Hydreigon [Singles] [QC: 0/3]

[skies]

--- [ QC: / / ] --
-- [ GP: / ] --​

Overview
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• Hydreigon is very powerful on the special side, being able to nuke most Pokemon with a powerful STAB Draco Meteor.
• Dark Pulse is Hydreigon's secondary STAB move that compliments Draco Meteor well.
• Due to Hydreigon's high Attack and Special Attack, it is able to run moves of either side to lure in and smash Pokemon.
• Hydreigon's immunity to Ground-type moves and great resistances allow it to be a good partner to many Pokemon as well.
• However, Hydreigon's Speed is quite lacking and leaves it outsped by a large portion of the metagame.
• Hydreigon's typing offers nice resistances, but it also unfortunately grants common weaknesses in Fairy-, Ice-, and Fighting-, amongst a few other weaknesses.
• Hydreigon faces competition from Mega Salamence and other Dragon-types, which can also pack their own Draco Meteor.

Offensive
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name: Offensive
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Dark Pulse
move 3: Fire Blast
move 4: Focus Blast
ability: Levitate
item: Life Orb
evs: 4 Def / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
nature: Modest

Moves
========​

• Draco Meteor is Hydreigon's main STAB move to spam because it hits so damn hard. This move is very hard to switch into and will dent nearly everything that doesn't resist it.
• Dark Pulse is an excellent neutral coverage STAB move that hurts bulkier Psychic-types and hits Steel-types hard on the switch in, without resorting to Fire Blast.
• Fire Blast hits Steel-types harder than Dark Pulse and also smacks Ferrothorn and Mega Mawile for consistent damage, as both are able to switch into Dark Pulse or Draco Meteor with ease.
• Focus Blast hits Normal- and Steel-types like Kangaskhan, Porygon2, and Heatran.
• Over Focus Blast, you can choose to run U-turn as an excellent pivot move to get into Aegislash or another teammate, but most often Aegislash.

Set Details
========​

• Life Orb is the most consistent item because it boosts Hydreigon's damage output a lot; however, a White Herb could potentially be used if another teammate requires Life Orb more. This is somewhat inconsistent, however.
• Choice Specs or Choice Scarf could be used, but this takes away from Hydreigon's versatility quite a lot, so it is unadvised to use these.
• Naive is chosen over Hasty simply to take on priority a bit better, while maintaining as a high of a Speed stat that Hydreigon can achieve.
• 12 Attack EVs is taking away just two stat points from Hydreigon's Special Attack, which is very unnoticeable; however, in return, they allow you to 100% guarantee the 2HKO on Heatran, making them very worthwhile. 252 Speed EVs is to maximize Speed, while the rest is dumped into SpA for a more powerful Draco Meteor.
• Levitate is a useful ability to take advantage of Choice-locked Landorus-T and pivot into Ground-type moves; but hey, you don't have another option!

Usage Tips
========​

• Hydreigon is primarily a powerful wallbreaker, so play it as one. This means hopefully click Draco Meteor to smash something, then use coverage when necessary.
• Besides clicking Draco Meteor and hoping to hurt something, try to pivot Hydreigon in via U-turn. It's too frail to take on non-resisted hits well, so U-turn / Volt Switch is helpful.
• Take advantage of Levitate, but be cautious! Landorus-T could use U-turn expecting the switch in, thus leading to Hydreigon losing a chunk of damage.

Team Options
========​

• Aegislash is the prime partner for Hydreigon. Between the two, they carry a resistance / immunity to every single typing the game! Their synergy is excellent because of this. They also can weaken walls together.
• Azumarill creates a powerful core because the raw and brute power of the two Pokemon places a bunch off offensive pressure on the opponent.
• Rotom-Wash pivots safely into Hydreigon and generally has good synergy with Hydreigon, and is preferred over Landorus-T so that the Ice-type weakness is not stacked between the two.
• Heatran easily sponges Fairy-type attacks and appreciates Hydreigon's ability to take on Ground- and Water-type attacks. Though, the two do create a double Fighting-type weakness.
• Scizor beats Fairy-types with a powerful Bullet Punch and can safely pivot into Hydreigon via U-turn. Hydreigon beats Heatran as well, which Scizor appreciates.
• Mega Gengar has good synergy with Hydreigon and is able to trap and kill Fairy-type Pokemon for Hydreigon.
• Basically, Pokemon to pivot into Hydreigon, Pokemon to take on Fairy-types, or Pokemon with good type synergy are good teammates for Hydreigon.

