[OVERVIEW]
Ghost
========
* Boasting an incredible Attack stat with Thick Club, Alolan Marowak is one of the best wallbreakers Ghost has. * Alolan Marowak is one of the only two Stealth Rock setters for Ghost.
* With Lightning Rod, it can absorb Electric-type attacks, which can make the opponent lose momentum.
* Alolan Marowak's typing gives it useful resistances to Steel and Fairy and an immunity to Will-O-Wisp.
* Its typing added with Ground coverage makes Alolan Marowak a decent check to Fire-types.
* However, Alolan Marowak has a poor base 45 Speed stat, meaning it can be outsped by the majority of the metagame.
* Its typing gives it weaknesses to common coverage like Ground and Rock
* Alolan Marowak's damage output is halved without Thick Club.
* Its moveset, while decent, is very linear, so Alolan Marowak can be very predictable.
* Alolan Marowak's bulk is average, with a decent base 110 Defense stat but a poor base 60 HP and base 80 Special Defense stats.
* Without the ability Rock Head, Alolan Marowak's Stealth Rock weakness with Flare Blitz's recoil makes it vulnerable to chip and residual damage.
[SET]
name: Utility Wallbreaker (Ghost)
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Shadow Bone
move 3: Flare Blitz / Fire Punch
move 4: Bonemerang / Knock Off
item: Thick Club
ability: Lightning Rod
nature: Adamant
evs: 212 HP / 252 Atk / 44 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Stealth Rock is used to help the team by punishing the opponent's team if they switch out. Stealth Rock damage lets Alolan Marowak OHKO Mega Charizard X, Mega Charizard Y, and Torkoal, and it also helps other Pokemon like Chandelure and Mimikyu have an easier time sweeping.
* Shadow Bone gives Alolan Marowak a STAB move that can hit the majority of Pokemon without any drawbacks.
* Flare Blitz is the most powerful STAB attack Alolan Marowak has access to, which dents the majority of walls, including Mega Venusaur and Clefable.
* Fire Punch is an alternative option over Flare Blitz for no recoil damage; however, it is a drop in damage, and Alolan Marowak loses the ability to 2HKO Mega Venusaur and Clefable.
* Bonemerang is a coverage move to help with Rock- and Fire-types that normally wall Alolan Marowak, such as Tyranitar and Heatran.
* Knock Off is a utility move that cripples item reliant switch-ins such as Porygon2, other Eviolite users, Choice Scarf users, and Pokemon with Leftovers.
Set Details
========
* Maximum Attack investment allows Alolan Marowak to deal as much damage as possible.
* 44 Speed EVs allow Alolan Marowak to outspeed non-invested base 50 Speed Pokemon such as Alolan Muk and Azumarill.
* The remaining EVs are placed into HP to reduce as much damage as possible while also reducing recoil from Flare Blitz.
* An Adamant nature is preferred to boost Alolan Marowak's damage.
* Thick Club is crucial to double Alolan Marowak's Attack.
* Lightning Rod gives Alolan Marowak. an immunity to Electric-type attacks, effectively countering the majority of Electric-type Pokemon.
Usage Tips
========
* Try and switch in against walls that do little damage as frequently as possible. This allows Alolan Marowak to have an almost free turn if they stay in to deal damage or set up Stealth Rock.
* Use Alolan Marowak early-game to take out as many Pokemon as possible that are trying to set up entry hazards such as Torkoal.
* Switch in Alolan Marowak against Electric-type moves, as Alolan Marowak counters most Electric-types. This gives Alolan Marowak an opportunity to deal damage.
* Using Alolan Marowak to sweep is not recommended, as it is easily revenge killed.
* If Alolan Marowak gets an opportunity where the opponent is forced to switch out, set up Stealth Rock unless they have no choice but to sack a wincon, where Alolan Marowak can use an attacking move.
* Use Knock Off against Pokemon that are extremely reliant on their items, such as Chansey or Porygon2. Using Knock Off to remove Leftovers can also help Will-O-Wisp users such as Mega Sableye and Gourgeist deal residual damage without the foe recovering it back.
* Do not let the opponent use Knock Off against Alolan Marowak, as it takes a lot of damage and loses its Thick Club, which is important because losing it halves Alolan Marowak's Attack. Getting Thick Club removed in other ways like Switcheroo or Trick also cripples Alolan Marowak's Attack.
* Only use Flare Blitz against Pokemon that resist Alolan Marowak's other moves, such as Mandibuzz and Staraptor, or against walls like Mega Venusaur and Chansey.
Team Options
========
* Mega Sableye is an excellent partner, as Alolan Marowak benefits from Mega Sableye's ability to absorb Knock Off and is able to keep hazards away with Magic Bounce. Mega Sableye also has access to Will-O-Wisp, so Alolan Marowak can have an easier time switching into physical attacks. * Gourgeist-XL is great for tanking Water-, Ground-, and physical Rock-type attacks well and can punish foes with Will-O-Wisp, while Alolan Marowak can remove Pokemon that try to set up entry hazards or Taunt Gourgeist XL.
* Gengar is a great offensive partner, as it can remove some of the threats that Alolan Marowak has trouble facing such as Hydreigon and Tapu Fini due to its high Speed and diverse movepool. Gengar also has the additional utility of Destiny Bond, which can remove a specific threat that is stopping Alolan Marowak.
* Jellicent is a great partner, as it absorbs Water-type moves with Water Absorb and is able to use Toxic and Scald for burns. Jellicent benefits from Alolan Marowak being able to absorb Grass- and Electric-type moves as well as remove Poison- and Steel-types, which are immune to Toxic.
* Dhelmise and Decidueye are good partners, since they absorb Water- and Ground-type moves while being able to remove entry hazards with Rapid Spin or Defog.
* Mimikyu is a good partner as it has an immunity to Dragon-type moves, access to Swords Dance, and benefits from Alolan Marowak's ability to remove walls such as Skarmory.
* Golurk's access to Stealth Rock can allow Alolan Marowak to use another coverage move such as Bonemerang, Knock Off or Stone Edge. Alolan Marowak can also have added wallbreaking potential with Swords Dance.
* Alolan Marowak fits very well in Trick Room with its low Speed, making Pokemon like Cofagrigus and other Trick Room users good options. When running Trick Room, use other Pokemon that utilize Trick Room such as Hoopa or Dhelmise. * Doublade is a decent partner because it can absorb Rock-type moves like Stone Edge while benefiting from Alolan Marowak's offensive presence.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Ghost
--------
* Maximum Speed and a Jolly nature can be optimal in certain situations, such as outspeeding invested Azumarill and base 85 Speed Pokemon like Tapu Fini; however, Alolan Marowak's extra bulk can help in more situations, like taking a Draco Meteor from Hydreigon at full health.
* Due to Alolan Marowak being the only Ghost-type with Will-O-Wisp and Stealth Rock, it can be used as a specially defensive utility Pokemon. However, this set lacks a lot of power, reliable recovery, and can be setup fodder for Fire-type Pokemon.
* Rock Head can be used to negate Flare Blitz recoil; however, this does cause Alolan Marowak to be hit neutrally by Electric-types, which makes it significantly less useful against Electric-types.
* Stone Edge is an option for Alolan Marowak to do more damage against Flying-types such as Zapdos and Mantine, and when combined with Bonemerang, gives Alolan Marowak incredible coverage. However, this can cause four-moveslot syndrome and is a loss of Stealth Rock or a STAB move.
* Swords Dance is an option for added wallbreaking potential; however, the loss of Stealth Rock or a coverage move is generally not worth the extra damage.
Checks and Counters
===================
Ghost
--------
**Tyranitar**: Tyranitar takes little damage from Alolan Marowak's STAB attacks, can survive a Bonemerang, and can Pursuit trap Alolan Marowak.
**Tapu Fini**: Tapu Fini can take a Shadow Bone fairly well and can deal a lot of damage to Alolan Marowak with Surf. Tapu Fini can also use Defog to remove the Stealth Rock that Alolan Marowak sets.
**Water-types**: Although the majority of Water-types can't switch in, Pokemon like Keldeo, Greninja, and other fast Water-types can revenge kill Alolan Marowak with Scald or Hydro Pump.
**Ground-types**: The majority of Ground-types can't switch into Alolan Marowak, but Pokemon like Excadrill and Mamoswine can OHKO it with Earthquake.
**Rock-types**: Rock-types can't switch in if Alolan Marowak carries Bonemerang, but Pokemon such as Nihilego and Terrakion can KO it with Power Gem, Rock Slide, or Stone Edge.
**Dragon-types**: Dragon-types like Dragonite, Hydreigon, and Garchomp can take the damage that Alolan Marowak deals and remove Alolan Marowak with their STAB attacks or coverage moves such as Earthquake and Dark Pulse.
**Dark-types**: The majority of Dark-types such as Greninja and Hydreigon can outspeed and OHKO Alolan Marowak with their super effective STAB moves.
**Physical Walls**: Physical walls that do not take super effective damage from Alolan Marowak's STAB moves can wall it fairly easily, such as Mandibuzz, Quagsire, Rotom-W, and Porygon2 and all of them can remove Alolan Marowak with Foul Play or STAB Water-type attacks. However, the latter can have its Eviolite Knocked Off and can take a lot of damage if Alolan Marowak has enough Speed to outspeed it. Mandibuzz, Quagsire and Rotom-W can also lose their Leftovers or Rocky Helmet with Knock Off.
**Faster Pokemon**: Even though the majority of faster Pokemon get 2HKOed by Alolan Marowak, faster Pokemon with high offensive power such as Alolan Raichu or Alakazam can deal heavy damage to Alolan Marowak.
**Stealth Rock**: Stealth Rock hinders Alolan Marowak, as it takes 25% from Stealth Rock, and with the combination of Flare Blitz recoil, can add up damage very quickly.
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