Dusclops QC: (0/3)

Aaronboyer

Aaronboyer

You Gave Me A World To Believe In
is a Contributor to Smogonis a Metagame Resource Contributor Alumnus
AM QC: Darkinium / Tonda
QC: ? / ? / ?
GP: ? / ?
[OVERVIEW]
  • Few Pokemon have the raw bulk that Dusclops possesses, and fewer Pokemon pack two type immunities to boot. These Fighting- and Normal-type immunites help Dusclops check certain Pokemon such as Hitmonchan and Pyroar considerably well.
  • Dusclops stands out amongst its Ghost-type brethren with its massive defensive stats further boosted by Eviolite, as well as its ability Pressure, which allows it to PP stall foes such as Lurantis and Aurorus with relative ease. As such, Dusclops can play the role of a generic bulky wall for Stall teams.
  • Dusclops can also use it's Ghost-typing to block foes such as Hitmonchan and Kabutops from successfully using Rapid Spin.
  • However, Dusclops' massive defense stats are offset by its exceedingly low Base 45 HP and overreliance on Eviolite. Dusclops also dislikes having its Eviolite removed from Knock Off or Trick from Pokemon such as Clefairy and Choice Scarf Mesprit.
  • Moreover, Dusclops faces fierce competition from Calm Mind Spiritomb as a Ghost-type RestTalker, as it isn't weak to Knock Off, can act as an efficient bulky wincon, and isn't nearly as passive.
  • Dusclops is also very passive and is completely walled by opposing Ghost-types such as Oricorio-G and Spiritomb.
  • Finally, Dusclops also competes with Pokemon like Type:Null and Clefairy as a bulky check to special attackers, which aren't completely passive since they possess stat-boosting moves in Swords Dance and Calm Mind, respectively.
[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Spite
move 2: Rest
move 3: Will-O-Wisp / Toxic
move 4: Mean Look / Seismic Toss
item: Eviolite
ability: Pressure
nature: Calm
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
ivs: 0 Atk / 25 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Spite, in tandem with it's ability Pressure and the guaranteed sleep turns of Rest, allows Dusclops to adequately PP stall the opposing Pokemon and force them to Struggle. This helps Dusclops beat Pokemon such as Regirock and Defensive Mesprit.
  • Rest alleviates Dusclops' status and restores its health back to full, allowing it to make use of its great bulk many times over.
  • Will-o-Wisp inflicts opposing Pokemon such as Primeape with the burn status, cutting its physical Attack in half while also providing continual chip damage.
  • Toxic can be used over Will-o-Wisp as Dusclops's chosen status to spread due to Dusclops being one of the few Pokemon who is bulky enough to wake up eventually against Sleep-inducing set up sweepers like Lilligant and win the matchup. Toxic is also useful as it is stall's main option against wearing down bulky Pokemon such as Pyukumuku and Tangela.
  • Mean Look traps the opposing Pokemon, allowing Dusclops to guarantee it to PP Stall with Spite, Pressure, and Rest or Toxic stall against a foe until it faints to Struggle or poison recoil. Otherwise, the foe could infinitely switch to avoid losing PP.
  • Seismic Toss is a fixed attacking move that ignores Dusclops's low, uninvested Attack stat in favor of consistently deal 100 HP with each use.

Set Details
========
  • Maximum EV's in HP and Special Defense further augmented by a Calm nature and its held Eviolite item aid Dusclops in performing its role as a bulky wall. 25 Speed IVs allows Dusclops to outspeed 0 IV Brave Crabominable under Trick Room, allowing it to burn it before Crabominable can attack. Outside of Trick Room, choosing to run 25 Speed IVs over 0 Speed IVs allows Dusclops to outspeed Ferroseed.
  • Pressure takes away two PP for every attack aimed at Dusclops instead of just one and is useful for draining low PP moves such as Pyroar’s Fire Blast and Aurorus's Blizzard and speeds up the process of stalling against bulkier foes before they inevitably Struggle.

