[Ray Jay]

I've definitely enjoyed playing sandstall over the past few days, using the slightly unorthodox core of Ferroseed + Slowpoke + Vullaby alongside the obvious Hippopotas. All three are much better than anticipated, and I've found that basically the easiest way to beat Mienfoo is sponging its hits. People oft point out to me "hey, Slowpoke is an awful Mienfoo counter cuz you get U-turned on," but this does not really matter to me. If I have a Pokemon that can a.) repeatedly take hits from Mienfoo (Regenerator means you may not even have to Slack Off) and b.) Paralyze the switch-in consistently with T-wave due to bulk (so many things hate para) then I believe this is a good Pokemon. So basically, stop badmouthing Slowpoke.

I've seen some discussion on the brokenness of Murkrow, which seems pretty inane at the moment. SubRoost Krow is demolished by all-but-ubiquitous checks such as Porygon and RestTalk Chinchou, and Life Orb 4 Attack burns itself out rather quickly. I think pretty notable is the fact that Life Orb 4 Attack is an amazing teammate for a ton of sweepers; I know I basically switch my 4th move on Krow to help the team out (stuff like HP Grass means that something like Numel-yes I brought it up-is now going to proceed to wreck the opponent). Still though, it's a sacrificial lamb at best early game; late game it can be more devastating but not if the opponent keeps their checks healthy. Still more curious on your thoughts on Murkrow.

The other thing I want to hype is Specially Defensive Timburr. It's basically a hard counter to Snover (including bulky varieties), and I've been using it with sand for that reason. It also does well against Scraggy and opposing Drilbur, so it's very similar to Mienfoo in that regard. There are some costs, such as no U-turn or Regenerator, but Mach Punch and Bulk Up help even the scales a bit.