http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/trapinch
Changes:
Pretty much a complete rewrite. The first set is what I feel is most effective in UU, and it has done its job repeatedly for me. The second set is the standard CB which is still effective and has some advantages. The biggest difference, however, is the Speed EVs, which are metagame-tailored. Trick Room is mentioned only in passing.
[SET]
name: Substitute Trapper
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Quick Attack / Toxic
move 4: Crunch / Toxic
item: Soft Sand
ability: Arena Trap
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 94 Def / 164 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The goal of this set is twofold. First and foremost, Trapinch is a wall eliminator, specifically targeting the two major Steel-types, Steelix and Registeel. Max Attack Soft Sand Earthquake is a guaranteed 2HKO on all Registeel and 2HKOes Impish 252/0 Steelix, the most common defensive EV investment, 82% of the time after accounting for Leftovers. It 2HKOes Calm Clefable, Calm Spiritomb, almost all Chansey (Bold 252/252 Chansey has a small chance to survive two hits, as does Calm Chansey with Protect), and Torkoal. It also OHKOes almost every Electric-type found in UU, as well as any 4x Ground-weak Pokemon - especially the lesser-used Steel walls, Bastiodon and Probopass.</p>
<p>The second goal of this set is to trap, and set up a Substitute on, any helpless foe. Most commonly this is a Choiced Electric attack or sleep move, Encored stat-up, or a switch-in on a predicted Rest. Once in, Trapinch is free to set up a Substitute at its leisure before dispatching the enemy. This prevents opponents from switching in frail sweepers for free after the trapped Pokémon is slain, since the switch-in will have to contend with the Substitute.</p>
<p>Quick Attack is arguably Trapinch's most useful secondary attack option. It can be used to nick a weakened Pokemon the turn after its Substitute is broken, or to revenge-trap and finish off an annoying foe that would otherwise escape to cause more havoc later. If your team needs a priority attack, Trapinch's Quick Attack is a fine choice. Crunch and Rock Slide both hit Flying-types and Levitators that want to avoid a STAB Earthquake. Crunch is usually the better option, massacring the common Mismagius, Rotom and Claydol while still hitting other Flying types, which are usually frail, for decent damage. Toxic is a good support move, since it can permanently cripple the walling capacities of bulky Water-types that so often switch into Subbed Trapinch. Beware, however, that Toxic without Crunch will leave you vulnerable to SubCM Mismagius, a common switch-in.</p>
<p>Soft Sand could be replaced with a couple other items. Expert Belt gives Earthquake the same damage boost as Soft Sand against Steel-types, and will also power up super-effective Crunches, but is generally inferior to Soft Sand since Earthquake will usually be your most damaging move. Life Orb can be used for extra power on all attacks, most notably Quick Attack, but it also has obvious drawbacks - recoil damage, and the inability to bluff a Choice Band.</p>
<p>Team support is a necessity for this set. With moves like Encore and Trick (with a Choice Item) on your team, Trapinch can more often get in on a resisted or harmless move and will have a much easier time setting up a Substitute. All kinds of status are great - paralysis will greatly improve the number of opponents you can kill before they kill you; so will burn, when trapping physical attackers. Sleep, of course, is a blessing, but be wary of one- and two-turn sleeps from Pokémon that can easily KO you - setting up a Substitute as a buffer is wise. If you are planning to use Trapinch, be sure to have a sweeper that enjoys having its Steel-type counters removed.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Choice Band
ability: Arena Trap
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 52 Def / 204 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This classical Trapinch set exchanges versatility and support options for pure power. Unlike the first set, which is able to set up on a successful trap against an immunity, Choice Band Trapinch's one and only goal is to eliminate opponents, especially walls, and it does this fairly efficiently. With a Choice Band, Trapinch has a 15% chance of OHKOing a Registeel that does not carry Def EVs, meaning it can usually finish off such a beast if it has suffered a U-turn or Stealth Rock damage. Choice Band also 2HKOes Bold Spiritomb 77% of the time without Stealth Rock, which is a major reason to use this set over the previous one - make sure to come in on a predicted Rest for the best chance of eliminating Spiritomb without fainting. A big advantage Choice Band holds over Soft Sand is that with the Band, Quick Attack is powered up into a formidable priority attack for revenge-killing weakened threats.</p>
<p>Besides the power boost, Choice Band Trapinch has a unique advantage of being able to foil and eliminate any grounded Trick user attempting to pass off a Choice item, as it will become effectively locked into Trick. The major disadvantage is, of course, that Trapinch becomes set-up fodder for any Ground resist after the trapper has fainted its quarry. The four attacks listed are straightforward and constitute pretty much all of Trapinch's useable offensive movepool (most of the time, Earthquake will be the only move used in the entire match).</p>
<p>If you are using Trapinch in Trick Room, Choice Band is probably the best option. Life Orb can be used in place of Choice Band, providing nearly the same universal boost in power while not leaving Trapinch as set-up fodder. The loss in durability, as well as missing out on key KOs like Bold Spiritomb, is a downer, however. The EVs provided allow Trapinch to outspeed Spiritomb.</p>
<p>While this build of Trapinch does not take advantage of setup opportunities like the first one, it still appreciates team support. Status, especially paralysis, is a good way to ensure Trapinch beats its quarry to the KO. Lures are useful for drawing out the opponent's Steel-types and Spiritomb. If you are running Choice Band Trapinch, be prepared with an answer for the Ground resists that will inevitably set up on you once you are locked into Earthquake. Sub-Calm Mind Mismagius is one of the most common and dangerous, so a tough Pursuiter is a good idea. Others include Sub-Seed Shaymin and Substitute Yanmega.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Trapinch's role on a team is to eliminate Steelix, Registeel, Spiritomb, Chansey, Clefable, and other such walls. This may sound ideal for slapping onto any team (who wouldn't want a wall eliminated every match?), but keep in mind, Trapinch cannot perform this task very well by itself.</p>
<p>Teamwork is mandatory. Without support, Trapinch will end up as dead weight or sacrifice fodder before it can snap its jaws shut. Status (especially paralysis) and Encore allow Trapinch to trap and eliminate opponents more easily, and U-turn and Baton Pass can help Trapinch get into battle with considerably less risk. A Steel lure like Swellow or Scyther, especially when packing U-turn, is one of the best ways to get Trapinch in on its quarry quickly without getting murdered. As an added bonus, such lures also serve as bait for Trapinch's bread and butter, Choice Scarfed Electric attacks.</p>
<p>Equally important to team support is your team's ability to capitalize on the enemy's lack of a wall, especially his Steel-type. In other words, don't use Trapinch unless you <i>need</i> to get rid of the enemy's Steel-type. Trapinch is most useful when your team has a game plan or overarching strategy (setting up a Belly Drum Linoone or a Sub-Petaya Yanmega, for example), but can still serve its purpose thoroughly if your team carries a couple general-purpose sweepers, like Swellow, Espeon, or Mismagius. In short, a team that contains Trapinch should use it out of necessity, and be dedicated to allowing it to do its job.</p>
<p>Besides team support, prediction is key to getting Trapinch in without taking damage - a single hit will usually mean the difference between a successful trapping and a dead Trapinch. Play Trapinch's switch-ins as you would a frail sweeper's. Against the Steels and other walls you will be trapping, some common switch in opportunities include Stealth Rock, Thunder Wave, Rest and Softboiled. A U-turn on the switch, or predicted double switch, is as good a switch-in opportunity as you can get.</p>
<p>Finally, Trapinch plays very differently on Trick Room teams, where it can act as a general-purpose revenge trapper similar to Dugtrio, albeit only during turns Trick Room is active. Reaching a minimum Speed of 22, Trapinch will be able to outspeed practically anything in Trick Room. A Choice Band or Life Orb set is recommended, since Trapinch does not have time to set up in Trick Room and will most likely want to KO the opponent as quickly as possible. As with all other teams that opt to use Trapinch, Trick Room teams will want to eliminate walls and other problem Pokémon so that a Trick Room sweeper can wreak havok unhindered. Trapinch can also fit well on teams that use Gravity, which allows Trapinch to trap all Pokémon, even Ground immunes, and hit them with Earthquake.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Trapinch's movepool is notoriously shabby, but the toothy trapper does have options. Body Slam occasionally works in your favour on the Substitute set; if you can score a lucky paralysis on a switch-in you may be able to outspeed and KO with Earthquake next turn, or leave it slow and crippled for the rest of your team to pick on. Rock Tomb can produce a similar effect somewhat more reliably, although many opponents will still outspeed you after the Speed drop. Attract and Swagger can harry your opponent from behind a Sub. Protect is useful in a few situations - if your team plays with Toxic Spikes, you can trap and stall a turn or two of poison damage out of your foe. If you use Perish Song on your team, Protect can provide a turn of safety as your trapped opponent struggles in vain to escape its Perish Count. Finally, Protect can shield Trapinch from Explosions, which are fairly easy to predict from trapped Registeel, Steelix, and especially Electrode.</p>
<p>Focus Sash can be useful in allowing Trapinch to take a hit from a frail sweeper and survive for the KO. Beware of Stealth Rock, of course, as it will ruin your Sash.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Maximizing Trapinch's Attack is always necessary. From there, its pathetic Speed and defenses can be padded to trump various specific threats.</p>
<p>A measly 12 Speed EVs brings Trapinch's Speed to 59, allowing the pokey sand bug to outpace 0 IV, -Speed nature Steelix, the Speed of choice for the Gyro Ball-happy Steelix. This is the minimum recommended investment for any Trapinch not used in Trick Room, since Steelix will probably be one of your primary targets. The next Speed tier to beat is Torkoal's, who stands alone at base 20 Speed - 84 Speed EVs (77 speed) will allow Trapinch to come out on top. In order to outpace 31 IV, neutral nature Steelix (base 30 Speed), Trapinch must invest 164 Speed EVs to reach 97 Speed, which is ideal as it also allows Trapinch to outspeed any paralyzed opponent of base 125 Speed (Swellow) and below. With 204 Speed EVs (107 Speed) Trapinch scuttles circles around the common Spiritomb (base 35). This is the maximum recommended Speed investment. Trapinch <i>can</i> outspeed the base 40 Speed group (Camerupt, Probopass) with 244 Speed EVs (117 Speed), but by this point Trapinch will have so little Defense that standard Steelix has a small chance of OHKOing it with Earthquake. If playing in Trick Room, Trapinch can reach a bottom Speed of 22 with a Brave nature and a Speed IV of 0, outspeeding practically everything but min Speed Shuckle in Trick Room.</p>
<p>If you're willing to forego Speed, and would rather focus on its defenses, specialization is the way to play. Physical optimization is recommended. 40 HP / 204 Def allows Trapinch to survive two hits from Registeel's Iron Head, assuming entry hazard damage, and is pretty much the most Defense you will squeeze from 252 Atk / 12 Spe Trapinch. Unfortunately, no EV spread will prevent a 2HKO from Steelix's Earthquake or Registeel's Ice Punch. If you want special optimization, a full 244 SpD EVs (with 0 HP EVs) lets Trapinch take a single unboosted HP Ice or Grass from Timid Magneton, and gives it a 91% chance of surviving 2 unboosted Dark Pulses from mono-attack Spiritomb (which is the only non-Electric-type special attacker Trapinch should commonly switch in on). However, it is usually more efficient to simply EV yourself to outspeed Spiritomb. For balanced defenses, 172 HP / 36 Def / 36 SpD is optimal, but Trapinch is so frail it usually requires specialized defenses to be effective. All defensive EV spreads assume 12 EVs are reserved to outspeed min speed Steelix.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Trapinch is an extremely vulnerable and situational Pokémon. One of the most useful abilities in the game, coupled with a solid base 100 Attack, make the ankle biter just barely worth using in the UnderUsed environment. Unfortunately, it fails utterly in every other category - it takes hits like a damp doily, its Speed makes Slowpoke impatient, and its movepool is more of a move-puddle. Still, it remains the best (and only) option for Arena Trapping in UU. It just needs to be used correctly in order to perform its task reliably. Unlike its more talented big brother Dugtrio, Trapinch should not be used as a general-purpose revenge trapper - it is strictly a situational threat eliminator. It does its job best when its quarry is helpless, or close to it, and as such is useless without team support.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Being a trapper, Trapinch is not counterable in the conventional sense. However, as far as trappers go, Trapinch is frail and unreliable, and improper scouting or poor prediction on the Trapinch user's part may leave him one Pokémon down.</p>
<p>Steelix 2HKOes all varieties of Trapinch with Earthquake, and can Roar it away or Explode on it. If Steelix is healthy and outspeeds Trapinch, it usually has nothing to fear, as it will beat the bug to the KO. Choice Band and Curse varieties of Steelix can both handily OHKO Trapinch with Earthquake. Registeel always 2HKOes with Ice Punch, and can 2HKO with Iron Head if Trapinch does not invest heavily in Defense. Any offensive Clefable can OHKO Trapinch with Ice Beam or Facade. A healthy Spiritomb usually has no problems with Trapinch unless the trapper switches into Rest and Spiritomb gets unlucky with Sleep Talk. Magneton defeats most Trapinch spreads with HP Ice / Grass or Flash Cannon and can also Magnet Rise to safety - only Electric-locked Choiced varieties of Magneton have anything to fear. Even Chansey can best Trapinch if it attacks on the switch, outspeeding and 3HKOing with Seismic Toss, or poisoning it with Toxic and then Wish-stalling.</p>
<p>Trapinch is easy to revenge kill, but don't be quick to assume it is Choiced - do damage calculations if you can. If Trapinch is behind a Substitute, beware of Toxic. Porygon2 and Gardevoir can trap and revenge kill Trapinch by using Trace to copy its Arena Trap.</p>
Changes:
Pretty much a complete rewrite. The first set is what I feel is most effective in UU, and it has done its job repeatedly for me. The second set is the standard CB which is still effective and has some advantages. The biggest difference, however, is the Speed EVs, which are metagame-tailored. Trick Room is mentioned only in passing.
[SET]
name: Substitute Trapper
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Quick Attack / Toxic
move 4: Crunch / Toxic
item: Soft Sand
ability: Arena Trap
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 94 Def / 164 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The goal of this set is twofold. First and foremost, Trapinch is a wall eliminator, specifically targeting the two major Steel-types, Steelix and Registeel. Max Attack Soft Sand Earthquake is a guaranteed 2HKO on all Registeel and 2HKOes Impish 252/0 Steelix, the most common defensive EV investment, 82% of the time after accounting for Leftovers. It 2HKOes Calm Clefable, Calm Spiritomb, almost all Chansey (Bold 252/252 Chansey has a small chance to survive two hits, as does Calm Chansey with Protect), and Torkoal. It also OHKOes almost every Electric-type found in UU, as well as any 4x Ground-weak Pokemon - especially the lesser-used Steel walls, Bastiodon and Probopass.</p>
<p>The second goal of this set is to trap, and set up a Substitute on, any helpless foe. Most commonly this is a Choiced Electric attack or sleep move, Encored stat-up, or a switch-in on a predicted Rest. Once in, Trapinch is free to set up a Substitute at its leisure before dispatching the enemy. This prevents opponents from switching in frail sweepers for free after the trapped Pokémon is slain, since the switch-in will have to contend with the Substitute.</p>
<p>Quick Attack is arguably Trapinch's most useful secondary attack option. It can be used to nick a weakened Pokemon the turn after its Substitute is broken, or to revenge-trap and finish off an annoying foe that would otherwise escape to cause more havoc later. If your team needs a priority attack, Trapinch's Quick Attack is a fine choice. Crunch and Rock Slide both hit Flying-types and Levitators that want to avoid a STAB Earthquake. Crunch is usually the better option, massacring the common Mismagius, Rotom and Claydol while still hitting other Flying types, which are usually frail, for decent damage. Toxic is a good support move, since it can permanently cripple the walling capacities of bulky Water-types that so often switch into Subbed Trapinch. Beware, however, that Toxic without Crunch will leave you vulnerable to SubCM Mismagius, a common switch-in.</p>
<p>Soft Sand could be replaced with a couple other items. Expert Belt gives Earthquake the same damage boost as Soft Sand against Steel-types, and will also power up super-effective Crunches, but is generally inferior to Soft Sand since Earthquake will usually be your most damaging move. Life Orb can be used for extra power on all attacks, most notably Quick Attack, but it also has obvious drawbacks - recoil damage, and the inability to bluff a Choice Band.</p>
<p>Team support is a necessity for this set. With moves like Encore and Trick (with a Choice Item) on your team, Trapinch can more often get in on a resisted or harmless move and will have a much easier time setting up a Substitute. All kinds of status are great - paralysis will greatly improve the number of opponents you can kill before they kill you; so will burn, when trapping physical attackers. Sleep, of course, is a blessing, but be wary of one- and two-turn sleeps from Pokémon that can easily KO you - setting up a Substitute as a buffer is wise. If you are planning to use Trapinch, be sure to have a sweeper that enjoys having its Steel-type counters removed.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Choice Band
ability: Arena Trap
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 52 Def / 204 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This classical Trapinch set exchanges versatility and support options for pure power. Unlike the first set, which is able to set up on a successful trap against an immunity, Choice Band Trapinch's one and only goal is to eliminate opponents, especially walls, and it does this fairly efficiently. With a Choice Band, Trapinch has a 15% chance of OHKOing a Registeel that does not carry Def EVs, meaning it can usually finish off such a beast if it has suffered a U-turn or Stealth Rock damage. Choice Band also 2HKOes Bold Spiritomb 77% of the time without Stealth Rock, which is a major reason to use this set over the previous one - make sure to come in on a predicted Rest for the best chance of eliminating Spiritomb without fainting. A big advantage Choice Band holds over Soft Sand is that with the Band, Quick Attack is powered up into a formidable priority attack for revenge-killing weakened threats.</p>
<p>Besides the power boost, Choice Band Trapinch has a unique advantage of being able to foil and eliminate any grounded Trick user attempting to pass off a Choice item, as it will become effectively locked into Trick. The major disadvantage is, of course, that Trapinch becomes set-up fodder for any Ground resist after the trapper has fainted its quarry. The four attacks listed are straightforward and constitute pretty much all of Trapinch's useable offensive movepool (most of the time, Earthquake will be the only move used in the entire match).</p>
<p>If you are using Trapinch in Trick Room, Choice Band is probably the best option. Life Orb can be used in place of Choice Band, providing nearly the same universal boost in power while not leaving Trapinch as set-up fodder. The loss in durability, as well as missing out on key KOs like Bold Spiritomb, is a downer, however. The EVs provided allow Trapinch to outspeed Spiritomb.</p>
<p>While this build of Trapinch does not take advantage of setup opportunities like the first one, it still appreciates team support. Status, especially paralysis, is a good way to ensure Trapinch beats its quarry to the KO. Lures are useful for drawing out the opponent's Steel-types and Spiritomb. If you are running Choice Band Trapinch, be prepared with an answer for the Ground resists that will inevitably set up on you once you are locked into Earthquake. Sub-Calm Mind Mismagius is one of the most common and dangerous, so a tough Pursuiter is a good idea. Others include Sub-Seed Shaymin and Substitute Yanmega.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Trapinch's role on a team is to eliminate Steelix, Registeel, Spiritomb, Chansey, Clefable, and other such walls. This may sound ideal for slapping onto any team (who wouldn't want a wall eliminated every match?), but keep in mind, Trapinch cannot perform this task very well by itself.</p>
<p>Teamwork is mandatory. Without support, Trapinch will end up as dead weight or sacrifice fodder before it can snap its jaws shut. Status (especially paralysis) and Encore allow Trapinch to trap and eliminate opponents more easily, and U-turn and Baton Pass can help Trapinch get into battle with considerably less risk. A Steel lure like Swellow or Scyther, especially when packing U-turn, is one of the best ways to get Trapinch in on its quarry quickly without getting murdered. As an added bonus, such lures also serve as bait for Trapinch's bread and butter, Choice Scarfed Electric attacks.</p>
<p>Equally important to team support is your team's ability to capitalize on the enemy's lack of a wall, especially his Steel-type. In other words, don't use Trapinch unless you <i>need</i> to get rid of the enemy's Steel-type. Trapinch is most useful when your team has a game plan or overarching strategy (setting up a Belly Drum Linoone or a Sub-Petaya Yanmega, for example), but can still serve its purpose thoroughly if your team carries a couple general-purpose sweepers, like Swellow, Espeon, or Mismagius. In short, a team that contains Trapinch should use it out of necessity, and be dedicated to allowing it to do its job.</p>
<p>Besides team support, prediction is key to getting Trapinch in without taking damage - a single hit will usually mean the difference between a successful trapping and a dead Trapinch. Play Trapinch's switch-ins as you would a frail sweeper's. Against the Steels and other walls you will be trapping, some common switch in opportunities include Stealth Rock, Thunder Wave, Rest and Softboiled. A U-turn on the switch, or predicted double switch, is as good a switch-in opportunity as you can get.</p>
<p>Finally, Trapinch plays very differently on Trick Room teams, where it can act as a general-purpose revenge trapper similar to Dugtrio, albeit only during turns Trick Room is active. Reaching a minimum Speed of 22, Trapinch will be able to outspeed practically anything in Trick Room. A Choice Band or Life Orb set is recommended, since Trapinch does not have time to set up in Trick Room and will most likely want to KO the opponent as quickly as possible. As with all other teams that opt to use Trapinch, Trick Room teams will want to eliminate walls and other problem Pokémon so that a Trick Room sweeper can wreak havok unhindered. Trapinch can also fit well on teams that use Gravity, which allows Trapinch to trap all Pokémon, even Ground immunes, and hit them with Earthquake.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Trapinch's movepool is notoriously shabby, but the toothy trapper does have options. Body Slam occasionally works in your favour on the Substitute set; if you can score a lucky paralysis on a switch-in you may be able to outspeed and KO with Earthquake next turn, or leave it slow and crippled for the rest of your team to pick on. Rock Tomb can produce a similar effect somewhat more reliably, although many opponents will still outspeed you after the Speed drop. Attract and Swagger can harry your opponent from behind a Sub. Protect is useful in a few situations - if your team plays with Toxic Spikes, you can trap and stall a turn or two of poison damage out of your foe. If you use Perish Song on your team, Protect can provide a turn of safety as your trapped opponent struggles in vain to escape its Perish Count. Finally, Protect can shield Trapinch from Explosions, which are fairly easy to predict from trapped Registeel, Steelix, and especially Electrode.</p>
<p>Focus Sash can be useful in allowing Trapinch to take a hit from a frail sweeper and survive for the KO. Beware of Stealth Rock, of course, as it will ruin your Sash.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Maximizing Trapinch's Attack is always necessary. From there, its pathetic Speed and defenses can be padded to trump various specific threats.</p>
<p>A measly 12 Speed EVs brings Trapinch's Speed to 59, allowing the pokey sand bug to outpace 0 IV, -Speed nature Steelix, the Speed of choice for the Gyro Ball-happy Steelix. This is the minimum recommended investment for any Trapinch not used in Trick Room, since Steelix will probably be one of your primary targets. The next Speed tier to beat is Torkoal's, who stands alone at base 20 Speed - 84 Speed EVs (77 speed) will allow Trapinch to come out on top. In order to outpace 31 IV, neutral nature Steelix (base 30 Speed), Trapinch must invest 164 Speed EVs to reach 97 Speed, which is ideal as it also allows Trapinch to outspeed any paralyzed opponent of base 125 Speed (Swellow) and below. With 204 Speed EVs (107 Speed) Trapinch scuttles circles around the common Spiritomb (base 35). This is the maximum recommended Speed investment. Trapinch <i>can</i> outspeed the base 40 Speed group (Camerupt, Probopass) with 244 Speed EVs (117 Speed), but by this point Trapinch will have so little Defense that standard Steelix has a small chance of OHKOing it with Earthquake. If playing in Trick Room, Trapinch can reach a bottom Speed of 22 with a Brave nature and a Speed IV of 0, outspeeding practically everything but min Speed Shuckle in Trick Room.</p>
<p>If you're willing to forego Speed, and would rather focus on its defenses, specialization is the way to play. Physical optimization is recommended. 40 HP / 204 Def allows Trapinch to survive two hits from Registeel's Iron Head, assuming entry hazard damage, and is pretty much the most Defense you will squeeze from 252 Atk / 12 Spe Trapinch. Unfortunately, no EV spread will prevent a 2HKO from Steelix's Earthquake or Registeel's Ice Punch. If you want special optimization, a full 244 SpD EVs (with 0 HP EVs) lets Trapinch take a single unboosted HP Ice or Grass from Timid Magneton, and gives it a 91% chance of surviving 2 unboosted Dark Pulses from mono-attack Spiritomb (which is the only non-Electric-type special attacker Trapinch should commonly switch in on). However, it is usually more efficient to simply EV yourself to outspeed Spiritomb. For balanced defenses, 172 HP / 36 Def / 36 SpD is optimal, but Trapinch is so frail it usually requires specialized defenses to be effective. All defensive EV spreads assume 12 EVs are reserved to outspeed min speed Steelix.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Trapinch is an extremely vulnerable and situational Pokémon. One of the most useful abilities in the game, coupled with a solid base 100 Attack, make the ankle biter just barely worth using in the UnderUsed environment. Unfortunately, it fails utterly in every other category - it takes hits like a damp doily, its Speed makes Slowpoke impatient, and its movepool is more of a move-puddle. Still, it remains the best (and only) option for Arena Trapping in UU. It just needs to be used correctly in order to perform its task reliably. Unlike its more talented big brother Dugtrio, Trapinch should not be used as a general-purpose revenge trapper - it is strictly a situational threat eliminator. It does its job best when its quarry is helpless, or close to it, and as such is useless without team support.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Being a trapper, Trapinch is not counterable in the conventional sense. However, as far as trappers go, Trapinch is frail and unreliable, and improper scouting or poor prediction on the Trapinch user's part may leave him one Pokémon down.</p>
<p>Steelix 2HKOes all varieties of Trapinch with Earthquake, and can Roar it away or Explode on it. If Steelix is healthy and outspeeds Trapinch, it usually has nothing to fear, as it will beat the bug to the KO. Choice Band and Curse varieties of Steelix can both handily OHKO Trapinch with Earthquake. Registeel always 2HKOes with Ice Punch, and can 2HKO with Iron Head if Trapinch does not invest heavily in Defense. Any offensive Clefable can OHKO Trapinch with Ice Beam or Facade. A healthy Spiritomb usually has no problems with Trapinch unless the trapper switches into Rest and Spiritomb gets unlucky with Sleep Talk. Magneton defeats most Trapinch spreads with HP Ice / Grass or Flash Cannon and can also Magnet Rise to safety - only Electric-locked Choiced varieties of Magneton have anything to fear. Even Chansey can best Trapinch if it attacks on the switch, outspeeding and 3HKOing with Seismic Toss, or poisoning it with Toxic and then Wish-stalling.</p>
<p>Trapinch is easy to revenge kill, but don't be quick to assume it is Choiced - do damage calculations if you can. If Trapinch is behind a Substitute, beware of Toxic. Porygon2 and Gardevoir can trap and revenge kill Trapinch by using Trace to copy its Arena Trap.</p>
