Analysis
Drifblim is a pretty versatile Pokemon this month, being able to fill whatever role a team may need with a bit of support. It gets a plethora of moves ranging from physical and special attacks, hazard removal, and status moves that cripple opponents which leads to various different sets.
Drifblim gets the ability Flare Boost which increases the base power of its special attacks by 1.5, making it deal the same damage as if it were carrying choice specs. It also gets access to Calm Mind, and with solid special STAB options in Air Slash and Shadow Ball as well as Thunderbolt as coverage for Mantine, there isn’t much that wants to switch into it. However, Drifblim’s middling speed stat allows faster threats such as Raichu and specs Thievul to easily revenge kill it. Morpeko also doesn’t fear its stabs nor coverage and can switch to OHKO with Aura Wheel. Calm Mind Drifblim also needs a turn to set up a Calm Mind and Flare Boost which gives the opponent a turn to safely switch to a Pokemon that easily threatens out Drifblim. However, it can take advantage of its rather slow speed by replacing Calm Mind with Trick Room. Although Drifblim won’t be hitting as hard without Calm Mind, it can get the jump on threats that would normally outspeed it which can make a difference in certain situations.
Because speed is a big problem for offensive Drifblim, Unburden is the more common ability. With only 188+ speed, it can outspeed +1 252+ Scolipede by 2 points when this ability is activated, allowing it to save 68 EVs for another stat. It also isn’t weak to Extreme Speed or Vacuum Wave which are some of the most common priority attacks while Sucker Punch and Shadow Sneak are rarely used which allows it to sweep safer. The easiest way to get Unburden Drifblim going is to use Mirror Herb, which only relies on the enemy Pokemon to setup, and with plenty of setup sweepers this month it becomes easy to bring in an immediately threatening Drifblim. A terrain seed can also be used, but Drifblim won’t benefit from terrains due to being considered as levitating. And because it wants to consume or lose an item, it will almost never want to use Heavy-Duty Boots which leaves it pretty stealth rock weak, so hazard removal is essential.
Drifblim is able to use physical, special, or even mixed attacker sets. For physical attacking sets, Acrobatics is amazing since not only is it a STAB move, but it also has an increased base power of 110 when Unburden is activated which more than makes up for its rather poor base attack stat of 80. Lucario and Scolipede, 2 of the top 5 mons this month, frequently use Swords Dance while Revavroom, a little less popular at #10, uses Shift Gear which makes using Mirror Herb very convenient to use. Belly Drum is also used by Linoone and will end the game on the spot if copied by Mirror Herb. Other attacks it can make use of are Knock Off, Phantom Force (which is unfortunately its only physical ghost STAB), Frustration, and Temper Flare. Knock Off is especially useful to deal with Wyrdeer who’s immune to Phantom Force. However, there might not be any physical setup sweepers to use Mirror Herb on, so Swagger is an important inclusion to guarantee that Unburden will activate. It also confuses the enemy Pokemon which can help it against walls.
Special attacking sets are a bit more limited because special setup sweepers aren’t as common, but it can copy Nasty Plot from certain variations of Lucario and Raichu as well as Calm Mind from Wyrdeer. Sitrus Berry or Colbur Berry can also be used, but the former requires Drifblim to not be OHKOed first while the latter doesn’t save it from the common Rock Slide, Shadow Ball, or Thunderbolt. This leaves terrain seeds as the best choice. Because Drifblim doesn’t benefit from terrains outside of consuming seeds, it’s best to avoid Grassy Terrain since it will only heal the opposing mon. Electric Terrain can be used in conjunction with a mon like Raichu since it greatly benefits from it and consuming Electric Seed raises Drifblim’s defense by 1 stage which helps with survivability, but if you don’t use such a Pokemon then Psychic Terrain is the best option. Special attacking sets will often be the same as the Flare Boost set with the only difference being in EV distribution and the item used.
Finally, mixed sets are more versatile but have less power. Being able to use physical or special attacks allows Drifblim to switch into any setup sweeper except for agility users and do some serious damage. Because Swords Dance is more common than Calm Mind or Nasty Plot, it’s best to maximize its attack stat and use the 68 EVs saved from using 188+ speed for its special attack. Acrobatics is a must have as it is Drifblim’s best flying STAB and easily OHKOes Scolipede and Lucario with +2 attack while Knock Off is good coverage for flying resists and Wyrdeer. This leaves Shadow Ball as the special attacking move and is a better STAB move than Phantom Force since it doesn’t take 2 turns to use.
Although its more offensive sets are a bit limited in available moves, its supportive sets are a lot more customizable. Will-O-Wisp allows Drifblim to act as a pseudo physical wall while Strength Sap allows it to ruin physical attackers even more. Hex can also be used to wear down whatever it’s walling even faster and hits harder when the enemy is burned from Will-O-Wisp. It can still make use of Knock Off to help weaken the opposing team while also hitting the normal types that are immune to Hex. Drifblim gets access to Defog which is always useful for hazard removal. It also has Baton Pass which allows it to pivot which gives it a unique niche over other walls as well as Mantine. Clear Smog can potentially be used to waste setup attempts but it doesn’t work on Lucario or Revavroom. There is also a very niche option to use it as a Trick Room setter since it can use Baton Pass to pass on a speed drop from consuming the item Room Service which also activates Unburden, allowing it to often go last and safely pivot into a wallbreaker. However, there aren’t many leads that Drifblim can survive 2 hits from so it’s often better to set Trick Room for itself to start wallbreaking with a Flare Boost set.
While Drifblim can sweep or be annoying with its support sets, it isn’t without flaws. Its ghost typing makes it weak to Knock Off and if its Heavy-Duty Boots are knocked off, it likely won’t be able to switch in again due to being Stealth Rock weak. A ghost/flying typing also makes Drifblim weak to 4 of the top 5 Pokemon. Lucario and Scolipede have rock coverage, scarf Gourgeist can easily outspeed and OHKO the balloon without ever activating its Mirror Herb, and Raichu just deletes it with one Life Orb boosted Thunderbolt. Its potential to sweep is also just potential; it can sometimes struggle to find an opportunity to switch in and get going. Most other sweepers only need 1 turn of setup to get going which makes predicting when to switch Drifblim in to use Mirror Herb a challenge. Its speed tier isn’t the best either without Unburden so it can struggle quite a bit. Drifblim also struggles to break past rock and steel types with monstrous defense stats like Aggron and Golem.
To help overcome these issues, supportive/defensive Drifblim wants other defensive mons that are able to take Knock Off well like Granbull or Qwilfish. Pokemon like Kingler or Gourgeist can help wear down rock and steel types to allow sweeping sets of Drifblim an easier time cleaning up late game. It also likes having a partner that can soften up the opposing team throughout the game before starting its sweep like Raichu. Offensive sets and Drifblim that got its Heavy-Duty Boots knocked off also really enjoy good hazard control which Eldegoss, Mantine, and Morpeko provide. Eldegoss in particular is also able to tank hits from Raichu that Drifblim would fear.
Written by AlfrexFrostStaff