Archeops

[WingedKnight]

Late Game Sweeper Set:
Archeos @ Flight Jewel
Jolly (I'm using)/Adamant
4 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
-Rock Slide
-Acrobat
-Earthquake
-Endeavor

Alright, now I can actually speak from experience as I finally got to download PO. Boy does it clean up gooooood.
If your smart about bringing him in, he can really rampage through the remnants of your opponent's team in late game. Sure, I've had a few stupid moments where he gets KO'd or crippled, but overall his performance has been incredibly solid! The first Jewel-boosted Acrobat is DEADLY, and Rock Slide has nabbed me some flinchhax on many occasions. Not to mention Endeavor, which is perfect for crippling those bulky mons as a final act on the occasion you find yourself barely surviving, leaving the kill open for his comrades. Though I've been surprised that his damage output even when Faint-Hearted activates can still do some damage, Endeavor is perfect for that final slot. The combination of Rock-move/Acrobat/Earthquake handles pretty much everything, so that last slot is utility as is. I had been running Dragon Claw, till I realized neutral STAB Acrobat is stronger than super effective Claw. U-Turn could work in that slot as well, if that's more your style. He requires smart play, and he has a lot to watch out for, but he is a definite force, even in our current undefined, Uber-filled metagame. A solid Pokemon, definite bro material!.
One more note: obviously does NOT do well in rain. Be prepared to deal with it.

 

[JellyOs]

Lead Set:
Archeos @ Focus Sash
Naive nature
-Stone Edge
-Taunt
-Quick Attack
-Endeavor
EVs: 252 Att/252 Spe
IVs: 0 Hp/0 Def/0 Sp. Def

This guy is scary. Really Scary. If he doesn't kill your lead and stop it from putting out rocks, the opposing lead is at 1 HP. But here's how he's supposed to work:
1) Taunt a lead that normally sets up hazards
2)If the lead doesn't normally set up hazards, Stone Edge
3)If you Taunted an attack lead, use Endeavor
4)After the first attack you receive, you should be at 1 HP
5)If you predicted right, the opponent is at 1 HP and so are you
6)Proceed to Quick Attack
7)Endeavor the next Pokemon coming in

 

[Rellik]

Semi-suicidal:
Archeos@Chesto Berry
Jolly/Naive
252atk/252spe/6hp
or split the atk/spatk EVs if you want to run a special atk in the last slot, although I don't know what an intelligent split would be.

-Head Smash
-Rest
-Acrobat
-EQ/Earth Power/Focus Blast

Head Smash, Rest, Chesto Berry, Acrobat have great compatibility. The final move is to cover steels and possibly add a bit of mixed ability to you Archeos.

Bring Archeos in on something that doesn't resist Smash and then proceed to destroy it. You can then atk on the special side if you chose to go that route. Once HP is low, Rest to restore out of faint hearted. This activates your Chesto Berry instantly waking you AND giving you a full power acrobat. You can then do whatever you want with your intensely powerful Archeos. This could be played some other ways, but you get the gist of what is supposed to happen.

 

[Banryu]

Semi-suicidal:
Archeos@Chesto Berry
Jolly/Naive
252atk/252spe/6hp
or split the atk/spatk EVs if you want to run a special atk in the last slot, although I don't know what an intelligent split would be.

-Head Smash
-Rest
-Acrobat
-EQ/Earth Power/Focus Blast

Head Smash, Rest, Chesto Berry, Acrobat have great compatibility. The final move is to cover steels and possibly add a bit of mixed ability to you Archeos.

Bring Archeos in on something that doesn't resist Smash and then proceed to destroy it. You can then atk on the special side if you chose to go that route. Once HP is low, Rest to restore out of faint hearted. This activates your Chesto Berry instantly waking you AND giving you a full power acrobat. You can then do whatever you want with your intensely powerful Archeos. This could be played some other ways, but you get the gist of what is supposed to happen.

