don't think i actually wrote one of these since bw, so forgive my clerical errors and rust
[OVERVIEW]
* Forretress does, in theory, possess multiple traits that make it particularly enticing as a Pokemon; Rapid Spin, most significant forms of entry hazard, and Volt Switch are exceedingly useful options to a support Pokemon such as it, with its bulk and typing offering various windows to capitalize on them.
* In spite of these various positives, a lack of reliable recovery or solid attacking options lend Forretress to heavy reliance on partners to properly check offensive threats
* Furthermore, Forretress' role as a spinner is somewhat undermined by not only a substantial pool of Ghost-types, but also a variety of hazard setters capable of beating it in a vacuum.
* Bearing in mind these cons, Forretress retains a proper niche with more offensively skewed balances and bulky offenses, where its ability to compress various useful roles is most valuable.
[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Spikes / Toxic Spikes
move 3: Volt Switch
move 4: Gyro Ball / Toxic / Pin Missile
item: Leftovers
ability: Overcoat
nature: Sassy / Relaxed
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Rapid Spin in conjunction with an entry hazard is what defines Forretress' role in the tier. Due to the greater variety to Pokemon affected by them, Spikes are more consistent and varied in their utility. However, certain Pokemon (particularly Calm Mind users) benefit greatly from Toxic Spikes support.
* Volt Switch is invaluable for downplaying Forretress' low offense presence, and its primary application is two-fold: allowing it to duck out of unfavorable match-ups, most significantly in the case of problematic Ghost-types, and granting it the leeway the pivot into select boosting Pokemon as to ensure the safety of the dedicated revenge-killer.
* Of the options available to Forretress for dealing any kind of damage, Gyro Ball has the most consistency, dealing the most consistent damage across the board and yielding the most meaningful damage against the most common Ghost-type, Gengar. While Toxic leaves incapable of applying any direct pressure on Pokemon, it does stand as its best means of pressuring common Stealth Rock setters such as Hippowdon and Swampert, as well as Defog users in Latias and Mew. Pin Missile has the most narrow application, with it looking primarily to directly threaten Alakazam and Celebi while keeping pressure on hazard removal Pokemon like Starmie and Latias, but given the ubiquity of these Pokemon it does remain a valid and broad niche.
Set Details
========
* Counterintuitive to Forretress' natural physical bulk, a specially defensive spread tends to favor its positive traits in this metagame, significantly in its ability to check prominent Fairy-, Grass-, and Psychic-types to an extent.
* A Relaxed nature, however, is somewhat plausible for its ability to pivot Pokemon such as Zygarde, Decidueye, and offensive Scizor. Bear in mind that this shift will find itself hindering its ability to take on offensive Psychic-types in a major way, most notably in the case of Nasty Plot Celebi and Life Orb Alakazam. It should be noted that, even when choosing to forgo Gyro Ball, a Speed-decreasing nature is preferred here for maximizing the value of Volt Switch.
* While the majority of Spore or Sleep Powder users are now toting Hidden Power Fire, the value of aggressively pivoting into such Pokemon via Overcoat does outweigh the limited implications of Sturdy. This also slightly buffers Forretress' ability to switch into Alolan Ninetales.
Usage Tips
========
* Forretress' most ruinous traits as a defensive Pokemon, its lack of direct pressure and limited self-sustainability, play heaviest into how it plays.
*To play most effectively to these issues, it is important to weigh the long-term implications of the utility moves used. To illustrate this point, Rapid Spinning away Stealth Rock from a non-statused, Leftovers toting Swampert offers very little long-term value when said Swampert can switch in and set them back up without consequence. Under such a hypothetical circumstances, it behooves the Forretress user to set up hazards to keep pressure on the opposing team in the long-term, or better yet put the Swampert on a timer via Toxic. Similarly, against a hazard remover such as Mew or even a bulkier Ghost-type that can switch into Forretress with moderate impunity, the situation would lend itself to a Volt Switch rather than an attempt of Rapid Spin or [Toxic] Spikes.
* However, against a team lacking in proper hazard control (or even one whose user you are looking to keep pressure on), Forretress has much more leniency to capitalize on both type-weak attackers and various defensive Pokemon for layers.
* While there are various Pokemon that Forretress can switch into but not necessarily beat, such as Scizor, Reuniclus and non-Flamethrower Clefable, they are solid targets of its pivoting ability. With these Pokemon, Forretress is best utilized switching into them initially, allowing a slow Volt Switch to bring in a more potent check that might simply not make a strong direct switch.
Team Options
========
* As a support Pokemon designed for slightly more offensive teams, very little past a complementary Stealth Rock setter offers much to set up Forretress for success. One exception to this overarching statement, however, are fast Pursuit users, who both remove some of the less bulky Ghost-types for a comfortable Rapid Spin and benefit from the Spikes support provided. Perhaps the most flexible example of such a Pokemon is Mega Aerodactyl, but Choice Scarf Krookodile and Absol also function in a very similar fashion.
* When considering alternative offensive partners to back Forretress, a integral role they should be filling is the ability to pressure the Pokemon Forretress sought to pivot, yet not actively beat. Some such examples of this include Gengar, Chandelure, Volcanion, and Choice Specs Keldeo.
* Furthermore, while not offering the same direct utility of previous options, Pokemon such as Life Orb Alakazam, Hydreigon, and Specs Primarina benefit not only from the Spikes and Volt Switch support provided here, but also apply significant pressure to balances with strong hazard control where Forretress struggles to make meaningful progress.
* Of course, buffering the defensive backbone of such teams is also highly significant for a team toting Forretress. Options like Calm Mind Suicune (particularly those utilizing Roar), Substitute Kyurem, and Swords Dance Gliscor all offer up cohesion to the team while maintaining pressure in a major way.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* While Forretress has access to a few mildly useful tools to buffer it as a defensive Pokemon, notably Light Screen, Reflect, Pain Split, and Counter, it is struck down as an option due to the sheer indispensability of every moveslot as is.
* When considering alternative attacking options, Earthquake is perhaps the most broad; targeting not only two relevant Ghost-types in Gengar and Chandelure, but also Klefki and Magneton that it might also find themselves commonly staring down Forretress.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Active Hazard Setters**: In order for Forretress to function effectively as a hazard remover, it does rely rather heavily on a level of passivity and inability to cause direct damage on their end. To this end, some of the Pokemon more capable of applying an immediate pressure can prove directly at odds with Forretress' functionality. Examples of this can range from offensive threats such as Swords Dance Cobalion and Azelf to the more defensively skewed Swampert and Flamethrower Clefable.
**Resilient Hazard Control**: Equal but opposite, Forretress' limited ability to stick around in a game as long as a hazard remover such as Latias, Mew, and Empoleon does undermine its role as a hazard setter somewhat.
**Conservative Boosters**: For as much that Forretress can pivot into to an extent, there are just as many Pokemon that can alter their method of play to exploit this tendency; Pokemon such as Celebi and Clefable can very easily tweak their EVs, nature, and more to make this line of play a liability to the Forretress user, limiting just how useful this role can be.
**Magneton**: While Forretress does remain fairly mobile as far as Steel-types go, denying its susceptibility to Magneton's trapping ability would be wholly unfair, as the most common Choice Specs set promptly OHKO's Forretress via HP Fire.
[OVERVIEW]
* Forretress does, in theory, possess multiple traits that make it particularly enticing as a Pokemon; Rapid Spin, most significant forms of entry hazard, and Volt Switch are exceedingly useful options to a support Pokemon such as it, with its bulk and typing offering various windows to capitalize on them.
* In spite of these various positives, a lack of reliable recovery or solid attacking options lend Forretress to heavy reliance on partners to properly check offensive threats
* Furthermore, Forretress' role as a spinner is somewhat undermined by not only a substantial pool of Ghost-types, but also a variety of hazard setters capable of beating it in a vacuum.
* Bearing in mind these cons, Forretress retains a proper niche with more offensively skewed balances and bulky offenses, where its ability to compress various useful roles is most valuable.
[SET]
name: Specially Defensive
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Spikes / Toxic Spikes
move 3: Volt Switch
move 4: Gyro Ball / Toxic / Pin Missile
item: Leftovers
ability: Overcoat
nature: Sassy / Relaxed
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Rapid Spin in conjunction with an entry hazard is what defines Forretress' role in the tier. Due to the greater variety to Pokemon affected by them, Spikes are more consistent and varied in their utility. However, certain Pokemon (particularly Calm Mind users) benefit greatly from Toxic Spikes support.
* Volt Switch is invaluable for downplaying Forretress' low offense presence, and its primary application is two-fold: allowing it to duck out of unfavorable match-ups, most significantly in the case of problematic Ghost-types, and granting it the leeway the pivot into select boosting Pokemon as to ensure the safety of the dedicated revenge-killer.
* Of the options available to Forretress for dealing any kind of damage, Gyro Ball has the most consistency, dealing the most consistent damage across the board and yielding the most meaningful damage against the most common Ghost-type, Gengar. While Toxic leaves incapable of applying any direct pressure on Pokemon, it does stand as its best means of pressuring common Stealth Rock setters such as Hippowdon and Swampert, as well as Defog users in Latias and Mew. Pin Missile has the most narrow application, with it looking primarily to directly threaten Alakazam and Celebi while keeping pressure on hazard removal Pokemon like Starmie and Latias, but given the ubiquity of these Pokemon it does remain a valid and broad niche.
Set Details
========
* Counterintuitive to Forretress' natural physical bulk, a specially defensive spread tends to favor its positive traits in this metagame, significantly in its ability to check prominent Fairy-, Grass-, and Psychic-types to an extent.
* A Relaxed nature, however, is somewhat plausible for its ability to pivot Pokemon such as Zygarde, Decidueye, and offensive Scizor. Bear in mind that this shift will find itself hindering its ability to take on offensive Psychic-types in a major way, most notably in the case of Nasty Plot Celebi and Life Orb Alakazam. It should be noted that, even when choosing to forgo Gyro Ball, a Speed-decreasing nature is preferred here for maximizing the value of Volt Switch.
* While the majority of Spore or Sleep Powder users are now toting Hidden Power Fire, the value of aggressively pivoting into such Pokemon via Overcoat does outweigh the limited implications of Sturdy. This also slightly buffers Forretress' ability to switch into Alolan Ninetales.
Usage Tips
========
* Forretress' most ruinous traits as a defensive Pokemon, its lack of direct pressure and limited self-sustainability, play heaviest into how it plays.
*To play most effectively to these issues, it is important to weigh the long-term implications of the utility moves used. To illustrate this point, Rapid Spinning away Stealth Rock from a non-statused, Leftovers toting Swampert offers very little long-term value when said Swampert can switch in and set them back up without consequence. Under such a hypothetical circumstances, it behooves the Forretress user to set up hazards to keep pressure on the opposing team in the long-term, or better yet put the Swampert on a timer via Toxic. Similarly, against a hazard remover such as Mew or even a bulkier Ghost-type that can switch into Forretress with moderate impunity, the situation would lend itself to a Volt Switch rather than an attempt of Rapid Spin or [Toxic] Spikes.
* However, against a team lacking in proper hazard control (or even one whose user you are looking to keep pressure on), Forretress has much more leniency to capitalize on both type-weak attackers and various defensive Pokemon for layers.
* While there are various Pokemon that Forretress can switch into but not necessarily beat, such as Scizor, Reuniclus and non-Flamethrower Clefable, they are solid targets of its pivoting ability. With these Pokemon, Forretress is best utilized switching into them initially, allowing a slow Volt Switch to bring in a more potent check that might simply not make a strong direct switch.
Team Options
========
* As a support Pokemon designed for slightly more offensive teams, very little past a complementary Stealth Rock setter offers much to set up Forretress for success. One exception to this overarching statement, however, are fast Pursuit users, who both remove some of the less bulky Ghost-types for a comfortable Rapid Spin and benefit from the Spikes support provided. Perhaps the most flexible example of such a Pokemon is Mega Aerodactyl, but Choice Scarf Krookodile and Absol also function in a very similar fashion.
* When considering alternative offensive partners to back Forretress, a integral role they should be filling is the ability to pressure the Pokemon Forretress sought to pivot, yet not actively beat. Some such examples of this include Gengar, Chandelure, Volcanion, and Choice Specs Keldeo.
* Furthermore, while not offering the same direct utility of previous options, Pokemon such as Life Orb Alakazam, Hydreigon, and Specs Primarina benefit not only from the Spikes and Volt Switch support provided here, but also apply significant pressure to balances with strong hazard control where Forretress struggles to make meaningful progress.
* Of course, buffering the defensive backbone of such teams is also highly significant for a team toting Forretress. Options like Calm Mind Suicune (particularly those utilizing Roar), Substitute Kyurem, and Swords Dance Gliscor all offer up cohesion to the team while maintaining pressure in a major way.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* While Forretress has access to a few mildly useful tools to buffer it as a defensive Pokemon, notably Light Screen, Reflect, Pain Split, and Counter, it is struck down as an option due to the sheer indispensability of every moveslot as is.
* When considering alternative attacking options, Earthquake is perhaps the most broad; targeting not only two relevant Ghost-types in Gengar and Chandelure, but also Klefki and Magneton that it might also find themselves commonly staring down Forretress.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Active Hazard Setters**: In order for Forretress to function effectively as a hazard remover, it does rely rather heavily on a level of passivity and inability to cause direct damage on their end. To this end, some of the Pokemon more capable of applying an immediate pressure can prove directly at odds with Forretress' functionality. Examples of this can range from offensive threats such as Swords Dance Cobalion and Azelf to the more defensively skewed Swampert and Flamethrower Clefable.
**Resilient Hazard Control**: Equal but opposite, Forretress' limited ability to stick around in a game as long as a hazard remover such as Latias, Mew, and Empoleon does undermine its role as a hazard setter somewhat.
**Conservative Boosters**: For as much that Forretress can pivot into to an extent, there are just as many Pokemon that can alter their method of play to exploit this tendency; Pokemon such as Celebi and Clefable can very easily tweak their EVs, nature, and more to make this line of play a liability to the Forretress user, limiting just how useful this role can be.
**Magneton**: While Forretress does remain fairly mobile as far as Steel-types go, denying its susceptibility to Magneton's trapping ability would be wholly unfair, as the most common Choice Specs set promptly OHKO's Forretress via HP Fire.
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