[OVERVIEW]
Sigilyph has access to Magic Guard, one of the best abilities in the game, which gives it immunity to all passive damage, including Stealth Rock damage, Toxic damage, and Life Orb recoil. Good Speed, good enough Special Attack, and an incredibly wide offensive movepool let Sigilyph act as a potent wallbreaker that can still pose a threat to offense thanks to its Speed. A wide support movepool lets Sigilyph sustain itself using Roost, act as a late-game sweeper using Calm Mind, and generally support its team with utility options such as Thunder Wave and Defog. However, Sigilyph is stuck with fairly low bulk, leaving it easily Pursuit trapped by Sneasel and vulnerable to being revenged killed by attacks such as Passimian's Knock Off. This low bulk and its susceptibility to coverage moves also heavily limit its opportunities to switch in, as Sigilyph takes significant damage even from neutral attacks, being easily 2HKOed by Steelix's Heavy Slam. While Sigilyph's Special Attack is good enough for it to deal heavy damage on super effective hits and against frail Pokemon, it struggles against dedicated special walls.
[SET]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Air Slash
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Energy Ball
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Air Slash boasts great neutral coverage, hits Incineroar harder than any other coverage option, and hits enemy Fighting- and Grass-types. Heat Wave is Sigilyph's best option against Steel-types such as Steelix and Silvally-Steel, notably hitting Silvally-Steel for a 2HKO most of the time if Stealth Rock is up. Energy Ball hits Rock-types such as Rhydon and Diancie for super effective damage, OHKOing the former most of the time after Stealth Rock and 2HKOing the latter most of the time. It also hits Slowbro and Slowking harder than any of Sigilyph's other attacks. Roost lets Sigilyph recover health against passive Pokemon such as Blastoise and Torterra, as well as on Pokemon such as Vileplume it predicts to switch out. Protect can be used to scout Choice item users such as Passimian and Sneasel, making playing against them significantly easier. Psyshock can be used to hit Golbat, Heliolisk, and Cryogonal harder than any of Sigilyph's other attacks, having a chance to OHKO specially defensive Cryogonal and OHKOing Heliolisk, both after Stealth Rock damage.
Set Details
========
Magic Guard lets Sigilyph ignore Stealth Rock, Toxic damage, and Life Orb recoil. Life Orb gives a significant power boost, and thanks to Magic Guard, its recoil is nullified. Maximum Speed and Special Attack as well as a Timid nature give Sigilyph the ability to outspeed enemy Rotom while maximizing its power.
Usage Tips
========
Sigilyph should be brought in on predicted double switches or when the opposing Pokemon is predicted to use Toxic, minimizing the damage it takes. This also extends to passive Pokemon such as Xatu, Seismitoad, and defensive Torterra, which cannot damage Sigilyph significantly. Stealth Rock can help to turn many of Sigilyph's 3HKOs into 2HKOs, so aim to get up Stealth Rock up early in a match, especially if facing Incineroar. If using Roost, try to heal up on predicted switches, for example against Vileplume. Air Slash is generally Sigilyph's safest move to use, hitting predicted Dark-type switch-ins such as Incineroar and Sneasel. Do not be afraid to let Sigilyph be KOed by an enemy Pursuit or Knock Off if your team has a sweeper that can set up on either of the two. If using Protect, use it to scout Choice item users that may use a Dark-type attack, such as Pursuit trappers like Sneasel and Aerodactyl and Knock Off users such as Passimian.
