[OVERVIEW]
Volcarona cements itself as one of the tier's deadliest sweepers thanks to its solid Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed, deadly STAB combination, and access to the amazing Quiver Dance. Its superb coverage options and flexible item selection allow it to cater to what its team desires, making it difficult for many traditional answers to safely answer it. Its Speed stat allows it to outpace most of the unboosted metagame and Choice Scarf users like Landorus-T and Volcanion after a Quiver Dance boost. Volcarona finds plenty of setup opportunities against many common targets like Clefable, Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, and Mega Scizor, and it can potentially outplay and beat Chansey with Substitute + Swarm after enough boosts. Additionally, Flame Body grants Volcarona the benefit of being a setup sweeper that can punish revenge killing attempts from priority users like Mega Medicham, Mega Lopunny, and Mega Pinsir, and if Volcarona invests its EVs in physical bulk, it can take further advantage of Flame Body to more easily take on strong physical attackers like Mega Metagross and Weavile. However, Volcarona is held back by its weaknesses to Water, Flying, and especially Rock, the latter of which gives it a nasty vulnerability to Stealth Rock. Volcarona also cannot fit all of the coverage it wants in one set, and it struggles against specific Pokemon depending on its choice of coverage options; it is easily beaten by Mega Tyranitar without Bug Buzz, can't do much to Mega Diancie and Keldeo without Giga Drain, is walled by Heatran without Hidden Power Ground, and struggles to break through Dragonite without Hidden Power Ice. Additionally, its low physical bulk leaves it susceptible to being revenge killed by a variety of priority users like Mega Medicham, Mega Lopunny, Mega Pinsir, and Bisharp, and is outsped by faster Pokemon, such as Choice Scarf Latios and weather sweepers like Sand Rush Excadrill after a Quiver Dance boost. As a result, Volcarona requires heavy support to truly shine, especially entry hazard removal from Rapid Spin and Defog.
[SET]
name: Standard Offensive
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Flamethrower / Fire Blast
move 3: Giga Drain / Bug Buzz
move 4: Hidden Power Ground / Hidden Power Ice
item: Lum Berry / Sitrus Berry / Charti Berry
ability: Flame Body
nature: Timid / Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=========
Quiver Dance raises Volcarona's Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed, making it harder for special attackers to revenge kill it, as well as turning it into one of the scariest sweepers in the game. Flamethrower is a consistent STAB option due to its PP and accuracy, letting it easily threaten Grass- and Steel-types like Serperior, Ferrothorn, Excadrill, and Mega Scizor. Fire Blast is a viable alternative to OHKO defensive Landorus-T at +1 after Stealth Rock. Giga Drain provides Volcarona with a reliable recovery option and threatens Mega Diancie and bulky Water-types like Gastrodon, Seismitoad, Slowbro, and Rotom-W. Bug Buzz blows through bulky Psychic-types like Mega Latias, Mew, and Reuniclus. Hidden Power Ground lets Volcarona heavily chip or KO Heatran and Volcanion, both of which can take on its STAB moves. Finally, Hidden Power Ice lets Volcarona snipe the likes of Garchomp, Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Dragonite.
Set Details
========
Flame Body is Volcarona's preferred ability to punish contact moves such as Fake Out from Mega Medicham and Mega Lopunny. Volcarona can also sacrifice itself to burn Pokemon like Weavile in a pinch to let its teammates set up more easily. A Timid nature lets Volcarona Speed tie with Pokemon like Mew, while a Modest nature maximizes its damage output at the cost of being outpaced by Choice Scarf Landorus-T at +1. Volcarona has flexibility with its items of choice. Lum Berry lets it shrug off status conditions such as Thunder Wave from Clefable and Thundurus and Toxic from Slowbro. A Sitrus Berry allows Volcarona to restore some of its HP after Stealth Rock. Finally, a Charti Berry is a decent option to survive Hidden Power Rock from Serperior. Volcarona is also very flexible with its EV spread. For example, Modest variants can drop their Speed EVs to 228 to outrun Mega Alakazam after a boost, while Timid variants can run 160 Speed EVs to outrun Jolly Excadrill. If Volcarona runs a Sitrus Berry, it can run 4 HP and 60 Defense EVs to survive Knock Off from Choice Band Weavile after Stealth Rock.
Usage Tips
========
Offensive Volcarona can be used at different points during the game depending on the circumstances, either as an early- and mid-game wallbreaker or a late-game cleaner. During the early- or mid-game, it can blast holes through checks like Heatran and Volcanion to allow breathing room for its teammates to finish the game. Since Volcarona struggles against answers like Talonflame and Toxic Chansey, it must wait until they are removed from the game before attempting to sweep. As Volcarona detests entry hazards, it is highly recommended to avoid bringing it in if Stealth Rock is present, as Volcarona needs as much HP as possible to maximize the number of chances it has at pulling off a sweep. Volcarona often finds a lot of setup opportunities against plenty of Pokemon, ranging from Clefable and Grass- and Steel-types like Amoonguss, Ferrothorn, and Mega Scizor to Choice-locked Pokemon like Keldeo locked into Secret Sword and -2 Latios. In addition to keeping Stealth Rock off the field, other ways of maximizing Volcarona's chance at a sweep are to bring it in via aggressive switches, pivot support from U-turn and Volt Switch, and after a teammate is KOed. Volcarona also needs to tread carefully against Pokemon that can cripple it with status ailments, such as Toxic from Heatran and Thunder Wave from Thundurus, especially if Volcarona isn't packing a Lum Berry to shrug them off.
Team Options
========
Offensive Volcarona is perfectly suited on the wide range of offensive structures like offense, bulky offense, and hyper offense teams, which enjoy its ability to wallbreak early-game and clean up late-game. Strong wallbreakers like Mega Medicham, Mega Gardevoir, Mega Alakazam, and Kyurem-B are greatly appreciated, as they can smash through problematic Pokemon that Volcarona has trouble against, like Chansey and Heatran, especially if Volcarona drops Hidden Power Ground for a different coverage move when facing the latter. Multiple forms of entry hazard prevention are mandatory; on hyper offense teams, Volcarona can be partnered with a lead like Taunt Mew, Rocky Helmet Aerodactyl, and Imprison Landorus-T, and a Rapid Spin user like Cloyster; bulkier teams can use Mega Diancie or utility variants of Excadrill; and both offensive archetypes use Taunt variants of Serperior and a Defogger like Latias. Mega Diancie handles Flying-types like Talonflame and Assault Vest Tornadus-T and blocks hazards with Magic Bounce; Serperior smashes through Water-types like Keldeo and Manaphy, baits in shared Fire-type answers like Mega Charizard Y and the aforementioned Talonflame to eliminate them with Hidden Power Rock, utilizes Taunt to shut down Chansey and make it easier to overwhelm it with repeated attacks and Rocky Helmet chip damage, and provides support with dual screens to grant Volcarona easier setup opportunities; and Latias provides Healing Wish to bring Volcarona back in top condition for another chance to sweep and can act as a backup dual screens user. Pivot support from Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, Rotom-W, and Thundurus is also beneficial, as they grant a free entry with U-turn and Volt Switch. Both Rotom-W and Thundurus also have the benefit of beating Talonflame and spreading status, allowing Volcarona to more easily set up against weakened targets. Garchomp is an option for a bulky Stealth Rock setter that can handle Fire-type attackers like Mega Charizard Y and Volcanion, checks Mega Diancie in a pinch, and spreads chip damage with the combination of Rough Skin, Rocky Helmet, and Toxic; in return, Volcarona removes the likes of Weavile and Clefable. Dark-type attackers like Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Weavile are also strong partners for Volcarona; all of them can weaken Chansey, and Talonflame in Tyranitar's case, with Pursuit; Weavile and Bisharp provide Knock Off to punish switch-ins like Keldeo and Heatran by removing their items; and Bisharp can act as a dangerous revenge killer with Sucker Punch and a potent setup sweeper with Swords Dance to overwhelm the opposition for Volcarona to clean up and vice versa. Other setup threats like Manaphy, Mega Charizard X, Mega Altaria, both Thundurus formes, Dragonite, Mega Gyarados, and Mega Gallade also enjoy pairing with Volcarona, as they, much like Bisharp, can overwhelm each other's answers to sweep later in the game.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/favmon-garchomp.653095/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user2.102/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user3.103/
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Fiery Dance is an option over Flamethrower and Fire Blast due to the random chance of boosting Volcarona's Special Attack stat, but it is less powerful than both Fire-type STAB options. Hidden Power Rock can be used over Hidden Power Ground and Hidden Power Ice to punish Mega Charizard Y, Talonflame, and more consistently answer opposing Volcarona. However, it doesn't serve much purpose outside of that, and not having Hidden Power Ground or Hidden Power Ice leaves Heatran and Dragonite able to come in more freely and pose a threat.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Entry Hazards**: All forms of entry hazards, especially Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes, are very distressing for Volcarona because they not only reduce the number of setup opportunities but also put it at an even greater risk of being picked off by revenge killers.
