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Abomasnow (Update)
- Thread starter Aeron Ee1
- Start date
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Comments
GP: 1/2
Also, some of your phrasing is a bit weird. There is nothing actually wrong with it, but if the other GP check agrees then something may need to be done about it.
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Comments
STAMPS
Quality Control: 3/3:
(panamaxis)
(Megan_Fox)(Setsuna)
Grammar Prose: 0/2:
======
http://www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/abomasnow
======
[Overview]
<p>Abomasnow is a fairly unique Pokemon, but that doesn't mean anything in the competitive environment,. whHere peer scrutiny brings out only the best of the best, and simply said, Abomasnow isn't one of them at all. Its typing brings it a total of 7 weaknesses, many of which are to common types such as Steel, Fire, and Fighting. This is Ccompounded by a further weakness to Stealth Rock, mediocre stats all-around, and an only decent barely adequate movepool, so it would seem that Abomasnow's fate in the OU tier is pretty clear.</p>
<p>It's not all bad news though, as Abomasnow's merits are still worth a look. For a start, it's the only auto-hail inducer in the game, and though this limits the amount variety of Pokemon you can use alongside it, it does give it a nice niche in that regard. Its typing also has its advantages; resistances to Water and Electric with a neutrality to Ice make it a great check to the many Water-types of the tier. Abomasnow also boasts 2 high-powered STAB options in Wood Hammer and Blizzard to make up for its middling attacking stats. Simply said, no matter how you look at it, Abomasnow is simply and very much a mixed bag of a Pokemon.</p>
[SET]
name: Leech Seed
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect / Substitute
move 3: Wood Hammer / Grass Knot
move 4: Blizzard / Ice Shard
nature: Sassy
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's typing makes it particularly good at dealing with the many Water-types in the OU tier, and pretty much any special attacker that lacks a super effective attack (coughLooking for something here?cough). This allows it a good number of oppurtunities to switch in and stall out an opponent with Leech Seed. Protect and Substitute help with the execution of this strategy (though Abomasnow's poor Speed stat makes the latter a lesser option), while the last 2 slots are for dedicated STAB attacks. Wood Hammer and Blizzard are both the more reliable and powerful options, but Grass Knot and Ice Shard make viable alternatives. The former having no recoil in comparison with Wood Hammer, while the latter being an ever-useful priority move.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Due to its typing, basically no physical attacker in the entire metagame will not have a super effective attack to hit Abomasnow with. Hence, very little investment is concentrated in that area, and everything is instead put into Abomasnow's special bulk. In terms of other options, Focus Punch in conjunction with Substitute can be used to deal with the Steel-types that Abomasnow generally has trouble with. A fast spread with a Timid nature, and a spread of 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 Spe can also be run, but Abomasnow does not have that much Speed to work with at all, and would prefer the bulkier spread most of the time.</p>
<p>Toxic Spikes, and all entry hazards in general, make an excellent option to include in your team simply because of the nature of this strategy. Tentacruel is an excellent candidate to take up this task as it synergizes almost perfectly has almost perfect synergy with Abomasnow, and has decent bulk as well. It also has access to Rapid Spin, which gets rid of any harmful entry hazards your opponent may set up. Pokemon with hail-related abilities such as Snow Body, or Snow Cloak, pair up well with Abomasnow for obvious reasons. However, including too many of them on your team can cause a swell of Fighting weaknesses, so a Ghost-type such as Rotom-A is also recommended to patch that hole up. Finally, Kingdra deserves a special mention, as it is able to very easily come in on any Fire-type attack aimed at Abomasnow and set up Dragon Dances with near impunity.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Earthquake
nature: Hasty
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 164 Atk / 116 SpA / 228 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Abomasnow's attacking stats are average at best, its powerful and reliable STAB options in Blizzard and Wood Hammer means that it can still be a viable offensive threat. With a Choice Scarf attached, Abomasnow will also be able to outspeed many Pokemon it couldn't prior before, including Dragonite, Infernape, and Gengar, making it that much more dangerous. Besides the STABs, Hidden Power Fire and Earthquake cover the Steel-types that resist both, particularly those with secondary Bug- (Scizor and Forretress) and Fire-typings (Heatran), respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Abomasnow to outspeed everything up to positive-natured base 110s, as well as always OHKO physically defensive Forretress with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock. Whatever's left is then sent into powering up the rest of the moveset as much as possible. Focus Punch is an option to hit Blissey, who walls the rest of the set, hard. Going fully special so as not have to split EVs with Grass Knot and Focus Blast over Wood Hammer and Earthquake is also an option. Since Abomasnow is going to be doing relatively high amounts of switching with this set, a Rapid Spin user is advised. Tentacruel and Starmie are both excellent candidates that synergize fairly well have good synergy with Abomasnow too. On a dedicated hail team, Abomasnow can perform the role of a revenge killer adequately, and works well with mixed Mamoswine to break down walls with its own 100% accurate STAB Blizzard.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Ice Shard
move 4: Earthquake / Focus Punch
nature: Brave
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's movepool and stats are just enough to run a decent mixed set with 4 attacking moves. Blizzard and Wood Hammer are the power STAB moves available to Abomasnow that allow this set to be viable, and they do good damage to many things. Ice Shard is STAB priority that is especially useful in picking off Dragon-type Pokemon, and Earthquake covers the Steel-types that resist the rest of the moveset. If you're feeling especially ballsy, you could run the more powerful (and risky) Focus Punch, which also deals major damage to Blissey, another troublesome Pokemon. Without any form of protection though, it's going to be heavily based on your less-than-perfect prediction skills.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread is pretty simple to understand with both attacking stats maximized for maximum damage output. Diverting some into Speed is a reasonable idea though, in order to outspeed specific threats; at least a neutral nature is required to outspeed Blissey and Swampert, and a further 84 EVs are needed for Skarmory. Hidden Power Fire, or Substitute / Protect can be run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, or ease prediction on your part, respectively. Team-wise, you're going to want something to make up for Abomasnow's poor Speed stat, like paralysis support. Rotom-A is able to provide this with Thunder Wave, and can switch in for free on any Fighting-type attacks aimed at Abomasnow. It can also benefit from the indefinite hail brought forth by Abomasnow with its access to Blizzard. Other than that, the usual hail Pokemon make obvious teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Grass Knot / Energy Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