Other Options
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• Hydreigon's got major problems with Fairy-types. Flash Cannon can mitigate this and is able to 2HKO most Fairy-types.
• Dragon Pulse is an option, but Draco Meteor is more powerful in two consecutive turns than Dragon Pulse is in two turns anyways. Draco Meteor's brute power is much preferred.
• Fully physical sets are somewhat viable, but really Hydreigon isn't cut out for it and will be left outclassed.
• Hydreigon has a somewhat large movepool filled with many niche toys such as Taunt, Roost, Substitute, or Tailwind. These moves could be used on select teams.
• Although Choice Scarf is a subpar option, it does patch up Hydreigon's lacking Speed in exchange for its excellent versatility and wallbreaking prowess.

Checks & Counters
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• **Fairy-types**: Mega Mawile, Azumarill, and Clefable all OHKO Hydreigon with their STAB moves because it is 4x weak to their moves. Fairy-types resist Dark Pulse, are immune to Draco Meteor, and shrug off Fire Blast unless they are Mega Mawile! Fairy-type coverage is often enough as well.
  
• **Faster Pokemon**: Mega Lopunny, Mega Salamence, Mega Kangaskhan, Garchomp, Mega Blaziken, Greninja, amongst others are all able to KO Hydreigon. None of them like switching into Draco Meteor, however, but otherwise can revenge kill it.
• **Water-types**: Rotom-Wash, the aforementioned Azumarill, Suicune, and other Water-types often are bulky enough to take a Draco Meteor and are not weak to any of Hydreigon's move. They can hurt it in return with Ice Beam or Will-O-Wisp, in Rotom-Wash's case.
  
• **Priority**: Talonflame's Brave Bird, Klefki's Thunder Wave, and Mamoswine's Ice Shard are all troublesome for Hydreigon, which dislikes all of these. It's weak to common priority like Ice Shard and Mach Punch, while only being resistant to Sucker Punch and Aqua Jet. Hydreigon lacks the bulk to take these hits.

 

[skies]

This is now ready for QC!

 

[Jibaku]

Actually I'm p sure Scarf and Specs are the most common sets, taking advantage of Dark Pulse's spammability. You sure you don't want to list them?

In any case:
Modest > Naive and Focus Blast > Superpower. Superpower doesn't really hit much except for maybe Blissey. Focus Blast in the meantime can destroy Kangaskhan, Porygon2, and Heatran. Modest > Naive because LO's primary objective is to crush walls and they're all already slower than it, and base 98 Speed is awkward for +Speed purposes.

 

[skies]

Jibaku, I was speaking to Theorymon via IRC about this, and I'll add in the Specs set tomorrow and the Scarf set. I'm not a fan of the Scarf set tbh, but I'll add it regardless.

I'll change those natures + FBlast tomorrow as well.

 

[DragonWhale]

Yeah, while Life Orb Hydreigons do exist, most of them are either specs or scarfed. 98 speed puts it under common Pokemon like Mega Khangaskhan and (especially) MCX and Garchomp, so having a +speed nature doesn't help it where it really counts. Dark Pulse is spammable due to its few resistances, and you're usually not going to stay in after getting the sharp special attack drop from the Draco Meteor. It also has a lot of natural enemies as you mentioned, and so it's going to be switching in and out a lot.

Modest with scarf reaches a sky high 225 speed, which outspeeds even Mega Aerodactyl/Alakazam, and allows you to either nuke fast attackers with DM or spam DP (and there's the flinch chance as a bonus).

Specs pretty much allows zero switch-ins and hits extremely hard.
As a good example it can beat standard Suicune 1v1 with Draco Meteor even if it Calm Minds:
252+ SpA Choice Specs Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Suicune: 159-187 (76.8 - 90.3%)
-2 252+ SpA Choice Specs Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. +1 252 HP / 0 SpD Suicune: 54-64 (26 - 30.9%)
It also guarantee 2HKOs leftovers Ferrothorn with Dark Pulse if it has little to no SpD investment, allowing its spammability.
For a pokemon that switches in and out a lot during a battle, Life Orb recoil sometimes makes it hard for Hydreigon to keep the cycle going since it reduces its longevity to switch into incoming attacks.

While Chansey/Blissey are annoying without Superpower, it's a really narrow target. While it does hit Heatran and other Pokemon hard, Hydreigon does suffer from the defense drops and Earth Power is usually the preferred option for Tran (and for electric types like Manectric).

