I’ve always overlooked Escavalier. But hey, it understandably fits snugly into the UU tier with that awesome Attack, nice typing (despite the *4 weakness to fire), decent defenses when paired with its Steel-type half, and no problems with base 20 Speed when given Trick Room support. Really, Escavalier’s biggest downfall is its rather shallow movepool. There isn’t much it can do outside of hitting things hard. Plus, it doesn’t have any way to fight against Fire-types that can easily pluck it off the battle scene. As a powerhouse, though, Escavalier fits the title to a “t”.
Abilities:
Swarm - When Escavalier’s health is below 1/3, its Bug-type attacks get a 50% increase. Out of all the other abilities, this one is likely the most helpful, as Escavalier’s okay bulk grants it the chance to survive long enough to use it.
Shell Armor - Critical Hits cannot occur on Escavalier. Critical Hits hurt when they land, sure, but I’ve honestly never seen abilities like Shell Armor to be a tremendous godsend on anybody. There are far better abilities out there.
Overcoat (Dream World) – Uh... This is a pretty useless one. Escavalier is already immune to Sandstorm because of its Steel typing, so Overcoat would protect it from... Hail.
That’s it. Unless you’re running a really bizarre Hail team, there is no need for this ability.
:589:
Physical Powerhouse
Item: Leftovers/ Occa Berry
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 HP –OR- 252 Atk / 128 Def / 128 Sp. Def
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -Sp. Atk) / Brave (+Atk, -Spd)
- Swords Dance
- X-Scissor / Megahorn
- Iron Head
- Slash / Reversal
Sadly, this set alone contains about all the worthwhile Physical moves in Escavalier’s movepool.
Swords Dance doubles its base 135 Attack to even more insane levels.
X-Scissor and
Megahorn both get STAB, but X-Scissor has better accuracy while Megahorn has better base power. The choice is up to you.
Iron Head also gets STAB and has the potential to flinch, which is always a nice bonus.
Slash lands Critical Hits easily, while
Reversal gains power the less HP Escavalier has, as well as give Escavalier a chance to fight against Steel-types that would otherwise completely resist this set.
Leftovers replenish health, although it may not be so helpful if you have Reversal in your roster. The
Occa Berry reduces Fire-type damage done to Escavalier, allowing it to potentially stay in the game just a little longer.
Partners:
Trick Room support always helps. It would also help Escavalier to have Rain Dance in effect, as Fire attacks will deal much less damage to it.
Countering:
KILL IT WITH FIRE. Being Bug-Steel, Escavalier has a nasty *4 weakness to fire. Will-o-wisp will greatly hinder Escavalier, as it will reduce its monstrous Attack. Heck, just having Sunny Day in effect alone can cause the thing to whimper in nervousness.
Attacks Index:
- Iron Head (Lvl. 37, Escavalier only)
- Megahorn (
EGG)
- Reversal (Lvl. 49, Escavalier only)
- Slash (Lvl. 32, Karrablast/Escavalier)
- Swords Dance (Lvl. 52, Karrablast/Escavalier ; TM75)
- X-Scissor (Lvl. 44, Karrablast/Escavalier ; TM81)