Gen 1 Charizard (UU) [QC 2/2] [GP 1/1]

Charizard:

[Overview]
Charizard may be a childhood favorite to many, but that doesn't necessarily translate to competitive viability in RBY UU. It certainly has access to some great moves with Earthquake and Slash, but it struggles heavily to make an impact in the metagame. This is mostly because of its Fire typing generally not being suitable for UU, since Tentacruel has such a stranglehold on the metagame. To add to this, Charizard's typing makes it weak to the most common types in the tier in Water, Rock, Electric, and, because Fire doesn't resist it in RBY, even Ice. Charizard's main niches are having a speed tie with Tentacruel, immunity to Dugtrio's powerful Earthquake, and has access to Swords Dance,
and a really strong STAB Fire Blast that can land a game-winning burn on Tentacruel or Dugtrio. However, in addition to its other flaws, Charizard suffers greatly from Wrap; faster Wrap users like Agility-boosted Dragonite shut it down, and slower ones force it to choose between switching out and losing Swords Dance or being worn down. In Tentacruel's case, Charizard still has to hope it wins the Speed tie even if it stays in. Overall, Charizard has decent and unique perks that make it a decent late-game cleaner, but it's usually just too difficult to make use of and clear the way for.


[SET]
Name: Late-game Cleaner
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Slash / Body Slam
move 4: Earthquake

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========

This is about as good as it will get with Charizard. Swords Dance is essential for it to do any significant damage to many foes, Slash is a near-guaranteed critical hit with Charizard’s Speed, and Earthquake is your best chance for beating Tentacruel with the Speed tie. If you manage to pull off Swords Dance, this set can clean through teams late-game very efficiently. Body Slam is a solid option for its paralysis chance, which could give Charizard a setup opportunity and sweep. This set is extremely fragile, so keeping up the momentum from Swords Dance will be quite the challenge against insufficiently weakened teams.


Other options:

Counter can be used as a fringe option against Persian and Kangaskhan. In the event Charizard can force something out after an Explosion, it can counter said Explosion as they switch, providing massive damage and possibly scoring a knockout. Counter is also useful if you survive a Hyper Beam to fire back during the recharge turn, but this is gimmicky. Toxic is also a nice niche option to check the infamous Agility + Wrap Dragonite, and Hyper Beam is an incredibly strong finisher if one decides to use an even more aggressive set.

Charizard gains the ability to pivot, with Fire Spin, which is stronger than Wrap thanks to STAB. However, there are better options for this role, most notably Moltres, which has a higher Special stat and access to Agility, and Rapidash, with its great Speed and access to Agility as well.


[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Rosewing, 540631]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353]], [[Amaranth, 265630 ]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [, ]]
 
Last edited:

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
Let's get things rolling.

Charizard is one of those Pokemon where it's almost viable, but the top threats just choke it out real bad. It's one of the better Fire-types available, it's just really specific, and being a Fire-type in RBY UU is just...lmfao

Overview
Charizard is a childhood fan favorite.
Awww we can play this up more, surely


To add to this, Fire doesn’t resist Ice in Gen 1, making Charizard quadruply weak to Ice Beam which is littered everywhere among the metagame.
Blizzard > Ice Beam in most scenarios. Remember, 90 accuracy makes this move wayyyy better.

Fire Spin with 100 speed definitely has its perks, especially since it gives this Pokémon flexibility in movesets and the ability to pivot while being supported by ToxicWrap.
Cite its perks. The main one is getting the speed tie on Tentacruel, so it can put the opponent at quite the disadvantage if you win out. Fire Spin has tons of utility. However, I'd put this into the OO paragraph since you don't put it into the main set (and for fair enough reason).

One could run Swords Dance on their set for Charizard, but with how Wrap is everywhere in UU, its ultimately a fruitless effort most of the time.
This isn't too well-explained and makes the set you're citing less viable than it is. Setting up is difficult - especially for Charizard - but not fruitless; if Charizard does set up, it's actually quite dangerous. I'd say "Charizard is capable of setting up with Swords Dance which, while difficult, can be very rewarding to the player". Once you do this, merge it with the sentence showing the niches it can offer.

Use it only if you need a Fire type on your team and don’t want to use Moltres, as it outclasses Charizard in about every way.
Moltres outclasses Charizard as a Fire Spin user, but the coverage and set-up potential Charizard has are completely unique among Fire-types. You could move the Fire Spin stuff here and go on to explain that Moltres is usually better for Agility access. Hell, even Rapidash is better for its initial Speed and Agility access. Oh, and I don't really see where a Fire-type would be needed; I'd argue the Flying-type is far more appealing.

Set Details
You need to explain Body Slam as an alternative, as you put it with Slash. The main reason you'd make the switch is exchanging the immediate power provided by Slash for the self-sufficient spread of paralysis that Body Slam provides. This, in turn, makes Charizard a bit more reliant on Swords Dance, but its damage output is a bit better off.

Good luck when it comes to getting the Swords Dance off when Wrap is everywhere, as it will delay setup. If you manage to pull it off, this can clean through teams late-game. If you manage to get the Swords Dance off, you can KO Tentacruel pretty well with an Earthquake.
The first line seems out of place in the context of the analysis, and is a bit harsh. I'd say cut the line or explain it better: "Swords Dance is difficult to pull off in RBY UU, and requires efficient positioning by the player" may be better and more truthful. Then merge the two highlighted lines, it repeats itself a bit when it could be one sentence.

As an example of how the merged sentence can look, feel free to use it: "If you manage to pull it off, Charizard can sweep teams late-game and even OHKO Tentacruel with Earthquake half the time.".

Be careful of Dugtrio’s Rock Slide and getting wrapped yourself otherwise Charizard’s Swords Dance becomes worthless.
The Dugtrio matchup is surprisingly murky; Fire Blast deals massive damage and a burn is a game over. If it's taken any hit, it may even lose outright, as Rock Slide is a 2HKO. Charizard gets one shot at winning, but a shot is all it really needs.

If you need another Pokémon with wrap, fit Fire Spin on this set, it’ll help somewhat with Charizard’s many checks in the metagame.
Put this in the OO paragraph.

Other Options Paragraph
A very good start here. Remember to move Fire Spin down.

Two other options could chuck in since Charizard has an excellent movepool;
  • Hyper Beam for more Swords Dance funnies
  • Toxic for Dragonite so it doesn't do the funny AgiliWrap sweep. Charizard is practically screaming for it to come in and ruin your day, so it's a strong deterrent.

Good start, implement these for QC 1/2.
plaguevonkarma-qc-small.gif
 

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
Just got the chance to check your QC implementation, good job! Just a few minor things before we pass it on to the next person.
It certainly has access to some great moves with Earthquake and Slash, but it struggles heavily to make an impact in the metagame. This is mostly because of its Fire typing generally not being suitable for UU since Tentacruel has such a stranglehold on the metagame.
The repetition here makes it fall a bit flat. You can possibly merge these sentences like this;
It certainly has access to some great moves with Earthquake and Slash, but it struggles heavily to make an impact in the metagame despite this; this is mostly because of its Fire typing generally not being suitable for UU since Tentacruel is so omnipresent on a game-to-game basis.
Or, change the wording on the second sentence.

The second sentence should expand on the weaknesses Fire/Flying brings to the table. It's hard to name a viable Pokemon that doesn't smack this poor thing.

One could run Swords Dance on their set for Charizard, but with how Wrap is everywhere in UU, its ultimately a fruitless effort most of the time.
Again, it's not really fruitless when the reward is there. I know you're getting at the fact Wrap delays it while dealing chip, as well as the presence of Water-types to force it out, but it needs to be explained better.

Use it only if you need a Fire type on your team and don’t want to use Moltres, as it outclasses Charizard in about every way.
I went over this as well. Check my previous post.

This is just about as good as it will get with Charizard. Swords Dance is essential for it to do any significant damage in the tier, Fire Blast is the best STAB move for Charizard, Slash has a near-guaranteed critical hit with Charizard’s speed, and Earthquake is your best chance for beating Tentacruel with the speed tie. Good luck when it comes to getting the Swords Dance off when Wrap is everywhere, as it will delay setup. If you manage to pull it off, this can clean through teams late-game. If you manage to get the Swords Dance off, you can KO Tentacruel pretty well with an Earthquake. Be careful of Dugtrio’s Rock Slide and getting wrapped yourself otherwise Charizard’s Swords Dance becomes worthless. If you need another Pokémon with wrap, fit Fire Spin on this set, it’ll help somewhat with Charizard’s many checks in the metagame. This set is fragile to a T, so good luck keeping the momentum made by Swords Dance.

Counter can be used as a fringe option against Persian and Kangaskhan. In the event Charizard can force something out after an Explosion, it can counter said Explosion as they switch, providing massive damage, possibly scoring a knockout. Surviving a Hyper Beam and countering during the recharge can be a good use for this move. Though one should remember, this is more so a gimmick than a legitimate strategy.
Move the highlighted text to the other paragraph, as it isn't in the main set. You could slash it with Swords Dance though, as that's generally how Charizard builds go. You also forgot Toxic for stopping Dragonite in the second paragraph.
 
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[Overview] (i consolidated it into one paragraph)
Charizard may have been a childhood favorite to many, but that doesn't necessarily translate to competitive viability in RBY UU. It certainly has access to some great moves with in Earthquake and Slash, but it struggles heavily to make an impact in the metagame. This is mostly because of its Fire typing generally not being suitable for UU, (AC) since Tentacruel has such a stranglehold on the metagame. To add to this, Charizard's type, being Fire/Flying, typing makes it weak to the most common types in the tier being water, rock, electric in Water, Rock, Electric, and, (AC) because Fire doesn't resist it in Gen 1 RBY, even Ice. Charizard's main niches are the fact that it speed ties with having a Speed tie with Tentacruel, has immunity to Dugtrio's powerful Earthquake, and has access to Swords Dance, (period -> comma) STAB Fire Blast can be really strong and burning Tentacruel or Dugtrio can be game-winning, but it falls flat in a metagame filled with so many Pokémon that have moves to cripple it. Charizard is capable of setting up with Swords Dance which, while difficult, can be very rewarding to the player. However, the user must get rid of any Pokemon that could wrap Charizard such as Dragonite's infamous Agility and Wrap combo or Tentacruel's speed tie with it in order to ensure Charizard's safety. Wrap in general just makes the idea of setting up such a pain as it forces Charizard to choose, either switching and resetting its boosts or staying in and being forced to take wrap damage in hopes of breaking out and outspeeding the opposition. Overall, Charizard, while having decent perks, it just has too many things working against it to be a true threat in UU, but can be a decent late-game cleaner. It's a very unique fire/flying type that has several coverage options, it's just very difficult to get going. and a really strong STAB Fire Blast that can land a game-winning burn on Tentacruel or Dugtrio. However, in addition to its other flaws, Charizard suffers greatly from Wrap; faster Wrap users like Agility-boosted Dragonite shut it down, and slower ones force it to choose between switching out and losing Swords Dance boosts—and momentum—or being worn down. In Tentacruel's case, Charizard still has to hope it wins the Speed tie even if it stays in. Overall, Charizard has decent and unique perks that make it a decent late-game cleaner, but it's usually just too difficult to make use of and clear the way for.

[SET]
Name: Late-game (added hyphen) Cleaner
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Slash / Body Slam
move 4: Earthquake

[SET COMMENTS]
Set Description
=========

This is just about as good as it will get with Charizard. Swords Dance is essential for it to do any significant damage in the tier, Fire Blast is the best STAB move for Charizard, Slash has to many foes, Slash is a near-guaranteed critical hit with Charizard’s Speed, and Earthquake is your best chance for beating Tentacruel with the Speed tie. If you manage to pull off Swords Dance, this set can clean through teams late-game very efficiently. Body Slam is a solid option for its paralysis chance, (AC) and could cause a situation where one could set up a Swords Dance which in turn, could create a sweep. This set is fragile to a T, so good luck keeping the momentum made by Swords Dance. which could give Charizard a setup opportunity and sweep. This set is extremely fragile, so keeping up the momentum from Swords Dance will be quite the challenge against insufficiently weakened teams.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=========


Counter can be used as a fringe option against Persian and Kangaskhan. In the event Charizard can force something out after an Explosion, it can counter said Explosion as they switch, providing massive damage (RC) and possibly scoring a knock-out. (added hyphen) Surviving a Hyper Beam and countering during the recharge can be a good use for this move. Though one should remember, this is more so a gimmick than a legitimate strategy. Counter is also useful if you survive a Hyper Beam to fire back during the recharge turn, but this is gimmicky. Toxic is also a nice niche option to check the infamous Agility + Wrap Dragonite, and Hyper Beam is an incredibly strong finisher if one decides to use an even more aggressive set.

Charizard gains the ability to pivot when you consider Fire Spin on your set, which is a STAB version of Wrap. Despite this fact, with Fire Spin, which is stronger than Wrap thanks to STAB. However, there are better options for this role, most notably Moltres, (AC), who which has a higher Special stat and access to Agility, (AC) or and Rapidash, (AC) with its great Speed and access to Agility as well. A neat tool for Charizard, but just unnecessary when you consider its competition.

Toxic is also a nice niche option for Charizard as a means of checking Dragonite's infamous Agility+Wrap combo and Hyper Beam can be an incredibly strong finisher if one decides to use a more aggressive set.



[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Rosewing, 540631]]
- Quality checked by: [[Plague von Karma, 236353], [Amaranth, 265630]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [, ]]

why.gif
1/2
also tagging Plague von Karma in case you think I missed something important from the overview / etc.
i assume ur subbed to the thread either way but who knows!?!?
 

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