First analysis, I beg your indulgence *makes a bow*
Isn't it cute?
[Overview]
<p>With her cracked shell and odd appearance, Vullaby may look like Murkrow's ugly and outclassed sister. However, closer inspection will reveal that she has enough benefits to differentiate herself from her Dark / Flying comrade. Her movepool includes several key tools ranging from the powerful Nasty Plot to the useful Taunt, and a reliable recovery move and Eviolite make Vullaby difficult to take down. With an exceptional combination of typing and abilities, Vullaby's place in the Little Cup tier is secured as a versatile threat capable of working as a tank or as a powerful sweeper.</p>
<p>Just like every other Pokemon, Vullaby has her downsides. Her typing means she will lose 25% of her HP if Stealth Rock is up, and common Rock-, Ice-, and Electric-type attacks will take her out fast. Her stats are also not quite high enough, so she will often find herself getting outsped or not dealing enough damage. Nonetheless, Vullaby can be a great team player and can play a useful role in most competitive matches.</p>
[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Air Slash
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Roost / Heat Wave
item: Eviolite
ability: Weak Armor
nature: Timid
evs: 236 SpA / 76 SpD / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Vullaby can learn Nasty Plot, a scarcely distributed move, which is very useful in conjuction with Weak Armor. With this incredible combination and her wide movepool, she transform herself into a fearsome sweeper. The goal of this set is to switch Vullaby into a weak physical move, such as Fake Out or Rapid Spin, and proceed to set up with Nasty Plot. Weak Armor is mandatory on the set as Vullaby has mediocre Speed and won't be outspeeding most of the threats she's attempting to beat without its boost. Air Slash is the main STAB move as it hits the multitude of Fighting-types in the tier on their weaker defensive stat for super effective damage; it also defeats all Grass-types in the tier except for Lileep and Ferroseed. Dark Pulse is a secondary STAB that gives very good coverage, hitting most of Vullaby's common switch-ins, such as Chinchou and Rock-types, for neutral damage. It also hits Misdreavus, Gastly, and Abra, making Vullaby a good check to all three. In the last slot, Vullaby can choose the recovery provided by Roost, making her a durable sweeper, as even at -1 Defense, Vullaby is bulky enough to survive the average neutral hit and recover. Heat Wave, on the other hand, gives perfect coverage against the whole Little Cup metagame and defeats Vullaby's biggest nemeses: Magnemite and Pawniard. It also achieves a clean OHKO on Ferroseed and hits Bronzor harder than Dark Pulse.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EVs listed give Vullaby offensive presence and a little physical bulk to survive hits even at -1 Defense. The Speed investment and a Timid nature allows her to switch into +1 Scraggy's physical moves and outspeed thanks to Weak Armor's boost. Vullaby's typing grants her neutrality to most priority moves and even a nice resistance to Sucker Punch, which allows her to attack without fear of being revenge killed. However, her weakness to Ice Shard makes Ice-types good checks. In addition to that, many special walls, such as Lileep, Munchlax, Lickitung, and specially defensive Chinchou won't be 2HKOed by any attack. Fighting-types are ideal partners, getting rid of Ice Shard users and defeating most of the special walls that Vullaby struggles with. Mienfoo is a good partner, and it can even carry Knock Off to ease Vullaby's sweep. Timburr, however, provides much needed priority to finish off weak opponents if Vullaby is taken out before she can finish sweeping the opposing team. Ferroseed is another nice teammate, providing entry hazard support and reliably checking most Chinchou. A Rapid Spin user is also a necessity so Vullaby won't start her sweep at 75% health. Mold Breaker Drilbur can beat Steel- and Electric-types and clear the field for Vullaby to switch in. It also provides offensive pressure, wearing down walls for the sweep. Choice Scarf Magnemite resists Ice Shard and can assist Vullaby in defeating opposing Magnemite, Pawniard, and Snover, allowing her to run Roost more easily.</p>
<p>Like many other setup sweepers, Vullaby appreciates Encore support. Wynaut can lure and Encore a resisted physical move such as Crunch for Vullaby to take advantage of. Cottonee can Encore a forced Rapid Spin thanks to Leech Seed and provide paralysis support.</p>
[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Air Slash
move 2: Dark Pulse / Heat Wave
move 3: Roost
move 4: Toxic / Taunt / Knock Off
item: Eviolite
ability: Overcoat
nature: Bold
evs: 116 HP / 76 Def / 76 SpA / 236 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>A combination of natural bulk, reliable recovery, and usable STAB moves makes Vullaby a good addition to any team. Unlike Murkrow, Vullaby has an amazing special Flying STAB move in Air Slash, which gives her super effective coverage on all Fighting-types in the Little Cup metagame and allows her to defeat most of the common Grass-types in the tier. Dark Pulse is her secondary STAB and grants nice coverage as well as hitting Ghost- and Psychic-types hard. Heat Wave is an option as, despite not having STAB, it hits most of Vullaby's counters for super effective damage. Roost provides recovery and is mandatory on this set as Vullaby is meant to switch in and take hits repeatedly.</p>
