What it does
Stomping Tantrum is a Ground-type physical move with base 75 power. It doubles to 150 if the user's immediately preceding move failed — meaning it ended with the 'But it failed!' message, or the move had no effect due to type immunity.
What counts as 'failed':
- The target used Protect, Detect, or Wide Guard, blocking the attack entirely
- The move hit a type that's immune to it (Ground into a Flying-type, for instance — the 'no effect' result still triggers the doubling)
- A protective ability blocked the move (e.g., Bulletproof negating a ball move)
- The move missed outright (from an Evasion raise or Accuracy drop)
One important clarification: the power doubling tracks the user's own action outcome, not the result on a specific target. If your move affected one target successfully and got blocked by a second, the failed interaction against the blocked target still triggers Stomping Tantrum's doubling on the next use.
Who runs it
Garchomp (47%) carries Stomping Tantrum as its primary Ground STAB in Champions, and the reason comes directly from doubles mechanics. Earthquake is Garchomp's most powerful Ground option, but in doubles it hits both opponents and also damages the user's own partner. Stomping Tantrum is single-target Ground — it applies damage selectively, no partner risk. On turns where Garchomp's partner would take Earthquake damage, Stomping Tantrum at base 75 becomes the correct call. And when the doubling triggers, 150 power on a single target is equivalent to a full-power Earthquake against that one Pokémon — without the collateral.
Dragonite (5%) runs Stomping Tantrum occasionally but rarely as a staple. Dragonite's Ground coverage is more situational; Stomping Tantrum shows up in specific team compositions where Ground utility is needed but Earthquake partner damage is problematic.
How to use it
The core pattern: predict the Protect, fire a move into it, confirm the failure, then fire Stomping Tantrum the next turn at double power.
In doubles, Protect is one of the most common turn-to-turn responses to obvious offensive pressure. When you read that the opponent is likely to Protect a specific slot, use Earthquake into that slot. If Earthquake is blocked, your action failed — Stomping Tantrum is now doubled. The efficiency here is real: the Earthquake you sent into the Protect isn't wasted on the protected side, but if the other opponent didn't Protect, Earthquake still hit them. One move punished the non-Protect side and set up the Tantrum payoff on the other.
Alternatively, you can directly use Stomping Tantrum into a Protect to trigger its own doubling for the following turn. This means your current turn has zero offensive output, which is only acceptable when you're highly confident the Protect is happening and have no better option that turn.
For type immunity coverage: Ground moves don't affect Flying-types or Levitate holders. When your Ground move has 'no effect' on those targets, Stomping Tantrum doubles next turn — and you can aim it at a non-immune target. The immunity interaction functions as a free Tantrum charge against Flying-type and Levitate teams that would otherwise demand a different move entirely.
Tips & strategy
The power doubling is one-shot: it applies to the next Stomping Tantrum use only. If you break the sequence — use a different move after the failure — the doubling disappears permanently for that window. Remembering to use Stomping Tantrum specifically on the turn after your move was blocked is basic but genuinely gets forgotten under game pressure. Keep the trigger visible in your decision-making.
Wide Guard from the opponent blocks spread moves like Earthquake, which means Wide Guard also sets up free Stomping Tantrum charges every time it activates. If the opponent is consistently using Wide Guard to answer your Earthquake, their own defensive play is handing you 150-power Ground attacks.
Stomping Tantrum's single-target nature is the fundamental difference from Earthquake. When your partner is Ground-type, has a Ground weakness, or is positioned where Earthquake hits them, Stomping Tantrum is the only safe Ground-type option regardless of power. At base 75 it's already solid neutral coverage; doubled at 150 it becomes a serious threat. Never fire Earthquake into your own partner when Stomping Tantrum exists.
Reading Protect timing accurately is the technical center of Stomping Tantrum play. The players who extract the most value from this move are the ones who've internalized when opponents are likely to Protect — based on remaining resources, momentum, and read on their opponent's tendencies. That calibration comes from experience, not theory.