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Community POTW #076

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Serebii

And, as if by magic, the webmaster appeared...
Staff member
Admin
Time for the next Pokémon of the Week and this week, we have a Unova classic

545.png


It's Scolipede!

https://www.serebii.net/pokedex-sm/545.shtml
 

TheIceCream

User of Ultra Beasts
You know, many Pokemon have their Abilities changed over time. You have Blue-Stripped Basculin changing Reckless to Rock Head, you have the Legendary Beasts changing Volt Absorb/Flash Fire/Water Absorb to Inner Focus and of course, you have Scolipede changing Quick Feet into Speed Boost in Gen 6. Speed Boost is considered one of the best abilities in the game and Scolipede uses it to great advantages. While being backed up with fairly decent stat and a good Movepool for a great Pokemon!

Positives:
+ Speed Boost is a great ability. Combined with a good 112 Speed, it can be hard to stop Scolipede when it gets enough boosts.
+ 100 Attack is pretty good as well
+ Scolipede has a great Movepool, including Baton Pass - a great move in conjunction with Speed Boost
+ Its typing gives it a fair few weaknesses
+ Did I mention Speed Boost?

Negatives:
- 60/89/69 Defenses are a bit meh. You won't be able to take too many hits
- Scolipede can be a bit predictable since there are ways to counter Speed Boost
- Baton Pass is banned in some Metagames, including OU, so there may be issues with it
- 4 Weaknesses is a bit annoying
- Just don't get cocky with Speed Boost. It's never worth it.

Abilities:
Poison Point:
Not bad, but just stick with Speed Boost, it can be luck when this activates
Swarm: Because you don't have the best Defenses to get in Swarm range and you have Speed Boost, don't use Swarm.
Speed Boost: One of the best abilities in the game and why Scolipede is as awesome as it is.

Counters: A set with Baton Pass can be easily countered with Taunt. Users such as Sableye, Thundurus-I, Defensive Heatran etc. Speaking of Heatran, it resists Bug and is immune to Poison, whilst it can OHKO with any Fire-Move. It does have to watch out for Aqua Tail though. Mega Blaziken also has Speed Boost and can be around the same Speed as Scolipede while being able to counter Scolipede with a Flare Blitz. Ferrothorn and Stakataka take almost nothing from Scolipede and get higher-powered Gyro Balls every Speed Boost. In a nutshell, a Steel-Type with a Strong STAB move that isn't resisted. That should work.
 

Missingno. Master

Poison-type Trainer
Scolistampede
Scolipede@Focus Sash
Adamant nature
Speed Boost
252 Attack/252 Speed/4 HP
~Swords Dance
~Megahorn
~Poison Jab
~Earthquake

My favorite Bug-type, in terms of both looks and usability. Swords Dance up on the first turn, and you're at +2 Attack and +1 Speed. And from there, sweep like you've never swept before. Megahorn and Poison Jab are pure devastation with a Swords Dance and STAB backing them up, and Earthquake is a solid move that needs no introduction or explanation.

Item ensures Scolipede survives the setup turn. Ability makes it fast enough to reliably sweep.

Scolipass
Scolipede@Leftovers/Liechi Berry
Jolly nature
Speed Boost
252 HP/252 Speed/4 Defense
~Swords Dance/Megahorn
~Substitute
~Protect
~Baton Pass

Scolipede is also a workable Baton Passer. Swords Dance gives you Attack buffs to pass, though Megahorn is an option to stop you from being complete Taunt bait, good if you're packing the Liechi Berry. Substitute gives you something else to pass, and can also activate a Liechi Berry. It and Protect are also good for stalling for more Speed Boosts to pass. And of course, Baton Pass, for getting all these buffs to their intended destination. Me, personally, I use Ninjask for Baton Pass and let Scolipede do the sweeping, but make no mistake, Scolipede can take on this role as well.

Item either gives Scolipede more Substitute usasge or another Attack boost to Baton Pass. Ability should be obvious.


Other options:
*The Baton Pass set has other options, such as Iron Defense and... I guess Double Team? Yeah, OK, pretty much just Iron Defense outside of what I already mentioned.
*In terms of coverage, however, Scolipede does have options. Superpower, Aqua Tail, Throat Chop, and Rock Slide are all there for the taking if you feel the need to use any of them.
*Scolipede also gets Spikes and Toxic Spikes. Make of that what you will.

