QC: [3/3]
GP: [2/2]
[Overview]
<p>Crawdaunt returns in BW as one of the most threatening Pokemon in the RU tier. Do not underestimate this crabby crustacean. If you do, the blow of his mighty pincers might very well be the last thing you see. Because of his insane base 120 Attack and access to one of the best boosting moves, Dragon Dance, Crawdaunt is an immediate offensive threat. Let's not forget the incredible gift that the Dream World has bestowed upon him: the ability Adaptability. Adaptability increases Crawdaunt's STAB multiplier from the normal 1.5 to 2, which makes him even more threatening because of the near-perfect coverage his STAB combination provides.</p>
<p>However, there is one thing that holds Crawdaunt back: his abysmal Speed stat. Crawdaunt's low base Speed stat of 55 makes him easily susceptible to being revenge killed, even with a +1 Speed boost. Although Crawdaunt has a decent Defense stat, his base HP is too low to be of any help under most circumstances. Additionally, his base 55 Special Defense stat cannot withstand even neutral special attacks. Despite his lackluster defenses, Crawdaunt is an excellent choice for any team that needs a powerful offensive threat.</p>
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Crunch
move 4: Substitute / Taunt
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
ability: Adaptability
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Attack / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set utilizes Dragon Dance to prepare Crawdaunt for a sweep, boosting his Attack to a ridiculous 508 and enough Speed to outrun positive base 105 Pokemon. Waterfall and Crunch are reliable STAB attacks and together provide excellent coverage as they are only resisted by Ferroseed, Poliwrath, and other Crawdaunt in RU, and have a Base Power of 160thanks to Adaptability. Substitute allows Crawdaunt to avoid being crippled by status such as Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave from Pokemon such as Rotom and Ferroseed. However, Taunt can be used over Substitute to block status as well, and prevent the foe from healing, all without the loss of HP from Substitute. If Substitute is used, the item choice should be Leftovers because the recoil from Life Orb and the health lost from Substitute will quickly wear Crawdaunt down.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Crawdaunt can use Superpower as an alternative to Taunt and Substitute, to hit Steel-types such as Ferroseed, but Crawdaunt is better off using its STAB attacks as there are few Steel-types in the tier. Ice Beam is an interesting choice, as it allows Crawdaunt to hit one of its biggest checks: Tangrowth. It does 69.8% - 82.2% damage with a neutral nature, uninvested, when equipped with a Life Orb. However, a Jolly +1 Life Orb boosted Crunch does 49.5% - 58.4% damage, which is also a 2HKO with Stealth Rock support. In addition, although Ice Beam does hit Tangrowth harder than Crunch, it hits practically nothing else. Pokemon who can take Electric- and Grass-type attacks, such as Munchlax and Ferroseed, make excellent partners to cover Crawdaunt's weaker specially defensive side. Ferroseed helps Crawdaunt a lot, especially with Thunder Wave, Stealth Rock, and Spikes support. Dusknoir is another great teammate, as he provides burn support and is immune to Fighting-type attacks, which allows him to take on threats such as Poliwrath. Rotom makes an excellent offensive partner to Crawdaunt; its Ghost-typing allows it to switch into Fighting-type attacks, and its Electric-type STAB hits Water-types for super effective damage, and can keep up the offensive momentum by using Volt Switch.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Toxic / Knock Off
item: Choice Band
ability: Adaptability
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Instead of using Dragon Dance to boost his Attack, Choice Band allows Crawdaunt to hit hard right off the bat. Thanks to his excellent dual Dark / Water typing and Adaptability, there are few Pokemon who can even think about switching in. Waterfall and Crunch are the main attacks for this set, both having a massive Base Power of 160. Superpower allows Crawdaunt to hit Steel-types for super effective damage. The last moveslot is basically filler, as Crunch and Waterfall alone are enough for this set. Toxic allows Crawdaunt to cripple bulky Pokemon such as Tangrowth and Alomomola while Knock Off has the nice effect of removing the foe's item.