Overview
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- Wonderful, beautiful STAB with Stone Edge and Close Combat
- Fighting types are very rare in Ubers, and Terrakion still makes Extreme Killer cry
- Main advantage over Mega Lucario is ability to check Ho-Oh, which has very little checks and is everywhere this gen
- Most things that would usually counter Terrakion can be cleaned off with its wonderful, beautiful STAB moves if weakened, especially with Scarf
- 108 speed makes Band relatively safe and Scarf nearly impossible to outspeed in Ubers
- Resists most priority attacks seen in Ubers, with the exception of Bullet Punch
- Is praying to Arceus for a hidden ability; Justified sucks (though Sucker Punch attack boost is nice)
- Really didn't gain anything this gen besides being able to check Yveltal and Mega Kangaskhan very well
- Needs Eartquake to check Aegislash and Mega Gengar, which is pretty redundant coverage
- Weather nerf means less sand for Terra, but at least it'll see much less of its old foe, Kabutops
- While its STAB has lovely coverage, Terrakion has a very barren move pool
- Will-O-Wisp exists
- The addition of Fairy has not helped Terrakion
- Speed is key to Terrakion; Thunder Wave and Sticky Web suck
- Often predictable, plus Ho-Oh usually isn't going to wait for you to Stone Edge it next turn, but forces switches well
- Can check very many things but hard counters very little, mainly due to Rock typing
- Terrakion's basically only seen set in Ubers last gen, Scarf, isn't as good as it used to be due to the countless new obstacles
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name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Toxic
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Moves
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- Fighting/Rock STAB is glorious and beautiful
- Close Combat smashes everything steel, dark, and normal
- Stone Edge slams all the Flying types that plague Ubers
- Rock Slide counters Ho-Oh more reliably than Stone Edge, but the damage drop sucks
- Earthquake might seem redundant but is mandatory for Aegislash and Mega Gengar
- Toxic cripples walls Terra struggles against on the switch-in
- Sleep Talk makes Terrakion a lovely Darkrai counter, and is still threatening while asleep
Set Details
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- Scarf is Terrakion's safest item, but not as good as last gen; due to Fairy, Mega Gengar, and even more Fighting-neutral Steels, being locked into the wrong move really sucks
- Band will always KO Arceus Normal and fares better against Aegislash than Scarf
- Obv EVs are obv
- Adamant is recommended, as it shreds and cleans more things than Jolly
- Jolly outspeeds nearly all other Scarf users, importantly Yveltal and Palkia, and SmashPass Dialga
Usage Tips
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- Waiting to see your opponent's Arceus form is useful; if Normal or Steel, save Terrakion
- Don't let Terrakion eat Dark Void if the opponent has something Terrakion is your only check to, especially EK and Ho-Oh
- Rocks and a layer of Spikes are very heavily appreciated
- Burn and paralysis really, really suck; scouting for status moves beforehand is always helpful
- Terrakion is NOT your sweeper. Terrakion paves the way for your sweepers.
- Being locked into attacks can suck. a lot. Especially Close Combat locked by Mega Gengar. Predict with caution
- Don't expect Scarf Terra to be as good as it was last gen, because it's not
Team Options
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- Get a Groudon counter
- And a Kyogre check too
- Latias might be the best partner; deals very well with Kyogre and Groudon and has Levitate, while Terrakion takes care of Ttar, Mega Gengar, and Yveltal
- Shaymin-S destroys Groudon and severely dents Kyogre
- Arceus Steel eliminates Yveltal, but is also hopeless against Groudon
- Sand always helps, as 1.5X special defense lets Terrakion avoid many KOs; Band appreciates the boost even more than scarf
- Sand teams that struggle against opposing Excadrill love that Terra always outspeeds and KOs with Close Combat/Earthquake
- Tyranitar scares away ghosts and psychic types, but Hippowdon has overall better type synergy and has little fear of Groudon
- Defog and Rapid Spin aren't mandatory, but help since Terrakion will probably end up switching a lot
- Anything that appreciates Ho-Oh gone
- Mega Gengar loves Yveltal, Ttar, and Ho-Oh removed while ripping Xerneas and psychic and ghost-types to shreds; specially offensive Arceus Ghost is in the same boat
- Fire types like Reshiram that like Heatran gone
- Something with a Fire move to eliminate Scizor, and also Mega Lucario
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name: Lead
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Taunt/Quick Attack
move 3: Close Combat
move 4: Stone Edge
ability: Justified
item: Focus Sash
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP/252 Attack/252 Speed
Moves
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- Stealth Rock is pretty much mandatory in Ubers, even with Defog everywhere
- Speaking of Defog...Taunt blocks it, making Taunt an even handier move than last gen
- Taunt also blocks opposing hazards from anything not named Deoxys and makes Terra an effective anti-lead
- Quick Attack checks Deoxys-A and some sashed Deoxys-S forms
- Lovely STAB still makes Terrakion offensively threatening; Stone Edge scares off the many Flying-type Defog users
Set Details
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- Speedy yet offensively threatening lead with given EVs
- Sash lets Terra dent something with one of its STABs after setting up Rocks
- Fist Plate can KO lead Dialga, but Sash is generally much better
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- Terra doesn't have to worry too much about its usual threats since it'll probably be sacrificed
- Use this on a very offensive team
- Doesn't really work against Deoxys forms and Darkrai leads so you might want to save it if that's the case
- Can only work against Darkrai if something's already asleep, which you don't really want
- Good Smeargle check, but be careful about Spore/Dark Void on the switch-in; having a false Team Preview lead and putting Terra in the back might somewhat help, since your opponent won't lead with Smeargle if they notice your Terra lead (if they have half a brain, which many Smeargle users don't, huhuhu)
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- Helps fast, offensive teams who appreciate quick Rocks
- Something to deal with Deoxys forms and a Dark Void switch in
- Mega Tyranitar laughs at Deoxys-S and breaks opposing sashers with sand
- Mega Mewtwo Y can switch in to Dark Void with Insomnia (if its Mega form is activated) and wreck something horribly; loves Rocks to weaken Flying walls
All-Out Attacker
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name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Taunt / Toxic
move 4: Earthquake / Stealth Rock
item: Life Orb / Fist Plate
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Moves
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- Very similar to Lead set; use first slashes for a more offensive set
- Taunt is an incredibly useful move and can stop Rocks and Thunder Waves from Groudon, Geomancy attempts, goddamn Smeargles, ect.; will definitely catch the opponent by surprise on Terrakion
- Toxic cripples Lugia
- Earthquake is necessary to check Aegislash but Terrakion is also a good Stealth Rock user
- Quick Attack is weak but occasionally useful priority; overall outclassed by Taunt/Toxic
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- Life Orb cleans/dents holes very well and is better off with the first slashes
- If using Stealth Rock, Fist Plate is recommended for better longevity and still denting most Steels and Arceus Normal/Rock
- Obv Evs are obv
- Jolly outspeeds base 99/100 club
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- Scarf being locked into CC against a ghost or Stone Edge against a steel type really sucks, so Life Orb takes advantage of Terrakion's powerful coverage; Scarf, however, generally does better against the millions of opponent Scarfers in Ubers
- It's not worth trying to tear a hole in something that can KO Terra in return (ex: Stone Edge vs. Xerneas) when the opponent has a threat Terra can quickly eliminate (ex: Mega Kangaskhan, EK, Ho-Oh)
- If Terra is your only hope against EK Arceus or Mega Kangaskhan, Terra needs a good amount of HP saved because of their priority and in case they get an Attack boost
- Due to LO recoil and Terrakion's meh defenses, Rapid Spin/Defog support is recommended. Be careful with Defog, though, because Terra needs Rocks on the field
- Scout for the Arceus form! If EK or Arc-Steel/Rock is on the opposing team, you should probably save Terrakion
- Please be careful of surprise burns/paralysis; Terra will be almost useless
- Again, Terrakion isn't your sweeper, it cleans things up and eliminates specific threats
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- Basically same as Scarf set; any sweepers that love EK Arceus, Mega Kangaskhan and Ho-Oh gone
- Loves sand Special Defense boost to muscle through a few Scarf special attacks
- Sticky Web Smeargle helps Terrakion wonderfully, letting him outspeed Arceus, Shaymin-S, Mega Gengar, Lati@s, ect.
Double Dancer
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name: Double Dance
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Rock Polish
move 4: Swords Dance / Earthquake
item: Life Orb
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Moves
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- Rock Polish boosts Terra's speed to ridiculous levels, actually outspeeding most scarfers in Ubers and all Megas
- Swords Dance allows Terra's STAB to OHKO many, many threats with hazard support
- Earthquake checks foes Terra otherwise would struggle against, like Aegislash and Mega Gengar
- Close Combat and Stone Edge give Terrakion wonderful, beautiful STAB coverage
Set Details
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- Hits more powerfully than Scarf and can freely switch between its STAB moves with LO
- Obv EVs are obv
- Jolly outspeeds scarfers not named Shaymin-S or Deoxys-S after +2 Speed boost
Usage Tips
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- Even if you've boosted, if you sense you're about to get burned or paralyzed, SWITCH
- Don't send out Terra until your opponent's Giratina, Groudon, or Hippowdon is gone; you can do almost nothing to them
- Be sure Shaymin-S isn't scarfed before trying to Stone Edge it
- This set can do nothing to Aegislash without Earthquake
- While tempting, this shouldn't be your main sweeper but a speedy cleaner of Scarfers and Flying types
- Terra can only KO Lugia with +2 Attack and Rocks on the field
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- Something (preferably 2 things at least) to deal with bulky Ground types
- Dark or Ghost teammate to take care of Ghost and Psychic types
- Rocks layer is almost mandatory, and a quick Taunter to check Defog wouldn't hurt
- Terra's worst enemy, Groudon, can set Rocks, check Scizor and Mega Lucario, and even spread paralysis for your team
- Ho-Oh tanks Xerneas and many special attackers; can be switched into if you expect a Will-O-Wisp
- 1.5X Special Defense boost from sand is most useful on this Terra set than the others, as Terra will be tanking a hit or two to get a boost
- Mega Gengar (especially behind a Substitute) and Latias are again lovely partners; Mega Latias will probably be a wonderful partner when it's released/if it's real
Other Options
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- WORK UP. Jk there aren't many.
- Band hits like a truck but is meh (although CC can conveniently check Skarmory); just use the Scarf set and replace Sleep Talk with Quick Attack
- Air Balloon, maybe, on an attacking set, since Terra hates Earthquake
- Don't try Poison Jab or Iron Head, Terrakion shouldn't be facing Fairies anyway
- If your team absolutely hates Ho-Oh then Rock Slide is safer than Stone Edge
Checks & Counters
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- Because of Terrakion's powerful and wide STAB coverage, it isn't hard countered by too many things and can badly dent many of its checks; sadly Terra has a LOT of checks
- Hard counters: Groudon, Giratina-O, Mega Mewtwo X, Bronzong
- Soft counters: Xerneas, Blaziken, any Arceus form who resists Terra's STAB, Giratina-A, Skarmory, Hippowdon, Mewtwo/Mega Mewtwo Y, Sableye, Deoxys-D, Forretress, Amoongus, Mega Scizor
- Checks: Mega Lucario, Kyogre, Palkia, Manaphy, Ditto, Shaymin-S, Mega Gengar, Mega Aggron, Deoxys-A, Excadrill, Lati@s
- Will-O-Wisp and Thunder Wave render Terrakion next to useless
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