Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Ononokusu, the broken shit

In a land where 130+ base stats were given away like candy on Halloween, this thing has just shown its face. It makes me wonder, has GameFreak gone too far with the stats?

One of the most proclaimed Pokemon out of Generation 5, Ononokusu is glaring at us with that badass looking axe face and we just can't look away. There's only one way to put it, this thing a BAMF! This thing boasts a monster 147 base attack stat, the second among non-legendaries behind only Rampardos. Wait...147...must be a typo. No, I'm so serious, 147 base attack. That also means that it has a STAB Outrage on par withRayquaza. We've all seen what all the previous dragons have been able to do, specifically Garchomp and Salamence. How will our Axeface reshape the metagame? In a land where 130+ base stats were given away like candy on Halloween, has GameFreak gone too far?

Below, here are Ononokusu's sprite and learnset, read below to learn more about it.



Type: Dragon
Base Stats: 76/147/90/60/70/97
Abilities: Rivalry/Mold Breaker
Ononokusu Learnset

As you see, this thing really is a BAMF. Here are some interesting facts about it below.

Pure Dragon typing: Ononokusu is special, we know that already. What makes it even cooler is its typing. We've seen Garchomp and Salamence in action, as well as Dragonite, Flygon, and even Altaria. All of them were kickass. However, they all had the same drawbacks, a 4x weakness to Ice. Ononokusu, unlike them is only 2x weak to Ice, this seems to present us with some new opportunities, no?

Taunt: Oh boy, this thing gets Taunt too? I'm smelling a real wallbreaker out of this. With Taunt, this monster finds new dimension, expect some of the competitive brains to find some way to turn Ononokusu into a set-up sweeper, if they can.

Outrage: Like I stated before, this thing has an Outrage on par with Rayquaza. At 147 base attack, Ononokusu's attack is only 3 base points less than Rayquaza's. At level 100 in optimal conditions, this thing can hit 432 base attack.

Ice and Dragon weaknesses: Being a dragon, unless your name is Kingdra, Weavile isn't exactly going to be your best friend. I know you don't like cold weather Axeface, so maybe some of your Dragon friends will be able to heat you up with some super-effective Dragon moves, maybe Dragon Pulse? Gl with those weaknesses, bro.

Below, you'll see some sample sets for Ononokusu. If i haven't posted them already, they'll be up soon.

Ononokusu TM list


Learnable TMs: TM01 - Claw Sharpen, TM02 - Dragon Claw, TM05 - Roar, TM06 - Toxic, TM10 - Hidden Power, TM11 - Sunny Day, TM12 - Taunt, TM17 - Protect, TM18 - Rain Dance, TM21 - Frustration, TM27 - Return, TM28 - Dig, TM32 - Double Team, TM39 - Rock Tomb, TM40 - Aerial Ace, TM42 - Facade, TM44 - Rest, TM45 - Attract, TM48 - Troll, TM54 - False Swipe, TM56 - Fling, TM59 - Complete Burn, TM65 - Shadow Claw, TM66 - Payback, TM68 - Giga Impact, TM75 - Swords Dance, TM81 - X-Scissor, TM82 - Dragon Tail, TM84 - Poison Jab, TM87 - Swagger, TM90 - Substitute, TM94 - Rock Smash, HM01 - Cut, HM04 - Strength

Egg Moves

Counter, Focus Energy, Reversal, Endure, Razor Wind, Night Slash, Endeavor, Iron Tail, Dragon Pulse, Harden

Possible Sets:
These sets are subject to change as I learn more about Ononokusu.
Choice Scarf
Ability - Mold Breaker
Item - Choice Scarf
Nature - Adamant/Jolly
EVs - 4 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
Moves - Outrage/Shadow Claw/Earthquake/(filler TBA)

147 base attack, dragon STAB, and currently the strongest non-Ubers Outrage is an LOL! Ononokusu has plenty of toys to work with, including Dragon Dance, but it's frailty suggests that it won't work too well as a set-up sweeper. This set works to increase. With this set, Ononokusu is hitting 432 base attack and 439 base speed, outspeeding all base 130s and Electrode included. With a Choice Scarf, Ononokusu is only being outsped by Ninjask and Agirudaa. Wait for this set to be one of the standards on Smogon in some time. STAB Outrage from this thing is hitting everything, even Skarmory hard. Watch out for this set, especially if it turns out to later get Stone Edge.

Choice Band
Ability - Mold Breaker
Item - Choice Band
Nature - Adamant/Jolly
EVs - 4 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
Moves - Outrage/Shadow Claw/Earthquake/(filler TBA)

While the previous set is here to boost Ononokusu's speed in order to check its frailty, this set is just a bulldozer. I'm so serious, this set justemanates raw power. Ononokusu is already pretty fast at 97 base Speed, just 3 points short of the speed bump. With a Choice Band, Adamant Nature, and 252 Attack EVs, this thing hits 648 base attack. Stop and consider that quickly.

Substitute Dragon Dance
Ability - Mold Breaker
Item - Leftovers/Life Orb
Nature - Adamant/Jolly
EVs - 252 Attack/40 Defence/212 Speed
Moves - Dragon Claw/Earthquake/Substitute/Dragon Dance

Be ready to see a set like this in standard play. While this set lacks the immediate speed of the Scarf set or the straightaway raw power of the Band set, this set combines the two while maintaining the ability to switch attacks. Behind a sub, Ononokusu's defenses are decent enough to get up at least one Dragon Dance. After a Dragon Dance, Ononokusu gets the speed of the Scarf set and the power of the Band set while maintaining the ability to switch attacks.

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