Shiftry (QC 1/3)

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etern

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NU Leader
[OVERVIEW]
  • Shiftry has a great offensive typing, solid stats, and access to the both Knock Off and Explosion, making it a nuisance for defensive teams to deal with.
  • STAB Sucker Punch gives Shiftry a way of circumventing it's average speed while also threatening faster Pokemon such as Sceptile, Sigilyph, Accelgor, and Delphox.
  • Moreover, Shiftry is one of the better offensive users of Defog in the tier, giving it a niche on offensive teams that need a Water-type check and hazard control in one slot.
  • However, Shiftry suffers from poor bulk, vulnerability to every entry hazard, and a reliance on Life Orb to maximize it's mixed attacking potential, thus it can get worn down extremely quickly and is unable to take even strong neutral hits.
  • Shiftry also suffers massive competition from fellow Grass-types such as Sceptile, Rotom-Mow, Whimsicott, Lurantis, and Virizion, as well as Dark-types such as Sneasel and Houndoom which all offer more distinct niches and consistently more appealing advantages to a team.
  • Therefore, Shiftry should only be used on specific teams which need it's niche of being as a unique mixed wallbreaker that can also remove hazards off the field.
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Leaf Storm
move 4: Defog
item: Life Orb
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Naive
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Knock Off is a strong STAB move that cripples a lot of Pokemon, removing their items, making it annoying to switch into.
  • Sucker Punch is a STAB priority move which lets Shiftry hit Pokemon faster than itself such as Sceptile, Accelgor, and Choice Scarf Delphox.
  • Leaf Storm deals tremendous damage to bulky Rock-, Ground-, and Water-types in the tier such as Regirock, Rhydon, and Slowbro.
  • Defog allows Shiftry to clear the field of entry hazards, providing valuable team support for various entry hazard-weak Pokemon such as Delphox and Vanilluxe.
  • Explosion is a viable option to let Shiftry break past Pokemon including Toxicroak, Garbodor, Golbat, Vileplume, Incineroar, Vikavolt, and Scrafty.
  • Hurricane is an alternative which destroys Grass-types like Virizion and Whimsicott on the switch, however it is unreliable due to low accuracy, and does not hit the wide range of targets which Explosion does.

Set Details
========
  • Maximum Attack investment powers up Shiftry's Dark-type moves, making it difficult to switch into.
  • A Naive nature with maximum Speed investment gives Shiftry the opportunity to speed tie with positive natured Braviary, Mesprit, and Medicham as well as outspeeding Pokemon such as Vanilluxe, Raticate-Alola, and Jolly Samurott.
  • 4 Special Attack EVs slightly increase the damage output of Leaf Storm.
  • Life Orb is used to maximize Shiftry's mixed wallbreaking power.
  • Chlorophyll is the preferred ability as it allows Shiftry to outspeed sweepers such as Victreebell and Charizard under Sun.
Usage Tips
========
  • Shiftry should only be brought in on free switches or through slow pivots as it is rather frail and weak to common attacking-types.
  • Once Shiftry in safely on the field it can throw out a powerful Knock Off to cripple it's counters or nail Dark-type resistant foes with Leaf Storm.
  • Shiftry can be brought in on predicted Psychic-type moves such as Slowbro's Psyshock as well as Slowking and Sigilyph's Psychic, however it must be wary of switching into coverage moves which can KO it.
  • Shiftry should either attempt to Defog versus Pokemon which it threatens out like Slowbro, Rhydon, and Rotom-Mow or if necessary sacrifice itself in order to get hazards off the field in emergency situations.
  • Click Sucker Punch against faster Pokemon including Sceptile, Accelgor, and Delphox to threaten the KO.

Team Options
========
  • Delphox, Emboar, and other Fire-types are great partners which appreciate Shiftry's ability to threaten common Water-types and Defog hazards away. Likewise these Fire-types can destroy Grass-type Pokemon like Virizion and Vileplume which would otherwise trouble Shiftry.
  • As Shiftry is weak to Fighting-type moves, Psychic-types would make fantastic partners, for example Choice Scarf Mesprit which provides Healing Wish support, Slowbro and Slowking which additional check Fire-types, and even Uxie which can set up Stealth Rock to weaken Shiftry's switch-ins.
  • Flying-types such as Vivillon, Archeops, and Dodrio support Shiftry well by eliminating Fighting-types and in return Shiftry can break down bulky Rock- and Ground-types for them as well as clear hazards.
  • Steelix can take on Fairy-types which wall Shifty and in return it can break Water-types like Vaporeon, Slowbro, and Jellicent.
  • Finally, powerful wallbreakers such as Emboar, Vanilluxe, and Vikavolt work well in tandem with Shiftry to destroy defensive cores and harass Stall teams.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Swords Dance is an option which can make Shiftry quite threatening to deal with for offensive teams, however apart from it's access to priority, it is outclassed by Virizion.
  • Choice Specs can surprise some counters such as Garbodor, Weezing, and Vileplume, however it is too slow and without Knock Off and Sucker Punch Shiftry loses a lot of it's viability.
  • Tailwind doubles the Speed of Shiftry and its teammates for three usable turns, but Shiftry struggles to find opportunities to set it up.
  • Growth is an option on sun teams, although Shiftry struggles to find many set-up opportunities and would rather attack straight up.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types such as Hariyama, Scrafty, and Toxicroak can shrug off Shiftry's STAB moves, however they dislike losing their items and can quickly get worn down due to a lack of recovery. Hitmonlee and Medicham cannot switch into Shiftry however they are able to OHKO it, though Medicham must be relatively healthy to stomach a Sucker Punch. Finally, Virizion completely walls Shiftry and can either use it as set-up fodder or KO it with Close Combat.

**Fairy-types**: Aromatisse and Mega Audino can easily switch into Shiftry throughout matches and OHKO it with their Fairy-type STAB or heal up with Wish. Granbull takes virtually nothing from Knock Off, however it must be wary of Leaf Storm which deals substantial amounts of damage to it. Finally, Togetic completely walls Shiftry, however it is not a good switch in as it abhors losing it's Eviolite.

**Poison-types**: Bulky Poison-types including Weezing, Vileplume, and Garbodor can comfortable take anything in Shiftry's arsenal and OHKO it with their STAB moves. Skuntank can also switch into Shiftry and use it as an opportunity to Defog away hazards. Finally, offensive Qwilfish can hammer Shiftry before it has a chance to attack while defensive variants can comfortably take Knock Off, unfortunately it cannot stomach a Life Orb Leaf Storm without becoming crippled beyond repair.

**Fire-types**: Emboar and Incineroar can easily stomach hits from Shiftry however they hates losing their items. Houndoom's fraility makes it difficult to switch in with Stealth Rock up, however it can revenge kill Shiftry up while resisting Sucker Punch.
 
Last edited:
you asked me so i'll go ahead, comments in bold
[OVERVIEW]
  • Shiftry has a great offensive typing, solid stats, and access to the both Knock Off and Explosion, making it a nuisance for defensive teams to deal with.
  • STAB Sucker Punch gives Shiftry a way of circumventing it's average speed while also threatening faster Pokemon such as Sceptile, Sigilyph, Accelgor, and Delphox.
  • Moreover, Shiftry is one of the better offensive users of Defog in the tier, giving it a niche on offensive teams that need a Water-type check and hazard control in one slot.
  • However, Shiftry suffers from poor bulk, vulnerability to every entry hazard, and a reliance on Life Orb to maximize it's mixed attacking potential, thus it can get worn down extremely quickly and is unable to take even strong neutral hits.
  • Shiftry also suffers massive competition from fellow Grass-types such as Sceptile, Rotom-Mow, Whimsicott, and Virizion, as well as Dark-types such as Sneasel and Drapion which all offer more distinct niches and consistently more appealing advantages to a team.
  • Therefore, Shiftry should only be used on specific teams which need it's niche of being as a unique mixed wallbreaker that can also remove hazards off the field.
  • good stuff but you should mention why you'd rather use it as an offensive defogger over lurantis, it's important to note imo
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Sucker Punch
move 3: Leaf Storm
move 4: Defog
item: Life Orb
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Naive
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Knock Off is a strong STAB move that cripples a lot of Pokemon, removing their items, making it annoying to switch into.
  • Sucker Punch is a STAB priority move which lets Shiftry hit Pokemon faster than itself such as Sceptile, Accelgor, and Choice Scarf Braviary. u could use more up-to-date examples
  • Leaf Storm deals tremendous damage to bulky Rock-, Ground-, and Water-types in the tier such as Regirock, Rhydon, and Slowbro.
  • Defog allows Shiftry to clear the field of entry hazards, providing valuable team support for various entry hazard-weak Pokemon such as Delphox and Vanilluxe.
  • Explosion is a viable option to let Shiftry break past Pokemon including Aromatisse, Garbodor, Golbat, Vileplume, Incineroar, Vikavolt, and Scrafty. maybe add toxicroak as well as mega audino
  • Hurricane is an alternative which destroys Grass-types like Virizion and Whimsicott on the switch, however it is unreliable due to low accuracy, and does not hit the wide range of targets which Explosion does.

Set Details
========
  • Maximum Attack investment powers up Shiftry's Dark-type moves, making it difficult to switch into.
  • A Naive nature with maximum Speed investment gives Shiftry the opportunity to speed tie with positive natured Braviary, Mesprit, and Medicham as well as outspeeding Pokemon such as Vanilluxe, Raticate-Alola, and Jolly Samurott.
  • 4 Special Attack EVs slightly increase the damage output of Leaf Storm.
  • Life Orb is used to maximize Shiftry's mixed wallbreaking power.
  • Chlorophyll is the preferred ability as it allows Shiftry to outspeed sweepers such as Victreebell and Charizard under Sun.
Usage Tips
========
  • Shiftry should only be brought in on free switches or through slow pivots as it is rather frail and weak to common attacking-types.
  • Once Shiftry in safely on the field it can throw out a powerful Knock Off to cripple it's counters or nail Dark-type resistant foes with Leaf Storm.
  • Shiftry can be brought in on predicted Psychic-type moves such as Slowbro's Psyshock as well as Slowking and Sigilyph's Psychic, however it must be wary of switching into coverage moves which can KO it.
  • Shiftry should either attempt to Defog versus Pokemon which it threatens out like Slowbro, Rhydon, and Rotom-Mow or if necessary sacrifice itself in order to get hazards off the field in emergency situations.
  • Click Sucker Punch against faster Pokemon including Sceptile, Accelgor, and Delphox to threaten the KO.

Team Options
========
  • Delphox, Emboar, and other Fire-types are great partners which appreciate Shiftry's ability to threaten common Water-types and Defog hazards away. Likewise these Fire-types can destroy Grass-type Pokemon like Virizion and Vileplume which would otherwise trouble Shiftry.
  • As Shiftry is weak to Fighting-type moves, Psychic-types would make fantastic partners, for example Choice Scarf Mesprit which provides Healing Wish support, Slowbro and Slowking which additional check Fire-types, and even Uxie which can set up Stealth Rock to weaken Shiftry's switch-ins.
  • Flying-types such as Vivillon, Archeops, and Dodrio support Shiftry well by eliminating Fighting-types and in return Shiftry can break down bulky Rock- and Ground-types for them as well as clear hazards.
  • Steelix can take on Fairy-types which wall Shifty and in return it can break Water-types like Vaporeon, Slowbro, and Jellicent.
  • Finally, powerful wallbreakers such as Emboar, Vanilluxe, and Vikavolt work well in tandem with Shiftry to destroy defensive cores and harass Stall teams.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Swords Dance is an option which can make Shiftry quite threatening to deal with for offensive teams, however apart from it's access to priority, it is outclassed by Virizion.
  • Choice Scarf hits a good Speed tier, and with dual STAB as well as Explosion and Rock Slide Shiftry can revenge kill a unique array of Pokemon. this sounds massively ass
  • Choice Specs can surprise some counters such as Garbodor, Weezing, and Vileplume, however it is too slow and without Knock Off and Sucker Punch Shiftry loses a lot of it's viability.
  • Tailwind doubles the Speed of Shiftry and its teammates for three usable turns, but Shiftry struggles to find opportunities to set it up.
  • Growth is an option on sun teams, although Shiftry struggles to find many set-up opportunities and would rather attack straight up.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types such as Hariyama, Emboar, Toxicroak, and Hitmontop can easily shrug off Shiftry's STAB moves, however they dislike losing their items and can quickly get worn down due to a lack of recovery. Hitmonlee and Medicham cannot switch into Shiftry however they are able to OHKO it, though Medicham must be relatively healthy to stomach a Sucker Punch. Finally, Virizion completely walls Shiftry and can either use it as set-up fodder or KO it with Close Combat.

**Fairy-types**: Aromatisse and Mega Audino can easily switch into Shiftry throughout matches and OHKO it with their Fairy-type STAB or heal up with Wish. Granbull takes virtually nothing from Knock Off, however it must be wary of Leaf Storm which deals substantial amounts of damage to it. Finally, Togetic completely walls Shiftry, however it is not a good switch in as it abhors losing it's Eviolite.

**Poison-types**: Bulky Poison-types including Weezing, Vileplume, and Garbodor can comfortable take anything in Shiftry's arsenal and OHKO it with their STAB moves. Skuntank can also switch into Shiftry and use it as an opportunity to Defog away hazards. Finally, offensive Qwilfish can hammer Shiftry before it has a chance to attack while defensive variants can comfortably take Knock Off, unfortunately it cannot stomach a Life Orb Leaf Storm without becoming crippled beyond repair.
good work but you've written it a while back so try making it more fresh by updating some stuff that are actually relevant in the metagame. 1/3
 
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