ALL HAIL THE DIAMOND QUEEN[OVERVIEW]
Mega Diancie is one of OverUsed's most dangerous Mega Evolutions courtesy of its unique typing, efficient coverage, and critical Speed tier. With its high offensive stats and powerful STAB moves, Mega Diancie can threaten both physical and special walls effectively. Additional coverage in the form of Earth Power and Hidden Power Fire lets it handle many of the common Pokemon that can stomach its STAB attacks. Defensively, Diancie's typing grants it resistances to Fire, Flying, and Dark as well as an immunity to Dragon, letting it check non-Earthquake Mega Charizard X and Dragonite and take crucial attacks such as Talonflame and Volcarona's boosted STAB moves, Mega Pinsir's Quick Attack, and Bisharp's Sucker Punch. Mega Diancie's Speed is one of its most important traits, letting it get the jump on threatening Pokemon that hover on and around the crowded base 100 Speed tier, such as Garchomp, Manaphy, Keldeo, and unboosted Volcarona, as well as Speed tie with Latios and Latias. Magic Bounce allows Mega Diancie to deny entry hazards with proper prediction and shield itself from status moves such as Heatran's Toxic and Taunt, Clefable's Thunder Wave, and Rotom-W's Will-O-Wisp. However, Mega Diancie is burdened with mediocre bulk, and its typing gives it weaknesses to common Water-, Steel-, Grass-, and Ground-type moves, making revenge killers such as Serperior, Weavile, Mega Lopunny, Mega Scizor, and Mega Metagross adept at picking it off. Additionally, Mega Diancie's lack of reliable recovery means it struggles to take strong repeated hits from Pokemon it wants to check, particularly Tornadus-T. Diancie's low Speed before Mega Evolving is also a concern, forcing it to run Protect and forfeit valuable coverage or utility options in order to render its Speed usable the next turn.
[SET]
name: Offensive
move 1: Protect
move 2: Moonblast
move 3: Diamond Storm / Stealth Rock
move 4: Earth Power / Hidden Power Fire / Stealth Rock
item: Diancite
ability: Clear Body
nature: Naive
evs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Protect lets Diancie Mega Evolve safely and circumvent its low Speed before Mega Evolution. Protect also serves a number of other purposes, helping Diancie effectively scout Choice item users such as Azumarill, Landorus-T, and Weavile, discerning whether Mega Medicham carries Bullet Punch, and forcing mind games with Mega Lopunny's High Jump Kick. Moonblast is Mega Diancie's strongest and most reliable STAB move, hitting most neutral targets very hard. Diamond Storm helps Mega Diancie act as a mixed attacker, dishing out respectable damage to specially bulky Pokemon such as Chansey and Slowking while destroying key Fire- and Flying-types such as Tornadus-T, Volcarona, and Charizard. The Defense boost it often provides is also notable, potentially coming into play against revenge killers such as Crawdaunt and Weavile. Earth Power is Mega Diancie's best coverage option to threaten important Steel-types, most importantly securing the 2HKO on any variant of Excadrill and Mega Metagross while obliterating Heatran, Magnezone, and Bisharp. Alternatively, Hidden Power Fire can 2HKO Skarmory, Ferrothorn, and Mega Scizor. However, using the latter lowers Mega Diancie's Speed IV, forfeiting the Speed tie against threats such as Latios, Mega Metagross, and the odd Gengar. Stealth Rock can be used in place of Diamond Storm or a coverage option if the team lacks another setter, as Mega Diancie is an effective user of the move due to the number of switches it forces. It is especially noteworthy for being able to keep Stealth Rock up versus stall thanks to its strong matchup against Zapdos, the most common form of entry hazard control on the archetype.
Set Details
========
A Naive nature is preferred over Hasty, letting Mega Diancie better check Talonflame, Mega Pinsir, and Mega Charizard X while always surviving Gliscor's unboosted Earthquake at full HP and Bisharp's +2 Sucker Punch after Stealth Rock. It is also worth noting that even with a Naive nature, Mega Diancie can survive two uninvested Moonblasts from Clefable as well as take a +1 Giga Drain from Volcarona before Mega Evolving. However, if Stealth Rock is chosen over Diamond Storm, Diancie should instead run a Timid nature to preserve its bulk.
