vaporeon
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[GAL=53494]Staraptor[/GAL]
It has a savage nature. It will courageously challenge foes that are much larger.
-Pokemon Diamond Pokedex Entry
When Staravia evolve into Staraptor, they leave the flock to live alone. They have sturdy wings.
-Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Pokedex Entry
-It never stops attacking even if it is injured. It fusses over the shape of its comb.
-Pokemon Black/2 and Pokemon White/2 Pokedex Entry
It has a savage nature. It will courageously challenge foes that are much larger.
-Pokemon Diamond Pokedex Entry
When Staravia evolve into Staraptor, they leave the flock to live alone. They have sturdy wings.
-Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Pokedex Entry
-It never stops attacking even if it is injured. It fusses over the shape of its comb.
-Pokemon Black/2 and Pokemon White/2 Pokedex Entry
Well, Staraptor is not as awesome as Pidgeot for sure. They want their crowns to look good and complain about it when it does not and they live lonely lives. Like most raptor bird Pokemon, then have powerful wings and talons and will fight fiercely with them. Lets take a look at what makes them great.
Base Stats:
HP: 85
Attack: 120
Defense: 70
Special Attack: 50
Special Defense: 50
Speed: 100
Okay. Staraptor is everything done right with the Normal/Flying type, period. It seemed like after each new game, the starting bird Pokemon were just bad. I mean not good for competitive play. If you know me, I'll find a way to compete with them. That's not all. The best part about this bird is its Ability. Let's look at them.
Ability One- Intimidate
This ability drops the attack stat of each of your opponents Pokemon on the battlefield by 1 Stage. This can cripple a Pokemon who relies on its attack stat. This also hurts the Pokemon that don't have any attack boosting attacks. This Ability also makes a great switch in if your opponent KO'ed one of your Pokemon.
This ability also reduces the encounter rate by 50 percent on Pokemon a lower level then the Pokemon with this Ability. Note that Pokemon must be the lead of your team.
This Ability is by far the best ability for this bird. Now, some Pokemon are not affected by this Ability. Pokemon with the Abilities Clear Body, Hyper Cutter, or White Smoke can not have their stats reduced by effects that are not self caused.
Hidden/Dream World Ability (Ability Two)- Reckless
This Ability is a fun one. This Ability increases the Based Power of attacks that have any recoil damage (self damage from attacks) by 20 percent. The down side is you take more damage from the recoil.
Lets look at how Staraptor can use it. Brave Bird has a Base Power of 120. With S.T.A.B. (same Type Attack Bonus), Brave Bird's attack power becomes 180 and with that 20 bonus from Reckless, you now have a Brave Bird with the attack power of 216. That's Huge and is also one of the most feared Brave Birds ever! Now what if you factor in a Choice Band with Staraptors 320+ attack.(Depends on Nature)
I'll leave the rest up to you.
As you can see, unlike Pidgeot, or most bird Pokemon, each of Staraptor's Abilities are VERY useful. With 2 Abilities, which one do you use? Well, I'll try my best here to help you out. I'll cover a few sets for you and you see which version of this bird can be helpful to your team.
[GAL=53495]Staraptor[/GAL]
Item: Choice Band/Life Orb/Choice Scarf
Nature: Jolly (- Special Attack, + Speed) or Adamant (+ Attack, -Special Attack)
Ability: Reckless
EV’s: 6 HP, 252 Attack, 252 Speed
-Brave Bird
-Close Combat
-U-Turn
-Double Edge/Quick Attack (EGG MOVE)
I know what you're saying and that's "why so many options". Well, that's because Staraptor is a Pokemon based on numbers. To me, it seems it was made to do a few things well. This role here will focus on ether its speed or attack and to help you with that, here are a few numbers with the choice items in mind.
Choice Band Adamant
HP: 312
Attack: 558
Defense: 176
Sp.Atk: 122
Sp.Def: 136
Speed: 299
Choice Band Jolly
HP: 312
Attack: 509
Defense: 176
Sp.Atk: 122
Sp.Def: 136
Speed: 328
Choice Scarf Adamant
HP: 312
Attack: 372
Defense: 176
Sp.Atk: 122
Sp.Def: 136
Speed: 449
Choice Scarf Jolly
HP: 312
Attack: 339
Defense: 176
Sp.Atk: 122
Sp.Def: 136
Speed: 492
I'll leave it to you on which number appeal to you more. Which ever you choose, the bird will perform amazingly well. For me, a rule of thumb is to always go the speed route because the game is ruled by it, though a well balanced team could abuse a slower but more powerful Staraptor.
Getting into the move choice, both Brave Bird and Double Edge are the core of this set. They both get stronger with the Ability Reckless. I tend to use Brave Bird more because it hits every type. Double Edge is just so you can hit Electric type Pokemon pretty hard, though Brave Bird 'can' do the job as well. If you don't want to use Double Edge, then Quick Attack is a perfect attack. On weaker defensive Pokemon, it can do up 50+ percent damage with the Choice Band. Still, that move slot is up to what you want on it. Double Edge is a Egg Move. The breeding tree is very small, consisting of Togekiss.
