Looking at Pokemon: Absol

March 20, 2008 | 17 Comments

Absol

Absol, the disaster Pokemon, was introduced in the Ruby and Sapphire series of GBA games. Absol is a single type Pokemon (Dark) and does not evolve. Absol sits at the 359th spot on the National Pokedex.

Absol has a very good Attack score (Max 394 which puts it in the top 10 if you ignore legendary Pokemon, spot 13 if you don’t) and above average Special Attack and Speed. Its other three scores are only average. This Pokemon comes in both genders and has either the ability Pressure (When this Pokémon is hit by a move, the opponent’s PP lowers by 2 rather than 1/ If the Pokémon is in the lead spot, chance of encountering wild Pokemon increases) or Super Luck (Raises the critical-hit ratio of moves; allows simultaneous use of Dire Hit and Focus Energy) .Both abilities can prove very helpful in battle.

Absol is able to use a wide variety of TMs and HMs. Its egg moves are mostly of the Dark type. None of which fall in the Special category. Its level up moves are heavy on Normal (9) and Dark (5). There is also one Fighting move on the list and two Psychic moves.

Absol is catchable in both Diamond and Pearl games (Mass Outbreaks on route 213) as well as being transferable from the previous GBA games via the Pal Park.

Now that the basics are out of the way I’m going to tell you a little bit about how to effectively use this Pokemon in your game. Right off the bat you are probably thinking that the only use you will ever have for this Pokemon is in the arena of battling, this is not so. It is quite possible to have someone trade an Absol to you when you first begin your Pokemon journey. Due to the wonders of Wi-Fi it is very easy to avoid the built-in Pokemon restrictions of Diamond and Pearl.

One of the problems with adventuring in Sinnoh is the lack of certain types of Pokemon until you defeat the Elite Four and complete your Sinnoh Pokedex. When it comes to Dark Pokemon you will be limited to Murkrow, Stunky, Spiritomb, Drapion and Sneasel.

Murkrow can be encountered early on but Stunky only appears in Diamond. Spiritomb is near impossible to get unless you have a lot of friends. Drapion requires evolving its earlier form and Sneasel does not appear until you have acquired several badges and head towards Snowpoint. Having access to a strong Dark-type Pokemon early in the game can change the single-player game experience for you.

Adventure Mode Absol

If you get a freshly hatched Absol with no special breeding you can expect it to only know the move Scratch. This is a rather weak Physical move but it is on par with what you will encounter in the early part of the game. At level 12 it will learn the much better move Quick Attack. This move is just as effective as Scratch but it is faster.

The first damage-inducing Dark move Absol learns is Pursuit at level 20. Pursuit gives you a STAB attack with the added benefit that it can damage a foe when they try to switch out. Because of its low power you will be replacing it with bite upon attaining level 28.

Sucker Punch is also a Dark-type attack that Absol can learn upon reaching level 44. Even though Sucker Punch has a higher power rating than Bite it only works if your foe uses a Physical Attack against you. This is a nice back-up move but you need to keep Bite as your main Dark-type attack.

You will continue on with Bite until Absol gets the chance to learn Night Slash at level 52. Odds are you will have already defeated the Elite Four by this point and unless your Absol has the Super Luck ability I would have to advise that you stick with Bite.

What about the non-Dark moves in Absol’s level-up move pool? Most of them are Status moves. I generally avoid Special Attack moves on an Absol due to their high Attack score. Still, having a Special Attack waiting in the wings can prove beneficial. Future Sight and Razor Wind are the only Special Attacks that Absol learns while leveling up.

Razor Wind pops up at level 17 and should be learned. Even though Razor Wind is a two-turn move it will hit both opponents in a Double Battle. Its Base Power of 80 makes it the most powerful Attack you will learn until Sucker Punch at level 44. Future Sight is also a Power 80 Attack but it hits several turns later and is not 100% accurate the way Razor Wind is.

In the Status department Absol has several good moves for the adventure mode of the game. Between Swords Dance and Double Team you can either knock out your foes faster or make yourself last longer in battle.

My preferred order of moves in adventure mode are as follows:

Move 1: Scratch -> Razor Wind
Move 2: Leer -> Swords Dance
Move 3: Taunt -> Pursuit -> Bite
move 4: Quick Attack -> Slash

After this point I have usually defeated the Elite Four, transferred my Pokemon out of the game and reset the game for a new go with a new team.

