Clawitzer Movesets & Competitive Sets

Moves Water Pulse is Clawitzer's main STAB move, as it hits very hard with Mega Launcher. It also comes with a decent confusion chance. Scald is an alternative if Water Pulse's extra power is not desired, and it can be used to spread burns to weaken Clawitzer's checks instead. It also is still powerful enough to OHKO Piloswine. Dark Pulse rounds Clawitzer's coverage well, nailing the bulky Water-types that otherwise wall it, namely Vaporeon and Slowking. Ice Beam is its main way of dealing with Grass- and Dragon-types, hitting the likes of Alolan Exeggutor and Druddigon for super effective damage. Aura Sphere lets Clawitzer OHKO Scrafty and hits Cryogonal and Audino for good damage. U-turn can be used to take advantage of Clawitzer's ability to force many switches, allowing it to get it teammates onto the field safely and pivoting out of its checks. Set Details Maximum Special Attack and Speed with a Modest nature and Choice Specs let Clawitzer hit hard and outpace much threats as possible. Mega Launcher boosts the damage of Water Pulse, Dark Pulse, and Aura Sphere. Usage Tips Use Clawitzer to tear apart opposing cores early-game, leaving them weakened for the rest of the team to clean up. Since this set is holding a Choice item, it is very prediction-reliant. Water Pulse should almost always be used to wear the opposing team down provided that opponent doesn't have a Pokemon immune to it, but you should also try to predict what Pokemon the opponent will send out and use the appropriate coverage move. Predicting wrong comes with very big risks, however, as it could cost the team's momentum or end up giving Pokemon like Comfey setup opportunities when Clawitzer is locked into a move like Dark Pulse. When using U-turn, first consider if safely bringing a teammate on the field would bring more momentum than Clawitzer firing off attacks on its own. Team Options Volt Switch, U-turn, and Parting Shot support from the likes of Whimsicott, Passimian, and Silvally-Steel is excellent for safely bringing Clawitzer into the field, and Clawitzer can even complete a VoltTurn core with them if it opts to run U-turn. Switch-ins to Electric- and Grass-types are needed, and Grass- and Electric-types of your own work well, such as Dhelmise and Vikavolt, as they also eliminate bulky Water-types for Clawitzer. Entry hazard support helps Clawitzer in its job, as it nets a 2HKO on Vaporeon after Stealth Rock and one layer of Spikes. Rhydon and Piloswine fit well as Stealth Rock setters, and Garbodor is a good Spikes setter, as it also checks Grass-types for Clawitzer. Faster revenge killers and naturally fast Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Passimian and Delphox help cover Clawitzer's low Speed stat, and they appreciate Clawitzer's ability to break past their checks.

Moves Substitute helps Clawitzer stall opposing Pokemon with Toxic and avoid getting revenge killed and statused by common Pokemon such as Passimian and Vaporeon. Toxic helps chip down opposing Pokemon such as Mega Audino, Seismitoad, and Vaporeon and pairs well with Substitute. Water Pulse is Clawitzer's STAB move and allows it to quickly break down opposing Pokemon while stalling them down via Toxic. Lastly, Dark Pulse does solid damage to Slowking and Vaporeon. Ice Beam is an alternative to Dark Pulse to hit Pokemon such as Torterra, Druddigon, and Whimsicott super effectively at the cost of missing out on beneficial damage on the aforementioned targets. Set Details Maximum Special Attack investment increases Clawitzer's damage output. 156 Speed EVs let Clawitzer outspeed various threatening Toxic users such as Vaporeon and Blastoise, giving it a chance to use Substitute effectively. The remaining EVs are put into HP to improve Clawitzer's bulk. Mega Launcher boosts Water Pulse's and Dark Pulse's damage. Usage Tips Use Substitute versus passive Pokemon like Vaporeon and Blastoise, as they are the easiest to get a Substitute off on. Additionally, try to keep entry hazards off the field because chipping Clawitzer can prevent it from using Substitute at some point. Additionally, Clawitzer lacks reliable recovery outside of Leftovers, so try not to let it get hit by Knock Off. Be wary of clicking Toxic versus teams with Xatu and Steel-types like Silvally-Steel, as Xatu can easily bounce back Toxic using Magic Bounce, while Steel-types are immune to Toxic. However, you can ease up on this if Clawitzer is behind a Substitute. Keep in mind that you should be clicking Toxic versus bulkier Pokemon that Clawitzer doesn't do as much damage to, such as Cryogonal and Audino. Lastly, try to make use of pivoting moves such as Parting Shot, U-turn, and Volt Switch to help get in Clawitzer safely. Team Options Checks to Electric-types such as Decidueye and to Ground-types such as Sceptile are pivotal for Clawitzer, as Electric-types heavily threaten Clawitzer if it is not behind a Substitute. Heliolisk especially is problematic, as it can damage Clawitzer with Hyper Voice even if it is behind a Substitute. Grass-type checks such as Incineroar, Mega Glalie, and Braviary benefit Clawitzer, as it cannot easily deal with the likes of Decidueye and Golbat without Ice Beam or Substitute. Entry hazard control from Pokemon such as Xatu and Cryogonal is also helpful for Clawitzer, as repeated chip damage will easily prevent Clawitzer from doing its job. Pokemon such as Incineroar and non-Grassium Z Delphox that aren't the biggest fans of bulky Water-types appreciate Clawitzer's support, as it deals with such Pokemon easily. Spikes setters like Ferroseed and Garbodor are also great partners for Clawitzer, as Spikes ease the process of Toxic stalling for Clawitzer quite a bit. Finally, pivot support from Pokemon such as Heliolisk, Iapapa Berry Incineroar, Passimian, and Silvally-Steel is useful for Clawitzer, as they are able to bring it in safely.

