What is a good moveset for Roaring Moon?

Question

If you have a good competitive moveset for Roaring Moon, post an answer below and upvote the best ones.

Be sure to include full set details in your post, e.g. items, abilities, natures and EVs. Some explanation, including the intended game mode for your set, is also appreciated. Access the full list of guidelines here.

Roaring Moon Pokedex & learnset for reference.

Answer 1

Gen 9 Monotype Loaded Dice + Dragon Dance (Dark)

Roaring Moon @ Loaded Dice
Ability: Protosynthesis
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Scale Shot
- Crunch
- Earthquake

A Dragon Dance + Loaded Dice set for Dark teams. This set should be used on Dark Screens HO, as the screens help you set up. Dragon Dance is used to boost your Attack and Speed, allowing you to clean through teams. Scale Shot is for Dragon STAB that hits 4-5 times thanks to Loaded Dice and raises your Speed stat. Crunch is used for Dark STAB. Earthquake is used for coverage against Pokemon such as Tyranitar, Iron Hands, Kingambit, Toxapex, Tinkaton, and Iron Treads.

Answer 2

Roaring Moon @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Dragon Claw
- Crunch
- Iron Head

Dragon dance for set up, Dragon claw and crunch are stab and Tera steel to resist fairy and dragon and hit back at the fairy's with iron head.

Comments

I would also like to add that Steel resists Ice, and is super effective against Ice.

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Steel is the best tera type due to the amazing amount of resistances it has. Dragon types especially ones with a 4x fairy weakness like roaring moon would appreciate tera steel alot!

Answer 3

Roaring Moon @ Aguav Berry
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 236 HP / 164 Def / 108 Spe
Impish Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Tera Blast
- Roost
- Crunch

If you tera poison predicting a close combat, moonblast, etc and then dragon dance, you'll live the hit and be able to fire back a tera blast, destroying the fairies that woud otherwise check you (such as iron valiant). The dragon dance also gives you momentum for a sweep, witch is nice. Roost, the extra bulk and the berry might let you pull off multiple dragon dances, too.

You can also run berries that reduce Super Effective damage (like roseli for fairy moves) then tera on the NEXT turn, letting you do 2 DDs before actually being in any real danger. I know its kind of a strange set, but it can actually work decently well because it often catches your opponent off-guard.

Answer 4

I nearly freaked out when I saw his Special Defense.

Roaring Moon @ Assault Vest
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpD
Jolly Nature
- Crunch
- Earthquake/Brick Break
- Stone Edge
- U-turn

Think AV Garchomp, just faster, stronger, and a tad bulkier. This man hurts. You got U-Turn to keep momentum, Stone Edge for a bunch of hurting, Crunch for STAB, and Earthquake for that pesky Kingambit. Or, you can Brick Break for extra Kingambit hurting but less overall power. Steel Tera for defense. Jolly Nature to outspeed max Speed Baxcalibur and Great Tusk.

Things you beat:
Hatterene
Gholdengo
Kingambit
Baxcalibur
Skeledirge
Iron Moth

Things you lose to:
Great Tusk
Physical Dragapult
Chien-Pao
Ting-Lu

Top Teamate
Corviknight. Together, these two make easy switchins for both physical and special attackers. RM appreciates removal of Chein-Pao and Physical 'pult, as well as walling Great Tusk and doing good damage to Ting-Lu. In return, Corviknight gets no Iron Moth, Hatterene, and Skeledirge.

Did I just make a defensive core with a Roaring Moon?

MrKensa

Answer 5

Gen 9 Monotype / National Dex Monotype Demon Trapper Moon (Dark/Dragon)

Roaring Moon @ Shed Shell / Convert Cloak
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 240 HP / 148 Def / 32 SpD / 88 Spe or 252 HP / 36 Atk / 220 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Jaw Lock
- Taunt
- Dragon Dance
- Roost

This (demonic) set was made by Showdown user Bka Onon (and to an extent Neko for the Monotype EV spread) that allows Roaring Moon traps walls so you can setup on them. Jaw Lock traps walls and is your attacking move. Taunt allows you to stop defensive walls from using moves such as Toxic and Haze so you can setup on the defensive walls you trap. Dragon Dance is used to setup against the defensive Pokemon you trap. Roost is used to give Roaring Moon longevity. This set can be used on either type, but in NatDex Monotype, Dark is the better type to use this set.

The item and EV spread depend on if you use this set in Monotype or National Dex Monotype.

Monotype: If you use this set in Monotype use Shed Shell as the item and the EV spread of 240 HP / 148 Def 32 SpD / 88 Spe. Shed Shell allows Roaring Moon to switch out if it traps the wrong Pokemon since Jaw Lock also traps you and would prevent you from switching out otherwise. The EV spread allows Roaring Moon to outspeed Gholdengo and avoid a 2HKO from Quagsire's Earthquake and Ice Beam from Gastrodon.

National Dex Monotype: If you use this set in National Dex Monotype, use Convert Cloak as the item and the EV spread of 252 HP / 36 Atk / 220 Spe. Convert Cloak prevents the effect of Scald burning you, which is useful since Scald is common in National Dex Monotype. The EV spread gives Roaring Moon bulk and enough speed to outspeed Pokemon such as Zapdos, Celebi, Victini, and Jirachi.

