Murkrow
Approved by Aerrow
Currently a LC Council Discussion Topic
Overview
I was originally going to write a brief history of Murkrow. The only problem is, it doesn't exactly have a huge amount of history to speak of. In Generation 4, it was ridiculously overpowered. People were resorting to things such as Shieldon just to beat it. Its banning has been called the "start of modern Little Cup". I wasn't around to see it. Murkrow wasn't a factor in DPP LC simply because it was impossible to use it. So unlike Porygon, which I could spend hours talking about its role in DPP LC, Murkrow simply doesn't have anything.
At the beginning of BW LC, Murkrow was widely suggested to be banned in the theorymoning before release. When Little Cup adopted a not-so-stringent banlist, Murkrow was left in Little Cup. It wasn't really broken when you had Sun teams everywhere, with Drought Vulpix not banned. After other, more glaring suspects were banned, the Calm Mind set was created, chaos ensued, and Murkrow was banned. Sure, there were other factors, but it was banned pretty convincingly and simply.
The unbanning of Murkrow surprised many people. Gligar and Misdreavus seemed to go together; they were two of the so-called "Big Four" (Gligar, Misdreavus, Carvanha, and Meditite). Murkrow was a mystery. Why it was unbanned is a mystery that only the Little Cup Council could explain, and I doubt they will. But it was. After the initial comments of "lol murkrow unbanned", Murkrow actually disappointed. It picked up #9 in the usage stats, far behind the #1 and #2 of Gligar and Misdreavus. People scrambled to find an explanation for Murkrow being so low. The two main reasons were that it required far more team support and that it was more skill-based. Seeing these two points, I created this thread. Murkrow at #9 is unacceptable. I hope, after reading this thread, that you all go out and try out Murkrow on your team. It will not disappoint you.
At the beginning of BW LC, Murkrow was widely suggested to be banned in the theorymoning before release. When Little Cup adopted a not-so-stringent banlist, Murkrow was left in Little Cup. It wasn't really broken when you had Sun teams everywhere, with Drought Vulpix not banned. After other, more glaring suspects were banned, the Calm Mind set was created, chaos ensued, and Murkrow was banned. Sure, there were other factors, but it was banned pretty convincingly and simply.
The unbanning of Murkrow surprised many people. Gligar and Misdreavus seemed to go together; they were two of the so-called "Big Four" (Gligar, Misdreavus, Carvanha, and Meditite). Murkrow was a mystery. Why it was unbanned is a mystery that only the Little Cup Council could explain, and I doubt they will. But it was. After the initial comments of "lol murkrow unbanned", Murkrow actually disappointed. It picked up #9 in the usage stats, far behind the #1 and #2 of Gligar and Misdreavus. People scrambled to find an explanation for Murkrow being so low. The two main reasons were that it required far more team support and that it was more skill-based. Seeing these two points, I created this thread. Murkrow at #9 is unacceptable. I hope, after reading this thread, that you all go out and try out Murkrow on your team. It will not disappoint you.
HP: 60
Attack: 85
Defense: 42
Special Attack: 85
Special Defense: 42
Speed: 91
BST: 405
Movepool:
Level-Up
1 Peck
1 Astonish
5 Pursuit
11 Haze
15 Wing Attack
21 Night Shade
25 Assurance
31 Taunt
35 Faint Attack
41 Mean Look
45 Foul Play
51 Tailwind
55 Sucker Punch
61 Torment
65 Quash
Egg
Assurance
Brave Bird
Confuse Ray
Drill Peck
Faint Attack
FeatherDance
Mirror Move
Perish Song
Psycho Shift
Roost
Screech
Sky Attack
Whirlwind
Wing Attack
Tutor
(note: These are illegal with Prankster except for the ones available through other means. The Emerald ones (marked with a *) are illegal with Super Luck too, except for the ones available through other means.)
