Liepard [GP 2/2]

sandshrewz

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I have not written an analysis in ages so here goes~~ haha x)


Catwoman

[Overview]

<p>Liepard was once considered a useless Pokemon in RU; it had considerably poor stats except for a good base 106 Speed, and its non-existent bulk did it no favors. However, Liepard gained Prankster from the Dream World, which better utilizes its rather good support movepool. With Prankster, Liepard has the ability to set up guaranteed weather, and it also gains priority on moves such as Thunder Wave and Encore. Additionally, Liepard's combination of support moves isn't entirely the same as that of other Prankster users. It crafts its niche as a Pokemon that can utilize Swagger semi-reliably and can work to some extent even in the upper tiers. In contrast to other Prankster Pokemon, Liepard can actually go on the offensive instead of completely relying on its ability as a support Pokemon. It has access to Nasty Plot to boost its base 88 Special Attack with, which is a lot more useful than an offensive Tail Glow Volbeat with base 47 Special Attack. Unlike Volbeat, however, it cannot Baton Pass its boosts to teammates. Much like most other Prankster users, Liepard is rather frail and can sometimes be hard to use effectively. Still, Liepard is a usable Pokemon, and although it might not be a top-tier threat, it is nevertheless a threat to be wary of in its own right.</p>

[SET]
name: Weather Support
move 1: Rain Dance / Sunny Day
move 2: Encore
move 3: Taunt / Thunder Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Damp Rock / Heat Rock
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard is one of the few Pokemon with access to Prankster. Furthermore, it can also use Rain Dance and Sunny Day along with Prankster, making it an ideal priority weather inducer. Unlike Volbeat and Illumise, Liepard is not weak to Stealth Rock and hence has better survivability, even with the presence of Stealth Rock; they also have comparable bulk, or lack thereof. Encore helps Liepard to gain a free turn so that it can set up the appropriate weather or lock Pokemon such as Swords Dance Gallade into their setup moves. Liepard also has access to Taunt, which could be useful against opposing weather teams or to prevent the opponent from setting up their own weather. It also stops the opponent from using status and support moves or from setting up. U-turn is obligatory for Liepard to switch out to its teammates. Against Trick Room teams, Taunt and Encore are both valuable tools; the former prevents Trick Room from being set up, while the latter forces the Trick Room user to switch or undo Trick Room on the next turn.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EVs are to maximize special bulk so as to better allow Liepard to come in on weak special attacks such as Lanturn's Scald. However, a physically defensive EV spread along with Impish can also be opted for, as it reduces the damage taken by Volbeat's U-turn, which can really limit Liepard's ability to win the weather war against it.</p>

<p>Weather sweepers are obvious teammates for Liepard. Omastar, Ludicolo, and Kabutops fit the bill for rain sweepers while Victreebel, Exeggutor, and Sawsbuck are options for sun teams. Encore not only lets Liepard set up, but it also opens up opportunities for a free switch to the weather sweepers. Other weather inducers can also work well alongside Liepard, given its poor bulk and inability to stay alive for long. Prankster weather inducers also work well as teammates if you want a fast-paced team, but bulkier weather supporters such as Rotom-C can work too when faced against an offensive team so that Liepard doesn't become single-use only.</p>

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore / Thunder Wave
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard has an average base 88 Special Attack but a pretty useful base 106 Speed. While Liepard's offenses might not be considered high enough for a special attacker, it has access to Nasty Plot to bolster its Special Attack to something much more usable and even threatening. Thanks to Prankster, Liepard can find some ease in setting up despite its low defenses. Encore can trap opponents in their non-attacking and other set-up moves. For example, Calm Mind Sigilyph would simply become setup fodder for Liepard after being Encored. However, Liepard cannot risk trying to Encore sweepers with priority moves, such as Aqua Jet Feraligatr and Kabutops. Liepard can also take advantage of Pokemon such as Qwilfish who might try to set up multiple layers of entry hazards. However, Thunder Wave can be used as an alternative support move for the team to ease setup or paralyze switch-ins. After either Encore or Thunder Wave is used, the next turn would be an excellent opportunity to set up Nasty Plot and take advantage of an almost-guaranteed switch. Dark Pulse is a reliable STAB move while Hidden Power Fire is used as a coverage move against Steel-types and common specially defensive behemoths such as Cryogonal.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EVs used are straightforward to maximize Speed and Special Attack. Life Orb gives an all-important boost to Liepard's attacks, and it isn't really affected by a quickly depleting HP, as it is unlikely to survive any considerably strong attack. Liepard's base 88 Special Attack might not look like much, but here are some damage calculations to show how strong it actually is after a Nasty Plot:</p>

<ul class="damage_calculation">
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 4/0 Kabutops 132.82 - 156.87%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 0/0 Moltres 92.83 - 109.34%</li>
<li>Hidden Power Fire vs. 248/92+ Cryogonal 58.3 - 69.09%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 252/252+ Clefable 50.76 - 60.4%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 40/216+ Lanturn 57.6 - 68.07%</li>
</ul>

<p>Grass Knot is also an option over Hidden Power Fire to hit Water-types such as Quagsire, Crawdaunt, and Poliwrath super effectively. If Grass Knot is used, Steelix can work as a teammate by walling Pokemon such as Escavalier and Klinklang. However, if Hidden Power Fire is used, Grass- or Electric-type teammates such as Rotom-C and Sceptile can be used to deal with bulky Water-types such as Lanturn and more importantly, Poliwrath. Hidden Power Fighting is also another option against Aggron, but Hidden Power Fire is usually recommended as it also allows Liepard to hit Bug-types super effectively. As Liepard is rather frail, dual screens support from Pokemon such as Uxie is recommended. Furthermore, Uxie can also use U-turn to bring Liepard in safely. Liepard will also face problems against Fighting-types, so Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Spiritomb and Uxie are great teammates for it. Qwilfish is also a plausible teammate, as it can check Fighting-types with Intimidate and its Poison typing while also setting up Spikes, which helps to guarantee an OHKO on Kabutops and 2HKOs on Lanturn and Clefable with layers. Furthermore, Qwilfish helps to deal with priority moves such as ExtremeSpeed from Entei. Choice Scarf users can put a stop to Liepard as well, so their removal is greatly appreciated.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Liepard has a couple of other useful support moves to use. Toxic can be used to wear down foes, and Taunt can be used in tandem with it to prevent healing. However, Liepard is usually used on an offensive team and would rather use Thunder Wave to slow down the opponent and gain momentum instead of trying to stall with Toxic damage. Liepard also tends to force switches, as it threatens to paralyze foes or set up on them; Yawn can be used to capitalize on those switches and gain entry hazard damage or put a foe to sleep. It can also be used as a last-resort attempt to halt a sweep if a phazing move is not available. Torment is a sable move along with Substitute, Toxic Spikes support, and sometimes Protect. However, it's mostly a situational move.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>With very poor defenses and abysmal HP, any reasonably strong attack will do significant damage to Liepard. Keeping a strong offensive presence against Liepard will also make it hard for it to switch in safely. When playing against a Swagger Liepard, applying offensive pressure reduces the ability for Liepard to set up a Substitute, as it cannot sponge even a decently strong attack. However, for more defensive teams, Pokemon such as Steelix and Alomomola are good counters against it. Steelix can wall Foul Play, thanks to its superb Defense and comparatively lower Attack stat. Furthermore, it is immune to Thunder Wave. Similarly, Alomomola's Defense is higher than its Attack. It also has Regenerator to heal itself and can switch around repeatedly until it can force Liepard out. Choice Band Entei makes a good check to Liepard, as ExtremeSpeed has +2 priority and can take out Liepard once its Substitute is down. Multi-hit move users such as Cinccino and Klinklang can hit Liepard through its Substitute. However, they will have to be wary of Swagger and Thunder Wave. Ferroseed walls Liepard quite comfortably and can set up entry hazards if the latter doesn't have Taunt. Rhydon can also use Rock Blast to get past Liepard, is immune to Thunder Wave, and can sponge confusion to some extent thanks to its Eviolite-boosted Defense.</p>

<p>Against the weather support set, Volbeat and Illumise can give Liepard problems, as U-turn from both of them will 2HKO Liepard; they make it hard for Liepard to be useful at all against them, if they are used on another weather team. As Liepard is faster than Volbeat, the latter can Encore Liepard into its weather-inducin move or just use its own weather move after Liepard. As for the Nasty Plot set, Quagsire, Poliwrath, and Crawdaunt are generally good checks to it as long as Liepard doesn't carry Grass Knot. If it doesn't use Hidden Power Fire, Steel-types such as Escavalier and Klinklang are good answers to Liepard. Priority users, such as Entei, are also good checks. Faster Pokemon such as Durant and Choice Scarf users are also great Liepard checks, as offensive Liepard relies on its high Speed and cannot take most hits comfortably. However, one has to be aware of that Liepard can be sacrificed in order to paralyze those faster checks with Thunder Wave.</p>
 
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sandz the offensive set is actually quite cool. Liepard has a niche in setting up due to Prankster and Encore, which is extremely useful. The set would be Nasty Plot, Encore, Dark Pulse, HP Fighting. Just come in on a non damaging move (this includes OTHER pokemon trying to set up, which is simply awesome) and lock them into their move, whether it be Substitute, an entry hazard, a Psychic-type move, a setup move, etc. Liepard's great speed really does allow it to sweep. I've used the set to success, it's one of my favourite non-standard Pokemon actually.
 

sandshrewz

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Liepard also sits at a pretty nice Speed tier... if QC agrees I'll add the offensive set in ^_^ thanks! Also PS didn't give Liepard U-turn fsr .-. It's legal !_!
 

Molk

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im not going to approve this just yet because i cant actually test the weather support set on the ladder because it keeps telling me it doesnt get u-turn -_-. But what i DID test was a Nasty Plot set. I personally feel it should be added to the analysis after playing a few matches with it, its pretty cool. The set should look like this

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire / Grass Knot
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 252 Spa / 4 Def / 252 Spe

Im not exactly sure on the last move, but ive been using hidden power fire lately to hit escavalier and ferroseed harder than hp fighting.

The basic goal of this set is to 1) stop opponents trying to use set up moves of their own such as fraxure and sigilyph, and 2) Set up a Nasty Plot of its own and demolish the opponent. Liepard is very frail, but it can still set up by forcing switches with its priority encore and high speed, from there, liepard hits quite hard, and is more than capable of sweeping. Mention that opposing priority can stop liepard's sweep quite easily, especially entei's extremespeed. Also mention that depending on the coverage move you use, you will be walled by different things. Hidden power fire is walled by Poliwrath and Crawdaunt, among other things. fighting is walled by escavalier, and grass knot is walled by escavalier and ferroseed, for example. No matter what coverage move liepard uses, it will have trouble with fighting types ;_;.

not approving just yet because of the already stated bug thingy, but this set has my approval.
 

sandshrewz

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Thanks Molk! ^_^ Added the NP set! Roflol I never realized HP Fire was superior to HP Fighting o.o Andddd the weather set is good okay u_u
 
Im not excactly sure how does on Liepard in RU but ive used it numerous times and it was succesfull.



[SET]
name: FoulSwag
move 1: Thunder Wave / Taunt
move 2: Substitute
move 3: Swagger
move 4: Foul Play
item: Leftovers / Focus Sash?
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

Swagger a poke that you know you can live an attack from. Sub until opponents hits itself. Now you can use a STAB Foul Play move at +2 because it uses your opponents attack. Good luck trollin with this.
 
Make Nasty Plot the first set; it's actually really good. Make Thunder Wave the second slash on Encore. I want you to show some calcs of Liepard at +2 (like against Nidoqueen, Kabutops, Moltres, Uxie, and Cresselia...they're impressive!) I'd move the Grass Knot slash to the AC instead; HP Fire is too useful. I want you to expand on checks and counters, by listing priority, things that aren't threatened, etc.

QC 1/3
 

Molk

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Nozzle's Foul play set is actually pretty fun to use but im not 100% sure if it should be anywhere outside of OO because of how luck reliant it is, used liepard a bit myself and it was fun, echoing blarajan's changes.

Otherwise

QC approved 2/3
 

sandshrewz

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Really sorry for taking forever with this analysis :( I might have broken NoBlue's record idk >_>

Written and pushing this back to QC with request from DittoCrow~ I just read PKG's announcement though <_> but rest assured I wrote everything in the skelly! :O! Any change of QC's opinion for Liepard ?_?
 

Molk

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hmmmm..... after some testing and the set sorta getting some infamy among the competitive community for being incredibly annoying, i think Nozzle's Swagger+Foul Play Liepard might deserve a full set. I mean, yeah its really uncompetitive and stuff, but its probably Liepard's most common set as well as its best one (and its really not useless outside of luck, Foul Play comes in handy against physical attackers in general as does priority twave/encore, and i'd like for it to be taken under consideration once again. If QC doesn't think it should be added just yet, no biggie, we could just enter it seperately at a later date and change the analysis up accordingly via the scms.

Also, be sure to remove mentions of Nidoqueen! I noticed a few while skimming through the analysis.
 

sandshrewz

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hmmmm..... after some testing and the set sorta getting some infamy among the competitive community for being incredibly annoying, i think Nozzle's Swagger+Foul Play Liepard might deserve a full set. I mean, yeah its really uncompetitive and stuff, but its probably Liepard's most common set as well as its best one (and its really not useless outside of luck, Foul Play comes in handy against physical attackers in general as does priority twave/encore, and i'd like for it to be taken under consideration once again. If QC doesn't think it should be added just yet, no biggie, we could just enter it seperately at a later date and change the analysis up accordingly via the scms.

Also, be sure to remove mentions of Nidoqueen! I noticed a few while skimming through the analysis.
There was only one mention of Nidoqueen !_! haha. But thanks and removed! :)
 

Oglemi

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yeah it should probably have the Swagger set. it's kinda unreliable at times, but as soon as it gets that free turn you've pretty much won.
 
I would switch the order of the sets (put weather first) since most people would use Liepard to make use of Prankster more than to sweep.

[qc]4/4[/qc]
 

sandshrewz

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Done ! Also added a paragraph in check and counters for the swagger set, with information from Molk~ TY Molk :>! So I suppose that part is QCed as well. Time for GP checks ~ :)
 

cb aaron judge

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<p>Liepard could bewas once considered a useless Pokemon in RU; it had considerably poor stats except a good base 106 Speed and its non-existent bulk did it no favors. However, Liepard gained Prankster from the Dream World with which to better utilizes its rather good support movepool. With Prankster, Liepard falls into the category with a handful of Prankster weather inducershas the ability to set up guaranteed weather and have priority on moves such as Thunder Wave and Encore. Liepard possesses yet another combination of support moves that wasn't entirely the same as other Prankster users, paving a niche for itself as the other Prankster users did. It crafts its niche as a Pokemon that can utilize Swagger semi-reliably and work to some extent even in the upper tiers. In contrast with other Prankster Pokemon, Liepard can actually go on the offensive instead of completely relying on its ability as a support Pokemon. It has access to Nasty Plot to boost its base 88 Special Attack with, which is a lot more useful than an offensive Tail Glow Volbeat with base 47 Special Attack. Unlike Volbeat, however, it cannot Baton Pass its boosts to teammates. Much like most other Prankster users, Liepard is rather frail and can sometimes be hard to use fully. Still, Liepard is a Pokemon that can be used, and although it may not be a top tier threat, but it is nevertheless a threat on its own.</p>

[SET]
name: Weather Support
move 1: Rain Dance / Sunny Day
move 2: Encore
move 3: Taunt / Thunder Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Damp Rock / Heat Rock
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard is one of the few Pokemon with access to Prankster. Furthermore, it can also use Rain Dance and Sunny Day along with Prankster, making it an ideal priority weather inducer. Unlike Volbeat and Illumise, Liepard is not weak to Stealth Rock and hence haves better survivability even with the presence of Stealth Rock; they also have comparable bulk, or the lack thereof. Encore helps Liepard to gain a free turn so that it can set up the appropriate weather or trap a Pokemon in its set up move such as a Gallade's Swords Dance. Liepard also has access to Taunt which could be useful against opposing weather teams or to prevent the opponent from setting up their own weather. It also stops the opponent from using status and support moves or from setting up. U-turn is obligatory for Liepard to switch out to its teammates. Against Trick Room teams, Taunt and Encore are both valuable tools; the former prevents Trick Room from being set up, while Encorethe latter forces the Trick Room user to switch or undo Trick Room on the next turn.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EVs are to maximize special bulk so as to better allow Liepard to come in on weak special attacks such as Lanturn's Scald. However, a physically defensive EV spread along with Impish can also be opted for; it also reduces the damage taken by Volbeat's U-turn, which can really limit Liepard's ability to win the weather war with a Volbeat. Weather sweepers are obvious teammates for Liepard. Omastar, Ludicolo, and Kabutops fit the bill for rain sweepers while Victreebel, Exeggutor, and Sawsbuck are options for sun teams. Encore not only lets Liepard set up, but it also opens up opportunities for a free switch to the weather sweepers. Other weather inducers can also work well alongside Liepard, as given its poor bulk and inability to maintain a high HP in the long run. Prankster weather inducers also work well as teammates if you want a fast-paced team, but bulkier weather supporters such as Rotom-C can work as well when faced against an offensive team so that Liepard doesn't become a one-trick pony.</p>

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore / Thunder Wave
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard has an average base 88 Special Attack but a pretty useful base 106 Speed. While Liepard's offenses may not be considered high enough for a special attacker, it has access to Nasty Plot to bolster its Special Attack to something much more useable and even threatening. Thanks to Prankster, Liepard can find some ease in setting up despite its low defenses. Encore can trap opponents in their non-attacking and other set-up moves. For example, Calm Mind Sigilyph would be simply become setup fodder for Liepard after being Encored. However, Liepard cannot risk trying to Encore against sweepers with priority moves such as Aqua Jet Feraligatr and Kabutops. Liepard can also take advantage of Pokemon such as Qwilfish that are trying to set up multiple layers of entry hazards. However, Thunder Wave can be used as an alternative support move for the team and to ease set up or paralyze switch-ins. After either Encore is used, the next turn would be an excellent opportunity to set up Nasty Plot and take advantage of an almost guaranteed switch. Dark Pulse is a reliable STAB move while Hidden Power Fire is used as a coverage move against Steel-types and common specially defensive behemoths that isuch as Cryogonal. The EVs used are straightforward to maximize Speed and Special Attack. Life Orb gives the all important boost to Liepard's attacks and it isn't much affected by a quickly depleting HP as it is unlikely to survive any considerably strong attack.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard's base 88 Special Attack might not look like much, but here are some damage calculations to show how strong it actually is after a Nasty Plot:</p>

<ul class="damange_calculation">
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 4/0 Kabutops 133.96 - 157.63%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 0/0 Moltres 92.83 - 109.65%</li>
<li>Hidden Power Fire vs. 248/252+ Cryogonal 51.6 - 61.51%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 252/252+ Clefable 50.76 - 60.4%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 40/216+ Lanturn 57.6 - 68.07%</li>
</ul>

<p>Grass Knot is also an option over Hidden Power Fire to hit Water-types such as Quagsire, Crawdaunt, and Poliwrath super effectively. If Grass Knot is used, Steelix can work as a teammate by walling Pokemon such as Escalavvalier and Klingklang. However, if Hidden Power Fire is used, Grass- or Electric-type teammates such as Rotom-C and Sceptile can be used to deal with bullky Water-types such as Lanturn and more importantly, Poliwrath. Hidden Power Fighting is also another option against Aggron but Hidden Power Fire is usually recommended as it also allows Liepard to hit Bug-types super effectively. As Liepard is rather frail, dual screens support from Pokemon such as Uxie is recommended. Furthermore, Uxie can also use U-turn to bring Liepard in safely. Liepard will also face problems against Fighting-types, so Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Spiritomb and Uxie, respectively, are great teammates for it. Qwilfish is also a plausible teammate as it can check Fighting-types with Intimidate and its Poison typing while also setting up Spikes which helps to guarantee an OHKO on Kabutops and 2HKOs on Lanturn and Clefable with 2 layers. Furthermore, Qwilfish helps to deal with priority moves such as ExtremeSpeed from Entei. Choice Scarf users can also put a stop to Liepard as well, so their removal is greatly appreciated.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Liepard has a couple of other useful support moves to use. Toxic can be used to wear down foes, and Taunt can be used in tandem with that to prevent healing. However, Liepard is usually used on an offensive team and would rather use Thunder Wave to slow down the opponent and garner momentum instead of trying to stall with Toxic damage. Liepard also tends to force switches as it threatens to paralyze foes or set up on them; Yawn can be used to capitalize on those switches and gain entry hazard damage or put a foe to sleep. It can also be used as a last resort attempt to halt a sweep without the use of a phazing move. Torment is a usable move along with Substitute, Toxic Spikes support, and sometimes Protect. However, it's a mostly situational move.</p>

[Check and Counters]

<p>With very poor defenses and abysmal HP, any reasonably strong damageattack will do significant damage to Liepard. Keeping a strong offensive presence against Liepard will also make thingsit hard for it to switch in safely. When playing against a Swagger Liepard, applying offensive pressure reduces the ability for Liepard to set up a Substitute as it cannot sponge even a decently strong attack without taking too much damage. However, for more defensive teams, Pokemon such as Steelix and Alomomola are good counters against it. Steelix can wall Foul Play thanks to its superb Defense and comparatively lower Attack stat. Furthermore, it is immune to Thunder Wave. Similarly, Alomomola's Defense is higher than its Attack. It also has Regenerator to heal itself and can switch around repeatedly until it can force Liepard out. Choice Band Entei makes a good check to Liepard as ExtremeSpeed has a +2 priority and can take out Liepard once its Substitute is down. Multi-hit move users such as Cinccino and Klinklang can hit Liepard through its Substitute. However, they will have to be wary of Swagger and Thunder Wave. Ferroseed walls Liepard quite comfortably and can set up entry hazards if the latter doesn't have Taunt. Rhydon can also use Rock Blast to get past Liepard, is immune to Thunder Wave, and can sponge confusion to some extent thanks to its Eviolite-boosted Defense.</p>

<p>Against the weather support set, Volbeat and Illumise can give Liepard problems as double U-turn from both of them will 2HKO Liepard; they make it hard for Liepard to have any use against them if used on another weather team. As Liepard is faster than Volbeat, the latter can Encore Liepard into its weather inducing move or just use its own weather move after Liepard. As for the Nasty Plot set, Quagsire, Poliwrath, and Crawdaunt are generally good checks to it as long as Liepard doesn't carry Grass Knot. If it doesn't use Hidden Power Fire, Steel-types such as Escavalier and Klinklang are good answers to Liepard. Priority move users, such as Entei, are also good checks to Liepard. Faster Pokemon such as Durant and Choice Scarf users are also great Liepard checks as offensive Liepard relies on its high Speed and cannot take most hits comfortably. However, one has to be aware of the trade-off that Liepard can be sacrificed in order to paralysze those faster checks with Thunder Wave.</p>


