|
-
Justified
- Raises Attack one stage when hit by a Dark-type move.
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Level 100 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
91
|
- |
323 |
386 |
- |
| Atk |
129
|
264 |
294 |
357 |
392 |
| Def |
90
|
194 |
216 |
279 |
306 |
| SpA |
72
|
162 |
180 |
243 |
267 |
| SpD |
90
|
194 |
216 |
279 |
306 |
| Spe |
108
|
226 |
252 |
315 |
346 |
Overview
As part of the new legendary foursome (don't forget PONY, people!), Terrakion boasts a unique type combination and some pretty beastly base stats to take advantage of it offensively. The great type coverage granted by its STABs alone essentially allows Terrakion to do whatever it wants with its last two moveslots. Because of these factors, Terrakion can be one of the best stat-boosters in the game, one of the best Choice Band users in the game, or one of the best revenge killers in the game when equipped with a Choice Scarf. With this offensive diversity, Terrakion is one of the best offensive threats in the game that every team should be prepared for, and everyone should consider using.
Stop me if I'm talking too much about how great Terrakion's offensive typing is, but the Choice Band set truly exemplifies just how fantastic its STABs really are. Choice Band Terrakion essentially boils down to, "Click its appropriate STAB for the situation and watch things take massive amounts of damage." Additional factors, such as great Speed, a resistance to Stealth Rock, and solid bulk make Terrakion arguably the best Choice Band user in the OU metagame.
Because Terrakion's STABs are just so balling, the last two moves in the set serve very limited functions. X-Scissor hits the bulky Psychic-types a bit harder than Stone Edge does, while also having the upside of being 100% accurate. Sacred Sword is a solid option in the fourth moveslot for situations in which you want to use your Fighting-type STAB without being forced to lower Terrakion's defenses. Quick Attack, normally a terrible option on just about everything that learns it, is somewhat viable on Terrakion. Because Terrakion doesn't need a coverage move in that last slot, Quick Attack becomes a solid situational, last resort move if you need to knock that last 15% off Latios.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Earthquake is extremely redundant with Close Combat, but it nails a couple things slightly harder and doesn't lower your defenses. However, because Choice-locked Earthquake without STAB is generally a terrible option, you're often better off with Sacred Sword as your situational move of choice; that or either Double Kick can be favorable aiding against threats like Focus Sash Mamoswine and those behind a Substitute. Rock Slide is also a viable option, as it allows you to take advantage of a more accurate Rock-type STAB that can fish for a flinch if you ever need one.
Generally, an Adamant nature is ill-advised on any Terrakion set that doesn't have Rock Polish since it means you will be outpaced by a large number of threats (as well as losing the speed tie with Virizion and Infernape). But on Choice Band Terrakion, the extra power can be very welcome against Pokemon such as Gliscor and Slowbro.
The same Pokemon that pair up well with the Double Boosting set also pair well with Choice Band Terrakion. In this case, however, Terrakion is generally best suited as the Pokemon that does the damage necessary to open holes in the opponent's team. The sheer damage that even bulkier Pokemon like Gliscor take from Terrakion's STABs make it nearly impossible for those defensive Pokemon to stay around long enough to wall the subsequent Landorus.
Many of the same factors that make Terrakion an amazing Choice Band user lend themselves to making Terrakion one of the best Choice Scarf users in the game as well. Its blazing Speed allows it to safely revenge kill some of the biggest threats in the game. The moves are self-explanatory if you read the Choice Band set. Close Combat and Stone Edge are your two powerful STAB moves and X-Scissor covers bulky Psychic-types. The fourth slot is, once again, essentially useless, so run whatever you feel like. Rock Slide is the first option merely because its ability to flinch can be useful in a pinch, while other options such as Earthquake provide redundant coverage.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Once again, Adamant is an option over Jolly, and it is even more viable with Choice Scarf compared to other sets. But still, losing the jump on several key Pokemon is rarely worth the extra power. Earthquake is a terrible option again for doing slightly more damage to Jirachi or...Muk, or something. You could still run Quick Attack in the last slot to pick off threatening Pokemon at low health...I'm just kidding. Please don't do that.
As mentioned in the Overview, Terrakion has amazing offensive typing, and combined with its bulk, has the freedom to do what very few other Pokemon in the game are able to: run a double boosting set. This gives Terrakion the versatility to be a fantastic weapon against both offensive and defensive teams. Against offensive teams, Rock Polish allows Terrakion to use its great STABs and the boost from Life Orb to run through them. Against slower, defensive teams, Terrakion can amplify its raw power with a Swords Dance, since it is unlikely to require the Speed boost. Also, it isn't that uncommon to find yourself in a situation where you are able to boost both Speed and Attack.
Air Balloon versus Life Orb is the biggest question you have to ask yourself when using Double Boosting Terrakion. Air Balloon is extremely useful for setting up in those frequent situations where you need to avoid an Earthquake. The most obvious scenario is getting an extra boost against Gliscor. Life Orb, on the other hand, adds to Terrakion's raw power, allowing it to nail a number of KOs that it normally wouldn't get. It really comes down to personal preference and which item is best suited for your team. Choose wisely!
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Whether to choose Adamant or Jolly is another difficult choice. Jolly is preferred for the ability to outpace positive base 100 Speed Pokemon before a Rock Polish boost, and to tie other base 108s, most notably Virizion, Infernape, and obviously other Terrakion. The power boost from an Adamant nature is very welcome, however, so if you're fine losing the jump on a few notable Pokemon, feel free to go with that. You could also run a slightly bulkier spread with Leftovers if that floats your boat. However, the standard 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe spread generally works best.
With an Adamant nature, Terrakion makes great use of the item Rock Gem, bestowing Stone Edge the extra 50% power buff to overcome even the most durable physical walls. To illustrate, after a Swords Dance, a Rock Gem-boosted Stone Edge scores an OHKO on Gliscor most of the time without Stealth Rock, as well as gaining a good chance to cleanly score an OHKO on Slowbro and Tangrowth after Stealth Rock. However, Rock Gem is only one-use, so there is a real chance that Terrakion would use up its Gem to revenge kill a death fodder rather than for wallbreaking. Rock Gem also does not help against Hippowdon, the premier physical tank of OU. Air Balloon is a more useful one-time item in this regard, and Life Orb provides a more consistent power boost than Rock Gem. Terrakion also must run Adamant nature to net the amazing kills on Gliscor, Tangrowth, and Slowbro, and this speed drop undoubtedly hampers its sweep.
Terrakion already has fantastic coverage with its two STABs, but you can always drop one of the boosting moves for a coverage move, the best option being X-Scissor. X-Scissor gives you a slightly stronger, 100% accurate move against a few of the Psychic-types that can slow Terrakion down a bit (especially Claydol). Earthquake is generally a terrible option, as its coverage is extremely redundant with Close Combat, so don't run that on this set.
Terrakion can function as either a Pokemon that opens holes for the rest of your team, or one that takes advantage of the holes opened by other threatening sweepers. Generally, the best sweepers to pair with Terrakion are those that fare well in sand. Landorus is the most prominent sweeper that comes to mind. Landorus can stick Hidden Power Ice on its set to take out Gliscor or run Swords Dance and Life Orb to absolutely eviscerate Slowbro or Reuniclus. Terrakion itself can muscle its way through Gliscor, which allows Landorus to have a field day. Because Terrakion shares a number of weaknesses with either two of those sweepers, you should also consider pairing Terrakion with some sweepers that offer nice resistance-pairing. Choices include Gyarados, which resists Fighting-, Water-, Steel-, and is immune to Ground-type attacks; or Latios, which also provides several compatible resistances while potentially baiting Dark-type attacks.
While other Terrakion sets are more focused towards sweeping and punching holes, this set focuses more on supporting its teammates by setting up Stealth Rock. Terrakion makes for an excellent user of Stealth Rock due to the many switches it forces with its heralded STABs. This Terrakion set is best used in the lead position, as it can get up Stealth Rock right off the bat and threatens common weather inducing and entry hazard-setting leads. It can prevent Deoxys-D from getting up any entry hazards with Taunt and can stop most setup sweepers that might choose to lead in their tracks. Another reason why Terrakion is an excellent user of Stealth Rock is that it can beat a common spinner—Forretress—as well as Espeon and Xatu which reflect Stealth Rock and Taunt. Very few Stealth Rock users can beat Espeon and Xatu, so this is a major advantage over other users. In addition, Terrakion is pretty much the only Stealth Rock user not named Tyranitar that is legitimately threatening to sun teams and their most common methods of preventing Stealth Rock from being set up, namely Forretress and Xatu. Stone Edge and Close Combat hit most of a sun team for heavy damage and Stealth Rock is a pain for Fire-types such as Volcarona, Victini, and Ninetales on said teams. Terrakion is also not setup bait for opposing entry hazard setters, unlike Ferrothorn and Forretress. Swords Dance can be used over Taunt to bluff one of the more traditional Terrakion sets and to provide immediate pressure in the lead position and later in the game after Stealth Rock has already been set up. As a final note, Stealth Rock Terrakion is often unexpected, which gives it more opportunity to set it up.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
The EVs are fairly obvious, with maximum investment in both Attack and Speed for Terrakion to function as efficiently as possible. A Jolly nature is used to best utilize Terrakion's high Speed stat, but an Adamant nature is an option, allowing Terrakion to always OHKO standard Breloom. However, this would cause Terrakion to be slower than other Terrakion, Keldeo, and other Pokemon with 95 base Speed or above that choose to run positive natures, as well as making it impossible to test whether opposing Landorus and Salamence are using a Choice Scarf or not with Terrakion's Focus Sash, but it is often worth the trade-off should one desire Terrakion to hit harder. Speaking of Focus Sash, it guarantees the setup of Stealth Rock in the lead position and allows Terrakion to stay in and go for the KO on opposing Starmie and Jolteon, among other Pokemon that outspeed it.
Where other move options are concerned, there are two that can boost Terrakion's effectiveness in certain situations. Substitute can be used to allow Terrakion to beat every common spinner, including Forretress, Starmie, and Tentacruel, as well as threaten sun teams even more by having a method to bypass Venusaur with a Chlorophyll boost. In that case, a Stone Plate may be used to boost the power of Stone Edge or a Fist Plate to boost the power of Close Combat due to the fact that Substitute makes Focus Sash unusable. However, Focus Sash already does this and more, so Substitute is very niche and usually less effective than Focus Sash + Taunt. X-Scissor is an option to OHKO Celebi, but its use would be solely for that purpose and so is not recommended unless one's team has trouble with Celebi. Lastly, a Rock Gem can be used to OHKO bulky Starmie and 2HKO standard Tentacruel, but Focus Sash has a myriad of uses that make Rock Gem inferior.
In the realm of support, there is nothing mandatory as Terrakion does very well as a standalone Pokemon. However, there are many optional forms of support that are beneficial to Terrakion. A spinblocker, such as Gengar, Jellicent, or Sableye, is helpful because Terrakion will have trouble setting up Stealth Rock multiple times due to its reliance on Focus Sash. Toxic Spikes support may be helpful if one wants Terrakion to beat bulky Water-types, with the two best users being Tentacruel and Forretress. There are many Pokemon that partner well with Terrakion thanks to its overwhelming power and utility. Since this Terrakion is a nightmare for sun teams, Tyranitar loves it as a partner, freeing up a moveslot for another coverage move and in return providing a 50% boost to Terrakion's Special Defense. Dragonite boasts excellent defensive synergy with Terrakion and enjoys Stealth Rock not being set up as well as having Ferrothorn removed. Latias is in the same boat as Dragonite and always beats Starmie, a major threat to Terrakion if its Focus Sash is already broken. Politoed enjoys the fact that Terrakion can remove its two most common rival weather inducers, Tyranitar and Ninetales, both of which hinder Politoed and its teammates. Lastly, it should be mentioned that every team pretty much requires Stealth Rock in one way or another, and Terrakion is an amazing user of it.
Besides Gliscor, Slowbro, Landorus-T, and a few obscure counters that struggle to reach even 2% usage in OU, the only way to deal with Terrakion is through status or revenge killing. Now, imagine if it had a way to get around status users and revenge killers—that would be a sight to behold wouldn't it? If this behemoth managed to set up, the opponent would surely be stuck between a rock and a hard place. Well, why are you still imagining? Substitute + Swords Dance Terrakion does just that! With Substitute, the terracotta warrior can now block those ever so annoying Thunder Waves, Will-O-Wisps, and Toxics. Furthermore, Substitute acts as a buffer against annoying revenge killers, such as Alakazam and Starmie, who now must waste a turn breaking the Substitute, and are destroyed by a powerful STAB move in return. Most importantly, though, Terrakion is cushioned from priority moves, such as Scizor's Bullet Punch, and with its newly found fly swatter, can crush the red bug in cold blood.
While Substitute is certainly the distinguishing move on this set, it is important to note that without Terrakion's fantastic stats, movepool, and offensive typing, this set wouldn't be nearly as effective. Swords Dance skyrockets Terrakion's Attack to terrifying levels. Even Gliscor and Slowbro must think twice about coming in, because if they are damaged prior to the encounter, a +2 Stone Edge can still break through. Its Fighting- and Rock-type STAB combination provides fantastic coverage, resisted only by a select few lower-tier Pokemon. Close Combat is Arceus's gift to Fighting-types; backed by Terrakion's immense power, it is one of the most fearsome moves in the metagame. Stone Edge rounds off this brute's set, allowing it to barbarically tear apart opposing teams.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Maximum Attack and Speed investment further oil this killing machine. A Jolly nature is preferred to Speed-tie with opposing base 108 Pokemon; with Substitute protecting Terrakion from potential revenge killers, you may fall to temptation and use an Adamant nature, but keep in mind that the longer you can preserve that Substitute, the more time you have to dismember your opponent's Pokemon. The extra power would certainly make Terrakion an even more formidable attacker, but being outsped by base 100 Pokemon is a real turn off. 4 Defense EVs rather than 4 HP EVs seems trivial at first, but 4 HP EVs give Terrakion 324 HP, which only allows it to make three Substitutes. You never know when a fourth Substitute can come in handy.
Rock Gem is the primary item, as it allows a boosted Terrakion to OHKO Gliscor with Stone Edge, and also allows you to feign a Choice item early on. Alternatively, a Life Orb can be used to bluff a Double Dancer set, although Substitute and Life Orb recoil could build up very quickly. If you use Substitute conservatively though, this set will still serve you well. Leftovers can be used, although the element of surprise is key for this set, and Leftovers is a dead giveaway that you're running Substitute. Salac Berry trades Speed for power, giving Terrakion a +1 boost if it ever gets low on health. You can use this to your advantage by repeatedly using Substitute, though you have to make sure opposing Breloom, Lucario, and Scizor are removed first. In any case, Terrakion is so powerful that it could probably pull its weight even without an item, so don't fret too much about the choice of item.
This set is incredibly self-sufficient, and doesn't need much in terms of support. However, it would be wise to pair it with another powerful physical attacker, such as Landorus or Lucario, to form a one-two punch. Wish support can come in handy, especially if using Life Orb, as Terrakion will often wear itself out with Substitute. Chansey and Blissey are ideal candidates, as they can also check troublesome Psychic-types, such as Starmie and Alakazam. Do keep in mind that Terrakion remains helpless against the likes of Scizor when not behind a Substitute, so Magnezone can be used to dismantle it. Bulky Psychic-types, such as Slowbro and Reuniclus, are swiftly eliminated by Scizor and Tyranitar. Tyranitar also happens to summon permanent Sandstorm, which gives Terrakion a nice 50% Special Defense boost. Finally, the only Pokemon that can put a full stop to this set are obscure threats, such as Golurk, Nidoqueen, and Claydol. As laughable as these Pokemon may seem, it would be a catastrophe if your Terrakion sweep fell short because of them. It would be wise to carry a powerful Water-type, such as Gyarados, Starmie, or Rotom-W, to clear the ruffian's path.
Other Options
I'm sure you've already looked through Terrakion's moveset and thought, "Whoa it learns Calm Mind!" Yes, yes it does learn Calm Mind. It's arguably Terrakion's best set; however, for some reason, the Quality Control guys won't let me list it first in this analysis. In a similar (and more serious!) vein, Terrakion also learns Work Up. The only use for it would be to lure Gliscor into a +1 Hidden Power Ice. The problem with that idea is that using Work Up as your opponent switches to Gliscor is a dead giveaway that you're rocking Hidden Power Ice. If you want Terrakion to act as a Gliscor lure, you're much better just pumping a ton of EVs into Special Attack so that it doesn't see it coming until it's already dead. Terrakion can also make use of Protect on some sets, which can be used to scout against Choice-locked Pokemon such as Rotom-W, Landorus, and Scizor; however, in order to use this, it sacrifices an important moveslot for a move that is only useful in a niche situation, and as such Protect is usually inferior to Terrakion's standard options.
Terrakion also learns Taunt, which obviously makes a Taunt/Swords Dance set an option. However, most of Terrakion's counters are simply going to attack it straight up, meaning there are very few situations in which Taunt would be anywhere near useful. Maybe against Skarmory I guess? Yeah, that makes sense.
Checks and Counters
If there was an award in OU for "most difficult Pokemon to switch into," here's your winner. Slowbro is probably the best check you'll find in OU, although a Stone Edge boosted by a Choice Band or a Swords Dance boost will hit like a truck. Gliscor and Landorus-T are also good checks, though they will be taking a ton from Stone Edge from those sets. Mew, Reuniclus and Jellicent also fall into the similar category. There is light at the end of the tunnel though; Terrakion needs to hit two consecutive Stone Edges to KO any of these Pokemon. Hippowdon can also tank a hit and Slack Off. You may be inclined to use Skarmory as your Terrakion counter, but despite its good Defense, Skarmory is ravaged by a Close Combat from the Choice Band or Swords Dance set, allowing it to only deal with Terrakion that lack Attack boosts.
Terrakion can be hard to check because of its great Speed. Scizor and Azumarill are two Choice Band users that can stop any Terrakion set dead in its tracks with their STAB priority attacks. Infernape can also do a good chunk of damage with Mach Punch; Conkeldurr can do the same and can also, at high health, survive a non-boosted Close Combat and go for the OHKO with Drain Punch after Stealth Rock. Latios and Tornadus can outspeed and hit Terrakion hard with Psyshock or Hurricane, respectively. Gengar and Starmie can smash it with Focus Blast and Hydro Pump, while Espeon can hit it hard with Psychic. Gengar deserves a special mention because it can Disable Stone Edge, crippling Terrakion instantly. Dugtrio does what he does best and can trap Terrakion with Earthquake. Wobbuffet knocks Choice-locked versions of Terrakion out of the park and will make them think twice before spamming Close Combat. Choice Scarf users such as Rotom-W, Landorus and other Terrakion are also fantastic checks.
Ironically, Terrakion's best counters litter the lower tiers, with examples being Golurk, Nidoqueen, Claydol, and Tangrowth. If you're feeling desperate, then one of these is your best bet.
