By Matt
What makes an ideal moveset? Like I said before about power complexes, it is not brute force that wins the war, but using strategy, like it says in the Art of War. This is true, and recent moves have made strategies even more intricate and tougher to get around. For example, Trick Room, which “warps the dimensions” so that the slowest Pokemon move first, is now commonly used in battle strategies. Back to the subject at hand, an ideal moveset depends on the kind of Pokemon you are going to use.
For example, a Pokemon that is a “sweeper” has a very high Attack or Special Attack Stat, and powerful moves should be used. Therefore, status moves have almost no use here, since many sweepers have very low defensive abilities. In Double Battles, there are partners to back up the sweeper and even boost its moves to make it seem invincible. However, the bigger they are, the harder they fall, so having a team composed of only sweepers is a terrible idea, seeing as they have the potential to be one-hit KO’d. Unfortunately, “sweeper” is the only term I know, since I don’t formulate battle strategies, but I can give you characteristics of other kinds of movesets.
There are some that have three different status moves and one attacking move (for defense). These can vary from a status affliction to stat changes. Protect is a common example, preventing powerful attacks like Earthquake or Surf to hit your teammate. Move Priorities, as I have explained before, are very crucial; time is of the essence. Utilizing Dream World Abilities (Hidden Abilities) can add a twist to one’s strategy. While battling a friend for fun in the Battle Simulator, my friend had a Serperior with its Hidden Ability, Contrary. Contrary is a unique ability in which stat changes are reversed.
Leaf Tornado, which lowers Special Attack two levels, is now raised two levels, making it even more powerful. Depending on your strategy, different moves must be compatible with every member of your team. Basically, your party has to be one theme, and even though it can revolve around numerous types, it must be centered towards one move.
The Trick Room technique I mentioned earlier has a team full of slow Pokemon. Since these are not taken out as easily, moves like Iron Defense or Amnesia can be implemented, making sure they stay out in battle as long as possible. One last note is that attacking moves of the same type is not a wise strategy. There should be, if possible, kinds of moves that can be used against rivals of your type.
For example, a Typhlosion that knows SolarBeam can easily overcome its weakness against Water, Ground, and Rock-types. When you’re faced with this kind of an opponent, remember that a variety of moves can definitely help. So what is the ideal moveset? Make it so that everything works in harmony and that your battle plan goes undisturbed even through the most convoluted of strategies.
Tags: Nintendo DS