[OVERVIEW]
Despite being a ZU pokemon that is not even fully evolved, Sneasel-Hisui has managed to create a respectable niche in the tier as a fast fighting type breaker. With base 115 speed and high base power STAB moves, as well as Swords Dance and an immunity to intimidate, Sneasel-Hisui may be your fighting type of choice on hyper offense and some balance builds. In regards to its speed tier, Sneasel outpaces nearly the entire metagame, with only Salazzle and Electrode-Hisui being viable pokemon who are naturally faster. Because of its typing and eviolite, it can find opportunities to set up on a handful of common pokemon such as Wo-Chien and Brute Bonnet. Even without those pokemon in the opposing team's squad, Sneasel-Hisui has enough bulk with eviolite to usually live at least one neutral hit from things, and this can be useful in getting a swords dance off. Due to this combination of traits, you will sometimes find Sneasel-Hisui performing its niche in the SV PU metagame.
However, not all is sunshine and rainbows with Sneasel-Hisui. Despite its eviolite, it will die to strong attacks due to its terrible defensive stats, 55/55/75. Also, with defensive poison tera being a common theme on many team's bulky pokemon, Sneasel-Hisui can find itself going from a great matchup into a terrible one. Sneasel-Hisui also is rather one-dimensional, only really utilizing one set effectively, making it predictable. Sneasel-Hisui also has an unfortunate x4 weakness to psychic types, which makes it unable to have a chance versus certain pokemon like Psynoise Florges and Uxie unless you have a defensive tera to flip the weakness. Lastly, despite its strong STAB moves and swords dance, Sneasel-Hisui only has 95 attack, so it cannot beat pokemon like Bellibolt and Mudsdale unless they are properly weakened before the sweep. With all of that said, Sneasel-Hisui still has a strong enough niche to perform well in the tier, and a swords dance Sneasel-Hisui can be quite the threat in the endgame.
[SET]
name: Sneasel-Hisui (Swords Dance)
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Gunk Shot
move 3: Close Combat
move 4: Throat Chop / Trailblaze
item: Eviolite
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 ATK / 4 DEF / 252 SPE
tera: Dark / Grass / Ghost
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Swords Dance exists to allow Sneasel-Hisui to become a threatening sweeper at +2 attack. Gunk Shot despite its 80% accuracy is the best choice on Sneasel-Hisui due to its high base power and poison chance, as well as lack of contact into rocky helmet or static. Close Combat is Sneasel-Hisui's best STAB Fighting attack, due to its high base power once again as well as the fact that it doesn't really care about its defenses as much once it gets a swords dance off. Throat Chop is important dark coverage that allows you to beat ghost types, and can also allow you to set up on non volt-switch toxtricity since it cancels sound moves. Trailblaze is an option as well to boost your speed, allowing you to surpass the fastest of choice scarf users.
Set Details
========
252 attack and 252 speed allow Sneasel-Hisui to be as fast and threatening as possible. A Jolly nature is essential because a big distinguishing factor for Sneasel-Hisui compared to other Fighting Type sweepers is its remarkable speed tier. Tera Dark is the best tera due to its ability to flip the psychic weakness into an immunity, and it boosts your coverage from STAB. Tera Grass can be useful if you are running trailblaze to get rid of the ground weakness and boost it, letting you have more opportunities to revenge pokemon with it and get the free speed boost. Tera Ghost can also be an option to avoid getting damaged by fake out, and most importantly Arcanine's Extremespeed. Inner Focus is the ability of choice to avoid the flinch from fake out Ambipom and not get weakened by intimidate users such as Arcanine and Tauros-Paldea-Fire.
Usage Tips
========
Sneasel-Hisui should avoid using its contact moves in the early game if it sees Bellibolt, and should avoid being used much in general in the beginning of the game due to the fact that it needs its HP to set up later and needs the defensive walls on the opponent's side weakened before it does that. An exception would be if you have toxic, then you should try to use that in the early game on a predicted switch to a physical wall. In the mid-game, Sneasel-Hisui will more-than-likely find opportunities to revenge kill something, and this is the extent of its utility in the mid-game unless the opposition's defensive walls are already weakened at this point. In the endgame, you should be looking for your best opportunity to set up a Swords Dance with your hopefully healthy Sneasel-Hisui. Try to revenge kill with trailblaze in the endgame if you need the extra speed boost to outspeed their scarfer for the sweep.
Team Options
========
Sneasel-Hisui really appreciates opposing physical walls being weakened throughout the game before it sets up a Swords Dance. Due to this, pokemon like Arcanine and Golurk can be useful. Arcanine in particular can be really nice, because it is immune to Will-O-Wisp, packs priority to create great speed control from the get-go between the two, and its Choice Band set can easily surprise physical walls and claim KOs. Sneasel also appreciates opportunities to sweep, so pokemon that get it in safely such as Electrode-Hisui and Bellibolt are great options. Electrode-Hisui on offensive teams in particular can be realy nice, because it also creates nice speed control between the two, and its switchins are often threatened by Sneasel-Hisui. Stealth Rock support is useful to Sneasel-Hisui on securing OHKOs and 2HKOs, so pokemon like Rhydon, Avalugg-Hisui, and Mudsdale can be helpful. Rhydon in particular can be nice because you are outsped by Salazzle and Choice Scarf Toxtricity, both of which hate to see Rhydon.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Sneasel-Hisui is rather one-dimensional and does not have many other options; however, toxic can be slotted in the last move for the Swords Dance set if you want in order to cripple physical walls like Mudsdale in the early game. This sounds nice, but it's hard to justify it over throat chop or trailblaze. A Choice Scarf set with Switcheroo is also an option. However, with only 95 base attack, Sneasel-Hisui can struggle to secure KOs without any boosts.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Walls**: As mentioned above, pokemon like Mudsdale and Bellibolt can tank a +2 attack pretty easily and threaten a KO or momentum into a revenge killer back. Altaria also is a less common physical wall who can tank an attack and threaten it back with flying STAB or Will-O-Wisp.
**Defensive Poison Tera**: Many pokemon run a defensive Poison Tera such as Florges, Bellibolt, and Rhydon. This can stop Sneasel-Hisui's sweep quickly if the opponent has not used their tera yet and saved it for the Sneasel-Hisui.
**Faster Pokemon** Some pokemon can naturally outspeed it and revenge kill it, such as Salazzle and Electrode-Hisui. Common choice scarf users such as Tauros-Paldea-Fire, Bruxish, and Florges can outspeed it and threaten a KO.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[<tom holland>, <userid1>]]
- Quality checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>], [<username2>, <userid2>], [<username3>, <userid3>]]
- Grammar checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>], [<username2>, <userid2>]]
Despite being a ZU pokemon that is not even fully evolved, Sneasel-Hisui has managed to create a respectable niche in the tier as a fast fighting type breaker. With base 115 speed and high base power STAB moves, as well as Swords Dance and an immunity to intimidate, Sneasel-Hisui may be your fighting type of choice on hyper offense and some balance builds. In regards to its speed tier, Sneasel outpaces nearly the entire metagame, with only Salazzle and Electrode-Hisui being viable pokemon who are naturally faster. Because of its typing and eviolite, it can find opportunities to set up on a handful of common pokemon such as Wo-Chien and Brute Bonnet. Even without those pokemon in the opposing team's squad, Sneasel-Hisui has enough bulk with eviolite to usually live at least one neutral hit from things, and this can be useful in getting a swords dance off. Due to this combination of traits, you will sometimes find Sneasel-Hisui performing its niche in the SV PU metagame.
However, not all is sunshine and rainbows with Sneasel-Hisui. Despite its eviolite, it will die to strong attacks due to its terrible defensive stats, 55/55/75. Also, with defensive poison tera being a common theme on many team's bulky pokemon, Sneasel-Hisui can find itself going from a great matchup into a terrible one. Sneasel-Hisui also is rather one-dimensional, only really utilizing one set effectively, making it predictable. Sneasel-Hisui also has an unfortunate x4 weakness to psychic types, which makes it unable to have a chance versus certain pokemon like Psynoise Florges and Uxie unless you have a defensive tera to flip the weakness. Lastly, despite its strong STAB moves and swords dance, Sneasel-Hisui only has 95 attack, so it cannot beat pokemon like Bellibolt and Mudsdale unless they are properly weakened before the sweep. With all of that said, Sneasel-Hisui still has a strong enough niche to perform well in the tier, and a swords dance Sneasel-Hisui can be quite the threat in the endgame.
[SET]
name: Sneasel-Hisui (Swords Dance)
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Gunk Shot
move 3: Close Combat
move 4: Throat Chop / Trailblaze
item: Eviolite
ability: Inner Focus
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 ATK / 4 DEF / 252 SPE
tera: Dark / Grass / Ghost
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Swords Dance exists to allow Sneasel-Hisui to become a threatening sweeper at +2 attack. Gunk Shot despite its 80% accuracy is the best choice on Sneasel-Hisui due to its high base power and poison chance, as well as lack of contact into rocky helmet or static. Close Combat is Sneasel-Hisui's best STAB Fighting attack, due to its high base power once again as well as the fact that it doesn't really care about its defenses as much once it gets a swords dance off. Throat Chop is important dark coverage that allows you to beat ghost types, and can also allow you to set up on non volt-switch toxtricity since it cancels sound moves. Trailblaze is an option as well to boost your speed, allowing you to surpass the fastest of choice scarf users.
Set Details
========
252 attack and 252 speed allow Sneasel-Hisui to be as fast and threatening as possible. A Jolly nature is essential because a big distinguishing factor for Sneasel-Hisui compared to other Fighting Type sweepers is its remarkable speed tier. Tera Dark is the best tera due to its ability to flip the psychic weakness into an immunity, and it boosts your coverage from STAB. Tera Grass can be useful if you are running trailblaze to get rid of the ground weakness and boost it, letting you have more opportunities to revenge pokemon with it and get the free speed boost. Tera Ghost can also be an option to avoid getting damaged by fake out, and most importantly Arcanine's Extremespeed. Inner Focus is the ability of choice to avoid the flinch from fake out Ambipom and not get weakened by intimidate users such as Arcanine and Tauros-Paldea-Fire.
Usage Tips
========
Sneasel-Hisui should avoid using its contact moves in the early game if it sees Bellibolt, and should avoid being used much in general in the beginning of the game due to the fact that it needs its HP to set up later and needs the defensive walls on the opponent's side weakened before it does that. An exception would be if you have toxic, then you should try to use that in the early game on a predicted switch to a physical wall. In the mid-game, Sneasel-Hisui will more-than-likely find opportunities to revenge kill something, and this is the extent of its utility in the mid-game unless the opposition's defensive walls are already weakened at this point. In the endgame, you should be looking for your best opportunity to set up a Swords Dance with your hopefully healthy Sneasel-Hisui. Try to revenge kill with trailblaze in the endgame if you need the extra speed boost to outspeed their scarfer for the sweep.
Team Options
========
Sneasel-Hisui really appreciates opposing physical walls being weakened throughout the game before it sets up a Swords Dance. Due to this, pokemon like Arcanine and Golurk can be useful. Arcanine in particular can be really nice, because it is immune to Will-O-Wisp, packs priority to create great speed control from the get-go between the two, and its Choice Band set can easily surprise physical walls and claim KOs. Sneasel also appreciates opportunities to sweep, so pokemon that get it in safely such as Electrode-Hisui and Bellibolt are great options. Electrode-Hisui on offensive teams in particular can be realy nice, because it also creates nice speed control between the two, and its switchins are often threatened by Sneasel-Hisui. Stealth Rock support is useful to Sneasel-Hisui on securing OHKOs and 2HKOs, so pokemon like Rhydon, Avalugg-Hisui, and Mudsdale can be helpful. Rhydon in particular can be nice because you are outsped by Salazzle and Choice Scarf Toxtricity, both of which hate to see Rhydon.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Sneasel-Hisui is rather one-dimensional and does not have many other options; however, toxic can be slotted in the last move for the Swords Dance set if you want in order to cripple physical walls like Mudsdale in the early game. This sounds nice, but it's hard to justify it over throat chop or trailblaze. A Choice Scarf set with Switcheroo is also an option. However, with only 95 base attack, Sneasel-Hisui can struggle to secure KOs without any boosts.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Walls**: As mentioned above, pokemon like Mudsdale and Bellibolt can tank a +2 attack pretty easily and threaten a KO or momentum into a revenge killer back. Altaria also is a less common physical wall who can tank an attack and threaten it back with flying STAB or Will-O-Wisp.
**Defensive Poison Tera**: Many pokemon run a defensive Poison Tera such as Florges, Bellibolt, and Rhydon. This can stop Sneasel-Hisui's sweep quickly if the opponent has not used their tera yet and saved it for the Sneasel-Hisui.
**Faster Pokemon** Some pokemon can naturally outspeed it and revenge kill it, such as Salazzle and Electrode-Hisui. Common choice scarf users such as Tauros-Paldea-Fire, Bruxish, and Florges can outspeed it and threaten a KO.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[<tom holland>, <userid1>]]
- Quality checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>], [<username2>, <userid2>], [<username3>, <userid3>]]
- Grammar checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>], [<username2>, <userid2>]]
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