[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Power Whip
move 3: Gyro Ball / Knock Off
move 4: Spikes / Knock Off / Explosion / Thunder Wave
item: Lum Berry / Rawst Berry / Leftovers
ability: Iron Barbs
nature: Brave / Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
ivs: 0 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Ferrothorn is the primary Stealth Rock setter on rain teams, and Power Whip will seriously threaten bulky Water-types like Rotom-W, Jellicent, Politoed, and Tentacruel. Gyro Ball lets Ferrothorn threaten Pokemon that resist Power Whip, including Latios, Dragonite, and Breloom. Its ability to do so against the last two is important because they can set up on Ferrothorn without the move, especially since they can use Substitute to protect themselves from any other option Ferrothorn can have. Knock Off is an irritating move in general to switch into, as bulky Pokemon treasure the passive recovery from Leftovers and offensive Pokemon would rather have their items that give them extra power or Speed. Spikes are important because they push damage into bulky Pokemon like opposing Ferrothorn and Jellicent that would irritate rain teams. Explosion seems counterintuitive on such a bulky Pokemon, but it prevents Ferrothorn from becoming setup fodder for the likes of Volcarona, Dragonite, and Thundurus-T. Thunder Wave is an irritating move for both offensive Pokemon like Latios that like being fast as well as bulky Pokemon like Reuniclus and Skarmory that dislike giving up free turns.
Set Details
========
Rain teams often have issues with bulky Water-types, including Rotom-W and Jellicent on sand teams and Politoed and Tentacruel on rain teams. These teams are often reliant on Water-type moves such as Keldeo's Hydro Pump, Latios's Surf, and Politoed's and Tentacruel's Scald to make progress, and the aforementioned bulky Water-types not only resist these attacks but also threaten burns in return, such as Rotom-W and Jellicent with Will-O-Wisp and Politoed and Tentacruel with Scald. However, with a Lum or Rawst Berry, Ferrothorn will shrug off their status, and with maximum Attack investment, Power Whip will seriously sting them. The choice between the two Berries is between whether or not Ferrothorn wants to shrug off paralysis and freeze as well and let a Latios that has used Trick on Ferrothorn shrug off paralysis. Leftovers is another solid item that gives Ferrothorn some passive longevity to enhance its naturally good defensive typing and bulk. A Brave nature is used to boost the power of Gyro Ball further, but an Adamant nature is also possible if it is not used.
Team Options
========
Ferrothorn fits on rain teams, and Politoed is required on these teams. It, and other Water-types like Tentacruel and Keldeo, appreciates Ferrothorn's ability to take on Grass-, Electric-, and Dragon-types. In exchange, these Water-types threaten the Ice- and Ground-types like Mamoswine and Landorus-T that Ferrothorn can struggle against without bulk investment. Thundurus-T also takes advantage of Ground-types like Landorus-T and Excadrill. Ground-types like Mamoswine, Landorus-T, Excadrill, and Garchomp enjoy Ferrothorn weakening bulky Water-types early-game. Dragon-types like the aforementioned Garchomp, Latios, and Kyurem-B appreciate Ferrothorn's ability to switch into opposing Dragon-type attacks. However, it will struggle to do so repeatedly without bulk investment and especially without Leftovers, so using Ferrothorn with a second Steel-type like Excadrill, Jirachi, or Scizor is a solid idea. Fighting-types like Breloom, Terrakion, and Keldeo threaten Ferrothorn severely, so using teammates that can pivot into or scare them out like Tentacruel and Latios are good. Teams weak to threats such as Quiver Dance Volcarona and Agility Thundurus-T after they have set up could consider offensive Explosion Ferrothorn to deny them the setup opportunity. However, Swords Dance Breloom threatens to OHKO Ferrothorn before a boost, denying the opportunity for it to use Explosion, and Swords Dance Scizor will set up on it anyway, so an Explosion Ferrothorn team will have to consider revenge killers that can deal with these threats. In general, the rain teams that use offensive Ferrothorn will lean more offensive than the ones that use defensive Ferrothorn because Ferrothorn, which is often a pivot on these teams, won't be able to take as many hits without bulk investment; as a result, these teams are less likely to run other defensive Pokemon, and the Politoed will run more offensive sets.
Ferrothorn also fits on sand teams, which appreciate its ability to set up Spikes and resist Water. Teammates that enjoy having Spikes weakening their checks, including Reuniclus, Alakazam, and Latios, enjoy Ferrothorn's presence. These Pokemon, in return, repel Fighting-types that threaten Ferrothorn. Because sand teams don't come with a Water-type by default, pairing Ferrothorn with one like Rotom-W or Jellicent is important so that it has a teammate that can take Fire-type attacks from the occasional Heatran and Ice-type attacks from Mamoswine; Rotom-W is immune to Spikes and Ground-type attacks, so it can deal with opposing hazard stacking teams and Ground-types, while Jellicent's Ghost typing makes it superior against Keldeo and spinners. Dragon- and Ground-types also fit well on sand teams, and their synergy with Ferrothorn on sand is as effective as it is on rain. Many Ground-types like Landorus-T and Gliscor can set up Stealth Rock, freeing up Ferrothorn from having to use the move and giving it more moveslot flexibility. Having a second Steel-type, while helpful, is not as important on sand because Tyranitar can remove Latios to relieve Ferrothorn of some of its defensive duties.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/tbolt.555379/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/cow.654013/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/magialice.624724/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/autumn.384270/
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