VGC MegaGross team

[frisoeva]

I have always found metagross an awesome pokemon so i decided to build a team balanced around it.

Metagross @ Metagrossite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 172 HP / 76 Atk / 4 Def / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Meteor Mash
- Zen Headbutt
- Protect
- Ice Punch

Mega Metagross was the pokemon i wanted to build around, I wanted to have it have a high damage output whilst still having a lot of bulk. meteor mash and zen headbutt are the STAB moves whilst ice punch is great coverage in my opinion. I EV'ed Metagross to OHKO non-bulk 4x weak pokemon like Landorus, Mega salamence, Mega garchomp and dragonite whilst still having a great damage output.

• 76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Ice Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Mega Salamence: 336-396 (101.5 - 119.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
• 76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Ice Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Landorus: 460-544 (144.2 - 170.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 52 HP / 220 Atk / 52 Def / 4 SpD / 180 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Rock Slide
- Superpower
- U-turn

I needed something to counter MegaCross' weakness fire and I really wanted a rock type attack against the common charizard y and talonflame. This guy had this all plus the ability to spread intimidate. I first ran knock off for a long time but I didn't really use it and u-turn gives a lot more momentum so i chose this. I took the spread from Yan Sim.

• Outruns Timid Mega Gengar and Jolly Aerodactyl by 1 point
• Survives Hidden Power Ice from 84 SpA neutral Thundurus 100% of the time
• Survives Jolly Mega Kangaskhan Double-Edge 56.2% of the time
• Survives Modest non-boosted Hydreigon Draco Meteor 100% of the time
• Survives Sucker Punch from +1 Life Orb Adamant Bisharp 87.5% of the time
• Survives Ice Shard from -1 Life Orb Adamant Mamoswine 93.7% of the time
• OHKOs 4 HP / 0 Def Terrakion with spread Earthquake 81.3% of the time

Ferrothorn @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 248 HP / 72 Atk / 184 Def / 4 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Power Whip
- Gyro Ball
- Leech Seed
- Protect

Now I needed something which could check mega kangaskhan, I had the choice between garchomp and ferrothorn, I already had a 4x weak ice pokemon and i needed something to check bulky waters. Ferrothorn can 2HKO suicune, milotic and rotom wash which are seen as the bulkiest waters.

Conkeldurr @ Assault Vest
Ability: Iron Fist
EVs: 212 HP / 84 Atk / 124 Def / 88 SpD
Adamant Nature
IVs: 15 Spe
- Drain Punch
- Mach Punch
- Ice Punch
- Knock Off

This conkeldurr's job is to put out a lot of damage and just criple a lot of pokemons. I chose for Iron fist because most people are scared to burn a conkeldurr because of guts. the 15 speed evs let conkeldurr underspeed quiet 0 iv aegislash and ohko-ing it in blade forme.

Hydreigon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 84 HP / 12 Def / 236 SpA / 4 SpD / 172 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Dark Pulse
- Fire Blast
- Earth Power

This hydreigon hits like a truck getting the OHKO on a lot of pokemons. Draco Meteor even KO's when hydreigon is at -2 or sometimes even at -4. He is also my check to ghost and psychic types.

Suicune @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 HP / 20 Def / 100 SpA / 116 SpD / 20 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Tailwind
- Snarl
- Protect

I have suicune to check the fire types some more and to reduce special pokemon their attacking potential with Snarl. He's also a special attacker of which I don't have a lot. I'm still doubting about this pokemon as I usually don't use it because Landorus already wins against fire types.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I'm thinking about maybe adding tyranitar for suicune to control weather and have some more answers to charizard. I'm still searching for a pokemon which can control speed and/or set weather and has good typing synergy with the rest of my team.

 

[DaAwesomeDude1]

Hey man, this is a REALLY nice team! There honestly isn't much I would change except a few Pokemon to patch up some weaknesses; spread and moveset wise, everything is on point. I suggest replacing Suicune with Politoed. Mega Metagross is a really popular Pokemon in Rain right now, as not only does Rain weaken Fire-type attacks, but also because common Swift Swim users checks Landorus-T, Heatran, and Charizard Y, all of which are major threats to Mega Metagross. Politoed's Drizzle can control the weather and thus gives you a much better matchup against Sun. It also has access to Icy Wind, which gives you a speed control option, and Helping Hand, which is really handy because Mega Metagross tends to miss out on a few KOs especially since you're not running max Attack. A spread of DaWoblefet's spread of 212 HP / 132 Def / 4 SpA / 116 SpD / 44 Spe with a Calm Nature allows Politoed to live an Adamant Kangaskhan's Double Edge and avoid a 2HKO from Specs Sylveon Hyper Voice. The Speed EVs also allows Politoed to outrun non-Choice Scarf Landorus-T, which is super handy because you'll be able to determine whether the Landorus is holding a Scarf or not

Defensive Calcs

252+ Atk Parental Bond Mega Kangaskhan Double-Edge vs. 212 HP / 132 Def Politoed: 176-209 (91.6 - 108.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery

252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 212 HP / 116+ SpD Politoed: 88-105 (45.8 - 54.6%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery

Helping Hand Calcs

76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Ice Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 122-144 (72.6 - 85.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Helping Hand Ice Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 180-214 (107.1 - 127.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO

76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Meteor Mash vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Eviolite Clefairy: 162-192 (91.5 - 108.4%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO
76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Helping Hand Meteor Mash vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Eviolite Clefairy: 240-284 (135.5 - 160.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Zen Headbutt vs. 252 HP / 212+ Def Amoonguss: 164-194 (74.2 - 87.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Helping Hand Zen Headbutt vs. 252 HP / 212+ Def Amoonguss: 248-294 (112.2 - 133%) -- guaranteed OHKO

It would be a shame to use Rain without any Pokemon to take advantage of it. With that, I suggest you replace Ferrothorn with Ludicolo. Essentially what you're using Ferrothorn for is a check to Kangaskhan and bulky Water-types. Ludicolo is able to check bulky Water-types a lot better than Ferrothorn because it doesn't mind getting burned, whereas a burned Ferrothorn can be pretty dead weight. Ludicolo also functions as a check to Landorus-T, Charizard Y, Heatran, Arcanine, and Rotom-H when under Rain. While Ludicolo can't check Kangaskhan as well as Ferrothorn, you have Landorus-T and Conkeldurr so honestly I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Once again man, this team looks really good! Hope I helped man and good luck with the team!!! :]

Sets

Politoed @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Drizzle
Calm Nature
212 HP / 132 Def / 4 SpA / 116 SpD / 44 Spe
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Icy Wind
- Helping Hand
- Protect

Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
Modest Nature
108 HP / 252 SpA / 148 Spe
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Giga Drain
- Protect / Fake Out

 

[frisoeva]

Your post

Hey man, this is a REALLY nice team! There honestly isn't much I would change except a few Pokemon to patch up some weaknesses; spread and moveset wise, everything is on point. I suggest replacing Suicune with Politoed. Mega Metagross is a really popular Pokemon in Rain right now, as not only does Rain weaken Fire-type attacks, but also because common Swift Swim users checks Landorus-T, Heatran, and Charizard Y, all of which are major threats to Mega Metagross. Politoed's Drizzle can control the weather and thus gives you a much better matchup against Sun. It also has access to Icy Wind, which gives you a speed control option, and Helping Hand, which is really handy because Mega Metagross tends to miss out on a few KOs especially since you're not running max Attack. A spread of DaWoblefet's spread of 212 HP / 132 Def / 4 SpA / 116 SpD / 44 Spe with a Calm Nature allows Politoed to live an Adamant Kangaskhan's Double Edge and avoid a 2HKO from Specs Sylveon Hyper Voice. The Speed EVs also allows Politoed to outrun non-Choice Scarf Landorus-T, which is super handy because you'll be able to determine whether the Landorus is holding a Scarf or not

Defensive Calcs

252+ Atk Parental Bond Mega Kangaskhan Double-Edge vs. 212 HP / 132 Def Politoed: 176-209 (91.6 - 108.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery

252+ SpA Choice Specs Pixilate Sylveon Hyper Voice vs. 212 HP / 116+ SpD Politoed: 88-105 (45.8 - 54.6%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery

Helping Hand Calcs

76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Ice Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 122-144 (72.6 - 85.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Helping Hand Ice Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Hydreigon: 180-214 (107.1 - 127.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO

76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Meteor Mash vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Eviolite Clefairy: 162-192 (91.5 - 108.4%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO
76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Helping Hand Meteor Mash vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Eviolite Clefairy: 240-284 (135.5 - 160.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Zen Headbutt vs. 252 HP / 212+ Def Amoonguss: 164-194 (74.2 - 87.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
76 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Helping Hand Zen Headbutt vs. 252 HP / 212+ Def Amoonguss: 248-294 (112.2 - 133%) -- guaranteed OHKO

It would be a shame to use Rain without any Pokemon to take advantage of it. With that, I suggest you replace Ferrothorn with Ludicolo. Essentially what you're using Ferrothorn for is a check to Kangaskhan and bulky Water-types. Ludicolo is able to check bulky Water-types a lot better than Ferrothorn because it doesn't mind getting burned, whereas a burned Ferrothorn can be pretty dead weight. Ludicolo also functions as a check to Landorus-T, Charizard Y, Heatran, Arcanine, and Rotom-H when under Rain. While Ludicolo can't check Kangaskhan as well as Ferrothorn, you have Landorus-T and Conkeldurr so honestly I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Once again man, this team looks really good! Hope I helped man and good luck with the team!!! :]

Sets

Politoed @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Drizzle
Calm Nature
212 HP / 132 Def / 4 SpA / 116 SpD / 44 Spe
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald
- Icy Wind
- Helping Hand
- Protect

Ludicolo @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
Modest Nature
108 HP / 252 SpA / 148 Spe
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Giga Drain
- Protect / Fake Out

Thanks a lot for the response and the compliments, this was the first team i built seriously. I really like this suggestion, I've got one question though; Should I put hydro pump instead of scald on politoed for some more power? Again thanks a lot for the response and you too good luck! :)

 

[DaAwesomeDude1]

Thanks a lot for the response and the compliments, this was the first team i built seriously. I really like this suggestion, I've got one question though; Should I put hydro pump instead of scald on politoed for some more power? Again thanks a lot for the response and you too good luck! :)

Nah keep Scald on Politoed, it's meant for support not power so the burn chance of Scald is much more beneficial. Also no problem man! :)

 

[Serapis]

Looking over this, my first thought is that you should definitely have Iron Head over Meteor Mash on Mega-Metagross. Not only does Meteor Mash have the chance to miss, but Iron Head has a more likely secondary effect with it's 30% chance to flinch, which is only made more potent by Mega-Metagross's base 110 speed. Furthermore, considering Zen Headbutt is 90% as well I think you should have at least one 100% accurate STAB.

Also, assuming you've added Politoed and Ludicolo, Mega-Charizard Y could prove to be an issue for your team. You DO have Scarf Landorus-T, but no Char Y player worth his salt will be too hindered by that. Should you win the weather war tho, Ludicolo and Politoed can do just fine against it. For that reason, I believe you should at least consider running Rain Dance on your Politoed. It's worth testing. Rock Slide > Ice Punch on Mega-Meta is another option, though that's entirely personaly preference. Your team also has a pretty huge weakness to AV Conkeldurr. It's able to take on your Rain Mode, OHKO Hydreigon and Lando-T and fares alright in the mirror. Mega-Metagross's Zen Headbutt isn't even a guaranteed OHKO (252 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Zen Headbutt vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Conkeldurr: 204-242 (96.2 - 114.1%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO).

You can accept the slight weakness to opposing Conkeldurr or replace Hydreigon with something like Togekiss. Togekiss is interesting in that while it's usually used supportively, it has a nice base 120 SpA stat. I recommend it in particular because of it's 4x Fighting resistance, access to redirection to Protect your team, Dark type resistance, and Flying typing to dodge EQs. Air Slash's 60% super effective flinch chance on opposing Conkeldurr is just icing on the cake. It doesn't resist Ghost tho.

 

[frisoeva]

Hey Serapis, thanks a lot for the reaction. About megagross, I just searched it up and found that iron head also gets the tough claws boost. I never seem to really get messed up by meteormashes accuracy Ill give it a try since the flinch is nice.

Ill test to see how togekiss works, I dont know if Id add it though as hydreigon is my only check to bulky cresselia or gothitelle

 

[Steven Stone]

With the changes that you have made so far, i find Ice Punch on Metagross completely unnecessary. Substitute / Hammer Arm are the options that you should consider.
Ahh, SubGross, one of early 2015 masterpieces, shines at its full potential under rain. Substitute allows you to ignore Will-o-Wisp from Pokemon like Rotom-W and Jellicent, Thunder Wave from Thundurus (sorta), and more importantly, Spore from Pokemon like Amoonguss and Breloom, which your team should have an eye for. It also gives Metagross a second life in bad matchups, which is crucial in 2v2 situations.
Hammer Arm, while lowering your speed, allows you to turn the tables on the so-said bad matchups such as Bisharp, Heatran and Hydreigon. Keep in mind that it misses on a lot of OHKOs, so if i was you, i'd just go Substitute.
Well, hope that helps.
Have a nice day!
(P.S: this is possibly the only team me, serapis and dadude have rated together. Let's keep it CT!)

 

[frisoeva]

With the changes that you have made so far, i find Ice Punch on Metagross completely unnecessary. Substitute / Hammer Arm are the options that you should consider.
Ahh, SubGross, one of early 2015 masterpieces, shines at its full potential under rain. Substitute allows you to ignore Will-o-Wisp from Pokemon like Rotom-W and Jellicent, Thunder Wave from Thundurus (sorta), and more importantly, Spore from Pokemon like Amoonguss and Breloom, which your team should have an eye for. It also gives Metagross a second life in bad matchups, which is crucial in 2v2 situations.
Hammer Arm, while lowering your speed, allows you to turn the tables on the so-said bad matchups such as Bisharp, Heatran and Hydreigon. Keep in mind that it misses on a lot of OHKOs, so if i was you, i'd just go Substitute.
Well, hope that helps.
Have a nice day!

thanks a lot, i really love ice punch on metagross as it gets quite a lot of KOs, ill be testing both hammer arm and substitute to see wether it would be more beneficial or not. Again thanks a lot for your response and you too have a nice day!

 

[Draconid997]

Hi :) it may be worth looking through rapha's report from nugget bridge to see how he uses his team - its very similar to the suggested team, with his team being politoed/ludicolo/terrakion/metagross/togekiss/hydreigon

Heres the link: http://nuggetbridge.com/reports/no-substitute-rain-northwest-9th-place-oregon-regional-report/

Just a few things, metagross plus ludicolo is a good lead if you aim to get up a substitute with fake out support. Having metagross and hydreigon in the front is a good anti trick room play - get up a sub, deal damage to the setter with hydreigon and have ludicolo in the back to stall out with fake outs
Also be wary of chandelure, it may be rare but infiltrator scarf chandelure is arguably one of the biggest threats to sub metagross

This is the metagross spread he uses - R Inanimates spread:

Metagross @ Metagrossite
Clear Body / Tough Claws | Adamant
252 HP / 36 Atk / 4 Def / 36 SpD / 180 Spe
– Iron Head
– Zen Headbutt
– Substitute
– Protect

This outruns base 100s and the bulk investment allows him to win vs sylveon/terrakion and other favourable matchup more consistently. Having substitute over ice punch allows you to get around sucker punch and status, two of the main counters to metagross.

Without hammer arm, hydreigon is able to counter all the threats to metagross that hammer arm would have dealt with (bar hydreigon), including bisharp (fire blast) and heatran (earth power), which is why hydreigon is such a crucial partner to metagross.

Now, the matchup versus hydreigon, charizard, kangaskhan, thundurus would be improved if you swap conkeldurr for terrakion, but its only a minor improvement so if you want to stick with conkeldurr its fine