Ask a Simple Question, Get a Simple Answer: Monotype Edition

[Jolly Togekiss ^-^]

Scarf Staraptor

Thanks.. I have scarf terrakion, but still I couldn't land a hit.. :( I should have saved replays of the two matches I lost for staraptor against flying type teams.. I think both of them had scarf staraptor, because it kept using brave bird repeatedly.
I have Cobalion with HP Ice for Gliscor or Garchomp starter.. I can try to change that.. or I can remove Cobalion and bring Infernape or Breloom in its place.. Breloom or Infernape is bit hard to fit in my team.

Scarf staraptor shouldn’t even touch a scarf Terrakion, so I’d assume you made a teambuilding error. This set should be able to check staraptor easily: https://pokepast.es/62007b48061be796

Cobalion is pretty essential for standard fighting teams, and as a result it usually runs a very specific set. This set allows you to use cobalion’s utilities most effectively, as well as cripple Staraptor: https://pokepast.es/96083cfaa8f64116

 

[Prof.Jabberwocky]

Scarf Staraptor


Scarf staraptor shouldn’t even touch a scarf Terrakion, so I’d assume you made a teambuilding error. This set should be able to check staraptor easily: https://pokepast.es/62007b48061be796

Cobalion is pretty essential for standard fighting teams, and as a result it usually runs a very specific set. This set allows you to use cobalion’s utilities most effectively, as well as cripple Staraptor: https://pokepast.es/96083cfaa8f64116

I have exact same stats in my team with only difference in cobalion.. Life orb, HP ice instead of thunder wave. And the only way Terrakion can OHKO with this set is a successful Stone edge.. which doesn't happen always. Another option is Iron head flinch, which again is a matter of luck.

 

[ChrystalFalchion]

I have exact same stats in my team with only difference in cobalion.. Life orb, HP ice instead of thunder wave. And the only way Terrakion can OHKO with this set is a successful Stone edge.. which doesn't happen always. Another option is Iron head flinch, which again is a matter of luck.

Since Terrakion has moveslots to spare, you could always run Rock Slide as well. Close Combat, Stone Edge and Earthquake hit just about everything it wants to so it can easily run Rock Slide in the last slot. I don't find much use for Iron Head myself, as a neutral Stone Edge is only slightly weaker than a X2 Iron Head.

252 Atk Terrakion Rock Slide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Staraptor: 326-386 (104.8 - 124.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

 

[GnralLao]

Since Terrakion has moveslots to spare, you could always run Rock Slide as well. Close Combat, Stone Edge and Earthquake hit just about everything it wants to so it can easily run Rock Slide in the last slot. I don't find much use for Iron Head myself, as a neutral Stone Edge is only slightly weaker than a X2 Iron Head.

252 Atk Terrakion Rock Slide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Staraptor: 326-386 (104.8 - 124.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Iron Head is really just for M-Diancie and weakened Tapu Bulu, but Fighting has so few answers to those two (Lucario aslo comes to mind) that Iron Head or even Poison Jab is pretty much required (at least on a Scarf set).

 

[NylaTheWolf]

What niche does Vivillon have on Bug and Cacturne on Dark?

 

[ChrystalFalchion]

What niche does Vivillon have on Bug?

Compound Eyes Sleep Powder lets it pretty much always put something out of commission, as it has 97% accuracy. And other than Cradily and Ferrothorn, no Grass type wants to switch into a STAB Hurricane. Beyond that though it’s pretty much a worse Volcarona

 

[Martinique Jason]

What niche does Cacturne have on Dark?

I think that its niche lies in its ability Water absorb, so it can into Scald without any fear. But yeah, cacturne is kinda bad, it has nice both attacks but terrible bulk and its speed tier is garbage (Sucker punch can do something, but it is not enough).

 

[NylaTheWolf]

Compound Eyes Sleep Powder lets it pretty much always put something out of commission, as it has 97% accuracy. Beyond that though it’s pretty much a worse Volcarona

Gotcha!!

I think that its niche lies in its ability Water absorb, so it can into Scald without any fear. But yeah, cacturne is kinda bad, it has nice both attacks but terrible bulk and its speed tier is garbage (Sucker punch can do something, but it is not enough).

Oh that's cool!

 

[Days for Dabs]

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7monotype-830611742
Is boosting allowed in this tier?

 

[maroon]

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7monotype-830611742
Is boosting allowed in this tier?

Boosting is never allowed on any ladder, that is just plainly against PS! rules.

 

[ChrystalFalchion]

I had an idea for a tournament. Would this interest anyone?

Monotype + Baton Pass.

A Monotype Tournament where Baton Pass is legal!

Rules
Standard Monotype Banlist
Matches are to be played in Anything Goes.
Only 1 Pokemon on your team can have Baton Pass.
Smeargle is banned.
Eeveeium Z is banned.
You may not pass Evasion boosts.
You may however, pass whatever other boosts you wish.
Possible bans: Gorebyss and Huntail

List of types with good passers and receivers.

 

[Eien]

I had an idea for a tournament. Would this interest anyone?

Monotype + Baton Pass.

A Monotype Tournament where Baton Pass is legal!

