[Overview]
<p>Offensive sandstorm would mayhaps not be a viable strategy in Little Cup save for one Pokemon: Drilbur. Due to the ability Sand Rush, Drilbur is able to attain a blazing Speed stat, easily outpacing the entire boosted tier and most of the tier at +1. Its Attack stat also shows great potential, hitting the enviable stat of 19 when maxed. What's more, Drilbur has the vast movepool to back up such offensive prowess, including Swords Dance, Earthquake, Rapid Spin, and a whole mess of coverage moves. Indeed, it would seem that the mole would have a field day shredding the faces of cute little Pokemon, but the introduction of Eviolite has granted many baby behemoths even more defensive potential. While Drilbur is by no means a perfect Pokemon, it can bring massive utility and damage to all sandstorm-based teams, garnering revenge kills with ease and causing predictable moves on the opponent's part. Just remember, where there's a drill, there's a way.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Offense
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Rock Slide
move 3: Shadow Claw
move 4: Rapid Spin / X-Scissor
item: Life Orb
ability: Sand Rush
nature: Adamant
evs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 212 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Drilbur is essentially the big guns on a sandstorm team, and this set aims to make the most of that. With a whopping 32 Speed during the sandstorm, Drilbur has the potential to revenge kill a vast portion of the tier. This is backed up by a mammoth 19 Attack, which allows Drilbur's coverage options to really shine. Earthquake is undoubtedly Drilbur's best STAB move, denting opponents that do not resist it early-game and cleaning up late-game. Rock Slide grants fantastic coverage alongside Earthquake, notably granting the OHKO on most Taillow and Doduo, along with any Choice Scarf Murkrow that are unable to Sucker Punch. Shadow Claw rounds out the coverage by nailing levitating Ghost-types, such as Misdreavus, Gastly, and even the occasional Duskull.</p>
<p>With such great three move coverage, Drilbur has some wiggle room for the final slot. Rapid Spin provides fantastic utility for the team and Drilbur itself, who is vulnerable to all three forms of entry hazards; such residual damage stacks up quite quickly in conjunction with Life Orb. However, if Shroomish is getting you down, X-Scissor can be a nasty surprise for it and the other more rare Grass-types.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>While one may desire to hit maximum Speed via a Jolly nature, Drilbur already outpaces the entire unboosted tier and greatly prefers the boost in power. The EV spread provides the most offensive potential possible, which is all Drilbur should really be concerned with when utilizing Life Orb. The last slot can obviously be manipulated to best suit the team; Protect can solve problems with Fake Out users, while Substitute can get around prediction wars against Murkrow.</p>
<p>Hippopotas is obviously a necessary teammate for this set, as Drilbur absolutely needs sandstorm support if it is going to pull off a sweep. Fortunately, Hippopotas can also provide Stealth Rock, which will prove useful in aiding the sweep. It also sponges hits from defensive Mienfoo quite nicely, making it an even more desirable teammate. Lileep is another good Pokemon for a sandstorm core, providing an immunity to Water-type attacks and a resistance to Grass-type attacks. Ferroseed works in a similar vein but typically sponges physical attacks instead of special ones. Vullaby can be a good defensive teammate, as can Slowpoke or Frillish, due to its ability to repeatedly switch in and take hits from defensive Pokemon; all three Pokemon can pack status moves such as Toxic, Thunder Wave, or Will-O-Wisp that will greatly aid a Drilbur sweep.</p>
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Shadow Claw / Protect
item: Eviolite / Life Orb
ability: Sand Rush
nature: Adamant
evs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 212 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Swords Dance turns any Pokemon with incredible Speed and Attack into even more of a threat, and so this move is unquestionably a good option for Drilbur. While this Drilbur can easily spam Earthquake early game to do some nice damage, it really shines in the mid- to late-game phases, where one surprise Swords Dance can easily tip the scales in your favor. After a Swords Dance, Drilbur hits 38 Attack and 32 Speed, which dwarfs any other physical sweeper in the metagame. Drilbur can afford to use Eviolite with this, as well, in order to ensure a setup against a weaker or defensive Pokemon. With Earthquake and Rock Slide, Drilbur has the power and coverage to OHKO the vast majority of the tier after a single boost. Shadow Claw amplifies this effect, netting the OHKO on the otherwise problematic defensive Misdreavus. There are some other boons, as well, such as having a 100% accurate attack against Natu. Protect is another fantastic option in the last slot, as it ensures Mienfoo will not be able to repeatedly Fake Out and take advantage of Regenerator to KO Drilbur.