[Overview]
<p>Sawsbuck is a decent offensive threat that can become very successful when used with a combination of Sunny Day and Tailwind. It lives up to its reputation as one of the best Chlorophyll users in the metagame which, combined with base 100 Attack, makes Sawsbuck a solid choice for any Sunny Day or Tailwind VGC team.</p>
[SET]
name: Sunny Day Sweeper
move 1: Horn Leech
move 2: Return / Double-Edge
move 3: Jump Kick / Megahorn
move 4: Protect
item: Life Orb
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Sawsbuck is a potent threat under the sun. When Chlorophyll is activated, this deer has a Speed of 294 with Adamant and a whooping 332 Speed with Jolly, allowing Sawsbuck to outspeed every unboosted Pokemon in the metagame. Tailwind support would give it an even greater Speed advantage. Horn Leech is a good STAB move that can OHKO popular VGC Pokemon such as Terrakion and 2HKO maximum HP Jellicent while regaining health. Return is a good secondary STAB, hitting common Pokemon that resist Horn Leech, such as Tornadus, Thundurus, Whimiscott, and maximum HP Amoonguss for neutral damage. Double-Edge is a good choice as well, OHKOing Thundurus and Tornadus, which are major threats to Sawsbuck. Although Return is a little weaker, it lacks recoil drawback and is still capable of OHKOing the two aforementioned Pokemon. The third moveslot has two good options. Jump Kick OHKOes Bisharp and Zoroark and 2HKOes Vanilluxe; however, it only 3HKOes Chople Berry Scrafty and damages Sawsbuck if the attack misses or the opposing Pokemon uses Protect. Megahorn 2HKOes Musharna and can OHKO Hydreigon; the latter is a huge threat to any sun teams due to its resistances to Fire-, Grass-, and Ghost-types. Protect is very useful move to have in the VGC metagame. It provides you with a free turn of defense while Sawsbuck's partner sets up Sunny Day or Tailwind. This can save Sawsbuck from faster threats and priority moves, such as Conkeldurr's Mach Punch, an attack that can OHKO with a Guts boost or 2HKO without one. It is also very useful for scouting out opposing moves, giving you time to react accordingly.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This set is essential for sun teams, and will work better when used in conjunction with Tailwind Support. Sawsbuck's best partner in this case would be Whimiscott. With Prankster, Whimiscott can set up Sunny Day quickly for Sawsbuck to sweep and also has access to Tailwind and Helping Hand. Tailwind can give Sawsbuck the advantage against other Tailwind-boosted Pokemon, while Helping Hand increases the base power of Sawsbuck's moves by 50%. Sawsbuck also works very well with other sun sweepers such as Chandelure, Lilligant, and Darmanitan. However, Chandelure and Conkeldurr counter Sawsbuck. To combat Chandelure, Hydregion and Terrakion are good partners due to Hydregion's access to Dark-type moves and Terrakion's Rock Slide. As for Conkeldurr, Tornadus and Amoonguss would make excellent teammates, able to defeat it with Acrobatics or the latter's Giga Drain, respectively.</p>
[SET]
name: Sap Counter
move 1: Horn Leech
move 2: Return
move 3: Jump Kick / Nature Power
move 4: Protect
item: Focus Sash
ability: Sap Sipper
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p> Sawsbuck has access to Sap Sipper, which increases Sawsbuck's Attack when hit by a Grass-type move. With this in mind, Sawsbuck can switch into and effectively hard counter Amoonguss, one of the most popular and efficient VGC Pokemon. Horn Leech is a good STAB move that keeps Sawsbuck's health full. Return is a good secondary STAB move, 2HKOing Thundurus, Tornadus and Whimiscott while 3HKOing Amoonguss. Jump Kick can OHKO Bisharp and Zoroark, 2HKO Hydreigon, and 3HKO Chople Berry Scrafty. Nature Power turns into Earthquake when used in Wi-Fi battles, which can 2HKO Chandelure, one of Sawsbuck's biggest threats. Protect is always a good to have to scout for priority moves; Fake Out can break Sawsbuck's Focus Sash while Conkeldurr's Guts boosted Mach Punch gets a clean OHKO. Protect also allows Sawsbuck's teammate to set up Tailwind or for you to scout out potential moves another Pokemon could have. Sawsbuck shines with a Focus Sash, especially with Horn Leech to keep Sawsbuck's health full.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This set could be very useful for Tailwind teams, as it could use the Speed boost to achieve the same effect as Chlorophyll. Whimiscott and Tornadus are the best Tailwind users, thanks to Prankster. Sawsbuck pairs up well with Tornadus, who can OHKO Condkeldurr with a Flight Gem Acrobatics. A Sap Sipper Sawsbuck is also a very good teammate for Jellicent. With Tailwind support, Jellicent can outspeed and take out Chandelure with a Shadow Ball or Water Spout, while Sawsbuck takes care of Amoonguss that often threatens Jellicent. Hydreigon is another good partner; Levitate makes it immune to Nature Power, allowing Sawsbuck to take out Chandelure without harming its teammate. Bouffalant might seem like a better option than Sawsbuck due to its higher defenses; however, Sawsbuck is much faster and has access to Grass-type STAB, making it the superior choice.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Protect can be replaced with Swords Dance if you wants to raise your Attack. Although Jump Kick or Megahorn is preferred on Sawsbuck, remember that Wild Charge is an option; which easily OHKOs Tornadus and Archeops. Nature Power becomes Earthquake in wireless battles, giving Sawsbuck an option to easily 2HKO Chandelure. If Item Clause is an issue, you can switch out Life Orb for a Focus Sash or vice versa, as they both benefit each set.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Chandelure is probably the best counter to Sawsbuck. It can easily OHKO Sawsbuck with Heat Wave and is immune to Jump Kick and Return, while also resisting Horn Leech and Megahorn. Conkeldurr is another great counter as it can OHKO Sawsbuck with a priority Mach Punch once Guts activates. Tornadus could easily set up Tailwind, which makes most Pokemon faster than Sawsbuck that lack Tailwind support; it could also just OHKO Sawsbuck with Acrobatics.</p>
<p>Sawsbuck is a decent offensive threat that can become very successful when used with a combination of Sunny Day and Tailwind. It lives up to its reputation as one of the best Chlorophyll users in the metagame which, combined with base 100 Attack, makes Sawsbuck a solid choice for any Sunny Day or Tailwind VGC team.</p>
[SET]
name: Sunny Day Sweeper
move 1: Horn Leech
move 2: Return / Double-Edge
move 3: Jump Kick / Megahorn
move 4: Protect
item: Life Orb
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Sawsbuck is a potent threat under the sun. When Chlorophyll is activated, this deer has a Speed of 294 with Adamant and a whooping 332 Speed with Jolly, allowing Sawsbuck to outspeed every unboosted Pokemon in the metagame. Tailwind support would give it an even greater Speed advantage. Horn Leech is a good STAB move that can OHKO popular VGC Pokemon such as Terrakion and 2HKO maximum HP Jellicent while regaining health. Return is a good secondary STAB, hitting common Pokemon that resist Horn Leech, such as Tornadus, Thundurus, Whimiscott, and maximum HP Amoonguss for neutral damage. Double-Edge is a good choice as well, OHKOing Thundurus and Tornadus, which are major threats to Sawsbuck. Although Return is a little weaker, it lacks recoil drawback and is still capable of OHKOing the two aforementioned Pokemon. The third moveslot has two good options. Jump Kick OHKOes Bisharp and Zoroark and 2HKOes Vanilluxe; however, it only 3HKOes Chople Berry Scrafty and damages Sawsbuck if the attack misses or the opposing Pokemon uses Protect. Megahorn 2HKOes Musharna and can OHKO Hydreigon; the latter is a huge threat to any sun teams due to its resistances to Fire-, Grass-, and Ghost-types. Protect is very useful move to have in the VGC metagame. It provides you with a free turn of defense while Sawsbuck's partner sets up Sunny Day or Tailwind. This can save Sawsbuck from faster threats and priority moves, such as Conkeldurr's Mach Punch, an attack that can OHKO with a Guts boost or 2HKO without one. It is also very useful for scouting out opposing moves, giving you time to react accordingly.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This set is essential for sun teams, and will work better when used in conjunction with Tailwind Support. Sawsbuck's best partner in this case would be Whimiscott. With Prankster, Whimiscott can set up Sunny Day quickly for Sawsbuck to sweep and also has access to Tailwind and Helping Hand. Tailwind can give Sawsbuck the advantage against other Tailwind-boosted Pokemon, while Helping Hand increases the base power of Sawsbuck's moves by 50%. Sawsbuck also works very well with other sun sweepers such as Chandelure, Lilligant, and Darmanitan. However, Chandelure and Conkeldurr counter Sawsbuck. To combat Chandelure, Hydregion and Terrakion are good partners due to Hydregion's access to Dark-type moves and Terrakion's Rock Slide. As for Conkeldurr, Tornadus and Amoonguss would make excellent teammates, able to defeat it with Acrobatics or the latter's Giga Drain, respectively.</p>
[SET]
name: Sap Counter
move 1: Horn Leech
move 2: Return
move 3: Jump Kick / Nature Power
move 4: Protect
item: Focus Sash
ability: Sap Sipper
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p> Sawsbuck has access to Sap Sipper, which increases Sawsbuck's Attack when hit by a Grass-type move. With this in mind, Sawsbuck can switch into and effectively hard counter Amoonguss, one of the most popular and efficient VGC Pokemon. Horn Leech is a good STAB move that keeps Sawsbuck's health full. Return is a good secondary STAB move, 2HKOing Thundurus, Tornadus and Whimiscott while 3HKOing Amoonguss. Jump Kick can OHKO Bisharp and Zoroark, 2HKO Hydreigon, and 3HKO Chople Berry Scrafty. Nature Power turns into Earthquake when used in Wi-Fi battles, which can 2HKO Chandelure, one of Sawsbuck's biggest threats. Protect is always a good to have to scout for priority moves; Fake Out can break Sawsbuck's Focus Sash while Conkeldurr's Guts boosted Mach Punch gets a clean OHKO. Protect also allows Sawsbuck's teammate to set up Tailwind or for you to scout out potential moves another Pokemon could have. Sawsbuck shines with a Focus Sash, especially with Horn Leech to keep Sawsbuck's health full.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>This set could be very useful for Tailwind teams, as it could use the Speed boost to achieve the same effect as Chlorophyll. Whimiscott and Tornadus are the best Tailwind users, thanks to Prankster. Sawsbuck pairs up well with Tornadus, who can OHKO Condkeldurr with a Flight Gem Acrobatics. A Sap Sipper Sawsbuck is also a very good teammate for Jellicent. With Tailwind support, Jellicent can outspeed and take out Chandelure with a Shadow Ball or Water Spout, while Sawsbuck takes care of Amoonguss that often threatens Jellicent. Hydreigon is another good partner; Levitate makes it immune to Nature Power, allowing Sawsbuck to take out Chandelure without harming its teammate. Bouffalant might seem like a better option than Sawsbuck due to its higher defenses; however, Sawsbuck is much faster and has access to Grass-type STAB, making it the superior choice.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Protect can be replaced with Swords Dance if you wants to raise your Attack. Although Jump Kick or Megahorn is preferred on Sawsbuck, remember that Wild Charge is an option; which easily OHKOs Tornadus and Archeops. Nature Power becomes Earthquake in wireless battles, giving Sawsbuck an option to easily 2HKO Chandelure. If Item Clause is an issue, you can switch out Life Orb for a Focus Sash or vice versa, as they both benefit each set.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Chandelure is probably the best counter to Sawsbuck. It can easily OHKO Sawsbuck with Heat Wave and is immune to Jump Kick and Return, while also resisting Horn Leech and Megahorn. Conkeldurr is another great counter as it can OHKO Sawsbuck with a priority Mach Punch once Guts activates. Tornadus could easily set up Tailwind, which makes most Pokemon faster than Sawsbuck that lack Tailwind support; it could also just OHKO Sawsbuck with Acrobatics.</p>
