Croagunk (B/W) - Smogon University

D/P
B/W
Strategy
Moves

Anticipation: Alerts the wielder to certain dangerous moves.
Dry Skin: The wielder absorbs Water-type moves and has a weakness to Fire-type moves. Heals in rain and is damaged by sun.
Poison Touch: The wielder has a 30% chance to poison the opponent when it uses a contact move.

Type	Tier
Poison / Fighting	LC

Level 5 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
		Min-	Min	Max	Max+
HP	48	-	21	24	-
Atk	61	10	12	15	16
Def	40	9	10	13	14
SpA	61	10	12	15	16
SpD	40	9	10	13	14
Spe	50	9	11	14	15

Little Cup

Overview

Ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes on one of the greatest utility Pokemon in all of Little Cup. Perhaps the most innocuous of toads at first glance, Croagunk is prepared to go on the offense and attack your team with such quickness that moves with neutral priority are all but a futile attempt to beat Croagunk to the punch. The coveted Fake Out + priority combination belongs to this hasty fighter, who it well. There are numerous Fighting-types in Little Cup, but the reigning king among them, Mienfoo, cannot beat Misdreavus, which Croagunk does with relative ease. It is a similar situation with many other top threats, as niche typing and a Water-type immunity thanks to Dry Skin make many a Pokemon unable to break Croagunk before they meet their demise. Although it has a quadruple weakness to the Psychic-type and a comparatively mediocre Speed stat, Croagunk remains one of the most useful, niche Pokemon that any team can carry.

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Bulky Offensive	Eviolite	Dry Skin	Quiet

Moveset	EVs
~ Fake Out / Knock Off ~ Drain Punch ~ Vacuum Wave ~ Shadow Ball	212 HP / 28 Atk / 36 Def / 108 SpA / 116 SpD

Croagunk inarguably checks a large amount of the Pokemon that are common in Little Cup. Misdreavus, Lileep, Snover, Scraggy, Staryu, Chinchou, Shellder, Magnemite, Tirtouga, Omanyte, Scraggy, weakened Drilbur, weakened Sandshrew, weakened Murkrow, and more all fall victim to the venomous tactics that Croagunk uses. For this reason, Croagunk is often used as the "glue" to check numerous threats that no other Pokemon can all at once. Croagunk isn't a Pokemon that you should use for power; if you want to do that, try one of the many other Fighting-types, such as Scraggy or Mienfoo. Rather, unleash Croagunk if you have trouble with Shell Smash sweepers, or Chinchou, or Misdreavus, or one of the many other Pokemon that Croagunk checks.

Moving onto the given moves, let's start off with Fake Out. Fake Out is an excellent move on Croagunk, allowing it to revenge kill Pokemon that Vacuum Wave alone simply cannot (especially through Focus Sashes). It also moves before all other priority moves, which is useful when attempting to check Pokemon with priority of their own, such as Snover. Vacuum Wave pairs extraordinarily well with Fake Out, making for a great one-two combination that KOes most glass cannons. Vacuum Wave also has the STAB bonus, is super effective on Snover, and does not activate Ferroseed's Iron Barbs. Drain Punch is both more powerful than Vacuum Wave and hits off of Croagunk's more powerful offensive stat, healing Croagunk's HP with every use, ensuring that it will not die whilst checking the Pokemon that it is meant to check. Rounding out the moveset is Shadow Ball, achieving perfect coverage with Drain Punch and giving Croagunk a way to hit Misdreavus and other Ghost-types, as well as hitting other Croagunk neutrally. While it might seem to somewhat compromise Croagunk's niche, Knock Off can replace the only move that is not entirely necessary, Fake Out, to remove the Eviolites held by many Pokemon in Little Cup. The loss of effectiveness in revenge killing is quite noticeable, but the tradeoff may very well be worth it.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

