Community POTW #53

[Dancing Togekiss]

Great timing! I just caught a vullaby and was considring if i should train her or not.
i guess the set i would use might be:
-toxic
-nasty plot/dark pulse
-brave bird
-fly

Her best ability seems to be overcoat which provides protection from the weather.
She seems to work mostly with defense which i dont use very often so this might be interesting how my journey with the bone vulture pokemon will turn out.

[F1r3h4wk]

If you want to do something really intresresting and overlooked with Mandibuzz, you can always go for something along the lines of, say, Modest or Timid nature, Weak Armour ability, holding either a Focus Sash (or maybe Leftovers if you want to invest in bulk), with an EV spread of 252 Speed, and 252 Special Attack, with 4 HP. 80 base speed is pretty decent to work with, especially with the Weak Armor boost.

I know you might be thinking 55 special attack isn't all that great-- To be honest it isn't. But Mandibuzz gets Nasty Plot. As soon as you get the 'Plot boost out, you're pretty much set to sweep, as your (max) ~458 Special Attack stat isn't to be scoffed at. Coupled with a max of ~428 speed after a Weak Armor boost, and you're set to sweep. I personally like this set because nobody expects it. They always go for a toxic or burn on Mandibuzz, giving me a free turn to set up. Personally, I use Special Sweeper Mandibuzz over a Wall Mandibuzz.

Possible Moveset:
-Nasty Plot
-Air Slash
-Dark Pulse
-Hidden Power Ice/Fighting/Grass

Nasty Plot for the needed boost, Air Slash and Dark Pulse for possible flinch hax and STAB, and HP fighting to round off the coverage. HP Ice and HP grass serve to cover weaknesses. HP Ice is mostly for the Dragon-dominated metagame, who expect an easy setup or switch in to Mandibuzz.

Other options:
-Shadow Ball (Strong special attack but greatly outclassed by Dark Pulse)
-Roost (If you want to be bulkier, I guess)
-HP Fire (If your team doesn't have much fire coverage, Fighting is usually better though)

Possible team mates are things like Forretress and Claydol, who can spin away Rocks and have a nice covering type.

Unfortunately the counters are more numerous. Blissey, Shell Smash Cloyster, Ferrothorn if Mandibuzz isn't running HP Fire, and a Bulky Water such as Unaware Quagsire do well. Priority attacks also mess up Mandibuzz. On top of that, Heatran pretty much walls it unless it's running HP Fighting. Tyrantitar also does great, especially with the Sandstorm up. Most Rock types to well against Mandibuzz, in fact, unless it's running HP Grass.

[Charizard Lizzy]

Great timing! I just caught a vullaby and was considring if i should train her or not.
i guess the set i would use might be:
-toxic
-nasty plot/dark pulse
-brave bird
-fly

Her best ability seems to be overcoat which provides protection from the weather.
She seems to work mostly with defense which i dont use very often so this might be interesting how my journey with the bone vulture pokemon will turn out.

If I were to choose Nasty Plot over Dark Pulse as you've written, it would go to waste as the rest of her offense in this list is physical instead of special.

It's also a bad idea to have half of your offensive choices be the same type.

[GirlKirbyZombie]

Looking at its stats and I see that it has usable special attack, so...

Special Sweeper:
Ability: Overcoat
Nature: Modest or Calm
Item: Kings Rock
EVS: (252 Sp. Attack, 189 Sp. Def, and 63 Speed) or (252 Sp. Attack, 252 Speed, 4 Sp. Def)
Moves:
Tail wind
Dark Pulse
Roost
Airslash

Mandi would make a good special flinch sweeper. It's sort of like another togekiss except you have weather immunity. She would make a great tailwind support for hail teams and sandstorm teams.

U mad, sis?
Ability: Overcoat or Weak Armor
Nature: Careful
EVs: 189 Sp. Def, 126 HP, 126 Def, and 63 Attack (A little sucky and complex... But I am going for balance)
Item: Lefties or Lum berry
Moves:
Flatter
Swagger
Punishment
Roost

Confusion will wreck teams and make the foe play on luck. Best combined with a dual screener as well as a hail/sandstorm team.

Other options:

Bone rush: A ground attack that will whack out steels, electrics, and fire types.

Defog: It helps remove stealth rocks and other hazards

Brave bird: A great physical attack, but it does damage you.

U-turn: A good way to switch out, but I believe that Mandi might be too slow...

Whirlwind: Is a supporting pokemon from the other side bothering you? Whirlwind is your best friend!

Snarl: A move that will help if you don't want to spend EVs on special defence.

Payback: Another physical move if you want a physical defensive Mandibuzz with low speed.

Leer: Use with Earthquake.

Woah! I wrote a lot. Perhaps I'll train my own Mandibuzz for my Diamond Champs revival team.

[ilex222]

Great timing! I just caught a vullaby and was considring if i should train her or not.
i guess the set i would use might be:
-toxic
-nasty plot/dark pulse
-brave bird
-fly

Her best ability seems to be overcoat which provides protection from the weather.
She seems to work mostly with defense which i dont use very often so this might be interesting how my journey with the bone vulture pokemon will turn out.

nasty plot without any special move?LOLOLOLOLOL

[Archstaraptor]

Mandibuzz is easily one of the most overlooked pokemon this generation.It's one bulky bird which is quite a rare sight in a world swarming with Staraptor,Braviary and Archeops.
Its speed's a bit disappointing at base 80,But 110,105 and 95 Base HP and Defences help it to stand out from the others.

It's quite capable at becoming offensive too,and Overcoat provides weather teams a useful asset.

Whilst overshadowed by Togekiss and classed as inferior to Braviary,Mandibuzz has potential whatever the weather-offensively and as a supporting role.

Abilities

Big Pecks-Prevents Defence reduction.Apart from Psych Up and Steel Wing,Mandibuzz has no real way of increasing its defence,which is where Mandibuzz could benefit greatly from it.
Overcoat-A must-have for weather teams.This where Mandibuzz can really shine.
(Dream World only)
Weak Armour-I don't see why anyone would use this...exchanging its defence for speed is suicide considering its poor attack stats.
It could be combined with Beat Up after a nasty plot set-up...but you're effectively killing yourself.

Supportive Role@Leftovers

Tailwind
Toxic
Punishment
Flatter

Tailwind could give teammates a useful boost in speed-Mandibuzz also needs it badly.
Confuse the foe with Flatter,then fight back with Punishment(one of the only decent attacks for Mandibuzz.
Toxic is a filler that works effectively when used alongside flatter

Offensive Flinch Leftovers

Airslash
Dark Pulse
Nasty Plot
Tailwind

While Mandibuzz has little sweeping potential,it's certainly possible after a few Nasty Plots and a Tailwind,which isn't that difficult for Mandibuzz thanks to its bulk.This is the odd set that I use;Airslash and Dark Pulse are both special attacks and occasionally flinch the target.Pair this with Leftovers,and you could recover your HP fairly effectively as your opponent struggles to land a hit.
Only problem is,you'll have to set up Tailwind every 4 turns-giving your opponent a good chance to deal some decent damage it's only really useful alongside a teammate.

[ilex222]

Mandibuzz is easily one of the most overlooked pokemon this generation.It's one bulky bird which is quite a rare sight in a world swarming with Staraptor,Braviary and Archeops.
Its speed's a bit disappointing at base 80,But 110,105 and 95 Base HP and Defences help it to stand out from the others.

It's quite capable at becoming offensive too,and Overcoat provides weather teams a useful asset.

Whilst overshadowed by Togekiss and classed as inferior to Braviary,Mandibuzz has potential whatever the weather-offensively and as a supporting role.

Abilities

Big Pecks-Prevents Defence reduction.Apart from Psych Up and Steel Wing,Mandibuzz has no real way of increasing its defence,which is where Mandibuzz could benefit greatly from it.
Overcoat-A must-have for weather teams.This where Mandibuzz can really shine.
(Dream World only)
Weak Armour-I don't see why anyone would use this...exchanging its defence for speed is suicide considering its poor attack stats.
It could be combined with Beat Up after a nasty plot set-up...but you're effectively killing yourself.

Supportive Role@Leftovers

Tailwind
Toxic
Punishment
Flatter

Tailwind could give teammates a useful boost in speed-Mandibuzz also needs it badly.
Confuse the foe with Flatter,then fight back with Punishment(one of the only decent attacks for Mandibuzz.
Toxic is a filler that works effectively when used alongside flatter

this wont work,if the opponent is a special sweeper,after the confusion gone.you are skrewed.also ,why tailwind instead roost?its not like mandi will have much use with the speed boost

Offensive Flinch Leftovers

Airslash
Dark Pulse
Nasty Plot
Tailwind

While Mandibuzz has little sweeping potential,it's certainly possible after a few Nasty Plots and a Tailwind,which isn't that difficult for Mandibuzz thanks to its bulk.This is the odd set that I use;Airslash and Dark Pulse are both special attacks and occasionally flinch the target.Pair this with Leftovers,and you could recover your HP fairly effectively as your opponent struggles to land a hit.
Only problem is,you'll have to set up Tailwind every 4 turns-giving your opponent a good chance to deal some decent damage.

this wont work either,w/o item boost,airslash and dark pulse have very small chance to flinch.

[Blue Harvest]

If you want to use Nasty Plot on an offensive set you're just using a crappy Misdreavous / elemental monkey / literally anything with Nasty Plot that is faster. Try a defensive EV spread with Nasty Plot so at any moment you won't sweep you can at least wall. Nasty Plot / Roost / Dark Pulse / Air Slash or Taunt.

[uberheracross]

General Wall.

Bold Nature, 252 Def 184Hp 72 SpDef @ leftovers .overcoat.

Roost
Whirlwind
Protect
Toxic

Not much to do I guess just stall until toxic kills them pretty good at it's job but it's not a bad whirlwind abuser at least whirlwind will knck away the steels + poisons that you cant poison not a great pokemon but overcoat gives it a niche at least

[jesusfreak94]

I've ran Mandibuzz in OU and RU, and both times it has worked very well. I've found that Mandibuzz makes a great supporter and wall for Hail stall with its fantastic defenses and Overcoat. My old RU Hail stall team used a specially defensive variant, and it was easily the MVP in plenty of matches. I believe the move set-up was Knock Off/Toxic/Roost/Whirlwind. Knock Off is really valuable on this thing. In fact, knocking off Magmortar's Life Orb/Choice Specs prevented Thunderbolt from even 2HKOing, and a similar claim can be made about a lot of other sweepers. I believe I went full specially defensive, so something like this.

Mandibuzz@Leftovers
Careful
Overcoat
EVs: 252 HP, 252 SpD, 4 Def
Moves:
-Knock Off
-Roost
-Whirlwind
-Toxic

[Airo]

No idea if this set actually works, but I'll give it a shot.

Give, Take, then Punish

Moves:
- Punishment
- Swagger
- Flatter/Knock Off/Roost
- Psych Up

Item: Leftovers
Ability: Overcoat
EVs and Nature: 170 Atk/170 Def/170 SpDef; Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk)

Basically, you use Swagger/Flatter as many times as you want, Psych Up (when using Swagger), and then Punishment. Unless you're afraid of the opponent's Pokemon getting dangerously high Attack, you're going to be using Swagger more often, so Knock Off can replace Flatter to make Mandibuzz more versatile, or Roost can takes its place to make Mandibuzz stay on the field a little longer. Also, if you want to be a little bit more defensive or offensive minded, you could put more EVs in that respective stat, but I prefer an equal balance.

[Kraleck]

No idea if this set actually works, but I'll give it a shot.

Give, Take, then Punish

Moves:
- Punishment
- Swagger
- Flatter/Knock Off/Roost
- Psych Up

Item: Leftovers
Ability: Overcoat
EVs and Nature: 170 Atk/170 Def/170 SpDef; Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk)

Basically, you use Swagger/Flatter as many times as you want, Psych Up (when using Swagger), and then Punishment. Unless you're afraid of the opponent's Pokemon getting dangerously high Attack, you're going to be using Swagger more often, so Knock Off can replace Flatter to make Mandibuzz more versatile, or Roost can takes its place to make Mandibuzz stay on the field a little longer. Also, if you want to be a little bit more defensive or offensive minded, you could put more EVs in that respective stat, but I prefer an equal balance.

Love the idea, but hate the fact you're stuck with Dark Type offense. Maybe replace Psych Up (because you won't last long if you predict wrong) with Toxic (Tox-fusion works well enough) or Brave Bird (use with Roost).

Flatter is great for attacking Physical Attackers (likewise Swagger for Special), but Mixed Attackers and Own Tempo will screw that set up over incredibly hard. Slowbro/king can be quite deadly to Mandi', despite the Dark VS Psychic advantage, because of Own Tempo and the capacity for Mixed (despite their lower Attack), as well as Lilligant (despite the Flying VS Grass advantage) and Lickilicky (incredible capacity for Mixed). Maybe Purugly, too, but it's less likely.

[GirlKirbyZombie]

No idea if this set actually works, but I'll give it a shot.

Give, Take, then Punish

Moves:
- Punishment
- Swagger
- Flatter/Knock Off/Roost
- Psych Up

Item: Leftovers
Ability: Overcoat
EVs and Nature: 170 Atk/170 Def/170 SpDef; Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk)

Basically, you use Swagger/Flatter as many times as you want, Psych Up (when using Swagger), and then Punishment. Unless you're afraid of the opponent's Pokemon getting dangerously high Attack, you're going to be using Swagger more often, so Knock Off can replace Flatter to make Mandibuzz more versatile, or Roost can takes its place to make Mandibuzz stay on the field a little longer. Also, if you want to be a little bit more defensive or offensive minded, you could put more EVs in that respective stat, but I prefer an equal balance.

I really like the idea, but I think the nature needs to be a careful nature because special defense is kind of low. I also did some math and I think that the EV spread needs an adjustment because 170 divided by 4 is 42.5, which is not a whole number.

Other than that, I will consider to use this set.

[kaiser soze]

Actually, (s)he would be better off putting those defensive EVs into HP

First commandent of EV spreads: EVs in HP >>> splitting EVs between both defenses with a few minor exceptions.

[Spinner]

Overcoat (preferred)
Leftovers/Lum Berry
Sassy (any def/sp def up, speed/att/sp att down will do)
252 def/ 252 sp def/ 4 hp

Toxic
Roost
Taunt
Flatter

A lot of bulk encouraging opponents to faint themselves. Flatter is good against pesky steel types. It is very easy to get a useful nature with this set, which has good staying power if you have patience.

[Missingno. Master]

No Bones About It
Mandibuzz@Leftovers
Careful nature
Overcoat
252 HP/128 Def/128 Sp. Def
~Roost
~Toxic
~Substitute/Bone Rush
~Whirlwind

A defensive Flying-type isn't a very common thing in this day and age, let alone one based on a bird. Most bird-based Flying-types focus on hitting fast and hitting hard, though usually aren't as proficient at this role as tons of other Pokémon. Mandibuzz is an interesting exception. Its defensive stats are very impressive, with 110/105/95 being nothing to sneeze at. With that in mind, behold a defensive set. Toxic will be Mandibuzz's main form of damage-dealing. Roost heals Mandibuzz, but also removes its Flying-type for the rest of the turn. However, at base 80 Speed, Mandibuzz isn't exactly gonna be outspeeding too much, so that may be a moot point. Whirlwind can get a potentially troublesome opponent out, and discourages setting up. Substitute is a decent idea, but Bone Rush stops Mandibuzz from being total Taunt bait. Bone Rush also has the added benefit of being super-effective against the Poison-types and Steel-types that are immune to Toxic.

Item is obvious. Ability prevents Hail or Sandstorm damage, which makes Mandibuzz a prime candidate for either kind of team.

Insert Witty Pun Here
Mandibuzz@Leftovers
Modest nature
Overcoat
252 HP/252 Sp.Atk/4 Sp. Def
~Nasty Plot
~Air Slash
~Dark Pulse
~Roost/Hidden Power (Fighting)

Not the best option a Mandibuzz has, but an option nonetheless. After one Nasty Plot, Mandibuzz reaches a respectable 458 Special Attack, which may allow it to sweep in lower tiers, and even score a surprise KO in the upper tiers. Air Slash and Dark Pulse get STAB, and are really Mandibuzz's only options for special attacks. HP Fighting is an option for the final slot, as it gets great coverage with Dark Pulse, but Roost is preferred, as Mandibuzz will take damage.

Item is obvious. Ability prevents weather damage, and preventing any kind of damage is generally a good thing.

Bare Bones Gimmick
Mandibuzz@Leftovers
Adamant nature
Overcoat
252 HP/252 Atk/4 Sp. Def
~Swagger
~Psych Up
~Mean Look
~Punishment

A little convoluted, but it could work in theory. After Psych Upping one Swagger, Mandibuzz has 502 Attack, and a Punishment attack with an effective base power of 100, and that's without factoring STAB in! Mean Look is to prevent the opponent from switching out and ruining the strategy.

