Absol’s amazing base 130 Attack stat coupled with Swords Dance and the strongest priority move in the game makes it a devastating sweeper for those who aren’t prepared. Sucker Punch helps accommodate for its mediocre Speed. With it, Absol becomes a tough challenge to take down as it can severely dent or possibly OHKO many Pokémon with a boosted Sucker Punch. Superpower is a great move paired with Sucker Punch as it allows for super effective damage to the Steel- and Dark-type Pokémon, such as Steelix and Houndoom, which would take little damage from Absol’s STAB Dark-type attacks. Night Slash allows you to eliminate Pokémon that try to outsmart you by refusing to attack while you try to Sucker Punch, and works extremely well with Absol’s Super Luck ability. Psycho Cut, which also benefits from Super Luck, can dent incoming Fighting-type Pokémon such as Hitmontop and Hariyama, who would otherwise cause trouble, and also hits the abundant Poison-type physical walls. As mentioned above, Absol generally has trouble against Fighting-type Pokémon, but a boosted Life Orb Sucker Punch is capable of dealing 64-75% damage to a 304 HP / 226 Def Hitmontop without Intimidate. In other words, you are able to knock out a weakened Hitmontop provided that you Swords Dance on the switch. On the other hand, the frailer Fighting-types such as Hitmonlee and Primeape can be OHKOed with a boosted Sucker Punch. Scope Lens is a decent alternative if you dislike the Life Orb recoil as it works very well with Super Luck, and the already high critical hit rate of Night Slash or Psycho Cut is used to score needed KOs against the most defensive of foes. Weezing and Spiritomb are capable of switching in on Absol while it Swords Dances and threaten it at the same time with Will-O-Wisp, reducing Absol’s effectiveness greatly. For this reason, Pokémon that benefit from Will-O-Wisp are great options to pair with Absol. Houndoom can use it to boost its Fire-type attacks with Flash Fire, and Swellow and Ursaring can improve their sweeping capabilities with Guts. If you decided not to run Psycho Cut, Hariyama can easily wall this set with ease as it resists Absol's STAB Dark-type attacks and rubs off Superpower, and can then proceed to OHKO with Force Palm or Close Combat. A RestTalk variant of Spiritomb makes a good partner for Absol, being able to switch in on all of the Fighting-types that trouble it and cripple them with Will-O-Wisp. It can also absorb any status attacks thrown Absol's way and Rest them off later on in the game.
Choice Band allows Absol to forego setting up Swords Dance and hit hard right off the bat. It’s capable of reaching a whopping 591 Attack, making Absol a fierce competitor. Absol should generally always run Sucker Punch as it helps support its mediocre Speed and is Absol’s strongest option to deal huge amounts of damage. However, it is well worth noting that locking yourself into Sucker Punch can be a very dangerous move if the opponent outpredicts and decides not to attack. Superpower is a great secondary option as it allows Absol to deal super effective damage mainly to Dark- and Steel-type Pokémon, as they resist Absol’s STAB. Steelix takes a hefty 52-62% damage, which is quite reasonable considering it has no form of instant recovery besides Rest. Aerial Ace allows Absol to hit bulky Fighting- and Grass-types, Hariyama and Tangrowth in particular, while Stone Edge can be used to deal with Flying-type Pokémon such as Altaria. The last slot is given up for Night Slash or Pursuit. Night Slash works very well with Absol’s ability, giving it a higher chance to score a critical hit, but Pursuit can be used if you predict the opposing Pokémon to switch out, causing a considerable amount of damage. Weezing and Spiritomb have no worry for switching in on Absol, since Weezing and Spiritomb can rub off all of Absol's attacks and proceed to cripple it with Will-o-Wisp. Milotic, while it doesn't necessarily enjoy the burn, isn't dilapidated quite as much by it as Absol is, and can use it to boost its Defense with its Marvel Scale ability. Milotic's natural bulk is also very helpful in absorbing the priority attacks often thrown Absol's way, such as an Aqua Jet from Azumarill or Hitmontop's Mach Punch. If you can keep Stealth Rock off the field, Moltres also makes quite a good partner for Absol - it cannot be burned and enjoys a resistance to Fighting-type attacks, and can proceed to scare off their users with STAB Air Slash. Weezing and Spiritomb both usually EV to take physical hits, so won't be wanting to stay in on a STAB Fire Blast anytime soon, either.
Absol equipped with Choice Scarf nullifies its mediocre Speed, reaching a reasonable Speed stat of 373 with an Adamant nature, making Absol that much more effective. Due to the drastic increase of Speed, Sucker Punch becomes a lesser option as Night Slash is a far better choice to hit just as hard without much worry of faster opponents. Superpower will intimidate those who resist Absol’s Dark-type STAB attacks such as Steelix and Registeel, while Psycho Cut eliminates all Fighting-type Pokémon that would also enjoy switching in on Absol’s STAB attacks. Pursuit is Absol’s best choice for the last slot, as it allows Absol to dent holes in retreating Ghost-types threatened by Night Slash, and any threatened Pokémon in general. This set has similar, if not the exact same problems as the Choice Band set. Weezing and Spiritomb can switch in much more easily now since Absol doesn’t have boosted Attack power and can then be crippled by Will-O-Wisp. Houndoom is an excellent, if not best, option for Absol to switch out to, boosting its Fire-type attacks with Flash Fire from an incoming Will-O-Wisp and then OHKOing them with Fire Blast. However, be warned that both Absol and Houndoom are exceedingly frail, vulnerable to priority attacks, and have similar weaknesses. If you decide to run both on a team, make sure you have a bulky and reliable answer to strong Fighting-types at hand.
