[OVERVIEW]
* Bruxish's high Attack, decent Speed, access to Swords Dance, and access to an obscenely powerful attack in STAB and Strong Jaw-boosted Psychic Fangs give it a niche on UU's offensive teams as a threatening physical wallbreaker or sweeper.
* Its access to priority in the form of STAB Aqua Jet and Strong Jaw-boosted Crunch help it to secure its niche and cover most of the tier quite nicely.
* Despite its impressive offensive prowess, Bruxish lacks recovery and is extremely frail, which means that it is often KOed by Pokemon that it fails to KO itself.
* Bruxish's Speed, while above average, still leaves it outsped by common Pokemon such as Hydreigon, Celebi, and Latias, who all scoff at Aqua Jet and OHKO Bruxish in return.
* Bruxish also suffers in that it directly competes with Mega Sharpedo as a sweeper, due to Mega Sharpedo's access to Speed Boost before Mega Evolution and higher Attack and Speed stats.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Psychic Fangs
move 3: Aqua Jet / Waterfall
move 4: Waterfall / Crunch
item: Life Orb
ability: Strong Jaw
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Swords Dance is mandatory for boosting Bruxish's Attack stat by two stages and allowing it to sweep or wallbreak.
* Psychic Fangs is an obscenely powerful attack that is boosted by both Strong Jaw and STAB, and when boosted, allows Bruxish to break even the tier's bulkiest threats such as Amoonguss, physically defensive Clefable, and Swampert after Stealth Rock damage.
* Aqua Jet is a powerful priority move with good coverage alongside Psychic Fangs, and allows Bruxish to outprioritize Bisharp's Sucker Punch and heavily damage faster foes.
* Waterfall provides Bruxish with good coverage alongside Psychic Fangs and can hit Pokemon such as Scizor, Forretress, Mandibuzz, and Magneton neutrally, as well as hitting Krookodile super effectively.
* Crunch can be used over Waterfall or Aqua Jet, as it gets a boost from Strong Jaw and hits Pokemon like Slowbro, Starmie, and Celebi, all of which otherwise wall Bruxish.
* A Strong Jaw-boosted Ice Fang is a decent option for hitting Hydreigon, which otherwise walls Bruxish, though Bruxish's other attacks cover the tier more reliably and Hydreigon outspeeds it anyway.
Set Details
========
* Maximum investment in Attack gives Bruxish as much offensive prowess as possible with a neutral nature, while Maximum investment in Speed with a Jolly nature allows it to speed tie Krookodile and outpace the likes of Primarina, Gliscor, Nidoking, and more.
* Strong Jaw is the preferred ability, as it gives Psychic Fangs an immense amount of power, thus providing Bruxish with its wallbreaking capabilities, and also boosts the power of Crunch.
* Life Orb further bolsters Bruxish's offensive presence and helps it to secure KOs on Pokemon like Klefki, Starmie, and Slowking.
Usage Tips
========
* Bruxish is able to function as both a wallbreaker and sweeper, depending on which your team needs most. If Bruxish is looking to sweep, it must have faster opponents, such as Hydreigon, Zygarde-10%, and Mega Absol removed, as the aforementioned threats outspeed and KO Bruxish.
* Unless it's running Crunch, bulky Psychic types resistant to Waterfall like Latias, Slowbro, and Slowking are also best removed, as Bruxish often struggles to break past these Pokemon otherwise.
* If Bruxish wishes to wallbreak against balanced or defensive teams, it should attempt setting up against a foe that can't damage it much or that it threatens, such as Mew or Hippowdon, as upon setup it will be extremely hard to KO without dealing heavy damage to opponents first.
* Aqua Jet should be used to outprioritize Bisharp's Sucker Punch and pick off weakened foes, but can also be used to deliver one final blow to an opponent trying to revenge kill Bruxish, as the move is quite powerful when boosted.
* If running Crunch, Bruxish should use the move on predicted switches into Pokemon like Latias and Celebi, as these Pokemon can otherwise take any of Bruxish's other attacks with ease and revenge kill it after switching in.
Team Options
========
* Entry hazard support from Pokemon like Klefki, Swampert, and Blissey can aid Bruxish in securing KOs against bulkier Pokemon such as Mandibuzz and Swampert.
* Choice Scarf users such as Infernape, Krookodile, and Mienshao can help remove fast threats such as Mega Absol, Celebi, and particularly Hydreigon, as the aforementioned threats all heavily impede an attempted sweep from Bruxish.
* Pokemon capable of removing bulky Psychic-types, such as Mega Absol, Bisharp, and Chandelure are also appreciated by Bruxish, as it otherwise struggles to break through the likes of Necrozma, Slowbro, and Cresselia without Crunch.
* Dark-type checks, such as Cobalion, Bewear, Conkeldurr, and Scizor can all remove the Dark-types that Bruxish hates dealing with, or weaken them into range of a KO from Aqua Jet.
