Sawk (Analysis)

[sandman]

Sawk
[Overview]

<p>Like Throh, Sawk faces massive competition from the myriad of other Fighting-types in VGC 2011. Mienshao is faster, and has a larger movepool including Fake Out. Terrakion boasts better stats and a Rock-type STAB. Really, Sawk’s only saving grace is his access to Sturdy and Inner Focus, both of great abilities, but not nearly enough to push him to the same level as the other two. However, unlike Mienshao, Sawk has access to one of the best STAB moves in the game, Close Combat, and arguably does better in teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room than the other two. All in all, Sawk can still be very dangerous when played right.</p>

[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 3: Payback / Earthquake / Taunt
move 4: Protect / Quick Guard
item: Fight Jewel / Lum Berry / Focus Sash
ability: Sturdy / Inner Focus
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 20 HP / 252 Atk / 236 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Sawk is a pretty straightforward but formidable physical attacker. Close Combat and Rock Slide both give good coverage. Stone Edge is usable over Rock Slide, having more Base Power and hitting through Wide Guard. Thanks to Sawk’s middling Speed, he works great in teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room. When Tailwind is up, he will almost always outspeed the opposing team, but if they set up Tailwind too, set up Trick Room and Sawk will probably have the Speed advantage even when the opposing team's Tailwind runs out. Combined with Sturdy’s guarantee of surviving one hit, Sawk can be very menacing. While Sawk is not the fastest user, Taunt is generally a helpful move. Quick Guard and Protect both have their uses, and either one is a good choice depending on your team. Payback hits Psychic- and Ghost-types harder than any other move Sawk has. Although somewhat redundant due to his Fighting-type STAB, Earthquake is a strong spread attack good for damaging both of your opponent's Pokemon.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EV spread assumes you run an Adamant nature and lets Sawk outrun the fastest Pokemon he can, Timid Samurott. If using Jolly, an alternate EV spread of 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe should be run, allowing Sawk to outspeed Adamant Krookodile and Haxorus, and Speed tie with Modest Hydreigon. Focus Sash can be used when using Inner Focus due to Sawk’s feeble defenses. If Amoonguss is using a Mental Herb, it can negate Taunt the first time it is used, and put Sawk to sleep. For this reason, running Lum Berry is also an option. Fighting Gem is for Raw Power on the first hit.</p>

<p>As mentioned above, Sawk fits well into teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room due to his middling speed. Fast Guard makes him a good partner for something trying to set up without being stopped by Fake Out such as a Trick Room user. It is recommended that you pack something fast that can cover Sawk's weaknesses to Psychic- and Flying-type attacks such as Thundorus or Krookodile. A wide guard user is always welcome as with Field attacks, your opponent won’t have to double attack Sawk to break Sturdy. Fast Guard or Anger Powder users can also help protect a Sturdy Sawk from a revenge kill.</p>


[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 3: Earthquake / Stone Edge
move 4: Payback / Reversal
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Sturdy / Inner Focus
nature: Adamant
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Sawk can make good Choice Scarf user due to his two abilities. With Sturdy, if you mess up once, Sawk is still in the game. Inner Focus ensures that Fake Out does not prevent Sawk attacking on the first turn, potentially leading to a surprise KO. As with the first set, Close Combat and Rock Slide will be your main attacking moves. Packback is Sawk's best option against bulky Psychic- and Ghost-types, especially those which resist Rock Slide such as Golurk. Reversal is also an option; after Sawk is brought down to between 1 and 13 HP, you can switch out and when you come back in, you have the option to use a Fighting-type move which will out-damage Payback against Psychic-types.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Jolly with 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe and a Choice Scarf is enough to outspeed Accelgor and allows some extra bulk. Having two Rock-Type attacks looks redundant, but Earthquake offers redundant coverage with Close Combat and as mentioned above Sawk needs a way to hit through Wide Guard.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Sawk doesn’t have much else to do besides attacking. Sawk is practically built to use Counter then sweep with Reversal, given that he has a built-in Focus Sash. Sawk also learns both Sunny Day and Rain Dance and with Inner Focus can set up without worrying about Fake Out; if you need a Fighting-type on your team he makes a decent choice. Sawk also gets Fling, allowing him to Fling a King's Rock at a Ghost-type setting up Trick Room; thanks to Inner Focus Sawk won’t be stopped by fake Out. Bulk Up is Sawk's best stat-boosting move, but in this regard he is largely outclassed by Scrafty.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>Bulky Psychic-types and Golurk are the best counters, as the best Sawk can do is Payback or Earthquake. Ghost-types deal with Sawk well if he is locked into Close Combat, and if he is locked into any other move he can be dealt with accordingly. Haxorus can get past Sturdy with Mold Breaker but must be wary of faster Sawk–those with a Jolly nature or a Choice Scarf. Anything faster such as Tornadus or Archeops can kill Inner Focus sets. Once Sturdy is used, Conkeldurr or anything with priority can revenge kill him.</p>

 

[Alaka]

You are missing the <p> </p> tags around your paragraphs.

When you keep saying "out speed Agirudaa with Choice Scarf" it's hard to tell if you mean Agirudaa has the scarf or not. You should change it around to make it more clear.

Also you probably don't need two Rock-type attacks, Earthquake is generally better.

 

[ParaChomp]

Might want to throw Taunt onto the counter reversal set.

 

[sandman]

You are missing the <p> </p> tags around your paragraphs.

When you keep saying "out speed Agirudaa with Choice Scarf" it's hard to tell if you mean Agirudaa has the scarf or not. You should change it around to make it more clear.

Also you probably don't need two Rock-type attacks, Earthquake is generally better.

Fixed everything.

I actually found Stone Edge to be useful not only for the extra power but Ground and Fighting are pretty redundant in the first place and god forbid at the end of the match your fighting a full HP Tornelos or Bulky Shandera, Rock Slide would fail to KO, plus it isn't stopped by Wide Guard which seems to be a pretty common way to protect field attack sensitive pokes.

Most people don't hesitate to attack Dageki since he's so Frail and want to get rid of Sturdy and Taunt already isn't that helpful so I don't think it would be more useful than any of the other moves up there.

 

[Sixonesix]

Until Salac Berry is released in BW you shouldn't mention it in analyses, since you can't transfer items from 4th gen.

 

[Huy]

Played with and against each and everyone of these Dagekis. They're all pretty solid and dangerous when used correctly.

QC Approved: 1/2

 

[Mr.Senior]

Dageki is practically built for this, having an automatic Endure built right in.

its an automatic focus sash because endure works at any health. sturdy only works at full. also slash stone edge everywhere you have rockslide. its generally the better option on anything that doesnt get stab on it.

 

[Huy]

Dageki is practically built for this, having an automatic Endure built right in.

its an automatic focus sash because endure works at any health. sturdy only works at full. also slash stone edge everywhere you have rockslide. its generally the better option on anything that doesnt get stab on it.

Untrue. I'd much rather hit two Pokemon than hit one with a shaky Stone Edge.

 

[Alaka]

You are missing the / in your <p></p> tags.

 

[Alaka]

Everything looks good, recently played around with this some. QC 2/2

 

[Rising_Dusk]

I was going to add this to the GP queue, but this is not the correct format. We don't use [Team Options] anymore, and you need to elaborate on each individual set substantially. You need at least one solid paragraph of additional information in the [ADDITIONAL COMMENTS] section of each set. Please refer to this announcement for a thorough explanation of formatting.

 

[sandman]

Updated analyses

Somethings a QC member might want to check
Removed the counter Reversal set because I thought it was too redundant to the first set as the only difference was Counter, but mentioned it in Other Options.

Trick Wind: Teams that use both Tail Wind and Trick Room on the same team. Don't know if there is already a name for it or if I should even be calling it that and just say teams with both Trick Room and Tail Wind users.

 

[Human]

I think Tail Room is what Deagle called Tailwind and Trick Room on the same team in his VGC blog, so I'd just go with that.

For the first moveset wouldn't Earthquake be better than Payback most of the time? Unless they are scarfed you will outspeed them most of the time. Also seeing that this is for Tailwind/Tail Room then you can lead with Tailwind at first and you have an immunity to Earthquake anyways. Slash Taunt with Earthquake and completely drop the slash of Quick Guard because it is not weak to any priority and it can not protect the team from Fake Out unless Scrafty's Fake Out. Seems like a good analysis though, nice work!

 

[sandman]

Made the Tail Room change.

I'll think about Earthquake but left it out for now as it suffers from the field attack power drop so it wont be stronger than payback against things weak to it and although most Tail Wind leads are immune, later on it could be problematic if your other pokemon isn't immune. Took out Quick Guard of the third slash, but its there in the last slot just to show Sawk gets it. I also want to try not to change too much though since its already been QC approved.

 

[Alaka]

Do not just make up a term that no one is using, its to colloquial. Just straight up call it using Tailwind and Trick Room on the same team.

 

[sandman]

Changed, thought it would be easier to say but your right.

 

[Fatecrashers]

[Counters] should be [Checks and Counters]

 

[Calm Pokemaster]

Deletions
Additions / Corrections
Comments

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[Overview]

<p>Like Throh, Sawk faces horrible massive competition against the myriad of other Fighting-types in the VGC 11. Mienshao is faster, has Fake Out and a larger movepool. Terrakion boasts better stats and a Rock-type STAB. Really, Sawk’s only saving grace is his access to Sturdy and Inner Focus, both of which are great abilities, but this is not nearly enough to push in him to the same level as those the other two. However, unlike Mienshao, Sawk has access to the one of the best STAB moves in the game, Close Combat, and arguably does Tail Wind with Trick Room better in teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room than the other two. All in all, Sawk can still be very dangerous when played right.</p>(remove space between "right." and the </p> tag)

[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 3: Payback / Earthquake / Taunt
move 4: Protect / Quick Guard
item: Fight Jewel / Lum Berry / Focus Sash
ability: Sturdy / Inner Focus
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 20 HP / 252 Atk / 236 Spe or 4 Hp / 252 Atk / 252 Spe (Mention the other EV set in AC)

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Sawk (remove space) is a pretty straightforward but formidable physical attacker. Close Combat and Rock Slide both give good coverage. Stone Edge is usable over Rock Slide, having more Base Power and hitting through Wide Guard. Thanks to Sawk’s middling Speed, he works great in Tail Wind with Trick Room teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room. When Tailwind is up, he will almost always outspeed the opposing team, but if they set up Tailwind too, set up Trick Room and Sawk will probably have the Speed advantage even when the opposing team's Tailwind runs out. Combined with Sturdy’s guarantee of surviving one hit, Sawk can be very menacing. While not the fastest user, Taunt is generally a helpful move. Fast Quick Guard and Protect both have their uses, and either one is a good choice depending on your team. Payback hits the Psychic- and Ghost-types harder than any other move Sawk has. Although somewhat redundant due to his Sawk's Fighting-type STAB, Earthquake is a strong field attack move spread attack good for damaging both of your opponent's Pokemon.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The first EV set spread assumes you run an Adamant nature and outspeed Timid Samurott, the fastest thing Sawk can outspeed while running Adamant. If using Jolly, you should probably just run max speed as it allows it to be faster than Adamant krookodile, Haxorus, and speed tie with Modest Hydriegon an alternate EV spread of 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe should be used, allowing Sawk to outspeed Adamant Krookodile and Haxorus, and Speed tie with Modest Hydreigon. Focus Sash can be used when using Inner Focus due to Sawk’s feeble defenses. Lum Berry is useful encase Amoonguss’s has a Mental Herb so you can Taunt it the next turn if it tries to put you to sleep. If Amoonguss is using a Mental Herb, it can negate Taunt the first time it is used, and put Sawk to sleep. For this reason, running Lum Berry is also an option. FightingGem is for raw power on the first hit.</p>

<p>As (remove space) mentioned above, Sawk fits well into Tail Wind with Trick Room teams teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room due to its his middling Speed. Fast Quick Guard makes it Sawk a good partner for someone trying to set up without being stopped by Fake Out, such as Taunting a Trick Room user. Anything fast that can cover its Sawk's weaknesses to Psychic- and Flying-type attacks such as Thundorus or Krookodile is also a good partner for Sawk. A Wide Guard user is always welcome as with Field attacks spread attacks, your opponent won’t have to double attack Sawk to break its Sturdy. Fast Guard or Anger Powered users are helpful for the Sturdy sets when Sturdy is used for opponents who think they can revenge kill Sawk.</p>


[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 3: Earthquake / Stone Edge
move 4: Payback / Reversal
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Sturdy / Inner Focus
nature: Adamant
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Sawk (remove space) can make a good Choice Scarf user due to its his two abilities. With Sturdy, if you mess up once, Sawk is still in the game. Inner Focus means it he isn't stopped first turn by Fake Out from attacking first turn by Fake Out, and can enables Sawk to score a surprise KO. As with the first set, Close Combat and Rock Slide will be your main attacking moves. Payback is the best Sawk can do for to Ghost-types like such as Golurk who resists both Close Combat and Rock Slide, and bulky Psychic-types. If you use Reversal over Payback, you’re essentially playing a reverse Water Spout Kyogre assuming you use Sturdy. After Sawk is brought down to 1 to 13 HP, you can switch out and when you come back in, you have the option to use a more powerful Close Combat that will also out damage Payback.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>A Jolly nature with 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe with and a Choice Scarf is enough to outspeed Accelgor and allows some extra bulk. Having two Rock-type attacks looks redundant, but Earthquake is already pretty redundant due to Close Combat. and As mentioned above, this gives Sawk a way to hit through Wide Guard, so generally, you should use Stone Edge and then use Rock Slide or Earthquake.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Sawk doesn’t have much else to do besides attacking. Sawk is practically built to use Counter, then sweep with Reversal, having abuilt-in Focus Sash and is viable. Sawk learns both Sunny Day and Rain Dance, and with Inner Focus, it can set up without worrying about Fake Out and adds a Fighting-type to your team. Sawk gets Fling, so it can fling King's Rocks at Ghost-types trying to sets up Trick Room, and thanks to Inner Focus, won’t be stopped by Fake Out. Bulk Up is the best move to boost his stats, but Scrafty is largely outclassed by Scrafty.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>Bulky (remove space) Psychic-types and Golurk are the best counters to Sawk, as the best Sawk can do is use Payback or Earthquake. Ghost-types can make merry if the Scarf set is locked into Close Combat or any other resisted attack. Haxorus can get past Sturdy with Mold Breaker, but has to worry about Choice Scarf or if Sawk has a Jolly nature if Sawk is running a Jolly nature or using a Choice Scarf. Anything faster, such as Tornadus or Archeops, can kill OHKO Inner Focus sets. Once Sturdy is used activated, Conkeldurr or anything with priority users of priority attacks, such as Conkeldurr, can revenge kill it Sawk easily. </p>

GP 1 / 2

 

[Phiddlesticks]

Quick Guard and Fake Out have the same priority, so Sawk can really only stop Scrafty's Fake Out since Mienshao and Liepard are both faster than him

 

[jc104]

[Overview]

<p>Like Throh, Sawk faces massive competition against fromthe myriad of other Fighting-types in VGC 2011. Mienshao is faster, and has Fake Out and a larger movepool including Fake Out. Terrakion boasts better stats and a Rock-type STAB. Really, Sawk’s only saving grace is his access to Sturdy and Inner Focus, both of which are great abilities, but not nearly enough to push him to the same level as the other two. However, unlike Mienshao, Sawk has access to one of the best STAB moves in the game, Close Combat, and arguably does Tailwind with Trick Room better than the other two (I don't understand what this means; you must change it, if not to what Calm Pokemaster suggested then to something else). All in all, Sawk can still be very dangerous when played right.</p>

[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 3: Payback / Earthquake / Taunt
move 4: Protect / Quick Guard
item: Fight Jewel / Lum Berry / Focus Sash
ability: Sturdy / Inner Focus
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 20 HP / 252 Atk / 236 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Sawk is a pretty straightforward but formidable physical attacker. Close Combat and Rock Slide both give good coverage. Stone Edge is usable over Rock Slide, having more Base Power and hitting through Wide Guard. Thanks to Sawk’s middling Speed, he works great in teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room. When Tailwind is up, he will almost always outspeed the opposing team, but if they set up Tailwind too, set up Trick Room and Sawk will probably have the Speed advantage even when the opposing team's Tailwind runs out. Combined with Sturdy’s guarantee of surviving one hit, Sawk can be very menacing. While Sawk is not the fastest user, Taunt is generally a helpful move. Quick Guard and Protect both have their uses, and either one is a good choice depending on your team. Payback hits Psychic- and Ghost-types harder than any other move Sawk has. Although somewhat redundant due to his Fighting-type STAB, Earthquake is a strong spread attack good for damaging both of your opponent's Pokemon.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EV spread assumes you run an Adamant nature and lets Sawk outrun the fastest Pokemon he can, outspeeds Timid Samurott, the fastest thingSawk can outspeed while running Adamant. If using Jolly, an alternate EV spread of 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe should be run, allowing Sawk to outspeed Adamant Krookodile and Haxorus, and Speed tie with Modest Hydreigon. Focus Sash can be used when using Inner Focus due to Sawk’s feeble defenses. If Amoonguss is using a Mental Herb, it can negate Taunt the first time it is used, and put Sawk to sleep. For this reason, running Lum Berry is also an option.</p>

<p>As mentioned above, Sawk fits well into teams running both Tailwind and Trick Room due to his middling speed. Fast Guard makes him a good partner for something someone trying to set up without being stopped by Fake Out such as Taunting a Trick Room user. Anything It is recommended that you pack something fast that can cover its Sawk's weaknesses to Psychic- and Flying-type attacks such as Thundorus or Krookodile. A wide guard user is always welcome as with Field attacks, your opponent won’t have to double attack Sawk to break its Sturdy. Fast Guard or Anger Powder users can also help protect a Sturdy Sawk from a revenge kill are helpful for the Sturdy sets for opponents who think they can revenge kill Sawk.</p>


[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 3: Earthquake / Stone Edge
move 4: Payback / Reversal
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Sturdy / Inner Focus
nature: Adamant
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Sawk can make good Choice Scarf user due to his its two abilities. With Sturdy, if you mess up once, Sawk is still in the game. Inner Focus ensures that Fake Out does not prevent Sawk attacking on the first turn, potentially leading to a surprise KO means it isn'tstopped first turn by Fake Out from attacking and can score a surprise KO. As with the first set, Close Combat and Rock Slide will be your main attacking moves. Packback is Sawk's best option against bulky Psychic- and Ghost-types, especially those which resist Rock Slide such as Golurk Payback is the best Sawk can do for ghosts like Golurk who resists both Close Combat and Rock Slide and bulky Psychics. If you use Reversal over Payback, you’re essentially playing a reverse Water Spout Kyogre assuming you use Sturdy. Reversal is also an option; after Sawk is brought down to between 1 and 13 HP, you can switch out and when you come back in, you have the option to use a Fighting-type move which will out-damage Payback against Psychic-types more powerful Close Combat that will also out damage Payback.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Jolly with 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe with and a Choice Scarf is enough to outspeed Accelgor and allows some extra bulk. Having two Rock-Type attacks looks redundant, but Earthquake is already pretty offers redundant coverage with due to Close Combat and as mentioned above gives Sawk needs a way to hit through Wide Guard so generally you should use Stone Edge and then Rock Slide or Earthquake.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Sawk doesn’t have much else to do besides attacking. Sawk is practically built to use Counter then sweep with Reversal, given that he has having a built-in Focus Sash and is viable. Sawk also learns both Sunny Day and Rain Dance and with Inner Focus can set up without worrying about Fake Out; if you need a Fighting-type on your team he makes a decent choice and adds a Fighting-type to your team. Sawk also gets Fling, allowing him soit can to Fling a King's Rocks at a Ghost-type setting up Trick Room; ghosts trying to sets up Trick Roomand thanks to Inner Focus Sawk won’t be stopped by fake Out. Bulk Up is Sawk's best stat-boosting move, but in this regard he the best move to boost his statsbut is largely outclassed by Scrafty.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>Bulky Psychic-types and Golurk are the best counters, as the best Sawk can do is Payback or Earthquake. Ghost-types deal with Sawk well if he is locked into Close Combat, and if he is locked into any other move he can be dealt with accordingly or anything that resists the attack the scarf set is locked. Haxorus can get past Sturdy with Mold Breaker but must be wary of faster Sawk–those with a Jolly nature or a Choice Scarf has to worry about Choice Scarfor if Sawk has a Jolly nature. Anything faster such as Tornadus or Archeops can kill Inner Focus sets. Once Sturdy is used, Conkeldurr or anything with priority can revenge kill him.</p>

GP 2/2

This is conditional upon you updating all of mine and Calm Pokemaster's changes (within reason - i.e don't copy typos). If you disagree with anything say so, and we can sort it out.

 

[sandman]

I must of had multiple words open because I remember making those changes Calm Pokemaster had.

Done