[SET]
name: Defog Pivot
move 1: Defog
move 2: Brave Bird / Body Press
move 3: U-turn
move 4: Roost
item: Leftovers / Rocky Helmet
ability: Pressure
nature: Impish
evs: 252 HP / 184 Def / 72 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Corviknight's ability to compress several important defensive niches at once makes it a strong utility Pokemon on many teams. Its good matchups against common entry hazard setters in Garchomp, Landorus-T, Mega Tyranitar, and Ferrothorn, alongside Pressure to deplete the PP of their entry hazards, make it a fantastic Defogger. Brave Bird is preferred to threaten Rillaboom, Garchomp, Mega Medicham, and Landorus-T, but Body Press can be used if one's team is weak to Pokemon like Excadrill and Kartana, or if one wants to secure the Mega Tyranitar matchup while discouraging Heatran from switching in. U-turn allows Corviknight to take advantage of the Pokemon it checks by granting free switch-in opportunities to teammates, preserve momentum against Pokemon that seek to take advantage of it such as Heatran and Mega Charizard Y, and escape Magnezone on the switch. Alternatively, Bulk Up can be used over U-turn to better deal with the setup sweepers Corviknight is tasked with handling, like Gliscor and offensive Landorus-T, while also letting it act as a potent wincon. However, U-turn's utility makes Bulk Up generally inferior.
Pressure allows Corviknight to PP stall entry hazard moves of passive setters, such as Ferrothorn and Clefable lacking Calm Mind, as well as PP stall other Pokemon like Gliscor and Mega Tyranitar. 184 Defense EVs with an Impish nature allow Corviknight to not be OHKOed by +2 Continental Crush from Landorus-T, with the remaining EVs going to Special Defense to let it switch into Tapu Lele, Mega Latias, and Clefable better. Alternatively, a spread of 252 HP / 44 Def / 212 SpD with an Impish nature allows Corviknight to avoid the 2HKO from Choice Specs Tapu Lele's Hidden Power Fire while also letting it withstand +2 Garchomp's Continental Crush. If running U-turn, using 0 Speed IVs with a Relaxed nature is an option to grab as much momentum as possible against Pokemon like Clefable, although being slower than Blissey and Mega Mawile can be problematic. Leftovers prevents Corviknight from being worn down too quickly. Alternatively, Rocky Helmet can be used to punish U-turn from the likes of Mega Scizor, Landorus-T, and Mega Lopunny.
Corviknight is heavily threatened by Fire-types like Heatran and Mega Charizard Y. Therefore, bulky Water-types like Slowbro, Slowking, Gastrodon, and Toxapex can form strong defensive cores with it. Gastrodon can also deal with a major roadblock in Zapdos; Slowbro and Slowking can form a pivot core with Corviknight; and Toxapex enjoys Corviknight checking most Ground- and Psychic-types. Corviknight has a mediocre matchup against Electric-types and Pokemon with Electric-type coverage, such as Tapu Koko, Rotom-W, and Mega Mawile. Teammates that can take these threats on, such as the aforementioned Gastrodon in Tapu Koko's case and Heatran in the case of the latter two, pair well with it. Corviknight can form pivot cores with Pokemon like Landorus-T and Mega Lopunny, with both appreciating Corviknight's ability to lure in Steel-types that they can take advantage of such as Aegislash, Magnezone, and Heatran. Pokemon that appreciate Corviknight's ability to get them in unscathed, such as Mega Medicham, Mega Mawile, and Weavile, make great partners. Weavile in particular is great at strengthening the matchup against Ground-types that Corviknight cannot properly force out, such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Gliscor.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Iron Head is an option over Brave Bird or Body Press, allowing Corviknight to defeat Calm Mind Clefable while still hitting Mega Tyranitar and Kyurem decently hard. Iron Defense in tandem with Body Press can be used on stall teams to keep pace with Swords Dance Garchomp and Landorus-T, but this role is often better filled by Skarmory or Quagsire. Taunt can be used to shut down passive Pokemon like Toxapex, Hippowdon, and Clefable while also blocking any attempt to set up and blow past Corviknight. Unfortunately, Corviknight's other moves have much greater opportunity costs than Taunt has benefits. Shed Shell can be used to escape Magnezone, but losing Leftovers or Rocky Helmet is extremely detrimental, and having little use against teams without Magnezone makes it very matchup dependent.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Electric-type Pokemon and Coverage**: Magnezone, Tapu Koko, and Zeraora all use Corviknight as a free entry point thanks to their Flying resistance. The first in particular poses a huge threat to Corviknight, as it can trap it and remove it from the game. Similarly, Pokemon like Clefable and Mega Mawile often run Electric-type coverage that can beat down Corviknight.
**Fire-types**: Heatran and Mega Charizard Y are easily capable of breaking past Corviknight with their STAB moves. The latter in particular can repeatedly come in if Stealth Rock is not on the field thanks to Roost. However, both must be wary of switching into too many Brave Birds or Body Presses, or of Corviknight using them to pivot into a wallbreaker like Mega Medicham or Tapu Koko.
**Substitute Ground-types**: Landorus-T and Excadrill are normally walled by Corviknight, but if they decide to run Substitute, they can use it as setup fodder. As Corviknight cannot touch them without the proper move and U-turn can't break their Substitutes, they can simply set up safely behind a Substitute and break past it. It should be noted that Bulk Up and Iron Defense sets can set up alongside these Pokemon, making them non-issues.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Solaros & Lunaris, 471780]]
- Quality checked by: [[Guardsweeper, 360582], [Jordy, 395754], [Sputnik, 475916], [Zneon, 487629]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [P Squared, 168392]]
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