If you read the Growlithe build I posted last week, you'll recall I promised to post with it a good partner for Doubles. Here it is, the build for a Luxray!
Volt Switch
Helping Hand
Snarl
Thunder Wave
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Modest
IVs: 31 HP, 31 Defense, 31 Sp. Defense (if Gen VI, add in Sp. Attack and Speed)
EVs: 252 HP, 128 Defense, 128 Sp. Defense
Look familiar? Yes, it is essentially the same as the Arcanine, just modified for Luxray. But that's what makes it such a great partner for him. You can double up the stat drops with this duo. At the start of battle: both enemy Pokemon have their Attack dropped 2 stages just from the Intimidate. Snarl hits both targets, so if you have Luxray and Arcanine use it, both opposing Pokemon have their Sp. Attack dropped two stages. Is a Pokemon too fast? Paralyze it with Thunder Wave. Volt Switch is a great way to switch out, dealing decent damage and getting to use another Intimidate at the same time (if there was a Fire-type switch out move I'd have said that for Arcanine). If you're not feeling Thunder Wave or Helping Hand, perhaps Swagger would be a good choice for you, Confuse them and give them back their original power. As for items, I have Arcanine hold the Sitrus Berry and Luxray hold the Leftovers, since two Pokemon cannot hold the same item in the Battle Subway/Maison.
You might think "what about Pokemon immune to stat drops, that have the ability Hyper Cutter, Clear Body, or White Smoke?" Well, if you look them up, you'll see the vast majority of them are weak to either Fire or Electric type attacks. In fact, only Gliscor, Torkoal, and Regirock are not weak to either type attack (and Carbink in Gen VI, but he's more defensive anyhow, no need to lower his offensive stats). Use whichever move is appropriate, have the other Helping Hand it, and it shouldn't be much more of a problem for you. And even still, the stat decrease from Burn will still apply. And the bulk of all Pokemon with these Abilities are slow so you wouldn't have to really choose between Burn or Paralyze, Burn is typically the better option (I'd say Paralyze Tentacruel, he's the only one with real Speed). Gliscor is the only one that poses a real threat given his Attack, Speed, and immunity to Thunder Wave, but he has low Sp. Defense and takes normal damage from Flame Burst. Helping Hand the Flame Burst and the problem should go down pretty quick. Contrary is another ability that poses a problem, but again, the only ones that the duo can't take out are really Malamar & DW Shuckle, and that can be dealt with through a nice Burn.
You have to breed for Helping Hand, but if your Arcanine is male, you can use that as your father and breed quite easily. A father-son duo to best the rest!
Just like the Arcanine, the Luxray is easily adapted to Single Battles, just replace Helping Hand with another move, maybe Swagger or Toxic (and if you go for Toxic, maybe swap Thunder Wave for Protect to stall out the enemy, up to you). Switch between Arcanine and Luxray to rack up those Intimidate stat drops.
This Luxray works really well with the Arcanine build, and can make even Arceus himself into a sickly old man!
Brock out.
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Growlithe, the Puppy Pokemon: Redux
I know I already did Growlithe, but he's so versatile, I had to make another one. This is far more defensive than my other Growlithe build, which you can find here.
Flame Burst
Helping Hand
Snarl
Will-o-Wisp/Morning Sun
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Modest (-Attack, + Sp. Attack)
IVs: 31 HP, 31 Defense, 31 Sp. Defense (if in Gen VI, add in Sp. Attack and Speed).
EVs: 252 HP, 128 Defense, 128 Sp. Defense
This was a build designed for Double Battles, aiming to support whichever partner Pokemon you choose (I'll be posting a good partner for it in the next few days). With Intimidate, both of the opponent's Pokemon have their Attack lowered by one stage. Snarl can be used to deal moderate damage to both opposing Pokemon, and lower their Sp. Attack by one stage each. Helping Hand is obviously to boost your partner's attack, whatever it may be. Flame Burst is for a decent STAB that will also cause the nontargeted opponent to take a small amount of damage as well (1/8 to be exact, great for those times when the opponent has a Pokemon that Focus Sashed the last turn). The extra damage of Flame Burst is typeless as well, so you can use it on anything, even if it has Flash Fire. Will-o-Wisp is for Burning physical attackers to cut their attack in half, while Morning Sun would be for healing yourself, whichever you prefer. I personally use Will-o-Wisp, since that would help defend my team as a whole, while Morning Sun only helps Arcanine.
No breeding for moves is necessary with this guy, unless you want to evolve him at level 1 with a Fire Stone, in which case you'd have to breed two Growlithes that both know Flame Burst & Helping Hand (Snarl & Will-o-Wisp are TMs). For Morning Sun, just use the same method from the other Arcanine build I posted.
This build can also be modified to Single Battles, just replace Flame Burst with a stronger Fire attack, and Helping Hand with Morning Sun or Fire Spin. Switch out and back in to continue activating Intimidate, if necessary.
As always, sorry for my inactivity. On the plus side, I've recorded some videos of some of the Pokemon I've shared on this blog, so I can put them up soon, probably under a separate label.
Brock out.
Flame Burst
Helping Hand
Snarl
Will-o-Wisp/Morning Sun
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: Modest (-Attack, + Sp. Attack)
IVs: 31 HP, 31 Defense, 31 Sp. Defense (if in Gen VI, add in Sp. Attack and Speed).
EVs: 252 HP, 128 Defense, 128 Sp. Defense
This was a build designed for Double Battles, aiming to support whichever partner Pokemon you choose (I'll be posting a good partner for it in the next few days). With Intimidate, both of the opponent's Pokemon have their Attack lowered by one stage. Snarl can be used to deal moderate damage to both opposing Pokemon, and lower their Sp. Attack by one stage each. Helping Hand is obviously to boost your partner's attack, whatever it may be. Flame Burst is for a decent STAB that will also cause the nontargeted opponent to take a small amount of damage as well (1/8 to be exact, great for those times when the opponent has a Pokemon that Focus Sashed the last turn). The extra damage of Flame Burst is typeless as well, so you can use it on anything, even if it has Flash Fire. Will-o-Wisp is for Burning physical attackers to cut their attack in half, while Morning Sun would be for healing yourself, whichever you prefer. I personally use Will-o-Wisp, since that would help defend my team as a whole, while Morning Sun only helps Arcanine.
No breeding for moves is necessary with this guy, unless you want to evolve him at level 1 with a Fire Stone, in which case you'd have to breed two Growlithes that both know Flame Burst & Helping Hand (Snarl & Will-o-Wisp are TMs). For Morning Sun, just use the same method from the other Arcanine build I posted.
This build can also be modified to Single Battles, just replace Flame Burst with a stronger Fire attack, and Helping Hand with Morning Sun or Fire Spin. Switch out and back in to continue activating Intimidate, if necessary.
As always, sorry for my inactivity. On the plus side, I've recorded some videos of some of the Pokemon I've shared on this blog, so I can put them up soon, probably under a separate label.
Brock out.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Gen VI Updated EV Training
So I got Pokemon X for Christmas, beat it the other day, it was a very enjoyable experience. Now for an update on EV Training! There are two effective manners of EV Training in these games.
The simplest is the Super Training. Located on your bottom screen, it's pretty self-explanatory, and yo do not need any of the fancy stuff to do it. You play a little mini-game that will reward you with 4, 8, or 12 EVs depending on which level of the game you play. As an additional reward for winning the mini-game, you get a training bag. There are a good variety of training bags, and breaking them will give certain rewards or perks. The more common bags give you extra EVs; a small (S) bag gives you 1 EV in the listed stat, a medium (M) gives you 4 EVs, and a large (L) gives you 12 EVs.
There are also bonus bags that you may get that are less common. The Double-Up Bag doubles the EVs you get from your next mini-game, so if you activate this bag and win a lv 1 game, you'll get 8 EVs, and 16 EVs for a lv 2 game, and 24 EVs for a lv 3 game. A Reset Bag will reset all of the EVs the Pokemon has, so you may restart a Pokemon's EVs to zero and start again if you decide to change them. A Soothing Bag will increase the Pokemon's happiness. The Team Flare Bag makes it easier to defeat other training bags, and the remaining bags (Swiftness Bag, Toughen-Up Bag, Strength Bag, and Big Shot Bag) all make the mini-game easier. None of the EVs given by the mini-game or training bags are affected by Pokerus or the Power Items.
The other method is making use of the Horde Encounters. You can trigger one of these through the use of Honey, or using Sweet Scent outside of battle (NOTE: the in-game weather must be clear for this to work). Each of the Pokemon you fight in the Horde Encounter will give EVs, and these EVs will be affected by Pokerus and the Power Items. For example, if you fight a horde of Axews, you will get 1 Attack EV for each of the Axews, 10 EVs each if you have the Pokerus and Power Item. Therefore, defeating all 5 of the Axews in the horde will grant you 50 Attack EVs. Defeating a horde becomes significantly easier if you have a multi-hit move, such as Surf or Rock Slide.
Unlike in the Gen V games, there are no set routes in which only Attack EV Pokemon reside, so these are your best options. Certainly if the weather is not permitting it, the Horde Encounter option is off the table. If you do not like the mini-game, Horde is your better option. I myself prefer the Super Training method, just because it's more engaging in my opinion. Try both and see which one you prefer!
Brock out.
The simplest is the Super Training. Located on your bottom screen, it's pretty self-explanatory, and yo do not need any of the fancy stuff to do it. You play a little mini-game that will reward you with 4, 8, or 12 EVs depending on which level of the game you play. As an additional reward for winning the mini-game, you get a training bag. There are a good variety of training bags, and breaking them will give certain rewards or perks. The more common bags give you extra EVs; a small (S) bag gives you 1 EV in the listed stat, a medium (M) gives you 4 EVs, and a large (L) gives you 12 EVs.
