QC checks: Fiend, --, --
GP checks: --, --
[OVERVIEW]
[SET]
name: Rock Polish Lure
move 1: Rock Polish
move 2: Earth Power
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Destiny Bond
item: Berry Juice
ability: Water Compaction
nature: Modest
evs: 76 HP / 116 SpA / 76 SpD / 236 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
========
Usage Tips
========
========
Other Options
=============
Checks and Counters
===================
**Flying-types**: although they are not recognized as premier defensive walls, the combination of Normal/Flying types, the most common one in the Pokémon world, hard walls Sandygast: it has no option against things like Rufflet and Doduo, and Ancient Power does not deal a lot of damage. Vullaby is a prime example of what can wall Sandygast, being immune to Earth Power, an eventual Psychic, and resisting both Giga Drain and Shadow Ball; it can use Sandygast as a setup bait, because even Ancient Power misses the 3HKO on Eviolite NP Vullaby.
**Dark-types**: Pawniard and Vullaby easily take advantage of Sandygast: they can OHKO or severely damage Sandygast; however, Eviolite Pawniard risks a OHKO from an Earth Power after Stealth Rock damage. As stated before, Vullaby completely walls Sandygast, and can either set up Nasty Plot or just 2HKO it with unboosted Dark Pulse.
**Water-types**: As said, Water Compaction boosts Sandygast's Defense by 2 stages; however, it does not neutralize them. This makes the majority of Water-types a threat to Sandygast: Carvanha can almost always OHKO Sandygast with Waterfall, and severely damages it with Aqua Jet. Thanks to Adaptability, Corphish can OHKO Sandygast with Crabhammer, or use it as a setup bait for Dragon Dance. Choice Scarf Chinchou can OHKO but it gets heavily hurt by Earth Power.
**Grass-types**: Grass-types resist Earth Power, sometimes also Shadow Ball (Deerling's case), and can take a Psychic/Ancient Power/HP Fire/Giga Drain with ease. Foongus is 3HKOed by Psychic, and can 2HKO a bulky variant with Giga Drain. Snivy OHKOes it, and Sandygast has no answer to it. Ferroseed is only 2HKOed by the rare HP Fire, and it can kill Sandygast with two 3-hit Bullet Seed.
**Ice-types**: Snover is an extreme check to Sandygast, as it can OHKO it with Blizzard, resists Earth Power and Giga Drain, and doesn't take enormous damage from Ancient Power and Psychic: however, HP Fire is a clean OHKO on the Scarf variants, so be ware. Non-Life Orb Alolan Vulpix has a slim chance to OHKO, but Sandygast can't do much in return. Life Orb Adamant Alolan Sandshrew can OHKO Sandygast with a 3-hit Icicle Spear; however, Sandygast can OHKO non-Eviolite Alolan Sandshrew with Earth Power. Choice Scarf Amaura can OHKO Sandygast with Refrigerate Hyper Voice most of times, but Sandygast can always OHKO it with Earth Power.
**Faster threats**: boosted Sandygast sits on a 22 Spe, which means that everything with at least 15 Speed and a Choice Scarf can tie with it. Choice Scarf users such as Jolly Pawniard, Jolly Rufflet, and Timid Chinchou can outspeed a boosted Sandygast and proceed to OHKO it. Gastly is immune to Earth Power and Toxic, outspeeds an unboosted Sandygast and OHKOes it with Shadow Ball; however, it can't switch in on a Shadow Ball, as they OHKO Gastly after Stealth Rock damage.
GP checks: --, --
[OVERVIEW]
- Good physical defense
- Reliable recovery in Shore Up
- 70 Special Attack, which is a bit above the average
- Its damage output is bigger than expected, but not exceptional
- Access to some coverage moves such as Psychic, Ancient Power, and Giga Drain, although they are not sensational options
- Extremely slow
- Its special bulk is quite low, compared to the physical one
- Being a Ghost-type means it is weak to Knock Off
- Its signature ability doesn't give an immunity to Water-type moves, taking full damage from them, and thus being an underwhelming option
- All in all, it doesn't have a real niche -its type is poor defensively, and lacks solid coverage options
[SET]
name: Rock Polish Lure
move 1: Rock Polish
move 2: Earth Power
move 3: Shadow Ball
move 4: Destiny Bond
item: Berry Juice
ability: Water Compaction
nature: Modest
evs: 76 HP / 116 SpA / 76 SpD / 236 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
- Rock Polish turns Sandygast into a fast special attacker, which is a unique niche because Sandygast has the highest Special Attack out of all Ground-types in LC.
- Earth Power is its best STAB option, nuking Steel-, Rock-, and Fire-types: it also deals ample damage on frail neutral targets.
- Shadow Ball is used as secondary STAB, and provides Sandygast a tool to hit Gastly, Drifloon, and Abra supereffectively. It also offers decent coverage alongside Earth Power.
- Destiny Bond, while unappealing at first, functions very well when Sandygast is boosted and has done its job: it is particularly useful to pick off a Rapid Spin user in a pinch (especially Staryu), and to dodge Sucker Punch when boosted (because non-Choice Scarf Pawniard can't outspeed a boosted Sandygast).
========
- EVs spread nature maximizes Sandygast's Special Attack to make it hit as hard as it can, while not wasting EVs.
- Maximum Speed is required, as at +2 Sandygast will outspeed all the unboosted LC metagame, and some Choice Scarf users such as Timid Magnemite.
- A Modest nature gives Sandygast more power.
- The leftover EVs give Sandygast an extra point in HP and Special Defense, as its Defense is higher than its Special Defense.
- Berry Juice acts as a form of recovery, bringing Sandygast back to full health when its HP drop below 50%.
- Water Compaction should be the only ability to use, as even though it takes full damage from Water-type moves, it raises its Defense to +2.
Usage Tips
========
- Sandygast should be sent in to block Volt Switch from things like Magnemite, in order to kill opposing momentum. It can also be used to take on Choice-locked Fighting-type moves, such as a Choice Scarf HJK from Mienfoo: however, be careful because Fighting-types can predict the switch and use Knock Off, severely hurting Sandygast.
- Sandygast is also a decent spinblocker, only fearing Staryu. It has enough physical bulk to survive attacks from Drilbur.
- When on field, Sandygast should spam its STAB once Flying- and Dark-types have been eliminated.
- Destiny Bond is the final trick Sandygast can use to bring the opponent down: please note rhat Sandygast should use Destint Bond only if boosted, because it has a terrible Speed when unboosted.
========
- Sandygast needs a lot of support for functioning correctly. He absolutely needs partners that deal with most Dark-types, as they can Knock Off, Dark Pulse, or Pursuit trap it. Priority users such as Timburr and Croagunk make for food partners, eliminating the likes of Pawniard quickly, while Snubbul can stop Vullaby.
- A Flying-type check such as Chinchou or Magnemite should be always added when playing Sandygast, as it has no real chance to hit them (especially the Normal/Flying ones, like Rufflet, which are immune to both its STABs). Magnemite can also exploit Sandygast's typing to escape Fighting-type moves, while it sponges the majority of moves thrown at Sandygast.
- Flying-types such as Doduo and Rufflet can also be good partners for Sandygast, as they remove Grass-types, while Sandygast can kill the majority of Rock-, Steel, and Electric-types with Earth Power.
- Hazard setters pair well with Sandygast. Setters such as Ferroseed can sponge Water-, Ice-, and Grass-type moves with ease, while Sandygast can take Fighting-types moves and threaten Fire-types with Earth Power.
Other Options
=============
- An Eviolite Defensive set using ots signature move Shore Up can be used, but it is outclassed by the main set.
- Ancient Power, Energy Ball, or Psychic can be used in the 4th slot, but Destiny Bond helps more because it allows Sandygast to take the opposing Spinner down.
- Sandygast can be used as a second Sand setter in dedicated Sandstorm teams, but it has difficulties in finding a slot for it.
- Trick Room teams appreciate Sandygast super-low Speed, but Sandygast needs a lot of support to work efficiently.
- A physical set with Earthquake/Rock Slide/Facade/Shore Up sounds a bit appealing, but unfortunately Sandygast's Attack is lower than its Special Attack, and lacks the coverage options a special set has; more importantly, most Ground-types outclass ir in this role; and finally, Sandygast has no physical Ghost-type moves, not even Shadow Sneak.
- Hidden Power Ice can be used to hit Flying-, Grass-, and Dragon-types for supereffective damage, but they sre generally inferior choices.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Flying-types**: although they are not recognized as premier defensive walls, the combination of Normal/Flying types, the most common one in the Pokémon world, hard walls Sandygast: it has no option against things like Rufflet and Doduo, and Ancient Power does not deal a lot of damage. Vullaby is a prime example of what can wall Sandygast, being immune to Earth Power, an eventual Psychic, and resisting both Giga Drain and Shadow Ball; it can use Sandygast as a setup bait, because even Ancient Power misses the 3HKO on Eviolite NP Vullaby.
**Dark-types**: Pawniard and Vullaby easily take advantage of Sandygast: they can OHKO or severely damage Sandygast; however, Eviolite Pawniard risks a OHKO from an Earth Power after Stealth Rock damage. As stated before, Vullaby completely walls Sandygast, and can either set up Nasty Plot or just 2HKO it with unboosted Dark Pulse.
**Water-types**: As said, Water Compaction boosts Sandygast's Defense by 2 stages; however, it does not neutralize them. This makes the majority of Water-types a threat to Sandygast: Carvanha can almost always OHKO Sandygast with Waterfall, and severely damages it with Aqua Jet. Thanks to Adaptability, Corphish can OHKO Sandygast with Crabhammer, or use it as a setup bait for Dragon Dance. Choice Scarf Chinchou can OHKO but it gets heavily hurt by Earth Power.
**Grass-types**: Grass-types resist Earth Power, sometimes also Shadow Ball (Deerling's case), and can take a Psychic/Ancient Power/HP Fire/Giga Drain with ease. Foongus is 3HKOed by Psychic, and can 2HKO a bulky variant with Giga Drain. Snivy OHKOes it, and Sandygast has no answer to it. Ferroseed is only 2HKOed by the rare HP Fire, and it can kill Sandygast with two 3-hit Bullet Seed.
**Ice-types**: Snover is an extreme check to Sandygast, as it can OHKO it with Blizzard, resists Earth Power and Giga Drain, and doesn't take enormous damage from Ancient Power and Psychic: however, HP Fire is a clean OHKO on the Scarf variants, so be ware. Non-Life Orb Alolan Vulpix has a slim chance to OHKO, but Sandygast can't do much in return. Life Orb Adamant Alolan Sandshrew can OHKO Sandygast with a 3-hit Icicle Spear; however, Sandygast can OHKO non-Eviolite Alolan Sandshrew with Earth Power. Choice Scarf Amaura can OHKO Sandygast with Refrigerate Hyper Voice most of times, but Sandygast can always OHKO it with Earth Power.
**Faster threats**: boosted Sandygast sits on a 22 Spe, which means that everything with at least 15 Speed and a Choice Scarf can tie with it. Choice Scarf users such as Jolly Pawniard, Jolly Rufflet, and Timid Chinchou can outspeed a boosted Sandygast and proceed to OHKO it. Gastly is immune to Earth Power and Toxic, outspeeds an unboosted Sandygast and OHKOes it with Shadow Ball; however, it can't switch in on a Shadow Ball, as they OHKO Gastly after Stealth Rock damage.
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