dachickens
07-03-2009, 06:13 PM
The original one is here (http://teamuber.net/forum/showthread.php?t=3612), but it was never completed. As a result, I've decided to do it. I'm sorry that I couldn't add many of my own sets to this analysis; Moltres just doesn't have many other options.
Moltres:
http://www.arkeis.com/images/pokemonfactory/moltres.png
HP: 90
Atk: 100
Def: 90
SpA: 125
SpD: 85
Spe: 90
Summary:
Most Used Set:
Moltres is usually seen as a scouting Choice Scarf Lead. With decent Speed, above-average Attack, and superb Special Attack, the legendary firebird poses an immediate threat to many opposing leads. The other sets are not as common because Moltres can't really afford to switch into Stealth Rock often.
Usual Counters:
Stealth Rock takes off half of Moltres's health every time it switches in, and as such it is far and away the best counter to Moltres by itself. Bulky waters like Suicune also work well, as they resist Moltres's dangerous Fire attacks. Snorlax also works well due to its Thick Fat ability, and it can just set up on Moltres as the firebird futilely attempts to hurt it.
Types of teams Moltres is used on:
Moltres is usually used as either a Scarfed lead or special sweeper on balanced teams due to its great power and speed. Occasionally, though, it will be seen running a stall set on a stall team. In any case, it will almost always be run on a team that is packing a Rapid Spinner.
In Depth:
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Scarfed Lead @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, - Atk) or Rash (+SpA, -SpD)
EV's: 40 Def / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
- U-Turn
- Overheat
- Air Slash
- Will-o-Wisp
This lead is extremely dominant in UU and sometimes even in OU. It works no matter what your opponent leads with. If they start with something that is weak to one of Moltres's STAB's, you can take advantage of that by either attacking or scouting the switch with U-Turn. Either way, it will leave you with a small early advantage. Overheat coming off of 383 Special Attack is extremely painful, and it packs so much power that it OHKO's Ambipom, Roserade, and Crobat. Between its dual STAB moves, Moltres can OHKO many OU leads as well, though Sashed opponents will still get Stealth Rock up. Will-o-wisp can be used if you wish to hurt opposing leads that don't make much damage from Overheat and Air Slash. Examples include Tyranitar, Gyarados, and Swampert. However, none of them will enjoy the attack drop that comes with the burn status. Burn an arrogant opposing lead as they Taunt or Stealth Rock and laugh as they deal puny amounts of damage for the rest of the game.
If you're worried that Moltres will get OHKO'd by opposing leads before it can kill them, fear not. To put Moltres's bulk in perspective, it is not OHKO'd by Stone Edges coming from burned Gyarados and Swampert, nor is it OHKO'd by a Scarfed Gengar's Thunderbolt. As such, if you're packing a spinner on your team, you can easily bring Moltres back in later in the game as a revenge killer.
Modest is the preferred nature since Moltres likes its bulk, but Rash can be used if you wish to keep U-Turn's power up.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
StallTres @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
EV's: 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 Spe
- Roost
- Substitute
- Toxic / Will-o-Wisp / Roar
- Flamethrower
Like its fellow legendary birds, Moltres can stall well if you keep it healthy. The concept is simple: hit your opponent with the status condition of choice, Substitute to block attacks and status effects, and Roost off the damage as your opponent slowly dies. Toxic is the best choice because it allows you to PP stall Heatran and deal more damage overall to bulky Waters and Blissey. However, Will-o-Wisp severely hampers physical attackers like Salamence. Flamethrower is standard fare, since it gets a STAB boost and OHKO's Weavile, Lucario, and Scizor. It also prevents Moltres from becoming Taunt bait. Roar can be used over Toxic and Will-o-Wisp if you have Toxic Spikes support if you wish to have a phazer on your team.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
SpecsTres @ Choice Specs
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EV's: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
- Overheat / Fire Blast
- Air Slash
- Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Ice
- Flamethrower / U-Turn
With Choice Specs equipped, Moltres's Special Attack skyrockets to OVER 9000- erm, I meant to 574.5. This means that Overheat, which dealt so much damage on the Lead set, will be dealing even more pain. It can wipe out almost anything that doesn't resist it and even some that do. The next moves are used to help complement Overheat. Air Slash is a solid STAB attack, and its 30% flinch rate will come in handy at times. It also 2HKO's Slowbro, Swampert, and Gyarados. Hidden Power Fighting is usually the better Hidden Power since it deals with Tyranitar (who otherwise stops this set cold), but Hidden Power Ice could be used to deal with Dragons. Note that Air Slash will 2HKO every Dragon though. Lastly, Flamethrower allows Moltres to serve as a late-game sweeper.
Overheat makes Moltres more of a hit-and-run sweeper, but if you want a more solid sweeper you could run Fire Blast and U-Turn over Overheat and Flamethrower. Fire Blast gives more sustained power than both of the other two moves, but it doesn't pack as much immediate power as the former and has poorer accuracy than the latter. U-Turn is great more scouting for your opponent's Moltres counter.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Agility @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EV's: 64 HP / 252 SpA / 192 Spe
- Agility
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Grass
- Air Slash / Roost
This set attempts to stat up with Agility and sweep with Fire Blast and your Hidden Power of choice. The first three moves are self-explanatory. Hidden Power Fighting takes down Tyranitar, while Hidden Power Grass helps against bulky waters. Air Slash gives Moltres a secondary STAB to fall back on, while Roost allows Moltres to both restore HP, temporarily shed two of its weaknesses, and reduce a third weakness.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Sunny Stall @ Heat Rock / Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
EV's: 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 Spe
- Sunny Day
- Morning Sun
- Substitute
- Flamethrower
This set runs almost exactly like the regular stall set. The main difference here is that you forgo a status move in favor of Sunny Day. The sun helps Moltres in three ways. First, Morning Sun now heals 2/3 of Moltres's HP instead of 1/2. Secondly, Moltres gets double STAB on Flamethrower, allowing it to burn through much of the metagame with ease. Lastly, it halves the power of Water-type moves, which essentially takes away Moltres's Water weakness temporarily. Substitute does the same thing it does in the other stall set. For the item choice, Heat Rock extends the beneficial effects of Sunny Day for three extra turns, while Leftovers gives Moltres consistent recovery.
This set must be run with Toxic Spikes support in order to work properly, as it cannot status opponents on its own. It also has a harder time PP stalling Heatran, but ultimately it should still work out fine.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Sunny Offense @ Heat Rock / Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk) / Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
EV's: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
- Sunny Day
- Fire Blast
- Solarbeam
- Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Ice / Will-O-Wisp
This set aims to use Sunny Day as an offensive weapon this time. You get double STAB on Fire Blast as well as a one-turn, 120 base power Solarbeam. Be careful when spamming Solarbeam around though, as a smart opponent can easily stop Moltres if they switch in Tyranitar as you use Solarbeam. Moltres will be forced to stay in and unleash a weakened Solarbeam as Tyranitar deals massive damage with its STAB Stone Edge. The Hidden Power choice has been explained several times in previous sets, while Will-o-wisp once again allows you cripple physical sweepers.
Other Options:
Not much, Moltres doesn't have enough of a physical movepool to run a Choice Band set. Extrasensory can be used on the Specs set to hit Poison-types, and Ancientpower can hurt opposing fliers.
Opinion:
People often underestimate Moltres because of its Stealth Rock weakness. However, it should not be dismissed as worthless because of that one weakness. Depending on how it is EV'd, Moltres can serve as either a powerful attacker or an undefeatable staller. Due to its limited movepool, it can't do too much, but it does everything it can quite well.
Moltres:
http://www.arkeis.com/images/pokemonfactory/moltres.png
HP: 90
Atk: 100
Def: 90
SpA: 125
SpD: 85
Spe: 90
Summary:
Most Used Set:
Moltres is usually seen as a scouting Choice Scarf Lead. With decent Speed, above-average Attack, and superb Special Attack, the legendary firebird poses an immediate threat to many opposing leads. The other sets are not as common because Moltres can't really afford to switch into Stealth Rock often.
Usual Counters:
Stealth Rock takes off half of Moltres's health every time it switches in, and as such it is far and away the best counter to Moltres by itself. Bulky waters like Suicune also work well, as they resist Moltres's dangerous Fire attacks. Snorlax also works well due to its Thick Fat ability, and it can just set up on Moltres as the firebird futilely attempts to hurt it.
Types of teams Moltres is used on:
Moltres is usually used as either a Scarfed lead or special sweeper on balanced teams due to its great power and speed. Occasionally, though, it will be seen running a stall set on a stall team. In any case, it will almost always be run on a team that is packing a Rapid Spinner.
In Depth:
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Scarfed Lead @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, - Atk) or Rash (+SpA, -SpD)
EV's: 40 Def / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
- U-Turn
- Overheat
- Air Slash
- Will-o-Wisp
This lead is extremely dominant in UU and sometimes even in OU. It works no matter what your opponent leads with. If they start with something that is weak to one of Moltres's STAB's, you can take advantage of that by either attacking or scouting the switch with U-Turn. Either way, it will leave you with a small early advantage. Overheat coming off of 383 Special Attack is extremely painful, and it packs so much power that it OHKO's Ambipom, Roserade, and Crobat. Between its dual STAB moves, Moltres can OHKO many OU leads as well, though Sashed opponents will still get Stealth Rock up. Will-o-wisp can be used if you wish to hurt opposing leads that don't make much damage from Overheat and Air Slash. Examples include Tyranitar, Gyarados, and Swampert. However, none of them will enjoy the attack drop that comes with the burn status. Burn an arrogant opposing lead as they Taunt or Stealth Rock and laugh as they deal puny amounts of damage for the rest of the game.
If you're worried that Moltres will get OHKO'd by opposing leads before it can kill them, fear not. To put Moltres's bulk in perspective, it is not OHKO'd by Stone Edges coming from burned Gyarados and Swampert, nor is it OHKO'd by a Scarfed Gengar's Thunderbolt. As such, if you're packing a spinner on your team, you can easily bring Moltres back in later in the game as a revenge killer.
Modest is the preferred nature since Moltres likes its bulk, but Rash can be used if you wish to keep U-Turn's power up.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
StallTres @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
EV's: 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 Spe
- Roost
- Substitute
- Toxic / Will-o-Wisp / Roar
- Flamethrower
Like its fellow legendary birds, Moltres can stall well if you keep it healthy. The concept is simple: hit your opponent with the status condition of choice, Substitute to block attacks and status effects, and Roost off the damage as your opponent slowly dies. Toxic is the best choice because it allows you to PP stall Heatran and deal more damage overall to bulky Waters and Blissey. However, Will-o-Wisp severely hampers physical attackers like Salamence. Flamethrower is standard fare, since it gets a STAB boost and OHKO's Weavile, Lucario, and Scizor. It also prevents Moltres from becoming Taunt bait. Roar can be used over Toxic and Will-o-Wisp if you have Toxic Spikes support if you wish to have a phazer on your team.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
SpecsTres @ Choice Specs
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EV's: 40 HP / 252 SpA / 216 Spe
- Overheat / Fire Blast
- Air Slash
- Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Ice
- Flamethrower / U-Turn
With Choice Specs equipped, Moltres's Special Attack skyrockets to OVER 9000- erm, I meant to 574.5. This means that Overheat, which dealt so much damage on the Lead set, will be dealing even more pain. It can wipe out almost anything that doesn't resist it and even some that do. The next moves are used to help complement Overheat. Air Slash is a solid STAB attack, and its 30% flinch rate will come in handy at times. It also 2HKO's Slowbro, Swampert, and Gyarados. Hidden Power Fighting is usually the better Hidden Power since it deals with Tyranitar (who otherwise stops this set cold), but Hidden Power Ice could be used to deal with Dragons. Note that Air Slash will 2HKO every Dragon though. Lastly, Flamethrower allows Moltres to serve as a late-game sweeper.
Overheat makes Moltres more of a hit-and-run sweeper, but if you want a more solid sweeper you could run Fire Blast and U-Turn over Overheat and Flamethrower. Fire Blast gives more sustained power than both of the other two moves, but it doesn't pack as much immediate power as the former and has poorer accuracy than the latter. U-Turn is great more scouting for your opponent's Moltres counter.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Agility @ Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EV's: 64 HP / 252 SpA / 192 Spe
- Agility
- Fire Blast
- Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Grass
- Air Slash / Roost
This set attempts to stat up with Agility and sweep with Fire Blast and your Hidden Power of choice. The first three moves are self-explanatory. Hidden Power Fighting takes down Tyranitar, while Hidden Power Grass helps against bulky waters. Air Slash gives Moltres a secondary STAB to fall back on, while Roost allows Moltres to both restore HP, temporarily shed two of its weaknesses, and reduce a third weakness.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Sunny Stall @ Heat Rock / Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Bold (+Def, -Atk)
EV's: 248 HP / 148 Def / 112 Spe
- Sunny Day
- Morning Sun
- Substitute
- Flamethrower
This set runs almost exactly like the regular stall set. The main difference here is that you forgo a status move in favor of Sunny Day. The sun helps Moltres in three ways. First, Morning Sun now heals 2/3 of Moltres's HP instead of 1/2. Secondly, Moltres gets double STAB on Flamethrower, allowing it to burn through much of the metagame with ease. Lastly, it halves the power of Water-type moves, which essentially takes away Moltres's Water weakness temporarily. Substitute does the same thing it does in the other stall set. For the item choice, Heat Rock extends the beneficial effects of Sunny Day for three extra turns, while Leftovers gives Moltres consistent recovery.
This set must be run with Toxic Spikes support in order to work properly, as it cannot status opponents on its own. It also has a harder time PP stalling Heatran, but ultimately it should still work out fine.
http://www.pokesho.com/img_icon/i_faiyaa.gif
Sunny Offense @ Heat Rock / Life Orb
Ability: Pressure
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk) / Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
EV's: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
- Sunny Day
- Fire Blast
- Solarbeam
- Hidden Power Fighting / Hidden Power Ice / Will-O-Wisp
This set aims to use Sunny Day as an offensive weapon this time. You get double STAB on Fire Blast as well as a one-turn, 120 base power Solarbeam. Be careful when spamming Solarbeam around though, as a smart opponent can easily stop Moltres if they switch in Tyranitar as you use Solarbeam. Moltres will be forced to stay in and unleash a weakened Solarbeam as Tyranitar deals massive damage with its STAB Stone Edge. The Hidden Power choice has been explained several times in previous sets, while Will-o-wisp once again allows you cripple physical sweepers.
Other Options:
Not much, Moltres doesn't have enough of a physical movepool to run a Choice Band set. Extrasensory can be used on the Specs set to hit Poison-types, and Ancientpower can hurt opposing fliers.
Opinion:
People often underestimate Moltres because of its Stealth Rock weakness. However, it should not be dismissed as worthless because of that one weakness. Depending on how it is EV'd, Moltres can serve as either a powerful attacker or an undefeatable staller. Due to its limited movepool, it can't do too much, but it does everything it can quite well.