[OVERVIEW]
Guts Heracross stands as one of the most dangerous wallbreakers thanks to its freedom to choose between powerful attacks alongside its decent Speed tier, which lets it outspeed bulkier Pokemon and keep dangerous threats like Volcanion and Toxtricity in check. Heracross's typing enables it to take a hit from Zarude, Zygarde-10%, or Mienshao, giving it openings and expanding its defensive use. Meanwhile, Choice Scarf allows Heracross to act as a revenge killer and a potent cleaner, with Moxie allowing it to snowball after a KO. Despite Heracross's potency in wallbreaking, the Guts set cannot come onto the field easily by itself and is quickly worn down by entry hazards and its burn, mandating support and selective play, and it's still liable to being worn down by its own burn and entry hazard damage. The Choice Scarf set requires the opposition to be heavily weakened to sweep and struggles with faster Choice Scarf users that can revenge kill it, especially if it lowers its defenses with Close Combat. Mienshao competes with it as a Choice Scarf Fighting-type, as it is faster, can pivot around with U-turn, and has Regenerator to combat chip damage, but Mienshao cannot snowball like Heracross can.
[SET]
name: Guts Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Facade
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: Megahorn / Swords Dance
item: Flame Orb
ability: Guts
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Megahorn OHKOes Psychic-types like Reuniclus, Cresselia, and Necrozma, while Swords Dance can ease prediction against Fairy-types and punish Protect users trying to rack up Flame Orb chip. Stone Edge can snipe Flying-types such as Crobat, Noivern, and Talonflame, which can otherwise take a hit and threaten Heracross out. Heracross puts immediate pressure on Steel-types and often zeroes in on Fairy-types such as Togekiss and Sylveon, which Zarude and Sharpedo can take advantage of. Heracross can break through most Pokemon by itself, but teammates like Starmie can prevent chip damage from entry hazards and pivots such as Thundurus and Darmanitan give Heracross openings to activate its Flame Orb, maximizing its chances to wallbreak. Certain Pokemon like Galarian Slowbro, Galarian Weezing, and Mimikyu can attempt to pivot around Heracross's attacks, racking up Flame Orb damage and punishing mispredictions, so having teammates like Alolan Marowak and Zygarde-10% can help apply additional pressure on them.
[SET]
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Megahorn / Spikes
move 3: Knock Off
move 4: Stone Edge
item: Choice Scarf
ability: Moxie
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Megahorn is a strong secondary STAB attack to clean with, but Spikes can be more effective against bulkier teams. Stone Edge allows Heracross to keep Thundurus, Noivern, and Talonflame in check and potentially catch Togekiss attempting to switch in. The threat of a late-game sweep will require the opponent to preserve a set of Pokemon in order to handle any one move Heracross may try to clean with. Thus, partners like Obstagoon and Gardevoir can help wear down or threaten these Pokemon, which include Galarian Slowbro, Doublade, and Togekiss. Heracross's weakness to faster Choice Scarf users like Darmanitan can be mitigated by teammates like Rhyperior and Seismitoad, which can also set up Stealth Rock to chip away at the opposition. Running Spikes on Heracross not only helps its own sweeping efforts, but also assists other Pokemon like Stakataka and Necrozma, which benefit from Steel- and Water-types being worn down.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Choice Band is an alternative wallbreaking route that is able to stay healthy more easily while potentially bluffing a Choice Scarf set, but it is held back by its prediction-reliant nature in an environment with Pokemon like Togekiss, Crobat, and Alolan Marowak, which can sponge its STAB attacks.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Fairy-types**: Even though Fairy-types like Togekiss, Sylveon, and Galarian Weezing are threatened by Facade from the Guts set, they can prove to be an annoyance if Heracross doesn't predict correctly. Galarian Weezing in particular does well if carrying Neutralizing Gas to negate Guts. Choice Scarf Heracross severely struggles with Fairy-types, as it has no direct workaround for most of them.
**Faster Pokemon**: Many threats such as Starmie, Obstagoon, Talonflame, and Mimikyu can outpace and threaten Guts Heracross. Choice Scarf Heracross can take a hit from certain Choice Scarf users, such as Zarude and Mienshao, but others like Darmanitan outspeed and KO it. If Heracross drops its defenses with Close Combat, more Pokemon are capable of revenge killing it even at high health.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Jmash, 363823]]
- Quality checked by: [[GoldCat, 359771], [zizalith, 410251]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Finland, 517429], [CryoGyro, 331519]]
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