[OVERVIEW]
Mega Salamence is one of the best Mega Evolutions of the format and should therefore be a top consideration when picking your team. Access to Intimidate before Mega Evolving helps provide excellent support, especially for partners like Amoonguss and Sylveon. Further, its great defensive stats and resistances to common types such as Fire, Water, and Grass make it easy for Salamence to switch in and out to activate it. Sets utilizing Draco Meteor tend to take advantage of this even more, as the Special Attack drops encourage switches. Aerilate and access to moves such as Double-Edge and Hyper Voice allow Mega Salamence to deal massive damage. Flying also has very good neutral coverage, so Mega Salamence can easily get away with running mono-Flying-type attacks. High Attack and Special Attack, and the movepool to support both, allow it to function with a variety of sets. The ability to go mixed is a big advantage Mega Salamence has over other Mega Evolutions. This can also make Mega Salamence difficult to deal with, as the opponent must guess the set in order to handle it appropriately. A high base Speed allows it to outpace the majority of the metagame, even ordinarily very fast foes such as Gengar and Terrakion. It is, however, vulnerable to all forms of speed control. A 4x weakness to Ice often leaves it threatened, as, despite Ice-types being uncommon, it's a common typing for coverage. When Intimidate support is unneeded, Mega Salamence can often face too much competition as a Mega Evolution to be optimal. For example, Mega Kangaskhan has a stronger Double-Edge, and Mega Gardevoir has a more powerful Hyper Voice.
[SET]
name: Mixed
move 1: Double-Edge
move 2: Hyper Voice
move 3: Draco Meteor / Fire Blast
move 4: Protect
item: Salamencite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Naive
evs: 44 Atk / 212 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Double-Edge, boosted by Aerilate, is one of Mega Salamence's strongest attacks, but it comes at the cost of inflicting recoil damage. Double-Edge notably provides an option for when Mega Salamence's Special Attack has been lowered by the use of Draco Meteor. Hyper Voice, which also gets the boost from Aerilate, deals spread damage backed by Mega Salamence's Special Attack. It makes for a good option when Mega Salamence's Attack has been lowered by a foe's Intimidate. Draco Meteor provides a finisher for dealing with opposing Dragons or picking up KOs on foes with low Special Defense. It also provides a means to hit Electric-types such as Thundurus and Rotom-A at least neutrally. A Fire-type attack such as Fire Blast or Flamethrower can be used in place of Draco Meteor if needed, as it's important to have at least one Fire-type attack on your team in order to deal with Ferrothorn. In a similar vein, Earthquake can be used over Hyper Voice or Draco Meteor if you need a way to hit Heatran super effectively. Protect allows Salamence to defend itself for a turn, allowing its partner time to eliminate a foe or switch, or gain the Speed increase from Mega Evolving safely.
Set Details
========
Intimidate is the far better ability compared to the alternative, Moxie, as it provides support by lowering the foe's Attack. A Naive nature and 252 Speed EVs are used to outspeed as many foes as possible, notably opposing Mega Salamence, Terrakion, and Gengar. A Hasty nature is not used, as it takes less advantage of Intimidate and Mega Salamence's Special Defense is not so much of a factor in surviving attacks. 44 Attack EVs are used to allow Mega Salamence to OHKO 252 HP / 4 Def Mega Gardevoir with Double-Edge. The 212 Special Attack EVs are mostly leftover, but they importantly make Hyper Voice a 2HKO against 4 HP Landorus-T the majority of the time. You may opt to change the number of Attack EVs used to suit your needs, such as dropping to 20 Attack EVs to OHKO maximum Defense Amoonguss. If Earthquake is chosen, an EV spread of 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe is recommended to OHKO uninvested Heatran.
Usage Tips
========
This set aims to deal as much damage as possible with Double-Edge and Draco Meteor to pick up quick KOs. Generally, you'll want to use Hyper Voice until a foe is put into KO range of either Double-Edge or Draco Meteor. Try to bring Salamence in during the early-game or as a lead, as this allows it to take better advantage of Intimidate. An exception is if a Defiant or Competitive user is seen at Team Preview, when caution should be given to doing so. Don't always Mega Evolve if you plan to simply use Protect, as Intimidate can be good to preserve for later on in the battle. Be aware of Mega Salamence's higher Speed compared to its base forme on the you choose to Mega Evolve it; utilize Protect to gain this safely where necessary. Don't be too afraid of Draco Meteor's Special Attack drops, as Mega Salamence can just switch to using Double-Edge afterwards. Be cautious of Double-Edge's recoil, and use another move if you think it'll put Mega Salamence into KO range of a foe's move.
Team Options
========
Teammates that are able to beat users of Ice-type moves such as Water-types and Cresselia are valuable. Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus can accomplish the former with their STAB Thunderbolt. Grass-types such as Amoonguss, Ludicolo, and Serperior also beat Water-types and are able to beat Rock-types as well. Amoonguss, as a Poison-type, further provides resistances to Fairy, which Mega Salamence is weak to. The Grass / Fighting types Virizion and Breloom can also handily beat Water-types as well as Steel-types such as Bisharp. Dark-types such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Weavile deal excellently with Cresselia, being immune to Psychic. Bisharp and Milotic can also dissuade opposing Intimidate users with Defiant and Competitive. Tyranitar is notable as well, since it pairs well with Mega Salamence on a sand archetype with partners like Landorus. Allies capable of dealing with Fairy-types are great, as Fairy-types can very often OHKO Mega Salamence. Steel-types such as Aegislash, Excadrill, and Ferrothorn can beat Fairies and also help beat Rock-types. Aegislash can also use Wide Guard to defend Mega Salamence against spread moves like Icy Wind and Rock Slide.
