What is a good moveset for Alolan Marowak?

Question

This thread is for Alolan Marowak. For Kantonian Marowak, please go here.

If you have a good competitive moveset for Alolan Marowak, post an answer below and upvote the best ones. Movesets for any of its pre-evolutions can also be shared on this thread.

Be sure to include full set details in your post, e.g. items, abilities, natures and EVs. Some explanation, including the intended game mode for your set, is also appreciated. Access the full list of guidelines here.

Alolan Marowak Pokedex and learnset for reference.

Comments

Note: I decided to allow Alolan Forms as separate questions, as these Pokemon are quite different to their regular forms.

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I really like this guy after knowing that Thick Club exists. Really great mon to use, and threatens other threats such as Koko, Bulu. Lightning Rod is really great for switching into electric attacks, and Shadow Bone is really great along with Flare Blitz.

Answer 1

Alolan Marowak

Pele (Marowak-Alola) (F) @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 248 HP / 80 Atk / 180 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz / Fire Punch
- Earthquake / Bonemarang
- Will-O-Wisp / Toxic / Stealth Rock / Swords Dance
- Shadow Bone / Low Kick

I never realized how good this thing's Attack could be until now. Why was it NU as opposed to this one (OU)? I'm probably out of touch on the tier cause I haven't played ultra-competitive in a while, but the site needs an Alolan moveset for this Poke. I got this set from Smogon us, but I rearranged the EVs. It originally had some investment in Speed to outdo Pokes like Chansey and Clefable, but I don't think they'll be as much of problems if you decide to run Low Kick for Chansey (EDIT 11/27/18: or Tyranitar, another big one, I wouldn't have caught this if I hadn't happened upon it by mistake), which was also my own idea. I have bolded the choices I use. This set also originally ran Lightning Rod, but I chose Rock Head to live to use more Flare Blitzes.

If you'd like the original EVs for this set:

EVs: 248 HP / 16 Atk / 112 SpD / 132 Spe

Smogon also had a set I liked for a Sub-attacker.

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Bonemerang / Earthquake
- Substitute

>Okay so, it might seem really weird to run Max Speed and Jolly on such a slow Pokemon, but hear me out. Running Speed actually helps Marowak a lot when it comes to stallbreaking. Being able to outspeed stuff like Hippowdon and Mega Venusaur prevents them from being able to stall you out with faster recovers or just revenge kill you. It also lets you Sub on them before they inflict you with status. And yes, base 45 speed may seem slow even with investment, but it actually outspeeds the important base 200 Speed tier (just barely; it hits 207 speed) ,which not many defensive Pokemon are able to surpass (idk how much speed Heatran runs nowadays*, might be more than Marowak can reach, but from what I've seen most are very bulky). And, most importantly, Substitute lets it act as an excellent MMawile check, given that they rarely run Knock Off and will most likely try to Sucker Punch Marowak. Oh, and with TWave support, it has an actual shot at being able to outspeed stuff: it outspeeds everything paralyzed up to base 140 speed You can definitely use Lightningrod over Rock Head to counter Tapu Koko and Xurkitree, but that means you need to run Fire Punch over Flare Blitz, which reduces your wallbreaking capabilities quite a bit. I initially dismissed this thing because of its speed+poor defensive typing, but in the current metagame, its typing is actually pretty useful, its coverage is amazing, and it packs one hell of a punch, so consider me impressed.

~Fat Albacore, Smogon

Comments

>run Low Kick for Chansey, which was also my own idea.
this is honestly a waste of a moveslot, flare blitz always does more damage to chansey and fire punch is only 10 bp below low kick so theres no point of it other than to hit tyranitar or whatever which still fears the ground move/will o wisp. shadow bone is also pretty irreplaceable.

>This set also originally ran Lightning Rod, but I chose Rock Head to live to use more Flare Blitzes.
the point of using alolan marowak with hp/spdef investment is to serve as a blanket check/counter to many threats, and lightningrod is essential to marowak performing that role effectively. i wouldn't recommend using rock head on a set that is not all out offensive.

