[OVERVIEW]
* High base stats that are excellently distributed mean Garchomp can perform well in yet another year of VGC.
* It has just enough Speed to outpace most of the metagame and very high base Attack.
* Ground typing is also a key to its success, as common foes such as Alolan Marowak and Alolan Muk are weak to it.
* The newly acquired Groundium Z means Garchomp is no longer mostly walled by Wide Guard, as it once was.
* A format centralized around Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, and Tapu Bulu means that Garchomp is rarely safe.
* Other Ground-types such as Krookodile and Gastrodon can provide more support because of their abilities.
[SET]
name: Groundium Z
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw / Fire Fang
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Protect
item: Groundium Z
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake is Garchomp's primary STAB move, sporting a high Base Power and great super effective coverage.
* Dragon Claw can circumvent Wide Guard and threaten opposing Dragon-types.
* Fire Fang is an alternative for foes such as Kartana, particularly if you're worried about Tapu Fini's Misty Terrain.
* Poison Jab is used primarily to hit Fairy-types that threaten Garchomp and to hit Grass-types that resist Ground.
* Protect shields Garchomp for a turn, permitting an ally to eliminate a threat or switch to improve positioning.
Set Details
========
* Groundium Z grants Garchomp a nuke capable of circumventing Wide Guard.
* Rough Skin is preferred due to consistently inflicting damage against contact attackers; particularly weaker hits.
* Sand Veil can be used when paired with Gigalith's Sand Stream, as this provides a means of reliably activating it.
* A 252 / 252 spread is fine on a Pokemon like Garchomp that aims to be as fast and hard-hitting as possible.
* Though, investing at least 76 SpD EVs is an option to survive Tapu Koko's Life Orb-boosted Hidden Power Ice.
* A Jolly nature is generally superior, but if you don't care about Garchomp Speed ties, Adamant offers more power.
Usage Tips
========
* Garchomp generally serves as the offensive backbone to most teams, and will find itself bought to many matches.
* It's able to be relatively flexible with regards to timing. But bear in mind that leading with it risks a drop from Intimidate.
* Garchomp's good defensive stats and Rough Skin mean you shouldn't overly worry about taking hits to switch it in.
* When in a pinch, recall that the option of using Rock Slide to fish for flinches can win you otherwise lost games.
Team Options
========
* Having at least one Flying-type such as Celesteela or Gyarados is a good idea so Garchomp can Earthquake freely.
* Celesteela along with other Steel-types like Kartana and Magnezone can additionally threaten Fairy-types.
* Magnezone, or other Electric-types like Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu, can also beat Water-types and Celesteela.
* Fire-types such as Arcanine are another option for Celesteela, and can further threaten problematic Ice-types.
* Making use of Milotic to deter Intimidate can be useful to keep Garchomp's Attack unhindered by the opponent.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Rock Slide / Fire Fang
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake is the first, and most notable, of Garchomp's STAB moves by providing great coverage at high power.
* Dragon Claw can threaten opposing Dragon-types, more so than on other sets thanks to Choice Scarf.
* Poison Jab hits Fairy-types that threaten Garchomp super effectively as well as Grass-types that resist Ground.
* Rock Slide complements Earthquake's coverage and can easily flinch foes due to Garchomp's high Speed.
* Fire Fang provides an alternative for Steel-types such as Celesteela and Kartana, which can be problematic.
Set Details
========
* Choice Scarf boosts Garchomp's Speed to new heights, outpacing threats such as Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu.
* Rough Skin is the more consistent option over Sand Veil and inflicts chip damage to attackers that make contact.
* Sand Veil can be used over Rough Skin if sand can be reliably active thanks to an allied Gigalith's Sand Stream.
* The EVs are straightforward. An Adamant nature is used as the increased Speed from Jolly is now unneeded.
* One option, however, is to invest at least 76 SpD EVs to survive Tapu Koko's Life Orb-boosted Hidden Power Ice.
