[QCs: Rowan / Corporal Levi / zeriloa ]
Overview
########
- Good base defense
- Steel typing grants it tons of resistances
- Head Smash does a lot of damage
- Metal Burst can be useful
- Slow
- Weak to several common types
- No built-in recovery as a wall
- Low base special defense
SET NAME
########
name: Sturdy
move 1: Rock Slide
move 2: Heavy Slam / Iron Head
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Metal Burst / Stealth Rock
ability: Sturdy
item: Berry Juice
evs: 196 Atk / 196 Def / 116 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
nature: Brave
Moves
========
- Head Smash does a lot of damage, and Berry Juice helps deal with Recoil
- Rock Slide can be used if the recoil is deemed too detrimental
- Heavy Slam is a secondary STAB option, having more accuracy and hitting light Pokemon hard
- Iron Head is more consistent and can flinch extremely slow Pokemon
- Heavy Slam hits a multitude of key targets harder than Iron Head, including but not limited to Bunnelby, Cottonee, Drilbur, Foongus, Scraggy, Snubbull, Spritzee, Timburr, and Vullaby.
- Superpower hits Steel types, and Pawniard especially hard.
- A combination of Metal Burst and Sturdy allows Aron to deal heavy damage to Pokemon looking to otherwise OHKO
- Stealth Rock can be used instead to support the team
Set Details
========
- EVs maximize Aron's damage output
- Given defensive EVs emphasize Aron's stronger defense
- No HP EVs are used so Aron is able to restore itself to full health with Berry Juice
- 0 Speed IVs and a Brave nature make Aron as slow as possible so Metal Burst is more likely to go last
Usage Tips
========
- Aron will usually be able to take at least two hits without going down thanks to Sturdy allowing Berry Juice to heal Aron back to full health after being hit by an otherwise fatal blow and then withstand another attack
- Knock Off ruins this by removing Berry Juice, allowing the next hit to take out Aron
- Mold Breaker Pokemon ignore Sturdy, and as such, also beat this strategy
- If a move brings Aron down to Sturdy from full health, Metal Burst will usually OHKO the assailant
- Head Smash does a lot of damage
- Meant to switch into Flying types and Spritzee.
Team Options
========
- A Rapid Spinner or Defogger will allow Aron to keep Sturdy intact upon switching in, letting Aron switch out of unfavourable match-ups more readily; otherwise, Stealth Rock and Spikes will break Sturdy
- A Pokemon to beat Knock Off using Fighting-types like Mienfoo and Timburr, such as Trubbish, is beneficial
- A Pokemon to beat Drilbur, such as Slowpoke, is also useful
SET NAME
########
name: Rock Head
move 1: Head Smash
move 2: Heavy Slam / Iron Head
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Stealth Rock / Rock Polish
ability: Rock Head
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 36 HP / 196 Atk / 116 Def / 116 SpD / 36 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
- Head Smash does a lot of damage to Pokemon that don't resist it, and is Aron's main STAB move
- Heavy Slam is a secondary STAB option, having more accuracy and hitting light Pokemon hard
- Iron Head is more consistent and can flinch extremely slow Pokemon
- Superpower beats Steel types such as Magnemite and especially Pawniard
- Stealth Rock allows Aron to support the team
- If Stealth Rock isn't necessary, Rock Polish allows Aron to hit 20 speed and possibly attempt a sweep with Head Smash
Set Details
========
- Attack EVs and nature maximize Aron's offensive potential
- Defensive EVs hit eviolite numbers
- Speed EVs allow Aron to outspeed Spritzee
- Berry Juice gives Aron the chance to recover HP
- Eviolite is useful with Wish support to allow Aron to easily tank certain attacks throughout the match
- Using Life Orb is justifiable if one chooses to run Rock Polish as a sweeper.
Usage Tips
========
- Walls Fletchling
- Head Smash does a lot of damage, so use it
Team Options
========
- Pokemon that force switching often can take advantage of Stealth Rock
- Something to eliminate fighting types like Mienfoo and Timburr, such as Spritzee or Slowpoke, is appreciated
- A Pokemon to beat Drilbur, such as Slowpoke, is also useful
- A Pokemon that can defeat water types like Chinchou and Staryu, such as Foongus, is helpful
- If Eviolite is used, Wish support extends Aron's lifespan dramatically
SET NAME
########
name: Sticky Web Attacker
move 1: Heavy Slam
move 2: Hone Claws
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Magnet Rise / Rock Slide / Head Smash
ability: Heavy Metal
item: Life Orb
evs: 116 HP / 196 Atk / 196 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
- Heavy Slam is a secondary STAB option, hits most Pokemon hard, due to Heavy Metal doubling Aron's weight
- Hone Claws allows it to set up in the face of some Pokémon it checks, like Fletchling
- Earthquake beats Electric and Steel types that think they can take a Heavy Slam, like Chinchou.
- Magnet Rise allows Aron to set up in front of Ground type Pokémon, as it is now immune or resistant to their other attacking options.
- If you do not think the temporary removal of one 4x weakness is necessary, using Rock Slide will give another STAB attacking option.
- Rock Head + Head Smash could also be used, but Heavy Slam, when boosted by Heavy Metal, Life Orb, and possibly Hone Claws, usually deals enough damage, rendering it a more appealing main STAB move than the inaccurate Head Smash.
Set Details
========
- Heavy metal doubles Aron's 60kg into a massive 120kg that allow Heavy Slam to hit more lighter Pokémon that litter the LC metagame a lot harder.
- Attack EVs and nature allow Aron to deal big damage quickly. Its low speed is taken care of by Sticky Web.
- HP stuck in to allow an extra turn of Life Orb recoil or to take an Acrobatics from Fletchling
- With Adamant and Sticky Web, Aron has enough speed to tie with the 18 speed tier
- Life Orb gets it the power it needs. It can OHKO Mienfoo at +1 with Heavy Slam after Spikes.
Usage Tips
========
- Walls Fletchling, so set up on it.
- Heavy Slam is the main attack, use it on everything that doesn't resist it for a world of hurt.
- Can set up on Spritzee as well.
Team Options
========
- Entry Hazards are preferred to turn some 2HKO's into guaranteed OHKO's
- Sticky web Setter
- Pawniard and Ghost types are ways to keep your Sticky Web and other hazards on the field, by gaining a scary attack boost from defiant, or spinblocking.
- Pawniard is also useful for getting rid of levitating ghost which easily outspeed Aron.
Other Options
########
- A dedicated Rock Polish sweeping set is generally outclassed by Sturdysmashers such as Tirtouga
- Automize is generally inferior to Rock Polish because it weakens Heavy Slam
- Double-Edge with Rock Head is usually less effective than Iron Head or coverage moves
- Earthquake allows Aron to 2HKO Honedge, but Honedge is able to OHKO in return with Sacred Sword and really isn't all that threatening compared to Pawniard, which Earthquake needs to OHKO but fails to do as opposed to Superpower
- A super effective Shadow Claw is outdamaged by a neutral Head Smash
- A Curse set is unlikely to work due to Aron's low Special Defense and double weaknesses
- Iron Tail's low accuracy means despite its greater damage, Iron Head is usually the better option
- Magnet Rise does not compensate for Aron's double fighting weakness or lack of recovery, meaning an attacking or supporting move is more useful
- Aron has too many weaknesses and too low of a base Special Defense to properly utilize a Resttalk set
- Heavy Metal to boost the power of Heavy Slam is generally inferior to Rock Head Head Smash due to the limited coverage Steel offers
- Level 1 Endeavor is horribly ineffective in LC because a full health Endeavor will usually only bring an opposing Pokemon to around half health, and regardless of how much damage Endeavor deals, Shell Bell won't restore nearly enough to bring Aron back to Sturdy range
Checks & Counters
########
**Mold Breaker**:
-Drilbur and Pancham can bypass Sturdy and pummel Aron with STAB Ground- or Fighting-type attacks while resisting Head Smash, but must be wary of Heavy Slam
-Axew and Cranidos are unable to take more than one Head Smash, but are also able to ignore Sturdy and KO with a 4x super-effective coverage move
**Fighting-types**:
-Aron without Sturdy is instantly decimated by STAB Fighting-type attacks, but spamming Fighting-type moves against a full health Aron is not recommended unless Rock Head has been confirmed due to Aron's access to Metal Burst, and lighter fighting types will not enjoy switching into Heavy Slam repeatedly
-Sturdyjuice variants lose to Fighting-types with Knock Off because Sturdy is broken and Berry Juice is removed in one move
-Mienfoo, Croagunk, and Timburr are the best Fighting-type switch-ins to Aron because they are able to avoid the 2HKO from Heavy Slam most of the time
**Dedicated physical walls**:
-Slowpoke is usually able to avoid the 2HKO from Head Smash, allowing it to paralyze Aron before spamming Slack Off until a miss or full paralysis, then breaking Sturdy with Psychic if necessary and beating Aron with Scald
-Phanpy is able to avoid the 2HKO from all of Aron's moves and beat it with Ice Shard + Earthquake
-Lickitung with at least 16 Attack is able to avoid the 2HKO from Head Smash the majority of the time, allowing it to PP stall Head Smash out with Wish and Protect and slowly whittle Aron down with an attacking move
**Burn**:
-A Burn status severely decreases Aron's offensive potential while breaking Sturdy
**Fighting-, Ground- or moderately powerful Water-type coverage moves**:
-If Sturdy is not intact, Aron is susceptible to common coverage moves taking advantage of its weaknesses
**Entry Hazards**
- For the sturdy set, entry hazards break sturdy limiting the effectiveness of Metal Burst.
**Fake Out**
- Fake Out can break the sturdy sets. Common users that are able to abuse this and KO Aron afterwards include Brick Break Aipom that carry Fake Out
I'm not sure whether to relegate EQ to OO because it hits Honedge and Croagunk
Overview
########
- Good base defense
- Steel typing grants it tons of resistances
- Head Smash does a lot of damage
- Metal Burst can be useful
- Slow
- Weak to several common types
- No built-in recovery as a wall
- Low base special defense
SET NAME
########
name: Sturdy
move 1: Rock Slide
move 2: Heavy Slam / Iron Head
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Metal Burst / Stealth Rock
ability: Sturdy
item: Berry Juice
evs: 196 Atk / 196 Def / 116 SpD
IVs: 0 Spe
nature: Brave
Moves
========
- Head Smash does a lot of damage, and Berry Juice helps deal with Recoil
- Rock Slide can be used if the recoil is deemed too detrimental
- Heavy Slam is a secondary STAB option, having more accuracy and hitting light Pokemon hard
- Iron Head is more consistent and can flinch extremely slow Pokemon
- Heavy Slam hits a multitude of key targets harder than Iron Head, including but not limited to Bunnelby, Cottonee, Drilbur, Foongus, Scraggy, Snubbull, Spritzee, Timburr, and Vullaby.
- Superpower hits Steel types, and Pawniard especially hard.
- A combination of Metal Burst and Sturdy allows Aron to deal heavy damage to Pokemon looking to otherwise OHKO
- Stealth Rock can be used instead to support the team
Set Details
========
- EVs maximize Aron's damage output
- Given defensive EVs emphasize Aron's stronger defense
- No HP EVs are used so Aron is able to restore itself to full health with Berry Juice
- 0 Speed IVs and a Brave nature make Aron as slow as possible so Metal Burst is more likely to go last
Usage Tips
========
- Aron will usually be able to take at least two hits without going down thanks to Sturdy allowing Berry Juice to heal Aron back to full health after being hit by an otherwise fatal blow and then withstand another attack
- Knock Off ruins this by removing Berry Juice, allowing the next hit to take out Aron
- Mold Breaker Pokemon ignore Sturdy, and as such, also beat this strategy
- If a move brings Aron down to Sturdy from full health, Metal Burst will usually OHKO the assailant
- Head Smash does a lot of damage
- Meant to switch into Flying types and Spritzee.
Team Options
========
- A Rapid Spinner or Defogger will allow Aron to keep Sturdy intact upon switching in, letting Aron switch out of unfavourable match-ups more readily; otherwise, Stealth Rock and Spikes will break Sturdy
- A Pokemon to beat Knock Off using Fighting-types like Mienfoo and Timburr, such as Trubbish, is beneficial
- A Pokemon to beat Drilbur, such as Slowpoke, is also useful
SET NAME
########
name: Rock Head
move 1: Head Smash
move 2: Heavy Slam / Iron Head
move 3: Superpower
move 4: Stealth Rock / Rock Polish
ability: Rock Head
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 36 HP / 196 Atk / 116 Def / 116 SpD / 36 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
- Head Smash does a lot of damage to Pokemon that don't resist it, and is Aron's main STAB move
- Heavy Slam is a secondary STAB option, having more accuracy and hitting light Pokemon hard
- Iron Head is more consistent and can flinch extremely slow Pokemon
- Superpower beats Steel types such as Magnemite and especially Pawniard
- Stealth Rock allows Aron to support the team
- If Stealth Rock isn't necessary, Rock Polish allows Aron to hit 20 speed and possibly attempt a sweep with Head Smash
Set Details
========
- Attack EVs and nature maximize Aron's offensive potential
- Defensive EVs hit eviolite numbers
- Speed EVs allow Aron to outspeed Spritzee
- Berry Juice gives Aron the chance to recover HP
- Eviolite is useful with Wish support to allow Aron to easily tank certain attacks throughout the match
- Using Life Orb is justifiable if one chooses to run Rock Polish as a sweeper.
Usage Tips
========
- Walls Fletchling
- Head Smash does a lot of damage, so use it
Team Options
========
- Pokemon that force switching often can take advantage of Stealth Rock
- Something to eliminate fighting types like Mienfoo and Timburr, such as Spritzee or Slowpoke, is appreciated
- A Pokemon to beat Drilbur, such as Slowpoke, is also useful
- A Pokemon that can defeat water types like Chinchou and Staryu, such as Foongus, is helpful
- If Eviolite is used, Wish support extends Aron's lifespan dramatically
SET NAME
########
name: Sticky Web Attacker
move 1: Heavy Slam
move 2: Hone Claws
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Magnet Rise / Rock Slide / Head Smash
ability: Heavy Metal
item: Life Orb
evs: 116 HP / 196 Atk / 196 Spe
nature: Adamant
Moves
========
- Heavy Slam is a secondary STAB option, hits most Pokemon hard, due to Heavy Metal doubling Aron's weight
- Hone Claws allows it to set up in the face of some Pokémon it checks, like Fletchling
- Earthquake beats Electric and Steel types that think they can take a Heavy Slam, like Chinchou.
- Magnet Rise allows Aron to set up in front of Ground type Pokémon, as it is now immune or resistant to their other attacking options.
- If you do not think the temporary removal of one 4x weakness is necessary, using Rock Slide will give another STAB attacking option.
- Rock Head + Head Smash could also be used, but Heavy Slam, when boosted by Heavy Metal, Life Orb, and possibly Hone Claws, usually deals enough damage, rendering it a more appealing main STAB move than the inaccurate Head Smash.
Set Details
========
- Heavy metal doubles Aron's 60kg into a massive 120kg that allow Heavy Slam to hit more lighter Pokémon that litter the LC metagame a lot harder.
- Attack EVs and nature allow Aron to deal big damage quickly. Its low speed is taken care of by Sticky Web.
- HP stuck in to allow an extra turn of Life Orb recoil or to take an Acrobatics from Fletchling
- With Adamant and Sticky Web, Aron has enough speed to tie with the 18 speed tier
- Life Orb gets it the power it needs. It can OHKO Mienfoo at +1 with Heavy Slam after Spikes.
Usage Tips
========
- Walls Fletchling, so set up on it.
- Heavy Slam is the main attack, use it on everything that doesn't resist it for a world of hurt.
- Can set up on Spritzee as well.
Team Options
========
- Entry Hazards are preferred to turn some 2HKO's into guaranteed OHKO's
- Sticky web Setter
- Pawniard and Ghost types are ways to keep your Sticky Web and other hazards on the field, by gaining a scary attack boost from defiant, or spinblocking.
- Pawniard is also useful for getting rid of levitating ghost which easily outspeed Aron.
Other Options
########
- A dedicated Rock Polish sweeping set is generally outclassed by Sturdysmashers such as Tirtouga
- Automize is generally inferior to Rock Polish because it weakens Heavy Slam
- Double-Edge with Rock Head is usually less effective than Iron Head or coverage moves
- Earthquake allows Aron to 2HKO Honedge, but Honedge is able to OHKO in return with Sacred Sword and really isn't all that threatening compared to Pawniard, which Earthquake needs to OHKO but fails to do as opposed to Superpower
- A super effective Shadow Claw is outdamaged by a neutral Head Smash
- A Curse set is unlikely to work due to Aron's low Special Defense and double weaknesses
- Iron Tail's low accuracy means despite its greater damage, Iron Head is usually the better option
- Magnet Rise does not compensate for Aron's double fighting weakness or lack of recovery, meaning an attacking or supporting move is more useful
- Aron has too many weaknesses and too low of a base Special Defense to properly utilize a Resttalk set
- Heavy Metal to boost the power of Heavy Slam is generally inferior to Rock Head Head Smash due to the limited coverage Steel offers
- Level 1 Endeavor is horribly ineffective in LC because a full health Endeavor will usually only bring an opposing Pokemon to around half health, and regardless of how much damage Endeavor deals, Shell Bell won't restore nearly enough to bring Aron back to Sturdy range
Checks & Counters
########
**Mold Breaker**:
-Drilbur and Pancham can bypass Sturdy and pummel Aron with STAB Ground- or Fighting-type attacks while resisting Head Smash, but must be wary of Heavy Slam
-Axew and Cranidos are unable to take more than one Head Smash, but are also able to ignore Sturdy and KO with a 4x super-effective coverage move
**Fighting-types**:
-Aron without Sturdy is instantly decimated by STAB Fighting-type attacks, but spamming Fighting-type moves against a full health Aron is not recommended unless Rock Head has been confirmed due to Aron's access to Metal Burst, and lighter fighting types will not enjoy switching into Heavy Slam repeatedly
-Sturdyjuice variants lose to Fighting-types with Knock Off because Sturdy is broken and Berry Juice is removed in one move
-Mienfoo, Croagunk, and Timburr are the best Fighting-type switch-ins to Aron because they are able to avoid the 2HKO from Heavy Slam most of the time
**Dedicated physical walls**:
-Slowpoke is usually able to avoid the 2HKO from Head Smash, allowing it to paralyze Aron before spamming Slack Off until a miss or full paralysis, then breaking Sturdy with Psychic if necessary and beating Aron with Scald
-Phanpy is able to avoid the 2HKO from all of Aron's moves and beat it with Ice Shard + Earthquake
-Lickitung with at least 16 Attack is able to avoid the 2HKO from Head Smash the majority of the time, allowing it to PP stall Head Smash out with Wish and Protect and slowly whittle Aron down with an attacking move
**Burn**:
-A Burn status severely decreases Aron's offensive potential while breaking Sturdy
**Fighting-, Ground- or moderately powerful Water-type coverage moves**:
-If Sturdy is not intact, Aron is susceptible to common coverage moves taking advantage of its weaknesses
**Entry Hazards**
- For the sturdy set, entry hazards break sturdy limiting the effectiveness of Metal Burst.
**Fake Out**
- Fake Out can break the sturdy sets. Common users that are able to abuse this and KO Aron afterwards include Brick Break Aipom that carry Fake Out
I'm not sure whether to relegate EQ to OO because it hits Honedge and Croagunk
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