[OVERVIEW]
The nerf to partial trapping in Stadium OU hits Cloyster quite hard, as Clamp is one of its most important tools in standard OU. Despite this, Cloyster is able to carve out a niche for itself thanks to its high Defense and immunity to freeze, allowing it to wall most common Snorlax sets. Stadium's nerf to Hyper Beam and revamped critical hit rates also make Cloyster more effective at checking Tauros. Cloyster also still has access to a powerful Explosion as well as Ice-type STAB moves that threaten freeze on foes.
Despite its robust defenses, Cloyster can get into trouble if luck does not go its way. Snorlax has a high critical hit rate in Stadium OU at 10.3%, and critical hits and full paralysis can break through Cloyster's Rest loop. Compared to Snorlax, Tauros has a higher critical hit rate at 18.1%, but Cloyster will only be hit twice before it wakes up due to Tauros being faster. Snorlax and Tauros can both use Thunderbolt to catch Cloyster off guard, making it a much less effective wall. Additionally, Cloyster is weak against other tier staples such as Starmie, Chansey, Zapdos, and Persian. The changes to Substitute's mechanics also makes Cloyster's Explosion riskier, as using Explosion on a Substitute will now knock Cloyster out. Overall, Cloyster has a strong niche in the metagame as a physical wall, but its flaws keep it from being among the top threats.
[SET]
name: Standard Wall
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Blizzard / Surf
move 3: Rest
move 4: Explosion
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Cloyster most often runs two Ice-type attacks in Ice Beam and Blizzard. Ice Beam's greater PP and accuracy make it better at freeze fishing, while Blizzard's extra power gets important KO ranges, such as a 2HKO on Exeggutor. These moves' freeze chance mean switching in an unparalyzed Starmie or Chansey is never truly safe. Surf is able to hit the rare Jynx, and it has more PP than Blizzard, which can be useful in longer games. However, forgoing Surf doesn't give Cloyster many coverage issues, since the two most viable Ice-resistant Pokemon—Starmie and Slowbro—also resist Surf. Rest is essential to Cloyster's function as a wall, as it gives Cloyster longevity against foes such as Tauros and Snorlax. Explosion lets Cloyster remove or heavily damage a foe and prevents it from being completely passive against Starmie, Chansey, and Alakazam. However, Cloyster must watch out for Substitute, as using Explosion on a Substitute will KO Cloyster.
Cloyster's best teammates are those that appreciate its walling capabilities and can fill in any defensive holes Cloyster creates. Chansey is a great partner for Cloyster, since it can switch into special attackers such as Starmie and Alakazam that force Cloyster out, while Cloyster can check Tauros and Snorlax. Rhydon is also a good teammate, as it switches into Zapdos and Jolteon with ease, while Cloyster can switch into Blizzard from Tauros. One physical attacker that gives Cloyster trouble is Persian, since Thunderbolt 3HKOes it, and even if Persian drops Thunderbolt, Slash 4HKOes it. For this reason, Gengar can be a helpful teammate thanks to its great Persian matchup. Gengar is also useful for forcing opposing Tauros and Snorlax to use Earthquake, a move that Cloyster can switch into more safely than Body Slam. Cloyster's ability to lure in and use Explosion on Starmie and Chansey makes Amnesia Snorlax and Slowbro more effective, as breaking through these special walls is one of their biggest hurdles.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Despite the nerf, Clamp can still be used on Cloyster as a pivot tool and a means to chip down paralyzed and slower foes. However, Clamp no longer doing damage as a Pokemon switches in heavily reduces the effectiveness of the move. Cloyster can use Substitute or Reflect to improve its resilience against Tauros and Snorlax. Reflect makes it much harder for the Normal-types to break through Cloyster, while Body Slam cannot break a Substitute. However, dropping an attacking move will give Cloyster PP issues, and dropping Explosion will make Cloyster very passive. Double-Edge can be used to try to break through Chansey and paralyzed Psychic-types, but the recoil hinders Cloyster's defensive capabilities, and it generally wants to switch out of these foes, since it takes heavy damage in return. Cloyster can also use Bubble Beam over Surf for more PP and a chance to slow down a foe, since Cloyster outspeeds every relevant Pokemon except for Jolteon at -1 Speed. However, Bubble Beam's lower damage output is noticeable.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Starmie switches into all of Cloyster's non-Explosion attacks with ease and 2HKOes it in return with Thunderbolt. Starmie can also safely click Recover on Cloyster, and it always survives Explosion from full health, taking a maximum of 96.9%. However, an unparalyzed Starmie can be ruined by an Ice Beam freeze. Slowbro also switches into Cloyster and can set up Amnesia in front of it. At +4 Special, Surf almost always 2HKOes it, preventing Cloyster from Rest looping. Opposing Cloyster can switch in safely and is immune to freeze, and Lapras can also switch in and threatens Cloyster with Thunderbolt.
**Chansey and Alakazam**: Chansey and Alakazam are both capable of switching into Cloyster and healing any damage they take with their instant recovery moves. Chansey 2HKOes Cloyster with Thunderbolt, while Alakazam 3HKOes it with Psychic. However, both must watch out for Explosion, as Alakazam is outright OHKOed by it, and Chansey gets OHKOed 74.4% of the time.
**Critical Hits**: Cloyster relies on Rest looping Tauros and Snorlax to wall them effectively, allowing them to break through with critical hits.
**Electric-types**: Zapdos and Jolteon deal massive damage to Cloyster with Thunderbolt , doing a minimum of 88.1% and 80.8%, respectively. Zapdos cannot switch directly into Cloyster due to the threat of an Ice-type attack, so it is better off revenge killing it or switching in when Cloyster uses Rest. Jolteon's lack of an Ice weakness means it can switch in better than Zapdos can.
**Normal-types with Thunderbolt**: Although Cloyster checks standard Snorlax and Tauros sets, both can equip Thunderbolt to catch Cloyster off guard. Both Tauros and Persian 3HKO Cloyster with Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt on Snorlax is typically seen on Amnesia sets, and a +4 Thunderbolt OHKOes Cloyster.
**Gengar**: Gengar switches into Cloyster's attacks relatively safely, taking a maximum of 28.7% from Ice Beam and 35.6% from Blizzard. Gengar threatens a 2HKO with Thunderbolt. It is also immune to Cloyster's Explosion, a huge advantage it has over Cloyster's other checks. However, it has no way to recover HP outside of Rest.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/ctown6.509438/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-blue-banana.649096/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
The nerf to partial trapping in Stadium OU hits Cloyster quite hard, as Clamp is one of its most important tools in standard OU. Despite this, Cloyster is able to carve out a niche for itself thanks to its high Defense and immunity to freeze, allowing it to wall most common Snorlax sets. Stadium's nerf to Hyper Beam and revamped critical hit rates also make Cloyster more effective at checking Tauros. Cloyster also still has access to a powerful Explosion as well as Ice-type STAB moves that threaten freeze on foes.
Despite its robust defenses, Cloyster can get into trouble if luck does not go its way. Snorlax has a high critical hit rate in Stadium OU at 10.3%, and critical hits and full paralysis can break through Cloyster's Rest loop. Compared to Snorlax, Tauros has a higher critical hit rate at 18.1%, but Cloyster will only be hit twice before it wakes up due to Tauros being faster. Snorlax and Tauros can both use Thunderbolt to catch Cloyster off guard, making it a much less effective wall. Additionally, Cloyster is weak against other tier staples such as Starmie, Chansey, Zapdos, and Persian. The changes to Substitute's mechanics also makes Cloyster's Explosion riskier, as using Explosion on a Substitute will now knock Cloyster out. Overall, Cloyster has a strong niche in the metagame as a physical wall, but its flaws keep it from being among the top threats.
[SET]
name: Standard Wall
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Blizzard / Surf
move 3: Rest
move 4: Explosion
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Cloyster most often runs two Ice-type attacks in Ice Beam and Blizzard. Ice Beam's greater PP and accuracy make it better at freeze fishing, while Blizzard's extra power gets important KO ranges, such as a 2HKO on Exeggutor. These moves' freeze chance mean switching in an unparalyzed Starmie or Chansey is never truly safe. Surf is able to hit the rare Jynx, and it has more PP than Blizzard, which can be useful in longer games. However, forgoing Surf doesn't give Cloyster many coverage issues, since the two most viable Ice-resistant Pokemon—Starmie and Slowbro—also resist Surf. Rest is essential to Cloyster's function as a wall, as it gives Cloyster longevity against foes such as Tauros and Snorlax. Explosion lets Cloyster remove or heavily damage a foe and prevents it from being completely passive against Starmie, Chansey, and Alakazam. However, Cloyster must watch out for Substitute, as using Explosion on a Substitute will KO Cloyster.
Cloyster's best teammates are those that appreciate its walling capabilities and can fill in any defensive holes Cloyster creates. Chansey is a great partner for Cloyster, since it can switch into special attackers such as Starmie and Alakazam that force Cloyster out, while Cloyster can check Tauros and Snorlax. Rhydon is also a good teammate, as it switches into Zapdos and Jolteon with ease, while Cloyster can switch into Blizzard from Tauros. One physical attacker that gives Cloyster trouble is Persian, since Thunderbolt 3HKOes it, and even if Persian drops Thunderbolt, Slash 4HKOes it. For this reason, Gengar can be a helpful teammate thanks to its great Persian matchup. Gengar is also useful for forcing opposing Tauros and Snorlax to use Earthquake, a move that Cloyster can switch into more safely than Body Slam. Cloyster's ability to lure in and use Explosion on Starmie and Chansey makes Amnesia Snorlax and Slowbro more effective, as breaking through these special walls is one of their biggest hurdles.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Despite the nerf, Clamp can still be used on Cloyster as a pivot tool and a means to chip down paralyzed and slower foes. However, Clamp no longer doing damage as a Pokemon switches in heavily reduces the effectiveness of the move. Cloyster can use Substitute or Reflect to improve its resilience against Tauros and Snorlax. Reflect makes it much harder for the Normal-types to break through Cloyster, while Body Slam cannot break a Substitute. However, dropping an attacking move will give Cloyster PP issues, and dropping Explosion will make Cloyster very passive. Double-Edge can be used to try to break through Chansey and paralyzed Psychic-types, but the recoil hinders Cloyster's defensive capabilities, and it generally wants to switch out of these foes, since it takes heavy damage in return. Cloyster can also use Bubble Beam over Surf for more PP and a chance to slow down a foe, since Cloyster outspeeds every relevant Pokemon except for Jolteon at -1 Speed. However, Bubble Beam's lower damage output is noticeable.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Starmie switches into all of Cloyster's non-Explosion attacks with ease and 2HKOes it in return with Thunderbolt. Starmie can also safely click Recover on Cloyster, and it always survives Explosion from full health, taking a maximum of 96.9%. However, an unparalyzed Starmie can be ruined by an Ice Beam freeze. Slowbro also switches into Cloyster and can set up Amnesia in front of it. At +4 Special, Surf almost always 2HKOes it, preventing Cloyster from Rest looping. Opposing Cloyster can switch in safely and is immune to freeze, and Lapras can also switch in and threatens Cloyster with Thunderbolt.
**Chansey and Alakazam**: Chansey and Alakazam are both capable of switching into Cloyster and healing any damage they take with their instant recovery moves. Chansey 2HKOes Cloyster with Thunderbolt, while Alakazam 3HKOes it with Psychic. However, both must watch out for Explosion, as Alakazam is outright OHKOed by it, and Chansey gets OHKOed 74.4% of the time.
**Critical Hits**: Cloyster relies on Rest looping Tauros and Snorlax to wall them effectively, allowing them to break through with critical hits.
**Electric-types**: Zapdos and Jolteon deal massive damage to Cloyster with Thunderbolt , doing a minimum of 88.1% and 80.8%, respectively. Zapdos cannot switch directly into Cloyster due to the threat of an Ice-type attack, so it is better off revenge killing it or switching in when Cloyster uses Rest. Jolteon's lack of an Ice weakness means it can switch in better than Zapdos can.
**Normal-types with Thunderbolt**: Although Cloyster checks standard Snorlax and Tauros sets, both can equip Thunderbolt to catch Cloyster off guard. Both Tauros and Persian 3HKO Cloyster with Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt on Snorlax is typically seen on Amnesia sets, and a +4 Thunderbolt OHKOes Cloyster.
**Gengar**: Gengar switches into Cloyster's attacks relatively safely, taking a maximum of 28.7% from Ice Beam and 35.6% from Blizzard. Gengar threatens a 2HKO with Thunderbolt. It is also immune to Cloyster's Explosion, a huge advantage it has over Cloyster's other checks. However, it has no way to recover HP outside of Rest.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/ctown6.509438/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/a-blue-banana.649096/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
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