QC: Nails, zdrup15, windsong
GP: shakeitup, Omicron
[Overview]
<p>Magmortar is an interesting Pokemon in RU, boasting a huge base 125 Special Attack stat with which to fire off its powerful STAB Fire-type attacks. Its movepool is incredibly diverse, as almost all Pokemon are hit for super effective damage by one move or another. As if that weren't enough, Magmortar also boasts a solid base 95 Attack stat with which it can threaten special walls. Furthermore, it can act as a check to one of the most threatening Pokemon in the tier, Lilligant, especially since Magmortar is immune to her deadly Sleep Powder due to its Dream World ability: Vital Spirit.</p>
<p>However, with all these blessings come some serious downsides for Magmortar. While its Fire typing is great offensively, it also curses Magmortar with a Stealth Rock weakness that is heightened further by its vulnerability to both types of Spikes. It also suffers from weaknesses to the common Water- and Ground-type moves that will quickly snuff out Magmortar's flame. These weaknesses would be of little danger, but unfortunately, Magmortar is hindered by its average-at-best base 83 Speed stat, meaning that it can easily be taken advantage of by faster Pokemon and Choice Scarf users. Despite these faults, Magmortar is a very powerful and unpredictable attacker, and it is capable of running multiple threatening sets that will punish you, should you fail to prepare for it.</p>
[SET]
name: Offensive
move1: Fire Blast
move2: Thunderbolt
move3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb / Choice Scarf
ability: Vital Spirit
nature: Timid
evs: 24 HP / 252 SpA / 232 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Magmortar's most common set uses its great movepool diversity in order to overwhelm your opponent with a plethora of special attacks. Depending on whether Magmortar chooses to use a Life Orb or a Choice Scarf, it becomes either a brutally powerful attacking force, or an extremely dangerous revenge killer. Fire Blast is nearly unwallable due to the sheer power it presents, hitting the majority of RU for neutral or super effective coverage. What Fire Blast fails to hit gets destroyed by Thunderbolt; for example, crippling the many Water-types that would attempt to douse Magmortar. Focus Blast, despite its unreliability, makes an appearance in order to remove the bulky Rock-type Pokemon, such as Eviolite Rhydon, who otherwise resists Magmortar's STAB. Despite Magmortar's wide range ofmoves, there are still a select few Pokemon that can beat it, so Hidden Power Grass ensures that Quagsire and Lanturn are OHKOed and 2HKOed, respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Timid is the only nature that is viable for Magmortar here, as with it, and with the given EVs, Magmortar is able to outrun all Pokemon with base 80 Speed or less; it also lets Magmortar outrun the rare Adamant Krookodile. The other EVs maximize Magmortar's offenses, and also provides a small amount of bulk in order to take hits better. Vital Spirit, as previously mentioned, allows Magmortar to switch into Lilligant with impunity, as not only is it immune to Sleep Powder, but a +1 Hidden Power Rock will always fail to OHKO Magmortar; Magmortar can then use Fire Blast for the OHKO in return.<p>
<p>A major drawback of using this variant of Magmortar is its vulnerability to entry hazards; a full array of hazards will strip Magmortar of a full 50% of its health, as well as badly poisoning it, each time it enters the field. For this reason, Rapid Spin support in the form of Cryogonal or Claydol is greatly appreciated, not only to remove entry hazards, but to take the common Water-, Rock-, and Ground-type attacks aimed at Magmortar. Claydol is particularly notable for its abilty to set up Stealth Rock, a trait Sandslash also shares; this is important because of the difficulty Magmortar has with breaking through bulky Fire-type Pokemon, Stealth Rock limiting their ability to switch in. Grass-type Pokemon such as Lilligant are also helpful for their ability to easily switch into opposing Ground- or Water-type Pokemon, with Magmortar being able to switch into Bug-type attacks in return.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move1: Fire Blast
move2: Cross Chop
move3: Thunderbolt
move4: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Ice
item: Life Orb
ability: Vital Spirit
nature: Naive / Hasty
evs: 24 Atk / 252 SpA / 232 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Unlike the previous set, this incarnation of Magmortar looks to capatalize on its ability to reliably 2HKO most of the defensive Pokemon in the tier with its decent Attack stat. Most notable of these walls are Munchlax and Clefable, both of which are special walls that would ordinarily stop Magmortar, but are easily 2HKOed by Cross Chop. All wallbreakers need a high powered STAB option to strike fear into opponents and Fire Blast fits that bill, being the strongest option against Pokemon such as Claydol or Steelix. Thunderbolt lets Magmortar easily break through bulky Waters, particularly Alomomola and Qwilfish. The choice of Hidden Power varies depending on the defensive threat that plagues your team the most. If Quagsire is of particular concern, Hidden Power Grass is the preferred option. Likewise, if Altaria grinds your gears, then Hidden Power Ice knocks it out of the sky.<p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Despite the ability to 2HKO most Pokemon, Magmortar is still hamstrung by its average Speed stat, making it prone to being revenge killed. Even when running enough Speed to outspeed unboosted base 80 Speed Pokemon, paralysis and entry hazard support from Pokemon like Qwilfish are greatly appreciated. The remaining EVs are allocated to provide maximum power, the Attack EVs in particular ensuring KOs on Munchlax and Clefable. The choice between a Naive or Hasty nature is one of preference, and since both ensure that Magmortar's Attack is unaffected, the decision depends on whether you want it to be less susceptible to priority attacks, or whether its good special bulk is to be used. Life Orb is crucial in obtaining those 2HKOs and retaining the ability to switch moves. Even more so than the previous set, this set appreciates Rapid Spin support. Magmortar will be taking plenty of residual damage between entry hazards and Life Orb recoil, so having a Rapid Spinner or a Wish user is a smart choice.
[Other Options]
<p>Because of Magmortar's diverse movepool, there are a variety of different options available to it. An Expert Belt can be used in place of Life Orb to feign a Choice item, thus being able to switch moves at the crucial moment to gain a KO. Magmortar is capable of running a physical moveset consisting of Flare Blitz, Earthquake, Cross Chop and Thunderpunch, with Fire Punch and Rock Slide also being options. Despite the power loss, this carries a huge level of unpredictability that can serve Magmortar well. Flamethrower can be used in place of Fire Blast as the safer, more accurate option, but the power drop is particularly noticeable. Psychic is a nice option on special sets, and allows Magmortar to easily beat Poison- and Fighting-type Pokemon. Mach Punch is notable as Magmortar's only form of priority. Despite its low Base Power, it can be used to ensure that Magmortar is not revenge killed by the likes of Krookodile. With Magmortar's low base Speed, Flame Charge is a unique option to rectify that issue, boosting its Speed while doing damage at the same time, although the low Base Power may be a turn-off for some. Taunt is a useful option to hinder defensively oriented teams, as there are some Pokemon such as Uxie that would relish the oppurtunity to set up hazards as Magmortar switches out. In addition to the mixed set, Magmortar is also capable of utilizing the SubPunch strategy fairly well, which both eases prediction and provides a platform for the powerful Focus Punch. Unfortunately, this is not a great choice as it only exacerbates the issues Magmortar has with residual damage from entry hazards and the like.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>With Magmortar's huge versatility and high power level, it is difficult to find many true checks and counters to it. Munchlax is capable of walling any special attack Magmortar may carry, but will always lose if it carries a Fighting-type attack. Slowking checks Magmortar well, threatening it with STAB super effective Scalds, but finds it difficult to take repeated Thunderbolts if you can predict correctly. Speaking of entry hazards, they make Magmortar cry, as it is vulnerable to all forms of them. Pokemon such as Rotom and Scarf Krookodile can easily outspeed and KO Magmortar, but a Pokemon is capable of outspeeding it usually finds it extremely difficult to switch into an attack. Lanturn and Altaria are capable of taking most of Magmortar's attacks, especially since they both resist Fire Blast, but are each 2HKOed by Hidden Power Grass and Ice, respectively, making them only tentative checks at best.</p>
GP: shakeitup, Omicron
[Overview]
<p>Magmortar is an interesting Pokemon in RU, boasting a huge base 125 Special Attack stat with which to fire off its powerful STAB Fire-type attacks. Its movepool is incredibly diverse, as almost all Pokemon are hit for super effective damage by one move or another. As if that weren't enough, Magmortar also boasts a solid base 95 Attack stat with which it can threaten special walls. Furthermore, it can act as a check to one of the most threatening Pokemon in the tier, Lilligant, especially since Magmortar is immune to her deadly Sleep Powder due to its Dream World ability: Vital Spirit.</p>
<p>However, with all these blessings come some serious downsides for Magmortar. While its Fire typing is great offensively, it also curses Magmortar with a Stealth Rock weakness that is heightened further by its vulnerability to both types of Spikes. It also suffers from weaknesses to the common Water- and Ground-type moves that will quickly snuff out Magmortar's flame. These weaknesses would be of little danger, but unfortunately, Magmortar is hindered by its average-at-best base 83 Speed stat, meaning that it can easily be taken advantage of by faster Pokemon and Choice Scarf users. Despite these faults, Magmortar is a very powerful and unpredictable attacker, and it is capable of running multiple threatening sets that will punish you, should you fail to prepare for it.</p>
[SET]
name: Offensive
move1: Fire Blast
move2: Thunderbolt
move3: Focus Blast
move 4: Hidden Power Grass
item: Life Orb / Choice Scarf
ability: Vital Spirit
nature: Timid
evs: 24 HP / 252 SpA / 232 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Magmortar's most common set uses its great movepool diversity in order to overwhelm your opponent with a plethora of special attacks. Depending on whether Magmortar chooses to use a Life Orb or a Choice Scarf, it becomes either a brutally powerful attacking force, or an extremely dangerous revenge killer. Fire Blast is nearly unwallable due to the sheer power it presents, hitting the majority of RU for neutral or super effective coverage. What Fire Blast fails to hit gets destroyed by Thunderbolt; for example, crippling the many Water-types that would attempt to douse Magmortar. Focus Blast, despite its unreliability, makes an appearance in order to remove the bulky Rock-type Pokemon, such as Eviolite Rhydon, who otherwise resists Magmortar's STAB. Despite Magmortar's wide range ofmoves, there are still a select few Pokemon that can beat it, so Hidden Power Grass ensures that Quagsire and Lanturn are OHKOed and 2HKOed, respectively.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Timid is the only nature that is viable for Magmortar here, as with it, and with the given EVs, Magmortar is able to outrun all Pokemon with base 80 Speed or less; it also lets Magmortar outrun the rare Adamant Krookodile. The other EVs maximize Magmortar's offenses, and also provides a small amount of bulk in order to take hits better. Vital Spirit, as previously mentioned, allows Magmortar to switch into Lilligant with impunity, as not only is it immune to Sleep Powder, but a +1 Hidden Power Rock will always fail to OHKO Magmortar; Magmortar can then use Fire Blast for the OHKO in return.<p>
<p>A major drawback of using this variant of Magmortar is its vulnerability to entry hazards; a full array of hazards will strip Magmortar of a full 50% of its health, as well as badly poisoning it, each time it enters the field. For this reason, Rapid Spin support in the form of Cryogonal or Claydol is greatly appreciated, not only to remove entry hazards, but to take the common Water-, Rock-, and Ground-type attacks aimed at Magmortar. Claydol is particularly notable for its abilty to set up Stealth Rock, a trait Sandslash also shares; this is important because of the difficulty Magmortar has with breaking through bulky Fire-type Pokemon, Stealth Rock limiting their ability to switch in. Grass-type Pokemon such as Lilligant are also helpful for their ability to easily switch into opposing Ground- or Water-type Pokemon, with Magmortar being able to switch into Bug-type attacks in return.</p>
[SET]
name: Mixed Attacker
move1: Fire Blast
move2: Cross Chop
move3: Thunderbolt
move4: Hidden Power Grass / Hidden Power Ice
item: Life Orb
ability: Vital Spirit
nature: Naive / Hasty
evs: 24 Atk / 252 SpA / 232 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>Unlike the previous set, this incarnation of Magmortar looks to capatalize on its ability to reliably 2HKO most of the defensive Pokemon in the tier with its decent Attack stat. Most notable of these walls are Munchlax and Clefable, both of which are special walls that would ordinarily stop Magmortar, but are easily 2HKOed by Cross Chop. All wallbreakers need a high powered STAB option to strike fear into opponents and Fire Blast fits that bill, being the strongest option against Pokemon such as Claydol or Steelix. Thunderbolt lets Magmortar easily break through bulky Waters, particularly Alomomola and Qwilfish. The choice of Hidden Power varies depending on the defensive threat that plagues your team the most. If Quagsire is of particular concern, Hidden Power Grass is the preferred option. Likewise, if Altaria grinds your gears, then Hidden Power Ice knocks it out of the sky.<p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>Despite the ability to 2HKO most Pokemon, Magmortar is still hamstrung by its average Speed stat, making it prone to being revenge killed. Even when running enough Speed to outspeed unboosted base 80 Speed Pokemon, paralysis and entry hazard support from Pokemon like Qwilfish are greatly appreciated. The remaining EVs are allocated to provide maximum power, the Attack EVs in particular ensuring KOs on Munchlax and Clefable. The choice between a Naive or Hasty nature is one of preference, and since both ensure that Magmortar's Attack is unaffected, the decision depends on whether you want it to be less susceptible to priority attacks, or whether its good special bulk is to be used. Life Orb is crucial in obtaining those 2HKOs and retaining the ability to switch moves. Even more so than the previous set, this set appreciates Rapid Spin support. Magmortar will be taking plenty of residual damage between entry hazards and Life Orb recoil, so having a Rapid Spinner or a Wish user is a smart choice.
[Other Options]
<p>Because of Magmortar's diverse movepool, there are a variety of different options available to it. An Expert Belt can be used in place of Life Orb to feign a Choice item, thus being able to switch moves at the crucial moment to gain a KO. Magmortar is capable of running a physical moveset consisting of Flare Blitz, Earthquake, Cross Chop and Thunderpunch, with Fire Punch and Rock Slide also being options. Despite the power loss, this carries a huge level of unpredictability that can serve Magmortar well. Flamethrower can be used in place of Fire Blast as the safer, more accurate option, but the power drop is particularly noticeable. Psychic is a nice option on special sets, and allows Magmortar to easily beat Poison- and Fighting-type Pokemon. Mach Punch is notable as Magmortar's only form of priority. Despite its low Base Power, it can be used to ensure that Magmortar is not revenge killed by the likes of Krookodile. With Magmortar's low base Speed, Flame Charge is a unique option to rectify that issue, boosting its Speed while doing damage at the same time, although the low Base Power may be a turn-off for some. Taunt is a useful option to hinder defensively oriented teams, as there are some Pokemon such as Uxie that would relish the oppurtunity to set up hazards as Magmortar switches out. In addition to the mixed set, Magmortar is also capable of utilizing the SubPunch strategy fairly well, which both eases prediction and provides a platform for the powerful Focus Punch. Unfortunately, this is not a great choice as it only exacerbates the issues Magmortar has with residual damage from entry hazards and the like.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>With Magmortar's huge versatility and high power level, it is difficult to find many true checks and counters to it. Munchlax is capable of walling any special attack Magmortar may carry, but will always lose if it carries a Fighting-type attack. Slowking checks Magmortar well, threatening it with STAB super effective Scalds, but finds it difficult to take repeated Thunderbolts if you can predict correctly. Speaking of entry hazards, they make Magmortar cry, as it is vulnerable to all forms of them. Pokemon such as Rotom and Scarf Krookodile can easily outspeed and KO Magmortar, but a Pokemon is capable of outspeeding it usually finds it extremely difficult to switch into an attack. Lanturn and Altaria are capable of taking most of Magmortar's attacks, especially since they both resist Fire Blast, but are each 2HKOed by Hidden Power Grass and Ice, respectively, making them only tentative checks at best.</p>
