FAN CHOICE: POKE FOCUS #17: SCIZOR

It's FAN CHOICE time!

Introduction

Our next Pokemon is one that can be found within the confines of the Johto Pokedex. However, it will require some trading-and-trade-backing to bring it about... which shouldn't be too hard to arrange. Scizor is a flying, bladed bug of doom. Now is certainly a great time to try it out, with the plethora of new and powerful attacks available to it.







About the Pokemon

Scizor, the Pincer Pokemon. With those eye-patterned pincers, Scizor can crush any foe with ease. And those eyes aren't just for show, either; Scizor can make it look like it has three heads with those. Fearsome, eh?

Those wings, though, are for show. Or rather, they don't help Scizor fly, and are only used to cool its body down. Still kind of cool. *groan*

Height: 5'11", Weight: 260.1 lbs.

Capture/Training
Ah, the Bug-Catching Contest. That was loads of fun in Silver, and it's guaranteed to be just as fun in the remake... what with Scythers tending to win the competition (so long as no one else catches a better one <_<).

Statistics

70 HP, 130 Atk, 110 Def, 55 Sp. Atk, 80 Sp. Def, 65 Spd

Scizor's stats are extremely good. Huge attack power, and no real weaknesses except in Speed, which Scizor has ways of compensating for. There is certainly plenty of use for that high Defense, too. Scizor works well as a straight-out physical sweeper (obviously, it shouldn't be using special attacks), or it can take a supportive role with Baton Pass and other support moves.

With the relative difficulty in catching Scyther, there should not be too much focus on trying to find the "perfect" Scizor. We probably do not want one that has a Special Attack-boosting nature (that, and obviously natures that hinder Special Attack are preferable), but other than that it's pretty safe to work with the Scizor you catch.

EV refocusing should obviously involve focusing them out of Special Attack. Other than that, though, it doesn't really matter where they go.

Scizor's typing is extremely nice. It's only weakness is a 4x weakness to Fire, so watch out for that, but otherwise, it has resistance to nine types and immunity to Poison--definitely makes up for that 4x weakness.

Movesets

Abilities are Swarm and Technician. Both are great abilities and whatever one ends up on the Scizor you stick with can be used. The moveset used will differ depending on the ability chosen. Swarm is pretty straightforward and encourages the use of moves like Substitute and items like Life Orb, which will help bring Scizor down to that 33% mark. Technician boosts the power of low-power attacks, which is most obvious with a certain attack called Bullet Punch, a first-strike attack that already gets STAB. With Technician, the power of this heart-scaled move really starts reaching levels that can one-hit-KO enemies with some attack-boosting help. Other moves that benefit from Technician are Quick Attack, Pursuit, and Double-Hit.

For its primary attacks, the obvious choices are X-Scissor for Bug and Iron Head for Steel. However, if Scizor has Technician, its strongest Bug-type move is actually the Move Tutor-able Bug Bite, of all things. (As a bonus, the move can screw over the enemy's berry strategies.) Scizor can also consider Metal Claw, which gets the Technician boost and has a slight chance of getting that Attack boost.

Secondary attacks can vary. Technician-boosted Double-Hit is probably its strongest option, and can break Subs if they come up. It's more powerful than a full-powered Return, though that move is better if Technician is absent. Brick Break, meanwhile, has great type coverage. Night Slash has a nice critical-hit ratio and can hit Ghost-types hard. Aerial Ace gets a Technician boost, hits Fighting-types and Bug-types, and can be used on dodgy opponents. With a Technician boost, even Rock Smash is somewhat useable. Superpower is a somewhat oddball choice that can hit hard, and then Scizor can switch out.

Scizor has several other options for attacks. Among them are its first-strike attacks, most notably Bullet Punch. STAB + Technician = one powerful attack that, for the most part, ignores Scizor's low Speed. It can even be Scizor's primary Steel-type move. Even without Technician, it's useful for finishing off enemies, especially after a Swords Dance. For the handful of types that it does not hit well, Quick Attack also works, and can also get that Technician boost.

As for other assorted attacks: Pursuit can screw over Pokemon who try to escape, and after that Technician boost, becomes pretty darn powerful. Even without the Technician boost, it's a decently-powerful attack, just a bit less powerful than Night Slash. U-Turn is a fun option, particularly on a Swarm Scizor: if it starts getting weak, it can switch out and deal some really nice damage beforehand. If Scizor hasn't used Agility beforehand, it can also make sure its replacement doesn't take any damage by soaking up the enemy's hit first. With Technician boost, even Thief has some potential. If you don't want to give up an item, you can always use Knock Off. Meanwhile, 130 base Attack plus Technician means that Scizor might just be the strongest False Swiper out there, which is good for all your Pokemon-catching needs, though more-or-less useless in competitive battle. Scizor can also pull off Counter well. You might need some Agility support, but an Endure-Reversal combo can work, too.

