Chandelure [QC 3/3] [GP 2/2]

Chandelure


[Overview]

<p>The UU tier is home to a plethora of insanely powerful Fire-types. While most hit very hard physically with their Flare Blitzes and V-creates, Chandelure stands out by hitting just as hard specially. Chandelure's secondary Ghost-typing gives it opportunities to switch in as UU is littered with Fighting-types and is heavily focused on entry hazards, making Ghost's immunities very useful. Chandelure has two great abilities to choose from. Flash Fire grants Chandelure immunity to the many powerful Fire-type moves in the tier, giving it opportunities to switch in for free and spam boosted Fire moves. However, such a play yields inconsistent result, as the Fire-types in question, such as Darmanitan and other Chandelure, can severely damage or KO Chandelure with a common coverage move, such as Earthquake and Shadow Ball, respectively. Flame Body sacrifices this immunity for the ability to muscle past Porygon2, as the latter will no longer Trace a Fire immunity.</p>

<p>That being said, Chandelure doesn't come without its flaws, including some common ones. For starters, Chandelure has extremely inconvenient weaknesses to Water-, Ground-, Dark-, and Rock-type attacks. The latter two make for crippling weaknesses to Stealth Rock and Pursuit, two fairly common sights in UU. Chandelure is also quite frail and has below average Speed. Having considered all of these flaws, Chandelure is still a very powerful threat in the current metagame and should always be prepared for.</p>

[SET]
name: SubSplit
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Pain Split
item: Life Orb
nature: Modest
evs: 68 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 184 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Due to Chandelure's sheer power, it will force the opponent to switch out often. This provides a perfect opportunity to set up a Substitute. Substitutes do a great job of making up for Chandelure's frailty and can turn it into a deadly sweeper. Fire Blast is again the STAB move of choice, providing more power than Flamethrower. Overheat does not work well for this set because most of the time multiple attacks will be used before switching out. Shadow Ball is a strong, reliable secondary STAB move. It can hit many things extremely hard that can take a few Fire Blasts, such as bulky Water-types, which usually don't invest much in Special Defense. Pain Split allows Chandelure to simultaneously cripple the opponent and recover HP lost as tribute to Life Orb and Substitute. This is especially effective against the common Chandelure counter Snorlax, as his high HP will give Chandelure a large health boost.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EV spread again maximizes Chandelure's huge Special Attack and provides enough Speed for it to function. Modest is used for even more power; the loss in Speed is nebulous as Timid Chandelure doesn't outspeed anything that Modest Chandelure doesn't outspeed. As it is, Chandelure is fast enough to Substitute against standard Honchkrow, ending Sucker Punch mindgames. The 4 Special Defense EVs are put in place to give a physical boost to the likes of download Porygon-Z and Porygon2 rather than a special one. While it may seem counterintuitive to invest in HP on a Pain Split set, Chandelure's HP is low enough that Pain Split still steals a lot of health from the opponent, and it gives some necessary bulk. Heracross cannot OHKO 100% health Chandelure with Stone Edge, and Porygon2's Discharge only has a 50% chance to break Chandelure's Substitute, instead of a 100% chance. This set prefers Flame Body, as without it, Chandelure is unable to get past Porygon2. Flash Fire is always an option for the immunity and chance to hit even harder with Fire Blast, but switching a slow Chandelure into Fire Pokemon with coverage moves is always dangerous. As for every set, a spinner, for example Blastoise, is a great teammate to have, as it keeps away the hazards that severely cripple Chandelure. Roserade is also a good teammate because it takes Water-type attacks that hurt Chandelure and lays down Spikes to help Chandelure sweep.</p>

[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Fire Blast / Overheat
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fighting
move 4: Energy Ball / Trick
item: Choice Specs
nature: Modest
evs: 120 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD / 128 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>With base 145 Special Attack, boosted 50% by Choice Specs, Chandelure is easily one of the most powerful special attackers in the tier. Whenever it switches in, there is a very high possibility that something from the opposing team will faint. Choice Specs further improves Chandelure's already massive Special Attack, making it very difficult to take on. Fire Blast is the standard attack. Overheat is a good alternative, as it provides even more power, but the fact that if usually forces Chandelure to switch out after using one move usually outweighs the increase in power. Shadow Ball is another powerful STAB attack that can be used to break most of the things that resist Chandelure's more powerful STAB move, namely bulky Water-types (especially Slowbro).</p>

