Espeon [Singles] [QC 0/2]

[Solerme]

[OVERVIEW]

+ Magic Bounce is a fantastic ability that makes him immune to Taunt, status moves, most phazing moves and Defog, giving him a niche over the superior Suicune and Raikou as a Calm Mind setter, and over Klefki as a dual screener.
+ Protects the field from entry hazards.
+ Solid Special Attack.
+ Good base Speed, making him a fast sweeper and an un-tauntable dual screen setter that can usually veil himself before being attacked.
+ decent movepool with good offensive coverage thanks to moves like Dazzling Gleam, Shadow Ball or Grass Knot, and decent supporting moves like Morning Sun, Yawn or Trick
- Poor defense and HP stats, leaving him vulnerable to prominent physical attackers like like Mega Kangaskhan, Mega Salamance or Talonflame.
- Little ability to answer to faster, hard hitting pokemon like Greninja and typical Choice Scarf users as Heracross or Landorus-T.
- Needs a couple of Calm Mind boosts to really come online, or faint due to his frailness.
- Can't score a KO on Aegislash also after a couple of Calm Mind, while being KOed by the combination of Shadow Ball plus Shadow Sneak.
- Psychic type suffers super effective damage from common Dark attacks
- Often hindered by bulkier pokemon as a Calm Mind sweeper and by Klefki as a dual screener.



[SET]

Name: Calm Mind Sweeper
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Dazzling Gleam / Shadow Ball
move 3: Psychic / Stored Power / Psyshock
move 4: Morning Sun
item: Leftovers
ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe


[Set Comments]

Moves
========

• Calm Mind is Espeon’s boosting move, increasing his already great special attack and his decent special defense.
• Dazzling Gleam is a solid choice to deal with Dark pokemon and hit harder Dragon pokemon. You can run Shadow Ball instead if you fear Mega Metagross or want a way to deal some damage to Aegislash, but this would leave you helpless versus Dark pokemon.
• Psychic is usually the preferred STAB option due to the physically defense oriented tier. Stored Power can also be a good option, considering that after two Calm Mind boosts it’s base power is higher that Psychic. You can run Psyshock instead if you fear special walls or the Calm Mind wars.
• Espeon’s signature move Morning Sun will help you to recover HP and can be crucial to survive in order to set up Calm Mind.

Set Details
========

• Magic Bounce makes Espeon a unique Calm Mind sweeper, along with Mega Sableye, letting you boost without the fear of being Roar’ed, Whirlwind’ed or statussed.
• The evs are pretty straightfoward: while Max Speed, along with a Timid nature, is there to speed tie with Gengar and Mega Metagross, and to hit or set up as fast as possible; max HP is to maximize Espeon's bulk. With 252 HP EVs you will resist Gengar's Shadow Ball 100% of the time, have a 31% to be OHKO'ed by Modest Hydreigon's Dark Pulse (25% if you put 4evs in SpD) and a 37,5% to be OHKO'ed by Jolly Garchomp's Outrage (31% if you put 4 Evs in Def), both pokemon that can run a Choice Scarf set, outspeeding Espeon.
• If you dont fear missing the speed ties with Gengar and Mega Metagross you can run a 196 speed evs instead to outspeed base 100's and Garchomp by 1 point, while adding 28 Evs to Defense being able to resist Jolly Garchomp's Outrage 93,7% of the time (44 EVs to be sure of surviving 100% of the time), and 36 Evs to Special Defense in order to resist Modest Hydreigon's Dark Pulse 87,5% of the time.
• Leftover is usually the preferred item, increasing Espeon's longevity with the help of Morning Sun.

Usage Tips
========

• Given his not-so-bad special defense stat, a good idea is to set up in front of special attackers which you can take hits from like Cresselia or Rotom, and heal back while boosting.
• You can also set up against a supporting pokemon like Chansey or Whimsicott, while being protected by Magic Bounce.Avoiding to switch in is a good way to keep Espeon as healty as possible.
• Comming in after a fainted teammate or when predicting a status move are both fine ideas to bring Espeon inside the battle.
• Keep in mind that you will usually need a few boosts to be able to sweep.

Team Options
========

• "Fairy-types such as Mega Mawile, Whimsicott, and Sylveon are great partners for Espeon because they can switch into predicted Dragon-type moves and deal with Dark-types such as Hydreigon and Tyranitar. Mega Mawile can KO Mega Salamence with a powerful STAB Play Rough and remove Ferrothorn off the field with Fire Fang. Whimsicott can provide speed control with Stun Spore for Espeon."
• Fire-types such as Blaziken, Talonflame, and Heatran can threaten out Steel-types such as Mega Mawile and Aegislash. Specially defensive variants of Talonflame are a great way in handling Aegislash."
• Fighting-types such as Mega Lopunny and Conkeldurr can help against threats such as Mega Kangaskhan.
• Rotom-W can handle Talonflame and Greninja, while also providing will-O-wisp support to burn physical attackers and soften attacks deal to Espeon.
• Mega Kangaskhan is a great way of getting rid of some threats with its powerful STAB Double Edge. Also, it has access to Earthquake to punish Heatran and other Steel-types.
• Thunder Wave support from Thundurus and Klefki are also great because Espeon would be able to set up. Calm Mind a little easier given the foe is paralyzed on some turns. Klefki deserves a special mention because it can help set up dual screens for Espeon.
• Garchomp is a great partner for several Pokemon, and this is no exception. While providing Stealth Rock support, it can threaten Dragon-typer, Steel Types and deal a lot of damage to opposing team before Espeon comes in
• Stealth Rock support from Mamoswine, Tyranitar, or Hippowdon is very helpful in breaking Focus Sash Pokemon such as Breloom.

