|
-
Guts
- Attack is increased 50% when hit with a status move.
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Statistics
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
90
|
- |
321 |
384 |
- |
| Atk |
130
|
266 |
296 |
359 |
394 |
| Def |
80
|
176 |
196 |
259 |
284 |
| SpA |
65
|
149 |
166 |
229 |
251 |
| SpD |
85
|
185 |
206 |
269 |
295 |
| Spe |
55
|
131 |
146 |
209 |
229 |
A strong but slow Choice Bander. With max Attack, Cross Chop, and enough luck to score a critical hit, you can OHKO Salamence and Skarmory. Focus Punch with Guts (activated from a Thunder Wave from Blissey, or maybe Will-O-Wisp from Weezing) OHKOs Skarmory. Hidden Power Ghost sends Gengar and Psychic types back to hell, and Facade can seriously damage Weezing if you are having trouble with it.
Machamp has the defenses to Bulk Up in Snorlax and Tyranitar's faces. Cross Chop after a Bulk Up hurts as usual and Hidden Power Ghost hurts stuff like Gengar and Celebi. You could try Rest in the last slot, but Machamp doesn't have the Special Defense to use such a Curselax-like set. Putting EVs into Special Defense isn't such a bad idea, however.
Sleep activates Guts, giving you huge Attack. This set and these EVs give Machamp some durability, and it can even function as a Tyranitar counter of sorts, as well as a good switch-in on Snorlax. Guts Cross Chop hurts everything while Rock Slide takes care of Flying or Ghost switch-ins. Dusclops or Weezing can't really do anything to this Machamp. Sleep Talk also gives you 5-6 more Cross Chops, on average, which is useful with that low PP.
Other Options
It can Encore Calm Minds, Dragon Dances, and other stuff. Very helpful with Substitute. Also of note is Light Screen, which can help Machamp get off a few Bulk Ups. Counter lays a quick OHKO down on Skarmory and non-Choice Band Salamence. Hidden Power Bug is handy for getting rid of Celebi on the switch, but you'll need Choice Band or some other kind of Attack boost to OHKO.
EVs
Concentrate on Attack and HP. If you are running Choice Band, you can invest in additional Speed EVs to beat Skarmory. You'll need about 128 of them. Always use an Adamant nature.
Opinion
The ability to OHKO Salamence and Skarmory is quite a plus if you have luck with Critical Hits and Cross Chop hitting. However, Cross Chop's low PP and sub-par accuracy really hinder Machamp. While an easy switch into a lot of stuff, Machamp is so slow it can't really sweep.
Counters
Machamp has no real surefire counters. Your best bet is predicting, as well as hitting it hard before it hits you, which is doable since Machamp is rather slow and has only average defenses. Gengar can come in on any Fighting move nicely, but will be 2HKOed by Rock Slide and usually OHKOed by Hidden Power Ghost. Dusclops is sturdier, but unlike Gengar he cannot really hit back that well. Both these Ghosts do not want to Will-O-Wisp Machamp, as it will only make him more powerful. The same goes to Weezing; it must beware of statusing Machamp with Sludge Bomb or Will-O-Wisp. If Machamp ever packs Facade, Weezing is dead, but it can take hits well and Pain Split off damage. Celebi makes a good overall counter, as Machamp cannot 2HKO it without Hidden Power Bug or a boosted Hidden Power Ghost. It can use Recover or Leech Seed to heal or attack with STAB Psychic. Salamence and Gyarados Intimidate Machamp and resist Fighting moves. Rock Slide can 3HKO them with Intimidate, though. Choice Band Critical Hit Cross Chop will OHKO both Salamence and Skarmory, who is generally a reliable switch-in to Machamp, however.
Basically, your safest bet is switching around with common sense, and not giving Machamp too many opportunities to come in. Sand Stream ruins Machamp's durability even more.