Pick Your Poison: NU Edition
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Introduction
Poison-types are an integral force in the NU metagame given that they are extremely easy to fit onto almost every single team archetype because of their good synergy with common Pokémon in the tier and the various traits and utilities that they provide. These Pokémon thrive upon the continually dwindling number of relevant Steel-types in the NeverUsed tier, most notably with the loss of Mega Steelix and Magneton as well as some Steel-types losing relevance due to metagame trends, such as Probopass. In addition to some having the ability to set up Toxic Spikes, being able to absorb and remove Toxic Spikes from your side of the battlefield is yet another key trait that Poison-types bring to a team. This is notable given how Toxic Spikes is a very prominent force in NU with its ability to break past common offensive and defensive teams alike. Lastly, being able to reliably check Fighting-types by virtue of their typing, most notably Sawk, is a necessary asset to any team.
All of the viable Poison-types have unique traits that distinguish them from the other Poison-types, whether it be certain coverage moves, unique abilities, secondary typings, so each one will have notable advantages or disadvantages when compared to the others. How will you pick your poison?
Garbodor
Throughout the 6th generation NU metagame, Garbodor has been an extremely reliable Spikes setter and supportive Pokémon that is very easy to fit onto teams due to its excellent overall bulk. Similar to most other Poison-types, Garbodor is a very effective check to physical attackers, especially the prevalent Fighting-types in NU, with recoil damage from the combination of Rocky Helmet and Aftermath. Many of said physical attackers, such as Hitmonchan, Kangaskhan, and Pinsir, run Earthquake specifically to avoid making contact with Garbodor. In addition, Garbodor is able to effectively play an offensive and defensive role on a team, due to its excellent offensive movepool and respectable Speed for a Spikes setter. Typically, when choosing a different Poison-type, Garbodor is used as a comparison to see what benefits to a team you would be losing out on by not using Garbodor, given that it is very splashable.
Haunter
As one of the few dedicated offensive Poison-types in this list, Haunter shines with its excellent dual STAB combination alongside its excellent Special Attack. Haunter's Ghost-type STAB is notable in that it directly threatens Psychic- and Ghost-types, which are relatively problematic for most other Poison-types. Another key trait Haunter has is its title as the fastest Poison-type in NU; sitting at base 95 Speed, it can outpace a slew of offensive threats such as Lilligant, Sawk, and Mesprit. Haunter also has a unique combination of typing and ability, Levitate, which grants it three immunities to common attacking types, and while these Pokémon typically have coverage moves to hit Haunter with, deterring them from using their STAB move is always a bonus. However, Haunter is severely held back by its paltry defenses, which on its own is always an issue for an offensive Pokémon, and secondly, Poison-types are typically known for their excellent overall bulk, which is where Haunter is lacking.
Skuntank
Unlike all of its fellow Poison-type brethren that struggle versus Psychic-types, Skuntank is one of the most reliable ways of handling Psychic-types in the tier. In comparison to most other Dark-types, Skuntank stands out, as it takes neutral damage from Signal Beam, a commonly used coverage move on Psychic-types. In addition, Skuntank has very little trouble dealing with Ghost-types unlike most other Poison-types. Unfortunately, Skuntank has a few crippling flaws, most notably how its main STAB moves have rather average power and, compounded with Skuntank's unexceptional offensive stats, mean that Skuntank typically relies on getting super effective hits to deal significant damage. Skuntank also cannot fully utilize Aftermath as well as Garbodor can due to its significantly lower Defense. Lastly, Skuntank's secondary Dark typing gives it a neutrality to Fighting-type attacks, which means it cannot check Fighting-types like other Poison-types.
Vileplume
Access to reliable recovery in Synthesis (or Moonlight) is one of Vileplume's key traits that set it apart from other Poison-types, letting it stay healthy throughout a match and check threats more times. Vileplume's secondary Grass typing gives it a few important advantages over other Poison-types, mainly the ability to check Ground-types, whereas other Poison-types have to rely on coverage moves to hit them. Unfortunately, Vileplume's ability, while it can be extremely game changing at times, is rather unreliable, as it only activates 30% of the time and only when Vileplume is hit with a contact move. In addition, Vileplume cannot check Calm Mind Mega Audino, specifically RestTalk variants, unlike the previously mentioned Poison-types that have access to Taunt.
Weezing
In a similar fashion to Haunter, Weezing's defensive niche is defined by the combination of its typing and ability, Levitate, which effectively leaves Weezing with only one weakness. However, Weezing's great physical bulk lets it fully utilize this niche, unlike Haunter. While it often has trouble fitting it onto its moveset, Weezing has access to Pain Split, which acts as a middle ground between having no recovery at all and having reliable recovery. Weezing also has access to Flamethrower, a trait only shared by Skuntank, giving it the upper hand versus Steel-types, most notably Ferroseed.
Roselia
Roselia is very similar to Vileplume in that they share a few traits separating them from other Poison-types, namely their secondary Grass typing and access to reliable recovery. However, Roselia has significantly higher Special Defense than Vileplume, letting it tackle threats that Vileplume normally cannot, such as Floatzel, Lilligant, and Cacturne. Another advantage that Roselia has over Vileplume is a much more practical ability in Natural Cure, which allows it to heal off status conditions and is especially useful given that it wants to be able to switch into Water-types as much as possible, and removing a timely Scald burn can be crucial. While Roselia faces some competition from Garbodor as a Spikes setter, Roselia puts pressure on some of the Pokémon that typically check Garbodor such as Rhydon and Regirock. However, not all is great for Roselia. With a very subpar Defense, Roselia is a Poison-type that cannot reliably switch into Fighting- or Ground-types like Vileplume can, which is very detrimental for Roselia with top-tier threats such as Sawk and Rhydon roaming the metagame.
Arbok
While generally the least effective and easy to fit onto a team out of the NU Poison-types, Arbok holds a very defined and specific niche with its colorful coverage movepool that separates it from the other offensive Poison-types. Arbok's wide coverage movepool consists of moves such as Earthquake, Aqua Tail, Seed Bomb, which break down most common Pokémon that resist Poison, and Sucker Punch, which helps out with Arbok's average Speed. However, Arbok's stats all around are rather average, meaning it has to set up a Coil to deal significant damage and takes a lot of damage even from resisted hits.
Get out there!
Poison-types are extremely easy and simple to fit onto most teams in NU, so you're very likely to see at least one of them throughout your matches. Be sure to prepare for the variety of Poison-types, and don't get poisoned when trying to dodge around their toxic array of attacks!
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