Shroomish Movesets & Competitive Sets

Moves Spore is a staple on Shroomish, as it enables it to put an opposing threat to sleep. Bullet Seed is a powerful STAB move which hits opponents such as Drilbur, Onix, Tirtouga, and Chinchou. Giga Drain is also a reliable STAB move which provides a small amount of recovery. Drain Punch enables Shroomish to hit opponents such as Pawniard super effectively while providing Shroomish with a small amount of recovery. It also nails Ferroseed and Lileep, which might try to switch in on a predicted Spore. Synthesis allows Shroomish to recover off damage, particularly against a sleeping opponent. Set Details Shroomish prefers to hold Eviolite, as it improves its bulk. The chosen EV spread gives Shroomish the highest Attack possible with enough EVs in Defenses to reach Eviolite numbers. The remaining EVs are put into HP and Special Attack for the sets that run Giga Drain. An Adamant nature gives the highest Attack possible, but a Brave nature can be used if Shroomish runs Giga Drain as it won't be greatly affected by the loss of a point in Speed. Effect Spore is a decent ability to mess up contact move users, but it can interfere with Spore and is unreliable. Usage Tips Shroomish should use Spore whenever it gets the opportunity. Crippling an opponent can be very advantageous, as you can switch out in an attempt to gain a favorable match up, or hit the incoming switch with an attack, or simply heal up with Synthesis if Shroomish has taken damage. Drain Punch can be used to hit opponents such as Pawniard and Houndour, which resist Shroomish's STAB moves. Shroomish is crippled by status, however, so it should not stay in on opponents such as Ferroseed or Porygon which can cripple Shroomish with a Thunder Wave. Team Options Steel-types such as Pawniard and Magnemite are great teammates for Shroomish, as they are immune to Poison-type attacks, and resist the Bug-, Flying-, and Ice-type attacks that Shroomish is weak to. They also wall Fletchling, which is a huge threat to Shroomish, although they cannot wall mixed Fletchling that carry Overheat. A teammate to absorb Will-O-Wisp and defeat the Grass-types that wall Shroomish, particularly Foongus and Cottonee, is helpful; Houndour or Ponyta both can do this. Abra or Drilbur beat the Poison-types that wall Shroomish; they can also both shred through opponents after Shroomish has weakened them extensively.

Moves Spore is a staple on Shroomish, as it enables it to put an opposing threat to sleep. Protect assures Toxic Orb's activation and also allows it to stall for an extra turn of recovery. However, without Hidden Power Fire, Shroomish is completely walled by other Grass-types and Steel-types. Leech Seed provides residual damage and recovery for Shroomish. Giga Drain is the STAB move of choice, as it hits Chinchou and Drilbur for super effective damage, and provides recovery. Toxic enables Shroomish to beat Lileep, Porygon and Vullaby, Pokemon that would wall it easily otherwise. Set Details Although Shroomish misses the bulk provided by Eviolite, Toxic Orb combined with Poison Heal gives it reliable recovery every turn and makes it immune to other status effects. Running Max HP EVs means Shroomish will recover 3 HP per turn while poisoned, while the rest of the EVs are placed in Defense and Special Defense with a Bold nature in order to make Shroomish as bulky as possible without Eviolite. Usage Tips After Toxic Orb's activation, Shroomish can act as both a status and Knock Off absorber, as it does not need its Toxic Orb after it is activated. Although it is still frail without Eviolite, the gradual recovery means that it can take hits reasonably well. Putting an opponent to sleep with Spore will allow Shroomish to recover plenty of health as Poison Heal and Giga Drain work well together in aiding recovery. Team Options Steel-types such as Pawniard and Magnemite are great teammates for Shroomish, as they are immune to Poison-type attacks and also resist the Bug-, Flying-, and Ice-type attacks that Shroomish is weak to. They also wall Fletchling, a huge threat to Shroomish, although they cannot wall mixed Fletchling that carry Overheat. A teammate to absorb Will-O-Wisp and defeat the Grass-type Pokemon that wall Shroomish, notably Foongus and Cottonee is helpful. Both Houndour or Ponyta can do this. Abra and Drilbur are able to beat the Poison-types that wall Shroomish, and they can also both shred through opponents after Shroomish has weakened them extensively.

