Changes
* removed the Choice Scarf set, which was beyond awful. It had Draco Meteor coming off of 9 SpA and Dig...plus, it's outclassed by Hustle Deino.
* Heavily edited the Dragon Dance set to make it very good. My set rocks!
* Rewrote some phrases from the overview and other areas, and rewrote the Dragon Dance set's almost entirely.
[Overview]
<p>Axew is one of the most fearsome Dragon-type Pokemon in Little Cup for good reason. It has an extremely high base 87 Attack, which, when coupled with a 120 Base Power STAB attack, is the main reason behind its dominance. It also has a decent base 57 Speed, which is higher than any of the other Dragon-types; unfortunately, it doesn't have access to ExtremeSpeed like Dratini does. However, Axew has Swords Dance and Dragon Dance in its movepool, allowing it to either boost its amazing Attack by two stages or raise both its Attack and Speed by one stage each.</p>
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Outrage
move 3: Dual Chop / Dragon Claw
move 4: Protect
item: Eviolite
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Jolly
evs: 68 HP / 220 Atk / 220 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Dragon Dance gives Axew the Speed and Attack necessary to sweep successfully without much hassle setting up due to its good typing. Outrage will be the main attack on this set, as its immense power after a Dragon Dance is too destructive to pass up on. However, Outrage isn't reliable after two to three hits and confusion sets in, so Dual Chop and Dragon Claw are available to trim down your opponent's team first. Dual Chop is recommended, as it allows Axew to set up on and defeat Substitute Misdreavus as well as Abra with Focus Sash. Dragon Claw is usually more reliable, though; it has 100% accuracy while Dual Chop doesn't, so if your team has a Pokemon who can defeat Pokemon who use Substitute or Focus Sash easily, such as Dwebble, opt for Dragon Claw. Protect is used in the last slot so Axew can protect itself from the common Fake Out. Protect also causes Hi Jump Kick to hurt the user, so it makes Axew a great answer to Mienfoo. With Eviolite, Axew can even survive a Hi Jump Kick and set up.</p>
<p>Eviolite is the item of choice, as it provides much of the bulk needed. Axew only takes about 40% from Life Orb Houndour's Sucker Punch when equipped with Eviolite, and it can also survive many other powerful moves. It also makes Axew a great check to Staryu, Chinchou, and other Water-types. Life Orb is a possible option, but bulk is usually needed to set up, and Axew is extremely powerful after a Dragon Dance, usually not needing a Life Orb to get KOs. The EV spread maximizes Attack and Speed for optimal sweeping. With a Jolly nature, Axew can Dragon Dance at the same time as Scraggy, then outspeed it and OHKO with Outrage after a layer of Spikes has been set up. An Adamant nature can be used for more power if your team covers Scraggy very well and you don't mind always losing a Speed tie to Choice Scarf Chinchou.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The great thing about Axew is that it synergizes well with many other Pokemon. Magnemite can trap Bronzor and other Steel-types that give Axew trouble; it can also take on other types that harm Axew well, but not as well as Bronzor. Bronzor can take Ice- and Dragon-type hits very easily and set up Stealth Rock to aid Axew's sweep. Moreover, it can also set up Dual Screens to help Axew set up. Clamperl makes a great sweeping partner and has great synergy with Axew. Diglett can use Memento to help Axew set up, defeat Sucker Punch users such as Pawniard and Stunky with a combination of Substitute and Earthquake, and weaken Axew's counters with strong STAB moves. Diglett can also set up Stealth Rock in a pinch.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Choice Scarf is not a bad idea, and Axew can actually function pretty well with it. Axew can utilize a Choice Band set, but it isn't really fast enough to outspeed the Pokemon it can OHKO, so it will likely die before it can get an attack off. Swords Dance can also be used over Dragon Dance to break through stall teams more easily. Toxic, Endeavor, and Taunt are all options in the last slot and might work, but they are rather situational. Rivalry could be used since most people use the default male gender for all their Pokemon, but it's more of a gimmick than anything, and it is extremely unreliable. Hidden Power Fire can be used over Protect with a Naive or Hasty nature and an EV spread of 220 Atk / 40 SpA / 224 Spe to beat Magnemite, Pawniard, Ferroseed, and Bronzor, but scouting and avoiding Fake Out is more useful in most cases. If you're thinking about using Dig, reconsider your life; even after two Dragon Dances, Axew needs Stealth Rock just to OHKO Bronzor without Eviolite.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Steel-types such as Bronzor that resist Dragon-type attacks are good counters, as they force Axew to switch out. Pokemon with Ice Shard, such as Snover, are also good checks, as they always hit for super effective damagebefore Axew can retaliate. Timburr is also a nifty check to Axew since it has strong priority and can use Bulk Up to take Axew's attacks more easily. Murkrow with Life Orb can damage it heavily with Sucker Punch, making it a good check to Axew.</p>
* removed the Choice Scarf set, which was beyond awful. It had Draco Meteor coming off of 9 SpA and Dig...plus, it's outclassed by Hustle Deino.
* Heavily edited the Dragon Dance set to make it very good. My set rocks!
* Rewrote some phrases from the overview and other areas, and rewrote the Dragon Dance set's almost entirely.
[Overview]
<p>Axew is one of the most fearsome Dragon-type Pokemon in Little Cup for good reason. It has an extremely high base 87 Attack, which, when coupled with a 120 Base Power STAB attack, is the main reason behind its dominance. It also has a decent base 57 Speed, which is higher than any of the other Dragon-types; unfortunately, it doesn't have access to ExtremeSpeed like Dratini does. However, Axew has Swords Dance and Dragon Dance in its movepool, allowing it to either boost its amazing Attack by two stages or raise both its Attack and Speed by one stage each.</p>
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Outrage
move 3: Dual Chop / Dragon Claw
move 4: Protect
item: Eviolite
ability: Mold Breaker
nature: Jolly
evs: 68 HP / 220 Atk / 220 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Dragon Dance gives Axew the Speed and Attack necessary to sweep successfully without much hassle setting up due to its good typing. Outrage will be the main attack on this set, as its immense power after a Dragon Dance is too destructive to pass up on. However, Outrage isn't reliable after two to three hits and confusion sets in, so Dual Chop and Dragon Claw are available to trim down your opponent's team first. Dual Chop is recommended, as it allows Axew to set up on and defeat Substitute Misdreavus as well as Abra with Focus Sash. Dragon Claw is usually more reliable, though; it has 100% accuracy while Dual Chop doesn't, so if your team has a Pokemon who can defeat Pokemon who use Substitute or Focus Sash easily, such as Dwebble, opt for Dragon Claw. Protect is used in the last slot so Axew can protect itself from the common Fake Out. Protect also causes Hi Jump Kick to hurt the user, so it makes Axew a great answer to Mienfoo. With Eviolite, Axew can even survive a Hi Jump Kick and set up.</p>
<p>Eviolite is the item of choice, as it provides much of the bulk needed. Axew only takes about 40% from Life Orb Houndour's Sucker Punch when equipped with Eviolite, and it can also survive many other powerful moves. It also makes Axew a great check to Staryu, Chinchou, and other Water-types. Life Orb is a possible option, but bulk is usually needed to set up, and Axew is extremely powerful after a Dragon Dance, usually not needing a Life Orb to get KOs. The EV spread maximizes Attack and Speed for optimal sweeping. With a Jolly nature, Axew can Dragon Dance at the same time as Scraggy, then outspeed it and OHKO with Outrage after a layer of Spikes has been set up. An Adamant nature can be used for more power if your team covers Scraggy very well and you don't mind always losing a Speed tie to Choice Scarf Chinchou.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The great thing about Axew is that it synergizes well with many other Pokemon. Magnemite can trap Bronzor and other Steel-types that give Axew trouble; it can also take on other types that harm Axew well, but not as well as Bronzor. Bronzor can take Ice- and Dragon-type hits very easily and set up Stealth Rock to aid Axew's sweep. Moreover, it can also set up Dual Screens to help Axew set up. Clamperl makes a great sweeping partner and has great synergy with Axew. Diglett can use Memento to help Axew set up, defeat Sucker Punch users such as Pawniard and Stunky with a combination of Substitute and Earthquake, and weaken Axew's counters with strong STAB moves. Diglett can also set up Stealth Rock in a pinch.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Choice Scarf is not a bad idea, and Axew can actually function pretty well with it. Axew can utilize a Choice Band set, but it isn't really fast enough to outspeed the Pokemon it can OHKO, so it will likely die before it can get an attack off. Swords Dance can also be used over Dragon Dance to break through stall teams more easily. Toxic, Endeavor, and Taunt are all options in the last slot and might work, but they are rather situational. Rivalry could be used since most people use the default male gender for all their Pokemon, but it's more of a gimmick than anything, and it is extremely unreliable. Hidden Power Fire can be used over Protect with a Naive or Hasty nature and an EV spread of 220 Atk / 40 SpA / 224 Spe to beat Magnemite, Pawniard, Ferroseed, and Bronzor, but scouting and avoiding Fake Out is more useful in most cases. If you're thinking about using Dig, reconsider your life; even after two Dragon Dances, Axew needs Stealth Rock just to OHKO Bronzor without Eviolite.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Steel-types such as Bronzor that resist Dragon-type attacks are good counters, as they force Axew to switch out. Pokemon with Ice Shard, such as Snover, are also good checks, as they always hit for super effective damagebefore Axew can retaliate. Timburr is also a nifty check to Axew since it has strong priority and can use Bulk Up to take Axew's attacks more easily. Murkrow with Life Orb can damage it heavily with Sucker Punch, making it a good check to Axew.</p>