nature: Modest / Mild
item: Choice Specs
evs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a pair of slick Choice Specs on, Abomasnow's Blizzard becomes incredibly powerful, and will be doing some serious damage to anything that doesn't resist it (bar Blissey and Snorlax). In conjunction wWith it, Grass Knot covers Water-types, while also hitting Rock-types such as Tyranitar harder and more reliably. Hidden Power Fire OHKOes even the most specially defensive of Scizor and Forretress, while standing a chance to 2HKO Bronzong as well. Finally, a Fighting-type move in Focus Blast will help round off the coverage, KOing switch-ins such as Heatran and Tyranitar with ease. Even though it's super effective, Focus Blast still doesn't even come close to 2HKOing Blissey, however, so Focus Punch is a fair alternative to do just that. It is weaker in almost every other aspect though.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread is simple, Special Attack is maximized, and so is overall bulk, with 4 EVs taken out of HP are to reduce the damage done by Stealth Rock. A faster spread with a Timid nature can be run, but is not recommended. Much like the Choice Scarf set, Choice Specs Abomasnow abhors Stealth Rock, and appreciates their removal. Starmie and Tentacruel have already been mentioned as are excellent choices for this. Donphan can also do this, and it provides a sturdy Rock resist for Abomasnow. It is also able to utilize Stealth Rock effectively, which can help secure several KOs for Abomasnow. Finally, the slow Abomasnow appreciates paralysis support, which can be provided by something like Slowbro, who resists Fire and Fighting, though despite sharesing a Bug-type weakness.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A Choice Band set may seem appealing, but Abomasnow lacks a good neutral STAB attack on that end, and will often find itself being forced out or taking more damage than it can dish out. A Swords Dance set is not recommended for the same reason; in addition, the prediction skills required for it to be effective are not realistic, and many of its uses can be accomplished without Swords Dance. Seed Bomb can replace Wood Hammer on any Abomasnow if you don't like the recoil, while Energy Ball can replace Grass Knot to hit lighter Pokemon, though most of the Grass attack's targets are quite heavy. Both are generally the weaker alternatives, however. Abomasnow has access to Light Screen, Safeguard, and Mist, but there are so many bulkier Pokemon that would make better use of them.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Scizor resists both of Abomasnow's STABs, and can destroy Abomasnow with Bullet Punch before it can make a move. It also packs U-turn to ruin any Leech Seed shenanigans. Bronzong and Forretress both work decently with Gyro Ball, but their lack of Speed makes them easy targets for Leech Seed. Metagross doesn't take much damage from Earthquake, and can easily OHKO with Meteor Mash. Bullet Punch also does massive damage, and helps to avoid any Leech Seed attempts. Jirachi shrugs off Earthquake too, and can U-turn or simply wear down Abomasnow with Zen Headbutt or Psychic. Tyranitar despises being hit by Wood Hammer and must beware of Focus Punch, but can switch in easily on Blizzard and negate its perfect accuracy thanks to Sand Stream. Tyranitar can then hit back with a super effective Stone Edge or even a powerful Crunch.</p>
<p>Fire-types are a big problem if Abomasnow doesn't pack Earthquake and even then, many are faster and able to revenge kill with little to no consequence. Stone Edge Gyarados is another good check, as its high Special Defense allow it to sponge neutral STAB attacks quite well. It also has the option of using Taunt to block Leech Seed. Weavile greatly fears Focus Punch and takes considerable damage from Wood Hammer, but is immune to the effects of Snow Warning and can outspeed and KO with Brick Break. Switching into Abomasnow can be very annoying, so prey on any of its many weaknesses and keep attacking,; it will fall soon enough.</p>
GP: 1/2
Also, some of your phrasing is a bit weird. There is nothing actually wrong with it, but if the other GP check agrees then something may need to be done about it.
Red = Removed
Blue = Changed
Green = Comments
Wow, very good analysis. So many effective sets with very thorough explanation on everything.
Blue = Changed
Green = Comments
[Overview]
<p>Abomasnow is a fairly unique Pokemon, but that doesn't mean anything in the competitive environment. Here, peer scrutiny brings out only the best of the best, and simply said, Abomasnow isn't one of them at all. Its typing brings it a total of 7 weaknesses, many of which are common types such as Steel, Fire, and Fighting. This is compounded by a further weakness to Stealth Rock, mediocre stats all-around, and a barely adequate movepool, so it would seem that Abomasnow's fate in the OU tier is pretty clear.</p>
<p>It's not all bad news though, as Abomasnow's merits are still worth a look. For a start, it's the only auto-hail inducer in the game, and though this limits the variety of Pokemon you can use alongside it, it does give it a nice niche in that regard. Its typing also has its advantages; resistances to Water and Electric with a neutrality to Ice make it a great check to the many Water-types of the tier. Abomasnow also boasts 2 high-powered STAB options in Wood Hammer and Blizzard to make up for its middling attacking stats. All in all, no matter how you look at it, Abomasnow is simply and very much so; (this is an optional change, but I think it would be for the better.) a mixed bag of a Pokemon.</p>
[SET]
name: Leech Seed
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect / Substitute
move 3: Wood Hammer / Grass Knot
move 4: Blizzard / Ice Shard
nature: Sassy
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's typing makes it particularly good at dealing with the many Water-types in the OU tier, and pretty much any special attacker that lacks a super effective attack. This allows it a good number of oppurtunities opportunities to switch in and stall out an opponent with Leech Seed. Protect and Substitute help with the execution of this strategy (though Abomasnow's poor Speed stat makes the latter a lesser option), while the last 2 slots are for dedicated STAB attacks. Wood Hammer and Blizzard are the more reliable and powerful options, but Grass Knot and Ice Shard make viable alternatives. The former having no recoil in comparison with Wood Hammer, while the latter being an ever-useful priority move.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Due to its typing, basically no physical attacker in the entire metagame will not have a super effective attack to hit Abomasnow with. Hence, very little investment is concentrated in that area, and everything is instead put into Abomasnow's special bulk. In terms of other options, Focus Punch in conjunction with Substitute can be used to deal with the Steel-types that Abomasnow generally has trouble with. A fast spread with a Timid nature, and a spread of 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 Spe can also be run, but Abomasnow does not have that much Speed to work with at all, and would prefer the bulkier spread most of the time.</p>
<p>Toxic Spikes, and all entry hazards in general, make an excellent option to include in your team simply because of the nature of this strategy. Tentacruel is an excellent candidate to take up this task as it has almost perfect synergy with Abomasnow, and has decent bulk as well. It also has access to Rapid Spin, which gets rid of any harmful entry hazards your opponent may set up. Pokemon with hail-related abilities such as Snow Body, or Snow Cloak, pair up well with Abomasnow for obvious reasons. However, including too many of them on your team can cause a swell of Fighting weaknesses, so a Ghost-type such as Rotom-A is also recommended to patch that hole up. Finally, Kingdra deserves a special mention, as it is able to very easily come in on any Fire-type attack aimed at Abomasnow and set up Dragon Dances with near impunity.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Earthquake
nature: Hasty
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 164 Atk / 116 SpA / 228 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Abomasnow's attacking stats are average at best, its powerful and reliable STAB options in Blizzard and Wood Hammer means that it can still be a viable offensive threat. With a Choice Scarf attached, Abomasnow will also be able to outspeed many Pokemon it couldn't before, including Dragonite, Infernape, and Gengar, making it that much more dangerous. Besides the STABs, Hidden Power Fire and Earthquake cover the Steel-types that resist both, particularly those with secondary Bug (Scizor and Forretress) and Fire typings (Heatran), respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Abomasnow to outspeed everything up to positive-natured base 110s, as well as always OHKO physically defensive Forretress with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock. Whatever's Whatever happens to be left is then sent into powering up the rest of the moveset as much as possible. Focus Punch is an option to hit Blissey, who walls the rest of the set, hard very well. Going fully special so as not have to split EVs with Grass Knot and Focus Blast over Wood Hammer and Earthquake is also an option. Since Abomasnow is going to be doing relatively high amounts of switching with this set, a Rapid Spin user is advised. Tentacruel and Starmie are both excellent candidates that have good synergy with Abomasnow. On a dedicated hail team, Abomasnow can perform the role of a revenge killer adequately, and works well with mixed Mamoswine to break down walls with its own 100% accurate STAB Blizzard.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Ice Shard
move 4: Earthquake / Focus Punch
nature: Brave
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's movepool and stats are just enough to run a decent mixed set with 4 attacking moves. Blizzard and Wood Hammer are the power STAB moves available to Abomasnow that allow this set to be viable, and they do good damage to many things. Ice Shard is STAB priority that is especially useful in picking off Dragon-type Pokemon, and Earthquake covers the Steel-types that resist the rest of the moveset. If you're feeling especially ballsy (again, some of the younger readers that come on smogon for help may not know what this slang really means. You may want to rethink having this in here for their sake, haha.), you could run the more powerful (and risky) Focus Punch, which also deals major damage to Blissey, another troublesome Pokemon. Without any form of protection though, it's going to be heavily based on your prediction skills.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread is pretty simple to understand with both attacking stats maximized for maximum damage output. Diverting some into Speed is a reasonable idea though, in order to outspeed specific threats; at least a neutral nature is required to outspeed Blissey and Swampert, and a further 84 EVs are needed for Skarmory. Hidden Power Fire, or Substitute / Protect can be run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, or ease prediction on your part, respectively. Team-wise, you're going to want something to make up for Abomasnow's poor Speed stat, like paralysis support. Rotom-A is able to provide this with Thunder Wave, and can switch in for free on any Fighting-type attacks aimed at Abomasnow. It can also benefit from the indefinite hail brought forth by Abomasnow with its access to Blizzard. Other than that, the usual hail Pokemon make obvious teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Grass Knot / Energy Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
nature: Modest / Mild
item: Choice Specs
evs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a pair of slick Choice Specs on, Abomasnow's Blizzard becomes incredibly powerful, and will be doing some serious damage to anything that doesn't resist it (bar Blissey and Snorlax). Grass Knot is the secondary STAB that covers Water-types, while also hitting Rock-types such as Tyranitar harder and more reliably. Hidden Power Fire OHKOes even the most specially defensive of Scizor and Forretress, while standing a chance to 2HKO Bronzong as well. Finally, a Fighting-type move in Focus Blast will help round off the coverage, while KOing switch-ins such as Heatran and Tyranitar with ease. Even though it's super effective, Focus Blast still doesn't even come close to 2HKOing Blissey, however,so Focus Punch is a fair alternative to do just that. It is weaker in almost every other aspect though.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread is simple, Special Attack is maximized, and so is overall bulk, with 4 EVs taken out of HP are to reduce the damage done by Stealth Rock. A faster spread with a Timid nature can be run, but is not recommended. Much like the Choice Scarf set, Choice Specs Abomasnow abhors Stealth Rock, and appreciates their removal. Starmie and Tentacruel have already been mentioned as excellent choices for this. Donphan can also do this, and it provides a sturdy Rock resist for Abomasnow. It is also able to utilize Stealth Rock effectively, which can help secure several KOs for Abomasnow. Finally, the slow Abomasnow appreciates paralysis support, which can be provided by something like Slowbro, who resists Fire and Fighting, though shares a Bug-type weakness.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A Choice Band set may seem appealing, but Abomasnow lacks a good neutral STAB attack on that end, and will often find itself being forced out or taking more damage than it can dish out. A Swords Dance set is not recommended for the same reason; in addition, the prediction skills required for it to be effective are not realistic, and many of its uses can be accomplished without Swords Dance. Seed Bomb can replace Wood Hammer on any Abomasnow if you don't like the recoil, while Energy Ball can replace Grass Knot to hit lighter Pokemon, though most of the Grass attack's targets are quite heavy. Both are generally the weaker alternatives, however. Abomasnow has access to Light Screen, Safeguard, and Mist, but there are so many bulkier Pokemon that would make better use of them.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Scizor resists both of Abomasnow's STABs, and can destroy Abomasnow with Bullet Punch before it can make a move. It also packs U-turn to ruin any Leech Seed shenanigans (why would you need to even bring up U-turn affecting Leech Seed when Scizor is faster on almost all sets besides scarf. And who runs Leech Seed on Scarf? Lol, that can be taken out.). Bronzong and Forretress both work decently with Gyro Ball, but their lack of Speed makes them easy targets for Leech Seed. Metagross doesn't take much damage from Earthquake, and can easily OHKO with Meteor Mash. Bullet Punch also does massive damage, and helps to avoid any Leech Seed attempts. Jirachi shrugs off Earthquake too, and can U-turn or simply wear down Abomasnow with Zen Headbutt or Psychic. Tyranitar despises being hit by Wood Hammer and must beware of Focus Punch, but can switch in easily on Blizzard and negate its perfect accuracy thanks to Sand Stream. Tyranitar can then hit back with a super effective Stone Edge or even a powerful Crunch.</p>
