Nuked
a moon full of stars and astral cars
[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Sludge Wave
move 4: Focus Blast
item: Fightinium Z / Life Orb / Black Sludge
ability: Cursed Body
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Substitute is very useful against Pursuit trappers like Krookodile, Bisharp, and Mega Aerodactyl, which are often used as counterplay to Gengar. Focus Blast is necessary to OHKO Dark-types such as Hydreigon, Krookodile, and Bisharp. It can also be used with Fightinium Z to have a powerful, perfectly accurate Fighting-type move.
Set Details
========
Fightinium Z turns Focus Blast into a perfectly accurate 190-Base Power All-Out Pummeling, which can reliably OHKO Dark-types as well as other threats like Terrakion and Cobalion as well as Empoleon after some chip damage. Life Orb can be used instead to give a significant power boost to all of Gengar's moves, but it makes Focus Blast rather unreliable and wears Gengar down. Black Sludge is an option to increase the number of times Gengar can use Substitute and improve its longevity overall.
Usage Tips
========
Gengar is too frail to switch directly into most attacks, so it needs to be brought in after a teammate has been KOed, by an aggressive double switch, or by Volt Switch or U-turn. Gengar's typing and high Special Attack allow it to force out common Pokemon such as Mega Altaria, Togekiss, and Slowbro, which means it usually gets several opportunities in a game to set up a Substitute. Gengar can switch into passive foes whose STAB moves it resists like Sylveon, Amoonguss, and Florges often to gain free turns, especially if it is using Black Sludge. In general, it's best to use Substitute quite often, but against teams with Pursuit trappers such as Mega Aerodactyl and Choice Scarf Krookodile, use Substitute as much as possible, as this eliminates the risk of predicting wrong with its coverage moves and can put the opponent in a very bad spot. For example, Substitute can be used when you expect the opponent to sacrifice something to Gengar; in this situation, you can turn Gengar potentially getting Pursuit trapped after a sacrifice into Gengar picking up two KOs. It can also be used when a foe that resists Shadow Ball, like Choice Scarf Hydreigon, is expected to come in to take the blow. Substitute should be used often against teams with priority users like Scizor and Crawdaunt, and it can also be very beneficial against Bisharp to bypass mind games with Sucker Punch and Pursuit. Don't let Gengar get too worn down by residual damage, as it needs to be able to use Substitute often and survive attacking moves. For this reason, make sure there aren't too many entry hazards on the field before sending Gengar out. Fightinium Z is best used to secure an OHKO against Dark-types like Krookodile and Bisharp on the switch or while behind a Substitute, as using it any other time means Gengar must risk missing. If using Black Sludge, Gengar can afford to use Substitute more often, as it gets many more chances to use Substitute with Black Sludge than with any other item on the set.
Team Options
========
Gengar fits best on offensive teams, as it's powerful and fast, being able to check threats such as Terrakion and Togekiss in a pinch. Teams often rely on threats like Choice Scarf Hydreigon and Choice Scarf Krookodile to check Gengar, so Justified users like Cobalion, Terrakion, and Lucario are able to take advantage of these threats to gain a free turn. Bulkier setup sweepers like Scizor and Suicune also appreciate the setup opportunities Gengar can naturally give them by baiting Choice-locked Pokemon such as Krookodile and Scizor to use Pursuit. Entry hazard setters like Cobalion and Klefki are able to help put threats like Empoleon in range of All-Out Pummeling and generally help Gengar secure 2HKOs with Shadow Ball. Additionally, Toxic Spikes from Tentacruel and Nidoqueen pairs nicely with Substitute Gengar, especially Black Sludge variants, as it can rack up chip damage on threats like Hippowdon and Blissey that would normally give Gengar a hard time. Gengar hates hazards, as they wear it down into range of attacks and limit the number of times it can use Substitute. Entry hazard removers like Starmie and Hydreigon fit well on offensive teams next to Gengar, and Starmie can check and spin on Ground-types like Hippowdon and Gligar, which threaten Gengar. Other Pokemon such as Tsareena and Slowbro can also check Ground-types. If Gengar isn't behind a Substitute, priority users like Scizor, Crawdaunt, and Mamoswine can pick off Gengar after some chip damage. Therefore, Pokemon such as Moltres, Hydreigon, and Infernape make for good teammates. Without a boosting item, Gengar struggles against most walls, so wallbreakers like Terrakion and Mega Blastoise make for good teammates. Volt Switch and U-turn users like Rotom-H, Scizor, and Hydreigon can bring Gengar in so it doesn't have to take too much damage.
name: Substitute
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Shadow Ball
move 3: Sludge Wave
move 4: Focus Blast
item: Fightinium Z / Life Orb / Black Sludge
ability: Cursed Body
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Substitute is very useful against Pursuit trappers like Krookodile, Bisharp, and Mega Aerodactyl, which are often used as counterplay to Gengar. Focus Blast is necessary to OHKO Dark-types such as Hydreigon, Krookodile, and Bisharp. It can also be used with Fightinium Z to have a powerful, perfectly accurate Fighting-type move.
