Approved on Discord by Amaranth and pac
The on-site Hypno analysis is showing its age andhas a terrifying move order has a set that could use separating due to playstyle differences and generally lacks a lot of content. This partial rewrite aims to fix that by basically making everything clearer. Shellnuts's writing was fine and basically got repositioned in areas, while I added a lot of Hypnosis Hypno details among other things. I think notes on where to play standard Hypno could be put in but it's fairly intuitive and I think Shellnuts did everything just fine.
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[OVERVIEW]
Hypno is a defensive centerpiece of RBY UU that warps how offensive play is executed in the tier; it's a near-automatic addition to most teams. With its great stats, phenomenal typing, and good movepool, Hypno can not only check threats, but also claw back momentum with startling efficiency. Hypno supports its team through spreading paralysis with Thunder Wave, which, due to the threat of Tentacruel locking down slower teams with Wrap, can decide games if it hits the right targets. It's also an offensive threat in its own right, with few Pokemon besides itself that can withstand its mighty STAB Psychic without taking significant damage. Furthermore, it's an effective lead that may put a Pokemon to sleep or spread paralysis. Being an effective check to both Kadabra and opposing Hypno is huge as well, ensuring teams don't crumble to their shared offensive pressure. Because of the variety of roles it fills and how well it can fill those roles, any viable team must have some plan to deal with Hypno.
Unfortunately, due to its subpar Speed, Hypno can be easily pivoted around by common Wrap users such as Dragonite and Tentacruel, which also prevent it from healing. Additionally, Hypno's reliance on Rest for recovery can let strong attackers such as Kangaskhan, Tentacruel, Persian, Articuno, and Dugtrio exploit it, as they can come in on the turn Hypno uses Rest and begin inflicting heavy damage. Hypno's physical bulk isn't stellar either, with Dodrio, Kangaskhan, and Persian all posing a serious threat if it's caught asleep.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Seismic Toss
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Rest
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Hypno's Psychic is one of the hardest special attacks to switch into in RBY UU, and with Hypno's high natural bulk, it's quite difficult to do similar damage in return. This makes Hypno incredible at trading blows, and it's thus an effective early-game progress-maker. Seismic Toss reliably forces opposing Hypno to use Rest while also dealing good damage to opposing Kadabra and the few Pokemon that boost their Special stat, such as Growth Tangela. Forcing opposing Hypno to use Rest is a critical part of making progress in RBY UU, as it lets your Hypno's teammates come in and wreak havoc; particularly, AgiliWrap Dragonite can come in and set up. Thunder Wave makes switching into Hypno an even more daunting task; the drop in Speed from paralysis is game changing in the fast-paced environment of RBY UU, as not having anything to outspeed Tentacruel can end the game on the spot. Rest gives Hypno the ability to recover health and remain a defensive piece throughout the game, especially important against enemy Hypno, and Hypno has plentiful opportunities to come in and burn sleep turns. For example, it can burn sleep turns by coming into a Tentacruel or Dragonite locked into Wrap and thus unable to do any significant damage. In addition, thanks to Hypno's high bulk, it usually only needs to burn a single turn to have enough health to wake up. Rest removing paralysis is also helpful, though it does prevent Hypno from blocking opposing sleep-inducing moves.
Hypno effectively absorbs and spreads paralysis, acts as a key defensive piece, and deals significant damage for nearly any teammates. It's a flexible check to many threats such as Persian and Dugtrio and stifles most common special attackers in the tier, such as Kadabra, opposing Hypno, Electabuzz, Haunter, and the rare Raichu. This defensive utility in conjunction with Thunder Wave makes it the best status spreader in the tier, as it gets on the field more often than other status spreaders. Offensively, Hypno can exert immense pressure on the opposing team, as little else outside of Kadabra, opposing Hypno, Vaporeon, and Articuno can take more than a few hits without being KOed. Even Wrap users like Tentacruel and Dragonite feel uncomfortable staying in on Hypno for too long, fearing taking a Psychic or Thunder Wave if they miss.
[SET]
name: Sleeper
move 1: Hypnosis
move 2: Psychic / Seismic Toss
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Rest / Seismic Toss
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Hypno can run Hypnosis to compress the sleeper role on conventional teams, oftentimes being used to set the stage for offensive powerhouses like Articuno, Dugtrio, and Persian. Whatever move it drops for Hypnosis will stop Hypno from doing everything at once, but the immense value of landing sleep is enough to make this set a very viable and successful build.
Hypnosis Hypno is primarily used as a lead to immediately put a foe to sleep, giving your team the initiative thanks to its positive matchups against other leads, such as Electabuzz and Kadabra, particularly if running Rest in the latter case. However, it does have a shaky matchup against Tentacruel, as its low Speed cedes the initiative to the Tentacruel user and makes it harder to force in and sleep enemy Hypno, though the benefit of paralyzing an enemy Tentacruel if it misses Wrap is significant. It can be used outside of the lead slot for shock value, however, which can outright win simplified game states.
Psychic ensures Hypno remains an offensive threat, making use of its remarkable Special while gaining offensive momentum with Special drops; this guarantees a better matchup against Normal-types like Kangaskhan and allows for significant damage against Tentacruel. Seismic Toss, while less common on this set, is Hypno's best bet against Kadabra and opposing Hypno, allowing it to trade blows well and have more defined early-game progress routes. It should be noted that dropping Psychic will make Hypno much easier to switch in on, especially for Vaporeon and the uncommon Golem, which aren't concerned about Thunder Wave. Rest allows for more mileage throughout a game, but it can be dropped to run both offensive options instead, wherein Hypno takes the more active role of trading with opposing Psychic-types. This aggressive playstyle does come at the loss of much defensive utility, however, and should be kept to specific teams.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Hypno has a boundless movepool that grants it numerous alternative options; the problem is fitting them onto its stacked moveset. Oftentimes, Seismic Toss or Rest is dropped, but this leaves gaping holes in its matchups, so players should take care when reviewing them. Thunder Wave can also be dropped on the Hypnosis set to run Seismic Toss without dropping Psychic, though this greatly limits how well Hypno can spread status through the opposing team and leaves it helpless against Dragonite if Sleep Clause Mod is active.
Counter is a viable move choice, as Hypno has a variety of targets where it can be effective: opposing Kadabra and Hypno especially, which commonly try to trade Seismic Tosses with it. For example, your Hypno can use Seismic Toss against Kadabra initially, and then use Counter as it uses its own for a guaranteed KO, not compromising your own at all. Counter also allows Hypno to deal significant damage to Pokemon like Dodrio, Persian, Kangaskhan, Gyarados, and the odd Clefable. It's also somewhat viable to switch Hypno in on a predicted Hyper Beam to KO the user next turn.
Body Slam is also vaguely viable over Seismic Toss to try and paralyze Kadabra while still 3HKOing it, but it loses the 4HKO against opposing Hypno, making it quite polarizing. Experimental players may look at Meditate and attempt to run physical attacking sets with Body Slam, but these are often a fool's errand, as setting up viably is difficult and dropping another move is simply not affordable. Reflect is a somewhat viable choice for improving Hypno's matchups against Dodrio, Dugtrio, and Kangaskhan, but it fails to help at all against Persian, which can use Slash to ignore it. It also often leaves Hypno's matchups against Kadabra and opposing Hypno significantly worse.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Hypno and Kadabra**: Hypno's Psychic is a very difficult attack to switch into. However, Kadabra and opposing Hypno can take that hit while doing enough damage with Seismic Toss to force it to use Rest. This grants both foes an opportunity to switch into a strong attacker or a faster Wrap user such as Tentacruel, Dragonite, Kangaskhan, or Persian. Of the two, Hypno is better as an answer, since it can absorb paralysis and fulfill its roles without issue, while Kadabra needs to avoid paralysis to remain a consistent answer to Tentacruel. However, Hypnosis can heavily exploit both Psychic-types by catching them on the switch. If Hypno is not using Seismic Toss, then Kadabra completely shuts it down, since it takes virtually nothing from Psychic while forcing Hypno to use Rest with repeated Seismic Tosses. It is worth noting, however, that Kadabra is in KO range of Persian's Slash after taking a Psychic.
**Faster Wrap Users**: Due to its poor Speed tier, Hypno has terrible matchups against Wrap users that are faster than it such as Tentacruel and Dragonite. It is unable to heal off damage while taking Wrap and gets chipped down into KO range either for the Wrap user itself or for one of its teammates, which can come in while Hypno is immobilized by Wrap. However, neither Dragonite nor Tentacruel switches into Hypno easily, since Hypno can catch them on the switch with Thunder Wave to turn the tides.
**Physical Attackers**: While Hypno is hard to wear down, its weaker Defense stat can be exploited by heavy damage dealers such as Dugtrio, Kangaskhan, Persian, Gyarados, Dodrio, Clefable, Golem, and Dragonite. However, none of them enjoy eating a Thunder Wave—barring Dugtrio, Golem, and the occasional Clefable—or a STAB Psychic, so these attackers are best in tandem with a Psychic-type to force the Hypno to use Rest, allowing the physical attacker to come in safely and threaten to KO Hypno.
**Articuno and Dewgong**: Articuno can deal heavy damage to Hypno and 3HKO with its absurdly powerful Blizzard; however, it does not enjoy eating a Thunder Wave and generally needs a Psychic-type to force Hypno to use Rest so it can come in safely. Dewgong can also do threaten with Blizzard but only nets a 3HKO half the time.
**Faster Users of Sleep Moves**: Faster sleep users such as Haunter, Venusaur, Poliwrath, and the odd Venomoth can come in on a predicted double switch or while Hypno is asleep and threaten to put it to sleep. However, all of them are weak to Psychic and cannot switch into Hypno safely, thus requiring a Psychic-type teammate to handle Hypno defensively.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Shellnuts, 491544], [phoopes, 96315], [Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[May, 236353] , [Volk, 530877], [pac, 520967]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [Astra, 240732], [Finland, 517429]]
The on-site Hypno analysis is showing its age and
-----
[OVERVIEW]
Hypno is a defensive centerpiece of RBY UU that warps how offensive play is executed in the tier; it's a near-automatic addition to most teams. With its great stats, phenomenal typing, and good movepool, Hypno can not only check threats, but also claw back momentum with startling efficiency. Hypno supports its team through spreading paralysis with Thunder Wave, which, due to the threat of Tentacruel locking down slower teams with Wrap, can decide games if it hits the right targets. It's also an offensive threat in its own right, with few Pokemon besides itself that can withstand its mighty STAB Psychic without taking significant damage. Furthermore, it's an effective lead that may put a Pokemon to sleep or spread paralysis. Being an effective check to both Kadabra and opposing Hypno is huge as well, ensuring teams don't crumble to their shared offensive pressure. Because of the variety of roles it fills and how well it can fill those roles, any viable team must have some plan to deal with Hypno.
Unfortunately, due to its subpar Speed, Hypno can be easily pivoted around by common Wrap users such as Dragonite and Tentacruel, which also prevent it from healing. Additionally, Hypno's reliance on Rest for recovery can let strong attackers such as Kangaskhan, Tentacruel, Persian, Articuno, and Dugtrio exploit it, as they can come in on the turn Hypno uses Rest and begin inflicting heavy damage. Hypno's physical bulk isn't stellar either, with Dodrio, Kangaskhan, and Persian all posing a serious threat if it's caught asleep.
