| Lucario Movesets in Other Games | |
|---|---|
| SV |  SWSH |
This is a strategy guide for using Lucario in competitive play for the games Pokemon Sword and Shield. Read on for tips on the best Nature, EV spreads, Movesets, Builds, and Held Items to use with Lucario, as well as its strengths and weak points.
| Lucario - Related Guides | |
|---|---|
| Evolution and Learnset |  Build for Ranked Battle |
List of Contents
- Basic Information for Lucario
- Singles Moveset for Lucario
- Counters for Lucario
- Related Links
Basic Information for Lucario
Types and Abilities
| Pokemon | Type 1 | Type 2 |
|---|---|---|
Lucario | ||
| Abilities | ||
| Inner Focus | The Pokemon is protected from flinching. | |
| Steadfast | Raises Speed each time the Pokemon Flinches. | |
| Justified(Hidden) | Raises Attack when hit by a Dark-type move. | |
Lucario Weaknesses and Resistances
| Type | |
|---|---|
| Takes 4x damage | - |
| Takes 2x damage | |
| Takes 0.5x damage | |
| Takes 1/4x damage | |
| Takes 0x damage |
What is Type Effectiveness?
Base Stats
| HP | Attack | Defense | Sp. Atk | Sp. Def | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | 110 | 70 | 115 | 70 | 90 |
Best Nature for Lucario
| Best Natures | ||
|---|---|---|
| Jolly (+Spd, -SpAtk) | Adamant (+Atk, -SpAtk) | Timid (+Spd, -Atk) |
| Modest (+SpAtk, -Atk) | Naive (+Spd, -SpDef) | |
What are Natures?
How to Learn Lucario's Egg Moves
| Bullet Punch | Inherit from Hitmonchan (learns at Lv. 1) or Pangoro (learns at Lv. 1) |
|---|---|
| Vacuum Wave | Inherit from Hitmonchan (learns at Lv. 1) |
Singles Movesets for Lucario
Physical Attacker Moveset & Best Build
| Nature | Jolly (+Spd, -SpAtk) |
|---|---|
| EV Spread | HP 4 / Atk. 252 / Spd. 252 |
| Final Stat Values | HP 146 / Atk. 162 / Def. 90 / Sp. Def. 90 / Spd. 156 |
| Ability | Inner Focus |
| Held Item | Focus Sash |
| Moveset | ・Close Combat ・Meteor Mash ・Extreme Speed ・Ice Punch |
This moveset focuses on Lucario's high Attack and Speed to maximize its potential as a Physical attacker. It can learn moves from a variety of types, so you can configure his moveset to handle the types you want to counter and match him easily with other Pokemon in your party.
Other Viable Moves
| Counter | Effective against physical attackers. Can return double the damage taken by an attack, enough to defeat most Pokemon. |
|---|---|
| Thunder Punch | Can be used against Water-type Pokemon. |
| Bullet Punch | A STAB Fighting-type move. |
| Swords Dance | Thanks to Focus Sash, it can definitely be used at least once. With Lucario's high base Speed, it's easy to hit back even after hanging on with Focus Sash. |
| Stone Edge | Rock-type move effective against Fire and Flying-types. As it won't take damage from the Sandstorm created by Max Rockfall, it's easy to use without worrying about timing. |
Special Attacker Moveset & Best Build
| Nature | Timid (+Spd, -Atk) | EV Spread | HP 4 / Sp. Atk. 252 / Spd. 252 |
|---|---|
| Final Stat Values | HP 146 / Def. 90 / Sp. Atk. 167 / Sp. Def. 90 / Spd. 156 |
| Ability | Inner Focus |
| Held Item | Focus Sash |
| Moveset | ・Aura Sphere ・Flash Cannon ・Vacuum Wave ・Dark Pulse |
As its Special Attack is slightly higher than its Attack, Lucario is also highly capable as a Special Attacker. Although it only learns moves from a few types, it can learn moves with high power in its own types, allowing to deal heavy STAB damage.
Other Viable Moves
| Nasty Plot | Thanks to Focus Sash, it can definitely be used at least once. With Lucario's high base Speed, it's easy to hit back even after hanging on with Focus Sash. |
|---|---|
| Counter | Effective against physical attackers. Can return double the damage taken by an attack, enough to defeat most Pokemon. |
| Psychic | Fewer opportunities to use than Dark Pulse, but when Dynamaxed, it can set up Psychic Terrain with Max Mindstorm. This will prevent Lucario from being knocked out by priority moves after holding on with Focus Sash. |
| Steel Beam | Powerful Steel-type move, though it cuts your HP in half, so it's important to time its usage well. |
How to Use Lucario Effectively
Can either be a Physical Attacker or Special Attacker
Lucario with its high Speed can either be a Physical Attacker or a Special Attacker. Its move pool supports both roles, and can learn corresponding STAB moves, whether physical or special.
Handle with care as Lucario is durable
Even though Lucario resists damage from a couple of types due to its Steel typing, its Defense and Special Defense is not that high. Keep this in mind when assigning the main attacker role to Lucario.
Counters for Lucario
| Weakness |
|---|
Use Pokemon with effective type matchups
Lucario's HP and defensive stats are rather middling, which gives an opening for a powerful super effective move to faint it in one hit. As long as you have a Pokemon who can weather Lucario's hits, you won't have too much trouble taking Lucario out.
Best Pokemon to Use
| Pokemon | Description |
|---|---|
| Zapdos | Ranking: ★★★★★ ・Can resist Steel- and Fighting-type moves by half. ・Generally an excellent attacker against Lucario. |
| Aegislash | Ranking: ★★★★★・Its Ghost typing makes it immune to Lucario's Fighting-type moves. ・Can use Fighting-type moves to hit Lucario's weak spot. |
| Chandelure | Ranking: ★★★★・Its Ghost typing makes it immune to Lucario's Fighting-type moves. ・Can use Fire-type moves to hit Lucario's weak spot. |
| Heat Rotom | Ranking: ★★★・Can use Will-o-Wisp to cripple Attack-focused Lucarios. ・Can use Overheat to hit Lucario's weak spot. |
Use a defensive Pokemon to wall it
When attempting to wall Lucario, be sure to use a Pokemon which is both Physically and Specially defensive, as Lucario is capable of either style of attack. However, as Lucario is typically seen as a Physical attacker, having a Pokemon who can handle Physical attacks well will be most important for dealing with Lucario.
Best Pokemon to Use
| Pokemon | Description |
|---|---|
| Galarian Corsola | Ranking: ★★★★★・Its Ghost typing makes it immune to Lucario's Fighting-type moves. ・Can use Will-o-Wisp to cripple Attack-focused Lucarios. |
| Cresselia | Ranking: ★★★★ ・High Defense and Special Defense. ・Fighting-type moves are resisted by half. |
| Toxapex | Ranking: ★★★★・It can take most of Lucario's attacks with reduced damage ・Can use Scald to inflict heavy damage with the chance of a Burn |
| Quagsire | Ranking: ★★★・Can wall with high defensive stats. ・Can use Scald to inflict heavy damage with the chance of a Burn. |
| Gastrodon | Ranking: ★★★・Can wall with high defensive stats. ・Can use Scald to inflict heavy damage with the chance of a Burn. |
Related Links
All Competitive Builds for Ranked Battle
Competitive Guides for Pokemon Sword and Shield
| Competitive Pokemon Battle Guides | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier List | Best Builds | Series 10 List of Contenders | |||
| Doubles Tier List | Team Building | Rental Teams | |||
Best Builds for Returning Pokemon
| Movesets & Best Builds for Returning Pokemon | ||
|---|---|---|
| Mimikyu | Wash Rotom | Gyarados |
| Ferrothorn | Aegislash | Excadrill |
| Tyranitar | Hydreigon | Heat Rotom |
| Arcanine | Mamoswine | Toxapex |
| Togekiss | Cloyster | Durant |
| Snorlax | Charizard | Sylveon |
 Lucario | Hippowdon | Umbreon |
| Conkeldurr | Quagsire | Gastrodon |
| Lapras | Whimsicott | Rhyperior |
| Goodra | Haxorus | Glaceon |
| Mow Rotom | Type: Null | Gengar |
| Milotic | Gardevoir | Flygon |
| Chandelure | Lanturn | Torkoal |
| Bisharp | Seismitoad | Silvally |
| Butterfree | Primarina | Incineroar |
| Blastoise | Decidueye | Venusaur |
| Darmanitan | Alolan Ninetales | Gothitelle |
| Crawdaunt | Clefable | Reuniclus |
| Kommo-o | Terrakion | Cobalion |
| Virizion | Noivern | Fan Rotom |
| Toxicroak | Pelipper | Jellicent |
| Celebi | Clefairy | Hitmontop |
| Diggersby | Ditto | Raichu |
| Hawlucha | Shiftry | Tsareena |
| Ludicolo | ||
