[Overview]
<p>With a change in the definition of Evasion Clause now banning Sand Veil from OU, Garchomp lost most of his strength in sandstorm, leaving him with only his Rough Skin ability. However, don't think Sand Veil was the only reason for Garchomp's success; a great Dragon / Ground dual typing coupled with high base stats is nothing to scoff at. Garchomp's almost perfect STAB coverage is only resisted by Skarmory and the rarely seen Bronzong and inviable Shedinja. Resisting Stealth Rock and working well under any weather condition are just a few more of his many perks.</p>
<p>Although he faces competition from his Dragon-type brethren Dragonite, Salamence, Haxorus, Latios, and Hydreigon, Garchomp can stand his ground thanks to his unique attributes, including the ability to set up Stealth Rock and an immunity to Electric-type moves that leaves him completely unaffected by Thunder Wave and Volt Switch. His weaknesses to Dragon- and Ice-type moves do leave him vulnerable to Choice Scarf Dragon-types and Ice Shard users, but these are issues team support should take care of.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Outrage
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Fire Fang / Aqua Tail
move 4: Dragon Claw / Dual Chop
item: Choice Band
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>What to do when you lack the time or the inclination to set up Garchomp? Slap a Choice Band on him and you're set. With an instant Attack boost, Garchomp's power reaches catastrophic levels. Outrage OHKOes or 2HKOes the entire OU metagame bar Steel-types—which is where Earthquake comes in. Although Earthquake is a risky pick for any Choice item user, Garchomp makes it work, using it as needed coverage and a powerful STAB. Fire Fang lets Garchomp break through Pokemon, such as Scizor, Ferrothorn and Forretress, that laugh at Outrage and take neutral damage from Earthquake and is therefore the preferred move outside of rain.</p>
<p>In rain, on the other hand, Aqua Tail gets a significant boost, gaining the power to hit most Steel-types—including Skarmory and Bronzong—harder and to 2HKO Gliscor. In the last slot, a secondary Dragon-type move is recommended to avoid being locked into Outrage when possible. While Dragon Claw is the more secure pick, Dual Chop lets Garchomp get past Substitute Dragonite and SubCM setup sweepers.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Band Garchomp can deal with most weather inducers, which is quite handy. Tyranitar is dispatched by Earthquake, and even physically defensive Ninetales is OHKOed by both of Garchomp's STAB moves. While 252/0 Politoed can be OHKOed with Outrage, physically defensive variants are only 2HKOed, as is 252/0 Hippowdon. Physically defensive Hippowdon is the only weather inducer that can avoid being 2HKOed.</p>
<p>Before Garchomp can unleash Outrage's full potential, Steel-types and faster Dragon-types need to be removed. Skarmory is a thorn in his side, being barely 2HKOed by Fire Fang in neutral weather and by rain-boosted Aqua Tail. Both Magneton and Magnezone make good partners for Garchomp in order to remove not just Skarmory but also Ferrothorn, Forretress, and Scizor Choice-locked into Bullet Punch. Any other potentially problematic Steel-types, such as Heatran, Jirachi, Magnezone, and Magneton, can be taken out by Dugtrio. Another option is Mamoswine, which can use its high base Attack stat and great dual STABs to deal with most threats to Garchomp. Defensively, Heatran and Jirachi can put a stop to most Dragon- and Ice-type moves aimed at Garchomp.</p>
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Fire Fang
item: Yache Berry / Haban Berry
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp can use Swords Dance rather easily thanks to his good number of resistances. Just bring him in on moves he resists, such as Volt Switch and Flamethrower, or that don't have STAB, set up Swords Dance, and start sweeping. Dual STAB is pretty much all he needs, as with a +2 boost under his belt, everything is overrun by Outrage, including physically defensive Hippowdon and Intimidate Gyarados. Fire Fang is needed to deal with Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Forretress—Scizor is OHKOed by +2 Earthquake after Stealth Rock. Fire Fang does more damage than Fire Blast after a boost, making it the heavily preferred option.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp has enough power after a Swords Dance boost, so he can afford to use a Yache Berry or Haban Berry to take hits better. The former allows Garchomp to take any unSTABed Ice-type move and also survive Life Orb Mamoswine's Ice Shard while the latter lets Garchomp survive an Outrage from Choice Scarf Salamence, non-Choice Band Dragonite, and opposing Choice Band Garchomp as well as a Draco Meteor from Life Orb Latias and Choice Scarf Latios. Draco Meteors from Life Orb Latios and Hydreigon still OHKO Garchomp, though, as does Outrage from Kyurem-B 43.75% of the time. Dragon Claw can be used instead of Outrage to avoid being locked in; however, Dragon Claw is weaker and will miss out on OHKOs on Deoxys-D, Gliscor, Celebi, and Hippowdon.</p>
<p>Garchomp fits well on DragMag teams, where he can get free switch-ins from Magneton's and Magnezone's Volt Switches. Jirachi and Scizor can both use U-turn to give Garchomp more safe switch-ins, and Jirachi can even pass Wishes to grant Garchomp multiple chances to attempt a sweep. Even though Garchomp can wreck almost anything, he still detests Scald and Will-O-Wisp burns. Gastrodon absorbs Scald and doesn't care much about being burned. In case of an unexpected status ailment on Garchomp, look to cleric support; Vaporeon can cure status, pass Wish, and allow soft switch-ins by using Baton Pass.</p>
