Gen 1 Moltres (UU) [QC 2/2] [GP 2/2] [DONE]

[Volk]

I'm back! Here is an analysis no one asked for. Plus, I somehow had a lot to say about this thoroughly mediocre Pokemon.
This has not been proofread yet so be aware of sudden changes shortly after after the initial post. Cheers!

[OVERVIEW]

Moltres is an unusual Pokemon in RBY UU. It has downright incredible base stats, boasting the second-highest total of any Pokemon outside of Ubers. Its Fire Blast is enormously strong, unsurpassed by any other unboosted special move in the game. Because of these traits, Moltres spent much of its history banned and was considered a top choice once it was finally released to the tier. Given its behemoth offensive prowess and the success its sibling Articuno had, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in the tier.

Moltres, however, is not a staple in RBY UU by any account. The tier is infested with Water-type Pokemon such as Vaporeon, Omastar, and UU king Tentacruel, which creates a very hostile environment for Moltres. Another major flaw is how heavily Articuno outclasses it. As a special attacker, Moltres is nearly strictly worse than Articuno, as several prominent Pokemon in the tier resist Fire but not Ice; thus, the true strength of Moltres's nuclear Fire Blast is seldom realized. Examples include Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Golem. Somewhat humorously, the only major Pokemon that Moltres has an edge against relative to Articuno is Articuno itself. Being a Fire-type Pokemon isn’t doing Moltres any defensive favors either. Articuno has a much better chance at muscling through Water-type checks, as it can endure their attacks while it hunts for a critical hit or freeze. Moltres, on the other hand, will likely get 2HKOed by Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, meaning it is afforded no extra turns to try to get lucky. Failing to resist Ice also leaves it more vulnerable to attackers like Gyarados. Considering the ubiquity of Water-type Pokemon and how everything that checks Articuno also checks Moltres, basically every well composed RBY UU team is incidentally prepared to face Moltres.

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU, being able to do one of two things for a team. Firstly, it can be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special attacking core. Against neutral targets, Moltres's Fire Blast boasts impressive damage output, 2HKOing most neutral targets. Alternatively, Moltres can try to slowly rack up damage and possibly even sweep with AgiliSpin, much like Dragonite with Wrap. While both approaches to Moltres are viable, they have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two share many checks. Fire Spin Moltres is a suboptimal partial trapper relative to staples like Dragonite due to the move's lower accuracy, PP, and damage output.

[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hyper Beam
move 3: Fire Spin / Double-Edge
move 4: Agility

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Moltres’s Fire Blast ties with Articuno’s Blizzard as the strongest unboosted special move in the tier. While more Pokemon resist Fire Blast than Blizzard, the move still deals massive damage to the right targets; it 3HKOes Hypno and 2HKOes Kangaskhan, Persian, Dodrio, Dugtrio, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur. Fire Blast actually outperforms Blizzard against a select few —albeit uncommon —Pokemon as well, including Dewgong, Pinsir, and Venomoth. It also comes with a nasty 30.1% chance to burn, which keeps some would-be checks, like Tentacruel and Dragonite, somewhat hesitant to face Moltres. While not quite as lethal as a freeze, a burn can completely incapacitate pretty much every physical attacker outside of Persian. A burn on a partial trapper like Tentacruel can force it to use Rest much earlier than usual, as the passive damage will build up if it tries to use Wrap or Bind. However, due to Fire Blast's poor accuracy and UU's many Water-types, running out of PP is a genuine possibility. Additionally, a single miss can ruin Moltres, as it leaves it vulnerable to being paralyzed or KOed. As such, Moltres must use it wisely.

Moltres's surprisingly high Attack stat makes its Hyper Beam and Double-Edge remarkably strong. Because of the extra damage output from its physical attacks, Moltres can use Agility and attempt to sweep even sooner than Articuno in some cases. For example, Tentacruel and Kadabra must be at or below 35% and 65% health, respectively, for Articuno to secure a sweep with Hyper Beam. For Moltres, these Pokemon can be at 38.5% and 72% health. The difference is minor, but it can be important in a metagame where many Pokemon lose health in increments of roughly 3% to Tentacruel’s Wrap.

Fire Spin is more versatile than Double-Edge, enabling it to chip weakened foes into KO range of Fire Blast or Hyper Beam. The move can also immobilize, slowly whittle down, and potentially sweep the opposing team, especially if Moltres has managed to use Agility. Fire Spin also gives Moltres an option against Dragonite; it can use the move and switch out to something that can prevent Dragonite from setting up its potentially game-ending Agility. Compared to Dragonite's Wrap, Moltres's Fire Spin has lower accuracy and PP but has the benefit of damaging Haunter. Alternatively, Double-Edge provides Moltres with a consistent attack with perfect accuracy, a lot of PP, and few drawbacks. This greatly aids in Moltres’s sweeping, allowing it to take out weakened targets with little risk. Note that Articuno almost completely outclasses Moltres running Double-Edge, so Articuno should generally be run alongside Moltres if this set is chosen. Essentially, Fire Spin is for sweeping sooner, while Double-Edge is for sweeping reliably. Agility makes Moltres faster than the entire unboosted metagame and therefore less fearful of Pokemon like Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu while letting it attempt to sweep or wallbreak.

Moltres requires quite a lot of support to function. Pokemon that can apply pressure to Water-type Pokemon, such as Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur, are good partners. Physical attackers like Persian and Kangaskhan can also work with Moltres on hyper offense builds. Together, they can form mixed attacking cores that few teams can handle. Users of sleep inducing moves like Hypno, Tangela, and the aforementioned Venusaur provide Moltres with a setup opportunity. If Moltres is being used alongside Articuno, much of the same support is required, though to an even greater extent. Fast Pokemon like Kadabra and Dugtrio are also good partners, as the core is relatively slow and liable to be smothered by Tentacruel.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
While Moltres is generally best used as an offensive Pokemon, its impressive bulk can allow it to check a few Pokemon, like the tier’s Normal-type attackers. This means Moltres can run defensive options like Rest and Reflect. Toxic gives Moltres a more reliable option for Dragonite and synergizes well with Fire Spin.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Water-type Pokemon**: Unless they happen to be in KO range of Hyper Beam or Double-Edge, Moltres is almost completely helpless against Water-type Pokemon. Tentacruel outspeeds Moltres and can use Wrap to weaken it or just cleanly 2HKO it with Surf. Vaporeon is slower but can take Moltres’s attacks more comfortably while still scoring a 2HKO. Poliwrath behaves similarly, but it can only potentially 2HKO Moltres if it has Hydro Pump. Thanks to its typing, Omastar is the best counter to Moltres; even if Moltres scores a critical hit with every attack, Omastar can safely use Rest and wall it indefinitely. Omastar will always 2HKO Moltres with Surf as well. Gyarados can take Moltres’s hits fairly comfortably and score a 2HKO with Hydro Pump or a 3HKO with Blizzard.

**Rock-type Pokemon**: Golem takes relatively little from Moltres’s moves. It is very likely to OHKO Moltres with Rock Slide, making Moltres very hesitant to pivot out with Fire Spin; this essentially gives Golem a free turn to use a powerful STAB attack or Substitute. Golem also punishes Hyper Beam exceptionally well, scoring a virtually guaranteed OHKO in response. Aerodactyl doesn’t have many good offensive options for Moltres, but it can take a few hits and apply pressure with Double-Edge, especially if it can land a few critical hits. Neither Golem nor Aerodactyl handles a burn well, however.

**Dragonite**: Moltres can, at best, 4HKO Dragonite, but it will likely require even more turns to KO it. Dragonite, on the other hand, can 3HKO with Blizzard, stymie Moltres's offensive ability with Thunder Wave, or attempt to use Agility and sweep with Wrap. Dragonite's ability to sweep is threatened by Fire Blast's burn chance, but Dragonite is still very likely to win the matchup thanks to its wide array of strong special attacks.

**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio has no business switching into Moltres and despises burn, but it survives a Fire Blast and can 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Thanks to its high critical hit rate, Dugtrio is liable to OHKO Moltres as well, making Moltres fearful even if it is at full health and has used Agility.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [phoopes, 96315]]
- Grammar checked by: [[CryoGyro, 331519], [Finland, 517429]]

 

[Plague von Karma]

Glad this bird is getting some love, time for some feedback.

This analysis needs a lot of work. I get why you're doing it, but these constant comparisons to Articuno hinder info delivery to the point that the eventual Articuno analysis will become required reading just to understand this one. You should only need a few references; a line in the Overview that says Articuno outclasses it, and then a few lines in the Set Details that explain how the two work so well together.

You need to focus on Moltres itself, what it can bring to the table, why you shouldn't use it, and how to use it if you want to use it. If you're going to say "Articuno does this better" constantly, then people won't read this, they'll click Articuno and go to something better. At that point, you have to ask yourself: why does this exist?

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qc

[OVERVIEW]

Moltres is an unusual Pokemon in RBY UU. Moltres has historically been banned from the tier and was briefly considered a top choice once it was released. A Pokemon like Moltres seems like a good candidate to be one of the best. (largely fluff) Given its enormous base stats and the success its sibling Articuno had in the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in RBY UU.

Moltres, however, is not a staple in RBY UU by any account. Moltres is nearly completely outclassed by Articuno. Almost every Pokemon that is commonly used to check Articuno, like Vaporeon and Omastar, also checks Moltres. Offensively, Moltres is nearly strictly worse than Articuno, as several prominent Pokemon in the tier resist Moltres’s Fire STAB but not Articuno’s Ice STAB. These include Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Golem. Somewhat humorously, the only major Pokemon that Moltres has an edge against relative to Articuno is opposing Articuno. Being a Fire-type Pokemon isn’t doing Moltres any favors defensively either. Articuno has a much better chance at muscling through the Water-type Pokemon that check it, as it can endure their attacks as it seeks a critical hit or Freeze. Moltres, on the other hand, will likely get 2HKOed by Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, meaning it is afforded no extra turns to try to get lucky. Failing to resist Ice also leaves it more vulnerable to a few attackers like Gyarados. Basically, (AC) every well-composed RBY UU team is prepared to face Moltres, even if Moltres hadn’t crossed anyone's mind as the team was built.

I think you're missing the point a bit here. Moltres is very much outclassed by Articuno, but by focusing on it in this way you're discounting just how dire its situation is in such a water-infested tier. Virtually everything resists its call to action, the strongest STAB Fire Blast in the game, and you need to emphasize this. This makes Moltres a Double-Edge bot a lot of the time, killing itself before its opponents a lot of the time. I'd say reword this paragraph to focus less on what Articuno offers it, and instead on what hampers Moltres. Then, in the end, you can say something like "Finally, because of these flaws, Articuno largely outclasses the fire kiwi.".

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU. Moltres can do one of two things for a team. It can either be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special-attacking core or an abuser of Agility + Partial-Trapping Fire Spin (best to be more specific). While both routes are viable, both have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two Pokemon share many of the same checks, and Moltres is a sub-optimal Partial-Trapper relative to staples like Dragonite.

Aw come on, surely we can go over more than just this? How does it stack up against Pokemon that don't resist Fire Blast, like Kangaskhan? Any cool 2HKOs? What can AgiliSpin bring to the table? Shouldn't you mention that access to Agility lets it keep away from Wrap and mitigate paralysis? Maybe its Ground immunity? At least go over the objective stuff. You go over some of these facts later, but going over the standout stuff in the overview can be pivotal in ensuring the reader actually wants to read on.

You need to sell Moltres more, especially after you shat on it for the first two. Otherwise, you may as well make this a Mini.

[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hyper Beam
move 3: Fire Spin / Double-Edge
move 4: Agility

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Moltres’s Fire Blast ties with Articuno’s Blizzard as the strongest Special move in the tier (I'm like 90% sure these are the strongest unboosted special moves in the game, not just UU...correct me if I'm wrong). While more Pokemon resist Fire Blast than Blizzard, the move still boasts many similarly impressive calculations. These include a 3HKO on Hypno as well as 2HKOes on Kangaskhan, Persian, Dodrio, Dugtrio, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur. Fire Blast actually outperforms Blizzard against a select few, albeit uncommon, Pokemon as well, including Dewgong, Pinsir, and Venomoth. Fire Blast is also accompanied by a nasty 30% chance to Burn. (Dex Info) While not quite as lethal as a freeze, a burn can completely incapacitate pretty much every physical attacker outside of Persian, and with Fire Blast's high burn chance, this isn't an infrequent sight (re-contextualizing dex info into a metagame perspective). A burn on a Partial-Trapper like Tentacruel can also force it to use Rest, as the passive damage will build up if they try to use Wrap or Bind, inflicting more damage to themselves than they do to others (again, being a touch more specific). It should be noted, however, that Fire Blast has some risk associated with it, as it has an underwhelming 85% accuracy and a mere 8 PP, so the move must be used wisely. (Dex Info)

In addition to a slightly higher Speed stat than Articuno, Moltres also enjoys an Attack stat that is 15 points higher. This makes Moltres the superior user of Hyper Beam. While the calculations are only slightly different, in a game of chip damage like RBY UU, the extra damage can be significant. Moltres can use Agility and attempt to sweep slightly sooner than Articuno in some cases. As some examples, Tentacruel and Kadabra must be at or below 35% and 65% health, respectively, for Articuno to certainly sweep. For Moltres, these Pokemon can be at 38.5% and 72% health, and Moltres can still reliably sweep. The difference is minor, but it can be important in a game where many Pokemon lose health in increments of roughly 3% to Tentacruel’s Wrap.

I really don't think you need to compare to Articuno all the way in Set Details, focus on Moltres itself. At this point, the Articuno analysis will become required reading to understand your point, which we can't expect of them. If they've got past your dragging of Moltres in the Overview, they're committed. Reword this paragraph to remove references.

Something like this can work;
"Moltres has a surprisingly high base Attack, which makes it a good user of Hyper Beam, allowing it to KO Kadabra at 72% onwards. With Agility on top of this, Moltres can be an effective late-game sweeper."

The choice between Fire Spin and Double-Edge is partially based on the role Moltres will fulfill. Fire Spin is the more versatile move, as it gives Moltres multiple paths to sweeping the opposing team. Fire Spin is best used to chip weakened foes into range of Fire Blast or Hyper Beam. The move can also be used to perpetually immobilize and slowly whittle down the opposing team, especially if Moltres has managed to use Agility. Fire Spin also gives Moltres an option against Dragonite; it can use the move and switch out to something that can prevent it from setting up Agility (You may want to emphasize how important this is, it can be a game-ending scenario). Compared to Dragonite's Wrap, Moltres's Fire Spin has lower accuracy and PP, but has the benefit of dealing damage to Haunter. Double-Edge provides Moltres with a consistent attacking move with perfect accuracy, a lot of PP, and few drawbacks. This greatly aids in Moltres’s sweeping ability, allowing it to take out weakened targets with little risk. Note that Articuno almost completely outclasses Moltres running Double-Edge, so Articuno should be run alongside Moltres if this set is chosen. Essentially, Fire Spin allows Moltres to sweep sooner while Double-Edge allows Moltres to sweep more reliably. (again, I get why you're doing this, but it's so so so overdone and this analysis needs to be independent)

Upon using Agility, Moltres outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame. This makes Moltres much less fearful of Pokemon like Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu and allows it to attempt to sweep or wall break. And of course, the move combines with Fire Spin and enables Moltres to immobilize the opponent and slowly weaken the opposing team, fearing nothing but its own misses.
You can prolly fit this at the start of the prior paragraph somehow.

