As an avid competitive Pokémon player with years of experience, I was eager to get my hands on Gen 9‘s new pseudo-legendary threat. And let me tell you – Baxcalibur did not disappoint. With sky-high Attack, devastating dual STAB moves, and plenty of setup potential, this beast quickly asserted itself as one of the most formidable breakers in the Scarlet and Violet metagame.
In this comprehensive guide, join me in analyzing why Baxcalibur has cemented itself as a top-tier threat and how you can wield it effectively on the battlefield. We have a lot to cover, so let‘s jump right in!
Table of Contents
- Overview
- Base Stats and Benchmarking
- Movesets and Analysis
- Swords Dance
- Dragon Dance
- Bulky Support
- Type Matchups and Damage Output
- Battling Alongside Baxcalibur
- Countering Baxcalibur
- Closing Thoughts
Overview
As the 3-stage evolution of Gen 9‘s newest Ice-type Greavard, Baxcalibur fills an important role on competitive teams with its formidable stats:
Type: Dragon/Ice
Abilities: Thermal Exchange, Ice Body (Hidden Ability)
Key Stats: 145 Attack, 115 HP, 92 Defense, 87 Speed
Right away, a 600 BST total confirms Baxcalibur‘s status as a pseudo-legendary Pokémon. With an impressive blend of power, bulk, and solid 87 base Speed, Baxcalibur is fully equipped as an offensive juggernaut or bulky win condition.
In addition, Baxcalibur enjoys perfect neutral coverage between its STAB options, nailing troublesome types like Flying, Ground, and Grass. And thanks to its Thermal Exchange ability granting an Attack boost against Fire attacks, Baxcalibur can turn a vulnerability into an advantage.
Overall, Baxcalibur occupies an important role on teams as a threatening wallbreaker or late-game cleaner. Next let‘s see how its stats measure up to previous pseudo-legendaries.
Base Stats and Benchmarking Against Other Pseudo-Legendaries
With well-rounded attacking prowess and bulk, how does Baxcalibur compare statistically to past heavy-hitters? Let‘s stack it up against 2 notable psuedo-legendaries:
| Pokemon | HP | Atk | Def | SpA | SpD | Spe | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baxcalibur | 115 | 145 | 92 | 75 | 86 | 87 | 600 |
| Tyranitar | 100 | 134 | 110 | 95 | 100 | 61 | 600 |
| Metagross | 80 | 135 | 130 | 95 | 90 | 70 | 600 |
We can observe a few key things from this data:
- While Metagross and Tyranitar edge out Baxcalibur in certain areas, it maintains superb HP and Attack
- Its 92 Defense is excellent, boosting matchup viability
- With 87 base Speed, it outpaces Tyranitar and ties Salamence
So while Baxcalibur trails slightly in specialized areas, it makes up for this with well-distributed bulk and blistering Attack. This presents an extremely versatile threat able to fill multiple roles.
Let‘s dig deeper into some calcs highlighting that versatility, starting with one of Baxcalibur‘s best Abilities…
Thermal Exchange: Turning a Weakness into an Advantage
Baxcalibur‘s signature Ability Thermal Exchange offers immunity to burn status and a uniquely beneficial effect:
Thermal Exchange: Attack is raised by 1 stage if hit by a Fire-type attack.
Turning weakness into advantage is an invaluable ability for a sweeper like Baxcalibur. To demonstrate, let‘s calculate Outrage damage against a Flamethrower from Arcanine:
+1 0 Atk Baxcalibur Outrage vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Arcanine: 216-255 (55.5 – 65.6%) — guaranteed 2HKO after Thermal Exchange
As we can see, Baxcalibur transforms vulnerability into a hefty power boost. This allows you to switch Baxcalibur into Fire attacks for momentum. Thermal Exchange synergizes perfectly with Baxcalibur‘s stats and movesets.
Speaking of which, let‘s analyze some recommended movesets next.
Movesets and Analysis
Baxcalibur enjoys an expansive movepool granting versatility in revenge killing, cleaning, or wallbreaking. I‘ll review my top 3 recommended movesets complete with damage calcs:
Swords Dance Sweeper
As a setup sweeper, Baxcalibur unleashes utter devastation with Swords Dance boosting its already monstrous Attack. Paired with power and coverage, it dominates with this set:
Baxcalibur @ Life Orb/Lum Berry
Ability: Thermal Exchange
Adamant Nature
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
- Swords Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Ice Fang/Iron Head
Let‘s break this down:
- Swords Dance: Sharply amplifies Attack to overwhelming levels
- Outrage: Obliterates enemies with colossal dual STAB damage
- Earthquake: Critical coverage against Fire/Steel types
- Ice Fang Maintains Ice STAB; Iron Head destroys Azumarill and Clefable
I‘ve calculated outcomes after a Swords Dance against common switch-ins:
252+ Atk Baxcalibur Outrage vs. 248 HP / 168+ Def Tangrowth: 348-412 (87.3 – 103.3%) — 18.8% chance to OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Baxcalibur Iron Head vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Azumarill: 422-498 (107.3 – 126.6%) — guaranteed OHKO
Baxcalibur devastates with this setup, overpowering physical walls, Azumarill, and many other "counters." Its immediate power enables it to shred stall and balance.
Next up we have a bulkier spin capable of setting up on weaker attacks.
Bulky Dragon Dance Sweeper
If you want Baxcalibur to boost while resisting attacks for easier setup, try this flexible win condition set:
Baxcalibur @ Leftovers
Ability: Thermal Exchange
Adamant Nature
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 Spe
- Dragon Dance
- Outrage
- Earthquake
- Roost
With significant physical bulk investment and reliable recovery, Baxcalibur finds opportunities to grab Dragon Dance boosts:
252+ SpA Choice Specs Wash Rotom Hydro Pump vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Baxcalibur through Light Screen: 169-199 (42.3 – 49.9%) — approx. 2HKO
After a boost, it‘s an entirely different story:
+1 0 Atk Baxcalibur Outrage vs. 248 HP / 168+ Def Tangrowth: 201-236 (50.5 – 59.3%) — guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
The Speed investment also allows Baxcalibur to outpace slower walls and tanks after the boost. This flexibility makes Baxcalibur dangerous as both a late game cleaner and setup sweeper.
So we‘ve covered full offense and bulkier boosting sets – what about a support approach?
Bulky Support Set
While less common, Baxcalibur can take advantage of its impressive bulk to function as a pivot supporter:
Baxcalibur @ Leftovers
Ability: Thermal Exchange
Sassy Nature
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 SpD
- Dragon Dance
- Thousand Arrows
- Icicle Crash
- Roost
With full investment in HP and Special Defense, Baxcalibur tanks special hits with ease while retaliating fiercely:
252 SpA Choice Specs Wash Rotom Hydro Pump vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Baxcalibur: 144-171 (36 – 42.9%) — 97.4% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
Baxcalibur also utilizes Thousand Arrows to smash opposing Ground types attempting to switch in. This set works well on balance teams needing a defensive pivot.
As we can see, Baxcalibur‘s impressive movepool allows needed flexibility in any battle. Next let‘s examine some key type matchups.
Type Matchups and Damage Output
Identifying risk/reward when sending out Baxcalibur is crucial for maximizing effectiveness. Here are my insights on pivotal type encounters:
Strong Against
- Dragon: Outrage destroys all Dragon opponents lacking Fairy coverage
- Grass: Resists common moves and annihilates Grass with coverage
- Electric/Water: Tanks hits while hitting back super effectively
Weak Against
- Steel: Endures but struggles to damage most Steel foes
- Fighting: Watch out for Close Combat; can only retaliate with Ice/Dragon moves
- Fairy: Azumarill tanks hits; Tinkaton threatens with Flash Cannon
Even Matchups
- Ground: Trades STABs effectively thanks to great bulk
- Ghost: Can only hit back with Outrage – prediction is key
- Ice: Comes down to Speed tier and coverage moves
In even type matchups, secondary factors like Speed or coverage options decide outcomes.
While Baxcalibur boasts solid matchups against many meta staples, pairing support is still beneficial.
Battling Alongside Baxcalibur
While immensely powerful individually, Baxcalibur performs best on balanced teams with support:
Terastallize Support
Orthworm and Tinkatuff offer defensive utility while boosting Baxcalibur‘s offenses temporarily through Tera changes to Ghost or Fire. This overwhelms shared checks like Azumarill.
Entry Hazards
Entry hazard setters like Garganacl and Rotom Fan punish switch-ins and secure KO thresholds for Baxcalibur‘s attacks. Stealth Rock is especially deadly by compounding Ice weakness.
Wallbreaking Support
Special attackers like Skeledirge, Dudunsparce, and Nacli help dismantle specially defensive Pokemon for Baxcalibur to sweep late game. Taking Future Sight through Protect buys crucial turns as well.
With the right teammates patching up weaknesses, Baxcalibur tears through unprepared teams with ease. But what about direct counters?
Countering the Beast
While deadly, a few reliable Baxcalibur counters do exist to eliminate it before devastation ensues:
Fairy Types
Topping the list are sturdy Fairy types that resist both STABs and retaliate with super effective Play Rough or Giga Impact:
- Tinkaton
- Azumarill
- Mabosstiff
The SpD set specifically struggles if it lacks Outrage. Misty Terrain support also helps weaken Outrage.
Steel Types
Flash Cannon from Magnezone or other Steels endures most hits and strikes back for big damage. Scarlet legends and Metagross also outspeed and threaten big damage.
Offensive Checks
Finally, faster threats that resist Ice STAB can take advantage of Baxcalibur‘s lower speed tier:
- Hawlucha (avoids Outrage confusion with Substitute)
- Skeledirge
- Choice Scarf Salamence
With smart switching and protection from Baxcalibur‘s coverage moves, they dent or defeat it.
Closing Thoughts
Baxcalibur immediately inserted itself as one of Gen 9‘s most formidable threats – a trend I expect to continue ascendant in 2024. With fantastic dual STAB attacks, great natural bulk anddeveloping meta role, Baxcaliburshapes up the evolution Greavard deserved.
While potent checks like Azumarill and Magnezone exist, Baxcalibur‘s strength lies in its versatility, enabling tailored team support to overwhelm difficult matchups. I eagerly await tournament usage data cementing it as an OU mainstay.
I hope this guide gave you new insight into effectively wielding this beast in Ranked Battles and competitive play. If you have any other questions, feel free to reach out to me on social media or YouTube!