[SET]

Name: Triple Shield Support
move 1: Psychic / Psyshock
move 2: Reflect
move 3: Light Screen
move 4: Yawn / Dazzling Gleam
item: Light Clay
ability: Magic Bounce
nature: Timid
evs: 236 HP / 76 Def / 196 Spe


[Set Comments]
Moves
========

• Psychic is Espeon's strongest STAB, dealing decent damage to most pokemon that doesn't resist it. You can fire a couple of this when behind the proper screen. Psyshock can be used instead to hit harder calm mind users like Suicune and Raikou, or special walls like Chansey, but Psychic is usually a better choice in a meta physical defense oriented.
• Reflect is usually the first choice when setting up due to Espeon's poor defense. Behind this veil Espeon can survive almost every non-boosted physical hit, from Adamant max attack Mega Kangaskhan's Sucker punch and Double Edge to Adamant max attack Conkeldurr's Knock off, having a second round to set up the last screen, deal some damage or just Yawn/switch out.
• Light Screen increases Espeon's already decent special defense stat, while ofcourse shielding the team for eight turns too. Just like Reflect, behind the screen Espeon longevity highly increases. An example is positive nature max special attack Aegislash's Shadow Ball dealing a maximum of 80% damage or Timid max SpA Life Orb Greninja's Dark Pulse, dealing up to 73,5% damage.
• In a tier full of set up sweeper Yawn is usually the best choice for the last slot, preventing other mons to set up freely or trying to force a switch out to safely bring in another pokemon. Dazzling Gleam can be used to still do damage to Dark types.

Set Details
========

• Thanks to Magic Bounce Espeon is a fantastic candidate for a dual screen set, immune to Taunt and bouncing back Defog that would otherwise break the dual shields.
• 236 Hp and 76 Def Evs allow you to survive a LO Adamant Talonflame's Brave Bird 100% of the time before setting up Reflect, usually ko'ing in return with Psychic after recoil and life orb's damage or just being able to set up a screen.
• 196 Speed with a Timid nature is used to outspeed positive nature base 100 Speed Pokemon such as Mega Kangaskhan and to outspeed positive nature non Choice Scarf variants of Garchomp.
• Light Clay is required to prolong the turns of Reflect and Light Screen.

Usage Tips
========

• It's usually a better idea to set up just one screen, depending on who you are against with, and then to attack, yawn to gain momentum or just switch out. Setting up both screens will often lead Espeon to faint.
• The main goal of this set is to set up screens for teammate sweepers, also if this means sacrificing Espeon it may be worth in order to give an easier time to a sweeper to come in and set up.
• Usually you will bring Espeon as a Lead, so you will be shielded by entry hazard while setting up the screens. Don't lead with it if you predict Greninja or a Mega Gengar as opposite leads, because they can ohko you before Espeon could do anything.
• Yawning the opponent and being ko'ed could be a good idea, so you can try to set up with your sweeper and take the momentum back.

Team Options
========

• Espeon fits well on offensive teams and pairs well with setup sweepers. Dragon Dance Mega Salamance or Quiver Dance Volcarona are both good partners, also due to the third shield, Magic bounce, that prevents entry hazards.
• Mega Kangaskhan is another good partner, covering Espeon's ghost weakness while checking fighting type, steel types with Earthquake and hitting hard with Double Edge.
• Azumarill appreciate the dual screen support too, so that he can easily set up Belly Drum while giving Espeon a handy switch in to Dark and Bug attacks.
• Blaziken is also a great choice not only setting up behind screens but also helping against Steel-types and Tyranitar.
• Mega Gyarados resist Ghost type moves and can set up with Dragon Dance.
• Dragonite can be extremely bulky with the combination of Multiscale plus the screens, while setting up Dragon Dances.
• In general strong hard hitting pokemon will all appreciate being behind the two veils, having in mind is a 3 versus 3 tier, so with an offensive strategy you will probably try to close the game while the screens are still active. Other good samples are Mega Heracross, Mega Mawile, Greninja or Sylveon.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
========

• Kee Berry is a good alternative over Leftovers for the Calm Mind set, helping to increase Espeon's frail defense.
• A Trick + Choice Scarf/Specs set can be used to hit hard and fast while still being able to annoy set up sweepers or trick room strategies.
• Grass knot can be considered if you want to deal superior damage to lead like Mamoswine or Swampert. Hidden Power Fire if you fear Ferrothorn or Mega Mawile.
• You can run a Timid nature with 252/252 Evs in speed and special attack with three attacks plus Substitute or Yawn, to lead and do as mush chip damage as you can while still guarding the team from entry hazards.
• A 252 hp 252 def Ev with a Bold nature can be used if you want to use Espeon as the ender of a baton pass chain, along with Stored Power.

