I was thinking along this line myself. Its ace in the hole is mainly its godly movepool. I just wish that it had a draining offensive move like Horn Leech (or Leech Seed)
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Pokémon Decidueye
- Thread starter Jaguar360
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yea we love doing that
Had some fun with an interesting Decidueye set up. Got a nice amount of chuckles out of it at least.
Decidueye @ Salac Berry
Jolly 252 Atk / 252 Speed
- Spirit Shackle
- Low Sweep
- Roost/Sucker Punch
- Swords Dance
Got off the first Swords Dance and after 1 Low Sweep was able to pick up the outspeed on some of the faster pokemon, Salac helped out with that a little. Roost helped bring HP up, but lack of priority did become an issue with pokes like Ribombee, Pheremosa, and Tapu Lele. At one point I considered running Brave Bird because Tapu Bulu and Buzzwole were getting annoying to deal with, but decided on flipping to scarfed toucannon instead for skill link shenanigans.
Decidueye @ Salac Berry
Jolly 252 Atk / 252 Speed
- Spirit Shackle
- Low Sweep
- Roost/Sucker Punch
- Swords Dance
Got off the first Swords Dance and after 1 Low Sweep was able to pick up the outspeed on some of the faster pokemon, Salac helped out with that a little. Roost helped bring HP up, but lack of priority did become an issue with pokes like Ribombee, Pheremosa, and Tapu Lele. At one point I considered running Brave Bird because Tapu Bulu and Buzzwole were getting annoying to deal with, but decided on flipping to scarfed toucannon instead for skill link shenanigans.
When i loaded up Smogon it said this thread had been viewed exactly 150,000 times, which is pretty cool.
But anyway i have a question, since Long Reach makes all moves non-contact, does that mean it effectively bypasses Bewear's Fluffy ability?
But anyway i have a question, since Long Reach makes all moves non-contact, does that mean it effectively bypasses Bewear's Fluffy ability?
I fail to see why it wouldn't (other than we are talking about a game developed by Game Freak).
I don't see Decidueye and Bewear fighting each other often though, especially since the latter is immune to Spirit Shackle.
It could potentially be used as a lure.
0 Atk Decidueye Leaf Blade vs. 92 HP / 0 Def Bewear: 124-147 (30.6 - 36.3%) -- 59.3% chance to 3HKO
0 Atk Decidueye Brave Bird vs. 92 HP / 0 Def Bewear: 220-260 (54.4 - 64.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Though I'm not sure how often Bewear would actually want to switch into Decidueye. On one hand, it resists U-Turn and is immune to Spirit Shackle. On the other hand, the Bewear player would know that Fluffy won't do anything against Decidueye. On the other other hand, Bewear's physical bulk is amazing even without Fluffy.
I don't know why I'm replying to a post from 9 days ago, but the move's Japanese name is "Butterfly Dance," hence the distribution. Has nothing to do with quivers.
Do you think a set like this would work?
Decidueye @ assault vest
Ability:Long reach
EVs: 252 attack/ 100 speed/ 158 sp.defence
Adamant nature
Leaf blade
Spirit shackle
U-turn
Sucker punch
Not exactly sure how much this would out speed but I really want to capitalise on its special defence and there's always sucker punch for the faster opponents.
Decidueye @ assault vest
Ability:Long reach
EVs: 252 attack/ 100 speed/ 158 sp.defence
Adamant nature
Leaf blade
Spirit shackle
U-turn
Sucker punch
Not exactly sure how much this would out speed but I really want to capitalise on its special defence and there's always sucker punch for the faster opponents.
Assault Vest is a bit of a waste on Decidueye since it has no form recovery or access to utility moves, and Decidueye's power on this set isn't amazing either. I get what the set's going for, it's trying to do a bit too much at once and ends up being mediocre. Instead, you'd probably either just want to run a specially defensive set with Roost if you want the tank/pivot role or a bulky Swords Dance set for something more offensive.
http://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/decidueye.3587254/page-5#post-7108170
This post by Flarowak is a good example for Bulky Swords Dance.
