QC: Dat Blast | boltsandbombers | Deej Dy
GP: P Squared | Snobalt
[OVERVIEW]
Xatu was gifted with the ability Magic Bounce, which prevents it from being crippled by status and also allows it to act as a solid anti-entry hazard pivot. It also boasts reliable recovery in Roost and a rather colorful movepool, both of which allow it to fill a range of roles from a Calm Mind user to a U-turn pivot. Xatu generally works well on more balanced teams, acting as the team's main source of entry hazard control. However, its bulk isn't exactly amazing, even with investment, while its typing leaves it susceptible to many common attacking types such as Dark, Ghost, and Rock.
[SET]
name: Pivot
move 1: Psychic / Psyshock
move 2: Roost
move 3: Giga Drain / Heat Wave
move 4: U-turn
item: Colbur Berry / Rocky Helmet
ability: Magic Bounce
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Psychic is the mandatory STAB option, doing decent damage to Fighting- and Poison-types such as Gurdurr, Weezing, Vileplume, and Garbodor despite no investment. Psyshock is a similar STAB move, but it hits foes on the Defense stat as opposed to the Special Defense stat, which gives Xatu the ability to do more damage to Pokemon such as Assault Vest Hariyama, Cryogonal, and Mantine. Roost is necessary given that Xatu will be pivoting in and out frequently and allows Xatu to stay healthy and function as a great anti-entry hazard and anti-status pivot. Giga Drain is used for its super effective coverage against common Stealth Rock setters such as Rhydon, and it also lets Xatu restore health. Heat Wave is another solid option to do critical damage to Pawniard, Ferroseed, Mawile, and Klinklang (also breaking the Substitutes of the last). Thunder Wave is an option to prevent Pokemon such as Lilligant from setting up on Xatu for free. U-turn is crucial to the success of the set, allowing Xatu to pivot around and gain momentum for the team and working fantastically in tandem with Magic Bounce.
Set Details
========
A spread of 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 Spe with a Timid nature gives Xatu some much-needed physical bulk, and allows it to outspeed Adamant Gallade and Adamant Sawk. An alternate spread using 200 HP EVs and 252 Defense EVs keep Xatu as bulky as possible and allow it to switch into Stealth Rock four times, while 56 Speed EVs with a Bold nature allow Xatu to outspeed neutral-natured base 70 Speed Pokemon such as Mantine, Samurott, and Ludicolo. Colbur Berry makes Xatu a much more reliable Fighting-type check and lets Xatu survive the occasional Pursuit or Knock Off from Pokemon such as Choice Band Sneasel. Rocky Helmet is also an option to slowly wear down foes that make contact with Xatu as it pivots in and finds moments to Roost off the damage. Leftovers is also an option to slightly increases Xatu's longevity. Magic Bounce bounces back entry hazards such as Stealth Rock and prevents status moves such as Taunt and Toxic from stopping recovery or crippling Xatu or its team with status.
Usage Tips
========
Xatu can bounce back entry hazards with Magic Bounce, but it must be wary of switching in on entry hazard setters that carry super effective coverage that could dispatch it. Xatu should also be used and switched in throughout the entirety of the game to reflect entry hazards and status moves whenever the opportunity presents itself. Psychic should be used to whittle down opposing Pokemon that cannot threaten Xatu, but it shouldn't be used as much if the opponent has a Dark-type Pokemon that can get a free switch. When predicting a foe to switch in, Xatu should generally try to hit it with a coverage move or simply U-turn out to catch momentum and shift into a more favorable matchup. Against faster Pokemon that could possibly threaten Xatu with super effective coverage, it is better to hard switch to avoid the risk of damage instead of using U-turn.
Team Options
========
Gurdurr and Sawk are good partners, as Xatu has trouble with Dark-, Rock-, and Ice-types such as Liepard, Sneasel, Pawniard, which can all KO it without much trouble. Sawk also appreciates Xatu's ability to block entry hazards, which keeps Sturdy intact. Rhydon is a good partner as it resists Rock and is immune to Electric, which prevents Volt Switch users such as Rotom from getting momentum off of Xatu. Lanturn is a similarly strong partner, as it is one of the only Pokemon to resist the famous Ice + Electric combo, both of which hit Xatu for super effective damage; Xatu also forms a VoltTurn core with Lanturn. Lanturn shuts down opposing Volt Switch users with Volt Absorb, while Xatu resists Grass and is immune to Ground. Liepard, Sneasel, and Pawniard, which Xatu dislikes to face, are ironically good partners, as they can use Knock Off or Pursuit to trap pesky Psychic- or Ghost-types, while Xatu covers their Fighting-type weakness and prevents entry hazards from going up, something Sneasel enjoys. Liepard itself can run U-turn to provide more momentum as well. Grass-types such as Lilligant resist Electric-type moves and are useful to take on bulky Rock-types, which Xatu can occasionally struggle to KO. Naturally, any Pokemon that has a weakness to Stealth Rock such as Scyther, Pyroar, or Vivilion, is a good teammate, as it appreciates Xatu's ability to keep entry hazards, which would otherwise severely cripple, it off the field.
[SET]
name: Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Roost
move 3: Psyshock
move 4: Heat Wave / Signal Beam
item: Colbur Berry / Leftovers
ability: Magic Bounce
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Calm Mind allows Xatu to boost its uninvested Special Attack and Special Defense stats, giving it the ability to break down or sweep the opponent's team after attaining enough boosts. Roost is necessary for reliable recovery, giving Xatu 50% of its health back and keeping it healthy throughout the match. The preferred STAB move is Psyshock, which hits Pokemon on their Defense stat as opposed to their Special Defense stat, doing significantly more damage to foes such as Mantine. Stored Power is an option that should mainly be used in tandem with Pokemon with Baton Passers such as Gorebyss, as Xatu can then use Stored Power to deal tremendous damage to even foes that resist it. Heat Wave should be used if one needs to KO Steel-types that can tank Psyshock or Stored Power such as Ferroseed and Klinklang. Signal Beam is mainly used to beat Malamar and other Psychic- or Dark-types. Giga Drain is also a notable option to beat both Quagsire and Rhydon.
Set Details
=======
A spread of 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 Spe with a Timid nature gives Xatu some much-needed physical bulk, and allows it to outspeed Adamant Gallade and Adamant Sawk. An alternate spread of 200 HP EVs and 252 Defense EVs keep Xatu as bulky as possible while still allowing it to switch into Stealth Rock four times, while 56 Speed EVs with a Bold nature allow Xatu to outspeed neutral-natured base 70 Speed Pokemon such as Mantine, Samurott, and Ludicolo. Colbur Berry allows Xatu to survive one super effective Dark-type attack. Leftovers is also an option that increases Xatu's longevity. Magic Bounce is the ability of choice to bounce back entry hazards as well as status moves, and it also allows Xatu to boost without the fear of being crippled by status or phazed with Roar or Whirlwind.
Usage Tips
========
Xatu should mainly attempt to break through the Pokemon it checks, as its typing and bulk aren't the greatest and the chance of a sweep happening against offense is minimal. Xatu should try to set up against Pokemon it threatens such as Weezing, which can't inflict status on it or set up entry hazards while it's on the field. Calm Mind Xatu should be used in an effort to trample stall teams due to Magic Bounce negating most phazing attempts and status inflictions. Psyshock and Stored Power are preferred over Psychic, as they can help Xatu win Calm Mind wars; Psyshock also strikes Pokemon with a high Special Defense stat, such as Cryogonal and Mantine, on their weaker Defense. Be wary of setting up against Pokemon that carry moves with secondary effects, such as Scald and Sludge Bomb, as they could cripple Xatu and make it much more difficult to set up. Xatu can also beat Calm Mind Mega Audino by boosting along with it and then dispatching it with Psyshock. However, Xatu should not try to set up against other Calm Mind users with better bulk, such as Uxie and Musharna.
Team Options
========
Sawk and Gurdurr can defeat Dark-, Rock-, and Steel-types such as Pawniard, Liepard, and Kilnklang, which Xatu can't touch if it lacks the appropriate coverage move, and Sawk's Sturdy can be kept intact due to Xatu's Magic Bounce. Lanturn can take Ice- and Electric-type attacks, KO Rock-types with its STAB Water-type moves, and help Xatu enter the field safely with Volt Switch. Pawniard, Liepard, and Sneasel are good partners, as they can use their STAB Knock Off and Pursuit to deal with Psychic-types that Xatu cannot sufficiently hurt during its setup, while Xatu resists any Fighting-type moves thrown their way. Gorebyss has access to Shell Smash and Baton Pass, and because Xatu can't be phazed with Roar or Whirlwind or crippled with paralysis and has access to a ridiculously powerful move in Stored Power, they make good partners. Another good teammate is Thick Fat Hariyama, which can tank Rock- and Ice-type moves aimed at Xatu and is also bulky enough to take most special attacks that Xatu can't survive without any Calm Minds up.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Xatu has a variety of support moves it can use, such as Tailwind to boost its team's Speed for four turns and dual screens to allow a teammate to set up. Haze is another option that nullifies any stat changes made on the field, allowing Xatu to stop some setup sweepers. Shadow Ball is an option that strikes Ghost-types harder than any other move Xatu has and could find itself on an offensive Life Orb variant of Xatu. Trick + Choice Scarf can be used to cripple certain defensive walls the opponent might have and allows Xatu to act as a revenge killer before using Trick. Night Shade is an option to deal a consistent 100 damage, allowing Xatu to slowly whittle down most foes at the cost of doing nothing to Normal-types. Toxic is a status move that Xatu can put to good work as it pivots around to break down walls.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dark-types**: Pawniard, Liepard, Sneasel, and Cacturne can KO Xatu with Dark-type STAB moves and threaten it with Pursuit, and Sucker Punch alleviates any Speed problems; however, they all need to be wary of switching in, as Xatu can damage them all with either U-turn or Heat Wave.
**Calm Mind Psychic-types**: Psychic-types such as Uxie, Musharna, and Mesprit can take some hits from Xatu's Calm Mind set assuming it lacks Signal Beam, but they need Calm Mind or super effective coverage moves such as Shadow Ball and Thunderbolt to do anything significant back.
**Super Effective Moves**: Archeops, Sneasel, Mismagius, Jynx, and Rotom are some Pokemon that carry super effective moves that can make quick work of most Xatu that haven't set up; however, Xatu often has a move that can 2HKO them or neuter them with status, making switching in sometimes difficult.
**Strong Attackers**: Strong attackers such as Magmortar and Pyroar can quickly decimate almost any Xatu, while it cannot 2HKO them in return, but Xatu can use U-turn on the switch to create a more advantageous matchup.
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