Diophantine
Banned deucer.
[OVERVIEW]
Jynx is a high-risk, high-reward type of Pokemon. Its Special Attack, Speed, access to Lovely Kiss, and combination of STAB attacks that is scarcely resisted in GSC OU make it a great sweeper and status inducer. It 2HKOes a huge number of the viable offensive Pokemon in the metagame, which can force somewhat of a passive response, allowing the Jynx user to gain momentum. Jynx is the only sleep inducer that straight up 2HKOes the most common sleep and general status absorber, Zapdos, and can even take it on one-on-one without relying on Sleep Talk rolls going in its favor. In the absence of one of a few specific viable Sleep Talk users, like Snorlax or Vaporeon, opponents must often effectively sacrifice one Pokemon to sleep and then have an additional healthy Pokemon capable of taking Jynx on. However, Jynx also comes with significant liabilities, which are its frailty, due to its poor defensive typing and stats, and its almost total uselessness when inflicted with status. These traits make it difficult to bring in at times. Nevertheless, Jynx has changed the way that offensive teams are structured in GSC OU and has gone from a niche pick to a metagame standard.
[SET]
name: Lullaby
move 1: Lovely Kiss
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Substitute / Thief / Nightmare
item: Leftovers / No Item
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
========
The coverage of Ice Beam and Psychic is resisted only by Starmie and Forretress in OU, neither of which commonly run Sleep Talk. Even many special walls such as Blissey and Raikou don't appreciate being put to sleep, although the latter can mitigate this by using Sleep Talk. Substitute allows Jynx to mitigate its frailty and weakness to status, as well as giving it extra turns and safety. These turns better its odds to put something to sleep and let it fish for freezes or Special Defense drops with its STAB attacks, which can allow Jynx to break through its supposed checks. Thief is commonly used over Substitute to steal Leftovers from common switch-ins such as Snorlax, Suicune, Raikou, and Blissey that attempt to wall it. This allows Jynx and its teammates to break through these Pokemon more easily and subsequently inflict sleep on a Pokemon the opponent would rather have kept free of status. Thief Jynx is often used as a lead to steal Leftovers early on, supposing the lead matchup is advantageous. Jynx threatens a lot of common leads such as non-Sleep Talk users, Exeggutor, and Nidoking. Nightmare is sometimes seen over Substitute or Thief to beat down sleeping Pokemon that Jynx cannot 3HKO like Suicune and Snorlax. It can force them into Rest loops, in which they are highly susceptible to Special Defense drops and critical hits, and also punishes Sleep Talk users by putting them at great risk if they call Rest while inflicted with Nightmare. The overall purpose of Nightmare is to force switches, which Jynx is very effective at punishing if the opponent does not have numerous Pokemon capable of taking its powerful special attacks.
Team Options
=============
Jynx appreciates teammates that can keep up offensive momentum. While losing momentum occasionally is acceptable, Jynx teams commonly struggle when the opponent is aggressively playing around them rather than taking them on passively. This means using Pokemon that are very difficult to respond to passively like Cloyster, Whirlwind Zapdos, and Gengar or, if a threat requires a passive response, using Pokemon like Curse Snorlax that similarly force passive responses from the opponent rather than allowing them to gain momentum. Jynx also helps offensive teams overwhelm the opponent's defensive measures by softening up or gaining advantages against defensive Pokemon through Lovely Kiss or Thief, and Spikes support from Cloyster or Forretress helps Jynx dish out damage more effectively. Pokemon that can deal with varieties of RestTalk Snorlax complement Jynx particularly well, as it typically draws them in. Gengar is immune to the Curse set and only fears the Earthquake set or a burn from Flamethrower; it also switches into Forretress without Hidden Power Ghost to stop it from getting a Rapid Spin off against Jynx. While Golem still takes super effective damage from Earthquake and the rare Surf from Sleep Talk Snorlax, it can get a Rapid Spin off against it and shuffle the opponent's team with Roar. Pokemon that check Jynx, such as Snorlax, Tyranitar, and Umbreon, are commonly threatened by Machamp, making it a great partner. A sleeping Snorlax makes an especially great entry point for Machamp, which is typically not a Pokemon you want to give opportunities to. Jynx and Machamp together can also apply pressure on poisoned Starmie by making it switch in and take residual damage. Sweepers that appreciate Raikou being worn down, such as Vaporeon, appreciate Jynx stealing its Leftovers or gradually weakening it. Jynx still appreciates Pokemon that can reliably stomach Thunders from Raikou, though, such as Steelix and Sleep Talk Snorlax. Jynx also makes for an excellent recipient of Special Attack boosts from Baton Pass users such as Vaporeon.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
============
Mean Look sets must drop Lovely Kiss due to the sleep move + Mean Look ban, but they can be quite threatening, as most phazers don't like switching into Jynx's STAB attacks. Perish Song + Mean Look can take huge advantage of more passive responses to Jynx such as Suicune and already sleeping Sleep Talk Snorlax. However, these sets are somewhat inconsistent due to Jynx being unable to stomach much damage, and foes can threaten it with heavy damage even if they cannot phaze to cancel Mean Look. This set is also harder to bring in than other users of this strategy, such as Gengar, due to its lack of notable resistances or immunities. Counter can be used on some sets to target physically offensive checks to Jynx such as Snorlax. Hidden Power Fire hits Forretress but can be hard to justify over one of the utility moves.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Special Walls**: Blissey, Raikou, Suicune, and Snorlax can all switch into Jynx and threaten it out with status or damage. However, they must be wary of Thief or Lovely Kiss along with the threat of the secondary effects from Jynx's STAB attacks.
**Dark-types**: Umbreon, Houndoom, and Tyranitar can all reliably Pursuit trap Jynx, although they can't do this while asleep. Houndoom and Tyranitar threaten it with an OHKO if it does not switch, although Houndoom will fail to OHKO the majority of the time and Speed ties Jynx. Tyranitar takes a sizeable chunk from Ice Beam too. Umbreon's Pursuit does not break Jynx's Substitute, so Jynx can still try to put it to sleep or freeze it.
**Starmie and Forretress**: Starmie and Forretress can both switch into Jynx thanks to their resistances to its STAB attacks, provided Sleep Clause is active, and threaten it out or get a Rapid Spin off. Forretress, though, is especially vulnerable to Thief, and some of its movesets check Jynx better than others.
**Sleep Talk Users**: Pokemon such as Snorlax, Raikou, and Moltres can come in on Jynx and absorb the Lovely Kiss to activate Sleep Clause while threatening Jynx back immediately. Jynx can still gain advantages against them through Thief, gradual damage, and secondary effects with STAB attacks.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Diophantine, 370164]]
- Quality checked by: [[BKC, 52012], [Earthworm, 15210]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [Finland, 517429]]
Jynx is a high-risk, high-reward type of Pokemon. Its Special Attack, Speed, access to Lovely Kiss, and combination of STAB attacks that is scarcely resisted in GSC OU make it a great sweeper and status inducer. It 2HKOes a huge number of the viable offensive Pokemon in the metagame, which can force somewhat of a passive response, allowing the Jynx user to gain momentum. Jynx is the only sleep inducer that straight up 2HKOes the most common sleep and general status absorber, Zapdos, and can even take it on one-on-one without relying on Sleep Talk rolls going in its favor. In the absence of one of a few specific viable Sleep Talk users, like Snorlax or Vaporeon, opponents must often effectively sacrifice one Pokemon to sleep and then have an additional healthy Pokemon capable of taking Jynx on. However, Jynx also comes with significant liabilities, which are its frailty, due to its poor defensive typing and stats, and its almost total uselessness when inflicted with status. These traits make it difficult to bring in at times. Nevertheless, Jynx has changed the way that offensive teams are structured in GSC OU and has gone from a niche pick to a metagame standard.
[SET]
name: Lullaby
move 1: Lovely Kiss
move 2: Ice Beam
move 3: Psychic
move 4: Substitute / Thief / Nightmare
item: Leftovers / No Item
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
========
The coverage of Ice Beam and Psychic is resisted only by Starmie and Forretress in OU, neither of which commonly run Sleep Talk. Even many special walls such as Blissey and Raikou don't appreciate being put to sleep, although the latter can mitigate this by using Sleep Talk. Substitute allows Jynx to mitigate its frailty and weakness to status, as well as giving it extra turns and safety. These turns better its odds to put something to sleep and let it fish for freezes or Special Defense drops with its STAB attacks, which can allow Jynx to break through its supposed checks. Thief is commonly used over Substitute to steal Leftovers from common switch-ins such as Snorlax, Suicune, Raikou, and Blissey that attempt to wall it. This allows Jynx and its teammates to break through these Pokemon more easily and subsequently inflict sleep on a Pokemon the opponent would rather have kept free of status. Thief Jynx is often used as a lead to steal Leftovers early on, supposing the lead matchup is advantageous. Jynx threatens a lot of common leads such as non-Sleep Talk users, Exeggutor, and Nidoking. Nightmare is sometimes seen over Substitute or Thief to beat down sleeping Pokemon that Jynx cannot 3HKO like Suicune and Snorlax. It can force them into Rest loops, in which they are highly susceptible to Special Defense drops and critical hits, and also punishes Sleep Talk users by putting them at great risk if they call Rest while inflicted with Nightmare. The overall purpose of Nightmare is to force switches, which Jynx is very effective at punishing if the opponent does not have numerous Pokemon capable of taking its powerful special attacks.
Team Options
=============
Jynx appreciates teammates that can keep up offensive momentum. While losing momentum occasionally is acceptable, Jynx teams commonly struggle when the opponent is aggressively playing around them rather than taking them on passively. This means using Pokemon that are very difficult to respond to passively like Cloyster, Whirlwind Zapdos, and Gengar or, if a threat requires a passive response, using Pokemon like Curse Snorlax that similarly force passive responses from the opponent rather than allowing them to gain momentum. Jynx also helps offensive teams overwhelm the opponent's defensive measures by softening up or gaining advantages against defensive Pokemon through Lovely Kiss or Thief, and Spikes support from Cloyster or Forretress helps Jynx dish out damage more effectively. Pokemon that can deal with varieties of RestTalk Snorlax complement Jynx particularly well, as it typically draws them in. Gengar is immune to the Curse set and only fears the Earthquake set or a burn from Flamethrower; it also switches into Forretress without Hidden Power Ghost to stop it from getting a Rapid Spin off against Jynx. While Golem still takes super effective damage from Earthquake and the rare Surf from Sleep Talk Snorlax, it can get a Rapid Spin off against it and shuffle the opponent's team with Roar. Pokemon that check Jynx, such as Snorlax, Tyranitar, and Umbreon, are commonly threatened by Machamp, making it a great partner. A sleeping Snorlax makes an especially great entry point for Machamp, which is typically not a Pokemon you want to give opportunities to. Jynx and Machamp together can also apply pressure on poisoned Starmie by making it switch in and take residual damage. Sweepers that appreciate Raikou being worn down, such as Vaporeon, appreciate Jynx stealing its Leftovers or gradually weakening it. Jynx still appreciates Pokemon that can reliably stomach Thunders from Raikou, though, such as Steelix and Sleep Talk Snorlax. Jynx also makes for an excellent recipient of Special Attack boosts from Baton Pass users such as Vaporeon.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
============
Mean Look sets must drop Lovely Kiss due to the sleep move + Mean Look ban, but they can be quite threatening, as most phazers don't like switching into Jynx's STAB attacks. Perish Song + Mean Look can take huge advantage of more passive responses to Jynx such as Suicune and already sleeping Sleep Talk Snorlax. However, these sets are somewhat inconsistent due to Jynx being unable to stomach much damage, and foes can threaten it with heavy damage even if they cannot phaze to cancel Mean Look. This set is also harder to bring in than other users of this strategy, such as Gengar, due to its lack of notable resistances or immunities. Counter can be used on some sets to target physically offensive checks to Jynx such as Snorlax. Hidden Power Fire hits Forretress but can be hard to justify over one of the utility moves.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Special Walls**: Blissey, Raikou, Suicune, and Snorlax can all switch into Jynx and threaten it out with status or damage. However, they must be wary of Thief or Lovely Kiss along with the threat of the secondary effects from Jynx's STAB attacks.
**Dark-types**: Umbreon, Houndoom, and Tyranitar can all reliably Pursuit trap Jynx, although they can't do this while asleep. Houndoom and Tyranitar threaten it with an OHKO if it does not switch, although Houndoom will fail to OHKO the majority of the time and Speed ties Jynx. Tyranitar takes a sizeable chunk from Ice Beam too. Umbreon's Pursuit does not break Jynx's Substitute, so Jynx can still try to put it to sleep or freeze it.
**Starmie and Forretress**: Starmie and Forretress can both switch into Jynx thanks to their resistances to its STAB attacks, provided Sleep Clause is active, and threaten it out or get a Rapid Spin off. Forretress, though, is especially vulnerable to Thief, and some of its movesets check Jynx better than others.
**Sleep Talk Users**: Pokemon such as Snorlax, Raikou, and Moltres can come in on Jynx and absorb the Lovely Kiss to activate Sleep Clause while threatening Jynx back immediately. Jynx can still gain advantages against them through Thief, gradual damage, and secondary effects with STAB attacks.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Diophantine, 370164]]
- Quality checked by: [[BKC, 52012], [Earthworm, 15210]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [Finland, 517429]]
Last edited by a moderator: