252 Atk Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 4 HP / 52 Def Ogerpon-Wellspring: 164-194 (105.1 - 124.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Gale Wings Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 180 HP / 0 Def Whimsicott: 170-204 (107.5 - 129.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Sharp Beak Gale Wings Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 244 HP / 4 Def Rillaboom: 194-230 (94.1 - 111.6%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Sharp Beak Gale Wings Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 108 HP / 4 Def Urshifu-Rapid-Strike: 180-212 (95.2 - 112.1%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Sharp Beak Gale Wings Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 244 HP / 4 Def Annihilape: 216-254 (100 - 117.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Great Tusk: 224-266 (60.3 - 71.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Great Tusk: 228-270 (52.5 - 62.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Just to give an idea of how suffocating priority Brave Bird is, it all but denies Flying weak Pokémon as options as it is not expected to have a priority move as strong as Brave Bird. Add into this priority Roost to keep Talonflame healthy so you can't rely on recoil to knock itself out and Talonflame's absurd speed denying most forms of opposing priority to begin with and Gale Wings Talonflame begins warping the game around itself. This is not even getting into other options like priority Tailwind or Feather Dance, or even being able to spam Acrobatics or Dual Wingbeat without worrying the opponent turning Talonflame's priority off. Talonflame can also address its power with Swords Dance, becoming a late game sweeper just on the power of priority Brave Bird. Talonflame was so centralizing I remember on the POTW for Magcargo on this forum we had someone arguing that Magcargo was good because it walled Talonflame. While that was incorrect for several reasons (though not for walling Talonflame), the fact it was even brought up at all is just how overwhelming Talonflame was.
To put in perspective, let's compare Galewings Brave Bird with another problematic priority user; Grassy Glide Rillaboom;
252+ Atk Rillaboom Grassy Glide (Base 70) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Avalugg in Grassy Terrain: 75-88 (19 - 22.3%)
252+ Atk Gale Wings Talonflame Brave Bird vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Avalugg: 73-87 (18.5 - 22%)
252+ Atk Rillaboom Grassy Glide (Base 55) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Avalugg in Grassy Terrain: 58-70 (14.7 - 17.7%)
As you can see, Talonflame's Brave Bird is just under pre nerf Rillaboom's Grassy Glide, and Flying is a fantastic offensive typing unlike the many types that resist Grass, meaning a far greater number of targets are threatened by Brave Bird. In fact looking at Flying's resists, Electric, Rock and Steel, further paints how overwhelming Talonflame is. Electric types are generally frail and take considerable damage regardless of resistances, Rock types outside of Tyranitar are rare (due to Rock being a bad typing) and Steel types get melted by Talonflame's Fire STAB, and Talonflame easily outspeeds every Steel type.
In fact, Gale Wings is so strong that Talonflame actually sees consistent usage in Reg H VGC post Gale Wings nerf. Priority Tailwind is that valuable. It is the fastest priority Tailwind setter around meaning opposing Prankster Taunt users like Whimsicott cannot stop Talonflame from setting up Tailwind, making it extremely consistent at this one task. Add in a speedy non-Prankster Taunt for shutting down other support users, a swift Will-O-Wisp to cripple physical Attackers, and just the strength of Brave Bird and Flare Blitz, and Talonflame is a niche, but consistent threat.
Blazing Speed
Talonflame
-Tailwind
-Will-O-Wisp
-Brave Bird
-Flare Blitz
Ability: Gale Wings
Item Attached: Covert Cloak
EVs and Nature:
4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
Tera Type: Ghost/Grass
Talonflame has made a name for itself in Regulation H as one of the most consistent Tailwind setters around. With Gale Wings, Talonflame boasts the fastest priority Tailwind in Regulation H, outspeeding even Prankster Whimsicott. This is important as it allows Talonflame to setup Tailwind without having to worry about a pre-emptive Taunt. Add in a Covert Cloak to deny the Flinch from Fake Out and it is very difficult to stop the Tailwind setup without specific combinations of Pokémon. Will-O-Wisp is another consistent move on Talonflame and its utility is amazing, crippling physical attackers before they can even move and making them that much less dangerous. Brave Bird and Flare Blitz are so that Talonflame isn't entirely passive. While it is rare that Talonflame will be using Gale Wings Brave Bird, it is still an excellent clean up tool in the right scenarios and is great in crippling key threats such as Scarf Final Gambit Annihilape. Flare Blitz handles Steel and Tera Steel types that resist Brave Bird, especially Gholdengo.
Covert Cloak is key for this set in preventing Fake Out from setting up Tailwind at low opportunity cost. With that in mind, Tera Ghost seems redundant, but Tera Ghost is still important for a few reasons. One of the few ways to stop Tailwind is with faster priority to break Gale Wings plus a faster Taunt user. However, all of the faster priority moves (Fake Out, Upper Hand, Feint and Extreme Speed) can be nullified by Tera Ghost. If unconcerned about that specific combination, Tera Grass is another good option, granting Talonflame invaluable Water and Electric resistances while preventing its attacks from being redirected with Rage Powder. Max Speed is so that Talonflame guarantees it outspeeds as much as possible and Max Attack is so that it is less passive.
Preferred Partners:
Talonflame is a key partner to offensive teams that love rolling the opponent over in a wave of offense. Gholdengo is a key beneficiary given its middling speed becomes terrifying with Tailwind allowing it to bring its full offense to bear. Speaking of bears, Max Speed Ursaluna-Bloodmoon is another notable Tailwind recipient that loves Talonflame's positive matchup into opposing Grass types while bringing truly absurd offense to the table.
As antisynergistic as it appears, Talonflame also makes a good partner for Sand teams. Despite Tyranitar's Sandstream breaking Gale Wings after the first turn, that first turn is all Talonflame needs to setup Tailwind. Tyranitar and Garchomp become absolute nightmares under Tailwind, now able to reliably outspeed and ravage foes with Rock Slide or freely spam Earthquake without fear of harming Talonflame. In turn, Talonflame is a great answer into the Grass types that trouble such teams.
Other Options:
As with any fast Pokémon, Taunt is a great option invaluable in shutting down all sorts of support and disruption, especially Trick Room.
Quick Guard is a rare move that Talonflame gets that is great for one free turn of no worries about Fake Out or any other priority.
Dual-Wingbeat is an alternative Flying STAB option that doesn't break Gale Wings, though the power drop is noticeable.
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