ZU Counterparts

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A cursory glance at the ZU Viability Rankings will show a handful of Pokémon with their own counterparts. Indeed, ZU is a tier where two Pokémon can have a relationship or striking similarity with each other and both Pokémon can be viable. Still, there's a time and place to use each one, and figuring out which counterpart goes where is the key to good team building.

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Eldegoss or Tangela?

While there's no in-game or specific connection between the two, Eldegoss and Tangela are remarkably similar competitively; both are defensive Grass-types with Regenerator and supportive movepools. Many battles go by where the two function the same, though their nuanced differences have given both viable uses in light of changing metagames and team and player preferences.

Tangela is better in terms of physical bulk and Knock Off. Eviolite makes Tangela unstoppable as a wall, and even some of the tier's strongest wallbreakers like Choice Band Sawk aren't able to 2HKO it. This bulk in conjunction with Regenerator makes Tangela one of the best defensive pivots in the history of ZU. It quickly rose to prominence as a definitive defensive staple, but it's not just all bulk; Tangela's supportive movepool allows it to make progress against its switch-ins. Sleep Powder and Leech Seed are hard to switch into without an immunity, and Tangela's Sludge Bomb is strong enough to deter opposing Grass-types and spread poison. What makes Tangela's movepool even more unique is Knock Off, as virtually nothing wants to lose its item in ZU. Item-dependent walls like Altaria and Articuno aren't the strongest switch-ins to Tangela if it uses Knock Off. Tangela quickly rose to the top of the ZU viability rankings thanks to these awesome traits.

Eldegoss, on the other hand, initially ranked much lower than Tangela due to both the metagame and playerbase not fully recognizing its potential. In fact, it almost went unranked due to the thought that it was purely inferior to Tangela. This was because Eldegoss lacks the substantial physical bulk that Tangela offers, instead boasting superior special bulk. A Grass-type is generally better as a physical wall in ZU to take on Ground-types like Rhydon as well as general physical attackers like Sawk, Cinccino, and Kangaskhan. Knock Off is also a clear, guaranteed utility move that most teams see as the key to their progress against defensive cores. Eldegoss is a worse physical wall and lacks Knock Off, and, while it had better matchups against some special attackers like Rotom, it went overlooked and undervalued.

What changed was the introduction of the metagame centralized around entry hazards, and that allowed Eldegoss to shine with its combination of Rapid Spin and Heavy-Duty Boots. After the Silvally-Ground ban, Spikes and Stealth Rock setters like Alolan Sandslash, Qwilfish, and Rhydon became exceedingly popular and harder to stop with older metagame staples and cores. It may sound like Tangela's Knock Off support would pair well on these teams, and while it does to some degree, there's an even more valuable move for these teams: Rapid Spin. Eldegoss does double duty as a serviceable physical wall that can combat opposing Spikes setters thanks to Rapid Spin's one-sided removal. Even non-Spikes teams could enjoy Eldegoss as an extra entry hazard remover that, unlike the Eviolite-reliant Tangela, was immune to the chip damage thanks to holding Heavy-Duty Boots. An even more general perk of Eldegoss is its matchup against Rotom, as the increased special bulk and Volt Switch resistance make it a great check; in comparison, Tangela would go down to Choice Specs- or Nasty Plot-boosted Shadow Ball. A handful of additional strategies around Eldegoss also blossomed, like Eject Button to synergize with Regenerator and provide instant pivoting and eventual immunity to Poltergeist, and Aromatherapy to act as a cleric. The playerbase gave Eldegoss a second chance in the new entry hazard-focused metagame and it proved worthy of a significant viability rise.

