Gyarados (Revamp) [QC 3/3] [GP 2/2]

[Yoda2798]

Skeleton

[OVERVIEW]

• Gyarados is a valuable utility Pokemon in the Doubles metagame, checking various defensive Pokemon such as Jirachi and Heatran as well as offensive threats such as Talonflame and Landorus-T.
• Gyarados also viably runs a Dragon Dance set, which allows it to take a more offensive role by boosting its Attack and Speed. Gyarados's versatility to run multiple distinct viable sets gives it the valuable and rare trait of being somewhat unpredictable in nature.
  
• Gyarados fits best on slightly bulkier teams that want a sturdy Pokemon with Intimidate, that can perform the above roles more reliably over the course of a match. This is because on full-out hyper offense it faces a lot of competition from Landorus-T.
• This is due to its ability in Intimidate, as well as its Water typing and access to support moves such as Taunt, Thunder Wave, and Icy Wind. Gyarados's usage of speed control helps make up for it's middling speed.
• Solid Water / Flying typing gives Gyarados valuable resists against Fire-, Fighting-, and Water-type attacks and an immunity to Ground-type attacks. However Electric-types all threaten Gyarados massively.

[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Taunt
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Protect
item: Sitrus Berry / Safety Goggles
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 208 Def / 44 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Waterfall is STAB and deals good amounts of damage to Water weak opponents such as Landorus-T, Talonflame, and Heatran.
• Taunt allows Gyardos to cripple Amoonguss and Aegislash, as well as preventing Trick Room and other speed control or status moves.
• Thunder Wave provides crippling speed control onto a single target and is particularly effective against very fast opponents like weather sweepers such as Ludicolo and Venusaur, or Pokemon under Tailwind.
• Icy Wind is useful for slowing down both opponents but to a lesser extent than Thunder Wave. Icy Wind does have the benefits of breaking sashes and providing chip damage as well as getting around Taunt, but its lack of permanence hurts its usefulness. Icy Wind can be better for teammates such as Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir, who both have middling speeds and so appreciate attacking first with strong spread moves.
• Protect is a staple move in Doubles, allowing Gyarados to stay alive while a partner removes a threat, or stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick Room.

Set Details
========

• 252 HP with 208 Defense EVs allow Gyarados to take two -1 Stone Edges from Landorus-T without a Sitrus Berry or two Diamond Storms from Mega Diancie with Sitrus Berry. 4 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature allow allow Gyarados to 2HKO Landorus-T in return, while also having a good chance to OHKO Mega Diancie. The remaining Speed EVs allow Gyarados to outspeed uninvested Rotom formes.
• Sitrus Berry provides valuable longevity to Gyarados which allows it to stay healthy and on the field for longer.
• Safety Goggles allows Gyarados to switch in and play around Amoonguss and Breloom more safely.
• Intimidate cripples physical attackers by softening attacks for Gyarados and its teammates.

Usage Tips
========

• Intimidate makes Gyarados a great switch-in to physical attackers, particularly against opponents such as Landorus-T and Talonflame which it can threaten with Waterfall.
• Gyarados's main role once on the field is maintaining speed control with the combination of Taunt and Thunder Wave or Icy Wind to help more offensive teammates. Taunt is also useful for preventing status moves such as burns, paralysis, and sleep.
• Gyarados performs well as a lead against Trick Room based teams, as it can use Taunt to prevent Trick Room from being set.
• Be wary of switching Gyarados into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========

• As Gyarados is a support Pokemon, teammates should take advantage of the utility provided in Intimidate, Taunt, and speed control.
• Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir both enjoy the speed control that Gyarados provides, and Intimidate also patches up both Pokemon's weaker Defense stat.
• Setup Pokemon such as Mega Kangaskhan and Mega Charizard X benefit from Gyarados's ability to provide support through Intimidate to help provide set-up opportunities,
  
• Mega Kangaskhan also appreciates Gyarados's ability to somewhat deal with Amoonguss through Taunt, as well as being able to switch into Keldeo and Landorus-T for it. An additional teammate which can KO Amoonguss would still greatly help.
• Pokemon which can deal with Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus have good synergy with Gyarados, making Grass- or Dragon-type Pokemon such as Amoonguss or Hydreigon, Kyurem-B and Latios respectively good teammates. Lightning Rod users such as Rhydon and Rhyperior can also do this, but are usually more team-specific options.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Double-Edge
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Ice Fang / Earthquake
item: Choice Band
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Waterfall is STAB, and with a Choice Band boost will put a large dent in anything that doesn't resist. It notably has a chance to OHKO standard Landorus-T even after Intimidate.
• Double Edge provides great neutral coverage alongside Waterfall, hitting most Water resists quite hard due to its high base power.
• Stone Edge deals massive damage to Kyurem-B and can clean OHKO regular checks to Gyarados in Zapdos, bulky Thundurus, and Mega Charizard Y.
• Ice Fang hits Dragon- and Grass-types stronger than any other move, allowing Gyarados to always KO Latios after one round of Life Orb recoil. It also always 2HKOs standard Rocky Helmet Amoonguss.
• Despite being not usually recommended on non Ground-type Pokemon, Earthquake can work on Gyarados. Earthquake notable hits targets such as Aegislash, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross quite hard. Additionally, hitting both opponents is nice for helping a teammate to finish them off, however Earthquake does leave Gyarados vulnerable to Ground immune switch ins due to Choice Band.

Set Details
========

• Choice Band takes advantage of Gyarados's high attack stat to allow it to hit like a truck.
• Intimidate allows Gyarados to still provide defensive utility for teammates, allowing itself and partners to take physical attacks better.
  
• 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature lets Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs outspeed neutral speed natured base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's defenses.
• If being used on a Trick Room team, a Brave nature should be used with the Speed EVs being put into HP.

Usage Tips
========

• Gyarados is best used when supported by speed control such as Trick Room or Tailwind, where it can break through teams and KO a lot of Pokemon before they can move.
• This allows Gyarados to fulfill it's main role as a wallbreaker, meaning that it can weaken teams for other teammates to plow through them with ease.
• Gyarados is therefore best taken advantage of early- to mid-game where it can weaken Pokemon, however it can do well late game with either the right support or against slower teams.
• Since Gyarados is usually the utility set, it can take advantage of this to catch common switch-ins such as Rotom-W and Thundurus for large amounts of damage.
  
• If multiple moves get the KO on a target, choose the move which does best against the remaining members of the opponent's team.
• Be wary of switching Gyarados into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========

• Pokemon that appreciate Gyarados's ability to weaken opposing teams make for good teammates. Good examples include Mega Diancie, Mega Kangaskhan, and Bisharp, as Gyarados can weaken Pokemon such as Amoonguss to help them clean later on.
• Choice Band Gyarados appreciates speed control to take advantage of its offensive power, making Tailwind users such as Zapdos and Latios great partners. Thundurus can provide Thunder Wave support and Jirachi can utilize Icy Wind. Good partners for setting Trick Room include Porygon2, which has great defensive synergy with Gyarados, as well as Cresselia and Gourgeist.
• Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon which can deal with the Electric-types such as Thundurus that Gyarados struggles with make good teammates. Amoonguss, which can also redirect, or Hydreigon, Kyurem-B and Latios are good examples respectively. Rhydon and Rhyperior can redirect Electric-type attacks via Lightning Rod, with both being good options on Trick Room teams as well due to their low Speed.

[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Return / Stone Edge / Taunt
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Protect
item: Safety Goggles / Sitrus Berry
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Waterfall is reliable STAB, doing good damage against most neutral targets.
• Dragon Dance allows Gyarados to boost its Attack and Speed.
• Return hits most Water resists such as Rotom-W, Latios, and Amoonguss for decent damage. Return is recommended over Double Edge here as being a setup sweeper, Gyarados needs to maintain its longevity.
  
• Stone Edge hits Mega Charizard Y to drastically improve the sun matchup, as well as enabling Gyarados to deal sufficient damage to Kyurem-B. It also hits Thundurus hard but usually Gyarados is too threatened to attack anyways.
• Taunt allows Gyarados to still perform some of its usual support role, Taunting Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Trick Room setters to help teammates. Preventing Tailwind from Pokemon such as Suicune can also be nice, as it counteracts the Speed boosts Gyarados gains from Dragon Dance. Taunt also makes Aegislash easier to deal with.
• Protect allows Gyarados to stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick room as well as allowing partners to remove threats to it.

Set Details
========

• Safety Goggles immensely helps Gyarados against Amoonguss by allowing it to get around Rage Powder and giving an immunity to Spore.
• However, Sitrus Berry can still be quite valuable for providing some limited recovery, but should only be used on teams where opposing Amoonguss is amply handled.
• Intimidate provides valuable support for teammates against physical attackers such as Mega Kangaskhan and Landorus-T while also helping Gyarados to setup more easily.
• 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature lets Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs outspeed neutral speed natured base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom before a boost. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's defenses.
• An alternate spread with 252 Attack and Speed EVs with a Jolly nature can be used to outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Landorus-T at +1 as well as neutral speed natured weather sweepers such as Venusaur and Kingdra, but the the drop in power makes Gyarados a less potent threat overall.