**Rock-type Pokemon and Coverage**: Mega Diancie resists both of Volcarona's STAB options and forces it out with Diamond Storm; however, it must watch out for variants that pack Giga Drain. Mega Tyranitar handles Volcarona variants that lack Bug Buzz and eliminates them with Stone Edge. Volcarona must also be wary of Pokemon that carry Rock-type coverage, such as Stone Edge from Landorus-T and Hidden Power Rock from Serperior.
**Water-types**: Keldeo, Volcanion, and regular Gyarados resist both of Volcarona's STAB options and strike back with their Water-type STAB options. Additionally, Volcanion can cripple them with Toxic and remove its stat boosts with Haze. However, Keldeo must watch out for sets packing Giga Drain, Volcanion can be heavily damaged by a boosted Hidden Power Ground, and Gyarados can be blown away by Bug Buzz and Giga Drain after Mega Evolving. Manaphy can also threaten Volcarona as long as Volcarona doesn't get out of hand with Quiver Dance. Gastrodon is another worthy mention because it is bulky enough to survive a +1 Bug Buzz and retaliate back with Toxic.
**Faster Revenge Killers and Priority**: Sand Rush Excadrill under the sand outpaces Timid Volcarona after a boost and threatens it back in return. Choice Scarf users like Landorus-T and Excadrill can also do the same against Volcarona variants that aren't running a Timid nature. Additionally, priority users like Mega Medicham, Mega Lopunny, Mega Pinsir, Azumarill, Crawdaunt, Dragonite, and Bisharp can also come in to pick off a boosted Volcarona; however, they will put themselves at risk of being burned by Flame Body, and Bisharp must make correct reads with Sucker Punch mindgames to bring Volcarona down.
**Specially Defensive Walls**: Chansey takes very little damage from anything that Volcarona throws at it, thanks to its garganuan special bulk, heals off any damage taken with Soft-Boiled, and retaliates back with Seismic Toss and Toxic. However, Chansey must use Seismic Toss at its own risk due to Flame Body, and it can be potentially outplayed and beaten by the Substitute + Swarm variant. Volcarona must also watch out for Unaware Clefable because it is completely unfazed by any Quiver Dance boosts, turns it into setup bait with Calm Mind, and stalls it out with Wish + Protect; however, Unaware Clefable can be put under heavy pressure if Volcarona nails it with a burn.
**Dragon-types**: Dragonite and Mega Altaria don't take much from Volcarona's STAB options and threaten it back in return; however, they must be wary of variants that carry Hidden Power Ice. Choice Scarf variants of Latias and Latios also deserve a mention because, while they can be easily KOed by Bug Buzz, they can lock it into a move with Trick, putting Volcarona's sweep to a halt.
**Fire-types**: Talonflame is, by and large, the most reliable switch-in against Volcarona because it takes very little from Volcarona's STAB options and common coverage, heals off any damage taken with Roost, and immediately threatens it with its choice of Flying-type STAB option in Brave Bird or Acrobatics. Both Mega Charizard formes pose a similar issue to Volcarona and fire back with heavy damage. Heatran is another special mention because it is immune to Volcarona's Fire-type moves thanks to Flash Fire, and either cripple it with Toxic, pressure it with Taunt, or phaze it out with Roar; however, it must be wary of variants that carry Hidden Power Ground.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/favmon-garchomp.653095/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user3.102/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user5.104/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user6.105/
Volcarona cements itself as one of the tier's deadliest sweepers thanks to its solid Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed, deadly STAB combination, and access to the amazing Quiver Dance. Its superb coverage options and flexible item selection allow it to cater to what its team desires, making it difficult for many traditional answers to safely answer it. Its Speed stat allows it to outpace most of the unboosted metagame and Choice Scarf users like Landorus-T and Volcanion after a Quiver Dance boost. Volcarona finds plenty of setup opportunities against many common targets like Clefable, Ferrothorn, Amoonguss, and Mega Scizor, and it can potentially outplay and beat Chansey with Substitute + Swarm after enough boosts. Additionally, Flame Body grants Volcarona the benefit of being a setup sweeper that can punish revenge killing attempts from priority users like Mega Medicham, Mega Lopunny, and Mega Pinsir, and if Volcarona invests its EVs in physical bulk, it can take further advantage of Flame Body to more easily take on strong physical attackers like Mega Metagross and Weavile. However, Volcarona is held back by its weaknesses to Water, Flying, and especially Rock, the latter of which gives it a nasty vulnerability to Stealth Rock. Volcarona also cannot fit all of the coverage it wants in one set, and it struggles against specific Pokemon depending on its choice of coverage options; it is easily beaten by Mega Tyranitar without Bug Buzz, can't do much to Mega Diancie and Keldeo without Giga Drain, is walled by Heatran without Hidden Power Ground, and struggles to break through Dragonite without Hidden Power Ice. Additionally, its low physical bulk leaves it susceptible to being revenge killed by a variety of priority users like Mega Medicham, Mega Lopunny, Mega Pinsir, and Bisharp, and is outsped by faster Pokemon, such as Choice Scarf Latios and weather sweepers like Sand Rush Excadrill after a Quiver Dance boost. As a result, Volcarona requires heavy support to truly shine, especially entry hazard removal from Rapid Spin and Defog.
[SET]
name: Standard Offensive
move 1: Quiver Dance
move 2: Flamethrower / Fire Blast
move 3: Giga Drain / Bug Buzz
move 4: Hidden Power Ground / Hidden Power Ice
item: Lum Berry / Sitrus Berry / Charti Berry
ability: Flame Body
nature: Timid / Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=========
Quiver Dance raises Volcarona's Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed, making it harder for special attackers to revenge kill it, as well as turning it into one of the scariest sweepers in the game. Flamethrower is a consistent STAB option due to its PP and accuracy, letting it easily threaten Grass- and Steel-types like Serperior, Ferrothorn, Excadrill, and Mega Scizor. Fire Blast is a viable alternative to OHKO defensive Landorus-T at +1 after Stealth Rock. Giga Drain provides Volcarona with a reliable recovery option and threatens Mega Diancie and bulky Water-types like Gastrodon, Seismitoad, Slowbro, and Rotom-W. Bug Buzz blows through bulky Psychic-types like Mega Latias, Mew, and Reuniclus. Hidden Power Ground lets Volcarona heavily chip or KO Heatran and Volcanion, both of which can take on its STAB moves. Finally, Hidden Power Ice lets Volcarona snipe the likes of Garchomp, Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Dragonite.
Set Details
========
Flame Body is Volcarona's preferred ability to punish contact moves such as Fake Out from Mega Medicham and Mega Lopunny. Volcarona can also sacrifice itself to burn Pokemon like Weavile in a pinch to let its teammates set up more easily. A Timid nature lets Volcarona Speed tie with Pokemon like Mew, while a Modest nature maximizes its damage output at the cost of being outpaced by Choice Scarf Landorus-T at +1. Volcarona has flexibility with its items of choice. Lum Berry lets it shrug off status conditions such as Thunder Wave from Clefable and Thundurus and Toxic from Slowbro. A Sitrus Berry allows Volcarona to restore some of its HP after Stealth Rock. Finally, a Charti Berry is a decent option to survive Hidden Power Rock from Serperior. Volcarona is also very flexible with its EV spread. For example, Modest variants can drop their Speed EVs to 228 to outrun Mega Alakazam after a boost, while Timid variants can run 160 Speed EVs to outrun Jolly Excadrill. If Volcarona runs a Sitrus Berry, it can run 4 HP and 60 Defense EVs to survive Knock Off from Choice Band Weavile after Stealth Rock.
