In-battle formes
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| HP: | 137 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Attack: | 113 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defense: | 89 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sp. Atk: | 137 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sp. Def: | 107 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Speed: | 97 |
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Strategies
- en
Written by Lotus
Overview
- Lunala is one of the threatening wallbreakers in the tier, capable of breaking down various archetypes with its strong STAB Ghost-type attacks along with a large number of useful coverage moves, Lunalium Z, and Calm Mind in its arsenal, making it a versatile Pokemon both offensively and defensively.
- Despite having a disappointing defensive typing, Lunala is still capable of functioning well against offense due to how difficult it is to safely switch into without a specific Pokemon like Chople Berry Extreme Killer Arceus. Most importantly, most Pokemon attempting to take down Lunala will have a disadvantageous matchup due to Shadow Shield halving incoming damage when Lunala's health is full. This means that, with Shadow Shield intact, Lunala will always have a chance to pose a threat to any team lacking a Pursuit trapper, being able to revenge kill threatening setup sweepers like Primal Groudon and Zygarde-C while also functioning as a defensive wall on slower teams where a blanket check to many threats that can avoid Shadow Tag trapping is appreciated.
- Lunala's good performance against offensive teams is further reinforced by its ability to check Ultra Necrozma and viably equip Choice Scarf to prey on such archetypes that typically have unreliable answers to Ghost-types. A few checks from offensive teams can also be bypassed by coverage moves or repeated attacks with entry hazards up.
- Lunala's effectiveness against offensive teams is largely dependent on the availability of Shadow Shield or its Z-Move, especially the former, as it provides opportunities for Lunala to switch in and attack. While it has enough Speed to threaten foes like Primal Groudon, it is also vulnerable to offensive threats that can OHKO Lunala through Shadow Shield like Yveltal and Marshadow.
- As much as Shadow Shield contributes to Lunala's viability, a broken Shadow Shield can restrict Lunala's ability to set up or check a threat in an emergency to a large extent. This leads to Lunala being forced to avoid entry hazards and status by any means necessary, at least before it sets up as an offensive variant or trades status or revenge kills a foe as a defensive variant.
Calm Mind
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Moves
- Calm Mind boosts Lunala's Special Attack and Special Defense, giving it a needed boost in damage output to take full advantage of its great coverage options and making it difficult to revenge kill with faster foes like support Arceus formes and Choice Scarf Xerneas. A boost in Special Defense also gives Lunala a chance to take on Yveltal, as after a Calm Mind boost, Yveltal's Dark Pulse fails to OHKO Lunala with Shadow Shield intact.
- Moongeist Beam has neutral coverage against many common Pokemon in the tier and is strong enough to 2HKO many offensive foes. With Calm Mind and Lunalium Z, Lunala can threaten to OHKO most neutral targets with Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom. Note that Moongeist Beam and Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom can bypass abilities like Multiscale.
- Psyshock is a secondary STAB move that has significantly higher damage output against specially bulky foes like Primal Kyogre and enables Lunala to break past Chansey and Blissey.
- Focus Blast provides Lunala with perfect offensive coverage along with Moongeist Beam, enabling it to hit Dark-types super effectively as well as deal with Steel-types better without relying on boosted Moongeist Beam or Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom.
- Moonblast compresses coverage against Dark- and Dragon-types when Lunala is running Psyshock, but it has less damage output against Arceus-Dark than Focus Blast. Moonblast also doesn't take out Zygarde as fast as Ice Beam does.
- Ice Beam allows Lunala to weaken Yveltal on the switch and, more importantly, offensively check Dragon-types like Zygarde, Mega Salamence, and Rayquaza without using its Z-Move. Ice Beam generally has better coverage against offensive teams, but many Pokemon that are taken out by Ice Beam are already vulnerable to Moongeist Beam.
- Roost can be considered for Lunala to fully take advantage of support Arceus formes lacking status and pose a greater threat to slower teams, but it is hard to justify over other attacks.
Set Details
- 12 Special Defense EVs allow Lunala to survive mixed Rock Polish Primal Groudon's Fire Blast after Stealth Rock damage. The rest of the EVs are invested in Special Attack and Speed to make Lunala hit as hard as possible and outspeed as many foes as possible.
- Though a Modest nature gives Lunala extra power and significantly improves the chance to OHKO Arceus-Dark with +1 Focus Blast after Stealth Rock damage, a Timid nature mostly outweighs this due to it enabling Lunala to outspeed base 90 Speed Pokemon like Primal Groudon.
- Lunalium Z enables the use of Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom with Moongeist Beam. The sheer power of the Z-Move is one of the most important aspects of this set, as when boosted it becomes so powerful that very few neutral targets can escape the OHKO and even resisted targets like Yveltal can be overpowered with Stealth Rock up.
- Though it is a much less effective option, if a Z-Move user already exists on the team, Spooky Plate can be considered to improve Moongeist Beam's damage output, guaranteeing a 2HKO on offensive Primal Groudon and, after Stealth Rock, an OHKO on Giratina-O. Spooky Plate-boosted Moongeist Beam also becomes powerful enough to force recovery moves from support Arceus formes.
- Shadow Shield halves the incoming damage when Lunala's HP is full, making it significantly harder to take down. Note that unlike Multiscale, moves like Sunsteel Strike and Moongeist Beam and users of abilities like Mold Breaker, Teravolt, and Turboblaze cannot ignore Shadow Shield.
Usage Tips
- It is generally recommended for Lunala to wallbreak early-game to weaken defensive cores. Weakening foes like support Arceus formes early is going to be beneficial for teammates that will attempt to clean up late-game, but making aggressive plays early on also reduces the odds that Lunala will have to enter the field when entry hazards are up and lose its Shadow Shield.
- Though Lunala might lack the firepower to immediately threaten bulkier foes, it is capable of 2HKOing most Pokemon found on offensive teams with the appropriate moves. Lunala can also threaten many neutral targets with an unboosted Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom. Avoid solely focusing on setting up Calm Mind and ensure that Lunala nets as much damage as possible before going down.
- This can pressure opponents into excessively focusing on breaking Lunala's Shadow Shield. As Lunala is quite hard to take on for most offensive Pokemon in a one-on-one situation due to its offensive coverage and ability to score a potential OHKO with Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom, Lunala is difficult to take down even after Stealth Rock damage, so the opponent will likely prioritize setting up Stealth Rock. This means Lunala can switch into possible Stealth Rock users like Primal Groudon and Lunala's teammates can potentially take advantage of the turn the opponent uses to set entry hazards. Leading against suicide leads can also be a good idea, as Lunala will often force opponents to choose between breaking Lunala's Shadow Shield or setting entry hazards that they may need for other Pokemon.
- Avoid setting up recklessly without fully scouting a foe's moveset. Though it is extremely rare for Lunala's common setup targets to have Dark- and Ghost-type coverage moves, there are other factors to be wary about. Support Arceus formes may have Thunder Wave, which makes Lunala vulnerable to slower foes that it can otherwise overpower without worrying about retaliation. Though Lunala can threaten most Primal Groudon variants, note that Primal Groudon with Rock Tomb can remove Lunala's Speed advantage and break Shadow Shield at the same time and throw a heavy blow before going down, weakening Lunala to the point where it can be picked off by weaker attacks like Arceus formes' Judgment or other slower foes that can outspeed Lunala after Rock Tomb.
- Lunala with Shadow Shield intact can survive a hit from setup sweepers like Rock Polish Primal Groudon and Mega Salamence and retaliate. With Lunalium Z available, it can OHKO most of the setup sweepers that it aims to hold back.
Team Options
- Fairy-type teammates are recommended, as Lunala needs protection against Dark-types in situations where it is forced out against them. Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy are primary options to consider due to their ability to switch into Dark-types like Yveltal and Arceus-Dark as well as Marshadow, which is one of the most threatening offensive checks to Lunala. Choice Scarf variants of Xerneas can take on faster foes that Lunala cannot effectively combat, while Arceus-Fairy can viably run Stealth Rock to pressure offensive Ho-Oh and allow Lunala's +1 Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom to meet various benchmarks.
- Magearna is another Fairy-type that checks Yveltal and can bring Lunala safely into the field using Volt Switch.
- Lunala desires entry hazards to OHKO foes like Ho-Oh after Calm Mind boosts. Offensive teams can use various leads, including Cloyster, which can provide Rapid Spin support, and Smeargle, which can set up Sticky Web and remove Arceus formes' Speed advantage against Lunala. Various Stealth Rock users like Primal Groudon and Arceus-Ground that can threaten a good portion of the tier can be employed to keep offensive pressure, giving Lunala more room to prey on teams that defensively react to its teammates.
- There are also instances where keeping Lunala's Shadow Shield intact should be prioritized over setting entry hazards for its breakthrough. Defog users like Mega Salamence and Arceus-Ground can make managing entry hazards more flexible.
- Priority move users like Rayquaza and Extreme Killer Arceus can improve Lunala's matchup against faster offensive foes and provide its team with extra security against faster foes when Lunala focuses on wallbreaking instead of preserving its Shadow Shield. Yveltal's ability to threaten Mega Gengar and Ultra Necrozma with Sucker Punch, in addition to its resistance to Dark and Ghost, makes it a noteworthy offensive partner as well.
- Offensive partners like Necrozma-DM and Mega Salamence can benefit from Lunala's ability to massively pressure Steel-types and other problematic foes like Primal Groudon. Mega Salamence's Defog support and ability to pivot into Ho-Oh can be handy for Lunala.
Choice Scarf
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Moves
- Moongeist Beam is capable of doing enough damage to revenge kill slower threats and pressuring many neutral targets.
- Focus Blast provides Lunala with a coverage move to hit Dark- and Normal-types.
- With Choice Scarf, Lunala can effectively revenge kill many threats like Zygarde, Mega Salamence, and a weakened Swords Dance Arceus-Ground with Ice Beam.
- Psyshock prevents Lunala from being completely walled by Blissey and 2HKOes Toxapex and offensive Primal Kyogre after Stealth Rock.
- Trick can be used to permanently cripple a persistent switch-in like defensive Ho-Oh and Chansey and is helpful in matchups against defensive teams where Lunala's Speed advantage over other Pokemon isn't needed.
- Thunder can be considered due to its higher damage output against Yveltal, Ho-Oh, Primal Kyogre, Arceus-Water, and Celesteela, though it is not the best move to be locked into and is unreliable due to its inaccuracy.
- Defog can remove entry hazards in a pinch, and Lunala's ability to force switches can make this handy utility on offensive teams, but it is hard to fit.
Set Details
- Maximum Special Attack and Speed investment is the most ideal EV spread for Lunala holding Choice Scarf so damage output is maximized and Lunala outspeeds as many foes as possible.
- A Modest nature is typically preferred due to it improving the odds for Lunala to 2HKO support Arceus formes with Stealth Rock support, although a Timid nature is also possible to let Lunala fully take advantage of Choice Scarf. This also enables Lunala to outspeed Modest Choice Scarf Xerneas and Yveltal.
- Choice Scarf increases Lunala's Speed, significantly improving Lunala's performance against offense when combined with its impressive coverage options.
- Shadow Shield further amplifies Lunala's effectiveness as a revenge killer by allowing Lunala to survive many strong hits with the ability intact.
Usage Tips
- Lunala performs significantly better as a revenge killer with Choice Scarf, as it will not be overly reliant on the availability of Shadow Shield and will outspeed primary targets like Ultra Necrozma, Mega Mewtwo Y, and Zygarde at +1. As long as Shadow Shield is intact, Marshadow can be revenge killed as well.
- Opposing setup sweepers might be caught off guard with a false sense of security that Lunala lacking Shadow Shield will not survive their attack. This can lead an opponent to meaninglessly let one of their Pokemon go down if they don't expect Lunala to be holding a Choice Scarf. This can be seen against threats like boosted Ultra Necrozma and Rayquaza, which can OHKO Lunala lacking Shadow Shield but are vulnerable to Choice Scarf Lunala, which attacks first.
- Though preserving Shadow Shield can be useful, Choice Scarf Lunala isn't overly reliant on it. It will focus on revenge killing a foe, so it will switch into a threat that it outspeeds even if entry hazards are present on the field. The speed advantage Lunala gains from Choice Scarf further diminishes the necessity to preserve Shadow Shield, so be aggressive with this set. Switch Lunala into powerful foes like Ultra Necrozma that struggle to OHKO Lunala and slower foes like Extreme Killer Arceus should they be in range of Lunala's attacks.
- Note that Lunala will have some difficulties facing defensive teams with Choice Scarf due to its inability to switch moves. This means Pokemon like Ho-Oh, Arceus-Dark, and Blissey can switch into Lunala to scout what move it will lock itself into and proceed to switch out to a different Pokemon, forcing Lunala's team to make aggressive double switches to retain momentum. Though Trick can cripple a defensive Pokemon, the move has only a single chance to cripple a switch-in, cannot cripple support Arceus formes, and will remove Lunala's speed advantage against them.
- Pursuit users also become problematic for Choice Scarf Lunala due to it not being able to switch moves. While Alolan Muk poses a problem to all sets, Tyranitar can be harder to deal with due to it forcing Lunala to lock itself into Focus Blast to avoid getting trapped and removed by Pursuit after sandstorm damage breaks Shadow Shield on the switch. Should there be any foe that can harshly punish Lunala locked into Moongeist Beam, consider making double switches and aiming to wear down potential switch-ins until they are removed or weakened enough to be unreliable.
Team Options
- Choice Scarf Lunala is an effective anti-offense Pokemon that can pressure offensive teams by exploiting their general lack of reliable switch-ins to Ghost-types. Thus, it fits in well with balanced cores that can provide entry hazard support to punish switch-ins and check a good number of Pokemon that can exploit Lunala locked into a wrong move.
- More offensive Stealth Rock users like Stealth Rock + Swords Dance Primal Groudon can be considered to pressure bulkier foes early-game. Pressuring teams early-game increases the chances that Lunala can potentially clean up weakened foes after its checks have been removed or sufficiently weakened.
- Various slower foes like Ferrothorn and Toxapex can pivot into support Arceus formes and set Spikes and Toxic Spikes to punish grounded foes harder than Stealth Rock would. Toxapex can also check Marshadow. In return, Lunala can take out faster foes like Mega Gengar and Mega Mewtwo Y that have the ability to remove these Pokemon. Wallbreakers like Primal Kyogre that struggle against faster foes due to their middling Speed can also benefit from this set as well while pressuring bulkier teams in return.
- Pivots to Dark-types like Xerneas and Magearna are needed. Xerneas has more room to customize its moveset, as Lunala performs the role of a revenge killer holding Choice Scarf, meaning it can run Geomancy to clean up weakened teams, which Lunala may struggle to do because of its lower damage output. Magearna is a reliable answer to many Dark-types that may get out of hand if they are not immediately dealt with after Lunala locks itself into Moongeist Beam against them.
Defensive
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Moves
- Moongeist Beam does a good amount of damage to neutral foes, 2HKOing Necrozma-DM and OHKOing Ultra Necrozma without investment.
- Roost gives Lunala a reliable form of recovery, enabling it to stay healthy and reactivate Shadow Shield when fully restoring its health.
- Lunala's immunity to Shadow Tag and ability to survive an attack with Shadow Shield intact makes it an appropriate Defog user on defensive teams. While Lunala's matchup against bulky entry hazard setters isn't favorable, its conventional teammates like Ho-Oh and Giratina can limit their usefulness, while Lunala can deal with dedicated leads like Deoxys-S better.
- Toxic prevents Ho-Oh and support Arceus formes from effortlessly walling this set for free while allowing Lunala to potentially stall foes that cannot 2HKO it by continually reactivating its Shadow Shield with Roost.
- Will-O-Wisp can be used instead to cripple Pursuit trappers and make Lunala a more reliable check to physically-oriented Primal Kyogre.
- Ice Beam allows Lunala to offensively check Zygarde, but it has little reason to be used over other moves.
Set Details
- 200 Speed EVs with a Timid nature allow Lunala to outspeed base 90 Speed Pokemon, enabling it to move faster than foes it can blanket check like Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre.
- The rest of the EVs allow Lunala to survive Necrozma-DM's +2 Searing Sunraze Smash and Modest Primal Kyogre's +1 Water Spout with Shadow Shield intact.
- Leftovers provides Lunala with passive recovery.
- Shadow Shield allows Lunala to function as a wall despite its lack of useful resistances, as it has good natural bulk and can survive many boosted hits with Shadow Shield halving incoming damage when Lunala's HP is full.
Usage Tips
- The bulkier version of Lunala is usually employed in defensive teams that desire a blanket check to dangerous Pokemon like Primal Groudon, Necrozma-DM, and physical Primal Kyogre. While it can take them on better with investment in bulk, it will be reliant on prior damage or Toxic stalling to keep them in control due to the lack of offensive investment and Lunalium Z.
- Despite the reduced offensive presence, switching into this set can actually be harder as Toxic serves as one of the ways to punish bulky foes like support Arceus formes. Offensive entry hazard setters like Swords Dance + Stealth Rock Primal Groudon will also struggle to combat Lunala unless its Shadow Shield is already broken, as many of them are slower than Lunala and have to remain healthy to survive Lunala's attacks.
- Defensive teams that this Lunala set finds itself on will typically rely on residual damage to wear foes down, using entry hazards or status. Many Steel-types can easily switch into Toxic from Lunala and its teammates, and Xerneas has access to Aromatherapy. This may make it quite difficult to wear down foes by solely relying on status.
- For this reason, Lunala's team may need countermeasures against passive foes, such as Ho-Oh, and assistance from entry hazards. Note that entry hazards won't be the most reliable solution to outlast the opposing team, as setting them will cause Lunala's teammates to often run into situations where they will have to decide between trading entry hazards to wear down opposing teams faster or entirely avoiding entry hazards until a threat that requires a healthy Lunala to be kept in control goes down.
- There is also a risk that Lunala will be hit by Toxic after it directly switches into opposing Pokemon or removes entry hazards with Defog. Trading Toxic with entry hazard setters like Primal Groudon can be an acceptable strategy if Lunala's team has strong cleric support, but it is better to avoid status in general. Spending multiple turns to cure Lunala of status and ensuring Lunala stays at full health without being statused to check threats will end up taking away momentum.
- Against offensive teams, leading with Lunala is generally a sensible idea, as dedicated leads like Cloyster and Excadrill will have to choose between setting entry hazards, which Lunala can easily remove with Defog, or breaking Lunala's Shadow Shield before they get 2HKOed by Moongeist Beam. Though leading with Mega Sableye can invalidate other leads like Smeargle, Deoxys-S and Excadrill can bypass Magic Bounce with Skill Swap and Mold Breaker, respectively, and Cloyster can overpower Mega Sableye with correct predictions. Thus, Lunala is a better option of entry hazard control against them.
- Pursuit trappers are problematic to this set as well, as this variant of Lunala struggles to punish Dark-types apart from poisoning them with Toxic. Alolan Muk can limit Lunala's effectiveness, Tyranitar can easily dispose of Lunala lacking Will-O-Wisp, and Marshadow carrying Pursuit can potentially eliminate Lunala. Make sure to exercise caution against these threats.
Team Options
- Defensive Lunala's effectiveness depends on the availability of Shadow Shield under offensive pressure, so entry hazard removal is very important. Ho-Oh, Mega Sableye, and Lunala together can deal with most entry hazard setters in the tier. Mega Sableye can discourage the use of Toxic and shut down passive foes like Ferrothorn, Ho-Oh can handle certain Primal Groudon variants with Stealth Rock, and Lunala can effectively use Defog even under offensive pressure.
- Lunala will mostly be reliant on Magearna when Dark-types switch in and proceed to threaten it. Magearna's access to Heal Bell is also helpful for Lunala, as a number of foes that Lunala takes on are likely going to have Toxic.
- Blissey is another viable cleric that can fit with Lunala. It can pivot into many support Arceus formes that attempt to status Lunala and check many special attackers that Lunala cannot actively take on while preserving its Shadow Shield.
- Arceus-Dark is an acceptable check to Yveltal and Ghost-types, and it can viably run Stealth Rock to apply pressure to the opposing team. Variants with Ice Beam can check foes like Ultra Necrozma and Zygarde, which Lunala will have a shakier matchup against should it lack Shadow Shield. Arceus-Fairy is a considerable alternative that can fulfill the same role apart from handling Ghost-types, instead checking Marshadow and posing a greater threat to Yveltal, but note that it can be a hindrance for Lunala's team, which typically employs Pokemon that are not vulnerable to Shadow Tag trapping.
- Bulkier walls like Zygarde and Lugia can be considered to handle Swords Dance Arceus formes and offensive Primal Groudon variants. Note that Zygarde counters Ho-Oh and makes faster foes more manageable with Glare.
- Lunala will be reliant on the target being frail or weakened enough to fall to Moongeist Beam when attempting to revenge kill a foe. Pokemon like Necrozma-DM and Primal Kyogre that can offensively check setup sweepers like Xerneas and Primal Groudon can be considered to have extra layers of security against them while reducing the team's overall passivity.
Other Options
- Fightinium Z gives Lunala a way to OHKO Yveltal and Arceus-Dark after a Calm Mind boost, but these checks can be overpowered by a boosted Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom and Focus Blast after some prior damage.
- A Z-Hypnosis set can potentially provide Lunala with a better setup opportunity by putting a check to sleep and, more importantly, makes Lunala harder to revenge kill by letting it outspeed Arceus formes and Mega Gengar. However, Hypnosis is generally unreliable, and Lunala will rely on favorable sleep turns, as it needs multiple Calm Mind boosts to gain enough power to OHKO foes.
- A Choice Specs set may be an attractive option that can pressure Arceus formes and Ho-Oh harder, but there is little reason to use a Choice Specs set over a Calm Mind set to wallbreak. Choice Specs sets also have to predict accurately to break through defensive teams.
Checks and Counters
Dark-types: Every Dark-type, with the exception of Mega Sableye, can pivot into Moongeist Beam with ease and threaten to at worst weaken Lunala with their STAB attacks. Arceus-Dark survives +1 Focus Blast from full health and 2HKOes Lunala with Judgment. While Yveltal is a shakier switch-in to Lunala due to its weakness to Ice Beam and vulnerability to Stealth Rock, it can OHKO an unboosted Lunala through Shadow Shield using Dark Pulse. Alolan Muk doesn't have much trouble taking Lunala's attacks and is only concerned about a boosted Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom when it is sufficiently weakened. Tyranitar can remove Choice Scarf Lunala locked into the wrong move and defensive variants with Pursuit after sandstorm damage, which breaks Shadow Shield.
Ghost-types: Though Ghost-types struggle to switch into Lunala, foes like Mega Gengar and Marshadow can outspeed and OHKO it. Note that the matchup can be reversed if Lunala holds a Choice Scarf, and Shadow Shield must have been broken for Mega Gengar to revenge kill Lunala with Hex and Marshadow to OHKO Lunala with Shadow Sneak.
Entry Hazards and Status: Lunala is heavily reliant on Shadow Shield to maximize the chance it sets up successfully and retain its ability to retaliate against many setup sweepers. This means residual damage from entry hazards, burn, and poison takes away a large part of Lunala's usefulness.
Ho-Oh: Thanks to its titanic special bulk and Regenerator, Ho-Oh can effectively pivot into Lunala and revenge kill offensive variants once Menacing Moonraze Maelstrom has been used. Choice Scarf Lunala in particular struggles to break through Ho-Oh without Stealth Rock support, and defensive variants should avoid trading Toxic with Ho-Oh due to Regenerator allowing Ho-Oh to outlast Lunala.
Chansey and Blissey: Both Chansey and Blissey are immune to Moongeist Beam and have high enough bulk to not mind even boosted Focus Blasts. However, note that Psyshock gives Lunala a significantly better chance to defeat them, and they are also heavily crippled by a well-timed Trick from Choice Scarf variants.
Pursuit: Alolan Muk and the less-reliable Marshadow and Tyranitar can remove Lunala from play using Pursuit. Note, however, that Alolan Muk is the only Pursuit trapper that can directly switch into Lunala without fear, as Tyranitar relies on Lunala locking itself into a wrong move while holding Choice Scarf or being a defensive variant, and Marshadow has to make a risky prediction.
Credits
- Written by Lotus
- Quality checked by Serial and MMII
- Grammar checked by Fireflame and Electrolyte
