[GSC] Thoughts on a moveset for Feraligatr

Discussion in 'Past Gens Discussion' started by Thrasher666, Feb 25, 2013.

  1. Thrasher666

    Thrasher666 Member

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    So, I've been caught by nostalgia again. A friend of mine made me remember of my good ol' pokèmon silver cartridge which had been left in a box, I exhumed it (:D) and started playing again. I had some eggs in the pc, so i started running around to hatch them and see what i was breeding for before i had stopped playing. The 4th hatched into a shiny Totodile (with rock slide). Since we(me and my friend) are going to do some battles in our free time, i guess i should build a new team, and i want to use this Totodile. I know that its stats are not well distributed, he doesn't have a physical STAB ecc. ecc., but i still think that it can get its job done with a proper set. So, this is my brainstorming, but i need some help to choose the best one in the gsc ou metagame. It doesn't have to be the best all around set, just the one that suits the metagame best.

    Mixed Curser

    Feraligatr @ Leftovers
    -Blizzard/(Hydro Pump)
    -Curse
    -Rock Slide/Earthquake
    -Roar

    Feraligatr has often been considered as a mixed attacker, in GSC, mainly because it doesn't have a physical stab move. With this set i've tried to mix Gatr's nice bulk with the ability to take down some of its counters. Curse-Roar-RSlide is a well known set(used mostly by tyranitar), which allows to boost atk/def while cutting its own speed, to make roar more reliable in avoiding Phazing. Roar works well in curse wars, too. Blizzard is my latest idea. I've always used Hydro pump, but never found it too efficient. It cannot 2hko skarmory, which would be the main reason for using it, nor it can 2hko Forretress with leftovers,even if there's a slight chance of this happening, if there are spikes on the forretress' side. On the other hand, blizzard can seriously dent some of Feraligatr's counters, mostly Zapdos,Exeggutor and Venusaur. Sadly, with Blizzard, Gatr won't be able to beat Steelix easily, but the steel snake will hardly switch in, expecting the presence of Hydro Pump in the set. Earthquake, though, will work better than RSlide when used against Steelix/Rhydon, but loses the ability to hit skarmory,without using the low-pp special move, and Zapdos. I'd hardly leave Feraligatr in against Zapdos, though, Rslide would be hitting the bird only on the switch.

    Pros:
    -Blizzard is unexpected.
    -Curse + Roar is nice due to the high presence of setuppers.

    Cons:
    Status kills it.
    No reliable recovery.


    Going against Skarmbliss

    Feraligatr @ Leftovers
    -Curse
    -DynamicPunch/Rest
    -Hydro Pump
    -Earthquake

    Pretty simple here. Curse is still nice with Gatr's bulk, the rest of the moves has been chosen to try to counter the common Skarmbliss strategy. Hydro Pump is a 3hko on skarmory, pretty decent, while earthquake can deal with blissey,3hko if Gatr is at +1. This set,though, struggles again Zapdos, Snorlax(without a good amount of luck with DynamicPunch) and grass types. Rest is an option just to be able to constantly win against blissey trying to toxic Gatr, but an opponent's switch to a Phazer while Feraligatr is sleeping has to be considered.

    Pros:
    Nice offensive power & coverage.
    Super effective move on Snorlax(only useful if he hass less boosts than Gatr).

    Cons:
    Lots of counters, it would need a lot of team support.



    Toxic Screech

    Feraligatr @ Leftovers
    -Toxic
    -Screech
    -Hydro Pump
    -Iron Tail/Rock Slide/Earthquake/Return

    Yeah, this is a gimmick, but it's fun. Toxic is for the switch in of a possible Feraligatr counter, while screech might work both as a stallbreaker and Phazer. Hydro Pump is there mostly to hit the steel types, which don't have high Sdef,while the last move is just to abuse Screech, which will make Gatr's attacking power quite frightening. This set works at full potential with spikes support. The presence of a beller in the opponent's team makes its job quite hard, so taking out the opponent's beller would be a good thing before starting the Screech-toxic spam.A beller would be needed as a supporter for this Gatr, since it will have to stay on the field for a quite long time, and without rest it's quite susceptible to toxic. I think this set is interesting, but it won't work against some teams.

