidoqueen appreciates Knock Off support from teammates like Azelf and Tapu Fini, as they make Toxic Spikes even stronger by removing Heavy-Duty Boots. Powerful wallbreakers like Galarian Zapdos and Zarude appreciate Nidoqueen weakening opposing walls with Super Fang and generally inflicting chip damage on the opposing team. Nidoqueen is unable to check some common physical attackers like Barraskewda and Zarude, so it needs other physically defensive teammates like Kommo-o to cover these threats. Nidoqueen is also vulnerable to Ground-types like Garchomp, Landorus-T, and Zygarde-10%, so teammates that frustrate them like Zarude and Dauntless Shield Mew are encouraged.

Moves Toxic Spikes poisons the opposing team upon entry, wearing them down throughout the match. Alternatively, Stealth Rock is a viable option on Nidoqueen if no other setters fit alongside it. Sludge Wave allows Nidoqueen to threaten Fairy-types such as Primarina and Mega Altaria. Earth Power possesses great synergy with Toxic Spikes, threatening hazard removal options such as Empoleon and grounded Poison-types like Tentacruel, opposing Nidoqueen, and Gengar. Ice Beam has nice coverage alongside Earth Power, hitting foes such as Gligar, Hydreigon, and Mega Aerodactyl for solid damage. Set Details 76 Speed EVs most notably allow Nidoqueen to outspeed Gligar, letting it effectively threaten with Ice Beam by moving before Gligar's Roost. 72 Special Defense EVs let Nidoqueen stomach a +2 Fire Blast from Infernape while bolstering its one-on-one matchup against foes such as Mega Manectric, Nihilego, and Tentacruel. The remaining investment is dumped into Defense alongside a Bold nature, helping it combat foes like Terrakion, Dragon Dance Mega Altaria, and Choice Scarf Infernape. Black Sludge provides Nidoqueen with passive recovery, aiding it through keeping it healthy throughout a match. Usage Tips Nidoqueen should be used primarily early- to mid-game, mainly to handle threats such as Nihilego, Terrakion, and Mega Manectric. These favorable positions make for ideal opportunities to set up an entry hazard, as the foe is often forced out. Prioritize laying down Toxic Spikes if the opponent has multiple Pokemon vulnerable to them, especially if they lack a grounded Poison-type or an entry hazard remover that fares well against Nidoqueen. Similarly, setting Stealth Rock can be crucial in pressuring foes like Moltres, Rotom-H, and Mega Aerodactyl. Keep Nidoqueen healthy if it is necessary to handle cleaners like Mega Manectric, Choice Scarf Infernape, and Nihilego. Team Options Defensive Nidoqueen fits best on balance or bulky teams that appreciate its unique defensive utility and ability to set entry hazards. Nidoqueen's access to Toxic Spikes makes Pokemon like Taunt Hydreigon, Substitute Kyurem, and Calm Mind + Substitute Suicune stand out as ideal partners, as they greatly appreciate the residual damage on foes as they apply pressure. Dragon-types like Latias and the aforementioned Hydreigon share great defensive synergy with Nidoqueen, covering its weaknesses to Water-, Psychic-, and Ground-type moves while it handles Fairy-types in return. They also take pressure off of Nidoqueen in handling Electric-types such as Mega Manectric and Rotom-H. Starmie, Tsareena, and Mega Blastoise offer Rapid Spin support, removing the need to use Defog and potentially risk clearing Nidoqueen's entry hazards. Additionally, these removers appreciate Nidoqueen's ability to remove opposing Toxic Spikes upon entry. Nidoqueen can absorb the Electric-type moves aimed at bulky Water-types like Alomomola, Empoleon, and Primarina; additionally, Alomomola can help keep Nidoqueen healthy with Wish. Other Stealth Rock setters like Bronzong, Mega Aggron, and Cobalion alleviate the need for Nidoqueen to run the move itself, meaning it can more feasibly fit Toxic Spikes on its moveset. Pursuit users such as Scizor and Mega Aerodactyl can remove threats to Nidoqueen such as Latias and Celebi.

Moves Toxic Spikes pressures the opposing team by poisoning those vulnerable, wearing them down over time. Stealth Rock is a solid alternative option to Toxic Spikes, but it is only truly necessary when another user does not fit on the rest of the team. Sludge Wave sufficiently threatens foes such as Mega Altaria, Primarina, and Celebi while often offering a safe middle ground between the outstanding synergy shared by Earth Power and Ice Beam. Earth Power punishes Pokemon like Empoleon, Tentacruel, Gengar, and Alolan Muk, which can remove Toxic Spikes either through Defog or their typing. Ice Beam nails foes such as Gligar, Hydreigon, Hippowdon, and Amoonguss, applying even more offensive pressure alongside its STAB moves. Set Details Maximum Special Attack investment alongside a Modest nature and Life Orb make Nidoqueen as threatening as possible with its great coverage. 128 Speed EVs guarantee that Nidoqueen outruns Modest Primarina, maximizing its opportunities to dish out damage. The remaining EVs are dumped into HP to assist Nidoqueen in dealing with foes like Nihilego, Mega Manectric, and Terrakion by virtue of its defensive typing. Usage Tips Especially early on in matches, position Nidoqueen against foes like Mega Altaria, Mega Manectric, and Cobalion, where it can either set an entry hazard or throw out a powerful attack. Nidoqueen has the coverage necessary to threaten most teams offensively; therefore, play aggressively to make the most of this trait. The combination of Earth Power and Ice Beam can hit most Pokemon super effectively, but Sludge Wave can often make for a safe middle ground if expecting a switch to Pokemon like Hydreigon, Moltres, or Rotom-H. Offensive Nidoqueen has a tendency to be worn down easily, so prioritize keeping it healthy if it is needed to beat Pokemon like Mega Manectric or Terrakion. Team Options Offensive Nidoqueen finds its home on bulky offense teams that take advantage of its offensive presence, entry hazards, and favorable matchups presented by its typing. Choice Scarf Hydreigon is a fantastic partner, getting Nidoqueen into favorable positions against its most common answers in Fairy-types while covering its weaknesses to Psychic-, Water-, and Ground-type moves. Rotom-H deals with Ground-types such as Hippowdon and Mamoswine as well as Togekiss, the one Fairy-type Nidoqueen truly struggles with. Rotom-H also gets Nidoqueen into good spots with Volt Switch and takes pressure off of it in dealing with Mega Manectric. Other pivots such as Scizor and Mega Manectric can be valuable partners, getting Nidoqueen into favorable positions with U-turn and Volt Switch. Alternative Stealth Rock users like Mega Aggron, Cobalion, and Terrakion let Nidoqueen run Toxic Spikes instead, letting it more effectively support the team by wearing down foes. Tsareena provides Rapid Spin support, a valuable asset alongside Toxic Spikes, and gets Nidoqueen into favorable matchups against Mega Altaria and Amoonguss.

Moves Earthquake is crucial to slam Pokemon such as Alolan Muk, Mega Charizard X, and Chansey for major damage while also chipping Melmetal. Toxic has phenomenal synergy with Earthquake, as it can hurt Steel- and Poison-type Pokemon that are immune to Toxic, and it has perfect accuracy thanks to Nidoqueen's Poison typing. Super Fang is an amazing support move that dishes out heavy chip damage to healthier targets. Ice Beam provides solid coverage against Flying-types such as Dragonite, Aerodactyl, and Zapdos while also hurting Sandslash and Alolan Exeggutor. Ice Beam is used over Ice Punch to dish out more damage against Reflect variants of Zapdos while also ignoring the Attack-lowering effect of burn. If Nidoqueen's team lacks a Stealth Rock setter, the move can be used in the fourth slot to provide extra support. A Relaxed nature is preferred when using Ice Beam to get the most out of its damage output; otherwise, an Impish nature can be used, which allows Nidoqueen to outspeed neutral-natured Poliwrath. Usage Tips As one of LGPE OU's best checks to Alolan Muk and Zapdos, Nidoqueen should switch into these threats. Utilize both Toxic and Super Fang early-game to start whittling down the opposing team as soon as possible. With the number of switches Nidoqueen forces, these moves are very safe to use. Stealth Rock is best used when forcing something out or against a slower Pokemon. It's not ideal to use it against a faster threat, since Nidoqueen will unnecessary chip damage or be stopped by Taunt. Be wary of the number of times Nidoqueen switches into attacks throughout the course of the match. With no reliable recovery options and a mediocre Speed tier, it can be taken advantage of to create offensive momentum, especially against U-turn variants of Zapdos. Team Options Gyarados has great synergy with Nidoqueen, as pre-Mega Gyarados can switch into Ground-type moves aimed at it, while Mega Gyarados checks Psychic-types such as Alakazam and Starmie; meanwhile, Nidoqueen shields Gyarados from Electric-type moves. Nidoqueen appreciates the free switches Mega Beedrill provides through U-turn so that it can switch into Melmetal safely and whittle it down with Earthquake and Super Fang. Mega Beedrill also threatens Mew, Starmie, and Modest Mega Alakazam with its super effective Bug-type attacks. Fast sweepers like Mega Alakazam and Mega Aerodactyl appreciate Nidoqueen's ability to whittle down their checks with Toxic and Super Fang, which eases their job of cleaning weakened teams late-game. Pokemon that are threatened by Alolan Muk such as Starmie, Mew, Zapdos, and Mega Alakazam all take solace from Nidoqueen's ability to switch into it fairly easily.

Moves Stealth Rock allows Nidoqueen to help pressure troublesome Pokemon for Poison like Heatran and Victini as well as Dragonite, which can be OHKOed by Ice Beam once its Multiscale has been broken. Earth Power helps combats big threats to Poison like Excadrill, Mega Diancie, and Victini. Thunderbolt helps against Water- and Flying-types such as Slowbro and Mega Charizard Y and Defog users like Mantine. Ice Beam helps nail Dragon-, Flying-, and Ground-types like Hydreigon, Garchomp, Zapdos, Gliscor, and Landorus-T. Set Details 164 HP EVs and Shuca Berry allow Nidoqueen to last as long as possible in the Steel- and the Ground-type matchup; it easily survives Earthquake from Excadrill and Landorus-T. 200 Speed EVs allow Nidoqueen to outpace Adamant Dragonite and Breloom and KO them with Ice Beam after it they have taken chip damage. 144 Special Attack EVs along with Sheer Force are used to make Nidoqueen's attacks powerful enough to KO Mega Scizor and Klefki. Alternatively, Nidoqueen can run Life Orb for an extra boost alongside Sheer Force in order to 2HKO Zapdos, Toxapex, Hippowdon, and Ferrothorn. Usage Tips Use Nidoqueen as a lead in key matchups like Dragon and Steel, as Ice Beam will threaten most Dragon-types into switching out, which is a perfect time to set Stealth Rock. Try to save Nidoqueen's Shuca Berry and enough HP to get a surprise KO on Ground-types such as Excadrill and Landorus-T. Be wary around faster and powerful Pokemon such as Mega Gallade, Kyurem-B, and Latios, as they outpace Nidoqueen and can OHKO it from full health even with its decent bulk. Use Earth Power to weaken faster Taunt users like Tapu Koko and Cobalion, as most of the time they will use Taunt to cut off Nidoqueen from using Stealth Rock. Use Nidoqueen in Flying-type matchups to set Stealth Rock, as its coverage threatens common Defog users like Mantine, Gliscor, and Landorus-T as well as Thundurus-T and Celesteela. Team Options Nidoking appreciates Nidoqueen's Stealth Rock support to break through the opposition as a powerful wallbreaker that helps take care of troubling Steel-types like Heatran and Ferrothorn, and because Nidoqueen runs Stealth Rock, Nidoking can run another move like Thunderbolt to pressure Flying- and Water-types like Mantine and Slowbro. Alolan Muk helps Nidoqueen by trapping troubling Psychic-types like Alolan Raichu and Latios and OHKOing them with Pursuit. Mega Venusaur is the main way of dealing with physical attackers like Azumarill and Mega Lopunny. Thanks to its ability Thick Fat, it can also take attacks from Mamoswine and Weavile. Mega Venusaur is also important to have on the team due to its Grass typing, which helps greatly in matchups like Ground and Water, making it a good switch-in to attacks like Earthquake from Excadrill and Landorus-T and Waterfall from Mega Swampert. It can also provide Leech Seed to give passive recovery to its teammates. In return, Nidoqueen can take care of troubling Fire-types like Infernape and Heatran. Crobat offers Defog support along with being able to threaten troubling Pokemon like Mega Lopunny and Mega Gallade with Brave Bird. Furthermore, its Flying typing can help greatly with Ground-type attacks from the likes of Garchomp and Excadrill. Toxapex aids in taking care of Normal-types with its Toxic Spikes support being able to effectively cripple the bulky duo of Chansey and Porygon2. Thanks to its Water typing, Toxapex is able to switch in on Ice- and Water-type attacks from the likes of Weavile and Greninja. It can also help with Dragonite because of its amazing bulk and help with setup Pokemon like Mega Gallade and Mega Latias thanks to Haze. In return, Nidoqueen can switch into Electric-type attacks from Zapdos and Tapu Koko for Crobat and Toxapex.

