[OVERVIEW]
Arcanine's immense base stat total provides it with huge bulk, excellent Speed, and respectable power, making it a contender for the best Pokemon in PU and capable of fulfilling nearly every role a team could ever want. It is only outsped by Rapidash, Scyther, and Fearow, and its access to the incredibly spammable Fire Blast and Body Slam combined with a high critical hit rate makes it exceptionally difficult to switch into and reliably beat one-on-one. Arcanine notably dominates the lead metagame, and while most opposing leads are specifically chosen for their good matchup against Arcanine, they still often lose due to critical hits and status from Fire Blast and Body Slam. Many of the leads that can somewhat reliably beat Arcanine, like Seaking, tend to be exploitable using teammates like Staryu. Arcanine is equally effective in the back, acting as a fantastic revenge killer, mid-game progress maker, and late-game sweeper. Arcanine does have competition from other Fire-types like Rapidash and Magmar, though its great balance of stats make it the premier choice out of the three, especially since its higher bulk means it's less troubled by Fire Blast misses. However, Arcanine's dominance means that every viable team has some plan to deal with it. Arcanine simply has no way to break through Omanyte, which has the typing and bulk to stonewall it. Even without Omanyte, teams typically have no shortage of Water- and Ground-types to deal with Arcanine; notably, Nidoqueen and Seaking are on almost every team, and Staryu is extremely common as well. Arcanine's sheer excellence makes it an instant inclusion on a majority of teams, but it can only do one role at a time and needs its teammates to handle inevitable poor matchups it will face in a game.
[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Body Slam
move 3: Hyper Beam
move 4: Agility / Reflect
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Fire Blast is Arcanine's strongest attack against most of the tier, and its burn chance potentially ruins checks like Nidoqueen and Machamp. Body Slam lets Arcanine spread paralysis and provides a spammable option against Fire-resistant Pokemon like Staryu, Rapidash, Dragonair, and opposing Arcanine. Hyper Beam is used as a powerful finisher to KO Fire-resistant foes and physically frail threats such as Staryu and Drowzee; it notably OHKOes the rare Abra. Agility negates the Speed drop from paralysis, which Arcanine will often take checking opposing Arcanine and other paralysis spreaders, and in some situations Arcanine can use it to be an late-game cleaner, allowing it to outspeed Fearow, Rapidash, Scyther, and opposing Arcanine. Arcanine can notably freely set up Agility on burned physical attackers like Nidoqueen, since this reapplies the Attack drop from burn. Alternatively, by using Reflect to augment its physical bulk, Arcanine can improve the matchup against opposing Fire-types and Nidoqueen. Notably, if it can set up Reflect without taking damage against Nidoqueen and Machamp, it flips the matchup and is now favored to win regardless of burn.
Arcanine should be included on the vast majority of teams as a lead, mid-game wallbreaker, or late-game cleaner. Arcanine is PU's most common lead; even if faced with a lead that can 2HKO it, such as Nidoqueen or Machamp, it's best off spamming Fire Blast to aim for a burn or at least to weaken them into revenge killing range. Seaking can beat Arcanine very consistently, though Arcanine can easily switch into Staryu to wall it or Gastly to more tenuously check it. Lead Arcanine should be very cautious against Magmar, as it can use Counter against Arcanine's Body Slam to deal heavy damage in return. Oftentimes Arcanine will end up facing another Arcanine; usually both Arcanines will spam Body Slam until one gets paralyzed—in which case it'll use Agility if it has it —before one finishes off the other with Hyper Beam. In this case, Reflect variants are favored to win, though generally the winner ends up paralyzed and in KO range regardless. If used mid-game, Arcanine should typically revenge kill a weakened foe like Nidoqueen and Machamp or trade hits with foes like Fearow and opposing Arcanine. If used as a late-game cleaner, it needs Omanyte, Seaking, and opposing Arcanine severely weakened and faster foes like Fearow, Rapidash, and Scyther paralyzed or KOed.
