Smogon Community - View Single Post - Quality Control Growlithe (BW2 Revamp) [QC 3/3]

The Unlucky one · Dec 9th, 2012, 1:57:00 PM

Alright so I think blara approved and Woodchuck allowed me to take over so i'm on this right now. Just taking Woodchuck's skeleton and may expound a bit on it as I tested Growlithe quite a bit. I'm not sure that iss' QC check counts after the changes though.
---

Send in the K-9 unit!

Current Stage: In the process of typing up
QC: iss, Hawkstar, Chrarmander
GP: None, None

Skeleton

[OVERVIEW]

With piercing eyes and a nose that can sniff out its prey from miles away, Growlithe comes into this metagame with the same cocky smirk it has always had. Growlithe is a rather unappreciated Fire-type simply for the reason that it's outclassed by every other Fire-type available. Ponyta and Darumaka are better physical attackers, and Houndour is a better special attacker. Even as a wall, it still faces trouble as a wall sometimes thanks to Fire being a bad defensive typing. However, Growlithe is an excellent defensive check to physical attackers thanks to the combination of Intimidate and Will-o-Wisp, which provides a double Attack drop for threats that stay in. Don't underestimate Growlithe, because his bite is worse than his bark.

[SET]
name: Pivot
move 1: Flare Blitz
move 2: Wild Charge / Return
move 3: Morning Sun
move 4: Will-o-Wisp
item: Eviolite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Careful
evs: 116 Atk / 196 Def / 196 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]
Thanks to Intimidate, Growlithe can be a decent defensive pivot for some teams. Sadly, it doesn't have much of a good movepool to back up its amazing ability in Intimidate. He can force a switch with Intimidate, and use his good coverage of Flare Blitz and Wild Charge. Another option over Wild Charge is Return. Return lets Growlithe dent Chinchou. Sadly, it will have a lot more neutral coverage than super effective coverage with Return. Morning Sun is on Growlithe to give it some form of recovery, which prevents it from being worn down by the Pokemon it is supposed to wall. Lastly, Will-O-Wisp helps you Burn the physical attacking threats that you can wall, such as Croagunk and Bulky Mienfoo.

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

The EV investment lets Growlithe cover both physical and special attacks with a stat spread of 19 Def / 22 SDef with Intimidate to back it up. The rest of the EVs are placed in the Attack stat to damage the opponent as much as possible with its STAB and its coverage move. Growlithe faces a lot of issues with Stealth Rock, this means a spinner is nearly necessary when including Growlithe in your team. Staryu is the main spinner that works here because it also helps Growlithe deal with Ground and Rock-types, something Growlithe struggles against. Growlithe is also rather weak to sand teams. While Snover hampers Growlithe's recovery, Shroomish works as an excellent partner to Growlithe as it can check sand teams without hampering his recovery. Growlithe, Staryu, and Shroomish can form a good Fire-Water-Grass core. 

[Other Options]
Growlithe can't really do a lot of things without being outclassed by another Fire-Type. First of all Flash Fire can help if you are weak to Fire-types, but it faces massive competition from Ponyta in that role. Flame Charge can also be used to increase your speed but Growlithe's only niche is in the defensive field so that doesn't really work out very much. Sunny Day can also help to increase the power of Flare Blitz and give more recovery in Morning Sun, while possibly stopping opposing sand teams. Lastly, Flamethrower and Fire Blast can be used over Flare Blitz but it is rather weak and they don't really stay in after Intimidate.

[Checks and Counters]
Growlithe isn't that hard to counter as it is rather weak. A good amount of Water-types can live a Wild Charge and retaliate back with a super-effective Water-type move. The Pokemon that stands out here is Chinchou, who is immune to Wild Charge and is resistant to Flare Blitz. Growlithe also struggles against sand teams as he is weak to Earthquake. Stone Edge Mienfoo may surprise Growlithe who thinks he can come in on bulky Variants. Lastly, Timburr can set-up on it taking a boost from Will-O-Wisp thanks to Guts.

Dec 9th, 2012, 1:57:00 PM	#1
The Unlucky one Join Date: Jun 2012 Posts: 500 Philippines	Growlithe (BW2 Revamp) [QC 3/3] Alright so I think blara approved and Woodchuck allowed me to take over so i'm on this right now. Just taking Woodchuck's skeleton and may expound a bit on it as I tested Growlithe quite a bit. I'm not sure that iss' QC check counts after the changes though. --- Send in the K-9 unit! Current Stage: In the process of typing up QC: iss, Hawkstar, Chrarmander GP: None, None Skeleton [OVERVIEW] <p>With piercing eyes and a nose that can sniff out its prey from miles away, Growlithe comes into this metagame with the same cocky smirk it has always had. Growlithe is a rather unappreciated Fire-type simply for the reason that it's outclassed by every other Fire-type available. Ponyta and Darumaka are better physical attackers, and Houndour is a better special attacker. Even as a wall, it still faces trouble as a wall sometimes thanks to Fire being a bad defensive typing. However, Growlithe is an excellent defensive check to physical attackers thanks to the combination of Intimidate and Will-o-Wisp, which provides a double Attack drop for threats that stay in. Don't underestimate Growlithe, because his bite is worse than his bark.</p> [SET] name: Pivot move 1: Flare Blitz move 2: Wild Charge / Return move 3: Morning Sun move 4: Will-o-Wisp item: Eviolite ability: Intimidate nature: Careful evs: 116 Atk / 196 Def / 196 SpD [SET COMMENTS] - Intimidate is invaluable in Little Cup - Really sucks that it can't get U-turn - Flare Blitz / Wild Charge give it decent coverage - Flare Blitz / Return grants better neutral coverage hitting things like Chinchou neutrally. You hit less things super-effectively though. Lack of recoil also really helps with Return/ - Intimdate + WoW burn means that physical attackers are dropped to the dirt - Allows Growlithe to cover SpD - Morning Sun heals off damage and provides longevity - It's Fire typing really doesn't let it resist much, Fire is a better Offensive typing than a defensive one. [ADDITIONAL COMMENTS] - 19 Def / 22 SpD with Eviolite - Stealth Rock hinders, so a spinner is necessary - Also struggles with Ground-types - Staryu handles both of these problems very well - Growlithe has problems with Sand Teams, and Snover hampers it's recovery, this makes Shroomish an excellent partner for dealing with sand without ruining it's recovery. Foongus also helps vs Timburr if you prefer that. - This allows the three pokemon to form a strong Fire-Water-Grass core that gives a strong pivoting core to abuse. [Other Options] - If your team is weak to Fire-types, Flash Fire is a good alternative to absorb them - Flame Charge raises speed but this is defensive so - Sunny Day to aid Morning Sun, power-up Flare Blitz, and stop Sand - Flamethrower or Fire Blast if you want to surprise physically-defensive threats, but it'll be really weak and they won't stay in after Intimidate [Checks and Counters] - Growlithe isn't strong, so Water-types can survive Wild Charge - Chinchou is immune to Wild Charge and can OHKO with Hydro Pump / Surf - Ground-types like Hippopotas or Drilbur - Stealth Rock wears down switching - Stone Edge Mienfoo may surprise Growlithe who thinks he can come in on bulky Variants - Timburr can set-up on it taking a boost from Will-O-Wisp thanks to guts. [OVERVIEW] <p>With piercing eyes and a nose that can sniff out its prey from miles away, Growlithe comes into this metagame with the same cocky smirk it has always had. Growlithe is a rather unappreciated Fire-type simply for the reason that it's outclassed by every other Fire-type available. Ponyta and Darumaka are better physical attackers, and Houndour is a better special attacker. Even as a wall, it still faces trouble as a wall sometimes thanks to Fire being a bad defensive typing. However, Growlithe is an excellent defensive check to physical attackers thanks to the combination of Intimidate and Will-o-Wisp, which provides a double Attack drop for threats that stay in. Don't underestimate Growlithe, because his bite is worse than his bark.</p> [SET] name: Pivot move 1: Flare Blitz move 2: Wild Charge / Return move 3: Morning Sun move 4: Will-o-Wisp item: Eviolite ability: Intimidate nature: Careful evs: 116 Atk / 196 Def / 196 SpD [SET COMMENTS] <p>Thanks to Intimidate, Growlithe can be a decent defensive pivot for some teams. Sadly, it doesn't have much of a good movepool to back up its amazing ability in Intimidate. He can force a switch with Intimidate, and use his good coverage of Flare Blitz and Wild Charge. Another option over Wild Charge is Return. Return lets Growlithe dent Chinchou. Sadly, it will have a lot more neutral coverage than super effective coverage with Return. Morning Sun is on Growlithe to give it some form of recovery, which prevents it from being worn down by the Pokemon it is supposed to wall. Lastly, Will-O-Wisp helps you Burn the physical attacking threats that you can wall, such as Croagunk and Bulky Mienfoo.</p> [ADDITIONAL COMMENTS] <p>The EV investment lets Growlithe cover both physical and special attacks with a stat spread of 19 Def / 22 SDef with Intimidate to back it up. The rest of the EVs are placed in the Attack stat to damage the opponent as much as possible with its STAB and its coverage move. Growlithe faces a lot of issues with Stealth Rock, this means a spinner is nearly necessary when including Growlithe in your team. Staryu is the main spinner that works here because it also helps Growlithe deal with Ground and Rock-types, something Growlithe struggles against. Growlithe is also rather weak to sand teams. While Snover hampers Growlithe's recovery, Shroomish works as an excellent partner to Growlithe as it can check sand teams without hampering his recovery. Growlithe, Staryu, and Shroomish can form a good Fire-Water-Grass core. </p> [Other Options] <p>Growlithe can't really do a lot of things without being outclassed by another Fire-Type. First of all Flash Fire can help if you are weak to Fire-types, but it faces massive competition from Ponyta in that role. Flame Charge can also be used to increase your speed but Growlithe's only niche is in the defensive field so that doesn't really work out very much. Sunny Day can also help to increase the power of Flare Blitz and give more recovery in Morning Sun, while possibly stopping opposing sand teams. Lastly, Flamethrower and Fire Blast can be used over Flare Blitz but it is rather weak and they don't really stay in after Intimidate.</p> [Checks and Counters] <p>Growlithe isn't that hard to counter as it is rather weak. A good amount of Water-types can live a Wild Charge and retaliate back with a super-effective Water-type move. The Pokemon that stands out here is Chinchou, who is immune to Wild Charge and is resistant to Flare Blitz. Growlithe also struggles against sand teams as he is weak to Earthquake. Stone Edge Mienfoo may surprise Growlithe who thinks he can come in on bulky Variants. Lastly, Timburr can set-up on it taking a boost from Will-O-Wisp thanks to Guts.</p> __________________ 252+ SpA Choice Specs Magikarp Hydro Pump vs. 248 HP / 84 SpD Ho-Oh in rain: 228-270 (54.93 - 65.06%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock you may know me as "superwii64cube" too Last edited by The Unlucky one; May 5th, 2013 at 10:22:01 AM.