Team Options
========
Stealth Rock users such as Steelix, Rhydon, and Diancie are excellent partners, as Sigilyph relies on the chip damage for many 2HKOs and OHKOs, such as against Rhydon with Energy Ball. Mold Breaker Druddigon also makes a great partner, taking on Heliolisk and being able to set up Stealth Rock against Xatu. Sweepers such as Incineroar, Klinklang, and Comfey that can set up on Dark-type attacks from Choice item users are excellent partners and take advantage of Pokemon Pursuit trapping Sigilyph or KOing it with Knock Off. Sigilyph threatens Grass-types such as Vileplume, Torterra, and Sceptile, so Pokemon weak to Grass-type attacks such as Rhydon, Slowbro, and Seismitoad can be excellent partners. Dark-type answers such as Passimian, Incineroar, and Diancie are good partners, as they come in on some of the more common Pokemon that threaten Sigilyph. Pokemon weak to Fighting-type attacks such as Heliolisk and Scrafty appreciate Sigilyph's ability to come in on attacks such as Passimian's Close Combat and threaten the opposing team. Pokemon that resist Ice, such as Klinklang and Incineroar, help take on the Ice-types that threaten Sigilyph. Spikes users such as Garbodor make good partners, capitalizing on the switches that Sigilyph forces.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A set of Calm Mind / Cosmic Power / Air Slash / Roost with Flyinium Z and an EV spread of 252 HP / 136 Def / 120 Spe with a Timid nature is an incredibly potent late-game sweeper if opposing Pokemon that resist Flying are taken out, being nearly impossible to stop if not taken out early enough. Although, critical hits ignore the defense boosts it accrues. Tinted Lens can be used with Choice Specs to fire off incredibly strong attacks that are nearly impossible to resist, letting Sigilyph 2HKO Slowking with Psyshock and 2HKO Steelix with Air Slash; however,(AC) it suffers from a vulnerability to Stealth Rock, as well as being vulnerable to status. Defog can be used alongside Magic Guard to come in on and remove almost any combination of enemy entry hazards; however, Sigilyph's low bulk means this is often better done by Xatu, which can proactively use Magic Bounce to control hazards. Thanks to Magic Guard, Sigilyph can be an excellent user of Focus Sash, especially on hyper offense teams, as when played properly, its Focus Sash is nearly impossible to break; however, the loss of Life Orb leaves it lacking in power. Thunder Wave can also be used on this set as a last-ditch effort to stop an opposing sweeper. Cosmic Power / Psycho Shift / Stored Power / Roost can be used with a Flame Orb to set up and spread burns, being nearly impossible to break if allowed to set up, but it is incredibly vulnerable to Incineroar, weak without boosts, and very vulnerable to critical hits, making its use hard to justify over sets based on Calm Mind and Air Slash. The combination of Calm Mind and Roost can be used on an offensive set to boost Sigilyph's power but requires it to give up valuable coverage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dark-types**: Specially defensive Incineroar takes little from anything Sigilyph can use aside from Air Slash and threatens it out with a Knock Off, but it is very susceptible to being worn down. Sneasel cannot switch in comfortably on Sigilyph's most used move, Air Slash, but can KO it with its STAB moves and threatens to Pursuit trap it. Guzzlord and Malamar can generally take most of Sigilyph's attacks and threaten it with super effective Dark-type moves.
**Faster Attackers**: Faster attackers such as Heliolisk, Choice Scarf Passimian, and Aerodactyl are all able to heavily damage Sigilyph and outspeed it easily. Heliolisk and Aerodactyl are especially of note, as both of them resist Sigilyph's main STAB attack in Air Slash, and Aerodactyl can threaten to Pursuit trap it.
**Electric-types**: Electric-types such as Rotom and Heliolisk take little from Sigilyph's Air Slash and threaten to OHKO it with their STAB Electric-type moves.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Articuno takes little from anything that Sigilyph can do to it and threatens to heavily damage it Sigilyph with a STAB Freeze-Dry. Mega Audino has Regenerator before Mega Evolving to mitigate any damage done to it and can use Knock Off to remove Sigilyph's Life Orb. Cryogonal does not comfortably switch into Sigilyph, as it fears Heat Wave, but it does threaten Sigilyph out.
**Ice-types**: Mega Glalie, Choice Scarf Vanilluxe, and Mega Abomasnow threaten to heavily damage or KO Sigilyph with Double Edge, Blizzard, and Ice Shard, respectively, while Cryogonal can switch into Air Slash and force out Sigilyph easily, only fearing Psyshock.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[quziel, 297859]]
- Earlier versions by: [[Eclipse, 302185]]
- Quality checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [banks, 379208], [Espeonage., 395065]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216], [Rabia, 336073]]
Sigilyph has access to Magic Guard, one of the best abilities in the game, which gives it immunity to all passive damage, including Stealth Rock damage, Toxic damage, and Life Orb recoil. Good Speed, good enough Special Attack, and an incredibly wide offensive movepool let Sigilyph act as a potent wallbreaker that can still pose a threat to offense thanks to its Speed. A wide support movepool lets Sigilyph sustain itself using Roost, act as a late-game sweeper using Calm Mind, and generally support its team with utility options such as Thunder Wave and Defog. However, Sigilyph is stuck with fairly low bulk, leaving it easily Pursuit trapped by Sneasel and vulnerable to being revenged killed by attacks such as Passimian's Knock Off. This low bulk and its susceptibility to coverage moves also heavily limit its opportunities to switch in, as Sigilyph takes significant damage even from neutral attacks, being easily 2HKOed by Steelix's Heavy Slam. While Sigilyph's Special Attack is good enough for it to deal heavy damage on super effective hits and against frail Pokemon, it struggles against dedicated special walls.
[SET]
name: Life Orb
move 1: Air Slash
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Energy Ball
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Air Slash boasts great neutral coverage, hits Incineroar harder than any other coverage option, and hits enemy Fighting- and Grass-types. Heat Wave is Sigilyph's best option against Steel-types such as Steelix and Silvally-Steel, notably hitting Silvally-Steel for a 2HKO most of the time if Stealth Rock is up. Energy Ball hits Rock-types such as Rhydon and Diancie for super effective damage, OHKOing the former most of the time after Stealth Rock and 2HKOing the latter most of the time. It also hits Slowbro and Slowking harder than any of Sigilyph's other attacks. Roost lets Sigilyph recover health against passive Pokemon such as Blastoise and Torterra, as well as on Pokemon such as Vileplume it predicts to switch out. Protect can be used to scout Choice item users such as Passimian and Sneasel, making playing against them significantly easier. Psyshock can be used to hit Golbat, Heliolisk, and Cryogonal harder than any of Sigilyph's other attacks, having a chance to OHKO specially defensive Cryogonal and OHKOing Heliolisk, both after Stealth Rock damage.
Set Details
========
Magic Guard lets Sigilyph ignore Stealth Rock, Toxic damage, and Life Orb recoil. Life Orb gives a significant power boost, and thanks to Magic Guard, its recoil is nullified. Maximum Speed and Special Attack as well as a Timid nature give Sigilyph the ability to outspeed enemy Rotom while maximizing its power.
Usage Tips
========
Sigilyph should be brought in on predicted double switches or when the opposing Pokemon is predicted to use Toxic, minimizing the damage it takes. This also extends to passive Pokemon such as Xatu, Seismitoad, and defensive Torterra, which cannot damage Sigilyph significantly. Stealth Rock can help to turn many of Sigilyph's 3HKOs into 2HKOs, so aim to get up Stealth Rock up early in a match, especially if facing Incineroar. If using Roost, try to heal up on predicted switches, for example against Vileplume. Air Slash is generally Sigilyph's safest move to use, hitting predicted Dark-type switch-ins such as Incineroar and Sneasel. Do not be afraid to let Sigilyph be KOed by an enemy Pursuit or Knock Off if your team has a sweeper that can set up on either of the two. If using Protect, use it to scout Choice item users that may use a Dark-type attack, such as Pursuit trappers like Sneasel and Aerodactyl and Knock Off users such as Passimian.
Team Options
========
Stealth Rock users such as Steelix, Rhydon, and Diancie are excellent partners, as Sigilyph relies on the chip damage for many 2HKOs and OHKOs, such as against Rhydon with Energy Ball. Mold Breaker Druddigon also makes a great partner, taking on Heliolisk and being able to set up Stealth Rock against Xatu. Sweepers such as Incineroar, Klinklang, and Comfey that can set up on Dark-type attacks from Choice item users are excellent partners and take advantage of Pokemon Pursuit trapping Sigilyph or KOing it with Knock Off. Sigilyph threatens Grass-types such as Vileplume, Torterra, and Sceptile, so Pokemon weak to Grass-type attacks such as Rhydon, Slowbro, and Seismitoad can be excellent partners. Dark-type answers such as Passimian, Incineroar, and Diancie are good partners, as they come in on some of the more common Pokemon that threaten Sigilyph. Pokemon weak to Fighting-type attacks such as Heliolisk and Scrafty appreciate Sigilyph's ability to come in on attacks such as Passimian's Close Combat and threaten the opposing team. Pokemon that resist Ice, such as Klinklang and Incineroar, help take on the Ice-types that threaten Sigilyph. Spikes users such as Garbodor make good partners, capitalizing on the switches that Sigilyph forces.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A set of Calm Mind / Cosmic Power / Air Slash / Roost with Flyinium Z and an EV spread of 252 HP / 136 Def / 120 Spe with a Timid nature is an incredibly potent late-game sweeper if opposing Pokemon that resist Flying are taken out, being nearly impossible to stop if not taken out early enough. Although, critical hits ignore the defense boosts it accrues. Tinted Lens can be used with Choice Specs to fire off incredibly strong attacks that are nearly impossible to resist, letting Sigilyph 2HKO Slowking with Psyshock and 2HKO Steelix with Air Slash; however,(AC) it suffers from a vulnerability to Stealth Rock, as well as being vulnerable to status. Defog can be used alongside Magic Guard to come in on and remove almost any combination of enemy entry hazards; however, Sigilyph's low bulk means this is often better done by Xatu, which can proactively use Magic Bounce to control hazards. Thanks to Magic Guard, Sigilyph can be an excellent user of Focus Sash, especially on hyper offense teams, as when played properly, its Focus Sash is nearly impossible to break; however, the loss of Life Orb leaves it lacking in power. Thunder Wave can also be used on this set as a last-ditch effort to stop an opposing sweeper. Cosmic Power / Psycho Shift / Stored Power / Roost can be used with a Flame Orb to set up and spread burns, being nearly impossible to break if allowed to set up, but it is incredibly vulnerable to Incineroar, weak without boosts, and very vulnerable to critical hits, making its use hard to justify over sets based on Calm Mind and Air Slash. The combination of Calm Mind and Roost can be used on an offensive set to boost Sigilyph's power but requires it to give up valuable coverage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dark-types**: Specially defensive Incineroar takes little from anything Sigilyph can use aside from Air Slash and threatens it out with a Knock Off, but it is very susceptible to being worn down. Sneasel cannot switch in comfortably on Sigilyph's most used move, Air Slash, but can KO it with its STAB moves and threatens to Pursuit trap it. Guzzlord and Malamar can generally take most of Sigilyph's attacks and threaten it with super effective Dark-type moves.
**Faster Attackers**: Faster attackers such as Heliolisk, Choice Scarf Passimian, and Aerodactyl are all able to heavily damage Sigilyph and outspeed it easily. Heliolisk and Aerodactyl are especially of note, as both of them resist Sigilyph's main STAB attack in Air Slash, and Aerodactyl can threaten to Pursuit trap it.
**Electric-types**: Electric-types such as Rotom and Heliolisk take little from Sigilyph's Air Slash and threaten to OHKO it with their STAB Electric-type moves.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Articuno takes little from anything that Sigilyph can do to it and threatens to heavily damage it Sigilyph with a STAB Freeze-Dry. Mega Audino has Regenerator before Mega Evolving to mitigate any damage done to it and can use Knock Off to remove Sigilyph's Life Orb. Cryogonal does not comfortably switch into Sigilyph, as it fears Heat Wave, but it does threaten Sigilyph out.
**Ice-types**: Mega Glalie, Choice Scarf Vanilluxe, and Mega Abomasnow threaten to heavily damage or KO Sigilyph with Double Edge, Blizzard, and Ice Shard, respectively, while Cryogonal can switch into Air Slash and force out Sigilyph easily, only fearing Psyshock.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[quziel, 297859]]
- Earlier versions by: [[Eclipse, 302185]]
- Quality checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [banks, 379208], [Espeonage., 395065]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216], [Rabia, 336073]]
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