Generation VI has defined the meta known as the "Mega" era, where certain Pokemon gains a degree of viability after being blessed by a peculiar power known as Mega Evolutions. However, despite these modern mechanics, there lies a Pokemon lurking in the shadows; ready to take them down with one swift blow... ACK!
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Subject No.13
Name: Greninja
Species: The Ninja Pokemon
Height: 4'11"
Weight: 88.2 lbs.
Type: Water, Dark
Possible Abilities: Torrent, Protean
Smogon Tier: OverUsed
Insights: Greninja is simply a beast gameplay-wise. It possesses one of the best (if not THE best) hidden Abilities in the game, Protean, which can allow this ninja to become of any type on the fly. It's simply a nasty and an infuriating Ability to begin with. You fire a Thunderbolt to destroy it? It turns Grass thanks to Grass Knot and Protean. Try to punch in a Fire Blast? Nope, because it becomes Water again. Hit it with Psystrike? Your argument becomes invalid because it turns Dark due to a move similar to it. See? It's pretty imbalanced and unfair to feel the unfairness of changing its Type, and that's what made Greninja ruthlessly strong.
Recommended Ability: Protean
This powerful Ability changes your Type depending on the last move you used. It's clearly what makes Greninja so popular. All of its moves benefits from STAB due to type changes while also dealing massive super-effective damage to any enemy that is weak from those attacks. Man, just hearing their cries of frustration shivers me to the bone.
Recommended moves:
1. Ice Beam - using Greninja is useless without it. It is the ninja's main STAB and coverage move against certain threats like Dragons and Grass Pokemon that litters everyone on the spot. While it does deal decent damage even without Protean, Ice Beam is coverage move that requires a lot of boosts to make it worth owning.
2. Dark Pulse - Greninja's Dark STAB and it deals a hefty amount of damage. Plus, it has a decent flinch rate.
3. Scald - one of Greninja's main Water STAB moves that deals decent damage while burning foes with intense temperature. So it's basically a Water-type Will-o-Wisp that also deals damage.
4. Grass Knot - another helpful STAB that helps Greninja from getting fatally damaged by Electric Pokemon and it also deals a hefty amount of damage against heavy opponents.
5. Surf - this is a solid move for Greninja and it has a lot of promise, especially in Double and Triple battles. It has decent damage even without Protean and deals twice the damage against diving foes.
Other recommended moves:
1. Hydro Pump - a more powerful Water STAB move than Surf and Scald, but its usefulness becomes questionable due to its mediocre accuracy.
2. Extrasensory - with Protean, this can allow Greninja to go Psychic-type and to prevent foes from attacking this Pokemon by flinching them.
3. Mat Block - prevents attacks from connecting to Greninja as well as its partner Pokemon. Quite versatile for Double and Triple battles.
4. Shadow Sneak - a perfect coverage move... for a physical attacker build. It also strikes first which can be very helpful in defeating a variety of foes in the meta such as Gengar.
5. Water Shuriken - also viable in a physical build, this move is an increased-priority attack that strikes foes multiple times, but even with Protean, the damage can still be mitigated very easily.
6. Night Slash - a good coverage move for obvious reasons. It also has an increased critical-hit chance.
Recommended items:
1. Life Orb - the staple of every Greninja build that increases the power of their offensive moves by 30%. A very nasty item for an already nasty Pokemon which doesn't care for the recoil because it is meant to go down so easily anyway.
2. Expert Belt - with many super-effective coverage moves that Greninja can actually learn, this item is best if Trainers want their Greninja to hit too hard.
3. Splash Plate - Water is Greninja's primary Type so it's the more obvious choice than Dread Plate.
4. Choice items - don't even attempt to use every Choice item on this bad boy. This will limit Protean's utility severely. It's not listed here as a recommended item, but it is something to watch out.
Recommended nature: Timid or Jolly
Greninja's stellar 122 base speed is an eye-candy for anyone who will do whatever it takes to win even the most serious and senseless of battles. Timid is the preferred nature on Greninja which makes it one of the fastest Pokemon in its tier and for a good reason; its a ninja with a vicious attitude.
Overall: Greninja is a solid teammate suitable in any team environment. Whether it is used on casual play or in the competitive field, Greninja is capable of dealing enough damage to go on par with the many enemies it may encounter in the battlefield. Greninja, truly, is not just for show after all.
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