Tangela
[Overview]
<p>Tangela... how the mighty have fallen. Though still the physical Chansey of NU, this former staple of many balanced and stall teams has been overtaken by another one of our green friends: Regenerator Amoonguss. With Spore, a secondary Poison typing, and better Special Defense, Amoonguss has singlehandedly doomed Tangela to the outskirts of the tier. However, Tangela is in no way outclassed, as it still boasts a variety of advantages over the competition. With vastly superior Defense, a Ground resist, the lack of a Psychic weakness, and perhaps most importantly, access to Leech Seed, Tangela can do things Amoonguss cannot. For example, Tangela can actually wall a large majority of physical threats, including Tauros and Cinccino, while threatening the switch-in with a constant drain on its health. Tangela's good Special Attack and decent Speed also let it run a good offensive set with to Leaf Storm and Sleep Powder while retaining most of its bulk. All in all, Tangela hasn't changed much, remaining the same old annoyance to physical attackers and one of NU's best supporters.</p>
[SET]
name: Physically Defensive
move 1: Giga Drain
move 2: Leech Seed
move 3: Synthesis / Sleep Powder
move 4: Hidden Power Ice
item: Eviolite
ability: Regenerator
nature: Bold
evs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a base 115 Defense boosted even further by Eviolite, Tangela is the epitome of physical walling, able to survive even a Choice Band Emboar's super effective Flare Blitz. Regenerator greatly helps in this endeavor, making it difficult to wear down Tangela as it can recover its health simply by switching out. Giga Drain makes for a solid STAB move backed by a base 100 Special Attack while also giving extra recovery to Tangela. Leech Seed is one of the most important moves in Tangela's repertoire as it not only helps by giving extra recovery for walling and sapping away at the opponent's health, but also by deterring switch-ins such as Musharna and Gurdurr from setting up, as well as creating setup opportunities for your teammates. It is Tangela's most distinguishing feature from Amoonguss, and the utility it provides is so valuable that you might just be better off using Amoonguss without it. Though Synthesis may seem like a strange choice considering how much recovery Tangela already has, it helps greatly in stalling for Leech Seed and recoil damage and when a lot of hazards are stacked on your side of the field. Combined with a Leech Seed on the switch, Tangela can stay in on even Choice Band variants of Emboar and Braviary and take the hit, use Synthesis, then switch out, regaining almost all of its health thanks to 50% + 33% recovery, while also draining 25% of their HP and making them take damage from recoil. Sleep Powder is still an option over Synthesis as, despite being inferior to Spore, it is still able to cripple a Pokemon for usually the whole match. Hidden Power Ice gives good coverage alongside Giga Drain, hitting Grass-, Flying-, and Dragon-types super effectively and greatly reducing the number of Pokemon that can set up on Tangela. It is especially important for preventing Sap Sippers such as Sawsbuck from having their way with Tangela, as well as stopping Fraxure from setting up. Being able to hit predicted switch-ins is pretty nice as well.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EVs listed seem simple enough, but the movement of 4 HP EVs into SpD will stop Timid Life Orb Ludicolo's Ice Beam from OHKOing while giving an extra Eviolite point. A spread of 248 HP / 216 Def / 44 Spe is also an option to outspeed standard Alomomola and Golurk, letting Tangela use Giga Drain or Leech Seed before being hit by Toxic or Ice Punch. Tangela doesn't have the largest movepool, but it does have a few more interesting options. Knock Off is quite a powerful move in a tier full of weak Pokemon reliant on their items and Eviolite users. Both Stun Spore and Toxic are status moves that can cripple either fast sweepers or bulky walls. Stun Spore and Sleep Powder together also form the well-known "double status" platform that can effectively cripple two Pokemon in quick succession. Finally, Hidden Power Rock provides similar coverage to Hidden Power Ice, but also hits Bug- and Fire-types, specifically Torkoal. However, it doesn't have enough power to OHKO even after Stealth Rock, and with the ascension of Magmortar to RU, Hidden Power Rock has lost most of its usefulness.</p>
<p>Even with Eviolite, Tangela's measly base 40 Special Defense is not easy to work with, and combined with the five weaknesses its Grass typing brings to the table, Tangela needs a lot of support to function at its best. Similar to Amoonguss, Tangela greatly appreciates having Alomomola as a partner greatly as it can easily take on Emboar, Swellow, and Braviary, all of which can break through Tangela with powerful super effective STAB moves. Additionally, due to their shared Regenerator ability, the two can oftentimes simply switch in and out, constantly recovering their health while the opponent slowly dies to recoil and Leech Seed. Regirock works similarly along these lines and brings Stealth Rock to the table, which is helpful in dealing with Swellow and Braviary. However, it doesn't take on Emboar as reliably and will fall easily to repeated blows. Either way, both of these partners have their flaws, being broken by both special attackers and SubBU Braviary, a massive threat that can set up easily on these Pokemon. As such, packing a Cinccino or Rotom-S can go a long way towards dealing with Braviary completely. When it comes to special walling, you can't get much better than Lickilicky, which also packs Heal Bell to remedy Tangela's massive weakness to Toxic.</p>
[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Sleep Powder
move 2: Leaf Storm
move 3: Hidden Power Ice
move 4: Stun Spore / Synthesis
item: Eviolite
ability: Regenerator
nature: Modest
evs: 248 HP / 252 SpA / 8 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Though Tangela has a reputation of being a harmless wall, it can also go on the offensive with a more than decent base 100 Special Attack. Combined with a 140 Base Power attack and status moves, opposing teams might be hard pressed to find a Pokemon that will enjoy switching into Tangela. Regenerator synergizes with Leaf Storm perfectly, as Leaf Storm's detrimental secondary effect will force Tangela to switch out often, and is perhaps the reason why this set is so effective. However, investment into offense doesn't mean Tangela's walling ability is gone. In fact, Tangela is still significantly physically bulkier than physically defensive Amoonguss. Sleep Powder will cripple almost everything Leaf Storm cannot, but the popularity of Amoonguss has also led to a rise of Sap Sippers, so be wary, especially with this set's decrease in physical bulk. Hidden Power Ice makes a return on this set to provide coverage on Grass- and Flying-types. Like most Grass-types, Tangela has a paltry movepool, so Stun Spore is the best move in the last slot. Stun Spore can offset Tangela's low Speed and stops some setup sweepers that would otherwise have their way with this set. Synthesis is another option to recover while staying in, but the nature of Leaf Storm makes this an unappealing choice.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Without a boosting item, maximizing Special Attack is necessary to hit as hard as possible. 248 HP EVs and an Eviolite retain most of Tangela's bulk while maximizing Regenerator HP gain. The remaining EVs are once again placed into Special Defense to survive Timid Life Orb Ludicolo's Ice Beam. A fully offensive set using Life Orb and max Speed is an option, but this severely detracts from Tangela's main niche over attackers such as Exeggutor: the ability to wall threats. Amoonguss, on the other hand, sorely misses the power of Leaf Storm, which is powerful enough to KO resists, such as Swellow, with Stealth Rock. Speaking of hazards, the hit-and-run nature of this set greatly appreciates both spin and hazard support. Spinners, such as Torkoal, will stop hazards from cutting off Tangela's only source of recovery, which is vital considering it will be constantly looking to switch into physical attackers in order to attack and spread status. Hazards are useful as they not only provide extra KOs, but also work well with the combined threat of sleep and Leaf Storm forcing numerous switches. Hidden Power Rock is an option to hit Fire-types, but it has lost most of its utility with the departure of Magmortar to NU.</p>
<p>While it might seem strange, this set suffers from being setup bait more so than the defensive set as the Special Attack drop from Leaf Storm will make it easy for opponents set up, especially Substitute users who can both stall for Leaf Storm drops and block status. As such, the Substitute-breaking ability of Cinccino is nice in order to remedy this. Since this set will be constantly looking for openings, Tangela will appreciate partners that can lure out Water- and Rock-types that Tangela can come in on and threaten. Defensive partners such as Regirock and Lickilicky are still useful for this set as the former can provide hazards while luring out Water-types, while the latter can wall special attackers and lure out Fighting-types. This set has huge problems with Amoonguss, who 4x resists Leaf Storm and isn't 2HKOed by Hidden Power Ice even when running a physically defensive spread. Magmar, Emboar, and Braviary all handle Amoonguss well, and will directly contribute to this set's effectiveness when partnered with it as Amoonguss possesses one of the highest usage stats in NU.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A specially defensive spread can do well against Rain Dance teams while retaining most of Tangela's physical bulk, but Amoonguss is generally the better choice if you want to go down this path. SubSeed is a time-honored strategy of Grass-types, and Regenerator will help in making Substitutes, but Tangela's low Speed means it can be difficult to do much with such a set. Things such as Sludge Bomb, Sunny Day, and Growth are the remainder of Tangela's miserable movepool, but these are all just outclassed by better options.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Taking into account Tangela's lopsided defenses and the Grass-type's myriad of weaknesses, it isn't difficult to find a Pokemon that can force Tangela out. Powerful physical attackers such as Emboar, Swellow, and Braviary all resist Tangela's STAB moves and can deal massive amounts of damage to it. Zangoose can also break through Tangela after Stealth Rock. Virtually any special attacker can break through Tangela, as even resisted STAB moves will oftentimes 2HKO it. The threat of sleep and paralysis is still strong, however, so ways to avoid them are necessary to fully counter Tangela. Magmar is the most prominent, as Vital Spirit and its Fire-typing make it difficult for Tangela to do anything against it, but Magmar's offensive threat level just isn't up to par with Magmortar's. Substitute users such as SubCM Gardevoir, Klang, and SubBU Braviary can all set up on Tangela with ease. Sap Sippers such as Miltank and Sawsbuck can switch into most of Tangela's moves and take advantage of the Attack boost, but against a healthy Tangela, Sawsbuck will only fall to repeated Hidden Power Ices. Sap Sipper Zebstrika is a bit unorthodox, but it can do the same and also threaten with Overheat. Amoonguss poses a serious threat with Sludge Bomb and can take Hidden Power Ice without breaking a sweat. LumRest Exeggutor is another Grass-type that is immune to both Leech Seed and Sleep Powder, and can Rest off the damage from Hidden Power Ice while preying on Tangela's low Special Defense with a strong STAB Psychic. Finally, hitting Tangela with a Toxic, Knock Off, or Trick will greatly diminish it's walling ability by either crippling its defenses or constantly draining its health, a fact that will only be amplified by its lack of Leftovers.</p>