037 - Vulpix

Overview: If you were to remove Vulpix from EFT, you would see a drastic difference. Vulpix is the only Pokemon in the tier with a permaweather ability, making it difficult for other weather based teams to be used. Access to Flash Fire gives Vulpix the ability to severely hamper opposing Clear Skies teams and use the boost for a potential sweep. With decent speed and its ability supplying extra power, Vulpix can run a decent Choice set with it's plethora of attacks. Wether it be offensive or defensive, Vulpix's movepool supplies many options and useful combinations.

Description: After a Nasty Plot, boosted with either Flash Fire or Drought (or even both), Vulpix's Fire Blast is among the most powerful attacks in the tier. Force a switch with Clear Skies or switching into a Fire-type move with Flash Fire, then use Nasty Plot to jump start Vulpix's Special Attack. Fire Blast's power is massive, but Flamethrower's reliable accuracy is also appealing. Energy Ball tears through Water- and Rock-type. Hidden Power Ice hits Dragon-types heavily while Hidden Power Rock hits Fire-types hard.

Description: Giving Clear Skies to your teammates is one of Vulpix's most important roles, but with plenty of teams prepared to deal with Clear Skies, you may need Vulpix to stick around. Unfortunately, Vulpix has a hard time dealing with Stealth Rock and other entry hazards, making Rapid Spin support a prefered choice. With Will-O-Wisp, Vulpix can rack up damage over time and protect it's weak Defense stat with Burn's Attack debuff. Flamethrower is the most reliable STAB attack, and in the sun it hardly needs an investment. Energy Ball is a great way to deal with Diglett, scoring super effective hits on Rock-, Ground-, and Water-types. Substitute can ease Vulpix's prediction and provides interesting stalling opportunities like Pain Split. Since Vulpix drives out Steel-types and attracts Flash Fire users, Toxic can get the drop on foes like other Vulpix and Cyndaquil. Confuse Ray can stack with other status effects and force switches. Hypnosis has low accuracy but puts a foe down for several turns.