BP
Upper Decky Lip Mints
[SET]
name: Salac Sweeper
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Reversal
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Bulk Up
item: Salac Berry
ability: Vital Spirit
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Mankey stands out in ADV ZU as the only viable Fighting-type thanks to its excellent base Attack in conjunction with its decent base Speed. These aspects alongside a Salac Berry and its access to Reversal allow Mankey to act as a frightening late-game sweeper. Substitute allows Mankey to avoid status while also providing it with a reliable way to activate its Salac Berry. STAB-boosted Reversal, when at full power, OHKOes almost every Pokemon that doesn't resist Fighting bar Bayleef. Earthquake provides Mankey with an option to hit Pokemon without relying on a weakened Reversal. It also threatens Poison-types that resist Reversal such as Grimer and Dustox while also threatening Shuppet, which is otherwise immune to Mankey's attacks. Bulk Up allows Mankey to function outside of or in conjunction with its Salac Berry as a setup sweeper. The most notable instance of this is allowing it to 2HKO Dustox with Earthquake at +2. At +1, Mankey has a chance to OHKO Bayleef with a full-power Reversal.
Mankey fits best on bulky offense and balance builds that require a late-game sweeper. Koffing is Mankey's biggest threat because of its resistance to Reversal as well as its immunity to Earthquake, so Pokemon that can threaten it such as Dustox, Magnemite, and Staryu all pair well with it. Physical walls such as Nosepass, Koffing, and Lileep can stifle the presence of faster physical attackers such as Pidgeotto and Aipom. Mankey struggles against Dustox, so Pokemon that can remove it such as mixed Seaking and Rhyhorn pair well with it. Elekid is one of Mankey's most common offensive checks, so Pokemon that can threaten it such as Castform, Delcatty, and Sunflora are all apreciated. Dustox is worth mentioning as it acts as a fantastic special wall capable of checking Elekid while also providing Toxic support.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Mankey can choose to use Rock Slide over Earthquake on its Salac Berry set to threaten Dustox, though this means it has to rely on a strengthened Reversal to reliably threaten Rhyhorn and Aron.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Status Users**: Mankey outspeeds almost every status user in the tier bar the tie it has with Butterfree as well as Elekid if it is running Toxic. Despite this, Mankey still finds itself threatened, as Toxic can invalidate its Salac Berry set, while Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave invalidate both sets. If Mankey lacks Rock Slide, Butterfree and Exeggcute can switch in and threaten Mankey with Psychic or hinder a switch-in with Sleep Powder.
**Faster Attackers**: Due to how frail Mankey is, it can easily be revenge killed by faster attackers such as Aipom and Elekid. If Salac Berry hasn't activated or Mankey isn't behind a Substitute priority users such as Pidgeotto, Taillow, and Delibird can prevent Salac Berry Mankey from sweeping with Quick Attack.
**Koffing**: Koffing walls both of Mankey's sets due to its resistance to Fighting and immense physical bulk, and it can render it useless with Will-O-Wisp.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/bp.272450/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sleid.601970/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/633500/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/deetah.297659/
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