Charmander
Status: Done, needs checking
[Overview]
<p>Charmander returns to Little Cup in the 5th Generation to find himself sorely outclassed in a new, more dangerous metagame. The introduction of Nitro Charge brought about many new threats to compete with Charmander for slots on a team, most notably Darumakka, and the infamous Dragon Dancing Scraggy greatly usurps Charmander's previous position as a Steel-killing Dragon Dancer. It isn't fully outclassed by any of these threats, however; in each instance it has qualities that still make it an option, such as being more versatile than Darumaka and its ability to OHKO Bronzor and Ferroseed, which Scraggy can't manage. Charmander hasn't changed much, but the metagame changing around it sure makes life difficult for it.</p>
[Set]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Flare Blitz
move 3: Brick Break
move 4: ThunderPunch / Rock Slide
item: Life Orb / Oran Berry
nature: Adamant
ability: Blaze
EVs: 44 HP / 180 Atk / 12 Def / 36 SpD / 236 Spe
[Set Comments]
<p>Though Nitro Charge's popularity might give it competition, Charmander is still the only Fire-type with access to Dragon Dance, giving it a slight edge up on his competitors. This Charmander's main job is to take out Steel-types with its powerful boosted STAB Flare Blitz. Thunderpunch and Brick Break provide fantastic additional supereffective coverage against Water-types and such threats as Houndour, Munchlax, Scraggy, and so forth respectively. Life Orb and Flare Blitz recoil, combined with Charmander's fragile constitution, means that it needs to hit hard and fast to cause as much damage as possible before it goes down.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Lack of priority really hurts Charmander, and thus it is extremely vulnerable to nearly all forms of priority attacks. Make sure to steer clear of priority users, or to clear them out before setting Charmander up to sweep.</p>
[Set]
name: Nitro Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Nitro Charge
move 3: Dragon Claw
move 4: Substitute / Fire Punch
item: Oran Berry / Life Orb / Salac Berry
nature: Jolly
ability: Blaze
EVs: 44 HP / 180 Atk / 12 Def / 36 SpD / 236 Spe
[Set Comments]
<p>Charmander and Torchic are the only two Pokemon in Little Cup to get the combination of Swords Dance and Nitro Charge, and of the two, Charmander is clearly superior at it with access to physical Fire STAB outside of Nitro Charge, as well as impeccable 2-move coverage with Fire Punch (or Nitro Charge) and Dragon Claw. Setting up can be extremely tricky, but with the proper prediction, it's even more a force to be reckoned with than the Dragon Dance set.</p>
[Additional Comments]
<p>Since Nitro Charge becomes quite strong after a Swords Dance and the extra Speed is extremely helpful, Substitute makes a good move on the set, as it allows for safer setup after forcing a switch against Teshiido or others that would be scared away by it. If you want to opt for more immediate power, Fire Punch or even Flare Blitz can be used.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Wynaut support is practically necessary for Charmander's success; Wynaut can trap and beat any priority users that might threaten Charmander's sweep later, and furthermore can abuse Shadow Tag and Encore to give Charmander an opportunity to switch in and set up.</p>
<p>Dragon-type Dragon Dancers like Dratini and Axew really appreciate Charmander as a teammate, due to his ability to clear out the Steel-types that plague these dragons' attempts to sweep. Dragon Dance or Choice Scarf Axew in particular is deadly with Steels out of the way, as it packs one of the strongest Outrages in the game; a team without a Steel-type has little defense against such a threat. Additionally, you can also use Charmander's talents with other sweepers like Taillow that appreciate having Steel-types out of the picture.</p>
[Optional Changes]
<p>Boosting moves aside, Charmander's Special Attack is its best asset, and a special set consisting of Flamethrower, Hidden Power (Grass/Electric), Dragon Pulse, and Substitute would seem to be Charmander's best bet at running a special-attacking set. Choice Specs or Scarf could also be used with a special set, although Charmander lacks the speed to do the former effectively and the power to do the latter, and also struggles to switch in repeatedly to Stealth Rock. </p>
<p>Belly Drum is a notorious tool in Charmander's arsenal, though Charmander's mediocre speed, inability to take hits, and abundance of priority moves in the Little Cup metagame make this far difficult to pull off.</p>
<p>Will-O-Wisp can be used on physical sets to surprise walls such as Gligar, who Charmander has trouble damaging, though it requires taking up a move slot that Charmander would often rather have an attack in.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Countering Charmander is pretty simple and straightforward: if you're faster and can hit it supereffectively, you KO it. If you can survive one of its attacks and hit it supereffectively, you KO it. If you have Aqua Jet, you can KO it, or if it's weakened by some combination of Stealth Rock damage, Flare Blitz recoil, and Life Orb damage, pretty much any priority attack not named Ice Shard will KO it. The bottom line is Charmander is fragile, and not very difficult to KO, especially after it has accumulated some self-inflicted damage from Life Orb or Flare Blitz, which it practically needs in order to hit anything for decent damage, especially in a metagame loaded with Evo Stone walls and bulky sweepers. Exceptionally noteworthy counters include fast scarfers like Gligar, who can easily outspeed and OHKO Charmander even with a Dance under its belt.</p>
[Dream World]
<p>Charmander gets Solar Power from the Dream World. Unfortunately, this ability is exclusive to male Charmander, and thus is not available for use in Little Cup.</p>
