Man i remember when this thing was everywhere in BW1, so fun to use and such a nightmare to face x_x.
Feraligatr @ Life Orb / Mystic Water
Trait: Torrent
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spd
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Waterfall
- Return / Crunch
- Aqua Jet
Swords Dance Feraligatr is and always has been one of the most dangerous Pokemon in the tier when left unchecked. Feraligatr uses its great bulk and decent defensive typing to set up a Swords Dance against most opponents, and if the opponent is unlucky enough to knock Feraligatr down to the Torrent sweet spot, their gonna have a hard time stopping Gatr from sweeping their team. Life Orb gives Feraligatr more power on all of its attacks in exchange for some hp every time it attacks, while Mystic water still boosts the power of Feraligatr's Water-type moves (but not Return/Crunch!) while eliminating the recoil that Gatr suffers from when using Life Orb.
Sadly, i'd say Feraligatr is a fallen star in the BW2 RU metagame, while its still a perfectly good Pokemon that can sweep any unprepared team, its starting to fall out of usage as players start to gravitate to Kabutops as their Water-type of choice. Kabutops has a strong secondary STAB in the form of Stone Edge to use, so it can get past many of the threats that Feraligatr struggles with, to make matters worse for Feraligatr, Kabutops is also the best Rapid Spinner RU has to offer, OHKOing every available Ghost-type Pokemon in the tier after a boost. Even NU star Samurott gives Feraligatr competition as a physical Water-type, as its capable of OHKOing Gatr's best counter: Tangrowth with ease with a +2 Megahorn. Nonthenless, if you play Swords Dance Feraligatr to its strengths (It has Torrent and some bulk over Kabutops, and it has more Speed and hits slightly harder than Samurott) it's still an excellent option for any RU team in need of a Physical Water-type, and a big threat that any team should be prepared for.
Im interested in how well Dragon Dance Feraligatr can perform in the current RU metagame, it recieves competition from Crawdaunt, who hits much harder, but Feraligatr has a significant amount of Speed over the grumpy crayfish, allowing it to outspeed Sceptile, who can revenge kill Crawdaunt with ease, as well as a slew of other threats. Feraligatr also has bulk over Crawdaunt, making it easier to set up. So, has anyone used Dragon Dance Feraligatr lately? If so, how did it do? Was it effective? Or should we wait until sheer force gets released and pray it'll be usable with DD?