[Overview]
<p>With Hitmontop already sealed as the definitive Fighting-type of the VGC metagame, one might wonder why they would want to use Hitmonlee. However, Hitmonlee has his perks that set him apart from Hitmontop. With a great 120 Base Attack stat, fantastic Close Combat STAB, and access to Fake Out, easily one of the best supporting moves of the metagame, the only thing that seemed to stop Hitmonlee was his average speed. However, Hitmonlee was blessed with Unburden this generation, forming a strategy that can cause Hitmonlee to hit very hard and very, very fast.</p>
[SET]
name: Unburden
move 1: Fake Out
move 2: Close Combat
move 3: Rock Slide / Earthquake
move 4: Protect
item: Normal Gem
ability: Unburden
nature: Adamant
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is meant to emphasize the new tool Hitmonlee added to his repertoire: Unburden. Fake Out boosted by the Normal Gem activates Unburden, doubling Hitmonlee's unimpressive Speed, suddenly making him able to outspeed nearly all of the metagame. Although Hi-Jump Kick is Hitmonlee's best STAB normally, it cannot be abused heavilly in the VGC metagame due to the abundance of Protect, so Close Combat is the safer, and more reliable, option. Hitmonlee should have either Rock Slide or Earthquake based on the strengths and coverage of the rest of the team: Rock Slide hits common Flying-type Pokemon such as Zapdos and Thundurus for super-effective damage and has a good chance of a flinch, while Earthquake hits Heatran and Chandelure for major damage. Protect allows Hitmonlee to live a few more turns and allows its partner to take care of a potential threat.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>252 EVs are put in both Attack and Speed, Hitmonlee's best quality, and the remaining 4 are put in HP. An Adamant nature is run, because after Unburden, Hitmonlee will outspeed most of the metagame anyways.</p>
<p>Any Pokemon that can deal with Hitmonlee's main threats such as Weavile, Zapdos, and Rotom-W pair up great with him. Thundurus, Tornadus, and other Prankster Pokemon can Taunt the opponent, preventing the setup of Trick Room or Tailwind. Any Pokemon with Intimidate such as Gyarados and Krookodile, allow Hitmonlee to live more physical moves, considering his Defense stat is abysmal. Sableye is another fantatic partner, being able to severely cripple the opponent with Will-o-Wisp, increasing Hitmonlee's survivability.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Fighting Gem is an interesting option to activate Unburden instead of a Normal Gem, but usually the latter is more reliable as it activates quicker. Blaze Kick is a good physical Fire-type move that can effectively deal with Amoonguss, but it has shoddy accuracy, and most Steel-types take more damage from Close Combat anyways. Stone Edge is a very powerful option to run, but like Blaze Kick, it's risky to use due to the move's 80 accuracy. Mach Punch is a good priority move to run, but again, it lacks the power of STAB Close Combat. Wide Guard can be used over Protect to block Hitmonlee and his ally from the common Heat Wave, Earthquake, and Rock Slide. Feint is an interesting move that bypasses Protect/Detect and can activate Hitmonlee's Normal Gem, and can also check FEAR Pokemon such as Aron and Solosis, but it does require a bit of prediction to be used properly, as Fake Out is the faster and more instantaneous option. Due to the pure speed Unburden allows, Hitmonlee can effectively set up Rain Dance or Sunny Day, giving Swift Swim and Chlorophyll a nice boost in speed, respectively, and can save Politoed and Ninetales for later. Hitmonlee can also support his ally with Helping Hand, though this role is better delegated to a support Pokemon such as Cresselia. An alternate EV spread of 244 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Spd gives Hitmonlee some extra survivability, and still allows him to outspeed a majority of the metagame after the Unburden boost, but it makes him somewhat even more reliant on said ability to do much. Outside of Unburden, both Limber and Reckless are solid ability options, as Unburden Hitmonlee is incompatible with moves such as Sucker Punch. Limber protects Hitmonlee from the common Thunder Wave, and Reckless boosts Hi-Jump Kick to a ridiculous 156 Base Power STAB attack and will boost Double-Edge to amazing power, giving Hitmonlee nice coverage; but again, Hi-Jump Kick requires a lot of prediction due to the abundance of Pokemon with Protect. Still, Hitmonlee appreciates the speed boost given by Unburden the most.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Cresselia, Musharna, Reuniclus, and other Psychic-types like them are the best counters to Hitmonlee: they take extremely minimum damage from Close Combat and aren't even phased by his others moves, and are able to set up Trick Room to turn Hitmonlee's blessing of speed into a major curse. Yanmega can also easily outspeed Hitmonlee after one or two Speed Boost and hit with a super-effective STAB Air Slash. If an opponent such as Weavile or Infernape gets Fake Out on Hitmonlee before he can use his own Fake Out, or if the opponent simply double-Protects the first turn, Hitmonlee cannot get the Unburden boost. Although both said strategies will not shut down Hitmonlee entirely, they make him more easily manageable. Intimidate supporters such as Hitmontop and Gyarados lower Hitmonlee's Attack, pinning him against a wall as to whether he should switch out or keep on fighting. Gliscor and Landorus will take next to nothing from Hitmonlee's attacks, and Ghost-types, bar Chandelure, resist both Fake Out and Close Combat, screwing Hitmonlee's strategy, and won't take much from Rock Slide and Earthquake. Although this strategy is rarely seen, using Roar, Dragon Tail, and any force-switch move, or pulling a Red Card on Hitmonlee after he has consumed his Normal Gem screws him over, seeing as how when he enters battle again, the Unburden boost will be gone. Hitmonlee will still be faster than most Pokemon, and still has utility in Fake Out, but the drop in speed will really hurt it.</p>
