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It’s worth noting up front that most combinations on this list involve the Steel typing, as this type alone has a whopping ten resistances and one immunity. However, Steel isn’t the be-all and end-all of defensive Pokemon. The other typings in these matchups are important to their tanking abilities as well.
Updated March 4, 2022, by Demaris Oxman: With the recent craze over Pokemon Legends: Arceus and the reveal of the starters for Gen 9, Pokemon players are as excited as ever to catch ’em all. Going up against other trainers in battle is one of the main sources of excitement in this long-running franchise; however, plenty of players can find themselves exhausted by opponents’ heavy hitters. That’s why every team needs a tank, whether it’s to stand in while the player heals up the rest of their team, or to chip away at a foe’s own tough Pokemon. With that in mind, we’ve updated the list to include more of the most defensively viable Pokemon type combinations, as well as additional details on their defensive strengths and weaknesses.
11 Poison/Dark
Weaknesses: Ground Resistances: Poison, Ghost, Grass, Dark Immunities: Psychic
Though four resistances aren’t much compared to later entries on this list, Skuntank and others with its typing earn their place here because they have a single weakness, as well as a type immunity. Psychic-type moves have no effect on these Pokemon, and the only type that presents a threat to them is Ground.
Poison/Dark is a great example of defensive typing, because the two types negate most of each other’s weaknesses. Dark’s innate immunity protects these Pokemon from Poison-type’s fatal enemy, Psychic attacks; meanwhile, Poison resists Dark’s weaknesses to Fighting, Fairy, and Bug. The result is a single gap in its defenses, making it hard to take down easily.
10 Dark/Ghost
Weaknesses: Fairy Resistances: Poison Immunities: Normal, Fighting, Psychic
Pokemon with this typing have only one weakness: Fairy-type moves. They have a single resistance as well, with only Poison-types doing reduced damage, but their three immunities make them worth mentioning when it comes to defensive Pokemon.
Since Fairy-types are the third rarest among all Pokemon, those with this typing aren’t likely to run into foes that can take them down easily. Immune to Normal, Fighting, and Psychic, they’re a fantastic choice to use against the latter. Powerful moves will bounce right off Pokemon like Sableye, and its attacks will take down a Psychic-type in a flash.
9 Normal/Ghost
Weaknesses: Dark Resistances: Poison, Bug Immunities: Normal, Fighting, Ghost
Pokemon fans finally got to witness a Normal/Ghost type when Legends: Arceus introduced Hisuian forms of Zorua and Zoroark. This type combination does perhaps the best job of covering its own weak points. Ghost-types have only two weaknesses, Ghost and Dark; meanwhile, Normal-types are weak only to Fighting-type moves. Normal-type Pokemon, however, cannot be touched by Ghost-type moves, and the same goes for Ghost with Fighting-type attacks. The result is that the Pokemon is immune to any potential weaknesses except for Dark-type attacks.
Like Dark/Ghost, Normal/Ghost Pokemon have three immunities: Normal, Fighting, and Ghost, and a single weakness, Dark-type. However, they have one more resistance, as both Poison and Bug-type moves deal reduced damage.
8 Steel/Psychic
Weaknesses: Ground, Ghost, Fire, Dark Resistances: Normal, Flying, Rock, Steel, Ice, Grass, Psychic, Dragon, Fairy, Immunities: Poison
With a huge number of resistances, these Pokemon make great tanks. Nine types do reduced damage against Steel/Psychic, and Poison-type doesn’t affect them at all. What’s more, they have a double resistance to Psychic-type moves; since both Steel and Psychic resist attacks of this type, moves like Extrasensory do one-quarter damage instead of half.
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Metagross and its ilk do have four weaknesses to watch out for, the most common of which is Fire-type attacks. Still, with the resistances above, this typing’s defensive capabilities are among the highest tier.
7 Steel/Ground
Weaknesses: Fire, Water, Fighting, Ground Resistances: Normal, Flying, Rock, Psychic, Bug, Steel, Dragon, Fairy Immunities: Poison, Electric
Steelix and other Pokemon with this typing boast not one, but two type immunities: Poison and Electric. It has eight resistances as well, including a double resistance to Rock-type moves; that is, Rock-type moves deal one-fourth damage.
This typing does have four weaknesses, including the very common Water-type. Still, with the incredibly high defensive stats that Steel-types tend to have, Steel/Ground is hard to one-shot even with super effective moves. When going up against the vast majority of types, it’s at a defensive advantage.
6 Steel/Flying
Weaknesses: Fire, Electric Resistances: Normal, Flying, Psychic, Bug, Grass, Steel, Dragon, Fairy Immunities: Poison, Ground
It’s hard to find moves that deal significant damage to Pokemon like Skarmory and Corviknight. Steel-types are usually weak to Fighting and Ground-type moves, but adding the Flying-type negates both these vulnerabilities. Meanwhile, the Steel typing cancels out all of Flying’s weaknesses except for Electric, leaving Steel/Flying with only two gaps in its defenses.
With eight resistances, including a double resistance to Bug-type moves, Pokemon with this combination can easily stand up to some of the most common types in the games. It might not have quite as many resistances as other Steel-type combinations do, but its lack of weaknesses and extra immunity land it a place in the ranking.
5 Water/Steel
Weaknesses: Fighting, Ground, Electric Resistances: Normal, Flying, Rock, Bug, Steel, Psychic, Water, Ice, Dragon, Fairy Immunities: Poison
Empoleon is currently the only Pokemon that boasts this typing, and many Gen IV players chose Piplup because of this. With ten resistances and Steel’s immunity to Poison, it’s very difficult to do much damage to a Water/Steel type.
Perhaps the most appealing aspect of a Water/Steel Pokemon is that the two types cancel out each other’s most common weaknesses — Grass and Fire, respectively. Empoleon does still have to watch out for Electric, Ground, and Fighting moves, but its huge number of resistances make it worthwhile as a defender in most situations.
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3 Steel/Fairy
Weaknesses: Ground, Fire Resistances: Normal, Flying, Rock, Ice, Bug, Grass, Psychic, Dark, Fairy Immunities: Poison, Dragon
Another type with two immunities, Mawile and others of its type are completely unaffected by Poison and Dragon-type moves. Considering Fairy-types are weak to Poison, this is a huge boon. It leaves Steel/Fairy types with only two weaknesses, making it much harder to take down.
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To top it off, this type combination boasts nine different resistances, including the common types Grass, Flying, and Psychic. It even has a double resistance to Bug-types, meaning that these moves do 25% of their usual damage against Steel/Fairy types.
2 Steel/Electric
Weaknesses: Fighting, Fire, Ground Resistances: Normal, Flying, Rock, Bug, Ice, Psychic, Electric, Steel, Grass, Fairy, Dragon Immunities: Poison
Only four total Pokemon bear this typing, the Magnemite line and Togedemaru. Its rarity may be in part because it is so difficult to damage. With eleven resistances and immunity to Poison-type attacks, Steel/Electric currently boasts the highest number of resistances in the games. Among these resistances are some of the most common types in the games, including Grass, Normal, and Psychic. This also includes double resistances to Bug and Flying.
The main downside to this typing is its Ground-type double weakness, meaning these attacks do four times the usual damage. In most cases, a double weakness might disqualify a type combination from a list of tanky Pokemon; however, all Steel/Electric types currently in existence are capable of learning Magnet Rise, which makes them immune to Ground-type moves for five turns. If players take advantage of this move, their opponents will have an incredibly difficult time taking them down.
1 Steel/Ghost
Weaknesses: Fire, Dark, Ghost, Ground Resistances: Flying, Rock, Bug, Psychic, Steel, Grass, Ice, Dragon, Fairy Immunities: Normal, Fighting, Poison
Even rarer than the previous entry, only one evolutionary family currently boasts this type combination — likely for the same reasons. Aegislash and its pre-evolutions have nine resistances, including a double resistance to Bug. Not only that, but they are immune three different types of attacks.
Like some others on this list, Steel/Ghost has four weaknesses; however, unlike Steel/Electric, none of them are double. Fire-type is its most common weakness, but with this family’s high Defense and Sp. Defense, they can still take these attacks in stride. Since Steel/Ghost either resists or is unaffected by two-thirds of all Pokemon types, they’ll stand strong by a trainer’s side for a long time.
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