<p>The last slot is dedicated to support and depends heavily on team needs. Toxic is good for balanced teams to cripple walls attempting to sponge Vullaby's attacks, and it allows Vullaby to stall when coupled with Roost. On the other hand, Taunt is a good choice for Vullaby as she outspeeds most walls attempting to inflict her with status or recover damage. It also keeps hazards off the field, making her a good lead against slow opponents such as Ferroseed and Bronzor, the former being neutral to Air Slash and the latter neutral to Dark Pulse. Finally, Knock Off will suit offensive playstyles better as it allows Vullaby to slow down Choice Scarf users or aid a sweep by taking off Eviolites and Oran Berries from the opposing team. If the need arises, Vullaby can run two support moves, forgoing Dark Pulse as it has less utility than Air Slash.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EV investment leaves Vullaby with an odd HP number, allowing her to switch into Stealth Rock one more time and recover one extra point with Roost. With the spread given and a Bold nature, Vullaby gets equal physical and special bulk, reaching 24 in both defenses after Eviolite's boost. The small investment in Special Attack increases Vullaby's damage output. Vullaby's Attack is actually higher than her Special Attack, so she can choose to run Brave Bird if using two support options along with Roost; in this case, the EVs invested in Special Attack will fit easily in Attack, and Vullaby should run an Impish nature to keep her bulk and offenses unchanged. Overcoat is the ability of choice, as weather damage can be problematic for Vullaby's durability. Big Pecks, however, is an alternative to prevent the random Defense drops from Crunch, but using it will force Vullaby into Roosting more often when facing sand and hail teams.</p>
<p>Hazard setters and Rapid Spin users are equally needed for this set, as Vullaby switches often and can force her opponent to do the same. Mold Breaker Drilbur has the best synergy with her, as it resists Rock-type attacks, is immune to Electric-type attacks, and provides Stealth Rock while also clearing the field for Vullaby. Tentacool is a good Rapid Spin user, too, also providing Toxic or Toxic Spikes to free up a slot for Vullaby. It's also a nice Snover check with its high Special Defense, resistance to Ice-type attacks, and Liquid Ooze to stop Giga Drain from healing Snover. Keep in mind that both of these Rapid Spin users add to Vullaby's weakness to all variants of Chinchou, although Drilbur can threaten slow variants with Earthquake. Hippopotas shares many of the qualities of Drilbur as a teammate for Vullaby, exchanging Rapid Spin for Sandstorm passive damage. As a result of Overcoat, typing, and moves, offensive sand teams will often find Vullaby to be a nice partner as her ability to defeat Bronzor and Grass-types is very appreciated.</p>
<p>Poison-types appreciate the synergy brought by Vullaby's Dark typing. Koffing is a very good choice, as it can tank physical moves as Vullaby sponges special ones. Croagunk provides a check to most Rock-types and adds priority to make up for Vullaby's lack of Speed. Similar to Hippopotas, Snover can add Hail damage to slowly wear down opponents, and it can beat Chinchou lacking Hidden Power Fire. Vullaby, in turn, can beat Fighting-types and Larvesta with Air Slash and prevent Ferroseed and Bronzor from setting hazards up. Almost all Grass-types have good synergy with Vullaby, as most can absorb Toxic aimed at Vullaby and can defeat Chinchou. Ferroseed is the best choice, as it can set hazards, is neutral to Ice-type attacks, and can defeat Snover and Chinchou at the same time. Choice Scarf Magnemite is another nice option for trapping and defeating Steel-types lured by Vullaby, and it also defeats Snover with ease thanks to Flash Cannon or Hidden Power Fire. Flash Cannon also leaves a huge dent in Lileep and other Rock-types even under Sandstorm. Most Fighting-types can do the same while also defeating most special walls that give Vullaby trouble. Timburr has priority and amazing bulk to go along with Vullaby's, and Mienfoo can form a good defensive pivoting core with Vullaby thanks to its bulk and Regenerator. Chinchou, in addition to being a good check to Vullaby, is also a good teammate, absorbing Electric- and Ice-type attacks thanks to its ability and typing while Vullaby can defeat the Grass-types that threaten it. Chinchou can also use Heal Bell in order to relieve Vullaby from status, most notably Toxic. Misdreavus can also use Heal Bell and spread burns or outright defeat Snover with Hidden Power Fighting as Vullaby sponges Ghost- and Dark-type attacks directed at it.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Vullaby can run a Choice Scarf set, which can notably revenge kill +1 Scraggy with Brave Bird or Air Slash, but Murkrow outclasses her in this role. As her Attack stat is higher than her Special Attack stat, Vullaby can run a physical bulky attacker set, but she lacks a reliable physical Dark-type move. In fact, the only usable physical Dark-type move in her arsenal is Punishment, which while useful against the many setup threats in the metagame, has a low damage output against most other threats. U-turn is another move that distinguishes Vullaby from Murkrow, but she will struggle to find free moveslots for it on her sets. Hidden Power Ground is an alternative over Heat Wave, as it retains coverage on most Steel-types while hitting Electric-types like Chinchou for super effective damage, but Bronzor is a threat big enough to make Heat Wave the superior choice on most occasions. Tailwind and weather support are both good options for Vullaby because of her bulk, reliable recovery and access to U-turn. However, those playstyles are rarely used in the Little Cup metagame. Mean Look can be used along with Toxic, Taunt, and Roost, but this set is Taunt bait, and most of the common switch-ins to Vullaby have means of defeating her one-on-one. A combination of Foul Play and Swagger is usable thanks to Vullaby's high Defense, but it relies too much on luck and is difficult to play because of her mediocre Speed. Whirlwind is also an option as she can stack up hazard damage and survive many hits, but Vullaby can't afford losing any of the support or coverage options on her sets. The same applies to Protect, which can otherwise be good for scouting or stalling for Toxic damage.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Like most bulky Pokemon, Vullaby fears Toxic above all things, as it will greatly hinder her durability and will kill her regardless of the recovery provided by Roost. In the same vein, Stealth Rock will slowly bring her down, though unlike Toxic, it can be mitigated by Roost.</p>
<p>If not running Stealth Rock or a reliable way to hit her with Toxic, the best way to defeat Vullaby is with super effective attacks. Any Pokemon that has Electric-, Ice- or Rock-type moves is a threat to Vullaby. If it also has high Special Defense, it will likely defeat Vullaby without breaking a sweat. Premier special walls such as Porygon, Munchlax, and Lickitung can slowly wear down Vullaby with their neutral moves, or even super effective Discharge and Ice Beam in Porygon's case. Among all the special walls, Lileep stands out with its amazing special bulk, particularly under Sandstorm. It can defeat Vullaby with its STAB Rock-type moves and Recover any damage dealt. All of these walls must be wary of Toxic, however. As much as Sandstorm is a friend of Vullaby, it also boosts the Special Defense of all Rock-types, allowing them to defeat her even more easily one-on-one.</p>
<p>All variants of Chinchou can take Vullaby down, as it has high Special Defense and STAB Electric-type moves. RestTalk variants are even better checks as they don't even fear Toxic. Staryu doesn't have the Special Defense that Chinchou does, but it often carries Thunderbolt or Ice Beam and naturally outspeeds Vullaby. It can also be instantly relieved of Toxic thanks to Natural Cure. Snover has Blizzard for bulky variants or Ice Shard for Nasty Plot, which will always KO Vullaby if Weak Armor has been activated. It must be careful to not switch into Air Slash or Heat Wave, however, as it will be heavily damaged if not outright OHKOed. Magnemite, much like Snover, fears Heat Wave but can hit Vullaby with STAB super effective Thunderbolt and won't be worn down by Sandstorm or Toxic. Misdreavus carrying Thunderbolt and Abra carrying Charge Beam can score surprise KOs on an unsuspecting Vullaby planning on defeating them. Pawniard can force Vullaby out if she's not running Heat Wave; even though Pawniard is not often able to hit Vullaby super effectively, it can set up on all of her common moves. As stated previously, Nasty Plot variants can be revenge killed with Ice Shard and other priority moves if at low enough health. If not set up, hitting Vullaby with special moves won't activate Weak Armor's Speed Boost, defeating the purpose of the set. Multi-hit moves will increase in damage after each hit thanks to Weak Armor activating; Skill Link Shellder excels at taking out Nasty Plot Vullaby with Icicle Spear, Rock Blast, or Ice Shard. All Vullaby variants rely a great deal on Eviolite to function. Knock Off, Switcheroo, and Trick will completely shut Vullaby down, cutting her defense instantly and making her much easier to defeat.</p>
Isn't it cute?
[Overview]
+ Typing is the same as Murkrow, the prominent threat.
+ Has to enough tools to differentiate herself in Movepool, Abilities and Stats.
+ Has a key immunity to Ground and neutrality to Fighting unlike other Dark-types.
+ Weakness to Rock, Ice and Electric really hinders her, specially because of Stealth Rock.
+ Has reliable recovery and great bulk along an Eviolite to make up for that.
+ Not a big movepool but includes an usable offensive special movepool along with the rare Nasty Plot.
+ Lack of Speed and Offensive presence without investment really holds her back in the offensive enviroment of LC.
+ A great team-player when used to her strenghts.
[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Air Slash
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Roost/Heat Wave
item: Eviolite
ability: Weak Armor
nature: Timid
evs: 236 SpA / 76 SpD / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
+ Nasty Plot is a scarcely distributed move and Vullaby has the movepool to abuse it.
+ Great in HO teams in need of a sweeper.
+ Switch into a weak physical move, such as Fake Out or Rapid Spin and proceed to use Nasty Plot attaining +2 SpA and +1 Spe at the cost of -1 Def.
+ Beware: Priority should be (ideally) taken out before hand.
+ Great coverage in just three moves, hits all the tier at least neutrally and has SE coverage on most threats.
+ Neutrality to common priorities makes her a good Weak Armor user, and resistance to Sucker Punch is amazing to take on Murkrow and Pawniard.
+ Air Slash is good to take away Mienfoo and Scraggy after a Boost. It also gets rid of Grass-types, except for Lileep.
+ Dark Pulse is secondary STAB and her best bet against Chinchou and Rock-types, it also hits Missy and Abra for SE damage
+ Roost because everything that gets reliable recovery should use it; Vullaby is very bulky even after a Def Drop, you must be wary around things that get Fighting-type moves.
+ Heat Wave is a nice option for Magnemite and Pawniard, the only two common 'mons that resists both STABs.
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
+ EVs gives her 16 Speed, which allows you to outrun Scraggy, a key threat, and hit it with SE damage on the weaker stat.
+ You can switch into Crunch, get one Weak Armor boost and retaliate with Air Slash.
+ Struggles with premiere Special Walls: Lileep in and outside of Sand, Munchlax, Lickitung and Specially Defensive Chinchou. Lileep and Chinchou can KO with STABs and the others can phaze
+ Rock-types in Sand are a Nightmare. KILL LILEEP BEFORE ATTEMPTING A SWEEP!
+ Fighting-types to get rid of most of them: Croagunk, Mienfoo (w/Knock Off is great) or Timburr.
+ Grass-types can dispatch Chinchou: Ferroseed has great sinergy and provides SR support.
+ A rapid spin user is good so she can last longer: MB Drilbur is the one with best sinergy.
+ Wynaut can provide encore support; Cottonee does too but it's not as good.
+ Scarf Magnemite is a nice partner as it can take opposing Magnemite and Pawniard if not running Heat Wave. Bulky Magnemite is also good but it struggles a bit against Pawniard; it resist all of Vullaby's weakness and can take Snover out.
+ Toxic, Burn, Leech Seed and passive damage from weather when coupled with all the physical priorities (at -1) will take her out fast so it's better to use her as a sweeper rather than a Wallbreaker.
[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Air Slash
move 2: Dark Pulse/Heat Wave
move 3: Roost
move 4: Taunt/Knock Off/Toxic
item: Eviolite
ability: Overcoat
nature: Bold
evs: 116 HP / 76 Def / 76 SpA / 236 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
+ Specially Offensive Vullaby is good as it has nice STAB moves, unlike Murkrow who must rely on Hidden Power or go physical/Mixed.
+ No HP investment gives odd number for SR and one point more than 50% recovery with roost
+ Vullaby's typing forces a lot of switches and her resistances and immunities along with bulk and recovery lets her switch in repeatedly.
+ Ideal for more defensive teams as she can take on offensive threats such as Misdreavus, Abra, LO Mienfoo and Scraggy. She can also get rid of Natu, a nightmare for Defensive teams.
+ Air Slash and Dark Pulse combo misses only on Steel-types... but Ferroseed and Bronzor are hit neutrally with her STABs so the only things you need to worry about are Pawniard and Magnemite.
+ Heat Wave is nice if you are having trouble with any Steel. If you choose not running Taunt, Heat wave will OHKO Ferroseed and Bronzor before they can set hazards up.
+ Roost because it needs to survive.
+ As Vullaby has a very wide support movepool, she can use many options quite effectively due to her natural bulk and enough speed.
+ Choosing one among them goes down to Team needs: Defensive teams will thank Toxic or Taunt as both can cripple many walls and set up sweepers, Taunt also keeps hazards at bay making switching more easy for Balanced teams; Offensive teams will apreciate Knock Off to help a sweep or slow down Scarfers.
+ Taunt stops Ferro, Bronzor and other walls to set up hazards making her a good lead, also stopping recovery.
+ Knock Off to dispose of Eviolites and Scarfs and the like.
+ Toxic to spread pasive damage.
+ Vullaby can run another support move over Dark Pulse if needed; Air Slash is non-negotiable as it's very good in the Meta.
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
+ EVs give 25 / 24 / 24 defenses after Eviolite.
+ HP is odd and lets her gain 13 HP roosts.
+ If you want, you could put the SpA evs into HP to get another point.
+ SpA investment so she can use both of her STABs
+ If running two support options you can use Brave Bird which has higher Base Power and better accuracy, with SpA EVs on Atk and Impish Nature it will hit hard.
+ Nice partners include Hazard setters and Rapid Spin users; again, Mold Breaker Drilbur is nice: Resists Rock, Spins away/sets up SR and is immune to Electric; it easily takes on Electric-types, but Chinchou is a big Threat.
+ Similarly, Hippopotas does all that but Spinning, it adds passive damage with Sand, however.
+ Poison-types add Fighting resistances and welcome the Psychic immunity: Koffing can Tank Physical moves while Vullaby can take on Special ones; Croagunk is a good Partner to take on Rock-types and adding Priority to make up for Vullaby's lack of speed.
+ Vullaby can support Snover by taking out Fighting-types and Larvesta with Air Slash; she also checks Bronzor with Dark Pulse and Taunts Ferroseed to stop incoming entry hazards, altough they stack up SR weaknesses; Snover can take on Ice Beam variants of Chinchou and adds Hail Passive Damage.
+ Grass-types are good to get rid of Chinchou: Ferroseed is nice as it sets Spikes/SR and resists all of Vullaby's weakness.
+ Magnemite is a good teammate but Pawniard always carries a Fighting move and with opposing Magnemite you gamble speed ties..
+ Fighting-types are better to dispose of both, Magnemite and Pawniard and also scare Snover: Mienfoo and Timburr are good enough, the former having great utility overall and the latter adding Priority.
+ Double Rush teams welcome her because of her ability to counter Bronzor and Grass-types, most notably Foongus, with a combination of Taunt and Air Slash.
+ Chinchou is a great teammate: Volt Absorb, resistance to Ice and Heal Bell to get rid of Toxic which greatly hinders Vullaby.
+ Misdreavus can also carry Heal Bell; has Fighting-type Coverage and can Burn Physical Attackers to make Vullaby's life easier; Vullaby, in turn, can take Ghost-type and Dark-type attacks from Porygon and the like.
[Other Options]
+ Big Pecks is usable on the Bulky Attacker set if you are paranoid about Def/SpD drops from Shadow Ball or Crunch but with Sand and Hail being so common Overcoat is better.
+ Scarf set can revenge kill +1 Scraggy but Murkrow looks better with it, although she can U-turn away, something Murkrow can't.
+ Physically offensive Bulky attacker, but Murkrow has better Physical Dark STAB.
+ Punishment to hit Set up sweepers.
+ U-turn is GREAT as she's can let a teammate in unscathed, but Vullaby has 4MSS as is.
+ Hidden Power Ground over Heat Wave retains coverage on most Steel types while hitting Electric-types for SE damage but Heat Wave is better because of Bronzor.
+ Mean Look has its use along with Toxic and Taunt but it's really gimmick.
+ Foul Play + Swagger is not bad with her defenses but it's even more gimmick than the previous option.
+ Tail Wind and Weather support are both good because of her bulk, recovery and access to U-turn but those playstyles are scarcely used in LC.
+ Whirlwind is nice but phazing is best left to Riolu.
+ Protect is usable to stall out Toxic damage and Scout.
[Checks and Counters]
+ Toxic.
+ Stealth Rock is bad but Roost mitigates it a little.
+ Lileep, in Sand and outside of it. Has SE Rock move.
+ Chinchou is faster, has enough SpD and SE moves. Staryu Outspeeds and has Thunderbolt.
+ Snover has Blizzard and Ice Shard, Choice Scarf sets will outrun and kill. Must be careful around Heat Wave variants.
+ Magnemite if not running Heat Wave.
+ Rock-types if not running Dark Pulse; even if running Dark Pulse, they're a threat in Sand because of her reliance on Special Moves: Tirtouga and Dwebble are great counters, and both can reliably set hazards up because of superior speed.
+ NP Misdreavus if running Thunderbolt. Charge Beam Abra, altough generally bad, can score a surprise kill as it outspeeds.
+ Riolu on Copycat Roar rampage will eventually kill her because the SR weakness.
+ Pawniard is in the same boat as Magnemite but doesn't have SE moves on Vullaby.
+ Nasty Plot Set is easy to revenge kill after the Def drop with priority if HP is low enough. Remember that Vullaby resists Sucker Punch. Ice Shard is the best way to revenge kill.
+ If unboosted, the Nasty Plot set is countered by not hitting it with physical moves: Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, Blizzard, AncientPower...
+ Premiere Special Walls can take hits but if running taunt they will be slowly wore down. Porygon stands out with Ice Beam/Blizzard/Discharge or simply Toxic. Lickitung can phaze boosts with Dragon Tail.
+ Taking away her Eviolite makes her cry.
Is it too long?
