Magby Movesets & Competitive Sets

Moves Flare Blitz is Magby's most powerful physical STAB attack, and it has immense power, especially under the sun. Cross Chop hits Munchlax and Porygon hard, as well as Rock-types. Return hits Chinchou considerably harder and provides decent neutral coverage. Thunder Punch, however, hits Archen and bulky Water-types not named Chinchou harder. Finally, Mach Punch gives Magby priority and OHKOes Pawniard while bypassing Sucker Punch. Set Details 252 Speed EVs and a positive nature allow Magby to reach 19 Speed, bypassing Pawniard's Sucker Punch. It can also Speed tie with or outspeed many common Pokemon, such as Aipom, Pawniard, and Mienfoo. All the remaining EVs are put into Attack to let Magby hit harder. Life Orb lends Magby much more power, and 0 HP IVs cause it to only lose 1 HP per attack. Vital Spirit gives Magby a safe switch against Foongus and other sleep-inducing Pokemon like Gastly. Flame Body can also be used, as it lets Magby have a chance of burning a Fake Out or faster / more durable priority user as Magby goes down; however, Magby will only have one shot at this, as almost any attack will KO it after the recoil. Usage Tips It is recommended that you bring Magby in safely, whether by means of a slow Volt Switch, U-Turn, a switch into a resisted attack, or by revenging something. Will-O-Wisp is an excellent attack to switch in on, as Magby cannot be burned by nature of its typing. Once it is in, it can break opponents down with its powerful attacks. Team Options Pursuit trapping by the likes of Pawniard and Stunky can defeat the Ghost-types that are immune to three of Magby's attacks. Defog or Rapid Spin support is recommended, as Stealth Rock hurts, and Sticky Web neuters Magby. Sticky Web support is appreciated, as it prevents Diglett from switching in and KOing with Sucker Punch, and also prevents Pokemon like Carvanha from outspeeding Magby after one boost. Finally, any way to weaken bulky Water-types like Chinchou is appreciated; for example, Hidden Power Grass Chinchou can weaken opposing Chinchou, and Mienfoo or Pawniard can Knock Off Slowpoke's Eviolite.

Moves Belly Drum boosts Magby's Attack stat to 68, letting it destroy the metagame. Fire Punch is Magby's primary physical STAB move, and it does enough at +6 to justify not using Flare Blitz. Mach Punch provides Magby priority to use on Pokemon it would Speed tie with or be outsped by, such as Meowth and Elekid. Return OHKOes Chinchou at +6, a very important benchmark, and does heavy damage to Pokemon that resist Fire, such as Munchlax and Shellder. Flame Charge lets Magby outspeed all relevant Choice Scarf users after a boost so that it does not have to rely on the relatively weak Mach Punch to damage them. Thunder Punch can also hit some of the Water-types that resist Fire Punch, such as Slowpoke, super effectively, but Return is usually enough. Set Details Magby can potentially reach 19 Speed, and this set does so, making it impossible for Pawniard to revenge kill it, barring the very rare and exploitable Choice Scarf Sucker Punch. This set utilizes only 29 HP IVs, which allows Magby to activate Berry Juice's recovery immediately after using Belly Drum. Berry Juice grants Magby recovery, getting it back to full HP no matter what. Vital Spirit lets Magby be one of the best Foongus switch-ins and protects it from other sleepers, like Gastly. Finally, Flame Body can be used to cripple any Pokemon trying to use Fake Out to chip away at it, such as Mienfoo, Aipom, and Meowth. Usage Tips Magby should be brought in by means of revenging or a slow U-turn or Volt Switch, preferably coming in on something that can not threaten it, such as Snover, Larvesta, Mienfoo, or Foongus lacking Stun Spore. Keep in mind, however, that Magby is extremely frail and will fall to many powerful neutral attacks. Magby can also switch in on Will-O-Wisp for free, as it cannot be burned due to its typing. Once Magby has gotten in, set up Belly Drum and sweep. It's okay to retreat, however, as switching it into a Fake Out can burn the foe, effectively neutering it; however, only do that if you must. Team Options Pursuit trapping from the likes of Pawniard can easily facilitate a Magby sweep, as Ghost-types are immune to its only form of priority. Defog or Rapid Spin support is also appreciated, as Stealth Rock chips off a quarter of Magby's HP, and Sticky Web neuters it. Sticky Web support is appreciated, as it usually prevents grounded foes from outspeeding it, meaning Magby doesn't have to use Mach Punch. Knock Off support is also appreciated to stop Choice Scarf users and remove Eviolites. Magby draws status like moths to a flame, so a status absorber or cleric is appreciated as a teammate. Any way to weaken bulky Water-types like Chinchou is appreciated; for example, Hidden Power Ground Magnemite can lure in and weaken the foe's Chinchou, and Mienfoo or Pawniard can Knock Off Slowpoke's Eviolite. Finally, Pokemon with Sturdy can usually withstand Magby's attacks, so Stealth Rock support is appreciated.

Even with a base Speed stat of 83, Magby is still outsped by a select few unboosted Pokemon and Choice Scarf users. This makes Magby a great candidate for a Choice Scarf, with its respectable Attack stat and great coverage. With Magby's impressive Speed stat, it will outspeed the majority of Choice Scarf users, and even some Rock Polish users such as Rhyhorn. Flare Blitz is Magby's move of choice, dishing out plenty of damage to any foe that isn't resistant to it. Thunder Punch takes care of most Water-types switching in, with the exception of Chinchou. Hidden Power Ice is great in the last slot to revenge kill Gligar, and even hit some of the bulkier Rock-types. Brick Break can be used over Mach Punch with Choice Scarf to revenge kill most Aron (defensive variants can still survive), as Mach Punch won't OHKO. Flare Blitz is illegal with Cross Chop, so you are reduced to using Fire Punch as a main STAB move if you want the stronger Fighting-type attack than Brick Break. If you want the extra punch, Magby can use a Lonely nature as its Speed is already blistering fast. If you feel that a Choice Scarf is redundant with Magby's great Speed stat, then a Choice Band can also be used. A Choice Band-boosted Flare Blitz will incinerate a good portion of the metagame with ease, OHKOing even physically bulky Pokemon such as Gligar and Duskull. However, the recoil can be dangerous. Mach Punch is a force to be reckoned with as well, as a Choice Band-boosted priority move should never be overlooked. This set needs the most defensive support due to its inability to switch attacks, because even if you predict correctly and KO an opponent's Pokemon, they can switch in whatever Pokemon they have that resists said attack. Houndour and other Flash Fire users will be switching into Flare Blitz once in a while, so having a Flash Fire user of your own is definitely a good idea, as a boosted Fire Blast coming off of Houndour's excellent Special Attack will dent even Pokemon who resist Fire-type attacks. Magby will often be caught using the wrong attack, especially if you have KOed a Pokemon with that attack already. This means that Magby will need general defensive support, so Pokemon such as Munchlax and Bronzor pair quite nicely with Magby.

While this set looks similar to the above set, its playstyle is quite different. This set is purely made for beating the opponent's bulky Pokemon down with hard-hitting attacks. Fire Blast is Magby's main attack, giving Bronzor and any Pokemon who doesn't resist Fire-type attacks a one way ticket back to its Pokeball. Here is where the two sets differ; this set can use Cross Chop, Thunder Punch, and Hidden Power Grass in one move set, giving Magby potentially the best super effective coverage possible in Little Cup. Cross Chop is Magby's main tool for getting rid of Munchlax, who is KOed after switching into any other attack, and is OHKOed most of the time with just Stealth Rock in play. Hidden Power Grass takes care of Pokemon such as Geodude and Kabuto, who have the Defense needed to survive a Cross Chop. Thunder Punch takes care of Mantyke, and also gives Magby a reliable way to take out Drifloon. Magby is one of the best wallbreakers in Little Cup because of its ability to take down every defensive combo with the 4 attacks given. For this reason, Pokemon such as Machop, Mankey, and Gligar make great teammates, as they each appreciate Bronzor out of the way. Gastly, Mantyke, and basically any special sweepers benefit from Munchlax being taken out, as it makes their sweep much easier to pull off with the main special wall of the metagame gone.

Magby has all of the right tools to be a top-notch sweeper in the Little Cup metagame, and this set takes advantage of all of them. Flare Blitz coming off of 17 Attack is especially potent, especially when it's also boosted by Life Orb. With Houndour being around, Magby can take advantage of its priority move, Mach Punch, which easily KOes Houndour while avoiding Sucker Punch. Priority is a godsend in Little Cup, because 40 Base Power is usually enough to finish off any fast and frail foe after taking only minor damage. Magby is also gifted with Thunder Punch, a great tool to rid the battle of Water-types who may switch in, especially Pokemon such as Mantyke, Slowpoke, and Kabuto, who will usually be your opponent's first line of defense against Fire-type attacks. With these attacks, Magby can OHKO a majority of the metagame, while being able to 2HKO even the most sturdy walls such as Munchlax (the Leftovers variant), who is 2HKOed by Flare Blitz as long as Stealth Rock is on the field. Beware of Flare Blitz recoil when you use this set, as it can be deadly for Magby after even two uses. The last slot is pretty flexible, but Overheat is recommended for its sheer power. With a solid 13 Special Attack stat, a STAB Overheat is still strong enough to OHKO major threats such as Gligar, who could otherwise survive any of Magby's physical attacks, even Flare Blitz. Brick Break is an option to hit Munchlax for the guaranteed OHKO, but leaves Magby open to Gligar. Hidden Power Grass is an option to OHKO Pokemon such as Geodude, Rhyhorn, and Kabuto who would otherwise cause some trouble for this set. However, they are quite uncommon. Overheat is still preferred for that reason, not to mention its ability to get the KO on most of the previously mentioned Rock-types after they switch into a Flare Blitz. Overheat also makes for a safe opening attack due to Flare Blitz recoil. This Magby set breaks down the opponent's team and finishes off weaker foes, giving a Pokemon holding the ever-common Choice Scarf a chance to sweep easily late game. Choice Scarf Bagon and Cranidos work very well with Magby offensively, as they have very little trouble with Oran Berry variants of Munchlax, but have a bit of trouble with Bronzor and faster Choice Scarf users, which Magby is built to take care of. While Magby is eventually going to be forced out, defensive support isn't needed as much because Magby can switch its attacks. In addition, it will only be able to switch in a couple times due to Flare Blitz recoil, Life Orb recoil, and Stealth Rock all chipping off Magby's HP. Speaking of Stealth Rock, this Magby set especially appreciates a fast lead who can stop Stealth Rock from being set up at all costs. Meowth, Voltorb, and any hard-hitting Choice Scarf lead can make sure Stealth Rock stays off the field, at least until Magby can get a couple switch-ins and do some damage. Staryu is also a good lead to use with Magby, as it also gets Rapid Spin.