|
-
Keen Eye
- The wielder's accuracy cannot be lowered.
-
Stall
- The wielder moves last.
-
Prankster
- Moves that do not deal direct damage have their priority increased by one level.
|
Level 50 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
50
|
- |
125 |
157 |
- |
| Atk |
75
|
85 |
95 |
127 |
139 |
| Def |
75
|
85 |
95 |
127 |
139 |
| SpA |
65
|
76 |
85 |
117 |
128 |
| SpD |
65
|
76 |
85 |
117 |
128 |
| Spe |
50
|
63 |
70 |
102 |
112 |
Overview
Despite possessing lower stats and a shallower movepool than other metagame staples, Sableye remains a very viable choice in the UU tier after the transition to BW2. Prankster, Sableye's Dream World ability, is the key to its success, giving it access to priority on key moves, such as Will-O-Wisp, Recover, and Taunt. Combined with zero weaknesses and two handy immunities, Sableye can be a thorn in the side of physical attackers, set-up sweepers, and support Pokemon alike. In addition, recent changes are almost exclusively beneficial for the Darkness Pokemon. Sableye is able to take on UU newcomers Mienshao and Scrafty easily, and the increasingly popular Moxie Heracross is not nearly as threatening to Sableye as its Guts counterpart. Sableye also gained interesting moves such as Gravity in BW2, increasing its already vast support options. However, Sableye struggles to handle special attackers and the most powerful physical threats, so using Sableye effectively requires a strong defensive backbone to overcome some of its shortcomings. Still, with team support and some prediction, Sableye makes a great addition to teams looking for insurance against physical attackers and stall teams.
This set abuses all of Sableye's unique gifts in conjuction with Prankster to become a massive headache for teams lacking the power to force it out. Recover helps Sableye to continually take hits, and due to Prankster it will move first almost all of the time, meaning the opponent must be doing more than fifty percent damage to Sableye to have a chance at beating it with power alone. Priority Will-O-Wisp cripples physical attackers, and chips away at the opponent's health. Taunt helps Sableye in a variety of ways, preventing status, opposing Taunt, stat boosting moves, and recovery moves. Foul Play or Night Shade occupies the last slot, in case Sableye is Taunted or needs to deal damage more quickly than Will-O-Wisp can provide. Foul Play gives Sableye a weapon against Victini, Darmanitan, and Chandelure looking to switch in on any of Sableye's other moves, while Night Shade is a more consistent option.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The EVs provide Sableye with balanced defensive capabilties, with an emphasis on Sableye's Special Defense because of Sableye's access to priority burns to bolster its Defense. The Defense EVs allow Sableye to take on the UU newcomers Scrafty and Mienshao without trouble through a cycle of Will-O-Wisp and Recover, using Taunt if necessary to stop set-up. A Calm nature is ideal because neither of Sableye's main attacking options utilize Sableye's own Attack stat, and the benefit of minimizing possible confusion damage is preferred. With such a large support movepool, Sableye can use multiple other moves in the last slot. Knock Off allows Sableye to operate while Taunted, and disrupts item dependent Pokemon, for example ridding defensive Pokemon such as Umbreon of Leftovers or sweepers such as Azelf of Life Orb. Toxic in the last slot helps Sableye wear down special attackers such as Blastoise and Slowbro more effectively than if they had been burned. Substitute works well for stalling because between priority Substitutes and Recovers, the opponent will struggle to get good hits on Sableye. However, many of these alternate options leave Sableye relying on status damage to drain the opponent's health.
To help Sableye bring down opponents more quickly than with burn damage alone, entry hazards aid it immensely. Many of Sableye's counters are also very vulnerable to entry hazards, such as Zapdos, Chandelure, and Houndoom. Qwilfish and Gligar can supply Spikes and Stealth Rock, respectively, while also serving as backup checks to physical attackers that Sableye cannot handle. In return, Sableye can block Rapid Spin by way of its Ghost-typing to keep the entry hazards on the field. While Sableye is adept at taking on the majority of physical attackers in UU, strong special attackers are another story. Snorlax can handle special juggernauts such as Zapdos, Shaymin, and Nidoking, and also appreciates the Fighting-type immunity that Sableye brings to the table.
Other Options
Prankster is central to Sableye's success, and with a large support movepool Sableye can use many other moves reliably. Sableye can make use of the Substitute and Torment combination, which will make many attackers rip their hair out trying to land a meaningful hit on Sableye. However, Sableye will struggle to take down opponents quickly with just Night Shade or Will-O-Wisp damage. Sableye is a decent Calm Mind user with Dark Pulse, now compatible with Prankster through move tutors, to surprise the special attackers that like to try to bring Sableye down; however, not being able to run both Taunt and Will-O-Wisp together on one set makes consistent results from the Calm Mind set unlikely. Sableye is able to use other moves such as Confuse Ray, Captivate, Trick, Psych Up, and Mean Look somewhat effectively, but is usually better off with the moves listed in the analysis. Finally, Sableye can be a valuable addition to a team based on a specific field condition with access to Sunny Day, Rain Dance, and Gravity. Prankster almost guarantees that Sableye can use the respective move to aid benefiting sweepers.
Checks and Counters
While Sableye may seem like a tough nut to crack with priority burn and recovery, there are multiple reliable methods to take it down. Fire-types such as Victini, Darmanitan, and Chandelure can come in on any attack except for Foul Play and take out Sableye in a single blow. Other lesser seen Fire-types such as Houndoom and Rotom-H can switch in with impunity because they do not fear Foul Play. While Guts Heracross has a high Attack stat, it can also switch in without fear because of its resistance to Foul Play. Heracross can then annihilate Sableye with Megahorn, profiting from potential burns due to its ability. Xatu is a good counter to Sableye because of Magic Bounce, which will reflect Sableye's attempts to status or Taunt Xatu. Xatu can then easily set up Reflect to sponge Foul Play. From there, it is a bit of a stalemate unless Xatu runs Toxic, which will bring down Sableye over time.
In addition to these options, most strong special attackers can take care of Sableye without much trouble. As Sableye cannot buffer their special attacks, Pokemon such as Roserade and Raikou can handle Sableye without issue and do not mind being burned. Another of Sableye's shortcomings is that it does not take on bulky Water-types very well without Toxic because of Scald's burn chance, so Suicune, Blastoise, and Milotic can all work against Sableye if needed.
