Garbodor Weaknesses Explored: The Trash Heap Pokemon

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Alex Maksymiw

Having began his writing career at Veryali Gaming, Alex has changed gears and has decided to write about his one true passion, Pokémon! Alex is one of our resident competitive experts and loves messing around with peculiar EV's, move sets and typing combos to keep his opponents on their toes. Also, when he's not out tossing Pokeballs in the tall grass, he's quite a handy guitar player and a decent photographer to boot!

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Gen-V was the most ambitious and arguably one of the franchise’s riskiest installments. Whether you love or hate Pokemon Black and White, it undeniably should be praised for adding new features. Such as seasonal cycles, Rotation Battles, and 156 new Pokemon to catch. Garbodor was one of these Pokemon. Its strange looks and trash bag concept would leave a stink in the air for many old franchise fans.

Garbador is a grizzly evolved form of Trubbish. A much smaller Pokemon made up of rubbish resembling a split bin bag. But while Trubbish may have a limiting appeal, Garbodor lacks any at all. This Pokemon towers above others and has the disgusting ability to fire lethal poison and filth from its hand. Garbodor absorbs rubbish and all kinds of grime and slime littered on the ground.

Generally, Pokedex entries are fun and fascinating, but sometimes an entry will shock you with a gruesome and terrifying reveal. It’s stated in the Pokemon Shield entry that Garbador’s poison is so lethal that it can quickly kill a small creature.

If that wasn’t all, its Gigantimax form unleashes an engulfing noxious gas that seeps down to your bone. Yikes, this comical Pokemon doesn’t seem so funny anymore.

I was taught to never judge a book by its cover, but ice cream and bin bag Pokemon, seriously? How can I be taken seriously as a Pokemon trainer using a bin bag to fight off a stern Ivysaur, let alone the legendary Palkia god of space?

This is the part where you’re expecting me to tell you that we’ve got it all wrong about Garbodor, and it’s actually a powerhouse garbage compactor. This would be far from the truth.

Nevertheless, Garbodor does bear some great strengths in battle if used correctly, such as its Stench ability and wide move coverage. It’s a niche Pokemon with potential in battle, but you’ll need some research to succeed. Luckily I’ve got all the information you need, so let’s get started!

Bottom Line-Up Front

 The bottom line is that Garbador isn’t a Pokemon that will move mountains. It’s, unfortunately, a Pokemon with a great move pool hindered by poor stats. Its defense does allow it to be somewhat tanky in battle, but I personally can’t justify using this Pokemon over better walls and entry hazard alternatives.

As a result, I would always pick Muk or Weezing over Garbador. Maybe I’m a little biased as an OG Pokemon fan but these Pokemon offer much better stats. 

I’m not completely hating on Garbador, though, as I think it’s surprisingly a fun Pokemon to battle with. Its Gunk Shot is its best offensive move, and its diverse move coverage allowed me to surprise my opponents with all kinds of attacks.

Stats

Looks aren’t everything; what’s on the inside counts. However, Garbador is rotten to the core. Its stats are below average to rivaling Poison-type Pokemon. Muk races ahead with an extra 25 stat points and beats it in all stats bar from speed and defense. However, don’t let Garbador catch you reading this, as the Pokedex states that Garbador has a toxic rivalry with Muk.

Interestingly the Aloan Pokedex states that Garbador numbers are in decline whenever Grimer is present. Garbador does have a little trick up its sleeve with its Weak Armor ability. This ability knocks off points to its defense and raises its speed every time it gets hit. This can be exploited in battle, allowing you to switch up your strategy on the go.

Overall, Garbador’s stats are trash; as a result, there are much better Poison-type alternatives for firepower and defense, such as my favorite Muk and Skuntank.

Garbodor’s Typing

Garbador is a pure Poison-type Pokemon, meaning it doesn’t gain any extra typing benefits. Subsequently, Garbador is vulnerable to Ground and Psychic-type attacks. Although it is strong against Grass-types, it will inflict super-effective attacks on powerful Fairy-type Pokemon.

Garbador is a good pick when looking for a Fairy-type killer, as its Powerful Gunk Shot is its best and most deadly Poison-type stab move.

Unfortunately, Garbador’s poor Special Attack stat hinders many of its Poison-type moves leaving few moves to maximize damage output. That being said, Garbador’s role isn’t to inflict serious damage but to lay down arena traps and slowly burn the opponent’s HP down.

Garbodor’s Abilities

• Aftermath – If Garbador is knocked out by a move that makes physical contact, the user takes one-quarter damage.
• Weak Armor – If a physical move attacks Garbador, its defense is lowered by one point, and two points raise its speed.
• Stench – Garbador’s attacks that don’t inflict the Flinch effect now how a 10% chance to Flinch.

I think that Garbador has some remarkable abilities that allow for different kinds of strategy in battle. Aftermath is Garbador’s Hidde Ability, so this may be harder to obtain. Weak Armor enables me to gain an advantage over an opponent whose speed is just out of range of Garbador. It also allows me to charge up the Stomping Tantrum move with Spikes or Toxic Spikes.

Stench is a great ability that can offer a fun, fresh new way to battle with Garbador. I equipped Garbador with a King’s Rock to greatly exploit its Flinch chance with brilliant results!

Key Strengths and Weaknesses

Garbador is not really a Pokemon that you assume will make an impact in battle. However, it has repeatedly proved itself a strategist and hard-hitting garbage monster. Don’t let that run away with you, though, as this Pokemon still lacks decent stats. Moreover, its mono-typing gives it little utility outside of being able to counter Fairy-types.

Despite its weaknesses, Garbador has found a comfy and humble spot in PVP. Its great move coverage and average defense make it an excellent choice for supporting U-Turn and Volt Switch users.

As Garbador can be quickly switched in to deal with any threats with Gunk Shot and Explosion. Or even wall it out and chip with Rocky Helmet while laying down entry hazards. However, don’t expect this Pokemon to last long in battle.

Like any other Pokemon, you must play to its strengths to maximize its value in battle. I realized that Garbador will never outlast even the weakest of walls. But it can remove them from the battle at the cost of itself using Explosion.

The Aftermath ability also allows Garbador to punish walling Pokemon used in conjuncture with Gunk Shot to deal severe damage with a chance of Poisoning. Garbador is susceptible to Ground-type moves and can quickly be taken out by an Earthquake. Its poor HP and defense make it an easy target for Ground-types.

While Garbador can run Seed Bomb to retaliate, it doesn’t have the firepower to fight back confidently. Moreover, Garbador can be taken off guard by an Earthquake from a non-Ground-type.

Garbador’s Fantastic Move Coverage

As you can imagine, Fairy-type Pokemon will not want to tussle with Garbador. Its Gunk Shot tears them to pieces; if the attack doesn’t knock them, then the 30% Poison chance will. Despite major weaknesses, Garbador can hold its own in battle and even send some Pokemon running with a pinched nose.

Flying-type Pokemon can be a problem for Garbador as I’ve often fought back and forth laying down Spikes only to have them removed with Whirlwind.

However, Garbador’s fantastic move pool allows it to challenge Flying-type Pokemon with Rock Blast. A base power of 20 Rock Blast may not be the most reliable move, but when has Garbador ever been reliable? If this move hits five times, that’s a 100-attack power devastating Flying-types.

Better Alternatives

Weezing is a much better alternative than a poison-type Pokemon. It lacks in attack power and HP, but its defense is outstanding. Add Levitate to the mix, and you’ve got a fantastic Poison-type that can check Ground-type Pokemon and avoid Spikes.

Equipped with Will-O-Wisp and Toxic Spikes, Weezing can lay traps while chipping away at its opponent with Sludge Bomb. Furthermore, in its Galarian form, Weezing is updated to have dual-typing of Fairy and Poison-type.

As well as improved move coverage to support Defog and a new signature Fairy-type move called Strange Steam with high accuracy and a chance to confuse the target. If you’re looking for power and a bit more bulk, then Skuntank could be your Garbador alternative. Skuntank has significantly more HP points and Attack stat points than Garbador at a small cost to its defense.

I have a lot more fun with Skuntank as its Pursuit move works exceptionally well with U-Turn. Its dual typing of Poison and Dark-type gives it Crunch for a decisive stab move as well as Poison Jab making short work of Fairy-types.

That being said, you’re not going to be able to run Spikes with this Pokemon, but there is plenty of better entry hazard Pokemon out there.

• As a result, I see little reason to use Garbador outside its versatile move coverage. It’s just unfortunate that Garbador is a mono-type Pokemon as it would benefit greatly coupled with an extra Pokemon-type such as Ground-type.

Garbodor Counters

Ground-type Pokemon pose a significant threat to Garbador. As well as any other Earthquake user that holds any amount of bulk. It’s incredibly frustrating to battle with Garbador as its stats are usually outmatched leading it to easily be outclassed by its opponents.

Good luck ever beating a Steel-type in battle as Garbador struggles to punch a hole through this type of Pokemon’s defenses.

Xatu

• Magic Bounce completely nullifies Garbador’s entry hazards and is quickly knocked out by its heavy-hitting Psychic-type moves.
• Xatu can also outspeed Garbador and bears little threat to its move pool, with Rock Blast as its only threat.
• U-Turn is one of Xatu’s most used moves, allowing it to quickly jump in and out to reflect Spikes. Once Spikes have been removed by an entry hazard remover.

Espeon

• Another Magic Bounce user can devastate a defensive utility Garbador build due to reflecting Spikes and Toxic Spikes at Garbador.
• Espeon completely outclasses Garbador’s stats with 110 Speed, and 130 Special Attack Espeon can easily clean up Garbador.

Skarmory

• Skarmory counters Garbador hard; the combination of Steel-type and Flying-type allows it to dodge entry hazards and resist Gunk Shot.
• Garbador cannot hold a candle to Skarmory’s extremely high physical defense of 140. Garbador’s low Special Attack stat only makes matters worse.

Rhydon

• Rhydon causes issues for Garbador as it naturally resists Gunk shot, one of Garbador’s only attacking moves. You may run Seed Bomb depending on your Garbador’s build. However, Rhydon can out-damage Garbador with super-effective Ground-type moves.
• Moreover, Garbador is entirely outclassed by Rhydon’s extremely high HP, Attack, and Defense stats. This is unfortunate because Garbador cannot exploit Rhydon’s poor Special Defense.

Steelix

• Garbador won’t make a dent on this tanky Steel-type Pokemon. Steelix has a monumental Defense stat of 200 and resists Garbador’s moves outside Drain Punch. However, Garbador lacks firepower without running a Choice Band. Moreover, even with an attack boost, Garbador will be knocked by Steelix’s Earthquake.

Entry Hazard Removals

I had a bit of trouble with Flying-type Pokemon such as Skarmory and Corviknight. These Pokemon often ran with Whirlwind and Defog to remove the Spikes I had placed with Garbador. Entry hazard removals are a significant counter to Garbador because they diminish Garbador’s value in a battle leaving it with little use.

Garbador can counter these entry removals if it’s fast enough to land Explosion nine times out of ten before its opponent. If I weren’t running Weak Armor, my Garbador would not be able to move first. As a result, it left my Garbador even less valuable as Explosion is a one-time move that knocks out the user before damaging its opponent.

Therefore, deciding whether Garbador should be run with Weak Armor or Aftermath can be challenging. However, after trial and error, I prefer Weak Armor as a few hits to Garbador can ensure a successful Explosion.

Competitive Setup

Garbador grew on me as a competitive Pokemon; it’s versatile when setting up teams. It makes excellent use out of entry hazards such as Spikes and Toxic Spikes but can also devastate opposing Fairy-type Pokemon. In fact, one of my favorite strategies was to take my staple U-Turn Flygon and bait out Fairy-types before switching to this monstrous pile of poison and firing a grizzly Gunk Shot.

Alternatively, while there are better Poison-type wall Pokemon out there. Garbador does

Spike Setting Bomber

• Seed Bomb/Stomping Tantrum
• Spikes/Toxic Spikes
• Explosion
• Gunk Shot

Garbador has enough defensive capabilities to use hazard entries effectively. However, this Spike strategy has an explosive twist. Explosion allows you to remove a threatening opponent with ease. However, I typically use this when Garbador has lost a significant portion of its health.

Although Seed Bomb is not a stab move, it’s a great addition to Garbador’s move set as it’s excellent for countering Ground–type Pokemon. I always run Gunk Shot as Garbador’s definitive Poison-type stab move. Stomping Tantrum is an excellent choice if you’ve set up Spikes, as failed moves double the power of Stomping Tantrum.

I recommend using the Black Sludge item for this build as it supplies Garbador with a little health recovery to offset its poor defense. Aftermath is an excellent choice for this build as it allows Garbador to revenge kill if the opponent is low health.

However, I much prefer Stench as ability as this gives me a chance to get a damage-free round in. But this does mean that you will have to swap Black Sludge for a King’s Rock to make this strategy more dependable.

I experimented with this build and discovered that Weak Armor is exceptionally beneficial to this build. As the extra speed gained ensured that Explosion landed before my opponent’s attack. This is very valuable in battle as, on occasion, I could defeat a Pokemon and follow with a devastating attack on the next opponent’s Pokemon. Don’t be scared to sacrifice Garbador once you’ve laid down Spikes. 

Garbador has taken considerable damage as I’ve managed to finish off Pokemon with Spikes later in the battle. For this build, I recommend using an Adamant (+Atk,-Sp. Atk) natured Garbador as no Special Attack moves are used for this build. Alternatively, consider the Jolly(+Spd,-Sp. Atk) nature as a minor speed boost that may allow you to move before your opponent.

However, I don’t run Garbador with a Jolly nature if I’m using the Weak Armor ability, as I can significantly raise the speed of Garbador with this instead.

Defensive Utility

• Haze
• Pain Split/Gunk Shot
• Spikes
• Toxic Spikes

This defensive yet surprisingly damaging build sacrifices several turns to set up Spikes and Toxic Spikes for field control over my opponent. Rocky Helmet and Aftermath are essential in this build.

As Rocky Helmet punishes opponents for physically damaging Garbador and is one of Garbador’s primary sources of damage if running Pain Split over Gunk Shot. I added Gunk Shot to this build to tailor it to my Flygon’s weaknesses. However, it’s acceptable to run Garbador without in this build.

This build requires a Bold (+Def – Atk) natured Garbador as it needs to rely on bulk to be of value in battle. This build is boring to play as it has little purpose outside of being a Spike setter. Haze is another Spike-related move that allows you to deny opponents from clearing the field.

Choice Band Offensive

• Gunk Shot
• Seed Bomb
• Drain Punch
• Rock Blast

This all-out offensive build turns Garbador into a terrifying force to be reckoned with. This is my favorite of the builds, as I think that Garbador does well as a jack of all trades. This build allows me to challenge Fairy-types, Flying-types, Ground-types, and somewhat Steel-types. Making Garbador a great Pokemon to fill in the blanks of your party.

I’m not worried about sacrificing Spikes and Toxic Spikes for damaging moves as there are much better entry hazard users to choose from. Skarmory is a fantastic example as it’s a Pokemon that synergizes well in typing and is a much better Spike layer thanks to its high defense.

Drain Punch is essential for Garbador to sustain its life in battle as Garbador can no longer rely on Black Sludge to heal itself. If you’re looking for more of an offensive build for Garbador, this should be your first pick. This build worked well with my U-Turn Flygon as I could easily switch to Garbador to inflict some heavy damage.

Even though Garbador has Seed Bomb to defend itself against Ground-type Pokemon. I don’t feel confident enough in battle to rely on this move alone. Instead, I use a Sceptile to take out these threats. Subsequently, Rock Blast is a great move to eliminate Fire-type Pokemon that threaten Sceptile.

This is a complete offensive build, so I run Garbador with an Adamant nature. A Jolly nature is once again an option. However, the Weak Armor ability allows Garbador to increase its speed. I much prefer this as Drain Punch will enable me to heal Garbador and take advantage of the speed boost without worrying about low HP.

Alternative Offensive

• Gunk Shot
• Psychic
• Spikes
• Toxic Spikes

This alternative offensive build allows Garbador to take out other Poison-types and decimate Fighting-types with Psychic. Once again, I’d use Gunk Shot as its primary Poison-type move as the 30% Poison chance is too good to ignore. Spikes and Toxic Spikes punish switching Pokemon and weaken them for your other team members.

I’d use Aftermatch for this build with support from Black Sludge to keep it healed in a battle.

• Like many of Garbador’s builds, an Adamant natured Garbador is best used for this build.

