Sawk
Overview
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Pros
- High attack and usable speed
- Awesome coverage and a high power STAB move in Close Combat
- Great abilities like Mold Breaker and Sturdy
- Ice Punch and Poison Jab allow Sawk to beat Gligar and Aromatisse respectively, which Hitmonlee cannot do
- Stronger Knock Off
- Weak to Status
- Though its speed isnt terrible Sawk will find it hard to function well against offensive mons
- Faces heavy competition from Hitmonlee who has STAB priority, Higher power STAB in Reckless HJK, and more overall versatility
- Fairly frail
- Did I say it is almost completely encompassed by Hitmonlee
Wallbreaker
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name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Knock Off
move 3: Ice Punch
move 4: Poison Jab
ability: Sturdy
item: Choice Band / Life Orb
evs: 4 hp / 252 atk / 252 spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
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- Close Combat acts as reliable STAB and lets Sawk crack a lot of walls in the tier
- Knock Off hits the ghosts and psychics that can resist Sawk's STAB
- Ice Punch is to break Gligar which is the main reason Sawk has a niche
- Poison Jab allows Sawk to beat Aromatisse while Stone Edge is an option for Pokemon like Moltres, though it is already hit hard by Stone Edge
- EQ with Mold Breaker is an option in the third slot if you are worried about less common things like Weezing, but this is generally an inferior choice
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- Evs and nature allow Sawk to hit as hard as possible
- Choice Band lets Sawk hit extremely hard with no recoil for maximum wallbreaking potention
- Life Orb is also an option to allow Sawk the freedom to switch moves
- Sturdy will let you live any one hit if at full health which can have many potential uses
- Mold Breaker should be used if using EQ though Sturdy is inferior in any other case
- Jolly can be used if you want to outspeed adamant Hitmonlee and tie with max speed positive natured base 85s
Usage Tips
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- Bring it in on a wall or a predicted switch and click CC unless its resisted or you are predicting a switch
- Avoid status at all costs
- Don't be afraid to switch around w/ Sawk as it doesn't care about hazards that much unless running LO
Team Options
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- Hitmonlee and other fighting types such as Gallade and Coballion are actually decent options with Sawk as Sawk can beat all of its defensive counters
- Offensive cleaners who benefit from the removal of pokemon like Gligar and Aromatisse
- Hazards help Sawk to secure its 2hkos and ohkos
- Stealth Rock is very important for Sawk as most of its checks and counters like Moltres, Swellow, and Fletchinder are fast flying types that are weak to Stealth Rock will not be able to come in on Sawk as frequently
- For this reason Rhyperior makes an amazing Sawk partner as it handles Flying types well and can reliably supply Stealth Rock
Other Options
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- Sawk is so generally outclassed it doesn't carry many other viable options
- Scarf is a possibility to act as a revenge killer but Sawk is better used as a wallbreaker as with a Scarf Sawk is more easily walled and can still be revenged killed fairly easily
Checks & Counters
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- Though uncommon Weezing can eat anything Sawk has to throw at it except the uncommon Earthquake
- Fletchinder cannot switch in but it can burn an incoming Sawk or simply obliterate it with priority Acrobatics
- Burn and Paralysis make Sawk's job a lot harder
- Faster, hard hitting pokemon will easily put a stop to Sawk as it is pretty frail
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