[SET]
name: Substitute + Swords Dance
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Swords Dance
move 3: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 4: Earthquake
item: Leftovers / Salac Berry
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp doesn't hide; Garchomp tactically retreats behind a Substitute. This allows him to set up more easily or attack, depending on the situation. In order to late-game sweep, you must either remove all the opponent's Outrage sponges or leave them with only one faster Pokemon. With only his STAB moves, Garchomp loses some coverage, but he gets significantly more power in return. A neutral Earthquake is often enough to let him power through most Steel-types, including Scizor, Ferrothorn and Forretress, all of which are easily 2HKOed at +2.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Both Leftovers and Salac Berry work well with Substitute. A lot of Pokemon in OU run a Choice Scarf or have access to priority, examples of the former being Latios and Terrakion and examples of the latter being Scizor, Breloom, Dragonite, Mamoswine, and Lucario, and thus threaten Garchomp without an active Substitute, even with the Speed boost from Salac Berry. This ultimately makes it an inferior option over Leftovers's constant recovery effect. If you want to use Salac Berry, make sure to eliminate these threats before starting your sweep. A Life Orb boost enables Garchomp to 2HKO Skarmory with +2 Outrage; however, residual damage will rack up quickly.</p>
<p>Lacking any Fire-type move, Garchomp badly needs support to remove opposing Skarmory and Bronzong. Besides Magnezone and Magneton, there are a number of other viable teammates for this purpose, such as Thundurus-T, Rotom-W, Heatran, and even Infernape. Since Mamoswine is a huge threat to this set, running Dragon-types that can eliminate Mamoswine, such as Kyurem-B and Haxorus, will greatly help Garchomp sweep. Choice Scarf Pokemon such as Terrakion, Latios, and Keldeo are also threatening. Scizor can handle Terrakion and Latios, while Latias or a Choice Scarf Latios of your own can handle Keldeo.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Outrage
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Stone Edge / Aqua Tail / Fire Blast
move 4: Dual Chop / Dragon Claw
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly / Naive
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Scarf Garchomp noticeably lacks the immediate wallbreaking power of his other sets, but is one of the fastest Pokemon in the game, outspeeding almost everything aside from Choice Scarf Latios, Choice Scarf Terrakion, and Chlorophyll sweepers such as Venusaur, and is hence an effective revenge killer. Outrage is his main move once certain threats are removed. STAB Earthquake hits most Steel-types hard, while he can pick between Stone Edge, Aqua Tail, and Fire Blast for coverage. Stone Edge allows Garchomp to revenge kill the likes of Volcarona and Thundurus-T without locking himself into Outrage, while Fire Blast 2HKOes Skarmory, something Fire Fang does not accomplish. Aqua Tail should only really be used on rain teams, however, where it hits Skarmory and Bronzong as hard as possible. With near-perfect coverage, Garchomp can viably run many moves in the last slot. Dual Chop has the same power as Dragon Claw, but has the added benefit of breaking Substitutes. However, Dragon Claw is still an option due to Dual Chop's lower accuracy.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Scarf Garchomp is best used as a glue for offensive and balanced teams, functioning as a good revenge killer and a good late-game cleaner at the same time. Typical partners that remove Steel-types are needed for an eventual Outrage sweep: Dugtrio in combination with Scizor or Jirachi can drag out and remove most easily, while Magneton and Magnezone can take out Skarmory safely. Breloom, Scizor, and Mamoswine can threaten faster Choice Scarf users with their priority moves to prevent them from revenge killing Garchomp. Due to Choice Scarf Garchomp's lower damage output compared to other sets, his attacks are relatively weak against neutral targets. Therefore, running powerful Dragon-types alongside Garchomp, such as Kyurem-B, Haxorus, and Dragonite, is a good idea in order to weaken or remove his checks and counters.</p>
[SET]
name: Stealth Rock
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Fire Blast / Swords Dance
item: Life Orb / Focus Sash
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Naive / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp is no one-dimensional hard-hitter; he can also securely set up Stealth Rock for the team, handling most spinners between his dual STABs and Fire Blast. The latter OHKOes Forretress with Life Orb, 2HKOes specially defensive Skarmory, and decimates Ferrothorn and Scizor. Swords Dance also works in the last slot to give Garchomp a secondary role as a setup sweeper.</p>
<p>Focus Sash can be used to make Garchomp a fantastic lead, as he is one of the fastest Stealth Rock users in the tier. If Terrakion hits Garchomp, Rough Skin will break its Focus Sash, resulting in an easy OHKO with Earthquake. Rapid Spin users, such as bulky Starmie, Forretress, and Tentacruel, are almost no problem for this set, as most of them are KOed easily, allowing Stealth Rock to be kept up on the field. This reduces the need for a spinblocker on the team.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Stealth Rock Garchomp's biggest advantage over its competition is that most players do not expect him to carry Stealth Rock. Additionally, Garchomp can easily set up Stealth Rock against sun teams since their members don't like switching in on Garchomp, while Xatu, who switches in easily on many other Stealth Rock users, is a bad switch-in to Garchomp. This set also fits very easily on offensive and balanced teams since Garchomp can actually deal damage after setting up Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>Deoxys-D works nicely with Garchomp by setting up Spikes for more residual damage. Dragon-types, such as Haxorus and Dragonite, are also good partners since Garchomp can either weaken or remove their checks and counters. While a spinblocker is not entirely necessary since Garchomp beats most Rapid Spin users, having a spinblocker like Jellicent can still be helpful against Donphan and bulky Starmie, who are major obstacles for Garchomp.</p>
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Dragon Claw / Dragon Tail
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Fire Blast / Aqua Tail / Protect
item: Leftovers
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 HP / 196 Def / 60 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp has great natural bulk and thus can work in a more support-oriented way. Stealth Rock is once again Garchomp's main aim. In contrast to his other sets, this one forgoes Outrage completely, as support Garchomp lacks the strength to take advantage of it, instead using Dragon Claw or Dragon Tail as they have the same neutral coverage, the former having more power while the latter can be used to phaze opposing Pokemon, racking up residual damage. The combination of Earthquake and Fire Blast destroys all Steel-types, but Aqua Tail can be used in rain to take out Gliscor and Skarmory. Alternatively, Protect lets Garchomp scout for super effective moves and aids prediction around Choice item users.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given Speed investment lets Garchomp outspeed neutral base 90s, such as Adamant Lucario, and positive natured Heatran and Breloom. The given spread maximizes Garchomp's bulk and specifically allows him to survive +2 Life Orb Breloom's Mach Punch and Choice Band Terrakion's Close Combat. Even Jolly Life Orb Mamoswine's Ice Shard has just a 37.5% chance to OHKO from full health, while unboosted Hidden Power Ices from the likes of Jirachi, Heatran, Alakazam, and Jolteon also fail to OHKO. However, even this bulky Garchomp should avoid Outrage, Draco Meteor, and Ice Beam.</p>
<p>This set works in almost any weather. In particular, sandstorm increases passive damage; Dragon Tail and even Rocky Helmet should therefore be considered on such teams. In sun and in rain, Fire Blast and Aqua Tail get pseudo-STAB, respectively, enhancing them significantly.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Dragon Tail can replace Dragon Claw on any set where the latter is secondary STAB. Bulldoze receives STAB and allows Garchomp to slow down faster Pokemon and Choice Scarf users on the switch, potentially letting him fire off another attack. Garchomp can also learn Stone Edge and Rock Slide, but these offer almost no additional coverage except against Volcarona and have subpar accuracy.</p>
<p>A classic ChainChomp set with Draco Meteor and Fire Blast might catch the opponent by surprise, as people usually expect Garchomp to be physically offensive. It lacks general power in comparison to Outrage and Fire Fang due both to Garchomp's higher Attack stat and his ability to boost it but does a decent job on more physically defensively oriented Pokemon and doesn't mind being burned as much. Mixed variants should use a Naive nature to keep Garchomp's good physical bulk for taking common priority moves. A passive damage stacker set with Protect, Toxic, and a Rocky Helmet can be used on sandstorm teams. RestTalk can surprise many opponents; with Garchomp's natural bulk and newfound ability to get rid of status, he can increase his staying power to some extent.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Skarmory and Bronzong are the only Pokemon that ever happen to be seen in OU that resist both of Garchomp's STAB moves. Both are also good physical walls, making Fire-type coverage almost mandatory. Opposing Dragon-types will also trouble Garchomp. Choice Scarf Kyurem-B is faster than any non-Choice Scarf Garchomp, and Kyurem-B's Outrage will definitely hurt a lot, so team support is needed to take care of him. Choice Scarf Salamence outspeeds and OHKOes non-Choice Scarf Garchomp, assuming Garchomp lacks Haban Berry, and can potentially use Garchomp to start a Moxie sweep. Heatran, Jirachi, and Scizor can take Outrage to some degree and counter back with powerful attacks or status ailments.</p>
<p>Defensive Gliscor is able to switch into Garchomp's Choice-locked Earthquake thanks to its immunity, forcing him to switch. Mamoswine is also one of Garchomp's worst problems, OHKOing any non-Yache Berry variant with Ice Shard. Weavile works similarly, but can get past Yache Berry variants of Garchomp with Ice Punch. Garchomp has only two weaknesses, but while they are low in quantity, they are high in quality: Garchomp will be OHKOed by almost any Outrage, Draco Meteor, Ice Beam, or Blizzard and even several Hidden Power Ices. Finally, priority from the likes of Breloom, Scizor, and Lucario can pick off a weakened Garchomp, even if he has a Choice Scarf or a Salac Berry boost.</p>
