Grim
The Ghost
QC: liberty32 / KratosMana / ben gay
GP: Winry. / horyzhnz
Overview
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By virtue of its base 165 Special Attack and its ability, Pixilate, Mega Gardevoir is a very strong wallbreaker. Unlike most wallbreakers, Gardevoir also has a decent base 100 Speed, which doesn't make it dead weight against offensive teams. Gardevoir also has a solid typing with an immunity to Dragon, which all teams enjoy, and a great movepool which lets it potentially hit anything neutrally or super effectively. However, Steel-types are very common in OU, and they can switch in quite easily on any of Gardevoir's moves except Focus Blast. An only decent base 100 Speed coupled with terrible Defense also makes Gardevoir very easy to revenge kill with physical attackers and common strong priority moves, especially Bullet Punch.
Wallbreaker
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name: Wallbreaker
move 1: Hyper Voice
move 2: Psyshock
move 3: Focus Blast
move 4: Calm Mind / Taunt / Will-O-Wisp
ability: Trace
item: Gardevoirite
evs: 24 Def / 232 SpA / 252 Spe
nature: Timid / Modest
Moves
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Hyper Voice hits incredibly hard and does a huge chunk of damage against any Pokemon that does not resist it. Psyshock hits special walls, most notably Chansey, on their Defense, allowing Gardevoir to break through them. Focus Blast hits the Steel-types that resist Gardevoir's STAB moves, such as Ferrothorn. Calm Mind makes Gardevoir a powerful setup sweeper that can threaten bulky and fast teams alike. Taunt allows Gardevoir to break through defensive Pokemon such as Chansey and Cresselia, and it stops Pokemon such as Bisharp from setting up on Gardevoir. Will-O-Wisp is great for burning Mega Scizor, Mega Metagross, Bronzong, and Jirachi on the switch. Substitute can also be used, as Gardevoir forces a ton of switches, and it makes Gardevoir harder to revenge kill, eases prediction, and protects it from status moves.
Set Details
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Trace is the preferred ability before Mega Evolution, as it makes Gardevoir capable of turning a foe's ability against them. Some example of this include countering specially defensive Heatran with Taunt, stealing Regenerator from Pokemon such as Amoonguss and Slowbro, utilizing Magic Bounce from Mega Sableye to reflect Will-O-Wisp, taking advantage of Manectric's Lightning Rod , Intimidating Landorus-T and Gyarados, and trapping Magnezone locked into a Hidden Power. Additionally, Trace lets Gardevoir revenge kill weakened Dragonite with the aid of Multiscale, revenge kill weather sweepers such as Modest Kingdra and Adamant Excadrill if it is using a Timid nature, and Synchronize burn Mew as well in case you lack another Pokemon to absorb a burn from it. 24 EVs in Defense let Gardevoir avoid the 2HKO from Life Orb Latios's Psyshock. The rest of the EVs are put into Speed, to make Gardevoir capable of outspeeding all defensive Pokemon and some slower offensive ones, such as Breloom and Tyranitar, and into Special Attack, to make Gardevoir hit very hard. A Timid nature improves Gardevoir's matchup against offensive teams by allowing it to outspeed Pokemon such as Jolly Excadrill, Pinsir on the turn it Mega Evolves, Jolly Landorus-T, and Timid Heatran. It also makes Gardevoir faster than Jolly Breloom and Jolly Bisharp on the turn it Mega Evolves, meaning Gardevoir can burn them with Will-O-Wisp before they can attack it, and makes Gardevoir capable of revenge killing most weather sweepers, as they usually do not run Speed-boosting natures. A Modest nature is, however, definitely viable if you would prefer the extra power instead.
Usage Tips
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This set works best against stall and balance, destroying a lot of teams by just clicking Hyper Voice, using Focus Blast against Steel-types, and using Psyshock together with Taunt to get past dedicated special walls such as Chansey and Poison-types such as Mega Venusaur. Gardevoir is not deadweight against offensive teams, however, because they usually have little to no switch-ins for it. Avoid physical attackers such as Azumarill, Talonflame, and Landorus-T, as Gardevoir has very poor physical bulk. Gardevoir actually has very good Special Defense, though, and it can use that to check Pokemon such as Tornadus-T, Raikou, and Substitute + Calm Mind Keldeo. Gardevoir can also use its typing to switch into Dragon-types and threaten them out with Pixilate-boosted Hyper Voice, although it has to watch out for coverage moves.
Team Options
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Pursuit support from Pokemon such as Bisharp, Weavile, and Tyranitar is very helpful to remove Jirachi, Bronzong, Victini, and Mega Metagross, which are common answers to Gardevoir. Pokemon that help Mega Gardevoir outspeed the foe are also great teammates, as its Speed is only decent. Tailwind support from Pokemon such as Talonflame, Latios, Mew, and Zapdos or Sticky Web support from Shuckle is also appreciated, as is Prankster Thunder Wave, which Thundurus and Klefki can dish out. Magnezone is a good teammate to remove bulky Steel-types such as Ferrothorn so Gardevoir does not have to rely on Focus Blast's low accuracy to defeat them. Partners to check Flying-types such as Raikou, Zapdos, and Tyranitar are mandatory because Gardevoir's Defense stat is horrible, and it is thus easily KOed by Talonflame's Brave Bird, as well as Mega Pinsir's Aerilate Quick Attack if weakened. Steel- and Dragon-types such as Heatran, Bisharp, Garchomp, Latios, and Latias are good teammates as well, because together with Gardevoir they can form a Dragon-Steel-Fairy core, which has great type synergy. Pokemon that can take advantage of Gardevoir's wallbreaking prowess are also good teammates. Talonflame pressures many of Gardevoir's checks, while Gardevoir pressures Talonflame's checks back in return. Sand Rush Excadrill handles all of Gardevoir's checks except for Bronzong, which is easy to take advantage of and not that difficult to accommodate for. In return, Gardevoir handles Chesnaught, Slowbro, Hippowdon, and Rotom-W.
Support
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name: Support
move 1: Hyper Voice
move 2: Will-O-Wisp / Calm Mind
move 3: Wish
move 4: Protect
ability: Trace
item: Gardevoirite
evs: 248 HP / 244 Def / 16 Spe
nature: Timid
Moves
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A strong Pixilate-boosted Hyper Voice coming from a base 165 Special Attack stat and access to Will-O-Wisp to cripple physical attackers such as Mega Metagross, Scizor, and Jirachi that like switching in against Gardevoir are enough reason to use Gardevoir over other similar walls. Calm Mind is another option over Will-O-Wisp if your team needs a win condition, and it augments Gardevoir's uninvested Special Defense, which can be crucial against powerful special attackers such as Landorus and Choice Specs Keldeo. Wish provides Gardevoir with recovery, and Protect gives Gardevoir a shield to hide behind as it receives its own Wish and scouts for moves.
Set Details
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The given EV spread optimizes Gardevoir's ability to wall Pokemon such as Latios, Raikou, and Mega Sableye, while outspeeding Pokemon with base 70 Speed and a boosting nature such as Bisharp and Breloom, so Gardevoir can burn them or attack with Hyper Voice before they can move. An alternative EV spread consisting of 248 HP / 84 Def / 176 Spe with a Timid nature can also be used to outspeed the aforementioned Pokemon before Gardevoir has Mega Evolved.
Usage Tips
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Make good use of Gardevoir's typing and bulk to pivot into Dragon-types and pass Wishes to teammates in need of them. This set works well against VoltTurn teams, as Gardevoir walls the typical Electric-types in those teams, including Raikou, Mega Manectric, and Rotom-W, and it can cripple Scizor on the switch with Will-O-Wisp. However, after the VoltTurn gets started Gardevoir has a hard time staying alive. Despite having Defense investment, Gardevoir should still avoid strong physical attackers that it cannot outspeed and burn, such as Talonflame, Landorus-T, and Mega Pinsir. Although not always necessary, it can be important to Mega Evolve as soon as possible if the opponent has a Pokemon with base 70 Speed, as otherwise the Speed EVs could be for naught.
Team Options
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Because of Gardevoir's horrible Defense stat, it needs teammates to take on Flying-types such as Talonflame and Mega Pinsir, as they can easily take care of it. Good options would be Heatran, Landorus-T, Hippowdon, and Rotom-W. Gardevoir can be part of a Dragon-Steel-Fairy core, which has great type synergy; good choices for such a core are Heatran, Scizor, Latias, Latios, and defensive Garchomp. Other defensive Pokemon such as Skarmory, Hippowdon, Ferrothorn, Heatran, Chansey, and Chesnaught are good teammates for Gardevoir because they can form a stall team together and take on the threats that Gardevoir loses to, most notably fast physical attackers.
Other Options
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Shadow Ball hits Jirachi, Bronzong, Victini, and Mega Metagross, which would otherwise counter or check Gardevoir, super effectively. Future Sight works very well with a strong physical attacker as your opponent may have nothing to take a strong physical attack and a strong Future Sight simultaneously, usually leading to a Pokemon getting sacked if you play correctly. Destiny Bond can get rid of threats such as Mega Metagross, Ferrothorn, Bisharp, Manaphy, and a boosted Clefable in a pinch. Memento is an interesting move that creates setup opportunities for teammates, and Healing Wish can give a teammate a second chance to sweep. Hidden Power Ground is an option to hit Heatran hard with 100% accuracy, but misses out on hitting other Steel-types such as Ferrothorn. Hidden Power Fire lures in Mega Scizor and almost OHKOes it on the switch, but leaves Gardevoir walled by Heatran. Choice Scarf Gardevoir is an interesting set that can revenge kill weather sweepers with Trace, as well as Pokemon such as Mega Gyarados and Mega Altaria. Additionally, Life Orb is an option over Gardevoirite if you already have a Mega Evolution on your team but still need an offensive Fairy-type.
Checks & Counters
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**Steel-types**: Although some of them fear Focus Blast or Will-O-Wisp and thus can't switch in safely, if they get a free switch in, Steel-types such as Scizor, Mega Metagross, Jolly Excadrill, Jirachi, Bronzong, and Choice Scarf Magnezone can easily force Gardevoir out with their super effective STAB moves.
**Poison-types**: Gardevoir's Psyshock hits Poison-types for a huge amount of damage, but faster Poison-types, specifically Gengar and Mega Beedrill, can both easily KO it, provided they get a free switch in.
**Fire-types**: Fire-types resist Gardevoir's Fairy-type STAB, and most Fire-types can hit back very hard. The most notable ones are Victini, which is a good answer to non-Shadow Ball sets, and Heatran, which can take one Focus Blast and hit back with its Fire-type STAB moves, Flash Cannon, or use Toxic, depending on the set it uses. Both resist Psyshock as well, which is what makes them especially good checks.
**Physical attackers**: Gardevoir's Defense stat is very low, so physical attackers that can live a hit from it or simply outspeed it, such as Mega Metagross, Terrakion, Victini, Weavile, and Choice Scarf Landorus-T, can easily KO it with just a little prior damage as long as they are not burned.
**Faster Pokemon**: Although Gardevoir's Speed is far from horrible, it still leaves it vulnerable to being revenge killed by faster Pokemon such as Landorus, Mega Lopunny, and Gengar. Strong priority moves such as Bisharp's Sucker Punch, Talonflame's Brave Bird, and Crawdaunt's Aqua Jet also do a ton of damage to Gardevoir because of its horrible Defense stat. However, the support set has a better matchup against them as it can usually survive a hit and use Will-O-Wisp to defeat them, granted Gardevoir is at good health.
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