For many newcomers to the Pokemon franchise, the defensive stats of a Pokemon are largely ignored in favor of their speed and attack stats, particularly for those who don’t take part in online or competitive battling. However, a Pokemon’s defensive stats are just as important as their offensive stats and shouldn’t be overlooked when building a team.
The Alola region was home to many slower, more defense-oriented Pokemon than previous generations and largely helped balance out the pool of available Pokemon to ensure that players had a wider variety to chose from. While Galar went back to having many fast and strong Pokemon, it also made sure to not leave defensive Pokemon behind and the region is home to many creatures that are able to take a hit when necessary.
10 Galarian Slowking
The original Slowking was one of the better special defensive walls both in standard playthroughs and in competitive battling. With its access to annoying moves like Yawn, Slack Off, and Scald, Slowking and its counterpart, Slowbro, were always great picks if you needed something to take a few attacks for your other teammates. Galarian Slowking is no different, having almost the exact same stats as its version in Johto with a decent 110 base special defense alongside its OK base 80 defense. While it no longer has the Water-typing, it can learn all the same attacks that the original could as well as a few extras, including Hex and Sludge Bomb.
9 Glastrier
Glastrier may be better known for its great attack and defense stats, its no slouch in the special defense department either. With a base special defense of 110, Glastrier is able to take most neutral hits without fainting in one attack, though its typing means that it suffers against common Fire-type attacks like Flamethrower. When partnered up with the right Pokemon, usually ones that can take advantage of Trick Room, Glastrier can easily get around this weak point and tear through opposing teams like it was going out of style.
8 Polteageist
For being a possessed pot of tea, Polteageist is a strangely strong Pokemon. Aside from having a higher special attack stat than the likes of Gengar and Alakazam, it also has a great 114 special defense stat to go along with it. This helps immensely with its main strategy, to use a combination of Shell Smash and the Weak Armor ability to outpace every other Pokemon in battle.
While its defense stat leaves little to be desired at a measly 65, meaning it is likely to be knocked out by a stray Crunch or Sucker Punch, given the right set up and partners, Polteageist can fight alongside the strongest Pokemon around.
7 Zacian and Zamazenta
Not to be outdone by a sentient English stereotype, both Zacian and Zamazenta, while both being fairly powerful, are also able to take attacks with the best of them. Both their defense and special defense sit at a respectable 115, putting them on par with other specially defensive Pokemon like Togekiss and Suicune and goes a long way in improving their survivability, as both Pokemon are weak to common special attacking types like Poison and Psychic-types.
6 Eldegoss
Eldegoss may be something of a missed opportunity that looks a little too much like Whimsicott, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have its uses. While it’s not very fast and can’t hit all that hard, it makes up for those shortcomings with its access to decent abilities in Regenerator, Cotton Down, and Effect Spore, as well as support moves like Helping Hand, Synthesis, and the Powder status moves. Its best feature, however, is its special defense, which sits at a comfortable 115 alongside Zacian and Zamazenta, making it one of the more defensive Grass-type Pokemon around, only being outdone in Galar by Virizion.
5 Orbeetle
Early game Bug-type Pokemon had been hard done by for a long time, but following Vikavolt’s appearance in Sun & Moon, it seems as though Game Freak is trying to rectify that. As well as being one of the few Galarian Pokemon to have a Gigantamax form, Orbeetle’s stats are built around it taking blow after blow in battle, with a base 110 defense and 120 special defense, making it higher than the cover legendaries in Sword & Shield. Orbeetle’s typing is also rather unique, being the only Bug/Psychic-type Pokemon in the series despite the fact that Dustox probably should have held the title first.
4 Alcremie
When in previous generations, Pokemon with odd designs usually didn’t have great stats to back them up, Galarian Pokemon went in a different direction and made sure that two of its weirder Pokemon, Polteageist and Alcremie, could back up their odd looks in battle. It may be a sentient wedding cake, but Alcremie refuses to be outdone by the cover legendaries and has a base special defense stat of 121.
Very few Pokemon in the series have a stat that isn’t a multiple of five and it seems like Alcremie is only one of those Pokemon so that it can outdo other specially defensive Pokemon like Tentacruel, but it also means that it has more special defense that Giratina and Palkia.
3 Galarian Moltres
Moltres was never the most defensive Pokemon in the world, but its defensive stats were also never terrible with 90 in defense and 85 in special defense. However, where Moltres excelled in offense, having a base 125 special attack, its Galarian counterpart changes things up and reduces its best attacking stat to 100, in exchange for increasing its special defense to 125. At first glance, this makes it seem like Moltres is now worse than it used to be, but when combined with its ability, Berserk, which boosts its special attack when its HP falls below half, it can still hit just as hard as the original could.
2 Ice Rider Calyrex
As Glastrier is one of the most defensive Pokemon native to Galar, it should be no surprise that this stat is improved while it is combined with Calyrex. Increasing from 110 to 130 goes a long way in helping it take even super effective blows, but it still suffers from having the Ice-typing alongside Calyrex’s Psychic-typing. However, its As One ability, which combines both Unnerve and Chilling Neigh, does go a long way in ensuring that it is able to dish out just as well as it can take.
1 Crowned Shield Zamazenta
It should be no surprise that the Pokemon in Galar associated with shields has the highest special defense stat for a Pokemon native to the region. While it is lower than several other Pokemon, including Goodra, Ho-Oh, and Lugia, it is still high enough to ensure that it isn’t going down without a fight and, combined with its Dauntless Shield ability to boost its defense, means that it is very unlikely to faint in one attack.
