5th Gen Braviary vs Swanna (NU Matchup #4)

This week you've got a strong special attacking bird in and out of rain, and a strong physical attacking bird!




When comparing the two, I want you to also base it on which you'd use competitively, which do you think has the better chance, which you used in-game, which you like the design-of best, and what strategies you think one could use to beat the other. Each week these polls will continue until all combinations and tiers are used up (each Pokemon compared will be from the same competitive tier). To find out more about tiers, and how you can get the most out of these Pokemon, check out Battle Center. So which do you choose? Don't forget to post in the thread when voting in the poll, either!

Braviary > Swanna. Simply put, the former packs more power behinds its attacks than the latter. While Swanna's STABs have good coverage together, Braviary hits Rocks and Steels harder with Superpower, even though the move doesn't receive STAB. That, and Braviary looks cooler, IMO.

I like Braviary's design but I've never used it; Swanna on the other hand has a beautiful design and is a really useful Pokemon. I'll vote for Swanna since I prefer it out of the two.

Braviary mainly because its amazing design

From two weaklings to two "beauties". #HockeyTermsEveryoneShouldKnowInCanada

NEway, my Swanna is my HM slave because it has STAB for Surf and Dive. I really should teach Fly to Braviary and have the STAB associated with that, but since Ducklett is also Flying type, that still works. Since I have three STAB HMs on Swanna, I have to say that it's way more useful from a traveling standpoint.

I'll see what other opinions there are before I vote, as I really have only used Swanna against Audinos while helping others evolve (currently Lv.74 so it's a cakewalk) and plan to bring out Braviary for some similar fighting.

Cyclone

Braviary. I used one in-game and was not disappointed, and it's appearance is great.

Braviary wins for me. I feel in love with it's design the moment I saw. It's why I got White instead of Black , I wanted one on my team. It's also has tons of power having incredible stats and strong moves , like Sky Drop and Brave Bird. The Braviary on my White hasn't disappointed and is probably my strongest Pokemon. These factors easily make it my favorite Gen 5 Pokemon and favorite Flying-type.

I never used Braviary in-game, but I voted for him cos he has good stats and learns some strong attacks like Return, Superpower and Brave Bird.

Also, it looks awesome in terms of design.

Braviary has a really cool design, but I voted for Swanna because of the nice design and because I used it on my team and wasn't disappointed.

I just realized another thing that might influence voting. Some did not get Rufflet/Braviary during the main game due to version (barring trading of course). Meanwhile, Mandibuzz proved relatively pointless to use, as Swanna out-performed it. Those of us with Black got the short end of the stick, for certain.

I'm going to therefore try it out in battle this week and come back with a vote later. Battle Subway might be calling.

Cyclone

I voted for Braviary. Mainly due to the fact that it has an amazing design, both normal and shiny, and also due to the fact that i caught a shiny one in White. So naturally, I have a bit of bias towards it over Swanna. Otherwise, Swanna would win. It's great special-wise and its design is elegant and beautiful.

Braviary obviously. I mean, it's not even the stats; the stats are one thing, but the amazing movepool and versatility is just amazing. Going from a powerful CB set to a fast, scarfed set and to the defensive with a sneakily good SubBU set. It gets roost from the move tutors, STAB return, brave bird, and most importantly, superpower to smack walls like probopass and miltank. Damn, it's really amazing, not to mention it sits at an incredible speed tier of base 80. Seriously, one could argue that Braviary will get moved up to RU; it's that good.

Swanna, on the other hand, is interesting. It is most notable for rain teams because of its ability to ohko ludicolo and amoonguss with brave bird and hurricane, respectively. But weather aren't that common in the lower tiers. Don't get me wrong, Swanna(and to a greater extent, weather) have great potential in NU, but much of NU is unexplored ATM.

So Braviary is the superior bird. Oh, and happy late thanksgiving everyone :]

Even if I don't think it's the better battler of the two, my vote goes to Swanna, mostly for personal reasons. It (well, technically Ducklett) was the first shiny Pokemon that I found in a Gen V game, and it actually had pretty decent stats, so I used it on my team. I actually plan on transferring it over to my W2 to have it be one of my main party members, so Swanna is my choice.

Even though I like both birds, I have to vote for Braviary for better stats and movepool. Swanna's stats are all over the place, and none of them reach over base 100.

I pick Braviary, for higher base stat total (More HP, Attack, Defence and Sp. Defence than Swanna), as well asgreat design and movepool. Swanna might have less weaknesses (Not weak to Ice, but x4 weak to Electric) and also be faster, but I just don't see it be as usefull as Braviary.

I vote for Braviary because of its Attack

My vote went to Swanna, but that's not to say I don't also adore Braviary. This was a hard choice. I really like Braviary's design and the one I used in White 2 did an amazing job. But Swanna won it for me because I love its design, how it can use both Surf and Fly and because it's my pair's favourite Pokémon.

My vote instantly goes to Braviary. It's really powerful and has quite good defences as well for a bird Pokemon. It's speed isn't too shabby either. As for Swanna, it sure is a good surfer and flyer and is great with Rain Dance + Hurricane + Surf and all, but it isn't one of the best flying-types as well as water-types. It's quite frail compared to Braviary, and frailness puts a Pokemon lower down in my rankings. And who can't deny that Braviary looks so much cooler than Swanna? So, yup. Overall, Braviary wins.

Braviary's nice attack, speed, and movepool make's it stand out more, for me, at least. My vote goes to Braviary,