Welcome to our thirtieth issue of 6th Generation's Pokemon of the Week! This week we'll be focusing on a Pokemon that was introduced in generation 2, but really rose to popularity in the middle of generation 4. This week, we discuss Scizor.

Scyther slashes through the grass with sharp scythes, moving too fast for the human eye to track. It uses these scythes to shred its prey to pieces. It rarely spreads its wings to fly, instead using them to maintain balance and to help batter foes. Scizor's steel pincers can crush any hard object it gets ahold of to bits. It intimidates foes by raising its eye-patterned pincers.

Base Stats: 70 HP / 130 Attack / 100 Defense / 55 Sp. Attack / 80 Sp. Defense / 65 Speed

Since Scizor received Technician in D/P, and Bullet Punch in Platinum, it has risen to the rank of top-tier offensive threat. Not only does it have a STAB, Technician Bullet Punch, but it sports the most powerful STAB U-Turn in the game (outside of a potentially Download boosted U-Turn by Genesect), as well as a Technician boosted Pursuit to checkmate choiced Psychic types, Superpower to smash through Steel types, and even Roost to use on bulky sets, to name the main options.

Scizor also received a Mega Evolution this generation, and while it lacks the power of the standard Choice Band set, it has its own uses that I'll go over in the Mega Evolution section. Overall, Scizor is a versatile, powerful, and dangerous threat that every Trainer needs to be able to handle if they want to remain on top of the food chain.

Scizor@ Choice Band Technician Adamant nature (+Attack, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 248 HP / 252 Attack / 8 Sp. Defense Bullet Punch U-Turn Knock Off / Pursuit Superpower

Yes, since Platinum, Scizor has hardly changed at all, still using the same basic popular set it was using back then. Bullet Punch is a fantastic STAB, boasting priority to bypass Scizor's awful base 60 Speed as well as a boost by Technician. This is the main reason Scizor is such a huge threat, as it can serve as a reliable revenge-killer and late-game sweeper. Be careful about spamming it, however, as it is easily walled by common threats such as Rotom-Wash and Heatran. U-Turn is the second part of what makes Scizor dangerous. Switching out to something that can take a Bullet Punch is easily punished with a terribly powerful U-Turn that now allows Scizor's Trainer to bring in a new Pokemon that can handle whatever switched into Scizor, often forcing it right back out.

In the third slot, you have a couple options. Knock Off is an amazing move for anything that gets it, crippling any switch-ins for the rest of the match except for Mega Evolutions, for the most part. Pursuit, however, allows you to checkmate choice-locked Latios locked into a Not Very Effective move, or even a Life Orb Latios that has already used Draco Meteor on something. Superpower in the last slot allows Scizor to smash its way through Heatran, Ferrothorn, and other Steel types.

Scizor begs for entry hazards on the opponent's side to punish switching to make both Bullet Punch and U-Turn more potent. Stealth Rock support in particular is fast to setup and really helps get turn 3HKOs into 2HKOs. Dugtrio support is optional to remove Heatran if you'd like, allowing you to more comfortably use your STAB moves once it's removed. Mega Venusaur makes a good partner for walling Rotom-W, only being annoyed by a possible Will-O-Wisp. Sticky Web support can help a little bit, but is much less necessary on this kind of Pokemon, given that it has such a good priority attack.

Base Stats: 70 HP / 150 Attack / 140 Defense / 65 Sp. Attack / 100 Sp. Defense / 75 Speed

Mega Scizor is an interesting case. When it was revealed and the stats were worked out, it was dismissed as another mega Pokemon that was inferior to its non-Mega counterpart. As we soon discovered, however, that is not entirely accurate. Mega Scizor has many advantages over normal Scizor, the most notable being the greatly increased bulk, but the jump in Speed is not something that should be overlooked either. Most of all, something we didn't know at the time was that Defog has been buffed to remove all hazards from the field. This gives Mega Scizor a great niche as a defensive hazard remover that isn't weak to Stealth Rock, and is immune to Toxic Spikes.

Being a defensive Defogger isn't the only thing Mega Scizor can do better than Scizor, though. Thanks to the increased defenses and Speed, it's a better Swords Dance sweeper as well. Mega Scizor is not the immediate powerful threat that Scizor is, but it is just as much of a team player, if not more.

Scizor@ Scizorite Light Metal [Technician] Impish nature (+Defense, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 248 HP / 84 Attack / 176 Sp. Defense Swords Dance Roost Bullet Punch Knock Off / Bug Bite

Bulky Swords Dance Scizor can setup with ease on many common threats and keep itself healthy with Roost. Bullet Punch is your main STAB attack, with Knock Off providing the best neutral coverage along with Bullet Punch, allowing it to hit many Pokemon that resist Steel, such as Rotom-Wash and Heatran on the switch, as well as crippling them. Bug Bite is an option in this slot for a secondary STAB, but Steel and Bug is awful type coverage, being walled by Steel types completely.

The EVs are strange for this set, so I will explain them. 248 HP gives Scizor the best bulk and takes less damage from Stealth Rock than max HP would. 176 Sp. Defense avoids a 2HKO by Mega Gardevoir's Focus Blast. Impish nature, even with 0 investment, avoids a 2HKO from max Attack Landorus-Therian's Earthquake, and even Life Orb Terrakion's Close Combat. The leftover EVs are put into Attack to give Scizor more power.

This set appreciates Dugtrio support even more than the CB set, as removing Heatran is more important on this set, to prevent it from stopping your SD sweep. Since it cannot be run with Mega Venusaur, Amoonguss is a good teammate to wall Rotom-Wash, and it doesn't mind a potential Burn as much as M-Venusaur does due to having Black Sludge and Regenerator.

Light Metal is the ability of choice before Mega Evolving since Mega Scizor will gain Technician regardless, and Light Metal allows Scizor to switch into Grass Knot and Low Kick and take less damage.

Scizor@ Scizorite Light Metal [Technician] Impish nature (+Defense, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 248 HP / 252 Defense / 8 Sp. Defense Defog Roost Bullet Punch Knock Off / Superpower / U-Turn

Scizor's access to Defog and neutrality to entry hazards makes it a prime candidate for hazard removal on your team. Defog removes all hazards on both sides, clearing the way for your Pokemon to come in unhindered after Scizor's work is done. Roost keeps Scizor alive, which is very important on this defensive set. Bullet Punch allows Scizor to act as a revenge-killer if necessary, though the lack of investment in Attack makes it significantly weaker than most revenge-killers, and calculations and consideration should be done before employing this strategy.

The last slot is a tough choice. Knock Off provides the best neutral coverage and can cripple foes by removing their item. Superpower deals with Steel types, though the Defense drop often forces Scizor out. U-Turn allows Scizor to escape while dealing good damage, giving Scizor momentum as the opponent switches in a counter to Scizor.

This Scizor is most suited to defensive or stall teams that need hazard removal. It is not meant as an offensive threat and should not be played as such. The defensive EVs make Scizor bulkier than Skarmory, which is considerable, allowing it to easily tank physical hits from OU's top physical attackers.

Scizor@ Scizorite Light Metal [Technician] Adamant nature (+Attack, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 Sp. Defense Swords Dance Bullet Punch Knock Off Superpower / U-Turn / Bug Bite

An all-out offensive SD Mega Scizor can be a significant threat, especially since most Mega Scizor are not a threatening offensive threat. The main difference on this set from the first set is that it drops Roost for a third attack. Swords Dance is the crux of the set, boosting Scizor's Attack stat to 876, more than capable of dealing heavy damage to defensive threats. Bullet Punch is chosen for the obvious reasons of STAB, Technician, and priority. Knock Off is the second choice, providing amazing neutral coverage, power, and the ability to remove items from opponents. The last slot has a few choices. Superpower allows Scizor to OHKO Heatran, as well as many other Steel types. U-Turn, while odd on a boosting set, has a realistic use. U-Turning out of counters that come in before attempted your SD sweep can soften them up for when you're ready to attempt your sweep. Bug Bite, however, gives you a very powerful secondary STAB, capable of OHKOing even the most physically defensive Rotom-Wash after a Swords Dance and damage from Stealth Rock 56% of the time.

As always, entry hazard support is appreciated. Dugtrio support is less necessary for this set, given that it will outspeed most Heatran and OHKO with Superpower or U-Turn out of it.

