Dpp weavile
Weavile’s great offensive stats and typing give a niche as a Pursuit trapper in DPP OU. Unlike its main competitor, Tyranitar, Weavile is really fast—fast enough that it doesn’t need a Choice Scarf to outspeed frailer Dark-weak foes such as Gengar, offensive Rotom-A, Latias, and Starmie. It can instead use more versatile items such as power-boosting items including Expert Belt and Black Glasses to more easily KO them if they don’t switch out or Lum Berry to absorb their status moves. Weavile also is a serviceable revenge killer; its access to a strong Ice Shard allows it to revenge kill prominent Dragon-types such as Dragonite and Flygon, and its Speed allows it to naturally outspeed +1 Tyranitar and easily OHKOes it with Low Kick. These attributes, in addition to not setting up sand like Tyranitar does, makes it particular adapt on very aggressive teams focused on frail attackers such as Infernape.
Weavile’s numerous problems in the tier stem from its lack of power and atrocious survivability. Weavile does not learn strong physical Dark- and Ice-type moves and struggles to damage bulky Pokemon as a result. Ice Punch and Night Slash are simply not strong enough to KO neutral targets such as Swampert, Gyarados, and Jirachi, or even very bulky walls weak to them such as Celebi and Hippowdon without a Swords Dance boost. Weavile also struggles to damage most of the Steel-types in the tier neutral to Fighting. Scizor in particular easily OHKOes Weavile with Bullet Punch and isn’t hit too hard by Low Kick, Skarmory and Forretress set up with impunity, and Metagross, Bronzong, and Jirachi can survive even Choice Band or +2 Night Slash without problems and OHKO it back. All of this is exacerbated by Weavile's dreadful defensive stats, bad defensive typing, and weakness to residual damage. In most situations, Weavile is outclassed by Tyranitar as a Pursuit trapper, as while Weavile is both stronger and faster than Choice Scarf Tyranitar, it lacks the bulk and resistances to switch in easily into Latias and Rotom-A to Pursuit trap them. Scizor is also difficult competition, as its far superior bulk and defensive profile are sometimes preferable to Weavile’s Speed and power. Being weak to Stealth Rock and vulnerable to status and sand means Weavile faints very quickly, as even weak special attacks like Rotom-A’s Thunderbolt and Latias’s Dragon Pulse easily 2HKO after Stealth Rock. Holding a Choice Band or a Life Orb makes this worse, as Weavile has to either switch out when locked on an unfavorable move or take even more residual damage to power up its weak attacks. Weavile also struggles to revenge kill Dragon Dance Dragonite with Extreme Speed, as Dragonite is faster at +1, and boosted Extreme Speed KOes it after Stealth Rock. Weavile also has issues fitting everything it wants onto one set: it needs Pursuit and often wants Low Kick and Swords Dance to help with coverage and make up for its power issues, but this leaves it wanting all of Night Slash, Ice Shard, and Ice Punch.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Pursuit
move 2: Ice Shard
move 3: Low Kick
move 4: Night Slash / Ice Punch
item: Expert Belt / BlackGlasses / Lum Berry
ability: Pressure
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Weavile’s primary niche is Pursuit trapping. It makes for a fantastic user of the move, as it outspeeds and, with the Expert Belt or Black Glasses, OHKOes frailer Dark-weak Pokemon such as Gengar after Stealth Rock even if it doesn’t switch out. Bulkier Dark-weak Pokemon such as Starmie, offensive Latias, and Choice item Rotom-A are OHKOed on the switch out after Stealth Rock. Ice Shard helps Weavile KO faster Ice-weak Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Flygon, Choice Scarf Latias, Dragon Dance Dragonite, and Breloom using Mach Punch. As Pursuit and Ice Shard are weak moves that can struggle to damage bulkier Dark- and Ice-weak foes such as physically defensive Rotom-A, Zapdos, Latias, Hippowdon, and Celebi, Swords Dance is another option to power these moves up.