* Speed EVs can drop to just 220 to outpace Pheromosa, but matching opposing Garchomp is generally worthwhile.
Usage Tips
========
* Garchomp is most effective when brought out mid-late game to finish weakened foes with its Speed.
* Don't be afraid to switch Garchomp into attacks, as Choice Scarf means foes will get fewer chances to follow up.
* This also presents a way to inflict chip damage on foes attempting weak contact attacks like Fake Out or Feint.
* Avoid locking Garchomp into Earthquake if it has no Flying-type allies, as it forces a switch the following turn.
* This set is especially vulnerable to Wide Guard, so ensure users of the move are a focus for Garchomp's partners.
Team Options
========
* Flying-types such as Celesteela and Gyarados are good partners, as Garchomp can Earthquake freely beside them.
* Celesteela additionally joins other Steel-types such as Kartana and Magnezone in being able to threaten Fairy-types.
* Electric-types such as Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu are great allies for threatening Water-types and Celesteela.
* Vikavolt is another great Electric-type teammate, as Levitate means Garchomp can Earthquake freely beside it.
* Fire-types such as Arcanine are another option for Celesteela, and, further, are a way of dealing with Ice-types.
* Milotic can be valuable as a way of deterring your opponent from investing heavily into Intimidate for Garchomp.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Fire Fang / Rock Slide
item: Assault Vest
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 28 HP / 172 Atk / 4 Def / 52 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake, being a strong spread move, serves as Garchomp's primary STAB move, with good coverage to boot.
* Dragon Claw is chosen as a reliable secondary STAB move that doesn't hit partners and isn't stopped by Wide Guard.
* Poison Jab hits Fairy-types hard, which Garchomp has a better chance to retaliate against thanks to Assault Vest.
* Fire Fang is used primarily for Kartana, but also helps deal with other Grass- and Steel-types like Celesteela.
* Rock Slide can be chosen if the above Pokemon are non-issues and complementing Earthquake is more valuable.
Set Details
========
* Rough Skin is the standard ability, as the chip damage it inflicts is reliable and significant enough to aid KOing foes.
* However, you may opt to use Sand Veil instead if Garchomp is paired with Gigalith, making it more consistent.
* Assault Vest compliments Garchomp's already good defensive stats by further boosting its Special Defense.
* The above, in combination with the EVs and nature, make Tapu Koko's Life Orb-boosted Dazzling Gleam a 3HKO.
Usage Tips
========
* This set aims to be more of a pivot by taking advantage of good resistances and greater coverage from dropping Protect.
* For this reason, you'll generally want to keep Garchomp in the back, ready to switch in, rather than as a lead.
* Doing so also helps it avoid the Attack drops associated with Intimidate, as users of the ability are often led with.
* Don't be worried about taking big hits to get KOs, such as against Tapu Koko. It's what the set was designed for.
* While this set isn't restrained by a Choice item, still be cautious of using Earthquake into a potential Wide Guard.
Team Options
========
* More than the other sets, this Garchomp enjoys partners that find a good balance between offense and defense.
* This is because frail attackers can't complete the kind of defensive cores that take advantage of this set's bulk.
* Flying-types such as Celesteela and Gyarados are nice partners, as Garchomp can Earthquake freely beside them.
* Celesteela, like other Steel-types such as Kartana and Magnezone, is also useful to threaten opposing Fairy-types.
* Electric-types like Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu are useful to deal with threatening Water-types and Celesteela.
* Vikavolt joins the aforementioned, as its Levitate ability means Garchomp can Earthquake freely alongside it.
* Fire-types such as Arcanine provide another means for dealing with Celesteela, in addition to Ice-type Pokemon.
* Milotic is a consideration for providing a means of deterring opposing Intimidate from neutering Garchomp's Attack.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Rock Tomb is an alternative to Rock Slide that provides a form of speed control in addition to Rock-type coverage.
* Swords Dance can greatly boost Garchomp's Attack provided it's complemented by the support to pull it off such as Fake Out.
* Substitute shields Garchomp against status and Intimidate in addition to buffering at least one strong attack.
* Focus Sash allows survival against a single attack, which is valuable given the amount of attacks that can OHKO.
* Yache Berry is often better than Focus Sash against Ice-type attacks due to hail otherwise picking Garchomp off at 1 HP.
* Roseli Berry is another option over Focus Sash which leaves Garchomp reasonably healthy after a Fairy attack.
* Lum Berry helps protect Garchomp against status, primarily burn, which would otherwise leave it crippled.
* Life Orb is great alternative item that provides a sizable boost to all Garchomp's attacks in exchange for health.
* Choice Band grants an even greater boost than Life Orb but, in exchange, locks Garchomp into a single move.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dragon-type Pokemon**: Dragon-types such as opposing Garchomp, Salamence, and Goodra, while threatened by their own weakness to Dragon, are nevertheless able to put pressure on Garchomp with their respective STAB moves.
**Fairy-type Pokemon**: Fairy-types such as Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, and Tapu Bulu can significantly threaten Garchomp. Tapu Bulu is of note, as while it's incredibly threatened by Poison Jab, its Grassy Terrain is nevertheless an annoyance for reducing the damage of Earthquake.
**Ice-type Pokemon**: Given that Garchomp is 4x weak to Ice, it makes sense that it's heavily threatened by Ice-type attackers such as Alolan Ninetales and Alolan Sandslash. Water-types are similarly threatening, as they commonly carry Ice-type attacks like Ice Beam.
**Celesteela**: Celesteela easily walls both of Garchomp's STAB moves, making it a nuisance for Garchomp.
**Intimidate and Burns**: Intimidate and burn cut into Garchomp's damage output. Intimidate users like Gyarados and Krookodile drop Attack when switched in. Gengar can also use Will-O-Wisp to halve Garchomp's Attack stat.
**Speed Control**: As Garchomp relies on its high Speed, effects such as Tailwind and Trick Room hamper it.
* High base stats that are excellently distributed mean Garchomp can perform well in yet another year of VGC.
* It has just enough Speed to outpace most of the metagame and very high base Attack.
* Ground typing is also a key to its success, as common foes such as Alolan Marowak and Alolan Muk are weak to it.
* The newly acquired Groundium Z means Garchomp is no longer mostly walled by Wide Guard, as it once was.
* A format centralized around Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, and Tapu Bulu means that Garchomp is rarely safe.
* Other Ground-types such as Krookodile and Gastrodon can provide more support because of their abilities.
[SET]
name: Groundium Z
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw / Fire Fang
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Protect
item: Groundium Z
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake is Garchomp's primary STAB move, sporting a high Base Power and great super effective coverage.
* Dragon Claw can circumvent Wide Guard and threaten opposing Dragon-types.
* Fire Fang is an alternative for foes such as Kartana, particularly if you're worried about Tapu Fini's Misty Terrain.
* Poison Jab is used primarily to hit Fairy-types that threaten Garchomp and to hit Grass-types that resist Ground.
* Protect shields Garchomp for a turn, permitting an ally to eliminate a threat or switch to improve positioning.
Set Details
========
* Groundium Z grants Garchomp a nuke capable of circumventing Wide Guard.
* Rough Skin is preferred due to consistently inflicting damage against contact attackers; particularly weaker hits.
* Sand Veil can be used when paired with Gigalith's Sand Stream, as this provides a means of reliably activating it.
* A 252 / 252 spread is fine on a Pokemon like Garchomp that aims to be as fast and hard-hitting as possible.
* Though, investing at least 76 SpD EVs is an option to survive Tapu Koko's Life Orb-boosted Hidden Power Ice.
* A Jolly nature is generally superior, but if you don't care about Garchomp Speed ties, Adamant offers more power.
Usage Tips
========
* Garchomp generally serves as the offensive backbone to most teams, and will find itself bought to many matches.
* It's able to be relatively flexible with regards to timing. But bear in mind that leading with it risks a drop from Intimidate.
* Garchomp's good defensive stats and Rough Skin mean you shouldn't overly worry about taking hits to switch it in.
* When in a pinch, recall that the option of using Rock Slide to fish for flinches can win you otherwise lost games.
Team Options
========
* Having at least one Flying-type such as Celesteela or Gyarados is a good idea so Garchomp can Earthquake freely.
* Celesteela along with other Steel-types like Kartana and Magnezone can additionally threaten Fairy-types.
* Magnezone, or other Electric-types like Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu, can also beat Water-types and Celesteela.
* Fire-types such as Arcanine are another option for Celesteela, and can further threaten problematic Ice-types.
* Making use of Milotic to deter Intimidate can be useful to keep Garchomp's Attack unhindered by the opponent.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Rock Slide / Fire Fang
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake is the first, and most notable, of Garchomp's STAB moves by providing great coverage at high power.
* Dragon Claw can threaten opposing Dragon-types, more so than on other sets thanks to Choice Scarf.
* Poison Jab hits Fairy-types that threaten Garchomp super effectively as well as Grass-types that resist Ground.
* Rock Slide complements Earthquake's coverage and can easily flinch foes due to Garchomp's high Speed.
* Fire Fang provides an alternative for Steel-types such as Celesteela and Kartana, which can be problematic.
Set Details
========
* Choice Scarf boosts Garchomp's Speed to new heights, outpacing threats such as Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu.
* Rough Skin is the more consistent option over Sand Veil and inflicts chip damage to attackers that make contact.
* Sand Veil can be used over Rough Skin if sand can be reliably active thanks to an allied Gigalith's Sand Stream.
* The EVs are straightforward. An Adamant nature is used as the increased Speed from Jolly is now unneeded.
* One option, however, is to invest at least 76 SpD EVs to survive Tapu Koko's Life Orb-boosted Hidden Power Ice.
* Speed EVs can drop to just 220 to outpace Pheromosa, but matching opposing Garchomp is generally worthwhile.
Usage Tips
========
* Garchomp is most effective when brought out mid-late game to finish weakened foes with its Speed.
* Don't be afraid to switch Garchomp into attacks, as Choice Scarf means foes will get fewer chances to follow up.
* This also presents a way to inflict chip damage on foes attempting weak contact attacks like Fake Out or Feint.
* Avoid locking Garchomp into Earthquake if it has no Flying-type allies, as it forces a switch the following turn.
* This set is especially vulnerable to Wide Guard, so ensure users of the move are a focus for Garchomp's partners.
Team Options
========
* Flying-types such as Celesteela and Gyarados are good partners, as Garchomp can Earthquake freely beside them.
* Celesteela additionally joins other Steel-types such as Kartana and Magnezone in being able to threaten Fairy-types.
* Electric-types such as Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu are great allies for threatening Water-types and Celesteela.
* Vikavolt is another great Electric-type teammate, as Levitate means Garchomp can Earthquake freely beside it.
* Fire-types such as Arcanine are another option for Celesteela, and, further, are a way of dealing with Ice-types.
* Milotic can be valuable as a way of deterring your opponent from investing heavily into Intimidate for Garchomp.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Earthquake
move 2: Dragon Claw
move 3: Poison Jab
move 4: Fire Fang / Rock Slide
item: Assault Vest
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 28 HP / 172 Atk / 4 Def / 52 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Earthquake, being a strong spread move, serves as Garchomp's primary STAB move, with good coverage to boot.
* Dragon Claw is chosen as a reliable secondary STAB move that doesn't hit partners and isn't stopped by Wide Guard.
* Poison Jab hits Fairy-types hard, which Garchomp has a better chance to retaliate against thanks to Assault Vest.
* Fire Fang is used primarily for Kartana, but also helps deal with other Grass- and Steel-types like Celesteela.
* Rock Slide can be chosen if the above Pokemon are non-issues and complementing Earthquake is more valuable.
