Pokémon Movepool Oddities & Explanations

I just noticed neither Galarian Farfetch'd nor Sirfetch'd can learn Aerial Ace, even though they learn many slashing moves, that Kantonian Farfetch'd can learn it, and that it's based on a sword technique, considering they wield weapons.
Hurts more when Arcanine, Aggron, and Gogoat learn it. Heck it's Gogoat's evolution move. I guess it uses its horns, but compared to the Farfetch'd line, which are bird swordsman that can't learn Aerial Ace, it sticks out way more.
 
In every game from Gen 2 up to Gen 7, Charizard has learned Wing Attack by level up and in Gen 7 that was changed to it's evolution move. In Sword and Shield, they've replaced Wing Attack with the much more appropriate Air Slash as Charizard's evolution attack, and have yeeted Wing Attack off of it's level-up learn-set all together, and giving it the Metal Claw treatment of making it an Egg Move..


So how would a Charmander attack with Wing Attack?
 
... have you seen the size of their leeks? I don't think they're going to be making the quick upward then downward slash the move requires anytime soon.
I dunno, just because they're large doesn't mean it's impossible to do a fast manuever like that. Especially when it's not an up & down thrust, it's a quick down & up thrust, which his a pretty basic motion that they do all the time. For a supposed skilled swordbird that seems totally doable



Also should have gotten Sacred Sword, honestly.

I think I've stumbled upon the oddest Pokemon/move combination

The Sobble line learns Fell Stinger and I can't come up with an explanation for it.
So the dex (unsure if its mentioned in other languages) mentions it has "spy tools" like its gliding membrane and gun hand, but something left out but IS mentioned on the official website is that its tail has a hidden knife
Inteleon’s rail-thin body hides a variety of surprising tricks within it. For example, its fingertips can fire out water that has been compressed within its body—shooting it out at a speed of Mach 3—to hit opponents where they’re weakest. Inteleon also has special lenses in its eyes and a sharp knife hidden in its tail. These hidden tricks allow it to adapt to any situation!
This is presumably why it gets Fell Stinger. Though it's a missed opportunity to not give it some slashing moves as well.
 
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I've been compiling Pokémon moves so I have a few.

Finneon can learn Nature Power from TM but Lumineon can't.

Hitmontop got Drill Run via Tutor in Gen 5, lost the ability to learn it in the next two gens, then can learn it again in SwSh.

Tyrunt and Tyrantrum get Horn Drill via level, despite the fact that they hardly have anything that could be called a horn (Tyrunt has little nubs and Tyrantrum has a pointed crest that is not in a good position to spear something with) and not learning any other horn-based or rotation-based attacks.
 
That one's easy, it can't use crush because its jaw is locked into a psycho grin, and can't learn dragon claw because it isn't a dragon.
Dragon Claw sure, but Crush Claw is likely something along the lines of Perrserker's claws being tough but thin, daggerlike claws, which I dunno about you, but a dagger is not the first weapon that comes to mind when I think of crushing an opponent's defense with a slash.

Crush Claw (jp name: Break Claw): The user slashes the target with hard and sharp claws. This may also lower the target's Defense.

The names, as well as description would suggest that the move consists of slashing with.. ahem.. Big. Meaty. Claws.

The learnset of Crush Claw backs this up with almost exclusively Pokemon that fit the bill. Sandslash, Zangoose, Armaldo, Excadrill, Treecko..

Wait... Treecko?


TREECKO!?
 

Pikachu315111

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That one's easy, it can't use crush because its jaw is locked into a psycho grin, and can't learn dragon claw because it isn't a dragon.
I think when RottenInfernape said "Crush" they meant for "Crush Claw" (also you're thinking of Crunch).

And plenty of non-Dragons learn Dragon Claw, most notable probably being Chesnaught, Pangoro, and Bewear as they're based on mammals like Perrserker and they all still can (aside from Chesnaught who's not in the game) via TR47.

The learnset of Crush Claw backs this up with almost exclusively Pokemon that fit the bill. Sandslash, Zangoose, Armaldo, Excadrill, Treecko..

Wait... Treecko?

TREECKO!?
Like Charmander above getting Wing Attack, I think it gets Crush Claw comes from being the prevo of Sceptile:

(Leaf Blade via the the long leaves on its wrist, Dragon Claw by just creating energy claws made of dragon power)

Also, I think the only reason Perrserker doesn't have Crush Claw is because GF didn't think of it. Infact I'm kind of surprised Crush Claw was kept because only six Pokemon get it and they could have easily replaced them with Slash: Drilbur family, Rufflet family, and Type: Null family. Only reason to have kept it was if Zangoose was in Sword & Shield but it isn't.
 

Karxrida

Death to the Undying Savage
is a Community Contributor Alumnus
Nothing in Coalossal's design really screams "Drill Run", and given that it learns both Earthquake and High Horsepower, it wouldn't really ever use it anyway.
Coalossal's evolutionary line is tied to coal mining, so it'd be on-theme for it to have Drill Run.
 
How about one of the most glaring of them... Zamazenta not learning Body Press (or any sort of Fighting STAB that is low base power or lowers defenses). It is, after all, the "Fighting Master's Shield".
Even then, why can't it learn Earthquake? That way, it could actually beat Zacian-C without being obliterated by Sacred Sword or Close Combat. The literal Sword and Shield Pokemon website states,
"When Zamazenta bashes into opponents with all its might, it’s said that the destructive force is enough to put cracks in the land and that the resulting shock wave can lay waste to hundreds of enemies"
https://swordshield.pokemon.com/en-us/pokemon-galar-region/zamazenta/
 
How about one of the most glaring of them... Zamazenta not learning Body Press (or any sort of Fighting STAB that is low base power or lowers defenses). It is, after all, the "Fighting Master's Shield".
Even then, why can't it learn Earthquake? That way, it could actually beat Zacian-C without being obliterated by Sacred Sword or Close Combat. The literal Sword and Shield Pokemon website states,
"When Zamazenta bashes into opponents with all its might, it’s said that the destructive force is enough to put cracks in the land and that the resulting shock wave can lay waste to hundreds of enemies"
https://swordshield.pokemon.com/en-us/pokemon-galar-region/zamazenta/
Zamazenta's movepool lacks any real ground coverage now that I look at it. It has...Dig. Which is probably because it's a dog.
You'd figure something like Bulldoze, a fairly common move on heavy and "bulky" pokemon, would be on here. I could see the arguments for Drill Run & High Horsepower, too.
 
Kyurem, and it's alternate forms, have now been through 4 generations. 4 generations of move pool revisions, move tutors and more. Base Kyurem is known for having 130 special attack AND attack. Black Kyurem has an absolutely monstrous 170 base attack.



Kyurem still cannot learn:
-Ice Punch
-Icicle Crash
-Ice Shard
-Avalanche
-Ice Fang

SWSH at least deemed it worthy enough to get Icicle Spear but I really just do not understand why they refuse to give thsi thing any of the useful ice moves. Icicle Crash & Ice Shard in particular should be slam dunks. Kyurem's banned from all relevant play anyway, it's a legendary with purposely crazy stats, give it the physical moves it deserves.
 

Jerry the great

Banned deucer.
I have some good ones.

Doduo, a flightless bird, can use fly.

Litten, an innocent cute looking cat, can learn scary face.

Growlithe, who is a dog and has growl in its name, cannot learn growl.

Edit: Well then... Turns out Litten making a scary face DOES make sense... Yeah I forgot some aspects of cats when making this post. How about Primeape having iron tail though with it having no tail? Huh? Mankey has a tail? Well just because it has a tail doesn't mean it has to have iron tail though.
 
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