Psychic-types in LGPE OU

By Ryota Mitarai. Released: 2019/08/25.
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Art by Matryoshkat

Art by Matryoshkat.

Introduction

Psychic is one of the best types in the LGPE OU metagame due to hitting a huge part of the meta for at least neutral damage while having a limited number of reliable checks and counters. Many teams are seen running Melmetal, Alolan Muk, Mega Gyarados, or Snorlax simply to ensure that they have a good switch-in to Psychic-types; alternatively, they can take a more offensive approach in the form of Mega Gengar or Mega Beedrill to outpace and OHKO a majority of Psychic-types. This article today will cover the Psychic-types that have made names for themselves in the metagame.

Mega Alakazam

Mega Alakazam

Although it is not the beast it was once considered to be during the initial stages of the meta, Mega Alakazam nonetheless remains a defining force in Psychic-types' overall viability. One of its most powerful traits is its exceptionally high Speed, which is only rivaled by Mega Aerodactyl and Electrode and allows it to outspeed Mega Gengar and Mega Beedrill, the two most prominent revenge killers for Psychic-types. Along with that, it has a high Special Attack to complement its Speed, a boosting move in the form of Calm Mind (which as a bonus also gives it some special bulk), and access to reliable recovery in the form of Recover (which it can easily use due to its ability to force out a lot of opposing Pokémon). As a bonus, Mega Alakazam can run Dazzling Gleam to hit its Dark-type checks harder, especially Mega Gyarados. However, it has two major weaknesses; its physical bulk is relatively low, leaving it vulnerable to moves like Alolan Dugtrio's Sucker Punch, and the metagame is adapted to its presence, as most players are aware of how to play around it and run one, sometimes even two, solid checks to Mega Alakazam. Nonetheless, should it get an opportunity (typically by having its checks and counters significally weakened or KOed), Mega Alakazam can finish games.

Mew

Mew
  • Mew
  • Ability: Synchronize
  • Level: 50
  • Timid Nature
  • IVs: 0 Atk
  • - Nasty Plot
  • - Psychic
  • - Thunderbolt
  • - Fire Blast / Roost
  • Mew
  • Ability: Synchronize
  • Level: 50
  • Careful Nature
  • - Stealth Rock
  • - Will-O-Wisp / Scald
  • - Roost
  • - Dragon Tail / U-turn
  • Mew
  • Ability: Synchronize
  • Level: 50
  • Timid / Bold Nature
  • - Psychic
  • - Will-O-Wisp
  • - Roost
  • - U-turn / Taunt

Mew is one of the best Pokémon in the metagame, to the point of having had a suspect test, although it ended in a 100% no ban majority. This is due to one of its strongest traits: versatility. Mew is able to run more than one set, all of which are viable. Even among known sets, there's still a few possibilities as to what it's running exactly. Another thing that factors into its viability is its wide arsenal of powerful move choices; its Nasty Plot set often runs Fire Blast and Psychic with coverage, typically Thunderbolt, though Fire Blast + BoltBeam is also seen sometimes. These moves allow it to hit a huge pool of the metagame, most notably Melmetal with Fire Blast and Mega Gyarados with Thunderbolt. On the other hand, Mew can also take the role of a Stealth Rock setter that can spread nasty burns. Mew is commonly used for this role due to its good bulk, allowing it to survive even a super effective move if healthy enough, and its lack of a weakness to a common type, like Ground or Water, unlike Rhydon, Nidoking, and Aerodactyl. In addition, it can also make physical attackers deadweight with Will-O-Wisp should they lack Eevee-S support, although Scald is another common option to make Mew less passive once the opponent is burned. Access to Roost also allows it to stall a little bit against burned physical threats; however, its ability to 1v1 a huge portion of physical attackers is hampered by Toxic poison, as it wears down Mew easily in no time. It is seen running Dragon Tail to avoid being setup fodder for special attackers and to spread Stealth Rock damage, but some just run U-turn instead to pivot out of a bad matchup and bring in a teammate safely. Earthquake also sees usage to lure in and significantly wear down Alolan Muk, making it less of a hassle for sweepers like Mega Gengar and Mega Alakazam.

Starmie

Starmie

Starmie is a notable Psychic-type Pokémon due to being a general Melmetal switch-in along with having a high Speed stat, good Special Attack, and a solid movepool. Due to its Water typing, it is able to switch in against Melmetal's Double Iron Bash, though it has to be careful to not switch into a Thunder Punch. By outspeeding foes, it is able to potentially burn them with Scald or just finish them off with the appropriate move should they be weakened enough. Its access to Recover helps it a lot in its longevity as well. Its coverage move depends on whether it wants to hit other Water-types like Gyarados, Slowbro, and opposing Starmie or Dragonite super effectively. Starmie is generally seen running a Bold nature to take Double Iron Bash and other physical attacks a little bit better.

Mega Slowbro

Mega Slowbro

Mega Slowbro differentiates itself from other Psychic-types, most notably Starmie, with its exceptionally high Defense, which, coupled with its access to Fire Blast, makes it the Psychic-type that struggles the least against Melmetal. Mega Slowbro generally is used as a Calm Mind sweeper, as not only does its physical bulk give it the ability to set up on quite a few threats, but Calm Mind also boosts its Special Defense, thus making it bulky both physically and specially. It's often seen running Surf over Scald due to the former option's higher power, along with Psychic as its other STAB move. However, Mega Slowbro has three major weaknesses. First, it's rather slow, meaning it will always have to take a hit before doing something against most Pokémon. Second, it lacks reliable recovery outside of Rest, which makes it mandatory to run Eevee-S in your team and means that it is easily worn out, especially by its Dark-type checks. Third, although its Water typing gives it a valuable resistance to Melmetal's Double Iron Bash, it also gives Mega Slowbro unpleasant weaknesses to Grass and Electric, with the latter being annoying due to the presence of Zapdos in a lot of teams. For this reason, Mega Slowbro should generally be utilized as a late-game sweeper once its checks and counters are KOed or significantly worn down.

Exeggutor

Exeggutor

Exeggutor's main appeal is access both to Leech Seed and Sleep Powder, making it very annoying to deal with it if played correctly. Thanks to the combination of Leech Seed and Mega Drain, Exeggutor has access to semi-reliable recovery, allowing it to keep itself healthy. Exeggutor can also prevent itself from being deadweight against its Dark-type checks and Melmetal by putting them to sleep. However, Exeggutor has a few flaws, which makes it a niche Psychic-type Pokémon. Its typing leaves with a lot of weaknesses, especially to Bug, which is even made worse by the fact that Mega Beedrill and the common Mew and Zapdos are often seen running U-turn. Its low Speed also means that opposing Pokémon generally have an easy time outpacing it and hitting it hard. It is also rather vulnerable to anything that resists both of its STAB moves, such as Alolan Muk or Melmetal, and even though it can put them to sleep, it cannot put them all to sleep due to Sleep Clause, meaning that it will always be deadweight against something. Finally, its non-Psychic counterpart, Alolan Exeggutor, is generally the more viable forme, as it has access to much more powerful moves like Flamethrower to hit Melmetal and Alolan Sandslash on the switch and does not possess a 4x weakness to U-turn, making it very hard to justify a normal Exeggutor over an Alolan one.

Get Out There

You are now aware of why Psychic is a dominant force in the LGPE OU meta. By knowing which Psychic-type Pokémon are commonly seen, what they can do, and what their weaknesses are, you are now likely not only able to counterplay against them but are also able to use them efficiently on your own. So, don't wait, and start laddering right away!

HTML by Ryota Mitarai.
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