Competitive Information for Zacian [Sword/Shield]


Fairy
Abilities:
Movesets for Singles
What is a good competitive moveset for Zacian? These builds have been optimized for Pokemon competing in Sword/Shield Single Battles. The movesets and EVs have been specifically calibrated to deal the most amount of damage to the largest group of potentially common opponents and typing threats for the Sword/Shield generation metagame.
Zacian is an awesome Fairy-typed Pokemon. It's pretty usual to see Zacian show up as a Sword/Shield opponent. Zacian's only type-related weaknesses are Poison and Steel.
Item: Eject Pack / Choice Band
Ability: Intrepid Sword
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
Nature: Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Moveset:
- Play Rough
- Close Combat / Sacred Sword
- Psycho Cut / Psychic Fangs
- Slash
Physical Sweeper Zacian (Intrepid Sword)
Zacian is a legendary Physical Sweeper for single battles. It was designed to take down the opponent's team with brute physical power. Choice Band will increase the damage of Zacian's physical moves by 1.5x at the cost of locking you into the first move you pick. With Intrepid Sword, on switch-in Zacian's attack is raised by 1 stage. With a Eject Pack equipped to it, if Zacian's stat stages are lowered, it switches to a chosen ally then the Eject Pack gets consumed.
◆ Close Combat is a physical 120-base power Fighting-type move (lowers your Zacian's defense and special defense by 1 stage).
◆ Sacred Sword is a physical 90-base power Fighting-type move (ignores the target's stat stage changes).
◆ Psycho Cut is a physical 70-base power Psychic-type move (high critical hit ratio).
◆ Psychic Fangs is a physical 85-base power Psychic-type move (destroys screens, unless the target is immune).
◆ Slash is a physical 70-base power Normal-type move (high critical hit ratio).
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Movesets for Doubles
What is a good doubles moveset for Zacian? These builds have been optimized for Sword/Shield Double Battles. They have movesets and EVs specifically calibrated to generally work best versus multiple Pokemon at once as well as helping to support other team members and allys in the Sword/Shield generation metagame.
Item: Rusted Sword
Ability: Intrepid Sword
Nature: Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Moveset:
- Iron Head
- Sacred Sword
- Substitute
- Protect
Doubles Physical Sweeper Zacian (Popular VGC)
Zacian is a legendary Physical Sweeper for double battles. This particular build was popular during past competitions. It's meant to take down the opponent's team with brute physical power. With Intrepid Sword, on switch-in Zacian's attack is raised by 1 stage. With a Rusted Sword equipped to it, if held by a zacian, this item changes its forme to crowned sword.
◆ Sacred Sword is a physical 90-base power Fighting-type move (ignores the target's stat stage changes).
◆ Substitute is a status move (Zacian takes 1/4 its max hp to put in a substitute).
◆ Protect is a status move (prevents moves from affecting your Zacian this turn).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/id10a378
Item: Eject Pack / Choice Band
Ability: Intrepid Sword
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
Nature: Jolly (+Spe, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Moveset:
- Play Rough
- Close Combat / Sacred Sword
- Psycho Cut / Psychic Fangs
- Slash
Doubles Physical Sweeper Zacian (Intrepid Sword)
Zacian is a legendary Physical Sweeper for double battles. It's goal is to take down the opponent's team with brute physical power. Choice Band will increase the damage of Zacian's physical moves by 1.5x at the cost of locking you into the first move you pick. With Intrepid Sword, on switch-in Zacian's attack is raised by 1 stage. With a Eject Pack equipped to it, if Zacian's stat stages are lowered, it switches to a chosen ally then the Eject Pack gets consumed.
◆ Close Combat is a physical 120-base power Fighting-type move (lowers your Zacian's defense and special defense by 1 stage).
◆ Sacred Sword is a physical 90-base power Fighting-type move (ignores the target's stat stage changes).
◆ Psycho Cut is a physical 70-base power Psychic-type move (high critical hit ratio).
◆ Psychic Fangs is a physical 85-base power Psychic-type move (destroys screens, unless the target is immune).
◆ Slash is a physical 70-base power Normal-type move (high critical hit ratio).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/id11a378
Movepool
Wondering what moves can Zacian learn? Here is the list of moves this Pokemon can learn in this selected generation.
Sort and organize the learnset by move type, category, accuracy, and power. Bolded moves will gain the same-type attack bonus (STAB) if this Pokemon uses them.
Damage Modifiers:
Combo List
These are a list of several common move combinations Zacian can perform in Sword/Shield. Not every combo going to be game-changing, but some can be pretty fun to play with. Sometimes these can be easily overlooked or forgotten, hence why we find and list them here. Discover what items, abilities, and moves this Pokemon can use in combination with each other to gain a strategic advantage in competitive battles.
Competitive SS Move and Ability Combos for Zacian
- Moves: Endure + Reversal
- Moves: Rest + Sleep talk
- Moves: Rest + Snore
- Moves: Substitute + Reversal
- Move: Assurance + Item: Rocky Helmet
- Move: Facade + Item: Flame Orb
- Move: Facade + Item: Toxic Orb
- Moves with Priority: Quick Attack, Endure, Protect, Helping Hand, Quick Guard
- Moves that Break Screens: Brick Break, Psychic Fangs
Moves that boost Zacian's stats
- Agility
- Howl
- Metal Claw
- Swords Dance
- Work Up
Most notable and possible best moves for Zacian
- Howl
- Protect
- Rest
- Snarl
Common Effort Values for Zacian in Sword and Shield
- Adamant Nature ( 0/252/0/0/0/252 )
- Modest Nature ( 0/0/0/252/0/252 )
- Optimize Zacian's EV spread for Pokemon Sword and Shield
Related Videos
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Here are the best movesets for Zacian. Top rated Zacian Sword/Shield movesets. You can find Zacian builds Sword/Shield. Zacian movesets Sword/Shield are listed here. VGC Zacian Competitive Movesets can be found here. Find various EV spreads, find the best nature for Zacian in Sword/Shield along with competitive movesets. Basic info and Movesets for evolution