This is the second analysis (Golem won out) designed after the inception of the RBY UU Analysis Project. There is no sprite right now because I didn't feel like fighting with one right now. Hopefully the format is fine; I basically just copied one of PvK's. Enjoy.
[OVERVIEW]
Omastar first appeared on the RBY UU stage because it was thought to be a strong counter to the then recently-released legendary birds, Articuno and Moltres, as well the Wrap-happy Dragonite to a lesser extent. However, as the metagame progressed, other significant Pokemon such as Tentacruel and Vaporeon proved more than capable of keeping the birds at bay. As Articuno became less potent and Moltres fell into obscurity, Omastar began to find itself somewhat unemployed. As such, Omastar dwells near the bottom of the RBY UU metagame. It competes quite closely with Vaporeon, which is widely regarded as the tier’s premier bulky Water-type. Despite stiff competition, Omastar has a few attributes that set it apart from Vaporeon and other defensively-oriented Pokemon.
Omastar’s most notable trait is its Rock typing, which makes it a much more specialized defensive unit compared to Vaporeon and the like. It matches up well against Pokemon that rely primarily or exclusively on Normal-, Flying-, or Fire-type moves such as Persian, Dodrio, and Moltres. Omastar is also rivaled only by Haunter and Golem at handling Wrap damage and Explosion. On the negative side, Omastar shares many of the same weaknesses held by other defensive Water-types, such as against Electric-type moves, while acquiring some additional ones. These include a new weakness to Ground-type moves, a worsened weakness to Grass-type moves, and the inability to resist the many Water-type attacks in the tier. Finally, Omastar is remarkably slow, being outpaced by every major Pokemon in the tier aside from Golem. This renders it highly susceptible to being revenge killed.
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Surf / Hydro Pump
move 2: Blizzard
move 3: Body Slam
move 4: Rest
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
This is the main set you can expect to see Omastar run. It strongly resembles the set most often employed by Vaporeon and seeks to accomplish many of the same goals. Surf or Hydro Pump is its all-purpose STAB move. Both moves hit neutral and weak targets quite effectively thanks to Omastar’s rather high Special stat. Hydro Pump's extra damage is notable for a few targets, such as scoring a 3HKO against Hypno and a guaranteed 2HKO against Kangaskhan and Persian. Surf misses some benchmarks but has higher accuracy and PP. Blizzard grants Omastar coverage resisted only by Water-types. It is also notable for being extremely likely to OHKO Dragonite, rendering it unable to use Agility. It also outperforms Surf and Hydro Pump against a few targets such as Dodrio, Gyarados, and the handful of Grass-types that lurk in the tier. Body Slam is mainly for hitting opposing Water-types. Its most notable target is Tentacruel; should Body Slam paralyze it, it will likely be forced to use Rest and thus become much easier to exploit. Rest is, of course, to keep Omastar healthy, especially against less offensive teams. Successfully using Rest and waking up is quite difficult in the RBY UU environment, but Omastar can occasionally use Rest in front of the Pokemon it can wall and attempt to wake up amidst the many turns of Wrap likely to occur as the match continues.
Omastar is quite good at slowing down your opponent’s offensive momentum. Its Rock typing can be very helpful for pivoting into the many Normal-type moves thrown around in the tier. Omastar can come in rather freely against Persian and Kangaskhan, provided they are using a Normal-type move, and threaten a 2HKO in return. Omastar becomes especially potent if switched in against a Hyper Beam, as it essentially has a free turn to use a powerful special attack. It should be noted that a revealed Omastar is a fairly good deterrent to reckless use of Hyper Beam and Explosion. Additionally, Omastar completely walls Dodrio and Articuno, only fearing the latter freezing it. While it is hardly worth mentioning in the modern metagame because they are so uncommon, Omastar is exceptional at walling Fire-type Pokemon.
