[SET]
Calm Mind (Lampent) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Substitute / Taunt
- Shadow Ball
- Fire Blast
[SET COMMENTS]
Lampent acts as an uncommon but threatening Calm Mind sweeper capable of overwhelming passive defensive cores of Clefairy, Wormadam-S, and Solrock thanks to its unique typing. Pokemon unable to touch Lampent enable it to set up, letting Lampent exploit Persian and Mienfoo lacking the right coverage moves, Choice item users like Grumpig and Mr. Mime locked into Focus Blast, and defensive Grass-types like Meganium and Ivysaur. Lampent's dual STAB combination is unresisted by nearly the entire tier besides Munchlax. Substitute shields Lampent from Thunder Wave from Clefairy and Dragon tail from Meganium as it sets up and gives Lampent some leeway against revenge killers such as Emolga, Kingler, and mixed Simisear. Substitute can also give Lampent a way to play around Pawniard's Sucker Punch, though it should be wary of Night Slash. Taunt completely shuts down Clefairy by disabling Encore while still protecting Lampent from its Thunder Wave, and it can enable Lampent to deny Munchlax from using Rest or Whirlwind and leave it otherwise unable to stop Lampent unless it's running Earthquake. Leftovers lets Lampent recoup health lost from Substitute and Stealth Rock while it sets up on Clefairy and Ivysaur. Flash Fire enables Lampent to wall and exploit Simisear lacking Dark-type coverage moves, and it can let Lampent further take advantage of switching into Frillish's Will-O-Wisp. Maximum Speed investment and a Timid nature let Lampent outspeed and threaten defensive Pokemon like Solrock, Meganium, and defensively invested Staryu. It also outspeeds slower offensive Pokemon like Lairon and Shelgon and speed ties Adamant Mienfoo.
Lampent's ability to break past bulkier Pokemon makes it a great fit for offense teams in need of a wallbreaker that doubles as a stallbreaker. Lampent's capacity to take advantage of Clefairy is greatly appreciated by special cleaners like Simisear, Choice Scarf Grumpig, and Raichu. Persian and Emolga tend to lure in defensive Pokemon Lampent threatens like Wormadam-G and Solrock, so they can put Lampent into good positions with U-turn. Offensive Pokemon weak to Fighting such as Lairon, Pawniard, and Glaceon appreciate Lampent as a check to Mienfoo, and Lampent can capitalize on these Pokemon luring Mienfoo in. Lampent enjoys Staryu providing hazard removal given its Rock weakness and lack of recovery, and in turn it threatens Grass-types like Meganium, Leafeon, and Ivysaur that would deter Staryu. While Lampent shouldn't be its team's only check to Persian given its poor bulk and vulnerability to coverage like Bite, fast and frail Pokemon Mr. Mime and Grumpig are grateful for Lampent as a partner that isn't as vulnerable to it.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Lampent could run Toxic or Will-O-Wisp to support its team with status and punish offensive Pokemon it might wall such as Persian and Mienfoo, but Lampent already threatens them offensively, and it's more effective against Clefairy with Taunt and Substitute because of Magic Guard. Flame Body can punish physical attackers like Persian, Muk, and Leafeon for making contact with Lampent, but Flash Fire's defensive utility compared to Flame Body's inconsistency makes it the better option for Lampent itself.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Offensive Pokemon**: Lampent's meager bulk leaves it picked off by Emolga, Arbok, and offensive Solrock sets. Even Pokemon with middling Speed such as Walrein, Kingler, and Whiscash with a Jolly nature outspeed and threaten Lampent. Choice Scarf Lampent is still slow for a Choice Scarf user, and is outsped by common Choice Scarf users such as Grumpig, Mr. Mime, and Glaceon.
**Bulky Water-types**: Whiscash and Walrein must be wary of Choice Specs-boosted Energy Ball, but they can generally stomach a boosted attack from Lampent and threaten it with their super effective STAB attacks. Pelipper doesn't mind Energy Ball and similarly threatens Lampent with its Water-type attacks. Staryu doesn't wall Lampent, but faster sets can outspeed it and threaten it with Scald.
**Residual Damage**: Stealth Rock takes off a quarter of Lampent's HP every time it switches in, and Lampent can only depend on the passive recovery of Leftovers. Lampent dislikes switching into Toxic from Wormadam-G and Mienfoo as it aims to exploit them. Even just a bit of chip damage can put Lampent in range of attacks like Muk's Shadow Sneak. Lampent attempting to switch in on Meganium to take advantage of it may be punished by Dragon Tail forcing it to take another round of damage from Stealth Rock.
**Super Effective Coverage**: Despite several immunities and resistances, Lampent's poor bulk leaves it prone to coverage moves. Persian can catch Lampent off-guard with Bite, Water Pulse, or Hidden Power Ground. Lampent otherwise walls Simisear without Hidden Power Dark but is not safe playing against it until its Hidden Power type has been revealed. Munchlax with Earthquake is a nearly immovable wall to Lampent. Meganium may seem like a safe target for Lampent, but it can also use Nature Power to use Earthquake to deal a chunk of damage to Lampent.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/missangelic.452572/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Grammar checked by:
Calm Mind (Lampent) @ Leftovers
Ability: Flash Fire
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Substitute / Taunt
- Shadow Ball
- Fire Blast
[SET COMMENTS]
Lampent acts as an uncommon but threatening Calm Mind sweeper capable of overwhelming passive defensive cores of Clefairy, Wormadam-S, and Solrock thanks to its unique typing. Pokemon unable to touch Lampent enable it to set up, letting Lampent exploit Persian and Mienfoo lacking the right coverage moves, Choice item users like Grumpig and Mr. Mime locked into Focus Blast, and defensive Grass-types like Meganium and Ivysaur. Lampent's dual STAB combination is unresisted by nearly the entire tier besides Munchlax. Substitute shields Lampent from Thunder Wave from Clefairy and Dragon tail from Meganium as it sets up and gives Lampent some leeway against revenge killers such as Emolga, Kingler, and mixed Simisear. Substitute can also give Lampent a way to play around Pawniard's Sucker Punch, though it should be wary of Night Slash. Taunt completely shuts down Clefairy by disabling Encore while still protecting Lampent from its Thunder Wave, and it can enable Lampent to deny Munchlax from using Rest or Whirlwind and leave it otherwise unable to stop Lampent unless it's running Earthquake. Leftovers lets Lampent recoup health lost from Substitute and Stealth Rock while it sets up on Clefairy and Ivysaur. Flash Fire enables Lampent to wall and exploit Simisear lacking Dark-type coverage moves, and it can let Lampent further take advantage of switching into Frillish's Will-O-Wisp. Maximum Speed investment and a Timid nature let Lampent outspeed and threaten defensive Pokemon like Solrock, Meganium, and defensively invested Staryu. It also outspeeds slower offensive Pokemon like Lairon and Shelgon and speed ties Adamant Mienfoo.
Lampent's ability to break past bulkier Pokemon makes it a great fit for offense teams in need of a wallbreaker that doubles as a stallbreaker. Lampent's capacity to take advantage of Clefairy is greatly appreciated by special cleaners like Simisear, Choice Scarf Grumpig, and Raichu. Persian and Emolga tend to lure in defensive Pokemon Lampent threatens like Wormadam-G and Solrock, so they can put Lampent into good positions with U-turn. Offensive Pokemon weak to Fighting such as Lairon, Pawniard, and Glaceon appreciate Lampent as a check to Mienfoo, and Lampent can capitalize on these Pokemon luring Mienfoo in. Lampent enjoys Staryu providing hazard removal given its Rock weakness and lack of recovery, and in turn it threatens Grass-types like Meganium, Leafeon, and Ivysaur that would deter Staryu. While Lampent shouldn't be its team's only check to Persian given its poor bulk and vulnerability to coverage like Bite, fast and frail Pokemon Mr. Mime and Grumpig are grateful for Lampent as a partner that isn't as vulnerable to it.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Lampent could run Toxic or Will-O-Wisp to support its team with status and punish offensive Pokemon it might wall such as Persian and Mienfoo, but Lampent already threatens them offensively, and it's more effective against Clefairy with Taunt and Substitute because of Magic Guard. Flame Body can punish physical attackers like Persian, Muk, and Leafeon for making contact with Lampent, but Flash Fire's defensive utility compared to Flame Body's inconsistency makes it the better option for Lampent itself.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Offensive Pokemon**: Lampent's meager bulk leaves it picked off by Emolga, Arbok, and offensive Solrock sets. Even Pokemon with middling Speed such as Walrein, Kingler, and Whiscash with a Jolly nature outspeed and threaten Lampent. Choice Scarf Lampent is still slow for a Choice Scarf user, and is outsped by common Choice Scarf users such as Grumpig, Mr. Mime, and Glaceon.
**Bulky Water-types**: Whiscash and Walrein must be wary of Choice Specs-boosted Energy Ball, but they can generally stomach a boosted attack from Lampent and threaten it with their super effective STAB attacks. Pelipper doesn't mind Energy Ball and similarly threatens Lampent with its Water-type attacks. Staryu doesn't wall Lampent, but faster sets can outspeed it and threaten it with Scald.
**Residual Damage**: Stealth Rock takes off a quarter of Lampent's HP every time it switches in, and Lampent can only depend on the passive recovery of Leftovers. Lampent dislikes switching into Toxic from Wormadam-G and Mienfoo as it aims to exploit them. Even just a bit of chip damage can put Lampent in range of attacks like Muk's Shadow Sneak. Lampent attempting to switch in on Meganium to take advantage of it may be punished by Dragon Tail forcing it to take another round of damage from Stealth Rock.
**Super Effective Coverage**: Despite several immunities and resistances, Lampent's poor bulk leaves it prone to coverage moves. Persian can catch Lampent off-guard with Bite, Water Pulse, or Hidden Power Ground. Lampent otherwise walls Simisear without Hidden Power Dark but is not safe playing against it until its Hidden Power type has been revealed. Munchlax with Earthquake is a nearly immovable wall to Lampent. Meganium may seem like a safe target for Lampent, but it can also use Nature Power to use Earthquake to deal a chunk of damage to Lampent.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/missangelic.452572/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Grammar checked by:
Last edited:
