Community POTW #5

[noobiess]

I like this pokemon very much. It gives the game an extra spin to it

Here is my set:

Zoroark @ choice scarf
Ev's: 252 sp attack, 152 (52) attack, 106 (206) speed
naughty/rash
attacks:
- U-turn
- foul play/night burst
- flametrower
- focus blast/grass knot

Zoroak, the illusionist. His movesets are as important as the pokemon you choose that zoroark is going to look like. I prefer pokemon like espeon,skarmory,natorei,... . In general, defensive pokemon; because they force the oponent to switch into an offensive pokemon (or let a offensive pokemon attack). I like this because the mostly don't have much defences so you have more chance of sweeping.
I like zoroark to be a little bit of a mixed sweeped since his physical attack isn't that bad and it gives him much more diversity to count pokemon. Also U-turn and choice skarf is a deadly combination. But his special attack stays it's strong point so I personly like to maximize the special attack stat.
Grass knot mainly is for swamperts, wich are difficult to counter without grassknot, but to be honest I prefer focus blast since swampert aren't so many seen in 5th gen OU lately. You may find foul play a weard move to go for, but actually it can be really handy. I uses the opponents attacking stat so it is perfect to use when you are able to switch in into a dragon dancing gyarados or a sword dancing dragon-pokemon. But the move stays really tricky, because it also can happen that the opponent switches into a defending pokemon with barely any attack. If you prefer to choose night burst over foul play I suggest of putting more EV's on speed since you only have one physical move then.
For the Ev's, I suggest of keeping the special attack at it's maximum because it stays the strongest point of zoroark. Also his speed is quit high so with the combination with choise skarf it doesn't need so much speed anyway.
The last thing I want to say it that this moveset isn't a solid as other ones. You should really let the moveset depend on the pokemon that zoroark is projecting and think about what the opponent should do when he falls for it, and to what he would switch into or wich attack it is going to use

So that was it. Hope you like the moveset

Ps: wow fforgot to send the rest of the text

More to come

[fishyfool]

Zoroark works best when you don't give it away too early.

The fact Zoro gets base 105 speed is neat, as it lets him outrun those base 100ers easily, but sadly 105 is only good and not great. His physical movepool consists of STAB options Foul Play, Night Slash and Sucker Punch, Return, Ankle Sweep and U-Turn, and...that's it. Of those, Foul Play can be countered by the fact that it uses the foe's attack stat in damage calculations, meaning a special tank can happily come straight in and sponge off that attack, despite its meaty base 95 STAB strength. Sucker Punch only works if being attacked, and considering Zoroark's bulk is equal to Spinda, that won't save him. He does get Counter as well, but with weather and sand floating around this isn't a saving throw, though it could allow him to abuse Illusion to get a free kill by forcing a resisted physical move. However, Zoroark has much better things to do. Hone Claws is just a crap move full stop outclassed by Swords Dance, but he only has the bulk to use one and even then with a Life Orb he's packing a scary 700ish attack, but as stated before he only has the power to use STAB moves and U-Turn. In short, physical Zoroark sucks.

Specially, however, is a different story. Natural access to Nasty Plot combined with his impressive base 120 special attack means Zoroark runs a tasty 744 special attack after a plot boost, and if doing so on a switch means he has liberty of abusing his monstrous special movepool. Sadly, Dark Pulse is an egg move, and while Night Burst is stronger, it gives up the game that he's a Zoroark, and that 95 accuracy can bite you at the worst moment. Thankfully, Zoroark is in the Ground Egg group meaning he can get Dark Pulse from Smeargle, who can also give him Extrasensory, though Psychic is an awful attacking type. With Extrasensory, Dark Pulse, Flamethrower and Grass Knot as well as Hidden Power, and though you may argue that this leaves him with 2 moves considering Dark Pulse, you can see that fire/grass doesn't help him against Heatran, so Focus Blast may be worth consideration, despite that hopeless accuracy. Calm Mind is outclassed by NP, and Zoro as stated before is fragile.

I see some support sets here, and will touch on that. Base 105 speed is pretty fast, though outrun by still quite a few things, but it gives Zoro a decent ability in use as a utility mon. By using Illusion to give the idea of another pokemon, Zoro can then Taunt something, poison them with Toxic then come in later to aid a sweeper's rise by Mementoing something. However, Erufuun does the whole support thing much better with access to Mischievous Heart, and Zoroark should really just play his role as a special sweeper with the power to fool others into thinking he's something when he's not.

[ilucado]

Zoroark the Illusionist!

-Nasty Plot
-Grass Knot
-Night Burst/Dark Pulse
-Extrasensory

@Expert Belt/Leftovers
Illusion
Modest(+SAtt, -Att)
Ev's 252 SAtt / 252 Spd / 4 HP

Nasty Plot needs no introduction.. and because of Zoroark's huge speed it can be used as a first attack, to give that nice boost. Grass Knot 1HKO rock type pkmn and hits hard on water's. Night Burst or Dark Pulse.. well they both have STAB, the first one has 85 power 95 acc (may lower the opp. acc), the other one has 80 power 100 acc (may flinch)... is up to you really! Extrasensory covers its main weakness: Fighting! And with the new "heavy weight champion" of the 5th Gen Roopushin, this may be your best choice!

The Illusion of the Illusionist!

- U-turn/Vengeance
- Foul Play/Sucker Punch
- Aerial Ace/Dig
- Giga Impact

@Expert Belt/Choice Band
Illusion
Adamant (+ Att, - SAtt)
Ev's 252 Att / 252 Spp / 252 HP

Lets get Physical! No really this moveset can be a real pain in the ***... If you put Zoroark as a Lead then you should go with U-turn, otherwise Vengeance for a Revenge kill! Foul Play is the best choice because of Zoroark's not-so-bright Attack stat.. Aerial Ace can deal with Bugs and Fighters, but Dig can handle all 5 types... and because your opponent knows nothing about you in the 1st round this can be a very cool move to have! Giga Impact covers pretty much what's left!

Partners:

I guess every thing that can trick the opp... such has ghosts/bugs/fighters.
Another good option could be a Stockpile/Baton Pass user like Drifblim.. any pokemon that could raise Zoroark's Def/SDef.

[windsong]

I feel the need to mention that Focus Blast should not be slashed, ever on special sets as it is Zoroark's only decent option against Tyranitar on the specially based sets. Continuing, they all want max speed to as to outspeed base 100s, and it's worth mentioning that team preview can mess up Zoroark a ton.

Anyways, the NP set should look like this, not the ones posted earlier:

Zoroark@Life Orb
Timid | Illusion
252 SpA / 252 Spe / 4 HP

- Nasty Plot
- Dark Pulse / Night Burst
- Focus Blast
- Flamethrower / Grass Knot / Extrasensory

Nasty Plot is easy to set up provided you can come in disguised as something that will force the opponent out with relative ease, making Zoroark a perfect user of the move. Dark Pulse or Night Burst is up to the person using Zoroark, but it should be mentioned that Night Burst will immediately give away the fact that it is a Zoroark, whereas Dark Pulse will not. Focus Blast rounds off for excellent type coverage when paired with a Dark attack, and most importantly hits Tyranitar. The final slot is essentially just a filler, with Flamethrower hitting Nattorei and Breloom, Grass Knot damaging bulky waters other than Rotom-W pretty heavily, and Extrasensory hitting Roobushin switch ins.

Swords Dance set should look something like this:

Zoroark@Life Orb
Naughty / Naive | Illusion
252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 HP

- Swords Dance
- Sucker Punch / Night Slash
- Flamethrower
- Ankle Sweep / U-Turn / Night Slash

The SD set has a bit of surprise value, and can come in disguised as something like Kobalon or Landlos pretty easily, which is massively helpful in setting up. Sucker Punch versus Night Slash on the first attacking slot is basically personal choice, but Sucker Punch is often better, hitting Latias, Gengar, and Latios, all of whom outspeed you. Flamethrower is the single best option in the next slot, for hitting Nattorei and Breloom, who both sort of wall the set, and the final slot is essentially just a filler, with Ankle sweep hitting Nattorei and steels for a bit of damage, U-Turn being a solid scouting move for midgame, and Night Slash being a secondary option if not used in the primary attacking slot.

Partners

Decided to add this after I saw the post where someone listed Weezing as a partner. =/

Partners for Zoroark should never be stuff that take different amounts of hazard damage than he does. That means pairing him up with, say, Gengar to "lure Psychic moves" is rather stupid, as Zoroark cannot effectively disguise himself as Gengar due to them receiving different amounts of hazard damage (Zoroark is hit by Spikes). Something like Scizor though, for example, would be a solid partner, though it doesn't quite lure the perfect moves for Zoroark, it can let Zoroark beat a switch in come to take an +2 Bullet Punch and facing a +2 Sucker Punch or +2 Dark Pulse.

[Aerodact]

Revenging Zoroark

Zoroark @ Focus Sash
Ability: Illusion
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252Atk / 252Spd / 4 HP
- Sucker Punch
- Counter
- Aerial Ace
- Night Slash

Firstly, it would be worth noting that with this set, you would have to breed a Raticate with Counter first to then breed with a Zoroark for the moves Sucker Punch and Counter. Night Slash is the primary move which allows you to basically land an attack. Focus Sash gives Zoroark the chance to use Counter despite its weak defences and hopefully knock out a pokemon and Sucker Punch is there to deal damage to any revenge-killer. Aerial Ace is mainly there to fill in the moveslot but it can also KO things like Heracross and slow Fighting types which pose a threat.

To counter a special-based Zoroak, I would recommend Special Walls such as Blissey, Snorlax or even Mantine. Lucario has almost nothing to fear as it can withstand Flying moves and easily OHKO with an Aura Sphere or Close Combat. Aianto should also receive a mention here as it outruns Zoroark and can deal a powerful blow from X-Sissor.

[Blazios]

I've found that Zoroark is quite useful as a Scarf lead disguised as a Cofagrigus, strangely. I don't use Gengar because a lot of people seem used to the idea of Gengar Illusions. Some people have also used Fighting attacks on Turn 1 but nobody seems to predict the Cofagrigus.

Zoroark @ Choice Scarf
EVs: 4 Def / 252 SAtk / 252 Spd
Modest Nature (+SAtk, -Atk)
- Night Burst/Dark Pulse
- Extrasensory
- Flamethrower
- Focus Blast

I was using a Timid Sashed Nasty Plot lead but it seemed to barely lack enough power to 1HKO a lot of leads. Extrasensory is on to take out Kojondo, which before I scarfed Zoroark would sometimes win the speed tie and invariably U-turn out to something with priority. Focus Blast for Sazandora and Tyranitar, Flamethrower for Nattorei and Forretress. The 4Def is so that its Special Defense is lower, so the occasional Download Pokémon won't be immediately tipped off. Cofagrigus is Taunt bait against pretty much any lead that has it, giving you a free attack.

Scarf actually outspeeds Neutral Deoxys-S and can KO with Night Burst. It also roasts Scarf Genosect with Flamethrower (Not that that matters for a long while). Outspeeds and 1HKOs non sashed Ninjask. Fake Out leads never Fake Out because of Illusion.

[jespoke]

PunishArk

- Foul Play/Punishment
- U-Turn
- Vengeance
- Aerial Ace/Ankle Sweep/Punishment

@ Leftovers/Lum Berry
Illusion
Jolly (+Spd, -SAtk)/Admadant (+Atk, -SAtk)
Ev's 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 Hp

A set mainly to punish stat boosters, especially Sword- and Dragon dancers. Foul Play uses the opponents boosted attack stat against them, where the weaker Punishment can be used against the less common defence boosters too. U-turn can be usefull to flee from slower oponents, just to return with a new illusion a little later in the battle. Vengeance is another punishing move, and works well with U-Turn too. The last slot is for coverage or getting both Foul Play and Punishment in one set.

Leftovers to survive longer, or Lum Berry for not getting recognized as you switch back in after taking a status makes up for the item slot.

Go Jolly if you use Foul Play, or else stick to Admadant.

Ev's are max Speed to outrun as much possible and Attack for the power of Vengeance. Alternatively you can switch Attack and Hp for surviving some longer.

[Monochromatic]

PunishArk

- Foul Play/Punishment
- U-Turn
- Retatlation
- Aerial Ace/Ankle Sweep/Punishment

@ Leftovers
Illusion
Jolly (+Spd, -SAtk)/Admadant (+Atk, -SAtk)
Ev's 252 Atk / 252 Spd / 4 Def

A set mainly to punish stat boosters, especially Sword- and Dragon dancers. Foul Play uses the opponents boosted attack stat against them, where the weaker Punishment can be used against the less common defence boosters too. U-turn can be usefull to flee from slower oponents, just to return with a new illusion a little later in the battle. Retatlation is another punishing move, and works well with U-Turn too. The last slot is for coverage or getting both Foul Play and Punishment in one set.

Uh...just wondering...

What's "retatlation"?

[Vivmeister]

Uh...just wondering...

What's "retatlation"?

I believe it's that move Vengeance, which is a move that doubles in power if your opponent knocked one of your Pokemon on the previous turn.

[ASB]

Weezing seems like a good illusion partner, too. Its only weakness is psychic, which Zoroark is immune to. Also, it can pick up Toxic Spikes if need be.

[jespoke]

I believe it's that move Vengeance, which is a move that doubles in power if your opponent knocked one of your Pokemon on the previous turn.

Sorry for the Bulbapedia translation, i had forgotten all about the missing official translations

[MikeHill005]

Standard Zoroark

U-Turn
Flamethrower
Night Burst
Extrasensory

Yeah, it's been said a few times already, so I'll skip the explanation and go to the partners.

POSSIBLE PARTNERS:

MACHAMP: Here's something new to throw into the mix. Say you have a Machamp with these moves: DynamicPunch, Ice Punch, Earthquake, and Stone Edge. Together with Standard Zoroark, you can get super-effective hits on every type but water. Combine this with the Phychic weakness/illusion strategy, and you've got one tough combo.
GENGAR: Its main weakness, Psychic, is resisted by Zoro. Confuse your oppenents easily.
WEEZING: Once again, its only weakness is Psychic. Use it to your advantage.

NOT TO USE AS PARTNERS: Grass, Ice, Normal, Rock, Steel, Psychic, or anything that shares Zoroark's weaknesses.

COUNTERS: Accelgor (the ninga-clam) could be a threat because of its speed, just watch out for Flamethrower. Any fighting type that can beat Zoro's speed would also work. Remember: It's frail but fast, so try and KO it before it pulls a U-Turn and escapes.

[jespoke]

We have a lot of nasty plot and choice sets already but has somebody an idea for using its novelty of being the only pokemon with Bark Out yet? I can't really find a good way to put it into use.

"Short" sum up of Bark Out's uses on Zoroark. (Not because i think you need it, but because i enjoy making it)

"Bark Out is, with its base 50 far from Zoroarks strongest stab move, but may be handy anyway as the Sp Attack drop it causes will be a hard thing to take for special oriented pokemon. The most effective use of the Sp Attack drop can be reacted with the most common use of Illusion, provoking the opponent to switch to a psychic pokemon(Special oriented more than 90% of the cases), with in turn is weak to Bark Out too."

[MikeHill005]

We have a lot of nasty plot and choice sets already but has somebody an idea for using its novelty of being the only pokemon with Bark Out yet? I can't really find a good way to put it into use.

Well, the fact is that there are virtually no Special-based attacks that really are a threat to Zoroark. Most fighting attacks are Physical (excluding Focus Blast). Bug Buzz may pose a threat, but that's really the only thing it would be useful for (that comes to mind).

[PhilosophicalPsychologica]

OK, just like I did for Machamp, I'm just going to be thorough and blunt, instead of imitating a fully-done PotW.

Side Note on Illusion: I've used Zoroark before on PO. To be honest, switching around is confusing, as it actually changes the order of your party. I do not know if this works in-game too or is just a PO perk.

Boosting Special @ Life Orb/Expert Belt
Illusion
252 SpAtk, 252 Spd, 4 HP
Timid (+Spd, -Atk)
Nasty Plot
Dark Pulse
Flamethrower/Hidden Fight Power/Grass Knot
any possible Hidden Power

Zoroark's strongest set. The two auxillery moves are strange because Zoroark doesn't honestly have a wide movepool. Flamethrower can hit the plethora of Steels that resist Dark STAB, but Fight Power or Focus Blast can also nail rival Darks to an extent. Grass Knot is mainly for Tyranitar, but is an option. As for the final slot, you can pick an additional auxillery move or any HP of your choice.

Physical Booster @ Life Orb/Expert Belt
Illusion
252 Atk, 252 Spd, 4 HP
Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk)/Jolly (+Spd, -SpAtk)
Swords Dance
Sucker Punch
Ankle Sweep
Night Slash/Taunt/Toxic/Return

Theoretically weaker than a pure Special set, and has even less weapons at its disposal, though it can work when factoring in Zoroark's niche to cause chaos.

Choice @ Choice Specs/Choice Scarf
Illusion
252 SpAtk, 252 Spd, 4 Atk
Timid (+Spd, -SpAtk)/Modest (+SpAtk, -Atk)
U-turn
Dark Pulse
Focus Blast/Flamethrower
Grass Knot/Hidden Power of choice

Allows Zoroark to get the jump with an immediate 50% boost to whatever offensive Stat it wishes. Choice Band is omitted due to Swords Dance set already crammed for space, though it is possible to run Sucker Punch, U-turn, Pursuit, Return, and Ankle Sweep as viable Physical options.

Speed Booster @ Life Orb
252 SpAtk, 252 Spd, 4 HP
Agility
Dark Pulse
Focus Blast
Hidden Power/Flamethrower/Grass Knot

Zoroark is already equipped with a fine 120 Base SpAtk. Agility complements Zoroark's high 105 Speed and to start sweeping with its Dark-Fight combo. Due to this, you may be able to find room to drop a few Speed EVs to invest in HP or possibly even go mix, but this is not Zoroark's strongest suit.

Supplementary @ Focus Sash
Illusion
252 HP, 252 Spd, 4 SpDef
Naive (+Spd, -Def)
Counter
Memento
Taunt
Torment/Foul Play

This set is designed (usually as a lead) to disrupt the foe as as much as Zoroark can, then to use Memento as the final touch to disrupt the way for a sweeper.

Pre-Evo Corner
Zorua is frai beyond belief to consider any use for Evolution Stone. However, Zorua can easily run any of the sets Zoroark uses in LC. Furthermore, it is possible for Zorua to run the last set in order to supplement a sweep for Zoroark. And double Illusion is always frustrating for your opponent.

Teammates: don't feel like it, everyone else already covered it
Doubles, Triples, Rotation: I don't recommend Zoroark.

Other Options
Night Burst: Possible Dark Pulse replace
ment, but usually isn't very good for both practical use and upholding Zorro's Illusion (although Zorro shouldn't be be Illuding a Dark type anyway)
Extrasensory: Can be used to hit Fighting types on the switch. This is actually better on paper as it is in practice, because if Zoroark is able to outspeed the Fighting type in question, it will probably get struck by a Mach Punch.
Shadow Ball: Is a better complement to Focus Blast than Dark Pulse is and helps uphold a Ghost Illusion, but is overall very inefficient with Dark Pulse, though Zoroark often finds itself with lots of movespace.

Zoroark has a somewhat exclusive Speed stat of 105. As a sweeper, it is ideal to max it out, most notably to tie with other Zoroark and Kojondo (that tai chi weasel Fighting-type that can learn Aura Sphere). In the terms of Choice Scarf, you will usually want to still max it out. When using Agility, I have 252 Speed listed as a base line, but feel free to lower this at your whimsy.

[PhilosophicalPsychologica]

We have a lot of nasty plot and choice sets already but has somebody an idea for using its novelty of being the only pokemon with Bark Out yet? I can't really find a good way to put it into use.

Bark Out is not a very useful move in general, especially considering Zoroark's frailness. It would be better off using Memento. I listed such a set. Zoroark honestly is not diverse in its options.

[TimmahX]

Nasty Fox
Item: Life Orb
Ability: Illusion
Nature: Timid
EVs: 252 Speed, 252 SpAtk, 4 HP

- Dark Pulse (STAB attack, Flinch, More accuracy than Night Burst)
- Flamethrower (Assorted coverage, great Anti-Steel)
- Grass Knot (Takes out Rock types that resist Flamethrower and Bulky Waters)
- Nasty Plot (Boosts Special attack by two stages)

Dancing Fox
Item: Life Orb
Ability: Illusion
Nature: Adamant / Jolly
EVs: 252 Speed, 252 Atk, 4 HP

- Sucker Punch (STAB attack, Priority)
- Night Slash (Stable attack) / Aerial Ace (Anti-Heracross/Fighting Types)
- U-Turn (Scouting)
- Swords Dance (Boosts Attack by two stages)

I choose to mix it up!
Item: Choice Scarf
Ability: Illusion
Nature: Adamant / Modest / Jolly / Timid
EVs: 252 SpAtk, 252 Atk, 4 Speed

- Dark Pulse (STAB attack)
- Flamethrower (Anti-Steel/Bug (Anti-Forretress)) / Grass Knot (Anti-Rock/Water/Ground)
- U-Turn (Scouting)
- Aerial Ace / Focus Blast / Hidden Power / Extrasensory

Partners

Gengar is a great illusion to use. That's all I got, this guy is really better off flying solo. I do not recommend using moves that your illusion cannot use, or your opponent will figure out what's really behind the smoke and mirrors.

Countering

Even if he hides behind a Gengar illusion, Thunder Wave can still shut Zoroark down, unless he carries Sucker Punch. And even then, Zoroark will be severely hampered if luck is against him. After Zoroark is exposed, Fighting and Bug moves wreck him due to his awful defensive stats. Poor prediction with switch ins can lead to exposed Zoroarks, so he's better used as a revenge killer early on. Do not save him for the end when there's no pokemon left to act as illusions.

[windsong]

Ok, I really didn't want to have to repeat myself, but since people seem to be posting without reading the thread or using the Pokemon, Gengar is an inefficient Zoroark partner. Though the typing resistances are good, there's a major problem in the fact that Gengar does not receive spikes damage while Zoroark does, meaning that against the huge amount of teams that use Spikes, Zoroark is never going to be able to properly disguise itself as a Gengar.

And STOP POSTING SPECIALLY BASED SETS WITHOUT FOCUS BLAST. Seriously, Focus Blast is absolutely needed.

[multi-scale]

roopushin counters zoroark, i guess. machamp as well. any fighting types i guess. agiruuda looks like a good counter. it's faster, has STAB bug buzz, recover, and even power swap to give it better attacking stats.
If any of this is wrong, i'm sorry. i'm a total newbie.

[damage inc.]

i haven't really studied any fifth gen in depth, but any pokemon with a weakness to psychic would make a good last slot teamate, lure in a psychic attack, they're now a turn behind. (if they use a psychic attack will that fade the illusion, or will it still be there?)