The Kinder-garden: Grass-types in LC
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Introduction
Grass-type Pokémon in standard tiers have consistently been plagued with issues that prevent all but the very best from shining competitively. They suffer defensively, as Grass is weak to five common attacking types, tying with Rock for the most weaknesses. This is compounded by the fact that many Grass-types are not defensively gifted or do not have complementary secondary typings, meaning that all but the bulkiest Grass-types readily wall foes. They also struggle offensively, as although Grass-type attacks are super effective against Water-, Rock-, and Ground-types, most Grass-type Pokémon find difficulty taking advantage of this, because their offensive stats are simply not high enough to make them formidable attackers. Grass-type attacks are also resisted by a whopping seven types, forcing offensive Grass-types to resort to weaker coverage. Their problems still don't stop there; Grass-types are often slow as well, allowing foes to easily take advantage of their shaky defenses.
It might seem from this that Grass-types are the games' cruel jokes, not meant to be considered on any serious team. However, Little Cup's Grass-types completely fly in the face of this stereotype. Their ability to switch into threats such as Drilbur and Chinchou in addition to checking most of the tier's threatening Water-types is a valuable asset, meaning that the Grass typing can actually be considered a defensive boon in this tier. This is bolstered by the fact that most prominent Grass-types have secondary typings that add useful resistances or negate weaknesses. In addition to this, defensive Grass-types are usually equipped with healing moves such as Synthesis and Leech Seed as well as excellent abilities for the roles they perform, such as Regenerator on Foongus and Prankster on Cottonee. Offensive Grass-types are viable in the tier too. Even though Grass-type attacks are resisted by so many foes, powerful attacks from Chlorophyll sweepers such as Bellsprout can quickly raze opposing teams. ORAS only increased the viability of Grass-type Pokémon, as Pumpkaboo and Chespin both received a handful of new moves, while Snivy received its long-awaited hidden ability, Contrary.
Foongus
Foongus is arguably one of the best defensive pivots in Little Cup. While its Grass / Poison typing has a few exploitable weaknesses, particularly to fast Pokémon such as Ponyta, Abra, and Fletchling, the five resistances it provides allows Foongus to wall a variety of foes. Adding to Foongus's prowess as a wall is its ability Regenerator, an incredible asset on a defensive Pokémon, allowing Foongus to absorb resisted hits with its excellent 69 / 45 / 55 defenses and simply heal them off as it switches, making Foongus difficult to wear down. Foongus also has access to a host of useful support moves that solidifies its role as a defensive Pokémon, as Foongus can cripple foes with Stun Spore and prevent opposing setup with Clear Smog. It can also opt to heal itself with Synthesis, but Regenerator already allows it to shrug off damage. The cherry on top of all of these great defensive assets is Spore, the only 100% accurate sleep-inducing move in the game. Although Spore alone would be enough to make Foongus a threat, it has powerful STAB moves as well, and even off its modest Special Attack stat, a Sludge Bomb and Giga Drain can deal some hefty damage to foes that are weak to them. While these STAB moves are walled by common Steel-types, Foongus can afford to run Hidden Power Fighting or Hidden Power Fire in order to dissuade them from taking advantage of this.
Foongus is an easy Pokémon to find a slot for on a team thanks to its good type synergy with other viable Pokémon in addition to its good defenses, Spore, and Regenerator. Fighting-types, particularly Timburr and Mienfoo, make good teammates, as Foongus walls and defeats all of the Fairy-type Pokémon in the tier that they cannot beat, leaving the Fighting-types free to take down Steel-type foes which Foongus sometimes struggles with. Timburr in particular has an easier time setting up Bulk Up when Foongus has eliminated Fairy-types or has put an enemy to sleep with Spore, giving Timburr the opportunity to switch in. Mienfoo has access to Regenerator, forming a defensive core with Foongus that is surprisingly difficult to compromise. This core can be further bolstered by Slowpoke, another bulky Pokémon with Regenerator. Bulky Fire-types such as Ponyta and Larvesta also enjoy Foongus's contributions, as its ability to comfortably wall most Water-types means that they have an easier time spreading burns and creating headaches for an opposing team. Given the ubiquity of Water-types and how threatening they can be, any bulky team can appreciate Foongus's presence, as its bulk, typing, and ability make it a perfect candidate for stall teams.