Usage Tips
========
Offensive Volcarona can be used at different points during the game depending on the circumstances, either as an early- and mid-game wallbreaker or a late-game cleaner. During the early- or mid-game, it can blast holes through checks like Heatran and Volcanion to allow breathing room for its teammates to finish the game. Since Volcarona struggles against answers like Talonflame and Toxic Chansey, it must wait until they are removed from the game before attempting to sweep. As Volcarona detests entry hazards, it is highly recommended to avoid bringing it in if Stealth Rock is present, as Volcarona needs as much HP as possible to maximize the number of chances it has at pulling off a sweep. Volcarona often finds a lot of setup opportunities against plenty of Pokemon, ranging from Clefable and Grass- and Steel-types like Amoonguss, Ferrothorn, and Mega Scizor to Choice-locked Pokemon like Keldeo locked into Secret Sword and -2 Latios. In addition to keeping Stealth Rock off the field, other ways of maximizing Volcarona's chance at a sweep are to bring it in via aggressive switches, pivot support from U-turn and Volt Switch, and after a teammate is KOed. Volcarona also needs to tread carefully against Pokemon that can cripple it with status ailments, such as Toxic from Heatran and Thunder Wave from Thundurus, especially if Volcarona isn't packing a Lum Berry to shrug them off.
Team Options
========
Offensive Volcarona is perfectly suited on the wide range of offensive structures like offense, bulky offense, and hyper offense teams, which enjoy its ability to wallbreak early-game and clean up late-game. Strong wallbreakers like Mega Medicham, Mega Gardevoir, Mega Alakazam, and Kyurem-B are greatly appreciated, as they can smash through problematic Pokemon that Volcarona has trouble against, like Chansey and Heatran, especially if Volcarona drops Hidden Power Ground for a different coverage move when facing the latter. Multiple forms of entry hazard prevention are mandatory; on hyper offense teams, Volcarona can be partnered with a lead like Taunt Mew, Rocky Helmet Aerodactyl, and Imprison Landorus-T, and a Rapid Spin user like Cloyster; bulkier teams can use Mega Diancie or utility variants of Excadrill; and both offensive archetypes use Taunt variants of Serperior and a Defogger like Latias. Mega Diancie handles Flying-types like Talonflame and Assault Vest Tornadus-T and blocks hazards with Magic Bounce; Serperior smashes through Water-types like Keldeo and Manaphy, baits in shared Fire-type answers like Mega Charizard Y and the aforementioned Talonflame to eliminate them with Hidden Power Rock, utilizes Taunt to shut down Chansey and make it easier to overwhelm it with repeated attacks and Rocky Helmet chip damage, and provides support with dual screens to grant Volcarona easier setup opportunities; and Latias provides Healing Wish to bring Volcarona back in top condition for another chance to sweep and can act as a backup dual screens user. Pivot support from Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, Rotom-W, and Thundurus is also beneficial, as they grant a free entry with U-turn and Volt Switch. Both Rotom-W and Thundurus also have the benefit of beating Talonflame and spreading status, allowing Volcarona to more easily set up against weakened targets. Garchomp is an option for a bulky Stealth Rock setter that can handle Fire-type attackers like Mega Charizard Y and Volcanion, checks Mega Diancie in a pinch, and spreads chip damage with the combination of Rough Skin, Rocky Helmet, and Toxic; in return, Volcarona removes the likes of Weavile and Clefable. Dark-type attackers like Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Weavile are also strong partners for Volcarona; all of them can weaken Chansey, and Talonflame in Tyranitar's case, with Pursuit; Weavile and Bisharp provide Knock Off to punish switch-ins like Keldeo and Heatran by removing their items; and Bisharp can act as a dangerous revenge killer with Sucker Punch and a potent setup sweeper with Swords Dance to overwhelm the opposition for Volcarona to clean up and vice versa. Other setup threats like Manaphy, Mega Charizard X, Mega Altaria, both Thundurus formes, Dragonite, Mega Gyarados, and Mega Gallade also enjoy pairing with Volcarona, as they, much like Bisharp, can overwhelm each other's answers to sweep later in the game.
[SET CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/favmon-garchomp.653095/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user2.102/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user3.103/
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Fiery Dance is an option over Flamethrower and Fire Blast due to the random chance of boosting Volcarona's Special Attack stat, but it is less powerful than both Fire-type STAB options. Hidden Power Rock can be used over Hidden Power Ground and Hidden Power Ice to punish Mega Charizard Y, Talonflame, and more consistently answer opposing Volcarona. However, it doesn't serve much purpose outside of that, and not having Hidden Power Ground or Hidden Power Ice leaves Heatran and Dragonite able to come in more freely and pose a threat.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Entry Hazards**: All forms of entry hazards, especially Stealth Rock and Toxic Spikes, are very distressing for Volcarona because they not only reduce the number of setup opportunities but also put it at an even greater risk of being picked off by revenge killers.
**Rock-type Pokemon and Coverage**: Mega Diancie resists both of Volcarona's STAB options and forces it out with Diamond Storm; however, it must watch out for variants that pack Giga Drain. Mega Tyranitar handles Volcarona variants that lack Bug Buzz and eliminates them with Stone Edge. Volcarona must also be wary of Pokemon that carry Rock-type coverage, such as Stone Edge from Landorus-T and Hidden Power Rock from Serperior.
**Water-types**: Keldeo, Volcanion, and regular Gyarados resist both of Volcarona's STAB options and strike back with their Water-type STAB options. Additionally, Volcanion can cripple them with Toxic and remove its stat boosts with Haze. However, Keldeo must watch out for sets packing Giga Drain, Volcanion can be heavily damaged by a boosted Hidden Power Ground, and Gyarados can be blown away by Bug Buzz and Giga Drain after Mega Evolving. Manaphy can also threaten Volcarona as long as Volcarona doesn't get out of hand with Quiver Dance. Gastrodon is another worthy mention because it is bulky enough to survive a +1 Bug Buzz and retaliate back with Toxic.
**Faster Revenge Killers and Priority**: Sand Rush Excadrill under the sand outpaces Timid Volcarona after a boost and threatens it back in return. Choice Scarf users like Landorus-T and Excadrill can also do the same against Volcarona variants that aren't running a Timid nature. Additionally, priority users like Mega Medicham, Mega Lopunny, Mega Pinsir, Azumarill, Crawdaunt, Dragonite, and Bisharp can also come in to pick off a boosted Volcarona; however, they will put themselves at risk of being burned by Flame Body, and Bisharp must make correct reads with Sucker Punch mindgames to bring Volcarona down.
**Specially Defensive Walls**: Chansey takes very little damage from anything that Volcarona throws at it, thanks to its garganuan special bulk, heals off any damage taken with Soft-Boiled, and retaliates back with Seismic Toss and Toxic. However, Chansey must use Seismic Toss at its own risk due to Flame Body, and it can be potentially outplayed and beaten by the Substitute + Swarm variant. Volcarona must also watch out for Unaware Clefable because it is completely unfazed by any Quiver Dance boosts, turns it into setup bait with Calm Mind, and stalls it out with Wish + Protect; however, Unaware Clefable can be put under heavy pressure if Volcarona nails it with a burn.
**Dragon-types**: Dragonite and Mega Altaria don't take much from Volcarona's STAB options and threaten it back in return; however, they must be wary of variants that carry Hidden Power Ice. Choice Scarf variants of Latias and Latios also deserve a mention because, while they can be easily KOed by Bug Buzz, they can lock it into a move with Trick, putting Volcarona's sweep to a halt.
**Fire-types**: Talonflame is, by and large, the most reliable switch-in against Volcarona because it takes very little from Volcarona's STAB options and common coverage, heals off any damage taken with Roost, and immediately threatens it with its choice of Flying-type STAB option in Brave Bird or Acrobatics. Both Mega Charizard formes pose a similar issue to Volcarona and fire back with heavy damage. Heatran is another special mention because it is immune to Volcarona's Fire-type moves thanks to Flash Fire, and either cripple it with Toxic, pressure it with Taunt, or phaze it out with Roar; however, it must be wary of variants that carry Hidden Power Ground.
[CREDITS]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/favmon-garchomp.653095/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user3.102/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user5.104/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/user6.105/