Close Combat is just a great move for any Staraptor to have. You can hit Metal type Pokemon pretty hard and fight Dark type with ease. Lastly, U-Turn is also a move I would recommend on any physical bird Pokemon. most of them are fast and can use this as a hit and run tactic.
As you may know, this Staraptor has a very short shelf life but you can expect very powerful Brave birds. If you like the freedom of using all of your attacks, the Life Orb will be for you. I see Staraptor as a 'all in' Pokemon. Its stats support this so I tend the hard hitting and fast versions of this bird. Well, this set is all summed up.
This Staraptor’s Advantages
This bird can use tools AMAZING WELL. Its ability to use Choice Band and Choice Scarf WITHOUT being punished is just too good. What I mean by being 'punished' is no matter what move you lock yourself into, you will still hit hard and its versatility with Life Orb is unmatched. Its fast and Powerful and will leave a dent in just about any team. Staraptor's Raptor nature also allows it to put heavy damage on any wall, will hitting most Metal type Pokemon for a little more then 50 to 70 percent. It's still wise to pick and choose what battles you engage in.
It also having access to Close Combat makes it a favorite when choosing bird for your team, even though it's a tougher choice when choosing against Braviary, who has access to Superpower and Rock Slide. All in all, Staraptor is on my top 10 list of bird Pokemon to use.
This Staraptor’s Disadvantages
Normally using choice items are a disadvantage but, not here. Sure you don't want to be locked into Double Edge against a Ghost type but that's not the issue. I think the issue is, because I use Staraptor, is its destructive nature. Staraptor is designed to go down. On a good match, you can get in 3 or 4 Brave Birds. The other problem is if you don't take down your opponent, Staraptor might (and that a strong might) go down. With Staraptor, you want to take down between 1 and a half to 3 Pokemon. Because of this, you'll be doing a lot of switching.
If keeping Pokemon alive is part of your play style, then avoid using most bird Pokemon.
For my next set. We'll cover a more defensive Staraptor because I found in testing that they work as well.
[GAL=53495]Staraptor[/GAL]
Item: Leftovers
Nature: Impish (+ Defense, - Special Attack) or Jolly (+ Speed, - Special Attack)
Ability: Intimidate
EV’s: 6 HP, 252 Defense, 252 Speed
-Feather Dance (EGG MOVE)
-Return
-U-Turn
-Roost
The goal of this set is to reduce the Attack stat of your opponents Pokemon. Intimidate drops the Attack stat by 1 stage. Staraptor will be faster then most physical attackers and because of this, Feather Dance becomes really useful. Most, if not all opponents will not see a Feather Dance coming. by the time your opponents Pokemon starts to attack, that Pokemon's attack stat will be down 3 stages. On the following turn, that may force them to switch, allowing you setup time or get a good U-Turn going. It also lets you scout their team a little bit.
Using self damaging moves are not recommended here. The same is recommended for Close Combat. You want to keep this bird alive for as long as you can. Those moves don't help with that. U-Turn, in my opinion is a great substitute for Close Combat with this set. Reason is most Pokemon used will be Dark types and U-Turn hits for weakness. You may run into a Steel type Pokemon but that is a battle you don't want to fight with this Staraptor.
This birds attack stat will be high enough to still deal damage. Return is the best non self destructive option you have. The Return move slot is also a filler attack. You can replace it with any attack you like. last move for this bird is Roost. Staraptor's base defense stats are high enough to help it wall physical attackers while you continue to reduce their stats or attack back.
This Staraptor’s Advantages
With this birds Intimidate Ability, high speed and decent physical defense stats, you'll be able to wall other physical attacks. Your ability to switch in and out of battle to hinder your opponents attacks make this bird a force to be reckon with. You'll also be able to hit many Pokemon hard as well with a S.T.A.B. Return, which makes up for not having attack EV's (Effort Value).
This set excels in Double Battles but is also strong in Single Battles.
This Staraptor’s Disadvantages
Well, Stealth Rock's ruins you hit and run tactic. You'll need to use a Pokemon with Rapid Spin to remove Stealth Rocks so you can effectively use this Pokemon. Most teams carry them so this may not be a problem. You do not want to engage and Rock type Pokemon because they will take you down, even with at minus 3 attack. You also don't want to fight any Pokemon using Stone Edge because there is a good chance it will land as a critical hit, which ignores all negative physical and special attack drops on the attacking Pokemon and all defensive enhancements on the defending Pokemon.
This Staraptor is also bad against many types. Those types Rock, Metal and Ghost. If you wish, you can put Close Combat on it but it reduces your defensive stats which is counter productive to what this set needs to do. You can use it if you want to risk that. U-Turn is also bad to use against them as well. if you can call a Feather Dance right on a switch and then U-Turn out, great.
You need to be careful when facing Ghost Pokemon because most of them are fast and faster then Staraptor. I recommend switching out over using U-Turn just to stay safe. A lot of Ghost Pokemon hit hit Staraptor for Super Effective damage.
I do hope this helps you see a little use when choosing to use a Staraptor. They can be good in many thing and play each role well when on your team. Staraptor can reward both the reckless play style and the careful play style well.
Thanks for reading and enjoy your new addition to your team.
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