http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/crobat
Status: Incomplete. In need of spelling / grammar check.
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Changes/Updates:
- Juiced up comments
- Updated comments in purple
- Team Options is underway
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[SET]
name: Standard Bat
move 1: Brave Bird / Air Slash
move 2: Taunt
move 3: Roost
move 4: U-turn / Hypnosis / Super Fang
item: Leftovers
nature: Jolly
evs: 104 HP / 152 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set takes full advantage of Crobat's new toys in the 4th generation, and is a solid choice to lead any team. Brave Bird is vital to this set, as it gives Crobat a strong, reliable STAB attack. However it is illegal with Hypnosis. Taunt is a great move on any lead with blazing Speed, and it allows Crobat to stop other Pokemon from setting up or recovering. In fact, the combination of Taunt and Roost allows Crobat to come out on top against many walls. Roost helps cope with Brave Bird's recoil and Stealth Rock damage accumulated over the course of the battle. Roost also rids Crobat of its Rock, Ice, and Electric weaknesses for the turn. The final slot is variable; U-turn can get in a counter, while Hypnosis can put something to sleep if you're lucky. Substitute can also work with Toxic Spikes on the field.</p>
<p>Crobat's use as a lead is to get off a fast Taunt, preventing the foe from setting up Stealth Rock or other entry hazards. Taunt is also extremely useful against Smeargle and Roserade leads, preventing them from putting you to sleep. Slower leads such as Swampert and Hippowdon don't pack enough power to kill you right off the bat, although you must be careful when you Roost as it gives you a weakness to Ground-types attacks. Thanks to your ability, Inner Focus, you have little to fear from Jirachi leads, meaning it is safe to Taunt those who may try to status you or set up Stealth Rock. Your ability also allows you to beat Infernape leads who can't flinch you, and are 2HKOed by Brave Bird. Azelf and Metagross leads are the toughest to deal with. Against Azelf, your are better off simply breaking its Focus Sash with U-turn and switching to a counter as Psychic will OHKO Crobat. Metagross leads may also kill you with a combination of Meteor Mash and Bullet Punch, so you have to be weary if you decide to Taunt it. Tyranitar and Aerodactyl leads are the two who will likely OHKO you with their STAB Rock-type attacks. You'd better not risk a Speed tie with Aerodactyl, but can U-turn out from Tyranitar, dealing some decent damage in the process. Super Fang is a new addition to Crobat's movepool, enabling it to severely weaken many walls it could not otherwise. Coupled with Taunt, Crobat can singlehandedly defeated many walls who can't do a sufficient amount of damage back.</p>
<p>Thanks to Crobat's unique typing, giving it a 4x resistance to both Fighting- and Bug-type attacks, Crobat makes a superb counter to many of the standard metagame's Fighting-types. Crobat can easily switch in on Heracross, as long as it avoids Stone Edge, and OHKO with Brave Bird. Similarly, Crobat counters Gallade quite nicely if it watches out for Psycho Cut. Machamp that lack Stone Edge are also easy pickings for Crobat, although an OHKO with Brave Bird is not guaranteed. If you have something else take the Spore, Crobat can counter Breloom without much trouble since it 4x resists both of Breloom's STAB attacks. Infernape requires Stealth Rock to OHKO Crobat with a Life Orb Fire Blast, but Crobat still switches in easily on a Close Combat and outspeeds Infernape. Lucario is the only troublesome Fighting-type, as its Steel-typing makes it neutral to Brave Bird, while it also possesses ExtremeSpeed to attack Crobat before it can land a hit. You are better off using a more reliable counter to Lucario, such as Gliscor or Hippowdon. Because of Crobat's 4x resistance to Grass-type attacks, Crobat can counter Celebi if you can avoid a Thunder Wave, and Taunt it to prevent Celebi from using Leech Seed, Thunder Wave, Baton Pass, or Recover. Watch out for Psychic, however an unboosted Psychic from Celebi will never OHKO Crobat.</p>
<p>The EVs allow enough Attack to score a likely OHKO on max HP Machamp after Stealth Rock damage. They also grant enough HP to reach a Leftovers threshold, while still retaining a HP stat not divisible by four, allowing Crobat to switch into Stealth Rock one additional time. Max Speed allows Crobat to outpace all Choice Scarf Breloom, so you can Taunt them or KO with Brave Bird before you are put to sleep. If you plan on using Crobat as your speedy weather team lead, then a Damp Rock or Heat Rock are plausible item choices along with the appropriate weather move in place of U-turn. If you choose to use Hypnosis, Air Slash must be used as Hypnosis and Brave Bird are an illegal combination. An EV spread of 124 HP / 132 SpA / 252 Spe with a Timid nature can be used. This gives Air Slash enough power to OHKO Heracross. If so desired, Aerial Ace can also be used.</p>
<p>Magnezone is a very good partner to Crobat, as Magnezone resists Rock-, Ice-, Electric-, and Psychic-type attacks, Crobat's four weaknesses. Crobat often lures in Steel-types and Magnezone can take advantage of this by trapping and killing these said Steel-types. Although Crobat has decent bulk, it cannot stand up to powerful attackers such as Gyarados, Salamence, Heatran, Jolteon, and friends. It would be wise to provide a counter to these Pokemon. Porygon2, surprisingly, does a decent job at countering all these Pokemon thanks to its ability: Trace. Crobat can then counter the Fighting-types which give Porygon2 some trouble. Tyranitar is another Pokemon to watch out for, as STAB Stone Edge will bring Crobat down in one hit. Bulky Ground-types fair well against Tyranitar, particularly Hippowdon and Swampert. When using Crobat to stall, Toxic Spikes are very helpful. Forretress is very good at setting them up, whilst also spinning away Stealth Rock which Crobat hates. Tentacruel can do much of the same but shares an Electric-types weakness with Crobat. Crobat will at times be preventing the foe from setting up Stealth Rock with Taunt, which lets you bring in a sweeper weak to it a lot more easily. Salamence and Gyarados are both prime examples of Pokemon who despise Stealth Rock. Bulky Gyarados can also utilize Taunt to keep Stealth Rock off the field, and preventing the foe from recovering. MixMence often switches in and out a lot since Draco Meteor lowers its Special Attack by two stages, and with Stealth Rock off the field, it can switch in and out much easier. It should be noted however, that many Pokemon weak to Stealth Rock share one or two weaknesses with Crobat.</p>
[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Sludge Bomb
move 3: Heat Wave
move 4: Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Ground / Roost
item: Life Orb / Leftovers / Lum Berry
nature: Timid / Modest
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With its blazing Speed and ability to sharply boost its Special Attack in a single turn, Crobat can function surprisingly well as a special sweeper. Sludge Bomb is the main attack here and can do decent damage to most things after a Nasty Plot. For instance, Sludge Bomb nets a clean OHKO on Salamance, while OHKOing Gyarados after Stealth Rock damage. Heat Wave complements Sludge Bomb nicely by frying the Steel-type Pokemon who try to absorb your attacks. After a Nasty Plot, Heat Wave will do a minimum of 73% to a max HP / max Special Defense Sassy Bronzong. Most other Steel-types, such as Metagross, Jirachi, and Magnezone are swiftly OHKOed unless they invest heavily in Hit Points and Special Defense. The final slot depends on what your team has more trouble with. With a single Nasty Plot, Hidden Power Fighting OHKOes Tyranitar with Stealth Rock on the field guaranteed, but fails to OHKO Heatran. A +2 Hidden Power Ground will OHKO all forms of Heatran but will come up short against Tyranitar. Roost is also an option and can be used on switches to recover Life Orb recoil.</p>
<p>Life Orb is the preferred item to nab important kills, but Leftovers or Lum Berry is viable especially when using Roost. A Modest nature can also be used since Crobat could really use the boost in power. Even with a Modest nature, Crobat still reaches a respectable 359 Speed, enough to outpace Gengar and Latias.</p>
<p>Since Crobat isn't using any physical attacks in this set, Blissey can wall it to no end. A Fighting-type can easily counter Blissey, while also fairing well against troublesome Tyranitar. Machamp is a very good partner for Crobat. With Rest and Sleep Talk it doesn't mind taking status for Crobat or the rest of your team, making coming in on Blissey much easier. Hariyama also works well, especially if you choose Hidden Power Ground for Crobat as it is one of the best Tyranitar counters in the game. If you opt for Hidden Power Fighting, then you should have a Pokemon to deal with Heatran. Bulky Water-types work very well, and they are not shy against Tyranitar either. Thanks to Thick Fat, Hariyama can counter Heatran well too. Being weak to Stealth Rock while holding Life Orb means Crobat's life will be relatively short. Having a Rapid Spinner on your team will be very helpful in keeping Crobat alive. Forretress and Starmie work fairly well. Roserade can also work well as a Toxic Spiker if you desire a more offensive Pokemon. If you are using Roost, then having Forretress lay down Toxic Spikes will be very helpful as you can stall Pokemon until they enter Crobat's kill range. Entry hazards in general, such as Stealth Rock and Spikes are very helpful to Crobat's sweep. Swampert is a reliable Pokemon to lay down Stealth Rock, while also being a good counter to both Tyranitar and Heatran.</p>
[SET]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Brave Bird
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Roost
move 4: U-turn / Taunt / Super Fang
item: Life Orb
nature: Naive
evs: 204 Atk / 88 SpA / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The addition of Heat Wave to Crobat's movepool has finally given it a way to hurt Steel-types. Brave Bird is Crobat's primary method of dealing damage, OHKOing many frailer Pokemon such as Alakazam, Gengar, Weavile, and Azelf. Various Fighting-type Pokemon are also OHKOed such as Infernape and Machamp, while there is more than a 50% chance to OHKO Lucario after Stealth Rock damage. Heat Wave compliments Brave Bird nicely, hitting Steel-types who resist Crobat's STAB. Common counters to the standard Crobat such as Skarmory and Metagross are 2HKOed by Heat Wave, while Jirachi that don't invest heavily in HP may also be 2HKOed. Forretress and Scizor are both easily OHKOed, while Scizor cannot OHKO you with Bullet Punch. Roost is a valuable move on any Pokemon this fast, allowing Crobat to shed its Electric-, Ice-, and Rock-type weakness. Roost also lets Crobat heal Stealth Rock damage, as well as Life Orb and Brave Bird recoil. The last move is up to preference; U-turn allows you to scout Crobat's counters, while also hitting Tyranitar (who resists your other attacks) super effective. Taunt can shut down walls such as Blissey and Skarmory who may try to status or set up on Crobat. Super Fang is a perfectly viable option to hit an unknown switch-in before Crobat is forced out itself. It makes Crobat dangerous against any Pokemon not immune to Super Fang.</p>
<p>Although Flying and Fire have great coverage, Crobat will still be walled by quite a few Pokemon due to its mediocre attacking stats. Heatran resists everything on this set, while Zapdos and Rotom-A can switch in quite easily as well. Tyranitar is a great partner alongside this Crobat, as Tyranitar counters all three of these Pokemon with relative ease thanks to sandstorm bolstering its Special Defense. Tyranitar will also appreciate Crobat for eliminating Scizor and Skarmory with Heat Wave. Blissey also counters the aformentioned Special Attackers very well, however you must beware of Toxic and Explosion. Rotom-A can take any Explosion, and can use Rest in conjuction with Sleep Talk to outstall Toxic stallers. Other offensive partners to this Crobat are Kingdra and Mamoswine, both of whom despise Steel-types who try and ruin their fun. Bulky Kingdra can take weaker Thunderbolts and Ice Beams very well while setting up with Dragon Dance, while Mamoswine can counter Pokemon such as Choice Specs Jolteon who may try to OHKO Crobat.</p>
<p>With Brave Bird and Life Orb recoil, Crobat's health will slowly diminish. Its weakness to Stealth Rock does not help this at all, which is why a sturdy Rapid Spinner will be incredibly helpful. Forretress with a Specially Defensive EV spread can Rapid Spin in the face of Stealth Rock users such as Swampert and Hippowdon, while also 2HKOing Rotom-A with Payback. Forretress can also set up its own entry hazards, such as Spikes and Toxic Spikes which will be useful for any sweeping Pokemon.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Bat
move 1: Brave Bird
move 2: Cross Poison
move 3: Pursuit
move 4: U-turn
item: Choice Band
