Absol (Update) [GP 2/2]

NatGeo · May 9, 2012

This is going to be the first of my conquests.

Changes I'm making:

*Changing the order of the sets. Choice Scarf is being removed, while Choice Band will be above Sub + SD.
*Lure set. I'm adding this one since it's good.
*Rewrite. n_n

[Overview]

Absol stands out as one of the most prominent physical attackers in the NU metagame thanks to a combination of massive Attack, priority in Sucker Punch, and Swords Dance. Sitting at a decent base 75 Speed, Absol has just enough Speed to outpace what it needs to; faster threats have to deal with a Sucker Punch, and one that has an unusually high chance to score a critical hit at that! Absol's Dark typing also has great neutral coverage on most of the metagame and strikes many popular Pokemon, such as Misdreavus and Musharna, super effectively. Pokemon that can take a STAB Night Slash might also risk facing one of Absol's token coverage moves, namely Megahorn or even Psycho Cut. However, above all else, a word of note: you must be able to predict well with Absol due to the nature of Sucker Punch; it's very much a Pokemon with a high-risk, very high-reward playstyle.

Absol does have its downfalls, however. Several physical walls can stall Absol all day and all night; some Grass-types can even put Absol to sleep and effectively neuter it for the rest of the match. All entry hazards affect Absol, so they are a major thorn in its side; Life Orb sets will have their lifespans cut much shorter than they might hope, while bulkier sets often have to contend with Toxic Spikes. There are also offensive threats to Absol, namely the Fighting-types that litter the metagame. They are a huge threat to Absol, as they both resist its STAB moves and easily KO it. Substitute users can be a pain as well by bypassing Sucker Punch if they predict correctly. However, all of these setbacks can be avoided with some proper team support, which allows Absol to shine as an offensive juggernaut. Why else do you think Absol is so popular?

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash / Psycho Cut
item: Life Orb / Lum Berry
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

If you see an Absol on the opponent's team, this is most likely the set it will be running. It has a lot going for it too; it wraps up a lot of Absol's best traits into one package, namely a massive Attack stat, Swords Dance to boost it with, and a priority Sucker Punch to hit any Pokemon that try to take it out for massive damage. Alongside this, Superpower is Absol's main coverage move. It doesn't usually need much else, either, thanks to the great neutral coverage Dark- and Fighting-type moves have together. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is the preferred option for a reliable STAB attack that works even when the opponent doesn't attack Absol. On the other hand, Psycho Cut can eliminate Fighting-types on the switch-in. Sawk is a good example of this, as Absol can KO it on the switch after Stealth Rock damage; if Absol does not have Psycho Cut, the only thing that could take down Sawk is a boosted, critical hit Sucker Punch.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

Life Orb gives Absol a welcome power boost against opponents it could not KO otherwise. However, Absol can be worn down too quickly if it acquires enough Life Orb recoil; this is especially true if there are hazards on the field, namely Toxic Spikes. Speaking of which, Lum Berry is another great choice for an item, as Absol can avoid an otherwise crippling status move or Toxic Spikes and get a boost with Swords Dance unscathed. For example, with a Lum Berry, it can always set up against Misdreavus by boosting as it uses Will-O-Wisp, then KOing with a STAB Night Slash. Super Luck is far and away the best ability on this set, as it allows Absol to occasionally beat several of its normal counters with a timely critical hit. Justified has its uses, but the main users of Dark-type moves in the tier—Golem and Skuntank, among others—threaten Absol enough that it can't effectively set up on them. Adamant is the preferred nature to increase Absol's damage output as much as possible, but you can get away with running Jolly as well, as this lets Absol outpace some slower offensive threats and quite possibly KO them. Absol can also win a possible Speed tie with other Jolly Absol and continue sweeping unscathed. If you prefer more bulk over Speed, an EV spread of 152 HP / 252 Atk / 104 Spe might be used to outspeed neutral base 50s.

There are several move options that work effectively on this set; however, they are niche to an extent and usually not as handy as the options listed. Megahorn is a neat idea to get past Tangela, as it nabs the OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. However, using Megahorn usually limits Absol to relying on Sucker Punch as its lone STAB move, which is not advised in most situations. Substitute might be used as well to block status moves. It also gives Absol a buffer against attacks, and by forcing your opponent to attack, Absol gets a free opportunity to fire off Sucker Punch.

Hazards are both loved and hated by Absol, in that it appreciates hazards on the opponent's side to bring some attacks into KO range, but it hates having its lifespan cut short by both Spikes and Toxic Spikes. Thus, users of Stealth Rock, as well as Rapid Spin, are greatly appreciated. Golem is a great offensive user of Stealth Rock, while Tentacool is a great teammate for Absol; it both spins away Spikes, which wear Absol down, and puts them on the opponent's side. Other teammates that can soak up super effective attacks are also a huge help to Absol. Musharna and Gurdurr in particular are great teammates, as they can weaken opponents to the point that Absol might be able to sweep unhindered.

[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

This set focuses on attacking the opponent as soon as it enters the field. Priority Sucker Punch allows Absol to act as a revenge killer of sorts, while Pursuit is an interesting move on Absol; along with Night Slash, it effectively traps Psychic- and most Ghost-types. Absol can then play mindgames with its opponent and possibly throw them off. As a note, Absol's Pursuit is much more powerful than that of the bulkier Skuntank, giving Absol a niche of sorts. Superpower makes sure Absol can at least dent Rock- and Steel-types, such as Regirock and Probopass. It also gives Absol excellent neutral coverage; thus, it can afford to mispredict every once in a while, because many Pokemon that resist Night Slash hate taking a Superpower to the face.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

To give Absol as much power as possible, Life Orb is the preferred item; Adamant is the preferred nature for the same reason. However, Jolly is always an option if you feel that Absol needs to outspeed Pokemon such as Jolly Samurott, which can be a nuisance otherwise. Choice Band is another possible option on this set, as it gives a larger Attack boost than Life Orb does. However, Absol often cannot afford to lock itself into attacks, most notably Sucker Punch. Absol's EV spread on this set is fairly simple: as it is meant to bash the opponent with physical attacks as hard and as fast as possible, Attack and Speed are maxed out, with the four filler EVs going into HP to slightly increase Absol's bulk.

Super Luck is the preferred ability for its ability to score a timely critical hit on opponents. This is very helpful in some situations, as there is a decent chance that Absol might come out on top with a critical hit, especially with Night Slash, which has a 25% critical hit rate. Justified has its uses, but Absol can't damage most of the users of Dark-type moves in the metagame without getting badly hurt itself. Megahorn and Psycho Cut both have coverage against key threats to Absol, but they don't hit much else besides Tangela and Fighting-types, respectively. Teammates that can take advantage of the holes Absol can make in teams are great ideas. Musharna and Gurdurr can both take advantage of Ghost- and Psychic-types being removed, which allows them to attack unhindered. This process goes in reverse as well; Gurdurr and Musharna can create holes in an opponent's defenses to set Absol up for a clean sweep.

[SET]
name: Mixed Lure
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Night Slash / Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Lonely
evs: 88 Atk / 168 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

While most Absol sets rely on physical attacks to beat down the opposition, this set aims to use Absol's usable Special Attack stat to eliminate key physical walls, such as Tangela and Quagsire, with super effective special attacks. Sucker Punch still provides a powerful STAB priority attack, while Superpower can dent Rock- and Steel-types, which otherwise take a pittance from this set. Fire Blast is this set's main draw; it always KOes physically defensive Tangela after Stealth Rock damage, while Amoonguss, another key physical wall in the metagame, is soundly 2HKOed. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is usually the best option, as it gives Absol a solid physical STAB move that doesn't rely on the opponent attacking it. However, Hidden Power Grass hits other walls that can handle Absol otherwise, such as Quagsire and Seadra.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

The given EVs allow Absol to always OHKO Tangela with Fire Blast after Stealth Rock, while its Attack stat is just 10 points lower than Jolly Absol with maximum investment. Speed is also maximized so that Absol can Speed tie with other neutral-natured base 75 Pokemon. The EVs on this set can be changed if you feel it needs more Attack or Special Attack. However, this is generally the best spread to go with. Life Orb is very important on this set, as Absol can't dream of KOing several Pokemon without the boost it provides.

Surprisingly, Misdreavus is a huge threat to this set, as it can tank any hit from this set and neuter it with Will-O-Wisp. Thus, it might be a good idea to pack a teammate that can either trap Misdreavus or use Misdreavus to its advantage. Skuntank is a good example of the former, as it can effectively put Misdreavus in a checkmate position with a fast Crunch or Pursuit. On the other hand, Magmortar is immune to Will-O-Wisp thanks to its Fire typing and can roast Misdreavus to a crisp with STAB Fire Blast. Teammates that can take advantage of the fact that Absol destroys common physical walls are also recommended. Gurdurr is a prime example, as not only does it sweep easily with physical walls weakened or removed, but it also synergizes very well with Absol in terms of typing; the two of them can come in on each other's weaknesses and create further holes in the opponent's team. Psychic-types also gel with Absol in terms of type synergy, and they can get rid of Fighting-types, which soundly defeat Absol. Lastly, hazard support is absolutely vital for this set to function correctly, so users of Stealth Rock, such as Golem and Regirock, work nicely. Additionally, Absol appreciates teammates that can remove hazards from its side of the field; Armaldo is an interesting option if Absol is on an offensive team, as it can both set down Stealth Rock and beat most other hazard setters with Rapid Spin and STAB Stone Edge.

[Other Options]

Choice Scarf is an interesting option for Absol; it lets Absol reliably revenge kill most variants of Haunter and Kadabra, among other threats, as they are incredibly frail on the physical side. However, its power is sometimes a bit low, and Absol usually has all the tools it needs to revenge kill opponents with a powerful Sucker Punch. Quick Attack is a priority move that always works, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Sucker Punch. Absol also has access to a number of support moves, including: Baton Pass, Magic Coat, Taunt, and Will-O-Wisp. While these moves might seem enticing, Absol is too frail to use them effectively.