Best Team for Weakness Coverage

I built my team around Garbador’s weaknesses to maximize its value in battle. Steel-type and Ground-type Pokemon are Garbador’s most significant threats as they resist many of its moves. Moreover, if you are running Garbador with Spikes and Toxic Spikes, you will need hard counters to Steel, Flying, and Ground-types.

Skarmory

Skarmory is a great Pokemon to partner with a Choice Band Garbador. Skarmory has less attack power making it more beneficial as an entry hazard alternative. Furthermore, Skarmory makes it elementary to bait out Steel-type counters for Garbador.

I’d only use Skarmory if you are running the Choice Band build for Garbador. I think Skarmory’s place in the party is wasted if Garbador is built defensively and as a hazard entry.

Incineroar

Incineroar is a great partner for Garbador as it makes short work of hardy Steel-type Pokemon. Not only that, Incineroar’s Fire/Dark-type comes in handy when fighting against Psychic and Ghost-type Pokemon. This is useful for countering Magic Bounce users such as Espeon and Xatu.

Incineroar’s comprehensive move coverage gives it access to Earthquake, making it a fearsome competitor against Electric, Rock, and Fire-types. Incineroar is relatively weak in battling against Fighting-types, so Garbador synergizes well in countering them.

Moreover, Incineroar benefits significantly from U-Turn as this allows me to switch to Garbador when a Fighting-type comes into play quickly or I want to lay some Spikes down.

Sceptile

Sceptile is a speedy Pokemon that is a perfect Ground-type counter for Garbador. Its high Special Attack and ability to Mega Evolve make it one of my favorite Pokemon to battle with.

You’ll want to Mega Evolve Sceptile as soon as you can in battle, as this significantly improves its stats and, importantly, raises its defense by 10 points totaling 75 points. Unfortunately, Sceptile’s HP stays the same with an unimpressive 70 stat points.

This makes Sceptile very squishy; however, don’t be put off by its low bulk Sceptile is a fantastic revenge killer due to its incredible speed. As a result, Sceptile can quickly finish off injured opponents damaged by Spikes or Poisoned by either Toxic Spikes or Gunk Shot.

Sceptile is one of my all-time favorite Pokemon due to its wicked design and signature move, Leaf Blade. However, I equip Mega Sceptile with Leaf Storm instead, as this capitalizes on Mega Sceptile monstrous Special Attack stat.

I’m a big fan of running Sceptile with Energy Ball for a chance to lower an opponent’s Special Defense. Although reducing the defense of bulky wall Pokemon is ideal. Sceptile isn’t equipped to deal with Steel-type Pokemon, so save this for Incineroar.

Chandelure

Chandelure is an odd Pokemon that grew on me in my Pokemon Y adventures. However, it has abysmal HP and physical attack stats. Chandelure is an excellent substitute for Incineroar or to include in your party to support Garbador.

For what Chandelure lacks, it makes up for with its insane Sp. Atk. and handy dual typing of Fire and Ghost-type grants it high resistances to Fighting-type Pokemon and moves.

Rhyperior

Could you imagine anything worse than both Spikes and Stealth Rock? Rhyperior plays a significant role in supporting Garbador. The combination of Garbador’s Spikes and Rhyperior’s Stealth Rock bitterly chips away at switching opponents.

This rounds the team off nicely as I can later Volt-Switch and U-Turn knowing it comes at a high cost for my opponent to change and attempt to counter.

Stealth Rock takes typing into account and will do more damage to Pokemon types that are weak to Rock, such as Flying. Furthermore, Rhyperior has a significant bulk with high HP, and physical defense stats attackers will struggle to get through. However, Special Attack users can devastate Rhyperior due to its low Special Defense.

FAQs

Garbodor Weaknesses: Conclusion

In conclusion, I’m not a fan of Garbador. It does have some decent potential in a battle as an aggressive or defensive Pokemon. However, I just can’t justify keeping Garbador on my team as there are much better Poison-type alternatives, such as the original and superior Muk.

I may favor the older generations of Pokemon but compare the two objectively. Muk has much better stats and defensive capabilities. Yes, you won’t get as much move coverage, but it makes me feel safer in battle.

However, this Pokemon grew on me, and I see how its small niche can be used in battle to lay traps and control the field with unexpected move types. However, I hate how this Pokemon is solely a Poison-type, as this holds it back from being a decent damage dealer.