<p>Fire-types are a big problem if Abomasnow doesn't pack Earthquake and even then, many are faster and able to revenge kill with little to no consequence. Stone Edge Gyarados is another good check, as its high Special Defense allow it to sponge neutral STAB attacks quite well. It also has the option of using Taunt to block Leech Seed. Weavile greatly fears Focus Punch and takes considerable damage from Wood Hammer, but is immune to the effects of Snow Warning and can outspeed and KO with Brick Break. Switching into Abomasnow can be very annoying, so prey on any of its many weaknesses and keep attacking, it will fall soon enough.</p>
<p>Abomasnow is a fairly unique Pokemon, but that doesn't mean anything in the competitive environment. Here, peer scrutiny brings out only the best of the best, and simply said, Abomasnow isn't one of them at all. Its typing brings it a total of 7 weaknesses, many of which are common types such as Steel, Fire, and Fighting. This is compounded by a further weakness to Stealth Rock, mediocre stats all-around, and a barely adequate movepool, so it would seem that Abomasnow's fate in the OU tier is pretty clear.</p>
<p>It's not all bad news though, as Abomasnow's merits are still worth a look. For a start, it's the only auto-hail inducer in the game, and though this limits the variety of Pokemon you can use alongside it, it does give it a nice niche in that regard. Its typing also has its advantages; resistances to Water and Electric with a neutrality to Ice make it a great check to the many Water-types of the tier. Abomasnow also boasts 2 high-powered STAB options in Wood Hammer and Blizzard to make up for its middling attacking stats. All in all, no matter how you look at it, Abomasnow is simply and very much so; (this is an optional change, but I think it would be for the better.) a mixed bag of a Pokemon.</p>
[SET]
name: Leech Seed
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect / Substitute
move 3: Wood Hammer / Grass Knot
move 4: Blizzard / Ice Shard
nature: Sassy
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's typing makes it particularly good at dealing with the many Water-types in the OU tier, and pretty much any special attacker that lacks a super effective attack. This allows it a good number of oppurtunities opportunities to switch in and stall out an opponent with Leech Seed. Protect and Substitute help with the execution of this strategy (though Abomasnow's poor Speed stat makes the latter a lesser option), while the last 2 slots are for dedicated STAB attacks. Wood Hammer and Blizzard are the more reliable and powerful options, but Grass Knot and Ice Shard make viable alternatives. The former having no recoil in comparison with Wood Hammer, while the latter being an ever-useful priority move.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Due to its typing, basically no physical attacker in the entire metagame will not have a super effective attack to hit Abomasnow with. Hence, very little investment is concentrated in that area, and everything is instead put into Abomasnow's special bulk. In terms of other options, Focus Punch in conjunction with Substitute can be used to deal with the Steel-types that Abomasnow generally has trouble with. A fast spread with a Timid nature, and a spread of 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 Spe can also be run, but Abomasnow does not have that much Speed to work with at all, and would prefer the bulkier spread most of the time.</p>
<p>Toxic Spikes, and all entry hazards in general, make an excellent option to include in your team simply because of the nature of this strategy. Tentacruel is an excellent candidate to take up this task as it has almost perfect synergy with Abomasnow, and has decent bulk as well. It also has access to Rapid Spin, which gets rid of any harmful entry hazards your opponent may set up. Pokemon with hail-related abilities such as Snow Body, or Snow Cloak, pair up well with Abomasnow for obvious reasons. However, including too many of them on your team can cause a swell of Fighting weaknesses, so a Ghost-type such as Rotom-A is also recommended to patch that hole up. Finally, Kingdra deserves a special mention, as it is able to very easily come in on any Fire-type attack aimed at Abomasnow and set up Dragon Dances with near impunity.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Earthquake
nature: Hasty
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 164 Atk / 116 SpA / 228 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Abomasnow's attacking stats are average at best, its powerful and reliable STAB options in Blizzard and Wood Hammer means that it can still be a viable offensive threat. With a Choice Scarf attached, Abomasnow will also be able to outspeed many Pokemon it couldn't before, including Dragonite, Infernape, and Gengar, making it that much more dangerous. Besides the STABs, Hidden Power Fire and Earthquake cover the Steel-types that resist both, particularly those with secondary Bug (Scizor and Forretress) and Fire typings (Heatran), respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Abomasnow to outspeed everything up to positive-natured base 110s, as well as always OHKO physically defensive Forretress with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock. Whatever's Whatever happens to be left is then sent into powering up the rest of the moveset as much as possible. Focus Punch is an option to hit Blissey, who walls the rest of the set, hard very well. Going fully special so as not have to split EVs with Grass Knot and Focus Blast over Wood Hammer and Earthquake is also an option. Since Abomasnow is going to be doing relatively high amounts of switching with this set, a Rapid Spin user is advised. Tentacruel and Starmie are both excellent candidates that have good synergy with Abomasnow. On a dedicated hail team, Abomasnow can perform the role of a revenge killer adequately, and works well with mixed Mamoswine to break down walls with its own 100% accurate STAB Blizzard.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Ice Shard
move 4: Earthquake / Focus Punch
nature: Brave
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's movepool and stats are just enough to run a decent mixed set with 4 attacking moves. Blizzard and Wood Hammer are the power STAB moves available to Abomasnow that allow this set to be viable, and they do good damage to many things. Ice Shard is STAB priority that is especially useful in picking off Dragon-type Pokemon, and Earthquake covers the Steel-types that resist the rest of the moveset. If you're feeling especially ballsy (again, some of the younger readers that come on smogon for help may not know what this slang really means. You may want to rethink having this in here for their sake, haha.), you could run the more powerful (and risky) Focus Punch, which also deals major damage to Blissey, another troublesome Pokemon. Without any form of protection though, it's going to be heavily based on your prediction skills.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread is pretty simple to understand with both attacking stats maximized for maximum damage output. Diverting some into Speed is a reasonable idea though, in order to outspeed specific threats; at least a neutral nature is required to outspeed Blissey and Swampert, and a further 84 EVs are needed for Skarmory. Hidden Power Fire, or Substitute / Protect can be run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, or ease prediction on your part, respectively. Team-wise, you're going to want something to make up for Abomasnow's poor Speed stat, like paralysis support. Rotom-A is able to provide this with Thunder Wave, and can switch in for free on any Fighting-type attacks aimed at Abomasnow. It can also benefit from the indefinite hail brought forth by Abomasnow with its access to Blizzard. Other than that, the usual hail Pokemon make obvious teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Grass Knot / Energy Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
nature: Modest / Mild
item: Choice Specs
evs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a pair of slick Choice Specs on, Abomasnow's Blizzard becomes incredibly powerful, and will be doing some serious damage to anything that doesn't resist it (bar Blissey and Snorlax). Grass Knot is the secondary STAB that covers Water-types, while also hitting Rock-types such as Tyranitar harder and more reliably. Hidden Power Fire OHKOes even the most specially defensive of Scizor and Forretress, while standing a chance to 2HKO Bronzong as well. Finally, a Fighting-type move in Focus Blast will help round off the coverage, while KOing switch-ins such as Heatran and Tyranitar with ease. Even though it's super effective, Focus Blast still doesn't even come close to 2HKOing Blissey, however,so Focus Punch is a fair alternative to do just that. It is weaker in almost every other aspect though.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread is simple, Special Attack is maximized, and so is overall bulk, with 4 EVs taken out of HP are to reduce the damage done by Stealth Rock. A faster spread with a Timid nature can be run, but is not recommended. Much like the Choice Scarf set, Choice Specs Abomasnow abhors Stealth Rock, and appreciates their removal. Starmie and Tentacruel have already been mentioned as excellent choices for this. Donphan can also do this, and it provides a sturdy Rock resist for Abomasnow. It is also able to utilize Stealth Rock effectively, which can help secure several KOs for Abomasnow. Finally, the slow Abomasnow appreciates paralysis support, which can be provided by something like Slowbro, who resists Fire and Fighting, though shares a Bug-type weakness.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A Choice Band set may seem appealing, but Abomasnow lacks a good neutral STAB attack on that end, and will often find itself being forced out or taking more damage than it can dish out. A Swords Dance set is not recommended for the same reason; in addition, the prediction skills required for it to be effective are not realistic, and many of its uses can be accomplished without Swords Dance. Seed Bomb can replace Wood Hammer on any Abomasnow if you don't like the recoil, while Energy Ball can replace Grass Knot to hit lighter Pokemon, though most of the Grass attack's targets are quite heavy. Both are generally the weaker alternatives, however. Abomasnow has access to Light Screen, Safeguard, and Mist, but there are so many bulkier Pokemon that would make better use of them.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Scizor resists both of Abomasnow's STABs, and can destroy Abomasnow with Bullet Punch before it can make a move. It also packs U-turn to ruin any Leech Seed shenanigans (why would you need to even bring up U-turn affecting Leech Seed when Scizor is faster on almost all sets besides scarf. And who runs Leech Seed on Scarf? Lol, that can be taken out.). Bronzong and Forretress both work decently with Gyro Ball, but their lack of Speed makes them easy targets for Leech Seed. Metagross doesn't take much damage from Earthquake, and can easily OHKO with Meteor Mash. Bullet Punch also does massive damage, and helps to avoid any Leech Seed attempts. Jirachi shrugs off Earthquake too, and can U-turn or simply wear down Abomasnow with Zen Headbutt or Psychic. Tyranitar despises being hit by Wood Hammer and must beware of Focus Punch, but can switch in easily on Blizzard and negate its perfect accuracy thanks to Sand Stream. Tyranitar can then hit back with a super effective Stone Edge or even a powerful Crunch.</p>
<p>Fire-types are a big problem if Abomasnow doesn't pack Earthquake and even then, many are faster and able to revenge kill with little to no consequence. Stone Edge Gyarados is another good check, as its high Special Defense allow it to sponge neutral STAB attacks quite well. It also has the option of using Taunt to block Leech Seed. Weavile greatly fears Focus Punch and takes considerable damage from Wood Hammer, but is immune to the effects of Snow Warning and can outspeed and KO with Brick Break. Switching into Abomasnow can be very annoying, so prey on any of its many weaknesses and keep attacking, it will fall soon enough.</p>
Wow, very good analysis. So many effective sets with very thorough explanation on everything.
obama-
GP CHECK TWO
delete
insert
great write-up
GP CHECK TWO
delete
insert
[Overview]
<p>Abomasnow is a fairly unique Pokemon, but that doesn't mean anything in the competitive environment. Here, peer scrutiny brings out favors only the best of the best, and simply said, Abomasnow isn't one of them at all. Its typing brings it a total of 7 weaknesses, many of which are common types such as Steel, Fire, and Fighting. This is compounded by a further weakness to Stealth Rock, mediocre stats all-round, and a barely adequate movepool, so it would seem that Abomasnow's fate in the OU tier is pretty clear.</p>
<p>It's not all bad news though, as Abomasnow's merits are still worth a look. For a start, it's the only auto-hail inducer in the game, and though this limits the variety of Pokemon you can use alongside it, it does give it a nice niche in that regard the metagame. Its typing also has its advantages; resistances to Water and Electric with a neutrality to Ice make it a great check to the many Water-types of the tier. Abomasnow also boasts 2 high-powered STAB options in Wood Hammer and Blizzard to make up for its middling attacking stats. All in all, no matter how you look at it, Abomasnow is simply, and very much so, a mixed bag of a Pokemon, pure and simple.</p>
[SET]
name: Leech Seed
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect / Substitute
move 3: Wood Hammer / Grass Knot
move 4: Blizzard / Ice Shard
nature: Sassy
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's typing makes it particularly good at dealing with the many Water-types in the OU tier, and pretty much any other special attacker that lacks a super effective attack (e.g. Jolteon). This allows it a good number of opportunities to switch in and stall out an opponent with Leech Seed. Protect and Substitute help with the execution of this strategy (though Abomasnow's poor Speed stat makes the latter a lesser poorer option), while the last 2 slots are for dedicated STAB attacks. Wood Hammer and Blizzard are the more reliable and powerful options, but Grass Knot and Ice Shard make viable alternatives. The former having no recoil in comparison with Wood Hammer, and the latter being an ever-useful priority move.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Due to its typing, basically no every physical attacker in the entire metagame will not have a super effective attack to hit Abomasnow with be able to hit Abomasnow super effectively. Hence very little investment is concentrated in that area physical defense, and everything is instead put into Abomasnow's special bulk. In terms of other options, Focus Punch in conjunction with Substitute can be used in conjunction with Substitute to deal with the Steel-types that Abomasnow generally has troubles with. A faster spread with a Timid nature can also be run, but Abomasnow does not have that much Speed to work with at all, and would prefer the bulkier spread most of the time.</p>
