Everything about RBY Speed [QC 3/3] [GP 2/2] [HTML-ready]

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Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
Approved by shiny finder
This article is intended to combine this and this while improving the source material.

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Upscaled artwork by Fleckaben, Diego Pozo, and Xygodactyl. Shiny finder approved using this.

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Introduction
jolteon.png

As is the case with any Pokemon game, Speed is arguably the most important stat; going first gives you the initiative, giving you the most control over the game in many situations. In the primitive world of RBY, however, many of the staple Speed changing options you see today—such as Choice Scarf, Tailwind, Trick Room, and Sticky Web—simply do not exist. Not only that, Speed works a bit differently in these games, being linked to the critical hit mechanic and the interesting workings behind paralysis. Understanding the ins and outs of this stat is pivotal to succeeding in Pokemon as a whole, not just RBY, so let's go ahead and get right into it.

Critical Hit Mechanics
persian.png

The first thing to understand about RBY is that critical hit rates are determined through your base Speed. There's a common misconception that they're determined by current Speed, which is false, so boosting with Agility will not influence your chance for a critical hit. Therefore, outside of a few attacks that can influence the formula, such as Slash, critical hit rates are consistent for a given Pokemon. Some Pokemon, such as Kingler and Persian, are heavily designed around making the best use of this mechanic. Your base critical hit rate is calculated with Base Speed * 100 / 512; applied to the fastest and slowest Pokemon in the game, this gives Electrode a 27.3% critical hit rate, and Slowpoke gets a 2.9% critical hit rate.

As aforementioned, some attacks will influence your critical hit rate: high critical hit rate moves and Focus Energy.

The "high-crit" moves include Slash, Karate Chop, Razor Leaf, and Crabhammer, which all multiply your critical hit rate by 8, making the formula Base Speed * 100 / 64. Because of this, almost every Pokemon in the game will get an extremely high critical hit rate, though it can't go beyond 99.6%. In practice, this effect effectively doubles the Base Power of each of these moves, making them incredible STAB options that give their users immediate offensive potential. For example, Kingler's Crabhammer can be treated as a 180 Base Power STAB move, largely making up for its decidedly poor Special stat.

scyther.png

Focus Energy, on the other hand, isn't so fortunate. Due to a programming flaw, it makes the formula Base Speed * 100 / 2048, quartering the user's chance for a critical hit until they switch. Preventing critical hits is often very counterproductive, but there are some minor applications. The damage dealt by a critical hit at L100 is 1.95x and ignores your boosts, so it amounts to less than a typical +2 boost. As a result, lowering the chance for a critical hit can help make a sweep more consistent. However, spending a moveslot and a turn to pull this off is absurd and oftentimes not something the few compatible Pokemon can afford. If put together, Focus Energy and a high-crit move will make the formula Base Speed * 100 / 256, leaving the user with a doubled critical hit rate. This move was later fixed in Stadium, which we'll go over later!

Critical hits will ignore all stat changes from both parties when they land, including the Attack drop from being burned. So, for example, a +2 Slash will hit like a +0 Slash if used by a Pokemon like Persian. In the same vein, Jolteon landing a critical hit Thunderbolt will ignore a +2 Amnesia Slowbro or Snorlax. This further extends to Reflect and Light Screen, so a Reflect Chansey is not immune to being OHKOed by a critical hit Hyper Beam from Tauros. Thanks to this mechanic, high-crit moves are excellent for smashing through Pokemon with boosted defenses, a common sight on Snorlax and Chansey in RBY OU and Ubers.

Here is a small role compendium of Pokemon that get moves that alter their critical hit rates. For high-crit moves, they are sorted by strength from left to right, factoring in STAB and including only fully evolved Pokemon. Focus Energy is sorted alphabetically. Moves learned through Tradebacks are separated by a vertical bar.
  • Slash: :persian::farfetchd::pinsir::kabutops::scyther::sandslash::parasect::charizard::dugtrio:
  • Karate Chop: :machamp::primeape: | :magmar::electabuzz:
  • Razor Leaf: :victreebel::venusaur: | :vileplume:
  • Crabhammer: :kingler:
  • Focus Energy: :beedrill::flareon::hitmonlee::jolteon::machamp::marowak::nidoking::pinsir::primeape::raticate::scyther::vaporeon: | :kangaskhan::nidoqueen:

Pokemon Stadium changed things up a bit with critical hits. For starters, the formula was changed to ((Base Speed + 76) / 1024) * 100, which shapes up to increasing the critical hit rates of Pokemon with Speed stats of 65 or lower, and decreasing it for those above. For example, Snorlax will have its critical hit rate raised from 5.86% to 10%, while Tauros goes from 21.48% to 18%. Additionally, critical hit rates now cap at 99% and are rounded down. Considering the majority of RBY OU is relatively slow, contrary to popular belief, critical hits are arguably more common. This increased critical hit frequency can also be seen with the high-crit moves, having their formula changed to ((Base Speed + 76) / 128) * 100, which makes Pokemon with 55 base Speed reach the 99% cap, rather than 65.

nidoking.png

Pokemon Stadium also famously fixed Focus Energy, making the formula ((Base Speed + 76 ) / 128) * 100. Together with high-crit moves, this becomes ((Base Speed + 236 ) / 64) * 100, which makes every single Pokemon get a 99% critical hit chance, though this combined effect doesn't help any fully evolved Pokemon. The fix to Focus Energy helps many Pokemon, especially Jolteon and Nidoking, which can fire off critical hits more than 50% of the time when active. For Jolteon in particular, Focus Energy helps it win much more consistently against Chansey when using Double Kick, and even Rhydon fears switching in when at around half HP.


Making Use of Speed
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Due to the lack of items and many variables that increase Speed in modern games, a fast Pokemon will almost always have the initiative. You're not going to see Starmie outspeed Jolteon without doing something to lower its Speed first, be it through Thunder Wave or the suboptimal Bubble Beam. This consistency is part of what makes Tauros so dominant: once the few Pokemon that outspeed it are paralyzed, it's simply a case of putting the opposing team in Hyper Beam range for it to win. Ergo, many Pokemon gain significant increases in viability if they can cripple it; these include Pokemon like Starmie, Jolteon, and Alakazam. Those that can't get Thunder Wave off by outspeeding it are bulky enough to stomach a blow, like Slowbro and Zapdos. It's not uncommon to see Thunder Wave thrown around a lot because of its high distribution and near-perfect accuracy, allowing for many Pokemon to often permanently incapacitate their foes. Avoiding paralysis through switching in Ground-types or already-statused Pokemon is pivotal to succeeding in RBY.

Boosting and Reducing Speed
Because of the lack of Sticky Web, Tailwind, Choice Scarf, and other variables, raising and decreasing Speed is limited to manually doing so. This makes controlling Speed fairly difficult and largely reserved to using paralysis.

RBY features only a single move that raises Speed in Agility, which is found on many Pokemon, particularly the legendary birds. Thanks to the way the game handles boosting stats, Agility completely cures the Speed drop inflicted by paralysis upon use. As a result, this move is extremely helpful for maintaining an advantage in Speed and finds its way into many sweeper sets. On the flip side, there are three moves that lower Speed in RBY: Bubble, Bubble Beam, and String Shot. Out of these, only Bubble Beam sees large distribution, and even it rarely sees use. Keep in mind that increases and decreases in Speed do not influence a Pokemon's critical hit rate!

Paralysis is a bit easier to spread, mainly thanks to the wide distribution of Thunder Wave and Body Slam. Other moves that inflict paralysis include Glare, Lick, Thunder, Thunderbolt, Thunder Punch, Thunder Shock, and Stun Spore. It should be noted that Normal-types are immune to paralysis from Body Slam, which is an important method of staving it off; this is a large part of why Pokemon like Snorlax and Chansey see so much usage, especially with Reflect. Because of Body Slam and Thunder Wave being the most popular options and Glare being on the largely unviable Arbok, paralyzing Ground-types like Rhydon is very difficult. To viably paralyze them, you need either the difficult-to-fit Stun Spore or some luck with Body Slam. As a result of this, using Ground-types is important counterplay to Speed control, since many fast Pokemon, even Tauros, become virtually unusable when paralyzed.

Paralysis, along with burn, is subject to the stat reapplication glitch. This means that, if the opposing Pokemon uses a stat-raising move like Swords Dance, the stat drop of your Pokemon's status is reapplied. For example, if a Starmie with 328 Speed were to be paralyzed, it would first drop to 82 as normal. If an opposing Kabutops were to use Swords Dance, though, it would drop further to a mere 20 Speed. This glitch can be helpful in the event both Pokemon are paralyzed, as it enables the setup Pokemon to gain the upper hand. In Ubers, this glitch can be applied against a paralyzed Mewtwo before your setup Pokemon is KOed, potentially forcing it out with your next Pokemon. The stat drop from paralysis doesn't go away when using Rest either, which can lead to interesting interactions. For example, Jolteon can use Rest to shake off paralysis, but the Speed drop still remains. If it's paralyzed again, the drops will stack, leaving it outsped by even a paralyzed Snorlax. In a similar—albeit different—vein, if Jolteon were to get paralyzed on the turn it uses Rest, its Speed would drop to 1/16, just 22 Speed.

Here's a role compendium for the aforementioned moves amongst fully evolved Pokemon, ordered alphabetically. Moves learned through Tradebacks are separated by a vertical bar, and offensive moves have their effect chances noted in brackets.
  • Speed Modifiers:
    • Agility (+2): :aerodactyl::arcanine::articuno::beedrill::dodrio::dragonite::farfetchd::fearow::hitmonchan::jolteon::moltres::pidgeot::porygon::raichu::rapidash::scyther::seadra::seaking::zapdos: | :electrode::magneton:
    • Bubble (-1, 33.2%): :blastoise::kingler::poliwrath::seadra: | :gyarados:
    • Bubble Beam (-1, 33.2%): :articuno::blastoise::chansey::clefable::cloyster::dewgong::dragonite::golduck::gyarados::jynx::kabutops::kangaskhan::kingler::lapras::lickitung::marowak::mew::mewtwo::nidoking::nidoqueen::omastar::persian::poliwrath::raticate::rhydon::seadra::seaking::slowbro::snorlax::starmie::tentacruel::vaporeon::wigglytuff:
    • Constrict (-1, 33.2%): :tangela::tentacruel: | :omastar:
    • String Shot (-1): :beedrill::butterfree:
  • Paralysis:
    • Body Slam (30.1%): :alakazam::arbok::arcanine::blastoise::chansey::charizard::clefable::dewgong::dodrio::dragonite::dugtrio::electabuzz::farfetchd::flareon::gengar::golduck::golem::gyarados::hitmonchan::hitmonlee::hypno::jolteon::jynx::kabutops::kangaskhan::kingler::lapras::lickitung::machamp::magmar::marowak::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::ninetales::omastar::onix::parasect::persian::pinsir::poliwrath::primeape::raichu::rapidash::raticate::rhydon::sandslash::slowbro::snorlax::tangela::tauros::vaporeon::venusaur::victreebel::vileplume::wigglytuff:
    • Glare: :arbok:
    • Lick (30.1%): :gengar::jynx: | :dewgong::lickitung::muk::snorlax:
    • Thunder (10.2%): :chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::gengar::gyarados::jolteon::kangaskhan::lapras::lickitung::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::persian::porygon::primeape::raichu::raticate::rhydon::snorlax::starmie::tauros::weezing::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Thunderbolt (10.2%): :chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::gengar::gyarados::jolteon::kangaskhan::lapras::lickitung::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::persian::porygon::primeape::raichu::raticate::rhydon::snorlax::starmie::tauros::weezing::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Thunder Punch (10.2%): :electabuzz::hitmonchan: | :alakazam::clefable::gengar::hypno::kangaskhan::lickitung::machamp::marowak::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::rhydon::snorlax::wigglytuff:
    • Thunder Shock (10.2%): :electabuzz::jolteon::magneton::raichu::zapdos:
    • Thunder Wave: :alakazam::chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::hypno::jolteon::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::porygon::raichu::slowbro::starmie::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Stun Spore: :butterfree::exeggutor::parasect::tangela::venomoth::victreebel::vileplume:

Partial Trapping
The notorious partial trapping mechanics in RBY benefit from Speed, as being faster than an opposing Pokemon can allow the user to "loop" them and force them to wait for a miss. Remember that the partial-trapping moves are Wrap, Bind, Fire Spin, and Clamp. The main counterplay to this is switching in a Pokemon that's faster, which consumes the partial trapper's PP and leaves them in a position to be attacked once the move ends. Both parties can switch, though, which creates a lot of potential for mind games. As one would expect, Agility makes these moves particularly potent, removing any counterplay the opponent has outside of PP stalling or hoping for a miss.

Here is a role compendium showing Pokemon that learn these moves, ordered alphabetically. Moves and combinations gained through Tradebacks are separated by a vertical bar.
  • Bind: :onix::pinsir::tangela:
  • Clamp: :cloyster:
  • Fire Spin: :charizard::flareon::moltres::ninetales::rapidash: | :arcanine:
  • Wrap: :arbok::dragonite::lickitung::tentacruel::victreebel:
  • Agility + Fire Spin: :moltres::rapidash: | :arcanine:
  • Agility + Wrap: :dragonite:


Speed Tiers & Critical Hit Rates

All (Speed list, ordered by Pokedex Number)
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Bulbasaur451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Ivysaur6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Venusaur8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Charmander6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Charmeleon8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Charizard10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Squirtle431848.40%67.19%2.10%16.80%11%54%92%99%
Wartortle5821411.33%90.63%2.83%22.66%13%57%99%99%
Blastoise7825415.23%99.90%3.81%30.47%15%61%99%99%
Caterpie451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Metapod301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Butterfree7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Weedle501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Kakuna351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Beedrill7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Pidgey5621010.94%87.50%2.73%21.88%12%57%99%99%
Pidgeotto7124013.87%99.90%3.47%27.73%14%59%99%99%
Pidgeot9128017.77%99.90%4.44%35.55%16%63%99%99%
Rattata7224214.06%99.90%3.52%28.13%14%60%99%99%
Raticate9729218.95%99.90%4.74%37.89%16%65%99%99%
Spearow7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Fearow10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Ekans5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Arbok8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Pikachu9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Raichu10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Sandshrew401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Sandslash6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Nidoran-F411808.01%64.06%2.00%16.02%11%54%91%99%
Nidorina5621010.94%87.50%2.73%21.88%12%57%99%99%
Nidoqueen7625014.84%99.90%3.71%29.69%14%60%99%99%
Nidoran-M501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Nidorino6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Nidoking8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Clefairy351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Clefable6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Vulpix6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Ninetales10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Jigglypuff201383.91%31.25%0.98%7.81%9%50%75%99%
Wigglytuff451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Zubat5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Golbat9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Oddish301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Gloom401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Vileplume501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Paras251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Parasect301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Venonat451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Venomoth9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Diglett9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Dugtrio12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%69%99%99%
Meowth9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%18%68%99%99%
Psyduck5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Golduck8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Mankey7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Primeape9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Growlithe6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Arcanine9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Poliwag9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Poliwhirl9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Poliwrath7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Abra9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Kadabra10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Alakazam12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%69%99%99%
Machop351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Machoke451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Machamp5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Bellsprout401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Weepinbell5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Victreebel7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Tentacool7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Tentacruel10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Geodude201383.91%31.25%0.98%7.81%9%50%75%99%
Graveler351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Ponyta9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Rapidash10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Slowpoke151282.93%23.44%0.73%5.86%8%49%71%99%
Slowbro301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Magnemite451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Magneton7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Farfetch'd6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Doduo7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Dodrio10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Seel451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Dewgong7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Grimer251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Muk501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Shellder401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Cloyster7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Gastly8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Haunter9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Gengar11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%67%99%99%
Onix7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Drowzee421828.20%65.63%2.05%16.41%11%54%92%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%13%59%99%99%
Krabby501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Kingler7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Voltorb10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Electrode14037827.34%99.90%6.84%54.69%21%73%99%99%
Exeggcute401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Exeggutor5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Cubone351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Marowak451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Hitmonlee8727216.99%99.90%4.25%33.98%15%63%99%99%
Hitmonchan7625014.84%99.90%3.71%29.69%14%60%99%99%
Lickitung301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Koffing351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Weezing6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Rhyhorn251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Rhydon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Chansey501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Tangela6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Horsea6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Seadra8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Goldeen6322412.30%98.44%3.08%24.61%13%58%99%99%
Seaking6823413.28%99.90%3.32%26.56%14%59%99%99%
Staryu8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Starmie11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%18%68%99%99%
Mr. Mime9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Scyther10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Jynx9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Electabuzz10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Magmar9328418.16%99.90%4.54%36.33%16%64%99%99%
Pinsir8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Tauros11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%67%99%99%
Magikarp8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Gyarados8126015.82%99.90%3.96%31.64%15%61%99%99%
Lapras6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Ditto481949.38%75.00%2.34%18.75%12%55%96%99%
Eevee5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Vaporeon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Jolteon13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Flareon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Porygon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Omanyte351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Omastar5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Kabuto5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Kabutops8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Aerodactyl13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Snorlax301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Zapdos10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Moltres9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Dratini501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Dragonair7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Mewtwo13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Mew10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%


