OU Alolan Marowak

[Niadev]

I personally think SD + 3 attacks deserves a mention as a stallbreaker

The problem with it is is that it loses the crippling utility of Will-o-Wisp/Stealth Rock if it runs that set. Swords Dance used to be a slash on the main set but it was moved down to OO for the aforementioned reason. SD's viable but not so viable that it gets it's own set unless the 3rd QC person says it should be.

 

[volx757]

188 HP, 252 Attack and 68 speed evs and an Adamant nature allow Marowak to hit as hard as possible while still outspeeding minus speed Celesteela and avoiding a 2HKO from Tapu Koko's Brave Bird.
* Alternatively, a spread of 248 HP / 96 Atk / 96 Def / 68 Spe with Impish outspeeds minus speed Celesteela while 96 Atk ensures the 2HKO on Tapu Fini with Shadow Bone and Toxapex with Bonemerang, while the defensive investment lets it take physical attacks better, preserving it's longevity.

The second spread here seems like the more relevant of the two. Alowak is more of a tank than a wallbreaker, the wallbreaking is just a nice bonus courtesy of thick club. But it's primary role is definitely as a defensive mon, absorbing/negating some of the most powerful attacks in the meta.

It's unclear what exactly is the benefit of the max attack spread outside of just doing more damage, which, again, is almost secondary to the fact that this poke beats out a lot of top tier threats due to it's defensive capabilities. The second spread has the speed for celesteela, HP investment cause you eat ice beams and moonblasts just as often as uturns and iron heads so you need to take hits on both sides, and the rest evenly divided between it's most usable stats (the physical tank stats), which fits more with alowak's actual role in the meta. In the same vein, Fire Punch should be the first option in the Fire STAB slot, slashed with blitz.

Maybe I'm wrong here (tho I don't think so cause I've been using this mon on basically every team so far, trying out different spreads), but alowak played as a purely offensive mon dies way too quickly to even get a chance to counter the things that it's supposed to counter. As soon as you come in with rocks up and fire off a blitz to KO some bulky mon with way more HP than you, you basically can't come in again. Well, except as a sac.

 

[Niadev]

The second spread here seems like the more relevant of the two. Alowak is more of a tank than a wallbreaker, the wallbreaking is just a nice bonus courtesy of thick club. But it's primary role is definitely as a defensive mon, absorbing/negating some of the most powerful attacks in the meta.

It's unclear what exactly is the benefit of the max attack spread outside of just doing more damage, which, again, is almost secondary to the fact that this poke beats out a lot of top tier threats due to it's defensive capabilities. The second spread has the speed for celesteela, HP investment cause you eat ice beams and moonblasts just as often as uturns and iron heads so you need to take hits on both sides, and the rest evenly divided between it's most usable stats (the physical tank stats), which fits more with alowak's actual role in the meta. In the same vein, Fire Punch should be the first option in the Fire STAB slot, slashed with blitz.

Maybe I'm wrong here (tho I don't think so cause I've been using this mon on basically every team so far, trying out different spreads), but alowak played as a purely offensive mon dies way too quickly to even get a chance to counter the things that it's supposed to counter. As soon as you come in with rocks up and fire off a blitz to KO some bulky mon with way more HP than you, you basically can't come in again. Well, except as a sac.

I forgot to remove the other spread haha. Ty for letting me know, should be gone from the analysis soon.

 

[Dragontamer]

I've actually been running Jolly 252+ Speed Marowak pretty well. Outspeeding slower Tapu Bulu has been clutch in some games.

Maybe Marowak's Jolly 252+ speed is more of a benchmark for other pokemon to worry about, rather than something for Marowak to actually run. (For example: Tapu Bulu wants to sub-seed, it probably should outrun Marowak. The SubSeed set in the Tapu Bulu analysis does outrun Jolly Marowak as well)

 

[MANNAT]

* 248 HP / 96 Atk / 96 Def / 68 Spe with Impish outspeeds minus speed Celesteela while 96 Atk ensures the 2HKO on Tapu Fini with Shadow Bone and Toxapex with Bonemerang, while the defensive investment lets it take physical attacks better, preserving it's longevity.
* A more specially defensive spread of 248 HP / 16 Atk / 244 Sp.Def can be run to take on special attackers better. 16 Atk with Adamant reaches a jump point, with the rest thrown into Sp.Def, to take the aforementioned special attacks better. However, this spread is more defensively oriented and the power drop is notable, but this spread can still deal with dangerous steels like Scizor and Kartana.

First of all, 96 attack with a neutral nature reaches the same amount of attack as 16 with an adamant nature, so remove the point about the set being more defensively oriented. Also, the alternate EV spread that you provided is slightly inefficient. An alternative EV spread of: 248 HP / 96 Atk / 164 SpD with a Careful Nature reaches the same amount of attack and HP while giving you three additional points in special defense.

Also, stress the need of entry hazard control in team options more since one of Alolan-Marowak's biggest issues is that it gets worn down too quickly when having to switch in and out of entry hazards repeatedly, partially due to its lack of reliable recovery (which should be mentioned in the overview fyi).

 

[Anish]

**Ground types**: While most can't really switch in, they can all threaten Alolan Marowak out with their strong STAB, which usually OHKOs or leaves it extremely low. Many can also set up Stealth Rocks, punishing Alolan Marowak over the course of the battle. Garchomp can take any attack as a 3HKO with a defensive set while doing significant damage back with Eartquake. Garchomp does hate Will-o-Wisp, however. Landorus-Therian is in a similar boat to Garchomp, but it's defensive set is 2hkod by Flare Blitz after Stealth Rock. Hippowdon is bulky enough to take it’s attacks reasonably well and hit back, but hates Will-o-Wisp and Toxic.

**Bulky Water types**: Very few can take Shadow Bone but some are solid switchins to it’s other moves. Tapu Fini doesn’t care about Will-o-Wisp or Toxic and can fire off a Scald at Alolan Marowak, but is 2HKOd by Shadow Bone. Mega Gyarados resists both of Alolan Marowak’s STABs and bulky sets can take a Bonemerang reasonably well. Gyarados despises Will-o-Wisp, however. Offensive Mega Gyara can be 2HKOd by Bonemerang, though. Azumarill can easily take out Alolan Marowak with it’s Water STABs but is 2HKOd by Shadow Bone. Defensive Suicune can take any of Alolan Marowak’s attacks. Toxapex can pivot into Alolan Marowak but has a chance to lose to more offensive variants. Pelliper can set rain to neuter it's fire attacks and take it out with rain boosted Scald. Mantine can also hit it with Scald, though it's not the best switchin due to Shadow Bone.

Just wanted to let you know that Tapu Fini and Lando T need some chip to be 2HKOd by Alolan Marowak.

Calc for Marowak

-1 96 Atk Thick Club Marowak-Alola Flare Blitz vs. 248 HP / 244+ Def Landorus-Therian: 124-147 (32.5 - 38.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Stealth Rock
96 Atk Thick Club Marowak-Alola Shadow Bone vs. 252 HP / 180 Def Tapu Fini: 130-154 (37.7 - 44.7%) -- 4.7% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock

 

[Niadev]

So is 248 HP / 96 Attack / 96 Def / 68 Spe the absolute best EV spread of A-Marowak?

It's probably the most efficient for general purpose checking of the stuff it's meant to - it outspeeds Celesteela, has just enough attack to get some notable 2hkos, all while giving it the defense to repeatedly take Tapu Koko Brave Birds and Gene/Phero U-turns (stealth rocks notwithstanding), but the best spread for one's team is entirely dependent on the role it needs to perform for said team, so as a result there is no one equivocal best spread.

 

[Dragontamer]

I've actually been running Jolly 252+ Speed Marowak pretty well. Outspeeding slower Tapu Bulu has been clutch in some games.

Maybe Marowak's Jolly 252+ speed is more of a benchmark for other pokemon to worry about, rather than something for Marowak to actually run. (For example: Tapu Bulu wants to sub-seed, it probably should outrun Marowak. The SubSeed set in the Tapu Bulu analysis does outrun Jolly Marowak as well)

Adding more to my previous thoughts: I went through the Speed Tiers topic, and noticed that Jolly 252+ Speed Marowak outspeeds Tapu Fini.

Since Tapu Fini threatens a KO (or at least, a lot of damage) from Scald and/or Hydro Pump, keeping the 2HKO and outspeeding 0Speed Fini might be a good reason to run Jolly 252 Speed. It probably deserves a mention... Marowak needs every single ounce of speed to outspeed Fini at level 100.

In any case, proper selection of Speed Tier is difficult and extremely team dependent. The relevant speeds I see from the Speed Tier (all assumed 0 speed) topic are:

* Hippowdon (20 EVs as you mentioned)
* Chansey (44 EVs)
* Clefable / Bewear (124 EVs)
* Alomomola (164 EVs)
* Tyranitar (192 EVs)
* Magnezone (196 EVs)
* Scizor-Mega / Tapu Bulu (244 EVs)
* Heatran (Jolly + 192)
* Mandibuzz / Mega Venusaur (Jolly + 216)
* Cresselia / Suicune / Tapu Fini (Jolly + 252)

So there's something relevant to outspeed from 20EVs investment all the way to Jolly + 252. Maybe a statement like:

"Picking Marowak's speed requires good teambuilding knowledge. At minimum, invest at least 20 EVs to outspeed Hippowdon. Jolly + 252 EVs outruns Suicune and Tapu Fini. The current recommended 68 EVs outspeed Sassy Cresteela, but tailor your Marowak against the relevant threat to your team".

 

[Niadev]

Adding more to my previous thoughts: I went through the Speed Tiers topic, and noticed that Jolly 252+ Speed Marowak outspeeds Tapu Fini.

Since Tapu Fini threatens a KO (or at least, a lot of damage) from Scald and/or Hydro Pump, keeping the 2HKO and outspeeding 0Speed Fini might be a good reason to run Jolly 252 Speed. It probably deserves a mention... Marowak needs every single ounce of speed to outspeed Fini at level 100.

In any case, proper selection of Speed Tier is difficult and extremely team dependent. The relevant speeds I see from the Speed Tier (all assumed 0 speed) topic are:

* Hippowdon (20 EVs as you mentioned)
* Chansey (44 EVs)
* Clefable / Bewear (124 EVs)
* Alomomola (164 EVs)
* Tyranitar (192 EVs)
* Magnezone (196 EVs)
* Scizor-Mega / Tapu Bulu (244 EVs)
* Heatran (Jolly + 192)
* Mandibuzz / Mega Venusaur (Jolly + 216)
* Cresselia / Suicune / Tapu Fini (Jolly + 252)

So there's something relevant to outspeed from 20EVs investment all the way to Jolly + 252. Maybe a statement like:

"Picking Marowak's speed requires good teambuilding knowledge. At minimum, invest at least 20 EVs to outspeed Hippowdon. Jolly + 252 EVs outruns Suicune and Tapu Fini. The current recommended 68 EVs outspeed Sassy Cresteela, but tailor your Marowak against the relevant threat to your team".

The problem with a some of these investments is that many of the 'mons targeted by them either can't touch you, such as Magne, Clef, Mega Sciz, unless Knock Off is a thing, or you're not staying in on them anyways, like Tyranitar if you're not running Bonemerang. It's also worth noting that spread for Heatran won't even realistically outspeed many Heatran, as most, if not all, run speed creep for opposing Heatran or Mega Scizor. Heck, even the old Sp.Def spread ran at least 60 speed EVs iirc. 44 for Chansey and Jolly Max Speed may be a good spread to add, hitting Chansey before it can toxic may be useful. You can't really touch Suicune (even max attack ada can't 2hko after rocks without TPunch, which isn't even mentioned in OO now) so Fini and Toxic Cress are the only real targets of 252+ spe.

So yeah 44 spe and 252 jolly are likely being added. Maybe 192 EVs for if you're Bonemerang and hate TTar that much

 

[Niadev]

RIP Genesect you will not be missed

If you see a mention of Genesect, let me know and I'll remove it as soon as possible

 

[Dragontamer]

* 184 HP / 252 Attack / 68 speed maximises damage output and outspeeds minus speed nautre, while maximising bulk, enabling you to take Tapu Koko's Brave Bird better.

I assume that's "Minus Speed Nature Celesteela".

* Rock Head is an option on Flare Blitz Bulky Attacker sets, but Lightningrod is one of it's big selling points and it loses the ability to check Pokemon like Tapu Koko without taking huge damage without Lightningrod.

I would argue that Rock Head is not a serious option actually. Lightningrod or bust, especially with all the Volt-Switch Pokemon running around right now.

while Alolan Marowak handles the bulky grasses that pester the Water types such as Mega Venusaur.

Not really. Mega-Venu has a number of sets that seem like they beat out Marowak. Thick Fat makes it a decent tank, even against "super effective" fire attacks.

252 Atk Thick Club Marowak-Alola Fire Punch vs. 248 HP / 96+ Def Thick Fat Venusaur-Mega: 126-150 (34.7 - 41.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Ferrothorn is probably the bulky grass of note that Marowak beats handily. But Mega-Venu switches in, hits the "Toxic" button, (typically) outspeeds Marowak for Synthesis-spam to victory. At least, with the set that you've listed.

There's also sub-seed and even the rare "Earthquake" set (which Venu might run vs Heatran... but it still can run it to beat A-Marowak). You pretty much need to hit Flare Blitz twice off of a significant +Atk and +Speed investment to beat Mega-Venusaur (gotta outspeed and 2HKO to have any hope)

A-Marowak also has issues checking Tapu Bulu.

252+ Atk Choice Band Tapu Bulu Wood Hammer vs. 184 HP / 0+ Def Marowak-Alola: 204-240 (66.4 - 78.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recover
252+ Atk Choice Band Tapu Bulu Horn Leech vs. 184 HP / 0+ Def Marowak-Alola: 127-150 (41.3 - 48.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Tapu Bulu Wood Hammer vs. 184 HP / 0+ Def Marowak-Alola: 135-160 (43.9 - 52.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Grassy Terrain recovery

That's a pretty shaky check IMO. Assault Vest or Leftovers Wood Hammer 2HKOs Marowak with Rocks, while Choice band doesn't even need rocks for a solid 2HKO.

Of course A-Marowak wins 1vs1, but when you say "handles the bulky grasses", I'm thinking that means "Checks well"... not "Takes a ton of damage that can't be recovered off very easily". Even the Horn-Leech set leaves a rather drastic dent in Marowak.

Tapu Bulu and Mega-Venusaur don't "win" vs A-Marowak... but I really don't think that A-Marowak has any business switching into them.

 

[Martin]

The main spread should be max atk/spe adamant imo. Alolan Marowak that gets U-turned on by uninvested Scizor is a complete travesty, and it should aim to check things offensively rather than defensively due to how easy it is to wear down between its SR weakness and other random stuff if you're trying to take hits with it. Genuinely I have never really found bulky spreads to have any kind of potency related to the fast spread on the basis that it simply doesn't force stuff out with remotely similar consistency, and the spread not only ties opposing Marowak/outpaces the people who are still running fat Marowak but also beats out quite a lot of really vital benchmarks for a lot of important bulky stuff that Marowak is dependent on forcing out.

 

[Dragontamer]

The main spread should be max atk/spe adamant imo. Alolan Marowak that gets U-turned on by uninvested Scizor is a complete travesty, and it should aim to check things offensively rather than defensively due to how easy it is to wear down between its SR weakness and other random stuff if you're trying to take hits with it. Genuinely I have never really found bulky spreads to have any kind of potency related to the fast spread on the basis that it simply doesn't force stuff out with remotely similar consistency, and the spread not only ties opposing Marowak/outpaces the people who are still running fat Marowak but also beats out quite a lot of really vital benchmarks for a lot of important bulky stuff that Marowak is dependent on forcing out.

Real question: What KOs does Adamant get you that Jolly doesn't?

I've been running 252 Jolly Marowak. Outspeeding uninvested Tapu Bulu, Fini, and Venu has grabbed me some wins.

 

[Martin]

Real question: What KOs does Adamant get you that Jolly doesn't?

I've been running 252 Jolly Marowak. Outspeeding uninvested Tapu Bulu, Fini, and Venu has grabbed me some wins.

idk+i don't wanna calc now but adamant is still better because overloading a stat is always the best decision with offenses/defenses and because literally nothing switches into adamant Shadow Bone given that there are so few good Ghost-type resists. Also uninvested Fini is virtually nonexistent--not to mention that 8 spe (which max/max variants should be running anyway) outpaces jolly wak by one point--and uninvested Tapu Bulu sounds really iffy, whereas Mega Venusaur is not a notable benchmark considering that it can't touch Marowak, offensive variants get 2HKOed by Shadow Bone and defensive variants it can't Synthesis stall Shadow Bone consistently due to it dealing just under 50% to it and considering that it isn't always gonna be at full health anyway--meaning that it will lose the matchup if the Marowak player isn't dumb enough to try and 1v1 it from full and/or it lacks Leech Seed in favor of HP Fire or smth.

 

[Dragontamer]

idk+i don't wanna calc now but adamant is still better because overloading a stat is always the best decision with offenses/defenses and because literally nothing switches into adamant Shadow Bone given that there are so few good Ghost-type resists. Also uninvested Fini is virtually nonexistent--not to mention that 8 spe (which max/max variants should be running anyway) outpaces jolly wak by one point--and uninvested Tapu Bulu sounds really iffy, whereas Mega Venusaur is not a notable benchmark considering that it can't touch Marowak, offensive variants get 2HKOed by Shadow Bone and defensive variants it can't Synthesis stall Shadow Bone consistently due to it dealing just under 50% to it and considering that it isn't always gonna be at full health anyway--meaning that it will lose the matchup if the Marowak player isn't dumb enough to try and 1v1 it from full and/or it lacks Leech Seed in favor of HP Fire or smth.

You're right actually. I don't "rely" on actually outspeeding Fini / Venu / Bulu. But it has happened. So maybe that's just my memory overemphasizing a lucky-win I pulled.

Generally speaking, I think the main advantage to Jolly-Wak is outspeeding every other Marowak in the game. 252 Jolly still hits hard as hell and I do run Flare Blitz for the "emergency KO". I agree with you that Shadow Bone spam is the best thing from this `mon, and forms a fearsome offensive presence. The extra 10% attack on Adamant probably nabs something useful, but that 70-ish to 80ish speed tier area has a surprising amount of speed-creep wars going on.

The question is if you want to roll the dice and attempt to play in the speed-creep wars with Heatran, Tyranitar, Tapu Bulu, Venusaur, Gyarados... or if you want to resign to those speed-creep wars and instead just go Adamant for 10% more damage. I definitely see the benefits to 10% more damage, but its honestly something I haven't done yet. What I can say is that Jolly Wak outrunning every other Marowak in the game is nice and reliable... especially with how often the mirror-matchup actually comes up. I guess the mirror-match is the most common thing that happens that I do rely upon.

------------

In any case, see me as a supporter of higher-speed offensive Marowak. It works in my experience... even more than just the mirror-matchup. I did look it up, 252 Adamant does outrun uninvested Tapu Bulu, but I'd be more confident in the speed-wars if I were Jolly instead.

 

[Martin]

actually while I'm here I'm gonna give this a big go-over even though i'm not QC cause I noticed a few things in other places that either I disagree with or are errors created when implementing other checks.

[OVERVIEW]
* Typing+Lightningrod and decent bulk enables it to check notable metagame threats such as Tapu Koko and Pheromosa
* Slow Speed and Stealth Rocks weakness wears Alolan Marowak down over a match.
* A lot of what it’s meant to counter can U-turn out of it, wearing it down over the course of the match

I think you should remove the emphasis you have put onto Marowak's bulk considering that it primarily functions by offensively checking things with just its typing/ability. Also I'm not big on this last bullet point considering that using Marowak as a U-turn switch in is an extremely inefficient way to use it in general as it should only really come in on immunities a lot of the time and if it does rely on resistances it's better doing it when its sure that it's not getting U-turned on. I think maybe re-word it slightly to say that it can't use its U-turn resistance well (idk the best way to word this so I'll leave that to you) and then merge it into the purple bullet point somehow 'cause its the same kind of deal.

[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Shadow Bone
move 2: Fire Punch
move 3: Bonemerang / Stealth Rock
move 4: Will-o-Wisp / Stealth Rock
item: Thick Club
ability: Lightningrod
nature: Adamant
evs: 184 HP / 4 Def / 252 Attack / 68 Spe

I've already said this but I'll just repeat that I think max atk/spe adamant is the best spread. Also capitalise the O in "Will-O-Wisp."

Set Details
========
* 184 HP / 252 Attack / 68 speed maximises damage output and outspeeds minus speed nature Celesteela, while maximising bulk, enabling you to take Tapu Koko's Brave Bird better. It also makes your HP odd to reduce damage taken from Stealth Rock.
* 248 HP / 96 Attack / 96 Def / 68 Spe with Impish is a bulkier alternative, with 96 attack being sufficient to 2HKO Tapu Fini with Shadow Bone and Toxapex with Bonemerang. However, the power loss is notable.
* Can run different speed investment to outspeed specific Pokemon at varying costs to bulk.
* 20 speed neutral nature will outspeed neutral uninvested Hippowdon and is the minimum you should run.