Moves Scald hits for ample damage and can cripple physical attackers such as Escavalier with a burn. Ice Beam provides coverage against Grass- and Dragon-types such as Venusaur and Druddigon while also hitting Flying-types such as Togetic; additionally, Virizion can be hit as it switches in. Dark Pulse gets a boost from Mega Launcher and allows Clawitzer to hit Psychic- and Ghost-types such as Meloetta and Jellicent for super effective damage. Aura Sphere also gets a boost from Mega Launcher and 2HKOes Dark-, Ice-, Normal-, and Steel-types such as Scrafty, Eviolite Sneasel, Audino, and Registeel and ensures an OHKO on Mega Glalie after Stealth Rock damage. Set Details 252 EVs in Special Attack along with a Modest nature maximize Clawitzer's wallbreaking capabilities. 252 EVs in Speed allow Clawitzer to outspeed Pokemon such as uninvested Golbat, uninvested Meloetta, and Adamant maximum Speed Scrafty. While it might seem enticing to use a Timid nature to outspeed the likes of Adamant Emboar and Modest Exploud, it isn't worth the loss of power. Life Orb boosts the power of Clawitzer's attacks at the cost of some health. Mega Launcher is Clawitzer's only ability, providing a boost to all of its pulse moves. Usage Tips Clawitzer is a wallbreaker first and foremost, so it should be used early- and mid-game to dent the opponent's team to make it easier for its teammates to come in and clean up. Scald is the primary attack to use to attempt to get a burn and deal out damage, while Ice Beam should be used on a predicted switch to a Pokemon that resists Water such as Virizion or Druddigon, and Dark Pulse is used to nail Jellicent, which is immune to Scald and Aura Sphere and resists Ice Beam. Despite having respectable bulk, Clawitzer should avoid switching in on strong attacks if you plan to use it at a later point. It is best to send Clawitzer in after a teammate has fainted or from a slow Volt Switch or U-turn from Pokemon such as Eelektross. Team Options Clawitzer appreciates entry hazard support from Pokemon such as Uxie, Druddigon, and Bronzong, as this wears down foes switching in. Examples include being able to guarantee 2HKOs on Golbat and specially defensive Meloetta with Ice Beam and Dark Pulse, respectively, after Stealth Rock damage. Uxie and Druddigon can also provide paralysis support to make up for Clawitzer's low Speed, and Druddigon can switch in on Grass- and Electric-type attacks aimed at Clawitzer. Sticky Web support from either Kricketune or Leavanny also helps in making up for Clawitzer's low Speed. Setup sweepers that appreciate Clawitzer's wallbreaking capabilities, such as Houndoom and Fletchinder, make for good partners. Electric-types such as Jolteon and Rotom-C can switch in on Electric-type attacks aimed at Clawitzer while it handles Ground-types for them. Eelektross also makes for a good partner, providing a slow pivot for Clawitzer and taking Electric- and Grass-type attacks aimed at it. Though it isn't mandatory, Clawitzer can also function well under Trick Room with support from Pokemon such as Aromatisse and Bronzong. If you plan to use Clawitzer under Trick Room, then use an EV spread of 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD with a Quiet nature and 0 Speed IVs.