Well this one was almost as long as Blaziken. God damn starter Fire-types and their versatility!
www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/charizard
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I basically rewrote everything for this one too, but kept some OU references in because its still commonly used in OU for some reason.
Question: Should i move CB to OO? It will clear up the analysis a bit, even though its viable....its just not THAT good imo.
I did test everything though.
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[SET]
name: BellyZard
move 1: Belly Drum
move 2: Substitute / Endure
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Earthquake / ThunderPunch
item: Salac Berry
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
ivs:30 HP
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The strategy here is to come in on something Charizard will scare away, and use Substitute as it switches out. Use that free turn to Belly Drum while the opposing Pokemon attempts to break your Substitute. Your Salac Berry will activate, as Belly Drum + Substitute brings you to 25% health. If done right, you will have +6 Attack, Blaze activated, and +1 Speed, which should allow you to sweep. If you opt for Endure over Substitute, then you use the moves in reverse order: first you Belly Drum as they switch, then you use Endure on whatever they bring out.</p>
<p>The IVs given allow for a combination of Substitute and Belly Drum to bring you to exactly 25% HP, which is when your Salac Berry will activate. At 296 HP, acheived by using a 30 HP IV, you will have 74 HP (25%) after using Substitute and then Belly Drum. If you have Endure, you can keep your HP at 31 IVs. This will make your HP stat odd, so that you may still Belly Drum even if you must switch into Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>ThunderPunch can be used over Earthquake, even though this makes Charizard vulnerable to Regirock and other Rock-types. ThunderPunch hits Pokemon such as Blastoise and Milotic, who can survive a +6 Earthquake, as well as hitting Pokemon such as Moltres who will survive a +6 Fire Punch. Additionally, Charizard can use ThunderPunch over Substitute or Endure to gain near perfect type coverage. Without Substitute or Endure, this set is exponentially harder to use, but it can sweep a whole team if it has no priority attacker most of the time. If you choose to use three attacks over Substitute, be warned that you must come into an attack that will deal less than 50% damage to Charizard, or else your strategy cannot work. A good way of making sure this happens is to simply bring Charizard in after one of its teammates is knocked out.</p>
<p>This set can be used effectively in OU as well. However, Charizard has a much harder time sweeping in that environment because of the much higher level of bulk in OU. If you use this set in OU, you need to support Charizard with as much residual damage as possible to ensure that Charizard can OHKO most Pokemon easily (whereas in UU, it can OHKO most of the Pokemon without residual damage). With Smeargle and other support leads running around in OU, this set can even set up early game to cause some serious damage. Life Orb is an option when this set is used as a lead so that Charizard has a higher chance of KOing something before it gets taken out.</p>
<p>With Substitute, Charizard needs to have a Taunt lead, or Rapid Spin Pokemon to keep Stealth Rock off of the field. Electrode is a fast Taunter that is useful for keeping Pokemon such as Uxie, Mesprit, Registeel, Steelix and Regirock from starting the match with Stealth Rock. Hitmontop and Claydol are good Rapid Spin users, using Pursuit and Shadow Ball respectively to hit Ghost-types who may switch in.</p>
<p>Pokemon who can stop this set include Slowbro, Milotic, and Hariyama, thus keeping a Pokemon who can deal with these threats is of benefit to Charizard. Blaziken, Magmortar and Nidoking are all great lures for Slowbro and Milotic, since they are all able to easily 2HKO Slowbro, though they require minor prediction to KO Milotic. Registeel and Regirock lure out Hariyama, because of its massive HP and nice resistances, while not caring about status. Hariyama is easily taken out by Explosion from one of these Pokemon, or any Pokemon with a strong super effective attack such as Espeon. Hitmontop has annoying priority attacks, but can be taken out using one of your Stealth Rock users with Explosion or a strong super effective move. Claydol can KO Hitmontop with Psychicwhen it thinks it is coming in to Pursuit or Rapid Spin, while Steelix and Regirock can easily take Hitmontop out with Explosion when it attempts to Rapid Spin. Note that Stealth Rock is not 100% needed for this set to be effective, so taking out Hitmontop is more important than keeping Stealth Rock on the field.</p
[SET]
name: Recoil BellyZard
move 1: Belly Drum
move 2: Double-Edge
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Earthquake / ThunderPunch
item: Salac Berry
nature: Adamant
evs: 16 HP / 252 Atk / 240 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is basically the same idea as the last set, but with a different playstyle. Instead of using Substitute, Endure, or weak attacks to get into Salac Berry range, it uses recoil damage. This set basically relies on your opponent carrying a slower Charizard counter, and needs to not have taken any previous damage. Basically, this set starts off by sending Charizard in on something it forces out, such as a Choiced Ground-type attack, and then using Belly Drum on the switch. Charizard then uses Double-Edge to OHKO the Milotic (only guaranteed with SR, but still has a high chance without), Hariyama, or whatever your opponent has sent in. With the recoil from Double-Edge, Charizard will be put into Salac range with its main counter taken out of the match. Double-Edge can be used as a suicide attack after, if your opponent happens to be carrying both Milotic and Hariyama for example. The HP EVs are there to make sure that you do not KO yourself with recoil after attacking Hariyama.</p>
<p>This set cannot be used if Stealth rock is in play without being extremely lucky (as in, you must come in on a Choiced Ground-type attack or after a KO because you cannot take any further damage). This Charizard in particular works well with Claydol, who can Rapid Spin and then explode to ensure that Stealth Rock will be off your side of the field. This set still has trouble with Slowbro, so Roserade and other Grass-types work well since they can either OHKO it or set up on it. Since Slowbro can stop this set, lead Arcanine will greatly benefit Charizard by being able to get an early game Toxic on Slowbro to eventually bring him down.</p>
[SET]
name: MixZard
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Electric
move 3: Focus Punch / Brick Break
move 4: Roost / Air Slash
item: Life Orb
nature: Rash / Mild
