In-battle formes
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| HP: | 78 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Attack: | 92 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defense: | 75 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sp. Atk: | 74 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sp. Def: | 63 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Speed: | 118 |
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Overview
Fighting
Hawlucha has solid niches on Fighting teams as a Defogger and as a sweeper. As a Defogger, Hawlucha's high Speed allows it to reliably remove entry hazards like Sticky Web and Toxic Spikes while also outspeeding most fast Taunt users like Krookodile and Cobalion. Its Flying typing also allows it to switch into almost all entry hazards safely and gives it an immunity to Ground-type attacks, while its combination of high-powered STAB attacks allows it to threaten and potentially force out opposing hazard setters and Defoggers such as Araquanid and Decidueye, giving it a good offensive presence. As a sweeper, Hawlucha helps pressure Grass- and Bug-types like Mega Venusaur, Tapu Bulu, Heracross, and Araquanid with its powerful Flying-type STAB move in Acrobatics, and it can use its STAB attacks to serve as a powerful cleaner against types such as Dark, Grass, Bug, and even Steel. On top of this, Hawlucha utilizes Substitute and Swords Dance in order to set up in front of passive Pokemon like Cradily and utility Mew, which makes it a very threatening sweeper. Regardless of its set, Hawlucha's impressive Speed stat and access to Unburden allow it to outspeed the entire metagame, including all Choice Scarf users such as Terrakion and Gengar and weather sweepers like Sand Rush Excadrill, after Unburden activates. Even without the boost from Unburden, Hawlucha can still outspeed and threaten Pokemon such as Heracross and Mega Gallade. However, Hawlucha sports horrendous 78 / 75 / 63 bulk, which does not allow it to survive many strong attacks; however, Hawlucha's bulk does prevent its Substitute from being broken by most weak moves such as Mega Sableye's Knock Off and Klefki's unboosted Foul Play. Hawlucha is the only Defogger on Fighting, but it still can end up being dead weight in certain matchups like Flying and Electric due to its lack of offensive presence against these types. Despite its offensive perks, Hawlucha heavily relies on Swords Dance in order to do respectable damage to its targets due to its relatively low base 92 Attack. Along with that, it fights for a teamslot on Fighting as a sweeper with Kommo-o because Kommo-o is a more reliable sweeper that can set up more quickly and assist with more matchups than Hawlucha such as against Psychic and Electric.
Flying
Hawlucha is a great addition to hyper offensive Flying teams, as its ability Unburden backed by Swords Dance and its powerful STAB attacks allows it to act as a good setup sweeper. Thanks to Unburden it single-handedly becomes the fastest Pokemon in the metagame. Its part Fighting typing allows it to act as a dangerous wincon against many types such as Ice, Normal, Steel, and Dark and lets it take on a plethora of threatening Pokemon, such as Kyurem-B, Chansey, Ferrothorn, and Tyranitar, for the team. Thanks to Substitute, Hawlucha can easily set up on defensive Pokemon such as Mega Sableye and Mew, as it can evade their status and weak attacks and safely set up Swords Dance behind Substitute. However, even though Hawlucha is a fantastic setup sweeper, before Unburden is activated, fast Pokemon such as Greninja and Choice Scarf Latios to outspeed it, and Hawlucha is also very weak without a Swords Dance boost. Additionally, its poor defensive stats make it difficult for Hawlucha to find opportunities to set up, especially against offensive teams that constantly apply pressure to Hawlucha. This also leaves it weak to the common priority users of the tier such as Dragonite, Mega Scizor, and Azumarill.
Offensive Defogger (Fighting)
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Moves
Defog lets Hawlucha take advantage of its high Speed to reliably remove entry hazards for Fighting; Sticky Web and Toxic Spikes are the most notable hazards, as they can otherwise harm the offensive presence of the team. Sky Attack, with the help of a Power Herb, is used as Hawlucha's way of activating Unburden with a powerful one-turn STAB attack. Due to the high Base Power of this move, Hawlucha can severely dent or KO a threat like Galvantula after Stealth Rock damage and proceed to activate Unburden, which can let it further threaten the opposing team offensively. Acrobatics is Hawlucha's most consistent STAB attack, and once Power Herb has been consumed, it is able to deal heavy damage to opposing Pokemon that are weak to it such as Breloom, Tapu Bulu, Heracross, and Infernape. High Jump Kick is Hawlucha's Fighting-type STAB attack, and because of its consistently high Base Power, it is able to pressure Pokemon such as Nihilego and Choice Specs Hydreigon.
Set Details
252 EVs are put into Attack, which lets Hawlucha OHKO Pokemon like Excadrill and Choice Band Tapu Bulu. 252 EVs are put into Speed so Hawlucha can outpace and use Defog against Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Life Orb Latios. Power Herb is used so that Sky Attack can be used in one turn, and it activates Unburden once it is consumed. Unburden is used so that Hawlucha can outspeed Pokemon like Jolly Sand Rush Excadrill and Choice Scarf Greninja. A Jolly nature is used so that Hawlucha can outspeed threats like Galvantula without the boost from Unburden.
Usage Tips
Using Sky Attack is the only way to activate Unburden, and Hawlucha can use this against Pokemon weak to the move so that it can activate the ability while removing a threat or a weakened Pokemon such as Celebi or Mega Gallade. Defog should be used when the opposing entry hazard setters have fainted, as Hawlucha is frail and cannot afford to frequently come in against matchups where entry hazards are common such as Poison and Water. Sending Hawlucha in on a weakened hazard setter like Galvantula or Araquanid can force them to switch out, allowing Hawlucha to Defog for free. Pokemon that are Choice-locked into a move that Hawlucha can manage, such as Choice Scarf Heracross using Close Combat and Choice Scarf Excadrill using Earthquake or Rapid Spin, allow Hawlucha to come in and Defog as well. Refrain from sending Hawlucha in on Pokemon with status-inducing moves, as any status ailment will hinder Hawlucha's usability. Hawlucha should also not be sacrificed or switched into strong attackers, as not only is its bulk abysmal, but Hawlucha's role in removing hazards is important enough in matchups like Rock and Bug that it needs to be preserved. Hawlucha must be wary of bulky setup sweepers like Mega Scizor and Mega Latias, as they can take advantage of its lackluster power and use it as a chance to set up. Hawlucha should try to activate Unburden if the entire enemy team is weakened to the point that it can clean; alternatively, it can be activated to outspeed a fast threat like Choice Scarf Latios so Hawlucha can use Defog before getting revenge killed. Also, avoid activating Unburden if any of Hawlucha's checks or counters are still active, as it can only be activated once and disappears once Hawlucha switches out. Hawlucha can also bluff having the Substitute + Swords Dance set, which can allow it to KO unsuspecting Pokemon such as Mega Gallade and Choice Specs Keldeo.
Team Options
Cobalion can provide Thunder Wave support, which lets Hawlucha outspeed threats such as Greninja and Mega Lopunny before activating Unburden. This lets Hawlucha threaten these Pokemon and clear entry hazards much more easily. Cobalion also switches into Fairy-, Flying-, Ice-, and Psychic-type moves for Hawlucha thanks to its better bulk and good defensive typing. Infernape can use its Fire-type moves to take out Celesteela and Skarmory, which would otherwise force Hawlucha out. Breloom likes to preserve its Focus Sash, so it appreciates Hawlucha removing any hazards so that it is able to switch in without taking any chip damage. In return, Breloom can put Hawlucha's threats to sleep with Spore and KO fast threats to Hawlucha like Mega Sharpedo and Greninja with Mach Punch. Choice Scarf Terrakion appreciates Hawlucha's ability to remove Sticky Web immensely, as Sticky Web would otherwise prevent it from eliminating threats like Mega Diancie, Life Orb Greninja, and Tapu Koko after Stealth Rock damage. Mega Gallade appreciates Hawlucha's ability to remove Toxic Spikes, as this allows it to set up more easily against Water- and Poison-type and take down walls like Toxapex and Mega Venusaur. Kommo-o also appreciates Hawlucha's ability to remove Toxic Spikes so that it can remain healthy and set up more easily; it can also KO bulky hazard setters like Forretress and Ferrothorn with Flamethrower, allowing Hawlucha to permanently remove the hazards once given the opportunity. Keldeo can break physical walls like Hippowdon and Mega Sableye so that Hawlucha will not be forced to switch out when it tries to sweep. Heracross can take advantage of Hawlucha's ability to remove Reflect, and it can make the Psychic matchup a little easier because it can threaten Psychic-types like Mew and Latios with Pursuit and Megahorn to ease Hawlucha's attempts at sweeping.