Set Details
========
Fightinium Z turns Focus Blast into a perfectly accurate 190-Base Power All-Out Pummeling, which can reliably OHKO Dark-types as well as other threats like Terrakion and Cobalion as well as Empoleon after some chip damage. Life Orb can be used instead to give a significant power boost to all of Gengar's moves, but it makes Focus Blast rather unreliable and wears Gengar down. Black Sludge is an option to increase the number of times Gengar can use Substitute and improve its longevity overall.
Usage Tips
========
Gengar is too frail to switch directly into most attacks, so it needs to be brought in after a teammate has been KOed, by an aggressive double switch, or by Volt Switch or U-turn. Gengar's typing and high Special Attack allow it to force out common Pokemon such as Mega Altaria, Togekiss, and Slowbro, which means it usually gets several opportunities in a game to set up a Substitute. Gengar can switch into passive foes whose STAB moves it resists like Sylveon, Amoonguss, and Florges often to gain free turns, especially if it is using Black Sludge. In general, it's best to use Substitute quite often, but against teams with Pursuit trappers such as Mega Aerodactyl and Choice Scarf Krookodile, use Substitute as much as possible, as this eliminates the risk of predicting wrong with its coverage moves and can put the opponent in a very bad spot. For example, Substitute can be used when you expect the opponent to sacrifice something to Gengar; in this situation, you can turn Gengar potentially getting Pursuit trapped after a sacrifice into Gengar picking up two KOs. It can also be used when a foe that resists Shadow Ball, like Choice Scarf Hydreigon, is expected to come in to take the blow. Substitute should be used often against teams with priority users like Scizor and Crawdaunt, and it can also be very beneficial against Bisharp to bypass mind games with Sucker Punch and Pursuit. Don't let Gengar get too worn down by residual damage, as it needs to be able to use Substitute often and survive attacking moves. For this reason, make sure there aren't too many entry hazards on the field before sending Gengar out. Fightinium Z is best used to secure an OHKO against Dark-types like Krookodile and Bisharp on the switch or while behind a Substitute, as using it any other time means Gengar must risk missing. If using Black Sludge, Gengar can afford to use Substitute more often, as it gets many more chances to use Substitute with Black Sludge than with any other item on the set.
Team Options
========
Gengar fits best on offensive teams, as it's powerful and fast, being able to check threats such as Terrakion and Togekiss in a pinch. Teams often rely on threats like Choice Scarf Hydreigon and Choice Scarf Krookodile to check Gengar, so Justified users like Cobalion, Terrakion, and Lucario are able to take advantage of these threats to gain a free turn. Bulkier setup sweepers like Scizor and Suicune also appreciate the setup opportunities Gengar can naturally give them by baiting Choice-locked Pokemon such as Krookodile and Scizor to use Pursuit. Entry hazard setters like Cobalion and Klefki are able to help put threats like Empoleon in range of All-Out Pummeling and generally help Gengar secure 2HKOs with Shadow Ball. Additionally, Toxic Spikes from Tentacruel and Nidoqueen pairs nicely with Substitute Gengar, especially Black Sludge variants, as it can rack up chip damage on threats like Hippowdon and Blissey that would normally give Gengar a hard time. Gengar hates hazards, as they wear it down into range of attacks and limit the number of times it can use Substitute. Entry hazard removers like Starmie and Hydreigon fit well on offensive teams next to Gengar, and Starmie can check and spin on Ground-types like Hippowdon and Gligar, which threaten Gengar. Other Pokemon such as Tsareena and Slowbro can also check Ground-types. If Gengar isn't behind a Substitute, priority users like Scizor, Crawdaunt, and Mamoswine can pick off Gengar after some chip damage. Therefore, Pokemon such as Moltres, Hydreigon, and Infernape make for good teammates. Without a boosting item, Gengar struggles against most walls, so wallbreakers like Terrakion and Mega Blastoise make for good teammates. Volt Switch and U-turn users like Rotom-H, Scizor, and Hydreigon can bring Gengar in so it doesn't have to take too much damage.
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