Overview
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From beneath the loamy sand and calm tides, Crawdaunt arrives on the battlefield as a true powerhouse. Crawdaunt's Knock Off, Crabhammer, and Aqua Jet are truly exceptional. Coming from a base 120 Attack stat and boosted by Adaptability, nearly nothing can stand up to this kind of power. However, Crawdaunt has little else beyond these virtues and suffers from numerous flaws, including poor Speed that is only mildly mitigated by Aqua Jet and poor defenses. If played smartly, Crawdaunt will always pull its weight, and against the correct matchup, it will do far more.
Wallbreaker
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name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Crabhammer
move 3: Aqua Jet
move 4: Crunch / Swords Dance
ability: Adaptability
item: Life Orb / Choice Band
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
Knock Off's strength and utility are what set Crawdaunt apart from other wallbreakers as it is the strongest user of the move. Not only are there few defensive Pokemon that resist the Dark-type, but almost all of them lose their item when struck with Knock Off, rendering them much easier to beat. Crabhammer's power is also incredibly impressive; achieving a 2HKO on max HP Azumarill with a resisted move is something else. Aqua Jet is weaker, but it gives Crawdaunt some utility against faster teams, letting it force out important and frail members of the opposing team, creating opportunities to throw around Crabhammer or Knock Off. Beyond pressuring frail Pokemon, Aqua Jet provides revenge killing utility against dangerous threats such as a weakened Mega Tyranitar. While Crunch appears completely redundant with Knock Off, its superior power against Mega Pokemon allows Crawdaunt to break past the bulkiest ones, such as Venusaur. Swords Dance on such a slow and frail Pokemon is understandably questionable, but it makes Crawdaunt an even more fearsome stallbreaker. It will only be successful if applied carefully against opponents, but when it is successful it bursts open the proverbial dam of defenses for other team members to capitalize on. Aerial Ace can be run for the sole purpose of sniping Chesnaught, but has little use otherwise. Finally, Superpower can be run in the final slot. Though situational, it lets Crawdaunt easily destroy Mega Gyarados, which walls it otherwise.
Set Details
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Adaptability's power increase makes it by far the most useful ability Crawdaunt has. The EV spread is simple and optimal. Maximum Attack with an Adamant nature hits as hard as possible, letting Crawdaunt excel as a wallbreaker. Maximum Speed with a neutral nature outspeeds up to uninvested base 86 Speed Pokemon, while Jolly can be used to get the drop on Jolly Mawile, Azumarill, and slightly invested Rotom-W. Choice Band confers an insane amount of power to Crawdaunt, letting it easily 2HKO even bulky Pokemon that resist its STAB. A Life Orb is also perfect for Crawdaunt, allowing it to switch moves, letting it finish off switch-ins sufficiently weakened by Knock Off or Crabhammer. A Life Orb is the only appropriate item to use with Swords Dance.
Usage Tips
========
Crawdaunt's defenses are bad, so simply bringing it on resisted moves is not a sufficiently safe tactic; only weak resisted moves can be comfortably absorbed and even they might be unsafe as generally they have a nasty side effect, such as Heatran's Lava Plume or Mandibuzz's Knock Off. In general, careful double switches, clean switch-ins, or switch advantage generated by U-turn or Volt Switch users are the best time to bring Crawdaunt in. Crawdaunt outspeeds most defensive Pokemon and OHKOes many, so simply select powerful STABs against them and watch as massive damage is dealt. Against offensive teams, Crawdaunt's application is a bit more complex. If it can not outspeed the opposition and OHKO, it will be lost. Therefore, only Aqua Jet-weak threats such as Landorus or Terrakion as well as slower threats whose priority Crawdaunt resists, such as a weakened Mega Mawile, should be checked with Crawdaunt. After that, it is necessary to read the play and predict correctly, as hitting an incoming Water-type resistance with Aqua Jet is useless, but hitting that same opponent with Knock Off will most certainly sting. Try to appraise how important what you threaten with Crawdaunt is and then predict accordingly. Crawdaunt is a wallbreaker first, so it should be played very aggressively against stall teams, and if the opportunity to break through the opponent's defensive core comes such that a win condition is in sight, don't be afraid to let Crawdaunt go down in the process. Swords Dance is challenging to use and will only really be successful against heavily defensive teams that try to utilize recovery + Toxic, recovery + Rocky Helmet, or Leech Seed + Protect to stall out Crawdaunt. Should the opponent attempt these kinds of tactics, simply set up in their face and they will have a real problem on their hands. Do not be afraid of Unaware users as both are easily 2HKOed with the correct STAB. Crawdaunt is not hard to check for faster teams unless its Aqua Jet will be needed later in the match, so after scoring a KO it is better to just let Crawdaunt get KOed than to switch it out and take heavy damage or give free setup as Crawdaunt's main job is to fight defensive teams.
