What it does
Knock Off is a 65-base-power Dark-type physical move. On contact, if the target holds a removable item, damage is multiplied ×1.5 — 97 effective base power — and the item is permanently gone for the rest of the match. Three things happen at the same time. That simultaneity is the whole point.
Running the numbers: Take Incineroar at 130 base Attack with a full Stat Points investment (32 cap). Against a target holding an item, its Knock Off hit is equivalent to a 97-BP Dark move with no prior setup. Even a support-oriented Incineroar that puts only 8–16 Stat Points into Attack still outputs enough damage that opponents cannot freely eat the hit — it is not a tickle. Strip the item, and the move drops to 65 BP, which at high-level play is noticeably weaker than purpose-built coverage. That gap is the core of the item-presence judgment you make every time you go to click it.
The permanent strip: Remove a Choice Scarf and that Pokémon is at base Speed for every future switch-in, no exceptions, for the rest of the match. Remove an Eviolite and the holder's defensive profile collapses — those mid-stage Pokémon relying on Eviolite to patch their mediocre bulk become noticeably squishier on every subsequent switch. Remove a Sitrus Berry or Lum Berry and what would have been a survivable bit of chip or a curable status becomes permanent damage and an uncured condition. In doubles, stripping an Assault Vest exposes the holder's Special Defense on the same turn your special attacker fires.
Information as the third resource: Team Preview tells you what Pokémon your opponent brought. Knock Off tells you whether they have an item. Hit at ×1.5 → item confirmed and gone. Hit at ×1 → confirmed itemless. Neither outcome is wasted; both paths give you cleaner reads for the rest of the game.
The hard ceiling: Mega Stone cannot be removed by Knock Off. Against a Pokémon that has already triggered Mega Evolution, Knock Off deals 65 BP with no strip. The timing window is before the Mega happens, not after.
Who runs it
Incineroar is the canonical Knock Off user and has been for years. It has Intimidate, Fake Out, and Parting Shot already in its kit — Knock Off goes into the fourth slot at essentially zero opportunity cost. More importantly, 97 effective power from a support Pokémon means opponents can't ignore the damage vector and focus purely on playing around Intimidate. Nearly every competitive Incineroar carries it, and for good reason.
Weavile wants Knock Off for a different reason: its Attack is high enough that 97 BP is genuine KO pressure, not just harassment. More specifically, Weavile's Speed means it often lands Knock Off before the target can act at all — stripping a Choice Scarf on the turn the opponent planned to outspeed you is the kind of tempo swing that wins games outright.
Urshifu (Single Strike) picks up Knock Off primarily as a way to cover targets outside Wicked Blow's critical-hit niche, while incidentally removing Rocky Helmet, Sitrus Berry, and similar sustain tools that would otherwise grind its multi-hit approach down. Strips that reduce healing on the target stack well with repeated contact damage.
Kingambit is the singles Pokémon most eager to open with Knock Off. Its 135 base Attack turns 97 effective power into a concrete damage threat, and it specifically benefits from stripping Leftovers or Eviolite targets early, then setting up behind the now-exposed opponent. Remove the recovery tool, start accumulating Supreme Overlord pressure or a Swords Dance — the sequence compresses quickly.
Who shouldn't run it: A Choice Band attacker that needs all four slots for type coverage; any Pokémon that simply doesn't learn Knock Off and has no workaround.
How to use it
Turn 1 scouting: When you don't know the opponent's item, Knock Off first turn is a zero-downside probe. It lands at ×1.5 → you see the strip, you know the item class, and you dealt 97 BP. It lands at ×1 → confirmed itemless; you got 65 BP and a clean read. There is no bad outcome from early Knock Off against an unknown target.
Fake Out into Knock Off: The classic two-turn pressure sequence. Fake Out causes a flinch on turn 1 — the target can't act. Turn 2, Knock Off lands without the opponent having an action available to switch or shield. Incineroar runs this constantly: Fake Out to pin position, Knock Off or Rock Slide based on read, then Parting Shot to drop their stats and exit. Three interactions, one pivot sequence, and the opponent has no item on the relevant target.
Singles item stripping as a long-term engine: In singles, the strip compounds over every future switch-in. Remove the Heavy-Duty Boots and now every entry — theirs — accumulates hazard damage. Remove Leftovers and the passive recovery they were relying on to stay healthy through chip stops entirely. A well-timed early Knock Off in singles can shift the resource math of the entire late game.
Doubles targeting discipline: In doubles you can only strip one item per Knock Off, so target selection matters. The highest-value line is: support Pokémon Knock Off the Assault Vest holder on the same turn your special attacker fires — the target eats a hard hit with Special Defense already exposed. Knock Off is not a spread move; it suffers no ×0.75 doubles penalty, so it hits for full calculated damage.
Sequencing with Parting Shot: Two valid orderings. Knock Off first, then Parting Shot out — your switch-in faces a weakened, itemless, debuffed target. Or: Parting Shot out to bring in a fresh attacker, then Knock Off from the new Pokémon against whatever the opponent switched into. The second line is useful when you don't know if the opponent will also switch, letting you reset the information situation before committing the strip.
Tips & strategy
Common mistake autopsy — the post-Mega Knock Off: This is the single most frequent Knock Off error in practice. A player sees a Mega Pokémon across from them, clicks Knock Off expecting the ×1.5 damage, and gets a 65-BP hit that removes nothing. The Mega Stone is locked in place once Mega Evolution activates — the bonus and the strip both disappear. The correct play: use Knock Off on the turn the Mega Pokémon first appears, before it Megas. At that point the Mega Stone is still technically a held item, Knock Off hits at 97 effective power, and the stone is removed — the Mega cannot trigger again. Miss this window and Knock Off loses most of its value against that target for the rest of the game.
Second common mistake — spam after the item is gone: Once you've stripped the item, Knock Off is a 65-BP Dark move. In the endgame of a singles match, 65 BP at no stat boost is often the wrong click when a coverage move can threaten a KO. Inventory your moves: if the opponent's Pokémon is in KO range for a coverage option and definitely itemless, use the coverage option. Knock Off into a known-itemless target in doubles is especially costly when a spread move or support action would have changed the board state.
Sticky Hold interaction: This ability blocks item removal entirely — the strip does not happen. However, the ×1.5 damage multiplier still applies, so Knock Off deals 97 effective BP regardless. Knock Off against a Sticky Hold Pokémon is a 97-BP Dark move that keeps their item. Know which Pokémon carry it (notably the Gengar line) so you don't plan around a strip that won't come.
Named counter — itemless switch-ins: The cleanest counter to Knock Off is sending in a Pokémon that has no item to begin with. An intentionally itemless switch-in reduces Knock Off to 65 BP, takes nothing away, and also dodges the information reveal (you already knew they had no item). Some teams run deliberately itemless Pokémon specifically to neuter opposing Knock Off users. Against these, pivot to a different move rather than clicking Knock Off into free 65-BP damage.
Shed Shell note: A Shed Shell holder can't have its item stripped either. Knock Off still deals full 65 BP (no ×1.5 since Shed Shell isn't removable), and the shell stays. The primary use case for Shed Shell is escaping trapping, but as a Knock Off counter it works.
Status synergy: Champions reduces paralysis full-stop to 12.5% and caps Sleep at 3 turns, but Burn is indefinite. Strip the Lum Berry with Knock Off, then use Will-O-Wisp — the burn sticks permanently now that their self-cure berry is gone. Incineroar frequently runs both moves for exactly this combo: Knock Off removes the cure, Will-O-Wisp applies the condition, and the resulting burn damage accumulates through every switch in or out.