So when should you use one over the other? Eldegoss should be used with Spikes users and pivots. Qwilfish and Coalossal rely on it as a switch-in to Rhydon's Earthquake and Stunfisk's Earth Power, and pivots like Rotom, Silvally-Poison, and Wishiwashi need Stealth Rock off their side of the field to perform their best. Tangela, on the other hand, excels as a physical sponge and works better on balance and bulky offense. Picks like Altaria, Articuno, Stunfisk, and Poliwrath synergize well, as they cover most of Tangela's weaknesses. These teammates also rely on Tangela's Knock Off and status moves to make progress against opposing defensive cores. Overall, both Grass-types represent dominant and worthwhile niches and neither necessarily surpasses the other.

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Stunfisk or Galarian Stunfisk?

Much like the Tangela-Eldegoss rivalry, the two Stunfisk formes became closer in viability as the metagame progressed. Players were initially drawn in by Galarian Stunfisk's Steel typing, a rarity in ZU. This forme still has its perks, but the original Stunfisk ended up being the better of the two in the long run.

Galarian Stunfisk's typing and special bulk allow it to wall multiple threats initially, but the problem players realized is that it does little in return. Galarian Stunfisk isn't that strong and lacks both coverage and reliable recovery. ZU used to have more prominent Dragon- and Electric-types like Drampa, Silvally-Dragon, and Vikavolt, so Galarian Stunfisk was used for its advantageous typing. With these threats banned for a while now, there's a limited number of attackers left for Galarian Stunfisk to deal with, and it can struggle to actively counteract them with its poor coverage. It has to use Foul Play to adequately punish Rotom, and even Articuno outstalls Rock Slide. As a Stealth Rock setter, it does little to deter most Defoggers and spinners, with Thunder Wave and Snap Trap + Yawn being unreliable. The Steel typing also adds weaknesses to Fire and Fighting. Galarian Stunfisk even lacks a Steel-type STAB attack, so it can't even deal with most of ZU's Ice-types. Without consistent matchups, Galarian Stunfisk falls below par.

Support for regular Stunfisk soon rose after acknowledging Galarian Stunfisk's shortcomings. Ground / Electric is a typing with more relevant neutralities rather than weaknesses. In addition to Stunfisk's good bulk, its typing makes it a much better check to the likes of Skuntank, Ninetales, and Manectric. It also has Toxic, which is a crucial catch-all status to spread against switch-ins like Tangela and Piloswine, and it pairs great with Earth Power nailing many immune Pokémon. Toxic additionally hits Will-O-Wisp + Hex Rotom, which otherwise would handle Foul Play. The last notable perk is Static, as the chance to paralyze physical attackers is significantly better than the useless, often detrimental Mimicry. Despite initial skepticism, the original Stunfisk proved itself to be better than the new one.

There's still some hope for Galarian Stunfisk, though. It functions as a counter to Frosmoth while deterring Volt Switch and Toxic. It is also better as a setup sweeper, with Curse sets patching up some of its passivity issues. Still, outside a few gimmicks, surprises, and legitimate albeit minor threats that it checks, Galarian Stunfisk still doesn't have much to differentiate it from the original. Use regular Stunfisk on your team unless you want to try something more unconventional with Galarian Stunfisk.

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Rotom or Rotom-S?

There's two Rotom formes in ZU: the base forme and Rotom-S. Regular Rotom by far outshines its transformation, but Rotom-S isn't without its supporters.

Both formes are offensive pivots and Nasty Plot sweepers with Volt Switch and Thunderbolt. The difference comes down to typing and stats. Rotom's secondary Ghost typing is ultimately much more complementary compared to Flying. It enables STAB Shadow Ball, which hits Ground- and Electric-types much harder than STAB Air Slash. With Electric, this coverage goes almost completely unresisted, whereas Volt Switch + Air Slash is stopped by a good number of Pokémon. For example, Rhydon, Stunfisk, and Manectric are much better at switching into attacks from Rotom-S compared to Rotom. Rotom-S is also slower than Rotom, but it has extra bulk. This bulk may help Rotom-S switch into targets like Eldegoss and Throh, but ultimately the extra Speed and superior typing that regular Rotom provides are far better.

If you opt for Rotom-S, use it for its defensive merits. It has better bulk and good resistances to Fighting and Grass for switching into some walls and slower attackers. Regular Rotom is frailer with exploitable weaknesses, like how it goes down to Dark-type attacks unless it runs Colbur Berry. This makes its Fighting immunity not as great when almost all Fighting-types use Knock Off, and even Sawk uses Mold Breaker Earthquake to OHKO Rotom. Rotom-S instead is a safer pick to punish and switch into Fighting-types, but note that the risks of losing Heavy-Duty Boots and switching into Sawk's Stone Edge still make these matchups shaky. With Air Slash and a resistance to Grass, Rotom-S can actually switch in to punish bulky Grass-types like Thwackey and Tangela, a feat that other Electric-types fail at. The extra bulk can also generally come in handy against threats like Qwilfish and Cramorant so that Rotom-S may switch in and force them out. In a metagame where Eldegoss and Throh are commonly used as soft checks to sponge Rotom's attacks, there's an edge to using Rotom-S. These positive matchups, while fishy, might make you a fan of the other Rotom!

More often than not, though, teams should default to regular Rotom. It has many more potential sets and variations, and the Shadow Ball + Volt Switch combination is too good to pass up. Teams with glaring weaknesses to Grass- and Fighting-types can try swapping in Rotom-S over Rotom to see if that fixes things. Both are able to run Choice Scarf, Nasty Plot, and Defog sets with minor variations between them, so the swap might actually work out. However, it could be better to just rework the support and go back to Rotom.

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Anything else?

It would really Sawk to Throh a game by having the wrong Fighting-type on your team! Building with either Sawk or Throh is easy enough given they are top tier Fighting-types in ZU, but each has their own niche and purposes despite some offensive overlap. Sawk often uses a Choice item and is a great threat offensively, whereas Throh is specially defensive and sponges hits from Rotom, Frosmoth, and Thievul.

Appletun and Flapple are a decent pair in ZU, but I like their apple impression better. Of the two, Appletun is slightly more viable as a consistent wall, whereas Flapple is often too inconsistent as a wallbreaker. Hustle is a discouraging ability that many players avoid entirely. There's also competition for Flapple with similar wallbreakers and sweepers like Shiftry and Thwackey. While Appletun has its own competition, its unique typing and signature attack Apple Acid let it carve its own niche. Regardless, both still struggle with their Ice weakness and the popularity of Ice-types like Articuno and Jynx in ZU.

Gourgeist formes and Trevenant received an offensive upgrade with Poltergeist. Gourgeist-S reigns supreme among its competition thanks to being the fastest. Outspeeding Rotom, Silvally formes, and Jynx is great when spamming Poltergeist. Trevenant is seldomly used instead for its raw power and Natural Cure. Gourgeist-XL can function as either a wall or a bulky offensive mix between the prior two.

Silvally formes are the most diverse of all. They're mostly valued for their strong Multi Attack and utility as pivots with Defog. Silvally-Dark and Silvally-Poison are by far the most viable. Silvally-Dark's Multi Attack is spammable, so it makes a great Swords Dance sweeper. It also boosts with Flame Charge, and coverage like Psychic Fangs, Iron Head, and U-turn deals with most switch-ins. Silvally-Poison needs more coverage to pull off sweeping roles, but it's arguably better at a utility role. Absorbing Toxic Spikes, removing entry hazards with Defog, and pivoting is a great combination. Other Silvally types like Electric, Fighting, Flying, Normal, Psychic, and Water are less viable alternatives as sweepers and pivots. Choosing the right Silvally forme comes down to the inherent value of their typings—or the item freedom with Normal—and the viability of teammates that synergize with said typings. Some argue any Silvally forme can work well in ZU, and even some unranked formes like Silvally-Grass have seen tour wins.

Whichever forme is your fancy, it's safe to say there's a lot of options to try out when teambuilding.

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