Community POTW #071

[Serebii]

Time for the next Pokémon of the Week!

This week, we have a cool new Kalos Pokémon

Noivern is a cool Flying/Dragon Pokémon and is capable of a lot when used right

http://www.serebii.net/pokedex-xy/715.shtml

Go nuts

 

[Shaymin is God]

Another bat Pokémon!

Positives
+123Spd definitly lets it outrun things
+One of the few Pokémon to be gifted Boomburst
+Very diverse movepool
Negatives
-85/80/80 bulk means you won't be outliving most things
-70Atk could definitly be higher, espicially considering Noivern's many physical moves
-Boomburst hits everything in doubles and triples, leaving Hyper Voice to be used in those cases

Holy sound, Noivern!
Noivern @ Choice Scarf
Frisk
-Roost
-Boomburst
-Dragon Pulse
-Super Fang/Hurricane/Switcheroo
Modest (+SpAtk -Atk) 252SpAtk 252Spd 4SpDef
I left out Moonlight mainly because Roost does its job better in most situations because Moonlight can be lowered in any other weather than sun and Roost stays as a stable recovery move. Boomburst is one of Noivern's strongest moves even without STAB. Dragon Pulse has STAB and deals with Noivern's unavoidable weakness of Dragon type. Hurricane is very strong and has STAB, but has a rather low accuracy. Super Fang tends to cripple stronger opponets or walls so Noivern can have a fighting chance. Switcheroo works with Frisk to switch items if the opponet doesn't have a mega stone and switches it with Noivern's Choice Scarf. Choice Scarf lets you run Switcheroo and outrun opponets even when you have Modest nature. Choice Scarf also lets you run a continous Roost stall if you can pull it off.

 

[HM02gon]

I do have a soft spot for this bat. Here we go-

Overview-
Noivern is defiantly a very diverse new Dragon type, and though it's may just serm like another dragon/flying type, its unique in that Flying is its primary type (and the critics used Outrage!) While not the hardest hitting dragon like it's fellow flying friends, it has been given the gift of one of the single most broken moves in the Meta, Boomburst. An amazing normal type special attack that has a base power of 140 and attacks multiple opponents. Pretty awesome. And besides being a super fast special sweeper, he's got access to some pretty good stall moves, making this Dragon-bat quite the unpredictable force to be reckoned with.

Positives-

+An excellent base speed of 123 allows it to hit faster that most other Dragon Types.
+Amazing movepool along with the ever-over-powered move Boomburst, which takes advantage of its very good special attack stat.
+85/80/80 bulk, which, while not spectacular, allows it to take a few hits.
+3 fantastic abilities that can really make it a very unpredictable supporter or sweeper. This bat was literally made for doubles and triples.
+It's the first dual-typed Pokémon to have flying as its primary type. How awesome is that? And did I mention Boomburst?

Negatives-

-It's typing leaves it susceptible to 4 very common attacking types, including that the infamous 4X ice weakness.
-It's base special attack of 97 , which you should be using, really isn't the top of the line. And it's base attack of 70 really isn't worth trying to use at all, unless you want to U-Turn.
-Unfortunately it suffers from sharing it's typing with several other Dragons, specifically pseudo-legends. So unfortunately it is outclassed.
-Even with a choice scarf, it can't escape those knockout-inducing Ice Shards.

Abilities-
Frisk- Reveals a foe's held item. This is a very useful ability for scouting and possibly seeing what technique the opponent's going to come at you with.
Infiltrator- Basically ignores Substitutes and screens made by the opponent. Really awesome if you're going against a bulky stall team that sets up double screens, or any for the matter.
(Hidden ability-avaliable)
Telepathy- Allows the Pokémon to avoid attacks made by its oppinents. Amazing in doubles and triples, especially when put next to a Surfer, Discharger, or the likes. The only big downside is that the user's attacks will still hit it's allies, so be careful with that Boomburst.

 

[Chinonso]

Bats. First Crobat and now this guy:

Positives:
+ Base 123 Speed makes it very fast. Scarf that, and it will outspeed almost anything.
+ A very wide Special movepool, including Water Pulse, Flamethrower, Hurricane, Air Slash, Boomburst, Heat Wave, Sweitcheroo and Dragon Pulse.
+ Access to the broken Super Fang.
+ Some cool abilities.
+ A cool design, as always.
+ I really like the concept of Noivern.

