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Levitate
- This Pokémon is immune to Ground moves.
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Statistics
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
80
|
- |
301 |
364 |
- |
| Atk |
105
|
221 |
246 |
309 |
339 |
| Def |
105
|
221 |
246 |
309 |
339 |
| SpA |
105
|
221 |
246 |
309 |
339 |
| SpD |
105
|
221 |
246 |
309 |
339 |
| Spe |
80
|
176 |
196 |
259 |
284 |
It does not get any more obvious than this. The perennially popular permutation of Thunderbolt and Ice Beam has been, and will always be one of the most effective offensive combinations in the game. What sets Mesprit apart from other BoltBeamers is the fact that it has access to Calm Mind—a distinction it shares with very few others. Psychic is the clear choice to fill the fourth slot since it benefits from STAB and makes Heracross think twice about switching in. Mesprit's regrettably low speed will prevent it from sweeping entire teams with this set, but its solid defenses allow him to stay in and take a hit where other sweepers would have to flee. 180 EVs puts Mesprit's speed at 241 which outpaces all base 60 Pokémon and Jolly Rampardos.
This set functions much like the first one. Having Grass Knot revokes Tyranitar's free switch-in privileges and hits Rhyperior quite a bit harder than Ice Beam. There are Pokémon that use Choice Specs better than Mesprit, but it is quite a bit sturdier than most of them and can afford to switch in more often. It does not hit as hard with Choice Scarf, but it eliminates his speed issues and gives you the element of surprise. Electing to use Choice Scarf gives Mesprit a speed of 426—outpacing all unboosted Pokémon apart from Ninjask, Jolly Choice Scarf Heracross/Medicham, and all Choice Scarf Garchomp.
This Mesprit is a very effective counter for both Gyarados and Garchomp as well as the versatile Infernape (to an extent). As such, carrying it on your team allows greater freedom of choice regarding the other five Pokémon slots since it covers three potent threats by itself. The defensive spread allows it to come into any of the three without much concern and force them to switch. U-turn is useful for scouting out Pursuit users, and preventing Mesprit from meeting an untimely end. If you feel you have sufficient coverage for Infernape, you can forgo Psychic in favor of one of the support moves that you find most advantageous for your particular team.
Other Options
Other elemental moves of note include Energy Ball (which can be used in lieu of Grass Knot) and Shadow Ball (which is only useful for Dusknoir and Mismagius). In the support category, it has access to Stealth Rock (but there exist better users of that move), and Trick Room, both of which can be helpful for the rest of your team. Imprison is rarely useful considering the role Mespirit usually fills, but is still a notable move. It is also sturdy enough to pull off a Rest/Sleep Talk set if you are interested in using it in that manner. Reflect and Light Screen can add to Mesprit's defensive capabilities. Regrettably, Mesprit's physical movepool is quite shallow, preventing it from taking full advantage of its balanced stats.
The Calm Mind version can run Timid over Modest if you're desperate to outspeed Adamant Heracross and neutral base 90s.
EVs
The EVs of Pokémon with stats as balanced as Mesprit change drastically based on the moveset you elect. EVs should be concentrated into Special Attack and Speed with the leftovers in Hit Points for Calm Mind and choice item variants. Just how much is leftover for Hit Points depends on how fast you want your Mesprit to be. For a defensive Mesprit that is meant to guard against Gyarados and Garchomp, Hit Points and Defense are paramount with offense being secondary.
Opinion
The much maligned Mesprit deserves more credit than many people are willing to give. Excessive balance without variety of offense or diversity of support often dooms a Pokémon to the UU tier. Mesprit's saving grace is its ability to counter three of the biggest threats in the D/P metagame and its almost exclusive right to the potent Calm Mind / Thunderbolt / Ice Beam combination. It would be an all-star if its attack stat was switched with HP or Speed or if it learned Recover, but it functions quite well as a support Pokémon as is. Being slower than Heracross is annoying, but not a reason to bench Mesprit.
Counters
Tyranitar switches in for free and steam rolls Mesprit if you are not packing Grass Knot, and Blissey will Seismic Toss you into oblivion before you can boost your Special Attack high enough to dent it. Beware of Weavile and other users of Pursuit; Mesprit probably won't be OHKO'd like Azelf, but its defensive capabilities will be greatly diminished. Being Electric/Steel, Magnezone resists the BoltBeam combo, along with Psychic and Grass Knot. There is not much Mesprit can do to Bronzong either, unless you already have a few Calm Minds under your belt. Pokémon like Gallade that can switch in and status you should be avoided as well.