Hey all, I was just curious about Decidueye's hidden ability: does long reach only avoid contact, or does it also provide a hidden benefit, like a power boost? I was just thinking about how weird it was that Decidueye's signature move is non-contact anyway and while browsing the mechanics section, I remembered that Araquanid had a similar situation. I am simply curious if everyone already knows long reach's limits, or if there has to be some in-game testing first.
I'm not sure we can say for certain as HA Decidueye isn't available yet. Only way to check is if someone hacks one into a game and tests it.
Okay, I've been lurking for way too long.
This is the set I've been using, and, yes, I know AV is not using Decidueye's potential (Defog+Spirit Shackle+Roost) to the max and blah blah blah, but it has been working decently for me so far in Pokébank OU.
Decidueye @ Assault Vest
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 80 HP / 252 Atk / 176 SpD
Careful Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Low Sweep
- Spirit Shackle
- U-turn
I don't have the exact calculations, but it's tanky enough to take a Specs Lele Psychic (65~70%) and does enough damage to OHKO back with a Spirit Shackle. Mostly as a revenge kill, throwing it in to tank the hit and then try to KO isn't a very good idea.
Most Koko sets (including Life Orb) deal under 15% with T-Bolt, even under Electric Terrain. Electric hits in general don't do much against it.
Be careful, as you're fairly slow, and your physical bulk is pretty much non-existent, so be mindful of what hits you want to take and which not.
EVs are probably not optimized, as I'm not exactly good with those.
Good partners for this set I've tried are Gyarados (+ Mega), Tapu Fini, and Skarmory, all of which appreciate the Electric resist, and in Skarmory's case, the SpD build to cover up each other. Anything that appreciates you eating up a non-supereffective (on Decidueye) special hit, really. You can take a supereffective hit or two, but you're so slow you're probably not going to be able to hit back.
I've been considering a non-AV set, which lets you take advantage of Roost, mostly (because Fini is a better Defogger, and she already is a really good partner for Decidueye), or maybe a bulky SD set with Swords Dance, Sucker Punch, Spirit Shackle, and Roost, but you're kinda fragile for that, so it probably wouldn't be very good in OU. Defensive(-ish?) sets seem to be the way to go, but I don't really want to go full defense, because you seem to be losing so much potential when people don't that Decidueye to straight up tank the special hit, and KO back with Spirit Shackle and/or Sucker Punch. Low Sweep is a nasty surprise for Weavile and Tyranitar, but you can't really do much against A-Muk except try to U-turn out.
This is the set I've been using, and, yes, I know AV is not using Decidueye's potential (Defog+Spirit Shackle+Roost) to the max and blah blah blah, but it has been working decently for me so far in Pokébank OU.
Decidueye @ Assault Vest
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 80 HP / 252 Atk / 176 SpD
Careful Nature
- Sucker Punch
- Low Sweep
- Spirit Shackle
- U-turn
I don't have the exact calculations, but it's tanky enough to take a Specs Lele Psychic (65~70%) and does enough damage to OHKO back with a Spirit Shackle. Mostly as a revenge kill, throwing it in to tank the hit and then try to KO isn't a very good idea.
Most Koko sets (including Life Orb) deal under 15% with T-Bolt, even under Electric Terrain. Electric hits in general don't do much against it.
Be careful, as you're fairly slow, and your physical bulk is pretty much non-existent, so be mindful of what hits you want to take and which not.
EVs are probably not optimized, as I'm not exactly good with those.
Good partners for this set I've tried are Gyarados (+ Mega), Tapu Fini, and Skarmory, all of which appreciate the Electric resist, and in Skarmory's case, the SpD build to cover up each other. Anything that appreciates you eating up a non-supereffective (on Decidueye) special hit, really. You can take a supereffective hit or two, but you're so slow you're probably not going to be able to hit back.
I've been considering a non-AV set, which lets you take advantage of Roost, mostly (because Fini is a better Defogger, and she already is a really good partner for Decidueye), or maybe a bulky SD set with Swords Dance, Sucker Punch, Spirit Shackle, and Roost, but you're kinda fragile for that, so it probably wouldn't be very good in OU. Defensive(-ish?) sets seem to be the way to go, but I don't really want to go full defense, because you seem to be losing so much potential when people don't that Decidueye to straight up tank the special hit, and KO back with Spirit Shackle and/or Sucker Punch. Low Sweep is a nasty surprise for Weavile and Tyranitar, but you can't really do much against A-Muk except try to U-turn out.