[Checks and Counters]

There are several Pokemon that can put an end to Absol; defensively speaking, powerful physical walls are your best options thanks to the fact that they can tank at least one hit from Absol and punish it for attacking. While it has to watch out for rare mixed sets, Tangela can wall any attack from Absol bar a boosted Megahorn after Stealth Rock. From there, it can put Absol to sleep or paralyze it; it can also attack Absol with STAB Giga Drain and regain some of its own HP in return. Amoonguss is nearly identical to Tangela when it comes to countering Absol, but along with its stellar physical bulk, it can also remove any boosts Absol might have acquired with Clear Smog, which is an extra bonus. On that note, Quagsire ignores any and all boosts Absol might have acquired and can hit back with Scald, Earthquake, or Toxic. Seadra, Torterra, and Weezing can all take any boosted attack from Absol (bar a boosted Psycho Cut to the latter) and can retaliate with STAB attacks that can either cripple Absol or KO it outright if it's weakened enough. Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn and Superpower, but it can't do too much back either, as Absol resists its Dark-type attacks. Skuntank's STAB Poison-type attacks do a number on Absol, however.

If you cannot fit a defensive counter to Absol on your team, fear not; there are plenty of offensive Pokemon in NU that can beat Absol one-on-one. Chief among these are Fighting-types, which can almost always take a boosted Sucker Punch and KO with their STAB attacks. A special mention needs to be made for Gurdurr; not only does it wall Absol completely (even with Psycho Cut!), but it can also set up in its face with Bulk Up, then KO with STAB Mach Punch and Drain Punch. Users of Substitute can be troublesome for Absol as well, as you have to win a prediction war with the opponent so that you can nail the opposing Pokemon when it doesn't have a Substitute up; you have a decent chance of winning the prediction war with Absol, however. Haunter is probably the best example of a Substitute user. As most Absol only have two moves to hit it with—Sucker Punch and Night Slash or a coverage move—it can Disable the latter and make sure it gets a Substitute up for free, then proceed to hit Absol with a STAB Sludge Bomb. Other ways of bypassing Sucker Punch include faster priority users and Encore support; the former can make sure that Sucker Punch fails while they attack, while the latter can lock Absol into Sucker Punch after a kill, drain its PP, and give the Encore user at least one free turn.

TROP · May 9, 2012

NatGeo said:
*Changing the order of the sets. Choice Scarf is being removed, while Choice Band will be above Sub + SD.

[SET]
name: Mixed Lure
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Night Slash / Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Mild
evs: 64 HP / 252 Atk / 88 SpA / 104 Spe

[Unreleased]

I know you are still working on this, but seriously I'll start from the top, Choice Scarf should not be removed as it reliably revenges Haunter, Kadabra and some Gardevoir without risking failing at doing its job as the lack of Life Orb/Leftovers will send in an alarm that it is choiced now that there is no reason to be running Lum Berry on Absol at all , also Choice Band is a TERRIBLE SET some of the reasons have been said previously and the other reasons continue in the next point:

Now, as the creator of the original Mixed Absol set months ago, I feel that I should be a different while its original objective was initially mixed with both special moves because fucking Tangela and Quagsire was so damn great it made Absol lose what it makes it good in the first place striking fear in the heart of all Psychic-types and Ghosts in the tier by being unable to beat shit like SubCM Mesprit(at the time) and allowing it to set up easily and now has a similar problem with Musharna and while Musharna has no reason to stay in Absol she can easily survive a Sucker Punch while she enjoys setting up against it the moment it notices you didn't Night Slash her making Absol lose something it should be winning , and really the last slot that has the special move should be Hidden Power Grass and then slashed with Fire Blast as it mostly depends on what the rest of the team has more problems with and because of what Raseri posted in the dark-type thread in the NU subforum:

I used HP Grass in my rmt and Fire blast also has its uses, though Tangela is a lot easier to lure out and defeat than quagsire.

, and because Tangela and Quagsire will come in to take a Night Slash/Superpower most of time and because Fire Blast/HP Grass are so fucking rare they will never see it coming and will be killed after that move and the special move to hit them and the best part Absol keeps its usual utility without locking itself in Sucker Punch/becoming set up bait for anything that is not weak to dark after the surprise is used. Also it doesn't need those evs to get it as you are making them come in, and because this Absol set has all attacking moves they will take a hit while they come in making just 4 spA evs with a Naughty Nature to achieve the K.O Stealth Rock or not. And based on the reasons on this boring part I say that Lure or All out attacker would be a way better name for the set.Also this does everything Band does but better without risking locking itself into lol Sucker Punch and freedom to change moves.

Now my main problem with this, the spreads are awful they serve no purpose besides outspeeding something Absol won't beat anyways while adding bulk that you guessed it does nothing as any hit stronger than Metang's Meteor Mash will still inflict great damage to Absol, and the worst part RISKING A BURN FROM MISDREAVUS whose standard sets runs exactly the same speed and I would also take a better chance at revenging Samurott without risking losing Absol than outspeeding something it won't beat unless the Lure/All Out Attacker set while preventing something I should be defeating easily from crippling it. Also

Code:

 EVs     | 56.3 | 252 Atk / 252 Spe

, from the usage stats for April, while I know this is missing 4 evs I think that the analysis having spreads the majority use is way better than arbitriary speed that serve no real purpose.

And Justified is released and compatible with Superpower.

jake · May 9, 2012

well shit that was an unexpected wall of a post

things i agree with

- 252/252 on all spreads, there's basically no point to the extra bulk and there are so many absol running around that id rather not insta-lose to everyone that runs more speed. also being outrun by missy suuuucks
- justified on all sets really, especially if its compatible w/ superpower
- 252 atk / 4 spa / 252 spe on the lure set, it does enough to 2hko both tangela and quagmire already
- also agreeing on night slash being the third slash on mixed set, losing absol's original purpose (to beat musharna and other psychics) would really suck, especially if you're running it as a wallbreaker to break walls for something like cb sawk

other things that tropious didn't mention

- subsd should be removed. add a slash for substitute on the main set and explain its viability; it doesn't play that differently from the standard set to warrant an additional one (plus its never seen)
- mention the absol / gurdurr / musharna core since that's pretty sexy
- psycho cut on band (which you don't have at all unless i'm mistaken?)
- make sure you mention stuff like quagsire, tangela, gurdurr in c&c

col49 · May 9, 2012

Quick note, though I agree you don't need to OHKO Tangela most of the time (unless it manages to double switch well or something it'll almost always have a little damage on it prior), if you feel the AC mention necessary, change the spread. 88 Atk / 168 SpA / 252 Spe with a Lonely Nature will bring Absol up to speed with it's standard sets, retain the ability to OHKO Tangela w/Fire Blast, and only lose 10 Attack over the current set.

NatGeo · May 19, 2012

I wanted to talk to DTC before I removed the mixed set, since he was teh one that wanted it in the skeleton. I will be implementing Zebraiken's changes ASAP.

Django · May 21, 2012

Just wondering why Choice sets have been shoved to OO completely? From laddering over the past few days I have seen a number of Choice Scarf (and indeed Band) Absol, and it works really really well as a Pursuit user, especially when it commonly does not run Pursuit so many Pokemon feel safe switching out. Psychic types are everywhere in this metagame, and it does a great job of removing them. It might not be the most common set but something as versatile as Absol definitely needs more than one set.

I personally am a huge fan of the mixed / lure set (call it whatever you want, but the one that runs LO + 4 Attacks), and have seen it used to great success on a number of occaisions. Not to repeat myself but again, Absol has a load of options and is definitely a top tier threat in NU, it needs more than one set to fully explain what it can do.

As for the content currently up, I feel its pretty lacking in most areas. Maybe thats just the way you write your skeletons (?). Anyway, a few things I think should be added:

Actually explain the choice of moves, I assume this is being done in the write up
Mention how Lum Berry means Absol can set up Swords Dance on Misdreavus
Explain how Substitute forces the opponent to attack you, meaning you can hit them with Sucker Punch
Psycho Cut as the best way to beat Gurdurr, but Absol must hit it on the switch because of Superpower
Other Options: Emphasise Absols terrible bulk, and how this means it can't use all those support moves.
More specific examples in Checks and Counters. Sawk and Gurdurr are the best Fighting type checks. Mention Skuntank as well.

There is a lot more I could add but I assume you still have more to write / don't put that much detail into skeletons.

tennisace · May 21, 2012

Mixed Set should be OO, it's a very situational lure (though it is quite useful at times).

Super Luck > Justified. I have never, ever once switched Absol in on a Dark-type move and here's why: the only common Dark-type moves are Sucker Punch from Skuntank, Golem, and Absol, Pursuit from Skuntank, Crunch from Skuntank, Night Slash from other Absol, and Knock Off from Tangela.

-Sucker Punch doesn't work if you switch in, and all three Pokemon can ko you with their other moves.
-Pursuit hits the Pokemon switching out, so it doesn't work.
-Skuntank doesn't usually run Crunch, foregoing it for Taunt/Poison Jab.
-A heads up situation with Absol v Absol will result in a speed tie Superpower, or if you're weakened, Sucker Punch mindgames.
-Sure, you can grab an attack boost if you switch in on a predicted Knock Off from Tangela. Or you could predict wrong and switch into Sleep Powder or Leech Seed or Giga Drain or a coverage move!

If I'm missing some key matchup, (MOLK I KNOW I DIDN'T MENTION SCRAGGY BUT WE'RE THE ONLY PEOPLE USING IT OK) please let me know; otherwise the extra crit rate from Super Luck helps break through pesky walls (sometimes), and is therefore better.

CB should have its own set, its niche over Skuntank is a much more powerful Pursuit/Sucker Punch.

DTC · May 21, 2012

Mixed set should be a set. Or at the very least be called "4 attacks" and have Hidden Power Grass and Fire Blast slashed in with Pursuit.

CB Absol isn't that great - why not just use 4 attacks Life Orb? The damage output is minimal, and not being able to switch attacks is really crippling for a Pokemon like Absol, as it has to use Sucker Punch sparingly now. The really powerful Pursuit is cute, but Life Orb Pursuit is powerful enough.

Also yes, Super Luck should be the first ability. 25% chance to crit with Night Slash gives Absol the ability to crit past Pokemon such as Amoonguss and beat them, and is just generally annoying. Plus, like tennisace said, you really aren't going to be switching into much Dark-type moves at all.

Mention in the Overview that Absol is heavily prediction based - more than other Pokemon - but is incredibly good if you predict right.

NatGeo · May 21, 2012

got all that except for DTC. you guys seem pretty mixed about all this, so i'm going to let you guys handle it. personally, I support tennisace's motions.

DTC said:
Mixed set should be a set. Or at the very least be called "4 attacks" and have Hidden Power Grass and Fire Blast slashed in with Pursuit. Again, I really think you and tennisace should settle this once and for all. I'm personally not too keen on this since I've never used it effectively, and really you're only paving the way for another physical sweeper, not absol itself (if that's anything).

CB Absol isn't that great - why not just use 4 attacks Life Orb? The damage output is minimal, and not being able to switch attacks is really crippling for a Pokemon like Absol, as it has to use Sucker Punch sparingly now. The really powerful Pursuit is cute, but Life Orb Pursuit is powerful enough. From my experience Absol benefits through the use of CB via a faster, more powerful Sucker Punch and Pursuit. Life Orb is the lesser option here in my opinion, since you're frail enough as is, not to mention the lower power.

Also yes, Super Luck should be the first ability. 25% chance to crit with Night Slash gives Absol the ability to crit past Pokemon such as Amoonguss and beat them, and is just generally annoying. Plus, like tennisace said, you really aren't going to be switching into much Dark-type moves at all. /agree

Mention in the Overview that Absol is heavily prediction based - more than other Pokemon - but is incredibly good if you predict right. /edit

responses in bold.

edit: mmk, i'll probably edit in a mixed set later today.

tennisace · May 21, 2012

The reason for CB > LO is simple: CB Absol is meant to switch in and Pursuit Psychic and Ghost-types. If you have LO recoil, you're going to be racking up a ton of damage switching in and out into SR and Hazards in addition to the LO damage.

I'm fine with Mixed being its own set, but it needs to be an actual mixed set, with a full description on how best to use it.

Steamroll · May 21, 2012

Alright I had a test to take for college placement and I missed out on this.

Everything everyone else has said has merit. Choice Scarf should stay in OO, and definitely lureabsol should be its own set.

Before it was a total randomniche mon that Trop just made to troll and with the increasing usage of TangleQuag cores the set carved out its own niche of being able to break through that core. It has a use that definitely can become a game changer.

DTC · May 21, 2012

tennisace said:
The reason for CB > LO is simple: CB Absol is meant to switch in and Pursuit Psychic and Ghost-types. If you have LO recoil, you're going to be racking up a ton of damage switching in and out into SR and Hazards in addition to the LO damage.

I'm fine with Mixed being its own set, but it needs to be an actual mixed set, with a full description on how best to use it.

I think it'd be best if the set was just named "Attacker" and has Life Orb / Choice Band slashed. The extra damage that Choice Band provides isn't that important, especially as you're losing out on the ability to switch moves by using it. It makes Sucker Punch a much, much riskier move. However, not taking any Life Orb damage definitely has some merit. Still, I'm not a fan of CB Absol being set-up bait. If it uses Pursuit to trap something it'll be locked into a weak move; if it uses Superpower it has an Attack drop and quite a few things in NU resist/are immune to NU; if it uses Sucker Punch anything with Substitute / Swords Dance / whatever can set-up on it. It's not very practical for a CB user, but I agree that it has some merit for some teams.

I don't really care if CB or Life Orb goes first in the proposed "Attacker" set; all I want is an all physical 4 attacks Life Orb set. Pursuit could be slashed with Swords Dance on the first set, but that's just way too many slashes.

Jaetheho · May 21, 2012

well in that case, name it "all out attacker" since all pokemon are attackers...

Steamroll · May 24, 2012

-check
-check
-check
-why are you writing the overview already?
-check

QC Approved 1/3

jake · May 24, 2012

you've got all of the hard counters i think, so to the checks half of that you can add:
- fast substitute users like haunter; while you've gotta win the prediction war, you still have a pretty good chance of winning that matchup (there's basically a 50% chance of you getting it right each Sub)
- fast encore users like raichu can come in after it kills something and lock it into sucker punch and set up on it while draining SP PP
- quick attack swellow, aqua jet floatzel, and other fast priority users can fuck it up pretty bad (both of those 2HKO iirc)
- weezing walls it HARD unless psycho cut, which isn't incredibly common

outside of that i think this is good in my eyes

QC APPROVED (2/3)

DTC · May 25, 2012

I am not convinced that Choice Band is something that you should ever use on Absol. One of the main draws in using Absol is its extremely strong priority (the strongest in the tier!). You're really compensating that for lack of recoil and a slight difference in power that doesn't make much of a difference? The power difference is minimal, and from doing a bunch of calcs, CB doesn't seem to get many notable KO's at all. All of the most common Pokemon that you would Pursuit are OHKO'd on the switch regardless if you use Life Orb or Choice Band.

Sucker Punch is Absol's main draw; using Choice Band prevents you from effectively using it. Running Life Orb over Choice Band hardly hinders one of the bigger reasons why you're using the "All-Out-Attacker" set over Swords Dance: being an incredibly powerful Pursuit user. The bottom line is that CB Sucker Punch is awful no matter how you look at it (why is it the first move?). However, Life Orb/Lum Berry Sucker Punch is very effective and is a big reason in why you're using Absol in the first place.

In my opinion, the second set should just be changed to "All-Out-Attacker" with Life Orb as the item. Choice Band in AC, although I guess if there is enough support we could make it a slash, although Choice Band is generally inferior.

Edit: Alright, looks good. QC Approve 3/3

NatGeo · May 25, 2012

mmk pooper i'll get this done

edit: @ below, we discussed this on IRC :P

shnen · May 26, 2012

Hey uh I know this has already passed QC but I really don't see the point of using Fire Blast on a lure set, I was considering using it but I ran calcs and +2 Megahorn OHKOes Tangela after rocks, meaning that Fire Blast is kinda useless as long as you're able to predict, while running Megahorn doesn't compromise stats by having to split EVs, the Special Attack investment required to kill Tangela is far too high in my opinion. Megahorn can easily take the place of Night Slash as it still lets Absol hit shit like Musharna etc. Anyay, just something to think over.

NatGeo · May 31, 2012

Hey I wrote this up!

sirndpt · May 31, 2012

[Overview]

Absol stands out as one of the most prominent physical attackers in the NU metagame, thanks to a combination of massive Attack, priority in Sucker Punch, and Swords Dance. Sitting at a decent base 75 Speed, Absol has just enough Speed to outpace what it needs to; faster threats have to deal with a Sucker Punch, and one that has an unusually high chance to score a critical hit at that! Absol's Dark typing also has great neutral coverage o~~ver~~n most of the metagame, and strik~~ing~~es many popular Pokemon ~~super effectively~~, such as Misdreavus and Musharna, super effectively. Pokemon who can take a STAB Night Slash mayight also risk facing ~~an Absol carrying a~~one of Absol's token coverage moves, ~~like~~namely Megahorn, or even Psycho Cut. However, above all else, a word of note: you must be able to predict well with Absol, due to the nature of Sucker Punch's use; it's very much a Pokemon with a playstyle of high-risk, very high-reward.

Absol does have its downfalls, however. Several physical walls can stall Absol all day and all night; some Grass-types can even put Absol to sleep, and effectively neuter~~ing~~ it for the rest of the match. Entry hazards are also a major thorn in Absol's side, as it is affected by all entry hazards; Life Orb sets will have their lifespans cut much shorter than they mayight hope, while bulkier sets often have to contend with Toxic Spikes. There are also offensive threats to Absol, namely the Fighting-types that litter the metagame. They are a huge threat to Absol, as they both resist~~ing~~ Absol's STAB moves and easily KO~~ing~~ it. Substitute users be a pain as well, by bypassing Sucker Punch if they predict correctly. However, all of these setbacks can be avoided with some proper team support and allow Absol to shine as an offensive juggernaut. Why else do you think Absol is so popular?

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash / Psycho Cut
item: Life Orb / Lum Berry
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

If you see an Absol on the opponent's team, this is most likely the set ~~they~~it will be running. It has a lot going for it too; it wraps up a lot of Absol's best traits into one package, namely a massive Attack stat, Swords Dance to boost it with, and a priority Sucker Punch to hit any Pokemon t~~rying~~hat try to take it out for massive damage. Alongside this, Superpower is Absol's main coverage move. It doesn't usually need much else either, thanks to the great neutral coverage Dark- and Fighting-type moves have together. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is the preferred option for a reliable STAB attack that works even when the opponent doesn't attack ~~you~~Absol. On the other hand, Psycho Cut can eliminate Fighting-types on the switch-in. Sawk is a good example of this, as Absol can KO it on the switch after Stealth Rock Damage; if Absol did not have Psycho Cut, the only thing that could take down Sawk would be a boosted, critical hit Sucker Punch.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

Life Orb gives Absol a welcome power boost against opponents ~~which~~ it could not KO otherwise. However, Absol can be worn down too quickly if it acquires enough Life Orb recoil; this is especially true if there are hazards on the field, namely Toxic Spikes. Speaking of which, Lum Berry is another great choice for an item, as ~~you~~Absol can avoid an otherwise crippling status move or Toxic Spikes, a~~llowing Absol to~~nd get a boost with Swords Dance unscathed. For example, with Lum Berry ~~you~~, it can always set up against Misdreavus, by boosting as they use Will-O-Wisp ~~and~~, then KOing with a STAB Night Slash. Super Luck is far and away the best ability on this set~~, since~~ as it allows ~~you~~Absol to occasionally beat several of ~~Absol'~~its normal counters with a timely critical hit. Justified has its uses, but the main users of Dark-type moves in the tier — —Golem and Skuntank, among others — —threaten Absol enough that it can't effectively set up on them. Adamant is the preferred nature to increase Absol's damage output by as much as possible, but you can get away with running Jolly as well, ~~since you can~~as this lets Absol outpace some slower offensive threats and quite possibly KO them. ~~You~~Absol can also win a possible sSpeed tie with other Jolly Absol~~, making sure that you~~ and continue sweeping unscathed. If you prefer more bulk over Speed, an EV spread of 152 HP / 252 Atk / 104 Spe mayight be used to outspeed neutral base 50s.

There are several move options that work effectively on this set; however, they are niche to an extent and usually not as handy as the options listed. Megahorn is a neat idea to get past Tangela, as ~~Absol KOes Tangela with Megahorn~~it nabs the OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. However, using Megahorn usually limits ~~you to using~~Absol to relying on Sucker Punch as ~~your~~its lone STAB move, which is not advised in most situations. Substitute mayight be used as well to block status moves. It also gives ~~you~~Absol a buffer against attacks, and by forcing your opponent to attack, Absol gets a free opportunity to fire off Sucker Punch.

Hazards are both loved and hated by Absol, in that it appreciates hazards on the opponent's side to ease some attacks into KO range, but it hates having its lifespan cut short by (both Spikes and Toxic) Spikes. Thus, users of Stealth Rock, as well as Rapid Spin, are greatly appreciated. Golem is a great offensive user of Stealth Rock, while Tentacool is a great teammate for Absol; it both spins away Spikes which wear Absol down, and it also puts them on the opponent's side. Other teammates that can soak up super effective attacks are also a huge help to Absol. Musharna and Gurdurr in particular are great teammates, ~~since once they are on the field~~as they can weaken opponents to the point that Absol mayight be able to sweep unhindered.

[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Where as Swords Dance Absol aims to sweep the opponent, this set focuses instead on attacking the opponent as soon as it enters the field. Priority Sucker Punch allows Absol to act as a revenge killer of sorts, ~~thanks to Sucker Punch's priority.~~while Pursuit is an interesting move on Absol~~, as~~; along with Night Slash, ~~you~~it effectively traps Psychic- and most Ghost-types~~, allowing you to~~. Absol can then play mindgames with ~~your~~its opponent ~~which can~~, and possibly throw them off. As a note, Absol's Pursuit is much more powerful than that of the bulkier Skuntank, giving Absol a niche of sorts. Superpower makes sure Absol can at least dent Rock- and Steel-types, such as Regirock and Probopass. It also gives Absol excellent neutral coverage; thus, it can afford to mispredict every once in a while, ~~sinc~~because many Pokemon that resist Night Slash hate taking a Superpower to the face.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

To give Absol as much power as possible, Life Orb is the preferred item; Adamant is the preferred nature ~~is Adamant~~ for the same reason. However, Jolly is always an option if you feel that ~~you~~Absol needs to outspeed Pokemon ~~like~~such as Jolly Samurott, who can be a nuisance otherwise. Choice Band is another possible option on this set, ~~since~~as it gives a bigger Attack boost than Life Orb does. However, ~~not being able to switch moves is bad for Absol, since it often needs to be able to switch out of certain moves, especial~~Absol often cannot afford to lock itself into attacks, most notably Sucker Punch. Absol's EV spread on this set is fairly simple: as ~~Absol~~it is meant to bash the opponent with physical attacks as hard and as fast as possible, Attack and Speed are maxed out, with the four filler EVs going into HP to slightly increase Absol's bulk.

Super Luck is the preferred ability for its ability to score a timely critical hit on opponents. This is very helpful in some situations, ~~since~~as there is a decent chance that Absol mayight come out on top with a critical hit, especially with Night Slash, which has a 25% critical hit rate. Justified has its uses, but Absol can't damage most of the users of Dark-type moves in the metagame without getting badly hurt itself. Megahorn and Psycho Cut both have coverage against key threats to Absol, but they don't hit much else besides Tangela and Fighting-types, respectively. Teammates who can take advantage of the holes Absol can make in teams are great ideas. Musharna and Gurdurr can both take advantage of Ghost- and Psychic-types being removed, which allow~~ing~~s them to attack unhindered. This process goes in reverse as well~~, as~~; Gurdurr and ~~/ or~~ Musharna can create holes in an opponent's defenses~~, allowing~~ to set Absol up for a clean sweep ~~by Absol~~.

[SET]
name: Mixed Lure
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Night Slash / Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Lonely
evs: 88 Atk / 168 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

While most Absol sets rely on physical attacks to beat down the opposition, this set aims to use Absol's usable Special Attack stat to eliminate key physical walls, such as Tangela and Quagsire, with super effective special attacks. Sucker Punch still provides a powerful STAB priority attack, while Superpower can dent Rock- and Steel-types, who otherwise take a pittance from this set. Fire Blast is this set's main draw — —it always KOes physically defensive Tangela after Stealth Rock damage, while Amoonguss, another key physical wall in the metagame, is soundly 2HKOed. In the final moveslot, Night Slash if usually the best option for Absol, retaining a solid physical STAB move that doesn't rely on the opponent attack you. However, Hidden Power Grass hits other walls which can handle Absol otherwise, such as Quagsire and Seadra.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

The given EVs allow Absol to always OHKO Tangela with Fire Blast after Stealth Rock, while its Attack stat is just 10 points lower than Jolly Absol with maximum investment. Speed is also max~~ed out~~imized so that Absol can sSpeed tie with other neutral base 75 Pokemon. The EVs on this set can be changed to ~~make whatever KOes you need them to, though~~nab whichever KOs are important to your team, but it is generally a good idea is to ~~invest~~run enough Special Attack to OHKO Amoonguss (which is specifically what?). However, this is generally the best spread to go with. Life Orb is very important on this set, as Absol can't dream of KOing several Pokemon withhout the boost it provides.

Surprisingly, Misdreavus is a huge threat to this set, ~~since~~as it can tank any hit from this set and neuter it with Will-O-Wisp. Thus, it mayight be a good idea to pack a teammate that can either trap Misdreavus or use Misdreavus to its advantage. Skuntank is a good example of the former, as it can effectively put~~ting it~~ Misdreavus in a checkmate position with a fast Crunch or Pursuit. On the other hand, Magmortar is immune to Will-O-Wisp thanks to its Fire typing, and can roast Misdreavus to a crisp with a STAB Fire Blast. ~~It may also be a good idea for one to use t~~Teammates that can take advantage of the fact that Absol destroys common physical walls are also recommended. Gurdurr is a prime example, as not only does it sweep easily with physical walls weakened or removed, but it also synergizes very well with Absol in terms of typing~~, allowing~~; the two of them to can come in on each other's super effective hits and create further holes in the opponent's team. Psychic-types also gel with Absol in terms of type synergy, and they can get rid of Fighting-types, which soundly defeat Absol otherwise. Lastly, hazard support is absolutely vital for this set to function correctly, so users of Stealth Rock ~~like~~, such as Golem and Regirock, work nicely. Additionally, Absol appreciates teammates who can ~~~~remove~~~~ hazards from its side of the field; spinners ~~like~~such as Tentacool are interesting options (this sounds kinda weird lol, perhaps be more specific on why you're recommending them?).

[Other Options]

Choice Scarf is an interesting option for Absol~~, since with Choice Scarf it can~~; it lets Absol reliably revenge kill most variants of Haunter and Kadabra, among other things, ~~since~~as they are incredibly frail on the physical side. However, its power is sometimes a bit low, and Absol usually has all the tools it needs to revenge kill opponents in a powerful Sucker Punch. Quick Attack is a priority move that always works, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Sucker Punch. Absol also has access to a number of support moves, including: Baton Pass, Magic Coat, Taunt, and Will-O-Wisp. While these mayight seem enticing, Absol is too frail to use these moves effectively.

[Checks and Counters]

There are several Pokemon that can put an end to Absol; defensively speaking, powerful physical walls are your best ~~defensive options against Absol~~options thanks to the fact that they can tank at least one hit from Absol and punish it for attacking. While it has to watch out for rare mixed sets, Tangela can wall any attack from Absol bar a boosted Megahorn after Stealth Rock. From there, it can put Absol to sleep or paralyze it; it can also attack Absol with STAB Giga Drain, and regain~~ing~~ some of its own HP in return. Amoonguss is nearly identical to Tangela when it comes to countering Absol, but along with its stellar physical bulk, it can also remove any boosts Absol mayight have acquired with Clear Smog, which is an extra bonus ~~along with its stellar physical bulk~~. On that note, Quagsire ignores any and all boosts Absol mayight have acquired, ~~hitting~~and can hit back with Scald, Earthquake, or Toxic. Seadra, Torterra, and Weezing can all take any boosted attack from Absol (bar a boosted Psycho Cut to the ~~third~~latter), and can retaliate with STAB attacks that can either cripple Absol or KO it outright if it's weakened enough. Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn, but it can't do too much back either ~~since~~as Absol resists its Dark-type attacks. Skuntank's STAB Poison-type attacks ~~from Skuntank~~ do a number toon Absol, however.

If you cannot fit a defensive counter to Absol on your team, fear not; there are plenty of offensive Pokemon in NU that can beat Absol one-on-one. Chief among these are Fighting-types, who can almost always take a boosted Sucker Punch and KO with their STAB attacks. A special mention needs to be made for Gurdurr; not only does it wall Absol completely (even with Psycho Cut!), but it also can set up in its face with Bulk Up, KOing with STAB Mach Punch and Drain Punch. Users of Substitute can be troublesome for Absol as well, as you have to win the prediction war with the opponent so that you can nail their Pokemon when they don't have a Substitute up; you have a decent chance of winning the prediction war with Absol, however. Haunter is probably the best example of a Substitute user. Since most Absol only have two moves to hit it with — —Sucker Punch and Night Slash or a coverage move ~~—~~ —it can Disable the latter~~, making~~ and make sure it gets a Substitute up for free ~~so it can hit you~~, then proceed to hit Absol with a STAB Sludge Bomb. Other ~~means to~~ways of bypassing Sucker Punch include faster priority users and Encore support; the former can make sure that Sucker Punch fails while they attack, while the latter ~~method can be used to~~can lock Absol into Sucker Punch after a kill, drain~~ing~~ its PP, and giv~~ing~~e the Encore user at least one free turn.

[Other Options]

Choice Scarf is an interesting option for Absol~~, since with Choice Scarf it can~~; it lets Absol reliably revenge kill most variants of Haunter and Kadabra, among other things, ~~since~~as they are incredibly frail on the physical side. However, its power is sometimes a bit low, and Absol usually has all the tools it needs to revenge kill opponents in a powerful Sucker Punch. Quick Attack is a priority move that always works, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Sucker Punch. Absol also has access to a number of support moves, including: Baton Pass, Magic Coat, Taunt, and Will-O-Wisp. While these mayight seem enticing, Absol is too frail to use these moves effectively.

