[Overview]
<p>In a tier where Grass-types such as Amoonguss and Tangela are common, Beartic is notable for its ability to get past these usually troublesome foes. With a good offensive typing in Ice and a nice base 110 Attack, Beartic can hit pretty hard. Beartic's decent 95 / 80 / 80 bulk also means it's somewhat hard to wear down while its good movepool gives it perfect neutral coverage. Unfortunately, Beartic is held back by several factors. For one, while Ice is a good offensive typing, defensively it bestows weaknesses to Stealth Rock and common Fire-, Fighting-, and Rock-type attacks. In addition, its Speed isn't very high, and it also competes with Piloswine as an offensive Ice-type, due to the latter's secondary Ground-type STAB, STAB priority, and neutrality to Stealth Rock. In contrast to Piloswine, however, Beartic has the ability to use Focus Punch, lacks a Grass-type weakness, and has access to Taunt. Overall, Beartic is a dangerous offensive Pokemon with the right support.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Icicle Crash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Taunt / Aqua Jet
item: Life Orb
ability: Swift Swim
nature: Adamant
evs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set aims to take advantage of Beartic's excellent coverage and good offensive typing to do as much damage as possible. Thanks to Beartic's decent bulk, it tends to last quite a while and thus can deal quite a bit of damage over the course of a match. Icicle Crash is the main STAB option as it is Beartic's most powerful physical Ice-type attack, while Superpower is used to get past Steel-types that resist Icicle Crash, as well as Thick Fat Miltank. Notably, this combination is only resisted by Shedinja, Grumpig, Lampent, and Frillish, none of which are particularly common. Stone Edge is preferred for the third slot as it is Beartic's best option against most Fire-types such as Charizard, Flareon, and Torkoal.</p>
<p>The final moveslot largely comes down to personal preference. Taunt is generally preferred as it prevents walls like Musharna and Garbodor from setting up on Beartic, which allows Beartic to wear them down. Taunt also allows Beartic to use its coverage more effectively against stall teams, as it can wear down these teams as Beartic absorbs their relatively weak hits well due to its bulk. However, Aqua Jet also has its uses as it is Beartic's only priority option, allowing it to pick off weakened foes despite its low Speed stat.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EVs maximize Beatic's Attack while ensuring it outspeeds uninvested base 75s (notably Garbodor). A fully offensive 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe spread is also viable, while more EVs can also be put into HP instead of Speed if one desires a bulkier spread. If the latter route is taken, 84 Speed EVs allows Beartic to outrun and Taunt base 60s, such as Tangela and Weezing, while 124 Speed EVs lets it outspeed and do the same to base 65s such as Alomomola. While a Life Orb is generally the preferable item choice, Choice Band is an option if using Aqua Jet, as the increased power can be useful.</p>
<p>Beartic's weakness to Stealth Rock is very debilitating, so it is good to pair it with a Rapid Spin user. Because Beartic is more of an offensive Pokemon, Armaldo is a good partner, as it is the only offensive spinner in NU. However, Torkoal is also an option to use Rapid Spin, as it resists Fire-type moves aimed at Beartic and has enough physical bulk to take on most Fighting-types. On the subject of Fighting-types, Golurk's and Misdreavus's immunity to their STAB attacks make them good options to take them on, while Weezing's resistance to their STAB and access to Will-O-Wisp makes it an effective answer as well. As Beartic deals with Grass-types well, offensive Grass- and Water-types, such as Torterra and Ludicolo, make good partners, because Beartic can take out Pokemon they would otherwise struggle against such as Tangela and Amoonguss. Moreover, Beartic's Swift Swim ability means it can provide a vital role on Rain Dance teams to take down Grass-types to pave the way for another Pokemon like Floatzel to spam rain-boosted Water-type attacks.</p>
[SET]
name: SubPunch
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Focus Punch
move 3: Icicle Crash
move 4: Toxic
item: Leftovers
ability: Swift Swim
nature: Adamant
evs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>At first glance, Beartic might seem outclassed by other SubPunch users, due to a lack of Fighting-type STAB. However, since none of the fully evolved Fighting-type Pokemon in the tier can learn Focus Punch, the lack of STAB is less undermining. In addition, when Beartic is behind a Substitute, Beartic's Ice-type STAB means it can defeat Haunter, Drifblim, and Golurk, three of the four most common Ghost-types in the tier.</p>
<p>As with any SubPunch set, the goal is to set up a Substitute on a Pokemon that Beartic can scare out off, and then use Focus Punch. Despite the lack of STAB, it is still Beartic's most powerful move and hits very hard. Because all the common Pokemon in NU are hit neutrally or better by the combination of Focus Punch and Icicle Crash, Toxic is preferred in the fourth slot to mess up walls like Alomomola, which have high enough bulk to take the other moves.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EVs allow Beartic to outspeed uninvested base 60s. Notable Pokemon in that speed tier are Tangela and Weezing, and this spread allows Beartic to set up a Substitute before they make it fall asleep or burn it, respectively. However, the EVs are once again customizable to outspeed certain Pokemon, such as 124 Speed EVs for Alomomola. Leftovers allow it to make more Substitutes than it usually could, as it makes up for the damage lost from the Substitute to a degree.</p>
<p>Rapid Spin users, such as Armaldo and Torkoal, are useful for their ability to get rid of Stealth Rock. This is important because Stealth Rock takes a hefty 25% of Beartic's health away, greatly inhibiting its ability to set up Substitutes. Pokemon such as Golurk and Weezing are useful for this set because of their ability to take down Fighting-type Pokemon that Beartic struggles with. Offensive Grass-types, such as Leafeon and Torterra, make good partners as well—both can hit Alomomola hard with their Grass-type STABs, while Beartic can defeat Tangela and Amoonguss for them.</p>
<p>A huge threat to this set is Cinccino, as its Skill Link Rock Blast can break Beartic's Substitute and KO it on the same turn. Due to this, Pokemon such as Misdreavus or Choice Scarf Sawk are good team options due to their ability to counter or revenge kill Cinccino. Moreover, while Beartic can deal with most Ghost-types somewhat well, Beartic would love to just use Focus Punch, so Dark-types, such as Skuntank and Absol, make good partners as well to trap and remove them.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Beartic's offensive movepool is rather shallow, but it still has a few other options to consider. Swords Dance makes it powerful, but it's too slow to use it effectively, which, combined with its poor defensive typing, makes it very easy to revenge kill. Bulk Up and Hone Claws are also similarly difficult to set up due to these weaknesses. Night Slash is able to hit Frillish and Grumpig very hard, but they are too uncommon to worry about.</p>
<p>Beartic has a decent support movepool including useful moves such as Yawn, Roar, and Encore. However, Beatic's defensive typing is bad, so pulling off a support set is rather difficult. Beartic also has access to Rain Dance, although it usually is better off if a teammate can set it up, because it needs all the moveslots it can get. Beartic's other ability, Snow Cloak, can be useful in hail, but hail is never seen within NU.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>The easiest way to take down Beartic is to take advantage of the weaknesses its Ice typing brings. Fighting-types, such as Sawk, Emboar, Gurdurr, and Throh, easily destroy Beartic with their powerful STAB moves. Sawk is also always faster than Beartic, while Emboar can switch in with little worry thanks to resisting Icicle Crash. In general, physical walls like Alomomola, Misdreavus, and Weezing can take on Beartic well. Although they must be wary of Taunt, even when afflicted they can still hit back and slowly wear Beartic down. Cinccino cannot switch in easily, but it OHKOs Bearic with Rock Blast, even if it is behind a Substitute. Armaldo has STAB Rock-type moves to defeat Beartic as well, along with decent bulk to take on a Stone Edge if necessary.</p>
<p>Regirock needs to be wary of Fighting-type moves, but its massive bulk and Rock STAB makes it a solid answer to Beartic. Although not particularly common, Frillish and Lampent resist Beartic's Ice STAB and Fighting moves, and both can also burn Beartic, crippling it for the rest of the match. Setting Stealth Rock up makes Beartic easier to revenge kill. For example, after Stealth Rock damage, Pinsir is able to OHKO with Close Combat.</p>