Omastar also has interesting interactions with Wrap. It resists the attack, so it is quite good at either PP stalling the attacker or simply taking the hits and hoping to punish a miss. When paired with other Pokemon that take little or no damage from Wrap, like Haunter and Golem, Omastar can feasibly force Tentacruel or Dragonite to exhaust all of their Wrap PP by simply switching in and out with the other Pokemon. Such a strategy can still be exploited by many potential Omastar switch-ins, such as Dugtrio, Electabuzz, and Raichu. This can be overcome with proper prediction; you can pivot into a Pokemon that matches up well against common switch-ins to Omastar. And in end-games where many of these attackers are KOed, Omastar can help secure victories against Pokemon that are dependent on Wrap for damage, such as some variants of Dragonite.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Aside from its Rock typing, Seismic Toss is pretty much Omastar's only unique advantage over Vaporeon. It can be fairly useful for its consistent damage against any target. However, most Pokemon are simply hit harder by Omastar’s other moves or more threatened by the chance of paralysis from Body Slam, so the move isn’t overly common or useful. It is strongly advised to stick to the suggested set.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-type Pokemon**: Omastar’s archrival Vaporeon is also one of its most consistent checks. Vaporeon takes very little from all of Omastar’s moves and is relatively unfazed by paralysis. Vaporeon also uses Omastar’s Rock typing against it by scoring a 4HKO with Surf or a 3HKO with Hydro Pump. Poliwrath is in a similar boat, as it shrugs off Omastar’s attacks quite easily and can retaliate with a super effective move like Earthquake or Submission. Finally, while it fears paralysis, Tentacruel easily emerges victorious against Omastar thanks to its access to the strongest unboosted Surf in the tier.
**Thunderbolt Users**: Electabuzz and Raichu are two of the scariest Pokemon for Omastar to face. While Hydro Pump does quite a lot to both, both dispatch Omastar with relatively uncontested 2HKOs. While it lacks STAB on the move, Gyarados is also more than capable of winning the matchup, even if it switches in. Other users such as Haunter and Persian can't reliably switch in, but they can use their superior Speed to threaten Omastar in a pinch, especially if Omastar has taken a few hits or is asleep.
**Earthquake Users**: While Omastar is well-equipped to handle Normal- and Flying-type moves, its Rock typing leaves it exposed to Earthquake. Omastar is capable of beating every Earthquake user aside from Poliwrath one-on-one, but the move limits Omastar’s ability to switch in. Earthquake users can also revenge kill Omastar without much damage or paralysis support due to its low Speed. A sleeping Omastar can be exploited rather easily for this same reason. The wrong situation can make Pokemon that Omastar usually matches up well against, like Kangaskhan, Dugtrio, and Golem, suddenly threatening.
**Grass-type Pokemon**: While rare, Grass-type Pokemon truly threaten Omastar. The uncommon Venusaur is especially scary, for it outspeeds and claims a clean OHKO with Razor Leaf. Tangela that choose to use Mega Drain can easily 2HKO Omastar while recovering enough health to not be too fearful of Omastar’s Blizzard. Additionally, its Mega Drain begins to enter OHKO territory after just two uses of Growth.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [EB0LA, 423005]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [Estronic, 240732]]
Extra Stuff:
I ended up cutting this part in favor of the "Earthquake Users" section. I kept it here in case anyone thought it was worth reviving:
**Revenge Killers**: Omastar is remarkably slow, being outpaced by every major Pokemon in the tier aside from Golem. This means it can find itself in bad situations against Pokemon it would otherwise fare well against. These same Pokemon are also liable to take advantage of it while it is resting. Kangaskhan and Dugtrio are two such examples.
I cut this part per EB0LA's recommendation. I wanted to include Ice Beam mainly to discourage its use (b/c a lot of players think it and Blizzard are interchangeable). I hope I accomplished this in my replacement sentence.
Ice Beam may seem fairly enticing, as it offers you more opportunities to freeze your opponent. This move is not recommended, as Omastar doesn’t have very many targets that it wants to freeze. Omastar usually walls an opponent or loses to it hard and can’t afford to stay in, so going for freezes is seldom a viable option. Moreover, it misses the crucial OHKO against Dragonite.
Additional Note: While this is a UU analysis, Omastar is still in need of a revamped OU analysis as well. This is none of my business, for I am not part of the RBY OU QC team. It is just something I want to note.
[OVERVIEW]
Omastar first appeared on the RBY UU stage because it was thought to be a strong counter to the then recently-released legendary birds, Articuno and Moltres, as well the Wrap-happy Dragonite to a lesser extent. However, as the metagame progressed, other significant Pokemon such as Tentacruel and Vaporeon proved more than capable of keeping the birds at bay. As Articuno became less potent and Moltres fell into obscurity, Omastar began to find itself somewhat unemployed. As such, Omastar dwells near the bottom of the RBY UU metagame. It competes quite closely with Vaporeon, which is widely regarded as the tier’s premier bulky Water-type. Despite stiff competition, Omastar has a few attributes that set it apart from Vaporeon and other defensively-oriented Pokemon.
Omastar’s most notable trait is its Rock typing, which makes it a much more specialized defensive unit compared to Vaporeon and the like. It matches up well against Pokemon that rely primarily or exclusively on Normal-, Flying-, or Fire-type moves such as Persian, Dodrio, and Moltres. Omastar is also rivaled only by Haunter and Golem at handling Wrap damage and Explosion. On the negative side, Omastar shares many of the same weaknesses held by other defensive Water-types, such as against Electric-type moves, while acquiring some additional ones. These include a new weakness to Ground-type moves, a worsened weakness to Grass-type moves, and the inability to resist the many Water-type attacks in the tier. Finally, Omastar is remarkably slow, being outpaced by every major Pokemon in the tier aside from Golem. This renders it highly susceptible to being revenge killed.
[SET]
name: Defensive
move 1: Surf / Hydro Pump
move 2: Blizzard
move 3: Body Slam
move 4: Rest
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
This is the main set you can expect to see Omastar run. It strongly resembles the set most often employed by Vaporeon and seeks to accomplish many of the same goals. Surf or Hydro Pump is its all-purpose STAB move. Both moves hit neutral and weak targets quite effectively thanks to Omastar’s rather high Special stat. Hydro Pump's extra damage is notable for a few targets, such as scoring a 3HKO against Hypno and a guaranteed 2HKO against Kangaskhan and Persian. Surf misses some benchmarks but has higher accuracy and PP. Blizzard grants Omastar coverage resisted only by Water-types. It is also notable for being extremely likely to OHKO Dragonite, rendering it unable to use Agility. It also outperforms Surf and Hydro Pump against a few targets such as Dodrio, Gyarados, and the handful of Grass-types that lurk in the tier. Body Slam is mainly for hitting opposing Water-types. Its most notable target is Tentacruel; should Body Slam paralyze it, it will likely be forced to use Rest and thus become much easier to exploit. Rest is, of course, to keep Omastar healthy, especially against less offensive teams. Successfully using Rest and waking up is quite difficult in the RBY UU environment, but Omastar can occasionally use Rest in front of the Pokemon it can wall and attempt to wake up amidst the many turns of Wrap likely to occur as the match continues.
Omastar is quite good at slowing down your opponent’s offensive momentum. Its Rock typing can be very helpful for pivoting into the many Normal-type moves thrown around in the tier. Omastar can come in rather freely against Persian and Kangaskhan, provided they are using a Normal-type move, and threaten a 2HKO in return. Omastar becomes especially potent if switched in against a Hyper Beam, as it essentially has a free turn to use a powerful special attack. It should be noted that a revealed Omastar is a fairly good deterrent to reckless use of Hyper Beam and Explosion. Additionally, Omastar completely walls Dodrio and Articuno, only fearing the latter freezing it. While it is hardly worth mentioning in the modern metagame because they are so uncommon, Omastar is exceptional at walling Fire-type Pokemon.
