memesketch
won't look back, i must shine
[OVERVIEW]
Although stiff competition from Pangoro, Golurk, and Heracross makes it niche, Alolan Marowak is an effective wallbreaker for offensive teams due to its combination of extreme power and defensive utility. Alolan Marowak's strong attacks, Thick Club, and offensive typing let it easily force out common slow, bulky Pokemon such as Registeel and Reuniclus, giving it opportunities to fire off powerful attacks or set up Substitute. A useful set of resistances and a great ability in Lightning Rod allow Alolan Marowak to take advantage of Xurkitree to come into play, as well as soft checking other threats like Roserade and Lucario. However, Alolan Marowak's defensive utility ends there. Its abysmal Speed and weaknesses to common offensive types such as Water, Dark, Ground, and Ghost leave it unable to check certain Electric-types such as Raikou, and it's vulnerable to dangerous wallbreakers such as Pangoro, Nidoqueen, and Chandelure and faster defensive Pokemon like Milotic. Furthermore, Alolan Marowak's lack of reliable recovery and Stealth Rock weakness limit its opportunities to come in, especially against Xurkitree.
[SET]
name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Poltergeist
move 2: Fire Punch
move 3: Low Kick
move 4: Shadow Bone / Substitute
item: Thick Club
ability: Lightning Rod
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Low Kick OHKOes Stakataka, Guzzlord, and Snorlax after Stealth Rock and 2HKOes Incineroar and Rhyperior. Alolan Marowak uses Shadow Bone alongside Poltergeist because it is perfectly accurate and gives Alolan Marowak's teammates more freedom to carry Knock Off. Alternatively, Substitute eases prediction on forced switches and shields Alolan Marowak from faster Pokemon. Stealth Rock is a viable option in the last moveslot, if none of Alolan Marowak's teammates carry it, due to the amount of switches Alolan Marowak forces, but it makes Alolan Marowak less self-sufficient as a wallbreaker; additionally, Alolan Marowak can struggle to keep Stealth Rock up throughout a game due to its lack of longevity.
Alolan Marowak appreciates partners that can relieve pressure on it to check Electric-types; Flygon and Nidoqueen are both good candidates for this role. Furthermore, the former can bring Alolan Marowak in with U-turn, while the latter can wallbreak alongside it. Other Pokemon that can pivot Alolan Marowak into battle safely, such as Crobat and Heliolisk, are great partners too. Heliolisk in particular is one of Alolan Marowak's best partners, as it can switch into Water-types and pressure faster threats such as Togekiss and Nidoqueen, while Alolan Marowak can crush Heliolisk's slower checks, such as Steelix. Other Water-type switch-ins, such as Starmie and Guzzlord, are important to cover Alolan Marowak's most common weakness; Guzzlord can also handle Ghost- and Dark-types such as Chandelure and mixed Sharpedo, which threaten Alolan Marowak. On the other hand, Alolan Marowak lures in bulky Water-types very effectively and forces damage on them, which helps faster attackers such as Aerodactyl, Flygon, and Sharpedo break through them more easily. Entry hazard control is necessary to allow Alolan Marowak to come into play more often; Crobat, Flygon, Tsareena, and Starmie are all excellent options that can account for some of its weaknesses and bring it into battle with U-turn or Teleport. Klefki, Heracross, and Golisopod all carry Spikes to augment Alolan Marowak's wallbreaking potential, letting it 2HKO Umbreon with Low Kick after only a single layer. The former two can additionally absorb Knock Off to preserve Alolan Marowak's Thick Club.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Flare Blitz can be situationally used alongside Rock Head to greatly increase Alolan Marowak's wallbreaking prowess; it notably allows Alolan Marowak to 2HKO Umbreon, almost always OHKO Steelix after Stealth Rock, and always OHKO Bewear after Stealth Rock. However, losing Lightning Rod forfeits what little defensive utility Alolan Marowak has. Alolan Marowak could use Swords Dance to reach nuclear levels of power, but it will rarely find worthwhile situations to set up due to its low Speed and bulk, and therefore Substitute and Stealth Rock are often more productive options. However, on Trick Room teams, Alolan Marowak employs Swords Dance with Rock Head and a moveset of Poltergeist, Flare Blitz, and Low Kick to become near impossible to switch into; regardless, it is worth noting that Trick Room teams are highly matchup reliant and inconsistent.
Checks and Counters
===================
*Stealth Rock**: Alolan Marowak cannot run Heavy-Duty Boots and has no recovery, so Stealth Rock severely cuts into its health and, over time, chips it into KO range of Pokemon it checks, such as Xurkitree and Lucario.
