OU Gyarados In GSC OU

[Falcon-M]

Hello to whoever's reading this thread! I've been playing through a lot of sample teams recently and decided I wanted to build a team of my own using an obscure Pokémon. As I scrolled down the UU list, I came across a very cool blue water dragon—Gyarados—and I wanted to share my thoughts on it.


At first glance, Gyarados struggles in the tier due to its nasty 4x weakness to Electric-type moves, which are among the most common attacks in the metagame. Its movepool, while expansive, is hampered by a very low Special Attack stat and the lack of a strong physical Flying-type STAB move. These drawbacks likely contribute to why many players overlook the flying fish. However, after some testing, I believe Gyarados may have a unique niche as a phazer with the following set:


- Surf
- Thunder
- Hidden Power Flying
- Roar

Gyarados’ typing allows it to function as a backup phazer against physical Baton Pass teams, reliably forcing out Scizor, who can otherwise destroy the tier’s most popular phazers with Hidden Power Fighting. Thanks to its solid bulk and typing, this specific moveset also lets Gyarados check threats like Jynx, Cloyster, and Vaporeon, while serving as an emergency answer to Snorlax and even 2HKOing Skarmory. With these tools, it can threaten key Pokémon such as Machamp, Golem, Rhydon, Exeggutor, Marowak, Steelix, Tyranitar, and Heracross. These targets usually don’t want to take a Hidden Power Flying or Surf and are often forced to switch out—this is where Gyarados’ strength as a phazer truly shines. When paired with Spikes, Gyarados can rack up significant chip damage not only on the Pokémon it pressures but also on its typical checks like Snorlax and Raikou. Against opponents like Golem or Steelix, the pressure may even lead them to explode prematurely, opening up opportunities for teammates like Snorlax, Zapdos, Raikou, or Tyranitar to clean up.


As for team partners, due to Gyarados’ crippling 4x weakness to Electric, Raikou is preferred over Zapdos to handle opposing Electric-types more effectively. Other strong partners include Pokémon that can absorb Thunder and threaten Electric-types in return, such as Exeggutor or Nidoking. With multiple Thunder absorbers on a Gyarados-centric team, the last slot becomes flexible: Golem offers fantastic role compression, while Tyranitar is a solid groundless option that appreciates its common checks being worn down by Spikes and Gyarados' pressure.


All in all, Gyarados has a unique and underrated niche in GSC OU as a phazer that checks and counters a unique group of Pokémon. How do you all feel about this Pokémon?

 

[Melbelle]

waow

 

[Siatam]

It is possible to use Gyarados in OU, but the problem is that it is almost completely redundant to Zapdos. In any team where Surf/Thunder/HP Fly/Roar Gyarados fits in I would much rather use Thunder/HP Water/Drill Peck/Roar Zapdos. Gyarados has a marginally better matchup than Zapdos into Jynx and Exeggutor but comes at a steep cost of Speed and Special Attack. Not to mention that Gyarados still needs to respect the sleep threat that these mons pose.

I think the only niche Gyara has is on a "double Dos" team with Zap. Unfortunately as you mentioned it isn't easy to fit both mons on the same team.

 

[Falcon-M]

It is possible to use Gyarados in OU, but the problem is that it is almost completely redundant to Zapdos. In any team where Surf/Thunder/HP Fly/Roar Gyarados fits in I would much rather use Thunder/HP Water/Drill Peck/Roar Zapdos. Gyarados has a marginally better matchup than Zapdos into Jynx and Exeggutor but comes at a steep cost of Speed and Special Attack. Not to mention that Gyarados still needs to respect the sleep threat that these mons pose.

I think the only niche Gyara has is on a "double Dos" team with Zap. Unfortunately as you mentioned it isn't easy to fit both mons on the same team.

I think the double electric sample team with Gyarados over Gengar is a neat try. The trade off for losing Gengar's speed and special attack was a stronger defensive presence, while gaining the ability to better deal with threats that sample team had trouble answering before (Exeggutor, Machamp maybe, and another Steelix answer never hurts to have). What's cooler, is that since Gyarados is generally worse than Zapdos, if your opponent uses explosion on Gyarados then that saves Zapdos a lot of stress and opportunities to enter the field. Losing Gyarados does not hurt nearly as much (a good amount of the time) as losing Gengar. The only disappointment really is that it can't 2HKO Tyranitar after spikes, so I guess I lied about Gyarados being able to counter that. Overall, for a UU mon it can perform deceptively well and has a real niche on that double elec sample team.

 

[Falcon-M]

Proof of concept https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen2ou-2402188034-i8t9uult6bkw0dopk1hcie6lku8c97fpw

 

[Jorgen]

Fun idea. Always love to see weirdo Pokemon make things happen. But I'll be honest, I don't think I'll be going out of my way to use Gyarados in OU anytime soon. I guess it's a funny way to lock out your opponent's spikes game if they're relying on Golem + Cloy to do the job, but it just does *nothing* to any of Snorlax, Zapdos, or Raikou (okay, DE might give it a chance with a crit, but the posted set is absolutely not accomplishing anything), so it's not like you can sit there forever and make your opponent dance. At least the oldschool Suicune pick could, in principle, tank a hit from lax and mirror coat the elecs.

 

[melancholy0]

I think a defensive set might work better here - surf / rest / roar / talk or tox. It would let stall cheat on vaporeon and lix duties while also being able to surf something down in a pinch (though it does not eat hits like a suicune would). Something like gyara / roar kou / talk lax / missy / forre / skarm, or taking suicune's role on certain double dog structures would work.

edit: heres a replay https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen2ou-2404705604-gl00guvgmu8l6etle1dd06927fn0jlspw

 

[bdt2002]

Stumbled upon this thread by chance and thought it would be fun to try and cook up some Gyarados sets for OU play. How’d I do?



Curse + Roar (Gyarados) @ Leftovers
Ability: No Ability
IVs: 14 HP / 24 Atk / 26 Def
- Surf
- Hidden Power [Flying]
- Curse
- Roar



Paralysis Support (Gyarados) @ Leftovers
Ability: No Ability
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
IVs: 0 SpA
- Double-Edge
- Dragon Breath
- Rest
- Sleep Talk



Toxic (Gyarados) @ Leftovers
Ability: No Ability
- Toxic
- Surf
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Gyarados feels like something that might be hard to fit on a wide variety of teams but could still be utilized on certain defensive builds. When I started exploring Gyarados’s movepool, I found that it could maybe be a solid Curse user for teams looking for an answer to certain physical threats while retaining some role compression against special attacking threats, specifically those in a tournament setting that may have proven to lack Electric-Type coverage. Thanks to GSC mechanics, if two Pokémon use Roar/Whirlwind at the same time, the slower one succeeds while the faster one fails, and Gyarados is able to make use of an excellent Speed tier for a Curse + Roar variant. Curse boosts Gyarados’s primary attacking stat and weaker defensive stat while still being fast enough to outspeed some slower Roar/Whirlwind users, especially those also using Curse themselves. Hidden Power Flying has a number of key targets and Surf still does enough to deal with Golem and Rhydon, and to a lesser extent a weakened Tyranitar.

Gyarados also feels like it could have some use as a RestTalk support Pokémon that wants to sit on Pokemon it matches up well against to spread status to the enemy team. Dragon Breath immediately caught my eye seeing as Gyarados can pull similar tricks to Dragon Breath Steelix but with way different matchups, and Toxic was already mentioned here as a nice check to Vaporeon and some other things for certain stall teams. Regardless of the set, I feel like Gyarados would be best used when kept away from Electric-Type Pokémon and moves, possibly in preferred late game scenarios where Zapdos and/or Raikou have been weakened or removed. It’s worth nothing that I actually don’t really like Hidden Power Ground on this Pokémon, since the IV sacrifice isn’t ideal and it doesn’t hit as hard here as I would like (even in UU most Gyarados don’t run the move as much as you’d expect). I would much rather have Hidden Power Flying for its own matchups and the better Speed IV.

 

[Blaine500]

View attachment 754999
Hello to whoever's reading this thread! I've been playing through a lot of sample teams recently and decided I wanted to build a team of my own using an obscure Pokémon. As I scrolled down the UU list, I came across a very cool blue water dragon—Gyarados—and I wanted to share my thoughts on it.


At first glance, Gyarados struggles in the tier due to its nasty 4x weakness to Electric-type moves, which are among the most common attacks in the metagame. Its movepool, while expansive, is hampered by a very low Special Attack stat and the lack of a strong physical Flying-type STAB move. These drawbacks likely contribute to why many players overlook the flying fish. However, after some testing, I believe Gyarados may have a unique niche as a phazer with the following set:


- Surf
- Thunder
- Hidden Power Flying
- Roar

Gyarados’ typing allows it to function as a backup phazer against physical Baton Pass teams, reliably forcing out Scizor, who can otherwise destroy the tier’s most popular phazers with Hidden Power Fighting. Thanks to its solid bulk and typing, this specific moveset also lets Gyarados check threats like Jynx, Cloyster, and Vaporeon, while serving as an emergency answer to Snorlax and even 2HKOing Skarmory. With these tools, it can threaten key Pokémon such as Machamp, Golem, Rhydon, Exeggutor, Marowak, Steelix, Tyranitar, and Heracross. These targets usually don’t want to take a Hidden Power Flying or Surf and are often forced to switch out—this is where Gyarados’ strength as a phazer truly shines. When paired with Spikes, Gyarados can rack up significant chip damage not only on the Pokémon it pressures but also on its typical checks like Snorlax and Raikou. Against opponents like Golem or Steelix, the pressure may even lead them to explode prematurely, opening up opportunities for teammates like Snorlax, Zapdos, Raikou, or Tyranitar to clean up.


As for team partners, due to Gyarados’ crippling 4x weakness to Electric, Raikou is preferred over Zapdos to handle opposing Electric-types more effectively. Other strong partners include Pokémon that can absorb Thunder and threaten Electric-types in return, such as Exeggutor or Nidoking. With multiple Thunder absorbers on a Gyarados-centric team, the last slot becomes flexible: Golem offers fantastic role compression, while Tyranitar is a solid groundless option that appreciates its common checks being worn down by Spikes and Gyarados' pressure.


All in all, Gyarados has a unique and underrated niche in GSC OU as a phazer that checks and counters a unique group of Pokémon. How do you all feel about this Pokémon?

I agree. Gyarados occupies an interesting niche in Generation 2 OU. I've been using it here and there over the years and I think I've even run into Siatam on ladder while using it (memories lol). Anyways, unlike more universally applicable Pokémon, it is semi-matchup dependent imo—it thrives in certain team contexts and struggles in others. Specifically, Gyarados would rather avoid running into a Zapdos + Raikou core; this pairing can quickly punish it, making its otherwise potent presence feel limited.


Where Gyarados shines is in its role as a fail-safe against otherwise troublesome threats. It handles Steelix far more comfortably than many other Pokémon (even better than HP Water Zapdos), and it provides a solid counter to Ground-types in general (especially Goldonix and Pilo). Its bulky 100 base Special Defense allows it to absorb attacks from Jynx neutrally, offering a reliable answer to setups or high-powered special hits. Additionally, Gyarados provides a strong contingency against out-of-control Growth Vaporeon from BORAT-ish teams, giving it an edge where slower-paced or defensive strategies falter.


Moveset Considerations

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• Surf vs. Hydro Pump: Surf is generally the go-to Water STAB for consistency, but Hydro Pump can achieve impressive spikes-based damage. For instance, after Spikes and Leftovers recovery, Hydro Pump does 190-224 to Tyranitar (47.1–55.5%), guaranteeing a 2HKO—making it a viable alternative in offensive contexts. The plus side too is that it can actually eat a Rock Slide to the face in order to get this done if it really comes down to it: Tyranitar Rock Slide vs. Gyarados: 236-278 (62.5 - 73.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery.

• HP Flying: HP Flying is niche, primarily targeting Machamp, Heracross, and Exeggutor. If coverage isn’t a pressing concern, a Normal-type attack is a reasonable alternative imo.

• Double-Edge vs. Return vs. Body Slam: Recoil on Double-Edge is generally undesirable on a phazer that often needs to move last, making Return a safer alternative that still hits hard. Body Slam, however, is noteworthy—it allows Gyarados to spread paralysis (even to ground types), a utility Zapdos doesn’t have. This can punish overly aggressive switch-ins or threatening threats like Zapdos, Raikou, and Nidoking. The chance to paralyze gives Gyarados the potential to act again before being Koed. Fun fact: Nidoking’s Thunder only does 316–372 (83.8–98.6%) to Gyarados, meaning that a carefully timed Body Slam or Thunder can grant Gyarados a second turn to attack before getting Koed.

• Thunder: Thunder provides valuable coverage against opposing Water-types, most notably Cloyster and Starmie. Aiming for paralysis can be critical in punishing predicted switches from threatening opponents such as Zapdos, Raikou or Gengar.
• Curse: I don't think Gyarados has the time to us Curse most of the time because Zapdos is WAAAY too common, but if you have a team who has an active plan on how to take down the zappy bird then this could open up the board for a potential Gyara set up. Big if tho...

Team Considerations

Gyarados pairs best with at least one electric-type, often Raikou, to cover its glaring weakness. Zapdos can be used alongside Gyarados, though Tyranitar in the opponent’s team makes this pairing slightly awkward. When properly supported, Gyarados can operate like a “Roar Zapdos + 3 attacks”—a flexible phazer with offensive reach, though it comes with its share of give-and-take and some considerations on the part of the builder. Gyarados is most effective against Vaporeon- or Marowak centric-style builds but struggles against teams running multiple Electric-types. Its semi-matchup dependency requires careful team construction, but in the right environment, it functions as a versatile phazer, pseudo-check to several meta threats, and can be a utility spreader of paralysis—qualities that make it a compelling, if somewhat situational, choice in GSC OU. You probably want to run it with a Pursuiter of some kind to handle Gengar tho, unless you're spreading para to enable a ground type like your own Marowak or Rhydon perhaps.