Orbeetle

Orbeetle, The Seven Spot Pokémon. It's famous for its high level of intelligence, and the large size of its brain is proof that it also possesses immense psychic power. It emits psychic energy to observe and study what's around it—and what's around it can include things over six miles away.Its brain has grown to a gargantuan size, as has the rest of its body. This Pokémon's intellect and psychic abilities are overpowering. If it were to utilize every last bit of its power, it could control the minds of every living being in its vicinity.

Overview

Orbeetle is an interesting take on the early game bug type Pokémon having a lengthy cocoon period that justifies a higher BST in the end. A wide support movepool and a myriad of boosting options give Orbeetle a great degree of flexibility and an argument to be on any team. Good Defenses and a surprisingly high Speed help Orbeetle excel as a support Pokémon. However, despite these positives, Orbeetle’s bad typing, poor offenses and lack of coverage leave Orbeetle rather passive. The fact that there are numerous Pokémon that can outperform Orbeetle (Regieleki, Grimmsnarl, Galvantula, Polteageist, Reuniclus) is a death knell that leaves Orbeetle unused.
Positives
Insanely good support movepool -with Screens, Hypnosis, Trick, and Sticky Web(!) Orbeetle has a tool for just about every situation.
Several boosting moves plus STAB Stored Power enable Orbeetle to ramp up very quickly and synergizes well with Bug Buzz to ward off Dark types.
60/120/110 Defenses are decently bulky and a base 90 Speed helps Orbeetle get multiple turns to setup and support. Negatives
Bug Psychic is a horrible typing with common Ghost, Dark and Rock weaknesses in addition to Flying, Fire and Bug
Base 80 Special Attack is middling at best and prevents Orbeetle from hitting OHKOs even on boosting sets
Abilities are situational at best and unusable at worst.

Movesets

Alien Vanguard

-Sticky Web
-Reflect
-Light Screen
-Hypnosis/Bug Buzz
Item Attached: Light Clay
Ability: Frisk
EVs and Nature:
252 HP / 4 SDef / 252 Spe
Timid Nature

Orbeetle exercises its great movepool in this set, providing unique role compression on hyper offense. Sticky Web is a fantastic entry Hazard, leaving all grounded opponents at -1 Speed, which not only severely throws off calculations, but enables wallbreakers to exercise their power against normally faster targets to devastating effect. Reflect and Light Screen offer valuable bulk on teams that normally lack it, enabling setup sweepers to setup and giving some temporary defensive counterplay. Hypnosis rounds out the set, allowing Orbeetle to shutdown opposing attempts to setup and to give it more time to finish setting up the Web and Screens. However, if you don’t want to be complete Taunt bait and have some options if Orbeetle is your last Pokémon, than Bug Buzz is a viable alternative.

DYNAMAX:
You never want to Dynamax this set. This set is all about making your other Dynamax Sweepers more terrifying.

EVs and Items:
Max Speed EVs and a Speed boosting Nature enable Orbeetle to outspeed as many targets as possible so it can setup more before being taken down. Max HP is to maximize Orbeetle’s bulk, so it lives to setup. Light Clay is the preferred item to maximize Reflect and Light Screen’s life span. .

Other Options:
U-Turn -while dealing absolutely pitiful damage, it is a reliable Pivot move that can get Orbeetle’s teammate in safely and can have Orbeetle come in to setup again. Magic Coat -Can bounce status and other setup attempts back to the opponent, but is prediction reliant. Trick + Choice Scarf -Great way to shutdown an opposing wall and since Frisk reads the item, Orbeetle pulls this off far better than others and can better avoid giving a Scarf to a Pokémon that doesn’t mind it and avoid items that would impact its performance.

Partners:
As mentioned before, this set belongs on Hyper Offense teams who can best take advantage of the increased bulk and slowed opponents to do maximum damage. Setup Sweepers in particular appreciate the Screens, as that gives them the bulk to survive setting up. Wallbreakers enjoy the reduced speed of their opponents, as that enables them to outspeed and overwhelm normally faster targets that would OHKO them back. As everything on this set can be wiped away by Defog, Pokémon that Punish Defog make partners. Bisharp, Braviary, Galarian Articuno, Boltund and Milotic all stand out for being able to pivot into a Defog and get a boost for a sweep. .

Orbital Laser Platform

-Calm Mind
-Recover
-Stored Power
-Bug Buzz
Item Attached: Weakness Policy/Leftovers
Ability: Swarm/Frisk
EVs and Nature:
252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature

This set aims to take advantage of Orbeetle’s many weaknesses, and great bulk and setup Stored Power with Calm Mind and Weakness Policy and go for the sweep. Calm Mind is the crux of the set, enabling Orbeetle to escalate its power and special bulk while improving Stored Power’s power. Recover keeps Orbeetle healthy after the super effective hit and throughout the match. Stored Power is the STAB move of choice, hitting a massive base 140 Base Power before STAB after Weakness Policy which being at +3 will one to two hit KO most Pokémon. Bug Buzz rounds out the set, being able to hit the Dark types that normally blank Stored Power.

DYNAMAX:
This Orbeetle set can Dynamax to better take a hit to trigger the Weakness Policy, and makes for a far Stronger Max Mindstorm if Orbeetle has not been able to setup, but an unprepared Orbeetle is very underwhelming. Stored Power outstrips Max Mindstorm at 6 boosts (Weakness Policy + Calm Mind or 3 Calm Minds) and is near the same at 4 boosts (Weakness Policy or 2 Calm Minds). Max Flutterby does increase special bulk, and Max Mindstorm does further boost Stored Power while protecting against Sucker Punch and Accelrock. Otherwise, you want to be out of Dynamax because Orbeetle can further boost and heal with Calm Mind and Recover. Gigantamax’s side effect does nothing for Orbeetle and should be avoided.

EVs and Items:
Max HP and Defense are to complement the Calm Mind boosts to Special Defense and enable Orbeetle to better take attacks to trigger Weakness Policy. If you want to go a more offensive route, you can Invest more into Special Attack and Speed, but note that Orbeetle’s bulk goes way down. At least 60 EVs and a positive Speed nature are needed to outspeed defensive Dragonite, netural natured Mimikyu, and defensive Zapdos.

Partners:
Other Pokémon that enable Orbeetle to setup as it really needs all the boosts it can get to be threatening. Grimmsnarl stands out with its priority Screens, Taunt to shutdown opposing setup sweepers, and ability to threaten Dark types with its Fairy STAB. Whimsicott does similarly with its Tailwind/Lagging Tail Switcheroo providing Speed Control, Memento for Psuedo Screens and STAB Fairy for Dark types, though you are stacking weaknesses. Magneton and Magnezone stand out for their ability to trap Steel types who resist both of Orbeetle’s STABs, dispatch Mandibuzz who can easily tank even +3 Bug Buzzes and draw in Ground moves that Orbeetle can easily come in on and setup.

Other Options:
Body Press is an option for Dark types that also works well with Steel types, but you have no way to boost it with this set unless you are willing to also sacrifice Recover for Iron Defense and lacks the STAB that makes Bug Buzz dangerous after a few Special Attack boosts. Agility can be used in place of Calm Mind alongside a more offensive EV spread and make Orbeetle near impossible to outspeed, but makes it more difficult to take Super Effective attacks to trigger the Weakness Policy boost and you only get one shot at the sweep unlike Calm Mind.

Countering Orbeetle

As with any Pokémon that regularly packs a Sleep move, even one as unreliable as Hypnosis, true counterplay is difficult against Orbeetle as it can disable any normal counters with Hypnosis and proceed with setting up/switch out to a counter. However, Orbeetle has a wide enough movepool that Hypnosis isn’t an auto include, but must be respected nonetheless.
Ignoring Hypnosis, Mandibuzz is the closest to a counter, able to take multiple boosted Bug Buzzes, taking pittance from everything else, clear away Webs and Screens with Defog or Taunt to shutdown support moves in general.
Celesteela performs similarly to Mandibuzz defensively, using Orbeetle as setup fodder with Leech Seed/Substitute or Meteor Beam but must be wary of sufficiently boosted Stored Powers.
While Orbeetle is bulky, it can be overwhelmed even with investment. Bisharp, Banded Weavile, Heatran, and Nihilego all sounds OHKO Orbeetle, with many more coming up if Orbeetle is not maxed out on the appropriate defense.
Taunt ruins Orbeetle, who needs its setup moves to function and Toxic ruins its otherwise amazing defenses. Orbeetle is also heavily exposed to entry hazards which prevent it from coming in repeatedly.

Locations in Games

Red/Blue/Yellow:
Not in game

Gold/Silver/Crystal:
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:
Not in game

Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire:
Not in game

Sun/Moon:
Not in game

Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon:
Not in game

Let's Go, Pikachu!/Let's Go, Eevee!:
Not in game

Sword/Shield:
Giant's Cap, Lake of Outrage, Slumbering Weald
Max Raid Battles: Bridge Field, Dappled Grove, Rolling Fields, South Lake Miloch, Fields of Honor, Forest of Focus, Training Lowlands, Workout Sea
Gigantamax Raid Battles: Bridge Field, Dappled Grove, Training Lowlands
Dynamax Adventures

Anime Appearences

Orbeetle has made an anime apparance, although it was a cameo

# -English Episode Name- -Jp. Episode Name- Pics
1135 Getting More Than You Battled For! Battling & Getting! Mewtwo Comes Back Pics