* While not mandatory, Sticky Web support from either Shuckle or Galvantula allows Bruxish to outspeed almost every grounded foe, further enhancing its sweeping capabilities.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Bruxish can opt to use its unique ability in Dazzling, which helps it to avoid powerful priority from the likes of Decidueye and Bisharp. However, Bruxish already has Aqua Jet to circumvent its susceptibility to priority and prefers the power Strong Jaw provides Psychic Fangs and Crunch with.
* Aqua Tail is an option over Waterfall for its better damage output, though the loss of accuracy makes it slightly less reliable.
* Poison Fangs can be hit to use Grass-types like Tsareena and Celebi, though these Pokemon are already hit hard enough by either Psychic Fangs, Ice Fang or Crunch.
* Choice Band and Choice Scarf are options to help Bruxish circumvent either its lack of immediate power or Speed, but Life Orb provides Bruxish with the invaluable freedom of setting up with Swords Dance and is thus the inferior option.
* Bruxish has access to decent utility options like Taunt, dual screens, and Toxix, but doesn't usually have the bulk or Speed to make good use of these moves.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Revenge Killers**: Due to Bruxish's frailty and rather average Speed, it is outsped and revenge killed by the likes of Celebi, Starmie, Raikou, and Choice Scarf Magneton.
**Dark-types**: Dark-type Pokemon such as Mega Absol and Mega Sharpedo are capable of taking a boosted Aqua Jet and revenge killing Bruxish in the latter's case, and outprioritizing Aqua Jet in the former's case. Hydreigon is particularly troublesome to Bruxish, as it is either immune or resistant to all of Bruxish's attacks bar the uncommon Ice Fang and can outpace and KO it with STAB Dark Pulse.
**Bulky Psychic-types**: Bulky Psychic-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Bronzong, and Mew can all take a hit from Bruxish and retaliate with crippling status ailments or Knock Off in Mew's case, though all must make sure Bruxish lacks Crunch in order to properly check it.
**Strong Priority**: Strong priority attacks, such as Bisharp's Sucker Punch and Doublade's Shadow Sneak, are capable of dealing massive damage to Bruxish and revenge killing it. Lucario and Entei's Extreme Speed, Talonflame's Supersonic Skystrike, and Mega Absol's Sucker Punch are all examples of particularly troublesome priority attacks, as they can all outprioritize Aqua Jet, thus preventing Bruxish from doing any damage to the aforementioned threats before fainting.
* Bruxish's high Attack, decent Speed, access to Swords Dance, and access to an obscenely powerful attack in STAB and Strong Jaw-boosted Psychic Fangs give it a niche on UU's offensive teams as a threatening physical wallbreaker or sweeper.
* Its access to priority in the form of STAB Aqua Jet and Strong Jaw-boosted Crunch help it to secure its niche and cover most of the tier quite nicely.
* Despite its impressive offensive prowess, Bruxish lacks recovery and is extremely frail, which means that it is often KOed by Pokemon that it fails to KO itself.
* Bruxish's Speed, while above average, still leaves it outsped by common Pokemon such as Hydreigon, Celebi, and Latias, who all scoff at Aqua Jet and OHKO Bruxish in return.
* Bruxish also suffers in that it directly competes with Mega Sharpedo as a sweeper, due to Mega Sharpedo's access to Speed Boost before Mega Evolution and higher Attack and Speed stats.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Psychic Fangs
move 3: Aqua Jet / Waterfall
move 4: Waterfall / Crunch
item: Life Orb
ability: Strong Jaw
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Swords Dance is mandatory for boosting Bruxish's Attack stat by two stages and allowing it to sweep or wallbreak.
* Psychic Fangs is an obscenely powerful attack that is boosted by both Strong Jaw and STAB, and when boosted, allows Bruxish to break even the tier's bulkiest threats such as Amoonguss, physically defensive Clefable, and Swampert after Stealth Rock damage.
* Aqua Jet is a powerful priority move with good coverage alongside Psychic Fangs, and allows Bruxish to outprioritize Bisharp's Sucker Punch and heavily damage faster foes.
* Waterfall provides Bruxish with good coverage alongside Psychic Fangs and can hit Pokemon such as Scizor, Forretress, Mandibuzz, and Magneton neutrally, as well as hitting Krookodile super effectively.
* Crunch can be used over Waterfall or Aqua Jet, as it gets a boost from Strong Jaw and hits Pokemon like Slowbro, Starmie, and Celebi, all of which otherwise wall Bruxish.
* A Strong Jaw-boosted Ice Fang is a decent option for hitting Hydreigon, which otherwise walls Bruxish, though Bruxish's other attacks cover the tier more reliably and Hydreigon outspeeds it anyway.
Set Details
========
* Maximum investment in Attack gives Bruxish as much offensive prowess as possible with a neutral nature, while Maximum investment in Speed with a Jolly nature allows it to speed tie Krookodile and outpace the likes of Primarina, Gliscor, Nidoking, and more.
