|
-
Overgrow
- Boosts power of Grass-type moves by 50% when at 1/3 HP or less.
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Contrary
- The wielder's stat changes are reversed.
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Level 100 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
75
|
- |
291 |
354 |
- |
| Atk |
75
|
167 |
186 |
249 |
273 |
| Def |
95
|
203 |
226 |
289 |
317 |
| SpA |
75
|
167 |
186 |
249 |
273 |
| SpD |
95
|
203 |
226 |
289 |
317 |
| Spe |
113
|
235 |
262 |
325 |
357 |
Overview
Despite his regal appearance, Serperior is anything but out of the ordinary. With a sparse offensive movepool, Serperior has only a few qualities that allow him to stand out when compared to other Grass-types. Thanks to a great base 113 Speed, Serperior is naturally faster than the entire tier, sans Ninjask, Swellow, and Swoobat. Serperior has a plethora of support options available, including dual screens, Glare, Leech Seed, Taunt, and Safeguard. Additionally, Serperior has admirable 75 / 95 / 95 defenses, allowing him to easily set up one of his boosting moves or Leech Seed safely from behind a Substitute.
Serperior can use his solid bulk and great Speed to set up a Substitute on Pokemon such as Regirock, then proceed to comfortably boost his Special Attack and Special Defense with Calm Mind. Even with Serperior's initially mediocre offensive prowess, his power increases dramatically after a boost or two, and his Substitutes become nearly unbreakable from the special side. Giga Drain is the preferred STAB move, as it quickly recovers health lost from Substitute. Hidden Power Rock provides the best coverage with Giga Drain, as it hits Bug- and Flying-type Pokemon super effectively, and the majority of Steel-type Pokemon in NU are neutral to Grass-type moves. The decision between Leftovers and Life Orb is mostly a matter of reliability versus power; when using Leftovers, Serperior recovers a small amount of HP each turn behind his Substitute, while Life Orb allows him to hit much harder off the bat. However, it must be noted that Substitute and Life Orb will wear down quickly on Serperior, emphasizing the need for Giga Drain.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
A bulkier EV spread is an option, but Serperior will not often find the time to set up and sweep this way, as Fire- and Flying-type Pokemon, such as Charizard and Swellow, are far too common for Serperior to boost up for too long. Hidden Power Ice is an option over Hidden Power Rock to hit Grass-types, but Hidden Power Rock has more utility as it hits more targets.
Although Hidden Power Rock helps Serperior out against Braviary and Swellow, a partner who can handle their powerful onslaughts would be incredibly useful. Regirock, Golem, and Alomomola all have no trouble dealing with the two birds, and all three have their own perks to help Serperior out: the former two can set up Stealth Rock, severely cutting the lifespan of Swellow, Braviary, and Charizard, whereas Alomomola can pass monstrous Wishes to Serperior to make up for his lack of reliable recovery. Offensively, partners such as Swellow and Gigalith, who lure bulky Water-, Rock-, and Ground-types that Serperior can set up on, are superb. Swellow in particular can U-turn away from incoming counters, giving Serperior a free switch-in. Serperior is incredibly vulnerable to Toxic Spikes, so carrying a Poison-type of your own or a Rapid Spin user is important for Serperior to be successful. Garbodor can set Spikes and Toxic Spikes to help Serperior wear out opposing special walls, and Wartortle has solid defensive synergy and can spin away entry hazards reliably.
All of Serperior's strengths flow together nicely in this set—his great Speed, solid defenses, and access to Taunt all enable him to be an effective user of the SubSeed combination. The strategy is fairly simple: switch in to a Pokemon that Serperior scares out, such as Golem, Regirock, or Alomomola, and set up a Substitute. From there, you can Leech Seed the switch-in and alternate between Substitute and the appropriate attacking move until Serperior scores a KO. Serperior is the fastest available user of this strategy in NU, sans Prankster Cottonee and Chlorophyll Jumpluff in the sun. Giga Drain gives Serperior a STAB move and provides extra recovery, if necessary. Hidden Power Ice is the preferred option for the fourth slot, as it nails the many Grass-types, who are immune to Leech Seed, for super effective damage. It also has solid coverage with Giga Drain, hitting the Dragon- and Flying-types that resist Giga Drain for heavy damage. Taunt, on the other hand, prevents opposing Pokemon from using a status move on Serperior, or a recovery move such as Wish. It also blocks any attempts to phaze Serperior via Roar or Whirlwind.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Serperior's EV spread can certainly be customized to fit your team's needs. 232 Speed EVs can be used to outpace base 110 Speed Pokemon, such as Tauros; alternatively, a bulkier spread such as 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD can prevent Lickilicky from breaking Serperior's Substitutes more than half the time. If you want to maximize Leech Seed recovery, you can use 0 HP EVs and a 0 HP IV, but that drastically cuts into Serperior's bulk and is not recommended.
Because this set is designed to force switches, it performs significantly better when coupled with entry hazards. Stealth Rock in particular quickly wears down Swellow and Braviary, two of the greatest threats to Serperior, so teammates such as Regirock and Golem, who can handle the two birds and set up Stealth Rock, are solid partners. Both Toxic Spikes and Spikes support are beneficial, but there are few Pokemon who can lay them. Garbodor is the best option available, as it has the ability to set up both hazards and absorb opposing Toxic Spikes, which will devastate Serperior. Lastly, Pokemon such as Charizard, who can mutilate opposing Grass-types, will make Serperior's life much easier.
Serperior is one of the fastest users of dual screens in NU, and when coupled with Taunt and his good bulk, Serperior makes for an excellent support Pokemon to aid a teammate's setup or sweep. Taunt prevents opposing Pokemon from trying to set up or Taunt Serperior while he is putting up Reflect and Light Screen. It also prevents the opponent from using a status move on Serperior or the incoming sweeper, which can often lead to a clean sweep. Giga Drain provides Serperior with a reliable STAB move and recovery, while Leech Seed steals opposing Pokemon's health and can be passed to a teammate. Light Clay is the preferred item, as it gives Reflect and Light Screen eight turns of longevity as opposed to the usual five.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Glare is an interesting option, as nearly every Pokemon benefits from Serperior's ability to spread paralysis. Safeguard is also neat to block status from moves such as Scald, but Taunt accomplishes this and also prevents phazing.
The best teammates for this set are powerful sweepers who preferably can utilize a boosting move such as Swords Dance, Rock Polish, or Shell Smash and proceed to sweep the opponent's team. Shell Smash Gorebyss is perhaps the most prominent option, as it can ravage entire teams after a boost or two, and none of its usual checks manage to OHKO Gorebyss behind dual screens. Gorebyss also has solid typing synergy with Serperior, switching in on the Fire-types that bother Serperior. Rock Polish Torterra is an outstanding choice, as it couples great power and coverage with natural bulk. A boosted Torterra also outspeeds and demolishes Choice Scarf Braviary and Swellow; both can 2HKO Serperior through Reflect with Brave Bird.
Despite a physical movepool consisting of largely Grass- and Normal-type moves, Coil is a surprisingly effective move on Serperior. The overall strategy of this set is largely the same as the others: switch in on a Pokemon whom Serperior threatens, such as Golem or Alomomola, set up a Substitute, then proceed to stack boosts with Coil. Although the Attack boost is important, the Defense and accuracy boosts provided by Coil are even more vital to the success of this set: the former makes Serperior's Substitute nearly unbreakable by a physical move after a few uses, and the latter erases Dragon Tail's 10% chance to miss. Leaf Blade is Serperior's best physical STAB option, but Dragon Tail is the key attacking move on this set; because Serperior is naturally faster than all common phazers, he can use Dragon Tail to phaze them before they can attempt to do so. It also helps Serperior handle Pokemon who can break his Substitutes, such as Swellow, by forcing them out, allowing Serperior to set up another Substitute and continue to rack up entry hazard damage.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
In order to make Serperior's attacks as powerful as possible, maximum Attack investment and an Adamant nature are preferred on this set. 224 Speed EVs and a neutral nature allow Serperior to outpace Pokemon with base 95 Speed. The rest of Serperior's EVs are placed in HP to maximize overall bulk. An Impish nature can be used instead of Adamant to make Serperior's Substitutes much harder to break with physical moves; for example, uninvested Regirock's Stone Edge will more often than not fail to break +1 Serperior's Substitute, and Miltank's Body Slam will never break it. A specially defensive spread is also an option if hitting hard off the bat isn't a concern, but most special attackers in the tier carry a move that hits Serperior super effectively.
Entry hazards are crucial to the success of this set, especially Stealth Rock. Most of Serperior's checks, such as Braviary and Charizard, are weak to Stealth Rock, so the ability to phaze them out via Dragon Tail and force them to take 25% on the return to the battlefield is a godsend for Serperior. Regirock is one of the best possible teammates, as it can set up Stealth Rock, paralyze potential threats with Thunder Wave, and handle Braviary and Swellow easily. In return, Serperior sets up on the bulky Water-types that plague Regirock, such as Alomomola. Spikes and Toxic Spikes are also incredibly helpful, as they help wear down grounded counters, including Tangela and Leafeon. Garbodor is the best available user of both moves in the tier, and also removes pesky Toxic Spikes that can mean the end of a Serperior sweep. Rapidash is one of the best responses to the aforementioned bulky Grass-types as it can threaten them with a super effective Flare Blitz.
Other Options
Serperior has few other options outside of those listed. He gets Glare, which is an interesting move in its own right, but there are more reliable Pokemon to spread paralysis. Gastro Acid is useful to cripple Pokemon who rely entirely on their ability, such as Swellow, but the effect ends as the opposing Pokemon switches out and thus is hardly ever worth the moveslot. Serperior can set up Sunny Day for other Chlorophyll-abusing teammates, but cannot make use of it himself. Additionally, Serperior's Grass typing is redundant with most Chlorophyll Pokemon, compounding common weaknesses. Safeguard blocks status, but Taunt is usually superior as it also prevents phazing and setup. Torment is a curious option, but Serperior doesn't have the typing and resistances to use it effectively. Aromatherapy removes all status afflictions from the team, but this is a job better left to the likes of Lickilicky. Leaf Storm is Serperior's most powerful attack, but the Special Attack drop makes it generally a bad idea, especially considering Serperior's already low Special Attack stat.
Checks and Counters
Miltank has no problem switching in on the majority of Serperior's sets, as it has Sap Sipper to absorb Grass-type moves and can consistently break Serperior's Substitutes with Seismic Toss or Body Slam. Opposing Grass-types, such as Leafeon and Vileplume, can handle the SubSeed set well unless Serperior is using Hidden Power Fire. Likewise, Duosion and Kadabra are not affected by Leech Seed thanks to Magic Guard, and both can set up Calm Mind. Swellow and Choice Scarf Braviary both outspeed Serperior and can break his Substitutes with U-turn or simply KO with Brave Bird. Toxic Spikes deals with all Serperior sets fairly well, as most revolve around Serperior utilizing Substitute to avoid status. Garbodor and Whirlipede are two of the few Toxic Spikes users in the tier, and both can easily switch into Serperior's Grass-type moves.
Unreleased
Serperior's Dream World ability, Contrary, inverts stat changes, making stat drops become boosts and vice versa. Leaf Storm is the only move that Serperior receives that lowers his stats, but effectively receiving +2 on every use of Leaf Storm quickly adds up, making Serperior a dangerous sweeper.
