Skuntank (Update)

Other Options said:

Fire Blast, with a mixed nature, Life Orb, and at least 100 Special Attack EVs 2HKOes Aggron and Steelix.

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Age of Kings said:

[Overview]

<p>Skuntank is often overlooked in favor of its more defensive Dark / Poison counterpart Drapion or more powerful Dark-types like Absol. Skuntank has a few unique factors that set it apart from these other Pokemon, most notably its access to Explosion, a movepool that can effectively back it up, and the Speed to use it. With base 103 HP, Skuntank also lacks the utter fragility of other UU offensive Dark-types, and when it does go down, Aftermath takes 25% off the offender’s HP if Skuntank fell to a contact attack. This coupled with Skuntank's neutrality to Fighting moves commonly carried by fragile Psychic- and Ghost-types makes it one of the most dependable switch-ins to these Pokemon. Skuntank's ability to absorb Toxic Spikes, take down faster threats with Sucker Punch,[serial comma] and Explode on enemy walls makes it a wonderful and unique addition to any UU team.</p>


[SET]
name: Non-Choiced Physical Attacker
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Explosion
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Pursuit / Return
item: Life Orb / Leftovers
ability: Aftermath
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Taking advantage of Skuntank’s STAB and Explosion, this set is the UU standard. Sucker Punch deals massive damage to faster, fragile Pokemon who[Pokemon are people] dare attack Skuntank; in many cases it is able to revenge kill something that is sweeping your team. Skuntank is one of only two Dark-types that get Explosion (the other being Shiftry),[comma before "which" if used as a demonstrative] which complements its STAB since few Ghost-types will switch into it. If Skuntank is low on health or an enemy wall is giving your team problems, it can Explode and potentially turn the game in your favor. Poison Jab is Skuntank’s secondary STAB attack, and it does not require the opponent to attack in order to work. While Poison has relatively poor super effective coverage, it is balanced out by its great neutral coverage.[30% poison chance is nothing to write home about] The last move is up to preference. Pursuit makes a death trap for fragile Psychic- and Ghost-types, who are unable to switch out without being KOed. Return is mostly for dealing damage to enemy Skuntank and Toxicroak, who resist your STAB, as well as any other Poison-types.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Skuntank’s niche is being a somewhat bulky check to Psychic- and Ghost-types and should be played as such. With Life Orb, Sucker Punch OHKOes every major Ghost-type in UU except for Spiritomb and every offensive Psychic-type. [is this applicable? Most Ghosts will either Substitute or Will-O-Wisp] Defensive Psychic-types such as Claydol, Mesprit, and Uxie are 2HKOed. While it can deal significant damage to certain other Pokemon such as bulky Grass-types, this set is more designed to eliminate the aforementioned Pokemon in order to make room for a sweep than to sweep by itself.</p>

<p>The EVs are straightforward: max Attack to boost Skuntank’s decent Attack stat and max Speed to outrun Modest Magmortar.</p>

<p>Steel-types completely wall this set so it is ideal that your team has Fire or Ground attacks available. Moltres and Charizard are excellent partners since in addition to Fire STAB, they are also immune to Skuntank’s only weakness, Ground. Many Rock-types have the defenses to weather Skuntank’s moves, with the likes of Aggron being part Steel as well. Claydol can switch into these Pokemon, being immune to Ground, and appreciates Skuntank removing its Ghost-, Dark-, and Grass-type foes.[goes without saying] Water-types like Blastoise can also eliminate the Rock-types, backed by Skuntank’s Poison STAB destroying Grass-types that dare try to wall them.</p>

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Crunch / Pursuit
move 2: Poison Jab
move 3: Explosion
move 4: Return / Double-Edge
item: Choice Band
ability: Aftermath
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Choice Band Skuntank improves on the power of the basic physical attacker, making it a more potent threat. Crunch returns as a main form of STAB, but Pursuit can nab you a few KOs on fleeing opponents. Poison Jab acts as a secondary STAB that doesn’t leave you short on power if you choose to run Pursuit over Crunch. A Choice Banded Explosion is extremely dangerous, dealing on average 74% to a standard Careful Registeel, 82% to Rhyperior that run no HP or Defense EVs, and 57% to standard Regirock and Steelix. Because it does colossal damage to even things that resist it, Explosion should never be used until you are certain all enemy Ghost-types are KOed. The last move defeats certain enemies who resist Crunch and Poison Jab. The choice between Return and Double-Edge rests on personal preference, whether you prefer extra power or safety from recoil damage. <p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>Sucker Punch is absent from the main options because it requires more prediction than usual for a Choice Band set. If opponents[plurality agreement] catch on to the fact that you are holding a Choice Band, they can switch in anything on Sucker Punch and have a few turns of free set up while you sit and do zero damage, wasting valuable PP.</p>

<p>The EVs are straightforward for a sweeper: max Attack to hit as hard as you can with Choice Band and max Speed will outrun all base 80s unless they run a positive nature.</p>

<p> While Raikou shares a Ground weakness with Skuntank, Skuntank can remove Chansey and give Raikou time to set up. Poison Jab comfortably 2HKOes walls like most Tangrowth, Chansey, and Lanturn in addition to offensive Venusaur. Special based Water-types like Milotic are a good match as they have the added bonus of defeating foes such as Weezing and Donphan who cause Skuntank problems.</p>

[SET]
name: Trapper
move 1: Taunt
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Sucker Punch
move 4: Toxic / Poison Jab / Roar
item: Leftovers
ability: Aftermath
nature: Careful
evs: 240 HP / 16 Spe / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Taunt set ups and force them to attack or switch; then hit them with one of your strong STAB moves. The main advantage Skuntank has over Spiritomb is improved Speed that lets it take better advantage of Taunt because you can actually outrun things, preventing it from being set-up fodder for Pokemon like Umbreon. Roar is also something Spiritomb cannot do and is a useful option if you have many entry hazards on the field. Toxic depletes the health Pokemon who think they can try and outlast you, while Poison Jab provides secondary STAB with a 30% chance of poisoning the opponent. In the way of supporting a stall team, Skuntank has another important niche over Spiritomb: it absorbs Toxic Spikes and cannot be poisoned itself.</p>

<p>The EVs are designed to maximize Skuntank’s staying power. This, coupled with its immunity to Poison, allows it to effectively stall out Pokemon like Milotic, Lanturn, Chansey, and even opposing Spiritomb in addition to its regular duties in killing fragile Psychic- and Ghost-types.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>This Skuntank is stall-oriented, unlike its previous offensive sets; it performs best when adequately supported by its team. Wish support from Chansey, Clefable, Gardevoir, or otherwise is essential to its success, since it lacks any form of healing. Skuntank can KO a Dugtrio with Sucker Punch if a layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock are down, so entry hazards will be important. Skuntank can help Cloyster lay them on the field and buy time for it to Rapid Spin due to being specially defensive and resisting Grass. As usual, Skuntank likes Pokemon who resist or are immune to Ground; having Pokemon like Tangrowth or Claydol will greatly increase its longevity.</p>

[Team Options]

<p>Skuntank, like most offensive Pokemon, appreciates Stealth Rock support, as it is crucial for guaranteeing certain OHKOs and 2HKOs. Skuntank does well on any bulky or heavy offense team, cleaning up the enemy’s team lategame with a combination of strong priority and Explosion. Espeon, Alakazam, and Mismagius are heavy end-game sweepers who benefit from Skuntank removing some of their usual counters, appreciating its resistances to Dark and Ghost. Fighting-types in general are excellent complements to Skuntank. Skuntank can remove faster Ghost- and Psychic-types who pose a threat to them, while the Fighting-types can remove the Steel-types who wall it,[ambiguity] and sweep unopposed. Since Skuntank gets STAB on Poison moves, it can be a nice companion to bulky Waters, removing enemy Grass-types like Tangrowth and Sceptile as they check some of Skuntank’s usual counters. Pokemon who resist or are immune to Ground like Claydol have been mentioned several times, and for good reason: Skuntank only has one weakness, sadly a common one, and Earthquake does not activate Aftermath.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Fire Blast, with a mixed nature, Life Orb, and at least 100 Special Attack EVs 2HKOes Aggron and Steelix. While Registeel is still dealt only a 3HKO, it prevents Skuntank from being wholly walled by Steel-types short of an Explosion. Screech can replace any move except for Pursuit on the physical attacker set. Leftovers is the recommended item if you do run it. Since Screech will cause switches, it makes a wonderful combo with Pursuit. Rock Smash can be used with Screech to deal heavy damage to Rock / Steel-types like Aggron but has little use otherwise, and Fire Blast generally does more damage. Night Slash has a high critical hit rate, but Sucker Punch and Crunch are more reliable forms of STAB. The low PP attack Punishment is in the same boat but can be useful if you anticipate running into a Calm Mind Spiritomb or something similar.</p>

<p>Attack should always maximized except for on the Rest + Sleep Talk set. For the most part, the spreads listed with the sets should be used. 116 Speed EVs allow you to outrun minimum Speed Uxie and Jolly Torterra if you would like to invest more in its good HP and less in its Speed. If you want to run any more, it’s best to run max Speed. While Skuntank has the benefit of a unique speed tier, Speed boosting natures are not recommended since Skuntank needs every point of Attack (or in the case of the Trapper set, defenses) it can get.</p>

[Counters]

<p>Countering Skuntank is difficult in UU since Explosion can take any potential counter down with it. Registeel is generally a good switch-in, resisting almost everything Skuntank does except for a Life Orb Fire Blast, which fails to 3HKO a standard variant. Weezing is in the same position. Rhyperior has massive defenses and can freely set up on anything Skuntank does. All are severely crippled by a Choice Banded Explosion, however. Spiritomb takes paltry damage from most of Skuntank’s moves and can burn away its main form of attack, bolstered by its immunity to Explosion. However, it loses to Taunt variants. Houndoom is faster and can come in on a predicted Fire Blast or Sucker Punch, and it can either blast it away with its STAB or use Nasty Plot. Drapion is faster and has access to Earthquake (which is unaffected by Aftermath), more often than not gaining free turns to set up. Anything faster that can survive a Sucker Punch after Skuntank has been significantly worn down by either Stealth Rock or Life Orb recoil is a good candidate to beat it.</p>

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