MikeDawg
Banned deucer.
Approved by Molk
Past POTW:
Intro:
Hey guys, MikeDawg here bringing everyone the next Pokemon of the Week! Format shamelessly stolen from TRC.
The XY OU Pokemon of the Week is an (obviously) weekly project in the Rarelyused forum. The idea originated from when we were reading many of the discussion threads, often the discussion is a bit lacking in the content department. Our goal here to is to highlight a threat in the metagame that isn't as well known, or isn't used as much as it should be, and provide a concise amount of information about that Pokemon; this will encourage creativity during teambuilding, and it will also provide an instant wealth of knowledge about that particular threat. This will hopefully be more helpful to themassive mediocre influx of new players in the RU subforum and promote better discussion within the individual threads.
In this thread though, the main point of discussion should be about experiences with that particular Pokemon and the sets featured, and how it has helped in some way during your battling. Niche sets and gimmicks can be mentioned as well, but bear in mind that this thread is mainly an informative source of knowledge through what is written in the OP. Think of this like an article highlighting a new threat. As such, discussion should be oriented towards highlighting its upsides, downsides, and niches. Oh yeah, you can also VM me what you think the next POTW should be, bearing in mind that they will be on lesser-used threats.
Depending on how this project goes in terms of activity (OU is certainly more active than RU), it may be edited accordingly. Perhaps more than one pokemon will be featured a week, etc. We'll see how it goes!
This week's Pokemon of the Week is Xatu.
Type: Psychic / Flying
Base Stats: 65 HP / 75 Atk / 70 Def / 95 SpA / 70 SpD / 95 Spe
Ability: Synchronize / Early Bird / Magic Bounce
Introduction:
Xatu is a seemingly mediocre pokemon that finds an incredible niche: Magic Bounce. This ability allows it to bounce back hazards, status moves, etc. With the current rise of frosslass/shuckle teams, this ability is invaluable as it can not only prevent these pokemon from setting up while xatu is in play, it can even reflect the hazards/taunt back in a good switch.
It has a number of interesting options in its movepool. Calm Mind allows for possible setup opportunity. Light Screen and Reflect offer the bird an ever greater niche in supporting the team. Haze is invaluable against sub calm-minders and the like. Roost offers valuable recovery. Confuse Ray is my favorite move ever, and given the amount of switches that Xatu forces on defensive mons, it is certainly competitively viable. Heat wave offers it rare coverage over escavalier and the like. Tailwind, wish, and u-turn are also great options.
However, there is a catch. A number of these options cannot be used alongside Magic Bounce. Most significant are Wish and Baton Pass. Regardless of this setback, Xatu's main niche in Magic Bounce is still intact.
What to try:
Xatu @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
Timid Nature
- Roost
- Heat Wave
- Psychic
- Grass Knot / Giga Drain
This generation in RU, Xatu surprisingly finds itself performing an offensive set very well. With its great coverage, though, this is unsurprising. 95 base SpA should not be underestimated when boosted by life orb. Psychic hits very hard, and its fire+grass coverage take down a surprising number of threats including Rhyperior and Escavalier. Of course, Xatu would find this set entirely eclipsed by Delphox, but Magic Bounce is its saving grace. Combining that much utility with comparable power to mons like Delphox, and you have a legitimate offensive threat. The choice between GK and GD is based on preference. Giga Drain cannot ko Spdef Rhyperior, but it fares fine against other variants. Without giga drain, Alomomola cannot be cracked without a crit, as psychic cannot 2hko after protect+letovers. Giga Drain also offers minor healing utility. Grass Knot is usually the better option, though, as Rhyperior is such an important target for Xatu that missing the 1hko is equatable to certain demise.
Xatu @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 4 Spd / 252 Def / 248 HP
Bold Nature
- Roost
- Thunder Wave / Toxic
- Psychic / Foul Play / Night Shade
- U-turn / Heat Wave / Reflect / Light Screen
Xatu can also run a decent defensive set. This certainly increases Xatu's longevity, allowing it to consistently offer magic bounce support, but it vastly decreases its offensive presence. Regardless, it offers great utility. Rocky Helmet is a solid option for punishing mons like Virizion and Cobalion on the switchin. If it can come in on a multi-hit attack such as Cincinno's tail sweep, it will rebound incredible damage. It is also useful for discouraging fake out spam via Ambipom. The choice between twave and toxic depends on your team. Twave is valuable for crippling offensive threats like the muskateers, while toxic can deal with more defensive threats like alomomola. The rest of the set is purely of to your preference. Psychic offers consistent stab. Foul play does surprising damage to strong attackers. Night Shade will moderately damage any pokemon. U-turn in the fourth slot is invaluable as a momentum-grabber. Heat wave is a possibility for not giving mons like Escavalier a free switch-in. Reflect and Light Screen are certainly viable options for the purpose of increasing Xatu's bulk and supporting the team.
Checks and Counters:
Xatu hates pursuit. It's inability to use Baton Pass definitely cripples it in this regard. If rocks are already up, Xatu will not appreciate the constant 25% damage. Electric types like Heliolisk/Jolteon are major threats, though they will have trouble switching in to the offensive set. Rhyperior can be an issue for the defensive set, as Xatu has no grass coverage. This weakness is rather significant as it discourages Xatu from switching in to a possible stealth rock setter. Strong choice users in general pose a danger to Xatu, as it simply is not bulky enough to fend them off.
Teammates:
Xatu support is loved by mons that hate hazards. Moltres, Yanmega, Fletchinder, etc. hate rocks, and Xatu helps a ton with keeping them off the field. Xatu holds surprising power behind its attacks, and it can quickly dismantle an unprepared offensive team. Mons like Sharpedo are great for their ability to quickly clean up. Slowking is a hard stop to the offensive set, so a pursuit user such as Escavalier is well-appreciated.
Topics For Discussion:
Past POTW:
This week's Pokemon of the Week is Shiftry.
Type: Grass / Dark
Base Stats: 90 HP / 100 Atk / 60 Def / 90 SpA / 60 SpD / 80 Spe
Ability: Chlorophyll / Early Bird / Pickpocket
Introduction
Shiftry is certainly an interesting pokemon, despite its low usage. It has great utility with moves such as Knock Off, Defog, Fake Out, Sucker Punch, and Tailwind. It is blessed with a myriad of boosting moves: Nasty Plot, Swords Dance, and Growth. It even has fantastic coverage, with only Togetic and Whimsicott resisting its Dark/Grass/Fighting combo. It perhaps misses the ground coverage offered by Nature Power as far as super-effective hitting goes, but it can make do.
Unfortunately, it doesn't have the greatest of abilities. Sun is rare and either bad or untapped in RU, lessening the use of Chlorophyll. Early Bird would be more helpful if grass was not now immune to spore/sleep powder, though it could have use with Rest. It cannot even tank dark voids, as Smeargle has risen to UU. Pickpocket may be relatively useful compared to the other two abilities if shiftry is knocked off or uses a consumable, but it is still incredibly niche.
Its stats are just enough to get by. It has a fairly decent speed tier, giving it the ability to outspeed neutral base 80 and 90 threats such as kabutops, moltres, hitmonlee (87) and meloetta. Its attacking stats seem to leave much to be desired, but its good coverage and access to fantastic boosting moves alleviates this, and life orb allows it to hit surprisingly hard when unboosted. It is indeed frail, but it could be worse!
Shiftry's typing is interesting, and it actually offers great offensive utility. STAB Knock off and Sucker punch are not to be underestimated, and grass STAB allows it to plow through blanket physical walls like Rhyperior and Alomomola. It offers a bit of defensive utility with a valuable dark resistance as well as the ability to better take grass, ground, and water attacks. Beware of mach punches, though.
What to try:
Shiftry @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Naive Nature
- Defog
- Leaf Storm
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch
One of Shiftry's better niches is its hazard-removal abilities. Its great offensive presence makes it comparable to hitmonlee as a hazard-remover. Shiftry can force switches easily with its incredibly strong coverage, and can use that opportunity to defog. Leaf storm hits incredibly hard, and the -2 SpA is offset by its mixed capabilites. Knock off and Sucker Punch offer great utility as well as hitting incredibly hard.
Shiftry @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Seed Bomb
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch / Low Kick
Shiftry can run a devastating physically offensive set. Seed Bomb and Knock Off cover all common pokemon except for Whimsicott and dark/poison types (neither of which Shiftry should stay in on regardless, especially given that they are mostly all faster than the tree-bird). Low Kick or Brick Break can be run to deal with the dark types, but the utility of Sucker Punch is usually too much to give up. A good reason to use Shiftry over comparable physical sweepers is grass coverage. Pokemon like Rhyperior and Alomomola are usually hard stops to most physical threats, but Shiftry can easily ko both of them with its STAB. Braviary is worth a mention due to its role as a defog blocker. If it comes in on a defog, it gets a +2 attack boost, so Shiftry must play with caution.
Checks and Counters:
Unfortunately, Shiftry's stabs still leave it open to a few RU threats. Cobalion and Virizion are common standouts, as they both resist grass and dark, and even receive an attack boost from dark attacks due to justified. Tangrowth's incredible physical bulk also gives it the ability to consistently deal with shiftry. Fletchinder and Hitmonlee are great checks, as their respective priority moves are super effective against the tree-bird.
Teammates:
Perhaps the most obvious choice for a teammate is Moltres. They have great type synergy, and shiftry has the ability to defog, alleviating Moltres' rock weakness. Sunny day support is a possibility, as it makes Shiftry into the fastest pokemon in the meta. Water types in general such as Slowking are nice partners, simply for the type synergy that they provide, though Shiftry's low defenses make it difficult for it to contribute to any stable defensive core. Shiftry definitely appreciates spike/rock support given its ability to force switches. Qwilfish is a prime candidate for this job given it's synergy with Shiftry.
Type: Grass / Dark
Base Stats: 90 HP / 100 Atk / 60 Def / 90 SpA / 60 SpD / 80 Spe
Ability: Chlorophyll / Early Bird / Pickpocket
Introduction
Shiftry is certainly an interesting pokemon, despite its low usage. It has great utility with moves such as Knock Off, Defog, Fake Out, Sucker Punch, and Tailwind. It is blessed with a myriad of boosting moves: Nasty Plot, Swords Dance, and Growth. It even has fantastic coverage, with only Togetic and Whimsicott resisting its Dark/Grass/Fighting combo. It perhaps misses the ground coverage offered by Nature Power as far as super-effective hitting goes, but it can make do.
Unfortunately, it doesn't have the greatest of abilities. Sun is rare and either bad or untapped in RU, lessening the use of Chlorophyll. Early Bird would be more helpful if grass was not now immune to spore/sleep powder, though it could have use with Rest. It cannot even tank dark voids, as Smeargle has risen to UU. Pickpocket may be relatively useful compared to the other two abilities if shiftry is knocked off or uses a consumable, but it is still incredibly niche.
Its stats are just enough to get by. It has a fairly decent speed tier, giving it the ability to outspeed neutral base 80 and 90 threats such as kabutops, moltres, hitmonlee (87) and meloetta. Its attacking stats seem to leave much to be desired, but its good coverage and access to fantastic boosting moves alleviates this, and life orb allows it to hit surprisingly hard when unboosted. It is indeed frail, but it could be worse!
Shiftry's typing is interesting, and it actually offers great offensive utility. STAB Knock off and Sucker punch are not to be underestimated, and grass STAB allows it to plow through blanket physical walls like Rhyperior and Alomomola. It offers a bit of defensive utility with a valuable dark resistance as well as the ability to better take grass, ground, and water attacks. Beware of mach punches, though.
What to try:
Shiftry @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 SAtk
Naive Nature
- Defog
- Leaf Storm
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch
One of Shiftry's better niches is its hazard-removal abilities. Its great offensive presence makes it comparable to hitmonlee as a hazard-remover. Shiftry can force switches easily with its incredibly strong coverage, and can use that opportunity to defog. Leaf storm hits incredibly hard, and the -2 SpA is offset by its mixed capabilites. Knock off and Sucker Punch offer great utility as well as hitting incredibly hard.
Shiftry @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Seed Bomb
- Knock Off
- Sucker Punch / Low Kick
Shiftry can run a devastating physically offensive set. Seed Bomb and Knock Off cover all common pokemon except for Whimsicott and dark/poison types (neither of which Shiftry should stay in on regardless, especially given that they are mostly all faster than the tree-bird). Low Kick or Brick Break can be run to deal with the dark types, but the utility of Sucker Punch is usually too much to give up. A good reason to use Shiftry over comparable physical sweepers is grass coverage. Pokemon like Rhyperior and Alomomola are usually hard stops to most physical threats, but Shiftry can easily ko both of them with its STAB. Braviary is worth a mention due to its role as a defog blocker. If it comes in on a defog, it gets a +2 attack boost, so Shiftry must play with caution.
Checks and Counters:
Unfortunately, Shiftry's stabs still leave it open to a few RU threats. Cobalion and Virizion are common standouts, as they both resist grass and dark, and even receive an attack boost from dark attacks due to justified. Tangrowth's incredible physical bulk also gives it the ability to consistently deal with shiftry. Fletchinder and Hitmonlee are great checks, as their respective priority moves are super effective against the tree-bird.
Teammates:
Perhaps the most obvious choice for a teammate is Moltres. They have great type synergy, and shiftry has the ability to defog, alleviating Moltres' rock weakness. Sunny day support is a possibility, as it makes Shiftry into the fastest pokemon in the meta. Water types in general such as Slowking are nice partners, simply for the type synergy that they provide, though Shiftry's low defenses make it difficult for it to contribute to any stable defensive core. Shiftry definitely appreciates spike/rock support given its ability to force switches. Qwilfish is a prime candidate for this job given it's synergy with Shiftry.
Intro:
Hey guys, MikeDawg here bringing everyone the next Pokemon of the Week! Format shamelessly stolen from TRC.
The XY OU Pokemon of the Week is an (obviously) weekly project in the Rarelyused forum. The idea originated from when we were reading many of the discussion threads, often the discussion is a bit lacking in the content department. Our goal here to is to highlight a threat in the metagame that isn't as well known, or isn't used as much as it should be, and provide a concise amount of information about that Pokemon; this will encourage creativity during teambuilding, and it will also provide an instant wealth of knowledge about that particular threat. This will hopefully be more helpful to the
In this thread though, the main point of discussion should be about experiences with that particular Pokemon and the sets featured, and how it has helped in some way during your battling. Niche sets and gimmicks can be mentioned as well, but bear in mind that this thread is mainly an informative source of knowledge through what is written in the OP. Think of this like an article highlighting a new threat. As such, discussion should be oriented towards highlighting its upsides, downsides, and niches. Oh yeah, you can also VM me what you think the next POTW should be, bearing in mind that they will be on lesser-used threats.
Depending on how this project goes in terms of activity (OU is certainly more active than RU), it may be edited accordingly. Perhaps more than one pokemon will be featured a week, etc. We'll see how it goes!
This week's Pokemon of the Week is Xatu.
Base Stats: 65 HP / 75 Atk / 70 Def / 95 SpA / 70 SpD / 95 Spe
Ability: Synchronize / Early Bird / Magic Bounce
Introduction:
Xatu is a seemingly mediocre pokemon that finds an incredible niche: Magic Bounce. This ability allows it to bounce back hazards, status moves, etc. With the current rise of frosslass/shuckle teams, this ability is invaluable as it can not only prevent these pokemon from setting up while xatu is in play, it can even reflect the hazards/taunt back in a good switch.
It has a number of interesting options in its movepool. Calm Mind allows for possible setup opportunity. Light Screen and Reflect offer the bird an ever greater niche in supporting the team. Haze is invaluable against sub calm-minders and the like. Roost offers valuable recovery. Confuse Ray is my favorite move ever, and given the amount of switches that Xatu forces on defensive mons, it is certainly competitively viable. Heat wave offers it rare coverage over escavalier and the like. Tailwind, wish, and u-turn are also great options.
However, there is a catch. A number of these options cannot be used alongside Magic Bounce. Most significant are Wish and Baton Pass. Regardless of this setback, Xatu's main niche in Magic Bounce is still intact.
What to try:
Xatu @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
Timid Nature
- Roost
- Heat Wave
- Psychic
- Grass Knot / Giga Drain
This generation in RU, Xatu surprisingly finds itself performing an offensive set very well. With its great coverage, though, this is unsurprising. 95 base SpA should not be underestimated when boosted by life orb. Psychic hits very hard, and its fire+grass coverage take down a surprising number of threats including Rhyperior and Escavalier. Of course, Xatu would find this set entirely eclipsed by Delphox, but Magic Bounce is its saving grace. Combining that much utility with comparable power to mons like Delphox, and you have a legitimate offensive threat. The choice between GK and GD is based on preference. Giga Drain cannot ko Spdef Rhyperior, but it fares fine against other variants. Without giga drain, Alomomola cannot be cracked without a crit, as psychic cannot 2hko after protect+letovers. Giga Drain also offers minor healing utility. Grass Knot is usually the better option, though, as Rhyperior is such an important target for Xatu that missing the 1hko is equatable to certain demise.
Xatu @ Rocky Helmet / Leftovers
Ability: Magic Bounce
EVs: 4 Spd / 252 Def / 248 HP
Bold Nature
- Roost
- Thunder Wave / Toxic
- Psychic / Foul Play / Night Shade
- U-turn / Heat Wave / Reflect / Light Screen
Xatu can also run a decent defensive set. This certainly increases Xatu's longevity, allowing it to consistently offer magic bounce support, but it vastly decreases its offensive presence. Regardless, it offers great utility. Rocky Helmet is a solid option for punishing mons like Virizion and Cobalion on the switchin. If it can come in on a multi-hit attack such as Cincinno's tail sweep, it will rebound incredible damage. It is also useful for discouraging fake out spam via Ambipom. The choice between twave and toxic depends on your team. Twave is valuable for crippling offensive threats like the muskateers, while toxic can deal with more defensive threats like alomomola. The rest of the set is purely of to your preference. Psychic offers consistent stab. Foul play does surprising damage to strong attackers. Night Shade will moderately damage any pokemon. U-turn in the fourth slot is invaluable as a momentum-grabber. Heat wave is a possibility for not giving mons like Escavalier a free switch-in. Reflect and Light Screen are certainly viable options for the purpose of increasing Xatu's bulk and supporting the team.
Checks and Counters:
Xatu hates pursuit. It's inability to use Baton Pass definitely cripples it in this regard. If rocks are already up, Xatu will not appreciate the constant 25% damage. Electric types like Heliolisk/Jolteon are major threats, though they will have trouble switching in to the offensive set. Rhyperior can be an issue for the defensive set, as Xatu has no grass coverage. This weakness is rather significant as it discourages Xatu from switching in to a possible stealth rock setter. Strong choice users in general pose a danger to Xatu, as it simply is not bulky enough to fend them off.
Teammates:
Xatu support is loved by mons that hate hazards. Moltres, Yanmega, Fletchinder, etc. hate rocks, and Xatu helps a ton with keeping them off the field. Xatu holds surprising power behind its attacks, and it can quickly dismantle an unprepared offensive team. Mons like Sharpedo are great for their ability to quickly clean up. Slowking is a hard stop to the offensive set, so a pursuit user such as Escavalier is well-appreciated.
Topics For Discussion:
- What are good partners that you have found for Xatu?
- What have you found puts a stop to most Xatu variants? How can you overcome them?
- What is the most useful Xatu set?
- What sorts of innovative sets can Xatu run? Trick flame orb? Calm mind sweeper? Sucka punch? Feather Dance?
- How should Xatu be played?
- When should Xatu be used relative to other threats?
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