Low Kick gives Weavile crucial coverage, OHKOing all variants of Tyranitar without a Chople Berry and hitting Steel-types such as Magnezone, Heatran, and Empoleon very hard. Low Kick is often Weavile’s best option against heavy neutral targets such as Metagross, Scizor, and Suicune. Weavile can use its stronger STAB options in the last slot such as Night Slash and Ice Punch. Night Slash allows Weavile to threaten bulkier Dark-weak Pokemon such as defensive Latias and Rest + Sleep Talk Rotom-A and is notably the best option against Jirachi. Ice Punch is Weavile’s strongest Ice-type move and hits Pokemon such as Zapdos, Hippowdon, Gliscor, and Swampert harder than anything else it can use.
Set Details
========
Weavile should always run maximum Attack EVs and at least 216 Speed EVs with a Jolly nature. This allows it to outspeed +1 Dragon Dance Tyranitar, Starmie, and slower Dragon Dance Gyarados. However, Weavile mostly runs maximum Speed EVs, as the extra bulk is marginal. Weavile has a couple of item choices: the most common is Expert Belt, as Weavile appreciates the extra boost on Pursuit against Gengar and other frail targets and on Ice Shard against Pokemon such as Breloom using Mach Punch. Black Glasses is excellent for always boosting Weavile’s Dark-type attacks, whether they’re super effective or not. Lum Berry is a specialized option to relieve pressure from Weavile when trapping targets carrying a status infliction such as defensive Latias's and Starmie's Thunder Wave and defensive Rotom-A's Will-O-Wisp.
Usage Tips
========
Weavile is at its best when played aggressively, getting in on predicted switches, weaker attacks, or on unexpected revenge kills. While Weavile is frail, it can switch in on resisted attacks such as Life Orb Gengar's and offensive Rotom-A's Shadow Ball, defensive Latias's Ice Beam, and just barely defensive Starmie's Surf with enough HP to switch into Stealth Rock twice—this allows it to switch in, threaten a Pursuit trap, and then be able to switch in one more time if necessary. Knowing the damage ranges against Latias, Rotom-A, and Starmie depending on its respective item is crucial, especially if Weavile has Night Slash or Ice Punch against Latias, as Weavile despises their status moves unless it has a Lum Berry.
How to use Weavile once it is in on a target heavily depends on the rest of the team and what it needs to do. Bulkier Dark-weak Pokemon that are not in range of Weavile attacks generally don't want to switch out in fear of being Pursuit trapped. This is a great opportunity to sacrifice Weavile to heavily damage them for other attackers on the team that may struggle with these Pokemon. However, since Weavile also is a critical revenge killer, it may open up the rest of the team to foes such as Dragon Dance Tyranitar, Swords Dance Gliscor, and Flygon.
Team Options
========
Weavile’s best partner is Infernape, as Infernape's best counters are Latias and Starmie, two Pokemon Weavile can Pursuit trap. Gengar and Choice Scarf Rotom-A are faster than Infernape and can switch into Close Combat to force it out—if these Pokemon use Shadow Ball as Weavile switches in, they will be Pursuit trapped by Weavile. Infernape is massively threatening to the bulkier Pokemon Weavile loathes to face, such as most Steel-types. Another fantastic teammate is offensive Calm Mind Suicune. Offensive Suicune is often checked by defensive Latias—if Weavile heavily weakens or traps Latias, defensive teams often need to check it with Clefable, which, if it lacks Thunder Wave or Encore, Suicune can muscle past at +2. Offensive Suicune and Weavile are also fantastic at checking Dragon Dance sweepers; offensive Suicune is a great Gyarados check with Hidden Power Electric and also forces Dragonite to use Outrage, allowing Weavile to revenge kill it with Ice Shard. Weavile checks Dragon Dance Tyranitar with Low Kick, allowing the team to function without Choice Scarf revenge killers. Weavile also appreciates teammates that threaten the bulkier Pokemon it can't handle. Offensive Heatran is a fantastic check to most Steel-types, while Trick + Iron Ball Metagross can hamper Skarmory and Zapdos with an Iron Ball as well as use