Negatives:
- 85/80/80 bulk is not very good. You also have to consider with this thing that it's 4x weak to Ice.
- It isn't actually that strong. Base 97 Special Attack isn't bad on its own, but it's gonna have to be Specs'd to dish out some serious damage. Unlike Dragalge, who has Adaptability and the same Base Special Attack as Noivern.
- Difficult to choose whether Noivern should be the Dragon of your team.

Abilities:
Frisk: Reveals the foe's held item. This is nice in the sense that Noivern can be a good lead. Being able to spot what your opponent is trying to do can prevent any weird tricks being played on you.
Infiltrator: Noivern's attacks go through Reflects, Light Screens and Safeguards. Another decent ability to shut down defensive/wall Pokemon like Meowstic or Rotom-C with screens.
Hidden Ability:
Telepathy: When Noivern uses an attack, no damage can be dealt to any of his team mates. Boomburst all the way in Doubles and Triples. The End.

Moveset:
Switcheroo
Roost
Dragon Pulse
Super Fang

Ability: Frisk
EV's: 252 HP, 176 SpA, 76 Def.
Modest Nature
Item: A Choice Item of your choice (tee hee)

Switcheroo on the first turn, unless you know that you can knock out whatever is leading in one hit, then switch. Super Fang is broken and I have chosen Roost as the healing move. I guess this could be a defensive Noivern, and then there would be no SpA EV's, so I may have to change that.

 

[SkyDriver]

I like him in doubles, paired with a Lanturn using Ion Deluge, to restore HP from boomburst.

Noivern @ White Herb
Timid
Infiltrator
252 SAtk / 252 Spd / 4 Def
- Draco Meteor
- Protect
- Air Cutter
- Boomburst

Draco Meteor becuz it is powerful and does good damage to anything not resistant / immune. Protect is just like a must-have move in doubles. Air Cutter is to do some minor damage, Fire Blast could be used here as well. Boomburst is to deal big damage to everything and heal Lanturn.

 

[Kitt Geekazaru]

Noivern is an interesting lead. With Frisk and Switcheroo, it can easily give an opposing pokemon an unwanted choice item. Boomburst is powerful coverage and eliminates any need for infiltrator, as it goes through subs. Hurricane is powerful flying coverage, but it also gets Air Slash if you don't like the accuracy. Draco Meteor is also good dragon coverage, but after two turns of usage Dragon Pulse is better. It also has options of Flamethrower for steel types and U-Turn for momentum.

 

[KillerDraco]

Why are people talking about Scarfing Noivern? It already outspeeds the entirety of the unboosted UU metagame sans Aerodactyl (both standard and Mega), Crobat, Mega Sceptile, and Mega Beedrill. Outspeeding a few boosted Pokemon may seem appealing, but with its mediocre special attack it's not going to be reliably revenging a lot of things. There comes a point where if something is fast enough you don't get much bang for your buck by sticking a Scarf on it. Noivern is one of those Pokemon (generally speaking, anything above 110 doesn't really care for Scarf's extra speed except for niche purposes).

Your standard Noivern is going to look more like...

Noivern @ Choice Specs
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Hurricane
- Flamethrower / Focus Blast
- Switcheroo

...With Boomburst, Air Slash, and U-Turn being other options on this set. Specs would be the obvious way to remedy Noivern's mediocre special attack, and works well with its great speed. Specs Draco Meteor is the best it can hope for, because it lacks the power to really wallbreak otherwise. You'll often be switching out due to Choice Specs' locking effect, so the SpA drop is inconsequential. Hurricane has naturally good coverage and high power as a flying STAB with base 110 power and a 30% chance to confuse, but the accuracy can let you down at times. It also tends to be a nasty surprise for Fairy types thinking they can get a free switch on a Draco Meteor. Air Slash can be considered if you want better accuracy, and with Noivern's high speed you can catch a flinch every now and again. There's an obvious gap in your coverage with Flying/Dragon, and that would be steel types. Flamethrower can bait in steel types that might be able to wall you, although Focus Blast can also be considered. The worse accuracy may be a deterrent but it allows Noivern to beat Empoleon. Switcheroo is the crux of the set, which makes special sponges like Blissey or Florges hesitant to switch in, because getting switched a choice item can absolutely ruin their day.

