DEFINITELY defensive, at least in my opinion. I run Impish nature on mine.
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Pokémon Scolipede
- Thread starter TwoBit
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Scolipede has a decent enough typing and defences to be able to switch in on a few things, say, Breloom (who I don't think is doing all that well anymore anyway). Its stats aren't too terrible to be able to pull off enough physical walling to get the pass off. But a damage boosting nature can also threaten a sweep off of its 100 base attack, which is certainly nothing to scoff at. A speed boosting nature is probably not worth running because if you're too slow you can just protect for free speed boost. Don't even try to take special hits, it's just not a thing Scolpede can do.
So yeah. Adamant or Impish is the go to natures. It's up to personal preference and what your team needs as to what you want to run. Focus Sash is still likely the best item for insurance.
It prevents all damage and you get to know what move they are locked into. You'll outspeed anything that's worth scarfing after a speedboost (both are 1.5x) and can baton pass to a team mate that can take the locked in move. If you baton pass to something that also sets up, you can also get that set up for free if you force out the scarfer.
Thank you, but wouldn't you have to use protect Twice to see if a pokemon is scarfed?
Also, I think a defensive scolopied with a attack nature could be cool. This outclashs ninjask to obviously.
While I am fairly new to the competitive scene, and for the most part content to breed up the pokemon I like at the moment (hence my interest in proper natures), unless I'm reading it wrong, such a build might be somewhat detrimental. It's got an attacking nature, but you've invested in its defenses rather than its attack. It's neither fish nor fowl.
So a defensive or offensive nature since it DOES speed boost, eh? Makes sense-same reason I rejected Jolly event torchics when I was soft resetting-it's going to speed boost, so what does it matter if it has a speed-neutral nature? Come to think of it, I'm sort of surprised that the OP has not been updated accordingly in that case.
So a defensive or offensive nature since it DOES speed boost, eh? Makes sense-same reason I rejected Jolly event torchics when I was soft resetting-it's going to speed boost, so what does it matter if it has a speed-neutral nature? Come to think of it, I'm sort of surprised that the OP has not been updated accordingly in that case.
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Even then, you wouldn't know for sure because they could have just selected the same move twice. Mid-game, if you suspect a Pokemon has a choice item, you can scout their move with protect; however, you need more information than seeing the move used twice. For example, Rotom-W using Hydro Pump, but then switching out manually instead of Volt Switch is a huge indicator that it's holding a choice item.
Scolipede has a tough time sweeping because he doesn't have enough raw power to sweep without setting up, and he can't reliably set up without some investment in bulk. I've had him one shot a Tyranitar, but only because he was already set up. I think he does better as support in general, but he does have enough power to get some kills on weakened opponents.
Agreed. Scolipede just doesn't really have the stats or movepool to be an effective main sweeper. However, Scolipede really shines after a Swords Dance when your opponent is expecting another support move like Protect, and suddenly out of the blue you nail him with a x2 Megahorn or EQ. Many an Aegislash has falled to my Scolipede.
Scolipede @ Leftovers
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 156 Spd / 248 HP / 104 Atk
Adamant Nature
- Poison Jab
- Baton Pass
- Substitute
- Megahorn
One way in which I've really been enjoying using Scolipede in this meta is as an offensive pivot. Lead Speed Boost is an immensely predictable strategy, which can, in this case, be used to your advantage. I've been using the above set with Light Clay Bronzong and a Stealth Rocker, both of which are legitimate lead options, allowing Scolipede to come in later and provide momentum, and in the best cases, a sub to a sweeper. There are plenty of sweepers that synergize well with Scolipede. For example, Crawdaunt loves the speed that Scolipede can offer him and a sub allows Crawdaunt to get in a Swords Dance and sweep away and Crawdaunt's fire resistant means that he can switch in easily. Weakness Policy Dragonite likes being able to take (with Marvel Scale) a rock move aimed at Scolipede and the Speed Boosts from Scolipede and start a sweep. I know people like running EQ for Ageislash coverage, but I think the setup and predicatbility of Ageislash are better utilized by setting up a sub and getting in a sweeper of your own. Additionally, with these EVs Poison Jab is a OHKO on the odd Breloom and is also tremendously handy for Azumarill. I'd still like to test out an offensive spiker set, something that was a huge threat in the later stages of GEN V NU.
That depends on the set you will be usin, I believe. I personally don't think that Scolipede has the bulk to be goin the full defensive route, but then again, never tried a defensive one so I can't be certain. For sweepin/cleaner purposes, either Jolly/Adamant. If you can reliably take down stuff that could outspeed Adamant unboosted (or +1 if you run protect) Scolipede before attemptin a sweep, I don't see why not run Adamant. It's pretty fast anyway.
I've been watching this thread very closely, trying to figure out how I wanted to build my own Scollipede. I was reading the Gen5 builds for him and had him set up to just be a dual spiker(is that what thats called?) While I think entry hazards are his speciality still, with his new hidden and easy access to megahorn he can be a bit more aggressive.
I'd like to propose this set:
Scollipede- Speed Boost
Adamant, 252 Atk, 252 HP, 4 def
Focus Sash
Toxic Spikes
Megahorn
Spikes/Rock Slide
Poison jab
I see scollipede functioning as a suicide lead. He is already going to be gaining significant speed through speed boost, so you can invest in bulk and attack. Poison jab feels mandatory because of the prominence of fairies, with rock slide being a "just-in-case" choice.
I'm pretty new to competitive, so I appreciate everyones patience.
I'd like to propose this set:
Scollipede- Speed Boost
Adamant, 252 Atk, 252 HP, 4 def
Focus Sash
Toxic Spikes
Megahorn
Spikes/Rock Slide
Poison jab
I see scollipede functioning as a suicide lead. He is already going to be gaining significant speed through speed boost, so you can invest in bulk and attack. Poison jab feels mandatory because of the prominence of fairies, with rock slide being a "just-in-case" choice.
I'm pretty new to competitive, so I appreciate everyones patience.
The one thing you can say about this gen is that Scoliopede does have more switch-in options than he did before. While switching in on togekiss is probably suicide, almost any other fairy type is fair game-even gardevoir, thanks to its low physical defenses and speed when compared to Scoliopede, and so long as you can predict the moonblast. 89 defense is not too bad, looking around-it's almost the same as scoliopede's old base attack. I'm in the process of breeding up an IV'd impish one, and it seems at least one user here has had some success with investing in bulk. What's the difference between an adamant with attack invested IVs and an attack-neutral nature after boosting with swordsdance?
Of Course, I'm basically planning to run the B@st@rd set. It's whole purpose would be to pass a speed boost or two-and maybe a swords dance-over to something very threatening but slow. I was thinking stuff like dragonite or Tyrantum. Heck, even Tyranitar could work really well with this set, since he can come in on most if not all of scoliopede's counters if I remember the type matchups correctly, possibly forcing a switch which might allow for a DDance boost just to put the cherry on the cake.
Of Course, I'm basically planning to run the B@st@rd set. It's whole purpose would be to pass a speed boost or two-and maybe a swords dance-over to something very threatening but slow. I was thinking stuff like dragonite or Tyrantum. Heck, even Tyranitar could work really well with this set, since he can come in on most if not all of scoliopede's counters if I remember the type matchups correctly, possibly forcing a switch which might allow for a DDance boost just to put the cherry on the cake.
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Scolipede is insane now -- I encountered one in the battle spot, and I think he ran Swords dance, Substitute, Toxi-spikes, and baton pass. He passed the SD and Speed-boost to a Physical Charizard X. It was terrifying.
Nice,I use mine in a team with Aegislash,Lucario,Kengaskhan and Garchomp(last slot is either Rotom-W or Azumaril).I would say go for the Mega horn,since Gliscor covers prety well with EQ.Mine has Earthquake since I don't like MH(to much missing in BW2,it scared me for life). Also,nice team,really balanced as far as I can see ^^
That's not a bad idea,as long no SR is in place is viable(AKA not viable after Pokébank),when I use my Charizard X I usually start the battle with him,since many oponents tend to send Talonflame or Klefki first. I dragon Dance and Outrage/Flare Blitz their asses then,and I can even chose when to mega evolve,since Charizard is Adamant I can use dragon dance in a pokémon that knows EQ but not Stone miss,and when I'm set I evolve and crush them. It works a lot actually o_O
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Breloom OHKOs with Rock Tomb, which, with its buff and the corresponding nerf to Low Sweep, every Breloom is going to be running. You'd have to be nuts to try and switch Scolipede into Breloom.
A decent idea. But mad speed probably isn't the way to go. With 0 Speed EVs and a neutral nature, Scolipede hits 240 speed before a boost, and 360 after. I believe the magic number to outrun all base 130's (the fastest pokemon you're likely to see in OU), is 264, or 96 EVs. Basically, if you want to hit this benchmark, you can go 160 HP/252 Atk/96 Spe, which has the added benefit of hitting 301 HP, which is a good number for switching into Stealth Rock, playing against Night Shade/Seismic Toss and Life Orb.
Well, technically, its a "buff". Breloom is going to be significantly less common this meta with talonflame, fairies, grass types being immune to spore, etc. I'm not sure about switching to Rock Tomb as a Low Sweep replacement. Force Palm is available as a less reliable, but more permanent alternative, particaularly since most stuff switching into Breloom fears paralysis almost as much as sleep. Superpower will be available post poke-bank and part of what made Low Sweep great was that it lets Breloom hit the switch in twice while sporting repectable power. Breloom also doesn't have to run technician, Poision heal is still a pretty great ability, and Breloom does have access to Stone Edge.
Bottom line, Scolipede has bigger fish to worry about than Breloom. Its main issues are going to be moveslot syndrome and switching into anything that isn't a resisted or weakn neutral physyical hit. That being said, with Blaziken gone, it being undoubtedly better both offensive and in utility than Ninjask, I believe it will see considerable play as OU's speed passer.
Do you guys think that a Scolipede with that moveset could be used sucessfully in the Battle Mansion? I am trying to find a lead for my team and using a baton pass to my Charizard Y I believe would be good. Does Scolipede have good chemistry with a Charizard?
It would be better to use Charizard X. Charizard Y would like the substitute and speed, but can't take advantage of the attack boost from swords dance.
My post was made in response to a comment suggesting that Scolipede would have a ready made switch into Breloom, which, irrespective of Breloom's likely place in OU, it clearly doesn't. You comment that "part of what made Low Sweep great was that it lets Breloom hit the switch in twice while sporting respectable power." This is exactly why Rock Tomb is going to be on every Breloom as a ready made replacement. In many respects, it's actually superior to pre-XY low sweep on Techniloom, since it provides the speed dropping side effect whilst not requiring Breloom to run double fighting STAB and sacrifice coverage. It also hits many significant faster switch-ins to Breloom harder than Low Sweep did (such as Starmie, Lati@s, Volcarona, Gengar, etc - many of which were previous checks or counters to Breloom). In particular, it nets vital KOs on Talonflame (OHKOed) and Togekiss (2HKOed). Force Palm's 10% paralysis chance simply cannot compare, and if anything, will be run over Mach Punch (which has lost a fair number of targets). RT's coverage and effect are too good to pass up on.
As for the new threats, to be blunt, past OU grass types are no more reliable switch ins to Breloom than they have ever been, Venusaur being the only real exception. The new grass types (Chesnaught, Trevenant and Gourgeist) fair a little better, being able to reliably check the LO set, but are 2HKOed by Banded variants, which are also able to run Fury Cutter to OHKO a previous nemesis in Celebi. As for the new fairies, the only new fairy capable of threatening Breloom is Mega Mawile, who can threaten to OHKO with Play Rough and cannot be 2HKOed in return - and this assumes you have already allowed Breloom to put another Pokemon to sleep. Togekiss is outsped and 2HKOed if he switches into Rock Tomb. Azumarill is OHKOed by Bullet Seed. Sylveon is 2HKOed by Bullet Seed. Florges is 2HKOed by Bullet Seed. Granbull is 2HKOed even after the Intimidate drop.
tl;dr - Breloom gained new counters but also gained toys to dissuade old ones. It's likely to drop in usage, since it relies more heavily on prediction to use than it did before, but if you don't prepare for it it's still going to tear holes into your team. And switching a Scolipede into it expecting it to have nothing but grass and fighting attacks to hit back with isn't, and never will be, a smart play.
Enough of a digression, though - let's get back to discussing Scolipede.
i remember i used scolipede a lot back in 5th gen OU actually. It synergized with lucario really well because lucario 4x resisted scolipede's rock weakness and scolipede 4x resisted lucario's fighting weakness (together they took on terrakion pretty well.) It was funny because for the longest time i used a choice band set and i would always lead with him. The other person would expect toxic spikes and i would just ruin their day with a megahorn. It was honestly deceptively really powerful (if i remember right megahorn 2HKO'd scizor of all things.) I always ran quick feet because it was hilarious trolling people using t-wave jirachi because they would paralyze me and then be suprised at the fact that my scolipede was now almost as fast as deoxys-speed. Though its losing quick feet, speed boost is waaaaay better though. This thing got so buffed with the attack boost (oh hi there choice band destroyer of worlds) and the speed boost though. I really want to use this thing again now XD
but yeah seriously this thing and lucario together make terrakion cry. Same for heracross as the two together can 4x resist every single move heracross runs.
but yeah seriously this thing and lucario together make terrakion cry. Same for heracross as the two together can 4x resist every single move heracross runs.
Scolipede and Breloom OHKO mutually with their most powerful attacks. Also, I remember that the only safe switch into Breloom was the one that could sponge the Spore.
This is the point I was making. I wasn't proposing Breloom as a counter to Scolipede. I was responding to the claim that Scolipede could safely switch into Breloom in order to set up. It clearly can't.
I was wondering which Mega would profit most from a BP Scoli (+2At +1 Sp).
Mega Heracross came to my mind, however it has the disadvantage of sharing bug types so BP might swap it into certain death.
Mega Tyranitar or Mega Gyrados both have some solid bulk (so does chomp) to survive a swap.
Gyra comes in with Intimidate which is a huge plus since it might force a switch, however Tyranitar surves basically and special attack which isn't focus blast.
Absol also COULD be a solid choice - it's fragile, but if it really does get the setup sponsored it's not stopable by and status-move-prankster-guys anymore (only by a strong mach-punch user).
Mega Heracross came to my mind, however it has the disadvantage of sharing bug types so BP might swap it into certain death.
Mega Tyranitar or Mega Gyrados both have some solid bulk (so does chomp) to survive a swap.
Gyra comes in with Intimidate which is a huge plus since it might force a switch, however Tyranitar surves basically and special attack which isn't focus blast.
Absol also COULD be a solid choice - it's fragile, but if it really does get the setup sponsored it's not stopable by and status-move-prankster-guys anymore (only by a strong mach-punch user).
I've had good results with Mega Pinser. It doesn't have the bulk to reliably set up by itself, so using baton pass is incredibly helpful. However, like you said, they're both bug type and it makes it hard to get them both in safely.
Mega Garchomp seems like an excellent recipient because his speed is lower than regular Garchomp's.
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