Murkrow

Way back when, to me at least, Murkrow was one of those lame non-evolvers that I figured Nintendo just inserted into the games to bolster their new type, Dark. Then, much later, it got an evolution that was pretty decent, able to frustrate a lot of ghosts/psychics anyhow. Now, in the wonderful black-and-white world we now occupy, Murkrow got a couple toys to play with: the ability Prankster, and the item Eviolite.

A quick glance at Murkrow's defenses will make the ordinary man go "wtf," and there's definitely good reason for that. Defensively maxed, with Eviolite, Murkrow can take a SE hit from a few Pokemon, but it isn't surviving two SE hits like, say, Cresselia or Porygon2. It is heavily reliant on its partner (in double battles) to help it use status-category moves. It is also reliant on the element of surprise it currently possesses: Murkrow is not only somewhat unknown, but it has a considerable number of moves at its disposal, making stopping it a little difficult if you just have brute force in your vanguard.

This effin' bird has SO MANY MOVES it's a wonder trying to settle on one moveset. When I was building one months ago some of these sets occurred to me as especially potent, usually serving as the core to the team in my experiences with them:




->Frustrator<-



Murkrow @ Eviolite
CAREFUL
+Prankster+
252 HP / 130 Def / 128 SpD
-Thunder Wave
-FeatherDance / Swagger / Quash
-Night Shade / Brave Bird
-Taunt / Roost

All-around annoyer. Thunder Wave helps immensely in a slow- to moderate-speed team and severely hurts the occasional Tailwind team; FeatherDance hampers the largely-physical Ground-types that can't be slowed by Thunder Wave and forces switches; Swagger does the opposite and has a 50% chance (all other things equal) of stopping the opponent for at least one turn; Quash puts the foe of choice at the end of the speed list for that turn, which is helpful when your ally is slow and the other foe is very slow. Taunt (theoretically) stops Trick Room and cripples similar status-reliant Pokemon like Whimsicott if they don't get to you first. Night Shade is usually the better attack choice, as it doesn't have any recoil and ignores defensive boosts, but Brave Bird hits every type for at least a little damage. It is also worth mentioning that, while Murkrow isn't very bulky even with Eviolite, since Roost removes its three ordinary weaknesses and gives it two in its place, it's a valuable move, and the foe caught unawares may hand you, for instance, <40% damage with a now-neutral Ice Beam or Thunderbolt.

The EVs here are not very complex, largely because the GBU contains such a huge crapload of different Pokemon, of all different EV arrangements and innovations, that it's hard to calculate useful numbers that will ever actually matter. Careful was chosen because I am at least certain that Murkrow faces more danger from special attacks than physical, since even a STAB Rock Slide isn't likely to OHKO, but a good Thunderbolt/Ice Beam might.

->Tailwind<-



Murkrow @ Focus Sash
ADAMANT
+Prankster+
6 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
-Tailwind
-Drill Peck / Night Shade
-Taunt / Roost
-Protect / Substitute

Meant to stay alive long enough to Tailwind and open the threshold to a world of pain for the enemy party. The attack is again very much a matter of taste, but unless you decide to run Eviolite (and you'd need a complete shift in EVs for it to mean anything) you at least want to stay away from Brave Bird. There are better overall Tailwind users, statistically speaking, but Murkrow's element of surprise once again gives it an advantage.

It should be mentioned that Murkrow is perfectly usable here with an Eviolite and its Spe EVs invested elsewhere; the Spe investment was made so that it can still be useful outside of the short-length Tailwind, and since it's wearing Focus Sash they don't have anywhere else to go. In the case of it wearing Eviolite and having a defensive spread, Brave Bird is entirely usable, only it isn't mentioned here because with all these changes Murkrow is practically on its way to another set.

On the second set, Brave Bird should be a main option if you're running Roost. In order for Roost to actually work and let the user lose their Flying-type weaknesses, the user has to have taken some damage first. Better to have it inflicted by Brave Bird first rather than wait for your opponent to hit Murkrow with a super-effective attack.

Don't forget priority Quash, too. It'll change the turn order immediately, unlike Thunder Wave.

It's too early to tell if Murkrow will end up being a top-tier threat, but I think at the very least it'll be one of those Pokemon to watch out for.

OmegaDonut said:

On the second set, Brave Bird should be a main option if you're running Roost. In order for Roost to actually work and let the user lose their Flying-type weaknesses, the user has to have taken some damage first. Better to have it inflicted by Brave Bird first rather than wait for your opponent to hit Murkrow with a super-effective attack.

Click to expand...

I definitely agree if Murkrow is running Eviolite or an item besides Focus Sash. I don't think a third set should be made, but I'll make an addendum that says if Murkrow is running bulky EVs and Eviolite as in the first set, Brave Bird is a viable option.

OmegaDonut said:

Don't forget priority Quash, too. It'll change the turn order immediately, unlike Thunder Wave.

Click to expand...

I don't see Quash amounting to much--it only delays the attack, so Murkrow's partner would have to either KO the Pokemon that was Quash'd and fall prey to the other foe's attack, or KO the other foe and be hit by the delayed attack anyway--but it certainly merits some consideration. I'll edit it in.

OmegaDonut said:

It's too early to tell if Murkrow will end up being a top-tier threat, but I think at the very least it'll be one of those Pokemon to watch out for.

Click to expand...

I don't think it will be a top-tier threat with Thundurus around. I think it will be like an amorphous blob in your peripheral vision of whose existence you must be vaguely aware yet not focused on like the threats directly in front. Not only is Thundurus a replacement for it in many aspects, he also KO's Murkrow with Thunderbolt or Taunts it out of commission. But then again, I don't want to end up in somebody's sig when a year later Murkrow is suddenly the premier status-inflicter, so I won't say it's obselete. Personally I love it, and would like to see what kind of status moves it might get in Pokemon "Gray."

Thank you for the suggestions, I'll fix things promptly.