[Checks and Counters]

There are several Pokemon that can put an end to Absol; defensively speaking, powerful physical walls are your best ~~defensive options against Absol~~options thanks to the fact that they can tank at least one hit from Absol and punish it for attacking. While it has to watch out for rare mixed sets, Tangela can wall any attack from Absol bar a boosted Megahorn after Stealth Rock. From there, it can put Absol to sleep or paralyze it; it can also attack Absol with STAB Giga Drain, and regain~~ing~~ some of its own HP in return. Amoonguss is nearly identical to Tangela when it comes to countering Absol, but along with its stellar physical bulk, it can also remove any boosts Absol mayight have acquired with Clear Smog, which is an extra bonus ~~along with its stellar physical bulk~~. On that note, Quagsire ignores any and all boosts Absol mayight have acquired, ~~hitting~~and can hit back with Scald, Earthquake, or Toxic. Seadra, Torterra, and Weezing can all take any boosted attack from Absol (bar a boosted Psycho Cut to the ~~third~~latter), and can retaliate with STAB attacks that can either cripple Absol or KO it outright if it's weakened enough. Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn, but it can't do too much back either ~~since~~as Absol resists its Dark-type attacks. Skuntank's STAB Poison-type attacks ~~from Skuntank~~ do a number toon Absol, however.

If you cannot fit a defensive counter to Absol on your team, fear not; there are plenty of offensive Pokemon in NU that can beat Absol one-on-one. Chief among these are Fighting-types, who can almost always take a boosted Sucker Punch and KO with their STAB attacks. A special mention needs to be made for Gurdurr; not only does it wall Absol completely (even with Psycho Cut!), but it also can set up in its face with Bulk Up, ~~KOing~~then KO with STAB Mach Punch and Drain Punch. Users of Substitute can be troublesome for Absol as well, as you have to win the prediction war with the opponent so that you can nail their Pokemon when they don't have a Substitute up; you have a decent chance of winning the prediction war with Absol, however. Haunter is probably the best example of a Substitute user. Since most Absol only have two moves to hit it with — —Sucker Punch and Night Slash or a coverage move ~~—~~ —it can Disable the latter~~, making~~ and make sure it gets a Substitute up for free ~~so it can hit you~~, then proceed to hit Absol with a STAB Sludge Bomb. Other ~~means to~~ways of bypassing Sucker Punch include faster priority users and Encore support; the former can make sure that Sucker Punch fails while they attack, while the latter ~~method can be used to~~can lock Absol into Sucker Punch after a kill, drain~~ing~~ its PP, and giv~~ing~~e the Encore user at least one free turn.

[Overview]

Absol stands out as one of the most prominent physical attackers in the NU metagame, thanks to a combination of massive Attack, priority in Sucker Punch, and Swords Dance. Sitting at a decent base 75 Speed, Absol has just enough Speed to outpace what it needs to; faster threats have to deal with a Sucker Punch, and one that has an unusually high chance to score a critical hit at that! Absol's Dark typing also has great neutral coverage on most of the metagame, and strikes many popular Pokemon, such as Misdreavus and Musharna, super effectively. Pokemon who can take a STAB Night Slash might also risk facing one of Absol's token coverage moves, namely Megahorn, or even Psycho Cut. However, above all else, a word of note: you must be able to predict well with Absol, due to the nature of Sucker Punch's use; it's very much a Pokemon with a playstyle of high-risk, very high-reward.

Absol does have its downfalls, however. Several physical walls can stall Absol all day and all night; some Grass-types can even put Absol to sleep and effectively neuter it for the rest of the match. Entry hazards are also a major thorn in Absol's side, as it is affected by all entry hazards; Life Orb sets will have their lifespans cut much shorter than they might hope, while bulkier sets often have to contend with Toxic Spikes. There are also offensive threats to Absol, namely the Fighting-types that litter the metagame. They are a huge threat to Absol, as they both resist Absol's STAB moves and easily KO it. Substitute users be a pain as well by bypassing Sucker Punch if they predict correctly. However, all of these setbacks can be avoided with some proper team support and allow Absol to shine as an offensive juggernaut. Why else do you think Absol is so popular?

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash / Psycho Cut
item: Life Orb / Lum Berry
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

If you see an Absol on the opponent's team, this is most likely the set it will be running. It has a lot going for it too; it wraps up a lot of Absol's best traits into one package, namely a massive Attack stat, Swords Dance to boost it with, and a priority Sucker Punch to hit any Pokemon that try to take it out for massive damage. Alongside this, Superpower is Absol's main coverage move. It doesn't usually need much else either, thanks to the great neutral coverage Dark- and Fighting-type moves have together. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is the preferred option for a reliable STAB attack that works even when the opponent doesn't attack Absol. On the other hand, Psycho Cut can eliminate Fighting-types on the switch-in. Sawk is a good example of this, as Absol can KO it on the switch after Stealth Rock Damage; if Absol did not have Psycho Cut, the only thing that could take down Sawk would be a boosted, critical hit Sucker Punch.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

Life Orb gives Absol a welcome power boost against opponents it could not KO otherwise. However, Absol can be worn down too quickly if it acquires enough Life Orb recoil; this is especially true if there are hazards on the field, namely Toxic Spikes. Speaking of which, Lum Berry is another great choice for an item, as Absol can avoid an otherwise crippling status move or Toxic Spikes and get a boost with Swords Dance unscathed. For example, with Lum Berry, it can always set up against Misdreavus by boosting as they use Will-O-Wisp, then KOing with a STAB Night Slash. Super Luck is far and away the best ability on this set as it allows Absol to occasionally beat several of its normal counters with a timely critical hit. Justified has its uses, but the main users of Dark-type moves in the tier—Golem and Skuntank, among others—threaten Absol enough that it can't effectively set up on them. Adamant is the preferred nature to increase Absol's damage output by as much as possible, but you can get away with running Jolly as well, as this lets Absol outpace some slower offensive threats and quite possibly KO them. Absol can also win a possible Speed tie with other Jolly Absol and continue sweeping unscathed. If you prefer more bulk over Speed, an EV spread of 152 HP / 252 Atk / 104 Spe might be used to outspeed neutral base 50s.

There are several move options that work effectively on this set; however, they are niche to an extent and usually not as handy as the options listed. Megahorn is a neat idea to get past Tangela, as it nabs the OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. However, using Megahorn usually limits Absol to relying on Sucker Punch as its lone STAB move, which is not advised in most situations. Substitute might be used as well to block status moves. It also gives Absol a buffer against attacks, and by forcing your opponent to attack, Absol gets a free opportunity to fire off Sucker Punch.

Hazards are both loved and hated by Absol, in that it appreciates hazards on the opponent's side to ease some attacks into KO range, but it hates having its lifespan cut short by both Spikes and Toxic Spikes. Thus, users of Stealth Rock, as well as Rapid Spin, are greatly appreciated. Golem is a great offensive user of Stealth Rock, while Tentacool is a great teammate for Absol; it both spins away Spikes which wear Absol down, and it also puts them on the opponent's side. Other teammates that can soak up super effective attacks are also a huge help to Absol. Musharna and Gurdurr in particular are great teammates, as they can weaken opponents to the point that Absol might be able to sweep unhindered.

[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

Whereas Swords Dance Absol aims to sweep the opponent, this set focuses instead on attacking the opponent as soon as it enters the field. Priority Sucker Punch allows Absol to act as a revenge killer of sorts, while Pursuit is an interesting move on Absol; along with Night Slash, it effectively traps Psychic- and most Ghost-types. Absol can then play mindgames with its opponent, and possibly throw them off. As a note, Absol's Pursuit is much more powerful than that of the bulkier Skuntank, giving Absol a niche of sorts. Superpower makes sure Absol can at least dent Rock- and Steel-types, such as Regirock and Probopass. It also gives Absol excellent neutral coverage; thus, it can afford to mispredict every once in a while, because many Pokemon that resist Night Slash hate taking a Superpower to the face.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

To give Absol as much power as possible, Life Orb is the preferred item; Adamant is the preferred nature for the same reason. However, Jolly is always an option if you feel that Absol needs to outspeed Pokemon such as Jolly Samurott, who can be a nuisance otherwise. Choice Band is another possible option on this set, as it gives a bigger Attack boost than Life Orb does. However, Absol often cannot afford to lock itself into attacks, most notably Sucker Punch. Absol's EV spread on this set is fairly simple: as it is meant to bash the opponent with physical attacks as hard and as fast as possible, Attack and Speed are maxed out, with the four filler EVs going into HP to slightly increase Absol's bulk.

Super Luck is the preferred ability for its ability to score a timely critical hit on opponents. This is very helpful in some situations, as there is a decent chance that Absol might come out on top with a critical hit, especially with Night Slash, which has a 25% critical hit rate. Justified has its uses, but Absol can't damage most of the users of Dark-type moves in the metagame without getting badly hurt itself. Megahorn and Psycho Cut both have coverage against key threats to Absol, but they don't hit much else besides Tangela and Fighting-types, respectively. Teammates who can take advantage of the holes Absol can make in teams are great ideas. Musharna and Gurdurr can both take advantage of Ghost- and Psychic-types being removed, which allows them to attack unhindered. This process goes in reverse as well; Gurdurr and Musharna can create holes in an opponent's defenses to set Absol up for a clean sweep.

[SET]
name: Mixed Lure
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Night Slash / Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Lonely
evs: 88 Atk / 168 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

While most Absol sets rely on physical attacks to beat down the opposition, this set aims to use Absol's usable Special Attack stat to eliminate key physical walls, such as Tangela and Quagsire, with super effective special attacks. Sucker Punch still provides a powerful STAB priority attack, while Superpower can dent Rock- and Steel-types, who otherwise take a pittance from this set. Fire Blast is this set's main draw—it always KOes physically defensive Tangela after Stealth Rock damage, while Amoonguss, another key physical wall in the metagame, is soundly 2HKOed. In the final moveslot, Night Slash if usually the best option for Absol, retaining a solid physical STAB move that doesn't rely on the opponent attack you. However, Hidden Power Grass hits other walls which can handle Absol otherwise, such as Quagsire and Seadra.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

The given EVs allow Absol to always OHKO Tangela with Fire Blast after Stealth Rock, while its Attack stat is just 10 points lower than Jolly Absol with maximum investment. Speed is also maximized so that Absol can Speed tie with other neutral base 75 Pokemon. The EVs on this set can be changed to nab whichever KOs are important to your team, but it is generally a good idea to run enough Special Attack to OHKO Amoonguss (which is specifically what?). However, this is generally the best spread to go with. Life Orb is very important on this set, as Absol can't dream of KOing several Pokemon without the boost it provides.

Surprisingly, Misdreavus is a huge threat to this set, as it can tank any hit from this set and neuter it with Will-O-Wisp. Thus, it might be a good idea to pack a teammate that can either trap Misdreavus or use Misdreavus to its advantage. Skuntank is a good example of the former, as it can effectively put Misdreavus in a checkmate position with a fast Crunch or Pursuit. On the other hand, Magmortar is immune to Will-O-Wisp thanks to its Fire typing and can roast Misdreavus to a crisp with STAB Fire Blast. Teammates that can take advantage of the fact that Absol destroys common physical walls are also recommended. Gurdurr is a prime example, as not only does it sweep easily with physical walls weakened or removed, but it also synergizes very well with Absol in terms of typing; the two of them can come in on each other's super effective hits and create further holes in the opponent's team. Psychic-types also gel with Absol in terms of type synergy, and they can get rid of Fighting-types, which soundly defeat Absol otherwise. Lastly, hazard support is absolutely vital for this set to function correctly, so users of Stealth Rock, such as Golem and Regirock, work nicely. Additionally, Absol appreciates teammates who can remove hazards from its side of the field; spinners such as Tentacool are interesting options (this sounds kinda weird lol, perhaps be more specific on why you're recommending them?).

[Other Options]

Choice Scarf is an interesting option for Absol; it lets Absol reliably revenge kill most variants of Haunter and Kadabra, among other things, as they are incredibly frail on the physical side. However, its power is sometimes a bit low, and Absol usually has all the tools it needs to revenge kill opponents in a powerful Sucker Punch. Quick Attack is a priority move that always works, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Sucker Punch. Absol also has access to a number of support moves, including: Baton Pass, Magic Coat, Taunt, and Will-O-Wisp. While these might seem enticing, Absol is too frail to use these moves effectively.

[Checks and Counters]

There are several Pokemon that can put an end to Absol; defensively speaking, powerful physical walls are your best options thanks to the fact that they can tank at least one hit from Absol and punish it for attacking. While it has to watch out for rare mixed sets, Tangela can wall any attack from Absol bar a boosted Megahorn after Stealth Rock. From there, it can put Absol to sleep or paralyze it; it can also attack Absol with STAB Giga Drain and regain some of its own HP in return. Amoonguss is nearly identical to Tangela when it comes to countering Absol, but along with its stellar physical bulk, it can also remove any boosts Absol might have acquired with Clear Smog, which is an extra bonus. On that note, Quagsire ignores any and all boosts Absol might have acquired, and can hit back with Scald, Earthquake, or Toxic. Seadra, Torterra, and Weezing can all take any boosted attack from Absol (bar a boosted Psycho Cut to the latter), and can retaliate with STAB attacks that can either cripple Absol or KO it outright if it's weakened enough. Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn, but it can't do too much back either as Absol resists its Dark-type attacks. Skuntank's STAB Poison-type attacks do a number on Absol, however.

If you cannot fit a defensive counter to Absol on your team, fear not; there are plenty of offensive Pokemon in NU that can beat Absol one-on-one. Chief among these are Fighting-types, who can almost always take a boosted Sucker Punch and KO with their STAB attacks. A special mention needs to be made for Gurdurr; not only does it wall Absol completely (even with Psycho Cut!), but it also can set up in its face with Bulk Up, then KO with STAB Mach Punch and Drain Punch. Users of Substitute can be troublesome for Absol as well, as you have to win the prediction war with the opponent so that you can nail their Pokemon when they don't have a Substitute up; you have a decent chance of winning the prediction war with Absol, however. Haunter is probably the best example of a Substitute user. As most Absol only have two moves to hit it with—Sucker Punch and Night Slash or a coverage move—it can Disable the latter and make sure it gets a Substitute up for free, then proceed to hit Absol with a STAB Sludge Bomb. Other ways of bypassing Sucker Punch include faster priority users and Encore support; the former can make sure that Sucker Punch fails while they attack, while the latter can lock Absol into Sucker Punch after a kill, drain its PP, and give the Encore user at least one free turn.

viol and bass · May 31, 2012

Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn, but it can't do too much back either since Absol resists its Dark-type attacks.

Superpower as well.

NatGeo · May 31, 2012

fixed those awkward sentences and implemented. Ready for number 2!

Stalfos · Jun 3, 2012

natgeo sux
i mean placeholder
sorry it was a typo

[Overview]

Absol stands out as one of the most prominent physical attackers in the NU metagame,(remove comma) thanks to a combination of massive Attack, priority in Sucker Punch, and Swords Dance. Sitting at a decent base 75 Speed, Absol has just enough Speed to outpace what it needs to; faster threats have to deal with a Sucker Punch, and one that has an unusually high chance to score a critical hit at that! Absol's Dark typing also has great neutral coverage on most of the metagame,(remove comma) and strikes many popular Pokemon, such as Misdreavus and Musharna, super effectively. Pokemon ~~who~~that can take a STAB Night Slash might also risk facing one of Absol's token coverage moves, namely Megahorn,(remove comma) or even Psycho Cut. However, above all else, a word of note: you must be able to predict well with Absol,(remove comma) due to the nature of Sucker Punch~~'s use~~; it's very much a Pokemon with a ~~playstyle of~~ high-risk, <iem>very</iem> high-reward playstyle.

Absol does have its downfalls, however. Several physical walls can stall Absol all day and all night; some Grass-types can even put Absol to sleep and effectively neuter it for the rest of the match. EAll entry hazards a~~re also a major thorn in Absol's side, as it is affected by all entry hazards~~ffect Absol, so they are a major thorn in its side; Life Orb sets will have their lifespans cut much shorter than they might hope, while bulkier sets often have to contend with Toxic Spikes. There are also offensive threats to Absol, namely the Fighting-types that litter the metagame. They are a huge threat to Absol, as they both resist ~~Absol'~~its STAB moves and easily KO it. Substitute users can be a pain as well by bypassing Sucker Punch if they predict correctly. However, all of these setbacks can be avoided with some proper team support ~~and~~, which allows Absol to shine as an offensive juggernaut. Why else do you think Absol is so popular?

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash / Psycho Cut
item: Life Orb / Lum Berry
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

If you see an Absol on the opponent's team, this is most likely the set it will be running. It has a lot going for it too; it wraps up a lot of Absol's best traits into one package, namely a massive Attack stat, Swords Dance to boost it with, and a priority Sucker Punch to hit any Pokemon that try to take it out for massive damage. Alongside this, Superpower is Absol's main coverage move. It doesn't usually need much else,(comma) either, thanks to the great neutral coverage Dark- and Fighting-type moves have together. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is the preferred option for a reliable STAB attack that works even when the opponent doesn't attack Absol. On the other hand, Psycho Cut can eliminate Fighting-types on the switch-in. Sawk is a good example of this, as Absol can KO it on the switch after Stealth Rock Ddamage; if Absol didoes not have Psycho Cut, the only thing that could take down Sawk ~~would be~~is a boosted, critical hit Sucker Punch.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

Life Orb gives Absol a welcome power boost against opponents it could not KO otherwise. However, Absol can be worn down too quickly if it acquires enough Life Orb recoil; this is especially true if there are hazards on the field, namely Toxic Spikes. Speaking of which, Lum Berry is another great choice for an item, as Absol can avoid an otherwise crippling status move or Toxic Spikes and get a boost with Swords Dance unscathed. For example, with a Lum Berry, it can always set up against Misdreavus by boosting as ~~they~~it uses Will-O-Wisp, then KOing with a STAB Night Slash. Super Luck is far and away the best ability on this set,(comma) as it allows Absol to occasionally beat several of its normal counters with a timely critical hit. Justified has its uses, but the main users of Dark-type moves in the tier—Golem and Skuntank, among others—threaten Absol enough that it can't effectively set up on them. Adamant is the preferred nature to increase Absol's damage output by as much as possible, but you can get away with running Jolly as well, as this lets Absol outpace some slower offensive threats and quite possibly KO them. Absol can also win a possible Speed tie with other Jolly Absol and continue sweeping unscathed. If you prefer more bulk over Speed, an EV spread of 152 HP / 252 Atk / 104 Spe might be used to outspeed neutral base 50s.

There are several move options that work effectively on this set; however, they are niche to an extent and usually not as handy as the options listed. Megahorn is a neat idea to get past Tangela, as it nabs the OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. However, using Megahorn usually limits Absol to relying on Sucker Punch as its lone STAB move, which is not advised in most situations. Substitute might be used as well to block status moves. It also gives Absol a buffer against attacks, and by forcing your opponent to attack, Absol gets a free opportunity to fire off Sucker Punch.

Hazards are both loved and hated by Absol, in that it appreciates hazards on the opponent's side to ~~ease~~bring some attacks into KO range, but it hates having its lifespan cut short by both Spikes and Toxic Spikes. Thus, users of Stealth Rock, as well as Rapid Spin, are greatly appreciated. Golem is a great offensive user of Stealth Rock, while Tentacool is a great teammate for Absol; it both spins away Spikes,(comma) which wear Absol down, and ~~it also~~ puts them on the opponent's side. Other teammates that can soak up super effective attacks are also a huge help to Absol. Musharna and Gurdurr in particular are great teammates, as they can weaken opponents to the point that Absol might be able to sweep unhindered.

[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

~~Whereas Swords Dance Absol aims to sweep the opponent, t~~This set focuses ~~instead~~ on attacking the opponent as soon as it enters the field. (do you remember that mass pm from fate that was like "if people talk about the first set in the second set take it out because we could change the set orders at some point"? that's why i took out the first part of this sentence n.n) Priority Sucker Punch allows Absol to act as a revenge killer of sorts, while Pursuit is an interesting move on Absol; along with Night Slash, it effectively traps Psychic- and most Ghost-types. Absol can then play mindgames with its opponent,(remove comma) and possibly throw them off. As a note, Absol's Pursuit is much more powerful than that of the bulkier Skuntank, giving Absol a niche of sorts. Superpower makes sure Absol can at least dent Rock- and Steel-types, such as Regirock and Probopass. It also gives Absol excellent neutral coverage; thus, it can afford to mispredict every once in a while, because many Pokemon that resist Night Slash hate taking a Superpower to the face.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

To give Absol as much power as possible, Life Orb is the preferred item; Adamant is the preferred nature for the same reason. However, Jolly is always an option if you feel that Absol needs to outspeed Pokemon such as Jolly Samurott, whoich can be a nuisance otherwise. Choice Band is another possible option on this set, as it gives a ~~big~~larger Attack boost than Life Orb does. However, Absol often cannot afford to lock itself into attacks, most notably Sucker Punch. Absol's EV spread on this set is fairly simple: as it is meant to bash the opponent with physical attacks as hard and as fast as possible, Attack and Speed are maxed out, with the four filler EVs going into HP to slightly increase Absol's bulk.

Super Luck is the preferred ability for its ability to score a timely critical hit on opponents. This is very helpful in some situations, as there is a decent chance that Absol might come out on top with a critical hit, especially with Night Slash, which has a 25% critical hit rate. Justified has its uses, but Absol can't damage most of the users of Dark-type moves in the metagame without getting badly hurt itself. Megahorn and Psycho Cut both have coverage against key threats to Absol, but they don't hit much else besides Tangela and Fighting-types, respectively. Teammates ~~who~~that can take advantage of the holes Absol can make in teams are great ideas. Musharna and Gurdurr can both take advantage of Ghost- and Psychic-types being removed, which allows them to attack unhindered. This process goes in reverse as well; Gurdurr and Musharna can create holes in an opponent's defenses to set Absol up for a clean sweep.

[SET]
name: Mixed Lure
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Night Slash / Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Lonely
evs: 88 Atk / 168 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

While most Absol sets rely on physical attacks to beat down the opposition, this set aims to use Absol's usable Special Attack stat to eliminate key physical walls, such as Tangela and Quagsire, with super effective special attacks. Sucker Punch still provides a powerful STAB priority attack, while Superpower can dent Rock- and Steel-types, whoich otherwise take a pittance from this set. Fire Blast is this set's main draw—; it always KOes physically defensive Tangela after Stealth Rock damage, while Amoonguss, another key physical wall in the metagame, is soundly 2HKOed. In the final moveslot, Night Slash ifs usually the best option ~~for Absol, retaining~~, as it gives Absol a solid physical STAB move that doesn't rely on the opponent attack ~~you~~ing it. However, Hidden Power Grass hits other walls ~~which~~that can handle Absol otherwise, such as Quagsire and Seadra.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

The given EVs allow Absol to always OHKO Tangela with Fire Blast after Stealth Rock, while its Attack stat is just 10 points lower than Jolly Absol with maximum investment. Speed is also maximized so that Absol can Speed tie with other neutral-natured base 75 Pokemon. The EVs on this set can be changed if you feel ~~this Absol se~~it needs more Attack or Special Attack. However, this is generally the best spread to go with. Life Orb is very important on this set, as Absol can't dream of KOing several Pokemon without the boost it provides.

Surprisingly, Misdreavus is a huge threat to this set, as it can tank any hit from this set and neuter it with Will-O-Wisp. Thus, it might be a good idea to pack a teammate that can either trap Misdreavus or use Misdreavus to its advantage. Skuntank is a good example of the former, as it can effectively put Misdreavus in a checkmate position with a fast Crunch or Pursuit. On the other hand, Magmortar is immune to Will-O-Wisp thanks to its Fire typing and can roast Misdreavus to a crisp with STAB Fire Blast. Teammates that can take advantage of the fact that Absol destroys common physical walls are also recommended. Gurdurr is a prime example, as not only does it sweep easily with physical walls weakened or removed, but it also synergizes very well with Absol in terms of typing; the two of them can come in on each other's ~~super effective hit~~weaknesses and create further holes in the opponent's team. Psychic-types also gel with Absol in terms of type synergy, and they can get rid of Fighting-types, which soundly defeat Absol ~~otherwise~~. Lastly, hazard support is absolutely vital for this set to function correctly, so users of Stealth Rock, such as Golem and Regirock, work nicely. Additionally, Absol appreciates teammates ~~who~~that can remove hazards from its side of the field; Armaldo is an interesting option if Absol is on an offensive team, ~~since~~as it can both set down Stealth Rock and beat most other hazard setters with Rapid Spin and STAB Stone Edge.

[Other Options]

Choice Scarf is an interesting option for Absol; it lets Absol reliably revenge kill most variants of Haunter and Kadabra, among other th~~ing~~reats, as they are incredibly frail on the physical side. However, its power is sometimes a bit low, and Absol usually has all the tools it needs to revenge kill opponents inwith a powerful Sucker Punch. Quick Attack is a priority move that always works, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Sucker Punch. Absol also has access to a number of support moves, including: Baton Pass, Magic Coat, Taunt, and Will-O-Wisp. While these moves might seem enticing, Absol is too frail to use the~~se moves~~m effectively.

[Checks and Counters]

There are several Pokemon that can put an end to Absol; defensively speaking, powerful physical walls are your best options thanks to the fact that they can tank at least one hit from Absol and punish it for attacking. While it has to watch out for rare mixed sets, Tangela can wall any attack from Absol bar a boosted Megahorn after Stealth Rock. From there, it can put Absol to sleep or paralyze it; it can also attack Absol with STAB Giga Drain and regain some of its own HP in return. Amoonguss is nearly identical to Tangela when it comes to countering Absol, but along with its stellar physical bulk, it can also remove any boosts Absol might have acquired with Clear Smog, which is an extra bonus. On that note, Quagsire ignores any and all boosts Absol might have acquired,(remove comma) and can hit back with Scald, Earthquake, or Toxic. Seadra, Torterra, and Weezing can all take any boosted attack from Absol (bar a boosted Psycho Cut to the latter),(remove comma) and can retaliate with STAB attacks that can either cripple Absol or KO it outright if it's weakened enough. Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn and Superpower, but it can't do too much back either,(comma) as Absol resists its Dark-type attacks. Skuntank's STAB Poison-type attacks do a number on Absol, however.

If you cannot fit a defensive counter to Absol on your team, fear not; there are plenty of offensive Pokemon in NU that can beat Absol one-on-one. Chief among these are Fighting-types, whoich can almost always take a boosted Sucker Punch and KO with their STAB attacks. A special mention needs to be made for Gurdurr; not only does it wall Absol completely (even with Psycho Cut!), but it can also ~~can~~ set up in its face with Bulk Up, then KO with STAB Mach Punch and Drain Punch. Users of Substitute can be troublesome for Absol as well, as you have to win ~~the~~a prediction war with the opponent so that you can nail their opposing Pokemon when ~~they~~it doesn't have a Substitute up; you have a decent chance of winning the prediction war with Absol, however. Haunter is probably the best example of a Substitute user. As most Absol only have two moves to hit it with—Sucker Punch and Night Slash or a coverage move—it can Disable the latter and make sure it gets a Substitute up for free, then proceed to hit Absol with a STAB Sludge Bomb. Other ways of bypassing Sucker Punch include faster priority users and Encore support; the former can make sure that Sucker Punch fails while they attack, while the latter can lock Absol into Sucker Punch after a kill, drain its PP, and give the Encore user at least one free turn.

[Overview]

Absol stands out as one of the most prominent physical attackers in the NU metagame thanks to a combination of massive Attack, priority in Sucker Punch, and Swords Dance. Sitting at a decent base 75 Speed, Absol has just enough Speed to outpace what it needs to; faster threats have to deal with a Sucker Punch, and one that has an unusually high chance to score a critical hit at that! Absol's Dark typing also has great neutral coverage on most of the metagame and strikes many popular Pokemon, such as Misdreavus and Musharna, super effectively. Pokemon that can take a STAB Night Slash might also risk facing one of Absol's token coverage moves, namely Megahorn or even Psycho Cut. However, above all else, a word of note: you must be able to predict well with Absol due to the nature of Sucker Punch; it's very much a Pokemon with a high-risk, very high-reward playstyle.

Absol does have its downfalls, however. Several physical walls can stall Absol all day and all night; some Grass-types can even put Absol to sleep and effectively neuter it for the rest of the match. All entry hazards affect Absol, so they are a major thorn in its side; Life Orb sets will have their lifespans cut much shorter than they might hope, while bulkier sets often have to contend with Toxic Spikes. There are also offensive threats to Absol, namely the Fighting-types that litter the metagame. They are a huge threat to Absol, as they both resist its STAB moves and easily KO it. Substitute users can be a pain as well by bypassing Sucker Punch if they predict correctly. However, all of these setbacks can be avoided with some proper team support, which allows Absol to shine as an offensive juggernaut. Why else do you think Absol is so popular?

[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash / Psycho Cut
item: Life Orb / Lum Berry
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

If you see an Absol on the opponent's team, this is most likely the set it will be running. It has a lot going for it too; it wraps up a lot of Absol's best traits into one package, namely a massive Attack stat, Swords Dance to boost it with, and a priority Sucker Punch to hit any Pokemon that try to take it out for massive damage. Alongside this, Superpower is Absol's main coverage move. It doesn't usually need much else, either, thanks to the great neutral coverage Dark- and Fighting-type moves have together. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is the preferred option for a reliable STAB attack that works even when the opponent doesn't attack Absol. On the other hand, Psycho Cut can eliminate Fighting-types on the switch-in. Sawk is a good example of this, as Absol can KO it on the switch after Stealth Rock damage; if Absol does not have Psycho Cut, the only thing that could take down Sawk is a boosted, critical hit Sucker Punch.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

Life Orb gives Absol a welcome power boost against opponents it could not KO otherwise. However, Absol can be worn down too quickly if it acquires enough Life Orb recoil; this is especially true if there are hazards on the field, namely Toxic Spikes. Speaking of which, Lum Berry is another great choice for an item, as Absol can avoid an otherwise crippling status move or Toxic Spikes and get a boost with Swords Dance unscathed. For example, with a Lum Berry, it can always set up against Misdreavus by boosting as it uses Will-O-Wisp, then KOing with a STAB Night Slash. Super Luck is far and away the best ability on this set, as it allows Absol to occasionally beat several of its normal counters with a timely critical hit. Justified has its uses, but the main users of Dark-type moves in the tier—Golem and Skuntank, among others—threaten Absol enough that it can't effectively set up on them. Adamant is the preferred nature to increase Absol's damage output as much as possible, but you can get away with running Jolly as well, as this lets Absol outpace some slower offensive threats and quite possibly KO them. Absol can also win a possible Speed tie with other Jolly Absol and continue sweeping unscathed. If you prefer more bulk over Speed, an EV spread of 152 HP / 252 Atk / 104 Spe might be used to outspeed neutral base 50s.

