Meganium is a quite a good supporting member in the UU environment. Energy Ball provides a more reliable STAB move than Grass Knot in UU because the bulky waters (mainly Pokemon like Quagsire and Gastrodon) are generally lighter there. Aromatherapy is always good to have, especially on a bulky Pokemon like Meganium. Light Screen and Reflect can basically go either way, depending on whether your team is more vulnerable to physical or special attacks. In normal play, Synthesis wouldn't be a real option for healing, but the lack of Sand Streamers and the increased prevalence of Sunny Day makes it a completely viable UU option. This is a physically defensive Meganium and, while Special Defense is an option since Meganium's defensive stats are the same, Hypno and Grumpig are generally better in that regard.
Though Meganium is normally viewed as a defensive Pokemon it can still make a formidable sweeper with access to Swords Dance, a 200 base power Normal move, and Overgrow. Meganium should come in on something that it can force a switch on and begin the Substitute and Swords Dance cycle. Eventually, it should Substitute down to activate the Salac berry and Overgrow and from there can proceed to sweep with boosted Seed Bombs and Flail. Surprisingly, Grass and Normal gives remarkably good coverage in the UU environment; being resisted only by Drifblim, Shedinja, Mawile, and the seldom seen Wormadam. At first glance, this set may seem to be an inferior Flail Leafeon given Leafeon's higher Speed and Attack. However, Meganium has one significant advantage over Leafeon and that is its Ability Overgrow, which boosts the power of Grass moves 50% when at one-third HP or less. With an Overgrow boost, Meganium's Swords Danced Seed Bombs with hit harder then Leafeon's Swords Danced Leaf Blades. The EVs are rather obvious for a sweeper of this style. Adamant and maximum Speed places Meganium at 259 Speed, enough to outrun even maximum Speed Swellow after a Salac boost. Other OptionsCounter is always an interesting choice but Meganium has a hard time fitting it into his moveset. GrassWhistle can provide additional support and give Meganium an extra turn of Leech Seed or a chance to use Synthesis. You can use Hidden Power if you want to get some additional type coverage so that you're not completely walled by other Grass-types. Hidden Power Rock hits Fire, Ice, Bug and Flying-types, 4 of Meganium's weaknesses; however Hidden Power Ice deals better with Altaria and fellow UU Grass-types. Earthquake is a strong move, but splitting Meganium's offense isn't generally the best. EVsHigh HP and Defense are standard on the Support set. Investing in Special Defense is probably not a good idea, since Meganium can already use Light Screen to boost its Special Defense and its typing better suits that of a physical wall. You can take a few slices off Defense if you want some Speed to go before something specific, or move a few attacking EVs into HP or Defense to allow for a more defensive EV spread. For the offensive Flail set you are just going to want to run maximum Attack and Speed to give Meganium its best hope at sweeping. OpinionMeganium is a good team supporter in UU because of its nice defenses and movepool. Aromatherapy is a good move to have on any team, especially one that fears status, and Meganium is no slouch at using it. Indeed, it is one of the best clerics in UU. However, its offensive capabilities should not be overlooked. With access to Swords Dance it can also make a formidable sweeper and can often take an opponent off guard. CountersCountering the Support set is rather simple due to Meganium's poor offensive prowess. Pokemon that resist Grass or have high Special Defense like Hypno and Grumpig have no problems with Support Meganium. A strong Ice-type like Glaceon should be able to do some heavy damage, but slower and weaker ones might have problems under sunny conditions since Meganium is fairly fast and can use Synthesis. Countering the Swords Dance set is a bit more challenging since Meganium gets great coverage with Seed Bomb and Flail. Drifblim resists Seed Bomb and is immune to Flail so it can easily take on Swords Dance Meganium. Shedinja is immune to both attacking moves and so if Stealth Rock or other entry hazards aren't in play he is the ideal counter. Steelix can easily take a Swords Danced Seed Bomb and Roar Meganium out. |
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