Azumarill Analysis for Series 2 (VGC 2023)

Azumarill. A VGC staple from generations past. Most veterans would fondly (or not) remember it for its salivating combination of Huge Power + Belly Drum, and how it could tear apart unprepared teams. Haze Murkrow’s immense popularity put a stop to that strategy, though it did not stop players from innovating new ways for Azumarill to shine. However, can the Aqua Rabbit Pokemon keep up whatever momentum it had into Series 2?

Type

Originally a pure Water Type Pokemon, Generation VI retconned it to give it an additional Fairy Type. The first of its kind is also the only legal representative in Generation IX, at least until any yet to be announced DLCs drop.

Offensive

The list of Pokemon that fare well against Azumarill’s STAB combination is provided below:

Resisted

• Qwilfish
• Amoonguss
• Toxapex

Amoonguss is the main name worthy of note out of the trio. Rage Powder is an absolute bane for Azumarill, especially if players desperately need it to land the KO.

Defensive

Weaknesses

• Electric(2x)
• Grass (2x)
• Poison (2x)

Resistances

• Water (2x)
• Fire (2x)
• Fighting (2x)
• Bug (2x)
• Ice (2x)
• Dark (2x)

Immunities

• Dragon

Azumarill’s unique Type combination leaves with not a lot of Type Weaknesses, but a few useful Type Resistances. Being able to stare down Roaring Moon is expected to be an important feat, though the main attraction from Series 1 is Azumarill’s good matchup against the feared Dondozo + Tatsugiri combination.

Abilities

Thick Fat

Great Ability in its own right, but very much wasted on regular Azumarill: the Water Rabbit Pokemon already resists Fire and Ice Type moves respectively. That said, players who Tera Grass their Azumarill can appreciate the defensive bonuses afforded.

Huge Power

The call to fame for Azumarill in seasons past. For offensive builds, Huge Power is an absolute must, considering Azumarill’s abysmal Base Attack of 50.

Sap Sipper

Sap Sipper has emerged as a popular defensive tool for Azumarill, allowing it to counter Meowscarada with ease. This also allows Azumarill to switch freely into Spore, improving the Water Rabbit Pokemon’s matchup against Amoonguss.

Base Stats

100 50 80 60 80 50

At first glance, Azumarill is a Pokemon that is built more for defense, rather than offense. This is mitigated somewhat by the aforementioned Huge Power and/or Belly Drum, though it should be said that the power drop-off is rather stark. The other issue would be the low Base Speed of 50, for it is too slow for normal play, but just a bit too fast when compared to dedicated Trick Room sweepers.

Moves

Offensive

• Liquidation
• Play Rough
• Aqua Jet
  • Despite the low Base Power, Aqua Jet is still an invaluable STAB outlet that often took precedence over the stronger Liquidation. This is because it hits with increased priority, which helps Azumarill overcome its low Base Speed. That said, this works best with Huge Power and/or Belly Drum.
• Ice Spinner
  • One of the more viable coverage moves that Azumarill gets, with the primary purpose being to hit Amoonguss for super effective damage if it does not commit to a Terastalization.

Supportive

• Belly Drum
• Perish Song
• Encore
• Sing
  • Sing plus Blunder Policy can be an interesting combo to either incapacitate or double Azumarill’s Speed.

Sample Sets

SNOW’s LCS2022 Runner Up Team

Azumarill (F) @ Sitrus Berry  

Ability: Sap Sipper  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Ground  

EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD  

Relaxed Nature  

IVs: 0 Spe  

– Aqua Jet  

– Sing  

– Perish Song  

– Protect 

tomo’s LCS2022 Top 32 Team

Azumarill (F) @ Assault Vest  

Ability: Huge Power  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Grass  

– Liquidation  

– Aqua Jet  

– Play Rough  

– Brick Break 

Rennen’s NinoPokeBros Tour Top 8 Team

Azumarill (M) @ Life Orb  

Ability: Huge Power  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Fairy  

EVs: 172 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Def / 12 SpD / 44 Spe  

Adamant Nature  

– Play Rough  

– Aqua Jet  

– Liquidation  

– Protect 

Teammates

Gothitelle

No Perish Trap team should be without Gothitelle and its Shadow Tag. But trapping isn’t the only thing that Gothitelle can do. Fake Out helps buy Azumarill the opportunity to set up Belly Drum, while Trick Room can heavily punish opposing Tailwind play.

Cyclizar / Orthworm

The newly introduced move, Shed Tail, basically combines Substitute and Baton Pass, with the main differences being the ½ Max HP cost (instead of ¼), and the inability to pass stat boosts. It is not hard to see how useful this is at bringing in a setup sweeper, for it allows the beneficiary to take at least one hit for free while it sets up. Only two Pokemon have access to this wonderful move. Cyclizar gets access to Regenerator, making the HP cost a lot more manageable. Orthworm, on the other hand, has its remaining Type Weaknesses (after Earth Eater) adequately covered by Azumarill’s STAB combination.

Annihilape / Flutter Mane

No matter whether Azumarill runs Belly Drum or Perish Song, one thing remains the same – the need to have a hard hitting ally to clear the field of hindering obstacles. In the former’s case, that would be Prankster Haze Murkrow, while the latter works best if the players can quickly establish a numerical advantage. Enter Annihilape and Flutter Mane. Both are powerful Ghost Type Pokemon, making them immune to Fake Out. The former is notable for Choice Scarf Final Gambit, or just a bulky juggernaut through Bulk Up, Drain Punch, and Rage Fist. The latter is fast and ridiculously powerful, with STAB Dazzling Gleam covering Murkrow and making up for Play Rough’s imperfect accuracy.

Gyarados Analysis for Series 2 (VGC 2023)

Gyarados. Part of Sejun Park’s historic World Championship-winning team from 2014 (albeit as Mega Gyarados). Series 1 has brought about a smattering of notable finishes for the Atrocious Pokemon, but not really plentiful enough to claim a significant market share. With the Paradox Pokemon thrown into the fray in Series 2, can Gyarados establish a viable niche for itself?

Type

As the first in a rich line of Water and Flying Type Pokemon, the only other direct STAB competition is Pelipper.

Offensive

The list of Pokemon that fare well against Gyarados’ STAB combination is provided below:

Resisted

• Wash Rotom

Every other Pokemon that resists Gyarados’ STAB combination is either not in the game or not yet available for competitive usage. The main issue lies in the fact that Gyarados lacks a Physical Flying Type STAB – forcing players to rely on Flying Tera Blast.

Defensive

Weaknesses

• Rock (2x)
• Electric (4x)
• Freeze-Dry (4x)

Resistances

• Fighting (2x)
• Bug (2x)
• Water (2x)
• Fire (2x)
• Steel (2x)

Immunities

• Ground

While the 4x Type Weakness to Electric hogs all the attention, there is one more important vulnerability that deserves equal attention. Freeze-Dry, a unique move, is a powerful Ice Type move that hits Gyarados for 4x super effective damage. While omitted from the in-house Series 1 Guide for Pelipper due to a lack of viable candidates, Series 2 saw fit to unleash Iron Bundle.

With a favourable Quark Drive boost, Iron Bundle can reach speeds that even an (unboosted) Regieleki cannot match. In addition, literally no Pokemon resists the combination of STAB Hydro Pump and Freeze-Dry. To make matters worse, the typical Types that Gyarados commonly Terastalized into in Series 1 are all vulnerable to Freeze-Dry (2x). Thus, this expected metagame-defining force will be a major worry for any Gyarados user in Series 2.

Abilities

Intimidate

While much of the early Series 2 metagame will likely revolve around Paradox Pokemon like Flutter Mane and Iron Bundle, both being Special strikers, Intimidate is still a valuable asset to weaken Physical damage dealers. These would include the likes of Tyranitar, Maushold, Annihilape, or the newly available Roaring Moon. Just take extra care to avoid switching it in on Defiant Pokemon like Kingambit!

Moxie

On paper, it is a fantastic Ability to help Gyarados snowball offensive boosts. As with all other Moxie users, the challenge is getting Gyarados that first KO to start the ball rolling. Fortunately, Gyarados has access to Dragon Dance, which also bolsters its average Base Speed. However, players will also have to factor in the drawbacks of being heavily boost-reliant. The immense popularity and viability of Prankster Haze Murkrow will easily wipe out all the painstakingly accumulated boosts.

Base Stats

95 125 79 60 100 81

A modest but still rather balanced Base Stat distribution. The only two shortcomings would be its Base Defense and Base Speed, though there are plenty of Pokemon that would kill to be on Gyarados’ level. As mentioned previously, Gyarados’ Base Speed can be a major pain, with Series 2 introducing multiple speedsters that leave the Atrocious in the dust.

Moves

Offensive

• Waterfall / Aqua Tail
• Tera Blast
  • The main coverage move for Gyarados. Tera Flying for an extra powerful STAB, or tack on a specific Tera Type to cover for a specific matchup.
• Earthquake
  • Gyarados’ main way out against opposing Electric Type Pokemon.
• Ice Fang
  • One of the few ways Gyarados has left to deal super effective damage to Grass Type opposition (bar the likes of Scovillain).

