OU Camerupt

Overview
########

Thanks to its excellent ability in Sheer Force and its dual STAB moves gaining wonderful coverage that is only resisted by a few Pokemon, Mega Camerupt is a fearsome wallbreaker that is insanely difficult to switch into. It also has solid bulk that is backed up by a unique typing that offers only two weaknesses in exchange for five resistances and one immunity; its typing also allows it to be one of the best stops to Volt Switch users not named Rotom-W. However, Mega Camerupt is extremely slow, meaning it will almost always be hit by something before it actually attacks. Furthermore, it is worn down especially quickly because of its lack of Leftovers or any other type of recovery. Mega Camerupt's low Speed also prevents it from being an excellent stallbreaker because it's unable to do anything when weakened. This is really tough in general for Camerupt unless Trick Room is set, but that's not a common playstyle and its timespan is too short. A 4x Water weakness holds Mega Camerupt back because there are a plethora of Water-types in the tier, and due to its horrible bulk pre-Mega Evolution, it is hard to effectively switch directly into many attacks.

Standard
########
name: Standard
move 1: Fire Blast
move 2: Earth Power
move 3: Ancient Power
move 4: Will-O-Wisp / Stealth Rock / Toxic
ability: Solid Rock
item: Cameruptite
evs: 168 HP / 252 SpA / 88 Spe
nature: Modest

Moves
========

Fire Blast is the move that Mega Camerupt should primarily be using, as it's insanely powerful and can dent even Pokemon that resist it. Earth Power is the secondary STAB move that provides fairly good coverage all around and is boosted by Sheer Force; it is also difficult to switch into. Ancient Power hits various Flying-types, such as Gyarados, Dragonite, Talonflame, and Charizard. Will-O-Wisp hurts Latias and Rotom-W switch-ins and can wear down or cripple Pokemon so that Mega Camerupt can blast through them at a later time. Stealth Rock can be used to wear down foes as they switch in, but Mega Camerupt should not be your team's primary entry hazard setter. Toxic hurts Latias and Rotom-W switch-ins more than Will-O-Wisp; however, it's not as useful as Will-O-Wisp and cannot be used to help soften blows. Substitute is also an option to set up on forced switches, though with how quickly Mega Camerupt is worn down, this is unadvised.

Set Details
========

Solid Rock isn't really useful in many scenarios, but it's simply better than Camerupt's other pre-Mega Evolution abilities, which also have little use. Sheer Force, the post-Mega Evolution ability, boosts the power of Fire Blast and Earth Power to soaring heights. Cameruptite is the best item choice, as it allows Camerupt to Mega Evolve and gain bulk and power; any other item makes Camerupt unviable and useless. 88 Speed EVs allow Mega Camerupt to outspeed Slowbro and smack it with Earth Power, while the rest is invested into Special Attack and HP. A Modest nature is chosen because Camerupt doesn't require a Timid nature, while a Quiet nature is unadvised because then Mega Camerupt cannot outspeed Slowbro. Running Mega Camerupt on a Trick Room team could be useful; if this is the chosen option, then a moveset of Fire Blast / Earth Power / Explosion / Ancient Power with 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD, a Quiet nature, and 0 Speed IVs is advised.

Usage Tips
========

Mega Camerupt is fairly simple to use: Mega Evolve as early as possible and launch off powerful attacks. Mega Evolving as early as possible is truly a priority, as Camerupt is pretty terrible pre-Mega Evolution. Spamming Fire Blast is often Camerupt's safest route, as it hits the widest portion of the metagame and is Camerupt's strongest move. Earth Power must be played a bit more cautiously, as Flying-types and Pokemon with the ability Levitate are common in OU. Mega Camerupt should only use its last move on predicted switches, never when it's against a foe, because it'll want to be spamming its attacks while possible. Mega Camerupt is a heavy hitter and switcher; a lot of Pokemon force it out, so be sure to play cautiously. The only time you can play Mega Camerupt recklessly is when spamming Fire Blast, otherwise, playing safe is key. Mega Camerupt should always be brought in with a U-turn, Volt Switch, or Baton Pass, as it's very unsafe to switch in directly. Relying on Mega Camerupt's teammates to stomach hits and weaken foes is the key to success, as using Camerupt as a sole Pokemon will result in failure. Finally, Mega Camerupt should always be used as a semi-wallbreaker, not a full one, as it's too slow to fulfill this role.

Team Options
========

Rotom-W stands out as a partner because it resists Water- and Ground-type moves, appreciates Mega Camerupt's ability to handle Grass-types in return, and can also bring Camerupt in safely with Volt Switch. Ferrothorn can set up entry hazards and has excellent synergy with Camerupt. Landorus-T is immune to Ground-type moves and is able to set up Stealth Rock, along with being able to pivot into Camerupt with U-turn and provide Intimidate support. Latios and Latias also make for good partners because they're able to switch into Water-type moves with ease. Togekiss can lure in Rotom-W and OHKO it with a +2 Dazzling Gleam, thus making it a good partner; the two share wonderful synergy as well. Pursuit from the likes of Tyranitar and Bisharp to trap and eliminate Latias is useful. Rotom-W checks such as Latias are also useful for their ability to remove one of Mega Camerupt's prime counters. Trick Room in general is a very good method of supporting Mega Camerupt, which has a base 20 Speed stat and is fully able to abuse it. Some good Trick Room setters include Slowbro, Porygon2, Diancie, Cresselia, and Celebi. Trick Room wallbreakers including Dragalge, Crawdaunt, and Exploud are also good partners on Trick Room teams. Fighting-types, namely Terrakion, are useful partners because they can break through Chansey and weaken foes with a strong Close Combat. Ice-types, such as Weavile and Mamoswine, are also able to weaken Chansey and beat the Dragon / Flying types that resist Camerupt's STAB moves. Tentacruel is a good partner because it has decent synergy with Camerupt, can remove Spikes, which Camerupt hates, and is able to beat Calm Mind users that Camerupt struggles against. In return, Camerupt is able to take on Electric-type Pokemon. However, a Flying-type or Levitate user must be added to this core because the two share a Ground weakness. Raikou is a useful partner because it is able to pivot into Camerupt via Volt Switch and break through Water-types.

Other Options
########

Flamethrower is a usable option over Fire Blast for accuracy, but the raw power Fire Blast provides is much more useful even with a chance to miss. Similarly, Lava Plume should not be used because Sheer Force takes away its secondary effect and Flamethrower then effectively outclasses it. Explosion hits extremely hard and can dent practically everything; however, it comes at the expense of Camerupt's HP. When running Mega Camerupt on Trick Room teams, a set of Sunny Day / Fire Blast / Earth Power / Solar Beam can be used to smack Rotom-W as they switch in and amp up Fire Blast's power. Other than these few options, nothing particularly stands out as a good option for Mega Camerupt.

Checks & Counters
########

**Special Walls**: While Camerupt is insanely strong, it just can't break through everything. The main special walls that can stop Camerupt are Latias and Chansey, which can switch into any of Camerupt's attacks and threaten it in return through various means, such as a Draco Meteor from Latias or Seismic Toss + Toxic stall from Chansey.

**Water-types**: All Water-type Pokemon, such as Rotom-W and Keldeo, are massive threats because Camerupt is 4x weak to their STAB attacks.

**Ground-types**: Ground-types, such as Garchomp, specially defensive Hippowdown, Landorus-T, and specially defensive Gliscor, are usually able to dent, if not KO, Camerupt. However, Ground-types don't usually resist Camerupt's STAB attacks and are thus a lot harder to switch into Camerupt with.

**Powerful Attacks**: Attacks from various different Pokemon, such as Latios, Mega Gallade, and Terrakion, are able to weaken Camerupt quite easily. But, once again, they're unable to switch into Camerupt directly.
 
Last edited:
I'm surprised there's no Trick Room set here. It seems like investing in base 20 speed is completely useless, as Camerupt is so slow anyway. You could have it invest in HP and be much bulkier, because it surely isn't outspeeding anything. For Trick Room, it'd be 252 HP / 252 Sp. Attack / 4 SpD or the 4 in Attack, with a Quiet nature.
 

Aragorn the King

Literally a duck
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnus
evs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
nature: Modest

a. Why wouldn't you run any Special Attack on this beast?
b. Why would you run speed on it?
c. Why would you run a Modest nature, when you use Rock Slide for damage. Quiet is imo better, since its Speed really doesn't matter.

Other thoughts:

In the overview mention that its speed prevents it from being as good v. stall unless it's under Trick Room. Whereas other Special Attackers can beat a Chansey at 1%, Camerupt can't, all because of that 20 base stat. Definitely add Chansey to C&C for this reason as well.

Definitely add TR mons to Team Options (Diancie, Cress, Bronzong, P2, Crawdaunt, Dragalge...)

:D
 

AM

is a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Past WCoP Champion
LCPL Champion
Mention relevant Electric Types as partners such as Raikou and Thundurus along side partners as bulky water types will give it trouble and bulky Grass types such as Celebi will not always be able to answer to those threats.
 

