I've been testing around with Gengar a lot this gen. I think it's an incredibly underrated pokemon, and one of the best "partner mons". What I mean by that is the amount of things that switch into Gengar are very limited, and there are several good pokemon that can check or counter the pretty much the entire handful of mons that threaten gengar both defensively and offensively. Dugtrio and Keldeo are both great partners that I've tried in the past, but with this team I wanted to try Mega Mawile (for the first time this gen too, which is strange because Mawile in PU was one of my favorite things to use).
This is the full team. It borders on that line between balance and straight up offence, which is one of the funnest playstyles to dabble in. You have enough raw offence that you can make and get rewarded for high risk high reward plays, but at the same time you have a defensive buffer to act as kind of a safety net for reliably switching into things. A few major things to admit: it's extremely slow and has a lack of reliable speed control. I've got satisfactory checks to the offensive threats that outspeed my team but this is still the main Achilles heel of the team. I guess I could make Gengar choice scarf and then change around the Magnezone set but that could end up leaving me weaker to stall. On that note, it also struggles a little bit versus stall if Dugtrio is able to trap Mawile, and it's for that reason that I might change my set to life orb but for now I like the set. Not only those things, but the team has no hazard removal which means sticky webs are there to stay versus me, as well as spikes and honestly that sucks a lot. I hate getting spikes thrown up, even with Magnezone, because I can't even outpace them because I don't have spikes of my own. Anyways, here's the breakdown:
Gengar (M) @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sludge Bomb
- Shadow Ball
- Taunt
- Substitute
This is kind of a fun Gengar set. Missing out on focus blast is what it is, but if you miss with focus blast then you're missing out regardless. In general, focus blast is to hit Heatran, Ferrothorn, Tyranitar and Muk I guess. But Heatran these days are usually offensive without leftovers so shadow ball can wear it down to the point where you would never want to risk focus blast in the first place. Ferrothorn I can trap with Magnezone so it's not worth missing and losing my gengar when I have more reliable counter play. Muk doesnt take anything from focus blast anyways and if I'm planning to focus blast predicting the Muk I'd be better off just doubling into Mawile in the first place. Tyranitar is the only thing I would find myself missing focus blast for, but having Mawile in the back makes the team more sound versus Ttar matchups if I can get it in on a double. Taunt lets Genger break stall to a certain extent: the only mon on stall that can comfortably switch into it is Chansey (which Gengar beats 1v1) as both Sableye and Toxapex die to shadow ball into never-ending-nightmare. I'm running sludge bomb over wave because without a life orb there aren't any notible things the extra power on sludge wave can offer, and sludge bomb is more risk free to spam versus landorus/Zygarde teams as you don't lose momentum if they switch in their ground type in and get poisoned as a result. I'm running sub as my last move for a few reasons. First off, I'm a sucker for sub Gengar. But Gengar forces a lot of switches and often a lot of sacs. If you sub on somebody sacing their 12% death fodder you gain ridiculous momentum, plus with never-ending-nightmare you often have the raw power to sub and then OHKO the switchin (while keeping your sub) in a scenerio where without the z move you'd have needed to 2hko the switch in.
Mawile (M) @ Mawilite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 128 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 124 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough/Iron Head
- Thunder Punch
- Sucker Punch
- Swords Dance/Fire Fang
As mentioned, Mawile is here to compliment Gengar. Mawile gains initiative on the likes of Tyranitar or Muk (even though I think Muk is terrible) and also threatens defensive mons that blanket check Gengar like Celesteela, Toxapex or Sableye. I've been running play rough so far, but there's been a few times I missed iron head for Magearna Venusaur and the like but I like the idea of bopping Zapdos, Rotom, Mega Xard on the switch as well as OHKOing Sableye. I'm running enough speed to outpace assault vest Magearna and sassy Celesteela. I don't outpace Skarmory but I'm willing to take an iron head (assuming they're even running steel STAB over flying STAB) to get the extra bulk verus other teams. Besides, stall Skarm carries counter over other attacking moves so the speed is irrelevant (although i have to admit letting a spike get up is absolutely dradful). Sucker punch goes without saying, as Mawile's priority can clean through offence. My last move I've been unsure on, swords dance can let Mawile actually demolish offence if it can boost as well as lets Mawile break through certain defensive threats. Fire fang seems redundant to me with Magnezone in the back, but I'm not certain.
Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Volt Switch
The third member to the team is here for a very specific purpose: to break down specific mons that give Gengar and Mawile trouble. Magnezone can efficiently trap the likes of Ferrothorn, opposing Mega Mawile,Celesteela/Skarmory, Scizor and Kartana as well as able to secure chip damage on Heatran and Metagross. Magnezone also checks all four Tapus for the team, all of which can threaten the team in their own ways. Even scarfed Magnezone is still really slow, so Mega Alakazam, Volcarona Gyarados or Zygarde at +1, any relevent scarfer, Tapu Koko, Greninja and Tornadus all outspeed my entire team. Hp fire is obviously the move that makes the set relevant in trapping the aforementioned threats, and thunderbolt-flash cannon-volt switch are the best available STABs Magnezone has access to.
Garchomp (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 240 HP / 176 Def / 92 Spe
Impish Nature
IVs: 30 Atk / 30 Def
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
- Fire Blast
Having the bulk of my offensive presence satisfied, I began looking into defensive answers to things that would otherwise run through my team. I chose Garchomp as my stealth rocker, as well as my fire resist. The standard set lives an Inferno Overdrive and a Shattered Psyche from Volcarona after a quiver dance, as well as barely dodges out on the 2hko by Charizard Y and answers offensive Heatran. Garchomp can also chip away at Metagross and Medicham with skin+helmet so that they can be revenge killed easily, as well as outspeeds and checks base 70 speed and below pokemon like Bisharp, Volcarona, Mawile, and Magearna. Fire blast is specifically for the likes of Scizor, Ferrothorn and Tapu Bulu. I've been looking into running more spdef but at the moment this is the spread I'm using.
Rotom-Wash @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
- Volt Switch
Rotom is added to the team for a few reasons. Rotom is a ground immunity (which is ackward to say when two of the best ground types in the tier hit through levitate) which is nice for offensive or defensive Landorus or sand rush Drill, both of which let me fire off a wisp. It's a good pivot into Celesteela and Tapu Fini. But, above all else, really the entire reason I added it to the team, is because of Greninja. Greninja is busted so it's hard to call it a check but it's the closest thing you can get without running like freaking Chansey or something. Rotom can pivot into BB Gren or even protean Gren the majority of the time and freely click volt switch.
Tangrowth (M)
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Earthquake
Last but in no way least, Tangrowth glues the entire team together. One of the best pivots in the tier, Tangrowth reliably and consistantly checks Tapu Koko, Zygarde, Serperior, bulky waters and can pivot into some incredibly powerful special attackers just to scout what they're going to do, like Tapu Lele, Latios, Mega Alakazamand Greninja (I wouldn't call it a counter to Lele, Zam or Ninja but it can scout what they're going to do and is often able to force them out). Hp ice is pretty much exlusively for Zygarde but has the added benefit of snipping Landorus, Earthquake hits almost every grass resist that doesnt care for hp ice (Heatran, Mawile and Metagross all take a really nice chunk). Knock off punishes switches and it extremely spammable when you're not in the mood to predict with EQ since nothing really likes switching into a knock off. And of coarse giga drain reliable STAB.
This is the full team. It borders on that line between balance and straight up offence, which is one of the funnest playstyles to dabble in. You have enough raw offence that you can make and get rewarded for high risk high reward plays, but at the same time you have a defensive buffer to act as kind of a safety net for reliably switching into things. A few major things to admit: it's extremely slow and has a lack of reliable speed control. I've got satisfactory checks to the offensive threats that outspeed my team but this is still the main Achilles heel of the team. I guess I could make Gengar choice scarf and then change around the Magnezone set but that could end up leaving me weaker to stall. On that note, it also struggles a little bit versus stall if Dugtrio is able to trap Mawile, and it's for that reason that I might change my set to life orb but for now I like the set. Not only those things, but the team has no hazard removal which means sticky webs are there to stay versus me, as well as spikes and honestly that sucks a lot. I hate getting spikes thrown up, even with Magnezone, because I can't even outpace them because I don't have spikes of my own. Anyways, here's the breakdown:
Gengar (M) @ Ghostium Z
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sludge Bomb
- Shadow Ball
- Taunt
- Substitute
This is kind of a fun Gengar set. Missing out on focus blast is what it is, but if you miss with focus blast then you're missing out regardless. In general, focus blast is to hit Heatran, Ferrothorn, Tyranitar and Muk I guess. But Heatran these days are usually offensive without leftovers so shadow ball can wear it down to the point where you would never want to risk focus blast in the first place. Ferrothorn I can trap with Magnezone so it's not worth missing and losing my gengar when I have more reliable counter play. Muk doesnt take anything from focus blast anyways and if I'm planning to focus blast predicting the Muk I'd be better off just doubling into Mawile in the first place. Tyranitar is the only thing I would find myself missing focus blast for, but having Mawile in the back makes the team more sound versus Ttar matchups if I can get it in on a double. Taunt lets Genger break stall to a certain extent: the only mon on stall that can comfortably switch into it is Chansey (which Gengar beats 1v1) as both Sableye and Toxapex die to shadow ball into never-ending-nightmare. I'm running sludge bomb over wave because without a life orb there aren't any notible things the extra power on sludge wave can offer, and sludge bomb is more risk free to spam versus landorus/Zygarde teams as you don't lose momentum if they switch in their ground type in and get poisoned as a result. I'm running sub as my last move for a few reasons. First off, I'm a sucker for sub Gengar. But Gengar forces a lot of switches and often a lot of sacs. If you sub on somebody sacing their 12% death fodder you gain ridiculous momentum, plus with never-ending-nightmare you often have the raw power to sub and then OHKO the switchin (while keeping your sub) in a scenerio where without the z move you'd have needed to 2hko the switch in.
Mawile (M) @ Mawilite
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 128 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def / 124 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Play Rough/Iron Head
- Thunder Punch
- Sucker Punch
- Swords Dance/Fire Fang
As mentioned, Mawile is here to compliment Gengar. Mawile gains initiative on the likes of Tyranitar or Muk (even though I think Muk is terrible) and also threatens defensive mons that blanket check Gengar like Celesteela, Toxapex or Sableye. I've been running play rough so far, but there's been a few times I missed iron head for Magearna Venusaur and the like but I like the idea of bopping Zapdos, Rotom, Mega Xard on the switch as well as OHKOing Sableye. I'm running enough speed to outpace assault vest Magearna and sassy Celesteela. I don't outpace Skarmory but I'm willing to take an iron head (assuming they're even running steel STAB over flying STAB) to get the extra bulk verus other teams. Besides, stall Skarm carries counter over other attacking moves so the speed is irrelevant (although i have to admit letting a spike get up is absolutely dradful). Sucker punch goes without saying, as Mawile's priority can clean through offence. My last move I've been unsure on, swords dance can let Mawile actually demolish offence if it can boost as well as lets Mawile break through certain defensive threats. Fire fang seems redundant to me with Magnezone in the back, but I'm not certain.
Magnezone @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Volt Switch
The third member to the team is here for a very specific purpose: to break down specific mons that give Gengar and Mawile trouble. Magnezone can efficiently trap the likes of Ferrothorn, opposing Mega Mawile,Celesteela/Skarmory, Scizor and Kartana as well as able to secure chip damage on Heatran and Metagross. Magnezone also checks all four Tapus for the team, all of which can threaten the team in their own ways. Even scarfed Magnezone is still really slow, so Mega Alakazam, Volcarona Gyarados or Zygarde at +1, any relevent scarfer, Tapu Koko, Greninja and Tornadus all outspeed my entire team. Hp fire is obviously the move that makes the set relevant in trapping the aforementioned threats, and thunderbolt-flash cannon-volt switch are the best available STABs Magnezone has access to.
Garchomp (M) @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 240 HP / 176 Def / 92 Spe
Impish Nature
IVs: 30 Atk / 30 Def
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Dragon Tail
- Fire Blast
Having the bulk of my offensive presence satisfied, I began looking into defensive answers to things that would otherwise run through my team. I chose Garchomp as my stealth rocker, as well as my fire resist. The standard set lives an Inferno Overdrive and a Shattered Psyche from Volcarona after a quiver dance, as well as barely dodges out on the 2hko by Charizard Y and answers offensive Heatran. Garchomp can also chip away at Metagross and Medicham with skin+helmet so that they can be revenge killed easily, as well as outspeeds and checks base 70 speed and below pokemon like Bisharp, Volcarona, Mawile, and Magearna. Fire blast is specifically for the likes of Scizor, Ferrothorn and Tapu Bulu. I've been looking into running more spdef but at the moment this is the spread I'm using.
Rotom-Wash @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
- Hydro Pump
- Will-O-Wisp
- Pain Split
- Volt Switch
Rotom is added to the team for a few reasons. Rotom is a ground immunity (which is ackward to say when two of the best ground types in the tier hit through levitate) which is nice for offensive or defensive Landorus or sand rush Drill, both of which let me fire off a wisp. It's a good pivot into Celesteela and Tapu Fini. But, above all else, really the entire reason I added it to the team, is because of Greninja. Greninja is busted so it's hard to call it a check but it's the closest thing you can get without running like freaking Chansey or something. Rotom can pivot into BB Gren or even protean Gren the majority of the time and freely click volt switch.
Tangrowth (M)
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- Giga Drain
- Knock Off
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Earthquake
Last but in no way least, Tangrowth glues the entire team together. One of the best pivots in the tier, Tangrowth reliably and consistantly checks Tapu Koko, Zygarde, Serperior, bulky waters and can pivot into some incredibly powerful special attackers just to scout what they're going to do, like Tapu Lele, Latios, Mega Alakazamand Greninja (I wouldn't call it a counter to Lele, Zam or Ninja but it can scout what they're going to do and is often able to force them out). Hp ice is pretty much exlusively for Zygarde but has the added benefit of snipping Landorus, Earthquake hits almost every grass resist that doesnt care for hp ice (Heatran, Mawile and Metagross all take a really nice chunk). Knock off punishes switches and it extremely spammable when you're not in the mood to predict with EQ since nothing really likes switching into a knock off. And of coarse giga drain reliable STAB.
