"Defensive Type Synergy - Another spin on "optimal" gym defense"

#PokemonGO: .PrefaceIf you believe that CP and being at or near the top of the gym is all that matters for gym defense, then almost the entirety of this post may appear trivial to you. That said, it’s in my personal belief that in most regions if you can clear the bottom 4 (or clear a Blissey) you’re “safe” from most forms of attrition and shaving. If you agree with that, it may be useful for you to read this to further arm your gyms both statistically and psychologically with this posts recommendations.OpeningEver since Pokemon GO came out there has been a lot of research and debate on which Pokemon are the “best” defenders and for what reasons. At this point, there are two main schools of thought revolving around the CP of a defender and the quality of defense they bring. Many different models exist which weigh the “challenge” of dodging a move, different dodge/energy use statistics, and time/damage different from each other in both obvious and subtle ways. Some of the more eloquent Tier Lists (such as Gamepress) already have CP considerations worked in alongside quantitative methodology. However, most fail to mention Defensive Synergy.Defensive SynergyAll well thought out and calculated defense models agree that damage dealt to an attacker and time spent in battle are what make a Pokemon “good” for defense. More eloquent models (such as u/QuantumOverlord ’s and Gamepress) rate a Pokemon’s worth as a defender against their more likely or more optimal match ups. What separates these is models is the fact that the difference between a “good” defender and a “very ok” one can be as simple as a couple hits and a few seconds. In and of this, anyone can say “Golem is a very underpowered defender” but it’d quickly ascend to the A ranks if someone was stubbornly fighting it with a Jolteon. Much the same can be said for Gyarados, who many forget can be quite the terrifying foe if you’re attacking with anything BUT a Jolteon.Assuming the average player isn’t plowing through a gym with 6 Dragonites (or more meta-consciously with 3 Dragonites, 2 Machamps, and 1 Flex), switches happen and they happen often. I feel this small lapse in damage, time, and effort is a critically undervalued aspect of gym defense. While swapping from a Vaporeon to a Jolteon against a Gyarados can feel like a tickle, doing the opposite when facing a Rhydon can really lay on the hurt. For this reason, I decided to make this post to emphasize the importance of what I call the “Gym Stack” and give a few shout outs to a few Pokemon I feel make good “defensive cores.”The Gym StackHave you ever fought a gym that was ordered like: Rhydon>Rhydon>Rhydon>Gyarados>Gyarados? What happened? Did you plow through all 3 Rhydon with one Vaporeon and then plow through the Gyarados with 1 Jolteon? Because I know I have. Now alternatively, consider the gym ordered like: Rhydon>Gyarados>Rhydon>Gyarados>Rhydon. It’s still not as bad as fighting a single Blissey or Snorlax, but I’m willing to bet things didn’t go nearly as smoothly as it did in my first example. This is what I mean when I mention to be mindful of the “Gym Stack.”The power of the “Gym Stack” can even go further than this by forcing players to bring in off beat attackers. For example, Jolteon is a pretty underrated defender. That said, if you manage to wedge one between two Vaporeon you have just put an attacker who uses Venasuar, Exeggutor, Tangela, or Jolteon to melt through Vape Stacks in a very awkward situation. Not only is their momentum thrown off by having to switch (or by not switching and trudging through the Jolt) but they may be tempted to bring in a less ideal attacker (such as Mudslap Rhydon) to optimally deal with this threat. In a roundabout way, this may change the gym match up from 10 v 6 to 9 v 5. Similar can be said for Exeggutor since it begets Scizor/Houndoom/Flareon or Muk who may bring in the Psychic Glass Cannons.Defensive CoresThese are a few cores I’ve made note of while researching for my own Tier List and contributions to other lists. These Pokemon are noted for their Defensive Synergy as well as being in similar CP ranges.Mountain-Dragon Core: As mentioned in Gamepress’ analysis, not only are Dragonite, Tyranitar, Rhydon, and Gyarados all very good defenders on their own, but they also have a nice defensive synergy with each other. Put simply, Gyarados is countered by Jolteon who is in turn countered heavily by Rhydon and softly by Dragonite and Tyranitar. Rhydon and Tyranitar have trouble with Grass, Water, Steel, and Fighting Types, where Dragonite and Gyarados pay them little mind. Finally, we all know Dragonite is felled by Ice types, but little can be said for their usefulness against the aforementioned 3. All this, in combination with the fact you can easily wedge in Snorlax and Blissey around them, make these 4 (6) Pokemon all the more formidable to face!Blue Steel: This core operates on the fact that Lapras, Cloyster, and Steelix’s weaknesses to Fighting, Fire, Water, Rock, and Ground and covered beautifully by Slowbro and Slowking (aka “The Slowdudes” as coined by u/DonDon151), while their weakness to Bug, Grass, and Electric are covered in turn. This core is given less credit due to the low CP, but is equally if not more formidable than the Mountain-Dragon Core. It can also find love if you’re building a gym specifically to keep some friends up, or if you want a more optimal/justifiable way to show off your Steelix or Slowking. Due to the threat of Tyranitar, I’d agree this core functions more attractively with Steelix rather than without.Beach Core: Vaporeon, Donphan, Golem, and Exeggutor also come together to make a Mountain-Dragon esque core. At this point you should know the deal, but Vaporeon is countered by Grass and Electric. Donphan and Golem handle the Electric side where Exeggutor handles the Grass side. Donphan and Golem are slapped by Water and Grass. The aforementioned 2 handle the Water, and Eggs handles the Grass again. Finally, Eggs has trouble with Dark, Bug, and Fire Types above all else, all of which are more or less covered by the other 3. Flareon/Arcanine can also make a splash in Beach Core, but I have a bias towards them in general and they place additional stress on Exeggutor as the “key” to the core. Despite having higher CP than “Blue Steel,” I chose to mention this core last since it’s synergy hinges on Exeggutor more than anything and because it can more easily be steamrolled by Dragonite unlike the aforementioned cores.Momentum Breakers: While not a core in their own right, Jolteon and Ampharos can be good “Momentum Breakers.” They both have some degree of “Defensive Synergy” with a good amount of Pokemon on this list due being only weak to Ground. Additionally, they can hit common attackers like Vaporeon and Dragonite for solid damage. Muk is also arguably a “Momentum Breaker” for similar reasons, but I feel his poor performance against Vape and Dragonite hold him a bit further back.ClosingAt the end of the day, a 10 stack of Blissey and/or Snorlax will outperform all, but once all your Blissey and Snorlax are resting on their respective gyms and you have to place your 3000 Rhydon and Gyarados on something, it could be helpful to be mindful of where they end up on the “Gym Stack.” Also, you don’t have to be a hero and stack lower than you’d like on a gym just to get defensive synergies in. But, as I said at the beginning of this post, stacking above the bottom 4 should keep you safe enough and being aware of the “Gym Stack” and “Defensive Synergies” can go a long way in both protecting the gym quantitatively and psychologically. via /r/TheSilphRoad http://ift.tt/2m6k47W