QC 3/3 (sparktrain, HeaLnDeaL, sparktrain)
GP 2/2 (P Squared, Haund)
[OVERVIEW]
Mega Lopunny's high Speed, good Attack stat, and near-flawless coverage between its Fighting- and Normal-type STAB moves allow the punching bunny to act as a powerful offensive Pokemon. Scrappy is the icing on the cake for Mega Lopunny, allowing it to have perfect neutral coverage through its STAB moves alone and easing the pressure Ghost-types such as Gengar, Kitsunoh, and Mega Sableye traditionally put on High Jump Kick users. Mega Lopunny's great Speed allows it to heavily threaten offensive teams by outspeeding and heavily damaging many of the fast, frail Pokemon offensive teams utilize, such as Syclant, Weavile, and even Mega Diancie. Mega Lopunny also has access to a variety of support moves, such as Healing Wish and Encore, that allows it to pressure defensive Pokemon and gives some manner of unpredictability to its sets, and it even has access to a decently powerful STAB Fake Out to help it safely Mega Evolve and to pick up chip damage on frailer Pokemon. Unfortunately, lackluster defenses prior to and after Mega Evolution hamper Mega Lopunny's ability to switch into Pokemon. Mega Lopunny also has trouble breaking through physical walls such as Tomohawk, Cyclohm, and Skarmory, and its dependence on High Jump Kick and its general hit-and-run nature leave it susceptible to being worn down through chip and recoil damage.
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: High Jump Kick
move 2: Return
move 3: Fake Out
move 4: Ice Punch / Baton Pass / Power-Up Punch
item: Lopunnite
ability: Limber
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=====
High Jump Kick is Mega Lopunny's most powerful STAB move and allows it to OHKO frailer Pokemon such as Stratagem, Weavile, Colossoil, and even Mega Diancie after Stealth Rock, as well as 2HKO neutral targets such as Mega Metagross. Unfortunately, High Jump Kick's recoil damage puts Mega Lopunny at a disadvantage against Protect users and severely punishes the user for missing, often at crucial moments in a match. Return is Mega Lopunny's most reliable Normal-type STAB move and allows it to hit Pokemon that resist Fighting such as Tornadus-T, Latios, and Mollux. Return's perfect accuracy also allows it to be used over High Jump Kick when the potential miss and accompanying recoil damage are not acceptable. Scrappy also gives Return perfect coverage in conjunction with High Jump Kick. Fake Out allows Mega Lopunny to safely Mega Evolve and notably to get the advantage on initially faster Pokemon such as Tornadus-T and Stratagem. Ice Punch is the most useful option for allowing Mega Lopunny to get past bulky Ground-types such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Gliscor, which would otherwise be able to take a hit and deal major damage to Mega Lopunny in return. Baton Pass can be used instead to create momentum for Mega Lopunny and eases prediction against the opponent, especially during switches. Baton Pass benefits from Mega Lopunny's high Speed, often allowing it to switch out before the opposing Pokemon can act. If neither option appeals to you, Power-Up Punch can be used to boost Mega Lopunny's Attack during the switches Mega Lopunny can create, as well as when it revenge kills weakened Pokemon. The Attack boost allows Mega Lopunny to break through defensive Pokemon, such as Hippowdon, more easily and sweep frailer Pokemon with ease. Additionally, Mega Lopunny can make use of Drain Punch, Encore, and Healing Wish effectively. Those moves also give it a safe option to use against Protect users such as Heatran. Drain Punch helps lengthen Mega Lopunny's longevity and offset chip and recoil damage. Encore puts more pressure on defensive Pokemon, allowing Mega Lopunny to lock would-be checks such as Tomohawk into support moves such as Stealth Rock. Healing Wish allows Mega Lopunny to give another Pokemon, such as Aurumoth, Mega Metagross, or Manaphy, a chance to clinch the game through fully healing them at the cost of its own life.
Set Details
=====
Limber is the least situtational of Lopunny's abilities and allows Mega Lopunny to shrug off paralysis pre-Mega Evolution, notably switching into Chansey's Thunder Wave or safely accumulating Power-Up Punch boosts on Static Cyclohm. The EV spread and Jolly nature are used to maximize Mega Lopunny's Attack and Speed to ensure its effectiveness as a revenge killer, giving it the Speed to outpace Stratagem, Syclant, Tornadus-T, and other prominent fast threats. Adamant is an option to pick up some notable KOs, such as a chance to 2HKO Clefable, a chance to OHKO Ferrothorn after Stealth Rock, and high chances of 2HKOing both Pyroak and Sylveon after Stealth Rock damage. Mega Lopunny will be able to outpace Jolly Cawmodore and below, but it is unable to revenge kill anything faster, such as Tornadus-T, Stratagem, and Syclant.
Usage Tips
=====
Exercise caution against Pokemon that commonly use Protect, such as Heatran, Mega Diancie, Ferrothorn, and Chansey. Mega Lopunny functions best on and against offensive teams due to its high Speed and Base Power of its STAB moves. Try to conserve Mega Lopunny's health for as long as possible; don't use High Jump Kick when Return would suffice and try not to switch it in needlessly. Use Fake Out when opportune, be careful if the opponent has a contact-punishing Pokemon such as Garchomp or Rocky Helmet Tomohawk. Fake Out also has utility for spreading chip damage and helping put threats such as Aurumoth and Mega Charizard X into revenge killing range. Keeping Mega Lopunny's last moveslot unknown for as long as possible can allow you to surprise the opponent. If common switch-ins to Mega Lopunny, such as Tomohawk and Cyclohm, are still healthy, a quick Baton Pass into a special attacker such Volcanion can swing the match's momentum towards you. Encore can be used to take advantage of Mega Lopunny's sole immunity by locking Pokemon into Ghost-type moves. Healing Wish is best used when Mega Lopunny is weakened and would be unable to achieve anything more for its team.
Team Options
=====
This set functions best with Pokemon that can handle common priority users, specifically Talonflame, such as tank Garchomp. Garchomp and other Stealth Rock setters are also vital teammates for Mega Lopunny, as it helps secure KOs against Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Tornadus-T, as well as pressuring Talonflame through Stealth Rock and Fake Out damage. Steel-types, such as Heatran and Scizor, can help handle Psychic- and Fairy-type Pokemon that threaten Mega Lopunny. Pokemon that resist Fighting synergize well with both Mega Lopunny and Steel-types to help handle their shared Fighting-type weakness. Tomohawk in particular can handily check the majority of Fighting-types while offering hazard control or the ability to weaken Fighting-resistant Pokemon, such as Clefable, on the opposing team. Clerics such as Clefable, Pyroak, and Cyclohm can help keep Mega Lopunny healthy and remove unwanted paralysis or burns through Heal Bell support. Wallbreakers such as Manaphy, Aurumoth, and Kyurem-B can soften up defensive cores for Mega Lopunny to break through later, and in return they appreciate Mega Lopunny's ability to handle faster offensive threats. Offensive Plasmanta sets are able to power through common Lopunny checks such as Tomohawk, Cyclohm, Skarmory, Pyroak, and Clefable with ease, and they are also able to lure bulky Ground-types such as Landorus-T and Garchomp and surprise them with Hidden Power Ice, or in Garchomp's case, Dazzling Gleam. Mega Lopunny is able to threaten faster Pokemon that trouble Plasmanta and can remove Chansey as well.
[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Substitute
move 2: High Jump Kick / Drain Punch
move 3: Return
move 4: Baton Pass / Encore
item: Lopunnite
ability: Limber
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=====
Substitute gives Mega Lopunny a way to get past status and punish switch-ins and synergizes well with both Baton Pass and Encore. High Jump Kick is Mega Lopunny's most powerful STAB move and helps break through Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Mega Metagross, and it best allows Mega Lopunny to punish switch-ins after a Substitute. Drain Punch can be used over High Jump Kick to prolong Mega Lopunny's Substitute-creating ability at a significant cost of power. It also doesn't miss, which makes it a more reliable option versus Pokemon such as Heatran and Ferrothorn. Return is Mega Lopunny's more reliable Normal-type STAB move and helps get past Fighting-resistant foes such as Tornadus-T and Latios. Its also perfectly accurate, which is useful in cases where High Jump Kick's potential for missing is unacceptable. In the last moveslot, Baton Pass or Encore is used to make the best use of Mega Lopunny's Substitute. Baton Pass helps ease predictions against the opponent and has great synergy with Substitute, potentially giving a teammate a free switch or turn to set up. Encore allows Mega Lopunny to pressure defensive Pokemon, notably locking them into a status move once a Substitute is up, allowing Mega Lopunny to create free turns. Encore also creates setup opportunities for Substitute. Fake Out and Ice Punch can be used to allow Mega Lopunny to take up a more offensive role, focusing on punishing switch-ins over crippling defensive Pokemon. Fake Out allows Mega Lopunny to bypass the downsides of the Mega Evolution turn as well as deal chip damage throughout the match. It also helps Mega Lopunny revenge kill opposing weakened Pokemon. Ice Punch allows Mega Lopunny to blow past bulky Ground-types that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Gliscor.
Set Details
=====
Limber is the least situtational of Lopunny's abilities and allows Mega Lopunny to shrug off paralysis pre-Mega Evolution. This is notable in a select few instances, mainly switching into Chansey's Thunder Wave or safely accumulating Power-Up Punch boosts on Static Cyclohm. The EV spread and Jolly nature are used to maximize Mega Lopunny's Attack and Speed to ensure its effectiveness as a revenge killer. HP is kept indivisible by four to maximize Substitute chances.
Usage Tips
=====
This set functions well against stall teams by taking advantage of their attempts to status Mega Lopunny. Mega Lopunny functions best on offensive teams due to its high Attack and Speed. These attributes also allow it to threaten offensive teams effectively. Don't be careless with Substitute; use it sparingly and only in situations where the advantages of creating the Substitute overshadow the potential damage Mega Lopunny can deal that turn. That said, use Substitute on predicted switches or status moves. Exercise caution with High Jump Kick against Pokemon that commonly run Protect, such as Heatran, Ferrothorn, Mega Diancie, and Chansey. It's very important to try to conserve Mega Lopunny's health so that it can create a Substitute, so be cautious using Fake Out against teams with contact-punishing Pokemon such as Garchomp, and try not to switch Mega Lopunny in needlessly.
Team Options
=====
Pokemon that can handle common priority users, specifically Talonflame, such as Garchomp, are essential for Mega Lopunny. Stealth Rock setters such as Garchomp are also vital teammates for Mega Lopunny, as it helps secure KOs against Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Tornadus-T, as well as pressuring Talonflame through Stealth Rock and Fake Out damage. Steel-types, such as Heatran and Scizor, can help handle Psychic- and Fairy-type Pokemon that threaten Mega Lopunny. Pokemon that resist Fighting work well with both Mega Lopunny and Steel-types to help handle their shared Fighting-type weakness. Tomohawk in particular can handily check the majority of Fighting-types while offering hazard control or the ability to weaken Fighting-resistant Pokemon, such as Mega Altaria, on the opposing team. Clerics such as Clefable, Pyroak, and Cyclohm can help keep Mega Lopunny healthy and remove unwanted paralysis or burns through Heal Bell and Wish support. Wallbreakers such as Manaphy, Aurumoth, and Kyurem-B can soften up defensive cores for Mega Lopunny to break through later, and in return they appreciate Mega Lopunny's ability to handle faster offensive threats such as Stratagem, as well as Mega Lopunny's potential for passing them Substitutes. Offensive Plasmanta sets are able to power through common Lopunny checks such as Tomohawk, Cyclohm, Skarmory, Pyroak, and Clefable with ease, and they are able to lure bulky Ground-types such as Landorus-T and Garchomp and surprise them with Hidden Power Ice, or in Garchomp's case, Dazzling Gleam. Mega Lopunny is able to threaten faster Pokemon that trouble Plasmanta as well as Chansey, and it is also able to pass Plasmanta Substitutes to get it in more safely.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
===================
Toxic is an option to better punish defensive Pokemon such as Tomohawk and Pyroak, and Mega Lopunny can stall out additional turns of Toxic damage through Substitute. Quick Attack can be used in conjunction with Fake Out to allow Mega Lopunny to more effectively deal chip damage to frailer Pokemon and to soften up threatening sweepers for more effective revenge killers such as Talonflame, at the cost of the opportunities to steal momentum the other moves create. Fake Out plus Quick Attack is also able to KO Talonflame after Stealth Rock. Heal Bell can be used in the last moveslot to give an offensive team some way to reset status, but it is limited in effectiveness by Mega Lopunny's frailness. Thunder Wave can be used in conjunction with Mega Lopunny's high Speed to cripple setup sweepers such as Mega Charizard X and Aurumoth, but it is overshadowed in this respect by Thundurus or even Tomohawk, both of which can neuter Pokemon after they've set up. Mega Lopunny is also considerably frail and would have to exercise caution using Thunder Wave. Facade is an option for use in situations where Mega Lopunny is statused, such as from Scald or Static, but it is situational. Substitute plus Endeavor is able to wear down bulky Pokemon that Lopunny would otherwise be unable to touch, allowing teammates to power through them later in the match.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Pokemon**: Faster Pokemon, such as Talonflame, Mega Alakazam, and Choice Scarf users such as Mollux, Volkraken, Keldeo, and Volcanion, can all outspeed and KO or heavily damage Mega Lopunny. They have trouble switching in or taking repeated Fake Outs, though.
**Physical Walls**: Physical walls such as Tomohawk, Pyroak, Hippowdon, and Cyclohm can all shrug off Mega Lopunny's attacks and retaliate with their STAB moves or set up utility moves such as Stealth Rock or recovery moves on Mega Lopunny, but they must be wary of Encore and Toxic. Power-Up Punch also allows Mega Lopunny to threaten all of these Pokemon save Tomohawk, which can outdamage Mega Lopunny no matter what or just as easily remove its boosts with Haze.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-types such as Clefable and Mega Altaria resist Mega Lopunny's main STAB move and can all take a hit and OHKO with their Fairy STAB move of choice.
**Flying-types**: Flying-types such as Mega Pinsir, Tornadus-T, and Talonflame all heavily threaten Mega Lopunny with their STAB moves, but they have trouble switching into Mega Lopunny, especially if Stealth Rock is up. Mega Pinsir and Talonflame deserve a mention for being able to threaten Mega Lopunny directly with their powerful priority.
**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types such as Aurumoth, Latios, Latias, and particularly Slowbro can all take a hit from Mega Lopunny and OHKO with their STAB move of choice. Frailer Psychic-types such as Alakazam, Latias, and Latios are not able to switch into Mega Lopunny reliably, although Slowbro and Mega Latias take a pittance from anything Mega Lopunny has save Encore and Toxic.
**Powerful Priority**: Due to Mega Lopunny's relative frailness, priority from Pokemon such as Mega Scizor, Talonflame, Breloom, and Azumarill can heavily damage it and can pick it off when weakened. Switching into Mega Lopunny repeatedly is not an option for the majority of these Pokemon, however, reducing them to a revenge killing role.
GP 2/2 (P Squared, Haund)
[OVERVIEW]
Mega Lopunny's high Speed, good Attack stat, and near-flawless coverage between its Fighting- and Normal-type STAB moves allow the punching bunny to act as a powerful offensive Pokemon. Scrappy is the icing on the cake for Mega Lopunny, allowing it to have perfect neutral coverage through its STAB moves alone and easing the pressure Ghost-types such as Gengar, Kitsunoh, and Mega Sableye traditionally put on High Jump Kick users. Mega Lopunny's great Speed allows it to heavily threaten offensive teams by outspeeding and heavily damaging many of the fast, frail Pokemon offensive teams utilize, such as Syclant, Weavile, and even Mega Diancie. Mega Lopunny also has access to a variety of support moves, such as Healing Wish and Encore, that allows it to pressure defensive Pokemon and gives some manner of unpredictability to its sets, and it even has access to a decently powerful STAB Fake Out to help it safely Mega Evolve and to pick up chip damage on frailer Pokemon. Unfortunately, lackluster defenses prior to and after Mega Evolution hamper Mega Lopunny's ability to switch into Pokemon. Mega Lopunny also has trouble breaking through physical walls such as Tomohawk, Cyclohm, and Skarmory, and its dependence on High Jump Kick and its general hit-and-run nature leave it susceptible to being worn down through chip and recoil damage.
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: High Jump Kick
move 2: Return
move 3: Fake Out
move 4: Ice Punch / Baton Pass / Power-Up Punch
item: Lopunnite
ability: Limber
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=====
High Jump Kick is Mega Lopunny's most powerful STAB move and allows it to OHKO frailer Pokemon such as Stratagem, Weavile, Colossoil, and even Mega Diancie after Stealth Rock, as well as 2HKO neutral targets such as Mega Metagross. Unfortunately, High Jump Kick's recoil damage puts Mega Lopunny at a disadvantage against Protect users and severely punishes the user for missing, often at crucial moments in a match. Return is Mega Lopunny's most reliable Normal-type STAB move and allows it to hit Pokemon that resist Fighting such as Tornadus-T, Latios, and Mollux. Return's perfect accuracy also allows it to be used over High Jump Kick when the potential miss and accompanying recoil damage are not acceptable. Scrappy also gives Return perfect coverage in conjunction with High Jump Kick. Fake Out allows Mega Lopunny to safely Mega Evolve and notably to get the advantage on initially faster Pokemon such as Tornadus-T and Stratagem. Ice Punch is the most useful option for allowing Mega Lopunny to get past bulky Ground-types such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Gliscor, which would otherwise be able to take a hit and deal major damage to Mega Lopunny in return. Baton Pass can be used instead to create momentum for Mega Lopunny and eases prediction against the opponent, especially during switches. Baton Pass benefits from Mega Lopunny's high Speed, often allowing it to switch out before the opposing Pokemon can act. If neither option appeals to you, Power-Up Punch can be used to boost Mega Lopunny's Attack during the switches Mega Lopunny can create, as well as when it revenge kills weakened Pokemon. The Attack boost allows Mega Lopunny to break through defensive Pokemon, such as Hippowdon, more easily and sweep frailer Pokemon with ease. Additionally, Mega Lopunny can make use of Drain Punch, Encore, and Healing Wish effectively. Those moves also give it a safe option to use against Protect users such as Heatran. Drain Punch helps lengthen Mega Lopunny's longevity and offset chip and recoil damage. Encore puts more pressure on defensive Pokemon, allowing Mega Lopunny to lock would-be checks such as Tomohawk into support moves such as Stealth Rock. Healing Wish allows Mega Lopunny to give another Pokemon, such as Aurumoth, Mega Metagross, or Manaphy, a chance to clinch the game through fully healing them at the cost of its own life.
Set Details
=====
Limber is the least situtational of Lopunny's abilities and allows Mega Lopunny to shrug off paralysis pre-Mega Evolution, notably switching into Chansey's Thunder Wave or safely accumulating Power-Up Punch boosts on Static Cyclohm. The EV spread and Jolly nature are used to maximize Mega Lopunny's Attack and Speed to ensure its effectiveness as a revenge killer, giving it the Speed to outpace Stratagem, Syclant, Tornadus-T, and other prominent fast threats. Adamant is an option to pick up some notable KOs, such as a chance to 2HKO Clefable, a chance to OHKO Ferrothorn after Stealth Rock, and high chances of 2HKOing both Pyroak and Sylveon after Stealth Rock damage. Mega Lopunny will be able to outpace Jolly Cawmodore and below, but it is unable to revenge kill anything faster, such as Tornadus-T, Stratagem, and Syclant.
Usage Tips
=====
Exercise caution against Pokemon that commonly use Protect, such as Heatran, Mega Diancie, Ferrothorn, and Chansey. Mega Lopunny functions best on and against offensive teams due to its high Speed and Base Power of its STAB moves. Try to conserve Mega Lopunny's health for as long as possible; don't use High Jump Kick when Return would suffice and try not to switch it in needlessly. Use Fake Out when opportune, be careful if the opponent has a contact-punishing Pokemon such as Garchomp or Rocky Helmet Tomohawk. Fake Out also has utility for spreading chip damage and helping put threats such as Aurumoth and Mega Charizard X into revenge killing range. Keeping Mega Lopunny's last moveslot unknown for as long as possible can allow you to surprise the opponent. If common switch-ins to Mega Lopunny, such as Tomohawk and Cyclohm, are still healthy, a quick Baton Pass into a special attacker such Volcanion can swing the match's momentum towards you. Encore can be used to take advantage of Mega Lopunny's sole immunity by locking Pokemon into Ghost-type moves. Healing Wish is best used when Mega Lopunny is weakened and would be unable to achieve anything more for its team.
Team Options
=====
This set functions best with Pokemon that can handle common priority users, specifically Talonflame, such as tank Garchomp. Garchomp and other Stealth Rock setters are also vital teammates for Mega Lopunny, as it helps secure KOs against Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Tornadus-T, as well as pressuring Talonflame through Stealth Rock and Fake Out damage. Steel-types, such as Heatran and Scizor, can help handle Psychic- and Fairy-type Pokemon that threaten Mega Lopunny. Pokemon that resist Fighting synergize well with both Mega Lopunny and Steel-types to help handle their shared Fighting-type weakness. Tomohawk in particular can handily check the majority of Fighting-types while offering hazard control or the ability to weaken Fighting-resistant Pokemon, such as Clefable, on the opposing team. Clerics such as Clefable, Pyroak, and Cyclohm can help keep Mega Lopunny healthy and remove unwanted paralysis or burns through Heal Bell support. Wallbreakers such as Manaphy, Aurumoth, and Kyurem-B can soften up defensive cores for Mega Lopunny to break through later, and in return they appreciate Mega Lopunny's ability to handle faster offensive threats. Offensive Plasmanta sets are able to power through common Lopunny checks such as Tomohawk, Cyclohm, Skarmory, Pyroak, and Clefable with ease, and they are also able to lure bulky Ground-types such as Landorus-T and Garchomp and surprise them with Hidden Power Ice, or in Garchomp's case, Dazzling Gleam. Mega Lopunny is able to threaten faster Pokemon that trouble Plasmanta and can remove Chansey as well.
[SET]
name: Substitute
move 1: Substitute
move 2: High Jump Kick / Drain Punch
move 3: Return
move 4: Baton Pass / Encore
item: Lopunnite
ability: Limber
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
=====
Substitute gives Mega Lopunny a way to get past status and punish switch-ins and synergizes well with both Baton Pass and Encore. High Jump Kick is Mega Lopunny's most powerful STAB move and helps break through Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Mega Metagross, and it best allows Mega Lopunny to punish switch-ins after a Substitute. Drain Punch can be used over High Jump Kick to prolong Mega Lopunny's Substitute-creating ability at a significant cost of power. It also doesn't miss, which makes it a more reliable option versus Pokemon such as Heatran and Ferrothorn. Return is Mega Lopunny's more reliable Normal-type STAB move and helps get past Fighting-resistant foes such as Tornadus-T and Latios. Its also perfectly accurate, which is useful in cases where High Jump Kick's potential for missing is unacceptable. In the last moveslot, Baton Pass or Encore is used to make the best use of Mega Lopunny's Substitute. Baton Pass helps ease predictions against the opponent and has great synergy with Substitute, potentially giving a teammate a free switch or turn to set up. Encore allows Mega Lopunny to pressure defensive Pokemon, notably locking them into a status move once a Substitute is up, allowing Mega Lopunny to create free turns. Encore also creates setup opportunities for Substitute. Fake Out and Ice Punch can be used to allow Mega Lopunny to take up a more offensive role, focusing on punishing switch-ins over crippling defensive Pokemon. Fake Out allows Mega Lopunny to bypass the downsides of the Mega Evolution turn as well as deal chip damage throughout the match. It also helps Mega Lopunny revenge kill opposing weakened Pokemon. Ice Punch allows Mega Lopunny to blow past bulky Ground-types that would otherwise give it trouble, such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Gliscor.
Set Details
=====
Limber is the least situtational of Lopunny's abilities and allows Mega Lopunny to shrug off paralysis pre-Mega Evolution. This is notable in a select few instances, mainly switching into Chansey's Thunder Wave or safely accumulating Power-Up Punch boosts on Static Cyclohm. The EV spread and Jolly nature are used to maximize Mega Lopunny's Attack and Speed to ensure its effectiveness as a revenge killer. HP is kept indivisible by four to maximize Substitute chances.
Usage Tips
=====
This set functions well against stall teams by taking advantage of their attempts to status Mega Lopunny. Mega Lopunny functions best on offensive teams due to its high Attack and Speed. These attributes also allow it to threaten offensive teams effectively. Don't be careless with Substitute; use it sparingly and only in situations where the advantages of creating the Substitute overshadow the potential damage Mega Lopunny can deal that turn. That said, use Substitute on predicted switches or status moves. Exercise caution with High Jump Kick against Pokemon that commonly run Protect, such as Heatran, Ferrothorn, Mega Diancie, and Chansey. It's very important to try to conserve Mega Lopunny's health so that it can create a Substitute, so be cautious using Fake Out against teams with contact-punishing Pokemon such as Garchomp, and try not to switch Mega Lopunny in needlessly.
Team Options
=====
Pokemon that can handle common priority users, specifically Talonflame, such as Garchomp, are essential for Mega Lopunny. Stealth Rock setters such as Garchomp are also vital teammates for Mega Lopunny, as it helps secure KOs against Pokemon such as Mega Diancie and Tornadus-T, as well as pressuring Talonflame through Stealth Rock and Fake Out damage. Steel-types, such as Heatran and Scizor, can help handle Psychic- and Fairy-type Pokemon that threaten Mega Lopunny. Pokemon that resist Fighting work well with both Mega Lopunny and Steel-types to help handle their shared Fighting-type weakness. Tomohawk in particular can handily check the majority of Fighting-types while offering hazard control or the ability to weaken Fighting-resistant Pokemon, such as Mega Altaria, on the opposing team. Clerics such as Clefable, Pyroak, and Cyclohm can help keep Mega Lopunny healthy and remove unwanted paralysis or burns through Heal Bell and Wish support. Wallbreakers such as Manaphy, Aurumoth, and Kyurem-B can soften up defensive cores for Mega Lopunny to break through later, and in return they appreciate Mega Lopunny's ability to handle faster offensive threats such as Stratagem, as well as Mega Lopunny's potential for passing them Substitutes. Offensive Plasmanta sets are able to power through common Lopunny checks such as Tomohawk, Cyclohm, Skarmory, Pyroak, and Clefable with ease, and they are able to lure bulky Ground-types such as Landorus-T and Garchomp and surprise them with Hidden Power Ice, or in Garchomp's case, Dazzling Gleam. Mega Lopunny is able to threaten faster Pokemon that trouble Plasmanta as well as Chansey, and it is also able to pass Plasmanta Substitutes to get it in more safely.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
===================
Toxic is an option to better punish defensive Pokemon such as Tomohawk and Pyroak, and Mega Lopunny can stall out additional turns of Toxic damage through Substitute. Quick Attack can be used in conjunction with Fake Out to allow Mega Lopunny to more effectively deal chip damage to frailer Pokemon and to soften up threatening sweepers for more effective revenge killers such as Talonflame, at the cost of the opportunities to steal momentum the other moves create. Fake Out plus Quick Attack is also able to KO Talonflame after Stealth Rock. Heal Bell can be used in the last moveslot to give an offensive team some way to reset status, but it is limited in effectiveness by Mega Lopunny's frailness. Thunder Wave can be used in conjunction with Mega Lopunny's high Speed to cripple setup sweepers such as Mega Charizard X and Aurumoth, but it is overshadowed in this respect by Thundurus or even Tomohawk, both of which can neuter Pokemon after they've set up. Mega Lopunny is also considerably frail and would have to exercise caution using Thunder Wave. Facade is an option for use in situations where Mega Lopunny is statused, such as from Scald or Static, but it is situational. Substitute plus Endeavor is able to wear down bulky Pokemon that Lopunny would otherwise be unable to touch, allowing teammates to power through them later in the match.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Faster Pokemon**: Faster Pokemon, such as Talonflame, Mega Alakazam, and Choice Scarf users such as Mollux, Volkraken, Keldeo, and Volcanion, can all outspeed and KO or heavily damage Mega Lopunny. They have trouble switching in or taking repeated Fake Outs, though.
**Physical Walls**: Physical walls such as Tomohawk, Pyroak, Hippowdon, and Cyclohm can all shrug off Mega Lopunny's attacks and retaliate with their STAB moves or set up utility moves such as Stealth Rock or recovery moves on Mega Lopunny, but they must be wary of Encore and Toxic. Power-Up Punch also allows Mega Lopunny to threaten all of these Pokemon save Tomohawk, which can outdamage Mega Lopunny no matter what or just as easily remove its boosts with Haze.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-types such as Clefable and Mega Altaria resist Mega Lopunny's main STAB move and can all take a hit and OHKO with their Fairy STAB move of choice.
**Flying-types**: Flying-types such as Mega Pinsir, Tornadus-T, and Talonflame all heavily threaten Mega Lopunny with their STAB moves, but they have trouble switching into Mega Lopunny, especially if Stealth Rock is up. Mega Pinsir and Talonflame deserve a mention for being able to threaten Mega Lopunny directly with their powerful priority.
**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types such as Aurumoth, Latios, Latias, and particularly Slowbro can all take a hit from Mega Lopunny and OHKO with their STAB move of choice. Frailer Psychic-types such as Alakazam, Latias, and Latios are not able to switch into Mega Lopunny reliably, although Slowbro and Mega Latias take a pittance from anything Mega Lopunny has save Encore and Toxic.
**Powerful Priority**: Due to Mega Lopunny's relative frailness, priority from Pokemon such as Mega Scizor, Talonflame, Breloom, and Azumarill can heavily damage it and can pick it off when weakened. Switching into Mega Lopunny repeatedly is not an option for the majority of these Pokemon, however, reducing them to a revenge killing role.
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