Iron Valiant‘s 5 Major Weaknesses in Pokémon Violet

As a powerful dual Fairy/Fighting-type Paradox Pokémon, Iron Valiant boasts solid 90/100/130 offensive stats and a versatile movepool. However, veterans know every Pokémon has an Achilles heel – and Iron Valiant is no exception.

After careful analysis, I‘ve determined Iron Valiant‘s 5 major weaknesses are:

Fairy, Flying, Poison, Psychic and Steel-type moves.

Now let‘s analyze in depth why these specific types are super effective versus Iron Valiant and how you can exploit them in battle for victory!

Detailed Breakdown of Iron Valiant‘s Type Weaknesses

First, let‘s review Iron Valiant‘s base stats and abilities for context on why it struggles defensively against its weakness types:

Stats:

HP: 90

Attack: 130

Defense: 90

Sp. Atk: 100

Sp. Def: 60

Speed: 130

Abilities: Iron Fists or Mold Breaker

With middling 90/90 bulk but huge 130/130 offensive stats, Iron Valiant is geared heavily towards dishing damage rather than taking hits. And while Mold Breaker lets it muscle through opposing abilities, it does nothing to shore up the weak 60 base Sp. Defense.

This explains why specially-based attacking types like Fairy, Psychic and Flying give Iron Valiant major issues Defensively. Meanwhile, Poison and Steel types resist Iron Valiant‘s STAB combination of Fighting and Fairy moves.

Now let‘s analyze some of Iron Valiant‘s bad type matchups against popular Pokémon:

Fairy

Azumarill: Huge 203 base Sp. Atk stat lets it chunk ~75% with STAB Play Rough. Iron Valiant can‘t break through its ability Sap Sipper either.

Togekiss: Can shrug off Fighting STABs thanks to Flying typing, threaten ~50% damage with Air Slash/Dazzling Gleam. Outspeeds and flinches Iron Valiant.

Psychic

Tapu Lele: Psychic Terrain boosted Psychics dent Iron Valiant hard. It blitzes back with Moonblast/Focus Blast for big neutral damage too.

Gardevoir: Devastates with ~80% Psychics and 75% Moonblasts. Traces Iron Fist for boosted Focus Blasts to cover Dark-types. Speed tiers allows it to attack first most of time too before Iron Valiant can retaliate.

Flying

Staraptor: Reckless boosted Double-Edge and Brave Bird pummel Iron Valiant for heavy damage while resisting its STABs.

Corviknight: Physically bulky Corviknight takes little from Iron Valiant‘s STAB moves thanks to Steel typing and can Whirlwind it away, set up Bulk Up boosts on it, then sweep late game after outstalling.

And that‘s just a few examples! Many other prominent meta Pokémon like Tornadus, Celesteela, the Lati twins all give Iron Valiant trouble.

Now that we‘ve established Iron Valiant struggles defensively against special hits, priority attacks, and Steel/Flying resistances, let‘s discuss some strategies to beat this fighting machine!

4 Effective Couterstrategies Against Iron Valiant

Here are effective Pokémon and sets capable of countering Iron Valiant in battle:

Volcarona @ Lum Berry

Quiver Dance
Fiery Dance
Bug Buzz
Giga Drain

With +1 Sp. Atk boost, Giga Drain only 3HKOs Iron Valiant allowing it to setup multiple Quiver Dance boosts and sweep. Lum Berry lets it shrug off Will-O-Wisp or Thunder Wave attempts. Works well with Toxapex to absorb expected Rock Slides.

Toxapex @ Black Sludge

Baneful Bunker
Recover
Scald
Toxic

Great defensive synergy with Volcarona. Baneful Bunker blocks Iron Valiant setting up Swords Dance or using Drain Punch for recovery, allowing Toxapex to chip with Scald burns then stall out with Recover. Fini is another solid Water/Fairy pivot option.

Assault Vest Garganect @ AV

Earth Power
Sludge Bomb
Flamethrower
Dragon Pulse

Excellent specially defensive bulk with Assault Vest activated. Earth Power deals solid stab damage. Sludge Bomb has chance to poison. Takes little from Fighting/Fairy stabs and threaten back super effectively. Handles Volcarona checks like Rillaboom and Amoonguss.

Multiscale Dragonite @ Weakness Policy

Dragon Dance
Earthquake
Outrage
Extreme Speed

If Iron Valiant lacks Toxic, Dragonite sets up Dragon Dance on resisted hits. This lets it outspeed and KO with Earthquake or pummel with Outrage after Weakness Policy and Dragon boosts. Priority Extreme Speed revenge kills faster threats. Great offensive pivot as Fairy resists common Steel counters like Heatran.

With these solid counters on your squad, Iron Valiant won‘t seem so intimidating next time you battle it! Now let‘s shift gears and discuss strategies for catching this elusive Paradox Pokémon.

Master Ball Worthy: Catching Tips for Iron Valiant

Don‘t let its cute gallant knight aesthetic fool you – Iron Valiant lives up to its name with a tiny catch rate of 3.9%, one of the lowest in Pokémon Violet! What makes this pocket monster so tricky to catch and should you use your Master Ball on it?

By The Numbers: Catch Rate Analysis

For context, most semi-rare Pokémon average around a 5-15% catch rate. Even the cover Legendary duo of Koraidon/Miraidon clock in way higher at 45% by comparison. Combined with Iron Valiant‘s very limited encounter spawn pool, this is easily among the hardest Pokémon to obtain in Gen 9.

So why the crazy low catch rate exactly? After prominently featuring it in trailers, my theory is developers GameFreak intentionally made Iron Valiant extra hard to catch to extend longevity achieving pokedex completion and #perfectIVgrind. Still, while difficult, it‘s very beatable with the right preparations.

Recommended Pokéballs

I highly advise stockpiling these optimized Pokéballs combinations for Ultra Beast-tier catch rates before hunting:

• Ultra Balls – Best balance of increased catch rate multiplier + easy accessibility
• Dusk Balls – Catch rate x3.5 if battling in caves or at night
• Repeat Balls – Catch rate x3.5 if you already own Iron Valiant registered
• Timer Balls – Catch rate scales up the longer battle duration

Use these in conjunction with food buffs that boost Fairy/Fighting catch rates for best results. I also recommend having a Pokémon with False Swipe + sleep inducing move to lower Iron Valiant‘s health then nab it when weakened. Stack all these and even this tough catch begins to consistent.

And while Master Balls work flawlessly one-shotting any Pokémon, given their finite quantity in Violet, I‘d save them for actual one-per game legends like Calyrex, Zacian or Enamorus.

Iron Valiant Myth & Lore: Robot?!

Little confirmed lore exists for Paradox species in general, but internet speculation runs wild with fan theories on the origins of man-made looking Pokémon like Iron Valiant.

Some claim Iron Valiant was robotic invention created by mad scientist Grim Locuteur detailed in the Violet legendary books. Perhaps tying into the potential time travel antics of Prof. Sada/Turo creating the Paradox forms?

Regardless if rumor is true, with its jet turbine "swords", sleek metallic body and unnaturally low catch rate for a non-legendary Pokemon, one can reasonably presume Iron Valiant probably didn‘t originate as a natural species…

But what are your thoughts on Iron Valiant‘s background? I‘m very intrigued by fan speculation regarding the Paradox Pokémon, as their lore seems purposefully mysterious even for Pokémon standards!

Iron Valiant Vs Koraidon: Clash of Titans!

Let‘s wrap up with a special crossover analysis comparing Iron Valiant to Koraidon – the Legendary mascot of Pokémon Scarlet exclusive to that version. How does this powerful Paradox species measure up against a literal god guardian Pokémon?

While obviously Koraidon takes the cake in importance to Scarlet‘s storyline, from a competitive analysis standpoint, Iron Valiant battles the legend monk lizard blow for blow! Let‘s examine the key strengths and weaknesses of both these alpha Pokémon.

Typing

• Koraidon: Pure Fighting. Weak to Fairy/Flying/Psychic
• Iron Valiant: Fairy/Fighting. Weak to above + Poison/Steel

Slight edge Koraidon with less weaknesses, but doubled Fairy weakness is rough in modern meta full of Azumarill/Togekiss/Tapus.

Stats

• Koraidon: 100/135/115/35/115/135
• Iron Valiant: 90/130/90/100/60/130

Very similar blistering high Attack/Speed offensive stats! Koraidon edges in natural bulk while Iron Valiant has more versatility on special side.

Catch Difficulty

• Koraidon: 45% catch rate
• Iron Valiant: 3.9% catch rate

Way harder to obtain by massive margin – though Koraidon only available 1 per save file.

Signature Moves

• Koraidon: Twin Beam/Core Rupture
• Iron Valiant: Glacial Lance/Scorching Slice

Both get excellent dual STAB combo signatures!

Crowned Forms

• Koraidon-O: Dragon/Fighting w/300 BST boost
• No Iron Valiant equivalent

Koraidon can further boost its power in the post game. This combined with legendary lore importance gives it a slight overall edge in hierarchy.

But don‘t sleep on Iron Valiant‘s potential in competitive play! With skillful training, it rivals even mascot legends in usage viability. And scoring a catch of this elusive collectable is a Trainer badge of honor rivalling any difficulty scaled extreme Pokémon acquisition!

Conclusion

And there you have it – the 5 major weaknesses of Iron Valiant fully analyzed, plus effective counter methods, optimized catching tips and juicy origin lore theories to boot! This lone warrior may intimidate unprepared trainers with its impenetrable defenses – but armed with the knowledge above, you can now confidently clinch victory when battling this formidable foe!

I hoped you enjoyed this comprehensive competitive guide to Iron Valiant – definitely one of the top standout new Gen 9 Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet! What are your own thoughts and experiences with this mighty paradox Pokémon? Let me know in the comments!