Foongus has some unfortunate problems, however. It is one of the slowest Pokémon in the entire game, with a Speed stat of just 15, meaning it will ordinarily have to take a hit upon switching in and sometimes take another before it even gets to make a move. Even with Regenerator and Synthesis, Foongus is susceptible to repeated assaults, and if its Eviolite is removed via Knock Off, it becomes even less able to wall opposing threats. Spore fails against Pokémon immune to powder-based moves, meaning that Foongus sometimes faces difficulty putting a foe to sleep, as bulky Pokémon such as Ferroseed and Vullaby are able to switch into Foongus with impunity. However, Foongus can still force switches all game long thanks to the ever-looming threat of Spore. Its offensive presence, although at times limited, prevents Rapid Spin users from switching in freely. This, when combined with Foongus's other features, makes it a potent defensive threat.
Ferroseed
Ferroseed's Grass / Steel typing and amazing bulk with Eviolite make it an incredibly tough nut to crack, even in higher tiers. In Little Cup, however, Ferroseed is yet another Grass-type that makes a formidable addition to bulky teams by virtue of its impressive nine resistances and an excellent support movepool that includes Stealth Rock, Spikes, Leech Seed, Thunder Wave, and Knock Off. Although Ferroseed suffers from its lack of Speed in the same way that Foongus does, having only two weaknesses alleviates this to a degree, while Bullet Seed is strong enough to prevent Ferroseed from becoming easy bait for most setup sweepers, in addition to Thunder Wave and the residual damage foes rack up thanks to Ferroseed's entry hazards and Iron Barbs. These factors give Ferroseed ample opportunities to switch into many of the most viable Pokémon in the tier and annoy opposing teams by setting up entry hazards, healing itself with Leech Seed, or crippling fast switch-ins such as Mienfoo and Ponyta with Thunder Wave. Although a lack of reliable coverage and a 4x Fire weaknesses are considerable liabilities, Ferroseed stands out as LC's serial annoyer.
Ferroseed is similar to Foongus in terms of the foes that it checks. Their typings and defensive assets allow them to each comfortably find a place on teams from balanced to full stall teams. Although Foongus's ease of recovery makes it a sustainable choice, Ferroseed's access to entry hazards and better typing cannot be overlooked. Its Grass / Steel typing is uncommonly solid and allows Ferroseed to check virtually all of the tier's Fairy-, Grass-, Poison-, and Water-types, forcing numerous switches and racking up passive damage over time, letting a strong teammate clean up late-game. Ferroseed's lack of recovery is an issue, but this is easily remedied by Spritzee, one of the best teammates it could ask for. Spritzee can pass hefty Wishes and handily beat almost all of the Fighting-types that plague Ferroseed, while Ferroseed walls most opposing Steel- and Poison-types. Both of these Pokémon are among the bulkiest in Little Cup, making Ferroseed + Spritzee a tremendously difficult core to break down.
Ferroseed still has issues with its Speed that can make using it difficult at times. Almost all Pokémon outspeed it, so Taunt users such as Mienfoo can prevent it from setting up Stealth Rock or using Thunder Wave. Foes that are unfazed by paralysis and take little damage from Bullet Seed can handily set up on Ferroseed. Timburr is a prime example of this, as after a Bulk Up, it takes minimal damage from Bullet Seed, and it receives a Guts boost from Thunder Wave. Fire-types are also an issue for Ferroseed, as Ponyta and Larvesta are both able to quickly put it down with a Flare Blitz. However, Ferroseed is easily able to set up Stealth Rock if given an opportunity, minimizing their impact in a game in addition to being able to threaten both common Rapid Spin users with Bullet Seed.
