Thursday, 29 July 2021 17:30

Pokemon Unite: All Attackers, Ranked | Game Rant

Written by Rhenn Taguiam
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The Nintendo Switch's Pokemon Unite offers a few Attackers for MOBA players to pick from, but which one is the best?

Pokemon Unite transforms Pokemon battles into real-time combat, with squads controlling teams of Pokemon to score the most points to win matches. And like any other MOBA, Pokemon Unite also separates Pokemon into Roles – each excelling in a particular combat strategy. Contrary to mobile Speedsters, hardy Defenders, and neutral All-Rounder, Attackers focus mainly on offense and aggression.

RELATED: Pokemon Unite: How to Get Aeos Gems and What They're Used For

In a game where Pokemon combat can secure plenty of points, Attackers find value in constant engagements. And fortunately for players, Attackers in Pokemon Unite each have exciting abilities to offer.

7 Venusaur

Difficulty: Intermediate

Stats:

  • Offense: 4.5
  • Endurance: 2
  • Mobility: 2
  • Scoring: 2.5
  • Support: 1

Of all Attackers in Pokemon Unite, Venusaur easily outmatches the rest in terms of damage output. With the right combos, an encounter with Venusaur can become deadly for virtually anyone else. However, the lack of endurance and mobility can make Venusaur a walking glass cannon that needs the assistance of others.

At the hands of a novice, handling Venusaur's Intermediate Difficult can get tricky at first. However, with the right Defender for the assist, Venusaur can offer tremendous firepower, especially against elite mobs.

Unite Move: Verdant Anger

When triggered, Verdant Anger releases a seed bomb that attacks multiple Pokemon in an area. Similar to Pikachu's Thunderstorm, Verdant Anger can easily wipe out opponents when caught off-guard in an engagement with Venusaur.

Notable Builds For Venusaur:

  • Seed Fury: Venusaur might lack in the mobility department, but it's consistent when it comes to dishing out damage. This build capitalizes on attack speed, provided the enemy stays within Venusaur's range. Razor Leaf (Level 1-3) fires a barrage of attacks at enemies. Afterward, Venusaur can unleash Sludge Bomb (L5) that can slow down enemies. Afterward, Petal Dance (L7) can give Venusaur a much-needed mobility boost to keep up the attack.
  • AOE Barrage: Venusaur can also bring down the pain from an AOE point of view. With Seed Bomb (Level 1-3), Venusaur can easily hit multiple enemies in an AOE. Moreover, Giga Drain (L5) can heal Venusaur via lifesteal if needed. Lastly, Solar Beam (L7) is a deadly penultimate attack prior to Verdant Anger.

6 Cramorant

Difficulty: Expert

Stats:

  • Offense: 4
  • Endurance: 3
  • Mobility: 3
  • Scoring: 1.5
  • Support: 1

Cramorant possesses a rather innocent appearance that leaves players wondering what it's doing as an Attacker. Players shouldn't let their guard down, though. It's exactly this false sense of security that hides Cramorant's shining potential. At its core, Cramorant can "snatch" wild Pokemon and use them for its attack combos.

RELATED: Pokemon Unite: Every Playable Pokemon You Can Get For Free

Naturally, Cramorant's moveset relies heavily on accurate attacks and precision tactics. Not being able to catch prey can radically reduce its performance in battle. Being an Expert Attacker, players need some time to fully understand the terrifying potential of this Pokemon.

Unite Move: Gatling Gulp Missile

When activated, Cramorant will use its huge beak to shoot a barrage of attacks to all nearby Pokemon. Despite its limited range, this Unite Move easily allows Cramorant to substitute as a defender or deter an enemy's advance.

Notable Builds For Cramorant:

  • Passive Catching: Cramorant can probably have a more passive "prey-catching" build beginning with Feather Dance (Level 1-3), which debuffs enemy attack and speed. It can follow up with Hurricane (L4), which is a damaging stun. Lastly, Dive (L6) is a neat puddle attack that can catch prey.
  • Active Catching: Cramorant can also have a more aggressive means of catching prey throughout the match. This begins with Whirlpool (Level 1-3), which is a damaging AOE. It can follow through with Air Slash (L4), a backward jump that releases blades of air. Lastly, Surf (L6) unleashes two damage waves that can catch prey.

