WouW
Smash Lord
#059 Arcanine
Fire
Intimidate: Lowers opponent's Attack stat by 1 stage upon entering the battle
Flash Fire: Increases Fire attack power by 1.5 when hit by a fire move
90HP/110Atk/80Def/100SpA/80SpD/95Spe
CB-Nine
Arcanine @ Choice Band
Intimidate/Jolly
252 Atk / 252 Speed / 4 HP
Flare Blitz
Extremespeed
Thunderfang
HP Ground
This set goes off Arcanine's pretty decent stats to make a fast, hard-hitting pokemon. Flare Blitz goes off his 110 Atk and gets STAB, so unless a poke resists this its going to be hurting. Extremespeed is to finish off weakened pokemon, Thunderfang and HP Ground give decent type coverage.
Specs Nine
Arcanine @ Choice Specs
Intimidate/Timid
252 Sp Atk / 252 Speed / 4 HP
Overheat
Dragon Pulse
HP Ground
Extremespeed
While it is his lower attacking stat, 100 Sp. Atk is nothing to laugh at. Most people will automatically see Arcanine and think CB, so this can get some surprise KOs. Overheat gives STAB, everything else is just coverage.
Bulky Phazer
Arcanine @ leftovers
Intimidate/Bold
252 HP / 168 Def / 88 Speed
Will-o-Wisp
Roar
Toxic
Fire Blast
A little different than a normal bulky Arcanine, this set is built on WoWing and Roaring. any walls you come across that wont care about WoW wont like Toxic. Fire Blast is on here because it hits harder than flamethrower, but wont slowly lose worth, as Overheat does. And arcanine doesnt want to lose the life from Flare Blitz .
Mix-Nine
Arcanine @ Life Orb
Flash Fire / Naive/Hasty
200 Atk / 100 Sp Atk / 208 Speed
Flare Blitz
Thunder Fang
Extremespeed
Overheat
A decent take-off of Mix-Nape, Arcanine has STAB to whack stuff with Flare Blitz, and Overheat if they will take more damage. Thunder Fang and Extremespeed are for coverage and a priority move. Flash Fire works very nicely with this set, giving Arcanine's STAB an amazing boost- very few things can survive a LO FFed STAB attack from Arcanine.
Extra Options:
Flash Fire is worth considering, as it gives his STAB a nice boost, but generally Intimidate is the way to go.
Choice Scarf can be considered over Choice Band, if you feel the need for speed- his speed, at base 95, is one of his biggest downfalls.
Arcanine actually has a decent movepool, but it suffers from one main problem- the pokemon that resist him resist almost everything he has. To list some move and set options:
Sunny Day- somehow he can learn sunny day and solarbeam, so a surprise set could be a sunny beamer.
Iron Tail- whacks stuff that is rock for nice damage, but it doesnt have the best chance to hit.
Crunch- to hit those psychic and ghost types, and has nice base power.
Substitute OR Restalker- If you feel like adding more bulk and less power to your Bulky nine.
Dragon Pulse- hits dragons hard, as they generally resist whatever else Arcanine can throw at them
Heat Wave is an option over Overheat, but generally not worth comparing
Aerial Ace- Just a nice option to have, only thing it really does is hit fighting types though.
HP Grass- Yea it gets a special mention- a lot of Arcanine sets are walled by Bulky Waters and Rock Pokemon. This will help whack them away.
EVs
For most sets, Arcanine will want his main attacking stat and speed mixed. His Bulky EV spread lets him survive a few decent hits while still giving him the opportunity to Phaze and WoW.
Troublesome Pokemon
Stealth Rocks is VERY troublesome for Arcanine. On his main sets (Choice), SR extremely limits Arcanines effectivness. If he cannot switch in and out effectively, he has little use. Bulky Waters will knock Arcanine out of the water (intended). A single Super effective hit on Arcanine should do the trick, but don't be surprised if it doesn't - 80 defense and Sp defense isnt too shabby on an offensive pokemon. Heatran is a nice bet if Arcanine isn't holding HP Ground, as with most flash fire users. Also, prediction - a well predicted Earthquake will send Arcanine to his doom.
Written by c3gill