|
-
Overgrow
- Boosts power of Grass-type moves by 50% when at 1/3 HP or less.
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Unburden
- Speed increases when an item is used or lost.
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Level 5 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
70
|
- |
23 |
26 |
- |
| Atk |
85
|
13 |
15 |
18 |
19 |
| Def |
65
|
11 |
13 |
16 |
17 |
| SpA |
105
|
15 |
17 |
20 |
22 |
| SpD |
85
|
13 |
15 |
18 |
19 |
| Spe |
120
|
16 |
18 |
21 |
23 |
Overview
Sceptile is widely regarded as one of the best offensive Pokemon in RU. This is largely due to its nearly unmatched Speed, above-average Special Attack, and useful Grass typing. Additionally, unlike most Grass-types, Sceptile actually has access to a coverage move not named Hidden Power in the form of Focus Blast, which it can use to hit Steel-types and various Sap Sipper Pokemon. This also means that Sceptile is free to run a different Hidden Power that gives it coverage on Fire-types, such as Hidden Power Rock. On top of that, Sceptile can also take you by surprise by attacking from the physical side with a very dangerous Swords Dance set. It's not all peaches for Sceptile though, as its subpar Defense and average Special Defense make it quite vulnerable to priority and only let it get so far. Nevertheless, when used correctly, Sceptile is hands down one of the most dangerous Pokemon in the tier and is sure to leave its mark in any battle it takes part in.
This set is arguably the main reason Sceptile is so dangerous; not only does it hit extremely hard and fast, but it also has quite a wide range of coverage and some longevity thanks to its access to recovery. Sceptile has two options to pick from for a STAB move. While Leaf Storm provides it with an ridiculous amount of power, it also cuts into Sceptile's ability to stay in for a long time. Giga Drain's drop in power is extremely noticeable, but it comes with the benefit of consistent damage and some HP recovery. Of course, if you opt to use Choice Specs, then Sceptile is free to use both STAB moves and get the best of both worlds. Hidden Power Rock covers Fire-types, most notably Moltres, while Focus Blast covers Steel-types and Pokemon with Sap Sipper. If you choose to use Life Orb, the final moveslot should be dedicated to a self-support move which Sceptile can take advantage of with the switches it forces. Synthesis gives it reliable recovery while Substitute protects it against status and cushions it from attacks. It's worth noting that Sceptile also has the option of repeatedly using Substitute until it is in Overgrow range and proceed to to fire off a powerful Giga Drain, doing large amounts of the damage to the opponent and restoring some of the HP lost from Substitute in the process.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The given EV spread allows Sceptile to hit as hard as it possibly can, while also outrunning as much as possible and ensuring a Speed tie with other Sceptile. A Modest nature may also be used, as even with the lower Speed, Sceptile retains its ability to either Speed tie with or outrun all Pokemon with base 105 Speed and below. This will give Sceptile a considerable amount of additional power behind its attacks at the cost of being outsped by some threats is could otherwise beat, such as Scolipede, Galvantula, and Durant. While the given moves give Sceptile the widest range of coverage, Hidden Power Ice can be used instead to land a super effective hit on opposing Grass-types. This, however, will leave Sceptile completely helpless against Moltres and the odd Charizard. If you do opt for Hidden Power Ice, then you might also want to consider maximizing Sceptile's Speed. This ensures that Sceptile at least ties with enemy Sceptile (which are most likely running Hidden Power Rock, letting you outrun them) and is faster than the odd Cinccino.
Sceptile is completely walled by Roselia and Amoonguss even if it runs a super effective Hidden Power, so pairing it with a Pokemon who can take advantage of these counters is a good idea. Moltres and Entei can both do this and also possess good synergy with Sceptile. If you go this route, packing a Rapid Spin user is also wise. This will keep the field clear of Stealth Rock, which greatly hinders the aforementioned Fire-types, as well as Toxic Spikes, which greatly hinder Sceptile. Kabutops is arguably the best offensive spinner in the tier; it also happens to pair very well with both Grass- and Fire-types, forming an effective Fire / Water / Grass core.
While it may seem odd to let Sceptile's special attacking prowess go to waste by using it as a physical sweeper, this set has a few perks over the others. For one, it can more readily take advantage of Sceptile's Dream World ability, Unburden, which takes the already fast Sceptile and makes certain that nothing outspeeds it. Secondly, Sceptile's physical movepool is actually much better than its special movepool. Finally, there's the fact that this set actually has a means of boosting its offense, something the specially offensive sets lack. Swords Dance allows Sceptile to double its Attack in a single turn and lets it sweep much more easily. Leaf Blade is the STAB move of choice here, as its respectable 90 Base Power will do good amounts of damage to anything after a Swords Dance boost. The last two slots are dedicated to coverage moves. Earthquake and Drain Punch both demolish Steel-types, but the former trades super effective coverage on Normal-type users of Sap Sipper and Ferroseed for a higher Base Power and the ability to maim grounded Fire- and Poison-types such as Entei and Muk. Acrobatics is used not only to ensure the activation of Flying Gem, but also because of its high Base Power and super effective coverage on opposing Grass-types, bar Ferroseed. If you choose to forgo Acrobatics, then Rock Slide can be used to land a good hit on Flying-types such as Moltres that would otherwise have no trouble countering this set.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The given EVs ensure that, before an Unburden boost, Sceptile ties with base 105s if it runs Adamant and at worse ties with opposing Sceptile with Jolly. Attack is then maximized and the remaining EVs are placed in Defense to slightly cushion Sceptile against physical priority. Adamant is preferred with Flying Gem as Sceptile is missing out on the power that Life Orb provides and gets a ton of Speed once it activates Unburden. If you're confident you can get Unburden to activate, you can get away with running 0 Speed and invest all of the EVs in Sceptile's bulk, since even without any investment, Sceptile outruns Timid Choice Scarf Manectric—the fastest thing you'll see in RU. Grass Gem is also an option to activate Unburden, but Flying Gem ensures Sceptile always has access to a fully powered Acrobatics. A Jolly nature and Overgrow should be used when Sceptile forgoes the use of a Gem to activate Unburden. Stick to the given moves; all of Sceptile's effective coverage moves have been talked about.
This set is pretty self-sufficient as it is, but it benefits from the standard things all offensive Pokemon benefit from, namely entry hazards and the weakening of its checks. Uxie can set up Stealth Rock and then give Sceptile a good setup opportunity with its trademark Yawn + U-turn combo. Spikes users such as Smeargle and Crustle also make good partners. Strong physical attackers that can severely dent opposing physical walls, perhaps even a second Swords Dance sweeper, are also appreciated. Kabutops has decent defensive synergy with Sceptile and can either punch holes into enemy defenses or take advantage of the holes Sceptile punches and sweep itself.
Despite the introduction of Whimsicott, which is the be-all and end-all of SubSeeders, Sceptile can also fill this niche and differentiates itself from the cotton ball due to its ability to hurt opposing Pokemon through direct offense in addition to passive damage. The strategy here is to use Leech Seed as a Pokemon switches in, then use Substitute to protect Sceptile from status and attacks while regaining most of the sacrificed HP though the aforementioned Leech Seed. Whenever the opportunity presents itself, Sceptile is free to fire off a powerful Leaf Storm or do more consistent damage with Giga Drain. It's worth noting that Sceptile also has the option of using Substitute until it is in Overgrow range in order to fire off an even stronger STAB attack. Hidden Power Fire is the coverage move of choice because it lands a super effective hit on all the Grass-types that would otherwise wall this set. Focus Blast is a viable alternative because it maintains coverage on Ferroseed and makes it possible for Sceptile to beat Sap Sipper users such as Sawsbuck and Bouffalant. It does, however, come with the unfortunate side effect of leaving Sceptile completely walled by Roselia and Amoonguss.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The given EVs ensure that Sceptile outpaces as much as possible, Speed tying with other Sceptile at the very least, and maximize its Special Attack. You may also choose to run max Speed; this is especially useful if you opt against Hidden Power Fire as Sceptile's coverage move, as this would mean it doesn't need to run a 30 Speed IV, essentially ensuring its always faster than opposing Sceptile. Doing this also comes with the benefit of recovering a greater HP percentage though Leech Seed every turn. Hidden Power Ice is also an acceptable coverage move, as it still gets super effective coverage on all the Grass-types in the tier, bar Ferroseed.
This particular Sceptile variant appreciates entry hazard support more than any other due to the sheer volume of switches it forces. Smeargle can act as a very effective suicide lead, often getting at least two layers of entry hazards up before going down. This, of course, means that you will also have to invest in a spinblocker to prevent the hazards from being blown away; Spiritomb and Rotom both fill this role quite nicely. Because Sceptile cannot possibly cover every relevant threat with a single coverage move, it also appreciates a partner who can take advantage of the Pokemon that don't mind its chosen coverage move. If you went with Hidden Power Fire, then Sap Sipper users such as Miltank and Bouffalant are the main issue. Luckily, every Pokemon with access to this ability shares the Normal typing, allowing you to take advantage of it by pairing Sceptile with a sturdy Fighting-type, such as Gurdurr or Hariyama. On the other hand, if you decide to go with Focus Blast, then pairing Sceptile with a Fire-type that can take advantage of the Grass-types which will wall this set is a good idea.
Other Options
Sceptile has access to a few other moves that have not been covered in the above sets but may prove to be useful if your team is in need of such support. Grasswhistle, despite its unreliable accuracy, can be used to put an opposing Pokemon out of commission—often permanently thanks to BW's sleep mechanics. Endeavor may also be considered, with Sceptile using its blazing Speed to cripple something just before it goes down. A Sunny Day + SolarBeam set with Hidden Power Fire and Focus Blast as coverage can also be used, but most of the time Sceptile will find itself missing the additional power Leaf Storm provides or being unable to set up and stay in a second turn to attack. Another option for Sceptile is to take advantage of both its offenses and go mixed. This, however, would require it to split its EVs, something that it is not keen on doing. A specially-based Unburden set with Grass Gem is also viable, but Sceptile is usually fast enough as it is and Life Orb brings more consistent results. Finally, White Herb may be used to provide Sceptile with the ability to fire off two consecutive, full-powered Leaf Storms, but this can prove to be a very situational tool.
Checks and Counters
Straight-up countering Sceptile is impossible due to its versatility and tendency to use different Hidden Powers for coverage. However, if you manage to figure out which Hidden Power type Sceptile is carrying, then the task of countering it becomes much easier—at least as far as special sets are concerned. Roselia and Amoonguss are the safest switch-ins, as they only fear Acrobatics due to their high Special Defense allowing them to take even super effective Hidden Powers and have Poison-type STAB to retaliate with. Altaria is probably the next safest switch-in, as it resists the Grass- and Fighting-type attacks Sceptile commonly carries and doesn't take too much from Hidden Power Rock due to its awesome Special Defense. However, if Sceptile happens to be carrying Hidden Power Ice or is a Swords Dance variant with Rock Slide, Altaria is no good. Similarly, Moltres and Charizard resist every move Sceptile commonly carries, except for Rock-type ones which hit them 4x super effectively. A specially defensive Flareon also works quite well as a counter to the special sets, but the Swords Dance variant will almost certainly be able to OHKO it after setting up. Cryogonal is in a similar boat, but it fears being hit by two consecutive Focus Blasts and will definitely lose to the Swords Dance set. Ferroseed and Pokemon with the ability Sap Sipper, such as Bouffalant and Miltank, also work quite well if Sceptile happens to be lacking Focus Blast—and Hidden Power Fire in the case of the former. Many of the aforementioned Pokemon have a fatal weakness to Stealth Rock though, so you need to be careful. Accelgor, Aerodactyl, and various common Choice Scarf users outpace Sceptile too, so you can always try to deal with it this way; watch out for Unburden sets though.