5 Greninja

Difficulty: Expert

Stats:

  • Offense: 4
  • Endurance: 2
  • Mobility: 3
  • Scoring: 3
  • Support: 0.5

Greninja brings in its penchant for stealth into his role as an Attacker. As such, its toolkit focuses on taking enemies by surprise and attacking them with barely any chance for counters. It boasts better durability and higher mobility compared to its other fellow Attackers, with a toolkit more suitable for scoring. However, its toolkit also poses some tricky combos that determine its potency in combat.

Given its Expert Difficulty, it makes sense for Greninja users to take time to master its rather complicated moveset. Greninja relies heavily on causing distractions to catch enemies by surprise. And its smokescreen easily gives it a handy escape out of sticky situations.

Unite Move: Waterburst Shuriken

When activated, Greninja summons a shuriken from above that deals massive damage to foes. Combined with his knack for speed and high-mobility attacks, Waterburst Shuriken easily becomes a finisher.

Notable Builds For Greninja:

  • Duplicates Galore: Greninja can easily annoy enemies with a duplicate-heavy build. This begins with Substitute (Level 1-3), which simply creates a Greninja duplicate. Thankfully, it can create another clone via Double Team (L5) through a dash. To add more annoyance, its Surf (L7) is a nifty lifesteal move that will leave enemies wondering where attacks are coming from.
  • Need For Speed: Greninja can capitalize on sheer speed to outpace enemies. This begins with Bubble (Level 1-3), a damaging attack that comes with a speed debuff. Additionally, Smokescreen (L5) leaves enemies in the dust as Greninja rolls while summoning a smokescreen. Lastly, Water Shuriken (L7) is a nifty attack that boosts his movement speed while restoring HP whenever a shuriken lands a hit.

4 Gardevoir

Difficulty: Intermediate

Stats:

  • Offense: 4.5
  • Endurance: 1.5
  • Mobility: 1.5
  • Scoring: 3
  • Support: 1.5

Despite Gardevoir's innate lack of Mobility, its moves compensate by giving it more mobility options. Teleport (Level 1 to Level 3) alone lets Gardevoir teleport with a handy attack boost. Psychic (L8) can slow down opponents with a nasty damage-over-time, while Moonblast (L8) stops them on their tracks.

As an Attacker, Gardevoir also has its deadly set of skills. Confusion (Level 1 to 3) is its go-to ranged attack. At Level 6, Gardevoir can use Psyshock to attack an area three times or lure opponents to a delayed explosion with Future Sight.

Unite Move: Fairy Singularity

This Unite Move serves as an incredibly powerful finisher, especially since it can devastate opponents in a single place. Thanks to this Unite Move, Gardevoir can prove extremely relevant in teamfights. With Fairy Singularity, Gardevoir can gather opponents in an area for its other teammates to bring out the pain.

Notable Builds For Gardevoir:

  • Pure Psyshock: This move capitalizes on dealing massive damage via Psyshock. Being able to land all those three hits will already score massive damage. Given Gardevoir's mobility, players can easily reposition it to land other attacks. Aside from Psyshock, Psychic can also unleash a slow, making it perfect for Top Lane teamfights.
  • Moonblast Shocker: This move capitalizes on Moonblast instead, which stuns Pokemon and leaves Gardevoir open for an escape. Thanks to this stunning ability, Gardevoir essentially becomes a crowd control master. This easily compensates for lack of speed, as the stun duration can give Gardevoir enough time to run away or reposition.

3 Alolan Ninetales

Difficulty: Intermediate

Stats:

  • Offense: 4
  • Endurance: 1.5
  • Mobility: 1.5
  • Scoring: 2.5
  • Support: 3

Alolan Ninetales proves that aggression and speed aren't always everything. As an Attacker, Alolan Ninetales gives their team an edge through constant debuffs to the enemy camp. Its usual strategies involve freezing or slowing down enemies – giving Speedsters enough time to pass them to the objective or for other Attackers to zone in on them.

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Just because Alolan Ninetales focuses on support doesn't mean it's a pushover, though. Given its toolkit, Alolan Ninetales can devastate foes if caught unawares with its slate of freezing attacks. After all, weak attacks become just as deadly if there's no way to defend against them.

