Pawniard

Pawniard has a unique typing that allows it to hit almost the entire metagame for neutral damage and serve as a switch-in to a decent number of Pokemon such as physical Skuntank and Sableye. Defiant allows Pawniard to take advantage of Defog and other stat-lowering moves, which furthers its ability to switch into physical Skuntank and other Defog users, though it struggles against many other common Defog users such as Swanna and Silvally-Fairy, which can 2HKO it if they can predict a switch. It also has a good movepool, with access to Knock Off, priority in the form of Sucker Punch, and Swords Dance, which gives it a form of setup. These moves allow Pawniard to serve as a decent wallbreaker and sweeper. However, Pawniard's stats can be overall very underwhelming, including its Attack, which often requires a Swords Dance boost to break through many foes. Its bulk is mediocre even with Eviolite, and especially without, leaving it struggling to switch into even resisted hits from foes such as Oricorio-G and Haunter too many times. Finally, Pawniard’s low Speed often hinders it when sweeping, although its access to Sucker Punch can somewhat make up for that. Fighting-types give Pawniard a lot of trouble and can put a stop to its sweep with relative ease, with many having higher Speed or access to Mach Punch. Bulky Ground-types also concern Pawniard, as they can take hits before OHKOing in return. It also receives a good amount of competition from other Swords Dance users such as Alolan Raticate and Absol due to their higher Attack and Speed stats. Nonetheless, Pawniard maintains its niche with its great ability in Defiant and a unique typing with some nice coverage and resistances.