Contest Contest-of-the-Week: Mawile vs Sableye

[Winterdaze]

Welcome to Contest-of-the-Week! With the release of Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire on the horizon, the attention of Pokémon fans everywhere turns to Hoenn, and all the cool and interesting Pokemon that live there.

Every week, we'll be looking at a few of the many Pokémon you'll meet along your journey through the Hoenn region, and asking for your opinions on them and how they stack up next to their counterparts or rival Pokemon looking to fill the same spot on your team.

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After retrieving the Devon Goods, Mr Stone tasks you with delivering them to Captain Stern in Slateport City. Fortunately Dewford Town, and the opportunity to earn your second badge, lies along the way. The caves on the island are also home to many new Pokemon, and depending on the version you are playing either Mawile or Sableye can be found there.

Both are single stage Pokemon that have fairly low stats for a fully evolved Pokemon, but some unique qualities that have earned them something of a cult following. For example both Pokemon are blessed with good typing and abilities, Mawile's Steel typing grants it a wide array of resistances, and it gains even more in Gen VI with the addition of the Fairy type, while Sableye's Ghost/Dark typing has just one weakness, or none at all in games before Gen VI. As of ORAS both of these Pokemon have Mega Evolutions, with Mawile gaining overwheming strength with Huge Power, while Sableye obtains another supporting niche with Magic Bounce.

Which Pokemon you prefer, and why?

-Which has the better design?
-Which one is easier to train?
-Which is more useful throughout the game?
-Which do you think will be better in ORAS?
-Which is more useful in the competitive environment?
-Which Mega Evolved form of these Pokemon do you prefer?

Let the contest begin!

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Next week: Hariyama vs Medicham

 

[Karpi]

I had never really used either of them until I got stuck with a Sableye in a Nuzlocke run as my only surviving pokemon after a particularly disastrous battle (Maxie, maybe. I don't quite remember). Sableye was decent enough for in-game, since normal type moves are everywhere, and I sort of felt obligated to keep him with me since he was my only pokemon at one point.

Then he died against a Foresight Machoke at Mt. Pyre because I wasn't thinking
Regardless, that's my experience with Sableye and I've never used Mawile. So I'm going to go with Sableye. (Plus no attack in Brawly's gym can touch Sableye, so if you're trying to just blast through there, get a Sableye for a few levels)

 

[cityvillain]

Mawile has one of the best designed Pokemons. Quirky and well executed. I've always wished the Mega Mawile was a normal evolution for Mawile. For my OR playthrough, I'll stick with Sableye simply because I want to try out the Mega Sableye.

 

[aliveatnight]

I had never really used either of them until I got stuck with a Sableye in a Nuzlocke run as my only surviving pokemon after a particularly disastrous battle (Maxie, maybe. I don't quite remember). Sableye was decent enough for in-game, since normal type moves are everywhere, and I sort of felt obligated to keep him with me since he was my only pokemon at one point.

Then he died against a Foresight Machoke at Mt. Pyre because I wasn't thinking
Regardless, that's my experience with Sableye and I've never used Mawile. So I'm going to go with Sableye. (Plus no attack in Brawly's gym can touch Sableye, so if you're trying to just blast through there, get a Sableye for a few levels)

I had the opposite happen. I was against a Sableye in a Nuzlocke, and all the Pokemon I had left couldn't hit it. It wiped that team clean.

Anyways, as for my answer:
I'm going to go with Mawile because I've always liked her, however I've definitely learned to appreciate Sableye. Mawile is adorable, especially for a steel type, has an awesome Mega.
I don't really use either in battle, so I can't really speak beyond that.

 

[Rainami]

I love Mawile, I really like its design. However, I like Sableye's design more, and honestly I wouldn't like Mawile as much as I do if it weren't for it being Sableye's counterpart. Sableye also has a more interesting and fun playstyle, and can be useful in both its mega and normal forms. Mawile, on the other hand, is a very mediocre Pokemon unless it mega evolves.

Which has the better design? Sableye, definitely
Which one is easier to train? Mawile I guess?
Which is more useful throughout the game? Probs Mawile because sheer power is more efficient than stalling in game. Even without mega evolving, Mawile hits harder.
Which do you think will be better in ORAS? Mawile
Which is more useful in the competitive environment? Mawile, but Sableye is good too, and doesn't need to mega evolve to be usable
Which Mega Evolved form of these Pokemon do you prefer? Mega Sableye, I like its design more. Mega Mawile has a gr8 design too but it's not as interesting, it's just a recolored Mawile with an extra jaw. Mega Sableye's design involves its chest gem being ripped out, growing to weigh over 300 pounds, and being used as a shield.

 

[SnivyFennekinFroakie]

Pfft. We all know what I chose.

 

[Team Gaara]

It's pretty much Mawile all the way for me~ I certainly like her design better, not that Sableye has a bad one, I just prefer Mawile's. A Kimono wearing monster with giant Jaws for hair? And a Steel-type, too? Speaking of, Mawile happens to be my favorite Steel-type. I feel as though Sableye might be easier to train, though. While Mawile resists a lot of hits, Sableye never has to worry about taking Super Effective Damage in Gen III. On top of that, I don't even think Mawile learns any STAB moves in Gen III since Iron Head was introduced in Gen IV, while Sableye can.

I personally find Mawile more useful in-game. Steel is always that type to have to come in and take all of the hits since it resists most of them, and, even though it doesn't have the best Defenses, it still holds up pretty well. Sableye, though I've never used one, doesn't seem to have too much to offer in-game other than having no weaknesses, which doesn't hold up very well due to Sableye's pretty low stats. I think Mawile will also be better in ORAS since she now has Fairy, which will allow for a new immunity to Dragon and ability to take on the Fighting-types she was previously weak to.

As for which is more useful in competitive, it depends on what you're looking for. Mawile is good for Bulky Offense, while Sableye with Prankster is good for being an annoying Status inflicter with Priority Recovers to add to it. Both have their uses, but I, personally, think Mawile is better with her Mega Evolution. Huge Power makes her a force to be reckoned with, only hindered by her low speed, which can be hindered if you choose to run Sucker Punch.

I really like both Megas, but is it really a question as to which I prefer? Mega Mawile is my favorite Mega Evolution, period. The design looks amazing, the stats are great; what's not to love about her? Mega Sableye looks great as well, but I still wish it had kept Prankster.

 

[homer.homs]

Now that I'm thinking of it, I'm gonna breed a Sableye. I go for Sableye because its sacary looking design.

 

[Zeb]

I'm gonna be a massive hipster and say I've loved Mawile since before it was popular. It was one of the biggest reasons I chose Ruby as a kid. Now it has a great Mega people suddenly seem to start proclaiming it their favourite Pokemon when they never knew it existed before - I'm glad it's getting more popularity, but it took a powerful Mega for people to realise it's worth attention which is sad Great design for both it and its Mega, has an amazing typing now, hits insanely hard. I've loved it since I was a kid and its Mega makes me love it even more.

-Which has the better design?
Both have great designs, but Mawile has the better one for me. It just looks more interesting with the giant jaw.
-Which one is easier to train?
Neither are particularly easy to train since their stats are pretty bad. Mawile has the benefit of Intimidate, great defensive typing and a good movepool and I managed to train one on my X team to decent success. While Sableye can have Prankster, Recover and a pretty good defensive typing with only one weakness. I reckon they are both about as easy as each other to train these days, though Sableye will want its hidden ability and egg move to be more useful.
-Which is more useful throughout the game?
Probably Mawile. Sableye needs its hidden ability (not in the main game) and Recover (egg move) otherwise it's not going to be alive long. I did manage to use a Sableye in Sapphire once and had it up until Fortree. It did quite well until that point but then it really started to struggle.
-Which do you think will be better in ORAS?
Depends if their Mega stones are available. If not, probably Mawile for reasons given in the last question.
-Which is more useful in the competitive environment?
Mega Mawile is PRO, nothing else to say. Sableye is good, but it's no pro. We'll see what its Mega is like come November.
-Which Mega Evolved form of these Pokemon do you prefer?
Both have great designs, and I love how they didn't just make Sableye bigger and spikier like most fanart depicts it. They went for a creative idea and I love it. Still, Mega Mawile's design is pretty much perfect, two more stylised jaws, the longer bangs. Mega Mawile easily for me. It's my favourite Mega for a reason!

 

[Sakuraa]

Which has the better design?
While I like both designs, I think Mawile is much cuter.

Which one is easier to train?
I've only ever trained Sableye in a Sapphire rom and it was in Brawly's gym. Overall I still choose Sableye simply because it has less weakness and more immunities.

Which is more useful throughout the game?
It depends on what is already on your team and how much coverage you want.

Which do you think will be better in ORAS?
Same as above really, especially when dealing with the megas (if they're available during main story).

Which Mega Evolved form of these Pokemon do you prefer?
Mawile's. I not particularly that fond of Sableye's Mega since it barely changes. Mawile's Mega clearly gives off the feeling of "this Pokemon is a much stronger version of the original." I just don't feel that with Sableye.

Regardless of everything I still pick Mawile as my choice because I prefer its typing and appearance in base form and mega.

 

[Adan Flyber]

So, this week, Mawile and Sableye. Mysdibule and Ténéfix. I had a Sableye in my Emerald Team, and (shame on me?) I planned to fight Elite Four with him. He even had a nickname (and I never give nicknames). Or she, I don't remember. So I prefer Sableye, answering the "missing question": Which do you prefer?

Which has the better design?

Well... Sorry Sableye, but I have to say that Mawile is the best here. The real body is "cute", sure, and the general design, totally strange and original (totally the style of Generation III) is just better than Sableye's.

Which one is easier to train?

Well, I didn't train any Mawile, but I remember my Sableye from Dewford Town was hard to train in the end of the game...

Which is more useful throughout the game?

Well, of coure, Mawile is more interesting when you want to attack and attack. But if we think about the gym leaders, Sableye is really useful: Sableye is a real advantage for Dewford Town, and he is even more useful in the fight against Tate and Lysa for the seventh badge: indeed, if your Sableye is level 42 or more (Tate and Lysa's Pokémons are level 40-42), he can use Shadow Ball, wich is really useful in a Psy Gym.

Which do you think will be better in ORAS?

I don't really know, and I don't really care. But I think that nothing will really change for thoses two Pokémons. But the fact is that Sableye is not the weakless Pokémon anymore, and Mawile has even an advantage because of his new "Fairy" Type...

Which is more useful in the competitive environment?

I'm not a specialist, so I don't really know.

Which Mega Evolved form of these Pokemon do you prefer?

Actually, I don't like Mega-evolution. I'm against Mega-Evolution. But I can of course give my opinion about the design, and "my vote" goes obviously to Mawile, totally creepy and dark (paradoxally, it's now a Fairy Pokémon, despite everything we know about him from the Pokédex and the stats would make him more a Dark or Fight Pokémon, because of his aggressivity...)

 

[Karpi]

Also, on which is easier to train:

Mawile only needs about 80% of the experience Sableye does. This difference starts at about level 30 according to Bulbapedia graphs.
Sableye still blows through the early game in a way that almost no other pokemon can. But after about level 30, it starts needing more experience and its stats also start to be subpar as every other pokemon around it evolves.
At that point you're better off with Mawile, because even though it also has low stats, it is one of the fastest pokemon to level. So you can have an overleveled Mawile that sort of makes up for its low stats.

All in RSE, of course. If you were going to raise either in XY, they would be one of those pokemon that sit in the back of your party passively gaining experience along with the other pokemon you don't want to directly train (Chansey, Wobbuffet, you know the kind), so this doesn't really apply anymore.