Shroomish's best set in LC lets it hold the spot as one of the best sand counters in the metagame. Its awesome resistances and balanced defenses when combined with an Eviolite let it sponge hits from common threats such as Drilbur, Tirtouga, Chinchou, and Hippopotas. With an Eviolite, it can shrug off two hits from +2 Adamant Drilbur's X-Scissor and KO back with Giga Drain, recovering off the lost HP in the process. It can also live a +2 Stone Edge from Shell Smash Tirtouga and OHKO back with Giga Drain or shut it down with Spore. Similarly, it can come in on Chinchou and Staryu and simply just sit and suck out their HP with Giga Drain as they fail to scratch Shroomish's bulky hide. Shroomish is a great tank because nearly anything that can't OHKO it can be shut down by Shroomish's Spore and then gradually KOed by Giga Drain. Using its decent Special Attack, Shroomish can quickly eliminate most of the opponents it commonly walls, as they are usually weak to Grass. Shroomish also has access to a recovery move in Synthesis, which heals it and lets it switch in repeatedly to sponge attacks. With Toxic or Stun Spore, Shroomish can be used to cripple defensive Pokemon or offensive Pokemon respectively, depending on which you want Shroomish to handle. Toxic quickly wears down opponents that lack recovery, especially when used in conjunction with residual damage, while Stun Spore can be used to further cripple opponents after Sleep Cause has been activated. Shroomish has quite a few other options it can use. Leech Seed is another great support move that can be used to stall the opponent as well as heal up Shroomish's HP. Hidden Power Fire is a nice way to beat opposing Grass- and Steel-types that give Shroomish trouble. If Shroomish does use Hidden Power Fire, it should have 40 EVs in Special Attack instead, as they are needed to bump Shroomish's Special Attack back up to 11. Both of Shroomish's abilities can be used to great effect. Poison Heal can be run to give Shroomish an immunity to Toxic as well as a way to heal itself gradually should it switch in on an opponent's Toxic. However, Poison Heal relies on support from the opponent, making it a situational yet still useful ability. Effect Spore can be used to potentially cripple physical attackers that Shroomish commonly walls, and can even put another opponent to sleep. The given EVs maximize Shroomish's HP and Defense, letting it wall sand teams and other physically attacking pokemon with ease. The EVs are then split to balance power and Special Defense, letting Shroomish dent things with its Giga Drain as well as tank the rare Ice Beam or two from bulky Water-types. In terms of teammates, Shroomish likes Pokemon that can get rid of opposing Grass-, Ice-, and Flying-types, which can all wall or KO it. Pokemon like Tirtouga or Chinchou that can beat Flying- and Fire-types pair well with Shroomish. Shroomish can help by tanking Grass- and Electric-type moves in return. Ponyta and Houndour are great partners too as they appreciate the removal of Ground- and Water-types and can eliminate Fire-, Grass- and Ice-types for Shroomish. Ponyta even sets up Sunny Day, which boosts Synthesis recovery. Natu can reflect status and Taunt, as well as defeat Grass-types with Hidden Power Flying.

With a combination of good typing, a wonderful ability, and decent defenses, Shroomish is able to cause havoc easily with its SubSeed set. The main idea of the set is to switch in on a resisted attack and either Substitute or Spore the Pokemon coming in on the switch. From there, Shroomish uses a combination of the HP it receives from Poison Heal and Leech Seed to stall out the opposition. This is even easier to carry out thanks to the plethora of Pokemon abusing Choice items in Little Cup. With 25 HP, 16 Defense, and 14 Special Defense, Shroomish can run arguably the most effective SubSeeding set in all of Little Cup. This set achieves its goal by using a combination of Substitute and Protect to make sure that the opponent cannot touch you, while draining their health with Leech Seed and restoring your own. Spore allows Shroomish to put the opponent to sleep 100% of the time, allowing for easy setup. Shroomish's plethora of resistances to the common attacking types in Little Cup help it easily switch in and set up. Once in, Shroomish can safely put the opponent to sleep with Spore and begin the stalling cycle. Use Substitute on the switch and Leech Seed as the opponent breaks your Substitute. Then, simply alternate between Substitute and Protect to drain your opponent's HP until it is KOed. Despite Shroomish's resistances, its Grass typing gives it several weaknesses as well. Be wary of Ice-, Flying-, and Fire-type attacks when attempting to set up. Ghosts can cause huge problems if they haven't been hit by Leech Seed, as they can easily outpace and KO Shroomish with a STAB Shadow Ball. A dual screen user, such as Bronzor, can help Shroomish take hits better, and Munchlax makes a great partner for Shroomish thanks to its great bulk and ability to counter troublesome Ghosts with Pursuit. Shroomish also has trouble with Wynaut since it has Encore.

While giving a Choice Scarf to such a slow Pokemon may seem silly, the boost gives Shroomish the magic 21 Speed, which allows it to outspeed all unboosted Pokemon. This makes Shroomish a very effective anti-lead, allowing it to outrun and sleep any non-Scarfed Pokemon with its 100% accurate Spore. This set can prevent most leads from setting up Stealth Rock. It can immobilize many top leads, including Hippopotas, Meowth, and Snover, simply by using Spore on them. Neither Snover's Ice Shard nor Meowth's Fake Out will ever OHKO Shroomish, allowing it to safely incapacitate them with Spore. Energy Ball allows Shroomish to deal with leads such as Diglett, Hippopotas, Phanpy, Kabuto, and Omanyte. Sludge Bomb gives Shroomish some extra coverage while Stun Spore is convenient for paralyzing Pokemon like Gligar. Shroomish doesn't have a fantastic movepool, but it can run a physical moveset as well. Seed Bomb may be used over Energy Ball to hit specially defensive Pokemon harder while Return complements it for extra coverage. Wake-Up Slap can be used to hit Snover, Houndour, and Aron a bit harder. Hidden Power Ice can also be used to kill Gligar. Shroomish's main objective is to use Spore against the opponent; if it can't OHKO the opposing lead, it should Spore to prevent the opposing lead from setting up. If the lead switches to take the hit, it ends up being slept rather than taking minimal damage. Choice Scarf Shroomish faces some competition from Choice Scarf Venonat. However, Venonat has Sleep Powder which, after Compound Eyes, only has 97.5% accuracy as opposed to Shroomish's 100% accurate Spore. Venonat also lacks Energy Ball, which is very useful in the lead position for dealing with common Ground- and Water-type leads. After its use in the lead position, Shroomish can revenge kill certain Pokemon that are weak to Energy Ball or use Spore on another target if the other Pokemon has fainted. Toxic can be also used to cripple a Pokemon, but seeing as Little Cup is a very fast paced metagame, it would be of little use. Choice Scarf Shroomish pairs up well with Houndour, as Houndour can absorb the Fire-type attacks thrown at Shroomish with Flash Fire. Chinchou can switch into nearly all attacks that Shroomish is weak to and set up. Keep in mind that Shroomish cannot set up Stealth Rock, so if the team strongly benefits from a Stealth Rock user, something like Bronzor or Omanyte may be used. Any Choice Scarfed lead, such as Mankey and Gastly, will beat this set. Leads with Lum Berry can take Shroomish's Spore and and KO with any attack. Houndour that run Early Bird and Sucker Punch can also take Shroomish down. Leads with priority can significantly damage Shroomish, but generally cannot OHKO it due to its reasonable defenses.