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Typically, this variant of Drilbur will have less time to Rapid Spin, so this move is typically foregone in favor of a coverage move or Protect. X-Scissor deserves a mention as an option in the last slot to lure in and eliminate the occasional Shroomish, but it is worth mentioning that Shroomish is nowhere near as common as Misdreavus. The core of a Water-type in conjunction with a Grass-type is a strong choice to provide a good defensive backing for Drilbur; either Slowpoke and Lileep or Ferroseed and Frillish is a good idea. Hippopotas is once again a necessity, as one cannot rely on the opponent to pack sandstorm if he or she wishes to consistently sweep with Drilbur. This specific Drilbur enjoys having teammates that can dent the opponent's team very early on. Murkrow is one of the best examples of this; with its great Speed, STABs, and movepool, the opponent will be forced to exhaust their physically defensive Pokemon rather early on, perhaps forcing them to remain in the range of a Drilbur KO. Pokemon with a slower U-turn or Volt Switch, such as Larvesta, minimum Speed Mienfoo, and Chinchou, also allow Drilbur to get the easy setup it desires.</p>
<p>Eviolite is typically not a problem if one is using three coverage moves, but if Protect is being used, one may want to consider Life Orb. Life Orb allows massive damage after a Swords Dance on neutral attacks, which can be useful against Misdreavus, who will fall to Rock Slide at +2 provided one can net about 20% in prior damage. Life Orb also guarantees the OHKO against maximum Defense Lileep, but this is useless if Drilbur cannot attain the Swords Dance that Eviolite would normally ensure.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Sand Force is gimmicky at best; Drilbur already has fantastic Attack, and it needs the Speed boost in order to garner kills. Jolly is almost not worth a mention; the only notable advantage is hitting the same Speed as Drifloon after it gains a boost via Unburden; most of the time, Drifloon will either straight up win that match up or Sucker Punch just to be safe. Substitute is worth a mention on almost any set, and a defensive set could even be vouched for wherein Drilbur repeatedly uses Substitute and Protect to wear down enemies. Toxic can be a nasty surprise for switch-ins such as Lileep and Snover, but a well built sandstorm team will almost always prefer an extra coverage move rather than the utility from such a move. The idea of using Drilbur outside of sandstorm is gimmicky at best; Hippopotas simply does not show up in battles often enough to merit such a playstyle and there are bulkier set up sweepers such as Scraggy who function equally well under normal weather.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Due to the sheer amount of damage Drilbur can do, it is not uncommon for teams to pack a slot dedicated to countering it. Bronzor is the most common choice, as it takes neutral damage from any of Drilbur's attacks at best, and possesses an immunity through Levitate to Drilbur's STAB. Grass-types are the next most common choice; Shroomish and Lileep can both take a hit pretty easily, and Ferroseed can typically come out on top against Drilbur despite lacking reliable recovery. Choice Scarf Snover will change the weather and then outspeed Drilbur, meaning that Hippopotas must be carefully guarded if one is against a Snover. Ponyta doesn't change the weather automatically, but it does have access to Sunny Day; unfortunately, it struggles to find a time to switch into Drilbur. Priority can wear down Life Orb variants of Drilbur rather quickly. Mienfoo and Croagunk can easily utilize Fake Out; Timburr has a powerful Mach Punch (especially at +1); Tirtouga has Sturdy, gains a Special Defense boost in sandstorm, and has Aqua Jet; Murkrow has STAB Sucker Punch. Bulky Water-types, such as Frillish and Slowpoke, can usually take on Drilbur if it is not packing Shadow Claw, and Unaware Wooper can cancel out Drilbur's boosts.</p>
[Unreleased]
<p>Drilbur gets Mold Breaker as a Dream World ability. This has situational utility in checking Bronzor, but Drilbur will lose the fantastic Speed it needs to be such an incredible sweeper.</p>
<p>Offensive sandstorm would mayhaps not be a viable strategy in Little Cup save for one Pokemon: Drilbur. Due to the ability Sand Rush, Drilbur is able to attain a blazing Speed stat, easily outpacing the entire boosted tier and most of the tier at +1. Its Attack stat also shows great potential, hitting the enviable stat of 19 when maxed. What's more, Drilbur has the vast movepool to back up such offensive prowess, including Swords Dance, Earthquake, Rapid Spin, and a whole mess of coverage moves. Indeed, it would seem that the mole would have a field day shredding the faces of cute little Pokemon, but the introduction of Eviolite has granted many baby behemoths even more defensive potential. While Drilbur is by no means a perfect Pokemon, it can bring massive utility and damage to all sandstorm-based teams, garnering revenge kills with ease and causing predictable moves on the opponent's part. Just remember, where there's a drill, there's a way.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Offense
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Rock Slide
move 3: Shadow Claw
move 4: Rapid Spin / X-Scissor
item: Life Orb
ability: Sand Rush
nature: Adamant
evs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 212 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Drilbur is essentially the big guns on a sandstorm team, and this set aims to make the most of that. With a whopping 32 Speed during the sandstorm, Drilbur has the potential to revenge kill a vast portion of the tier. This is backed up by a mammoth 19 Attack, which allows Drilbur's coverage options to really shine. Earthquake is undoubtedly Drilbur's best STAB move, denting opponents that do not resist it early-game and cleaning up late-game. Rock Slide grants fantastic coverage alongside Earthquake, notably granting the OHKO on most Taillow and Doduo, along with any Choice Scarf Murkrow that are unable to Sucker Punch. Shadow Claw rounds out the coverage by nailing levitating Ghost-types, such as Misdreavus, Gastly, and even the occasional Duskull.</p>
<p>With such great three move coverage, Drilbur has some wiggle room for the final slot. Rapid Spin provides fantastic utility for the team and Drilbur itself, who is vulnerable to all three forms of entry hazards; such residual damage stacks up quite quickly in conjunction with Life Orb. However, if Shroomish is getting you down, X-Scissor can be a nasty surprise for it and the other more rare Grass-types.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>While one may desire to hit maximum Speed via a Jolly nature, Drilbur already outpaces the entire unboosted tier and greatly prefers the boost in power. The EV spread provides the most offensive potential possible, which is all Drilbur should really be concerned with when utilizing Life Orb. The last slot can obviously be manipulated to best suit the team; Protect can solve problems with Fake Out users, while Substitute can get around prediction wars against Murkrow.</p>
<p>Hippopotas is obviously a necessary teammate for this set, as Drilbur absolutely needs sandstorm support if it is going to pull off a sweep. Fortunately, Hippopotas can also provide Stealth Rock, which will prove useful in aiding the sweep. It also sponges hits from defensive Mienfoo quite nicely, making it an even more desirable teammate. Lileep is another good Pokemon for a sandstorm core, providing an immunity to Water-type attacks and a resistance to Grass-type attacks. Ferroseed works in a similar vein but typically sponges physical attacks instead of special ones. Vullaby can be a good defensive teammate, as can Slowpoke or Frillish, due to its ability to repeatedly switch in and take hits from defensive Pokemon; all three Pokemon can pack status moves such as Toxic, Thunder Wave, or Will-O-Wisp that will greatly aid a Drilbur sweep.</p>
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Shadow Claw / Protect
item: Eviolite / Life Orb
ability: Sand Rush
nature: Adamant