A very cool set without the Special stuff... I don't know for the life of me why you would use Special Attacks when you can take advantage of Earthquake off of that huge Attack stat. :0

The potential problem with this is that Archeos isn't exceptionally bulky... Even if you get the opportunity to Chesto-Rest, what's gonna stop someone from knocking you back into Weak-Kneed right there that turn? :0 Seems good in theory, but I dunno if it can actually perform.

 

[WingedKnight]

The potential problem with this is that Archeos isn't exceptionally bulky... Even if you get the opportunity to Chesto-Rest, what's gonna stop someone from knocking you back into Weak-Kneed right there that turn? :0 Seems good in theory, but I dunno if it can actually perform.

That's my main concern with this set. It sounds cool on paper, but I don't know how effective it would be for the same reasons Archeos can't use set-up moves like Claw Sharpen: he gets killed way too easily.
Still as a lead or end of game cleaner, he seems to do really well. Even though I wish it wasn't there, at least Gamefreak FINALLY gave a handicap ability that doesn't utterly ruin the Pokemon.

 

[Nonary Game]

Honestly, if you want to make him work, you NEED Rapid Spin support. This one is pretty non-negotiable, especially if you're running a Choice set. His ability is the one thing that keeps him in check.

If something has priority, you MUST switch it out. Don't even chance it not using priority. There is a set I've been mucking around with lately though.

Archeos @Sitrus Berry
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 HP
Nature: Adamant
Ability: Weak-Kneed
~ Rock Polish
~ Acrobat
~ Earthquake
~ Rock Slide

Basically, the set's designed around getting a Rock Polish, outspeeding everything in the game, then sweeping. It's a basic set really.

Even then, you need to bring it in on a resist / on something that you can KO outright or force out, or just about anything other than weak neutral hits will trigger your ability/KO. His defenses really hurt him more than anything.

 

[gabezj]

what about using an endeavor/heal bell set to regain health back to the point before its ability activated? it could work with its low hp base stat and if people are already using endeavor as a last resort attack, you might as well have that last resort attack put it back where it needs to be.

 

[Chubbs]

Liking the idea of endeavour abuse creativity ln the lead set that Ryan10958 posted, would be so much better with ESpeed for the +2 priority though.

 

[JojoX3]

what about using an endeavor/heal bell set to regain health back to the point before its ability activated? it could work with its low hp base stat and if people are already using endeavor as a last resort attack, you might as well have that last resort attack put it back where it needs to be.

A neat idea actually. It still needs to watch out for priority, but it sounds appealing to me. And it´s Shell Bell, not Heal Bell.

Maybe even usable with Head Smash? I don´t know if it´s viable tough.

Archeos@Shell Bell
252Atk 252Spe 6Def // 0HP IV
Adamant/Jolly
- Endeavor
- Stone Edge/Rock Slide/Head Smash
- Earthquake
- U-Turn/Quick Attack

This could actually work, if you manage to get hit and NOT get killed. U-Turn in order to scout a bit and lure Priority users in, Quick Attack to finish endeavored foes(probably better than U-Turn here)
Not sure about Head Smash. If Shell Bell heals enough, it´s okay, I guess.

 

[gabezj]

^^ my bad about the name.
anyway, i dont think it would work with Head Smash, you would lose too much HP for it to work, the shell bell would reduce the recoil but if your goal is to counteract its ability the recoil would be counter-productive.

 

[PlatinumDude]

I personally wouldn't use Head Smash + Shell Bell on Archeos because Head Smash recoil does more damage to Archeos than Shell Bell can heal.(Head Smash deals 1/2 of the damage done as recoil and Shell Bell restores HP equal to 1/8 of the damage done by a move). Head Smash also brings Archeos down to Faint-Hearted range even faster.

 

[Granstafer]

yeah... If Archeos had rock head as an ability on the other hand...Can we say broken? gamefreak made life harder for us again by not making roost a TM anymore... otherwise, we could easily have some sort of bulky set.

 

[gabezj]

I agree about head smash. however i do think that JoJoX3's set has some merit as long as stone edge or rock slide is used over head smash. even if it cant take a hit, the shell bell can heal of SR damage, if it switches in twice, it will be at 50% and the health gained by the shell bell will easily push out of faint-hearted's effect range.

 

[Darkamber8828]

If a team with Archeos lets SR get put down, they've already got themselves a useless pokemon, Sitrus, Shell Bell, or not.

Are there merits in Blaze-Passing to this thing? It's immune to ground and resists Flying, and at +2 Attack and Speed, I'd imagine sweeping would be lulzily easy.

 

[Pentao]

I think Archeos is one Pokemon in dire need of calcs to show what it can do before and after it's ability kicks in. It's been stated that after Weak-Kneed, a Head Smash will do roughly similar damage to a Rock Slide in good health, which is definitely powerful, but having only one attack type after 50% health is pretty awful.

But seriously, Archeos has 140 Base Attack and access to some very key powerhouse attacks, like Head Smash at 150 BP, Acrobat, which has 100 (or 110) BP without an item, Stone Edge at 100 BP, as well as Earthquake, Dragon Claw, Earth Power, and Crunch. It even gets some nice moves like Knock Off, Quick Attack, Endeavor and U-Turn.

Endeavor seems like a great last ditch effort move, especially if a wall thinks it can be smug and attempt to stall it out, but my problem with it is, aside from passive damage, how are you getting under 50% HP? Anything that actually hits you directly will probably kill you outright, since Archeos isn't bulky at all (unless you EV it for HP & Sp. Def in a sandstorm, but why would you?), and thus, it may not find a good opportunity for Endeavor.

I think if one forgoes Acrobat, they leave themselves open to bulky fighting types, namely Roopushin, who enjoys the free turns to Bulk Up and Drain Punch you, as your STAB Rock-type attacks won't be effective, but at the same time, Acrobat essentially requires you to use a Rock or Flight Jewel, which means you have no means of boosting your high attack stat outside of Hone Claws, which you probably will never get a chance to use.

Archeos also has a usable, good special attack stat, but with Focus Blast being the most powerful special attack at it's disposal, it doesn't look too great. I think HP Fire should be an option on sets though, if only to try and catch Nattorei/Scizor on the switch in, as both of these Pokemon give Archeos huge headaches.

Scizor can Bullet Punch to end Archeos then and there, and if you switch out, it can Pursuit you, and while that might not OHKO you, it'll probably dent you hard enough to cripple you. However, should Scizor switch in on a boosted attack (be it Flight Jewel Acrobat, a Choice Band Stone Edge/Head Smash... perhaps even Rock Slide), it'll probably take serious damage itself. Though without a good damaging shot on Scizor as it switches in, it's really annoying to deal with, so things are pretty bad for Archeos if it comes in for a revenge kill, though if it's revenge killing, at least Archeos contributed to the team.

Nattorei gives Archeos tons of trouble too, it resists the rock-type STAB, and delivers passive damage with Iron Barbs/Thorns, Leech Seed, and it can get SR up as well. Worse yet, it'll probably OHKO you with Gyro Ball, or set up on you with Curse. It's unafraid of Acrobat (unless it's the very first Flight-Jewel boosted one, not sure how much that would do, but I don't think it'd do much over 50%), and virtually nothing Archeos has aside from Focus Blast can really dent it.

 

[WingedKnight]

I think Archeos is one Pokemon in dire need of calcs to show what it can do before and after it's ability kicks in. It's been stated that after Weak-Kneed, a Head Smash will do roughly similar damage to a Rock Slide in good health, which is definitely powerful, but having only one attack type after 50% health is pretty awful.

But seriously, Archeos has 140 Base Attack and access to some very key powerhouse attacks, like Head Smash at 150 BP, Acrobat, which has 100 (or 110) BP without an item, Stone Edge at 100 BP, as well as Earthquake, Dragon Claw, Earth Power, and Crunch. It even gets some nice moves like Knock Off, Quick Attack, Endeavor and U-Turn.

Endeavor seems like a great last ditch effort move, especially if a wall thinks it can be smug and attempt to stall it out, but my problem with it is, aside from passive damage, how are you getting under 50% HP? Anything that actually hits you directly will probably kill you outright, since Archeos isn't bulky at all (unless you EV it for HP & Sp. Def in a sandstorm, but why would you?), and thus, it may not find a good opportunity for Endeavor.

I think if one forgoes Acrobat, they leave themselves open to bulky fighting types, namely Roopushin, who enjoys the free turns to Bulk Up and Drain Punch you, as your STAB Rock-type attacks won't be effective, but at the same time, Acrobat essentially requires you to use a Rock or Flight Jewel, which means you have no means of boosting your high attack stat outside of Hone Claws, which you probably will never get a chance to use.

Archeos also has a usable, good special attack stat, but with Focus Blast being the most powerful special attack at it's disposal, it doesn't look too great. I think HP Fire should be an option on sets though, if only to try and catch Nattorei/Scizor on the switch in, as both of these Pokemon give Archeos huge headaches.

Scizor can Bullet Punch to end Archeos then and there, and if you switch out, it can Pursuit you, and while that might not OHKO you, it'll probably dent you hard enough to cripple you. However, should Scizor switch in on a boosted attack (be it Flight Jewel Acrobat, a Choice Band Stone Edge/Head Smash... perhaps even Rock Slide), it'll probably take serious damage itself. Though without a good damaging shot on Scizor as it switches in, it's really annoying to deal with, so things are pretty bad for Archeos if it comes in for a revenge kill, though if it's revenge killing, at least Archeos contributed to the team.

Nattorei gives Archeos tons of trouble too, it resists the rock-type STAB, and delivers passive damage with Iron Barbs/Thorns, Leech Seed, and it can get SR up as well. Worse yet, it'll probably OHKO you with Gyro Ball, or set up on you with Curse. It's unafraid of Acrobat (unless it's the very first Flight-Jewel boosted one, not sure how much that would do, but I don't think it'd do much over 50%), and virtually nothing Archeos has aside from Focus Blast can really dent it.

Wow. Impressive wall of text dedicated to ole Archeops (American names!). Pretty good summary. He has a really solid movepool, and obviously solid stats from the get-go. He simply doesn't have the opportunity to boost with Hone Claws, and the threats you mentioned are some of the biggest obstacles in his way. That said, Archeops is still a powerful Pokemon in lategame with the competition removed. I'm playing around with him still, and have been very successful overall. The Jewel-Acrobat seems to be his best option, unless someone has something better.
On the subject of Endeavor, it is true that it doesn't see too much use. Still, it is up there with U-turn for the best 4th moveslot. Coverage moves like Crunch and Dragon Claw, even when super effective, are weaker than STAB Acrobat, which rips though most everything.

 

[Fluffy Otters]

I think if Nattorei switched in on that first Acrobat, the second kills it (neutral to flying). Since Acrobat not only gets doubled while using the Jewl that is a 165 Base power stab attack I think which does 70.17-82.95% to Max hp/min def Nattorei and 59.66-64.2% to 352 hp/352 Def Nattorei (still 2 hit ko). Nattorei is a terrible initial switch in if it still has Flight Jewl.

Edit-I accidentally calculated that with +Atk Nature (416) instead of +Spd (379). It still is a 2 hit ko if it works like I think it does if max hp/min def Nattorei switches in but Nattorei with mixed defenses might not be 2 hit koed with Jolly nature without some sort of other damage or hazard out.

Acrobat/Earthquake/Rock Slide/Endeavor (or U-Turn) seems to be the best set really. Claw Sharpen is tough to use and priority really doesn't like you. It has a sucky ability but not quite as sucky in singles as Truant or Slow Start at least.

 

[WingedKnight]

I think if Nattorei switched in on that first Acrobat, the second kills it (neutral to flying). Since Acrobat not only gets doubled while using the Jewl that is a 165 Base power stab attack I think which does 70.17-82.95% to Max hp/min def Nattorei and 59.66-64.2% to 352 hp/352 Def Nattorei (still 2 hit ko). Nattorei is a terrible initial switch in if it still has Flight Jewl.

Edit-I accidentally calculated that with +Atk Nature (416) instead of +Spd (379). It still is a 2 hit ko if it works like I think it does if max hp/min def Nattorei switches in but Nattorei with mixed defenses might not be 2 hit koed with Jolly nature without some sort of other damage or hazard out.

Acrobat/Earthquake/Rock Slide/Endeavor (or U-Turn) seems to be the best set really. Claw Sharpen is tough to use and priority really doesn't like you. It has a sucky ability but not quite as sucky in singles as Truant or Slow Start at least.

Now I agree with the statement about comparison to Truant and Slow Start, but I have one question about your calcs. You said Acrobat is double with Flight Jewel. Did you mean the 55 bp double to 110, or the Jewel doubling, because I think the Jewel simply acts as an additional STAB modifier. Just wanted to be sure.
In my experience, Boosted Acrobat+Acrobat KOs Natty, but you need to watch out for Gyro Ball and Iron Thorns hurts. Depending on the situation it might just be better to switch out.

 

[Lork]

i was thinking a basic band set of edgequak/uturn/hp ice with naive nature and a few special attack evs would be pretty effective. lure in gliscor or come in on gliscor and garchomps earthquakes for example?

 

[tofucocoa]

You said Acrobat is double with Flight Jewel. Did you mean the 55 bp double to 110, or the Jewel doubling, because I think the Jewel simply acts as an additional STAB modifier.

It's another STAB; 110(1.5)= 165 and with Flight Gem it's ~248 BP.

 

[PlatinumDude]

i was thinking a basic band set of edgequak/uturn/hp ice with naive nature and a few special attack evs would be pretty effective. lure in gliscor or come in on gliscor and garchomps earthquakes for example?

That could work, but you need to keep SR off the field so that Archeops won't run into Defeatist range.

I haven't tried Archeops yet, but I know that Scizor screws it over really badly thanks to Bullet Punch.

 

[Nonary Game]

All things considered, Archeops would really LOVE Flamethrower or Ice Beam. He's got the SpAtk to where he wouldn't need to invest to KO it's intended targets Nattorei or Gliscor. 112 Base SpAtk is high enough to where it could OHKO Scizor, Forretress, Ferrothorn, Gliscor, and nearly every dragon. Seriously, Flamethrower would be the one move this bird needs to really do something.

Consider the things that wall him. Skarmory, Forretress, Nattorei, Gliscor, etc. All of them have a crippling Fire or Ice weakness. He's got awesome stats, he just lacks the movepool to really maximize usage of.

 

[Jaroda]

Archeops doesn't really fear Gliscor on account of it being Immune to EQ and resisting Acrobatics and Facade. Archeops can carry HP Ice if it wants to OHKO it since Poison Heal will mitigate a lot of Acrobatics' power.

 

[TheReflexWonder]

Out of curiosity, has anyone given Bug Gem a shot with this? Archeops' sheer power often causes switches, so it would allow you to scout with U-Turn and get a full-power Acrobatics the next time you come in. I'm not quite sure if this is terribly inferior to using Flying Gem or not, but it would allow you to keep up offensive presence and perhaps weaken the switch-in enough to capitalize in a way you otherwise wouldn't be able to manage.

 

[jamashawalker]

Out of curiosity, has anyone given Bug Gem a shot with this? Archeops' sheer power often causes switches, so it would allow you to scout with U-Turn and get a full-power Acrobatics the next time you come in. I'm not quite sure if this is terribly inferior to using Flying Gem or not, but it would allow you to keep up offensive presence and perhaps weaken the switch-in enough to capitalize in a way you otherwise wouldn't be able to manage.

U-turn isnt meant to be a damaging move on many pokes,with the exception of scizor and a few others. It is meant to keep the momentum on your side of play..U-turn+bug jewel will still be really weak unless its something that is weak to bug