* Strong Jaw is the preferred ability, as it gives Psychic Fangs an immense amount of power, thus providing Bruxish with its wallbreaking capabilities, and also boosts the power of Crunch.
* Life Orb further bolsters Bruxish's offensive presence and helps it to secure KOs on Pokemon like Klefki, Starmie, and Slowking.
Usage Tips
========
* Bruxish is able to function as both a wallbreaker and sweeper, depending on which your team needs most. If Bruxish is looking to sweep, it must have faster opponents, such as Hydreigon, Zygarde-10%, and Mega Absol removed, as the aforementioned threats outspeed and KO Bruxish.
* Unless it's running Crunch, bulky Psychic types resistant to Waterfall like Latias, Slowbro, and Slowking are also best removed, as Bruxish often struggles to break past these Pokemon otherwise.
* If Bruxish wishes to wallbreak against balanced or defensive teams, it should attempt setting up against a foe that can't damage it much or that it threatens, such as Mew or Hippowdon, as upon setup it will be extremely hard to KO without dealing heavy damage to opponents first.
* Aqua Jet should be used to outprioritize Bisharp's Sucker Punch and pick off weakened foes, but can also be used to deliver one final blow to an opponent trying to revenge kill Bruxish, as the move is quite powerful when boosted.
* If running Crunch, Bruxish should use the move on predicted switches into Pokemon like Latias and Celebi, as these Pokemon can otherwise take any of Bruxish's other attacks with ease and revenge kill it after switching in.
Team Options
========
* Entry hazard support from Pokemon like Klefki, Swampert, and Blissey can aid Bruxish in securing KOs against bulkier Pokemon such as Mandibuzz and Swampert.
* Choice Scarf users such as Infernape, Krookodile, and Mienshao can help remove fast threats such as Mega Absol, Celebi, and particularly Hydreigon, as the aforementioned threats all heavily impede an attempted sweep from Bruxish.
* Pokemon capable of removing bulky Psychic-types, such as Mega Absol, Bisharp, and Chandelure are also appreciated by Bruxish, as it otherwise struggles to break through the likes of Necrozma, Slowbro, and Cresselia without Crunch.
* Dark-type checks, such as Cobalion, Bewear, Conkeldurr, and Scizor can all remove the Dark-types that Bruxish hates dealing with, or weaken them into range of a KO from Aqua Jet.
* While not mandatory, Sticky Web support from either Shuckle or Galvantula allows Bruxish to outspeed almost every grounded foe, further enhancing its sweeping capabilities.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Bruxish can opt to use its unique ability in Dazzling, which helps it to avoid powerful priority from the likes of Decidueye and Bisharp. However, Bruxish already has Aqua Jet to circumvent its susceptibility to priority and prefers the power Strong Jaw provides Psychic Fangs and Crunch with.
* Aqua Tail is an option over Waterfall for its better damage output, though the loss of accuracy makes it slightly less reliable.
* Poison Fangs can be hit to use Grass-types like Tsareena and Celebi, though these Pokemon are already hit hard enough by either Psychic Fangs, Ice Fang or Crunch.
* Choice Band and Choice Scarf are options to help Bruxish circumvent either its lack of immediate power or Speed, but Life Orb provides Bruxish with the invaluable freedom of setting up with Swords Dance and is thus the inferior option.
* Bruxish has access to decent utility options like Taunt, dual screens, and Toxix, but doesn't usually have the bulk or Speed to make good use of these moves.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Revenge Killers**: Due to Bruxish's frailty and rather average Speed, it is outsped and revenge killed by the likes of Celebi, Starmie, Raikou, and Choice Scarf Magneton.
**Dark-types**: Dark-type Pokemon such as Mega Absol and Mega Sharpedo are capable of taking a boosted Aqua Jet and revenge killing Bruxish in the latter's case, and outprioritizing Aqua Jet in the former's case. Hydreigon is particularly troublesome to Bruxish, as it is either immune or resistant to all of Bruxish's attacks bar the uncommon Ice Fang and can outpace and KO it with STAB Dark Pulse.
**Bulky Psychic-types**: Bulky Psychic-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Bronzong, and Mew can all take a hit from Bruxish and retaliate with crippling status ailments or Knock Off in Mew's case, though all must make sure Bruxish lacks Crunch in order to properly check it.
**Strong Priority**: Strong priority attacks, such as Bisharp's Sucker Punch and Doublade's Shadow Sneak, are capable of dealing massive damage to Bruxish and revenge killing it. Lucario and Entei's Extreme Speed, Talonflame's Supersonic Skystrike, and Mega Absol's Sucker Punch are all examples of particularly troublesome priority attacks, as they can all outprioritize Aqua Jet, thus preventing Bruxish from doing any damage to the aforementioned threats before fainting.
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