5Dots
Chairs
”SD up to +6, Use Fissure. Check and mate. Any Questions?”
[OVERVIEW]
Sandslash is able to carve out a solid niche in NU as the only fully evolved Ground-type that possesses Swords Dance and a neutrality to Earthquake. Thanks to its immunity to Thunder Wave, Sandslash can switch in more easily than other Swords Dance users, like Kingler and Pinsir, by predicting Thunder Wave from Pokemon like Electrode, Drowzee, and Mr. Mime. It further benefits from the coveted Earthquake + Rock Slide combination, alongside other key offensive moves like Substitute and Body Slam. Its Speed tier is also serviceable enough to outspeed key staples like Golem, Clefable, and Porygon. Lastly, Sandslash possesses good physical bulk, allowing it to combat physical attackers like Golem effectively. With paralysis support from Pokemon like Mr. Mime and Clefable, Sandslash can ravage the opposing team late-game.
However, while having some use, Sandslash's Speed tier is still poor: the relevant Water-types of the tier, such as Kingler, Blastoise, Seadra, and Kabutops, will outspeed it, threatening significant damage before it can set up with Swords Dance. Ergo, they must be removed, severely weakened, or crippled for Sandslash to be effective. This usually causes it to rely on paralysis support, which many teams cannot afford to easily provide. Although Sandslash is immune to Thunder Wave, paralysis from Body Slam, Stun Spore, or Glare cripples its chances to sweep late-game, exposing its poor special bulk and cutting into what Speed it does have. Lastly, it faces heavy competition as a Ground-type from Nidoking and Golem: the former has a much more flexible movepool, better Speed, and a Toxic immunity, while the latter has access to STAB Rock Slide, an important resistance to Fire, more immediate power, and Explosion.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Rock Slide
move 4: Body Slam / Substitute
[SET COMMENTS]
Swords Dance is Sandslash's calling card, driving its Attack stat to terrifying levels. At +2, it can threaten OHKOs on Pokemon like Electrode, Mr. Mime, and Nidoking with Earthquake. Rock Slide complements Earthquake, providing unresisted coverage and securing OHKOs on Charizard and Moltres after a boost; it also hits Pinsir and Fearow hard. Body Slam discourages switch-ins from Poliwhirl and Blastoise, potentially paralyzing them. Alternatively, Substitute can exploit predicted switches and grants Sandslash more opportunities to set up, especially given its immunity to Thunder Wave.
Sandslash has a surprisingly interesting movepool, making it quite customizable. Slash gives Sandslash immediate power and tears through Pokemon relying on Reflect, such as Abra and rare variants of Mr. Mime, Clefable, and Wigglytuff. Toxic prevents partial trappers like AgiliWrap Dragonair, Charizard, Moltres, and Rapidash from pinning it down. Submission is its best option against Clefable, Porygon, and Wigglytuff; however, the recoil, shaky accuracy, and lower damage than Earthquake against neutral targets make it a niche option at best. Hyper Beam is Sandslash's best move against Exeggcute and matches Earthquake’s power but fails to notably hit other targets.
As a result of its typing and good physical bulk, Sandslash can pivot in against Electrode and Golem as well as Pokemon running Rest, such as Moltres and Blastoise, which let it also break holes in the opposition with Swords Dance. Since they let Sandslash set up, sleeping Pokemon are effectively left on the sidelines until it is eliminated. Pokemon carrying Thunderbolt, like Clefable, that can deter Water-types like Seadra and Blastoise from staying in allows Sandslash to set up more easily. Chip damage from Fire Spin users like Moltres, Rapidash, and Charizard, as well as Wrap from Dragonair, is also appreciated to help secure OHKOs after a Swords Dance, which makes Sandslash more difficult to deal with over the course of a game. Lastly, paralysis support from the likes of Electrode and Mr. Mime allows Sandslash to not only have more setup opportunities, but also to fish for full paralysis with Substitute and become even more lethal.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[5Dots, 543866]]
- Quality checked by: [[pac, 520967], [May, 236353]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429]]
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