Poison/Dragon Type

Poison/Dragon is a rare pairing whose value comes from how its two halves cover one another. Poison removes Dragon’s Fairy weakness by resisting Fairy, so Fairy attacks become neutral rather than super effective. Dragon, meanwhile, resists Fire, Water, Electric, and Grass, while Poison adds resistances to Fighting, Poison, Bug, Grass, and Fairy. Grass is resisted twice and deals only ¼ damage. The resulting weaknesses are Ground, Psychic, Ice, and Dragon, all at 2×. That profile gives the typing several useful entry points but no immunity, so it still takes chip damage and strong neutral hits. Eternatus, Dragalge, and Naganadel illustrate very different uses of the same pair; their stats, abilities, legal formats, and moves are more decisive than the shared chart alone.

Offensive plan

Dragon STAB is resisted by Steel and stopped entirely by Fairy, while Poison STAB hits Fairy super effectively and also pressures Grass. This makes Poison a natural partner for Dragon offense: a Fairy cannot assume that switching into a Dragon move makes the whole attacker harmless. Steel remains the most important structural answer because it resists Dragon and is immune to Poison. A Poison/Dragon attacker therefore often needs Ground, Fire, Fighting, or another coverage option—or a teammate that can exploit Steel-types. Dragon attacks otherwise offer broad neutral reach, and Poison can spread status or threaten chip even when immediate damage is not the plan. Before selecting both STAB moves, consider the role: a bulky utility set may gain more from recovery, hazards, phazing, or status, while a fast sweeper needs enough coverage to stop Steel from ending its progress.

Counterplay and defensive risks

Ground, Psychic, Ice, and Dragon are the chart-based answers. Ground is often the cleanest option because it hits Poison super effectively, but Levitate, an Air Balloon, defensive Terastallization, or a partner’s immunity can punish a predictable Earthquake. Psychic attackers must respect fast Dragon pressure and Dark-type teammates. Ice coverage is widely distributed and useful, although it only deals 2× here rather than the 4× damage seen against several other Dragon combinations. Using another Dragon is inherently risky because both sides may threaten super-effective damage, making Speed and priority important. If direct coverage is unavailable, force progress with hazards, Knock Off, status, and strong neutral attacks. The typing has useful resistances, but without an immunity it cannot repeatedly enter for free when recovery is limited.

Team-building advice

Cover Ground, Psychic, Ice, and Dragon with a defensive core rather than expecting one partner to answer all four. Flying-types and Levitate users can discourage Ground attacks; Steel-types resist Ice, Psychic, and Dragon; Dark-types are immune to Psychic. Those options have their own overlaps, so check that adding a Steel partner does not leave the entire team vulnerable to Ground. Poison/Dragon repays support by absorbing Grass especially well and by resisting Fire, Water, Electric, Fighting, Poison, Bug, and Fairy attacks. Offensive versions appreciate a teammate that pressures Steel, while defensive versions benefit from recovery support and hazard removal. Run the full roster through the Team Calculator and inspect not only weakness counts but also which member can safely switch into the relevant attacker more than once.

Read the best Pokémon type combinations guide for a side-by-side defensive comparison.

Frequently asked questions