Iron Hands Movesets and Best Builds

This is a guide to movesets and best builds for using Iron Hands in competitive play for the games Pokemon Scarlet and Violet (SV). Read on for tips on the best Nature, EV spreads, Movesets, Tera Type, and Held Items to use with Iron Hands, as well as its strengths and weakness.

Iron Hands - Related Guides
Evolution and Learnset	Moveset for Ranked Battle	Tera Raid Build

Iron Hands Base Stats, Type, Abilities and Weaknesses

Paldea #384		Type
Iron Hands
		Abilities
		Quark Drive
Weak to:
	(2x)
Damaged Normally By:	(1x)
Resists:	(0.5x)

What is Type Effectiveness?

Base Stats

Best Nature for Iron Hands

What are Natures?

Singles Movesets for Iron Hands

Assault Vest Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Adamant (+Atk, -Sp.Atk)
EV Spread	HP 76 / Atk 252 / Def 20 / Sp.Def 156
Final Stat Values	HP 239 / Atk 211 / Def 131 / Sp.Def 108 / Spe 71
Ability	Quark Drive
Tera Type
Held Item	Assault Vest
Moveset	・ Drain Punch ・ Wild Charge ・ Ice Punch ・ Earthquake

Summary

Iron Hands' natural bulk allows it to run an effective Assault Vest set, trading pure power for more survivability against its usual checks and counters.

Great physical coverage with high BP moves. Drain Punch gives it some form of recovery. Great mixed bulk bolstered with Assault Vest.

Ability and Held Item

Ability	Held Item
Quark Drive	Assault Vest

Quark Drive is Iron Hands' only Ability and increases its highest stat by 30% when Electric Terrain is on the field except for HP. With the given EV spread, this Iron Hands build will receive a 30% boost to its Attack.

Assault Vest increases Iron Hands' Special Defense by 50% but restricts it from using Status Moves. With the given EV spread, Iron Hands has an effective Special Defense stat of 162 at Level 50.

Moves Breakdown

Drain Punch is Iron Hands' main Fighting-type STAB and also its only form of recovery, while Wild Charge is a strong Electric-type STAB but has recoil damage.

Ice Punch and Earthquake are its main coverage moves, allowing Iron Hands to stay on the field and threaten metagame staples such as Dragonite and Gholdengo respectively.

Fighting Tera Type Matchup
Weak to:
	(2x)
Damaged Normally By:	(1x)
Resists:	(0.5x)

Fighting-type Tera boosts the power of Iron Hands' Drain Punch which results in more healing from the move.

Terastallizing into a Fighting-type also removes Iron Hands' rather common weakness to Ground-types, allowing it to switch into and stay on the field against the likes of Garchomp and Hippowdon.

Best Fighting Type Pokemon for Ranked Battle

EV Spread and Nature

We're using a modified defensive EV spread with 76 HP, 20 Def, and 156 Sp.Def EVs to give it as much bulk as possible, while full 252 Atk EVs so that it hits as hard as possible with its physical moves.

Other Viable Moves

Key Damage Calculations

The following calculations take into account Iron Hands EV Spread with an Adamant Nature and Assault Vest.

Damage Dealt by Iron Hands
180 HP｜91 Def No Defensive EV Investment: HP 0 | Def 0 (Jolly) Item: Choice Band	Drain Punch 198-234 (110 - 130%) Guaranteed OHKO
205 HP｜172 Def Defensive EV Investment: HP 205 | Def 172 (Impish) Item: Leftovers	Wild Charge 126-150 (61.4 - 73.1%) Guaranteed OHKO
183 HP｜115 Def No Defensive EV Investment: HP 0 | Def 0 (Jolly) Item: Leftovers	Ice Punch 208-248 (113.6 - 135.5%) Guaranteed OHKO
211 HP｜167 Def Defensive EV Investment: HP 252 | Def 252 (Bold) Item: Leftovers	Earthquake 96-114 (45.4 - 54%) 40.6% Chance to 2HKO
Damage Received by Iron Hands
153 Sp.Atk Offensive EV Investment: Sp.Atk 252 (Timid) Item: Choice Specs	Lumina Crash 128-152 (53.5 - 63.5%) Guaranteed 2HKO
187 Sp.Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp.Atk (Timid) Item: Choice Specs	Moonblast 186-222 (77.8 - 92.8%) Guaranteed 2HKO

Game8's Competitive Damage Calculator

Life Orb Iron Hands Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Adamant (+Atk, -Sp. Atk)
EV Spread	4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Sp. Def
Final Stat Values	229 HP / 211 Atk / 128 Def / 63 Sp. Atk / 120 Sp. Def / 70 Spe
Ability	Quark Drive
Tera Type
Held Item	Life Orb
Moveset	・ Swords Dance ・ Drain Punch ・ Ice Punch ・ Tera Blast

Iron Hands boasts a very high HP and Attack stat, making Life Orb a viable held item option to increase your damage, while you also heal from Drain Punch. After a Swords Dance setup, Iron Hands should be able to 2HKO at most the majority of meta Pokemon.

Ice Punch provides Iron Hands with a good coverage against very common Dragon and Ground types like Garchomp, while Drain Punch serves as its main damaging move to also restore HP from the Life Orb damage.

Terastallizing Iron Hands to Steel has two benefits. First, by becoming a Steel type, you gain resistance to Psychic and Fairy type attacks, two of Iron Hands' main weaknesses. Second, by Terastallizing to Steel, your Tera Blast then also becomes Steel types, allowing you to catch Fairy type Pokemon off guard, and hitting them for 2x Steel STAB.

Other Viable Moves

Other Viable Items

Key Damage Calculations

Damage Dealt by Iron Hands
201 HP｜85 Def Defensive EV Investment: 244 HP	Tera Blast (After Terastallizing) 291 ~ 346 (144.7 ~ 172.1%) Guaranteed OHKO
130 HP｜100 Def No Defensive EV Investment	Tera Blast (After Terastallizing) 250 ~ 296 (192.3 ~ 227.6%) Guaranteed OHKO
149 HP｜110 Def No Defensive EV Investment	Tera Blast (After Terastallizing) 226 ~ 268 (151.6 ~ 179.8%) Guaranteed OHKO
Damage Received by Iron Hands
205 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk	Moonblast 188 ~ 224 (81.3 ~ 96.9%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
205 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk	Moonblast Iron Hands Tera Type: 47 ~ 56 (20.3 ~ 24.2%) Guaranteed 5-Hit KO
168 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk	Lumina Crash 128 ~ 152 (55.8 ~ 66.3%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
168 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk	Lumina Crash Iron Hands Tera Type: 32 ~ 38 (13.9 ~ 16.5%) then increases exponentially due to -2 Sp. Def Guaranteed 4-Hit KO

Punching Glove Iron Hands Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Adamant (+Atk, -Sp. Atk)
EV Spread	12 HP / 252 Atk / 6 Def / 228 Sp. Def / 12 Spe
Final Stat Values	231 HP / 211 Atk / 129 Def / 63 Sp. Atk / 117 Sp. Def / 72 Spe
Ability	Quark Drive
Tera Type
Held Item	Punching Glove
Moveset	・ Swords Dance ・ Drain Punch ・ Thunder Punch ・ Ice Punch

Iron Hands' base stats are higher than most Pokemon, with a gargantuan HP and Attack Stat, which allows it to deal high damage while still being tanky enough to take hits. Putting 252 EVs on Attack maximizes Iron Hands' damage output, and the 12 points into Speed allows it to outspeed Pokemon like Azumarill.

Iron Hands can learn a variety of punching moves, making it a deadly attacker with a lot of coverage moves. With the held item Punching Glove, Iron Hands' punching moves get an additional 10% damage bonus as well.

Giving Iron Hands an Electric Tera type allows it to remove its weakness to Fairy types, while doubling its STAB for Thunder Punch.

Other Viable Moves

Other Viable Items

Key Damage Calculations

Damage Dealt by Iron Hands
180 HP｜91 Def No Defensive EV Investment	Drain Punch 216 ~ 254 (120 ~ 141.1%) Guaranteed OHKO
157 HP｜127 Def Defensive EV Investment: 252 HP EVs	Drain Punch 76 ~ 91 (48.4~ 57.9%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
207 HP｜150 Def Defensive EV Investment: 252 HP EVs	Drain Punch 132 ~ 156 (63.7 ~ 75.3%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
207 HP｜100 Def Defensive EV Investment: 252 HP EVs	Thunder Punch 198 ~ 234 (95.6 ~ 113%) 12.5% Chance to OHKO
149 HP｜110 Def No Defensive EV Investment	Thunder Punch 90 ~ 106 (60.4 ~ 71.1%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
130 HP｜100 Def No Defensive EV Investment	Thunder Punch 99 ~ 117 (76.1 ~ 90%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
195 HP｜95 Def Defensive EV Investment: 252 HP EVs	Ice Punch 126 ~ 150 (64.6 ~ 76.9%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
221 HP｜122 Def Defensive EV Investment: 252 HP EVs, 252 Def EVs	Ice Punch 100 ~ 118 (45.2 ~ 53.3%) 28.9% chance to 2-Hit KO
215 HP｜132 Def Defensive EV Investment: 252 HP EVs, 136 Def EVs	Ice Punch 134 ~ 158 (58.5 ~ 68.9%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
Damage Received by Iron Hands
191 Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Atk	Earthquake 112 ~ 134 (48.4 ~ 58%) 94.5% chance to 2-Hit KO
112 Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Atk	Play Rough (+6 Atk) Iron Hands Tera Type: 354 ~ 416 (153.2 ~ 180%) Guaranteed OHKO

Ability and Held Item

As with all Future Paradox Pokemon, Iron Hands has Quark Drive. But even without ways to trigger it, it is still an effective Pokemon on its own.

Assault Vest gives Iron Hands a much needed boost to its Special Defense.

Moves Breakdown

Wild Charge is its most damaging STAB Move, but deals recoil damage when you use it. Drain Punch gives Iron Hands incremental recovery. Volt Switch works well with Iron Hands' low Speed Stat because a slow Volt Switch will often let a teammate enter battle safely without taking damage. Fake Out is an important Move in any Iron Hands build as it can force protects or break Focus Sashes.

Best Tera Type

This build makes use of Tera Grass as it lets Iron Hands resist Ground-type Attacks, which it is sure to be a target of. Tera Grass also makes Iron Hands immune to the effects of Spore and Rage Powder

EV Spread and Nature

140 HP and 116 Special Defense with Assault Vest gives Iron Hands enough Special bulk to withstand powerful super-effective Moves like Flutter Mane's Moonblast, Sylveon's Hyper Voice, or Armarouge's Psyshock. A full 252 is put into its Attack stat to ensure that Iron Hands hits as hard as possible.

An Adamant Nature is chosen for this build, as it ensures that Iron Hands will always hit as hard as possible.

Other Viable Moves

Key Damage Calculations

Damage Dealt by Iron Hands
105 HP｜71 Def No Defensive EV Investment Item: Booster Energy	Drain Punch 198 ~ 234 (110 ~ 130%) Guaranteed OHKO
115 HP｜92 Def No Defensive EV Investment Tera Type: Item: Loaded Dice	Wild Charge 192 ~ 228 (101 ~ 120%) Guaranteed OHKO
55 HP｜55 Def No Defensive EV Investment Item: Booster Energy	Wild Charge 144 ~ 169 (110.7 ~ 130%) Guaranteed OHKO
Damage Received by Iron Hands
135 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk Item: Booster Energy	Moonblast 172 ~ 203 (69.6 ~ 82.1%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO
110 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk Item: Throat Spray	Hyper Voice 104 ~ 126 (42.1 ~ 51%) 2% Chance to 2-Hit KO
125 Sp. Atk Offensive EV Investment: 252 Sp. Atk Item: Life Orb	Psyshock 164 ~ 195 (66.3 ~ 78.9%) Guaranteed 2-Hit KO

Doubles Movesets for Iron Hands

Assault Vest Iron Hands Moveset & Best Build

Nature	Adamant (+Atk, -Sp. Atk)
EV Spread	140 HP / 252 Atk / 116 Sp. Def
Final Stat Values	247 HP / 211 Atk / 128 Def / 103 Sp. Def / 70 Spe
Ability	Quark Drive
Tera Type
Held Item	Assault Vest
Moveset	・ Wild Charge ・ Drain Punch ・ Heavy Slam ・ Fake Out

Summary

Incredibly HP and Attack Stats making it a reliable offensive tank. Can support its team with Fake Out. A consistent check to Electric-weak Pokemon.

This Iron Hands build features the same moves as the Champion's team in the recently concluded 2023 Oceanic International Championships. It was used to great success by the champion, Gavin Michaels.

VGC Tournament Results: 2023 Oceania International Championships

How to Use Iron Hands Effectively

Use Iron Hands as a Bulky Attacker

Iron Hands has a high HP and Attack stat, but suffers from low Speed. Capitalize on your natural tankiness to take a hit from your opponent, then strike back to deal heavy damage. Iron Hands gains access to a variety of coverage moves, so with your natural tankiness, you can survive an Earthquake from a Roaring Moon and then hit it with an Ice Punch to deal 2x Damage as well.

Paradox Pokemon Builds for Competitive Battles and Tera Raids

How to Build a Team with Iron Hands

Since Iron Hands is naturally Tanky with a high Attack stat, using it as a Lead Tank would be the best way to capitalize on its strengths. Try to deal as much damage as you can to the enemy team while tanking hits to make it easier for your sweeper to come in and finish up during the late game.

Sample Balance Team

Lead Tank	Utility	Sweeper
Iron Hands	Cyclizar	Espathra

Sample Doubles Team

Special Attacker	Physical Attacker
Iron Bundle	Iron Hands
Win Con	Support / Physical Attacker
Garganacl	Arcanine

Iron Bundle makes for a great partner for Iron Hands, being able to take on Ground-Pokemon who may want to challenge Iron Hands.

Garganacl is a great Pokemon to have in the back, serving as a consistent win condition after Iron Bundle and Iron Hands have done extensive damage to the opposing team.

Arcanine works as a soft check to opposing Iron Hands, with Will-O-Wisp and Intimidate rendering it ineffectual.

Counters for Iron Hands

Take advantage of its low Special Defense

Iron Hands also suffers from a low Special Defense stat, on top of its weakness to Psychic and Fairy type moves, leaving it extremely vulnerable to hard hitting Special Attack sweepers.

Use Intimidate to Mitigate its Effectiveness

Best Pokemon to Use

Pokemon	Description
Landorus (Therian Forme)	Ranking: ★★★★★ ・Naturally outspeeds Iron Hands and can deal huge damage with Stomping Tantrum. ・Is immune to Wild Charge and takes resisted damage from Drain Punch. ▶️Landorus Best Movesets
Landorus (Incarnate Forme)	Ranking: ★★★★★ ・Naturally outspeeds Iron Hands and can deal huge damage with Earth Power. ・Is immune to Wild Charge and takes resisted damage from Drain Punch. ▶️Landorus Best Movesets
Gardevoir	Ranking: ★★★★ ・Can hit Iron Hands with 2x STAB Psychic or Fairy moves ・4x Resistance to Fighting type moves

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