Boomburst is decent for its high power and neutral coverage, but it is outdamaged by Hurricane (although again, accuracy) and Draco Meteor is generally what you'll be spamming anyway. If you want reliably spammable damage with decent neutral coverage though, Boomburst is worth consideration. U-Turn has obvious pivoting advantages, but the damage it deals will be miniscule at best, and is mainly used for scouting. You sacrifice a bit of coverage, as well.

You can opt for Taunt/Roost for stallbreaking as well, but those work better with Life Orb and in general, Specs are pretty standard.

 

[Kraleck]

Noivern. I love Dragon Types, but Fairy Types have brought them to a bit of a standoff. Still, a new sound-based Pokémon is always fun, plus it can use U-Turn very effectively to escape.

Stats:
-HP - Good - Base 85 is a decent start. Could've been worse, considering the Flying Type, or better, considering the Dragon Type.
-Attack - Below Average - Base 70 isn't that good, but it allows your U-Turn to hit for a decent clip.
-Defense - Average - Base 80.
-Sp.Atk - Good-bordering-Great - Base 97 is a decent offense. Not the best, but your pool's Moves have decent Power to compensate.
-Sp.Def - Average - Base 80.
-Speed - Incredible (non-Trick Room) - Base 123 is a huge bonus to Flying Types and Dragon Types alike. With U-Turn having such Speed behind it, you can easily ditch when things go sour.

Abilities:
-Frisk - Short analysis: Meh. Long analysis: You'll often be able to determine Items based on the holder, so this is a pretty "meh" Ability.
-Infiltrator - As we saw with Crobat last week, Noivern with this Ability can ignore Reflect, Light Screen, Safeguard, and Substitute. Sound-based Moves already ignore Substitute as of Gen VI, so it's a bit redundant there, but not all of Noivern's Moves are sound-based.
-Telepathy (Hidden, Available) - Immune to damage from Allies' widespread-attack Moves (Surf, Discharge, Lava Plume, Boomburst, etc.). Really "meh" because you are Type-Immune to Earthquake due to your Flying Type and Resist Water and Fire naturally due to your Dragon Type, with Electric turning Neutral.

Overall, Noivern needs to rely on its Stats and Moves more than its Abilities for success...and they don't hold back too much. Boomburst and Hurricane hurt a lot, Draco Meteor and Dragon Pulse are decent damage output, U-Turn helps your survival, Super Fang halves the HP of non-Ghost Types, Whirlwind and Tailwind are great supports, Flamethrower and Heat Wave help cover your Ice-Type Weakness, and Toxic, Hone Claws, Psychic, Taunt, Torment, Dark Pulse, Switcheroo, Shadow Ball, Water Pulse, and Focus Blast round out your Movepool nicely.

However, Noivern is, Stat-wise, built like a Special-based non-Mega Aerodactyl or Crobat, a faster Xatu, or a Mega-Pidgeot with less Sp.Atk. It's got Speed, but not so much punch. Even then, Noivern's Speed allows it luxury that most of the aforementioned Pokémon tend to lack.

 

[dragontamer44722]

Love Noivern, even if he leaves some things to be desired. With his great speed, I would use him for support in doubles, using this set.

Nature: Timid
Ability: Telepathy (Though most moves would be neutral you don't want him taking any damage, no matter how small)
Evs; Max out Speed and Special attack, per the norm.
Item: Focus Sash
Moves: Taunt, Tailwind, Draco Meteor/Dragon Pulse, U turn

The basic idea is, depending on what you opponent sends out, you taunt a pokemon or you use tailwind to boost your team's speed. With no hazards up, Noivern will be able to get at least 1 move off, maybe 2 if it isn't outsped by something. Not the best set in the world but it is one I like to use.

 

[Meowmeow]

Noivern is pretty cool.
Being the game's fastest dragon type (besides Mega Sceptile) is awesome. While its special attack is above average at best, combining it with its high speed and Choice Specs will net you one heck of a late-game sweeper. However, that's all Noivern can do well.
Even though Noivern has the movepool to do more, it's inferior to other Pokemon at those other tasks. Noivern's bulk is also less than impressive, and that's before taking Stealth Rock weakness into account.
That being said, Noivern has the tools to finish a match once its counters have been dealt with.

A Sound Pokemon wears Glasses
Nature: Modest/Timid
Ability: Infiltrator
EVs: 252 special attack and speed, 4 HP
@: Choice Specs

Draco Meteor
Hurricane
Flamethrower/Focus Blast
Dragon Pulse/Switcheroo

The basic Noivern set. Don't expect anything different than this.