When you add the description of max speed, give mentions to uninvested Mega Scizor and Skarmory as things that you outpace that the bulky spreads do not. Also talk about Thick Club and Lightning Rod in here.

Usage Tips
========
* Keep Stealth Rocks off the field if at all possible as Stealth Rocks will wear it down over repeated switches due to a lack of Leftovers.
* Bring in on Pokemon it can check such as Pheromosa and Tapu Koko and fire off a hit or Will-o-Wisp if it is running it depending on what the opponent might switch in.
* Shadow Bone should be the attack you primarily click as it does not wear you down and has great neutral coverage, hitting most of the tier very hard
* Flare Blitz should be clicked only if the opponent has a sturdy ghost resist or if Alolan Marowak is not very useful in the match.
* Bonemerang should only be clicked if the opponent have a bulky Pokemon that can take Alolan Marowak’s STABs but is weak/neutral to Bonemerang.
* Feel free to use Alolan Marowak's electric immunity to take advantage of electric types for free switchins, or just to pivot into a threatening attacker.

Add a mention that you shouldn't bring Marowak in if you expect a U-turn; I'd also narrow down the second bullet point to just "moves are immune to or when a teammate faints". Add a comment underneath that saying that its resistances should primarily be used to help it offensively check things such as [add some examples of stuff it checks].

Team Options
========
* Hazard control is very important as rocks will wear down Alolan Marowak and prevent it from doing it's job, especially as it lacks reliable recovery outside of the unreliable RestTalk.
* Water types like Keldeo and Greninja can break the Ground types that annoy Alolan Marowak, while Alolan Marowak checks the bulky grasses that pester the Water types such as Ferrothorn. Tapu Fini is a bulky defogger that can also handle Dark types by virtue of Tapu Fini's typing. Mantine is another bulky defogger but handles Ground types for Alolan Marowak.
* Bulky flying types like Skarmory, Celesteela and Landorus-Therian are good partners as they are immune to Ground types aimed at Alolan Marowak. In turn, Alolan Marowak can take the Ice and Electric type moves aimed at them. Landorus-Therian and Skarmory can also set hazards to wear down opposing checks to Alolan Marowak.
* Bulky grasses like Amoongus, Tangrowth, Ferrothorn and Mega Venusaur provide valuable Water resists, with Tangrowth in particular resisting Ground, while Alolan Marowak can take Ice and Fire attacks for them. Tapu Bulu, while not as bulky as the others, forms a formidable wallbreaking core, with Tapu Bulu helping mitigating Alolan Marowak's Ground weakness with it's Terrain.
* Latios provides Defog support and a Ground immunity, two valuable traits for Alolan Marowak in a teammate.
* Wish support is very useful, so Wish passing Pokemon like Alomomola, Chansey or Clefable, though this only really fits on more defensively oriented teams.
* Alolan Marowak can be effective on Trick Room as it remedies it's speed issue but Trick Room's viability as a playstyle is questionable.

Add a bullet point saying supplemental checks due to the fact that it's often not a good idea to have Marowak as your sole answer to things like Pheromosa due to how easy it is to wear down if constantly switching into resisted hits.

Other Options
=============
* Knock Off is an option to cripple switchins by removing their items, but does not provide much coverage.
* Flare Blitz is stronger than Fire Punch but wears it down a lot faster, making it unideal in the long run.
* Toxic can be run to more heavily cripple defensive walls. However, the attack dropping aspect of Will-o-Wisp is often more desirable versus offensive teams and effectively removing it's Leftovers is often enough to cripple the target's longevity.
* Swords Dance gives slower teams a hard time on the Bulky Attacker set, but prevents it from crippling switchins with Will-o-Wisp or supporting the team with Stealth Rock and requires significant speed investment to pose a significant threat vs Balance, but can be effective if pulled off. It can be especially dangerous in Trick Room, but Trick Room isn't the most viable playstyle.
* Max Attack Adamant lets it hit extremely hard, but this is generally inefficient outside of Trick Room, as the main reason to use Alolan Marowak is for it's ability to defensively check top threats. It does, however, allow it to 2HKO Tapu Fini more reliably.

Remove the last bullet point because this is the listed set. I'd also just turn the SD point into a general Trick Room attacker point where you mention Rock Head+Flare Blitz as an option "A Trick Room attacker set with Rock Head, Shadow Bone, Flare Blitz, Bonemerang and Swords Dance is an option alongside Trick Room which hits immensely hard, but Trick Room is an inconsistent playstyle." Emphasise that such as set should run max Atk/Spe so that it outpaces walls outside of Trick Room considering that being completely dependent on it is dreadful and that it is slower than the offense 'mons that TR attempts to shut down anyway.

**Ghost types**: None of these can switch in at all but all threaten it. Gengar can easily OHKO with it’s STAB.

Just rename this to Gengar and re-word it "Gengar is faster than Marowak and OHKOes it with STAB Shadow Ball" or smth. There are no other notable Ghost-types that I can think of off of the top of my head--let alone ones faster than max spe Marowak.

 

[Colonel M]

I'm also going to voice that going max Speed Adamant is the way to go. Jolly is okay to mention in the SET COMMENTS, and you can dabble at a more defensive spread if you want in there too. Main set should be max Attack / max Speed Adamant though.

 

[Niadev]

Implemented max speed max attack as main set, as well as many of Martin 's other points.

 

[Gary]

In Pursuit section of C&C, replace Bisharp with Mega Metagross, because Bisharp is already a pretty uncommon sight let alone its Pursuit trapping set.

Other than that, looks good. Lets get this shit done.

QC 3/3

 

[AmateurGamer]

These are probably the three most successful sets I've seen.

Offensive

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz / Fire Punch
- Shadow Bone
- Brick Break / Knock Off / Low Kick
- Earthquake / Bonemerang

3 Attacks

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Fire Punch / Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Bonemerang
- Stealth Rock / Will-O-Wisp

Specially Defensive

Marowak-Alola @ Leftovers / Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
- Will-O-Wisp / Toxic
- Shadow Bone

These sets probably work best too, although I've only used the offensive set.

 

[P Squared]

is this still good for GP? looks like it hasn't been posted in the GP queue so we were unaware it was ready

 

[Niadev]

is this still good for GP? looks like it hasn't been posted in the GP queue so we were unaware it was ready

Sorry, I didn't know I was supposed to post to a GP queue. I'm new to analyses :P. But yeah it should still be good.

 

[fleurdyleurse]

hi

check

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[OVERVIEW]
* Typing + Lightningrod Alolan Marowak's typing and Lightning Rod ability coupled with and decent bulk enables enable it to check notable metagame threats such as Tapu Koko and Pheromosa.
* Thick Club + Good STAB coverage enables lets Alolan Marowak to hit extremely hard and is while its good STAB coverage is extremely difficult to counter.
* Can Alolan Marowak can run useful utility moves in Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp and Stealth Rock, which can cripple switchins. switch-ins.
* Weak It is weak to many common attacking types such as Rock, Dark, Ground, Water, and Ghost.
* Low Speed and Stealth Rocks weakness wears Alolan Marowak down over a match. Alolan Marowak is worn down easily over a match, having low Speed and a weakness to Stealth Rock.
* A lot of what it’s meant to counter can U-turn out of it, wearing it down over the course of the match. A lot of the Pokemon it's meant to counter can U-turn out of it, which also wears it down.

[SET]
name: Utility Attacker
move 1: Shadow Bone
move 2: Fire Punch
move 3: Bonemerang / Stealth Rock
move 4: Will-O-Wisp / Stealth Rock
item: Thick Club
ability: Lightningrod
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Sp.Def SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Shadow Bone is it’s main Ghost STAB and has a high damage output.
* Fire Punch is the main STAB used over Flare Blitz, as it doesn't wear down Alolan Marowak and does respectable damage.
* Bonemerang is better than Earthquake due to it’s its ability to hit Pokemon through substitutes and potential sashes, Substitutes and Focus Sashes as well as not being affected by Grassy Terrain, while still providing a method to hit Tyranitars, Tyranitar, Mega Gyarados Gyarados, and Toxapex trying to switch in.
* Stealth Rock can be run over Bonemerang on teams who that don't necessarily need it to hit incoming targets, targets and is an option for teams who that need a Stealth Rock user.
* Will-O-Wisp can cripple Pokemon who try trying to switch in, reducing their longevity and makes it easier for it to handle physical attackers. lowering their Attack, making it easier to handle physical attackers.

Set Details
========
* The spread runs max speed maximum Speed and Attack EVs and damage output to speed Speed creep opposing Alolan Marowaks (Comment: ordinarily speed creep mentions aren't sanctioned, so i would remove this ) and outspeed notable threats, such as Celesteela not running max speed, maximum Speed, bulkier variants of Mega Scizor Scizor, and Skarmory. Adamant allows Alolan Marowak to hit extremely hard, 2HKOing more or less almost the entire tier.
* An alternate, alternate bulkier spread of 184 HP / 252 Attack Atk / 4 Defense Def / 68 speed Spe maximises maximizes damage output and outspeeds minus speed nature negatively natured Celesteela, Celesteela while having much better bulk, enabling you Alolan Marowak to take Tapu Koko's Brave Bird and repeated U-turns better. It also makes your its HP odd to reduce damage taken from Stealth Rock. The rest of the EVs are placed into Defense. The 4 defense is a dump stat.
* Can Alolan Marowak can run different speed Speed investment to outspeed specific Pokemon at varying costs to bulk. 20 Speed EVs with a neutal nature outspeeds neutral-natured uninvested Hippowdon and is the minimum that it should run.
* 20 speed neutral nature will outspeed neutral uninvested Hippowdon and is the minimum you should run.
* Thick Club is mandatory due to how weak and passive it Alolan Marowak is without it.
* Lightningrod Lightning Rod is mandatory on Alolan Marowak due to it plus it's typing being the only things making it viable. , as its typing combined with Lightning Rod is what makes it viable.

Usage Tips
========
* Keep Stealth Rocks Rock off the field if at all possible , as Stealth Rocks Rock will wear it Alolan Marowak down over repeated switches due to a lack of Leftovers.
* Bring it in on moves it's immune to, such as electric Electric attacks.
* Shadow Bone should be the attack you primarily click click, as it does not wear you Alolan Marowak down and has great neutral coverage, hitting most of the tier very hard.
* Fire Punch only really needs to be clicked if the opponent has a sturdy ghost Ghost-resistant Pokemon. resist.
* Bonemerang should only be clicked used if the opponent has a bulky Pokemon that can take Alolan Marowak’s STABs STAB moves but is weak/neutral to Bonemerang.
* Feel free to use Alolan Marowak's electric Electric immunity to take advantage of electric types Electric-types for free switchins, switches in or just to pivot into a threatening attacker.
* Avoid pivoting it into a predicted U-turn U-turn, as it that will let the opponent gain a free switch in and cause Alolan Marowak to take Stealth Rock damage.

Team Options
========
* Hazard control is very important as , as Stealth Rock rocks will wear down Alolan Marowak and prevent it from doing it's its job, especially as because it lacks reliable recovery outside of the unreliable RestTalk.
* Water types Water-types like Keldeo and Greninja can break the Ground types Ground-types that annoy Alolan Marowak, while Marowak; in return, Alolan Marowak checks the bulky grasses Grass-types that pester the Water types them such as Ferrothorn. Tapu Fini is a bulky defogger Defogger that can also handle Dark types Dark-types by virtue of Tapu Fini's its typing. Mantine is another bulky defogger but handles Ground types is another bulky Defogger, handling Ground-types for Alolan Marowak.
* Bulky flying Flying-types types like Skarmory, Celesteela and Landorus-Therian , and Landorus-T are good partners partners, as they are immune to Ground types attacks aimed at Alolan Marowak. In turn, Alolan Marowak can take the Ice and Electric type moves aimed at them. Landorus-Therian Landorus-T and Skarmory can also set hazards to wear down opposing checks to Alolan Marowak. checks.
* Bulky grasses Grass-types like Amoongus, Amoonguss, Tangrowth, Ferrothorn Ferrothorn, and Mega Venusaur provide valuable Water resists, Water-resistant Pokemon, with Tangrowth in particular also resisting Ground, while Alolan Marowak can take Ice and Fire attacks for them. Tapu Bulu, while not as bulky as the others, forms a formidable wallbreaking core, core with Alolan Marowak; with Tapu Bulu helping also helps to mitigate mitigating Alolan Marowak's Ground weakness with by setting Grassy Terrain. it's Terrain.
* Latios provides Defog support and a Ground immunity, two valuable traits for Alolan Marowak in a teammate.
* Wish support is very useful, so Wish passing Pokemon users like Alomomola, Chansey or Chansey, and Clefable, Clefable make for good partners, though this they only really fits fit on more defensively oriented teams.
* Alolan Marowak can be effective on Trick Room Room teams, as it remedies it's speed issue but Trick Room's viability as a playstyle is questionable. Trick Room remedies its low Speed; however, the viability of such a playstyle is questionable.
* Secondary checks to what Alolan Marowak is checking supposed to check is ideal ideal, as relying only on Alolan Marowak is dangerous.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Knock Off is an option to cripple switchins switch-ins by removing their items, but it does not provide much coverage.
* Flare Blitz is stronger than Fire Punch but wears it Alolan Marowak down a lot faster, making it not ideal inoptimal in the long run.
* Toxic can be run to more heavily cripple defensive walls. However, the attack dropping Attack-dropping aspect of Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp is often more desirable versus against offensive teams and effectively removing it's the foe's Leftovers is often enough to cripple the target's its longevity.
* Swords Dance gives slower teams a hard time on the Attacker set, but prevents it Alolan Marowak from crippling switchins switch-ins with Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp or supporting the its team with Stealth Rock and requires significant speed Speed investment to pose a significant threat vs Balance, against balance teams, but a Swords Dance set can be be effective if pulled off well. but can be effective if pulled off.
* A Rock Head set with Shadow Bone / Flare Blitz / Bonemerang / Swords Dance set can be run on Trick Room, but Trick Room as a playstyle is inconsistent on a good day. . It should probably run speed investment on such a team anyways, however, as being dependent on Trick Room is a long way from being a good thing, due to the aforementioned inconsistencies, while still being slower than the offensive Pokemon Trick Room intends to beat. Alolan Marowak should still run Speed investment on such a team, however, as being dependent on Trick Room is undesirable due to its inconsistencies; Alolan Marowak will still be slower than the offensive Pokemon it intends to beat. (Comment: wasn't quite sure what your last clause was supposed to mean -- please correct me if my intepretation was incorrect )

