[Overview]
<p>Starmie has always been able to make a splash in the standard OU environment, and DW OU is no different. Its excellent Speed, adequate Special Attack, and outstanding movepool give it a spot on many teams, as it can revenge kill many unboosted Pokemon even without a Choice Scarf. In addition, Starmie has access to Rapid Spin, enabling it to spin away hazards that cripple many dangerous sweepers, such as Dragonite and Volcarona. On top of that, Starmie's wonderful Natural Cure ability allows it to rid itself of status upon switching out, so that it can use Rapid Spin again later or just cause havoc in general. Furthermore, what differentiates Starmie from Donphan and Tentacruel as a spinner is its ability to hit spinblockers extremely hard due to its phenomenal coverage.</p>
<p>While Starmie is a fantastic Pokemon, it is not without its downfalls. Many specially defensive threats such as Ferrothorn, Gastrodon, Blissey, and Chansey cause Starmie enormous problems. Ferrothorn deserves special mention because not only can it take any of Starmie's attacks, but it also can OHKO it with Power Whip. Starmie's secondary Psychic typing is a burden as well, as it is susceptible to Pursuit and U-turn, common moves in the DW OU metagame. In general, Starmie's low defenses make it vulnerable to priority users such as Dragonite, Lucario, and Toxicroak, which can use a powerful ExtremeSpeed or Sucker Punch to quickly dispose of Starmie. However, if you're looking for a spinner with offensive presence, Starmie is the perfect Pokemon for you.</p>
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunderbolt / Psyshock
move 4: Rapid Spin / Recover
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Starmie's most popular set in BW OU makes a comeback as one of the best special attackers in the tier. Its insane coverage in just three moves makes it a force to be reckoned with. Hydro Pump is Starmie's main STAB move, as—especially in the rain—it is quite powerful coming off Starmie's base 100 Special Attack stat. However, Surf can be used if one desires a more reliable STAB attack. Ice Beam and Thunderbolt are nearly unresisted together, so they are naturally placed on this moveset. However, Psyshock can be used over Thunderbolt for a secondary STAB move; it is also a better option against Fighting-types such as Breloom, Virizion, and Keldeo. Rapid Spin is the most recommended move in the final slot, as removing hazards is an asset to any team, especially ones utilizing the famed VoltTurn strategy. Alternatively, Recover improves Starmie's longevity.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EV spread maximizes Starmie's offensive potency; however, a bulkier spread of 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe can be used if one wants Starmie to survive more hits. If such a spread is chosen, Scald can be used as the main Water-type STAB move to cut the opponent's Attack with its burn chance. However, this strategy takes away from Starmie's key advantage: its great offensive presence. Starmie can be useful on a sun team by providing Rapid Spin support; it should use Psyshock over its Water-type STAB attack. Hidden Power Grass or Hidden Power Fire can be used over Thunderbolt or Ice Beam to hit Gastrodon and Ferrothorn, respectively, but these moves provide poor coverage. Rain Dance is an option for ruining sun, sand, and hail teams, but Politoed outclasses Starmie at providing rain support. Starmie can also use an Expert Belt to bluff a Choice set, but said sets are uncommon on Starmie, and this strategy is better left to Pokemon such as Latios and Hydreigon. Finally, using both Recover and Rapid Spin on the same set is an option; however, this forces Starmie to drop either Thunderbolt or Ice Beam, which limits its coverage.</p>
<p>Drizzle Politoed is perhaps Starmie's best friend, as its rain gives an immense power buff to Starmie's Water-type attacks, as well as the option to run a perfectly accurate Thunder in place of Thunderbolt. In general, Pokemon that need Rapid Spin support, such as Dragonite, Thundurus, and Tornadus, make great partners for Starmie. Starmie also requires a little support, as it cries every time Ferrothorn is brought out to absorb one of its attacks, so Magnezone is a fantastic partner due to its ability to trap Ferrothorn with Magnet Pull. Chandelure can also switch into non-Shed Shell variants and roast Ferrothorn with its powerful Fire-type attacks. In addition, Starmie struggles with Blissey, Chansey, and Tyranitar, so a powerful Fighting-type, such as Breloom, Conkeldurr, or Terrakion, is a good teammate to it.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Trick / Psyshock
item: Choice Specs
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While uncommon, Choice Specs Starmie goes from troublesome to downright dangerous. To give an example of its offensive prowess, a rain- and Choice Specs-boosted Hydro Pump will 2HKO 252/0 Blissey after Stealth Rock. On top of that, Starmie isn't crippled by status as easily as other offensive Pokemon, as Natural Cure heals it of status upon switching out. Hydro Pump is obviously the STAB move of choice, but Surf can be used if you prefer accuracy. Thunderbolt and Ice Beam provide neutral coverage and are much more threatening behind Choice Specs. In the final slot, Trick is a fun move to counter walls such as Ferrothorn and Blissey by locking them into a support move. On the other hand, Psyshock is a stronger option against Gastrodon, which is immune to both Starmie's Water-type STAB move and Thunderbolt, and shrugs off Ice Beam easily.
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Timid is the primary nature because quite frankly, Starmie needs all the Speed it can get. Timid also allows Starmie to outrun Jolly Garchomp. However, Modest can be used to increase Starmie's power output if that is more desirable. Modest can also turn a 3HKO to a 2HKO on standard Conkledurr. Starmie also has a few other options it can use in the fourth moveslot, but they either detract from its coverage or are outclassed. Once again, Hidden Power Fire and Hidden Power Grass can be used to hit Ferrothorn and Gastrodon, respectively. Rapid Spin is an option for getting rid of hazards. One could even run both Hydro Pump and Surf in one set for both power and reliability. However, all of these moves are inferior to Trick and Psyshock, due to their ability to screw over walls.</p>
<p>Once again, Drizzle Politoed is a wonderful partner to Starmie because the rain hugely increases Hydro Pump's power, allowing Starmie to 2HKO Blissey. Starmie also requires Fighting-type support, as Tyranitar and Ferrothorn are still common switch-ins to it, so removing these threats before firing off Starmie's powerful attacks is recommended. However, Tyranitar should take care not to switch into Hydro Pump, which is a guaranteed 2HKO. Jellicent is a much more prominent threat, as it can absorb Hydro Pump and takes little damage from Ice Beam; Rotom-W, Serperior, and Conkeldurr are all good options for disposing of it.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Hydro Pump / Surf
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Trick
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Natural Cure
nature: Timid / Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Starmie's stellar Speed might make a Choice Scarf set seem overkill at first, this variant of Starmie is a great revenge killer, as it outspeeds many dangerous threats such as +2 Dragonite and Choice Scarf Chandelure. This set might appear similar to the Choice Specs set, but it plays much differently: instead of blasting through teams or severely weakening them, Choice Scarf Starmie aims to outspeed and KO many prominent threats. As you've read over and over throughout this analysis, Starmie's Water-type STAB attack and BoltBeam give it fantastic coverage, while Trick cripples walls by locking them into support moves.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>A key difference between this set and the others is that a Modest nature is viable; as Starmie is already extremely fast, it can use more power at a lesser cost. For example, Modest Starmie can still outrun base 100 Speed Choice Scarf users, such as Jirachi. However, a Timid nature allows Starmie to outspeed Choice Scarf Garchomp, so the choice is truly up to the user. Most of Starmie's other options are moves that counter specific Pokemon, but shouldn't generally be used due to lack of other coverage. Hidden Power Fire can be used to surprise Scizor, but Hydro Pump is much more powerful in the rain, and even with Hidden Power Fire, Starmie doesn't have a prayer against Ferrothorn in the rain. Hidden Power Grass eliminates Water / Ground type Pokemon such as Gastrodon, Quagsire, and Swampert, but such Pokemon aren't very common in the DW metagame. Rapid Spin can be used in place of Trick, but this isn't a good idea because locking Starmie into Rapid Spin is generally not advised, especially when there are Ghost-types on the opposing team.</p>
<p>Politoed is excellent as it provides rain support to power up Starmie's Hydro Pump. Pursuit users such as Tyranitar and Scizor plague Choice-locked Starmie, so one should bring along a Fighting-type to dispose of these Pokemon. Jellicent also loves switching into Choice-locked Hydro Pump and Ice Beam, so once again Rotom-W, Serperior, and Conkledurr are great counters to Jellicent.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Starmie's movepool is fairly large, so it does have several other options. As previously mentioned, Hidden Power Fire or Hidden Power Grass can be used if Starmie would like a way around Scizor or Gastrodon, but this takes away from its incredible coverage. Starmie also has access to Psychic, which can be used over Psyshock due to its higher Base Power, but Psyshock is much better for dealing with physically weak walls. Power Gem is an option if you desire a reliable way to beat Volcarona, but Hydro Pump deals more damage to it. Starmie is capable of running a dual screens set, but it is largely outclassed by Espeon and Latias in this role because of the former's better ability and the latter's greater bulk. Blizzard is an option over Ice Beam, but it should only be used on a hail team as it has low accuracy otherwise.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Specially defensive Pokemon that resist at least two of Starmie's attacks can typically check it. Ferrothorn resists both Starmie's Water-type STAB and Thunderbolt, takes minimal damage from Ice Beam, and easily OHKOes Starmie with Power Whip. Gastrodon is immune to Hydro Pump and Thunderbolt, and can stall Starmie out since Ice Beam is only a 5HKO. Jellicent can check Choice Starmie, as it can switch into and shrug off Hydro Pump and Ice Beam. It also has the ability to spinblock, which causes problems for Rapid Spin Starmie. Jellicent must be wary of Thunderbolt, however. Blissey and Chansey can wall Starmie quite well due to their marvelous Special Defense stats. All of these Pokemon must beware of Trick, however.</p>
<p>Starmie's excellent coverage make it slightly difficult to switch into, but due to its mediocre defenses, it can be KOed rather easily. Tyranitar can take pretty much any attack—bar Life Orb- or Choice Specs-boosted Hydro Pump—and retaliate with Crunch or Pursuit. Similarly, Scizor can easily KO Starmie with U-turn, Bug Bite, or Pursuit, but must be wary of Hydro Pump. Celebi can take any attack bar Ice Beam and KO Starmie with its powerful Grass-type attacks. Latias can stomach an Ice Beam and proceed to set up with Calm Mind or directly attack Starmie. Rotom-W can cause a bit of mayhem with Volt Switch, but it must be wary of switching into Thunderbolt. Jolteon can switch into Thunderbolt, outspeed all but Choice Scarf Starmie, and KO with its own Thunderbolt.</p>