Fairies of your own such as Azumarill and Sylveon can switch into Dragon-type moves and OHKO Dragons back. Sylveon and Assault Vest Azumarill specifically also appreciate Intimidate to patch up their weaker Defense stat. Steel-types wall both of Mega Salamence's STAB moves, so teammates that can beat them are useful. Ground-types such as Excadrill, Swampert, and Gastrodon can do this as well as beat Rock-types. Swampert, like Aegislash, can also use Wide Guard to defend Mega Salamence against spread moves. Fire-types such as Talonflame, Arcanine, and Heatran beat Steel-types and provide a resistance to Fairy. Greninja can beat a variety of threats such as opposing Dragons with Ice Beam and Fairies with Gunk Shot. Politoed enjoys Mega Salamence's presence on rain teams, as Mega Salamence can beat Grass-types for them. In return, Politoed's Water-type moves help deal with Heatran and Rock-type attackers such as Tyranitar and Terrakion. Rain teams often also struggle with balancing physical and special attackers, which Double-Edge helps with.
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Return / Double-Edge
move 3: Earthquake / Roost
move 4: Protect
item: Salamencite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Dragon Dance is the biggest reason to use a physically based Mega Salamence, boosting Attack and Speed by one stage. Return is Mega Salamence's best option for an Aerilate-boosted attack without any drawbacks. Double-Edge is an alternative if you need an increase in damage output at the cost of recoil damage, notably guaranteeing an immediate OHKO against Sylveon. Earthquake helps to deal with the Steel-, Rock-, and Electric-types that wall Mega Salamence's Flying-type STAB move. Heatran is a prime example of this, as it ordinarily takes little damage from Mega Salamence's STAB moves, but is very threatened by Earthquake. It also gives Mega Salamence a spread move to better sweep through teams with, which this set would otherwise lack. If you prefer Mega Salamence be able to stick around for extended periods, Roost can accomplish this by healing it for half of its health. It also briefly removes Mega Salamence's Flying typing, which can be notable for surviving super effective attacks like Stone Edge. Roost is particularly attractive if Salamence is using a bulkier EV spread, as that would take better advantage of it. Protect shields Salamence for a turn, allowing a partner to potentially KO a threat or switch to improve positioning. Since regular Salamence is slower than Mega Salamence, Protect can also be used to speed up in safety. Further, since Mega Salamence can be a big threat to the opponent's team after setting up, Protect is useful for punishing attacks that are more likely to be aimed at it.
Set Details
========
Intimidate is Salamence's better ability, as dropping the foe's Attack stat helps it set up with Dragon Dance. An Adamant nature and 252 Attack EVs are used to improve Mega Salamence's damage output as much as possible. A Jolly nature can be used instead if you'd prefer to outspeed foes such as Terrakion and Gengar before a Dragon Dance. The remaining 252 EVs are placed in Speed to allow Mega Salamence to outpace the greatest number of foes. Bulkier spreads such as 84 HP / 132 Atk / 4 Def / 148 SpD / 140 Spe are viable to improve Mega Salamence's bulk. They allow Return to OHKO 252 HP / 4 Def Mega Gardevoir nearly all the time, make Terrakion's Rock Slide a 3HKO and neutral-natured Politoed's Ice Beam a 2HKO, and let Mega Salamence outspeed Jolly Landorus-T. Bulkier spreads with a Jolly nature are a possibility as well, such as 52 HP / 172 Atk / 4 Def / 84 SpD / 196 Spe. These outrun Mega Lucario, make Terrakion's Rock Slide a 3HKO and Suicune's Ice Beam a 2HKO, and OHKO the majority of Suicune with a +1 Helping Hand-boosted Return. Don't use either of these spreads with Double-Edge, however, as the recoil damage will mean Mega Salamence won't survive those attacks anyway.
Usage Tips
========
This set aims to set up a Dragon Dance before sweeping through the opponent's team with powerful attacks. While most setup sweepers prefer being brought out in the late-game, Salamence is an exception due to Intimidate. Be wary of Defiant and Competitive users should you choose to lead with Salamence, though. Try to keep Mega Salamence defended by a redirector for as long as it's on the field so that it can continue setting up and sweeping safely. You may not want to Mega Evolve immediately if you're using Protect in order to preserve Intimidate for later in the battle. Be aware of Salamence's lower base Speed in comparison to Mega Salamence's on the turn you Mega Evolve it to avoid being caught off guard. Dragon Dance, while generally good, is especially nice when used on a predicted Protect, switch, or weak attack from a foe. If Double-Edge is chosen, be careful that the recoil damage it inflicts doesn't put Mega Salamence into a foe's KO range.
Team Options
========
Follow Me or Rage Powder support is very valuable for helping Mega Salamence set up, as it can defend it against damage and crippling status. Follow Me Clefable and Clefairy, being Fairy-types, are generally the best candidates for this, being immune to Dragon-type attacks. Clefable has the advantage of not being forced into using Eviolite and can instead use items such as Sitrus Berry or Rocky Helmet, although Clefairy's Friend Guard is valuable to reduce the damage of spread attacks like Rock Slide. Both can also use Moonblast to KO opposing Dragons or Helping Hand to further boost the power of Mega Salamence's attacks. Amoonguss or Togekiss may also be considered for the role, although you must bear in mind they share some weaknesses with Mega Salamence. Partners capable of dealing with users of Ice-type attacks such as Cresselia and Water-types are also helpful. Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus can handle Water-types with their STAB Thunderbolt. Grass-types such as Ludicolo and Serperior can equally beat Water-types in addition to Rock-types. Breloom and Virizion, being part Fighting-type, are also great, as they resist Rock and beat Steel-types.
Dark-types such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Weavile can beat Cresselia with their STAB moves. Weavile is notable, as Fake Out can grant Mega Salamence the opportunity to set up a Dragon Dance more safely. Bisharp and Milotic are also able to deter Intimidate users with Defiant and Competitive, respectively. Pokemon capable of dealing with Fairy-types are also good teammates, as Mega Salamence is weak to their STAB attacks. Steel-types such as Aegislash, Excadrill, and Ferrothorn are good options that can deal with Rock-types as well. Aegislash is particularly great, as Wide Guard can shield Mega Salamence from spread moves like Rock Slide. Fairy-types of your own such as Azumarill and Sylveon are also useful to switch in on and beat opposing Dragons. Assault Vest Azumarill and Sylveon in particular really appreciate Intimidate for patching up their lower Defense. While this set can carry Earthquake, allies that beat Steel-types are still useful, as they wall Flying-type moves. For example, Ground-types such as Swampert and Gastrodon can deal a lot of damage to them with their STAB moves. Swampert, similarly to Aegislash, can also use Wide Guard to defend Mega Salamence against spread attacks. Fire-types such as Talonflame, Arcanine, and Heatran can also beat Steel-types and resist Fairy-type attacks. Greninja can aid Mega Salamence with a variety of coverage, such as Ice Beam to KO opposing Dragons or Gunk Shot to KO Fairies.
[SET]
name: Special
move 1: Hyper Voice
move 2: Draco Meteor / Dragon Pulse
move 3: Fire Blast / Flamethrower
move 4: Protect
item: Salamencite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hyper Voice is boosted by Aerilate and deals a good amount of spread damage. Draco Meteor serves as a strong single-target STAB attack able to KO even bulky Dragons, at the cost of lowering Mega Salamence's Special Attack. A Dragon-type move is also valuable for dealing at least neutral damage to Electric-types such as Rotom-W. Dragon Pulse can be used instead if you'd prefer to use a Dragon-type move without Draco Meteor's drawback. Fire Blast can hit Steel-types that resist Flying and Dragon super effectively, although it only has 85% accuracy. Flamethrower is an alternative if you'd prefer more accuracy, though the drop in power means that Mega Salamence is no longer guaranteed to pick up the OHKO on Ferrothorn, for example. Protect can shield Salamence for a turn, allowing its partner to KO a threat or switch out to improve positioning. Protect can also be used to help Salamence gain its all-important Speed from Mega Evolving more safely.
Set Details
========
Intimidate is the ability of choice, as Moxie is useless on a special attacker and Intimidate provides support by dropping both foes' Attack. 252 Speed EVs and a Timid nature are used to outspeed as many foes as possible. While a Modest nature may be tempting to increase Mega Salamence's damage output further, missing out on outspeeding key threats such as Gengar and Terrakion is generally not worth it. The remaining 252 EVs are then invested into Special Attack to improve Mega Salamence's damage output.
Usage Tips
========
This set is mostly aiming to deal as much damage as possible with Hyper Voice. Try to bring Salamence out in the early-game, or as a lead, in order get the maximum opportunities to take advantage of Intimidate. However, be aware of Defiant and Competitive users from Team Preview should you choose to lead with Salamence. Don't feel as though you have to Mega Evolve if you're just opting to Protect Salamence, as preserving Intimidate for later in the battle can be useful. Be conscious of the fact that Salamence has a lower Speed than Mega Salamence on the turn you Mega Evolve in order to avoid being outsped unnecessarily. Be careful of killing momentum with Draco Meteor if you have it, as this set has no physical move to fall back on. If Mega Salamence is your team's only option against Ferrothorn, be sure to preserve Mega Salamence until it's been eliminated.
Team Options
========
Because Mega Salamence is 4x weak to Ice, allies that beat Ice-type attackers such as Cresselia and Water-types are valuable. Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus are able to do this with their strong STAB Thunderbolt. Grass-types such as Amoonguss, Ludicolo, and Serperior can also beat Water-types in addition to Rock-types. Amoonguss is further a Poison-type and therefore resists Fairy-type attacks for Mega Salamence. Breloom and Virizion, as Grass / Fighting types, beat Water-types and Steel-types such as Bisharp. Dark-types such as Tyranitar, Weavile, and Bisharp can beat Cresselia with their super effective STAB attacks. Tyranitar pairs particularly well with Mega Salamence on a sand archetype with partners such as Sand Rush Excadrill that can eliminate Rock- and Fairy-types. Other Steel-types such as Aegislash and Ferrothorn equally do a good job at eliminating the aforementioned foes. Aegislash can also use Wide Guard to shield Mega Salamence against spread moves like Icy Wind and Rock Slide. Using Fairy-types of your own such as Azumarill and Sylveon can be useful to beat opposing Dragons. Sylveon and Assault Vest Azumarill especially enjoy Salamence's Intimidate to patch up their lower Defense. Steel-types wall Mega Salamence's STAB moves, and it's therefore useful to have partners that can beat them. Ground-types such as Swampert and Gastrodon can beat Steel-types and also help beat Rock-types. Swampert, like Aegislash, can also use Wide Guard to block spread attacks. Fire-types such as Talonflame, Arcanine, and Heatran also beat Steel-types and resist Fairy-type attacks. Greninja can beat a variety of threats to Mega Salamence such as Dragons with Ice Beam and Fairies with Gunk Shot.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A physical set without Dragon Dance is viable, but in general it's outclassed by the mixed set, which is able to accomplish almost the same thing with exclusively Double-Edge. Hydro Pump can be used to hit Fire- and Rock-types, particularly Rotom-H and Aerodactyl, which are immune to Earthquake. Rock Slide and Stone Edge are options to hit foes like Talonflame and Charizard super effectively. Rock Slide is particularly effective given Salamence's high Speed, as it's more likely than not that at least one foe will flinch. Dragon Claw could be used over Earthquake on the Dragon Dance set to hit a greater number of foes neutrally. Tailwind can be used over Draco Meteor on the mixed set in order to provide a form of speed control. Substitute could be used in the same slot in order to capitalize on passive turns from your opponent, allowing Mega Salamence to avoid being KOed by threatening attacks or crippled by status such as paralysis. Giga Impact hits very hard at the cost of a recharge turn, but it can OHKO foes that EV to survive Double-Edge. This can be particularly appealing if Mega Salamence is used with a teammate that knows Roar, such as Suicune, to help skip the recharge turn. Running different items such as Choice Scarf and Life Orb is possible if you'd like to bring Salamence and another Mega Pokemon.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dragon-type Pokemon**: While Mega Salamence beats the majority of opposing Dragons, there are some exceptions. Choice Scarf Hydreigon, for example, can outspeed non-Dragon Dance variants of Mega Salamence and OHKO them with Draco Meteor. Opposing Mega Salamence are also able to at least Speed tie with it and can threaten an OHKO with a Draco Meteor of their own.
**Electric-type Pokemon**: Electric-types resist Mega Salamence's Flying-type moves and often carry Hidden Power Ice. Rotom-W, Zapdos, and Thundurus are great examples, as they're also immune to Mega Salamence's Earthquake. They should still be wary of Draco Meteor, however, as it can deal a large amount of damage to them if they're not specially defensive.
**Fairy-type Pokemon**: While they're often OHKOed by Double-Edge, Fairies have an easy time OHKOing Mega Salamence themselves with their high-powered STAB attacks. Sylveon's and Mega Gardevoir's Hyper Voice can hit Mega Salamence through Substitute and bypass redirection. Azumarill can survive Double-Edge and has a chance to OHKO Mega Salamence with an unboosted Play Rough. Mega Mawile takes reduced damage from Mega Salamence's Flying-type moves as a result of its Steel typing, and Play Rough deals excellent damage to it. It does have to be wary of Fire Blast, however, as, with some prior damage, it can be KOed by the move.
**Ice-type Attacks**: Ice-type Pokemon themselves are uncommon, but Ice is a common typing for coverage, which is problematic due to Mega Salamence's 4x weakness to it. Weavile is the most common Ice-type and has a great matchup against Mega Salamence, as it can outspeed and OHKO it. Cresselia and Porygon2 have the bulk to survive any attack from Mega Salamence and can retaliate with Ice Beam. Bulky Water-types such as Milotic, Suicune, and Politoed can also threaten an OHKO on Mega Salamence with Ice Beam and additionally have the option of Icy Wind, which can hit Mega Salamence through redirection and lower its Speed. Gengar is also a notable user of Icy Wind, and it may have multiple opportunities to use the move because it commonly runs Focus Sash. Swift Swim users such as Ludicolo and Kingdra can outspeed Mega Salamence in the rain and can OHKO it with Ice Beam. Greninja outspeeds maximum Speed Mega Salamence and gains STAB on Ice Beam thanks to its Protean ability.
**Rock-type Pokemon**: Rock-types often resist Flying-type attacks, and Rock Slide hits Mega Salamence through redirection. Tyranitar takes little damage from Mega Salamence's special moves as a result of sand boosting its Special Defense. Aerodactyl easily outpaces Mega Salamence and can use Wide Guard to block Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice. Mega Aerodactyl is also notable, as it can deal excellent damage to Mega Salamence with a Tough Claws-boosted Ice Fang. Terrakion doesn't resist Flying as a result of its Fighting typing, but it can deal good damage with Rock Slide or Stone Edge.
**Steel-type Pokemon**: Steel-types resist both Flying- and Dragon-type attacks and therefore have a relatively easy time against Mega Salamence. Heatran, while 4x weak to Earthquake, is free to either set up a Substitute or use Flash Cannon against Mega Salamence. Further, if Heatran carries Hidden Power Ice, it can just outright OHKO it. Aegislash takes little damage from Fire- and Ground-type moves and can gain boosts from them thanks to its Weakness Policy. In fact, the boost from Weakness Policy is enough to allow Aegislash to OHKO Mega Salamence with its STAB moves. Its access to Wide Guard also means it can block Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice and Earthquake. Mega Metagross is not affected by Intimidate before Mega Evolving due to Clear Body and can OHKO Mega Salamence with Ice Punch. Its massive Defense stat also means that it takes Earthquake very well, not even being OHKOed at +2.
**Intimidate and Burns**: While the commonness of mixed and special sets means Intimidate and burns won't necessarily hamper all Mega Salamence, they are nevertheless effective at reducing the damage output of Mega Salamence's physical attacks. Intimidate users such as Landorus-T, Gyarados, and opposing Salamence are able to lower Mega Salamence's Attack one stage when switched in. Will-O-Wisp users such as Talonflame, Gengar, and Rotom-W can halve Mega Salamence's Attack stat and inflict residual damage through burn. Entei can also attempt to fish for burns with Sacred Fire, as the move has a 50% chance to burn its target.
**Speed Control**: As most Mega Salamence sets rely on their very high Speed, ways of reducing it are harmful for it. Thunder Wave users such as Thundurus and Gyarados are able to quarter Mega Salamence's Speed and reduce the chance of it moving. Tailwind users such as Talonflame, Whimsicott, and Zapdos can temporarily double their team's Speed. Trick Room users such as Gardevoir, Cresselia, and Gothitelle can allow normally slower foes to move before Mega Salamence.
**Defiant and Competitive**: Salamence's Intimidate activates Defiant and Competitive, causing their users' respective stats to increase. Bisharp and Milotic are the most prominent users and can significantly threaten Mega Salamence with Sucker Punch and Ice Beam or Icy Wind after a boost.
Mega Salamence is one of the best Mega Evolutions of the format and should therefore be a top consideration when picking your team. Access to Intimidate before Mega Evolving helps provide excellent support, especially for partners like Amoonguss and Sylveon. Further, its great defensive stats and resistances to common types such as Fire, Water, and Grass make it easy for Salamence to switch in and out to activate it. Sets utilizing Draco Meteor tend to take advantage of this even more, as the Special Attack drops encourage switches. Aerilate and access to moves such as Double-Edge and Hyper Voice allow Mega Salamence to deal massive damage. Flying also has very good neutral coverage, so Mega Salamence can easily get away with running mono-Flying-type attacks. High Attack and Special Attack, and the movepool to support both, allow it to function with a variety of sets. The ability to go mixed is a big advantage Mega Salamence has over other Mega Evolutions. This can also make Mega Salamence difficult to deal with, as the opponent must guess the set in order to handle it appropriately. A high base Speed allows it to outpace the majority of the metagame, even ordinarily very fast foes such as Gengar and Terrakion. It is, however, vulnerable to all forms of speed control. A 4x weakness to Ice often leaves it threatened, as, despite Ice-types being uncommon, it's a common typing for coverage. When Intimidate support is unneeded, Mega Salamence can often face too much competition as a Mega Evolution to be optimal. For example, Mega Kangaskhan has a stronger Double-Edge, and Mega Gardevoir has a more powerful Hyper Voice.
[SET]
name: Mixed
move 1: Double-Edge
move 2: Hyper Voice
move 3: Draco Meteor / Fire Blast
move 4: Protect
item: Salamencite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Naive
evs: 44 Atk / 212 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Double-Edge, boosted by Aerilate, is one of Mega Salamence's strongest attacks, but it comes at the cost of inflicting recoil damage. Double-Edge notably provides an option for when Mega Salamence's Special Attack has been lowered by the use of Draco Meteor. Hyper Voice, which also gets the boost from Aerilate, deals spread damage backed by Mega Salamence's Special Attack. It makes for a good option when Mega Salamence's Attack has been lowered by a foe's Intimidate. Draco Meteor provides a finisher for dealing with opposing Dragons or picking up KOs on foes with low Special Defense. It also provides a means to hit Electric-types such as Thundurus and Rotom-A at least neutrally. A Fire-type attack such as Fire Blast or Flamethrower can be used in place of Draco Meteor if needed, as it's important to have at least one Fire-type attack on your team in order to deal with Ferrothorn. In a similar vein, Earthquake can be used over Hyper Voice or Draco Meteor if you need a way to hit Heatran super effectively. Protect allows Salamence to defend itself for a turn, allowing its partner time to eliminate a foe or switch, or gain the Speed increase from Mega Evolving safely.
Set Details
========
Intimidate is the far better ability compared to the alternative, Moxie, as it provides support by lowering the foe's Attack. A Naive nature and 252 Speed EVs are used to outspeed as many foes as possible, notably opposing Mega Salamence, Terrakion, and Gengar. A Hasty nature is not used, as it takes less advantage of Intimidate and Mega Salamence's Special Defense is not so much of a factor in surviving attacks. 44 Attack EVs are used to allow Mega Salamence to OHKO 252 HP / 4 Def Mega Gardevoir with Double-Edge. The 212 Special Attack EVs are mostly leftover, but they importantly make Hyper Voice a 2HKO against 4 HP Landorus-T the majority of the time. You may opt to change the number of Attack EVs used to suit your needs, such as dropping to 20 Attack EVs to OHKO maximum Defense Amoonguss. If Earthquake is chosen, an EV spread of 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe is recommended to OHKO uninvested Heatran.
Usage Tips
========
This set aims to deal as much damage as possible with Double-Edge and Draco Meteor to pick up quick KOs. Generally, you'll want to use Hyper Voice until a foe is put into KO range of either Double-Edge or Draco Meteor. Try to bring Salamence in during the early-game or as a lead, as this allows it to take better advantage of Intimidate. An exception is if a Defiant or Competitive user is seen at Team Preview, when caution should be given to doing so. Don't always Mega Evolve if you plan to simply use Protect, as Intimidate can be good to preserve for later on in the battle. Be aware of Mega Salamence's higher Speed compared to its base forme on the you choose to Mega Evolve it; utilize Protect to gain this safely where necessary. Don't be too afraid of Draco Meteor's Special Attack drops, as Mega Salamence can just switch to using Double-Edge afterwards. Be cautious of Double-Edge's recoil, and use another move if you think it'll put Mega Salamence into KO range of a foe's move.
Team Options
========
Teammates that are able to beat users of Ice-type moves such as Water-types and Cresselia are valuable. Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus can accomplish the former with their STAB Thunderbolt. Grass-types such as Amoonguss, Ludicolo, and Serperior also beat Water-types and are able to beat Rock-types as well. Amoonguss, as a Poison-type, further provides resistances to Fairy, which Mega Salamence is weak to. The Grass / Fighting types Virizion and Breloom can also handily beat Water-types as well as Steel-types such as Bisharp. Dark-types such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Weavile deal excellently with Cresselia, being immune to Psychic. Bisharp and Milotic can also dissuade opposing Intimidate users with Defiant and Competitive. Tyranitar is notable as well, since it pairs well with Mega Salamence on a sand archetype with partners like Landorus. Allies capable of dealing with Fairy-types are great, as Fairy-types can very often OHKO Mega Salamence. Steel-types such as Aegislash, Excadrill, and Ferrothorn can beat Fairies and also help beat Rock-types. Aegislash can also use Wide Guard to defend Mega Salamence against spread moves like Icy Wind and Rock Slide.
Fairies of your own such as Azumarill and Sylveon can switch into Dragon-type moves and OHKO Dragons back. Sylveon and Assault Vest Azumarill specifically also appreciate Intimidate to patch up their weaker Defense stat. Steel-types wall both of Mega Salamence's STAB moves, so teammates that can beat them are useful. Ground-types such as Excadrill, Swampert, and Gastrodon can do this as well as beat Rock-types. Swampert, like Aegislash, can also use Wide Guard to defend Mega Salamence against spread moves. Fire-types such as Talonflame, Arcanine, and Heatran beat Steel-types and provide a resistance to Fairy. Greninja can beat a variety of threats such as opposing Dragons with Ice Beam and Fairies with Gunk Shot. Politoed enjoys Mega Salamence's presence on rain teams, as Mega Salamence can beat Grass-types for them. In return, Politoed's Water-type moves help deal with Heatran and Rock-type attackers such as Tyranitar and Terrakion. Rain teams often also struggle with balancing physical and special attackers, which Double-Edge helps with.
[SET]
name: Dragon Dance
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Return / Double-Edge
move 3: Earthquake / Roost
move 4: Protect
item: Salamencite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 4 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Dragon Dance is the biggest reason to use a physically based Mega Salamence, boosting Attack and Speed by one stage. Return is Mega Salamence's best option for an Aerilate-boosted attack without any drawbacks. Double-Edge is an alternative if you need an increase in damage output at the cost of recoil damage, notably guaranteeing an immediate OHKO against Sylveon. Earthquake helps to deal with the Steel-, Rock-, and Electric-types that wall Mega Salamence's Flying-type STAB move. Heatran is a prime example of this, as it ordinarily takes little damage from Mega Salamence's STAB moves, but is very threatened by Earthquake. It also gives Mega Salamence a spread move to better sweep through teams with, which this set would otherwise lack. If you prefer Mega Salamence be able to stick around for extended periods, Roost can accomplish this by healing it for half of its health. It also briefly removes Mega Salamence's Flying typing, which can be notable for surviving super effective attacks like Stone Edge. Roost is particularly attractive if Salamence is using a bulkier EV spread, as that would take better advantage of it. Protect shields Salamence for a turn, allowing a partner to potentially KO a threat or switch to improve positioning. Since regular Salamence is slower than Mega Salamence, Protect can also be used to speed up in safety. Further, since Mega Salamence can be a big threat to the opponent's team after setting up, Protect is useful for punishing attacks that are more likely to be aimed at it.
Set Details
========
Intimidate is Salamence's better ability, as dropping the foe's Attack stat helps it set up with Dragon Dance. An Adamant nature and 252 Attack EVs are used to improve Mega Salamence's damage output as much as possible. A Jolly nature can be used instead if you'd prefer to outspeed foes such as Terrakion and Gengar before a Dragon Dance. The remaining 252 EVs are placed in Speed to allow Mega Salamence to outpace the greatest number of foes. Bulkier spreads such as 84 HP / 132 Atk / 4 Def / 148 SpD / 140 Spe are viable to improve Mega Salamence's bulk. They allow Return to OHKO 252 HP / 4 Def Mega Gardevoir nearly all the time, make Terrakion's Rock Slide a 3HKO and neutral-natured Politoed's Ice Beam a 2HKO, and let Mega Salamence outspeed Jolly Landorus-T. Bulkier spreads with a Jolly nature are a possibility as well, such as 52 HP / 172 Atk / 4 Def / 84 SpD / 196 Spe. These outrun Mega Lucario, make Terrakion's Rock Slide a 3HKO and Suicune's Ice Beam a 2HKO, and OHKO the majority of Suicune with a +1 Helping Hand-boosted Return. Don't use either of these spreads with Double-Edge, however, as the recoil damage will mean Mega Salamence won't survive those attacks anyway.
Usage Tips
========
This set aims to set up a Dragon Dance before sweeping through the opponent's team with powerful attacks. While most setup sweepers prefer being brought out in the late-game, Salamence is an exception due to Intimidate. Be wary of Defiant and Competitive users should you choose to lead with Salamence, though. Try to keep Mega Salamence defended by a redirector for as long as it's on the field so that it can continue setting up and sweeping safely. You may not want to Mega Evolve immediately if you're using Protect in order to preserve Intimidate for later in the battle. Be aware of Salamence's lower base Speed in comparison to Mega Salamence's on the turn you Mega Evolve it to avoid being caught off guard. Dragon Dance, while generally good, is especially nice when used on a predicted Protect, switch, or weak attack from a foe. If Double-Edge is chosen, be careful that the recoil damage it inflicts doesn't put Mega Salamence into a foe's KO range.
Team Options
========
Follow Me or Rage Powder support is very valuable for helping Mega Salamence set up, as it can defend it against damage and crippling status. Follow Me Clefable and Clefairy, being Fairy-types, are generally the best candidates for this, being immune to Dragon-type attacks. Clefable has the advantage of not being forced into using Eviolite and can instead use items such as Sitrus Berry or Rocky Helmet, although Clefairy's Friend Guard is valuable to reduce the damage of spread attacks like Rock Slide. Both can also use Moonblast to KO opposing Dragons or Helping Hand to further boost the power of Mega Salamence's attacks. Amoonguss or Togekiss may also be considered for the role, although you must bear in mind they share some weaknesses with Mega Salamence. Partners capable of dealing with users of Ice-type attacks such as Cresselia and Water-types are also helpful. Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus can handle Water-types with their STAB Thunderbolt. Grass-types such as Ludicolo and Serperior can equally beat Water-types in addition to Rock-types. Breloom and Virizion, being part Fighting-type, are also great, as they resist Rock and beat Steel-types.
Dark-types such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Weavile can beat Cresselia with their STAB moves. Weavile is notable, as Fake Out can grant Mega Salamence the opportunity to set up a Dragon Dance more safely. Bisharp and Milotic are also able to deter Intimidate users with Defiant and Competitive, respectively. Pokemon capable of dealing with Fairy-types are also good teammates, as Mega Salamence is weak to their STAB attacks. Steel-types such as Aegislash, Excadrill, and Ferrothorn are good options that can deal with Rock-types as well. Aegislash is particularly great, as Wide Guard can shield Mega Salamence from spread moves like Rock Slide. Fairy-types of your own such as Azumarill and Sylveon are also useful to switch in on and beat opposing Dragons. Assault Vest Azumarill and Sylveon in particular really appreciate Intimidate for patching up their lower Defense. While this set can carry Earthquake, allies that beat Steel-types are still useful, as they wall Flying-type moves. For example, Ground-types such as Swampert and Gastrodon can deal a lot of damage to them with their STAB moves. Swampert, similarly to Aegislash, can also use Wide Guard to defend Mega Salamence against spread attacks. Fire-types such as Talonflame, Arcanine, and Heatran can also beat Steel-types and resist Fairy-type attacks. Greninja can aid Mega Salamence with a variety of coverage, such as Ice Beam to KO opposing Dragons or Gunk Shot to KO Fairies.
[SET]
name: Special
move 1: Hyper Voice
move 2: Draco Meteor / Dragon Pulse
move 3: Fire Blast / Flamethrower
move 4: Protect
item: Salamencite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Timid
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Hyper Voice is boosted by Aerilate and deals a good amount of spread damage. Draco Meteor serves as a strong single-target STAB attack able to KO even bulky Dragons, at the cost of lowering Mega Salamence's Special Attack. A Dragon-type move is also valuable for dealing at least neutral damage to Electric-types such as Rotom-W. Dragon Pulse can be used instead if you'd prefer to use a Dragon-type move without Draco Meteor's drawback. Fire Blast can hit Steel-types that resist Flying and Dragon super effectively, although it only has 85% accuracy. Flamethrower is an alternative if you'd prefer more accuracy, though the drop in power means that Mega Salamence is no longer guaranteed to pick up the OHKO on Ferrothorn, for example. Protect can shield Salamence for a turn, allowing its partner to KO a threat or switch out to improve positioning. Protect can also be used to help Salamence gain its all-important Speed from Mega Evolving more safely.
Set Details
========
Intimidate is the ability of choice, as Moxie is useless on a special attacker and Intimidate provides support by dropping both foes' Attack. 252 Speed EVs and a Timid nature are used to outspeed as many foes as possible. While a Modest nature may be tempting to increase Mega Salamence's damage output further, missing out on outspeeding key threats such as Gengar and Terrakion is generally not worth it. The remaining 252 EVs are then invested into Special Attack to improve Mega Salamence's damage output.
Usage Tips
========
This set is mostly aiming to deal as much damage as possible with Hyper Voice. Try to bring Salamence out in the early-game, or as a lead, in order get the maximum opportunities to take advantage of Intimidate. However, be aware of Defiant and Competitive users from Team Preview should you choose to lead with Salamence. Don't feel as though you have to Mega Evolve if you're just opting to Protect Salamence, as preserving Intimidate for later in the battle can be useful. Be conscious of the fact that Salamence has a lower Speed than Mega Salamence on the turn you Mega Evolve in order to avoid being outsped unnecessarily. Be careful of killing momentum with Draco Meteor if you have it, as this set has no physical move to fall back on. If Mega Salamence is your team's only option against Ferrothorn, be sure to preserve Mega Salamence until it's been eliminated.
Team Options
========
Because Mega Salamence is 4x weak to Ice, allies that beat Ice-type attackers such as Cresselia and Water-types are valuable. Electric-types such as Rotom-W and Thundurus are able to do this with their strong STAB Thunderbolt. Grass-types such as Amoonguss, Ludicolo, and Serperior can also beat Water-types in addition to Rock-types. Amoonguss is further a Poison-type and therefore resists Fairy-type attacks for Mega Salamence. Breloom and Virizion, as Grass / Fighting types, beat Water-types and Steel-types such as Bisharp. Dark-types such as Tyranitar, Weavile, and Bisharp can beat Cresselia with their super effective STAB attacks. Tyranitar pairs particularly well with Mega Salamence on a sand archetype with partners such as Sand Rush Excadrill that can eliminate Rock- and Fairy-types. Other Steel-types such as Aegislash and Ferrothorn equally do a good job at eliminating the aforementioned foes. Aegislash can also use Wide Guard to shield Mega Salamence against spread moves like Icy Wind and Rock Slide. Using Fairy-types of your own such as Azumarill and Sylveon can be useful to beat opposing Dragons. Sylveon and Assault Vest Azumarill especially enjoy Salamence's Intimidate to patch up their lower Defense. Steel-types wall Mega Salamence's STAB moves, and it's therefore useful to have partners that can beat them. Ground-types such as Swampert and Gastrodon can beat Steel-types and also help beat Rock-types. Swampert, like Aegislash, can also use Wide Guard to block spread attacks. Fire-types such as Talonflame, Arcanine, and Heatran also beat Steel-types and resist Fairy-type attacks. Greninja can beat a variety of threats to Mega Salamence such as Dragons with Ice Beam and Fairies with Gunk Shot.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
A physical set without Dragon Dance is viable, but in general it's outclassed by the mixed set, which is able to accomplish almost the same thing with exclusively Double-Edge. Hydro Pump can be used to hit Fire- and Rock-types, particularly Rotom-H and Aerodactyl, which are immune to Earthquake. Rock Slide and Stone Edge are options to hit foes like Talonflame and Charizard super effectively. Rock Slide is particularly effective given Salamence's high Speed, as it's more likely than not that at least one foe will flinch. Dragon Claw could be used over Earthquake on the Dragon Dance set to hit a greater number of foes neutrally. Tailwind can be used over Draco Meteor on the mixed set in order to provide a form of speed control. Substitute could be used in the same slot in order to capitalize on passive turns from your opponent, allowing Mega Salamence to avoid being KOed by threatening attacks or crippled by status such as paralysis. Giga Impact hits very hard at the cost of a recharge turn, but it can OHKO foes that EV to survive Double-Edge. This can be particularly appealing if Mega Salamence is used with a teammate that knows Roar, such as Suicune, to help skip the recharge turn. Running different items such as Choice Scarf and Life Orb is possible if you'd like to bring Salamence and another Mega Pokemon.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Dragon-type Pokemon**: While Mega Salamence beats the majority of opposing Dragons, there are some exceptions. Choice Scarf Hydreigon, for example, can outspeed non-Dragon Dance variants of Mega Salamence and OHKO them with Draco Meteor. Opposing Mega Salamence are also able to at least Speed tie with it and can threaten an OHKO with a Draco Meteor of their own.
**Electric-type Pokemon**: Electric-types resist Mega Salamence's Flying-type moves and often carry Hidden Power Ice. Rotom-W, Zapdos, and Thundurus are great examples, as they're also immune to Mega Salamence's Earthquake. They should still be wary of Draco Meteor, however, as it can deal a large amount of damage to them if they're not specially defensive.
**Fairy-type Pokemon**: While they're often OHKOed by Double-Edge, Fairies have an easy time OHKOing Mega Salamence themselves with their high-powered STAB attacks. Sylveon's and Mega Gardevoir's Hyper Voice can hit Mega Salamence through Substitute and bypass redirection. Azumarill can survive Double-Edge and has a chance to OHKO Mega Salamence with an unboosted Play Rough. Mega Mawile takes reduced damage from Mega Salamence's Flying-type moves as a result of its Steel typing, and Play Rough deals excellent damage to it. It does have to be wary of Fire Blast, however, as, with some prior damage, it can be KOed by the move.
**Ice-type Attacks**: Ice-type Pokemon themselves are uncommon, but Ice is a common typing for coverage, which is problematic due to Mega Salamence's 4x weakness to it. Weavile is the most common Ice-type and has a great matchup against Mega Salamence, as it can outspeed and OHKO it. Cresselia and Porygon2 have the bulk to survive any attack from Mega Salamence and can retaliate with Ice Beam. Bulky Water-types such as Milotic, Suicune, and Politoed can also threaten an OHKO on Mega Salamence with Ice Beam and additionally have the option of Icy Wind, which can hit Mega Salamence through redirection and lower its Speed. Gengar is also a notable user of Icy Wind, and it may have multiple opportunities to use the move because it commonly runs Focus Sash. Swift Swim users such as Ludicolo and Kingdra can outspeed Mega Salamence in the rain and can OHKO it with Ice Beam. Greninja outspeeds maximum Speed Mega Salamence and gains STAB on Ice Beam thanks to its Protean ability.
**Rock-type Pokemon**: Rock-types often resist Flying-type attacks, and Rock Slide hits Mega Salamence through redirection. Tyranitar takes little damage from Mega Salamence's special moves as a result of sand boosting its Special Defense. Aerodactyl easily outpaces Mega Salamence and can use Wide Guard to block Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice. Mega Aerodactyl is also notable, as it can deal excellent damage to Mega Salamence with a Tough Claws-boosted Ice Fang. Terrakion doesn't resist Flying as a result of its Fighting typing, but it can deal good damage with Rock Slide or Stone Edge.
**Steel-type Pokemon**: Steel-types resist both Flying- and Dragon-type attacks and therefore have a relatively easy time against Mega Salamence. Heatran, while 4x weak to Earthquake, is free to either set up a Substitute or use Flash Cannon against Mega Salamence. Further, if Heatran carries Hidden Power Ice, it can just outright OHKO it. Aegislash takes little damage from Fire- and Ground-type moves and can gain boosts from them thanks to its Weakness Policy. In fact, the boost from Weakness Policy is enough to allow Aegislash to OHKO Mega Salamence with its STAB moves. Its access to Wide Guard also means it can block Mega Salamence's Hyper Voice and Earthquake. Mega Metagross is not affected by Intimidate before Mega Evolving due to Clear Body and can OHKO Mega Salamence with Ice Punch. Its massive Defense stat also means that it takes Earthquake very well, not even being OHKOed at +2.
**Intimidate and Burns**: While the commonness of mixed and special sets means Intimidate and burns won't necessarily hamper all Mega Salamence, they are nevertheless effective at reducing the damage output of Mega Salamence's physical attacks. Intimidate users such as Landorus-T, Gyarados, and opposing Salamence are able to lower Mega Salamence's Attack one stage when switched in. Will-O-Wisp users such as Talonflame, Gengar, and Rotom-W can halve Mega Salamence's Attack stat and inflict residual damage through burn. Entei can also attempt to fish for burns with Sacred Fire, as the move has a 50% chance to burn its target.
**Speed Control**: As most Mega Salamence sets rely on their very high Speed, ways of reducing it are harmful for it. Thunder Wave users such as Thundurus and Gyarados are able to quarter Mega Salamence's Speed and reduce the chance of it moving. Tailwind users such as Talonflame, Whimsicott, and Zapdos can temporarily double their team's Speed. Trick Room users such as Gardevoir, Cresselia, and Gothitelle can allow normally slower foes to move before Mega Salamence.
**Defiant and Competitive**: Salamence's Intimidate activates Defiant and Competitive, causing their users' respective stats to increase. Bisharp and Milotic are the most prominent users and can significantly threaten Mega Salamence with Sucker Punch and Ice Beam or Icy Wind after a boost.
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