ORAS PU Sleeping Beauty

Acast

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Credit to f(x) for the amazing art!





Introduction

Hey RMT forum. Everyone in PU has been pretty excited about the new drops for the past week or two, so I decided to focus my second RMT on the pokemon I'm most excited about: Muk. The pile of purple filth can be a very reliable wallbreaker, tank, or wincon and that reliability is what makes it my favorite of the 5 new drops into PU. The day after the drops occurred, the PU room was full of talk about how to use the new pokemon and what kinds of cores could be formed. I mentioned Muk+Probopass, thinking that Probo can handle the Steel types that would wall Muk. At the time everyone was thinking about Muk's wallbreaking ability with a Choice Band more than any other set, and CB Muk handles most Steel types quite easily with Fire Punch, so most people agreed Muk+Probo wouldn't catch on. Funnily enough, a day later MaroGod told me that Muk+Probo is actually pretty good if Muk is running a Curse RestTalk set, aka "CroMuk" (named after the famous Crocune set for Suicune). MaroGod's CroMuk suggestion ended up being my inspiration for this team. Since then I've noticed a few people have been using it along with Probopass too, so it's not as unique as I was hoping. Even so, I like to think this team is one of the more successful ones to run the Muk+Probo core.​


As mentioned in the introduction, I started the team with a core of Muk and Probopass. Muk is the team's wincon, but it's entirely walled by Steel types and struggles against Rock and Poison types. Probopass's greatest niche in PU is eliminating Steel types and it's not too bad at dealing with Rock and Poison either since it has Earth Power.


Immediately I noticed the primary core has a weakness to Ground, so I added Pelipper to be a switch-in for Ground attacks as well as hazard control. I also just wanted try it out since it was a new drop that came along with Muk.


Before the new drops, one of my favorite defensive cores was Swanna+Audino because Audino keeps the rest of the team healthy and sponges just about any unboosted attack that isn't Fighting type while Swanna handled the Fighting attacks. I decided to add Audino to this team to form the same core but with a bulkier Water/Flying type this time. It works even better than the old Swanna+Audino core in my opinion.


At this point I wanted to cover Pelipper's crippling weakness to Electric. Audino can tank most Electric attacks, but Pelipper is so important that I wanted extra security. I also noticed that the team is very slow. Both of those issues are patched up by adding Lightningrod Zebstrika.


Finally I wanted a Pursuit trapper to handle the Psychic types and Ghost types that would give Muk trouble, but I usually like most of my teams to have some immediate power too, so Choice Band Stoutland seemed like a good choice.


After some testing on the ladder I discovered a very big issue with the team: half of it is weak to Fighting and another half is weak to Ground. The team did have Pelipper, which does extremely well against both of those types. But a big problem I noticed was that I was relying on Pelipper to do way too much for the team. I can't expect it to function as my physical wall, hazard control, my only Ground switch-in, AND my only Fighting switch-in. That's just too much burden to place on one member of the team. So I decided to try for a more offensive approach with Scarf Mr. Mime and Banded Dodrio to patch up my Fighting weakness and add another Ground immunity. It only worked moderately well and I was really struggling from losing Audino's bulk.


After getting frustrated with my lack of success, I decided to bring Audino back and reevaluate the team from the perspective of my primary goal: allowing Muk to set up. I must have lost sight of that goal at some point because doing this helped me realize I don't need a wallbreaker on the team. Muk loves facing walls because most of them are setup bait. What I really need to do is eliminate the offensive pokemon on the opponent's team so Muk can set up Curse more easily. With this new role in mind, I added Life Orb Dusknoir because it’s great at handling the more frail offensive pokemon with its dual priority moves. Its bulk and immunity to Fighting are also greatly appreciated to lessen the burden on Pelipper.


The Team



Muk @ Black Sludge
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Curse
- Poison Jab

This set honestly surprises me with how many opportunities it finds to set up. The main thing holding it back is opposing Steel types and to a lesser extent opposing Ground and Psychic types with strong STAB moves. As long as you wait to set it up until those threats are eliminated, Muk shouldn't let you down.

Maximizing its special bulk allows it to set up more easily and not have to use Rest as often. Poison Jab is preferred over Gunk Shot for its higher PP and accuracy. Sticky Hold is very necessary on this set to prevent Trick or Knock Off from ruining Muk's setup (especially Trick).



Probopass @ Leftovers
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 168 HP / 252 SpA / 88 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Flash Cannon
- Earth Power
- Volt Switch

This is the typical offensive pivot set that most Probopass run. It's primary function on this team is as a Steel trapper thanks to Magnet Pull. Probopass should usually be preserved until all the opposing Steel types are eliminated. Mawile and Pawniard (before it sets up) are sitting ducks if you can get Probopass in play. Metang fairs better against Probopass because of its bulk and access to Earthquake, but if it's weakened already or if its Eviolite is knocked off, Probo can still trap it, outspeed it, and KO it with Earth Power.​
252+ SpA Probopass Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Eviolite Pawniard: 204-240 (88.3 - 103.8%) -- 25% chance to OHKO

252+ Atk Pawniard Iron Head vs. 168 HP / 0 Def Probopass: 78-93 (25.7 - 30.6%) -- 3.5% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Metang with Eviolite:
252+ SpA Probopass Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Eviolite Metang: 122-144 (37.6 - 44.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Metang without Eviolite:
252+ SpA Probopass Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Metang: 180-214 (55.5 - 66%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ Atk Metang Earthquake vs. 168 HP / 0 Def Probopass: 244-288 (80.5 - 95%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
Flash Cannon is mostly just spam-able STAB, but it also helps against the various Rock types in the tier, especially Solrock which is immune to Earth Power. Volt Switch allows Probo to be a slow pivot and bring in a teammate safely while also providing excellent coverage. The standard Probo EV spread has 84 speed EVs, which creeps neutral base 50s like Metang, Mawile, and Prinplup. I increased my spread to 88 speed EVs so I can outspeed opposing Probopass. Muk is so dependent upon Probo's Steel killer role that I can't afford to risk speed ties.



Pelipper @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Defog
- Scald
- Roost
- U-turn

With my team being as weak to Monferno as it is, Pelipper is a very important member on the team. It also happens to be my best check to Golem and lead Crustle. Whenever I see a Golem or Crustle on the opposing team, I usually lead with Pelipper because Scald is such a huge threat to them. I chose U-turn over Knock Off or Toxic to form a sort of VoltTurn core with Probopass and Zebstrika. Pelipper tends to get worn down relatively easily because it needs to switch in on so many things and oftentimes doesn't have the opportunity to Roost. I try to play it carefully so that Pelipper sticks around at least until the opposing hazard setter is knocked out.

An alternative EV spread is 252 HP / 160 Def / 96 Spe. The speed investment creeps 252 Speed Adamant Golem, but it sacrifices a decent amount of bulk to do so.



Audino @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Wish
- Protect
- Thunder Wave
- Knock Off

A very standard Audino set for the most part. Maximized special bulk is to take hits more readily and form a defensive core with Pelipper. Wish keeps the rest of the team healthy. Dusknoir especially appreciates the Wish passes because it relies on its bulk, but also gets worn down with its own Life Orb. I decided to pick Thunder Wave over Heal Bell or Encore because my main concern with this team is dealing with opposing offensive pokemon. Muk can set up on most defensive pokemon, but strong offensive pokemon won't make it quite so easy. Crippling them with paralysis on the switch and then letting Dusknoir, Probopass, or Pelipper take care of them later on is my usual strategy. I feel the need to have Knock Off appear at least once on every one of my teams because of how prevalent Eviolite is in PU. On this team it's even more important because Metang is the biggest threat to my wincon.



Zebstrika @ Life Orb
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Overheat
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Being the only fast and frail pokemon on the team, Zebstrika is a bit of an oddball but it plays a number of very important roles. Primarily, it's my Electric immunity thanks to Lightningrod. On a team that depends on Pelipper so much, an Electric immunity is almost mandatory. Together with Dusknoir, it also forms my revenge-killing offensive core. These two are my way of dealing with fast, offensive opponents like Simipour, Floatzel, and Leafeon to a lesser extent. Until recently I was running Hidden Power [Ice] like most standard Zebstrika sets do, but Golem is so common and such a big threat to this team that Hidden Power [Grass] turned out to be more useful.



Dusknoir @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Sneak / Thunder Punch
- Sucker Punch / Thunder Punch
- Earthquake
- Pursuit

Fighting immunity, secondary Normal check, spinblocker, speed control/general check to offensive teams, and most importantly, Pursuit trapper are all roles that Dusknoir fills on this team. It was the final member I added and it really glues the rest of the team together by patching up weaknesses and packing some nice bulk.

I run dual priority to deal with offensive pokemon that would otherwise KO Muk before it can set up. Shadow Sneak is the more reliable option while Sucker Punch is stronger and can hit Normal types. Thunder Punch could allow Dusknoir to act as a lure for opposing Pelipper and also give it a way to hit Vullaby, but I feel that the dual priority moves are better at accomplishing what I want Dusk to do: handling offensive teams. Earthquake is its strongest coverage move with no drawbacks and it really helps against things like Monferno, Stunfisk, and Muk. Pursuit is the primary reason Dusknoir is on this team. Things like Grumpig and Kadabra would otherwise be very difficult to deal with, so Pursuit is there to trap and eliminate them. It's also a great way to get rid of Cryogonal after switching in to spinblock, ensuring the hazards I set will stay up for the rest of the match.

44 EVs in Speed gives it just enough to outpace uninvested base 50 speed pokemon, the most significant of which are opposing Muk and Metang.


Weaknesses
Relicanth: This is the team's biggest weakness as far as I've noticed. Probopass is the only thing that can reliably switch in on a Head Smash, but it gets OHKO'd by Earthquake. The best way I've found to play around Relicanth is playing aggressively and trying to have either Zebstrika or Dusknoir in when Relicanth switches in. If it's a Rock Polish variant, you might need Audino to paralyze it before you can go for the revenge kill with Dusk or Zeb.

Duosion: Another huge weakness, but at least this one is less common. Duosion is bulky enough that it can tank my team's hits pretty well while it sets up and I have nothing to prevent that setup. Slowbroth suggested Taunt instead of Flash Cannon on Probopass, which would definitely fix my issue, but personally I think Flash Cannon is more useful.

There are probably other weaknesses, but these are the two that have stood out the most to me.​


Replays

Battle against Kern11 - The finals of a PU room tournament.
Battle against ShuckleDeath (tagging ShuckleDeath) - A pretty intense battle against a PU room mod.
Battle against November Rain - Another intense battle. This was also during a PU room tournament.
Battle against two12 - Another PU room tour. This one really highlights how well the team does against offense.
Battle against oujiaboard - I'm mostly including this one because of how ridiculous it is. It's the semifinals of an official PU room tournament and I'm battling the #2 player on the ladder. We went 62 turns without knocking out a single pokemon and it ended up lasting 184 turns total. I came dangerously close to running out of PP with my only wincon towards the end, but I ended up getting lucky with the Sleep Talk rolls before that happened.

Muk @ Black Sludge
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Curse
- Poison Jab

Probopass @ Leftovers
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 168 HP / 252 SpA / 88 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Flash Cannon
- Earth Power
- Volt Switch

Pelipper @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
- Defog
- Scald
- Roost
- U-turn

Audino @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Wish
- Protect
- Thunder Wave
- Knock Off

Zebstrika @ Life Orb
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 Def
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Overheat
- Hidden Power [Ice]

Dusknoir @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Sucker Punch
- Earthquake
- Pursuit


Conclusion

Muk has been one of the most fun pokemon to build around for me, even if it was a bit of a challenge at first. Its presence in the PU metagame can only be a good thing from what I've seen and I look forward to seeing what other people can come up with to make use of this new addition. Thanks for reading!
Muk @ Black Sludge
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Curse
- Poison Jab

Probopass @ Leftovers
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 168 HP / 252 SpA / 88 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Flash Cannon
- Earth Power
- Volt Switch

Pelipper @ Leftovers
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Impish Nature
- Defog
- Scald
- Roost
- U-turn

Tangela @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder

Zebstrika @ Life Orb
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 30 SpA
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Overheat
- Hidden Power [Grass]

Dusknoir @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Ice Punch
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
Muk @ Black Sludge
Ability: Sticky Hold
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Curse
- Poison Jab

Probopass @ Leftovers
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 168 HP / 252 SpA / 88 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Stealth Rock
- Flash Cannon
- Earth Power
- Volt Switch

Vibrava @ Eviolite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Defog
- U-turn
- Roost
- Earthquake

Audino @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Wish
- Protect
- Encore
- Knock Off

Floatzel @ Life Orb
Ability: Water Veil
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Waterfall
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Electric]
- Aqua Jet

Dusknoir @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Shadow Sneak
- Ice Punch
- Earthquake
- Pursuit
 
Last edited:

WhiteDMist

Path>Goal
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You can consider HP Water on Zebstrika to hit Camerupt and Crustle, at the cost of not hitting Seaking and Chinchou very well. Tbolt does more than HP Grass to Relicanth, so no major loss there.
 