[CHECKS AND COUNTERS]
========

**Faster Pokemon** While Talonflame threats the Calm Mind set, Greninja can beat both of Espeon’s sets. Mega Lopunny can be problematic with the combination of Fake out plus Return, and common choice scarf users such as Heracross and Landorus-T can easily check Espeon.

**Bulky set up Pokemon** Volcarona can Quiver Dance and hit hard Espeon with Bug Buzz, while becoming faster and then firing back before him. Mega Salamance can take an Espeon hit also after a Calm Mind and just Dragon Dance, Roost, and become very hard to stop if you dont have a specific counter. Azumarril is also a threat that can tank Espeon and set up Belly Drum, dealing huge damage to him with Play Rough and with Knock off even behind Reflect.

**Priority Users** Sucker Punch users such as Mega Kangaskhan or Mega Mawile can ohko the calm mind set and do heavy damage to the dual screen set. Dragonite and Lucario both can pressure Espeon and deal good damage with Extreme Speed, while also being able to set up. Adamant nature Mamoswine can revenge kill a weakened Espeon with Ice Shard max attack set if Espeon has no investment in bulk.

**Bulky Steel-types** Aegislash can easily threaten both of Espeon’s set, easily tanking Psychic moves, Dazzling Gleam, and even Shadow Ball or Hidden Power Fire after one or two calm mind boosts, KOing him back with the combination of Shadow Ball plus Shadow Sneak even at +2. A bulky set of Mega Mawile can almost freely sword dance and then punch holes through your team. Scizor and Ferrothorn can both be very hard to deal with if you dont run Hidden Power Fire.

**Bulky Dark-types** This part deserve a special mention for Tyranitar that can easily OHKO Espeon even behind Reflect, while tanking his Dazzling Gleam if Espeon doesn't have enough calm mind set up thanks to sand's special defense boost.

 

[Carbonific]

You need to post in the Analysis Reservation Thread when you decide to take up an analysis. This is especially true in Espeon's case, as it's not on the list of unreserved Pokemon and those generally need some sort of QC approval. I'd also recommend you take a look at the Battle Spot Usage as it's fairly clear Calm Mind should be Espeon's primary set and a move like Baton Pass, which has 4% usage, probably shouldn't be getting a main set slash; Pursuit in general just isn't really a thing in BSS.

 

[Solerme]

Done asking in the Reservation thread, also tho i'm not sure about how this works. For the set, i'd still like to cover the dual screen one, 'cause i think id can still do very fine in this tier, do you think this is ok? I'm fixxing the Baton pass thing anyway.

 

[Misaka Mikoto]

Done asking in the Reservation thread, also tho i'm not sure about how this works. For the set, i'd still like to cover the dual screen one, 'cause i think id can still do very fine in this tier. I'm fixxing the Baton pass thing anyway.

You might want to put this back on WIP. Calm Mind definitely needs to be added as a set. Dazzling Gleam doesn't really deserve to be in the Other Options either because it's the #1 most used move on Espeon as we speak.

As for the Overview, (that's all I'll discuss here) you need to talk more about Espeon overall. I think that 80% of the section talks about dual screens. Espeon is

• Mention what is Espeon really capable of. What does its base 110 Speed help it do in terms of outspeeding some important Pokemon?
• What does Magic Bounce also bounce back besides hazards and Taunt? Because the ability helps Espeon set up Calm Mind freely due to not being inflicted by status moves like Thunder Wave, Toxic, Will-O-Wisp, etc.
• Talk about its offensive movepool and how they help check / counter other threats. There's things like Dazzling Gleam, Shadow Ball, Grass Knot, Hidden Power Fire, etc.
• Discuss the kinds of things that Espeon lacks like its physical bulk which make strong physical attackers walk all over it, how its typing hinders it against things like Aegislash.

Make sure you work on the other sections as well. Note: There should be more Checks / Counters listed.
Remove Slowking. Not really a viable mon to mention.
" People usually underestimate his ability to survive more that one hit also without screens, if evved properly." remove from overview.

"130 base Special Attack makes you hit hard also without any Ev investiments" Reword because regardless, Espeon needs the extra fire power from Calm Mind to really deal more damage including the 252 investment to get some crucial KOes.

 

[Solerme]

Edited and added the CM set. What do you think?

 

[Misaka Mikoto]

Make sure that everything is in bullet points before we go over this.

EDIT: You don't need to bullet point the checks/counters though.

