Alright, thanks everyone for voting! Apologies for closing voting this week one day later; I've had a fair amount of work-related stuff which unfortunately takes precedence. Anyway.
Congratulations to HydreigonTheChild and Astoria for winning this week's
check and
counter with Lopunny-Mega and Tapu Fini respectively! I'll add your submissions to the Hall of Fame shortly.
Week 9: Swords Dance Rockium Z Garchomp
Garchomp @ Rockium Z
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Swords Dance
Swords Dance Garchomp is a dangerous threat in OU thanks to a sky-high Attack stat, access to excellent Ground/Rock coverage allowing it to hit an opponent at least neutrally, and access to Swords Dance to set up further. In addition, Rockium Z turns Stone Edge into Continental Crush, allowing Garchomp to muscle through some Pokemon that would otherwise answer it, such as Tapu Bulu and Celesteela. In addition, Garchomp has a very good base 102 Speed, allowing it to creep the highly congested base 95-100 Speed tier. However, Garchomp is hampered by prominent weaknesses to Fairy, Ice, and Dragon, which can sometimes prevent it from setting up or sweeping. Also, while base 102 Speed is good, Garchomp is still easily outsped by a significant number of faster Pokemon which can force it out with some consistency.
Can you find a way to handle this set? You will have 6 days to submit your answers, with
submissions ending on Wednesday 6th March . If you wish,
you may submit both a check and a counter, though you are of course allowed to submit one or the other if you please.
Good luck!