Rules
Standard Monotype Banlist
Matches are to be played in Anything Goes.
Only 1 Pokemon on your team can have Baton Pass.
Smeargle is banned.
Eeveeium Z is banned.
You may not pass Evasion boosts.
You may however, pass whatever other boosts you wish.
Possible bans: Gorebyss and Huntail

List of types with good passers and receivers.

You can suggest tour ideas to the forum mods for approval. You can also ask in tours forum for their approval. I’m not a fan for what it’s worth.

 

[BlueRay]

I was wondering if people are interested in seeing an EV spread for certain Pokémon on level 50. Maybe, it might be possible to include them in an analysis? After all, there might be some people playing against their friends on their 2 DS or 3 DS.

 

[DoW]

I was wondering if people are interested in seeing an EV spread for certain Pokémon on level 50. Maybe, it might be possible to include them in an analysis? After all, there might be some people playing against their friends on their 2 DS or 3 DS.

This is a nice thought. Unfortunately it's not really what the analyses are for, as they're specifically aimed at people playing at lv.100 (alongside all the other smogon rules), however I hope that in most cases the optimal EVs will be close enough that our analyses will still be close enough.

 

[GnralLao]

Hi, y'all!

What did I miss this last month in terms of metagame shifts and whatnot?

 

[Havens]

Hi, y'all!

What did I miss this last month in terms of metagame shifts and whatnot?

Hey there! Nothing too crazy really; Some Tapu Bulu have started to run Disable, Toxapex are starting to run Sludge Bomb, Sandless Ground is getting more popular, among other things, but that's all there is to really note of consequence for now.

 

[NylaTheWolf]

How come there is a lack of Monotype resources, like Set Viabilities and Cores?

They seem to exist for regular Sun and Moon, but not for Ultra

 

[GnralLao]

Hi! Me again.

Same question: what did I miss those last two month in terms of metagame shifts and whatnot?

 

[Eien]

How come there is a lack of Monotype resources, like Set Viabilities and Cores?

They seem to exist for regular Sun and Moon, but not for Ultra

After experimenting with them across ORAS and SM, we find that a lot of traditional resources just don't really make a lot of sense in Monotype. For example, set viability has been tried twice, and the issue really comes down to the factis that you can combine the VR and the analyses on the smogon dex and be able to generally understand the viability of sets as they relate to each other. The resource just confuses users who then try to compare letter viability across sets, when really, we want to show that Greninja's sets are still than everything else on Water anyway, for example, but it is still necessary that not all of its sets are at the same rank, since that would defeat the purpose.

Role and checks compendium run into the same issue. On a higher level, you don't really think "I want a physical setup sweeper to round out this team" or "I want specifically a spinner not a defogger" very often in Monotype. You're building your team around the other Pokemon you've selected. The other reason is same as for set viability. You can just check the analyses to see what Pokemon do and what check them.

Hi! Me again.

Same question: what did I miss those last two month in terms of metagame shifts and whatnot?

Hard to really summarize in a SQSA reply, but here are three recent team tours that went on during 2019 so far and their replay threads, so you can check out games and see what weird tech is coming out. Best to see for yourself, I think.
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/monotype-winter-premier-ii-standings-and-replays.3644571/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threa...replays-and-administrative-decisions.3648243/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/monotype-wcop-standings-and-replays.3647842/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/smogon-exhibition-ii-logs-and-replays.3645819/

 

[TWS|Random]

What are good physical mons (that do not take up a mega slot) for a balance psychic team?

 

[maroon]

What are good physical mons (that do not take up a mega slot) for a balance psychic team?

Victini and Metagross are solid physical attackers for Psychic teams. Also for the future you can ask these type of questions in the Monotype PS! room or the Monotype Discord.

 

[13electrode13]

I don't know where to post this, so I'm just posting it here. There's a bug in the random monotype teambuilder which allows megas to violate the type rules. Here's a replay which shows a flying team with a mega zard x.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7monotyperandombattle-914231084

 

[mushamu]

I don't know where to post this, so I'm just posting it here. There's a bug in the random monotype teambuilder which allows megas to violate the type rules. Here's a replay which shows a flying team with a mega zard x.
http://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7monotyperandombattle-914231084

Monotype random battle’s sametypeclause doesn’t take into account the type change that mega evolutions go through when they mega evolve, which is different from the way sametypeclause in gen7monotype functions. What you brought up wasn’t a bug, it was intentional.

 

[S. Court]

I was checking in Monotype WIP analysis and I noticed one about Z-Haze Toxapex will be made for Mono-Poison

Since when is this set a thing? Which is its role in Mono-Poison teams?

 

[maroon]

I was checking in Monotype WIP analysis and I noticed one about Z-Haze Toxapex will be made for Mono-Poison

Since when is this set a thing? Which is its role in Mono-Poison teams?

Z-Haze Toxapex on Poison teams can check a threats to Poison teams such as being able to Haze away Taunt Kommo-o's boosts and is capable of living a +1 Z-Happy Hour Jirachi's Psychic after Stealth Rock chip. Aside from that it isn't different from regular Toxapex.