Tyranitar
The Tyrant writes his own analysis. Exciting!
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[Overview]
- Great offensive stats (134 Attack and passable 95 Special Attack) coupled with a wide movepool.
- Awesome defensive stats. 100 HP, 110 Def, and 100 Special Defense, the latter being boosted further thanks to sandstorm.
- Strongest Pursuit in the game.
- Great offensive typing; has no immunities (though Justice Heart now gives the Pokemon an Attack boost if hit by Tyranitar's Dark-type attacks).
- Access to Dragon Dance and Rock Polish to boost its Speed.
- Hindered by its base 61 Speed. Despite it being low, a +Spe nature allows it to outspeed base 115s.
- It has a lot of cringe-worthy weaknesses; especially its quadruple weakness to Fighting-type attacks.
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Stone Edge
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Pursuit
move 4: Aqua Tail / Superpower / Earthquake
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Set Comments:
- Outspeeds base 115s, which is plenty for Tyranitar. It also ties with base 116s, which is sufficient enough for it.
- Stone Edge and Crunch are the primary moves to use. Crunch's reliable accuracy is a good lock for Tyranitar, while Stone Edge offers a boost of power.
- Pursuit is very effective against the Ghost- and Psychic-types that are usually faster than Tyranitar. Think Gengar and Azelf for example.
- Aqua Tail nails Randorosu, Superpower hits Terakion and Kobaruon, while Earthquake hits Jirachi and Kobaruon. Earthquake runs the problem with Balloon Pokemon.
- Superpower is an option as it hits Bijirion for neutral as well as hitting Terakion and Kobaruon for super effective damage.
- Stealth Rock is a good idea to pack with this Tyranitar. Anything to help make its job easier with revenge killing is recommended.
- Anything past 115 Speed bracket is open game against Tyranitar. Alakazam is faster than Tyranitar and can KO it with Focus Blast. Wouldn't be a bad idea to pack Scizor to keep Alakazam from ruining Tyranitar's day.
- Watch out for Dugtrio and Wobbuffet. If you're locked onto the wrong move, it could spell doom for your Tyranitar.
name: Mixed Attacker
move 1: Ice Beam
move 2: Flamethrower
move 3: Crunch
move 4: Superpower / Pursuit
item: Expert Belt / Life Orb
nature: Brave
evs: 252 HP / 128 Atk / 128 SpA
Set Comments:
- Mixed Tyranitar is still a dangerous foe to face against. With the right prediction, many Pokemon go down.
- Hippowdon has to be designed to take on Doryuuzu, which requires max HP / Def with an Impish nature. With that in mind, Tyranitar has an easier time 2HKOing Hippowdon.
- Flamethrower olbiterates Skarmory and Nattorei; two common switch-ins for the Choice sets.
- Crunch is your strongest STAB to use.
- Superpower is primarily for Blissey. Pursuit isn't a bad choice to use this as a Trapper.
- The SpA EVs allow Tyranitar to 2HKO Celebi and Birijion with Flamethrower.
- The HP EVs are to keep Tyranitar bulky. While you can invest Speed onto Tyranitar, the HP EVs help keep Tyranitar alive and pose a greater threat. Brave Nature is great to weaken Nattorei's Gyro Ball as well.
- Expert Belt is more suitable for Bulky Tyranitars, while Life Orb is for the more suicidal approach.
- You can use Life Orb and a lot more Speed on Tyranitar.
- Fire Blast is an option if you don't want to use a lot of SpA EVs. It will always 2HKO 252 HP / 0 SpD Celebi.
- Paralysis spreading is a huge boon for this set. It allows Tyranitar to function outside of wall-breaking.
- Bulky sets are a bit more difficult to take down, but hits weaker than the Life Orb set. The best you can do is try to switch in a Pokemon that reists the incoming attack and hit hard. Without any Speed, Machamp is a pretty good way to check Tyranitar. Roobushin with Mach Punch can peg Tyranitar, but it only switches in well with Superpower and Crunch; Crunch being preferered.
- The lack of Speed is an issue, and even the faster Tyranitars are vulnerable to agile Pokemon such as Infernape. While it cannot switch into an attack, there is no way Tyranitar will stay in on Infernape unless it predicts a Nasty Plot. Groudon is an even better check; while it can't switch into Fire Blast easily due to the sun, it can survive a hit from Tyranitar and quickly KO it with STAB Earthquake.
- In general, finding Pokemon that "safely" switch into this set is difficult. The best thing to do is to attempt to predict the move with your counter.
name: Choice Band
move 1: Stone Edge
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Crunch / Payback
move 4: Superpower / Aqua Tail / Earthquake
item: Choice Band
nature: Adamant / Brave
evs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spe
Set Comments:
- 604 Attack after a Choice Band with deadly STABs.
- Payback is an option for a boost in power (150 vs. 120 after STAB). Sadly, Payback doesn't work so well against slower Pokemon, so a Brave nature fixes this.
- Earthquake is primarily for Steel-types, while Aqua Tail will go for the 2HKO on Hippowdon and makes Gliscor think twice about switching into Tyranitar. Superpower hits most Steel-types while knocking Nattorei down a peg.
- Brave nets Tyranitar 142 Speed. While it makes you more susceptible to Machamp, Swampert, and Zuruzukin you still outspeed minimum Speed Hippowdon and Wobbuffet.
- Nothing else really. You can go for max Speed, but the loss of bulk is noticeable. It's not a great idea to try to Speed creep Skarmory as it's in a better position to go faster than you regardless and the more EVs given up, the more inferior your spread becomes. Either use max HP or go for max Speed.
- Fire Punch is an option if you're deathly afraid of being Roost-stalled by Skarmory. It still 2HKOes Skarmory while having a chance to burn it.
- Careful with 252 HP/ 40 Atk/ 216 SDef can be used to give Tyranitar more bulk with Choice Band supplying ample power.
- This variant is very slow, so watch out for Pokemon like Skarmory attempting to wall Tyranitar. Paralysis can help a lot with this, or try to be crafty with Magnezone. Wobbuffet also does well against Skarmory since it can switch into any attack (though granted; Brave Bird sucks to switch into) and simply Encore onto an attack.
- Pack faster Pokemon behind this guy; especially those that can outspeed Terakion and company. Justice Heart means that Terakion can switch into Crunch and receive an Attack boost or obtain a free Swords Dance / Rock Polish on a Pursuit-lock (because who's stupid enough to keep Tyranitar in that situation?). Starmie isn't a bad idea.
- Fighting-type Pokemon aren't bad switch-ins for this set; especially those that have either the bulk to withstand a hit or the speed to outspeed Tyranitar.
name: Lead
move 1: Stealth Rock
move 2: Payback / Crunch
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Superpower
item: Lum Berry / Focus Sash
nature: Brave
evs: 252 HP / 88 SpA / 168 SpD
Set Comments
- Tyranitar's combination of Stealth Rock and Sandstream make it an excellent lead as Sandstream nullifies Focus Sash's usefulness.
- STAB Payback does fail if the opponent switches out, but it does well if the Pokemon stays in. If you want to hit switch-ins harder, Crunch is never a bad option.
- Fire Blast prevents Nattorei from switching into Nattorei as well as Forretress; the latter which can threaten to remove Tyranitar's entry hazards with Rapid Spin.
- Fire Blast is superior to Fire Punch. Since most Steel-types are physically defensive, Fire Blast hits on their weaker defense.
- Superpower neutralizes other Tyranitar leads while making sure Doryuuzu stays off the field. This is helpful versus Darkrai in particular, which is why Lum Berry is intact.
- Lum Berry prevents Dark Void from putting Tyranitar to sleep and allows Tyranitar to destroy Darkrai with Superpower.
- The EVs allow Tyranitar to survive a Focus Blast from Darkrai. Fire Blast will OHKO Forretress after stepping into Stealth Rock, though Sturdy variants will survive with 1 HP and likely get Stealth Rock + Toxic Spikes up.
Additional Comments
- If you think Tyranitar will survive past the lead position, Thunder Wave isn't a bad option. Outside of Ground-type switch-ins, which are common answers to Tyranitar, it can cripple any other Pokemon foolish enough to try to switch into Tyranitar.
Teammates and Counters
- Tyranitar is pretty much in the lead position for a reason. It doesn't fail often against most leads, so any team can be designed around it.
- Groudon or Kyogre might not be a bad idea to use if you're worried about sandstorm damage kicking in.
- Groudon counters this set well. Fire Blast is the only bad move that Groudon can switch into. STAB Earthquake does well in forcing Tyranitar out.
- Fighting-types do well against Tyranitar. Lucario doesn't get a free switch-in, but it easily forces Tyranitar out with STAB Close Combat.
- Scizor has to beware of Fire Blast, but it can dent Tyranitar with Bullet Punch or U-turn for a recipient for Fire Blast.
[Team Options]
- Tyranitar provides a free sandstorm, so Pokemon such as Doryuuzu and Randorosu enjoy a boost with their offenses. Doryuuzu becomes an effective revenge killer, while Randorosu gains more power behind his attacks.
- Scarf Tyranitar lacks some manpower, so it becomes more susceptible to being walled by Skarmory. Even Blissey can shrug off Stone Edges while Superpower does 68.1% - 80.1%, which isn't quite a OHKO. Mixed attackers, or all around good physical attackers, are good Pokemon to pair with it. Infernape is an excellent example since it is an effective mixed sweeper.
- Choice Band and Mixed Tyranitar lack speed, so agile Pokemon are a great addition for them. A Pokemon with Thunder Wave can also be considered, but make sure the user doesn't draw in Ground-types often.
- There will be Pokemon that will try to take advantage of Tyranitar's STABs. Think Lucario, Birijion, Terakion, and Kobaruon. It's best to have Pokemon faster than these 4 Pokemon and be able to KO them in the process.
- Fighting-types love Tyranitar for one reason: Pursuit helps clear Psychic- and Ghost-types that otherwise trouble Fighting-types. Stone Edge is a great aid to crippling Flying-types.
- Substitute is not a bad set to build around. Tyranitar forces a lot of switches, so setting up a Substitute is not difficult. It can set up 101 HP Substitutes to prevent its Substitutes being broken by Seismic Toss and Night Shade. Focus Punch can be used alongside it.
- Tyranitar has a more special attacks. It has STAB Dark Pulse, Thunderbolt, and Focus Blast. A Choice Specs set could be used, but it is inferior to all of Tyranitar's usual movesets.
- Rock Polish and Dragon Dance aren't good ideas this generation. With Doryuuzu running rampant in the tier and Rock Polish missing Scarf Garchomp, they're not great options to look at. It's best to use Tyranitar for its immediate man power with Choice Band even if the Speed boost is tempting. There's also a lot of priority attacks; specifically Fighting-type moves, that are commonly going to be used thanks to Doryuuzu. This hampers Dragon Dance Tyranitar's potential overall.
- It learns both Dragon Tail and Roar for phazing options. Dragon Tail can work on the Choice Band slot in the fourth option.
- Thunder Wave can slow down many Pokemon for Tyranitar, but Tyranitar likes to draw in Ground-types, which are immune to Thunder Wave. It does help a lot against Terakion and Lucario though.
- Lucario, Terakion, Birijion, and Kobaruon can switch into any of Tyranitar's STABs. The legendary trio can take advantage of Crunch and obtain an Attack boost.
- Mach Punch users are commonly being used no thanks to Doryuuzu, so they pop up more often to be a thorn on Tyranitar's side. Roobushin doesn't like taking too many special attacks, but it handles most, if not all, of the physical sets well. It can set up a free Bulk Up against Tyranitar. Hitmontop has Technician Mach Punch while Breloom has Spore to incapacitate the next switch-in.
- Hippowdon and Gliscor can switch into Choice Band sets, barring a boosted Aqua Tail. Gliscor has to be wary of an Ice Beam from Mixed sets as it will OHKO. Hippowdon gets a little more breathing space with a 2HKO.
- Skarmory can Roost-stall Stone Edge's PP if Skarmory is faster than Tyranitar. Once again, be aware of Mixed Tyranitar as Flamethrower will severely shut it down.
- Scizor can be an annoyance to the Choice sets. Scizor has Bullet Punch, Superpower, or U-turn to exterminate Tyranitar.
- Aside from Superpower and Flamethrower, Nattorei is actually a good switch-in to Tyranitar. Iron Thorns damages Tyranitar each time it uses a contact attack. It has STAB Gyro Ball or Power Whip to exterminate Tyranitar.
- Tyranitar gets Tension as a Dream World ability. Not very good unless you absolutely hate having sandstorm.
- It is illegal with Superpower and Aqua Tail.