Team Options
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Though Crawdaunt is powerful, a few switch-ins such as Keldeo and Chesnaught do exist; good answers to these Pokemon are useful to have alongside Crawdaunt. Mega Venusaur with Hidden Power Fire is a solid answer to all of these threats, and with its Leech Seed immunity it makes Chesnaught easier to wear down. Ferrothorn is an answer to Azumarill, and Latios is a good answer to both Keldeo and Chesnaught. As mentioned before, pivots will increase Crawdaunt's presence in a match greatly. Mega Manectric and Choice Scarf Landorus-T excel against offensive teams and can create switch advantage for Crawdaunt quite easily.
Other Options
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Dragon Dance is something in Crawdaunt's arsenal, but Crawdaunt is fast enough for defensive teams unboosted, and too slow for offensive teams when boosted, Swords Dance is superior in nearly every way. Switcheroo may seem appealing, but it actually sucks. When Crawdaunt loses its boosting item, it is very weak and it's nearly impossible to wall anyways so giving its item to a defensive Pokemon is not beneficial at all. If anything, its only utility is to stop defensive boosters such as Clefable and Suicune.
Checks & Counters
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**Chesnaught and Mega Venusaur**: Physically defensive Mega Venusaur is the only Pokemon in OU that can truly claim to wall Crawdaunt. Chesnaught can potentially wall Crawdaunt however, it must only be wary of Aerial Ace. Even bulky Pokemon that resist Crawdaunt's dual STAB such as Azumarill can be 2HKOed, while purely physical walls face 2HKOs. Mega Gyarados can also wall Crawdaunt, however Superpower demolishes Gyarados should it already be evolved.
**Offensive Checks**: Crawdaunt is slow and has bad defenses. Nearly anything faster that doesn't keel over to Aqua Jet can easily check Crawdaunt. Keldeo, Dragonite, Heracross, and countless others are capable of this. Crawdaunt's ability to fight offense is very prediction-reliant, consistent targeting of Crawdaunt will ensure it can only really do damage with Aqua Jet to faster threats.
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From beneath the loamy sand and calm tides, Crawdaunt arrives on the battlefield as a true powerhouse. Crawdaunt's Knock Off, Crabhammer, and Aqua Jet are truly exceptional. Coming from a base 120 Attack stat and boosted by Adaptability, nearly nothing can stand up to this kind of power. However, Crawdaunt has little else beyond these virtues and suffers from numerous flaws, including poor Speed that is only mildly mitigated by Aqua Jet and poor defenses. If played smartly, Crawdaunt will always pull its weight, and against the correct matchup, it will do far more.
Wallbreaker
########
name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Crabhammer
move 3: Aqua Jet
move 4: Crunch / Swords Dance
ability: Adaptability
item: Life Orb / Choice Band
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
Knock Off's strength and utility are what set Crawdaunt apart from other wallbreakers as it is the strongest user of the move. Not only are there few defensive Pokemon that resist the Dark-type, but almost all of them lose their item when struck with Knock Off, rendering them much easier to beat. Crabhammer's power is also incredibly impressive; achieving a 2HKO on max HP Azumarill with a resisted move is something else. Aqua Jet is weaker, but it gives Crawdaunt some utility against faster teams, letting it force out important and frail members of the opposing team, creating opportunities to throw around Crabhammer or Knock Off. Beyond pressuring frail Pokemon, Aqua Jet provides revenge killing utility against dangerous threats such as a weakened Mega Tyranitar. While Crunch appears completely redundant with Knock Off, its superior power against Mega Pokemon allows Crawdaunt to break past the bulkiest ones, such as Venusaur. Swords Dance on such a slow and frail Pokemon is understandably questionable, but it makes Crawdaunt an even more fearsome stallbreaker. It will only be successful if applied carefully against opponents, but when it is successful it bursts open the proverbial dam of defenses for other team members to capitalize on. Aerial Ace can be run for the sole purpose of sniping Chesnaught, but has little use otherwise. Finally, Superpower can be run in the final slot. Though situational, it lets Crawdaunt easily destroy Mega Gyarados, which walls it otherwise.
Set Details
========
Adaptability's power increase makes it by far the most useful ability Crawdaunt has. The EV spread is simple and optimal. Maximum Attack with an Adamant nature hits as hard as possible, letting Crawdaunt excel as a wallbreaker. Maximum Speed with a neutral nature outspeeds up to uninvested base 86 Speed Pokemon, while Jolly can be used to get the drop on Jolly Mawile, Azumarill, and slightly invested Rotom-W. Choice Band confers an insane amount of power to Crawdaunt, letting it easily 2HKO even bulky Pokemon that resist its STAB. A Life Orb is also perfect for Crawdaunt, allowing it to switch moves, letting it finish off switch-ins sufficiently weakened by Knock Off or Crabhammer. A Life Orb is the only appropriate item to use with Swords Dance.
Usage Tips
========
Crawdaunt's defenses are bad, so simply bringing it on resisted moves is not a sufficiently safe tactic; only weak resisted moves can be comfortably absorbed and even they might be unsafe as generally they have a nasty side effect, such as Heatran's Lava Plume or Mandibuzz's Knock Off. In general, careful double switches, clean switch-ins, or switch advantage generated by U-turn or Volt Switch users are the best time to bring Crawdaunt in. Crawdaunt outspeeds most defensive Pokemon and OHKOes many, so simply select powerful STABs against them and watch as massive damage is dealt. Against offensive teams, Crawdaunt's application is a bit more complex. If it can not outspeed the opposition and OHKO, it will be lost. Therefore, only Aqua Jet-weak threats such as Landorus or Terrakion as well as slower threats whose priority Crawdaunt resists, such as a weakened Mega Mawile, should be checked with Crawdaunt. After that, it is necessary to read the play and predict correctly, as hitting an incoming Water-type resistance with Aqua Jet is useless, but hitting that same opponent with Knock Off will most certainly sting. Try to appraise how important what you threaten with Crawdaunt is and then predict accordingly. Crawdaunt is a wallbreaker first, so it should be played very aggressively against stall teams, and if the opportunity to break through the opponent's defensive core comes such that a win condition is in sight, don't be afraid to let Crawdaunt go down in the process. Swords Dance is challenging to use and will only really be successful against heavily defensive teams that try to utilize recovery + Toxic, recovery + Rocky Helmet, or Leech Seed + Protect to stall out Crawdaunt. Should the opponent attempt these kinds of tactics, simply set up in their face and they will have a real problem on their hands. Do not be afraid of Unaware users as both are easily 2HKOed with the correct STAB. Crawdaunt is not hard to check for faster teams unless its Aqua Jet will be needed later in the match, so after scoring a KO it is better to just let Crawdaunt get KOed than to switch it out and take heavy damage or give free setup as Crawdaunt's main job is to fight defensive teams.
Team Options
========
Though Crawdaunt is powerful, a few switch-ins such as Keldeo and Chesnaught do exist; good answers to these Pokemon are useful to have alongside Crawdaunt. Mega Venusaur with Hidden Power Fire is a solid answer to all of these threats, and with its Leech Seed immunity it makes Chesnaught easier to wear down. Ferrothorn is an answer to Azumarill, and Latios is a good answer to both Keldeo and Chesnaught. As mentioned before, pivots will increase Crawdaunt's presence in a match greatly. Mega Manectric and Choice Scarf Landorus-T excel against offensive teams and can create switch advantage for Crawdaunt quite easily.
Other Options
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Dragon Dance is something in Crawdaunt's arsenal, but Crawdaunt is fast enough for defensive teams unboosted, and too slow for offensive teams when boosted, Swords Dance is superior in nearly every way. Switcheroo may seem appealing, but it actually sucks. When Crawdaunt loses its boosting item, it is very weak and it's nearly impossible to wall anyways so giving its item to a defensive Pokemon is not beneficial at all. If anything, its only utility is to stop defensive boosters such as Clefable and Suicune.
Checks & Counters
########
**Chesnaught and Mega Venusaur**: Physically defensive Mega Venusaur is the only Pokemon in OU that can truly claim to wall Crawdaunt. Chesnaught can potentially wall Crawdaunt however, it must only be wary of Aerial Ace. Even bulky Pokemon that resist Crawdaunt's dual STAB such as Azumarill can be 2HKOed, while purely physical walls face 2HKOs. Mega Gyarados can also wall Crawdaunt, however Superpower demolishes Gyarados should it already be evolved.
**Offensive Checks**: Crawdaunt is slow and has bad defenses. Nearly anything faster that doesn't keel over to Aqua Jet can easily check Crawdaunt. Keldeo, Dragonite, Heracross, and countless others are capable of this. Crawdaunt's ability to fight offense is very prediction-reliant, consistent targeting of Crawdaunt will ensure it can only really do damage with Aqua Jet to faster threats.
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