Usage Tips
========
  • Dusclops should come on special attackers that it is specifically trying to PP stall out such as Pyroar and Aurorus or Fighting-types that lack Knock Off such as Primeape and Hitmonchan.
  • Dusclops greatly values its Eviolite, so switching out on a predicted Knock Off or Trick helps preserve its ability to wall.
  • Evaluating how much damage Dusclops can still take before it is necessary to heal itself with Rest promotes overall longevity and the ability to continue to spinblock the opposing team.
  • Double switching Dusclops in and out of Pursuit trappers such as Skuntank, Alolan Raticate and Liepard prevents it from taking unnecessary damage. Double switching also helps it deal with setup sweepers that could potentially come in to abuse its turns of Rest. While Dusclops can burn the Skuntank before switching out, Pursuit trappers that also learn Kncok Off such as Liepard and Alolan Raticate are troublesome in the fact that they can create 50/50s between Knocking Off Dusclops's Eviolite while it Will-o-Wisps or using Pursuit as it switches out. Therefore, if the opponent has such a Pursuit trapper, double switching is more crucial than if the opponent has a Skuntank or another Pursuit trapper without Knock Off.
  • Dusclops should try to avoid being badly poisoned by Toxic, as while it does have Rest to alleviate its status and restore its health, forcing it to be a sitting duck for two turns can put the user in a bad position.
Team Options
========
  • Even though Dusclops can fit Rest onto its moveset, there are times when being passed a Wish is more beneficial than putting yourself to sleep. Dusclops also appreciates having a cleric to alleviate Dusclops' sleep after using Rest, as otherwise it can be easily taken advantage of. Audino fulfills both of these roles while also having Regenerator to heal itself as it switches, as well as other support option like Encore and Knock Off.
  • Dusclops highly values its Eviolite, so Pokemon that can absorb Knock Off and possess an immunity to Trick such as Muk, Poisonium Z Pyukumuku, and Silvally-Fairy make great partners. On stall teams, CroMuk can act as a sufficient win-con, while Z-Toxic Pyukumuku is an Unaware wall and Silvally-Fairy removes entry hazards with Defog.
  • Pokemon like Poliwrath that can beat the most common Pursuit trappers such as Skuntank and Liepard while Dusclops double switches out make for a good teammate, as removing these Pokemon are beneficial to the longevity of Dusclops being able to spinblock and wall special attackers.
  • Entry hazard setters such as Ferroseed and Clefairy are useful for stall teams and help Dusclops by bringing the opposing Pokemon closer to being in range of Seismic Toss or Night Shade.
  • Toxic Spikes support from Pokemon such as Weezing can be incredibly useful for Dusclops as it relieves pressure off of Dusclops to Toxic every Pokemon it comes against and overall helps stall foes out faster.
  • Lastly, specially defensive walls like Audino and Clefairy appreciate Dusclops burning powerful physical attackers such as Kangaskhan and Kingler for them.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Sleep Talk allows Dusclops' to potentially use Will-o-Wisp, Toxic, or Seismic Toss while asleep so that it doesn't setup fodder for Pokemon such as Swords Dance Type: Null or Calm Mind Clefairy. However, Dusclops as difficulty finding room on its moveset.
  • Night Shade works similarly to Seismic Toss with the exception that it's a Ghost-type move, and therefore can hit opposing Ghost-types. However, there are very few scenarios where Night Shade would be more advantageous than Seismic Toss. Ghost-types such as Oricorio-G, Haunter, Calm Mind Spiritomb, and Gourgeist-XL all beat Dusclops even with Night Shade. The disadvantage of not being able to hit Normal-types such as Pyroar and Kangaskhan is also make Night Shade not worthwhile.
  • A physically defensive EV Spread could make use of the Poison- and Bug-type resistances that Dusclops' Ghost typing provides. However, Will-o-Wisp already takes care of most physical attackers, and such a spread would leave Dusclops very susceptible to special attackers such as Dark Pulse from Spiritomb and Shadow Ball from Haunter.
  • Dusclops' access to Trick Room and Memento may seem like it could be a reliable setter; however, Carbink does a better job as it can viably hold a Mental Herb to prevent itself from being taunted, unlike Dusclops who can only viably hold an Eviolite. Dusclops' evolution, Dusknoir, also pulls off a Trick Room setting set better, as it can use Z-Memento to bring a teammate back to full.
  • Calm Mind alongside an attacking move such as Ice Beam allows Dusclops to act as a bulky win-con. However, Pokemon such as Clefairy and Type: Null fulfill this role better, as Clefairy can utilize other support options such as Stealth Rock, and Type: Null has better defensive typing and overall better bulk.
  • Dusclops has an assortment of other support options not yet mentioned such as Disable, Destiny Bond, Taunt, Haze, and Pain Split, but are difficult to find room for on its moveset, mostly suboptimal, or easily to play around. Dusclops' awful speed also makes certain options such as Taunt and Destiny Bond hard to pull off.
  • Frisk can be used to determine the opponent's item and make an inference about what set it is if it viably runs more than one. Scoutin for a choice item on Pokemon such as Mesprit and Rotom-Frost can be considerably useful, as Dusclops can switch out into an appropriate answer. However, utilizing Frisk means you must give up Pressure, which is a far more useful ability considering Dusclops is most likely to be placed on a defensively-oriented team structure.
  • Infestation is a temporary trapping move that inflicts residual damage and traps opposing Ghost-types such as Oricorio-G but only lasting four to five turns, making this a less consistent option than Mean Look overall.
Checks and Counters
===================

