Quick Links
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet added the Paradox Pokemon, and many of them are better than the originals. Iron Moth might just be among them, with Paradox Volcarona being better than either of its siblings.
A lot of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet’s Paradox Pokemon are prototypical “special sweepers.” Iron Bundle and Flutter Mane are both fast special attackers, but they aren’t alone as Iron Moth also fits into that mold. Iron Moth can still differentiate itself from its fellow Paradox Pokemon with the right build, with these options being the best for ranked singles and doubles battles.
Best Iron Moth Build for Ranked Singles
Iron Moth’s high attack stats and speed alongside its double weakness to ground-type attacks makes it a prototypical Choice Scarf user. Choice Scarf’s speed boost allows it to more reliably out-speed Pokemon and avoid getting knocked out in one shot by a fast Earthquake user. Here’s the breakdown of the build:
- Ability: Quark Drive
- Nature: Timid
- EVs: 252 Sp. Attack, 6 Sp. Defense, 252 Speed
- Tera Type: Grass
- Item: Choice Scarf
- Moves: Fiery Dance, Sludge Wave, Energy Ball, Dazzling Gleam
Maxed-out Speed EVs with a Timid nature and Choice Scarf lets it get its moves in before most meta opponents, and its great coverage lets it hit almost anything for super-effective damage. That makes it a formidable revenge killer that can fit onto many different teams.
Fiery Dance and grass Tera Type can be substituted out in favor of Overheat and a fire Tera Type. Tera fire Iron Moth with Overheat hits incredibly hard, and can threaten knockouts even against Pokemon that take neutral damage from fire.
Best Iron Moth Build for Pokemon Scarlet & Violet Ranked Doubles
Iron Moth in doubles looks quite a bit different from the Pokemon in singles. The Pokemon is better off using Booster Energy to bolster its speed while using Protect to compensate for its weakness to ground moves. Unfortunately, this necessitates a precise EV spread:
- Ability: Quark Drive
- Nature: Timid
- EVs: 118 HP, 6 Defense, 132 Sp. Attack, 4 Sp. Defense, 252 Speed
- Tera Type: Grass
- Item: Booster Energy
- Moves: Heat Wave, Energy Ball, Sludge Wave, Protect
This EV spread lets Booster Energy improve its speed while the defensive EVs let it tank a handful of staple attacks from common meta opponents. Heat Wave and Sludge Wave both hit all opposing Pokemon with STAB damage. Tera grass is preferred for helping to protect against ground-type moves with Energy Ball being the best STAB option there, but Flash Cannon, Dazzling Gleam, Psychic, and Hurricane can all work as alternative moves.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now on Nintendo Switch.