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Crabhammer can be used instead of Waterfall. It is a slightly stronger STAB attack, but has 90% accuracy. Because this set is similar to the Dragon Dance set, the same teammates work well with this set. Ferroseed is an excellent teammate to Crawdaunt, providing Spikes, Stealth Rock, and Thunder Wave support, while resisting Electric- and Grass-type attacks aimed at Crawdaunt. Bulky Ghosts such as Dusknoir and Cofagrigus are good partners to take the Fighting-type attacks aimed at Crawdaunt, and can block any of the foe's attempts at spinning away hazards. Because of this set's immediate offensive presence, it spells terror for stall teams, especially with a layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock up. As with the Dragon Dance set, Rotom and its other formes make great teammates to this set their Electric-type STAB hitting Pokemon who resist Crawdaunt's STAB attacks, such as Poliwrath and opposing Crawdaunt.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Unfortunately, Crawdaunt has very few other options. However, Crawdaunt has access to Swords Dance and a set with 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Speed, an Adamant or Jolly nature, and a moveset of Waterfall, Crunch, Substitute, and Swords Dance can be used. This set makes Crawdaunt insanely powerful after one boost, and can be used to decimate slower bulky offense and stall teams.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>There are very few Pokemon that can take a hit from Crawdaunt because of its high Attack stat and Adaptability boosting both of its STAB moves, which provide excellent coverage. Ferroseed resists both of Crawdaunt's STABs, but unless it has Bullet Seed, sets with Substitute can set up on it, as Substitute blocks status, Leech Seed, and aren't broken by Gyro Ball. Ferroseed must also be cautious of a super effective Superpower from the Choice Band set. Defensive Poliwrath makes an excellent counter to Crawdaunt, and is probably the most effective check in RU. Water Absorb makes Crawdaunt's Water-type attacks useless. Poliwrath's Fighting typing allows it to resist Crunch, and hit Crawdaunt back for super effective damage. Tangrowth is another excellent counter to Crawdaunt. Tangrowth's insane Defense and HP stats allow him to take even boosted attacks from Crawdaunt and can hit Crawdaunt back with a super effective, STAB Grass-type attack. Due to Crawdaunt's low Speed, most Pokemon equipped with a Choice Scarf or a naturally high Speed stat will still outspeed him even after a boost. Therefore, outspeeding him is one of the most effective ways of checking him. Pokemon such as Porygon-Z, Primeape, Rotom (and Rotom Formes), Sceptile, and Galvantula, can all OHKO him with a super effective attack.</p>
GP: [2/2]
[Overview]
<p>Crawdaunt returns in BW as one of the most threatening Pokemon in the RU tier. Do not underestimate this crabby crustacean. If you do, the blow of his mighty pincers might very well be the last thing you see. Because of his insane base 120 Attack and access to one of the best boosting moves, Dragon Dance, Crawdaunt is an immediate offensive threat. Let's not forget the incredible gift that the Dream World has bestowed upon him: the ability Adaptability. Adaptability increases Crawdaunt's STAB multiplier from the normal 1.5 to 2, which makes him even more threatening because of the near-perfect coverage his STAB combination provides.</p>
<p>However, there is one thing that holds Crawdaunt back: his abysmal Speed stat. Crawdaunt's low base Speed stat of 55 makes him easily susceptible to being revenge killed, even with a +1 Speed boost. Although Crawdaunt has a decent Defense stat, his base HP is too low to be of any help under most circumstances. Additionally, his base 55 Special Defense stat cannot withstand even neutral special attacks. Despite his lackluster defenses, Crawdaunt is an excellent choice for any team that needs a powerful offensive threat.</p>
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Crunch
move 4: Substitute / Taunt
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
ability: Adaptability
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Attack / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set utilizes Dragon Dance to prepare Crawdaunt for a sweep, boosting his Attack to a ridiculous 508 and enough Speed to outrun positive base 105 Pokemon. Waterfall and Crunch are reliable STAB attacks and together provide excellent coverage as they are only resisted by Ferroseed, Poliwrath, and other Crawdaunt in RU, and have a Base Power of 160thanks to Adaptability. Substitute allows Crawdaunt to avoid being crippled by status such as Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave from Pokemon such as Rotom and Ferroseed. However, Taunt can be used over Substitute to block status as well, and prevent the foe from healing, all without the loss of HP from Substitute. If Substitute is used, the item choice should be Leftovers because the recoil from Life Orb and the health lost from Substitute will quickly wear Crawdaunt down.