The latest rendition of the hit RPGPokemongame,Sword & Shield, is rife with one of the most badass types in the game; the tanky powerhouse known as Steel. Being something akin to a jacked-up version of the Rock-type, SteelPokemonoften thrive through wars of attrition, as they come equipped with an abundance of Defense, Special Defense, and/or HP. Yet, they can also pack a punch physically.
These Steel titans are useful in that they’re super effective against the similarly potent Fairy, Ice, and Rock types, and have the potential to learn some pretty powerful moves including Steel Beam, Iron Tail, and the appropriately named Doom Desire. They’re also just plain cool in terms of their creative, often intimidating designs.
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In this list, we’ll cover the most powerful and effective Steel-types overall, compiling the overall stats to reach our conclusions.
Updated October 13th, 2021, by Jeff Drake:“The Crown Tundra” DLC included many new additions to Sword and Shield’s Pokedex. So many great Pokemon, in fact, that a second update is needed to bring this list up-to-date. This final DLC offering was quite friendly to fans of Steel-type Pokemon. Many of thestrongest Steel typesnot yet included were added to Sword & Shield. The three Pokemon added to this article from “The Crown Tundra” are in the top ten on this list – one of them made it in the top three. This update will also include the two new legendaries introduced into the series in Sword & Shield, Zamazenta and Zacian.
20Alolan Sandslash
Sandslash, the spike-covered ground-type from Kanto, returned on theIsle of Armor. However, because classic Sandslash is legal, its distant cousin in Alolan Sandslash also makes its way to Galar throughPokemon Home. This Ice-Steel dual-type Pokemon has some unique typing and was a menace in lower tiers of play duringSun and Moon.
In terms of raw power, Alolan Sandslash canIcicle Crashthrough a team under ideal circumstances. Unfortunately, circumstances aren’t always ideal for theIce-typemouse, so it’s far from the strongest of Steel. Still, perhaps in a game that still has limited competitive options, Alolan Sandslash will find itself a niche in higher tiers of play; its strength certainly gives it the potential to.
19Scizor
The Bug-Steel dual-type Scizor also makes its reappearance in TheIsle of Armor,evenshowing up in the Wild Areaas a special encounter. While it has lost access to its powerful Mega Evolution, Scizor still packs a serious punch with its solid typing and movepool. Its absolutely massive 130 base Attackgives it serious power, especially for moves that make use of itsTechnicianability.
In the past, Scizor found a solid niche with good priority moves and as a solid pivot. However, with Fire-types being safer options as a whole, Scizor’s weaknesses are greater than they used to be. The original Bug-Steel Pokemon making its appearance is a sight for sore eyes, and Bug-type enthusiasts will have a new critter to help round out their roster.
18Skarmory
In terms of physical defense, not many Steel-types can compete with Skarmory. The ones that can compete are either mythical Pokemon or have so many weaknesses that they aren’t worth busting out. Skarmory, however, is an all-around fantastic Pokemon. It’s incredible as a supportive Pokemon, boasting a strong movepool of supportive techniques and theWhirlwindattack, forcing the opponent to act on the fly and eat more spikes than they’d maybe like to.
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For casual play, it also has solid Attack and Speed stats, making it a capable fighter along with taking any physical attack. Sure, it has a glaring weakness to electricity, but as long as it doesn’t get stuck in combat against an Electric-type, it can be a menace to take down. Move over Corviknight: the original metal bird has returned to challenge the throne.
17Magnezone
Steel-types are incredibly strong but have their weaknesses. Their biggest weakness as a type is probably their overall underwhelming special defense. There are some exceptions, but they’re hardly the rule. They also don’t have a resistance toElectric-typeattacks. So, what’s the answer to these weaknesses? Magnezone, the trapper and slayer of pesky Steel-types. It has access to theMagnet Pullability, which is relatively useless in casual play but a lifesaver for those in competitive play.
Steel-types are stuck in a terrible match-up against the floating magnet behemoth, and then take a powerful electric blast right to the dome. Its worst stat is its Speed, but its strong Defense and offense easily make up for it. Magnezone is a much-missed Pokemon, and its Steel-type rivals are shaking in their boots.
16Magearna
While this isn’t exactly anIsle of ArmorPokemon, Magearna got its pass to leavePokemon Homeand enter the fray once again. This mythical Pokemon has powerful defenses and Special Attack, like Magnezone, but also has access to the incredibly powerful move Shift Gear. Its typing is great defensively as well, meaning that it will likely get at least oneShift Gearoff in battle. That speed boost alone will allow it to pick up some easy knock-outs.
Once it gets rolling with its Soul-Heart ability, it can become a freight train of aFairy Pokemon. It may be more cutesy than the average Steel-type, but it’s one of the strongest of the bunch. Magearna is the strongest steel-type added back in the game with theIsle of ArmorDLC.
15Durant
Good luck trying to squash this massive armored bug! This six-legged critter is laced with a metal exoskeleton that can absorb quite a beating, thanks to Durant’s Defense of a massive 112.
Players will want to focus on Physical Attacks (and ideallygo againstan opponent’s physical moves as well), on account of Durant’s pretty rough Special Attack/Defense stats. Still, this thing is a physical powerhouse as a whole, and its ability to learn great moves likeFlash CannonandX-Scissorhelps make it one of the deadliest BugandSteel types on the Galar roster.
14Escavalier
Speaking of Bug-Steel hybrids, this spear-wielding powerhouse can skew opponents with shrewd efficiency, thanks to its tremendous base Attack stat of 135. While Escavalier’s speed is pretty awful on account of this little guy dragging tons of heavy metal armor, its Defense and Special Defense is solid enough that some of this can be offset if you play your cards right.
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Escavalier can learn an array of powerful STAB moves that can make an impact likeBug BuzzandIron Head. And with the Bug-Steel combo, trainers will be effective against a number of elements while there won’t be many that can tangle with Escavalier effectively.
13Aegislash
This Pokemon is a peculiar one; and not just because of its distinct form which resembles medieval weaponry more than any sort of living creature. One trait that makes Aegislashtrulyunique is that theSword & Shieldversions vary greatly in terms of their strengths. While theShieldversion of this thing naturally comes with a much higher defense (at the expense of meager power),Swordflips things on their head and gives it a super high Attack and Special Attack of 140!
Combine this brute force with its array of awesome Steel and Ghost-type moves, and you’ve got yourself a destructive Pokemon (albeit a pretty imbalanced one in terms of stats).
12Copperajah
This steel-laced elephant is as powerful as its massive size might indicate, sporting a base Attack of an insane 130. Though its more marginal Special Attack makes it less effective with certain moves, trainers will be able to lay tons of hurt on opponents with Copperajah’s myriad of physical attacks likeIron Head,High Horsepower, andSuperpower. Players will want to make sure this beast is protected, as its Defense isn’t amazing and its Speed is brutally low.
Still, given how strong this thing is, trainers likely won’t need to worry about a long war of attrition anyhow.
11Excadrill
This bipedal mole-esque Pokemon has it going on when it comes to sheer brute strength. While its defense is a bit lacking compared to many others of its steel-laced ilk, it more than makes up for it when it comes to its array of learned moves as well as compatible TMs. These range from the devastating Ground-type moveEarthquaketo the piercing Steel-type moveMetal Claw.
You’ll definitely want to make a point to try and evolve a Drilbur into this burrowing beast if you happen to get your hands on one, as it’s a truly impactful offensive weapon of Ground and Steel.