There are also bonus bags that you may get that are less common. The Double-Up Bag doubles the EVs you get from your next mini-game, so if you activate this bag and win a lv 1 game, you'll get 8 EVs, and 16 EVs for a lv 2 game, and 24 EVs for a lv 3 game. A Reset Bag will reset all of the EVs the Pokemon has, so you may restart a Pokemon's EVs to zero and start again if you decide to change them. A Soothing Bag will increase the Pokemon's happiness. The Team Flare Bag makes it easier to defeat other training bags, and the remaining bags (Swiftness Bag, Toughen-Up Bag, Strength Bag, and Big Shot Bag) all make the mini-game easier. None of the EVs given by the mini-game or training bags are affected by Pokerus or the Power Items.
The other method is making use of the Horde Encounters. You can trigger one of these through the use of Honey, or using Sweet Scent outside of battle (NOTE: the in-game weather must be clear for this to work). Each of the Pokemon you fight in the Horde Encounter will give EVs, and these EVs will be affected by Pokerus and the Power Items. For example, if you fight a horde of Axews, you will get 1 Attack EV for each of the Axews, 10 EVs each if you have the Pokerus and Power Item. Therefore, defeating all 5 of the Axews in the horde will grant you 50 Attack EVs. Defeating a horde becomes significantly easier if you have a multi-hit move, such as Surf or Rock Slide.
Unlike in the Gen V games, there are no set routes in which only Attack EV Pokemon reside, so these are your best options. Certainly if the weather is not permitting it, the Horde Encounter option is off the table. If you do not like the mini-game, Horde is your better option. I myself prefer the Super Training method, just because it's more engaging in my opinion. Try both and see which one you prefer!
Brock out.
Monday, January 6, 2014
Corphish, the Ruffian Pokemon
Crawdaunt is a beastly attacker with his Dream World ability. With the proper breeding, he can wreak all sorts of havoc on your opponents. The build I suggest is the following:
Crabhammer
Night Slash
Dragon Dance
Aerial Ace/Superpower
IVs: 31 Attack, 31 Defense, 31 Speed
EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 HP
Have him hold a Focus Sash. The first turn you use Dragon Dance to boost Speed and Attack, and then you are set up to sweep most anything. The Adaptability ability changes the STAB from x1.5 to x2, meaning Crabhammer and Night Slash are 180 and 140 power respectively with no modification. After a single Dragon Dance, they become 270 and 210 respectively, and that is backed by Crawdaunts impressive base Attack stat of 120. Not only that, but with the right Nature, he becomes faster than most other Pokemon, pretty much anything under 110 base. Most things faster than that have poor defenses anyhow, so just hit then before they hit you first, since the Focus Sash affords you a free turn. His 4th moveslot is really up to personal preference. I opted for Aerial Ace so I would have a move that never misses, and to hit pesky Grass types like Shiftry and Meganium. However, that super effective Aerial Ace is not as strong as a one-type resisted Crabhammer or Night Slash, so you may prefer something with more power. Superpower could fill that void, but remember it lowers Attack and Defense 1 stage each. There are other options, but these are the better ones in my opinion.
How do you get this bully of a Pokemon?
(1) Breed a female DW Corphish with a male Feraligatr that knows Dragon Dance (an Egg Move) and Superpower if you want that (level up, or you can use a B2W2 move tutor for it later). If you don't want Superpower, you can use a Horsea for breeding, as it learns Dragon Dance through level up.
(2) Aim for a Jolly Nature. Teach it Aerial Ace via the respective TM if desired.
I'll have a video of this beast up shortly, he is just ferocious.
Brock out.
Crabhammer
Night Slash
Dragon Dance
Aerial Ace/Superpower
IVs: 31 Attack, 31 Defense, 31 Speed
EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 HP
Have him hold a Focus Sash. The first turn you use Dragon Dance to boost Speed and Attack, and then you are set up to sweep most anything. The Adaptability ability changes the STAB from x1.5 to x2, meaning Crabhammer and Night Slash are 180 and 140 power respectively with no modification. After a single Dragon Dance, they become 270 and 210 respectively, and that is backed by Crawdaunts impressive base Attack stat of 120. Not only that, but with the right Nature, he becomes faster than most other Pokemon, pretty much anything under 110 base. Most things faster than that have poor defenses anyhow, so just hit then before they hit you first, since the Focus Sash affords you a free turn. His 4th moveslot is really up to personal preference. I opted for Aerial Ace so I would have a move that never misses, and to hit pesky Grass types like Shiftry and Meganium. However, that super effective Aerial Ace is not as strong as a one-type resisted Crabhammer or Night Slash, so you may prefer something with more power. Superpower could fill that void, but remember it lowers Attack and Defense 1 stage each. There are other options, but these are the better ones in my opinion.
How do you get this bully of a Pokemon?
(1) Breed a female DW Corphish with a male Feraligatr that knows Dragon Dance (an Egg Move) and Superpower if you want that (level up, or you can use a B2W2 move tutor for it later). If you don't want Superpower, you can use a Horsea for breeding, as it learns Dragon Dance through level up.
(2) Aim for a Jolly Nature. Teach it Aerial Ace via the respective TM if desired.
I'll have a video of this beast up shortly, he is just ferocious.
Brock out.
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