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You give a good point on Low Kick. I thought it'd be more effective considering the physical figure of Chansey, but maybe it's not worth it with Rock Head. What makes Shadow Bone so irreplaceable though? What if I run into a Thick Fat Snorlax? Will this thing do more damage to it than I think it will?

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Shadow Bone has fantastic coverage along with Marowaks Fire STAB and hits extremely hard as well. It's true, Low Kick will hit Thick Fat Snorlax for more damage that Flare Blitz. Shadow Bone, however, is STAB and hits a ton of mons neutrally/super effectively for a lot of damage, while Low Kick is only useful for a few specific threats.

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you could call it Pele and make it female - Pele is the Hawaiian Goddess of fire

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Thanks for that, that's actually great!

Answer 2

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 100 HP / 252 Atk / 28 SpD / 128 Spe OR 252 HP / 128 Atk / 128 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Bonemerang / Earthquake
- Flare Blitz
- Poltergeist / Shadow Bone / Hex
- Will-O-Wisp / Swords Dance / Stealth Rock

• Bonemerang / Earthquake (Coverage)
• Flare Blitz (Stab and No need to take recoil damage anymore! YaY!)
• Poltergeist / Shadow bone/Hex (All of Them are STAB, Hex if you use will-o-wisp)
• Will-O-Wisp / Swords Dance/Stealth Rock (For Hex /For Boost/Hazard Setting)

Answer 3

Gen 8 UU
Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Earthquake
- Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Stone Edge
Explanation: This set is to be used on Trick Room teams. Earthquake hits hard and has double power due to Thick Club. Flare Blitz is STAB and has double power. With the ability Rock Head, Marowak won't take any recoil damage. Shadow Bone is STAB. Stone Edge is for coverage.

Answer 4

Gen 8 RU/UU/OU

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod / Rock Head
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature

• Poltergeist
• Fire Punch / Flare Blitz
• Earthquake
• Low Kick

Poltergeist is brutal STAB that reveals the enemy's item and covers Ghost types. The Fire STAB depends on the ability. Fire Punch should be used on Lightning Rod sets, while Flare Blitz must be used on Rock Head sets. Earthquake covers Rock types. Low Kick hits heavier Rock types like Rhyperior for more damage, and also covers Dark types.

Answer 5

Gen 8 Doubles UU

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Swords Dance
- Flare Blitz
- Poltergeist / Shadow Bone
- Detect

This should be used in a Trick Room team. After a Swords Dance, Alolan Marowak OHKOs every single Pokémon in the metagame. Even if it gets intimidated after setting up a Swords Dance, Marowak is still guaranteed to OHKO most Pokémon (including the best Intimidate user in the tier, Scrafty). Flare Blitz and Poltergeist are STAB, but you can go with Shadow Bone over Poltergeist if you want, since Poltergeist fails if the target has no item or lost / consumed it's item, which sucks since Sitrus Berries and Pinch Berries are very common in doubles. Detect allows Marowak to stay safe from all attacks for a turn and allows it to scout for attacks. Best used when Marowak's ally is attempting to set Trick Room up. Also, Detect is chosen over Protect because of the rare Imprison + Protect strats despite Detects lower total PP. The Thick Club doubles Marowak's attack stat. Rock Head makes it so Flare Blitz does no recoil damage.

Answer 6

Gen 9 National Dex Trick Room Breaker

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Brave Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Swords Dance
- Flare Blitz
- Poltergeist
- Bonemerang

Alolan Marowak's slow speed and high attack allows it to thrive in Trick Room teams. With Swords Dance, Alolan Marowak manages to break Pokemon like Alomomola, which cleaning teammates like Stakataka really appreciate. Bonemerang is a potent move to OHKO Ceruledge through Focus Sash as well as providing decent Ground coverage against the likes of chipped Raging Bolt. Ceruledge is an issue thanks to Sash allowing it to survive any hit along with Close Combat dismantling Porygon2, meaning it can rip through a team after Mega Mawile is removed or force a Tera. Marowak possesses the ability to bait and remove Ceruledge, allowing teammates Porygon2 to set up Trick Room and Teleport out easier without being threatened. Tera Fire Flare Blitz allows Marowak to land a guaranteed OHKO on key Pokemon like Landorus-T and Great Tusk after even a +1 boost.

For teammates, Alolan Marowak necessitates Hatterene to ensure near guaranteed Trick Room setup. Hatterene can also fully heal up a battered Marowak thanks to Healing Wish. In return, Marowak can threaten Pokemon that aim to OHKO Hatterene and prevent either Trick Room or Healing Wish, like Iron Crown and Mega Scizor. Ursaluna is a great partner for Marowak, notably threatening a 2HKO on Dondozo, which would only be 3HKOed by Marowak's Poltergeist. Mega Mawile appreciates the raw breaking power of Marowak, notably removing Landorus-T, which can lower Mawile's attack. Mega Mawile's priority can also help revenge kill Marowak if the opposing Pokemon has already been dented. Finally, Stakataka is a potent cleaner thanks to Beast Boost skyrocketing its Attack after just one KO. However, Stakataka struggles to hit Pokemon like Alomomola, non-Ground weak Steels like Mega Scizor and Corviknight, and bulky Grasses like Tangrowth, all of which are threatened by Marowak.

Answer 7

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpA
Brave Nature
- Ice Beam
- Flare Blitz
- Bonemerang
- Shadow Bone

Explanation: Ice Beam on Alolan Marowak? It can actually do good with Lightning Rod boosts and It hits Garchomp, Landorus-Therian, and Gliscor. Flare Blitz is STAB but at the risk or Recoil Damage. Bonemerang hits covers Rock and Electric types and it breaks Mimikyu's Disguise. Shadow Bone is also STAB and it has a chance to lower the foe's Defense by 1 Stage.

Comments

No Rock Head. Lightning Rod is the best for Marowak. Marowak can't take electric hits from heavy hitters like Xurkitree.

Answer 8

Marowak-Alola @ Lum Berry / Choice Band
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Earthquake
- Shadow Bone
- Swords Dance / Rock Slide

Okay, so the idea here is to set up when you force a switch. Those three moves, type wise, give you great coverage against most of the biggest annoyances in Sun/Moon competitive, like Toxapex and Celesteela, who either get OHKOed or 2HKOed. Great attack, decent coverage. Rock Head, over Lightning Rod, because it's a crappy ability, on a PHYSICAL attacker, that takes neutral from Electric, and with Flare Blitz, no recoil.

Obviously, if you're running Band over other items, you switch Swords Dance for an attacking move.

Comments

Why use Choice Band when you can use Thich Club? It's kind of dumb.

Answer 9

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Atk / 8 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Earthquake
- Protect / Swords Dance

This moveset's really good because the Thick Club increases your Alolan Marowak's Attack which is high as it is. You then have the Ability Rock Head, which means Marowak doesn't take recoil damage when he uses Flare Blitz. The Thick Club plus the attack Marowak has means every move will do a ton of damage, especially Flare Blitz and Shadow Bone as they get STAB, and Earthquake gets boosted too! Not to mention if you use Swords Dance to get your Attack to the max!!!

Comments

Rock head is pretty useless to have on Marowak except for preventing the recoil which isn't really important. Marowak has access to Earthquake and Lightning Rod, thus making him a solid check to Koko and Xurkitree. I think that's marowaks role in the current OU. I don't really recommend using Rock Head.

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I don’t like rock head, but if your nervous about the recoil then go fire punch

Answer 10

Dry Bones (Marowak-Alola) @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 248 HP / 192 Atk / 68 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Bonemerang
- Will-O-Wisp

• Flare Blitz STAB
• Shadow Bone STAB
• Bonemerang Hits twice, chance for crit for each.
• Will-O-Wisp Burns your opponent.

The 248 HP increases survivability, the 192 Atk gives more punch and 68 Spe lets it outspeed other builds of Marowak-A.

Comments

yeah! dry bones hype!
I'd say Flame Charge instead of Flare Blitz, as it raises Marowak's low speed and it doesn't pose a recoil threat

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Flare Blitz is for damage, Flame Charge does very small amounts of damage. Marowak wants to do as much damage in a single attack as possible.

Answer 11

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head / Cursed Body
EVs: 128 HP / 252 Atk
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz / Fire Punch
- Shadow Bone
- Bonemerang
- Smack Down

• Flare Blitz / Fire Punch (STAB)
• Shadow Bone (STAB)

Okay, first...let's go over the facts. Thick Club is a MUST. It DOUBLES Marowak's attack stat making him one of the hardest hitters in the game. I have used Marowak since Gen 1 and strongly believe in his power.

Now, with that said, his weakness is his speed which is why you DO NOT invest any EVs on his speed. Instead, work on his strengths. Attack, Defense, and HP for survival. Also, I, personally stay away from and trade away my Lightning Rod Marowaks. With Lightning Rod, when hit with an Electric type move, it raises Marowak's Special Attack stat instead of doing damage. As an Adamant Marowak, the Special attack stat means little to nothing. Instead, go for Rock Head which will prevent Marowak from sustaining recoil damage, therefore works best with Flare Blitz.

In addition, Flare Blitz also gets STAB. If you cannot get a Rock Head Marowak, use a Cursed Body Marowak and switch out Flare Blitz and replace it with Fire Punch... that way you don't suffer the recoil damage from Flare Blitz. Let's move onto Shadow Bone... another STAB move capable of dealing massive damage. Then there is Bonemarang. Now, I know some of you are thinking, "why not Earthquake?" I answer: Earthquake is overused and, in my opinion, - overrated. With Marowak's attack stat, Bonemarang (first hit) is enough to remove all Substitutes, (second hit) then might be enough to KO on the way back. Yes, I'd gladly sacrifice 10 accuracy for that perk as opposed to the straight direct 1 hit Earthquake that WILL fail to hurt the opposing Pokemon using moves like Substitute. Yes, Bonemarang and Earthquake share the same base power. In the end, it's really your own preference. Moving on... I chose Smack Down as the last move. Seems crazy, right? Maybe even stupid? As a ground Pokemon, flying Pokemon seem all but untouchable; until Marowak and his high Attack stack bring them right down to earth. That [pretty weak] move tends to look pretty damn strong when Marowak's at the front of the helm utilizing it. In addition, it allows Flying type Pokemon to be hit with ground type moves such as overrated Earthquake and preferred moves like Bonemarang. Trust me...as crazy as it sounds, it works.

Anyhow, this is my moveset with my Alolan Marowak. Feel free to try it out and let me know what you think.

Comments

Earthquake is in no way "overrated". It's an excellent move and a competitive mainstay.

Answer 12

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 HP / 180 Atk / 76 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Bonemerang
- Shadow Bone
- Flare Blitz
- Protect

This is a standard VGC set. It's the most balanced variant that combine decent bulk and massive damage.
Shadow Bone and Flare Blitz: self explanatory.
Bonemerang is a powerful tool to deal with alolan-muk, Tapu-Koko and bypass focus sashes.

Answer 13

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 HP
Jolly Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Double-Edge
- Earthquake / Bonemerang
- Shadow Bone / Knock Off

The point of this is to use Sticky Web support to make Marowak's speed viable. With Sticky Web and speed investment, Marowak's Speed becomes respectable. Knock Off could be run instead of Shadow Bone to counter tanks like Chansey. Then there is Bonemerang/Earthquake so just pick whatever one you like, as everyone else has gone through the pros and cons. With Sticky Web, this can outspeed most speed invested Pokemon with less than 100 speed, and can outspeed 100 speed Pokemon without speed invested. This extra speed boost makes Marowak an absolute monster.

Comments

thank you, you just helped me figure out how to include double-edge on my alolan marowak!

Answer 14

Alolan Marowak @ Firium Z
Ability: Rock Head
Naughty Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Toxic
- Stomping Tantrum
- Swords Dance

I chose Swords Dance because attack stat is important to aid Marowak's two physical attacks, Flare Blitz and Stomping Tantrum; the former of which is a strong Fire-type physical with STAB, the latter is coverage for a weakness to Rock, and is good if a move fails, which can happen with Toxic facing Steel-types, or the move Stomping Tantrum itself with Flying-types. Toxic inflicts strong poison, which is useful if you want to damage the opponent but still get that Swords Dance. Same thing with Rock Head, which hurts the opponent if Marowak is hit with a physical attack. Marowak can stand a lot of physical attacks because of its high Defense stat. I also like giving different kinds of Z-Crystals to all my team, so they can pull out a Z-move to match the weakness of the Pokemon they're up against.