 

[Hulavuta]

Okay, I play a lot with Hydreigon so I've got some things to add.

First just some general comments for you unfixable:

This seems awfully like you just copied over the Smogon UU set. I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt but just keep in mind that Battle Spot is a quite different metagame and you need to play on the 3DS to get the full experience since that's where the real metagame is. It's definitely important to play on your own, but also consult the Pokemon stats here: http://3ds.pokemon-gl.com/battle/oras/ to see what is popular and most used. For the most part it does correlate with what is good.

Specs absolutely needs to be the first set no question, it's undeniably the best set. I won't get too much into it 'cause DragonWhale covered it mostly. Modest is the best nature for it because speed tiers aren't quite as important in 3v3s (Pokemon tend to have huge differences in speed for the most part) and it really likes the power. Timid does deserve a mention though, just make sure you list what benefits it gets over Modest.

I'm not a fan of Scarf either, but it is high in usage so I guess it deserves a mention. When you add this set, make sure you list specific Pokemon that Hydreigon is now able to outspeed and kill that it wouldn't before.

Superpower is pretty niche and doesn't do much to Chansey or Blissey.

0 Atk Hydreigon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Blissey: 168-198 (46.4 - 54.6%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

Against Chansey even with max attack:

252 Atk Hydreigon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Chansey: 154-182 (43.1 - 50.9%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO

These two aren't too common either, so you should just say that you should bring a teammate to deal with them.

I would not say any sort of fighting move is necessary as Dark Pulse 2HKOs pretty much every Steel-type. Dark Pulse beats Heatran already, and if it's really a huge issue, Earth Power is a much better option. I'd say you can still list Focus Blast as an option though, since Jibaku says it's good against Normal-types. It also gets 24% usage so I'm sure a lot of players agree.

As for Fairies, I'd say get rid of Iron Tail and replace it with Flash Cannon. You can also use U-turn (even on Specs) to switch out into a partner that can deal with Fairies. Speaking of partners, you should add Mega Venusaur, as it handles Fairies like Sylveon and Azumarill pretty well.

For checks and counters:

I'd get rid of Rotom-W honestly. In fact I'd go as far as to say it's the other way around and Hydreigon actually counters Rotom. Rotom can't really do anything to Hydreigon and Hydreigon outspeeds and resists Electric and Water, while not caring about burns due to being special-attacking. Draco Meteor is an OHKO and Dark Pulse is a 2HKO on the most common Rotom sets. Only specially defensive ones can survive but it's still nowhere near a check.

Add Lucario and Blaziken imo, as they can come in on the popular Dark Pulse spam move. This lets them have a free set-up too against specs.

That's all I've got for now! Just remember you can check most commonly used moves, natures, items, teammates, and counters on the PGL site! Very useful!

 

[cant say]

Life Orb was only used on 10% of Hydreigon last season (and 9% this season - only a week though) so I don't like it being the one and only set, I would much prefer it as an OO mention tbqh. Specs Draco Meteor is the main draw to this guy, as well as Dark Pulse's great coverage and spammability. Even Scarf is way more popular than LO, if that gets a set then I'd like to see U-turn slashed in.

You mention Iron Tail to take out fairies, but he has access to Flash Cannon, so that should obviously get a mention on the Specs set

Also, he really benefits from a +SpA nature rather than a +Spe one, since base 98 is pretty awkward and so you should just pump up DM's power as much as possible.

I don't wanna say too much coz I know Hulavuta is the Hydreigon expert, so I'll wait to see what he says :)

edit: ninja'd by the guy himself

 

[skies]

Yeah, while Life Orb Hydreigons do exist, most of them are either specs or scarfed. 98 speed puts it under common Pokemon like Mega Khangaskhan and (especially) MCX and Garchomp, so having a +speed nature doesn't help it where it really counts. Dark Pulse is spammable due to its few resistances, and you're usually not going to stay in after getting the sharp special attack drop from the Draco Meteor. It also has a lot of natural enemies as you mentioned, and so it's going to be switching in and out a lot.

Modest with scarf reaches a sky high 225 speed, which outspeeds even Mega Aerodactyl/Alakazam, and allows you to either nuke fast attackers with DM or spam DP (and there's the flinch chance as a bonus).

