Welcome once again to Pokemon of the Week. In this very special article, I will be discussing a Pokemon that I have very strong feelings about. This week, I discuss Infernape.

Infernape was introduced in generation four as the final evolution to one of the three starter Pokemon that can be chosen in Diamond, Pearl and Platinum. The impact this Pokemon had on the 4th generation metagame was pretty noticable, as it was one of only two starters to make it to the 4th generation OU tier and remain there through the duration of the metagame (the other being Swampert).

I can see you wondering why I've not gone into rant mode yet, but, dear reader, I promise to you that I will keep this professional. Not a negative word will pass my lips, for I have taken the high road. The righteous road. I am the better man, and no one can take my honor from me.

Until the My Thoughts section.

As said, Infernape was a pretty big player in DPPtHGSS's metagame, and with the shifting of generations, Infernape has remained largely unchanged. The metagame surrounding it, however, has changed drastically. With the introduction of Jellicent, Latios and Latias roosting comfortably in OU, Tentacruel gaining popularity in Rain teams, Rain teams themselves, courtesy of Drizzle Politoed, priority moves, and the plethora of Choice Scarf Pokemon, Infernape has a lot to watch out for this generation.

This is somewhat mitigated, however, as Game Freak and Pokemon have generously decided that Infernape should have all of the best moves in the game short of Outrage. Infernape's movepool is ridiculously diverse, sporting such oddities as Grass Knot, U-Turn, Vacuum Wave, Nasty Plot, as well as the powerful moves you'd expect like Close Combat, Fire Blast, Flare Blitz, Swords Dance, and Stone Edge. With so much diversity in top-tier moves, it's easy to see why Infernape is popular in battle, and a very dangerous threat.

Infernape@ Life Orb Blaze / Iron Fist Naive nature (+Speed, -Sp. Defense) EVs: 252 Speed / 252 Attack / 4 Sp. Attack Close Combat Overheat U-Turn / Grass Knot Stone Edge / Mach Punch

This is the most common set you'll see Infernape using, and for good reason. Close Combat provides Infernape with his most reliable, and often, strongest attack, at virtually no cost, since the defense drops make little-to-no difference to a Pokemon that will be OHKOd by the majority of attacks thrown at it. Overheat is Infernape's other STAB move, and is used as a high-powered one-shot move that runs off of Infernape's Sp. Attack stat. This is very useful for dispatching Skarmory, Ferrothorn, Genesect, and dealing large chunks of damage to physical based walls that don't resist the move.

In the third slot, you have two very good options. The benefits of U-Turn are almost too hard to pass up, as it not only allows Infernape to escape while doing damage, but it allows Infernape to become a dangerous scout, giving you a mental advantage in battle that should not be overlooked. It also hits common switch-ins such as Latios and Starmie, allowing you to immediately switch to a counter and continue the offensive, potentially setting them in range of being immediately knocked out by what you bring into battle. U-Turn will also remove the Sp. Attack drop from Overheat, allowing you to launch it more freely, using U-Turn to get out after using it while scouting whether or not they'll stay in, helping to ease your prediction.

Grass Knot, on the other hand, allows Infernape to eliminate some of his counters completely, not relying on team support to get the job done. A good example of this is that Infernape has a good chance of 2HKOing standard physically bulky Jellicent with Stealth Rock up (a guarunteed 2HKO with Stealth Rock and one layer of Spikes), while also OHKOing Gastrodon, so this is a good option to consider if you don't want to structure your team around Infernape, but rather, have him KO as many things by himself as possible.

In the last slot, you have two options yet again. Stone Edge is a great option for Infernape as the given EVs allow it to OHKO offensive Dragonite after accounting for Stealth Rock damage, as well as dealing damage to Salamence and Gyarados, two dangerous setup sweepers that resist Infernape's STAB moves. On the other hand, Mach Punch can pick of fast, weakened Pokemon, proving especially useful against many Choice Scarf users, especially when factoring in Iron Fist, which should only be used if running Mach Punch. For example, Choice Scarf Terrakion takes a minimum of 60% from an Iron Fist boosted Mach Punch with a maximum of 70%, allowing you to easily pick off even a slightly weakened Terrakion before it can do anything. It also deals a minimum of 60% to most Hydreigon, so this can be a very effective way of getting around dangerous Scarfers.

Infernape@ Choice Band Iron Fist / Blaze Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Speed / 252 Attack / 4 HP Flare Blitz Close Combat Stone Edge / Mach Punch U-Turn

Too bad Hi Jump Kick is better. Get off the stage. Anyway, Infernape can use a Choice Band set because... well, better Fire types have moved onto better tiers, leaving this niche largely unfilled in the OU tier, with Infernape taking up the mantal. Flare Blitz and Close Combat form a deadly STAB core, dealing heavy damage to anything not resistant or immune to them. Stone Edge deals with Gyarados and Salamence, OHKOing both of them after Stealth Rock damage, even factoring in Intimidate. However, Mach Punch is a good option to strike the opponent with a powerful priority attack. Again, Iron Fist should be used if Mach Punch is used, to get the maximum amount of damage out of it. U-Turn rounds the set out, serving as a very powerful scouting tool.

Infernape@ Life Orb Blaze / Iron Fist Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Speed / 252 Attack / 4 HP Swords Dance Close Combat Fire Punch Stone Edge / Mach Punch

Infernape's got the stats and movepool to utilize a Swords Dance set, and finds time to do so with the many switches it forces. After boosting its Attack to high levels with a single Swords Dance, you're free to launch powerful Close Combats. Fire Punch is chosen as the Fire STAB of choice, since it'll OHKO anything weak to Fire after a Swords Dance without the recoil of Flare Blitz. In the last slot, we have the same Stone Edge and Mach Punch decision. Stone Edge will get rid of Gyarados, Salamence and after Stealth Rock damage, but Mach Punch allows you a powerful priority move, especially after Swords Dance.

Infernape@ Life Orb Blaze Timid nature (+Speed, -Attack) / Naive nature (+Speed, -Sp. Defense) EVs: 252 Speed / 252 Sp. Attack / 4 Attack Nasty Plot Fire Blast / Flamethrower Focus Blast / Close Combat Grass Knot / Vacuum Wave

Infernape has access to Nasty Plot for whatever reason, so here's a moveset for it. Nasty Plot boosts Infernape's Sp. Attack to high levels, just the same as the previous set does with Attack. Fire Blast is the main STAB move of the set, dealing huge amounts of damage to almost anything after a Nasty Plot boost. Flamethrower can be used for more reliability at the cost of some power. Focus Blast benefits from the Nasty Plot boost, giving you a powerful secondary STAB move to use. Close Combat is a good alternative here, as it's much more accurate, and deals with Chansey, Blissey and a few other special walls that it'd otherwise have troubles with. The last slot is another toss-up between coverage and priority. Grass Knot deals with Jellicent, Gastrodon, Politoed, and other Water types that'd otherwise give Infernape trouble, while Vacuum Wave gives Infernape a powerful priority move to use. The choice should depend on your team and what gives you the most trouble.

Infernape@ Choice Scarf Blaze Naive nature (+Speed, -Sp. Defense) EVs: 252 Speed / 148 Sp. Attack / 108 Attack Close Combat Fire Blast / Flare Blitz U-Turn Stone Edge / Hidden Power Ice

Slap a Choice Scarf on Infernape, and it becomes a deadly revenge killer, and a very fast scout. Close Combat is your main STAB move here, dealing a lot of damage and having good coverage. Fire Blast supplements this with a special attack to roast Pokemon such as Skarmory and Forretress. Flare Blitz can be used if you don't like the risk of missing with Fire Blast, but this isn't recommended, as the recoil is annoying, and you lose a special STAB to deal with physical walls. U-Turn allows you to scout what the opponent will do, and with the Choice Scarf, you almost assure avoiding damage and seeing if the opponent stays in or switches. Stone Edge hits Flying types that have plagued all the previous sets, while Hidden Power Ice deals with Dragon types such as Dragonite and Salamence. This set is not as powerful as previous sets, and should be used to revenge kill Pokemon that have been weakened significantly, and prey upon Super Effective hits to get kills on opponents.

Getting an Infernape in-game now requires you to PokeTransfer one from 4th gen, as they are not currently available via Dream World. If you can get past this hump, Infernape does pretty much the same things in-game that it does competitively. Here's what you should use for an in-game Infernape:

Infernape Flamethrower Close Combat Stone Edge Grass Knot

Infernape's got all the moves it needs to hit many things Super Effectively in-game. Flamethrower and Close Combat form the STAB core, while Stone Edge hits Flying types. Grass Knot rounds out the moveset, hitting Water types that Infernape wouldn't otherwise be able to damage effectively.

I've patiently written this entire article as neutrally as I can, waiting for this section. If you've been a member of PKMN.net for the last... I guess 4 or so years, you'll know exactly how I feel about Infernape, but you know what? I just had to write up five Infernape movesets, so I've definitely built up some rant.

Infernape is a cruel joke played by Game Freak. In Diamond and Pearl, we got two mediocre starters in Torterra and Empoleon. The third choice began as a squiggle-headed monkey with an eternal ass-fire. This evolved into a thing with a giant blue uni-brow, and ended in the most hideous thing I have ever laid eyes upon. Let's break down why Infernape has the stupidest design in history.

First thing that's noticeable is that its head is on fire. What purpose could this possibly serve realistically? Flaming Headbutts? The Pokedex says that that flame never goes out. This means that anywhere it sleeps, it burns that place down. Want to cuddle with your abomination starter? We'll prepare your funeral services.

Second, Infernape appears to... grow armor. This itself is bizarre and ridiculous, but even more ridiculous is the fact that Infernape's defenses are laughable at best, sporting an awful base 76 HP, and 71 base Defense and Sp. Defense. I fail to see the point.

Third, and most importantly, COME ON. This is the ugliest, stupidest, most uncool creature I have EVER seen in my life. Just freaking look at it, it's hideous! How anyone could like this just baffles me, especially when the coolest Pokemon ever was introduced with the same type last generation.

When it comes down to it, Infernape is comparable to Dan from the Street Fighter series. He's a knock-off of a better, more established Pokemon, with sub-par abilities that just doesn't live up to what it was based on. If my hatred for this thing was converted to water, a typhoon would leave Infernape drowned beneath the sea, never to be found again, lost with the secrets of the Abyssal Ruins.

Use Blaziken.

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