Usage Tips
========

• Don't setup too early in the match when Gyarados's counters are still healthy. Gyarados has a better chance of performing well late game when it's checks are worn down.
• Try to avoid letting Gyarados take too much damage before and while setting up, as this can hurt Gyarados's chances of sweeping by putting it in range of priority attacks such as Talonflame Brave Bird or Bisharp Sucker Punch.
• Gyarados can should be brought in on Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Heatran which provide it safe setup opportunities. Utilizing partners with redirection moves or Fake Out should also be a priority when aiming to setup.
• Gyarados can use the fact that people will expect the utility set, especially with Protect and Taunt, to it's advantage.
• Gyarados doesn't always need to setup to perform effectively, as sometimes Gyarados doesn't need boosts to KO something, or the immediate damage can be better when trying to double attack a threat for the KO.
• Protect should be utilized so Gyarados keeps its boosts while a partner takes care of Pokemon such as Thundurus which threaten it.
• Avoid bringing in Gyarados on Defiant users such as Bisharp and Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with free boosts which make these Pokemon extremely threatening to Gyarados and its teammates.

Team Options
========

• Redirectors such as Amoonguss and Jirachi help Gyarados to setup safely. Amoonguss tanks Electric-type attacks the best. Gyarados removes Fire-types such Heatran and Talonflame in return.
• Fake Out users such as Mega Kangaskhan can also help Gyarados get good opportunities to setup. Gyarados also helps Mega Kangaskhan handle Landorus-T.
• Pokemon which can deal with the Electric-types such as Rotom-Wash and Thundurus who threaten Gyarados also make for good teammates. Possible partners include Dragon-types such as Kyurem-B, Latios and Hydreigon as well as Grass-types, for example Amoonguss.
• Raichu, Rhydon, and Rhyperior can provide Lightning Rod support to redirect Electric-type attacks by virtue of being on the field. Raichu can also provide Fake Out support to help Gyarados setup, or use Feint to ensure Gyarados will get boosted attacks off.
• If Gyarados is not carrying Safety Goggles, then it especially appreciates support from Pokemon such as Talonflame and Heatran which can reliably beat Amoonguss.
  
• Bisharp can serve as a good offensive partner by discouraging Intimidate users, and also due to its ability to hit most Water-type resists hard with strong Dark coverage.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

• Stone Edge can be used on the Utility set so Gyarados isn't Substitute bait for Kyurem-B.
• Crunch is an option on the Choice Band set for dealing more damage to Aegislash, while OHKOing Latios from full. Crunch is also nice for hitting other Psychic-types such as Cresselia, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross.
  
• Bounce is another option when using Choice Band, notable OHKOing Amoonguss and Keldeo. Being a two turn move lets it force Protects, and also makes Feint support a good addition.
• Wacan Berry or Charti Berry can be used to half the damage from an Electric- or Rock-type attack respectively but is usually outclassed by Sitrus Berry in terms of improving Gyarados's survivability.
• Lum Berry can be a clutch option to heal Gyarados of status once, but Safety Goggles is far better against Spore users, while Gyarados still faces massive problems from most burn or paralysis users even with a Lum Berry.
• Roar can be used to phaze out opposing Pokemon, particularly setup Pokemon such as Azumarilly, Mega Kangaskhan, and Volcarona, as well as Substitute users such as Kyurem-B and Aegislash. Roar can also prevent Trick Room from being set.

Checks and Counters
===================
**Typing Advantage**: Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus, Rotom formes and Zapdos all threaten to OHKO Gyarados with a STAB Thunderbolt, with only Rotom-Heat fearing too much from switching in. Rock-type Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Terrakion can threaten Gyarados offensively but struggle to KO without prior damage even if they come in after Gyarados to avoid Intimidate. Gyarados also threatens back with a super effective STAB Waterfall. Dragon-types such as Hydreigon and Kyurem-B fear little offensively from Gyarados while being able to hit it hard.

**Intimidate and Burns**: Intimidate from opposing Gyarados or Landorus-T weaken Gyarados's attacks. Gyarados also needs to watch out for being burnt by Pokemon such as Gengar, Jellicent, and Gourgeist. Rotom-W can also burn Gyarados, but will usually just use Thunderbolt to KO instead.

**Speed Control**: Dragon Dance sets are vulnerable to opposing speed control, with Trick Room using Gyarados's Speed boosts against it. Trick Room users such as Jellicent and Gourgeist take little from Gyarados's attacks but need to watch out for Taunt. Tailwind users such as Zapdos also cause problems. Thunder Wave, especially priority ones from Thundurus to go before a boosted Gyarados, completely neuter Gyarados.

**Utility Moves**: Taunt cripples utility Gyarados, with Keldeo being the most common user. Thundurus can also Taunt Gyarados but can just Thunderbolt to KO usually. Kyurem-B is free to use Substitute on utility Gyarados.

[OVERVIEW]

Gyarados is a valuable utility Pokemon in the Doubles metagame, being able to check various defensive Pokemon such as Jirachi and Heatran as well as offensive threats such as Talonflame and Landorus-T. It can also viably run a Dragon Dance set, which allows it to take a more offensive role by boosting its Attack and Speed, or a Choice Band set for immediate power. This versatility gives Gyarados the rare, and valuable, trait of being somewhat unpredictable.

Gyarados fits best on slightly bulkier teams that want a sturdy Pokemon with Intimidate that can perform the above roles more reliably over the course of a match. This is because on full-out hyper offense teams Gyarados faces a lot of competition from Landorus-T, which is better offensively. However, Gyarados offers its Water typing and valuable access to support moves such as Taunt, Thunder Wave, and Icy Wind. Gyarados's usage of speed control also helps make up for its middling Speed, and its solid Water / Flying typing gives it important resistancess against Fire-, Fighting-, and Water-type attacks and an immunity to Ground-type attacks. However, Electric-types such as Thundurus and Rotom formes threaten Gyarados massively.

[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Taunt
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Protect / Stone Edge
item: Sitrus Berry / Safety Goggles
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 208 Def / 44 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Waterfall gains STAB and deals large amounts of damage to Water-weak foes such as Landorus-T, Talonflame, and Heatran. Taunt allows Gyardos to cripple Amoonguss and Aegislash, as well as prevent Trick Room and other speed control or status moves. Thunder Wave provides crippling speed control onto a single target and is particularly effective against very fast foes such as Ludicolo and Venusaur under weather and other Pokemon under Tailwind. However, Icy Wind is useful for slowing down both foes but to a lesser extent than Thunder Wave. It also has the benefits of breaking Focus Sashes and providing chip damage as well as getting around Taunt, but its effects being lost when switching out hurts its usefulness. Icy Wind tends to be better for teammates such as Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir, which both have middling Speed stats and so appreciate attacking first before both foes with strong spread moves. Protect is a staple move in Doubles, allowing Gyarados to stay alive while a partner removes a threat such as Thundurus or stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick Room. However, Gyarados can afford to run Stone Edge instead, allowing it to check Mega Charizard Y as well as preventing Kyurem-B from getting a free Substitute.

Set Details
========

252 HP with 208 Defense EVs allow Gyarados to take two -1 Stone Edges from Landorus-T without a Sitrus Berry or two -1 Diamond Storms from Mega Diancie with it. 4 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature allow Gyarados to 2HKO Landorus-T in return with Waterfall while also giving it a good chance to OHKO Mega Diancie. The remaining EVs are put into Speed to outspeed uninvested Rotom formes. Sitrus Berry provides valuable longevity to Gyarados, which allows it to stay healthy and on the field for longer. Safety Goggles is another option that allows Gyarados to switch in and play around Amoonguss and Breloom more safely. Intimidate weakens opposing physical attackers by softening attacks for Gyarados and its teammates.

Usage Tips
========

Intimidate makes Gyarados a great switch-in to physical attackers, particularly the likes of Landorus-T and Talonflame, which it can threaten with Waterfall. Gyarados's main role once it's on the field is exerting speed control with the combination of Taunt and Thunder Wave or Icy Wind to help more offensive teammates. Taunt should also be used to prevent the foe from inflicting status such as burns, paralysis, and sleep. Gyarados can perform well as a lead against Trick Room teams, as it can use Taunt to prevent Trick Room from being set. When using Gyarados, one should be wary of switching it into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========

As Gyarados is a support Pokemon, teammates should take advantage of the utility provided in Intimidate, Taunt, and speed control. Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir both enjoy the speed control that Gyarados provides, while Intimidate also patches up both Pokemon's weaker Defense stat. Setup Pokemon such as Mega Kangaskhan and Mega Charizard X benefit from Gyarados's ability to provide support through Intimidate to help provide setup opportunities, as well as its ability to deal with Landorus-T reliably. Mega Kangaskhan also appreciates Gyarados's ability to neuter Amoonguss through Taunt as well as switch into Keldeo and Landorus-T for it. An additional teammate that can KO Amoonguss would still greatly help this combination. Pokemon that can deal with Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus have good synergy with Gyarados, making Grass- or Dragon-type Pokemon such as Amoonguss, Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, and Latios good teammates. Lightning Rod users such as Rhydon and Rhyperior can also do this by virtue of being on the field, but they are usually more team-specific options.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Double Edge
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Ice Fang / Earthquake
item: Choice Band
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Waterfall gains STAB, and with a Choice Band boost it will put a large dent in anything that doesn't resist Water. It notably has a chance to OHKO standard Landorus-T even after Intimidate. Double Edge provides great neutral coverage alongside Waterfall, hitting most Pokemon that resist Water such as Rotom-W quite hard due to its high Base Power. Stone Edge deals massive damage to Kyurem-B and can cleanly OHKO regular checks to Gyarados in Zapdos, bulky Thundurus, and Mega Charizard Y. Ice Fang hits Dragon- and Grass-types harder than any other move, allowing Gyarados to always KO Latios after one round of Life Orb recoil. It also always 2HKOes standard Rocky Helmet Amoonguss. Despite not being usually recommended on non-Ground-type Pokemon, Earthquake can work well on Gyarados, notably hitting targets such as Aegislash, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross quite hard while avoiding Aegislash's King's Shield mind games. Additionally, hitting both foes is nice for helping a teammate to finish them off; however, Earthquake does leave Gyarados vulnerable to Ground-immune switch-ins due to Choice Band.

Set Details
========

Choice Band takes advantage of Gyarados's high Attack stat to allow it to hit like a truck. Intimidate allows Gyarados to still provide defensive utility for its teammates, allowing itself and partners to take physical attacks better. 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature let Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed neutral Speed-natured base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom; however, 228 EVs can be used instead to always outspeed Modest Heatran. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's bulk. If Gyarados is being used on a Trick Room team, a Brave nature should be used with the Speed EVs being put into HP instead.

Usage Tips
========

Gyarados is best used when supported by speed control such as Trick Room or Tailwind, where it can break through teams and KO a lot of Pokemon before they can even move. This allows Gyarados to fulfill its main role as a wallbreaker, meaning that it can greatly weaken opposing teams for teammates to plow through them with ease. Gyarados is therefore best taken advantage of early- or mid-game, when it can weaken Pokemon; however, it can do well late-game with the right support or against slower teams. Since Gyarados is usually expected to be running the utility set, it can take advantage of this to catch common switch-ins such as Rotom-W and Thundurus for large amounts of damage. If multiple moves get the KO on a target, choose the move that does best against the remaining members of the opponent's team. One should be wary of switching Gyarados into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========

Pokemon that appreciate Gyarados's ability to weaken opposing teams make for good teammates. Good examples include Mega Diancie, Mega Kangaskhan, and Bisharp, as Gyarados can weaken Pokemon such as Amoonguss to help them clean later on. The Choice Band set appreciates speed control to take advantage of its power, making Tailwind users such as Zapdos and Latios great partners. Other options include Thundurus, which can provide Thunder Wave support, and Jirachi, which can utilize Icy Wind. Good partners for setting Trick Room include Porygon2, which has great defensive synergy with Gyarados, as well as Cresselia and Gourgeist-XL. Other good teammates include Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon, which can deal with the Electric-types such as Thundurus that Gyarados struggles with. Amoonguss, which can also redirect the foes' attacks, Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, and Latios are good examples. Rhydon and Rhyperior can redirect Electric-type attacks via Lightning Rod, with both Pokemon being good options on Trick Room teams as well due to their low Speed.

[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Stone Edge / Return
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Protect
item: Safety Goggles / Sitrus Berry
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Waterfall does good damage against most neutral targets and is Gyarados's main attack. Dragon Dance allows Gyarados to boost its Attack and Speed. Stone Edge KOes Mega Charizard Y and drastically improves Gyarados's sun matchup, as well as enabling Gyarados to deal sufficient damage to Kyurem-B. It also hits Thundurus hard, but usually Gyarados is too threatened to attack anyway. Alternatively, Return still hits most Pokemon that resist Water such as Rotom-W, Latios, and Amoonguss for decent damage and has better accuracy. Return is recommended over Double-Edge because as a setup sweeper, Gyarados needs to maintain its longevity. If you're using Sitrus Berry, Taunt can be a niche option instead of Return or Stone Edge to help Gyarados deal with Amoonguss, but the coverage is still usually more appreciated. Protect allows Gyarados to stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick room as well as allowing partners to remove threats such as Thundurus.

Set Details
========

Safety Goggles immensely helps Gyarados against Amoonguss, changing it from a check to setup bait by allowing Gyarados to get around Rage Powder and giving it an immunity to Spore. However, Sitrus Berry can still be quite valuable for providing some limited recovery, but it should only be used on teams where opposing Amoonguss is amply covered. Intimidate provides valuable support for teammates against physical attackers such as Mega Kangaskhan and Landorus-T while also helping Gyarados to set up more easily. 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature let Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed neutral Speed-natured base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom before a boost. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's bulk. An alternate spread with 252 Attack and Speed EVs with a Jolly nature can be used to outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Landorus-T at +1 as well as neutral Speed-natured weather sweepers such as Venusaur and Kingdra at +2, but the the drop in power and bulk makes Gyarados a less potent threat overall.

Usage Tips
========

Don't set up too early in the match, when Gyarados's counters are still healthy. Gyarados has a better chance of performing well late-game when its checks are worn down. Also, try to avoid letting Gyarados take too much damage before and while setting up, as this can hurt its chances of sweeping by putting it in range of priority attacks such as Talonflame's Brave Bird and Bisharp's Sucker Punch. Gyarados should idealy be brought in on Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Heatran, which provide it with safe setup opportunities. Utilizing partners with redirection moves or Fake Out should also be a priority when aiming to set up. Gyarados can use the fact that people will expect the utility set to its advantage. Gyarados doesn't always need to set up to perform effectively, as sometimes it doesn't need the boosts or the immediate damage can be better when trying to double target a threat for the KO. Protect should be utilized effectively so that Gyarados keeps its boosts while a partner takes care of Pokemon such as Thundurus, which threaten it offensively and has a priority Thunder Wave. Avoid bringing in Gyarados on Defiant users such as Bisharp and Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with free boosts that make these Pokemon extremely threatening to Gyarados and its teammates.

Team Options
========

Redirection users such as Amoonguss and Jirachi help Gyarados to set up safely. Amoonguss tanks Electric-type attacks better, while Jirachi can deal with Grass-types. Gyarados also removes Fire-types such as Heatran and Talonflame in return. Fake Out users such as Mega Kangaskhan can also help Gyarados to set up, while Gyarados also helps Mega Kangaskhan handle Landorus-T. Pokemon that can deal with the Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus that threaten Gyarados also make for good teammates. Possible partners include Dragon-types such as Kyurem-B, Latios, and Hydreigon as well as Grass-types such as Mega Venusaur and Ferrothorn. Raichu, Rhydon, and Rhyperior can provide Lightning Rod support to redirect Electric-type attacks by virtue of being on the field. Raichu can also provide Fake Out support to help Gyarados setup, or use Feint to ensure Gyarados will get boosted attacks off. If Gyarados is not carrying Safety Goggles, it especially appreciates support from Pokemon such as Talonflame, Heatran, and Latios, which can reliably beat Amoonguss. Bisharp can serve as a good offensive partner for Gyarados by discouraging Intimidate through Defiant.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Crunch is a possible coverage option on the Choice Band set for dealing more damage to Aegislash and OHKOing Latios from full health. It is also nice for hitting other Psychic-types such as Cresselia, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross. Bounce is another option when using Choice Band, notably OHKOing Amoonguss and Keldeo. However, being a two-turn move lets it force Protects and makes Feint support an almost necessary addition. Wacan Berry or Charti Berry can be used to halve the damage from an Electric- or Rock-type attack, but both Berries are usually outclassed by Sitrus Berry in terms of improving Gyarados's longevity. Lum Berry can be a clutch option to cure Gyarados of status once, but Safety Goggles is far better against Spore users, while Gyarados still faces massive problems from most burn or paralysis users even with a Lum Berry. Roar can be used to phaze opposing Pokemon, particularly setup Pokemon such as Azumarill and Mega Kangaskhan, as well as Substitute users such as Kyurem-B and Aegislash. Roar can also prevent Trick Room from being set, although less reliably than Taunt.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Typing Advantage**: Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus, Rotom-W, and Zapdos all threaten to OHKO Gyarados with a STAB Thunderbolt. Rock-type Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Terrakion can threaten Gyarados offensively but struggle to KO it without prior damage even without Intimidate. Gyarados also threatens back with a super effective STAB Waterfall. Dragon-types such as Hydreigon, Latios, and Kyurem-B fear little offensively from Gyarados while being able to hit it hard.

**Intimidate and Burns**: Intimidate from opposing Gyarados or Landorus-T weaken Gyarados's attacks. Gyarados also needs to watch out for being burned by Pokemon such as Gengar, Jellicent, and Gourgeist-XL. Rotom-W can also burn Gyarados, but it will usually just use Thunderbolt to KO it instead.

**Speed Control**: Dragon Dance and Choice Band sets are quite vulnerable to opposing speed control, with Trick Room using Gyarados's Speed boosts against it. Trick Room users such as Jellicent and Gourgeist-XL take little from Gyarados's attacks but need to watch out for Taunt. Tailwind users such as Zapdos also cause problems. Thunder Wave, especially priority ones from Thundurus, effectively neuter offensive Gyarados variants.

**Utility Moves**: Taunt users such as Keldeo can cripple utilitly Gyarados. Thundurus can also Taunt Gyarados, but it will usually just use Thunderbolt for the KO. Kyurem-B can freely set up Substitute against any of utility Gyarados's moves bar Stone Edge.

 

[Checkmater]

check's check n_n did not notice this was wip, take these as suggestions I guess
[SET]

item: Safety Goggles There are other viable options, maybe sitrus/lum. Judge for yourself/discuss with qc if these are worth putting in main set.

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Maybe further elaborate how normal-coverage is just a general catchall for switchins? You did mention how it hits water-resists so you're probably fine

• Taunt allows Gyarados to still perform some of its usual support role, Taunting Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Trick Room setters to help teammates. Stopping Tailwind can also be nice, as it counteracts the Speed boosts Gyarados gains from Dragon Dance. also taunts sub users ie kyube

Set Details
========

• Intimidate provides valuable support for teammates against physical attackers while also helping Gyarados to setup more easily. examples of physical attackers

Usage Tips
========

• Don't setup too early in the match when Gyarados's counters are still healthy. Gyarados has a better chance of performing well late game when it's checks are worn down. Not necessarily true... maybe rephrase to "use gyarados setting up to bring out its counters" or "position it with allies that can handle said counters" Just because opp still has a thundurus doesn't mean you can't setup, especially if it can't/doesn't want to switch in, or you're supporting with a Diancie or Rhydon or something. Maybe lengthy for an analysis
• Try to avoid letting Gyarados take too much damage before and while setting up, as this can hurt Gyarados's chances of sweeping. This isn't unique to gyarados... "Don't take damage" isn't very detailed/informative imo. Either elaborate or scrap
• Mention some of the stuff gyarados sets up freely on, ie Heatran or Amoonguss
• Mention Bisharp? Not sure if this would just be elaborated in the checks and counters section, but you can say something like "don't bring in Gyarados on Bisharp"

 

[talkingtree]

Talked with other QC members, the Gyara analysis we have uploaded right now is "groan zone" anyway, so revamp the whole thing please :)

You'll have to add Overview, the first set (bulky) to make this one the secondary set, OO, and C&C. Thanks!

 

[Yoda2798]

Okay, done for whole analysis; ready for QC.

Was still in WIP but thanks for the help check :P

 

[Stratos]

add cb before dd

 

[Yoda2798]

Done

 

[Checkmater]

Real AM check this time instead of suggestions n_n


[OVERVIEW]

• Gyarados fits best on slightly bulkier teams that want a sturdy Pokemon with Intimidate, that can perform the above roles more reliably over the course of a match. This is because on full-out hyper offense it faces a lot of competition from Landorus-T. Find a way to condense + make this flow better
• This is due to its ability in Intimidate, as well as its Water typing and access to support moves such as Taunt, Thunder Wave, and Icy Wind. same thing. These 3 sentences feel choppy and not flowy
• Solid Water / Flying typing gives Gyarados valuable resists against Fire-, Fighting-, and Water-type attacks and an immunity to Ground-type attacks. However Electric-types all threaten Gyarados massively. same thing again.. The sentence structure here just feels choppy and erratic
• Mention middling speed tier somewhere. It's not fast and that's a disadvantage, especially for its more offensive sets

[SET]
name: Utility rename to "Intimidate Support"? Check with QC

move 3: Thunder Wave / Icy Wind consider removing icy wind


[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Waterfall is STAB and deals good amounts of super-effective damage to Water weak opponents such as Landorus-T, Talonflame, and Heatran.
• Thunder Wave provides crippling speed control onto a single target and is particularly effective against very fast opponents like weather sweepers such as Ludicolo and Venusaur, or Pokemon under Tailwind. mention how it's gyarados' only response to dragons, maybe. Or just mention a set of fast threats, or just say "fast threats that resist waterfall" then list "latios, keldeo, hydreigon, etc"
• icy wind sentence doesn't really make sense. If it's a good option, there should be better reasoning than "supporting middling speed pkmn" What does icy wind hit that twave gyara can't? Again, discuss if Icy is really worth it

Set Details
========

• Intimidate cripples physical attackers examples by softening attacks for Gyarados and its teammates.

Usage Tips
========

• Intimidate and Gyarados' bulk makes Gyaradosit a great switch-in to physical attackers, particularly against opponents such as Landorus-T and Talonflame which it can threaten with Waterfall.
• Mention other mons it switches in on, ie Heatran or Keldeo, by saying "x resists, such as Heatran Heat Wave" etc
• Gyarados's main role once on the field is maintaining speed control with the combination of Taunt this isn't speed control. Modify to "providing support" or put a seperate Taunt bullet as "keeping down opposing speed control/support" and Thunder Wave or Icy Wind to help more offensive teammates.

Team Options
========

• Pokemon which can deal with Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus have good synergy with Gyarados, making Grass- or Dragon-type Pokemon such as Amoonguss or Hydreigon and Latios respectively good teammates. Lightning Rod users such as Rhydon can also do this, but are usually more team-specific options.Not really team-specific, just less viable. Modify to reflect this

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Double Edge
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Ice Fang
item: Choice Band
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Double Edge provides great neutral coverage alongside Waterfall, hitting most Water resists quite hard due to its high base power. Also comment on how it's quite often better to lock into double-edge than Waterfall, because there tend to be more water resists on a team. Maybe put this in Usage tips but it has to be mentioned somewhere that Double-Edge is so often the move you're locking into because normal-coverage is harder to switch into than water
• As a general note I'm not too sure about the whole "here are calcs as I describe the move" and I'm not sure if they're necessary. Talk over with QC

Set Details
========

• Choice Band takes advantagemaybe modify to "adds to" of Gyarados's high attack stat to allow it to hit like a truck.

Usage Tips
========

• Specify Choice Band Gyarados is best used when support by speed control such as Trick Room or Tailwind, where it can break through teams and KO a lot of Pokemon before they can move.
• This allows Gyarados to fulfill it's main role as a wallbreaker pretty sure this isn't a real doubles term, since we don't have walls, and the ""walls"" we do have Gyarados can't really break?, meaning that it can weaken teams for other teammates to plow through them with ease. I'd just modify this sentence to talking about how it's a powerful attacker or smthing.
• Gyarados is therefore best taken advantage of early- to mid-game where it can weaken Pokemon, however it can do well late game with either the right support or against slower teams. This doesn't really... tell me anything? Just say the type of threats it likes being brought out on / the switchins that should be cleared imo
• Since Gyarados is usually the utility set, it can take advantage of this to catch common switch-ins to the utility set (note: modify utility to "support" if you change the name) such as Rotom-W and Thundurus with Double-Edge for large amounts of damage.
  
• Be wary of switching Gyarados into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening. This is getting repetitive, and likely in ever single one's "usage tips". Perhaps leave it to c&c

Team Options
========

• Pokemon that appreciate specify band Gyarados's ability to weaken opposing teams This is very broad, and I'm not sure if it's accurate either. CB gyara is like "I want an attacker with this typing/coverage" not "weaken things" which doesn't sound right or like a real "role" I suppose. Maybe rethink what Gyarados CB's role really is. make for good teammates. Good examples include Mega Diancie, Mega Kangaskhan, and Bisharp, as Gyarados can weaken Pokemon such as Amoonguss to help them clean later on.

[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Return / Stone Edge / Taunt
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Protect
item: Safety Goggles / Sitrus Berry
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

• Taunt allows Gyarados to still perform some of its usual support role, Taunting Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Trick Room setters to help teammates. Stopping Tailwind can also be nice, as it counteracts the Speed boosts Gyarados gains from Dragon Dance. Taunt also makes Aegislash easier to deal with while also preventing Kyurem-B from using Substitute. You're slower than kyube so find some way to put that in. Maybe specify after a dd

Usage Tips
========

• Don't setup too early in the match when Gyarados's counters are still healthy. Gyarados has a better chance of performing well late game when it's checks are worn down.
• Try to avoid letting Gyarados take too much damage before and while setting up, as this can hurt Gyarados's chances of sweeping by putting it in range of priority attacks such as Talonflame Brave Bird or Bisharp Sucker Punch.
• Gyarados can should be brought in on Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Heatran which provide it safe setup opportunities. Utilizing partners with redirection moves or Fake Out should also be a priority when aiming to setup.
• Gyarados doesn't always need to setup to perform effectively, as sometimes Gyarados doesn't need boosts to KO something, or the immediate damage can be better when trying to double attack a threat for the KO.
• Protect should be utilized so Gyarados keeps its boosts while a partner takes care of Pokemon such as Thundurus which threaten it.
• Avoid bringing in Gyarados on Defiant users such as Bisharp and Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with free boosts which make these Pokemon extremely threatening to Gyarados and its teammates.
• Previous comments still stand I think...

Checks and Counters
===================

**Utility Moves**: Taunt cripples Utility Gyarados, with Keldeo being the most common user. Thundurus can also Taunt Gyarados but can just Thunderbolt to KO usually. Substitute users such as Kyurem-B take this out. Kyube beats Gyarados mainly because resisting waterfall, so it should just be in the Typing Adv section with other dragons. Also put in grasses there also annoy Gyarados, as it can't break a Substitute with Waterfall, and prevents Gyarados from slowing it down with Thunder Wave and Icy Wind.

 

[talkingtree]

sup yoda i'm a little tipsy writing this so hopefully it's not shit legggoooooo

check, i'm taking some inspiration from your check but a lot of it has to do with specific phrasing and not the content, so that should be reserved for the third check cuz this one's just like what we want to be said - yoda's gonna write it up nice n tidy after 2/3 anyway :^] also don't c/p phrases that aren't even problems that's just extra text for no reason and it makes me :[

Overview

• Mention middling speed tier, although it can make up for that with some sweet speed control shenanigans

Set 1

• Remove the slash for Icy Wind unless you're like super about that being there - rest of QC says talk about it in moves but no slash

Moves 1

• Mention spread damage + speed reduction for Icy Wind, also non-permanence
• Point out that Icy Wind would go over Thunder Wave but also that it's less reliable or something

Set Details 1

• fuckin' beautiful

Usage Tips 1

• Taunt isn't just for TR stuff - also to avoid yellow magic and burns and generally be a bro

Team Options 1

• Gyara doesn't really "deal with" Amoong - I'd still feel Amoong weak with a team of Gyara + Mega Kang especially considering Helmet damage. Other two points are nice tho

Set 2

• (y)

Moves 2

• Maybe mention either EQ or Crunch here as other options? I've used both but I'm bad so other QC will weigh in
• Stone Edge OHKOs "would-be counters" Zapdos and Thundurus - important to note this imo
• Mention that Double Edge is owie

Set Details 2

• looks gucci

Usage Tips 2

• *supported in the first bullet
• wallbreaker is a fine term to use - the idea still translates. wait is this in team options? nah we're good
• mention locking into the right move if multiple get the KO
• i had another point but i forgot sry

Team Options 2

• talk about gyara's troubled past and how it just wants some friends ;-; lol jk gyara's a bro good job yoda

Set 3

• Wow there's a lotta sets i should try DD on a not gimmicky team
• I feel like there's a better spread but i'm lazy so it's fine whatever

Moves 3

• You have Return in the set but Double Edge in these comments - can't trick me ha ha! pick one and stick to it
• Taunt also makes people think you're all defensive and then you reveal the DD and they're like whaaaaaa
• Do the thing with Gyara's too slow to actually stop Kyube from subbing unless you're already at +1. Also you probably want SEdge for sub Kyube not Taunt just sayin

Set Details 3

• Gyara doesn't get around Rage Powder "while" ignoring Spore, they happen at different times you silly goose
• Otherwise you got this section down pat

Usage Tips 3

• sry i'm tired this might be getting worse idk
• but you're not getting worse cause that section was the bomb
• this is fun

Team Options 3

• RAICHU GETS FEINT AND IT'S GOOD so talk about it for helping gyara actually land the boosted hits k thnx
• Bisharp to discourage Intimidate cause it's a stern mothafucka who don't get scared

OO

• spooky
• If not EQ or Crunch in main set, talk about them here plz
• I think it gets Roar

C&C

• yeah check's right Kyube wins cuz scary dragon not cuz it's a lazy benchwarmer who needs a sub
• but otherwise this is nice n giftwrapped (get it cuz christmas)

OOOOOOOkay i'm not in the right mental state to be giving 1/3 officially rn so let me know when you implement and i'll potentially edit ths post for clarify tomorrow stay chill bye

 

[Idyll]

Uh mention Rhydon / Perior too when talking about LRod o_o

 

[Yoda2798]

Implemented tree's check (lol you're hilarious when drunk) and Memo's point.

BTW Gyarados doesn't get Roar :[ (it gets Dragon Tail but I don't think that's as good, especially versus Azumarill)

Edit: I'm wrong, ignore me

 

[Idyll]

 

[Yoda2798]

Okay I looked on Serebii for it and didn't see it so I'm blind then ,,,. (Added to OO now)

Also I'm not on PS since it won't work on chrome for me lately for some reason ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.

 

[Bughouse]

Is Icy Wind really worthy of demotion to not get a slash? It's very useful against teams with redirection, so you don't have to Taunt first before slowing down the threat (which Gyarados may not be able to live 2 hits from). Also it can slow down Lando-T and Mega Diancie.

 

[Idyll]

Icy Wind is still a valid option because of the points you said, but Thunder Wave is miles better still because of the permanent cripple effect and how it's cash against rain teams. While slowing down Lando-T and Mega Diancie is cool, facing off against redirection is a bit situational as not every team has redirection and Gyara isn't always matched up against redirectors. Icy Wind's usefulness makes it worth a mention in Moves, but Thunder Wave is just waaaay better in general and deserves to be alone in the main set mention.

 

[talkingtree]

Okay then now that I'm more in control of my brain, let's finish this up.

You do a good job explaining in Overview the benefits of the first set, but make sure to at least mention CB, maybe along with the last bullet point. Good to keep it clearly emphasizing the value of Utility over the other two more niche sets though.

Yeahhhh EQ on Band Gyara is dumb sorry. Take it off the set but leave the mention for other QC to weigh in on I guess

Don't mention the "Stone Edge is better for this matchup" when you're talking about Taunt DD Gyara - I was just pointing out that you might want a better example than Kyube since you should just hit it with a Stone Edge. If you can think of a better option (maybe allowing you to Taunt Suicune to prevent Tailwind ruining your Speed advantage) then switch that out, otherwise just remove the last phrase.

Do those three^ and take your well earned 1/3

P.S. ngl I'm kinda impressed that I only missed three things in that first check

 

[talkingtree]

Talked with xzern and memo, new set for Band Gyara:

-Waterfall
-Double Edge
-Stone Edge
-Ice Fang / EQ

With mentions of Crunch and Bounce in OO

Thanks :]

 

[Yoda2798]

Implemented, thanks

 

[xzern]

this analysis is big, like my number of friends

this analysis is also very good and detailed, i dont think a lot needs to be changed, nice job

defence should be spelled defense

Overview

• make emphasis of gyarados's versatility. it can run a few different viable sets, which a lot of mons cant do. this makes it rather somewhat unpredictable, which is a great attribute to have in a tier where most mons have the same set 90% of the time
• gyarados doesnt exactly check amoonguss, like talkingtree said. u could replace this with jirachi

Moves 1

• mention that icy wind is also useful for breaking opposing sashes.
• icy wind also is good for providing speed control even when gyarados is taunted

Team Options 1

• setup sweepers (charizard-x, mega kangaskhan) benefit from gyarados's ability to let them set up easier with intimidate

Team Options 2

• kyurem should be added under examples of dragon types that beat electrics

Moves 3

• mention that return is recommended on the dragon dance set rather than double edge because, as a setup sweeper, gyarados needs to maintain its longevity

Team Options 3

• if gyarados is not running safety goggles, it should have support from mons like talonflame or heatran in order to beat amoonguss
• kyurem should be added under examples of dragon types that beat electrics

Checks & Counters

• seeing as there are only 2 viable rotom formes, you could just say rotom-w instead of "rotom formes" when listing off the electric types.

2/3

 

[Yoda2798]

Implemented and written up, thanks :]

 

[qsns]

Utility Set:

I have never really liked Protect on support Gyara. Protect feels extremely awkward and the things Gyara is scared of (bulky electrics) are extremely hard to take down in the one turn Protect allows you. In addition, this set is complete Kyube bait, which is something you want to avoid on a support mon at all costs. I feel Stone Edge at least deserves a slash behind Protect if not in front of it. This allows you to more effectively check ZardY (which is the biggest reason I put support Gyara on a team besides Intimidate), and prevents Kyube from getting a Sub up on you.

DD Set:

Taunt DD is an awful set, preventing TW from Suicune is nice and all but it's a little less nice when it beats you 1v1 lol. could be justified if you didn't have goggles as a slash but you do so it's not even like you beat Amoonguss when you didn't before. please get rid of this sorry :<

checked with tree and memo respectively for these two above ^

also imo tbh edge before return, edge hits stuff like rotom-w and latios for the same amount of damage but allows you to ohko ZardY and dunk Thundurus if it comes to that

Team Options:
Amoonguss is mentioned twice in the redirectors + grasses parts. Also Dark coverage doesn't specifically hit any water resists harder so change the wording in the final sentence.


All of the actual writing looks great, sorry we took so long to get to this lol. 3/3 when implemented

 

[Yoda2798]

Implemented, thank you :D. Sending to GP now.

 

[Lumari]

o_k
i must check gyarados

remove add / fix (comments); (AC=add comma; RC=remove comma; SC=semicolon)
GP 1/2

check

[OVERVIEW]
Gyarados is a valuable utility Pokemon in the Doubles metagame, being able to check various defensive Pokemon such as Jirachi and Heatran as well as offensive threats such as Talonflame and Landorus-T. Gyarados It can also viably run a Dragon Dance set, (AC) which allows it to take a more offensive role by boosting its Attack and Speed, or a Choice Band set for immediate power. This versatility to run multiple distinct viable sets gives Gyarados the rare, and valuable, (AC) trait of being somewhat unpredictable.

Gyarados fits best on slightly bulkier teams that want a sturdy Pokemon with Intimidate (RC) that can perform the above roles more reliably over the course of a match. This is because on full-out hyper offense teams Gyarados faces a lot of competition from Landorus-T, who which is better offensively. However, Gyarados sets itself apart due to its ability in Intimidate, (this should be reworded / removed cause Landorus-T has Intimidate too) as well as its Water typing and valuable access to support moves such as Taunt, Thunder Wave, and Icy Wind. Gyarados's usage of speed control also helps make up for it's its middling Speed, (comma) Gyarados's and its solid Water / Flying typing gives it important resistances against Fire-, Fighting-, and Water-type attacks and an immunity to Ground-type attacks. However, Electric-types such as Thundurus and Rotom formes threaten Gyarados massively.

[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Taunt
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Protect / Stone Edge
item: Sitrus Berry / Safety Goggles
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 208 Def / 44 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Waterfall gains STAB and deals large amounts of damage to Water-weak (AH) opponents foes such as Landorus-T, Talonflame, and Heatran. Taunt allows Gyardos to cripple Amoonguss and Aegislash, as well as prevent Trick Room and other speed control or status moves. Thunder Wave provides crippling speed control onto a single target and is particularly effective against very fast opponents foes such as Ludicolo and Venusaur under weather, or and other Pokemon under Tailwind. However, Icy Wind is useful for slowing down both opponents foes but to a lesser extent than Thunder Wave. It also has the benefits of breaking Focus Sashes and providing chip damage as well as getting around Taunt, but its effects being lost on switchs to switching out hurts its usefulness. Icy Wind tends to be better for teammates such as Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir, who which both have middling Speed stats and so appreciate attacking first before both opponents foes with strong spread moves. Protect is a staple move in Doubles, (AC) allowing Gyarados to stay alive while a partner removes a threat such as Thundurus (RC) or stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick Room. However, Gyarados can afford to run Stone Edge instead, allowing it to check Mega Charizard Y as well as preventing Kyurem-B from getting a free Substitute against Gyarados.

Set Details
========
252 HP with 208 Defense EVs allow Gyarados to take two -1 Stone Edges from Landorus-T without a Sitrus Berry (RC) or two -1 Diamond Storms from Mega Diancie with it. 4 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature allow Gyarados to 2HKO Landorus-T in return with Waterfall (RC) while also giving Gyarados it a good chance to OHKO Mega Diancie. The remaining Speed EVs allow Gyarados are put into Speed to outspeed uninvested Rotom formes. Sitrus Berry provides valuable longevity to Gyarados, (AC) which allows it to stay healthy and on the field for longer. Safety Goggles is another option which that allows Gyarados to switch in and play around Amoonguss and Breloom more safely. Intimidate weakens opposing physical attackers by softening attacks for Gyarados and its teammates and is invaluable to the set.

Usage Tips
========
Intimidate makes Gyarados a great switch-in to physical attackers, particularly against opponents such as the likes of Landorus-T and Talonflame, (AC) which it can threaten with Waterfall. Gyarados's main role once it's on the field is maintaining exerting speed control with the combination of Taunt and Thunder Wave or Icy Wind to help more offensive teammates. Taunt should also be used to prevent status moves ("prevent the foe from inflicting status such as burns etc" or "prevent status moves such as <actual status moves 1, 2, and 3>"such as burns, paralysis, and sleep. Gyarados can perform well as a lead against Trick Room based teams, as it can use Taunt to prevent Trick Room from being set. When using Gyarados, one should be wary of switching it into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic, (AC) as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========
As Gyarados is a support Pokemon, teammates should take advantage of the utility provided in Intimidate, Taunt, and speed control. Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir both enjoy the speed control that Gyarados provides, while Intimidate also patches up both Pokemon's weaker Defense stat. Setup Pokemon such as Mega Kangaskhan and Mega Charizard X benefit from Gyarados's ability to provide support through Intimidate to help provide set-up setup opportunities, as well as its ability to deal with Landorus-T reliably. Mega Kangaskhan also appreciates Gyarados's ability to neuter Amoonguss through Taunt (RC) as well as being able to switch into Keldeo and Landorus-T for it. An additional teammate which that can KO Amoonguss would still greatly help this combination. Pokemon which that can deal with Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus have good synergy with Gyarados, making Grass- or Dragon-type Pokemon such as Amoonguss, (AC) or Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, (AC) and Latios respectively (no one's gonna think Amoonguss is a dragon) good teammates. Lightning Rod users such as Rhydon and Rhyperior can also do this by virtue of being on the field, but they are usually more team-specific options.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Double-Edge (AH)
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Ice Fang / Earthquake
item: Choice Band
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Waterfall gains STAB, and with a Choice Band boost it will put a large dent in anything that doesn't resist Water. It notably has a chance to OHKO standard Landorus-T even after Intimidate. Double Edge provides great neutral coverage alongside Waterfall, hitting most Pokemon that resist Water resists such as Rotom-W quite hard due to its high Base Power. Stone Edge deals massive damage to Kyurem-B and can cleanly OHKO regular checks to Gyarados in Zapdos, bulky Thundurus, and Mega Charizard Y. Ice Fang hits Dragon- and Grass-types stronger harder than any other move, allowing Gyarados to always KO Latios after one round of Life Orb recoil. It also always 2HKOes standard Rocky Helmet Amoonguss. Despite not being usually recommended on non-Ground-type (AH) Pokemon, Earthquake can work well on Gyarados, (comma) Earthquake notable hits notably hitting targets such as Aegislash, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross quite hard while avoiding Aegislash's King's Shield mind(space)games. Additionally, hitting both opponents foes is nice for helping a teammate to finish them off; (SC) however, (AC) Earthquake does leave Gyarados vulnerable to Ground-immune (AH) switch-ins (AH) due to Choice Band.

Set Details
========
Choice Band takes advantage of Gyarados's high Attack stat to allow it to hit like a truck. Intimidate allows Gyarados to still provide defensive utility for teammates, allowing itself and partners to take physical attacks better. 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature lets let Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed neutral Speed-natured (AH) base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom; (SC) however, 228 EVs can be used instead to always outspeed Modest Heatran. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's defenses. If Gyarados is being used on a Trick Room team, a Brave nature should be used with the Speed EVs being put into HP instead.

Usage Tips
========
Gyarados is best used when supported by speed control such as Trick Room or Tailwind, where it can break through teams and KO a lot of Pokemon before they can even move. This allows Gyarados to fulfill it's its main role as a wallbreaker, meaning that it can greatly weaken opposing teams for teammates to plow through them with ease. Gyarados is therefore best taken advantage of early- to or mid-game, (AC) where when it can weaken Pokemon; (SC) however, (AC) it can do well late-game (AH) with the right support or against slower teams. Since Gyarados is usually expected to be running the utility set, it can take advantage of this to catch common switch-ins such as Rotom-W and Thundurus for large amounts of damage. If multiple moves get the KO on a target, choose the move which that does best against the remaining members of the opponent's team. One should be wary of switching Gyarados into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic, (AC) as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========
Pokemon that appreciate Gyarados's ability to weaken opposing teams make for good teammates. Good examples include Mega Diancie, Mega Kangaskhan, and Bisharp, as Gyarados can weaken Pokemon such as Amoonguss to help them clean later on. The Choice Band set appreciates speed control to take advantage of its offensive power, making Tailwind users such as Zapdos and Latios great partners. Other options include Thundurus, (AC) which can provide Thunder Wave support, (AC) and Jirachi, (AC) which can utilize Icy Wind. Good partners for setting Trick Room include Porygon2, which has great defensive synergy with Gyarados, as well as Cresselia and Gourgeist. (specifically XL, I assume?) Other good teammates include Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon, (AC) which can deal with the Electric-types such as Thundurus that Gyarados struggles with. Amoonguss, which can also redirect the foe's attacks, or Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, (AC) and Latios are good examples respectively. Rhydon and Rhyperior can redirect Electric-type attacks via Lightning Rod, with both Pokemon being good options on Trick Room teams as well due to their low Speed.

[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Stone Edge / Return
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Protect
item: Safety Goggles / Sitrus Berry
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Waterfall is a reliable STAB move, doing does good damage against most neutral targets and being is Gyarados's main attack. Dragon Dance is the crux of the set, allowing allows (filler)Gyarados to boost its Attack and Speed. Alternatively, (AC) Return hits most Pokemon that resist Water resists such as Rotom-W, Latios, and Amoonguss for decent damage. Return It is recommended over Double Edge here as being because as a setup sweeper, Gyarados needs to maintain its longevity. Stone Edge is an alternate option that KOes Mega Charizard Y and so drastically improves the Gyarados's sun matchup, as well as enabling Gyarados to deal sufficient damage to Kyurem-B. It also hits Thundurus hard, (AC) but usually Gyarados is too threatened to attack anyways. If you're using Sitrus Berry, Taunt can be a niche option instead of Return or Stone Edge to help deal with Amoonguss, but the coverage is still usually better more appreciated. Protect allows Gyarados to stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick room as well as allowing partners to remove threats such as Thundurus.

Set Details
========
Safety Goggles immensely helps Gyarados against Amoonguss, (AC) changing it from a check to setup bait, (AC) by allowing it Gyarados to get around Rage Powder and giving it an immunity to Spore. Changing Amoonguss from a check to set-up bait is very beneficial. However, Sitrus Berry can still be quite valuable for providing some limited recovery, but it should only be used on teams where opposing Amoonguss is amply handled covered. Intimidate provides valuable support for teammates against physical attackers such as Mega Kangaskhan and Landorus-T while also helping Gyarados to set(space)up more easily. 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature lets let Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed neutral Speed-natured (AH) base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom before a boost. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's defenses. An alternate spread with 252 Attack and Speed EVs with a Jolly nature can be used to outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Landorus-T at +1 as well as neutral Speed-natured (AH) weather sweepers such as Venusaur and Kingdra at +2, but the the drop in power and bulk makes Gyarados a less potent threat overall.

Usage Tips
========
Don't set(space)up too early in the match, (AC) when Gyarados's counters are still healthy. Gyarados has a better chance of performing well late-game (AH) when it's checks are worn down. Also, try to avoid letting Gyarados take too much damage before and while setting up, as this can hurt Gyarados's it chances of sweeping by putting it in range of priority attacks such as Talonflame's Brave Bird or and Bisharp's Sucker Punch. Gyarados should idealy be brought in on Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Heatran, (AC) which provide it safe setup opportunities. Utilizing partners with redirection moves or Fake Out should also be a priority when aiming to set(space)up. Gyarados can again use the fact that people will expect the utility set, which can be further bluffed with Taunt, (slash was removed) to it's its advantage. Gyarados doesn't always need to set(space)up to perform effectively, as sometimes Gyarados it doesn't need the speed and attack boosts (RC) or the immediate damage can be better when trying to double attack target a threat for the KO. Protect should be utilized effectively so Gyarados keeps its boosts while a partner takes care of Pokemon such as Thundurus, (AC) which threaten it offensively and with a priority Thunder Wave. Avoid bringing in Gyarados on Defiant users such as Bisharp and Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with free boosts which that make these Pokemon extremely threatening to Gyarados and its teammates.

Team Options
========
Redirectors Redirection users such as Amoonguss and Jirachi help Gyarados to set(space)up safely. Amoonguss tanks Electric-type attacks better, (AC) while Jirachi can deal with Grass-types. Gyarados also removes Fire-types such as Heatran and Talonflame in return. Fake Out users such as Mega Kangaskhan can also help Gyarados to set(space)up, while Gyarados also helps Mega Kangaskhan handle Landorus-T. Pokemon which that can deal with the Electric-types such as Rotom-Wash and Thundurus who that threaten Gyarados also make for good teammates. Possible partners include Dragon-types such as Kyurem-B, Latios, (AC) and Hydreigon as well as Grass-types such as Mega Venusaur and Ferrothorn. Raichu, Rhydon, and Rhyperior can provide Lightning Rod support to redirect Electric-type attacks by virtue of being on the field. Raichu can also provide Fake Out support to help Gyarados setup, or use Feint to ensure Gyarados will get boosted attacks off. If Gyarados is not carrying Safety Goggles, then it especially appreciates support from Pokemon such as Talonflame, Heatran, and Latios, (AC) which can reliably beat and KO Amoonguss. Bisharp can serve as a good offensive partner for Gyarados by discouraging Intimidate users through Defiant.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Stone Edge can be used on the utility set so that Gyarados isn't Substitute bait for Kyurem-B, as well as for hitting Mega Charizard Y. (RH, also it's been given a slash on the set) Crunch is a possible coverage option on the Choice Band set for dealing more damage to Aegislash, while and OHKOing Latios from full. Crunch It is also nice for hitting other Psychic-types such as Cresselia, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross. Bounce is another option when using Choice Band, notable notably OHKOing Amoonguss and Keldeo. ("However," maybe?) Being a two-turn (AH) move lets it force Protects (RC) and makes Feint support an almost necessary addition. Wacan Berry or Charti Berry can be used to half halve the damage from an Electric- or Rock-type attack respectively, but both Berries are usually outclassed by Sitrus Berry in terms of improving Gyarados's survivability longevity. Lum Berry can be a clutch option to heal Gyarados of status once, but Safety Goggles is far better against Spore users, while Gyarados still faces massive problems from most burn or paralysis users even with a Lum Berry. Roar can be used to phaze out opposing Pokemon, particularly setup Pokemon such as Azumarilly, Mega Kangaskhan, and Volcarona, as well as Substitute users such as Kyurem-B and Aegislash. Roar can also prevent Trick Room from being set, although less reliably than Taunt.

Checks and Counters
===================
**Typing Advantage**: Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus, Rotom-W, (AC) and Zapdos all threaten to OHKO Gyarados with a STAB Thunderbolt. Rock-type Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Terrakion can threaten Gyarados offensively but struggle to KO without prior damage even without Intimidate. Gyarados also threatens back with a super effective STAB Waterfall. Dragon-types such as Hydreigon, Latios, and Kyurem-B fear little offensively from Gyarados while being able to hit it hard.

**Intimidate and Burns**: Intimidate from opposing Gyarados or Landorus-T weaken Gyarados's attacks. Gyarados also needs to watch out for being burnt burned by Pokemon such as Gengar, Jellicent, and Gourgeist. (which one?) Rotom-W can also burn Gyarados, but it will usually just use Thunderbolt to KO it instead.

**Speed Control**: Dragon Dance and Choice Band sets are quite vulnerable to opposing speed control, with Trick Room using Gyarados's Speed boosts against it. Trick Room users such as Jellicent and Gourgeist take little from Gyarados's attacks but need to watch out for Taunt. Tailwind users such as Zapdos also cause problems. Thunder Wave, especially priority ones from Thundurus to go before a boosted Gyarados, (implied) effectively neuter offensive Gyarados variants.

**Utility Moves**: Taunt users such as Keldeo can cripple utilitly Gyarados. Thundurus can also Taunt Gyarados, but it will usually just use Thunderbolt for the KO. Kyurem-B can freely set up Substitute up against any of utility Gyarados's moves.

 

[Yoda2798]

Implemented, thank you n_n

 

[Haund]

add remove comments
please address the long comment under dragon dance set details (if things change a bit feel free to tag me so i take a quick look at it again)

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[OVERVIEW]

Gyarados is a valuable utility Pokemon in the Doubles metagame, being able to check various defensive Pokemon such as Jirachi and Heatran as well as offensive threats such as Talonflame and Landorus-T. It can also viably run a Dragon Dance set, which allows it to take a more offensive role by boosting its Attack and Speed, or a Choice Band set for immediate power. This versatility gives Gyarados the rare, and valuable, trait of being somewhat unpredictable.

Gyarados fits best on slightly bulkier teams that want a sturdy Pokemon with Intimidate that can perform the above roles more reliably over the course of a match. This is because on full-out hyper offense teams Gyarados faces a lot of competition from Landorus-T, which is better offensively. However, Gyarados offers its Water typing and valuable access to support moves such as Taunt, Thunder Wave, and Icy Wind. Gyarados's usage of speed control also helps make up for its middling Speed, and its solid Water / Flying typing gives it important resistancess against Fire-, Fighting-, and Water-type attacks and an immunity to Ground-type attacks. However, Electric-types such as Thundurus and Rotom formes threaten Gyarados massively.

[SET]
name: Utility
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Taunt
move 3: Thunder Wave
move 4: Protect / Stone Edge
item: Sitrus Berry / Safety Goggles
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 208 Def / 44 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
(spaces inbetween all these)
Waterfall gains STAB and deals large amounts of damage to Water-weak foes such as Landorus-T, Talonflame, and Heatran. Taunt allows Gyardos to cripple Amoonguss and Aegislash, as well as prevent Trick Room and other speed control or status moves. Thunder Wave provides crippling speed control onto a single target and is particularly effective against very fast foes such as Ludicolo and Venusaur under weather, (RC) and other Pokemon under Tailwind. However, Icy Wind is useful for slowing down both opponents foes but to a lesser extent than Thunder Wave. It also has the benefits of breaking Focus Sashes and providing chip damage as well as getting around Taunt, but its effects being lost to when switching out hurts its usefulness. Icy Wind tends to be better for teammates such as Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir, which both have middling Speed stats and so appreciate attacking first before both foes with strong spread moves. Protect is a staple move in Doubles, allowing Gyarados to stay alive while a partner removes a threat such as Thundurus or stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick Room. However, Gyarados can afford to run Stone Edge instead, allowing it to check Mega Charizard Y as well as preventing Kyurem-B from getting a free Substitute.

Set Details
========

252 HP with 208 Defense EVs allow Gyarados to take two -1 Stone Edges from Landorus-T without a Sitrus Berry or two -1 Diamond Storms from Mega Diancie with it. 4 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature allow Gyarados to 2HKO Landorus-T in return with Waterfall while also giving it a good chance to OHKO Mega Diancie. The remaining EVs are put into Speed to outspeed uninvested Rotom formes. Sitrus Berry provides valuable longevity to Gyarados, that which allows it to stay healthy and on the field for longer. Safety Goggles is another option which that allows Gyarados to switch in and play around Amoonguss and Breloom more safely. Intimidate weakens opposing physical attackers by softening attacks for Gyarados and its teammates.

Usage Tips
========

Intimidate makes Gyarados a great switch-in to physical attackers, particularly the likes of Landorus-T and Talonflame, which it can threaten with Waterfall. Gyarados's main role once it's on the field is exerting speed control with the combination of Taunt and Thunder Wave or Icy Wind to help more offensive teammates. Taunt should also be used to prevent the foe from inflicting status such as burns, paralysis, and sleep. Gyarados can perform well as a lead against Trick Room teams, as it can use Taunt to prevent Trick Room from being set. When using Gyarados, one should be wary of switching it into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========

As Gyarados is a support Pokemon, teammates should take advantage of the utility provided in Intimidate, Taunt, and speed control. Mega Charizard Y and Mega Gardevoir both enjoy the speed control that Gyarados provides, while Intimidate also patches up both Pokemon's weaker Defense stat. Setup Pokemon such as Mega Kangaskhan and Mega Charizard X benefit from Gyarados's ability to provide support through Intimidate to help provide setup opportunities, as well as its ability to deal with Landorus-T reliably. Mega Kangaskhan also appreciates Gyarados's ability to neuter Amoonguss through Taunt as well as switch into Keldeo and Landorus-T for it. An additional teammate that can KO Amoonguss would still greatly help this combination. Pokemon which that can deal with Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus have good synergy with Gyarados, making Grass- or Dragon-type Pokemon such as Amoonguss, Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, and Latios good teammates. Lightning Rod users such as Rhydon and Rhyperior can also do this by virtue of being on the field, but they are usually more team-specific options.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Waterfall
move 2: Double Edge
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Ice Fang / Earthquake
item: Choice Band
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Waterfall gains STAB, and with a Choice Band boost it will put a large dent in anything that doesn't resist Water. It notably has a chance to OHKO standard Landorus-T even after Intimidate. Double Edge provides great neutral coverage alongside Waterfall, hitting most Pokemon that resist Water such as Rotom-W quite hard due to its high Base Power. Stone Edge deals massive damage to Kyurem-B and can cleanly OHKO regular checks to Gyarados in Zapdos, bulky Thundurus, and Mega Charizard Y. Ice Fang hits Dragon- and Grass-types harder than any other move, allowing Gyarados to always KO Latios after one round of Life Orb recoil. It also always 2HKOes standard Rocky Helmet Amoonguss. Despite not being usually recommended on non-Ground-type Pokemon, Earthquake can work well on Gyarados, notably hitting targets such as Aegislash, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross quite hard while avoiding Aegislash's King's Shield mind games. Additionally, hitting both foes is nice for helping a teammate to finish them off; however, Earthquake does leave Gyarados vulnerable to Ground-immune switch-ins due to Choice Band.

Set Details
========

Choice Band takes advantage of Gyarados's high Attack stat to allow it to hit like a truck. Intimidate allows Gyarados to still provide defensive utility for its teammates, allowing itself and partners to take physical attacks better. 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature let Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed neutral Speed-natured base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom; however, 228 EVs can be used instead to always outspeed Modest Heatran. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's bulk defenses. If Gyarados is being used on a Trick Room team, a Brave nature should be used with the Speed EVs being put into HP instead.

Usage Tips

========
Gyarados is best used when supported by speed control such as Trick Room or Tailwind, where it can break through teams and KO a lot of Pokemon before they can even move. This allows Gyarados to fulfill its main role as a wallbreaker, meaning that it can greatly weaken opposing teams for teammates to plow through them with ease. Gyarados is therefore best taken advantage of early- or mid-game, when it can weaken Pokemon; however, it can do well late-game with the right support or against slower teams. Since Gyarados is usually expected to be running the utility set, it can take advantage of this to catch common switch-ins such as Rotom-W and Thundurus for large amounts of damage. If multiple moves get the KO on a target, choose the move that does best against the remaining members of the opponent's team. One should be wary of switching Gyarados into Defiant users such as Bisharp or Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with boosts, making them extremely threatening.

Team Options
========

Pokemon that appreciate Gyarados's ability to weaken opposing teams make for good teammates. Good examples include Mega Diancie, Mega Kangaskhan, and Bisharp, as Gyarados can weaken Pokemon such as Amoonguss to help them clean later on. The Choice Band set appreciates speed control to take advantage of its power, making Tailwind users such as Zapdos and Latios great partners. Other options include Thundurus, which can provide Thunder Wave support, and Jirachi, which can utilize Icy Wind. Good partners for setting Trick Room include Porygon2, which has great defensive synergy with Gyarados, as well as Cresselia and Gourgeist-XL (add hyphen). Other good teammates include Grass- and Dragon-type Pokemon, which can deal with the Electric-types such as Thundurus that Gyarados struggles with. Amoonguss, which can also redirect the foes foes' attacks, Hydreigon, Kyurem-B, and Latios are good examples. Rhydon and Rhyperior can redirect Electric-type attacks via Lightning Rod, with both Pokemon being good options on Trick Room teams as well due to their low Speed.

[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Waterfall / Return
move 2: Stone Edge / Return
move 3: Dragon Dance
move 4: Protect
item: Safety Goggles / Sitrus Berry
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant
evs: 88 HP / 252 Atk / 168 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Waterfall does good damage against most neutral targets and is Gyarados's main attack. Dragon Dance allows Gyarados to boost its Attack and Speed. Alternatively, Return hits most Pokemon that resist Water such as Rotom-W, Latios, and Amoonguss for decent damage. It is recommended over Double-Edge (add hyphen) because as a setup sweeper, Gyarados needs to maintain its longevity. Stone Edge is an alternate option that KOes Mega Charizard Y and so drastically improves Gyarados's sun matchup, as well as enabling Gyarados to deal sufficient damage to Kyurem-B. It also hits Thundurus hard, but usually Gyarados is too threatened to attack anyway. If you're using Sitrus Berry, Taunt can be a niche option instead of Return or Stone Edge to help deal with Amoonguss, but the coverage is still usually more appreciated. Protect allows Gyarados to stall out field conditions such as Tailwind and Trick Room as well as allowing partners to remove threats such as Thundurus. (the set order is a bit confusing. Is Return an alternative to Stone Edge or Waterfall? Also doesn't it make more sense to put Dragon Dance in the first slot since the set is literally named "Dragon Dance"? You say Double Edge is an "alternate option", but to what? It seems to return and waterfall, but if so, then waterfall+return+stone edge by logic should be on the same moveslot, but this leaves gyarados with only 3 moves. I moved Return as a first slot slash even if it doesn't make much sense to not have a stab i guess? However I'm not knowledgeable enough to fix this so please give it another look)

Set Details
========

Safety Goggles immensely helps Gyarados against Amoonguss, changing it from a check to setup bait, (RC) by allowing Gyarados to get around Rage Powder and giving it an immunity to Spore. However, Sitrus Berry can still be quite valuable for providing some limited recovery, but it should only be used on teams where opposing Amoonguss is amply covered. Intimidate provides valuable support for teammates against physical attackers such as Mega Kangaskhan and Landorus-T while also helping Gyarados to set up more easily. 252 Attack EVs with an Adamant nature let Gyarados hit as hard as possible. 168 Speed EVs allow it to outspeed neutral Speed-natured base 70s such as Bisharp and Breloom before a boost. The remaining EVs are put into HP to maximize Gyarados's bulk defenses. An alternate spread with 252 Attack and Speed EVs with a Jolly nature can be used to outspeed Adamant Choice Scarf Landorus-T at +1 as well as neutral Speed-natured weather sweepers such as Venusaur and Kingdra at +2, but the the drop in power and bulk makes Gyarados a less potent threat overall.

Usage Tips
========

Don't set up too early in the match, when Gyarados's counters are still healthy. Gyarados has a better chance of performing well late-game when it's its checks are worn down. Also, try to avoid letting Gyarados take too much damage before and while setting up, as this can hurt its chances of sweeping by putting it in range of priority attacks such as Talonflame's Brave Bird and Bisharp's Sucker Punch. Gyarados should idealy be brought in on Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Heatran, which provide it with safe setup opportunities. Utilizing partners with redirection moves or Fake Out should also be a priority when aiming to set up. Gyarados can use the fact that people will expect the utility set, (RC) to its to it's advantage. Gyarados doesn't always need to set up to perform effectively, as sometimes it doesn't need the boosts or the immediate damage can be better when trying to double target a threat for the KO. Protect should be utilized effectively so that Gyarados keeps its boosts while a partner takes care of Pokemon such as Thundurus, which threaten it offensively and has with a priority Thunder Wave. Avoid bringing in Gyarados on Defiant users such as Bisharp and Competitive users such as Milotic, as Intimidate will provide them with free boosts that make these Pokemon extremely threatening to Gyarados and its teammates.

Team Options
========

Redirection users such as Amoonguss and Jirachi help Gyarados to set up safely. Amoonguss tanks Electric-type attacks better, while Jirachi can deal with Grass-types. Gyarados also removes Fire-types such as Heatran and Talonflame in return. Fake Out users such as Mega Kangaskhan can also help Gyarados to set up, while Gyarados also helps Mega Kangaskhan handle Landorus-T. Pokemon that can deal with the Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus that threaten Gyarados also make for good teammates. Possible partners include Dragon-types such as Kyurem-B, Latios, and Hydreigon as well as Grass-types such as Mega Venusaur and Ferrothorn. Raichu, Rhydon, and Rhyperior can provide Lightning Rod support to redirect Electric-type attacks by virtue of being on the field. Raichu can also provide Fake Out support to help Gyarados setup, or use Feint to ensure Gyarados will get boosted attacks off. If Gyarados is not carrying Safety Goggles, it especially appreciates support from Pokemon such as Talonflame, Heatran, and Latios, which can reliably beat Amoonguss. Bisharp can serve as a good offensive partner for Gyarados by discouraging Intimidate through Defiant.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Crunch is a possible coverage option on the Choice Band set for dealing more damage to Aegislash and OHKOing Latios from full health. It is also nice for hitting other Psychic-types such as Cresselia, Jirachi, and Mega Metagross. Bounce is another option when using Choice Band, notably OHKOing Amoonguss and Keldeo. However, being a two-turns move lets it force Protects and makes Feint support an almost necessary addition. Wacan Berry or Charti Berry can be used to halve the damage from an Electric- or Rock-type attack, but both Berries are usually outclassed by Sitrus Berry in terms of improving Gyarados's longevity. Lum Berry can be a clutch option to heal cure Gyarados of status once, but Safety Goggles is far better against Spore users, while Gyarados still faces massive problems from most burn or paralysis users even with a Lum Berry. Roar can be used to phaze opposing Pokemon, particularly setup Pokemon such as Azumarill and Mega Kangaskhan, as well as Substitute users such as Kyurem-B and Aegislash. Roar can also prevent Trick Room from being set, although less reliably than Taunt.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Typing Advantage**: Electric-type Pokemon such as Thundurus, Rotom-W, and Zapdos all threaten to OHKO Gyarados with a STAB Thunderbolt. Rock-type Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Terrakion can threaten Gyarados offensively but struggle to KO it without prior damage even without Intimidate. Gyarados also threatens back with a super effective STAB Waterfall. Dragon-types such as Hydreigon, Latios, and Kyurem-B fear little offensively from Gyarados while being able to hit it hard.

**Intimidate and Burns**: Intimidate from opposing Gyarados or Landorus-T weaken Gyarados's attacks. Gyarados also needs to watch out for being burned by Pokemon such as Gengar, Jellicent, and Gourgeist-XL (add hyphen). Rotom-W can also burn Gyarados, but it will usually just use Thunderbolt to KO it instead.

**Speed Control**: Dragon Dance and Choice Band sets are quite vulnerable to opposing speed control, with Trick Room using Gyarados's Speed boosts against it. Trick Room users such as Jellicent and Gourgeist-XL take little from Gyarados's attacks but need to watch out for Taunt. Tailwind users such as Zapdos also cause problems. Thunder Wave, especially priority ones from Thundurus, effectively neuter offensive Gyarados variants.

**Utility Moves**: Taunt users such as Keldeo can cripple utilitly Gyarados. Thundurus can also Taunt Gyarados, but it will usually just use Thunderbolt for the KO. Kyurem-B can freely set up Substitute against any of utility Gyarados's moves bar Stone Edge.

2/2

 

[Yoda2798]

Implemented, thanks :]

For the comments on the Dragon Dance set, Return is an alternative to Stone Edge, but the order of the slashes was different then got changed so I think I just forgot to fix the order of stuff that (done now and should be more clear). Also for putting Dragon Dance first, in Doubles we have a kind of set convention we try to follow of STAB attacks/other attacks/status moves/Protect. Finally, for Double-Edge, I was just trying to explain that you use Return over Double-Edge to avoid recoil since you're a setup mon basically.

Since I've changed the Moves section for the Dragon Dance set I'd appreciate if you could quickly check it over if that's alright.