<p>Liepard was once considered a useless Pokemon in RU; it had considerably poor stats except a good base 106 Speed and its non-existent bulk did it no favors. However, Liepard gained Prankster from the Dream World which better utilizes its rather good support movepool. With Prankster, Liepard has the ability to set up guaranteed weather and have priority on moves such as Thunder Wave and Encore. Liepard possesses yet another combination of support moves that wasn't entirely the same as other Prankster users, paving a niche for itself as the other Prankster users did. It crafts its niche as a Pokemon that can utilize Swagger semi-reliably and work to some extent even in the upper tiers. In contrast with other Prankster Pokemon, Liepard can actually go on the offensive instead of completely relying on its ability as a support Pokemon. It has access to Nasty Plot to boost its base 88 Special Attack with, which is a lot more useful than an offensive Tail Glow Volbeat with base 47 Special Attack. Unlike Volbeat however, it cannot Baton Pass its boosts to teammates. Much like most other Prankster users, Liepard is rather frail and can sometimes be hard to use fully. Still, Liepard is a Pokemon that can be used, and although it may not be a top tier threat, but it is nevertheless a threat on its own.</p>

[SET]
name: Weather Support
move 1: Rain Dance / Sunny Day
move 2: Encore
move 3: Taunt / Thunder Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Damp Rock / Heat Rock
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard is one of the few Pokemon with access to Prankster. Furthermore, it can also use Rain Dance and Sunny Day along with Prankster, making it an ideal priority weather inducer. Unlike Volbeat and Illumise, Liepard is not weak to Stealth Rock and hence has better survivability even with the presence of Stealth Rock; they also have comparable bulk, or the lack thereof. Encore helps Liepard to gain a free turn so that it can set up the appropriate weather or trap a Pokemon in its set up move such as a Gallade's Swords Dance. Liepard also has access to Taunt which could be useful against opposing weather teams or to prevent the opponent from setting up their own weather. It also stops the opponent from using status and support moves or from setting up. U-turn is obligatory for Liepard to switch out to its teammates. Against Trick Room teams, Taunt and Encore are both valuable tools; the former prevents Trick Room from being set up, while the latter forces the Trick Room user to switch or undo Trick Room on the next turn.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EVs are to maximize special bulk so as to better allow Liepard to come in on weak special attacks such as Lanturn's Scald. However, a physically defensive EV spread along with Impish can also be opted for; it also reduces the damage taken by Volbeat's U-turn, which can really limit Liepard's ability to win the weather war with a Volbeat. Weather sweepers are obvious teammates for Liepard. Omastar, Ludicolo, and Kabutops fit the bill for rain sweepers while Victreebel, Exeggutor, and Sawsbuck are options for sun teams. Encore not only lets Liepard set up, but it also opens up opportunities for a free switch to the weather sweepers. Other weather inducers can also work well alongside Liepard, as given its poor bulk and inability to maintain a high HP in the long run. Prankster weather inducers also work well as teammates if you want a fast-paced team, but bulkier weather supporters such as Rotom-C can work as well when faced against an offensive team so that Liepard doesn't become a one-trick pony.</p>

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore / Thunder Wave
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard has an average base 88 Special Attack but a pretty useful base 106 Speed. While Liepard's offenses may not be considered high enough for a special attacker, it has access to Nasty Plot to bolster its Special Attack to something much more usable and even threatening. Thanks to Prankster, Liepard can find some ease in setting up despite its low defenses. Encore can trap opponents in their non-attacking and other set-up moves. For example, Calm Mind Sigilyph would be simply become setup fodder for Liepard after being Encored. However, Liepard cannot risk trying to Encore against sweepers with priority moves such as Aqua Jet Feraligatr and Kabutops. Liepard can also take advantage of Pokemon such as Qwilfish that are trying to set up multiple layers of entry hazards. However, Thunder Wave can be used as an alternative support move for the team and to ease set up or paralyze switch-ins. After either Encore is used, the next turn would be an excellent opportunity to set up Nasty Plot and take advantage of an almost guaranteed switch. Dark Pulse is a reliable STAB move while Hidden Power Fire is used as a coverage move against Steel-types and common specially defensive behemoths such as Cryogonal. The EVs used are straightforward to maximize Speed and Special Attack. Life Orb gives the all important boost to Liepard's attacks and it isn't much affected by a quickly depleting HP as it is unlikely to survive any considerably strong attack.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard's base 88 Special Attack might not look like much, but here are some damage calculations to show how strong it actually is after a Nasty Plot:</p>

<ul class="damange_calculation">
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 4/0 Kabutops 133.96 - 157.63%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 0/0 Moltres 92.83 - 109.65%</li>
<li>Hidden Power Fire vs. 248/252+ Cryogonal 51.6 - 61.51%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 252/252+ Clefable 50.76 - 60.4%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 40/216+ Lanturn 57.6 - 68.07%</li>
</ul>

<p>Grass Knot is also an option over Hidden Power Fire to hit Water-types such as Quagsire, Crawdaunt, and Poliwrath super effectively. If Grass Knot is used, Steelix can work as a teammate by walling Pokemon such as Escavalier and Klinklang. However, if Hidden Power Fire is used, Grass- or Electric-type teammates such as Rotom-C and Sceptile can be used to deal with bullky Water-types such as Lanturn and more importantly, Poliwrath. Hidden Power Fighting is also another option against Aggron but Hidden Power Fire is usually recommended as it also allows Liepard to hit Bug-types super effectively. As Liepard is rather frail, dual screens support from Pokemon such as Uxie is recommended. Furthermore, Uxie can also use U-turn to bring Liepard in safely. Liepard will also face problems against Fighting-types, so Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Spiritomb and Uxie, respectively, are great teammates for it. Qwilfish is also a plausible teammate as it can check Fighting-types with Intimidate and its Poison typing while also setting up Spikes which helps to guarantee an OHKO on Kabutops and 2HKOs on Lanturn and Clefable with 2 layers. Furthermore, Qwilfish helps to deal with priority moves such as ExtremeSpeed from Entei. Choice Scarf users can also put a stop to Liepard as well, so their removal is greatly appreciated.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Liepard has a couple of other useful support moves to use. Toxic can be used to wear down foes, and Taunt can be used in tandem with that to prevent healing. However, Liepard is usually used on an offensive team and would rather use Thunder Wave to slow down the opponent and garner momentum instead of trying to stall with Toxic damage. Liepard also tends to force switches as it threatens to paralyze foes or set up on them; Yawn can be used to capitalize on those switches and gain entry hazard damage or put a foe to sleep. It can also be used as a last resort attempt to halt a sweep without the use of a phazing move. Torment is a usable move along with Substitute, Toxic Spikes support, and sometimes Protect. However, it's a mostly situational move.</p>

[Check and Counters]

<p>With very poor defenses and abysmal HP, any reasonably strong attack will do significant damage to Liepard. Keeping a strong offensive presence against Liepard will also make it hard for it to switch in safely. When playing against a Swagger Liepard, applying offensive pressure reduces the ability for Liepard to set up a Substitute as it cannot sponge even a decently strong attack without taking too much damage. However, for more defensive teams, Pokemon such as Steelix and Alomomola are good counters against it. Steelix can wall Foul Play thanks to its superb Defense and comparatively lower Attack stat. Furthermore, it is immune to Thunder Wave. Similarly, Alomomola's Defense is higher than its Attack. It also has Regenerator to heal itself and can switch around repeatedly until it can force Liepard out. Choice Band Entei makes a good check to Liepard as ExtremeSpeed has a +2 priority and can take out Liepard once its Substitute is down. Multi-hit move users such as Cinccino and Klinklang can hit Liepard through its Substitute. However, they will have to be wary of Swagger and Thunder Wave. Ferroseed walls Liepard quite comfortably and can set up entry hazards if the latter doesn't have Taunt. Rhydon can also use Rock Blast to get past Liepard, is immune to Thunder Wave, and can sponge confusion to some extent thanks to its Eviolite-boosted Defense.</p>

<p>Against the weather support set, Volbeat and Illumise can give Liepard problems as U-turn from both of them will 2HKO Liepard; they make it hard for Liepard to have any use against them if used on another weather team. As Liepard is faster than Volbeat, the latter can Encore Liepard into its weather inducing move or just use its own weather move after Liepard. As for the Nasty Plot set, Quagsire, Poliwrath, and Crawdaunt are generally good checks to it as long as Liepard doesn't carry Grass Knot. If it doesn't use Hidden Power Fire, Steel-types such as Escavalier and Klinklang are good answers to Liepard. Priority users, such as Entei, are also good checks to Liepard. Faster Pokemon such as Durant and Choice Scarf users are also great Liepard checks as offensive Liepard relies on its high Speed and cannot take most hits comfortably. However, one has to be aware of the trade-off that Liepard can be sacrificed in order to paralyze those faster checks with Thunder Wave.</p>
 
working over cbt's c/p make sure to look over his changes etc

[Overview]

<p>Liepard was once considered a useless Pokemon in RU; it had considerably poor stats except a good base 106 Speed and its non-existent bulk did it no favors. However, Liepard gained Prankster from the Dream World which better utilizes its rather good support movepool. With Prankster, Liepard has the ability to set up guaranteed weather,(comma) and have also gains priority on moves such as Thunder Wave and Encore. Liepard possesses yet another combination of support moves that wasn't entirely the same as other Prankster users, paving a niche for itself as the other Prankster users did. Additionally, Liepard's combination of support moves isn't entirely the same as that of other Prankster users. i know that this is quite the rephrase, but i couldn't really find a way to make the phrase 'combination that (isn't) entirely the same as other Prankster users' work. "other prankster users' " perhaps? It crafts its niche as a Pokemon that can utilize Swagger semi-reliably and work to some extent even in the upper tiers. In contrast with to other Prankster Pokemon, Liepard can actually go on the offensive instead of completely relying on its ability as a support Pokemon. It has access to Nasty Plot to boost its base 88 Special Attack with, which is a lot more useful than an offensive Tail Glow Volbeat with base 47 Special Attack. Unlike Volbeat, don't remove the comma however, it cannot Baton Pass its boosts to teammates. Much like most other Prankster users, Liepard is rather frail and can sometimes be hard to use fully. Still, Liepard is a Pokemon that can be used, and although it may might not be a top-tier threat, but it is nevertheless a threat on its own.</p>

[SET]
name: Weather Support
move 1: Rain Dance / Sunny Day
move 2: Encore
move 3: Taunt / Thunder Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Damp Rock / Heat Rock
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard is one of the few Pokemon with access to Prankster. Furthermore, it can also use Rain Dance and Sunny Day along with Prankster, making it an ideal priority weather inducer. Unlike Volbeat and Illumise, Liepard is not weak to Stealth Rock and hence has better survivability even with the presence of Stealth Rock; they also have comparable bulk, or the lack thereof. Encore helps Liepard to gain a free turn so that it can set up the appropriate weather or trap a Pokemon in its set up move such as a Gallade's Swords Dance lock Pokemon such as Swords Dance Gallade into their setup moves. Liepard also has access to Taunt,(comma) which could be useful against opposing weather teams or to prevent the opponent from setting up their own weather. It also stops the opponent from using status and support moves or from setting up. U-turn is obligatory for Liepard to switch out to its teammates. Against Trick Room teams, Taunt and Encore are both valuable tools; the former prevents Trick Room from being set up, while the latter forces the Trick Room user to switch or undo Trick Room on the next turn.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EVs are to maximize special bulk so as to better allow Liepard to come in on weak special attacks such as Lanturn's Scald. However, a physically defensive EV spread along with Impish can also be opted for; it also reduces the damage taken by Volbeat's U-turn, which can really limit Liepard's ability to win the weather war with against a Volbeat.</p>

<p>
Weather sweepers are obvious teammates for Liepard. Omastar, Ludicolo, and Kabutops fit the bill for rain sweepers while Victreebel, Exeggutor, and Sawsbuck are options for sun teams. Encore not only lets Liepard set up, but it also opens up opportunities for a free switch to the weather sweepers. Other weather inducers can also work well alongside Liepard, as given its poor bulk and inability to maintain a high HP in the long run stay alive for long original wording kind of implied that it's the high hp that's important somehow (like water spout or smth idk). Prankster weather inducers also work well as teammates if you want a fast-paced team, but bulkier weather supporters such as Rotom-C can work as well when faced against an offensive team so that Liepard doesn't become a one-trick pony does this mean so that liepard doesn't have to do the job itself? if so, then 'one-trick pony' is the wrong phrase to use here.</p>

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore / Thunder Wave
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard has an average base 88 Special Attack but a pretty useful base 106 Speed. While Liepard's offenses may might not be considered high enough for a special attacker, it has access to Nasty Plot to bolster its Special Attack to something much more usable and even threatening. Thanks to Prankster, Liepard can find some ease in setting up despite its low defenses. Encore can trap opponents in their non-attacking and other set-up moves. For example, Calm Mind Sigilyph would be simply become setup fodder for Liepard after being Encored. However, Liepard cannot risk trying to Encore against sweepers with priority moves,(comma) such as Aqua Jet Feraligatr and Kabutops. Liepard can also take advantage of Pokemon such as Qwilfish that are trying who might try to set up multiple layers of entry hazards. However, Thunder Wave can be used as an alternative support move for the team and to ease setup or paralyze switch-ins. After either Encore or thunder wave? is used, the next turn would be an excellent opportunity to set up Nasty Plot and take advantage of an almost-guaranteed switch. Dark Pulse is a reliable STAB move while Hidden Power Fire is used as a coverage move against Steel-types and common specially defensive behemoths such as Cryogonal. move the following to AC The EVs used are straightforward to maximize Speed and Special Attack. Life Orb gives the an all-important boost to Liepard's attacks and it isn't much affected by a quickly depleting HP as it is unlikely to survive any considerably strong attack.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard's base 88 Special Attack might not look like much, but here are some damage calculations to show how strong it actually is after a Nasty Plot:</p>

<ul class="damage_calculation">
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 4/0 Kabutops 133.96 - 157.63%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 0/0 Moltres 92.83 - 109.65%</li>
<li>Hidden Power Fire vs. 248/252+ Cryogonal 51.6 - 61.51%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 252/252+ Clefable 50.76 - 60.4%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 40/216+ Lanturn 57.6 - 68.07%</li>
</ul>

<p>Grass Knot is also an option over Hidden Power Fire to hit Water-types such as Quagsire, Crawdaunt, and Poliwrath super effectively. If Grass Knot is used, Steelix can work as a teammate by walling Pokemon such as Escavalier and Klinklang. However, if Hidden Power Fire is used, Grass- or Electric-type teammates such as Rotom-C and Sceptile can be used to deal with bulky Water-types such as Lanturn and more importantly, Poliwrath. Hidden Power Fighting is also another option against Aggron,(comma) but Hidden Power Fire is usually recommended as it also allows Liepard to hit Bug-types super effectively. As Liepard is rather frail, dual screens support from Pokemon such as Uxie is recommended. Furthermore, Uxie can also use U-turn to bring Liepard in safely. Liepard will also face problems against Fighting-types, so Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Spiritomb and Uxie, respectively, are great teammates for it. Qwilfish is also a plausible teammate as it can check Fighting-types with Intimidate and its Poison typing,(comma) while also setting up Spikes,(comma) which help to guarantee an OHKO on Kabutops and 2HKOs on Lanturn and Clefable with two layers. Furthermore, Qwilfish helps to deal with priority moves such as ExtremeSpeed from Entei. Choice Scarf users can also put a stop to Liepard as well, so their removal is greatly appreciated.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Liepard has a couple of other useful support moves to use. Toxic can be used to wear down foes, and Taunt can be used in tandem with that to prevent healing. However, Liepard is usually used on an offensive team and would rather use Thunder Wave to slow down the opponent and garner momentum instead of trying to stall with Toxic damage. Liepard also tends to force switches as it threatens to paralyze foes or set up on them; Yawn can be used to capitalize on those switches and gain entry hazard damage or put a foe to sleep. It can also be used as a last-resort attempt to halt a sweep without the use of a phazing move 'if a phazing move is not available' might be a better way of phrasing it; 'without the use of x' implies that x is somehow detrimental, ie x should not be used as far as possible. Torment is a usable move along with Substitute, Toxic Spikes support, and sometimes Protect. However, it's a mostly situational move.</p>

[Check and Counters]

<p>With very poor defenses and abysmal HP, any reasonably strong attack will do significant damage to Liepard. Keeping a strong offensive presence against Liepard will also make it hard for it to switch in safely. When playing against a Swagger Liepard, applying offensive pressure reduces the ability for Liepard to set up a Substitute,(comma) as it cannot sponge even a decently strong attack without taking too much damage. However, for more defensive teams, Pokemon such as Steelix and Alomomola are good counters against it. Steelix can wall Foul Play thanks to its superb Defense and comparatively lower Attack stat. Furthermore, it is immune to Thunder Wave. Similarly, Alomomola's Defense is higher than its Attack. It also has Regenerator to heal itself and can switch around repeatedly until it can force Liepard out. Choice Band Entei makes a good check to Liepard as ExtremeSpeed has a +2 priority and can take out Liepard once its Substitute is down. Multi-hit move users such as Cinccino and Klinklang can hit Liepard through its Substitute. However, they will have to be wary of Swagger and Thunder Wave. Ferroseed walls Liepard quite comfortably and can set up entry hazards if the latter doesn't have Taunt. Rhydon can also use Rock Blast to get past Liepard, is immune to Thunder Wave, and can sponge confusion to some extent thanks to its Eviolite-boosted Defense.</p>

<p>Against the weather support set, Volbeat and Illumise can give Liepard problems as U-turn from both of them will 2HKO Liepard; they make it hard for Liepard to have any use against them if 'they are'? used on another weather team. As Liepard is faster than Volbeat, the latter can Encore Liepard into its weather-inducing move or just use its own weather move after Liepard. As for the Nasty Plot set, Quagsire, Poliwrath, and Crawdaunt are generally good checks to it as long as Liepard doesn't carry Grass Knot. If it doesn't use Hidden Power Fire, Steel-types such as Escavalier and Klinklang are good answers to Liepard. Priority users, such as Entei, are also good checks to Liepard. Faster Pokemon such as Durant and Choice Scarf users are also great Liepard checks as offensive Liepard relies on its high Speed and cannot take most hits comfortably. However, one has to be aware of the trade-off that Liepard can be sacrificed in order to paralyze those faster checks with Thunder Wave.</p>
[gp]1/2[/gp]
 
Nice job sandshrewz. I made an amcheck.
Amcheck

Additions
Deletions
Comments
[Overview]

<p>Liepard was once considered a useless Pokemon in RU; it had considerably poor stats except a good base 106 Speed and its non-existent bulk did it no favors. However, Liepard gained Prankster from the Dream World which better utilizes its rather good support movepool. With Prankster, Liepard has the ability to set up guaranteed weather,(space)and also gains priority on moves such as Thunder Wave and Encore. Additionally, Liepard's combination of support moves isn't entirely the same as that of other Prankster users.; Iit crafts its niche as a Pokemon that can utilize Swagger semi-reliably and work to some extent even in the upper tiers. In contrast to other Prankster Pokemon, Liepard can actually go on the offensive instead of completely relying on its ability as a support Pokemon. It has access to Nasty Plot to boost its base 88 Special Attack with, which is a lot more useful than an offensive Tail Glow Volbeat with base 47 Special Attack. Unlike Volbeat, however, it cannot Baton Pass its boosts to teammates. Much like most other Prankster users, Liepard is rather frail and can sometimes be hard to use fully. Still, Liepard is a Pokemon that can be used, and although it might not be a top-tier threat, it is nevertheless a threat on its own.</p>

[SET]
name: Weather Support
move 1: Rain Dance / Sunny Day
move 2: Encore
move 3: Taunt / Thunder Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Damp Rock / Heat Rock
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard is one of the few Pokemon with access to Prankster. Furthermore, it can also use Rain Dance and Sunny Day along with Prankster, making it an ideal priority weather inducer. Unlike Volbeat and Illumise, Liepard is not weak to Stealth Rock and hence has better survivability even with the presence of Stealth Rock; they also have comparable bulk, or lack thereof. Encore helps Liepard to gain a free turn so that it can set up the appropriate weather or lock Pokemon such as Swords Dance Gallade into their setup moves. Liepard also has access to Taunt, which could be useful against opposing weather teams or to prevent the opponent from setting up their own weather. It also stops the opponent from using status and support moves or from setting up. U-turn is obligatory for Liepard to switch out to its teammates. Against Trick Room teams, Taunt and Encore are both valuable tools; the former prevents Trick Room from being set up, while the latter forces the Trick Room user to switch or undo Trick Room on the next turn.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EVs are to maximize special bulk so as to better allow Liepard to come in on weak special attacks such as Lanturn's Scald. However, a physically defensive EV spread along with Impish can also be opted for; it also reduces the damage taken by Volbeat's U-turn, which can really limit Liepard's ability to win the weather war against Volbeat.</p>

<p>Weather sweepers are obvious teammates for Liepard. Omastar, Ludicolo, and Kabutops fit the bill for rain sweepers while Victreebel, Exeggutor, and Sawsbuck are options for sun teams. Encore not only lets Liepard set up, but it also opens up opportunities for a free switch to the weather sweepers. Other weather inducers can also work well alongside Liepard, given its poor bulk and inability to stay alive for long. Prankster weather inducers also work well as teammates if you want a fast-paced team, but bulkier weather supporters such as Rotom-C can work as well when faced against an offensive team so that Liepard doesn't become single-use only.</p>

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore / Thunder Wave
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard has an average base 88 Special Attack but a pretty useful base 106 Speed. While Liepard's offenses might not be considered high enough for a special attacker, it has access to Nasty Plot to bolster its Special Attack to something much more usable and even threatening. Thanks to Prankster, Liepard can find some ease in setting up, despite its low defenses. Encore can trap opponents in their non-attacking and other set-up moves. For example, Calm Mind Sigilyph would simply become setup fodder for Liepard after being Encored. However, Liepard cannot risk trying to Encore sweepers with priority moves, such as Aqua Jet Feraligatr and Kabutops. Liepard can also take advantage of Pokemon such as Qwilfish who might try to set up multiple layers of entry hazards. However, Thunder Wave can be used as an alternative support move for the team and to ease setup or paralyze switch-ins. After either Encore or Thunder Wave is used, the next turn would be an excellent opportunity to set up Nasty Plot and take advantage of an almost-guaranteed switch. Dark Pulse is a reliable STAB move while Hidden Power Fire is used as a coverage move against Steel-types and common specially defensive behemoths such as Cryogonal.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EVs used are straightforward to maximize Speed and Special Attack. Life Orb gives an all-important boost to Liepard's attacks and it isn't much affected by a quickly depleting HP as it is unlikely to survive any considerably strong attack. Liepard's base 88 Special Attack might not look like much, but here are some damage calculations to show how strong it actually is after a Nasty Plot:</p>

