We all know that Snorlax has pretty much defined the GSC metagame since its inception. With that being the case, should GSC do to Snorlax what some future generations have done to certain other metagame-warping Pokemon, and count Snorlax as an Uber as opposed to an OU?
Is this a bit pointless considering we're talking about a 2-generations-ago metagame? Perhaps. Is it an overreaction to Snorlax's impact on the GSC metagame, from someone who doesn't know that metagame well? Quite likely. Would it change how the GSC metagame works? Definitely. Would the overall effect of this change be good? I have no clue.
Here's (some of) what I do know.
- For a (base) stat comparison, Snorlax has higher HP than every Uber, ties with Mewtwo (second place among Ubers) on Attack, would be third place for Special Defense (beaten only by Lugia and Ho-oh, each of which have a base Special Defense of 154 to Snorlax's 110), and is beaten by all Ubers in Speed, Defense, and Special Attack.
- Again as a way of putting things into perspective, let's look at Snorlax's best stat, HP. Snorlax's Base HP stat is 160; among fully-evolved Pokemon, this is beaten only by Blissey (255) and Wobbuffet (190). (Chansey also has higher HP than Snorlax, with base 250.)
- Among fully-evolved Pokemon, Snorlax's Attack Stat (base 110) is beaten by a total of 17 Pokemon, including 1 Uber (Ho-oh). It is tied by 5 Pokemon, including 1 Uber (Mewtwo).
- Snorlax's Speed (base 30) is part of a 9-member tie for second-LOWEST in the game among fully-evolved Pokemon, with only Shuckle (base 5) being slower. Of course, as many GSC summaries stress, Speed is relatively unimportant in the GSC metagame (and indeed, under certain circumstances, low Speed can be an advantage.)
- Also in the stats department, Snorlax's Base Stat Total is 540; for a comparison, of the Ubers, three (Ho-oh, Lugia, and Mewtwo) have a Base Stat Total of 680 (matched only by each other), and the other two (Mew and Celebi) have a Base Stat Total of 600, which is beaten only by other Ubers and is tied only by Dragonite and Tyranitar. 540 is the fifth-highest Base Stat Total in the game among fully-evolved Pokemon, counting Ubers, and Snorlax is one of 4 Pokemon with this total (the other 3 being Blissey, Kingdra, and Gyarados).
- Snorlax's GSC summary on the main site says that "EVERY effective team should be able to counter Snorlax," and later goes on to say that "There really is no bona fide Snorlax counter because of his awesome versatility, attacking power, and Special Defense."
- The few Pokemon that Snorlax's summary lists specifically as counters are almost all weak to Earthquake; the only exception is Skarmory. Considering that both the classic Curselax set and Drumlax usually have Earthquake, this further goes to show just how difficult it is to deal with Snorlax, whether or not it has Lovely Kiss.
While I can hardly claim to know the GSC metagame very well, I hope that I have at least said enough here to allow for intelligent discussion.
Is this a bit pointless considering we're talking about a 2-generations-ago metagame? Perhaps. Is it an overreaction to Snorlax's impact on the GSC metagame, from someone who doesn't know that metagame well? Quite likely. Would it change how the GSC metagame works? Definitely. Would the overall effect of this change be good? I have no clue.
Here's (some of) what I do know.
- For a (base) stat comparison, Snorlax has higher HP than every Uber, ties with Mewtwo (second place among Ubers) on Attack, would be third place for Special Defense (beaten only by Lugia and Ho-oh, each of which have a base Special Defense of 154 to Snorlax's 110), and is beaten by all Ubers in Speed, Defense, and Special Attack.
- Again as a way of putting things into perspective, let's look at Snorlax's best stat, HP. Snorlax's Base HP stat is 160; among fully-evolved Pokemon, this is beaten only by Blissey (255) and Wobbuffet (190). (Chansey also has higher HP than Snorlax, with base 250.)
- Among fully-evolved Pokemon, Snorlax's Attack Stat (base 110) is beaten by a total of 17 Pokemon, including 1 Uber (Ho-oh). It is tied by 5 Pokemon, including 1 Uber (Mewtwo).
- Snorlax's Speed (base 30) is part of a 9-member tie for second-LOWEST in the game among fully-evolved Pokemon, with only Shuckle (base 5) being slower. Of course, as many GSC summaries stress, Speed is relatively unimportant in the GSC metagame (and indeed, under certain circumstances, low Speed can be an advantage.)
- Also in the stats department, Snorlax's Base Stat Total is 540; for a comparison, of the Ubers, three (Ho-oh, Lugia, and Mewtwo) have a Base Stat Total of 680 (matched only by each other), and the other two (Mew and Celebi) have a Base Stat Total of 600, which is beaten only by other Ubers and is tied only by Dragonite and Tyranitar. 540 is the fifth-highest Base Stat Total in the game among fully-evolved Pokemon, counting Ubers, and Snorlax is one of 4 Pokemon with this total (the other 3 being Blissey, Kingdra, and Gyarados).
- Snorlax's GSC summary on the main site says that "EVERY effective team should be able to counter Snorlax," and later goes on to say that "There really is no bona fide Snorlax counter because of his awesome versatility, attacking power, and Special Defense."
- The few Pokemon that Snorlax's summary lists specifically as counters are almost all weak to Earthquake; the only exception is Skarmory. Considering that both the classic Curselax set and Drumlax usually have Earthquake, this further goes to show just how difficult it is to deal with Snorlax, whether or not it has Lovely Kiss.
While I can hardly claim to know the GSC metagame very well, I hope that I have at least said enough here to allow for intelligent discussion.