Abilities
MetaMons competitive notes
Garchomp is a dragon/ground-type Pokémon whose base stats lean toward Attack — at 600 BST it is a legendary-grade total for competitive play, with above-average speed (base 102) and a physical attacking profile. Its Sand Veil ability matters more than the raw numbers when it hits the field: check what it does before deciding between a sweeper, pivot, or support role for Garchomp. Build around what Garchomp actually threatens, not its in-game lore — start from its weaknesses and strongest STAB moves, then decide whether its Speed, bulk, or coverage justifies a team slot.
Reviewed competitive profile
Reviewed by Metamons Team
Garchomp earns a slot when a team wants Stealth Rock pressure without surrendering offensive tempo. Rough Skin, Ground STAB, and the threat of a boosting set force physical attackers and passive pivots to pay for predictable contact or switches.
Gen 9 OU: This blueprint is for Scarlet and Violet OU singles. Confirm the current tier list and clauses before using it in a tournament or a different generation.
Rough Skin plus Rocky Helmet turns U-turn, Rapid Spin, and other contact moves into real chip damage. That makes Garchomp useful even in games where it never attempts to sweep.
Earthquake prevents Steel-, Poison-, and Electric-types from treating the hazard setter as passive. Dragon STAB or phazing then punishes opponents that rely on a single Ground immunity.
Starting blueprint
This is an explained starting point, not a claim that one set fits every matchup. Compare it with the live format presets in the team builder.
- Item
- Rocky Helmet
- Ability
- Rough Skin
- Nature
- Jolly or Impish
- Tera type
- Steel
EV approach
Start with enough Speed for the threats your team must pressure, then place the remaining investment into HP and Defense. Use Jolly for proactive leads and Impish when contact punishment is the main job.
Moves and jobs
Stealth Rock
Creates progress every time the opponent switches.
Earthquake
Reliable STAB that stops Garchomp becoming passive.
Dragon Tail
Phazes setup attempts and compounds hazard damage.
Spikes / Fire Blast
Adds hazard pressure or targets Steel-type answers.
Lead Garchomp when the opposing removal plan relies on contact or when Stealth Rock immediately limits a key attacker. Preserve it if Rough Skin chip is needed later; trading it on turn one is poor value when the opponent still has healthy U-turn or Rapid Spin users. Tera Steel is defensive insurance, not the default click—spending Tera on a hazard setter must protect a matchup the rest of the team cannot cover.
Checks to plan for
- Corviknight — avoids Earthquake and can outlast sets without Fire coverage.
- Weavile — threatens immediate Ice damage but dislikes contact chip.
- Dragapult — outspeeds unboosted variants and forces careful HP management.
Partners that solve a job
- Gholdengo — discourages common forms of hazard removal.
- Corviknight — covers Fairy and Ice pressure while providing a slow pivot.
- Kingambit — benefits from the chip damage Garchomp creates.
- Treating Garchomp as disposable before identifying the opponent's contact attackers.
- Running four utility moves and losing all offensive pressure.
- Using Tera automatically instead of preserving it for the team's actual win condition.
Damage multipliers when attacked by each type
A MetaMons teambuilding read based on base stats and typing
Garchomp takes super-effective damage from Ice, Dragon, Fairy moves — every one of those types is a check you need an answer for when drafting. Before locking Garchomp into a team, check the weakness guide and count how many of those types your remaining five slots can answer.
- Highest stat
- Attack (130)
- Lowest stat
- Special Attack (80)
- Offensive lean
- physical
- Speed tier
- above-average speed (base 102)
- BST
- 600 (legendary-grade for the format)
Garchomp is a dragon/ground-type Pokémon whose base stats lean toward Attack — at 600 BST it is a legendary-grade total for competitive play, with above-average speed (base 102) and a physical attacking profile. Its Sand Veil ability matters more than the raw numbers when it hits the field: check what it does before deciding between a sweeper, pivot, or support role for Garchomp. Build around what Garchomp actually threatens, not its in-game lore — start from its weaknesses and strongest STAB moves, then decide whether its Speed, bulk, or coverage justifies a team slot. Compare this profile against your roster's shared weaknesses in the MetaMons team builder, where the 18-type coverage heatmap reads the whole team, not one slot.
About Garchomp
Garchomp is the Mach Pokémon a Dragon/Ground type Pokémon. It has a base stat total of 600 with Sand Veil as its ability.
What is Garchomp weak to?
Garchomp is a Dragon/Ground-type, so it takes super-effective damage from Ice, Dragon, Fairy. It resists Fire, Poison, Rock. It is immune to Electric.
How to counter Garchomp
To counter Garchomp in competitive play, bring Pokémon that can hit back with Ice or Dragon or Fairy moves and can withstand its Dragon/Ground STAB attacks. Check the type-defense grid above for the full multiplier breakdown.
Using Garchomp in competitive teams
Garchomp can be added to Smogon or VGC teams across Gen 1–9 formats. Build a competitive team with Garchomp on Metamons and get AI reads on your type coverage and threats before you queue.
