Ferrothorn excels as a Spikes setter thanks to the combination of its solid Grass / Steel defensive typing, great defensive stats, and wide utility movepool, which lets it pressure common forms of entry hazard control such as Zapdos and Tornadus-T with Knock Off. Ferrothorn's typing also lets it deter attackers such as Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, and Melmetal. Spikes is Ferrothorn's main attribute, slowly chipping down checks as well as offensive threats such as Tapu Lele and Tapu Koko with the support of Knock Off. Additionally, Iron Barbs is useful to punish pivots that try to generate momentum such as Landorus-T and Rillaboom. However, Ferrothorn has a glaring 4x weakness to Fire, which means that it is immediately forced out by Fire-types and Pokemon carrying Fire-type coverage such as Dragapult and Nidoking. It also struggles against Pokemon carrying Fighting-type coverage moves such as Tornadus-T and Tapu Lele, which it would otherwise be able to check comfortably. Ferrothorn is almost completely useless against Regenerator cores such as Toxapex + Tangrowth and Toxapex + Tornadus-T, as they can easily shrug off Ferrothorn's chip damage and PP stall it. Furthermore, Ferrothorn is very easily worn down due to its reliance on Leech Seed and Leftovers to make up for its lack of reliable recovery, which makes it susceptible to wallbreakers such as Kartana and Rillaboom and Knock Off users such as Toxapex and Clefable that can threaten it over time.
[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Spikes / Stealth Rock
move 2: Knock Off
move 3: Leech Seed
move 4: Power Whip
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Barbs
nature: Careful
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Ferrothorn is the best Spikes setter in the tier thanks to its ability to threaten common forms of entry hazard control like Zapdos, Tornadus-T, and Mandibuzz with Knock Off. Alternatively, Stealth Rock can be used over Spikes if your team lacks a Stealth Rock setter; however, Ferrothorn will have a harder time breaking through defensive cores. Leech Seed is Ferrothorn's main source of recovery and is particularly helpful because it makes Ferrothorn, which is usually a passive Pokemon, much harder to switch into. Maximum HP and Special Defense investment allows Ferrothorn to check Tapu Lele and other special attackers.
Ferrothorn fits on balance and bulky offense teams that appreciate the defensive utility it provides as a Spikes setter. Wallbreakers such as Dragapult, Kyurem, and Nidoking appreciate the entry hazards Ferrothorn sets up and can pressure revenge killers such as Zeraora and Weavile. Clefable and Heatran both have great defensive synergy with Ferrothorn, as they can wear down common checks such as Corviknight. They, alongside other Stealth Rock setters such as Landorus-T, can also help Ferrothorn by allowing it to run Spikes. It's incredibly important to provide checks to Fire-type Pokemon such as Heatran and Volcarona, as Ferrothorn is extremely vulnerable to them. Therefore, Pokemon like Tapu Fini and Garchomp are fantastic partners for it. Fast pivots such as Tornadus-T and Tapu Koko provide VoltTurn support and retain momentum against Pokemon like Corviknight and Mandibuzz, which only fear Knock Off from Ferrothorn, while benefiting from it setting up Spikes to further pressure their defensive switch-ins like Heatran and Galarian Slowking. They can also give Ferrothorn opportunities to set up entry hazards and utilize Knock Off more reliably after pivoting against its checks such as Corviknight and Zapdos. Rain teams also deserve a special mention, as they have formidable synergy with Ferrothorn; Ferrothorn provides Spikes support to wear down the opposing team for rain wallbreakers like Kingdra, Seismitoad, and Barraskewda, it acts as a great check to many Pokemon that threaten rain teams such as Tapu Koko and Rillaboom, while rain reduces its weakness to Fire.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
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A more physically defensive EV spread of 252 HP / 88 Def / 168 SpD with an Impish nature can be run to check offensive variants of Landorus-T and Kartana. Thunder Wave can be run to disrupt pivots and wallbreakers such as Tornadus-T and Kartana. Body Press is an option that lets Ferrothorn dish out super effective damage to Pokemon such as Heatran, Hydreigon, and opposing Ferrothorn, although forgoing Power Whip makes Ferrothorn a significantly worse check to Pokemon like Slowking and Tapu Fini. Gyro Ball is another alternative to Power Whip that lets Ferrothorn deal more damage to faster foes such as Tapu Koko, Tornadus-T, and Latios. Protect can be used to stall turns and gain extra recovery while scouting Choice-locked Pokemon such as Clefable, Tapu Fini, and Latios.
Checks and Counters
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**Fire-type Pokemon and Coverage**: Heatran and Volcarona are extremely threatening to Ferrothorn, as they OHKO it with their STAB moves; however, they cannot safely switch in because of a potential Knock Off or Thunder Wave. Thanks to the prevalence of Ferrothorn, there are plenty of Pokemon that choose to run Fire-type coverage for it such as Calm Mind Clefable, Choice Specs Dragapult, and Nidoking.
**Fighting-type Pokemon and Coverage**: Fighting-types such as Urshifu-R and Buzzwole can easily pressure Ferrothorn with their STAB moves, but the former struggles to switch into it. Pokemon like Rillaboom, Tapu Lele, and Zeraora often run Fighting-type coverage to pressure Ferrothorn.
**Strong Wallbreakers**: Swords Dance Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Kyurem threaten Ferrothorn with their STAB moves, although they must be wary of being worn down by Knock Off; the former two also need to set up in order to pressure it. Ferrothorn can also be overwhelmed by the Pokemon it is meant to check such as Tapu Lele and Melmetal.
**Item Removal**: Ferrothorn is reliant on Leftovers, as it is one of its main sources of recovery. It often must avoid Pokemon that carry Knock Off or can remove its item such as Landorus-T, Clefable, and Choice Scarf Tapu Fini to maintain its longevity.
**Burn**: Ferrothorn is prone to being vulnerable by Pokemon it checks such as Toxapex and Slowking, as it makes Ferrothorn much more passive and removes its ability to recover health, which prevents it from reliably checking its intended targets.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[PA, 430787]]
- Quality checked by: [[ausma, 360720], [airfare, 513717]]
- Grammar checked by: [[DC, 449990], [Milak, 262594]]
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