Explosion on very bulky Pokemon such as Swampert, Celebi, and Hippowdon that Weavile struggles with. Other Pokemon such as offensive Latias, offensive Zapdos, and offensive Empoleon are also good teammates, as they can shoulder a lot of defensive responsibility when Weavile is invariably forced out. Suicide leads carrying Taunt such as Azelf and Aerodactyl are great options to help Weavile come onto the field unscathed. These leads also carry Stealth Rock and are effective at securing them early to pressure bulky Flying-types such as Gyarados and defensive Zapdos. Weavile also appreciates Spikes support, as a lot of its checks are grounded. Offensive Skarmory, Froslass, and Qwilfish often provide quick entry hazards for Weavile to take advantage of.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Weavile has historically been used as an anti-lead, as it has access to options such as Fake Out, Taunt, and Counter. With a Focus Sash, it can both threaten prominent leads such as Azelf with Taunt and Dark-type moves, while other anti-leads risk Counter. However, such a set simply does not provide enough utility to be worth it, as once the set is known, it loses its surprise value when opponents can just switch out. Weavile can use a dedicated Swords Dance set without Pursuit, but even with the extra moveslot, it lacks power and sorely misses its niche as a Pursuit trapper. While Weavile loathes to give up further coverage, it can take advantage of the switches it forces to use Substitute + Focus Punch to have a generally strong attack against lighter targets such as Jirachi. However, Low Kick most often outclasses Focus Punch and Substitute makes Weavile faint even quicker.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-types neutral to Fighting**: Weavile struggles to damage Steel-types, especially if they are neutral to Low Kick. Scizor is perhaps the best answer in the game to Weavile, as it takes Low Kick well and easily OHKOes Weavile with Bullet Punch and U-turn. Metagross, Jirachi, and Bronzong all OHKO Weavile easily, while Skarmory and Forretress can be overwhelmed only with multiple boosts. Even Steel-types weak to Low Kick, such as Magnezone, Heatran, and Empoleon, can generally survive one Low Kick and KO or heavily damage it back.
**Fighting-types**: Especially since Weavile often forgoes Ice Punch, it severely struggles to damage Fighting-types. Machamp has almost nothing to fear from Weavile and destroys it with DynamicPunch. Breloom and especially Infernape destroy Weavile with Mach Punch. Choice Scarf Lucario outspeeds Weavile and obliterates it with Close Combat.
**Residual Damage**: Being vulnerable to all three entry hazards, sand, all status, and being frail means Weavile often only has one or two opportunities to make an impact. This is made worse because common Weavile targets often carry status moves such as Thunder Wave and Will-O-Wisp that neuter it completely.
**Bulky Pokemon**: Weavile struggles to damage Pokemon that aren't weak to Dark-, Fighting, or Ice-type attacks, such as Water-types like Swampert, Gyarados, Suicune, and Milotic as well as lighter Normal-types such as Clefable. Very bulky Pokemon such as Hippowdon, Celebi, and physically defensive Zapdos avoid being 2HKOed by Weavile unless it has a Choice Band or Swords Dance.
**Strong Priority**: Weavile really struggles to survive strong priority attacks, as many of them hit it super effectively. Scizor, Metagross, and Lucario's Bullet Punch is the worst, as it will always OHKO after Stealth Rock and they all resist Ice Shard. While Breloom is hit super effectively by Ice Shard, it is only 2HKOed and can OHKO it with Mach Punch. +1 Dragonite is especially dangerous, as it outspeeds Weavile and KOes it with Extreme Speed after Stealth Rock before Weavile can hit it with Ice Shard.
**Choice Scarf Pokemon**: Weavile is very frail and really needs the Speed advantage to fulfill its niche. Choice Scarf Rotom-A and Latias outspeed Weavile and can potentially OHKO it before Weavile KOes them back, especially with entry hazards set. Other Choice Scarf Pokemon such as Heatran, Lucario, Jirachi, and Metagross all outspeed Weavile and easily OHKO it.
Weavile’s great offensive stats and typing give a niche as a Pursuit trapper in DPP OU. Unlike its main competitor, Tyranitar, Weavile is really fast—fast enough that it doesn’t need a Choice Scarf to outspeed frailer Dark-weak foes such as Gengar, offensive Rotom-A, Latias, and Starmie. It can instead use more versatile items such as power-boosting items including Expert Belt and Black Glasses to more easily KO them if they don’t switch out or Lum Berry to absorb their status moves. Weavile also is a serviceable revenge killer; its access to a strong Ice Shard allows it to revenge kill prominent Dragon-types such as Dragonite and Flygon, and its Speed allows it to naturally outspeed +1 Tyranitar and easily OHKOes it with Low Kick. These attributes, in addition to not setting up sand like Tyranitar does, makes it particular adapt on very aggressive teams focused on frail attackers such as Infernape.
Weavile’s numerous problems in the tier stem from its lack of power and atrocious survivability. Weavile does not learn strong physical Dark- and Ice-type moves and struggles to damage bulky Pokemon as a result. Ice Punch and Night Slash are simply not strong enough to KO neutral targets such as Swampert, Gyarados, and Jirachi, or even very bulky walls weak to them such as Celebi and Hippowdon without a Swords Dance boost. Weavile also struggles to damage most of the Steel-types in the tier neutral to Fighting. Scizor in particular easily OHKOes Weavile with Bullet Punch and isn’t hit too hard by Low Kick, Skarmory and Forretress set up with impunity, and Metagross, Bronzong, and Jirachi can survive even Choice Band or +2 Night Slash without problems and OHKO it back. All of this is exacerbated by Weavile's dreadful defensive stats, bad defensive typing, and weakness to residual damage. In most situations, Weavile is outclassed by Tyranitar as a Pursuit trapper, as while Weavile is both stronger and faster than Choice Scarf Tyranitar, it lacks the bulk and resistances to switch in easily into Latias and Rotom-A to Pursuit trap them. Scizor is also difficult competition, as its far superior bulk and defensive profile are sometimes preferable to Weavile’s Speed and power. Being weak to Stealth Rock and vulnerable to status and sand means Weavile faints very quickly, as even weak special attacks like Rotom-A’s Thunderbolt and Latias’s Dragon Pulse easily 2HKO after Stealth Rock. Holding a Choice Band or a Life Orb makes this worse, as Weavile has to either switch out when locked on an unfavorable move or take even more residual damage to power up its weak attacks. Weavile also struggles to revenge kill Dragon Dance Dragonite with Extreme Speed, as Dragonite is faster at +1, and boosted Extreme Speed KOes it after Stealth Rock. Weavile also has issues fitting everything it wants onto one set: it needs Pursuit and often wants Low Kick and Swords Dance to help with coverage and make up for its power issues, but this leaves it wanting all of Night Slash, Ice Shard, and Ice Punch.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Pursuit
move 2: Ice Shard
move 3: Low Kick
move 4: Night Slash / Ice Punch
item: Expert Belt / BlackGlasses / Lum Berry
ability: Pressure
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Weavile’s primary niche is Pursuit trapping. It makes for a fantastic user of the move, as it outspeeds and, with the Expert Belt or Black Glasses, OHKOes frailer Dark-weak Pokemon such as Gengar after Stealth Rock even if it doesn’t switch out. Bulkier Dark-weak Pokemon such as Starmie, offensive Latias, and Choice item Rotom-A are OHKOed on the switch out after Stealth Rock. Ice Shard helps Weavile KO faster Ice-weak Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Flygon, Choice Scarf Latias, Dragon Dance Dragonite, and Breloom using Mach Punch. As Pursuit and Ice Shard are weak moves that can struggle to damage bulkier Dark- and Ice-weak foes such as physically defensive Rotom-A, Zapdos, Latias, Hippowdon, and Celebi, Swords Dance is another option to power these moves up.
