Project Pokemon of the Week

[Brawlfest]

Approved by Raseri

What Is It?​

Alright, I'm starting a Pokemon of the Week Project. For those of you who do not know what Pokemon of the Week typically is, we have one victim pokemon each week, and the goal of the thread is to spark discussion of pokemon one by one. Not only do we hope to bring some underrated sets and pokemon out into the exposure of the NU community, but we hope to bolster discussion of well established threats at the same time. I will post every Saturday, and essentially we eventually seek to make this a good resource for new players to refer to in order to look at how certain pokemon fair in the current metagame, and create serious discussion amongst ourselves!

What Topics Do We Talk About?​

In general, some topics that I hope will be discussed are:

1. The Pokemon of the Week's current role in the NU metagame, and the niches that it fulfills.
2. What sets the Pokemon of the Week has that are most viable or popular in the current state of the metagame.
3. Underrated or underused sets on the Pokemon of the Week, which are still viable.
4. How the Pokemon of the Week is fares against other Pokemon in the tier.
5. What advantages and disadvantages it has compared to Pokemon of the Week with a similar niche.
6. What Pokemon are able to check, counter, threaten, or stop the Pokemon of the Week.
7. What Pokemon does the Pokemon of the Week check, counter, threaten, or stop.
8. What Pokemon make for good teammates for the Pokemon of the Week.
9. How the Pokemon of the Week should be played.
10. To what extent does the Pokemon of the Week influence the current metagame.
11. What misconceptions people often have about the Pokemon of the Week.

What Are the Goals of This Thread?​

1. Spark deep analysis of a Pokemon to fully explain how it functions, what sets it can run, its viability in the tier, etc.
2. Generate exposure to Pokemon or Sets not commonly seen in the current metagame.
3. Create casual discussion on the actual state of the NU metagame, which the current NU forums lack somewhat.
4. Develop a resource which newcomers can reference in order to gain knowledge and understanding of NU.

[Pokemon of the Week Archive]
Week 1 : Pangoro
Week 2 : Flareon​

 

[Brawlfest]

Pangoro
Type: Fighting / Dark
Base Stats: 95 HP / 124 Atk / 78 Def / 69 SpA / 71 SpD / 58 Spe
Ability: Iron Fist / Mold Breaker / Scrappy
​

Alright, for our first week our victim will be Pangoro, the Kung-Fu Panda. This powerful offensive tank with interesting typing, solid stats, a decent movepool, and a awesome signature move in Parting Shot makes for a solid threat in NU. Discuss!

 

[Aleccat]

If he goes Parting shot generally he will be a staller. Otherwise, CB, AV, or some offensive set. He has great stab and a great attack stat, but middling bulk and speed hold poor kung-fu panda from doing much. With Web support he seems to be a huge threat.

 

[Brambane]

I can't really say I have used Pangoro that much; any Pokemon that is 4x weak to Fairy makes me nervous. The fact that the (debatably) most powerful sweeper in the metagame resists both its STABs doesn't help either. What Pangoro does have is a very specific and abusable niche in the form of Parting Shot. With it, Pangoro can act as a very powerful and aggressive scout to maintain momentum and create setup opportunities for teammates. His Speed is a hair little slow for Choice Scarfer of my taste, but I have seen it work. Fairies kind of love the Pangoro (unless you run PJab I suppose) so partnering it with Pokemon that can readily take out or set up on Fairies would be wise (Klinklang?)

I have used Taunt Pangoro, as it kind of shits on Gourgeist / Audino / Ferroseed which makes stall a sad puppy

Pangoro @ Leftovers
Ability: Mold Breaker
EVs: 28 HP / 252 Atk / 228 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Taunt
- Swords Dance
- Storm Throw
- Crunch

funfact: Mold Breaker means you can Taunt Xatu and Storm Throw hits through Battle Armor / Shell Armor :> The Speed hits 209 Speed, which I am told is good although I usually Speed creep endlessly regardless.

 

[Swagalge]

Pangoro is probably one of the best pokes for Trick Room abuse, where it can effectively run a Choice Banded or Swords Dance set. The lack of Spiritomb means Mold Breaker is now probably a better choice than Scrappy. Pangoro pairs well with Steelix, as if Pangoro runs into a fairy type it can just Parting Shot out and let Steelix deal with it (alternatively Poison Jab could be used for coverage).

 

[Punchshroom]

Pangoro @ Life Orb
Ability: Iron Fist
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Hammer Arm
- Crunch
- Parting Shot
- Swords Dance

Trick Room Pangoro can end goddamn lives. Dat LO Iron Fist Hammer Arm simply crushes all who don't resist it, and if they can survive, all Panda needs is some SR support and most of them go down too. If TR is about to run out, Parting Shot is very nice to let a Trick Room setter reset TR on a weakened opponent. Hm, what's that? The opponent has a Slurpuff that can survive a 2HKO from Hammer Arm due to Sitrus Berry, or they simply wishes to play around Pangoro's STABs? No problem! Swords Dance lets you freely spam attacks and totally obliterate everything bar Granbull and Togetic. Pangoro usually nets 2 kills against offensive teams with Trick Room active, then I have Trick Room + Healing Wish Audino to let Panda do it all over again.

+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Iron Fist Pangoro Hammer Arm vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Slurpuff: 307-361 (100.32 - 117.97%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Panda says NO to you.

 

[Brawlfest]

Flareon
Type: Fire
Base Stats: 65 HP / 130 Atk / 60 Def / 95 SpA / 110 SpD / 65 Spe
Ability: Flash Fire / Guts
​

Alright, Sunday has come around. I know the first week was shorter, but I need to get us on schedule. I really do hope this next pokemon spurrs more discussion. This week I've selected Flareon, as I feel that it currently has some untapped potential and is a pretty underrated pokemon in the metagame, and its unique Stats, Movepool, and Ability really lets it stand out from its fire type brethren as the single best physical fire type in NU.

 

[tennisace]

I missed the word "physical" in "single best physical fire type in NU" and did a double take lol.

Anyway, Flareon was ok last gen as a SpDef Wish Passer, and it can still do that set this gen (hard walls Typhlosion and Pyroar and non-EQ Magmortar). However since it got Flare Blitz (a slight upgrade from Flame Wheel), it hits like an absolute truck. I think I did out some calcs in another thread where the only Pokemon that can safely switch into Flare Blitz more than once without getting 2hko'd are like... Regirock, Qwilfish, and the handful of Rock / Water-type Pokemon. However everything listed there except Qwilfish has to be really wary of Superpower since CB Superpower will 2hko most of the Rock-type Pokemon!

Of course Flareon's coverage is absolute ass outside of those two moves but it really doesn't need much more. One interesting option if you want to bluff a CB set is Natural Gift, with a Grass-type giving berry (Liechi) to smack those aforementioned Rock / Water-type Pokemon around a bit. Another knock on Flareon is it's (lack of) speed. It does outspeed what it has to (bulky/stall Pokemon), and not much likes switching in on it. Don't expect it to sweep though, since late game it'll get outsped by a lot of stuff. Pairing it with Sticky Web is a nice option for that reason, since Flareon puts a ton of pressure on a bunch of the common Defoggers / Spinners. Also: Flareon tends to die quickly if you don't manage it well, between Flare Blitz's recoil and its Stealth Rock weakness. Hollywood paired it with Healing Wish Mesprit in an RMT of his, which is a neat way to give Flareon a second chance.

Anyway Flareon is a really neat option in this meta that people sometimes ignore which is sad because it punches large holes in teams.

 

[Punchshroom]

tennisace wait, Flareon doesn't get Flame Wheel, that was Fire Fang. Even then, I was under the assumption that SpD Flareon simply Lava Plumed shit.

Flare Blitz Flareon oh boy. This thing hits like a goddamn truck, and unlike fellow suicide nukes like Head Smash Rampardos / Brave Bird Dodrio it actually offers some neat defensive utility with Flash Fire and high enough Special Defense to tank Grass, Fairy, Fire moves and shit. HP and Speed are pretty poor though, but Flareon can blow a nice clean hole in one's team if given the chance, which the meta gives it a better chance of doing atm. Gets Synchronoise but doesn't hit Qwilfsh which sux balls.

#NotBasedRapidash

 

[Zenza]

To me flareon is so cool because it can run CB and wreck shit, but can also run sets like sp.def to counter sun. Also CB flareon 2 hit ko's Thick fat Yama with flare blitz <3

 

[marilli]

I think it's really obvious what set you should be using on Flareon for the most part, so talking about sets gets pretty boring for her. CB is the standard set for a good reason. SpDef Flareon is surely viable, but it only fits in on very specific defensive teams, and is not really a good pick on most balanced / bulky offensive teams unless you are otherwise incredibly weak to Sun, you know the other guy's gonna use Sun, or you know that the other guy has a huge hard-on for Pyroar and Typhlosion. Even then Hariyama is a popular bulky offensive pick for a reason. Those teams most definitely do not appreciate the momentum loss by a SR weak wall who needs to stay in predictably for 2 turns if you want to heal up. Offensive Flareon still deters them from spamming their Fire-type STAB, which is often good enough. Other than that there's fairly decent sets like Liechi Natural Gift, a situational alternative if you want a Rhydon / Seismitoad lure. I've seen Offensive WoW Flareon be tossed around but I am not sold on it. Flareon isn't really bulky enough to go around burning stuff, and you often get outsped and 2HKOed for a Will-o-Wisp (which can miss fairly often). Not to mention, very few things actually switch into Flareon and expect to live, so you often end up just burning their fodder or something you would have killed if you just attacked.

So what has people found successful running alongside CB Flareon? Flareon powers through and 2HKOs Fire-type resists, which is pretty cool, but if they know that their important Hariyama will be 2HKOed by CB Flareon, they won't let me do that. She just kills herself really fast with SR and recoil damage, and often the enemy trades away Flareon for a Pokemon of their choice and tries to revenge it, knowing that you can't really preserve it under normal battle conditions. Kabutops is good spinner, probably only one that maintains the momentum of CB Flareon, and Lilligant was brought up before in a teambuilding thread, but I think other Grass-types work well, too. I feel you can't have Flareon as a lone check to anything because it's so hard to preserve. Yes, you can abuse certain defensive Pokemon by getting relatively free switch-ins on them, like Vileplume on predicted Giga Drains. But you can not assume they're taken care of by Flareon, or assume Flareon will lure out and 2HKO the resists. All you can be sure is something goes down, and your opponent choose who goes down with Flareon. For me, this consumable nature makes Flareon hard to teambuild with other than sticking her in as part of a FWG core.

 

[Raymon]

I really don't understand what's the point with Flash Fire Banded set, because with Guts and Toxic Orb, you get a +1(similar to band) boost in attack. Pair it with Flame Charge, Pick a weakened Pokemon, nab it with Flame Charge, then you have +1 Speed (which with Jolly nature allows to outspeed 120 Base speed Pokemon, lvl.50 calcs). Then you can switch your moves, and Flare Blitz/Superpower/Facade all the things.
While Toxic Orb slowly chips away Flareon's health, even without it, Flareon's longevity is very small.
Some Calcs at Guts Boosted Flareon.
252 Atk Guts Flareon Facade (140 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Sceptile: 169-199 (116.5 - 137.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO (You don't even need to use Flare Blitz and take recoil)
252 Atk Guts Flareon Facade (140 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Floatzel: 189-223 (118.1 - 139.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Guts Flareon Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Torterra: 216-254 (106.9 - 125.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Relicanth: 164-194 (93.7 - 110.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Archeops: 145-171 (96.6 - 114%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Miltank: 196-232 (97 - 114.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Flare Blitz vs. 180 HP / 0 Def Pangoro: 189-223 (97.9 - 115.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Facade (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Rotom-F: 113-134 (71.9 - 85.3%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Regirock: 112-134 (59.8 - 71.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock (so Yeah, Regi can't even switch out on this set, and if it is worn down before hand, even he falls to Flareon)

I think switching moves and being at +1 speed is what is best for Flareon. Thanks everyone for your time reading this:)

 

[Punchshroom]

I really don't understand what's the point with Flash Fire Banded set, because with Guts and Toxic Orb, you get a +1(similar to band) boost in attack. Pair it with Flame Charge, Pick a weakened Pokemon, nab it with Flame Charge, then you have +1 Speed (which with Jolly nature allows to outspeed 120 Base speed Pokemon, lvl.50 calcs). Then you can switch your moves, and Flare Blitz/Superpower/Facade all the things.
While Toxic Orb slowly chips away Flareon's health, even without it, Flareon's longevity is very small.
Some Calcs at Guts Boosted Flareon.
252 Atk Guts Flareon Facade (140 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Sceptile: 169-199 (116.5 - 137.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO (You don't even need to use Flare Blitz and take recoil)
252 Atk Guts Flareon Facade (140 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Floatzel: 189-223 (118.1 - 139.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Guts Flareon Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Torterra: 216-254 (106.9 - 125.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Relicanth: 164-194 (93.7 - 110.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Archeops: 145-171 (96.6 - 114%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Miltank: 196-232 (97 - 114.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Flare Blitz vs. 180 HP / 0 Def Pangoro: 189-223 (97.9 - 115.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Facade (140 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Rotom-F: 113-134 (71.9 - 85.3%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 Atk Guts Flareon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Regirock: 112-134 (59.8 - 71.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock (so Yeah, Regi can't even switch out on this set, and if it is worn down before hand, even he falls to Flareon)

I think switching moves and being at +1 speed is what is best for Flareon. Thanks everyone for your time reading this:)

Guts + Toxic Orb dies extremely quick, while Flash Fire Flareon can stick around for substantially longer since it's not necessarily wearing itself down every single turn. Superpower also conflicts with Flame Charge, meaning it can get forced out anyway like a regular CB Flareon would. Flame Charge does let it outspeed offensive teams, but with its longevity it gets like what, 1 or 2 kills at best, provided it can safely Flame Charge in the first place, and is useless against bulkier Pokemon, which tend to be Flareon's main switch-ins anyway. CB Flareon, for the most part, does just as fine (or worse) at nuking offensive teams, and can last longer to do the same against slower teams.

Offensive Flareon's biggest problem is definitely its longevity, which means it isn't particularly relied upon to reliably check foes since it usually does not outlast them, and there is always the case of the opponent sacking a mon to soften Flareon up so that their intended sweeper does not get hindered by Flareon. Flareon most appreciates Pokes that can keep up the offensive momentum on the opponent. I've found special Mesprit with U-turn to be an admirable teammate; it is a good dry Pass recipient for Flareon when predicting switches such as Qwilfish, Hariyama, Dragalge, and Seismitoad, and doesn't mind the Intimidate passed by Baton Pass either. U-turn allows Mesprit to double back to Flareon if need be if special walls such as Audino and Probopass are brought out to stop it, so we got a nice 'VoltTurn core' going on. Or you can be like Holly and use Healing Wish, that too.

 

[Raymon]

Guts + Toxic Orb dies extremely quick, while Flash Fire Flareon can stick around for substantially longer since it's not necessarily wearing itself down every single turn. Superpower also conflicts with Flame Charge, meaning it can get forced out anyway like a regular CB Flareon would. Flame Charge does let it outspeed offensive teams, but with its longevity it gets like what, 1 or 2 kills at best, provided it can safely Flame Charge in the first place, and is useless against bulkier Pokemon, which tend to be Flareon's main switch-ins anyway. CB Flareon, for the most part, does just as fine (or worse) at nuking offensive teams, and can last longer to do the same against slower teams.

