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-
Sturdy
- OHKO moves will fail.
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Magnet Pull
- Prevents Steel-type Pokémon from switching. Increases the chance of encountering a Steel-type Pokémon in the wild.
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Level 100 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
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Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
50
|
- |
241 |
304 |
- |
| Atk |
60
|
140 |
156 |
219 |
240 |
| Def |
95
|
203 |
226 |
289 |
317 |
| SpA |
120
|
248 |
276 |
339 |
372 |
| SpD |
70
|
158 |
176 |
239 |
262 |
| Spe |
70
|
158 |
176 |
239 |
262 |
Overview
Because UU does not have the plethora of Steel-types that are found in OU, Magneton has a tough time proving its worth. But due to the prevalence of Registeel and Steelix in the UU environment, Magneton can fill a niche on teams that utilize hard-hitting Normal-, Dragon-, or Flying-type Pokemon by removing those Steel-type Pokemon from play with its ability, Magnet Pull. With a superb Special Attack stat, Magneton can also take the offensive by either boosting its Special Attack with Charge Beam or lowering the opponent's stats and forcing switches with Metal Sound. Magneton also has decent defenses as well as resistances to Dragon, Steel, Bug, Normal, Flying, Rock, Electric, and Ice, allowing it to form sturdy Substitutes and switch in against a wide variety of attacks.
Like its OU brethren, Magnezone, Magneton's utility lies in its ability to trap and knock out Steel-types. Substitute blocks all forms of status while scouting the opponent's actions. Magneton's Substitutes are not broken by Registeel's Iron Head or Ice Punch or Steelix's Gyro Ball, Stone Edge, or Crunch; however, an Earthquake from either Registeel or Steelix will break the Substitute, due to Magneton's 4x weakness to Ground. With Magnet Rise, Magneton is able to hover safely above the range of normally fatal Ground-type attacks. Magnet Rise should be Magneton's first priority against Steelix in order to prevent Earthquake. At worst, Magneton will be Roared away. For this reason, it is a good idea to save Magneton until Steelix is in range to be KOed by Hidden Power Fire. It should also be mentioned that Substitute is Magneton's first priority when up against Registeel.
Hidden Power Fire is used over Hidden Power Ice or Hidden Power Grass for its ability to successfully hit Steelix, one of the main targets of this set. Hidden Power Fighting or Hidden Power Ground could be used in place of Hidden Power Fire due to their ability to deal greater damage to Probopass and Bastiodon, while still hitting Steelix for super effective damage; but due to the type coverage that Hidden Power Fire offers when paired with Thunderbolt (compared to that offered by Hidden Power Fighting or Ground), it is considered the superior choice. Thunderbolt efficiently KOes Probopass and Bastiodon, so the power loss when using Hidden Power Fire is not a big issue. Hidden Power Ice is not listed as an option on this set due to the fact that there are no commonly used Dragon-types in UU that do not take neutral damage from Thunderbolt. Altaria is 2HKOed by Thunderbolt after Stealth Rock damage and UU Grass-types are hit equally hard by Hidden Power Fire as they would be by Hidden Power Ice (with the sole exception of Torterra).
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Leftovers is the optimal item choice due to its ability to restore HP, allowing Magneton to recover some of the damage sacrificed to create a Substitute. One issue that Magneton faces when switching in against Registeel is the possibility of Thunder Wave, a scenario that frequently presents itself when Magneton attempts to trap a Registeel that switched into a Mismagius or Venusaur. Lum Berry allows Magneton to shed its paralysis status, giving it the opportunity to set up a Substitute before any further status attempts can be launched. Lum Berry also gives Magneton the same opportunity against slower status-inducing foes such as defensive Venusaur with Sleep Powder.
148 Speed EVs give Magneton a Speed stat of 212, allowing it to outspeed max Speed Adamant Torterra (a spread normally used by the popular Rock Polish Torterra variant). Magneton can then Magnet Rise before Torterra has the opportunity to Earthquake, meaning Torterra can only damage Magneton with resisted attacks: Stone Edge and Wood Hammer. After maximizing Magneton's Special Attack stat, the remaining EVs are dumped into HP in order to buff Magneton's durability.
