#605 - Elgyem
55 HP / 55 Atk / 55 Def /
85 SAtk / 55 SDef / 30 Spe
Abilities: Telepathy / Syncronize /
Analytic
When one looks at Elgyem, they don't see much. Weak defenses, SAtk and Spe stats outclassed largely by Abra, and generally useless abilities. It doesn't even warrant an analysis.
However, BW2 came along and gave Elgyem a few new toys. First off is
Analytic, which boosts the power of attacks for the slower mons. This is great for Elgyem because his speed is horrifying. This is followed by some new support moves, most notably
Trick,
Gravity, and the ever useful
Magic Coat. Finally, Elgyem recieves
Dark Pulse and
Signal Beam from Move Tutors. This means that Elgyem can't be stopped by Ghost or Dark types, who otherwise destroy it.
This also gives Elgyem a new niche; Trick Room attacker.
So, you're probably looking at this and saying, "Well, yay, new stuff. But what does it have over Abra?" Well, a couple of things. Elgyem can run an effective Eviolite set, where Abra cannot. Although having matching SDef, Elgyem boasts a stronger Def. Eviolite brings Elgyem's Def and SDef both up to 22, which is
amazing for Psychic-types. Second, Elgyem can use Magic Coat much better than Abra could ever dream of. Since Abra is so frail, it couldn't use Magic Coat effectively if it wanted to. Elgyem laughs at this as his defenses are good enough to pull it off. Finally, Elgyem can do a support set with the many supporting moves it has (which also includes
Light Screen and
Barrier), while still giving the fun of wrecking fighting types.
Discussion: Does Elgyem make a good team member? What would his role be if used on a team? What could be a good set for Elgyem to use in battle?
NOTE: Please feel free to post damage calcs (defensive or offensive). They're far more helpful than you'd think, as they can show what we should watch out for when debating moves/EVs/etc.