Go over MoltCuno here with a fourth paragraph dedicated to teammates and stuff, I think this would be a better option than your current system.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Like Articuno, (again, don't) Moltres can run defensive options like Rest and Reflect. Moltres is generally best used as an offensive Pokemon, but its (RA) impressive bulk can allow it to check a few Pokemon, like the tier’s Normal-type attackers. Toxic is another option, as it gives Moltres a more reliable option for Dragonite and synergizes well with Fire Spin.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Water-type Pokemon**: Unless they happen to be in range of Hyper Beam or Double-Edge, Moltres is almost completely helpless against Water-type Pokemon. Not only do these Pokemon resist Moltres’s Fire STAB, but they can also usually respond with their own powerful STAB moves. Tentacruel outspeeds Moltres and can either use Wrap to weaken it or just cleanly 2HKO it with Surf. Vaporeon is slower, but can take Moltres’s attacks a bit better while still also being capable of scoring a 2HKO. Poliwrath behaves similarly, but it can only potentially 2HKO Moltres if it has Hydro Pump. Omastar completely walls Moltres and can 2HKO with Surf as well. Even if Moltres scores a critical hit with every attack, Omastar can safely use Rest and wall it indefinitely. Finally, Gyarados can take Moltres’s hits fairly comfortably and score a 2HKO with Hydro Pump or a 3HKO with Blizzard.

**Rock-Type Pokemon**: Golem takes relatively little from Moltres’s moves. Golem is very likely to OHKO Moltres with Rock Slide, making Moltres very hesitant to pivot out with Fire Spin; this essentially gives Golem a free turn to use a powerful STAB attack or Substitute. Golem also punishes Hyper Beam exceptionally well. Aerodactyl doesn’t have many good offensive options for Moltres, but it can take a few hits and apply pressure with Double-Edge, especially if it can land a few critical hits.

**Dragonite**: Moltres can, at best, 4HKO Dragonite, but is likely to require even more turns to KO it. Dragonite, on the other hand, can 3HKO with Blizzard, stymie a sweep with Thunder Wave, or attempt to use Agility and begin to use Wrap and sweep. (Dragonite despises being burned too, you should mention that here)

**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio has no business switching into Moltres, but it can 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Thanks to its high critical hit rate, Dugtrio is liable to OHKO Moltres as well, making Moltres fearful even if it is at full health and has used Agility.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]

 

[Plague von Karma]

Ok, this has been thoroughly changed since my last critique, let's get into it.
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There are a lot of areas here where the writing is quite choppy and/or sacky in areas. Consider giving this a thorough read and try to link sentences and enhance the flow.

check

[OVERVIEW]

Moltres is an unusual Pokemon in RBY UU. Moltres has historically been banned from the tier and was briefly considered a top choice once it was released. Given its enormous base stats and the success its sibling Articuno had in the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in RBY UU.

Move your bottom paragraph up here, it serves virtually the same purpose as this above one and is more consistent with how our other analyses went.

Moltres, however, is not a staple in RBY UU by any account. The tier is infested with several prominent Water-type Pokemon, such as Vaporeon, Omastar, and tier-king (obligatory emphasise big man tent) Tentacruel, which creates a very hostile environment for Moltres. The much bigger flaw with Moltres, however, is how heavily Articuno outclasses it. Offensively, Moltres is nearly strictly worse than Articuno, as several prominent Pokemon in the tier resist Moltres’s Fire STAB but not Articuno’s Ice STAB. These include Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Golem. Somewhat humorously, the only major Pokemon that Moltres has an edge against relative to Articuno is opposing Articuno. Being a Fire-type Pokemon isn’t doing Moltres any favors defensively either. Articuno has a much better chance at muscling through the Water-type Pokemon that check it, as it can endure their attacks while it hunts for a critical hit or Freeze. Moltres, on the other hand, will likely get 2HKOed by Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, meaning it is afforded no extra turns to try to get lucky. Failing to resist Ice also leaves it more vulnerable to a few attackers like Gyarados as well. Considering the ubiquity of Water-type Pokemon and how everything that checks Articuno also checks Moltres, basically every well-composed RBY UU team is prepared to face Moltres, even if Moltres hadn’t crossed anyone's mind as the team was built. (A key thing you sort of implied but didn't directly state is that due to the type chart, you rarely see the true damage Moltres is capable of in practice. I think a line directly stating this would be helpful to drive home the point.)

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU and . Moltres can do one of two things for a team. (flow, felt kind of sacky) It can be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special-attacking core. (this is way too choppy, consider putting it with its second role to flow far more effectively, sit down and try to make this flow) Against neutral targets, Moltres's Fire Blast boasts an impressive damage output. For example, Kangaskhan, Persian, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur are all guaranteed to be 2HKOed. Alternatively, Moltres can try to abuse Agility + Fire Spin. Much like Dragonite with Wrap, Moltres can perpetually immobilize the opponent with Fire Spin, slowly racking up damage and possibly even sweeping. While both routes are viable, both have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two Pokemon share many of the same checks. Conversely, Moltres is a sub-optimal Partial-Trapper (afaik this isn't recognized as a term in UU, but I don't have anything else in mind) relative to staples like Dragonite due to the lower accuracy, PP, and damage output of Fire Spin.

[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hyper Beam
move 3: Fire Spin / Double-Edge
move 4: Agility

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Moltres’s Fire Blast ties with Articuno’s Blizzard as the strongest unboosted Special move in the tier game. (sounds better and is actually true!) While more Pokemon resist Fire Blast than Blizzard, the move still boasts many similarly impressive calculations; these include a 3HKO on Hypno, (AC) as well as 2HKOes on Kangaskhan, Persian, Dodrio, Dugtrio, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur. Fire Blast actually outperforms Blizzard against a select few, albeit uncommon, Pokemon as well, including Dewgong, Pinsir, and Venomoth. Fire Blast is also accompanied by a nasty 30.1% chance to burn, which keeps some would-be checks, like Tentacruel and Dragonite, somewhat hesitant to face Moltres. While not quite as lethal as a freeze, a burn can completely incapacitate pretty much every physical attacker outside of Persian. A burn on a Partial-Trapper like Tentacruel can also force it to use Rest earlier than usual, as the passive damage will build up if they try to use Wrap or Bind. It should be noted, however, that Fire Blast has some risk associated with it, as it has an underwhelming 85% 84.4% accuracy and a mere 8 PP, so the move must be used wisely.

One of Moltres's best selling points as a sweeper or wallbreaker is its surprisingly high Attack stat. As such, Moltres packs a remarkably strong Hyper Beam and Double-Edge. Because of the extra damage output from its physical attacks, Moltres can use Agility and attempt to sweep even sooner than Articuno in some cases. As some examples, Tentacruel and Kadabra must be at or below 35% and 65% health, respectively, for Articuno to secure a sweep with Hyper Beam. For Moltres, these Pokemon can be at 38.5% and 72% health, and Moltres can still reliably sweep. The difference is minor, but it can be important in a game where many Pokemon lose health in increments of roughly 3% to Tentacruel’s Wrap.

