Vivillon, The Scale Pokémon. Vivillon with many different patterns are found all over the world. These patterns are affected by the climate of their habitat. The patterns on this Pokémon's wings depend on the climate and topography of its habitat. It scatters colorful scales.
Overview
Vivillon is a very unique Pokémon despite being yet another Bug/Flying type in the same vein as Butterfree. Unlike Beautifly and Mothim before it, Vivillon actually manages to be something other than a strictly worse Butterfree, and instead manages to be Butterfree but better. Unfortunately being better than Butterfree is hardly an accomplishment, but if you look past the fact that Vivillon's stats are nothing special it does have some nice tools that let this cute little butterfly shine, such as Hurricane and a better Speed stat than Butterfree. Rage Powder and access to the elusive Friend Guard ability are also really cool for Double Battles, but unfortunately Vivillon is not particularly strong there either. There really isn't much to say about Vivillon other than it's another cool Bug-type that has awful stats for the job, but if nothing else it's accomplished more than most Pokémon and brought people together for trading, seasoned collectors and casual trainers alike. Maybe Vivillon is just a step above the rest of the weak Bug-types and realized the best way to get people to want you is to have as many pretty patterns as possible. It doesn't matter how weak you are if you have a lot of exclusive patterns, someone out there will want them.
Positives
+ Vivillon actually one-ups Butterfree in the Butterfly Tier List, boasting better Speed and having the same Special Attack as the original butterfly.
+ Access to Compoundeyes Sleep Powder gives Vivillon a reliable sleep option that allows it to set up with Quiver Dance. Unlike Butterfree, Vivillon also gets Hurricane which also benefits from Compoundeyes, which is both stronger and a better STAB move than Bug Buzz.
+ All those patterns give you no shortage of customization for your team's color composition, which some would argue is the most important part of a good team.
Negatives
- Vivillon's stats are bad. Quiver Dance salvages its Special Attack and Speed but it still isn't a major powerhouse, and any strong hit will take it out or bring it down to its Focus Sash.
- Bug/Flying is not a great typing to have, even in formats where Stealth Rock isn't omnipresent. The plethora of weaknesses that come with its typing makes it even easier to squash this butterfly.
- Vivillon seems to like some places better than others and gives those regions better wing patterns, so if you're in the wrong regions you'll be stuck with one of the boring patterns unless you have good friends.
Abilities
Shield Dust: Damaging moves used by the opponent will not have an additional effect. In theory this is a solid ability, but the benefits of Compoundeyes greatly outweighs Shield Dust.
Compoundeyes: Raises the Pokémon's accuracy by 30%. This makes Hurricane and Sleep Powder highly effective options that allow Quiver Dance to be a viable set for Vivillon. Really this is the thing that keeps Vivillon from suffering the same fate as most Bug/Flying Pokémon.
Hidden Ability (Available through transfer):
Friend Guard: In Double & Triple battles, the damage that ally Pokémon receive from attacks is reduced by 25%. This is an amazing ability, and Vivillon even gets Rage Powder to make use of it. Unfortunately Vivillon is still bad in Doubles so this doesn't help much.
Movesets
Virtouous Flight
- Hurricane
- Quiver Dance
- Sleep Powder
- Energy Ball / Bug Buzz
Item Attached: Focus Sash
Ability: Compound Eyes
EVs and Nature:
252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
Vivillon is a simple butterfly. Finding an opportunity to put something to sleep and creating a setup opportunity is all it takes for Vivillon to do its job. Sleep Powder is an obvious choice with Compoundeyes, helping Vivillon create its setup opportunity by itself to set up with Quiver Dance. Hurricane isn't 100% accurate even with the Compoundeyes boost, but it's reliable enough and has the power to justify it. An obnoxious 30% chance to confuse the foe makes this a more dangerous option on top of Sleep Powder. Energy Ball is preferred over Bug Buzz to threaten Rock-types more effectively, though if for whatever reason you don't fear Rock-types or think you're lucky enough with Hurricane confusion, Bug Buzz is a safe secondary STAB move.
Timid nature with maximum Special Attack and Speed investment should be self-explanatory, Vivillon has no realistic amount of bulk so significant investment is a waste. Compoundeyes is Vivillon's best ability so that Hurricane and Sleep Powder can actually be considered reliable moves, while Focus Sash gives Vivillon one free opportunity to put something to sleep, and generally prevents it from being KOed the moment it gets hit.
Other Options
- Substitute can be used with Leftovers in less aggressively powerful formats, and takes advantage of the threat of Sleep Powder forcing switches. However, this is far riskier than Focus Sash and has a tougher time finding setup opportunities.
- Endeavor is a sneaky option that is generally only worth consideration in Battle Spot Singles, but it helps Vivillon go out with a parting gift against a bulky foe it can't beat once its Focus Sash has been used up.
- Z-Hold Hands gives Vivillon a boost to all of its stats, but really this option is mainly used to show your opponent that you appreciate them and hope they forfeit out of the kindness you showed them.
Countering Vivillon
You don't need a long list of dedicated answers to consider when dealing with Vivillon. As long as you have anything that can hit Vivillon then it will usually go down pretty fast. The only thing to be wary of when dealing with Vivillon is its Focus Sash and Sleep Powder, so if you're playing with Sleep Clause then Vivillon is not difficult to deal with. Stealth Rock more or less turns Vivillon into a bigger liability than it probably already is, so if you can keep Stealth Rock up then Vivillon is no longer a threat. Vivillon also has no way to hit Steel-types outside of getting lucky with Hurricane confusion luck, any Steel-type with some degree of Special Defense can handle Vivillon fairly well. Anything that can outspeed Vivillon and set up Substitute in front of it also makes it difficult for Vivillon to set up, since it can no longer put the foe to sleep either. There really isn't much else to dealing with Vivillon though, as long as you can work around Sleep Powder or destroy it with Stealth Rock then Vivillon goes down as easily as the rest of those early-game Bug-types. Just because it's a cut above the rest of them doesn't change the fact that it's still an early-game Bug-type. Now if we're talking about beating Vivillon in terms of aesthetics, it's tough to outdo a butterfly with all of those colorful patterns to choose from, but if that's what you're reading this section for then I don't know what to tell you.
Locations in Games
Red/Blue/Yellow:
Not in game
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:
Not in game
Black 2/White 2:
Not in game
X/Y:
Friend Safari
Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire:
Trade from X/Y
Sun/Moon:
Transfer from Generation VI
Animé Appearences
