Sableye's access to Prankster allows it to shut down a vast majority of physical attackers, setup sweepers, walls, and weak special attackers before they can cause harm thanks to a combination of priority Will-O-Wisp and Taunt. Sableye also has access to the ever-reliable Recover, preventing it from being worn down quickly, thus allowing it to annoy teams throughout an entire match. Sableye is blessed with a rare type combination, and because of a priority Taunt, Sableye serves as a reliable Defog and Rapid Spin blocker for Spikes-stacking teams. Its typing also grants Sableye key immunities to the STAB moves of relevant offensive threats, such as Snorlax, Mienshao, and Reuniclus. Access to Knock Off furthers its capacity as a stallbreaker, especially considering most of Sableye's checks and counters don't appreciate having their item removed.

Despite having a great ability and a movepool that pairs well with Prankster, Sableye's mediocre base stats make it hard, impossible even, to switch in on a lot of the threats it's supposed to beat, and this usually results in Sableye losing to most special attackers. Because of an overwhelming lack of any offensive presence and such weak base stats, Sableye is extremely reliant on Will-O-Wisp and can be pressured to use Recover fairly easily. The ever-growing popularity of wallbreakers that Sableye can't shut down, specifically Entei, Hydreigon, Bulk Up Conkeldurr, and Nasty Plot Celebi, leaves it susceptible to offensive pressure. Sableye's specialized moveset also lets powerful offensive Pokemon like Conkeldurr and Mega Absol come in for free and immediately threaten it, but it can limit any setup in the former's case. Common defensive Pokemon, such as Sylveon and Diancie, scoff at anything Sableye is capable of doing in return and force it out with Pixilate Hyper Voice or Moonblast.