The choice between Fire Spin and Double-Edge is largely based on the role Moltres will fulfill. Fire Spin is the more versatile move, as it gives Moltres multiple paths to sweeping the opposing team. Fire Spin is best used to chip weakened foes into range of Fire Blast or Hyper Beam. The move can also be used to perpetually immobilize and slowly whittle down the opposing team, especially if Moltres has managed to use Agility. Fire Spin also gives Moltres an option against Dragonite; it can use the move and switch out to something that can prevent it from setting up Agility, which could otherwise lead to the end of the game. Compared to Dragonite's Wrap, Moltres's Fire Spin has lower accuracy and PP, but has the benefit of dealing damage to Haunter. Double-Edge provides Moltres with a consistent attacking move with perfect accuracy, a lot of PP, and few drawbacks. This greatly aids in Moltres’s sweeping ability, allowing it to take out weakened targets with little risk. Note that Articuno almost completely outclasses Moltres running Double-Edge, so Articuno should be run alongside Moltres if this set is chosen. Essentially, Fire Spin allows Moltres to sweep sooner while Double-Edge allows Moltres to sweep more reliably.

Upon using Agility, Moltres outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame. This makes Moltres much less fearful of Pokemon like Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu and allows it to attempt to sweep or wall break break walls. (ik it's weird but wallbreak isn't really used as a verb) And of course, the move combines with Fire Spin and enables Moltres to immobilize the opponent and slowly weaken the opposing team, fearing nothing but its own misses. (nitpicky as fuck but starting with "and" here feels really really bad, can this be changed?)

Moltres is not a particularly easy Pokemon to build around, as it requires quite a lot of support to function. Pokemon that can apply pressure to Water-types, Pokemon, such as Electabuzz, Raichu, or Venusaur, are good partners, as they can punish the Water-type Pokemon that will most likely switch in against Moltres. Physical attackers like Persian and Kangaskhan can also work with Moltres on hyper offensive builds. (explain this point. What does Moltres help them with and vice versa? Dispatching Tangela, yeah?) Users of sleep-inducing moves like Hypno, Tangela, and the aforementioned Venusaur, are also helpful, as they provide Moltres with a target to set up Agility safely against. If Moltres is being used alongside Articuno, much of the same support is required, though to an even greater extent. (Explain this too, the main issue is vaporeon making you question life; alternatively, link the next sentence with a semicolon, as it kinda does this for you but it's a bit weird) Fast Pokemon like Kadabra and Dugtrio are also good partners, (AC) as the dual bird core is relatively slow and liable to be stuffed out by Tentacruel.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Like Articuno, Moltres can run defensive options like Rest and Reflect. Moltres is generally best used as an offensive Pokemon, but it’s impressive bulk can allow it to check a few Pokemon, like the tier’s Normal-type attackers. Toxic is another option, as it gives Moltres a more reliable option for Dragonite and synergizes well with Fire Spin.

Rewrite this with better wording. Superior order would be Line 2 -> Line 1 w/ explanation on how Rest/Reflect Moltres can work in this regard -> Line 3. Line 1 should explain how this can aid with burning Pokemon like Kangaskhan, with Kang in particular being fully capable of carrying Rock Slide.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Water-type Pokemon**: Unless they happen to be in range of Hyper Beam or Double-Edge, Moltres is almost completely helpless against Water-type Pokemon. Not only do these Pokemon resist Moltres’s Fire STAB, but they can also respond with their own powerful STAB moves. Tentacruel outspeeds Moltres and can either use Wrap to weaken it or just cleanly 2HKO it with Surf. Vaporeon is slower, but can take Moltres’s attacks a bit better while still also being capable of scoring a 2HKO. Poliwrath behaves similarly, but it can only potentially 2HKO Moltres if it has Hydro Pump. Omastar completely walls Moltres and can 2HKO with Surf as well. Even if Moltres scores a critical hit with every attack, Omastar can safely use Rest and wall it indefinitely. Finally, Gyarados can take Moltres’s hits fairly comfortably and score a 2HKO with Hydro Pump or a 3HKO with Blizzard. (Maybe distinguish Omastar more as it's the only quad resist; it's one of the most brutal counters to any Pokemon in the history of the franchise.)

**Rock-type Pokemon**: Golem takes relatively little from Moltres’s moves and . Golem is very likely to OHKO Moltres with Rock Slide, making Moltres very hesitant to pivot out with Fire Spin; this essentially gives Golem a free turn to use a powerful STAB attack or Substitute. Golem also punishes Hyper Beam exceptionally well, scoring a virtually guaranteed OHKO in response. Aerodactyl doesn’t have many good offensive options for Moltres, but it can take a few hits and apply pressure with Double-Edge, especially if it can land a few critical hits.

**Dragonite**: Moltres can, at best, 4HKO Dragonite, but is likely to require even more turns to KO it. Dragonite, on the other hand, can 3HKO with Blizzard, stymie a sweep with Thunder Wave, or attempt to use Agility and begin to use Wrap and sweep. Dragonite only really fears a burn in this matchup. (You should absolutely emphasise the burn more, Dragonite is not comfortable risking it at all as its AgiliWrap is significantly less threatening with a burn at play. Generally, this should just be wordier, it's a dicey matchup.)

**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio has no business switching into Moltres, but it survives a Fire Blast and can 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Thanks to its high critical hit rate, Dugtrio is liable to OHKO Moltres as well, making Moltres fearful even if it is at full health and has used Agility.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[, ], [, ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]

 

[Volk]

QC 1/2 courtesy of Plague von Karma over the RBY Community Discord. Cheers!

Screenshot courtesy of pacattacc.

 

[phoopes]

Alright let's take a look.

This means Moltres ran defensive options like Rest and Reflect

I believe you mean "can run" here.

...and that's it. This is pretty comprehensive and really well done as always lol. QC 2/2

 

[Volk]

Thank you. Updated and queued. Cheers!

 

[Plague von Karma]

Amchecking this to help it along in hopes GP gets to it soon. Unofficial, don't have to add, yada yada.
add
remove
comments
(AH) = Hyphenate
(ASC) = Add Semi-Colon
(AC) = Add Colon
(RSC) = Remove Semi-Colon
(RH) = Dehyphenate
(RC) = Remove Comma
(RA) = Remove Apostrophe

You sometimes have issues with brevity, try to make things less verbose. I've attempted to cut down a bit on that here, but I think it could be done more effectively. You also tend to misuse hyphens quite a bit. Lastly, only capitalise stuff like Special when referring to the stat itself; any other reference is lower-case.

fire kiwi

[OVERVIEW]

Moltres is an unusual Pokemon in RBY UU. Moltres has downright incredible base stats, boasting the second-highest (AH) total of any Pokemon outside of the Ubers tier. Its Fire Blast is enormously strong, (RSC, AC) being able to do more damage than any other unboosted Special move in the game. Because of these traits, Moltres was deemed too strong for UU and spent much of its history banned. Once Moltres was released to the tier, it was briefly considered a top choice. Given its behemoth offensive prowess and the success its sibling Articuno had in the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in RBY UU. Because of these traits, Moltres spent much of its history banned from UU. With it released to the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple. (Honestly, this is just way too much "history" that can be explained just fine like this. This Pokemon is a fallen giant and you want to give it credit, sure, but this isn't necessarily what analyses were for. However, it would make a great Flying Press article...)

Moltres, however, is not a staple in RBY UU by any account. The tier is infested with several prominent (when you say "infested", "several prominent" comes off as a dissonance) Water-type Pokemon, such as Vaporeon, Omastar, and tier-king Tentacruel, which creates a very hostile environment for Moltres. This means the true strength of Moltres's nuclear Fire Blast is seldom realized. Another major flaw with Moltres is how heavily Articuno outclasses it. Offensively, Moltres is nearly strictly worse than Articuno, as several prominent Pokemon in the tier resist Moltres’s Fire STAB but not Articuno’s Ice STAB; this means the true strength of Moltres's nuclear Fire Blast is seldom realized. These Examples include Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Golem. Somewhat humorously, the only major Pokemon that Moltres has an edge against relative to Articuno is opposing Articuno. Being a Fire-type Pokemon isn’t doing Moltres any favors defensively either. Articuno has a much better chance at muscling through the Water-type Pokemon that check it, as it can endure their attacks while it hunts for a critical hit or freeze. Moltres, on the other hand, will likely get 2HKOed by Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, meaning it is afforded no extra turns to try to get lucky. Failing to resist Ice also leaves it more vulnerable to a few attackers like Gyarados as well. Considering the ubiquity of Water-type Pokemon and how everything that checks Articuno also checks Moltres, basically every well-composed RBY UU team is prepared to face Moltres, even if Moltres hadn’t crossed anyone's mind as the team was built.