With solid defensive stats, Scizor can function well as a Baton Passer. Passable moves include: Swords Dance is probably the most obvious subject, being able to bring Scizor's Attack power to ridiculous levels and allowing it to pretty much level the competition with even Technician-boosted Bullet Punches easily. And then, once it's done, it can pass that huge Attack stat to a teammate. Agility can be used on Scizor itself to compensate for its low Speed. Iron Defense makes for a very bulky Scizor, and can help its less-defensive brethren. Also passable are Substitutes.

While Scizor can use the aforementioned Iron Defense as a defensive move, its best defensive move is definitely Roost. However, that move does require using up the TM, as it cannot be bred onto it. Also available to Scizor is Light Screen, which can make Scizor resistant to both physical and special attacks, and good for supporting teammates.

Moveset 1: Baton Passer
- Baton Pass
- (passable move)
- (defensive move)
- (primary attack - either type)

Straightforward Baton-Passer. Defensive move suggestions are Roost, which is always good, and Substitute, which can be Baton Passed. Either Swarm or Technician can work here; Technicians should consider Bug Bite or Bullet Punch as the primary attack, the latter more so if Swords Dance is the passing move of choice. Good on a defensive Scizor; EV refocusing should be directed at defensive stats.

Moveset 2: Choice
- (primary Bug attack)
- (primary Steel attack)/(secondary attack)
- (secondary attack)/(first-strike attack)
- (secondary attack)/(assorted attack)
Item: Choice Band (or Choice Scarf)

Really, just choose four attacks. The list of possible attacks were previously given. U-Turn can be used in place of the other primary Bug attack. Technician is recommended for this set; remember that Bug Bite is the strongest primary Bug attack in that case. Stat-wise, the usual Attack/Speed combo is a good way to go.

Moveset 3: Sweeper
- Swords Dance/Agility
- (primary attack)
- (primary attack)/(secondary attack)/(assorted attack)
- (first-strike attack)/(secondary attack)
Item: Life Orb

Depends on the stat-booster chosen. A first-strike attack is an absolute necessity on a Swords-Dancer, while not needed if Agility is being used. Swarm is useful for the Agility-sweeper, while Technician helps the Swords Dance user by providing it with super-powered Bullet Punches. The Life Orb works well here either way. Roost can be used on the set to recover health. Stat-wise, high Attack is great; other than that, go defensive, particularly in HP. Agility-sweeper can use more Speed, too.

General Moveset

- (primary Bug attack)
- (primary Steel attack)
- (secondary attack)/(assorted attack)
- (offensive buff)/(defensive move)

Really, Scizor has so many possibilities it's hard to list a single general moveset. Play around to find one that works well.

Rocky Scizor!

Effective Movesets
1. "Classic" Choice Band
- Bullet Punch
- U-Turn
- Pursuit
- Superpower
Item: Choice Band
Ability: Technician

2. Swords Dance Sweeper
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Bug Bite
- Brick Break
Item: Life Orb
Ability: Technician

3. Baton Passer
- Swords Dance
- Agility
- Baton Pass
- Bullet Punch (if Technician)/X-Scissor (if Swarm)

4. Ninja
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Bug Bite
- Night Slash
Ability: Technician

5. Priority Abuse
- Swords Dance
- Bullet Punch
- Bug Bite
- Quick Attack
Ability: Technician

6. Sub-Salac
- Substitute
- Reversal
- X-Scissor
- Bullet Punch
Item: Salac Berry
Ability: Swarm

7. Pure Utility
- Thief
- False Swipe
- Rock Smash
- Light Screen
Ability: Technician

Breeding

Best Egg moves: Baton Pass
Notes:
- It is impossible to breed Roost onto Scizor.

- The easiest benefactor of Baton Pass is a Ledyba, who learns the move at Lv. 22 and is common in SoulSilver.


- However, a Ninjask, although not learning Baton Pass until Level 45, can also breed Swords Dance onto Scyther beforehand. It can also start off a Scyther with Agility or Bug Bite/X-Scissor if the parent Scyther/Scizor already knows the move.


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