Answer 6

Roaring Moon @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
EVs: 252 Atk/ 252 Spe/ 4 Def
Adamant Nature
Tera Type - Dark

• Dragon Claw
• Throat Chop/ Jaw Lock
• Earthquake/ Zen Headbutt
• Dragon Dance

Dragon Dance for + Spe and + Atk

Dragon Claw (STAB)

Throat Chop (STAB) for Stab and prevents Sylveon from using Hyper Voice for a few turns
or Jaw Lock (STAB) to trap an opponent from escaping

Zen Headbutt is a good coverage against fighting types or you can use Earthquake

Answer 7

Roaring Moon @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Acrobatics
- Dragon Dance/Iron Head
- Dragon Claw
- Earthquake/Crunch

Obviously when the booster energy is consumed acrobatics doubles in power. Tera Flying to gain STAB for acrobatics. Dragon dance is for setup but Iron head can be used for fairy coverage. Dragon claw to deal with other dragon types and Earthquake to deal with bulky Toxapex or crunch for Gholdengo or you can run fire fang to deal with Corviknight.

Answer 8

Roaring Moon @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Acrobatics
- Crunch
- Dragon Claw
- Dragon Dance

This is a Dragon Dance setup set. Dragon Claw and Crunch are here for obvious reasons (STAB), Dragon Dance for setup. Acrobatics is here because when the Booster Energy is used up, Acrobatics deals 110 attack. The Flying Tera Type not only gives STAB Acrobatics, but It changes your weaknesses to Ice, Electric and Rock, looses the 4x Weakness to fairy and can hit back with supereffective stab Acrobatics to fighting and bug type counters.

Answer 9

Better Salamence (Roaring Moon) @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Acrobatics
- Iron Head
- Crunch
- Dragon Dance

This is very effective with tera steel as it covers its 4x weakness to fairy and its 2x weakness to ice and dragon, sadly the fighting weakness remains. My strategy is to tera and D dance up along with booster energy and sweep. I use it in uber and it performs well. A soft check to this is Miraidon but I ran some calcs and you can dish out a lot of damage. Everything except for acrobatics was stab but with that power, it doesn't need to be(this is according to my knowledge that tera Pokemon retain stab on their moves correct me if I am wrong)

The calcs:
(BTW I gave it Lifeorb as I did not know how to show booster energy activated and both give the same boost)

After D Dance:
+1 252+ Atk Life Orb Roaring Moon Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 294-347 (86.2 - 101.7%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO

Before D dance:

252+ Atk Life Orb Roaring Moon Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Miraidon: 196-231 (57.4 - 67.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

And this is why Roaring Moon is better Salamence.

Answer 10

Gen 9 OU strong, bulky, yet speedy set (for both doubles and singles)
Item: Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Steel (chose it because it handles Roaring Moons Fairy and Ice weaknesses)
EVs: 252 Atk, 232 Spe, 13 HP, 13 SpD
Nature: Jolly (lowers SpA, boosts Spe)
- Dragon Claw
- Crunch/Throat Chop (you could go either way)
- Iron Head
- Dragon Dance

Dragon Claw and Crunch/Throat Chop are STAB. Iron Head is for Roaring Moons Steel Tera Type. Dragon Dance is a great boosting move.

Answer 11

they doubted me.
they said it won't work.
LOOK WHO'S LAUGHING NOW

NATIONAL DEX DEFENSIVE ROARING MOON

Roaring Moon @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 HP / 72 SpD / 184 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Earthquake / Taunt
- Roost

So Moon was just unbanned in NatDex, and people are flocking to the usual sets: Choice Band/Scarf, Dragon Dance w/ Booster Energy or Dragonium Z, and the occasional oddball Z crystal like Darkinium Z. However, everybody failed to see the definitely original GENIUS of defensive Roaring Moon.

This set basically plays defense on offense. Knock Off is best paired with consistent hazard setters like Ferrothorn and Ting-Lu (and half the time you'd also slap a Wish passer like Alomomola or Chansey). U-turn serves as momentum as well as a bit of genius I'll explain later. Earthquake is great for hitting more niche targets like Heatran and Iron Moth, especially the latter, as Moon can tank a +1 Sludge Wave and destroy its sweep (if it has Dazzling Gleam it's losing out on quite significant coverage). Alternatively, Taunt allows Moon to shut down important defensive roles on the opposing team, such as Wish passing, hazard setting, and healing. Roost is Roost.

184 Speed allows Moon to hit 352 Speed, outspeeding Ogerpon-Wellspring, arguably one of the most dangerous setup sweepers in the game. By packing a Super Effective U-turn, Roaring Moon can basically 2HKO offensive Waterpon just by using a pivoting move. HP is maxed as usual, and extra Special Defense allows Moon to switch in on the likes of Gholdengo and Charizard-Mega-Y, who after rounds of hazard/status chip, likely can't survive uninvested Knock Off.

This set requires a LOT of defensive support to work. In particular, the aforementioned hazards as well as Toxic support are vital. Both of them aim to chip down the opposition, preferably in range of Knock Off, but it also works in tandem with Moon's U-turn for extra layers of chip. Therefore, this Roaring Moon is more of a fat exclusive, with maybe slight niche on more bulky/balance teams (it doesn't fit on stall due to the already established big 5 of stall).

Comments

YES TRIPLE DARK TYPE CORE