Tales from Battle Spot Singles blog #12 — Lopunny feat. Sap Sipper Azumarill (hiragif S15)
For August's post, I have chosen to recount the tale of a committed Lopunny team that features interesting complementary options such as Sap Sipper Azumarill and SpDef invested bulky berry Excadrill, and which the team's original author used to get 2000 during season 15. Although my own journey with a modified version of this team, discussed below, ended as early as 1885, it was a pleasure from start to finish.
nouthuca: http://nouthuca.com/topic/?code=g7s15single&num=3
blogs: https://hiragif.hatenadiary.jp/entry/2019/06/20/204359 (original build)
QR code:
Pokepaste: https://pokepast.es/4381a38d895c3aeb (my final version)
1) Team overview:
Please see links above for builds.
Tyranitar
First of all, the team's original author uses Assault Vest Vikavolt in this slot as a hard answer for Focus Blast Thundurus-T that also deals with Greninja as well as Celesteela (and its possible Stealth Rock setters), and hits hard enough with its slow Volt Switch to put things in KO range for Lopunny.
My reasoning for opting for Tyranitar instead of Vikavolt forfeits all of the above in exchange for markedly improved, momentum-recovering matchups against Volcarona and especially Naganadel—enough chip (30%) on Excadrill, a reactive pokemon, and unboosted Fire Blast from Naganadel is already enough to kill—with a natively bulky Rock Tomb for preventing becoming set-up bait itself, and for Lopunny or Greninja to follow-up on.
The desired secondary effect of faking a sand team is obviously impossible to quantify, but things like dissuading opposing Scarf Tapu Lele from showing up for Lopunny and Greninja's benefit, and— most importantly—not outright telegraphing the intended Lopunny + Zapdos all-in you are looking to go for most games has to have some merit. The sets Azumarill and Greninja are running also both stand to benefit from opposing Tapu Fini, Breloom, and Charizard Y that might want to man up on a sand plan.
With all that, I have to confess that both the EV spread and moveset on this Tyranitar remain unoptimized, with the Def stat in particular easily tweakable to more consistently live things like +1 +252 Salamence Earthquake and non-Superpower Swampert's +252 Earthquake outside rain from full. Foul Play is another option to consider with Pursuit being almost never worth it over Rock Tomb virtually irrespective of the situation. Ultimately, Assault Vest Tyranitar has such a limited usage niche here that even Dragon Tail might find its way onto a set.
Excadrill
When running a committed Lopunny team, answers need to be brought to the many things that either hard wall it, or can outlast it with entry hazard, status, and chip damage attrition. To this end, SpDef invested Excadrill brings another source of Toxic poison and Horn Drill, which is, as paradoxical as it sounds, the most consistent out this team has against things like Venusaur or defensive double steel cores, Tapu Bulu + Toxapex, and hard stall.
The defensive investments and bulky berry mean Excadrill can stay in on and survive 252 mega-Gengar Focus Blast from full, and come in on non-Focus Blast Tapu Lele repeatedly to throw its Horn Drill or Toxic into switches, or indeed, just double out itself. Tapu Koko is even more free, needing to run U-turn or hard switch out if it wants to pivot out to keep momentum against an incoming Excadrill. The EV investment in Spd seeks a real stat of 118 which creeps past 4 Spd bulky Mimikyu's 117, and should be enough to fire off an extra Horn Drill against most defensive line-ups.
Lopunny
Lopunny's main selling point is its fantastic speed tier and bursty physical damage output in a format in which games are getting consistently decided well in advance of turn 10, and which give it the ability to Fake Out + STAB kill things like mega-Gengar, Tapu Koko and Greninja in the lead role, and severely limiting the utility of opposing Mimikyu overall. Going above a real Spd stat of 200 also gives it the potential of outspeeding some set-up threats at +1 Spd that only seek to hit 201, either by opting for bulkier spreads (e.g. Roost and/or bulky berry Volcarona, some Recover Porygon Z variants), or by operating from a lower base stat (Tyranitar) to begin with.
The author uses Quick Attack to complement Toxic + Fake Out + Rocky Helmet chip in conjunction with two Volt Switch users in order to gain more offensive reach against things like Blaziken that are a Spd tier above, or against sweepers that have gained momentum already through Dragon Dance, for example. I found myself instead opting for the more conservative choice in Substitute, a move to click against King's Shield and Protect from Blaziken's 1st turn on the field, and from the occasional Protect from Leftovers Ferrothorn, Heatran, or Celesteela. Without Vikavolt, Lopunny's match up against Celesteela in particular is something I felt warranted this, as it makes staying in easier against Leech Seed, as well.
Zapdos
Rocky Helmet chip and a relatively slow Volt Switch are all things that make Lopunny's life easier. More importantly, though, this Zapdos provides a check to Salamence and Gyarados (and Intimidate users in general), both of whom harbor aspirations of coming in on Lopunny and Dragon Dancing on it, and, again, as a result of my replacing of the original author's Vikavolt, it also finds itself forced to do some heavy lifting in Celesteela-matchups.
Azumarill
Sap Sipper Azumarill shuts down Breloom and especially Serperior. Defensively, its role is also to Toxic attrition Charizard X/Y and mega-Gyarados, with Perish Song giving an out to dedicated Baton Pass strategies as well as Glalie.
As with Excadrill, Azumarill lacks native HP recovery, so managing its bulky berry range is a high priority; for example: while 252 Charizard Y's Flamethrower and Fire Blast both miss the 2HKO, either one plus an Overheat follow-up is likely enough to bypass the berry heal; similarly, switching into an Overheat can not be done twice without avoiding the 2HKO.
Lastly, opposing Blaziken can be a real problem for this team since Greninja does not actually carry Water Shuriken, nor does Lopunny Quick Attack, so Azumarill finds itself as a check to both offensive and Baton Pass variants. This might mean having to drag Azumarill into games where it stands to not get any mileage out of its kit barring Blaziken actually showing up. Worse still, any kind of Swords Dance Blaziken lure/sweeper set like Swords Dance + Thunder Punch or even Z-Stone Edge will just go through everything.
Greninja
Greninja is the team's main source of special-based damage, complementing Lopunny by providing a second source of raw damage for when Lopunny alone is not enough; or, indeed, an option at all. At the time of writing, Tapu Fini enjoys the highest usage it has ever seen, and with Lopunny and a possible sand duo on the team, the Z-Grass Knot lure set is indeed chiefly targeted at Fini, but also handles that even more ubiquitous Lopunny check, Hippowdon, of course.
As for the rest of the set, Dark Pulse is a clickable move against Metagross and Aegislash, with Metagross especially often paired with Tapu Fini, most notably putting the former into Lopunny range. Rock Tomb helps Greninja to lead against a cheeky Charizard Y from HippoZard, but is mainly used to stop Volcarona from trying to do anything providing it does not have a Quiver Dance under its belt yet (achieved by way of a KO by Greninja or a Volt Switch KO by Zapdos into which Volcarona is inserted).
2) Usage notes:
I started using this team on my alternate ROM designated for experimentation to go from 1700 to 1800 in 18 games with a record of 12 – 6 a full month before the end of season 16 and the end of season points inflation, after which I reset my main cart to hit 1800 with this with a 67% win rate. Upon returning to this team after a few weeks hiatus, the alt ROM ultimately got a high of 1885 mentioned above:
Greninja likes to lead since it stomps some of the more prominent checks to Lopunny (Hippowdon, Tapu Fini, Intimidate users), so being able to identify whether it is safe to do so is worth spending a few extra seconds in the team selection screen. Still, bringing Greninja in order to surprise Tapu Fini only to have it be the occasional 10-ish per cent usage Scarf Moonblast obviously ends the game immediately—unexpected Scarf users are also something the team's original author takes care to point out as a threat to Lopunny, as well.
The Greninja mirror in the lead matchup is also something that tends to be game deciding due to speed ties and the possibility of opposing Scarf U-turn, so applying a mental checklist for what the opposing Greninja set in the team select screen is the likeliest is likewise worth spending some time on. Ideally, though, your Lopunny lead will scare off most opposing would-be Greninja and Tapu Koko leads.
Tapu Lele's offensive pressure can force compositions that might omit Lopunny altogether, doubly so if it is paired with Hippowdon, in which case Excadrill's HP management becomes key. Indeed, Tapu Lele is something against which Excadrill can actually elect to lead, as bad of a momentum drain as that sounds like.
Zapdos + Lopunny can have problems breaking through Snorlax: opening with Return and switching out immediately bruises Lopunny to where it can't hard switch in again; opening Curse already puts it out of High Jump Kick range even if inserted via Zapdos' Volt Switch.
Despite its formidable physically defensive prowess, it should be noted that Zapdos can not avoid the 2HKO from 252 Ice Punch from Metagross, and, as such, it can be more constructive to drop Zapdos against it in favour of a more offensive answer in Greninja—not only does Greninja switch into a Zapdos-targeting Ice Punch and Zen Headbutt for free, only having to play around Hammer Arm and the seldom seen Thunder Punch, its Dark Pulse is more than enough to put Metagross into High Jump Kick range for later; or, conversely, Lopunny can stay in and suicide on Metagross for Greninja.
2.1 — Usual team compositions
Lopunny-Zapdos-
Greninja-Lopunny-
2.2 — Most drafted, by rate/member (descending)
1. Greninja
2. Zapdos
3. Lopunny
4. Excadrill
5. Azumarill
6. Tyranitar (sub-5% usage)
2.3 — Drafting and leading cf. matchup-archetype list
See link for my basic archetype checklist:
https://tinyurl.com/archetypes101
More comprehensive list of relevant cores and archetypes by marilli:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/battle-spot-singles-good-cores.3602082/#post-8156937
"Kabamanda"
Salamence/Hippowdon/Aegislash/Koko
Greninja-Zapdos-Lopunny/Excadrill
Lopunny-Excadrill-Zapdos
If Tapu Koko is benched, and Aegislash dips to around 50% health, Greninja will just win since it 1HKOs Hippowdon and Salamence. A less greedy and more consistent approach is to bring Excadrill to come in on Koko for free and live a few hits from Aegislash, while having Toxic to click into a Salamence or Hippowdon switch, and having Zapdos in the back to absorb most variants of Salamence.
"Rizzagross"
Charizard X/Metagross/Greninja/Tapu Fini
Greninja-Azumarill/Zapdos-Lopunny
Lopunny-Greninja-Zapdos
Since neither Lopunny nor Greninja can 1v1 lead Metagross, the choice of lead should be factoring in the opponent's Metagross support options (likely something like Landorus and Tapu Fini) because each does put Metagross in KO range for the other. Needless to say, getting the Z-move to connect onto Tapu Fini is ideal.
Celesteela + Tapu Fini + Ground-type
Celesteela/Tapu Fini/Lopunny/Landorus/Garchomp/Hippowdon
Greninja-Zapdos-
Zapdos is a decent lead against Stealth Rock setters when they are Landorus or Sash / Yache berry Garchomp, and has two super-effective attacks to click against Celesteela; one for staying in; and, the other for switching out.
"Landorus momentum"
Suicide lead Landorus + set-up sweepers (Naganadel, Tapu Koko, Dragon Dance megas, NagaScizor etc.)
Lopunny-Zapdos-Tyranitar/Azumarill
Lopunny breaks Landorus' Sash for free and can click Substitute on an Explosion or Stealth Rock, and forces out a possible lead Tapu Koko. Bringing Tyranitar in the back lets Greninja lead safely, since you won't get immediately blown out by Naganadel as Landorus clicks Rock Tomb on turn 1, with Zapdos as the go-to for Gyarados and Scizor.
Rain core modular
Politoed/Pelipper/Swampert/steel type/Tapu Koko
Lopunny-Zapdos-Azumarill
Zapdos can outheal Swampert outside rain unless it gets flinched twice. Lopunny is a weak lead against Pelipper, but, again, forces out lead Tapu Koko which lead Zapdos does not appreciate. Greninja can opt to click its Z-move on turn 1 barring a Tapu Koko, and is likely useful for the non-rain part of the opposing team.
"Mimigassa / suropoke"
Mimikyu/Breloom/Mawile/Porygon2
Lopunny-Excadrill/Zapdos-Azumarill
Lopunny only really wants to avoid Mawile in the lead matchup, which is something worth playing towards against dedicated Mawile teams. While Excadrill technically 1v1s Mimikyu, Porygon2 and Mawile, Zapdos' recovery can make it a more consistent switch-in if Lopunny gets counterled, or if there are Trick Room turns to waste with Roost.
Dedicated stall
Chansey/Toxapex/Sableye/Celesteela/Slowbro/Skarmory/Venusaur/Shedinja/Gliscor etc...
Excadrill-Zapdos-Lopunny/Greninja
Zapdos-Lopunny-Excadrill
As stated by the team's original author, Sableye-Shedinja -based builds are annoying due to mega-Sableye's bulk and immunity to Horn Drill—connecting with the Mold Breaker Toxic on a likely Will-o-Wisp turn 1 from mega-Sableye as the ideal start. Fast Toxic Gliscor with defensive pairings is something this team never wants to see. Mold Breaker Horn Drill is good on paper as an answer to completely passive Chansey and Skarmory, again, even through Sturdy.
3) In Conclusion:
Overall, this team was another pleasant climb with clever team building solutions, especially with how it sought to deal with things like Breloom and Tapu Lele. As with everything else in life, though, this team did definitely have its problems too, something the changes I took the liberty of making did little to mitigate: unexpected Scarf users, particularly Tapu Fini, and Focus Blast variants of Tapu Lele and Thundurus inevitably produced unwinnable scenarios from turn 1. Likewise, it did not matter whether you got Excadrill in on something like Venusaur + Porygon2 if it simply decided to whiff 4-5 Horn Drills in a row, leaving you feeling a bit silly, to say the least.
Season 16 is set to conclude at the beginning of September, but we do not yet know whether there will be another ranked season before the release of generation 8 on November 15 of this year. Still, if we do somehow get one last season of ranked play, I will be here to write up that final ranked climb of generation 7, too. As for plans going forward in generation 8, I will definitely start out with the ranked singles ladder as my main format, but beyond that, I have nothing more specific in the works.
- Tox
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tox.146/
