[OVERVIEW]
Reuniclus is a versatile Pokemon that serves as a slow yet bulky and powerful wallbreaker with good longevity. Reuniclus's bulk allows it to trade with common Pokemon such as Moltres, Salamence, and Zygarde-10% and KO them with enough prior chip damage. Its ability, Magic Guard, allows it to completely ignore passive damage, such as Toxic from Chansey and Hippowdon, as well as sand damage from the latter. Magic Guard also negates Life Orb recoil, which, in tandem with its high natural Special Attack stat, makes it extremely difficult to switch into, and its coverage options in Focus Blast and Thunder are able to wipe out checks like Zarude, Hydreigon, Mandibuzz, and Celesteela. However, Reuniclus is terribly slow and often relies on prediction. It is also prone to getting overwhelmed by offensive teams, which give it very few chances to use Recover. Psychic is also a fairly mediocre defensive typing because it doesn't resist common attacks and is weak to the omnipresent Knock Off and U-turn, which means Reuniclus is often forced into using Recover more than it would like to, further limiting its offensive presence. Furthermroe, Focus Blast and Thunder's poor accuracies make using an attack that isn't Psychic a gamble. Reuniclus also faces heavy competition from Pokemon like Galarian Slowbro and Azelf; the former has more expansive coverage and a better defensive typing, while the latter is faster, generating momentum with U-turn and progress with Knock Off. Reuniclus is stronger than both, however, and can ignore passive damage like sand and entry hazards, making it harder to overwhelm.
[SET]
name: Life Orb + 3 Attacks
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Thunder
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Recover
item: Life Orb
ability: Magic Guard
nature: Modest
evs: 188 HP / 32 Def / 252 SpA / 36 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Psychic nails threats like Hippowdon, Amoonguss, and Salamence. Thunder allows Reuniclus to severely threaten Pokemon resistant or immune to Psychic, such as Celesteela, Slowking, and Mandibuzz, whilst also hitting Primarina super effectively. Focus Blast allows Reuniclus to OHKO common Steel- and Dark-types including Excadrill, Hydreigon, and Zarude. Recover increases its longevity to give it more wallbreaking opportunities; Reuniclus can have several opportunities to heal in front of passive walls such as Skarmory and Slowking. Life Orb is used to further bolster its wallbreaking potential, as it suffers none of its drawbacks due to Magic Guard. The given EVs allow Reuniclus to maximize its bulk in order to trade versus threats like Keldeo and Salamence while hitting as hard as possible. It also guarantees that Reuniclus survives Fire Blast from Azelf after a Nasty Plot boost and avoids a 2HKO from Nihilego's Sludge Bomb.
Reuniclus fits on bulky offense and balance teams that appreciate its solid offensive profile and coverage that threatens a multitude of Pokemon, like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Skarmory. Cobalion is a solid partner for it, as it can switch into Dark-types like Zarude and Mandibuzz, as well as threaten Chansey. It can also absorb Knock Off and counter Scizor. Hippowdon, Nihilego, Spikes Skarmory, and Cobalion are all good entry hazard setters for Reuniclus, as they help wear down threats like Hydreigon, Chansey, and opposing Hippowdon. Hippowdon, in particular, can also soften up Tangrowth with Toxic, making it much easier to break through, while Skarmory can completely counter Scizor. Primarina can pivot in on Dark-types like Hydreigon, as well as prevent Reuniclus from being overwhelmed against the likes of Moltres, Keldeo, and Salamence. Pivots, such as Rotom-W, Zarude, and Mandibuzz, are appreciated to bring in Reuniclus safely against Pokemon like Amoonguss, Nihilego, and Hippowdon. Mandibuzz can also check Dark- and Ghost-types, including Hydreigon, Zarude, and Chandelure. Rotom-W can stave off Moltres and Celesteela, while Zarude can deal with Chansey and Thundurus-T. Various late-game cleaners, such as Scizor, Raikou, and Choice Scarf Hydreigon, are good alongside Reuniclus due to how much pressure it puts on the opposing team, allowing its teammates to clean up after.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Calm Mind sets with maximum Defense investment make Reuniclus a potent stallbreaker thanks to its immunity to Toxic, turning traditional checks like Chansey and Hippowdon into setup bait. However, this set is largely outclassed by Galarian Slowbro, which has a more useful typing to set up more easily and greater offensive potency. Calm Mind + Trick + Sticky Barb sets can take switch-ins like Zarude and Scizor out of commission, but this set still struggles into Dark-types and requires extensive team support. Stored Power sets with Calm Mind and Acid Armor allow Reuniclus to boost its defenses and potentially snowball enemy teams, but this set is largely unreliable because it cannot touch Dark-types and Reuniclus will be a dead weight if it fails to safely boost. Assault Vest Reuniclus makes use of Regenerator by scouting powerful special attackers like Keldeo and Primarina, while setting itself apart from Galarian Slowbro with its access to Knock Off. However, Galarian Slowbro is usually better in this role as well, having much more of an offensive presence by virtue of its great coverage. As a defensive pivot, Assault Vest Reuniclus also faces competition from Slowking and Chansey, both being much safer options due to their access to Teleport. Offensive Trick Room Reuniclus is an option that turns its horrible Speed stat into an advantage. However, it usually isn't favored, as Reuniclus has to give up Recover to use Trick Room, severely cutting into its longevity.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dark-types and Dark-type coverage**: Dark-types such as Hydreigon and Zarude are extremely threatening for Reuniclus, though they hate taking Focus Blast. Mandibuzz can pivot into most of Reuniclus's attacks and slowly rack up chip damage with U-turn; it can't switch in on Thunder, though. Knock Off from Tangrowth, Scizor, and Diggersby is also particularly dangerous for Reuniclus, as it hates losing its item and taking massive damage from the latter two.
**Strong Wallbreakers**: Powerful wallbreakers such as Chandelure, Mamoswine, and Keldeo can force out Reuniclus to an extent, as it does not want to take chip damage that forces it into using Recover more often. Its terrible Speed makes it difficult to find chances to Recover against offensive teams as well.
**Special Walls**: Bulky special walls, including Slowking and Chansey, give Reuniclus an extremely hard time, as both can pivot in on its STAB move and use it for easy momentum into a dangerous threat with Teleport. However, Slowking must be wary of Thunder.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sulo, 528036]]
- Quality checked by: [pokemonisfun, 56643], [Monky25, 515132], [Mystras Leoxses, 530118]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Band, 301217], [dex, 277988]]
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