Sunday, October 9, 2011

Pokemon of the Week: Borderline?

Okay so sorry I didn't post up a poll on Monday to ask you guys for the next suggestions, because I had a little homework to finish up all week. Anyways, here is this week's POTW, a scary and Intimidating bird that's not quite OU, but BL, here is our 14'th Pokemon of the Week, Staraptor.


Predator Pokemon, Staraptor
 Overview:
Staraptor was never a favorite of mine in fourth gen, as it was used by nearly every single player that didn't play (respectively) competitively. Despite that fact, I would've probably used Staraptor also, but there were holes on my old team I had to cover up. *Cough Heatran* Anyways, he was introduced in fourth gen, and I'm pretty sure he was OU then. As fifth generation was introduced, Staraptor got one niche, his Dream World ability, Reckless. Other than this, Staraptor hasn't gotten any big changes to his use. He boasts a powerful STAB Brave Bird, and also a crushing STAB Double-Edge. He also gets access to the almighty Close Combat, which allowed Staraptor to OHKO and 2HKO walling steels. All this leads to his categorization, which is BL, or borderline.

Abilities:
Intimidate: Lower's the opponent's attack by one stage upon entering the battle: it's a very useful ability in some perspectives, although I prefer the other one.
Reckless: Raises the power of all recoil moves by 20%: this is where I think Staraptor gets it's new toys for fifth gen. Although it forces Staraptor to die quickly, this set can be used, rather to dent teams largely.

Moveset(s):

Anti-Lead:
Moves:
-Brave Bird
-Close Combat
-Double Edge
-U-Turn
Nature: Jolly
EV'S: 252 attack, 252 speed, 4 sp. defense
Item: Choice Band
Ability: Reckless/Intimidate

This set as I said before, is primarily used to dent large holes into the opponent's team. Staraptor boasts an excellent attack and speed, and it is used importantly in this set. Base 100 speed means speed tieing with other variants such as Jirachi, Celebi, and other Pokemon. Your nature allows you to outspeed all of them, if they do not have a speed boosting nature. Your main moves in this set are Brave Bird and Close Combat. Brave Bird is an excellent STAB move, and if you are running the Reckless ability, it has so much devastating power. Close Combat can 2HKO most of the steels in the OU and UU metagame, and OHKO's threats like Magnezone. Double Edge is another amazingly powerful STAB attack, but doesn't provide much coverage, as it is just for attacking. U-Turn is your scouting move, if you predict a switch in such as Espeon or Starmie, as they are threats that can OHKO Staraptor. Intimidate can be used if you want more support, but other than that, Reckless is the better go-to.

SUGGESTED SET(S):
***Pastrybomb
The only thing that can stop him from wreaking havoc on a weakened team is his speed. This set is usually used as the scout, and can destroy unprepared teams.

Item: Choice Scarf
EV's: 252 Atk/252 Speed/4Defense
Nature: Jolly/Adamant


~ Brave Bird
~ Close Combat
~ Return / Double-Edge
~ U-turn

One of Staraptor's obstacles to performing a successful sweep is the fact that there are many threats that can still outspeed and KO him before he can successfully land a hit. Giving Staraptor a Choice Scarf promptly eliminates this problem. By holding a Choice Scarf, it gains the ability to outspeed and take out its normal counters, yet still maintain a powerful offensive presence. Because of Staraptor's already high Attack and Speed, it can revenge or surprise kill many unsuspecting setup threats and would-be counters. Due to high Speed, Choice Scarf Staraptor can also make a great lead; unlike its Choice Band counterpart, Staraptor can now eliminate faster threats and limit set up.

In contrast to some alternative revenge killers and scouts, Staraptor is not offensively weak and can actually serve multiple roles on a team with just one of its moves. Brave Bird, as always, is a reliable STAB that can be used consistently, despite recoil. The only type that commonly resists the powerful Brave Bird are the Steel- and Rock-types, which can be easily handled with team members or Close Combat, and Electric-types, which can be taken care of by repeated switch-ins to Staraptor's Normal-type STAB move of choice. In addition to Brave Bird, Return or Double-Edge can be used alongside it to provide a powerful Normal-type STAB. Return is a reliable move that can pick off weakened opponents, whereas Double-Edge is basically a Normal-type version of Brave Bird with different coverage. Keep in mind that since this set is weaker than his other sets, Close Combat should be used only on weathered Rock- and Steel-types.

