Venusaur
Attack
Defense
Stamina
Best Movesets
Analysis
Venusaur was once the top Grass Type attacker. This isn't thanks to its stats, but rather its moveset. As the first Pokemon to not only get Frenzy Plant, but any of the starter moves, Venusaur is still viable, but it's fallen from grace greatly. Still, it's worth raising at least one for Mega Venusaur.
Offense
- Vine Whip is on par with Razor Leaf on attack; though they’re very different moves, they end up close in cycle DPS.
- Frenzy Plant has absurdly high damage for a 2-bar charge move and is optimal.
- Solar Beam is frequently superior to Petal Blizzard due to its massive base power.
- Sludge Bomb has little use on an offensive Venusaur, and Sludge is even worse.
Defense
- Razor Leaf is far superior to Vine Whip, netting higher damage and energy gain.
- Sludge is an off-type multi-bar charge move, which can hurt Venusaur's counters. Sludge Bomb is generallyworse on defense.
- Frenzy Plant is powerful but has poor typing and is easily dodged.
- Petal Blizzard is the hardest to dodge, but doesn't get used often due to being a 1-bar move.
- Solar Beam is too slow for defense.
Vine Whip is the preferred fast move for Venusaur due to greater energy generation, which allows Venusaur to take advantage of its powerful charge moves. Razor Leaf is a more polarizing fast move that focuses on dealing damage without requiring energy or being denied by shields, though its slow energy generation causes Venusaur to lose some neutral matchups.
Frenzy Plant is the main selling feature of Venusaur, with an insane 2.22 DPE (Damage Per Energy) and moderate energy cost. If you don't have access to Frenzy Plant, consider Ivysaur with Power Whip instead. Sludge Bomb is a nice STAB coverage move that also gives it an advantage against other Grass-type picks.
Venusaur is a solid pick for PvP whose claim to fame is mostly due to Frenzy Plant. While its stat distribution doesn't result in spectacular bulk, it's still considerably tankier than some other Grass picks such as Victreebel or Sceptile, in addition to having a Poison-typing that gives it the edge against fellow Grass like Meganium. Overall a very good candidate for PvP in general, with numerous wins against popular meta picks.