 

[Deltadromeus]

Noivern. Noivern is awesome! Especially with Boomburst, honestly, that's his bread and butter. He can also do some supporting, but I don't use him that way. Here is my set.

KRAKABOOM (burst)
Noivern @ Choice Specs
Ability:Frisk/Infiltrator
252 SpA, 252 Spd, 4 Hp
Timid
-Boomburst
-Draco Meteor
-Dark Pulse
-Flamethrower

The goal here is simple. Boomburst til you win. Draco Meteor is a final-gambit attack, and the other attacks are just coverage.

 

[eworm]

With the Enter the Dragon Type tournament (Doubles) coming up, I've been experimenting with Noivern myself and it's doing pretty well. Here's what I'm using at the moment:

Noivern @Focus Sash
4HP / 252SpA / 252Speed
Timid / Frisk
- Draco Meteor
- Super Fang
- Taunt
- Protect

My team is already very fast, which is why I'm not using Tailwind. Noivern's task in my case is to lead, Frisk both opponents (because information is a weapon in itself) and either Taunt the troublemakers like Darkrai, Smeargle or Trick Room users or start softening up the opponents, starting with the one that seems like the biggest threat. Focus Sash combined with that glorious speed guarantees Noivern a move or two at least — actually, some of my opponents began to simply ignore 1HP Noivern ("can finish it off any time") which cost them greatly. Draco Meteor hits with plenty of power and Super Fang brings everything to half-health and isn't hindered by SpA drop.

Tailwind is definitely to be considered for teams that could use more Speed, Boomburst is cool if your partners have Telepathy or Soundproof and pairs fairly well with Heat Wave. If worried about Screens and Substitutes (though Boomburst ignores them anyway), Infiltrator can be used. Telepathy works in Doubles/Triples too, if Noivern's partners have attacks like Discharge. For Rain teams, Hurricane is a great choice.

 

[Mestorn]

Ehh.. I'll leave the Noivern movesets to others.

Countering Noivern
Ice attacks. As for any Dragon Flying type, Ice attacks are the way to go and Noivern stands as one of the frailest possessors of the typing. Off course since Noivern is likely to U-Turn away from anything that smells of an Ice attack that it can't outright kill, that makes the job difficult. Ice Shard works beautifully bypassing Noivern's incredible speed. Stealth Rocks is another way to go. Like Crobat, Noivern constantly hops in and out of battle, and losing 1/4 of its health per switch greatly limits the damage it can cause. Paralysis is another suggested method: depriving Noivern of it greatest asset makes it much more manageable. Most sponges can tank Noiverns easily, save for Super Fang.

 

[Lord Zoroark]

Another bat Pokémon!

Positives
+123Spd definitly lets it outrun things
+One of the few Pokémon to be gifted Boomburst
+Very diverse movepool
Negatives
-85/80/80 bulk means you won't be outliving most things
-70Atk could definitly be higher, espicially considering Noivern's many physical moves
-Boomburst hits everything in doubles and triples, leaving Hyper Voice to be used in those cases

Holy sound, Noivern!
Noivern @ Choice Scarf
Frisk
-Roost
-Boomburst
-Dragon Pulse
-Super Fang/Hurricane/Switcheroo
Modest (+SpAtk -Atk) 252SpAtk 252Spd 4SpDef
I left out Moonlight mainly because Roost does its job better in most situations because Moonlight can be lowered in any other weather than sun and Roost stays as a stable recovery move. Boomburst is one of Noivern's strongest moves even without STAB. Dragon Pulse has STAB and deals with Noivern's unavoidable weakness of Dragon type. Hurricane is very strong and has STAB, but has a rather low accuracy. Super Fang tends to cripple stronger opponets or walls so Noivern can have a fighting chance. Switcheroo works with Frisk to switch items if the opponet doesn't have a mega stone and switches it with Noivern's Choice Scarf. Choice Scarf lets you run Switcheroo and outrun opponets even when you have Modest nature. Choice Scarf also lets you run a continous Roost stall if you can pull it off.

Roost AND Scarf? Really?

 

[Karxrida]

Ehh.. I'll leave the Noivern movesets to others.

Countering Noivern
Ice attacks. As for any Dragon Flying type, Ice attacks are the way to go and Noivern stands as one of the frailest possessors of the typing. Off course since Noivern is likely to U-Turn away from anything that smells of an Ice attack that it can't outright kill, that makes the job difficult. Ice Shard works beautifully bypassing Noivern's incredible speed. Stealth Rocks is another way to go. Like Crobat, Noivern constantly hops in and out of battle, and losing 1/4 of its health per switch greatly limits the damage it can cause. Paralysis is another suggested method: depriving Noivern of it greatest asset makes it much more manageable. Most sponges can tank Noiverns easily, save for Super Fang.

This first part isn't really that helpful; of course hitting something with a double weakness is going to KO them. The question here is:
1.) What can switch in consistently to do so (with or without Ice moves)?
2.) What can revenge kill it?
3.) What can wall it?

Some examples going by OU (which Noivern is viable in, albeit barely) for Specs:
Counters
-Mega Altaria eats everything up and can set up on you or just OHKO back.
-Assault Vest Raikou can avoid the 2HKO from Draco Meteor as long as Stealth Rock isn't up and OHKO back with HP Ice. Tricking it isn't the best solution either since it can just Volt Switch out or KO with HP for free.
-Mega Sableye avoids the 2HKO and can Recover stall.

Checks (note this includes things that would have been counters but don't like being Tricked a Choice item even if they aren't 2HKO'd)
-Mega Venusaur easily tanks anything that isn't Hurricane while 2HKOing back with Sludge Bomb (small chance without Stealth Rock but guaranteed with it), healing up with Synthesis, or getting a Sleep Powder off.
-Weavile and Mamoswine both revenge kill with Ice Shard.
-Strong Scarfers in general can revenge kill also. Even something like Keldeo can win after Stealth Rock if you're not locked into Hurricane when it comes in.
-Tyranitar walls sets without Focus Blast and can OHKO with Ice Beam/Ice Punch/Stone Edge or 2HKO with Scarfed Crunch.
-Clefable can switch into anything but Hurricane while OHKOing back with Moonblast after Stealth Rock. Doesn't like Trick though.
-Chansey walls you, but also doesn't like Trick.
-Mega Diancie resists everything but Focus Blast, but unlike Tyranitar it's a neutral hit and missing it will screw you over. Even with a Naive Nature you fail to OHKO with Stealth Rock up while it OHKOs with Moonblast or Diamond Storm.
-Gengar forces you out if you're locked into Boomburst or Focus Blast.
-Heatran can take any hit and Lava Plume, Toxic, set up Stealth Rock, or just revenge you with a Scarf set.
-Mega Lopunny can Fake Out + Return to revenge.
-Mega Manectric outspeeds to revenge with HP Ice.
-Mega Metagross can switch into anything bar Flamethrower/Heat Wave while Meteor Mash has a high chance to OHKO after Rocks. Ice Punch is Ice Punch.
-Mega Sceptile outspeeds to revenge with Dragon Pulse.
-Bisharp resists Draco Meteor and Boomburst while having a small chance to OHKO with LO Jolly Sucker Punch after Stealth Rock. If you're locked into Boomburst it can just click Knock Off to cripple something.
-Assault Vest Azumarill can switch into Draco Meteor or Flamethorwer/Heat Wave and OHKO.

 

[Missingno. Master]

Noi Way Out
Noivern@Life Orb
Timid nature
Infiltrator
252 Sp. Atk/252 Speed/4 HP
~Dragon Pulse/Draco Meteor
~Hurricane
~Heat Wave/Flamethrower
~Boomburst

Noivern's pretty damn impressive. Respectable Special Attack, and really, really nice Speed. Now, Dragon Pulse is for STAB, as is Hurricane. Draco Meteor can replace Dragon Pulse, but if you intend on keeping Noivern out and dealing damage, it'd kinda be nice to not lower Special Attack every time you want dat Dragon STAB. Heat Wave is for coverage, and can be replaced with Flamethrower if you prefer accuracy over power (though given that you already got Hurricane, you're already taking that risk with accuracy in the first place). And then we come to Boomburst. Ahh, Boomburst. It's like a Normal-type Overheat without any drawbacks. That one's there for the raw power.

Item is for boosting Noivern's already nice Special Attack. Ability is for bypassing those pesky Substitutes, as well as Light Screen. Well, OK, Boomburst already bypasses Substitute, but you probably prefer all your moves to bypass it if possible, right?


