Venomoth
[Overview]
<p>Venomoth has never been a top threat, traditionally being labeled "not as bad as those other bad Bug-types." Outshining Pokemon like Butterfree, Beautifly, and Dustox could hardly be called a talent, and Venomoth's decidedly mediocre stats and typing left it as a forgettable Pokemon despite its impressive movepool and abilities.</p>
<p>BW gave Venomoth a new lease on life in the competitive Pokemon scene, granting it an incredible boosting move in Quiver Dance, an attack that boosts the user's Speed, Special Attack, and Special Defense by one stage each. Only a handful of Pokemon learn Quiver Dance, and of them, Venomoth is the only one to also learn Baton Pass (except for Masquerain, yet another awful Bug-type it outclasses). With Quiver Dance added to its bag of tricks, Venomoth has become a terrifying Baton Pass user, also boasting Sleep Powder to nab it turns to boost and fantastic coverage with just one STAB attack thanks to its Tinted Lens ability. Essentially, Venomoth can disable foes, set up on disabled foes, and pass or sweep all in one moveset, suffering little to no four moveslot syndrome. Venomoth possesses very unique qualities as an offensive Baton Pass user, and with the host of powerful special sweepers (potential pass targets) in BW's UU metagame, you can be sure that Venomoth will remain a threat one must be wary of.</p>
[SET]
name: Baton Pass
move 1: Sleep Powder
move 2: Quiver Dance
move 3: Baton Pass
move 4: Bug Buzz / Roost
item: Leftovers
ability: Tinted Lens
nature: Timid
evs.: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Venomoth accomplishes a lot with just four moves. Sleep Powder lets it set up with terrific reliability on the many UU Pokemon that it outspeeds. Not only will it disable a foe (possibly for the whole game), but it also nabs a free turn to set up as the opponent sleeps or switches. Quiver Dance is an incredible boosting move that makes the user a lot more powerful and a lot harder to bring down. The boost to Speed also makes Venomoth's Baton Pass very reliable. The defensive EVs, in tandem with the Special Defense boost, also give Venomoth a very good chance of setting up multiple Quiver Dances against foes that rely on special attacks.</p>
<p>Venomoth is a lethal threat with just those three moves, but thanks to the coverage from Tinted Lens, it becomes a double threat by being able to go on the offensive with just one attack! There are no Pokemon immune to Bug-type attacks, and with Tinted Lens, even finding a Pokemon that resists Venomoth's one attack is difficult. Furthermore, Venomoth can potentially forgo attacking completely and abuse the Speed and Special Defense boosts further with Roost, letting it heal up and gather even more boosts. Generally speaking, Bug Buzz is superior, as it makes Venomoth a much more versatile threat by giving Venomoth the ability to sweep or pass. Roost is best used if your pass target is a bulkier Pokemon that needs more boosts to be a real threat, but will sweep with more security once set up (for instance, using Nidoqueen instead of Nidoking as a pass target). Thanks to the free turns from Sleep Powder and the Speed boosts from Quiver Dance, Venomoth has very little to fear from Taunt users, as Prankster users are very rare in UU.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>With different EV spreads, this set can play very different but effective styles. Reallocating the HP EVs to Special Attack creates a more offensive passer, increasing Venomoth's ability to sweep and abuse the boosts itself. Alternatively,by moving the Speed EVs to Defense and possibly even changing the nature to Bold, you can turn Venomoth into a very bulky passer. Bold Venomoth with full defensive investment always survives a Jolly Choice Scarf Heracross's Stone Edge, even after taking Stealth Rock damage. When using Roost, any EVs that would normally go in Special Attack should be allotted to a defensive stat, and the ability should be changed to Shield Dust to block the secondary effects of attacks such as Discharge and Scald. Finally, Substitute is traditionally a very useful move on Calm Mind sweepers, and Venomoth can use it over Bug Buzz or Roost to block status or potentially grab extra boosts.</p>
<p>As far as teammates go, Nidoking is the most popular (and most effective) pass target, boasting tremendous offensive power and coverage. Its reasonable bulk and immunity to Thunder Wave make it even more appealing. As mentioned earlier, with a more defensive Venomoth dedicated to picking up multiple boosts, Nidoqueen might be the superior option, possessing superior bulk to both more reliably survive the pass turn and carry out a longer sweep. Though Nidoking is especially noteworthy, any of UU's top special offensive threats would love to receive a Quiver Dance or two.</p>
<p>When looking to support Venomoth, the first thing that comes to mind is getting rid of Stealth Rock. A reliable Rapid Spin user will make Venomoth's work a lot easier, and give it more opportunities to set up multiple times in a single game. Otherwise, like all Baton Pass users, Venomoth would greatly appreciate the benefit of dual screens set up by a Pokemon such as Uxie or Deoxys-D.</p>
[SET]
name: Sweeper
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Bug Buzz
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Sleep Powder / Hidden Power Ground / Hidden Power Fire
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Tinted Lens
nature: Timid
evs.: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>When not abusing Baton Pass, Venomoth can dedicate itself to sweeping outright. Its Speed and Special Attack are decidedly average (for sweeper standards), but the boosts from Quiver Dance and the added coverage from Tinted Lens can quickly make it deadly. The attacking combination of Psychic / Bug gives Venomoth essentially flawless coverage. Bug is a fantastic STAB to have in UU, destroying the many Psychic- and Grass-types in the tier. In addition to its great neutral coverage, Psychic deals with Crobat, arguably Venomoth's most dreaded counter.</p>
<p>The last slot rounds out Venomoth's offensive abilities. Sleep Powder is always a great attack, and it allows Venomoth to take out a potential counter. Hidden Powers Ground and Fire are useful for hitting Steel-types. Hidden Power Ground also hits Fire-types such as Arcanine hard without diminishing Venomoth's Speed, while Hidden Power Fire is most notable for destroying Escavalier but makes Venomoth lose to foes it would normally speed-tie with, such as Choice Scarf Porygon-Z and Choice Scarf Moltres, as it requires a 30 Speed IV.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>There are many other possible alternatives for the last slot, thanks to the great coverage granted by Tinted Lens. The most notable alternative move is Baton Pass, which can replace any move not named Quiver Dance or Bug Buzz. Baton Pass gives the set a much more flexible play style, letting Venomoth "bail out" of bad situations by simply passing its accrued boosts to a teammate that can handle the situation. Alternatively, there are number of offensive moves that could be used in the last slot. Sludge Bomb is another extremely powerful secondary STAB move, and it offers decent neutral coverage when combined with Tinted Lens. The only real drawbacks to Sludge Bomb are that it cannot touch Steel-types and that it provides little in the way of super effective coverage against key threats. The fact that it hits no harder than Bug Buzz at neutral is also disappointing. Giga Drain is an interesting option for healing, but even at 75 Base Power its coverage and power are hardly impressive. Hidden Power Rock provides some great super effective hits, notably against Charizard and Moltres, but, once again, the inability to hit Steel-types is disappointing. Substitute could also be used to block status and potentially nab extra boosts, but be careful because Substitute will drain Venomoth’s HP quickly when used with Life Orb. Roost could also be used in the last slot and works well to remove Life Orb damage. However, considering Venomoth's frailty, it would probably only be useful against special attacking foes. In the end, none of these moves are likely to be more useful than Sleep Powder.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Venomoth has a few other options to try. It can act as a bulky setup sweeper, mono-attacking with Tinted Lens Bug Buzz. The set would utilize Quiver Dance, Roost, Bug Buzz, and either Sleep Powder or Substitute. It could also use a RestTalk set with Sleep Talk, Rest, Quiver Dance, and Bug Buzz.</p>
<p>Venomoth can also try its hand at a support role, setting up Toxic Spikes or disabling foes with Stun Spore. Meanwhile, it can use Roost to replenish its life , and it can also remove Toxic Spikes, making it a great boon to tanks like bulky Water-types and Arcanine. Unfortunately, Venomoth's below average defensive stats really inhibit it in this role; generally, it would be outclassed by Roserade or Drapion.</p>
<p>Lum Berry and Mental Herb are always worth a mention on a set up Pokemon, including Baton Pass users, but Venomoth generally has little need for these moves. The free turns from Sleep Powder and the Speed boosts from Quiver Dance generally allow Venomoth to set up and pass unmolested, giving these one shot items little use. Venomoth could also try to take on an offensive role with Choice Items, but its mediocre offensive stats and weakness to Stealth Rock make them a poor routes for Venomoth to take. Essentially, Venomoth without Quiver Dance is just not a big threat in UU.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>It's very difficult to pin down a "counter" for a Baton Pass user, and even more difficult when the Baton Pass user has Sleep Powder and a decent Speed stat. Pinning down the Baton Pass user is even more difficult when that Pokemon boosts its Speed and can pass after just one boost. One option is to stop the Sleep Powder. You can use Xatu to bounce back the powder, or use Honchkrow's Insomnia to switch into Venomoth as it tries to sleep a foe. While it’s unlikely the foe will blindly Sleep Powder when he sees Xatu in your team, having Xatu will at least force him to be more careful in setting up Venomoth. Just be aware that should you switch Xatu into Venomoth as it predicts the switch and Quiver Dances, it can Quiver Dance again without any fear of being OHKOed by your Xatu and then pass multiple boosts. As such, Honchkrow makes for a much more immediate threat.</p>
<p>A more common way of dealing with Venomoth is switching in a Choice Scarf user as Venomoth Quiver Dances. There are a number of UU Pokemon that enjoy carrying Choice Scarf and can both outspeed Venomoth and OHKO it. Good examples include Victini, Azelf, and Arcanine, though they will likely need to use physical attacks to ensure clean OHKOs. Psychic-types cannot switch into Venomoth recklessly, lest they get predicted and are met with a lethal Bug Buzz.</p>
<p>Perhaps the most reliable method to get rid of Venomoth is simply to phaze it, and this is a good option when all else fails. The best phazer to counter Venomoth is Crobat, which possesses a 4x resistance to Bug-type attacks and can OHKO Venomoth with Brave Bird. Moltres can also do this, but it needs Rapid Spin support.</p>
<p>While it’s not the recommended method, you could always aim to beat the pass target directly. Rotom-H resists almost any move a Nidoking is likely carry and can threaten Venomoth itself with Overheat. Unfortunately, Venomoth is likely to have multiple pass targets and will probably have one that can beat Rotom-H. Chansey could always be used as a "catch all" answer to special threats, but just be wary that Venomoth could pass its boosts to a Pokemon that knows Psyshock.</p>
<p>One of the best things you can do to prepare yourself for Venomoth is to set up Stealth Rock. Stealth Rock will severely cut into Venomoth’s ability to set up multiple boosts or set up multiple times. Just putting the rocks on the field should help you a lot against the mini Mothra.</p>
[Dream World]
<p>Venomoth's Dream World ability is Miracle Skin, an interesting ability that decreases the accuracy of major status moves by 50%. Avoiding paralysis or sleep can be nice, though Venomoth cares little about burn and is immune to poison. The most interesting thing about Miracle Skin is that it has a 50% chance to make Taunt miss (though it does not affect Encore). This seems like an incredibly useful ability for a Pokemon aiming to set up, though, like Mental Herb, it will rarely be needed on Venomoth. Generally speaking, Tinted Lens is a fantastic ability that is too hard to pass up.</p>