Specs pretty much allows zero switch-ins and hits extremely hard.
As a good example it can beat standard Suicune 1v1 with Draco Meteor even if it Calm Minds:
252+ SpA Choice Specs Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Suicune: 159-187 (76.8 - 90.3%)
-2 252+ SpA Choice Specs Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. +1 252 HP / 0 SpD Suicune: 54-64 (26 - 30.9%)
It also guarantee 2HKOs leftovers Ferrothorn with Dark Pulse if it has little to no SpD investment, allowing its spammability.
For a pokemon that switches in and out a lot during a battle, Life Orb recoil sometimes makes it hard for Hydreigon to keep the cycle going since it reduces its longevity to switch into incoming attacks.

While Chansey/Blissey are annoying without Superpower, it's a really narrow target. While it does hit Heatran and other Pokemon hard, Hydreigon does suffer from the defense drops and Earth Power is usually the preferred option for Tran (and for electric types like Manectric).

Alright, thank you.

Okay, I play a lot with Hydreigon so I've got some things to add.

First just some general comments for you unfixable:

This seems awfully like you just copied over the Smogon UU set. I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt but just keep in mind that Battle Spot is a quite different metagame and you need to play on the 3DS to get the full experience since that's where the real metagame is. It's definitely important to play on your own, but also consult the Pokemon stats here: http://3ds.pokemon-gl.com/battle/oras/ to see what is popular and most used. For the most part it does correlate with what is good.

Specs absolutely needs to be the first set no question, it's undeniably the best set. I won't get too much into it 'cause DragonWhale covered it mostly. Modest is the best nature for it because speed tiers aren't quite as important in 3v3s (Pokemon tend to have huge differences in speed for the most part) and it really likes the power. Timid does deserve a mention though, just make sure you list what benefits it gets over Modest.

I'm not a fan of Scarf either, but it is high in usage so I guess it deserves a mention. When you add this set, make sure you list specific Pokemon that Hydreigon is now able to outspeed and kill that it wouldn't before.

Superpower is pretty niche and doesn't do much to Chansey or Blissey.

0 Atk Hydreigon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Blissey: 168-198 (46.4 - 54.6%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

Against Chansey even with max attack:

252 Atk Hydreigon Superpower vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Chansey: 154-182 (43.1 - 50.9%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO

These two aren't too common either, so you should just say that you should bring a teammate to deal with them.

I would not say any sort of fighting move is necessary as Dark Pulse 2HKOs pretty much every Steel-type. Dark Pulse beats Heatran already, and if it's really a huge issue, Earth Power is a much better option. I'd say you can still list Focus Blast as an option though, since Jibaku says it's good against Normal-types. It also gets 24% usage so I'm sure a lot of players agree.

As for Fairies, I'd say get rid of Iron Tail and replace it with Flash Cannon. You can also use U-turn (even on Specs) to switch out into a partner that can deal with Fairies. Speaking of partners, you should add Mega Venusaur, as it handles Fairies like Sylveon and Azumarill pretty well.

For checks and counters:

I'd get rid of Rotom-W honestly. In fact I'd go as far as to say it's the other way around and Hydreigon actually counters Rotom. Rotom can't really do anything to Hydreigon and Hydreigon outspeeds and resists Electric and Water, while not caring about burns due to being special-attacking. Draco Meteor is an OHKO and Dark Pulse is a 2HKO on the most common Rotom sets. Only specially defensive ones can survive but it's still nowhere near a check.

Add Lucario and Blaziken imo, as they can come in on the popular Dark Pulse spam move. This lets them have a free set-up too against specs.

That's all I've got for now! Just remember you can check most commonly used moves, natures, items, teammates, and counters on the PGL site! Very useful!

Hm, I didn't copy this over from any UU set o.o I've got to admit, however, I've only been playing on Showdown! so far, I don't have ORAS to actually play in-game, nor the time to get all of these Pokemon.

Okay, I'll add the Specs set after I playtest with it today for awhile so I can get a grasp for it. Doesn't seem too hard; click Dark Pulse and then something is smacked!

Again, I need to use the Scarf set more as well. I've really only been using Life Orb!

Edited that.

On the Choice sets, I'd assume? Or the Life Orb one? Either way, I'll be sure to mention how Dark Pulse 2HKOes most Steel-types in both.

After running the calcs with it, I now see Iron Tail is very inferior to Flash Cannon u_u!

Removed Rotom-Wash.

Added both Lucario and Blaziken.

Thank you for the in-depth check, Hula n_n.

 

[Hulavuta]

unfixable is giving this to me, so I guess I'll move it to the locked analyses.