I will most likely finish this in a couple of days. I'm still trying to figure out the best possible moveset for Cursearel, but once I get that done, it'll be nice and easy to revamp everything else.
EDIT: I decided to finally get off my studying ass for a little and write this thing up. I proofread as much as I could, so I hope there's not too many mistakes.
Credit goes to Caelum for the great Cursearel set.
[SET]
name: Tauntarel
move 1: Taunt
move 2: Super Fang
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Yawn / Swagger / Thunder Wave
item: Leftovers
ability: Unaware
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 SDef
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Out of all of the Bibarel sets to choose from, this one will cause the most trouble for your opponent in both OU and UU. The point of Tauntarel is to break walls, force switches, stop sweeps, and whittle down your opponent's team for a more powerful sweeper to wreak havoc.</p>
<p>The moves Taunt and Super Fang make up the entire reason that Bibarel is such a good wall-breaker. Taunt forces the opponent to attack Bibarel. For walls, this is bad news as they cannot recover their health during this time. While their recovery is halted for 3-5 turns, Bibarel can use Super Fang to strip off 50% of their current HP, and can keep doing this until they're in Waterfall's KO range. Waterfall is simply there for STAB, and is quite reliable since only Water Absorbers like Vaporeon are immune to it.</p>
<p>The final slot offers Bibarel a status move to assist the team even more. Yawn is the best choice, as it can allow Bibarel to not only shut off a wall, but also stop an imminent sweep due to Unaware ignoring stat boosts besides Speed. Swagger may seem like an odd option, but it actually works quite well with Unaware. The way it normally works is that your opponent's Attack gets raised by 2 stages, and this applies to hitting you and hitting themselves. However, with Unaware, the +2 Attack only applies to the opponent hitting themselves, and doesn't apply when hitting Bibarel, making it a dangerous status move in Bibarel's hands. Thunder Wave is also a very good option, as it can also aid in stopping a sweep, but can help the slower sweepers on your team go first.</p>
<p>The EV spread allows Bibarel to have his optimal defenses. Max HP is a necessity on Tauntarel because it allows him to take hits very well from both sides. The Defense and Special Defense EVs, along with the Careful nature allow him to have equal defenses. It may seem odd to have no Speed EVs, but even with no Speed, Bibarel is still faster than a majority of the slow walls, and is even faster than Skarmory by just 2 points. It should be noted that with this EV spread, not even an Adamant max Attack Absol's Superpower is guaranteed a OHKO.</p>
[SET]
name: Cursearel
move 1: Curse
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Quick Attack
move 4: Return / Taunt
item: Leftovers / Silk Scarf
ability: Simple
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 48 Atk / 120 Def / 88 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Simple is a rather interesting ability and when coupled with Curse, presents a very effective combination. While Bibarel is no Snorlax, with his decent stats and Simple it can pose quite a threat even after a single Curse.</p>
<p>Waterfall and Quick Attack give impeccable coverage, and Bibarel gets STAB on both. Bibarel's access to an STAB priority move is a huge plus when using Curse, since the Speed drop from Curse will be ignored. Return is used for a more reliable Normal STAB move since Quick Attack doesn't always have the power that is needed. Taunt is a very good option in the final slot to prevent pseudo-hazing.</p>
<p>Amnesia is usable in the final slot to buff his Special Defense in the process. Silk Scarf is a plausible option over Leftovers to power up your STAB Quick Attack, but the small recovery from Leftovers can aid in Bibarel setting up.</p>
<p>The given EVs allow you to survive a Jolly Hitmonlee's Life Orb Close Combat after a Curse, who is easily OHKO'd in return with a Curse Waterfall. The implication of this is that Bibarel should be able to survive any unboosted physical hit, sans Choice Band Close Combats, after a Curse. The Special Defense EVs allow Bibarel to survive a Timid Rotom's Thunderbolt on average, which leaves healthy Special Defensive abilities for Bibarel in UU. The remaining EVs are delegated to Attack as investing a small amount in Attack is recommended; however, investing the remaining EVs in Special Defense is a decent option as well. If you opt to use this in OU you'll want to pump Attack EVs. In OU, Bibarel will not nearly have the defenses to gather several Curses like he can in UU, meaning that he needs as much Attack as possible to hit hard right after a single Curse.</p>
[SET]
name: Bulky Beaver
move 1: Super Fang
move 2: Amnesia
move 3: Return
move 4: Waterfall
item: Leftovers
ability: Simple
nature: Impish