 

[Solerme]

Ok, i pointed everything with the exception of the overview and the set detail. Tell me if i need to bullet point also those descriptions

 

[Misaka Mikoto]

Eh, close enough. Overview and Set Details needed to be bullet pointed as well.

[OVERVIEW]

With his fantastic ability, a solid special attack and decent speed stat, Espeon finds a niche in the BSS tier.
Thanks to Magic Bounce he is able to control the field from entry hazard, while being immune from status moves and most of phazing moves. This makes him a good candidate to be a calm mind sweeper capable of boosting himself and heal back with his signature move Morning sun.
Given his ability Espeon finds a chance to be chosen over the otherwise stronger Alakazam and Azelf, , without the fear of being paralyzed, taunted, or phazed. Keep in mind that also considering his great base 130 special attack stat, he still needs to be at +1 or +2 to deal significant damage, or faint due to his frailness versus those pokemon that can tank hits and fire back.
With his base 110 speed stat he can also work as a good lead, being one of the faster dual screen setter, usually capable of veiling himself before being attacked or simply be used as a fast chip damage dealer, while still protecting the field from hazards.
What really stops Espeon to be more than a niche pokemon are his poor defense and HP stats and the fact that he has almost zero answers to prominent threats like Aegislash or Greninja, often leading to a forced switch or just to a sacrifice.

• You don't need to mention Alakazam or Azelf either so I'd remove that.
• Also, add physical attackers such as Mega Salamence, Mega Kangaskhan, Talonflame, and Landorus-T (the the bad HP and defense part). "Espeon's poor HP and Defense stats leaves it vulnerable to other physical attackers such as Mega Salamence, Mega Kangaskhan, Talonflame, and Landorus-T."
• Discuss its coverage movepool in allowing it to check Pokemon such as Dark-, Dragon-, Ghost-, Psychic-, and Steel-types. Things such as Hydreigon, Garchomp, Sableye (didn't mention Mega but I guess it can get the upper hand on it due to Mega Sableye having base 20 Speed and no Prankster), Mega Gardevoir, Cresselia, and Ferrothorn. Some examples include Dazzling Gleam, Shadow Ball, and Hidden Power Fire.
• You can also say that Espeon faces tough competition from other Calm Mind Pokemon such as Suicune and Raikou because Suicune has superior bulk and both of them have an easier time to check some of the top tier threats.
• Note here: Espeon also requires support from other members from its team to function more efficiently in the metagame as a Calm Mind sweeper.

[SET]
Name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psychic / Psyshock / Stored Power Swap these two due to the order of importance.
move 3: Dazzling Gleam / Shadow Ball I'd put Dazzling Gleam / Shadow Ball on top of move 2.
move 4: Morning Sun
item: Leftovers / Kee Berry I don't think this is needed and move it to Other Options.
ability: Magic Bounce
evs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe

[Set Comments]
Moves
========

- Calm Mind is Espeon’s boosting move, increasing his already great special attack and his decent special defense.

- Psychic is usually the preferred STAB option due to the physically defense oriented tier and also considering the higher base power. You can run Psyshock instead if you fear special walls. Stored Power could also be a good option, considering that after two Calm Mind boosts it’s base power is higher that Psychic.

- Dazzling Gleam is a solid choice to deal with Dark pokemon. You can run Shadow Ball instead if you fear Mega Metagross or want a way to deal some damage to Aegislash, but this would leave you helpless versus Dark pokemon.

- Espeon’s signature move Morning Sun will help you to recover HP and can be crucial to survive in order to set up Calm Mind.

• Dazzling Gleam is also meant to hit Dragon-types as well. Mention some examples of important Pokemon it hits from both Dark and Dragon.
• I'd be a little more specific with Stored Power. How many boosts are needed to KO what Pokemon?
• Psyshock is mainly ran against Pokemon that like to set up Calm Mind such as Suicune or Raikou. Be a good idea to mention Chansey as well.
• Mention that Shadow Ball is a way to keep Espeon from being walled by Steel-types because as of 6th Gen, the move is neutral on them and the type resists Dazzling Gleam and its Psychic STAB moves.

Set Details
========

- Magic Bounce makes Espeon a unique Calm Mind sweeper, along with Mega Sableye, letting you boost without the fear of being Roar’ed, Whirlwind’ed or statussed. Max Speed and max HP, along with a Timid nature, are usually required in order to hit or set up as fast as possible, while also trying to maximize Espeon's bulk.
- Morning Sun, with the help of Leftovers, will increase Espeon’s longevity.
A Kee Berry instead can be a good way to increase his poor physical defense.
If you dont fear missing the speed tie with Gengar, Latios and Mega Metagross you can run a 196 speed evs instead to outspeed base 100's and Garchomp by 1 point, while adding 60 free evs to one of Espeon's defenses, or just add some damage on special attack.

• Kee Berry should go into the Other Options.
• I don't think Espeon would really fear any type of Speed tie against a Latios, so you can remove that.
• What does 252 HP help Espeon survive against?
• I'd also mention why it's not needed to have 252 EVs in Special Attack. Espeon has Calm Mind, which can further increase its Special Attack. So it's more wise to run max HP for Espeon to take a hit.
• Note: You'll need to keep in mind that not only a lot of people run Focus Sash Garchomp (29%) but Choice Scarf Garchomp is used a lot as well. (30%).
• What EVs would be added for the Special Attack in the last sentence?

Usage Tips
========

- Given his not-so-bad special defense stat, a good idea is to set up in front of special attackers which you can take couple of hits from, like Suicune, Florges or Rotom, and heal back while boosting.
- You can also set up in front of supporting pokemon like Chansey or Whimsicott, while protected by Magic Bounce.
- Avoiding switch in is a good way to keep Espeon as healty as possible.
- Keep in mind that you will usually need a few boosts to be able to sweep.

• Florges isn't really important so you don't need to mention it.
• Remember: Even though Espeon can set up Calm Mind, Suicune can set up Calm Mind as well and I highly don't think Espeon wants to take a chance getting burned from Scald either. Morning Sun doesn't have a lot of PP. Espeon would be struggling on every other turn to recover due to the residual damage every turn. (QC)
• Also great to mention that it can come in after a fainted teammate as well. It wouldn't be taking damage either.
• I wouldn't say "supporting" Pokemon. More like "defensive" Pokemon. I'd also add Cresselia as well because it can't do anything to Espeon tbh.
• I'd also mention that Espeon can be a great status absorber for its teammates, especially if they're sweepers to disrupt any kind of annoyance they might have on your team.

Team Options
========

- Pokemon that can deal with Dark and Steel type are required in order to clear the way for Espeon. Blaziken, Mega Lopunny or Mega Mawile are all good option.
- Pokemon that can check Talonflame and Greninja, like Rotom-W that also provides wOw support for Espeon's frail physical defense.
- A solid counter to Aegislash due to Espeon's little capacity to hurt him, like Hydreigon, Mega Mawile or hard attacking fire type.

• You really need to mention more teammates for Espeon. Lets rearrange these sentences.
• "Fairy-types such as Mega Mawile, Whimsicott, and Sylveon are great partners for Espeon because they can switch into predicted Dragon-type moves and deal with Dark-types such as Hydreigon and Tyranitar. Mega Mawile can KO Mega Salamence with a powerful STAB Play Rough and remove Ferrothorn off the field with Fire Fang. Whimsicott can provide speed control with Stun Spore for Espeon."
• Fire-types such as Blaziken, Talonflame, and Heatran can threaten out Steel-types such as Mega Mawile and Aegislash. Specially defensive variants of Talonflame are a great way in handling Aegislash."
• Fighting-types such as Mega Lopunny and Conkeldurr can help against threats such as Mega Kangaskhan.
• Rotom-W: Mention that it can be used to burn physical attackers as a way to soften attacks dealt to Espeon.
• Mega Kangaskhan is a great way of getting rid of some threats with its powerful STAB Double Edge. Also, it has access to Earthquake to get rid of Heatran and other Steel-types.
• Thunder Wave support from Thundurus and Klefki are also great because Espeon would be able to set up. Calm Mind a little easier given the foe is paralyzed on some turns. Klefki deserves a special mention because it can help set up dual screens for Espeon.
• Of course you know that Garchomp is a great partner for several Pokemon within the game so I'd mention about how it can help threaten Dragon-types and deal a lot damage to the opposing team before Espeon comes in.
• Stealth Rock support from Garchomp, Mamoswine, Tyranitar, or Hippowdon is very helpful in breaking Focus Sash Pokemon such as Breloom.

I'm not in any way familiar with dual screens so here goes.

[SET]
Name: Triple Shield Support
move 1: Psychic / Psyshock
move 2: Reflect
move 3: Light Screen
move 4: Yawn / Dazzling Gleam
item: Light Clay
ability: Magic Bounce
nature: Timid
evs: 236 HP / 76 Def / 196 Spe

[Set Comments]
Moves
========

- Psychic is Espeon's strongest STAB, dealing decent damage to most pokemon that doesn't resist it. You can fire a couple of this when behind the proper screen. Psyshock can be used instead to hit harder calm mind users like Suicune and Raikou, or special walls like Chansey, but Psychic is usually a better choice in a meta physical defense oriented.

- Reflect is the first of the two screens, and is usually the first choice when setting up due to Espeon's poor defense. Behind this veil Espeon can survive almost every non-boosted physical hit, from Adamant max attack Mega Kangaskhan's Sucker punch and Double Edge to Adamant max attack +0 Conkeldurr's Knock off, having a second round to set up the last screen, deal some damage or just Yawn/switch out. To make you understand Espeon's bulk with Reflect, Max attack Adamant MegaKan's Double Edge has only a 0.8% chance to OHKO him, being ohko'ed just by a small pool of moves like Mega Heracross's Pin Missile or Adamant LO Bisharp's Knock off.

- Light Screen is the last of the two screens. It increases Espeon's already decent special defense stat, while ofcouse shielding the team for eight turns too. Just like Reflect, behind the screen Espeon longevity highly increases. An example is positive nature max special attack Aegislash's Shadow Ball dealing a maximum of 80% damage or Timid max SpA Life Orb Greninja's Dark Pulse, dealing up to 73,5% damage.

- In a tier full of set up sweeper Yawn is usually the best choice for the last slot, preventing other mons to set up freely or trying to force a switch out to safely bring in another pokemon. Dazzling Gleam can be used to still do damage to Dark types.

• You don't need to mention +0 from Conkeldurr.
• I ran some calcs with Reflect and Espeons bulk along with Adamant nature Mega Kangaskhan, Double Edge is a 2HKO (63.5 - 75.8%). With just Espeon's bulk it's still an OHKO.
• Same thing with Greninja and Aegislash. Might want to look at the calcs again. They seem incorrect.
• I'm not entirely sure about Dazzling Gleam being slashed with Yawn and at the same time, you don't want to get walled by Dark-types either if you only have a Psychic STAB move. (QC)

Set Details
========

- 236 Hp , 76 Def evs allow you to survive a LO Adamant Talonflame's Brave Bird 100% of the time before setting up Reflect, usually ko'ing in return with Psychic after recoil and life orb's damage or just being able to set up a screen.
- 196 Speed is to outspeed positive nature max evs 100's and to be faster by 1 point than Jolly Garchomp, a top pokemon in this tier.
- Gengar's Shadow Ball has only a 6,3% to OHKO

• You need to also mention Magic Bounce and Light Clay here as well. Magic Bounce keeps Espeon from getting induced by status while setting up dual screens.
• Light Clay is helpful in prolonging the turns for Reflect and Light Screen to be up.
• I don't think that regular Gengar is an honest mention because the majority of them are Mega Gengar. (QC)
• "196 Speed with a Timid nature is used to outspeed positive nature base 100 Speed Pokemon such as...." and outspeed positive nature non Choice Scarf variants of Garchomp.

Usage Tips
========

- It's usually a better idea to set up just one screen, depending on who you are against with, and then to attack, yawn to gain momentum or just switch out. Setting up both screens will often lead Espeon to faint (also tho this may be worth).
- the 90% of the time you will bring Espeon as a Lead, so you will be shielded by entry hazard while setting up the screens. Don't lead with it if you predict Greninja or a Mega Gengar as opposite leads, cause they can ohko you before Espeon could do anything.
- Yawning the opponent and being ko'ed could be a good idea, so you can try to set up with your sweeper and take the momentum back.

• I wouldn't give a percentage. Just say "usually you will bring Espeon as a lead..."
• Entry hazards and status moves.
• Also add how it's useful to set up screens for its teammates before it faints. This is the case, especially for other set up sweepers on its team.

Team Options
========

Espeon fits well on offensive teams and pairs well with setup sweepers. Dragon Dance Mega Salamance or Quiver Dance Volcarona are both good partners, also due to the third shield, Magic bounce, that prevents entry hazards.
Mega Kangaskhan is another good example, covering Espeon's ghost weakness while he checks fighting type.
In general strong hard hitting pokemon will all appreciate being behind the two veils, having in mind is a 3 versus 3 tier, so with an offensive strategy you will probably try to close the game while the screens are still active.

• I'd mention more partners here as well. Azumarill would appreciate the dual screens set up so that it can easily set up Belly Drum.
• Blaziken is also a great choice not only setting up behind screens but also helps against Steel-types and Tyranitar.
• There's Calm Mind Suicune.
• Mega Gyarados not only resisting Ghost type moves but also setting up with Dragon Dance.
• Dragonite is another example.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
========

- A Trick + Choice Scarf/Specs set can be used to hit hard and fast while still being able to annoy set up sweepers or trick room strategies.
- You can run a Timid 252/252 speed-special attack with three attacks + Yawn or Substitute, with Leftovers, to lead and do as mush chip damage as you can while still guarding the team from entry hazards.
- Grass knot can be considered if you want to deal superior damage to lead like Mamoswine or Swampert. Hidden Power Fire if you fear Ferrothorn or Mega Mawile.
- A 252 hp 252 def Ev with a Bold nature can be used if you want to use Espeon as the ender of a baton pass chain, along with Stored Power.

• I'd also add somewhere about Substitute as well.

[CHECKS AND COUNTERS]
========

**Faster Pokemon** While Talonflame threats the CM set, Greninja can beat both of Espeon’s sets. Mega Lopunny can be problematic with the combination of Fake out plus Return and common choice scarf users, such as Hydreigon, Heracross and Landorus-T can easily check Espeon.

**Bulky setters** Volcarona can Quiver Dance and hit hard Espeon with Bug Buzz, while becoming faster and then firing back before him. Cresselia and Mega Slowbro could be problematic for the Calm mind set, as they can do the same thing as Espeon, boosting and healing back, while being bulkier and able to set up Trick Room to outspeed Espeon, while you can set up screens and yawn them to force them out or just put them asleep, with the dual screen set. Bulkier variant of Mega Salamance can set up and become very hard to stop if you dont have a specific counter.

