The “Nifty Or Thrifty” article series takes a comprehensive look at the meta for ongoing PvP metas… this time, it’s Little Halloween Cup. As is typical for the series, I’ll cover not only the top meta picks, but also some mons where you can save some dust with cheaper second move unlock costs… or not needing to unlock a second move at all! I usually dive right in on Pokémon with the cheapest second move unlock cost (10,000 dust) and work my way through from there until finally concluding with the most expensive unlocks, but this time I’m going to start with a pair of meta-defining ‘mons, the ones that most people are chatting about and that the meta really revolves around, before I dive into the standard run from the thriftiest on up.

Thankfully, you can at least build most things in Little League without needing XL investment, but that’s not a hard and fast rule. In fact, the very top meta options actually require a LOT of XL investment. I will be marking with icons things that require XLs, with one meaning a little bit, two meaning a good amount (leveling into the mid-40s, at least), and three s basically meaning full Level 50 investment. Again, there are hardly any things like this, but the ones that make that list are worthy investments… just not possible for everybody.

We’ve got a lot to cover, so let’s not waste any more time. Here we go!

LITTLE GIANTS

SHUCKLE 

Shuckle

BugRock

Rock Throw | Rock Blast & Stone Edge

So… yeah, right off the bat with wild investment, as Shuckle needs to be taken all the way up to Level 50. Niantic decided to let this thing into the meta. Now it’s not quite as bad as THAT shows (only 2 losses), as there ARE other things that can outlast Shuckle with the right moves and/or IVs, but it’s not a ton better. There are many reasons why Shuckle looks SO dominant here, including none of the primary typings allowed in the format resist Rock damage, nor do any of those typings deal super effective damage back. Now of course, secondary typings and coverage moves that break that mold are littered throughout the meta, but then the other issue becomes apparent: Shuckle’s ridiculous bulk. It actually has THE highest stat product and bulk of anything in Little League, Halloween or not… only Chansey comes anywhere close, and even that evil little pink blob trails badly. Shuckle can face even most Steel types, which resist Rock AND Steel deals super effective damage back, and come out on top, typically with HP to spare. I think Shadow Shuckie (yes, that’s misspelled on purpose) is actually slightly less favorable, losing to a couple more things without noticeable gains, but I also know from Little Galar Cup that a ridiculous number of players have somehow already built one anyway, so be prepared to see both and plan accordingly. For the rest of us, I will be sure to highlight anything that can take Shuckle down, to include its #1 nemesis in Little Halloween Cup, which we’ll cover next.

First, one final Shuckle note: you CAN under level it and still have a very worthy specimen if you simply cannot afford a Level 50 build. Anything around Level 45 or so still works without a serious drop-off in performance, though you will, of course, lose mirror matches to higher leveled Shuckles. Just wanted to point that out.

MARILL 

Marill

WaterFairy

Bubble/Tackle | Body Slam & Aqua Tail

By the numbers, Marill is the #1 counter to Shuckle in this meta. Look again at Shuckle’s performance, and you will see Marill right at the top as Shuckie’s hardest loss. (And while that’s not true of Shadow Shuckle, Marill still consistenly overcomes it too.) Marill and Clodsire (who we’ll look at later) are the ONLY things that beat Shuckle (normal and Shadow) in all even shield scenarios. Depending on how the battle goes, Marill can even beat Shuckle when down a shield, or potentially even down two shields, which is quite remarkable. Stunning and unprecedented, really. The bad news is that Marill also has to be maxed out to it (or at least approach) 500 CP, but the “good” news is that you can do so to “only” Level 46.5 and hit exactly 500 CP with a 15-15-15 hundo, as I’ve done myself. And yes, it performs just as well as the #1 rank… because the #1 Rank 50 specimen is still a 13-15-14. Yeah, get ready to see tiny CP increases level to level if you build this little guy up. Anyway, the nice thing about Marill (and why I think it is a more worthy investment for the long term than most other Shuckle counters) is all the other good it does. Yes, most Poison and/or Grass types are obviously a problem, but Body Slam can even the odds there to the point that Marill still manages to actually beat most Poison types, to include big names like Clodsire, Galarian Weezing, the Qwilfishes, the Grimers and more. And it dominates Darks, of course, to include other Shuckle counters like Pawniard and Greninja, plus it can beat all Grasses but Cottonee, and the vast majority of Ghosts too. Shuckle is what this meta will inevitably be built around, but if I had my choice, Marill is what I would build a team around.

OH, and one thing I almost forgot entirely before I went to press! While I think Bubble remains my recommendation for fast move (as it’s the best for wiping out major targets like Shuckle and Clodsire, as well as other big things in this meta like Golett and Grimer), it is WELL worth noting that Tackle Marill is definitely worth a look in this meta as well. It STILL manages to beat Shuckle and has the upper hand in the mirror match, which is no small thing, as well as turning the tables on a number of Poison types like Skrelp, Shadow Skorupi, and even Grass type Foongus. It puts up better overall numbers… but loses Clodsire in the process. For my money, I’m still going with Bubble for how it deals with the biggest names in the meta with consistency. But Tackle is to be legit respected here too, folks.

Shuckle and Marill make a particularly dangerous pair, as there is literally no damage type in the game that hits them both super effectively. Perhaps even worse, they cover each other’s weakness well, with Shuckle resisting the Poison that Marill is weak to (and taking only neutral from Electric and Grass), and Marill resisting the Water damage that Shuckle is vulnerable too, and taking only neutral from Steel and Rock that can beat up Shuckle too. But there is at least ONE thing that smacks them both around with successful, super effective damage, and it makes the final of our “three kings” of Little Halloween Cup….

CLODSIRE

Clodsire

PoisonGround

Poison Sting/Mud Shot | Stone Edge & Sludge Bomb/Earthquake

I’m actually going to start this one off with the very best possible numbers, a Rank 1, 499 CP Clodsire with Poison Sting, Stone Edge, and Sludge Bomb that gains Purrloin, Shadow Skorupi, and regular and Shadow Drapion as compared to Earthquake, and Pawniard and Purrloin as compared to more average IVs. But the one thing Clodsire always consistently does that brings it into the top section of this article is beat down Shuckle, across all even shield scenarios, with Stone Edge alone. The choice between Sludge Bomb and Earthquake is close, with Sludge Bomb having all those listed advantages in 1shield, but Earthquake being necessary to win the mirror and beat Drapion with shields down. The OTHER choice is Poison Sting or Mud Shot. Both handle Shuckle fine, but Poison Sting is better in 1shield to outrace Purrloin, Skorupi, and Drapion, and then Mud Shot is better in 2shield by tacking Drap, Pawniard, and Qwilfish onto the same wins you get with Poison Sting. I know that’s a lot to digest, so I’ll by saying my personal recommendation is probably Stone Edge/Sludge Bomb with the fast move of your choice, and as close to #1 IVs as you can get to pick up some additional meta wins. But Shuckle NEVER wants to see this thing coming.

Now for our standard run through the rest of the meta, though when it comes to effective counters to the above, there is very, very little that can take them all on and walk away.

10,000 Dust/25 Candy

GRENINJA

Greninja

WaterDark

Water Shuriken | Hydro Cannonᴸ & Night Slash

There’s not much that can scare Shuckle in this meta, but among that small group, Greninja is near the top, suffering a close loss to regular Shuckle, but able to wash away Shadow Shuckle while also consistently taking out Clodsire and a bunch of other threatening stuff like Pawniard, Purrloin, Inkay, Drapion, and (thanks to Night Slash) Qwilfish. If you’re disappointed that it can’t take out both versions of Shuckle… well, you’ll get used to that as we continue, I’m sorry to say.

VENUSAUR

Venusaur

GrassPoison

Vine Whip | Frenzy Plantᴸ & Sludge Bomb

Got a tiny one? Not surprisingly it has no real shot against Shuckle, but it DOES capably handle both Clodsire and Marill, the ONLY 10k Pokémon that reliably does both in 1shield and 2shield scenarios. (Clodsire JUST manages to escape with shields down.) Less surprising are consistent wins over Greninja and Golett, and pleasant surprises include Pawniard and Qwilfish in 0shield, and G-Zigsagoon and Skrelp in 1shield. The key to Venusaur’s success is partly just how fast and effective Vine Whip/Frenzy Plant combo is, critically combined with the Poison subtyping to hold up under a Poison damage assault. Venusaur just works in this meta like nothing else. Sadly, Shadow Venusaur is one level too big to fit in Little League, which is a shame because it would more consistently outrace Clodsire with shields down.