Air Cutter
Double-Edge*
Dream Eater*
Endure*
Heat Wave
Icy Wind
Mimic*
Mud-Slap
Nightmare*
Ominous Wind
Psych Up*
Sky Attack*
Sleep Talk*
Snore*
Spite
Substitute*
Sucker Punch
Swagger*
Swift
Tailwind
Thunder Wave*
Twister
Uproar
TM/HM
04 Calm Mind
06 Toxic
10 Hidden Power
11 Sunny Day
12 Taunt
17 Protect
18 Rain Dance
21 Frustration
27 Return
29 Psychic
30 Shadow Ball
32 Double Team
40 Aerial Ace
41 Torment
42 Facade
43 Secret Power*
44 Rest
45 Attract
46 Thief
47 Steel Wing*
48 Round
49 Snatch*
51 Roost*
58 Endure*
60 Quash
63 Embargo
66 Payback
67 Retaliate
73 Thunder Wave
77 Psych Up
78 Captivate*
79 Dark Pulse*
82 Sleep Talk*
83 Natural Gift*
85 Dream Eater
87 Swagger
88 Pluck
90 Substitute
95 Snarl**
H2 Fly
H5 Defog*
* Gen IV TM/HM. These are illegal with Prankster unless available through other means.
** Snarl is currently illegal (yes, the event Zoroark gets it, but nothing can transfer it to Murkrow).
Attack: 85
Defense: 42
Special Attack: 85
Special Defense: 42
Speed: 91
BST: 405
Movepool:
Level-Up
1 Peck
1 Astonish
5 Pursuit
11 Haze
15 Wing Attack
21 Night Shade
25 Assurance
31 Taunt
35 Faint Attack
41 Mean Look
45 Foul Play
51 Tailwind
55 Sucker Punch
61 Torment
65 Quash
Egg
Assurance
Brave Bird
Confuse Ray
Drill Peck
Faint Attack
FeatherDance
Mirror Move
Perish Song
Psycho Shift
Roost
Screech
Sky Attack
Whirlwind
Wing Attack
Tutor
(note: These are illegal with Prankster except for the ones available through other means. The Emerald ones (marked with a *) are illegal with Super Luck too, except for the ones available through other means.)
Air Cutter
Double-Edge*
Dream Eater*
Endure*
Heat Wave
Icy Wind
Mimic*
Mud-Slap
Nightmare*
Ominous Wind
Psych Up*
Sky Attack*
Sleep Talk*
Snore*
Spite
Substitute*
Sucker Punch
Swagger*
Swift
Tailwind
Thunder Wave*
Twister
Uproar
TM/HM
04 Calm Mind
06 Toxic
10 Hidden Power
11 Sunny Day
12 Taunt
17 Protect
18 Rain Dance
21 Frustration
27 Return
29 Psychic
30 Shadow Ball
32 Double Team
40 Aerial Ace
41 Torment
42 Facade
43 Secret Power*
44 Rest
45 Attract
46 Thief
47 Steel Wing*
48 Round
49 Snatch*
51 Roost*
58 Endure*
60 Quash
63 Embargo
66 Payback
67 Retaliate
73 Thunder Wave
77 Psych Up
78 Captivate*
79 Dark Pulse*
82 Sleep Talk*
83 Natural Gift*
85 Dream Eater
87 Swagger
88 Pluck
90 Substitute
95 Snarl**
H2 Fly
H5 Defog*
* Gen IV TM/HM. These are illegal with Prankster unless available through other means.
** Snarl is currently illegal (yes, the event Zoroark gets it, but nothing can transfer it to Murkrow).
[SET]
name: SubRoost
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Roost
move 3: Brave Bird
move 4: Sucker Punch
item: Eviolite
ability: Prankster
nature: Jolly
evs: 36 HP / 236 Atk / 20 Def / 20 SpD / 188 Spe
Okay, here's the set that I've been calling the most skillbased set in the metagame at the moment in several threads. The general premise is pretty simple; get a Substitute and start killing things, Roosting off damage when you need to. However, while without prediction it's already an excellent set, with good prediction it becomes nearly unstoppable. Firstly, you must understand when and why to use each move:
Substitute: You should be using this a lot. By a lot, I mean more than half of the time in some cases. Prankster Substitute, especially when paired with Roost, is like Protect--except it punishes your opponent hard for not attacking. If Stealth Rock is off the field, feel free to Substitute whenever you want; Murkrow has plenty of opportunities to Roost. Murkrow is such a threat to simply wreck most Pokemon with Brave Bird that often, you'll see your opponent switch on the second or third Substitute, fearing a Brave Bird. From the switch, you can be content with entry hazard damage and Roost up for next time, or abuse the fact that they pretty much have to attack by using Sucker Punch. Brave Bird is an option too. Keep in mind that if you have hail support (which is absolutely fantastic for Murkrow), Substitute can help you get that 5-10% extra you need for a KO.
Roost: Roost's main effect is healing Murkrow, but there are special ways to use Roost, too. If you need to stall more turns than Substitute allows you to (in hail), Murkrow is actually pretty bulky with Eviolite and can tank a lot of hits. However, the more useful effect is removing Murkrow's Flying type for a turn, allowing Murkrow's Substitute to tank a lot of weak super effective hits. The main attack that you will encounter is Bronzor's Hidden Power Ice, which does not break Murkrow's Substitute during Roost. With perfect prediction or good prediction and some prior damage, Murkrow can easily take out Bronzor without even needing to attack.
Brave Bird: Brave Bird is mainly useful during the earlygame and lategame. In the earlygame, Brave Bird can be extremely useful to test your opponent's defenses against Murkrow, and can even punch a few holes in some common counters for lategame sweeps. I have quite a few 6-0 Murkrow sweeps to my name just because my opponent decided to switch their supposed Murkrow counter into a Brave Bird, getting 2HKOed either naturally or via a crit, and losing the game because of that. Lategame, Brave Bird, when combined with Murkrow's great Speed, can clean up many weakened teams. During the midgame, Brave Bird isn't quite as useful because you're taking a lot of residual damage. For example, Stealth Rock usually won't be up during the earlygame, and lategame 25% off Murkrow won't matter as much, but during the midgame Murkrow really does not want to be losing HP from Stealth Rock, Substitute, Hail, and Brave Bird. Yes, Roost helps, but you really should only be using Brave Bird if it's after a kill, Murkrow's at high health, and you're facing something like Mienfoo that you can easily OHKO.
Sucker Punch: Sucker Punch is a very situational move, and it will most likely be your least used move. There are only four circumstances where Sucker Punch should be used: against a Choice Scarfer, against a sweeper that has set up, finishing off weakened Pokemon from behind a Substitute, and when Murkrow simply cannot afford to take recoil damage (usually when Murkrow is the last Pokemon on your team). You usually will encounter at least one or two of these situations per game, and that's when Sucker Punch truly shines. Don't go around spamming Sucker Punch though. It simply isn't worth it.
What you usually want to happen is this: Murkrow switches in, gets a free Substitute on the switch to the counter, uses Roost while scouting the move used against it, and switches out to an appropriate counter. Notice the lack of attacks in that sequence. Yes, I did mention using Brave Bird as a scouting tool in the earlygame, but this should be your general midgame plan unless you are absolutely sure you can nab a quick KO. Murkrow thrives in the lategame, and that's where you want to get to. Murkrow doesn't need to attack to do damage; like Drilbur in the last metagame, it forces your opponent to keep their checks and counters alive, while making them reluctant to use Ground-type moves or KO one of your Pokemon with a Pokemon that is weak to Murkrow. Never sacrifice Murkrow unless doing so would help you win the game.
