Research Week 2 - Tentacool

Dracoyoshi8 · Jul 26th, 2010, 11:58:40 AM

Well, here's Research Week #2: Tentacool.

Goals of this Research WeeK:

Figure out what moves are viable on Tentacool.
Find potentially good teammates for Tentacool.
Figure out what kind of team Tentacool preforms best on.
Figure out what kind of support Tentacool may need to be productive.

This thread is for discussion about Tentacool during the Research Week. I would appreciate that if any viable sets are discovered that they be posted here, since all the good ones will be combined into an analysis at the end of the week. Also feel free to post sets of any Pokemon that work good alongside Tentacool.

And a certain somebody better post here.

Ulysses · Jul 26th, 2010, 12:35:52 PM

Not to burst anyone's bubble, but I had kind of already reserved this...

Name: Offensive Spinner
Move 1: Hydro Pump
Move 2: Sludge Bomb
Move 3: Hidden Power Psychic
Move 4: Rapid Spin
Item: Oran Berry
Nature: Timid
EVs: 36 HP / 76 DEF / 196 SATK / 196 SPE

Tentacool is a far better spinner than Squirtle. He has higher special defense, better special attack, and higher speed. Hydro Pump puts a large dent in almost anything. Gastly, Duskull and Drifloon are all one or 2HKO'd, and those are the pokemon who will be switching in to block Rapid Spin. Sludge Bomb has excellent coverage alongside Hydro Pump, and it hits dragons for high damage. However, if you wish to OHKO Dratini and Bagon, Ice Beam can also be used. Hidden Power Psychic OHKOs Croagunk, whom Tentacool is an excellent switching to, resisting all of his common moves bar Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse. You can also revenge kill Carvanha, but the only move that you can switch into is Aqua Jet.

eric the espeon · Jul 26th, 2010, 12:44:09 PM

First set that comes to mind is the basic:

Tentacool@Oran Berry
Evs/nature quite variable, maxing speed with a nature gives 17 which is cool, but defenses and SpA are also important.
~ Hydro Pump
~ Sludge Bomb
~ Toxic Spikes / Rapid Spin
~ HP Electric / Giga Drain

Able to hit fairly hard with Hydro Pump, hit foes that don't need the extra damage with the more accurate Sludge Bomb and use one of the support moves which don't have huge distribution. Last moveslot gives you something to hit waters. HP Ground could work for Chincy+Croagunk.

I guess for a hail team Tenta could be fun, great defensive synergy with Snover (resists Fire, Fighting, Bug, Steel and Poison for Snover, Snover resists Electric and Ground for it) and being able to use Blizzard would certainly help Tenta. Hail teams would also love Toxic Spikes set up if using the classic hail stall strategy.

Optimusje · Jul 26th, 2010, 1:10:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fat Ulysses

Name: Offensive Spinner
Move 1: Hydro Pump
Move 2: Sludge Bomb
Move 3: Hidden Power Psychic
Move 4: Rapid Spin
Item: Oran Berry
Nature: Timid
EVs: 36 HP / 76 DEF / 196 SATK / 196 SPE

Tentacool is a far better spinner than Squirtle. He has higher special defense, better special attack, and higher speed. Hydro Pump puts a large dent in almost anything. Gastly, Duskull and Drifloon are all one or 2HKO'd, and those are the pokemon who will be switching in to block Rapid Spin. Sludge Bomb has excellent coverage alongside Hydro Pump, and it hits dragons for high damage. However, if you wish to OHKO Dratini and Bagon, Ice Beam can also be used. Hidden Power Psychic OHKOs Croagunk, whom Tentacool is an excellent switching to, resisting all of his common moves bar Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse. You can also revenge kill Carvanha, but the only move that you can switch into is Aqua Jet.