Battle Mode Absol

Using Absol in adventure mode is far different from breeding an Absol for competitive battling. When battling competitively Absol falls in the Under Used Tier. This grouping is based off of Absol’s Base Points (465) and Move Pool. Some tournaments also exist where you will be forced to only use Pokemon of a certain evolutionary type. In Absol’s case it fits in the “non-evolving category”.

Even though Absol falls into the Under Used tier the only other Pokemon with a Base Attack of 130 are Kingler and Flareon, both of which are “evolving” Pokemon. This means Absol has the highest Attack score for the non-evolving Under Used tier Pokemon. When it comes to Speed, Absol is just about in the middle with a Base Speed of 75.

Absol 1: Baton Passer

Some people over look Absol as a Baton Passer because it does not have an ability that leads to passing on heightened stats. Absol is not one of the best Baton Passers out there but it can learn the move and if it has Pressure it can lay some hurt on the opponent’s Pokemon if they use high Power low Power Point moves.

IVs: HP:252, Def:8, Spd:252
Nature: Jolly (Spd+/SpA-)

Move 1: Baton Pass (Egg Move)
Move 2: Double Team
Move 3: Psych Up (TM)
Move 4: Swords Dance / Calm Mind (TM)

The choice between Swords Dance and Calm Mind depends on what Pokemon you are setting up for. If the next Pokemon is a Physical Attacker go with Swords Dance. If they are a Special Attacker go with Calm Mind.

Absol is far from the best Baton Passer around but when a tournament restricts the better Baton Passers it is good to know that an Absol is an option.

Absol 2: Speed Kills

Absol has a very nice Attack score and its Speed is not that far behind. Absol is faster than many Pokemon in its class and with the Super Luck ability you can make short work of your opponent’s Pokemon by landing a few Critical Hits before they even get a chance to attack you.

IVs: Atk: 252, Def:8, Spd:252
Nature: Adamant (Atk+/SpA-), Jolly (Spd+/SpA-)

Move 1: Stone Edge (TM)
Move 2: Night Slash
Move 3: Assurance (TM)
Move 4: Psycho Cut Thanks Jhamin!

Yes, I know some of these moves are not very powerful and others are not 100% accurate. What they all have in common is that they are Physical moves. They will all use Absol’s high Attack score to their advantage.

Absol is weak against Fighting and Bug-type moves. Psycho Cut (Psychic 70/100) is a good hedge against those pesky Fighting-type Pokemon. Stone Edge (Rock 100/80) is effective against the Bug-type Pokemon you will face.

Other Absol Uses

There are many other uses for an Absol in your party. For one thing the Ability Pressure causes wild Pokemon to appear more often. Couple this with teaching Absol False Swipe and you can do some Pokemon hunting.

You can also teach an Absol Perish Song, Baton Pass, Substitute and Mean Look. Start with Mean Look, drop a Perish Song down and Substitute until you need to pull off a Baton Pass to get your Absol out of danger. This tactic can be very deadly in a Double Battle situation.

Posted by HMTKSteve | Filed Under Tips 

Pokemon Farming: Absol

October 18, 2007 | 63 Comments

Today in Pokemon Farming, the disaster Pokemon, Absol!

This little dark Pokemon, is in Pokemon lore, the omen of disaster and bad things. It’s defense stat is not so great, but the attacks it can put out are some great ones. Having one of my special Absols wont be bad at all though! Besides looking so cool, these guys can do a little of everything–

  • Flamethrower
  • Ice Beam
  • Thunderbolt
  • Dark Pulse (STAB)

It also has two abilities: Pressure, when the opponents attacks hit, 2 PP of that move are used instead of one and Super Luck, which increases the critical hit ratio of moves. Pretty nice abilities I think!

So, would you like one of my ‘everything’ Absols? Heres what to do:

  • Comment with your Name and Friend Code
    • Even if we have traded before, I need your information again!
  • Get a Pokemon to trade (preferably non-Sinnoh, though I will take anything, items are always appreciated.)
  • Be in the Wi-Fi zone at 5pm EDT on October 19 (Friday)
  • Make yourself available to Trade (Invite–>Trade) I will come to you when I’m ready.
  • If you are new to our site, your first comment will be moderated. Don’t worry if your post doesn’t show, we will get to it in time, and you will not miss out!
  • Only Absol will be handed out tonight, thanks!

My Information:

Trainer name: God

Friend Code: 5369 6895 7194

See everyone tonight!

Posted by TheTaterTot | Filed Under Farming