Gallade (B/W) - Smogon University

D/P
B/W
Strategy
Moves

Steadfast: Speed is boosted one stage when flinched.
Justified: Raises Attack one stage when hit by a Dark-type move.

Type	Tier
Psychic / Fighting	RU

Level 100 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
		Min-	Min	Max	Max+
HP	68	-	277	340	-
Atk	125	257	286	349	383
Def	65	149	166	229	251
SpA	65	149	166	229	251
SpD	115	239	266	329	361
Spe	80	176	196	259	284

Rarelyused
Underused
VGC '12

Overview

Gallade is one of the best Fighting-types in RU, if not the best. With a base 125 Attack stat and a powerful STAB move in Close Combat, Gallade is one of the most feared Swords Dance users in the tier, as its base 80 Speed is just enough to let it sweep through teams once it has a Swords Dance under its belt. Gallade isn't all about offense though; unlike many other RU sweepers, Gallade isn't frail and has a solid base 115 Special Defense. Along with Drain Punch, this allows Gallade to run bulkier boosting sets quite effectively. Despite not really getting any new moves from BW2 tutors, all of Gallade's important moves are now legal with Justified, something Gallade welcomes with open arms.

However, the premier Fighting-type is held back by its somewhat disappointing base 80 Speed, which is good, but not great, and low base 65 Defense makes it easily revenge killed. Gallade is also afflicted by four-moveslot syndrome, as it can't possibly carry every move it needs to demolish every relevant threat. The rise of Moltres certainly hasn't helped Gallade's cause either, as the phoenix can easily wipe out every Fighting-type in the tier, and Gallade is no exception. Don't let these drawbacks deter you though. Gallade is more than capable of demolishing teams with proper support, and if you take it lightly, Gallade will surely leave your team shattered and broken as a result of your poor judgment.

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Offensive Swords Dance	Lum Berry / Life Orb	Justified	Adamant / Jolly

Moveset	EVs
~ Swords Dance ~ Close Combat ~ Shadow Sneak ~ Zen Headbutt / Night Slash / Leaf Blade	252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

This is Gallade's bread and butter set as it sets the standard for true power. Even without a Swords Dance boost, this set hits really hard with a Life Orb. However, after a Swords Dance boost, almost nothing is safe from Gallade's wrath. A +2 Close Combat is going to take out just about everything that doesn't resist it, and even some resists get hit incredibly hard. This is quite possibly the single strongest attack in the tier, coming off of Gallade's incredible base 125 Attack stat. Shadow Sneak provides Gallade with a priority move to cover for its somewhat low Speed, and it also provides Gallade with perfect neutral coverage in the tier. With Shadow Sneak, Gallade can beat the likes of Rotom, opposing Gallade, and Jynx and also take out weakened opponents that might be faster, such as Sceptile, Manectric, and Moltres. Gallade's last move will give it coverage on certain defensive threats. Zen Headbutt is the strongest option against Poliwrath and also allows Gallade to immediately take out Amoonguss and Qwilfish while also getting a strong hit on Moltres. Night Slash gets great neutral coverage with Gallade's Fighting STAB. It's good for hitting bulky Psychic- and Ghost-types such as Uxie, Cresselia, and bulky variants of Rotom. However, do note that one of its main targets, Slowking, gets hit harder by Leaf Blade. Leaf Blade lets Gallade cut through bulky Water-types including Slowking, Quagsire, and Poliwrath.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

The EV spread is typical of a physical sweeper as it maximizes Attack and Speed to give Gallade the best chance to sweep. Lum Berry is the primary item choice as, despite being an offensive set, many teams use status to check Gallade and Lum Berry gives Gallade a one-time free pass on a status move. However, Life Orb is viable as it lowers the need to boost up with Swords Dance and gives this set more wallbreaking potential. Adamant is the preferred nature as there are very few Pokemon that Gallade can outrun with a Jolly nature. That being said, if you want Gallade to outspeed neutral nature Pokemon with below base 92 Speed, such as Moltres, Rotom, and Lilligant, then Jolly is viable. However, there is a significant power drop with Jolly, thus making Adamant the preferred nature as most of these targets can be hit hard by Shadow Sneak. Gallade has a couple of other moves that you can consider for the final slot. Stone Edge is the other coverage move Gallade has that you should consider as it can instantly KO Moltres. Although this can give Gallade's team serious momentum, you have to predict the Moltres switch-in, while the shaky accuracy of Stone Edge can also turn on you.