I've tested decidueye in hundreds of battles using many different build and the best one I've so far was this:
Decidueye @ Leftovers
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 168 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 84 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Spirit Shackle
- Swords Dance
- Sucker Punch
- Roost
Its role is trap and kill pokemons like amoongus, tangrowth, toxapec, mega venusaur, ferrothorn, Tapu Fini, Clefable and sometimes even celesteela. Toxic can be used over sucker punch to trap even more pokemons. Pairs amazingly well with spec greninja.
Decidueye @ Leftovers
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 168 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 84 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Spirit Shackle
- Swords Dance
- Sucker Punch
- Roost
Its role is trap and kill pokemons like amoongus, tangrowth, toxapec, mega venusaur, ferrothorn, Tapu Fini, Clefable and sometimes even celesteela. Toxic can be used over sucker punch to trap even more pokemons. Pairs amazingly well with spec greninja.
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Why the 4 Def? Wouldn't those be better in Speed?
84 in spe is enough to outspeed univested base 80, aka mega venusaur.
No, I mean
What's the point in having 4 in Defense? lol
You don't have a Defense-increasing Nature, so it doesn't avoid any important KOs or damage
Why not just shoving those random four points into a different stat, like HP or Speed?
A better wishpassing partner would be Clefable. Being able to cockblock Dark types is something that Decidueye loves, and regardless, Decidueye doesn't need wish support since it has Roost. If you're looking for good Water partners, Mega Gyara and Azumarill are the best options
You'll need someone to deal with Bisharp if you're going to use Clefable with Decidueye. Also having Wish support gives Decidueye frees up Roost and gives another moveslot to play with.
Could you run a mixed defender with Baton Pass, Swords Dance and Nasty Plot with Spirit Shackle to trap?
Fully SDef with BP/shackle/roost/SD is its best set imo. It can check some of the stuff a grass is supposed to check while preventing double switches and passing SD (or using its boosts itself to take out whatever it traps, if possible.) Roost is mandatory and nastypass is possible but not as optimal since it wouldn't be able to use its own boosts. Lefties or colbur berry would be the item of choice.
Any other sets are just too pressured or try to do too much, or just outclassed. If you're gonna use decidueye, this is its niche.
I'll be brutally honest. And this is coming from someone whose favorite Alola Pokémon is Decidueye.
The only niche I see Decidueye having is as a special pivot-slash-defogger-slash-spinblocker, with Defog + Spirit Shackle + Roost being basically it. Thing is very few teams ever need something like that, so, yes, it's pretty decent role compression, but, if you don't need all of those (and being a defogger plus a spinblocker that cannot setup hazards already is kind of... awkward, to say the least), you're probably better using a different Pokémon in your team. Baton Pass sets are outclassed by Celebi, too slow to be a sweeper, too frail to be a wall.
That said, it's still a cool Pokémon, with a cool design, but that it desperately wishes it had better focused stats, be it more Attack, more Speed, or more bulk.
Or, a better movepool. It really feels like it needs certain moves to fit better in certain roles (-cough-Taunt-cough-Jump Kick-cough-). Right now, it's stuck at being a low jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none Pokémon, and an awkward one at that.
Decent Attack, but low Speed means you're outclassed as an SD sweeper, low bulk too means being a bulky sweeper is probably out of your reach (hehe, get it?), that same low bulk means you're eh-ish as a defensive Pokémon, and a limited (yes, limited) support movepool means you've got the short end of the stick there too. Hell, I expect to get Tailwind from move tutors, and possibly a few other toys for both support and offense (Long Reach Knock Off sounds interesting)... if we do get move tutors. Or maybe even better special options for a mixed attacker! And then your 4MSS pops up lol.
Also, Assault Vest is a waste of your movepool. Namely, your access to both Defog and Roost. Dhelmise probably runs a better AV, with its higher bulk, and higher attack, and lack of reliable recovery.
That said, to point out useful info, good partners for Decidueye are trappers, the most common ones, Dugtrio and Magnezone, sticking out. Call out a switch-in correctly (especially on something like a Heatran, a Celesteela, or others that want to come in to wall you), Shackle it in, switch to your trapper of choice, and you can get a pretty easy KO. Sadly, this does mean you're even bigger Pursuit bait, and your low physical bulk means you're probably dead anyway, even if you try to avoid the extra damage by U-turning out.
Honestly, the best I could visualise Decidueye being, is a support-slash-special pivot with offensive presence, which means you're probably going to want to go for Attack and Special bulk. Still trying to find an EV spread that could optimize this niche.
The only niche I see Decidueye having is as a special pivot-slash-defogger-slash-spinblocker, with Defog + Spirit Shackle + Roost being basically it. Thing is very few teams ever need something like that, so, yes, it's pretty decent role compression, but, if you don't need all of those (and being a defogger plus a spinblocker that cannot setup hazards already is kind of... awkward, to say the least), you're probably better using a different Pokémon in your team. Baton Pass sets are outclassed by Celebi, too slow to be a sweeper, too frail to be a wall.
That said, it's still a cool Pokémon, with a cool design, but that it desperately wishes it had better focused stats, be it more Attack, more Speed, or more bulk.
Or, a better movepool. It really feels like it needs certain moves to fit better in certain roles (-cough-Taunt-cough-Jump Kick-cough-). Right now, it's stuck at being a low jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none Pokémon, and an awkward one at that.
Decent Attack, but low Speed means you're outclassed as an SD sweeper, low bulk too means being a bulky sweeper is probably out of your reach (hehe, get it?), that same low bulk means you're eh-ish as a defensive Pokémon, and a limited (yes, limited) support movepool means you've got the short end of the stick there too. Hell, I expect to get Tailwind from move tutors, and possibly a few other toys for both support and offense (Long Reach Knock Off sounds interesting)... if we do get move tutors. Or maybe even better special options for a mixed attacker! And then your 4MSS pops up lol.
Also, Assault Vest is a waste of your movepool. Namely, your access to both Defog and Roost. Dhelmise probably runs a better AV, with its higher bulk, and higher attack, and lack of reliable recovery.
That said, to point out useful info, good partners for Decidueye are trappers, the most common ones, Dugtrio and Magnezone, sticking out. Call out a switch-in correctly (especially on something like a Heatran, a Celesteela, or others that want to come in to wall you), Shackle it in, switch to your trapper of choice, and you can get a pretty easy KO. Sadly, this does mean you're even bigger Pursuit bait, and your low physical bulk means you're probably dead anyway, even if you try to avoid the extra damage by U-turning out.
Honestly, the best I could visualise Decidueye being, is a support-slash-special pivot with offensive presence, which means you're probably going to want to go for Attack and Special bulk. Still trying to find an EV spread that could optimize this niche.
I wouldn't say so. Key points are Spirit Shackle and significantly better typing (trades psychic resist for bug+poison neutrality and fighting immunity.) SD pass is not that easy to pull off with either, but Celebi can consistently be shut down with faster u-turns (which are pretty common right now with phero/gene/lando/some koko/etc. etc.) whereas it's not as easy for Decidueye to be taken advantage of like that.
Trapping in any form is also really good, same with Spirit Shackle. As an example, even if Decideueye can barely scratch Ferrothorn (7HKO,) Ferro is still forced out because it risks being trapped and eventually losing, or worse, Decidueye getting 3x SDs and passing them. A variety of stuff is prone to this, and at worst it prevents a double switch.
I think it has some sort of niche, a legit one, not something retarded like spinblocker that also defogs, just need to see if it becomes useful somewhere, whether it be OU (it's not gonna stay as HO as it is now) or a lower tier.
With Spirit shackle and an immunity to Explosion, Decidueye makes suicide leads great setup fodder
Decidueye @ Lum Berry/Mental Herb
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Spirit Shackle
- Swords Dance / Nasty Plot
- Defog /Substitute
- Baton Pass
This set does really well against sash azelf, terrakion, and Lycanroc, since Decidueye resists or is immune to their STAB moves.
Decidueye @ Lum Berry/Mental Herb
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Spirit Shackle
- Swords Dance / Nasty Plot
- Defog /Substitute
- Baton Pass
This set does really well against sash azelf, terrakion, and Lycanroc, since Decidueye resists or is immune to their STAB moves.
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