This is a sample set. We aren't working on BW Monotype analyses at the moment, but check out BW Monotype resources for more information about the metagame.

Moves This set uses Special Defense investment to do better against certain threats like mixed Dragonite, Heatran, Infernape, Gengar, Rotom-A, and Zapdos. Toxic Spikes is a staple to Nidoqueen's niche in OU. While Protect is preferred, Stealth Rock will be mandatory for many teams that use Nidoqueen if nothing else can better fit the move. Earthquake is Nidoqueen's preferred STAB attack for doing solid damage against Tyranitar and Heatran. Nidoqueen can also use Earth Power for more damage against Metagross and for a bit more Speed, but this is less recommended because Flamethrower and Thunderbolt aren't nearly as effective without Defense investment, and you'd also sacrifice Nidoqueen's damage output versus Infernape. This means that Nidoqueen has no move to pressure Skarmory, so the increased Speed isn't worth replacing Earthquake. Ice Beam is the best option for the last moveslot because it takes advantage of Nidoqueen's heightened Special Defense by threatening mixed Dragonite and pressuring Zapdos into using Roost, allowing Nidoqueen to hit it harder with Earthquake. It also allows Nidoqueen to still do decently versus Breloom, hitting it super effectively. Set Details HP and Special Defense are maximized to make Nidoqueen as specially bulky as possible, which allows it to stand a chance versus mixed Dragonite and Gengar. On top of that, it allows Nidoqueen to reliably set up entry hazards on bulkier variants of Zapdos and Rotom-A that don't carry Will-O-Wisp as well. Interestingly, specially defensive Nidoqueen can more reliably cripple Trick Rotom-A with Black Sludge because it has an easier time entering in on Shadow Ball or even Hidden Power Ice from Choice Scarf variants, but it must beware of Choice Specs sets. Also, the passive recovery from Black Sludge can be taken advantage of even further by opting for Protect. Usage Tips Even though this Nidoqueen does decently versus mixed Dragonite, Gengar, Heatran, Rotom-A, and Zapdos, it must be careful when trying to match up versus all of those Pokemon. Nidoqueen only deals with mixed Dragonite reliably when it is at full health, and it needs to be at a reasonably high amount of health to come in on Gengar and at least guarantee that SubSplit variants don't maintain their Substitute. In terms of its health, the same can apply with the other aforementioned special attackers. Coming in on moves it's immune to will be very beneficial to this Nidoqueen. Be sure to evaluate whether one or two layers of Toxic Spikes should be used, and try to prioritize Stealth Rock. If needed, this Nidoqueen can sometimes stay in once versus Leftovers Starmie to hit it with an Earthquake and pressure it a bit more, but this usually isn't recommended. Even though Nidoqueen lacks investment in Defense, it can still take advantage of Poison Point, as it still takes Infernape's Close Combat decently and resists U-turn. Team Options Beyond the fact that Nidoqueen appreciates teammates that do well versus Water-types and Skarmory, Pokemon with more Defense investment will pair slightly better with specially defensive Nidoqueen, as it loses a large portion of its physically defensive value. Physically defensive Skarmory has great synergy with specially defensive Nidoqueen, and this core can be difficult to break. Because specially defensive Nidoqueen tends to check its foes much more effectively at higher health, Wish support is extremely helpful. Blissey, Clefable, Jirachi, and Vaporeon can effectively pass Wish to Nidoqueen, and the physically bulky Wish + Calm Mind variant of Jirachi has particularly nice synergy with specially defensive Nidoqueen. Suicune and other bulky Water-types like Milotic, Kingdra, and Swampert appreciate Nidoqueen's support. Physically defensive Zapdos can sometimes dislike mixed Dragonite, so this combined with the natural synergy this Nidoqueen has with physically defensive Zapdos makes these two a fantastic pair. Bulkier Starmie, especially with Reflect, can pair well with this Nidoqueen, spinning away Spikes and setting up Reflect for Nidoqueen while Zapdos is handled naturally by Nidoqueen. Celebi appreciates the Toxic Spikes removal that Nidoqueen provides, and physically defensive variants have even better synergy with this Nidoqueen, taking Water- and Ground-type attacks aimed at it while it takes Bug-type attacks like U-turn; however, an Ice-type weakness will be compounded when pairing these two together. Tyranitar combined with this Nidoqueen can give many special attackers a hard time, but there should be reassurance versus Water-types, whether it be through a Passho Berry Tyranitar variant or with a Grass-type like Leech Seed Shaymin or Celebi. This Nidoqueen is still countered by Starmie, most variants of which Tyranitar will consistently trap. Tyranitar's Sand Stream also helps wear down opposing Pokemon. Weavile can also work effectively with specially defensive Nidoqueen, which effectively combats Heatran; in return, Weavile's Pursuit will be greatly beneficial to Nidoqueen, and the removal of Toxic Spikes will increase its longevity. Magnezone can pair well to trap Skarmory, but it must beware of Shed Shell and a compounded Ground-type weakness. Ghost-type Pokemon like Gengar and Rotom-A function as secondary Fighting-type answers and spinblockers for all of Nidoqueen's entry hazards; physically defensive Rotom-A synergizes especially well with specially defensive Nidoqueen. Anything that appreciates Toxic Spikes support, such as Protect users like Leech Seed Shaymin, Calm Mind Raikou, and Heatran, will pair well with Nidoqueen.

Moves Toxic Spikes is Nidoqueen's niche, as it is one of the most consistent and bulky users of the move in OU, so it's a mandatory moveslot. Although it can use Stealth Rock instead of Protect, Nidoqueen prefers the latter to take advantage of potential sand, receive additional Black Sludge recovery to make up for its lack of a recovery move of its own outside of Rest, and scout Choice item users like Flygon and Jirachi. Protect can also be used in conjunction with Toxic Spikes to wear down opposing Pokemon with residual poison damage. However, often teams that use Nidoqueen will want it to use both entry hazards, so using Stealth Rock over Protect will be mandatory if nothing else on the team can better use Stealth Rock. Earthquake is Nidoqueen's strongest STAB move, hitting Pokemon like Tyranitar, Heatran, and even Jirachi quite hard. Earth Power is an option over Earthquake to hit Metagross harder that also allows Nidoqueen to use a Bold nature instead, but if using Earth Power, Nidoqueen should use Flamethrower or Thunderbolt to take advantage of being faster than most Skarmory. Nidoqueen can also use Roar over a Ground-type move on a set that has Toxic Spikes, Ice Beam, and Protect, but this is only recommended on full stall builds. The fourth move is quite flexible, but Ice Beam is the most recommended to give Nidoqueen leverage against Pokemon like Gliscor, Dragonite, Flygon, and Breloom all at once. Flamethrower is a solid option for Skarmory, Forretress, and Scizor, particularly the Swords Dance variant of the latter. Fire Blast could be used for its increased power, but this will likely be more unreliable versus Skarmory and Scizor because of its low PP and chance to miss; the extra damage output is typically not worth it because Fire Blast can likely still be stalled out with Roost from specially defensive Skarmory. Furthermore, since Flamethrower has more PP, Nidoqueen overall will have a higher chance to inflict a burn or get a critical hit. Thunderbolt can be used if a team has trouble with Gyarados and does not want to give it any initiative, but this move will not OHKO it unless it takes damage from Stealth Rock and two turns of sand or one turn of Life Orb damage; Thunderbolt hits Skarmory as well. The issue with Thunderbolt, however, is that ultimately it is inferior to Ice Beam or Flamethrower because it makes Nidoqueen unable to check Breloom. Set Details HP and Defense are maximized so Nidoqueen can take physical attacks from the likes of Dragonite, Tyranitar, Infernape, and Lucario as well as possible. Black Sludge is used to give Nidoqueen passive recovery and can be nice for punishing Trick users like Jirachi, Latias, and Rotom-A. A Relaxed nature is recommended because Nidoqueen is typically a mixed attacker. Nidoqueen can opt for a Bold nature if using Earth Power, which allows it to outspeed most Skarmory. However, this is only recommended if opting for Flamethrower or Thunderbolt to damage Skarmory. While Nidoqueen is not a good Skarmory check even with these moves, as they likely will do less than 50% to it, they do prevent it from being able to freely set up on Nidoqueen with little to no consequence, which is the case if opting for Ice Beam. Usage Tips You need to be somewhat careful when using Nidoqueen because one of its biggest weaknesses is that it can be chipped down easily, so try to use its Poison / Ground typing to your advantage by pivoting it into attacks or status moves it's immune to. Also, identifying Pokemon with Choice items will make it easier to get Nidoqueen on the battlefield, as its many resistances can help it take advantage of bad locks. When considering which entry hazard to use first, usually Stealth Rock is the most important one, as no matter what comes in, something will take damage. Identify the type of team you are facing before laying down two layers of Toxic Spikes, as more offensive teams will actually be crippled more by only one layer. This is because they need to stay in for a few turns to take more damage from two layers of Toxic Spikes than just one. If you know that your opponent is using Starmie, you can try to bait it out and double switch to a counter; this is especially effective if you use a Pursuit trapper like Tyranitar or Weavile. Try to take advantage of Nidoqueen's Poison Point by sending it in on Pokemon that spam U-turn and other physical attacks, provided that it will take minimal damage in the process. For example, because Nidoqueen can threaten Breloom with Ice Beam, you can force Breloom to use Spore, which ideally Breloom wants to delay for as long as possible. Even while Nidoqueen is asleep, you can still pivot it into U-turn users to threaten Pokemon with Poison Point, switch it into Trick and give away a Black Sludge, and also clear Toxic Spikes from your side of the field. If you opt for a rarer move like Flamethrower or Thunderbolt, try your best to keep it concealed until necessary to reveal it so you may surprise your opponent. If you are using a Pokemon with Wish support alongside Nidoqueen or you opt for Protect over Stealth Rock, you can afford to be a bit more lenient with conserving its health, which can be incredibly rewarding because it can result in more pressure with entry hazards and certain offenses having a harder time breaking it. Team Options Nidoqueen appreciates teammates that can handle Water-types, Skarmory, and strong special attackers well. Ghost-type Pokemon like Gengar and Rotom-A are naturally a great fit with Nidoqueen, as they function as secondary Fighting-type checks and spinblockers for all of Nidoqueen's entry hazards. Rotom-A is better versus Starmie than Gengar, but the Choice Scarf variants of each can outspeed Starmie and OHKO it with their STAB moves. Choice Scarf Rotom-A is a great countermeasure to Dragon Dance Gyarados, which also benefits Nidoqueen. Tyranitar can do well versus Water-types and strong special attackers with its incredible special bulk and Passho Berry, and it can consistently trap Starmie, which assists with Nidoqueen's entry hazards. Tyranitar's Sand Stream also assists Nidoqueen with wearing down its foes and restoring its passive recovery in case it faces a hail-inducing Pokemon like Abomasnow. Weavile is also a wonderful partner for Nidoqueen on more offensive builds, as the two have good type synergy. Nidoqueen also removes opposing Toxic Spikes from the field on entry, and Weavile can trap Starmie with Pursuit, forcing it into a mind game by also packing Night Slash. Magnezone can trap Skarmory and other troubling Steel-types like Bronzong and Choice Scarf Jirachi while doing decently versus Water-types, but this compounds a a Ground-type weakness, and a backup plan should be in store for Shed Shell Skarmory. Since Nidoqueen does amazingly versus Breloom, which can often be the bane of a stall build's existence, Skarmory and Latias fit well to stop Breloom after Nidoqueen forces it to use Spore. Skarmory itself has great type synergy with Nidoqueen and can assist in setting up entry hazards as well as soft check threats like Dragon Dance Gyarados and Flygon. Bulkier variants of Latias can soft check Gyarados. Nidoqueen and Latias form a strong core of Fighting-resistant Pokemon. Latias can also switch into Ground-, Water-, and Psychic-type attacks aimed at Nidoqueen. A Calm Mind + Roar set can be used in conjunction with Toxic Spikes to spread poison. Blissey and Clefable are great special walls that have good type synergy with Nidoqueen and can also handle all the special attacking Water-types. Milotic can also handle most Water-types, has great special bulk, and does particularly well versus Gyarados, which Nidoqueen detests. On top of that, Nidoqueen clears Toxic Spikes for Milotic, which can be a nuisance. Many other bulky Water-types like Vaporeon, some Kingdra, and Swampert pair well with Nidoqueen because they appreciate the removal of Toxic Spikes. In fact, the CroCune variant of Suicune both appreciates Nidoqueen removing Toxic Spikes and setting up its own against the opposing team. Blissey, Clefable, Latias, and Jirachi with Wish can also support Nidoqueen well. Specially defensive Empoleon makes for a good teammate that can use Stealth Rock and allow Nidoqueen to use Protect, but you should beware of the compounded Ground-type weakness. Pokemon that appreciate Toxic Spikes support are also great teammates for Nidoqueen. Protect users like Torment Heatran, Calm Mind Raikou, and Leech Seed Shaymin can take advantage of Toxic Spikes. Heatran can do well versus Steel-types that give Nidoqueen some trouble, and Shaymin can do well versus Water-types. Celebi is another Grass-type that defensively synergizes well with Nidoqueen and can do decently versus Choice Band Gyarados and other Water-types; however, while Celebi brushes off Water- and Ground-type attacks aimed at Nidoqueen, and Nidoqueen takes Bug-type attacks like U-turn aimed at Celebi, they are both weak to Ice, so this should be considered when pairing the two together. Zapdos can add to a stall build and use a set like Substitute + Roost or even a Protect set to take advantage of Nidoqueen's Toxic Spikes.

Thanks to her high Defense and decent typing, Nidoqueen is able to check numerous physical threats. Unlike other physically defensive Ground-types, Nidoqueen has a usable Special Attack stat that allows her to strike physical attackers, such as Aggron and Rhyperior, on their weaker Special Defense stat. Nidoqueen's typing grants her resistances to many common UU attacking types, such as Rock, Fighting, and Bug, which enables her to set up Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes with ease. As for her attacking moves, Earth Power allows Nidoqueen to hit Rhyperior and Aggron for super effective damage, while Ice Beam allows her to strike Donphan, Torterra, and Altaria. Bulky Pokemon, such as Milotic and Slowbro, are severely crippled by Toxic Spikes. Roar can be used instead to rack up entry hazard damage, scout your opponent's team, and phaze out any stat-boosters. The given EVs are self-explanatory, but you can shift some Defense EVs into Speed if you wish. 48 Speed EVs allow Nidoqueen to outspeed Rhyperior and Adamant Aggron, and strike them with a super effective Earth Power. With 96 EVs, Nidoqueen outspeeds Adamant Torterra and minimum Speed Altaria. Finally, Nidoqueen is able to outspeed Jolly Aggron with 124 Speed EVs, but the loss of bulk generally isn't worth it. Nidoqueen can use Toxic in her last slot, giving her a way to poison Levitate users and Flying-types, such as Uxie and Moltres. Nidoqueen can also choose to adopt a purely physical set with a moveset of Earthquake, Stone Edge, and Crunch. A physical set will hit Chansey and Registeel harder, Stone Edge will ward off Moltres, while Crunch will allow Nidoqueen to hit Ghost- and Psychic-types for super effective damage. Since Nidoqueen will most likely be used on defensive teams, it makes sense to add Spikes support, due to Nidoqueen's ability to rack up residual damage with Roar. Cloyster makes a solid Spikes partner since he can set up on Donphan's and Steelix's Earthquake, while Nidoqueen buffers Rock- and Electric-type attacks directed at Cloyster. This set has problems with bulky Waters such as Milotic, Blastoise, and Azumarill. Even Toxic is somewhat unreliable since Milotic and Blastoise both have viable RestTalk sets. Venusaur is a great partner to pair Nidoqueen with since he has the ability to check almost every bulky Water with the appropriate EV investment. Do note, however, that this will give your team an undesirable weakness to Alakazam (and Psychic-type moves in general), so be sure to pack a Spiritomb, Drapion, or Skuntank to remedy this problem. A spinblocker is recommended to keep the hazards Nidoqueen sets up on the field. Rotom and Mismagius make great choices; Rotom can hurt Blastoise with Thunderbolt, while Mismagius can block Foresight with Taunt, and both can use Will-O-Wisp to cripple Donphan and Hitmontop. Nidoqueen makes a great teammate to Pokemon that can make the most of the entry hazards she sets up. Registeel and Spiritomb can take on common counters such as Haze Milotic with two layers of Toxic Spikes on the field. With poison damage increasing every turn, Milotic will have a difficult time erasing their Curse and Calm Mind boosts. Weather stall teams can also make great use of the Toxic Spikes that Nidoqueen sets up, as well as her ability to absorb them on your side of the field. Hail teams in particular enjoy Nidoqueen as a teammate, thanks to her defensive synergy with Ice-types. Nidoqueen is able to buffer Rock- and Fighting-type attacks aimed at your Ice-types, while she benefits from having an 100% accurate Blizzard, and having teammates that are able to take any Ice and Water attacks aimed at her.

The standard Nidoking set, applied to Nidoqueen. Nidoqueen lacks Megahorn, but it can remedy that by hitting Meganium with STAB Sludge Bomb and Solrock with Shadow Ball. Ice Beam OHKOs Gligar and does a lot of damage to other Grounds, as well as Fearow, who is immune to two of your moves.

Requires prediction to work. Your main attacking move here is Earthquake, so like with above set, hit Fliers like Gligar with Ice Beam, Shadow Ball is for Solrock, and Sludge Bomb is for Meganium (and it hits Fearow quite hard as well). This set makes Nidoqueen do notable damage if used right. If you're using Ice Beam for Gligar, use 56 Special Attack EVs and Hasty or Naive nature (taking EVs from HP and Speed), so you can OHKO it.

Set Description Earthquake is Nidoqueen's necessary STAB attack, which allows it to be the threat that it is. Thunder is also necessary to nail the bulky Water-type pair of Slowbro and Slowking and is also very handy with its 30% chance to paralyze a Pokemon that is not a Ground-type (provided it hits). Nidoqueen's next coverage move allows it to punch through more checks and has a useful chance to either freeze or burn. Ice Beam hits Jumpluff and Gligar like a truck, whereas Fire Blast is useful for dealing even more damage to Bellossom and is a better option for winning against Scyther one-on-one—another dominant Pokemon in this tier. Lovely Kiss and Moonlight are not legally compatible with each other on Nidoqueen, so one must choose which utility option to run. Lovely Kiss is more commonly seen on hyper offense teams, as Nidoqueen can then spread status for itself or its teammates to plow through teams, whereas Moonlight is usually on other playstyles, as it improves Nidoqueen's longevity to allow the user to make some risky plays with the safety net of being able to recover. Team Options As said earlier, Nidoqueen is the most splashable Pokemon in the tier, so it is a useful teammate with any other Pokemon. There are certainly other Pokemon that, when paired with it, increase Nidoqueen's ability to dominate including Baton Passers such as Girafarig and Scyther that can pass on +2 Special Defense, Speed, and Attack boosts to prepare for a Nidoqueen sweep. Spikes support from Qwilfish is incredibly useful, as it allows Nidoqueen to punish the opponent for switching in, for example, their Slowbro to attempt to eat up an expected Earthquake. Of course, countermeasures for Psychic- and Water-types should be included when teambuilding, so Thief users and Electric-types are great at pressuring these such Pokemon. Psychic-types themselves are also good teammates for Nidoqueen, so Slowbro and the like are commonly seen paired with it because they cover the aforementioned weaknesses.