[overview]
**Draft Order**: Round 5 onwards
**Price Range**: 10-11 points
**Overview**: Entei is a powerful physical attacker that can function as a wallbreaker and cleaner. Its spammable STAB move in Sacred Fire can be combined with coverage options such as Stone Edge and its strong priority move in Extreme Speed to wear down an opponent's team while using Inner Focus to block Intimidate. However, Entei has a fairly shallow movepool, a weakness to Stealth Rock, and mediocre special bulk. It also struggles without any physical setup moves to increase its Attack.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
========
**Wallbreaker**: Using a Choice Band, Entei can use Sacred Fire and its limited coverage to deal large amounts of damage to the opposing team. It can revenge kill and clean using Extreme Speed.
**Offensive Utility**: Entei can forgo a Choice Band for another item, most commonly Heavy-Duty Boots. This makes it weaker, but it allows Entei to slot useful moves for the matchup, notably Will-O-Wisp and Trailblaze, which are both far worse on a Choice Band set.
Common Moves
========
**Primary STAB Moves**: Sacred Fire, Flare Blitz
**Setup Moves**: Agility, Trailblaze, Flame Charge
**Utility Moves**: Substitute, Will-O-Wisp, Roar
**Coverage**: Stomping Tantrum, Stone Edge, Iron Head, Crunch, Extreme Speed, Double-Edge
Niche Moves
========
**Fire Spin**: Entei can utilize Fire Spin against more passive foes, allowing for a favorable switch or a safe opportunity to set a Substitute.
**Calm Mind**: Entei can run a Calm Mind set to utilize a variety of special STAB attacks and its better special coverage such as Scorching Sands and Shadow Ball. However, these moves' lower Base Power and Entei's lower Special Attack make Calm Mind unappealing most of the time. It can occasionally utilize Roar to win a setup battle as well.
**Solar Beam**: Solar Beam in conjunction with Power Herb is Entei's only real way of hitting Water-types for strong super effective damage.
**Eruption**: Eruption is Entei's strongest special move, allowing it to compensate for its weaker Special Attack. However, Eruption is very inconsistent on Entei, as although it is fast, it still gets outsped by many foes. Entei's weakness to entry hazards also makes Eruption less viable in some situations.
Common Items
========
**Choice Band**: Choice Band enhances Entei's wallbreaking effectiveness, taking advantage of Sacred Fire's high power and burn chance to wear down Pokemon that resist it. Choice Band also increases Entei's ability to clean teams with Extreme Speed.
**Heavy-Duty Boots**: In games where Entei has sufficient power already, Heavy-Duty Boots can be a useful item to allow it more points of entry, especially if its teammates are lacking in entry hazard removal.
Niche Items
========
**Damage-boosting Items**: In matchups where Entei wants the freedom to change moves, it can utilize damage-boosting items such as Life Orb and Charcoal to enhance its wallbreaking potential while being more flexible.
**Assault Vest**: If you can ensure the removal of entry hazards on your side of the field, Assault Vest can help to shore up Entei's special bulk, allowing it to function more as a bulky attacker and as better support to its team defensively.
**Leftovers**: On a bulkier set and where entry hazards are likely to be absent, Entei can run Leftovers. This can allow it to use Substitute more, giving it more turns to safely use Sacred Fire.
**Power Herb**: Power Herb used in conjunction with Solar Beam is Entei's most effective way of breaking Water-types.
Tera
========
Entei is a fairly strong secondary Tera Captain, utilizing offensive Tera types such as Tera Fire and Normal to further enhance its wallbreaking potential. It can also use Tera types like Tera Grass, Fairy, and Electric to gain offensive coverage with Tera Blast to threaten Water-, Dragon-, and Rock-types. Due to its lack of setup options and reliable recovery, Entei cannot utilize defensive Tera types as well. It can perform well as a secondary Tera Captain, but there will be better options for your main Tera Captain.
Draft Strategy
========
As a mid-tier pick, Entei should not be a Pokemon your whole team is drafted around. It slots into some teams as an effective secondary threat, using Extreme Speed and Sacred Fire to wear down defensive foes and pick off weakened targets.
**Entry Hazard Removal**: Entei appreciates partners that can reliably remove entry hazards such as Iron Treads and Corviknight, allowing it to have more longevity and switch-in opportunities with its Choice Band sets.
**Pivots**: Entei appreciates pivots that allow it to find more entry points. It especially appreciates slow, bulky pivots that can take a hit and then switch out such as Galarian Slowking and Alomomola.
**Entry Hazards**: Entei appreciates having entry hazards set up for it, allowing it to further wear down its checks when they switch in. Reliable hazard setters such as Hisuian Samurott and Skarmory compliment Entei well in this regard.
**Additional Wallbreaking**: Due to its poor coverage, Entei struggles as a team's main wallbreaker. It appreciates wallbreaking teammates such as Urshifu-S and Dragonite that can assist it in breaking through defensive checks. Entei's late-game Extreme Speed cleaner sets also enjoy wallbreaking help.
Checks and Counters
========
**Bulky Water-types**: Entei has no consistent way to hit bulky Water-types for any sort of damage, struggling against foes with reliable recovery like Alomomola, Milotic, and Vaporeon. They also do not mind being burned by Sacred Fire.
**Entry Hazards**: Entei struggles a lot against entry hazards, being weak to Stealth Rock and Spikes. They can wear it down quickly, limiting the amount of times a non-Heavy-Duty Boots variant of Entei can come in. In some matchups, Heavy-Duty Boots will essentially be forced, neutering a lot of Entei’s offensive capabilities with it missing out on a damage-boosting item.
**Faster Attackers**: Although Entei is fairly fast, a lot of foes will still outspeed it. Some of these offensive foes (such as Landorus Greninja, and Ogerpon-W can reliably check Entei by forcing it out and limiting its overall damage.
**Ground- and Rock-types**: Most Ground- and Rock-types have good enough bulk to switch into Sacred Fire and threaten Entei with their STAB attacks. They can hold a Lum Berry to mitigate the risk of burns.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/hamish150.639451/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/scionicle.599989/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/jscurf2.608304/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
**Draft Order**: Round 5 onwards
**Price Range**: 10-11 points
**Overview**: Entei is a powerful physical attacker that can function as a wallbreaker and cleaner. Its spammable STAB move in Sacred Fire can be combined with coverage options such as Stone Edge and its strong priority move in Extreme Speed to wear down an opponent's team while using Inner Focus to block Intimidate. However, Entei has a fairly shallow movepool, a weakness to Stealth Rock, and mediocre special bulk. It also struggles without any physical setup moves to increase its Attack.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
========
**Wallbreaker**: Using a Choice Band, Entei can use Sacred Fire and its limited coverage to deal large amounts of damage to the opposing team. It can revenge kill and clean using Extreme Speed.
**Offensive Utility**: Entei can forgo a Choice Band for another item, most commonly Heavy-Duty Boots. This makes it weaker, but it allows Entei to slot useful moves for the matchup, notably Will-O-Wisp and Trailblaze, which are both far worse on a Choice Band set.
Common Moves
========
**Primary STAB Moves**: Sacred Fire, Flare Blitz
**Setup Moves**: Agility, Trailblaze, Flame Charge
**Utility Moves**: Substitute, Will-O-Wisp, Roar
**Coverage**: Stomping Tantrum, Stone Edge, Iron Head, Crunch, Extreme Speed, Double-Edge
Niche Moves
========
**Fire Spin**: Entei can utilize Fire Spin against more passive foes, allowing for a favorable switch or a safe opportunity to set a Substitute.
**Calm Mind**: Entei can run a Calm Mind set to utilize a variety of special STAB attacks and its better special coverage such as Scorching Sands and Shadow Ball. However, these moves' lower Base Power and Entei's lower Special Attack make Calm Mind unappealing most of the time. It can occasionally utilize Roar to win a setup battle as well.
**Solar Beam**: Solar Beam in conjunction with Power Herb is Entei's only real way of hitting Water-types for strong super effective damage.
**Eruption**: Eruption is Entei's strongest special move, allowing it to compensate for its weaker Special Attack. However, Eruption is very inconsistent on Entei, as although it is fast, it still gets outsped by many foes. Entei's weakness to entry hazards also makes Eruption less viable in some situations.
Common Items
========
**Choice Band**: Choice Band enhances Entei's wallbreaking effectiveness, taking advantage of Sacred Fire's high power and burn chance to wear down Pokemon that resist it. Choice Band also increases Entei's ability to clean teams with Extreme Speed.
**Heavy-Duty Boots**: In games where Entei has sufficient power already, Heavy-Duty Boots can be a useful item to allow it more points of entry, especially if its teammates are lacking in entry hazard removal.
Niche Items
========
**Damage-boosting Items**: In matchups where Entei wants the freedom to change moves, it can utilize damage-boosting items such as Life Orb and Charcoal to enhance its wallbreaking potential while being more flexible.
**Assault Vest**: If you can ensure the removal of entry hazards on your side of the field, Assault Vest can help to shore up Entei's special bulk, allowing it to function more as a bulky attacker and as better support to its team defensively.
**Leftovers**: On a bulkier set and where entry hazards are likely to be absent, Entei can run Leftovers. This can allow it to use Substitute more, giving it more turns to safely use Sacred Fire.
**Power Herb**: Power Herb used in conjunction with Solar Beam is Entei's most effective way of breaking Water-types.
Tera
========
Entei is a fairly strong secondary Tera Captain, utilizing offensive Tera types such as Tera Fire and Normal to further enhance its wallbreaking potential. It can also use Tera types like Tera Grass, Fairy, and Electric to gain offensive coverage with Tera Blast to threaten Water-, Dragon-, and Rock-types. Due to its lack of setup options and reliable recovery, Entei cannot utilize defensive Tera types as well. It can perform well as a secondary Tera Captain, but there will be better options for your main Tera Captain.
Draft Strategy
========
As a mid-tier pick, Entei should not be a Pokemon your whole team is drafted around. It slots into some teams as an effective secondary threat, using Extreme Speed and Sacred Fire to wear down defensive foes and pick off weakened targets.
**Entry Hazard Removal**: Entei appreciates partners that can reliably remove entry hazards such as Iron Treads and Corviknight, allowing it to have more longevity and switch-in opportunities with its Choice Band sets.
**Pivots**: Entei appreciates pivots that allow it to find more entry points. It especially appreciates slow, bulky pivots that can take a hit and then switch out such as Galarian Slowking and Alomomola.
**Entry Hazards**: Entei appreciates having entry hazards set up for it, allowing it to further wear down its checks when they switch in. Reliable hazard setters such as Hisuian Samurott and Skarmory compliment Entei well in this regard.
**Additional Wallbreaking**: Due to its poor coverage, Entei struggles as a team's main wallbreaker. It appreciates wallbreaking teammates such as Urshifu-S and Dragonite that can assist it in breaking through defensive checks. Entei's late-game Extreme Speed cleaner sets also enjoy wallbreaking help.
Checks and Counters
========
**Bulky Water-types**: Entei has no consistent way to hit bulky Water-types for any sort of damage, struggling against foes with reliable recovery like Alomomola, Milotic, and Vaporeon. They also do not mind being burned by Sacred Fire.
**Entry Hazards**: Entei struggles a lot against entry hazards, being weak to Stealth Rock and Spikes. They can wear it down quickly, limiting the amount of times a non-Heavy-Duty Boots variant of Entei can come in. In some matchups, Heavy-Duty Boots will essentially be forced, neutering a lot of Entei’s offensive capabilities with it missing out on a damage-boosting item.
**Faster Attackers**: Although Entei is fairly fast, a lot of foes will still outspeed it. Some of these offensive foes (such as Landorus Greninja, and Ogerpon-W can reliably check Entei by forcing it out and limiting its overall damage.
**Ground- and Rock-types**: Most Ground- and Rock-types have good enough bulk to switch into Sacred Fire and threaten Entei with their STAB attacks. They can hold a Lum Berry to mitigate the risk of burns.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/hamish150.639451/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/scionicle.599989/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/jscurf2.608304/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
Last edited:
