[OVERVIEW]
Moltres is GSC OU's most consistent Sunny Day attacker. It has the highest Special Attack out of any Fire-type, and with the help of Charcoal and Sunny Day, it has extremely high odds to 2HKO Snorlax after Spikes. Moltres's defensive stats are also quite solid, and its typing enables it to answer common threats like Exeggutor, Steelix, Forretress, and Heracross. In addition, it makes for a decent sleep absorber, and its Spikes immunity can be quite useful for longer games. Moltres best matches up versus offensive teams that lack Fire-resistant Pokemon, in particular when Steelix is used as the only Normal-type check with a Zapdos / Snorlax / Cloyster core; unless Vaporeon or Charizard is used in one of the slots, the other two Pokemon likely do not resist Fire. Some examples of those Pokemon are Nidoking, Jynx, Exeggutor, Machamp, and Gengar. In addition, Moltres can wreak havoc versus traditional defensive teams that replace Suicune with Umbreon.
Despite Moltres's potential to 2HKO Snorlax, it's still not favored in a one-on-one matchup; its best chances are if sun has already been set up, but Snorlax can use Self-Destruct to take Moltres down with it. Usually Moltres's only attack is Fire Blast, so Water- and Rock-types like Vaporeon, Suicune, Tyranitar, Rhydon, and Golem will often stop it in its tracks. Moltres also struggles versus Zapdos and Raikou if they switch in safely, as they outspeed it and threaten it with their powerful Electric-type attacks.
[SET]
name: RestTalk
move 1: Rest
move 2: Sleep Talk
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Sunny Day
item: Charcoal
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
RestTalk is Moltres's most consistent moveset because of its overall longevity and ability to compensate for Sunny Day's and Fire Blast's low PP. The combination of Rest and Sleep Talk enables Moltres to check Pokemon like Exeggutor and Jynx, which would otherwise be a bit difficult to switch into. In addition, thanks to Sunny Day reducing Thunder's accuracy, Moltres can also absorb Nidoking's Lovely Kiss relatively well. If Nidoking tries to use Thief, it ends up stealing Charcoal, which significantly reduces Thief's effectiveness. Sunny Day significantly increases Moltres's damage output, which enables it to OHKO Cloyster and Gengar after Spikes, as well as 2HKO several Pokemon such as Machamp, Zapdos, and Raikou. With Charcoal, it even has high odds to 2HKO Snorlax after Spikes, which is significant in that no other Sunny Day attacker is capable of accomplishing that feat.
Although it may seem inconvenient for Moltres to use Sunny Day with Sleep Talk, this can be useful to restart sun's timer and also make it more difficult for Pokemon like Zapdos, Raikou, Snorlax, and Nidoking to land Thunder. While Moltres is awake, try to conserve Fire Blast's PP carefully, as 8 PP is extremely low and may be difficult to manage in a long game. It may also be best to keep Moltres hidden as long as possible, because compared to other Pokemon, Moltres can become much easier to manage once it has been revealed.
Team Options
=========
For Moltres to successfully sweep a team, it needs quite a bit of support. Sleep inducers like Snorlax, Exeggutor, and Gengar make it easier to switch Moltres in and set up. As an added bonus, all of these Pokemon can use Explosion or Self-Destruct to potentially remove a Moltres check like Vaporeon, Suicune, Zapdos, or Raikou. Cloyster is an almost mandatory teammate, as Spikes are what enable Moltres to have high odds at 2HKOing Snorlax. In addition, its Explosion is also very useful, especially for removing Moltres checks like Starmie, Vaporeon, and Suicune. Steelix's Steel / Ground typing allows it to support Moltres with its Electric immunity and Normal and Rock resistances. It can often use a combination of Curse, Roar, and Explosion to force in and KO Zapdos, assisting in Moltres's eventual sweep. Other Ground-types like Nidoking and Golem can be useful to combat Electric-types; Nidoking can use Lovely Kiss, and Golem can use Explosion to disrupt typical Moltres checks. Your own Raikou can support Moltres by shrugging off Electric-type attacks from Zapdos, using Roar to phaze the opposing team and identify Moltres checks early, and pressuring Water-types like Suicune and Vaporeon. Raikou can potentially use Hidden Power Water to lure in and remove Rock / Ground types like Rhydon and Golem, but both should be worn down slightly before using the move, as it is not a guaranteed OHKO. Also, using Thunderbolt over Thunder on Raikou should be considered so as to not be messed up by your own sun. Moltres can directly support Tyranitar by using Sunny Day to weaken Water-type attacks and enable it to take on Electric-types with slightly more ease. In return, Tyranitar can switch into Starmie and threaten it with Pursuit and Crunch, which frees up Moltres and Cloyster significantly.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Flamethrower can be used over Fire Blast for more PP and higher accuracy, but this is generally not worth it, as the additional power is extremely important and Moltres can somewhat compensate for Fire Blast's low PP with Rest and Sleep Talk. Leftovers can also be used over Charcoal for increased longevity at the expense of more power. Hidden Power Grass gives Moltres better coverage, enabling it to turn the tide against Rhydon, Golem, and Quagsire; however, the move is far too weak to make a significant difference versus Vaporeon, Starmie, and Suicune. Whirlwind is a decent option, since Moltres is able to force many switches with its offensive presence. Sleep Talk can be used without Rest on more offensive sets so Moltres can still function as a sleep absorber, but its longevity will be significantly hampered. Toxic could be used to cripple Rock-types like Rhydon, Golem, and Tyranitar, but it's quite difficult to find room for this move. Substitute is an interesting option alongside moves like Sunny Day and Toxic, which can potentially enable Moltres to more safely combat Electric-types like Zapdos and Raikou. Overall, however, Moltres has an extremely difficult time giving up any of its main moves and will lose a large portion of its effectiveness if any of them is replaced.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Water-types like Vaporeon, Quagsire, Starmie, and Suicune can completely shut down Moltres, as they can shrug off Fire Blast, even in the sun, and hit Moltres with super effective Water-type attacks or, in Quagsire's case, Hidden Power Rock.
**Rock-types**: Tyranitar, Golem, and Rhydon can check Moltres, as Fire Blast is usually its only attacking move. While Tyranitar and Rhydon can fire back with a 4x super effective Rock Slide, Golem typically needs to use Explosion to remove Moltres as it often forgoes Rock-type coverage.
**Electric-types**: Zapdos and Raikou both outspeed Moltres and can threaten it with powerful STAB-boosted Electric-type attacks. While Moltres can deal massive damage back with Fire Blast, it doesn't usually want to stay in and take an attack. Moltres is able to take one Thunder, however, so it may want to go for a KO in a pinch. If sun is up, Moltres may also want to stay in and bank on a 50% chance for Thunder to miss, which may open the gate for it to sweep.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Pokemon like Blissey and Snorlax have a lot of natural Special Defense, which enables them to check Moltres. While Blissey checks Moltres defensively by shrugging off Fire Blast, Snorlax can hit Moltres with powerful STAB-boosted Normal-type attacks like Body Slam, Double-Edge, and even Self-Destruct. Snorlax needs to be careful of a Charcoal-boosted Fire Blast in the sun, though, which has high odds to 2HKO it after damage from Spikes.
**Gengar**: Gengar outspeeds Moltres and can attack it with a super effective Electric-type attack, use Explosion to remove it, or even take Moltres down with it by using Destiny Bond. Gengar can never switch into Moltres safely, though; it needs to be very healthy to take a hit. While sun is up, Gengar should never switch into Moltres.
**Pokemon with Rock-type attacks**: Machamp and Marowak can always take a hit from full and hit Moltres with a devastating 4x super effective Rock Slide, landing a 2HKO and an OHKO respectively. Neither of these Pokemon can switch into Moltres safely, however, because they risk being 2HKOed by Fire Blast.
**Fire-types**: Charizard is a great Moltres check because it can switch into Fire Blast safely from full, and it can outspeed and 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Entei resists any of Moltres's attacks, but it can't do too much damage back to Moltres. Still, it can be used in hopes that Moltres wastes its Fire Blast PP on it. Moltres can check itself, but that often results in a PP war.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Excal, 456373]]
- Quality checked by: [[BKC, 52012], [Earthworm, 15210]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
Moltres is GSC OU's most consistent Sunny Day attacker. It has the highest Special Attack out of any Fire-type, and with the help of Charcoal and Sunny Day, it has extremely high odds to 2HKO Snorlax after Spikes. Moltres's defensive stats are also quite solid, and its typing enables it to answer common threats like Exeggutor, Steelix, Forretress, and Heracross. In addition, it makes for a decent sleep absorber, and its Spikes immunity can be quite useful for longer games. Moltres best matches up versus offensive teams that lack Fire-resistant Pokemon, in particular when Steelix is used as the only Normal-type check with a Zapdos / Snorlax / Cloyster core; unless Vaporeon or Charizard is used in one of the slots, the other two Pokemon likely do not resist Fire. Some examples of those Pokemon are Nidoking, Jynx, Exeggutor, Machamp, and Gengar. In addition, Moltres can wreak havoc versus traditional defensive teams that replace Suicune with Umbreon.
Despite Moltres's potential to 2HKO Snorlax, it's still not favored in a one-on-one matchup; its best chances are if sun has already been set up, but Snorlax can use Self-Destruct to take Moltres down with it. Usually Moltres's only attack is Fire Blast, so Water- and Rock-types like Vaporeon, Suicune, Tyranitar, Rhydon, and Golem will often stop it in its tracks. Moltres also struggles versus Zapdos and Raikou if they switch in safely, as they outspeed it and threaten it with their powerful Electric-type attacks.
[SET]
name: RestTalk
move 1: Rest
move 2: Sleep Talk
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Sunny Day
item: Charcoal
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
RestTalk is Moltres's most consistent moveset because of its overall longevity and ability to compensate for Sunny Day's and Fire Blast's low PP. The combination of Rest and Sleep Talk enables Moltres to check Pokemon like Exeggutor and Jynx, which would otherwise be a bit difficult to switch into. In addition, thanks to Sunny Day reducing Thunder's accuracy, Moltres can also absorb Nidoking's Lovely Kiss relatively well. If Nidoking tries to use Thief, it ends up stealing Charcoal, which significantly reduces Thief's effectiveness. Sunny Day significantly increases Moltres's damage output, which enables it to OHKO Cloyster and Gengar after Spikes, as well as 2HKO several Pokemon such as Machamp, Zapdos, and Raikou. With Charcoal, it even has high odds to 2HKO Snorlax after Spikes, which is significant in that no other Sunny Day attacker is capable of accomplishing that feat.
Although it may seem inconvenient for Moltres to use Sunny Day with Sleep Talk, this can be useful to restart sun's timer and also make it more difficult for Pokemon like Zapdos, Raikou, Snorlax, and Nidoking to land Thunder. While Moltres is awake, try to conserve Fire Blast's PP carefully, as 8 PP is extremely low and may be difficult to manage in a long game. It may also be best to keep Moltres hidden as long as possible, because compared to other Pokemon, Moltres can become much easier to manage once it has been revealed.
Team Options
=========
For Moltres to successfully sweep a team, it needs quite a bit of support. Sleep inducers like Snorlax, Exeggutor, and Gengar make it easier to switch Moltres in and set up. As an added bonus, all of these Pokemon can use Explosion or Self-Destruct to potentially remove a Moltres check like Vaporeon, Suicune, Zapdos, or Raikou. Cloyster is an almost mandatory teammate, as Spikes are what enable Moltres to have high odds at 2HKOing Snorlax. In addition, its Explosion is also very useful, especially for removing Moltres checks like Starmie, Vaporeon, and Suicune. Steelix's Steel / Ground typing allows it to support Moltres with its Electric immunity and Normal and Rock resistances. It can often use a combination of Curse, Roar, and Explosion to force in and KO Zapdos, assisting in Moltres's eventual sweep. Other Ground-types like Nidoking and Golem can be useful to combat Electric-types; Nidoking can use Lovely Kiss, and Golem can use Explosion to disrupt typical Moltres checks. Your own Raikou can support Moltres by shrugging off Electric-type attacks from Zapdos, using Roar to phaze the opposing team and identify Moltres checks early, and pressuring Water-types like Suicune and Vaporeon. Raikou can potentially use Hidden Power Water to lure in and remove Rock / Ground types like Rhydon and Golem, but both should be worn down slightly before using the move, as it is not a guaranteed OHKO. Also, using Thunderbolt over Thunder on Raikou should be considered so as to not be messed up by your own sun. Moltres can directly support Tyranitar by using Sunny Day to weaken Water-type attacks and enable it to take on Electric-types with slightly more ease. In return, Tyranitar can switch into Starmie and threaten it with Pursuit and Crunch, which frees up Moltres and Cloyster significantly.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Flamethrower can be used over Fire Blast for more PP and higher accuracy, but this is generally not worth it, as the additional power is extremely important and Moltres can somewhat compensate for Fire Blast's low PP with Rest and Sleep Talk. Leftovers can also be used over Charcoal for increased longevity at the expense of more power. Hidden Power Grass gives Moltres better coverage, enabling it to turn the tide against Rhydon, Golem, and Quagsire; however, the move is far too weak to make a significant difference versus Vaporeon, Starmie, and Suicune. Whirlwind is a decent option, since Moltres is able to force many switches with its offensive presence. Sleep Talk can be used without Rest on more offensive sets so Moltres can still function as a sleep absorber, but its longevity will be significantly hampered. Toxic could be used to cripple Rock-types like Rhydon, Golem, and Tyranitar, but it's quite difficult to find room for this move. Substitute is an interesting option alongside moves like Sunny Day and Toxic, which can potentially enable Moltres to more safely combat Electric-types like Zapdos and Raikou. Overall, however, Moltres has an extremely difficult time giving up any of its main moves and will lose a large portion of its effectiveness if any of them is replaced.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Water-types like Vaporeon, Quagsire, Starmie, and Suicune can completely shut down Moltres, as they can shrug off Fire Blast, even in the sun, and hit Moltres with super effective Water-type attacks or, in Quagsire's case, Hidden Power Rock.
**Rock-types**: Tyranitar, Golem, and Rhydon can check Moltres, as Fire Blast is usually its only attacking move. While Tyranitar and Rhydon can fire back with a 4x super effective Rock Slide, Golem typically needs to use Explosion to remove Moltres as it often forgoes Rock-type coverage.
**Electric-types**: Zapdos and Raikou both outspeed Moltres and can threaten it with powerful STAB-boosted Electric-type attacks. While Moltres can deal massive damage back with Fire Blast, it doesn't usually want to stay in and take an attack. Moltres is able to take one Thunder, however, so it may want to go for a KO in a pinch. If sun is up, Moltres may also want to stay in and bank on a 50% chance for Thunder to miss, which may open the gate for it to sweep.
**Specially Defensive Pokemon**: Pokemon like Blissey and Snorlax have a lot of natural Special Defense, which enables them to check Moltres. While Blissey checks Moltres defensively by shrugging off Fire Blast, Snorlax can hit Moltres with powerful STAB-boosted Normal-type attacks like Body Slam, Double-Edge, and even Self-Destruct. Snorlax needs to be careful of a Charcoal-boosted Fire Blast in the sun, though, which has high odds to 2HKO it after damage from Spikes.
**Gengar**: Gengar outspeeds Moltres and can attack it with a super effective Electric-type attack, use Explosion to remove it, or even take Moltres down with it by using Destiny Bond. Gengar can never switch into Moltres safely, though; it needs to be very healthy to take a hit. While sun is up, Gengar should never switch into Moltres.
**Pokemon with Rock-type attacks**: Machamp and Marowak can always take a hit from full and hit Moltres with a devastating 4x super effective Rock Slide, landing a 2HKO and an OHKO respectively. Neither of these Pokemon can switch into Moltres safely, however, because they risk being 2HKOed by Fire Blast.
**Fire-types**: Charizard is a great Moltres check because it can switch into Fire Blast safely from full, and it can outspeed and 2HKO Moltres with Rock Slide. Entei resists any of Moltres's attacks, but it can't do too much damage back to Moltres. Still, it can be used in hopes that Moltres wastes its Fire Blast PP on it. Moltres can check itself, but that often results in a PP war.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Excal, 456373]]
- Quality checked by: [[BKC, 52012], [Earthworm, 15210]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Rabia, 336073], [The Dutch Plumberjack, 232216]]
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