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Atk
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Unlike the last set, this set aims to abuse Bibarel's second ability - Simple. This set doesn't necessarily focus on wall-breaking, but does focus on making Bibarel a tank. It should be noted that this set works much better in UU than in OU, as a lot of the hard-hitters in OU can still break through Bibarel's Special Defense after a boost.</p>
<p>The reason that this set can support itself as a tank is Amnesia. Thanks to Simple's ability to double any stat boosts that are received, Amnesia's +2 SDef boost is raised to a +4 SDef boost after just one use. If you don't know, that means that with just one use, Amnesia triples Bibarel's Special Defense to 468, making him a very potent tank.</p>
<p>Super Fang helps Bibarel bypass his average offenses and allows him to be a very dangerous tank, since he can destroy other walls and still support the team. Return and Waterfall both receive STAB, and are resisted only by Shedinja and Empoleon. The good coverage allows him to tank even better, as he can finish off opponents with ease after one or two uses of Super Fang as long as the attacking move is not resisted.</p>
<p>The EV spread is very straightforward. Max HP and max Defense allows Bibarel to take physical hits quite well, letting him take hits from both sides of offense as Amnesia is beefing up his Special Defense.</p>
[SET]
name: Simple Beam
move 1: Charge Beam
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Surf
move 4: Grass Knot / Super Fang
item: Leftovers / Expert Belt / Life Orb
ability: Simple
nature: Modest
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Bibarel may have an awful Special Attack stat, but this set is no gimmick. The reason is that Charge Beam and Simple complement each other perfectly. Whevener Charge Beam hits, Simple makes it so that there's a 70% chance of receiving a +2 Special Attack boost. This means that after one Charge Beam, Bibarel's pathetic 229 Special Attack can be raised to a respectable 458 in the blink of an eye.</p>
<p>Surf is a good STAB attack, while Ice Beam and Grass Knot provide more coverage. Super Fang is also a good option if you plan to use this in OU, because Blissey will wall this to no end, and even in UU, Lanturn will destroy this set without it.</p>
<p>Item choice is all up to preference. Leftovers can provide Bibarel with a little bit of healing, and is especially useful if he's facing off against a wall so that he can actually win one-on-one. Expert Belt is a good choice as well, because this set does happen to hit quite a few foes for super effective damage. Life Orb can work as well to help compensate for Bibarel's low initial Special Attack; however, it is not recommended if you have Super Fang, as it will ruin Bibarel's ability to take down walls.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Return
move 2: Waterfall / Aqua Tail
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Choice Band
ability: Unaware
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Since Bibarel only has base 85 Attack, a Choice Band can help him dish out powerful hits without the need for a Curse. The main reason to use this set is Unaware's ability to hit through defense boosts, and Bibarel's great type coverage.</p>
<p>Return and Waterfall/Aqua Tail work as great STAB attacks, and as mentioned several times already, have incredible coverage that is only resisted by Empoleon and Shedinja in OU. Whether Bibarel uses Aqua Tail or Waterfall is completely up to preference. As usual, Waterfall is the preferred option due to 100% accuracy and a possible flinch, but Aqua Tail is usable for the extra punch. Superpower is there to complement the type coverage even more, and it takes care of Empoleon, making Shedinja the only one to resist this set's coverage. Quick Attack is especially useful in UU, where priority is important due to the offensive nature of the tier. Getting the jump on your opponent from an Attack score of 442 can end their sweep and potentially save your team. Quick Attack also helps to bypass Bibarel's mediocre Speed, which is a big plus.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>If Bibarel has the ability Simple, Pluck is an okay option. If you can steal a berry, the boost will be doubled, which can come in handy. It can also be used on the Choice Band set over Quick Attack to OHKO Heracross and Breloom on the switch, but it isn't a very good move in UU.</p>
<p>Stealth Rock is a good option on either Tauntarel (over a statusing move), or Bulky Beaver (over Return or Waterfall). However, it is not recommended, as it takes away something vital from each set.</p>
<p>With Unaware, Swagger, and Thunder Wave, Bibarel can use Headbutt or Hyper Fang to make a parafusion flinching set. Headbutt is recommended over Hyper Fang due to better accuracy and flinch chance though.</p>
[EVs]
<p>On a defensive set where there is no bias toward a particular defense, Bibarel's HP should be maxed out, and he should have equal defenses. On a set where there is a bias, such as Bulky Beaver, max out HP, and then max out the defense that's not getting a boost.</p>
<p>On offensive sets, max out Speed, and max out the offensive stat that your set corresponds with. Use a nature that raises Attack or Special Attack, not Speed. Bibarel will not outspeed anything of note with a Speed raising nature, and the Speed is therefore wasted.</p>
<p>On a set such as the Curse set, it is a mix of offense and defense, and therefore should have a mix of both offensive and defensive EVs, with HP being the most important stat.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Bibarel is one of the few Pokemon whose stats are generally considered to be very low, but is actually usable in all tiers. In return for his industrious nature, he received Super Fang and Curse, which are his two saving graces in today's metagame. In OU, Super Fang and Curse are generally required in one way or the other, or Bibarel WILL be outclassed. In UU, he can work without them, but either of the two moves are still highly recommended. These two moves allow Bibarel to be used to his fullest potential, and will show his opponents the consequences of battling a Canadian menace.</p>
[Counters]
<p>It is surprisingly difficult to switch into Bibarel, as a majority of switch-ins fear a Super Fang or a status move. Once they actually are in though, it's really not that hard to force Bibarel out.</p>
<p>Most Electric-types work well. Lanturn does a good job here as his high HP helps him take Returns so that he can bring down Bibarel with a Thunderbolt. Lanturn does hate Super Fang though, as he has no reliable recovery.</p>
<p>Grass-types in any tier are going to mess up Bibarel quite badly. However, if they rely on Grass Knot as their STAB, they will still have to watch out for Bulky Beaver, as Grass Knot is only 60 base power against Bibarel, and will do very little once he has an Amnesia up. Again, they must still watch out for Super Fang, as most of them have very poor recovery moves, if any.</p>
<p>Ghost-types are by far the best switch-in, as they're immune to Super Fang, meaning the most that Bibarel can do is status them. Bibarel is in a lot of trouble if he faces Rotom or Rotom-Appliance as an STAB Thunderbolt from either of them is most likely the end for him. Gengar does the same thing as well, except without STAB obviously. Dusknoir is by far the best counter for Bibarel, as it is immune to Super Fang, and generally only cares about getting Yawned or Swaggered, while other Ghosts fear Thunder Wave.</p>
EDIT: I decided to finally get off my studying ass for a little and write this thing up. I proofread as much as I could, so I hope there's not too many mistakes.
Credit goes to Caelum for the great Cursearel set.
[SET]
name: Tauntarel
move 1: Taunt
move 2: Super Fang
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Yawn / Swagger / Thunder Wave
item: Leftovers
ability: Unaware
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 SDef
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Out of all of the Bibarel sets to choose from, this one will cause the most trouble for your opponent in both OU and UU. The point of Tauntarel is to break walls, force switches, stop sweeps, and whittle down your opponent's team for a more powerful sweeper to wreak havoc.</p>
<p>The moves Taunt and Super Fang make up the entire reason that Bibarel is such a good wall-breaker. Taunt forces the opponent to attack Bibarel. For walls, this is bad news as they cannot recover their health during this time. While their recovery is halted for 3-5 turns, Bibarel can use Super Fang to strip off 50% of their current HP, and can keep doing this until they're in Waterfall's KO range. Waterfall is simply there for STAB, and is quite reliable since only Water Absorbers like Vaporeon are immune to it.</p>
<p>The final slot offers Bibarel a status move to assist the team even more. Yawn is the best choice, as it can allow Bibarel to not only shut off a wall, but also stop an imminent sweep due to Unaware ignoring stat boosts besides Speed. Swagger may seem like an odd option, but it actually works quite well with Unaware. The way it normally works is that your opponent's Attack gets raised by 2 stages, and this applies to hitting you and hitting themselves. However, with Unaware, the +2 Attack only applies to the opponent hitting themselves, and doesn't apply when hitting Bibarel, making it a dangerous status move in Bibarel's hands. Thunder Wave is also a very good option, as it can also aid in stopping a sweep, but can help the slower sweepers on your team go first.</p>
<p>The EV spread allows Bibarel to have his optimal defenses. Max HP is a necessity on Tauntarel because it allows him to take hits very well from both sides. The Defense and Special Defense EVs, along with the Careful nature allow him to have equal defenses. It may seem odd to have no Speed EVs, but even with no Speed, Bibarel is still faster than a majority of the slow walls, and is even faster than Skarmory by just 2 points. It should be noted that with this EV spread, not even an Adamant max Attack Absol's Superpower is guaranteed a OHKO.</p>
