Okay, I'm pretty sure I fixed all of the formatting errors. Thanks for the help
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OU Alolan Muk
- Thread starter earl
- Start date
Nice catch
Scizor is misspelled here.
You should clarify this is specs lele, and after stealth rock.
Wish passer is especially a good mention for team options.
Unless im missing something, which I very well could be, Muk only needs 20 special defense evs to avoid the 2hko from specs lele moonblast after rocks.
252 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Lele Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 20 SpD Assault Vest Muk-Alola: 153-180 (37 - 43.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Stealth Rock
(153, 154, 156, 157, 159, 162, 163, 165, 166, 168, 171, 172, 174, 175, 177, 180)
252 SpA Choice Specs Tapu Lele Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 20 SpD Assault Vest Muk-Alola: 153-180 (37 - 43.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Stealth Rock
(153, 154, 156, 157, 159, 162, 163, 165, 166, 168, 171, 172, 174, 175, 177, 180)
I ran your calcs, and yes, you were correct. Thanks for catching that, 4 more EVs in attack can help
Hate to be this kind of person, and I'm pretty sure there are already people whose job it is to point out stuff like this, but I believe you meant to use "its." The one you used is the contraction of "it is."
Typically the Grammar-Prose team would correct the various small typos in an analysis like this, but thanks for pointing it out anyhow
Points in the overview are bit bloated. You can merge the first two lines as well as the line mentioning Muk's bulk into one point. Remove the part about its Ground weakness in the first bullet because you mention this later when talking about its downsides. Shadow Sneak isn't really worth noting in the overview either as it's quite weak and isn't even listed as a main option anyways.
For moves, rearrange the sentences so that they are mentioned in the order they are listed on the set. Also don't forget to put spaces between the slashes on the moveset itself. Minor little detail, but list Latios rather than Latias as a Pursuit target, it's far more threatening and relevant in the current metagame. One upside to Gunk Shot being non-contact is not taking Rocky Helmet damage from defensive Landorus-T or Tank Garchomp, letting Muk poison them without taking extra residual; this can be very helpful as being worn down repeatedly can be an issue when you need Muk to stay fairly healthy for Tapu Lele and such.
The EV Spread needs a minor adjustment. HP should just be 252 because Muk doesn't take more from Stealth Rock with it. Just a little side note, but keep in mind that odd HP =/= taking less SR damage. Anyways the EV spread should be 252 HP / 240 Atk / 16 SpD. Technically 12 SpD is sufficient for the given benchmark, but the extra 4 EVs make Assault Vest slightly more efficient in terms of the boost in special bulk.
Third line in usage tips is a bit redundant and doesn't really tell the reader much, especially the last bit, which is more suited for team options. Remove it.
For team options, I'd like you to put a little more emphasis on Buzzwole as teammate (give it a separate mention from the rest you listed there), as both of cover each others vulnerability to certain threats very well; Buzzwole switches in on Landorus-T and Excadrill with little fear and the SubPunch set in particular appreciates Poison status on Landorus-T wearing it down. Alolan Muk also happens to handle pretty much every fast Psychic-type that Buzzwole is forced out against.
Checks and Counters need to be expanded upon a bit i.e. when you mention Ground-types, note that the two Pokemon listed hate being worn down by Poison status. Give Excadrill a special mention there as it cannot get Poisoned unlike the other Ground-types. I would also mention that Celesteela really dislikes losing its Leftovers.
3/3
For moves, rearrange the sentences so that they are mentioned in the order they are listed on the set. Also don't forget to put spaces between the slashes on the moveset itself. Minor little detail, but list Latios rather than Latias as a Pursuit target, it's far more threatening and relevant in the current metagame. One upside to Gunk Shot being non-contact is not taking Rocky Helmet damage from defensive Landorus-T or Tank Garchomp, letting Muk poison them without taking extra residual; this can be very helpful as being worn down repeatedly can be an issue when you need Muk to stay fairly healthy for Tapu Lele and such.
The EV Spread needs a minor adjustment. HP should just be 252 because Muk doesn't take more from Stealth Rock with it. Just a little side note, but keep in mind that odd HP =/= taking less SR damage. Anyways the EV spread should be 252 HP / 240 Atk / 16 SpD. Technically 12 SpD is sufficient for the given benchmark, but the extra 4 EVs make Assault Vest slightly more efficient in terms of the boost in special bulk.
Third line in usage tips is a bit redundant and doesn't really tell the reader much, especially the last bit, which is more suited for team options. Remove it.
For team options, I'd like you to put a little more emphasis on Buzzwole as teammate (give it a separate mention from the rest you listed there), as both of cover each others vulnerability to certain threats very well; Buzzwole switches in on Landorus-T and Excadrill with little fear and the SubPunch set in particular appreciates Poison status on Landorus-T wearing it down. Alolan Muk also happens to handle pretty much every fast Psychic-type that Buzzwole is forced out against.
Checks and Counters need to be expanded upon a bit i.e. when you mention Ground-types, note that the two Pokemon listed hate being worn down by Poison status. Give Excadrill a special mention there as it cannot get Poisoned unlike the other Ground-types. I would also mention that Celesteela really dislikes losing its Leftovers.
3/3
I've implemented your points, thanks!
Scizor does NOT resist Dark.
Although due to its colossal defense, Mega Scizor takes very little damage from anything other than Fire Blast.
Seems I'm stuck in the past a little. I'll fix that, thanks
GP 1/1
remove add comments
If you could proofread your future analyses with the Spelling and Grammar Standards before entering the GP phase, that would be greatly appreciated. Not having to add "Alolan" to every mention of Muk saves us so much time.
remove add comments
[OVERVIEW]
* Excellent typing, with Alolan Muk has an excellent typing that provides 4 useful resistances including and an immunity to Psychic-type attacks, which combined with its good 100/105 special bulk makes it a safe switch-(hyphen)in to many Psychic-type Pokemon such as Tapu Lele and Mega Alakazam.
* STAB Pursuit allows Alolan Muk to effectively trap Psychic-types and either KO or severely cripple them on the switch.
* STAB Knock Off hits hard and complements Alolan Muk's Poison-type STAB moves by being able STABs for its ability to cripple Steel-types.
* Alolan Muk has a respectable chance to spread poison, (comma) by virtue of Poison Touch. This allows Muk it to potentially cripple normally safe switch-ins before being forced out.
* Incredibly It's incredibly weak to Ground-types, and has no real way to threaten them outside of the initial removing their items with Knock Off.
* Lack A lack of reliable recovery limits the amount of switch-ins for Muk how much Alolan Muk can switch in, which hurts it as a pivot.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Poison Jab / Gunk Shot
move 4: Shadow Sneak / Fire Blast
item: Assault Vest
ability: Poison Touch
nature: Adamant / Brave
evs: 252 HP / 240 Atk / 16 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* STAB Knock Off hits very hard when removing an item factoring in STAB.
* Pursuit can trap prominent Psychic-types such as Latios, Mega Alakazam, and Tapu-(hyphen)Lele.
* Poison Jab is Alolan Muk's secondary reliable STAB, (comma) in conjunction with Muk's ability the move has a nice ~50% poison chance move and has approximately a 50% chance to poison thanks to Poison Touch.
* Gunk Shot hits harder than Poison Jab, (comma) and can kill KO earlier, but has shaky accuracy and does not contact, meaning it misses out on the additional 30% poison chance but also and avoids Rocky Helmet damage from Pokemon such as Tank tank Garchomp or and defensive Landorus-T, (comma) keeping to keep Alolan Muk healthier throughout the match., (period) (comma) but has shaky accuracy and misses out on Poison Touch's extra chance to poison.
* Shadow Sneak allows Alolan Muk to come in on severely weakened foes for the to revenge kill.
* Fire Blast specifically takes out Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Skarmory, which would otherwise wall Alolan Muk, as well as generally threatening and threatens Steel-types in general.
Set Details
========
* Assault Vest allows Alolan Muk to easily switch in on special hits, and then cripple or KO the opponent in various ways.
* Poison Touch is vastly superior to Muk's other abilities, and allows all of Muk's contact moves to potentially poison.
* Poison Jab can OHKO all four of the Tapus Tapu group outside of maximum HP Tapu-(hyphen)Fini, where which is OHKOed by Gunk Shot will.
* Ability Alolan Muk's ability to force switches with Pursuit and Knock Off benefits from entry hazards on the opponent's side.
* An Adamant nature should be ran run unless Alolan Muk is running Fire Blast, where a Brave nature is more beneficial.
* 16 Special Defense EVs allows Muk to avoid the chance of a being 2HKOed from by a Choice Specs timid Timid Tapu-(hyphen)Lele's Moonblast after rocks Stealth Rock damage as well as boosting its special bulk that much more.
