Pidgeot, The Bird Pokémon. This Pokémon flies at Mach 2 speed, seeking prey. Its large talons are feared as wicked weapons. This Pokémon has a dazzling plumage of beautifully glossy feathers. Many Trainers are captivated by the striking beauty of the feathers on its head, compelling them to choose Pidgeot as their Pokémon.
Overview
The original regional bird, Pidgeot is a fan favorite Pokemon often being the evolution of one of the first Pokemon that many players caught. However, Pidgeot hasn't stood the test of time well and has fairly consistently remained among the lower tiers of competitive battling. Pidgeot can do some decent things down in these tiers of competitive play where its competition is less steep, but it can't really do much outside of there as it ends up being as generic as it gets for a bird Pokemon. Thankfully it has a fairly decent Mega Evolution bringing it back out of obscurity, but if you're looking to use regular Pidgeot there's unfortunately not a ton going for it.
Positives
Bulk - Pidgeot is a decently bulky bird with 83 base health and 75/70 Defense and Special Defense allowing it to take a hit or two. However, its Normal typing makes it hard to sponge up hits from some of the Pokemon you want to answer such as Fighting-types, namely Hitmonchan.
Negatives
Outclassed - Pidgeot often competes with Dodrio who is often seen in the same tier of play, who packs better offensive stats and Drill Peck (as well as Jump Kick), so it's not just dependent on the recoiling Brave Bird. Swanna also shows up as an offensive Defog user as well as pivot and usually does it better than Pidgeot due to its Water/Flying typing with access to Scald.
Power - Pidgeot doesn't hit very hard or has a lot of use in most lower tiers, and this stems from its low power, a base power of 80 in Attack and 70 Special Attack. This makes a Choice Band a mandatory option if Pidgeot wants to damage anything.
Abilities
Big Pecks - Prevents Defense from being dropped - Just not good as there isn't a lot of Defense dropping moves that get used much, but it can be nice in niche situations that you can't really even control.
Keen Eyes - Prevents Accuracy drop - Good in-game but bad in competitive play, as most accuracy dropping moves are bad or otherwise outright banned depending on your ruleset.
Tangled Feet - Doubles Speed when affected by confusion - If confusion wasn't a coin toss this would have a nice way to take advantage of a poor situation, but as of right now this is a gimmick at best.
Movesets
Choice Band
-Brave Bird
-U-Turn
-Return
-Defog
Item Attached: Choice Band
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs and Nature:
252 Atk / 4 Def /252 Spe
Jolly / Adamant Nature
With a Choice Band Pidgeot can make an attempt at chunking Pokemon in lower tiers and Brave Bird is a powerful STAB for it. Return is a less powerful option but lacks the recoil of Brave Bird making it a safer option to use in most instances. U-Turn is a nice option to create momentum and try and put slower teammates on more favorable footing. Last slot is open, Defog is good to remove hazards, and Steel Wing can be used to chip at Rhydon and Golem. Either way you lose to Steelix though who can come in very easily against it.
The EV spread is self-explanatory, maximum offensive investment is all you really want with a Choice Band set while the choice in Jolly or Adamant comes down to whether you want slightly more power or slight more speed. The ability is mostly irrelevant but Keen Eye provides the most valuable security of Pidgeot's abilities, you really don't want to be missing moves if you can avoid it.
Leftovers
-Defog
-U-Turn
-Toxic
-Roost / Return
Item Attached: Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs and Nature:
252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
Defensively Pidgeot can be a decent pivot to remove hazards. Defog and U-Turn are key moves to remove hazards and create space and momentum for the major players of the team. Last slot is open to a combination of moves, Toxic and Roost being two of the front runners due to their ability to cripple walls and heal respectively. Return and Brave Bird are also options for a more offensive style and allow Pidgeot to do more than U-Turn. Lastly Tailwind can make a last send off as you Tailwind and faint allowing a slow powerhouse to sweep such as Bewear.
The EV spread is still offensively inclined so that Pidgeot can actually deal some damage, though the Attack EVs can be moved to HP if preferred. Leftovers is a given for the item to provide some extra longevity, and Keen Eye is a mostly irrelevant pick for the ability but that's true of all the alternatives.
Other Options& Partners
Special Attacker - While its Special Attack is even lower than its physical at 70, Pidgeot can catch some things off guard such as Golem and Rhydon with Hidden Power Grass and Choice Specs. However at that point you should just use Mega Pidgeot and play a format where that shines such as Smogon UU.
Stunfisk- Resisting most of the Pokemon that Pidgeot baits in such as Steelix and Rhydon, Stunfisk can be very helpful for it, notably being immune to Electric-type moves itself. Stunfisk can also pressure Pidgeot's checks back with its decent Special Attack, and provide hazard support via Stealth Rock.
Countering Pidgeot
Steelix - Unaffected by anything Pidgeot can due bar a Spec set with Heat Wave, Steelix can safely switch in and laugh at Pidgeot and set up Stealth Rocks or Curse on it.
Rock Types - Without Steel Wing or Hidden Power Grass/Water, Pidgeot can't touch most Rock-types. This gives Pokemon such as Rhydon a free switch in, while other powerful options such as Golem,and if you use Pidgeot in higher tiers, Gigalith, a free switch in to create pressure.
Pidgeot, The Bird Pokémon. With its muscular strength now greatly increased, it can fly continuously for two weeks without resting.
Overview
Gaining a Mega stone with ORAS, Mega Pidgeot has been an interesting Mega similar to Beedrill in that it has a lot of power and in ideal situations is a major threat. The only issue is just creating these situations for Mega Pidgeot to shine. With No Guard and 135 Special Attack, Mega Pidgeot definitely does damage but it lacks a way to boost so you're left with that for power, which is unfortunately not overly impressive for a Mega Evolution. Most of Mega Pidgeot's new stat points are put into Special Attack, with another 20 into Speed and 15 spread across its defenses. This means that Mega Pidgeot is frail for a Mega and when with the competition that it faces in its usual tiers of play, it has to be decided that Mega Pidgeot is the core of the team really early and can't just be put into a team like other Megas such as Aerodactyl can be. However, Mega Pidgeot is no joke and it should definitely be respected if you see it in its usual tiers of play.
Positives
Offensive Pressure - Pidgeot brings a lot of offensive pressure to the team once it gets in as not much outside special walls like to take hits from Hurricane. This can put more frail teams on the back foot as Mega Pidgeot can easily wear down offensive pivots such as Rotom Heat. It does have a harder time breaking stall teams but can easily wear down Pokemon that lack recovery.
Negatives
Defenses - Mega Pidgeot has really bad defenses overall and makes it vulnerable to being revenge killed by faster threats or priority moves. This means Mega Pidgeot has a hard time finding a way into the field as it will take a lot of damage, especially since Mega Pidgeot will get hit with every move that gets fired.
Abilities
No Guard - Moves can't miss - This is a great ability and with Mega Pidgeot's access the Hurricane it gives the bird a fantastic STAB. However, this means Mega Pidgeot will always get hit as well so be aware of that. It also doesn't offer much else for Pidgeot aside from preventing occasional Heat Wave misses.
Movesets
Special Attacker
-U-Turn
-Hurricane
-Heat Wave
-Roost
Item Attached: Pidgeotite
Ability: No Guard (Big Pecks on Pidgeot)
EVs and Nature:
252 SpA /4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid / Modest Nature
Hurricane is the main move of the set, hitting really hard and having a 30% chance of confusion which can really disrupt some Pokemon if it comes at inopportune moments. Heat Wave is the only good coverage option Mega Pidgeot has but helps deal with Steel-type threats such as Cobalion. U-Turn allows Mega Pidgeot to tag out with its high speed and helps scout. Finally Roost allows Mega Pidgeot to stay around for longer to get more out of your Mega.
Maximum Special Attack and Speed investment are straightforward to take full advantage of its solid offensive stats. A Timid nature is preferred to capitalize on Mega Pidgeot's great Speed, though Modest can have merits to push its Special Attack a bit more so that it can break foes more effectively. Big Pecks is listed as the pre-Mega ability but as with regular Pidgeot it's very irrelevant here since you'll be Mega Evolving immediately for No Guard.
Other Options & Partners
Defog - Mega Pidgeot is typically not the ideal slot for your Defog user, but if you don't have room for hazard removal elsewhere or need a backup then Mega Pidgeot can drop Roost for it.Work Up + Refresh - This is a very difficult set to obtain for what is ultimately a niche stallbreaker, but it can put in some work while keeping itself free of status. This requires a Pidgeot from Pokemon XD that must also be taught Work Up via TM in Gen 5, which is often more trouble than it's worth.
Nihilego - Being a good answer to Mega Pidgeot, Nihilego is a solid answer to a lot of answers to Mega Pidgeot as well. Nihilego boasts high Special Defense to pivot into Rotom Heat as well as being a good option to run as a Choice Scarf to answer Mega Aerodactyl. Nihilego also can pressure down special walls to help Mega Pidgeot sweep or look to itself with Beast Boost.
Krookodile - With good Attack and the ability to Pursuit trap Pokemon, Krookodile is a strong option to pair with Pidgeot. Krookodile's ability to beat most Electric-types really helps as well as most can sponge hits well from Pidgeot. Krookodile can also effectively pivot into Mega Aerodactyl, but no more than a few times in a match due to lack of recovery.
Countering Mega Pidgeot
Mega Aerodactyl - Arguable the best Mega option around Mega Pidgeot's power level, Mega Aerodactyl can switch into Pidgeot decently well only fearing confusion from Hurricane. Mega Aerodactyl can pressure Pidgeot out with its higher base Speed and super effective Stone Edge or just set up Stealth Rock to pressure Mega Pidgeot, as it loses ź its health switching into it.
Rotom Heat - Rotom Heat does a great job walling Mega Pidgeot, not really caring a lot about its moves and dealing a lot of damage with Volt Switch or Overheat. However, Rotom Heat is vulnerable to being worn down by Hurricane over time and its weakness to Stealth Rock further limits its overall usefulness.
Locations in Games
Red/Blue/Yellow:
Evolve Pidgeotto
Gold/Silver/Crystal:
Evolve Pidgeotto
Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald:
Trade from FireRed/LeafGreen
FireRed/LeafGreen:
Evolve Pidgeotto
Colosseum/XD:
Evolve Pidgeotto (XD)
Trade from FireRed/LeafGreen (Colosseum)
Diamond/Pearl/Platinum:
Evolve Pidgeotto
HeartGold/SoulSilver:
Evolve Pidgeotto
Black/White:
Evolve Pidgeotto (White)
Trade from White (Black)
Black 2/White 2:
Trade from White
X/Y:
Evolve Pidgeotto
Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire:
Evolve Pidgeotto
Sun/Moon:
Trade from Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon
Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon:
Route 10 (Island Scan)
Let's Go, Pikachu!/Let's Go, Eevee!:
Route 1, Route 2, Route 5, Route 6, Route 7, Route 8, Route 11, Route 12, Route 13, Route 14, Route 15, Route 16, Route 17, Route 18, Route 19, Route 20, Route 21, Route 24, Route 25
Animé Appearences
