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Screaming Angel
11-27-2009, 08:12 PM
Swalot


http://www.arkeis.com/images/pokemonfactory/swalot.png



HP:100
Atk: 73
Def: 83
Spd: 55
SpA: 73
SpD: 83

Summary:

Most Used Set:

Encore, not only does it allow Swalot to outshine Muk, but it also makes it somewhat useable outside of NU. Altough Muk's Base Stats truly makes Swalot look like thras, Swalot has 3 good moves that Muk wished it had. Both Yawn and Encore would often be found in the most overused set for Swalot since they are the most useful moves Swalot has. With this 2 moves Swalot can abuse entry hazards to the fullest causing the oponent to think twice about switching. Swalot like Muk does lack a good reliable recovery move, but unlike Muk it gets Pain Split which may be benificiary when fighting against Pokemons with gargantuan HP like Chansey or Hariyama. The last move would be most of the time Ice Beam since it hits any Flying or Levitating Pokemon that might evade any Toxic Spikes that are commonly run with Swalot.

Usual Counters:

Most of the time good Sturdy Ground types make good switch ins into Swalot. For UU Donphan and Rhyperior are 2 Pokemon that can come easily on the majority of Swalots' attacks and threathen it immediatly with a STAB Super Effective Earthquake. Bulky Psychic Pokemons also make good alternatives, such as Uxie or Mesprit which can both come in unscathed and because of Levitate are immune to the Toxic Spikes.Apart from the above mentioned Pokemon any Bulky pokemon with a damaging move and a recovery move will most certainly beat Swalot, but the user has to be careful of Encore.

Types of Teams Pokemon Is Used In:

Swalot has semi-mediocre stats all around but its Base 100 HP makes up for the semi-lacking defenses. Swalot should be used on more defensives teams for UU or NU and altough it does work in OU it obviously lacks the stats and moves to compete against other defensive walls like Cresselia or Tentacruel. When using Swalot it is recommended that the user run Toxic Spikes to allow Swalot to wall more comfortably. With Toxic Spikes it also beats most Bulky Waters that do not have acces to Rest such as Recover Milotics or Slowking. If used in a defensive team one generally wants to lay down other entry hazards too since Swalot causes a lot of switches while it is using Encore and Yawn, having the entry hazard punishes the oponent for making those recklessly moves.

In Depth:

http://veekun.com/dex-images/platinum/female/frame2/317.png Encore! Encore! @ Leftovers
Ability: Sticky Hold
Evs: 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Nature: Calm / Careful

-Encore
-Yawn
-Pain Split
-Ice Beam / Shadow Ball / Earthquake / Gunk Shot

This set is Swalots most used because its a set that is something Muk can't outclass. Encore is the crux of this set not allowing Swalot to become Set Up fodder for the various threats in the metagame. With Encore it can also beat bulky Pokemons that were affected by the Toxic Spikes. Aside from Encore, Swalot also has 2 other moves that Muk can't learn both being somewhat useful in this set. Yawn provokes the oponent to switch more often since the oponent probably wouldn't like their pokemon to be slept. Those switches can be punished with other entry hazards run such as Spikes and Stealth Rock. If the oponent decided to stay in he would get one of his pokemon Slept which probably would affect the turnout of the match.. Pain Split altough not a reliable way to heal, is something Muk can't do. Pain Split allows Swalot to gan HP when fighting against Pokemons such as Hariyama or Chansey which have Gargantuan HP. For the last move there are uite some choices. Ice Beam hits any levitators that avoid Toxic Spikes, while Shadow Ball hits any Ghost or Psychic coming in hard. Earthquake can be used to hit Poison Types which totally wall Swalot, and Gunk Shot can be used for a reliable STAB altough the accuracy is questionable.

The EVs provided don't maximize defenses but instead allow Pain Split to be used to the fullest. Calm nature is preferred if using a Special move and Careful is preferred when using a Physical move. Bold and Impish can also be used as alternatives but generally Swalot doesn't want to stay on a Physical Attack that it doesn't resist (which would be most of the time since Swalot only resist Fighting,Poison,Grass, and Bug). Leftovers is a must on a defensive Pokemon and thanks to Sticky Hold Swalot can be used as a switch in to Choiced Pokemon trying to trick their item.

http://veekun.com/dex-images/platinum/female/frame2/317.pngSleep Talker @ Leftovers
Ability: Sticky Hold - or – Liquid Ooze
Evs: 252 HP / 144 Def / 112 SpD
Nature: Calm / Careful

- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Ice Beam
- Shadow Ball / Earthquake

Like most Pokemon Swalot poses Rest and Sleep Talk and since Pain Split isn't that reliable one may opt for this set. With this set Swalot becomes a good Status receiver and a good counter to leech seeders if one were to opt for Liquid Ooze. Rest allows Swalot a better recovery move but at the cost of being slept 2 turns. Together with Sleep Talk it isn't such a bad trade off. Ice Beam is here chosen again for hitting Levitators and Dragons such as Altaria that might make Swalot's day troublesome. It also hits Ground Types for reasonable damage. Shadow Ball is used to hi Ghost such as Rotom and Psychic Types such as Mesprit hitting for a good chunk of their HP. Earthquake is also an option for the last move since together with Ice they provide perfect coverage hitting anything for neutral in NU and UU barring Shedinja of course.

The EVs allow for maimized defenses with a slight opt for Special Defense. With Max HP, Swalot reaches an HP Stat of 404 which allows for a Leftovers number. Leftovers is a must on this set as well. For the Ability there are 2 options and both can be useful. With Sticky Hold Swalot can recklessly switch in on Choice Scarfed Pokemons since it won't take much damage and with Sticky Hold it becomes immune to Trick. With Liquid Ooze Swalot becomes a more reliable counter to things such as Jumpluff or SubSeeding Roserade. The Ability to choose is up to what you need Swalot to counter the best.


http://veekun.com/dex-images/platinum/female/frame2/317.pngCurse @ Leftovers
Ability: Sticky Hold
Evs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Nature: Careful

- Curse
- Earthquake
- Ice Punch
- Rest

With Curse Swalot can specialize in Special Defense instead of having to mix the EVs. With this set it is easier to wall Special Attackers that can be Specially annoyign such as Milotic or Roserade Curse up and then attack them. Curse also raises its defense mening Swalot can become a Physical wall after a couple of Curses. Earthquake + Ice Punch give Swalot good type coverage. There is no STAB needed here since the only Physical Poison move Swalot knows is Gunk Shot which has a very unreliable accuracy and doesn't have enough coverage in the UU or NU Metagame. Rest is there to ultimately recover any health that was lost during the process of Cursing. Adding Sleep Talk over one of the attacking moves is also an option altough that would limit Swalot to just one move which could be easily walled. This set allows Swalot to still counter certain threats while giving it a way to harm its oponents by being able to boost up its Attack. On a side note one would prefer not to switch Swalot in recklessly on Physical attacks since without any Defense investements it can't really take a hit if it hasn't cursed yet.

The EVs are fairly simple here. With Max HP and Max Special Defense Swalot can take Special Attacks without any worries as long as it isn't Super Effective. The leftover EVs were dumped into attack to give it a small push. Sticky Hold is a must here so that Swalot isn't tricked into using Curse or Rest which would completely hinder it. On a side note one would prefer not to switch Swalot in recklessly on Physical attacks since without any Defense investements it can't really take a hit if it hasn't cursed yet.






Other Options:


Swalot has many different moves which some might be useful in some situations. Rain Dance or Sunny Day can be used in conjuction with Heat Rock or Damp Rock since Swalot is definetely a sturdy Pokemon which would allow it to set up the weather. Counter is also another option that can work on a defensive set and take care of some threats.

Swalot has also equal offensive stats which one could make use by makign a mixed set. Explosion is also a greta move that can be used as last resort. Choice Band or Choice Specs can also be part ofr a set but honestly other pokemon do this job better.

Opinion:


When using Swalot one has to be careful as to not use it as an inferior Muk. Swalot has many more usable abilities than Muk. Encore, Yawn, and Pain Split are all an example of this. These 3 useful moves are something Muk dreams of having. One shouldn't take Swalot lightly since even though Poison is a horrendous offensive type, it is average as a defensive one. Therefore Swalot might be a strudy oponent to take down and therefore should not be taken lightly.

(http://atblueskies.files.wordpress.com/2007/03/blobfish.jpg)

Tony32
11-27-2009, 08:37 PM
>.<http://teamuber.net/forum/showthread.php?t=6266.

Although, your analysis has way more information.

Good job.

Screaming Angel
11-27-2009, 09:17 PM
I know I asked Stat if I could write up more info on it and he said yeah so I did it XD I also took out some sets that just where plain useless

Tony32
11-27-2009, 09:40 PM
Oh XD. Well, my bad man. This is a really great analysis. :D