Usage Tips
========
* Bring in Alolan Muk on resisted special attacks, optimally a predicted Psychic-type move, such as Tapu-(hyphen)Lele's Psychic.
* Avoid switching directly into neutral STAB moves, as Alolan Muk will take quite a bit of damage and cannot afford to loose lose the HP what with it's its lack of recovery.
* Knock Off should almost always be the go-to attack unless either Shadow Sneak is required for the revenge kill, (comma) or a switch is likely, in which case pursuit Pursuit is a good choice.
Team Options
========
* Tapu-(hyphen)Bulu is a great teammate for Alolan Muk, as Grassy Terrain halves the power of Earthquake while providing and provides Alolan Muk with a minor amount of recovery. Any Pokémon that can reliably take out Ground-types, like Tapu-(hyphen)Bulu, mitigates Alolan Muk's huge weakness to the type.
* Bulky Wish passers such as Chansey and Alomomola can keep Alolan Muk healthy with passed wishes, while also being and are able to switch into most of Muk's its checks safely.
* Offensive Pokemon such as Nihilego, Breloom, and Nidoking greatly appreciate Alolan Muk's ability to trap and KO fast Psychic-types such as Choice Scarf Tapu-(hyphen)Lele and Latios.
* Buzzwole in particular covers Alolan Muk's weaknesses very well, resisting Ground-type attacks and easily beating Steel-types while Alolan Muk covers the fast Pyschic Psychic-types that threaten Buzzwole. It's Sub-Punch Its Substitute + Drain Punch set also appreciates Alolan Muk's poison as it helps helping it whittle down Pokemon such as Landorus-T while setting up.
* Dragon-(hyphen) or and Dark-type Pokemon such as Garchomp or and Greninja appreciate Alolan Muk's ability to easily handle Fairy-types, in particular the Tapus Tapu group.
* Rotom-Wash can be a helpful teammate for Alolan Muk, as it can switch into predicted Ground-type attacks and proceed to KO with Hydro Pump or cripple with Will-O-Wisp.
* Flying-types or and Pokemon with Levitate can use Alolan Muk's Ground weakness as a bait for ability to lure Ground-type moves to get a free switch in.
* Magnezone's and Dugtrio's ability to trap and KO Pokemon such as Heatran and Scizor is a huge help to Alolan Muk, as these Pokemon would otherwise wall Muk it. These Pokemon trappers should not be run solely to aid Alolan Muk, however, as its pivoting role doesn't require the complete removal of Steel-(hyphen)types.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* While a Choice Band set similar to normal Muk's may seem appealing, Alolan Muk lacks Ice Punch and any way to deter Ground-types from switching in outside of the initial Knock Off.
* A Curse set can be ran run to boost Muk's weaker defense Defense while making it more threatening, but Muk functions much better as a pivot and is outclassed by other bulky set-(hyphen)up sweepers such as Zygarde or and Buzzwole.
* Air Balloon can be ran run on Muk to basically guarantee a Knock Off on a Ground-(hyphen)type, but Alolan Muk should not be directly challenging a Ground-(hyphen)type in the first place.
* Brick Break can be ran run if Bisharp is a problem, but Fire Blast is typically better for it's its ability to hit other Steel-types harder.
* Poison Fang can be ran run as Muk's Poison-type STAB move if a high poison chance is desired, but it has underwhelming base power Base Power.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Ground-types**: Alolan Muk has no coverage moves to super effectively hit Pokemon like Landorus-T or and Garchomp, and ground Ground-type moves, particularly earthquake Earthquake, can easily KO it. Alolan Muk can poison them before switching out, though, wearing them down over the match. Excadrill in particular fears almost nothing from Alolan Muk, being immune to Muk's its poison.
**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio can trap and KO Alolan Muk with Earthquake, (comma) by virtue of Muk's its weak defense stat Defense and low speed Speed. It However, Dugtrio should be wary of Shadow Sneak if brought down to its Focus Sash.
**Mega Scizor**: Without Fire Blast, Mega Scizor is immune to or takes very little from both all of Alolan Muk's STABs moves and takes no bonus Knock Off damage, and can proceed to set up or threaten Alolan Muk with its strong physical attacks.
**Bisharp**: Bisharp, like Scizor, resists both of takes little from Alolan Muk's STABs moves and can easily set up if Muk is lacking if it lacks Fire Blast or Brick Break.
