Moveset Help & Other Questions (FAQ in first post)

JohnnyGolduck said:

Soooooo, took forever to breed a perfect Cleffa but it paid off and I actually bred 2.

For the first one it's going to look like a set I found on Smogon...

Unaware Ability
Bold Nature
248 HP
252 Defense
8 Special Defense

Moonblast
Heal Bell
Wish
Protect

Now the second one will also have Unaware and it's also Bold. Anyone have any good ideas of how I should use it? Maybe calm mind?

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Generally the calm mind sets I've seen and that have been recommended are ones with Magic Guard so as to prevent Clefable being worn down by Toxic/burns/hazards, affording it more chances to set up on the opponent. Other members can provide more input, as I basically just said what the Smogon strategy says.
EDIT: Here's the Smogon set for Unaware Calm Mind:
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Moonlight
- Heal Bell


I come here with my own question - on Mega Lopunny, is the coverage Ice Punch provides more valuable in general than the attack boost Power-Up Punch yields?

Shiny Electivire said:

Generally the calm mind sets I've seen and that have been recommended are ones with Magic Guard so as to prevent Clefable being worn down by Toxic/burns/hazards, affording it more chances to set up on the opponent. Other members can provide more input, as I basically just said what the Smogon strategy says.
EDIT: Here's the Smogon set for Unaware Calm Mind:
Clefable @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Bold Nature
- Calm Mind
- Moonblast
- Moonlight
- Heal Bell


I come here with my own question - on Mega Lopunny, is the coverage Ice Punch provides more valuable in general than the attack boost Power-Up Punch yields?

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Both are equally useful. Ice Punch is if you hate Gliscor, Dragonite, and Therian Landorus a lot. Power-Up Punch lets Mega Lopunny tear through defensive teams more easily.

Do Substitutes get affected by changes to the user's defensive stats? Like let's say you have a sub up and you use Calm Mind, would the Sub take less damage from special attacks than if you hadn't CMed or no?

Nah said:

Do Substitutes get affected by changes to the user's defensive stats? Like let's say you have a sub up and you use Calm Mind, would the Sub take less damage from special attacks than if you hadn't CMed or no?

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To sum up the question, yes. This is why Substitute + Calm Mind Keldeo is popular.

If I want to start competitive battling in Sun and Moon should I wait until the games come out and start fresh or should I train pokemon from the games that are already out and use those?

X-Files said:

If I want to start competitive battling in Sun and Moon should I wait until the games come out and start fresh or should I train pokemon from the games that are already out and use those?

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I think it's one of those questions where it's hard to give a definitive answer. I think waiting might be wise since we know very little about how Pokemon will fair in 7th gen competitive. Training may give you a headstart but competitive Pokemon is volatile that a certain Pokemon/trend/EV spread may not fair so well in a month compared to launch. Not to mention moves like Knock Off may be nerfed and other changes Gen 7 could throw at us.

To find balance, you could breed Pokemon in Gen 6 and train them in SM. However, it's hard to judge at this point.

You can still raise some stuff for use in the 4-5 months that's left of the Gen 6 metas, but you have to keep in mind that it's highly likely you'll have to scrap most of that when Sun/Moon come out. New generations always cause major shifts in the metagames (due to new 'mons, moves, mechanics, etc being introduced) so a lot of what used to work will probably no longer work, stuff that didn't work may now work, some Pokemon may drastically rise or fall in usage, etc.

How to Level up my Pokemon?

I'm building a competitive team for online battles. I've maxed out their hearts in Pokemon Amie and Super Trained them all, maxing out all their usable EV's. Now I need to level them up to at least level fifty for competitive battles. 

Would Blissey Bases be the most effective and quickest way to go about it? If I leveled them up in Blissey Base with POKERUS and gave them Power Items for a specific stat, would that make them stronger? Trying to make my team as tough as possible.

WANDERING-POKEMON-TRAINER said:

I'm building a competitive team for online battles. I've maxed out their hearts in Pokemon Amie and Super Trained them all, maxing out all their usable EV's. Now I need to level them up to at least level fifty for competitive battles. 

Would Blissey Bases be the most effective and quickest way to go about it? If I leveled them up in Blissey Base with POKERUS and gave them Power Items for a specific stat, would that make them stronger? Trying to make my team as tough as possible.