Set Details
========
* Rough Skin is the standard ability, as the chip damage it inflicts is reliable and significant enough to aid KOing foes.
* However, you may opt to use Sand Veil instead if Garchomp is paired with Gigalith, making it more consistent.
* Assault Vest compliments Garchomp's already good defensive stats by further boosting its Special Defense.
* The above, in combination with the EVs and nature, make Tapu Koko's Life Orb-boosted Dazzling Gleam a 3HKO.
Usage Tips
========
* This set aims to be more of a pivot by taking advantage of good resistances and greater coverage from dropping Protect.
* For this reason, you'll generally want to keep Garchomp in the back, ready to switch in, rather than as a lead.
* Doing so also helps it avoid the Attack drops associated with Intimidate, as users of the ability are often led with.
* Don't be worried about taking big hits to get KOs, such as against Tapu Koko. It's what the set was designed for.
* While this set isn't restrained by a Choice item, still be cautious of using Earthquake into a potential Wide Guard.
Team Options
========
* More than the other sets, this Garchomp enjoys partners that find a good balance between offense and defense.
* This is because frail attackers can't complete the kind of defensive cores that take advantage of this set's bulk.
* Flying-types such as Celesteela and Gyarados are nice partners, as Garchomp can Earthquake freely beside them.
* Celesteela, like other Steel-types such as Kartana and Magnezone, is also useful to threaten opposing Fairy-types.
* Electric-types like Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu are useful to deal with threatening Water-types and Celesteela.
* Vikavolt joins the aforementioned, as its Levitate ability means Garchomp can Earthquake freely alongside it.
* Fire-types such as Arcanine provide another means for dealing with Celesteela, in addition to Ice-type Pokemon.
* Milotic is a consideration for providing a means of deterring opposing Intimidate from neutering Garchomp's Attack.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Rock Tomb is an alternative to Rock Slide that provides a form of speed control in addition to Rock-type coverage.
* Swords Dance can greatly boost Garchomp's Attack provided it's complemented by the support to pull it off such as Fake Out.
* Substitute shields Garchomp against status and Intimidate in addition to buffering at least one strong attack.
* Focus Sash allows survival against a single attack, which is valuable given the amount of attacks that can OHKO.
* Yache Berry is often better than Focus Sash against Ice-type attacks due to hail otherwise picking Garchomp off at 1 HP.
* Roseli Berry is another option over Focus Sash which leaves Garchomp reasonably healthy after a Fairy attack.
* Lum Berry helps protect Garchomp against status, primarily burn, which would otherwise leave it crippled.
* Life Orb is great alternative item that provides a sizable boost to all Garchomp's attacks in exchange for health.
* Choice Band grants an even greater boost than Life Orb but, in exchange, locks Garchomp into a single move.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dragon-type Pokemon**: Dragon-types such as opposing Garchomp, Salamence, and Goodra, while threatened by their own weakness to Dragon, are nevertheless able to put pressure on Garchomp with their respective STAB moves.
**Fairy-type Pokemon**: Fairy-types such as Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, and Tapu Bulu can significantly threaten Garchomp. Tapu Bulu is of note, as while it's incredibly threatened by Poison Jab, its Grassy Terrain is nevertheless an annoyance for reducing the damage of Earthquake.
**Ice-type Pokemon**: Given that Garchomp is 4x weak to Ice, it makes sense that it's heavily threatened by Ice-type attackers such as Alolan Ninetales and Alolan Sandslash. Water-types are similarly threatening, as they commonly carry Ice-type attacks like Ice Beam.
**Celesteela**: Celesteela easily walls both of Garchomp's STAB moves, making it a nuisance for Garchomp.
**Intimidate and Burns**: Intimidate and burn cut into Garchomp's damage output. Intimidate users like Gyarados and Krookodile drop Attack when switched in. Gengar can also use Will-O-Wisp to halve Garchomp's Attack stat.
**Speed Control**: As Garchomp relies on its high Speed, effects such as Tailwind and Trick Room hamper it.
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