Usage Tips
========
In many matchups, players should lead off with Diancie and Mega Evolve safely with Protect to reap the benefits of Mega Diancie's Speed and Magic Bounce. However, choosing to abstain from leading with and immediately Mega Evolving Diancie can be beneficial depending on the circumstance. For example, it may be wise not to lead with Diancie if your team dislikes switching into Scald and the opponent can anti-lead it with a bulky Water-type or if the opponent has a Mold Breaker Excadrill, which can set Stealth Rock freely on Mega Diancie in spite of Magic Bounce. Also, if Diancie is not immediately Mega Evolved, it can act as a better initial pivot into certain Pokemon such as Tornadus-T and Hydreigon due to its regular forme's higher bulk. At later stages in the game, Mega Diancie should be used to soften up defensive cores by firing off powerful attacks. Diancie is best brought in with partners that can pivot into it with U-turn or Volt Switch due to its mediocre bulk, and its health should be preserved if it is needed as a revenge killer or emergency check to a threat such as Bisharp or Dragonite. If this is not the case, Mega Diancie can find additional wallbreaking opportunities by switching directly into Pokemon such as Tornadus-T and Talonflame that can do little to threaten it. Do not shy away from utilizing Protect often; aside from scouting the moves of Choice item users, it can be used to learn valuable information about the opponent's moveset. For example, Mega Diancie should use Protect against Mega Medicham to see if it carries Bullet Punch and against Latios to check for Surf.
Team Options
========
Mega Diancie finds itself at home on bulky offensive builds that can effectively make use of its Speed, defensive utility, Magic Bounce, and most importantly, its incredible firepower. Fire-types such as Volcarona, Talonflame, and Volcanion can deal with its Steel-type checks and enjoy Mega Diancie warding off Stealth Rock with Magic Bounce. The former two especially appreciate its ability to keep Tyranitar at bay, weaken bulky Water-types, and threaten Heatran with Earth Power. Other Pokemon that are hindered by Stealth Rock and can clean up after Mega Diancie softens up teams, such as Dragonite and Weavile, also appreciate said traits. Magnezone is an excellent teammate if Diancie opts not to use Hidden Power Fire, as it frees up Mega Diancie offensively by trapping and eliminating Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Mega Scizor for it and pivots it in with Volt Switch. It should be noted that Mega Diancie loses to common Stealth Rock setters such as Excadrill, Chansey, and Ferrothorn, making it an unreliable means of entry hazard control. As such, bulky Excadrill is one of Mega Diancie's most common and effective partners, providing vital Rapid Spin support to take the pressure off of Mega Diancie to keep hazards away while preserving the hazards the latter sends back with Magic Bounce. Excadrill also takes care of Magnezone, Clefable, and Jirachi and can cripple bulky Water-types with Toxic while appreciating Mega Diancie's ability to pressure Skarmory and Tornadus-T. Starmie is another good spinner to pair with Diancie, as it can pivot into Scald from bulky Water-types, provide Thunder Wave support, and check Steel- and Ground-types such as Mega Metagross and bulky Excadrill for it. In return, Mega Diancie offensively checks Dark-types such as Bisharp and Tyranitar that give Starmie grief. Both of these spinners are highly fond of Mega Diancie's unparalleled ability to force opponents to switch and pivot around it, giving them more opportunities to come in safely and click Rapid Spin.
If Mega Diancie forgoes Stealth Rock, entry hazard setters are important teammates for it to help chip Mega Diancie's answers into range of its powerful attacks and make it near impossible to pivot around. Clefable can use Stealth Rock and Thunder Wave to support Mega Diancie or carry Ice Beam or Flamethrower to deal with Gliscor and Ferrothorn for it. Ferrothorn checks Chansey and bulky Water-types and can set up Spikes as well as Stealth Rock. Lastly, pivots that bring Mega Diancie in and soak up the hits aimed at it are great partners. Tangrowth and Alomomola handle threats such as Mega Metagross and Mega Lopunny for Mega Diancie and give it opportunities to come in safely with Sleep Powder and Wish, respectively. Rotom-W and Tornadus-T can directly pivot Mega Diancie in with Volt Switch and U-turn; the former takes on Mega Scizor and Mega Metagross for Mega Diancie, while the latter checks Serperior and other Grass-types for it.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Hidden Power Ice lets Mega Diancie blitz through Landorus-T after Stealth Rock and deal huge damage to Gliscor, which otherwise is able to stall out Moonblasts with Roost. However, Hidden Power Ice is best used alongside Protect due to increased emphasis on scouting Landorus-T's set and greatly increases Diancie's reliance on teammates like Volcarona and Magnezone to handle Steel-types. Calm Mind can let Mega Diancie overwhelm checks such as Clefable and Alomomola and soak up hits from faster Pokemon such as Latios and Thundurus. Unfortunately, this is an extremely niche option because it comes at the cost of Protect, making Diancie painfully easy to revenge kill, and the loss of Diamond Storm makes it far more difficult to break special walls and check key Pokemon such as Mega Charizard Y. In addition, Calm Mind Mega Diancie can still struggle in one-on-one situations with checks that can offensively pressure it such as Gliscor, Chansey, Jirachi, and Amoonguss. Rock Polish gives Mega Diancie the potential to sweep weakened offensive teams on paper, but this is also a subpar option, as it fails to help it against defensive checks and still leaves Diancie completely vulnerable to Bullet Punch and Aqua Jet users. In addition, like Calm Mind, it occupies a valuable moveslot in which Diancie would prefer to carry an important coverage or utility option. Though it can be similarly difficult to fit, Heal Bell lets Diancie offer more team support by acting as a cleric, ridding its teammates of burns from the Scalds that they may have switched into for Diancie.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-type Pokemon and Coverage**: Mega Metagross outspeeds Hidden Power Fire Mega Diancie, can take an Earth Power, and OHKOes Diancie with a Steel-type STAB move. Jirachi can also take a hit and strike back with Iron Head. Skarmory and Mega Scizor switch into Mega Diancie lacking Hidden Power Fire, and the latter OHKOes it with Bullet Punch. Ferrothorn can take a STAB move followed by Hidden Power Fire from full health and OHKO Diancie back with Gyro Ball. Magnezone survives any one hit from Diancie barring Earth Power and dispatches it with Flash Cannon. While it is OHKOed by Moonblast, Mega Medicham is known to run Bullet Punch to OHKO Mega Diancie before it can strike back, so tread carefully when facing it.
**Water-types**: Gastrodon and Jellicent check Mega Diancie decently well if they are healthy, recovering off Moonblasts and dealing huge damage back with Earthquake and Scald. Suicune survives any two hits after Stealth Rock and as such makes for a decent check, but its lack of reliable recovery is a concern. Though they also crumble to repeated blows, Rotom-W and Manaphy each can take a hit and KO Mega Diancie in return. Azumarill and Crawdaunt can revenge kill Mega Diancie with Choice Band-boosted Aqua Jet after some prior damage, but only the former is able to endure a Moonblast. Slowbro can force damage on Mega Diancie in a pinch, but it struggles greatly to take Moonblast. Slowking does not have this problem due to its higher special bulk, making it an excellent check.
**Bulky Grass-types**: Amoonguss and Assault Vest Tangrowth switch into Mega Diancie reliably and threaten it with their Grass-type STAB moves, and they can do so multiple times over the course of the game thanks to Regenerator. Mega Venusaur is an even stronger counter, taking all of Mega Diancie's common moves with ease and healing any damage taken with Synthesis.
**Specially Defensive Walls**: Chansey is extremely difficult for Mega Diancie to overcome, as it can take Mega Diancie's hits quite easily with Eviolite intact and 3HKO in return with Seismic Toss. Specially defensive Gliscor can stall out Moonblast with Roost and threaten major damage with Earthquake, but Moonblast can 2HKO it with Stealth Rock up and Hidden Power Ice will nearly OHKO it. Specially defensive Hippowdon and Alomomola can take two hits unless Spikes are up, but Hippowdon must be cautious of Magic Bounce returning its Toxic or Whirlwind, and Alomomola does little damage back with its weak Scald. Specially defensive Excadrill is an especially notable check, surviving a Moonblast followed by an Earth Power and OHKOing Diancie back or setting up Stealth Rock thanks to Mold Breaker.
**Faster Pokemon**: Serperior and Starmie are excellent offensive checks that force Mega Diancie out. The former can then take the opportunity to set up with Substitute or Leaf Storm, while the latter can heal or fire off a Scald. Weavile, Life Orb Thundurus, Mega Lopunny, and Mega Alakazam also outspeed and deal huge damage to Mega Diancie, but none of them can OHKO Mega Diancie without prior damage, and it can OHKO all of them in return. Choice Scarf users such as Landorus-T are able to revenge kill Mega Diancie, but Mega Diancie can scout their chosen move with Protect and act accordingly.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[memesketch, 537558]]
- Quality checked by: [[jonfilch, 472436], [Vulpix03, 306299]]
- Grammar checked by: [[lumari, 232216]]
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