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once you've trained to MAx EVs they can't get any more EVs. just blissey base. one battle and they will reach lvl 50 with lucky egg and exp o power :P

WANDERING-POKEMON-TRAINER said:

I'm building a competitive team for online battles. I've maxed out their hearts in Pokemon Amie and Super Trained them all, maxing out all their usable EV's. Now I need to level them up to at least level fifty for competitive battles. 

Would Blissey Bases be the most effective and quickest way to go about it? If I leveled them up in Blissey Base with POKERUS and gave them Power Items for a specific stat, would that make them stronger? Trying to make my team as tough as possible.

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Pokemon Amie and Super Training seem incredibly time consuming for things that don't affect competitive play at all (Amie) and could be easily done through Horde grinding (ST). Oh well. Power Items and Pokerus effect EVs, the same thing that Super Training gives, so those are redundant at this point.

As far as the question at hand, Blissey Bases tend to be the best way to level up an already EVd (Super Trained) pokemon. Took me about 20 minutes to get my Regionals team up to Lv50. But please, don't bother with leveling them up unless they are at least decently Natured and IVd (and you have tested the team on Showdown, but I'm assuming you did that already). I'm writing a guide to making pokemon stronger for the PC Daily, so you should read that when it comes out.

Bolt Beam Combo?

Been hearing about it but can't find any good answers online. What is it and how does it work?

Should I include this for Porygon's Moveset?

I hate Shuckle!

And I'm sure you all do to. Shuckle Is the definition of OP. With moves like Toxic, Infestation, Shell Smash and Rest, he's completely unstoppable. Let not forget about those defensive stats of his.

Point is, I need a good strategy for taking down Shuckle, an i need your help. Your help is appreciated. 

Shuckle isn't that hard to deal with because of its common weaknesses and low HP undermining its huge defenses. Taunt is one of the best ways to shut it down. The set you mentioned is a prime example of Taunt bait, which is why it's largely ineffective. Steel Pokemon are not only immune to Toxic, they can also hit Shuckle hard with a supereffective STAB attack.

Soft-Boiled Clefable?

I know that Soft-boiled is normally only available as a move tutor attack from FRLG,

But does it pass to the baby cleffa on breeding?

If so, is it worth asking around on Trade Chat for one with Soft-Boiled?

Sadly, no. Soft-Boiled cannot be bred onto Cleffa at all, whether it be through normal breeding or chain-breeding.

Hey, I was wondering if I could get some help with my SD Mega Venusaur EV spread? I'm looking at running Jolly with 236 in Speed to outspeed max speed Timid Heatran and smack it with EQ (as Heatran's Fire Blast does around 50%). Or, I could not worry about Heatran and just go with Adamant with 100 in Speed to outspeed max Speed Azumarill?

Also, as a general rule - I know generally speaking odd HP gives an extra switch in when Stealth Rocks are on the field, but is it necessary for Pokemon like Mega Venusaur who aren't weak to Rocks?

Thanks for your help!

Porygon2 EV Spread HELP!

Which stats should I raise to their maximum? Which would benefit Porygon2 most? Right now, my Porygon is running a Modest nature for that boost in Special Attack. Now I'm stuck trying to decide which stats to EV train this thing in and that's where you guys come in. I'll list a few examples below of my ideal EV spreads for Porygon and you guys correct me if I'm wrong. LETS DO THIS TOGETHER!

252 Hp/ 252 Sp.Atk
Or
252 Hp/ 252 Def.
Or
170 Hp/ 170 Def./ 170 Sp.Def
Or
170 Hp/ 170 Def./ 170 Sp. Atk

I think the whole 170/170/170 split thing may work best but then again I could be terribly wrong. I can't decide. Please.....HELP MEEEEE!!!!!

You usually want to invest in Porygon2's HP/Def/SpDef, as it has fantastic bulk when holding Eviolite, plus it gets Recover. Offensive spreads are generally not worth it due to its low base Speed and kind of average Sp.Attack, and Porygon Z being way better at being an attacker.

Nah said:

You usually want to invest in Porygon2's HP/Def/SpDef, as it has fantastic bulk when holding Eviolite, plus it gets Recover. Offensive spreads are generally not worth it due to its low base Speed and kind of average Sp.Attack, and Porygon Z being way better at being an attacker.

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So 170Hp/ 170Def./ and 170 Sp.Def right? Would I have to run stalling moves like thunder wave and toxic with this setup or can I still go on the offense with Tri Attack or Ice Beam?