Hilomilo
High-low My-low
After three consecutive generations of being an OU mainstay, Scizor has finally fallen down to UU and is already one of the tier's most defining forces. With an amazing typing that only leaves it weak to Fire-type attacks, as well as a great ability in Technician and good offensive and defensive stats alike, Scizor is capable of tanking hits from tier staples like Mega Aerodactyl, Latias, Celebi, Krookodile, and more while also dishing out plenty of damage between its Technician-boosted Bullet Punch and powerful U-turn. Complementing all of these perks is its access to Swords Dance, which Scizor can use to capitalize on the many switches it forces and nab a +2 Attack boost, and Pursuit, which Scizor can take advantage of on its Choice Band set to punish foes that try switching out, like Latias, Celebi, and Blissey. All in all, Scizor is among the tier's most influential Pokemon due to its ability to check a huge portion of the metagame between its several viable sets and should always be accounted for when teambuilding due to its ability to sweep unprepared teams with ease.
Scizor @ Leftovers
Ability: Technician
EVs: 248 HP / 124 Def / 136 SpD
Impish Nature
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Roost
Among all of its viable sets, bulky Swords Dance stands out for Scizor in that it allows it to both offensively threaten most of the metagame while also letting it defensively check several important threats, like Latias and Mega Sharpedo, thanks to Roost and heavy investment in bulk. Swords Dance boosts Scizor's Attack, which even with no investment, allows it to deal large amounts of damage to several foes. Bullet Punch receives priority and a boost in Base Power from Technician, allowing Scizor to easily dispose of threatening Pokemon like Mega Aerodactyl and Togekiss, while U-turn allows it to pivot out of unfavorable matchups and with a Swords Dance boost, OHKO other big metagame threats, like Latias, Starmie, and Krookodile, while also doing heavy damage to anything that doesn't resist it. Roost provides Scizor with a form of reliable recovery, which is what allows it to ultimately function as an extremely consistent check to a plethora of important Pokemon. A more offensively inclined Swords Dance set with maximum Attack and Speed investment, Bug Bite over U-turn, and Superpower or Knock Off over Roost is another option for Scizor that can more reliably break opposing teams, though the bulky Swords Dance set comes in as just a step above any other due to its unparalleled combination of fantastic offensive and defensive prowess.
Scizor @ Choice Band
Ability: Technician
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Bullet Punch
- Superpower
- Pursuit / Knock Off / Bug Bite
While Bulky Swords Dance may be a great set, Choice Band is a great option as well due to its ability to allow Scizor to function as a premier wallbreaker. U-turn is an extremely valuable asset of Scizor that is both obscenely powerful and capable of generating momentum. It allows Scizor to flat out OHKO large presences in the tier like Latias, Krookodile, and Hydreigon, while also safely pivoting it out of some of its common switch-ins, like Infernape, Volcanion, and Empoleon. Bullet Punch complements U-turn quite nicely as one of the tier's strongest priority attacks, easily OHKOing Pokemon like Mega Aerodactyl, Togekiss, and Terrakion from full health. Superpower nails a lot of Pokemon that may try taking advantage of their resistances to Scizor's attacks, like Cobalion, Empoleon, Infernape, and Magneton. The last choice of moveslot for this set usually boils down to what Scizor's team needs most. Pursuit punishes and KOes Pokemon like Latias and Celebi that may try switching out of Scizor, while Knock Off is an option for dealing heavy damage to Pokemon like Metagross and Chandelure while removing crucial items, such as Amoonguss's Black Sludge and Conkeldurr's Flame Orb. Bug Bite may seem like an odd option considering that Scizor already uses U-turn, but it allows Scizor to attack with a Bug-type move without pivoting out of play, and gets a useful Technician boost that can be crucial for picking up KOs on significantly bulky foes, like the 2HKO on Amoonguss. Overall, this set's wallbreaking and pivoting capabilities allow for it to comfortably fit onto offensive archetypes and for Scizor to even futher broaden its versatility.
Scizor has some glaring weaknesses that prevent it from sweeping or wallbreaking without support, such as its 4x weakness to Fire and its struggle to hit the tier's many bulky Water-types hard. However, Scizor's small but useful movepool, great bulk, offensive presence, and typing altogether allow it to compensate for these flaws by keeping a multitude of top-tier threats in check and always pulling its weight in matches.
If you ever find that your team lacks a check to threats like Latias or Mega Sharpedo or that you need some reliable and strong priority, Scizor may be exactly what you need! Give it a try, you definitely won't regret it!
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