Unite Move: Snow Globe

When activated, Alolan Ninetales releases a blizzard with impressive range. Opponents caught in its blast zone are frozen temporarily. When used properly, this should leave the enemy team wide open for Alolan Ninetales' team to zoom in for the quick score.

Notable Builds For Alolan Ninetales:

  • Hard Support: Alolan Ninetales players who want to go for the hard support route would focus on Icy Wind (Level 1-3), which gives a ranged speed debuff. Afterward, they can pair this with Dazzling Gleam (L4) which is a harsh stun, and then Aurora Veil (L6) which is a damage reduction barrier.
  • Tactical Offense: Even the more aggressive build of Alolan Ninetales has its unique perks attached to it. When using Powder Snow (Level 1-3), enemies hit still get a speed debuff. Meanwhile, Avalanche (L4) forms an ice wall that damages enemies upon collapse. Lastly, Blizzard (L6) gives another speed debuff alongside a shoving.

2 Cinderace

Difficulty: Novice

Stats:

  • Offense: 4
  • Endurance: 1.5
  • Mobility: 3
  • Scoring: 2.5
  • Support: 0.5

Boasting impressive speed, Cinderace capitalizes on getting to hot zones quickly and building damage through aggression. Across all attackers, Cinderace can quickly escalate damage numbers through its fire-infused attack or speed buffs. At its core, Cinderace's toolkit can give it enough juice to keep on fighting or make a run for it when necessary.

Albeit with a Novice difficulty, Cinderace remains a force to reckon with on the battlefield. Cinderace can focus on a damage-heavy toolkit thanks to its per-attack damage buildup. However, Cinderace can also capitalize its mobility for hit-and-run tactics designed to distract opponents.

Unite Move: Blazing Bicycle Kick

When activated, Cinderace unleashes the Pokemon's signature fireball to deal massive damage to a swath of opponents. If aimed properly, Blazing Bicycle Kick can end engagements against unguarded Pokemon.

Notable Builds For Cinderace:

  • Damage Build-Up: This build heavily relies on Cinderace building damage through skills and attacks. As such, it primarily requires Ember (Level 1-3) to deal stronger damage across sets of three attacks. Moreover, notable follow-ups to support the build include Pyro Ball (L7), and the range-increasing Flame Charge (L8).
  • Hit-And-Run: An alternate build for Cinderace involves capitalizing on sheer speed. This would begin with Low Sweep (Level 1-3), an attack with a speed debuff. To add salt to injury, Blaze Kick (L7) is a guaranteed crit that burns and knocks back enemies. When it comes to building speed, Feint (L8) grants Cinderace temporary invincibility with a speed buff, perfect for escapes.

1 Pikachu

Difficulty: Novice

Stats:

  • Offense: 4.5
  • Endurance: 1.5
  • Mobility: 2.5
  • Scoring: 2
  • Support: 1.5

The franchise mascot, Pikachu ain't no pushover in Pokemon Unite. Fans who loved Pikachu zig-zagging around the battlefield when fighting with Ash will get exactly the kind of mobility here. All of Pikachu's attacks boast decent damage on the get-go, with paralyzing moves that can debilitate the enemy's sense of timing.

Befitting the Novice difficulty, Pikachu always remains a reliable choice for Attacker – be it for a newcomer or a Unite savant. Pikachu can be a force to reckon with when built to dish out direct damage. However, a more defensive player can have an Attacker Pikachu as a support with its less-lethal albeit equally annoying AOE moveset.

Unite Move: Thunderstorm

When activated, Pikachu releases lightning blasts that target all enemies within range. Since Pikachu boasts decent mobility, proper positioning with Thunderstorm can wipe out entire mobs, elite mobs like Zapdos, or even multiple foes in a teamfight.

Notable Builds For Pikachu:

  • Direct Offense: Players can build Pikachu to become a heavily aggressive frontliner. This may require strong paralysis via Thunder Shock (Level 1-3), augmented with Thunder (L4), and Volt Tackle (L6).
  • Shocking AOE: Players can have Pikachu become an aggressive deterrent. This will need devastatingly annoying AOE moves. Essentially, this requires Electroweb (Level 1-3), Electro Ball (L4), and Thunderbolt (L6).

NEXT: Pokemon Unite Explained: How it Fits in the Franchise, and What You Need to Know

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