<p>Hidden Power Fighting gives needed coverage, hitting Houndoom and Snorlax. Chandelure can also use Trick instead of Energy Ball to target the same type of Pokemon and cripple them for the rest of the match. Energy Ball is a good coverage move, but Choice Specs-boosted Shadow Ball will usually 2HKO bulky Water-types and Rhyperior, the target of Energy Ball. Trick makes Chandelure a little more of a team player. If Snorlax, the most reliable Chandelure counter, is crippled by Trick, the opposing team has very little to stop your other special sweeper.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The given EV spread maximizes Chandelure's already huge Special Attack stat and makes Chandelure faster than 0 Speed Arcanine and other base 95s like Xatu. Modest Nature adds even more power to Chandelure's attacks, allowing Chandelure to 2HKO most Pokemon, with the exception of a few such as Snorlax. The 8 Special Defense EVs are put in place to give Download users such as the Porygon family an Attack boost upon switching in and to keep Chandelure at a HP number not divisible by four. The rest is invested in HP for overall bulk. While this set prefers Flame Body in order to spam Fire moves past Porygon2, Flash Fire is still viable as Hidden Power Fighting will 2HKO the duck anyways. Flamethrower can be considered as the last move if you aren't particularly worried about bulky Water-type Pokemon, such as Milotic and Suicune, and it can be used in times when a Fire Blast miss would be deadly. However, the 2HKOs and coverage that Energy Ball provides or the team support Trick provides will usually outweigh Flamethrower. As Chandelure is weak to Stealth Rock, and is still hurt by Spikes, a Rapid Spin user or Xatu is a great partner to have on the team. A powerful Fighting-type attacker is also of great use, picking off bulky Normal-types that haunt Chandelure. Scrafty in particular has great synergy with Chandelure; it can absorb Ghost, Rock, Dark, and any weak moves such as Body Slam from Snorlax, and in return attracts Fighting moves for Chandelure to get into battle. As Scrafty is a late-game sweeper, he appreciates the massive damage Choice Specs Chandelure can deal to the opponent's team.</p>

[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Energy Ball
move 4: Trick / Hidden Power Fighting
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Flash Fire
nature: Timid / Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Even without a Choice Specs boost, Chandelure can still hit very hard with its base 145 Special Attack. Its relatively slow Speed cripples Chandelure the most, but equipping it with a Choice Scarf is the best remedy. It will turn Chandelure into a decently fast sweeper that can revenge kill nearly any sweeper that doesn't boost Speed. Fire Blast is once again the STAB Fire-type move of choice, being as powerful as possible without a negative side effect. It is of course less accurate than Flamethrower, but the extra power is necessary, especially on this set. Shadow Ball is the other necessary STAB that can hit a lot of Pokemon hard that Fire Blast cannot.</p>

<p>Energy Ball is a very effective coverage move and can still hit a few bulky Water-types and Rhyperior harder than either of its STABs. Trick works better on the Choice Scarf set than it does on the Choice Specs set, because the extra Speed allows Chandelure to outspeed many more Pokemon and cripple them by locking them into a single move. Hidden Power Fighting is still an option of course, allowing Chandelure to break through the bulky Normal-types that would otherwise wall it, as well as Houndoom. However, without the Choice Specs boost, Chandelure deals much less damage, and is unable to do anything without a lot of prior damage.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>As usual, the EVs are to maximize Chandelure's Special Attack and the Speed boost to beat out as many threats as possible. The 4 Special Defense EVs are used to give Download users an Attack boost rather than a Special Attack boost upon switching in. Timid is the nature of choice, as it can outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Heracross and Krookodile, Lilligant after a boost, and Jolly max Speed Crobat. However, Modest can still be used for extra power. Flash Fire is the preferred ability on this set, as muscling past Porygon2 isn't as important for a revenge killer and late-game sweeper. As Chandelure is weak to Stealth Rock, and is hurt by Spikes, a Rapid Spin user or Xatu is usually a great teammate to have. A powerful Fighting-type is a great teammate, because of its ability to break through Pokemon that can take both of Chandelure's STABs well. Swords Dance Heracross can make a great partner for this set. This set sacrifices more power for more Speed, and while that allows it to become more effective against fast-and-frail offensive teams, it loses the ability to get through defensive teams a effectively. The massive power of Swords Dance Heracross will run through defensive Pokemon, and the pair has decent synergy. Togekiss also earns a mention for ability to wreck defensive teams, but it unfortunately shares Chandelure's Rock weakness.</p>

[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Energy Ball / Will-O-Wisp
item: Leftovers
ability: Flame Body
nature: Modest
evs: 68 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 184 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>This set sacrifices power for eased prediction and protection from Pursuit. The goal of the set is to force a switch with Chandelure's massive power and set up Substitute to ease prediction. The Substitute allows Chandelure to dodge potentially fatal hits from faster Pokemon, and retaliate with its still huge Special Attack. Many Pokemon that could otherwise trap Chandelure with Pursuit now have to take a Fire Blast or potentially crippling coverage move. Fire Blast and Shadow Ball are the obligatory STABS of the set. They get good neutral coverage, and hit hard even without a boosting item thanks to Chandelure's gargantuan Special Attack. Energy Ball wrecks bulky Water-types, like Swampert, Milotic, and Suicune, who become more of a threat as the boost-providing item is the reason Chandelure 2HKOes them. It also cripples specially defensive Rhyperior, OHKOing with a little bit of prior damage. However, Will-O-Wisp can be used instead of Energy Ball for nearly the same effect. It ruins Swampert, Rhyperior, Snorlax, among other physical attackers who might try and check Chandelure. Shadow Ball still deals a lot of damage to other bulky Water-types, especially the common Slowbro.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EVs allow Chandelure to safely use Substitute against Honchkrow, which helps end Sucker Punch mindgames. The 4 Special Defense EVs ensure Download Pokemon get an Attack boost, and the rest is dumped in Chandelure's low HP. Naturally, Special Attack is maximized so Chandelure can deal the most possible damage. As this is a Substitute set, Flame Body is preferred because the set lacks a way to get past Porygon2 otherwise. The power given by a Flash Fire boost is very attractive on this set without a boosting item, but coverage moves on Fire Pokemon make it very dangerous to attempt a switch. Taunt can be used instead of Energy Ball or Will-O-Wisp. It can prevent set up by opposing Pokemon and the Foresight + Rapid Spin combination, but without a coverage move or status, Chandelure finds it even harder to break through teams. Leftovers are needed as Chandelure cannot recover health for more Substitutes without Pain Split. If the punch from Life Orb is missed, the SubSplit set should be used. This set appreciates hazards even more than others, as it lacks the power given by Life Orb or Choice Specs. Heracross can break through a burned Snorlax and Porygon2 very easily, and the Choice Scarf set can both weaken the opponent's team, as well as sweep late-game when Chandelure has spread status and damage across the opposing team. It also has some type synergy, taking weak Dark attacks with its resistance. As with any Chandelure set, any spinner or Xatu are welcome teammates as they can assuage Chandelure's fear of entry hazards.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Chandelure has a very expansive movepool for a Fire-type, and this does come with a few more moveset options. Calm Mind is Chandelure's best boosting option, and makes its attacks even more powerful. The problem with this set is the fact that Chandelure is relatively slow and will usually get outsped and KOed before getting too many boosts up. A support set is somewhat viable, consisting of moves such as Will-O-Wisp, Taunt, Pain Split, and other support moves. Usually though, Chandelure's offensive FIREpower is too good to pass up, and it is outclassed by other defensive Ghosts like Cofagrigus or Sableye.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>As for all of the sets, there are few counters to Chandelure largely due to its sheer offensive power. Snorlax can absorb any special attack with his bulk and is one of the only sure counters. However, even he fears burn from the Substitute set and Trick from the Choice sets. Houndoom can absorb Fire moves, and resists Ghost moves while threatening Pursuit or Sucker Punch, but his frailty makes him a check at best. Porygon2 can check the Choice Scarf set, as it runs Flash Fire more than Flame Body, but that's all it can do anymore. Any fast Pursuit user can check Chandelure. Weavile, Krookodile, Honchkrow, and the previously mentioned Houndoom can all come in after a KO, and trap Chandelure. However, all but Houndoom must fear a Substitute, as Chandelure can KO or cripple them from behind one. Any fast, powerful Pokemon can also check the frail Chandelure, especially as its hazard weakness will often leave it weak enough for a KO. Even just forcing it out is a minor victory, as switching back in can be very painful.</p>

[Unreleased]

<p>Shadow Tag is Chandelure's amazing unreleased ability that has proven itself broken on a much weaker Pokemon, Gothitelle. When the ability is released, Chandelure can basically kiss UU goodbye as it will most likely move up to OU or even Ubers.</p>

I have been using Chandelure a lot lately (the Specs set) and I really find Flamethrower to be the move I lock myself in the most. I am not a QC member or anything but I think the moveset should be:

move 1: Overheat / Fire Blast
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Flamethrower
move 4: Hidden Power Fighting / Energy Ball

Not sure about the order of the slashes on the last move, but I guess you can put pressure on Porygon2 with HP Fighting since it is a 2HKO

Timid is probably the better nature for the Substitute set, but I am not an expert when it comes to speed tiers. However, I think Chandelure is sitting in a very competitive speed tier that allows to outspeed certain threats if they are running Modest/Adamant instead of Timid/Jolly, so it might be worth a shot.

Another thing. Don't SubSplit and Sub + 3 attacks work differently? I have never used it, but it seems like it

The choice specs set should definately come before the choice scarf set. The scarf set isn't very useful imo, it can't revenge kill many of the pokemon you'd want from a scarfer, (+1 Kingdra, +1 Lilligant, +2 Omastar, pretty much every other scarfed mon you'll encounter) not to mention that being weak to every form of hazards is going to severely limit its amount of switchins. I'd still keep it in the analysis, but the choice specs set should be listed as #1. Speaking of which, Fire blast should be the first move, with Overheat slashed in. Chandelure isn't always going to be forced out after its first attack, and two Overheats is less powerful than two Fire Blasts. For example, Blastoise and Swampert are both KOed by 2 consecutive Fire Blasts w/SR, whereas they survive 2 Overheats and will KO you with their torrent-boosted stabs.

I don't think you should be slashing Flamethrower with Energy Ball on the Specs set. Energy Ball scores lovely 2HKOes on things like Milotic and Suicune, and to give up that capability for a weaker Fire-type STAB is just unnecessary. I also agree with moving up the Choice Specs set to the first slot. Choice Scarf Chandelure has been decidedly mediocre in my experiences with it.

Yeah, Specs should definitely be listed first and Fire Blast should go before Overheat.

Also, I know this is still a WIP, but you'll need to expand your skeleton quite a bit for us to approve it.

Ok, I changed the order of the sets, putting the Specs set first, and I reversed the order of Fire Blast and Overheat on that set. I removed Flamethrower from that set as well, Energy ball is a far better option. I'll continue working on the skeleton.

You should also probably mention that Chandelure is one of the very select few Pokemon that can take Victini and Darmanitan's V-create and Flare Blitz, respectively. Victini can't do much damage with any of its moves, and Chandelure gets a free substitute on the switch out. Darmanitan is a bit more dangerous to switch into thanks to its access to Rock Slide and Earthquake, but if you predict right, and you've determined that Darmanitan is indeed a Choice Scarf / Band user, then it will definitely pay off.

You say that bulky waters counter all sets that lack Energy Ball, but this is simply not true. The Specs set, and even Life Orb set can 2HKO most bulky waters. The only true counters to Chandelure are Snorlax and Porygon2, but Pursuit users should still be mentioned as checks. Also, on the Specs set you should slash in Timid as the secondary nature. This is primarily to outspeed Kingdra, all of which run neutral speed nature, but it also helps you outrun Adamant Heracross, Togekiss, and other Chandelure.

The substitute set should just be called "Substitute". Also, I think Flame Body deserves an AC mention at least, since it removes Porygon2 as a counter and is more useful than Flash Fire in higher levels of play.

You should slash HP Fighting with Trick on the 3rd slot of the Choice Specs set. They both target the same Pokemon (SpD walls like Umbreon, Snorlax & P2.). Trick can completely cripple them for the rest of the match. It's true that with some prior damage you're 2hkoing their asses with HP fight anyway, but that is a liberty that is not always available to you. Especially effective against stall teams.

It comes down to Reliability vs High Risk / High reward.

Ok, a few changes have been made and the skeleton has been expanded. I've yet to expand the choice scarf set, I'll probably get to that later tonight.

You should slash overheat with fire blast on the Choice Scarf set, like you did in the specs set.

Alright, done with skeleton, ready for QC.

I think Timid should get a better mention on the Substitute set because it outspeeds Adamant Heracross, Modest Nidoking, Adamant/Modest Kingdra (specially important because it means it cant switch in) and ties at worst with other Timid Chandelure.

Mention Flame Body as a potential ability. It lets you beat one of your biggest counters without getting locked into HP Fighting, and it can severely troll u-turn users, moxiecross, and can even be useful as a last-ditch effort to stop something like Crobat or Honchkrow from sweeping. Not sure if it's worth a slash, but it should definitely be given a strong mention.

FlareBlitz said:

It lets you beat one of your biggest counters without getting locked into HP Fighting

Click to expand...

And who is that? Out of Chandelure's 3 biggest counters, P2 makes contact with none of its moves, Snorlax doesnt have a contact move that effects Chandelure (aside from the occasional Pursuit, which will maim Chandelure anyway), and Umbreon will make contact but even if he does and you get the burn off, your still getting burnt yourself and Umbreon usually carries heal bell.

When using Flame Body, Porygon2 gets hit by Fire moves because he Traces your ability. And wtf man, don't you know that Fire types can't be burned?

alexwolf said:

When using Flame Body, Porygon2 gets hit by Fire moves because he Traces your ability. And wtf man, don't you know that Fire types can't be burned?

Click to expand...

True, I didn't think of that. And i didn't realize Umbreon wont burn Fire-types with his ability, sorry about that. I just figured he was talking about the actual ability for Porygon2 rather that Trace.

Yeah I agree with a stronger mention of Flame Body. Once that's done,

QC Approved 1/3

I personally think Flame Body deserves a slash, but I rarely see anyone else using it over Flash Fire. Flash Fire is probably the most helpful ability on a majority of teams, so just mentioning Flame Body should be fine.

QC Approved 2/3

Agreeing with the above, getting past trace P2 is huge. Also, the sub and scarf sets don't actually say anything about energy ball in the writeup and just have it listed in the set. Other than that

[qc]3/3[/qc]

Thanks for the stamps, I'll get to writing this up soon.

Written Up, Ready for GP

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TSTEF said:

Chandelure

[Overview]

<p> UU is a tier that is home to consider "The UU tier is home to" a plethora of insanely powerful Fire-types. Most of them hit very hard from the physical side of the spectrum, putting dents in many teams with their Flare Blitzes or V-Creates. One Pokemon, however, However, one Pokemon stands out for hitting just as hard specially awkward comparison. That Pokemon is Chandelure. and armed with the highest special attack of any non legendary, it can really be a scary threat in UU. Armed with the highest Special Attack of any non-legendary Pokemon, Chandelure can be a prominent threat in UU. "scary threat" doesn't sound great Chandelure's powerful Fire-type attacks are by no means the only thing it has going for it, add a conjunction or make this into two sentences it's Ghost typing is also incredibly useful as well. UU is littered with Fighting-types, and is heavily focused on entry hazards, making Ghost a very important type. Chandelure has two great abilities to choose from--Flash Fire being the more commonly used one--granting Chandelure immunity to the many powerful Fire-type moves in the tier. Flame Body should not be overlooked however, as it allows Chandelure to get past one of its major walls, namely Porygon2.</p>

<p> That being said, Chandelure doesn't come without it's flaws, some of them being very large. For starters, Chandelure has extremely inconvenient weaknesses to types like Water, Ground, Dark, and Rock. The latter two make for crippling weaknesses to Stealth Rock and Pursuit, two fairly common sights in UU. Not only that, but Chandelure is also fairly frail, and has a very inconveniently below-average speed. Having all of those flaws in mind, considered all of those flaws, Chandelure is still a very powerful threat in the current metagame, and should almost always be prepared for.</p>

[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Fire Blast / Overheat
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fighting / Trick
move 4: Energy Ball
item: Choice Specs
ability: Flash Fire
nature: Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p> With a base 140 SpA Special Attack, boosted 50% by Choice Specs, You should usually write out the full term the first time you use it Specs Chandelure is easily one of the most powerful special attackers in the tier. Whenever it switches in, the opponent should be wary as it is highly likely that something will die. Awkward wording, and the technical term is "faint" Choice Specs are is chosen to further improve Chandelure's already massive SpA, and make it so barely anything can take it on making it very difficult to face. Fire Blast is the standard move attack as because it prolongs the time in which Chandelure can break walls, rather than having to switch out after one attack. Overheat is a good alternative, as it provides even more power, but the fact that if usually forces Chandelure to switch out after using on move usually outweighs the increase in power. Those sentences about Fire Blast and Overheat can probably be combined Shadow Ball is another powerful STAB that can be used to break damage most of the things that resist Chandelure's more powerful STAB move attack, namely bulky waters and (especially Slowbro.)</p>

<p>Hidden Power Fighting is a great move option to fill the third moveslot, as it allows Chandelure to 2HKO most of the things that wall the its first two moves, (namely Trace Porygon2, Houndoom, and with prior damage Snorlax) Snorlax with some prior damage. If that move doesn't suit your fancy, another alternative is Trick. Trick will target the same type of Pokemon, and cripple them for the rest of the match, rather than just put some damage on them. Energy Ball is a great coverage move to round off the set. It allows you to score a 2HKO on the likes of Suicune and Milotic, and allows you to hit Rhyperior incredibly hard as well.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p> The given EV spreads was designed to maximize Chandelure's already huge Special Attack stat, and provide a decent amount of Speed. While Chandelure is by no means fast, 252 Speed EVs are helpful to outspeed a few select threats. Modest is used to add even more power to Chandelure's attacks, basically eliminating things foes that can take every any hit from the set twice, with the exception of a few: (Snorlax and Trace Porygon2, also along with Houndoom if the set lacks HP Fighting). The 4 SpD EVs are put in place to give download users like Porygon2/ or Porygon-Z an Attack boost upon switching in. Flamethrower can be considered as the last move if you aren't particularly worried about things like Milotic and Suicune, and it can be used in times when a Fire Blast miss would be deadly. Although, the 2HKOs and coverage that Energy Ball provides will usually outweigh this, however. As Chandelure is weak to Stealth Rock, and is hurt even more by Spikes, a Rapid Spinner user or Xatu is usually a great partner to have on the team. Also, A powerful Fighting-type attacker is also of great use, picking off bulky Normal-types that haunt Chandelure.</p>

[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Pain Split / Energy Ball
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Flash Fire
nature: Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Due to the sheer power that Chandelure provides, it will force the opponent to make many switches switch out often. This provides a perfect opportunity to set up a Substitute. Substitutes do a great job of making up for Chandelure's frailty, and can allow it to turn into a deadly sweeper. Fire Blast is again the STAB of choice, providing more power than Flamethrower. Overheat does not work well for this set because most of the time, more than one attack will be used before switching out most of the time. Shadow Ball is very strong, reliable secondary STAB. It can hit many things extremely hard that can take a few Fire Blasts, just like on the last Choice Specs set. Without the Specs boost, Shadow Ball loses a few of the 2HKOs and OHKOs it gets otherwise, but it is still a reliable STAB move.</p>

<p>Energy Ball is a very nice coverage move to have in the last slot, to make up for some of the power Chandelure loses from the Specs set. Energy Ball gets some nice 2HKOs and OHKOs on bulky Water-types and other bulky Pokemon that are weak to Grass. Pain Split is another great move for the last slot, as because Chandelure has a relatively low HP stat, and it can prolong its life span while shortening that of the enemy.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The EV spread again maxes out Chandelure's huge SpA, and provides enough Speed for it to function. Modest is used for even more power, as the Speed boost Timid provides will only allow Chandelure to outspeed a few select things, none of which are extremely important for the Substitute set. The 4 SpD EVs are put in place to give a physical boost to the likes of download Porygon-Z and Porygon2 rather than a special one. Taunt is a decent option in the last slot, as it can stop things from healing off the damage it Chandelure causes, or using a combination of Foresight and Rapid Spin to get rid of hazards. Will-O-Wisp can also work in the fourth slot to cripple physical attackers that will come in and attempt to break the Sub Chandelure has set up. As for every set, a rapid spinner like Blastoise is a great teammate to have, as it keeps away the hazards that severely cripple Chandelure. Roserade is also a good teamate because it takes Water-type attacks that hurt Chandelure and lays down Spikes to help attain a better it sweep.</p>

[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Energy Ball
move 4: Trick / Hidden Power Fighting
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Flash Fire
nature: Modest/Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Again, even without a Specs boost, Chandelure can still hit very hard, with its base 140 SpA. It's relatively slow Speed is one of the things that hurts Chandelure the most, and equipping it with a Choice Scarf seems like is the best remedy. It will turn Chandelure into a decently fast killer sweeper, that can revenge kill many of the best Pokemon in the tier. Fire Blast is once again the STAB Fire-type move of choice, being as powerful as possible without a SpA drop. It is of course less accurate than Flamethrower, but the extra power is definitely needed, especially on the Scarf set. Like every other set, Shadow Ball is another very reliable STAB that can hit a lot of things hard that Fire Blast cannot.</p>

<p>Energy Ball is a very effective coverage move, and can still hit a few bulky Water-types and Rhyperior harder than either of it's STABs. Trick works better on the Scarf set than it does on the Specs set, because the extra Speed will allow Chandelure to outspeed many more things and cripple them badly by locking them into a single move. Hidden Power Fighting is still an option of course, allowing it to break through the bulky Normal-types that can otherwise wall it, and beating allowing it to beat Houndoom as well.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>As usual, the EVs are to maximize Chandelure's SpA stat to the fullest, and boost the Speed to beat out as many threats as possible. The 4 SpD EVs are used to give Download users an Atk boost rather than a SpA boost upon switch in. You wrote that on each set which seems excessive but that's just my take on it Modest is still the nature of choice for this set, because Chandelure really appreciates the extra power it gives, but Timid becomes much more viable on the Scarf set, because the Speed boost allows Chandelure to outspeed a few more important threats. These include Adamant Scarf Heracross and Krookodile, and Lilligant after a boost to name a few. As Chandelure is weak to Stealth Rock, and is hurt even more by Spikes, a Rapid Spinner or Xatu is usually a great teammate to have. A powerful Fighting-type is again a great teammate, because of it's ability to break through Pokemon that can take both of Chandelure's STABs well.</p>

[Other Options]

<p>Chandelure has a very expansive movesetpool for a Fire-Type, and this does come with a few more moveset options. Calm Mind is Chandelure's best boosting option, and making it's makes its attacks even more powerful is almost unheard of. The problem with this set however is the fact that Chandelure is relatively slow and will usually get outsped and killed before getting too many boosts up. A support set is somewhat viable, consisting of moves like Will-O-Wisp, Taunt, Pain Split, and other support moves. Usually though, Chandelure's offensive FIREpower Of course that's not grammatically correct is too good to pass up. As mentioned before, Flame Body is by no means a bad ability, and can be considered for basically every set. The biggest perk to Flame Body is the fact that it allows Chandelure to get past Porygon2, one of its biggest counters. The biggest downside to that ability however is the fact that Chandelure is usually too frail to use the ability effectively.</p>

[Checks and Counters]

<p>As for all of the sets, there are very few counters to Chandelure largely due to its sheer offensive power. Snorlax, Porygon2 (bar scenarios where Chandelure runs Flame Body) and Houndoom are some of the very few Pokemon in the tier that resist (or are immune to) both of Chandelure's STABs, making them the only true counters in the tier. Pursuit users can be considered checks, because Chandelure is pretty frail, and obviously weak to said move. A Pursuit user can be very crippling, but Chandelure can usually kill most of the Pursuit users in the tier. Again, Chandelure is really crippled by hazards, so a Rapid Spinner or Xatu is almost always a necessary teammate. </p>

[Unreleased]

<p>Shadow Tag is Chandelure's amazing unreleased ability that is currently limited only to the a single evolutionary line that has an insanely shallow movepool and cant use it very well. When the ability is released, Chandelure can basically kiss UU goodbye as it will most likely move up to OU or even Ubers.</p>

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TSTEF please address Zacc's amateur check

you don't have to implement everything that he changed, just what you agree with

if you have questions, ask, and don't implement it and the next gper will address it