Omastar also has interesting interactions with Wrap. It resists the attack, so it is quite good at either PP stalling the attacker or simply taking the hits and hoping to punish a miss. When paired with other Pokemon that take little or no damage from Wrap, like Haunter and Golem, Omastar can feasibly force Tentacruel or Dragonite to exhaust all of their Wrap PP by simply switching in and out with the other Pokemon. Such a strategy can still be exploited by many potential Omastar switch-ins, such as Dugtrio, Electabuzz, and Raichu. This can be overcome with proper prediction; you can pivot into a Pokemon that matches up well against common switch-ins to Omastar. And in end-games where many of these attackers are KOed, Omastar can help secure victories against Pokemon that are dependent on Wrap for damage, such as some variants of Dragonite.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Aside from its Rock typing, Seismic Toss is pretty much Omastar's only unique advantage over Vaporeon. It can be fairly useful for its consistent damage against any target. However, most Pokemon are simply hit harder by Omastar’s other moves or more threatened by the chance of paralysis from Body Slam, so the move isn’t overly common or useful. It is strongly advised to stick to the suggested set.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-type Pokemon**: Omastar’s archrival Vaporeon is also one of its most consistent checks. Vaporeon takes very little from all of Omastar’s moves and is relatively unfazed by paralysis. Vaporeon also uses Omastar’s Rock typing against it by scoring a 4HKO with Surf or a 3HKO with Hydro Pump. Poliwrath is in a similar boat, as it shrugs off Omastar’s attacks quite easily and can retaliate with a super effective move like Earthquake or Submission. Finally, while it fears paralysis, Tentacruel easily emerges victorious against Omastar thanks to its access to the strongest unboosted Surf in the tier.
**Thunderbolt Users**: Electabuzz and Raichu are two of the scariest Pokemon for Omastar to face. While Hydro Pump does quite a lot to both, both dispatch Omastar with relatively uncontested 2HKOs. While it lacks STAB on the move, Gyarados is also more than capable of winning the matchup, even if it switches in. Other users such as Haunter and Persian can't reliably switch in, but they can use their superior Speed to threaten Omastar in a pinch, especially if Omastar has taken a few hits or is asleep.
**Earthquake Users**: While Omastar is well-equipped to handle Normal- and Flying-type moves, its Rock typing leaves it exposed to Earthquake. Omastar is capable of beating every Earthquake user aside from Poliwrath one-on-one, but the move limits Omastar’s ability to switch in. Earthquake users can also revenge kill Omastar without much damage or paralysis support due to its low Speed. A sleeping Omastar can be exploited rather easily for this same reason. The wrong situation can make Pokemon that Omastar usually matches up well against, like Kangaskhan, Dugtrio, and Golem, suddenly threatening.
**Grass-type Pokemon**: While rare, Grass-type Pokemon truly threaten Omastar. The uncommon Venusaur is especially scary, for it outspeeds and claims a clean OHKO with Razor Leaf. Tangela that choose to use Mega Drain can easily 2HKO Omastar while recovering enough health to not be too fearful of Omastar’s Blizzard. Additionally, its Mega Drain begins to enter OHKO territory after just two uses of Growth.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [EB0LA, 423005]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [Estronic, 240732]]
Extra Stuff:
I ended up cutting this part in favor of the "Earthquake Users" section. I kept it here in case anyone thought it was worth reviving:
**Revenge Killers**: Omastar is remarkably slow, being outpaced by every major Pokemon in the tier aside from Golem. This means it can find itself in bad situations against Pokemon it would otherwise fare well against. These same Pokemon are also liable to take advantage of it while it is resting. Kangaskhan and Dugtrio are two such examples.
I cut this part per EB0LA's recommendation. I wanted to include Ice Beam mainly to discourage its use (b/c a lot of players think it and Blizzard are interchangeable). I hope I accomplished this in my replacement sentence.
Ice Beam may seem fairly enticing, as it offers you more opportunities to freeze your opponent. This move is not recommended, as Omastar doesn’t have very many targets that it wants to freeze. Omastar usually walls an opponent or loses to it hard and can’t afford to stay in, so going for freezes is seldom a viable option. Moreover, it misses the crucial OHKO against Dragonite.
Additional Note: While this is a UU analysis, Omastar is still in need of a revamped OU analysis as well. This is none of my business, for I am not part of the RBY OU QC team. It is just something I want to note.
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