One of the reasons I probably have some of my best memories from Gen II (specifically Silver version) is because I played much of that game blind. With no Player's Guide and no information on the Internet, I was left to discover many of that game's new Pokemon on my own. As such, I found myself encountering all sorts of mysterious creatures which I would learn about only after I caught them.
Stumbling into Mt. Silver at the end, I would every once in a while run into a Larvitar. Compared to the more monstrous beasts inside the mountain, Larvitar seemed pretty... weird. He was a weak, low-level Pokemon, but my intuition was already alarming me that a beast was waiting to emerge...
...and boy, was I right!
#77: Tyranitar
Tyranitar is Gen II's answer to Gen I's Dragonite, thus making "pseudo-Legendaries" officially a thing (instead of Dragonite's abnormally high Base Stat Total being just an anomaly). His concept of a rock version of Godzilla and the resulting design are simple yet plenty effective in portraying how terrifying it is, and this is only helped by Tyranitar's appearances in the anime, especially in the 4th movie (the last Pokemon movie I watched from start to finish). (There's also his Pokedex entry about destroying mountains so that maps have to be re-written...
As terrifying as Tyranitar looks--or appears in the anime--it says nothing about how terrifying he is on the competitive circuit, where he's currently the 7th most popular Pokemon on Smogon's OverUsed tier. To start, there's his stats, and as I mentioned, Tyranitar belongs to the "pseudo-legendary" category of Pokemon, meaning his Base Stat Total is a Legendary-comparable 600... and that's being distributed with a massive Base 134 Attack, great Base 110 Defense, a very good Base 100 HP and Special Defense, and solid Base 95 Special Attack. Only his Base 61 Speed is on the low side. But wait! Tyranitar's stats in battle are actually even higher than these!
Tyranitar's formerly-signature ability is Sand Stream, which is Sandstorm's version of Drizzle and Drought, and summons a permanent sandstorm upon entering the field. As of Gen IV, Sandstorm grants a 50% boost to Rock-types' Special Defense while active... which means, as long Tyranitar's induced Sandstorm is not overwritten by another weather or negated by an ability, Tyranitar is fighting with an absolutely monstrous Special Defense stat. And that's to say nothing of the residual damage that sandstorm's forcing on the opponent...
(Tyranitar also gets Unnerve from the Dream World. You might end up using this on Doubles if you don't want to form a Sandstorm team, as berries are more commonly used there.)
Wait, you want some moves to go with those killer stats? Tyranitar has that covered easily. Crunch and Stone Edge (or Rock Slide for doubles) provide strong primary STAB, while Pursuit can be used to take down a frail opponent, particularly a Psychic- or Ghost-type, without them being able to switch out of impending doom. If you want some Special coverage, Tyranitar can also use Dark Pulse.
If you want coverage moves... oh goodness, does Tyranitar have coverage moves! Fire Blast, Surf/Aqua Tail, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, Superpower, Earthquake, Outrage... Of those, Superpower is probably the most useful, going well with Crunch, while Fire Blast is the best option for any mixed set. But hey, if you want to just put a lot of elemental moves and powerful physical attacks together and just go to town on in-game opponents... why not? A couple of support moves, like Stealth Rock and Thunder Wave, are worth noting, but for the most part, you're better off just destroying stuff.
If it sounds like Tyranitar is near-unstoppable, well, he's not. His unique Rock-Dark type, while providing some nice resistances and immunities, also gives him a number of weaknesses, most notably a 4x weakness to Fighting, and he's also rather slow. Take advantage of this, and he will go down.
However, even if you take down Tyranitar, there's no saying what punishment awaits from his team. Tyranitar's ability to instantly start a Sandstorm allows him to form the basis of a Sand team, which uses residual damage and new abilities like Sand Rush and Sand Force to brutalize the opposition. Some may choose to use Hippowdon, who's more defensive, instead, but if you want your weather starter to come with some sheer power, Tyranitar is a fantastic choice.
As far as monstrous Pokemon go, few do it better than Tyranitar, both in concept and in battle. Tyranitar truly is one of the most terrifying Pokemon out there.
But the terror does not stop here! Next is a terror from the seas, emerging from the most unlikely of beasts.
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