Why is Slaking So Strong in Pokemon?
Slaking is infamous in the Pokemon world for having monstrous stats rivaling legendaries, yet finds itself constantly held back by its Ability Truant in competitive play. Let‘s dive deep into understanding this powerhouse lazy Pokemon.
Slaking‘s Stats Are In Legendary Territory
With base stats of 150 HP, 160 Attack, 100 Defense, 95 Special Attack, 65 Special Defense, and 100 Speed, Slaking‘s total base stat sum of 670 exceeds every other non-legendary Pokemon. To put this in perspective, here‘s how Slaking compares to some legendary and pseudo-legendary Pokemon:
| Pokemon | HP | Atk | Def | SpA | SpD | Spe | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slaking | 150 | 160 | 100 | 95 | 65 | 100 | 670 |
| Mewtwo | 106 | 110 | 90 | 154 | 90 | 130 | 680 |
| Dragonite | 91 | 134 | 95 | 100 | 100 | 80 | 600 |
| Tyranitar | 100 | 134 | 110 | 95 | 100 | 61 | 600 |
| Registeel | 80 | 75 | 150 | 75 | 150 | 50 | 580 |
As you can see, Slaking matches or exceeds the stats of pseudo-legendaries like Dragonite and Tyranitar, while approaching the totals of real legends like Mewtwo. An attack stat of 160 is higher than any Pokemon besides legendaries. Its massive HP stat of 150 is also only matched by a handful of tanky legends. Slaking definitely deserves its reputation as one of the strongest non-legendaries stat-wise!
Truant Dooms Slaking Competitively
So with legendary-level power, Slaking should be dominating competitions right? Unfortunately no – his Ability Truant cripples Slaking by making him loaf around every other turn unable to attack. Smart opponents will switch in a counter or set up stat boosts/hazards during his downtime. Various strategies have tried to mitigate Truant like switching to absorb attacks or using Protect, but they cannot hide Slaking‘s glaring weakness. As a result, Slaking is almost never seen in high level competitive play despite his towering stats. Such a shame for a Pokemon with the latent power to sweep unprepared teams!
Boasting Impressive Charged Moves in Pokemon GO
In Pokemon GO, Slaking‘s massive attack allows it to hit hard with charge moves like Play Rough and Earthquake. However, it is again crippled by only learning the 0 damage move Yawn for energy generation. Having to spend every other turn just idling makes it difficult to charge up and properly time the release of its attacks. Still, an unprepared opponent risks getting flattened by a surprise Play Rough or Earthquake by the beast. Slaking proves itself a scary gym defender despite its limitations in GO.
More Details on Countering This Normal Type Tank
Fighting types naturally excel at countering Slaking thanks to their super effective STAB attacks. Machamp is likely the premier option, wielding the fighting type Cross Chop and Rock Slide to pummel Slaking for massive damage. Speedy priority users like Breloom can hit Slaking as it loafs with Mach Punch. Setting up with Dragon Dance users like Salamence is also effective. Bulky fairy types that resist Slaking‘s STAB like Clefable are solid checks. And watch out for being trapped by Slaking while Truant is up – bring a Ghost type like Dusclops to switch out for free!
Slaking‘s Sheer Power Depicted in Anime and Manga
In the Pokemon anime, Norman‘s Slaking was shown to be overwhelming even without using any attacks! In the manga, Ruby‘s Slaking unleashed all its pent up energy at once to defeat a Groudon. These depictions showcase that while hampered by Truant, Slaking‘s raw strength allows it to cause destruction whenever it gets the chance to attack. Even a simple Tackle or Punch can be devastating coming from this beast.
Fans Wish for a Truant-less Slaking
Slaking is a fan favorite for its design and concept as an impossibly strong lazy Pokemon. However many wish Game Freak would just let it reach its full potential already by removing Truant! The regional variant Slaking in the fan game Pokemon Tandor boosts Slaking‘s speed instead of loafing around, showing one way to improve it. While unlikely, one can dream that someday Slaking will get an Ability change or regional form to become the legendary-smashing sweeper its stats suggest it should be!
In summary, Slaking is shackled by Truant into being a mediocre competitive Pokemon despite boasting otherworldly attack and HP. This sleepy beast has the latent power to annihilate opponents, if only it stayed awake! While Game Freak likely restricts it to prevent breaking the meta, we can continue dreaming of the day Slaking awakens into the legendary-slaying dynamo we know it can be.