|
-
Keen Eye
- Pokémon's accuracy cannot be lowered.
-
Stall
- This Pokémon moves last.
|
Statistics
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
50
|
- |
241 |
304 |
- |
| Atk |
75
|
167 |
186 |
249 |
273 |
| Def |
75
|
167 |
186 |
249 |
273 |
| SpA |
65
|
149 |
166 |
229 |
251 |
| SpD |
65
|
149 |
166 |
229 |
251 |
| Spe |
50
|
122 |
136 |
199 |
218 |
One of Sableye's few saving graces is its ability to Knock Off items, combined with the fact that it has immunity to three of the most common move-types in Normal, Fighting, and Psychic. Toxic or Will-O-Wisp is used to spread status around, while Seismic Toss compensates for Sableye's low offensive power. Shadow Claw with no attack EVs is still capable of taking out low-defense Ghosts such as Gengar, Mismagius, and Rotom in two hits. The fourth move depends on whether you want to last a little longer, foil any Pokémon who tries to block your status move with a Will-O-Wisp, or simply to use both Toxic and Will-O-Wisp at the same time.
This is one of Sableye's few chances to actually KO something. Its neutral typing lets it use Counter to an extent. Shadow Claw lets it hit the Ghosts who are immune to Counter, while Recover is used whenever it's safe to restore HP that was lost during Counter attempts. You really only get one chance to Counter, as Sableye will be very low on health even if it survives the attack, and once the opponent is onto your strategy they will just try to set up in Sableye's face or KO it outright. If you still have some health left, use this opportunity to either Knock Off their item or Taunt to prevent from setting up.
Sableye's Special Attack stat is lackluster, but it can use Nasty Plot all the same. Dark Pulse or Shadow Ball take advantage of STAB, while Psychic gives some extra diversity. Hidden Power Fighting helps it to take down Steels and Darks who resist Shadow Ball, Dark Pulse, and Psychic. Sableye is also very slow even without its Stall trait, so pumping 252 EVs into speed will not do much. Even with 252 HP though, don't expect to survive long if your opponent is smart.
Other Options
Sableye gets Calm Mind for slower but slightly more stable Special Attack boosts. Night Shade is an alternative to Seismic Toss, but Normal types are usually more worrisome than Ghosts. Torment is an option for normal/fighting Pokémon who decide to carry only one other attack that actually hits Sableye (such as the common combination of Fighting and Rock). Sableye can also switch in on both Flail and Reversal, and then take down the opposing Pokémon with Shadow Sneak or Fake Out. Sableye's Stall ability is largely useless, but if you dare to use it you should combine it with Zoom Lens, which gives a 1.2x accuracy boost provided Sableye goes last, which with Stall will almost always be the case.
EVs
Generally even with maxed out offensive stats, Sableye still doesn't have enough offensive power to do anything about it and should rely more on set damage attacks such as Night Shade. As such, Sableye should EV itself defensively so that it can actually take a hit and survive long enough to at least knock items off. 252 HP is a must, while the other defenses should be spread according to whether you want to defend more against physical or special attacks.
Opinion
Sableye's throne has been completely usurped by Spiritomb, who boasts better stats in nearly every category along with the same type combination of Dark and Ghost, and you're better off using Spiritomb wherever it's allowed. However, that doesn't take away from the fact that Sableye is still a Ghost/Dark and can switch in on Fighting, Normal, and Psychic attacks with impunity. Sableye's strategies are largely situational, as it cannot do much otherwise.
Counters
Kangaskhan and Miltank are the primary counters to Sableye, as they are immune to Ghost Attacks, outspeed Sableye, and can use their Scrappy ability to hit Sableye with super effective Fighting attacks. Other than that, Sableye's defenses are low to the point that any sort of attack from a Pokémon with strong offense will take it down, though Special Attacks are generally preferred because Sableye has the ability to foil any non-Fire-typed physical attackers without Guts by using Will-O-Wisp. Both Muk and Gastrodon also present problems with their large number of Hit Points, which foils set damage moves like Seismic Toss, as well as their Sticky Hold ability which neutralizes Knock Off.