GALARIAN ZIGZAGOON 

Zigzagoon (Galarian)

DarkNormal

Tackle | Swift & Dig

And already we start moving away from things that can beat Shuckle and/or Marill (G-Zoon can do neither) and focus instead on widespread success elsewhere. Thankfully you do NOT have to fully max it out to find peak success, but you do still have to level it into the mid-40s. You get Clodsire in a bulk-vs-bulk showdown, as well as taking down most other Poison types (thanks in large part to Dig) as well as (most) Darks, and of course the majority of Ghosts. Just have another plan for the Dynamic Disgusting Duo of Shackie and Marill.

Linoone (Galarian)

DarkNormal

GALARIAN LINOONE works in a pinch but is obviously far less interesting… and it flops versus Clodsire, which is a big knock against it. And yes, you actually want Lick rather than Snarl for the extra damage… it adds on Skorupi, Purrloin, and Golett that way.

Raticate (Alola)

DarkNormal

Rattata (Alola)

DarkNormal

And the other Dark/Normal family, Alolan RATICATE and RATTATA, are sadly even a step lower than that. But TIL that Alolan Rattata can learn Shadow Ball, so maybe that will matter more in some future meta.

PURRLOIN

Purrloin

Dark

Sucker Punch | Night Slash & Play Rough

A sudden superstar in Little League this season, coming off great success and widespread use in Little Galar Cup, thanks to the big buff to Sucker Punch. And while it, like G-Zoon, flops versus Shuckle and Marill, it certainly does enough else to be worth consideration, including Clodsire on that list. Technically you can probably get by without any charge move other than Night Slash, but Play Rough can at least take out Drapion and the mirror with shields down.

WIGGLYTUFF

Wigglytuff

NormalFairy

Charm | Swift & Icy Wind

Charmers often fail to take down ANY of the three Little Giants, but there is plenty else they can do, and if you want one, Wigglytuff is a good candidate thanks to its resistance to Ghost. It also uses Icy Wind to beat things other Charmers cannot, Drapion most notably. If you simply must kill Darks dead, go with Charm.

Clefable

Fairy

CLEFABLE too wants Charm more than Fairy Wind for once, as the former adds on Shadow Drapion and Shadow Golett. But as I said, Wigglytuff gets the slight edge for better anti-Ghost role and outlasting non-Shadow Drap.

COTTONEE

Cottonee

GrassFairy

Charm | Seed Bomb & Grass Knot

Overall Cottonball also lags slightly behind Wiggly, falling badly to Drapion of any kind (though it does outlast both Draps in 2shield), but what it DOES do is consistently beat Marill in all even shield scenarios (and even when down a shield!), which is actually pretty huge. Cotteee is an OG favorite in Little League, so I do expect to see a lot of them.

Primarina

WaterFairy

You might think PRIMARINA as a Charmer would also be able to overcome Marill, but you’d be wrong. Still a decent Charmer overall, but Marill is not among those wins.

SHADOW ZUBAT

Zubat (Shadow)

PoisonFlying

Quick Attack | Poison Fang & Swift

Obviously it’s gonna fail hard to Shuckie’s rocky assault, but Zubat DOES overcome (Bubble) Marill and can even beat Clodsire as long as you call the bait (or has really good IVs!). Even without that, though, Zubat looks like fun, and it’s nice that it can run Swift now and no longer has to rely on Legacy Sludge Bomb.

LEDYBA

Ledyba

BugFlying

Bug Bite | Aerial Ace & Swift

Another one that flops versus Shuckle and the other Little Giants but is pretty good elsewhere, handling Darks and Grasses and Grounds with relative ease. It’s a good one to sandwich between the Shuckle and Marill you all are gonna run anyway.

50,000 Dust/50 Candy

INKAY

Inkay

DarkPsychic

Psywave | Night Slash & Psybeam

Yeah, we’re starting off with something that has no realistic shot at beating Shuckle OR Marill. That’s just this meta, folks! Anyway, what Inkay DOES do well is shred Clodsire (and every other Poison type that isn’t half Dark), as well as all (again, non-Dark) Ghosts. That’s why you bring it, and that’s really about all it does. You can even run without Psybeam if you want, but it DOES ensure you beat Clodsire, Skorupi, and stuff like Foongus with shields down, so you probably still want it. And if you have one small enough, MALAMAR works similarly and definitely wants its second charge move of Superpower, which has at least the potential to maim Dark types.

SKRELP

Skrelp

PoisonWater

Water Gun | Aqua Tail & Sludge Bomb

Well, it blows up Marill, at least. (With Bubble, that is.) Hey, and Clodsire! And Greninja too?! It does fail to overcome Shuckle, though even there, a steady Water diet leaves Shuckie weakened, as the very least. Overall it’s one of the better performances in the format, nicely countering Shuckle’s top threats even if it tyically fails to get Shuckie itself.

Dragalge

PoisonDragon

You may even see a tiny DRAGALGE here and there, though I like it less than its pre-evolution Skrelp, who is more consistent at beating Clodsire, among others. It IS worth noting that Dragalge with 2 shields is pretty dominant, including in comparison to Skrelp.

Qwilfish

Water[posion]

Skrelp (and even Dragalge) put in a better overall performance than QWILFISH, though admittedly not by a lot. Qwil can actually overcome things like Foongus and Purrloin that Skrelp cannot, but conversely, loses to stuff Skrelp can beat like Greninja and Qwilfish itself, and also is more consistent versus Marill. Qwilfish HAS to hit Marill with a Sludge Wave to win, which can be tricky.

Tentacool

WaterPoison

And THAT is slightly better than TENTACOOL, which does okay but has to make the difficult choice between running Poison Sting and beating Marill, or Bubble and trying to take out Clodsire.

SHADOW FOONGUS

Foongus (Shadow)

GrassPoison

Astonish | Body Slam & Grass Knot

Yes, the Shadow version, since the non-Shadow tends to whiff on Qwilfish, Skorupi, Pawniard, and most importantly, Marill. Of note, however: the one win non-Shadow gets that Shadow doesn’t is Clodsire. I don’t strongly recommend Foongus, but it IS the highest ranked Grass in this meta for good reason. It’s as flexible as you can get among Grasses in Little Halloween Cup.

SANDYGAST/PALOSSAND

Sandygast

GroundGhost

Palossand

GroundGhost

Sand Attack | Scorching Sands & Shadow Ball

These two also have buffed Astonish, but in this meta they’re better served by Sand Attack, which adds on Skorupi, G-Zoon, and a couple things you may have heard of called Clodsire and Shuckle! That’s right, these two can legit beat down Shuckle AND Shadow Shuckle with a steady dose of Scorching Sands even if it never triggers the Attack debuff on the opponent. Shadow Ball isn’t strictly necessary but is helpful for punching out things that resist Ground (or some things like Skorupi and Foongus that are neutral to Ghost and Ground, but Ball obviously deals more flat damage). But DO NOT MISS THESE TWO. The ability to outduel Clodsire AND Shuckle is massive… just look out for Marill.

Runerigus

GroundGhost

Far less so for RUNERIGUS, however, who does want Astonish (mostly because it lacks a Ground fast move), but lacks the Ground damage necessary to be the same threat as Sandy and Paulo above. You still get Clodsire and a number of Poisons (and Ghosts), but Shuckle gets away entirely. Same for GALARIAN YAMASK, who ranks decently but lacks ANY Ground damage at all, and thus has even less to do than the other Ground/Ghosts covered so far.

PALDEAN WOOPER

Wooper (Paldean)

PoisonGround

Mud Shot | Body Slam & Dig

Worth it, but not on the same level as Clodsire. (Shuckle escapes.) Though it DOES beat Clodsire head to head, which is nice for bragging rights, as well as other big Poisons like Skorupi, Skrelp, and Quilfish despite their scary Water moves.

GRIMER

Grimer (Shadow)

Poison

Mud Slap | Mud Bomb & Sludge Bomb

Mud Slapping goodness from a non-Ground type, and you know what? It works pretty well, at least for the Shadow version, crushing many opposing Poison types plus Pawniard and G-Zoon… and thanks to Sludge Bomb, even (Bubble) Marill! Not too shabby… this is the kind of spice I can get behind!

75,000 Dust/75 Candy

I am going to try to cover these a bit more succinctly, as I have a Reddit character limit to account for AND these are obviously not thrifty picks anymore. So strap in for the final push!

