Melmetal [QC 0/2]

[Stareal]

[Overview]
. Melmetal is amazing in the current OU Metagame thanks to its great bulk and power and resists to many common typings such as Ice, Fairy and Psychic. paired with its signature move Double Iron Bash and its ability Iron Fist, which lets it become one of the biggest Offensive threats in OU.

. Its great coverage allows it to overcome a large portion of the metagame, being able to Toxic Slowbro, Earthquake Toxapex and Ice Punch Landorus-T.
. Melmetal's downfall is it not having reliable recovery, with the only recovery Melmetal can get by it self is Leftovers. And its vulnerability to contact such as Rough Skin, Rocky Helmet, Flame Body, Iron Barbs and Static.

[SET}
name: Pads
move 1: Thunder Wave
move 2: Double Iron Bash
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Earthquake
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature Adamant
evs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 104 SpD / 112 Spe

. Thunder Wave allows Melmetal to pressure Pokemon easier, such as Skarmory, Corviknight, Toxapex and Buzzwole. Allowing you to be able to Double Iron Bash more freely even when resisted, as with Double Iron Bash its already around a 50% to flinch and when paired with Paralysis its in your favor for them to Paralyze / Flinch.

. Thunder Punch lets you hit Pokemon like Corviknight, Slowbro and Skarmory. And thanks to its Ability, Iron Fist, Thunder Punch base attack get boosted allowing it to do more damage.

. Earthquake lets you hit Heatran. And Toxapex for a tad more then Thunder Punch would.

. 40 HP + 104 Special Defense allows Melmetal to live Heatran's Magma Storm and avoid a 2HKO from Hippowdons Earthquake.. 112 Speed lets you outspeed Hippowdon.

. A teammate that work well with Melmetal would be Slowbro being able to switch into Melmetal's offensive threats such as Excadrill, Landorus and Garchomp and allowing Melmetal to become more opportunities to break that opposing team with Future Sight.

. Another teammate could be Landorus-T, Melmetal being able to switch into Landorus's Threats such as Kyurem, Arctozolt (in hail) and Tapu Fini.

[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Ice Punch
move 4: Thunder Punch
ability: Iron Fist
item: Assault Vest
nature: Careful
evs: 252 Spd / 128 HP / 116 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

. Assault Vest on Melmetal and its Special Defensive EV investment and lastly its Nature allows it to switch into a lot of special attackers freely, such as Dragapult, Tapu Lele, Tapu Koko, Kyurem and Slowking-Galar.
. Ice Punch lets Melmetal hit Zapdos, Garchomp and Landorus-T.

. Thunder Punch hits Corviknight, Slowbro, Toxapex and Skarmory.
. Superpower lets Melmetal hit Ferrothorn and Melmetal harder then Earthquake which could be crucial at some point, but would lose some Attack and Defense,

. Not really a singular teammate but Melmetal can work well with Rain teams that are weaker to offensive pokemon such as Tapu Lele, Kyurem and Dragapult, being able to switch into any move these use.

. Clefable can be a good partner with AV Melmetal, being able to heal Melmetal back up thanks to wish as AV Melmetal wouldn't have any healing capabilities due to losing Leftovers.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Ice Punch / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 224 Spe / 44 Hp

[SET COMMENTS]

. Choice Band with Melmetal can be a deadly combo, paired with its STAB + Ability Double Iron Bash can hit extremely hard versus the entier meta.ws you to hit Ferrothorn.
. Thunder Punch lets Melmetal hit Slowbro, Moltres and Corviknight, whilst Ice Punch lets you hit Zapdos and Landorus Therian.
. 224 Speed allows Melmetal to speed creep Clefable.

. Slowbro can be a great partner with Choice Band Melmetal, being able to switch into Offensive threats that was mentioned before, but being able to Future Sight and Teleport, so Melmetal can find safer, more reliable wallbreaking opportunities versus pokemon such as Buzzwole, Skarmory and Toxapex.
. Tornadus can be a partner with Melmetal, being able to pivot out with U-Turn on opposing pokemon to gain momentum, whilst being able to switch into major offensive threats such as Excadrill, Kartana and Landorus-T.

