Pok�mon of the Week

Braviary, The Valiant Pok�mon. They fight for their friends without any thought about danger to themselves. One can carry a car while flying.The more scars they have, the more respect these brave soldiers of the sky get from their peers. For the sake of its friends, this brave warrior of the sky will not stop battling, even if injured.

Braviary is one of the better Pokemon in NU, as it isn't bothered by Spikes of either kind (which are extremely common in the tier). It also has a good Attack stat, decent defensive stats, and a solid movepool. The main problem with Braviary is Speed, as its lackluster base 80 speed just isn't up to par with the Pokemon of higher tiers. It also doesn't have the greatest defensive typing as it's weak to Stealth Rock, and it is also outclassed by several Normal / Flying types (mainly Staraptor). Braviary also has the blessing of being able to hit Steel types, which most Normal / Flyings cannot scratch, but Superpower unfortunately has the drawbacks of the stat drops. Braviary works well on most NU teams, and is definitely a threat to be prepared to face quite often.

Keen Eye: Accuracy cannot be lowered, useful only in an in-game environment, as most competitive tiers have accuracy lowering moves banned.
Sheer Force: Boosts Attacks with an extra effect by 30%, but removes said effect, a very good ability, but unfortunately not on Braviary as it has nothing to really abuse with Sheer Force (as its best STABs are Return and Brave Bird, which have no effect that is removed).
Defiant: Boosts Attack by two stages every time a stat of Braviary's is lowered, a good ability to deter Intimidate pokemon and others from switching in and attempting to lower Braviary's stats (also gives a nice bonus whenever a 10% Special Defense drop kicks in and such).

-Return
-Brave Bird
-Superpower
-U-turn / Roost
Item Attached: Choice Band / Choice Scarf / Life Orb
Ability: Defiant
EVs and Nature:
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe or 80 HP / 252 Atk / 176 Spe
Jolly Nature (+Spe, -SAtk)

This patriotic avian swoops out of the sky like a one-bird army; a solo Seal Team 6. It streaks down to where its foe lays helpless, trying to attack, whilst Braviary STABs it in Return with its mighty beak. The everlasting eagle stretches its magnificent wings, and off it goes into the wild blue yonder, flying high into the sky. As it catches an updraft above the fruited plain, it once again spots another victim, using the strong attack Brave Bird, but the collision brings some collateral damage with it. Braviary then channels its inner Chris Evans and launches its overwhelming Superpower, hitting a Bastiodon out of the land of the pilgrims' pride, causing the Munchlaxes to fear and tremble before it. Then, the Psychics approach, daring our hero to indulge in perilous endeavors. Braviary is not fooled however, and instead of attempting to wreak havoc, it U-turns out of the situation, escaping the deadly adversary while still dealing out a form of punishment. But alack, if Braviary instead needs to regroup and assess damage, then you can do so by Roosting on a nearby outcropping, although this is generally only recommended for the Braviary's that can switch between their mode of attack. Alright, back to speaking English, the item choice is mainly whether you want Braviary to hit like a Sherman tank or whether it'll be used as a revenge killer (or just to make the thing faster), or just to sit around and hit junk. The first EV spread can be used on any set, while the second one is an option for the Choice Band and Life Orb sets to allow it to better take hits while still dealing the same amount of damage, though leaving Braviary more open to being outsped. Jolly Nature is basically a necessity as Braviary is too slow to start with to need Adamant (though it could be used on the Scarf set).

-Substitute
-Bulk Up
-Roost
-Return / Brave Bird
Item Attached: Leftovers
Ability: Defiant
EVs and Nature:
EVs: 252 HP / 192 SDef / 64 Spe
Careful Nature (+SDef, -SAtk)

This Braviary set allows you to better handle bulkier threats and walls, as they won't be able to do too much (some of them). Substitute prevents you from being Burned, Paralyzed, etc, and also allows you to provoke your opponent into making their move early while you're shielded and can possibly get in a boost. Bulk Up boosts both the Attack and Defense stats, allowing Braviary to tank many Physical attackers as well as demolish others. Roost increases Braviary's playtime, as Braviary can still be worn down quickly by Stealth Rock and strong Special attackers. The final moveslot choice is up to you on which STAB move you want to use, Brave Bird having higher power, but Return having no recoil. The EVs and Nature give Braviary 101 HP Substitutes, preventing Seismic Toss and Night Shade from breaking through them, while the Speed allows Braviary to outrun Adamant Torterra (and anything slower). The Special Defense investment allows Braviary to take hits better from both types of attackers, as Bulk Up will shortly equalize the investment difference.

Facade, Hone Claws, Protect, Rock Slide, Shadow Claw, Tailwind, Thrash, Whirlwind, Work Up
Facade can be used to take advantage of someone Paralyzing or Poisoning you, as you then have a base 140 power STAB move at your disposal, though this is risky as not every team runs some sort of status.
Hone Claws can be used over Bulk Up as a boosting move if you have any move you desperately want the accuracy to be higher for.
Protect helps to scout out your opponent's move, and help you determine what to do next in response.
Rock Slide paired with Sheer Force is a dangerous combination, but unfortunately limits the coverage that Braviary has, though if you are determined to run Sheer Force Braviary, definitely run Rock Slide (I mean, there really isn't much else to abuse with it).
Shadow Claw allows Braviary to hit Ghost and Psychic types hard (though it's other moves generally do this better).
Tailwind can be used to boost Braviary's Speed (as well as the rest of your team), and helps out with team support and getting sweepers set up.
Thrash can be used for powerful STAB, although it has the drawback of trapping the user and confusing Braviary when it finishes.
Whirlwind can be used to phaze out other potential sweepers that try to come in and get their boosts up against Braviary.
Work Up can be used to boost both Attack and Special Attack on some gimmicky mixed Braviary set, which it really doesn't have much of a movepool for outside of Air Slash.

This format is really where Sheer Force Braviary comes into play, as Rock Slide is very beneficial to run, and an additional boost to it is always helpful. It has an excellent STAB in Brave Bird and can be used to take out threats such as Amoonguss, while Rock Slide deals with other Flying types and some Fires. Braviary could also be used on a Trick Room team as it's Speed is just low enough to consider.

Rapid Spinners such as Armaldo help to keep Braviary from getting whittled down by hazards. Any Pokemon that can deal with faster threats and Choice Scarf Pokemon helps out Braviary immensely, as well anything that takes down Physical walls like Alomomola and Misdreavus.

Alomomola, Misdreavus, and Musharna all do relatively well against Braviary as their high Defenses allow them to wall most Braviary sets, though they become set up bait for the Bulk Up set. Choice Scarf users such as Sawk and Gardevoir also do well against Braviary, as they outspeed even Scarf Braviary generally. Rocks and Steel such as Regirock and Probopass can handle Bulk Up Braviary and Choice sets trapped in Brave Bird or Return. Priority users such as Skuntank, Zangoose, and Gurdurr also deal with weakened Braviarys. Bulky Electric types such as Eelektross and Stunfisk also can wall Braviary decently.

Pre-Evolution Corner - Rufflet (Little Cup)

You've Rufflet Some Feathers

- Brave Bird
- Return
- Superpower
- U-turn
Item Attached: Choice Scarf / Life Orb
Ability: Hustle / Keen Eye / Sheer Force
EVs and Nature:
EVs: 252 Atk / 36 Def / 196 Spd
Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)

As the all American bird, Rufflet could be useful as it has access to U-turn, so naturally it can run a Choice Scarf set. Although accuracy is being sacrificed once Hustle has been released, Brave Bird coupled up with Hustle and STAB comes off stronger than Murkrow�s own Brave Bird, which is a great STAB move to have so it can counter or check the many Fighting types in the tier of LC such as Timburr, Mienfoo, Scraggy, and Riolu. Return is a secondary STAB move that could be used to avoid recoil from Brave Bird, and swipe solid neutral coverage on several threats. Superpower is a tutor move that can be used to hit very specific Rock or Steel pokemon that are resistant to both stab moves such as Omanyte, Pawniard, Cranidos, Tirtouga, and Magnemite. Lastly, U-turn can be used to scout the opposing team and switch to a more viable pokemon. You could opt to use Life Orb instead for added power over Choice Scarf, which could make a great late game cleaner if all of Rufflet�s faster opponents have been cleared. Although it has stellar physical prowess, it is far from being a huge threat as it has a very shallow movepool, and it is outpaced by other more popular scarf users. Bronzor is Rufflet�s main counter as Bronzor resists both STAB moves, and takes neutral damage from Superpower, and U-turn. Faster Choice Scarf users such as Murkrow, Gastly, Abra, and Chinchou threaten to KO the American baby bird with strong offensive moves and priority (in Murkrow's case).

Locations in Games

Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald:
Not in game.

FireRed/LeafGreen:
Not in game

Colosseum/XD:
Not in game

Diamond/Pearl/Platinum:
Not in game

HeartGold/SoulSilver:
Not in game

Black/White:
Route 11 (White)
Trade from White/White 2 (Black)

Black 2/White 2:
Route 4 - Monday (White 2)
Trade from White/White 2 (Black 2)