Typing:
Base Stats: 60/65/60/130/75/110 (500 BST)
Ability: Cursed Body
Notable Moves:
Pros:
*130 Special Attack makes for a very strong attacker, with (currently) perfect coverage in two moves and the ability to boost its power to frightening levels with Nasty Plot
*110 Speed isn't bad either, giving Gengar a good Speed tier against offensive and defensive Pokemon alike
*Although Ghost/Poison is sketchy defensively, it has key resistances to Fighting, Grass, Fairy, and Bug
*Gengar personally appreciates Knock Off being less prevalent in Scarlet/Violet, as well as Pursuit still being locked in the basement
Cons:
*Gengar's paper-thin defenses cause it to fold to any moderately strong attack
*While 110 Speed is still quite serviceable, Gengar can find itself struggling to keep up in one of the fastest-paced iterations of OU to date
*Ghost/Poison also "gifts" Gengar common weaknesses to Dark, Ghost, and Ground
*Reliant on prediction to perform well, as both Shadow Ball and Focus Blast can be played around
Terastal Potential:
*Ghost Tera gives Shadow Ball the extra power to muscle past some of Gengar's usual switch-ins, and turns Hex into a nuclear bomb under the right conditions.
*Fighting Tera can also be used to stomach a Sucker Punch or the like, and hit hard in return with Focus Blast. It also lets you use Fighting Tera Blast if you really hate missing Focus Blast.
Potential Sets:
SubNP
Gengar @ Leftovers
Ability: Cursed Body
Tera Type: Ghost / Fighting
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Substitute
- Nasty Plot
- Shadow Ball
- Focus Blast / Tera Blast
One of Gengar's defining sets from SW/SH, it returns to punch holes in defensive cores once again. Substitute eases prediction, and can be used to help set up a Nasty Plot if Gengar can force a switch. Shadow Ball and Focus Blast have perfect coverage on their own, with Tera Blast being an option on Fighting Tera sets.
Life Orb Attacker
Gengar @ Life Orb
Ability: Cursed Body
Tera Type: Ghost / Fighting
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Shadow Ball
- Sludge Bomb
- Focus Blast / Tera Blast
- Taunt
With a Life Orb, Gengar gains more immediate power at the cost of 10% of its HP every attack. Taunt shuts down moves like Spore from Amoonguss, Roost and Defog from Corviknight, or Stealth Rock/Spikes from the tier's many hazard setters.
Other Options:
Anywhere Shadow Ball is on a set, Hex can be there instead. The condition for its maximum power, however, can make it situational. Choice-locked sets with Trick are also possibilities, but they are even more prediction reliant. Gengar actually got Toxic Spikes this generation, so it could potentially try its hand at a suicide lead set with TSpikes/Shadow Ball/Focus Blast/Destiny Bond or something similar.