Scizor@ Scizorite Light Metal [Technician] Adamant nature (+Attack, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 248 HP / 96 Attack / 164 Sp. Defense U-Turn Bullet Punch Roost Knock Off / Pursuit / Superpower

Giving Scizor Roost and three attacks allows Scizor to consistently check prominent top-tier threats such as Latios, Latias, Fairy types (excluding Azumarill), among others. U-Turn allows you to maintain a good position in the match even when the opponent switches in something that walls Scizor, such as Skarmory. Bullet Punch gives Scizor a great STAB priority attack that can deal heavy damage to Pokemon such as Kyurem-Black, Mega Gardevoir, and Greninja, especially given that its typing is not static. Roost keeps Scizor alive to ensure that it can punish these Pokemon throughout the match.

The last slot has a few options. Knock Off provides the most general team support, ridding the opponent of their held item and dealing considerable damage. Pursuit is great for punishing Latios and Latias, as well as Alakazam that attempt to switch out of a Bullet Punch. Superpower is once again an option, for breaking through common Steel type switch-ins like Heatran and Ferrothorn.

This Scizor is all about removing specific threats, specifically Psychic types. Good partners are ones that can sweep through teams that have Psychic types removed. Keldeo, Mega Medicham and Infernape are good examples of Pokemon that appreciate these Pokemon removed.

Scyther can be found on Route 21, but requires a trade while holding Metal Coat to evolve, so you'll need a friend to help out. Here's what I'd recommend for an in-game Scizor:

Scizor Bullet Punch / Iron Head X-Scissor Brick Break Roost

Scizor's a very powerful Pokemon with only a single weakness, and a STAB Super Effective move for the many Fairy types in X/Y, making it a great choice for in-game use. Bullet Punch is a STAB priority attack, and is boosted by Technician if your Scizor has that. If not, Iron Head has even more power than Technician boosted Bullet Punch. X-Scissor is your secondary STAB attack, and has good power as well, and decent coverage. Brick Break is chosen as the coverage move to defeat Steel types that resist the other two moves. Finally, Roost keeps Scizor healthy without the need for Potions.

Scizor and its pre-evolution, Scyther, both appear to be based on mantis, though Scyther more closely resembles one. Mantis are pretty cool, and kind of scary, insects. Smaller species eat mostly insects, but larger species have been known to hunt small scorpions, lizards, frogs, rodents, snakes, fish, and birds. Scizor also shares characteristics with flying red ants. I tried to do more research on them, but I couldn’t because of a phobia, so instead I’ll have to speak from personal experience. Ants in general scare me, but flying ants are so much worse. Flying ants are terrifying, they’re far larger than you would expect, and being swarmed by them is horrible. Now, take an insect that preys on animals that prey on other insects, combine in with one of my worst fears, and you have Scizor, a truly terrifying Pokémon.

Scizor’s typing seems fairly simple. Its Steel typing is likely based on its namesakes, scissors and razors. Its name is likely a reference to its claws, which work like scissors and are razor sharp. As for its name in other languages, in Japanese, its name is ハッサム Hassam, which comes from剪む hasamu, meaning ‘clip’ or ‘snip’. In French, its name is Cizayox, which comes from ‘ciseaux’, which means ‘scissors’, and possibly also comes from ‘oxidation’, which is the process that happens when metal rusts, which is likely a reference to its colour. In German, its name is Scherox, which comes from ‘schere’, meaning ‘scissors’, and either ‘ferox’, which means ‘wild’, or oxidation, again. In Korean, its name is핫삼 Hassam, which is a transliteration of its Japanese name. In Mandarin Chinese, which always seems to have the most literal Pokémon names, its name is 巨鉗螳螂 / 巨钳螳螂 Jùqiántángláng , which means ‘Giant-pincered mantis’.

Scizor is pretty cool, especially since I imagine its claws double as giant fists with which it uses Bullet Punch. That said... Scyther wins it for me. Scyther's my favorite Bug type, and it baffles me how those awesome long blades turned into pincers. In any case, Mega Scizor improves on Scizor's design, in my opinion, and the claws are much more functional than I'd imagine Scizor's would be. Such a cool Pokemon.

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