Moves
Sunsteel Strike is Solgaleo's most powerful STAB move, allowing it to dish out heavy damage to common Fairy-type Pokemon such as Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy.
Flare Blitz is used to damage Steel-types that resist Solgaleo's STAB combination. Most notably, Flare Blitz OHKOes Ferrothorn and Mega Lucario and 2HKOes Necrozma-DM and Magearna.
Earthquake is Solgaleo's most effective way of dishing out damage to Primal Groudon and Mega Gengar, which is otherwise able to trap Solgaleo and remove it from the field. It also helps punish Steel-types without having the drawbacks of recoil damage.
Stone Edge allows Solgaleo deal with Ho-Oh, even having a 25% chance to OHKO defensive sets. It also pairs well with Earthquake.
Alternatively, Wild Charge allows Solgaleo to dish out heavy damage to Primal Kyogre while still hitting Ho-Oh for supereffective damage.
Toxic hits a lot of neutral targets and is Solgaleo's most reliable means of punishing support Arceus formes, which can otherwise be problematic.
Set Details
Choice Scarf Solgaleo is best run with a standard offensive EV spread with maximum Attack and Speed.
A Jolly nature is used to take advantage of Solgaleo's decent Speed tier, allowing it to outpace Modest Choice Scarf Yveltal and Xerneas.
Usage Tips
Solgaleo tends to be used best as a revenge killer and an offensive check to Xerneas. Make sure to keep it healthy until Xerneas has been removed from the field, as it can take up to 90% from a +2 Focus Blast. Therefore, it is best used late-game, as it's only really useful for revenge killing Xerneas and Psychic Terrain cores.
If you're facing less offensive teams that aren't using Xerneas, Solgaleo can be used as a decent answer to Arceus-Fairy, Magearna, and Mega Diancie. It can also be used to scout for Toxic.
While it's primarily a revenge killer, it's important to consider what moves you lock Solgaleo into, as Solgaleo can end up becoming setup fodder for Pokemon such as Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre or utterly walled by foes such as Ho-Oh if it's locked into the wrong move.
Team Options
Primal Groudon makes a useful partner for Solgaleo, as Solgaleo's presence allows Primal Groudon to run more offensive sets. It also deals with common Pokemon that threaten Solgaleo such as Mega Gengar, and its immunity to burns and Thunder Wave combined with Solgaleo's immunity to poison means that they can both help prevent each other from being crippled by status. Solgaleo also appreciates the offensive pressure that Primal Groudon generates, especially against threatening foes such as support Arceus formes, opposing Primal Groudon, Mega Gengar, and Yveltal.
Yveltal is a nice partner for Solgaleo, as it is able to threaten Mega Gengar and Marshadow. It provides the team with a Ground immunity, which Solgaleo greatly appreciates, and in return, it appreciates Solgaleo's ability to threaten Fairy-types such as Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy, which otherwise wall Yveltal.
Both Swords Dance and support Arceus-Ground sets make for brilliant partners for Solgaleo, as they're both able to threaten Primal Groudon and Mega Gengar. Swords Dance sets are also especially useful for threatening Ho-Oh, and support sets are useful to deal with Zygarde-C, which otherwise walls Solgaleo and can use it as setup fodder, cripple it with Glare, or dish out heavy damage with Thousand Arrows. Support sets can also remove entry hazards for Solgaleo, preventing it from potentially being worn down and losing its ability to check Xerneas.
Marshadow deals with many of the Pokemon that threaten Solgaleo, such as Mega Gengar and Arceus-Dark. It also provides the team with some priority, allowing it to easily revenge kill.
Xerneas is a great partner for Solgaleo, as it threatens the common Dark-type Pokemon that Solgaleo dislikes such as Yveltal and Arceus-Dark. It also appreciates Solgaleo's ability to deal with Magearna.
Ho-Oh makes for a useful partner for Solgaleo, as it resists the Fire- and Ground-type attacks that threaten Solgaleo.
Mega Salamence and Rayquaza are also useful partners for Solgaleo, since they provide teams with key Fire-type resistances and Ground immunities. Both of them also appreciate Solgaleo's ability to check Xerneas, making it easier for Mega Salamence and Rayquaza to sweep.
Primal Kyogre is a nice partner for Solgaleo, as it's able to threaten the Fire- and Ground-type Pokemon that threaten Solgaleo, such as Primal Groudon, Ho-Oh, and Arceus-Ground.
