Girafarig
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[Overview]
<p>From an evolutionary point of view, you would think that Girafarig is at an advantage due to its additional head. However, having two heads only provides the giraffe with a decent base 90 Special Attack, and those stone stone-hard hoofs can only march so far with its average base 85 Speed. Its laughable defenses, coupled with the fact that its Normal / Psychic typing provides almost no resistances, means that you've got yourself a completely ludicrous Pokemon. On the bright side, Girafarig is at least fast and strong enough to tangle with some of UU's forces. With an absolutely vast movepool consisting of moves such as Thunderbolt, Sucker Punch, Baton Pass, and Calm Mind, Girafarig can damage a wide variety of opponents while passing along possibly game-changing stat boosts to a suitable partner. Girafarig is also the only Psychic-type Pokemon in the game that is immune to Ghost-type attacks. While new players ought to avoid using Girafarig at all costs, veterans and other practiced individuals may have a blast when utilizing Girafarig's unique perks.</p>
[SET]
name: Offensive Calm Mind
move 1: Calm Mind
move 2: Psychic
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Baton Pass / Hidden Power Fighting / Shadow Ball
item: Life Orb
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With usable Speed and passable Special Attack, Girafarig can utilize an offensive Calm Mind set to varying degrees to success. After a Calm Mind boost, Girafarig reaches 418 Special Attack, which is generally enough todish out some pain on the opposition. Together, Psychic and Thunderbolt hit every Pokemon in UU for at least neutral damage, except for Steelix, Magneton, Shedinja, Shiftry, Cacturne and Exeggutor. The fourth slot depends on your preference. Baton Pass is recommended so that Girafarig can pass its Calm Mind boosts to a better suited Pokemon. Hidden Power Fighting deals with Steel-types such as Steelix, Magneton, and Registeel, although it leaves Girafarig with an imperfect Speed IV and the inability to outwit special walls, Shedinja, and Exeggutor. Shadow Ball covers Ghost- and Psychic-types such as the aforementioned Shedinja and Exeggutor.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Do not panic when you see a slower Pursuit user, such as Absol or Spiritomb, switch in. If you decide to let Girafarig use Thunderbolt, you are risking a Sucker Punch to the face. It is safer to just use Baton Pass when such a threat switches in, because Pursuit, unlike U-turn, will not have priority over Baton Pass receiver. Blaziken is a great receiver as it can counter Absol and Spiritomb, make good use of the Calm Mind boost via Fire Blast and Vacuum Wave, and keep the chain running with its own Baton Pass. Faster Pursuit users like Drapion and Scyther are a bit harder to handle; thus, if put in such a situation, it is best to scout by immediately using Baton Pass just in case your opponent has such a Pokemon. However, if they are already in, it's over for Girafarig.</p>
<p>This Girafarig has trouble with physically-inclined Pokemon that are faster than base 85 Speed such as Kangaskhan, Swellow, and Hitmonlee. If they switch in as Girafarig uses Calm Mind, then they can begin wreaking havoc. Although not a physical attacker, Alakazam with Encore can also be irritating against this Girafarig. Utilizing Choice Scarf Rotom can help protect Girafarig from Swellow and Hitmonlee due to its immunities to Normal- and Fighting-type attacks. Moreover, Rotom can switch in as Alakazam uses Encore and OHKO it with Shadow Ball. Against the physical attackers, Rotom can also use Will-O-Wisp to soften their blows (excluding Swellow). Another ideal partner is Registeel, which can absorb most of Kangaskhan's, Alakazam's, and Swellow's assaults and set up Stealth Rock in the process. Stealth Rock helps Girafarig obtain KOs that it wouldn't have gotten otherwise, so it is an important form of support to utilize alongside this Girafarig.</p>
[SET]
name: All-Out Offensive
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Thunderbolt / Grass Knot
move 3: Sucker Punch
move 4: Hidden Power Fighting
item: Life Orb
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Naive
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>At first glance, this set looks relaxing to the mind, as it revolves around simply picking the correct attack in the given scenario. However, it can be complex when predicting what moves your opponent is actually choosing. For starters, firing off Psychic is the logical choice as it deals the most damage out of all of Girafarig’s moves against a neutral target. However, Thunderbolt should be used at first to neutrally cover a wider range of Pokemon. Grass Knot is an option over Thunderbolt to smack Spiritomb, Milotic, Omastar, and Rhyperior harder, but it has poor overall coverage when compared to Thunderbolt. Sucker Punch is Girafarig's selling point here, as it can strike weakened opponents before they can attack back. Hidden Power Fighting wraps up the coverage by hitting Dark- and Steel-types such as Absol and Registeel, respectively, for super effective damage.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>A Naive nature is recommended as the main option as it lessens Girafarig's vulnerability to physical priority attacks. Most neutral special attacks would still 2HKO Girafarig. even if its nature were Hasty. For instance, Bulky Water Milotic's Surf deals 51.6% - 61.2% damage to Hasty natured Girafarig and SubPuncher Azumarill's Aqua Jet manages 40.6% - 48% damage to Naive natured Girafarig. Natures aside, you can split the offensive EVs even more so that Sucker Punch can deal more damage, but most of the time, Stealth Rock will eliminate the need for this. 64 Attack EVs allow Sucker Punch to OHKO any Alakazam without any HP investment.</p>
<p>Due to the wide coverage gained from four attacks, this Girafarig can be used as an attacking lead. Girafarig has the ability to beat some leads, though it is a little on the weak side. For example, Life Orb Psychic deals 95.2% - 112.4% damage to offensive Venusaur; Ambipom is beaten by a combination of Psychic and Sucker Punch; and 252 HP Omastar takes 82% - 96.5% damage from Thunderbolt (Grass Knot deals 91.9% - 109.3% damage). Energy Ball is an alternative over Grass Knot for the guaranteed OHKO on Omastar, but it deals less damage against Spiritomb leads. Both of Girafarig's abilities are extremely handy when it's leading: use Inner Focus to deal with Fake Out users, and use Early Bird to manage sleep leads. Focus Sash can be swapped over Life Orb so that Girafarig can survive a potential fatal attack. Also, switching from Naive to Rash can help improve the odds of KOing the enemy's lead; this is relatively safe, as there are not many leads that can outspeed Girafarig if it uses a Rash nature that wouldn’t outspeed it anyway.</p>
<p>This set is even more vulnerable to Pursuit users than the first set, due to the absence of Baton Pass. The best option is to double switch, which is sadly inferior to using Baton Pass due to the inability to scout what your opponent's switch-in actually is. Having an all-around general Pokemon with status moves to cover Girafarig's back in this case is recommended. Venusaur makes a good partner as it can sleep an opponent (hopefully the Pursuit user) while dishing out incredible damage with its STAB attacks. Registeel can usually block most of Girafarig's switch-ins with its excellent defensive stats and Steel typing. It can then cripple the opponent with Thunder Wave, which will allow Girafarig to outspeed the opponent on the next encounter. If a Pursuit user seals Girafarig's fate, then take advantage of the opponent with a Dark-type resistant Pokemon with a boosting move, such as Aggron or Drapion. Although it lacks a boosting move and is fragile, Primeape is a great partner for Girafarig, as it resists Dark- and Bug-type attacks and has U-turn to safely bring in the giraffe. Primeape can also deal with Chansey, Registeel, and Steelix, all of which will cause troubles for this set (even with Hidden Power Fighting).</p>
[SET]
name: Baton Pass
move 1: Baton Pass
move 2: Calm Mind / Agility
move 3: Substitute
move 4: Psychic
item: Salac Berry / Petaya Berry
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Although Girafarig may not have the greatest of defenses, it at least has enough Speed and a wide enough movepool to easily abuse Baton Pass. Switch in on a Pokemon that is most likely to switch out, then set up a Substitute. Afterward, use your selected boosting move. If the foe breaks Girafarig's Substitute, then keep using Substitute until its chosen pinch Berry activates. Girafarig will likely have a total of three boosts; at this point, proceed to pass the boosts to a more reasonable partner that suits what boosts Girafarig has attained.</p>
<p>Baton Pass is the crux of this set; without it, Girafarig can't pass boosts. There are two boosting moves to choose from. Calm Mind is recommended because Girafarig may actually have a chance of setting up multiple Calm Minds on weak special attacks due to the Special Defense boost. The Special Defense boost also helps your receiver take incoming special hits more easily. The alternative is Agility, which doubles your Pokemon's Speed. With Agility, Girafarig can outrun many more Pokemon, allowing it to safely set up Substitutes until its Berry activates. Substitute does two things for Girafarig: it blocks harmful status for additional set-up time, and it helps activate the pinch Berry. The final slot is saved for Psychic, just in case Girafarig needs to attack Taunt users that aren't Dark-types.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>252 HP solves Girafarig's fragility issue to an extent; it can now easily Calm Mind up against Milotic without Haze, but it still cannot withstand super effective physical attacks from the likes of Scyther. Putting 252 EVs into Special Attack isn't recommended as Girafarig only has one attack that it will rarely use since its sole job is to only pass boosts. Max Speed is important in order to set up a Substitute before a slower Pokemon cripples Girafarig with an untimely status move.</p>
<p>If you are confident enough, you can swap out either Substitute or Psychic for Agility so Girafarig has two boosting moves to pass. With both Agility and Calm Mind, passing to Moltres, Milotic, or even Venusaur could be extremely devastating to your opponent. Watch out, though, as doing this will make Girafarig far more vulnerable to status and Taunt. If the Baton Pass fails, Girafarig is essentially a helpless toy without Psychic.</p>
<p>When choosing a Baton Pass receiver, you need to pick out Pokemon that will not only benefit from the Berry boost, but also the move boost. A combination of Calm Mind and a Salac Berry requires special sweepers with decent Speed; the aforementioned Moltres, Milotic, and Venusaur are great candidates for this. Agility and a Petaya Berry can help out slower special sweepers such as Tangrowth, Exeggutor, and Glaceon. Using a same-stat boost combination such as Agility and a Salac Berry is not recommended as it's overkill; balancing between offense and Speed is a better way of allocating stats. Also, Liechi Berry can be used over the other Berries to help a physical sweeper out. Remember to use Agility instead of Calm Mind when doing so, as physical sweepers won't benefit from passed Calm Mind boosts. Notable receivers of Liechi boosts are Aggron, Rhyperior, and Absol.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice
move 1: Trick
move 2: Psychic
move 3: Thunderbolt / Hidden Power Fighting
move 4: Baton Pass / Shadow Ball / Hidden Power Fighting
item: Choice Specs / Choice Scarf
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Timid / Modest
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>As with most Pokemon, Girafarig can make decent use of a Choice set. Using Choice Specs will help Girafarig plow through slow teams, while a Choice Scarf makes Girafarig into a decent revenge killer. Trick is one of the most important moves on this set; if Girafarig isn't doing any damage, then it should at least cripple its target. Do not just wildly select Trick, however, as Girafarig may Trick a Pokemon it doesn't want to Trick, such as a low HP Pokemon. For coverage, the tried-and-true combination of Psychic and Thunderbolt is utilized to toast the enemy. In the last slot, Baton Pass is suggested, as even though Girafarig is passing nothing, it lets the giraffe scout for potential Pursuit users that would otherwise easily trap and OHKO it. If you're keen on your predicting skills, then Shadow Ball, which is good for striking down enemy Ghost- and Psychic-types, or Hidden Power Fighting, which is used for smacking Dark- and Steel-types, make great alternatives to Baton Pass.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The choice of nature boils down to your personal preference. Timid is suggested on the Choice Specs set to outrun base 80 Speed Pokemon, while Modest is recommended on a Choice Scarf set to compensate for the loss of power. This isn't set in stone, though, so you can adjust the nature and item at your leisure.</p>
<p>This Girafarig appreciates defensive Pokemon that can take care of its weaknesses. Although most Bug-types such as Scyther will use U-turn, retreating back to a Steel-type wall such as Steelix and Registeel is usually the best course of action. Both of the above Steel-types can also set up Stealth Rock to support Girafarig. Additionally, they can provide a defense against Dark-type threats such as Absol and Drapion. Specifically, Houndoom and Spiritomb can cause major problems to this set due to Pursuit. Houndoom doesn't mind being Tricked a Choice item, while Spiritomb has great special bulk to withstand Girafarig's attacks. If, for some reason, they do not use Pursuit, then it is probably best to switch in a bulky Water-type such as Milotic and wear them down with Surf and Toxic.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>To the general Girafarig, the first steps of business are to take care of its weaknesses to Bug- and Dark-type attacks and to remove troublesome Steel-types. Fighting- and Steel-type Pokemon such as Blaziken and Registeel, respectively, come to mind when dealing with such threats. Blaziken can act as a great offensive partner alongside Girafarig because it can scare away the aforementioned types of Pokemon with its powerful STAB attacks. Additionally, it can continue a Baton Pass chain thanks to its access to Swords Dance, Bulk Up, and Agility. Registeel is a solid defensive Pokemon that can cripple Girafarig's counters with Thunder Wave, which will help Girafarig earn more chances at setting up and allows it to outspeed its counters, and set up Stealth Rock to support offensive Girafarig sets. Primeape is also a valuable teammate to consider due to U-turn, which can safely bring Girafarig in.</p>
<p>Next in line to safeguard against are the two prime special sponges: Clefable and Chansey. Both have incredible special bulk and a movepool that can really mess with Girafarig; Clefable has Trick to repel Girafarig's own Trick and Encore to stop set-up attempts, while Chansey can easily stall out the giraffe. RestTalk Hariyama can help repel both Normal-types as it doesn't mind status, and even if it's Tricked a Flame Orb, it won't be too hindering when Hariyama is asleep. Force Palm's chance to paralyze and Whirlwind's ability to scout for potential Girafarig counters also help Hariyama support Girafarig.</p>
[Optional Changes]
<p>For such a sad Pokemon, Girafarig surprisingly has some nice other options; however, it cannot utilize most of these moves effectively. Wish is usable, but Girafarig is unlikely to be able to pull it off due to its terrible defenses and bad typing. You would think that Girafarig could set up dual screens to support the team, but when attacks from Pokemon such as Choice Band Hitmonlee still 2HKO it, you are often better off with another dual screens user. Girafarig has access to fun field support moves such as Gravity and Trick Room and actually has the Speed to pull them off. Thunder Wave is available to spread around paralysis. A full physical moveset with Life Orb or Choice Band and Zen Headbutt, Sucker Punch, Earthquake, and Return could work; with an Adamant nature, Return does 57.9% - 68.2% to Chansey. However, once you get one hit in (that doesn't even OHKO, mind you), the surprise is over and a physical wall like Steelix will ruin the fun.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Girafarig is actually hard to counter due to Baton Pass, but otherwise, it's a piece of cake. The best initial switch-ins consist of Dark-types with decent special bulk and great Speed. Drapion and Houndoom are wonderful counters to most Girafarig sets, as they can outspeed and KO Girafarig before it can escape. Slower Dark-types such as Spiritomb and Absol are still threatening to Girafarig, but they are easily eluded by Baton Pass. Registeel is a pest to Girafarig, as it can cripple Girafarig with Thunder Wave while taking boosted Hidden Power Fighting without too much trouble thanks to its excellent special bulk. Fast and powerful sweepers such as Sceptile, Scyther, and Kangaskhan will have no trouble OHKOing the giraffe with their respective STAB attacks. Chansey and Clefable are great at sponging basically all of Girafarig's attacks, and can strike back with multiple Seismic Tosses.</p>
