Grass
========
* Ferrothorn's typing allows it to easily take on some of Grass's weakness such as Flying-, Bug-, and Ice-type attacks while also being immune to Poison-type attacks.
* With its great defenses, Ferrothorn can take most hits with retaliative ease.
* It has amazing support moves in Leech Seed and Spikes, which makes Ferrothorn an excellent utility Pokemon.
* Ferrothorn has an amazing ability in Iron Barbs, which allows it to punish U-turn users.
* It also has a passable Attack stat that prevents it from being setup bait.
* Ferrothorn has Gyro Ball, which allows it to take advantage of its low Speed stat.
* However, Ferrothorn lacks recovery outside of Leech Seed, which often means it needs to run Leech Seed + Protect to recover some of its health.
* Ferrothorn is extremely predictable because of its shallow movepool.
* It also stacks a Fire-type weakness while also adding a Fighting-type weakness.
* Ferrothorn is extremely slow even for a utility Pokemon, which means it is outsped by common stallbreakers such as Gliscor and Mew.
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect
move 3: Gyro Ball
move 4: Spikes
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Barbs
nature: Relaxed
evs: 252 HP / 68 Def / 188 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Leech Seed allows Ferrothorn to slowly drain its opponents healthwhile also being able to recover some its health.
* Protect is used to allow Ferrothorn to scout and also lets it recover a bit of its health from Leech Seed.
* Gyro Ball allows Ferrothorn to hit fast Fairy-types such as Gardevoir and Alolan Ninetales while also punishing setup sweepers, namely Salamence.
* Spikes is used to pressure grounded threats and gives sweepers such as Serperior and Tapu Bulu more opportunities to sweep.
Set Details
========
* A Relaxed Nature in conjunction with 0 Speed IVs makes Ferrothorn as slow as possible, which maximizes Gyro Ball's power.
* Maximum HP investment with 188 Special Defense EVs allows Ferrothorn to always take Psychic + Focus Blast from Mega Alakazam after Stealth Rock.
* The remaining are EVs are put into Defense to add to its physical bulk.
* Iron Barbs allows Ferrothorn to damage physical attackers that make contact such as Dragonite and Gyarados.
* Leftovers allows Ferrothorn to recover a bit of its health each turn.
Usage Tips
========
* Ferrothorn doesn't have to worry about most status ailments such as poison and paralysis, but it has to avoid burns at all costs because it halves Ferrothorn's Attack stat while also negating its Leftovers recovery.
* If a target is already seeded and has a bad matchup against Ferrothorn, it is best to use Leech Seed on a predicted double switch.
* Only use Spikes when it is beneficial to use them; for example, using Spikes against a Flying-type team would not be beneficial, while using Spikes against a Fairy-type team would be beneficial.
* Preserve Ferrothorn's health, as it is often needed to check threats such as Mega Alakazam and Manaphy.
* Utilize Protect to see what move Choice item users such as Latios, Keldeo, and Victini lock themselves into.
* If a target is seeded, Ferrothorn should use Protect to regain as much health as possible.
* However, be wary when using Protect to recover more HP on setup sweepers such as Salamence and Gyarados, as they can deal massive damage to Ferrothorn after a single boost with Supersonic Skystrike.
* It is best to switch Ferrothorn in on U-turn users such as Landorus-T and Scizor, as with Iron Barbs, Ferrothorn gradually wears them down.
* It is best to switch Ferrothorn in on a predicted double switch or on a weak attack, as it minimizes the damage Ferrothorn takes.
Team Options
========
* Mega Venusaur is a great teammate, as it can take some Fire-type attacks due to Thick Fat, while Ferrothorn can take on Flying-types and can also provide some extra recovery through Leech Seed.
* Cradily check Fire-types such as Mega Charizard Y and Torkoal that Ferrothorn struggles against. Cradily can also set up Stealth Rock, which frees up a moveslot for Ferrothorn. Ferrothorn in return takes Bug- and Ice-type attacks nicely.
* Tapu Bulu helps Ferrothorn immensely because it takes Fighting-type attacks nicely and can also give Ferrothorn extra recovery in Grassy Terrain. Ferrothorn in return can set up Spikes, which allows Tapu Bulu to always OHKO opposing Ferrothorn and Mew.
* Breloom is a great teammate because of its ability to put foes to sleep with Spore while also being able to check Flying- and Fire-types such as Zapdos and Mega Charizard Y. Ferrothorn in return is able to set up Spikes to wear down bulky Pokemon such as Chansey and Porygon2.
* Serperior is an extremely fast cleaner and heavily benefits from Spikes from Ferrothorn, which opens more opportunities to sweep.
* Rotom-C can pivot with Volt Switch, which allows Ferrothorn to be brought in in safely. Ferrothorn provides pseudo recovery for Rotom-Mow in Leech Seed.
* Whimsicott is a great teammate because of its ability to eliminate Fighting-types such as Heracross and Terrakion with Moonblast.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Ferrothorn can run Power Whip over Protect to break Substitute from the likes of Gliscor and Gyarados, but ultimately, Grass teams do not need extra Grass-type coverage.
* Ferrothorn can run Knock Off to get rid of foes' items, but the added utility of Protect is typically better.
* Thunder Wave is also another option to slow down fast Pokemon such as Greninja and Mega Pinsir, but Ferrothorn is still outsped by most paralyzed threats. Thunder Wave also lowers the Base Power of Gyro Ball.
* Toxic can be used to wear down bulky Pokemon such as Zapdos and Ferrothorn, but Protect provides more utility.
* Stealth Rock can be used on Ferrothorn to help its teammates pick up certain KOs, but Cradily is better at setting up Stealth Rock.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Torkoal and Mega Charizard Y can easily take any of Ferrothorn's attacks and OHKO it with their Fire-type attacks.
**Stallbreakers**: Ferrothorn is completely shut down by Taunt, so stallbreakers such as Gliscor and Mew can easily beat Ferrothorn one-on-one.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types such as Heracross and Terrakion can deal massive damage to Ferrothorn with their Fighting-type attacks. However, most Fighting-types cannot switch into Gyro Ball.
**Fire-type coverage**: Pokemon such as Tyranitar and Hydreigon have Fire-type coverage, which allows them to deal massive damage to Ferrothorn.
**Setup Sweepers**: Setup sweepers such as Quiver Dance Volcarona and Swords Dance Scizor can easily set up on Ferrothorn and OHKO it with ease. However, Ferrothorn can cripple most setup sweepers with Thunder Wave
========
* Ferrothorn's typing allows it to easily take on some of Grass's weakness such as Flying-, Bug-, and Ice-type attacks while also being immune to Poison-type attacks.
* With its great defenses, Ferrothorn can take most hits with retaliative ease.
* It has amazing support moves in Leech Seed and Spikes, which makes Ferrothorn an excellent utility Pokemon.
* Ferrothorn has an amazing ability in Iron Barbs, which allows it to punish U-turn users.
* It also has a passable Attack stat that prevents it from being setup bait.
* Ferrothorn has Gyro Ball, which allows it to take advantage of its low Speed stat.
* However, Ferrothorn lacks recovery outside of Leech Seed, which often means it needs to run Leech Seed + Protect to recover some of its health.
* Ferrothorn is extremely predictable because of its shallow movepool.
* It also stacks a Fire-type weakness while also adding a Fighting-type weakness.
* Ferrothorn is extremely slow even for a utility Pokemon, which means it is outsped by common stallbreakers such as Gliscor and Mew.
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Leech Seed
move 2: Protect
move 3: Gyro Ball
move 4: Spikes
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Barbs
nature: Relaxed
evs: 252 HP / 68 Def / 188 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Leech Seed allows Ferrothorn to slowly drain its opponents healthwhile also being able to recover some its health.
* Protect is used to allow Ferrothorn to scout and also lets it recover a bit of its health from Leech Seed.
* Gyro Ball allows Ferrothorn to hit fast Fairy-types such as Gardevoir and Alolan Ninetales while also punishing setup sweepers, namely Salamence.
* Spikes is used to pressure grounded threats and gives sweepers such as Serperior and Tapu Bulu more opportunities to sweep.
Set Details
========
* A Relaxed Nature in conjunction with 0 Speed IVs makes Ferrothorn as slow as possible, which maximizes Gyro Ball's power.
* Maximum HP investment with 188 Special Defense EVs allows Ferrothorn to always take Psychic + Focus Blast from Mega Alakazam after Stealth Rock.
* The remaining are EVs are put into Defense to add to its physical bulk.
* Iron Barbs allows Ferrothorn to damage physical attackers that make contact such as Dragonite and Gyarados.
* Leftovers allows Ferrothorn to recover a bit of its health each turn.
Usage Tips
========
* Ferrothorn doesn't have to worry about most status ailments such as poison and paralysis, but it has to avoid burns at all costs because it halves Ferrothorn's Attack stat while also negating its Leftovers recovery.
* If a target is already seeded and has a bad matchup against Ferrothorn, it is best to use Leech Seed on a predicted double switch.
* Only use Spikes when it is beneficial to use them; for example, using Spikes against a Flying-type team would not be beneficial, while using Spikes against a Fairy-type team would be beneficial.
* Preserve Ferrothorn's health, as it is often needed to check threats such as Mega Alakazam and Manaphy.
* Utilize Protect to see what move Choice item users such as Latios, Keldeo, and Victini lock themselves into.
* If a target is seeded, Ferrothorn should use Protect to regain as much health as possible.
* However, be wary when using Protect to recover more HP on setup sweepers such as Salamence and Gyarados, as they can deal massive damage to Ferrothorn after a single boost with Supersonic Skystrike.
* It is best to switch Ferrothorn in on U-turn users such as Landorus-T and Scizor, as with Iron Barbs, Ferrothorn gradually wears them down.
* It is best to switch Ferrothorn in on a predicted double switch or on a weak attack, as it minimizes the damage Ferrothorn takes.
Team Options
========
* Mega Venusaur is a great teammate, as it can take some Fire-type attacks due to Thick Fat, while Ferrothorn can take on Flying-types and can also provide some extra recovery through Leech Seed.
* Cradily check Fire-types such as Mega Charizard Y and Torkoal that Ferrothorn struggles against. Cradily can also set up Stealth Rock, which frees up a moveslot for Ferrothorn. Ferrothorn in return takes Bug- and Ice-type attacks nicely.
* Tapu Bulu helps Ferrothorn immensely because it takes Fighting-type attacks nicely and can also give Ferrothorn extra recovery in Grassy Terrain. Ferrothorn in return can set up Spikes, which allows Tapu Bulu to always OHKO opposing Ferrothorn and Mew.
* Breloom is a great teammate because of its ability to put foes to sleep with Spore while also being able to check Flying- and Fire-types such as Zapdos and Mega Charizard Y. Ferrothorn in return is able to set up Spikes to wear down bulky Pokemon such as Chansey and Porygon2.
* Serperior is an extremely fast cleaner and heavily benefits from Spikes from Ferrothorn, which opens more opportunities to sweep.
* Rotom-C can pivot with Volt Switch, which allows Ferrothorn to be brought in in safely. Ferrothorn provides pseudo recovery for Rotom-Mow in Leech Seed.
* Whimsicott is a great teammate because of its ability to eliminate Fighting-types such as Heracross and Terrakion with Moonblast.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Ferrothorn can run Power Whip over Protect to break Substitute from the likes of Gliscor and Gyarados, but ultimately, Grass teams do not need extra Grass-type coverage.
* Ferrothorn can run Knock Off to get rid of foes' items, but the added utility of Protect is typically better.
* Thunder Wave is also another option to slow down fast Pokemon such as Greninja and Mega Pinsir, but Ferrothorn is still outsped by most paralyzed threats. Thunder Wave also lowers the Base Power of Gyro Ball.
* Toxic can be used to wear down bulky Pokemon such as Zapdos and Ferrothorn, but Protect provides more utility.
* Stealth Rock can be used on Ferrothorn to help its teammates pick up certain KOs, but Cradily is better at setting up Stealth Rock.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Torkoal and Mega Charizard Y can easily take any of Ferrothorn's attacks and OHKO it with their Fire-type attacks.
**Stallbreakers**: Ferrothorn is completely shut down by Taunt, so stallbreakers such as Gliscor and Mew can easily beat Ferrothorn one-on-one.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-types such as Heracross and Terrakion can deal massive damage to Ferrothorn with their Fighting-type attacks. However, most Fighting-types cannot switch into Gyro Ball.
**Fire-type coverage**: Pokemon such as Tyranitar and Hydreigon have Fire-type coverage, which allows them to deal massive damage to Ferrothorn.
**Setup Sweepers**: Setup sweepers such as Quiver Dance Volcarona and Swords Dance Scizor can easily set up on Ferrothorn and OHKO it with ease. However, Ferrothorn can cripple most setup sweepers with Thunder Wave
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