This is exemplified in Mega Vikavolt’s newfound ability in Battery, which increases Special Attack by 1.3, which describes the second part of Vikavolt’s Pokemon Shield entry being able to fire off high powered beams of electricity.
Be aware that Battery only works in doubles and only affects allies! This will not help Vikavolt itself, so you might want to account for that with your stat spread. I know you mentioned helping allies in your post, but I get the impression that you thought that was in addition to Vikavolt itself - it definitely looks like you expected it to be stronger than it is.
I have some bad ideas now:
Mega Lycanroc (Midday Form)
New Ability: Keen Eye/Sand Rush/Steadfast ->
Grounded
(Cloud Nine clone: eliminates the effects of terrain.)
Type: Rock/Normal
New Stats:
HP: 75
Attack: 115 ->
130 (+15)
Defense: 65 ->
115 (+50)
Special Attack: 55
Special Defense: 65 ->
75 (+10)
Speed: 112 ->
137 (+25)
(
587 BST)
New moves: Extreme Speed, Spikes
Description:
Priority spam.
Rock/Normal is an awful defensive type, but now it has priority for both of its STAB types (Accelerock and Extreme Speed) as well as decent enough physical bulk to pull off Swords Dance a tiny bit more reliably. It's pretty Mega Scizor-esque in that respect, with a bit less utility and bulk but a bit more raw power and the ability to set rocks.
Grounded enables it to bypass Psychic Terrain for the sake of its priority spam (and Misty Terrain if it wants to run Toxic, which it occasionally did in Gen VII) while also preventing Grassy Glides from outspeeding it if it wants to run Fire Fang. It's also a fun shoutout to Splintered Stormshards, the signature Z-Move of all three Lycanroc, which had the unique effect of clearing terrain.
Its reliance on priority enables it to run an Adamant nature safely, while its access to Swords Dance and the potential to set hazards enables it to break very effectively. However, its defensive type is bad, and even at +2 with an Adamant nature, it can't score key KOs against threatening offensive Pokémon like Rillaboom and Urshifu without prior chip, forcing it to choose between running either a hazard or coverage for the Steel-types that wall it in its fourth slot.
Mega Lycanroc (Midnight Form)
New Ability: Keen Eye/Vital Spirit/No Guard ->
Contrary
Type: Rock/Dark
New Stats:
HP: 85
Attack: 115 ->
138 (+23)
Defense: 75 ->
105 (+30)
Special Attack: 55
Special Defense: 75 ->
105 (+30)
Speed: 82 ->
99 (+17)
(
587 BST)
New moves: Knock Off, Moonlight
Description:
It has exactly one move to abuse Contrary. That move is Close Combat, which is not STAB and does not boost its offenses or Speed. We have no (good) purely defensive Contrary users, and I want one.
I'm tentatively subbing these for now, but I've asked for advice on the Pet Mods Discord as to whether they need to be nerfed at all and plan to edit this accordingly if so! I feel like these have a higher power level than what I'm used to submitting, but what I'm used to submitting usually has too low a power level, so I can't tell if I'm overcompensating or if these have struck a balance, haha.
Confirming: their power level does not need to be lowered at all and is, in fact, entirely representative of my usual standards! XP
EDIT: doing one more because why not!
Mega Vikavolt
New Ability: Levitate ->
Surge Surfer
Type: Bug/Electric
New Stats:
HP: 77
Attack: 70
Defense: 90 ->
140 (+50)
Special Attack: 145
Special Defense: 75 ->
107 (+32)
Speed: 43 ->
61 (+18)
(
600 BST)
New moves: Earth Power, Electric Terrain
Description:
This is best used in Electric Terrain
(ideally with an ally with Electric Surge, but running manual Electric Terrain is an interesting twist on Agility Vikavolt, a set it has been known to use in the past), with Surge Surfer and access to Rising Voltage making it into a threatening sweeper despite its otherwise low Speed. (Remember that Surge Surfer doubles the actual Speed
stat, not the base stat! This is much more than the equivalent of base 121 - in terrain, a Modest Vikavolt can just barely outspeed base 150s with Speed-increasing natures.) The loss of Levitate also
indirectly increases its attack power by granting it Electric Terrain's 30% damage boost, further increasing its ability to take advantage of Terrain compared to its base form but without actually enhancing its Special Attack.
Incidentally, Mega Vikavolt can also act as a slow pivot outside of terrain, benefiting from its access to Roost and Volt Switch as well as its naturally low Speed and mostly bulk-oriented stat increases. Mega Vikavolt should absolutely not be run on a team that doesn't include Electric Terrain support - its base form broadly outclasses it at defensive roles, and it definitely isn't worth a Mega slot - but it's still always nice that it can serve a second purpose when its terrain runs out and doesn't become a momentum drain.
Its dependence on terrain is obviously a limiting factor in its own right - not only will many teams not have a way to set Electric Terrain, but Vikavolt sweeps are "on a timer" and reliant on team support. In return, it's hopefully a bit harder to wall thanks to its new coverage in Earth Power (though it may still prefer Energy Ball sometimes, targeting the Ground-types that resist its Rising Voltage) and the amazing raw power of its Rising Voltage when it has the support it needs.