Unlike the previous set, U-turn is crucial here so Staraptor can take advantage of its Speed and act more as a scout and revenge killer. U-turn is a fantastic utility move that can throw the momentum of the battle into the user's favor. In addition, certain—if not most—Pokemon faster than Staraptor are hit super-effectively by U-turn, so it can make a dent by predicting switch-ins and U-turning to the appropriate counter. The scouting method should be used early-game so Staraptor will not easily stopped by bulky attackers.

4 comments:

  1. You need to put a Choice Scarf set for this guy. The only thing that can stop him from wreaking havoc on a weakened team is his speed. This set is usually used as the scout, and can destroy unprepared teams.

    Item: Choice Scarf
    EV's: 252 Atk/252 Speed/4Defense
    Nature: Jolly/Adamant


    ~ Brave Bird
    ~ Close Combat
    ~ Return / Double-Edge
    ~ U-turn

    One of Staraptor's obstacles to performing a successful sweep is the fact that there are many threats that can still outspeed and KO him before he can successfully land a hit. Giving Staraptor a Choice Scarf promptly eliminates this problem. By holding a Choice Scarf, it gains the ability to outspeed and take out its normal counters, yet still maintain a powerful offensive presence. Because of Staraptor's already high Attack and Speed, it can revenge or surprise kill many unsuspecting setup threats and would-be counters. Due to high Speed, Choice Scarf Staraptor can also make a great lead; unlike its Choice Band counterpart, Staraptor can now eliminate faster threats and limit set up.

    In contrast to some alternative revenge killers and scouts, Staraptor is not offensively weak and can actually serve multiple roles on a team with just one of its moves. Brave Bird, as always, is a reliable STAB that can be used consistently, despite recoil. The only type that commonly resists the powerful Brave Bird are the Steel- and Rock-types, which can be easily handled with team members or Close Combat, and Electric-types, which can be taken care of by repeated switch-ins to Staraptor's Normal-type STAB move of choice. In addition to Brave Bird, Return or Double-Edge can be used alongside it to provide a powerful Normal-type STAB. Return is a reliable move that can pick off weakened opponents, whereas Double-Edge is basically a Normal-type version of Brave Bird with different coverage. Keep in mind that since this set is weaker than his other sets, Close Combat should be used only on weathered Rock- and Steel-types.

    Unlike the previous set, U-turn is crucial here so Staraptor can take advantage of its Speed and act more as a scout and revenge killer. U-turn is a fantastic utility move that can throw the momentum of the battle into the user's favor. In addition, certain—if not most—Pokemon faster than Staraptor are hit super-effectively by U-turn, so it can make a dent by predicting switch-ins and U-turning to the appropriate counter. The scouting method should be used early-game so Staraptor will not easily stopped by bulky attackers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How long does it take for you to write these genius PKMN sets? Write me one, I can use it to drop a BOMB on someone. Bad joke, sorry...

      Who's that Pokemon?
      It's MEH! (MEH, MEH)

      Delete
    2. Wow lol. This is actually the set I use right now. I prefer the speed over devastating power, because Staraptor can really sweep without a Choice Band anyways, and it needs the speed to outspeed some any other max speed base 100's out there. SUCH AS MEW COUGHCOUGH.

      Delete
  2. Thanks Pastry... I got kinda lazy, so I didn't post this set up, even thought it's great. The only change I would make is letting go of the slash of Jolly and Adamant, and I would choose Adamant, as despite Staraptor's already nice attack, it needs more help ofensively, scout-wise and revenge killer-wise. Also.... you forgot to include the ability you would opt for. I'm assuming it's Reckless though, seeing as Initmidate sometimes forces switches to physical counters.

    ReplyDelete

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