Clefairy
Attack
Defense
Stamina
Best Movesets
Analysis
Clefable is one of the old-school defenders, but now it's pretty underwhelming. With Steel Type titans like Shadow Metagross, Dawn Mane Necrozma, Zacian - Crowned Forme and Zamazenta - Crowned Forme waiting to smack it with some cold metal, Clefable really doesn't work extremely well.
Offense
- Fairy Wind slightly out-paces Charm on average, and is also easier to dodge with.
- Zen Headbutt can pair with Psychic, but Clefable isn't good in this role.
- Dazzling Gleam is better than Moonblast for Fairy Type damage output.
- Charge Beam, Pound*, Meteor Mash, and Swift are all underwhelming for Clefable.
Defense
- Charm out-paces all of the competition, hitting very hard on defense.
- Zen Headbutt isn't the worst Fast Move on defense, but it generally falls behind Charm.
- Charge Beam and Fairy Wind aren't the worst, but they're definitely behind the competition by way of Fast Moves.
- Psychic, Meteor Mash, or Dazzling Gleam are the best Charged Move options on defense, as each has its own set of advantages.
- Swift and Moonblast fall behind.
Clefable can opt for two playstyles - one that focuses on firing hard-hitting charge moves, and another that focuses on consistent, relentless Fairy-type damage.
Fairy Wind's high energy generation combines well with Meteor Mash and Moonblast, two excellent charge moves. This is usually the preferred moveset, as Clefable tends to compete with other Charmers.
Charm enables Clefable to deal Fairy-type damage without relying on charge moves.
Swift is by far Clefable's cheapest Charged Attack; it is an excellent bait move and can also be used to finish off weakened targets. Moonblast is typically the preferred Charged Attack (mandatory on the Fairy Wind set) due to its high DPE and STAB. Meteor Mash is an option that can break apart opposing Fairy-type Pokemon. Psychic can be used to pressure Poison-type Pokemon, but should only be used on the Charm set, where Clefable already deals significant Fairy-type damage. Dazzling Gleam is strictly inferior to Moonblast.
Clefable is sets itself apart from other Fairy-type Pokemon by incredible pacing of its Charged Attacks. Other Fairy-type Pokemon such as Alolan Ninetales and Galarian Weezing can compete with its speed, but Clefable's pure Fairy-typing lets it evade some of its counterparts' worst weaknesses. For instance, it doesn't struggle against Fighting types unlike Alolan Ninetales, and it lacks a weakness to Mud Slap unlike Galarian Weezing. Clefable also has a niche in beating opposing Fairy-type Pokemon due to its access to Meteor Mash. Poison- and Steel-type Pokemon are Clefable's banes - Clodsire, Toxapex, and Alolan Sandslash all put a full stop to it.