**Taunt Users**: Taunt shuts down Dusclops from using three of its four moves. Some of PU's most common Taunt users such as Sableye and Oricorio-G possess a Fighting-type immunity and therefore leave Dusclops completely helpless. Oricorio is especially troublesome, as it can use Dusclops as setup fodder for acquiring Calm Mind boosts.

**Eviolite Removal**: The removal of Dusclops's Eviolite by means of Knock Off and Trick from Pokemon such as Eelektross, Zangoose, and Rotom-Frost can spell disaster later in the battle, as Dusclops is pretty much useless and complete setup bait without its held item Eviolite.

**Dark-type Pokemon**: Dark-type Pokemon such as Skuntank, Alolan Raticate, Absol, and Shiftry can all 2HKO Dusclops with their super effective STAB moves. Dark-types are also the most common Pokemon to have access to the dreaded Knock Off, as for many of these Pokemon it is their most reliable STAB option. Dusclops can burn these Pokemon as they switch in, however.

**Ghost-type Pokemon**: Similarly to Dark-types, Ghost-type Pokemon such as Spiritomb, Oricorio-G, Haunter, and Silvally-Ghost can also 2HKO Dusclops with their super effective STAB attacks. However, Ghost-types have even less to worry about since Dusclops's only attacking move is Seismic Toss. Ghost-types are also immune to Mean Look, meaning Dusclops can't use it as means of safely pivoting.
 
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name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Spite
move 2: Rest
move 3: Will-O-Wisp / Toxic
move 4: Mean Look / Seismic Toss
item: Eviolite
ability: Pressure
nature: Calm
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
ivs: 0 Atk / 25 Spe

This is what we (QC) consider to be the best set for Dusclops for the moment, and the only set that allows it to carve a distinctive niche towards its defensive Ghost-type brethren for its ability to function well against other bulkier and stall (this set allows Dusclops to be one of the best picks for stall to beat other stall+other defensive teams due to Pressure+Spite+threat of trapping with Mean Look) builds due to Pressure and its PP draining options netting it an inherent advantage on the field against those types of teams. It's mostly similar to the main set where you function with the combination of using your bulk and ability to reliably spread status to bother opposing teams, but with the added role compression of using Spite, a move with a multifaceted purpose for Dusclops. It allows it to be able to more reliably mess with Lurantis, Aurorus, and Pyroar who have limited PP and force them out with the threat of Spite, as well as dismantling defensive Pokemon who can't touch Clops but really likes to maintain their PP against stall such as Clefairy, Type Null (Spite vs Rest is very good), and friends. I've found the need for Sleep Talk to be largely unnecessary for hard stall since it doesn't take advantage of Sleep Talk as well as something like CroTomb and it already has Heal Bell+Wish support with massive bulk for it to not really matter, and the stuff you've mentioned as to who it would prevent it from becoming set up fodder can still set up on it anyway. Add this and Night Shade to OO.

25 Speed IVs allow you to outspeed 0 IV Brave Crabominale under Trick Room, allowing you to burn it before it can attack. Toxic still deserves to be on the set just because of how useful it is for stall's main option against wearing down bulky Pokemon, and due to Dusclops being one of the few Pokemon who is bulky enough to wake up eventually against Sleep-inducing set up sweepers like Lilligant without dying to repeated hits. Seismic Toss is good for consistent damage and makes you not Taunt-bait, allowing you to safely come in and abuse Pressure against stuff like Weezing. Mean Look traps obviously, allowing you to guarantee a PP or Toxic stall with Spite against something, confirming kills a bit more easily.

Before we begin QCing this, please consider rewriting this so that it will reflect the current set.
 
amcheck
Aaronboyer said:
[OVERVIEW]
  • Few Pokemon have the raw bulk that Dusclops possesses, and fewer Pokemon pack two type immunities to boot. How do the two immunities help it? What Pokemon do they allow Dusclops to check?
  • Dusclops stands out amongst its Ghost-type brethren with its massive Base 130 Defense and Special Defense stats further boosted by Eviolite, as well as its ability Pressure, which allows it to PP stall opponents such as? with relative ease. I think the term "bulkier foes" is the preferred terminology over "stall opponents." I would also go into greater detail on its PP stalling abilites, and emphasize that that's its edge over Spiritomb and Sableye.
  • As such, Dusclops can play the role of a generic bulky wall for Stall teams, using it's Ghost-typing to block foes such as Hitmonchan and Kabutops from successfully using Rapid Spin. Perhaps split the walling and spinblocking parts into two points, as they aren't super related.
  • However, Dusclops' massive defense stats are offset by its exceedingly low Base 45 HP and overreliance on Eviolite. Mention that it hates stuff like Knock Off and Trick, and list Pokemon that can use said moves.
  • Moreover, Dusclops faces fierce competition from Calm Mind Spiritomb as a Ghost-type RestTalker, as it isn't weak to Knock Off, can act as an efficient bulky wincon, and isn't nearly as passive.
A bit of a GP thing, but don't list specific numbers when describing stats, as the reader can already see them when using the Dex. Use adjectives instead.

[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Spite
move 2: Rest
move 3: Will-O-Wisp / Toxic
move 4: Mean Look / Seismic Toss
item: Eviolite
ability: Pressure
nature: Calm
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
ivs: 0 Atk / 25 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Spite, in tandem with it's ability Pressure and the guaranteed sleep turns of Rest, allows Dusclops to adequately PP stall the opposing Pokemon and force them to Struggle. List some bulkier Pokemon this lets you beat.
  • Rest alleviates Dusclops' status and restores its health back to full, allowing it to make use of its great bulk many times over.
  • Will-o-Wisp inflicts the opposing Pokemon foes such as? with the burn status, cutting its physical Attack in half while also providing continual chip damage.
  • Toxic can be used over Will-o-Wisp as Dusclops's chosen status to spread due to Dusclops being one of the few Pokemon who is bulky enough to wake up eventually against Sleep-inducing set up sweepers like Lilligant and win the matchup. Toxic is also useful as it is stall's main option against wearing down bulky Pokemon such as Pyukumuku and Tangela.
  • Mean Look traps the opposing Pokemon, allowing Dusclops to guarantee it to PP Stall with Spite, Pressure, and Rest or Toxic stall against a foe until it faints to Struggle or poison recoil. I'd mention explicitly that the foe could otherwise switch constantly to avoid losing PP.
  • Seismic Toss is a fixed attacking move that ignores Dusclops's low, uninvested Attack stat in favor of consistently deal 100 HP with each use.

Set Details
========
  • Maximum EV's in HP and Special Defense further augmented by a Calm nature and its held Eviolite item aid Dusclops in performing its role as a bulky wall. 25 Speed IVs allow Dusclops to outspeed 0 IV Brave Crabominable under Trick Room, allowing it to burn it before Crabominable can attack. Does this let you outspeed anything relevant outside of Trick Room? In other words, why shouldn't the reader just use 0 Speed IVs?
  • Pressure takes away two PP for every attack aimed at Dusclops instead of just one and is useful for draining low PP moves such as Pyroar’s Fire Blast and Aurorus's Blizzard and speeds up the process a lot against bulkier foes and any foe in general, but the former specifically.

