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By the release of the DLC expansions to Pokemon Legends: Arceus, there are over 900 different species of Pokemon throughout the over two decades-long franchise. However, when it comes to the competitive scene, only a small fraction of those Pokemon are considered viable. Oftentimes, the same few Pokemon will appear in competitive battles.

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A key component of building a team in a competitive Pokemon match is balance between Pokemon who specialize in Attack and Special Attack stats. For the former, these Pokemon are often brutal sweepers who pose a threat to many defenseless Pokemon. These ten Pokemon throughout the 8 generations are the best when it comes to physical Attack.

10 Dragonite

Dragonite in a forest in the anime

Dragonite may be adorable on the outside, but he's a tough fighter when it comes to Pokemon VGC. Debuting in the first generation games, Dragonite is Dragon/Flying-type, making him especially weak to Ice-type moves. However, Dragonite makes up for it with his whopping 134 base Attack stat, which is far above average for any Pokemon.

Dragonite is placed in OU in the most recent Sword & Shield competitive meta, meaning many metagames have banned him. When paired with moves like Dragon Dance, Dragonite's Attack and Speed stats only power up even more. This will especially power up the move Earthquake, which counters Flying-type weaknesses like Rock and Electric.

9 Tyranitar

Tyranitar in a volcano in the anime

Tyranitar's overall stats exceed that of Dragonite, finding him boasting incredible Attack as well as HP, Defense, and Special Defense. However, as a Rock/Dark-type Pokemon, Tyranitar is quite vulnerable against Fighting-types, which can be tricky in a competitive meta where Fighting-type Pokemon are fairly popular amongst players.

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Thankfully, Tyranitar has access to moves like Thunder Wave which paralyzes opponents. This can thwart or slow an opponent's attack, allowing Tyranitar to take advantage of its high Attack stats with moves like Stone Edge or Heavy Slam. An item like a Choice Band can also prioritize increased Attack stats in lieu of selecting different moves.

8 Groudon

Groudon in his Primal Form in the anime

Groudon is the mascot legendary for Pokemon Ruby, and is quite popular in the competitive meta alongside its Sapphire counterpart, Kyogre. However, both of them being classified in the Uber tier makes them unusable in certain parts of Ranked play. Still, one can't deny Groudon's massive 150 base Attack and 140 base Defense.

On switch-in, Groudon also activates the ability Drought, which makes the weather Sunny for several turns. This will power up Groudon's Fire-type attacks, such as the powerful moves Heat Crash or Fire Punch. However, Groudon also has a pretty wide selection of STAB moves for a pure-Ground-type, such as its signature move Precipice Blades.

7 Garchomp

Garchomp flying through a city in the anime

Garchomp was introduced in the 4th generation, and has seen some pretty high highs in the competitive Pokemon scene. In Gen 6, it had access to an extremely powerful Mega Evolution, though this ability hasn't been included since Gen 7. With Mega Evolution gone in Gen 8, however, Garchomp still succeeds thanks to his powerful Attack, HP, and Speed.

His Attack stat only grows more powerful when paired with the move Swords Dance, which raises a Pokemon's Attack by 2 stages. Combined with Garchomp's Rocky Helmet-like ability Rough Skin, Garchomp can stall with Swords Dance for a few turns before demolishing any opponent with moves like Earthquake or Scale Shot.

6 Landorus-Therian

Landorus-Therian fighting a Dragonite in the anime

The Therian form of Landorus is quite popular in the world of competitive Pokemon due to its versatility as a Physical Attack Sweeper as well as a defensive support. Its ability, Intimidate, cripples opponents on switch-in by lowering their Attack. This also gives Landorus some time to set up Stealth Rocks or pull of a few Swords Dances.

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Strategies like this can pose a real threat to common Pokemon like Heatran or Corviknight, especially thanks to Landorus-Therian's placement in the OU tier. The combination of Ground/Flying makes it susceptible to Ice-types, but also nullifies Flying-type's weakness to Electric-type moves. Landorus-Therian is an easy Pokemon to make fit on any team.

5 Aegislash

Aegislash sent out to battle in the anime

Aegislash's appearance in Generation 6 and 7 saw it dominating the competitive scene, resulting in its banishment to Uber tier. Since the release of Pokemon Sword & Shield, however, Aegislash has dropped significantly to UU, the UnderUsed tier. Still, even at this much lower tier, it boasts one of the best Attack stats in the game thanks to its Ability.

When Aegislash uses an attack, its Ability Stance Change causes it to shift to Blade Form. Its base form usually has abysmal Attack and Special Attack in place of incredible Defense and Special Defense, while the Blade Form reverses this. Moves like Shadow Sneak with priority and Close Combat will rarely not do devastating damage from an Aegislash.

4 Yveltal

Yveltal flying through the air in the anime

Yveltal is another Uber-tier Pokemon who isn't often seen in Ranked Battles in Generation 8. However, even for a Legendary Pokemon, the Pokemon Y mascot boasts some of the best stats in the franchise, with 131 base Attack, 126 base HP, and 131 base Special Attack. It even has enough Speed to outspeed some of the biggest competitive threats.

Thankfully, as a Dark/Flying-type, Yveltal also has access to some pretty key STAB moves. Sucker Punch and Knock Off are rarely missed in any type of Pokemon competitively, but especially Dark-type Physical Attackers. It also has access to moves like Roost and Oblivion Wing which can heal itself and cause devastating damage, respectively.

3 Incineroar

Incineroar in a stadium in the anime

Incineroar gained a lot of popularity when it was included as a playable character in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. Thankfully, Incineroar smashes bros just as well in competitive Pokemon, with a base 115 Attack stat that rivals the best starter Pokemon in previous games. Its access to the Ability Intimidate also makes a great switch-in Pokemon.

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In Doubles play especially, Incineroar makes for a great pivot to many viable Pokemon. Using a move like Fake Out, which causes opponents to flinch if used on the first turn, will provide space for partners to boost stats or heal if they need to. Moves like Flare Blitz and Knock Off also give it the chance to deal devastating STAB damage.

2 Rillaboom

Rillaboom smiling in the anime

Rillaboom also makes for a great starter Pokemon in the competitive scene after its introduction in Sword & Shield. On switch-in, it summons Grassy Terrain, which boosts Grass moves by 50% and restores its HP every turn. This HP boost makes Rillaboom the perfect choice for an item like the Life Orb which drains health for attack boosts.

A move like Grassy Glide, which gains priority in Grassy Terrain, also makes up for Rillaboom's mediocre Speed stat. Additionally, a move like Wood Hammer is an option for players who want their attacks to pack a little more punch in exchange for recoil damage. All in all, most Water-type Pokemon will fall short against Rillaboom in Singles or Doubles.

1 Urshifu Rapid-Strike

Urshifu training in the mountains in anime

Every player who completes the Isle of Armor DLC in Sword & Shield will gain access to Urshifu, Kubfu's Legendary evolution. When evolving Kubfu, players will have the choice to gain Rapid-Strike Urshifu or Single-Strike Urshifu, which vary in typing (Fighting/Water and Fighting/Dark, respectively). Only one of these forms, however, is a competitive beast.

That form would be the Fighting/Water-type Rapid-Strike Urshifu. It boasts 130 Attack, as well as 100 HP and 100 Defense, but that's not the best part. Urshifu's Ability, Unseen Fist, will ensure all moves make contact through protection, making moves like Protect or Baneful Bunker useless against it. Rapid-Strike Urshifu, simply put, is a go-to wallbreaker.

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