This set takes full advantage of the vulnerability of Absol’s counters on the special side of the spectrum and retaliates against them. Fire Blast is capable of always 2HKOing Steelix, a common counter that Absol has trouble dealing damage to normally. Sucker Punch is an excellent option to take advantage of Pokémon that are able to outspeed Absol, dealing hefty amounts of damage. Superpower allows you to OHKO Cloyster, and is your best option for dealing damage to Pokémon that resist Absol’s Dark-type STAB attacks such as Houndoom. Psycho Cut is for the omnipotent Poison- and Fighting-types, namely Hariyama and Venusaur, while Night Slash gives Absol a strong secondary attack against slower opponents instead of relying on Sucker Punch. Life Orb is the best item for this set. With a Hasty nature and 240 Speed EVs, Absol can outspeed Adamant Toxicroak and score a OHKO with Psycho Cut. If you don’t mind about increasing Speed with a Hasty nature, you can use Lonely to improve Absol’s Attack to make full use of its base 130 Attack stat. Scope Lens is also an alternate option if you dislike Life Orb recoil, but Life Orb is generally the superior option to deal more damage. Absol will have a lot of trouble dealing with Intimidate Hitmontop, Thick Fat Hariyama, and Dry Skin Toxicroak if you decide not to run Psycho Cut. With this being said, it’s a good idea to eliminate these Pokémon so Absol doesn’t have to worry about being walled by said Pokémon. Weezing is your best bet for these as it resists all of their STAB moves and can threaten them with Will-O-Wisp. Altaria is also capable of switching in without fear and can attempt to set up with Dragon Dance and destroying them with Outrage and Earthquake respectively. Hariyama can walk right into this set with no fear, resisting Fire Blast thanks to Thick Fat and Absol's Dark-type attacks thanks to its typing. Although, if you decide to run Psycho Cut, you have a decent chance at 2HKOing Hariyama. You could always use bulky Pokémon that take little damage from Hariyama, such as Milotic or Donphan, and proceed to threaten it with Toxic or Earthquake, respectively, but you must watch out for Hariyama running Guts instead of Thick Fat if you decide to poison it.
This set makes Absol a decent anti-lead using the moves Taunt and Counter. Taunt disables leads trying to set up entry hazards or stat boosting, while Counter takes care of most Pokémon looking to end Absol as soon as possible. Sucker Punch works great in conjunction with Counter, as it can pick them off should they survive the blow. The last slot is up for grabs between Night Slash and Pursuit. Night Slash is a great STAB attack to have in case your opponent smartens up and tries to stall out Sucker Punch’s lack of PP, while Pursuit enables Absol to deal a hefty amount of damage to most leads fleeing from Absol. The EV spread is a bit straightforward. Max Speed allows Absol to reach a reasonable stat of 273, just barely outspeeding neutral base 85s running max Speed. Focus Sash protects you from all direct damage that may cause an OHKO, the practical thing to do is to invest all of the EVs to maximize Attack to add as much damage as possible to its chosen attacks. Like always, Weezing and Spiritomb can easily switch in on this set with no worry whatsoever and threaten Absol with Will-O-Wisp. Milotic and Roserade are reasonable answers to eliminate Weezing and Spiritomb as they can Rest off Will-O-Wisp and threaten them with Surf or Leaf Storm respectively. Fake Out leads such as Persian and Ambipom can do major damage towards Absol, leaving it vulnerable for a KO. Mismagius is a great team partner as it resists Fake Out and complements Absol’s Fighting-type weakness. The likes of Steelix, Regirock, and Registeel can use a free Fake Out as an opportunity to set Stealth Rock up as well, providing the Fake Out user doesn't have Taunt as well. Fighting-types can easily wall this set since Absol has no way of dealing large amounts of damage aside from Counter. A Weezing or Spiritomb of your own will give good insurance against said Fighting-types, who can be scared off with Will-O-Wisp. Team OptionsSince Weezing and Spiritomb, some of Absol's biggest counters, can Will-O-Wisp Absol, Pokémon that benefit from Will-O-Wisp are excellent team partners. Swellow, for example, can use the burn to activate Guts instead of using Flame Orb as an item, meaning that Swellow can use Life Orb to deal massive amounts of damage with Facade. Milotic can also switch in and absorb Will-O-Wisp to activate Marvel Scale, increasing Milotic’s bulkiness, or Houndoom can use it to boost it’s Fire-type moves with Flash Fire. Mismagius also makes a great team player in conjunction with Absol since they both complement each other’s weaknesses, meaning that Mismagius can start setting up Calm Mind or Absol can start setting up Swords Dance more easily. Setting up entry hazards can help Absol score more KOs and increase its effectiveness late-game. Roserade is an excellent candidate for Toxic Spikes or Spikes support as it resists Absol's Fighting-type weakness, while Absol is immune to Roserade's Psychic-type weakness. Claydol is a nice choice as well for setting up Stealth Rock, since it also resists Absol's weakness and can threaten the fighter with Psychic. Having heavy hitters on your team to weaken your opponent's team is also a good thing to keep in mind, allowing Absol to sweep weakened enemies much more easily. Blaziken and Tinted Lens Yanmega are great options. Fire Blast from Blaziken and Bug Buzz from Yanmega (which also has a 4x resist to Absol's Fighting-type weakness) are all powerful STAB attacks that can severely dent your opponent's bulkier Pokémon, giving Absol a chance to score many kills later in the battle. Other OptionsThe first attack that springs to mind is Stone Edge. Stone Edge is more suitable if you decide to use Absol in the OU metagame, as it can dent Pokémon like Gyarados and Salamence harder than Absol’s other attacks would. Zen Headbutt has 10 more Base Power than Psycho Cut, but the latter’s higher critical hit rate and better accuracy make up for the slight power drop. Absol is capable of Baton Passing Mean Look, Swords Dance, Calm Mind, and Curse. Baton Passing Mean Look is one of Absol’s few niches compared to the rest of the UU Baton Passers. Swords Dance is better left to Scyther, while Hypno and Mr. Mime pass Calm Mind much better than Absol. It is one of the few Pokémon that can Baton Pass Curse as well, but there are still better choices for this job. Will-O-Wisp can burn opponents while Thunder Wave can cripple some fast sweepers. Perish Song can be used to ruin Baton Pass chains as well. Absol can also learn Wish as a NYPC move, however, it is illegal with many of Absol’s egg moves. You are probably better off using a bulkier Pokémon if you are set on using these moves, as even with defensive investment Absol can barely survive neutral hits. EVsMax Attack is highly recommended on any set with Absol, followed by maxing out Speed so Absol can be used to its full potential. The Mixed Sweeper set should stick with the given EVs to give Fire Blast the extra kick it needs to ensure OHKOes and 2HKOes. OpinionAbsol is considered the “Disaster” Pokémon, bringing bad luck to any opponent that meets it, which is relatively true. STAB Sucker Punch is Absol’s biggest selling point. In fact, it’s the strongest priority move in the game. Swords Dance and a monstrous 130 Attack stat makes switching into Absol difficult; and if that wasn’t bad enough, Super Luck allows Absol a good chance of landing a critical hit. Its only real downfalls are its intolerable defenses and an average Speed stat. CountersHitmontop with Intimidate is a good Absol counter. It isn't OHKOed by a Sucker Punch and Mach Punch does hefty damage in return. It must beware of Psycho Cut, though, as it will do massive damage even with Intimidate factored in. Thick Fat Hariyama can wreak havoc for Absol, since it resists Absol's Dark-type attacks, rubs off Superpower and Fire Blast, and can threaten Absol with a clean OHKO with Force Palm or Close Combat. Although, a Swords Danced Psycho Cut will OHKO Hariyama if Absol is running it. Drapion resists Sucker Punch and has an immunity to Psycho Cut, and the only concern Drapion should have is a Swords Danced Superpower. It should focus on being faster than Absol in order to score a OHKO with Brick Break or X-Scissor. Fighting-types with Mach Punch make most Absol think twice before retaliating. Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan work best as both of them are faster than Absol and can use their strong Fighting-type attacks to OHKO it. Blaziken can revenge kill Absol with Vacuum Wave as it can barely survive a boosted Sucker Punch as well. Steelix and Regirock can survive an unboosted Superpower and retaliate with Earthquake or Stone Edge respectively. Spiritomb and Weezing have been mentioned several times already, and with good reason - they are both bulky and reliable counters who can cripple Absol for the rest of the game with Will-O-Wisp. Be wary, though, since Weezing will take massive damage from a Swords Danced Psycho Cut, and neither it nor Spiritomb resist Dark and are simply working off sheer defensive stats to take on Absol's STAB attacks. In reality, it is rather difficult to switch into Absol with “prediction”. After a Swords Dance, Absol can severely damage many of its counters while outpacing a lot of them. The best strategy to taking down Absol is to target its two key vulnerable points: its defenses and its Speed stat. Pokémon that are faster than Absol and use Substitute can basically force Absol to use Sucker Punch to get the KO, but this means you can get a free Substitute up to block Sucker Punch damage. For example, Espeon can threaten to OHKO Absol with a powerful super effective Signal Beam, but simply use Substitute when Absol uses Sucker Punch and proceed to OHKO it from behind its Substitute. Dugtrio can employ a similar strategy with Substitute and then proceed to destroy Absol with Earthquake. |
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