Checks and Counters
===================

**Stealth Rock**: While it doesn’t directly take it out it it doesn't directly pose a threat to Alolan Marowak, Stealth Rock heavily reduces it’s its ability to reliably check what it’s meant to, which means Pokemon like Pheromosa and Mega Scizor can wear it down by repeatedly U-turning using U-turn on it to the point where their other coverage moves can take it out. Tapu Koko can also accumulate chip damage on it by Brave Birding hitting it with Brave Bird it on the switchin while Alolan Marowak switches it in tandem with Stealth Rock to eventually get past Alolan Marowak. it.

**Faster Pokemon**: Pokemon that can outspeed it Alolan Marowak can either heavily weaken it for the things Alolan Marowak it is meant to check, check or just outright KO it. Greninja can KO it easily with Dark Pulse or Hydro Pump, Pump; Choice Specs Keldeo outright vaporises it, it; while Latios hits it very hard with Draco Meteor or Surf. Surf; and Mega Aerodactyl can also hit it with Stone Edge, Edge. Note, however, that though note none of these can switch in.

**Pursuit**: **Pursuit Users**: While it can’t be trapped by trapping abilities and moves, it Alolan Marowak can be trapped by Pursuit, either weakening it significantly or outright OHKOing it. Notable users include Tyranitar (who (which resists both of its STAB moves), resists both STABS), Weavile and Mega Metagross Weavile, and Mega Metagross.

**Ground types**: **Ground-types**: While most of them can't really switch in, they Ground-types can all threaten Alolan Marowak out with their strong STAB, STAB moves, which usually OHKOs OHKO or leaves it extremely low. heavily damage Alolan Marowak. Many can also set up Stealth Rocks, Rock, punishing Alolan Marowak over the course of the battle. Garchomp can take any attack as a 3HKO with a defensive set while doing significant damage back with Eartquake. Defensive variant of Garchomp are notably only 3HKOed by Alolan Marowak's attacks while dealing significant damage back with Earthquake. Garchomp does hate Will-o-Wisp, being burnt by Will-O-Wisp, however. Landorus-Therian Landorus-T is in a similar boat to Garchomp, only really fearing Will-o-Wisp. Will-O-Wisp. Hippowdon is bulky enough to take it’s Alolan Marowak's attacks reasonably well and hit back, but hates Will-o-Wisp. Will-O-Wisp.

**Dark types**: **Dark-types**: While very few Dark-types can reliably switch in, they can all threaten Alolan Marowak it out. Greninja possesses a large coverage pool to threaten switchins and can easily OHKO Alolan Marowak with either Dark Pulse or the occasional Hydro Pump. However, Greninja lacking these moves can face issues with Alolan Marowak. Ash-Greninja can easily KO Alolan Marowak with it's STABs, its STAB moves, and pre Battle Bond pre-Battle Bond activation can use Marowak to get it's activate Battle Bond. Weavile threatens Alolan Marowak with a very fast and powerful Knock Off, knocking off it’s item and dealing huge damage, as well as potentially Pursuit trapping it. Mega Gyarados can do big damage with either STAB and resists or is netural to all of Alolan Marowak’s attacks. It can be crippled with Will-o-Wisp, though. Hoopa-Unbound can easily take out Alolan Marowak with it’s Dark STAB and special sets don’t particularly care about Will-o-Wisp. Finally, Tyranitar can Pursuit trap it and can take it’s STABs quite well, though it fears Bonemerang. removing Alolan Marowak's item and dealing huge damage, as well as potentially Pursuit trap it. Mega Gyarados can deal large amounts of damage with its STAB moves and does not take much damage from Alolan Marowak's attacks; however, it can be crippled with Will-O-Wisp. Hoopa-U can easily take out Alolan Marowak with its Dark-type STAB moves, while special sets of Hoopa-U aren't severely crippled by Will-O-Wisp. Finally, Tyranitar can Pursuit trap Alolan Marowak and take its STAB moves quite well, though it fears Bonemerang.

**Ghost types**: **Ghost-types**: Gengar can easily OHKO Alolan Marowak with its STAB moves, with it’s STAB, and opposing Alolan Marowak can either speed tie or outspeed depending and opposing Alolan Marowak can either Speed tie or outspeed it depending on investment while easily OHKOing with it's its own Shadow Bone. Fortunately, Gengar and Alolan Marowak are the only OU viable ghost types. OU-viable Ghost-types.

**Bulky Water types**: Water-types**: Very few Few Water-types can take Shadow Bone but some are solid switchins switch-ins to it’s Alolan Marowak's other moves. Tapu Fini doesn’t care about Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp or Toxic and can fire off a Scald at Alolan Marowak, but risks being 2HKOd 2HKOed by Shadow Bone. Mega Gyarados resists both of Alolan Marowak’s STABs STAB moves, and bulky sets can take a Bonemerang reasonably well. Gyarados despises Will-o-Wisp, Will-O-Wisp, however. Offensive Mega Gyara Gyarados can be 2HKOd 2HKOed by Bonemerang, though. Azumarill can easily take out Alolan Marowak with it’s its Water STABs STAB move, but is 2HKOd 2HKOed by Shadow Bone. Defensive Suicune can take any of Alolan Marowak’s attacks. Toxapex can pivot into Alolan Marowak but has a chance to lose to more offensive variants. Pelliper Pelipper can set rain to neuter it's fire Alolan Marowak's Fire attacks and take it out with rain boosted rain-boosted Scald. Mantine can also hit it with Scald, though it's not the best switchin switch-in due to Shadow Bone.

**Rock Types**: Tyranitar can take Alolan Marowak’s STABs STAB moves quite well and Pursuit trap it, but fears Bonemerang and Will-o-Wisp. Will-O-Wisp. Mega Aerodactyl struggles to take any attack but can threaten it out with Stone Edge or Pursuit trap it, but it too fears Will-o-Wisp. is heavily crippled by Will-O-Wisp.

gp 1/1

 

[Niadev]

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[OVERVIEW]
* Typing + Lightningrod Alolan Marowak's typing and Lightning Rod ability coupled with and decent bulk enables enable it to check notable metagame threats such as Tapu Koko and Pheromosa.
* Thick Club + Good STAB coverage enables lets Alolan Marowak to hit extremely hard and is while its good STAB coverage is extremely difficult to counter.
* Can Alolan Marowak can run useful utility moves in Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp and Stealth Rock, which can cripple switchins. switch-ins.
* Weak It is weak to many common attacking types such as Rock, Dark, Ground, Water, and Ghost.
* Low Speed and Stealth Rocks weakness wears Alolan Marowak down over a match. Alolan Marowak is worn down easily over a match, having low Speed and a weakness to Stealth Rock.
* A lot of what it’s meant to counter can U-turn out of it, wearing it down over the course of the match. A lot of the Pokemon it's meant to counter can U-turn out of it, which also wears it down.

[SET]
name: Utility Attacker
move 1: Shadow Bone
move 2: Fire Punch
move 3: Bonemerang / Stealth Rock
move 4: Will-O-Wisp / Stealth Rock
item: Thick Club
ability: Lightningrod
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Sp.Def SpD / 252 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Shadow Bone is it’s main Ghost STAB and has a high damage output.
* Fire Punch is the main STAB used over Flare Blitz, as it doesn't wear down Alolan Marowak and does respectable damage.
* Bonemerang is better than Earthquake due to it’s its ability to hit Pokemon through substitutes and potential sashes, Substitutes and Focus Sashes as well as not being affected by Grassy Terrain, while still providing a method to hit Tyranitars, Tyranitar, Mega Gyarados Gyarados, and Toxapex trying to switch in.
* Stealth Rock can be run over Bonemerang on teams who that don't necessarily need it to hit incoming targets, targets and is an option for teams who that need a Stealth Rock user.
* Will-O-Wisp can cripple Pokemon who try trying to switch in, reducing their longevity and makes it easier for it to handle physical attackers. lowering their Attack, making it easier to handle physical attackers.

Set Details
========
* The spread runs max speed maximum Speed and Attack EVs and damage output to speed Speed creep opposing Alolan Marowaks (Comment: ordinarily speed creep mentions aren't sanctioned, so i would remove this ) and outspeed notable threats, such as Celesteela not running max speed, maximum Speed, bulkier variants of Mega Scizor Scizor, and Skarmory. Adamant allows Alolan Marowak to hit extremely hard, 2HKOing more or less almost the entire tier.
* An alternate, alternate bulkier spread of 184 HP / 252 Attack Atk / 4 Defense Def / 68 speed Spe maximises maximizes damage output and outspeeds minus speed nature negatively natured Celesteela, Celesteela while having much better bulk, enabling you Alolan Marowak to take Tapu Koko's Brave Bird and repeated U-turns better. It also makes your its HP odd to reduce damage taken from Stealth Rock. The rest of the EVs are placed into Defense. The 4 defense is a dump stat.
* Can Alolan Marowak can run different speed Speed investment to outspeed specific Pokemon at varying costs to bulk. 20 Speed EVs with a neutal nature outspeeds neutral-natured uninvested Hippowdon and is the minimum that it should run.
* 20 speed neutral nature will outspeed neutral uninvested Hippowdon and is the minimum you should run.
* Thick Club is mandatory due to how weak and passive it Alolan Marowak is without it.
* Lightningrod Lightning Rod is mandatory on Alolan Marowak due to it plus it's typing being the only things making it viable. , as its typing combined with Lightning Rod is what makes it viable.

Usage Tips
========
* Keep Stealth Rocks Rock off the field if at all possible , as Stealth Rocks Rock will wear it Alolan Marowak down over repeated switches due to a lack of Leftovers.
* Bring it in on moves it's immune to, such as electric Electric attacks.
* Shadow Bone should be the attack you primarily click click, as it does not wear you Alolan Marowak down and has great neutral coverage, hitting most of the tier very hard.
* Fire Punch only really needs to be clicked if the opponent has a sturdy ghost Ghost-resistant Pokemon. resist.
* Bonemerang should only be clicked used if the opponent has a bulky Pokemon that can take Alolan Marowak’s STABs STAB moves but is weak/neutral to Bonemerang.
* Feel free to use Alolan Marowak's electric Electric immunity to take advantage of electric types Electric-types for free switchins, switches in or just to pivot into a threatening attacker.
* Avoid pivoting it into a predicted U-turn U-turn, as it that will let the opponent gain a free switch in and cause Alolan Marowak to take Stealth Rock damage.

Team Options
========
* Hazard control is very important as , as Stealth Rock rocks will wear down Alolan Marowak and prevent it from doing it's its job, especially as because it lacks reliable recovery outside of the unreliable RestTalk.
* Water types Water-types like Keldeo and Greninja can break the Ground types Ground-types that annoy Alolan Marowak, while Marowak; in return, Alolan Marowak checks the bulky grasses Grass-types that pester the Water types them such as Ferrothorn. Tapu Fini is a bulky defogger Defogger that can also handle Dark types Dark-types by virtue of Tapu Fini's its typing. Mantine is another bulky defogger but handles Ground types is another bulky Defogger, handling Ground-types for Alolan Marowak.
* Bulky flying Flying-types types like Skarmory, Celesteela and Landorus-Therian , and Landorus-T are good partners partners, as they are immune to Ground types attacks aimed at Alolan Marowak. In turn, Alolan Marowak can take the Ice and Electric type moves aimed at them. Landorus-Therian Landorus-T and Skarmory can also set hazards to wear down opposing checks to Alolan Marowak. checks.
* Bulky grasses Grass-types like Amoongus, Amoonguss, Tangrowth, Ferrothorn Ferrothorn, and Mega Venusaur provide valuable Water resists, Water-resistant Pokemon, with Tangrowth in particular also resisting Ground, while Alolan Marowak can take Ice and Fire attacks for them. Tapu Bulu, while not as bulky as the others, forms a formidable wallbreaking core, core with Alolan Marowak; with Tapu Bulu helping also helps to mitigate mitigating Alolan Marowak's Ground weakness with by setting Grassy Terrain. it's Terrain.
* Latios provides Defog support and a Ground immunity, two valuable traits for Alolan Marowak in a teammate.
* Wish support is very useful, so Wish passing Pokemon users like Alomomola, Chansey or Chansey, and Clefable, Clefable make for good partners, though this they only really fits fit on more defensively oriented teams.
* Alolan Marowak can be effective on Trick Room Room teams, as it remedies it's speed issue but Trick Room's viability as a playstyle is questionable. Trick Room remedies its low Speed; however, the viability of such a playstyle is questionable.
* Secondary checks to what Alolan Marowak is checking supposed to check is ideal ideal, as relying only on Alolan Marowak is dangerous.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Knock Off is an option to cripple switchins switch-ins by removing their items, but it does not provide much coverage.
* Flare Blitz is stronger than Fire Punch but wears it Alolan Marowak down a lot faster, making it not ideal inoptimal in the long run.
* Toxic can be run to more heavily cripple defensive walls. However, the attack dropping Attack-dropping aspect of Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp is often more desirable versus against offensive teams and effectively removing it's the foe's Leftovers is often enough to cripple the target's its longevity.
* Swords Dance gives slower teams a hard time on the Attacker set, but prevents it Alolan Marowak from crippling switchins switch-ins with Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp or supporting the its team with Stealth Rock and requires significant speed Speed investment to pose a significant threat vs Balance, against balance teams, but a Swords Dance set can be be effective if pulled off well. but can be effective if pulled off.
* A Rock Head set with Shadow Bone / Flare Blitz / Bonemerang / Swords Dance set can be run on Trick Room, but Trick Room as a playstyle is inconsistent on a good day. . It should probably run speed investment on such a team anyways, however, as being dependent on Trick Room is a long way from being a good thing, due to the aforementioned inconsistencies, while still being slower than the offensive Pokemon Trick Room intends to beat. Alolan Marowak should still run Speed investment on such a team, however, as being dependent on Trick Room is undesirable due to its inconsistencies; Alolan Marowak will still be slower than the offensive Pokemon it intends to beat. (Comment: wasn't quite sure what your last clause was supposed to mean -- please correct me if my intepretation was incorrect )

Checks and Counters
===================

**Stealth Rock**: While it doesn’t directly take it out it it doesn't directly pose a threat to Alolan Marowak, Stealth Rock heavily reduces it’s its ability to reliably check what it’s meant to, which means Pokemon like Pheromosa and Mega Scizor can wear it down by repeatedly U-turning using U-turn on it to the point where their other coverage moves can take it out. Tapu Koko can also accumulate chip damage on it by Brave Birding hitting it with Brave Bird it on the switchin while Alolan Marowak switches it in tandem with Stealth Rock to eventually get past Alolan Marowak. it.

**Faster Pokemon**: Pokemon that can outspeed it Alolan Marowak can either heavily weaken it for the things Alolan Marowak it is meant to check, check or just outright KO it. Greninja can KO it easily with Dark Pulse or Hydro Pump, Pump; Choice Specs Keldeo outright vaporises it, it; while Latios hits it very hard with Draco Meteor or Surf. Surf; and Mega Aerodactyl can also hit it with Stone Edge, Edge. Note, however, that though note none of these can switch in.

**Pursuit**: **Pursuit Users**: While it can’t be trapped by trapping abilities and moves, it Alolan Marowak can be trapped by Pursuit, either weakening it significantly or outright OHKOing it. Notable users include Tyranitar (who (which resists both of its STAB moves), resists both STABS), Weavile and Mega Metagross Weavile, and Mega Metagross.

**Ground types**: **Ground-types**: While most of them can't really switch in, they Ground-types can all threaten Alolan Marowak out with their strong STAB, STAB moves, which usually OHKOs OHKO or leaves it extremely low. heavily damage Alolan Marowak. Many can also set up Stealth Rocks, Rock, punishing Alolan Marowak over the course of the battle. Garchomp can take any attack as a 3HKO with a defensive set while doing significant damage back with Eartquake. Defensive variant of Garchomp are notably only 3HKOed by Alolan Marowak's attacks while dealing significant damage back with Earthquake. Garchomp does hate Will-o-Wisp, being burnt by Will-O-Wisp, however. Landorus-Therian Landorus-T is in a similar boat to Garchomp, only really fearing Will-o-Wisp. Will-O-Wisp. Hippowdon is bulky enough to take it’s Alolan Marowak's attacks reasonably well and hit back, but hates Will-o-Wisp. Will-O-Wisp.

**Dark types**: **Dark-types**: While very few Dark-types can reliably switch in, they can all threaten Alolan Marowak it out. Greninja possesses a large coverage pool to threaten switchins and can easily OHKO Alolan Marowak with either Dark Pulse or the occasional Hydro Pump. However, Greninja lacking these moves can face issues with Alolan Marowak. Ash-Greninja can easily KO Alolan Marowak with it's STABs, its STAB moves, and pre Battle Bond pre-Battle Bond activation can use Marowak to get it's activate Battle Bond. Weavile threatens Alolan Marowak with a very fast and powerful Knock Off, knocking off it’s item and dealing huge damage, as well as potentially Pursuit trapping it. Mega Gyarados can do big damage with either STAB and resists or is netural to all of Alolan Marowak’s attacks. It can be crippled with Will-o-Wisp, though. Hoopa-Unbound can easily take out Alolan Marowak with it’s Dark STAB and special sets don’t particularly care about Will-o-Wisp. Finally, Tyranitar can Pursuit trap it and can take it’s STABs quite well, though it fears Bonemerang. removing Alolan Marowak's item and dealing huge damage, as well as potentially Pursuit trap it. Mega Gyarados can deal large amounts of damage with its STAB moves and does not take much damage from Alolan Marowak's attacks; however, it can be crippled with Will-O-Wisp. Hoopa-U can easily take out Alolan Marowak with its Dark-type STAB moves, while special sets of Hoopa-U aren't severely crippled by Will-O-Wisp. Finally, Tyranitar can Pursuit trap Alolan Marowak and take its STAB moves quite well, though it fears Bonemerang.

**Ghost types**: **Ghost-types**: Gengar can easily OHKO Alolan Marowak with its STAB moves, with it’s STAB, and opposing Alolan Marowak can either speed tie or outspeed depending and opposing Alolan Marowak can either Speed tie or outspeed it depending on investment while easily OHKOing with it's its own Shadow Bone. Fortunately, Gengar and Alolan Marowak are the only OU viable ghost types. OU-viable Ghost-types.

**Bulky Water types**: Water-types**: Very few Few Water-types can take Shadow Bone but some are solid switchins switch-ins to it’s Alolan Marowak's other moves. Tapu Fini doesn’t care about Will-o-Wisp Will-O-Wisp or Toxic and can fire off a Scald at Alolan Marowak, but risks being 2HKOd 2HKOed by Shadow Bone. Mega Gyarados resists both of Alolan Marowak’s STABs STAB moves, and bulky sets can take a Bonemerang reasonably well. Gyarados despises Will-o-Wisp, Will-O-Wisp, however. Offensive Mega Gyara Gyarados can be 2HKOd 2HKOed by Bonemerang, though. Azumarill can easily take out Alolan Marowak with it’s its Water STABs STAB move, but is 2HKOd 2HKOed by Shadow Bone. Defensive Suicune can take any of Alolan Marowak’s attacks. Toxapex can pivot into Alolan Marowak but has a chance to lose to more offensive variants. Pelliper Pelipper can set rain to neuter it's fire Alolan Marowak's Fire attacks and take it out with rain boosted rain-boosted Scald. Mantine can also hit it with Scald, though it's not the best switchin switch-in due to Shadow Bone.

**Rock Types**: Tyranitar can take Alolan Marowak’s STABs STAB moves quite well and Pursuit trap it, but fears Bonemerang and Will-o-Wisp. Will-O-Wisp. Mega Aerodactyl struggles to take any attack but can threaten it out with Stone Edge or Pursuit trap it, but it too fears Will-o-Wisp. is heavily crippled by Will-O-Wisp.

gp 1/1

Implemented, if anything was missed let me know.

 

[Colonel M]

Were Lee still around he would be shedding a tear.

Marowak finally made it in OU. Just took a little longer than expected.

Uploading.