|
-
Inner Focus
- Prevents flinching.
-
Regenerator
- Wielder heals 1/3 of its maximum HP on switching out.
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Reckless
- Increases the power of recoil moves by 20%.
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Level 100 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
45
|
- |
231 |
294 |
- |
| Atk |
85
|
185 |
206 |
269 |
295 |
| Def |
50
|
122 |
136 |
199 |
218 |
| SpA |
55
|
131 |
146 |
209 |
229 |
| SpD |
50
|
122 |
136 |
199 |
218 |
| Spe |
65
|
149 |
166 |
229 |
251 |
Overview
Mienfoo is completely dominant in the Little Cup metagame and it's not hard to see why. It has the perfect stat spread to fit its role, with decent bulk topped off by good Speed and great Attack. On top of its stats, it has a precise movepool including Drain Punch, Knock Off, and U-turn. Additionally, Mienfoo has one of the best abilities in the game, Regenerator, which allows it to heal 33% of its HP without doing anything; this synergizes perfectly with U-turn, as it can take even boosted attacks, use Drain Punch to KO, and switch out to recover a huge percentage of its HP. Overall, Mienfoo is clearly one of the best, if not the best, Pokemon in the metagame, and correspondingly, it truly dominates.
A defensive set lets Mienfoo use its spectacular ability in conjunction with its focused movepool to optimal effect. It takes hits very well and can heal back easily with Drain Punch and Regenerator. It came to light as one of the best counters to Scraggy and can also check top setup sweepers such as Dwebble and Tirtouga. Additionally, it forces out a huge array of defensive Pokemon, including Lileep, Ferroseed, and Porygon, and can capitalize on this with its support moves. Drain Punch and U-turn's synergy with Regenerator give Mienfoo surprisingly reliable recovery and a fairly powerful STAB attack. Knock Off is one of the most versatile moves in Little Cup, being able to cripple defensive Pokemon which rely on Eviolite to weather the most powerful attacks, offensive Pokemon which appreciate the boost in defenses to aid setting up, and Choice Scarf wielders which utilize the boosted Speed to check Mienfoo's teammates. Fake Out is handy for revenge killing Pokemon such as Tirtouga on 1 HP, as it bypasses their boosted Speed and can also break the rare Focus Sash.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The EV investment in bulk means that Mienfoo will never be OHKOed by +1 Scraggy's Hi Jump Kick after Stealth Rock damage. The remaining EVs are placed in Attack to allow Mienfoo to KO the aforementioned Scraggy with Fake Out followed by Drain Punch, and in Speed to Speed tie with Modest Magnemite and outspeed Clamperl. The HP EVs can be placed in Attack to hit harder, although doing so will severely compromise Mienfoo's bulk. As for other move options, Mienfoo can run Stone Edge over Fake Out to better handle Drifloon and Larvesta, or use Hi Jump Kick over Drain Punch to simply hit harder, although the lack of recovery hurts and missing can lose you the match. Just about anything works well with Mienfoo. Murkrow is a top teammate, as it can easily check Abra, which can OHKO Mienfoo with Psychic and avoid Fake Out with Protect. Ironically, Mienfoo fears Murkrow, so Rock-types such as Archen and Tirtouga are great alongside it and can also set up Stealth Rock. Stunky and Porygon have nice synergy with Mienfoo, handling Misdreavus and Drifloon nicely, both of which can check Mienfoo effortlessly. It's pretty tough to not be able to fit defensive Mienfoo on your team.
Life Orb Mienfoo is akin to a nuke in Little Cup; its best general check, Misdreavus, takes over 50% from Stone Edge. It has just about the most powerful attack in the metagame in Hi Jump Kick, which boasts superlative power in combination with good coverage. U-turn is a great move to seize momentum on the switches that Life Orb Mienfoo forces. Stone Edge hits Pokemon such as Misdreavus, Drifloon, and Larvesta that could otherwise check it with ease and gives Mienfoo flawless neutral coverage. Finally, Fake Out is remarkably strong with Life Orb, but Knock Off has great utility and makes it even harder to switch into Mienfoo.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The EVs are simple, giving Mienfoo maximum Speed and Attack. Drain Punch is a viable option in the last slot, trading power for healing and perfect accuracy; however, Mienfoo can't really take hits without Eviolite and significant EV investment—Misdreavus's Shadow Ball does 71% minimum—and so is better off trying to OHKO the opponent. Entry hazard support really helps out Mienfoo, making it less reliant on high damage rolls to KO opponents and minimizing opportunities to strike back at it. Dwebble, Ferroseed, and Archen are great choices here (the latter can also check Murkrow for Mienfoo). Ghost-types can switch in on Hi Jump Kick, causing Mienfoo to take massive recoil damage; a Pursuit trapper such as Stunky is excellent to remove Ghost-types to allow Mienfoo to spam Hi Jump Kick.
It's not the best set Mienfoo can run, but it's definitely a decent Choice Scarf user in the metagame. It has an excellent STAB attack in Hi Jump Kick, letting it outspeed and OHKO +1 Scraggy, Choice Scarf Snover, and even Abra with its Focus Sash broken 50% of the time. U-turn lets Mienfoo utilize Regenerator and scout switches while Stone Edge hits Flying- and Bug-types which would otherwise check it. The last slot is a toss-up between Drain Punch and Knock Off: Drain Punch is a good move to clean up with when your opponent still has a Ghost-type left whereas Knock Off can cripple these Ghost-types.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Simply put, Attack and Speed are maximized with the remaining EVs placed in Defense. Adamant is used to boost Mienfoo's power as nothing notable is outsped with 25 compared to 24 Speed. Pursuit support really benefits Mienfoo to let it spam Hi Jump Kick more freely; Munchlax and Stunky are great for this. Stealth Rock and Spikes support from Pokemon such as Dwebble and Ferroseed helps to rack up damage on forced switches Mienfoo causes and let it sweep more easily late-game. Remember that Choice Scarf Mienfoo is considerably weaker than Life Orb and needs all the support it can get to sweep.
Other Options
Payback is useful over Knock Off on some sets to hit Ghost-types super effectively, although the utility of Knock Off is often greater. Baton Pass sets utilizing Swords Dance, Calm Mind, or Substitute are very viable and can be effective in the metagame. Low Sweep is usable to often 2HKO Murkrow after Stealth Rock damage and stop it from KOing Archen. Taunt is a neat option which can really mess with defensive Pokemon including Hippopotas, Ferroseed, and Shelmet. A set using Swords Dance carries remarkable power, although setting up can be difficult and Mienfoo is still checked relatively easily by Ghost- and Flying-types. Rain Dance and Sunny Day are useful filler options for changing the weather against sand teams, which can really ruin their strategy if Hippopotas has already been KOed. Toxic can be used to cripple Misdreavus, Larvesta, and Hippopotas on the switch-in.
Checks and Counters
Without a Life Orb, Mienfoo can barely scratch Ghost-types outside of Knock Off. Misdreavus and Frillish can then burn Mienfoo and Drifloon and Gastly can outright KO it. Powerful Flying-types, including Guts Taillow, Acrobatics Drifloon and Archen, and Murkrow, can easily OHKO Mienfoo with their STAB attacks, although they must be wary of Stone Edge. Abra is in much the same boat, being able to KO Mienfoo with ease but unable to switch in at all. Larvesta solidly counters any set lacking Stone Edge and can burn Mienfoo with impunity. Poison-types, in particular Grimer, as you can't Knock Off its Eviolite, are pretty much impossible for Mienfoo to KO with their Fighting-type resistance. Incredibly bulky Pokemon, such as Hippopotas, can check Mienfoo in a pinch, but they despise Knock Off and Mienfoo can just switch out anyway. Mienfoo is pretty much impossible to truly counter, as it heals with Regenerator upon switching out and can rack up damage slowly with Knock Off and U-turn.