. Lastly, Magnezone is a great partner with CB Melmetal, being able to trap and OHKO pokemon such as Skarmory, Corviknight. and Ferrothorn with an Iron Defense set if you are locked into a move that isntr Superpower.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Melmetal can run a Toxic Protect set which allows it to cripple Slowbro and Zapdos, due to the help of Leftovers and Protect allowing melmetal to stall out Zapdos and Slowbro whilst they attack with scald or Heat Wave, though Slowbro can Future Sight + Teleport so Protecting on slowbro isnt very ideal, whilst you can predict a Zapdos's roost whilst it predicts a Protect without much drawback.




Checks and Counters
====
**Bulky Steel Types** Pokemon like Coriknight or Ferrothorn take hardly and damage from the Toxic & Protect set. Corviknight can switch in easily as Melmetal's only move it can hit it with is Double Iron Bash. Ferrothorn can also easily switch into Melmetal, being able to heal any damage it does with Earthquake with Leech Seed. Whilst being able to make non protective-pads Melmetal lose 1/4 of its HP if it makes Contact with Ferrothorn,

**Wallbreakers** Offensive threats such as Landorus, Excadrill and Garchomp all pressure Melmetal too switch out. Exacdrill, Landorus and Garchomp being able to threaten it out with Earthquake, whilst Landorus being able to use Intimidate, so you won't be taking as much from Double Iron Bash as you normally would if they stayed in. Whilst these Earthquakes won't normally OHKO it will make Melmetal lose a lot of HP whilst it's a struggle for Melmetal to regain HP back.

**Burn** Bulky Water Types such as Slowbro, Swampert, Gastrodon and Toxapex can switch into Melmetal whilst being able to Burn Melmetal. Slowbro can completely wall Melmetal even when statused with toxic. Being able to have the ability Regenerator, good recovery, having rocky Helmet which allows it take take 33% of Melmetal's HP if it makes contact with Double Iron Bash and being able to Burn with Scald. Swampert is also a great switch in to melmetal, being able to force it out with Earthquake whilst being able to get up Stealth Rocks. Gastrodon can switch into Melmetal, though its not very ideal if your not invested into Physical Defense due to Double Iron Bash flinch rate. Toxapex can scout any Melemtal's attacks it uses without much drawback thanks to Regenerator.

**Contact Move Punishment** Rocky Helmet, Static, Rough Skin, Iron Barbs and Flame Body, can all be a pain for Melmetal's Double Iron Bash hits twice, increasing the rates to get Burned or Paralyzed and taking more Damage from Iron Barbs and Rocky Helmet.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [stareal, 481219]]
- Quality checked by: [[airfare, 513717], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]

 

[Stareal]

ready for qc

 

[ausma]

comments in orange
additions/changes in purple
removals will be striked

View attachment 306840
[Overview]
. Melmetal is amazing in the current OU Metagame thanks to its great Defensive and Offensive Stats. This implies that its special stats are good, which, bluntly, they are not. This is also really bare bones, and doesn't give the full picture about how it operates defensively and offensively. How is this relevant in any way, and why should I pick Melmetal as my Steel-type over any of the other options? DIB is also an important detail and a huge reason it's so powerful, and its something you just outright do not mention.
. Its great coverage allows it to overcome a large portion of the metagame, for example Slowbro, Toxapex and Landorus-Therian. This also has an awkward emphasis. Its coverage is phenomenal, yes, but why is that relevant? These are switch-ins to DIB, for one.
. Melmetal's downfall is its speed tier, which lets it be easily knocked or burned with scald. This in tandem with its inability to reliably heal really really sucks for it, meaning it can't perform in the long term, and becomes nearly useless after it sustains a certain amount of damage.


[SET]
name: Toxic & Protect
move 1: Toxic
move 2: Protect
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Earthquake
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 12 Spe / 244 Spd

[SET COMMENTS]

. Toxic allows Melmetal to cripple Pokemon like Buzzwole and Slowbro, whilst having protect to be able to cripple them both even more. The emphasis here is completely off. This set runs Toxic as a way to punish common DIB switch-ins like Zapdos, Slowbro, and Landorus-T with debilitating status and ultimately allow for Melmetal or another teammate to pick them off once chipped. Protect basically is there to let it garner more Leftovers recovery and stack Toxic damage, it doesn't cripple them more.
. With 252+ Attack Melmetal is able to have a chance to secure a 2HKO versus Toxapex with Earthquake.

252+ Atk Melmetal Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Toxapex: 138-164 (45.3 - 53.9%) -- 2.3% chance to 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
Not quite. Even after Rocks damage, it's still a roll. It runs max Attack to optimize its Damage output, it has nothing to do with Pex specifically.
. 12 Speed lets it outspeed Toxapex.
. Its Ability lets Melmetal's signature move Double Iron Bash increase in power. Don't mention obvious things, especially because this thing in question is something Melmetal cannot change anyway.

Explain why it has special investment. The big reason is because of its Steel-type being able to take on threats like Magearna and Tapu Lele, letting it switch in much more consistently to them.

. Zarude can be a great partner with Melmetal, being able to switch into Toxapex on its knock off and not care much, whilst being able to easily switch into slowbro without risking anything, thanks to jungle healing. Zarude is not really a very good partner at all. It is troubled by the exact same things Melmetal is, and doesn't really provide much in return, other than maybe abusing the Toxic it spreads.
. Clefable can also be a great partner with Melmetal, being able to do what zarude does, but with access to better recovery and a better ability. Melmetal provides a good way of checking Tapu Lele and Magearna, two Pokemon that heavily pressure Clefable. I feel as though the lack of examples here is also very troubling, especially because you don't actually mention at all how great the defensive synergy between the two is, nor do you mention Wish.
. Magnezone can also be a pair with Melmetal, being able to trap and 1HKO one of its main answers, Corviknight.
Double Steel is a no from me, especially for such a situational use.

Again, the emphasis here is just, not right. You are correct that it really dislikes dealing with Corviknight and other Toxic-immune DIB-hardy Pokemon, but you don't mention anything that could possibly pressure those for Melmetal, or mention any Pokemon that could benefit from the Toxic that Melmetal is able to spread. Examples like Cinderace and Slowbro exist; the former providing immediate offensive pressure toward checks like Ferrothorn and Corviknight, and the latter providing Futureport support for it to help pierce through physical walls like Toxapex, Buzzwole, and Hippowdon.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Ice Punch / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 108 Spe / 148 Hp

SET COMMENTS]

. Choice Band with Melmetal can be a deadly combo, being able to do plenty of damage to most of the Pokemon of the OU metagame. Again, emphasize DIB, and how the rest of the set capitalizes on Melmetal's great coverage to circumvent poor DIB matchups.
. Superpower allows you to hit Ferrothorn.
. Thunder Punch lets Melmetal hit Slowbro, Moltres and Corviknight, whilst Ice Punch lets you hit Zapdos and Rocky Helmet Landorus Therian.
. 108 Speed lets it outspeed Hippowdon. I'd feel as though something like the Clefable benchmark is considerably more important, as CB Melmetal detests having to stomach a Flamethrower/Thunder before retaliating.

Add the EQ mention; it's primarily an ok option for avoiding contact procs like Rocky Helmet, Iron Barbs, and Rough Skin.
. Slowbro can be a great partner with Choice Band Melmetal, being able to switch into one of the main offensive threats, Cinderace. Whilst being able to Future Sight and Teleport so Melmetal can click Double Iron Bash versus the whole tier. It also switches into things like Excadrill/Garchomp too, which are also fairly relevant targets.
. Another partner that goes well with Melmetal is Corviknight, beating another offensive threat to Melmetal, Excadrill. Again, double Steel just does not click right with me, especially when there are more effective allies for the job that cover more bases.

You need to emphasize pivoting support here, and how vital it is for getting Melmetal in. U-turn/Volt recipients generally consist of Pokemon like Tapu Lele, Magearna, and Clefable. I'd mention something like Mandibuzz, for example, which invites those in and U-turns out on them. A major downside of this set is that it is also prediction reliant when DIB switch-ins are still healthy, which can be incredibly problematic for it.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Substitute can be an option to use over Protect on Melmetal, being able to avoid being Burned from Toxapex and Slowbro, being able to take less then 25%, which allows the Substitute to stay in tact for another turn.


Checks and Counters
====
**Bulky Steel Types** Pokemon like Coriknight or Ferrothorn take hardly any damage from the Toxic & Protect set. Corviknight can switch in easily as Melmetal's only move it can hit it with is Double Iron Bash. Ferrothorn can also easily switch into Melmetal, being able to heal any damage it does with Earthquake with Leech Seed. Whilst being able to make Melmetal lose 1/4 of its HP if it makes Contact with Ferrothorn, due to Double Iron Bash hitting Ferrothorn Twice.

**Offensive Threats** Offensive threats such as Landorus, Cinderace and Garchomp all pressure Melmetal too switch out. Landorus and Garchomp being able to threaten it out with Earthquake, whilst Landorus being able to use Intimidate, so you won't be taking as much from Double Iron Bash as you normally would if they stayed in. Lastly Cinderace pressures Melmetal with Pyro Ball or High Jump Kick, both being able to serve a large amount damage to Melmetal.

**Burn** Offensive and Defensive Pokemon can burn Melmetal which stops from being a threat. Pokemon like Spectier and Dragapult can both Willo-O-Wisp Melmetal, letting them both being able to do more damage with Hex. Toxapex can potentially burn Melmetal as well, being able to scald and fish for a burn which allows Toxapex to switch in freely and recover on any attack it throws out.

**Bulky Water Types** Bulky Water Types such as Slowbro and Swampert can switch into Melmetal. Slowbro can completely wall Melmetal even when statused with toxic. Being able to have the ability Regenerator, good recovery, having rocky Helmet which allows it take take 33% of Melmetal's HP if it makes contact with Double Iron Bash and being able to Burn with Scald. Swampert is also a great switch in to melmetal, being able to force it out with Earthquake, and on a rare occasion being able to use Rest to avoid losing health to Toxic.

Rocky Helmet as a mention I feel is very important, especially because it exploits DIB's dual hit mechanic so well.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [stareal481219, userid1]]
- Quality checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]

You need to elaborate on a lot, focus more on examples, and change your emphasis on Melmetal's function in the tier. Please let me know when you've implemented these changes.

 

[Stareal]

implemented ausma

 

[ausma]

comments in orange
additions/changes in purple
removals will be striked

View attachment 306840
[Overview]
. Melmetal is amazing in the current OU Metagame thanks to its great bulk and power Defensive and Physically Offensive Stats, paired with its signature move Double Iron Bash and its ability Iron Fist, which lets it become one of the biggest Offensive threats in OU.

. Its great coverage allows it to overcome a large portion of the metagame, being able to Toxic Slowbro, Earthquake Toxapex and Ice Punch Landorus-T. Kind of specific examples, especially with Toxic which I don't see being necessary here since Toxic is pretty much an option that any Pokemon can go to if they miss out on a potential target. Regardless, I'd say you could just Thunder Punch Slowbro anyway.
. Melmetal's downfall is it not having reliable recovery, with the only recovery Melmetal can get by it self is Leftovers. This doesn't really give the full picture of Melmetal's issues. The lack of reliable recovery is pretty major, but there are other issues like how it competes with other Steel-types for a slot on teams due to Heatran's polarizing strength and trapping abilities and Ferrothorn's typing/hazard stacking abilities, as well as its atrocious speed making it lose worth after being run down.




[SET]
name: Toxic & Protect
move 1: Toxic
move 2: Protect
move 3: Double iron Bash
move 4: Earthquake
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 12 Spe / 244 Spd

[SET COMMENTS]

. Toxic allows Melmetal to cripple Pokemon like Zapdos and Slowbro, whilst having Protect forcing them to take more damage or switch out. Ok, yeah, it does, but this doesn't give the picture of the set, like I said originally. The purpose of this set and the use of Toxic in general is to allow Melmetal to punish conventional DIB checks with a debilitating status. The examples are fine enough, but this just doesn't really give the full picture and concept of the set in question, which is really important to have.
. With 252+ Attack its able to have a chance to 2HKO a Toxapex after Stealth Rocks with Earthquake Why it has 252+ Attack is really obvious, and it's not really because of this damage range on Toxapex; it's so DIB actually stings. instead I'd be looking more at why it has Earthquake and what it allows Melmetal to hit. Toxapex is the main example, but I'd emphasize more about how Earthquake lets it actually pressure Toxapex at all since DIB/Toxic are unable to.
. 12 Speed lets it outspeed Toxapex.
. 244 Special Defense lets it switch in easier versus Magearna, Clefable and Latios. Melmetal has a high base HP, so investing into SpDef makes it more optimal against these Psychic wallbreakers, letting it serve a purpose on teams as a Steel-type since you're losing out on using something like Heatran/Ferrothorn. I think I'd like to see a mention of this.

. Slowbro can be a great defensive partner with Melmetal, being able to check its offensive threats such as, Garchomp, Cinderace and Landorus-T. Slowbro can provide Future Sight support and Teleport, the latter of which being really prominent since it gets Melmetal in for free. I think the emphasis with this section in general is helping to get Melmetal in safely, and also finding allies that can exploit Melmetal's ability to spread Toxic damage on prominent metagame walls.
. Clefable can also be a great partner with Melmetal, being able to do Wish pass towards melmetal, whilst Melmetal being able to switch into offensive threats Clefable would lose to such as Tapu Lele and Magearna.
. Cinderace takes advantage of Melmetal using Toxic on Zapdos or Slowbro, allowing cinderace easily being able to take more Hp off both of them making KO'ing a lot easier. U-turn support is also really good, because again, Melmetal just really has a hard time getting in. Be sure to explain what Cinderace can pivot against.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Ice Punch / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 224 Spe / 148 Hp

SET COMMENTS]

. Choice Band with Melmetal can be a deadly combo, paired with its great coverage, being able to do plenty of damage to most of the Pokemon of the OU metagame Again, the emphasis is wrong. Choice Band with DIB is the main appeal, and the set's coverage is primarily meant to shut down/punish any DIB switch-ins.
. Superpower allows you to hit Ferrothorn.
. Thunder Punch lets Melmetal hit Slowbro, Moltres and Corviknight, whilst Ice Punch lets you hit Zapdos and Landorus Therian.
. 212 Speed allows Melmetal to outspeed Clefable, that could be using Flamethrower. Just say Clefable. Melmetal being Knock Off'd as well really sucks for it, so even against utility sets it's annoying.

. Slowbro can be a great partner with Choice Band Melmetal, being able to switch into Offensive threats that was mentioned before but being able to Future Sight and Teleport so Melmetal can break through pokemon such as Hippowdon and Toxapex much easier. These are oddly specific examples, and relatively unnecessary too. Rephrase this to be something like "so Melmetal can find safer, more reliable wallbreaking opportunities".
. Mandibuzz can be a partner with Melmetal, being able to pivot out with u-turn on opposing Clefable, Magearna, Tapu Fini or Tapu Lele. Also being able to switch into Earthquake which would normally force Melmetal out, from opposing Landorus, Excadrill and Garchomp.