+ Typing is the same as Murkrow, the prominent threat.
+ Has to enough tools to differentiate herself in Movepool, Abilities and Stats.
+ Has a key immunity to Ground and neutrality to Fighting unlike other Dark-types.
+ Weakness to Rock, Ice and Electric really hinders her, specially because of Stealth Rock.
+ Has reliable recovery and great bulk along an Eviolite to make up for that.
+ Not a big movepool but includes an usable offensive special movepool along with the rare Nasty Plot.
+ Lack of Speed and Offensive presence without investment really holds her back in the offensive enviroment of LC.
+ A great team-player when used to her strenghts.
[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Air Slash
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Roost/Heat Wave
item: Eviolite
ability: Weak Armor
nature: Timid
evs: 236 SpA / 76 SpD / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
+ Nasty Plot is a scarcely distributed move and Vullaby has the movepool to abuse it.
+ Great in HO teams in need of a sweeper.
+ Switch into a weak physical move, such as Fake Out or Rapid Spin and proceed to use Nasty Plot attaining +2 SpA and +1 Spe at the cost of -1 Def.
+ Beware: Priority should be (ideally) taken out before hand.
+ Great coverage in just three moves, hits all the tier at least neutrally and has SE coverage on most threats.
+ Neutrality to common priorities makes her a good Weak Armor user, and resistance to Sucker Punch is amazing to take on Murkrow and Pawniard.
+ Air Slash is good to take away Mienfoo and Scraggy after a Boost. It also gets rid of Grass-types, except for Lileep.
+ Dark Pulse is secondary STAB and her best bet against Chinchou and Rock-types, it also hits Missy and Abra for SE damage
+ Roost because everything that gets reliable recovery should use it; Vullaby is very bulky even after a Def Drop, you must be wary around things that get Fighting-type moves.
+ Heat Wave is a nice option for Magnemite and Pawniard, the only two common 'mons that resists both STABs.
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
+ EVs gives her 16 Speed, which allows you to outrun Scraggy, a key threat, and hit it with SE damage on the weaker stat.
+ You can switch into Crunch, get one Weak Armor boost and retaliate with Air Slash.
+ Struggles with premiere Special Walls: Lileep in and outside of Sand, Munchlax, Lickitung and Specially Defensive Chinchou. Lileep and Chinchou can KO with STABs and the others can phaze
+ Rock-types in Sand are a Nightmare. KILL LILEEP BEFORE ATTEMPTING A SWEEP!
+ Fighting-types to get rid of most of them: Croagunk, Mienfoo (w/Knock Off is great) or Timburr.
+ Grass-types can dispatch Chinchou: Ferroseed has great sinergy and provides SR support.
+ A rapid spin user is good so she can last longer: MB Drilbur is the one with best sinergy.
+ Wynaut can provide encore support; Cottonee does too but it's not as good.
+ Scarf Magnemite is a nice partner as it can take opposing Magnemite and Pawniard if not running Heat Wave. Bulky Magnemite is also good but it struggles a bit against Pawniard; it resist all of Vullaby's weakness and can take Snover out.
+ Toxic, Burn, Leech Seed and passive damage from weather when coupled with all the physical priorities (at -1) will take her out fast so it's better to use her as a sweeper rather than a Wallbreaker.
[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Air Slash
move 2: Dark Pulse/Heat Wave
move 3: Roost
move 4: Taunt/Knock Off/Toxic
item: Eviolite
ability: Overcoat
nature: Bold
evs: 116 HP / 76 Def / 76 SpA / 236 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
+ Specially Offensive Vullaby is good as it has nice STAB moves, unlike Murkrow who must rely on Hidden Power or go physical/Mixed.
+ No HP investment gives odd number for SR and one point more than 50% recovery with roost
+ Vullaby's typing forces a lot of switches and her resistances and immunities along with bulk and recovery lets her switch in repeatedly.
+ Ideal for more defensive teams as she can take on offensive threats such as Misdreavus, Abra, LO Mienfoo and Scraggy. She can also get rid of Natu, a nightmare for Defensive teams.
+ Air Slash and Dark Pulse combo misses only on Steel-types... but Ferroseed and Bronzor are hit neutrally with her STABs so the only things you need to worry about are Pawniard and Magnemite.
+ Heat Wave is nice if you are having trouble with any Steel. If you choose not running Taunt, Heat wave will OHKO Ferroseed and Bronzor before they can set hazards up.
+ Roost because it needs to survive.
+ As Vullaby has a very wide support movepool, she can use many options quite effectively due to her natural bulk and enough speed.
+ Choosing one among them goes down to Team needs: Defensive teams will thank Toxic or Taunt as both can cripple many walls and set up sweepers, Taunt also keeps hazards at bay making switching more easy for Balanced teams; Offensive teams will apreciate Knock Off to help a sweep or slow down Scarfers.
+ Taunt stops Ferro, Bronzor and other walls to set up hazards making her a good lead, also stopping recovery.
+ Knock Off to dispose of Eviolites and Scarfs and the like.
+ Toxic to spread pasive damage.
+ Vullaby can run another support move over Dark Pulse if needed; Air Slash is non-negotiable as it's very good in the Meta.
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
+ EVs give 25 / 24 / 24 defenses after Eviolite.
+ HP is odd and lets her gain 13 HP roosts.
+ If you want, you could put the SpA evs into HP to get another point.
+ SpA investment so she can use both of her STABs
+ If running two support options you can use Brave Bird which has higher Base Power and better accuracy, with SpA EVs on Atk and Impish Nature it will hit hard.
+ Nice partners include Hazard setters and Rapid Spin users; again, Mold Breaker Drilbur is nice: Resists Rock, Spins away/sets up SR and is immune to Electric; it easily takes on Electric-types, but Chinchou is a big Threat.
+ Similarly, Hippopotas does all that but Spinning, it adds passive damage with Sand, however.