<p>Toxic Spikes, and all entry hazards in general, make an excellent option to include in your team simply because of the nature of this strategy. Tentacruel is an excellent candidate to take up this task as it has decent bulk and almost perfect synergy with Abomasnow, and has decent bulk as well. It also has access to Rapid Spin, which gets rid of any harmful entry hazards your opponent may set up. Pokemon with hail-related abilities, such as Snow Body or Snow Cloak, pair up well with Abomasnow for obvious reasons. However, including too many of them on your team can cause a swell of Fighting weaknesses make it incredibly vulnerable to Fighting, so a Ghost-type such as Rotom-A is also recommended to patch that hole up. Finally, Kingdra deserves a special mention, as it is able to very easily come in on any Fire-type attack aimed at Abomasnow and set up Dragon Dances with near impunity.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Earthquake
nature: Hasty
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 164 Atk / 116 SpA / 228 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Abomasnow's attacking stats are average at best, its powerful and reliable STAB options in Blizzard and Wood Hammer means that it can still be a viable offensive threat. With a Choice Scarf attached, Abomasnow will also be able to outspeed many Pokemon it couldn't before, including Dragonite, Infernape, and Gengar, making it that much more dangerous. Besides the STABs, Hidden Power Fire and Earthquake cover the Steel-types that resist both STABs; particularly those with secondary Bug (Scizor and Forretress) and Fire typings (Heatran), respectively while Hidden Power deals with Scizor and Forretress, Earthquake can be used to demolish Heatran.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Abomasnow to outspeed everything up to positive-natured base 110s, as well as always OHKO physically defensive Forretress with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock. Whatever's left is then sent into powering dumped in Attack to power up the rest of the moveset as much as possible. Focus Punch is an option to hit Blissey, who walls the rest of the set. If you prefer not to split EVs, going fully special so as not have to split EVs with Grass Knot and Focus Blast over Wood Hammer and Earthquake is also an option. Since Abomasnow is going to be doing relatively high amounts of switching with this set, a Rapid Spin user is advised. Tentacruel and Starmie are both excellent candidates that have good synergy with Abomasnow. On a dedicated hail team, Abomasnow can perform the role of a revenge killer adequately, and works well with a mixed Mamoswine to who can break down walls with its own 100% accurate STAB Blizzard.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Ice Shard
move 4: Earthquake / Focus Punch
nature: Brave
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's movepool and stats are just enough to run a decent mixed set with 4 attacking moves. Despite the typically offensive nature of these type of sets, Leftovers is the preferred item choice here for survivability, since one of the hardest parts of using Abomasnow is keeping it alive through entry hazards and switch-ins when it relies upon constant switching; without the power, speed, or bulk of the Choice and Leech Seed sets, the this task becomes that much harder, which is why Leftovers is where it is recommended over Life Orb. Life Orb tends to kill Abomasnow off faster than it would like, but can be worth it on incredibly fast-paced offensive teams.</p>
<p>Blizzard and Wood Hammer are the powerful STAB moves available to Abomasnow that allow this set to be viable, and they do good damage to many things. Ice Shard is STAB priority that is especially useful in for picking off Dragon-type Pokemon, and Earthquake covers the Steel-types that resist the rest of the moveset. If you're feeling especially bold, you could run the more powerful (and but risky) Focus Punch, which also deals major damage to Blissey, another troublesome Pokemon. Without any form of protection though, you'd have to have some impressive prediction skills for it to work be useful.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Maximizing both attacking stats is the way to go here, as Abomasnow's going to want all the power that it can get with no Life Orb on. Diverting some EVs into Speed is a reasonable idea though, in order to outspeed specific threats; at least a neutral nature is required to outspeed Blissey and Swampert, and a further 84 EVs are needed for Skarmory. Hidden Power Fire, or Substitute / Protect can be run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, or ease prediction on your part, respectively. Hidden Power Fire can use run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, while Substitute / Protect can be used to ease prediction. Team-wise, you're going to want something to make up for Abomasnow's poor Speed stat, like paralysis support. Rotom-F is able to provide this with Thunder Wave, and can switch in for free on any Fighting-type attacks aimed at Abomasnow; it can also benefit from the Abomasnow's indefinite hail brought forth by Abomasnow with its access to Blizzard. Other than that, the usual hail Pokemon make obvious teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Grass Knot / Energy Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
nature: Modest / Mild
item: Choice Specs
evs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a pair of slick Choice Specs on, Abomasnow's Blizzard packs quite a punch, and will be doing good damage to anything that doesn't resist it (bar Blissey and Snorlax), despite Abomasnow's only modest Special Attack. Grass Knot is the secondary STAB that covers Water-types, while also hitting Rock-types such as Tyranitar harder and more reliably. Hidden Power Fire OHKOes even the most specially defensive of Scizor and Forretress, while standing a chance to 2HKO Bronzong as well. Finally, a Fighting-type move in Focus Blast will help helps round off the coverage, KOing switch-ins such as Heatran and Tyranitar with ease. Even though it's super effective, Focus Blast still doesn't even come close to 2HKOing Blissey, so Focus Punch is a fair alternative to do just that. It is weaker in almost every other aspect though.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Special Attack is maximized, and so is overall bulk, with 4 EVs taken out of HP are to reduce the damage done by Stealth Rock. A faster spread with a Timid nature can be run, but is not recommended. Much like the Choice Scarf set, Choice Specs Abomasnow abhors Stealth Rock, and appreciates their removal. Starmie and Tentacruel have already been mentioned as excellent choices for this make excellent spinners due to their synergy with Abomasnow. Donphan can also do this, and it provides a sturdy Rock resist for Abomasnow; it is also able to utilize Stealth Rock effectively, which can help secure several KOs for Abomasnow. Finally, the slow Abomasnow appreciates paralysis support, which can be provided by something like Slowbro, who resists Fire and Fighting, though they share a Bug-type weakness.