Substitute + Swords Dance (Fighting)
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Moves
Substitute helps lower Hawlucha's HP so that it can consume its Sitrus Berry, which then activates Unburden and boosts the power of Acrobatics. This can also be used to avoid status moves like Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave. Swords Dance boosts Hawlucha's Attack by two stages, letting it OHKO the likes of Mega Venusaur and Alolan Muk. Acrobatics is Hawlucha's Flying-type STAB attack; once Hawlucha's Sitrus Berry is consumed, Acrobatics doubles in power, allowing it to OHKO most Grass- and Bug-type Pokemon like Tapu Bulu and Volcarona. High Jump Kick is Hawlucha's Fighting-type STAB move, and it packs a punch against Pokemon like Nihilego and Greninja.
Set Details
30 HP IVs are used to make Hawlucha's HP divisible by 4, allowing it to use Substitute twice to activate its Sitrus Berry. Hawlucha uses 252 Attack EVs and 252 Speed EVs to maximize its power and Speed; it runs a Jolly nature due to how crucial its Speed tier is when revenge killing Pokemon like Keldeo and Mega Gallade before Unburden has activated. A Sitrus Berry gives Hawlucha a decent amount of recovery, and it boosts Hawlucha's Acrobatics and activates Unburden after it is consumed. A Sitrus Berry is used over another healing Berry to lower the number of turns required to activate Unburden with Substitute.
Usage Tips
Hawlucha works best as a late-game sweeper, aiming to clean up once defensive threats such as Landorus-T and Toxapex have been eliminated or severely weakened. It is necessary to preserve Hawlucha's Sitrus Berry until this time, as Hawlucha will not be able to tap into its Unburden ability after switching out when it has activated. Without the boost from Unburden, Hawlucha is not able to outspeed certain threats to Fighting like Sand Rush Excadrill and Choice Scarf Gengar. The small health boost from the Sitrus Berry allows Hawlucha to potentially set up Substitute again after activating Unburden to deal with offensive threats or to tank a weak attack in order to get a KO in return. Sending in Hawlucha against passive Pokemon like Cradily, utility Mew, and Gliscor allows it to set up Substitute for free and potentially get a Swords Dance as they either switch out or continue to try and break the Substitute. Refrain from sending Hawlucha into strong attacks, as it cannot take good hits due to its lackluster bulk; instead reserve it for revenge killing. Also refrain from sending Hawlucha into status inducers and Scald users, as any status ailment can compromise Hawlucha's longevity. Be wary of Pokemon that use Protect like Celesteela and Mega Sharpedo when Hawlucha needs to use High Jump Kick, as the crash damage will severely dent Hawlucha and potentially KO it. Hawlucha should set up Substitute before using Swords Dance if it is up against a slow status inducer such as Mega Sableye; however, if the foe is Choice-locked into an exploitable move like Choice Scarf Excadrill locked into Earthquake or Rapid Spin, Hawlucha can afford to set up Swords Dance first and use Substitute later to set up on a different Pokemon.
Team Options
Cobalion and Infernape both support Hawlucha with their ability to set Stealth Rock to weaken opposing Pokemon. Cobalion specifically helps slow down threats with Thunder Wave and can switch into attacks that Hawlucha would not like to take thanks to its superior bulk, while Infernape can eliminate Celesteela and Skarmory with its Fire-type STAB attacks. Mega Gallade helps eliminate tanky Haze users like Toxapex and Mantine that would otherwise make Hawlucha's job harder to pull off. Keldeo can assist with getting rid of physical walls that would give Hawlucha a hard time such as Slowbro, Skarmory, and Mega Sableye. It also helps serve as a way of dealing with Mega Scizor. Choice Scarf Terrakion outspeeds common threats to Hawlucha such as Choice Scarf Togekiss, Life Orb Greninja, and Choice Scarf Victini. Terrakion also has the coverage to help KO Zapdos, Tapu Koko, and Mega Diancie, which otherwise give Hawlucha a hard time. Breloom can put Pokemon to sleep, giving Hawlucha an opportunity to set up. It can also eliminate some problematic Pokemon like Hippowdon and Slowbro with its Grass-type attacks, and its access to Mach Punch allows it to OHKO threats to Hawlucha like Choice Band Diggersby and Choice Scarf Greninja without needing to worry about Speed because of its priority. Despite fighting for a teamslot, Choice Scarf Heracross can be used with Hawlucha, as it can help eliminate troubling Psychic-types like Mewnium Z Mew and Life Orb Latios with its powerful Bug-type STAB attacks. Kommo-o can be used alongside Hawlucha to eliminate bulky Pokemon such as Mega Slowbro and Skarmory with its coverage moves, allowing Hawlucha to sweep weaker Pokemon with ease.
Unburden Sweeper (Flying)
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Moves
Swords Dance allows Hawlucha to act as dangerous setup sweeper, always being able to OHKO Pokemon such as Latios and Mega Venusaur after a boost. High Jump Kick is Hawlucha's strongest STAB attack and deals with various threats to Flying teams such as Chansey and Kyurem-B. Acrobatics allows Hawlucha to take on Bug-, Grass-, Fighting-type Pokemon such as Volcarona, Mega Venusaur, and Keldeo. Substitute allows Hawlucha to evade status conditions and is important for activating its Sitrus Berry and, in turn, Unburden.
Set Details
30 HP IVs allow Hawlucha to always activate its Sitrus Berry after its second use of Substitute. 252 Attack and 252 Speed EVs alongside a Jolly nature allow Hawlucha to hit as fast and hard as possible. Unburden doubles Hawlucha's Speed after it has used its item, allowing it to become the fastest Pokemon in the metagame; this also allows Hawlucha to beat Ditto, which is a typical check to a setup sweeper.
Usage Tips
Hawlucha is best used as a late-game sweeper, as once most of its checks are put in the range of Hawlucha's boosted attacks, it is near impossible to stop. Hawlucha appreciates its counters, such as Toxapex, being removed from the battle and its checks, such as Mega Scizor, to be chipped before it attempts a sweep. Avoid status at all costs, as every form of status severely cripples Hawlucha's ability to act as a setup sweeper. Substitute is a great tool to do so; this also allows it to set up a Swords Dance the next turn for free. Hawlucha should always activate Unburden before trying to set up a sweep, as Acrobatics is severely underpowered before its Sitrus Berry has been activated. Hawlucha should set up a Substitute against Pokemon that it forces out, such as Chansey and Cobalion, and proceed to set up a Swords Dance. Substitute also allows it to activate Sitrus Berry more easily and set up an Unburden sweep. Aim to set up Hawlucha in a matchup such as Normal where it's the teams main wincon after Pokemon such as Staraptor, whose Intimidate can make sweeping more difficult, have been severely weakened or eliminated from battle.
Team Options
Aerodactyl is a phenomenal Focus Sash lead Pokemon; with access to Stealth Rock, it chips down Hawlucha's checks each time they switch in and breaks Dragonite's Multiscale, and it can also prevent slower leads from setting Stealth Rock thanks to Taunt. Mega Charizard Y can break past physically defensive walls such as Celesteela, Hippowdon, and Zapdos that can otherwise wall Hawlucha. In return, Hawlucha can break past most of Mega Charizard Y's checks like Chansey. Celesteela and Hawlucha weaken each other's checks, allowing the other to sweep late-game. Celesteela can also act as a wincon in the Fairy matchup, which can otherwise be difficult for Hawlucha. Dragonite and Hawlucha wear down their commonly shared checks. Additionally, Dragonite can break past Pokemon such as Toxapex and Swampert with a boosted Devastating Drake and act as a wincon in the Electric matchup thanks to the combination of Earthquake and Extreme Speed. Both Landorus formes provide an Electric immunity for Hawlucha. Landorus-T acts as a fast Choice Scarf user that can outspeed such threats as Tapu Koko for Hawlucha and can cripple foes by removing their items with Knock Off. Landorus is a fantastic special attacker that can take on an array of threats such as Toxapex, Skarmory, and Klefki. Thundurus-T provides an Electric immunity and acts as an offensive pivot that can bring in Hawlucha with Volt Switch. It can also break Water- and Flying-type Pokemon that give Hawlucha trouble such as Toxapex, Mantine, and Celesteela.
Other Options
Fighting
Drain Punch is an option over High Jump Kick for more consistent accuracy on the Substitute + Swords Dance set. However, by doing this, Hawlucha will be unable to OHKO Pokemon such as Excadrill and Mamoswine. The Swords Dance set can also use Power Herb over Sitrus Berry and use Sky Attack over Substitute in order to set up more quickly against offensive teams, but using this leaves Hawlucha open to status moves.
Flying
Hawlucha has no other viable options.
Checks and Counters
Fighting
Priority Users: Pokemon like Mega Scizor, Mega Pinsir, and Dragonite threaten Hawlucha with their powerful priority moves, as Hawlucha has difficulty taking hits, especially if it has already set up.
Physically Defensive Pokemon: Pokemon like Clefable and Zapdos can take hits from Hawlucha and wear it down with super effective STAB attacks as well as recover their lost health with recovery moves.
Phazers and Haze Users: Pokemon like Hippowdon, Skarmory, and Toxapex can deal with Hawlucha's STAB moves even after a Swords Dance. On top of that, these Pokemon can also remove Hawlucha's boosts with Haze or force it out with Roar or Whirlwind.
Offensive Pokemon: Many revenge killers can eliminate Hawlucha due to its lack of bulk if it has not yet activated Unburden or does not have a Substitute up. Pokemon like Sand Rush Excadrill, Choice Scarf Nihilego, Choice Scarf Togekiss, and Life Orb Greninja can OHKO Hawlucha if it does not have a Substitute.
Electric-types: Most Pokemon on Electric like Tapu Koko, Alolan Raichu, and Rotom-W generally threaten Hawlucha because of their super effective STAB moves and resistance to Flying-type attacks making it harder for Hawlucha to find opportunities to set up.
Flying
Super Effective Attacks: Hawlucha is rather frail and can only set up against weaker attackers. Any super effective coverage makes it near impossible for Hawlucha to set up and sweep.
Physically Defensive Walls: Physically defensive walls such as Hippowdon and Zapdos can easily tank Hawlucha's attacks and deal with it either through phazing or hitting it with super effective damage, then healing damage done with their recovery moves.
Priority Users: Priority users such as Azumarill, Mega Scizor, and Dragonite can easily pick off Hawlucha because of its poor bulk. However, if Hawlucha has set up and these Pokemon have been chipped and are not in range of killing Hawlucha with their priority attacks, it can pick them off with its powerful STAB attacks.
Status: All forms of status hinder Hawlucha, as paralysis cripples its speed, poison cripples its longevity, and burns cripple its Attack stat, making it harder to break past other Pokemon.
Revenge Killers: Before Hawlucha has activated Unburden, faster Pokemon such as Tapu Koko, Choice Scarf Latios, and Greninja can easily pick it off.
Phazers and Haze users: Phazers and Haze users such as Hippowdon and Toxapex can prevent Hawlucha from sweeping, as the former forces Hawlucha out of battling, negating all its boosts, and the latter resets all of Hawlucha's boosts, preventing it from properly being able to set up.
Credits
- Written by Namranan and Rio Vidal
- Quality checked by Moosical, Eien, iLlama, mushamu, and Kev
- Grammar checked by talkingtree, A Cake Wearing A Hat, and Lumari
