Serperior

[blasphemy1]

Serperior

Stats: 75 HP / 75 Atk / 95 Def / 75 SpA / 95 SpD / 113 Spe

This stat spread seems relatively mediocre at first; good speed, average HP, above average defenses, and only average attacking stats. This will be explained further, but this distribution is key to its success.


Level-up Moves

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Lv1: Tackle
Lv1: Leer
Lv1: Vine Whip
Lv1: Wrap
Lv4: Leer
Lv7: Vine Whip
Lv10: Wrap
Lv13: Growth
Lv16: [M536]
Lv20: Leech Seed
Lv24: Mega Drain
Lv28: Slam
Lv32: Leaf Blade
Lv36: [M489]
Lv40: Giga Drain
Lv44: Wring Out
Lv48: Gastro Acid
Lv52: Leaf Storm

Egg Moves

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Captivate
Natural Gift
Glare
Iron Tail
Magical Leaf
Sweet Scent
Mirror Coat
Pursuit
Mean Look
Twister

Learnable TMs

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TM04 - Calm Mind
TM06 - Toxic
TM10 - Hidden Power
TM11 - Sunny Day
TM12 - Taunt
TM15 - Hyper Beam
TM16 - Light Screen
TM17 - Protect
TM20 - Safeguard
TM21 - Frustration
TM22 - Solar Beam
TM27 - Return
TM32 - Double Team
TM33 - Reflect
TM40 - Aerial Ace
TM41 - Torment
TM42 - Facade
TM44 - Rest
TM45 - Attract
TM48 - Troll
TM53 - Energy Ball
TM68 - Giga Impact
TM70 - Flash
TM75 - Swords Dance
TM82 - Dragon Tail
TM86 - Grass Knot
TM87 - Swagger
TM90 - Substitute
TM94 - Rock Smash
HM01 - Cut
HM04 - Strength

New Move Data:
[M536]: Special Grass PP: 10 Power: 65 / Accuracy: 90 Effect: May decrease opponent's Accuracy by 1 stage.
[M489]: Other Poison PP: 20 Power: --- / Accuracy: --- Effect: Raises the user's Atk, Def, and Acc.

A well rounded support movepool, as well as several boosting moves in Growth, Calm Mind, and Swords Dance for attacking sets. Its offensive movepool, on the other hand, is barren. This makes his access to the aforementioned boosting moves less relevant.

Typing: Grass
Resistances: Electric, Grass, Ground, Water
Weaknesses: Bug, Fire, Flying, Ice, Poison

Due to its pure Grass-typing, it isn't 4x weak to anything, which means it can even take super effective attacks. Its resistances are fairly common and allow him to ward off many common attackers. However, the Grass-type leaves him with weaknesses to very common attacks; U-turn, Fire Blast, and Ice Beam. Fortunately, Flying and Poison moves aren't all that common.

Ability: Overgrow

"When a Pokémon with Overgrow uses a Grass-type move, the power will increase by 1.5x if the user has less than or equal to 33% of its maximum HP remaining."

On offensive sets, it allows Serperior to fire off one last attack before going down. On defensive sets, it could allow Serperior to recover some extra damage via Giga Drain (which now has 75 BP).

Possible Sets:

Name: SubSeed
Nature: Timid
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 252 HP / 20 Def / 236 Spe or 252 Def / 20 SpD / 236 Spe
Item: Leftovers
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Leech Seed
move 3: Protect / Giga Drain
move 4: Torment / Glare

Serperior has something no other SubSeeder has: access to Torment and Glare. It may not be as fast as Shaymin-S or Sceptile, but it has a lot more bulk than them. Maximum HP EVs makes its Substitutes more durable, while 236 Speed EVs allows it to outrun positive 110 base speed Pokemon. The rest goes into defense for taking Earthquakes and various physical attacks like Scizor's Bullet Punch. An alternate spread is 252 Def / 20 SpD / 236 Spe, which still outruns base 110s but allows you to recover a larger % from Leech Seed. Substitute + Torment + Protect is seen on Heatran a lot, and this set can utilize the strategy by pairing it with Leech Seed. Torment + Leech Seed will force a lot of switches, racking up residual damage. Serperior will effectively beat many choice users, such as Scizor and Heatran, with this set. Another option is to use Giga Drain + Glare. Giga Drain is now 75 BP, which works well with Leech Seed and Leftovers to regain lost HP. Glare now has 90% accuracy, and it will also create a lot of switches, while also adding paralysis support for your team. Taunt can be used in either of the last two slots in order to beat Blissey handily, as it will not be able to recover off the damage from Leech Seed while you set up Substitutes in its face.

Name: Dual Screen
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 252 HP / 20 Atk / 236 Spe
Item: Light Clay
move 1: Reflect
move 2: Leaf Blade
move 3: Light Screen
move 4: Leech Seed / Glare / Safeguard

Serperior has the right combination of bulk + speed to differentiate itself from other Dual Screeners. Reflect + Light Screen are further extended by Light Clay, which can help a sweeper set up. Leaf Blade is there so you're not complete Taunt-bait, and it can do some decent damage with its high critical hit ratio and STAB. Of course, you can move the Attack EVs to Special Attack and use Giga Drain instead, which will further extend the life of Serperior. However, that will reduce the number of turns your sweepers will have to set up. The last slot can offer your team more support. Leech Seed will help sap health from the likes of Blissey and Snorlax. Glare can paralyze a threatening Pokemon, or Safeguard can protect your sweepers from status.

Name: Offensive SubSeed
Nature: Timid
Ability: Contrarian
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Item: Leftovers
move 1: Leaf Storm
move 2: Hidden Power [Fire] or [Ice]
move 3: Substitute
move 4: Leech Seed

Serperior's Dream World ability, Contrarian, supposedly reverses stat changes. Utilizing the same Substitute + Leech Seed strategy as before, this set focuses on going on the offense. Leaf Storm + Contrarian is a deadly combination. Instead of Leaf Storm sharply reducing your Special Attack, it will sharply increase it (+2). Each consecutive use of Leaf Storm will make Serperior more powerful, and with its high base speed and Leech Seed forcing switches, it shouldn't have any problems finding turns to use it. Hidden Power Fire gives additional coverage and puts the hurt on Skarmory, Scizor, Forretress, and other Grass-types, but leaves you walled by Dragons, specifically the new Dark/Dragon, Dragonite, and Salamence. Hidden Power Ice covers these threats, but leaves you walled by the aforementioned Steel-types. Although Heatran walls you either way, if you put up a Substitute or Leech Seed it as it switches in, you can drain its HP a bit.

 

[IcyMan28]

The Subseed set interests me...I'll have to test it to see how it compares against the other prominent subseeders though. Also, how about this:

Jaroda@Light Clay
Jolly; 252 HP / 20 Atk / 236 Spe

Reflect
Leaf Blade
Light Screen
Leech Seed / Glare

Support Jaroda. It uses the exact same EV spread as the OP, with the defense moved to attack to give its Leaf Blade a bit more power. It's bulk and typing provide it with ample opportunities to set up Dual Screens, often before getting hit thanks to its high speed.

Leaf Blade > Energy Ball/Leaf Storm so that Blissey doesn't walk all over it.

Leech Seed provides it with further durability, while Glare spreads paralysis and disregards Ground typing (normally irrelevant due to leaf blade, but Flygon/Garchomp/Doryuuzu have little to fear from it).

If leech seed is selected, the set may switch to a Timid nature and a special grass move, as Blissey no longer walls it as badly.

 

[Raseri]

Edit: Lol the guy before me posted a dual screen set to

Jaroda is faster than Jumpluff, Jump has 110 speed.


A dual screener looks interesting

Jaroda @ Light Clay (Assuming its still around)
Timid
252 HP/ 236 Speed / 20 SpAtk
Reflect
Light Screen
Giga Drain
Safeguard/Glare/Hidden Power Ice

Could help set up a sweeper, safeguard +Dual Screens would be hard to break through

 

[blasphemy1]

I'm adding it to the OP, considering it has a mixture of bulk that Pokemon like Cresselia and Bronzong have with speed that Alakazam packs (although a compromise of the two groups). I'm trying to think of a reason to use Dragon Tail, however Torment and Glare seem like more useful alternatives to forcing Pokemon out.