Cottonee
Although its new Grass / Fairy typing gave Cottonee a weakness to Steel and the dubious honor of being the only Pokémon in Little Cup with a 4x weakness to Poison-type attacks, its new-found resistances to Dark and Fighting type attacks afforded it a greater niche in XY and ORAS Little Cup. Cottonee's decent bulk and sprawling movepool make it a valuable support Pokémon and its access to the ability Prankster allows it to greatly utilize these assets. Thanks to Prankster, Cottonee gets priority on Encore, which punishes foes for setting up, particularly Bulk Up Timburr and other Fighting-type sweepers. It also has priority on Tailwind, Substitute, Taunt, Leech Seed, Stun Spore, and Memento, the latter of which can be used as a last resort or in order to allow a teammate to set on a significantly less threatening foe. Although Cottonee's meager 37 Special Attack stat does not look threatening, its Dazzling Gleam and Giga Drain are quite capable of hurting opposing Pokémon. It can even run Hidden Power Fighting to surprise the Steel-types that can otherwise freely switch in on it.
One of the most appealing reasons to use Cottonee on a team is the support it provides for its teammates. Although it is regarded as a situational move, Tailwind can speed up slow but powerful teammates such as Corphish and Scraggy, allowing them to plow through foes that would normally outspeed them. Memento goes even further than this, causing Cottonee to faint in exchange for halving its foe's offensive stats, creating an opening for a frailer teammate to set up and sweep. Shell Smash sweepers such as Omanyte and Tirtouga, as well as Belly Drum sweepers, particularly Zigzagoon, really benefit from this support. Cottonee's ability to check Fighting-types as well should not be overlooked, as it can force out the likes of Mienfoo and Timburr, allowing teammates such as Pawniard and Magnemite to have an easier time wreaking havoc.
Cottonee's dual typing has a few downsides, however. Poison-type coverage is surprisingly easy to fit on many of the Pokémon that Cottonee checks. Poison is also an excellent defensive typing in LC, so Foongus, Skrelp, and Koffing all comfortably wall Cottonee. Steel-types are also common in LC; Pawniard, Magnemite, and Ferroseed are also capable of walling anything Cottonee can throw at them aside from the uncommon Hidden Power Fighting. The predictability of Cottonee's role also works against it, as an experienced player would not set up on a Cottonee, nor would they stay in after setting up entry hazards. Despite Cottonee's somewhat narrow and specialized role, it performs it quite well, utilizing its unique typing, good defenses, large movepool, and excellent ability in order to support its teammates and facilitate their sweeps.
Snivy
Look at the smug expression on that face. Snivy's better than you and knows it, because with its hidden ability, Contrary, Leaf Storm is effectively a 130 Base Power Nasty Plot that cannot be Taunted. While Snivy had a niche as a fast support pokémon before receiving Contrary, it is now an extremely potent sweeper, annihilating teams once Pokémon that resist Grass are taken out of play. Although Snivy's barren movepool can often leave it walled by Pokémon that resist Grass, it still has many useful moves for punishing foes that think they can switch in easily. Knock Off removes the items of the likes of Larvesta, Foongus, Vullaby, and Pawniard, making them more manageable later on. Glare, on the other hand, cripples faster switch-ins to Snivy, particularly Ponyta. Other common Snivy counters can be dealt with using the appropriate Hidden Power. However, the Speed IV drop associated with Hidden Power Fire and Hidden Power Fighting means that Snivy can no longer reach the coveted 17 Speed tier, as it needs 252 Speed EVs, a Speed IV of 31, and a positive nature in order to do so. Snivy can still make do with Hidden Power Ground, Ice, or Flying to cover its checks, though bulkier variants of Snivy don't mind the drop in Speed. Snivy's use is not limited to sweeping teams; it's also a vicious wallbreaker with a Choice Scarf that can eliminate foes or force them out, eroding its counters and allowing for teammate to sweep late-game.
Snivy has numerous checks; anything that can stomach a Leaf Storm will usually force it out, and faster threats such as Fletchling and Ponyta are especially threatening, as they can revenge kill Snivy quite handily. Therefore, Snivy requires a lot of support if it is to sweep teams. Fortunately, Diglett can trap and remove a lot of these threats, and it can also set Stealth Rock, limiting the amount of times Fire- and Flying-type foes can switch in. An Electric-type teammate such as Magnemite or Chinchou can remove Flying-types with their Electric-type STAB moves in addition to being able to provide Snivy with a free switch in via Volt Switch.
Although Snivy's stats are decent, its low bulk prevents it from it being able to switch in easily, especially without Eviolite, and its Special Attack is let down by its small offensive movepool, forcing it to resort to Hidden Power, which sometimes fails to OHKO bulkier foes, even at +2. Snivy has a good Speed stat, but the IV changes can often cause headaches, as faster variants of Snivy are forced to run inferior Hidden Power types in order to maintain their Speed tiers. Snivy also relies heavily on its teammates' support to sweep, as Snivy's checks are numerous to the point where Leaf Storm + Hidden Power will rarely provide enough coverage to allow Snivy to take a team down by itself. Despite these faults, Snivy is a very unique threat with Contrary. In addition to Leaf Storm, Snivy can receive boosts from Sticky Web, allowing it to massacre Sticky Web teams, as well as moves such as Parting Shot and Memento, in addition to occasionally receiving lucky boosts from moves such as Crunch and Moonblast, much to the displeasure of your opponents.
Pumpkaboo
Towards the end of the XY era, Pumpkaboo-XL emerged as a solid and reliable spinblocker, particularly as it walled Staryu and Drilbur, the tier's most common Rapid Spin users. Both usually lacked coverage moves for Pumpkaboo, meaning it could spinblock several times throughout a match. Although its lack of reliable recovery was an issue it faced, this was alleviated with the ORAS move tutors, as Pumpkaboo becoming more difficult to wear down with the addition of Synthesis to its movepool. Despite Pumpkaboo-XL's middling Attack stat, a Bullet Seed from it is capable of badly hurting anything that it hits super effectively, including common threats such as Chinchou and Tirtouga, meaning that it can pull its weight even if it does not need to spinblock. Pumpkaboo can also do things besides spinblock, too. Its bulk, Speed, and movepool make it a perfect candidate for a Trick Room setter, as not only is it among the bulkiest pokémon with access to the move, it also has access to Explosion and Destiny Bond, allowing it to take a foe down with it. A Pumpkaboo-S Life Orb set can be used reliably on Sticky Web teams, as it reaches 19 HP and has very good coverage.
Entry hazard setters make good teammates for any variant of Pumpkaboo. Dwebble, Ferroseed, Venipede, Omanyte, Onix, and Tirtouga are just some of many entry hazard setters whose entry hazards can be kept up with Pumpkaboo's intervention. Pumpkaboo cannot stop Defog users, however. This makes Pawniard a useful partner, as Defog's evasion drop will trigger Defiant, making opponents hesitant to use the move. Pawniard is also a soft check to the Flying-types that trouble Pumpkaboo; however, neither of them can stand up very well to Fire-types.
Knock Off users are especially threatening to Pumpkaboo. Its low Speed prevents it from burning its foes with Will-O-Wisp before it takes a huge amount of damage from Knock Off while losing its precious Eviolite in the process, severely hindering its ability to spinblock. Pumpkaboo's mediocre offensive prowess and low Speed also give it a poor matchup against foes that can set up on it. Bulk Up Timburr, Calm Mind Spritzee, and Shed Skin Scraggy are examples of foes that are generally unfazed by Pumpkaboo. Despite its flaws, Pumpkaboo walls certain threats quite well, and the chip damage Bullet Seed, Shadow Sneak, Will-O-Wisp, and its teammates' entry hazards cause can wear down foes rapidly, making it a viable addition to bulkier offensive teams.
Chespin
Much like the other Pokémon on this list, Chespin's bulk and movepool allow it to wall a variety of physically offensive foes. It has access to Spikes and Bulk Up, allowing it to perform different roles, and it has access to Drain Punch, which gives it ample recovery and prevents it from being walled by Steel-types, unlike most other Grass-types. However, the thing that sets Chespin apart from other Pokémon in Little Cup is its unique and incredibly useful Bulletproof ability, which makes Chespin immune to all ball and bomb moves. This list includes moves such as Shadow Ball, Sludge Bomb, and Weather Ball, meaning Chespin can wall the likes of Gastly, Foongus, Croagunk, and Bellsprout, Pokémon that would otherwise nail Chespin with their super effective moves. Chespin can then capitalize on this advantage by setting up a layer of Spikes, recovering with Synthesis, or setting up with Bulk Up.
Although Chespin's combination of ability and bulk might lead one to believe that it can easily find a place on a team, its role is too specialized for it to be considered over most other Pokémon in a lot of instances. Aside from walling the aforementioned threats, Chespin's walling prowess brings nothing else new to the table. Fletchling and Fire-type foes still beat this Grass-type handily, Timburr tends to outclass Chespin as a Bulk Up sweeper thanks to its superior bulk, similar speed, and access to priority, while Ferroseed is normally just as capable of walling the likes of Foongus along with having a better typing, bulk, and access to Stealth Rock over Chespin. However, Bulletproof and Synthesis are just enough for Chespin to differentiate itself from other Pokémon and carve itself a niche in the metagame. As such, teams that have no means of beating Gastly, Pawniard, Ferroseed, and Chlorophyll sweepers appreciate the role that Chespin performs.
Lileep
Lileep is one of the most resilient walls in Little Cup. A combination of stellar 66 / 77 / 87 bulk, two forms of recovery, and a very helpful Water immunity allow Lileep to wall foes annoyingly well. Although Lileep was nerfed somewhat by the loss of permanent sand, its role of countering most of the tier's Water-types still stands. Storm Drain boosts Lileep's Special Attack every time it is hit by a Water-type attack, turning its middling Special Attack into a more powerful weapon. This means that not only can Lileep freely absorb Scalds, Waterfalls, and Crabhammers, it can reply in kind with a powerful Giga Drain. Lileep also flies in the face of Grass-types' fear of Fletchling and Ponyta thanks to its access to STAB Ancient Power, which, in addition to 2HKOing both of these threats after Stealth Rock, has a small chance to boost all of Lileep's stats, making it even harder to take down.
Although sand teams are generally considered a thing of the past in ORAS Little Cup, Hippopotas's role as a physical wall remains, and the two cover each other's weaknesses quite well. Both have access to recovery and are more than comfortable watching their foes wither from a combination of Sandstorm and Stealth Rock damage. Vullaby is a good third member of this defensive core, providing Knock Off and Defog support while handling Fighting- and Grass-types. All of these Pokémon are weak to Ice-type moves, but their general scarcity prevents this from being greatly problematic. Any team that needs a bulky answer to Shell Smashers and other Water-types can appreciate Lileep too, as its removal of Water-types allows its Fire- and Ground-type teammates to thrive.
Lileep struggles to find usage at times, as it faces competition from Croagunk as a Water-type check and from other Grass-types in a defensive role. Although its moves allow it to quickly chip away at even the bulkiest foes, a fast Taunt user, particularly Pawniard and Mienfoo, will render Lileep practically useless as they are then able to shatter it with their STAB super effective moves or stunt its walling capability with Knock Off. Lileep also finds itself frequently walled, as its mediocre Special Attack combined with the low Base Powers of Giga Drain and Ancient Power do little to bulky foes such as Porygon and Spritzee, often forcing it to forgo coverage in order to use Toxic. However, with the right team support, Lileep is able to push past these Pokémon and continue to solidly wall its foes.
