LC Spotlight: Snivy

By H&MBerkeley. Art by Cretacerus.
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Snivy: The Fifth Gen Flop

Snivy by Cretacerus

With the advent of the fifth generation came, of course, three new starter Pokémon, and none of those three are more powerful or defining in our current Little Cup metagame than Snivy. However, Snivy was nowhere near the force it is now when it was first introduced back in Black and White. All Snivy had to its name was a niche dual screens set, which was notable for its access to Taunt, its above average Speed, and its resistance to Drilbur's Ground-type STAB attacks. Unfortunately, Snivy's niche was not good enough to grant it any real place in the metagame. As the sixth generation rolled around, Snivy found itself in pretty much the same spot. Being unable to secure a prominent niche in the metagame, it was only used by die-hard Snivy fans.

Snivy Takes the Stage

Of course, all rags become riches at some point, and on January 22, 2015, diligent Snivy fans were finally able to get their hands on a Contrary Serperior via Mystery Gift. This meant that, via breeding, players could now obtain a legal Contrary Snivy, finally turning Snivy into the potent attacking force all of us Snivy fans had been hoping for. While Snivy was originally ranked near the bottom of the barrel of viable Little Cup Pokémon in the lowly D rank, the introduction of Contrary Leaf Storm into Snivy's arsenal shot it all the way up to A- rank! Let that be a lesson to you: whenever you're feeling down—like way down at rock bottom of the ocean down—just remember that you, like Snivy, may one day be granted the hidden ability Contrary and return to your native tier as the best special wallbreaker around! I'm telling you, such a tantalizing prospect has certainly helped me through some rough patches...

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Ahem.

Snivy In A Nutshell

Snivy Snivy

Snivy has several fantastic qualities that easily set it apart as the top offensive Grass-type in Little Cup. With all mentions of Leaf Storm and the havoc it wreaks set aside, Contrary also helps Snivy beat Sticky Web teams and dissuades Defog (most Defog users are Flying-types, however, so beware). Snivy also hits the important 17 Speed tier, allowing it to Speed tie with top-tier Pokémon like Mienfoo and Drilbur. It also has access to an impressively wide array of support moves; these include self-supporting options such as Synthesis and dual screens and offensive support options such as Glare, Knock Off, and Taunt. Snivy is also somewhat unique in that it can viably run two sets that function differently and yet are equally effective. Should you add an Eviolite Snivy with Synthesis to your team, you have elected to use one of the best self-sustaining special sweepers (try saying that five times fast!) in the entire metagame; on the other hand, should you instead choose to use a Berry Juice Snivy with Substitute, you become the guiding hand behind one of the most fearsome wallbreakers in the tier!

Of course, if Snivy was nothing but a Hefty™ bag full of positive qualities, it'd be sitting in the LC Ubers trash can. The biggest letdowns you'll experience from Snivy include its shallow movepool in terms of attacking coverage (as it only has access to Leaf Storm, Hidden Power, and various other weak attacks that give it poor coverage) and its huge weakness to Fletchling, the Little Cup Tier Terror™. Snivy's stats are also fairly mediocre outside of its above-average Speed, and its mono-Grass typing leaves a lot to be desired offensively. Even with these flaws, however, Snivy is arguably the best special wallbreaker in the tier, and it is certainly a threat for which every team needs to prepare.

Just Click Leaf Storm

The first step to playing with Snivy is picking a set to use, but don't worry! At the moment, there are two viable Snivy sets: Eviolite Pivot and Berry Juice. Snivy's Eviolite set happens to be slightly more conducive to the metagame at the moment, as it makes use of its bulk and Synthesis to fit better on more defensively oriented balance squads. On the other hand, Berry Juice Snivy is a better fit on teams that don't require it to pivot as much. Because the two have fairly distinct playstyles, you shouldn't have a hard time picking between the two sets once you figure out what kind of team you'd like to use Snivy on. After you've selected a Snivy set, focus on bringing it in against threats such as Chinchou and Tirtouga, as Snivy isn't too threatened by them. Once Snivy takes the stage, you'll find that Leaf Storm is your next click nine times out of ten; however, you'll want some good options available for when that's not the case. Snivy should almost always run Hidden Power, with the most viable typings being Ground, Flying, and Fire. The Hidden Power you choose to use decides what can beat Snivy—to a certain extent—and is the only useful coverage move that Snivy can run. It's important to note, however, that there are a few Hidden Power options (most notably Hidden Power Fire and Rock) that will cause Snivy to drop down to the 16 Speed tier, which is significantly worse than the 17 Speed it usually reaches. Filling in the last two moveslots can be just about any combination of Snivy's fantastic support arsenal, including moves such as Glare, Knock Off, Synthesis, and Substitute.