Usage Tips
========
  • Dusclops should come on special attackers that it is specifically trying to PP stall out such as Pyroar and Aurorus or Fighting-types that lack Knock Off such as Primeape and Hitmonchan.
  • Dusclops greatly values its Eviolite, so switching out on a predicted Knock Off or Trick helps preserve its ability to wall.
  • Prematurely using Rest will have Dusclops rolling the dice for Sleep Talk specific moves. Remove this, Sleep Talk isn't on the set. Evaluating how much damage Dusclops can still take before it is necessary to heal itself with Rest promotes overall longevity and the ability to continue to spinblock the opposing team. This sentence has me a bit confused. I understand the gist of it but rewording it might help.
  • Double switching Dusclops in and out of Pursuit trappers such as Skuntank and Liepard prevents it from taking unnecessary damage. While Dusclops can burn the Skuntank before switching out, Liepard is troublesome in the fact that it can create 50/50s between Knocking Off Dusclops's Eviolite while it Will-o-Wisps or using Pursuit as it switches out. Therefore, if the opponent has a Liepard, double switching is more crucial than if the opponent has a Skuntank or another Pursuit trapper. I feel as though this goes a bit too much into detail with the Liepard v Dusclops scenario. Maybe expand this to include foes that learn both Knock Off and Pursuit, like Alolan Raticate.
Team Options
========
  • Even though Dusclops can fit Rest onto its moveset, there are times when being passed a Wish is more beneficial than putting yourself to sleep. Dusclops also appreciates having a cleric to alleviate Dusclops' sleep after using Rest or being frozen. I'd remove the freeze mention, just too situational. Say that certain Pokemon can take advantage of Dusclops being asleep and KO it before it can Rest again. Audino fulfills both of these roles while also having Regenerator to heal itself as it switches, as well as other support option like Encore and Knock Off.
  • Dusclops values highly its Eviolite, so Pokemon that can absorb Knock Off and possess an immunity to Trick such as Muk, Poisonium Z Pyukumuku, and Silvally-Fairy. The sentence is incomplete. I'm also unsure on the Silvally-Fairy mention, just doesn't seem like a Stall mon. On stall teams, CroMuk can act as a sufficient win-con, while Z-Toxic Pyukumuku is an Unaware wall and Silvally-Fairy removes entry hazards with Defog.
  • Pokemon that can beat the most common Pursuit trappers such as Skuntank and Liepard like Hitmonchan I feel like there are sturdier checks than Hitmonchan. while Dusclops double switches out make for a good teammate, as removing these Pokemon are beneficial to the longevity of Dusclops being able to spinblock and wall special attackers.
  • Entry hazard setters such as Ferroseed and Clefairy are useful for stall teams and help Dusclops by bringing the opposing Pokemon closer to being in range of Seismic Toss or Night Shade.
Toxic Spikes really help Dusclops stall foes out a lot faster.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Sleep Talk allows Dusclops' to potentially use Will-o-Wisp, Toxic, or Seismic Toss while asleep so that it doesn't become setup fodder for Pokemon such as Swords Dance Type: Null or Calm Mind Clefairy Why shouldn't Duscslops always use it, then? Prefers other options, etc. I would also just replace "it being setup fodder" with "just being less passive overall."
  • Night Shade works similarly to Seismic Toss with the exception that it's a Ghost-type move, and therefore can hit opposing Ghost-types. However, there are very few scenarios where Night Shade would be more advantageous than Seismic Toss. Ghost-types such as Oricorio-G, Haunter, Calm Mind Spiritomb, and Gourgeist-XL all beat Dusclops even with Night Shade. The disadvantage of not being able to hit Normal-types such as Pyroar and Kangaskhan is also make Night Shade not worthwhile.
  • A physically defensive EV Spread could make use of the Poison- and Bug-type resistances that Dusclops' Ghost typing provides. However, Will-o-Wisp already takes care of most physical attackers, and such a spread would leave Dusclops very susceptible to special attackers such as Dark Pulse from Spiritomb and Shadow Ball from Haunter.
  • Shadow Ball and Shadow Punch are attacking options over Seismic Toss and Night Shade that don't have a fixated damage output. However, Shadow Ball and Shadow Punch do significantly less damage to most foes evening taking into account STAB because Dusclops's attacking stats when left uninvested deal less than 100 HP. To be honest, both are so weak that I'd scrap them altogether.
  • Dusclops' access to Trick Room and Memento may seem like it could be a reliable setter; however, Carbink does a better job as it can viably hold a Mental Herb to prevent itself from being taunted, unlike Dusclops who can only viably hold an Eviolite. Dusclops' evolution, Dusknoir, also pulls off a Trick Room setting set better, as it can use Z-Memento to bring a teammate back to full.
  • Calm Mind alongside an attacking move such as Ice Beam allows Dusclops to act as a bulky win-con. However, Pokemon such as Clefairy and Type: Null fulfill this role better, as Clefairy can utilize other support options such as Stealth Rock, and Type: Null has better defensive typing and overall better bulk.
  • Dusclops has an assortment of other support options not yet mentioned such as Gravity, Curse, Disable, Destiny Bond, Taunt, Haze, and Pain Split, but are difficult to find room for on its moveset. Some are also situational or suboptimal. Dusclops's low Speed makes a few of them easy to play around, too.
  • Frisk can be used to determine the opponent's item and make an inference about what set it is if it viably runs more than one. However, utilizing Frisk means you must give up Pressure, which is a far more useful ability considering Dusclops is most likely to be placed on a defensively-oriented team structure.
Checks and Counters
===================

**Taunt Users**: Taunt shuts down Dusclops from using three of its four moves. Some of PU's most common Taunt users such as Sableye and Pyroar possess a Fighting- or Ghost-type immunity and therefore, depending on what attacking move it chose, Dusclops could be left completely helpless.

**Eviolite Removal**: The removal of Dusclops's Eviolite by means of Knock Off and Trick from Pokemon such as Eelektross, Zangoose, and Rotom-Frost can spell disaster later in the battle, as Dusclops will not be able to perform its role as a bulky spinblock to nearly the same extent as it did when it held its Eviolite. I would split this into two sections: Knock Off, and Trick and Switcheroo.

**Dark-type Pokemon**: Dark-type Pokemon such as Skuntank, Alolan Raticate, Absol, and Shiftry can all 2HKO Dusclops with their super effective STAB moves This part is pretty bare bones, expand on it.

**Ghost-type Pokemon**: Similarly to Dark-types, Ghost-type Pokemon such as Spiritomb, Oricorio-G, Haunter, and Silvally-Ghost can also 2HKO Dusclops with their super effective STAB attacks. However, Ghost-types have even less to worry about since Dusclops's only attacking move is Seismic Toss.
Click to expand...
 
AM check, ik this isn't the alert you'd like to receive for this analysis but I do feel as if this is pretty well done thus far.
Aaronboyer said:
AM QC: Darkinium
QC: ? / ? / ?
GP: ? / ?
[OVERVIEW]
  • Few Pokemon have the raw bulk that Dusclops possesses, and fewer Pokemon pack two type immunities to boot. These Fighting- and Normal-type immunites help Dusclops check certain Pokemon such as Hitmonchan and Pyroar considerably well.
  • Dusclops stands out amongst its Ghost-type brethren with its massive defensive stats further boosted by Eviolite, as well as its ability Pressure, which allows it to PP stall foes such as Lurantis and Aurorus with relative ease. As such, Dusclops can play the role of a generic bulky wall for Stall teams.
  • Dusclops can also use it's Ghost-typing to block foes such as Hitmonchan and Kabutops from successfully using Rapid Spin.
  • However, Dusclops' massive defense stats are offset by its exceedingly low Base 45 HP and overreliance on Eviolite. Dusclops also dislikes having its Eviolite removed from Knock Off or Trick from Pokemon such as Clefairy and Choice Scarf Mesprit. I'd really emphasize how much Dusclops hates having its Eviolite tricked/knocked, not being able to sustain bulk or use any of its other moves to speak of just invites tons of setup mons.
  • Moreover, Dusclops faces fierce competition from Calm Mind Spiritomb as a Ghost-type RestTalker, as it isn't weak to Knock Off, can act as an efficient bulky wincon, and isn't nearly as passive.
  • Mention its general passiveness, making it prone to setup sweepers and Taunt. Make sure to go into detail about how certain mons affect it differently like bulky Sensu, Weezing, etc.
  • It also competes with things like Type:Null and Clefairy as a bulky check to special attackers, which aren't completely passive since they possess stat-boosting moves in SD and Calm Mind, respectively.
[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Spite
move 2: Rest
move 3: Will-O-Wisp / Toxic
move 4: Mean Look / Seismic Toss
item: Eviolite
ability: Pressure
nature: Calm
evs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
ivs: 0 Atk / 25 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
  • Spite, in tandem with it's ability Pressure and the guaranteed sleep turns of Rest, allows Dusclops to adequately PP stall the opposing Pokemon and force them to Struggle. This helps Dusclops beat Pokemon such as Regirock and Defensive Mesprit.
  • Rest alleviates Dusclops' status and restores its health back to full, allowing it to make use of its great bulk many times over.
  • Will-o-Wisp inflicts opposing Pokemon such as Primeape with the burn status, cutting its physical Attack in half while also providing continual chip damage.
  • Toxic can be used over Will-o-Wisp as Dusclops's chosen status to spread due to Dusclops being one of the few Pokemon who is bulky enough to wake up eventually against Sleep-inducing set up sweepers like Lilligant and win the matchup. Toxic is also useful as it is stall's main option against wearing down bulky Pokemon such as Pyukumuku and Tangela.
  • Mean Look traps the opposing Pokemon, allowing Dusclops to guarantee it to PP Stall with Spite, Pressure, and Rest or Toxic stall against a foe until it faints to Struggle or poison recoil. Otherwise, the foe could infinitely switch to avoid losing PP.
  • Seismic Toss is a fixed attacking move that ignores Dusclops's low, uninvested Attack stat in favor of consistently deal 100 HP with each use.
good

Set Details
========
  • Maximum EV's in HP and Special Defense further augmented by a Calm nature and its held Eviolite item aid Dusclops in performing its role as a bulky wall. 25 Speed IVs allows Dusclops to outspeed 0 IV Brave Crabominable under Trick Room, allowing it to burn it before Crabominable can attack. Outside of Trick Room, choosing to run 25 Speed IVs over 0 Speed IVs allows Dusclops to outspeed Ferroseed.
  • Pressure takes away two PP for every attack aimed at Dusclops instead of just one and is useful for draining low PP moves such as Pyroar’s Fire Blast and Aurorus's Blizzard and speeds up the process of stalling against bulkier foes before they inevitably Struggle.
this seems aight

Usage Tips
========
  • Dusclops should come on special attackers that it is specifically trying to PP stall out such as Pyroar and Aurorus or Fighting-types that lack Knock Off such as Primeape and Hitmonchan.
  • Dusclops greatly values its Eviolite, so switching out on a predicted Knock Off or Trick helps preserve its ability to wall.
  • Evaluating how much damage Dusclops can still take before it is necessary to heal itself with Rest promotes overall longevity and the ability to continue to spinblock the opposing team.
  • Double switching Dusclops in and out of Pursuit trappers such as Skuntank, Alolan Raticate and Liepard prevents it from taking unnecessary damage. Double switching also helps it deal with setup sweepers that could potentially come in to abuse its turns of Rest. While Dusclops can burn the Skuntank before switching out, Pursuit trappers that also learn Kncok Off such as Liepard and Alolan Raticate are troublesome in the fact that they can create 50/50s between Knocking Off Dusclops's Eviolite while it Will-o-Wisps or using Pursuit as it switches out. Therefore, if the opponent has such a Pursuit trapper, double switching is more crucial than if the opponent has a Skuntank or another Pursuit trapper without Knock Off.
  • Mention something about avoiding being hit with Toxic, as while it does have Rest, forcing it to be a sitting duck for two turns can put the user in a bad position.
Team Options
========
  • Even though Dusclops can fit Rest onto its moveset, there are times when being passed a Wish is more beneficial than putting yourself to sleep. Dusclops also appreciates having a cleric to alleviate Dusclops' sleep after using Rest, as otherwise it can be easily taken advantage of. Audino fulfills both of these roles while also having Regenerator to heal itself as it switches, as well as other support option like Encore and Knock Off.
  • Dusclops values highly highly values its Eviolite, so Pokemon that can absorb Knock Off and possess an immunity to Trick such as Muk, Poisonium Z Pyukumuku, and Silvally-Fairy make great partners. On stall teams, CroMuk can act as a sufficient win-con, while Z-Toxic Pyukumuku is an Unaware wall and Silvally-Fairy removes entry hazards with Defog.
  • Pokemon that can beat the most common Pursuit trappers such as Skuntank and Liepard like Gurdurr The wording here is odd. I'd say something along the lines of "Pokemon like Gurdurr can threaten common Pursuit users" the transition from the users of pursuit to the pokemon that beat them feels awkward to read. You could also mention something like Hitmonchan or Poliwrath instead, since these pursuit trappers often carry Knock Off which Gurdurr hates. while Dusclops double switches out make for a good teammate, as removing these Pokemon are beneficial to the longevity of Dusclops being able to spinblock and wall special attackers.
  • Entry hazard setters such as Ferroseed and Clefairy are useful for stall teams and help Dusclops by bringing the opposing Pokemon closer to being in range of Seismic Toss or Night Shade.
  • Toxic Spikes support from Pokemon such as Weezing can be incredibly useful for Dusclops as it relieves pressure off of Dusclops to Toxic every Pokemon it comes against and overall helps stall foes out faster.
  • Something about special walls like Audino and Clefairy appreciating Dusclops burning powerful physical attackers can go here.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
  • Sleep Talk allows Dusclops' to potentially use Will-o-Wisp, Toxic, or Seismic Toss while asleep so that it doesn't setup fodder for Pokemon such as Swords Dance Type: Null or Calm Mind Clefairy. However, Dusclops as difficulty finding room on its moveset.
  • Night Shade works similarly to Seismic Toss with the exception that it's a Ghost-type move, and therefore can hit opposing Ghost-types. However, there are very few scenarios where Night Shade would be more advantageous than Seismic Toss. Ghost-types such as Oricorio-G, Haunter, Calm Mind Spiritomb, and Gourgeist-XL all beat Dusclops even with Night Shade. The disadvantage of not being able to hit Normal-types such as Pyroar and Kangaskhan is also make Night Shade not worthwhile.
  • A physically defensive EV Spread could make use of the Poison- and Bug-type resistances that Dusclops' Ghost typing provides. However, Will-o-Wisp already takes care of most physical attackers, and such a spread would leave Dusclops very susceptible to special attackers such as Dark Pulse from Spiritomb and Shadow Ball from Haunter.
  • Dusclops' access to Trick Room and Memento may seem like it could be a reliable setter; however, Carbink does a better job as it can viably hold a Mental Herb to prevent itself from being taunted, unlike Dusclops who can only viably hold an Eviolite. Dusclops' evolution, Dusknoir, also pulls off a Trick Room setting set better, as it can use Z-Memento to bring a teammate back to full.
  • Calm Mind alongside an attacking move such as Ice Beam allows Dusclops to act as a bulky win-con. However, Pokemon such as Clefairy and Type: Null fulfill this role better, as Clefairy can utilize other support options such as Stealth Rock, and Type: Null has better defensive typing and overall better bulk. I mean, Dusclops still works as a bulky wincon due to its gargantuan defenses, maybe you could instead talk about how it beats certain special attackers that otherwise power through non-cm sets.
  • Dusclops has an assortment of other support options not yet mentioned such as Gravity, Curse, Disable, Destiny Bond, Taunt, Haze, and Pain Split, but are difficult to find room for on its moveset, mostly suboptimal, or easily to play around. I'd get rid of Gravity and Curse imo, they just seem like trash options that generally don't help this mon and are niche for its teammates at best. Mention Dusclops' awful speed making options like Taunt and DBond hard to pull off.
  • Frisk can be used to determine the opponent's item and make an inference about what set it is if it viably runs more than one Talk about how scouting for a choiced item is potentially useful versus things like Mesprit and Rotom-F.. However, utilizing Frisk means you must give up Pressure, which is a far more useful ability considering Dusclops is most likely to be placed on a defensively-oriented team structure.
  • Infestation is a temporary trapping move that inflicts residual damage, but mention how only lasting 4-5 turns makes this a less consistent option over Mean Look.
Checks and Counters
===================

**Taunt Users**: Taunt shuts down Dusclops from using three of its four moves. Some of PU's most common Taunt users such as Sableye and Pyroar possess a Fighting- or Ghost-type immunity and therefore, depending on what attacking move it chose, Dusclops could be left completely helpless. Give a specific mention to Oricorio-G, which straight-up turns Dusclops into setup fodder with its bulky TauntCM set.

**Eviolite Removal**: The removal of Dusclops's Eviolite by means of Knock Off and Trick from Pokemon such as Eelektross, Zangoose, and Rotom-Frost can spell disaster later in the battle, as Dusclops will not be able to perform its role as a bulky spinblock to nearly the same extent as it did when it held its Eviolite. Talk about how being Tricked into smth like Scarf makes Dusclops pretty much useless and complete setup bait, "not performing its role to the same extent" is putting it very lightly in this scenario.

**Dark-type Pokemon**: Dark-type Pokemon such as Skuntank, Alolan Raticate, Absol, and Shiftry can all 2HKO Dusclops with their super effective STAB moves. Dark-types are also the most common Pokemon to have access to the dreaded Knock Off, as for many of these Pokemon it is their most reliable STAB option. Mention how Dusclops can burn these Pokemon if they attempt to switch in, however.

**Ghost-type Pokemon**: Similarly to Dark-types, Ghost-type Pokemon such as Spiritomb, Oricorio-G, Haunter, and Silvally-Ghost can also 2HKO Dusclops with their super effective STAB attacks. However, Ghost-types have even less to worry about since Dusclops's only attacking move is Seismic Toss. Mention how Ghost-types are also immune to Mean Look, meaning you can't use it as means of safely pivoting.
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