**Priority Users** Sucker Punch users such as Mega Kangaskhan or Mega Mawile can ohko the calm mind set and do heavy damage to the dual screen set. Dragonite and Lucario both can pressure Espeon and deal good damage with Extreme Speed, while also being able to set up. Adamant nature Mamoswine can revenge kill a weakened Espeon with Ice Shard, dealing up to 49% Hp with an Adamant, max attack set if Espeon has no investment in bulk.

**Bulky Steel-types** Aegislash can easily threaten both of Espeon’s set, easily tanking Psychic moves, Dazzling Gleam, and even Shadow Ball or HP Hidden Power Fire after one or two calm mind boosts, KOing him back with the combination of Shadow Ball plus Shadow Sneak also at +2. A bulky set of Mega Mawile can almost freely sword dance and then punch holes through your team. Scizor can be also problematic if you dont run HP Hidden Power Fire.

• Choice Scarf Hydreigon doesn't OHKO Espeon and it also needs to be wary of Dazzling Gleam because it's 4x weak to Fairy attacks. (QC)
• I am not entirely sure about Cresselia because it can't do anything much back to Espeon. Also Calm Mind isn't very common on Cresselia. (QC)
• I'd add Ferrothorn as well because Espeon does not enjoy taking a hit from Gyro Ball either.
• I'd also add Azumarill into the list because it's not KOed by any of Espeon's moves unless Espeon has two Calm Mind boosts already. Azumarill can KO Espeon with Play Rough or Knock Off. Azumarill can still do a considerate amount with Knock Off while Espeon is under Reflect.
• I'd also add Mega Tyranitar as well. If Espeon doesn't have enough Calm Minds set up, Mega Tyranitar can just simply KO it with a STAB Crunch.

I did as much as I can. I'm not going over it once more after the changes. QC can do that instead.

 

[Solerme]

Edited everything in bullet point.
Really tried my best now, thanks for the help :]

 

[bobochan]

My thoughts:
You need a good opening sentence that summarises Espeon's role and positive qualities in the metagame. For example, it's one of the best Baton Pass receivers in the game due to Magic Bounce, reliable recovery and can further grab boosts via Calm Mind.
However, due to appalling Defense, any heavy hitters in Battle Spot (very common) will make quick work of Espeon. It's also outclassed in every single role that it performs, CM sweeping, screener, Trick. To make matters worse, Morning Sun isn't even a completely "reliable" recovery move. It has extremely low PP often times not enough, and in any weather conditions bar sun, it only heals 25%.
Just by looking at the top 4 teammates for Espeon on the stats, 3 out of the 4 are Baton Pass users.
Therefore you can say that Espeon requires dedicated support from its team in order to make it work. It's also very match up dependent that you're going to be benching it most of the time. Hence the low ranking (below B) and usage (~70).

[OVERVIEW]

-Magic Bounce is a fantastic ability that makes him immune to Taunt, status moves, most phazing moves and Defog, giving him a niche over the superior Suicune and Raikou as a Calm Mind setter, and over Klefki as a dual screener.
Defog is almost non-existent in the metagame, it's definitely not worth mentioning.
-Protects the field from entry hazards.
-Solid Special Attack.
Way too brief.
-Good base Speed, making him a fast sweeper and an un-tauntable dual screen setter that can usually veil himself before being attacked.
"Fast sweeper" is incorrect here. Espeon's niche is a Baton Pass receiver, it can't do any sweeping or setting up alone (most of the time).
-Decent movepool with good offensive coverage thanks to moves like Dazzling Gleam, Shadow Ball or Grass Knot, and decent supporting moves like Morning Sun, Yawn or Trick.
"Good offensive coverage" but can't take advantage of them, Shadow Ball hits super effectively but doesn't even 2HKO or 3HKO the ones it's meant to hit (Aegislash).
-Psychic type suffers super effective damage from common Dark attacks.
-Often hindered by bulkier pokemon as a Calm Mind sweeper and by Klefki as a dual screener.
Poor sentences that doesn't clearly get their point across to the readers. Try to somehow condense Espeon's negative points instead of spreading them out in six bits and pieces.

[SET]
Name: Calm Mind Sweeper
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Dazzling Gleam / Shadow Ball / Substitute
move 3: Psychic / Stored Power / Psyshock
move 4: Morning Sun
item: Leftovers
ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe

Changes: Shadow Ball isn't even top 10 moves, in terms of usefulness and what it hits, it's still outclassed by what Hidden Power offers [Fire/Ground]. Psychic is a better move on the screen set or the choice sets when you're trying to score potential OHKO.
Calm Mind and Morning Sun are staple moves. Choice of STAB can be Stored Power or Psyshock (Baton Pass team or non-Baton pass team, both moves wins CM wars). The last slot depends on preference: Subsitute is safer, lets you set up safely on weak Scald, and makes you less prone to OHKO moves or crits. Dazzling Gleam hits Dark-types, that wall it completely.