Albacore

sludge bomb is better than sludge wave
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Team Rater Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
I think you should slash Wisp before SR and slash Toxic in there too, b/c it fucks up Rotom-W and Latis harder than Wisp does. Maybe also slash Flamethrower there for accurate Fire STAB. Also make it clear that if MCamerupt does run SR it's mostly as filler to be used on Rotom-W/Lati switchins if you don't have rocks up yet, and MCamerupt should really not be your only rock setter (it's not really a bad rock setter, it's just that IMO it's more efficient in most cases to have something like Ferrothorn set rocks up and have MCam just nuke stuff b/c even its best switchins get hit hard by its STABs, and it has limited opportunities to hit stuff so you have to use these opportunities wisely aka by clicking Fire Blast)

also make the main spread 88 Speed to outspeed Slowbro, with 0 speed as an option to take Thundurus's Focus Blasts better.

oh yeah also Ancientpower>>>>>>Rock Slide, Rock Slide hits nothing afaik (I guess SpD Talon can PP stall you more easily? but you have to get every single Roost turn incorrect for it to do so, which is far less likely than Rock Slide missing) and has worse acc.

Explosion has merit but mainly on Trick Room teams, I think there maybe should be a seperate set for TR and that's where Exploson would go.
 
Last edited:
a. Why wouldn't you run any Special Attack on this beast?
b. Why would you run speed on it?
c. Why would you run a Modest nature, when you use Rock Slide for damage. Quiet is imo better, since its Speed really doesn't matter.

Other thoughts:

In the overview mention that its speed prevents it from being as good v. stall unless it's under Trick Room. Whereas other Special Attackers can beat a Chansey at 1%, Camerupt can't, all because of that 20 base stat. Definitely add Chansey to C&C for this reason as well.

Definitely add TR mons to Team Options (Diancie, Cress, Bronzong, P2, Crawdaunt, Dragalge...)

:D
I wasn't even done :o. I made this in a hurry lol, I am invested in SpA but mistyped it to Spe >_<. Quiet is better yes.

Mention relevant Electric Types as partners such as Raikou and Thundurus along side partners as bulky water types will give it trouble and bulky Grass types such as Celebi will not always be able to answer to those threats.
Will do.

I would definitely throw explosion in oo or moves, I've seen it used to some good success.
I was actually going to try this out myself!

I think you should slash Wisp before SR and slash Toxic in there too, b/c it fucks up Rotom-W and Latis harder than Wisp does. Maybe also slash Flamethrower there for accurate Fire STAB. Also make it clear that if MCamerupt does run SR it's mostly as filler to be used on Rotom-W/Lati switchins if you don't have rocks up yet, and MCamerupt should really not be your only rock setter (it's not really a bad rock setter, it's just that IMO it's more efficient in most cases to have something like Ferrothorn set rocks up and have MCam just nuke stuff b/c even its best switchins get hit hard by its STABs, and it has limited opportunities to hit stuff so you have to use these opportunities wisely aka by clicking Fire Blast)

also make the main spread 88 Speed to outspeed Slowbro, with 0 speed as an option to take Thundurus's Focus Blasts better.

oh yeah also Ancientpower>>>>>>Rock Slide, Rock Slide hits nothing afaik (I guess SpD Talon can PP stall you more easily? but you have to get every single Roost turn incorrect for it to do so, which is far less likely than Rock Slide missing) and has worse acc.

Explosion has merit but mainly on Trick Room teams, I think there maybe should be a seperate set for TR and that's where Exploson would go.
I meant to put 88 Speed actually! Spoke with TheEnder on Showdown! but just couldn't remember the right amount haha n_n. Thanks!

In regards to Rock Slide vs Ancient Power, that sounds good I was just using Rock Slide because I thought it did more damage, didn't calc it n_n!


Thanks for all the responses guys o.o I'm still working on this haha but still thanks !
 

SM979

dank memes
is a Contributor Alumnus
Also, you could slash Fire Blast for Flamethrower for those who prefer accuracy over power, or put it in OO.

Edit: You say Ancient Power has a nifty side effect, but Sheer Force negates it, so you don't have to include that.
 
Last edited:

Martin

A monoid in the category of endofunctors
is a Smogon Discord Contributoris a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
IMO Rock Slide is better than Ancient Power as it OHKOs Zard Y 100% of the time with a quiet nature as opposed to 56.3% of the time:
  • 0 Atk Camerupt Rock Slide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Mega Charizard Y: 312-368 (105 - 123.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252+ SpA Camerupt Ancient Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Mega Charizard Y: 276-328 (92.9 - 110.4%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO
This is pretty important as Fire-/Flying-types (and I guess Volc) are the only targets of your Rock-type coverage, so missing out on the KO (before rocks) is huge.
 

Albacore

sludge bomb is better than sludge wave
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Team Rater Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnus
IMO Rock Slide is better than Ancient Power as it OHKOs Zard Y 100% of the time with a quiet nature as opposed to 56.3% of the time:
  • 0 Atk Camerupt Rock Slide vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Mega Charizard Y: 312-368 (105 - 123.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
  • 252+ SpA Camerupt Ancient Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Mega Charizard Y: 276-328 (92.9 - 110.4%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO
This is pretty important as Fire-/Flying-types (and I guess Volc) are the only targets of your Rock-type coverage, so missing out on the KO is huge.
You forgot Sheer Force...

252+ SpA Sheer Force Mega-Camerupt Ancient Power vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Mega Charizard Y: 360-428 (100.2 - 119.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO

and I feel pretty safe in saying no-one runs max HP YZard.
 

Martin

A monoid in the category of endofunctors
is a Smogon Discord Contributoris a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnus
You forgot Sheer Force...

252+ SpA Sheer Force Mega-Camerupt Ancient Power vs. 248 HP / 0 SpD Mega Charizard Y: 360-428 (100.2 - 119.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO

and I feel pretty safe in saying no-one runs max HP YZard.
oops lol i clicked on the wrong set -_- my bad XD

also i made a special point of remembering sheer force before and then I must have had a brain fart for the calc :/ carry on.
 
This is almost ready for QC. But, I must ask: does QC think a Trick Room set is deserving of its own set? It's no different than this set and it just has a bit different partners, one move variation, and a tiny change in usage. I really don't think it needs to change, I could just mention in various spots to change it to Quite / 0 Spe, Explosion, etc. Thoughts?
 

AccidentalGreed

Sweet and bitter as chocolate.
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
This is almost ready for QC. But, I must ask: does QC think a Trick Room set is deserving of its own set? It's no different than this set and it just has a bit different partners, one move variation, and a tiny change in usage. I really don't think it needs to change, I could just mention in various spots to change it to Quite / 0 Spe, Explosion, etc. Thoughts?
It's literally just the same set with a quiet nature and 0 Speed IV, and we typically don't do analyses dedicated Trick Room sweeper sets. A mention of TR is fine as well as a couple of teammates that synergize with it on TR teams, but no set.
 
Real quick i would reccomend giving HP grass a mention in OO as it is helpful against those bulky water types and doesn't need to take a turn to charge up like solarbeam
 
I think in overview, you should mention that it is basically a full stop to almost all the electric types in OU (thundurus, raikou, manectric etc.), except for rotom-w.
 

SM979

dank memes
is a Contributor Alumnus
I'm not sure if this is set is the most viable, but it works. (Sorry I posted this after you're ready for QC.)

Rock Polish
########
name: Rock Polish
move 1: Rock Polish
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Earth Power
move 4: Ancient Power
ability: Solid Rock
item: Cameruptite
evs: 24 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 228 Spe
ivs: 0 Atk
nature: Modest


252 Special Attack EVs and a Modest Nature maximize Special Attack. 228 Speed EVs let Mega Camerupt outpace everything up to Jolly Mega Tyranitar. 24 HP EVs give Camerupt a Stealth Rock number, and the rest of the EVs are put into Defense to take priority attacks better.

c/p:

Camerupt @ Cameruptite
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 24 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 228 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rock Polish
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Ancient Power
 

boltsandbombers

i'm sorry mr. man
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
I'm not sure if this is set is the most viable, but it works. (Sorry I posted this after you're ready for QC.)

Rock Polish
########
name: Rock Polish
move 1: Rock Polish
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Earth Power
move 4: Ancient Power
ability: Solid Rock
item: Cameruptite
evs: 24 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 228 Spe
ivs: 0 Atk
nature: Modest


252 Special Attack EVs and a Modest Nature maximize Special Attack. 228 Speed EVs let Mega Camerupt outpace everything up to Jolly Mega Tyranitar. 24 HP EVs give Camerupt a Stealth Rock number, and the rest of the EVs are put into Defense to take priority attacks better.

c/p:

Camerupt @ Cameruptite
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 24 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 228 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rock Polish
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Ancient Power
I really don't see such a set being very effective, OO at best.
 
I'm not sure if this is set is the most viable, but it works. (Sorry I posted this after you're ready for QC.)

Rock Polish
########
name: Rock Polish
move 1: Rock Polish
move 2: Fire Blast
move 3: Earth Power
move 4: Ancient Power
ability: Solid Rock
item: Cameruptite
evs: 24 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 228 Spe
ivs: 0 Atk
nature: Modest


252 Special Attack EVs and a Modest Nature maximize Special Attack. 228 Speed EVs let Mega Camerupt outpace everything up to Jolly Mega Tyranitar. 24 HP EVs give Camerupt a Stealth Rock number, and the rest of the EVs are put into Defense to take priority attacks better.

c/p:

Camerupt @ Cameruptite
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 24 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA / 228 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rock Polish
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power
- Ancient Power
I don't even see that being viable enough for OO. With that given speed investment, the fastest thing you're gonna outspeed is Adamant Loom, Bisharp, and MHera. And even if you ran max speed investment, you can't even outspeed max speed base 90 and above. Good luck sweeping a team with that.
 
Sadly, camerupt speed is way too slow for rock polish to be effective. Even if it had like base 50 speed, rock polish would be really good. However, 20 speed just isn't enough, and it's hard for camerupt to set it up anyways.
 

TheEnder

a petal in the wind
is a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Past WCoP Champion
remove mentions of "shouldn't be used" in OO

mention "trick room setters" and "trick room wallbreakers" in team options, and list the most viable ones, instead of ten different pokes, each with an own mention

add Lati@s to team options, as they are great switch-ins to water-spam. also, remove Jirachi; it doesn't really provide any synergy with Camerupt, and doesn't really contribute to Camerupt breaking, aside from setting Trick Room

add pursuit users who take care of lati@s, and lures to rotom-w, such as hp grass greninja, to team options

CQ 1/3
 

alexwolf

lurks in the shadows
is a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Top Contributor Alumnus
I agree with TheEnder, Pursuit users are great partners, especially Bisharp, which pressures Camerupt's biggest enemies, Latios, Latias, and Chansey. NP Dazzling Gleam Togekiss is another good partner, as it can lure and OHKO Rotom-W at +2, checks Lati@s and most Ground-types that trouble Camerupt, while Camerupt counters Electric-types not named Rotom-W that are problematic to Mega Camerupt, as well as Heatran.

Remove the wide movepool part from the overview, Camerupt's movepool is just big enough to get the job done and not wide at all. Also, add in the overview how Mega Camerupt blocks Volt Switch users not named Rotom-W.

I would also remove Victini as a partner. Mega Camerupt doesn't fit in HO, the only playstyle where using multiple Pokemon with the same weaknesses is acceptable, and having two Water and Ground-weak Pokemon is horrible in this metagame, especially when their roles overlap a lot, with both being Fire-type wallbreakers.

Remove any option that has no merit at all from OO, such as Overheat, Solarbeam, and Roar. Also, remove Flash Cannon, it hits nothing notable that the other moves don't cover already.

Just a nitpick, but you have mentioned Rotom-W under special walls, which it clearly isn't. Also, refrain from mentioning generic strong Pokemon able to weaken or OHKO Camerupt if they can't switch in, it's meaningless information. People read the checks and counters SECTION to find checks and counters, not to read obvious stuff they already know. And remove Spikes from there.

Finally, be more specific in checks and counters. For example, under Ground-types you don't bring up a single example, while there are plenty of good checks to choose from, such as Garchomp and SpD Hippowdon. So yeah, be thorough and mention each and every one Pokemon that fits in each category, as long as it's relevant in OU.

QC APPROVED 2/3
 
Last edited:
Is Specially Defensive Mega Camerupt not viable? It doesn't have the bulk of SpD Heatran, but it does have good resistences and bulk, can counter ZardY and Scizor formes, and hits significantly harder than SpD Heatran thanks to a higher base SpA and Sheer Force. No Leftys and taking up the Mega slot sucks, but does it at least warrant OO?
 
Last edited:
Is Specially Defensive Mega Camerupt not viable? It doesn't have the bulk of SpD Heatran, but it does have good resistences and bulk, can counter ZardY and Scizor formes, and hits significantly harder than SpD Heatran thanks to a higher base SpA and Sheer Force. No Leftys and taking up the Mega slot sucks, but does it at least warrant OO?
I doubt so, any water-type attack screws it over and taunt can screw it over as its hella slow,
 

Karxrida

Death to the Undying Savage
is a Community Contributor Alumnus
It should be noted that anything that can switch in without getting OHKO'd and threaten to OHKO back is actually a counter, even if they can only do so once. Azumarill, Latios, Rotom-W, and some others I can't think of right now fall into this category.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Muk

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 1, Guests: 0)

Top