
http://www.smogon.com/bw/pokemon/crawdaunt
[Overview]
<p>Crawdaunt was never a very good Pokemon in past generations. It had strong STABs and a high base Attack, but its pathetic Base 55 Speed stat kept it from doing pretty much anything useful. However, its first ray of light came when it obtained Dragon Dance as an HGSS Egg move. This allowed Crawdaunt to finally raise its Speed and possibly even attempt a sweep. Although the power of the metagame around it has risen dramatically, Crawdaunt has only improved in the 5th Generation. It received the ability Adaptability from the Dream World, raising its STAB modifier from 1.5x to 2x. Combined with the excellent coverage of Water- and Dark-type STABs, Crawdaunt has the raw power to smash through many teams in UU after a Dragon Dance. Although Feraligatr may seem to outclass Crawdaunt in a sweeping role, Crawdaunt boasts a secondary Dark-type STAB to dispose of walls such as Deoxys-D. However, Crawdaunt still has its fair share of problems on the defensive side. Its paper-thin defenses mean that priority moves spell trouble for our dancing friend, especially considering that Crawdaunt's secondary Dark typing give it a weakness to Mach Punch and Vacuum Wave. In addition, even after a Dragon Dance, Crawdaunt can be revenge killed by fast Pokemon thanks to its abysmal Speed. Overall, if you need a sweeper for a UU team, it's always worth giving Crawdaunt a look.</p>
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Crunch
move 4: Superpower / Taunt / Substitute
item: Life Orb
ability: Adaptability
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 12 HP / 252 Atk / 244 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set makes use of the move Dragon Dance to raise Crawdaunt's Speed and Attack. After one boost, it outspeeds Pokemon with a base Speed of 105 and reaches 508 Attack, enabling it to break through many UU teams. Coupled with Crawdaunt's excellent dual Base 160 Power STABs, the crab will have very few troubles sweeping given the proper support.</p>
<p>The moves employed on this set are fairly straightforward. Dragon Dance is the basis of the set, boosting Crawdaunt's Attack and Speed to prime it for a sweep. Waterfall and Crunch are Crawdaunt's main attacks, with their awesome combined coverage capable of hitting almost every Pokemon in UU for neutral damage. However, the last slot is a much more difficult choice to make. Superpower is the primary option, enabling Crawdaunt to massacre Ferroseed and Empoleon, which would otherwise wall it. However, Taunt shuts down walls and prevents them from hitting Crawdaunt with a crippling status effect or setting up hazards or stat boosts. Substitute also stops Crawdaunt from being affected by status, and has the added bonus of allowing Crawdaunt to scout for moves its opponent may be able to stop it with.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EVs on this set could hardly be more simple, enabling Crawdaunt to outspeed Pokemon with a base Speed of 105 after a Dragon Dance, and giving it maximum attack power to help it blast through teams. The leftover 12 EVs go into Crawdaunt's HP, giving it a bit of help with taking stray resisted attacks. A Jolly nature enables Crawdaunt to outspeed Pokemon with a base Speed of up to 105 that also have a boosting nature, but if you really want extra power an Adamant nature is usable. A Life Orb is the suggested item because Crawdaunt needs all the power it can get, and isn't bulky at all so an item such as Leftovers does it no good. Crabhammer can be used for a slight increase in Base Power, but Waterfall's accuracy and flinch chance are far more useful.</p>
<p>The best teammates for this set are those that eliminate Crawdaunt's counters and help it sweep. Dugtrio is a great option for taking out Raikou, which gives Crawdaunt a lot of trouble. Dugtrio can also eliminate Empoleon, because if Crawdaunt doesn't employ Superpower, the metal penguin can wall the crab easily. Checks for Hitmontop and Arcanine are necessary to use with Crawdaunt. Slowbro works well for checking both of them, and Celebi is a great check for Hitmontop. In addition, a user of the move Rain Dance can be quite beneficial to Crawdaunt, as rain boosts Waterfall's Base Power to a ridiculous 270.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>While there are a few other sets that Crawdaunt can employ, most of them fall flat due to its terrible Speed. A Choice Band set can be used for huge power immediately, but unlike the Dragon Dance set it can't switch moves and is revenged very easily since it has no way to boost its Speed. Swords Dance gives Crawdaunt simply massive power. Almost nothing in UU can avoid a OHKO from a Crawdaunt with +2 Attack. However, it also suffers from the problem of having awful Speed, allowing it to be easily revenge killed.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Priority is an excellent way of checking Crawdaunt due to its awful defenses. Hitmontop is amazingly adept at this, OHKOing Crawdaunt with a STAB Mach Punch and even packing Intimidate to cushion the blow on its way in. While Arcanine can pick off weakened Crawdaunt with Extremespeed, if the crab is still in good health it can take the hit and massacre Arcanine with a STAB Water-type attack. Even after one Dragon Dance, Raikou, Azelf, and Jolteon that run speed-increasing natures outspeed Crawdaunt and can easily OHKO it with Electric- and Grass-type moves. If Crawdaunt does not use Superpower, Ferroseed and Empoleon can soak up anything Crawdaunt can throw at them easily. In addditon, Tangrowth can take a boosted Crunch easily and retaliate with a STAB Grass-type move. Lastly, the extremely rare Poliwrath takes negligible damage from anything Crawdaunt can do and phazes it out with STAB Circle Throw.</p>