[OVERVIEW]
Clefable is the face of OU thanks to a variety of factors that make it a good choice for any team that's not too far on the offensive end of the spectrum. Its ability in Magic Guard allows Clefable to absorb status like Toxic and Scald burns, making it a relatively safe switch-in to common Pokemon like Toxapex, Mandibuzz, and Hippowdon, and renders it immune to chip damage from entry hazards, significantly amplifying its already solid bulk. Clefable's pure Fairy typing is great defensively, as it makes it one of the few solid checks to Urshifu-S and a soft check to Dragon-types like Dragapult. Last but not least, Clefable's extremely expansive movepool, which includes reliable recovery in Soft-Boiled, enables it to fulfill various different roles and allows it to be molded to the needs of almost any team bar hyper offensive ones, as showcased by the sets below. All these sets have maximal HP and Defense investment in order to enable Clefable to check physical threats like Urshifu-S to the best of its ability, though in case this base is sufficiently covered Special Defense investment can also be useful in order to function as a better check to special threats like Hex and Choice Specs Dragapult.
Any Clefable set is threatened by offensive Steel- and Poison-types like Excadrill, Magnezone, Aegislash, Gengar, Scizor, Toxtricity, Jirachi, and Bisharp. Therefore, Pokemon that can deal with them make for suitable teammates to any Clefable set. For instance, Corviknight can help with Excadrill, Aegislash, Gengar, and Bisharp, while Excadrill can deal with Magnezone and Jirachi.
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Moonblast
move 2: Soft-Boiled
move 3: Stealth Rock / Wish / Aromatherapy
move 4: Knock Off / Trick / Thunder Wave
item: Leftovers / Sticky Barb / Choice Scarf
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Clefable can make use of various utility moves, which allow it to support its team in a variety of ways. It can provide entry hazard support through Stealth Rock, which often opens up an important moveslot on one of Clefable's teammates to run a more effective set. Wish allows Clefable to directly restore its teammates' health by half of Clefable's total health, 197 HP, while Aromatherapy rids its team of pesky status conditions. Clefable's final moveslot usually goes to a crippling move, which avoids rendering it risk-free to switch into. Knock Off allows Clefable to remove foes' held items, while Trick allows it to take them for itself while passing it its own held item, which is initially Sticky Barb or Choice Scarf. Sticky Barb makes any foe without Magic Guard take significant chip damage each passing turn, while Choice Scarf cripples setup Pokemon like Calm Mind users and other foes that would vastly prefer not being locked into a move. It should be noted that Sticky Barb grants Clefable more freedom in when to use Trick than Choice Scarf, while Knock Off gives it the ability to hold Leftovers, which makes it safer to combat offensive threats like Urshifu-S. Finally, Thunder Wave allows Clefable to cripple foes like Volcarona and Calm Mind Clefable without the need for item displacement.
This Clefable set can fit on a wide variety of teams, but it depends on the moves you choose to run on it. Stealth Rock Clefable is used with partners that either can't use Stealth Rock themselves or are better off not running it, like Spikes users Ferrothorn and Skarmory. Wish is enjoyed by teammates that lack reliable recovery of their own, like Kommo-o and Rhyperior. Aromatherapy is appreciated by setup Pokemon that can be heavily crippled by status moves, like Volcarona and Primarina, and Rest users, like Tyranitar and Snorlax. Finally, other suitable teammates include those that benefit from the fact that it can cripple their checks. Some examples are Primarina benefitting from Clefable passing Sticky Barb or Choice Scarf to Toxapex, Amoonguss, or Ferrothorn and special attackers like Hydreigon benefitting from Clefable removing Heavy-Duty Boots from Blissey and potentially passing it a Sticky Barb or Choice Scarf as well.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Moonblast
move 3: Soft-Boiled
move 4: Thunderbolt / Flamethrower
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 244 Def / 12 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Rather than support its teammates, Clefable can prove to be a deadly potential wincon of its own. Calm Mind boosts both its offensive prowess and its special bulk, making it rather difficult to take down once it's set up, especially if it has already been inflicted with poison or burn. Thunderbolt allows Clefable to hurt and take advantage of Toxapex, while Flamethrower hits Excadrill, Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, and Magnezone; both of these options cover Corviknight and Skarmory. Thunder is a solid option over Thunderbolt, as it has more power and a significantly higher chance of paralysis, but at the cost of accuracy and PP. Alternatively, Stored Power can be used, as its power is skyhigh after a couple boosts and as such allows Clefable to win setup wars against opposing Calm Mind users, but it comes at the cost of having close to no power unboosted. Trick in tandem with Sticky Barb is another solid option, as it allows Clefable to cripple and overpower potential would-be checks like Toxapex, Amoonguss, and Ferrothorn, without needing the appropriate coverage move. Finally, running Knock Off combines the offensive prowess of Calm Mind with the utility of consistent item removal without giving up Leftovers or Life Orb. Life Orb is generally the preferred item for Calm Mind Clefable, as it grants more power, which can be significant in Calm Mind wars, but Leftovers is a solid option to improve its matchup against offensive threats like Urshifu-S. 12 Speed EVs allow Clefable to outrun uninvested Tyranitar, which can run Heavy Slam to threaten Fairy-types like Clefable.
Calm Mind Clefable is used on teams that are looking for a potential wincon and which already have entry hazard support, item displacement, and status spread covered in its other members, as these actions set Clefable up for a late-game sweep. As such, Pokemon like Toxapex and Ferrothorn make for suitable teammates. Since Calm Mind Clefable tends to force a lot of switches, it appreciates Spikes support from Ferrothorn or Skarmory to soften up its checks. Sand teams are often good fits, as they usually have Stealth Rock covered by Hippowdon or Tyranitar and Excadrill as a fast physical threat to clean up after Clefable; additionally, sandstorm does chip damage to most foes while Clefable is unaffected. Finally, since Clefable with Thunderbolt or Thunder takes advantage of opposing Toxapex, Pokemon like Urshifu-R that lure it in and can pivot out on it make for good partners as well.
[SET]
name: Teleport
move 1: Teleport
move 2: Moonblast
move 3: Wish
move 4: Protect
item: Leftovers
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Bold
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
This set goes all-in on having Clefable provide a reliable means of recovery for Pokemon that lack it through the combination of Wish and Teleport. Teleport allows Clefable to take a hit and switch out right after, allowing it to bring in its teammate safely at the end of the turn. This works well in tandem with Wish, as it means it can heal up a partner no matter how low on health it is. It is oftentimes also a good idea to use Teleport on predicted switches, as it allows you to send in a teammate that matches up well against whatever your opponent switches into. Protect is necessary to allow Clefable to restore its own health safely afer using Wish, since Soft-Boiled is incompatible with Teleport. It is also useful for racking up Leftovers recovery as well as poison or burn damage on foes, stalling out weather turns, and scouting Choice item users. It should be noted that both Urshifu-S and Urshifu-R hit through Protect due to their ability, Unseen Fist, which makes this set not as reliable of an Urshifu-S check as the other sets, as you typically have to choose between using Moonblast or Wish after being switched into Urshifu-S, predicting it to stay in or switch out respectively, and Clefable will be in a precarious position if you pick wrong.
Suitable partners to Teleport Clefable include Pokemon that lack reliable recovery but would benefit heavily from it, such as Ferrothorn, Kommo-o, and Tyranitar. Wallbreakers like Urshifu-S, Hydreigon, Kyurem, Magnezone, and Rhyperior enjoy being able to be brought in safely via Teleport in addition to having their health restored through Wish when necessary. Magnezone especially appreciates Teleport, as it can potentially trap and eliminate Steel-types Clefable pivoted out of, like Corviknight, Skarmory, and Ferrothorn. Because Teleport Clefable isn't a foolproof check to Urshifu-S for the aforementioned reasoning, it is often a good idea to have backup counterplay to it, like Toxapex in tandem with another Dark-resistant Pokemon like Mandibuzz or Kommo-o.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Ruft, 295110]]
- Earlier versions by: [[Jordy, 395754], [talah, 248449]]
- Quality checked by: [[,], [,], [Rabia, 336073], [Ruft, 295110], [Jordy, 395754], [Leo, 328915]]
- Grammar checked by: [[,], [Rabia, 336073]]
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