<ul class="damage_calculation">
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 4/0 Kabutops 133.96 - 157.63%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 0/0 Moltres 92.83 - 109.65%</li>
<li>Hidden Power Fire vs. 248/252+ Cryogonal 51.6 - 61.51%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 252/252+ Clefable 50.76 - 60.4%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 40/216+ Lanturn 57.6 - 68.07%</li>
</ul>

<p>Grass Knot is also an option over Hidden Power Fire to hit Water-types such as Quagsire, Crawdaunt, and Poliwrath super effectively. If Grass Knot is used, Steelix can work as a teammate by walling Pokemon such as Escavalier and Klinklang. However, if Hidden Power Fire is used, Grass- or Electric-type teammates such as Rotom-C and Sceptile can be used to deal with bulky Water-types such as Lanturn and more importantly, Poliwrath. Hidden Power Fighting is also another option against Aggron,(comma) but Hidden Power Fire is usually recommended as it also allows Liepard to hit Bug-types super effectively. As Liepard is rather frail, Ddual Sscreens support from Pokemon such as Uxie is recommended. Furthermore, Uxie can also use U-turn to bring Liepard in safely. Liepard will also face problems against Fighting-types, so Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Spiritomb and Uxie, respectively, are great teammates for it. Qwilfish is also a plausible teammate as it can check Fighting-types with Intimidate and its Poison typing, while also setting up Spikes, which to guarantee an OHKO on Kabutops and 2HKOs on Lanturn and Clefable with layers. Furthermore, Qwilfish helps to deal with priority moves such as ExtremeSpeed from Entei. Choice Scarf users can also put a stop to Liepard as well, so their removal is greatly appreciated.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Liepard has a couple of other useful support moves to use. Toxic can be used to wear down foes, and Taunt can be used in tandem with that to prevent healing. However, Liepard is usually used on an offensive team and would rather use Thunder Wave to slow down the opponent and garner momentum instead of trying to stall with Toxic damage. Liepard also tends to force switches as it threatens to paralyze foes or set up on them; Yawn can be used to capitalize on those switches and gain entry hazard damage or put a foe to sleep. It can also be used as a last-resort attempt to halt a sweep if a phazing move is not available. Torment is a usable move along with Substitute, Toxic Spikes support, and sometimes Protect. However, it's a mostly situational move.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>With very poor defenses and abysmal HP, any reasonably strong attack will do significant damage to Liepard. Keeping a strong offensive presence against Liepard will also make it hard for it to switch in safely. When playing against a Swagger Liepard, applying offensive pressure reduces the ability for Liepard to set up a Substitute, as it cannot sponge even a decently strong attack. However, for more defensive teams, Pokemon such as Steelix and Alomomola are good counters against it. Steelix can wall Foul Play thanks to its superb Defense and comparatively lower Attack stat. Furthermore, it is immune to Thunder Wave. Similarly, Alomomola's Defense is higher than its Attack. It also has Regenerator to heal itself and can switch around repeatedly until it can force Liepard out. Choice Band Entei makes a good check to Liepard as ExtremeSpeed has +2 priority and can take out Liepard once its Substitute is down. Multi-hit move users such as Cinccino and Klinklang can hit Liepard through its Substitute. However, they will have to be wary of Swagger and Thunder Wave. Ferroseed walls Liepard quite comfortably and can set up entry hazards if the latter doesn't have Taunt. Rhydon can also use Rock Blast to get past Liepard, is immune to Thunder Wave, and can sponge confusion to some extent thanks to its Eviolite-boosted Defense.</p>

<p>Against the weather support set, Volbeat and Illumise can give Liepard problems as U-turn from both each of them will 2HKO Liepard; they make it hard for Liepard to have any use against them if they are used on another weather team. As Liepard is faster than Volbeat, the latter can Encore Liepard into its weather-inducing move or just use its own weather move after Liepard. As for the Nasty Plot set, Quagsire, Poliwrath, and Crawdaunt are generally good checks to it as long as Liepard doesn't carry Grass Knot. If it doesn't use Hidden Power Fire, Steel-types such as Escavalier and Klinklang are good answers to Liepard. Priority users, such as Entei, are also good checks to Liepard. Faster Pokemon such as Durant and Choice Scarf users are also great Liepard checks as offensive Liepard relies on its high Speed and cannot take most hits comfortably. However, one has to be aware of the trade-off that Liepard can be sacrificed in order to paralyze those faster checks with Thunder Wave.</p>
 

Ender

pelagic
is a Contributor Alumnus

GP 2/2

Fixed spacing issues. Also Swagger is mentioned in the intro and in the counters section, but not anywhere else. Not sure what's going on there.

Additions and Changes

Deletions
[Comments]

[Overview]

<p>Liepard was once considered a useless Pokemon in RU; it had [only removed space I'm commenting on just as a reminder] considerably poor stats except for a good base 106 Speed, [comma] and its non-existent bulk did it no favors. However, Liepard gained Prankster from the Dream World, [comma] which better utilizes its rather good support movepool. With Prankster, Liepard has the ability to set up guaranteed weather, [added space] and it also gains priority on moves such as Thunder Wave and Encore. Additionally, Liepard's combination of support moves isn't entirely the same as that of other Prankster users. It crafts its niche as a Pokemon that can utilize Swagger semi-reliably and can work to some extent even in the upper tiers. In contrast to other Prankster Pokemon, Liepard can actually go on the offensive instead of completely relying on its ability as a support Pokemon. It has access to Nasty Plot to boost its base 88 Special Attack with, which is a lot more useful than an offensive Tail Glow Volbeat with base 47 Special Attack. Unlike Volbeat, however, it cannot Baton Pass its boosts to teammates. Much like most other Prankster users, Liepard is rather frail and can sometimes be hard to use effectively fully. Still, Liepard is a usable Pokemon that can be used, and although it might not be a top-tier threat, it is nevertheless a threat to be wary of in on its own right.</p>

[SET]
name: Weather Support
move 1: Rain Dance / Sunny Day
move 2: Encore
move 3: Taunt / Thunder Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Damp Rock / Heat Rock
ability: Prankster
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard is one of the few Pokemon with access to Prankster. Furthermore, it can also use Rain Dance and Sunny Day along with Prankster, making it an ideal priority weather inducer. Unlike Volbeat and Illumise, Liepard is not weak to Stealth Rock and hence has better survivability, [comma] even with the presence of Stealth Rock; they also have comparable bulk, or lack thereof. Encore helps Liepard to gain a free turn so that it can set up the appropriate weather or lock Pokemon such as Swords Dance Gallade into their setup moves. Liepard also has access to Taunt, which could be useful against opposing weather teams or to prevent the opponent from setting up their own weather. It also stops the opponent from using status and support moves or from setting up. U-turn is obligatory for Liepard to switch out to its teammates. Against Trick Room teams, Taunt and Encore are both valuable tools; the former prevents Trick Room from being set up, while the latter forces the Trick Room user to switch or undo Trick Room on the next turn.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EVs are to maximize special bulk so as to better allow Liepard to come in on weak special attacks such as Lanturn's Scald. However, a physically defensive EV spread along with Impish can also be opted for, [changed ; to ,] as it also reduces the damage taken by Volbeat's U-turn, which can really limit Liepard's ability to win the weather war against it Volbeat.</p>