Snover
Snover is the only Pokémon in Little Cup that can set up hail thanks to its ability Snow Warning, which replaces opposing weather with hail and gives Snover a 100% accurate STAB Blizzard. However, Snover's viability dropped heavily after the weather nerf, along with the lowering of Blizzard's Base Power from 120 to 110 and the introduction of Fletchling, which became a threat to most Grass-types in LC. Snover is still threatening in Little Cup, with its ability to fire off a 100% accurate Blizzard, having STAB Giga Drain that can be used to heal Snover and deal with Water-types that resist Blizzard, and access to a priority move in Ice Shard, which can deal with weakened faster Pokémon and other priority users such as Fletchling. Snover can run either a revenge killing or late-game cleaning Choice Scarf set, as it's able outspeed the whole unboosted metagame after the Choice Scarf boost, or a bulky Eviolite set, as Snover has respectable 60 / 50 / 60 bulk and a nice defensive typing that gives it resistances to common Water-, Electric-, and Ground-type attacks, allowing it to be a decent check to common threats such as Chinchou and Staryu.
Snover needs a lot of team support because of its common weaknesses. One of the most important types of support to have is a Pokémon that can remove Stealth Rock, as Snover loses 25% of its HP when it switches into the entry hazard. Archen can provide Defog support and deal with Fire- and Fighting-types that threaten Snover while Snover deals with Water- and Electric-types that are a pain for Archen. Drilbur can Rapid Spin away Stealth Rock and deal with Fire-, Poison-, and Steel-types which threaten Snover. Fletchling is also a great teammate, as it can deal with Fighting-types that threaten Snover as well as Larvesta to a lesser extent. Chinchou can deal with Fire-types and Magnemite and creates a Fire / Water / Grass core with Snover and a Fire-type.
However, Snover has a lot of problems. It's weak to common threats that include Fighting-types such as Mienfoo and Timburr, Fire-types such as Ponyta and Larvesta, which resist its STAB moves and threaten it with 4x super effective STAB moves, and Steel-types such as Pawniard and Magnemite, which resist its STAB moves and can KO it with Iron Head and Flash Cannon respectively. Flying-types also threaten Snover, but to a lesser extent, as they can't safely switch in for fear of Blizzard. However, Fletchling is a good revenge killer for Snover, as Ice Shard doesn't KO it and Fletchling can OHKO Snover back with its priority Acrobatics.
Chlorophyll Sweepers
Chlorophyll sweepers are huge threats, as they only need sun to be up to double their Speed stats, and they possess above-average Special Attack stats and nice offensive typings. The best and most common Chlorophyll sweeper is Bellsprout, with its decent 70 Special Attack and 75 Attack stats and access to Weather Ball, which it can use to deal with Steel-types and Croagunk, whereas other Chlorophyll sweepers can only rely on Hidden Power Fire to be able to bypass these Pokémon. Bellsprout also has access to Sucker Punch, which is usable in some situations. The other two common Chlorophyll sweepers, Oddish and Bulbasaur, have higher bulk than Bellsprout, but Bellsprout is usually the best option to run. Chlorophyll sweepers run Solar Beam and Sludge Bomb as their STAB attacks, Weather Ball or Hidden Power Fire for coverage, and either Sleep Powder or Growth as a fourth move. Sleep Powder is used to avoid Sucker Punch and secure 2HKOs, while Growth doubles Attack and Special Attack under sun.
Even though these Chlorophyll sweepers seem to be amazing, they are dead weight when sun is not up, so keeping Vulpix alive as long as possible is necessary to succeed while running them. Having an entry hazard control Pokémon is thus always necessary as Vulpix takes 25% damage from Stealth Rock. Having Pokémon that can check Fletchling are also nice, as it can easily revenge kill Chlorophyll sweepers. Knock Off users such as Pawniard, which can fire off powerful STAB Knock Offs and check Fletchling, are also nice teammates to have, as they remove opposing walls' Eviolites, allowing these Chlorophyll sweepers to secure some OHKOs that they couldn't otherwise, such as Mienfoo and Timburr, common switch-ins to Pawniard's Knock Off.
Chlorophyll sweepers are really hard to deal with, especially with sun up, so the best thing to do when facing them is to waste sun turns and restrict Vulpix's switch-in opportunities with Stealth Rock and offensive pressure. However, some special walls including Munchlax, Porygon, and Lickitung, can deal with Chlorophyll sweepers. Fletchling is also a big threat for these Pokémon as it can OHKO them with priority Acrobatics. Additionally, there are some Pokémon that can still outspeed and KO Chlorophyll sweepers, such as Choice Scarf Doduo and Gastly.
Honorable Mentions
Not all Grass-types are fortunate enough to be bulky, fast, or strong, but there are numerous plants that have their niches in Little Cup. Paras and Shroomish both have access to Spore, and while they may not be as usable as Foongus, Paras's ability Dry Skin allows it to avoid nasty Scald burns, while Shroomish is a rather bulky pokémon with multiple avenues of recovery, including Poison Heal, Leech Seed, and Drain Punch. Deerling's Speed stat allows it to operate from a nearly unassailable Speed tier with Choice Scarf, giving it the notable niche of revenge killing Shell Smash sweepers with its powerful STAB Seed Bomb. Although Phantump is inferior to Pumpkaboo as a physical wall, it is able to utilize a SubSeed set with Harvest in order to wear opposing teams down. It can also utilize Rest with Natural Cure or even set up Trick Room for its teammates. Exeggcute can also utilize Harvest repeatedly; however, it has far too many weaknesses to wall many foes. It, along with many other overlooked Grass-types, has access to Chlorophyll and Psychic-type STAB moves, however. Cacnea is yet another Grass-type Pokémon that enjoys immunity to Scald thanks to Water Absorb, enabling it to set up a Swords Dance or Nasty Plot on opposing Water-types. Although these Pokémon have very limited niches, they are quite usable in the right hands and on certain teams.
Counters
Although Grass-types are quite solid defensively, they have five weaknesses to very common attacking types, meaning that even the most resilient Grass-types will crumble under the pressure of many common foes. Flying-types are very troubling foes to face, as Acrobatics from the likes of Fletchling, Archen, and Drifloon will severely dent Grass-types, even ones that take neutral damage from the move. Brave Bird users such as Taillow and Vullaby can also make short work of Grass-types. Vullaby is a particularly notable Grass-type counter, as not only is it bulky and resists Grass-type moves, its ability Overcoat makes it immune to powder-based moves, including Spore, Sleep Powder, and Stun Spore. Fire-types are also an issue for Grass-types not named Lileep, as the two most prominent ones, Ponyta and Larvesta, are extremely bulky and strong, and they are therefore able to absorb attacks and reply in kind with a STAB Flare Blitz. Grass-types also need to be wary of the Water-types they counter, as it is not uncommon for pokémon such as Chinchou, Slowpoke, and even Carvanha to use Ice Beam in order to surprise their would-be counters. Poison-types can also be too bulky to to break down; opposing Foongus, Skrelp, Croagunk, and Trubbish are capable of beating down most opposing Grass-types with either Sludge Bomb or Gunk Shot.
Conclusion
Grass-types suffer a lot of adversity in Little Cup: their moves are resisted by more types than any other type, and they are tied with Rock-types for the most weaknesses. However, they are widely valued for the common threats that many of they can wall or overpower. A lot of them have access to fantastic utility options that are backed up by their good defenses and solid typing combinations, while others are able to fill unique offensive roles. Little Cup's garden bed is filled with some exotic and colorful plant species, and if you don't mind their crippling fear of birds and ponies, they'll make fantastic additions to your team!
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