[Overview]
<p>Since its debut in RSE, Mightyena has never seen too much sunlight in competitive play. Having always resided of the darkest depths in NU tier due to its biggest rival Absol, Mightyena comes into the sunlight this generation to show that it can do more than just howl in the shadows in this Psychic- and Ghost-type filled metagame. The one and only selling point of the mighty hyena is that it gets Moxie from the Dream World, allowing it to stand its ground in several battles. However, Mightyena's movepool is empty and lackluster, meaning the hyena doesn't have the coverage needed to counter several threads in the NU metagame. Rest assured though, for as long as you grab some Moxie boosts with Mightyena, it can make a great late game cleaner.</p>
[SET]
name: Moxie Hyena
move 1: Sucker Punch
move 2: Crunch
move 3: Thunder Fang
move 4: Ice Fang
item: Life Orb
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>This set is really simple and requires almost no skill to use bar prediction at the right moment. Crunch is a STAB move to attack foes that you can outspeed or if you know the opponent is not going to attack. Sucker Punch allows Mightyena to overcome his middling Speed and strike before the opponent; and once Mightyena has attained several boosts, your opponent will want to rage quit. The last two moves create the infamous BoltBeam combo; despite being fairly weak, it allows Mightyena to hit everything in the tier for at least for neutral damage. You will rarely find yourself using the latter two moves, except when the opponent is 4x weak to one or resistant to your STAB moves.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The given EV spread is standard and aims to maximize Mightyena's below average Attack and give it a chance to outspeed common Psychic- types. An Adamant nature is always preferred over Jolly as with Adamant it gains more power, which is always welcome, and there aren't too many things Mightyena needs to outspeed. Life Orb also bestows Mightyena with more offensive presence, which allows it to 2HKO every bulky Psychic-type, such as Mesprit, Exeggutor, and Duosion, in the tier.</p>
<p>Since Mightyena will mostly be coming in to pick off weakened enemies, every kind of residual damage greatly assists it. Garbodor is one of the best teammates for Mightyena, as it can lay Spikes or Toxic Spikes and invites Psychic-type attacks so Mightyena can switch unscathed. Misdreavus is also a decent partner as it can Will-O-Wisp Sawk and other physical threats, rendering them useless. Sawk and Magmortar are also good Pokemon to pair with Mightyena as they can remove Pokemon such as Regirock, Miltank, and Lickilicky, which would otherwise stop Mightyena's attempt to sweep with ease. Also, entry hazards in conjunction with Life Orb recoil will drastically shorten Mightyena's life, so Rapid Spin support is always welcomed. Torkoal is a good teammate for this, as it can spin entry hazards away in addition to putting Stealth Rock on the opponent’s field.</p>
[Other Options]
<p>Mightyena is a Pokemon has very few viable moves it can run, other than the options already listed. Mightyena has access to Taunt which can shut down some Pokemon, such as Misdreavus, or stop Pokemon who try to set up on it. Swagger is another odd possibility for Mightyena, but even with it the hyena will rarely annoy opponent as it will be OHKOed most of its time. Mightyena also can utilize Roar to phaze, however, its defenses are paper thin, meaning it will never get a chance to accomplish this well. Mightyena has Intimidate as its primary ability but a terrible Defense stat hardly allows Mightyena to switch in safely without being one-shoted. Quick Feet + Toxic Orb might seem viable, but it is pathetically weak. Mightyena also has other, more gimmicky moves, such as Me First and Toxic, but it’s not made for that, bearing in mind it has terrible stat distribution.</p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Mightyena isn't a Pokemon that one should have problems countering. Unfortunately, Mightyena can be stopped in its assault easily. Quagsire is its best counter as it can neglect all of the boosts Mightyena has managed to gather and Mightyena literally can't touch it. Regirock is another Pokemon that can sponge every hit Mightyena can dish out. As funny as it sounds, Regirock is only 2HKOed by +6 Crunch. Torkoal is another Pokemon that has no problem walling Mightyena as long as it hasn’t gotten to +3 Attack from Moxie, and it can either set up Stealth Rock or just proceed to slowly kill the hyena. Lickilicky and Miltank can easily stall Mightyena out with Life Orb recoil by using Wish and Protect or Milk Drink, respectively. Tangela is another great counter as it can take +1 hits and Leech Seed or Sleep Powder the mighty hyena.</p>