[OVERVIEW]
* Hydreigon is a strong contender for the title of best Pokemon in the Series 1 metagame thanks to its diverse movepool and high damage output.
* Terastallization proves to be a boon for Hydreigon, as it can get rid of its ever-burdening Fairy-type weakness by changing to much more beneficial types such as Steel.
* Hydreigon has a good offensive typing, leaving few Pokemon able to switch in safely. It is one of the best checks to Gholdengo and also pairs well with it, forming a fundamentally powerful core when used with Tailwind support from Murkrow. Armarouge and Garchomp also synergize well with Hydreigon, covering for Steel-types, which it may not be able to damage effectively depending on its Tera type. Hydreigon can, however, struggle against damage reduction such as Snarl and Light Screen, with the latter coming especially from Grimmsnarl, which can easily take its STAB moves and OHKO it back with Spirit Break if Hydreigon is not Terastallized. Repeated usage of Draco Meteor can also make Hydreigon deal unimpressive amounts of damage, but this can be counteracted with Haze from Murkrow, allowing it to continue dealing devastating damage.
[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Dark Pulse
move 3: Flash Cannon / Heat Wave
move 4: Protect / Tailwind
item: Life Orb
ability: Levitate
nature: Timid / Modest
tera type: Steel / Fire
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
* Tailwind allows Hydreigon to support allies such as Armarouge and Sylveon, forming strong offensive combinations. The third moveslot depends on Hydreigon's Tera Type and can be changed accordingly. Protect is utilized on teams with a different primary Tailwind setter such as Murkrow, but Hydreigon can still be kept as a secondary setter. Focus Energy is used on Scope Lens variants.
* Life Orb lets Hydreigon dish out consistent damage without the need to set up.
* The Steel Tera type synergizes wonderfully with Hydreigon's original typing and Levitate, allowing it to resist a plethora of common types such as Fairy, Ground, and, Dragon. This makes Hydreigon one of the best checks to Tera Ground Garchomp, which cannot hit Hydreigon with Earthquake and deals minimal damage to it with Dragon Claw and Rock Slide. A Fire Tera type allows Hydreigon to beat opposing Tera Steel Pokemon such as Hydreigon and Salamence. The Poison Tera type lets Hydreigon maintain the resistance to Fairy that Steel and Fire possess while also gaining an additional resistance to Fighting, crucial against the likes of Annihilape, Hariyama, and Close Combat Lycanroc. It is only left with Psychic as a relevant weakness, synergizing well with its original Dark typing.
[SET]
name: Scope Lens
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Heat Wave
move 3: Focus Energy
move 4: Protect
item: Scope Lens
ability: Levitate
nature: Timid / Modest
tera type: Fire
evs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
* Heat Wave is a great coverage move to deal with Steel-types which can withstand Draco Meteor such as Gholdengo and Kingambit.
* Scope Lens takes advantage of the +2 critical hit rate from Focus Energy, allowing Hydreigon to always critical hit, especially through Draco Meteor Special Attack drops and other means of damage reduction such as Light Screen.
* A Timid nature lets Hydreigon speed tie other Hydreigon as the raw power it gains from having the ability to always critical hit is enough. A Modest nature can, however, be utilized on teams with good methods of speed control such as Tailwind from Murkrow.
* The Fire Tera type powers up Hydreigon's Heat Wave, thus allowing its move combination to be near unresisted.
[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Draco Meteor
move 2: Snarl
move 3: Flash Cannon
move 4: Dark Pulse / Heat Wave
item: Assault Vest
ability: Levitate
nature: Timid
tera type: Steel
evs: 228 HP / 20 Def / 36 SpA / 76 SpD / 148 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
* Snarl is an immensely useful tool for reducing the damage dealt by strong special attackers such as Gholdengo, Psychic Terrain-boosted Expanding Force Armarouge, and opposing Hydreigon.
* Flash Cannon in combination with the Steel Tera type is used as a way to keep Fairy-types such as Grimmsnarl and Sylveon in check. Heat Wave is used as coverage to hit opposing Steel-types, but Dark Pulse is usually preferred over it for its ability to deal consistent damage to most other types overall.
* Assault Vest makes Hydreigon a very potent sponge against special moves when combined with its ability to use Snarl for further reduction, especially for its teammates. Its high Special Attack lets it deal respectable damage despite running a more support-oriented set.
* The Speed EVs allow Hydreigon to outrun maximum Speed Timid Gholdengo, and as a result, Armarouge of all Speed investments, allowing it to immediately use Snarl and lower their damage output. The Special Attack EVs let it always 2HKO maximum HP and 4 Special Defense Armarouge and uninvested Gholdengo with Dark Pulse. The Special Defense EVs make -1 Modest maximum Special Attack Choice Specs Gholdengo's Shadow Ball only a possible 5HKO on Tera Steel Hydreigon, while Make It Rain rocks a petty chance to even 7HKO. -1 Armarouge Aura Sphere also only has about a 50% chance to 4HKO Hydreigon. Note that Hydreigon should not be Terastallized against Armarouge to maintain the Fire resistance and Psychic immunity, as it is still weak to Aura Sphere when Terastallized. Opposing Tera Fire Hydreigon never OHKOes Tera Steel Hydreigon with Life Orb Heat Wave when spread damage is accounted for, allowing Hydreigon to retaliate with Snarl. The physical bulk allows Hydreigon to never be 2HKOed by maximum Attack Adamant Annihilape Drain Punch and Jolly maximum Attack Garchomp Brick Break.
* Steel Tera type is the best defensive type for Hydreigon, allowing it to hard check most special attackers such as Gholdengo and Sylveon while holding its own against Pokemon such as Grimmsnarl. Poison Tera type, on the other hand, lets Hydreigon maintain the Fairy resistance that Steel gives it while also awarding it an additional resistance to Fighting in the face of Pokemon such as Annihilape and Hariyama.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sole Survivor, 518634]]
- Quality checked by: [[yuki, 294287]]
- Grammar checked by: [[autumn, 384270]]
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