QC:- Eien / iVid / SirSkit
GP:- The Dutch Plumberjack / Rare Poison
[OVERVIEW]
**Flying**:
With access to Dragon Dance, Mega Gyarados can be a huge threat in the Monotype metagame as a sweeper. Gyarados has great bulk and access to Intimidate, which let it set up Dragon Dance more easily against physical attackers and provide more support for its teammates. Its Water / Flying typing leaves it with only two weaknesses, Electric and Rock. It also has a handful of resistances to Bug-, Fighting-, Fire-, Steel-, and Water-type moves prior to Mega Evolution. After Mega Evolution, it loses its Flying typing, allowing it to resist Ice-type moves, but at the cost of becoming weak to Fighting-, Bug-, and Grass-type moves and losing its Ground resistance. However, it gains a Dark typing and STAB Crunch, allowing it to check Psychic-types. Its good base 81 Speed lets it outspeed Choice Scarf base 80 Pokemon like Gardevoir and Hoopa-U as well as Mega Manectric and Mega Lopunny after one Dragon Dance boost. However, it is still outsped by common Choice Scarf Pokemon like Victini, Terrakion, Latios, and Kyurem-B. It's also weak to Stealth Rock prior to Mega Evolution, making it harder to set up and sweep successfully.
[SET]
name: Offensive Dragon Dance (Flying)
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Waterfall
move 3: Crunch
move 4: Substitute / Taunt
item: Gyaradosite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Dragon Dance boosts both Mega Gyarados's Attack and Speed stats to high levels, allowing it to function as one of Monotype's best setup sweepers. Waterfall is Gyarados's strongest physical Water-type STAB move, which gives it a good chance to not only make the foe flinch, but to also sweep through types like Fire, Ground, and Rock. Crunch is a secondary STAB move that lets Mega Gyarados hit Grass-type Pokemon that resist Waterfall, as well as sweep through Psychic- and Ghost-type teams. Substitute allows Mega Gyarados to avoid status moves such as Thunder Wave, Will-O-Wisp, and Toxic along with blocking weak attacks. Also, this gives Mega Gyarados a free turn to set up Dragon Dance. Taunt prevents phazers like Skarmory and Hippowdon from forcing Mega Gyarados out, Pokemon like Chansey, Porygon2, and Rotom-W from statusing it, and defensive walls like Skarmory, Hippowdon, and Porygon2 from recovering health. Substitute is generally superior to Taunt, as it can more reliably prevent status, and is particularly useful because Mega Gyarados resists common burn-inflicting moves such as Scald and Lava Plume. Substitute can also let Mega Gyarados use more Pokemon as setup bait than Taunt.
Set Details
========
Maximum investment in Attack and Speed is used to maximize Gyarados's setup sweeping potential. A Jolly nature is preferred to let Mega Gyarados outspeed Pokemon like Choice Scarf Hoopa-U, Gardevoir, and Volcanion as well as Mega Manectric and Mega Lopunny after one Dragon Dance boost. Intimidate is the preferred ability because it lowers the foe's attack by one stage, allowing for Mega Gyarados to set up more easily. Gyaradosite allows Gyarados to Mega Evolve, increasing its bulk and changing its typing to let it resist Ice-type moves and gain STAB on Dark-type moves. Mold Breaker allows Mega Gyarados to hit Water Absorb users such as Gastrodon and Seismitoad with Waterfall, OHKO Sturdy users such as Shuckle, break through Unaware users such as Clefable and Quagsire, and, if Earthquake is being run, hit Levitate users such as Rotom-W super effectively.
Usage Tips
========
Keep Mega Gyarados away from status such as paralysis, burns, and poison because they'll ruin its longevity and cripple it. It can switch into and set up on certain physical attacks like Ice-type attacks; however, it's better to conserve Mega Gyarados's health to create Substitutes or set up on weaker attackers. Stealth Rock should also be kept off the field to preserve its health before Mega Evolution. It doesn't have to Mega Evolve right away because of its useful typing and ability Intimidate. It can Taunt or set up a Substitute on defensive Pokemon like Ferrothorn, Slowbro, and Mew. As Mega Gyarados forces a lot of switches, using Substitute on a switch is a good way to protect it. If Taunt is being used, Mega Gyarados should try to hide it until the opponent tries to phaze Mega Gyarados, resulting in more turns to set up. Bring Gyarados into foes that are Choice locked into a move that it resists either before or after Mega Evolving, such as Choice Scarf Victini's V-create, Choice Band Terrakion's Close Combat, and Choice Band Azumarill's Waterfall. Mega Gyarados should try to find the right time to set up and sweep after all its checks and counters are weakened.
Team Options
========
Skarmory is a great partner to Mega Gyarados due to its ability to set and remove entry hazards, switch into physical moves, and act as a decent Fairy check. Zapdos is a great special sponge that can switch into Electric-type moves that threaten Mega Gyarados. It can also remove Stealth Rock with Defog and whittle down walls with Toxic. Zapdos appreciates having Mega Gyarados to switch into Ice-type attacks that it can't take. It also has access to Volt Switch, which can give Mega Gyarados more opportunities to set up. Mega Gyarados appreciates wallbreakers such as Landorus and Dragonite as partners because their wallbreaking capabilities allow Mega Gyarados to set up and clean late-game more easily. Landorus can break through Steel-types like Ferrothorn and Skarmory that Mega Gyarados doesn't like, and Dragonite can break the Normal-type defensive core of Porygon2 and Chansey and a majority of Water-type defensive cores. Dragonite can additionally revenge kill threats to Mega Gyarados such as Breloom and Whimsicott after prior damage. Both defensive and offensive variants of Landorus-T support Mega Gyarados. Defensive Landorus-T can set Stealth Rock and pressure the other side as well as slowly pivot into Mega Gyarados with U-turn. Offensive Landorus-T can break walls, allowing Mega Gyarados to set up more easily. Thundurus is also a nice partner to Gyarados, as it can paralyze threats with Prankster Thunder Wave. It also checks Water-type Pokemon, most of which wall Mega Gyarados. Choice Scarf Thundurus-T can outspeed several Pokemon that Mega Gyarados doesn't after one boost, such as Choice Scarf Kyurem-B and Victini. It also has a great ability in Volt Absorb, allowing it to take Electric-type moves that can threaten Mega Gyarados. Assault Vest Tornadus-T is also a good partner to Mega Gyarados, as it can switch into many special moves, beat Grass-types with Hurricane, and U-turn into Mega Gyarados to create more setup opportunities. Gliscor deserves a mention because of its stallbreaking capabilities, which allow it to stall out walls that can threaten Mega Gyarados such as Porygon2 and Skarmory. Gliscor is also one of the best Fairy-type checks, being able to switch into and beat Pokemon that threaten Mega Gyarados like Diancie, Klefki, and Clefable.
[SET]
name: Bulky Dragon Dance (Flying)
move 1: Dragon Dance
move 2: Rest
move 3: Sleep Talk
move 4: Waterfall / Crunch
item: Gyaradosite
ability: Intimidate
nature: Careful
evs: 248 HP / 92 Def / 68 SpD / 100 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Dragon Dance boosts Mega Gyarados's Speed and Attack stat, allowing it to function as a dangerous setup sweeper. Rest is its only way to recover damage dealt and ensures that status ailments don't ruin its sweep. Sleep Talk prevents Mega Gyarados from being setup fodder while asleep and gives it a good chance to use a useful move. Waterfall is the STAB move of choice, as it hits Ground-, Fire-, and Rock-types for super effective damage and has a decent flinch chance. Crunch can be used over Waterfall to hit Dragon-types and most Water- and Grass-types for neutral damage, as well as Psychic-types for super effective damage. Waterfall is preferred, as it gets the STAB boost before Gyarados Mega Evolves and has better coverage in general.
Set Details
========
The given HP and Special Defense EVs allow Gyarados to take two Solar Beams from Mega Charizard Y after Stealth Rock damage, allowing Gyarados to use it as setup fodder. The Speed investment lets it outspeed Pokemon like Garchomp and Landorus after one Dragon Dance boost. The rest of the EVs are put in Defense to allow Gyarados to switch into physical attacks. Intimidate is the preferred ability, as it allows Gyarados to soften physical blows it wants to switch into and weaken physical attackers for the rest of the team. Gyaradosite allows Gyarados to Mega Evolve and acquire a more useful typing that gives it resistance to Ice-type moves and an immunity to Psychic-type moves and gain a significant amount of bulk. Mold Breaker benefits bulky Mega Gyarados a lot because it always runs a mono-attacking set, and Mold Breaker allows Mega Gyarados to hit Water Absorb Pokemon such as Gastrodon and Seismitoad.
Usage Tips
========
Mega Gyarados can be used to absorb status for the team, as it can just heal itself with Rest. It can be switched into certain physical attackers thanks to the bulky nature of this set and its pre-Mega ability in Intimidate, softening the blows. Due to its greater bulk and access to recovery, this set can afford to pivot in and out, setting up occasionally without the intent of sweeping. It can simply Rest off the damage it takes and do it again later. This set should often Mega Evolve to gain more bulk and lose its Flying typing as soon as possible; however, in matchups predominantly against physical attackers, it may be best to keep its pre-Mega ability Intimidate.