ShuckleDeath

They call me the kign of typos
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Hello Acast pretty solid team here, I do see a pretty big weakness to Ground types such as Golem and Gabite, with Pelipper not being able to switch in to Stone Edge ad it does not appreciate getting hit by Gabites Toxic. My first suggestion would be running Ice Punch over Thunder Punch on Dusknoir as this allows you to hit Gabite and Dragon Dance Altaria as it sets up on good portion of your team, not only this but your wincon, Muk, actually sets up on Pelipper so I think this would be more crucial than trying to lure it in. I also feel you have an option of changing Audino out for SpDef Tangela, while you lose out on wish you gain a reliable water resist as well as a way to deal with Golem much easier and can also help to check Relicanth.


Thunder Punch ---> Ice Punch

---->


Tangela @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder / Synthisis


Thats the ideas I got, hope they help :)
 

Acast

Ghost of a Forum Mod & PS Room Owner
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Staff Alumnus
You can consider HP Water on Zebstrika to hit Camerupt and Crustle, at the cost of not hitting Seaking and Chinchou very well. Tbolt does more than HP Grass to Relicanth, so no major loss there.
Hello Acast pretty solid team here, I do see a pretty big weakness to Ground types such as Golem and Gabite, with Pelipper not being able to switch in to Stone Edge ad it does not appreciate getting hit by Gabites Toxic. My first suggestion would be running Ice Punch over Thunder Punch on Dusknoir as this allows you to hit Gabite and Dragon Dance Altaria as it sets up on good portion of your team, not only this but your wincon, Muk, actually sets up on Pelipper so I think this would be more crucial than trying to lure it in. I also feel you have an option of changing Audino out for SpDef Tangela, while you lose out on wish you gain a reliable water resist as well as a way to deal with Golem much easier and can also help to check Relicanth.


Thunder Punch ---> Ice Punch

---->


Tangela @ Eviolite
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Bold Nature
- Giga Drain
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Knock Off
- Sleep Powder / Synthisis


Thats the ideas I got, hope they help :)
Thank you both for the suggestions! I really like all 3 of these so I'll probably update the OP as soon as I'm on a computer (I'm on mobile atm.)

Question for ShuckleDeath: Which of Dusknoir's priority moves would you replace with Ice Punch?
 

ShuckleDeath

They call me the kign of typos
is a Team Rater Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnus
Thank you both for the suggestions! I really like all 3 of these so I'll probably update the OP as soon as I'm on a computer (I'm on mobile atm.)

Question for ShuckleDeath: Which of Dusknoir's priority moves would you replace with Ice Punch?
Id keep shadow sneak as i find it more reliable than sucker punch
 

MZ

And now for something completely different
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Hi cool team etc etc that banner is sick

So you've got some useful suggestions already, but I don't think they solve the main issue with the team. Faced with opposing balance, you have so little offensive presence that their wallbreakers are free to pressure you as much as they want. This is sorta how stall works, but a more semi-stallish approach with Zebstrika and offensive Dusk also doesn't take on some balance breakers too well, like NP Mime or CB Leaf. In fact you can look through your replays and the only game you have vs an offensive balanced-ish team like that you kept the win with some crucial full para's, so I think a way to increase general offensive presence would be huge here, alongside obviously getting better rock checks.

To this end, I'm recommending LO mixed Floatzel over Zebstrika as a way to punish balance a little better and revenge kill threatening stuff. The speed drop shouldn't be huge and you do have sufficient Floatzel checks, but the electric immunity loss is a little obnoxious. Fortunately, to better handle Rock-types, there is a nice solution of physically defensive Vibrava over Pelipper (same set as the analysis but phys def which is better in this meta anyway). It still takes on Monferno which is a large part of the role (plus floatzel jet is there if SD gets out of hand) while Defogging and doing generally the same stuff Pelipper took care of. There is a larger Floatzel weakness, but only in the sense that now more variants than just HP Electric are annoying and between brava/dino/dusk/muk I don't think there's much else to do there. The only other changes I'd recommend is definitely going Ice Punch Dusknoir now that Gabite is actually kinda hard to switch into (idk when that happened or how it even happens but it's comparatively a lot less minor then previous problems and you do have dino) and consider going back to Encore Audino because it's a really easy, no brainer fix to the CM Duosion/Audino/Beheeyem problem. I hope these changes help you out, I did enjoy the team a lot more when it wasn't just losing to a well played balance core. Unfortunately, vs Trapinch I can only recommend that you roll over and die given the Probo+Muk core but you can't win them all.

Summary of changes:
vibrava > pelipper
floatzel > audino
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/pu-418070769 I even got a replay of me testing it !_!
 

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