Item and ability are to help with Mandibuzz's survival, especially as this one doesn't have Roost.


Other options:
*Mirror Move has some situational use. Very, very situational.
*Mandibuzz has a semi-decent physical movepool, such as Brave Bird, Punishment, Bone Rush, Steel Wing, etc., but its Attack is only marginally better than its Special Attack, and Mandibuzz doesn't learn Swords Dance.
*Incinerate is good against berry-wielding opponents, but Mandibuzz already gets Embargo for that purpose.


Abilities:
*Overcoat: Prevents damage from Hail and Sandstorm. As a defensive Pokémon whose typing doesn't afford it a natural immunity to either weather effect, Mandibuzz appreciates this ability greatly.
*Big Pecks: In addition to having one of Nintendo of America's better puns as a name, prevents Defense from being lowered. It's decent enough in theory, as a defensive Pokémon naturally doesn't want its Defense lowered. But how often does that actually happen? Who runs moves like Tail Whip and Screech on anything? That's what I thought. Defense lowering happens as the side effect of certain attacks, but anything that learns Crush Claw also learns Return and Frustration, and Cloyster has much better options against Mandibuzz than Razor Shell.
*Weak Armor: Mandibuzz's Hidden Ability. When Mandibuzz takes a physical hit, its Defense goes down and its Speed goes up. One-stage changes either way. Hands-down a very undesirable ability for a defensive Pokémon, but it could see use on the Nasty Plot set with a little tweaking of the EVs, which would allow Mandibuzz to be one of those fast sweepers. Base 80 Speed isn't too good, but it's not so bad that a one-stage increase wouldn't make a world of difference. Bit of a shame Weak Armor Mandibuzz isn't actually legal yet.

Partners:
You want to have a Rapid Spinner or a Magic Bouncer on the same team as Mandibuzz, as she despises Stealth Rock. A nice, offensive Ground-type is also good, as the standard defensive set can't do diddly to a Steel-type or a Poison-type.

Counters:
Stealth Rock takes a large chunk of Mandibuzz's HP upon switching in, which is not a desirable thing with a defensive Pokémon. Steel-types and Poison-types wall the standard set completely. And Mandibuzz's respectable Defense isn't gonna be too much help when Cloyster's launching its +2 STAB Skill Linked Icicle Spear.

Opinion:
Mandibuzz is an interesting concept, just... not done well enough. Such is the case with lots of other Pokémon, but Mandibuzz doesn't have it as bad as certain others *coughDelibirdcough*.

Prediction for next week:
Klinklang

[jesusfreak94]

One quick word of advice: I've found on some occasions that if you're running Taunt in RU, it might be beneficial to run just 44 Spe EVs to outspeed 0 Spe Gligar and Taunt it before it Taunts you. Otherwise, Gligar usually has a pretty easy time stalling you out.

[Voice Of The Forest]

If you want to see this bird in action go to ins4negam3rs website on youtube it is a beast
Mandibuzz @ Leftovers
Ability Big Pecks
Nature Careful
252 hp 252 def 6 sp def
Whirlwind
Brave bird
Roost
Toxic

[briguin]

SR-71 Blackbird
Overcoat@Leftovers
252 Sp. Atk. 252 Sp. Def. 4 spd.
Dark Pulse
Air Slash
Nasty Plot
Hidden Power(Fight)/Roost/Shadow Ball

This set is meant to be slightly more aggressive. Nasty Plot sets you up for more powerful strikes. Dark Pulse and Air Slash give decent STAB coverage. Combined with Nasty Plot, you can do some nice damage. The fourth move is kinda on what you're style is. You can use Hidden Power to defend yourself from other Darks, Ice, and Rock, Mandibuzz's weakness'. But if you're a more defensive person, you can use Roost to heal yourself when you're injured. Also, You can use Shadow Ball to get rid of any ghosts trying to wall you.

[Vandslaux]

What's with all the NP sets? Remember, you're boosting base 55 base Sp. Atk. Even Spinda laughs at this. And you're still easily walled at +2. You need +4 to do something, and if you're getting that many NPs, then you're likely facing a bad player.