Lillipup
[Overview]
<p>While it may be outclassed in its role by Eevee and (to a lesser extent) Rattata, Lillipup still has the makings of a good offensive Normal-type. It boasts good Attack and Speed stats, allowing it to dish out some hurt thanks to its good base 60 Attack. Lillipup has an interesting ability in Vital Spirit, allowing it some free switch-ins and an immunity to sleep, both of which are great for sweeping. Access to STAB Return is a great boon, and with good coverage moves in Crunch and Wild Charge, Lillipup is not be trifled with. However, it must be emphasized that while Lillipup is not the best at what it does, though it is certainly usable and worth a team slot.</p>
[SET]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Return
move 2: Wild Charge
move 3: Fire Fang
move 4: Crunch / Ice Fang
item: Life Orb
ability: Vital Spirit
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 200 Atk / 236 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is basically the best set that Lillipup can run. Lillipup has a decent 15 Attack with a Jolly nature, and with a Life Orb, STAB Return is going to sting a little if you're not a Ghost-, Rock-, or Steel-type. Wild Charge can easily take care of any incoming Water-types, including Frillish aiming to take advantage of Return. Fire Fang allows Lillipup to hit Steel-types hard, the most important of which is Ferroseed, who completely walls this set otherwise. Lastly, Crunch allows Lillipup to hit Ghost-types, including the aforementioned Frillish. Ice Fang is another coverage option that enables Lillipup to hit Dragon-types for huge damage.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This set uses maximum investment in Attack and Speed to maximise the damage that Lillipup can cause. Jolly is the preferred nature over Adamant as Lillipup has a decent amount of power as it is, but is a bit lacking in Speed if not running Jolly. Life Orb is the item of choice, allowing Lillipup to hit hard while being able to switch attacks at the same time.</p>
<p>Lillipup has plenty of moves at its disposal, though they aren't necessarily the best ones. Moves such as Dig and Aerial Ace can be used if your team needs it, but they really don't need to be used over any of the moves listed as Lillipup will lose coverage on important Pokemon if it chooses to forgo Crunch. Lillipup can also make a good user of Choice Scarf, hitting 22 Speed with an Adamant nature, meaning that it has power as well as Speed. Choice Band is also an option, but Lillipup doesn't really benefit from having it over Life Orb.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Lillipup has some other options, though they really aren't anything to write home about. It has access to Howl, allowing it to run a boosting set, though it really needs all the coverage it can get, so using Howl is usually a waste of a moveslot. Reversal can be used on the set, however, it is both risky and somewhat redundant. Yawn, Thunder Wave, Roar, and Toxic can be used as fillers or as the main moves of their own set, though other Pokemon run these moves better and Lillipup just doesn't have the space on a moveset for it. Lillipup also has a fairly extensive special movepool, though unfortunately it really can't use it due to its terrible base 25 Special Attack.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p> Fighting-types can lay down the hurt on Lillipup, though most will take a number from Return if they come in on it. Anything that is faster than Lillipup and takes little damage from one of its moves can be called checks if they can dispose of it easily. Good examples include Houndour and Chinchou, getting a free switch in on a Fire Fang or Wild Charge. In short, anything faster with a powerful attack can easily take out Lillipup, as its defenses aren't anything to write home about.</p>
[Dream World]
<p>Lillipup receives Run Away from the Dream World, and this is useless competitively, meaning that it should never be used.</p>