    Pros:
    Definitely unexpected.
    Screech allows heavy damage.

    Cons:
    Not easy to get the strategy going.
    Gets ruined by bellers.
    Dies to status.

    So, these were my ideas. Any input would be appreciated. Don't let GSC die!
     
  2. Ortheore

    Ortheore One beautiful monster

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    Feraligatr? I wish you luck using it. In this metagame, I would say Zap and Eggy are the main switchins to Gatr. People wouldn't really be inclined to go on the defensive with a phazer against it

    The first set seems like it tries to do too much against it's counters, and so compromises it's own functionality- Blizzard is a pretty neat idea, which could work since it hurts Zap and Eggy quite a bit, but it is too unreliable for a set to only have one other attacking option, while non-STAB rock slide isn't scaring much unless you've got a few boosts in, something Feraligatr will struggle with a lot. Roar is effective against opposing phazers and cursers, but they wouldn't really be the most common response to Feraligatr.

    Contrast with the second set, which has much more power, but gets countered hard. This would probably just take way too much support to be effective.

    And I think the last set is hilarious. It wouldn't really be effective, but I can imagine staring at my computer in utter confusion when faced with this set.

    Of the sets listed, I think I might go with the first one, but I would change it up a bit, so you've got a few more powerful attacking options. Perhaps Curse/Blizzard/EQ/Return? Or if you want to Curse+roar, I might go Curse/Roar/Hydro pump/Return
    These are just my thoughts anyway. Someone else will probably give some better advice.
     
  3. Crystal_

    Crystal_ Active Member

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    Curse / Earthquake / Rock Slide / Hydro Pump
     
  4. Thrasher666

    Thrasher666 Member

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    First of all, thank you for answering.
    So, the first set needs a bit more of attacking power, indeed. Earthquake seems the best option. The last slot will be another physical move,either Rock Slide or Return, but some testing will help me in deciding. The flinch rate of rock slide might be nice against pHazers,though, now that i don't have roar anymore.
     
  5. Jørgen

    Jørgen Sniper

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    So I'm late to the party but it's a GSC thread so I'm obliged to comment.

    The problem with Gatr is the same problem with Ttar as a mixed sweeper, only amplified 10x thanks to worse stats and movepool. It gets solid coverage for most of what it could want to hit, but the lack of a really good Physical STAB leaves it totally unable to touch any bulky water. At least its typing lets it Curse up on bulky waters, but then you get 4mss. Check it out:

    -Curse (can't muscle past fellow Waters otherwise)
    -EQ (for Raikou on the switch)
    -Blizz (you need it to hit Zapdos on the switch)
    -Pump (for Skarm, obv)
    -Dpunch (not doing anything to Curselax/Growlers without it)

    Moves like Rock Slide and Roar aren't worth it imo. Rock Slide is too weak without Curses and you need to be able to hit Zapdos on the switch, and there's better stuff for the Curse + Roar game (although it does make RoarCune and Curselax less annoying). I suppose if I had to pick a set, it'd be something like Pump/Blizz/Dpunch/EQ, with Curse over Dpunch if waters keep showing up to annoy me.

    EDIT: Oh yeah after reading through the OP again I forgot that Screech is a thing. That might be better than Curse in some cases. It's worth a shot since Gatr is far from fantastic with sets inspired by conventional GSC thinking.
     
    Last edited: Mar 4, 2013
  6. Thrasher666

    Thrasher666 Member

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    @Jørgen: Thanks for your reply!
    I'm quite late, but i've had trouble with my internet connection.
    As you said, Rock Slide isn't powerful enough to hit the opponent's bulky mons. I don't completely agree on the 4mss, though. I don't really like hydro pump, it doesn't really hit skarmory hard, and that accuracy doesn't help, too. Dynamichpunch seems interesting, despite the low accuracy, i'll try it with this set:
    DPunch
    Earthquake
    Curse
    Blizzard

    From what i've tested so far, i've found blizzard to do what i expected it to. It's nice to weaken those exeggutors and zapdos'. Feraligatr kinda works as a stallbreaker.Definitely not the best one, but with some support and smart playing he can be quite effective.

    Edit: Screech hasn't worked that well, Feraligatr lacks the power to hit hard what switches in after the screech.