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU, being able to do one of two things for a team. Firstly, It can be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special-attacking (RH) core. Against neutral targets, Moltres's Fire Blast boasts an impressive damage output. For example, Kangaskhan, Persian, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur are all guaranteed to be 2HKOed. (You go over this in Set Details, which is the right place to put it. Rework the previous sentence to fit how the Overview should work, maybe citing one standout calc.) Alternatively, Moltres can try to abuse Agility + Fire Spin AgiliSpin. Much like Dragonite with Wrap, Moltres can perpetually immobilize the opponent with Fire Spin, slowly racking up damage and possibly even sweeping. While both routes are viable, both have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two Pokemon share many of the same checks. Conversely, Moltres is a suboptimal (RH) partial-trapper (RH) relative to staples like Dragonite due to the lower accuracy, PP, and damage output of Fire Spin.

[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hyper Beam
move 3: Fire Spin / Double-Edge
move 4: Agility

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Moltres’s Fire Blast ties with Articuno’s Blizzard as the strongest unboosted special move in the tier. While more Pokemon resist Fire Blast than Blizzard, the move still boasts many similarly impressive calculations; (Not sure if this is the right word. Perhaps "performs similarly impressive feats"?) these include a 3HKO on Hypno as well as 2HKOes on Kangaskhan, Persian, Dodrio, Dugtrio, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur. (see, you cite these in the overview, making you unnecessarily repeat yourself) Fire Blast actually outperforms Blizzard against a select few — (RC) albeit uncommon — (RC) (You're after an emdash here, this isn't correct comma use) Pokemon as well, including Dewgong, Pinsir, and Venomoth. Fire Blast is also accompanied by a nasty 30.1% chance to burn, which keeps some would-be checks, like Tentacruel and Dragonite, somewhat hesitant to face Moltres. While not quite as lethal as a freeze, a burn can completely incapacitate pretty much every physical attacker outside of Persian. A burn on a partial-trapper (RH) like Tentacruel can also force it to use Rest much earlier than usual, as the passive damage will build up if they try to use Wrap or Bind. It should be noted, however, that Fire Blast has some risk associated with it, as it has an underwhelming 84.4% accuracy and a mere 8 PP, so the move must be used wisely. A single miss with Fire Blast can ruin Moltres, as it leaves it vulnerable to being paralyzed or KOed, which is exemplified by its shaky accuracy.

One of Moltres's best selling points as a sweeper or wallbreaker (spacing) is its surprisingly high Attack stat. As such, Thanks to this, Moltres packs a remarkably strong Hyper Beam and Double-Edge. Because of the extra damage output from its physical attacks, Moltres can use Agility and attempt to sweep even sooner than Articuno in some cases. As some examples, For example, Tentacruel and Kadabra must be at or below 35% and 65% health, respectively, for Articuno to secure a sweep with Hyper Beam. For Moltres, these Pokemon can be at 38.5% and 72% health, and Moltres can still reliably sweep. The difference is minor, but it can be important in a game where many Pokemon lose health in increments of roughly 3% to Tentacruel’s Wrap.

The choice between Fire Spin and Double-Edge is largely based on the role Moltres will fulfill. Fire Spin is the more versatile move, as it gives Moltres multiple paths to sweeping the opposing team. Fire Spin is best used to chip weakened foes into range of Fire Blast or Hyper Beam. The move can also be used to perpetually immobilize and slowly whittle down the opposing team, especially if Moltres has managed to use Agility. Fire Spin also gives Moltres an option against Dragonite; it can use the move and switch out to something that can prevent it from setting up Agility, which could otherwise lead to the end of the game. Compared to Dragonite's Wrap, Moltres's Fire Spin has lower accuracy and PP, (RC) but has the benefit of dealing damage to Haunter. Double-Edge provides Moltres with a consistent attacking move with perfect accuracy, a lot of PP, and few drawbacks. This greatly aids in Moltres’s sweeping ability, allowing it to take out weakened targets with little risk. Note that Articuno almost completely outclasses Moltres running Double-Edge, so Articuno should be run alongside Moltres if this set is chosen. Essentially, Fire Spin allows Moltres to sweep sooner while Double-Edge allows Moltres to sweep more reliably.

Upon using Agility, Moltres outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame. This makes Moltres much less fearful of Pokemon like Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu and while allowing it to attempt to sweep or break walls. The move can also combine with Fire Spin and enable Moltres to immobilize foes and slowly weaken the opposing team, fearing nothing but its own misses. (You mentioned this in the previous paragraph, consider moving the prior sentence to the first paragraph so it isn't lonely)

Moltres is not a particularly easy Pokemon to build around, as it requires quite a lot of support to function. Pokemon that can apply pressure to Water-type Pokemon, such as Electabuzz, Raichu, or Venusaur, are good partners, as they can punish the Water-type Pokemon that will most likely switch in against Moltres. Physical attackers like Persian and Kangaskhan can also work with Moltres on hyper offensive offense (referring to the archetype) builds. Together, they can form mixed-attacking (RH) cores that few teams can handle. Users of sleep-inducing (RH) moves like Hypno, Tangela, and the aforementioned Venusaur, are also helpful, as they provide Moltres with a target to set up Agility safely against. If Because Moltres is likely being used alongside Articuno, much of the same support is required, though to an even greater extent. (You infer that this is strictly a partner for Articuno in the Overview, so best to stay consistent) Fast Pokemon like Kadabra and Dugtrio are also good partners, as the core is relatively slow and liable to be smothered by Tentacruel.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
While Moltres is generally best used as an offensive Pokemon, it’s (RA) impressive bulk can allow it to check a few Pokemon, like the tier’s Normal-type attackers. This means Moltres can run defensive options like Rest and Reflect. Toxic is another option, as it gives Moltres a more reliable option for Dragonite and synergizes well with Fire Spin.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Water-type Pokemon**: Unless they happen to be in range of Hyper Beam or Double-Edge, Moltres is almost completely helpless against Water-type Pokemon. Not only do these Pokemon resist Moltres’s Fire STAB, but they can also respond with their own powerful STAB moves. Tentacruel outspeeds Moltres and can either use Wrap to weaken it or just cleanly 2HKO it with Surf. Vaporeon is slower, (RC) but can take Moltres’s attacks a bit better more effectively while still also being capable of scoring a 2HKO. Poliwrath behaves similarly, but it can only potentially 2HKO Moltres if it has Hydro Pump. Thanks to its typing, Omastar is the single best counter to Moltres; even if Moltres scores a critical hit with every attack, Omastar can safely use Rest and wall it indefinitely. Omastar will always 2HKO Moltres with Surf as well. Finally, Gyarados can take Moltres’s hits fairly comfortably and score a 2HKO with Hydro Pump or a 3HKO with Blizzard.

**Rock-type Pokemon**: Golem takes relatively little from Moltres’s moves. Golem is very likely to OHKO Moltres with Rock Slide, making Moltres very hesitant to pivot out with Fire Spin; this essentially gives Golem a free turn to use a powerful STAB attack or Substitute. Golem also punishes Hyper Beam exceptionally well, scoring a virtually guaranteed OHKO in response. Aerodactyl doesn’t have many good offensive options for Moltres, but it can take a few hits and apply pressure with Double-Edge, especially if it can land a few critical hits. (mention that burns induce crippling depression on these mons pls)

**Dragonite**: Moltres can, at best, 4HKO Dragonite, but will likely require even more turns to KO it. Dragonite, on the other hand, can 3HKO with Blizzard, stymie Moltres's offensive ability with Thunder Wave, or attempt to use Agility and begin to use Wrap and sweep. Dragonite's ability to sweep is threatened by Fire Blast's Burn chance, but Dragonite is still very likely to win the matchup thanks to its wide array of strong special attacks.

**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio has no business switching into Moltres and despises burns, but it survives a Fire Blast and can 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Thanks to its high critical hit rate, Dugtrio is liable to OHKO Moltres as well, making Moltres fearful even if it is at full health and has used Agility.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [phoopes, 96315]]
- Grammar checked by: [[phoopes, 96315], [, ]]

 

[Adeleine]

i'll check once you implement as desired from the above check

 

[Volk]

Plague von Karma's AM Check was implemented.

Fine Points:

Because of these traits, Moltres was deemed too strong for UU and spent much of its history banned. Once Moltres was released to the tier, it was briefly considered a top choice. Given its behemoth offensive prowess and the success its sibling Articuno had in the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in RBY UU. Because of these traits, Moltres spent much of its history banned from UU. With it released to the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple. (Honestly, this is just way too much "history" that can be explained just fine like this. This Pokemon is a fallen giant and you want to give it credit, sure, but this isn't necessarily what analyses were for. However, it would make a great Flying Press article...)

I see what you're saying, but I think you missed the point of why I included this. Sure, it dwells quite a lot on history, but it also clearly outlines Moltres's positive traits. It gives me a good launch point into the analysis, as it allows me to be positive about the subject. Also, at least in my opinion, it draws the reader in a little, as it makes you wonder why Moltres fell off the map.

It should be noted, however, that Fire Blast has some risk associated with it, as it has an underwhelming 84.4% accuracy and a mere 8 PP, so the move must be used wisely.

I know you are very anti-Dex Info, but I put this here for a reason. Moltres can very realistically run out of PP due to these two attributes, so it's something important to keep in mind when deciding what move to click, especially when finishing off an opponent. If you have a better way to word this, let me know. But as of now, it is too important to just cut out without replacement.

If Because Moltres is likely being used alongside Articuno, much of the same support is required, though to an even greater extent. (You infer that this is strictly a partner for Articuno in the Overview, so best to stay consistent)

You seem to have misunderstood me. I never said that Moltres must be used alongside Articuno. I said the offensive sweeper set (No Fire Spin) is generally best used with Articuno. The pure AgiliSpin set can be used with or without Articuno. See below:

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU, being able to do one of two things for a team. Firstly, It can be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special attacking core. (<- This leads into the first set) Against neutral targets, Moltres's Fire Blast boasts an impressive damage output, 2HKOing most neutral targets. Alternatively, Moltres can try to abuse AgiliSpin. (<- This leads into the second set, note that Articuno is not mentioned) Much like Dragonite with Wrap, Moltres can perpetually immobilize the opponent with Fire Spin, slowly racking up damage and possibly even sweeping. While both routes are viable, both have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two Pokemon share many of the same checks. Conversely, Moltres is a sub optimal partial trapper relative to staples like Dragonite due to the lower accuracy, PP, and damage output of Fire Spin.

Thank you!
Plague von Karma
Finland

 

[CryoGyro]

GP 1/2

Hide

[OVERVIEW]

Moltres is an unusual Pokemon in RBY UU. Moltres It has downright incredible base stats, boasting the second-highest total of any Pokemon outside of the Uber tier Ubers. Its Fire Blast is enormously strong, being able to do more damage than unsurpassed by (articuno's blizzard is equal, as you say later) any other unboosted special (move categories are not capped) move in the game. Because of these traits, Moltres spent much of its history banned and was considered a top choice once it was finally released to the tier. Given its behemoth offensive prowess and the success its sibling Articuno had in the tier, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in RBY UU.

Moltres, however, is not a staple in RBY UU by any account. The tier is infested with Water-type Pokemon, (comma) such as Vaporeon, Omastar, and tier-king UU king Tentacruel, which creates a very hostile environment for Moltres. Another major flaw with Moltres is how heavily Articuno outclasses it. Offensively, Moltres is nearly strictly worse than Articuno, as several prominent Pokemon in the tier resist Moltres’s Fire STAB but not Articuno’s Ice STAB Fire but not Ice; thus, the true strength of Moltres's nuclear Fire Blast is seldom realized. Examples include Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Golem. Somewhat humorously, the only major Pokemon that Moltres has an edge against relative to Articuno is opposing Articuno itself. Being a Fire-type Pokemon isn’t doing Moltres any defensive favors defensively either. Articuno has a much better chance at muscling through the Water-type Pokemon that check it Water-type checks, as it can endure their attacks while it hunts for a critical hit or freeze. Moltres, on the other hand, will likely get 2HKOed by Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, meaning it is afforded no extra turns to try to get lucky. Failing to resist Ice also leaves it more vulnerable to attackers like Gyarados as well. Considering the ubiquity of Water-type Pokemon and how everything that checks Articuno also checks Moltres, basically every well composed RBY UU team is incidentally prepared to face Moltres, even if Moltres hadn’t crossed anyone's mind as the team was built.

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU, being able to do one of two things for a team. Firstly, it can be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special attacking core. Against neutral targets, Moltres's Fire Blast boasts an impressive damage output, 2HKOing most neutral targets. Alternatively, Moltres can try to abuse AgiliSpin using Agility + Fire Spin. Much like Wrap Dragonite with Wrap, Moltres can perpetually immobilize the opponent foe with Fire Spin, slowly racking up damage and possibly even sweeping. While both routes approaches to Moltres are viable, both they have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two Pokemon share many of the same checks. Conversely, Moltres is a sub optimal partial trapper Fire Spin Moltres is a suboptimal partial trapper relative to staples like Dragonite due to the move's lower accuracy, PP, and damage output of Fire Spin.

[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hyper Beam
move 3: Fire Spin / Double-Edge
move 4: Agility

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Moltres’s Fire Blast ties with Articuno’s Blizzard as the strongest unboosted special move in the tier. While more Pokemon resist Fire Blast than Blizzard, the move still deals massive damage to the right targets; these include a 3HKO on it 3HKOes Hypno as well as and 2HKOes on Kangaskhan, Persian, Dodrio, Dugtrio, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur. Fire Blast actually outperforms Blizzard against a select few &mdash; albeit uncommon &mdash; Pokemon as well, including Dewgong, Pinsir, and Venomoth. Fire Blast is also accompanied by comes with a nasty 30.1% chance to burn, which keeps some would-be checks, like Tentacruel and Dragonite, somewhat hesitant to face Moltres. While not quite as lethal as a freeze, a burn can completely incapacitate pretty much every physical attacker outside of Persian. A burn on a partial trapper like Tentacruel can also force it to use Rest much earlier than usual, as the passive damage will build up if they try it tries to use Wrap or Bind. It should be noted, however, that because Fire Blast has poor accuracy and many Water-type Pokemon can stall it However, thanks to Fire Blast's poor accuracy and UU's many bulky Water-types, running out of PP is a genuine possibility with Moltres. As such, Moltres must pick its battles wisely and not overextend itself. Additionally, a single miss can ruin Moltres, as it leaves it vulnerable to being paralyzed or KOed.

One of Moltres's best selling points as a sweeper or wallbreaker is its surprisingly high Attack stat making its Hyper Beam and Double-Edge remarkably strong. (wondering why it isn't in the overview, then) Thanks to this, Moltres packs a remarkably strong Hyper Beam and Double-Edge. Because of the extra damage output from its physical attacks, Moltres can use Agility and attempt to sweep even sooner than Articuno in some cases. For example, Tentacruel and Kadabra must be at or below 35% and 65% health, respectively, for Articuno to secure a sweep with Hyper Beam. For Moltres, these Pokemon can be at 38.5% and 72% health, and Moltres can still reliably sweep. The difference is minor, but it can be important in a metagame where many Pokemon lose health in increments of roughly 3% to Tentacruel’s Wrap.

The choice between Fire Spin and Double-Edge is largely based on the role Moltres will fulfill. Fire Spin is the more versatile move, as it gives Moltres multiple paths to sweeping the opposing team. Fire Spin is best used to chip weakened foes into KO range of Fire Blast or Hyper Beam. The move can also be used to perpetually immobilize and slowly whittle down the opposing team, especially if Moltres has managed to use Agility. Fire Spin also gives Moltres an option against Dragonite; it can use the move and switch out to something that can prevent it from setting up its possibly game-ending Agility, which could otherwise lead to the end of the game. Compared to Dragonite's Wrap, Moltres's Fire Spin has lower accuracy and PP but has the benefit of dealing damage to damaging Haunter. Double-Edge provides Moltres with a consistent attacking move attack with perfect accuracy, a lot of PP, and few drawbacks. This greatly aids in Moltres’s sweeping ability, allowing it to take out weakened targets with little risk. Note that Articuno almost completely outclasses Moltres running Double-Edge, so Articuno should be run alongside Moltres if this set is chosen. Essentially, Fire Spin allows Moltres to sweep sooner while Double-Edge allows Moltres to sweep more reliably is for sweeping sooner, while Double-Edge is for sweeping reliably. Agility is used because it allows Moltres outspeeds makes Moltres faster than the entire unboosted metagame. (per) This makes Moltres much less fearful and therefore less afraid of Pokemon like Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu while allowing it to attempt to sweep or break walls, either with Fire Spin or its strong attacks.

Moltres is not a particularly easy Pokemon to build around, as it requires quite a lot of support to function. Pokemon that can apply pressure to Water-type Pokemon, such as Electabuzz, Raichu, or Venusaur, are good partners, as they can punish the Water-type Pokemon that will most likely switch in against Moltres. Physical attackers like Persian and Kangaskhan can also work with Moltres on hyper offense builds. Together, they can form mixed attacking cores that few teams can handle. Users of sleep inducing moves like Hypno, Tangela, and the aforementioned Venusaur, (comma) are also helpful, as they provide Moltres with a target to set up Agility safely against setup opportunity. If Moltres is being used alongside Articuno, much of the same support is required, though to an even greater extent. Fast Pokemon like Kadabra and Dugtrio are also good partners, as the core is relatively slow and liable to be smothered by Tentacruel.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
While Moltres is generally best used as an offensive Pokemon, its impressive bulk can allow it to check a few Pokemon, like the tier’s Normal-type attackers. This means Moltres can run defensive options like Rest and Reflect. Toxic is another option, as it gives Moltres a more reliable option for Dragonite and synergizes well with Fire Spin.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Water-type Pokemon**: Unless they happen to be in KO range of Hyper Beam or Double-Edge, Moltres is almost completely helpless against Water-type Pokemon. Not only do these Pokemon resist Moltres’s Fire STAB, but they can also respond with their own powerful STAB moves. Tentacruel outspeeds Moltres and can either use Wrap to weaken it or just cleanly 2HKO it with Surf. Vaporeon is slower but can take Moltres’s attacks more comfortably while still scoring a 2HKO. Poliwrath behaves similarly, but it can only potentially 2HKO Moltres if it has Hydro Pump. Thanks to its typing, Omastar is the single best counter to Moltres; even if Moltres scores a critical hit with every attack, Omastar can safely use Rest and wall it indefinitely. Omastar will always 2HKO Moltres with Surf as well. Finally, Gyarados can take Moltres’s hits fairly comfortably and score a 2HKO with Hydro Pump or a 3HKO with Blizzard.

**Rock-type Pokemon**: Golem takes relatively little from Moltres’s moves. Golem is very likely to OHKO Moltres with Rock Slide, making Moltres very hesitant to pivot out with risk Fire Spin; this essentially gives Golem a free turn to use a powerful STAB attack or Substitute. Golem also punishes Hyper Beam exceptionally well, scoring a virtually guaranteed OHKO in response. Aerodactyl doesn’t have many good offensive options for Moltres, but it can take a few hits and apply pressure with Double-Edge, especially if it can land a few critical hits. It should be noted, however, that neither Golem nor Aerodactyl handles burn well. Neither Rock-type handles a burn well, however.

**Dragonite**: Moltres can, at best, 4HKO Dragonite, but will likely require even more turns to KO it. Dragonite, on the other hand, can 3HKO with Blizzard, stymie Moltres's offensive ability with Thunder Wave, or attempt to use Agility and begin to use Wrap and sweep with Wrap. Dragonite's ability to sweep is threatened by Fire Blast's burn chance, but Dragonite is still very likely to win the matchup thanks to its wide array of strong special attacks.

**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio has no business switching into Moltres and despises burns, but it survives a takes Fire Blast and can 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Thanks to its high critical hit rate, Dugtrio is liable to OHKO Moltres as well, making Moltres fearful even if it is at full health and has used Agility.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [phoopes, 96315]]
- Grammar checked by: [[, ], [, ]]

 

[Adeleine]

i'll check when this is implemented

for reals this time

 

[Volk]

One check down, one to go. You're in Finland.

 

[Adeleine]

Add/Fix Remove Comment
(AC)/(RC): Add/Remove Comma

Hide

[OVERVIEW]

Moltres is an unusual Pokemon in RBY UU. It has downright incredible base stats, boasting the second-highest total of any Pokemon outside of Ubers. Its Fire Blast is enormously strong, unsurpassed by any other unboosted special move in the game. Because of these traits, Moltres spent much of its history banned and was considered a top choice once it was finally released to the tier. Given its behemoth offensive prowess and the success its sibling Articuno had, one would be forgiven for assuming Moltres would be a staple in RBY UU. the tier.

Moltres, however, is not a staple in RBY UU by any account. The tier is infested with Water-type Pokemon such as Vaporeon, Omastar, and UU king Tentacruel, which creates a very hostile environment for Moltres. Another major flaw is how heavily Articuno outclasses it. Offensively, Moltres is nearly strictly worse than Articuno, as several prominent Pokemon in the tier resist Fire but not Ice; thus, the true strength of Moltres's nuclear Fire Blast is seldom realized. Examples include Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Golem. Somewhat humorously, the only major Pokemon that Moltres has an edge against relative to Articuno is Articuno itself. Being a Fire-type Pokemon isn’t doing Moltres any defensive favors either. Articuno has a much better chance at muscling through Water-type checks, as it can endure their attacks while it hunts for a critical hit or freeze. Moltres, on the other hand, will likely get 2HKOed by Tentacruel, Vaporeon, and Omastar, meaning it is afforded no extra turns to try to get lucky. Failing to resist Ice also leaves it more vulnerable to attackers like Gyarados. Considering the ubiquity of Water-type Pokemon and how everything that checks Articuno also checks Moltres, basically every well-composed (added hyphen) RBY UU team is incidentally prepared to face Moltres.

Moltres is just barely able to scrounge a niche in RBY UU, being able to do one of two things for a team. Firstly, it can be a supplement to Articuno to create a strong special attacking core. Against neutral targets, Moltres's Fire Blast boasts impressive damage output, 2HKOing most neutral targets. Alternatively, Moltres can try to abuse AgiliSpin. Much like Dragonite with Wrap, Moltres can perpetually immobilize the foe with Fire Spin, slowly racking up damage and possibly even sweeping. While both approaches to Moltres are viable, they slowly rack up damage and even possibly sweep with AgiliSpin, much like Dragonite with Wrap. While both approaches to Moltres are viable, they both have their issues. A Moltres and Articuno core still needs a lot of support, as the two share many checks. Fire Spin Moltres is a suboptimal (was "sub optimal") partial trapper relative to staples like Dragonite due to the move's lower accuracy, PP, and damage ouput. output.

[SET]
name: Special Sweeper
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hyper Beam
move 3: Fire Spin / Double-Edge
move 4: Agility

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Moltres’s Fire Blast ties with Articuno’s Blizzard as the strongest unboosted special move in the tier. While more Pokemon resist Fire Blast than Blizzard, the move still deals massive damage to the right targets; it 3HKOes on Hypno and 2HKOes Kangaskhan, Persian, Dodrio, Dugtrio, Electabuzz, Raichu, and Venusaur. Fire Blast actually outperforms Blizzard against a select few&mdash;albeit uncommon&mdash;Pokemon (removed spaces before and after &mdash;) as well, including Dewgong, Pinsir, and Venomoth. Fire Blast It also comes with a nasty 30.1% chance to burn, which keeps some would-be checks, like Tentacruel and Dragonite, somewhat hesitant to face Moltres. While not quite as lethal as a freeze, a burn can completely incapacitate pretty much every physical attacker outside of Persian. A burn on a partial trapper like Tentacruel can force it to use Rest much earlier than usual, as the passive damage will build up if it tries to use Wrap or Bind. However, due to Fire Blast's poor accuracy and UU's many Water-types, running out of PP is a genuine possibility. As such, Moltres must pick its battles wisely and not overextend itself. Additionally, use it wisely. PP aside, a single miss can ruin Moltres, as it leaves it vulnerable to being paralyzed or KOed.

One of Moltres's best selling points as a sweeper or wallbreaker is its surprisingly high Attack stat, which Moltres's surprisingly high Attack stat (feels conflicting in tone with overview "articuno nearly completely outdoes it offensively" and later "if double-edge articuno outclasses, so you gotta run it alongside". you can tinker or we can talk about this if you want) makes its Hyper Beam and Double-Edge remarkably strong. Because of the extra damage output from its physical attacks, Moltres notably strong. This means it ("remarkably" -> "notably" for same tone reason as above, and again you can tinker or we can talk) can use Agility and attempt to sweep even sooner than Articuno in some cases. For example, Tentacruel and Kadabra must be at or below 35% and 65% health, respectively, for Articuno to secure a sweep with Hyper Beam. For Moltres, these Pokemon can be at 38.5% and 72% health. The difference is minor, but it can be important in a metagame where many Pokemon lose health in increments of roughly 3% to Tentacruel’s Wrap.

The choice between Fire Spin and Double-Edge is largely based on the role Moltres will fulfill. Fire Spin is the more versatile move, as it gives Moltres multiple paths to sweeping. Fire Spin is more versatile than Double-Edge, letting Moltres (the first sentence feels like it's occupying the same general purpose as "Essentially, Fire Spin is for sweeping...", except that it competes with that sentence by making the competition extra-role vs intra-role, so I removed it and moved the latter up for now. tinkering/clarifying/talking about is possible) chip weakened foes into KO range of Fire Blast or Hyper Beam. The move can also be used to perpetually immobilize and slowly whittle down the opposing team, even to sweep, especially if Moltres has managed to use Agility. Fire Spin also gives Moltres an option against Dragonite; it can use the move and switch out to something that can prevent it Dragonite from setting up its potentially game-ending Agility. Compared to Dragonite's Wrap, Moltres's Fire Spin has lower accuracy and PP but has the benefit of damaging to Haunter. Double-Edge provides Moltres with a consistent attack with perfect accuracy, a lot of PP, and few drawbacks. This greatly aids in Moltres’s sweeping ability, allowing it to take out weakened targets with little risk. Note that Articuno almost completely outclasses Moltres running Double-Edge, so Articuno should be run alongside Moltres if this set is chosen. Essentially, Fire Spin is for sweeping sooner, while Double-Edge is for sweeping reliably. Agility makes Moltres faster than the entire unboosted metagame and therefore less fearful of Pokemon like Tentacruel, Kadabra, Electabuzz, and Raichu while allowing it to letting it attempt to sweep or break walls. wallbreak. (looks marginal, but i imagine the more general connotation of "wallbreak" is more applicable to the stuff that agility would make a difference in molt breaking. lmk if i'm missing something)

Moltres requires quite a lot of support to function. Pokemon that can apply pressure to Water-type Pokemon, such as Electabuzz, Raichu, or and Venusaur, are good partners. Physical attackers like Persian and Kangaskhan can also work with Moltres on hyper offense builds. Together, they can form mixed attacking cores that few teams can handle. Users of sleep-inducing (added hyphen) moves like Hypno, Tangela, and the aforementioned Venusaur provide Moltres with a setup opportuniy. opportunity. If Moltres is being used alongside Articuno, much of the same support is required, though to an even greater extent. Fast Pokemon like Kadabra and Dugtrio are also good partners, as the core is relatively slow and liable to be smothered by Tentacruel.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
While Moltres is generally best used as an offensive Pokemon, its impressive bulk can allow it to check a few Pokemon, like the tier’s Normal-type attackers. This means Moltres can run defensive options like Rest and Reflect. Toxic gives Moltres a more reliable option for Dragonite and synergizes well with Fire Spin.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Water-type Pokemon**: Unless they happen to be in KO range of Hyper Beam or Double-Edge, Moltres is almost completely helpless against Water-type Pokemon. Tentacruel outspeeds Moltres and can use Wrap to weaken it or just cleanly 2HKO it with Surf. Vaporeon is slower but can take Moltres’s attacks more comfortably while still scoring a 2HKO. Poliwrath behaves similarly, but it can only potentially 2HKO Moltres if it has Hydro Pump. Thanks to its typing, Omastar is the best counter to Moltres; even if Moltres scores a critical hit with every attack, Omastar can safely use Rest and wall it indefinitely. Omastar will always 2HKO Moltres with Surf as well. Gyarados can take Moltres’s hits fairly comfortably and score a 2HKO with Hydro Pump or a 3HKO with Blizzard.

**Rock-type Pokemon**: Golem takes relatively little from Moltres’s moves. Golem It is very likely to OHKO Moltres with Rock Slide, making Moltres very hesitant to pivot out with Fire Spin; this essentially gives Golem a free turn to use a powerful STAB attack or Substitute. Golem also punishes Hyper Beam exceptionally well, scoring a virtually guaranteed OHKO in response. Aerodactyl doesn’t have many good offensive options for Moltres, but it can take a few hits and apply pressure with Double-Edge, especially if it can land a few critical hits. Neither Golem nor Aerodactyl handles a burn well, however.

**Dragonite**: Moltres can, at best, 4HKO Dragonite, but it will likely require even more turns to KO it. Dragonite, on the other hand, can 3HKO with Blizzard, stymie Moltres's offensive ability with Thunder Wave, or attempt to use Agility and sweep with Wrap. Dragonite's ability to sweep is threatened by Fire Blast's burn chance, but Dragonite is still very likely to win the matchup thanks to its wide array of strong special attacks.

**Dugtrio**: Dugtrio has no business switching into Moltres and despises burn, but it takes a (I imagine? not multiple?) Fire Blast and can 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Thanks to its high critical hit rate, Dugtrio is liable to OHKO Moltres as well, making Moltres fearful even if it is at full health and has used Agility.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Volk, 530877]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [phoopes, 96315]]
- Grammar checked by: [[CryoGyro, 331519], [Finland, 517429]]

2/2

 

[Volk]

All done folks. Thanks everyone, cheers!

 

[Plague von Karma]

This is up, good work!