evs: 236 Atk / 36 Def / 212 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Swords Dance turns any Pokemon with incredible Speed and Attack into even more of a threat, and so this move is unquestionably a good option for Drilbur. While this Drilbur can easily spam Earthquake early game to do some nice damage, it really shines in the mid- to late-game phases, where one surprise Swords Dance can easily tip the scales in your favor. After a Swords Dance, Drilbur hits 38 Attack and 32 Speed, which dwarfs any other physical sweeper in the metagame. Drilbur can afford to use Eviolite with this, as well, in order to ensure a setup against a weaker or defensive Pokemon. With Earthquake and Rock Slide, Drilbur has the power and coverage to OHKO the vast majority of the tier after a single boost. Shadow Claw amplifies this effect, netting the OHKO on the otherwise problematic defensive Misdreavus. There are some other boons, as well, such as having a 100% accurate attack against Natu. Protect is another fantastic option in the last slot, as it ensures Mienfoo will not be able to repeatedly Fake Out and take advantage of Regenerator to KO Drilbur.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Typically, this variant of Drilbur will have less time to Rapid Spin, so this move is typically foregone in favor of a coverage move or Protect. X-Scissor deserves a mention as an option in the last slot to lure in and eliminate the occasional Shroomish, but it is worth mentioning that Shroomish is nowhere near as common as Misdreavus. The core of a Water-type in conjunction with a Grass-type is a strong choice to provide a good defensive backing for Drilbur; either Slowpoke and Lileep or Ferroseed and Frillish is a good idea. Hippopotas is once again a necessity, as one cannot rely on the opponent to pack sandstorm if he or she wishes to consistently sweep with Drilbur. This specific Drilbur enjoys having teammates that can dent the opponent's team very early on. Murkrow is one of the best examples of this; with its great Speed, STABs, and movepool, the opponent will be forced to exhaust their physically defensive Pokemon rather early on, perhaps forcing them to remain in the range of a Drilbur KO. Pokemon with a slower U-turn or Volt Switch, such as Larvesta, minimum Speed Mienfoo, and Chinchou, also allow Drilbur to get the easy setup it desires.</p>
<p>Eviolite is typically not a problem if one is using three coverage moves, but if Protect is being used, one may want to consider Life Orb. Life Orb allows massive damage after a Swords Dance on neutral attacks, which can be useful against Misdreavus, who will fall to Rock Slide at +2 provided one can net about 20% in prior damage. Life Orb also guarantees the OHKO against maximum Defense Lileep, but this is useless if Drilbur cannot attain the Swords Dance that Eviolite would normally ensure.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Sand Force is gimmicky at best; Drilbur already has fantastic Attack, and it needs the Speed boost in order to garner kills. Jolly is almost not worth a mention; the only notable advantage is hitting the same Speed as Drifloon after it gains a boost via Unburden; most of the time, Drifloon will either straight up win that match up or Sucker Punch just to be safe. Substitute is worth a mention on almost any set, and a defensive set could even be vouched for wherein Drilbur repeatedly uses Substitute and Protect to wear down enemies. Toxic can be a nasty surprise for switch-ins such as Lileep and Snover, but a well built sandstorm team will almost always prefer an extra coverage move rather than the utility from such a move. The idea of using Drilbur outside of sandstorm is gimmicky at best; Hippopotas simply does not show up in battles often enough to merit such a playstyle and there are bulkier set up sweepers such as Scraggy who function equally well under normal weather.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Due to the sheer amount of damage Drilbur can do, it is not uncommon for teams to pack a slot dedicated to countering it. Bronzor is the most common choice, as it takes neutral damage from any of Drilbur's attacks at best, and possesses an immunity through Levitate to Drilbur's STAB. Grass-types are the next most common choice; Shroomish and Lileep can both take a hit pretty easily, and Ferroseed can typically come out on top against Drilbur despite lacking reliable recovery. Choice Scarf Snover will change the weather and then outspeed Drilbur, meaning that Hippopotas must be carefully guarded if one is against a Snover. Ponyta doesn't change the weather automatically, but it does have access to Sunny Day; unfortunately, it struggles to find a time to switch into Drilbur. Priority can wear down Life Orb variants of Drilbur rather quickly. Mienfoo and Croagunk can easily utilize Fake Out; Timburr has a powerful Mach Punch (especially at +1); Tirtouga has Sturdy, gains a Special Defense boost in sandstorm, and has Aqua Jet; Murkrow has STAB Sucker Punch. Bulky Water-types, such as Frillish and Slowpoke, can usually take on Drilbur if it is not packing Shadow Claw, and Unaware Wooper can cancel out Drilbur's boosts.</p>
[Unreleased]
<p>Drilbur gets Mold Breaker as a Dream World ability. This has situational utility in checking Bronzor, but Drilbur will lose the fantastic Speed it needs to be such an incredible sweeper.</p>
