Swords Dance Scizor (Life Orb)
Scizor @ Life Orb
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
Ability: Technician
EVs: In description
- Swords Dance
- Roost / X-Scissor / Quick Attack
- Superpower/ Brick Break/ X-Scissor
- Bullet Punch
Description
The premiere set that made Scizor a top-notch OU Pokemon. Swords Dance boosts its already formidable attack running off of an impressive Base 130 Stat.
Bullet Punch is a staple; it gets STAB and is boosted by the Technician ability even further to base 90 power. If Cresselia and Spiritomb are big issues for you then X-Scissor can deal with them after a Swords Dance, though as far as coverage is concerned Steel + Fighting would be the best option, otherwise you cannot hit Steel types for neutral damage. Roost allows Scizor to recover HP lost to Life Orb recoil, but Quick Attack is an option if you want to hit things like Infernape and Kingdra among others who resist Bullet Punch.
The choice between Brick Break and Superpower really is up to personal preference. Brick Break keeps Scizor's defense in tact and breaks screens. Superpower is far stronger and can OHKO Heatran and Magnezone switch-ins without a Sword Dance, where Brick Break will not. It will also have +1 in Attack after one use and will still be stronger than a +2 Brick Break.
Now to the matter of EV spread. The following spreads are all EV'd to outspeed certain threats that are crucial for Scizor to deal with. They all get minimum Life Orb recoil so you can attack 10 times and still survive with 1 HP afterwards.
-
40 HP / 244 Atk / 224 Spe
Outspeeds Adamant Max Speed Tyranitar, who can OHKO you with a Choice Banded Stone Edge. This EV Spread makes sure you can hit it with a Brick Break or Superpower for the OHKO.
- 120 HP / 224 Atk / 164 Spe
Outspeeds Neutral No Speed Cresselia and Suicune, allowing you to hit them before they can get another Calm Mind in, and ultimately putting them on the defensive.
- 240 HP / 216 Atk / 44 SpD/ 8 Spe
Underspeeds Neutral No Speed Skarmory so you can use your chosen Fighting type move and hit it for super effective damage as it tries to Roost off the damage. In addition, it outspeeds 4 Speed Vaporeon and Swampert. The 44 Special Defense EVs are simply extras and can be put into Defense as well.
the 216 Attack hits the highest possible jump point, though one can opt for using Max attack by foregoing all the Special Defense investment.