Welcome to another edition of Pokemon of the Week! This week, we'll be focusing on a Pokemon that I personally use in nearly all of my competitive teams, and for good reason. This week, we'll discuss Terrakion.

Terrakion is part of the four musketeer Pokemon, and is a top contender for being the best of the bunch, though Keldeo gives it stiff competition. Rock/Fighting is a fantastic offensive typing, basically hitting anything for at least neutral damage. Add in 129 Attack and 108 Speed, and it's easy to see why Terrakion is popular among competitive battlers. 91/90/90 defenses are pretty good as well, and Terrakion's Rock type allows him a special defense boost in Sandstorm conditions, making him able to take on special attackers much easier if need be.

Terrakion has been a staple of OU practically since it was revealed, and it's definitely not going anywhere. With the capability to run so many effective sets, Terrakion can fit on nearly any team very well.

Terrakion@ Choice Band Justified Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP Close Combat Stone Edge X-Scissor Sacred Sword / Quick Attack / Rock Slide

With a Choice Band equipped, Terrakion becomes a monster that is very difficult to switch into directly. Close Combat is Terrakion's best STAB attack, able to punch massive holes in anything not resistant or immune to it, and easily capable of OHKOing many Pokemon in OU. Stone Edge supplements this move as Terrakion's other STAB attack, making Flying types that resist Close Combat tremble to think about switching into Terrakion before he's been locked into one move. X-Scissor allows Terrakion to hit Psychic types hard, such as Latios, Reuniclus and Celebi.

As usual, the last slot is a toss-up for what you prefer. Sacred Sword is much weaker than Close Combat, but it does not lower your defenses, and there are definitely times when keeping your defenses intact is vitally important to Terrakion, especially during a late-game cleanup of the opponent's weakened team. Quick Attack gives Terrakion a priority move to pick off fast but weakened foes, but be careful about locking yourself into it at the wrong times. Rock Slide gives you an alternate Rock STAB that is a bit more accurate than Stone Edge for when you need more assurance of hitting an opponent with Rock STAB.

Terrakion@ Choice Scarf Justified Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP Close Combat Stone Edge X-Scissor Rock Slide / Sacred Sword

A Choice Scarf gives Terrakion a wonderful Speed boost, allowing him to serve as one of the best, most potent revenge killers in the metagame. The moves are the same from the last set, with Close Combat and Stone Edge serving as your two main STAB attacks, and X-Scissor serving as coverage for Psychic types. The final slot is a safer STAB approach. Sacred Sword lets you keep your defenses intact at the cost of some power, while Rock Slide trades power and a higher critical hit rate for more accuracy and a flinch rate that can be helpful with the speed granted by Choice Scarf.

As a final note to this set, this is something I utilize very often in my own competitive teams. Having a fast, powerful Pokemon with two incredible STABs, Scarf Terrakion is very rarely a liability, and the surprise factor of it not being Banded has won me entire games. Watch for Gliscor, Landorus Therian Form and a few others, but if you know when and how to play this Terrakion, it will not disappoint you.

Terrakion@ Air Balloon / Life Orb Justified Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) / Adamant nature (+Attack, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 HP Rock Polish Swords Dance closecombat} Stone Edge

Terrakion has two boosting moves that both take advantage of his fantastic offensive capabilities. Rock Polish allows Terrakion to double his Speed, essentially setting him above everything in OU. Swords Dance, on the other hand, doubles his Attack, basically letting him 1-2HKO the metagame. Close Combat and Stone Edge are your STAB attacks, nothing too fancy, but they get the job done as efficiently as Terrakion can afford.

Now, the real challenge to using this set is knowing how and when to setup your boost or boosts. Part of making this decision comes from keeping your opponent's team memorized, and learning/predicting their movesets based on the rest of their team. When facing heavily offensive teams, Rock Polish is the best boosting move you can utilize, setting you above your opponent's fastest Pokemon and allowing you to smash through them. When facing defensive teams that aren't so quick, Swords Dance is your boosting move of choice, allowing you to muscle through those slower, bulkier threats. In both cases, entry hazard support is not helpful, it is completely necessary. Stealth Rock and Spikes will help you achieve those KOs that Terrakion would otherwise fall just short of achieving.

Terrakion@ Rock Gem / Life Orb / Salac Berry Justified Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Attack / 252 Speed / 4 Defense Substitute Swords Dance Close Combat Stone Edge

Substitute Terrakion is incredibly dangerous to deal with. Not only does it provide a shield to hide behind, allowing you to setup Swords Dance more safely, but it blocks status attacks, which easily shuts down numerous would-be counters from crippling Terrakion with an untimely Burn or Paralysis. After finding an opportunity to safely setup a Sub (not difficult, considering most versions of Terrakion are Banded or Scarfed), Swords Dance lets Terrakion fairly safely double his Attack stat. Close Combat and Stone Edge have incredible power after a Swords Dance, and with Rock Gem, even Gliscor is 2HKOd by Stone Edge after the SD. Life Orb is a usable alternative to give a 1.3x boost to both moves, allowing Terrakion to frequently hit harder all around. Finally, Salac Berry is an incredible option if you manage to boost with SD and Sub your way down to 25%. If this is the case, your opponent had better have a Super Effective priority attack or one of a few Terrakion counters, or they will be swept.

Terrakion@ Focus Sash Justified Jolly nature (+Speed, -Sp. Attack) EVs: 252 Speed / 252 Attack / 4 Sp. Defense Stealth Rock Taunt / Swords Dance Close Combat Stone Edge

Terrakion serving as a lead is somewhat odd, but it can work well. Terrakion is one of very few users of Stealth Rock that also poses a significant offensive threat. Magic Bounce Espeon and Xatu will think twice before switching into Terrakion, allowing you to setup Stealth Rock fairly reliably. This is especially useful vs. Sun teams, where Terrakion not only get get rocks up pretty safely, but threatens many common members of Sun teams as well. The choice between Taunt and Swords Dance comes down to preference. Taunt stops opposing Pokemon from setting up Stealth Rock, while Swords Dance allows Terrakion to go on an even heavier offensive if necessary.

In-game, Terrakion is one of the best Pokemon you can raise. It's got the Speed, it's got the offensive capabilities, it's got the great STABs and coverage, it's just fantastic. It's in Victory Road in Black and White, and Route 22 in Black2 and White2. Here's the moveset I recommend:

Terrakion Justified Close Combat Rock Slide / Stone Edge X-Scissor Earthquake

Terrakion has everything it needs to earn a spot on your team. Close Combat is his strongest STAB, and is the main attack you'll be using to flatten everything with. Stone Edge is your secondary STAB, hitting most things that resist Close Combat. Rock Slide is a usable alternative in-game for higher PP and accuracy, as well as the fact that having a high level ensures you'll kill most things you'll face in-game anyway. X-Scissor is for Psychic types, while Earthquake kills Electric types. Honestly, raise this Pokemon and you'll see how powerful and useful a single Pokemon can be.

It should be apparent already, I absolutely love Terrakion. Fighting is my favorite type, and it's Pokemon like this that show exactly why. His raw power, great diversity and general badassness makes him the posterboy for what it takes to be a top threat in OU. With this bulldog on your side, your opponents better have a Slowbro if they want to stand a chance.

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