[OVERVIEW]
Utilizing its large special bulk and the incredible progress-making combination of Poison Touch and Knock Off, Alolan Muk stands out as a potent special wall in the tier. Common special attackers such as Gengar and Volcanion struggle to get past it and are forced out by Knock Off. Alolan Muk can be incredibly difficult to switch into for defensive teams, as common walls like Slowbro and Hippowdon hate losing their items and potentially getting poisoned. However, Alolan Muk can struggle a lot against powerful physical attackers such as Galarian Zapdos and Mamoswine, as they deal massive damage to it. Alolan Muk also relies entirely on Rest to keep itself healthy throughout a battle, leading it to be potentially overwhelmed or exploited if it cannot find safe opportunities to burn sleep turns.
[SET]
RestTalk (Muk-Alola) @ Leftovers
Ability: Poison Touch
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Tera Type: Water / Fairy
Careful Nature
- Knock Off
- Poison Jab / Drain Punch / Haze
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Details
====
Drain Punch allows Alolan Muk to regain health from targets while helping it against Steel-types like Hisuian Goodra and Bisharp. Haze allows Alolan Muk to stop setup sweepers such as Calm Mind Slowbro, Calm Mind Armarouge, and Calm Mind Reuniclus by negating the boosts they have attained. Rest is Alolan Muk's main form of recovery and, in longer-paced games, lets it continue to threaten opposing Pokemon. Sleep Talk makes Alolan Muk not too passive even while it's asleep, so it can continue threatening defensive cores. Leftovers allows Alolan Muk to keep itself healthy without relying on Rest as much, enabling it to be more proactive. Tera Water helps Alolan Muk against powerful Water-type special wallbreakers such as Volcanion and Basculegion-F. Tera Fairy can be used to give Alolan Muk a Fighting resistance to help against Pokemon like Galarian Zapdos and Mienshao while also being a solid defensive typing overall. Alolan Muk typically doesn't enjoy Terastallizing, however, as it loses the valuable neutralities and resistances its original typing comes with, so Terastallizing should be a last resort.
Alolan Muk fits best on balance and stall teams, as it's able to utilize its immense special bulk to wall powerful Pokemon like Gengar and Armarouge while threatening solid damage and status. Blissey in particular pairs amazingly with Alolan Muk on stall, with Blissey walling the special wallbreakers that Alolan Muk cannot handle such as Choice Specs Volcanion and Tera Blast Ground Porygon-Z, while Alolan Muk in return can take on the Ghost-types that Blissey can struggle to hit such as Gengar and Basculegion-F. Physically defensive walls such as Hippowdon and Slowbro pair well with Alolan Muk, as they can cover the physical attackers that threaten it such as Galarian Zapdos and Gyarados. In return, Alolan Muk can take on the special attackers that threaten them such as Gengar and Volcanion. Flying-type Pokemon such as Galarian Zapdos and Talonflame pair well with Alolan Muk, as they can easily switch into Ground-types such as Krookodile and Hippowdon, and Fighting-types that threaten Alolan Muk, such as Mienshao and Hisuian Lilligant, and in return, Alolan Muk can switch into the various Electric-types that threaten them such as Magnezone and Raikou, as well as powerful special attackers they cannot immediately threaten such as Volcanion. Entry hazard control options such as Cyclizar and Talonflame pair well with Alolan Muk, allowing it to leverage Leftovers recovery more often, while Alolan Muk can threaten Ghost-type spiblockers, such as Gengar and Basculegion-F, and Empoleon, which might try to punish Defog. Alolan Muk heavily appreciates Pokemon like Gastrodon, Noivern, and Slowbro that can help chip away at enemies health, as they can increase the damage that Alolan Muk does with moves such as Spikes or can help deny recovery with Taunt or Psychic Noise.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Curse can be utilized on Alolan Muk to try and turn it into a sweeper, but it generally doesn't have the power or bulk to effectively sweep after setting up. Shadow Sneak can be used in order to pick off weakened foes, but with no STAB boost, it is pretty weak and only does good damage to Pokemon weak to it such as Gengar and Mimikyu. Protect can be used on stall teams so that Alolan Muk can safely absorb Future Sight from Pokemon like Reuniclus and Slowbro, and it can allow Alolan Muk to gain even more Leftovers recovery. Assault Vest can be used to increase Alolan Muk's special bulk but prohibits the use of Rest, thus heavily cutting into its longevity; due to this, Assault Vest Alolan Muk is relegated to more offensive teams. Heavy-Duty Boots can be used in order to solve Alolan Muk's entry hazard weakness, but this cuts into its longevity and forces Alolan Muk to use Rest more often against repeated attacks.