This set loves entry hazard support as most of Gallade's checks are weak to Stealth Rock. Smeargle, Aerodactyl, and Accelgor are good entry hazard users for the offensive teams, which Gallade typically finds itself on, while Rhydon, Qwilfish, and Roselia are defensive hazard users for more balanced teams. A strong Dark-type can be helpful to remove the Ghost- and Psychic-type Pokemon Gallade doesn't like, especially if it lacks Night Slash. Thus, Spiritomb and Drapion can make for good teammates. Moltres is a thorn in Gallade's side, so using Lanturn alongside Gallade can be worthwhile. Lanturn can also provide paralysis support to thwart potential revenge killers and even use a slow Volt Switch to get Gallade in safely. Other paralysis inducers such as Uxie and Cresselia are also helpful as Gallade absolutely hates revenge killers. The former can also set up Stealth Rock as well. Strong Grass-types, such as Sceptile and Rotom-C, can remove bulky Water-types, such as Slowking and Quagsire, should Gallade lack Leaf Blade. Both can also pick up the slack for Gallade should it be unable to finish its sweep.

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Bulky Swords Dance	Lum Berry / Leftovers	Justified	Adamant

Moveset	EVs
~ Swords Dance ~ Drain Punch ~ Zen Headbutt ~ Night Slash / Leaf Blade / Shadow Sneak	200 HP / 252 Atk / 56 Spe

This set takes a more defensive approach to sweeping with Swords Dance and takes advantage of Gallade's great base 115 Special Defense to find more setup opportunities. This Gallade can take virtually any neutral attack from a faster Pokemon and OHKO back with Drain Punch, which also heals Gallade so it can prepare for the next assault it might have to take. While offensive teams are unable to withstand Gallade's natural power without one of the few faster Pokemon that can actually OHKO Gallade, more defensive teams struggle with Gallade's boosted power and the use of a Lum Berry that lets it bypass status and set up. Thanks to this, Gallade can sweep through many types of teams without a second thought.

Swords Dance is the boosting move of choice and gives Gallade the power it needs to get through more defensive threats. Drain Punch is used over Close Combat for its healing and lack of defense drops. This lets Gallade perform much better against offensive teams which could have multiple threats that outspeed Gallade since it can stick around longer to get multiple KOs. Zen Headbutt is the chosen move for the third slot as it allows Gallade to bypass bulkier Pokemon it would otherwise have trouble with. Pokemon such as Qwilfish and Amoonguss are OHKOed after a boost while Misdreavus and Tangrowth are 2HKOed after a boost, although Stealth Rock and a layer of Spikes are needed to take care of Tangrowth. There are three choices to pick from for the last slot. Night Slash stands out as it allows Gallade to OHKO both Slowking and Sigilyph while also 2HKOing Uxie and Cresselia. Leaf Blade is a good choice as it allows Gallade to OHKO Slowking; do at least 86.29% minimum to physically defensive Quagsire, which would wall Gallade otherwise thanks to Unaware; OHKO 172/0 Spiritomb 50% of the time; OHKO Rhydon at +2, something that Drain Punch is unable to accomplish; and OHKO 252/252+ Sandslash 50% of the time after Stealth Rock and one layer of Spikes. Finally, Shadow Sneak gives Gallade a priority move, and although it is somewhat weak, it does let Gallade OHKO Rotom and Medicham at +2 as well as giving it an option for weakened, faster foes.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

An Adamant nature is used with max Attack to get the most out of Gallade's massive Attack stat. 56 Speed EVs are needed to get the jump on neutral nature base 55 Speed Pokemon, such as Bouffalant, Crawdaunt, and Omastar, thus allowing Gallade to outspeed and OHKO them with the appropriate move before they can retaliate. The rest are thrown into HP in order to give Gallade the bulk it needs to survive attacks and dish damage back out. Lum Berry is the preferred item as Gallade attracts status like a magnet and getting a free pass on a burn or paralysis can mean the difference between a sweep and a crippled Gallade. Leftovers is a good option as well because Gallade will be taking more hits with this set and the extra recovery can sometimes be just enough to let Gallade survive the next attack and KO its target. There are some other options Gallade can use in the last slot should your team need the specific needs of a particular move. Stone Edge allows Gallade to handle Sigilyph and Mandibuzz, OHKO Moltres on the switch, OHKO Entei if it switches into Stealth Rock, and OHKO 172/0 Spiritomb at +2 after Stealth Rock and Spikes. X-Scissor 2HKOes even the bulkiest variants of Uxie and Tangrowth without the need for hazards while also OHKOing Slowking. Rock Slide and Psycho Cut are weaker, more accurate versions of Stone Edge and Zen Headbutt respectively, but the extra power is sorely missed.