[SET]
name: Cursearel
move 1: Curse
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Quick Attack
move 4: Return / Taunt
item: Leftovers / Silk Scarf
ability: Simple
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 48 Atk / 120 Def / 88 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Simple is a rather interesting ability and when coupled with Curse, presents a very effective combination. While Bibarel is no Snorlax, with his decent stats and Simple it can pose quite a threat even after a single Curse.</p>
<p>Waterfall and Quick Attack give impeccable coverage, and Bibarel gets STAB on both. Bibarel's access to an STAB priority move is a huge plus when using Curse, since the Speed drop from Curse will be ignored. Return is used for a more reliable Normal STAB move since Quick Attack doesn't always have the power that is needed. Taunt is a very good option in the final slot to prevent pseudo-hazing.</p>
<p>Amnesia is usable in the final slot to buff his Special Defense in the process. Silk Scarf is a plausible option over Leftovers to power up your STAB Quick Attack, but the small recovery from Leftovers can aid in Bibarel setting up.</p>
<p>The given EVs allow you to survive a Jolly Hitmonlee's Life Orb Close Combat after a Curse, who is easily OHKO'd in return with a Curse Waterfall. The implication of this is that Bibarel should be able to survive any unboosted physical hit, sans Choice Band Close Combats, after a Curse. The Special Defense EVs allow Bibarel to survive a Timid Rotom's Thunderbolt on average, which leaves healthy Special Defensive abilities for Bibarel in UU. The remaining EVs are delegated to Attack as investing a small amount in Attack is recommended; however, investing the remaining EVs in Special Defense is a decent option as well. If you opt to use this in OU you'll want to pump Attack EVs. In OU, Bibarel will not nearly have the defenses to gather several Curses like he can in UU, meaning that he needs as much Attack as possible to hit hard right after a single Curse.</p>
[SET]
name: Bulky Beaver
move 1: Super Fang
move 2: Amnesia
move 3: Return
move 4: Waterfall
item: Leftovers
ability: Simple
nature: Impish
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Atk
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Unlike the last set, this set aims to abuse Bibarel's second ability - Simple. This set doesn't necessarily focus on wall-breaking, but does focus on making Bibarel a tank. It should be noted that this set works much better in UU than in OU, as a lot of the hard-hitters in OU can still break through Bibarel's Special Defense after a boost.</p>
<p>The reason that this set can support itself as a tank is Amnesia. Thanks to Simple's ability to double any stat boosts that are received, Amnesia's +2 SDef boost is raised to a +4 SDef boost after just one use. If you don't know, that means that with just one use, Amnesia triples Bibarel's Special Defense to 468, making him a very potent tank.</p>
<p>Super Fang helps Bibarel bypass his average offenses and allows him to be a very dangerous tank, since he can destroy other walls and still support the team. Return and Waterfall both receive STAB, and are resisted only by Shedinja and Empoleon. The good coverage allows him to tank even better, as he can finish off opponents with ease after one or two uses of Super Fang as long as the attacking move is not resisted.</p>
<p>The EV spread is very straightforward. Max HP and max Defense allows Bibarel to take physical hits quite well, letting him take hits from both sides of offense as Amnesia is beefing up his Special Defense.</p>
[SET]
name: Simple Beam
move 1: Charge Beam
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Surf
move 4: Grass Knot / Super Fang
item: Leftovers / Expert Belt / Life Orb
ability: Simple
nature: Modest
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Bibarel may have an awful Special Attack stat, but this set is no gimmick. The reason is that Charge Beam and Simple complement each other perfectly. Whevener Charge Beam hits, Simple makes it so that there's a 70% chance of receiving a +2 Special Attack boost. This means that after one Charge Beam, Bibarel's pathetic 229 Special Attack can be raised to a respectable 458 in the blink of an eye.</p>
<p>Surf is a good STAB attack, while Ice Beam and Grass Knot provide more coverage. Super Fang is also a good option if you plan to use this in OU, because Blissey will wall this to no end, and even in UU, Lanturn will destroy this set without it.</p>
<p>Item choice is all up to preference. Leftovers can provide Bibarel with a little bit of healing, and is especially useful if he's facing off against a wall so that he can actually win one-on-one. Expert Belt is a good choice as well, because this set does happen to hit quite a few foes for super effective damage. Life Orb can work as well to help compensate for Bibarel's low initial Special Attack; however, it is not recommended if you have Super Fang, as it will ruin Bibarel's ability to take down walls.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Return
move 2: Waterfall / Aqua Tail
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Quick Attack
item: Choice Band
ability: Unaware
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Since Bibarel only has base 85 Attack, a Choice Band can help him dish out powerful hits without the need for a Curse. The main reason to use this set is Unaware's ability to hit through defense boosts, and Bibarel's great type coverage.</p>
<p>Return and Waterfall/Aqua Tail work as great STAB attacks, and as mentioned several times already, have incredible coverage that is only resisted by Empoleon and Shedinja in OU. Whether Bibarel uses Aqua Tail or Waterfall is completely up to preference. As usual, Waterfall is the preferred option due to 100% accuracy and a possible flinch, but Aqua Tail is usable for the extra punch. Superpower is there to complement the type coverage even more, and it takes care of Empoleon, making Shedinja the only one to resist this set's coverage. Quick Attack is especially useful in UU, where priority is important due to the offensive nature of the tier. Getting the jump on your opponent from an Attack score of 442 can end their sweep and potentially save your team. Quick Attack also helps to bypass Bibarel's mediocre Speed, which is a big plus.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>If Bibarel has the ability Simple, Pluck is an okay option. If you can steal a berry, the boost will be doubled, which can come in handy. It can also be used on the Choice Band set over Quick Attack to OHKO Heracross and Breloom on the switch, but it isn't a very good move in UU.</p>
<p>Stealth Rock is a good option on either Tauntarel (over a statusing move), or Bulky Beaver (over Return or Waterfall). However, it is not recommended, as it takes away something vital from each set.</p>
<p>With Unaware, Swagger, and Thunder Wave, Bibarel can use Headbutt or Hyper Fang to make a parafusion flinching set. Headbutt is recommended over Hyper Fang due to better accuracy and flinch chance though.</p>
[EVs]
<p>On a defensive set where there is no bias toward a particular defense, Bibarel's HP should be maxed out, and he should have equal defenses. On a set where there is a bias, such as Bulky Beaver, max out HP, and then max out the defense that's not getting a boost.</p>
<p>On offensive sets, max out Speed, and max out the offensive stat that your set corresponds with. Use a nature that raises Attack or Special Attack, not Speed. Bibarel will not outspeed anything of note with a Speed raising nature, and the Speed is therefore wasted.</p>
<p>On a set such as the Curse set, it is a mix of offense and defense, and therefore should have a mix of both offensive and defensive EVs, with HP being the most important stat.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Bibarel is one of the few Pokemon whose stats are generally considered to be very low, but is actually usable in all tiers. In return for his industrious nature, he received Super Fang and Curse, which are his two saving graces in today's metagame. In OU, Super Fang and Curse are generally required in one way or the other, or Bibarel WILL be outclassed. In UU, he can work without them, but either of the two moves are still highly recommended. These two moves allow Bibarel to be used to his fullest potential, and will show his opponents the consequences of battling a Canadian menace.</p>
[Counters]
<p>It is surprisingly difficult to switch into Bibarel, as a majority of switch-ins fear a Super Fang or a status move. Once they actually are in though, it's really not that hard to force Bibarel out.</p>
<p>Most Electric-types work well. Lanturn does a good job here as his high HP helps him take Returns so that he can bring down Bibarel with a Thunderbolt. Lanturn does hate Super Fang though, as he has no reliable recovery.</p>
<p>Grass-types in any tier are going to mess up Bibarel quite badly. However, if they rely on Grass Knot as their STAB, they will still have to watch out for Bulky Beaver, as Grass Knot is only 60 base power against Bibarel, and will do very little once he has an Amnesia up. Again, they must still watch out for Super Fang, as most of them have very poor recovery moves, if any.</p>
<p>Ghost-types are by far the best switch-in, as they're immune to Super Fang, meaning the most that Bibarel can do is status them. Bibarel is in a lot of trouble if he faces Rotom or Rotom-Appliance as an STAB Thunderbolt from either of them is most likely the end for him. Gengar does the same thing as well, except without STAB obviously. Dusknoir is by far the best counter for Bibarel, as it is immune to Super Fang, and generally only cares about getting Yawned or Swaggered, while other Ghosts fear Thunder Wave.</p>