Checks and Counters
====
**Steel-types**: Steel-types like Bisharp can easily switch into Knock Off and threaten Alolan Muk back. However, Steel-types that rely on their items for recovery such as Registeel and Hisuian Goodra still do not like taking Knock Off, and they have to be wary of Drain Punch, which can allow Alolan Muk to potentially win one-on-one.
**Ground-types**: Ground-types such as Hippowdon and Krookodile can target Alolan Muk's Ground weakness while also easily taking Poison Jab. However, they do not like getting poisoned by Poison Touch, as that lessens their longevity.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types such as Galarian Zapdos and Mienshao can easily take Alolan Muk's Knock Off and threaten it out with Close Combat. However, some item-reliant Fighting-types like Choice Scarf Galarian Zapdos still do not appreciate the item removal, and all of the Fighting-types still are threatened by the poison chance.
**Entry Hazards**: Due to Alolan Muk's reliance on Leftovers, hazards can heavily cut into its longevity, forcing Alolan Muk to use Rest more often. Spikes setters such as Chesnaught and Quagsire can not only force Alolan Muk out but also make it more difficult for Alolan Muk to switch in over the course of a game due to the Spikes they set up.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/heatranator.647728/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/rarelyme.513635/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/feen.231398/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-blue-banana.649096/
Utilizing its large special bulk and the incredible progress-making combination of Poison Touch and Knock Off, Alolan Muk stands out as a potent special wall in the tier. Common special attackers such as Gengar and Volcanion struggle to get past it and are forced out by Knock Off. Alolan Muk can be incredibly difficult to switch into for defensive teams, as common walls like Slowbro and Hippowdon hate losing their items and potentially getting poisoned. However, Alolan Muk can struggle a lot against powerful physical attackers such as Galarian Zapdos and Mamoswine, as they deal massive damage to it. Alolan Muk also relies entirely on Rest to keep itself healthy throughout a battle, leading it to be potentially overwhelmed or exploited if it cannot find safe opportunities to burn sleep turns.
[SET]
RestTalk (Muk-Alola) @ Leftovers
Ability: Poison Touch
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Tera Type: Water / Fairy
Careful Nature
- Knock Off
- Poison Jab / Drain Punch / Haze
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Details
====
Drain Punch allows Alolan Muk to regain health from targets while helping it against Steel-types like Hisuian Goodra and Bisharp. Haze allows Alolan Muk to stop setup sweepers such as Calm Mind Slowbro, Calm Mind Armarouge, and Calm Mind Reuniclus by negating the boosts they have attained. Rest is Alolan Muk's main form of recovery and, in longer-paced games, lets it continue to threaten opposing Pokemon. Sleep Talk makes Alolan Muk not too passive even while it's asleep, so it can continue threatening defensive cores. Leftovers allows Alolan Muk to keep itself healthy without relying on Rest as much, enabling it to be more proactive. Tera Water helps Alolan Muk against powerful Water-type special wallbreakers such as Volcanion and Basculegion-F. Tera Fairy can be used to give Alolan Muk a Fighting resistance to help against Pokemon like Galarian Zapdos and Mienshao while also being a solid defensive typing overall. Alolan Muk typically doesn't enjoy Terastallizing, however, as it loses the valuable neutralities and resistances its original typing comes with, so Terastallizing should be a last resort.
