Mienfoo Movesets & Competitive Sets

Mienfoo is an extremely versatile and durable Pokemon that can serve as a lead, defensive pivot, and offensive wallbreaker over the course of a game. U-turn lets Mienfoo take advantage of the switches it forces while maintaining offensive momentum and healing itself with Regenerator. Knock Off softens up switch-ins like Mareanie and Koffing and hits Frillish and Galarian Ponyta hard. Fake Out is valuable for wearing down Choice Scarf users and sweepers while also providing free chip damage against most foes. Taunt is an alternative that blocks Poison-type checks from recovering and status moves from Foongus and Koffing. While the given EV spread is reliable for its physical bulk and its guarantee of a Speed tie with opposing Mienfoo and outspeeding Vullaby, Mienfoo's versatility allows a wide variety of investments. These include a spread with 236 Attack EVs instead of Defense to KO Vullaby after Stealth Rock alongside additional wallbreaking power. Mienfoo fits well on virtually every team, but it pairs especially well with Diglett, which benefits from U-turn to trap checks like Mareanie, and Koffing, which can wear down Regenerator users with Neutralizing Gas. Mienfoo is an invaluable partner for Pokemon that are forced out by Pawniard like Abra, Vullaby, and Porygon. Abra also punishes Mienfoo's Poison-type checks like Foongus and Koffing after U-turn.

An EV spread of 76 HP, 196 Defense, and 196 Special Defense with an Impish nature allows Mienfoo to survive an attack from non-Life Orb Abra and a Special Attack-boosted Psychic from Porygon. Alternatively, an EV spread of 236 HP, 196 Defense, and 36 Special Defense allows it to beat opposing lead Mienfoo and utilitizes its physical Defense more effectively.

Choice Scarf Mienfoo is a major threat that outspeeds most of the tier while dealing severe damage and offering sweeping potential. Reckless High Jump Kick will OHKO or 2HKO any neutral target. U-turn lets Mienfoo scout the opposing team and allows teammates to punish the Poison-types it forces in. Knock Off wears down those Poison-types to set up for a later sweep, and it also hits Galarian Ponyta and Frillish hard. Close Combat should be used when the additional power of High Jump Kick is not needed and the stat drops are not a concern. Choice Scarf Mienfoo pairs well with Timburr, which can perform the duties of a bulky Fighting-type while both Pokemon overwhelm the opposing Poison-type. Diglett is a valuable partner for its ability to trap Poison-types. Beyond the usual checks, this set is vulnerable to Frillish, as it punishes its STAB moves and thus make it extremely difficult for Mienfoo to operate offensively. Pawniard is a valuable partner, as it checks it. Knock Off Grookey and Shadow Ball Abra can also pressure them.

Moves Flyinium Z turns Bounce into a 160-Base Power Supersonic Skystrike, which surprises other Fighting-types like Timburr and Mienfoo as well as Foongus, a traditional Fighting-type check. High Jump Kick is the primary STAB option, giving Mienfoo more immediate power and 2HKOing most Pokemon that don't resist it. Fake Out is extremely helpful on this set, getting chip damage on the first turn Mienfoo is out and KOing Timburr and Foongus when combined with Supersonic Skystrike. Knock Off can give Mienfoo coverage against Ghost- and Psychic-types while also providing utility to its teammates by removing the foe's item. It also punishes switch-ins like Foongus by putting them in range to be KOed by Supersonic Skystrike. U-turn allows Mienfoo to gain momentum and get chip damage while switching. Set Details Flyinium Z allows Bounce to become Supersonic Skystrike, a powerful Flying-type move that allows Mienfoo to lure and remove Foongus and surprise Timburr and opposing Mienfoo. On sets lacking Knock Off, Supersonic Skystrike can hit Pumpkaboo-XL as well. The ability is mostly up to preference; Regenerator gives Mienfoo slightly more staying power, allowing it to gain some HP back when switching or utilizing U-turn, but Reckless makes its High Jump Kick more difficult to switch into. A Jolly nature and 236 Speed EVs allow Mienfoo to outspeed the Pokemon it lures as well as Speed tie with other fast Mienfoo and Snivy. 156 Attack EVs allow Mienfoo to hit hard, notably scoring the KO on Timburr with Fake Out + Supersonic Skystrike. Finally, 116 Defense EVs net Mienfoo an extra two points in its physical bulk, allowing it to take less from priority moves like Aqua Jet and Mach Punch. Usage Tips Be careful when using Supersonic Skystrike on predicted switches; it's a one-use move, so play it safe until the threatening Pokemon is on the field. Also, be sure not to reveal Bounce beforehand, as only this set utilizes it; switching into Knock Off can also tip off your opponent that you have a Z-Move, since Z-Crystals can't be removed. Be cautious when using High Jump Kick against teams with a Ghost-type, as they can switch in and force Mienfoo to take crash damage; use Knock Off to punish Ghost-types on the switch in. Be aware that Mienfoo is quite frail due to the lack of an Eviolite and won't be able to switch into attacks as easily as other variants. Otherwise, this Mienfoo can play similarly to pivot variants: coming in on resisted attacks, using U-turn to keep up its health and momentum, and using Knock Off to remove items to help teammates sweep. Team Options Pokemon that appreciate Fighting-types removed like Pawniard, Zigzagoon, and Carvanha can utilize Mienfoo's ability to easily dispatch them. Mienfoo fits on cores with other Fighting-types like Timburr, as they share checks like Croagunk and Foongus, which Supersonic Skystrike can take care of easily. Similarly, Pokemon that want Grass-types removed like Staryu and Corphish are helped by Mienfoo's Supersonic Skystrike. Fairy-type checks like Pawniard, Foongus, and Magnemite can ward off Fairy-types, which this set has a hard time with. Flying-type checks like Onix and Pawniard are useful as well, patching up Mienfoo's Flying-type weakness. Both these Pokemon can use Stealth Rock too, which is helpful for getting the KO on Timburr and Foongus with Supersonic Skystrike without needing Fake Out. Pursuit trappers like Pawniard and Alolan Grimer are helpful, as without Knock Off Mienfoo has no way to deal with Pokemon like Abra and Gastly. Electric-types like Chinchou and Magnemite can form a VoltTurn core with Mienfoo and take care of Flying-types that outspeed and KO Mienfoo like Doduo and Choice Scarf Rufflet.

Moves High Jump Kick is Mienfoo's primary STAB move and does enormous damage to anything that doesn't resist it. U-turn allows Mienfoo to pivot and scout the opponent's team while dealing chip damage early in a game in order to weaken foes. Knock Off can soften up switch-ins by removing their items, allowing Mienfoo to do more damage later, and also hits Ghost-types like Gastly and Pumpkaboo, which deter Mienfoo from using High Jump Kick. Drain Punch and Brick Break are options in the final slot as a STAB move that can be more safely spammed in situations where a High Jump Kick miss would be especially costly; Drain Punch is preferable on Reckless sets to give Mienfoo more survivability, while Regenerator sets already have good survivability, making Brick Break's ability to remove Aurora Veil more useful. Stone Edge is an alternative that hits Flame Body users such as Ponyta that aim to come in on Mienfoo. Finally, Poison Jab can be used as a way for Mienfoo to hit Fairy-types. Set Details With maximum Speed investment and a Choice Scarf, Mienfoo hits 25 Speed, allowing it to outspeed the entire unboosted metagame and serve as a good revenge killer. This pairs well with maximum Attack investment, which allows Mienfoo to hit as hard as possible. An Adamant nature can be used to allow Mienfoo to hit harder, but without the Speed investment Mienfoo will fail to outspeed a few key threats, such as Choice Scarf Pawniard, Choice Scarf Rufflet, and Carvanha after a Speed boost. Reckless boosts the power of High Jump Kick significantly, but it costs Mienfoo the longevity provided by Regenerator. Regenerator is a useful ability that allows Mienfoo to take weak hits and priority moves early on in a match and recover its health as it switches out, and can help make up for the damage taken from a High Jump Kick miss. Usage Tips In the early-game, Mienfoo should use Knock Off and U-turn to weaken foes and bring in checks. As the pivot set is far more common, Mienfoo can often bluff not having a Choice Scarf, which can be used to lure in Pokemon that aim to revenge kill Mienfoo. After foes have been worn down, High Jump Kick should be spammed because it hits extremely hard. However, care should be taken to remove opposing Ghost-types beforehand, as they can hurt Mienfoo significantly by coming in on High Jump Kick. Because Choice Scarf locks Mienfoo into a single move, be careful about picking a move that turns it into setup bait, and keep in mind that Mienfoo can always use U-turn if becoming locked into a single move is an issue. However, in most late-game scenarios, if opposing Ghost-types have been eliminated, locking Mienfoo into High Jump Kick has very few downsides. Team Options This Mienfoo set pairs well with other VoltTurn users, which can use slow pivoting moves to bring it in safely without it taking damage and work together with Mienfoo to give a team momentum. Examples of good partners that can do this include Magnemite and Vullaby. Diglett makes a good partner for its ability to trap and remove some Pokemon that can take Mienfoo's hits, including Poison-types and Ponyta. Alolan Grimer and Pawniard make good partners to this set as well, as they are able to use Pursuit to trap the Ghost-types that make it riskier for Mienfoo to use High Jump Kick and check opposing Fairy-types for it. Other Fighting-types such as Timburr work well as a partner to Mienfoo due to their ability to bring in and weaken shared checks and counters so that Mienfoo can clean with High Jump Kick late-game.

Moves High Jump Kick is the preferred STAB move to grant Mienfoo a great deal of immediate power. U-turn turns Mienfoo into a stellar pivot, giving it the ability to gain momentum for its team just by switching out of a check. It also works well with Regenerator to keep Mienfoo healthy throughout a match. Knock Off allows Mienfoo to support itself and its team by removing items such as Eviolite and Berry Juice from foes to allow them to be more easily defeated. Mienfoo's final moveslot is less crucial to its success as a pivot, so the move choice can be tailored to support its team. Fake Out is Mienfoo's best 4th move option, allowing Mienfoo to get in chip damage notably against Weak Armor Vullaby, and scout for certain set variants based on how much damage Fake Out does. Mienfoo can also run Acrobatics to hit opposing Fighting-types and Foongus for super effective damage, which is made more effective by how often it is used as a Knock Off absorber during a match, meaning it frequently gets the damage boost. Poison Jab is an option to hit Fairy-types such as Spritzee and Snubbull super effectively. Taunt can be used to shut down slower hazard leads, to block Foongus' Spore, or to prevent Foongus or Mareanie from recovering HP. Set Details The given EV spread allows Mienfoo to hit 17 Speed and Eviolite numbers, outspeeding a decent majority of the metagame, notably Pawniard and Vullaby, and turning it into a better revenge killer and a slightly better switch-in to several key Pokemon such as Pawniard. An offensive spread of 236 Atk / 36 Def / 236 Spe with a Jolly nature significantly boosts the power of Mienfoo's High Jump Kick, notably allowing it to OHKO Vullaby after Stealth Rock damage. However, the given sets' Speed comes at the cost of special bulk and the ability to act as a slow pivot. An alternative spread of 76 HP / 196 Def / 196 SpD with an Impish nature is designed to take a variety of hits and keep its health up throughout a match. This gives it the ability to take a wide range of hits when holding an Eviolite such as Vullaby's Brave Bird, Focus Sash Abra's Psychic, and +2 Shellder's Icicle Spear after Stealth Rock. The lack of Speed investments would give Mienfoo 13 Speed, which is slower than a large portion of the metagame. This allows Mienfoo to take a hit before using U-turn to safely bring in a frailer ally. Usage Tips This Mienfoo set should be used as a pivot or a scout, coming in on resisted or weaker neutral hits throughout a battle and pivoting out when its health gets low. Regenerator comes in handy in doing this, as Mienfoo can regain health when it needs to just by coming out of battle. When Mienfoo is in battle, it should use Knock Off as much as possible to wear down the opposing Pokemon and remove items, especially to wear down Mienfoo's checks. Once it needs to recover health, or if a check is predicted to be coming into battle, Mienfoo can use U-turn to switch out while gaining momentum for its team. Its relatively slow U-turn is useful for bringing in frail allies as well. Be careful against opposing Flame Body users such as Ponyta and Larvesta, however, as Mienfoo relies on contact moves, which these Pokemon can come in on and potentially cripple Mienfoo with a burn. Team Options Mienfoo is weak to Flying-types, so good partners include Onix, Pawniard and Magnemite. The latter also forms a powerful VoltTurn core with Mienfoo, which can give a team offensive momentum. Checks to Fairy-types are also important when using Mienfoo, as they are its most threatening switch-ins and Poison Jab doesn't do significant damage to them. Foongus switches into most Fairy-types and forms a potent Regenerator core with Mienfoo, and Steel-types such as Pawniard and Magnemite can deal with Fairy-types offensively. Finally, frail attackers such as Abra and Gastly appreciate Mienfoo's slow U-turn, as it can bring them in safely, and they can force many of Mienfoo's checks out of battle.