+ Poison-types add Fighting resistances and welcome the Psychic immunity: Koffing can Tank Physical moves while Vullaby can take on Special ones; Croagunk is a good Partner to take on Rock-types and adding Priority to make up for Vullaby's lack of speed.
+ Vullaby can support Snover by taking out Fighting-types and Larvesta with Air Slash; she also checks Bronzor with Dark Pulse and Taunts Ferroseed to stop incoming entry hazards, altough they stack up SR weaknesses; Snover can take on Ice Beam variants of Chinchou and adds Hail Passive Damage.
+ Grass-types are good to get rid of Chinchou: Ferroseed is nice as it sets Spikes/SR and resists all of Vullaby's weakness.
+ Magnemite is a good teammate but Pawniard always carries a Fighting move and with opposing Magnemite you gamble speed ties..
+ Fighting-types are better to dispose of both, Magnemite and Pawniard and also scare Snover: Mienfoo and Timburr are good enough, the former having great utility overall and the latter adding Priority.
+ Double Rush teams welcome her because of her ability to counter Bronzor and Grass-types, most notably Foongus, with a combination of Taunt and Air Slash.
+ Chinchou is a great teammate: Volt Absorb, resistance to Ice and Heal Bell to get rid of Toxic which greatly hinders Vullaby.
+ Misdreavus can also carry Heal Bell; has Fighting-type Coverage and can Burn Physical Attackers to make Vullaby's life easier; Vullaby, in turn, can take Ghost-type and Dark-type attacks from Porygon and the like.
[Other Options]
+ Big Pecks is usable on the Bulky Attacker set if you are paranoid about Def/SpD drops from Shadow Ball or Crunch but with Sand and Hail being so common Overcoat is better.
+ Scarf set can revenge kill +1 Scraggy but Murkrow looks better with it, although she can U-turn away, something Murkrow can't.
+ Physically offensive Bulky attacker, but Murkrow has better Physical Dark STAB.
+ Punishment to hit Set up sweepers.
+ U-turn is GREAT as she's can let a teammate in unscathed, but Vullaby has 4MSS as is.
+ Hidden Power Ground over Heat Wave retains coverage on most Steel types while hitting Electric-types for SE damage but Heat Wave is better because of Bronzor.
+ Mean Look has its use along with Toxic and Taunt but it's really gimmick.
+ Foul Play + Swagger is not bad with her defenses but it's even more gimmick than the previous option.
+ Tail Wind and Weather support are both good because of her bulk, recovery and access to U-turn but those playstyles are scarcely used in LC.
+ Whirlwind is nice but phazing is best left to Riolu.
+ Protect is usable to stall out Toxic damage and Scout.
[Checks and Counters]
+ Toxic.
+ Stealth Rock is bad but Roost mitigates it a little.
+ Lileep, in Sand and outside of it. Has SE Rock move.
+ Chinchou is faster, has enough SpD and SE moves. Staryu Outspeeds and has Thunderbolt.
+ Snover has Blizzard and Ice Shard, Choice Scarf sets will outrun and kill. Must be careful around Heat Wave variants.
+ Magnemite if not running Heat Wave.
+ Rock-types if not running Dark Pulse; even if running Dark Pulse, they're a threat in Sand because of her reliance on Special Moves: Tirtouga and Dwebble are great counters, and both can reliably set hazards up because of superior speed.
+ NP Misdreavus if running Thunderbolt. Charge Beam Abra, altough generally bad, can score a surprise kill as it outspeeds.
+ Riolu on Copycat Roar rampage will eventually kill her because the SR weakness.
+ Pawniard is in the same boat as Magnemite but doesn't have SE moves on Vullaby.
+ Nasty Plot Set is easy to revenge kill after the Def drop with priority if HP is low enough. Remember that Vullaby resists Sucker Punch. Ice Shard is the best way to revenge kill.
+ If unboosted, the Nasty Plot set is countered by not hitting it with physical moves: Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, Blizzard, AncientPower...
+ Premiere Special Walls can take hits but if running taunt they will be slowly wore down. Porygon stands out with Ice Beam/Blizzard/Discharge or simply Toxic. Lickitung can phaze boosts with Dragon Tail.
+ Taking away her Eviolite makes her cry.
Is it too long?
[Overview]
<p>With her cracked shell and odd appearance, Vullaby may look like Murkrow's ugly and outclassed sister. However, closer inspection will reveal that she has enough benefits to differentiate herself from her Dark / Flying comrade. Her movepool includes several key tools ranging from the powerful Nasty Plot to the useful Taunt, and a reliable recovery move and Eviolite make Vullaby difficult to take down. With an exceptional combination of typing and abilities, Vullaby's place in the Little Cup tier is secured as a versatile threat capable of working as a tank or as a powerful sweeper.</p>
<p>Just like every other Pokemon, Vullaby has her downsides. Her typing means she will lose 25% of her HP if Stealth Rock is up, and common Rock-, Ice-, and Electric-type attacks will take her out fast. Her stats are also not quite high enough, so she will often find herself getting outsped or not dealing enough damage. Nonetheless, Vullaby can be a great team player and can play a useful role in most competitive matches.</p>
[SET]
name: Nasty Plot
move 1: Nasty Plot
move 2: Air Slash
move 3: Dark Pulse
move 4: Roost / Heat Wave
item: Eviolite
ability: Weak Armor
nature: Timid
evs: 236 SpA / 76 SpD / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Vullaby can learn Nasty Plot, a scarcely distributed move, which is very useful in conjuction with Weak Armor. With this incredible combination and her wide movepool, she transform herself into a fearsome sweeper. The goal of this set is to switch Vullaby into a weak physical move, such as Fake Out or Rapid Spin, and proceed to set up with Nasty Plot. Weak Armor is mandatory on the set as Vullaby has mediocre Speed and won't be outspeeding most of the threats she's attempting to beat without its boost. Air Slash is the main STAB move as it hits the multitude of Fighting-types in the tier on their weaker defensive stat for super effective damage; it also defeats all Grass-types in the tier except for Lileep and Ferroseed. Dark Pulse is a secondary STAB that gives very good coverage, hitting most of Vullaby's common switch-ins, such as Chinchou and Rock-types, for neutral damage. It also hits Misdreavus, Gastly, and Abra, making Vullaby a good check to all three. In the last slot, Vullaby can choose the recovery provided by Roost, making her a durable sweeper, as even at -1 Defense, Vullaby is bulky enough to survive the average neutral hit and recover. Heat Wave, on the other hand, gives perfect coverage against the whole Little Cup metagame and defeats Vullaby's biggest nemeses: Magnemite and Pawniard. It also achieves a clean OHKO on Ferroseed and hits Bronzor harder than Dark Pulse.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EVs listed give Vullaby offensive presence and a little physical bulk to survive hits even at -1 Defense. The Speed investment and a Timid nature allows her to switch into +1 Scraggy's physical moves and outspeed thanks to Weak Armor's boost. Vullaby's typing grants her neutrality to most priority moves and even a nice resistance to Sucker Punch, which allows her to attack without fear of being revenge killed. However, her weakness to Ice Shard makes Ice-types good checks. In addition to that, many special walls, such as Lileep, Munchlax, Lickitung, and specially defensive Chinchou won't be 2HKOed by any attack. Fighting-types are ideal partners, getting rid of Ice Shard users and defeating most of the special walls that Vullaby struggles with. Mienfoo is a good partner, and it can even carry Knock Off to ease Vullaby's sweep. Timburr, however, provides much needed priority to finish off weak opponents if Vullaby is taken out before she can finish sweeping the opposing team. Ferroseed is another nice teammate, providing entry hazard support and reliably checking most Chinchou. A Rapid Spin user is also a necessity so Vullaby won't start her sweep at 75% health. Mold Breaker Drilbur can beat Steel- and Electric-types and clear the field for Vullaby to switch in. It also provides offensive pressure, wearing down walls for the sweep. Choice Scarf Magnemite resists Ice Shard and can assist Vullaby in defeating opposing Magnemite, Pawniard, and Snover, allowing her to run Roost more easily.</p>
<p>Like many other setup sweepers, Vullaby appreciates Encore support. Wynaut can lure and Encore a resisted physical move such as Crunch for Vullaby to take advantage of. Cottonee can Encore a forced Rapid Spin thanks to Leech Seed and provide paralysis support.</p>
[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Air Slash
move 2: Dark Pulse / Heat Wave
move 3: Roost
move 4: Toxic / Taunt / Knock Off
item: Eviolite
ability: Overcoat
nature: Bold
evs: 116 HP / 76 Def / 76 SpA / 236 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>A combination of natural bulk, reliable recovery, and usable STAB moves makes Vullaby a good addition to any team. Unlike Murkrow, Vullaby has an amazing special Flying STAB move in Air Slash, which gives her super effective coverage on all Fighting-types in the Little Cup metagame and allows her to defeat most of the common Grass-types in the tier. Dark Pulse is her secondary STAB and grants nice coverage as well as hitting Ghost- and Psychic-types hard. Heat Wave is an option as, despite not having STAB, it hits most of Vullaby's counters for super effective damage. Roost provides recovery and is mandatory on this set as Vullaby is meant to switch in and take hits repeatedly.</p>
<p>The last slot is dedicated to support and depends heavily on team needs. Toxic is good for balanced teams to cripple walls attempting to sponge Vullaby's attacks, and it allows Vullaby to stall when coupled with Roost. On the other hand, Taunt is a good choice for Vullaby as she outspeeds most walls attempting to inflict her with status or recover damage. It also keeps hazards off the field, making her a good lead against slow opponents such as Ferroseed and Bronzor, the former being neutral to Air Slash and the latter neutral to Dark Pulse. Finally, Knock Off will suit offensive playstyles better as it allows Vullaby to slow down Choice Scarf users or aid a sweep by taking off Eviolites and Oran Berries from the opposing team. If the need arises, Vullaby can run two support moves, forgoing Dark Pulse as it has less utility than Air Slash.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EV investment leaves Vullaby with an odd HP number, allowing her to switch into Stealth Rock one more time and recover one extra point with Roost. With the spread given and a Bold nature, Vullaby gets equal physical and special bulk, reaching 24 in both defenses after Eviolite's boost. The small investment in Special Attack increases Vullaby's damage output. Vullaby's Attack is actually higher than her Special Attack, so she can choose to run Brave Bird if using two support options along with Roost; in this case, the EVs invested in Special Attack will fit easily in Attack, and Vullaby should run an Impish nature to keep her bulk and offenses unchanged. Overcoat is the ability of choice, as weather damage can be problematic for Vullaby's durability. Big Pecks, however, is an alternative to prevent the random Defense drops from Crunch, but using it will force Vullaby into Roosting more often when facing sand and hail teams.</p>
<p>Hazard setters and Rapid Spin users are equally needed for this set, as Vullaby switches often and can force her opponent to do the same. Mold Breaker Drilbur has the best synergy with her, as it resists Rock-type attacks, is immune to Electric-type attacks, and provides Stealth Rock while also clearing the field for Vullaby. Tentacool is a good Rapid Spin user, too, also providing Toxic or Toxic Spikes to free up a slot for Vullaby. It's also a nice Snover check with its high Special Defense, resistance to Ice-type attacks, and Liquid Ooze to stop Giga Drain from healing Snover. Keep in mind that both of these Rapid Spin users add to Vullaby's weakness to all variants of Chinchou, although Drilbur can threaten slow variants with Earthquake. Hippopotas shares many of the qualities of Drilbur as a teammate for Vullaby, exchanging Rapid Spin for Sandstorm passive damage. As a result of Overcoat, typing, and moves, offensive sand teams will often find Vullaby to be a nice partner as her ability to defeat Bronzor and Grass-types is very appreciated.</p>
<p>Poison-types appreciate the synergy brought by Vullaby's Dark typing. Koffing is a very good choice, as it can tank physical moves as Vullaby sponges special ones. Croagunk provides a check to most Rock-types and adds priority to make up for Vullaby's lack of Speed. Similar to Hippopotas, Snover can add Hail damage to slowly wear down opponents, and it can beat Chinchou lacking Hidden Power Fire. Vullaby, in turn, can beat Fighting-types and Larvesta with Air Slash and prevent Ferroseed and Bronzor from setting hazards up. Almost all Grass-types have good synergy with Vullaby, as most can absorb Toxic aimed at Vullaby and can defeat Chinchou. Ferroseed is the best choice, as it can set hazards, is neutral to Ice-type attacks, and can defeat Snover and Chinchou at the same time. Choice Scarf Magnemite is another nice option for trapping and defeating Steel-types lured by Vullaby, and it also defeats Snover with ease thanks to Flash Cannon or Hidden Power Fire. Flash Cannon also leaves a huge dent in Lileep and other Rock-types even under Sandstorm. Most Fighting-types can do the same while also defeating most special walls that give Vullaby trouble. Timburr has priority and amazing bulk to go along with Vullaby's, and Mienfoo can form a good defensive pivoting core with Vullaby thanks to its bulk and Regenerator. Chinchou, in addition to being a good check to Vullaby, is also a good teammate, absorbing Electric- and Ice-type attacks thanks to its ability and typing while Vullaby can defeat the Grass-types that threaten it. Chinchou can also use Heal Bell in order to relieve Vullaby from status, most notably Toxic. Misdreavus can also use Heal Bell and spread burns or outright defeat Snover with Hidden Power Fighting as Vullaby sponges Ghost- and Dark-type attacks directed at it.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Vullaby can run a Choice Scarf set, which can notably revenge kill +1 Scraggy with Brave Bird or Air Slash, but Murkrow outclasses her in this role. As her Attack stat is higher than her Special Attack stat, Vullaby can run a physical bulky attacker set, but she lacks a reliable physical Dark-type move. In fact, the only usable physical Dark-type move in her arsenal is Punishment, which while useful against the many setup threats in the metagame, has a low damage output against most other threats. U-turn is another move that distinguishes Vullaby from Murkrow, but she will struggle to find free moveslots for it on her sets. Hidden Power Ground is an alternative over Heat Wave, as it retains coverage on most Steel-types while hitting Electric-types like Chinchou for super effective damage, but Bronzor is a threat big enough to make Heat Wave the superior choice on most occasions. Tailwind and weather support are both good options for Vullaby because of her bulk, reliable recovery and access to U-turn. However, those playstyles are rarely used in the Little Cup metagame. Mean Look can be used along with Toxic, Taunt, and Roost, but this set is Taunt bait, and most of the common switch-ins to Vullaby have means of defeating her one-on-one. A combination of Foul Play and Swagger is usable thanks to Vullaby's high Defense, but it relies too much on luck and is difficult to play because of her mediocre Speed. Whirlwind is also an option as she can stack up hazard damage and survive many hits, but Vullaby can't afford losing any of the support or coverage options on her sets. The same applies to Protect, which can otherwise be good for scouting or stalling for Toxic damage.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Like most bulky Pokemon, Vullaby fears Toxic above all things, as it will greatly hinder her durability and will kill her regardless of the recovery provided by Roost. In the same vein, Stealth Rock will slowly bring her down, though unlike Toxic, it can be mitigated by Roost.</p>
<p>If not running Stealth Rock or a reliable way to hit her with Toxic, the best way to defeat Vullaby is with super effective attacks. Any Pokemon that has Electric-, Ice- or Rock-type moves is a threat to Vullaby. If it also has high Special Defense, it will likely defeat Vullaby without breaking a sweat. Premier special walls such as Porygon, Munchlax, and Lickitung can slowly wear down Vullaby with their neutral moves, or even super effective Discharge and Ice Beam in Porygon's case. Among all the special walls, Lileep stands out with its amazing special bulk, particularly under Sandstorm. It can defeat Vullaby with its STAB Rock-type moves and Recover any damage dealt. All of these walls must be wary of Toxic, however. As much as Sandstorm is a friend of Vullaby, it also boosts the Special Defense of all Rock-types, allowing them to defeat her even more easily one-on-one.</p>
<p>All variants of Chinchou can take Vullaby down, as it has high Special Defense and STAB Electric-type moves. RestTalk variants are even better checks as they don't even fear Toxic. Staryu doesn't have the Special Defense that Chinchou does, but it often carries Thunderbolt or Ice Beam and naturally outspeeds Vullaby. It can also be instantly relieved of Toxic thanks to Natural Cure. Snover has Blizzard for bulky variants or Ice Shard for Nasty Plot, which will always KO Vullaby if Weak Armor has been activated. It must be careful to not switch into Air Slash or Heat Wave, however, as it will be heavily damaged if not outright OHKOed. Magnemite, much like Snover, fears Heat Wave but can hit Vullaby with STAB super effective Thunderbolt and won't be worn down by Sandstorm or Toxic. Misdreavus carrying Thunderbolt and Abra carrying Charge Beam can score surprise KOs on an unsuspecting Vullaby planning on defeating them. Pawniard can force Vullaby out if she's not running Heat Wave; even though Pawniard is not often able to hit Vullaby super effectively, it can set up on all of her common moves. As stated previously, Nasty Plot variants can be revenge killed with Ice Shard and other priority moves if at low enough health. If not set up, hitting Vullaby with special moves won't activate Weak Armor's Speed Boost, defeating the purpose of the set. Multi-hit moves will increase in damage after each hit thanks to Weak Armor activating; Skill Link Shellder excels at taking out Nasty Plot Vullaby with Icicle Spear, Rock Blast, or Ice Shard. All Vullaby variants rely a great deal on Eviolite to function. Knock Off, Switcheroo, and Trick will completely shut Vullaby down, cutting her defense instantly and making her much easier to defeat.</p>