Low Kick gives Weavile crucial coverage, OHKOing all variants of Tyranitar without a Chople Berry and hitting Steel-types such as Magnezone, Heatran, and Empoleon very hard. Low Kick is often Weavile’s best option against heavy neutral targets such as Metagross, Scizor, and Suicune. Weavile can use its stronger STAB options in the last slot such as Night Slash and Ice Punch. Night Slash allows Weavile to threaten bulkier Dark-weak Pokemon such as defensive Latias and Rest + Sleep Talk Rotom-A and is notably the best option against Jirachi. Ice Punch is Weavile’s strongest Ice-type move and hits Pokemon such as Zapdos, Hippowdon, Gliscor, and Swampert harder than anything else it can use.
Set Details
========
Weavile should always run maximum Attack EVs and at least 216 Speed EVs with a Jolly nature. This allows it to outspeed +1 Dragon Dance Tyranitar, Starmie, and slower Dragon Dance Gyarados. However, Weavile mostly runs maximum Speed EVs, as the extra bulk is marginal. Weavile has a couple of item choices: the most common is Expert Belt, as Weavile appreciates the extra boost on Pursuit against Gengar and other frail targets and on Ice Shard against Pokemon such as Breloom using Mach Punch. Black Glasses is excellent for always boosting Weavile’s Dark-type attacks, whether they’re super effective or not. Lum Berry is a specialized option to relieve pressure from Weavile when trapping targets carrying a status infliction such as defensive Latias's and Starmie's Thunder Wave and defensive Rotom-A's Will-O-Wisp.
Usage Tips
========
Weavile is at its best when played aggressively, getting in on predicted switches, weaker attacks, or on unexpected revenge kills. While Weavile is frail, it can switch in on resisted attacks such as Life Orb Gengar's and offensive Rotom-A's Shadow Ball, defensive Latias's Ice Beam, and just barely defensive Starmie's Surf with enough HP to switch into Stealth Rock twice—this allows it to switch in, threaten a Pursuit trap, and then be able to switch in one more time if necessary. Knowing the damage ranges against Latias, Rotom-A, and Starmie depending on its respective item is crucial, especially if Weavile has Night Slash or Ice Punch against Latias, as Weavile despises their status moves unless it has a Lum Berry.
How to use Weavile once it is in on a target heavily depends on the rest of the team and what it needs to do. Bulkier Dark-weak Pokemon that are not in range of Weavile attacks generally don't want to switch out in fear of being Pursuit trapped. This is a great opportunity to sacrifice Weavile to heavily damage them for other attackers on the team that may struggle with these Pokemon. However, since Weavile also is a critical revenge killer, it may open up the rest of the team to foes such as Dragon Dance Tyranitar, Swords Dance Gliscor, and Flygon.
Team Options
========
Weavile’s best partner is Infernape, as Infernape's best counters are Latias and Starmie, two Pokemon Weavile can Pursuit trap. Gengar and Choice Scarf Rotom-A are faster than Infernape and can switch into Close Combat to force it out—if these Pokemon use Shadow Ball as Weavile switches in, they will be Pursuit trapped by Weavile. Infernape is massively threatening to the bulkier Pokemon Weavile loathes to face, such as most Steel-types. Another fantastic teammate is offensive Calm Mind Suicune. Offensive Suicune is often checked by defensive Latias—if Weavile heavily weakens or traps Latias, defensive teams often need to check it with Clefable, which, if it lacks Thunder Wave or Encore, Suicune can muscle past at +2. Offensive Suicune and Weavile are also fantastic at checking Dragon Dance sweepers; offensive Suicune is a great Gyarados check with Hidden Power Electric and also forces Dragonite to use Outrage, allowing Weavile to revenge kill it with Ice Shard. Weavile checks Dragon Dance Tyranitar with Low Kick, allowing the team to function without Choice Scarf revenge killers. Weavile also appreciates teammates that threaten the bulkier Pokemon it can't handle. Offensive Heatran is a fantastic check to most Steel-types, while Trick + Iron Ball Metagross can hamper Skarmory and Zapdos with an Iron Ball as well as use Explosion on very bulky Pokemon