Bat Of Choice
Noivern@Choice Specs
Timid nature
Infiltrator
252 Sp. Atk/252 Speed/4 HP
~Draco Meteor/Dragon Pulse
~Hurricane
~Heat Wave/U-Turn
~Boomburst/U-Turn

A Specs set allowing for potentially even more destruction. This time, Draco Meteor is the STAB Dragon move of choice, since sets of this sort generally involve a ton of switching (though Dragon Pulse is an acceptable substitute if the idea still doesn't appeal to you. Hurricane, Heat Wave, and Boomburst have already been explained previously, though either of the non-STAB moves can be replaced with U-Turn if you like.

Item is for boosting Noivern's already nice Special Attack. Ability I already covered.


A Noi-ing
Noivern@Sitrus Berry
Jolly nature
Infiltrator
252 Attack/252 Speed/4 HP
~Hone Claws
~Dragon Claw
~Acrobatics
~Wild Charge/Shadow Claw/Iron Tail

Noivern's Attack isn't too shabby, so a Hone Claws set could easily take opponents by surprise and still do fairly well. Dragon Claw and Acrobatics are your STAB moves of choice here, the latter becoming especially useful once Noivern takes enough damage to consume that Sitrus Berry. The last move's your call. Wild Charge and Shadow Claw both have potential to be nice coverage moves, and Iron Tail can be especially useful against those pesky Fairy-types. It even benefits from Hone Claws's accuracy buff.

Item is for powering up Acrobatics and possibly healing up some Wild Charge recoil. Ability I already covered.


Other options:
*If Hurricane's accuracy bothers you, it learns Air Slash, but... it just isn't the same.
*Shadow Ball and Focus Blast have unresisted coverage together, but good luck finding room to squeeze both moves in a single moveset.
*Switcheroo is an interesting option for the Specs set.

Abilities:
*Frisk: When Noivern is sent out, its Trainer is alerted to the opposing Pokémon's held item. It's not a bad Ability by any means- knowing exactly what item the opponent holds can give you an advantage- but it still pales in comparison to...
*Infiltrator: Noivern's attacks bypass opposing Reflects, Light Screens, Mists, Safeguards, and Substitutes, the latter of which was first discovered by yours truly, and with a Noibat, no less! Wha- I said that last week? Oh, yeah. Anyway, the best Ability for Noivern, hands down. Bypassing them Substitutes is always a big plus.
*Telepathy: Noivern's Hidden Ability. Noivern is immune to attacks used by allies in double, triple, and horde battles. Kinda underwhelming, IMO. Even with my lack of talent for doubles and triples, one doesn't need to be an expert in those formats to know that Noivern is already immune to Earthquake, probably the biggest offender in that regard. And that leaves what? Boomburst? What the hell else besides Noivern even gets Boomburst that you're likely to use, especially on the same team as a Noivern? Discharge? The only reason to use that move is to activate an ally's Motor Drive or Lightning Rod! OK, maybe in Triples it'd be useful for that, but still! My point still stands- Telepathy is exceptionally situational for Noivern. Smart thing to do would be to just stick with Infiltrator.

Partners:
Noivern appreciates Rapid Spin/Defog support, particularly the Specs set.

Counters:
Ice. Awesome though Noivern is, it suffers from a common ailment of Dragon-types known as a big-*** weakness to Ice. An Ice Shard from something with the Attack to back it up will put a serious dent in Noivern. And Fairy-types are also something to watch out for. Not so much Mawile or Klefki, as any Fire move can deal with those, but Mega Gardevoir, between the high Special Defense and the STAB Pixilate Hyper Voice, it's... not something a Noivern likes to go up against. Unless it's the Hone Claws set with Iron Tail, in which case, bring on the Fairy-types!

Opinion:
Noivern is... well, it's awesome. I would've used one in my in-game team in Y, only I learned just how late in the game Noibat becomes available.

Prediction for next week:
Swoobat. Noivern makes two bats in a row, they might as well make it three.

 

[Ckeen]

Oh lookie lookie, its a fun pokemon! Noivern is just a bundle of joy

Noivern
Infiltrator
Choice specs
Switcheroo
Boomburst
Dracometeor
Flamethrower/super fang

If im feeling noivern I pair it with mega gengar since boomburst wont hurt gengar and can trap whatever you wanna trap with potentially crippling effects of passing specs

 

[Karxrida]

Noi Way Out
Noivern@Life Orb
Timid nature
Infiltrator
252 Sp. Atk/252 Speed/4 HP
~Dragon Pulse/Draco Meteor
~Hurricane
~Fire Blast/Flamethrower/Heat Wave
~Boomburst

Noivern's pretty damn impressive. Respectable Special Attack, and really, really nice Speed. Now, Dragon Pulse is for STAB, as is Hurricane. Draco Meteor can replace Dragon Pulse, but if you intend on keeping Noivern out and dealing damage, it'd kinda be nice to not lower Special Attack every time you want dat Dragon STAB. Fire Blast is for coverage, and can be replaced with Flamethrower if you prefer accuracy over power, or even Heat Wave if you want it somewhere in between (though given that you already got Hurricane, you're already taking that risk with accuracy in the first place). And then we come to Boomburst. Ahh, Boomburst. It's like a Normal-type Overheat without any drawbacks. That one's there for the raw power.

Item is for boosting Noivern's already nice Special Attack. Ability is for bypassing those pesky Substitutes, as well as Light Screen. Well, OK, Boomburst already bypasses Substitute, but you probably prefer all your moves to bypass it if possible, right?


Bat Of Choice
Noivern@Choice Specs
Timid nature
Infiltrator
252 Sp. Atk/252 Speed/4 HP
~Draco Meteor/Dragon Pulse
~Hurricane
~Fire Blast/U-Turn
~Boomburst/U-Turn

A Specs set allowing for potentially even more destruction. This time, Draco Meteor is the STAB Dragon move of choice, since sets of this sort generally involve a ton of switching (though Dragon Pulse is an acceptable substitute if the idea still doesn't appeal to you. Hurricane, Fire Blast, and Boomburst have already been explained previously, though either of the non-STAB moves can be replaced with U-Turn if you like.

Item is for boosting Noivern's already nice Special Attack. Ability I already covered.


A Noi-ing
Noivern@Sitrus Berry
Jolly nature
Infiltrator
252 Attack/252 Speed/4 HP
~Hone Claws
~Dragon Claw
~Acrobatics
~Wild Charge/Shadow Claw/Iron Tail

Noivern's Attack isn't too shabby, so a Hone Claws set could easily take opponents by surprise and still do fairly well. Dragon Claw and Acrobatics are your STAB moves of choice here, the latter becoming especially useful once Noivern takes enough damage to consume that Sitrus Berry. The last move's your call. Wild Charge and Shadow Claw both have potential to be nice coverage moves, and Iron Tail can be especially useful against those pesky Fairy-types. It even benefits from Hone Claws's accuracy buff.

Item is for powering up Acrobatics and possibly healing up some Wild Charge recoil. Ability I already covered.


Other options:
*If Hurricane's accuracy bothers you, it learns Air Slash, but... it just isn't the same.
*Shadow Ball and Focus Blast have unresisted coverage together, but good luck finding room to squeeze both moves in a single moveset.
*Switcheroo is an interesting option for the Specs set.

Abilities:
*Frisk: When Noivern is sent out, its Trainer is alerted to the opposing Pokémon's held item. It's not a bad Ability by any means- knowing exactly what item the opponent holds can give you an advantage- but it still pales in comparison to...
*Infiltrator: Noivern's attacks bypass opposing Reflects, Light Screens, Mists, Safeguards, and Substitutes, the latter of which was first discovered by yours truly, and with a Noibat, no less! Wha- I said that last week? Oh, yeah. Anyway, the best Ability for Noivern, hands down. Bypassing them Substitutes is always a big plus.
*Telepathy: Noivern's Hidden Ability. Noivern is immune to attacks used by allies in double, triple, and horde battles. Kinda underwhelming, IMO. Even with my lack of talent for doubles and triples, one doesn't need to be an expert in those formats to know that Noivern is already immune to Earthquake, probably the biggest offender in that regard. And that leaves what? Boomburst? What the hell else besides Noivern even gets Boomburst that you're likely to use, especially on the same team as a Noivern? Discharge? The only reason to use that move is to activate an ally's Motor Drive or Lightning Rod! OK, maybe in Triples it'd be useful for that, but still! My point still stands- Telepathy is exceptionally situational for Noivern. Smart thing to do would be to just stick with Infiltrator.

Partners:
Noivern appreciates Rapid Spin/Defog support, particularly the Specs set.

Counters:
Ice. Awesome though Noivern is, it suffers from a common ailment of Dragon-types known as a big-*** weakness to Ice. An Ice Shard from something with the Attack to back it up will put a serious dent in Noivern. And Fairy-types are also something to watch out for. Not so much Mawile or Klefki, as any Fire move can deal with those, but Mega Gardevoir, between the high Special Defense and the STAB Pixilate Hyper Voice, it's... not something a Noivern likes to go up against. Unless it's the Hone Claws set with Iron Tail, in which case, bring on the Fairy-types!

