Mincci Movesets & Competitive Sets

Moves Tail Slap is a powerful STAB move that does significant damage to anything that does not resist it due to LC damage mechanics. For example, it 2HKOes Spritzee, Foongus, and Vullaby. Knock Off allows Minccino to hit Ghost-types and remove the foe's item to help itself or a teammate. Seed Bomb can be run to hit Rock-types such as Onix and Tirtouga. U-turn can give Minccino a way out of unfavorable matchups or as a way of gaining offensive momentum. Wake-Up Slap gives Minccino a way to hit Steel-types, such as Pawniard and Ferroseed, super effectively. Set Details Minccino's Speed is maximized to allow it to outspeed Mienfoo and Onix while Speed tying with Gastly and Doduo. Life Orb is used as its item to massively increase the damage output of Tail Slap. The remaining EVs are invested in Defense and Special Defense to boost both its defenses by as much as possible, which slightly increases its longevity. Skill Link is used to force Tail Slap to always hit five times, giving it more consistent damage output than Technician would. Usage Tips Minccino generally works best as an early-game breaker, dealing heavy damage to defensive foes to allow a partner to clean. Due to its poor defensive stats, Minccino should not be switched directly into an attack; instead, use a pivoting move such as Mienfoo's U-turn or Magnemite's Volt Switch to bring it in. Minccino can also be used to force out Weak Armor Vullaby, Eviolite Snivy, and Onix with any chip damage. Team Options Entry hazard setters such as Ferroseed work very well with Minccino, since a layer of Spikes and Stealth Rock can provide enough chip damage on defensive foes for Minccino to OHKO them. Mienfoo, Vullaby, and Magnemite all work well with Minccino by using Volt Switch and U-turn to get it in without taking damage. Diglett and Magnemite can help Minccino to clean by trapping common Steel-types such as Pawniard, Ferroseed, and Magnemite, while Minccino can weaken defensive Pokemon down to a point where they can be trapped. Fighting-type checks such as Spritzee and Foongus give Minccino a way out of a Fighting-type matchup. Switch-ins to Steel- and Rock-types such as Mienfoo are helpful, since Minccino struggles to OHKO most of them and many of them will KO in return. Minccino pairs well with Fighting-types such as Mienfoo and Timburr, since it can do heavy damage to their checks such as Spritzee and Foongus, allowing them to clean.

Moves Tail Slap is Minccino's main STAB attack, smashing most of the metagame for good damage in tandem with Skill Link. Knock Off is an excellent coverage move, hitting Ghost-types which would otherwise wall Minccino. U-turn allows Minccino to escape unfavorable matchups and still deal decent damage. Wake-Up Slap provides Minccino with a means to hit Steel-types, such as Pawniard, that would otherwise survive a Tail Slap or Knock Off. Seed Bomb can be chosen instead to hit Omanyte and Tirtouga, which otherwise survive a Wake-Up Slap and proceed to Shell Smash. Set Details Life Orb boosts the damage Minccino deals and causes Tail Slap to become quite powerful thanks to Little Cup's unique damage rolls. The EVs maximize Attack and Speed, with the remainder invested in Defense and Special Defense to slightly increase Minccino's bulk. Jolly is the preferred nature, as it allows Minccino to outspeed Jolly Mienfoo, Drilbur, and Archen and also Speed tie with Pokemon such as Gastly, Stunky, and Doduo. Usage Tips Minccino is rather frail, so switching into a strong attack will severely hamper its longevity; however, if Minccino can switch in safely, it can be a dangerous threat. Knock Off can be a nice way to soften up strong physical walls and remove their item, and can punish an opponent attempting to switch their Ghost-type into a predicted Tail Slap. U-turn is to switch out of unfavorable match-ups as well as pivot out of a predicted switch-in. Wake-Up Slap is to hit Steel-types, most notably Pawniard, and Seed Bomb is to neuter mainly Omanyte and Tirtouga, along with uncommon Rock / Ground-types. Team Options Because this set functions primarily as a wallbreaker and secondary sweeper, set up sweepers, such as Scraggy and Tirtouga, make good teammates as they appreciate the removal of bulkier opponents. Larvesta and Spritzee are also good partners with their resistances to Fighting-type attacks. Entry hazard support, particularly Stealth Rock, is helpful for netting KOs; as such, Dwebble and Drilbur make good teammates, the latter being able to Rapid Spin hazards your opponent might have set. Sticky Web can be useful to outspeed some Choice Scarf Pokemon and 19 Speed Pokemon, but its usually not necessary. Bulky pivots are helpful, as they can take strong priority attacks that would otherwise harm Minccino.

Moves Tail Slap is the STAB attack of choice due to its fantastic combination with Skill Link and the unique damage rolls of Little Cup. Knock Off hits Ghost-type Pokemon, and U-turn is Minccino's escape route from unfavorable match-ups, as well as a scouting tool. Wake-Up Slap hits Steel- and Rock-type Pokemon, most notably Pawniard, and Seed Bomb is to hit Omanyte and Tirtouga. Set Details The EVs allow Minccino to capitalize on its good Speed and Attack stats and outpace a large portion of the tier. With a Choice Scarf equipped, Minccino's maxed out 17 Speed skyrockets up to an impressive 25, outspeeding every unboosted Pokemon in the tier, as well as more than a few Choice Scarf Pokemon. Jolly is useful for outspeeding +2 Modest Omanyte, Modest Bellsprout under the sun, and a couple of other Shell Smashers; however, Adamant can be used for a larger damage output. Usage Tips This moveset functions well as both a late-game cleaner and a revenge killer. Knock Off and U-turn are the most useful early-game moves, weakening opponents and making it easier for both Minccino and its teammates to clean up later in the match. Removing opposing Normal-type immunities and resists should be a top priority, so predicting and KOing incoming Ghost-, Steel-, and Rock-type switch-ins is incredibly helpful. Team Options Teammates that can remove Steel-, Rock-, and Ghost-type Pokemon are essential. Drilbur makes a fantastic teammate with its access to Stealth Rock, Rapid Spin, and Mold Breaker Earthquake, the latter being able to hit Gastly as well as Steel- and Rock-types for super effective damage. Mienfoo can switch into both Rock- and Steel-types and forms a nice U-turn core with Minccino. Stunky and Pawniard both make decent teammates with their ability to trap and KO opposing Ghost-types with Pursuit. Magnemite is also a useful teammate, as it can trap and defeat opposing Steel-types with Hidden Power Fire, Fighting, or Ground, depending on what Pokemon threaten your team the most.

Tail Slap and Skill Link come together to form a very effective combination. Add Life Orb to the mix, and the opposing Pokemon should be terrified. Despite having 85% accuracy, Tail Slap is going to cause major damage if it hits your opponent. It should be stressed that Tail Slap should almost always be the attack Minccino uses, unless you know a more accurate attack will KO, or the opponent resists Tail Slap. Even a super effective Aqua Tail or Seed Bomb is less powerful than a neutral Tail Slap, so don't get greedy for that super effective message. The choice between an Adamant and a Jolly nature isn't a tough one; nothing really dangerous sits at the base 17 Speed tier, and Adamant is good because it gives Minccino as much power as possible. However, if you really want to outspeed almost anything, a Jolly nature can be used. If Minccino's longevity is unappealing, Eviolite can be used as it gives Minccino 14 / 15 defenses, which means it can take hits a bit better than it can with Life Orb. If you do this, however, the power drop is definitely noticeable. Aqua Tail hits the Rock-types who resist Tail Slap for super effective damage, and it hits Ground-types hard too. U-turn is useful to get out of tough situations and to bring out another sweeper. Knock Off is used to stop defensive Pokemon that rely on Eviolite, such as Misdreavus, by getting rid of their Eviolite, making them easier to beat. However, if bulky Water-types such as Tirtouga and Omanyte get you down, Seed Bomb can be used to deal good damage to them. The EV spread is simple; give Minccino enough Speed to outpace the lower half of the tier, and then give it enough power to really hurt something. Entry hazards make Minccino's job easier and can help put its foes in its KO range, so Pokemon such as Dwebble pair with it nicely. A switch-in for Fighting-types is also helpful, as they can easily OHKO Minccino with any super effective move; Misdreavus fills this role nicely, and so does Shelmet, who can provide the aforementioned entry hazards. Minccino also has the ability to KO potential threats to setup sweepers or bring them in with U-turn, so Pokemon such as Misdreavus love to have Minccino on their team.

Minccino is already fast enough on its own, and can thus easily outpace the entire unboosted metagame with a Choice Scarf. With this major Speed boost, Adamant is the recommended nature as Minccino doesn't need any more Speed than it already has. Despite this, it's not very different from the Life Orb set. Tail Slap and Skill Link are kept because it dishes out major damage, and it means that Minccino will have an easier time 2HKOing set-up sweepers with its improved Speed. Aqua Tail and U-turn are still there to hit Rock- and Ground-types and scout, respectively. Seed Bomb is used to hit bulky Water-types. The same EV spread from the Life Orb set is used; it lets Minccino outspeed any non-Scarfed Pokemon, and even some that are. This gives setup sweepers a much harder time, as they'll wish that they had attacked instead of powering up as they're torn apart by a Tail Slap. Sadly, Minccino doesn't have a large plethora of options for this set. Wake-Up Slap can be used to hit Steel-types, but it's so weak that you're better off having a more effective Pokemon deal with them. Magnemite does this job very well, as it can trap Steel-types with Magnet Pull and KO them with Hidden Power Fire. Other than that, there's not much else that can be done that wouldn't ruin the flow that this set has.