Also, I don't know how I forgot Jumpluff had 110 Speed :P.

 

[giggity69]

I am loving the torment Sub seed set, though taunt would also be an option over it to keep blissey from stalling you out of subs.

 

[TEA_DEMON]

It'll be interesting to see whether people prefer the bulk of Jaroda or the speed and offenses of Sceptile when looking for a SubSeeder not named Breloom. I would think Jaroda would be the better dedicated SubSeeder but it'd need Torment to beat Starmie (although Torment isn't a bad idea in general really).

 

[Agent123]

I heard Jaroda got a new ability on Gamefaqs.

Here's the link:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/989552-pokemon-black-version/56431491

 

[kyu]

This is supposedly his Dream World ability, but we may need better explanation of how it works.

[126] Contrarian: Effect of stat boosts/drops reversed.

It seems like it's begging for Leaf Storm/Swagger abuse.

 

[Mario With Lasers]

I want to point out Jaroda's Dream World ability is...

[126] Contrarian: Effect of Stat Boosts/Drops reversed


Its only way of abusing the move is Leaf Storm. If only his special movepool was bigger...!

 

[IcyMan28]

^Contrarian Leaf Storm would change things VERY quickly...or at least it would have if Jaroda had an offensive movepool to speak of :/

EDIT: Sniped.

 

[doomvendingmachine]

When i first saw smuglord's stats, i thought "wow thats crap" and I immediately assumed nu. However, looking at the movepool, it seems like it will be a very interesting subseeder. Seems like smuggy could be a high end uu subseeder after all. I think ou might be stretching it, but i could see it getting some play there, like sceptile.

Edit: just saw the new ability. If true, a leaf storm abuse set could be fun.

 

[Epic Cherubi]

Mean Look + Calm Mind + could be fun, but the snake's movepool is so terrible it could never find a good coverage move. Not to mention it can't really set up on anything that would switch in.

I think Dual Screen is its best option. Does Dragon Tail work like Roar + attack? If so it could be usable on the SubSeeder. Sub / Seed / Glare / Dragon Tail + Spikes / SR whoo.

 

[mtr]

Subseed and Torment looks good, especially with hazard support. But defenses are mediocre, attacking stats are bad, and Celebi rapes you. Better get a Forry or Cruel for Toxic Spikes.

 

[blasphemy1]

His rumored ability would certainly add a new dimension. Currently, I'm not really impressed with his Special OR Physical movepool. I was thinking of a mixed set with Growth, but even then he really only has Grass and Normal moves, along with Hidden Power. Leaf Storm + Hidden Power Ice / Fire is still walled by Heatran, but I could see it being really useful in the lower tiers (where he'll probably end up anyways).

 

[Max_LKC]

Physically defensive:
Jaroda @leftovers
Careful 236HP 188SPDEF 20ATK 64DEF
Coil(a new move that that increases attack defense and accuracy)
Dragon Tail
Taunt/Glare/substitute
Leaf Blade

Dragon tail to hurt the opposing steel and grass types forcing them to switch out and letting the switch in taunt from letting them set up but you have dragon tail to phaze so glare is another option. Substitute is very hard to be taken down by a neutral attack if you manage to set up. Leaf Blade is your STAB and it hurts a lot after a few coil. Skarm and fortty is a problem but dragon tail sends them out if the disturb you.

Specially defensive:
Jaroda @leftovers
Bold 236HP 188DEF 20SPATK 64SPDEF
Calm mind
Giga Drain/Grass Knot/Energy Ball/Grass Mixer
Taunt/Glare/Substitute
Hp-Fire/Ice/ground

Pretty straightforward, Giga drain is preferred if you want to do have some healing option, Grass Knot hits everything heavy for a lot of damage while energy ball(note that is only has 5more base power than G-drain) is just for vaporeon. Grass mixer would be annoying to your opponent if its effect trggers. Third slot has been explained above and the types of Hidden power is up to you, Fire for skarm and fortty, Ice for nite and other dragons, ground is sort of gimmicky just for Heatran. Without the correct HP some pokes walls it badly,and since you cant force them switch with dragon tail, Blissey walls this like nothing.

