Focus Punch

Hero Fly Chao

In the third generation metagame, it seemed like everyone and their grandfather used Focus Punch on all sorts of stuff. Snorlax, Heracross, Breloom, Gengar...You get the idea. It's a fabulous move just MADE for prediction. But from all of the RMTs I've seen of late, there's no sign of Focus Punch anywhere. Is it outclassed these days? Or are people just trying new things? Personally, I loved Subpunchreversaling Heracross back in 386 play, but is FP just a dead tactic now?
If not, what other new Pokes could put it to good use?
 
Consider the most popular Focus Punchers in Advance.

Breloom - Not really seen.
Dragonite - Rarely seen, and tends to prefer DD/Outrage sets.
Dusclops (Dusknoir) - Has no real place for it.
Gengar - People seem more taken with Focus Bomb, though I suspect Focus Punch will make a return.
Heracross - Got In Fight.
Slaking - Rarely seen, but might also use Arm Hammer.
Snorlax - Tends to be Curse/Return/X/Rest...
Tyranitar - Generally has Focus Punch on the CB sets. Boah hasn't been seen much.

As far as new DP Pokemon with Focus Punch, nothing really noteworthy. A lot of Pokemon just plain don't learn it, learn something better (In Fight), or have moveset syndrome.
 
If Feather Rest Skarmory gets popular FP will still see a lot of use.
It magically becomes super effective and actually makes skarm think twice about walling your FPer.
If the metagame sticks with rest instead, FP looses out on some usefulness.
The current wifi metagame also seems like it loves to switch to a counter rather than have a pokemon that can deal with lots of problems, so wherever there is switching there should be focus punching.
SubPunching, however, will see just about as much use as it did before. It will be a rare sight and only seen on a few select pokemon.

The 4th generation doesn't seem to have that many useful focus punchers or subpunchers.
Rampard, who forces switches like it was his job, should carry focus punch. I can't really see Rhyperior using FP, because it won't do much more than what his Stab EQ or Stone Edge could do.
Lickilicky could possibly pull off a subpunching set because of his massive HP, but his attack is not high enough to make it worth it.
 
To me, the 1/5 more power from FP is plenty worth giving up for things that learn AH or IF. If it's predicted wrongly then there seems to be too much makeup to do when the opponent actually catches on for when you use it. Say FP is used on Skarmory, but you think too fast not knowing that it has Drill Peck...I'd stick with moves I'll know they will hit instead.
 
I love Focus Punch i'll be using it on Gengar for the fear of Blissey.

Focus Punch > Focus Bomb @ Bliss

EDIT 1: I take that back i'll be using Focus Bomb because Tyranitar is more of a threat to me than Blissey.
 
I never used Focus Punch even though my teams were sort of designed with Serenity-class prediction in mind. I doubt I'll use it in D/P either, the only thing I ever did with Focus Punch was Followpunch in 2v2.
 
I like Focus Punch in ADV. I think I'd have to see how the DP metagame turns out before I decide how I'd use it or if I'd use it.
 
I like the idea of a yawnpuncher. I'm just not sure of what pokes can pull it off. Yawnpursuing would be cool too.
 
x099x said:
I like the idea of a yawnpuncher. I'm just not sure of what pokes can pull it off. Yawnpursuing would be cool too.
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Kangaskhan, but it takes a lot of damage before she Focus Punches and SubPunch still better.

Other Yawn Punchers:

-Ursaring (has better things to do)
-Snorlax (LOL)

Yawn + Pursuit looks more useful but Sleep + Pursuit would be better, let's search what Pokemon learns both:

-Dunsparce (has better things to do as well :S)

Any other Sleep move + Pursuit:

-Yanma/Yanmega (couldn't work)
-Spiritomb
-Darkrai
-Crobat (Not sure about if it's legal)
-Parasect (cool :P)
 
-Crobat (Not sure about if it's legal)
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It gets Hypnosis from Noctowl, so no.

Darkrai would make a great uber sleep-pursuiter. Too bad his special is so much better than his physical and he gets Dark Pulse STAB anyway.
 
Tyranitar hardly needs Focus Punch anymore now that it gets Stone Edge which has equal base power against things both are neutral on. This includes Suicune, Skarmory and Milotic, which it was mostly used for. Tyranitar got the rather screwed up Pursuit now though to replace it.
 
Well, CBtar needs four moves, Crunch/Stone Edge/Pursuit/?, and between Focus Punch and Earthquake, there's some stuff to like from either option, I think.
 
Besides some questionable situations like running out of Stone Edge PP due to Pressure I cannot really see where Focus Punch is coming very handy. If you're up against Curselax or Cursetank you'd probably want to Stone Edge them to death anyway. Stone Edge's accuracy loss is sort of negated by the fact Focus Punch is always going to "miss" when you are attacked. I think I'd take Earthquake anyday, though I have to admit that it won't do as much to Rhyperior.
 
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