5 best Legendaries legal for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet PvP battles

Many Legendaries tend to be great in PvP battles, and Pokemon Scarlet and Violet have several worth noting. It's a common misconception that anything Legendary is broken, yet the entries below will be dedicated to the best options currently allowed. Thus, it's easy to see why such stereotypes continue since some of the best metagame staples tend to be these Pokemon.

For all intents and purposes, most Paradox Pokemon do not count as Legendaries. Similarly, Mythicals are a separate category altogether. There are still several worthy candidates to discuss in the following list regarding viable PvP options in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.

Note: This article is specifically about the Regulation D ruleset for Season 8. Several Legendaries are still banned and are illegible for this list.

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Five amazing Legendaries to use in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's Regulation D battles

1) Urshifu

Urshifu is very good in the current VGC meta (Image via Game Freak)

Many Legendaries have multiple forms in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. Urshifu can either come in the Single Strike or Rapid Strike Style. Both are good, but the Rapid Strike Style variant is currently more dominant in the meta. This Fighting/Water-type has exclusive access to the Surging Strikes move.

This Water attack always crits and hits up to three times. Focus Sash and Study won't stop it from defeating a foe in one move. Likewise, Urshifu's Unseen Fist Ability helps it go through Protect or Detect, two common moves in Double Battles.

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2) Chien-Pao

Chien-Pao is the only Legendary on this list that is catchable in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet (Image via Game Freak)

All of the Treasures of Ruin are pretty good in their own right, but Chieno-Pao currently stands as the most viable. An Ice-Type with high Attack and Speed is incredibly dangerous, especially with an Ability as devastatingly powerful as Sword of Ruin. That Ability basically decreases all foes' Defense by 25% unless they also have Sword of Ruin.

Anything weak to Ice or Dark moves will crumble against Chien-Pao. Sacred Sword also helps it get past any sneaky Steel-types trying to wall it. Anything slower than Chien-Pao is bound to take a lot of damage.

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3) Cresselia

Cresselia is better suited for Double Battles than Singles (Image via Game Freak)

Cresselia is incredibly bulky with Base 120 HP, 110 Defense, and 120 Sp. Def. The bad Psychic typing is manageable thanks to Terastallization, as players could change its type to something better like Fairy, Electric, or Steel. Levitate helps it be immune to Ground attacks, which is nice since the latter two types are weak to Ground.

There are two fantastic moves to highlight with Cresselia: Lunar Blessing and Trick Room. Lunar Blessing makes Cresselia faint in exchange for fully healing an ally and removing their status conditions. Trick Room makes all Pokemon swap turn order in Scarlet and Violet (ignoring Priority moves or certain exploits).

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4) Tornadus (Incarnate)

Some Legendaries are better suited for Double Battles (Image via Game Freak)

The next two Legendaries both have alternate forms in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. Tornadus's Incarnate form grants it Prankster, which complements Tailwind as that attack gets +1 Priority. A +1 Tailwind is incredibly valuable in Double Battles, making Tornadus one of the best options in the current PvP metagame.

Note that Tornadus's niche is much smaller in Single Battles in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. A +1 Tailwind there isn't as valuable when two of the four turns are used to set it up and swap out.

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5) Landorus (Therian)

He used to dominate OU metagames in past generations (Image via Game Freak)

Something amazing in both Single and Double Battles is Landorus's Therian form. A Base 145 Attack coupled with solid stats elsewhere and Intimidate will always be useful. Ground/Flying is also a fantastic type, which results in Landorus' Therian form being as good as it is.

Landorus is splashable and works with a variety of items. Having him on a team is a good way to combine several roles, further allowing more diverse team building in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.