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a 120 Base Power STAB move in Brave Bird at its disposal, Crobat is just asking for a Choice Band. However, that is about all Choice Band Crobat has going for it because the type coverage is awful. The loss of physical Hidden Power wasn’t great for the speedy bat. Cross Poison isn't much help for type coverage, but it leaves a nice dent in some of the weaker Electric-types, like Electivire and Jolteon. Pursuit is a pretty great move for Crobat as well, and will allow it to function as something of a revenge killer in the same vein as Weavile — just a bit faster with less power but better resistances. U-turn rounds out the set allowing you to get in an appropriate counter, when the inevitable Rock- and Steel-types appear.</p>
<p>This set is utterly walled by most Steel-types. Skarmory, Metagross, Jirachi, and Bronzong switch in with near impunity as they resist all of your attacks. Although you can hit them hard with a neutral Brave Bird, Scizor and Forretress' naturally high Defense allows them to counter you as well. Scizor's Bullet Punch will inevitably take a large chunk of Crobat's health. As such, Magnezone is an execellent partner to Crobat. Magnezone with Magnet Rise can counter even Metagross and Bronzong quite well if it avoids switching in on an Earthquake. A mixed attacking Tyranitar can lure and kill most Steel-types with Flamethrower or Fire Blast. TyraniBoah can set up a Substitute to avoid taking an Iron Head or Bullet Punch before getting off a hit, while using Focus Punch to OHKO Blissey and Heatran. Tyranitar also makes a great counter to Rotom-A and Zapdos, who also wall this set very easily. Heatran is another Pokemon who defeats most Steel-types without a sweat, while its large Special Defense stat makes it a decent switch in to Zapdos and Rotom-A as well.</p>
<p>Since Crobat lacks Roost, it will slowly die to Stealth Rock damage and Brave Bird recoil. Having a Rapid Spinner is very helpful. Forretress, Starmie, and Tentacruel pull off the job well in the standard metagame. Packing your team with Wish support will also allow Crobat to recover lost health. Vaporeon can utilize Wish, while also countering many Steel-types such as Metagross and Skarmory. Having a Pokemon to take Electric-type attacks aimed at Crobat and Vaporeon will be necessary. Rotom-A, Jolteon, and other Electric-types work well. Blissey also takes special Electric- and Ice-type attacks extremely well, and can also use Wish to recover Crobat's health. Crobat also 4x resists Blissey's only weakness, making it a great partner.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>In terms of physical alternatives, Poison Fang, Steel Wing, Bite, and X-Scissor are options, but none of them really outshine the suggested moves above in any appreciable way. A Choice Specs set is plausible, but not recommended as Crobat barely breaks 360 Special Attack, even with the item boost. Giga Drain can leave a nice dent in Swampert and Rhyperior. Super Fang is a good move on most Crobat, but you will find it hard to fit into a set. Knocking off a full 50% of a Pokemon's health is very good, unfortunately, Crobat's most common counter is immune to it.</p>
<p>In the support category, there is the ever irritating Confuse Ray that Crobat uses supremely well thanks to its Speed as well as Haze or Whirlwind to clear the field of stat boosts. Screech is a less direct approach to phazing an enemy, but it can work nicely with U-turn. Screech as they switch in, then U-turn out, hitting their now lowered Defense on the way. Rain Dance can be used also, as Crobat boasts high speed and gives a scare to the Grass Pokemon that trouble Swift Swimmers. Crobat learns Mean Look which can stall out weaker opponents with Taunt, Roost, and Toxic but is a lesser choice. Crobat also learns Curse which can give Crobat a much needed Attack boost but the loss of Speed isn't helpful.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Crobat is one of those Pokemon who both hate and adore entry hazards. On one hand, Toxic Spikes will greatly improve offensive Crobat's effectiveness, but on the other, Stealth Rock really hampers Crobat's ability to come into the battle. Some Pokemon who can set up Toxic Spikes are Tentacruel and Forretress, both can also utilize Rapid Spin to remove Stealth Rock from your side of the field. Swampert can easily set up Stealth Rock for your team, while also resisting Rock-type attacks, while being immune to Electric-type moves, both of these attack types being super effective against Crobat.</p>