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A Choice Band set may seem appealing, but Abomasnow lacks a good neutral physical STAB attack on that end, and will often find itself being forced out or taking more damage than it can dish out. A Swords Dance set is not recommended for the same reason; in addition, the prediction skills required for it to be effective are not realistic, and many of its uses can be accomplished without Swords Dance. Seed Bomb can replace Wood Hammer on any Abomasnow set if you don't like the recoil, while Energy Ball can replace Grass Knot to hit lighter Pokemon, though most of the Grass attack's targets are quite heavy anyway. Both Seed Bomb and Energy Ball are generally the weaker alternatives, however. Abomasnow has access to Light Screen, Safeguard, and Mist, but there are so many bulkier Pokemon that would make better use of them.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Scizor resists both of Abomasnow's STABs, and can destroy Abomasnow with Bullet Punch before it can even make a move. It also packs U-turn to ruin any Leech Seed shenanigans. Bronzong and Forretress both work decently as counters with Gyro Ball, but their lack of Speed makes them easy targets for Leech Seed. Metagross doesn't take much damage from Earthquake and can easily OHKO with Meteor Mash; Bullet Punch also does massive damage, and helps to avoid any Leech Seed attempts. Jirachi shrugs off Earthquake too, and can U-turn or simply wear tear down Abomasnow with Zen Headbutt or Psychic Iron Head or Fire Punch. Tyranitar despises being hit by Wood Hammer and must beware of Focus Punch, but can switch in easily on Blizzard and negate its perfect accuracy thanks to with Sand Stream. Tyranitar can then hit back with a super effective Stone Edge or even a powerful Crunch.</p>
<p>Fire-types are a big problem if Abomasnow doesn't pack Earthquake, and even then many are faster and able to revenge kill with little to no consequence. Stone Edge Gyarados is another good check, as its high Special Defense allows it to sponge neutral STAB attacks quite well. It also has the option of using Taunt to block Leech Seed. Weavile greatly fears Focus Punch and takes considerable damage from Wood Hammer, but is immune to the effects of Snow Warning and can outspeed and KO with Brick Break. Switching into Abomasnow can be very annoying, so prey on any of its many weaknesses and keep attacking, it will fall soon enough.</p>
<p>Abomasnow is a fairly unique Pokemon, but that doesn't mean anything in the competitive environment. Here, peer scrutiny brings out favors only the best of the best, and simply said, Abomasnow isn't one of them at all. Its typing brings it a total of 7 weaknesses, many of which are common types such as Steel, Fire, and Fighting. This is compounded by a further weakness to Stealth Rock, mediocre stats all-round, and a barely adequate movepool, so it would seem that Abomasnow's fate in the OU tier is pretty clear.</p>
<p>It's not all bad news though, as Abomasnow's merits are still worth a look. For a start, it's the only auto-hail inducer in the game, and though this limits the variety of Pokemon you can use alongside it, it does give it a nice niche in that regard the metagame. Its typing also has its advantages; resistances to Water and Electric with a neutrality to Ice make it a great check to the many Water-types of the tier. Abomasnow also boasts 2 high-powered STAB options in Wood Hammer and Blizzard to make up for its middling attacking stats. All in all, no matter how you look at it, Abomasnow is simply, and very much so, a mixed bag of a Pokemon, pure and simple.</p>
[SET]
name: Leech Seed
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect / Substitute
move 3: Wood Hammer / Grass Knot
move 4: Blizzard / Ice Shard
nature: Sassy
item: Leftovers
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's typing makes it particularly good at dealing with the many Water-types in the OU tier, and pretty much any other special attacker that lacks a super effective attack (e.g. Jolteon). This allows it a good number of opportunities to switch in and stall out an opponent with Leech Seed. Protect and Substitute help with the execution of this strategy (though Abomasnow's poor Speed stat makes the latter a lesser poorer option), while the last 2 slots are for dedicated STAB attacks. Wood Hammer and Blizzard are the more reliable and powerful options, but Grass Knot and Ice Shard make viable alternatives. The former having no recoil in comparison with Wood Hammer, and the latter being an ever-useful priority move.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Due to its typing, basically no every physical attacker in the entire metagame will not have a super effective attack to hit Abomasnow with be able to hit Abomasnow super effectively. Hence very little investment is concentrated in that area physical defense, and everything is instead put into Abomasnow's special bulk. In terms of other options, Focus Punch in conjunction with Substitute can be used in conjunction with Substitute to deal with the Steel-types that Abomasnow generally has troubles with. A faster spread with a Timid nature can also be run, but Abomasnow does not have that much Speed to work with at all, and would prefer the bulkier spread most of the time.</p>
<p>Toxic Spikes, and all entry hazards in general, make an excellent option to include in your team simply because of the nature of this strategy. Tentacruel is an excellent candidate to take up this task as it has decent bulk and almost perfect synergy with Abomasnow, and has decent bulk as well. It also has access to Rapid Spin, which gets rid of any harmful entry hazards your opponent may set up. Pokemon with hail-related abilities, such as Snow Body or Snow Cloak, pair up well with Abomasnow for obvious reasons. However, including too many of them on your team can cause a swell of Fighting weaknesses make it incredibly vulnerable to Fighting, so a Ghost-type such as Rotom-A is also recommended to patch that hole up. Finally, Kingdra deserves a special mention, as it is able to very easily come in on any Fire-type attack aimed at Abomasnow and set up Dragon Dances with near impunity.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Earthquake
nature: Hasty
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 164 Atk / 116 SpA / 228 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>While Abomasnow's attacking stats are average at best, its powerful and reliable STAB options in Blizzard and Wood Hammer means that it can still be a viable offensive threat. With a Choice Scarf attached, Abomasnow will also be able to outspeed many Pokemon it couldn't before, including Dragonite, Infernape, and Gengar, making it that much more dangerous. Besides the STABs, Hidden Power Fire and Earthquake cover the Steel-types that resist both STABs; particularly those with secondary Bug (Scizor and Forretress) and Fire typings (Heatran), respectively while Hidden Power deals with Scizor and Forretress, Earthquake can be used to demolish Heatran.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Abomasnow to outspeed everything up to positive-natured base 110s, as well as always OHKO physically defensive Forretress with Hidden Power Fire after Stealth Rock. Whatever's left is then sent into powering dumped in Attack to power up the rest of the moveset as much as possible. Focus Punch is an option to hit Blissey, who walls the rest of the set. If you prefer not to split EVs, going fully special so as not have to split EVs with Grass Knot and Focus Blast over Wood Hammer and Earthquake is also an option. Since Abomasnow is going to be doing relatively high amounts of switching with this set, a Rapid Spin user is advised. Tentacruel and Starmie are both excellent candidates that have good synergy with Abomasnow. On a dedicated hail team, Abomasnow can perform the role of a revenge killer adequately, and works well with a mixed Mamoswine to who can break down walls with its own 100% accurate STAB Blizzard.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Wood Hammer
move 3: Ice Shard
move 4: Earthquake / Focus Punch
nature: Brave
item: Leftovers / Life Orb
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Abomasnow's movepool and stats are just enough to run a decent mixed set with 4 attacking moves. Despite the typically offensive nature of these type of sets, Leftovers is the preferred item choice here for survivability, since one of the hardest parts of using Abomasnow is keeping it alive through entry hazards and switch-ins when it relies upon constant switching; without the power, speed, or bulk of the Choice and Leech Seed sets, the this task becomes that much harder, which is why Leftovers is where it is recommended over Life Orb. Life Orb tends to kill Abomasnow off faster than it would like, but can be worth it on incredibly fast-paced offensive teams.</p>
<p>Blizzard and Wood Hammer are the powerful STAB moves available to Abomasnow that allow this set to be viable, and they do good damage to many things. Ice Shard is STAB priority that is especially useful in for picking off Dragon-type Pokemon, and Earthquake covers the Steel-types that resist the rest of the moveset. If you're feeling especially bold, you could run the more powerful (and but risky) Focus Punch, which also deals major damage to Blissey, another troublesome Pokemon. Without any form of protection though, you'd have to have some impressive prediction skills for it to work be useful.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Maximizing both attacking stats is the way to go here, as Abomasnow's going to want all the power that it can get with no Life Orb on. Diverting some EVs into Speed is a reasonable idea though, in order to outspeed specific threats; at least a neutral nature is required to outspeed Blissey and Swampert, and a further 84 EVs are needed for Skarmory. Hidden Power Fire, or Substitute / Protect can be run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, or ease prediction on your part, respectively. Hidden Power Fire can use run to net the OHKO on Forretress and Scizor, while Substitute / Protect can be used to ease prediction. Team-wise, you're going to want something to make up for Abomasnow's poor Speed stat, like paralysis support. Rotom-F is able to provide this with Thunder Wave, and can switch in for free on any Fighting-type attacks aimed at Abomasnow; it can also benefit from the Abomasnow's indefinite hail brought forth by Abomasnow with its access to Blizzard. Other than that, the usual hail Pokemon make obvious teammates.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Blizzard
move 2: Grass Knot / Energy Ball
move 3: Hidden Power Fire
move 4: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
nature: Modest / Mild
item: Choice Specs
evs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 SpA
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With a pair of slick Choice Specs on, Abomasnow's Blizzard packs quite a punch, and will be doing good damage to anything that doesn't resist it (bar Blissey and Snorlax), despite Abomasnow's only modest Special Attack. Grass Knot is the secondary STAB that covers Water-types, while also hitting Rock-types such as Tyranitar harder and more reliably. Hidden Power Fire OHKOes even the most specially defensive of Scizor and Forretress, while standing a chance to 2HKO Bronzong as well. Finally, a Fighting-type move in Focus Blast will help helps round off the coverage, KOing switch-ins such as Heatran and Tyranitar with ease. Even though it's super effective, Focus Blast still doesn't even come close to 2HKOing Blissey, so Focus Punch is a fair alternative to do just that. It is weaker in almost every other aspect though.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Special Attack is maximized, and so is overall bulk, with 4 EVs taken out of HP are to reduce the damage done by Stealth Rock. A faster spread with a Timid nature can be run, but is not recommended. Much like the Choice Scarf set, Choice Specs Abomasnow abhors Stealth Rock, and appreciates their removal. Starmie and Tentacruel have already been mentioned as excellent choices for this make excellent spinners due to their synergy with Abomasnow. Donphan can also do this, and it provides a sturdy Rock resist for Abomasnow; it is also able to utilize Stealth Rock effectively, which can help secure several KOs for Abomasnow. Finally, the slow Abomasnow appreciates paralysis support, which can be provided by something like Slowbro, who resists Fire and Fighting, though they share a Bug-type weakness.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>A Choice Band set may seem appealing, but Abomasnow lacks a good neutral physical STAB attack on that end, and will often find itself being forced out or taking more damage than it can dish out. A Swords Dance set is not recommended for the same reason; in addition, the prediction skills required for it to be effective are not realistic, and many of its uses can be accomplished without Swords Dance. Seed Bomb can replace Wood Hammer on any Abomasnow set if you don't like the recoil, while Energy Ball can replace Grass Knot to hit lighter Pokemon, though most of the Grass attack's targets are quite heavy anyway. Both Seed Bomb and Energy Ball are generally the weaker alternatives, however. Abomasnow has access to Light Screen, Safeguard, and Mist, but there are so many bulkier Pokemon that would make better use of them.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Scizor resists both of Abomasnow's STABs, and can destroy Abomasnow with Bullet Punch before it can even make a move. It also packs U-turn to ruin any Leech Seed shenanigans. Bronzong and Forretress both work decently as counters with Gyro Ball, but their lack of Speed makes them easy targets for Leech Seed. Metagross doesn't take much damage from Earthquake and can easily OHKO with Meteor Mash; Bullet Punch also does massive damage, and helps to avoid any Leech Seed attempts. Jirachi shrugs off Earthquake too, and can U-turn or simply wear tear down Abomasnow with Zen Headbutt or Psychic Iron Head or Fire Punch. Tyranitar despises being hit by Wood Hammer and must beware of Focus Punch, but can switch in easily on Blizzard and negate its perfect accuracy thanks to with Sand Stream. Tyranitar can then hit back with a super effective Stone Edge or even a powerful Crunch.</p>
<p>Fire-types are a big problem if Abomasnow doesn't pack Earthquake, and even then many are faster and able to revenge kill with little to no consequence. Stone Edge Gyarados is another good check, as its high Special Defense allows it to sponge neutral STAB attacks quite well. It also has the option of using Taunt to block Leech Seed. Weavile greatly fears Focus Punch and takes considerable damage from Wood Hammer, but is immune to the effects of Snow Warning and can outspeed and KO with Brick Break. Switching into Abomasnow can be very annoying, so prey on any of its many weaknesses and keep attacking, it will fall soon enough.</p>
great write-up
just noticed something silly i did
should be
should be
Done, eh? Well, I can take care of this... Uploading.
EDIT:
Pretty clean job overall. I honestly didn't have to fix much at all, and nothing stood out that bothered me enough to remember it so that I could mention it here. Good job!
EDIT:
Pretty clean job overall. I honestly didn't have to fix much at all, and nothing stood out that bothered me enough to remember it so that I could mention it here. Good job!