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[Overview]
<p>Along with a change in the definition of Evasion Clause–now including Sand Veil from OU–Garchomp dropped off most of his Sandstorm synergy, leaving him back with only with his Rough Skin ability. However, don't think Sand Veil was the only reason for Garchomp's success; great Dragon / Ground dual-type coupled with viable base stats give Garchomp a lot of merits. Garchomp has almost perfect STAB coverage, with his STAB moves only resisted by the rarely seen Bronzong and Skarmory. Resisting Stealth Rock as well as working well under any weather condition are just a few more of his abilities.</p>
<p>Although it faces competition from his Dragon brethren Dragonite, Salamence, Haxorus, Latios, and Hydreigon, Garchomp can stand his ground thanks to his unique abilities, including the ability to set up Stealth Rock and an immunity to Electric-type moves, blocking Thunder Wave and Volt Switch completely. Although he has just two weaknesses, Dragon- and Ice-type moves are seen on any team, giving him some problems with Choice Scarf Dragons unless he wields one himself, as well as Mamoswine—which his teammates should work around.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Outrage
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Fire Fang / Aqua Tail
move 4: Dragon Claw / Dual Chop
item: Choice Band
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>What to do if you don't have the time to set up or you just don't want to? Slap a Choice Band on him and you are set to go. With an instant Attack boost, Garchomp's attacks will reach destructive levels. Outrage will at least 2HKO the entire OU metagame, bar Steel-types—which is, where Earthquake comes in. Although Earthquake is a risky pick for any Choice Pokemon, Garchomp makes good use of it, as it offers needed coverage along with gaining STAB. Fire Fang lets Garchomp break through Pokemon such as Scizor, Ferrothorn and Forretress, which laugh at Outrage and take just neutral damage from Earthquake; it is therefore the preferred move outside of rain.</p>
<p>In rain, on the other hand, Aqua Tail gets a significant boost, allowing him to hit most Steel-types—including Skarmory and Bronzong—harder; it also 2HKOes Gliscor. In the last slot, a secondary Dragon-type move is recommended so as not to lock into Outrage to early. While Dragon Claw is the more secure pick, Dual Chop lets Garchomp get past Substitute Dragonite and SubCM setup sweepers.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Band Garchomp has a handy ability to deal with most weather inducers. Tyranitar is dispatched by Earthquake, even physically defensive Ninetales will be OHKOed by both Garchomp's STAB moves. While 252/0 Politoed can be OHKOed with Outrage, a physically defensive variant is only in 2HKO range, so is 252/0 Hippowdon. Physically defensive Hippowdon is the only weather inducer, that has a chance of not being 2HKOed.</p>
<p>Before Garchomp can unleash Outrage's full potential, Steel-types and faster Dragons will need to first be removed. Skarmory especially is quite a nuisance, as it is barely 2HKOed by Fire Fang in neutral weather and by rain-boosted Aqua Tail. Both Magneton and Magnezone make good partners for Garchomp as a DragMag combo, in order to remove not just this specific threat, but also Ferrothorn, Forretress, and a Scizor Choice-locked into Bullet Punch. Any other potentially problematic Steel-types will have a hard day facing Dugtrio; examples include Heatran, Jirachi, as well as opposing Magnezone and Magneton. Another offensive option is Mamoswine, which has a high base Attack stat and great dual STAB moves, being able to deal with most Garchomp threats. Defensively, Heatran and Jirachi can put a full stop to most Dragon- and Ice-type moves aimed at Garchomp.</p>
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Fire Fang
item: Yache Berry / Haban Berry
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp can utilize Swords Dance rather easily thanks to his good number of resists and immunities. Just bring him in on moves such as Volt Switch, Flamethrower or most unSTABed moves, set up Swords Dance and start sweeping. Dual STAB is pretty much all he needs, since with a +2 boost under his belt, everything in his way will be overrun by Outrage, including physically defensive Hippowdon and physically defensive Gyarados, even factoring in Intimidate. Still, Fire Fang is needed to deal with Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Forretress—but note that Scizor is OHKOed by +2 Earthquake after Stealth Rock. Fire Fang should always be used over Fire Blast, as it does more damage after a boost.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp has enough power after a Swords Dance boost, so he can use an item that helps in taking hits better. Thankfully, he only has two weaknesses, which can both be reduced a bit by using a Yache Berry or Haban Berry respectively. The former allows Garchomp to take any unSTABed Ice-type move, and also always survive Life Orb Mamoswine's Ice Shard while the latter lets Garchomp survive an Outrage from Life Orb Salamence, Life Orb Dragonite, and opposing Choice Band Garchomp, as well as a Draco Meteor from Life Orb Latias and Choice Scarf Latios. Draco Meteor from Life Orb Latios and Hydreigon still always OHKOs Garchomp, though, as does Outrage from Kyurem-B 43.75% of the time. Dragon Claw can be used instead of Outrage to avoid being locked into it; however, Dragon Claw is weaker and will miss out on OHKOs on Deoxys-D, Gliscor, Celebi, and Hippowdon.</p>
<p>Again, Garchomp fits well on DragMag teams, where he can get free switch-ins from Magneton's and Magnezone's Volt Switch. Generally, Steel-types work very well with Dragon-type Pokemon. Jirachi and Scizor can both use U-Turn to give Garchomp more safe switch-ins. Jirachi can even pass Wish to grant Garchomp multiple chances to attempt a sweep. Even though Garchomp can wreck almost anything, he still detests Scald or Will-O-Wisp burns from faster Pokemon, such as Choice Scarf Rotom-W and Starmie. Gastrodon works as a solid counter to these moves, and doesn't care much about burn. In case of an unexpected status ailment on Garchomp, look to cleric support; Vaporeon can cure status, pass Wish, and allow soft switch-ins by using Baton Pass.</p>
[SET]
name: Substitute + Swords Dance
move 1: Substitute
move 2: Swords Dance
move 3: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 4: Earthquake
item: Leftovers / Salac Berry
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp doesn't hide; Garchomp retreats tactically behind a Substitute. This allows him to set up more easily or attack right away if needed, depending on the situation. Either of two conditions are required for a successful late-game sweep: either remove all the opponent's Outrage sponges, or leave him with no more than one faster Pokemon. With only his STAB moves, Garchomp might lose some coverage, but he gets significantly more power in return. A neutral Earthquake is often enough to let him power through most Steel-types, including Scizor, Ferrothorn and Forretress, all of whom are easily 2HKOed at +2.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Both Leftovers and Salac Berry work well with Substitute. But since speed is a real big term in OU, there are a lot of Pokemon running a Choice Scarf or have access to priority. This includes Latios and Terrakion for the former and Scizor, Breloom, Dragonite, Mamoswine, and Lucario for the ladder, making them all a threat to Garchomp without an active Substitute, even when getting the speed boost by Salac Berry. This ultimately makes it an inferior option in general over Leftovers's constant recovery effect. In case you want to use Salac Berry though, make sure these threats got eliminated before activating. A Life Orb boost enables Garchomp to 2HKO Skarmory with +2 Outrage; however, be aware that residual damage will rack up quickly.</p>
<p>Lacking any Fire-type move and potentially being unable to set up, Garchomp badly needs support to remove opposing Skarmory and Bronzong. Besides Magnezone and Magneton, there are a number of other viable teammates for this purpose, namely Thundurus-T, Rotom-W, Heatran, and even Infernape</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Outrage
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Fire Fang / Aqua Tail
move 4: Dragon Claw
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Choice Scarf Garchomp noticeably lacks the immediate wallbreaking power of his other variants, but is one of the fastest Pokemon in the game—aside from Choice Scarf Latios and Choice Scarf Terrakion, as well as Chlorophyll sweepers such as Venusaur— nd is hence an effective revenge kiler. Outrage is his main move once certain threats are removed. STAB Earthquake hitsmost Steel-types hard, while he can pick between either Fire Fang or Aqua Tail for coverage. The latter should only really be used on rain teams, however, where it hits Skarmory and Bronzong as hard as possible. With near-perfect coverage, Garchomp can run any move in the last slot. Dragon Claw is recommended for a consequence-free STAB move.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Typical partners that remove Steel-types are needed for an eventual Outrage sweep: Dugtrio in combination with Scizor or Jirachi can drag most of them out and remove them easily, while Magneton and Magnezone can take out Skarmory safely. Breloom, Scizor, and Mamoswine can threaten faster Choice Scarf users with their priority moves to prevent them from revenge killing Garchomp.</p>
[SET]
name: Stealth Rock
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Outrage / Dragon Claw
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Fire Blast / Swords Dance
item: Life Orb / Focus Sash
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Naive / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp is no one-dimensional hard-hitter; he can also securely set up Stealth Rock for the team, as he can handle most spinners between its dual STAB and Fire Blast. The latter OHKOes Forretress with Life Orb, 2HKOes specially defensive Skarmory, and decimates Ferrothorn and Scizor. Swords Dance also works in the last slot to give Garchomp a secondary role as a setup sweeper.</p>
<p>Focus Sash can be used to make Garchomp a fantastic lead, as he is one of the fastest Stealth Rock users in the tier, ahead even of Terrakion and Aerodactyl. Thanks to Rough Skin, Garchomp is able to break Terrakion's Focus Sash, ensuring an easy OHKO with Earthquake. Rapid Spinners, such as bulky Starmie, Forretress, Tentacruel, and even Donphan are almost no problem for this set, being able to KO most of them easily, allowing it to keep up Stealth Rock on the field. This again reduces the actual need of a spinblocker on the same team.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Deoxys-D works nicely with Garchomp by setting up Spikes and increasing residual damage on the opponent's team. Other than this, Stealth Rock Garchomp works very independently in contrast to his other sets, as it follows its own strategy. This allows the team to be more flexible than usual.</p>
[SET]
name: Support
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Dragon Claw / Dragon Tail
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Fire Blast / Aqua Tail / Protect
item: Leftovers
ability: Rough Skin
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 HP / 196 Def / 60 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Garchomp has great natural bulk and thus can work in a more support-orientated way. Stealth Rock is again Garchomp's main aim. In contrast to his other sets, this one forgoes Outrage completely, as it doesn't hit nearly as hard, but instead using Dragon Claw as it has the same great standalone neutral coverage, but Dragon Tail can be used to phaze through the opponent's team, racking up residual damage. The combination of Earthquake and Fire Blast destroys all Steel-types, but Aqua Tail can be used in rain to take out Gliscor and Skarmory. Alternatively, Protect lets Garchomp schout for super effective moves, and aids prediction around Choice users.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given Speed investment lets Garchomp outspeed neutral base 90s, such as Adamant Lucario, but also positive-natured Heatran and Breloom. The given spread maximizes Garchomp's bulk, and specifically allows him to survive +2 Life Orb Breloom's Mach Punch and Choice Band Terrakion's Close Combat. Even Jolly Life Orb Mamoswine's Ice Shard has just a 37.5% chance to OHKO from full health, while unboosted Hidden Power Ice from the likes of Jirachi, Heatran, Alakazam, and Jolteon also fail to OHKO. However, even this bulky Garchomp should avoid Outrage, Draco Meteor, and Ice Beam.</p>
<p>This set works in almost any weather. In particular, sandstorm increases passive damage on the opponent's team; Dragon Tail and even Rocky Helmet should therefore be considered on such teams. In sun and in rain, Fire Blast and Aqua Tail get pseudo-STAB respectively, making them significantly.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Dragon Tail can replace Dragon Claw on any set where the latter is secondary STAB. Bulldoze receives STAB and allows Garchomp to slow down faster Pokemon or Choice Scarf users on the switch potentially letting him fire off another attack. Garchomp can also learn Stone Edge and Rock Slide, but these offer almost no additional coverage but against Volcarona and have subpar accuracy.</p>
<p>A Classic ChainChomp set with Draco Meteor and Fire Blast might catch the opponent by surprise, usually expecting Garchomp to be physically offensive. It lacks general power in comparison to Outrage and Fire Fang due both to Garchomp's higher Attack stat and his ability to boost it but does a decent job on more physically defensive oriented Pokemon and doesn't mind that much about getting burned. Mixed variants should use a Hasty nature to keep Garchomp's good bulk against common priority moves. A passive damage stacker with Protect, Toxic and a Rocky Helmet can be used in sandstorm teams. RestTalk can surprise most opponents, with Garchomp's natural bulk and newfound ability to get rid of status, he can increase his staying power to some extent.</p>
[Checks and Counters] *will be redone entirely*
<p>Skarmory and Bronzong are the only Pokemon that ever happen to be seen in OU that resist both of Garchomp's STAB moves. More annoyingly, both are known to be effective physical walls, making a Fire-type move coverage almost mandatory. Choice Scarf Kyurem-B is faster than any set Garchomp has except when running a Choice Scarf by himself. Also, Kyurem-B's Outrage will definitely hurt a lot so prober Team support is needed to take care of him. Heatran, Jirachi and Scizor can take Outrage somewhat ok, allowing to hit back hard with their STAB moves.</p>
<p>Defensive Gliscor is really annoying, being able to switch easily into Garchomp's Choice locked Earthquake, forcing him to switch. Mamoswine can cover this problem easily with his ridiculously powerful Ice-type moves but Rotom-W also works well to full stop most Glisor. In Rain, Garchomp can hit it really hard with Aqua Tail and Vaporeon doesn't even care at all, negating Toxic with her Hydration ability. Speaking of Mamoswine, he not just makes a good partner but is also one of Garchomp's worst problems. With just an Adamant nature, Ice Shard can almost OHKO from full health, which again makes Rotom-W one of Garchomp's best partners. Garchomp generally has only two weaknesses which is low in quantity but immense in quality: Garchomp will die to almost any Outrage, Draco Meteor, Ice Beam, Blizzard and even several Hidden Power Ice. Steel-types luckyliy can take hits from both of this types, so one of them should always stand at Garchomp's side.</p>
