[Overview]
<p>Victreebel rarely had a chance to shine in previous generations, having few options to give it any niche. That changes in Gen 5 RU, where Victreebel becomes one of the most threatening Pokemon in the game with the proper support. Its great 105 / 100 mixed attacking stats, along with its very powerful offensive moves, make Victreebel a solid Pokemon. But that's not all, under Sunny Day, Victreebel becomes a monster; Chlorophyll doubles its Speed, while Growth does the same to its offenses. Sun makes or breaks Victreebel; under sun it is ridiculously powerful, 2HKOing the entire tier, but outside of it, Victreebel is all but dead-weight.</p>
<p>All this power comes at a price, however. Its poor defensive stats mean that even though it can decimate most of the tier in one or two hits, it will only be able to take one attack at best; priority also causes it huge problems defensively. Victreebel also has very limited offensive options, the lack of physical coverage practically requires it to go mixed. Although Victreebel has received very few changes since Gen 4, it is still capable of obliterating teams with some support.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Sun Abuser
move 1: Leaf Blade
move 2: Weather Ball
move 3: Sludge Bomb
move 4: Growth
item: Life Orb
nature: Rash
ability: Chlorophyll
evs: 200 Atk / 56 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is the ultimate sun abusing set; after a Growth boost, Victreebel is capable of defeating everything in RU in 1 or 2. As the intent of the set is to cover the entirety of the tier, Victreebel's two STAB options, Leaf Blade and Sludge Bomb, attack off both the physical and special side, leaving nothing safe from its deadly offensive prowess. Weather Ball is the key to this set, giving Victreebel perfect coverage, as well as a 100 Base Power Fire-type move under the sun, allowing it to gain a psuedo STAB from the weather. The power this set provides is ridiculous, with only maximum Defense Munchlax, a niche option at best, able to withstand Victreebel's onslaught.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Chlorophyll is the crux of any Victreebel set, doubling its Speed underneath the sun. Full investment in Speed ensures that Victreebel is able to outspeed Choice Scarf variants of base 95 Speed Pokemon, outspeeding and KOing threats such as Moltres and Sawsbuck. The given offensive EVs ensure that Victreebel will always OHKO Moltres and Entei with Sludge Bomb at +2 Special Attack, and will always 2HKO Munchlax with Leaf Blade after a Growth boost, which is important since those three Pokemon are the greatest threats to Victreebel's sweep.</p>
<p>Victreebel's perfect type coverage is enhanced further by the use of Life Orb, ensuring that its one and two hit KOs remain as such. In terms of alternative moveset options, SolarBeam can be used over Leaf Blade, along with a purely specially-based EV spread. This makes the most of its destructive power and lets it take full advantage of the sun. With the additional EVs, SolarBeam is almost equally as effective as Leaf Blade in accomplishing a sweep, although it may force Victreebel to struggle more against dedicated special walls. Sleep Powder is a useful move on Victreebel, granting it the ability to incapacitate one of its counters. However, this choice gives it significant coverage issues, hindering a potential sweep. An alternative moveset utilizing Power Whip and Hidden Power Fire can be used in place of Leaf Blade and Weather Ball, as Power Whip and Weather Ball are an illegal breeding combination. This trades the power Weather Ball provides in favor of the sheer destruction Power Whip allows for, OHKOing almost anything that doesn't resist it.</p>
<p>Despite the ridiculous power Victreebel has, it is quite frail, and almost any attacker is capable of at least 2HKOing it. Additionally, it absolutely requires Sunny Day support to function. To this end, Uxie makes an amazing partner for Victreebel, capable of setting up Sunny Day before U-turning out, as well as setting up Reflect and Light Screen, aiding Victreebel's set up. Victreebel also loves support from entry hazards, especially Spikes, as it turns many of the 2HKOs on opposing Pokemon into outright kills. Therefore, Qwilfish is an excellent partner thanks to its ability to set up Spikes, while also checking the opposing Fire-type Pokemon that give Sun teams pause.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Outside of the moves already mentioned, Victreebel has very few alternative choices. Sucker Punch is Victreebel's only form of priority, and can be used to pick off weakened Pokemon or Pokemon that could outspeed and threaten Victreebel. However, it generally lacks power without any boosts to back it up. Encore is an option that can grant Victreebel turns to set up; for example, Victreebel can Encore a wall using Toxic, and use this time to set up Growth. Unfortunately, this greatly reduces Victreebel's coverage and leaves it more vulnerable than it should be. A Swords Dance set is an alternative option to the Mixed set, with a set of Leaf Blade, Sucker Punch, Swords Dance, and Return, Victreebel can hit most of the tier hard. However, this set struggles greatly with Steel-types and physical walls in general, only managing to 3HKO Steelix with a +2 Leaf Blade.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>With the immense power Victreebel wields, it is very difficult to find a Pokemon to take it on. If Victreebel is given the chance to set up, nothing in the tier is capable of avoiding a 2HKO. That said, Victreebel suffers from frailty, so attacking it immediately can weaken it to the point where a clean sweep is not an option. After it sets up, the best way to stop it is with smart switches that can outstall the sun turns and increase Life Orb recoil damage. Choice Scarf variants of base 100 Speed Pokemon such as Typhlosion are able to outspeed Victreebel in the sun, thereby revenge killing it before it wreaks too much havoc. The bulkier Pokemon in the tier can take one attack and fire back in return; Throh is the best option for this, but Gallade is also good choice. Snover, although it cannot switch in easily, removes the sun that makes Victreebel so deadly, replacing it with hail that can wear Victreebel down. Strong priority such as Entei's ExtremeSpeed or Honchkrow's Sucker Punch will put Victreebel in a position where it cannot use more than a couple of attacks before fainting to Life Orb recoil, possibly even KOing it if Victreebel has switched into entry hazards.</p>
<p>Victreebel rarely had a chance to shine in previous generations, having few options to give it any niche. That changes in Gen 5 RU, where Victreebel becomes one of the most threatening Pokemon in the game with the proper support. Its great 105 / 100 mixed attacking stats, along with its very powerful offensive moves, make Victreebel a solid Pokemon. But that's not all, under Sunny Day, Victreebel becomes a monster; Chlorophyll doubles its Speed, while Growth does the same to its offenses. Sun makes or breaks Victreebel; under sun it is ridiculously powerful, 2HKOing the entire tier, but outside of it, Victreebel is all but dead-weight.</p>
<p>All this power comes at a price, however. Its poor defensive stats mean that even though it can decimate most of the tier in one or two hits, it will only be able to take one attack at best; priority also causes it huge problems defensively. Victreebel also has very limited offensive options, the lack of physical coverage practically requires it to go mixed. Although Victreebel has received very few changes since Gen 4, it is still capable of obliterating teams with some support.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Sun Abuser
move 1: Leaf Blade
move 2: Weather Ball
move 3: Sludge Bomb
move 4: Growth
item: Life Orb
nature: Rash
ability: Chlorophyll
evs: 200 Atk / 56 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This is the ultimate sun abusing set; after a Growth boost, Victreebel is capable of defeating everything in RU in 1 or 2. As the intent of the set is to cover the entirety of the tier, Victreebel's two STAB options, Leaf Blade and Sludge Bomb, attack off both the physical and special side, leaving nothing safe from its deadly offensive prowess. Weather Ball is the key to this set, giving Victreebel perfect coverage, as well as a 100 Base Power Fire-type move under the sun, allowing it to gain a psuedo STAB from the weather. The power this set provides is ridiculous, with only maximum Defense Munchlax, a niche option at best, able to withstand Victreebel's onslaught.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Chlorophyll is the crux of any Victreebel set, doubling its Speed underneath the sun. Full investment in Speed ensures that Victreebel is able to outspeed Choice Scarf variants of base 95 Speed Pokemon, outspeeding and KOing threats such as Moltres and Sawsbuck. The given offensive EVs ensure that Victreebel will always OHKO Moltres and Entei with Sludge Bomb at +2 Special Attack, and will always 2HKO Munchlax with Leaf Blade after a Growth boost, which is important since those three Pokemon are the greatest threats to Victreebel's sweep.</p>
<p>Victreebel's perfect type coverage is enhanced further by the use of Life Orb, ensuring that its one and two hit KOs remain as such. In terms of alternative moveset options, SolarBeam can be used over Leaf Blade, along with a purely specially-based EV spread. This makes the most of its destructive power and lets it take full advantage of the sun. With the additional EVs, SolarBeam is almost equally as effective as Leaf Blade in accomplishing a sweep, although it may force Victreebel to struggle more against dedicated special walls. Sleep Powder is a useful move on Victreebel, granting it the ability to incapacitate one of its counters. However, this choice gives it significant coverage issues, hindering a potential sweep. An alternative moveset utilizing Power Whip and Hidden Power Fire can be used in place of Leaf Blade and Weather Ball, as Power Whip and Weather Ball are an illegal breeding combination. This trades the power Weather Ball provides in favor of the sheer destruction Power Whip allows for, OHKOing almost anything that doesn't resist it.</p>
<p>Despite the ridiculous power Victreebel has, it is quite frail, and almost any attacker is capable of at least 2HKOing it. Additionally, it absolutely requires Sunny Day support to function. To this end, Uxie makes an amazing partner for Victreebel, capable of setting up Sunny Day before U-turning out, as well as setting up Reflect and Light Screen, aiding Victreebel's set up. Victreebel also loves support from entry hazards, especially Spikes, as it turns many of the 2HKOs on opposing Pokemon into outright kills. Therefore, Qwilfish is an excellent partner thanks to its ability to set up Spikes, while also checking the opposing Fire-type Pokemon that give Sun teams pause.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Outside of the moves already mentioned, Victreebel has very few alternative choices. Sucker Punch is Victreebel's only form of priority, and can be used to pick off weakened Pokemon or Pokemon that could outspeed and threaten Victreebel. However, it generally lacks power without any boosts to back it up. Encore is an option that can grant Victreebel turns to set up; for example, Victreebel can Encore a wall using Toxic, and use this time to set up Growth. Unfortunately, this greatly reduces Victreebel's coverage and leaves it more vulnerable than it should be. A Swords Dance set is an alternative option to the Mixed set, with a set of Leaf Blade, Sucker Punch, Swords Dance, and Return, Victreebel can hit most of the tier hard. However, this set struggles greatly with Steel-types and physical walls in general, only managing to 3HKO Steelix with a +2 Leaf Blade.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>With the immense power Victreebel wields, it is very difficult to find a Pokemon to take it on. If Victreebel is given the chance to set up, nothing in the tier is capable of avoiding a 2HKO. That said, Victreebel suffers from frailty, so attacking it immediately can weaken it to the point where a clean sweep is not an option. After it sets up, the best way to stop it is with smart switches that can outstall the sun turns and increase Life Orb recoil damage. Choice Scarf variants of base 100 Speed Pokemon such as Typhlosion are able to outspeed Victreebel in the sun, thereby revenge killing it before it wreaks too much havoc. The bulkier Pokemon in the tier can take one attack and fire back in return; Throh is the best option for this, but Gallade is also good choice. Snover, although it cannot switch in easily, removes the sun that makes Victreebel so deadly, replacing it with hail that can wear Victreebel down. Strong priority such as Entei's ExtremeSpeed or Honchkrow's Sucker Punch will put Victreebel in a position where it cannot use more than a couple of attacks before fainting to Life Orb recoil, possibly even KOing it if Victreebel has switched into entry hazards.</p>
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