**Steel-types**: Outside of the initial Knock Off, Alolan Muk without Fire Blast poses little threat to Steel-types such as Skarmory or and Celesteela without Fire Blast. However, Knock Off is particularly effective while when removing Celesteela's leftovers Leftovers, as it has no form of reliable recovery.
**Burns**: While Alolan Muk is immune to poison, sets without Rest are easily crippled by burns from Will-O-Wisp and Scald.
* Excellent typing, with Alolan Muk has an excellent typing that provides 4 useful resistances including and an immunity to Psychic-type attacks, which combined with its good 100/105 special bulk makes it a safe switch-(hyphen)in to many Psychic-type Pokemon such as Tapu Lele and Mega Alakazam.
* STAB Pursuit allows Alolan Muk to effectively trap Psychic-types and either KO or severely cripple them on the switch.
* STAB Knock Off hits hard and complements Alolan Muk's Poison-type STAB moves by being able STABs for its ability to cripple Steel-types.
* Alolan Muk has a respectable chance to spread poison, (comma) by virtue of Poison Touch. This allows Muk it to potentially cripple normally safe switch-ins before being forced out.
* Incredibly It's incredibly weak to Ground-types, and has no real way to threaten them outside of the initial removing their items with Knock Off.
* Lack A lack of reliable recovery limits the amount of switch-ins for Muk how much Alolan Muk can switch in, which hurts it as a pivot.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Poison Jab / Gunk Shot
move 4: Shadow Sneak / Fire Blast
item: Assault Vest
ability: Poison Touch
nature: Adamant / Brave
evs: 252 HP / 240 Atk / 16 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* STAB Knock Off hits very hard when removing an item factoring in STAB.
* Pursuit can trap prominent Psychic-types such as Latios, Mega Alakazam, and Tapu-(hyphen)Lele.
* Poison Jab is Alolan Muk's secondary reliable STAB, (comma) in conjunction with Muk's ability the move has a nice ~50% poison chance move and has approximately a 50% chance to poison thanks to Poison Touch.
* Gunk Shot hits harder than Poison Jab, (comma) and can kill KO earlier, but has shaky accuracy and does not contact, meaning it misses out on the additional 30% poison chance but also and avoids Rocky Helmet damage from Pokemon such as Tank tank Garchomp or and defensive Landorus-T, (comma) keeping to keep Alolan Muk healthier throughout the match., (period) (comma) but has shaky accuracy and misses out on Poison Touch's extra chance to poison.
* Shadow Sneak allows Alolan Muk to come in on severely weakened foes for the to revenge kill.
* Fire Blast specifically takes out Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Skarmory, which would otherwise wall Alolan Muk, as well as generally threatening and threatens Steel-types in general.
Set Details
========
* Assault Vest allows Alolan Muk to easily switch in on special hits, and then cripple or KO the opponent in various ways.
* Poison Touch is vastly superior to Muk's other abilities, and allows all of Muk's contact moves to potentially poison.
* Poison Jab can OHKO all four of the Tapus Tapu group outside of maximum HP Tapu-(hyphen)Fini, where which is OHKOed by Gunk Shot will.
* Ability Alolan Muk's ability to force switches with Pursuit and Knock Off benefits from entry hazards on the opponent's side.
* An Adamant nature should be ran run unless Alolan Muk is running Fire Blast, where a Brave nature is more beneficial.
* 16 Special Defense EVs allows Muk to avoid the chance of a being 2HKOed from by a Choice Specs timid Timid Tapu-(hyphen)Lele's Moonblast after rocks Stealth Rock damage as well as boosting its special bulk that much more.
Usage Tips
========
* Bring in Alolan Muk on resisted special attacks, optimally a predicted Psychic-type move, such as Tapu-(hyphen)Lele's Psychic.
* Avoid switching directly into neutral STAB moves, as Alolan Muk will take quite a bit of damage and cannot afford to loose lose the HP what with it's its lack of recovery.
* Knock Off should almost always be the go-to attack unless either Shadow Sneak is required for the revenge kill, (comma) or a switch is likely, in which case pursuit Pursuit is a good choice.
Team Options
========
* Tapu-(hyphen)Bulu is a great teammate for Alolan Muk, as Grassy Terrain halves the power of Earthquake while providing and provides Alolan Muk with a minor amount of recovery. Any Pokémon that can reliably take out Ground-types, like Tapu-(hyphen)Bulu, mitigates Alolan Muk's huge weakness to the type.