evs:60 Atk / 252 SpA / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is meant to tear holes in the opponents team allowing for other pokemon to sweep. This also can function as a sweeper of its own with Charizard's naturally high base Speed. Fire Blast is Charizard's weapon of choice, and can use it to hit most Pokemon in the UU metagame for a 2HKO with Hidden Power for a nice coverage move. Chansey can try to switch in to this set expecting to wall its special attacks, but Chansey will be met by a big Focus Punch to the face, allowing Charizard to continue sweeping. The basic strategy is to send Charizard in on Steelix or Registeel using Stealth Rock, while then firing off your best attacks, until you knock something out or are met by one of Charizard's counters. This Charizard can come in again, ideally after you used 2 Attacks thanks to Life Orb so you start at 31% health activating Blaze, boosting Fire Blast's power by 50%.</p>
<p>Hidden Power Grass and Electric both hit Water-types who will love to switch in, especially since they will likely expect BellyZard. Slowbro gets incinerated by a Fire Blast and Hidden Power combo, meaning Charizard can freely open with Fire Blast on most foes. Hidden Power Grass hits those pesky Omastar who wall your other attacks fairly well and also hits Gastrodon and Quagsire who otherwise give this set trouble. Hidden Power Electric hits Moltres who may attempt to stop you, but it can barely take an attack after Stealth Rock anyway.</p>
<p>Focus Punch is needed to get the guaranteed OHKO on Chansey. Brick Break is viable to have the possibility for a 2HKO, but it also breaks screens which can be annoying for a Life Orb set such as this.</p>
<p>With Air Slash have few key benefits, being only usefull against Pokemon such as Blaziken, and being more accurate than Fire Blast as a STAB attack, Roost can be used in the last slot as well to heal Stealth Rock and Life Orb damage. With Stealth Rock and spin blockers being so commonly used, Roost helps Charizard stick around longer. Charizard also boasts decent defenses to utilize Roost, and can switch to resisted attacks and Roost off the damage. The EVs given allow Charizard to OHKO Chansey 100% of the time with Stealth Rock, and outspeed increased nature base 80s, such as Blaziken, and neutral nature base 90s such as Roserade.</p>
<p>This Charizard set brings a ton of immediate Speed and power (something BellyZard does not), and is basically the only Charizard that can be used effectively without Rapid Spin support. However, Milotic and other bulky Water-types can wall this set quite effectively, Regirock does as well. Stealth Rock support is very helpful on this set as well, so Pokemon that can set it up are greatly appreciated. Steelix makes a great pair with Charizard, resisting Rock-type attacks from Regirock, setting up Stealth Rock and being able to explode on said Water-types. Roserade is a great pair with Charizard as well, because it lures out bulky Water-types who give Roserade a free chance to use Spikes, which also help Charizard.</p>
<p>Charizard is a great Pokemon to lure and destroy Chansey, due to Focus Punch being unexpected from a primarily special set. Espeon, Yanmega, and other special sweepers appreciate the removal of the pink blob.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
move 3: Dragon Pulse / Air Slash
move 4: Hidden Power Electric / Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Specs
nature: Modest / Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With Charizard's awesome Special Attack stat, and very good Speed stat, a Choice Specs set can be very effective. Fire Blast (or Flamethrower for you accuracy freaks) is Charizard's weapon of choice, and can deal a hefty amount of damage, likely OHKOing or 2HKOing anything that does not resist it (except for Chansey of course). Focus Blast nails Chansey and Regirock for large sums of damage (though Chansey is almost always only 3HKOed), while Hidden Power hits Water-types super effectively. Dragon Pulse is one of the many advantages Charizard has on its fellow Fire-type attackers, being able to get the solid 2HKO on Altaria, while providing great neutral coverage with Fire Blast.</p>
<p>Hidden Power Electric hits Moltres and foe Charizard, which may otherwise Roost off the damage. Hidden Power Grass can hit the Water-types who have a secondary Ground or Rock-typing for clean OHKOs, though Focus Blast gets the clean OHKO on Kabuto and Omastar. Dragon Pulse hits both for neutral damage as well.</p>
<p>Focus Puch hits Chansey for a 2HKO, and can be used with a neutral nature, while Focus Blast has poor accuracy, but hits Regirock and other threats a lot harder. Air Slash can be used over any move except for Fire Blast and Focus Blast or Focus Punch, due to Charizard having STAB on it, and not to mention it hits Hariyama, who can otherwise switch in on this set quite easily.</p>
<p>This Charizard set can only be effectively walled by Chansey and Hariyama, who both still risk getting nailed by a Fighting-type attack or Air Slash respectively. This set needs Stealth Rock support badly, because it turns many 3HKOs into 2HKOs, such as Hidden Power against Milotic. This set does also appreciate having Rapid Spin support, but keep in mind that with Blaze activated, little can survive a boosted Fire Blast (or Flamethrower for that matter), and Stealth Rock is the easiest way to activate it. Since this Charizard can break its own walls and sweep, its best used on a team that will give it a lot of opportunities to switch in. Pokemon such as Steelix work well with Charizard, because Steelix lures out Ground attacks, as well as Fire and Fighting-type attacks from various other Pokemon. Omastar lures out Roserade as well, and gives Charizard an exceptionally easy time to come in on Energy Ball or Leaf Storm.</p>
<p>Steelix and Omastar also have the benefits of taking Rock-type attacks fairly well, which will be aimed at Charizard because of its 4x weakness, while also being able to set up Stealth Rock. Venusaur or Roserade can take the Water-type attacks aimed at Charizard, and can help Charizard remove the annoying Water-types with their strong STAB attacks.</p>
[SET]
name: Blaze + Sunny Day
move 1: Sunny Day
move 2: Substitute
move 3: Fire Blast / Flamethrower
move 4: SolarBeam
item: Petaya Berry
nature: Modest / Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252
ivs: 30 HP
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With Sunny Day, Blaze, and a Petaya boost in effect, Fire Blast turns into an incredibly deadly attack, that will OHKO a surprising amount of the metagame. Another benefit of Sunny Day, is that Charizard now has a 120 base power Grass-type attack at its disposal, which will KO a good number of Water and Rock-types.</p>
<p>The trick with this set, is to get Charizard in on something that it forces out, or cannot KO it. Once the opponent switches or fails to KO Charizard, use Substitute, to scout their switch-in. If its a Pokemon that will attack you with a Water-type attack, use Sunny Day immediately, and take their Surfs with ease. When you think you can sweep, and are down to one Substitute left, thats when you go all-out with Blaze and Petaya. On the last Substitute, you use Sunny Day as they break your Substitute, then proceed to sweep your opponent with Fire Blast's monstrous power.</p>
<p>To give an example of its power, a Sunny Day, Blaze, and Petaya boosted Fire Blast will always OHKO Hariyama without significant EV investment in Special Defense.</p>
<p>This set works fine without Stealth Rock support, because it can just be saved untill the end of the battle if Stealth Rock is in effect, due to Charizard only being able to Substitute once more. This Charizard can definitely use Spikes and Stealth Rock support, giving it many OHKOs, such as Milotic. With 2 layers of Spikes and Stealth Rock in play, a Modest Charizard will always OHKO (yes OHKO) a Calm Chansey with Fire Blast, to give you an example of Spikes importance. Otherwise, in order to successfully sweep, Charizard abosutely needs Chansey out of the way, because they can both take a Fire Blast or SolarBeam, and KO back once Charizard Substitutes to less than 25%. Trick Specs variants of Espeon and Mismagius definitely help with crippling Chansey, and Espeon also has Baton Pass, which can be used to scout for a Chansey switch in, and then promptly send out a powerful Chansey destroyer, such as Nidoking or Hariyama.</p>
<p>Most importantly, this set needs a way to eliminate Azumarill and other priority attackers before Charizard Substitutes to low health. Though SolarBeam can KO Azumaril, and Sunny Day weakens Azumarill's attacks, Aqua Jet will still KO Charizard when it is below 25% HP. Any Rock or Ground-type with Explosion can do the the job of getting Azumarill out of the way, as Azumarill is a common switch in to them.</p>
<p>To show the importance of residual damage, and the incredible power of Fire Blast, here are some damage calculations.</p>
<h3>Damage Calculations</h3>
<pre>
Fire Blast vs 80 HP / min SpD Hariyama: 100%
Fire Blast vs 4 HP / max SpD Calm Chansey: 69.63% - 81.93%
SolarBeam vs 252 HP / min SpD Milotic: 80.20% - 94.42%
</pre>
[SET]
name: Dancing Dragon
move 1: Flare Blitz / Fire Punch
move 2: Earthquake / ThunderPunch
move 3: Dragon Dance / Swords Dance
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb / Leftovers / Lum Berry
nature: Adamant
evs: 144 HP / 252 Atk / 112 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Charizard has two great physical attack boosting moves at its disposal, as well as decent bulk and Roost. With Flare Blitz as Charizard's main attack, Roost is even more important to prevent Charizard from taking itself out with the recoil from Life Orb and Flare Blitz. Earthquake does tons of damage to Regirock and other common switch-ins, while providing nice neutral coverage with Flare Blitz.</p>
<p>Fire Punch can be used over Flare Blitz if you do not care for the recoil, but the power difference between the two is pretty major. ThunderPunch can be used over Earthquake to hit Slowbro and other Water-types, but it's often too weak to even 2HKO them. ThunderPunch is only really useful to hit Milotic, which can be KOed after being slightly weakened. Leftovers can be used over Life Orb, to add a bit more bulk to Charizard, and help negate the recoil damage a bit, while Lum Berry prevents status, which is always nice for a sweeper.</p>
<p>The EVs given are for use with Dragon Dance (with Swords Dance the EVs are simply 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe with a Adamant or Jolly nature), which gives Charizard enough Speed to outrun base 130s after a single boost. Attack is maximized, to increase sweeping potential, and the rest is put into HP, to give Charizard a bit of bulk to abuse Roost.</p>
<p>This Charizard set can recover HP, so Rapid Spin is not a must, but its still benefitial to have. This Charizard set needs to have its basic counters weakened heavily in order to sweep. Pokemon such as Milotic, Slowbro, and Regirock are near impossible for Charizard to take down without some help. However, all of these Pokemon share a weakness to Grass-type attacks, and can barely touch Pokemon such as Venusaur, who can then take the turn to hit them with a STAB attack, or Leech Seed. Magmortar is an effective lure for Milotic, who is usually a safe switch-in to Fire Blast, but if hit by even a weaker unboosted (for instance, without Life Orb or Choice Specs) Thunderbolt, Milotic is put into KO range from Charizard.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Charizard, as an offensively natured Pokemon, will always appreciate residual damage support, such as Stealth Rock and Spikes, though some sets need it more than others (such as the Blaze + Sunny Day set needs it more than the Recoil BellyZard set). Charizard also almost always benefits from having Rapid Spin support, because of its deadly 4x weakness to it. Some of the sets will not work very well at all with Stealth Rock in play.</p>
<p>Charizard has difficulty with bulky Water-types, as well as Pokemon such as Regirock. Generally, these Pokemon are very slow, so using Pokemon with high offensive stats, and mediocre Speed can deal with the problems. Nidoking is a great choice, with decent offensive stats, and an amazing movepool to boot. Nidoking can come in on an Electric or Rock-type attack aimed at Charizard, and proceed to destroy the bulky Water-types with Thunderbolt, and Regirock with Earthquake. Blaziken and Magmortar are also fair choices as well, however they share a lot of the same weaknesses as Charizard, such as Rock and Water-type attacks. The Fire-type wall breakers are generally better paired with the Sunny Day Charizard, because they can at least benefit from the sun. Rhydon is a nice pair with Charizard, Rhydon can easily take out Milotic and Regirock with a couple Earthquakes, and Slowbro falls quickly to Megahorn.</p>
<p>Charizard always benefits from having Pokemon to sponge attacks thrown at it by its counters. Arguably the best partner for Charizard is Hitmontop, who can Rapid Spin away Stealth Rock fairly reliably, while also resisting Rock-type attacks. Cloyster can be used with Hitmontop, as it can set up Spikes of its own, while Charizard can take the Grass and Fighting-type attacks aimed at it, while Hitmontop can take the Rock-type attacks aimed at it. Rhydon is a great Pokemon to use with Charizard, being able to take the Rock-type attacks aimed at Charizard, while luring out Grass and Ground-type attacks for Charizard to switch into. Omastar is a nice Pokemon to use Charizard with, granting Stealth Rock and Spikes support, while also having very high defenses, allowing it to take some of the Water and Rock-type attacks aimed at Charizard even without a resistance, not to mention Grass and Ground-type attacks aimed at Omastar give Charizard an easy switch-in. Steelix and Roserade pair to make a great defensive trio with Charizard, with Steelix being able to take Rock-type attacks and being able to set up Stealth Rock, while Roserade can easily take the Water-type attacks, and set up Spikes.</p>
<p>Since Roserade and the like give Charizard an easy switch in, its important to keep in mind which Pokemon are used with it. Milotic is very commonly used with Roserade, so when you switch Charizard into their Grass-type attack, remember that Milotic will likely be coming in on your next attack. On Pokemon like Steelix, who is an easy switch in for Charizard are often used with Milotic as well, so keep your trigger finger on an Electric-type attack. Registeel is very commonly used with Slowbro, so unless you have maximized Special Attack EVs, you may want to get rid of Slowbro before attempting to sweep with Charizard.</p>
<p>Many common strategies for Charizard basically involve maneuvering around Stealth Rock. The easiest way to get a free turn, while also getting in before Stealth Rock is in play, is to switch in on Steelix or Registeel as they use it. Not only are they forced out, you have just entered the battle with 100% HP. Another way to get into the match quickly, is to predict a U-turn from Ambipom or Uxie and send Charizard in, and with your 4x resistance to Bug-type attacks, Charizard gets in practically free of harm. Charizard can be used with a Baton Passing Espeon or Drifblim, and use its awesome coverage and Speed to sweep the opponents team, while also resisting Bug-type attacks aimed at Espeon.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Since Charizard has a fair bit of viable options, there is quite a bit of room to cover here. Charizard can use Dragon Dance, Substitute and a Liechi Berry to run an essentially easier to set up, but weaker Belly Drum set.</p>
<p>Charizard can abuse its fast Speed, and strong STAB attacks to use a decent Choice Band set, even though it has a mere 84 base Attack. Flare Blitz would be Charizard's main attack, with Earthquake, ThunderPunch, and Focus Punch for coverage. Charizard's physical movepool is huge, and almost any attack can be used on a Choice Band set for certain Pokemon, such as Rock Slide for Moltres, Crunch for Mismagius, and even Outrage for general coverage, though without STAB and only moderate attacking power, its usually not worth it.</p>
<p>Overheat can be used on almost any set, but keep in mind that it hinders Charizard's sweeping possibilities, and also forces Charizard out, which is always a bad thing with a Stealth Rock weakness. Charizard can run a mixed Dragon Dance set, but since Charizard will almost always hit the target harder with a physical attack, due to Charizard's great movepool, the moveslot is usually best used for physical coverage.</p>
<p>A Toxic stalling set can be used, with Charizard's decent bulk and Roost, but this set is almost 100% outclassed by Moltres, and the only advantage Charizard has is Speed and surprise factor. On the note of surprise, Charizard can surprise many of its switch-ins with Will-O-Wisp, and cut their Attack and infict them with a burn, as well as being able to Roar them out, stacking on the residual damage.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Charizard will usually want to maximize the primary attacking stat, as well as Speed to dish out as much damage as possible. A Jolly or Timid nature can be used on the sets without a Salac Berry, to outpace other base 100s, and also base 95s, such as Arcanine and Drapion.</p>
<p>With the mixed set, Charizard needs 60 Attack EVs to OHKO Chansey, while maximizing Special Attack to deal the most damage possible. The rest of the EVs should be just dumped into HP. The Dragon Dance set can easily use its bulk to get more Dragon Dances, and have an easier chance to sweep. With 112 Speed EVs, Charizard is faster than every Pokemon minus Electrode after a Dragon Dance, and gives it 144 EVs to put into HP.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Charizard is one of those Pokemon who is not OU merely because of weakness to Stealth Rock. With Stealth Rock being so common, Fire and Flying-types have a very tough time competing, and need a little more team support to do well. However, this is not to say that they are bad Pokemon, Charizard is one of the fastest and strongest Pokemon in the UU metagame, boasting awesome Speed, Special Attack, and movepool, as well as a nice amount of resistances, decent Bulk, and a usable Attack stat.</p>
<p>With Charizard's immanent Belly Drum threat, people are often forced to either carry a counter, or lose if Charizard is given the opportunity to set up (even in OU). Often Charizard can use this as an advantage, and use more immediately threatening sets, such as Choice Specs and Life Orb.</p>
<p>Charizard can also take advantage of the excess amount of Grass-types in UU, giving Charizard a basically free switch-in on any of their STAB attacks. With decent bulk Charizard can heal off Stealth Rock and / or Life Orb recoil, and continue to sweep.</p>
<p>If you are in need of a Ground-type immunity, or Fighting-type resist, while also benefitting from a quick and powerful sweeper, Charizard is a definite candidate for a moveslot.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Charizard has set dependent counters, but many of the counters overlap. For example. Slowbro is a flawless counter for the Choice Band, BellyZard, and Dragon Dance sets, while Pokemon such as Milotic will be able to counter BellyZard only if it does not carry ThunderPunch, but can counter basically all of the special oriented sets. Regirock is a great general Charizard counter, having a STAB Rock-type attack, great defenses, and resisting Charizard's STABs.</p>
<p>Pokemon such as Hariyama can switch into sets without Air Slash, though it can be OHKOed by the Sunny Day Blaze set. Hariyama dislikes constant attacks being thrown at it as well, without a recovery move. Azumarill can come in on Charizard's Fire-type attacks, and KO with Aqua Jet, though Hidden Power will do a number on the little Water-type Pokemon.</p>
<p>Chansey can switch in on the special sets, as long as it avoids Focus Blast. Moltres can switch into any set without Rock Slide, ThunderPunch, or Hidden Power Electric and proceed to Toxic and stall Charizard. However, Moltres is also fairly useless agaisnt a Substitute Charizard.</p>
<p>The best way to get rid of Charizard, is to carry Stealth Rock and a Ghost-type to block Rapid Spin. Once Charizard is below 50% HP, it cannot switch back into the match, and is thus easily rendered useless. Watch out for Foresight Hitmontops or Roost to deal with these problems though, and keep in mind when you see a Charizard with less than 33% HP, you might want to take a step back, for with a Blaze boost not much can stand in the way of a Fire Blast.</p>
www.smogon.com/dp/pokemon/charizard
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
I basically rewrote everything for this one too, but kept some OU references in because its still commonly used in OU for some reason.