Low Murkrow usage has been attributed to the fact that Murkrow cannot just be thrown on any team the way Gligar or Misdreavus can. That is true, but Murkrow does not need a huge amount of team support. There are three main components that make Murkrow much stronger: entry hazards, Rapid Spin, and hail or sand (but preferably hail). Murkrow appreciates entry hazards just like any sweeper. There are quite a few 2HKOs that Murkrow can achieve on bulkier defensive Pokemon with Stealth Rock up, most notably defensive Gligar. While it isn't essential for Murkrow's success, it certainly does help. Rapid Spin makes Murkrow much better in the midgame, as it can use Substitute without needing to Roost every time it switches in. Staryu synergizes pretty well with Murkrow anyways, as Murkrow can easily remove defensive Grass-types while Staryu is good against most standard Steel-types. Hail not only provides additional damage for Murkrow, it allows Murkrow to do damage while using Substitute. While it may not be a lot of damage, Little Cup is a lot about small amounts of damage adding up these days. It also lets Murkrow beat Bronzor. Sandstorm works too to an extent, but Murkrow loses the ability to beat Bronzor.
Oh, and one last note.
236 +1 Atk Scraggy Ice Punch vs 36 HP/20 Def Eviolite Murkrow: 78.26% - 95.65%
name: SubRoost
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Roost
move 3: Brave Bird
move 4: Sucker Punch
item: Eviolite
ability: Prankster
nature: Jolly
evs: 36 HP / 236 Atk / 20 Def / 20 SpD / 188 Spe
Okay, here's the set that I've been calling the most skillbased set in the metagame at the moment in several threads. The general premise is pretty simple; get a Substitute and start killing things, Roosting off damage when you need to. However, while without prediction it's already an excellent set, with good prediction it becomes nearly unstoppable. Firstly, you must understand when and why to use each move:
Substitute: You should be using this a lot. By a lot, I mean more than half of the time in some cases. Prankster Substitute, especially when paired with Roost, is like Protect--except it punishes your opponent hard for not attacking. If Stealth Rock is off the field, feel free to Substitute whenever you want; Murkrow has plenty of opportunities to Roost. Murkrow is such a threat to simply wreck most Pokemon with Brave Bird that often, you'll see your opponent switch on the second or third Substitute, fearing a Brave Bird. From the switch, you can be content with entry hazard damage and Roost up for next time, or abuse the fact that they pretty much have to attack by using Sucker Punch. Brave Bird is an option too. Keep in mind that if you have hail support (which is absolutely fantastic for Murkrow), Substitute can help you get that 5-10% extra you need for a KO.
Roost: Roost's main effect is healing Murkrow, but there are special ways to use Roost, too. If you need to stall more turns than Substitute allows you to (in hail), Murkrow is actually pretty bulky with Eviolite and can tank a lot of hits. However, the more useful effect is removing Murkrow's Flying type for a turn, allowing Murkrow's Substitute to tank a lot of weak super effective hits. The main attack that you will encounter is Bronzor's Hidden Power Ice, which does not break Murkrow's Substitute during Roost. With perfect prediction or good prediction and some prior damage, Murkrow can easily take out Bronzor without even needing to attack.
Brave Bird: Brave Bird is mainly useful during the earlygame and lategame. In the earlygame, Brave Bird can be extremely useful to test your opponent's defenses against Murkrow, and can even punch a few holes in some common counters for lategame sweeps. I have quite a few 6-0 Murkrow sweeps to my name just because my opponent decided to switch their supposed Murkrow counter into a Brave Bird, getting 2HKOed either naturally or via a crit, and losing the game because of that. Lategame, Brave Bird, when combined with Murkrow's great Speed, can clean up many weakened teams. During the midgame, Brave Bird isn't quite as useful because you're taking a lot of residual damage. For example, Stealth Rock usually won't be up during the earlygame, and lategame 25% off Murkrow won't matter as much, but during the midgame Murkrow really does not want to be losing HP from Stealth Rock, Substitute, Hail, and Brave Bird. Yes, Roost helps, but you really should only be using Brave Bird if it's after a kill, Murkrow's at high health, and you're facing something like Mienfoo that you can easily OHKO.
Sucker Punch: Sucker Punch is a very situational move, and it will most likely be your least used move. There are only four circumstances where Sucker Punch should be used: against a Choice Scarfer, against a sweeper that has set up, finishing off weakened Pokemon from behind a Substitute, and when Murkrow simply cannot afford to take recoil damage (usually when Murkrow is the last Pokemon on your team). You usually will encounter at least one or two of these situations per game, and that's when Sucker Punch truly shines. Don't go around spamming Sucker Punch though. It simply isn't worth it.