* Bulky Wish passers such as Chansey and Alomomola can keep Alolan Muk healthy with passed wishes, while also being and are able to switch into most of Muk's its checks safely.
* Offensive Pokemon such as Nihilego, Breloom, and Nidoking greatly appreciate Alolan Muk's ability to trap and KO fast Psychic-types such as Choice Scarf Tapu-(hyphen)Lele and Latios.
* Buzzwole in particular covers Alolan Muk's weaknesses very well, resisting Ground-type attacks and easily beating Steel-types while Alolan Muk covers the fast Pyschic Psychic-types that threaten Buzzwole. It's Sub-Punch Its Substitute + Drain Punch set also appreciates Alolan Muk's poison as it helps helping it whittle down Pokemon such as Landorus-T while setting up.
* Dragon-(hyphen) or and Dark-type Pokemon such as Garchomp or and Greninja appreciate Alolan Muk's ability to easily handle Fairy-types, in particular the Tapus Tapu group.
* Rotom-Wash can be a helpful teammate for Alolan Muk, as it can switch into predicted Ground-type attacks and proceed to KO with Hydro Pump or cripple with Will-O-Wisp.
* Flying-types or and Pokemon with Levitate can use Alolan Muk's Ground weakness as a bait for ability to lure Ground-type moves to get a free switch in.
* Magnezone's and Dugtrio's ability to trap and KO Pokemon such as Heatran and Scizor is a huge help to Alolan Muk, as these Pokemon would otherwise wall Muk it. These Pokemon trappers should not be run solely to aid Alolan Muk, however, as its pivoting role doesn't require the complete removal of Steel-(hyphen)types.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* While a Choice Band set similar to normal Muk's may seem appealing, Alolan Muk lacks Ice Punch and any way to deter Ground-types from switching in outside of the initial Knock Off.
* A Curse set can be ran run to boost Muk's weaker defense Defense while making it more threatening, but Muk functions much better as a pivot and is outclassed by other bulky set-(hyphen)up sweepers such as Zygarde or and Buzzwole.
* Air Balloon can be ran run on Muk to basically guarantee a Knock Off on a Ground-(hyphen)type, but Alolan Muk should not be directly challenging a Ground-(hyphen)type in the first place.
* Brick Break can be ran run if Bisharp is a problem, but Fire Blast is typically better for it's its ability to hit other Steel-types harder.
* Poison Fang can be ran run as Muk's Poison-type STAB move if a high poison chance is desired, but it has underwhelming base power Base Power.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Ground-types**: Alolan Muk has no coverage moves to super effectively hit Pokemon like Landorus-T or and Garchomp, and ground Ground-type moves, particularly earthquake Earthquake, can easily KO it. Alolan Muk can poison them before switching out, though, wearing them down over the match. Excadrill in particular fears almost nothing from Alolan Muk, being immune to Muk's its poison.
**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio can trap and KO Alolan Muk with Earthquake, (comma) by virtue of Muk's its weak defense stat Defense and low speed Speed. It However, Dugtrio should be wary of Shadow Sneak if brought down to its Focus Sash.
**Mega Scizor**: Without Fire Blast, Mega Scizor is immune to or takes very little from both all of Alolan Muk's STABs moves and takes no bonus Knock Off damage, and can proceed to set up or threaten Alolan Muk with its strong physical attacks.
**Bisharp**: Bisharp, like Scizor, resists both of takes little from Alolan Muk's STABs moves and can easily set up if Muk is lacking if it lacks Fire Blast or Brick Break.
**Steel-types**: Outside of the initial Knock Off, Alolan Muk without Fire Blast poses little threat to Steel-types such as Skarmory or and Celesteela without Fire Blast. However, Knock Off is particularly effective while when removing Celesteela's leftovers Leftovers, as it has no form of reliable recovery.
**Burns**: While Alolan Muk is immune to poison, sets without Rest are easily crippled by burns from Will-O-Wisp and Scald.
If you could proofread your future analyses with the Spelling and Grammar Standards before entering the GP phase, that would be greatly appreciated. Not having to add "Alolan" to every mention of Muk saves us so much time.
Last edited:
Thanks for checking this, I'll implement these later today. While I did read the standards, I must admit that was a while back and parts of it slipped my mind. I'll be more mindful next time, thanks.