Supportive

• Dragon Dance
  • The most important move on a Gyarados, giving it the power and Speed boost it so desperately needs to be good.
• Taunt
• Thunder Wave
• Helping Hand

Sample Sets

SNOW’s LCS2022 Runner Up Team

Gyarados (M) @ Life Orb  

Ability: Intimidate  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Flying  

EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe  

Jolly Nature  

– Waterfall  

– Tera Blast  

– Dragon Dance  

– Protect 

Molina’s Costa Rica Cup Champion Team

Gyarados @ Lum Berry  

Ability: Intimidate  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Flying  

EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe  

Jolly Nature  

– Waterfall  

– Tera Blast  

– Dragon Dance  

– Protect  

bubs’s San Diego Regionals Top 32 Team

Gyarados (F) @ Safety Goggles  

Ability: Intimidate  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Flying  

EVs: 196 HP / 100 Atk / 60 Def / 4 SpD / 148 Spe  

Adamant Nature  

– Waterfall  

– Tera Blast  

– Dragon Dance  

– Protect 

Teammates

Scizor

The offensive pressure exerted by the newly released Flutter Mane is set to dominate Series 2. With that comes counterplay, with not much better options besides Scizor. Technician-boosted Bullet Punch can and will make short work of any non-Focus Sash carrying Flutter Mane. Gyarados easily returns the favour by nullifying any Fire Type Pokemon that would otherwise prey on Scizor’s 4x Weakness.

Hippowdon

With Waterfall being Gyarados’ primary attack, it comes as a no-brainer that Sun would be the bane of Gyarados’ existence. With Paradox Pokemon (and the accompanying Protosynthesis) released in Series 2, the problem becomes more prevalent for players to ignore. Enter Hippowdon, one of the competing Weather setters (Sand). The Heavyweight Pokemon steals the march over Tyranitar thanks to a more favourable matchup against Flutter Mane.

Amoonguss / Brute Bonnet

The need for Gyarados to get at least one Dragon Dance off to perform means that it likes requires redirection support to prevent being knocked out during that process. Enter Amoonguss, one of the best options available in this role. Special mention goes to its Paradox counterpart, Brute Bonnet. Both share access to Spore, Rage Powder, and Pollen Puff. With the latter, players can run a more offensive build to improve endgame odds, should Brute Bonnet end up being the last Pokemon standing. Should opposing Flutter Mane commit to an early Tera Ghost, Brute Bonnet can even threaten a scary STAB Sucker Punch.

Hariyama Analysis for Series 2 (VGC 2023)

Hariyama. A fantastically solid Pokemon that has been everpresent in the limelight for every Regional Dex format it had been available in. With players now gaining access to its Paradox Form, will regular Hariyama be able to muster enough from within to remain relevant? Should it?

Type

A Pure Fighting Type Pokemon, Hariyama’s Type Matchup chart is pretty straightforward.

Offensive

The list of Pokemon that fare well against Hariyama’s STAB moves is provided below:

Resisted

• Bug Type
• Psychic Type
• Poison Type
• Flying Type
• Fairy Type

Immunity

• Ghost Type

Quite a lot of Types resist Hariyama’s STAB Close Combat. However, one should not overlook its strengths. The Fighting Type is one of the few Types to hit Steel Type Pokemon for super effective damage, in addition to being the only one to do so against Normal Type Pokemon. This puts Hariyama in a good position against the plethora of Tera Steel Pokemon, or Paradox Pokemon like Brute Bonnet, Roaring Moon, Iron Bundle, and more.

Defensive

Weaknesses

• Psychic (2x)
• Flying (2x)
• Fairy (2x)

All of these three Types are resisted by Steel Type, making it a valuable Terastal option for Hariyama. Primary threats would include Flutter Mane and Iron Valiant. The former formed a devastating duo with Chi-Yu before they were both banned in Series 1, so expect players to flock back to the Ancient Paradox Pokemon.

Abilities

Thick Fat

Jokes aside, Thick Fat is actually a highly valuable defensive Ability. The development of VGC play around Mega Venusaur back in Generation VI would attest to that. Considering that Drought Torkoal and Snow-boosted Iron Bundle are likely to see hefty usage, this Ability can come in handy against those cores.

Guts

One of the more powerful Abilities out there, for it punishes foes that haphazardly inflict Hariyama with a status condition. Negating the consequences of Burn is the biggest buff, since it makes Hariyama, a Physical attacker, harder to shut down. Running a dedicated Flame Orb Guts set can also help to prevent Hariyama from being put to Sleep with Spore (unless inflicted upon a fresh switch in).

Sheer Force

Another very powerful Ability. At the cost of the used move’s secondary effect, Sheer Force buffs applicable moves’ power by about 30%. This stacks with Life Orb, but most importantly, negates the HP recoil! The one thing is that this basically nullifies Fake Out, or players who still want the odds of inflicting that game-changing flinch. Considering that Hariyama has access to Guts, which is a lot easier to pull off, most players would (wisely) opt against running Sheer Force on their Hariyama.

Base Stats

144 120 60 40 60 50

Great Base HP and Attack, but mediocre everywhere else. Hariyama functions best in Trick Room and can come in handy to help players ensure that the field condition is set up.

Moves

Offensive

• Close Combat
• Headlong Rush
  • Close Combat, but Ground Type
• Rock Slide / Stone Edge / Thunderpunch
  • These three moves help Hariyama better hit Flying Type Pokemon. The first two cover more of such threats but suffer from imperfect accuracy. The latter loses out against Pokemon like Kilowattrel but could be a nice option against bulky Water Type Pokemon.
• Bullet Punch / Iron Head
  • Hariyama’s main outlet against Fairy Type Pokemon. Bullet Punch, while weak, gives Hariyama a priority option against weakened or frailer targets. Iron Head is more reliable and hits harder, though players will need to manage it with Hariyama’s raw Base Speed.
• Others
  • Facade
    • Hariyama’s STAB Close Combat covers almost every Pokemon that resist Facade, with the only exception being Ghost Type Pokemon, which are immune to both. At 140 Base Power, it actually hits harder at neutral than a 2x super effective Rock Slide after spread damage reduction, or just a bit less than a 2x super effective Thunderpunch.

Supportive

• Fake Out
• Wide Guard
• Feint
  • Lifting Protect and Wide Guard can be massively useful, especially if players intend to sweep with an allied Torkoal’s Eruption.
• Knock Off
  • The value of Knock Off has diminished slightly, with Booster Energy Paradox Pokemon entering the already congested fray. However, being able to rid a bulky Pokemon of their main form of recovery is still a valuable asset.
• Others
  • Belly Drum
    • Strictly overkill, slightly hard to pull off, and can be easily nullified by Murkrow’s Prankster Haze. However, if successfully setup, players can afford to run weaker moves like Drain Punch and demand immediate attention from the opponent.

Sample Sets

ToooTz’s Tainan Regionals Top 4 Team / Clipperz’s San Diego Regionals Top 4 Team

Hariyama (M) @ Flame Orb  

Ability: Guts  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Steel  

EVs: 156 HP / 252 Atk / 100 SpD  (EVs from ToooTz)

Brave Nature  

IVs: 19 Spe  

– Close Combat  

– Fake Out  

– Knock Off  

– Bullet Punch 

barudoru’s LCS2022 Top 32 Team

Hariyama (F) @ Flame Orb  

Ability: Guts  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Dark  

EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Def / 4 SpD  

Brave Nature  

IVs: 17 Spe  

– Close Combat  

– Knock Off  

– Fake Out  

– Wide Guard 

Jamie Boyt’s Assault Vest Sample

Hariyama @ Assault Vest  

Ability: Thick Fat  

Level: 50  

Tera Type: Fighting / Fire

EVs: 4 HP / 156 Atk / 156 Def / 188 SpD / 4 Spe  

Adamant Nature  

– Close Combat  

– Fake Out  

– Headlong Rush  

– Knock Off

Teammates

Torkoal

Players looking to run Trick Room will definitely be looking to sweep with a dedicated Trick Room sweeper. In that regard, one simply cannot ignore Drought Torkoal. Not only does Drought help Ancient Paradox Pokemon trigger Protosynthesis without having to utilize the Booster Energy, but it also allows Torkoal itself to melt the field with a boosted Eruption.

Farigiraf

All Trick Room teams need at least one Trick Room setter. Enter Farigiraf, whose signature Armor Tail blocks opposing cross-field priority. Between this and Hariyama’s own Fake Out, there aren’t many other ways to really deny the player from setting up Trick Room.

Meowscarada / Roaring Moon

Meowscarada’s value needs no second introduction, though special mention should be afforded to its capability to function as a secondary (or tertiary) Trick Room setter. In the context of Series 2, the spotlight should fall on Roaring Moon. It is the third fastest Paradox Pokemon, behind only Flutter Mane and Iron Bundle. The former, while immune to Fake Out, does not like to be the recipient of a Guts-boosted Bullet Punch. If its sole Fairy Type move is Dazzling Gleam, players can call upon Hariyama’s Wide Guard to put a stop to that. This can similarly be applied to Iron Bundle’s Icy Wind and/or Blizzard. The Future Paradox Pokemon is susceptible to Fake Out, and takes super effective damage from STAB Close Combat.