While the EVs may seem unnecessarily complex, they optimize Croagunk's defenses for great all-around bulk, with the remaining EVs invested into its offenses to give a bit of a kick to its attacks. A Quiet nature is used to make Vacuum Wave and Shadow Ball more powerful, as they hit off of Croagunk's lower offensive stat and need the boost to hit sufficiently hard, especially against Scraggy. All of Croagunk's stats other than Speed are indispensable, so the Speed drop isn't that big of a deal. Icy Wind, Low Sweep, and to a much lesser extent Bulldoze all can be used over Fake Out to lower the opposing Pokemon's Speed and potentially hit them with Drain Punch instead of the weaker Vacuum Wave. However, the lack of priority is off-putting and makes Croagunk more reliant on prediction, which is fine but should be avoided if possible. Sucker Punch is pretty difficult to fit into the set, but revenge killing Gastly and Misdreavus that lack Substitute is helpful. The best move to replace would probably be Shadow Ball, as it has similar coverage, but the unreliability of Sucker Punch and potential backfire that mispredicting with it could cause makes it an inferior choice.

Before considering partners for Croagunk, it is important to understand what playstyles it functions best on. Bulky offense, the ruler of the roost in Little Cup, just happens to be a perfect fit for Croagunk. This is due to the playstyle's focus on taking hits and dishing them out, as well as that Croagunk checks many top threats that otherwise might require multiple Pokemon in order to be adequately checked. Balance is just as good if not a better fit for Croagunk, as the sheer utility it provides in one Pokemon and multiple roles that it can fill fits the description of an excellent Pokemon perfectly. Defensive teams can even find a place for Croagunk, as its much stressed upon ability to check many threats is important for such teams. It also provides a Toxoc Spikes absorber and easily defeats Misdreavus, the bane of many a defensive team. Do consider that its defenses, while more than decent, aren't impenetrable and you shouldn't be using Croagunk to replace a more reliable counter that is a more natural fit for a defensive team.

When using Croagunk, it is not usually a matter of what you can do for it, but rather what it can do for you. There's more than a few Pokemon (read: pretty much the entirety of Little Cup) that appreciate at least one of the Pokemon that Croagunk beats being defeated. I draw your attention the excellent Shell Smash users, Shellder, Tirtouga, and Omanyte, who are hated by all but their lowly users. Dry Skin absorbs their Water-type attacks, so what might have caused a tragic 6-0 demolition in your opponent's favor is no longer an issue. Pretty much every Pokemon not immune or resistant to Water-type attacks that is also not weak or hit hard by one of the Shell Smashing trio members' coverage moves enjoys their removal, so Larvesta, Archen, Cranidos, Houndour, non-Choice Scarf Murkrow, and many others enjoy Croagunk's support. All of the given Pokemon lure said Water-type attacks that Croagunk can switch into with impunity.

As has hopefully been made painfully clear, Shell Smash users are just the start of what Croagunk can beat. Misdreavus, aka the spirit that will possess your soul and rip it straight out, is vanquished to its haunted homeland by Croagunk. Basically every Fighting-type in Little Cup, every bulky Pokemon without much offensive investment, every Rapid Spin user, and many others will rejoice when Misdreavus has met its demise. Your sand teams will appreciate the lack of Snover to mess with their most destructive preferred environment. Chinchou being gone is quite pleasing to the Murkrows and Staryus of the world. Lileep removed is excellent news for every Normal-type ever and every Pokemon that lacks a strong neutral or super effective attack. The list of Pokemon that appreciate Croagunk's presence is very long, so if you need X Pokemon checked and Croagunk checks it, you are adding an invaluable team player.

Of course, regardless of all the good that Croagunk can do, it is not a standalone Pokemon by any means. You're going to want to invest in a Dark-type to absorb Psychic-type attacks often aimed at Croagunk. Murkrow is the best choice, as it breaks down Croagunk's counters and vice versa, though there are a few other choices, such as Pawniard and Scraggy. Steel-types are decent as well, but they are swiftly taken out by coverage moves that Abra, the most common Psychic-type, and fail to do much in return. Rock-type attacks do a number to a large amount of Croagunk's checks, such as Larvesta, Archen, and Murkrow, so Archen itself, Lileep, Dwebble, and Tirtouga make great partners. Stealth Rock, as with all offensive Pokemon, is very helpful, particularly when facing Murkrow and Snover. Many Pokemon can set it up, the aforementioned Dwebble and Ferroseed being only two of the many different options. Croagunk is an easy Pokemon to support, as its needs are very straightforward and pretty much every Pokemon without redundant typing appreciates its presence.

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Bulk Up	Eviolite	Dry Skin	Adamant

Moveset	EVs
~ Bulk Up ~ Drain Punch ~ Sucker Punch ~ Payback	212 HP / 28 Atk / 116 Def / 116 SpD / 36 Spe

Unlike the standard Eviolite Croagunk set, this set aims to sweep late-game with the Attack and Defense boosts from Bulk Up. However, it can still act as a bulky pivot throughout the match due to Croagunk's unique typing, fantastic ability, and relative bulk with Eviolite. These traits allow Croagunk to set up on many common Pokemon in Little Cup, such as Staryu, Chinchou, Tirtouga, Lileep and Mienfoo, though it must be wary of Knock Off from the latter. One notable Pokemon this set can beat is Timburr, which would otherwise beat Croagunk by boosting with a Bulk Up of its own. This set can boost up alongside Timburr, allowing it to beat one of its would-be checks.

The moveset is fairly straightforward. Drain Punch is a reliable STAB move that also allows Croagunk to recover some damage, which is crucial to Croagunk's ability to switch in and out many times throughout the match. Sucker Punch provides it with a powerful priority move as well as near-perfect coverage. This allows it to beat faster threats such as Abra if its Focus Sash has been broken. Payback in the final moveslot gives Croagunk a more reliable coverage move. This allows it to beat variants of Misdreavus that use Substitute to bypass Sucker Punch, although it still must be wary of Will-O-Wisp variants.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

The EV spread gives Croagunk decent mixed defenses of 24/18/18 factoring in Eviolite. 28 Attack EVs and an Adamant nature give it an Attack of 21 after a single boost. However, if you prefer the power over bulk, you can maximize Croagunk's Attack with 188 EVs and an Adamant nature whilst reducing HP and Defense to 132 and 36 EVs respectively. Although 36 Speed EVs may seem counter-intuitive in conjunction with Payback, Croagunk hits a Speed stat of 12, allowing it to outspeed bulky Magnemite. Croagunk has a few other options it can use in place of Payback. Vacuum Wave is a more reliable form of priority, allowing it to pick off weakened Pokemon and also hit Choice Scarf Snover and Magnemite super effectively. If you were to use Vacuum Wave, the nature should be adjusted to Brave and the EVs from Speed should be put into Special Attack. Knock Off is another useful move allowing Croagunk to weaken its own checks and also support its teammates.

Talking of teammates, many Pokemon work well in conjunction with Croagunk. Because of its ability to beat Chinchou, Tirtouga, Omanyte, Porygon, and Lileep, SubRoost Murkrow really appreciates having Croagunk on its team. In return, Murkrow absorbs Psychic- and Ground-type attacks aimed at Croagunk. Misdreavus that carry Will-O-Wisp will severely cripple Croagunk, so it appreciates teammates that can beat it. Stunky is one of the best counters to Misdreavus and can also take Psychic-type hits thanks to its immunity to them. Porygon and Scraggy can also beat Misdreavus, and they both appreciate Croagunk's ability to beat Fighting-types like Mienfoo and Timburr. Another Pokemon that needs to be removed before Croagunk can sweep is Murkrow. Tirtouga and Chinchou are generally good options to beat Murkrow despite the threat of Hidden Power Grass. They also lure out Lileep and Ferroseed, two Pokemon which Croagunk can use as setup bait. Finally, a Pokemon that can take on Ground-types like Hippopotas and Drilbur is appreciated. Grass-types that can take an Earthquake, such as Shroomish and Snover, can give these Pokemon a lot of trouble.

Other Options

Croagunk's movepool is actually quite wide, filled with a bunch of decent options. The first of these is Pursuit, which puts Misdreavus and Gastly in a checkmate position—however, it's no help against the dreaded Abra, and is a huge risk due to Croagunk's inability to tank powerful neutral attacks repeatedly. If you want a Dark-type attack, Sucker Punch is almost always the better option. A Poison-type STAB move, such as Gunk Shot or Poison Jab, might seem tempting; however, it offers zero additional coverage and must replace one of Croagunk's much-needed moves. There are a few other options for coverage, such as Earthquake, Fire Punch, and ThunderPunch, although none are useful for much. The former has redundant type coverage, while the latter two only net coverage on the Flying-types that outspeed Croagunk. A few supporting options inhabit Croagunk's quirky movepool, including Taunt to prevent Dwebble from setting up entry hazards and Misdreavus from burning with Will-O-Wisp and Rain Dance to support rain teams and activate Dry Skin.

There are a few other sets that Croagunk has up its tight little sleeve. First and foremost is a Nasty Plot set, with Sludge Bomb as the main STAB attack, Vacuum Wave as STAB priority, and Shadow Ball to fill all gaps in coverage. It can be used to great effect, as once Croagunk's Special Attack stat is boosted it is capable of plowing through its opposition. Yet another setup option is a mixed booster set utilizing Work Up, but the need to split investment between its offenses and having no room for defensive EVs destines it to utter failure. Last up among boosting moves is the always fun Acupressure, but the unreliability makes it unappetizing. There's one more set available for Croagunk, a Substitute + Focus Punch set for a more powerful STAB move, but it creates an unnecessary four moveslot syndrome and loses out on the heavily beneficial recovery provided by Drain Punch.

Checks and Counters

While Croagunk seems to be all bells and whistles with few flaws, its array of checks and counters is actually fairly diverse. Ironically, Croagunk cannot break past itself, so Croagunk versus Croagunk is basically a stalemate hinging on which one gets a critical hit with Shadow Ball first. Its quadruple Psychic weakness is easily exploitable; Abra can switch into Vacuum Wave and deal a hilarious 366% - 466% with Psychic; Misdreavus that carry Psychic work decently as well. Another weakness to exploit would be its Flying-type weakness; Murkrow is not 2HKOed by Fake Out + Vacuum Wave at full health, and can retaliate with a powerful Brave Bird. Archen does not appreciate taking a Vacuum Wave but can if it needs to and OHKOes with Acrobatics. Vullaby can OHKO with Brave Bird and Drifloon is immune to both Fake Out and Vacuum Wave, is faster, and OHKOes with Acrobatics. Furthermore, Croagunk has a Ground-type weakness, which can be exploited by a Pokemon that is a hard stop to it, Hippopotas, and Drilbur and Sandshrew that are not too weakened to take the combination of Fake Out + Vacuum Wave. Vacuum Wave will do quite a bit to Sandshrew, however, so it has to be in top condition to take on Croagunk. Continuing down an unfortunate trail of weaknesses for Croagunk, it is hit super effectively by Fire-type attacks due to Dry Skin. Larvesta can switch into pretty much any attack that Croagunk might carry and OHKO with STAB Flare Blitz and Houndour OHKOes with STAB Fire Blast, though its Fighting weakness prevents it from switching in easily. There's also Ponyta, who outspeeds by quite a bit, can take Fake Out + Vacuum Wave, and OHKOes with Flare Blitz. Snover is pretty difficult for Croagunk to switch into generally, but in no way can it stay in on Croagunk due to its Vacuum Wave weakness. Alternatively, you can take a defensive route and wall Croagunk with Bronzor or burn it with Misdreavus. Really, it's not that hard to check Croagunk, but it has a way of working around most of its checks, so play carefully, otherwise you might be dealing with a Croagunk ripping apart your team.

Croagunk

Overview

Bulky Offensive

Bulk Up

Other Options

Checks and Counters