I haven't written an analysis in a hot minute, so hopefully this one turned out okay. It was a pretty big project and I churned it out in like two days without reviewing it after finishing it, so I expect a few mistakes slipped through. Enjoy!
[OVERVIEW]
Exeggutor is a fixture of almost every STABmons team, offering an exceptional amount of utility in just a single team slot. Thanks to its typing and high Special stat, it is among the strongest answers to Starmie, the most imposing special attacker in the tier. Access to Razor Leaf also grants it an unparalleled ability to threaten not just Starmie and most other Crabhammer users, but many Pokemon that may try to switch in. Exeggutor is also the tier’s premier sleep-inducer, thanks to the high accuracy of Sleep Powder and Exeggutor’s solid bulk. Exeggutor also has excellent Speed control options in Agility and Stun Spore. Finally, Explosion is an excellent tool for maintaining momentum and eliminating troublesome targets quickly. Overall, Exeggutor is one of the tier’s most decisive progress makers.
Exeggutor has relatively few flaws, but its sheer amount of utility can sometimes cause it to be overburdened in games. While it is an excellent Starmie check, sleep-inducer, and Explosion user, managing to accomplish all three of these goals is not guaranteed. Additionally, Exeggutor often needs to compromise on some of its utility because it only has four move slots. Getting the most value from Exeggutor often requires building teams that cater to its strengths and working towards positional advantages.
[SET]
name: Offensive Utility
move 1: Razor Leaf
move 2: Sleep Powder
move 3: Explosion
move 4: Agility / Psychic / Stun Spore
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Razor Leaf is the best gift STABmons brought to Exeggutor, notably dealing enormous damage to the tier’s two most prominent Crabhammer users, Starmie and Vaporeon, even boasting a very slim chance to just outright OHKO the former. Many neutral targets also take hefty damage; Kangaskhan and Tauros are always and almost always 2HKOed by the move, respectively, for example.
Ideally, Exeggutor can make its way onto the field against a slower threat, like Chansey or Snorlax, while it is trying to heal so it can use Sleep Powder unscathed. However, large bulk means that Exeggutor can threaten to put pretty much the entire tier to sleep, provided it can afford to lose some health. Starmie using Crabhammer is a very common entry point for Exeggutor. Starmie has no way to knock out Exeggutor after Crabhammer, barring a high roll critical hit Blizzard, meaning something is very likely to fall to sleep. Alakazam is a similar entry point. Exeggutor is bulky enough to stand against heavy hitters like Tauros, Kangaskhan, Jolteon, Gengar, Vaporeon, and opposing Exeggutor and go for a sleep, but the threat of Explosion makes this somewhat less reliable. While Sleep Powder is most often used in the early game, it should be noted that doing so will often force Exeggutor to take a few hits early on. The more damage it takes at the start of the game, the less capable it is of handling threats like Starmie in the endgame. Delaying sleep may be the preferred option against teams with few slow or weak targets or when using a team with limited alternate answers to Crabhammer. A late-game Sleep Powder can be pivotal to stymying would-be counters like Zapdos in endgames.
Explosion is an excellent tool for maintaining momentum and eliminating problematic foes after Exeggutor achieves its goals. Exeggutor will generally aim to use Explosion after successfully using Sleep Powder. Prime targets include Chansey, Alakazam, and opposing Exeggutor. Removing these Pokemon can greatly benefit special-attacking teammates like Starmie, Vaporeon, Jolteon, and Zapdos. Alternatively, Explosion can be reserved for late-game scenarios. Especially if it is never paralyzed, Explosion can be saved for a heavy hit against dangerous Pokemon like Tauros and Zapdos. Given the turn ends immediately after Exeggutor uses Explosion, it provides an excellent opportunity for a revenge killer like one’s own Tauros or Starmie to enter the field.
Exeggutor’s fourth move is fairly situational. Agility partners very well with Sleep Powder and Explosion. Agility is often clicked after a foe is put to sleep and works as a strong midground option against most Pokemon. If the sleeping foe stays in, Exeggutor may attack with impunity as it can always use Sleep Powder again should the foe wake up. If a defensive answer like Clefable, Zapdos, or an opposing Exeggutor comes in, Exeggutor retains the option to use Razor Leaf or Explosion before going down. If a hard counter comes in, like Gengar, Exeggutor can simply switch. Agility gives Exeggutor much more agency behind its Explosions, as it is less necessary to guess what Pokemon might switch in if the Speed advantage is guaranteed and it can’t be revenge killed. Agility also gives Exeggutor the potential to sweep in endgames, but keeping Exeggutor healthy enough to set up and eliminating all the necessary targets make this fairly rare. Psychic most notably allows Exeggutor to largely reverse its poor Gengar matchup by scoring a clean 2HKO. It hits a handful of resistant targets, like Zapdos and Dodrio, harder than Razor Leaf as well and can also be used to break through Normal-type Recover users like Snorlax, Chansey, and Clefable with enough Special drops. Stun Spore is a broadly useful tool for slowing down opposing Pokemon. The Speed reduction and free turns caused by paralysis can be great for allowing Normal-type teammates to push through tricky foes like Tauros and Gengar.
Exeggutor’s ability to spread sleep and paralysis as well as check Starmie make it very supportive to a wide number of teammates. Tauros and Kangaskhan appreciate the openings that Exeggutor can create and the fact that it can switch into Crabhammer users that threaten it. Attackers with more middling Speed stats, such as Zapdos, Dodrio, and Vaporeon especially appreciate Exeggutor’s ability to slow dangerous Pokemon down with Stun Spore. Exeggutor benefits from teammates that can relieve the pressure it faces from the numerous roles it needs to fulfill. Chansey in particular is great for dueling with Special attackers, like opposing Exeggutor, in the early game so one’s own Exeggutor can be saved for the endgame. Running secondary sleepers like Gengar can similarly assist with this. On the flipside, running Pokemon like Zapdos or Jolteon to deal with Starmie and Vaporeon in the endgame can enable Exeggutor to play loosely in the early game.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Exeggutor has few other moves of interest, but it can use a few different permutations of the moves on its standard set. In particular, a set with Agility and Psychic creates a very aggressive Exeggutor that can completely shut down opposing Gengar. Stun Spore can also be used with Agility and/or Psychic to support its teammates while maintaining an imposing offensive presence. If these sets are used, typically Sleep Powder is given up, in which case an alternative sleeper like Gengar, Jynx, or Sing Chansey will likely need to be a teammate. Explosion may also be dropped on occasion, but the loss of momentum is often very noticeable.
Amnesia is a very tempting move added to Exeggutor's kit, but it synergizes very poorly with Razor Leaf and forces Exeggutor to give up one its more valuable moves. The high damage output of the tier's physical attackers and the prevalence of Explosion make running Amnesia quite impractical, especially for slower Pokemon.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Recover Users**: Chansey is especially difficult for Exeggutor to break, especially if it lacks Psychic and Stun Spore. Chansey shrugs off Razor Leaf very comfortably and can deal hefty damage with Ice Beam, Seismic Toss, or Super Fang after paralyzing it with Thunder Wave. Exeggutor is often forced to switch out or use Explosion against Chansey, though the risk of full paralysis makes the latter option occasionally unreliable. Clefable and Snorlax are both able to survive two uses of Razor Leaf and paralyze it, meaning they can potentially stall Exeggutor and intermittently attack if Exeggutor misses with Razor or ever becomes fully paralyzed. Alakazam is also surprisingly sturdy against Exeggutor, also being only 3HKOed by Razor Leaf, and can whittle it down with repeated uses of Seismic Toss or even Psychic. Jolteon can also stall Exeggutor with Thunder Wave and Recover, though Recover is a fairly uncommon option for it to use. Flareon, while rare within the tier, is a very strong counter to Exeggutor. Flareon takes very little from Razor Leaf and cleanly 2HKOes Exeggutor with Fire Blast. Depending on the status of both Pokemon, Flareon may be able to claim the KO before Exeggutor is able to use Explosion, or burn it and thus survive the Explosion. Exeggutor has the ability to circumvent several of these bad matchups with Explosion, but this often a bad trade, especially when Exeggutor is healthy, as it often more valuable than most of these potential targets.
**Flying-type Pokemon**: Zapdos, Dragonite, Articuno, and Moltres switch into Exeggutor fairly comfortably, as they take very low damage from Razor Leaf, are 4HKOed by Psychic, and threaten 2HKOs with their super effective STAB moves. Dragonite and Moltres also have Wrap and Fire Spin, respectively, if they need just a little more chip damage to secure a knockout. They are all strong options to revenge kill Exeggutor and only really fear Explosion; even then, they will survive a non-critical hit Explosion from full health. Dodrio is typically 4HKOed Razor Leaf, though it is heavily damaged by Psychic, and holds a guaranteed 2hKO with Drill Peck.
**Gengar**: If Exeggutor is lacking Psychic and another foe has already been put to sleep, Exeggutor is virtually impotent against Gengar, as Gengar takes little from Razor Leaf and is immune to Explosion. Paralyzing Gengar with Stun Spore will limit its offensive potential significantly, but it will remain a solid defensive answer to Exeggutor regardless. If Exeggutor does stay in, Gengar will put it to sleep with Hypnosis or knock it out after using Night Shade four times or Sludge three or four times.
**Jynx**: Jynx outspeeds Exeggutor and can very easily dispatch it with Lovely Kiss or a 2HKO from Blizzard. If Jynx has used Amnesia or lands a critical hit, Blizzard becomes a clean OHKO. Exeggutor also just barely misses the 2HKO with Razor Leaf, meaning Jynx can switch in.
**Opposing Exeggutor**: Exeggutor struggles to considerably damaging itself. Unless one Exeggutor is able to put the other to sleep or take advantage of several repeated instances of full paralysis, the matchup will most likely end up with both Exeggutor fainting after an Explosion or one being very weak and immediately susceptible to revenge killing.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/volk.530877/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/enigami.233818/
Grammar checked by:
[OVERVIEW]
Exeggutor is a fixture of almost every STABmons team, offering an exceptional amount of utility in just a single team slot. Thanks to its typing and high Special stat, it is among the strongest answers to Starmie, the most imposing special attacker in the tier. Access to Razor Leaf also grants it an unparalleled ability to threaten not just Starmie and most other Crabhammer users, but many Pokemon that may try to switch in. Exeggutor is also the tier’s premier sleep-inducer, thanks to the high accuracy of Sleep Powder and Exeggutor’s solid bulk. Exeggutor also has excellent Speed control options in Agility and Stun Spore. Finally, Explosion is an excellent tool for maintaining momentum and eliminating troublesome targets quickly. Overall, Exeggutor is one of the tier’s most decisive progress makers.
Exeggutor has relatively few flaws, but its sheer amount of utility can sometimes cause it to be overburdened in games. While it is an excellent Starmie check, sleep-inducer, and Explosion user, managing to accomplish all three of these goals is not guaranteed. Additionally, Exeggutor often needs to compromise on some of its utility because it only has four move slots. Getting the most value from Exeggutor often requires building teams that cater to its strengths and working towards positional advantages.
[SET]
name: Offensive Utility
move 1: Razor Leaf
move 2: Sleep Powder
move 3: Explosion
move 4: Agility / Psychic / Stun Spore
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Razor Leaf is the best gift STABmons brought to Exeggutor, notably dealing enormous damage to the tier’s two most prominent Crabhammer users, Starmie and Vaporeon, even boasting a very slim chance to just outright OHKO the former. Many neutral targets also take hefty damage; Kangaskhan and Tauros are always and almost always 2HKOed by the move, respectively, for example.
Ideally, Exeggutor can make its way onto the field against a slower threat, like Chansey or Snorlax, while it is trying to heal so it can use Sleep Powder unscathed. However, large bulk means that Exeggutor can threaten to put pretty much the entire tier to sleep, provided it can afford to lose some health. Starmie using Crabhammer is a very common entry point for Exeggutor. Starmie has no way to knock out Exeggutor after Crabhammer, barring a high roll critical hit Blizzard, meaning something is very likely to fall to sleep. Alakazam is a similar entry point. Exeggutor is bulky enough to stand against heavy hitters like Tauros, Kangaskhan, Jolteon, Gengar, Vaporeon, and opposing Exeggutor and go for a sleep, but the threat of Explosion makes this somewhat less reliable. While Sleep Powder is most often used in the early game, it should be noted that doing so will often force Exeggutor to take a few hits early on. The more damage it takes at the start of the game, the less capable it is of handling threats like Starmie in the endgame. Delaying sleep may be the preferred option against teams with few slow or weak targets or when using a team with limited alternate answers to Crabhammer. A late-game Sleep Powder can be pivotal to stymying would-be counters like Zapdos in endgames.
Explosion is an excellent tool for maintaining momentum and eliminating problematic foes after Exeggutor achieves its goals. Exeggutor will generally aim to use Explosion after successfully using Sleep Powder. Prime targets include Chansey, Alakazam, and opposing Exeggutor. Removing these Pokemon can greatly benefit special-attacking teammates like Starmie, Vaporeon, Jolteon, and Zapdos. Alternatively, Explosion can be reserved for late-game scenarios. Especially if it is never paralyzed, Explosion can be saved for a heavy hit against dangerous Pokemon like Tauros and Zapdos. Given the turn ends immediately after Exeggutor uses Explosion, it provides an excellent opportunity for a revenge killer like one’s own Tauros or Starmie to enter the field.
Exeggutor’s fourth move is fairly situational. Agility partners very well with Sleep Powder and Explosion. Agility is often clicked after a foe is put to sleep and works as a strong midground option against most Pokemon. If the sleeping foe stays in, Exeggutor may attack with impunity as it can always use Sleep Powder again should the foe wake up. If a defensive answer like Clefable, Zapdos, or an opposing Exeggutor comes in, Exeggutor retains the option to use Razor Leaf or Explosion before going down. If a hard counter comes in, like Gengar, Exeggutor can simply switch. Agility gives Exeggutor much more agency behind its Explosions, as it is less necessary to guess what Pokemon might switch in if the Speed advantage is guaranteed and it can’t be revenge killed. Agility also gives Exeggutor the potential to sweep in endgames, but keeping Exeggutor healthy enough to set up and eliminating all the necessary targets make this fairly rare. Psychic most notably allows Exeggutor to largely reverse its poor Gengar matchup by scoring a clean 2HKO. It hits a handful of resistant targets, like Zapdos and Dodrio, harder than Razor Leaf as well and can also be used to break through Normal-type Recover users like Snorlax, Chansey, and Clefable with enough Special drops. Stun Spore is a broadly useful tool for slowing down opposing Pokemon. The Speed reduction and free turns caused by paralysis can be great for allowing Normal-type teammates to push through tricky foes like Tauros and Gengar.
Exeggutor’s ability to spread sleep and paralysis as well as check Starmie make it very supportive to a wide number of teammates. Tauros and Kangaskhan appreciate the openings that Exeggutor can create and the fact that it can switch into Crabhammer users that threaten it. Attackers with more middling Speed stats, such as Zapdos, Dodrio, and Vaporeon especially appreciate Exeggutor’s ability to slow dangerous Pokemon down with Stun Spore. Exeggutor benefits from teammates that can relieve the pressure it faces from the numerous roles it needs to fulfill. Chansey in particular is great for dueling with Special attackers, like opposing Exeggutor, in the early game so one’s own Exeggutor can be saved for the endgame. Running secondary sleepers like Gengar can similarly assist with this. On the flipside, running Pokemon like Zapdos or Jolteon to deal with Starmie and Vaporeon in the endgame can enable Exeggutor to play loosely in the early game.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Exeggutor has few other moves of interest, but it can use a few different permutations of the moves on its standard set. In particular, a set with Agility and Psychic creates a very aggressive Exeggutor that can completely shut down opposing Gengar. Stun Spore can also be used with Agility and/or Psychic to support its teammates while maintaining an imposing offensive presence. If these sets are used, typically Sleep Powder is given up, in which case an alternative sleeper like Gengar, Jynx, or Sing Chansey will likely need to be a teammate. Explosion may also be dropped on occasion, but the loss of momentum is often very noticeable.
Amnesia is a very tempting move added to Exeggutor's kit, but it synergizes very poorly with Razor Leaf and forces Exeggutor to give up one its more valuable moves. The high damage output of the tier's physical attackers and the prevalence of Explosion make running Amnesia quite impractical, especially for slower Pokemon.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Recover Users**: Chansey is especially difficult for Exeggutor to break, especially if it lacks Psychic and Stun Spore. Chansey shrugs off Razor Leaf very comfortably and can deal hefty damage with Ice Beam, Seismic Toss, or Super Fang after paralyzing it with Thunder Wave. Exeggutor is often forced to switch out or use Explosion against Chansey, though the risk of full paralysis makes the latter option occasionally unreliable. Clefable and Snorlax are both able to survive two uses of Razor Leaf and paralyze it, meaning they can potentially stall Exeggutor and intermittently attack if Exeggutor misses with Razor or ever becomes fully paralyzed. Alakazam is also surprisingly sturdy against Exeggutor, also being only 3HKOed by Razor Leaf, and can whittle it down with repeated uses of Seismic Toss or even Psychic. Jolteon can also stall Exeggutor with Thunder Wave and Recover, though Recover is a fairly uncommon option for it to use. Flareon, while rare within the tier, is a very strong counter to Exeggutor. Flareon takes very little from Razor Leaf and cleanly 2HKOes Exeggutor with Fire Blast. Depending on the status of both Pokemon, Flareon may be able to claim the KO before Exeggutor is able to use Explosion, or burn it and thus survive the Explosion. Exeggutor has the ability to circumvent several of these bad matchups with Explosion, but this often a bad trade, especially when Exeggutor is healthy, as it often more valuable than most of these potential targets.
**Flying-type Pokemon**: Zapdos, Dragonite, Articuno, and Moltres switch into Exeggutor fairly comfortably, as they take very low damage from Razor Leaf, are 4HKOed by Psychic, and threaten 2HKOs with their super effective STAB moves. Dragonite and Moltres also have Wrap and Fire Spin, respectively, if they need just a little more chip damage to secure a knockout. They are all strong options to revenge kill Exeggutor and only really fear Explosion; even then, they will survive a non-critical hit Explosion from full health. Dodrio is typically 4HKOed Razor Leaf, though it is heavily damaged by Psychic, and holds a guaranteed 2hKO with Drill Peck.
**Gengar**: If Exeggutor is lacking Psychic and another foe has already been put to sleep, Exeggutor is virtually impotent against Gengar, as Gengar takes little from Razor Leaf and is immune to Explosion. Paralyzing Gengar with Stun Spore will limit its offensive potential significantly, but it will remain a solid defensive answer to Exeggutor regardless. If Exeggutor does stay in, Gengar will put it to sleep with Hypnosis or knock it out after using Night Shade four times or Sludge three or four times.
**Jynx**: Jynx outspeeds Exeggutor and can very easily dispatch it with Lovely Kiss or a 2HKO from Blizzard. If Jynx has used Amnesia or lands a critical hit, Blizzard becomes a clean OHKO. Exeggutor also just barely misses the 2HKO with Razor Leaf, meaning Jynx can switch in.
**Opposing Exeggutor**: Exeggutor struggles to considerably damaging itself. Unless one Exeggutor is able to put the other to sleep or take advantage of several repeated instances of full paralysis, the matchup will most likely end up with both Exeggutor fainting after an Explosion or one being very weak and immediately susceptible to revenge killing.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/volk.530877/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/enigami.233818/
Grammar checked by:
Last edited:
