Porygon2 - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle

This is a strategy guide for using Porygon2 in competitive play for the games Pokemon Sword and Shield. Read on for tips on the best Nature, EV spreads, Movesets, and Held Items to use with Porygon2, as well as its strengths and weak points.

Porygon2 - Related Guides
Evolution and Learnset	Build for Ranked Battle

Basic Information for Porygon2

Types and Abilities

Pokemon	Type 1	Type 2
Porygon2
Abilities
Trace	The Pokemon copies a foe's Ability.
Download	Compares an opposing Pokémon's Defense and Sp. Def stats before raising its own Attack or Sp. Atk stat, whichever will be more effective.
Analytic (Hidden)	Boosts move power when the pokemon moves last.

Porygon2 Weaknesses and Resistances

	Type
Takes 4x damage	-
Takes 2x damage
Takes 0.5x damage	-
Takes 1/4x damage	-
Takes 0x damage

What is Type Effectiveness?

Base Stats

HP	Attack	Defense	Sp. Atk	Sp. Def	Speed
85	80	90	105	85	60

Best Nature for Porygon2

Best Natures
Modest (+SpAtk, -Atk)	Bold (+Def, -Atk)
Calm (+SpDef, -Atk)	Quiet (+SpAtk, -Spd)

What are Natures?

Singles Movesets for Porygon2

Defensive Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Bold
EV Spread	HP 244 / Def 252 / Spd 12
Final Stat Values	HP 191 / Def 156 / Sp.Atk 125 / Sp.Def 115 / Spd 82
Ability	Trace
Held Item	Eviolite
Moveset	・Recover ・Ice Beam ・Tri-Attack ・Discharge

About Porygon2's Moves

Tri Attack serves as Porygon2's STAB move of choice which has the added bonus of possibly inflicting status onto the opponent. Otherwise it can rely on handy coverage moves in the form of Ice Beam and Discharge.

As long as it doesn't take any massive hits, it can use Recover to heal back lost damage and handle a wide variety of Pokemon without being overwhelmed.

About Porygon2's EV Spread

This moveset utilizes a modified physically bulky spread with maximum investment in Defense and a near maximum investment in HP. The remaining EVs are placed into Speed to outspeed other Porygon2.

About Porygon2's Ability

Trace allows Porygon2 to copy the opponent's ability. Try to switch in on Abilities that can prove beneficial to your team.

About Porygon2's Held Item

This moveset places EVs in HP and Defense, combined with the Eviolite to produce a highly-defensive Pokemon.

Other Viable Moves

Foul Play	When up against especially strong physical-attacking teams, Foul Play gives Porygon 2 an option to use their offense against them.
Icy Wind	Lowers an opponent's Speed by 1 stage. Good for supporting teammates to switch in and follow up.
Psychic	For countering Fighting-types who come into break Porygon2's defensive wall.
Thunder Wave	An alternative to Discharge that can guarantee paralysis but won't deal any damage.
Substitute	Can help protect Porygon2 from being inflicted with status conditions.

Analytic + Iron Tail Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Sassy (+Sp.Def, -Spd)
EV Spread	HP 244 / Def 12 / Sp.Def 252
Final Stat Values	HP 191 / Atk 100 / Def 112 / Sp.Atk 125 / Sp.Def 161 / Spd 72 (minimum)
Ability	Analytic
Held Item	Eviolite
Moveset	・Facade ・Ice Beam ・Iron Tail ・Recover

This unique Porygon2 build was used by Japanese competitive player Roshi, who won 4th place in Ranked Battles Season 13.

About Porygon2's Moves

Roshi utilizes Iron Tail for this Porygon2 as a way to hit special attackers with frail physical defense, such as Nihilego, Mimikyu, and Sylveon.

Iron Tail also has a 30% chance to lower the opposing Pokemon's Defense by 1 stage. This allows Porygon2 to further support its teammmates, softening opponents and allowing physical attackers to take advantage of their lowered defenses.

About Porygon2's EV Spread

This build uses a standard Specially Defensive EV spread so that it can withstand powerful Special Attacks thrown at it.

About Porygon2's Ability

Since this Porygon2 has a Sassy Nature, it always gets an Analytic boost when facing against faster attackers.

About Porygon2's Held Item

Eviolite raises the Defense and Special Defense of the user by 50% as long as the user is not a fully-evolved Pokemon

Other Viable Moves

Foul Play	When up against especially strong physical-attacking teams, Foul Play gives Porygon 2 an option to use their offense against them
Discharge	Discharge offers an Electric-type coverage move with a 30% chance to paralyze.
Speed Swap	This is a niche move that can be used to give up the damage offered by Analytic but lowering the speed of your opponent. This can be especially useful against sweepers who highly rely on their speed.
Substitute	Can help protect Porygon2 from being inflicted with status conditions.
Tri Attack	Serves as Porygon2's STAB move of choice which has the added bonus of possibly inflicting status onto the opponent.
Icy Wind	Lowers an opponent's Speed by 1 stage. Good for supporting teammates to switch in and follow up
Psychic	For countering Fighting-types who come into break Porygon2's defensive wall.
Thunder Wave	An alternative to Discharge that can guarantee paralysis but won't deal any damage.

Trick Room Setup + Special Attacker Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Quiet (+Sp.Atk, -Spd)
EV Spread	HP 244 / Def 12 / Sp.Atk 252
Final Stat Values	HP 191 / Def 112 / Sp.Atk 172 / Sp.Def 115 / Spd 58 (minimum)
Ability	Download
Held Item	Eviolite
Moveset	・Trick Room ・Discharge ・Ice Beam ・Tri Attack

This mix of offense and defense allow it to take hits while also moving faster thanks to Trick Room. It can also be Dynamaxed or brought in near the end to turn the tides of the battle unexpectedly.

About Porygon2's Moves

Thanks to its wide movepool, it's easy to fit into a variety of teams, and can also be difficult for opponents to read.

Tri Attack serves as Porygon2's STAB move of choice which has the added bonus of possibly inflicting status onto the opponent. Otherwise it can rely on handy coverage moves in the form of Ice Beam and Discharge.

About Porygon2's EV Spread

This build uses Eviolite to provide constitution, while placing EVs in HP and Special Attack to make it a formidable Special Attacker after setting up Trick Room.

About Porygon2's Ability

Download is a fantastic offensive ability giving Porygon2 a boost in the stat the opponent is weaker against. Bringing Porygon2 in on an opponent with low Special Defense can give Porygon2 a helpful boost in it's Special Attack.

Other Viable Moves

Shadow Ball	Used for hitting Ghost-types. Has a 20% chance of lowering Special Defense, increasing the damage of further attacks.
Psychic	Used for hitting Fighting-types. Can change to Max Mindstorm to prevent priority moves, which can ignore Trick Room's effects.
Thunderbolt	An alternate choice for Discharge. For when you want to prioritize power over Paralysis chance.
Hyper Beam	Porygon2's strongest STAB-move can deal unexpected amounts of damage. You do have to be wary of the turn required to recharge, but this move can catch many enemies off guard.
Recover	Allows it to take advantage of its defensive potential. Increasing PP beforehand can come in handy.

Doubles Moveset for Porygon2

Defensive Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Bold (+Def, -Atk)
EV Spread	HP 244 / Def 148 / Sp/ Def 116 IVs: 0 Spe
Final Stat Values	HP 191 / Def 141 / Sp. Atk 125 / Sp. Def 130 / Spe 65
Ability	Download
Held Item	Eviolite
Moveset	・Ice Beam ・Tri Attack ・Recover ・Trick Room

Porygon2 is one of the most defensive Pokemon available. With access to Trick Room and a good variety of support moves and coverage moves, Porygon2 proves itself to be a worthy addition to any team.

About Porygon2's Moves

Though not specifically an attacker, Porygon2 can deal adequate damage with its main attacking moves, Ice Beam and Tri Attack after a boost from Download.
Recover is an excellent recovery move that allows Porygon2 to survive for as long as possible. It is also good for stalling out Dynamax turns .

Trick Room is a good means of speed control whether or not Porygon2 is in a dedicated Trick Room team.

About Porygon2's EV Spread

This set alots ample EVs to HP, and a solid split between Defense and Special Defense with a little bit more on Defense so that Porygon can better survive physical Fighting-type moves. This makes Porygon2 incredibly difficult to knock out.

About Porygon2's Ability

Porygon2's Download Ability lets it contribute to a team offensively, especially if it is able to get a Special Attack boost.

About Porygon2's Held Item

Eviolite is what makes Porygon2 viable and threatening. It gives Porygon2 a massive 50% increase to its already modest defenses, making it incredibly tanky.

Other Viable Moves

Foul Play	Foul Play is good to use against Weakness Policy and Beat Up strategies. It also does not depend on Porygon2's own stats.
Eerie Impulse	Eerie Impulse can severely drop a Special Attacker's offensive capabilities
Ally Switch	Ally Switch is an incredibly annoying move in Double Battles. Porygon2 can switch positions with a teammate and tank a hit for it.
Thunderbolt	Thunderbolt is a solid coverage move that allows Porygon2 to hit Flying and Water-types. Consider running Thunderbolt if you need Porygon2 to have Electric-type coverage.
Shadow Ball	Shadow Ball is a solid coverage move that allows Porygon2 to hit Ghost and Psychic-types. Consider running Shadow Ball if you need Porygon2 to have Ghost-type coverage.

How to Use Porygon2 Effectively

Placing Porygon2 next to an Intimidate user or a Pokemon with access to Dual Screens (Light Screen and Reflect.) will help further improve its bulk and survivability. Placing it next to a partner Pokemon that can use Fake Out can usually guarantee a Trick Room set up.

Porygon2 is also a good Pokemon to have on a Sun team because of the ever-present threat of Trick Room and Ally Switch.

How to Build a Team with Porygon2

Sun Team Trick Room Support

Fast Attacker	Support	Slow Attacker
Venusaur	Porygon2	Torkoal

Venusaur next to Porygon2 can be frighteningly unpredictable. You may either switch out Porygon2 to Torkoal and let Venusaur be a speedy Special attacker with its Chlorophyll Ability. Or you may switch out Venusaur for Torkoal and have Porygon2 use Trick Room. This team set up allows you to go fast or slow at will, depending on what your opponent has on the field

Having Venusaur stay on the field with Porygon2 is also a strong choice especially if Porygon2 is running Ally Switch.

Check out our article below to learn more about building a Trick Room team:
How to Build a Trick Room Team

Counters for Porygon2

Weakness

Counter Porygon2 with Fighting-Type Moves and by Disabling it

Although reasonably bulky, Porygon2 will not be able to withstand boosted Fighting-type moves. Disabling its ability to set up or be defensive is also effective against Porygon2

Best Pokemon to Use

Pokemon	Description
Zacian	Ranking: ★★★★★ ・Can tank hits from Porygon2 and can knock it out with a boosted Fighting-type move or a powerful Behemoth Blade. Zacian - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle
Urshifu Single-Strike Style	Ranking: ★★★★★ ・Choice Banded Close Combat is a strong STAB move that exploits Porygon2's Fighting weakness. ・Wicked Blow ignores increases in Defense. Moveset & Best Build for Urshifu Single-Strike Style
Rillaboom	Ranking: ★★★★★ ・Can use Knock Off and remove Porygon2's Eviolite. ・Can function in or out of Trick Room thanks to Grassy Glide's priority. Rillaboom - Moveset & Best Build for Ranked Battle
Conkeldurr	Ranking: ★★★★ ・Can use Fighting moves with STAB and high base Attack. ・If it has Guts, can fight without worrying about Paralysis. Moveset & Best Build for Conkeldurr

Related Links

All Competitive Builds for Ranked Battle

Competitive Guides for Pokemon Sword and Shield

Competitive Pokemon Battle Guides
Tier List		Best Builds		Series 10 List of Contenders
Doubles Tier List		Team Building		Rental Teams

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