Snivy is a fairly self-sufficient Pokémon, as it has the sheer wallbreaking power to muscle through many of its checks. However, certain teammates can do a great job of paving the way for Snivy's rampage; these include trappers such as Diglett and Gothita, Fletchling checks such as Omanyte and Archen, and Choice Scarf users such as Chinchou and Magnemite. Of the trappers, Diglett is a particularly potent partner, as it can remove common Snivy checks such as Ponyta and Pawniard while alleviating the need for Hidden Power Ground. Omanyte is also a fantastic partner for Snivy, as it can set up with Shell Smash in the faces of many common Snivy checks, particularly Fletchling.

The Snivy Stopping Shortlist

Obviously, Snivy can easily snowball into a monster of a threat. With such insane offensive capabilities, what's to stop little_cup_masteh123 from mindlessly Leaf Storming his way through your beautiful Omastar + Rhydon core? Worry not, oh humble user, for there are plenty of ways to deal with Snivy before anything gets too far out of hand. For one thing, no Snivy will ever sweep your team if it contains Fletchling, Snivy's Enemy #1. No Snivy build can hope to withstand the raw power of a 110 Base Power priority Acrobatics, so preserving Fletchling is key should you encounter little_cup_masteh123 and his Snivy again. Pokémon that resist Grass-type attacks, such as Larvesta and Croagunk, also make for great Snivy checks. However, when considering using a slower Pokémon resistant to Grass as your Snivy check, it is important to take into consideration Snivy's possible choice of Hidden Power coverage. The most common Hidden Power types Snivy runs are Fire, Ground, and Flying, so depending on his coverage choice, little_cup_masteh123 and his glorified leaf snake may be able to barrel right through your Foongus. What a shame, amirite?

Snivy also lacks any form of priority attack, so using your own priority attackers, such as Fletchling, Snover, and Pawniard, is a great way to pick off a weakened +4 Leaf Storm machine. Additionally, because Snivy is only moderately quick, one of the best ways to deal with it is to revenge kill it with a faster Pokémon such as Doduo or Gastly. Of course, these faster Pokémon are fairly frail, so switching them directly into Leaf Storm is generally out of the picture.

teambuildingforlove.com/user/snivy

Snivy enjoys long walks on the beach, the company of Rock- and Water-type friends, and balanced offensive teams. Qualities he looks for in a potential core involve the ability to get past Fletchling and other troubling Flying-types, compassion, good listening skills, and fast Pokémon that can deal with opposing Pokémon that outspeed him. Significant relationships Snivy has previously enjoyed include a great synergy he found with Omanyte, who could take advantage of pesky Flying- and Fire-types with the threat of Shell Smash, a short stint with Diglett, who was able to remove Poison-, Steel-, and Fire-types that threaten Snivy, and a distinctly one-sided partnership with Fletchling, who appreciated Snivy's penchant for removing Rock-type Pokémon but left little on the table herself. Overall, Snivy is looking for a committed, trusting partner with good type synergy, a general quickness, a powerful sense of self, and a desire to grow.

Please Use This Leaf Snake

When it all boils down, Snivy's Contrary Leaf Storm turns it into a truly spectacular wallbreaker capable of steamrolling even some prepared teams. Though it falls to the plethora of faster Pokémon and priority running around the tier (not to mention cowering in the face of the vaunted SubDisable Gastly), Snivy has been blessed with an unrivaled potential and wears it well. Be sure to try out your own Snivy next time you take some time in the tier, and don't be surprised when you roll right through little_cup_masteh123 in your next Little Cup ladder matchup.

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