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

You can put Shadow Ball in Other Options for now if you want.
Like I said earlier, Psychic is better on other sets.
Mention Subsitute if you're gonna slash it onto the main set.

Usage Tips
========

-You can also set up against a supporting pokemon like Chansey or Whimsicott, while being protected by Magic Bounce.
Chansey is a bad example here. It actually has a solid matchup against Espeon, especially during early stages of the game. Seismic Toss has 4 times more PP than Morning Sun, it can muscle past your recovery while an unboosted Espeon pose no threat it.

Team Options
========

Umbreon is a good teammate for Espeon. It takes on physical attackers with STAB Foul Play, while easily coming into Dark- and Ghost-type moves. It's also a nice Baton Pass user to pass boosts onto Espeon (if you decide to use it).

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

-Behind this veil Espeon can survive almost every non-boosted physical hit, from Adamant max attack Mega Kangaskhan's Sucker punch and Double Edge to Adamant max attack Conkeldurr's Knock off, having a second round to set up the last screen, deal some damage or just Yawn/switch out.
The part with Mega Kangaskhan is very irrelevant here. Fake Out does a huge chunk and it can finish off Espeon regardless if its next attack.
-Just like Reflect, behind the screen Espeon longevity highly increases. An example is positive nature max special attack Aegislash's Shadow Ball dealing a maximum of 80% damage or Timid max SpA Life Orb Greninja's Dark Pulse, dealing up to 73,5% damage.
"Longevity highly increases" yet these attacks can still easily 2HKO (further proving how bad Espeon's bulk is). This part just seems weird overall, consider rewording.

Set Details
========

-Thanks to Magic Bounce Espeon is a fantastic candidate for a dual screen set, immune to Taunt and bouncing back Defog that would otherwise break the dual shields.
Wrong metagame to be talking about Defog.

Usage Tips
========

This section could use more work. (Another QC member with more experience can take a look.)
As a suicide dual screen setter, Espeon is outclassed by Latios and Raikou to a certain extent. Being as frail as Espeon, it's entirely possible it'll go down before it can even make a move, making it dead weight against certain team matchups.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

-A Trick + Choice Scarf/Specs set can be used to hit hard and fast while still being able to annoy set up sweepers or trick room strategies.
Trick Room is too specific here, just cripple defensive threats is fine.
-Hidden Power Fire if you fear Ferrothorn or Mega Mawile.
Hidden Power Ground if you don't want to be walled by Heatran, still hits Mega Mawile, Aegislash, while not losing the crucial 110 Speed tier.

Checks and Counters
===================

Note: Conkeldurr's Knock Off OHKOs any variants of Espeon prior to screens. Neither Psyshock and Psychic or OHKO, unless you run Choice Specs.

Comments
===================

I'll be honest here, you were simply not ready for this analysis. I didn't want Lucy's post going to waste and received your PM this morning so I had a look at this. But unfortunately it's still not ready to be written up.

You mentioned twice about Defog and clearly this isn't the metagame for it, to quote Hulavuta:
Finally, like with all analyses forums, don't reserve an analysis if you don't actually play the metagame. This should be common sense but it bears repeating. 3v3 is not just "OU but with only half a team", it is completely different. Viable Pokemon, sets, counters, etc. are all different and require you to actually play to understand. For example, we know you haven't really played when you start mentioning things like Rapid Spin, Spinblocking, or Defog.

Here are a few users who can help you out with the rest of the check, their experience and knowledge with Espeon greatly exceeds mine (especially Dual Screens set). Feel free to PM them:
cant say, NOVED, Theorymon, Psynergy, Demantoid

 

[cant say]

I'm terribly sorry Solerme but I'm going to have to stop this analysis where it's at and lock it. There are a few things that I need to address:

1. You posted the thread without first reserving the Pokemon, this tells me you hadn't bothered to read the rules or learn how the process works.
2. You posted in the reservation thread after being told you had to, only to keep working on this without approval (the whole reason the reservation thread exists).
3. Espeon has no role in the Battle Spot Singles metagame and therefore does not require an analysis.
4. The work so far is not up to standard, and judging from what you had originally in your edit history I'm not even sure that you play Battle Spot Singles in the first place. This seems to just be derived from the usage stats and current QC input, rather than your experience. We are not here to write the analysis for you and have you copy-paste it into the OP...

I'm sorry that you put so much work into this, only for it to be locked now rather than earlier. That's our fault as a QC team for not nipping it in the bud early. This analysis should not have been commented on / checked by anyone, QC or not QC team, as it was clearly not approved nor go through the proper screening first.

If you want to become more involved in the Battle Spot community in the hopes of perhaps writing again, I urge you to check out the Battle Spot forum and PS room so that you can improve your general BSS knowledge.

Again, sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused. Feel free to PM either myself, or anyone else on the QC team if you have any questions.