Punchshroom
FISHIOUS REND MEGA SHARPEDO
I'm cuter than IRL
[Overview]
<p>Reuniclus pairs perfectly with Trick Room: it has good all-around defenses to set up Trick Room reliably, poor Speed that is perfectly designed to use Trick Room, and an impressive Special Attack stat that allows for sweeping under Trick Room seem like a match made in heaven. It even has good neutral coverage, with access to Focus Blast, which is rare among Trick Room users. However, its specialized traits do make it one-sided and predictable. It also faces competition with much bulkier Psychic-types such as Cresselia and Musharna that set up Trick Room with more consistency and permit self-damaging spread moves from teammates by virtue of their abilities. 4-moveslot syndrome also limits what Reuniclus can do in a match. However, its immunity to residual damage and high offensive presence set it apart from other Trick Roomers, and still stands out as one of its most effective users.</p>
[SET]
name: Trick Room Attacker
move 1: Trick Room
move 2: Psychic / Psyshock
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Protect
item: Life Orb
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Quiet
evs: 172 HP / 28 Def / 252 SpA / 56 SpD
ivs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Reuniclus is a solid user of Trick Room, as it sets it up to allow both itself and its teammates to sweep. Psychic is Reuniclus's best attack and is very strong against many targets; Psychock is slightly weaker but targets Pokemon with weaker Defense, such as Amoonguss, Politoed and Terrakion in a sandstorm. Focus Blast nails Dark-types and Steel-types, and while it has shaky accuracy, the payoff is great. Trick Room teams may prefer Reuniclus's power as opposed to bulkier Trick Room setters such as Cresselia and Musharna while still sporting enough bulk to set it up, making it one of the few reliable Trick Room users that can actually sweep alongside the TR sweepers rather than being pure support. Its Magic Guard ability grants the Life Orb boost for free, allow it to function normally in damaging weather, and its immunity to residual damage aids its overall bulk.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Reuniclus needs Trick Room to function at its best, hence the minimum Speed investment and Speed-lowering nature. The EV spread is used to survive Latios's Dragon Gem-boosted Draco Meteor more than 50% of the time, which 252 HP EVs alone would fail to do, in exchange for leaving it slightly more vulnerable to a OHKO from Tyranitar (which it can still survive), which can be remedied with an Intimidate from a teammate. Reuniclus has Shadow Ball to nail Psychic-types like Cresselia, Latios, and opposing Reuniclus, but that job is better left to teammates, and Focus Blast is a many other Psychic-types do not have access to. If you feel it is necessary to pack more coverage with Reuniclus, it can forgo Protect, but it will be more reliant on teammates to aid its set up. While Life Orb adds to Reuniclus's potent strength, Mental Herb and Chesto Berry can be used as consistency boosters, ensuring Trick Room goes or stays up even in the face of Taunt and Encore or Spore, respectively. Lum Berry can be used over Chesto Berry if one does not want their Reuniclus paralyzed or confused, though keep in mind it actually appreciates being burned or poisoned to avoid sleep-inducing moves.</p>
<p>Pokemon that can function in Trick Room make great partners, especially if they can take out bulky Psychic-types; Scrafty, Escavalier, and even Rhyperior (to handle Jirachi) are good choices, and can sweep alongside Reuniclus. Pokemon that can aid in the setting of Trick Room, such as Amoonguss's Rage Powder or Fake Out from Scrafty, Hitmontop, or Hariyama, make good partners, and provide additional support with Spore or Fighting attacks to ward off Dark-types; Scrafty gets special mention for also deterring Ghost- and Psychic-types. Fire-types can ward off Sableye and roast Steel-types instead of relying on the inaccurate Focus Blast; Chandelure can hit Psychic- and Ghost-types with STAB Shadow Ball, while Heatran resists their attacks. As Reuniclus is immune to weather damage, Trick Room teams that utilize hail or sandstorm really appreciate Reuniclus as a partner, especially because Reuniclus disposes of problematic Fighting-types.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Reuniclus has plenty of supportive options like Helping Hand, Skill Swap, Imprison, and Gravity, but is better left off to bulkier or faster Psychic-types that have more teammate-friendly abilities such as Levitate or Telepathy; Reuniclus is better off attacking anyway, though Skill Swapping Magic Guard is still cool. Hidden Power Fire is Reuniclus's strongest move against Scizor, Escavalier, and Metagross, but is useless against anything else, especially Tyranitar. Other offensive options include Energy Ball for Gastrodon, Signal Beam for Dark-types and Psychic-types, and Thunder mainly for a strong hit on Sableye (strangely, Reuniclus does not get Thunderbolt), but Focus Blast and to an extent Shadow Ball's coverage is superior. Magic Coat reflects Spore, Taunt, and Encore directed at Reuniclus, relieving the slot for Mental Herb, but leaves Reuniclus with mono-coverage and requires prediction, unlike Mental Herb. Colbur Berry allows Reuniclus to tank a Dark-type move and set up Trick Room or retaliate with Focus Blast. After You is nifty for non-dedicated Trick Room teams, as it allows Reuniclus to help a fast teammate move before an otherwise slower opponent (with Trick Room active), provided Reuniclus gets to act first. Imprison can allow Reuniclus to stop opposing Trick Room users from neutralizing its own Trick Room and turns the tables on the slower Musharna, but faster users of Imprison + Trick Room, such as Chandelure and Uxie, will still stop it.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Spore (Breloom, Amoonguss), Taunt (Thundurus-I, Terrakion, Heatran), and Encore (Whimsicott, Liepard) can stop a Reuniclus without the appropriate item from setting up, or force a switch in terms of Encore, neutering it and its teammates' offensive potential. Dark-types, such as Hydreigon, Bisharp, Darkrai, and Tyranitar, as well as Bug-types, such as Volcarona, Genesect and Escavalier, all threaten to damage Reuniclus beyond repair or KO outright, which is another alternative to preventing Trick Room. Sableye stands out as the biggest obstacle for Reuniclus. It is completely immune to its attacks, has Taunt to stop Trick Room, and can burn its physically-oriented teammates. Phazing moves such as Roar and Whirlwind from Pokemon such as Latias and Suicune can stop Reuniclus from setting up Trick Room due to the latter's lower priority, and bypass Mental Herb.</p>
<p>Bulky Psychic-types such as Cresselia, Musharna, Jirachi, and Latias are Reuniclus's next biggest problems, and not just because they resist its main attacks; Trick Room users that are faster than Reuniclus can reset Trick Room as or after it goes up, regaining the Speed advantage and setting Reuniclus back. While rare, Imprison + Trick Room users can stop Trick Room as long as they remain in battle, and since its main users, Musharna and Uxie, will be difficult for Reuniclus to get rid of. These bulky Psychic-types also know Light Screen, which helps in waiting out Trick Room. Offensive Psychic-types, on the other hand, such as Latios and Victini, can easily take a hit from Reuniclus without Shadow Ball and strike with ludicrously powerful moves like Draco Meteor or V-Create. Steel-types that take neutral damage from Fighting-type attacks, such as Scizor, Escavalier, Metagross, Bronzong, and Jirachi, can also stop Reuniclus, the former three hitting Reuniclus very hard and the latter two being bulky enough to wear out Trick Room; Jirachi's Follow Me can also get in Reuniclus's way. Even though Reuniclus's bulk is acceptable, it is vulnerable to powerful STAB attacks if they are boosted by Gems and/or weather, namely Life Orb Kingdra's rain boosted Hydro Pump and Kyurem-Black's Dragon Gem-boosted Dragon Claw/Outrage.</p>
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