Btw is Dragon Pulse no longer a TM? Because I don't see why Jaroda can't learn it.

EDIT: Added grass mixer, it has a chance to lower accuracy with para and accuracy lowered, it would annoy your opponents.

 

[XenoIncognito]

Name: Parafuse
move 1: Grass Mixer / Leaf Storm
move 2: Glare
move 3: Swagger
move 4: Mean Look
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Contrarian
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 HP / 236 Spe / 20 SpD or 252 HP / 236 Spe / 20 Def

This could take advantage of Jaroda's high speed and its support movepool. Mean Look to trap a weaker/choice-locked enemy. With Contrarian, Swagger becomes a deadly debuff move. Grass Mixer is a respectable 65 BP STAB move that can lower accuracy, further crippling the opponent. Alternatively, you can use Leaf Storm to rack up SpA boosts wihle your opponent flails around doing nothing.

 

[megamonk4]

Don't know if this will help out at all.

[M536]Grass Mixer: Special Grass PP: 10 Power: 65 / Accuracy: 90 Effect: May decrease opponent's Accuracy by 1 stage.

[M489]Coil: Other Poison PP: 20 Power: --- / Accuracy: --- Effect: Raises the user's Atk, Def, and Acc.

 

[tangramman]

Jaroda's Dream World ability, Contrarian (according to here and here) allows Jaroda to use stat-debilitating moves without consequence. Give it Leaf Storm, HP Water for neutral coverage and Life Orb and destroy everything with an obscenely fast +6 140 Base Power monster. Unfortunately, given the power of the Pokemon we've seen so far, Jaroda will probably be sent to UU.

Jaroda @ Life Orb / Choice Specs / Scarf
Timid / Contrarian
4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
~Leaf Storm
~HP Water
~filler
~filler

Filler could be whatever Move Tutors it gets, but it doesn't really matter. Also:

Jaroda @ Leftovers / Life Orb
Jolly / Overgrow
24 HP / 252 Atk / 236 Spe
~Swords Dance
~Leaf Blade
~Dragon Tail
~Return

Force switches with Dragon Tail, with STAB and Return as the best options. 236 Spe should allow it to outspeed Max+ base 110's.

Jaroda @ Leftovers
Timid / Overgrow
252 HP / 24 SpA / 236 Spe
~Calm Mind
~Energy Ball
~HP Water
~Substitute/Taunt/Twister

Energy Ball is to have consistent damage on lighter enemies like Rotom-W and CandleGhost (who I assume will be light). Slashitis in the last slot due to lack of options. Opinions?

 

[Max_LKC]

I want to point out Jaroda's Dream World ability is...

[126] Contrarian: Effect of Stat Boosts/Drops reversed


Its only way of abusing the move is Leaf Storm. If only his special movepool was bigger...!

Yeah its sad that most of its movepool are defensive, bt we don't know about move tutors yet, its still too early to judge, btw if it has that ability it would be awesome.

 

[IcyMan28]

I'm thinking the first set could just go ahead and use Dual Screen to further buff its defenses while it boosts its SpA.

Sadly, Nattorel still walls that set easily, as does Venusaur and pretty much any bulky grass type.

 

[Elliot Gale]

Grass Mixer would increase their accuracy under Contrarian, wouldn't it?

 

[megamonk4]

Grass Mixer would increase their accuracy under Contrarian, wouldn't it?

No, Contrarian ability would only affect Jaroda since its the one with the ability.

 

[Max_LKC]

Grass Mixer would increase their accuracy under Contrarian, wouldn't it?

I think contratian only effects itself, or maybe it effects the opponents, the info about it is still unsure, we just have to wait =)

 

[XenoIncognito]

Grass Mixer would increase their accuracy under Contrarian, wouldn't it?

If it affects the enemy like that, then Leaf Storm would be Jaroda's dominant STAB move.

 

[Elliot Gale]

I just got word that Contrarian does not affect other Pokémon.

So uh... yeah Leaf Storm is about all.