You can also use hp ground instead of hp psychic, like you said, gunk cant really do much anyways so a 2hko doesnt mind, and this also lets you whack chinchou harder

iss · Jul 26th, 2010, 5:33:53 PM

I think Eo uses a lead tenta on his stall team, something like surf/giga drain/tspikes/filler. I will test this later, don't have time right now.

**Eo Ut Mortus** · Jul 26th, 2010, 8:15:38 PM

Surf / Ice Beam / Toxic Spikes / Protect or Giga Drain is the exact set. Ice Beam is basically for Dratini because apparently nobody expects Ice Beam Tentacool for some reason, but Sludge Bomb would probably be superior otherwise. Protect helps with stuff like Fake Out Meowth, and everything else is rather self-explanatory (you could probably put Rapid Spin over Ice Beam for Chimchar). Sets up Toxic Spikes against a lot of leads; however, Kabuto is a real pain in the ass, especially if it gets a lucky flinch with Rock Slide.

EVs are 196 HP / 196 SpD / 116 Spe.

Destiny Warrior · Jul 26th, 2010, 9:59:58 PM

I can testify as to how nasty that lead is.

Darkamber8828 · Jul 27th, 2010, 1:20:39 AM

Tentacool looks like it would do well on a sandstorm team. Gligar and Tentacool resist each other's weaknesses. Also, SSStall Gligar is a bitch to take down normally, but with Toxic Spikes, it can rip apart teams.

EDIT: Stolen from that Uber Tentacruel thread (Forry is better)

A Basic Look into the Attacks

Physical Moves
Facade
Payback
Poison Jab
Return
Waterfall

Special Moves
Blizzard
Hydro Pump
Ice Beam
Muddy Water
Sludge Bomb
Surf
Water Pulse

Support Moves
Acupressure
Confuse Ray
Endure
Haze
Icy Wind
Knock Off
Mirror Coat
Protect
Rapid Spin
Rest
Safeguard
Sleep Talk
Substitute
Swagger
Swords Dance
Toxic
Toxic Spikes

Alan · Jul 27th, 2010, 1:47:55 AM

I've been running this tenta in a lead for a kinda fast/bulky feel at the same time. idk, its probably not at its full potential, ev spread wise but yeah.

name: Bulky Spiker ???
move1: Toxic Spikes
move2: Surf
move3: Sludge Bomb
move4: Rapid Spin
item: Leftovers / Oran Berry
ability: Liquid Ooze
nature: Calm
evs: 196 HP / 76 Def / 36 SpA / 196 Spe

big base sdef help it a long way against neutral hits. 70 base speed is p fast, all things considered. cant take physical hits very well, 76 def lets it manage nuetral and resisted hits better. sludge bomb + surf for dual stab. t-spikes is the core of this set. rapid spin helps get rid of spikes/rocks/tpikes on your side of the feild. leftovers or oran berry is preference. liquid ooze makes sure that shroomish cant subseed on you as effectively.

iss · Jul 27th, 2010, 9:30:04 PM

I will look into an SD Tenta soon. Sounds pretty cool right now.

destinybond · Jul 27th, 2010, 10:55:36 PM

Its a shame it doesnt get aqua jet...

Sledge · Jul 28th, 2010, 8:16:41 PM

I've been using SD tenta a lot lately and it seems very underwhelming. You might get an SD off and even then something faster can come in to take you down. Maybe I'm not giving it the right support and this is the set I've been using:

Tentacool @ Oran Berry
EVs:116 HP / 236 Atk / 196 Spe
Adamant / Jolly
-SD
-Waterfall
-Poison Jab
-Return

Towelie · Jul 28th, 2010, 8:26:08 PM

Im just theorymoning here, but would a mixed Tenta work? Something along the lines of:

Tentacool@Life Orb
Mixed EV's (not sure yet, ill try it later)
+SpA -Def Nature
Hydro Pump
Waterfall
Sludge Bomb
Hp Electric/Grass

Somethin like that could possibly work. Hydro Pump everything, Waterfall to 2hko munchlax or whatever

Darkamber8828 · Jul 28th, 2010, 8:32:58 PM

Max attack attack Adamant Life Orb Waterfall (not a good choice) does just over 50% after SR, so it'll activate Oran and 3HKO while Munchy EQs for the OHKO.

Druidcool>Mixed Tentacool. Water/Poison is only resisted by Wooper and Croagunk iirc, so the additional coverage isn't needed imo.

iss · Jul 28th, 2010, 8:40:34 PM

Will test in a couple of days. Right now I'm thinking about passing an aglity to it from gligar or venonat for sd tenta. It's bulky, so perhaps set up will work. i'm thinking sd/waterfall/poison jab/return like sledge.

EDIT: olol 299 posts

**Elevator Music** · Aug 1st, 2010, 4:00:37 PM

It might be better to focus more on teammates for Tentacool, since it probably doesn't have too many great sets, and most of them will feature Toxic Spikes anyways.

Tenta is easily one of the best Toxic Spikers, more than likely THE best Toxic Spiker. What really likes Toxic Spike support though? Obviously defensive teams do, but are there any offensive pokemon that shine with them (blah blah everything appreciates residual damage but thats not the point), and if so what are they? This is probably more productive to discuss than "should I be using Scarf Tentacool or LO?"...

Jul 26th, 2010, 11:58:40 AM	#1
Dracoyoshi8 weapon of mass seduction Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 598 intentionally infiltrates	Research Week 2 - Tentacool Well, here's Research Week #2: Tentacool. Goals of this Research WeeK: Figure out what moves are viable on Tentacool. Find potentially good teammates for Tentacool. Figure out what kind of team Tentacool preforms best on. Figure out what kind of support Tentacool may need to be productive. This thread is for discussion about Tentacool during the Research Week. I would appreciate that if any viable sets are discovered that they be posted here, since all the good ones will be combined into an analysis at the end of the week. Also feel free to post sets of any Pokemon that work good alongside Tentacool. And a certain somebody better post here. __________________

Jul 26th, 2010, 12:44:09 PM	#3
eric the espeon maybe I just misunderstood Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 3,695	First set that comes to mind is the basic: Tentacool@Oran Berry Evs/nature quite variable, maxing speed with a nature gives 17 which is cool, but defenses and SpA are also important. ~ Hydro Pump ~ Sludge Bomb ~ Toxic Spikes / Rapid Spin ~ HP Electric / Giga Drain Able to hit fairly hard with Hydro Pump, hit foes that don't need the extra damage with the more accurate Sludge Bomb and use one of the support moves which don't have huge distribution. Last moveslot gives you something to hit waters. HP Ground could work for Chincy+Croagunk. I guess for a hail team Tenta could be fun, great defensive synergy with Snover (resists Fire, Fighting, Bug, Steel and Poison for Snover, Snover resists Electric and Ground for it) and being able to use Blizzard would certainly help Tenta. Hail teams would also love Toxic Spikes set up if using the classic hail stall strategy. __________________ For people who like storing things: The Box Reading and LC? LCF, LC Guide, LC Analyses Good channels: #littlecup, #C&C, #1v1, others And for SCMS editors: SCMS group ete on IRC. Goodbye Smogon. Good luck, was fun while it lasted.

Jul 26th, 2010, 5:33:53 PM	#5
iss perpetual semifinalist Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,981 sirndpt <3	I think Eo uses a lead tenta on his stall team, something like surf/giga drain/tspikes/filler. I will test this later, don't have time right now. __________________ "Mienfoo is a shitty Pokemon." - blarajan ~CHINCHOUS~

Jul 26th, 2010, 8:15:38 PM	#6
Eo Ut Mortus EL GUIMO Moderator Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 3,090 meow	Surf / Ice Beam / Toxic Spikes / Protect or Giga Drain is the exact set. Ice Beam is basically for Dratini because apparently nobody expects Ice Beam Tentacool for some reason, but Sludge Bomb would probably be superior otherwise. Protect helps with stuff like Fake Out Meowth, and everything else is rather self-explanatory (you could probably put Rapid Spin over Ice Beam for Chimchar). Sets up Toxic Spikes against a lot of leads; however, Kabuto is a real pain in the ass, especially if it gets a lucky flinch with Rock Slide. EVs are 196 HP / 196 SpD / 116 Spe. __________________ Credit to Luis Negron Photography and McMeghan Animations

Jul 26th, 2010, 9:59:58 PM	#7
Destiny Warrior also known as Darkwing_Duck Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 3,043 Location: Andromeda Galaxy	I can testify as to how nasty that lead is. __________________ CAP ASB and Battle Arcade

Jul 26th, 2010, 12:35:52 PM	#2
Ulysses Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 375 Antiquity	Not to burst anyone's bubble, but I had kind of already reserved this... Name: Offensive Spinner Move 1: Hydro Pump Move 2: Sludge Bomb Move 3: Hidden Power Psychic Move 4: Rapid Spin Item: Oran Berry Nature: Timid EVs: 36 HP / 76 DEF / 196 SATK / 196 SPE Tentacool is a far better spinner than Squirtle. He has higher special defense, better special attack, and higher speed. Hydro Pump puts a large dent in almost anything. Gastly, Duskull and Drifloon are all one or 2HKO'd, and those are the pokemon who will be switching in to block Rapid Spin. Sludge Bomb has excellent coverage alongside Hydro Pump, and it hits dragons for high damage. However, if you wish to OHKO Dratini and Bagon, Ice Beam can also be used. Hidden Power Psychic OHKOs Croagunk, whom Tentacool is an excellent switching to, resisting all of his common moves bar Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse. You can also revenge kill Carvanha, but the only move that you can switch into is Aqua Jet. __________________ Ladder peaks: Smogon Little Cup (4th generation, Shoddy): #1

Jul 27th, 2010, 1:20:39 AM	#8
Darkamber8828 Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 2,695 i taste good but NO NO DON'T	Tentacool looks like it would do well on a sandstorm team. Gligar and Tentacool resist each other's weaknesses. Also, SSStall Gligar is a bitch to take down normally, but with Toxic Spikes, it can rip apart teams. EDIT: Stolen from that Uber Tentacruel thread (Forry is better) A Basic Look into the Attacks Physical Moves Facade Payback Poison Jab Return Waterfall Special Moves Blizzard Hydro Pump Ice Beam Muddy Water Sludge Bomb Surf Water Pulse Support Moves Acupressure Confuse Ray Endure Haze Icy Wind Knock Off Mirror Coat Protect Rapid Spin Rest Safeguard Sleep Talk Substitute Swagger Swords Dance Toxic Toxic Spikes __________________ Darkamber8828: Taunt is pokemon-cussing, right? DarkSlay: Nah. I thought it was more of the tounge sticking out kind of thing that pisses off people. DarkSlay: Not Pokemon actually cussing out one another. DarkSlay: "AYE FUCK YOU SKARMORY" (23:31:48) +RankingBot: Your rank in Standard LC is 1/415! Last edited by Darkamber8828; Jul 27th, 2010 at 2:14:22 AM.

Jul 27th, 2010, 1:47:55 AM	#9
Alan Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 2,715 get the reptile to me	I've been running this tenta in a lead for a kinda fast/bulky feel at the same time. idk, its probably not at its full potential, ev spread wise but yeah. name: Bulky Spiker ??? move1: Toxic Spikes move2: Surf move3: Sludge Bomb move4: Rapid Spin item: Leftovers / Oran Berry ability: Liquid Ooze nature: Calm evs: 196 HP / 76 Def / 36 SpA / 196 Spe big base sdef help it a long way against neutral hits. 70 base speed is p fast, all things considered. cant take physical hits very well, 76 def lets it manage nuetral and resisted hits better. sludge bomb + surf for dual stab. t-spikes is the core of this set. rapid spin helps get rid of spikes/rocks/tpikes on your side of the feild. leftovers or oran berry is preference. liquid ooze makes sure that shroomish cant subseed on you as effectively. __________________ music youtube Lorem ipsum id est oculis

Jul 27th, 2010, 9:30:04 PM	#10
iss perpetual semifinalist Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,981 sirndpt <3	I will look into an SD Tenta soon. Sounds pretty cool right now. __________________ "Mienfoo is a shitty Pokemon." - blarajan ~CHINCHOUS~

Jul 27th, 2010, 10:55:36 PM	#11
destinybond Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 154	Its a shame it doesnt get aqua jet...

Jul 28th, 2010, 8:16:41 PM	#12
Sledge Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 330	I've been using SD tenta a lot lately and it seems very underwhelming. You might get an SD off and even then something faster can come in to take you down. Maybe I'm not giving it the right support and this is the set I've been using: Tentacool @ Oran Berry EVs:116 HP / 236 Atk / 196 Spe Adamant / Jolly -SD -Waterfall -Poison Jab -Return

Jul 28th, 2010, 8:26:08 PM	#13
Towelie Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 665 The Jesus of Suburbia	Im just theorymoning here, but would a mixed Tenta work? Something along the lines of: Tentacool@Life Orb Mixed EV's (not sure yet, ill try it later) +SpA -Def Nature Hydro Pump Waterfall Sludge Bomb Hp Electric/Grass Somethin like that could possibly work. Hydro Pump everything, Waterfall to 2hko munchlax or whatever __________________ It's your persistence that makes me sick. It's not the sight of your kind. And now I am so faint, caught up in just this way. I know that you can be more than this. This wasn't what I wanted. You said I sewed that dream alive. Climb farther into hate, is it this back seat making you itch? Morals become something from a dream. This isn't the way to blow off steam inside of your head. JONNYCRAIG4L

Jul 28th, 2010, 8:32:58 PM	#14
Darkamber8828 Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 2,695 i taste good but NO NO DON'T	Max attack attack Adamant Life Orb Waterfall (not a good choice) does just over 50% after SR, so it'll activate Oran and 3HKO while Munchy EQs for the OHKO. Druidcool>Mixed Tentacool. Water/Poison is only resisted by Wooper and Croagunk iirc, so the additional coverage isn't needed imo. __________________ Darkamber8828: Taunt is pokemon-cussing, right? DarkSlay: Nah. I thought it was more of the tounge sticking out kind of thing that pisses off people. DarkSlay: Not Pokemon actually cussing out one another. DarkSlay: "AYE FUCK YOU SKARMORY" (23:31:48) +RankingBot: Your rank in Standard LC is 1/415!

Jul 28th, 2010, 8:40:34 PM	#15
iss perpetual semifinalist Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 1,981 sirndpt <3	Will test in a couple of days. Right now I'm thinking about passing an aglity to it from gligar or venonat for sd tenta. It's bulky, so perhaps set up will work. i'm thinking sd/waterfall/poison jab/return like sledge. EDIT: olol 299 posts __________________ "Mienfoo is a shitty Pokemon." - blarajan ~CHINCHOUS~

Aug 1st, 2010, 4:00:37 PM	#16
Elevator Music there is actually no underscore in my name Moderator Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 5,485	It might be better to focus more on teammates for Tentacool, since it probably doesn't have too many great sets, and most of them will feature Toxic Spikes anyways. Tenta is easily one of the best Toxic Spikers, more than likely THE best Toxic Spiker. What really likes Toxic Spike support though? Obviously defensive teams do, but are there any offensive pokemon that shine with them (blah blah everything appreciates residual damage but thats not the point), and if so what are they? This is probably more productive to discuss than "should I be using Scarf Tentacool or LO?"... __________________