|
-
Keen Eye
- Pokémon's accuracy cannot be lowered.
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Iron Fist
- Increases the power of punching moves.
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Statistics
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
50
|
- |
241 |
304 |
- |
| Atk |
105
|
221 |
246 |
309 |
339 |
| Def |
79
|
174 |
194 |
257 |
282 |
| SpA |
35
|
95 |
106 |
169 |
185 |
| SpD |
110
|
230 |
256 |
319 |
350 |
| Spe |
76
|
169 |
188 |
251 |
276 |
This is Hitmonchan's best chance at doing some damage in OU battles, and even then it gets outclassed by Medicham, Gallade and many others. Still, if you're a big Hitmonchan fan, having him outrun and kill a Swords Dance Garchomp or Dragon Dance Gyarados will surely bring a smile to your face.
With Choice Scarf, Hitmonchan will outrun everything in the base 120 Speed group, and most Gyarados after a Dragon Dance. Mach Punch might seem unnecessary with Choice Scarf, but Weavile is still faster, so it doesn't hurt to have something to take him out in one hit before he gets to attack. Fire Punch is mostly for Heracross, although it gives you some more power against Forretress and Scizor too.
Focus Punch is immensely powerful, but requires perfect prediction to use effectively, so the more reliable option of Close Combat is also a good choice. Ice Punch and ThunderPunch have more merit in OU, where reliable tools for slaying Dragons and Gyarados are always welcome. However, in UU you may prefer to go with Stone Edge and Earthquake. Stone Edge gives you coverage against all the Flying-types in UU battles, while Earthquake takes out Nidoking, Nidoqueen and Toxicroak, who all resist the Fighting/Rock combination.
Hitmonchan's best chance at a sweep in UU. Predict attacks early on, then Agility late in the game and finish off your opponents. Like the Choice Band set, you have the choice of Ground/Rock or Electric/Ice for type coverage.
Use Substitute on a switch to ease prediction, but this comes at the cost of a fourth attack. Ice Punch has the best coverage as a lone secondary attack, but Stone Edge actually hurts Froslass. Mach Punch can finish off some faster opponents if they managed to barely survive a Focus Punch.
Other Options
Sky Uppercut gets a boost from Iron Fist, but Close Combat is still a more powerful option. Drain Punch remains too weak, even with Iron Fist. Bullet Punch gets a mention mainly for Froslass. It can Rapid Spin in a pinch, but Hitmontop fills the utility role better. Pursuit can wear down a switching opponent, but is difficult to find a moveslot for.
EVs
Always max Attack and use a minimum of 241 Speed to outrun all base 60 Speed Pokemon, then dump the remainder in HP. Jolly nature, with max Speed will let 'Chan get the drop on neutral natured Toxicroak, Nidoking and max Speed Absol. Agility sets only require a few Speed EVs. 84 EVs is enough to outrun max Speed Electrode after an Agility.
Opinion
With Iron Fist, Hitmonchan finally has something unique and useful to offer. Focus Punch is suddenly 180 power, before STAB, and Mach Punch a respectable 48. Do not expect to see it in standard play, but used well, it can be decent in the UU environment. If you want to use Hitmonchan differently from the strategies outlined above, you are better off with Hitmonlee, Hitmontop or Primeape.
Counters
Hitmonchan has a hard time switching in, but once it does, you will be pushed to find anything in UU that enjoys taking an Iron Fist Focus Punch. Toxicroak and Muk work ok if Hitmonchan doesn't have Earthquake. Nidoking and Nidoqueen both work well thanks to their Fighting and Rock resists and immunity to Electric, but beware of Earthquake and Ice Punch. Ghosts are always handy to have around too. Besides the obvious Fighting immunity, Froslass resists Ice Punch, Rotom can handle Earthquake and Thunderpunch, Shedinja takes everything but Stone Edge and Fire Punch.