Protection

I generally use moves like Protect on Pokémon that simply can't function well without them. The metagame would change extremely if they were removed. Glass Cannon Pokémon like Aegislash (after using an attacking move) would become completely unusable due to how frail they are.

 

I donot use protection moves AT ALL except in double battels but i only use them in extreme cases tho

 

In Single Battles, you don't see Protect used much, if at all, except maybe on Pressure Pokémon or stuff like Shedinja. It's usually outclassed by moves that would do better than it, so it rarely finds its way into a moveslot.

 

I use Protect in VGC battles more than Singles battles, for it's the most important/crucial move in that "tier". In singles matches, it can be a good scouting move for Mons like Heatran. It's also good to use on a trolling Trevenant.

Additionally, I like how we're starting to see more moves that break through moves like Protect/Detect now (other than Feint and Shadow Force). We have Phantom Force (a non-Uber type Shadow Force), Hyperspace Hole, and Hyperspace Fury. Hopefully, we can see a few other moves down the road to counter moves like Protect/Detect/Spiky Shield/King's Shield etc. Much like Substitute, it'll be begin to have more counters to it.

 

I use protect if I know my opponent will one-shot me, and in a double battle, protect+heal pulse is amazing. One protects, and the other heals that Pokémon that's going to faint.

 

I run mat block and protect on my ninja so that A he doesnt take backlash from my op set of Custap belly drum Gluttony Selfdestruct Snorlax and B so it doesnt break his sash but anyways it helps if you *puts on sunglasses* put on some protection babe?

 

I run protect on Sharpedo On my UU team. He protects turn one for speed boost, Megas turn two, and destroys with crunch.

 

I think the premier Protect users in Singles are any Wish passers (3 of the Eeveelutions, Chansey/Blissey, Alomomola, etc.), and it's not hard to see why. Gaining that little bit of Lefties recovery, and possibly stalling out your opponent can make or break your game.

I love it when people think they can setup a Swords Dance against my Umbreon because I used Wish the previous turn and they expect a Protect, but I just wreck them with Foul Play on the turn they'd thought I'd protect.

Then the signature protection moves (barring King's Shield for obv reasons) like Spiky Shield, I generally don't see, but even when I do, they don't really impact me and on Chesnaught I don't think Spiky Shield is worth having tbh (it kinda has 4 Moveslot Syndrome and I think there are other moves with better utility for him).

 

Always use protection

I personally dont use protection moves, since my strategies are based on fast attacking, than stalling or lasting power.

But i finf Spiky Shield useful. It has a nice Gimmick to it ^^

 

I use protect in double battles more, often in tandem with status moves that go through protect.

For example, I have a beheeyem and a manaphy out together on one of my sets. On the first turn Beheyem uses trick room so that my Pokémon will most likely end up going first due to already average speed stats that have been given negatives, and manaphy uses tail glow. Now that manaphy's become most likely to be attacked in fear of the tail glow boost and trick room speed, I have manaphy use protect and beheeyem use psych up, which goes through protect to copy the 3 stage sp att boost. Now both can hit with respectable damage, and hit first.

I've seen a few tactics like this utilizing protect and status moves that go through it, like the protect and heal pulse strategy Azure talked about. But outside of doubles, I've only seen protect on stallers and megas. I personally don't use it very much in singles, mostly because I always end up overpredicting and using it at wrong times.

 

Protection is a very sweet strategy against choiced mons! Really shuts them down! And it is used on single battles too!