[OVERVIEW]
Cloyster is a Pokemon with coverage limited to STAB moves and Normal-type attacks, yet despite this, it has access to one of the most diverse toolsets in RBY OU. Through the use of Clamp, Cloyster can provide free switches to its teammates while also walling some of the most prominent physical threats, such as Snorlax, particularly those running Reflect, and Tauros. It possesses a reasonably powerful Blizzard, with the ability to threaten freeze on special walls, and has the option of using Explosion on Starmie to set up a Rhydon or Tauros sweep. Its part-Ice typing gives it immunity to freeze and STAB on Blizzard, at the expense of being weaker to Rock Slide. However, Cloyster has some drawbacks that stop it from being one of the top threats of RBY OU. Firstly, not being a Normal-type means it can be paralyzed by Body Slam, unlike Chansey or Snorlax. Secondly, Clamp's subpar accuracy could prove deadly to Cloyster's pretensions, especially if it's paralyzed. Lastly, it needs to rely on Rest as means of recovery, which means it's going to remain completely passive for three turns whenever it wants to recover HP.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Clamp
move 2: Blizzard
move 3: Rest / Hyper Beam
move 4: Explosion
[SET COMMENTS]
This is Cloyster's best set and the one you should expect when you see it. Clamp provides a free switch to another teammate. It also does respectable amounts of damage due to having a higher Base Power than similar moves such as Wrap as well as being boosted by STAB. Blizzard is Cloyster's best attacking option, a powerful STAB move that only Ice-resistant Pokemon such as Starmie and Lapras or speciall walls such as Chansey and Alakazam can handle; it also has a possibility of scoring a freeze. Explosion allows Cloyster to act as a wallbreaker once its support capabilities are no longer needed, blowing up on a Pokemon such as Starmie or Chansey and allowing a sweeper to perform its job more easily. For the third move, Rest is the the most common option by far, as it allows Cloyster to perform its walling duties much more easily. However, Hyper Beam can also be used if the team favors the possibility of doing extra damage to Chansey. It is also the best option on dedicated Wrap teams, since they can't afford to lose any momentum, but those teams tend to be inconsistent and are thus rarely seen.
Cloyster provides unique utility to RBY teams in that it provides the user with a sturdy Tauros answer, something that very few other Pokemon in the tier can do. Therefore, despite being an excellent Pokemon to lure in and KO walls like Starmie and Chansey through Explosion, it is often best to preserve Cloyster for the later stages, until the opposing Tauros has been crippled enough for Cloyster's defensive prowess to be superfluous. However, Cloyster is not simply a late-game Tauros answer; its positive matchup against Snorlax also gives it plenty of positional utility in the early stages, especially when combined with Clamp to gain free and safe switches. Managing Cloyster's health demands making many tricky decisions: switching in on Snorlax or using Explosion on Chansey early on may seem like great propositions, but they will weaken your team against the opponent's Tauros, so it is necessary to think about your long-term plans whenever you expose Cloyster to danger.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
The options listed give Cloyster the best tools to perform its roles effectively, so other options should generally not be considered. Reflect could be used in place of Clamp or Explosion to wall Normal-types even more reliably, but Cloyster loses on one of its key supporting roles when doing so and the extra bulk is generally not needed. Ice Beam is an option, though the drop in power is noticeable; most notably, Snorlax is 4HKOed instead of 3HKOed with Blizzard, but the added PP can come in handy in longer games where neither player manages to break the opponent. Toxic, when combined with Clamp, can allow Cloyster to wear down the special walls that usually threaten it with higher degrees of efficiency; however, it's difficult to justify making space for it when all of Cloyster's default moves are so valuable. Paralysis is generally very efficient at enabling Clamp chains and already present on virtually every RBY team anyway.
Checks and Counters
========
**Water-types**: Starmie is the premier Cloyster counter; it takes virtually no damage from Clamp or Blizzard and is able to Recover any damage done effortlessly. It can also cripple Cloyster with Thunder Wave or do heavy damage to it with Thunderbolt or Psychic. However, it must watch out for Explosion, as it can be KOed if not at full health. Lapras or an opposing Cloyster can also completely shrug off Cloyster's attacks, and the former can threaten a powerful Thunderbolt or even Sing. It should be noted that if these Water-types are paralyzed they struggle considerably more, as Cloyster will now be faster, allowing it to use Clamp and switch out safely, with the only danger being the unlikely case of a Clamp miss coupled with lack of full paralysis.
**Special Walls**: Chansey and Alakazam can also shrug off Blizzard relatively easily thanks to their high Special bulk and easy, accessible recovery; however, if they are paralyzed, Cloyster has the option to partial trap them with Clamp to deny their recovery and switch out freely. They are also very vulnerable to Explosion, meaning that they have to tread carefully when attempting to take on Cloyster.
**Electric types**: Electric-types such as Jolteon and Zapdos outspeed and 2HKO Cloyster. They must be wary of switching in, though, as Blizzard threatens significant damage, especially to Zapdos.
**Slowbro**: Slowbro can switch in on Cloyster with impunity, cripple it with Thunder Wave, and start setting up on it. If it's carrying Reflect, it's even worse, as Cloyster does a measly 30% to it with Explosion after Reflect has been set up. Slowbro is even more dangerous for Cloyster if it's packing Psychic; a +4 Psychic is already more than 50% likely to OHKO Cloyster. Thus, Cloyster is forced to use Clamp and then switch out as soon as Slowbro enters the field. This is risky and predictable due to the low accuracy and imminent threat that Slowbro poses.
**Thunderbolt Tauros**: If Tauros chooses to run the rare Thunderbolt instead of the standard Earthquake, it can lure in Cloyster and seriously cripple it, especially if Cloyster is already caught in Rest cycles or suffers a critical hit.
**Victreebel**: Victreebel Speed ties with Cloyster and can do at least 85% damage with Razor Leaf. However, it's a shaky check at best, as it's also 2HKOed by Cloyster's Blizzard.
**Gengar**: Though it does not particularly enjoy switching into Blizzards, Gengar does not suffer Clamp much, outspeeds Cloyster, and threatens a 2HKO with Thunderbolt. It is also able to completely nullify Explosion, though this is reliant on prediction.
**Jynx**: Jynx enjoys switching into Cloyster's attacks and threatening it with Psychic. It is faster, making it a good switch-in to Clamp, and can use Cloyster's weaker attacks to its advantage to wake up after a Rest.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sceptross, 123746], [Amaranth, 265630]]
- Quality checked by: [[FriendOfMrGolem120, 424525], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[deetah, 297659], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
Cloyster is a Pokemon with coverage limited to STAB moves and Normal-type attacks, yet despite this, it has access to one of the most diverse toolsets in RBY OU. Through the use of Clamp, Cloyster can provide free switches to its teammates while also walling some of the most prominent physical threats, such as Snorlax, particularly those running Reflect, and Tauros. It possesses a reasonably powerful Blizzard, with the ability to threaten freeze on special walls, and has the option of using Explosion on Starmie to set up a Rhydon or Tauros sweep. Its part-Ice typing gives it immunity to freeze and STAB on Blizzard, at the expense of being weaker to Rock Slide. However, Cloyster has some drawbacks that stop it from being one of the top threats of RBY OU. Firstly, not being a Normal-type means it can be paralyzed by Body Slam, unlike Chansey or Snorlax. Secondly, Clamp's subpar accuracy could prove deadly to Cloyster's pretensions, especially if it's paralyzed. Lastly, it needs to rely on Rest as means of recovery, which means it's going to remain completely passive for three turns whenever it wants to recover HP.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Clamp
move 2: Blizzard
move 3: Rest / Hyper Beam
move 4: Explosion
[SET COMMENTS]
This is Cloyster's best set and the one you should expect when you see it. Clamp provides a free switch to another teammate. It also does respectable amounts of damage due to having a higher Base Power than similar moves such as Wrap as well as being boosted by STAB. Blizzard is Cloyster's best attacking option, a powerful STAB move that only Ice-resistant Pokemon such as Starmie and Lapras or speciall walls such as Chansey and Alakazam can handle; it also has a possibility of scoring a freeze. Explosion allows Cloyster to act as a wallbreaker once its support capabilities are no longer needed, blowing up on a Pokemon such as Starmie or Chansey and allowing a sweeper to perform its job more easily. For the third move, Rest is the the most common option by far, as it allows Cloyster to perform its walling duties much more easily. However, Hyper Beam can also be used if the team favors the possibility of doing extra damage to Chansey. It is also the best option on dedicated Wrap teams, since they can't afford to lose any momentum, but those teams tend to be inconsistent and are thus rarely seen.
Cloyster provides unique utility to RBY teams in that it provides the user with a sturdy Tauros answer, something that very few other Pokemon in the tier can do. Therefore, despite being an excellent Pokemon to lure in and KO walls like Starmie and Chansey through Explosion, it is often best to preserve Cloyster for the later stages, until the opposing Tauros has been crippled enough for Cloyster's defensive prowess to be superfluous. However, Cloyster is not simply a late-game Tauros answer; its positive matchup against Snorlax also gives it plenty of positional utility in the early stages, especially when combined with Clamp to gain free and safe switches. Managing Cloyster's health demands making many tricky decisions: switching in on Snorlax or using Explosion on Chansey early on may seem like great propositions, but they will weaken your team against the opponent's Tauros, so it is necessary to think about your long-term plans whenever you expose Cloyster to danger.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
The options listed give Cloyster the best tools to perform its roles effectively, so other options should generally not be considered. Reflect could be used in place of Clamp or Explosion to wall Normal-types even more reliably, but Cloyster loses on one of its key supporting roles when doing so and the extra bulk is generally not needed. Ice Beam is an option, though the drop in power is noticeable; most notably, Snorlax is 4HKOed instead of 3HKOed with Blizzard, but the added PP can come in handy in longer games where neither player manages to break the opponent. Toxic, when combined with Clamp, can allow Cloyster to wear down the special walls that usually threaten it with higher degrees of efficiency; however, it's difficult to justify making space for it when all of Cloyster's default moves are so valuable. Paralysis is generally very efficient at enabling Clamp chains and already present on virtually every RBY team anyway.
Checks and Counters
========
**Water-types**: Starmie is the premier Cloyster counter; it takes virtually no damage from Clamp or Blizzard and is able to Recover any damage done effortlessly. It can also cripple Cloyster with Thunder Wave or do heavy damage to it with Thunderbolt or Psychic. However, it must watch out for Explosion, as it can be KOed if not at full health. Lapras or an opposing Cloyster can also completely shrug off Cloyster's attacks, and the former can threaten a powerful Thunderbolt or even Sing. It should be noted that if these Water-types are paralyzed they struggle considerably more, as Cloyster will now be faster, allowing it to use Clamp and switch out safely, with the only danger being the unlikely case of a Clamp miss coupled with lack of full paralysis.
**Special Walls**: Chansey and Alakazam can also shrug off Blizzard relatively easily thanks to their high Special bulk and easy, accessible recovery; however, if they are paralyzed, Cloyster has the option to partial trap them with Clamp to deny their recovery and switch out freely. They are also very vulnerable to Explosion, meaning that they have to tread carefully when attempting to take on Cloyster.
**Electric types**: Electric-types such as Jolteon and Zapdos outspeed and 2HKO Cloyster. They must be wary of switching in, though, as Blizzard threatens significant damage, especially to Zapdos.
**Slowbro**: Slowbro can switch in on Cloyster with impunity, cripple it with Thunder Wave, and start setting up on it. If it's carrying Reflect, it's even worse, as Cloyster does a measly 30% to it with Explosion after Reflect has been set up. Slowbro is even more dangerous for Cloyster if it's packing Psychic; a +4 Psychic is already more than 50% likely to OHKO Cloyster. Thus, Cloyster is forced to use Clamp and then switch out as soon as Slowbro enters the field. This is risky and predictable due to the low accuracy and imminent threat that Slowbro poses.
**Thunderbolt Tauros**: If Tauros chooses to run the rare Thunderbolt instead of the standard Earthquake, it can lure in Cloyster and seriously cripple it, especially if Cloyster is already caught in Rest cycles or suffers a critical hit.
**Victreebel**: Victreebel Speed ties with Cloyster and can do at least 85% damage with Razor Leaf. However, it's a shaky check at best, as it's also 2HKOed by Cloyster's Blizzard.
**Gengar**: Though it does not particularly enjoy switching into Blizzards, Gengar does not suffer Clamp much, outspeeds Cloyster, and threatens a 2HKO with Thunderbolt. It is also able to completely nullify Explosion, though this is reliant on prediction.
**Jynx**: Jynx enjoys switching into Cloyster's attacks and threatening it with Psychic. It is faster, making it a good switch-in to Clamp, and can use Cloyster's weaker attacks to its advantage to wake up after a Rest.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sceptross, 123746], [Amaranth, 265630]]
- Quality checked by: [[FriendOfMrGolem120, 424525], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[deetah, 297659], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
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