[OVERVIEW]
Frillish is a strong defensive wall with reliable recovery and useful utility moves, allowing it to stop a variety of strong offensive threats such as Ponyta, Drilbur, and Galarian Ponyta. Will-O-Wisp and Hex form a deadly combination, dealing significant damage and crippling physical threats such as Galarian Farfetch'd. Its Ghost typing also allows it to spinblock effectively while threatening common Rapid Spin users such as Drilbur. However, its effectiveness is limited by the prevalence of Knock Off, meaning Dark-types can easily force it out. Additionally, this can create setup opportunities for Dark-types such as Vullaby and Scraggy.
[SET]
name: Special Tank
move 1: Hex
move 2: Will-O-Wisp
move 3: Recover
move 4: Scald / Taunt
item: Eviolite
ability: Cursed Body
nature: Timid
evs: 76 HP / 196 Def / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hex is used to deal significant damage to a target with a status condition. Will-O-Wisp burns the target, reducing damage from physical attacks while boosting the power of Hex. Recover is used for reliable recovery, increasing Frillish's longevity. Scald allows Frillish to reliably check important threats such as Ponyta and Onix and also has the chance to power up Hex if a Pokemon that resists Water gets burned. It can also help to chip and potentially burn common switch-ins to Frillish, such as Vullaby and Pawniard. Taunt can be used to prevent recovery on defensive Pokemon such as Shellos and Mareanie or prevent slow Pokemon such as Dewpider and Ferroseed from setting up entry hazards.
Set Details
========
The HP and Defense investment enables Frillish to take two Earthquakes from Drilbur and Onix. The Speed investment allows it to outspeed Zigzagoon, Adamant Corphish, defensive Mudbray, and other physical threats. It can also take the opportunity to burn opposing Pokemon with Will-O-Wisp before taking damage. Eviolite is used as the item to further increase bulk, allowing Frillish to reach 21 Defense and 22 Special Defense. Cursed Body is the preferred ability and can potentially disable a super effective attack. Although it's unreliable due to its activation chance, most foes only run one super effective move against Frillish, meaning it can keep using Recover until Cursed Body activates in tight situations. An alternative spread of 236 HP / 116 Def / 76 SpA / 36 Spe with a Bold nature can be run for increased bulk while outspeeding bulky Timburr.
Usage Tips
========
Frillish should be brought in on weak defensive Pokemon and special attackers such as Mareanie and Shellos. It is able to counter Normal-, Water-, Fire-, and Ground-types, notably Ponyta and Onix. Frillish can come in on such Pokemon, take minimal damage, and deal heavy damage back with its STAB attacks. Be careful when facing Pokemon with access to Knock Off, such as Timburr and Vullaby, as Frillish should try to keep its item. However, most offensive threats rely on a single move such as Knock Off to hit Frillish, allowing Frillish to keep using Recover until Cursed Body activates. Be wary of Guts Timburr, since burning it with Will-O-Wisp or Scald will give it a free Attack boost. It is important to balance spreading burns with keeping Frillish healthy so that it can continue to switch into Pokemon throughout the game.
Team Options
========
Ferroseed and Oddish make good teammates because they counter both Electric- and Grass-types well. Oddish makes a particularly good partner by removing Toxic Spikes when switching in, as do other Poison-types such as Mareanie. A good Knock Off absorber such as Spritzee makes a good partner for Frillish because of Frillish's susceptibility to the move. Timburr and Spritzee make good teammates because they are able to check Dark-types. Entry hazard setters such as Dewpider, Dwebble and Ferroseed benefit from Frillish's ability to spinblock effectively. Toxic Spikes users such as Mareanie enable Frillish to do more damage with Hex when opposing Pokemon are poisoned. Ponyta can check Dark-types by burning them and is able to force out Grass-types. Entry hazard removers such as Timburr and Vullaby are appreciated because Frillish struggles to avoid a lot of 2HKOs if Stealth Rock is present.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A Choice Scarf set can be run with Water Spout and Trick to form a dangerous surprise set, but it struggles to break through Frillish's checks due to its mediocre Special Attack. Shadow Ball can be run instead of Hex for more consistent damage output. However, there isn't a huge difference in damage output between unboosted Hex and Shadow Ball. Psychic can be used to OHKO Croagunk, which can otherwise switch freely into Scald. Ice Beam is a useful coverage option for Grass-type switch-ins such as Oddish. Energy Ball or Giga Drain can be used to hit other Water-types for more damage, such as other Frillish and Corphish. Strength Sap is an alternative recovery move that also cripples the target but reduces Frillish's longevity against the common Pawniard. Water Absorb can be used over Cursed Body, but it is considered worse because Frillish takes little damage from Water-type attacks anyway.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dark-types**: Vullaby and Scraggy are able to set up on Frillish and threaten it with Knock Off. Vullaby is particularly threatening because its Nasty Plot set isn't affected by Will-O-Wisp burns, which other Dark-types tend to fear.
**Electric-types**: Chinchou and Magnemite can be threatening with their strong STAB attacks. However, Chinchou cannot OHKO Frillish with Eviolite intact, giving Frillish opportunities to scout its set, while Magnemite struggles to switch into Frillish's attacks.
**Grass-types**: Oddish, Bulbasaur, and Ferroseed can all switch into Frillish and typically force it out. However, they are all forced out if Giga Drain is disabled by Cursed Body. Bulbasaur is particularly threatening, as it can set up Growth against Frillish.
**Status Conditions**: Poisoning Frillish through Toxic Spikes or Toxic massively reduce its longevity. If paralyzed, Frillish is unable to wait for Cursed Body to activate and is forced out.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[EnzoLapras, 381336]]
- Quality checked by: [[Stoward, 420389], [Fiend, 208173], [Corporal Levi, 55063]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216], [Estronic, 240732]]
Frillish is a strong defensive wall with reliable recovery and useful utility moves, allowing it to stop a variety of strong offensive threats such as Ponyta, Drilbur, and Galarian Ponyta. Will-O-Wisp and Hex form a deadly combination, dealing significant damage and crippling physical threats such as Galarian Farfetch'd. Its Ghost typing also allows it to spinblock effectively while threatening common Rapid Spin users such as Drilbur. However, its effectiveness is limited by the prevalence of Knock Off, meaning Dark-types can easily force it out. Additionally, this can create setup opportunities for Dark-types such as Vullaby and Scraggy.
[SET]
name: Special Tank
move 1: Hex
move 2: Will-O-Wisp
move 3: Recover
move 4: Scald / Taunt
item: Eviolite
ability: Cursed Body
nature: Timid
evs: 76 HP / 196 Def / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hex is used to deal significant damage to a target with a status condition. Will-O-Wisp burns the target, reducing damage from physical attacks while boosting the power of Hex. Recover is used for reliable recovery, increasing Frillish's longevity. Scald allows Frillish to reliably check important threats such as Ponyta and Onix and also has the chance to power up Hex if a Pokemon that resists Water gets burned. It can also help to chip and potentially burn common switch-ins to Frillish, such as Vullaby and Pawniard. Taunt can be used to prevent recovery on defensive Pokemon such as Shellos and Mareanie or prevent slow Pokemon such as Dewpider and Ferroseed from setting up entry hazards.
Set Details
========
The HP and Defense investment enables Frillish to take two Earthquakes from Drilbur and Onix. The Speed investment allows it to outspeed Zigzagoon, Adamant Corphish, defensive Mudbray, and other physical threats. It can also take the opportunity to burn opposing Pokemon with Will-O-Wisp before taking damage. Eviolite is used as the item to further increase bulk, allowing Frillish to reach 21 Defense and 22 Special Defense. Cursed Body is the preferred ability and can potentially disable a super effective attack. Although it's unreliable due to its activation chance, most foes only run one super effective move against Frillish, meaning it can keep using Recover until Cursed Body activates in tight situations. An alternative spread of 236 HP / 116 Def / 76 SpA / 36 Spe with a Bold nature can be run for increased bulk while outspeeding bulky Timburr.
Usage Tips
========
Frillish should be brought in on weak defensive Pokemon and special attackers such as Mareanie and Shellos. It is able to counter Normal-, Water-, Fire-, and Ground-types, notably Ponyta and Onix. Frillish can come in on such Pokemon, take minimal damage, and deal heavy damage back with its STAB attacks. Be careful when facing Pokemon with access to Knock Off, such as Timburr and Vullaby, as Frillish should try to keep its item. However, most offensive threats rely on a single move such as Knock Off to hit Frillish, allowing Frillish to keep using Recover until Cursed Body activates. Be wary of Guts Timburr, since burning it with Will-O-Wisp or Scald will give it a free Attack boost. It is important to balance spreading burns with keeping Frillish healthy so that it can continue to switch into Pokemon throughout the game.
Team Options
========
Ferroseed and Oddish make good teammates because they counter both Electric- and Grass-types well. Oddish makes a particularly good partner by removing Toxic Spikes when switching in, as do other Poison-types such as Mareanie. A good Knock Off absorber such as Spritzee makes a good partner for Frillish because of Frillish's susceptibility to the move. Timburr and Spritzee make good teammates because they are able to check Dark-types. Entry hazard setters such as Dewpider, Dwebble and Ferroseed benefit from Frillish's ability to spinblock effectively. Toxic Spikes users such as Mareanie enable Frillish to do more damage with Hex when opposing Pokemon are poisoned. Ponyta can check Dark-types by burning them and is able to force out Grass-types. Entry hazard removers such as Timburr and Vullaby are appreciated because Frillish struggles to avoid a lot of 2HKOs if Stealth Rock is present.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A Choice Scarf set can be run with Water Spout and Trick to form a dangerous surprise set, but it struggles to break through Frillish's checks due to its mediocre Special Attack. Shadow Ball can be run instead of Hex for more consistent damage output. However, there isn't a huge difference in damage output between unboosted Hex and Shadow Ball. Psychic can be used to OHKO Croagunk, which can otherwise switch freely into Scald. Ice Beam is a useful coverage option for Grass-type switch-ins such as Oddish. Energy Ball or Giga Drain can be used to hit other Water-types for more damage, such as other Frillish and Corphish. Strength Sap is an alternative recovery move that also cripples the target but reduces Frillish's longevity against the common Pawniard. Water Absorb can be used over Cursed Body, but it is considered worse because Frillish takes little damage from Water-type attacks anyway.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dark-types**: Vullaby and Scraggy are able to set up on Frillish and threaten it with Knock Off. Vullaby is particularly threatening because its Nasty Plot set isn't affected by Will-O-Wisp burns, which other Dark-types tend to fear.
**Electric-types**: Chinchou and Magnemite can be threatening with their strong STAB attacks. However, Chinchou cannot OHKO Frillish with Eviolite intact, giving Frillish opportunities to scout its set, while Magnemite struggles to switch into Frillish's attacks.
**Grass-types**: Oddish, Bulbasaur, and Ferroseed can all switch into Frillish and typically force it out. However, they are all forced out if Giga Drain is disabled by Cursed Body. Bulbasaur is particularly threatening, as it can set up Growth against Frillish.
**Status Conditions**: Poisoning Frillish through Toxic Spikes or Toxic massively reduce its longevity. If paralyzed, Frillish is unable to wait for Cursed Body to activate and is forced out.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[EnzoLapras, 381336]]
- Quality checked by: [[Stoward, 420389], [Fiend, 208173], [Corporal Levi, 55063]]
- Grammar checked by: [[The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216], [Estronic, 240732]]
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