Based on a Lavos's skeleton and fleshed out by me.
[OVERVIEW]
Cloyster is a top pick for a reason: it's one of the very few Pokemon blessed with the move Spikes, a very important piece of a metagame filled with Pokemon that heavily benefit from the extra chip damage, which lets it fit on a wide variety of teams. It distinguishes itself from other Spikes setters thanks to its Water typing; coupled with excellent physical bulk and a powerful and relatively fast Explosion, this allows it to check Ground-types like Steelix and Marowak and act as an a tricky-to-play-around offensive threat, since its decently powerful Surf keeps most Pokemon that resist Normal at bay that otherwise would be tempted to take the Explosion. Furthermore, Cloyster can further expand its utility thanks to its access to Rapid Spin, a very useful tool in a metagame where Spikes are so rampant, although it unfortunately cannot be used alongside Explosion.
However, while Cloyster remains the premier Spikes setter and Water-type in the tier, Forretress sports a typing with more resistances and an immunity to Toxic, which usually grants it more opportunities to set up Spikes than Cloyster. As a spinner, Starmie has a much easier time taking on Gengar thanks to its secondary typing and less trouble using Rapid Spin throughout the game by virtue of its access to Recover. Finally, due to its abysmal special bulk and subpar defensive typing, Cloyster is outclassed as a pure defensive Water-type by Suicune.
[SET]
name: Spikes
move 1: Spikes
move 2: Surf
move 3: Toxic / Hidden Power Electric
move 4: Explosion / Rapid Spin
item: Leftovers
[SET COMMENTS]
The chip damage Spikes provides can be extremely beneficial for just about any team because it makes Pokemon like Zapdos, Nidoking, and various Thief users significantly more threatening. Cloyster is widely considered the best source of Spikes available due to its other attributes. Surf is the preferred STAB option, as it is very likely to 3HKO Forretress, a common spinner that would be tempted to get rid of Spikes, and heavily damages the likes of Steelix, Marowak, Tyranitar, Rhydon, and Golem, allowing Cloyster to act as check to these and prevent the latter from using Rapid Spin. Toxic is Cloyster's best tool besides Explosion to cripple important targets like Starmie, Snorlax, and opposing Cloyster. The added residual damage can be very effective when coupled with Spikes. Nonetheless, since the opposing team carrying a Cloyster of their own is a common scenario, Hidden Power Electric is a good option to weaken the opposing Cloyster quicker. It is preferred over Hidden Power Grass, since it offers a decent chance of breaking Tentacruel's Substitute, which is a more important target than Quagsire, the only other noteworthy Pokemon covered by Hidden Power Grass, and doesn't force Cloyster to give up as many HP IVs. However, the loss of HP IVs is still pretty substantial, and it's still unlikely to 2HKO opposing Cloyster unless they run the move as well. Explosion forces the opponent to be careful, as it gives the ability to remove Cloyster checks like Zapdos and Raikou from the game. It is especially scary to deal with because most Pokemon that resist it like Steelix, Tyranitar, and Skarmory have a hard time taking Surf. However, you can forgo the threat of Explosion in favor of Rapid Spin, which might be more beneficial for defensive teams or some teammates that really benefit from having Spikes removed.
Due to the tremendous usefulness of Spikes, Cloyster can fit onto practically any kind of team, hence why it sees so much usage. Both Gengar and Misdreavus make good teammates, as they can serve as spinblockers and exploit Spikes with their various disrupting options that force more switches; the former can also absorb Toxic aimed at Cloyster, whereas the latter is fit to prevent Starmie from using Rapid Spin. Other notable Pokemon that can exploit Spikes include phazers, especially those with a significant offensive presence like Raikou and Rhydon. Other forms of residual damage pair nicely with Spikes, since they wear down the opposing team even quicker, so various Toxic and Thief users like Nidoking, Exeggutor, Gengar, Misdreavus, and Jynx do well alongside Cloyster. Overall, every Pokemon with significant offensive pressure like Zapdos, Machamp, and Marowak or with sleep-inducing moves like Exeggutor, Nidoking, and Snorlax tend to force a lot of switches and benefit from the additional damage against bulky foes. Finally, Cloyster has trouble setting Spikes up safely against special attackers like Zapdos, Raikou, Gengar, Nidoking, Exeggutor, and Starmie, many of which can OHKO Cloyster with a powerful Thunder. As a result, Pokemon suited to take these assaults like Snorlax, Steelix, Blissey, Umbreon, and Raikou make good backups for Cloyster. The latter in particular tends to attract opposing Steelix and Snorlax, two Pokemon that are Spikes bait for Cloyster most of the time. This trait can also be exploited by Zapdos, since just like Raikou it can threaten most relevant spinners, doesn't have any counter immune to Spikes, and is a magnet for Ground-types for Cloyster to take advantage of. Due to this, the core of Cloyster + Electric-type is extremely common and metagame defining.
Explosion variants of Cloyster are a good asset for offensive teams, as they can lure in Starmie, Zapdos, and Raikou and get rid of them, opening the field for sweepers like Machamp and Vaporeon. Therefore, Cloyster finds a solid place on Explosion-based teams, since Electric-types are usually primary targets for this archetype. Rapid Spin variants, on the other hand, find their support greatly appreciated by Pokemon such as Marowak and Belly Drum Snorlax, which want to avoid any kind of damage before setting up. A field cleared of Spikes is also very beneficial for stall-oriented teams because they won't face nearly as much pressure when switching.
[Other Options]
Ice Beam is a secondary STAB option that pairs well with Hidden Power Electric and puts a big dent in powerhouses like Zapdos, Exeggutor, and Dragonite, but the lack of Surf puts Cloyster at a disadvantage if the opponent happens to use Forretress. Icy Wind can prove to be a very effective tool, as you can potentially keep Spikes up against Starmie and Rapid Spin Tentacruel with the right support, but its power is lacking, and other moves may be more optimal. Hidden Power Fire can eliminate Forretress quickly so its Rapid Spin is no longer an issue, but it doesn't OHKO Forretress, is too situational to warrant a moveslot most of the time, and comes with an even bigger IV issue than Hidden Power Electric, so much so that the Defense and HP loss means that a Swords Dance-boosted Marowak can now potentially OHKO Cloyster. Clamp traps the foe and ensures that Explosion cannot be avoided, and it can work well in tandem with Screech, which enables Cloyster to ideally trap a target like Snorlax, nullify its Defense boosts from Curse, and remove it from the game. However, there is no guarantee that the Pokemon you aim to trap will stay in against Cloyster, and once you've revealed Clamp, the opponent will be more careful. Rest is an option on Rapid Spin variants to improve their longevity and ability to clear and lay down Spikes throughout the game, but it should only be used on stall teams alongside a cleric, as Cloyster will have a hard time staying healthy for two turns and has to give up the very valuable Toxic.
[Checks and Counters]
Since Cloyster's purpose revolves around Spikes, keeping these away is the best way to check it. Starmie is widely regarded as the best spinner available, mainly because it does a good job of clearing Spikes after Cloyster has set them up. While Cloyster can choose to use Explosion, Starmie remains faster and is likely to accomplish its job most of the time. Forretress has more trouble using Rapid Spin against Cloyster, since it's slower and takes a lot of damage from Surf, but it can potentially retaliate with Toxic and Giga Drain, which may be enough to significantly hinder Cloyster and to clear the field afterwards. Although far less common, Rapid Spin Tentacruel might be even more suited than Starmie at preventing Cloyster from laying Spikes, since its immunity to Toxic means that Cloyster can't do anything against it bar Explosion. Swords Dance Tentacruel, on the other hand, cannot use Rapid Spin, but it remains a nuisance, since it can freely set up on Cloyster as long as it uses Substitute to avoid Explosion.
Cloyster aims to make good use of Explosion or Rapid Spin once Spikes are up. Therefore, Ghost-types like Gengar and Misdreavus can prove to be very annoying with their Normal immunity preventing Cloyster from accomplishing anything else along with their fast Thunder to force it out. However, Gengar has trouble taking Surf too often, whereas Misdreavus badly wants to avoid Toxic unless it carries Rest, and it can still be worn down with Surf. Fast Thunder users like Zapdos, Raikou, Nidoking, Jolteon, Dragonite, and even Starmie all threaten Cloyster, in most cases for a guaranteed OHKO; the latter in particular might take Cloyster by surprise, thus nullifying its impact on the game. Grass-types like Exeggutor and the rarer Meganium and Venusaur also deal heavy damage to Cloyster with their STAB attacks, the latter of which also has an immunity to Toxic, but they should be wary of the potential Ice Beam. Overall, other special attackers like Jynx, Espeon, and Thunder Snorlax as well as Toxic spreaders like Suicune, Umbreon, and Blissey will wear down Cloyster, urging it to use Explosion sooner and making it more predictable and easy to play around as a result.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Wenderz, 331114], [Lavos, 129513]]
- Quality checked by: [[Earthworm, 15210], [FriendOfMrGolem120, 424525]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack,232216 ], [Rabia, 336073]]
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