OU Speed Tiers
This lists Pokemon from S-D on the 2020 Viability Rankings.
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Jolteon13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%99%71%99%
Alakazam12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%99%70%99%
Starmie11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Tauros11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%99%68%99%
Gengar11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%99%68%99%
Zapdos10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Jynx9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%17%99%65%99%
Moltres9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%16%99%63%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Kingler7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%15%99%61%99%
Victreebel7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Cloyster7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%14%99%59%99%
Sandslash6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%14%99%59%99%
Lapras6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%99%58%99%
Exeggutor5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%13%99%57%99%
Chansey501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%98%56%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%12%95%55%99%
Rhydon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%91%54%99%
Porygon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%91%54%99%
Slowbro301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%83%52%99%
Snorlax301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%83%52%99%

UU Speed Tiers
This lists Pokemon from S-C on the April 2021 Viability Rankings.
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Aerodactyl13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%99%71%99%
Dugtrio12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%99%70%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Kadabra10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%18%99%67%99%
Electabuzz10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%18%99%67%99%
Raichu10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Tentacruel10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Dodrio10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Raticate9729218.95%99.90%4.74%37.89%17%99%65%99%
Haunter9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%17%99%65%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%16%99%63%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Venusaur8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Gyarados8126015.82%99.90%3.96%31.64%15%99%62%99%
Poliwrath7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Dewgong7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%14%99%59%99%
Vaporeon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%14%99%59%99%
Tangela6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%99%58%99%
Omastar5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%13%99%57%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%12%95%55%99%
 
Last edited:

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
This is now ready for QC. In the end, I put the Stadium changes in the bit about critical hits, since that's all it changes. I also chose to make a Speed List for "All" Pokemon rather than tiers, as Speed Tiers only really apply to formats. I went with OU and UU for formats, since they're the most stable and Ubers kind of explains itself. I used S-D rank on the VR for OU and S-C rank for UU, as they are the most stable ranks, but we could cut it down to just OU/UU-tiered Pokemon if that's seen as more important.

Main issue right now is how to handle the general speed info as I don't think I did the subject justice. See the purple note for stuff on that.
 

Hipmonlee

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It would be nice to have a bit about how stat boosting moves reapply of paralysis and the fact that rest does not remove the paralysis speed drops (and also that if you rest and get paralysed against your speed will be reduced to 1/16th.

A classic example is in Ubers where it can be important to stat boost with something against a paralysed Mewtwo, so after it KOs you, you can eg. set up a light screen with paralysed Chansey before getting hit Or guarantee that you get an amnesia up before taking a hit with your own Paralysed Mewtwo.

And its pretty common for a Lax to rest of paralysis and then still be outsped by a paralysed Starmie or something. There is also things like a paralysed Jolteon resting and getting paralysed again, and is now outspeed by a paralysed Snorlax.
 

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
It would be nice to have a bit about how stat boosting moves reapply of paralysis and the fact that rest does not remove the paralysis speed drops (and also that if you rest and get paralysed against your speed will be reduced to 1/16th.

A classic example is in Ubers where it can be important to stat boost with something against a paralysed Mewtwo, so after it KOs you, you can eg. set up a light screen with paralysed Chansey before getting hit Or guarantee that you get an amnesia up before taking a hit with your own Paralysed Mewtwo.

And its pretty common for a Lax to rest of paralysis and then still be outsped by a paralysed Starmie or something. There is also things like a paralysed Jolteon resting and getting paralysed again, and is now outspeed by a paralysed Snorlax.
Really good call, added a paragraph about that.

I also took a hint from Lutra in regards to the crit columns, I think they should be grouped and hidden by default, allowing the reader to expand them to get the data or something. Sort of like on Sheets:
1618657124909.png
 

shiny finder

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If put together, Focus Energy and a high-crit move will make the formula Base Speed * 100 / 256, essentially halving the user's critical hit rate. This move was later fixed in Stadium, which we'll go over later!
Quite possible I'm misreading, but /256 would effectively double the crit rate over /512.

I really think I need more nuances here...but I'm not sure what to write. Maybe it's ok like this from a beginner's point of view.
Afaik the only switching move is teleport, so idk if free switches are too nuancey? That said, the rest of the section is dedicated to making use of speed, so idk how much more really needs to be said in an intro paragraph. If there are considerable notable nuances, could be it's own section.

OU uses S-D on the VR, UU uses S-C.
I used S-D rank on the VR for OU and S-C rank for UU, as they are the most stable ranks, but we could cut it down to just OU/UU-tiered Pokemon if that's seen as more important.
Ty for including that. Idm the current setup (and I'm not qualified to say which'd be more helpful to people as a reference), but if this is only a subset of OU/UU, that should probably be designated somewhere.

I'm not that knowledgeable in this area, but all-in-all looks good on my end. Gonna tag the people that chimed in in your other thread/were tagged by you for any more substantial feedback, if any:

phoopes Shellnuts Enigami Caetano93 Amaranth Volk Lutra
 
Making use of SpeedView attachment 332551
Due to the lack of items and many variables that increase Speed in modern games, a fast Pokemon will almost always have the initiative. You're not going to see Starmie outspeed Jolteon without doing something to lower it first, be it through Thunder Wave or the suboptimal Bubble Beam. This is part of what makes Tauros so dominant, as once the few Pokemon that outspeed it are paralyzed, it's simply a case of putting the opposing team in Hyper Beam range for it to win. It's not uncommon to see Thunder Wave thrown around a lot because of its high distribution and near-guaranteed accuracy, allowing for a Pokemon to often permanently incapacitate its foe. Avoiding this through switching in Ground-types or already-statused Pokemon is pivotal to succeeding in RBY.

I really think I need more nuances here...but I'm not sure what to write. Maybe it's ok like this from a beginner's point of view.
This is already excelent and its a good rundown on the Speed control. What you can do here, if you want to expand a bit, is to explore more the Tauros Speed creep (This is part of what makes Starmie, Alakazam, and Jolteon good in OU), or explore some slower but bulky para users (Zapdos / Exeggutor) but i'm not so sure in this one... Grabbing a paralyzes on Tauros is the dream of every OU game since it is immune to BSlam effect.

I have already pointed other small things with PvK in the RBY Discord. This is is a very high quality guide. It have my QC after this one is defined.
 

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
I have already pointed other small things with PvK in the RBY Discord. This is is a very high quality guide. It have my QC after this one is defined.
Implemented this and marked with QC 1/x.

On a side note, I elaborated on the paraslam mechanics a touch later into the section, I failed to contextualise it into the Chans/Lax usage. Bit of a blunder on my part there.
 

LTG

It’s always gaming time
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I think this article is really chock-full of good info. I already gave some feedback in the RBY Discord in the early stages of writing it, and I think most all of the flaws with the latest version have been ironed out. I'm not sure if I'm super qualified to be giving an opinion on this, but I asked PvK who's allowed to QC articles like this and they said anyone's allowed, so I suppose as long as I am allowed to I would mark this as QC 2/x.
 

pac

pay 5000, gg?
is a Contributor Alumnus
PvK asked me to take a look at this, and I have to say that its a terrific article all around, everything is thorough and easy to read. The only thing i would note is that the "Stad1 w/Both" column of the tables is kind of unnecessary since you already establish clearly that all of them are 99%. Other than that small nitpick, which you may not even need to remove, I have really nothing to add. I'd give this a QC 3/x.
 

Adeleine

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IntroductionView attachment 332339
As is the case with any Pokemon game, Speed is arguably the most important stat; going first gives you the initiative, giving you the most control over the game in many situations. In the primitive world of RBY, however, many of the staple Speed control changing options you see today—such as Choice Scarf, Tailwind, Trick Room, and Sticky Web—simply do not exist. Not only that, Speed works a bit differently in these games, being linked to the critical hit mechanic and the interesting workings behind paralysis. Understanding the ins and outs of this stat is pivotal to succeeding in Pokemon as a whole, not just RBY, so let's go ahead and get right into it.

Critical Hit Mechanics
View attachment 332344The first thing to understand about RBY is that critical hit rates are determined through your base Speed. There's a common misconception that it's they're determined by current Speed, which is false, so boosting with Agility will not influence your chance for a critical hit. Therefore, outside of a few attacks that can influence the formula, such as Slash, critical hit rates are consistent for a given Pokemon. (to make sure ppl dont think "consistent across all Pokemon") Some Pokemon, such as Kingler and Persian, are heavily designed around making the best use of this mechanic. Your base critical hit rate is calculated with Base Speed * 100 / 512; applied to the fastest and slowest Pokemon in the game, this gives Electrode a 27.3% critical hit rate, and Slowpoke gets a 2.9% critical hit rate.

As aforementioned, some attacks will influence your critical hit rate: high critical hit rate moves and Focus Energy.

The "high-crit" moves include Slash, Karate Chop, Razor Leaf, and Crabhammer, which all multiply your critical hit rate by 8, making the formula Base Speed * 100 / 64. Because of this, almost every Pokemon in the game will get an extremely high critical hit rate, though it can't go beyond 99.6%. In practice, this effect effectively doubles the Base Power of each of these moves, making them incredible STAB options that give their users immediate offensive potential. So, (AC) for example, Kingler's Crabhammer can be treated as a base 180 power 180 Base Power STAB move, largely making up for its decidedly poor Special stat.
View attachment 332348
Focus Energy, on the other hand, isn't so fortunate. Due to a programming flaw, it makes the formula Base Speed * 100 / 2048, permanently quartering the user's chance for a critical hit until they switch. Preventing critical hits is often very counterproductive, but there are some minor applications. The damage dealt by a critical hit at L100 is 1.95x and ignores your boosts, so it amounts to less than a typical +2 boost. As a result, lowering the chance for a critical hit — which ignores your boosts and, consequently, uses that multiplier — can help make a sweep more consistent. However, the amount of setup required spending a moveslot and a turn to pull this off is absurd and oftentimes not something the few compatible Pokemon can afford. If put together, Focus Energy and a high-crit move will make the formula Base Speed * 100 / 256, leaving the user with a doubled critical hit rate. This move was later fixed in Stadium, which we'll go over later!

Critical hits will ignore all stat changes from both parties when they land, including the Attack drop from being burned. So, for example, a +2 Slash will hit like a +0 Slash if used by something like Persian. In the same vein, Jolteon landing a critical hit Thunderbolt will ignore a +2 Amnesia Slowbro or Snorlax. This further extends to Reflect and Light Screen, so a Reflect Chansey is not immune to being OHKOed a critical hit Hyper Beam from Tauros. Thanks to this mechanic, high-crit moves are excellent for smashing through Pokemon that have picked up defensive stat boosts with boosted defenses, a common sight on Snorlax and Chansey in RBY OU and Ubers.

Here is a small role compendium of Pokemon that get moves that alter their critical hit rates. For high-crit moves, they are sorted by strength from left to right, factoring in STAB and including only fully evolved Pokemon. Focus Energy is sorted alphabetically. Moves learned through Tradebacks are separated by an upper vertical (i havent heard it called "upper bar"; is that a thing? if it is a thing, feel free to ignore this change) bar.
  • Slash: :persian::farfetchd::pinsir::kabutops::scyther::sandslash::parasect::charizard::dugtrio:
  • Karate Chop: :machamp::primeape: | :magmar::electabuzz:
  • Razor Leaf: :victreebel::venusaur: | :vileplume:
  • Crabhammer: :kingler:
  • Focus Energy: :beedrill::flareon::hitmonlee::jolteon::machamp::marowak::nidoking::pinsir::primeape::raticate::scyther::vaporeon: | :kangaskhan::nidoqueen:

Pokemon Stadium changed things up a bit with critical hits. For starters, the formula was changed to ((Base Speed + 76) / 1024) * 100, which shapes up to increasing the critical hit rates of Pokemon with Speed stats of 65 or lower, and decreasing it for those above. For example, Snorlax will have its critical hit rate raised from 5.86% to 10%, while Tauros goes from 21.48% to 18%. Additionally, critical hit rates now cap at 99% and are rounded down. Considering the majority of RBY OU is relatively slow, contrary to popular belief, critical hits are arguably more common. This increased critical hit frequency can also (is this what you meant?) be seen with the high-crit moves, having their formula changed to ((Base Speed + 76) / 128) * 100, which makes Pokemon with 55 base Speed reach the 99% cap, rather than 65.
View attachment 333332
Pokemon Stadium also famously fixed Focus Energy, making the formula ((Base Speed + 76 ) / 128) * 100. Together with high-crit moves, this becomes ((Base Speed + 236 ) / 64) * 100, which makes every single Pokemon get a 99% critical hit chance, though this combined effect (I imagine?) doesn't help any fully evolved Pokemon. The fix to Focus Energy helps many Pokemon, especially Jolteon and Nidoking, which can fire off critical hits well over half the time when it's active. For Jolteon in particular, this Focus Energy helps it win much more consistently against Chansey when using Double Kick, and even Rhydon fears switching in when at around half HP.


Making Use of SpeedView attachment 332551
Due to the lack of items and many variables that increase Speed in modern games, a fast Pokemon will almost always have the initiative. You're not going to see Starmie outspeed Jolteon without doing something to lower its Speed first, be it through Thunder Wave or the suboptimal Bubble Beam. This consistency is part of what makes Tauros so dominant, as, (AC. you could also do like "dominant; once" to not have another comma) once the few Pokemon that outspeed it are paralyzed, it's simply a case of putting the opposing team in Hyper Beam range for it to win. Ergo, many Pokemon gain significant increases in viability to try and if they can (does this make sense / is it what you meant?) cripple it; these include Pokemon like Starmie, Jolteon, and Alakazam. If it's not Speed, it's those they can't get Thunder Wave off by outspeeding it, they're bulky enough to stomach a blow, like Slowbro or and Zapdos. It's not uncommon to see Thunder Wave thrown around a lot because of its high distribution and near-guaranteed near-perfect accuracy, allowing for a many Pokemon to often permanently incapacitate its foe their foes. Avoiding this paralysis through switching in Ground-types or already-statused Pokemon is pivotal to succeeding in RBY.

Boosting and Reducing Speed
Because of the lack of Sticky Web, Tailwind, Choice Scarf, and other variables, raising and decreasing Speed is limited to manually doing so. This makes controlling Speed through status (not sure what other statuses would be controlling Speed) fairly difficult and largely reserved to using paralysis.

RBY features only a single move that raises Speed in Agility, which is found on many Pokemon, particularly the legendary birds. Thanks to the way the game handles boosting stats, Agility acts as a cure to completely cures the Speed drop inflicted by paralysis upon use, completely ignoring said Speed drop. As a result, this move is extremely helpful for maintaining an advantage in Speed and finds its way into many sweeper sets. On the flip side, there are three moves that lower Speed in RBY; these include RBY: Bubble, Bubble Beam, and String Shot. Out of these, only Bubble Beam sees large distribution, and even that it rarely sees use in many contexts. Keep in mind that increases and decreases in Speed do not influence a Pokemon's critical hit rate!

Paralysis is a bit easier to spread, mainly thanks to the wide distribution of Thunder Wave and Body Slam. Other moves that inflict paralysis include Glare, Lick, Thunder, Thunderbolt, Thunder Punch, Thunder Shock, and Stun Spore. It should be noted that Normal-types are immune to paralysis from Body Slam, which is an important method of staving it off; this is a large part of why Pokemon like Snorlax and Chansey see so much usage, especially with Reflect. Because of Body Slam and Thunder Wave being the most popular options and Glare being on the largely unviable Arbok, paralyzing Ground-types like Rhydon is very difficult. To viably paralyze them, you need either the difficult-to-fit Stun Spore or some luck with Body Slam. As a result of this, using Ground-types is important as a form of counterplay to Speed control, since many fast Pokemon, even Tauros, become virtually unusable when paralyzed.

