Baxcalibur functions as a niche wallbreaker and occasional sweeper for hyper offense teams. Glaive Rush and Icicle Spear are fantastic STAB moves that hit most of the tier for super effective or neutral damage.
Earthquake provides good coverage against common defensive Pokemon such as Toxapex and Skeledirge.
Baxcalibur competes heavily with Chien-Pao as an offensive Ice-type, as they fill a similar role on teams. The key difference is Baxcalibur's ability to boost its Speed. Another key difference is Baxcalibur's Dragon typing, which gives it weaknesses to common Dragon- and Fairy-type moves. This stacks weaknesses with Koraidon and Miraidon.
Tera Fairy provides Baxcalibur with a Dragon immunity to better deal with Koraidon and Miraidon, as well as a resistance to Fighting-type moves from Pokemon such as Koraidon and Great Tusk. It also ensures Kingambit and Chien-Pao cannot easily revenge kill Baxcalibur with Sucker Punch.
Tera Steel grants Baxcalibur important resistances to types like Dragon and Fairy, as well as a Toxic immunity, giving it setup potential against certain walls like Toxapex.
Grimmsnarl is a great partner: it provides dual screens support, easing Baxcalibur's setup and entry into the match. Another good partner is Hatterene or another form of hazard control, since denying Stealth Rock assists Baxcalibur in setting up.
Miraidon is a recommended teammate, as it can provide both sweeping potential and wallbreaking power and appreciates Baxcalibur breaking down Clodsire and Ting-Lu. Another recommended teammate is Koraidon, since it appreciates Baxcalibur removing walls like Toxapex and Skeledirge.
Baxcalibur is a powerful sweeper, especially with the support of Snow and Aurora Veil. Thermal Exchange makes Baxcalibur immune to being burned, taking what is normally a huge weakness for physical attackers off the table. Earthquake is valuable to cover Steel and Fire types that otherwise pose a fair bit of danger, such as Solgaleo and Kingambit. Alternatively, Ice Shard finishes off low health targets and surprises faster Pokémon, which is very beneficial due to Baxcalibur's relatively low Speed. Tera Ground powers up Earthquake as well as makes Baxcalibur immune to Thunder Wave and blocking Volt Switch, which is very useful. Alolan Ninetales is a fantastic teammate with its ability Snow Warning, as Snow and Aurora Veil increase Baxcalibur's bulk to very high levels. Other good teammates are ones that can cover problems Fighting, Steel, or Fairy types, so Zacian, Mewtwo, Chi-Yu, and Solgaleo are notably appreciated. Some Pokémon like Kingambit and Arceus-Poison that are vulnerable to Ground Type attacks appreciate having Baxcalibur around to snuff them out.
Dragon Dance Baxcalibur is an excellent setup sweeper and beneficiary of snow with its solid STAB combination, its high Attack, its powerful attacking moves, and Dragon Dance. Earthquake allows it to hit bulky Steel-type Pokemon like Magearna, Dialga, and Solgaleo, which would otherwise wall it. Tera Ground boosts Baxcalibur's Earthquake and gives it a Thunder Wave immunity, while Tera Fairy allows it to absorb Dragon-type moves and set up on Pokemon like Palkia-O, Dialga, and Giratina. Alolan Ninetales is one of the best teammates for Baxcalibur, as Aurora Veil and the Defense boost snow gives to Ice-types make it much easier for Baxcalibur to set up. Choice Scarf Chi-Yu and Choice Scarf Landorus are also good teammates for Baxcalibur, as they threaten Zamazenta-C and Magearna, which would otherwise beat it, and Landorus can pivot with U-turn. Magearna and Solgaleo can also be used as defensive teammates, as they have excellent synergy with Baxcalibur and can slowly pivot it in, positioning it to sweep.
With the given EV spread, Baxcalibur can outspeed -1 Landorus and survive Choice Band Wicked Blow from Urshifu-S, a Tera Stellar Sacred Sword from Chien-Pao, and a Dazzling Gleam from Choice Specs Flutter Mane.
Glaive Rush is Baxcalibur's best Dragon-type STAB because of its massive Base Power, with Protect offsetting the drawback. Ice Shard makes up for Baxcalibur's middling Speed tier and threatens Landorus. Icicle Crash is a good Ice-type STAB that has a chance to flinch the target. Swords Dance grants Baxcalibur a boosting move that makes it a more threatening Pokemon to the opposition.
Tera Poison grants Baxcalibur a to resistance Urshifu's Close Combat and Flutter Mane's Fairy-type moves while also being a great neutral type against the majority of the metagame.
Clear Amulet gives Baxcalibur an immunity to Intimidate from the likes of Incineroar and Hisuian-Arcanine. It also helps against Icy Wind from Flutter Mane and ElectroWeb from Assault Vest Raging Bolt.
Thermal Exchange prevents Baxcalibur from being burned by Wil-O-Wisp users like Incineroar in addition to deterring Ogerpon-H and Chi-Yu from using their Fire-type STAB moves.
Baxcalibur is a powerful attacker within the metagame, leveraging its immense Attack and powerful STAB moves to deal massive damage to foes, especially Rillaboom, Dragonite, and Ursaluna.
Scale Shot is integral to Baxcalibur's strength, as when paired with Loaded Dice, it's a consistent STAB move that OHKOes Sneasler through Focus Sash while letting Baxcalibur outspeed many common foes, including Whimsicott and Sneasler. Icicle Spear also exploits Loaded Dice to act as a powerful multi-hit STAB option that can hit the many common Grass-, Ground-, and Flying-types in the metagame, such as Amoonguss, Rillaboom, Garchomp, and Dragonite.
Ice Shard is a powerful priority option that can finish off low-HP foes, such as Sneasler and Pelipper after being brought down to Focus Sash. High Horsepower can be used to hit Steel-types such as Gholdengo and Kingambit while also super effectively hitting Incineroar.
Loaded Dice allows Baxcalibur's Scale Shot and Icicle Spear to be consistently powerful damage options while letting it KO Focus Sash users, such as Sneasler, Indeedee-M, and Tatsugiri.
Tera Ghost grants Baxcalibur an immunity to Fighting-type attacks, most notably Close Combat from Sneasler, and Fake Out from Incineroar and Rillaboom as well as Facade from Ursaluna.
The Speed investment allows you Baxcalibur to outspeed Adamant Dragonite, while maximum Attack investment is crucial for guaranteeing the OHKO on Sneasler with Scale Shot or Icicle Spear. The defensive investment allows it to survive Eruption from Modest Choice Specs Hisuian Typhlosion and a +2 Body Press from Archaludon.
Swords Dance Baxcalibur is built to withstand hits, set up, and sweep through teams using its STAB attacks. Clear Amulet ensures that its offensive presence isn't hindered by physical damage reduction like Incineroar's Intimidate and Parting Shot or Gouging Fire and Roaring Moon's Breaking Swipe.
Maximum HP investment allows Baxcalibur to almost always survive a Make It Rain from Gholdengo. In Aurora Veil, it lives Draco Meteor from Kyurem and almost always withstands two Drain Punches from Iron Hands.
Ice Shard gives this slower Baxcalibur a priority option to finish off weakened foes. It also synergizes well with Glaive Rush, as using Ice Shard immediately after removes the defensive drawback. Additionally, it lets Baxcalibur lock itself into an attack after setting up to avoid being punished by Encore users such as Alolan Ninetales.
Thermal Exchange is ideal for a physically-oriented setup Pokemon like Baxcalibur, preventing it from getting burned by moves like Incineroar's Will-O-Wisp. Thermal Exchange also deters Fire-type attacks such as Ogerpon-H's Ivy Cudgel. Ice Body is an alternative option to boost its longevity, but it should only be used alongside an ally Alolan Ninetales to ensure Snow is consistently set.
Tera Ghost gives Baxcalibur useful neutralities to Dragon- and Fairy-type moves, but more importantly, it grants an immunity to Fake Out, often letting it set up for an extra turn, as well as to Fighting-type attacks, which helps against threats like Iron Hands and Okidogi. Alternatively, Tera Electric offers neutralities to otherwise threatening Fighting-, Dragon-, and Fairy-type attacks while giving Baxcalibur a crucial resistance to Steel-type attacks, improving its matchup against Pokemon like Gholdengo and Iron Crown.
Swords Dance Baxcalibur aims to capitalize on openings created by teammates to set up and tear through teams at any stage of the game. After one Swords Dance, Baxcalibur has a high chance to OHKO uninvested Iron Hands with Glaive Rush and offensive Tornadus with Ice Shard.
Regardless of its ability choice, Baxcalibur greatly benefits from Alolan Ninetales's support. Snow Warning provides a Defense boost, and Aurora Veil makes it even harder to remove, giving Baxcalibur the time it needs to set up and sweep. Teammates with Fake Out and pivoting moves such as Incineroar and Rillaboom can cycle in and out to help Baxcalibur safely click Swords Dance without being threatened.
Because this set relies primarily on Glaive Rush, Baxcalibur appreciates teammates that can handle the common Steel- and Fairy-types, namely Gholdengo, Iron Crown, Alolan Ninetales, and Diancie. Landorus is one of the best partners for this, pressuring Steel-types with its Ground moves and Fairy-types with Sludge Bomb. Gholdengo also helps by threatening Fairy-types with Make It Rain while resisting both of Iron Crown's STAB moves and retaliating with Shadow Ball.
Ogerpon-H also threatens the aforementioned Steel-types with Ivy Cudgel while providing redirection with Follow Me, allowing Baxcalibur to safely set up.
Due to its middling Speed, Baxcalibur appreciates Tornadus as a partner to provide Tailwind and Icy Wind speed control, increasing its sweeping potential by allowing it to outspeed most of the metagame and fire off powerful Glaive Rushes.
With good bulk, an immunity to burn, and multiple ways to boost its Speed, Baxcalibur is a unique and dangerous sweeper.
Icicle Spear: Icicle Spear KOes Breloom and Mimikyu through Focus Sash and Disguise respectively, and it's also more reliable than Scale Shot.
Dragon Dance versus Swords Dance: Dragon Dance's Speed boost is generally more effective against offensive teams, but Swords Dance is still viable for breaking through more defensive foes like Corviknight due to Scale Shot still providing a Speed boost. Swords Dance also pairs nicely with Ice Shard for late-game sweeping.
Ice Shard: Ice Shard means Baxcalibur will have a difficult time breaking past bulky Steel-types early-game, but it makes Baxcalibur an effective cleaner otherwise, especially with Swords Dance.
Jolly versus Adamant: Jolly ensures that Baxcalibur outspeeds Dragapult after one Speed boost, but Adamant makes plenty of sense with Ice Shard or when using Dragon Dance with Scale Shot.
Other Options
Focus Sash: Focus Sash may seem like a waste with Baxcalibur's bulk, but it provides new setup opportunities and eases matchups against other Dragon-types, though Icicle Spear and Scale Shot become far less reliable.
Tera Types
Tera Dependency - Medium: Terastallization is required for Baxcalibur to cover the most amount of threats via Tera Blast and patches up its mediocre defensive typing, but Baxcalibur's bulk and tendency to force switches means it's still viable without Terastallizing.
Ground: Tera Ground makes Earthquake an especially reliable sweeping tool, removes most of Baxcalibur's weaknesses, and makes it immune to Thunder Wave from the likes of Archaludon.
Electric: Tera Electric lets Baxcalibur set up against Gholdengo and Scizor and, when paired with Tera Blast, is Baxcalibur's best way of wearing down Dondozo. The paralysis immunity also helps Baxcalibur set up against Serperior with less risk.
Fairy: Tera Fairy protects Baxcalibur from faster Dragon-types like Garchomp, and it lets Baxcalibur come out on top against Terastallized Scale Shot Dragonite.
Ghost: Tera Ghost provides even better protection against Fighting-type attacks than Tera Fairy and ensures that Dragonite doesn't revenge kill Baxcalibur with Extreme Speed.
Steel: With a Tera type of Steel, Baxcalibur has a much better matchup against Dragon-types and Mimikyu, and a handy resistance to Scizor's Bullet Punch.
Baxcalibur's fantastic bulk, immunity to burns, and access to a priority attack make it a strong option for an Assault Vest tank, despite its iffy defensive typing.
Icicle Spear: Icicle Spear is recommended despite its inconsistent damage, as it deals damage through Mimikyu's disguise and potentially KOes Focus Sash users like Breloom and Meowscarada. Just be careful about hitting Stamina Archaludon, who can threaten to gain multiple Defense boosts from it.
**Glaive Rush versus Scale Shot **: Glaive Rush makes Baxcalibur very vulnerable to getting KOed the next turn (especially by OHKO users like Fissure Dondozo), but it is still the least risky Dragon-type STAB move. Remember that Ice Shard will remove Glaive Rush's negative effects as well. Scale Shot's Defense drop may not seem like it gels well with this set's bulky focus, but the Speed boost can lead to some late-game clean-ups that would be impossible otherwise.
Other Options
Icicle Crash: Icicle Crash's chance of missing and being less effective against Dragonite's Multiscale and Mimikyu's Disguise usually makes it the inferior choice to Icicle Spear, but it doesn't risk activating Archaludon's Stamina multiple times, as well as potentially flipping matches by occasionally flinching slower foes like Ursaluna-B.
Tera Types
Tera Dependency - High: Baxcalibur is fully functional without Terastallization, but doing so makes it a far more effective tank due to its poor defensive typing.
Ground: A Ground Tera type gives Baxcalibur a reliable STAB move in Earthquake, resistance to Stealth Rock, and removes a ton of weaknesses, at the cost of becoming more vulnerable to Primarina, Basculegion, and Rotom-W.
Electric: With Tera Electric, Baxcalibur's Tera Blast deals massive damage to Corviknight that lack a set up move, and helps break through Primarina. Tera Electric also makes Baxcalibur a great Gholdengo check thanks to resisting Steel.
Fairy: Tera Fairy helps Baxcalibur against opposing Terastallizations from Dragon-types like Garchomp and Hydreigon, though being weak to Steel is a big problem.
EV Spreads
252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Spe with Adamant: This simple EV spread maximizes Baxcalibur's bulk and power.
252 HP / 204 Atk / 52 Spe with Adamant: If using Scale Shot, this Speed investment outspeeds Garchomp, who will often Terastallize in front of Baxcalibur.
116 HP / 156 Atk / 236 Spe with Adamant: The Speed investment here outspeeds Modest Gholdengo and Adamant Dragonite at the cost of some bulk, in addition to outspeeding Meowscarada after Scale Shot.
