Lanturn [4N] - OU Parafusion

http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/lanturn

Ok, here's the deal. I've been testing this set in OU for months and months, and I've found that this is the best way for him to avoid being outclassed in OU. It lets him use his resistances and other unique qualities to differentiate himself from other Waters and Electrics, and it's been extremely successful for me to the point that I include it on almost all of my teams. It's also a staple on hax teams as a paralysis inducer that can hax the crap out of teams as well (especially in tandem with Togekiss). I'm not sure how well this particular moveset and EV spread work in UU, so I haven't made any comments in there for it, but if anyone would like to test this in UU, be my guest.

I decided that making a new thread for this was the right thing to do, since it works in a completely different tier than the rest of the sets, and the other thread was a UU revamp, and this is just one set.

[SET]
name: Parafusion
move 1: Confuse Ray
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Thunderbolt
move 4: Ice Beam / Surf
item: Leftovers
ability: Volt Absorb
nature: Calm
evs: 40 HP / 216 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>If you're looking to use Lanturn in the land of OU, then this set is the way to go. "Parafusion" is a strategy that includes inducing both paralysis and confusion on the opponent. This means that for 5 turns out of 8, the notion of "stop hitting yourself" will be quite valid for the opponent. This strategy is quite easy to pull off with Lanturn's unique set of resistances allowing him to come in several times during the match and cripple the opponent. The best way to utilize the combination is to paralyze first and to then use Confuse Ray. This way, if Lanturn gets the paralysis off, it's guaranteed to get the confusion off as well. However, this is obviously not always possible due to Ground-types, Jolteon, and opposing Lanturn so the reverse is possible too; just note that the combination will not be guaranteed in that situation.</p>

<p>Thunderbolt and Ice Beam are the recommended attacking moves because of their near flawless coverage, which helps Lanturn compensate for his below average Special Attack stat. Discharge is an option over Thunderbolt for an easier chance at paralysis. However, it isn't the recommended choice because Thunder Wave is already on the set, and being able to control what you paralyze is very important. For example, you don't want to accidentally paralyze something you intended to put to sleep with a different Pokemon. In addition, Thunderbolt allows Lanturn an 87% chance to OHKO a min/min Gyarados even if Stealth Rock is not up, while Discharge has no chance without Stealth Rock. Discharge also cannot guarantee a OHKO on BulkyGyara even if Stealth Rock is up, while Thunderbolt can. Ice Beam is needed so that Lanturn can beat Celebi, Latias, and Zapdos one-on-one while also netting OHKOs on the 4x weak Dragons, provided Stealth Rock is up. Surf is a possibility in the last slot if you find that Lanturn has a lot of trouble with Magnezone or Mamoswine, but it's less useful than Ice Beam due to the poor coverage.</p>

<p>The EV spread is tailored for survival in the OU metagame. The biggest difference is the large amount of Defense EVs. Defense EVs are an absolute necessity for Lanturn's survival in OU because without them, many unboosted neutral attacks can 2HKO him, and even resisted attacks take off massive chunks of damage. It should be noted that with these Defense EVs, Lanturn is easily able to survive a Life Orb MixMence's Earthquake. In addition, without any Defense EVs, Lanturn is 2HKOed by a +1 Life Orb Waterfall from Gyarados, but with them he doesn't even come close to a 2HKO. Lastly, these Defense EVs let Lanturn take next to nothing from Choice Band Scizor's Bullet Punch, making a great switch-in to a very common move. Therefore, after maxing out Special Defense and reaching 401 HP for a Leftovers number, the rest of the EVs should be dumped into Defense. This will allow Lanturn to parafuse a much wider variety of opponents. This EV spread also works very well in UU, where it makes a great counter to Arcanine while acting as a check to Blaziken and Azumarill. It also helps Lanturn take non-STAB Earthquakes relatively well if he has no choice. Surf is recommended over Ice Beam in UU as Fire-types are much more common, as well as Steelix.</p>

<p>Since Lanturn's job is to spread paralysis and confuse in the process, teammates that benefit from paralyzed opponents would greatly appreciate partnering up with him. Togekiss is the best example of this, as he and Lanturn cover each other's weaknesses extremely well while paralysis helps Togekiss hax things to death with Air Slash. Encore Supporter Togekiss is the best variation of Togekiss to use in tandem with Lanturn, because he can Encore all of the Earthquakes aimed at Lanturn with ease, as well as offering Wish support for him. In addition, the two together are staples on a hax team, as they make it nearly impossible for the opponent to move. Latias and Salamence also greatly appreciate Lanturn's support, as he takes down the Ice Beam wielding Bulky Waters with ease, with the exception of Swampert. Lanturn also enjoys their support as they have perfect (Latias) or near-perfect (Salamence) coverage of each other's weaknesses. Teammates with strong Grass-type attacks, such as Shaymin, complement Lanturn very well, as he has a lot of trouble with Swampert, and again, they cover each other's weaknesses. Rotom-C is also helpful for defeating Swampert and covering the Ground weakness, but he also helps against Electivire who gives Lanturn a bit of trouble. A partner that can kill Blissey is helpful, as Lanturn is helpless against her. Something such as Machamp can fill this role, while being a great partner in hax as well. Lastly, something such as Roserade or Rapid Spinners that can get rid of Toxic Spikes would be very helpful to Lanturn's survival, as it becomes very difficult for him to do his job while poisoned.</p>

I proofread all my syntax and spelling, but let me know if I missed anything and I'll edit it. Thanks.

For the reasons you mentioned, (already having a paralysis move, and not being able to 2HKO Gyarados) Discharge should not be included as an option over Thunderbolt.

Staraptor Call said:

For the reasons you mentioned, (already having a paralysis move, and not being able to 2HKO Gyarados) Discharge should not be included as an option over Thunderbolt.

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Discharge can 2HKO Gyarados just fine, it's OHKOing that it has trouble with, just missing out on the OHKO. I was thinking of removing Discharge, but I think I might keep it there since some people might not care about controlling their paralysis. However, if more people think I should remove it, I will.

EDIT: Thanks latios315

without any Defense EVs, Lanturn is 2HKOed by a +1 Life Orb Waterfall from Gyarados, but with them he doesn't even come close to a 2HKO with these Defense EVs.

the "with these defense EV's" is redundant

You should note that Blissey completley walls this. TWave means nothing with Natural Cure, and Toxic and possibly even SToss can wear this Lanturn down. And neither of Lanturn's teammates (Latias, Mence, Togekiss) would like taking Toxic damage, and Stealth Rock damage and possibly Sandstorm.

Also, how is 401 a Leftovers number? Unless you mean survival after 5 consecutive SToss's with no residual damage. But in a metagame plagued with SR and Sandstorm, residual damage comes somewhere.

Bologo said:

http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/lanturn

Ok, here's the deal. I've been testing this set in OU for months and months, and I've found that this is the best way for him to avoid being outclassed in OU. It lets him use his resistances and other unique qualities to differentiate himself from other Waters and Electrics, and it's been extremely successful for me to the point that I include it on almost all of my teams. It's also a staple on hax teams as a paralysis inducer that can hax the crap out of teams as well (especially in tandem with Togekiss). I'm not sure how well this particular moveset and EV spread work in UU, so I haven't made any comments in there for it, but if anyone would like to test this in UU, be my guest.

I decided that making a new thread for this was the right thing to do, since it works in a completely different tier than the rest of the sets, and the other thread was a UU revamp, and this is just one set.

[SET]
name: Parafusion
move 1: Confuse Ray
move 2: Thunder Wave
move 3: Thunderbolt / Discharge
move 4: Ice Beam / Surf
item: Leftovers
ability: Volt Absorb
nature: Calm
evs: 40 HP / 216 Def / 252 SpD

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>If you're looking to use Lanturn in the land of OU, then this set is the way to go. "Parafusion" is a strategy that includes inducing both paralysis and confusion on the opponent. This means that for 5 turns out of 8, the notion of "stop hitting yourself" will be quite valid for the opponent. This strategy is quite easy to pull off with Lanturn's unique set of resistances, allowing him to come in several times during the match and cripple the opponent. The best way to utilize the combination is to paralyze first and to then use Confuse Ray. This way, if Lanturn gets the paralysis off, it's guaranteed to get the confusion off as well. However, this is obviously not always possible due to Ground-types, Jolteon, and opposing Lanturn, so the reverse is possible too; just note that the combination will not be guaranteed in that situation.</p>

<p>Thunderbolt and Ice Beam are the recommended attacking moves because of their near flawless coverage, which helps Lanturn compensate for his below average Special Attack stat. Discharge is an option over Thunderbolt for an easier chance at paralysis. However, it isn't the recommended choice because Thunder Wave is already on the set, and being able to control what you paralyze is very important. For example, you don't want to accidentally paralyze something you intended to put to sleep with a different Pokemon. In addition, Thunderbolt allows Lanturn an 87% chance to OHKO a min/min Gyarados, even if Stealth Rock is not up, while Discharge has no chance without Stealth Rock. Discharge also cannot guarantee a OHKO on BulkyGyara, even if Stealth Rock is up, while Thunderbolt can. Ice Beam is needed so that Lanturn can beat Celebi, Latias, and Zapdos one-on-one while also netting OHKOs on the 4x weak Dragons, provided Stealth Rock is up. Surf is a possibility in the last slot if you find that Lanturn has a lot of trouble with Magnezone or Mamoswine, but it's less useful than Ice Beam due to the poor coverage.</p>

<p>The EV spread is tailored for survival in the OU metagame. The biggest difference is the large amount of Defense EVs. Defense EVs are an absolute necessity for Lanturn's survival in OU because without them, many unboosted neutral attacks can 2HKO him, and even resisted attacks take off massive chunks of damage. It should be noted that with these Defense EVs, Lanturn is easily able to survive a Life Orb MixMence's Earthquake. In addition, without any Defense EVs, Lanturn is 2HKOed by a +1 Life Orb Waterfall from Gyarados, but with them, he doesn't even come close to a 2HKO. Lastly, these Defense EVs let Lanturn take next to nothing from Choice Band Scizor's Bullet Punch, making a great switch-in to a very common move. Therefore, after maxing out Special Defense and reaching 401 HP for a Leftovers number, the rest of the EVs should be dumped into Defense. This will allow Lanturn to parafuse a much wider variety of opponents.</p>

<p>Since Lanturn's job is to spread paralysis and confuse in the process, teammates that benefit from paralyzed opponents would greatly appreciate partnering up with him. Togekiss is the best example of this, as he and Lanturn cover each other's weaknesses extremely well (Rewrote as the flow of your sentence sounded a bit odd.) while paralysis helps Togekiss hax (You might want to consider the word "flinch" here, as hax is not an official competitive term.) things to death with Air Slash. Encore Supporter Togekiss is the best variation of Togekiss to use in tandem with Lanturn, because he can Encore all of the Earthquakes aimed at Lanturn with ease, as well as offering Wish support for him. In addition, the two together are staples on a hax team, as they make it nearly impossible for the opponent to move. Latias and Salamence also greatly appreciate Lanturn's support, as he takes down the Ice Beam wielding Bulky Waters with ease, with the exception of Swampert. Lanturn also enjoys their support as they have perfect (Latias) or near-perfect (Salamence) coverage of each other's weaknesses. Teammates with strong Grass-type attacks, such as Shaymin, complement Lanturn very well, as he has a lot of trouble with Swampert, and again, they cover each other's weaknesses. Lastly, something such as Roserade or Rapid Spinners that can get rid of Toxic Spikes would be very helpful to Lanturn's survival, as it becomes very difficult for him to do his job while poisoned.</p>

I proofread all my syntax and spelling, but let me know if I missed anything and I'll edit it. Thanks.

Click to expand...

Overall, the update was great and easy to read. Mainly, I added commas to better help the flow of some of your sentences, and also fixed a few other nitpicks.

Nice work Bologo! In fact, I even remember seeing this Lanturn in your suspect team.

EDIT: I am also in favor for Discharge being removed fro the set. I just don't see a potential use for it when Lanturn already gets Thunder Wave, and as your set stated, you absolutely need Thunderbolt to net those specific KO's against Gyarados and the like.

.//enigma said:

You should note that Blissey completley walls this. TWave means nothing with Natural Cure, and Toxic and possibly even SToss can wear this Lanturn down. And neither of Lanturn's teammates (Latias, Mence, Togekiss) would like taking Toxic damage, and Stealth Rock damage and possibly Sandstorm.

Also, how is 401 a Leftovers number? Unless you mean survival after 5 consecutive SToss's with no residual damage. But in a metagame plagued with SR and Sandstorm, residual damage comes somewhere.

Click to expand...

It's pretty much a given that Blissey walls this, since it relies on statuses and Special Attacks - the two things that Blissey sponges. I suppose adding a Blissey killer as a teammate is a good idea though.

401 is a Leftovers numbers because 400 is divisible by 16, and whenever you get a Leftovers number, you add 1 more HP so it doesn't become a Stealth Rock number. Now it recovers 25 HP per turn instead of 24 if it had 399 HP. The Seismic Toss thing is just a bonus. Nothing besides Blissey & Clefable really use Seismic Toss, and Lanturn has no business fighting either.

EDIT: Thanks a lot for the edits Flashstorm. :]

I guess I will also remove Discharge, I never found it to be particularly useful either. I'll keep the explanation as to why in the analysis though.

Also, I put Machamp as the Blissey-killing teammate, since Machamp is another great Pokemon on a hax team, getting easy parafusion with Lanturn's paralysis and his own DynamicPunch. This also annihilates Blissey.

Ahh, I was unaware of that.

Just throwing this out there, but you said in your analysis you should TWave first. Wouldn't Electivire wall this as it is immune to half of your moves? It will also be faster (with and without a boost), and it usually packs a super-effective Earthquake.

.//enigma said:

Ahh, I was unaware of that.

Just throwing this out there, but you said in your analysis you should TWave first. Wouldn't Electivire wall this as it is immune to half of your moves? It will also be faster (with and without a boost), and it usually packs a super-effective Earthquake.

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That's true (though there are sometimes where Electivire loses due to Confusion hax since it can't even OHKO with an Expert Belt EQ :P).

Usually, I use Rotom-C alongside Lanturn since he can scare off Swampert, and isn't the least bit scared of Electivire while also covering up Lanturn's Ground weakness. I guess I could add him as a teammate. Thanks.

EDIT: Does anyone have experience with this in UU? I'm not a UU player, but I'd certainly imagine that the large amount of Defense EVs help somewhere in UU.

UU is not anymore specially based over OU, since Clefable and (to an extent) Chansey wall the special half.

DEF EVs help against Earthquakes, since most Pokemon pack them for the Poison-type fetish in UU.

I think moving 36 EVs from SpD to DEF would be the best transition for UU.

However, this is obviously not always possible due to Ground-types, Jolteon, and opposing Lanturn

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Is the mention of opposing Lanturn necessary? Admittedly I haven't seen a Lanturn in a few months.

And anyone have a summary on confusion mechanics? I know it's a 50/50 to attack yourself, but what's the base power when you hurt yourself and how is the duration calculated?

Phantom_IV said:

And anyone have a summary on confusion mechanics? I know it's a 50/50 to attack yourself, but what's the base power when you hurt yourself and how is the duration calculated?

Click to expand...

Every turn, 50% chance to attack yourself, 25% to proceed as normal, 25% to break out of Confusion.

You attack yourself with a base 40 (or is it 50?)power move, calculated using your attack and defense stats. The attack is neutral. I think that's right.

I've used this in UU and it's a pretty decent competitor for Rotom and Gardevoir in the parafusion department. But i've found surf is more useful as it allows it to deal with fires/steelix easier.

Thund91: Did you use the same EV spread, or did you use enigma's? Also, did the giant amount of physical defense EVs help against anything in particular for UU that Lanturn can't normally deal with?

I used the same spread as this Lanturn. It helped it up soak up random non-stab earthquakes and close combats. But either way you don't really want Lanturn taking hard physical attacks. It makes it a near perfect Arcanine counter, though. And that's always a plus.

I really wouldn't trust anything enigma says about UU, as it's fairly inaccurate. (Chansey secondary to Clefable in completely shutting down special attackers? What?) UU Special Attackers are fairly prominent in the tier, moreso tha OU in my opinion but not much.

Anyways, the physical defense where it's at doesn't seem to hurt versus Azumarill and Blaziken in a pinch, haven't tested it over other spreads but I don't see why this couldn't work in UU.

Alright, I added a bit about UU play in the EV spread paragraph with what you guys said. Thanks.

I am using this spread for my OU Hax team and he's wonderful. He loves switching into CB Scizor's Bullet Punches and he is very annoying to any speed based team since he is very hard to OHKO. He also possess a very important Electric absorption which is unique for a bulky, haxy pokemon. This lets him take on Thunder Wave which is bad for a team that, if paralyzed, is going to be slower than most things it paralyzes.

Many people don't have an answer for Lanturn in OU and if they do, they can still be Paralyzed or Confused while Lanturn safely switches out.

He's awesome.

Glad to see this; Lanturn is an interesting Pokemon.
I haven't really tried it but I have a shot-in-the-dark question/suggestion.

Since you're paralysing or confusing your opponent it seems that Thunder could be worth a thought over Thunderbolt or Discharge despite the poor accuracy.
With this Lanturn's extra bulk and handicapping status inflictions it might be able to afford Thunder missing 30% of the time.
Besides, most Water Types you'd want to hit with an Electric attack won't threaten to OHKO and for those that might, the extra power of STAB Thunder will help.
So, if you do decide to Thunder a switchin and it hits, you have a nice chance to inflict paralysis right there or OHKO a Gyarados.

Speaking of Gyarados, it's probably not a bad pairing with this Lanturn either.
Obviously, Lanturn could come in on Electric attacks and Machamp could come in on Rock attacks aimed at Gyarados.
While Gyarados can evade Ground attacks and threaten Ground types (or even have Thunder Wave but that'd be a minor option).
His vicious STAB Waterfall flinches too and combined with so many things dishing out paralysis, it could be a real pain.

Yeah, I think just keeping this guy for UU sounds better. Closing for now. Maybe if we get tabs I might add this.