I'll better die extremely quick, than use Flare Blitz on something like Miltank and Relicanth, be locked in it, when I just could switch for Superpower with Guts boost.

 

[Punchshroom]

I'll better die extremely quick, than use Flare Blitz on something like Miltank and Relicanth, be locked in it, when I just could switch for Superpower with Guts boost.

It more likely has to do with the current meta, because stuff like Miltank and Relicanth aren't common, but Flareon counters such as Rhydon, Seismitoad, and Qwilfish (plus maybe defensive Carracosta??) are more prevelant. Guts Flareon does not fare any better against these Pokemon over CB Flareon despite the benefit of being able to switch moves, in fact it has a harder time since it is taking unnecessary damage from Toxic Orb if it does not predict them on the switch, but CB Flareon can also do that without the threat of poison cleaving away at its health at every wrong prediction. Like I said, CB Flareon does most of what Guts Flareon wants to do anyway, and isn't hindered by dwindling health or lack of a Fire immunity. I suppose Guts Flareon has the benefit of Facade, but CB Superpower and Flare Blitz just hits most of its targets for decent damage already.

 

[Raymon]

It more likely has to do with the current meta, because stuff like Miltank and Relicanth aren't common, but Flareon counters such as Rhydon, Seismitoad, and Qwilfish (plus maybe defensive Carracosta??) are more prevelant. Guts Flareon does not fare any better against these Pokemon over CB Flareon despite the benefit of being able to switch moves, in fact it has a harder time since it is taking unnecessary damage from Toxic Orb if it does not predict them on the switch, but CB Flareon can also do that without the threat of poison cleaving away at its health at every wrong prediction. Like I said, CB Flareon does most of what Guts Flareon wants to do anyway, and isn't hindered by dwindling health or lack of a Fire immunity. I suppose Guts Flareon has the benefit of Facade, but CB Superpower and Flare Blitz just hits most of its targets for decent damage already.

Choice Band Flareon does especially bad against Qwilfish and Seismitoad. What move do yo have for them on banded set? With Guts, if you predict incorrectly, you can just switch to Facade.

 

[Punchshroom]

Choice Band Flareon does especially bad against Qwilfish and Seismitoad. What move do yo have for them on banded set? With Guts, if you predict incorrectly, you can just switch to Facade.

If CB Flareon nails Seismitoad on the switch with Superpower, it can freely spam Flare Blitzes in the future knowing it cannot switch in again, not to mention your Flareon is Jolly so it might not even 2HKO Toad with Facade. I will concede that CB Flareon does not have much for Qwilfish outside of predicting with dry Baton Pass, but Guts Facade falls noticeably short of a 2HKO as well. Regardless, back to the post that started this whole debate...

I really don't understand what's the point with Flash Fire Banded set, because with Guts and Toxic Orb, you get a +1(similar to band) boost in attack. Pair it with Flame Charge, Pick a weakened Pokemon, nab it with Flame Charge, then you have +1 Speed. Then you can switch your moves, and Flare Blitz/Superpower/Facade all the things.

I think switching moves and being at +1 speed is what is best for Flareon. Thanks everyone for your time reading this:)

Flash Fire CB Flareon is meant for hit-and-run while being able to check threats, while Guts Flareon is a suicide sweeper. They do different things, though I still have problems (and bad memories) with Guts Flareon: namely it being slow enough that getting convenient Flame Charge kills without suffering damage is really hard, then it gets forced out by nearly every priority move in the tier anyway or even by its own Superpower, said Superpower which also makes it incredibly vulnerable to pivoting alongside Toxic damage. Oh, and its best attack + Toxic Orb is basically the equivalent of Head Smash Archeops in that you realistically only get one good use out of it before it kills itself, and who the hell wants that out of their Fire STAB? If I'm getting forced out and not making use of the speed boost as often as it is, I might as well use a CB Flareon and spare myself the extra damage.

With jolly guts, against seismitoad, max damage from a flare blitz + facade +stealth rock damage-leftovers is 101.75%, the min is 87.15% (for 200HP/252D seismitoad) So you have a really difficult time killing seismitoad.

100% - 6.25% - 37.4% + 6.25% - 58.1% = 4.5%

????

 

[Shuckleking87]

Choice Band Flareon does especially bad against Qwilfish and Seismitoad. What move do yo have for them on banded set? With Guts, if you predict incorrectly, you can just switch to Facade.

With jolly guts, against seismitoad, max damage from a flare blitz + facade +stealth rock damage-leftovers is 101.75%, the min is 87.15% (for 200HP/252D seismitoad) So you have a really difficult time killing seismitoad. You have a 0% chance against qwilfish. Oh, and without flash fire, you are 2hko after rocks from scarfed typhlosion eruption or specs fire blast. So dont see why you would lose your ability to at least put typhlosion and pyroar in a guessing game, and if they guess wrong, you have a choice band flash fire flareblitz, which 2hko seismitoad, and has a 25% to 2hko kill 252/252 intimidate qwilfish, whose waterfall would do less than half and you would win that encounter.

 

[Brawlfest]

Exeggutor
Type: Grass / Psychic
Base Stats: 95 HP / 95 Atk / 85 Def / 125 SpA / 65 SpD / 55 Spe
Ability: Chlorophyll / Harvest

Alright, this week we are doing Exeggutor, my favorite mon to use in NU atm which I feel is a potent and versatile offensive and defensive threat. This is due to its great movepool, typing, ability, and unique stats that give it incredible strength and bulk. Discuss the walking threeheaded tree!​

 

[Punchshroom]

Exeggutor's coverage is very scary against the majority of NU, particularly against anything slower than it. While base 55 Speed looks too low to threaten much. Eggy has two ways to gain the speed advantage: Sun and Trick Room. Exeggutor's SolarBeams hit like a ton of bricks, for the most part decimating nearly every neutral offensive threat, while Trick Room Eggy can afford bulk while going for sweeps and can use its Grass STAB without setting up first. Both even have the nifty option of Sleep Powder, which can buy them time to reset their respective 5-turn field effect should it run out.

Eggy is also good in the stallbreaking department. Choice Specs Eggy is a downright bastard to switch into, boasting one of the strongest special attacks in all of NU (Modest Specs Eggy Leaf Storm > neutral Specs Typhlosion Eruption!). And then it has Psyshock or Hidden Power Fire to hammer anything specially defensive enough to eat a Leaf Storm. I've even seen some Exeggutors go ASPLODING, which only increases its threat level. SubSeed Eggy isn't commonly seen since Knock Off screws it massively over, but if it can avoid that Knock Off by the time it gets its Sub-cycle going, it (hopefully) shouldn't matter and would become a massive thorn in the opponent's side.

The weaknesses coupled with low initial Speed and especially bad Special Defense hold it back a lot though. Expect to witness numerous scenarios where Eggy has lost momentum (either by its field effect wearing off, using Leaf Storm, or breaking out of the SubSeed-cycle) and is forced out by the many opponents that threaten it with super effective hits, because it happens a lot. While Eggy is a potent offensive force, it wants support to be used to its fullest potential, otherwise it just gets killed off without doing jack.

 

[slayerx725232]

Having personal experience with Exeggutor (having written the analysis for it :p) I can say that despite the initial reaction people may have of it, it is a very versatile Pokemon that can play both an offensive or stall-esque role, making it a great Pokemon. It's one of the most viable users of Harvest, allowing for it to have fun using LumRest or Sitrus+SubSeed. However if you want to take the more offensive approach with this Pokemon, you can easily throw Exeggutor onto a Sun Team, as it is almost unable to be passed in terms of Speed once it has the Chlorophyll boost, or put it on a Trick Room team, taking advantage of its already mediocre Speed. Either approach will end in the same way however: destruction. The only true difference between putting Exeggutor on a Sun Team vs. a Trick Room Team is the fact that it can only utilize Solarbeam when the Sun is up. And trust me, nothing is going to want to switch into a Choice Specs Solarbeam from an Exeggutor. Nope, not even Probopass, being cleanly 2HKO'd after Stealth Rock damage, and almost OHKO'd every time regardless of Stealth Rock or not. That being said, Exeggutor can play the role of an offensive beast were it given the right support.

The main things that keep Exeggutor in check would be its reliance of set up from its teammates to deal with its subpar base 55 Speed. Not to mention that it is decimated by Bug-type attacks, and weak to 6 other types. This means that it gets obliterated by VoltTurn cores, minus the Volt part. And suppose one were to run the defensive Harvest sets, that gets shut down entirely via the use of Knock Off, rendering Exeggutor useless. Most of the times, it also gets stopped by Taunt, relying on Leech Seed for passive recovery, and Sleep Powder to incapacitate the opposing Pokemon. Overall I personally love Exeggutor as a Pokemon, being a great user of Harvest, with some minor flaws. Couple that with the fact that Exeggutor can be a terrifying offensive presence, which many people forget, and you have one great Pokemon that shouldn't be messed with. (Unless you have banded Ninjask maybe?)

 

[Brawlfest]

Musharna
Type: Psychic
Base Stats: 116 HP / 55 Atk / 85 Def / 107 SpA / 95 SpD / 29 Spe
Ability: Forewarn / Synchronize / Telepathy

Alright, this week we are doing Musharna, because Raseri said so and orders are orders. Musharna was literally the best pokemon in BW without a doubt in anybody's mind, and was capable of checking some of the tier's top threats while providing uncomparable utility. How did the generation change fare for it? Discuss!

 

[marilli]

Nice Harvest Musharna

 

[Brawlfest]

Nice Harvest Musharna

srry

 

[The Quasar]

In previous BW2 pokemon generation, Musharna had a prevalent role as last october statistics (a year ago) shows:

Standard Stat
5 | Musharna | 11.58242% | 20758 | 9.325% | 16377 | 9.113%

1850 Stat
3 | Musharna | 16.61471% | 20758 | 9.325% | 16377 | 9.113%

With its exceptional bulk, Musharna could easily setup with Calm Mind so good to become a bulky sweeper, with a good recovery move like Moonlight too. Taking advantage of its slowness, it could be used very well in a Trick Room team, with Life Orb, max SAtk, a Modest/Quiet nature and a decent covarage SAtk move like STAB Psychic, Signal Beam and Shadow Ball.
Just as bulky pivot with TW/Toxic/Heal Bell/Baton Pass. Musharna showed its versatility,as a S Rank has to be; in fact it's a BW2 S Rank with Charizard, Kangaskhan and Samurott, performing a variety of role.

What's the matter in XY?

Well I think a good reason is presence of offensive Mesprit and defensive Uxie in XY, considering also its slow leads to a dimunition of Musharna usage. This is the base stats, differences are obvious :

Musharna 116 HP / 55 Atk / 85 Def / 107 SpA / 95 SpD / 29 Spe
Mesprit 80 HP / 105 Atk / 105 Def / 105 SpA / 105 SpD / 80 Spe
Uxie 75 HP / 75 Atk / 130 Def / 75 SpA / 130 SpD / 95 Spe

Furthemore, weakness vs overstated XY Knock Off and other recurring NU moves and an unfavourable match-up against 'mons like Steelix and Ferroseed (Musharna could be poisoned and Synchronize can't run.

I was reading about a Musharna's suspect in PU. Nowadays, this is real XY NU scenario for Musharna. :(