Paralysis, along with burns, is subject to the stat reapplication glitch. This means that, (AC) if the opposing Pokemon uses a stat-raising move like Swords Dance, the stat drop given by of your Pokemon's status is reapplied. So For example, if a Starmie with 328 Speed were to be paralyzed, it would first drop to 82 as normal. If an opposing Kabutops were to use Swords Dance, though, it would drop further to a mere 20 Speed. This glitch can be helpful in the event both Pokemon are paralyzed, as it enables the setup (collapsed hyphen) Pokemon to gain the upper hand. In Ubers, this glitch can be applied against a paralyzed Mewtwo before your setup (collapsed hyphen) Pokemon is KOed, potentially forcing it out with your next Pokemon. The stat drop from paralysis doesn't go away when using Rest either, which can lead to interesting interactions. For example, Jolteon can use Rest to shake off paralysis, but the Speed drop still remains. If it's paralyzed again, the drops will stack, leaving it outsped by even a paralyzed Snorlax. In a similar—albeit different—vein, if Jolteon were to get paralyzed on the turn it uses Rest, its Speed will would drop to 1/16, just 22 Speed.

Here's a role compendium for the aforementioned moves amongst fully evolved Pokemon, ordered alphabetically. Moves learned through Tradebacks are separated by an upper vertical (same comment as last time) bar, and offensive moves have their effect chances noted in brackets.
  • Speed Modifiers:
    • Agility (+2): :aerodactyl::arcanine::articuno::beedrill::dodrio::dragonite::farfetchd::fearow::hitmonchan::jolteon::moltres::pidgeot::porygon::raichu::rapidash::scyther::seadra::seaking::zapdos: | :electrode::magneton:
    • Bubble (-1, 33.2%): :blastoise::kingler::poliwrath::seadra: | :gyarados:
    • Bubble Beam (-1, 33.2%): :articuno::blastoise::chansey::clefable::cloyster::dewgong::dragonite::golduck::gyarados::jynx::kabutops::kangaskhan::kingler::lapras::lickitung::marowak::mew::mewtwo::nidoking::nidoqueen::omastar::persian::poliwrath::raticate::rhydon::seadra::seaking::slowbro::snorlax::starmie::tentacruel::vaporeon::wigglytuff:
    • Constrict (-1, 33.2%): :tangela::tentacruel: | :omastar:
    • String Shot (-1): :beedrill::butterfree:
  • Paralysis:
    • Body Slam (30.1%): :alakazam::arbok::arcanine::blastoise::chansey::charizard::clefable::dewgong::dodrio::dragonite::dugtrio::electabuzz::farfetchd::flareon::gengar::golduck::golem::gyarados::hitmonchan::hitmonlee::hypno::jolteon::jynx::kabutops::kangaskhan::kingler::lapras::lickitung::machamp::magmar::marowak::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::ninetales::omastar::onix::parasect::persian::pinsir::poliwrath::primeape::raichu::rapidash::raticate::rhydon::sandslash::slowbro::snorlax::tangela::tauros::vaporeon::venusaur::victreebel::vileplume::wigglytuff:
    • Glare: :arbok:
    • Lick (30.1%): :gengar::jynx: | :dewgong::lickitung::muk::snorlax:
    • Thunder (10.2%): :chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::gengar::gyarados::jolteon::kangaskhan::lapras::lickitung::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::persian::porygon::primeape::raichu::raticate::rhydon::snorlax::starmie::tauros::weezing::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Thunderbolt (10.2%): :chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::gengar::gyarados::jolteon::kangaskhan::lapras::lickitung::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::persian::porygon::primeape::raichu::raticate::rhydon::snorlax::starmie::tauros::weezing::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Thunder Punch (10.2%): :electabuzz::hitmonchan: | :alakazam::clefable::gengar::hypno::kangaskhan::lickitung::machamp::marowak::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::rhydon::snorlax::wigglytuff:
    • Thunder Shock (10.2%): :electabuzz::jolteon::magneton::raichu::zapdos:
    • Thunder Wave: :alakazam::chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::hypno::jolteon::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::porygon::raichu::slowbro::starmie::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Stun Spore: :butterfree::exeggutor::parasect::tangela::venomoth::victreebel::vileplume:

Partial Trapping
The notorious partial trapping mechanics in RBY benefit from Speed, as being faster than an opposing Pokemon can allow the user to "loop" the opposing Pokemon them and force them to wait for a miss. Applicable moves include Remember that the partial-trapping moves are (making clear they don't have anything unique about them related to this effect... which I assume is true. feel free to tinker) Wrap, Bind, Fire Spin, and Clamp. The main counterplay to this is switching in a Pokemon that's faster, which consumes their the partial trapper's PP and leaves them in a position to be attacked once it the move ends. Both parties can switch, (AC) though, which creates a lot of potential for mind games. As one would expect, Agility makes these moves particularly potent, removing any counterplay the opponent has outside of PP stalling or hoping for a miss.

Here is a role compendium showing Pokemon that learn these moves, ordered alphabetically. Moves and combinations gained through Tradebacks are separated by an upper vertical (same as last time) bar.
  • Bind: :onix::pinsir::tangela:
  • Clamp: :cloyster:
  • Fire Spin: :charizard::flareon::moltres::ninetales::rapidash: | :arcanine:
  • Wrap: :arbok::dragonite::lickitung::tentacruel::victreebel:
  • Agility + Fire Spin: :moltres::rapidash: | :arcanine:
  • Agility + Wrap: :dragonite:


Speed Tiers & Critical Hit Rates

All (Speed list, ordered by Pokedex Number)
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Bulbasaur451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Ivysaur6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Venusaur8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Charmander6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Charmeleon8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Charizard10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Squirtle431848.40%67.19%2.10%16.80%11%54%92%99%
Wartortle5821411.33%90.63%2.83%22.66%13%57%99%99%
Blastoise7825415.23%99.90%3.81%30.47%15%61%99%99%
Caterpie451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Metapod301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Butterfree7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Weedle501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Kakuna351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Beedrill7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Pidgey5621010.94%87.50%2.73%21.88%12%57%99%99%
Pidgeotto7124013.87%99.90%3.47%27.73%14%59%99%99%
Pidgeot9128017.77%99.90%4.44%35.55%16%63%99%99%
Rattata7224214.06%99.90%3.52%28.13%14%60%99%99%
Raticate9729218.95%99.90%4.74%37.89%16%65%99%99%
Spearow7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Fearow10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Ekans5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Arbok8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Pikachu9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Raichu10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Sandshrew401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Sandslash6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Nidoran-F411808.01%64.06%2.00%16.02%11%54%91%99%
Nidorina5621010.94%87.50%2.73%21.88%12%57%99%99%
Nidoqueen7625014.84%99.90%3.71%29.69%14%60%99%99%
Nidoran-M501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Nidorino6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Nidoking8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Clefairy351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Clefable6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Vulpix6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Ninetales10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Jigglypuff201383.91%31.25%0.98%7.81%9%50%75%99%
Wigglytuff451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Zubat5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Golbat9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Oddish301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Gloom401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Vileplume501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Paras251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Parasect301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Venonat451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Venomoth9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Diglett9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Dugtrio12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%69%99%99%
Meowth9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%18%68%99%99%
Psyduck5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Golduck8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Mankey7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Primeape9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Growlithe6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Arcanine9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Poliwag9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Poliwhirl9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Poliwrath7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Abra9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Kadabra10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Alakazam12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%69%99%99%
Machop351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Machoke451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Machamp5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Bellsprout401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Weepinbell5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Victreebel7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Tentacool7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Tentacruel10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Geodude201383.91%31.25%0.98%7.81%9%50%75%99%
Graveler351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Ponyta9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Rapidash10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Slowpoke151282.93%23.44%0.73%5.86%8%49%71%99%
Slowbro301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Magnemite451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Magneton7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Farfetch'd6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Doduo7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Dodrio10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Seel451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Dewgong7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Grimer251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Muk501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Shellder401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Cloyster7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Gastly8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Haunter9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Gengar11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%67%99%99%
Onix7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Drowzee421828.20%65.63%2.05%16.41%11%54%92%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%13%59%99%99%
Krabby501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Kingler7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Voltorb10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Electrode14037827.34%99.90%6.84%54.69%21%73%99%99%
Exeggcute401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Exeggutor5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Cubone351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Marowak451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Hitmonlee8727216.99%99.90%4.25%33.98%15%63%99%99%
Hitmonchan7625014.84%99.90%3.71%29.69%14%60%99%99%
Lickitung301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Koffing351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Weezing6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Rhyhorn251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Rhydon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Chansey501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Tangela6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Horsea6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Seadra8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Goldeen6322412.30%98.44%3.08%24.61%13%58%99%99%
Seaking6823413.28%99.90%3.32%26.56%14%59%99%99%
Staryu8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Starmie11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%18%68%99%99%
Mr. Mime9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Scyther10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Jynx9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Electabuzz10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Magmar9328418.16%99.90%4.54%36.33%16%64%99%99%
Pinsir8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Tauros11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%67%99%99%
Magikarp8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Gyarados8126015.82%99.90%3.96%31.64%15%61%99%99%
Lapras6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Ditto481949.38%75.00%2.34%18.75%12%55%96%99%
Eevee5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Vaporeon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Jolteon13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Flareon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Porygon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Omanyte351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Omastar5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Kabuto5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Kabutops8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Aerodactyl13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Snorlax301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Zapdos10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Moltres9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Dratini501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Dragonair7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Mewtwo13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Mew10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%


OU Speed Tiers
This lists Pokemon on from S-D on the 2020 Viability Rankings.
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Jolteon13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%99%71%99%
Alakazam12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%99%70%99%
Starmie11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Tauros11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%99%68%99%
Gengar11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%99%68%99%
Zapdos10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Jynx9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%17%99%65%99%
Moltres9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%16%99%63%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Kingler7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%15%99%61%99%
Victreebel7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Cloyster7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%14%99%59%99%
Sandslash6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%14%99%59%99%
Lapras6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%99%58%99%
Exeggutor5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%13%99%57%99%
Chansey501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%98%56%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%12%95%55%99%
Rhydon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%91%54%99%
Porygon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%91%54%99%
Slowbro301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%83%52%99%
Snorlax301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%83%52%99%

UU Speed Tiers
This lists Pokemon on from S-C on the April 2021 Viability Rankings.
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Aerodactyl13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%99%71%99%
Dugtrio12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%99%70%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Kadabra10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%18%99%67%99%
Electabuzz10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%18%99%67%99%
Raichu10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Tentacruel10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Dodrio10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Raticate9729218.95%99.90%4.74%37.89%17%99%65%99%
Haunter9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%17%99%65%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%16%99%63%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Venusaur8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Gyarados8126015.82%99.90%3.96%31.64%15%99%62%99%
Poliwrath7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Dewgong7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%14%99%59%99%
Vaporeon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%14%99%59%99%
Tangela6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%99%58%99%
Omastar5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%13%99%57%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%12%95%55%99%

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Introduction
View attachment 332339
As is the case with any Pokemon game, Speed is arguably the most important stat; going first gives you the initiative, giving you the most control over the game in many situations. In the primitive world of RBY, however, many of the staple Speed changing options you see today—such as Choice Scarf, Tailwind, Trick Room, and Sticky Web—simply do not exist. Not only that, Speed works a bit differently in these games, being linked to the critical hit mechanic and the interesting workings behind paralysis. Understanding the ins and outs of this stat is pivotal to succeeding in Pokemon as a whole, not just RBY, so let's go ahead and get right into it.

Critical Hit Mechanics
View attachment 332344The first thing to understand about RBY is that critical hit rates are determined through your base Speed. There's a common misconception that they're determined by current Speed, which is false, so boosting with Agility will not influence your chance for a critical hit. Therefore, outside of a few attacks that can influence the formula, such as Slash, critical hit rates are consistent for a given Pokemon. Some Pokemon, such as Kingler and Persian, are heavily designed around making the best use of this mechanic. Your base critical hit rate is calculated with Base Speed * 100 / 512; applied to the fastest and slowest Pokemon in the game, this gives Electrode a 27.3% critical hit rate, and Slowpoke gets a 2.9% critical hit rate.

As aforementioned, some attacks will influence your critical hit rate: high critical hit rate moves and Focus Energy.

The "high-crit" moves include Slash, Karate Chop, Razor Leaf, and Crabhammer, which all multiply your critical hit rate by 8, making the formula Base Speed * 100 / 64. Because of this, almost every Pokemon in the game will get an extremely high critical hit rate, though it can't go beyond 99.6%. In practice, this effect effectively doubles the Base Power of each of these moves, making them incredible STAB options that give their users immediate offensive potential. So, for example For example, Kingler's Crabhammer can be treated as a 180 Base Power STAB move, largely making up for its decidedly poor Special stat.

View attachment 332348
Focus Energy, on the other hand, isn't so fortunate. Due to a programming flaw, it makes the formula Base Speed * 100 / 2048, quartering the user's chance for a critical hit until they switch. Preventing critical hits is often very counterproductive, but there are some minor applications. The damage dealt by a critical hit at L100 is 1.95x and ignores your boosts, so it amounts to less than a typical +2 boost. As a result, lowering the chance for a critical hit can help make a sweep more consistent. However, spending a moveslot and a turn to pull this off is absurd and oftentimes not something the few compatible Pokemon can afford. If put together, Focus Energy and a high-crit move will make the formula Base Speed * 100 / 256, leaving the user with a doubled critical hit rate. This move was later fixed in Stadium, which we'll go over later!

Critical hits will ignore all stat changes from both parties when they land, including the Attack drop from being burned. So, for example, a +2 Slash will hit like a +0 Slash if used by something a Pokemon like Persian. In the same vein, Jolteon landing a critical hit Thunderbolt will ignore a +2 Amnesia Slowbro or Snorlax. This further extends to Reflect and Light Screen, so a Reflect Chansey is not immune to being OHKOed by a critical hit Hyper Beam from Tauros. Thanks to this mechanic, high-crit moves are excellent for smashing through Pokemon with boosted defenses, a common sight on Snorlax and Chansey in RBY OU and Ubers.

Here is a small role compendium of Pokemon that get moves that alter their critical hit rates. For high-crit moves, they are sorted by strength from left to right, factoring in STAB and including only fully evolved Pokemon. Focus Energy is sorted alphabetically. Moves learned through Tradebacks are separated by a vertical bar.
  • Slash: :persian::farfetchd::pinsir::kabutops::scyther::sandslash::parasect::charizard::dugtrio:
  • Karate Chop: :machamp::primeape: | :magmar::electabuzz:
  • Razor Leaf: :victreebel::venusaur: | :vileplume:
  • Crabhammer: :kingler:
  • Focus Energy: :beedrill::flareon::hitmonlee::jolteon::machamp::marowak::nidoking::pinsir::primeape::raticate::scyther::vaporeon: | :kangaskhan::nidoqueen:

Pokemon Stadium also famously fixed Focus Energy, making the formula ((Base Speed + 76 ) / 128) * 100. Together with high-crit moves, this becomes ((Base Speed + 236 ) / 64) * 100, which makes every single Pokemon get a 99% critical hit chance, though this combined effect doesn't help any fully evolved Pokemon. The fix to Focus Energy helps many Pokemon, especially Jolteon and Nidoking, which can fire off critical hits well over half the time when it's more than 50% of the time when active. For Jolteon in particular, Focus Energy helps it win much more consistently against Chansey when using Double Kick, and even Rhydon fears switching in when at around half HP.

View attachment 333332
Pokemon Stadium also famously fixed Focus Energy, making the formula ((Base Speed + 76 ) / 128) * 100. Together with high-crit moves, this becomes ((Base Speed + 236 ) / 64) * 100, which makes every single Pokemon get a 99% critical hit chance, though this combined effect doesn't help any fully evolved Pokemon. The fix to Focus Energy helps many Pokemon, especially Jolteon and Nidoking, which can fire off critical hits well over half the time when it's active. For Jolteon in particular, Focus Energy helps it win much more consistently against Chansey when using Double Kick, and even Rhydon fears switching in when at around half HP.


Making Use of SpeedView attachment 332551
Due to the lack of items and many variables that increase Speed in modern games, a fast Pokemon will almost always have the initiative. You're not going to see Starmie outspeed Jolteon without doing something to lower its Speed first, be it through Thunder Wave or the suboptimal Bubble Beam. This consistency is part of what makes Tauros so dominant: once the few Pokemon that outspeed it are paralyzed, it's simply a case of putting the opposing team in Hyper Beam range for it to win. Ergo, many Pokemon gain significant increases in viability if they can cripple it; these include Pokemon like Starmie, Jolteon, and Alakazam. If they Those that can't get Thunder Wave off by outspeeding it, they're are bulky enough to stomach a blow, like Slowbro and Zapdos. It's not uncommon to see Thunder Wave thrown around a lot because of its high distribution and near-perfect accuracy, allowing for many Pokemon to often permanently incapacitate their foes. Avoiding paralysis through switching in Ground-types or already-statused Pokemon is pivotal to succeeding in RBY.

Boosting and Reducing Speed
Because of the lack of Sticky Web, Tailwind, Choice Scarf, and other variables, raising and decreasing Speed is limited to manually doing so. This makes controlling Speed fairly difficult and largely reserved to using paralysis.

RBY features only a single move that raises Speed in Agility, which is found on many Pokemon, particularly the legendary birds. Thanks to the way the game handles boosting stats, Agility completely cures the Speed drop inflicted by paralysis upon use. As a result, this move is extremely helpful for maintaining an advantage in Speed and finds its way into many sweeper sets. On the flip side, there are three moves that lower Speed in RBY: Bubble, Bubble Beam, and String Shot. Out of these, only Bubble Beam sees large distribution, and even it rarely sees use. Keep in mind that increases and decreases in Speed do not influence a Pokemon's critical hit rate!

Paralysis is a bit easier to spread, mainly thanks to the wide distribution of Thunder Wave and Body Slam. Other moves that inflict paralysis include Glare, Lick, Thunder, Thunderbolt, Thunder Punch, Thunder Shock, and Stun Spore. It should be noted that Normal-types are immune to paralysis from Body Slam, which is an important method of staving it off; this is a large part of why Pokemon like Snorlax and Chansey see so much usage, especially with Reflect. Because of Body Slam and Thunder Wave being the most popular options and Glare being on the largely unviable Arbok, paralyzing Ground-types like Rhydon is very difficult. To viably paralyze them, you need either the difficult-to-fit Stun Spore or some luck with Body Slam. As a result of this, using Ground-types is important counterplay to Speed control, since many fast Pokemon, even Tauros, become virtually unusable when paralyzed.

Paralysis, along with burn, is subject to the stat reapplication glitch. This means that, if the opposing Pokemon uses a stat-raising move like Swords Dance, the stat drop of your Pokemon's status is reapplied. For example, if a Starmie with 328 Speed were to be paralyzed, it would first drop to 82 as normal. If an opposing Kabutops were to use Swords Dance, though, it would drop further to a mere 20 Speed. This glitch can be helpful in the event both Pokemon are paralyzed, as it enables the setup Pokemon to gain the upper hand. In Ubers, this glitch can be applied against a paralyzed Mewtwo before your setup Pokemon is KOed, potentially forcing it out with your next Pokemon. The stat drop from paralysis doesn't go away when using Rest either, which can lead to interesting interactions. For example, Jolteon can use Rest to shake off paralysis, but the Speed drop still remains. If it's paralyzed again, the drops will stack, leaving it outsped by even a paralyzed Snorlax. In a similar—albeit different—vein, if Jolteon were to get paralyzed on the turn it uses Rest, its Speed would drop to 1/16, just 22 Speed.

Here's a role compendium for the aforementioned moves amongst fully evolved Pokemon, ordered alphabetically. Moves learned through Tradebacks are separated by a vertical bar, and offensive moves have their effect chances noted in brackets.
  • Speed Modifiers:
    • Agility (+2): :aerodactyl::arcanine::articuno::beedrill::dodrio::dragonite::farfetchd::fearow::hitmonchan::jolteon::moltres::pidgeot::porygon::raichu::rapidash::scyther::seadra::seaking::zapdos: | :electrode::magneton:
    • Bubble (-1, 33.2%): :blastoise::kingler::poliwrath::seadra: | :gyarados:
    • Bubble Beam (-1, 33.2%): :articuno::blastoise::chansey::clefable::cloyster::dewgong::dragonite::golduck::gyarados::jynx::kabutops::kangaskhan::kingler::lapras::lickitung::marowak::mew::mewtwo::nidoking::nidoqueen::omastar::persian::poliwrath::raticate::rhydon::seadra::seaking::slowbro::snorlax::starmie::tentacruel::vaporeon::wigglytuff:
    • Constrict (-1, 33.2%): :tangela::tentacruel: | :omastar:
    • String Shot (-1): :beedrill::butterfree:
  • Paralysis:
    • Body Slam (30.1%): :alakazam::arbok::arcanine::blastoise::chansey::charizard::clefable::dewgong::dodrio::dragonite::dugtrio::electabuzz::farfetchd::flareon::gengar::golduck::golem::gyarados::hitmonchan::hitmonlee::hypno::jolteon::jynx::kabutops::kangaskhan::kingler::lapras::lickitung::machamp::magmar::marowak::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::ninetales::omastar::onix::parasect::persian::pinsir::poliwrath::primeape::raichu::rapidash::raticate::rhydon::sandslash::slowbro::snorlax::tangela::tauros::vaporeon::venusaur::victreebel::vileplume::wigglytuff:
    • Glare: :arbok:
    • Lick (30.1%): :gengar::jynx: | :dewgong::lickitung::muk::snorlax:
    • Thunder (10.2%): :chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::gengar::gyarados::jolteon::kangaskhan::lapras::lickitung::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::persian::porygon::primeape::raichu::raticate::rhydon::snorlax::starmie::tauros::weezing::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Thunderbolt (10.2%): :chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::gengar::gyarados::jolteon::kangaskhan::lapras::lickitung::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::nidoking::nidoqueen::persian::porygon::primeape::raichu::raticate::rhydon::snorlax::starmie::tauros::weezing::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Thunder Punch (10.2%): :electabuzz::hitmonchan: | :alakazam::clefable::gengar::hypno::kangaskhan::lickitung::machamp::marowak::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::muk::rhydon::snorlax::wigglytuff:
    • Thunder Shock (10.2%): :electabuzz::jolteon::magneton::raichu::zapdos:
    • Thunder Wave: :alakazam::chansey::clefable::dragonite::electabuzz::electrode::hypno::jolteon::magneton::mew::mewtwo::mr-mime::porygon::raichu::slowbro::starmie::wigglytuff::zapdos:
    • Stun Spore: :butterfree::exeggutor::parasect::tangela::venomoth::victreebel::vileplume:

Partial Trapping
The notorious partial trapping mechanics in RBY benefit from Speed, as being faster than an opposing Pokemon can allow the user to "loop" them and force them to wait for a miss. Remember that the partial-trapping moves are Wrap, Bind, Fire Spin, and Clamp. The main counterplay to this is switching in a Pokemon that's faster, which consumes the partial trapper's PP and leaves them in a position to be attacked once the move ends. Both parties can switch, though, which creates a lot of potential for mind games. As one would expect, Agility makes these moves particularly potent, removing any counterplay the opponent has outside of PP stalling or hoping for a miss.

Here is a role compendium showing Pokemon that learn these moves, ordered alphabetically. Moves and combinations gained through Tradebacks are separated by a vertical bar.
  • Bind: :onix::pinsir::tangela:
  • Clamp: :cloyster:
  • Fire Spin: :charizard::flareon::moltres::ninetales::rapidash: | :arcanine:
  • Wrap: :arbok::dragonite::lickitung::tentacruel::victreebel:
  • Agility + Fire Spin: :moltres::rapidash: | :arcanine:
  • Agility + Wrap: :dragonite:


Speed Tiers & Critical Hit Rates

All (Speed list, ordered by Pokedex Number)
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Bulbasaur451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Ivysaur6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Venusaur8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Charmander6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Charmeleon8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Charizard10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Squirtle431848.40%67.19%2.10%16.80%11%54%92%99%
Wartortle5821411.33%90.63%2.83%22.66%13%57%99%99%
Blastoise7825415.23%99.90%3.81%30.47%15%61%99%99%
Caterpie451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Metapod301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Butterfree7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Weedle501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Kakuna351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Beedrill7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Pidgey5621010.94%87.50%2.73%21.88%12%57%99%99%
Pidgeotto7124013.87%99.90%3.47%27.73%14%59%99%99%
Pidgeot9128017.77%99.90%4.44%35.55%16%63%99%99%
Rattata7224214.06%99.90%3.52%28.13%14%60%99%99%
Raticate9729218.95%99.90%4.74%37.89%16%65%99%99%
Spearow7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Fearow10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Ekans5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Arbok8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Pikachu9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Raichu10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Sandshrew401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Sandslash6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Nidoran-F411808.01%64.06%2.00%16.02%11%54%91%99%
Nidorina5621010.94%87.50%2.73%21.88%12%57%99%99%
Nidoqueen7625014.84%99.90%3.71%29.69%14%60%99%99%
Nidoran-M501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Nidorino6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Nidoking8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Clefairy351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Clefable6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Vulpix6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Ninetales10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Jigglypuff201383.91%31.25%0.98%7.81%9%50%75%99%
Wigglytuff451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Zubat5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Golbat9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Oddish301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Gloom401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Vileplume501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Paras251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Parasect301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Venonat451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Venomoth9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Diglett9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Dugtrio12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%69%99%99%
Meowth9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%18%68%99%99%
Psyduck5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Golduck8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Mankey7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Primeape9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Growlithe6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Arcanine9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Poliwag9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Poliwhirl9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Poliwrath7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Abra9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Kadabra10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Alakazam12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%69%99%99%
Machop351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Machoke451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Machamp5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Bellsprout401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Weepinbell5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Victreebel7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Tentacool7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Tentacruel10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Geodude201383.91%31.25%0.98%7.81%9%50%75%99%
Graveler351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Ponyta9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Rapidash10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Slowpoke151282.93%23.44%0.73%5.86%8%49%71%99%
Slowbro301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Magnemite451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Magneton7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Farfetch'd6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Doduo7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Dodrio10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Seel451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Dewgong7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Grimer251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Muk501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Shellder401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Cloyster7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Gastly8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Haunter9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Gengar11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%67%99%99%
Onix7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Drowzee421828.20%65.63%2.05%16.41%11%54%92%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%13%59%99%99%
Krabby501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Kingler7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%14%60%99%99%
Voltorb10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Electrode14037827.34%99.90%6.84%54.69%21%73%99%99%
Exeggcute401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Exeggutor5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Cubone351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Marowak451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%11%54%94%99%
Hitmonlee8727216.99%99.90%4.25%33.98%15%63%99%99%
Hitmonchan7625014.84%99.90%3.71%29.69%14%60%99%99%
Lickitung301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Koffing351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Weezing6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Rhyhorn251484.88%39.06%1.22%9.77%9%50%78%99%
Rhydon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Chansey501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Tangela6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Horsea6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Seadra8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Goldeen6322412.30%98.44%3.08%24.61%13%58%99%99%
Seaking6823413.28%99.90%3.32%26.56%14%59%99%99%
Staryu8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Starmie11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%18%68%99%99%
Mr. Mime9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Scyther10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Jynx9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%16%64%99%99%
Electabuzz10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%17%66%99%99%
Magmar9328418.16%99.90%4.54%36.33%16%64%99%99%
Pinsir8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Tauros11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%67%99%99%
Magikarp8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Gyarados8126015.82%99.90%3.96%31.64%15%61%99%99%
Lapras6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%57%99%99%
Ditto481949.38%75.00%2.34%18.75%12%55%96%99%
Eevee5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Vaporeon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Jolteon13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Flareon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%13%58%99%99%
Porygon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%53%90%99%
Omanyte351686.84%54.69%1.71%13.67%10%52%86%99%
Omastar5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Kabuto5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%12%56%99%99%
Kabutops8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Aerodactyl13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Snorlax301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%51%82%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%15%62%99%99%
Zapdos10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%
Moltres9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%63%99%99%
Dratini501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%55%98%99%
Dragonair7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%59%99%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%61%99%99%
Mewtwo13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%71%99%99%
Mew10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%65%99%99%


OU Speed Tiers
This lists Pokemon from S-D on the 2020 Viability Rankings.
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Jolteon13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%99%71%99%
Alakazam12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%99%70%99%
Starmie11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Tauros11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%99%68%99%
Gengar11031821.48%99.90%5.37%42.97%18%99%68%99%
Zapdos10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Jynx9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%17%99%65%99%
Moltres9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%16%99%63%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Kingler7524814.65%99.90%3.66%29.30%15%99%61%99%
Victreebel7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Cloyster7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%14%99%59%99%
Sandslash6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%14%99%59%99%
Lapras6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%99%58%99%
Exeggutor5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%13%99%57%99%
Chansey501989.77%78.13%2.44%19.53%12%98%56%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%12%95%55%99%
Rhydon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%91%54%99%
Porygon401787.81%62.50%1.95%15.63%11%91%54%99%
Slowbro301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%83%52%99%
Snorlax301585.86%46.88%1.46%11.72%10%83%52%99%

UU Speed Tiers
This lists Pokemon from S-C on the April 2021 Viability Rankings.
PokemonSpeedActual SpeedCritical Hit Ratew/High-crit movesw/Focus Energyw/BothStad1 Critical HitStad1 w/High-critStad1 w/Focus EnergyStad1 w/Both
Aerodactyl13035825.39%99.90%6.35%50.78%20%99%71%99%
Dugtrio12033823.44%99.90%5.86%46.88%19%99%70%99%
Persian11532822.46%99.90%5.62%44.92%19%99%69%99%
Kadabra10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%18%99%67%99%
Electabuzz10530820.51%99.90%5.13%41.02%18%99%67%99%
Raichu10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Tentacruel10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Dodrio10029819.53%99.90%4.88%39.06%17%99%66%99%
Raticate9729218.95%99.90%4.74%37.89%17%99%65%99%
Haunter9528818.55%99.90%4.64%37.11%17%99%65%99%
Kangaskhan9027817.58%99.90%4.39%35.16%16%99%64%99%
Articuno8526816.60%99.90%4.15%33.20%16%99%63%99%
Dragonite8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Venusaur8025815.63%99.90%3.91%31.25%15%99%62%99%
Gyarados8126015.82%99.90%3.96%31.64%15%99%62%99%
Poliwrath7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Dewgong7023813.67%99.90%3.42%27.34%14%99%60%99%
Hypno6723213.09%99.90%3.27%26.17%14%99%59%99%
Vaporeon6522812.70%99.90%3.17%25.39%14%99%59%99%
Tangela6021811.72%93.75%2.93%23.44%13%99%58%99%
Omastar5520810.74%85.94%2.69%21.48%13%99%57%99%
Golem451888.79%70.31%2.20%17.58%12%95%55%99%

Bandkrook2_Small.gif
 

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
Bandkrook implemented, ready for HTML.

Notes for the HTMLer;
  • The tables are intended to have a divider sort of thing for the crit rates. So you can expand the speed tiers to have them show Stad1/RBY crits on the fly, eg.
  • The artists that upscaled that official artwork have Twitter accounts, not Smogon ones, make sure to link to them specifically
 
Last edited:

Ryota Mitarai

Shrektimus Prime
is a Tiering Contributoris a Contributor to Smogonis a Top Smogon Media Contributor
Code is in here: https://gist.github.com/RyotaMitaraiWeb/b56e2e638bcdfd293357ae400ea4121d

Live preview

The divider thing wasn't implemented, because the tables are already hidden behind a button and hiding some parts of it even more didn't really make a lot of sense to me. Author was informed of this and they didn't object to that.

Other than that, I mostly did the same as I did with the previous RBY article, only making very small changes to the design where I saw fit.

The Dutch Plumberjack

important edit: some of the values in the tables were wrong, so I had to fix them. Also made a small change to the TOC to make "All" more descriptive. Also, I swapped the link to code with a Gist since it finally managed to load (and I don't have a Pastebin account to edit my pastes :((), keep this in mind if you took the previous link @ tdp

e2: new live preview
 
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