^lol Dragon Rush Garchomp
[OVERVIEW]
Garchomp faces heavy competition from better Dragon-types such as Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, and Latios, which have more overall utility, power, and coverage moves. As a Ground-type, Garchomp faces competition from Landorus-T, which possesses more utility. Garchomp's typing, however, gives it a resistance to Fire-type moves, which makes it more reliable against Mega Charizard Y and Heatran. Garchomp's naturally high base Speed allows it to check Mega Charizard Y without needing Choice Scarf, unlike Landorus-T. Its Dragon / Ground typing gives it nearly unresisted STAB coverage; however, Garchomp doesn't hit many Pokemon for super effective damage. It is also pretty easy to switch into Garchomp because it doesn't hit very hard without a Life Orb, and while Garchomp has excellent total coverage, quite a few Pokemon resist one of its STAB types, which makes it pretty easy to tell which one it's going to use. Moreover, it has trouble beating common defensive Pokemon such as Rotom-W, Cresselia, and Amoonguss. Garchomp also has a really bad matchup versus common offensive threats such as Latios, offensive Thundurus, and Mega Diancie; Choice Scarf Landorus-T, however, can handle these offensive threats, and many more, relatively easily. Garchomp is also heavily crippled by Intimidate and burn. Fortunately, a good ability in Rough Skin combined with respectable bulk allows Garchomp to punish weaker contact moves, such as U-turn and Fake Out. Overall, though, Garchomp needs a lot of support to function and should really only be used over Landorus-T if you need a Pokemon that resists Fire.
[SET]
name: Physical Attacker
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw
move 3: Rock Slide / Stone Edge
move 4: Protect
item: Rocky Helmet / Life Orb / Focus Sash
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Earthquake is Garchomp's most reliable Ground-type STAB attack, while Dragon Claw is Garchomp's most reliable Dragon-type STAB attack. Rock Slide, along with Garchomp's other attacks, gives it near-perfect coverage; however, Stone Edge can be used, as it is stronger, bypasses Wide Guard, and ensures an OHKO on Mega Charizard Y regardless of Mega Charizard Y's bulk investment.
Set Details
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Garchomp's EV spread allows it to hit fast and hit hard. Rough Skin is Garchomp's preferred ability, as it allows it to deal chip damage to physical attackers. Rocky Helmet, in conjunction with Rough Skin, allows Garchomp to punish weak contact moves, such as Fake Out and U-turn. It also allows Garchomp to wear down threats, such as Mega Kangaskhan, so that Garchomp can KO them with one of its STAB attacks. Life Orb increases Garchomp's less-than-stellar damage output and can allow it to pick up KOs on Pokemon such as uninvested Hydreigon. Focus Sash allows Garchomp to beat Latios and Mega Diancie one-on-one; however, using a Focus Sash greatly hinders Garchomp's ability to switch in.
Usage Tips
========
Switch Garchomp in to weaker contact moves, such as Fake Out, Mach Punch, and Aqua Jet, so that the foe can take Rough Skin and potentially Rocky Helmet damage. Because Garchomp has trouble picking up KOs against most Pokemon, it works best mid- and late-game, when the foe's Pokemon and Intimidate or Will-O-Wisp users have been taken out or weakened, which Garchomp should avoid at all costs. If Garchomp is hit by Intimidate, it is recommended that you switch Garchomp out, as its damage output will plummet, causing it to be dead weight.
Team Options
========
Intimidate users work really well with Garchomp, as they can weaken physical attackers and allow Garchomp to take more hits and deal more Rough Skin damage. Steel-types are great partners for Garchomp, as they have near-perfect synergy with it. Most notably, Aegislash and Mega Metagross benefit greatly from the removal of Fire-types such as Heatran and Mega Charizard Y and are able to switch into any Ice-, Fairy-, or Dragon-type move aimed at Garchomp. They can also force out Latios, Mega Diancie, and Kyurem-B, all of which are major threats to Garchomp. Thanks to Defiant, Bisharp deters Intimidate users from coming in, which can allow Garchomp to keep up its damage output. Grass-types, such as Breloom, greatly benefit from Garchomp's ability to remove Mega Charizard Y and Steel-types, most notably Aegislash. Breloom is able to check bulky Water-types such as Rotom-W that Garchomp struggles with; however, if using Breloom, be wary of Ice-types. Any form of speed control allows Garchomp to outrun threats such as Latios, Mega Diancie, and Terrakion and KO them with its STAB moves. Common speed control users are Tailwind Talonflame, which benefits from Garchomp's ability to remove Aegislash and Heatran, and Thunder Wave or Icy Wind Jirachi. Keep in mind that Jirachi has to use Protect or switch out if Garchomp chooses to use Earthquake. As with anything that uses Earthquake frequently, Pokemon that are immune to it are great partners. Talonflame, which can put a lot of Pokemon into KO range for Garchomp and can set up Tailwind, Cresselia, which provides Icy Wind and Helping Hand support, and Thundurus all are great partners. Garchomp works really well on sun teams. Under sun, both Mega Charizard Y and Venusaur beat bulky Water-types that Garchomp struggles with, such as Suicune and Rotom-W, and Fairy-types, such as Mega Gardevoir and Mega Diancie. Mega Charizard Y also beats Ice-types that threaten Garchomp, while Garchomp can switch into and beat Rock- and Electric-types that threaten Mega Charizard Y. In return, both Mega Charizard Y and Venusaur benefit greatly from Garchomp's ability to remove Heatran.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Mega Garchomp can be used on a sand team; however, there are a lot of better Mega Evolutions that can be used instead of it. Choice Scarf allows Garchomp to beat threats that it normally couldn't, such as Mega Diancie and Latios; however, Landorus-T is usually the better pick as a Choice Scarf user. Choice Band can be used to turn Garchomp into a wallbreaker. Lum Berry can be used to cure Garchomp from a crippling status ailment, such as burn or sleep. Garchomp can also run a much bulkier set. Poison Jab and Iron Head allow Garchomp to hit Fairy-types, while Fire Blast lets Garchomp hit Ferrothorn. Dragon Rush is a stronger alternative to Dragon Claw, as it guarantees an OHKO on Hydreigon and Substitute Kyurem-B if Garchomp is holding Life Orb. Substitute can be used to block Will-O-Wisp. When using Substitute, Leftovers is the preferred item for Garchomp. Swords Dance turns Garchomp into a fearsome late-game sweeper, while Roar can be used to stop Trick Room setters and setup sweepers.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Intimidate and Burns**: Garchomp is primarily a physical attacker, so Intimidate and burns will lower its damage output and cripple it immensely, turning it from a fearsome attacker to dead weight. Landorus-T and Rotom-W can easily switch into Garchomp's attacks and cripple it.
**Speed Control**: Garchomp's naturally high Speed is one of the things that put it above Landorus-T. Without it, its effectiveness severely decreases. Garchomp's typing makes it 4x weak to Icy Wind, while Trick Room can turn Garchomp's high Speed from an advantage to a liability.
**Offensive Typing Advantage**: Garchomp's typing makes it weak to Dragon, one of the most common attacking STAB types, and Ice, one of the most common types for coverage moves. Garchomp can be removed by faster Dragon-types, such as Latios and Choice Scarf Kyurem-B. Ice-types such as Weavile, Mamoswine, and Abomasnow are able to OHKO Garchomp with their Ice-type STAB moves, while Pokemon that commonly carry Ice-type coverage moves for Landorus-T, such as Deoxys-A, Darkrai, Ludicolo, Cresselia, Politoed, Thundurus, and Landorus, can do the same. Fairy-types such as Sylveon and Mega Gardevoir can OHKO Garchomp with their STAB moves too. Defensively, Garchomp is walled by bulky Water-types and Grass-types, which it can't hit for super effective damage, such as Politoed, Suicune, Amoonguss, and Ferrothorn.
**Utility**: Wide Guard can stop Garchomp in its tracks, as its best move is a spread move. In particular, Wide Guard Aegislash can completely stop Garchomp, as it resists Garchomp's other attacks.
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