|
-
Inner Focus
- Prevents flinching.
-
Early Bird
- Reduces sleep time.
-
Sap Sipper
- Grants immunity to Grass-type moves and boosts Attack by 1 stage when hit by a Grass-type move.
|
Level 50 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
70
|
- |
145 |
177 |
- |
| Atk |
80
|
90 |
100 |
132 |
145 |
| Def |
65
|
76 |
85 |
117 |
128 |
| SpA |
90
|
99 |
110 |
142 |
156 |
| SpD |
65
|
76 |
85 |
117 |
128 |
| Spe |
85
|
94 |
105 |
137 |
150 |
Overview
Girafarig is one of the more diverse and adaptive Pokemon in NU—indeed, with its two heads, it only makes sense that Girafarig has multiple options. As a versatile Pokemon, Girafarig is naturally doomed as a jack-of-all-trades, and faces severe competition in a metagame infested with pure Psychic-types and Normal-types. Special Girafarig is usually inferior to Gardevoir, while physical Girafarig is sorely outclassed by anything from Miltank to Stantler. However, Sap Sipper and the Normal typing gives Girafarig two great immunities and an edge over Misdreavus and opposing Psychic-types. On top of that, the threat of a Calm Mind sweep and Baton Pass poses a multidimensional threat to the opponent. While this niche may not be enough, Girafarig is an underrated Pokemon that can be a nuisance to an unprepared team.
Girafarig's above average Special Attack, coverage, and Speed allows it to use a sweeping Calm Mind set. Thanks to its interesting typing and ability, Girafarig can set up in front of the likes of Misdreavus, Tangela, and other common defensive Pokemon. Psychic is its strongest STAB move, while Thunderbolt provides great coverage alongside Psychic. In fact, only Cacturne, Exeggutor, and Zweilous resist these two moves, and Cacturne cannot even touch Girafarig given that it has Sucker Punch and Seed Bomb as its two attacking moves. Baton Pass is Girafarig's biggest niche as a Calm Mind user: when threatened, Girafarig can pass away its Calm Mind or Sap Sipper boosts. As an added bonus, Baton Pass happens to bypass Pursuit, Sucker Punch, and other Dark-type moves that will surely end Girafarig in a single hit.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The EV spread is simple, but maximizes Girafarig's sweeping potential. This way, Girafarig can pose a double threat of sweeping and Baton Passing. Life Orb is the item of choice for further increasing its damage output. Finally, Sap Sipper is Girafarig's best ability—Sap Sipper allows Girafarig to nullify all sleep moves bar the rare Hypnosis or Sing, and is vastly superior to Early Bird. As for Inner Focus, there are very few Fake Out users in NU, and Kangaskhan's Fake Out will do a ton of damage regardless. Additionally, Sap Sipper allows Girafarig to get an Attack boost from opponent's Grass-type moves, which it can simply pass away to a physical sweeper.
Even with Life Orb, Girafarig's power is middling at best, and it is hopeless defensively. As a result, Spikes support from Garbodor or Cacturne is helpful in order to bring Regirock and other bulky Pokemon into KO range, instead of failing to KO and taking heavy damage in return. Girafarig is a handy switch-in to Misdreavus, Tangela, Cacturne, and other prominent Pokemon. As Misdreavus and Tangela are common physical walls, it is wise to pair Girafarig with a physical attacker that can lure them in and allow Girafarig to set up. Golem is a terrific teammate for Girafarig, as it can easily check Skuntank, while Girafarig takes care of Misdreavus and Tangela that wall Golem. As a Baton Passer, Girafarig appreciates a partner that can terrify the opposition with the Special Attack boost. For example, Charizard can make excellent use of the Calm Mind boost, but comes at a price of questionable defensive synergy.
Other Options
Thanks to its second head, Girafarig has some extra gray matter and hence, a large movepool. An all-out special set with Hyper Voice, Psychic, Thunderbolt, Grass Knot, Hidden Power Fighting, or Charge Beam is viable. Hyper Voice is Girafarig's strongest special Normal-type STAB move, boasting a solid Base Power and impressive reliability. Girafarig's physical options include Return, Earthquake, Sucker Punch, Zen Headbutt, and Crunch, but unfortunately Sucker Punch is illegal with Sap Sipper. The physical set also happens to be very outclassed by the multitude of Normal-types in NU, including Sap Sipper Miltank, Tauros, and even Stantler. While the surprise value may allow Girafarig to cripple a special wall, any self-respecting physical wall can deal with a purely physical Girafarig. Again, a mixed set might work, but Girafarig has modest offenses at best, hates splitting investment into both attacking stats, and is unable to sacrifice its Speed thanks to the contested Speed tier around 85 base. Especially with access to Psyshock, a mixed set is outclassed by special Girafarig at best.
As for supporting options, Girafarig has access to Thunder Wave, Baton Pass, Trick, Wish, Magic Coat, and dual screens. Wish with Sap Sipper might allow Girafarig to switch into all variants of Exeggutor, but specially defensive Girafarig would only be a niche counter with little to do against strong switch-ins such as Skuntank. Trick may see use on Choice Girafarig. Thunder Wave or Magic Coat can see some situational use, but requires heavy prediction because Girafarig is too frail to take a hit. Finally, a pure Baton Pass set is viable, with access to a number of boosting moves such as Agility, Calm Mind, and Work Up. However, Girafarig needs to compete with Ninjask, Volbeat, and other stellar Baton Passers. The offensive Calm Mind set uses Girafarig's offenses to pose a dual threat—something that neither Ninjask nor Volbeat can claim for themselves—and should be the focus of a Baton Pass set for that reason.
Checks and Counters
As a Calm Mind user, Girafarig loses to special walls, given that they can deal damage back or phaze Girafarig out of play. Lickilicky and Altaria are both very specially bulky, and have access to Roar and Dragon Tail, respectively, to force out Girafarig and foil its Baton Passing attempts. For a more offensive response, Skuntank is one of the best counters, but Girafarig will often have Baton Pass, which handily evades Sucker Punch and Pursuit. However, very few prominent special attackers resist Dark-type moves, so Girafarig is essentially forced to give up the offensive boost of Calm Mind. Cacturne can OHKO with Sucker Punch, but Girafarig can often beat it with proper prediction. As an offensive Pokemon, Girafarig's mediocre Speed and lackluster bulk allows faster threats such as Swellow, and Choice Scarf users such as Sawk and Braviary to easily revenge kill Girafarig. However, beware of revenging Girafarig with a special Choice Scarf user such as Rotom-S, as it will not do enough damage after the Calm Mind boost.