What you usually want to happen is this: Murkrow switches in, gets a free Substitute on the switch to the counter, uses Roost while scouting the move used against it, and switches out to an appropriate counter. Notice the lack of attacks in that sequence. Yes, I did mention using Brave Bird as a scouting tool in the earlygame, but this should be your general midgame plan unless you are absolutely sure you can nab a quick KO. Murkrow thrives in the lategame, and that's where you want to get to. Murkrow doesn't need to attack to do damage; like Drilbur in the last metagame, it forces your opponent to keep their checks and counters alive, while making them reluctant to use Ground-type moves or KO one of your Pokemon with a Pokemon that is weak to Murkrow. Never sacrifice Murkrow unless doing so would help you win the game.
Low Murkrow usage has been attributed to the fact that Murkrow cannot just be thrown on any team the way Gligar or Misdreavus can. That is true, but Murkrow does not need a huge amount of team support. There are three main components that make Murkrow much stronger: entry hazards, Rapid Spin, and hail or sand (but preferably hail). Murkrow appreciates entry hazards just like any sweeper. There are quite a few 2HKOs that Murkrow can achieve on bulkier defensive Pokemon with Stealth Rock up, most notably defensive Gligar. While it isn't essential for Murkrow's success, it certainly does help. Rapid Spin makes Murkrow much better in the midgame, as it can use Substitute without needing to Roost every time it switches in. Staryu synergizes pretty well with Murkrow anyways, as Murkrow can easily remove defensive Grass-types while Staryu is good against most standard Steel-types. Hail not only provides additional damage for Murkrow, it allows Murkrow to do damage while using Substitute. While it may not be a lot of damage, Little Cup is a lot about small amounts of damage adding up these days. It also lets Murkrow beat Bronzor. Sandstorm works too to an extent, but Murkrow loses the ability to beat Bronzor.
Oh, and one last note.
236 +1 Atk Scraggy Ice Punch vs 36 HP/20 Def Eviolite Murkrow: 78.26% - 95.65%
[SET]
name: MixKrow
move 1: Drill Peck
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Sucker Punch
move 4: Icy Wind / Hidden Power Ice
item: Life Orb
ability: Insomnia / Super Luck
nature: Naive
evs: 236 Atk / 76 SpA / 192 Spe
MixKrow is very underrated and underutilized. With proper prediction, this set not only serves as a potent revenge killer (if you can win speed ties), but also absolutely destroy team expecting only the SubRoost set. The four listed moves at least 2HKO pretty much everything in Little Cup aside from Chinchou, which takes a ton from Sucker Punch. But really, there's nothing to say about this set. Here's a summary:
<%iss|krow> there's nothing to say about mixkrow
<%iss|krow> you click one of four attacks
<%iss|krow> and it does damage
<%iss|krow> and you keep doing that until you die
<Sledge> that sad life of a pokemon...
Basically, if you're a newer player and don't want to jump into the deep pool of SubRoost yet, use MixKrow. It works too, and it's a lot easier to use!
(since someone will say something about me slashing Hidden Power Ice, let me just say this: Icy Wind doesn't always OHKO defensive Gligar. sure, the speed drop is absolutely gamechanging if you can land it on a Choice Scarfer, and that's why Icy Wind is recommended. Hidden Power Ice is just an option if you're really worried about Gligar and you don't want to predict ever.)
name: MixKrow
move 1: Drill Peck
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Sucker Punch
move 4: Icy Wind / Hidden Power Ice
item: Life Orb
ability: Insomnia / Super Luck
nature: Naive
evs: 236 Atk / 76 SpA / 192 Spe
MixKrow is very underrated and underutilized. With proper prediction, this set not only serves as a potent revenge killer (if you can win speed ties), but also absolutely destroy team expecting only the SubRoost set. The four listed moves at least 2HKO pretty much everything in Little Cup aside from Chinchou, which takes a ton from Sucker Punch. But really, there's nothing to say about this set. Here's a summary:
<%iss|krow> there's nothing to say about mixkrow
<%iss|krow> you click one of four attacks
<%iss|krow> and it does damage
<%iss|krow> and you keep doing that until you die
<Sledge> that sad life of a pokemon...
Basically, if you're a newer player and don't want to jump into the deep pool of SubRoost yet, use MixKrow. It works too, and it's a lot easier to use!
(since someone will say something about me slashing Hidden Power Ice, let me just say this: Icy Wind doesn't always OHKO defensive Gligar. sure, the speed drop is absolutely gamechanging if you can land it on a Choice Scarfer, and that's why Icy Wind is recommended. Hidden Power Ice is just an option if you're really worried about Gligar and you don't want to predict ever.)
[SET]
name: Calm Mind + FeatherDance
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: FeatherDance
move 3: Roost
move 4: Hidden Power Flying
item: Eviolite
ability: Prankster
nature: Calm
evs: 196 HP / 100 Def / 184 SpD
A long time ago, in a land far far away, Calm Mind Murkrow reigned supreme over all of Little Cup. None could stand up to its mighty wrath. Special sweepers were unable to penetrate its meditating state, while physical sweepers were easily dispatched with a feather to the knee. Before long, all bowed to its unfathomable power, and many a sadfaced opponent GG'd out of a ladder match. The top warriors in the land of Little Cup met and tried to figure out how to defeat this monster. All of their best fighters had fallen to it. Even Elevator Music had been 6-0ed many a time (lol there's my standard cookie for EM). Eventually, someone called in the banhammer, and they won I guess. I'm sorry that I don't write good fiction.
One day, the people of Little Cup decided that life was boring. Enough with the Drilbur sweeps! the cynics cried. Bread and water! shouted the circuses. And Murkrow was brought back as an entertainment. This time, they were ready. Many barbs of Toxic poison were thrown out from across the land, destroying any shred of invincibility that Calm Mind Murkrow used to have. Eventually, it became the subject of many a joke. And that, my friends, is what it is today. Nothing but a joke.
On a more serious tone, Calm Mind would be fantastic if Murkrow had five moveslots. If only it could carry Substitute too, it would certainly be one of the best Murkrow sets. As is, though, it's easier to beat than blarajan. If you want to use it, check that your ladder points are under 800 before attempting. Failure to do so may result in humiliation.
name: Calm Mind + FeatherDance
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: FeatherDance
move 3: Roost
move 4: Hidden Power Flying
item: Eviolite
ability: Prankster
nature: Calm
evs: 196 HP / 100 Def / 184 SpD
A long time ago, in a land far far away, Calm Mind Murkrow reigned supreme over all of Little Cup. None could stand up to its mighty wrath. Special sweepers were unable to penetrate its meditating state, while physical sweepers were easily dispatched with a feather to the knee. Before long, all bowed to its unfathomable power, and many a sadfaced opponent GG'd out of a ladder match. The top warriors in the land of Little Cup met and tried to figure out how to defeat this monster. All of their best fighters had fallen to it. Even Elevator Music had been 6-0ed many a time (lol there's my standard cookie for EM). Eventually, someone called in the banhammer, and they won I guess. I'm sorry that I don't write good fiction.
One day, the people of Little Cup decided that life was boring. Enough with the Drilbur sweeps! the cynics cried. Bread and water! shouted the circuses. And Murkrow was brought back as an entertainment. This time, they were ready. Many barbs of Toxic poison were thrown out from across the land, destroying any shred of invincibility that Calm Mind Murkrow used to have. Eventually, it became the subject of many a joke. And that, my friends, is what it is today. Nothing but a joke.
On a more serious tone, Calm Mind would be fantastic if Murkrow had five moveslots. If only it could carry Substitute too, it would certainly be one of the best Murkrow sets. As is, though, it's easier to beat than blarajan. If you want to use it, check that your ladder points are under 800 before attempting. Failure to do so may result in humiliation.
Thanks for reading!