[SET]
name: Standard
move 1: Psychic
move 2: Seismic Toss
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Rest
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Hypno's Psychic is one of the hardest special attacks to switch into in RBY UU, and with Hypno's high natural bulk, it's quite difficult to do similar damage in return. This makes Hypno incredible at trading blows, and it's thus an effective early-game progress-maker. Seismic Toss reliably forces opposing Hypno to use Rest while also dealing good damage to opposing Kadabra and the few Pokemon that boost their Special stat, such as Growth Tangela. Forcing opposing Hypno to use Rest is a critical part of making progress in RBY UU, as it lets your Hypno's teammates come in and wreak havoc; particularly, AgiliWrap Dragonite can come in and set up. Thunder Wave makes switching into Hypno an even more daunting task; the drop in Speed from paralysis is game changing in the fast-paced environment of RBY UU, as not having anything to outspeed Tentacruel can end the game on the spot. Rest gives Hypno the ability to recover health and remain a defensive piece throughout the game, especially important against enemy Hypno, and Hypno has plentiful opportunities to come in and burn sleep turns. For example, it can burn sleep turns by coming into a Tentacruel or Dragonite locked into Wrap and thus unable to do any significant damage. In addition, thanks to Hypno's high bulk, it usually only needs to burn a single turn to have enough health to wake up. Rest removing paralysis is also helpful, though it does prevent Hypno from blocking opposing sleep-inducing moves.
Hypno effectively absorbs and spreads paralysis, acts as a key defensive piece, and deals significant damage for nearly any teammates. It's a flexible check to many threats such as Persian and Dugtrio and stifles most common special attackers in the tier, such as Kadabra, opposing Hypno, Electabuzz, Haunter, and the rare Raichu. This defensive utility in conjunction with Thunder Wave makes it the best status spreader in the tier, as it gets on the field more often than other status spreaders. Offensively, Hypno can exert immense pressure on the opposing team, as little else outside of Kadabra, opposing Hypno, Vaporeon, and Articuno can take more than a few hits without being KOed. Even Wrap users like Tentacruel and Dragonite feel uncomfortable staying in on Hypno for too long, fearing taking a Psychic or Thunder Wave if they miss.
[SET]
name: Sleeper
move 1: Hypnosis
move 2: Psychic / Seismic Toss
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Rest / Seismic Toss
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Hypno can run Hypnosis to compress the sleeper role on conventional teams, oftentimes being used to set the stage for offensive powerhouses like Articuno, Dugtrio, and Persian. Whatever move it drops for Hypnosis will stop Hypno from doing everything at once, but the immense value of landing sleep is enough to make this set a very viable and successful build.
Hypnosis Hypno is primarily used as a lead to immediately put a foe to sleep, giving your team the initiative thanks to its positive matchups against other leads, such as Electabuzz and Kadabra, particularly if running Rest in the latter case. However, it does have a shaky matchup against Tentacruel, as its low Speed cedes the initiative to the Tentacruel user and makes it harder to force in and sleep enemy Hypno, though the benefit of paralyzing an enemy Tentacruel if it misses Wrap is significant. It can be used outside of the lead slot for shock value, however, which can outright win simplified game states.
Psychic ensures Hypno remains an offensive threat, making use of its remarkable Special while gaining offensive momentum with Special drops; this guarantees a better matchup against Normal-types like Kangaskhan and allows for significant damage against Tentacruel. Seismic Toss, while less common on this set, is Hypno's best bet against Kadabra and opposing Hypno, allowing it to trade blows well and have more defined early-game progress routes. It should be noted that dropping Psychic will make Hypno much easier to switch in on, especially for Vaporeon and the uncommon Golem, which aren't concerned about Thunder Wave. Rest allows for more mileage throughout a game, but it can be dropped to run both offensive options instead, wherein Hypno takes the more active role of trading with opposing Psychic-types. This aggressive playstyle does come at the loss of much defensive utility, however, and should be kept to specific teams.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Hypno has a boundless movepool that grants it numerous alternative options; the problem is fitting them onto its stacked moveset. Oftentimes, Seismic Toss or Rest is dropped, but this leaves gaping holes in its matchups, so players should take care when reviewing them. Thunder Wave can also be dropped on the Hypnosis set to run Seismic Toss without dropping Psychic, though this greatly limits how well Hypno can spread status through the opposing team and leaves it helpless against Dragonite if Sleep Clause Mod is active.
Counter is a viable move choice, as Hypno has a variety of targets where it can be effective: opposing Kadabra and Hypno especially, which commonly try to trade Seismic Tosses with it. For example, your Hypno can use Seismic Toss against Kadabra initially, and then use Counter as it uses its own for a guaranteed KO, not compromising your own at all. Counter also allows Hypno to deal significant damage to Pokemon like Dodrio, Persian, Kangaskhan, Gyarados, and the odd Clefable. It's also somewhat viable to switch Hypno in on a predicted Hyper Beam to KO the user next turn.
Body Slam is also vaguely viable over Seismic Toss to try and paralyze Kadabra while still 3HKOing it, but it loses the 4HKO against opposing Hypno, making it quite polarizing. Experimental players may look at Meditate and attempt to run physical attacking sets with Body Slam, but these are often a fool's errand, as setting up viably is difficult and dropping another move is simply not affordable. Reflect is a somewhat viable choice for improving Hypno's matchups against Dodrio, Dugtrio, and Kangaskhan, but it fails to help at all against Persian, which can use Slash to ignore it. It also often leaves Hypno's matchups against Kadabra and opposing Hypno significantly worse.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Hypno and Kadabra**: Hypno's Psychic is a very difficult attack to switch into. However, Kadabra and opposing Hypno can take that hit while doing enough damage with Seismic Toss to force it to use Rest. This grants both foes an opportunity to switch into a strong attacker or a faster Wrap user such as Tentacruel, Dragonite, Kangaskhan, or Persian. Of the two, Hypno is better as an answer, since it can absorb paralysis and fulfill its roles without issue, while Kadabra needs to avoid paralysis to remain a consistent answer to Tentacruel. However, Hypnosis can heavily exploit both Psychic-types by catching them on the switch. If Hypno is not using Seismic Toss, then Kadabra completely shuts it down, since it takes virtually nothing from Psychic while forcing Hypno to use Rest with repeated Seismic Tosses. It is worth noting, however, that Kadabra is in KO range of Persian's Slash after taking a Psychic.
**Faster Wrap Users**: Due to its poor Speed tier, Hypno has terrible matchups against Wrap users that are faster than it such as Tentacruel and Dragonite. It is unable to heal off damage while taking Wrap and gets chipped down into KO range either for the Wrap user itself or for one of its teammates, which can come in while Hypno is immobilized by Wrap. However, neither Dragonite nor Tentacruel switches into Hypno easily, since Hypno can catch them on the switch with Thunder Wave to turn the tides.
**Physical Attackers**: While Hypno is hard to wear down, its weaker Defense stat can be exploited by heavy damage dealers such as Dugtrio, Kangaskhan, Persian, Gyarados, Dodrio, Clefable, Golem, and Dragonite. However, none of them enjoy eating a Thunder Wave—barring Dugtrio, Golem, and the occasional Clefable—or a STAB Psychic, so these attackers are best in tandem with a Psychic-type to force the Hypno to use Rest, allowing the physical attacker to come in safely and threaten to KO Hypno.
**Articuno and Dewgong**: Articuno can deal heavy damage to Hypno and 3HKO with its absurdly powerful Blizzard; however, it does not enjoy eating a Thunder Wave and generally needs a Psychic-type to force Hypno to use Rest so it can come in safely. Dewgong can also do threaten with Blizzard but only nets a 3HKO half the time.
**Faster Users of Sleep Moves**: Faster sleep users such as Haunter, Venusaur, Poliwrath, and the odd Venomoth can come in on a predicted double switch or while Hypno is asleep and threaten to put it to sleep. However, all of them are weak to Psychic and cannot switch into Hypno safely, thus requiring a Psychic-type teammate to handle Hypno defensively.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Shellnuts, 491544], [phoopes, 96315], [Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[May, 236353] , [Volk, 530877], [pac, 520967]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [Astra, 240732], [Finland, 517429]]
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