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The first wave of Alola-native Pokemon has finally arrived in Pokemon GO. In this first wave, the three starter Pokemon of the region have come into the game. Incineroar, the fully evolved Fire-type Starter Pokemon of the Alola region, is a new arrival for players to add to their collections.
With the sudden additions to the catalog of Pokemon players can catch, the competitive Battle League is also considered. Whenever new Pokemon are added to Pokemon GO, players always try to experiment with the new Pokemon to try and find a solid niche in the metagame where these new arrivals fit.
When considering the addition of another Pokemon to a player's competitive battle party, various factors must be kept in mind. Details like its typing, stats, and potential movesets are all crucial to know when looking at a Pokemon under a competitive lens. Knowing how that Pokemon will perform in the meta also helps.
Incineroar in Pokemon GO: An analysis
Incineroar is a Fire and Dark-type Pokemon. Incineroar shares this typing with Houndoom, another prevalent Fire and Dark-type Pokemon. This type of combination gives Incineroar seven resistances and four weaknesses. The dual-type Pokemon is weak to Water, Fighting, Ground, and Rock-type attacks.
Incineroar's stats are spread evenly between its stamina and attack, with the former being slightly higher at 216. Incineroar's attack stat of 214 make it capable of punching holes in the opponent's defensive Pokemon, especially Steel-types, as it has a type advantage over them. Incineroar's lowest stat is its defense at 175.
Incineroar's movepool is rather bland as it lacks any differing types aside from Fire and Dark. This can work to Incineroar's advantage. Any attack chosen packs a greater punch than usual, thanks to the Same Type Attack Bonus, or STAB for short.
Incineroar is still very new to Pokemon GO. This means that it still lacks the advantages many Fire-type Starter Pokemon have in the Battle League, mainly access to the best Fire-type attack, Blast Burn. Blast Burn has been an attack added to every Fire-type Starter Pokemon in their respective Community Days.
Looking towards the future, Incineroar shows promise for a potential tank buster role in the Ultra League, though it currently performs best in the Great League. Having two stats above 200 makes Incineroar a great Pokemon competitively, though it currently lacks the tools to succeed in higher tiers of play.
To summarize, Incineroar has excellent potential as a Fire-type Pokemon in Pokemon GO. While this may be the case, players should wait until after the Litten Community Day event before using their Incineroar seriously. As it stands, Incineroar's best moveset offensively is a combination of Fire Fang and Fire Blast.