Magneton's main role is removing Steel-types so that other Pokemon, such as Flying- or Normal-types, have the opportunity to sweep. Mismagius pairs excellently with Magneton due to its immunity to Fighting- and Ground-type attacks; in turn, Magneton traps and removes Registeel. Hard-hitting Normal-type Pokemon, such as Ambipom and Tauros, also enjoy having Steelix and Registeel removed from play. Dragon Dance Altaria is a lesser seen Pokemon who benefits greatly after Magneton has done its job, allowing it to Outrage without the fear of retribution from Steelix or Registeel. In general, offensive Flying-type Pokemon pair nicely with Magneton due to the coverage of weaknesses and the increased possibility of an offensive sweep that Steel-type removal offers. Mismagius also benefits greatly from the removal of Registeel, one of its most sure-fire counters. Once Registeel is out of commission, Mismagius has a relatively easy time of setting up and sweeping the opposing team.
Defensive Water-type Pokemon with decent HP and defenses, namely Milotic and Slowbro, do an excellent job of absorbing the various Fire-type attacks thrown at Magneton. Because both Pokemon have access to instant recovery, they can also take a few Ground- or Fighting-type attacks (Slowbro is especially well-equipped for the second) while recovering from the damage. Because Magneton lacks recovery, Gardevoir can be used to provide Wish support and take weaker Fighting-type attacks. But due to its low HP and Defense, the latter is not recommended. Other Wish options include Clefable and Chansey, but they both share a dangerous Fighting weakness with Magneton, diminishing the chances of successfully switching Magneton in to receive the Wish.
Unlike the Steel Trapper set, this set focuses Magneton's often overlooked base 120 Special Attack (the highest of any UU Electric-type). Offensive sets such as this should normally be left to faster, more immediately threatening special sweepers, such as Rotom and Manectric, but Magneton, due to its good defenses and numerous resistances, is able to set up much sturdier Substitutes than the two aforementioned Pokemon. Sturdier Substitutes mean that Magneton can set up against a wider variety of foes, such as Registeel (that lack Earthquake), Spiritomb, and Choice Scarf Venusaur locked into Energy Ball or Sludge Bomb. None of these Pokemon are able to break Magneton's Substitutes with attacks they commonly carry, allowing it to safely boost its stats without fear of immediate offensive assault.
With Charge Beam, Magneton keeps its boosts until switching out or being phazed, so it retains more of an offensive presence. Charge Beam also has the benefit of doing damage to the opponent and benefiting from STAB. Metal Sound on the other hand has the ability to force switches, thus dealing Spikes and Stealth Rock damage to the opponent. Due to the somewhat defensive nature of Metal Sound, it is recommend that Magneton be used alongside residual damage support. Flash Cannon can be used in the last slot in order to hit Rock-types much harder, however it does not add much coverage-wise.
As is the case with most Electric-type Pokemon, the choice of Hidden Power is a difficult one. Hidden Power Grass is the best choice due to its ability to hit Ground-types, especially Quagsire and Gastrodon, for super effective damage. Hidden Power Ice also performs similarly, but the main target of Hidden Power Ice is Altaria, which is easily taken care of with a boosted Thunderbolt. Another benefit of Hidden Power Ice is the ability to hit Grass-types, which resists both Thunderbolt and Hidden Power Grass, for super effective damage. The combination of Electric and Ice is only resisted by Lanturn, Shedinja, and other Magneton in the UU environment. Hidden Power Fire helps against Steelix and other Magneton while still hitting Grass-types for super effective damage.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
160 Speed EVs gives Magneton enough Speed to outrun Jolly Aggron. Max Special Attack is a given on such an offensive set. The remaining EVs are placed into HP. Life Orb can be used in place of Leftovers if power is preferred over durability, but Life Orb and Substitute recoil will catch up to Magneton before it is able to do sufficient damage to the opponent's team. If Magneton is using Life Orb, it would be a good idea to forgo the use of Substitute for Explosion and use a Naive nature. The HP EVs would also need to be placed into Attack. With Explosion, Magneton is able to take out some of its counters at the expense of KOing itself. However, this could open the way for a sweep by another Pokemon such as Mismagius.
If one of Magneton's teammates is able to Trick a choice item onto the opposing Steel-type, it will make it much easier for Magneton to switch in and set up for the kill. Locking Steelix or Registeel into Stealth Rock will completely incapacitate them once Magneton is brought into play.
Like most special-based Pokemon in UU, Magneton has trouble taking on Chansey. For that reason, Magneton should be paired with a Pokemon that can take it out, such as Hariyama, Torterra, or strong Pursuit users. Rest + Sleep Talk Hariyama is the best choice for the job due to the fact that it does not particularly care about status. It can simply Rest away any attempts by Chansey to Toxic or Thunder Wave it. Hariyama also resists both Flamethrower and Ice Beam due to its ability, Thick Fat. With gargantuan HP, Hariyama also doesn't mind Seismic Toss. Hariyama can then retaliate with STAB Fighting-type attacks to scare away Chansey. Torterra is able to switch in against Seismic Toss and Thunder Wave and threaten Chansey with STAB Earthquake. Yache Berry Torterra stands the best chance against Chansey (no pun intended), due to the possibility of Ice Beam. Strong Pursuit users, such as Drapion, Absol, and Scyther can also weaken Chansey to the point that Magneton would be able to finish it off later.
Magneton also has issues against Claydol and Camerupt, however rare the latter may be in UU. Like with Chansey, Magneton can be paired with strong Pursuit users in order to remove Claydol from play. However, the better option may be to pair Magneton with a bulky Water-type, such as Slowbro, Milotic, or Azumarill. All three of these Pokemon can withstand any of the attacks that Claydol and Camerupt can launch (except possibly Explosion), and launch super effective Water attacks of their own. Azumarill is particularly a good choice due to its access to Encore, which would allow Magneton to more easily set up against the opponent.
Mismagius pairs well offensively with Magneton due to its ability to dispose of the threats listed above, namely Chansey and Claydol, and the fact that it covers Magneton's weaknesses. After Mismagius has weakened the opponent's special walls, Magneton can more easily sweep.
Although the Electric-type Choice set is better left to faster options such as Manectric and Electabuzz, Magneton performs decently in this department due to its access to Explosion. With Explosion, Magneton can suddenly OHKO its main counter, Chansey; something that Manectric has no hope of doing. With 56 Attack EVs, Magneton always OHKOes 252 Def Calm Chansey with Explosion as long as it has taken Stealth Rock damage.
Magneton has much less utility in the UU environment than does Magnezone in the OU environment. However, it can still perform adequately by KOing hard-hitting Flying-types. With Choice Scarf, Magneton outspeeds standard Dragon Dance Altaria after a single Dragon Dance and can switch in against Outrage or Dragon Claw with impunity. Magneton can then OHKO Altaria with Hidden Power Ice, assuming it has taken prior damage from Stealth Rock. Magneton also does a fantastic job of countering Swellow. If Magneton switches in against Facade or Protect, Swellow will normally stay in hoping to U-turn out, but Magneton will outspeed and OHKO with Thunderbolt before Swellow has the chance.
As previously mentioned, Magneton can use Hidden Power Ice to KO Altaria, making it the best bet for a Hidden Power. Hidden Power Grass can be used to severely dent Gastrodon and KO Quagsire. Hidden Power Fire can finish off weakened Steelix; however, outside of that, it has little utility. Flash Cannon has decent neutral-type coverage and should be used when Magneton predicts a Grass-type or Ground-type (not Gastrodon or Quagsire!) will switch in to absorb Thunderbolt.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
56 Attack EVs allow Magneton to OHKO Calm 252 Def Chansey with Explosion, assuming it has taken prior damage from Stealth Rock. 228 Spe EVs, a positive nature, and Choice Scarf give Magneton a Speed stat of 384, allowing it to outspeed +1 Altaria as well as Swellow. Of course, Special Attack is maximized.
Due to the fact that Magneton will be locked into an attack after KOing the foe, it is a good idea to pair Magneton with a somewhat defensive Pokemon who can absorb attacks from the Grass-, Ground-, and Electric-type Pokemon who will switch in against it. Shaymin is the best candidate with its 100 / 100 / 100 defenses and resistances to the aforementioned types. Shaymin can also recover away any damage with Leech Seed or Synthesis. Shaymin easily tackles opponents such as Quagsire and Gastrodon that give Magneton trouble. Like the other sets, Water-types, such as Milotic, Slowbro, and Azumarill, pair well with Magneton due to their ability to take hits and remove opposing Ground-types.