<p>In a tier where Grass-types such as Amoonguss and Tangela are common, Beartic is notable for its ability to get past these usually troublesome foes. With a good offensive typing in Ice and a nice base 110 Attack, Beartic can hit pretty hard. Beartic's decent 95 / 80 / 80 bulk also means it's somewhat hard to wear down while its good movepool gives it perfect neutral coverage. Unfortunately, Beartic is held back by several factors. For one, while Ice is a good offensive typing, defensively it bestows weaknesses to Stealth Rock and common Fire-, Fighting-, and Rock-type attacks. In addition, its Speed isn't very high, and it also competes with Piloswine as an offensive Ice-type, due to the latter's secondary Ground-type STAB, STAB priority, and neutrality to Stealth Rock. In contrast to Piloswine, however, Beartic has the ability to use Focus Punch, lacks a Grass-type weakness, and has access to Taunt. Overall, Beartic is a dangerous offensive Pokemon with the right support.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Icicle Crash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Taunt / Aqua Jet
item: Life Orb
ability: Swift Swim
nature: Adamant
evs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set aims to take advantage of Beartic's excellent coverage and good offensive typing to do as much damage as possible. Thanks to Beartic's decent bulk, it tends to last quite a while and thus can deal quite a bit of damage over the course of a match. Icicle Crash is the main STAB option as it is Beartic's most powerful physical Ice-type attack, while Superpower is used to get past Steel-types that resist Icicle Crash, as well as Thick Fat Miltank. Notably, this combination is only resisted by Shedinja, Grumpig, Lampent, and Frillish, none of which are particularly common. Stone Edge is preferred for the third slot as it is Beartic's best option against most Fire-types such as Charizard, Flareon, and Torkoal.</p>
<p>The final moveslot largely comes down to personal preference. Taunt is generally preferred as it prevents walls like Musharna and Garbodor from setting up on Beartic, which allows Beartic to wear them down. Taunt also allows Beartic to use its coverage more effectively against stall teams, as it can wear down these teams as Beartic absorbs their relatively weak hits well due to its bulk. However, Aqua Jet also has its uses as it is Beartic's only priority option, allowing it to pick off weakened foes despite its low Speed stat.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EVs maximize Beatic's Attack while ensuring it outspeeds uninvested base 75s (notably Garbodor). A fully offensive 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe spread is also viable, while more EVs can also be put into HP instead of Speed if one desires a bulkier spread. If the latter route is taken, 84 Speed EVs allows Beartic to outrun and Taunt base 60s, such as Tangela and Weezing, while 124 Speed EVs lets it outspeed and do the same to base 65s such as Alomomola. While a Life Orb is generally the preferable item choice, Choice Band is an option if using Aqua Jet, as the increased power can be useful.</p>
<p>Beartic's weakness to Stealth Rock is very debilitating, so it is good to pair it with a Rapid Spin user. Because Beartic is more of an offensive Pokemon, Armaldo is a good partner, as it is the only offensive spinner in NU. However, Torkoal is also an option to use Rapid Spin, as it resists Fire-type moves aimed at Beartic and has enough physical bulk to take on most Fighting-types. On the subject of Fighting-types, Golurk's and Misdreavus's immunity to their STAB attacks make them good options to take them on, while Weezing's resistance to their STAB and access to Will-O-Wisp makes it an effective answer as well. As Beartic deals with Grass-types well, offensive Grass- and Water-types, such as Torterra and Ludicolo, make good partners, because Beartic can take out Pokemon they would otherwise struggle against such as Tangela and Amoonguss. Moreover, Beartic's Swift Swim ability means it can provide a vital role on Rain Dance teams to take down Grass-types to pave the way for another Pokemon like Floatzel to spam rain-boosted Water-type attacks.</p>
[SET]
name: SubPunch
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Focus Punch
move 3: Icicle Crash
move 4: Toxic
item: Leftovers
ability: Swift Swim
nature: Adamant
evs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 84 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>At first glance, Beartic might seem outclassed by other SubPunch users, due to a lack of Fighting-type STAB. However, since none of the fully evolved Fighting-type Pokemon in the tier can learn Focus Punch, the lack of STAB is less undermining. In addition, when Beartic is behind a Substitute, Beartic's Ice-type STAB means it can defeat Haunter, Drifblim, and Golurk, three of the four most common Ghost-types in the tier.</p>
<p>As with any SubPunch set, the goal is to set up a Substitute on a Pokemon that Beartic can scare out off, and then use Focus Punch. Despite the lack of STAB, it is still Beartic's most powerful move and hits very hard. Because all the common Pokemon in NU are hit neutrally or better by the combination of Focus Punch and Icicle Crash, Toxic is preferred in the fourth slot to mess up walls like Alomomola, which have high enough bulk to take the other moves.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EVs allow Beartic to outspeed uninvested base 60s. Notable Pokemon in that speed tier are Tangela and Weezing, and this spread allows Beartic to set up a Substitute before they make it fall asleep or burn it, respectively. However, the EVs are once again customizable to outspeed certain Pokemon, such as 124 Speed EVs for Alomomola. Leftovers allow it to make more Substitutes than it usually could, as it makes up for the damage lost from the Substitute to a degree.</p>
<p>Rapid Spin users, such as Armaldo and Torkoal, are useful for their ability to get rid of Stealth Rock. This is important because Stealth Rock takes a hefty 25% of Beartic's health away, greatly inhibiting its ability to set up Substitutes. Pokemon such as Golurk and Weezing are useful for this set because of their ability to take down Fighting-type Pokemon that Beartic struggles with. Offensive Grass-types, such as Leafeon and Torterra, make good partners as well—both can hit Alomomola hard with their Grass-type STABs, while Beartic can defeat Tangela and Amoonguss for them.</p>
<p>A huge threat to this set is Cinccino, as its Skill Link Rock Blast can break Beartic's Substitute and KO it on the same turn. Due to this, Pokemon such as Misdreavus or Choice Scarf Sawk are good team options due to their ability to counter or revenge kill Cinccino. Moreover, while Beartic can deal with most Ghost-types somewhat well, Beartic would love to just use Focus Punch, so Dark-types, such as Skuntank and Absol, make good partners as well to trap and remove them.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Beartic's offensive movepool is rather shallow, but it still has a few other options to consider. Swords Dance makes it powerful, but it's too slow to use it effectively, which, combined with its poor defensive typing, makes it very easy to revenge kill. Bulk Up and Hone Claws are also similarly difficult to set up due to these weaknesses. Night Slash is able to hit Frillish and Grumpig very hard, but they are too uncommon to worry about.</p>
<p>Beartic has a decent support movepool including useful moves such as Yawn, Roar, and Encore. However, Beatic's defensive typing is bad, so pulling off a support set is rather difficult. Beartic also has access to Rain Dance, although it usually is better off if a teammate can set it up, because it needs all the moveslots it can get. Beartic's other ability, Snow Cloak, can be useful in hail, but hail is never seen within NU.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>The easiest way to take down Beartic is to take advantage of the weaknesses its Ice typing brings. Fighting-types, such as Sawk, Emboar, Gurdurr, and Throh, easily destroy Beartic with their powerful STAB moves. Sawk is also always faster than Beartic, while Emboar can switch in with little worry thanks to resisting Icicle Crash. In general, physical walls like Alomomola, Misdreavus, and Weezing can take on Beartic well. Although they must be wary of Taunt, even when afflicted they can still hit back and slowly wear Beartic down. Cinccino cannot switch in easily, but it OHKOs Bearic with Rock Blast, even if it is behind a Substitute. Armaldo has STAB Rock-type moves to defeat Beartic as well, along with decent bulk to take on a Stone Edge if necessary.</p>
<p>Regirock needs to be wary of Fighting-type moves, but its massive bulk and Rock STAB makes it a solid answer to Beartic. Although not particularly common, Frillish and Lampent resist Beartic's Ice STAB and Fighting moves, and both can also burn Beartic, crippling it for the rest of the match. Setting Stealth Rock up makes Beartic easier to revenge kill. For example, after Stealth Rock damage, Pinsir is able to OHKO with Close Combat.</p>