<p>Weather sweepers are obvious teammates for Liepard. Omastar, Ludicolo, and Kabutops fit the bill for rain sweepers while Victreebel, Exeggutor, and Sawsbuck are options for sun teams. Encore not only lets Liepard set up, but it also opens up opportunities for a free switch to the weather sweepers. Other weather inducers can also work well alongside Liepard, given its poor bulk and inability to stay alive for long. Prankster weather inducers also work well as teammates if you want a fast-paced team, but bulkier weather supporters such as Rotom-C can work too as well when faced against an offensive team so that Liepard doesn't become single-use only.</p>

[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Encore / Thunder Wave
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb
ability: Prankster
nature: Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Liepard has an average base 88 Special Attack but a pretty useful base 106 Speed. While Liepard's offenses might not be considered high enough for a special attacker, it has access to Nasty Plot to bolster its Special Attack to something much more usable and even threatening. Thanks to Prankster, Liepard can find some ease in setting up despite its low defenses. Encore can trap opponents in their non-attacking and other set-up moves. For example, Calm Mind Sigilyph would simply become setup fodder for Liepard after being Encored. However, Liepard cannot risk trying to Encore sweepers with priority moves, such as Aqua Jet Feraligatr and Kabutops. Liepard can also take advantage of Pokemon such as Qwilfish who might try to set up multiple layers of entry hazards. However, Thunder Wave can be used as an alternative support move for the team and to ease setup or paralyze switch-ins. After either Encore or Thunder Wave is used, the next turn would be an excellent opportunity to set up Nasty Plot and take advantage of an almost-guaranteed switch. Dark Pulse is a reliable STAB move while Hidden Power Fire is used as a coverage move against Steel-types and common specially defensive behemoths such as Cryogonal.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EVs used are straightforward to maximize Speed and Special Attack. Life Orb gives an all-important boost to Liepard's attacks, [comma] and it isn't much really affected by a quickly depleting HP, [comma] as it is unlikely to survive any considerably strong attack. Liepard's base 88 Special Attack might not look like much, but here are some damage calculations to show how strong it actually is after a Nasty Plot:</p>

<ul class="damage_calculation">
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 4/0 Kabutops 133.96 - 157.63%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 0/0 Moltres 92.83 - 109.65%</li>
<li>Hidden Power Fire vs. 248/252+ Cryogonal 51.6 - 61.51%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 252/252+ Clefable 50.76 - 60.4%</li>
<li>Dark Pulse vs. 40/216+ Lanturn 57.6 - 68.07%</li>
</ul>

<p>Grass Knot is also an option over Hidden Power Fire to hit Water-types such as Quagsire, Crawdaunt, and Poliwrath super effectively. If Grass Knot is used, Steelix can work as a teammate by walling Pokemon such as Escavalier and Klinklang. However, if Hidden Power Fire is used, Grass- or Electric-type teammates such as Rotom-C and Sceptile can be used to deal with bulky Water-types such as Lanturn and more importantly, Poliwrath. Hidden Power Fighting is also another option against Aggron, (comma) but Hidden Power Fire is usually recommended as it also allows Liepard to hit Bug-types super effectively. As Liepard is rather frail, dual screens support from Pokemon such as Uxie is recommended. Furthermore, Uxie can also use U-turn to bring Liepard in safely. Liepard will also face problems against Fighting-types, so Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Spiritomb and Uxie, respectively [the respectively is unnecessary but if you want to keep it, go right ahead], are great teammates for it. Qwilfish is also a plausible teammate, [comma] as it can check Fighting-types with Intimidate and its Poison typing [removed comma] while also setting up Spikes, which helps to guarantee an OHKO on Kabutops and 2HKOs on Lanturn and Clefable with layers. Furthermore, Qwilfish helps to deal with priority moves such as ExtremeSpeed from Entei. Choice Scarf users can also put a stop to Liepard as well, so their removal is greatly appreciated.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Liepard has a couple of other useful support moves to use. Toxic can be used to wear down foes, and Taunt can be used in tandem with it that to prevent healing. However, Liepard is usually used on an offensive team and would rather use Thunder Wave to slow down the opponent and garner gain [I don't think garner is used 100% correctly in this context, but this can be construed as preference, so do what you will] momentum instead of trying to stall with Toxic damage. Liepard also tends to force switches, [comma] as it threatens to paralyze foes or set up on them; Yawn can be used to capitalize on those switches and gain entry hazard damage or put a foe to sleep. It can also be used as a last-resort attempt to halt a sweep if a phazing move is not available. Torment is a sable move along with Substitute, Toxic Spikes support, and sometimes Protect. However, it's mostly a mostly situational move.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>With very poor defenses and abysmal HP, any reasonably strong attack will do significant damage to Liepard. Keeping a strong offensive presence against Liepard will also make it hard for it to switch in safely. When playing against a Swagger [where is Swagger mentioned anywhere here except for the intro] Liepard, applying offensive pressure reduces the ability for Liepard to set up a Substitute, as it cannot sponge even a decently strong attack. However, for more defensive teams, Pokemon such as Steelix and Alomomola are good counters against it. Steelix can wall Foul Play, [comma] thanks to its superb Defense and comparatively lower Attack stat. Furthermore, it is immune to Thunder Wave. Similarly, Alomomola's Defense is higher than its Attack. It also has Regenerator to heal itself and can switch around repeatedly until it can force Liepard out. Choice Band Entei makes a good check to Liepard, [comma] as ExtremeSpeed has +2 priority and can take out Liepard once its Substitute is down. Multi-hit move users such as Cinccino and Klinklang can hit Liepard through its Substitute. However, they will have to be wary of Swagger and Thunder Wave. Ferroseed walls Liepard quite comfortably and can set up entry hazards if the latter doesn't have Taunt. Rhydon can also use Rock Blast to get past Liepard, is immune to Thunder Wave, and can sponge confusion to some extent thanks to its Eviolite-boosted Defense.</p>

<p>Against the weather support set, Volbeat and Illumise can give Liepard problems, [comma] as U-turn from both of them will 2HKO Liepard; they make it hard for Liepard to be useful at all have any use against them, [comma] if they are used on another weather team. As Liepard is faster than Volbeat, the latter can Encore Liepard into its weather-inducin move or just use its own weather move after Liepard. As for the Nasty Plot set, Quagsire, Poliwrath, and Crawdaunt are generally good checks to it as long as Liepard doesn't carry Grass Knot. If it doesn't use Hidden Power Fire, Steel-types such as Escavalier and Klinklang are good answers to Liepard. Priority users, such as Entei, are also good checks to Liepard. Faster Pokemon such as Durant and Choice Scarf users are also great Liepard checks, [comma] as offensive Liepard relies on its high Speed and cannot take most hits comfortably. However, one has to be aware of the trade-off that Liepard can be sacrificed in order to paralyze those faster checks with Thunder Wave.</p>
 

sandshrewz

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Thanks Ender! ^_^ Swagger was mentioned because it has a set written for it here. I've also updated the calcs for Cyro's EV spread because apparently 92 SpD EVs is what is uses now o.o and also SpA should have 30 IVs with HP Fire which I just factored into the calc (not much diff for stuff like Lanturn but slight diff for Kabutops lol). This nearly year old analysis is finally done!!! :DDD whoever uploads this do rmb to upload Molk's swag set as well! Idrmb which set it should be so ya !_!

FINALLY!!! LOL
 

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