[OVERVIEW]
The combination of Knock Off, good typing, and Intimidate makes Incineroar a great wallbreaker while being a solid defensive Pokemon. Sword Dance sets can make Incineroar into a great wallbreaker, since many defensive staples like Vileplume, Galarian Slowbro, and Registeel just drop to its Swords Dance-boosted STAB attacks. Also, Incineroar easily checks the common Ghost-, Grass-, and Steel-types like Chandelure, Brambleghast, and Klefki, meaning it can take advantage of its utility moves it can go for a more defensively-oriented pivot set if it wishes. It has Will-O-Wisp and Knock Off to cripple incoming physical wallbreakers like Toxicroak, Flygon, and Mienshao and item-reliant Pokemon like Talonflame, Avalugg, and Swampert, respectively. Defensive Incineroar is solid for handling special wallbreakers such as Hisuian Typhlosion, Porygon-Z, and Heavy-Duty Boots Munkidori. However, Incineroar's low Speed stat makes it very easy for wallbreakers with a middling Speed tier like Basculegion, Breloom, and Heracross to outspeed and destroy it with their own STAB attacks. Incineroar's reliance on Heavy-Duty Boots can be felt, since it has to be wary of switching into opposing Knock Off from Tsareena, Alolan Muk, and Wo-Chien. It even has to worry about switching into the Pokemon it checks best, Chandelure, as it carries Trick to cripple Incineroar. Incineroar also lacks any form of recovery, making it easily worn down over the course of a battle.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Flare Blitz
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: U-turn / Earthquake
item: Heavy-Duty Boots
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
tera type: Poison / Fairy
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Details
====
U-turn allows Incineroar to pivot on, chip away at, and not get taken advantage of by its checks like Swampert and Diancie. Earthquake, on the other hand, provides a powerful attack that has no drawback that also hits the common Rock-, Poison-, and Fire-types like Iron Thorns, Dragalge, and opposing Incineroar. An Adamant nature can be used to allow Incineroar to 2HKO Pokemon like Alolan Muk and Talonflame, but a Jolly nature is useful for outspeeding foes like Modest Choice Specs Sylveon and unboosted Torterra. A specially defensive spread of 248 HP / 212 SpD / 48 Spe with a Careful nature can alternatively be used on Swords Dance sets, allowing Incineroar to safely handle Cresselia while letting it better pivot into foes like Chandelure, Munkidori, and Meloetta; the Speed EVs let Incineroar outpace foes like Brute Bonnet and Alolan Muk. Tera Poison gives Incineroar an immunity to poison from Alolan Muk and Vileplume while having a resistance to Fighting-type attacks. However, Tera Fairy provides a more well-rounded defensive typing that isn't weak to Ground-type attacks while still resisting Fighting-type attacks, giving opportunities for Incineroar to set up against Fighting-types like Mienshao, Toxicroak, and Breloom.
Incineroar can partner with other pivots like Rotom-C, Flygon, and Swampert, which tend to draw in Grass-types like Brute Bonnet, Vileplume, and Tsareena for Incineroar to prey on and form a VoltTurn core able to chip away at each other's checks. Entry hazard removers like Brambleghast, Tsareena, and Tentacruel can be great partners, since they can remove entry hazards if Incineroar loses its Heavy-Duty Boots. Incineroar can struggle against bulky Water-types like Vaporeon, Quagsire, and Swampert that can tank its STAB attacks, so it pairs with Pokemon like Toxicroak, Rotom-C, and Vileplume, as they can check the aforementioned Water-types. Fairy- and Poison-types like Sylveon, Dragalge, and Vileplume appreciate Incineroar for checking Steel-types like Registeel, Klefki, and Bronzong; in return, they can check Fighting-types like Mienshao, Infernape, and Gallade.
