Charjabug Movesets & Competitive Sets

Charjabug is the premier Sticky Web user in the metagame thanks to its solid Bug / Electric typing letting it threaten Hattrem and pivot out of common Defog users with Volt Switch. It's also blessed with a solid Defense stat and a resistance to Fighting, which lets it switch into Gurdurr and Machoke with relative ease. Skitter Smack is Charjabug's primary attack due to its ability to cripple special attackers that may switch in such as Lampent and Hattrem while also being powerful enough to 2HKO Choice Specs variants of the latter. Volt Switch lets Charjabug generate momentum and safely switch out of setup sweepers such as Combusken, Klang, and Fraxure, which all would otherwise use it as setup fodder. Lastly, Toxic allows Charjabug to cripple Defog users like Vullaby and Gurdurr in addition to opposing hazard setters like Galarian Corsola and Piloswine. Alternatively, Thunder Wave allows Charjabug to cripple Vullaby, and can lower the Speed of Pokemon that are unaffected by Sticky Web such as Drakloak and Klang. Charjabug should aim to set up Sticky Web as early in the game as possible, although it should be wary of Magic Bounce if Hattrem is present on the opponent's team. After Sticky Web has been set, Charjabug can freely spread status and use Volt Switch to pivot into strong breakers to take advantage. Wallbreakers like Machoke, Rufflet, and Gastly make great use of the speed control that Charjabug provides and benefit greatly from its ability to bring them in safely with a slow Volt Switch, the latter also being an offensive spinblocker. Charjabug has no reliable recovery and is very prone to being worn down, so pairing it with Wish users like Clefairy and Togetic can increase its longevity; the aforementioned Fairy-types also function as great physically defensive walls and can alleviate some pressure from Charjabug. Charjabug's weakness to entry hazards limits the number of times it is able to switch in, so Rapid Spin users like Wartortle can be beneficial. Spikes users such as Carkol, Roselia, and Ferroseed not only form solid entry hazard-stacking cores but can act as specially defensive walls covering Charjabug's mediocre special bulk.