**Water-types**: Milotic outspeeds Alolan Marowak, can heal off from most of its attacks, and can respond with Scald. Suicune and Seismitoad also outspeed Alolan Marowak and can force it out to set up Calm Mind and Stealth Rock, respectively, but must be careful due to their lack of recovery. Vaporeon and Quagsire can take most of Alolan Marowak's attacks and attempt to stall out Poltergeist, though they cannot safely switch into a Ghost-type STAB move. Though they cannot switch in, offensive Water-types such as Sharpedo and Starmie force Alolan Marowak out easily with the threat of an OHKO.
**Dark-types**: Incineroar's great bulk and Intimidate let it switch into Alolan Marowak's STAB moves with ease and force it out with the threat of Knock Off; however, it must be wary of Low Kick. Umbreon, if fully healthy, can stall out any of Alolan Marowak's moves save for Flare Blitz and nearly OHKO back with Foul Play.
**Ground-types**: Flygon can OHKO Alolan Marowak with Earthquake and force it out to gain momentum with U-turn or set up with Dragon Dance. Nidoqueen and Golurk can easily OHKO Alolan Marowak and fire off powerful attacks on its forced switch, but they struggle to come in against it. Rhyperior and Steelix can each take a single hit from Alolan Marowak at full health and trade with it in a pinch, although Steelix's Earthquake fails to OHKO it.
**Special Attackers**: Powerful special attackers, such as Choice Specs Gardevoir, have no problem forcing Alolan Marowak out and threatening its team in the process. Among these threats, Raikou and Toxtricity stand out as Electric-types that Alolan Marowak cannot reliably check due to their coverage moves in Scald and Snarl, respectively, while Togekiss can both survive a hit from Alolan Marowak and flinch it down with Air Slash.
**Item Removal**: Alolan Marowak relies on its Thick Club for its damage output, and therefore any Pokemon that can remove it is a great annoyance. Pokemon that Alolan Marowak would otherwise solidly check, such as Rotom-C, Vileplume, and Salazzle, can put a damper on its effectiveness with Trick, Corrosive Gas, and Knock Off.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[memesketch, 537558]]
- Quality checked by: [[Yourwelcomethanku, 541847], [GoldCat, 359771]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Adeleine, 517429]]
Although stiff competition from Pangoro, Golurk, and Heracross makes it niche, Alolan Marowak is an effective wallbreaker for offensive teams due to its combination of extreme power and defensive utility. Alolan Marowak's strong attacks, Thick Club, and offensive typing let it easily force out common slow, bulky Pokemon such as Registeel and Reuniclus, giving it opportunities to fire off powerful attacks or set up Substitute. A useful set of resistances and a great ability in Lightning Rod allow Alolan Marowak to take advantage of Xurkitree to come into play, as well as soft checking other threats like Roserade and Lucario. However, Alolan Marowak's defensive utility ends there. Its abysmal Speed and weaknesses to common offensive types such as Water, Dark, Ground, and Ghost leave it unable to check certain Electric-types such as Raikou, and it's vulnerable to dangerous wallbreakers such as Pangoro, Nidoqueen, and Chandelure and faster defensive Pokemon like Milotic. Furthermore, Alolan Marowak's lack of reliable recovery and Stealth Rock weakness limit its opportunities to come in, especially against Xurkitree.
[SET]
name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Poltergeist
move 2: Fire Punch
move 3: Low Kick
move 4: Shadow Bone / Substitute
item: Thick Club
ability: Lightning Rod
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Low Kick OHKOes Stakataka, Guzzlord, and Snorlax after Stealth Rock and 2HKOes Incineroar and Rhyperior. Alolan Marowak uses Shadow Bone alongside Poltergeist because it is perfectly accurate and gives Alolan Marowak's teammates more freedom to carry Knock Off. Alternatively, Substitute eases prediction on forced switches and shields Alolan Marowak from faster Pokemon. Stealth Rock is a viable option in the last moveslot, if none of Alolan Marowak's teammates carry it, due to the amount of switches Alolan Marowak forces, but it makes Alolan Marowak less self-sufficient as a wallbreaker; additionally, Alolan Marowak can struggle to keep Stealth Rock up throughout a game due to its lack of longevity.
Alolan Marowak appreciates partners that can relieve pressure on it to check Electric-types; Flygon and Nidoqueen are both good candidates for this role. Furthermore, the former can bring Alolan Marowak in with U-turn, while the latter can wallbreak alongside it. Other Pokemon that can pivot Alolan Marowak into battle safely, such as Crobat and Heliolisk, are great partners too. Heliolisk in particular is one of Alolan Marowak's best partners, as it can switch into Water-types and pressure faster threats such as Togekiss and Nidoqueen, while Alolan Marowak can crush Heliolisk's slower checks, such as Steelix. Other Water-type switch-ins, such as Starmie and Guzzlord, are important to cover Alolan Marowak's most common weakness; Guzzlord can also handle Ghost- and Dark-types such as Chandelure and mixed Sharpedo, which threaten Alolan Marowak. On the other hand, Alolan Marowak lures in bulky Water-types very effectively and forces damage on them, which helps faster attackers such as Aerodactyl, Flygon, and Sharpedo break through them more easily. Entry hazard control is necessary to allow Alolan Marowak to come into play more often; Crobat, Flygon, Tsareena, and Starmie are all excellent options that can account for some of its weaknesses and bring it into battle with U-turn or Teleport. Klefki, Heracross, and Golisopod all carry Spikes to augment Alolan Marowak's wallbreaking potential, letting it 2HKO Umbreon with Low Kick after only a single layer. The former two can additionally absorb Knock Off to preserve Alolan Marowak's Thick Club.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Flare Blitz can be situationally used alongside Rock Head to greatly increase Alolan Marowak's wallbreaking prowess; it notably allows Alolan Marowak to 2HKO Umbreon, almost always OHKO Steelix after Stealth Rock, and always OHKO Bewear after Stealth Rock. However, losing Lightning Rod forfeits what little defensive utility Alolan Marowak has. Alolan Marowak could use Swords Dance to reach nuclear levels of power, but it will rarely find worthwhile situations to set up due to its low Speed and bulk, and therefore Substitute and Stealth Rock are often more productive options. However, on Trick Room teams, Alolan Marowak employs Swords Dance with Rock Head and a moveset of Poltergeist, Flare Blitz, and Low Kick to become near impossible to switch into; regardless, it is worth noting that Trick Room teams are highly matchup reliant and inconsistent.
Checks and Counters
===================
*Stealth Rock**: Alolan Marowak cannot run Heavy-Duty Boots and has no recovery, so Stealth Rock severely cuts into its health and, over time, chips it into KO range of Pokemon it checks, such as Xurkitree and Lucario.
**Water-types**: Milotic outspeeds Alolan Marowak, can heal off from most of its attacks, and can respond with Scald. Suicune and Seismitoad also outspeed Alolan Marowak and can force it out to set up Calm Mind and Stealth Rock, respectively, but must be careful due to their lack of recovery. Vaporeon and Quagsire can take most of Alolan Marowak's attacks and attempt to stall out Poltergeist, though they cannot safely switch into a Ghost-type STAB move. Though they cannot switch in, offensive Water-types such as Sharpedo and Starmie force Alolan Marowak out easily with the threat of an OHKO.
**Dark-types**: Incineroar's great bulk and Intimidate let it switch into Alolan Marowak's STAB moves with ease and force it out with the threat of Knock Off; however, it must be wary of Low Kick. Umbreon, if fully healthy, can stall out any of Alolan Marowak's moves save for Flare Blitz and nearly OHKO back with Foul Play.
**Ground-types**: Flygon can OHKO Alolan Marowak with Earthquake and force it out to gain momentum with U-turn or set up with Dragon Dance. Nidoqueen and Golurk can easily OHKO Alolan Marowak and fire off powerful attacks on its forced switch, but they struggle to come in against it. Rhyperior and Steelix can each take a single hit from Alolan Marowak at full health and trade with it in a pinch, although Steelix's Earthquake fails to OHKO it.
**Special Attackers**: Powerful special attackers, such as Choice Specs Gardevoir, have no problem forcing Alolan Marowak out and threatening its team in the process. Among these threats, Raikou and Toxtricity stand out as Electric-types that Alolan Marowak cannot reliably check due to their coverage moves in Scald and Snarl, respectively, while Togekiss can both survive a hit from Alolan Marowak and flinch it down with Air Slash.
**Item Removal**: Alolan Marowak relies on its Thick Club for its damage output, and therefore any Pokemon that can remove it is a great annoyance. Pokemon that Alolan Marowak would otherwise solidly check, such as Rotom-C, Vileplume, and Salazzle, can put a damper on its effectiveness with Trick, Corrosive Gas, and Knock Off.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[memesketch, 537558]]
- Quality checked by: [[Yourwelcomethanku, 541847], [GoldCat, 359771]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Adeleine, 517429]]
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