With incredible bulk, Vessel of Ruin, and access to both Spikes and Stealth Rock, Ting-Lu is one of OU's premier hazard setters and also doubles as a special wall. Spikes are used to hit grounded Stealth Rock-resistant Pokemon like Kingambit and Gholdengo harder, while Stealth Rock can be used instead to damage Spikes-immune Pokemon like Corviknight that repeatedly switch into Ting-Lu, as well as punish Stealth Rock-weak Pokemon like Iron Moth and Enamorus. Thanks to its huge bulk, Ting-Lu is able to take super effective hits from setup sweepers like Calm Mind Iron Valiant and Iron Boulder and phaze them with Whirlwind in return; in addition to this, Whirlwind forces in opposing Pokemon, which will take damage from Ting-Lu's hazards unless they hold Heavy-Duty Boots. Ruination deals meaningful damage to switch-ins like Rillaboom, Great Tusk, and Hatterene while forcing walls like Alomomola, Garganacl, and Clefable to waste their recovery moves. Leftovers provides consistent recovery, while Heavy-Duty Boots prevents Ting-Lu from getting overwhelmed by entry hazards, mainly Spikes from opposing hazard-stacking teams. Alternatively, on offensive teams, Red Card allows Ting-Lu to take a hit from a threatening foe—specifically a setup sweeper—and force it out, taking advantage of its huge overall bulk to even take on physical attackers and super effective special attacks, such as from Kingambit and Hatterene. Moreover, Red Card taking on Whirlwind's phazing duty gives Ting-Lu more freedom to run both hazards simultaneously. Tera Poison is used to help Ting-Lu better check Fairy- and Fighting-types like Enamorus, Zamazenta, and especially Iron Valiant and grant it an immunity to Toxic, while Tera Ghost can be run instead to nullify Ting-Lu's Fighting-type weakness and allow it to spinblock Great Tusk and Iron Treads, though this comes at the cost of being weak to Ghost-types like Gholdengo and Choice Specs Dragapult as well as Dark-types like Darkrai that Ting-Lu would otherwise check.

Ting-Lu fits well as a support option on nearly any balance, bulky offense, and offense team. Offensive partners like Dragapult and Zamazenta appreciate entry hazard support to make foes easier to KO, while physically defensive partners like Dondozo and Skarmory benefit from Ting-Lu's ability to handle special attackers like Gholdengo and Raging Bolt. Skarmory is particularly notable for forming a strong defensive hazard-stacking core with Ting-Lu, being able to switch into Pokemon like Meowscarada and Weavile that threaten it. Aside from being potent late-game cleaners that appreciate Ting-Lu spreading chip damage early-game, offensive partners like Weavile and Meowscarada pair well, since they're able to remove Heavy-Duty Boots from opposing Pokemon with Knock Off to make Ting-Lu's hazard stacking more effective as well as pressure Gliscor, which Ting-Lu struggles significantly against. Galarian Slowking and Gholdengo are both great defensive partners for Ting-Lu to handle Fairy-types like Hatterene and Iron Valiant, with the former able to provide additional pressure with Future Sight and the latter also able to block hazard removal.

Ting-Lu is a solid defensive tank that can be used to answer threats like Dragapult, Gholdengo, and Raging Bolt. Rest allows Ting-Lu to fully utilize its walling potential giving it more longevity than it otherwise would have, which makes it much more consistent against foes such as Will-O-Wisp Dragapult while helping with longevity versus hazards in the face of foes like opposing Ting-Lu. Ruination is used to chunk switch-ins such as Landorus-T and provide consistent damage. Payback, an alternative to Ruination, allows Ting-Lu to deal damage to foes weak to Dark, namely Dragapult. Sleep Talk's reduced passivity makes Ting-Lu harder to set up on, creating fewer free turns for Pokemon such as Kingambit and Dragonite. This also prevents foes like Ogerpon-W from getting free opportunities to come in, as it may call Ruination. At the cost of being a bit more passive, Ting-Lu can forgo Sleep Talk to run Stealth Rock and form entry hazard stacking cores with Pokemon such as Spikes Gliscor and enable teammates such as Dragonite, Ogerpon-W, and Zamazenta. Tera Water allows Ting-Lu to deal with moves from foes such as Kyurem and Hisuian Samurott. Tera Poison enables it to become immune to poison from foes it likes to switch into such as Galarian Slowking while enabling it to come in and out to absorb Toxic Spikes. Furthermore, it allows Ting-Lu to handle Fighting-types like Zamazenta and Iron Valiant and Grass-type moves from Rillaboom and Ogerpon-W.

Ting-Lu fits on a variety of different balance and stall teams. Pokemon such as Gholdengo and Galarian Slowking appreciate Ting-Lu's presence, as it can check faster foes these Pokemon are weak to, such as Dragapult and Darkrai. In return, Gholdengo checks foes that it struggles against like Zamazenta, and Galarian Slowking checks special variants of Iron Valiant and Primarina for Ting-Lu while providing a safe entry point for Ting-Lu through Chilly Reception when baiting in foes like Dragapult. Spikes Gliscor can be used to wear down Ting-Lu checks like Great Tusk. Ting-Lu also struggles with Flying-types such as Dragonite, Landorus-T, and Gliscor because it has to rely on Ruination or Payback to damage them. Dragonite and Gliscor can also use it as setup fodder, so teammates that threaten these Pokemon, such as Kyurem and Ogerpon-W, are appreciated. Dragonite is also a good partner, as it appreciates a Pokemon that can handle Will-O-Wisp Dragapult in addition to checking foes like Ogerpon-W for Ting-Lu. These Pokemon help with Ting-Lu's passivity with the ability to muscle through foes such as Gliscor and Great Tusk. Dondozo is also a great partner on stall teams, stopping any setup attempts from physical threats like Low Kick Kingambit and Dragonite. Dondozo's walling attempts can get punished by Raging Bolt, so Ting-Lu's ability to answer Raging Bolt is appreciated. Clefable is able to provide utility through Knock Off, which, in conjunction with Ting-Lu's Stealth Rock, helps wear down the opposition; in return, Ting-Lu handles Gholdengo for it.This set is easily worn down by entry hazards, so hazard removal through Defog from partners such as Corviknight and Galarian Weezing is appreciated. Pokemon like Zamazenta appreciate Ting-Lu's ability to take on foes such as Will-O-Wisp Dragapult, being able to sponge status and force it out. This set is also used on pivot balance teams alongside Dragapult, Corviknight, and Galarian Slowking, as these Pokemon pivot on Pokemon Ting-Lu can force damage on or set up Stealth Rock against such as opposing Ting-Lu. These teams appreciate Ting-Lu being able to handle foes such as Dragapult, Raging Bolt, and Darkrai.