Mega Snorlax
Typing: Normal >>> Normal
Abilities: Immunity/Thick Fat/Gluttony >>> Roadblock
Stats: 160/110/65/65/110/30 ----> 160/140(+30)/85(+20)/85(+20)/140(+30)/30
New Moves: None
Roadblock (Ability) - The user blocks the foe's way with its sheer size, preventing grounded Pokémon from escaping
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you a monster.
Snorlax is known as the "Sleeping Pokemon." Even to those not familiar with the low-energy antics of Snorlax, this title seems fitting. His eyes are permanently closed, he is rarely seen standing up, and he is usually seen wearing the contented smile of someone who just ate an entire orchard and got away with it. To those who ARE familiar with Snorlax and what he does, one of the first things that comes to mind would be this:
or this:
or this:
or, most recently, this:
For 18 years now, Snorlax has been blocking roads, pathways, routes, you name it, if it's an inconvenient location to take a nap, you can be guaranteed to find a Snorlax. Unless you can fly, there's no way around this bad boy.
Which brings me to explain his Mega.
Trapping is one of the most feared skills a pokemon can possess in this community, and it isn't difficult to see why. If locked into an unwinnable situation, there's nothing to be done except prepare to lose that pokemon. In fact, this sole skill is why Gothitelle is currently BL, and the sole reason Mega Gengar was banished to Ubers.
That being said, why would I give such a skill to an already adequate Pokemon receiving more adequate buffs? Allow me to explain:
Roadblock is, essentially, Arena Trap. The only difference is the name, which is there solely for flavor's sake (which, I must say, it's dripping with). For those of you who are still not sold on trapping, be it known that Arena Trap =/= Shadow Tag. Shadow Tag traps any and all things non-Ghost type, which is at least 95% of the meta. Arena Trap, on the other hand, also does not trap Ghosts, but it also allows Flying types, Pokemon holding an Air Balloon, and those with Levitate to freely come and go as they please. Which, in this Talonflame/Mega Pinsir/Skarmory/Rotom-W drenched meta, is nowhere near as daunting as you'd expect, and doesn't even begin to compare with Shadow Tag.
For those who STILL aren't sold, I have scattered a few replays of the now-dubbed "TrapLax" facing various team archetypes over the past page or two of this thread. After watching him in action, one can see that he's undeniably good, but against certain teams, he's more than maneagable.
Now, the reason he's manageable would be these:
1. Roadblock doesn't affect non-grounded foes. Flying types such as Talonflame, Skarmory, Mega Pinsir, etc. are in abundance right now, and they can maneuver their way with ease around the Lax.
2. His mono-Normal typing leaves him susceptable to physical Fighting-type moves, which would be most of them, and his much lower physical defense stat means that he's easy prey for bruisers such as Conkeldurr, Terrakion, Keldeo, and even Breloom.
3. He's slower than just about everything in the tier not named Ferrothorn. With a whopping base speed stat of 30, he's outspeed by just about everything out there. This also means that VoltTurners weave in and out of his big fat paws without breaking a sweat.
4. Quagsire. Snorlax requires a Belly Drum or multiple Curse boosts to do any real damage, but the Quag brings all this to a screeching halt. 1v1, they essentially stall each other out, with one being trapped, and the other not capable of doing anything.
So, clearly, he'd have an impact on the Meta in some shape or form, but it wouldn't be earth-shattering the way Mega Gengar's was, and with the plethora of powerful new megas being presented in this project, I think TrapLax would make an excellent new addition.
The reasons I've been pushing this ability on Snorlax are these:
1. There is nothing more flavorful on Snorlax. There just isn't. While he is the Sleeping Pokemon, he's most famous for demonstrating this skill by blocking the fuck outta your way for 18 years. This has been his signature thing for 6 generations, and nothing could signify this better.
2. It needs to differentiate itself from normal Snorlax. Regular Lax has a suberb role in VGC as being a hard-hitting special wall, tailored exceptionally well to handle Mega Charizard Y with his Thick Fat. Mega Snorlax must perform a completely different role in order not to outclass his regular self, and this accomplishes that beautifully.
Now that we've got that out of the way, time to talk numbers. It is incredibly important that Snorlax's stats remain balanced and true to the original. Too much attack or defense and he becomes unstoppable. Too little would render him outclassed or undesirable. The key here is to balance out the offenses and defenses while retaining an abysmally low speed. This way, Snorlax becomes a powerful special tank that can hit back hard, but he can be outspeed so easily that prediction is greatly eased. Base Attack is the same as SDef, as it was in the original (as it should be), and Defense and SAtk are kept fairly low to prevent any sort of overpowering from occuring. However, thanks to his great Special Movepool, he can use moves such as Fire Blast to actually dent things like Skarmory, which is always a nice option to have.
I chose against giving Snorlax any new moves. His movepool is already incredibly diverse, and giving him instant recovery outside of Rest would break him, I'm afraid. Also, Slack Off is more fitting of the likes of SLAKing and Slowbro, wouldn't you say? Rest is befitting of the King of Sleeping, and anything else would make him much too overpowered. The Lax don't need that shit, and in my opinion, no other moves are necessary.
Anyway, I must say, of all the mega submissions I've brought to the table, THIS is the one I'm most proud of. It's unique, immensely flavorful, and is a truly solidly built mon in every aspect. Last two rounds, I gave the meta two new gifts to stall. Now, I bring one of stall's greatest threats. While keeping the meta balanced is important, it is equally important to keep it fun, challenging, and interesting. And Mega Snorlax, I firmly believe, brings out the best of all three.
