honk mimimimimi
[OVERVIEW]
Drowzee is a solid support option thanks to its good movepool and great typing helping it pave the way for Pokemon like Fearow and Pinsir to make more progress throughout the course of a game. Access to Thunder Wave and Hypnosis help Drowzee prevent Pokemon like Rapidash, Seaking, and Abra from consistently being able to make progress. Additionally, access to a STAB Psychic backed by a solid Special stat lets Drowzee pressure Pokemon that are immune to paralysis, 2HKOing Pokemon like Nidoqueen and Graveler. This combination of status and offensive power makes it amazing at forcing progress, forcing trades with threats like Sandslash and Fearow while being able to hold its own against bulkier Pokemon like Arcanine. Its high Special stat lets it act as a solid specially defensive Pokemon, checking Pokemon like Staryu, Gastly, and Abra. Most importantly, however, this lets it act as one of the premier answers to Porygon, as it can outspeed and overwhelm it with status and Special drops from Psychic. In addition to spreading sleep, Drowzee can double as a sleep absorber thanks to its solid match ups into sleep users like Gastly and Vileplume. However, Drowzee has poor physical bulk, leaving it prone to being 2HKOed by the likes of Nidoqueen, Pinsir, and Fearow, lowering Drowzee's capabilities as a defensive Pokemon. These Pokemon also outspeed Drowzee due to its poor Speed tier, which also leaves it vulnerable to Dragonair’s Wrap. This means that Drowzee must exercise caution when putting Pokemon to sleep, as otherwise, it is extremely susceptible to being overwhelmed.
[SET]
name: Bulky Support
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Hypnosis
move 3: Seismic Toss
move 4: Thunder Wave
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
STAB Psychic is one of Drowzee’s most valuable aspects, 2HKOing Pokemon like Nidoqueen, Machamp, Gastly, and Graveler as well as Staryu and Seaking after a Special drop while boasting great neutral coverage against almost the entire tier. Hypnosis makes Drowzee much more difficult to switch into for more defensively oriented Pokemon such as Porygon and and Staryu. Seismic Toss’s consistent damage output lets Drowzee overwhelm Abra and opposing Drowzee. Thunder Wave makes switching into Drowzee even harder, as would be switchins like Pinsir and Fearow are ultimately left more vulnerable to being overwhelmed by Drowzee's more offensively inclined teammates.
Drowzee's combination of Hypnosis and Thunder Wave gives it appeal to almost any team. Offensive Pokemon with rather meager Speed stats such as Dragonair, Machamp, and Sandslash heavily appreciate Drowzee's ability to spread paralysis. Additionally, these Pokemon heavily appreciate the likes of Pinsir and Abra being paralyzed as they would otherwise be vulnerable to getting outsped and overwhelmed by these threats. Rock-types like Omanyte and Graveler make for good partners as they are able to switch into and force out physical attackers like Fearow and Pinsir and in return, Drowzee can force out Pokemon like Machamp and Porygon that would otherwise overwhelm these Pokemon. Pokemon who are threatened by opposing Psychic-types such as Nidoqueen and Gastly appreciate Drowzee being able to trade paralysis with them in a pinch, enabling these threats to more easily overwhelm them.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Drowzee has few other options due to its rather subpar movepool. Drowzee will generally drop Hypnosis when considering an other option due to the sheer value its other moveslots grant it. Counter can turn the tables against Normal-type attackers like Fearow and Pinsir, being able to take advantage of Body Slams and Hyper Beams.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Sleep Users**:
**Physical Attackers**: Drowzee's mediocre physical bulk means that it is unable to consistently take hits from common physical attackers such as Pinsir, Arcanine, and Sandslash. These Pokemon are all bulky enough to trade with Drowzee, with the latter even being unaffected by paralysis. The latter two also boast access to Body Slam, meaning that they can also threaten to paralyze Drowzee. Frailer physical attackers such as Fearow and Rapidash are also capable of overwhelming Drowzee. However, these two are much more susceptible to paralysis. Although it cannot switch in directly, Nidoqueen is faster than Drowzee and can 2HKO it with Earthquake.
**Partial Trapping Users**: Drowzee's awful Speed leaves it vulnerable to being overwhelmed by partial trapping users such as Rapidash, Dragonair, and Pinsir. A lack of reliable recovery means that Drowzee is often left at the expense of Fire Spin, Wrap, or Bind missing if it desires to retaliate against these threats. However, none of these Pokemon want to directly switch into Drowzee because of Thunder Wave or Hypnosis.
**Opposing Drowzee**: Drowzee is one of the best checks to itself. It is able to take paralysis and overwhelm opposing Drowzee with repeated Seismic Tosses and can paralyze it to make it more vulnerable against physical attackers. However, Drowzee can catch itself on the switch in with Hypnosis.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/bt89.487308/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
2
Grammar checked by:
1
2
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