Answer 15

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Fire Punch-STAB
- Earthquake-Coverage
- Shadow Bone-STAB
- Swords Dance / Iron Head / Thunder Punch-Whichever you prefer

You really don’t need Swords Dance because the Thick Club doubles your attack, but you can have it if you want, just sweep with Earthquake or Shadow Bone with the Thick Club.

Answer 16

Alolan Marowak is more famous thanks to it's signature item, Thick Club. If you don't use a Thick Club Marowak, then you aren't getting far. I bring to you...

Flame Charge Marowak.

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head / Lightning Rod
EVs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature

• Flame Charge
• Flare Blitz
• Shadow Bone
• Earthquake

Sadly, Marowak still doesn't have the best speed ever even after a Flame Charge or two. Flame Charge is STAB, and is for boosting speed, and for doing damage. Flare Blitz is huge STAB and if you run Rock Head, you take no recoil. Shadow Bone is okay STAB. Earthquake is for coverage.

Answer 17

A trick room Marowak

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Rock Head
EVs: 252 HP / 108 Atk / 148 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Belly Drum
- Flare Blitz
- Shadow Bone
- Bonemerang

• Belly Drum (boosts attack)
• Flare Blitz (strong stab with no recoil thanks to rock head)
• Shadow Bone (stab)
• Bonemerang (coverage)

Basically, you setup trick room let Marowak belly drum, and suddenly you have an equivalent of huge power azumarill with belly drum, but you are actually slow enough to trick room. Unfortunately, you can't heal with this set but it works well in doubles with an ally healing you. You can also use e quake and hit both foes, and likely knock them both out.

Answer 18

Gen 8 RU / Gen 8 Monotype

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Flame Charge
- Poltergeist
- Earthquake

Dual Dance set. Swords Dance boosts your attack and makes your attack stat even more dangerous paired with Thick Club. Flame Charge is STAB that boosts your speed. Poltergeist is ghost STAB that can reveal the item opposing Pokémon are holding. Earthquake is coverage against rock types.

Answer 19

Gen 8 SS Monotype Offensive Stealth Rock (Fire)

Marowak-Alola @ Thick Club
Ability: Lightning Rod
EVs: 80 HP / 248 Atk / 180 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Poltergeist
- Fire Punch
- Earthquake / Low Kick / Brick Break

Alolan Marowak has a niche of being immune to Electric type moves due to its Ability, Lightning Rod. This is appreciated on Fire teams in SS Monotype, as Alolan Marowak provides the team with a Volt Switch blocker in addition to being able to switch into Electric-types such as Tapu Koko, Magnezone, Defog Zapdos, and Choice Specs Regieleki that is locked into an Electric-type move.

This set should be used on Sunless Fire teams. Sunless teams don't have Torkoal, which is why Alolan Marowak has Stealth Rock. Stealth Rock is used to chip opposing Pokemon switching in who aren't wearing Heavy-Duty Boots or have Magic Guard. Poltergeist provides Alolan Marowak with a strong Ghost STAB that allows you to reveal what items opposing Pokemon have. Fire Punch is used as the Fire STAB that hits Pokemon such as Celesteela, Corviknight, Alolan Ninetales, Ferrothorn, and Arctozolt super effectively. Earthquake allows you to deal super effective damage to Pokemon like Toxapex and non Air Balloon Heatran. Low Kick allows you to OHKO Pokemon such as Air Balloon Heatran, Tyranitar, Mamoswine, and Hydreigon should they switch in. Brick Break is used as a niche option that allows you to destroy Grimmsnarl and Klefki screens.

180 Speed EVs allow Alolan Marowak to outspeed defensive Corviknight. 248 Attack EVs along with Thick Club and Adamant Nature lets Alolan Marowak hit as hard as possible. The leftover EVs are used in HP that gives Alolan Marowak some bulk and an odd HP number (281), allowing it to have more times to take Stealth Rock damage if you're unable to get rid of hazards on your side.