Overview
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Gyarados is gifted with a great typing, resisting the common Fire-, Fighting-, Water- and Bug-type attacks while being immune to Ground. Additionally, a splendid ability in Intimidate makes it a great choice in Doubles even before it Mega Evolves. Meanwhile, Mega Gyarados's type change gives it a better match-up against certain threats that would normally halt Gyarados in its tracks, such as Rock-type attacks and Rotom-W. Furthermore, its Attack, Defense, and Special Defense are greatly increased when it Mega Evolves, granting it greater bulk and offensive power as well. An interesting ability in Mold Breaker allows Mega Gyarados to nullify the enemy's defensive abilities, particularly Levitate, which allows Mega Gyarados free reign to spam Earthquake. Gyarados is extremely versatile and can perform the role of sweeper and supporter with moves such as Thunder Wave and Taunt with great results. However, when taking an offensive route, it needs a Dragon Dance boost, as otherwise it's too slow to sweep.
Mega Dragon Dance
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name: Mega Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Protect / Stone Edge / Ice Fang
ability: Intimidate
item: Gyaradosite
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant / Jolly
Moves
========
Dragon Dance boosts Gyarados's Attack and Speed to make it more threatening. Waterfall is Gyarados's primary STAB move and has a good 20% chance to flinch. Earthquake is the mandatory spread move, easily beating Rotom-W, Gyarados's biggest counter, after Mega Evolution. Protect is a staple move in Doubles to allow Mega Gyarados to survive a turn, stall out field conditions, or make smart plays. Stone Edge helps Gyarados beat Kyurem-B, Thundurus, Zapdos, Abomasnow, and other Gyarados. Ice Fang deserves a mention for beating Garchomp, Shaymin-Sky, Zygarde, Amoonguss, and Breloom.
Set Details
========
An Adamant nature is great for granting Mega Gyarados maximum power. It is more useful than a Jolly nature if two Dragon Dance can be set up. However, Jolly is a safer option, as Adamant Mega Gyarados cannot outspeed some faster threats even after a boost, such as unboosted Shaymin-Sky and Deoxys-A as well as any other base 80 Speed Choice Scarf user with a positive nature. Thus, if Gyarados is using Ice Fang, it should have a Jolly nature to allow it to defeat Shaymin-Sky after a Dragon Dance. Maximum Attack and Speed investment is necessary to get the full effects from Dragon Dance. Intimidate makes it easier to set up Dragon Dance by crippling foes, but Moxie can be useful if you can grab some KOs before Mega Evolving. Mold Breaker is helpful, allowing Mega Gyarados to hit Gastrodon for neutral damage and Rotom-W and Gengar with Earthquake. With Mold Breaker, Stone Edge will be able to completely ignore Multiscale from Dragonite.
Usage Tips
========
Gyarados is a great Intimidate user in Doubles, so it can also be switched in and out of the field early-game to cripple the opponent's physical attackers. Unlike other Mega Evolutions, you may not want to evolve Gyarados immediately due to the different type combinations of the two formes and Gyarados's ability to Intimidate. For example, when facing a Stone Edge, Rock Slide, or even an Electric-type attack, Gyarados may want to Mega Evolve immediately in order to survive the attacks and grab a boost. However, against threats such as Scizor and Conkeldurr, it is recommended to defer the Mega Evolution in fear of future Fighting- or Bug-type attacks. Furthermore, Mega Gyarados should be kept healthy until the late-game so that it can perform its role as a late-game cleaner. Timing is very crucial to success with Gyarados: know when it is safe to sweep and when you still need to continue to scout. The ability to cripple foes with Intimidate is also invaluable. Just remember to use its teammates to back Gyarados up; they can help it set up a Dragon Dance and thus allow it to sweep, or they can soften its checks and counters before it sweeps.
Team Options
========
As Mega Gyarados functions as a late-game cleaner, wallbreakers with high offenses such as Deoxys-A, Genesect and Aegislash should considered as teammates. Kyurem-B is a great team option because it can plow through many of Gyarados's checks and counters, such as physically bulky Water-types with Fusion Bolt and Mega Venusaur with its STAB Ice Beam. Latios is also able to nuke physically bulky Water-types with strong special moves and can defeat Mega Venusaur with Psyshock. Talonflame is also a great teammate with access to priority Brave Bird to defeat problematic Fighting- and Grass-types like Conkeldurr, Keldeo, Mega Venusaur and Shaymin-Sky, respectively. Manectric can provide valuable support with Lightning Rod, deterring opponents from spamming Electric-type attacks.
Mega Gyarados absolutely hates Grass-type foes, so Pokemon that can eliminate them work well as teammates. Fire-type teammates include Heatran and Volcarona, while Bug-type teammates include Volcarona and Genesect, and Ice-types include Mamoswine and Kyurem-B. Volcarona can use Rage Powder to help Gyarados sweep and to redirect Bug-, Fighting-, and Fairy-type attacks aimed at Mega Gyarados. Wide Guard support is quite useful to prevent Gyarados from being hit by Discharge and Rock Slide, both of which are threats to Gyarados. To increase the amount of setup opportunities for Gyarados, you can consider choosing one of the many team support options in Doubles: Fake Out, Follow Me, Rage Powder, Light Screen, Reflect, or a sleep status move. Pokemon that can use these moves include Amoonguss, with access to Rage Powder and Spore and a resistance to Electric-type attacks; Togekiss for its great bulk, resistance to Fighting, and access to Follow Me; Meowstic for its access to Light Screen and Reflect to complement Mega Gyarados's already great bulk and Fake Out to allow setup opportunities; Klefki for its access to Light Screen and Reflect, and its ability to cover Gyarados's Fire- and Ground-type weaknesses.
Utility
########
name: Utility
move 1: Taunt
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Protect
move 4: Thunder Wave / Icy Wind
ability: Intimidate
item: Sitrus Berry
evs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 Spe
nature: Impish
Moves
========
Taunt is a great move to foil the opponent's support Pokemon, preventing them from setting up crippling field effects or using status moves. Waterfall is Gyarados's primary STAB move and has a good 20% chance to flinch. Protect is a staple move in Doubles to allow Gyarados to survive a turn, stall out field conditions, or make smart plays. Thunder Wave is a great move that severely cripples foes and grants extremely potent speed control. Icy Wind is another option for speed control because it can temporarily slow down both foes on the field.
Set Details
========
An Impish nature, 208 EVs in Defense, and 252 HP EVs are used to maximize Gyarados's physical bulk. 48 Speed EVs let Gyarados outspeed the standard 76 Speed Heatran and use Taunt on Cresselia. Sitrus Berry is a great item to allow Gyarados to recover 25% of its health in a pinch, granting it greater longevity to cripple foes further. Intimidate is mandatory to cripple the opponent's physical attackers on the field and is extremely helpful to cushion Gyarados's teammate from physical attacks.
Usage Tips
========
Gyarados is a great Intimidate user in Doubles, so it can also be switched in and out of the field early-game to cripple the opponent's physical attackers. Gyarados functions as a great pivot and can switch into many common attackers in the tier including Scizor, Mamoswine, and Talonflame. It can also function as a great lead against obvious Trick Room teams, Taunting the opposing Trick Room setter before it can set up. Gyarados should focus on speed control so that its teammates can sweep. When faster foes have been slowed by Thunder Wave or Icy Wind, they can fall prey to Gyarados's faster Taunt and have their support moves halted.
Team Options
========
It is more important to pick teammates that benefit from the support Gyarados provides instead of teammates that can support Gyarados. Gyarados fits well with many Pokemon because it provides many support options, such as Taunt, Intimidate, and speed control, whilst needing little support itself. Taunt Gyarados can be a savior to fast, offensive teams to stop Trick Room. Particularly good teammates are strong sweepers such as Mega Kangaskhan, Mega Heracross, and Mega Charizard Y. They are strong beneficiaries of Intimidate, which complement their already decent bulk, and Taunt helps prevents speed control from the opposing team. Ground-types, such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Excadrill, serve as good defensive team options for Gyarados, as they cover Gyarados's Rock- and Electric-type weaknesses well.
Other Options
########
A non-Mega Dragon Dance Gyarados can be used, but it forgoes the perks of Mega Gyarados's greater offenses and defenses. A bulky Dragon Dance Set with Sitrus Berry and Taunt is a great option, as it is able to provide reliable Intimidate support and still sweep. Substitute can also be used on other offensive sets. Choice Band and Choice Scarf sets can function as splendid late-game cleaners, but the restriction of moves and poor STAB coverage makes them difficult sets to pull off. Return and Double-Edge can be used as strong neutral coverage with Waterfall and are Gyarados's hardest hitting attacks against Water-types. However, Double-Edge is more appropriate on Choice sets due to its unappealing recoil on a Dragon Dance set. Moxie can be used over Intimidate because Gyarados can get a boost or two before Mega Evolving, becoming a menacing juggernaut. However, this is usually difficult to pull off, and Intimidate has more utility in the Doubles metagame. A Dragon Dance set with Lum Berry could work to set up on passive status users like Amoonguss. Wacan Berry or Charti Berry can be used to halve the damage dealt by super effective Electric- and Rock-type moves, respectively, possibly opening up strategic gameplays.
Checks & Counters
########
**Intimidate and Burns**: Being a physical attacker, Gyarados is hampered by opposing Intimidate and burns, which reduce its overall damage output. Some Intimidate users include Hitmontop, Landorus-T, and opposing Gyarados, while Will-O-Wisp users include Trevenant and Rotom-W. Care must be taken for Gyarados to avoid such scenarios. Gastrodon is also a notable counter to the utility set, as it is immune to all Gyarados's moves and can burn it with Scald.
**Offensive Typing Advantage**: Gyarados is walled and is damaged super effectively by bulky Grass-types such as Amoonguss, Abomasnow, and Shaymin-Sky due to its Water / Ground type coverage. Ice Fang is an option to relieve this problem, but its low damage output may still leave complications. Electric-types such as Rotom-W, Mega Manectric, and Thundurus can pose major problems for the non-Mega Gyarados set and must be avoided. Azumarill is also problematic for Mega Gyarados, as it resists Gyarados's Water-type STAB moves. Pokemon that can outspeed the Mega Gyarados set may be threatening as well. Breloom and Conkeldurr can revenge even a boosted Mega Gyarados with Mach Punch, while Breloom also resists Gyarados's primary coverage moves.
**Speed Control**: Although Mega Gyarados is bulky enough to take multiple neutral hits, it hates being paralyzed or slowed by Trick Room during its sweep, so these threats should be weakened or eliminated before using Dragon Dance. Thundurus, in particular, is a nuisance due to its priority Thunder Wave.
########
Gyarados is gifted with a great typing, resisting the common Fire-, Fighting-, Water- and Bug-type attacks while being immune to Ground. Additionally, a splendid ability in Intimidate makes it a great choice in Doubles even before it Mega Evolves. Meanwhile, Mega Gyarados's type change gives it a better match-up against certain threats that would normally halt Gyarados in its tracks, such as Rock-type attacks and Rotom-W. Furthermore, its Attack, Defense, and Special Defense are greatly increased when it Mega Evolves, granting it greater bulk and offensive power as well. An interesting ability in Mold Breaker allows Mega Gyarados to nullify the enemy's defensive abilities, particularly Levitate, which allows Mega Gyarados free reign to spam Earthquake. Gyarados is extremely versatile and can perform the role of sweeper and supporter with moves such as Thunder Wave and Taunt with great results. However, when taking an offensive route, it needs a Dragon Dance boost, as otherwise it's too slow to sweep.
Mega Dragon Dance
########
name: Mega Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Protect / Stone Edge / Ice Fang
ability: Intimidate
item: Gyaradosite
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
nature: Adamant / Jolly
Moves
========
Dragon Dance boosts Gyarados's Attack and Speed to make it more threatening. Waterfall is Gyarados's primary STAB move and has a good 20% chance to flinch. Earthquake is the mandatory spread move, easily beating Rotom-W, Gyarados's biggest counter, after Mega Evolution. Protect is a staple move in Doubles to allow Mega Gyarados to survive a turn, stall out field conditions, or make smart plays. Stone Edge helps Gyarados beat Kyurem-B, Thundurus, Zapdos, Abomasnow, and other Gyarados. Ice Fang deserves a mention for beating Garchomp, Shaymin-Sky, Zygarde, Amoonguss, and Breloom.
Set Details
========
An Adamant nature is great for granting Mega Gyarados maximum power. It is more useful than a Jolly nature if two Dragon Dance can be set up. However, Jolly is a safer option, as Adamant Mega Gyarados cannot outspeed some faster threats even after a boost, such as unboosted Shaymin-Sky and Deoxys-A as well as any other base 80 Speed Choice Scarf user with a positive nature. Thus, if Gyarados is using Ice Fang, it should have a Jolly nature to allow it to defeat Shaymin-Sky after a Dragon Dance. Maximum Attack and Speed investment is necessary to get the full effects from Dragon Dance. Intimidate makes it easier to set up Dragon Dance by crippling foes, but Moxie can be useful if you can grab some KOs before Mega Evolving. Mold Breaker is helpful, allowing Mega Gyarados to hit Gastrodon for neutral damage and Rotom-W and Gengar with Earthquake. With Mold Breaker, Stone Edge will be able to completely ignore Multiscale from Dragonite.
Usage Tips
========
Gyarados is a great Intimidate user in Doubles, so it can also be switched in and out of the field early-game to cripple the opponent's physical attackers. Unlike other Mega Evolutions, you may not want to evolve Gyarados immediately due to the different type combinations of the two formes and Gyarados's ability to Intimidate. For example, when facing a Stone Edge, Rock Slide, or even an Electric-type attack, Gyarados may want to Mega Evolve immediately in order to survive the attacks and grab a boost. However, against threats such as Scizor and Conkeldurr, it is recommended to defer the Mega Evolution in fear of future Fighting- or Bug-type attacks. Furthermore, Mega Gyarados should be kept healthy until the late-game so that it can perform its role as a late-game cleaner. Timing is very crucial to success with Gyarados: know when it is safe to sweep and when you still need to continue to scout. The ability to cripple foes with Intimidate is also invaluable. Just remember to use its teammates to back Gyarados up; they can help it set up a Dragon Dance and thus allow it to sweep, or they can soften its checks and counters before it sweeps.
Team Options
========
As Mega Gyarados functions as a late-game cleaner, wallbreakers with high offenses such as Deoxys-A, Genesect and Aegislash should considered as teammates. Kyurem-B is a great team option because it can plow through many of Gyarados's checks and counters, such as physically bulky Water-types with Fusion Bolt and Mega Venusaur with its STAB Ice Beam. Latios is also able to nuke physically bulky Water-types with strong special moves and can defeat Mega Venusaur with Psyshock. Talonflame is also a great teammate with access to priority Brave Bird to defeat problematic Fighting- and Grass-types like Conkeldurr, Keldeo, Mega Venusaur and Shaymin-Sky, respectively. Manectric can provide valuable support with Lightning Rod, deterring opponents from spamming Electric-type attacks.
Mega Gyarados absolutely hates Grass-type foes, so Pokemon that can eliminate them work well as teammates. Fire-type teammates include Heatran and Volcarona, while Bug-type teammates include Volcarona and Genesect, and Ice-types include Mamoswine and Kyurem-B. Volcarona can use Rage Powder to help Gyarados sweep and to redirect Bug-, Fighting-, and Fairy-type attacks aimed at Mega Gyarados. Wide Guard support is quite useful to prevent Gyarados from being hit by Discharge and Rock Slide, both of which are threats to Gyarados. To increase the amount of setup opportunities for Gyarados, you can consider choosing one of the many team support options in Doubles: Fake Out, Follow Me, Rage Powder, Light Screen, Reflect, or a sleep status move. Pokemon that can use these moves include Amoonguss, with access to Rage Powder and Spore and a resistance to Electric-type attacks; Togekiss for its great bulk, resistance to Fighting, and access to Follow Me; Meowstic for its access to Light Screen and Reflect to complement Mega Gyarados's already great bulk and Fake Out to allow setup opportunities; Klefki for its access to Light Screen and Reflect, and its ability to cover Gyarados's Fire- and Ground-type weaknesses.
Utility
########
name: Utility
move 1: Taunt
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Protect
move 4: Thunder Wave / Icy Wind
ability: Intimidate
item: Sitrus Berry
evs: 252 HP / 208 Def / 48 Spe
nature: Impish
Moves
========
Taunt is a great move to foil the opponent's support Pokemon, preventing them from setting up crippling field effects or using status moves. Waterfall is Gyarados's primary STAB move and has a good 20% chance to flinch. Protect is a staple move in Doubles to allow Gyarados to survive a turn, stall out field conditions, or make smart plays. Thunder Wave is a great move that severely cripples foes and grants extremely potent speed control. Icy Wind is another option for speed control because it can temporarily slow down both foes on the field.
Set Details
========
An Impish nature, 208 EVs in Defense, and 252 HP EVs are used to maximize Gyarados's physical bulk. 48 Speed EVs let Gyarados outspeed the standard 76 Speed Heatran and use Taunt on Cresselia. Sitrus Berry is a great item to allow Gyarados to recover 25% of its health in a pinch, granting it greater longevity to cripple foes further. Intimidate is mandatory to cripple the opponent's physical attackers on the field and is extremely helpful to cushion Gyarados's teammate from physical attacks.
Usage Tips
========
Gyarados is a great Intimidate user in Doubles, so it can also be switched in and out of the field early-game to cripple the opponent's physical attackers. Gyarados functions as a great pivot and can switch into many common attackers in the tier including Scizor, Mamoswine, and Talonflame. It can also function as a great lead against obvious Trick Room teams, Taunting the opposing Trick Room setter before it can set up. Gyarados should focus on speed control so that its teammates can sweep. When faster foes have been slowed by Thunder Wave or Icy Wind, they can fall prey to Gyarados's faster Taunt and have their support moves halted.
Team Options
========
It is more important to pick teammates that benefit from the support Gyarados provides instead of teammates that can support Gyarados. Gyarados fits well with many Pokemon because it provides many support options, such as Taunt, Intimidate, and speed control, whilst needing little support itself. Taunt Gyarados can be a savior to fast, offensive teams to stop Trick Room. Particularly good teammates are strong sweepers such as Mega Kangaskhan, Mega Heracross, and Mega Charizard Y. They are strong beneficiaries of Intimidate, which complement their already decent bulk, and Taunt helps prevents speed control from the opposing team. Ground-types, such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Excadrill, serve as good defensive team options for Gyarados, as they cover Gyarados's Rock- and Electric-type weaknesses well.
Other Options
########
A non-Mega Dragon Dance Gyarados can be used, but it forgoes the perks of Mega Gyarados's greater offenses and defenses. A bulky Dragon Dance Set with Sitrus Berry and Taunt is a great option, as it is able to provide reliable Intimidate support and still sweep. Substitute can also be used on other offensive sets. Choice Band and Choice Scarf sets can function as splendid late-game cleaners, but the restriction of moves and poor STAB coverage makes them difficult sets to pull off. Return and Double-Edge can be used as strong neutral coverage with Waterfall and are Gyarados's hardest hitting attacks against Water-types. However, Double-Edge is more appropriate on Choice sets due to its unappealing recoil on a Dragon Dance set. Moxie can be used over Intimidate because Gyarados can get a boost or two before Mega Evolving, becoming a menacing juggernaut. However, this is usually difficult to pull off, and Intimidate has more utility in the Doubles metagame. A Dragon Dance set with Lum Berry could work to set up on passive status users like Amoonguss. Wacan Berry or Charti Berry can be used to halve the damage dealt by super effective Electric- and Rock-type moves, respectively, possibly opening up strategic gameplays.
Checks & Counters
########
**Intimidate and Burns**: Being a physical attacker, Gyarados is hampered by opposing Intimidate and burns, which reduce its overall damage output. Some Intimidate users include Hitmontop, Landorus-T, and opposing Gyarados, while Will-O-Wisp users include Trevenant and Rotom-W. Care must be taken for Gyarados to avoid such scenarios. Gastrodon is also a notable counter to the utility set, as it is immune to all Gyarados's moves and can burn it with Scald.
**Offensive Typing Advantage**: Gyarados is walled and is damaged super effectively by bulky Grass-types such as Amoonguss, Abomasnow, and Shaymin-Sky due to its Water / Ground type coverage. Ice Fang is an option to relieve this problem, but its low damage output may still leave complications. Electric-types such as Rotom-W, Mega Manectric, and Thundurus can pose major problems for the non-Mega Gyarados set and must be avoided. Azumarill is also problematic for Mega Gyarados, as it resists Gyarados's Water-type STAB moves. Pokemon that can outspeed the Mega Gyarados set may be threatening as well. Breloom and Conkeldurr can revenge even a boosted Mega Gyarados with Mach Punch, while Breloom also resists Gyarados's primary coverage moves.
**Speed Control**: Although Mega Gyarados is bulky enough to take multiple neutral hits, it hates being paralyzed or slowed by Trick Room during its sweep, so these threats should be weakened or eliminated before using Dragon Dance. Thundurus, in particular, is a nuisance due to its priority Thunder Wave.
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