This set appreciates hazards due to the borderline nature of the KOs this Gallade gets. Suicide hazard users such as Accelgor, Smeargle, and Aerodactyl are great for offensive teams while bulkier hazard users such as Qwilfish and Rhydon can lay hazards throughout the game. Gallade frequently attracts the likes of Entei and Moltres, so a check to them is a must even if you should run Stone Edge. Slowking is good to keep the former in check while Lanturn can deal with the latter. Without a Lum Berry, Gallade will need help from its teammates to handle Misdreavus and Tangrowth. Fire-types are great options in particular, especially Magmortar who is immune to Sleep Powder thanks to Vital Spirit. Other Fire-types, such as Entei, Moltres, and Typhlosion, can also work well.

Choice Band Escavalier and physical attacking Entei are the two most common checks to this set. The former can take any boosted attack, even Drain Punch, and OHKO back with its powerful Megahorn while the latter only fears Stone Edge and can smash Gallade with its powerful Flare Blitz. Choice Scarf Fire-types such as Typhlosion and Emboar can beat Escavalier and Scyther, a less common check to this set. As for Entei, both Slowking and Lanturn can get the job done with Slowking being the more reliable choice. Sigilyph can be a little problematic until you can figure out its item. Gallade is unable to handle Life Orb Sigilyph, but it can handle Cosmic Power Sigilyph should it have Stone Edge or Shadow Sneak and Lum Berry. Manectric is a good option against both sets as it can take Air Slash and hit back hard with Thunderbolt, but it needs to watch out for Psychic from the Life Orb set. Finally, Spiritomb is a solid check to Gallade as it is immune to both of Gallade's STABs and it can also handle any boosted coverage moves after Stealth Rock. For this reason, Entei is a good teammate as it can easily handle Spiritomb and demolish it with Flare Blitz.

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Bulk Up	Leftovers	Justified	Careful

Moveset	EVs
~ Bulk Up ~ Drain Punch ~ Night Slash / Ice Punch ~ Substitute	240 HP / 212 SpD / 56 Spe

Although Gallade is a very threatening Swords Dance sweeper, it can use Bulk Up and its solid base 115 Special Defense to become a threatening sweeper as well. What this set lacks in initial power, it makes up for in longevity as this is the hardest Gallade set to revenge kill thanks to the Defense boosts and heavy investment in special bulk. This makes it incredibly difficult to deal with Gallade as, even without investment, Gallade's great base 125 Attack still lets it hit very hard after a couple of boosts.

Bulk Up is the boosting move of choice on this set as it boosts Gallade's amazing Attack and lackluster Defense. Drain Punch is the chosen STAB move as it provides recovery, which is invaluable, and it still has the power to get past most threats. Next, Gallade has its choice of coverage move. Night Slash is the main option for the third slot as it gets the best neutral coverage with Gallade's Fighting-type STAB. It hits bulky Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Rotom and Cresselia hard while also giving Gallade at least neutral coverage on every relevant threat in RU. Ice Punch is a good alternative option for its ability to smash threats such as Amoonguss, Tangrowth, and Aerodactyl. Substitute fills in the last slot as it gives Gallade protection from status moves. After a couple of Bulk Up boosts, Gallade's Substitutes become very difficult to break.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

With 240 HP EVs, Gallade's HP is divisible by 4, which is optimal for making Substitutes. 56 Speed EVs are needed to outspeed neutral nature base 55 Speed Pokemon such as Omastar and Bouffalant. The rest are dumped into Special Defense and a Careful nature is used to take the most advantage of Gallade's good special bulk. Stone Edge is a viable option as it absolutely crushes Moltres while retaining coverage on other Flying-types such as Aerodactyl and Archeops. It also takes care of Entei, which could otherwise be a pain for this set. Make sure to have a check for Golurk when running Stone Edge, though, because Golurk resists Fighting + Rock coverage. Zen Headbutt is the last option worth considering for this set as it can maim Poison-types such as Amoonguss and Qwilfish. However, this leaves Gallade completely walled by Spiritomb as it is immune to both of Gallade's STAB moves, thus making Zen Headbutt an inferior option because Ice Punch already hits Amoonguss hard enough. You can also choose to run another coverage move such as Stone Edge over Substitute, but this set is absolutely ruined by status and as it needs more time than other sets to become threatening, Substitute is almost always preferred.