PAWNIARD

Pawniard

DarkSteel

Fury Cutter | Night Slash & Iron Head

Here’s one of those true rarities that can beat BOTH Shuckles… but there is a catch. Regular Shuckle is scary close but pretty consistently a win for Pawniard with even decent PvP stats. Overcoming Shadow Shuckle, however, requires basically #1 PvP IVs to hit a critical bulkpoint that takes S-Shuckle’s Rock Throws from 3 damage to only 2. If you have such a Pawniard, you’ve hit the jackpot, but really most Pawnies still do a LOT of good whooping opposing Darks, Grasses, and usually Skorupi and even Clodsire too. Pawniard is worth it even if you don’t have the best specimen available.

GOLETT

Golett

GroundGhost

Mud Slap | Shadow Punch & Brick Break

Sadly Golett misses out on Shuckle, but can do a lot else well, particularly with high rank IVs to add on Skrelp and Shadow Skorupi to a winlist that already includes basically all other meta Poison types and even Darks like Pawniard and Galarian Zigzagoon. it can even overwhelm Marill, which is darned impressive. Also impressive: it CAN beat Shuckle (and Shadow Shuckle in 2v2 shielding, which is something to celebrate. (It even has a legit shot in 1v1 shielding if you successfully call the bait and shield the one Stone Edge Shuckle has time to get out.) Non-Shadow is ranked slightly higher than Shadow Golett appropriately, as Shadow can outduel Greninja but drops the much more important Marill, along with S-Skorupi ad Shuckle in 2shield. This pick is worth the hype it’s getting going into this format!

SANDILE

Sandile

GroundDark

Mud Slap| Crunch & Dig

This one is a little unlikely, as you have to trade to get a hatched (Level 20) Sandile to even fit at 500 or less CP, but it IS possible. Worth it? Eh, it’s good enough to show off, at least.

SABLEYE

Sableye

DarkGhost

Shadow Claw | Foul Play & Power Gem

It’s viable, sure, just not overly impressive. Shadow is worse. That said, expect to see it here and there anyway, as Sableye remains hugely popular in most any format it’s available in.

DRAGAPULT

Dragapult

GhostDragon

Astonish | Breaking Swipe & Shadow Ball

I wouldn’t expect to see this, but hey, it’s possible someone has prepped a Little League one by now, and sure, it does some good work, and it’s notable that this is a Dragon that beats Marill, and handily since it actually resists ALL of Marill’s moves.

DEINO

Deino

DarkDragon

Dragon Breath | Body Slam & Crunch

Always popular in Little League, yes, Deino does well overall here, it just has no answer to Shuckle or Marill or some of their bigger answers. As a sweeper once you’ve dealt with those threats, however, it COULD feast on the right team, for sure.

SKORUPI

Skorupi

PoisonBug

Poison Sting | Aqua Tail & Cross Poison

And that leaves us with our final pair of Pokémon, starting with the first stage: Poison/Bug type Skorupi. The advantages here are spammier moves that lead to wins over Golett, Pawniard, Greninja, and Marill, mostly thanks to Cross Poison in that last case. The downside is being critically weak to Shuckle’s Rock damage and being wiped clean off the mat there, as well as versus things like Inkay due to taking super effective damage. (And I like Shadow Skorupi less, as it struggles more with Marill.) On the flipside…

DRAPION

Drapion (Shadow)

PoisonDark

Poison Sting | Aqua Tail & Crunch/Sludge Bomb

…here the typing is Dark/Poison, so no more weakness to Rock or Psychic… but Drap still fails to overcome Shuckle either. I recommend running it as a Shadow if you have one that fits, and with Crunch rather than Sludge Bomb, as it can beat stuff like Skrelp and Skorupi that way, as well as beating Purrloin and Inkay that Skorupi cannot. The one big downside, to reiterate, is missing out on Marill that Skorupi can beat… but not even Sludge Bomb arrives in time for Drap to turn that one around.

And I could cover EVEN MORE, but I have to stop sometime, especially as Little Halloween Cup has now officially arrived! So I’ll end it here and let you get right to it. Good luck!

Until next time, you can always find me on Twitter for near-daily PvP analysis nuggets, or Patreon. And please, feel free to comment here with your own thoughts or questions and I’ll try to get back to you!

Thank you for reading! I very much appreciate you taking the time, and sincerely hope this helps you master Little Halloween Cup (and handle Shuckle and friends), and in the most affordable way possible. Best of luck, and catch you next time!

The post Nifty Or Thrifty PvP: Little Halloween Cup appeared first on Pokémon GO Hub.