Our first Group Day of the season is right here, and it's excessive time everybody have the ability to discover themselves a shiny (actually!) new HAXORUS ultimately, don't you assume? How does this funky Dragon look now in PvP battles? The reply to that's principally proper right here in our Backside Line Up Entrance:
B.L.U.F.
- After some clunkers, this has the look of a genuinely GOOD Group Day for PvPers! New transfer Breaking Swipe is a straight improve for Haxorus in ALL Leagues!
- Hax comes with an intriguing movepool already, with two of the easiest quick strikes within the sport AND a diversified and efficient array of cost strikes. There are a number of methods you possibly can construct it, earlier than and nonetheless after Group Day… however all of them will now focus on Breaking Swipe from right here on out.
- Grasp League Haxorus shouldn't be surprisingly your prime precedence (Hax crosses the vital 4000 CP barrier), however don't neglect on the lookout for good ones for decrease Leagues as properly. Even in Nice League, Haxorus does seem to have the sauce to (principally) overcome its scary glassiness. This can be a weekend to hunt for a number of Haxorus' (Haxoruses? Horoxii? ) in case you can!
HAXORUS Stats and Strikes
Haxorus
Dragon
Nice League Stats
| Assault | Protection | HP |
|---|---|---|
| 151 (149 Excessive Stat Product) | 96 (98 Excessive Stat Product) | 102 (103 Excessive Stat Product) |
(Highest Stat Product IVs: 0-14-13, 1499 CP, Degree 15.5)
Extremely League Stats
| Assault | Protection | HP |
|---|---|---|
| 196 (192 Excessive Stat Product) | 126 (126 Excessive Stat Product) | 129 (133 Excessive Stat Product) |
(Highest Stat Product IVs: 1-15-15, 2495 CP, Degree 25.5)
Grasp League Stats
| Assault | Protection | HP |
|---|---|---|
| 251 | 157 | 166 |
(Assuming 15-15-15 IVs, CP 4062 at Degree 50)
Actual fast, since you're extra right here for the strikes than something. Haxorus may be very frail. Like, the very best examples I may give of HOW frail are as follows:
- It has mainly the identical Assault stat (in Grasp League) as Therian Landorus, Rayquaza, and Darkrai… however decrease bulk than all of them. And NONE of them will ever be labeled as something near cumbersome.
- In Extremely League, the closest comp is Chandelure, with almost an identical Assault and (lack of) bulk.
- And in Nice League, Haxorus' whole stat product (mainly Assault + bulk) is at #807… out of a listing 852. It's roughly the identical as falls-over-to-a-stiff-breeze Darmanitan, Breloom, and Honchkrow (all of which have a larger stat product than Haxorus!).
Now the typing does assist a bit bit. Typically. As a Dragon, Hax resists all of the “components”: Grass, Hearth, Water, and Electrical, although additionally it is (reasonably famously) weak to Fairy, Ice, and different Dragon injury. So… extra resistances than vulnerabilities, at the very least!
However… yeah. Pokemon like this mainly require spam to have an opportunity at making an impression. Fortunately, Haxorus has that in spades, and its new transfer addition solely helps with that, with one of many extra fascinating movepools within the sport!
Quick Strikes
- Counter – Combating kind, 4.0 DPT, 3.5 EPT, 1.0 CoolDown
- Dragon Tail – Dragon kind, 4.33 DPT, 3.0 EPT, 1.5 CD
Counter is the very best quick transfer within the sport, bar none. That mentioned, Dragon Tail, particularly with the STAB injury is enjoys with Haxorus, is actually good too. And its common vitality era is greater than compensated for with the cost strikes. (We'll get to these in a second.)
Level is, whereas Counter is the primary transfer you'll probably take into account, that is a kind of very uncommon circumstances the place it might not truly be the very best. We'll come again to that.
ᴱ – Unique (Group Day) Transfer
Cost Strikes
- Breaking Swipeᴱ – Dragon kind, 50 injury, 35 vitality, Reduces Opponent Assault -1 Stage
- Dragon Claw – Dragon kind, 50 injury, 35 vitality
- Evening Slash – Darkish kind, 50 injury, 35 vitality, 12.5% Likelihood to Elevate Person Assault +2 Levels
- Surf – Water kind, 65 injury, 40 vitality
- Earthquake – Floor kind, 120 injury, 65 vitality
Not one, not two, however THREE strikes all costing solely 35 vitality (tied for least expensive within the sport). After which Surf costing solely 5 vitality extra and dealing 15 extra injury. THIS is the form of spam AND unpredicatbility you hope for with one thing glassy like this! And if the opponent lets it cling round, you possibly can attempt to punish them with a superb nearer as properly in Earthquake.
The transfer selection is SO good, in reality, that it may be laborious to choose what to go away out. One selection, nonetheless, turns into apparent now. The time period “strictly higher” might be overused, even by me, however Breaking Swipe actually is strictly higher than Dragon Claw, and thus Haxorus itself is strictly higher popping out of Group Day than it's moving into. So we are able to safely push Claw off the raft, because it have been, simply as we did with Rayquaza when it received Breaking Swipe.
In order that leaves us with 4 strikes: 35-energy Breaking Swipe and Evening Slash, 40-energy Surf, and 65-energy Earthquake.