This set appreciates entry hazards much more than any other set Gallade can run due to its lack of immediate power. Once again, Accelgor and Smeargle are good for offensive teams while Uxie and Qwilfish are better for balanced teams. Choice Band Escavalier and Entei are absolute pains for this set as they have the power to outright KO or heavily cripple even +1 Gallade. Fire-types such as Moltres, Entei, and Magmortar can keep Escavalier in check while bulky Water-types such as Slowking and Qwilfish are solid Entei checks. As with all Gallade sets, Moltres is a royal pain thanks to its powerful Hurricane as all the Special Defense investment in the world won't spare Gallade from it. Lanturn is a good teammate as it can handle many special attackers, including Moltres. Physical attackers are also good partners for Gallade to keep up offensive pressure. Escavalier, Kabutops, and Entei are good examples of physical attackers that can come in on Gallade's checks and counters to continue the offensive pressure on the opponent. Although this set doesn't fear revenge killers nearly as much as any other set, paralysis support from Pokemon such as Uxie and Lanturn is still nice to keep Gallade from taking as many hits.

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Choice Band	Choice Band	Justified	Adamant / Jolly

Moveset	EVs
~ Close Combat ~ Zen Headbutt ~ Shadow Sneak ~ Night Slash / Stone Edge	252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe

Although Gallade is best known for sweeping through teams with Swords Dance-boosted hits or tanking hits and systematically taking down a team with a Bulk Up set, it is more than capable of forgoing a boosting move to hit hard right off the bat. With a base 125 Attack stat and Choice Band equipped, Gallade turns into one of the most frightening wallbreakers to face in RU thanks to its great coverage, access to priority, and powerful Close Combat. With this amazing combination of power, coverage, and priority, almost nothing will be able to safely switch into Gallade without fear of being KOed by one of its moves.

Close Combat is Gallade's pride and joy for any set looking to tear apart teams and Choice Band Gallade is no different. Even some resists will be taking heavy damage from Close Combat due to the sheer power of the move. Most resists to Close Combat such as Moltres are hit hard by Gallade's secondary STAB move, Zen Headbutt. It also hits most bulky Ghost-types for heavy damage, barring Spiritomb, making it all the more easier for Gallade to spam Close Combat later. Shadow Sneak allows Gallade to bypass its middling Speed to KO the likes of Rotom, Haunter, and Kadabra as well as weakened, faster opponents such as Sceptile and Manectric. Night Slash is slashed over Stone Edge in the final slot as it demolishes bulky Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Rotom, Uxie, Cresselia, and Slowking. Stone Edge is good as well as it destroys Moltres and other Flying-types such as Charizard.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

Name	Item	Ability	Nature
Specially Defensive	Leftovers	Steadfast	Careful

Moveset	EVs
~ Wish ~ Protect ~ Drain Punch ~ Will-O-Wisp	248 HP / 244 SpD / 16 Spe

While Gallade is more commonly known for its offensive prowess, it can also take advantage of its stellar Special Defense and typing to use a specially defensive set that can beat some of the metagame's most threatening special attackers. Specially attacking Sceptile, Rotom-C, Galvantula, Expert Belt Magmortar, and Omastar are only a few of the threats that Gallade checks. Gallade has many unique traits that separate it from the rest of RU's special walls; the most notable of these is access to reliable recovery in the form of Wish. Gallade also stands out because it isn't weak to Pursuit, whether by typing or just low Defense, and this is crucial because many of the top special walls are susceptible to Pursuit, including Slowking, Cryogonal, and Roselia. In fact, your opponent might be hesitant to use Pursuit on Gallade for fear of activating Justified, a common ability on Gallade, and granting it a free Attack boost. Also, Gallade is resistant to Stealth Rock, making it hard to wear down through double switches unless your opponent has Spikes up. These traits make Gallade perfect for defensive balance or full stall teams.

As said before, Wish is a great move that Gallade has access to and helps set it apart from Pokemon like Uxie, which is more physically bulky. Protect ensures that Gallade receives the recovery from Wish, as without it Gallade could just be forced out again and again until it is within 2HKO range from a threatening sweeper. Be careful though, as Protect gives your opponent a free turn to set up, and sometimes it's best to use Will-O-Wisp to deter a physical sweeper that might try to get a free boost off of Protect. However, this does nothing to stop entry hazards from going up or Pokemon like Calm Mind Spiritomb or Misdreavus, which don't mind being burned due to Rest and Heal Bell, respectively. Drain Punch is a reliable STAB move that still hits pretty hard even without investment thanks to Gallade's high base Attack, and has that cool side effect of regaining a bit of health afterwards. Will-O-Wisp is another great move for Gallade, as it can cripple its common switch-ins easily such as Spiritomb, Drapion, and Escavalier. As mentioned before, it also ensures that Gallade isn't setup fodder for any moderately bulky physical sweeper; Pokemon such as Feraligatr and Fraxure will think twice about setting up as opposed to attacking.

Team Options & Additional Comments >>>

Almost maximum HP and Special Defense investment is used to make Gallade as specially bulky as possible, while 16 Speed EVs outrun Adamant Aggron so that Gallade can burn it or just KO with Drain Punch after Stealth Rock and one layer of Spikes. Steadfast is the only ability that Gallade can use with Wish; Justified would be the superior choice if not for its illegality on this set. Thunder Wave and Toxic are alternative status moves that can be used, but even if you are building a team around either of these two statuses, Will-O-Wisp is still better the majority of the time. Stone Edge serves one purpose and one purpose only: to OHKO Moltres as it tries to switch in for free. Drain Punch is better in just about every other situation though, so only use Stone Edge if your team is absurdly weak to Moltres. Zen Headbutt is a middle ground between Drain Punch and Stone Edge; however, it still doesn't KO Moltres even after Stealth Rock and has only a trivial amount of higher Base Power, so only use it if you're extremely worried about Accelgor getting a Special Defense drop or a critical hit, as Zen Headbutt hits that harder too. Drain Punch is a lot better because of its perfect accuracy and healing side effect.

Gallade doesn't really require any specific support, but there are some Pokemon that it works better with than others. Regirock is a great partner for this set, as it can take on nearly all of the special attackers that Gallade has trouble with, such as Moltres, Sigilyph, and Substitute + Calm Mind Uxie and Mesprit, and can also check Entei. In return, Gallade can easily pass Wishes to compensate for Regirock's lack of reliable recovery. Qwilfish is another solid partner that can check a good amount of physical attackers that Gallade struggles with such as Entei, Escavalier, and Feraligatr. It also lacks reliable recovery, and can set up Spikes to take advantage of the many switches that Gallade forces due to its sheer special bulk. Similarly, Alomomola checks many of the same things that Qwilfish does and can form a dual Wish core with Gallade that can be very hard to break. Gallade struggles against opposing Psychic-types, especially those that can set up on it with Substitute or a Lum Berry; Spiritomb and Escavalier are two of the best Psychic-type killers in the metagame, and they too appreciate Wish support as they can be worn down quickly due to frequent switch-ins and commonly don't use Leftovers. Spiritomb is a better check to Sigilyph while Escavalier has better synergy with Gallade, resisting Ghost-type moves, and is better against the Dark-types that also typically pose a threat to Gallade such as Spiritomb and Absol. Status is extremely crippling to this set, especially burn, so using a cleric as a teammate is also a good idea. Lanturn beats Moltres and appreciates Wish support, although Misdreavus, Miltank, and Lickilicky are also good choices.

Other Options

Gallade has a wide support movepool, but it just doesn't have the defensive stats to utilize it effectively. Taunt and Will-O-Wisp can form a decent stallbreaker set, but Gallade would rather use free turns to set up with Swords Dance and Bulk Up or just smash the opposition with Close Combat. Other support options such as Thunder Wave and Hypnosis are available to Gallade, but they too fall into a similar category as Taunt and Will-O-Wisp. Gallade's base 80 Speed is sometimes too low for it to sweep effectively, so Trick Room is an option. However, even though it hits on the physical side to separate itself from other Trick Room users, Gallade doesn't have the useful support options of Uxie and Mesprit and many slower offensive threats such as Druddigon and Escavalier would actually outspeed Gallade in the twisted dimensions. Like almost all other Psychic-types, Gallade has access to dual screens. However, Uxie and Mesprit outclass Gallade at this due to their higher bulk and access to Memento and Healing Wish, respectively. A SubDisable set is possible a la Gengar in OU, but the lack of immunities really hurts Gallade. Rain Dance and Sunny Day can turn Gallade into a weather setter, but there are much better users of the move in the tier such as Uxie and Volbeat. Destiny Bond is somewhat gimmicky, but it can net a surprise kill every now and then.

As for offensive options, Gallade isn't really lacking in that department either. A Choice Scarf seems like a perfectly viable item for Gallade to use with its high base 125 Attack stat. However, Medicham—a Pokemon of the exact same typing as Gallade—is much better for the Choice Scarf role thanks to Pure Power. Gallade has the elemental punches available with Justified now, but outside of Ice Punch on the Bulk Up set, they are all conditional. Earthquake and X-Scissor are both powerful coverage moves Gallade can use, but each gets redundant coverage with at least one of Gallade's main attacks. As with most other Psychic-types, Gallade has access to Calm Mind. It has the special movepool to utilize the move with attacks such as Focus Blast, Psyshock, and Thunderbolt. However, a base 125 Attack is obviously much higher than a base 65 Special Attack, thus making Calm Mind a very poor option on Gallade.

Checks and Counters

There is no true counter to Gallade as its combination of power, coverage, and priority makes it nearly impossible to safely switch into. However, there are some Pokemon that fare much better than most on average. Chief among these is Moltres as it can take any move bar Stone Edge and KO back with a STAB Hurricane. Spiritomb is immune to both of Gallade's STABs and can even take boosted coverage moves from the bulky Swords Dance set should it be healthy. It can then use Shadow Sneak to easily 2HKO Gallade. Entei is bulky enough to take a hit from sets lacking Stone Edge and hit back hard with Flare Blitz while it easily revenge kills the offensive Swords Dance set with ExtremeSpeed. Outside of these three, though, finding your way in on resisted attacks is key against Gallade. Thankfully, you have an ally in four moveslot syndrome as Gallade simply has too many options for its own good and just can't cover everything in four moves. Without Night Slash, Gallade has a very difficult time with bulky Psychic- and Ghost-types such as Uxie, Dusknoir, and Slowking, although the latter has to be wary of Leaf Blade as well. Speaking of Leaf Blade, Gallade absolutely needs it to get past Quagsire which will wall any boosting Gallade set otherwise thanks to Unaware. If Gallade forgoes Zen Headbutt, bulky Poison-types such as Amoonguss, Qwilfish, and Weezing will have little to fear, although the former must also be wary of a possible Ice Punch. If Gallade isn't running Shadow Sneak, then Haunter and Kadabra will have few issues revenge killing it. Most Choice Scarf users in general will also have an easier time dealing with Gallade in this case. Mesprit has enough power to get past Gallade after Close Combat is used, but it must be wary of Night Slash. Offensive variants of Tangrowth can tank a hit from offensive Swords Dance Gallade and KO back with a Life Orb- or Choice Specs-boosted Leaf Storm while more defensive variants of Tangrowth can take on the other sets should they lack a Lum Berry.

Instead of trying to counter Gallade, you can opt to revenge kill it. This is much easier than trying to counter Gallade as its base 80 Speed and base 65 Defense allows most faster physical attackers to easily revenge kill it, as long as they can take a possible Shadow Sneak. Faster Pokemon with physical or STAB Flying-type moves can generally revenge kill Gallade with few problems. Examples of such Pokemon include Moltres, Archeops, Sigilyph, Sceptile, Swellow, Tauros, and Scyther. Rotom and Haunter have to look out for Shadow Sneak, but they can use STAB Shadow Ball to take out Gallade. Strong priority users can also revenge kill Gallade once it's weakened or used Close Combat a couple of times. Spiritomb, Entei, Kabutops, and Feraligatr are the best options for this as three of the four pick up STAB on their priority while Entei has ExtremeSpeed.

Gallade

Overview

Offensive Swords Dance

Bulky Swords Dance

Bulk Up

Choice Band

Specially Defensive

Other Options

Checks and Counters