Opinion:
Noivern is... well, it's awesome. I would've used one in my in-game team in Y, only I learned just how late in the game Noibat becomes available.

Prediction for next week:
Swoobat. Noivern makes two bats in a row, they might as well make it three.

It doesn't get Fire Blast.

 

[Pokedex649]

Okay, I might as well contribute to this

--Positives--
+123 Base Speed lets it outspeed even Greninja
+Very diverse movepool, with Heat Wave, Water Pulse, Boomburst, Dragon Pulse, Hurricane, Solar Beam, Psychic, etc
+Access to Super Fang and Moonlight
+Has both Infiltrator and Telepathy, allowing it to either take out Dual-Screens Klefki or use Boomburst in double battles
+Solar Beam gives it use on Drought teams

--Negatives--
-Base 85/80/80 defenses put it in a very bad situation against many Pokémon
-Base 70/97/123 offenses make it not worth it to use physical attacks, and still heavily outclassed in special attacks
-Why does it have access to Boomburst and not have STAB for it? This is seriously one of two Pokémon that does that. Also Dream Eater with no way to cause sleep
-Both Ice and Fairy types exist
-The only Steel-type special move it has access to is Hidden Power, giving it a bit more trouble with Ice and Fairy

Doubles Teams

Noi Pun Included
-Boomburst
-Heat Wave/Hidden Power (Steel)/Dragon Pulse
-Super Fang/Supersonic
-Moonlight/Roost
Ability: Telepathy
Held Item: Life Orb
252 Sp Atk/252 Spe/4 Sp Def

Other Options
Hurricane or Air Slash are good, allowing STAB coverage against a few types
Draco Meteor is good for about 1 turn, but then Noivern's special attack will be too low to even use
Whirlwind, to be used for sending away those pesky Ice or Fairy types
Protect is always great
Psychic, Shadow Ball and Focus Blast are great moves for type coverage
Snatch if you often go against Calm Mind users (It just dawned on me that Noivern does not have access to either Calm Mind or Dragon Dance)

Favored Partners
Electrode with Eerie Impulse allows you to nullify attackers like Mega Gardevoir, and Electrode's soundproof allows you to have an ability other than Telepathy on Noivern, but Electrode is weak to Donphan
Pyroar with Noble Roar allows you to nullify threats like Donphan and Mega Gardevoir, but Pyroar is weak to Donphan



Solar Flare
-Solar Beam
-Heat Wave
-Moonlight
-Hidden Power (Steel)
Ability: Infiltrator
Held Item: Life Orb/Assault Vest/Choice Specs
252 Sp Atk/252 Spe/4 Sp Def

Other Options
I can't really think of any

Favored Partners
Mega Charizard Y. Obviously


Countering Noivern
Let's face it... Noivern's a glass cannon. Pretty much anything that can exploit a weakness can take out Noivern easily. But, if you're looking for specifics, there are a few that come to mind. First is Mega Gardevoir for obvious reasons. Second is Mega Altaria, as it's immune/resistant to most of Noivern's movepool. Third is Donphan simply because of Ice Shard. Fourth is Weavile, being the deadly combination of Ice-type and high base speed (Outspeeding Noivern in fact)

 

[jesusfreak94]

Why are people talking about Scarfing Noivern? It already outspeeds the entirety of the unboosted UU metagame sans Aerodactyl (both standard and Mega), Crobat, Mega Sceptile, and Mega Beedrill. Outspeeding a few boosted Pokemon may seem appealing, but with its mediocre special attack it's not going to be reliably revenging a lot of things. There comes a point where if something is fast enough you don't get much bang for your buck by sticking a Scarf on it. Noivern is one of those Pokemon (generally speaking, anything above 110 doesn't really care for Scarf's extra speed except for niche purposes).

At the beginning of ORAS, I remember a seeing few people run Scarf Noivern as a check to Mega Salamence since it could outrun even the fastest ones at +1 and could generally OHKO in return with Draco Meteor. Plus, Infiltrator let it bypass the Substitutes of the SubDD sets. It really has less to do with Scarf Noivern being a decent set and more to do with Mega Salamence being so stupidly powerful, but there you go, lol.