Team Options
========
Skarmory supports Mega Gyarados by phazing Pokemon that use it as setup fodder while it's asleep. It also switches into most Fighting- and Fairy-type Pokemon that threaten Mega Gyarados. Zapdos can switch into almost every Electric-type Pokemon and stall them out with Toxic. Zapdos also appreciates Mega Gyarados as a partner due to its Ice resistance. Both Skarmory and Zapdos can remove Stealth Rock from the field with Defog, allowing Mega Gyarados to switch into attacks more easily. Togekiss can support Mega Gyarados with Heal Bell, allowing it to wake up earlier, and cripple certain threats like Kyurem-B with Thunder Wave. A Choice Scarf Togekiss can deal with Bug-, Fighting-, and Grass-type Pokemon that threaten Mega Gyarados. Mega Gyarados appreciates wallbreakers like Landorus and Dragonite as partners due to their ability to break through Pokemon like Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Porygon2, as well as their great offensive coverage, which Mega Gyarados lacks. Landorus-T can form a good defensive core with Mega Gyarados, as it's immune to Electric-type attacks, while Mega Gyarados resists Ice-type attacks. Furthermore, Landorus-T also has Intimidate and can bring in Gyarados with U-turn to repeatedly reduce the foe's Attack. Thundurus is a good partner to Mega Gyarados, as it can beat the Water-type Pokemon that wall it and spread status through Thunder Wave. Thundurus-T is also a good partner because of its great ability in Volt Absorb, which allows it to switch into Electric-type moves and heal itself. A Nasty Plot set can be run to break through walls, and a Choice Scarf set allows it to outspeed threats such as Choice Scarf Victini and Kyurem-B. Assault Vest Tornadus-T is a great partner to Mega Gyarados, as it can pivot into special attacks as well as create opportunities for Mega Gyarados to set up with U-turn.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
**Flying**:
Ice Fang or Earthquake can be run over Taunt or Substitute to give Mega Gyarados coverage on Grass- and Dragon-types or Pokemon like Keldeo and Azumarill. Both of them can also be run together to give Mega Gyarados perfect coverage. However, Taunt and Substitute allow Mega Gyarados to set up and sweep more easily, and lacking a STAB move on Mega Gyarados is not recommended. A defensive Gyarados can be run due to its access to a plethora of support moves such as Thunder Wave, Taunt, Scald, and Roar, useful defensive typing, and access to Intimidate; however, it is outclassed by other support Pokemon like Zapdos, Gliscor, and Togekiss, as it relies too much on Rest for recovery. A Dragon Dance Gyarados set with Bounce and Leftovers is possible but is generally outclassed by both Mega Gyarados and other setup sweepers that Flying has to offer, such as Dragonite. Moxie can be run over Intimidate, but Intimidate gives Gyarados an easier time to set up and switch into certain hits.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Flying**:
**Physically Defensive Walls**: Physically defensive Pokemon such as Skarmory, Porygon2, and Ferrothorn can take Mega Gyarados's STAB attacks easily. Skarmory can phaze it with Whirlwind, while Porygon2 and Ferrothorn can continually break its Substitute with Discharge and Power Whip respectively, with both of them 2HKOing the Taunt variant.
**Fighting-types**: Fighting-type Pokemon such as Breloom and Keldeo resist both of Mega Gyarados's STAB moves and can revenge kill it easily, especially when it's Mega Evolved.
**Status Conditions**: Status conditions like burn and paralysis ruin Mega Gyarados's ability to sweep, although they do not trouble the RestTalk set as much.
**Revenge Killers**: Revenge killers, such as Choice Scarf Kyurem-B, Choice Scarf Latios, Choice Scarf Victini, and Choice Scarf Terrakion, and priority users such as Breloom and Dragonite can beat Mega Gyarados even after a Dragon Dance boost.
**Fairy-types**: Fairy-type Pokemon like Azumarill and Whimsicott resist both of Mega Gyarados's STAB moves. Klefki and Clefable can also cripple it with Thunder Wave.
**Electric-types**: Fast Electric-types like Choice Specs Raikou and Life Orb Thundurus can easily KO Mega Gyarados with their Electric-type STAB attacks. Thundurus can also cripple Mega Gyarados with Thunder Wave if it has already set up.
**Grass-types**: Most Grass-type Pokemon are bulky and can take Mega Gyarados's STAB Waterfall. Certain Pokemon like Mega Venusaur and Whimsicott can take both of its STAB moves and can revenge kill it easily.
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