[Overview]
Kartana is one of the best and most threatening wallbreakers in OU because of its monstrous Attack stat, good coverage options, and exceptional Speed tier among wallbreakers, which makes it difficult to revenge kill. Swords Dance or Choice Band lets it bust through its most common checks in Corviknight, Skarmory, and Zapdos. It can also be a good revenge killer and late-game wincon when utilizing a Choice Scarf and its ability Beast Boost. This lets it outspeed almost everything in the metagame and subsequently snowball for extremely easy sweeps. Knock Off lets it cripple common Flying- and Fire-type switch-ins, like Zapdos and Volcarona, by removing their Heavy-Duty Boots. Kartana is extremely effective at wallbreaking for other Pokemon that it shares Flying- or Grass-type checks with, including Garchomp and Rillaboom. However, it can be hindered by contact-based abilities and items like Zapdos's Static, Volcarona's Flame Body, Ferrothorn's Iron Barbs, and Corviknight's Rocky Helmet. Swords Dance and Choice Band sets are commonly revenge killed by faster threats such as Dragapult and Zeraora after they're switched in safely via a defensive pivot like Mandibuzz or Corviknight. Choice Scarf sets can be easily shut down by physically defensive walls like Tangrowth, Corviknight, and Skarmory without the power boost given by Swords Dance or Choice Band. Kartana faces competition from other wallbreakers and wincons like Garchomp, Bisharp, and Rillaboom because they are more difficult to revenge kill through their use of Speed boosting or priority. Garchomp and Bisharp can also use their good defensive typings when setting up, while Kartana is limited because of its frailty.
[SET]
name: Paper Cut
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Leaf Blade
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: Sacred Sword
item: Life Orb
ability: Beast Boost
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Swords Dance Kartana is a premier wallbreaker because of its immense power. Its ability to steamroll its common Flying-type checks when boosted or slowly whittle them down with Knock Off and entry hazard support makes it nearly uncheckable. Knock Off targets Flying-type switch-ins like Mandibuzz, Zapdos, and Tornadus-T, as well as hitting Galarian Slowking and Volcarona. By removing their items, Kartana ensures that it or one of its teammates has an easier time breaking through later. Sacred Sword lets it break through Steel-types such as Ferrothorn and Heatran more easily. Sacred Sword also lets Kartana beat Iron Defense Corviknight and Skarmory by bypassing their Defense boosts. Synthesis is an alternative to ensure Kartana defeats Corviknight while healing off Life Orb recoil. It is especially valuable on bulkier teams, where Kartana can be useful even after eliminating Corviknight. However, forgoing Sacred Sword results in harder matchups against other Steel-types like Ferrothorn and Heatran. A Jolly nature is used to outspeed and possibly revenge kill common offensive threats like Garchomp and Hydreigon. Life Orb is especially useful when trying to break through common defensive walls like Corviknight, Zapdos, and Tangrowth.
Swords Dance Kartana is often used on offensive teams because of its unparalleled ability to break through Corviknight, Tangrowth, and Skarmory for other cleaners like Rillaboom and Garchomp. Magnezone supports it well because it can trap Corviknight and Skarmory, enabling an easy Kartana sweep. On bulky offense teams, Heatran can set Stealth Rock to help chip common checks, including Corviknight and Tangrowth, and easily pressure Grass- and Steel-types. Cleaners like Dragonite, Weavile, and Hawlucha, alongside the aforementioned ones, can benefit from Kartana's wallbreaking ability on hyper offense teams, often with dual screens support from Tapu Koko or Regieleki.
[SET]
name: Paper Press
move 1: Leaf Blade
move 2: Knock Off
move 3: Sacred Sword
move 4: Smart Strike
item: Choice Band
ability: Beast Boost
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Knock Off is the one move Choice Band Kartana uses the most because of its unparalleled utility in gradually weakening its most common checks, including Zapdos and Tornadus-T. Removing their items, especially Heavy-Duty Boots, helps Kartana and its teammates break through these foes. Sacred Sword, in addition to targeting Steel-types like Ferrothorn and Heatran, can bypass Iron Defense boosts from Corviknight and Skarmory, letting Kartana break through them if positioned well.
Choice Band Kartana fits well with Slowking on Future Sight-based balance or bulky offense teams because of its incredible synergy with Future Sight, which lets it easily bust through typical checks like Tornadus-T, Zapdos, and even Skarmory. Slowking's Teleport also gives it safe switches for more wallbreaking opportunities. Kartana's ability to wallbreak and remove Steel- and Flying-type answers makes partners like Garchomp and Tornadus-T thrive. Magnezone can remove Corviknight, Skarmory, and Ferrothorn, making Choice Band Kartana less prediction-reliant and helping it wallbreak more easily. Because Kartana systematically removes items from an opponent's whole team, especially Heavy-Duty Boots, Stealth Rock setters like Landorus-T and Heatran are solid teammates, as they set up their entry hazards while pressuring Kartana's checks with Toxic and Magma Storm, respectively.
[SET]
name: Paper Plane
move 1: Leaf Blade
move 2: Knock Off
move 3: Sacred Sword
move 4: Smart Strike / Defog
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Beast Boost
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Utilizing a Choice Scarf, Kartana becomes a deadly late-game cleaner and revenge killer at the cost of being considerably weaker. It can use Knock Off to help weaken shared defensive checks for wallbreaking teammates like Rillaboom, Bisharp, and Tapu Lele. Sacred Sword nails Steel-types that would otherwise wall Kartana, like Ferrothorn and Heatran. Although most Kartana prefer Smart Strike for its reliable damage, some offensive teams opt for Defog as an emergency way to remove hazards on forced switches. A Jolly nature and a Choice Scarf let it outspeed other Choice Scarf Pokemon, including Landorus-T, and Speed-boosted sweepers like Garchomp and Volcarona to revenge kill them.
Magnezone is Choice Scarf Kartana's most common partner because of its ability to trap annoying Steel-type checks, including Ferrothorn, Corviknight, and Skarmory that would otherwise wall it and its teammates. As Choice Scarf Kartana has problems beating walls without prior Beast Boost activations; therefore, wallbreaking teammates like Bisharp and Tapu Lele can help remove obstacles like Tangrowth and Corviknight for it to clean up. Garchomp is an especially great partner because it can help chip and remove common Flying-type checks, as well as threatening opposing Pokemon that could come in on Choice-locked Kartana, like Heatran and Volcarona.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Swords Dance Kartana occasionally runs Protective Pads to bypass contact effects from the likes of Zapdos, Ferrothorn, and Rocky Helmet users like Skarmory and Corviknight at the expense of a great portion of its power without Life Orb. Some other Swords Dance Kartana, especially on hyper offense teams, also opt to act as a wincon by using a Timid nature, 19 Attack IVs, and maximum HP EVs, letting Kartana boost its Speed after a KO instead of its Attack. This prevents Kartana from being revenge killed by typical faster threats like Zeraora, Dragapult, and Tornadus-T at the expense of a huge portion of its power.
Checks and Counters
====
**Flying-types**: Flying-types like Corviknight, Zapdos, Tornadus-T, and Skarmory are able to deal with the majority of Kartana's coverage. However, they are vulnerable to being worn down over time with Knock Off and hazard support, and they can even lose to Swords Dance sets on the spot if weakened.
**Physically Defensive Pokemon**: Kartana has immense difficulty breaking through Skarmory, Tangrowth, and Buzzwole, which have enough Defense to check all of its sets. However, these checks can be heavily pressured by Choice Band Kartana assisted by Future Sight because of their mediocre Special Defense. In the process of KOing Kartana, they can also get weakened to the point where they are unable to check some of Kartana's cleaning teammates, like Garchomp and Rillaboom. Physically defensive Volcarona, especially on offensive teams, can threaten Kartana with Flame Body and use it as setup fodder, but it is crippled if it switches into a Knock Off and is unable to reliably take Swords Dance- or Choice Band-boosted attacks.
**Contact Effects**: Static from Zapdos, Flame Body from Volcarona, Iron Barbs from Ferrothorn, and Rocky Helmet on Corviknight and Skarmory can make it difficult for Kartana to make progress against these Pokemon, especially for the former two.
**Revenge Killers**: For Swords Dance and Choice Band sets, an aggressive double switch on a predicted Swords Dance or a sacrifice of a teammate into a faster threat like Dragapult, Zeraora, or Tornadus-T can easily force Kartana to switch or get KOed.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[airfare, 513717]]
- Quality checked by: [[TailGlowVM, 546123], [Abhisdn417, 526987]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [Milak, 262594]]
Last edited by a moderator:
)