Now let's begin placing these along with the quick strikes and see what shakes out! And we're going to go backwards to do it, beginning with the league the place Hax is most related and dealing down from there.
MASTER LEAGUE
So for comparability, here is Haxorus' former best in Open Master League, and here is Master League Premier, each operating Surf/Dragon Claw. Evening Slash isn't too far behind Claw, however the latter is healthier for overpowering Mamoswine and Machamp (the latter of which resists Evening Slash), so Claw will get the nod. ALSO be aware that I used Dragon Tail there, not Counter. Counter certainly is viable (pretty much as good as it's, it might be laborious NOT to be viable!), and will get some further wins versus issues like Snorlax and Melmetal with a transparent weak point to Combating injury, however Dragon Tail is required if you wish to beat each Giratinas, Yveltal, and to a lot better assure Garchomp. I lean Tail, however I received't say Counter is “flawed”… simply completely different.
Anyway, with Breaking Swipe beign a transparent improve on Dragon Claw, let's see how a lot of an improve. Swapping Swipe in for Claw and leaving all different components alone results in a clear improvement with six new wins: Mewtwo with Focus Blast or Shadow Ball (be aware, nonetheless, that Ice Beam M2 wins with Hax having the profitable Swipe totally charged however unable to fireside), Yveltal, Groudon, Gyarados, and now Snorlax that was previously certainly one of Counter's few benefits. Superb what a easy little nerf to the opponent's Assault energy can do for flimsy Pokemon like Haxorus (because it did for Rayquaza too!). In Premier, it's more of the same, with these Gyarados and Snorlax (and Shadow Snorlax) wins cropping up.
Breaking Swipe's oblique buff to Haxorus' bulk truly permits one thing much more spectacular, although. Whereas earlier than, Earthquake wasn't really an option as Hax would typically perish earlier than attending to it in a significant spot, Breaking Swipe changes all that. It nonetheless sadly comes up a bit brief versus the massive Steels (together with Diagla), and does surrender former wins versus Excadrill and Ice Punch Ursaluna, however it may acquire Zacian, of us. (Not less than, with out Play Tough.) Simply rolls over it with a giant Earthquake. Good! Equally, it may additionally beat Primarina this fashion now (that's probably only for ML Premier, although).
I'll be aware, nonetheless, that Counter doesn't see fairly the identical bump. It IS higher than Claw nonetheless, and that reveals up extra in 2v2 shielding (Claw vs Swipe) as a number of Breaking Swipe debuffs add up, however Dragon Tail remains to be typically higher in 1v1 (and 0v0) shielding and nonetheless will get my general vote. Simply too many issues that Dragon injury is healthier for than Combating injury at this degree.
So briefly, sure, Breaking Swipe is a transparent improve for Haxorus in Grasp League and value pursuing on Group Day for this function. It's nonetheless not fairly on the extent of, say, Dragonite or Kyurem or fellow Swiper (“Swiper, no swiping!”) Rayquaza, however I feel it defintely strikes up into the next tier of Dragon proper there amongst them.
Grasp League is what most people are eyeing going into this weekend, however what about elsewhere?
ULTRA LEAGUE
Comparable improve right here, with Breaking Swipe (this time moreso with Counter… extra punchable issues at this degree than in Grasp League!) [clearly distancing itself from Dragon Claw… new wins embody Swampert, Venusaur, Charizard, Mandibuzz, Guzzlord, Drapion, Golisopod, and naturally, Snorlax. (Yeah, Counter/Claw/Surf couldn't fairly do this earlier than!) Apparently, it slides backwards in Premier, however in Open? Maybe it's value some spice consideration now.
GREAT LEAGUE
A lot of punchable issues down in Nice League as properly, the place Counter Hax might be already a bit higher than you assume, at the very least on paper. Wins towards issues like Lanturn, Swampert, Galarian Stunfisk, Registeel, Bastiodon, Victreebel, Talonflame, Mandibuzz, Dunsparce, Diggersby, Alolan Sandslash and Walrein catch the attention, however then Breaking Swipe simply goes and makes it higher with Drapion, Toxicroak, and even Lickitung! And look how far it may now go in 2v2 shielding! One thing so fragile shouldn't get pleasure from that degree of success in longer battles like that in Nice League, however right here we're!
IN SUMMATION….
I'm shocked to say it, however I feel that Breaking Swipe Haxorus could also be value grinding for in all three Leagues! If I needed to rank them, it might be Grasp first, then Nice, after which Extremely, however in case you discover a candidate with good Extremely League or Nice League IVs, evolve it whereas you may get Breaking Swipe, even when you find yourself brief on sweet wanted to construct all of them now. We'll get extra Axew sweet later this 12 months, proper?
Gonna wrap it up proper right here, as Group Day is FAST approaching, and I've Summer time Cup (Extremely) evaluation to attempt to get again to anyway!
Till subsequent time, you possibly can all the time discover me on Twitter with near-daily PvP evaluation nuggets or Patreon, in case you're feeling further beneficiant.
Good searching, of us! Do keep secure on the market, and catch you subsequent time, Pokéfriends!
The submit Breaking Swipe Haxorus in PvP appeared first on Pokémon GO Hub.
