Wo-Chien
Stats
Ability: Tablets of Ruin - The attack stat of all other active pokemon is reduced by 25%
HP: 85
Attack: 85
Defense: 100*
Special Attack: 95
Special Defense: 135
Speed: 70
Notable Moves
*Moves bolded are particularly notableStats
Ability: Tablets of Ruin - The attack stat of all other active pokemon is reduced by 25%
HP: 85
Attack: 85
Defense: 100*
Special Attack: 95
Special Defense: 135
Speed: 70
Notable Moves
- Body Press
- Body Slam
- Dark Pulse
- Energy Ball
- Facade
- Foul Play
- Giga Drain
- Grass Knot
- Hex
- Knock Off
- Leaf Storm
- Leech Seed
- Light Screen
- Power Whip
- Protect
- Reflect
- Rest
- Seed Bomb
- Sleep Talk
- Stun Spore
- Substitute
- Taunt
- Tera Blast
- Trailblaze
- Zen Headbutt
Pros
- Audaciously good defensesWo-Chien has an 85/100/135 statline for defenses. This would already be incredible, as evidenced by
0 Atk Mew Giga Impact vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Toxapex: 75-89 (31.1 - 36.9%) -- 74.9% chance to 3HKO 0 Atk Mew Giga Impact vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Toxapex: 75-89 (31.1 - 36.9%) -- 74.9% chance to 3HKO
0 SpA Mew Hyper Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Toxapex: 79-94 (32.7 - 39%) -- 99.5% chance to 3HKO
0 Atk Mew Giga Impact vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Zarude: 108-128 (34.7 - 41.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 SpA Mew Hyper Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Zarude: 84-99 (27 - 31.8%) -- guaranteed 4HKO Used Zarude with adjusted stats to simulate Wo-Chien
0 SpA Mew Hyper Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Toxapex: 79-94 (32.7 - 39%) -- 99.5% chance to 3HKO
0 Atk Mew Giga Impact vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Zarude: 108-128 (34.7 - 41.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 SpA Mew Hyper Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Zarude: 84-99 (27 - 31.8%) -- guaranteed 4HKO Used Zarude with adjusted stats to simulate Wo-Chien
- Utility
Wo-Chien has access to a fair amount of strong utility moves, most notably Leech Seed, Knock Off, Taunt, and Stun Spore. Notably, knock off had its distribution limited, which means it will be a lot more notable to have this utility. Taking a look at what else gets leech seed, Wo-Chien seems like it will be the premier leech seed user in the tier (spore focus punch Breloom sets may use this as well, but that is a less traditional usage than Wo-Chien). Stun Spore has accuracy issues, and taunt may not be able to fit on every sit, but they are nonetheless good alternatives.
- Variety
Usually, a pokemon is very obviously either a physical attacker or special attacker. However, Wo-Chien has the movepool to be either. For stabs, the combinations of either Power Whip and Knock Off or Leaf Storm/Energy Ball and Dark Pulse work as attacking moves. Wo-Chien also has access to body press, which will most likely see lots of mileage. Although special attack has 10 more points than attack, knock off’s strength may make some users go the physical route instead. Mixed is also a very possible option on this pokemon. It will be tough to completely predict what exactly Wo-Chien will be running, and opponents will need to analyze Wo-Chien’s role on the team to make an educated guess, which is good for this pokemon.
Cons
- 4x bug weaknessPlenty of incredible pokemon have 4x weaknesses (Lando-T, Heatran, Kartana, etc), but a 4x bug weakness is notable because of u-turn. Wo-Chien getting blasted by a u-turn not only heavily depletes its HP, but it puts the user on the back foot because of momentum. Wo-Chien is a relatively slow pokemon pace-wise, and it might struggle to keep up with the prevalence of this momentum move.
- No Recovery
Although this is not as much of a weakness as it would be in previous gens due to the PP nerfs, a defensive pokemon not having access to reliable recovery is a definitive con. Although leech seed and leftovers will allow Wo-Chien to recover some HP, it pales in comparison to what recover, slack off, or roost would do for another pokemon. Because Wo-Chien is centered around defense, not having the longevity of competitors is a significant concern.
- Inconsistent with Metagame Trends
At current, the tier is absolutely dominated by the strong offensive presence of many threats (as are many new generations). As a result, defense oriented play styles will not be nearly as common or viable as they will be in the future. Additionally, the recovery PP nerfs do a number on bulky offense, balance, and stall that other styles were able to avoid. As a result, it may be challenging to fit this pokemon on teams, and it could slide down in usage as a result. This pokemon is also fodder for Volcarona, which might end up being a staple pokemon in the tier (as it has been good in every tier since its release).
Terastallizing
In all likelihood, this pokemon should not be terastallizing. Generally, terastallizing should be reserved for an offensive pokemon, and Wo-Chien will almost never be used as that. One thing that Wo-Chien could benefit from is rock type terastallizing. This would allow it to blast Volcarona with a strong STAB tera blast. Alternatively, grass type terastallizing into a strong leaf storm move could be a great way to surprise unsuspecting opponents thinking Wo-Chien was merely acting as a wall. With that being said, this pokemon should generally not be the terastallizing pokemon in any given battle. Potential Sets
Wall Sina (Wo-Chien) @ Leftovers
Ability: Tablets of Ruin
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Leech Seed
- Protect
- Knock Off
- Power Whip
Wall Rose (Wo-Chien) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Tablets of Ruin
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
- Stun Spore
- Body Press
- Knock Off
- Tera Blast
Wall Maria (Wo-Chien) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Tablets of Ruin
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Leech Seed
- Substitute
- Energy Ball
- Dark Pulse
In truth, because Wo-Chien is so splashable, there are many different variations of similar sets. These are just some examples, feel free to mix and match EVs, items, and moves to make the best possible tablet slug you can!
Consensus
It’s good!
For real though. To be perfectly candid, I do not know if Wo-Chien has what it takes to be an OU pokemon. While it has absurd defenses, there are plenty of pokemon with great defenses. That is not enough to make it OU, and a middle of the road moveset and some troublesome weaknesses may hold it back. It also will compete with Meowscarada and Brute Bonnet for a grass/dark spot (Zarude too when it comes out, and I guess Cacturne but realistically nobody is using Cacturne). However, one thing is for certain: this pokemon can work at an OU level. It has great strengths, and a good team that can take advantage of them is sure to get a lot of mileage. My guess for this thing out of OU, UU, RU, NU, or PU would be that it ends up as a UUBL, UU, or RUBL level pokemon. It seems too good for RU but not good enough for OU at a glance. Of course, I cannot wait to be proven wrong and this thing is Ubers or PU. This pokemon may also suffer from not being as “cool” as some of the new attackers. I implore you to try out slug buddy, even if it’s just on a single team. This pokemon has insane potential, and offers very unique things other pokemon cannot hope to match. Believe me, if you use this pokemon, you are sure to Wo-Chienjoy ;).It’s good!