[OVERVIEW]
* Mega Metagross has great offensive stats paired up with respectable bulk, fitting well onto Offensive teams
* An useful ability in Tough Claws boosts Mega Metagross’s wallbreaking abilities
* Mega Metagross has access the priority move Bullet Punch as well as a wide movepool, making it rather unpredictable
* Steel / Psychic typing grants Mega Metagross great resistances such as Psychic, Dragon, Fairy, Ice and Steel as well as a immunity to Poison, allowing it to serve as a offensive check to common Dragon, Fairy, Steel and Psychic types such as Salamence, Xerneas, Necrozma-Dusk-Mane and Deoxys-A
* Mega Metagross’s good physical bulk allows it to take at least 1 hit from the likes of Marshadow, Mega Salamence and Mega Lucario and retaliate with a super-effective coverage move
* Unfortunately, Mega Metagross is weak to 4 of the most prominent attacking types in the tier: Ground, Dark, Ghost, Fire, making it weak to common Pokemon in the Ubers tier such as Primal Groudon, Yveltal and Mega Gengar
* Mega Metagross faces competition from Necrozma-Dusk-Mane and Mega Lucario, the former having recovery, more versatility, able to check Xerneas better and does not take a Mega slot, and the latter having more offensive presence
* Mega Metagross also has a serious four-move syndrome, being unable to hit Ho-Oh if not running Rock Slide, Primal Groudon if not running Earthquake, Landorus-T if not running Ice Punch and Primal Kyogre if not running Thunder Punch
* Mega Metagross is also checked by a large number of Pokemon, such as support Arceus formes, Defensive Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre, Zygarde-C and Giratina, and has to rely on different coverage to hit them, making it easy to play around once Mega Metagross's moves are known
* It is a setup fodder for many Pokemon, such as Double Dance Ultra Necrozma, Rock Polish Primal Groudon or Extreme Killer Arceus
* Although it has a decent speed tier, it is easily revenge killed by faster Pokemon such as Mega Lucario, Marshadow, Yveltal, and Mega Gengar
* Running Mega Metagross stops you from taking another Mega Evolution such as Mega Mewtwo X or Mega Salamence, both able to offer better offensive presence and check more Pokemon
[SET]
name: All-Out Attacker
move 1: Meteor Mash
move 2: Bullet Punch
move 3: Ice Punch / Earthquake
move 4: Toxic / Thunder Punch
Item: Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
nature: Jolly
evs: 180 HP / 152 Atk / 176 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
* Meteor Mash is Mega Metagross's strongest Steel-type STAB move, has a chance to raise its Attack by 1 stage, and hits Fairy types such as Xerneas and Arceus-Fairy for super effective damage
* Bullet Punch is an important priority move that allows Mega Metagross to pick off weakened foes with the use of Meteor Mash such as Geomancy Xerneas or Mega Salamence
* Ice Punch hits Dragon-types such as Mega Salamence, Rayquaza, Giratina and Zygarde-C for super effective damage
* Earthquake is an alternative over Ice Punch to hit Primal Groudon and opposing Steel-types such as Necrozma-Dusk-Mane
* Toxic is useful for wearing down checks such as Giratina, support Arceus formes, Ho-Oh and Primal Groudon if not running Earthquake
* Thunder Punch 3HKOes Skarmory, Celesteela without Leech Seed recovery, Physically Defensive Kyogre, and Arceus-Water after Stealth Rock and OHKOes Defensive Ho-oh after Stealth Rock damage
* Rock Slide is an alternative for 2HKOing Defensive Ho-Oh without Stealth Rock, but it has no other use other than that
* Hammer Arm allows Metagross to hit Ferrothorn and non-Chople Berry Extreme Killer Arceus, but lowering Mega Metagross's speed is not beneficial to the momentum
* Pursuit is an option to trap Psychic-types, with the exception of Mega Mewtwo X
Set Details
========
* Clear Body prevents Intimidate users such as pre-mega Salamence and Landorus-T to lower Mega Metagross's Attack before Mega Evolution, as well as stop Sticky Web from lowering its Speed
* A Jolly nature with 176 Spe allows Mega Metagross to outspeed positive-natured base 100 and below Speed Pokemon such as Palkia, Xerneas and Yveltal
* 180 HP gives Mega Metagross just enough bulk to take a +2 Xerneas's Focus Blast, +1 Mega Salamence's Earthquake, and Life Orb Marshadow's Spectral Thief, assuming Stealth Rock is up on your side
* The rest of the EVs are put into Attack to increase Mega Metagross's overall damage output
Usage Tips
========
* Against offensive teams, Mega Metagross should try and weaken foes for other teammates to sweep through them later, as more offensive teams usually bring frailer Pokemon or Pokemon with less bulk investment
* Mega Metagross should be kept healthy against more balanced or defensive teams, as it can keep damaging bulky Pokemon such as Ho-Oh, Lugia and Giratina with its respective coverage moves and switch out into another teammate
* Mega Metagross should switch in through prediction or resisted attacks, such as Arceus Fairy's Judgment or unboosted Xerneas's Moonblast and proceed to weaken the opposing team with its coverage moves
* As Mega Metagross is mainly used to check Xerneas, it should avoid taking any kind of residual damage such as Leech Seed from Ferrothorn and Celesteela
* If an opponent has a check for Mega Metagross such as Celesteela or Giratina, double out into a teammate that can threaten them out such as Primal Groudon or Yveltal after Mega Metagross has switched in
* Although Mega Metagross is able to hit Water types such as Primal Kyogre and Arceus-Water with Thunder Punch, it should be aware of Scald burns or the rare Will-O-Wisp, as burn cripples Mega Metagross throughout the match and renders it useless
* Due to most Arceus formes running just enough speed to outspeed Jolly Mega Lucario, Mega Metagross should avoid being used as a check against them, as they can weaken Mega Metagross to a point where a resisted attack can take it out
* Although Clear Body prevents any sort of stat drop, it is recommended that you Mega Evolve Metagross as soon as possible, as the bulk is very useful and Metagross's speed is low
* Be wary of Primal Groudon, which can come in easily and threaten Mega Metagross out with its powerful STAB moves.
* Be careful against certain Psychic and Poison types, as they bring coverage to hit Steel types, such as Fire Blast from both Mega Mewtwo Y and Naganadel
* If the foe is in range of Bullet Punch, use it as Meteor Mash has a chance to miss and missing may change the tides of a game
Team Options
========
* Mega Metagross fits well on offensive teams which cannot afford a sturdy Xerneas check that ruins momentum such as Specially Defensive Necrozma-Dusk-Mane
* Primal Groudon is a good teammate, as it sets up Stealth Rock, breaking Lugia's Multiscale and removing 50% of Ho-Oh HP, helping Mega Metagross chip down opposing team, or weaken the opposing team enough for Mega Metagross to sweep through them late-game. It also helps Mega Metagross with Steel-types, which typically wall Mega Metagross. Furthermore, Primal Groudon provides a check to Xerneas, so Mega Metagross can share the burden with Primal Groudon
* Primal Kyogre is able to threaten out a lot of Mega Metagross's checks, such as Primal Groudon, Arceus-Ground, Zygarde-C and Giratina
* Support Arceus formes capable of removing hazards and weakening Mega Metagross's checks are great partners, as they can sustain Mega Metagross's longevity by removing hazards and Toxic Mega Metagross's checks, so Arceus-Fairy, Arceus-Ground or Arceus-Water are good teammates. Arceus-Ground and Arceus-Water, in particular, is able to check Primal Groudon and Arceus-Water also able to beat non-Thunder Primal Kyogre
* Xerneas is able to weaken most of Mega Metagross's checks such as Giratina and Zygarde-C. It can also weaken Steel-types and Primal Groudon with its coverage moves for Mega Metagross, or vice versa. Choice Scarf sets are also able to get rid of Paralysis or Burn on Mega Metagross with Aromatherapy
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
* Stealth Rock on Mega Metagross is plausible and potentially frees up a slot of Primal Groudon, but Mega Metagross will lose an important coverage move and be played around more easily
* A set featuring Agility / Meteor Mash / Earthquake / Zen Headbutt is usable as a late-game sweeper, but Rock Polish Primal Groudon or Dragon Dance Mega Salamence generally outclass this set
* Explosion is an option to prevent a Defog and deal heavy damage, but it will leave the team with one less Pokemon
Checks and Counters
===================
**Steel-types**: Most Steel-types in the Ubers tier wall Mega Metagross, as it lacks the coverage to hit super-effectively. With the exception of Solgaleo, Necrozma-Dusk-Mane being hit super effectively by Earthquake and Skarmory, Celesteela being hit super effectively by Thunder Punch, Pokemon such as Mega Scizor or Bronzong is able to take any hit from Mega Metagross and weaken it
**Dark-types**: Pokemon such as Yveltal or Arceus-Dark can kill Mega Metagross easily with Dark Pulse and Judgment respectively. Yveltal can also run a Physically Defensive set and Roost off any damage from Mega Metagross, while Arceus-Dark can use Recover.
**Ground-types**: Ground-types such as Primal Groudon, Arceus-Ground and Zygarde-C can take multiple hits from Mega Metagross and threaten it out with a powerful Ground-type move. Arceus-Ground and Zygarde-C in particular can take Mega Metagross's attacks with ease by Recover and Rest respectively. Zygarde-C is also able to Glare Mega Metagross, crippling it, or paralyze a teammate
**Ghost-types**: Ghost-types such as Mega Sableye, Giratina, Lunala and Mega Gengar are able to threaten Mega Metagross with their powerful STAB move. Mega Sableye is not 2HKOed by Meteor Mash, Giratina walls Mega Metagross, Lunala threatens it out with a powerful Moongeist Beam and Mega Gengar traps and removes Mega Metagross from the game
**Support Arceus formes**: Due to the presence of Mega Lucario, most support Arceus formes run just enough speed to outspeed it, so Mega Metagross cannot outspeed them either, and they can either weaken or KO Metagross with Judgment or coverage moves such as Earth Power or cripple it with Will-O-Wisp
**Ho-Oh**: Defensive Ho-oh is able to take a hit from Mega Metagross and, assuming Stealth Rock is not up on opponent's side, 2HKO Mega Metagross with a powerful Sacred Fire
**Giratina and Giratina-O**: Giratina and Giratina-O is able to take on any kind of damage Mega Metagross throws at it, and threaten it out with Will-O-Wisp or Hex. Giratina can shrug off any damage with Rest and Giratina-O can force it out with Will-O-Wisp + Hex or Phantom Force + Shadow Sneak
**Primal Kyogre**: Primal Kyogre is able to take any hit aside from Thunder Punch from Mega Metagross and threaten it out with a powerful Origin Pulse, Scald or Liquidation
**Necrozma-Dusk-Mane**: Necrozma-Dusk-Mane is able to take hits from Mega Metagross, weaken it and recover with Morning Sun. Sets featuring Weakness Policy can also take advantage of Earthquake from Mega Metagross to achieve a sweep
Attachments
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