Duraludon usages

[Noteworthy-Anarchy]

Hey trainers!! Note here. I couldn’t find a gen 8 part of the competitive thread so if someone has a better idea on where i could have tossed this please direct me there for next time hahaha!
So i’m currently looking on how i can use a Duraludon on my current main team. I’m not super competitive but winning is always nice. I found a few ways to use the big guy for my team but want to use just one! So any input is welcome! As i am just trying as i go.

Physical use:
(STALWART) (G-max)
Moves:
Iron head
Swords dance
Breaking swipe
Body press
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This set i rely on boosting before G-maxing for the extra bulk and then raining haymakers onto unsuspecting teams that wouldn’t expect to see a physical Duraludon. Due to his attack being slightly below average. He also has a WAAAY more diverse physical move pool that will allow him to cover down on at least one of his two weaknesses.
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Special use:
(Stalwart) (G-Max)
Thunder wave
stealth rock
flash cannon
dragon pulse
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This set i can use to establish entry hazards and slow down threats to allow the rest of my team the time to clean them up.
I can also make use of a Gigantamax to chip away at the PP gauge of pokemon they have because of his Gmax dragon move. And his special attack is a base 120 which is neat. Problem with this is that he has absolutely no coverage here. Which sucks!! Maybe the new DLC will correct this.
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The final question I pose to you guys is would it be worth just running a non G-max shiny Duraludon because i like his shiny form and its also relatively tank-y and i can use him in either of these ways and just not Gigantamax him into Trump Towers!?

I look forward to your input!
Note.

 

[Divine Retribution]

Brick Break is only 5 BP less than Body Press and is actually boosted by Swords Dance (plus if you're dumping EVs into HP and Attack, your Attack will naturally be higher than your Defense anyways. Max Attack Adamant Duraludon hits 317 attack, while its uninvested Defense only hits 266). I'm not sure I'd advocate for using Swords Dance Duraludon (or Duraludon in general) but if you were going to, you might as well use Brick Break over Body Press. I'd also probably go with Dragon Claw over Breaking Swipe unless this is for Doubles or something (and even for Doubles a SD Duraludon probably isn't going to accomplish much anyways).

As for the special set I'd definitely use Draco Meteor over Dragon Pulse, he needs all the firepower he can get to net KOs. It also means a slightly stronger G-Max Depletion. There's an argument for Thunderbolt > Thunder Wave to hit the likes of Corviknight, Toxapex, and Mandibuzz harder, but Thunder Wave isn't bad itself for crippling faster switchins.

 

[Noteworthy-Anarchy]

Brick Break is only 5 BP less than Body Press and is actually boosted by Swords Dance (plus if you're dumping EVs into HP and Attack, your Attack will naturally be higher than your Defense anyways. Max Attack Adamant Duraludon hits 317 attack, while its uninvested Defense only hits 266). I'm not sure I'd advocate for using Swords Dance Duraludon (or Duraludon in general) but if you were going to, you might as well use Brick Break over Body Press. I'd also probably go with Dragon Claw over Breaking Swipe unless this is for Doubles or something (and even for Doubles a SD Duraludon probably isn't going to accomplish much anyways).

As for the special set I'd definitely use Draco Meteor over Dragon Pulse, he needs all the firepower he can get to net KOs. It also means a slightly stronger G-Max Depletion. There's an argument for Thunderbolt > Thunder Wave to hit the likes of Corviknight, Toxapex, and Mandibuzz harder, but Thunder Wave isn't bad itself for crippling faster switchins.

thanks for the feedback friend!
I could see why you’d advocate away from swords dance! As he will tank a hit for sure, however he probably isn’t going to survive more than a 2HKO from super effective hits. So a part of me is thinking that maybe the special use might yeild better results.

 

[Ophie]

The big thing about Duraludon you have to remember is that the big guy's got very low Special Defense. This means you'll be using Duraludon drastically differently depending on if you're putting one into a single battle team or a double battle team. Either way, if you're playing in a mode with Team Preview (and if it's via Pokémon Sword & Shield rather than the simulators, you will), you will need to have Pokémon with high Special Defense to help back Duraludon up. Otherwise, you'll attract special attackers from savvy opponents. Most Ground and Fighting attacks will be physical, but there's the occasional special one like Earth Power or Focus Blast that can really ruin Dualudon's day. Using Duraludon effectively relies on your knowledge of which Pokémon is likely to carry those moves. Lucario is one, for instance. If you see a lot of special attackers on the opponent's team, you should avoid selecting Duraludon for battle unless you have no other options.

Since you've chosen Stalwart as your Ability, I'm guessing you're going for double battling, since that Ability doesn't have much use in single battling. Your opponents are most likely going to begin with one special attacker and one physical attacker, which would create bad situations for any Pokémon that has lopsided defenses unless they have a high Speed. Your best bet is to send in Duraludon as your third or fourth Pokémon, after you've KOed a special attacker or two on the opponent's side and they're forced to have no special attackers on the field. Entry hazards won't be as useful in double battles, since switching is not as common and, as you shouldn't be opening with Duraludon, your opponent may not have any Pokémon left to switch into by the time he shows up.

The other benefit to having Duraludon as one of your later Pokémon is that you'll have more control over which move's PP G-Max Depletion will, well, deplete, especially if Duraludon is faster than your target. It's only by 2, but if it's one of those low PP moves like Focus Blast, that can be a real killer. It's pretty situational though.