Shadow Drapion
Attack
Defense
Stamina
Best Movesets
Analysis
Shadow Drapion has the coveted Shadow Pokemon boost, but it's still not enough to actually make this misbegotten atrocity worth using. At this stage of the game, it seems that absolutely nothing can save Drapion, regardless of what forme it takes.
Offense
- Poison Sting and Infestation perform similarly in neutral situations.
- Sludge Bomb is Drapion’s best STAB charged move
- Crunch is Drapion's second best charged move and should be paired with Bite
- Fell Stinger can pair with Infestation to make Shadow Drapion into a bug attacker, but it's not good at this role.
- Aqua Tail and Ice Fang have no offensive purpose.
Defense
- Infestation hits generally harder than Poison Sting. It’s still on par with it even against Pokemon that resist it, such as Machamp.
- Bite is superior to Poison Sting on defense, but Infestation is still the superior option.
- Ice Fang can rack up fast damage on common Dragon Type attackers
- Aqua Tail and Crunch are both 3-bar charged moves that can be tricky to dodge.
- Fell Stinger is also 3 bar, but is more widely resisted and easier to dodge.
- Sludge Bomb is more powerful, but won’t be fired as often.
Poison Sting is Drapion's best Fast Attack, sporting excellent energy generation. This enables Drapion to spam its charge moves much sooner to improve its pressure on shields. Infestation is a step down due to worse energy generation and lacking STAB.
Crunch is Drapion's most consistent STAB attack and has a nasty DEF drop chance. Aqua Tail pressures Ground-type Pokemon that would otherwise give Drapion trouble. Sludge Bomb can be used as a surprise move to hit Fairy-type Pokemon who think they are safe from Crunch and Aqua Tail, but Drapion has a tough time sacrificing either one of those two moves.
Drapion is a top-tier Pokemon in the Great League thanks to its incredible versatility and general lack of abusable weaknesses. Its spammy moveset is backed by a wide coverage; not only is Poison + Dark + Water difficult to resist, it also pressures Drapion's sole Ground weakness. This Pokemon's chokehold on the Great League meta occasionally demands specialized answers such as Gastrodon and Marowak.
Shadow Drapion tends to be preferable to regular Drapion. This is because Drapion's lightning-fast Charged Attacks outpace most Pokemon in the game. The overall reliability of Shadow Drapion's damage allows it to make excellent use of the Shadow Bonus and makes up for the bulk penalty of being a Shadow Pokemon.
