Stantler Movesets & Competitive Sets

This set attempts to deal as much damage as possible and revenge kill weakened Pokemon with Sucker Punch, with Intimidate helping against physical attackers. Unfortunately, Stantler's lack of bulk, Speed or Swords Dance means it's completely outclassed by Stoutland, Dodrio, and Kangaskhan as an offensive Normal-type. Stantler is also fairly weak, as most of the damage it does comes from hitting foes super effectively with its coverage, with the exception of its decently powerful STAB Double-Edge. Finally, Stantler is worn down quite easily with the combination of Life Orb and Double-Edge recoil.

Moves Double-Edge can deal a lot of damage to neutral targets, although it inflicts a lot of recoil along with Life Orb. Sucker Punch allows Stantler to deal super effective damage to Ghost-types such as Dusknoir, which are immune to its STAB type, and allows it to pick off weakened foes or frail Pokemon such as Kadabra. Jump Kick deals super effective damage to Steel- and Rock-types such as Pawniard and Probopass, while Earthquake can additionally deal super effective damage to Fire-types but fails to hit Probopass with its Air Balloon intact; on top of that, Earthquake also has 100% accuracy and doesn't inflict recoil if it misses. Energy Ball allows Stantler to OHKO Golem once Sturdy is broken, while Signal Beam allows it to 2HKO Tangela. Set Details Maximum Speed investment along with a Lonely nature allows Stantler to be fast enough to outspeed Pokemon such as Stoutland and Golduck, while a Hasty nature can be used for more Speed, at the cost of losing power. A Lonely nature is chosen over Adamant to preserve Stantler's Special Attack. Maximum Attack investment along with a Life Orb allows Stantler to hit very hard with its physical attacks, while the last 4 EVs are placed into Special Attack to slightly boost Signal Beam's and Energy Ball's power. Intimidate allows Stantler to take more physical hits, but it is still unable to take them well due to its frailty. Usage Tips Stantler shouldn't be switched into strong attacks, as it is very frail; instead, it should be switched in via Volt Switch or U-turn from Pokemon such as Raichu and Ninjask. Alternatively, it can be brought in on a double switch or after a Pokemon has fainted. Stantler should be brought in against a slower Pokemon or a Pokemon that can't KO it in order to get off a free hit and wallbreak. It can be used to revenge kill weakened foes with Sucker Punch as well with the help of Intimidate. Double-Edge should be used carefully, as the recoil along with Life Orb can be detrimental. Jump Kick should be used with caution if the opponent has a Ghost-type such as Gourgeist-XL, as a miss causes Stantler to lose half of its health. Stantler can be used to lure in Normal-type spam checks such as Golem and Tangela and KO them with Energy Ball and Signal Beam, respectively, allowing other Normal-types to sweep. Team Options Stantler fits best on offensive and balanced teams for its wallbreaking capabilities. Stantler appreciates Stealth Rock support from Pokemon such as Probopass, as it can help it 2HKO Pokemon such as Pelipper. Probopass is also helpful in trapping Steel-types for Stantler as well as providing a slow Volt Switch to get Stantler in safely. Similarly, Stantler also appreciates Spikes and Toxic Spikes support from Pokemon such as Roselia. Entry hazard control from Pokemon such as Vullaby and Pelipper is helpful to prevent Stantler from being worn down easily. Mr. Mime and Clefairy are good partners for Stantler, as they resist Fighting-type attacks, which Stantler is weak to, and can provide Healing Wish support for when Stantler is weakened. Setup sweepers such as Huntail and Ninetales appreciate Stantler's wallbreaking capabilities, as it can weaken threats to the two. Other Normal-types such as Ursaring and Stoutland make for good partners for Stantler, as they can wear down each other's counters for the other to sweep. Ghost-, Psychic-, and Fairy-types such as Misdreavus, Mr. Mime, and Clefairy are good partners for Stantler for their ability to take on Fighting-types. Pursuit trappers such as Pawniard and Krokorok can trap Ghost-types such as Misdreavus and Gourgeist-XL, which can check Stantler and cripple it with Will-O-Wisp.

Double-Edge is Stantler's most powerful STAB move and is needed to hit opponents as hard as possible. However, it should be noted that the combination of Double-Edge and Life Orb recoil will kill Stantler very quickly. Sucker Punch allows Stantler to hit faster threats such as Kadabra and Gardevoir, as well as finish off faster threats that are sufficiently weakened. Earthquake is a coverage move for hitting Rock- and Steel-type Pokemon. Finally, Toxic is mostly a filler move, but its utility lies in allowing Stantler to cripple physical walls such as Misdreavus and Alomomola. A Jolly nature allows Stantler to outrun positive-natured base 80 Pokemon, such as Braviary and Gardevoir, as well as Adamant Sawk. However, an Adamant nature is also viable, as it guarantees that Stantler 2HKOes Metang with Earthquake. Intimidate is the chosen ability because it allows Stantler to survive a few weaker hits. It also allows Stantler to act as a pivot against weaker opponents, although it is still extremely frail. Sap Sipper isn't used because it leaves Stantler entirely outclassed by Sawsbuck and it is illegal with Double-Edge and Sucker Punch, which are both very important parts of Stantler's moveset. Double-Edge is the only viable STAB move because Stantler cannot do enough damage with Return; for example, it cannot 2HKO Miltank without Double-Edge. Life Orb helps Stantler nab several important KOs, such as the 2HKO against Metang. Gothorita is an excellent teammate, as it can trap and eliminate physical walls such as Regirock and Alomomola, allowing Stantler to sweep. Skuntank and Liepard are also good teammates for Pursuit trapping opposing defensive Ghost-types, especially Misdreavus, which are troublesome to Stantler. Entry hazard support is also beneficial for Stantler to enable it to grab a few extra KOs. For example, a layer of Spikes is needed to 2HKO physically defensive Seismitoad. Garbodor is a decent Spikes user that also covers up Stantler's weakness to Fighting-type moves, and it is especially useful for dealing with the troublesome Primeape. Roselia is also a decent Spikes user and defeats both Alomomola and Tangela, which are rather troublesome to Stantler. Both of these previously mentioned Spikes users can also set up Toxic Spikes, which helps wear down Alomomola and Tangela. Finally, Seismitoad is also a good partner, as it can set up Stealth Rock and help Stantler defeat Regirock.

Stantler is a good user of Gravity; Earthquake has perfect coverage alongside Return, hitting Flying-types and Levitators such as Moltres and Rotom. Return is used for reliable STAB, and Hypnosis becomes more accurate with Gravity in effect. Finally, Intimidate gives Stantler a much easier time switching into physical attackers. Donphan has a high Defense stat and threatens a lot of Pokemon with his STAB Earthquake, which becomes even more dangerous in Gravity as it can hit your own Flying-types and Levitators. Torterra is a good teammate as he can switch into Donphan with ease and threaten him with Wood Hammer, while Gravity makes his STAB Earthquake unavoidable. Mismagius can be a problem under Gravity, as she can switch into Return and her Will-O-Wisp becomes 100% accurate. A Flash Fire Houndoom is a good teammate option as it can switch into Will-O-Wisp and gain a boost, and Water Veil Wailord can switch into it as well. Chansey can take on Mismagius if she doesn't carry Taunt, and Dark-types like Drapion can threaten Mismagius with Night Slash and Pursuit.

Stantler is an effective user of the parafusion strategy; thanks to Intimidate and his good Attack stat, Stantler can cause some real problems for the opponent. Headbutt can make things even worse for the opponent, having a small chance at causing them to flinch; although this doesn't seem like much, when combined with paralysis and confusion, this can severely reduce the opponent's chance of attacking. Alternatively, Stantler may use Return for more power. Earthquake deals with Rock- and Steel-types, while Bite can be used to hit opposing Ghost-types. Body Slam is another option for this set, giving Stantler another way to paralyze the opponent. However, this should only be used alongside Bite, as Ghost-types completely wall him. As this Stantler can severely cripple the opponent's team, your teammates can gain more opportunities to set up and sweep. Alakazam and Mismagius can take advantage of the holes created by Stantler by setting up Calm Mind or Nasty Plot, respectively. Mismagius and Rotom can be troublesome for this set if they switch into a predicted Return or Earthquake, making a Dark-type such as Drapion or Absol a good partner. Both of them have access to Pursuit, while Drapion can set up Toxic Spikes and Absol can set up Swords Dance. Donphan is immune to Thunder Wave and his huge Defense means he'll take little damage from Earthquake or Headbutt. Furthermore, his STAB Earthquake cleanly KOes Stantler. To get past Donphan, a bulky Water-type such as Milotic is helpful as she can hit Donphan hard with a STAB Surf. Poliwrath is another good option due to his good Attack and Defense stats, access to Bulk Up, and ability to switch into most of Donphan's attacks.

This set takes advantage of Stantler's good Attack stat, turning him into a potent sweeper. His diverse movepool makes it difficult for most of his counters to switch in safely, while Intimidate gives him an easier time switching into physical attackers. Return is used for reliable STAB, Earthquake destroys Rock- and Steel-types, and Sucker Punch will overcome faster opponents such as Mismagius and Scyther. Megahorn deals immense damage to Grass-types such as Leafeon and Tangrowth, though Bite can be used to hit Ghost-types reliably. The item choice is down to personal preference. A Choice Band can be used over Life Orb in exchange for more power, though it locks Stantler into a single attack. Sucker Punch isn't advised when Stantler is holding a Choice Band as an opponent can use this opportunity to set up. Stantler should watch out for opposing Fighting-types, since they make light work of him. Weezing can switch into almost any Fighting-type and cripple them with Will-O-Wisp; unfortunately, Weezing is also a good counter to Stantler due to its high Defense and immunity to Earthquake. Venusaur is another partner who can handle Fighting-types, being able to cripple the opponent with Sleep Powder and then use its powerful STAB to weaken them. Mismagius is another good switch-in to Fighting-types, and she also has a helpful immunity to Ground-type moves and access to Will-O-Wisp; again, Mismagius is also a good counter to Stantler as she can switch into Return and Earthquake, while using Will-O-Wisp to cut his Attack.

With this set, Stantler becomes an incredibly solid anti-lead with better longevity than a dedicated lead set. Its ability to stay in on Thunder Wave variants of Wigglytuff, opposing Stantler leads, and Rapidash can be invaluable for teams lacking switch-ins for those Pokemon. Stantler is also able to switch in throughout the game much better thanks to said longevity. Return and Earthquake hit everything in GSC NU for neutral damage, making them the best options for RestTalk Stantler to still keep its solid offensive prowess. Unfortunately, RestTalk Xatu has an excellent matchup against Stantler because Return cannot 2HKO it and Xatu outspeeds and reliably 3HKOes in return with Psychic or Drill Peck. One way to improve Stantler's chances is to pair it with a Light Screen user such as Azumarill, which also doubles as a check to fast and powerful Fire-types and some Water-types, or Ivysaur, which also checks Chinchou and Primeape. While these Pokemon are passive, RestTalk Stantler can compensate for this with its high-Base Power attacks, perfect coverage, and good longevity behind a screen.

Stantler is quite the threatening Pokemon thanks to its solid offensive stats and a variety of support moves including Hypnosis, Light Screen, and Reflect. In addition, unlike most other Normal-types in GSC NU, it is quite strong even when unboosted and has crucial coverage in Earthquake to actually threaten Rock- and Steel-types. Stantler is a defining member of the lead metagame, able to effectively put something to sleep before dishing out damage with its powerful Return. Stantler is also quite fast for the tier, outspeeding Pokemon such as Kingler, Weezing, Chinchou, and Dewgong. However, Stantler has a poor matchup against the most common Pokemon in the tier, Xatu, and also struggles with other top-tier Pokemon such as Primeape. Furthermore, while its defensive stats are passable, they are far from amazing, which can make it difficult to switch in throughout a battle. Return is a mandatory STAB move that hits a vast majority of the tier for a 3HKO. Earthquake complements Return well, hitting the common Rock-types such as Sudowoodo and Pupitar for decent damage and OHKOing Magnemite and the rare Gastly. Hypnosis is another valuable tool in Stantler's moveset, as it can shut down Stantler's checks temporarily as well as stop slower setup sweepers. Thief's ability to make defensive Pokemon such as Azumarill and Dewgong much easier to break through by stealing their Leftovers makes it invaluable for Stantler's offensive teammates. On teams with setup sweepers such as Kingler and Primeape, Stantler can run Light Screen or Reflect over its other supporting moves to make their time setting up much easier, especially Light Screen in Kingler's case. Finally, when paired with a Agility + Baton Pass user such as Farfetch'd, Stantler can run Curse to boost its Attack, turning it into a powerful sweeper while retaining +1 Speed after one use. Stantler best fits on offensive teams, starting the game off well by potentially sleeping a slower lead such as Wigglytuff or Pineco and later stealing valuable Leftovers from bulky Pokemon that could give its team trouble. Weezing is one of Stantler's best partners, as it greatly helps Stantler with its weakness to Fighting-types, while Stantler can support Weezing well with Thief and Hypnosis. Anti-Xatu Pokemon such as Ninetales and Dewgong also assist Stantler with its poor matchup against the Psychic bird; Dewgong in particular enjoys Stantler's ability to blow through Chinchou with Earthquake. Finally, setup sweepers that can have a hard time setting up, such as Kingler and Primeape, benefit from Stantler's ability to shut one check down and provide Light Screen and Reflect support.