[SET]
name: Defensive Pivot
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Flare Blitz
move 3: Will-O-Wisp
move 4: Parting Shot / U-turn
item: Heavy-Duty Boots
ability: Intimidate
nature: Careful
evs: 248 HP / 212 SpD / 48 Spe
tera type: Fairy / Dragon / Water
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Details
====
Will-O-Wisp allows Incineroar to cripple its common switch-ins like Diancie, Swampert, and Gallade. Parting Shot can be used to weaken foes, pivot, and provide safety for setup sweepers. However, U-turn can be used because it allows Incineroar to pivot out from Diancie and Registeel that would usually be immune to Parting Shot due to their Clear Body ability. The given EV spread allows Incineroar to get the jump on Brute Bonnet while having as much special bulk as possible. Tera Fairy provides it the ability to check Dragon- and Fighting-types like Flygon, Mienshao, and Gallade while also letting it resist the omnipresent U-turn. Alternatively, Tera Dragon gives Incineroar the ability to check a myriad of special attackers like Toxtricity, Vileplume, and Inteleon. Tera Water is similar to Tera Dragon but replaces a Grass resistance for an Ice resistance, making Incineroar better against Inteleon.
Grass-types like Tsareena, Brambleghast, and Vileplume are great partners for Incineroar, since they can handle bulky Water- and Ground-types such as Vaporeon, Swampert, and Gastrodon. Fighting-types like Mienshao, Toxicroak, and Infernape can force Incineroar to switch, so it best pairs with physically defensive Pokemon like Galarian Slowbro, Bellibolt, and Sylveon that can handle the aforementioned Fighting-types. Additionally, Sylveon can provide Incineroar with recovery by passing it a Wish. Wallbreakers like Inteleon, Munkidori, and Toxtricity appreciate Incineroar's slow Parting Shot, as they can get a free entry on Rock-, Fighting-, and Water-types that tend to switch in on Incineroar. Setup sweepers like Calm Mind Cresselia, Swords Dance Toxicroak, and Dragon Dance Flygon similarly appreciate Incineroar's Parting Shot weakening foes and it giving them more opportunities to set up. Incineroar's longevity is limited and can be cut severely if it loses its Heavy-Duty Boots, so it pairs well with entry hazard removers such as Tsareena, Tentacruel, and Brambleghast.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Close Combat is an option to hit many foes neutrally like Swampert and Diancie while also hitting foes like Iron Thorns and opposing Incineroar super effectively. Flame Charge gives Incineroar the opportunity to become a late-game cleaner after picking off a weakened threat. Alternatively, Trailblaze can be used alongside Tera Grass to hit Water-types super effectively but it's pretty reliant on Terastallization to do good damage. Iron Head can be used on Swords Dance Incineroar to surprise Sylveon, Diancie, and Florges, but the ability to pivot, boost its Speed, or use a high-Base Power coverage move tends to be better overall. Weakness Policy + Power Trip sets can be used on hyper offense teams, letting Incineroar become a dangerous sweeper. Incineroar has a bunch of usable defensive Tera types, but they are really inconsistent for many teams. Tera Flying helps Incineroar take on Fighting- and Ground-type attacks, but it retains its weakness to Stealth Rock. Tera Grass gives Incineroar a resistance to Water- and Ground-type attacks but gives it a bad matchup against opposing Fire-types like Chandelure, Infernape, and Hisuian Typhlosion.
Checks and Counters
====
**Water-types**: Vaporeon, Milotic, and Swampert can switch into its Flare Blitz and threaten Incineroar back with their own STAB attacks, but they have to be wary about switching into a boosted Knock Off from Swords Dance sets. Offensive Water-types like Inteleon and Basculegion, while they have to be worried about switching into its Knock Off, can easily destroy it. Quagsire is notable for shutting down Incineroar sweeps due to Unaware and punish it back by spreading Toxic or hitting Incineroar with its STAB Earthquake.
**Ground-types**: Flygon, Swampert, and Quagsire destroy Incineroar with their STAB Earthquake, but they have to be wary about switching into Will-O-Wisp from bulkier sets.
**Fighting-types**: Mienshao, Toxicroak, and Breloom outspeed Incineroar and destroy it with their STAB Fighting-type attacks. Infernape and Paldean Tauros-W resist both of Incineroar's STAB attacks and use it as setup fodder.
**Rock-types**: Diancie and Iron Thorns can tank Incineroar's STAB attacks very well and use it to set up Stealth Rock or hit it back with their STAB Rock-type attacks.
**Item Displacement**: Common Knock Off users like Tsareena, Alolan Muk, and Wo-Chien can threaten Incineroar by removing its Heavy-Duty Boots, making it a lot weaker to entry hazards. On top of this, Pokemon it would love to switch into like Chandelure, Munkidori, and Porygon-Z often carry Trick to cripple it.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/pika134.609709/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/powerofmemes.583607/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/rabia.336073/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
The combination of Knock Off, good typing, and Intimidate makes Incineroar a great wallbreaker while being a solid defensive Pokemon. Sword Dance sets can make Incineroar into a great wallbreaker, since many defensive staples like Vileplume, Galarian Slowbro, and Registeel just drop to its Swords Dance-boosted STAB attacks. Also, Incineroar easily checks the common Ghost-, Grass-, and Steel-types like Chandelure, Brambleghast, and Klefki, meaning it can take advantage of its utility moves it can go for a more defensively-oriented pivot set if it wishes. It has Will-O-Wisp and Knock Off to cripple incoming physical wallbreakers like Toxicroak, Flygon, and Mienshao and item-reliant Pokemon like Talonflame, Avalugg, and Swampert, respectively. Defensive Incineroar is solid for handling special wallbreakers such as Hisuian Typhlosion, Porygon-Z, and Heavy-Duty Boots Munkidori. However, Incineroar's low Speed stat makes it very easy for wallbreakers with a middling Speed tier like Basculegion, Breloom, and Heracross to outspeed and destroy it with their own STAB attacks. Incineroar's reliance on Heavy-Duty Boots can be felt, since it has to be wary of switching into opposing Knock Off from Tsareena, Alolan Muk, and Wo-Chien. It even has to worry about switching into the Pokemon it checks best, Chandelure, as it carries Trick to cripple Incineroar. Incineroar also lacks any form of recovery, making it easily worn down over the course of a battle.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Flare Blitz
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: U-turn / Earthquake
item: Heavy-Duty Boots
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
tera type: Poison / Fairy
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Details
====
U-turn allows Incineroar to pivot on, chip away at, and not get taken advantage of by its checks like Swampert and Diancie. Earthquake, on the other hand, provides a powerful attack that has no drawback that also hits the common Rock-, Poison-, and Fire-types like Iron Thorns, Dragalge, and opposing Incineroar. An Adamant nature can be used to allow Incineroar to 2HKO Pokemon like Alolan Muk and Talonflame, but a Jolly nature is useful for outspeeding foes like Modest Choice Specs Sylveon and unboosted Torterra. A specially defensive spread of 248 HP / 212 SpD / 48 Spe with a Careful nature can alternatively be used on Swords Dance sets, allowing Incineroar to safely handle Cresselia while letting it better pivot into foes like Chandelure, Munkidori, and Meloetta; the Speed EVs let Incineroar outpace foes like Brute Bonnet and Alolan Muk. Tera Poison gives Incineroar an immunity to poison from Alolan Muk and Vileplume while having a resistance to Fighting-type attacks. However, Tera Fairy provides a more well-rounded defensive typing that isn't weak to Ground-type attacks while still resisting Fighting-type attacks, giving opportunities for Incineroar to set up against Fighting-types like Mienshao, Toxicroak, and Breloom.
Incineroar can partner with other pivots like Rotom-C, Flygon, and Swampert, which tend to draw in Grass-types like Brute Bonnet, Vileplume, and Tsareena for Incineroar to prey on and form a VoltTurn core able to chip away at each other's checks. Entry hazard removers like Brambleghast, Tsareena, and Tentacruel can be great partners, since they can remove entry hazards if Incineroar loses its Heavy-Duty Boots. Incineroar can struggle against bulky Water-types like Vaporeon, Quagsire, and Swampert that can tank its STAB attacks, so it pairs with Pokemon like Toxicroak, Rotom-C, and Vileplume, as they can check the aforementioned Water-types. Fairy- and Poison-types like Sylveon, Dragalge, and Vileplume appreciate Incineroar for checking Steel-types like Registeel, Klefki, and Bronzong; in return, they can check Fighting-types like Mienshao, Infernape, and Gallade.
[SET]
name: Defensive Pivot
move 1: Knock Off
move 2: Flare Blitz
move 3: Will-O-Wisp
move 4: Parting Shot / U-turn
item: Heavy-Duty Boots
ability: Intimidate
nature: Careful
evs: 248 HP / 212 SpD / 48 Spe
tera type: Fairy / Dragon / Water
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Details
====
Will-O-Wisp allows Incineroar to cripple its common switch-ins like Diancie, Swampert, and Gallade. Parting Shot can be used to weaken foes, pivot, and provide safety for setup sweepers. However, U-turn can be used because it allows Incineroar to pivot out from Diancie and Registeel that would usually be immune to Parting Shot due to their Clear Body ability. The given EV spread allows Incineroar to get the jump on Brute Bonnet while having as much special bulk as possible. Tera Fairy provides it the ability to check Dragon- and Fighting-types like Flygon, Mienshao, and Gallade while also letting it resist the omnipresent U-turn. Alternatively, Tera Dragon gives Incineroar the ability to check a myriad of special attackers like Toxtricity, Vileplume, and Inteleon. Tera Water is similar to Tera Dragon but replaces a Grass resistance for an Ice resistance, making Incineroar better against Inteleon.
Grass-types like Tsareena, Brambleghast, and Vileplume are great partners for Incineroar, since they can handle bulky Water- and Ground-types such as Vaporeon, Swampert, and Gastrodon. Fighting-types like Mienshao, Toxicroak, and Infernape can force Incineroar to switch, so it best pairs with physically defensive Pokemon like Galarian Slowbro, Bellibolt, and Sylveon that can handle the aforementioned Fighting-types. Additionally, Sylveon can provide Incineroar with recovery by passing it a Wish. Wallbreakers like Inteleon, Munkidori, and Toxtricity appreciate Incineroar's slow Parting Shot, as they can get a free entry on Rock-, Fighting-, and Water-types that tend to switch in on Incineroar. Setup sweepers like Calm Mind Cresselia, Swords Dance Toxicroak, and Dragon Dance Flygon similarly appreciate Incineroar's Parting Shot weakening foes and it giving them more opportunities to set up. Incineroar's longevity is limited and can be cut severely if it loses its Heavy-Duty Boots, so it pairs well with entry hazard removers such as Tsareena, Tentacruel, and Brambleghast.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Close Combat is an option to hit many foes neutrally like Swampert and Diancie while also hitting foes like Iron Thorns and opposing Incineroar super effectively. Flame Charge gives Incineroar the opportunity to become a late-game cleaner after picking off a weakened threat. Alternatively, Trailblaze can be used alongside Tera Grass to hit Water-types super effectively but it's pretty reliant on Terastallization to do good damage. Iron Head can be used on Swords Dance Incineroar to surprise Sylveon, Diancie, and Florges, but the ability to pivot, boost its Speed, or use a high-Base Power coverage move tends to be better overall. Weakness Policy + Power Trip sets can be used on hyper offense teams, letting Incineroar become a dangerous sweeper. Incineroar has a bunch of usable defensive Tera types, but they are really inconsistent for many teams. Tera Flying helps Incineroar take on Fighting- and Ground-type attacks, but it retains its weakness to Stealth Rock. Tera Grass gives Incineroar a resistance to Water- and Ground-type attacks but gives it a bad matchup against opposing Fire-types like Chandelure, Infernape, and Hisuian Typhlosion.
Checks and Counters
====
**Water-types**: Vaporeon, Milotic, and Swampert can switch into its Flare Blitz and threaten Incineroar back with their own STAB attacks, but they have to be wary about switching into a boosted Knock Off from Swords Dance sets. Offensive Water-types like Inteleon and Basculegion, while they have to be worried about switching into its Knock Off, can easily destroy it. Quagsire is notable for shutting down Incineroar sweeps due to Unaware and punish it back by spreading Toxic or hitting Incineroar with its STAB Earthquake.
**Ground-types**: Flygon, Swampert, and Quagsire destroy Incineroar with their STAB Earthquake, but they have to be wary about switching into Will-O-Wisp from bulkier sets.
**Fighting-types**: Mienshao, Toxicroak, and Breloom outspeed Incineroar and destroy it with their STAB Fighting-type attacks. Infernape and Paldean Tauros-W resist both of Incineroar's STAB attacks and use it as setup fodder.
**Rock-types**: Diancie and Iron Thorns can tank Incineroar's STAB attacks very well and use it to set up Stealth Rock or hit it back with their STAB Rock-type attacks.
**Item Displacement**: Common Knock Off users like Tsareena, Alolan Muk, and Wo-Chien can threaten Incineroar by removing its Heavy-Duty Boots, making it a lot weaker to entry hazards. On top of this, Pokemon it would love to switch into like Chandelure, Munkidori, and Porygon-Z often carry Trick to cripple it.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/pika134.609709/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/powerofmemes.583607/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/rabia.336073/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Last edited:
