You could set out to cripple things and force things into struggle with...alright we got some nice and powerful posts being posted
Give me an alternative to:
Tyrone (Meowstic) (M) @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Light Screen
- Reflect
- Psychic
- Thunder Wave
but.. that's not a better use of Meowstic. You've suggested a worse set - the Priority Dual screens set is the best set it can run.You could set out to cripple things and force things into struggle with..
Meowstic (M) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Trick
- Thunder Wave
- Torment
- Psychic
All of the Sticky Web users have some niche that warrants use (even Ariados). That said, they need optimal movesets in order to be able to maximise their odds of either keeping offensive momentum or just ensuring their Webs stay down. Sticky Web Masquerain shouldn't be QuiverPassing imo since Sticky Web renders the speed pass redundant, it should have Hydro Pump (or Giga Drain) in order to destroy opposing leads (especially SR leads), or even do a little holepunching alongside its STABs if need be after it has set up Web so that your sweepers can clean up. Granted, it is very difficult to lay down Web, Quiver, and attack before Masquerain gets KOed, although occasionally it doesn't even need to set up Web so that burden can be relieved for it to start attacking.I think I got one.
Don't use this:
Masquerain @ Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP/ 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sticky Web
- Quiver Dance
- Baton Pass
- Air Slash
Masquerain isn't sure what it wants to be. Is it a Suicide Sticky Web user? Is it a Quiver Dance threat? The trouble is that it's outclassed in all of these roles. As a Quiver Dance threat, it's outclassed heavily by Vivillon. Props to it for being the only thing that can Baton Pass Quiver Dance, but the base 65 speed leaves a lot to be desired, and is outclassed by a variety of things as a Baton Passer (Ninjask, Whirlipede, Musharna, etc). It's also completely outclassed as a Sticky Web user by...
Use this instead:
Leavanny @ Focus Sash
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Sticky Web
- Magic Coat
- X-Scissor
- Toxic/Leaf Blade
Say hello to NU's best Sticky Web user. With a solid speed tier of 92, Leavanny is all but guaranteed to get a Sticky Web out. Magic Coat means that it has an answer to your opponent's Hazards, and gives it a way to avoid being Taunted. In addition to being faster than Masquerain, it's also slightly bulkier, and takes less damage from Stealth Rock. Pokemon that are quad-weak to grass, like Relicanth, Seismitoad, and even Rhyperior tend to stay away from it. Finally, Swarm + Focus Sash + X-Scissor has decent synergy, and give you a possible offensive option against common leads like Liepard.
Maybe I'm biased because of my love for Masquerain, but intimidate and scald (which you didn't put, so perhaps this is moot) in addition to its fighting-resist are not bad. Anyway, against the most common spinner, Sandslash:I think I got one.
Don't use this:
Masquerain @ Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 HP/ 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Sticky Web
- Quiver Dance
- Baton Pass
- Air Slash
Masquerain isn't sure what it wants to be. Is it a Suicide Sticky Web user? Is it a Quiver Dance threat? The trouble is that it's outclassed in all of these roles. As a Quiver Dance threat, it's outclassed heavily by Vivillon. Props to it for being the only thing that can Baton Pass Quiver Dance, but the base 65 speed leaves a lot to be desired, and is outclassed by a variety of things as a Baton Passer (Ninjask, Whirlipede, Musharna, etc). It's also completely outclassed as a Sticky Web user by...
Use this instead:
Leavanny @ Focus Sash
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Sticky Web
- Magic Coat
- X-Scissor
- Toxic/Leaf Blade
Say hello to NU's best Sticky Web user. With a solid speed tier of 92, Leavanny is all but guaranteed to get a Sticky Web out. Magic Coat means that it has an answer to your opponent's Hazards, and gives it a way to avoid being Taunted. In addition to being faster than Masquerain, it's also slightly bulkier, and takes less damage from Stealth Rock. Pokemon that are quad-weak to grass, like Relicanth, Seismitoad, and even Rhyperior tend to stay away from it. Finally, Swarm + Focus Sash + X-Scissor has decent synergy, and give you a possible offensive option against common leads like Liepard.
as stated before, leavanny should always be running leaf storm > leaf blade which doesMaybe I'm biased because of my love for Masquerain, but intimidate and scald (which you didn't put, so perhaps this is moot) in addition to its fighting-resist are not bad. Anyway, against the most common spinner, Sandslash:
252 Atk Leavanny Leaf Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Sandslash: 168-200 (47.4 - 56.4%) -- 28.1% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Masquerain Hydro Pump vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sandslash: 306-362 (86.4 - 102.2%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO
Actually, not sure why you gave it 252 HP with a sash, but the previous calc is with 252 SpA. I mean, I don't know how common special Sandslash is, but that's the most common set according to the calc usage.
Hmm. I guess. But Intimidate is still a decent enough niche imo to make it not completely outclassed.as stated before, leavanny should always be running leaf storm > leaf blade which does
252 SpA Leavanny Leaf Storm vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Sandslash: 458-540 (129.3 - 152.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
and also has the ability to hit lead seismitoad, in essence you've literally taken the point of this thread (changing used yet lack luster sets, to better ones) and tried to do the opposite...
Please mention Slaking's worst flaw: it is setup fodder; any Pokemon can set up literally without fear on a Truant turn which would turn the tides and shift momentum easily.This thing somehow gets more usage than Ferroseed. WTF?
Don't use:
Slaking @ Choice Band
Ability: Truant
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Return
- Hammer Arm
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
Sure, Slaking may have stats equivalent to that of Ubers. Sure, its Attack is higher than that of Deoxys-N. So why is Slaking bad? One word: Truant. This is an extremely exploitable ability, as all you have to do is use Protect or predict a move and switch into something that resists it. It gets worn down very easily because of this, and the only way to remove its ability is to use Yamask, and any smart player will not try to use contact moves to get mummified.
Use this instead:
Tauros @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SAtk / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Rock Climb
- Earthquake
- Zen Headbutt
- Fire Blast
Tauros is less suspicable to Protect shenanigans that stop Slaking in its tracks, allowing it to have more chances of breaking through its opponent. Sheer Force is an excellent ability for Tauros, as it will not take LO recoil damage from moves with secondary effects, thus making it harder to wear down. Better physical Normal-types aren't just limited to Tauros. Kangaskhan has access to priority in Sucker Punch, Zangoose has Toxic Boost Facade, Swellow also has Facade as well as Flying-type coverage, Bouffalant works well in Trick Room, and even niche stuff like Linoone, Ursaring, Sawsbuck, Dodrio, Purugly, Stoutland, and Persian all have things that make them stand out more than Slaking.
Yep. Slaking is a very one-dimensional pokemon. Slaking's only potentially useful role in all of pokemon is in doubles w/cofagrigus. Have cofagrigus hold ring target, and slaking use power up punch on it. This will remove slaking's truant and replace it with mummy, and raise it's attack one stage. Of course, any good player will see that coming from a mile away, so good luck ever pulling it off effectively. Slaking really shouldn't be used... ever. You should use ANYTHING ELSE instead of slaking.Please mention Slaking's worst flaw: it is setup fodder; any Pokemon can set up literally without fear on a Truant turn which would turn the tides and shift momentum easily.
Gigalith @ Leftovers
Ability: Sturdy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Rock Blast
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Heavy Slam
Gigalith, while having its niche in gen 5 NU, is no longer as viable; Custap Berry Explosion lead is now impossible with Custap Berry being illegal in gen 6. Additionally, single Rock typing leaves it vulnerable to Volt Switch pivots such as Rotom, Probopass, Raichu, and Lanturn. Gigalith also has a lackluster physical movepool, using moves that can all be used better by other pokemon.
Rhydon @ Eviolite
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Rock Blast
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Megahorn
Unlike Gigalith, Rhydon has an extra Ground typing, granting it an immunity to Electric moves, stopping volt switch users in their tracks. Furthermore, ground typing allows Rhydon to hit hard with STAB earthquake, swiftly dispatching of walls like Probopass and Steelix. With a large(r) physical movepool, Rhydon has options like megahorn, aqua tail, fire punch, etc. With access to eviolite, Rhydon also has the bulk to withstand hits from sweepers like Zangoose and Gurdurr.
I don't play NU that much, but I run the RU version of this thread so I might as well respond to this. Usually, the more interesting and helpful entries in these threads are the ones that point out inferior sets or individual moves on a Pokemon and suggest another move or set on the same Pokemon, which there are plenty of examples of and are about things that have a lot more people using them. To use an example from RU, over half of all Doublade (the most common Pokemon in the tier) run Sacred Sword, which is almost always inferior to its other moves for various reasons. Since Doublade is so common, an entry about not using Sacred Sword on it would be much more useful and more likely to help someone out by letting them know that they are running an inferior set and help them make their team better (which is the entire point of these threads, otherwise they'd be nothing more than a glorified way to complain about usage stats), whereas the 1% of ladder players who use Ninjask would be a lot less likely to visit the forums and even see the information that is being directed at them (not to mention the fact that there are a lot less of them in the first place). As I said before, I don't play NU, so I don't know of any relevant examples, but I'm sure there are plenty of possible entries that would be much more helpful than telling people who are likely just playing for fun that their mon is bad (they usually don't even care; if they cared enough they would see that their garbage mon was bad by looking at the viability rankings before they would see it here anyway). It should be easy to find good examples just by looking through the moveset statistics.The thing is, aside from Dusknoir (Which was already covered by ScraftyisTheBest) not much things above 2% in raw stats are really outclassed. Maybe you could make a case for stuff like Electrode and Kingler but that's it really.
Lilligant @ Lum BerryGive me an alternative to this:
Serperior @ Leftovers
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Calm Mind
- Giga Drain
- Substitute
- Hidden Power [Fire]
I love running Water / Normal teams and whenever I face Cradily with those I die a little inside. Not exactly the best, but most definitely worth using.
Lilligant @ Lum Berry
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Quiver Dance
- Sleep Powder
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power Fire
Lilligant outclasses Serperior when it comes to boosting and sweeping with a purely offensive spread. Lum Berry is there to guard against status, which is what Substitute is mostly good for anyways. You get Sleep Powder, so you have a lot more setup opportunities, and you become faster than Serperior after the initial boost. She also hits significantly harder off the bat.
If you want the advantage over Lilligant you might want to do a little bit of EV shifting and make it more durable. Serperior is most definitely bulkier, which I guess is the merit in its SubCM set. But with that frail spread, he isn't going anywhere, and the minor increase in bulk isn't as good as Sleep Powder when it comes to free turns to set up.