Plague von Karma
Banned deucer.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Knock Off
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Earthquake / Aqua Tail
item: Shuca Berry / Black Sludge
ability: Battle Armor
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Drapion carves itself a strong niche as a wallbreaker in RU thanks to its decent Attack stat, great Speed and access to Swords Dance. Knock Off also provides excellent utility, removing opposing Pokemon's items and potentially crippling foes that rely on them, such as Charizard's Heavy-Duty Boots, while Poison Jab hits Fairy-types that resist it. In the fourth slot, Earthquake deals high damage to Steel-types like Steelix and Duraludon while also ensuring Drapion isn't walled by opposing Toxicroak. Alternatively, Aqua Tail is Drapion's best way to hit Rhydon and Mudsdale, which it can otherwise struggle with. Investing 36 EVs into Special Defense is an option that guarantees that Drapion survives Ninetales's Fire Blast. Shuca Berry allows Drapion to better combat Ground-types that have already been damaged, such as Mudsdale. Black Sludge can be used to give Drapion better matchups in the long-run, such as against Vileplume. Alternatively, Life Orb can be used to give Drapion immediate power, though Drapion falls to chip damage too easily for it to be reliable.
Drapion's Speed tier allows it to fit well onto offensive teams, with Knock Off's utility letting it break balance cores. Drapion pairs well with Fighting-types like Passimian, which appreciates its ability to easily take on Psychic-types. However, Drapion dislikes being burned, so an Aromatherapy user such as Vileplume or Aromatisse could be used to alleviate this. Vaporeon is also a good partner against Scald users thanks to Water Absorb and Heal Bell. It can also use Wish support to ensure Drapion stays healthy. Drapion also has issues handling faster attackers such as Virizion and Ninetales, so a Choice Scarf user such as Passimian can help on this front. Drapion also appreciates having opportunities to set up, so it appreciates safe entry via VolTurn support from Pokemon like Rotom-C and the aforementioned Passimian. Pokemon such as Boltund and Braviary appreciate Drapion's ability to beat their Ground-type checks, opening up the opponent for a sweep.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Poison Jab
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Toxic Spikes / Aqua Tail
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Battle Armor
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Drapion can work as one of RU's better Choice Scarf users; its good Speed tier gives it great use as a revenge killer, and its natural defensive utility allows it to threaten foes such as Indeedee-M with the right prediction. However, such a set damage output is a far cry from boosting sets. Knock Off enables Drapion to remove items while pressuring Pokemon such as Indeedee-M and Alolan Raichu. Earthquake allows Drapion to revenge kill the tier's offensive Fire-types, OHKOing Salazzle and doing over 75% to Ninetales, while also giving it a way to hit common defensive switch-ins such as Steelix. The fourth moveslot depends on what the team needs; Toxic Spikes can be used to provide support to the team, while Aqua Tail is a guaranteed 2HKO on Rhydon that lack HP investment. An Adamant nature is usually preferred, as Drapion's damage output can be deceptively low. However, it should be noted that a Jolly nature allows Drapion to outspeed Choice Scarf Rotom-C and Rillaboom, as well as Speed tie with Choice Scarf Indeedee-M and +1 Speed Silvally. Regardless of the nature choice, however, Drapion will always outrun Braviary and Passimian with Choice Scarf while threatening with a Knock Off.
Choice Scarf Drapion works best on offensive teams, though it can be a momentum sink after landing a KO. Thus, a switch-in for its Ground-type weakness is appreciated. Rotom-C and Virizion make good choices, resisting common Ground-types' coverage options and threatening them with a KO. Vaporeon and Jellicent can be more effective, given their access to recovery moves and potential to spread burns with Scald. Fighting-types such as Bewear don't really care for Drapion's weak attacks and set up on it. Silvally-Fairy makes a good switch-in to them, usually forcing them out. Drapion can struggle with Vileplume, so checks to it such as Ninetales and Charizard are also useful. This set also despises burns, which render Drapion unable to revenge kill opposing sweepers, so Heal Bell support from Vaporeon can be useful.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353]]
- Quality checked by: [[Mavis, 469610], [Expulso, 202058]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
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