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Crawdaunt can use Superpower as an alternative to Taunt and Substitute, to hit Steel-types such as Ferroseed, but Crawdaunt is better off using its STAB attacks as there are few Steel-types in the tier. Ice Beam is an interesting choice, as it allows Crawdaunt to hit one of its biggest checks: Tangrowth. It does 69.8% - 82.2% damage with a neutral nature, uninvested, when equipped with a Life Orb. However, a Jolly +1 Life Orb boosted Crunch does 49.5% - 58.4% damage, which is also a 2HKO with Stealth Rock support. In addition, although Ice Beam does hit Tangrowth harder than Crunch, it hits practically nothing else. Pokemon who can take Electric- and Grass-type attacks, such as Munchlax and Ferroseed, make excellent partners to cover Crawdaunt's weaker specially defensive side. Ferroseed helps Crawdaunt a lot, especially with Thunder Wave, Stealth Rock, and Spikes support. Dusknoir is another great teammate, as he provides burn support and is immune to Fighting-type attacks, which allows him to take on threats such as Poliwrath. Rotom makes an excellent offensive partner to Crawdaunt; its Ghost-typing allows it to switch into Fighting-type attacks, and its Electric-type STAB hits Water-types for super effective damage, and can keep up the offensive momentum by using Volt Switch.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Toxic / Knock Off
item: Choice Band
ability: Adaptability
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Instead of using Dragon Dance to boost his Attack, Choice Band allows Crawdaunt to hit hard right off the bat. Thanks to his excellent dual Dark / Water typing and Adaptability, there are few Pokemon who can even think about switching in. Waterfall and Crunch are the main attacks for this set, both having a massive Base Power of 160. Superpower allows Crawdaunt to hit Steel-types for super effective damage. The last moveslot is basically filler, as Crunch and Waterfall alone are enough for this set. Toxic allows Crawdaunt to cripple bulky Pokemon such as Tangrowth and Alomomola while Knock Off has the nice effect of removing the foe's item.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Crabhammer can be used instead of Waterfall. It is a slightly stronger STAB attack, but has 90% accuracy. Because this set is similar to the Dragon Dance set, the same teammates work well with this set. Ferroseed is an excellent teammate to Crawdaunt, providing Spikes, Stealth Rock, and Thunder Wave support, while resisting Electric- and Grass-type attacks aimed at Crawdaunt. Bulky Ghosts such as Dusknoir and Cofagrigus are good partners to take the Fighting-type attacks aimed at Crawdaunt, and can block any of the foe's attempts at spinning away hazards. Because of this set's immediate offensive presence, it spells terror for stall teams, especially with a layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock up. As with the Dragon Dance set, Rotom and its other formes make great teammates to this set their Electric-type STAB hitting Pokemon who resist Crawdaunt's STAB attacks, such as Poliwrath and opposing Crawdaunt.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Unfortunately, Crawdaunt has very few other options. However, Crawdaunt has access to Swords Dance and a set with 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Speed, an Adamant or Jolly nature, and a moveset of Waterfall, Crunch, Substitute, and Swords Dance can be used. This set makes Crawdaunt insanely powerful after one boost, and can be used to decimate slower bulky offense and stall teams.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>There are very few Pokemon that can take a hit from Crawdaunt because of its high Attack stat and Adaptability boosting both of its STAB moves, which provide excellent coverage. Ferroseed resists both of Crawdaunt's STABs, but unless it has Bullet Seed, sets with Substitute can set up on it, as Substitute blocks status, Leech Seed, and aren't broken by Gyro Ball. Ferroseed must also be cautious of a super effective Superpower from the Choice Band set. Defensive Poliwrath makes an excellent counter to Crawdaunt, and is probably the most effective check in RU. Water Absorb makes Crawdaunt's Water-type attacks useless. Poliwrath's Fighting typing allows it to resist Crunch, and hit Crawdaunt back for super effective damage. Tangrowth is another excellent counter to Crawdaunt. Tangrowth's insane Defense and HP stats allow him to take even boosted attacks from Crawdaunt and can hit Crawdaunt back with a super effective, STAB Grass-type attack. Due to Crawdaunt's low Speed, most Pokemon equipped with a Choice Scarf or a naturally high Speed stat will still outspeed him even after a boost. Therefore, outspeeding him is one of the most effective ways of checking him. Pokemon such as Porygon-Z, Primeape, Rotom (and Rotom Formes), Sceptile, and Galvantula, can all OHKO him with a super effective attack.</p>