Item Focus Sash

[chimpact]

An item to be held by a Pokémon. If it has full HP, the holder will endure one potential KO attack, leaving 1 HP.

This item has been used for very niche purposes in the past and may retain that reputation in this generation. But I'm sure it can go beyond that because of some of the new battle mechanics introduced in XY. The best part about this item is that it can give your opponent a false sense of security. They may make unnecessary double switches when you are showing no fear because you know you can take any hit regardless of the move ( JK megakanga :[ )

It got better this generation in quite a few ways.

• With Defog being able to rid both sides of the field of any entry hazards, sash users can effectively stay at 100% more consistently
• Excadrill, the best spinner, is back in OU. Mold Breaker Exca can effectively beat every spin blocker 1v1 except trevenant who can't do much back. More ways to get hazards off the field.
• Sandstorm only lasting 5 turns means they have to preserve their weather inducer for sash to be ineffective. You can easily take advantage of someone playing conservatively with their pokemon

Obviously the biggest obstacle for focus sash users was to stay at full hp and not be vulnerable after. There's still a plethora of priority users that stop a 1 HP pokemon, but there's always going to be something thats in the way.

Some examples of good Focus Sash candidates.

Breloom (M) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Technician
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Spore
- Mach Punch
- Bullet Seed
- Rock Tomb

It's been a great lead since Genesect was first introduced in 5th. Spore with Focus Sash is a great combo in itself. Spore can take out 1 pokemon usually, while the focus sash can help you take out another. Although sleep isn't as powerful as it was in Black/White, it still renders most mons useless for a few turns and has 100% accuracy. Rock tomb is a great answer for flying types [Talonflame] and has the same strength as mach punch.

Excadrill (M) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Mold Breaker
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature (+Spd, -SAtk)
- Stealth Rock / Rock Slide
- Earthquake
- Rapid Spin
- Iron Head / Rock Slide

Prevents deoxys forms from setting up ALL KINDS OF hazards on you. If it can limit the amount of hazards on the field, it did its job. If Excadrill gets two shots at taking something out, it's more than likely going to get the job done.

Some other niche purposes Focus Sash can serve is to allow unburden pokemon to get their speed boost and to increase acrobatics base power. Something like protean greninja can fire off spikes and STAB acrobatics. One thing to note is that you should have 0 IVS in your defenses and hp to ensure that you use the item. Otherwise the ability and attacks that synergize with it will be useless. I'm not sure how efficient that would be on greninja when it could be doing so much more, but with more discussion and theory, another innovative moveset may be introduced into the metagame.

Please discuss your thoughts on Focus Sash and potential users of the item.

 

[LittleTLK]

I don't see this generation changing focus sash's impact all that much.
Nothing's really changed. Sash users still need hazard removal support-- defog doesn't do anything rapid spin can't when it comes to focus sash support, plus it has low distribution, most of which are weak to SR themselves.

 

[Martingale]

I genuinely don't see Sash any differently now. It's still the same item with the same uses. Didn't get any buffs per sé, and unless we are given a nightmarish fusion of it and Weakness Policy next gen it'll still be as it is. Gets the job done on things that want to survive in a metagame where they're slow and/or frail.
Never used Excadrill before but it seems solid enough to survive in OU with Sash not activating often, but then again I wouldn't know.

 

[King]

Unlike the two posters before me, I see a tremendous boost for focus sash.

Most teams have to run a spinner for sash/multiscale/stall. I can now create a sash/multiscale team without using one of the slots for a spinner and instead use a moveslot. That is HUGE. Focus Sash can also now be abused on a team (5+ mons with sash) and defog just preserves it. I agree with you chimp buddy.

 

[Beast Mode]

Greninja can serve as a great lead with focus sash:

Greninja (M) @ Focus Sash
Trait: Torrent/Protean (Whatever works for you, I generally prefer Torrent for this set)
EVs: 4 HP/ 252 SAtk/ 252 Spd
Timid Nature (+Spd, -Atk)
- Spikes
- Hydro Pump
- Dark Pulse
- Taunt

This set is unique because it puts offensive pressure on the opponent while also being able to set up hazards and stop other hazards. The ability depends on what you want, I think Torrent is better because often times you will be knocked down to your sash and it is good to have the extra power. I guess you can play mind games against Galvantula with Protean by going for spikes as it Thunders but it is very situational. Overall this is a great lead for hyper offensive teams and can be paired with a strong ghost type like Gengar or Aegislash.

As for Focus Sash in general, it does get a buff but not that significant.

 

[GeneralMLD]

Magic Guard Alakazam and Smeargle seem to be the main ones that would benefit from a focus sash. Suicide leads too. Gen 6 didn't change anything

 

[TheTtarManCan]

I actually have to say that Focus sash was nerfed this gen. Mega Kangaskhan will likely be popular and is easily capable of breaking sashes. It can even take out magic guard Alakazam quite easily with sucker punch. There is also another user of skill link in Mega Heracross. He won't be nearly as popular though. Lastly, Noivern can now item scout with frisk, effectively removing any surprise having a sash might create. That being said, FS is still a decent item. I personally would only put it on a lead or Alakazam. Remember that just because you have a Pokemon with Defog on your team, it doesn't mean you don't have to worry about SR any more. They can take out your Defoger and set up again. Suddenly, your three sashes become useless.

 

[GeneralMLD]

I actually have to say that Focus sash was nerfed this gen. Mega Kangaskhan will likely be popular and is easily capable of breaking sashes. It can even take out magic guard Alakazam quite easily with sucker punch. There is also another user of skill link in Mega Heracross. He won't be nearly as popular though. Lastly, Noivern can now item scout with frisk, effectively removing any surprise having a sash might create. That being said, FS is still a decent item. I personally would only put it on a lead or Alakazam. Remember that just because you have a Pokemon with Defog on your team, it doesn't mean you don't have to worry about SR any more. They can take out your Defoger and set up again. Suddenly, your three sashes become useless.

Just want to put out there that Normal types are the least represented typing from every generation, competitively speaking. Usability aside, I think there's a subconscious desire to give ones team a certain "flair". I mean, one doesn't play a video game where you command your own personal monsters with a "normal" type. Not only is it not super effective against anything...but its way to vanilla. But that aside, I haven't seen much use of a Megakanga outside of testing its novelty.

Your right about heracross, due to his poor speed and being unable to scarf, it won't see much use either. Noivern can use frisk, but competitively users pick infiltrator as it has more uses.

And maybe its me, though I do watch quite a number of competitive online battles, defog gets a lot of talk here but much less actual use in real battles.

 

[Thorhammer]

Sash is so much better this gen. I notice a lot of the sets so far focus on leads still, but now, rather than just being an option for leads, Sash is workable on fragile sweepers that can take real advantage of it.

Cloyster (M) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Skill Link
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spd
Jolly Nature
- Shell Smash
- Icicle Spear
- Rock Blast
- Ice Shard

I've been running this set alongside Smooth Rock Tyranitar and Rapid Spin Excadrill and it's fantastic. It's a bit counterintuitive to run a Sash on a Cloyster next to not just a Sand Stream, but a Smooth Rock, but buffing Excadrill is worth it; it gets enough time to beat things up and secure a good chance to use Rapid Spin to clear the field. Once the field's clear, the sand's died down, and troublemakers like Aegislash are out of the way, Cloyster can come in anytime it's safe, even in the face of a powerful special attacker, set up a Shell Smash without worry, and proceed to mop up the rest of the opposition.

I tried using Barbaracle initially, which has better synergy with Tyranitar due to retaining its Sash even in sand, but Cloyster's worked out much better for my team. Definitely an option for taking advantage of a Tyranitar-Excadrill spinning core, though.

 

[TheTtarManCan]

Just want to put out there that Normal types are the least represented typing from every generation, competitively speaking. Usability aside, I think there's a subconscious desire to give ones team a certain "flair". I mean, one doesn't play a video game where you command your own personal monsters with a "normal" type. Not only is it not super effective against anything...but its way to vanilla. But that aside, I haven't seen much use of a Megakanga outside of testing its novelty.


Your right about heracross, due to his poor speed and being unable to scarf, it won't see much use either. Noivern can use frisk, but competitively users pick infiltrator as it has more uses.

And maybe its me, though I do watch quite a number of competitive online battles, defog gets a lot of talk here but much less actual use in real battles.

Saying a good normal type will not be used simply because it is a normal type is pretty silly. Giving a plate to Arceus might give it more flair, but I see being used as a normal most of the time. Mega Kangaskhan is too good to been seen as a novelty.

Frisk is perfectly viable on Noivern and should not be ruled out. It works especially well on a lead and can help you get around some nasty surprise sets, for example, being able to tell a Pokemon is scarfed before it takes out one of your Pokes. Furthermore, Frisk Noivern can still go through subs with Boomburst. If you want a good Infiltrator you should probably just go for Crobat.

Defog was the major reason people are saying sash was buffed. If what you say is true and Defog isn't seeing as much use as we expected, that probably means that Defog was over hyped. This leads to sash being less buffed itself.

 

[AccidentalGreed]

Okay can we please stop saying Focus Sash is "nerfed" or "buffed" or any of that? Saying it's any of those thing implies that there was something actually changed in regards to Focus Sash in itself, which didn't happen. If you guys are referring to external factors such as more common sandstorm/hail or Defog, then it's not a nerf or a buff. They're just things that made Focus Sash "more viable" or "less viable". Like others said, it's still as it was in the last couple of generations, with external factors affecting its use.

If something really got nerfed or buffed, take a look at Draco Meteor's power drop (Nerf? Correct.) or Raichu's Speed increase (Buff? Correct.). But for the love of god stop promoting poor gaming vocabulary, or somebody might someday acquire an imaginary aneurism.

As for the topic itself, competitively, it's pretty much unchanged. Defog will be just as prominent as Rapid Spin, and sandstorm seems to be getting as much use as most periods from last generation. There's nothing really special about it aside from the usual usage on Breloom and Smeargle. I don't really see what's the big deal.