RU Sets: Good vs. Bad #2
Sigilyph Cosmic Power vs. Calm Mind Cosmic Power: [SET] Why it's bad: While Cosmic Power Sigilyph might look good, or even overpowering, on paper, it simply doesn't perform in practice. Despite Cosmic Power Sigilyph having the potential to deal major damage after it has boosted a few times, Stored Power's paltry initial 20 Base Power leaves it offensively inept before it does so. Cosmic Power Sigilyph simply takes too long to set up and become threatening, giving the opponent ample time to switch in a check or a counter and force it out—or score a critical hit! Sigilyph also has major trouble with bulky Psychic-type Pokemon with Calm Mind, such as Uxie and Slowking, which always win, as without Special Attack boosts, Stored Power doesn't have a hope in hell of beating them even with a critical hit. Dark-type Pokemon are also extremely problematic for Sigilyph, being immune to its only damaging attack; Pokemon such as Spiritomb (Crotomb) and Mandibuzz beat it easily. Cosmic Power Sigilyph also has the burden of being stopped easily by Taunt, which prevents it from setting up further, and Haze, which eliminates all existing stat boosts. Haze Cryogonal and Taunt Drapion are both common examples of Pokemon which carry these moves; moreover, they both have super effective STAB moves against Sigilyph, making them superb checks—although Drapion without Lum Berry has to watch out for Psycho Shift, as Sigilyph barely outpaces it. If you want to use Sigilyph, a Calm Mind set is much more effective—like this one! Calm Mind: [SET] Why it's better: Calm Mind Sigilyph is a devastating force and can sweep quite easily after just 1 or 2 boosts, unlike the Cosmic Power set. Using its good Speed tier, reliable recovery, and decent coverage, Sigilyph can easily smack around faster offensive teams; Calm Mind's Special Defense boost and Sigilyph's ability, Magic Guard, put the squeeze on more defensive teams, rendering residual damage useless and weakening already feeble special attacks. Calm Mind Sigilyph is also less susceptible to Taunt and Haze, being able to get past both Drapion and Cryogonal at +1 with the appropriate move. Unlike the Cosmic Power set, this set has the potential to actually sweep the opponent's team; Cosmic Power Sigilyph usually gets one of: phazed, debilitated by Taunt or Haze, or struck by a critical hit, whereas Calm Mind Sigilyph's improved coverage and power—courtesy of Life Orb and maximized Special Attack investment—make it far more difficult to handle. 
Typhlosion Choice Scarf vs. Choice Specs Choice Scarf: [SET] Why it's bad: With its excellent Special Attack and Speed, powerful STAB Eruption, and decent coverage, the average player would probably think that Choice Scarf Typhlosion is a great choice for a revenge killer in RU. In reality, Choice Scarf Typhlosion is rather mediocre. While it has one of the most powerful STAB moves in the game at its disposal, ironically, it doesn't hit hard enough to KO a large portion of Pokemon in the RU tier. Moreover, Typhlosion rarely even gets to abuse its max power Eruption thanks to one of the most important mechanics in the game: entry hazards. Entry hazards lower the power of Typhlosion's Eruption greatly, and to make matters worse, the blazing badger takes full damage from every hazard, even being weak to Stealth Rock. Typhlosion is also vulnerable to the many priority moves in RU, such as Kabutops's Aqua Jet and Entei's ExtremeSpeed, both of which can KO a slightly weakened Typhlosion without much trouble. Thankfully, a simple item change can dramatically affect Typhlosion's performance in the tier. Choice Specs: [SET] Why it's better: Although the only thing on this set that changed was an item, Choice Specs Typhlosion's improvement over its lesser set is vast. Choice Specs Typhlosion's added power is both significant and notable; in fact, a max power Eruption from Choice Scarf Typhlosion is weaker than a Choice Specs Typhlosion Fire Blast by a significant margin! While Choice Specs Typhlosion loses the ability to revenge kill some boosted threats, such as Lilligant, it still outspeeds the vast majority of the unboosted tier with its good 100 Speed stat. Here are some damage calculations of Choice Specs Typhlosion's damage output compared to Choice Scarf: Choice Scarf: As you can see, Choice Specs Typhlosion can blow past Typhlosion's conventional checks, whereas Choice Scarf doesn't even come close. Ultimately, Choice Specs is simply the better set because Choice Scarf fails to even be a decent revenge killer, let alone the mighty wallbreaker that Typhlosion should be. 
Whimsicott SubSeed vs. Support SubSeed: [SET] Why it's bad: Whimsicott's poor reputation as a competitive Pokemon comes from this set. To put it bluntly, a moveset centered around priority Leech Seed is simply not effective in RU. Not only are there numerous Grass-type Pokemon that populate the tier, but Magic Guard Pokemon, such as Sigilyph and Clefable, also exist, and are similarly immune to Leech Seed. Moreover, Pokemon with the Sap Sipper ability, such as Bouffalant, Sawsbuck, and Miltank, can even get an Attack boost when switching in on Leech Seed. Ultimately, using Leech Seed and Substitute is a total waste of two moveslots; Whimsicott has better moves in its arsenal and should be putting them to use. Support: [SET] Why it's better: Unlike the SubSeed set, Support Whimsicott can actually accomplish something with priority Stun Spore; paralyzing the opponent's Pokemon can open up the path for a teammate to sweep. This set has much more utility than the SubSeed set as well, acting as a pivot for offensive teams and providing setup opportunities for sweepers. U-turn provides momentum when used on switches that Encore can force. Encore can also create opportunities for setup sweepers, such as Gallade and Sigilyph; Memento does this as well, but Whimsicott must be sacrificed in the process. Taunt prevents opposing sweepers from setting up and hazards from going down, while shutting down Pokemon reliant on support moves such as Uxie and Smeargle. If running a sun team, Whimsicott can forgo Giga Drain or Stun Spore for priority Sunny Day. With sun up, Victreebel and Charizard become offensive juggernauts, having the ability to sweep your opponent's entire team, should they be unprepared. Do not waste any of Whimsicott's moveslots with Substitute and Leech Seed, it has a cornucopia of moves with far greater utility. |