Jumpluff
QC Checks: 2/2
GP Checks: 2/2
[Overview]
<p>One may ignore Jumpluff at first glance, as it lacks decent stats or an extensive movepool. Upon closer inspection, however, one can see that Jumpluff has some niche thanks to its great ability, Chlorophyll, and a fantastic movepool to take advantage of this. All is not well for Jumpluff, unfortunately, as a weakness to three very common spread moves: Blizzard, Heat Wave, and Rock Slide, keeps it from realizing its true potential as a sun-abusing supporter. Despite this, with the correct support, Jumpluff is an excellent choice for any team looking to take advantage of sunny weather.</p>
[SET]
name: Chlorophyll Supporter
move 1: Sleep Powder
move 2: Encore
move 3: Rage Powder / Helping Hand / Giga Drain / Protect
move 4: Rage Powder / Helping Hand / Giga Drain / Protect
item: Yache Berry / Sitrus Berry
ability: Chlorophyll
nature: Timid
evs: 252 HP / 60 SpD / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The lack of Sleep Clause in VGC allows a huge amount of Pokemon to abuse Sleep Powder and Spore; Jumpluff is one of these said Pokemon. What really sets Jumpluff apart from the rest is its ability, Chloropyll, which doubles its Speed in the sun; this set takes full advantage of it by supporting its team with a variety of support moves.</p>
<p>With Sleep Powder, Jumpluff is able to neuter the opponent's Pokemon by rendering it unable to attack for several turns. Encore can lock foes into non-damaging moves or one-time use moves such as Fake Out, forcing a switch and keeping the opponent on their toes. critical to Jumpluff's success, and as such, are mandatory, but the remaining two can be a combination of Rage Powder, Helping Hand, Giga Drain, or Protect. Rage Powder is generally the first choice; it provides cover for Jumpluff's partner by attracting all moves to Jumpluff for a turn while Jumpluff's teammate eliminates any threats. However, a teammate may need a little extra "oomph" on its attacks in order to get a KO, which Jumpluff gladly provides with Helping Hand, boosting the power of its partner's attacks. If one is afraid of Taunt, Giga Drain keeps Jumpluff from being complete Taunt bait and allows a little HP to be regained. Protect keeps Jumpluff alive for another turn and gives time for its partner to take care of a problematic Pokemon.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>With Blizzard doing 4x damage to Jumpluff, a Yache Berry allows Jumpluff to stay in the game for another turn while its partner deals with the Blizzard user. However, a good sun team can take care of any Blizzard users without difficulty, making a Sitrus Berry a suitable alternative in order to heal Jumpluff's HP when it has taken a lot of damage. A Timid nature and 196 Speed EVs allow Jumpluff to outpace Garchomp even when not in the sun, and in the sun, allow Jumpluff to outspeed all of the remaining unboosted Pokemon in the metagame. Since so few Speed EVs are needed, 252 EVs are placed in HP and 60 in Special Defense to increase Jumpluff's lifespan throughout battle.</p>
<p>Jumpluff needs Sunny Day support to be effective, and Ninetales provides just that; its new ability Drought brings eternal sun to the battlefield. Ninetales also appreciates the support Jumpluff provides, with Sleep Powder taking care of threatening Pokemon such as Garchomp, and Helping Hand helping Ninetales nab extra KOs. Additionally, Hitmontop works well with Jumpluff, providing Wide Guard support so Jumpluff won't be destroyed by spread moves.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Another support option is Stun Spore, which cuts the opponent's Speed by 75% and giving Jumpluff's teammates the upper hand. Memento could be viable as a last-ditch move to neuter a powerful opponent, but Jumpluff is generally better off using Sleep Powder until it is KOed. A SubSeed set looks good on paper, but its weakness to common spread moves keeps this from being utilized effectively. Substitute, however, is usable in its own right, and could be placed in the fourth move slot if Giga Drain and Protect are unattractive. Sunny Day is useful for setting sun back up if a weather starter is brought in; however, Pokemon that have access to Prankster such as Whimsicott generally perform this job better.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Most Ice-type Pokemon present an obstacle to Jumpluff. Weavile, Mamoswine, and Abomasnow all take little to no damage from Giga Drain and hit back hard with super effective Ice-type attacks. While sun may help Jumpluff, it also powers up opposing Pokemon's Fire-type moves, which shred Jumpluff to pieces. Zapdos and Chandelure in particular utilize powerful Heat Waves to take down Jumpluff. Pokemon utilizing the Prankster ability, such as Thundurus and Whimsicott, utilize a priority Taunt to stop Jumpluff from getting off its deadly Sleep Powder, and force a Giga Drain-less Jumpluff to Struggle for damage.</p>