Abilities:
*Poison Point: Making physical contact with Scolipede incurs a 30% chance of being poisoned. While it would make foes think twice about such devastating super effective options as Flare Blitz and Brave Bird... really, really not worth it when you consider the alternative.
*Swarm: When Scolipede's health is at a third of its maximum, its Bug moves are 50% stronger. It's an interesting idea- Focus Sash Swords Dance, now you're at +2 AND your Megahorn is even stronger. If you really want to go with that, Scolipede does naturally outspeed a lot of stuff, but if you really want to hold out for what makes Scolipede such an unstoppable force in battle, then you want...
*Speed Boost: Scolipede's Hidden Ability. At the end of each turn, Scolipede's Speed goes up one stage. Now THIS is what I'm talking about! Scolipede is fast to begin with, this takes it to the next level. It's of immense use whether you're using it as a sweeper or a Baton Passer. Little note, by the way- originally, Scolipede's Hidden Ability was Quick Feet, which... quite frankly sucked for it, considering it couldn't be poisoned anyway (no Corrosion back then) and a burn would cut its Attack, making paralysis the most feasible option. And considering the ever-present threat of being fully paralyzed, I use the term "feasible" loosely. No, they made the right choice, changing that to Speed Boost.

Partners:
Considering the sweeper's reliance on Focus Sash much of the time, I'd say Rapid Spin support is your friend. Preferably Rapid Spin support that can also get up a hazard or two itself. Forretress with Rapid Spin and Stealth Rock springs readily to mind. For the Baton Passer set, just pick whichever physical sweeper you'd use if it just had a little more in the stats department, like Stantler or Basculin. Or go with something already powerful and make it unstoppable, like Metagross or Salamence.

Counters:
Scolipede's all about hitting hard and fast, compensating for "meh" defenses by ripping through enemies before they rip through it. Ergo, priority moves are a big problem for it, particularly the stronger ones like Sucker Punch and Extreme Speed. Be wary of those. Also note that Mega Pinsir's Quick Attack is both powered up and made super effective (and given STAB!) by Aerilate. Not a combination you want to have to deal with. Also, if you haven't busted the Disguise of any Mimikyu on your opponent's team, it can put a stop to your sweep. Also be on the lookout for Trick Room. Anything that gets a chance to use it will instantly turn Speed Boost into a crippling disadvantage. Oh, and Taunt from anything that resists whatever attacking move you may have slapped onto it shuts down the Baton Pass set cold.

Opinion:
THIS. THING. IS. AWESOME!!! I want one in real life, and I want to ride on its back. I want Ride Pokémon to remain a thing in future games and I want Scolipede to be a Ride Pokémon. It looks cool, it fights like a champ, and- and- and- *faints*


Pre-Evolution Corner:

Give It A Whirl
Whirlipede@Eviolite
Jolly nature
Speed Boost
252 HP/252 Speed/4 Attack
~Protect
~Toxic Spikes/Spikes/Toxic
~Toxic Spikes/Spikes/Toxic
~Bug Bite

Whirlipede's defenses are hardly what one would call the best ever, but they're better than Scolipede's, so this could have some legitimate merit. Protect to get that Speed Boost going, and then do what you gotta do, be it setting up entry hazards, or just one hazard and also hitting the foe with Toxic. Bug Bite does get STAB, but its main use is for ridding opponents of their berries. Basically, this helps set the stage for the rest of the team.

Item beefs up Whirlipede's defenses. Ability beefs up its Speed.


Other options:
*If you want to just Toxic stall, you can supplement Toxic with Infestation- keeps foes from switching, and piles on further damage. OF course, Whirlipede's got precious few options for recovery, so this may not be the smartest idea.
*Actually, speaking of recovery, you could always teach it Rest.

Abilities:
*Poison Point: Making physical contact with Whirlipede incurs a 30% chance of being poisoned. If you don't really care whether Whirlipede outspeeds stuff, you could go with this, just bear in mind that you can't badly poison foes with it.
*Swarm: When Whirlipede's health is at a third of its maximum, its Bug moves are 50% stronger. Could be nice, give Bug Bite a bit of a boost when you're on your way out, but probably won't give it any significant buffs.
*Speed Boost: Whirlipede's Hidden Ability. At the end of each turn, Whirlipede's Speed goes up one stage. Yeah, if you want Whirlipede to be going first with its hazard setting, or Toxic usage, or Bug Bite, or pretty much whatever you're trying to do with it, go with this.

Partners:
Pretty much anything that'll want Spikes or Toxic Spikes set up will like having Whirlipede as a teammate. In fact, this'd be a decent teammate for Scolipede!

Counters:
Whirlipede's defenses are respectable, not impenetrable. A strong enough attacker can take it out. A special attacker especially, due to its lower Sp. Def. Alakazam almost certainly destroys this thing with Psychic, but if it's gotten enough Speed Boosts, Whirlipede might be able to deal some heavy damage with Bug Bite beforehand.

Opinion:
I actually really like Whirlipede. I like Scolipede better, but Whirlipede's got its own unique charm to it.

Prediction for next week:
Basculin.
 

MetalSonic

Orderan' Defendan'
holy dog doo, its big SCOLY
i love scolipede, its cry and heavy thud was so cool in BW, especially the way it stares down the opp, idk i find it rly cool ><
plus its poison type so its auto cool unless you're toxapex

Spr_5b_545_s.png

Scolipede @ Waterium Z
Ability: Speed Boost
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Poison Jab / Megahorn
- Aqua Tail
- Earthquake

I don't know why the OU analysis doesn't even slash Poison Jab alongside Megahorn, it's very much so a viable alternative to Megahorn. Poison Jab boasts being able to OHKO Clefable after a boost, which is annoying to a lot of teams. Plus you don't have to click your Z-Move if you want to ensure the KO against flying foes like Torn, Gyara, and Char-Y, and Lati@s since its especially easy to get them in range of boosted P-Jab thanks to rocks. The coverage of Waterium-Z Aqua Tail is the nuke that tends to save Scolipede in the face of defensive behemoths such as Landorus-T, Scizor-Mega, Skarm, and Celesteela. The latter 3 simply have to be weakened though. Earthquake is a necessity. It grants you desperately needed coverage against Toxapex, Mawile, Excadrill, Magearna and other stuff soz you're not forced to Z-Move em.

SD Scolipede functions really well as a late game sweeper, thanks to its ability Speed Boost which makes it incredibly hard to revenge kill after 2 or even 1 turn of boosting, this is really made apparent because of Scolipedes generous speed tier, being able to outpace scarf lati after a +1; which is why Jolly is important. You might think slashing Protect is a good idea, but Scolipede needs its coverage. Megahorn is a decent alternative, hitting Ferrothorn, Kartana, and psychics immediately a lot harder, though its easy to pair it wih stuff like specs greninja that can get spikes up for it while pressuring these 3 mons very easily. Scolipede tends to fit snugly on offensive teams that employ means of keeping hazards up efficiently, since you want to get things in range of Scolipedes attacks; and Scolipede wants to be able to OHKO things. It's unfortunately not incredibly strong after an SD, especially since two of the moves here aren't STAB, and even if they were, you'd be surprised at the things that would still live a +2 neutral hit sooo stack em up.

Speakin of which, Scolipede is not without its flaws in this metagame. A weakness to the popular hazard we know and love helps to keep it in range of strong priority such as Mawile Sucker and Ash Grens Shurikens. Because Scoli tends to run pretty much one set, its pretty easy to predict if someone is at least a little savvy of Scoli in OU, so you'll have to watch out for them scouting the Z-Move. If you're super cheeky, you can SD on the scout and become super hard to kill! It's defensive typing is OK, it can live a physical hit or two if you wanna get an SD up against that, but another reason why its kind of hard to use against OU mons is that a lot of them tend to just have a move in their repertoire that can handle Scoli one way or another or at least; make it pay for SD'ing int their face, so SD'ing on the predicted switch out or on a choice locked thing like Scarf Kart leaf blade or Kelds Secret is preferred against taking any damage.

Scolipede's one of the big reasons BP was banned, some guy made a team with BP Scoli and it got everyone in a tizzy, it was so awesome but it probably had to go. I wish I had a Scolipede to playpunch in the stomach and order from the drive though with.
 
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