<p>As a purely physical attacker, Crobat is often walled by the many Steel-types in the standard metagame. Skarmory, Metagross, Bronzong, and Jirachi can switch in with little concern to their own welfare. As such, Magnezone is extremely helpful and coincidentally resists all of the attacking types Crobat is weak to. Tyranitar with Flamethrower or Fire Blast is a wonderous lure to many of Crobat's counters, and vice versa if Crobat possesses Heat Wave. Said Fire-type move will 2HKO most Steel-types out there, while Tyranitar can use Earthquake to OHKO Heatran. Heatran itself, can counter many Steel-type Pokemon and deliver a swift OHKO with STAB Fire Blast. While holding a Life Orb Heatran can even overcome other physical walls such as Swampert, Gyarados, and Suicune with the appropriate Hidden Power.</p>
<p>When using Special Attacks, Blissey and Snorlax come to mind as immediate counters. A Fighting-type such as Breloom, Heracross, or Machamp will easily OHKO both if they get in safely. None of these Pokemon care about status much which makes them good Blissey switch ins. Powerful physical attackers in general can beat most Blissey and Snorlax. Tyranitar and Salamence can use both attacking stats to beat the common Skarmory and Blissey combination. Bulky Gyarados gets particular mention for countering Snorlax because it can use Taunt to prevent Snorlax from using Curse.</p>
[EVs]
<p>For the Standard Bat set, an alternate EV spread is 168 HP / 88 Def / 252 Spe. This greatly increases Crobat's ability to take physical hits to counter the game's toughest Fighting-type Pokemon. After a Swords Dance, a +2 Adamant Lucario's ExtremeSpeed will never OHKO Crobat after Stealth Rock. Additionally, Crobat will do a minimum 60% back with Brave Bird which can prove fatal if Lucario has suffered any prior damage or previously used Close Combat. You can also just max Speed and Attack, as Brave Bird coming from a max Attack Crobat has a chance to OHKO Gengar, but it should be noted that the OHKO is guaranteed if you switch Crobat's item to Sharp Beak.</p>
<p>Crobat has no business fighting many of the Pokemon it ties with or outspeeds by maxing its Speed. These Pokemon include Jolteon, Aerodactyl, and Weavile, all of which can OHKO Crobat. For this reason, you can drop your Speed to 363 to gain many alternative EV spreads. 104 HP / 252 Atk / 16 Def / 136 Spe with a Jolly nature gives Crobat the same amount of bulk as the standard set, but by maxing its Attack, Crobat can OHKO Gengar after Stealth Rock as well as Machamp. 32 HP / 204 Atk / 136 SpA / 136 Spe is a good option for the Life Orb set, enabling Crobat to OHKO Lucario with Heat Wave and 2HKO Jirachi.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Crobat has some nice new additions that make it quite a bit more versatile than it was in Advance. The addition of Brave Bird, Nasty Plot, and U-turn make it quite unpredictable indeed. Additionally, its 4x resistance to both of Heracross' STABed moves is always welcome. The only thing it misses from Advance is physical Hidden Power and Shadow Ball for its Choice Band set. As before, it seems likely that Crobat will skate that line between OU and UU. Still, Crobat fulfills a very interesting niche on many teams. It's neither a sweeper nor a wall, but it does an excellent job at countering deadly threats such as Breloom and Infernape, and can shut down stall teams with fast Taunts. Unfortunately, only average stats keep it from becoming a more potent threat in the standard metagame.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Zapdos is one of the best counters for Crobat. It resists Crobat's Flying-type attacks, resists or is immune to its Hidden Power of choice, and can pack Sleep Talk to render Hypnosis useless. Similarly, Rotom-A can counter most Crobat sets very well thanks to its Poison- and Flying-type resistances. Otherwise, Rock-, Steel-, and Ground-types like Metagross, Tyranitar, Skarmory, Bronzong, Jirachi, Rhyperior, Swampert, etc. slow down most sets, but should be wary of the special sweeper. The unfortunate thing is that it can put them to sleep with Hypnosis, however only 60% of the time. The other problem is that Pokemon such as Skarmory and Forretress can be shut down by Taunt. The others in the base 130 Speed group (Jolteon and Aerodactyl) both make fine counters for it too. The rest of the more specific counters are determined by the chosen set — for example, Blissey walls the Special Sweeper set, but would struggle with the Choice Bander. Snorlax also fares well against the special sweeper, only fearing Hidden Power Fighting while hitting back with powerful Body Slams or Returns. Tyranitar and Heatran counter physical Crobat quite well, while only fearing Hidden Power from the special sweeper.</p>
