WEEK 1
SS RU
Leads | Combos | Moves and Teammates
Highlights
Rotom-Mow (
)
To the surprise of basically no one, Rotom-Mow sees itself as the most used Pokemon in Week 1 of RU action in Snake. What Rotom-Mow was able to provide in the teambuilder was flexibility, as it was able to effectively pilot 2 different sets at a relatively equal level, namely a Choice Scarf set or a Nasty Plot + Defog Set, with either Leftovers or without an item. Choice Scarf is the most straightforward set, providing speed control for the team and allows for fast pivoting with Volt Switch. Additionally, it can provide some small utility via Trick, tricking its Choice Scarf onto an opposing wall to cripple it. On the other hand, the Nasty Plot + Defog set provides role compression, being able to fit both hazard removal and a set-up breaker onto one slot. By virtue of its great typing, it is able to heavily punish Ground-types that attempt to block its Volt Switch, such as Steelix and Seismitoad, with a Leaf Storm right after. Nasty Plot allows it to exert great pressure on opposing teams by boosting its damage output versus stuff such as Slowbro-Galar while pivoting, or threatening an OHKO on stuff such as Steelix when boosted. Additionally, it is able to run itemless to block Poltergeist, which can make it particularly effective in dealing with Golurk as it is immune to Earthquake as well with the ability Levitate. Examples of its effectiveness can be witnessed in PepeDuce's game where his Nasty Plot Rotom-Mow exerted a lot of pressure on Nat's slower-paced team, in Feliburn's game where Rotom-Mow is able to pivot on Dragalge and bring in Gardevoir safely on 3 separate occassions, and finally, in Charmflash's game where it was able to safely bring in Golurk to basically claim a kill each time it came in.
Now, there's a very interesting question to be asked here, what will these players turn to now that Rotom-Mow has risen up to UU to fill the void it left. Would it be alternate forms of Rotom such as regular Rotom or Rotom-Frost, or perhaps fellow Electric-types such as Heliolisk or Vikavolt? We will have to wait and see when the games this week are being played!
Slowbro-Galar (
)
In its debut generation, it has quickly made an impact in RU as it is able to effectively function as a bulky pivot with its ability Regenerator, and decent defensive stats with a 95/95/70 spread in base stats, as well as its ability to absorb Toxic Spikes due to its part Poison typing. Currently in the tier, its most effective sets are Calm Mind + Slack Off, or Assault Vest. With its adequate bulk and key resistances to Fighting, Poison and Fairy, by virtue of its typing, it is able to function as a bulky set up sweeper with recovery that is able to exert pressure on most teams. On the other hand, Assault Vest sets allow for it to pivot into some of the more threatening special attackers in the tier such as Goodra and Dragalge, and pressure opposing teams with the use of Future Sight. A less common option that also saw use this week was Nasty Plot + Slack Off, in roman's game, which can be used to pose a larger threat in terms of damage potential off the bat and can potentially catch opponents off guard. Slowbro-Galar was also being used very effectively in Nat and PepeDuce's game, by functioning as a pivot with its classic Assault Vest set and kept up pressure on the opposing teams with Future Sight, which definitely affected certain plays being made during the game.
Will Slowbro-Galar continue to see relatively similar, or possibly even more usage, in weeks to come? What do you guys think? I personally think it will see relatively similar usage due to its ability to effectively pivot into menacing special attackers in the tier and potentially pose a threat damage-wise if using set-up variants.
Seismitoad (
)
Seismitoad has recently seen a surge of usage in the tier, however not in its usual role as a Stealth Rocker, even though it can still be used to set Stealth Rocks if needed. The set that has caught attention as of late is its Choice Band set, paired with another Pokemon as the Stealth Rocker, such as Bronzong or Steelix. Its dual STABs, along with its coverage options in Ice Punch and Knock Off mainly, are able to heavily threaten majority of the tier, and can yield a lot of effectiveness if the right prediction is made to nab the switch-ins. We saw it being used in Ajna's game and Nat's game, albeit not necessarily netting wins in these games, I believe it still has a ton of potential as it can pose a huge nuisance on team preview. Whether we still see it being used depends largely on whether the player's perspective on this Pokemon has been shifted from these games, or whether it stays the same. We can only wait and see when the games are being played.
Golurk (
)
Another Ground-type, Golurk, has also seen a fair bit of usage in Week 1, with a different set each time its being used. The sets being used this time around were Rindo Berry, Rock Polish + Life Orb, and Choice Band. We saw Rindo Berry, which is not really a common set, but was an effective lure in snaga's game, by being able to tank a Leaf Storm and kill of Rotom-Mow, which is the intended target behind this lure. Rock Polish + Life Orb, being used by atomicllamas, and Choice Band, being used by Charmflash, were both seen in the same game. On atomicllamas' side, the set-up breaker / sweeper could have potentially exerted more pressure on the opposing team if not for the Poltergeist blunder (feelsbadman). On Charmflash's side, we saw Golurk at essentially peak effectiveness, pivoting in multiple times via Rotom-Mow's Volt Switch and Porygon2's Teleport, to pick up a bunch of kills vs atomicllamas' team which had no Ghost resist with Choice Band boosted Poltergeist.
I believe Golurk is a Pokemon that should potentially see more usage down the line, due to its threatening presence both on team preview and in practice, and getting Poltergeist this gen as a stronger Ghost STAB option was essentially a godsend in pushing it to newer heights.
Ninjask (
)
Last but not least, Ninjask. While it only got used once, it was able to pick up a win piloted by PepeDuce. For all those people who have faced PepeDuce on the ladder before, you guys should know that Ninjask is essentially his signature mon, and seeing him pilot it to success on his official tour debut is really nice to see. More on Ninjask itself, I think this Pokemon is particularly interesting and worth to take a look at, due to its blistering Speed tier that can even allow it to outrun certain scarfers. With its ability in Speed Boost, it can essentially outpace the entire metagame and exert a lot of pressure, slowly racking up damage via U-turn for momentum, and Dual Wingbeat (if using Heavy-Duty Boots) or Acrobatics (if itemless). In Pepeduce's game, we saw the itemless set which essentially was able to clean up a weakened team in the endgame due to its blistering speed.
It will be very interesting to see if Ninjask sees more usage in the future weeks, and if so, how will these players work Ninjask onto their teams to bring out its effectiveness.
Leads | Combos | Moves and Teammates
Code:
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon | Use | Usage % | Win % |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1 | Rotom-Mow | 8 | 80.00% | 50.00% |
| 2 | Slowbro-Galar | 5 | 50.00% | 80.00% |
| 3 | Dragalge | 4 | 40.00% | 25.00% |
| 3 | Bewear | 4 | 40.00% | 25.00% |
| 3 | Bronzong | 4 | 40.00% | 0.00% |
| 6 | Golurk | 3 | 30.00% | 66.67% |
| 6 | Seismitoad | 3 | 30.00% | 33.33% |
| 8 | Klefki | 2 | 20.00% | 100.00% |
| 8 | Inteleon | 2 | 20.00% | 100.00% |
| 8 | Gardevoir | 2 | 20.00% | 50.00% |
| 8 | Sigilyph | 2 | 20.00% | 50.00% |
| 8 | Steelix | 2 | 20.00% | 50.00% |
| 8 | Milotic | 2 | 20.00% | 0.00% |
| 8 | Passimian | 2 | 20.00% | 0.00% |
| 15 | Silvally | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Silvally-Dark | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Coalossal | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Gourgeist-Large | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Scrafty | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Ninjask | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Persian-Alola | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Copperajah | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Togedemaru | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Porygon2 | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Druddigon | 1 | 10.00% | 100.00% |
| 15 | Umbreon | 1 | 10.00% | 0.00% |
| 15 | Ninetales | 1 | 10.00% | 0.00% |
| 15 | Tauros | 1 | 10.00% | 0.00% |
| 15 | Haunter | 1 | 10.00% | 0.00% |
| 15 | Lycanroc | 1 | 10.00% | 0.00% |Highlights
Rotom-Mow (
To the surprise of basically no one, Rotom-Mow sees itself as the most used Pokemon in Week 1 of RU action in Snake. What Rotom-Mow was able to provide in the teambuilder was flexibility, as it was able to effectively pilot 2 different sets at a relatively equal level, namely a Choice Scarf set or a Nasty Plot + Defog Set, with either Leftovers or without an item. Choice Scarf is the most straightforward set, providing speed control for the team and allows for fast pivoting with Volt Switch. Additionally, it can provide some small utility via Trick, tricking its Choice Scarf onto an opposing wall to cripple it. On the other hand, the Nasty Plot + Defog set provides role compression, being able to fit both hazard removal and a set-up breaker onto one slot. By virtue of its great typing, it is able to heavily punish Ground-types that attempt to block its Volt Switch, such as Steelix and Seismitoad, with a Leaf Storm right after. Nasty Plot allows it to exert great pressure on opposing teams by boosting its damage output versus stuff such as Slowbro-Galar while pivoting, or threatening an OHKO on stuff such as Steelix when boosted. Additionally, it is able to run itemless to block Poltergeist, which can make it particularly effective in dealing with Golurk as it is immune to Earthquake as well with the ability Levitate. Examples of its effectiveness can be witnessed in PepeDuce's game where his Nasty Plot Rotom-Mow exerted a lot of pressure on Nat's slower-paced team, in Feliburn's game where Rotom-Mow is able to pivot on Dragalge and bring in Gardevoir safely on 3 separate occassions, and finally, in Charmflash's game where it was able to safely bring in Golurk to basically claim a kill each time it came in.
Now, there's a very interesting question to be asked here, what will these players turn to now that Rotom-Mow has risen up to UU to fill the void it left. Would it be alternate forms of Rotom such as regular Rotom or Rotom-Frost, or perhaps fellow Electric-types such as Heliolisk or Vikavolt? We will have to wait and see when the games this week are being played!
Slowbro-Galar (
In its debut generation, it has quickly made an impact in RU as it is able to effectively function as a bulky pivot with its ability Regenerator, and decent defensive stats with a 95/95/70 spread in base stats, as well as its ability to absorb Toxic Spikes due to its part Poison typing. Currently in the tier, its most effective sets are Calm Mind + Slack Off, or Assault Vest. With its adequate bulk and key resistances to Fighting, Poison and Fairy, by virtue of its typing, it is able to function as a bulky set up sweeper with recovery that is able to exert pressure on most teams. On the other hand, Assault Vest sets allow for it to pivot into some of the more threatening special attackers in the tier such as Goodra and Dragalge, and pressure opposing teams with the use of Future Sight. A less common option that also saw use this week was Nasty Plot + Slack Off, in roman's game, which can be used to pose a larger threat in terms of damage potential off the bat and can potentially catch opponents off guard. Slowbro-Galar was also being used very effectively in Nat and PepeDuce's game, by functioning as a pivot with its classic Assault Vest set and kept up pressure on the opposing teams with Future Sight, which definitely affected certain plays being made during the game.
Will Slowbro-Galar continue to see relatively similar, or possibly even more usage, in weeks to come? What do you guys think? I personally think it will see relatively similar usage due to its ability to effectively pivot into menacing special attackers in the tier and potentially pose a threat damage-wise if using set-up variants.
Seismitoad (
Seismitoad has recently seen a surge of usage in the tier, however not in its usual role as a Stealth Rocker, even though it can still be used to set Stealth Rocks if needed. The set that has caught attention as of late is its Choice Band set, paired with another Pokemon as the Stealth Rocker, such as Bronzong or Steelix. Its dual STABs, along with its coverage options in Ice Punch and Knock Off mainly, are able to heavily threaten majority of the tier, and can yield a lot of effectiveness if the right prediction is made to nab the switch-ins. We saw it being used in Ajna's game and Nat's game, albeit not necessarily netting wins in these games, I believe it still has a ton of potential as it can pose a huge nuisance on team preview. Whether we still see it being used depends largely on whether the player's perspective on this Pokemon has been shifted from these games, or whether it stays the same. We can only wait and see when the games are being played.
Golurk (
Another Ground-type, Golurk, has also seen a fair bit of usage in Week 1, with a different set each time its being used. The sets being used this time around were Rindo Berry, Rock Polish + Life Orb, and Choice Band. We saw Rindo Berry, which is not really a common set, but was an effective lure in snaga's game, by being able to tank a Leaf Storm and kill of Rotom-Mow, which is the intended target behind this lure. Rock Polish + Life Orb, being used by atomicllamas, and Choice Band, being used by Charmflash, were both seen in the same game. On atomicllamas' side, the set-up breaker / sweeper could have potentially exerted more pressure on the opposing team if not for the Poltergeist blunder (feelsbadman). On Charmflash's side, we saw Golurk at essentially peak effectiveness, pivoting in multiple times via Rotom-Mow's Volt Switch and Porygon2's Teleport, to pick up a bunch of kills vs atomicllamas' team which had no Ghost resist with Choice Band boosted Poltergeist.
I believe Golurk is a Pokemon that should potentially see more usage down the line, due to its threatening presence both on team preview and in practice, and getting Poltergeist this gen as a stronger Ghost STAB option was essentially a godsend in pushing it to newer heights.
Ninjask (
Last but not least, Ninjask. While it only got used once, it was able to pick up a win piloted by PepeDuce. For all those people who have faced PepeDuce on the ladder before, you guys should know that Ninjask is essentially his signature mon, and seeing him pilot it to success on his official tour debut is really nice to see. More on Ninjask itself, I think this Pokemon is particularly interesting and worth to take a look at, due to its blistering Speed tier that can even allow it to outrun certain scarfers. With its ability in Speed Boost, it can essentially outpace the entire metagame and exert a lot of pressure, slowly racking up damage via U-turn for momentum, and Dual Wingbeat (if using Heavy-Duty Boots) or Acrobatics (if itemless). In Pepeduce's game, we saw the itemless set which essentially was able to clean up a weakened team in the endgame due to its blistering speed.
It will be very interesting to see if Ninjask sees more usage in the future weeks, and if so, how will these players work Ninjask onto their teams to bring out its effectiveness.
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