[OVERVIEW]
Volcanion's unique typing and decent well-rounded stats give it a niche in the tier, with its defensive utility including forcing out Fire-types like Volcarona and Heatran and proving useful against Water-types like Ash-Greninja, Tapu Fini, and Manaphy. Its ability also provides free entry and recovery from Scald from the likes of Toxapex and Slowbro. Its signature move, Steam Eruption, is like Scald on steroids, and the burn chance often makes Volcanion quite unpleasant to switch into even for solid defensive answers. However, it doesn't have the offensive prowess to justify its low Speed, so it finds itself walled by common defensive Pokemon like Mega Latias, Toxapex, and especially Chansey. It has some incredibly frustrating weaknesses in Rock, Ground, and Electric, the first one punishing Volcanion with the omnipresent Stealth Rock and the last two being common offensive types. It also has no reliable recovery, so its defensive value comes from immediate bulk rather than longevity.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Steam Eruption
move 2: Flamethrower
move 3: Sludge Bomb / Superpower / Earth Power
move 4: Explosion
item: Assault Vest
ability: Water Absorb
nature: Relaxed
evs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 96 Def / 28 SpA / 128 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=========
Steam Eruption is a very spammable move, being powerful in its own right and threatening out Fire-types like Volcarona while also bugging answers like Mega Latias and Toxapex with burn. Flamethrower punishes Steel-types like Magearna, Mega Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Celesteela, which are generally unable to hit Volcanion back meaningfully. Sludge Bomb hits Tapu Fini, an otherwise check that is unaffected by Steam Eruption's burn chance, and is an even better option against Mega Latias and Clefable. Explosion is a big neutral hit capable of KOing Volcanion's checks and counters and at lower percentages, and it makes sure that Volcanion will always find value even in the face of hard counters like Chansey, allowing it to cleanly trade itself off late-game when facing offensive teams. Superpower can be used to keep a little bit of pressure against Chansey switching in without committing to Explosion, and it is additionally useful against Greninja and Hydreigon. Earth Power can be used to threaten Heatran harder and chip away at incoming Toxapex.
Set Details
========
The physical bulk investment allows Volcanion to survive Fake Out followed by High Jump Kick from Mega Medicham. 28 Special Attack EVs ensure that Volcanion OHKOes uninvested Mega Pinsir with Flamethrower. 128 Speed EVs with a Relaxed nature allow Volcanion to outspeed uninvested Mega Scizor, though the Speed EVs can be dropped to 4 instead if this benchmark isn't required, instead letting Volcanion outspeed Sassy Celesteela and putting the rest of the EVs into its attacking stats.
Usage Tips
========
Volcanion gets a lot of mileage out of its resistances to Fire, Fairy, and Ice, helpful against Fire-types like Volcarona and Heatran, Fairy-types like Magearna and Tapu Fini, and Choice-locked Weavile's Icicle Crash and Protean Greninja's Ice Beam. Its immunity to Water is wonderful to have against Manaphy and switching into Ash-Greninja's Hydro Pump, with its very presence discouraging the use of their Water-type attacks; however, Volcanion does not want to be a team's primary check to Greninja, but rather a secondary answer to its Water-type STAB attacks that defensively complements other checks to it like Ferrothorn and Magearna. Entry hazard control is a priority due to Volcanion's Stealth Rock weakness being exacerbated by the complete lack of recovery on this set, as unnecessary damage takes away from its ability to face off with the likes of Choice Scarf Kartana, Choice Specs Greninja, and Mega Alakazam one-on-one.
Team Options
========
Volcanion's defensive presence is built for offense teams that plan to see the game out quickly with offensive pressure, meaning that its lack of longevity isn't as much of a problem. Tapu Bulu brings a useful resistance to Dark, and its Grassy Terrain greatly assists Volcanion with passive recovery, as well as helping it take Earthquake better. Mega Diancie is a great teammate, as it not only draws in Steel-types and can scout Ash-Greninja's attack with Protect, but it has the obvious upside of Magic Bounce to make it more difficult for Stealth Rock setters. Additionally, Defoggers like Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Tornadus-T are necessary when using Volcanion due to how weak it is to every hazard. The aforementioned Tornadus-T can add to this with Taunt, providing further counterplay against hazards. Pivoting support from the likes of Landorus-T and Tapu Koko is a natural addition to offensive structures, and they can bring in Volcanion unscathed and in prime position to make trades.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
On bulky offense and balance teams, Volcanion can run a defensive Leftovers set with a spread of 248 HP / 176 Def / 40 SpD / 44 Spe and a Bold nature, making use of Roar to phaze setup Pokemon like Volcarona and Clefable and rack up entry hazard damage, with Roar being especially useful against hyper offense teams by dragging in the hazard-weak Mega Charizard X and Unburden Hawlucha at inopportune times, and Protect to more consistently recoup health. 40 Special Defense EVs allow Volcanion to survive +1 Thunderbolt from non-Modest Magearna, and the Speed EVs allow Volcanion to hit the same benchmark of outspeeding uninvested Mega Scizor, leaving the remaining EVs to be dumped into physical bulk to better handle the likes of Hawlucha and Mega Medicham in a pinch. Volcanion can make use of Substitute to dodge status attempts from the likes of Toxapex and Clefable and ease prediction against offense teams, though it has a difficult time cleanly breaking through the likes of Chansey and Mega Latias.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Seismitoad and Gastrodon are able to completely neutralize Volcanion's Steam Eruption and threaten it out with their Ground-type STAB attacks or status moves. Rotom-W is able to take Volcanion's attacks and chip it down with Volt Switch or, even worse, Gigavolt Havoc from offensive sets. Toxapex is able to wall Volcanion for the most part, able to threaten it with Toxic, lay down infuriating Toxic Spikes, and even remove its item with Knock Off. Tapu Fini is able to defensively handle non-Sludge Bomb sets, threatening to cut Volcanion down to size with Nature's Madness or remove its item with Knock Off, though it's unable to threaten Volcanion back if it lacks both of these moves.
**Dragon-types**: Mega Latias and Mega Latios are able to handle Volcanion's dual STAB combination and either set up on it with Calm Mind or whittle it down with attacks while staying healthy, though Sludge Bomb hits neutrally and can poison them as they come in. Hydreigon is another good answer to Volcanion, shrugging off its attacks and threatening it back with its own Earth Power while staying healthy with Roost. Kommo-o is another Pokemon unaffected by Volcanion's attacking power, even being able to use Bulletproof to block Sludge Bomb, though it hates having to risk burn from Steam Eruption, throttling its capability offensively and dooming the longevity of Leftovers sets.
**Electric-type Pokemon and Coverage Moves**: Though none switch in directly, Electric-types like Tapu Koko, Thundurus-T, and Zapdos can threaten Volcanion using their STAB attacks. Other users of Electric-type attacks, like Thunder Mega Latias, Thunderbolt Magearna, and Bolt Strike Victini, are something Volcanion would prefer to avoid, the latter two being Pokemon that Volcanion would otherwise wall.
**Passive Damage**: As a grounded Rock-weak Pokemon, Volcanion does not have it easy in the realm of entry hazards. Spikes are frustrating, Stealth Rock is horrible, and Toxic Spikes are completely ruinous, meaning that Volcanion requires strong hazard control lest it get chipped down quickly. Knock Off is generally annoying, but even more so to Leftovers variants that can't otherwise heal. Toxic from the likes of Toxapex, Slowbro, and Gastrodon completely is devastating for Volcanion and prevents it from doing its job.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/zinnias.569291/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/diyusi.519886/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/adorluigi.528364/
Volcanion's unique typing and decent well-rounded stats give it a niche in the tier, with its defensive utility including forcing out Fire-types like Volcarona and Heatran and proving useful against Water-types like Ash-Greninja, Tapu Fini, and Manaphy. Its ability also provides free entry and recovery from Scald from the likes of Toxapex and Slowbro. Its signature move, Steam Eruption, is like Scald on steroids, and the burn chance often makes Volcanion quite unpleasant to switch into even for solid defensive answers. However, it doesn't have the offensive prowess to justify its low Speed, so it finds itself walled by common defensive Pokemon like Mega Latias, Toxapex, and especially Chansey. It has some incredibly frustrating weaknesses in Rock, Ground, and Electric, the first one punishing Volcanion with the omnipresent Stealth Rock and the last two being common offensive types. It also has no reliable recovery, so its defensive value comes from immediate bulk rather than longevity.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Steam Eruption
move 2: Flamethrower
move 3: Sludge Bomb / Superpower / Earth Power
move 4: Explosion
item: Assault Vest
ability: Water Absorb
nature: Relaxed
evs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 96 Def / 28 SpA / 128 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=========
Steam Eruption is a very spammable move, being powerful in its own right and threatening out Fire-types like Volcarona while also bugging answers like Mega Latias and Toxapex with burn. Flamethrower punishes Steel-types like Magearna, Mega Scizor, Ferrothorn, and Celesteela, which are generally unable to hit Volcanion back meaningfully. Sludge Bomb hits Tapu Fini, an otherwise check that is unaffected by Steam Eruption's burn chance, and is an even better option against Mega Latias and Clefable. Explosion is a big neutral hit capable of KOing Volcanion's checks and counters and at lower percentages, and it makes sure that Volcanion will always find value even in the face of hard counters like Chansey, allowing it to cleanly trade itself off late-game when facing offensive teams. Superpower can be used to keep a little bit of pressure against Chansey switching in without committing to Explosion, and it is additionally useful against Greninja and Hydreigon. Earth Power can be used to threaten Heatran harder and chip away at incoming Toxapex.
Set Details
========
The physical bulk investment allows Volcanion to survive Fake Out followed by High Jump Kick from Mega Medicham. 28 Special Attack EVs ensure that Volcanion OHKOes uninvested Mega Pinsir with Flamethrower. 128 Speed EVs with a Relaxed nature allow Volcanion to outspeed uninvested Mega Scizor, though the Speed EVs can be dropped to 4 instead if this benchmark isn't required, instead letting Volcanion outspeed Sassy Celesteela and putting the rest of the EVs into its attacking stats.
Usage Tips
========
Volcanion gets a lot of mileage out of its resistances to Fire, Fairy, and Ice, helpful against Fire-types like Volcarona and Heatran, Fairy-types like Magearna and Tapu Fini, and Choice-locked Weavile's Icicle Crash and Protean Greninja's Ice Beam. Its immunity to Water is wonderful to have against Manaphy and switching into Ash-Greninja's Hydro Pump, with its very presence discouraging the use of their Water-type attacks; however, Volcanion does not want to be a team's primary check to Greninja, but rather a secondary answer to its Water-type STAB attacks that defensively complements other checks to it like Ferrothorn and Magearna. Entry hazard control is a priority due to Volcanion's Stealth Rock weakness being exacerbated by the complete lack of recovery on this set, as unnecessary damage takes away from its ability to face off with the likes of Choice Scarf Kartana, Choice Specs Greninja, and Mega Alakazam one-on-one.
Team Options
========
Volcanion's defensive presence is built for offense teams that plan to see the game out quickly with offensive pressure, meaning that its lack of longevity isn't as much of a problem. Tapu Bulu brings a useful resistance to Dark, and its Grassy Terrain greatly assists Volcanion with passive recovery, as well as helping it take Earthquake better. Mega Diancie is a great teammate, as it not only draws in Steel-types and can scout Ash-Greninja's attack with Protect, but it has the obvious upside of Magic Bounce to make it more difficult for Stealth Rock setters. Additionally, Defoggers like Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Tornadus-T are necessary when using Volcanion due to how weak it is to every hazard. The aforementioned Tornadus-T can add to this with Taunt, providing further counterplay against hazards. Pivoting support from the likes of Landorus-T and Tapu Koko is a natural addition to offensive structures, and they can bring in Volcanion unscathed and in prime position to make trades.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
On bulky offense and balance teams, Volcanion can run a defensive Leftovers set with a spread of 248 HP / 176 Def / 40 SpD / 44 Spe and a Bold nature, making use of Roar to phaze setup Pokemon like Volcarona and Clefable and rack up entry hazard damage, with Roar being especially useful against hyper offense teams by dragging in the hazard-weak Mega Charizard X and Unburden Hawlucha at inopportune times, and Protect to more consistently recoup health. 40 Special Defense EVs allow Volcanion to survive +1 Thunderbolt from non-Modest Magearna, and the Speed EVs allow Volcanion to hit the same benchmark of outspeeding uninvested Mega Scizor, leaving the remaining EVs to be dumped into physical bulk to better handle the likes of Hawlucha and Mega Medicham in a pinch. Volcanion can make use of Substitute to dodge status attempts from the likes of Toxapex and Clefable and ease prediction against offense teams, though it has a difficult time cleanly breaking through the likes of Chansey and Mega Latias.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Water-types**: Seismitoad and Gastrodon are able to completely neutralize Volcanion's Steam Eruption and threaten it out with their Ground-type STAB attacks or status moves. Rotom-W is able to take Volcanion's attacks and chip it down with Volt Switch or, even worse, Gigavolt Havoc from offensive sets. Toxapex is able to wall Volcanion for the most part, able to threaten it with Toxic, lay down infuriating Toxic Spikes, and even remove its item with Knock Off. Tapu Fini is able to defensively handle non-Sludge Bomb sets, threatening to cut Volcanion down to size with Nature's Madness or remove its item with Knock Off, though it's unable to threaten Volcanion back if it lacks both of these moves.
**Dragon-types**: Mega Latias and Mega Latios are able to handle Volcanion's dual STAB combination and either set up on it with Calm Mind or whittle it down with attacks while staying healthy, though Sludge Bomb hits neutrally and can poison them as they come in. Hydreigon is another good answer to Volcanion, shrugging off its attacks and threatening it back with its own Earth Power while staying healthy with Roost. Kommo-o is another Pokemon unaffected by Volcanion's attacking power, even being able to use Bulletproof to block Sludge Bomb, though it hates having to risk burn from Steam Eruption, throttling its capability offensively and dooming the longevity of Leftovers sets.
**Electric-type Pokemon and Coverage Moves**: Though none switch in directly, Electric-types like Tapu Koko, Thundurus-T, and Zapdos can threaten Volcanion using their STAB attacks. Other users of Electric-type attacks, like Thunder Mega Latias, Thunderbolt Magearna, and Bolt Strike Victini, are something Volcanion would prefer to avoid, the latter two being Pokemon that Volcanion would otherwise wall.
**Passive Damage**: As a grounded Rock-weak Pokemon, Volcanion does not have it easy in the realm of entry hazards. Spikes are frustrating, Stealth Rock is horrible, and Toxic Spikes are completely ruinous, meaning that Volcanion requires strong hazard control lest it get chipped down quickly. Knock Off is generally annoying, but even more so to Leftovers variants that can't otherwise heal. Toxic from the likes of Toxapex, Slowbro, and Gastrodon completely is devastating for Volcanion and prevents it from doing its job.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/zinnias.569291/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/diyusi.519886/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/adorluigi.528364/
Last edited:
