Slither Wing, the Paradox Pokémon. This mysterious Pokémon has some similarities to a creature that an old book introduced as Slither Wing. This Pokémon somewhat resembles an ancient form of Volcarona that was introduced in a dubious magazine.

Overview

The past Paradox form of Volcarona, Slither Wing captures all the savagery one would expect of a prehistoric bug. With a whopping base 135 Attack and potential Protosynthesis Boost, Slither Wing hits like a dinosaur. It has the movepool to back up such power too getting some of the best physical Bug and Fighting STABs around in Leech Life, Close Combat, U-Turn, Lunge and the rare First Impression. Slither Wing’s heritage as a Volcarona expy helps it out as well, giving it ample Fire coverage that compliments Slither Wing’s existing STABs and synergizes wonderfully with the Sun activated Protosynthesis. This heritage also lends Slither Wing decent base 105 Special Defense giving it a degree of special hit taking especially with access to recovery options in Leech Life and Morning Sun and can remedy its physical Defense with Will-O-Wisp. All these traits offer Slither Wing an impressive degree of flexibility for a physical attacker, whether as a potent Bulk Up Sweeper, powerful pivot of both the offensive and defensive varieties or just straight up wall.

However, for all of Slither Wing’s strengths, it is held back by a myriad of factors. Bug-Fighting while having good coverage offensively is held back by having a whopping 4 singular types that resist both STABs. While Buzzwole has proven that Bug-Fighting can be a potent defensive type, that is only when looking at physical side of the spectrum. Dark, Ground, Fighting and to a lesser extent Grass are all predominantly physical, something that does not mesh well with Slither Wing’s unimpressive base 79 Defense, meaning it is taking significant damage even from resisted blows. To say nothing of its onerous weakness to Flying that obliterates Slither Wing without a second thought. All these defensive failings are exasperated by Slither Wing’s unimpressive base 81 Speed, having it fall short of many predominant offensive threats as well as some defensive staples like Excadrill, Landorus-Therian, Great Tusk, Gholdengo and Fezandipiti. While Slither Wing can remedy its poor Speed with Flame Charge or First Impression, these moves come with their own failings and are situational. Slither Wing’s power, flawed as it is, cannot be denied, with this blast from the past able to take names with the best of them.
Positives
Base 135 Attack is amazing even before considering boosts like from Protosynthesis or Bulk Up.
Base 105 Special Defense allows for some special hit-taking, especially in conjunction with recovery options in Morning Sun and Leech Life.
Bug-Fighting offers impressive defensive profile with Dark, Ground and Fighting resistances

Negatives
Bug-Fighting is rather marred offensively with Poison, Ghost, Flying and Fairy mutually resisting both types. Base 79 Defense meshes poorly with Slither Wing’s defensive profile preventing Slither Wing from tanking the attacks you would expect it to. Base 81 Speed is unimpressive, allowing for many offensive staples to easily revenge KO Slither Wing.

Movesets

Military Crawl

-First Impression
-U-Turn
-Close Combat
-Earthquake
Ability: Protosynthesis
Item: Assault Vest
EVs and Nature:
252 Atk / 4 SDef / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature

Slither Wing’s blend of tools make it ideally suited as a hybrid revenge killer and pivot. A lot of this comes from its access to the rare First Impression. Even with how poor Bug is as an offensive, with STAB and coming off base 135 Attack, First Impression hits like a truck for a priority move. It deals over a third to Dragapult who resists the attack mind you, to say nothing of fast attackers like Darkrai, Greninja, Latios and Ogerpon who want nothing to do with the move. U-Turn complements First Impression nicely, allowing Slither Wing to pivot out after eliminating a target, or take advantage of Slither Wing’s defensive profile to force switches, especially against Special Attackers like Kyurem, Primarina, and Darkrai given the double whammy of Slither Wing’s good Special Defense and Assault Vest. Close Combat is secondary STAB and vital for Slither Wing given the large coverage it boasts, especially into Steel types like Kingambit, Heatran, Excadrill and Iron Treads, while ensuring other bulky Fighting types like Great Tusk, Zamazenta and Keldeo aren’t just free switches into Slither Wing either. Earthquake rounds out the set for coverage, being vital into the Poison types that wall both STABs like Pecharunt, Iron Moth, and Toxapex as well as hitting the Ground weak Gholdengo and Ceruledge who otherwise walls Slither Wing’s STABs with ease.

Tera Types:
As a pivot it is far from a high priority to Terastalize this Slither Wing set, given how it prefers to switch or U-Turn out of trouble as opposed to standing its ground. Even if this set wasn’t a pivoting set, Slither Wing’s gets a lot of mileage out of its combination of resistances making Terastalization an even more unattractive prospect. That is not to say Terastalization is completely without merit. Tera Fire is incredibly valuable, not only for the resistances to Fire and Fairy it provides, but the immunity to Burns, preventing Moltres from pivoting in to punish a First Impression or U-Turn attempt. Giving a boost to Flare Blitz gives the option offensive merit as well. Tera Electric is similar, if less impactful, giving an immunity to Zapdos’ Static, but in conjunction with Wild Charge or Tera Blast allows Slither Wing to act as a lure to walls like Dondozo, Corviknight, Skarmory, and to a lesser extent Moltres on top of turning the tables on Flying types in general. Tera Dragon, while sharing a Fairy weakness, offers several valuable special resistances to have Slither Wing make better use of its excellent Special Defense. Tera Steel conversely is a more traditional defensive option given the sheer number of resistances it boasts, especially to Flying and Fairy, but also shares a weakness in Fire.

EVs and Items:
Max Speed and Attack are recommended for this set, with a larger emphasis on Attack for Slither Wing to squeeze as much value out of First Impression as possible. Max Speed investment is recommended as this set lacking natural recovery, is reliant on speed to stay healthy when pivoting out and the base 80s for Speed is a rather crowded speed tier. It is too the point that Max Speed is helpful outrunning the likes of Ceruledge, Great Tusk, and Gholdengo who do not fully invest in Speed. Assault Vest is key for this set, turning Slither Wing’s special bulk from good to exceptional, allowing it to absorb all sorts of special blows. Alternatively, one could go all in on the pivoting aspect and give Slither Wing Heavy-Duty Boots so it isn’t eaten alive by entry hazards.

Partners:
: This set excels on Sun teams, loving the free Protosynthesis boost to its Attack and making Slither Wing’s First Impressions and U-Turns even more ruinous. As such Torkoal makes for a natural partner, and addresses several of Slither Wing’s weaknesses, being a good pivot into Fire, Fairy and physical attacks and clearing away hazards while Slither Wing in turn can pivot into the Special and Ground attacks aiming to remove Torkoal. Pair this with other partners that excel in the Sun like Raging Bolt and Great Tusk who threaten the Flying and Poison types that Slither Wing struggles with respectively. In turn both like Slither Wing for its ability to force damage pushing foes into knock out range. Pivot Slither Wings also has value as a lure just in general, taking advantage of the numerous resists to Bug looking to absorb a First Impression or U-Turn and immediately pivot out into a check. Kyurem, Sandy Shocks and Thundurus-Therian are excellent pivots into the Flying types that Slither Wings draws in, while Iron Treads and Excadrill work decently against the Fairy, Poison and lesser extent Fire types looking to reduce the damage Slither Wing wreaks.

Other Options:
Flare Blitz and Temper Flare are powerful Fire coverage options that synergize well with Sun and Protosynthesis, but leave Slither Wing stone walled by Toxapex and Dragonite. Flare Blitz is preferred for power, but the recoil adds up quickly, especially with entry hazards, making Temper Flare worth consideration for the lack of recoil. Wild Charge is Slither Wing’s best option in Flying types who are a major problem for sets running Earthquake for coverage.

Doubles and VGC Options

Slither Wing struggles to make the same impact in Doubles that it has in singles. In Restricted formats, this is rather apparent with Slither Wing being a lesser version of Koraidon, being a base 135 Attack Fighting type, but at the cost of a worse primary type, poorer Speed and inability to passively set its own Sun. In formats without restricted Pokémon, Slither Wing still struggles. Part of this is due to its status as a Paradox Pokémon, Slither Wing is forced to compete with other Paradox and legendary Pokémon, many prominent ones possessing overwhelmingly positive matchups into it such as Flutter Mane, Tornadus, Chi-Yu, and Gouging Fire. Furthermore, most of Slither Wing’s value comes from being a Fighting type, in which case it has extremely stiff competition with Urshifu, and Iron Hands who fulfill similar niches as Fighting typed attackers. The other issue is due to being a physical attacker in a format where Intimidate users like Incineroar and Landorus-Therian run rampant, making it difficult to exercise Slither Wing’s full power. First Impression only being +2 in priority is another blow; while its First Impression may look like a more damaging Fake Out, the fact that First Impression can easily be stopped by Fake Out on top of other measures taken to prevent Fake Out, such as Armor Tail, Psychic Terrain and even Tera Ghost. While Slither Wing is good into the common Rillaboom + Incineroar core as well as handily remove staples such as Indeedee, Farigiraf, Wellspring Ogerpon, Cresselia and Kingambit, its numerous weaknesses make even keeping it around to get that value difficult. If one can keep Slither Wing around, its appellation as a lesser Koraidon quickly comes apparent with the destruction it deals.

Dragon Free Dinosaur

-Close Combat
-Flare Blitz
-Leech Life
-Protect
Ability: Protosynthesis
Item: Clear Amulet
Tera Type: Fire
EVs and Nature:
180 HP /252 Atk / 76 Spe
Jolly Nature

This Slither Wing set brings Koraidon’s searing power to a format lacking Koraidon. Close Combat is Slither Wing’s preferred STAB thanks to its wide coverage, on top of smashing doubles superstar Incineroar, but also Urshifu-Single, Archaludon, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, both Ursalunas, Roaring Moon, and Kingambit. Flare Blitz rises to pseudo-STAB in the Sun and complements Close Combat nicely with incredibly wide neutral coverage, allowing Slither Wing to obliterate many of the Pokémon that could otherwise resist both STABs, especially the common Tera Ghost and Tera Fairy users. Leech Life is secondary STAB that deals with the self destructive nature of Close Combat and Flare Blitz, keeping Slither Wing healthy as it goes on its rampage. Bug STAB, while not the best due to the many resists, hits a lot of important Grass and Psychic support pieces common on many teams like Rillaboom, Wellspring-Ogerpon, Indeedee-F, Farigiraf and Cresselia. Protect rounds out the set as a doubles staple, blocking Fake Out, punishing double up attempts, scouting for Terastalization, stalling for allied setup, stalling out opposing field conditions, Protect is invaluable in doubles formats.

Max Attack and Speed are recommended. The base 80s are a crowded speed tier with many staples such as Rillaboom, Indeedee-F, Gholdengo, Glimmora, Archaludon just to name a few, many of which do not fully invest in Speed, meaning Slither Wing is more reliably able to outspeed them. Attack is due to Slither Wing’s utility being damage first and foremost. Clear Amulet is an important accessory, allowing Slither Wing to ignore Incineroar and Landorus-Therian’s Intimidates and keep its offensive intact. Tera Fire completes the Koraidon cosplay, allowing Slither Wing to Terastalize out of its painful quadruple Flying weakness, as well as its Fire, Fairy and Psychic weaknesses, allowing it to better address threats. To say nothing of Tera Fire Protosynthesis Flare Blitz going nuclear in the Sun, dealing over half to physically defensive Incineroar and nearly half to pre-Commander Dondozo, allowing Slither Wing to pick up knock outs left and right.

Preferred Partners:
As Slither Wing is reliant on the Sun to excel and reach knock outs, a passive Sun setter like Torkoal is mandatory for this set. Both Slither Wing and Torkoal also make for an aggressive soft anti Trick Room package, with Slither Wing easily removing most Trick Room setters/attackers while Torkoal excels once opposing Trick Room is set up. Chien-Pao is another potent partner for this set, thanks to its Ice STAB obliterating Tornadus, Landorus, and Tera Flying Roaring Moon, while its Dark STABs are a more reliable answer to opposing Ghost and Tera Ghost types. Slither Wing also loves the passive damage boost from Sword of Ruin pushing its power even higher. First Impression is a tantalizing option regardless given its Extreme Speed-esque priority and insane power given Slither Wing’s base Attack and STAB, though cannot be only Bug STAB due to missing important bug weak targets in Indeede-F and Farigiraf. If not running Clear Amulet, U-Turn deserves mention being an immensely powerful pivoting tool in Slither Wing’s appendages, that is great for resetting Intimidate drops and scouting for switches and Teras on the opponent’s side.

Countering Slither Wing

While Slither Wing’s power is top notch and even boasts a fantastic defensive profile, the failings of its typing, underwhelming Defense and Speed hold it back.

Defensively checking Slither Wing comes down to what it is running for coverage due to the numerous resistances to both STABs, though exceptionally sturdy walls can also make the cut. Flying Dragon types like Dragonite and Intimidate Salamence are close to being the exceptions, given their immunity to Earthquake, resistance to Flare Blitz and neutrality to Wild Charge, meaning Slither Wing can only hope to 3HKO at best while being threatened by their Flying STABs in turn. Max HP Landorus-Therian is also only 4HKO’d even by Flare Blitz thanks to Intimidate, but needs Earthquake or Stone Edge to meaningfully threaten Slither Wing back. Iron Press Zamazenta can get by on sheer bulk thanks to Dauntless Shield forcing a 3HKO on Close Combat and Zamazenta’s insane speed making it trivial to get an Iron Defense up before Close Combat connects. Max HP and Defense Clefable also works as a general wall given every coverage is neutral to it and can easily outlast Slither Wing with Moonlight, cripple it with Thunder Wave or blast it down with Moonblast. Gliscor is also a headache thanks to Poison Heal it can easily outlast Flare Blitz damage and between the self destructive nature of Close Combat and Flare Blitz deal with Slither Wing in short order.

Sets lacking Wild Charge find themselves struggling the likes of Pelipper, Primarina, Moltres and Dondozo, with the former 3 resisting both STABs and the latter getting by on sheer bulk. Slither Wing lacking Flare Blitz struggle to handle Air Balloon Gholdengo, Zapdos, and Sinistcha. Sets lacking Earthquake find Poison types to be a struggle, especially Pecharunt, Galarian-Weezing, Fezandipiti and Toxapex as well as Fire resistant Ghosts like Ceruledge, Skeledirge, and Dragapult.

Offensively checking Slither Wing looks simple at first glance, but in practice can be wildly different thanks to Slither Wing commonly running sets that contain Will-O-Wisp or Assault Vest. As a result, physical Fire types that naturally outrun Slither Wing are the most consistent due to their immunity to Will-O-Wisp and super effective STAB. Speed Boost Blaziken, Entei, Cinderace, and Hisuian-Arcanine all fill this slot with gusto. Flying typed offense is also incredibly reliable given Slither Wing’s extreme vulnerability to the moves, with Tornadus-Therian, Iron Jugulis, Galarian-Zapdos, Salamence, Tera Flying Tera Blast Gyarados, Zapdos, Corviknight and Galarian Moltres being common users.

If up against Assault Vest Slither Wing, physical attackers are generally recommended if for their ability to more consistently pressure with damage, though Mimikyu is one of the few physical attackers not yet mentioned that can get the OHKO. Banded Meowscarada and Weavile can get the OHKO with Triple Axel, but are horrendously weak to First Impression, making them less consistent of an offensive check. Some Specs Special Attackers have the sheer muscle to break through Slither Wing’s Special Defense, namely Latios, Enamorus and Iron Crown, though the former also cannot tank a First Impression at all.

Conversely against defensive sets packing Will-O-Wisp, special attackers are valued given the threat of Will-O-Wisp, and such sets tend to sacrifice Speed for bulk, allowing for some extended counter play. Volcanion, non Specs Latios, and Specs Raging Bolt all easily OHKO.

Even if a Pokémon can’t get a knock out, Slither Wing often runs into the same problem as that of other physical Fire and Fighting attackers where its own offenses sacrifices its own defensive utility drastically expanding the pool of Pokémon that can remove Slither Wing.

Anime Appearences

Slither Wing has yet to make any appearances in the anime # -English Episode Name- -Jp. Episode Name- Pics