BITCH SLAP INCOMING
[OVERVIEW]
Poliwrath's standout trait is its unique typing. Defensively, Poliwrath has a coveted Water immunity and resistances to Dark, Ice, Bug, Steel, and Rock. Its Water- and Fighting-type STAB moves also complement each other offensively, providing solid neutral coverage and making it harder to resist its attacks. Poliwrath is even blessed with good overall bulk. This makes it one of the very few offensive Pokemon not threatened by Sneasel and allows it to check threats such as Swords Dance Samurott, Klinklang, Kabutops, Barbaracle, and Rhydon.
However, Poliwrath's offensive stats are fairly unimpressive, and its defensive sets suffer from having no reliable recovery. It doesn't respond very well to most of the tier's Fire-types, and it faces competition with Unaware Quagsire, which has reliable recovery and no need for phazing, which lessens Poliwrath's defensive value. Poliwrath's bothersome weaknesses to Flying, Grass, Psychic, and Electric can be a hassle to cover as well.
[SET]
name: Special Attacker
move 1: Scald / Hydro Pump
move 2: Focus Blast
move 3: Ice Beam
move 4: Vacuum Wave / Rain Dance
item: Life Orb / Choice Specs
ability: Water Absorb / Swift Swim
nature: Modest
evs: 96 HP / 252 SpA / 160 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Scald allows Poliwrath to get burns on its checks, allowing them to be worn down quicker. Hydro Pump offers instant power in exchange for a drop in accuracy. Focus Blast serves as Poliwrath's alternate STAB attack, dealing high damage against most Pokemon in the tier that resist Water while netting coverage against the likes of Audino and Ferroseed. Ice Beam strikes Grass-types, especially those that resist Focus Blast, such as Gourgeist, Vileplume, Exeggutor, and Jumpluff. Vacuum Wave gives Poliwrath access to priority, and it is unique in that it is the only special priority move in the game.
The last moveslot allows Poliwrath to outpace faster foes. Vacuum Wave is generally used to pick off Tauros, Sneasel, Cacturne, and Pyroar, as well as snipe down non-White Herb variants of Carracosta and Barbaracle. Rain Dance can be used to activate Swift Swim and bolster Poliwrath's Water-type moves, giving it great sweeping potential.
Set Details
========
Maximum Special Attack investment with a Modest nature and either Choice Specs or Life Orb significantly boosts Poliwrath's attacks and helps patch up its lackluster Special Attack. 160 Speed EVs allow Poliwrath to outspeed neutral-natured Aurorus, Rampardos, and Torterra, as well as neutral base 55 Speed Pokemon such as Exeggutor, Cacturne, and Golurk. The leftover EVs are placed into HP. Should Swift Swim Poliwrath be used, full investment in Speed is preferred to outspeed up to positive-natured base 95 Speed Choice Scarf users, such as Jynx and Haunter. Water Absorb can be used to soak up Water-type hits and replenish Poliwrath's health, but Swift Swim is a fine alternative if Poliwrath is used on rain teams. Do note, however, that Vacuum Wave is incompatible with Swift Swim. Swift Swim Poliwrath would prefer Life Orb over Choice Specs as its item, as it shouldn't adopt a hit-and-run playstyle due to rain's time limit.
Usage Tips
========
This set is for players who still want a check to the likes of Sneasel, Carracosta, Kabutops, and Klinklang but prefer a great offensive presence as opposed to a passive defensive presence. This Poliwrath trades defensive longevity for the ability to retaliate hard and presents an element of surprise against opponents expecting a passive, defensive set. Poliwrath's good neutral coverage means it can actually act as a decent core breaker. Poliwrath can also be used to revenge kill targets or even clean up late-game courtesy of Vacuum Wave. On rain teams, Poliwrath can help to break down common stops to rain teams, such as Ferroseed, Cradily, Audino, and even Choice Scarf Snow Warning Aurorus with the aid of Vacuum Wave, paving the way for its fellow rain sweepers to finish off the opposing team. Outside of rain teams, it can instead function as a lure for bulky Grass-types such as Vileplume and Gourgeist, which can benefit teammates such as Torterra and Rhydon.
However, due to its lesser power compared to its fellow rain sweepers in Ludicolo and Kabutops, it shouldn't be the team's main sweeper. It either helps break down cores for its rain sweeping brethren or cleans up after them. It can even make use of its bulk to fit Rain Dance on its moveset and sweep the foe with its three-move coverage in a manner similar to Ludicolo.
Team Options
========
Because this Poliwrath fits nicely on offensive teams, Pokemon that are vulnerable to the Pokemon it checks make for good partners. As this Poliwrath variant easily stops physical Water-type sweepers, such as Samurott, Kabutops, Carracosta, and Barbaracle, Pokemon that would otherwise give these Pokemon free opportunities, such as Fletchinder and Choiced variants of Pyroar, are much more safely insured. Poliwrath's bulk and typing make it a decent switch-in to priority moves as well, with the exception of Fletchinder's Acrobatics. Pokemon that are often subject to priority attacks, such as Sneasel, Pyroar, Lilligant, and Mismagius, would appreciate Poliwrath soaking up these attacks for them. Of course, Poliwrath shouldn't be the team's sole stop against priority due to its weakness to Fletchinder, so a teammate that resists Flying, such as Rotom, Rhydon, or even Stunfisk, can help back it up. Poliwrath can also soften up most bulky Grass-types because most of them are the only switch-ins against its powerful dual STAB attacks, making life much easier for the likes of Torterra, Lilligant, and Rhydon, which want opposing bulky Grass-types weakened or outright removed.
If used on a rain team, Poliwrath can become the aggressor much more easily against the numerous Pokemon that outsped it before. The most obvious partners are its fellow rain sweepers in Ludicolo and Kabutops, which can help break down the opposing team with sheer offensive pressure. Rain setters are the next set of teammates that Swift Swim Poliwrath appreciates; good examples include Uxie and Mesprit with their access to Stealth Rock and utility moves, Liepard and Volbeat with their various Prankster attacks, and even Mawile and Carbink, whose defensive typings complement Poliwrath's and the fellow Swift Swim sweepers' typing.
[SET]
name: Physically Defensive
move 1: Circle Throw
move 2: Scald
move 3: Rest
move 4: Sleep Talk
ability: Water Absorb
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
nature: Relaxed
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Circle Throw phazes the foes Poliwrath walls, such as Klinklang, Malamar, Shell Smash Carracosta, and Shell Smash Barbaracle, preventing them from amassing boosts to overwhelm Poliwrath. Circle Throw can also make foes such as Huntail, Mawile, and Musharna think twice about setting up freely on Poliwrath (though the latter two are risky to try this against) as well as rack up entry hazard damage on the foe. Scald threatens physical attackers by potentially crippling them with a burn, making them even easier to wall. Rest keeps Poliwrath from being worn down by repeated damage and status. Sleep Talk allows Poliwrath to function while asleep and prevents it from being a sitting duck.
Set Details
========
Full investment in HP and Defense with a Relaxed nature allows Poliwrath to sponge hits from physical attackers such as Kangaskhan more easily, as well as halting the sweeps of the likes of Barbaracle and Rhydon. Leftovers gives Poliwrath consistent passive recovery, which is especially important for a RestTalk user. A Relaxed nature is used over Bold and Impish so as to not weaken Poliwrath's attacks, and the loss in Speed is rarely relevant.
Usage Tips
========
Poliwrath is intended to wall various physical attackers such as Sneasel, Carracosta, and Klinklang. Poliwrath can retaliate with Circle Throw to deny their setup or rack up entry hazard damage or spam Scald to aim for burns, while using Rest once its health gets too low to continue walling threats. Poliwrath's attacks are fairly safe to use via Sleep Talk, complementing its RestTalk strategy nicely and allowing it to function fairly reliably.
Team Options
========
Poliwrath best fits on defensive teams, relying on defensive synergy with its teammates to keep ahead of most offensive Pokemon. Entry hazard setters such as Ferroseed and Garbodor pair well with Poliwrath to make its Circle Throws more potent. These Pokemon even have good defensive synergy with Poliwrath, with both resisting Grass- and Fairy-type attacks, as well as Psychic attacks in Ferroseed's case, while Poliwrath partially covers their Fire and Ground weakness, respectively, although you should keep in mind that Poliwrath doesn't actually resist Ground. Clerics can wake Poliwrath up so that it can continually use Rest to replenish itself. Examples of clerics include Musharna, Vileplume, Audino, Togetic, Grumpig, and Lanturn. Poliwrath also appreciates specially defensive teammates to sponge the hits that it doesn't want to. Most of the clerics fit this description, most notably Grumpig and Lanturn; both can handle the Fire-types that Poliwrath struggles to take on while resisting Psychic- and Electric-type attacks for it, respectively. Wish users, while not too necessary, can certainly be helpful in keeping Poliwrath healthy; the most prominent Wish users in the tier include Audino, Leafeon, and even Hypno, which either resist Poliwrath's weaknesses or serve as special tanks for it.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====================
The combination of Substitute and Focus Punch can harass foes, but being unable to immediately launch a Fighting-type attack can be a large setback, and most Pokemon that resist Fighting can handle most of Poliwrath's other attacks anyway. Such a set can run Encore to amp up the disruption factor at the cost of coverage. Poliwrath could attempt a Belly Drum sweeper variant with Swift Swim, but physical Poliwrath's attacks are inferior to special Poliwrath's attacks prior to the boost, and such a set wants optimal setup conditions to be considered worthwhile; that said, Uxie does provide both rain and Memento support for it, which can allow it to work. Poliwrath has access to Bulk Up, but again, physical Poliwrath makes for a lackluster attacker due to its mediocre attacks. Couple that with its inability to boost its Speed, and Bulk Up Poliwrath would be too threatened by its various weaknesses to afford staying in battle for too long. Specially defensive Poliwrath could be an option to handle Fire-types better while not sacrificing its already favorable matchups too much, but it does become noticeably more vulnerable against the likes of Barbaracle and Swords Dance Rhydon, which would be a waste, as Poliwrath is one of the better stops available to them; Poliwrath is also still considerably vulnerable to most special attackers in the tier. Special Poliwrath can try Hidden Power Electric to hit Mantine, but it's not a particularly effective Mantine lure, as it needs to be used on the switch and Mantine would still have enough health remaining to take Poliwrath's other attacks, with Water Absorb even threatening to undo the Hidden Power damage and waste Poliwrath's efforts.
Checks and Counters
======================
**Grass-types**: Grass-types can usually easily take advantage of Poliwrath, taking pittance from its STAB attacks and easily threatening it with their super effective STAB moves. Examples include Vileplume, Exeggutor, Lilligant, Ludicolo, Torterra, Leafeon, and Roselia, although the physical Grass-types do not like getting burned. Most of these Grass-types also do not appreciate Ice Beam, although the faster Grass-types can get ahead of Poliwrath and revenge kill it.
**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types, such as Musharna, Uxie, Mesprit, and Xatu, take little from most of Poliwrath's attacks while bringing it down with their STAB Psychic-type moves or using it as Calm Mind fodder, although a timely Circle Throw can stop them. While Choice Specs Hydro Pump can sting, they can still make for a decent response given that they can survive a hit from Poliwrath and that most Psychic-types can outspeed it as well. Jynx is unique from them in that it has nothing to worry about from Poliwrath's Water-type attacks, but it instead has to be wary about switching into a Fighting-type move.
**Electric-types**: Electric-types make for effective offensive responses to Poliwrath due to their high Speed and good power. Rotom, Rotom-S, Electivire, and Zebstrika will swiftly bring Poliwrath down to its knees, while Lanturn instead takes everything Poliwrath throws at it and responds with a super effective Electric-type STAB attack.
**Fairy-types**: Granbull, Togetic, and Mega Audino all carry some form of clerical move, meaning that they don't care much about any Scald burns incurred onto them while firing back with super effective Fairy-type STAB attacks. Mega Audino in particular is a giant pain, as all of Poliwrath's sets will struggle to break through its sheer girth. While Mawile does not prove to be a significant obstacle for offensive Poliwrath sets, defensive variants have to watch out for Mawile's powerful Play Rough.
**Flying-types**: Bulky Flying-types such as Pelipper and especially Mantine will prove to be very bothersome obstacles for Poliwrath to overcome. Its weakness to Flying also means that common attackers such as Archeops, Fletchinder, Scyther, and Swellow will prey on it.
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