Gangsta Spongebob
"Mama I'm a Criminal" - Badass Smoking Caterpillar
[OVERVIEW]
Despite possessing the highest BST in PU, Flareon is beyond outclassed. While Rapidash, Arcanine, and Magmar have much lower attacking stats, their excellent Speed improves their matchups across the board. Flareon's bad base 65 Speed, meanwhile, leaves it outsped by most of the metagame, including key threats like Nidoqueen. Even if it can still win against foes like Abra and Pinsir, having to take an extra hit means it gets worn down quickly and revenge killed by faster threats. Flareon often fails to outdamage faster Fire-types, as their higher Speed lets them launch more attacks against the opposing team. They also have traits that offer more game-to-game utility than Flareon's sheer damage. Rapidash outspeeds Fearow, Arcanine has excellent bulk, and Magmar can threaten Omanyte, something no other Fire-type can do.
Thus, you can only justify using Flareon alongside another Fire-type and heavy paralysis support. With proper support Flareon is a usable wallbreaker, as besides Omanyte, no Pokemon can safely switch into all of its attacks. Notably, it's among the few Pokemon that can reliably 2HKO Porygon. However, most of the time another duo of Fire-types will make more progress with less support, and thus Flareon should rarely see play.
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Body Slam
move 3: Hyper Beam
move 4: Fire Spin
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Fire Blast can 2HKO most neutral targets and threatens to burn physical attackers. Body Slam lets Flareon fish for paralysis and hits most Fire-resistant switch-ins hard, including Arcanine, Staryu, and Dragonair. Hyper Beam is actually weaker than Fire Blast against most neutral foes, but it OHKOes Abra and serves as a powerful finisher against physically-frail Pokemon, like Drowzee, and Fire-resistant foes, barring Omanyte. Fire Spin lets Flareon wear down and pivot against slower Pokemon, though its terrible accuracy means it should be used sparingly.
Given that the other Fire-types often do Flareon's job better, it's best used alongside Rapidash or Arcanine as a slower but more powerful wallbreaker. Omanyte is the one wall Flareon has no hope of breaking through, so Porygon is an essential partner. Paralysis support is also crucial for letting Flareon overwhelm its foes, so Thunder Wave users like Staryu, Drowzee, and the aforementioned Porygon are important.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Toxic can be used alongside Fire Spin to let Flareon wear down Omanyte, but this means Flareon must give up Hyper Beam. Reflect can be used over Fire Spin to improve Flareon's matchups against many physical attackers, but its low Speed hampers this. Nidoqueen still 2HKOes Flareon unless it can use Reflect before Nidoqueen can land the first Earthquake, while Fearow's high critical hit rate and Pinsir's Slash can bypass Reflect's Defense boost. While weak, Quick Attack can be used to pick off physically frail foes, like Staryu and Abra.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Omanyte's unique typing lets it take minimal damage from all of Flareon's attacks barring the rare Toxic plus Fire Spin combo, making it Flareon's hardest counter. Seaking outspeeds Flareon and 2HKOes it with Surf and is 3HKOed by Body Slam in return, though Seaking must be wary of Body Slam paralysis.
**Arcanine**: Arcanine's higher Speed and physical bulk let it outdamage Flareon one-on-one, especially if it's carrying Reflect.
**Ground-types**: Nidoqueen outspeeds and 2HKOes Flareon with Earthquake, (AC) while Flareon's Fire Blast only 2HKOes 3% of the time Flareon outspeeds Graveler and 3HKOes it with Fire Blast, but it has a 17.9% chance to OHKO Flareon with Earthquake. The rarer Sandslash speed ties Flareon and has a 33.3% chance to OHKO Flareon with Earthquake.
**Fearow**: Fearow outspeeds and 2HKOes Flareon with Double-Edge+ Hyper Beam while only being 2HKOed by Fire Blast in return. While Fearow fears a burn, it is notably immune to Body Slam paralysis cannot be KOed by the combination of Body Slam and Fire Blast.
**Faster Threats**: While they usually lose to Flareon one-on-one, faster threats like Staryu and Pinsir can easily revenge kill Flareon due to their higher Speed.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Despite possessing the highest BST in PU, Flareon is beyond outclassed. While Rapidash, Arcanine, and Magmar have much lower attacking stats, their excellent Speed improves their matchups across the board. Flareon's bad base 65 Speed, meanwhile, leaves it outsped by most of the metagame, including key threats like Nidoqueen. Even if it can still win against foes like Abra and Pinsir, having to take an extra hit means it gets worn down quickly and revenge killed by faster threats. Flareon often fails to outdamage faster Fire-types, as their higher Speed lets them launch more attacks against the opposing team. They also have traits that offer more game-to-game utility than Flareon's sheer damage. Rapidash outspeeds Fearow, Arcanine has excellent bulk, and Magmar can threaten Omanyte, something no other Fire-type can do.
Thus, you can only justify using Flareon alongside another Fire-type and heavy paralysis support. With proper support Flareon is a usable wallbreaker, as besides Omanyte, no Pokemon can safely switch into all of its attacks. Notably, it's among the few Pokemon that can reliably 2HKO Porygon. However, most of the time another duo of Fire-types will make more progress with less support, and thus Flareon should rarely see play.
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Body Slam
move 3: Hyper Beam
move 4: Fire Spin
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Fire Blast can 2HKO most neutral targets and threatens to burn physical attackers. Body Slam lets Flareon fish for paralysis and hits most Fire-resistant switch-ins hard, including Arcanine, Staryu, and Dragonair. Hyper Beam is actually weaker than Fire Blast against most neutral foes, but it OHKOes Abra and serves as a powerful finisher against physically-frail Pokemon, like Drowzee, and Fire-resistant foes, barring Omanyte. Fire Spin lets Flareon wear down and pivot against slower Pokemon, though its terrible accuracy means it should be used sparingly.
Given that the other Fire-types often do Flareon's job better, it's best used alongside Rapidash or Arcanine as a slower but more powerful wallbreaker. Omanyte is the one wall Flareon has no hope of breaking through, so Porygon is an essential partner. Paralysis support is also crucial for letting Flareon overwhelm its foes, so Thunder Wave users like Staryu, Drowzee, and the aforementioned Porygon are important.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Toxic can be used alongside Fire Spin to let Flareon wear down Omanyte, but this means Flareon must give up Hyper Beam. Reflect can be used over Fire Spin to improve Flareon's matchups against many physical attackers, but its low Speed hampers this. Nidoqueen still 2HKOes Flareon unless it can use Reflect before Nidoqueen can land the first Earthquake, while Fearow's high critical hit rate and Pinsir's Slash can bypass Reflect's Defense boost. While weak, Quick Attack can be used to pick off physically frail foes, like Staryu and Abra.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Omanyte's unique typing lets it take minimal damage from all of Flareon's attacks barring the rare Toxic plus Fire Spin combo, making it Flareon's hardest counter. Seaking outspeeds Flareon and 2HKOes it with Surf and is 3HKOed by Body Slam in return, though Seaking must be wary of Body Slam paralysis.
**Arcanine**: Arcanine's higher Speed and physical bulk let it outdamage Flareon one-on-one, especially if it's carrying Reflect.
**Ground-types**: Nidoqueen outspeeds and 2HKOes Flareon with Earthquake, (AC) while Flareon's Fire Blast only 2HKOes 3% of the time Flareon outspeeds Graveler and 3HKOes it with Fire Blast, but it has a 17.9% chance to OHKO Flareon with Earthquake. The rarer Sandslash speed ties Flareon and has a 33.3% chance to OHKO Flareon with Earthquake.
**Fearow**: Fearow outspeeds and 2HKOes Flareon with Double-Edge+ Hyper Beam while only being 2HKOed by Fire Blast in return. While Fearow fears a burn, it is notably immune to Body Slam paralysis cannot be KOed by the combination of Body Slam and Fire Blast.
**Faster Threats**: While they usually lose to Flareon one-on-one, faster threats like Staryu and Pinsir can easily revenge kill Flareon due to their higher Speed.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
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