Alolan Muk fits best on balance and stall teams, as it's able to utilize its immense special bulk to wall powerful Pokemon like Gengar and Armarouge while threatening solid damage and status. Blissey in particular pairs amazingly with Alolan Muk on stall, with Blissey walling the special wallbreakers that Alolan Muk cannot handle such as Choice Specs Volcanion and Tera Blast Ground Porygon-Z, while Alolan Muk in return can take on the Ghost-types that Blissey can struggle to hit such as Gengar and Basculegion-F. Physically defensive walls such as Hippowdon and Slowbro pair well with Alolan Muk, as they can cover the physical attackers that threaten it such as Galarian Zapdos and Gyarados. In return, Alolan Muk can take on the special attackers that threaten them such as Gengar and Volcanion. Flying-type Pokemon such as Galarian Zapdos and Talonflame pair well with Alolan Muk, as they can easily switch into Ground-types such as Krookodile and Hippowdon, and Fighting-types that threaten Alolan Muk, such as Mienshao and Hisuian Lilligant, and in return, Alolan Muk can switch into the various Electric-types that threaten them such as Magnezone and Raikou, as well as powerful special attackers they cannot immediately threaten such as Volcanion. Entry hazard control options such as Cyclizar and Talonflame pair well with Alolan Muk, allowing it to leverage Leftovers recovery more often, while Alolan Muk can threaten Ghost-type spiblockers, such as Gengar and Basculegion-F, and Empoleon, which might try to punish Defog. Alolan Muk heavily appreciates Pokemon like Gastrodon, Noivern, and Slowbro that can help chip away at enemies health, as they can increase the damage that Alolan Muk does with moves such as Spikes or can help deny recovery with Taunt or Psychic Noise.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Curse can be utilized on Alolan Muk to try and turn it into a sweeper, but it generally doesn't have the power or bulk to effectively sweep after setting up. Shadow Sneak can be used in order to pick off weakened foes, but with no STAB boost, it is pretty weak and only does good damage to Pokemon weak to it such as Gengar and Mimikyu. Protect can be used on stall teams so that Alolan Muk can safely absorb Future Sight from Pokemon like Reuniclus and Slowbro, and it can allow Alolan Muk to gain even more Leftovers recovery. Assault Vest can be used to increase Alolan Muk's special bulk but prohibits the use of Rest, thus heavily cutting into its longevity; due to this, Assault Vest Alolan Muk is relegated to more offensive teams. Heavy-Duty Boots can be used in order to solve Alolan Muk's entry hazard weakness, but this cuts into its longevity and forces Alolan Muk to use Rest more often against repeated attacks.
Checks and Counters
====
**Steel-types**: Steel-types like Bisharp can easily switch into Knock Off and threaten Alolan Muk back. However, Steel-types that rely on their items for recovery such as Registeel and Hisuian Goodra still do not like taking Knock Off, and they have to be wary of Drain Punch, which can allow Alolan Muk to potentially win one-on-one.
**Ground-types**: Ground-types such as Hippowdon and Krookodile can target Alolan Muk's Ground weakness while also easily taking Poison Jab. However, they do not like getting poisoned by Poison Touch, as that lessens their longevity.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types such as Galarian Zapdos and Mienshao can easily take Alolan Muk's Knock Off and threaten it out with Close Combat. However, some item-reliant Fighting-types like Choice Scarf Galarian Zapdos still do not appreciate the item removal, and all of the Fighting-types still are threatened by the poison chance.
**Entry Hazards**: Due to Alolan Muk's reliance on Leftovers, hazards can heavily cut into its longevity, forcing Alolan Muk to use Rest more often. Spikes setters such as Chesnaught and Quagsire can not only force Alolan Muk out but also make it more difficult for Alolan Muk to switch in over the course of a game due to the Spikes they set up.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/heatranator.647728/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/rarelyme.513635/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/feen.231398/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-blue-banana.649096/
Last edited:
