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Overview
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Tyranitar has been one of the most successful Pokemon in OU ever since it's introduction into the metagame, and it's not hard to see why. Being one of the only two fully evolved Pokemon with access to Sand Stream, Tyranitar has once again retained its main niche in OU as a key team player with its ability to summon Sand at will. Tyranitar's impressive attacking stats are only made better with its plentiful offensive movepool and nearly
unresistant unresisted STAB combination, which is even more potent this generation now that its Dark-type moves are no longer resisted by the Steel-type. When the sand is up, Tyranitar becomes an impenetrable special wall that is able to take Special Attacks with ease, allowing it to switch into powerful special attackers such as Latios and Mega Charizard Y. It's also able to provide immense support for other Pokemon such as Excadrill, Landorus, and Mega Garchomp who benefit greatly from the Sand. Tyranitar was even gifted with a faster, bulkier, and much more powerful Mega Evolution. With a usable 71 base Speed, Mega Tyranitar is able to become a terrifying sweeper with Dragon Dance, and thanks to its monstrous bulk, it can set up on Talonflame, Mega Pinsir, Starmie, Latios, and many other Pokemon.
Unfortunately, Tyranitar is plagued with a nasty 4x weakness to the Fighting-type, leaving it helpless against Conkeldurr, Keldeo, and Terrakion. It's also weak to other common top tier threats such as Garchomp, Scizor, and Landorus, while the new Fairy-typing gives Tyranitar an extra weakness to worry about. The weather nerf causes Sand Stream to only activate five turns at a time opposed to indefinitely, which really hurts Tyranitar's biggest niche. Last but not least, its incredibly slow, putting it behind a majority of the offensive metagame, and its Mega Evolution is somewhat easy to revenge kill because Tyranitar is weak to almost every form of priority. However, even with its share of flaws, Tyranitar's incredible versatility and the immense amount of team support it provides is nearly unparalleled, making it one of the most defining Pokemon in the OU metagame.
Choice Scarf
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name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Pursuit
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Stone Edge
ability: Sand Stream
item: Choice Scarf
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Moves
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Tyranitar's abysmal Speed stat becomes much more manageable with a Choice Scarf, allowing it to function as a solid revenge killer. Pursuit allows it to easily outspeed and trap Gengar, Starmie, Latias, and Latios before they are able to retaliate, which sets it apart from its other sets. Crunch provides Tyranitar with a backup Dark-type STAB to hit bulkier Pokemon such as Trevanent and Slowbro. Earthquake is very important for Aegislash who can otherwise threaten to lower Tyranitar's Attack stat with King's Shield if it were locked into Crunch or Pursuit, and it hits Lucario, Heatran, Bisharp, and Excadrill harder than anything else. Stone Edge rounds off the set by giving Tyranitar a Rock-type STAB to revenge kill dangerous sweepers such as Volcarona, Mega Pinsir, Mega Charizard Y, Mega Charizard X, Talonflame, and Dragonite. Tyranitar's decent special movepool gives it a few other options to choose from. Ice Beam can surprise the unsuspecting Landorus-T and Gliscor who would otherwise easily switch into this set, as well as revenge killing Garchomp and Landorus. Fire Blast is yet another alternative that fries bulky Steel-types such as Ferrothorn and Skarmory who take little damage from both of Tyranitar's STAB moves. If Terrakion and opposing Tyranitar are
of an issue, Superpower is also an option.
Set Details
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With maximum Speed investment and a Jolly nature, Tyranitar is able to outspeed base 115 Speed Pokemon
and below, putting it above a decent portion of the metagame. The rest is dumped into its Attack stat in order to hit as hard as possible.
Usage Tips
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Choice Scarf Tyranitar is one of the best Pursuit trappers in the game because it's able to outspeed every common Psychic- and Ghost-type Pokemon in the tier. Unlike
it's its other sets, Gengar and Starmie can no longer deal heavy damage to Tyranitar with Focus Blast or Hydro Pump respectively before being taken out by Pursuit. Keep in mind that even with a Choice Scarf, Tyranitar is still outsped by key Pokemon such as Alakazam, Tornadus-T, and Greninja, all of which can easily 2HKO Tyranitar with their coverage moves. Tyranitar's ability to revenge kill top tier threats such as both Mega Charizard forms, Mega Pinsir, Thundurus, Talonflame, and Gyarados, as well as being able to Pursuit trap, is invaluable for most teams, making it a great choice for offensive teams.
Team Options
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Pairing Tyranitar with Pokemon that appreciate the lack of Ghost- and Psychic-types is a really good idea. Keldeo and Landorus in particular struggle to break through Latias and Latios, and once they're gone, it's much easier for them to blow through opposing teams. Mega Pinsir and Talonflame can check a majority of the Fighting-types in OU that threaten Tyranitar because of their priority Flying-type attacks. Mega Venusaur has great defensive synergy with Tyranitar, as it is able to switch into Fighting-, Fairy-, and Water-type attacks with ease. As with most of its sets, Tyranitar appreciates being able to switch-in frequently, so pairing it with a Rapid Spinner such as Excadrill or a Defogger
like such as Skarmory is highly recommended.
Dragon Dance
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name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Stone Edge
move 3: Ice Punch / Crunch
move 4: Earthquake
ability: Sand Stream
item: Tyranitarite
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Moves
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Dragon Dance turns Mega Tyranitar into one of the most powerful sweepers in the metagame, capable of plowing through offensive and defensive teams alike. After one Dragon Dance, it hits a whopping 640 Attack and 397 Speed, giving it an insane amount of power to work with, along with enough Speed to outpace most of the unboosted metagame. Stone Edge is Mega Tyranitar's STAB move of choice, as it is able to OHKO pretty much anything that doesn't resist it after a boost and even easily 2HKO physically defensive Skarmory. Ice Punch provides Mega Tyranitar with
a an important coverage move to hit some of its common checks and counters really hard, such as Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Garchomp, while dealing solid damage to Hippowdon. Crunch on the other hand is a powerful Dark-type STAB move that hits Ferrothorn and Slowbro harder than anything else, but
than then Mega Tyranitar will struggle to break through bulky Ground-types. Earthquake rounds off the set by hitting Aegislash without having to worry about the massive Attack drop from King's Shield, as well as smashing Lucario, Bisharp, Terrakion, Excadrill, and opposing Tyranitar for super effective damage. Fire Punch is a decent option in the last moveslot to always OHKO Scizor and Ferrothorn at +1, but Stone Edge already hits Scizor hard enough, and hitting Ferrothorn isn't really worth giving up the extra coverage that Earthquake has.
Set Details
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Max Attack and Speed investment with a Jolly nature are so that Mega Tyranitar can hit as hard as possible while being able to outspeed a majority of the unboosted tier after a boost. Tyranitarite allows Tyranitar to Mega Evolve, which gives it a much higher Attack, Defense, Special Defense and Speed stat. Although an Adamant nature may seem tempting due to the incredible boost in power, Mega Tyranitar will miss out on out speeding key Pokemon such Greninja and Alakazam.
Usage Tips
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Aside from the obvious fact that Mega Tyranitar has a higher Attack and Speed stat, its buffed defenses are an incredible asset to it as well. It's so bulky in fact, that it only takes 66.66 - 78.94% from Choice Band Scizor's Bullet Punch and 66.9 - 79.8% from Life Orb Greninja's Hydro Pump in the sand. This gives Mega Tyranitar the ability to set up on most Pokemon that lack a powerful super effective move to hit it with, as well as a few that do, such as Starmie, Kyurem-B, and Mega Pinsir. Even with this extra bulk, it isn't recommended to set up when its checks are still present, as most of its common checks can severely cripple Mega Tyranitar or put it into a range where it can easily be worn down by priority. Still, Mega Tyranitar can survive all forms of priority moves at least once at full health, so keep that in mind. Dragon Dance Mega Tyranitar fits very well on offensive teams that contain powerful wallbreakers and other sweepers that can break its common checks and counters in order for it to sweep.
Team Options
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Common offensive Pokemon such as Mamoswine, Excadrill, Terrakion, Lucario, Scizor, Keldeo, and Conkeldurr all threaten to deal massive damage to Mega Tyranitar and prevent it from sweeping. Talonflame can handle most of the Fighting-types in the tier with its priority Brave Bird, and it can soften up physical walls so Mega Tyranitar has an easier time sweeping. Keldeo is an amazing wallbreaker that can easily break through Landorus-T, Hippowdon, and Gliscor, which are great checks to Mega Tyranitar. Scizor can check Clefable and Azumarill which threaten to stop Mega Tyranitar from sweeping. Entry hazards are very important in securing specific OHKOes at +1, such as Gliscor and Scizor. Deoxys-S or Deoxys-D are usually the best fit for the job because they fit very well on offensive teams which Mega Tyranitar is usually going to be on, and they guarantee at least getting up Stealth Rock.
Physically Defensive
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name: Support
move 1: Stealth Rock / Fire Blast
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Ice Beam / Stone Edge
move 4: Earthquake
ability: Sand Stream
item: Leftovers
nature: Relaxed / Impish
evs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Moves
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Tyranitar's massive Special Defense stat and impressive physical bulk makes it a perfect contender for a support set. Its useful Rock-typing gives it a key resistance to both the Flying- and Fire-type, which are two very common types that are seen on common threats such as Talonflame, Mega Pinsir, Heatran, and Mega Charizard X. Because of Tyranitar's incredible bulk and useful resistances to Flying-, Fire-, and Dark-types, it's easily one of the most reliable users of Stealth Rock in the tier. However, if something else on your team is already using Stealth Rock, Fire Blast is a fine alternative to lure bulky Steel-types such as Skarmory, Scizor, and Ferrothorn. Crunch is Tyranitar's STAB Dark-type move of choice to hit Psychic-types such as Latias and Latios, as well as Gengar. Ice Beam keeps Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Hippowdon from completely walling Tyranitar, as well as keeping Garchomp from freely switching in. Earthquake provides Tyranitar with a reliable way to hit Aegislash without having to worry about the massive Attack drop from King's Shield. Stone Edge can be used if you want Tyranitar to have a Rock-type move to better handle Talonflame and Mega Pinsir. Pursuit can be used to trap Psychic-types such as Latios and Latias, but it's very weak without Attack investment, and
prefers the extra coverage from Ice Beam. the extra coverage from Ice Beam is preferred.
Set Details
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Investing heavily HP, physical
defensive defense, and using a +Def nature allows for Tyranitar to be one of the bulkiest mixed walls in the game. Leftovers is the preferred item for extra, much needed longevity due to Tyranitar's lack of reliable recovery. An Assault Vest can be used if you want Tyranitar to be an even better mixed wall, but it'll have to forgo the ability run Stealth Rock and it will greatly miss out on Leftovers recovery. Smooth
Stone Rock (it's called smooth rock, not smooth stone) allows Sandstorm to be up for 8 turns instead of 5, but the loss in longevity or extra bulk isn't really worth it, and Hippowdon is arguably a better choice for the job anyway because of its access to reliable recovery. Tyranitarite allows Tyranitar to Mega Evolve and obtain a significantly higher boost to both of its defenses and Attack stat. The downside of this is that it loses out on the ability to run Leftovers for extra longevity, so it is worn down quickly and also uses up your team's Mega slot. Chople Berry allows Tyranitar to take even less damage from Aegislash's Sacred Sword and Mega Charizard Y's Focus Blast in the sun, allowing Tyranitar to deal heavy damage to them in return.
Usage Tips
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This set is best used on teams in need of a reliable user of Stealth Rock and check to very prominent physical attackers in the tier, such as Mega Pinsir and Talonflame. Although it's not nearly as sturdy as Hippowdon, Tyranitar still does a very good job at keeping the Sand up, so if your team needs Sand, this set is one of the best at keeping it up because of its insane amount of bulk. Tyranitar has the advantage of having a more offensive presence than Hippowdon, making it a better fit for more offensively based teams. Keep in mind that Tyranitar can be worn down relatively easily due to its lack of reliable recovery, so it's important to switch it in sparingly.
Team Options
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Tyranitar is completely shut down by most Fighting-types, so pairing it with teammates that can both check and counter them is essential. Gourgeist and Trevanent are very good switch-ins to a large portion of Fighting-types in the tier, such as Keldeo, Lucario, Breloom, Conkeldurr and Terrakion, and they are able to burn them with Will-O-Wisp. Landorus-T checks Scizor and it can provide Tyranitar with free switch-ins thanks to U-turn. Talonflame checks all Fighting-types with priority Brave Bird and can roast Steel-types with Flare Blitz. Keldeo, Mega Charizard Y, and Landorus are great offensive partners because Tyranitar puts a lot of pressure on Latias and Latios. Keeping entry hazards off the field is essential in keeping Tyranitar healthy. Skarmory has great defensive synergy with Tyranitar and can use Defog to clear away entry hazards. Excadrill can not only abuse its Sand Rush ability when paired with Tyranitar, but it also has access to Rapid Spin, making them great partners.
Choice Band
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name: Choice Band
move 1: Crunch
move 2: Pursuit
move 3: Stone Edge
move 4: Earthquake / Ice Punch
ability: Sand Stream
item: Choice Band
nature: Adamant
evs: 180 HP / 252 Atk / 76 Spe
Moves
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When equipped with a Choice Band, Tyranitar becomes a fearsome wallbreaker capable of punching massive holes into opposing teams. Crunch is a powerful Dark-type STAB that hits anything that doesn't resist it extremely hard, and due to the Steel-type nerf defensive Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Skarmory can no longer reliably switch into it. It's best for hitting bulky Ghost- and Psychic-types such as Slowbro, Latias, and Jellicent. Pursuit is even more threatening on this set because it's capable of OHKOing Starmie, Latios, and even Latias with a bit of residual damage, even if they choose not to switch out. Stone Edge provides Tyranitar with yet another powerful STAB move to OHKO Mega Pinsir, Volcarona, Kyurem-B, and Talonflame, as well a hitting Fairy-types such as Azumarill for neutral damage. Earthquake gives Tyranitar a way to hit Aegislash reliably without having to worry about the Attack drop from King's Shield, and it also hits Lucario and opposing Tyranitar for super effective damage. Ice Punch is a viable alternative to Earthquake if none of these threats are at issue, as it allows for Tyranitar to deal heavy damage to Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Garchomp. Fire Punch is also an option for OHKOing Ferrothorn and Scizor, but it doesn't supply Tyranitar with as much useful coverage as Earthquake or Ice Punch, because Stone Edge and Crunch hit both of these Pokemon hard enough anyway.
Set Details
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The Attack EVs and an Adamant nature are to ensure that Tyranitar hits as hard as possible, while the Speed EVs are to outpace Skarmory and 2HKO it with Stone Edge on the switch before it can Roost off the damage. Everything else is dumped into its HP stat so it remains as bulky as possible.
Usage Tips
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Choice Band Tyranitar is meant to function as a powerful wallbreaker that should be used on teams in need of something to soften up walls such as Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Gourgeist. This makes it a lot easier for a teammate to sweep or clean up once its counters are heavily weakened by Tyranitar. Tyranitar's insane bulk makes it more than capable of switching into a plethora of non-super effective special attacks, which can consistently put a lot of pressure on offensive teams that lack a good switch-in. Take caution when locking yourself into Crunch or Pursuit, because Lucario and Terrakion are very dangerous, and letting them get a free turn of set up or a Justified boost can potentially lose you the battle. Overall, this set does not function very well fast paced offensive teams because of how vulnerable it is once it's locked into a move due to its common exploitable weaknesses. It's a better fit on bulky offensive teams that need a wallbreaker to break down common defensive cores.
Team Options
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Fighting-type Pokemon such as Conkeldurr, Keldeo, and Terrakion completely destroy Tyranitar and don't really mind either of its STAB moves. Breloom is a great check to both Terrakion and Keldeo, while Latios resists their Fighting-type moves and threatens them with Psyshock. Pairing Choice Band Tyranitar with offensive partners that appreciate their counters heavily weakened is a great idea. Mega Scizor has a lot of trouble breaking through Skarmory, Landorus-T, and Gourgeist, but Tyranitar can soften them up to a point where it can sweep afterwards. Talonflame checks nearly all the Fighting-types in the tier and it also enjoys physically defensive Pokemon heavily weakened. Sand Rush Excadrill benefits from Tyranitar's Sandstream ability and it can also clear entry hazards off the field with Rapid Spin, which greatly improves Tyranitar's longevity.
Other Options
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Tyranitar is a very versatile Pokemon, so it has plenty of other options to choose from. A specially defensive set can be used if you want Tyranitar to function as more of a special sponge, but it's not recommended because Tyranitar will primarily want to check physical attackers. A lead Focus Sash attacker set with Fire Blast and Ice Beam can be a great lure to most physical walls such as Skarmory and Landorus-T, but it loses out on a lot of utility. A Curse set may seem viable because of Tyranitar's impressive defenses and a Mega Evolution, but it's still very prone to being worn down quickly due to its exploitable weaknesses and lack of reliable recovery, so it's mostly overshadowed by the Dragon Dance set. Roar and Dragon Tail can phaze out sweepers that may try to set up on it, and it pairs very well with entry hazards. Thunder Wave can cripple common checks such as Lucario, Terrakion, and Keldeo. RestTalk is a lot more viable this generation due to the return of the old sleep mechanics, but it can't really fit them anywhere without giving up a lot of coverage or utility. Aqua Tail hits Hippowdon harder than any other move in its arsenal, but it's better off running an Ice-type Attack to beat Gliscor, Landorus-T, and Garchomp.
Checks & Counters
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**Physically Defensive Walls**: Pokemon with very high physical defense have little trouble dealing with most of Tyranitar's sets. Hippowdon is the best full stop to Tyranitar in OU because of its access to reliable recovery, enormous physical bulk, and Ground-type, which allows it to
easily switch into Stone Edge and Crunch with ease. Landorus-T and Gliscor are also fantastic checks to Tyranitar, fearing only a boosted Ice Punch from Mega Tyranitar and the stray Ice Beam. Skarmory fears very little from Tyranitar at thanks to its access to Roost and high Defense stat. Ferrothorn resists Stone Edge and takes little from Crunch, and threatens to deal heavy damage with Gyro Ball. Chesnaught resists both of Tyranitar's STAB moves and can set up entry hazards all over it.
**Fighting- and Ground-types**: Because of Tyranitar's crippling 4x weakness to Fighting-type attacks, Fighting-types are obviously some of the best checks to it in the game. Terrakion and Lucario can both receive an Attack boost with their Justified ability if they happen to switch into a Dark-type move. Keldeo , Breloom, and Conkeldurr also fear nothing from Tyranitar and can easily OHKO it. Diggersby, Garchomp, and Landorus are great checks to Tyranitar with their powerful Ground-type moves.
**Steel- and Fairy-types**: Scizor is a fantastic check because of priority Bullet Punch. Both of Excadrill's STAB moves threaten to deal serious damage to Tyranitar. Mega Mawile resists both of its STAB moves and can easily OHKO back with Play Rough. Azumarill can also destroy Tyranitar with Play Rough, as well as picking off weakened Dragon Dance variants with Aqua Jet. Unaware Clefable can stop Mega Tyranitar short of a sweep, and its great physical bulk and access to reliable recovery makes it very difficult to take down.
**Politoed**: Politoed on its own is a huge threat to Tyranitar because of its Drizzle ability. This not only cancels out Tyranitar's Sand Stream ability upon activation, but also allows Politoed to fire off powerful Water-type moves which can easily OHKO Tyranitar. On top of that, Politoed is usually paired with other Water-types such as Kingdra or Kabutops, all of which also threaten Tyranitar.