Swellow and Dragon Dance Altaria create great synergy with Magneton by covering each others' weaknesses. Swellow and Altaria also do a fantastic job of knocking out the special walls that stand in Magneton's way, such as Chansey and Hypno.
With the abundance of bulky Water-types and other Electric-weak Pokemon in the UU tier, Electric is one of the best STABs to have. Magneton boasts the highest Special Attack stat out of all the Electric-types available in UU, and this set takes full advantage of that by utilizing Choice Specs. With the boost from Choice Specs, Magneton reaches a monstrous 556 Special Attack (factoring in the imperfect IVs from Hidden Power), which allows it to leave gaping holes in the opponent's team. While Magneton's defenses are nothing to write home about and its Speed is subpar, it can still switch in multiple times during a match to dish out hefty blows by relying on its 13 resistances. Thunderbolt is Magneton's main STAB attack and will badly hurt any Pokemon that does not resist it. Flash Cannon is Magneton's secondary STAB move and hurts most Pokemon that resist or are immune to Thunderbolt. While Hidden Power Grass has better coverage alongside Magneton's STAB attacks, Hidden Power Water is preferred since it allows Magneton to take full advantage of its ability, Magnet Pull, by allowing it to severely dent Steelix. However, Hidden Power Grass is still a great option if one is wary about trapping Steelix, as it OHKOes Quagsire and Gastrodon while 2HKOing Lanturn. Explosion rounds out the set by giving Magneton a means to OHKO Chansey after Stealth Rock damage. If one doesn't like blowing Magneton up, Signal Beam can be used over Explosion in order to hit Grass-types like Tangrowth and Leafeon for super effective damage.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Below are some calculations to show how powerful Magneton's attacks are against some common threats.
- Thunderbolt vs 252 HP / 252 SpD Careful Registeel: 35.71% - 42.31%
- Thunderbolt vs 4 HP / 0 SpD Venusaur: 39.74% - 47.02%
- Thunderbolt vs 252 HP / 252 SpD Calm Clefable: 47.21% - 55.58%
- Thunderbolt vs 252 HP / 216 SpD Careful Altaria: 48.59% - 57.63%
- Flash Cannon vs 4 HP / 0 SpD Venusaur: 67.55% - 79.47%
- Flash Cannon vs 252 HP / 252 SpD Careful Torterra - 41.12% - 48.73%
- Hidden Power Water vs 252 HP / 252 SpD Sassy Steelix: 63.28% - 74.58%
- Hidden Power Grass vs 40 HP / 252 SpD Careful Lanturn: 50.87% - 59.85%
- Explosion vs 4 HP / 252 Def Chansey: 93.46% - 100%
The given EVs allow Magneton to outspeed, trap, and OHKO Jolly Aggron. Max Special Attack and a Rash nature allow Magneton to hit as hard as possible, and the remaining EVs go into Attack to power up Explosion. Should one pick Signal Beam instead of Explosion in the last slot, a Modest nature is preferred and the Attack EVs should be distributed into HP so Magneton's average bulk is not compromised. Thunder is another daring option over Explosion. While the 70% accuracy is a huge turnoff, its power allows Magneton to 2HKO Registeel with a layer of Spikes most of the time, while utterly maiming almost all switch-ins. If one is using Magneton on a Rain Dance team, Thunder becomes much more appealing, due to its perfect accuracy in rain, and could even be used over Thunderbolt.
It should be noted that while it may be extremely tempting to bring Magneton out and start spamming Thunderbolt from the get-go, one must avoid this temptation, because although Thunderbolt is a fantastic STAB move, it does have its disadvantages. Dangerous Ground-types such as Rhyperior, Torterra, and especially Dugtrio are all itching to switch into Thunderbolt, and can use the free turn Thunderbolt gives them to set up, or, in Dugtrio's case, completely remove Magneton from the field. Due to this, it is usually better for Magneton to start off by scouting with either Flash Cannon or Hidden Power to catch Ground-types or Electric-resistant Pokemon first, only using Thunderbolt later in the match after the opponent's team has been properly scouted.
Chansey can switch into any attack Magneton can dish out apart from Explosion and heal itself with Wish or Softboiled. Due to this, strong Fighting-type teammates such as Hitmonlee and Hariyama are recommended, since they can easily scare off Chansey. Dugtrio can also be employed to trap and take out Chansey without too much trouble. Specially Defensive Torterra, when at full health, is also a good check to Magneton, as it is immune to Thunderbolt, isn't 2HKOed by Flash Cannon, and can OHKO back with Earthquake. Swords Dance Leafeon is a good partner to Magneton due to this reason, as it is able to set up on Torterra and proceed to sweep. In exchange, Magneton can trap and severely weaken Registeel beyond repair for Leafeon. After two Thunderbolts, Registeel will be too weak to stand up to Swords Dance Leafeon's assaults. Nasty Plot Mismagius is another Pokemon that can take advantage of a weakened Registeel. Magneton can also weaken Steelix with Hidden Power Water, so Pokemon that can sweep when Steelix is weakened are also good partners for Magneton. With Steelix gone, Swords Dance Scyther, Swellow, Choice Band Kangaskhan and other physical Normal- and Flying-types can sweep teams with a lot less effort. Altaria is possibly Magneton's best teammate, synergizing extremely well with it; in fact, the pair resists every type in the game. With opposing Steel-types weakened or removed, Altaria can fearlessly devastate an opposing team with its Dragon Dance-boosted Outrages. Magneton also easily scares away Milotic (although do not switch into any of Milotic's STAB attacks, as they will greatly damage Magneton), which is helpful because Milotic can severely damage Altaria with Ice Beam or remove its boosts with Haze. Other UU Dragon-types such as Shelgon and Dragonair achieve similar results.
Other Options
Discharge is another option for an Electric attack that has the added bonus of paralyzing the opponent 30% of the time, as opposed to Thunderbolt's 10%, at the cost of 15 Base Power. Reflect and Light Screen bolster Magneton's decent defenses, allowing it to take many more attacks, while also supporting the entire team. Signal Beam can be used to hit Grass-types and Psychic-types for slightly more damage than Thunderbolt, but it does not have enough utility to take up an entire moveslot. Toxic could pair well with Substitute to cripple some of the special walls, such as Hypno, that do not have Natural Cure or a status recovery move.
Checks and Counters
Chansey is the best counter to any Magneton set that does not have Explosion due to its sky-high Special Defense and HP and access to Softboiled or Wish. Claydol does a good job against sets lacking Magnet Rise and takes little damage from Magneton's super effective Hidden Powers. Camerupt is immune to Thunderbolt, resists Flash Cannon and Hidden Power Fire, and takes neutral damage from Hidden Power Ice and Hidden Power Grass. It can also get around Magnet Rise by hitting Magneton with STAB Fire-type attacks. However, due to Camerupt's low defenses and HP, it must focus heavily on HP and Special Defense.
Bulky Grass-types with access to recovery such as Shaymin, Venusaur, and Meganium do a great job against Magneton due to their resistance to Thunderbolt. None of these Pokemon take excessive damage from super effective Hidden Powers due to their good Special Defense stats. Shaymin and Venusaur can KO Magneton with Earth Power and Earthquake respectively. Although Earthquake is rare on Meganium sets, it has that option and can also set up Light Screen to lessen the impact of Magneton's attacks even further.
Gastrodon and Quagsire perform exceptionally well against Magneton due to their immunity to Thunderbolt, resistance to Flash Cannon and Hidden Power Fire, and neutrality to Hidden Power Ice. However, they must be wary of any Magneton carrying Hidden Power Grass. Both can hit Magneton with STAB Ground-type attacks or break its Substitutes with Water-type attacks if it has used Magnet Rise. They can then heal off any damage taken with Recover.
Gardevoir can Trace Magneton's Magnet Pull and weather a few of Magneton's attacks due to its high Special Defense and access to Wish. Gardevoir can then dispose of Magneton with Focus Blast. Hard-hitting Fighting-types with good Special Defense, such as Hitmontop and Hitmonlee, can absorb one or two Thunderbolts and threaten Magneton with Close Combat or Mach Punch.
