Armaldo
Credit to waterwarrior for the original analysis.
[Overview]
<p>Armaldo enjoys significant usage in NU for one thing and one thing only: Rapid Spin. Of course, this is in a metagame where many of the top threats require Rapid Spin support, and Armaldo is one of the few viable Pokemon that can provide it. Armaldo stands out among spinners in NU for two reasons; it has the greatest offensive presence of any spinner in NU, as its access to Swords Dance allows it to break through common spinblockers such as Misdreavus and Drifblim. On top of this, Armaldo is one of just a handful of Pokemon that have access to both Stealth Rock and Rapid Spin, which allows it to fill two would-be teamslots by itself. Offensive sets are also effective, as Armaldo can use the aforementioned Swords Dance or utilize a Choice Band to bust through defensive cores. Armaldo is blessed with awesome dual STABs as well, as Rock is a solid offensive type in NU, but it is Armaldo's access to a Bug-type STAB move that allows it to break through the premier physical wall in NU: Tangela. Unfortunately, that's where the positives come to an end.</p>
<p>While Armaldo's 75 / 100 / 80 defenses might look attractive, especially on the physical side, in reality, Armaldo is extremely slow and prone to being KOed by most decently powered special STAB moves. Even more powerful physical STAB moves, such as Braviary's Brave Bird, will leave Armaldo unable to do to much for the remainder of the game. In addition, Armaldo's typing is poor defensively. Although it only has three weaknesses, it has no useful resistances as well; it takes full damage from the most prominent attacking types in NU, namely Flying, Fighting, and Fire. It is also weak to Stealth Rock, and furthermore takes full damage from Spikes and Toxic Spikes, all of which are highly undesirable in a spinner. To top it all off, Armaldo lacks reliable recovery, which leaves it easily worn down to the point where it is easily outsped and KOed. Despite its glaring weaknesses Armaldo is still one of the best candidates for the job of spinning in NU, with its access to Stealth Rock setting itself apart from Cryogonal.</p>
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Rapid Spin
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: X-Scissor / Earthquake
item: Lum Berry / Leftovers
ability: Battle Armor
nature: Adamant
evs: 128 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 124 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Armaldo is one of the best spinners in NU, and this set is one of the major reasons why. Swords Dance lets it break through every spinblocker in the tier, including Misdreavus, that are using a fast spread or that have taken previous damage. After a single Swords Dance, Armaldo reaches an Attack stat of 766, more than enough to let it plow through almost everything in sight. In fact, counters to +2 Armaldo exist only because of Armaldo's four-moveslot syndrome. Bastiodon and Probopass can take on Armaldo that lack Earthquake, while Tangela and Torterra are thorns in Armaldo's side should it lack X-Scissor. However, the primary purpose of this set is not to sweep, but to break through your opponent's spinblocker in order to successfully get a Rapid Spin off, and allow a teammate to sweep. While Armaldo is almost impossible to wall at +2, its lack of Speed and defensive investment leave it prey to common offensive teams; Pokemon such as Magmortar, Gorebyss, and Braviary can halt Armaldo's sweep.</p>
<p>Stone Edge is Armaldo's most powerful STAB move; although its accuracy might let you down at times, it can still do massive damage to most switch-ins. It helps Armaldo break through spinblockers as well; specifically, after a boost, it OHKOes Drifblim and does upwards of 70% to Misdreavus. The last moveslot is left up to the trainer: X-Scissor is a more reliable secondary STAB move that provides essential coverage on Tangela and Torterra, while Earthquake allows Armaldo to hit Steel-types such as Probopass and Bastiodon, as well as Fighting-types such as Sawk and Gurdurr. While the EdgeQuake combo certainly has its benefits, X-Scissor is usually the preferred choice because it is one of Armaldo's main niches over Golem, other than Rapid Spin. Although Rapid Spin is the main reason to use this set, X-Scissor makes Armaldo a fantastic Tangela lure.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EVs might look a bit confusing, but they are rather simple. Maximum investment in Attack, along with an Adamant nature, allows Armaldo to hit as hard as possible, and 124 Speed EVs let it outrun uninvested Tangela and 2HKO it after a boost. The remaining EVs increase Armaldo's bulk; 4 EVs are taken out of HP to reduce Stealth Rock damage, which might allow Armaldo a fifth switch into Stealth Rock. Lum Berry is the preferred item as it enables Armaldo to get past spinblockers such as Misdreavus, Drifblim, and Frillish without getting burned by Will-O-Wisp, or even Scald in the latter Pokemon's case. It also comes in handy against foes such as Alomomola, Tangela, Quagsire, and Amoonguss, who will either aim to put Armaldo to sleep or shorten its lifespan with Sleep Powder, Spore, and Toxic, respectively. However, Leftovers is also a good option to grant Armaldo greater longevity. Note that Leftovers enables Armaldo to possibly spin more than once, although not as well, while Lum Berry allows Armaldo to do a better job spinning the first time, with reduced performance after it has been consumed.</p>
<p>While Battle Armor is the default ability of choice for overall usefulness, this set can also be used with Swift Swim to function on a rain team. With a Swift Swim boost, Armaldo can outspeed Swellow, as well as neutral-natured Choice Scarf Braviary and Gardevoir. In fact, this set is very useful on rain teams because Armaldo packs STAB X-Scissor to hit pesky Grass-types that trouble them, most notably Ludicolo, which takes neutral damage from Ice Beam, rain teams' most common weapon against Grass-types. Should you decide to take this route, a Jolly nature and a spread of 48 HP / 252 Atk / 208 Spe should be used to maximize Attack power while also being able to outpace neutral-natured base 80 Speed Choice Scarf users in rain. Life Orb and Leftovers would be such a set's primary item choices for power and longevity, respectively.</p>
<p>Even outside of rain, this Armaldo has many other options. Although it is one of the main reasons to use Armaldo in the first place, you can drop Rapid Spin if this task is being handled by a teammate such as Cryogonal. Armaldo can thus use both X-Scissor and Earthquake, which makes it a better standalone sweeper and much harder to wall. Swords Dance can be dropped as well, but this is less recommended as the boosting move is vital in allowing Armaldo to break through spinblockers and become a threatening sweeper. The one exception to this rule is if your team desperately needs a Stealth Rock user; feel free to run Stealth Rock over one of these moves if so. While the support set fills this role more reliably, this set has advantages in greater coverage and power. Finally, an interesting move that Armaldo can also use effectively is Aqua Tail; although illegal with Swift Swim, it is useful to hit unsuspecting Golem. However, it should only be used if Armaldo doesn't require Swords Dance or Rapid Spin, as these moves are generally superior.</p>
<p>Pokemon that appreciate a field free of entry hazards, such as Charizard, Rotom-S, and Swellow, are naturally great partners for Armaldo. Likewise, entry hazard users, such as Golem, Garbodor, and Cacturne, are also good teammates that complement Armaldo on the offensive side. Quagsire stops this set cold due to Unaware and its resistance to Stone Edge; Grass-types that can switch in and pose an immediate threat to it, such as Exeggutor and Torterra, therefore make for fine partners. In particular, Torterra is probably the greatest partner this set could ask for as it can set up Stealth Rock to weaken defensive cores, provide complementary offense with Swords Dance, Rock Polish, or a Choice Band, and counter Golem with Bullet Seed, thereby preventing it from even setting up Stealth Rock. This set is especially useful on offensive teams because it has great offensive presence of its own along with the capability to provide Rapid Spin support. Gardevoir, Golem, and Garbodor are all exceptional leads for these types of teams, and the former is also a prime choice to set up Rain Dance. One mainstay on offensive teams is Sawk; it and other Fighting-types can easily force out Probopass and Golem. Not only can Armaldo spin away hazards to preserve Sawk's Sturdy, it can also bring Misdreavus to the brink of death, which lets Sawk clean up afterwards.</p>
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Stealth Rock
move 3: Rock Blast / Rock Slide
move 4: X-Scissor / Knock Off
item: Leftovers
ability: Battle Armor
nature: Impish
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While the Swords Dance set is better if Armaldo merely wants to clear the field once, Armaldo can also take advantage of its unique qualities to use Rapid Spin in a more supporting role. This set takes advantage of Armaldo's high base 100 Defense stat to set up Stealth Rock and use Rapid Spin multiple times. While Armaldo's typing is usually a burden defensively, it is uniquely helpful for countering Sawsbuck, one of the most threatening sweepers in NU. Once again, the focus of this set is Rapid Spin, which is is a godsend in a tier where many of the top sweepers are weak to Stealth Rock. Armaldo is one of the few viable users of Rapid Spin in NU, and this set's main difference from the Swords Dance one is its greater utility on more types of teams. Every competitive team should have a Stealth Rock user, and Armaldo might sometimes be the only Pokemon on the team that can set it up. Rather than use the Swords Dance set to spin more effectively, you must compromise and trade the ability to beat spinblockers for the unique qualities of this set; countering certain threats and setting up Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Even without investment, Armaldo's attacks still pack a punch thanks to its high base Attack. Dual STAB is usually the way to go, as they have crucial coverage in NU, such as on Swellow and Torterra. Rock Blast is the preferred Rock-type move as it has the same accuracy as Rock Slide, and will usually be at least as powerful, if not more. Being a multi-hit move, it can also break through the frail Substitutes of Haunter, Kadabra, Rotom-S, and Ninjask. However, Rock Slide is still an option for greater reliability. X-Scissor is the move of choice in the last slot, and is especially useful for Sawsbuck, Musharna, and Torterra. Despite this, Knock Off is a solid team support option, as there is an abundance of both Eviolite users and Choice Scarf revenge killers in NU. Using Knock Off on these Pokemon as they switch in will make them much harder to wall or revenge kill. However, X-Scissor is usually the superior choice because Knock Off is very prediction-reliant and Armaldo needs all the longevity it can get.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Maximum investment in HP and Defense, as well as an Impish nature, increases Armaldo's physical defense capabilities as much as possible. However, this set can be more offensively inclined as well; investing in Attack instead of Defense and using an Adamant nature would make Armaldo an offensive tank that can set up Stealth Rock while your opponent switches out. Leftovers is the only item for Armaldo, as it is Armaldo's only form of reliable recovery. Battle Armor is a great ability for a defensive Pokemon, and should be used accordingly. While you'll never notice its effects, critical hits are what usually spell doom for almost all defensive Pokemon. Swift Swim could be used to better check rain teams, but it won't usually make a difference because Armaldo is so hilariously slow, especially uninvested, that every rain sweeper will be able to outspeed it even with Swift Swim active. Stick to Battle Armor.</p>
<p>There are a few optional changes that can be made to this set. Stone Edge is generally stronger than Rock Blast, and hits a lot harder than Rock Slide. However, the accuracy will let you down and Rock Blast has a lot more utility. Using Toxic over one of Armaldo's attacking moves can make it less of a tank and more of a wall. The loss in coverage won't be a big issue as Armaldo can already break through Substitutes with Rock Blast. However, it won't be able to effectively Toxic stall due to its lack of reliable recovery. Chesto Berry + Rest can rectify Armaldo's need for recovery and give it a second chance at pulling off Rapid Spin, but Armaldo will have to sacrifice coverage. RestTalk should not be considered, however, because this set's main value is its access to both Stealth Rock and Rapid Spin, and a Pokemon that runs Rapid Spin as its only attacking move epitomizes setup fodder.</p>
<p>As with all spinners, Pokemon that can take advantage of a hazard-free field, such as Magmortar, Swellow, Rotom-S, and Braviary, benefit enormously from Armaldo's presence. As this set can't power through spinblockers, Pursuit support is recommended. Both Absol and Skuntank are great choices for this, but take care not to switch them into Misdreavus's Will-O-Wisp. Wish support benefits Armaldo greatly, as it will frequently be worn down from hazard damage and powerful hits. Alomomola, Flareon, and Lickilicky are all fine candidates for the job, with the former taking on physical attackers and the latter two defending your team against special attackers; the latter two also have access to Heal Bell to help your team even more. Armaldo can be paired with either Lickilicky or Flareon to make a great stall core, as they provide ideal Stealth Rock, Rapid Spin, Wish, and Heal Bell support. As Gorebyss and Quagsire can switch into this set and destroy it all day, Ludicolo is a good partner that can get rid of both of these Pokemon. A spinblocker that can keep Stealth Rock on your opponent's side of the field would be a wise investment; Misdreavus, Drifblim, and Lampent are all Pokemon that can fill this role.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Stone Edge
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: X-Scissor
move 4: Superpower
item: Choice Band
ability: Battle Armor
nature: Adamant
evs: 128 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 124 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While most Armaldo sets take advantage of its access to Stealth Rock, Rapid Spin, or both, this set uses Armaldo's offensive capabilities rather than letting it support other offensive Pokemon. Armaldo is a fine user of Choice Band thanks to its high Attack stat, good bulk, and excellent coverage; it hits hard off the bat and powers through Pokemon that attempt to switch in on Stealth Rock, Rapid Spin, or Swords Dance. It can not only break through some of Armaldo's usual offensive checks, such as Gorebyss, Samurott, and Golem, but even common physical walls, namely Tangela, Torterra, and Regirock. This set fits best on balanced teams that can both provide hazards for Armaldo to take advantage of, and provide complementary offense to break down Armaldo's checks. Additionally, Armaldo can't be counted on to take hits, so defensive teammates are necessary as well.</p>
<p>Stone Edge is Armaldo's most powerful STAB move and the one that it should be using the most often; it is particularly helpful against the many Flying-type Pokemon in NU. Earthquake is a necessity to hit Steel- and Fighting-types such as Gurdurr and Probopass, and completes the EdgeQuake combination. One of Armaldo's greatest assets is its Bug-type STAB; this set is no exception. X-Scissor is a wonderful secondary STAB to have in the NU metagame, as it is not only reliable but useful for 2HKOing Tangela and Torterra, which Armaldo's other moves fail to do. Rounding out the set is Superpower, which gets coverage on Normal-type special walls that Armaldo can easily switch into, such as Miltank, Lickilicky, and Audino. It's worth noting that Superpower is more powerful than Earthquake against Normal-, Ice-, and Dark-type Pokemon over two turns, but if you expect Armaldo to stay in for three turns or more at a time, Earthquake is the superior choice.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Maximum investment in Attack in tandem with an Adamant nature allows Armaldo to hit as hard as possible. The listed Speed EVs let Armaldo outpace uninvested Tangela to 2HKO it with X-Scissor. The remaining EVs are placed in HP, but take four EVs out of HP so Armaldo can switch into Stealth Rock five times. Battle Armor is the superior choice if you're not using this set on a rain team, but if you are using Swift Swim, run a spread of 48 HP /252 Atk / 208 Spe along with a Jolly nature; this lets Armaldo outrun Swellow and neutral-natured base 80 Choice Scarf users, such as Gardevoir and Braviary. While Aqua Tail is illegal with Swift Swim, it finds some use otherwise by hitting Golem, who is a common switch-in to Armaldo. Rock Blast is also useful on this set for breaking Focus Sashes and Substitutes. Armaldo can switch into Ninjask with ease, and destroy it behind a Substitute before it has a chance to Baton Pass its boosts to a threatening sweeper.</p>
<p>Ironically, Rapid Spin support is a must when using this set because Armaldo is weak to Stealth Rock and can't afford to switch into it many times. You could run Rapid Spin over Superpower if you can't fit another spinner onto your team; however, it is generally not advised because Cryogonal, Wartortle, and Tentacool can all pick up the slack. Torterra is a great partner for any Armaldo set, and helps this set in particular by setting up Stealth Rock to aid Armaldo's ability to break through walls and clean up after said walls have been broken. Armaldo can get rid of two troublesome Pokemon for Torterra, namely Tangela and opposing Torterra, while Torterra easily gets rid of bulky Water-types that wall Armaldo, such as Quagsire and Alomomola. Cacturne is another great partner for this set, as it can switch into the aforementioned bulky Water-types with ease and set up Spikes for Armaldo to take advantage of. Alternatively, you could pair Armaldo up with Ludicolo, who can switch into both bulky Grass / Poison types such as Amoonguss and Vileplume, as well as Quagsire and Alomomola, and power through them all with Ice Beam or STAB Giga Drain.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A Rock Polish set is very viable on Armaldo, with Life Orb boosting its attack power and Rock Polish doubling its Speed. Stone Edge, Earthquake, and X-Scissor provide an amazing combination of both power and coverage, with each move being useful in the correct circumstances. This set plays very differently to any other set, because it tries to break down walls over time before setting up a sweep against faster revenge killers by using Rock Polish. An EV spread of 48 HP / 252 Atk / 208 Spe along with a Jolly nature is the recommended spread, as this lets Armaldo outspeed base 80 Choice Scarf users and Swellow after a single Rock Polish. The main reason that this set doesn't have a more detailed write-up in the main analysis is that it has to make a crucial choice when choosing natures; a Jolly-natured Armaldo is almost completely outclassed by Golem, because even with its super effective STAB, Armaldo only has a very small chance to 2HKO Tangela. Golem has a much better typing both offensively and defensively, as it is granted both STAB EdgeQuake and a resistance to Stealth Rock. While an Adamant nature remedies the lack of power, losing out to Swellow and Choice Scarf Braviary isn't exactly ideal either. The only way this set can beat Tangela is with a little prior damage, and even then the vine monster can just switch out and recover health, then deal with Armaldo later.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, aside from Rock Polish, every other useful move in Armaldo's movepool is either extremely situational or leaves it outclassed in some way by another Pokemon. Curse is an interesting prospect that Armaldo has the stat spread to use well; it boosts Armaldo's already high Attack and Defense while lowering its already pitiful Speed. Curse is best used on a mono-attacking RestTalk set that tries to accumulate multiple boosts over time. However, using RestTalk leaves Armaldo at the mercy of BW's sleep mechanics; worse still, Armaldo will be easily outsped and KOed by a strong special attack, such as Gorebyss's Hydro Pump. Another boosting move that Armaldo has access to is Hone Claws, which shores up Stone Edge's accuracy issues while also boosting the power of Armaldo's other attacks. However, it is largely outclassed by Swords Dance.</p>
<p>Finally, Armaldo can be a good sun supporter with its access to Sunny Day. Pokemon such as Charizard require Rapid Spin support, and Armaldo is the best candidate for the job. Not only is Armaldo's weakness to Water-type attacks neutered, Armaldo can also set up Stealth Rock to aid sun sweepers. Cryogonal doesn't appreciate its weakness to Fire-type attacks being amplified, while Wartortle doesn't like its already pitiful Scald being weakened even further.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>While few Pokemon can switch into any of offensive Armaldo's moves due to its impressive combination of power and coverage, there are a few Pokemon that stand above the rest. Quagsire is the best counter to Armaldo bar none, as Armaldo can't 2HKO Quagsire even with Choice Band X-Scissor, while Quagsire can use Scald or Toxic to KO Armaldo sooner or later. Alomomola is arguably the best check to Armaldo, as only the Swords Dance set stands a chance of beating it. The only move that 2HKOes Alomomola is +2 Stone Edge, and in return, Waterfall always 2HKOes Armaldo after Stealth Rock. Toxic is an unreliable option, however, as Armaldo is often seen carrying a Lum Berry. Vileplume and Amoonguss are two defensive Grass-types that aren't weak to X-Scissor, and therefore aren't hit hard by Armaldo. They can both take even a +2 Stone Edge and put Armaldo to sleep with either Spore or Sleep Powder. However, as noted before, most Swords Dance Armaldo will carry a Lum Berry to prevent this exact scenario. Weezing is another top-notch check to all Armaldo variants, as it can take a +2 Stone Edge and burn Armaldo before getting rid of its boosts with Clear Smog. Misdreavus can counter all of Armaldo's sets, and most importantly, can prevent it from using Rapid Spin. Misdreavus outspeeds Armaldo and can hit it twice with Will-O-Wisp before Armaldo can connect twice with a Swords Dance-boosted Stone Edge.</p>
<p>While the list of Pokemon that can switch into offensive Armaldo is small, support variants—especially those that lack Earthquake—are much easier to counter. Regirock, Probopass, and Golem can shrug off all support Armaldo's attacks not named Earthquake, retaliate with STAB Rock-type attacks, or set up Stealth Rock as Armaldo switches out, which not only renders Armaldo's efforts for naught, but also compromises its ability to switch back in. Fighting-types resist both Armaldo's STABs and are dangerous for Armaldo to stay in on. Gurdurr, for example, can boost its stats and recover all of its health back with Drain Punch. Wartortle is a huge pain for Armaldo as it can spin away Armaldo's Stealth Rock and Haze away any boosts that Armaldo has acquired before wrecking it with Scald. Similarly, Gorebyss and Samurott can switch into the support set's weak attacks and OHKO it with Hydro Pump.</p>
