Raticate (Update)

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

Plans:
- Remove Rancorous Rat
- Remove Swords Dance
- Add Super Fang to AC or OC

Status: WIP

[Overview]

<p>Raticate has been the butt of many a joke over the years. While in some respects these jokes are true, Raticate is anything but a joke on the battlefield in DPP. With its ability, Guts, Raticate's Attack can reach sky-high levels; couple that with Raticate's naturally high Speed, and one has quite the potent sweeper. Raticate's only downfalls are its low defenses, its limited usable movepool, and the fact that it has some major competition from fellow Guts abusers such as Ursaring, Swellow, and Hariyama. Don't let the stigma of the beginner's rodent blind you to the fact that Raticate is very capable of sweeping teams with the right support.</p>

[SET]
name: Guts
move 1: Facade
move 2: Sucker Punch / Crunch
move 3: U-turn / Reversal
move 4: Protect / Swords Dance
item: Flame Orb / Toxic Orb
ability: Guts
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

<p>Depending on how one wants to use Raticate's Guts-boosted power, with this set, Raticate can be played in two ways: as either a scout or a late-game sweeper. If played as a scout, Raticate should come in during early-game on something it forces out, such as Chansey, and activate its ability. When the opponent reveals their Raticate counter, Raticate should use U-turn to switch to the appropriate teammate and keep momentum on your side of the battle. Facade is the STAB move of choice because after the Flame or Toxic Orb has been activated, its Base Power reaches 210 (with STAB factored in). To demonstrate Facade's power, Raticate is able to 2HKO Milotic and OHKO Chansey after Stealth Rock with a Guts boost under its belt. Sucker Punch is the recommended choice for the second slot as it allows Raticate to deal good damage to Pokemon that are faster than it, such as Sceptile, Alakazam, and Mismagius. Crunch can be used in place of Sucker Punch since it is Raticate's strongest and most reliable move against Rotom and Spiritomb.</p>

<p>If using Raticate as a late-game sweeper, Reversal can be used in U-turn's spot to hit Rhyperior and Registeel for super effective damage once Raticate's health has been diminished sufficiently through poison or burn damage. Finally, Swords Dance can be used in the last slot over Protect to provide Raticate with the power to OHKO the majority of the UU metagame that doesn't resist Facade. However, Protect is the recommended choice to allow Raticate to safely activate its Orb of choice and scout the opponent's next move.</p>

[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]

<p>The choice between Toxic Orb and Flame Orb is rather arbitrary in Raticate's case. Flame Orb is more appealing if you plan on keeping Raticate on the battlefield for an extended period of time; Toxic Orb is the more attractive option if you plan on keeping Raticate in for less than three turns, as after that, the damage from Toxic Orb will outweigh the damage from Flame Orb. Thanks to Raticate's ability, Guts, it is not affected by the Attack drop normally induced by the burn from its Flame Orb, so either option is a safe bet.</p>

<p>Jolly is the required nature as it allows Raticate to outspeed base 95s and below such as Houndoom and Rotom. Pursuit can be used in place of Crunch or Sucker Punch, but odds are that most Pokemon will not be immediately threatened by Raticate and won't switch out, so the reliability of the other moves is preferred. Grass Knot can be used to 2HKO Omastar, Kabutops, and Rhyperior, but other than that, offers little coverage and damage output. Super Fang can be used in the last slot to strip Registeel, Weezing, Rhyperior, and Regirock switch-ins of half their health, but then Raticate is forced to simply U-turn out afterward.</p>

<p>Raticate is utterly walled by Rock- and Steel-types, so providing it with good teammates to eliminate them is recommended. Dugtrio and Hitmontop are prime examples of such teammates; Dugtrio is able to trap its victims, such as Registeel, and cleanly dispose of them with Earthquake, while Hitmontop can buffer any physical attacks with Intimidate and proceed to unleash STAB Close Combats on the opposing Pokemon. Raticate is also stopped cold by physically defensive Weezing. Claydol is an excellent teammate to scare out Weezing with STAB Psychic, while also providing Stealth Rock or Rapid Spin support. Ghost-types such as Mismagius and Spiritomb are valuable teammates as they are immune to Fighting-type attacks that Raticate will likely encounter. Finally, Registeel makes a great partner as it can switch into a multitude of faster threats, such as Sceptile, Swellow, Scyther, Manectric, and Mismagius, and paralyze them with Thunder Wave. Registeel can also provide useful Stealth Rock support.</p>

[Team Options]

<p>Stealth Rock and Spikes support is recommended to build up residual damage from Raticate's scouting, which can help push a lot of 2HKOs to OHKOs. Good teammates to set up these entry hazards include Claydol, Uxie, and Qwilfish, as they all resist Raticate's Fighting weakness. In the same respect, keeping entry hazards off of Raticate's side of the battlefield is a good idea; excellent Rapid Spin users include Claydol and Donphan. Dugtrio and Rhyperior are superb teammates as they have little trouble switching into a majority of the Rock- and Steel-types of UU and eliminating them with Earthquake. Ghost-types, such as Rotom, Mismagius, and Spiritomb, are excellent teammates for safeguarding Raticate's Fighting-type weakness. Finally, other U-turn users make good partners as they can cause a lot of extra switching and keep momentum on one's side of the battlefield; good examples of other U-turn users include Primeape, Swellow, and Scyther. Primeape in particular is a great partner as it can easily dispose of any Rock- and Steel-types that stand in Raticate's way with its STAB Close Combat.</p>

[Optional Changes]

<p>Other STAB moves in Raticate's repertoire include Return, Double-Edge, Quick Attack, and Last Resort. Return and Double-Edge are left out in favor of Facade's higher Base Power after the Toxic or Flame Orb has been activated. Quick Attack is Raticate's other available priority move, though Raticate needs as much type coverage as it can get, and the coverage provided by the priority Sucker Punch is just too good to pass up. Last Resort has a high Base Power, but it is unreliable and highly situational. Raticate's only other notable physical coverage moves are Flame Wheel and Zen Headbutt. Flame Wheel is Raticate's strongest attack on Registeel if Reversal is not at full power, but other than that, is utterly useless. Zen Headbutt can be used to hit Weezing super effectively and provide flinch hax, but Raticate has much more reliable moves available to it.</p>

<p>Thunder Wave is an interesting choice for the last slot in the Guts set to paralyze faster threats on the switch. However, it is hard to use because most Raticate switch-ins are Rock-, Ground-, and Steel-types, most of which don't mind the paralysis. Taunt can be used as well to prevent Pokemon such as Rhyperior or Aggron from using Rock Polish in an attempt to sweep. While useful, it is very risky, as one false prediction would lead to Raticate's quick demise. Screech is another way in which Raticate can cause more switches and rack up more residual damage from Stealth Rock and Spikes.</p>

<p>Finally, Raticate is capable of pulling off the infamous F.E.A.R. set. The acronym stands for Focus Sash, Endeavor, (Quick) Attack, Raticate (Rattata / Rodent). The idea is to allow the opponent to activate Raticate's Focus Sash and attack on the same turn with Endeavor, bringing the opponent down to 1 HP. On the next turn, Raticate is free to pick off the opponent with Quick Attack. The strategy is very difficult to accomplish due to the prevalence of Stealth Rock, which effectively renders Focus Sash useless, and Raticate being required to be slower than the opponent, diminishing one of Raticate's better qualities.</p>

[Counters]

<p>Rock- and Steel-types such as Registeel, Rhyperior, and Steelix are the biggest obstacles that stand between Raticate and a clean sweep. Weezing is another hard stop to any sweep that Raticate may attempt. Tangrowth and Leafeon take a large chunk of damage from Facade, but it's not enough to severely threaten them; in return, they can dispose of Raticate with Power Whip or Leaf Blade, respectively. Slowbro makes a good check to non-Swords Dance Raticate since it can take most of Raticate's attacks relatively well, heal off any damage with Slack Off, and remove Raticate with Surf. Physically defensive Spiritomb is another Pokemon that can stop Raticate in its tracks, removing it with Pursuit or Sucker Punch. Additionally, defensive Fighting-types such as Hitmontop and Hariyama can survive Raticate's assaults and hit it for super effective damage with their STAB attacks. Finally, Hitmonlee, Primeape, and Blaziken holding a Choice Scarf can get the jump on Raticate and eliminate it; however, all three are easily OHKOed by Raticate's boosted Facade should they attempt to switch into it.</p>

In the set, replace Pursuit with Crunch. It is far more reliable and Crunch always does at least the same damage anyway. I believe Swords Dance should be slashed with Protect on the set if you have the ability to bait status, which makes Raticate far more dangerous.

Also surprisingly there is no mention of Reversal which might help agains Steel and Rock types at low health.

Hmmm, while Crunch did help a little more with Mismagius, Pursuit already breaks its Subs, and it could just KO Raticate back with Thunderbolt/HP Fighting if Raticate were to stay in against it and even run Pursuit/Crunch in the first place instead of Sucker Punch. Raticate usually scares the shit out of Rotom since Raticate outspeeds it and can even switch into his Choice Scarf Shadow Ball, so being able to KO Rotom as it switches out is usually too good to pass up.

Yeah I'll slash Swords Dance.

Thanks for mentioning Reversal too, I'll add it to AC, as Raticate has some major 4MSS to fit it on the set.

I am not so sure about Super Fang not being slashed anywhere. Super Fang gives Raticate a way of jacking up Rhyperior, Aggron, Registeel, and other Rock- and Steel- types.

Okay, Crunch is weak. Pursuit though is only for Rotom, Facade hits all the Psychics harder anyway than Crunch and some Psychics like Alakazam, won't flee anyway. I'm beginning to think Pursuit is AC material. Losing Sucker Punch leaves you completely naked against any faster attacker which is unfortunately a bad idea and is not worth killing fleeing Rotom, who might survive Pursuit staying in I think and maim you with Thunderbolt

Looking at OC moves... Thunder Wave, Screech, Zen Headbutt, Last Resort and Flame Wheel don't deserve mentions in my opinion. Not much use paralyzing physical walls, Spiritomb, Registeel or Rhyperior. Why Screech when you can Swords Dance and keep the boosts after killing the opponent, Zen Headbutt is 99% inferior to Crunch, Raticate is too slow for Last Resort (leave that to Ambipom) and Flame Wheel off 50 base special attack uninvested?

Edit lol flame wheel is physical? Still super effective flame wheel is 120BP and resisted facade is 105BP after STAB.. Ah well leave flame wheel then

@ The Cicada - Super Fang is nice for about those 3 you listed, and maybe Omastar, which is why it'll get a lengthy mention in AC. Otherwise, the other moves are more helpful, and there is simply no room for it on the set. I could maybe slash it next to Sucker Punch, but as I said, Raticate has some serious 4MSS.

@ YaM - Those moves listed in OC are exactly that, OC. They have some very limited use and are hard to use, and shouldn't be main options.

As for Thunder Wave, I've actually used it to some effect catching things like Scyther or Mismagius on the switch if they mispredicted a U-turn or something.

Flame Wheel is actually a physical move... but yeah it's very weak, but next to Rock Smash, Reversal or Super Fang, is Raticate's strongest move to hit Registeel.

K so i tried this out the other day to some surprisingly (!!!) good results.

anyway heres what i think:

just add reversal slashed with u-turn to at least try to hurt some shit after a while. its kinda hard to switch in but uturning vs a rhyperior or regi is probabbly better than reversaling it anyways so i guess it has more merit as a primary option


also i remember trying out grass knot on this. despite being a bit gimmicky it got easy 2hkos on omastar/kabutops/rhyperior so mentioning that somewhere, probably in a/c, at the very least is a good idea

210 Base Power off 391 Atk (261x1.5) vs 394 HP, 282 Def (milotic) = 53.4% - 62.8% (2hko)
210 base Power off 391 Atk (261x1.5) vs 642 HP, 109 Def (chansey) = 83.9% - 98.9% (chance to ohko with rocks)

What's there not to trust?

Also, it's not "outclassed" by ursaring as a Guts sweeper. It has more Speed, and Sucker Punch to differentiate itself. The overview should cover what it has over the 2 popular Guts-ers. Over Ursaring, who has the better movepool, it has Speed and Sucker Punch. Over Swellow, who is much faster and slightly stronger, it has Sucker Punch, Swords Dance and Crunch. Hmm, Sucker Punch suddenly seems more important as otherwise you'd be better off using the other 2.

Thanks folgorio, I'll add in Grass Knot in AC and slash Reversal next to U-turn.

@Aeron - I knew it! For some reason I was getting only ~40% on Milotic with the Smogon calculator. I don't know if it wasn't factoring in the Guts boost or what, but anyway, thanks for that!

Ok forgot about this but make crunch be slashed over pursuit. odds are no ghost is switchin out anyways but pursuit wont KO neither missy not rotom at full health (once again assuming they dont switch) while crunch does OHKO them and does more damage to spiritomb and other stuff. So just change that, but yeah this works p. well considering its raticate.

OK, so did you want Sucker Punch / Crunch / Pursuit or just move Pursuit to AC?

We discussed this on IRC so I agree with whatever Folg said (I'm pretty sure I'll regret having said that):



Edit: He means Sucker Punch / Crunch and Pursuit to AC.

Allrighty, sounds wonderful. Will get this and Primeape written up here over the weekend!

There, this is finished. It should be ready for GP checks.

GP Check 1/2:
additions/changes in blue
removals in red
comments in navy


Some weird prose issues, repetitive verbs/phrases, and some fluff. Otherwise, this is nice, especially for the Overview. =)

Thanks Flora, changes made.

There was one change that I didn't agree with though.

Return and Double-Edge are left out of for favor for of

Click to expand...

What you changed it to makes sense, but the original term is also correct.

To "be left out of favor for" something, is to be left out because something is unpopular and it implies that there is something better.

However, in the context that I'm using it in, I realize that the phrase should read "Double-Edge and Return are left out in favor of Facade's higher base power."

What you have, "Double-Edge and Return are left out for favor of Facade's higher base power" makes sense, but to me it doesn't sound quite right.

Oh, and the thing Aeron pointed out is indeed correct. It's just a kind of backward speak that's been accepted in our language.

In any case, GP 1/2.

When I read that to myself the original way, I just didn't like it, but you can keep it as is, sure. I guess the joke thing can stay too if other people can understand it.

Red is removal
Blue is changes
Explainations below

I've set this out differently, let me know if it's easier for you :)

Edit: Okay, thank you. Won't use this in future :)

I always thought FEAR stood for Fucking Evil Ass Rodent O_o. Oh, and if you're going to acronym it, it should be:

Focus Sash, Endeavor, (Quick) Attack, Rattata / Rodent

Click to expand...

Thanks for the catches Komodo and Aeron.

@Komodo - No, doing that way all broken up is actually really confusing. Even if I know my own analysis.

GP CHECK 2/2

blue is additions
red is removals


i'm back from my GP checking hiatus~

....good analysis!

Thanks Snorlaxe! Changes made.

This should be ready for upload if someone else wants to give me a mod check.

Uploaded.