Koffing Movesets & Competitive Sets

Koffing is Little Cup's premier physical tank. It can counter dangerous threats like Mienfoo and Grookey with its combination of good bulk, useful defensive typing, and Neutralizing Gas while opening up holes in opposing teams with its excellent coverage. Sludge Bomb is a powerful and reliable STAB move that can further chip foes with its high poison chance. Fire Blast is often Koffing's best midground attack, hitting Steel-types such as Ferroseed and Pawniard super effectively and doing decent damage to Ground-types like Mudbray and Eviolite Diglett. Will-O-Wisp cripples many of Koffing's best answers, such as Natu and Tyrunt, as well as generally good threats such as Mienfoo. Thunderbolt hits common switch-ins like Mareanie, Staryu, and Natu for super effective damage. Pain Split allows Koffing to stay healthy enough to repeatedly check foes like Mienfoo, and it's often the most reliable way of damaging bulky foes like Frillish. Neutralizing Gas denies Regenerator recovery from foes such as Mienfoo and Mareanie, allowing it to consistently make progress, while also making it immune to trapping. 156 Speed EVs allow Koffing to outspeed opposing Mareanie. Koffing can viably run a range of EV spreads, like a bulkier spread with HP investment or maximum Speed to tie Pawniard. Koffing's ability to make progress against Mienfoo is invaluable to a wide range of teammates, from Steel-types such as Pawniard and Ferroseed to sweepers like Carvanha and Swords Dance Grookey. Grookey in particular makes an excellent partner for Koffing; it handles opposing Ground-types and Frillish while providing passive recovery, while Koffing can check opposing Poison-types and wallbreak. Steel-types like Ferroseed and Pawniard are important teammates for switching into opposing Psychic-types and Porygon. Natu can switch into opposing Natu and Mudbray and serve as a secondary Grookey check. Pokemon that can check Ground- and Rock-types, such as Staryu, also make great teammates. Onix has good defensive synergy with Koffing and can sweep teams when opposing Mienfoo are weakened.

Moves Will-O-Wisp cripples physical threats, and its damage over time is almost always helpful. Pain Split is Koffing's only way to regain HP; it's not the most reliable method, but its capability to heal Koffing and damage the foe can prove quite useful. Sludge Bomb has good damaging capabilities and a nice 30% chance to inflict poison. Clear Smog is weaker than Sludge Bomb but can be used to prevent Koffing from being set up on; however, keep in mind that it doesn't remove boosts through Substitute. Fire Blast dents Steel-types like Magnemite and Ferroseed, which don't fear Poison-type moves. Toxic Spikes isn't a common move in LC, and Koffing is one of the more reliable Toxic Spikes setters. The move's ability to spread poison on foes upon entry causes it to work very well on defensive or balanced teams. Set Details Koffing's EVs are focused on defenses to get the maximum bulk possible from Eviolite while maintaining low HP to make Pain Split more impactful. A Bold nature further bolsters Koffing's strong Defense and hits an Eviolite-optimal number. Levitate is Koffing's only ability, effectively leaving it with one weakness. Usage Tips Due to Koffing's strong Defense and useful resistances, it can switch in on most Bug-, Fighting-, Poison-, and Fairy-types without fear. Examples include Snubbull, Spritzee, Foongus, and Mienfoo. Because of Koffing's low Speed, anticipate when Koffing will hit low HP so it can get the most health out of Pain Split in a single use. Be careful with Will-O-Wisp around Guts users such as Timburr, which gain an Attack boost from being statused. Avoid letting Koffing's Eviolite be removed by Knock Off from Pokemon such as Pawniard and Cottonee unless absolutely necessary, since this takes away a lot of Koffing's bulk. Be careful around special attackers such as Staryu and Magnemite because they can prey on Koffing's weaker Special Defense. Try to lure in Steel-types like Ferroseed and Pawniard to then deliver a nasty blow with Fire Blast. Toxic Spikes can be very useful for gradually wearing down the opponent's team, but make sure there are burns on physically offensive threats before setting it up. Spinners, Defoggers, and grounded Poison-types such as Staryu, Vullaby, and Foongus can easily remove Toxic Spikes, so try to remove them from the game as soon as possible. Pokemon with Mold Breaker such as Drilbur can hit Koffing with Ground-type moves, so be careful of them. Team Options Dark-types like Pawniard and Alolan Grimer can deal with the Psychic-types directed at Koffing and Pursuit trap them. Ghost-types can also deal with Psychic-types and prevent the opponent from using Rapid Spin to clear Toxic Spikes. Fighting-weak Pokemon like Ferroseed and Pawniard appreciate Koffing's ability to deal with Fighting-types. Spritzee can provide valuable Wish support and appreciates Koffing's ability to handle Poison-types. Gastly can use a strong Hex that takes advantage of Koffing's ability to easily spread status. Diglett can trap Poison-types, which allows Toxic Spikes to stay on the field.

Moves Will-O-Wisp is Koffing's key to bringing down physical attackers and is perhaps the most important move in its arsenal. Pain Split is Koffing's only means of recovery. Though unreliable, it not only heals Koffing, but damages the opponent as well. Sludge Bomb is a STAB attack that can deal decent chunks of damage and has a nice 30% chance to poison the opposing Pokemon. Clear Smog is a possible option over Sludge Bomb if you want Koffing to be able to stop setup sweepers from getting out of control, though its effect will not activate if the opponent has a Substitute up. Fire Blast is primarily for hitting the Steel-types that are immune to Koffing's STAB move; it lands a powerful hit on Pawniard and nails Ferroseed especially hard. Destiny Bond lets Koffing take a foe down with it when it is KOed by a direct attack. It's mostly a last-ditch attempt to get rid of a troublesome enemy. Set Details An Eviolite, with the given EV spread, gives Koffing an effective Defense stat of 30. This allows Koffing to tank physical hits well. Apart from maxing out Defense, the remaining EVs contribute to Koffing's special bulk so that it can survive stray neutral special hits more easily. Fewer EVs are invested in HP so that Pain Split takes more health from the opponent. Levitate rids Koffing of its would-be Ground-type weakness, except for when facing an opponent with Mold Breaker and Earthquake. Usage Tips Koffing can switch in comfortably against Bug-, Fairy-, Ground-, and Fighting-type foes and can force most physical attackers out with the threat of Will-O-Wisp. A warning to the wise: do not use Will-O-Wisp on Timburr. Most Timburr run Guts, which will boost its Attack and help it deal more damage. Pain Split can be used at lower health against enemies with higher health to damage them while also recovering HP; Koffing's low Speed can come in handy for this move in particular, as it lets the opponent take away some of its health before stealing it back with Pain Split. Destiny Bond can be used to make the opponent reconsider delivering a fatal blow. This looming threat often keeps foes from attacking a low Koffing, providing an opportunity to recover with Pain Split while they hesitate. Team Options Koffing's main goal is to neutralize Fighting-type threats. Because of this, teammates that have problems with Fighting-types enjoy the support that Koffing provides. Koffing appreciates the recovery granted by Wish support, even though it has Pain Split; Lickitung makes a particularly good partner for this purpose, as Koffing can shrug off the Fighting-type attacks aimed at Lickitung, while its Wish recovery can be provided to both of them. Scraggy makes an ideal partner that covers Koffing's sole weakness to Psychic-type attacks, and Koffing tanks the Fighting-type attacks aimed at Scraggy. Other Dark-types, such as Zorua and Purrloin, love having Koffing as a partner, as it resists all of their weaknesses. Other Dark-types such as Vullaby and Pawniard appreciate this coverage too, but to a lesser extent, as their second type neutralizes some of these resistances. Chinchou makes a good partner for dealing with Tentacool, which resists Koffing's STAB move and Fire Blast rather easily. Entry hazard setters like Dwebble and Ferroseed can be ideal partners, as Koffing can force switches which rack up residual damage quite nicely.

Koffing can use a RestTalk set efficiently thanks to its good Eviolite-boosted stats, good defensive typing, and awesome ability. Rest gives Koffing a recovery move that cures status and fully heals HP, and Sleep Talk prevents Koffing from being completely useless while sleeping. Clear Smog is a staple on Koffing, as it prevents setup sweepers such as Riolu and Timburr from defeating it with ease. Finally, Fire Blast roasts Steel-types such as Ferroseed that like to switch into Koffing. Sludge Bomb is a viable alternative as it gives Koffing a reliable STAB move that hits harder against Water-types than Fire Blast. Eviolite is just as necessary as it is on any defensive pivot as it allows Koffing to survive throughout the battle. The EVs maximize Koffing's defenses; there is no need to lower its HP to maximize Pain Split recovery. Koffing can viably run several moves in the fourth moveslot. Flamethrower is a less powerful Fire Blast that does not KO Steel-types as effectively but has perfect accuracy. Thunderbolt is useful for taking down Staryu, a Water-type that is known to switch into Koffing, and is also useful for checking Vullaby. Finally, Shadow Ball can be used if your team needs a physical wall that checks Misdreavus too. As Koffing doesn't have great Special Defense even with the boost from Eviolite, Pokemon that can take on powerful special attackers are good teammates. Lileep can easily beat most special attackers, while Chinchou and Shroomish can deal with Water-types. In return, Koffing can take on Fighting-types for this trio. Porygon can also sponge special attacks and pairs well with Koffing, which can do the same with physical attacks.

This is Koffing's bread-and-butter set. Pain Split is Koffing's best form of recovery in a fast-paced metagame such as Little Cup; stealing the opponent's HP not only lengthens Koffing lifespan but also allows it to weaken foes. Clear Smog distinguishes Koffing from other physical walls, as it enables Koffing to take away stat boosts from the likes of Misdreavus and Timburr, both of which are powerful boosting sweepers in Little Cup. Will-O-Wisp allows Koffing to cripple physical attackers such as Mienfoo, as well as causing prominent Koffing switch-ins such as Chinchou to take residual damage. Toxic is a viable option over Will-O-Wisp for crippling walls such as Chinchou, Lileep, and Hippopotas. Fire Blast rounds off the set by giving Koffing an option to hit Steel-types, such as Ferroseed and Bronzor, which would otherwise wall Koffing with ease. Levitate is what puts Koffing over the edge as a physically defensive wall; the ability to wall Fighting-types and the popular Drilbur is a niche that no other Pokemon in Little Cup can fill. Like most Pokemon in Little Cup, Koffing should use an Eviolite to take physical and special hits, despite its low Special Defense stat. The listed EV spread gives Koffing 21 / 30 / 23 defenses; the low HP investment is necessary to ensure that Koffing gains as much HP as possible with Pain Split. Like many RBY Pokemon, Koffing has a lot of flexibility in terms of its moves. Sludge Bomb can be used over Fire Blast for a strong STAB attack that does respectable damage to the likes of Lileep. Flamethrower is a more accurate alternative to Fire Blast, but the drop in power is noticeable. Thunderbolt is useful for checking Water-types such as Staryu that like to switch into Koffing. Finally, Shadow Ball can be considered if your team is in need of a physically defensive wall that can check Misdreavus. As Koffing has a relatively low Special Defense stat, Pokemon that can take special attacks for it are good teammates. Porygon can take most special attacks for Koffing, and Koffing can take Fighting-type moves for Porygon. RestTalk Chinchou can switch into most Water-types that plague Koffing's existence and remove them with Volt Switch or Thunderbolt. Shroomish is another good partner as it has good synergy with Koffing and can take most Water-type moves. Misdreavus, one of the scariest setup sweepers in the tier, sets up on Koffing with nominal worries if Koffing isn't using Toxic. Thus, Stunky is a good partner as it traps and disposes of Misdreavus with ease.