[OVERVIEW]
Mega Lopunny is an incredibly dangerous sweeper and utility attacker in STABmons. Its incredible Speed stat allows it to outspeed almost all of the unboosted metagame, and its solid Attack stat allows it to hit most Pokemon hard. Its excellent STAB combination in conjunction with Scrappy gives it perfect neutral coverage with Extreme Speed and High Jump Kick. It also has an expansive movepool that contains utility options such as Fake Out, Rapid Spin, and Heal Bell as well as coverage in Ice Punch and Thunder Punch. However, Lopunny is held back by its frailty and mediocre defensive typing, which prevent it from offering good defensive synergy. Mega Lopunny also cannot hold a boosting item and does not have a particularly high Attack stat for a Mega Evolution, so its power is unexceptional without a Swords Dance boost. As a result, it struggles to break down some defensive walls, especially those that resist Fighting, and it can struggle to revenge kill threats effectively with Fake Out + Extreme Speed, especially in comparison to other Normal-types such as Porygon-Z and Ursaring.
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Extreme Speed
move 3: High Jump Kick / Drain Punch
move 4: Ice Punch
item: Lopunnite
ability: Limber
nature: Adamant / Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Swords Dance boosts Mega Lopunny's Attack stat to incredible levels, allowing it to break down defensive threats and sweep offensive teams easily. Extreme Speed is a reasonably powerful STAB attack that also has +2 priority, allowing Mega Lopunny to threaten faster Pokemon. High Jump Kick is Mega Lopunny's most powerful STAB attack and provides perfect neutral coverage with Extreme Speed. Drain Punch can be used instead to enhance Mega Lopunny's longevity by recovering health when it attacks; however, it is noticeably weaker than High Jump Kick. Ice Punch hits defensive threats such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, Gliscor, and Zapdos hard. Various other moves are usable in the fourth slot. Protect allows Mega Lopunny to sweep without fear of being picked off by opposing Fake Out users. Substitute blocks attempts to inflict status and Imposter and allows Mega Lopunny to avoid Fake Out flinches as well as set up in front of passive Pokemon such as Alomomola easily. Baton Pass allows Mega Lopunny to pass Swords Dance boosts to its teammates, making fast attackers such as Choice Scarf Landorus-T extremely threatening sweepers.
Set Details
========
Maximum Attack and Speed EVs increase Mega Lopunny's offensive potential. Adamant is the preferred nature, as it increases Mega Lopunny's power and allows it to hit crucial benchmarks such as 2HKOing Quagsire. However, Jolly can be used to outspeed threats such as Weavile, Aerodactyl, and Tornadus-T, as Extreme Speed may not always be sufficient to deal with them. Lopunnite is necessary to Mega Evolve Lopunny. Limber allows Mega Lopunny to avoid paralysis from defensive Pokemon such as Chansey, Ferrothorn, and Rotom-W before it Mega Evolves.
Usage Tips
========
If possible, Lopunny should be brought in safely with the use of a pivot, as it is quite frail. Use Mega Lopunny's powerful Extreme Speed to revenge kill foes, but be wary of its low PP. Swords Dance can be used mid-game to break down defensive threats; however, it is best used late-game when Mega Lopunny can easily clean up the opposing team. Be wary of Rough Skin, Rocky Helmet, and Iron Barbs damage racking up. Predict Ferrothorn and Ground-type switch-ins and hit them with High Jump Kick and Ice Punch, respectively. Don't recklessly click High Jump Kick against Steel-types, as they can run King's Shield, or against a foe that commonly runs Protect, such as Mega Sableye or Mega Diancie; use Swords Dance or Substitute instead. Substitute can also be used in front of foes that often run status-inflicting moves, such as Mew and Celebi, and passive Pokemon such as Alomomola.
Team Options
========
Entry hazard setters such as Stealth Rock Garchomp and Spikes Klefki wear down the opposing team. In particular, Rock-types such as Terrakion and Tyranitar can set Stealth Rock and threaten Flying-types. Strong special wallbreakers, such as Thundurus, Hoopa-U, and Gengar can deal with the physical walls that trouble Lopunny. Dark- and Ghost-types such as Weavile and Bisharp can Pursuit trap and outright KO bulky Psychic-types. Mega Lopunny appreciates Lunar Dance support from Jirachi and Latios, as it can get easily worn down throughout the match. Jirachi can also utilize Wish to restore Mega Lopunny's health without sacrificing itself, and it consistently threatens Fairy-types. Volt Switch, U-turn, and Parting Shot users such as Thundurus, Landorus-T, and Sableye allow Lopunny to come in safely. Rotom-W is particularly good at this, as it can also deal with the Flying- and Steel-types that threaten Lopunny.
[SET]
name: Offensive Utility
move 1: Fake Out
move 2: Extreme Speed
move 3: High Jump Kick
move 4: Rapid Spin / Ice Punch
item: Lopunnite
ability: Limber
nature: Jolly / Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Fake Out + Extreme Speed allows Mega Lopunny to revenge kill many foes, as the combination is virtually a 120-Base Power priority attack. High Jump Kick is Mega Lopunny's strongest attack and hits Rock- and Steel-types hard. Rapid Spin clears entry hazards on Mega Lopunny's side of the field, and it cannot be blocked thanks to Scrappy. Ice Punch can also be used to 2HKO variants of Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Gliscor. Baton Pass can be used to allow Mega Lopunny to gain momentum, as it forces switches easily with the threat of Fake Out + Extreme Speed. However, Mega Lopunny should be wary of passing a lowered Attack stat from a foe's Intimidate.
Set Details
========
Maximum Speed EVs and a Jolly nature give Mega Lopunny as many opportunities to utilize Rapid Spin, as well as the ability to outspeed threats such as Jolly Aerodactyl. However, Adamant can also be used to increase the power of Fake Out + Extreme Speed significantly. Maximum Attack EVs give Mega Lopunny as much power as possible. Lopunnite allows Lopunny to Mega Evolve. Limber allows Lopunny to avoid paralysis before it Mega Evolves.
Usage Tips
========
Use Fake Out as soon as possible to safely Mega Evolve Lopunny. Use Fake Out frequently against offensive teams, as it racks up chip damage very quickly. Do not recklessly spam it against defensive teams, as damage from Rocky Helmet, Rough Skin, and Iron Barbs will wear down Mega Lopunny rapidly. Instead, predict when Rocky Helmet users such as Landorus-T and Garchomp and Iron Barbs Ferrothorn will switch in, and hit them with Ice Punch and High Jump Kick, respectively. If Mega Lopunny is running Rapid Spin, use it when it forces switches with the threat of Fake Out + Extreme Speed. Lopunny can also serve as an excellent lead, as Fake Out allows it to safely break Focus Sash and Sturdy. Bring Lopunny in with the use of a pivoting move or after a teammate has fainted, as it is too frail to be directly switched into attacks.
Team Options
========
Generally, Mega Lopunny appreciates support from wallbreakers, as it struggles to break through common physical walls. In particular, Bug-, Dark-, and Ghost-types such as Volcarona, Hoopa-U, Crawdaunt, Weavile, and Gengar threaten bulky Psychic-types. Strong Water- and Ice-type attackers such as Keldeo and Kyurem-B break down the Ground- and Flying-types that non-Ice Punch Lopunny cannot beat. Pokemon that dislike Stealth Rock, such as Thundurus and Dragonite, appreciate Rapid Spin support. Lunar Dance users such as Latios and Jirachi can sacrifice themselves to heal Lopunny; the latter also takes on Fairy-types. Bulky Volt Switch, U-turn, and Parting Shot users such as Rotom-W, Landorus-T, and Sableye can sponge attacks aimed at Mega Lopunny and bring it in safely with their pivoting moves.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Substitute blocks status moves and eases prediction, especially against King's Shield users. It works well in conjunction with Toxic and Encore, which cripple many of Mega Lopunny's regular defensive counters. Heal Bell allows Mega Lopunny to cure status that has been inflicted on itself and its team, providing invaluable utility for some teams. However, Mega Lopunny generally struggles to find opportunities to use it. Head Charge can be used as a stronger Normal-type STAB move, especially on the Swords Dance set, as it allows Mega Lopunny to break through bulky Flying-types more easily. Thunder Punch hits bulky Water-types such as Slowbro and Gyarados hard, but it has poor overall coverage. Recover can be used to boost Mega Lopunny's longevity, but Mega Lopunny is too frail to use it effectively.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Physical Walls**: Very physically bulky Pokemon such as Mega Scizor, Hippowdon, and Skarmory can tank Mega Lopunny's High Jump Kick even after a Swords Dance boost and hit back reasonably hard. Mega Lopunny cannot hit Pokemon that resist Fighting such as Gliscor and Gyarados hard, unless it is running Ice Punch or Thunder Punch. Landorus-T and Gyarados also lower Lopunny's Attack stat with Intimidate.
**Psychic-types**: Mew, Victini, and Celebi can tank a boosted Extreme Speed and retaliate by crippling Mega Lopunny with Will-O-Wisp and Spore or KOing it with Psystrike. Slowbro can take hits easily thanks to its excellent physical bulk and can heavily damage Mega Lopunny with Psystrike, and Regenerator allows it to tank hits throughout the battle. Mega Slowbro's incredible physical bulk allows it to avoid a 2HKO from +2 Extreme Speed, and it always OHKOes Mega Lopunny with Psystrike.
**Fairy-types**: Magic Guard Clefable can tank a +2 Extreme Speed and retaliate with Moonblast. Unaware Clefable ignores any Swords Dance boost that Mega Lopunny may have obtained. Physically defensive Togekiss survives +2 Ice Punch and can hit Mega Lopunny hard in return with Moonblast or Oblivion Wing.
**Faster Pokemon and Choice Scarf Users**: Aerodactyl outspeeds Adamant Mega Lopunny and threatens it with Brave Bird, but Jolly Mega Lopunny will outspeed it and KO with High Jump Kick. Various Choice Scarf users such as Keldeo and Landorus-T can outspeed and KO Mega Lopunny, but they are threatened by a boosted Extreme Speed. Choice Scarf users that resist Normal such as Jirachi and Terrakion can revenge kill Mega Lopunny effectively. Sand Rush Excadrill also outspeeds Mega Lopunny when sand is active and takes little damage from unboosted Extreme Speed.
**Residual Damage**: Missing High Jump Kick or using it against a foe that uses King's Shield or Protect will instantly force Mega Lopunny to lose 50% of its health. Rocky Helmet, Rough Skin, and Iron Barbs from Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Garchomp, and Ferrothorn will wear down Mega Lopunny, taking advantage of Fake Out in particular. Mega Lopunny can also be worn down by Spikes as it switches in.
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