Question: Should i move CB to OO? It will clear up the analysis a bit, even though its viable....its just not THAT good imo.
I did test everything though.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
[SET]
name: BellyZard
move 1: Belly Drum
move 2: Substitute / Endure
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Earthquake / ThunderPunch
item: Salac Berry
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
ivs:30 HP
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>The strategy here is to come in on something Charizard will scare away, and use Substitute as it switches out. Use that free turn to Belly Drum while the opposing Pokemon attempts to break your Substitute. Your Salac Berry will activate, as Belly Drum + Substitute brings you to 25% health. If done right, you will have +6 Attack, Blaze activated, and +1 Speed, which should allow you to sweep. If you opt for Endure over Substitute, then you use the moves in reverse order: first you Belly Drum as they switch, then you use Endure on whatever they bring out.</p>
<p>The IVs given allow for a combination of Substitute and Belly Drum to bring you to exactly 25% HP, which is when your Salac Berry will activate. At 296 HP, acheived by using a 30 HP IV, you will have 74 HP (25%) after using Substitute and then Belly Drum. If you have Endure, you can keep your HP at 31 IVs. This will make your HP stat odd, so that you may still Belly Drum even if you must switch into Stealth Rock.</p>
<p>ThunderPunch can be used over Earthquake, even though this makes Charizard vulnerable to Regirock and other Rock-types. ThunderPunch hits Pokemon such as Blastoise and Milotic, who can survive a +6 Earthquake, as well as hitting Pokemon such as Moltres who will survive a +6 Fire Punch. Additionally, Charizard can use ThunderPunch over Substitute or Endure to gain near perfect type coverage. Without Substitute or Endure, this set is exponentially harder to use, but it can sweep a whole team if it has no priority attacker most of the time. If you choose to use three attacks over Substitute, be warned that you must come into an attack that will deal less than 50% damage to Charizard, or else your strategy cannot work. A good way of making sure this happens is to simply bring Charizard in after one of its teammates is knocked out.</p>
<p>This set can be used effectively in OU as well. However, Charizard has a much harder time sweeping in that environment because of the much higher level of bulk in OU. If you use this set in OU, you need to support Charizard with as much residual damage as possible to ensure that Charizard can OHKO most Pokemon easily (whereas in UU, it can OHKO most of the Pokemon without residual damage). With Smeargle and other support leads running around in OU, this set can even set up early game to cause some serious damage. Life Orb is an option when this set is used as a lead so that Charizard has a higher chance of KOing something before it gets taken out.</p>
<p>With Substitute, Charizard needs to have a Taunt lead, or Rapid Spin Pokemon to keep Stealth Rock off of the field. Electrode is a fast Taunter that is useful for keeping Pokemon such as Uxie, Mesprit, Registeel, Steelix and Regirock from starting the match with Stealth Rock. Hitmontop and Claydol are good Rapid Spin users, using Pursuit and Shadow Ball respectively to hit Ghost-types who may switch in.</p>
<p>Pokemon who can stop this set include Slowbro, Milotic, and Hariyama, thus keeping a Pokemon who can deal with these threats is of benefit to Charizard. Blaziken, Magmortar and Nidoking are all great lures for Slowbro and Milotic, since they are all able to easily 2HKO Slowbro, though they require minor prediction to KO Milotic. Registeel and Regirock lure out Hariyama, because of its massive HP and nice resistances, while not caring about status. Hariyama is easily taken out by Explosion from one of these Pokemon, or any Pokemon with a strong super effective attack such as Espeon. Hitmontop has annoying priority attacks, but can be taken out using one of your Stealth Rock users with Explosion or a strong super effective move. Claydol can KO Hitmontop with Psychicwhen it thinks it is coming in to Pursuit or Rapid Spin, while Steelix and Regirock can easily take Hitmontop out with Explosion when it attempts to Rapid Spin. Note that Stealth Rock is not 100% needed for this set to be effective, so taking out Hitmontop is more important than keeping Stealth Rock on the field.</p
[SET]
name: Recoil BellyZard
move 1: Belly Drum
move 2: Double-Edge
move 3: Fire Punch
move 4: Earthquake / ThunderPunch
item: Salac Berry
nature: Adamant
evs: 16 HP / 252 Atk / 240 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is basically the same idea as the last set, but with a different playstyle. Instead of using Substitute, Endure, or weak attacks to get into Salac Berry range, it uses recoil damage. This set basically relies on your opponent carrying a slower Charizard counter, and needs to not have taken any previous damage. Basically, this set starts off by sending Charizard in on something it forces out, such as a Choiced Ground-type attack, and then using Belly Drum on the switch. Charizard then uses Double-Edge to OHKO the Milotic (only guaranteed with SR, but still has a high chance without), Hariyama, or whatever your opponent has sent in. With the recoil from Double-Edge, Charizard will be put into Salac range with its main counter taken out of the match. Double-Edge can be used as a suicide attack after, if your opponent happens to be carrying both Milotic and Hariyama for example. The HP EVs are there to make sure that you do not KO yourself with recoil after attacking Hariyama.</p>
<p>This set cannot be used if Stealth rock is in play without being extremely lucky (as in, you must come in on a Choiced Ground-type attack or after a KO because you cannot take any further damage). This Charizard in particular works well with Claydol, who can Rapid Spin and then explode to ensure that Stealth Rock will be off your side of the field. This set still has trouble with Slowbro, so Roserade and other Grass-types work well since they can either OHKO it or set up on it. Since Slowbro can stop this set, lead Arcanine will greatly benefit Charizard by being able to get an early game Toxic on Slowbro to eventually bring him down.</p>
[SET]
name: MixZard
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Electric
move 3: Focus Punch / Brick Break
move 4: Roost / Air Slash
item: Life Orb
nature: Rash / Mild
evs:60 Atk / 252 SpA / 196 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is meant to tear holes in the opponents team allowing for other pokemon to sweep. This also can function as a sweeper of its own with Charizard's naturally high base Speed. Fire Blast is Charizard's weapon of choice, and can use it to hit most Pokemon in the UU metagame for a 2HKO with Hidden Power for a nice coverage move. Chansey can try to switch in to this set expecting to wall its special attacks, but Chansey will be met by a big Focus Punch to the face, allowing Charizard to continue sweeping. The basic strategy is to send Charizard in on Steelix or Registeel using Stealth Rock, while then firing off your best attacks, until you knock something out or are met by one of Charizard's counters. This Charizard can come in again, ideally after you used 2 Attacks thanks to Life Orb so you start at 31% health activating Blaze, boosting Fire Blast's power by 50%.</p>
<p>Hidden Power Grass and Electric both hit Water-types who will love to switch in, especially since they will likely expect BellyZard. Slowbro gets incinerated by a Fire Blast and Hidden Power combo, meaning Charizard can freely open with Fire Blast on most foes. Hidden Power Grass hits those pesky Omastar who wall your other attacks fairly well and also hits Gastrodon and Quagsire who otherwise give this set trouble. Hidden Power Electric hits Moltres who may attempt to stop you, but it can barely take an attack after Stealth Rock anyway.</p>
<p>Focus Punch is needed to get the guaranteed OHKO on Chansey. Brick Break is viable to have the possibility for a 2HKO, but it also breaks screens which can be annoying for a Life Orb set such as this.</p>
<p>With Air Slash have few key benefits, being only usefull against Pokemon such as Blaziken, and being more accurate than Fire Blast as a STAB attack, Roost can be used in the last slot as well to heal Stealth Rock and Life Orb damage. With Stealth Rock and spin blockers being so commonly used, Roost helps Charizard stick around longer. Charizard also boasts decent defenses to utilize Roost, and can switch to resisted attacks and Roost off the damage. The EVs given allow Charizard to OHKO Chansey 100% of the time with Stealth Rock, and outspeed increased nature base 80s, such as Blaziken, and neutral nature base 90s such as Roserade.</p>
<p>This Charizard set brings a ton of immediate Speed and power (something BellyZard does not), and is basically the only Charizard that can be used effectively without Rapid Spin support. However, Milotic and other bulky Water-types can wall this set quite effectively, Regirock does as well. Stealth Rock support is very helpful on this set as well, so Pokemon that can set it up are greatly appreciated. Steelix makes a great pair with Charizard, resisting Rock-type attacks from Regirock, setting up Stealth Rock and being able to explode on said Water-types. Roserade is a great pair with Charizard as well, because it lures out bulky Water-types who give Roserade a free chance to use Spikes, which also help Charizard.</p>
<p>Charizard is a great Pokemon to lure and destroy Chansey, due to Focus Punch being unexpected from a primarily special set. Espeon, Yanmega, and other special sweepers appreciate the removal of the pink blob.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Focus Blast / Focus Punch
move 3: Dragon Pulse / Air Slash
move 4: Hidden Power Electric / Hidden Power Grass
item: Choice Specs
nature: Modest / Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With Charizard's awesome Special Attack stat, and very good Speed stat, a Choice Specs set can be very effective. Fire Blast (or Flamethrower for you accuracy freaks) is Charizard's weapon of choice, and can deal a hefty amount of damage, likely OHKOing or 2HKOing anything that does not resist it (except for Chansey of course). Focus Blast nails Chansey and Regirock for large sums of damage (though Chansey is almost always only 3HKOed), while Hidden Power hits Water-types super effectively. Dragon Pulse is one of the many advantages Charizard has on its fellow Fire-type attackers, being able to get the solid 2HKO on Altaria, while providing great neutral coverage with Fire Blast.</p>
<p>Hidden Power Electric hits Moltres and foe Charizard, which may otherwise Roost off the damage. Hidden Power Grass can hit the Water-types who have a secondary Ground or Rock-typing for clean OHKOs, though Focus Blast gets the clean OHKO on Kabuto and Omastar. Dragon Pulse hits both for neutral damage as well.</p>
<p>Focus Puch hits Chansey for a 2HKO, and can be used with a neutral nature, while Focus Blast has poor accuracy, but hits Regirock and other threats a lot harder. Air Slash can be used over any move except for Fire Blast and Focus Blast or Focus Punch, due to Charizard having STAB on it, and not to mention it hits Hariyama, who can otherwise switch in on this set quite easily.</p>
<p>This Charizard set can only be effectively walled by Chansey and Hariyama, who both still risk getting nailed by a Fighting-type attack or Air Slash respectively. This set needs Stealth Rock support badly, because it turns many 3HKOs into 2HKOs, such as Hidden Power against Milotic. This set does also appreciate having Rapid Spin support, but keep in mind that with Blaze activated, little can survive a boosted Fire Blast (or Flamethrower for that matter), and Stealth Rock is the easiest way to activate it. Since this Charizard can break its own walls and sweep, its best used on a team that will give it a lot of opportunities to switch in. Pokemon such as Steelix work well with Charizard, because Steelix lures out Ground attacks, as well as Fire and Fighting-type attacks from various other Pokemon. Omastar lures out Roserade as well, and gives Charizard an exceptionally easy time to come in on Energy Ball or Leaf Storm.</p>
<p>Steelix and Omastar also have the benefits of taking Rock-type attacks fairly well, which will be aimed at Charizard because of its 4x weakness, while also being able to set up Stealth Rock. Venusaur or Roserade can take the Water-type attacks aimed at Charizard, and can help Charizard remove the annoying Water-types with their strong STAB attacks.</p>
[SET]
name: Blaze + Sunny Day
move 1: Sunny Day
move 2: Substitute
move 3: Fire Blast / Flamethrower
move 4: SolarBeam
item: Petaya Berry
nature: Modest / Timid
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252
ivs: 30 HP
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With Sunny Day, Blaze, and a Petaya boost in effect, Fire Blast turns into an incredibly deadly attack, that will OHKO a surprising amount of the metagame. Another benefit of Sunny Day, is that Charizard now has a 120 base power Grass-type attack at its disposal, which will KO a good number of Water and Rock-types.</p>
<p>The trick with this set, is to get Charizard in on something that it forces out, or cannot KO it. Once the opponent switches or fails to KO Charizard, use Substitute, to scout their switch-in. If its a Pokemon that will attack you with a Water-type attack, use Sunny Day immediately, and take their Surfs with ease. When you think you can sweep, and are down to one Substitute left, thats when you go all-out with Blaze and Petaya. On the last Substitute, you use Sunny Day as they break your Substitute, then proceed to sweep your opponent with Fire Blast's monstrous power.</p>
<p>To give an example of its power, a Sunny Day, Blaze, and Petaya boosted Fire Blast will always OHKO Hariyama without significant EV investment in Special Defense.</p>
<p>This set works fine without Stealth Rock support, because it can just be saved untill the end of the battle if Stealth Rock is in effect, due to Charizard only being able to Substitute once more. This Charizard can definitely use Spikes and Stealth Rock support, giving it many OHKOs, such as Milotic. With 2 layers of Spikes and Stealth Rock in play, a Modest Charizard will always OHKO (yes OHKO) a Calm Chansey with Fire Blast, to give you an example of Spikes importance. Otherwise, in order to successfully sweep, Charizard abosutely needs Chansey out of the way, because they can both take a Fire Blast or SolarBeam, and KO back once Charizard Substitutes to less than 25%. Trick Specs variants of Espeon and Mismagius definitely help with crippling Chansey, and Espeon also has Baton Pass, which can be used to scout for a Chansey switch in, and then promptly send out a powerful Chansey destroyer, such as Nidoking or Hariyama.</p>
<p>Most importantly, this set needs a way to eliminate Azumarill and other priority attackers before Charizard Substitutes to low health. Though SolarBeam can KO Azumaril, and Sunny Day weakens Azumarill's attacks, Aqua Jet will still KO Charizard when it is below 25% HP. Any Rock or Ground-type with Explosion can do the the job of getting Azumarill out of the way, as Azumarill is a common switch in to them.</p>
<p>To show the importance of residual damage, and the incredible power of Fire Blast, here are some damage calculations.</p>
<h3>Damage Calculations</h3>
<pre>
Fire Blast vs 80 HP / min SpD Hariyama: 100%
Fire Blast vs 4 HP / max SpD Calm Chansey: 69.63% - 81.93%
SolarBeam vs 252 HP / min SpD Milotic: 80.20% - 94.42%
</pre>
[SET]
name: Dancing Dragon
move 1: Flare Blitz / Fire Punch
move 2: Earthquake / ThunderPunch
move 3: Dragon Dance / Swords Dance
move 4: Roost
item: Life Orb / Leftovers / Lum Berry
nature: Adamant
evs: 144 HP / 252 Atk / 112 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Charizard has two great physical attack boosting moves at its disposal, as well as decent bulk and Roost. With Flare Blitz as Charizard's main attack, Roost is even more important to prevent Charizard from taking itself out with the recoil from Life Orb and Flare Blitz. Earthquake does tons of damage to Regirock and other common switch-ins, while providing nice neutral coverage with Flare Blitz.</p>
<p>Fire Punch can be used over Flare Blitz if you do not care for the recoil, but the power difference between the two is pretty major. ThunderPunch can be used over Earthquake to hit Slowbro and other Water-types, but it's often too weak to even 2HKO them. ThunderPunch is only really useful to hit Milotic, which can be KOed after being slightly weakened. Leftovers can be used over Life Orb, to add a bit more bulk to Charizard, and help negate the recoil damage a bit, while Lum Berry prevents status, which is always nice for a sweeper.</p>
<p>The EVs given are for use with Dragon Dance (with Swords Dance the EVs are simply 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe with a Adamant or Jolly nature), which gives Charizard enough Speed to outrun base 130s after a single boost. Attack is maximized, to increase sweeping potential, and the rest is put into HP, to give Charizard a bit of bulk to abuse Roost.</p>
<p>This Charizard set can recover HP, so Rapid Spin is not a must, but its still benefitial to have. This Charizard set needs to have its basic counters weakened heavily in order to sweep. Pokemon such as Milotic, Slowbro, and Regirock are near impossible for Charizard to take down without some help. However, all of these Pokemon share a weakness to Grass-type attacks, and can barely touch Pokemon such as Venusaur, who can then take the turn to hit them with a STAB attack, or Leech Seed. Magmortar is an effective lure for Milotic, who is usually a safe switch-in to Fire Blast, but if hit by even a weaker unboosted (for instance, without Life Orb or Choice Specs) Thunderbolt, Milotic is put into KO range from Charizard.</p>
[Team Options]
<p>Charizard, as an offensively natured Pokemon, will always appreciate residual damage support, such as Stealth Rock and Spikes, though some sets need it more than others (such as the Blaze + Sunny Day set needs it more than the Recoil BellyZard set). Charizard also almost always benefits from having Rapid Spin support, because of its deadly 4x weakness to it. Some of the sets will not work very well at all with Stealth Rock in play.</p>
<p>Charizard has difficulty with bulky Water-types, as well as Pokemon such as Regirock. Generally, these Pokemon are very slow, so using Pokemon with high offensive stats, and mediocre Speed can deal with the problems. Nidoking is a great choice, with decent offensive stats, and an amazing movepool to boot. Nidoking can come in on an Electric or Rock-type attack aimed at Charizard, and proceed to destroy the bulky Water-types with Thunderbolt, and Regirock with Earthquake. Blaziken and Magmortar are also fair choices as well, however they share a lot of the same weaknesses as Charizard, such as Rock and Water-type attacks. The Fire-type wall breakers are generally better paired with the Sunny Day Charizard, because they can at least benefit from the sun. Rhydon is a nice pair with Charizard, Rhydon can easily take out Milotic and Regirock with a couple Earthquakes, and Slowbro falls quickly to Megahorn.</p>
<p>Charizard always benefits from having Pokemon to sponge attacks thrown at it by its counters. Arguably the best partner for Charizard is Hitmontop, who can Rapid Spin away Stealth Rock fairly reliably, while also resisting Rock-type attacks. Cloyster can be used with Hitmontop, as it can set up Spikes of its own, while Charizard can take the Grass and Fighting-type attacks aimed at it, while Hitmontop can take the Rock-type attacks aimed at it. Rhydon is a great Pokemon to use with Charizard, being able to take the Rock-type attacks aimed at Charizard, while luring out Grass and Ground-type attacks for Charizard to switch into. Omastar is a nice Pokemon to use Charizard with, granting Stealth Rock and Spikes support, while also having very high defenses, allowing it to take some of the Water and Rock-type attacks aimed at Charizard even without a resistance, not to mention Grass and Ground-type attacks aimed at Omastar give Charizard an easy switch-in. Steelix and Roserade pair to make a great defensive trio with Charizard, with Steelix being able to take Rock-type attacks and being able to set up Stealth Rock, while Roserade can easily take the Water-type attacks, and set up Spikes.</p>
<p>Since Roserade and the like give Charizard an easy switch in, its important to keep in mind which Pokemon are used with it. Milotic is very commonly used with Roserade, so when you switch Charizard into their Grass-type attack, remember that Milotic will likely be coming in on your next attack. On Pokemon like Steelix, who is an easy switch in for Charizard are often used with Milotic as well, so keep your trigger finger on an Electric-type attack. Registeel is very commonly used with Slowbro, so unless you have maximized Special Attack EVs, you may want to get rid of Slowbro before attempting to sweep with Charizard.</p>
<p>Many common strategies for Charizard basically involve maneuvering around Stealth Rock. The easiest way to get a free turn, while also getting in before Stealth Rock is in play, is to switch in on Steelix or Registeel as they use it. Not only are they forced out, you have just entered the battle with 100% HP. Another way to get into the match quickly, is to predict a U-turn from Ambipom or Uxie and send Charizard in, and with your 4x resistance to Bug-type attacks, Charizard gets in practically free of harm. Charizard can be used with a Baton Passing Espeon or Drifblim, and use its awesome coverage and Speed to sweep the opponents team, while also resisting Bug-type attacks aimed at Espeon.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Since Charizard has a fair bit of viable options, there is quite a bit of room to cover here. Charizard can use Dragon Dance, Substitute and a Liechi Berry to run an essentially easier to set up, but weaker Belly Drum set.</p>
<p>Charizard can abuse its fast Speed, and strong STAB attacks to use a decent Choice Band set, even though it has a mere 84 base Attack. Flare Blitz would be Charizard's main attack, with Earthquake, ThunderPunch, and Focus Punch for coverage. Charizard's physical movepool is huge, and almost any attack can be used on a Choice Band set for certain Pokemon, such as Rock Slide for Moltres, Crunch for Mismagius, and even Outrage for general coverage, though without STAB and only moderate attacking power, its usually not worth it.</p>
<p>Overheat can be used on almost any set, but keep in mind that it hinders Charizard's sweeping possibilities, and also forces Charizard out, which is always a bad thing with a Stealth Rock weakness. Charizard can run a mixed Dragon Dance set, but since Charizard will almost always hit the target harder with a physical attack, due to Charizard's great movepool, the moveslot is usually best used for physical coverage.</p>
<p>A Toxic stalling set can be used, with Charizard's decent bulk and Roost, but this set is almost 100% outclassed by Moltres, and the only advantage Charizard has is Speed and surprise factor. On the note of surprise, Charizard can surprise many of its switch-ins with Will-O-Wisp, and cut their Attack and infict them with a burn, as well as being able to Roar them out, stacking on the residual damage.</p>
[EVs]
<p>Charizard will usually want to maximize the primary attacking stat, as well as Speed to dish out as much damage as possible. A Jolly or Timid nature can be used on the sets without a Salac Berry, to outpace other base 100s, and also base 95s, such as Arcanine and Drapion.</p>
<p>With the mixed set, Charizard needs 60 Attack EVs to OHKO Chansey, while maximizing Special Attack to deal the most damage possible. The rest of the EVs should be just dumped into HP. The Dragon Dance set can easily use its bulk to get more Dragon Dances, and have an easier chance to sweep. With 112 Speed EVs, Charizard is faster than every Pokemon minus Electrode after a Dragon Dance, and gives it 144 EVs to put into HP.</p>
[Opinion]
<p>Charizard is one of those Pokemon who is not OU merely because of weakness to Stealth Rock. With Stealth Rock being so common, Fire and Flying-types have a very tough time competing, and need a little more team support to do well. However, this is not to say that they are bad Pokemon, Charizard is one of the fastest and strongest Pokemon in the UU metagame, boasting awesome Speed, Special Attack, and movepool, as well as a nice amount of resistances, decent Bulk, and a usable Attack stat.</p>
<p>With Charizard's immanent Belly Drum threat, people are often forced to either carry a counter, or lose if Charizard is given the opportunity to set up (even in OU). Often Charizard can use this as an advantage, and use more immediately threatening sets, such as Choice Specs and Life Orb.</p>
<p>Charizard can also take advantage of the excess amount of Grass-types in UU, giving Charizard a basically free switch-in on any of their STAB attacks. With decent bulk Charizard can heal off Stealth Rock and / or Life Orb recoil, and continue to sweep.</p>
<p>If you are in need of a Ground-type immunity, or Fighting-type resist, while also benefitting from a quick and powerful sweeper, Charizard is a definite candidate for a moveslot.</p>
[Counters]
<p>Charizard has set dependent counters, but many of the counters overlap. For example. Slowbro is a flawless counter for the Choice Band, BellyZard, and Dragon Dance sets, while Pokemon such as Milotic will be able to counter BellyZard only if it does not carry ThunderPunch, but can counter basically all of the special oriented sets. Regirock is a great general Charizard counter, having a STAB Rock-type attack, great defenses, and resisting Charizard's STABs.</p>
<p>Pokemon such as Hariyama can switch into sets without Air Slash, though it can be OHKOed by the Sunny Day Blaze set. Hariyama dislikes constant attacks being thrown at it as well, without a recovery move. Azumarill can come in on Charizard's Fire-type attacks, and KO with Aqua Jet, though Hidden Power will do a number on the little Water-type Pokemon.</p>
<p>Chansey can switch in on the special sets, as long as it avoids Focus Blast. Moltres can switch into any set without Rock Slide, ThunderPunch, or Hidden Power Electric and proceed to Toxic and stall Charizard. However, Moltres is also fairly useless agaisnt a Substitute Charizard.</p>
<p>The best way to get rid of Charizard, is to carry Stealth Rock and a Ghost-type to block Rapid Spin. Once Charizard is below 50% HP, it cannot switch back into the match, and is thus easily rendered useless. Watch out for Foresight Hitmontops or Roost to deal with these problems though, and keep in mind when you see a Charizard with less than 33% HP, you might want to take a step back, for with a Blaze boost not much can stand in the way of a Fire Blast.</p>
