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Item Assault Vest

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Ho-Oh with an assault vest=win.
He's got solid 106/90/154 defenses, and 130/110 offenses, which are more than enough to function well.

Ho-Oh@Assault Vest
Trait:Regenerator
EVs- 72HP/184Atk/252SpD
-Flame Charge
-Brave Bird
-Sacred Fire
-Earthquake/Iron Head
Careful Nature (+SpD, -SpA)

Hi-Ho, Ho-Oh! Ho-oh was always a special tank to begin with. Now, with an assault vest, his Special Defense reaches a titanic level. Flame Charge is used to boost Ho-Oh's dismal Speed, and Brave Bird just wrecks. Sacred Fire is Ho-Oh's main STAB, and the burn chance helps with Ho-Oh's physical bulk. Lastly, Iron Head could be used to beat Fairies, while Earthquake gets heavier damage output and hits Electric-types. Regenerator is there, as ho-Oh gets no recovery now due to Assault Vest.

Some calculations-
Choice Specs Keldeo vs. Assault vest Ho-Oh- 252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Hydro Pump vs. +1 72 HP / 252+ SpD Ho-Oh: 206-246 (55.52 - 66.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Choice Specs +4 MegaMewtwo Y vs. Assault vest Ho-Oh- +4 252 SpA Choice Specs (custom) Psychic vs. +1 72 HP / 252+ SpD Ho-Oh: 316-373 (85.17 - 100.53%) -- 6.25% chance to OHKO (Yes, i know MegaMewtwo Y can't even get Choice Specs, but this is just illustrating the sheer defensive powers of Ho-Oh with the Assault Vest)
Life Orb Thundurus-T vs. Assault vest Ho-Oh- 252 SpA Life Orb Thundurus-T Thunder vs. +1 72 HP / 252+ SpD Ho-Oh: 198-234 (53.36 - 63.07%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
MegaGengar vs. Assault vest Ho-Oh- 252 SpA Gengar Shadow Ball vs. +1 72 HP / 252+ SpD Ho-Oh: 58-69 (15.63 - 18.59%) -- possible 6HKO
+6 MegaGengar vs. Assault vest Ho-Oh- +6 252 SpA Gengar Shadow Ball vs. +1 72 HP / 252+ SpD Ho-Oh: 226-267 (60.91 - 71.96%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
MegaCharizard Y vs. Assault vest Ho-Oh- 252 SpA Charizard Fire Blast vs. +1 72 HP / 252+ SpD Ho-Oh: 40-48 (10.78 - 12.93%) -- possible 8HKO

Ho-Oh is a tank with the assault vest, and will become a staple of Ubers Teams, in my opinion.
 
I'm not sure if this could even work, but could you use switcheroo or trick an assault vest onto an ally mega evolved Pokemon in doubles? Obviously with klutz but yeah. Like you mega evolve tyranitar and then have your ally lopunny trick it's assault vest on to mega TTar. Because with the boost to the base SpD and sandstorm boost, that would be insanely hard to kill
 
Toad0234 said:
I'm not sure if this could even work, but could you use switcheroo or trick an assault vest onto an ally mega evolved Pokemon in doubles? Obviously with klutz but yeah. Like you mega evolve tyranitar and then have your ally lopunny trick it's assault vest on to mega TTar. Because with the boost to the base SpD and sandstorm boost, that would be insanely hard to kill
Click to expand...
Mega Pokémon cannot be Tricked. It is impossible to remove their -ite item by any means (Trick, Switcheroo, Knock Off, Fling, etc.).
 
237.png

Assault Vest Hitmontop anyone?

Hitmontop @ Assault Vest
Intimidate
Careful
252hp/252spdef/4def
Rapid Spin
High Jump Kick
Mach Punch
Stone Edge/Sucker Punch

With the vest I believe it reaches 525 special defence.

Some calcs

252 SpA Life Orb Azelf Psychic vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Hitmontop: 172-203 (56.57 - 66.77%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Hitmontop: 157-186 (51.64 - 61.18%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ SpA Choice Specs Kingdra Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Hitmontop: 136-162 (44.73 - 53.28%) -- 31.25% chance to 2HKO

+2 252 SpA Life Orb Mismagius Shadow Ball vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Hitmontop: 133-157 (43.75 - 51.64%) -- 10.94% chance to 2HKO

252+ SpA Choice Specs Adaptability Porygon-Z Tri Attack vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Hitmontop: 134-158 (44.07 - 51.97%) -- 13.28% chance to 2HKO

Course this is just theorymon but I thought it might have some potential. Intimidate allows it to take hits from both sides and makes it a fairly bulky spinner which is nice. Thoughts?
 
Stellar said:
Mega Pokémon cannot be Tricked. It is impossible to remove their -ite item by any means (Trick, Switcheroo, Knock Off, Fling, etc.).
Click to expand...
Really quick question, can an -ite item be removed before megavolution? Say I waited to MEvo Chaizard for a good drought opportunity, could my stone be removed during that time?
 
Tangrowth @ Assault Vest
Regenerator
Calm
252hp/6def/252Spdef
- Knock Off
- Giga Drain
- Focus Blast
- Hidden power Fire


With amazing defense and hp stats, Tangrowth loves assault vest and a +spdef nature. Combine that with Regenerator and giga drain and this thing becomes tough to kill. Knock off for predicted switch in to counters and what not.
 
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Here's the AV speculation I really like right now:

(Note: Possibly includes options illegal pre-Pokebank.)

Chandelure
While holding the Assault Vest, Chandelure's SpDef isn't too far below its monstrous SpAtk. If this were it, AV 'Lure wouldn't be half bad: tanking special hits and then striking back with obscenely powerful Fire Blasts is good on its own. But when you add trapping potential with Fire Spin's improved damage and good coverage you have a decent potential. Be mindful of 'Lure's low HP however.

Heatran
AV Heatran is a beast. It's SpAtk is already high enough to make it a dangerous Special tank, but it also has access to Lava Plume to burn with, Magma Storm to trap with, Flash Fire with which to steal a +1, and Flash Cannon for any Fairies who want to give him a bad day. Seems good.

Hitmonchan
AV Chan was mentioned in 'Chan's thread a day or two ago. I must say, I like it. With access to Iron Fist-boosted Mach and Drain Punch, Rapid Spin, and Close Combat, Hitmonchan looks like it can utilize an AV set pretty well.

Hitmontop, Arcanine, Gyarados, Salamence, Scrafty
These guys are grouped because of one thing: Intimidate. I haven't seen it mentioned yet but I'm certain most of you have already noticed that AssVest on an Intimidate 'mon should be really good. An Vest on any of these guys alongside Intimidate makes for a very, very sturdy Pokemon.

Gyarados, Salamence, Scrafty
These three get their own subsection because of one of their other abilities: Moxie. If Intimidate isn't your bag, perhaps you'd be interested in using your newfound Special bulk to steal a kill and a +1? Sound pretty good?

Politoed and Ninetales
Both of these guys already have usable Special bulk. Add on a Vest and they can wall with the best of them. What makes them stand out is, of course, Drizzle and Drought, which allows them to hit hard right out of the gate without need of a status move to increase their stats. Additionally, Politoed's Scald and Ninetales's Fire Spin and great coverage do them a lot of favors.

Blastoise
Blastoise wins at life with AssVest. It could already very nearly run a mono-attacking Utility set with Rapid Spin, Dragon Tail, and Scald. The last slot can go to Flash Cannon (most Fairies are Specially-based, which makes your Vested 'Toise a solid switch-in) or Fake Out.. just.. 'cuz.

Metagross
Don't like Fairies? Neither does Metagross. With a Vest and just Meteor Mash and Bullet Punch, very few Fairy-type Pokemon can make it past 'Grosse Pointe Blank. Throw in Pursuit (because why not) and maybe an Explosion or two (might as well go out with a bang once its job making Fairies and Gengar's life a living hell is over) and you've got a pretty good Vest-wearer.

Volcarona
Better Special bulk giving more opportunity to switch in a wreak havoc aside, AV Volcarona has a lot going for it: its massive SpAtk gives ample opportunity to gain life with Giga Drain, Fiery Dance offers an attacking method to possibly increase the aforementioned absurd SpAtk, and U-Turn to.. U-Turn with. Looks pretty good on paper, though possibly sub-par to anything else Volcarona can do.

