No Punch Line: a Look at Fighting-types in OU

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Introduction

Fighting has always been an interesting type in Pokémon. During RBY, Fighting was considered one of the worst types in the game, being weak to the spammable Psychic-type attacks, mainly from Alakazam. Fighting gained new Pokémon throughout the generations, and the metagame became kinder to the type. In today's USM OU, though, Fighting finds itself in a rough spot; Fairy-types run rampant with a whopping 9 of them in the tier, giving Fighting trouble to shine. This holds Fighting back, but not completely, as it is still a premier offensive type, hitting 5 types super effectively, including the common Steel-types. Here is a look at the Fighting-types that define today's SM OU metagame.

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Premier Fighting-types in OU

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Hawlucha has seen a rise in popularity due to its newfound synergy with the Guardian Deities. Hawlucha can come in while holding a Terrain Seed in a Guardian Deity of choice's Terrain, immediately getting rid of its item, giving it a 2x boost to Speed thanks to Unburden. This goes especially well with Tapu Koko’s ability to pivot out with Volt Switch or U-turn and Hawlucha’s ability to take on bulky Grass-types such as Tapu Bulu and Ferrothorn. Hawlucha’s exceptionally high Speed after an Unburden boost and its ability to set up with Swords Dance make it a prominent threat in the OU metagame. However, Hawlucha only gets one opportunity per game to boost its Speed, as it loses its Speed boost once switching out.

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Mega Lopunny is a Fighting-type that stands out. It has a very solid base 136 Attack stat, but what really makes it great is its blazing Speed stat, which allows it to outspeed nearly the entire unboosted metagame. Its Scrappy ability allows its Normal- and Fighting-type STAB attacks to hit Ghost-types. This means that Mega Lopunny's STAB combination is completely unresisted, allowing it to break through most bulky offense teams. Access to Power-Up Punch allows it to boost its Attack while dealing damage, and Fake Out does chip damage while causing the foe to flinch. Weaknesses to four common types limit its viability, however, and it is checked by most physical walls, making it hard for Mega Lopunny to sweep. It also has mediocre bulk at best, so it is not difficult to OHKO Mega Lopunny with powerful STAB attacks, and it is outsped by every relevant Choice Scarf user in the tier.

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Another notable Fighting-type, Mega Medicham is one of the best wallbreakers the type has to offer, being able to reach an Attack stat of 656 right off the bat thanks to Pure Power. This allows it to break through bulky physical walls like Toxapex and Magearna. The list of Pokémon that can consistently switch into its attacks is incredibly small. To say it 2HKOes nearly the entire tier is no exaggeration, as the only two Pokémon in the tier that can consistently switch in on it are Mega Sableye and Mew. Its sky-high Attack goes hand-in-hand with High Jump Kick, a 130-Base Power STAB move that can rip through any targets that don't resist it and even some that do. It also gets access to all of the elemental punches as well as Fake Out to deal chip damage and scout for switch-ins. Mega Medicham is commonly run on VoltTurn teams so it doesn't have to take a hit all the time. Its poor Speed is easily taken advantage of by faster targets, however.

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Keldeo stands out from other Fighting-types because of its base 129 Special Attack stat in tandem with a great base 108 Speed stat. Thanks to this, it can function as a premier revenge killer in today's metagame, being able to check common threats such as Volcarona and Landorus-T when holding a Choice Scarf. It is the best special attacking Fighting-type in the tier with a signature move, Secret Sword, that allows it to break through special walls that would otherwise wall it, such as Chansey. Unlike Mega Medicham, Keldeo has decent bulk for an offensive Pokémon at 91 / 90 / 90. Keldeo also has access to Calm Mind and Taunt, allowing it to beat more defensively inclined teams, but most notably some of its checks, like Toxapex and Mantine. Its Water typing allows it to switch into the common Scald, and it does not care about being burned. Keldeo's weak points lie in the large number of checks and counters it has, such as Toxapex, Latios, Latias, Tangrowth, Tapu Bulu, Mantine, Tapu Lele, Tapu Koko, and Tapu Fini.

Honorable Mentions

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Terrakion is a strong Fighting-type in OU thanks to its near-unresisted dual STAB combination and its high-Base Power moves. Terrakion can function as a setup sweeper, as it's capable of threatening many Pokémon thanks to its good Attack stat and great dual STAB combination. The introduction of Z-Moves definitely helped this set, because not many Pokémon can switch into a Swords Dance-boosted Continental Crush. It's also a decent Choice Scarf user because of its ability to check threats like Volcarona and Mega Charizard X when equipped with it. Despite lacking a way to boost its Attack stat with this set, Terrakion can still threaten a large number of Pokémon with its strong moves. Unfortunately, not all is as good for Terrakion as it was in ORAS; many newly introduced Pokémon like Toxapex and Tapu Lele, as well as the ever-present Landorus-T, can easily threaten it, limiting its overall viability.

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Mega Heracross is a decent Fighting-type in USM that can break through bulkier teams relatively easily; this is thanks to its astonishing base 185 Attack stat, potent defensive typing, and good 80 / 115 / 105 bulk. Due to its typing and bulk, it can set up a Swords Dance on Pokémon like Celesteela and Hippowdon, which are commonly run on bulkier teams. Skill Link is by far what sets Mega Heracross apart from the other Fighting-types, however, as Mega Heracross always hits five times with multi-hit moves like Pin Missile and Rock Blast. Mega Heracross isn't that good overall, however, as its lacking Speed combined with its weakness to Fairy means it can't keep up with the offensive metagame.

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While Mega Gallade may seem hopelessly outclassed by Mega Medicham, it does have a few notable niches over it. For example, Mega Gallade can outspeed non-Choice Scarf Kartana to potentially revenge kill it. It also has access to Knock Off and Swords Dance to break past Mew, which Mega Medicham fails to do. A decent Special Defense stat also gives it a bit of an easier time setting up against special attackers. Despite all of this, Mega Gallade is considered mediocre, as it lacks the immediate power that Mega Medicham provides and the blazing Speed of Mega Lopunny. Additionally, Mew isn't that relevant anymore, and therefore its niche of beating Mew is less relevant.

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Fighting-types in Past Generations

Fighting as a type in the metagame has gone through a few changes across the generations. In Generation 1, for example, despite threatening Pokémon like Tauros and Chansey being at the top of the metagame, it was a completely irrelevant type in OU due to how common Alakazam and other Psychic-types were and the complete lack of a usable STAB move, with the only option being Submission. Generation 2 introduced Pokémon like Heracross and made Machamp a much more prominent threat due to the sheer dominance of Snorlax and the introduction of a much better STAB move in Cross Chop. In Generation 3, Fighting was an irrelevant type with only Heracross sitting in the OU tier. Generation 4 gave Fighting a boon with the arrival of Infernape, Lucario, Toxicroak, and Gallade. Generations 5 and 6 were pretty much the peak of Fighting, with the introduction of the Swords of Justice and new Mega Evolutions such as Mega Medicham, Mega Gallade, and Mega Lopunny all being top-tier threats in the OU tier. The introduction of the Fairy-type hurt Fighting heavily, though, and even more so now thanks to the sheer dominance of the Island Guardians.

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Fighting's Downfall

In Sun and Moon, Fighting is at the worst it has ever been as a type. While it is still a top-tier offensive type, the metagame is very unkind to it right now. Threats such as Clefable and Tapu Lele run rampant as well as common switch-ins such as Landorus-T and Toxapex, though both of these are beaten by Keldeo, Mega Lopunny, and Mega Medicham.

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