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I had asked for a good Dragon type, and these are the results. I know Dragalge doesn't get a mega, but Adaptability means it can hit with a 260 base damage Draco Meteor. Garchomp can Earthquake every thing, an example is on Battle Showdowns recordings, where it sweeped 11 Pokemon (including it's team members). Salamence has always been feared, it has great abilities and speed, and has reliable recovery with Roost. Please help.

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I had a long, complicated answer for this question with calculations and everything, but my computer glitched and I lost it, and now I don't have time to retype it. :(
I'll try post it later.
thanx, i feel bad that your answer is gone :'(
Mega Salamence.
even with adaptability, 260 Power Draco Meteor is only once; it severely lowers Dragalge's Sp. Atk; i think that's why its sorta in NU and its other stats are that good too
Edit: In fact, its in RU
What's the rest of your team?
Building a new one based on one of these dragons.
I like dragalge the most, its not amazing though. I'd say salamence. :P

4 Answers

2 votes
 
Best answer

This is a little late, but it's detailed and I spent a lot of time on it, so I'll post it anyways.

There are three factors: Teammates, Tiering, and Mega Evolutions

Dragalge

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Teammates
Dragalge benefits from a team that can clear out opposing Dragons, slow the opposition via Sticky Web and Thunder Wave, Dark-types to switch into Psyshocks and Levitators and/or Flying-types to switch into EQuake.

Tiering
Dragalge, being an RU Pokémon, will really struggle in the OU environment. He will have to contend with all of the devastating anti-Dragon 'Mons that run rampant throughout the tier, namely Latios and Garchomp, as well as every Psyshock user ever. Even with Dragalge's decent Special Defence and Adaptability-boosted STABs, it simply cannot hold it's weight agains some of the more prominent threats in OU.

252+ SpA Choice Specs Dragalge Draco Meteor vs. 4 HP / 252 SpD Eviolite Chansey: 145-172 (22.5 - 26.7%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Stealth Rock (not counting the repeated SpA drops – ouch)

252 SpA Life Orb Latios Psyshock vs. 200 HP / 0 Def Dragalge: 374-439 (116.5 - 136.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252 SpA Life Orb Latios Draco Meteor vs. 200 HP / 0 SpD Dragalge: 463-549 (144.2 - 171%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252+ SpA Choice Specs Adaptability Dragalge Draco Meteor vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Latios: 704-832 (233.1 - 275.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Even though Dragalge can one-shot Latios with Draco Meteor, Latios outspeeds and one-shots Dragalge. It is also completely walled by Chansey/Blissey and useless against Excadrill. While Dragalge is usable in RU, it falls utterly short of the mark in OU due to the combination of superior Dragons, poor Defence and weakness to two of the most common moves in the tier, Psyshock and Earthquake.

Mega Evolution

Nothing to say here as Dragalge has no Mega Evolution.

Garchomp

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Teammates
Garchomp pairs well with bulky Water-types to absorb Ice attacks and bulky Steel-types to absorb Fairy attacks. In doubles, 'Chomp loves Levitators and Flying-types so it can spam EQuake and wreck things. (On a side note, the 11-0 doubles sweep is very gimmicky and is easily countered by priority Taunt, among other things.)

Tiering
Garchomp has a nice little nest at the top of OU, and he's not likely to leave. His impressive HP, Attack and Speed allow him to perform a plethora of jobs. 'Chomp has a scary surprise factor, as you never know what set he's running until he's running over you. Garchomp's possibilities include ScarfChomp, LO, Lum Berry, Sashed SR, Mixed, and the odd support set, to name a few.

252+ Atk Garchomp Outrage vs. 4 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Chansey: 286-337 (44.5 - 52.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

4 SpA Garchomp Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 16 SpD Skarmory: 174-206 (52 - 61.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

+2 252+ Atk Garchomp Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowbro: 260-306 (65.9 - 77.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

While Garchomp isn't perfect, he has the raw power, good looks and versatility to have a spot on almost any team.

Mega Evolution
Mega Garchomp is meh. Upon Mega Evolving it gains better defences, decent Special Attack and sky-high Attack, but loses Speed, forcing it to run a bulkier set that regular Garchomp. It's Ability, Sand Force, gives it a nice niche on Sand teams and partners well with Tyranitar, but outside of Sand it isn't useful at all. Despite MegaChomp's buffed Attack, more often than not basic Garchomp actually hits harder.

252 SpA Garchomp Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 168 SpD Ferrothorn: 268-316 (76.1 - 89.7%)

252 Atk Mega Garchomp Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 88+ Def Ferrothorn: 135-159 (38.3 - 45.1%)

As these calcs have shown, when choosing between Garchomp and its Mega form, there are usually better choices for a Mega and normal Garchomp performs better.

Salamence

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Teammates
Salamence appreciates many of the same teammates as Garchomp, but also requires a Spinner/Defogger to clear out Rocks to allow for repeated switch-ins. Sticky Web is also useful because it patches up Salamence's average Speed.

Tiering
Salamence has had always been at the top of OU, and has even been banned to Ubers a couple of times. But all good things come to an end, and Salamence was majorly nerfed in Gen VI, thanks to the introduction of Fairy-types. Suddenly Salamence had to contend with new threats like Sylveon and Xerneas as well as returning nobody-Pokémon back for revenge like Gardevoir, Mega Gardevoir, Mega Mawile (before it was banned to Ubers), and the evil Azumarill. Salamence didn't have the firepower or speed to muscle through these new threats, and it's only coverage move, Iron Head, proved inadequate to deal with Fairies.

252 Atk Life Orb Salamence Iron Head vs. 92 HP / 0 Def Azumarill: 140-166 (38.4 - 45.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252+ Atk Huge Power Azumarill Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Salamence: 432-510 (130.5 - 154%) -- guaranteed OHKO (without Belly Drum)

252+ Atk Huge Power Mega Mawile Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Salamence: 668-788 (201.8 - 238%) -- guaranteed OHKO

4 SpA Life Orb Salamence Fire Blast vs. 172 HP / 0 SpD Mega Mawile: 234-278 (82.3 - 97.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

232 SpA Pixilate Mega Gardevoir Hyper Voice vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Salamence: 542-642 (163.7 - 193.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252 Atk Life Orb Salamence Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 24 Def Mega Gardevoir: 322-380 (116.2 - 137.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Although Salamence can OHKO Mega Gardevoir, it is outsped and KOed before it can get its feet off the ground.

Mega Evolution

Salamence's fall from glory was amended with the release of its new Mega Evolution in ORAS. It now has a beastly 700 BST and one of the most useful Abilities in the game, Aerialate. Aerialate managed to resurrect Pinsir in XY, and has worked its magic again in ORAS. Finally Salamence had a reliable Flying STAB in Return/Hyper Voice, and incredible bulk and speed to boot. It was so powerful that MegaMence was banned to Ubers, where it struggled to hold up against the horror of Mega Rayquaza, until it was banned from Ubers and MegaMence took its place as top dog. Take a look at these calcs:

Unfortunately, Smogon has not added ORAS Megas to its Battle Calculator (but MegaMence hits like a truck anyways).

MegaMence topples some of the bulkiest Pokés in Ubers, outspeeds the vast majority of unscarfed base 90s, and can tank some of the strongest attacks in the metagame.

I hope this overview of each Dragon helps you to choose one. Happy teambuilding!

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4 votes

We'll, Dragalge is out sadly, because it really isn't that good in OU(assuming that's the tier you're using) So let's compare Salamance vs Garchomp!

Salamence

Pros

Mega Evolution
Wide Movepool
Great offensive stats
Great abilities
Has many roles

Cons

Huge ice weakness
Defenses aren't the best
Can be outsped without any boosts

Garchomp

Pros

Great Movepool
Mega Evolution
Great Attack stat
Speed is decent
Rocks
Rough Skin

Cons

Huge ice weakness
Defenses are meh
Mega isn't that fast

So in this case I would choose Garchomp. Here's some sets for it:

Garchomp @Garchompite
Trait: Rough Skin ---> Sand Force
Jolly Nature
EVs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe, 4 Hp
-Earthquake
-Dragon Claw
-Iron Head
-Swords Dance

Garchomp @Garchompite
Trait: Rough Skin ---> Sand Force
Timid Nature
EVs: 252 SpA, 252 Spe, 4 Hp
-Earth Power
-Dragon Pulse
-Flamethrower
-Surf

Garchomp @Choice Scarf
Trait: Rough Skin
Jolly Nature
EVs: 252 Atk, 252 Spe, 4 Hp
-Earthquake
-Stealth Rock
-Dragon Claw
-Iron Head

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That special garchomp moveset. :D I thought I'd never see such a thing~
What reason did you have for choosing Garchomp over Salamence? You never clearly answered as to why it is better or preferable to Salamence. Both had almost exactly the same pros and cons in your description...
Garchomp can do many other things, like Rocky Skin and Rocks, and sweep as well
You say that your personal choice would be Garchomp, however you never actually support the idea except with a couple vague points on each one. Also, if he wants to know about Dragalge, don't eliminate it entirely. Provide information for that as well.
1 vote

Personally, I wouldn't choose Dragalge, as it's stats are worse than both Garchomp and Salamence. I have both Garchomp and Salamence on my team, and quite honestly, I'm finding Salamence better.

Although it really does depend on what you are looking for in your team; Salamence is more of a tank than a sweeper, and Garchomp is more of a sweeper than a tank.

Overall, I'd choose Salamence, as it has better stats, a good movepool, and lots of pontential.

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Actually, Salamence is moreof a glass cannon than Chomp is. It has less bulk than the dragon shark, as well as a lesser ability to cover its weaknesses. Garchomp can afford to run a bulky setup set, Salamence can hope to get one DDance. One.
1 vote

Personally, I like Salamence best. It's a classic dragon type, feared by everyone in the early R/S/E games. Its mega evolution is a beast, although outclassed by garchomp in double battles. Dragalge's stats are fairly poor for a dragon type, and can easily be OHKO'd by an ice type.

Why?

Salamence's Attack, Special Attack, and Speed are all high.
Its other stats are in the high-average range, and can be ignored because of Salamence's high stats.
Item: Assault Vest/Scope Lens

Both obvious choices. assault vest provides a base 120 sp. Defence. If you tried that with Dragalge, It would be 182, but other stats couldn't be raised because of the vest.
Scope Lens is my personal Favorite, allowing moves such as earthquake, dragon claw, etc. to be used.

Garchomp's speed is high, but only slightly faster than salamence. An ice sweeper would be deadly to Garchomp, so I don't like it.

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