Muk
AV Muk is great: tank Special hits and retaliate with 51%-chance-to-poison Poison Jab. That's it. That's the gimmick. And I think it's really good. But if that doesn't convince you, consider Poison's buffed coverage, priority Shadow Sneak, and Acid Spray (!).
 
I believe the only pokemon that can utilize assaulf vest are the ones with regenerator. You really miss out on leftovers on a lot of the pokemon that use assault vest and not having that little recovery per turn will hurt you more than assault vest will help you. When you consider entry hazards, status, sand damage, and other forms of residual damage, assault vest doesn't help you, while leftovers does. Regenerator allows you to deal with the residual damage and still potentially put pressure on your opponent through switching. having to limit your movepool to use this item eliminates certain pokemon from contention of even using this. (most specially defensive ttar/heatran use stealth rock to take advantage of their bulk).

I'm especially fond of regenerator tangrowth because of giga drain and knock off. It's going to be very difficult to take out with super effective hits and they're quite easy to see coming so you can always switch out.
 
I've been using Assault Tyranitar to great effect. He's taken Hydro Pumps with more than half his heath to spare. It's a nasty surprise for you opponents, since they usually expect him to be physically bulky. You can survive anything that isn't focus blast (and even then there's hope).
 
469.png

Tankiest of Tanks

Ability: Solid Rock
Item: Assault Vest
Nature: Adament
EV: 248 HP / 16 Atk / 244 SpD

Stone Edge
Earthquake
Hammer Arm
Poison Jab

Base Stats

HP 115, ATK 140, DEF 130, SpA 55, SpD 55, Spe 40

Not sure if this was mentioned but I believe that Ryperior is a lot more useful now. With EV investment in HP and SpD, magnified with assault vest, this makes Ryperior able to tank almost anything. Solid Rock also helps to lower any super effective attacks. With the complete tank package that assault vest provides, this makes the move set all the easier to figure out: all-out damage.

Ryperiors attacks are varied and all powerful. When you disregard speed, it makes attacks like Hammer Arm all the better to use. Poison Jab gets those grass types, as well as Azumarill.
 
GeneralMLD said:
469.png

Tankiest of Tanks

Ability: Solid Rock
Item: Assault Vest
Nature: Adament
EV: 248 HP / 16 Atk / 244 SpD

Stone Edge
Earthquake
Hammer Arm
Poison Jab

Base Stats

HP 115, ATK 140, DEF 130, SpA 55, SpD 55, Spe 40

Not sure if this was mentioned but I believe that Ryperior is a lot more useful now. With EV investment in HP and SpD, magnified with assault vest, this makes Ryperior able to tank almost anything. Solid Rock also helps to lower any super effective attacks. With the complete tank package that assault vest provides, this makes the move set all the easier to figure out: all-out damage.

Ryperiors attacks are varied and all powerful. When you disregard speed, it makes attacks like Hammer Arm all the better to use. Poison Jab gets those grass types, as well as Azumarill.
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I find this hilarious in Sand:
252 SpA Life Orb Greninja Hydro Pump vs. +1 252 HP / 252+ SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior in sand: 296-355 (68.2 - 81.79%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Greninja Ice Beam vs. +1 252 HP / 252+ SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior in sand: 119-142 (27.41 - 32.71%) -- possible 4HKO
 
Anartya said:
I find this hilarious in Sand:
252 SpA Life Orb Greninja Hydro Pump vs. +1 252 HP / 252+ SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior in sand: 296-355 (68.2 - 81.79%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Greninja Ice Beam vs. +1 252 HP / 252+ SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior in sand: 119-142 (27.41 - 32.71%) -- possible 4HKO
Click to expand...

Wow....even better. Any team that runs a Tyranitar would really benefit having an assault vest ryperior on their team.
 
GeneralMLD said:
Wow....even better. Any team that runs a Tyranitar would really benefit having an assault vest ryperior on their team.
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I disagree... AV TTar already has a similar niche, so I don't see much reason to compound weaknesses by using rhyperior, too.
 
CQC said:
I disagree... AV TTar already has a similar niche, so I don't see much reason to compound weaknesses by using rhyperior, too.
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I don't think it matters now, but it may matter later on once Tyrantrum gets AT LAST his Rock Head ability. Tyranitar has no snowball chance to handle Tyrantrum in any way, while Rhyperior with little defensive investment (and it's not really big, enough to keep his special bulk technically untouched) can handle everything it can throw on him, even CB Head Smash.

Another thing is that it's also more reliable against Talonflame, as he really doesn't care about U-turns (and those can wear down TTar pretty hard) and +2 Steel Wing hits TTar really damn hard unlike in case of Rhyperior, which is far more physically bulky and you still don't need to invest anything in defenses against Talonflame, because Rhyperior is so damn sturdy on physical side.

While it may sound odd, Rhyperior is more reliable against Gengar, as he can't hit it for x4 damage from any standard move, while Tyranitar really dislike taking Focus Blast in the face, while both keep the ability to smash Gengar hard enough to KO him in one hit.

Also he is more reliable against Thundurus-T as he can handle every single hit except HP Grass after Nasty Plot as long as he has Sandstorm back him up and KO back with Stone STAB attack.

While those advantages are not that great, they provide him few slightly different niche from TTar if your team has trouble with those. Honestly I would still pick TTar in most cases, just because Pursuit trapping is always nice thing to have, but Rhyperior is not really outclassed in all aspects IMO.
 
I'm still quite a fan of the Scrafty thing. AssVest + Intimidate gives it an effective +1 to both defensive stats, they're base 115 to begin with, and it gets Drain Punch letting it absorb flat amounts of HP which will be worth a ton with high mixed defenses. It also gets Dragon Tail, allowing it to become quite the bulky phazer.

Another interesting possibility is an admittedly prediction-heavy (or doubles-specific) Poison Heal Gliscor. Getting it poisoned while holding the vest might be tricky (such a pity Poison Gas doesn't also hit allies!), but if you can pull it off you'll have an Assault Vest and two Leftovers and status immunity, which compensates for Gliscor's lower SpD to make it quite frightening to face. I'm not 100% sure it's worth it (Ice attacks still knock it out cold, the amount of setup required in doubles mightn't be worth it although there is the rather cute trick of using Gliscor/Lopunny, Tricking the Toxic Orb off Gliscor in exchange for an Assault Vest, then sticking the Toxic Orb on an opposing Pokemon later, which is aided by the fact that it's not compulsory and Lopunny can just AssVest an opposing Prankster pokemon to cripple them, and in singles relying on the opponent having poison is obviously unreliable, although again Gliscor @ Assault Vest with no ability isn't exactly the worst thing in the world), but it's interesting to think about at least.
 
lopunny could run a set like switchroo with klutz
switchroo,
toxic
protect / return / magic coat
healing wish
klutz
assault vest
252 hp 252 spd
switichroo to cripple blissey and other support pokemon.
can also heal and get in a sweeper. plus, magic coat can remove hazard, and return if you don't want to be taunt bait. also, it can toxic stall, wearing down something.
 
Three pokemon who can benefit from assault vest

1.
Honchkrow 252 Hp/252Atk/6 spe adamant w/ moxie. Sucker punch+bravebird+pursuit+ (superpower when gen5 becomes available)

With max Hp+ assault Vest Honchkrow is able to take Draco meteor from Max sp atk Dragonite without any sp def investment, just to give an example
Sucker Punch to some extent removes the need to run max speed.

2.
Sand force Probopass (if not already mentioned) with Max Hp and Sp Atk can run assault vest to great effect.

In Sandstorm most of his special attacks receives stab+30% which translates to unstab,unboosted moves coming from a whopping 491 sp atk stat
His uninvested special defence reaches 672 in sand, meaning he can take most special attacks not called specs focus blast and stab earth power
A great asset to sandroom-teams.

3.
When Regirock gets available he'll probably get power up punch. Combined with drain punch, stone Edge and Earthquake he'll definetly be a threat to consider.
With impish nature+ 252 Hp/190 defence/68 sp def he gets 500+ in both defences during sandstorm while holding the assault vest.
 
I have tried out a new threat in my teams, Assault Vest Rotom-W! It can run max special attack, and be good at tanking rain team's hits at the same time! I've seen it talked about in this forums, but I've created an actual set.
Rotom.png

Rotom-Wash @ Assault Vest
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 128 HP / 252 SAtk / 128 SDef
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Thunder/Thunderbolt/Discharge
- Hidden Power Ice/Hidden Power Fire/Hidden Power Grass
- Volt Switch
With this kind of set, Rotom can capitalize on its special defense, and special attack! While it may miss Will 'o Wisp and Pain Split and Leftovers, with the assault vest equipped, and 128 Evs, Rotom's special defense reaches and astounding 423, which is way better than on 313 it gets with max investment. Additionally, it allows Rotom to put more into special attack than a specially defensive set usually could. The Move set doesn't exactly have much variation. Hydro Pump is a must, and the electric move depends on your situation, Thunder if Rotom is on a rain team, Thunderbolt if it is not on a rain team, and Discharge can be used for paralysis support. The Hidden Power is also up to you, Ice is recommended, to deal with the 4x Weak Dragons and Grounds. Hidden Power Fire is for if it's not on a Rain team, so you can stop the Ferrothorn switch-in, and Hidden Power Grass is so you're not completely walled by Gastrodon. Volt Switch is to keep momentum. Here are some defensive calculations, (I inputted all the new stats, and set Rotom's Special Defense to +1 for the vest.)​
252 SpA Mega Gengar Sludge Bomb vs. +1 128 HP / 128 SpD Rotom-W: 102-120 (37.36 - 43.95%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Politoed Hidden Power Grass vs. +1 128 HP / 128 SpD Rotom-W: 110-130 (40.29 - 47.61%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Politoed Hydro Pump vs. +1 128 HP / 128 SpD Rotom-W in rain: 105-124 (38.46 - 45.42%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. +1 128 HP / 128 SpD Rotom-W: 126-148 (46.15 - 54.21%) -- 56.25% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Latios Draco Meteor vs. +1 128 HP / 128 SpD Rotom-W: 192-226 (70.32 - 82.78%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Ninetales SolarBeam vs. +1 128 HP / 128 SpD Rotom-W: 108-128 (39.56 - 46.88%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Just about as bulky as specially defensive Rotom-W right? Awesome, and it has the offensive prowess of Rotom-W as well, so discuss!
 
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Kaifi said:
I have tried out a new threat in my teams, Assault Vest Rotom-W! It can run max special attack, and be good at tanking rain team's hits at the same time! I've seen it talked about in this forums, but I've created an actual set.
View attachment 3788
Rotom-Wash @ Assault Vest
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 128 HP / 252 SAtk / 128 SDef
Modest Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Thunder/Thunderbolt/Discharge
- Hidden Power Ice/Hidden Power Fire/Hidden Power Grass
- Volt Switch​
Click to expand...

Scratch all the Sdef Investment and put it into HP; That way, you'll lose no special bulk, but win a lot in physical bulk.
 
CQC said:
Scratch all the Sdef Investment and put it into HP; That way, you'll lose no special bulk, but win a lot in physical bulk.
Click to expand...

Actually, I'm not 100% sure on this but I seem to remember that having equal HP/SpD stats gives you more special bulk than having more of one, and Rotom-W's lowest values in both are nigh identical (210 HP, 219 SpD). The reason for this is that you can get a rough estimate of effective bulk by multiplying the two stats together (each point of SpD makes each point of HP worth a bit more on the special side), and, for example, 250 * 250 is larger than 200 * 300

That said, the difference is very small (62500 vs. 60000) and in this case HP IVs are almost certainly preferred (you lose a LITTLE special bulk, but not much, and gain practically 1.5x physical bulk due to Rotom's tiny HP stat). I've noticed that maxxing HP is generally the better option even for things with a fair bit more HP than defenses (Reuniclus, for instance), with most exceptions being of Blissey-like disproportionality.
 
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