such as Swampert, Celebi, and Hippowdon that Weavile struggles with. Other Pokemon such as offensive Latias, offensive Zapdos, and offensive Empoleon are also good teammates, as they can shoulder a lot of defensive responsibility when Weavile is invariably forced out. Suicide leads carrying Taunt such as Azelf and Aerodactyl are great options to help Weavile come onto the field unscathed. These leads also carry Stealth Rock and are effective at securing them early to pressure bulky Flying-types such as Gyarados and defensive Zapdos. Weavile also appreciates Spikes support, as a lot of its checks are grounded. Offensive Skarmory, Froslass, and Qwilfish often provide quick entry hazards for Weavile to take advantage of.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Weavile has historically been used as an anti-lead, as it has access to options such as Fake Out, Taunt, and Counter. With a Focus Sash, it can both threaten prominent leads such as Azelf with Taunt and Dark-type moves, while other anti-leads risk Counter. However, such a set simply does not provide enough utility to be worth it, as once the set is known, it loses its surprise value when opponents can just switch out. Weavile can use a dedicated Swords Dance set without Pursuit, but even with the extra moveslot, it lacks power and sorely misses its niche as a Pursuit trapper. While Weavile loathes to give up further coverage, it can take advantage of the switches it forces to use Substitute + Focus Punch to have a generally strong attack against lighter targets such as Jirachi. However, Low Kick most often outclasses Focus Punch and Substitute makes Weavile faint even quicker.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-types neutral to Fighting**: Weavile struggles to damage Steel-types, especially if they are neutral to Low Kick. Scizor is perhaps the best answer in the game to Weavile, as it takes Low Kick well and easily OHKOes Weavile with Bullet Punch and U-turn. Metagross, Jirachi, and Bronzong all OHKO Weavile easily, while Skarmory and Forretress can be overwhelmed only with multiple boosts. Even Steel-types weak to Low Kick, such as Magnezone, Heatran, and Empoleon, can generally survive one Low Kick and KO or heavily damage it back.
**Fighting-types**: Especially since Weavile often forgoes Ice Punch, it severely struggles to damage Fighting-types. Machamp has almost nothing to fear from Weavile and destroys it with DynamicPunch. Breloom and especially Infernape destroy Weavile with Mach Punch. Choice Scarf Lucario outspeeds Weavile and obliterates it with Close Combat.
**Residual Damage**: Being vulnerable to all three entry hazards, sand, all status, and being frail means Weavile often only has one or two opportunities to make an impact. This is made worse because common Weavile targets often carry status moves such as Thunder Wave and Will-O-Wisp that neuter it completely.
**Bulky Pokemon**: Weavile struggles to damage Pokemon that aren't weak to Dark-, Fighting, or Ice-type attacks, such as Water-types like Swampert, Gyarados, Suicune, and Milotic as well as lighter Normal-types such as Clefable. Very bulky Pokemon such as Hippowdon, Celebi, and physically defensive Zapdos avoid being 2HKOed by Weavile unless it has a Choice Band or Swords Dance.
**Strong Priority**: Weavile really struggles to survive strong priority attacks, as many of them hit it super effectively. Scizor, Metagross, and Lucario's Bullet Punch is the worst, as it will always OHKO after Stealth Rock and they all resist Ice Shard. While Breloom is hit super effectively by Ice Shard, it is only 2HKOed and can OHKO it with Mach Punch. +1 Dragonite is especially dangerous, as it outspeeds Weavile and KOes it with Extreme Speed after Stealth Rock before Weavile can hit it with Ice Shard.
**Choice Scarf Pokemon**: Weavile is very frail and really needs the Speed advantage to fulfill its niche. Choice Scarf Rotom-A and Latias outspeed Weavile and can potentially OHKO it before Weavile KOes them back, especially with entry hazards set. Other Choice Scarf Pokemon such as Heatran, Lucario, Jirachi, and Metagross all outspeed Weavile and easily OHKO it.
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