No matter Arcanine's role, it tends to invite Omanyte in. Teammates that can abuse Omanyte, such as Water-types, Porygon, Gastly, Vileplume, and Drowzee, make great partners. Given that Omanyte's switch ins are very telegraphed, double switching into these Pokemon is the best way to punish its use while keeping Arcanine's team healthy. Seaking is a very troublesome matchup, and the aforementioned Vileplume, Staryu, and one's own Seaking considerably help against it. Omanyte can be paired with Arcanine, allowing it to avoid having to trade with an opposing Arcanine. Omanyte can also thwart revenge killing attempts by Fearow, Scyther, and Rapidash. Paralysis spreaders such as Dragonair and Drowzee can cripple these faster threats, making it easy for Arcanine to finish them off. Arcanine pairs nicely with Rapidash, with each able to weaken their shared checks, though they both are stonewalled by Omanyte. Magmar is another option—while it's not as fast, it can perform a similar role while also threatening Omanyte.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Arcanine's attacking moves are pivotal to its success, so dropping Agility or Reflect is the preferred course of action. Arcanine can exploit switches it forces to set up Substitute, which can sometimes give it an extra hit against foes such as Seaking, Nidoqueen, and Machamp, often flipping the matchup. Magmar notably cannot break Arcanine's Substitute without Seismic Toss or Hyper Beam. However, it doesn't meaningfully help against Omanyte in any way nor guard against Thunder Wave, and guessing wrong will do nothing but deprive Arcanine of longevity. Flamethrower can be used alongside Fire Blast in situations where Arcanine prefers the higher accuracy, and it mitigates the risk of Fire Blast being PP stalled, though generally Arcanine gets more use from other moves and PU's fast pace means PP stalling is a rare sight. Arcanine can drop Hyper Beam in favor of Rest alongside Reflect to allow it to wall foes such as itself and Rapidash. However, it is extremely passive while asleep, and it is easily overwhelmed by foes such as Nidoqueen, Staryu, and Omanyte or even set up on by Pokemon like Scyther and Seaking. Toxic initially seems like a good option to break through Omanyte, but without a partial trapping move Arcanine has no effective means to rack up damage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Omanyte**: Omanyte is Arcanine's worst matchup, as it takes minimal damage from all of Arcanine's attacks, absorbs burn and paralysis well, and can 2HKO Arcanine back with Surf. Graveler is only 4HKOed by Fire Blast and 2HKOes back with Earthquake. However, it must be wary of being burned by Fire Blast.
**Seaking**: Arcanine has very low odds to 3HKO Seaking with a combination of Body Slam and Hyper Beam, while Seaking can set up Agility and 2HKO Arcanine back. However, it dislikes Body Slam paralysis even if it can eliminate the Speed drop with Agility, and Arcanine's high critical hit rate can let it come out on top.
**Ground-types**: Nidoqueen is only 3HKOed by Fire Blast, and Sandslash is only 2HKOed 32.8% of the time; they both can 2HKO Arcanine with Earthquake, and Sandslash OHKOes it after a Swords Dance. However, both Ground-types lose one-on-one if Arcanine is able to get up Reflect at full health, and they also must be wary of a burn, making these matchups more even than they'd initially seem.
**Paralysis**: Arcanine is reliant on its Speed to defeat foes such as Staryu and Drowzee, and thus it loses once it's paralyzed. Arcanine normally can still deal significant damage to checks like Nidoqueen and Seaking, if not win outright with burn or paralysis, but this is usually denied to it when it's outsped. Arcanine can remove the Speed drop with Agility, but it must use a turn to set it up every time it switches in, and a single turn of full paralysis can ruin Arcanine.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Arcanine's immense base stat total provides it with huge bulk, excellent Speed, and respectable power, making it a contender for the best Pokemon in PU and capable of fulfilling nearly every role a team could ever want. It is only outsped by Rapidash, Scyther, and Fearow, and its access to the incredibly spammable Fire Blast and Body Slam combined with a high critical hit rate makes it exceptionally difficult to switch into and reliably beat one-on-one. Arcanine notably dominates the lead metagame, and while most opposing leads are specifically chosen for their good matchup against Arcanine, they still often lose due to critical hits and status from Fire Blast and Body Slam. Many of the leads that can somewhat reliably beat Arcanine, like Seaking, tend to be exploitable using teammates like Staryu. Arcanine is equally effective in the back, acting as a fantastic revenge killer, mid-game progress maker, and late-game sweeper. Arcanine does have competition from other Fire-types like Rapidash and Magmar, though its great balance of stats make it the premier choice out of the three, especially since its higher bulk means it's less troubled by Fire Blast misses. However, Arcanine's dominance means that every viable team has some plan to deal with it. Arcanine simply has no way to break through Omanyte, which has the typing and bulk to stonewall it. Even without Omanyte, teams typically have no shortage of Water- and Ground-types to deal with Arcanine; notably, Nidoqueen and Seaking are on almost every team, and Staryu is extremely common as well. Arcanine's sheer excellence makes it an instant inclusion on a majority of teams, but it can only do one role at a time and needs its teammates to handle inevitable poor matchups it will face in a game.
[SET]
name: Bulky Attacker
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Body Slam
move 3: Hyper Beam
move 4: Agility / Reflect
[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========
Fire Blast is Arcanine's strongest attack against most of the tier, and its burn chance potentially ruins checks like Nidoqueen and Machamp. Body Slam lets Arcanine spread paralysis and provides a spammable option against Fire-resistant Pokemon like Staryu, Rapidash, Dragonair, and opposing Arcanine. Hyper Beam is used as a powerful finisher to KO Fire-resistant foes and physically frail threats such as Staryu and Drowzee; it notably OHKOes the rare Abra. Agility negates the Speed drop from paralysis, which Arcanine will often take checking opposing Arcanine and other paralysis spreaders, and in some situations Arcanine can use it to be an late-game cleaner, allowing it to outspeed Fearow, Rapidash, Scyther, and opposing Arcanine. Arcanine can notably freely set up Agility on burned physical attackers like Nidoqueen, since this reapplies the Attack drop from burn. Alternatively, by using Reflect to augment its physical bulk, Arcanine can improve the matchup against opposing Fire-types and Nidoqueen. Notably, if it can set up Reflect without taking damage against Nidoqueen and Machamp, it flips the matchup and is now favored to win regardless of burn.
Arcanine should be included on the vast majority of teams as a lead, mid-game wallbreaker, or late-game cleaner. Arcanine is PU's most common lead; even if faced with a lead that can 2HKO it, such as Nidoqueen or Machamp, it's best off spamming Fire Blast to aim for a burn or at least to weaken them into revenge killing range. Seaking can beat Arcanine very consistently, though Arcanine can easily switch into Staryu to wall it or Gastly to more tenuously check it. Lead Arcanine should be very cautious against Magmar, as it can use Counter against Arcanine's Body Slam to deal heavy damage in return. Oftentimes Arcanine will end up facing another Arcanine; usually both Arcanines will spam Body Slam until one gets paralyzed—in which case it'll use Agility if it has it —before one finishes off the other with Hyper Beam. In this case, Reflect variants are favored to win, though generally the winner ends up paralyzed and in KO range regardless. If used mid-game, Arcanine should typically revenge kill a weakened foe like Nidoqueen and Machamp or trade hits with foes like Fearow and opposing Arcanine. If used as a late-game cleaner, it needs Omanyte, Seaking, and opposing Arcanine severely weakened and faster foes like Fearow, Rapidash, and Scyther paralyzed or KOed.
No matter Arcanine's role, it tends to invite Omanyte in. Teammates that can abuse Omanyte, such as Water-types, Porygon, Gastly, Vileplume, and Drowzee, make great partners. Given that Omanyte's switch ins are very telegraphed, double switching into these Pokemon is the best way to punish its use while keeping Arcanine's team healthy. Seaking is a very troublesome matchup, and the aforementioned Vileplume, Staryu, and one's own Seaking considerably help against it. Omanyte can be paired with Arcanine, allowing it to avoid having to trade with an opposing Arcanine. Omanyte can also thwart revenge killing attempts by Fearow, Scyther, and Rapidash. Paralysis spreaders such as Dragonair and Drowzee can cripple these faster threats, making it easy for Arcanine to finish them off. Arcanine pairs nicely with Rapidash, with each able to weaken their shared checks, though they both are stonewalled by Omanyte. Magmar is another option—while it's not as fast, it can perform a similar role while also threatening Omanyte.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Arcanine's attacking moves are pivotal to its success, so dropping Agility or Reflect is the preferred course of action. Arcanine can exploit switches it forces to set up Substitute, which can sometimes give it an extra hit against foes such as Seaking, Nidoqueen, and Machamp, often flipping the matchup. Magmar notably cannot break Arcanine's Substitute without Seismic Toss or Hyper Beam. However, it doesn't meaningfully help against Omanyte in any way nor guard against Thunder Wave, and guessing wrong will do nothing but deprive Arcanine of longevity. Flamethrower can be used alongside Fire Blast in situations where Arcanine prefers the higher accuracy, and it mitigates the risk of Fire Blast being PP stalled, though generally Arcanine gets more use from other moves and PU's fast pace means PP stalling is a rare sight. Arcanine can drop Hyper Beam in favor of Rest alongside Reflect to allow it to wall foes such as itself and Rapidash. However, it is extremely passive while asleep, and it is easily overwhelmed by foes such as Nidoqueen, Staryu, and Omanyte or even set up on by Pokemon like Scyther and Seaking. Toxic initially seems like a good option to break through Omanyte, but without a partial trapping move Arcanine has no effective means to rack up damage.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Omanyte**: Omanyte is Arcanine's worst matchup, as it takes minimal damage from all of Arcanine's attacks, absorbs burn and paralysis well, and can 2HKO Arcanine back with Surf. Graveler is only 4HKOed by Fire Blast and 2HKOes back with Earthquake. However, it must be wary of being burned by Fire Blast.
**Seaking**: Arcanine has very low odds to 3HKO Seaking with a combination of Body Slam and Hyper Beam, while Seaking can set up Agility and 2HKO Arcanine back. However, it dislikes Body Slam paralysis even if it can eliminate the Speed drop with Agility, and Arcanine's high critical hit rate can let it come out on top.
**Ground-types**: Nidoqueen is only 3HKOed by Fire Blast, and Sandslash is only 2HKOed 32.8% of the time; they both can 2HKO Arcanine with Earthquake, and Sandslash OHKOes it after a Swords Dance. However, both Ground-types lose one-on-one if Arcanine is able to get up Reflect at full health, and they also must be wary of a burn, making these matchups more even than they'd initially seem.
**Paralysis**: Arcanine is reliant on its Speed to defeat foes such as Staryu and Drowzee, and thus it loses once it's paralyzed. Arcanine normally can still deal significant damage to checks like Nidoqueen and Seaking, if not win outright with burn or paralysis, but this is usually denied to it when it's outsped. Arcanine can remove the Speed drop with Agility, but it must use a turn to set it up every time it switches in, and a single turn of full paralysis can ruin Arcanine.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gangsta-spongebob.535530/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/gastlies.540559/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/sabelette.583793/
Last edited:
