Poliwag: So Strongth

v

protected by a silver spoon
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Hello! As you may know, I like Poliwag. A lot. I am here to talk to you about Poliwag and how to properly use it. What is so special about Poliwag, you ask? I’ll tell you.




Poliwag’s strengths:
-19 Speed
-Water-typing and immunity to water
-Unresisted coverage
-Belly Drum
-Hypnosis
-Encore

Poliwag’s weaknesses:
-Easily KO’d
-Soundly beaten by Elekid, Diglett and Voltorb
-Ties majority of sweeps
-Outsped by Scarfers

However, with the advent of HeartGold/SoulSilver, a Bellywag sweep has almost never had such an easy time setting itself up. Well, not itself exactly. You see, Poliwag was excellent before Platinum because Hypnosis had 70% accuracy, allowing it to set-up relatively easily. However, the 10% drop was a huge hit to Poliwag. Add that onto the fact that it had become predictable and you suddenly had a weak and more often than not useless Pokemon. Enter HGSS.

Poliwag got one move in HGSS that it cares about. That move, of course, is Encore! Now Poliwag has a bit of an edge to it. You can risk staying in and being Encored on your useless move and letting it BD for free, or switch and risk being Slept and letting Poli BD for free. Additionally, its favorite partner Gligar became known as a RP sweeper, making it all the better for the trio of support Poliwag needs.

It is important to understand something about Poliwag before using it. It is not a Pokemon which can just be slapped onto a team such as Elekid, Diglett or Bronzor. The team must be built around eliminating Poliwag’s checks, something akin to a SubAgilityPetaya Empoleon team in OU. Unlike such a team, however, Poliwag typically cannot come out midgame. It is exclusively an endgamer. That said, it OHKOs everything in the game with a sole exception, that being Lileep with 3 Stockpiles.

Have I gotten your attention yet? 48 Attack with unresisted coverage hits like a meteor. Not just a truck, a meteor. Now, how does one go about setting up such a magnificent and satisfying victory, you ask? It’s very simple and only three Pokemon are required. Poliwag, Gligar and Bronzor. Bronzor sets up obligatory Stealth Rock to remove pesky Sashers and then Dual Screens to allow Gligar to take an Ice move.

From there, Gligar Rock Polishes and Baton Passes to the waiting Poliwag as it is hit by an Ice or Water move. Now comes decision time. Poliwag can either Encore the user of the Water/Ice move that does nearly nothing to the tadpole, or can Hypnosis at 40% risk of dying. It depends on the set and what you’re comfortable with. If you feel they will switch, then BD on the switch. Congratulations, you’ve just won. Well, maybe. If you’ve taken proper care to remove Meowth and Sucker Punchers, then yes, you’ve won.

So please, give Bellywag a try sometime! It can be difficult to pull off, but there is nothing in Pokemon as satisfying as a Bellywag sweep.

The Best Set in History said:
Poliwag@Oran Berry
36 HP/36 Atk/116 Def/196 Spe/116 SDef
Jolly Nature
-Hypnosis/Encore
-Belly Drum
-Waterfall
-Return
 
You might want to mention that the biggest issue with attempting a Bellywag sweep is the insane amount of priority in the game: Fake Out users can wear you down quite easily, and immunity teams have to be played around with carefully since they tend to use #3 in usage Croagunk(I think that's what it's called), popularly known for it's priority abusal. Even Shadow Sneak on Mismagius, a ghost also commonly used on the immunity teams, can be used in tantem with its Normal immunity to wear you down.

Playing you, I remember almost shitting my pants when you tried to get that exact thing going against me. Thankfully, I was able to abuse Priority Squirtle and Shadow Sneak Duskull(I think) to wear it down. Interesting assessment, just mention priority.
 

little gk

competitive oosos player
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I've got to admit playing with a BellyWag is extremely fun, but it's equally frustrating. This can go wrong in so many ways, from Gligar being Taunted, to their late gamer simply out speeding you. The caution and prediction necessary to pull off a sweep, then, almost becomes too much when you can use something that doesn't need as much support. That being said Poliwag is still extremely effective when you get it set-up and is just as much fun to play with.
 
Sounds kinda like Bellyzard in OU. And yes, I know you're fond of Poliwag, Lord Vader.... I seem to recall reading a War story in which your Poliwag was named after the Hulk. xP
 

iss

let's play bw lc!
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Eh, BellyWag is one of the most fun sweepers in LC. But it's kinda like using Pikachu in OU; it hits like a truck, but a light wind will kill it.
 
I've always found Bellywag super easy to play around even if it gets set up with +2 Speed. Croagunk is such an easy counter as long as you carry a ghost too. Basically all I do is send in Croagunk on Waterfall, Fake Out. Switch to Ghost. Send Croagunk back in on Waterfall. Fake Out. Vacuum Wave. GG!
 
I used a similar strategy but passed SD from Gligar to Buizel. Although Buizel obviously doesn't get Hypnosis, it has the all important priority in Aqua Jet and can BP out if need be.
 
I personally prefer SubBellyDrum Poliwag; if you can get your set up to work you get +1 speed, or alot of you health back.
 

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