NU Spotlight: Scolipede

History

Scolipede was in RarelyUsed for most of its competitive life; however, in the April tier changes it became NU for the first time since Stage 0. For the most part, Scolipede didn't have too much to offer on the competitive scene; Accelgor was a faster spiker in RU, and power-wise its Attack was low in comparison to the rest of the tier. It almost dropped to NU in January's tier changes, however it only just held on and remained in RU. However, despite this, the NU community still predicted how Scolipede would influence the NU metagame if it did drop. Many thought it would easily be within the top five, given how useful Spikes were, and the fact that it could single-handedly provide a way to shut down Musharna, 2HKOing it with its STAB Megahorn.

Now Scolipede has been in NeverUsed for two months, it has found itself a 9th position in the regular usage stats, and 4th position in the 1850 usage stats. Spikes weren't common in NU before Scolipede dropped, however, once it did, that changed. Roselia and Garbodor were used for Spikes, although nowhere near as much as Scolipede is now. Scolipede has also helped stop the Psychic-type domination of Stage 8, and has contributed to a faster metagame. Scolipede has now cemented itself as a prominent part of NU, and chances are it will rise in popularity over the next few months as faster offense becomes more common.

Scolipede's Qualities

One of Scolipede's best qualities is its base 112 Speed. It shares the 10th position of highest Speed in the tier with Purugly. With the majority of offensive threats in NeverUsed being either at or above base 95, the extra Speed allows Scolipede to outspeed huge threats in the NU metagame such as Jynx and Charizard and OHKO non-scarfed variants with Megahorn or Rock Slide, respectively. This Speed also allows it to be the fastest spiker in the tier (with the other common spikers in the tier, Garbodor and Roselia, sitting at base 80 Speed and base 65 Speed, respectively), which can almost guarantee one layer of Spikes on the field. If Scolipede is played conservatively it can set up multiple layers late-game to help offensive sweepers on its team that lack the extra power. Scolipede also has access to Toxic Spikes, and like Spikes, can set up multiple layers throughout the game easily thanks to its Speed.

Scolipede's other notable quality is its power. Scolipede has base 90 Attack, however, when coupled with Swords Dance, it can hit an attack power of 558 with a Jolly nature. This can work with its STAB Megahorn, and its coverage moves of Earthquake, Aqua Tail, and Rock Slide to allow it to both outspeed and do a lot of damage to the majority of the metagame. Scolipede's versatility move-wise is also a great quality, as it has a variety of other moves to utilize, such as Baton Pass, so it can pass its Swords Dance or Agility boosts to a teammate. Scolipede also has access to Payback and Poison Jab, however for the most part it generally doesn't have the space on its sets for either of these moves. X-Scissor is also an option over Megahorn if you would rather have 100% accuracy, however, the drop in power is definitely noticeable, and Scolipede is almost always better off with Megahorn.

Scolipede's other quality is its abilities. Scolipede's most common ability is Swarm, which can be used in conjunction with Focus Sash and Swords Dance for a powerful Megahorn when at low health. Due to its Speed, it can make use of its boosted Megahorn, or coverage moves, and proceed to speed through any teams it faces. Scolipede also has the option to use Poison Point or Quick Feet, although they are generally outclassed by Swarm. This is because Scolipede is mostly hit with non-direct attacks such as Rock Slide or Earthquake and Scolipede is more often burned than paralyzed, making the Quick Feet boost mostly useless.

Playing with Scolipede

Scolipede can run a variety of different sets in NeverUsed. Its most common set is its Spikes set, however its Swords Dance and three attacks, and Swords Dance + Substitute are also used in the NU metagame.

Scolipede's Spikes set allows it to trade attack power for team utility. Most of the time when you're using the Spikes set, you'll mainly be using Spikes and trying to get them out as fast as possible. With its Swords Dance set it's best to set up when all possible counters are out. Physical Alomomola sets can be set up on if you correctly predict when it's using Protect, however most chances Scolipede gets to set up is when an opponent predicts a Megahorn and switches out to a counter. The same applies for the Swords Dance + Substitute set, however that has the advantage of using Substitute. Thanks to Scolipede's Speed, it can keep using Substitute until it gets into Salac range where it can use Swords Dance or Baton Pass to pass to an appropriate teammate. Generally the Spikes set is the easiest to play with as it involves the least amount of prediction, however when used effectively the other two can steamroll entire teams.

Playing against Scolipede

Scolipede can often be hard to predict. You might think it's safe to send in your Scarf Charizard against it only to realize it's using a Focus Sash. On the other hand, you might assume it's the standard Spikes set and send in Weezing to burn it, but then Scolipede uses Substitute and passes to Sawk. Despite this, there's a few tell-tale signs to usually predict what set Scolipede is running. For the most part it will be running Spikes, however, if there's a lot of Pokémon that resist its weaknesses it's likely Swords Dance, and if it's full of physical attackers chances are it will be Substitute + Swords Dance. You can't always be right about what it's running but these are usually the tell-tale signs. However, with this in mind, defensive switch-ins have to be aware that Scolipede can set up Spikes against them and laugh off their attempts to wall it, or can use Substitute and pass Swords Dance boosts to a teammate.

Despite this, Scolipede has various defensive counters in the tier that have little issue switching into its attacks and can do something to it in return. Misdreavus can switch in on any of Scolipede's attacks and takes around 18% from an unboosted Megahorn and burn it with Will-O-Wisp. Weezing can do the same as it also resists Scolipede's STAB and can burn it with Will-O-Wisp, too. Golbat also resists Megahorn, can easily take a Rock Slide from Scolipede, and can threaten an OHKO with Brave Bird.

Torkoal is another common counter as its defensive set takes little from Scolipede's attacks and can 2HKO Scolipede with Lava Plume. Gurdurr can also use Stone Edge if it's running it, or 3HKO with Ice Punch and/or use Bulk Up if it wishes. Piloswine can safely switch into Scolipede, however, Piloswine can't OHKO unless it gets max damage rolls from both Earthquake and Ice Shard. Swellow can switch into Rock Slide and activate its Toxic Orb, however it has to be aware that if Stealth Rock is up it will not be able to switch in without fainting afterwards. Finally, Regirock can safely switch into any of Scolipede's attacks and OHKO it with Stone Edge.

Fitting Scolipede onto your team

Scolipede can fit on a range of teams. However, to use Scolipede to its full potential it needs some support. For Swords Dance sets, Pokémon that can set up on its defensive counters (Weezing and Misdreavus for example) are what Scolipede needs to to be able to sweep successfully without little opposition. Spikes Scolipede sets prefer if there's a spinblocker to make sure Spikes remain on the field. This is because Scolipede is somewhat frail and its weakness to Stealth Rock means it can only switch in limited times in the match, and finds it harder to do so later in the game. However, spinblocking support isn't always necessary, as with careful play a team can maintain Spikes on the field without needing a spinblocker. Substitute + Swords Dance Scolipede need physical attacking teammates to receive boosts. Examples of this are Sawk, Kangaskhan, and Primeape as they can utilize the boost in Speed and Attack to their advantage, making them more threatening to their opponents.

In terms of what it can support, there aren't too many Pokémon in particular that Scolipede can support, however there are a few crucial roles it can play to teams. Teams that are weak to Musharna enjoy Scolipede's presence; although Scolipede can't safely switch into Musharna, it can do significant damage to Musharna and can make the opponent play more cautiously. Teams that have fast but not extremely powerful attackers also appreciate Scolipede as it can set up Spikes to turn 2HKOs turn into OHKOs after switching in. Examples of this are Pokémon like Primeape that are great at revenge killing but often lack the power to dent a significant hole in a team, unlike Sawk, which can break through teams on its own. For Substitute + Swords Dance Scolipede, teams with more than one physical attackers also enjoy the extra attack boosts Scolipede can pass to them, as well as the extra speed. These are usually Fighting-type or Normal-type Pokémon, most of which are huge threats in the NU metagame.

Get out there!

Scolipede can provide useful utility to teams with Spikes, and can also be a strong force offensively. On its own, it can threaten entire teams if given the chance to set up, or can pass its boosts to an even deadlier Pokémon. All of this makes Scolipede an important part of the NU metagame no matter what role it's performing, and it should be considered when putting together a team.

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