Tofu's Table: Snorlax Set Spotlight!
This is a quick blog post just to tide things over while I get things set up for Regulation H! At the moment, I am participating in the Opal League, a team draft league that provides me the opportunity to collaborate and play against strong players.
[If you want to learn more about it, visit the DevonCorp page! Shoutouts to the Ultra Space Timelords for being a great team.]
During my matches, and all throughout Regulation G, I have been finding areas to use Snorlax in. As much as I can accept the shortcomings of all my favourite Pokémon, I worked hard so I can apply all my knowledge in bringing out their best potential. Staying true to the theme of Trainer and Pokémon, right?
I did.
I wholeheartedly believe this is one of the best Snorlax sets I have ever made. It has proven its logic time and time again on the ladder and in my key matches [replays included!]. With absolute pride, I present my Snorlax.
The Set
Snorlax (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 164 HP / 252 Def / 92 SpD
Impish Nature
- Yawn
- Fissure
- Double-Edge
- Helping Hand [The set details are to mimic my shiny Sleepy Mark Snorlax that I found in Wistful Fields]
Calcs:
252+ Atk Urshifu-Single Strike Close Combat vs. 164 HP / 252+ Def Snorlax: 212-252 (82.8 - 98.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Urshifu-Single Strike Wicked Blow vs. 164 HP / 252+ Def Tera-Ghost Snorlax on a critical hit: 200-236 (78.1 - 92.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Calyrex-Ice Rider Glacial Lance vs. 164 HP / 252+ Def Thick Fat Snorlax: 48-57 (18.7 - 22.2%) -- possible 6HKO after Leftovers recovery
+1 252+ Def Zamazenta-Crowned Body Press vs. 164 HP / 252+ Def Snorlax: 222-264 (86.7 - 103.1%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO
0 Atk Zamazenta-Crowned Heavy Slam (40 BP) vs. +1 164 HP / 252+ Def Snorlax: 16-21 (6.2 - 8.2%) -- possibly the worst move ever
252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Tera-Fire Koraidon Flare Blitz vs. 164 HP / 252+ Def Thick Fat Tera-Ghost Snorlax in Sun: 100-118 (39 - 46%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Choice Specs Beads of Ruin Chi-Yu Overheat vs. 164 HP / 92 SpD Thick Fat Snorlax: 108-127 (42.1 - 49.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
I have to admit, it is a pretty strange set. You might also recognise the EVs from my previous blogpost: Curse of the Sun!
I transitioned that set to a Yawn-Curse based one:
Snorlax (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Thick Fat
Shiny: Yes
Tera Type: Ghost
EVs: 164 HP / 252 Def / 92 SpD
Impish Nature
- Curse
- Yawn
- Facade / Heavy Slam
- Crunch / Body PressI tried a myriad of movesets to tackle different Pokémon such as Flutter Mane, Gholdengo, and keeping in mind the Calyrex and Zamazenta matchups.
However, I ran into a lot of issues dealing with Taunt, Spores, and outputting any meaningful pressure outside of Sleep turns. Even with retaining Defence boosts, it didn't feel particularly great. Despite Normal-type and Thick Fat providing great resistance to both Calyrex-Rider STABs, you didn't necessarily do much in return.
I also tried a more offensive set, such as Assault Vest and Belly Drum but the offense was still lacking on AV, while the lack of bulk was undesirable on Belly Drum.
Digging deeper into Snorlax's moveset I came across Fissure. Personally, I have never run OHKO moves and didn't really think much of them aside from understanding them as a method of an out. The lightbulb moment happened shortly after this.
The Logic
Yawn dictates the tempo of the game. Opposing Pokémon will have to use a turn to switch, or accept Sleep as a payoff for staying on a turn they are Drowsy.
On a Drowsy turn, Snorlax is fairly free to move to either pressure the other slot with Yawn, which can force a Protect to come out or punish the switching slot. This can apply to your side-slot as well.
Double-Edge is the strongest STAB Snorlax has that it can realistically execute consistently. This is one of our punish methods. We do not want something like Body Slam as Paralyze will interfere with the Yawn-cycle, and there are not enough Burns going around to justify Facade.
Breaks Focus Sash.
Brings opposing HP into range for relevant calcs.
Consistent damage output/KO potential as the game progresses.
Fissure is our big button. Capitalizing on the identified punish turns, if Double-Edge does not seem desirable or necessary, you can use Fissure to grab a big payout and potentially win off of it. Fissure can also give you an out in a losing board state, keeping you in the game until the very end. For Regulation G, this also retains my matchup against Zamazenta when combined with Tera-Ghost.
The Yawn-Fissure system essentially works to choke out opponent resources by forcing them to make passive plays or use up turns in an attempt to get rid of Snorlax.
For example, an opponent having to click Taunt into Snorlax to try and stop Yawn means they have given you a turn to move for free. This essentially gives you free turns to click something like Fissure or Double-Edge. Big payout potential. Remember that turns are a resource.
The last move on the list is Helping Hand. Essentially capitalizing on a switch turn, you potentiate your side-slots damage output to go for big damage into an expected switch. This generally allows Snorlax to still contribute to the match if the rest of the moves are no longer feasible for any reason.
Other moves I have had in this slot are Protect, to have a defensive option as Snorlax will draw pressure to itself thanks to Yawn.
Counter can also work as a more offensive variation that takes advantage of the hits you expect to take and can also score a KO. Particularly effective against physically heavy teams
Overall, I think it's a really fun and consistent set. Despite the lack of being able to damage a Ghost-type consistently, Yawn still affects them, Fissure can still hit, and you can lean on your team to assist in those situations. That's what they're there for!
Now, before you leave, it's best to show you the theory in action!
The Games
Just a couple of G3s from Opal League matches, which coincidentally showed both Calyrex formes. Shoutouts to my opponents, they are great players, massive respect for them.
First up, against NarretVGC, Game 3:
[Gen 9] VGC 2024 Reg G: Narret VGC vs. WoodTofu - Replays - Pokémon Showdown!
Snorlax took full advantage of its immunity to Astral Barrage to dictate the game and prevent Calyrex-Shadow Rider from gaining any momentum.
Second, against Kaneoji, Senior NAIC 2024 Champion and LAIC 2024 Runner-up:
[Gen 9] VGC 2024 Reg G: WoodTofu vs. Kaneoji - Replays - Pokémon Showdown!
Snorlax's control and longevity allowed me to have enough room to try and create a favorable board state. Unfortunately, Calyrex-Ice Rider's offensive pressure did not make it easy to position. However, with a bit of luck, Snorlax pushed through for the win!