
Overview
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Emboar established itself as one of the top Fire-type powerhouses of BW RU, and although it didn't receive a Mega Evolution or an increase in any of its base stats, it has seen an increase in usage. The increase is primarily because Entei was moved up to UU, which left Emboar as the only physical Fire-type in the tier. Emboar received Sucker Punch in XY, which was a godsend as priority moves for Pokemon with low Speed and high Attack stats are extremely valuable. Much is the same though; Emboar still has an expansive movepool with respectable base Attack and Special Attack stats. It still maintains decent bulk despite having low base defenses thanks to its large base 110 HP. It's also the only Fire-type in the tier that has neutrality to Rock-type moves because of its dual Fire / Fighting typing. However, Emboar doesn't have the Speed to get past Pokemon it should counter without taking a hit first. Emboar's poor Speed also makes it susceptible to being revenge KOed. Many of Emboar's moves have harsh penalties that include stat drops and nasty recoil damage, all of which hurt its longevity. It also lacks the capability to remove most of its important counters like Cresselia and Golbat, leaving Emboar to lean on its team for support. However, when given the right team support, Emboar becomes an extremely useful Pokemon.
Mixed Attacker
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name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Grass Knot
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Sucker Punch
ability: Blaze
item: Life Orb / Expert Belt
evs: 72 Atk / 252 SAtk / 184 Spe
nature: Rash
Moves
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Emboars boasts an incredible base 123 Attack and a decent base 100 Special Attack along with a massive movepool that can take advantage of its incredible offensive potential. This moveset allows Emboar to beat many of its conventional checks and counters while retaining its wallbreaking prowess. Thanks to Game Freak, Emboar has access to two of the most powerful Fire-type moves in the game. Fire Blast is Emboar's STAB attack and the main damaging move of this set, allowing Emboar to hit most of the tier for a decent amount of damage. Fire Blast has a drop in power compared to Flare Blitz but it also has a lack of recoil which increases Emboars longevity. Grass Knot is the driving force that allows Emboar to beat many of its conventional checks, including Slowking, Alomomola, Rhyperior, Jellicent, and Gastrodon. All of these Pokemon are OHKOed or 2HKOed by Grass Knot after Stealth Rock damage. Superpower is Emboar's second STAB move and allows Emboar to challenge Pokemon that could care less about Fire Blast or Grass Knot, like Lanturn and Druddigon. Sucker Punch isEmboar'snew priority move that allows it to get pastits Psychic- and Ghost-type counters. Sucker Punch OHKOes Delphox and Mega Banette after Stealth Rock damage. The only downside to Sucker Punch is that the opposing Pokemon must attack in order for the move to work, which leaves Emboar open to being afflicted with status ailments. Earthquake can be considered as an option because it 2HKOes Lanturn, but this is only recommended if your team has trouble dealing with Lanturn because replacing any of the moves on this set would decrease its effectiveness. Wild Charge is another viable option that gives Emboar a way to hit Flying-type Pokemon super effectively. However, it might not be worth the slot because Fire Blast will hit almost all of the tier's Flying-type Pokemon for decent amounts of damage, except for Moltres.
Set Details
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This set maximizes Emboar's Special Attack in order to net as much damage as possible with Fire Blast and Grass Knot as those attacks are the set's most important moves. A Life Orb is the preferreditem because it provides a generous boost to all attacks instead of just super effective moves. Expert Belt can still be effective, but the drop in power compromises Emboar's ability to act as an efficient wallbreaker. The 184 Speed EVs allow Emboar to outspeed uninvested base 85 Pokemon, namely Gligar, which is 2HKOed by Fire Blast.
Usage Tips
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There's little reason to be scared of using Superpower when necessary, because Superpower's Attack and Defense drops aren't very important as this sets main focus is on Emboar's Special Attack stat. Knock Off is also a major problem because losing the power boost Life Orb offers severely hampers Emboar's wallbreaking capability. Choosing to opt for an Expert Belt hinders Emboar's attempts to break down the opposing team's defensive Pokemon, because moves are only boosted when a super effective attack is used. Also, if you choose to use an Expert Belt over a Life Orb, you'll have to rely heavily on prediction to net decent damage with Fire Blast. Using an Expert Belt also makes it more difficult to deal with Jellicent as it can recover Sucker Punch damage and take a few Grass Knots. It's also important to note that Moltres walls this set.
Team Options
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Powerful Grass- or Ground-type Pokemon are great partners for a mixed Emboar, mainly because they can easily break Lanturn. Rotom-C can also break down Lanturn and switch Emboar in freely with Volt Switch. Stealth Rock support is important because with Stealth Rock active, Emboar is able to net crucial 2HKOs and OHKOs, most importantly guaranteeing a Sucker Punch OHKO on Delphox. Psychic-types can still cause Emboar problems despite its access to Sucker Punch, so having a Pokemon like Drapion to trap and KO Psychic-type Pokemon would give Emboar more chances to break down the opposing team's walls. A Flying-type Pokemon like Braviary enjoys having Emboar as a teammate because Emboar can eliminate the opposing team's Rock- and Steel-types. Sticky Web support is appreciated and allows Emboar to outspeed everything up to neutral-natured base 95 Speed Pokemon.
Choice Scarf
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name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Flare Blitz
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Wild Charge
move 4: Stone Edge / Sleep Talk
ability: Blaze
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Jolly
Moves
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Flare Blitz is the STAB move of choice here, and it should be what Emboar is spamming most of the time as it's so powerful. Superpower is another STAB move of Emboar's, and like Flare Blitz it can also punch holes in the opposing team. The only problem with Superpower is that it drops Emboar's Attack and Defense stats, meaning Emboar will have to switch out after using it. Wild Charge is this set's best coverage move, as it allows Emboar to get past bulky Water-types aside from Lanturn without having to lower its Attack and Defense. Stone Edge rounds out this set's excellent coverage and is preferred over Head Smash as it doesn't have any recoil. Stone Edge also gives Emboar a way to get past Flying-types, especially Moltres,which is one of its biggest checks. Sleep Talk could also be used over Stone Edge if your team lacks a sleep absorber; it also holds some surprise factor as most players would assume Emboar is useless after being put to sleep. Head Smash could be used over either Stone Edge or Sleep Talk because it's capable of breaking bulky Flying-type Pokemon like Golbat.
Set Details
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Use maximum Attack and Speed to ensure that Emboar outspeeds most Pokemon.AnAdamant nature can be considered, though using it means Emboar is unable to outspeed positive-natured base 108 Speed Pokemon. Whenequipped with a Choice Scarf, Emboar is able to check Pokemon like Cobalion, Durant, and Virizion because it doesn't have to take a hit before OHKOing them.
Usage Tips
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Like all movesets that utilize Choice Scarf, this set is mainly for hitting hard and switching out, unless the opposing team is weak enough for Emboar to sweep. Because Emboar has a low base Speed, positive-natured Jolteon is able to outspeed Choice Scarf Emboar without a Speed-boostingmove or item. Swellow and Choice Scarf Braviary are also able to outspeed a Choice Scarf Emboar, so it would be wise to switch out of these Pokemon if they are ever switched into Emboar. This set is used mainly as a revenge killer.
Team Options
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Emboar appreciates the help of a strong pivot that can wear down its checks and counters and also allow Emboar to switch in safely. Magneton and Rotom-C are worth considering for this role because Magneton resists Emboar's common weaknesses and Rotom-C is immune to one of them. Despite this, Magneton is still a great option albeit sharing a Ground-type weakness with Emboar. Pokemon with Stealth Rock such as Rhyperior and Cobalion aren't bad options either, as they are able to wear down Flying-type Pokemon that check Emboar well. Alomomola and Amoonguss are great partners as well, they can switch into all super effective attacks aimed at Emboar and thanks to their respective abilities, their health can be easily replenished. Alomomola can also pass Wishes to Emboar, which would allow it a bit more freedom when using moves with recoil (Wild Charge and Flare Blitz). Alomomola support also opens the door to Head Smash usage.
Other Options
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Choice Band Emboar is worth considering as the power increase would make Emboar an even deadlier wallbreaker. Using Flame Charge is an option, as it would allow Emboar to increase its poor Speed. Hammer Arm is another Fighting-type STAB move with a harsh penalty, but its Speed drop isn't as costly as Superpower's Attack and Defense drops. A Sunny Day + Solar Beam set could be used to get rid of bulky Water-type Pokemon that check Emboar. Taunt could prove to be very useful, but it would come at the cost of a coverage move. Roar could be used to phaze out setup sweepers, but Emboar would have to sacrifice a coverage move to use it as well. Toxic can be used to cripple threats that Emboar can't eliminate itself.
Checks & Counters
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**Slowking**: Emboar can 3HKO Slowking with Wild Charge or Grass Knot but only if it's not 2HKOed by Scald or Psyshock.
**Alomomola**: Emboar can 2HKO Alomomola with Grass Knot with its mixed set but the Choice Scarf set still lacks the power or flexibility to break it down.
**Moltres**: The mixed set iscompletely walled by Moltres and the Choice Scarf set only checks Moltres.
**Golbat**: Emboar fails to outspeed Golbat without a Choice Scarf or Speed boost and is OHKOed by Golbat's STAB Brave Bird.
**Rhyperior**: Rhyperior hastremendous bulk that allows it to take a hit from Emboar and hit back hard with Earthquake. The mixed Emboar set, however, OHKOes Rhyperior with Grass Knot.
**Gastrodon**: If Emboar lacks Grass Knot, there isn't any way Emboar is getting past Gastrodon, which 2HKOes Emboar with Earth Power.
**Cresselia**: Cresselia can take multiple hits from both sets thanks to its tremendous bulk and can OHKO with Psychic.
**Uxie**: Uxie has the ability to compress the damage taken and canhit back with Psychic.
**Druddigon**: Druddigon is able to tank every move on both of Emboar's sets and can OHKO with Earthquake.
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