There are several move options that work effectively on this set; however, they are niche to an extent and usually not as handy as the options listed. Megahorn is a neat idea to get past Tangela, as it nabs the OHKO after Stealth Rock damage. However, using Megahorn usually limits Absol to relying on Sucker Punch as its lone STAB move, which is not advised in most situations. Substitute might be used as well to block status moves. It also gives Absol a buffer against attacks, and by forcing your opponent to attack, Absol gets a free opportunity to fire off Sucker Punch.

Hazards are both loved and hated by Absol, in that it appreciates hazards on the opponent's side to bring some attacks into KO range, but it hates having its lifespan cut short by both Spikes and Toxic Spikes. Thus, users of Stealth Rock, as well as Rapid Spin, are greatly appreciated. Golem is a great offensive user of Stealth Rock, while Tentacool is a great teammate for Absol; it both spins away Spikes, which wear Absol down, and puts them on the opponent's side. Other teammates that can soak up super effective attacks are also a huge help to Absol. Musharna and Gurdurr in particular are great teammates, as they can weaken opponents to the point that Absol might be able to sweep unhindered.

[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Night Slash
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

This set focuses on attacking the opponent as soon as it enters the field. Priority Sucker Punch allows Absol to act as a revenge killer of sorts, while Pursuit is an interesting move on Absol; along with Night Slash, it effectively traps Psychic- and most Ghost-types. Absol can then play mindgames with its opponent and possibly throw them off. As a note, Absol's Pursuit is much more powerful than that of the bulkier Skuntank, giving Absol a niche of sorts. Superpower makes sure Absol can at least dent Rock- and Steel-types, such as Regirock and Probopass. It also gives Absol excellent neutral coverage; thus, it can afford to mispredict every once in a while, because many Pokemon that resist Night Slash hate taking a Superpower to the face.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

To give Absol as much power as possible, Life Orb is the preferred item; Adamant is the preferred nature for the same reason. However, Jolly is always an option if you feel that Absol needs to outspeed Pokemon such as Jolly Samurott, which can be a nuisance otherwise. Choice Band is another possible option on this set, as it gives a larger Attack boost than Life Orb does. However, Absol often cannot afford to lock itself into attacks, most notably Sucker Punch. Absol's EV spread on this set is fairly simple: as it is meant to bash the opponent with physical attacks as hard and as fast as possible, Attack and Speed are maxed out, with the four filler EVs going into HP to slightly increase Absol's bulk.

Super Luck is the preferred ability for its ability to score a timely critical hit on opponents. This is very helpful in some situations, as there is a decent chance that Absol might come out on top with a critical hit, especially with Night Slash, which has a 25% critical hit rate. Justified has its uses, but Absol can't damage most of the users of Dark-type moves in the metagame without getting badly hurt itself. Megahorn and Psycho Cut both have coverage against key threats to Absol, but they don't hit much else besides Tangela and Fighting-types, respectively. Teammates that can take advantage of the holes Absol can make in teams are great ideas. Musharna and Gurdurr can both take advantage of Ghost- and Psychic-types being removed, which allows them to attack unhindered. This process goes in reverse as well; Gurdurr and Musharna can create holes in an opponent's defenses to set Absol up for a clean sweep.

[SET]
name: Mixed Lure
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Night Slash / Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb
ability: Super Luck
nature: Lonely
evs: 88 Atk / 168 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

While most Absol sets rely on physical attacks to beat down the opposition, this set aims to use Absol's usable Special Attack stat to eliminate key physical walls, such as Tangela and Quagsire, with super effective special attacks. Sucker Punch still provides a powerful STAB priority attack, while Superpower can dent Rock- and Steel-types, which otherwise take a pittance from this set. Fire Blast is this set's main draw; it always KOes physically defensive Tangela after Stealth Rock damage, while Amoonguss, another key physical wall in the metagame, is soundly 2HKOed. In the final moveslot, Night Slash is usually the best option, as it gives Absol a solid physical STAB move that doesn't rely on the opponent attacking it. However, Hidden Power Grass hits other walls that can handle Absol otherwise, such as Quagsire and Seadra.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

The given EVs allow Absol to always OHKO Tangela with Fire Blast after Stealth Rock, while its Attack stat is just 10 points lower than Jolly Absol with maximum investment. Speed is also maximized so that Absol can Speed tie with other neutral-natured base 75 Pokemon. The EVs on this set can be changed if you feel it needs more Attack or Special Attack. However, this is generally the best spread to go with. Life Orb is very important on this set, as Absol can't dream of KOing several Pokemon without the boost it provides.

Surprisingly, Misdreavus is a huge threat to this set, as it can tank any hit from this set and neuter it with Will-O-Wisp. Thus, it might be a good idea to pack a teammate that can either trap Misdreavus or use Misdreavus to its advantage. Skuntank is a good example of the former, as it can effectively put Misdreavus in a checkmate position with a fast Crunch or Pursuit. On the other hand, Magmortar is immune to Will-O-Wisp thanks to its Fire typing and can roast Misdreavus to a crisp with STAB Fire Blast. Teammates that can take advantage of the fact that Absol destroys common physical walls are also recommended. Gurdurr is a prime example, as not only does it sweep easily with physical walls weakened or removed, but it also synergizes very well with Absol in terms of typing; the two of them can come in on each other's weaknesses and create further holes in the opponent's team. Psychic-types also gel with Absol in terms of type synergy, and they can get rid of Fighting-types, which soundly defeat Absol. Lastly, hazard support is absolutely vital for this set to function correctly, so users of Stealth Rock, such as Golem and Regirock, work nicely. Additionally, Absol appreciates teammates that can remove hazards from its side of the field; Armaldo is an interesting option if Absol is on an offensive team, as it can both set down Stealth Rock and beat most other hazard setters with Rapid Spin and STAB Stone Edge.

[Other Options]

Choice Scarf is an interesting option for Absol; it lets Absol reliably revenge kill most variants of Haunter and Kadabra, among other threats, as they are incredibly frail on the physical side. However, its power is sometimes a bit low, and Absol usually has all the tools it needs to revenge kill opponents with a powerful Sucker Punch. Quick Attack is a priority move that always works, but it's nowhere near as powerful as Sucker Punch. Absol also has access to a number of support moves, including: Baton Pass, Magic Coat, Taunt, and Will-O-Wisp. While these moves might seem enticing, Absol is too frail to use them effectively.

[Checks and Counters]

There are several Pokemon that can put an end to Absol; defensively speaking, powerful physical walls are your best options thanks to the fact that they can tank at least one hit from Absol and punish it for attacking. While it has to watch out for rare mixed sets, Tangela can wall any attack from Absol bar a boosted Megahorn after Stealth Rock. From there, it can put Absol to sleep or paralyze it; it can also attack Absol with STAB Giga Drain and regain some of its own HP in return. Amoonguss is nearly identical to Tangela when it comes to countering Absol, but along with its stellar physical bulk, it can also remove any boosts Absol might have acquired with Clear Smog, which is an extra bonus. On that note, Quagsire ignores any and all boosts Absol might have acquired and can hit back with Scald, Earthquake, or Toxic. Seadra, Torterra, and Weezing can all take any boosted attack from Absol (bar a boosted Psycho Cut to the latter) and can retaliate with STAB attacks that can either cripple Absol or KO it outright if it's weakened enough. Skuntank is a special case; it resists Absol's entire competitive movepool bar Megahorn and Superpower, but it can't do too much back either, as Absol resists its Dark-type attacks. Skuntank's STAB Poison-type attacks do a number on Absol, however.

If you cannot fit a defensive counter to Absol on your team, fear not; there are plenty of offensive Pokemon in NU that can beat Absol one-on-one. Chief among these are Fighting-types, which can almost always take a boosted Sucker Punch and KO with their STAB attacks. A special mention needs to be made for Gurdurr; not only does it wall Absol completely (even with Psycho Cut!), but it can also set up in its face with Bulk Up, then KO with STAB Mach Punch and Drain Punch. Users of Substitute can be troublesome for Absol as well, as you have to win a prediction war with the opponent so that you can nail the opposing Pokemon when it doesn't have a Substitute up; you have a decent chance of winning the prediction war with Absol, however. Haunter is probably the best example of a Substitute user. As most Absol only have two moves to hit it with—Sucker Punch and Night Slash or a coverage move—it can Disable the latter and make sure it gets a Substitute up for free, then proceed to hit Absol with a STAB Sludge Bomb. Other ways of bypassing Sucker Punch include faster priority users and Encore support; the former can make sure that Sucker Punch fails while they attack, while the latter can lock Absol into Sucker Punch after a kill, drain its PP, and give the Encore user at least one free turn.

GP APPROVED 2/2

NatGeo · Jun 4, 2012

this is done!

Absol (Update) [GP 2/2]

NatGeo

TROP

BAN DRUDDIGON. FIREWALL DRAGON DID NOTHING WRONG

jake

underdog of the year

col49

NatGeo

Django

Started from the bottom...

tennisace

not quite too old for this, apparently

DTC

NatGeo

tennisace

not quite too old for this, apparently

Steamroll

huh?

DTC

Jaetheho

Steamroll

huh?

jake

underdog of the year

DTC

NatGeo

shnen

שוני

NatGeo

sirndpt

viol and bass

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Stalfos

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