Cinderace is a good mention here; it pressures natural DIB checks like Ferrothorn and Corviknight superbly well, and provides U-turn momentum for it. Regardless I think I'd just like to see a greater emphasis here on getting Melmetal in safely, or having allies that can pressure natural DIB switch-ins in general.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Substitute can be an option to use over Protect on Melmetal, being able to avoid being Burned from Toxapex and Slowbro, being able to take less then 25%, which allows the Substitute to stay in tact for another turn. Substitute's other appeal is how it can safely Toxic or attack opponents, as you can set up one on fodder like Clefable.

You can use 212 Speed on Choice Band Melmetal to avoid getting hit by a flamethrower from Clefable.


Checks and Counters
====
**Bulky Steel Types** Pokemon like Coriknight or Ferrothorn take hardly and damage from the Toxic & Protect set. Corviknight can switch in easily as Melmetal's only move it can hit it with is Double Iron Bash. Ferrothorn can also easily switch into Melmetal, being able to heal any damage it does with Earthquake with Leech Seed, whilst being able to make Melmetal lose 1/4 of its HP if it makes contact with Ferrothorn. due to Double Iron Bash hitting Ferrothorn Twice.

**Wallbreakers** Offensive threats such as Landorus, Cinderace and Garchomp all pressure Melmetal too switch out. Landorus and Garchomp being able to threaten it out with Earthquake, whilst Landorus being able to use Intimidate, so you won't be taking as much from Double Iron Bash as you normally would if they stayed in. Lastly Cinderace pressures Melmetal with Pyro Ball or High Jump Kick, both being able to serve a large amount damage to Melmetal. I think the more important focus here should be how the threat of losing a heavy amount of HP can render it pretty much useless, since it lacks speed and can be very easily picked off once low, and if it takes any prior chip damage it just drops.

**Burn** Offensive and Defensive Pokemon can burn Melmetal which stops from being a threat. Awkward wording; just say burn in general can shut it down. Pokemon like Spectier and Dragapult can both Willo-O-Wisp Melmetal, letting them both being able to do more damage with Hex. Toxapex can potentially burn Melmetal as well, being able to scald and fish for a burn which allows Toxapex to switch in freely and recover on any attack it throws out. Spectrier is banned, so remove its mentions.

**Bulky Water Types** Bulky Water Types such as Slowbro and Swampert can switch into Melmetal. Slowbro can completely wall Melmetal even when statused with toxic. It walls DIB, not Melmetal as a whole. Being able to have the ability Regenerator, good recovery, having rocky Helmet which allows it take take 33% of Melmetal's HP if it makes contact with Double Iron Bash and being able to Burn with Scald. Swampert is also a great switch in to melmetal, being able to force it out with Earthquake. Swampert is a bit of a specific mention, but I guess it's fine? Swampert is mainly nice because Melmetal has no options to super-effectively hit it, making it more vulnerable to being chipped or being Stealth Rock fodder.

**Rocky Helmet** Rocky Helmet can be a huge pain for Melmetal if it makes contact, forcing it to lose Hp , which can be put on Rough Skin Garchomp, Defensive Landorus-T or Slowbro. To be honest this can just be amended to "Contact Move Punishment", because it hates things like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin and Iron Barbs just as much. Explain why this is a problem, especially because of DIB which hits twice.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [stareal481219, userid1]]
- Quality checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]

Please capitalize every move and item name. Let me know when you've added these changes.

 

[airfare]

leg day

View attachment 306840
[Overview]
. Melmetal is amazing in the current OU Metagame thanks to its great bulk and power, paired with its signature move Double Iron Bash and its ability Iron Fist, which lets it become one of the biggest Offensive threats in OU.

. Its great coverage allows it to overcome a large portion of the metagame, being able to Toxic Slowbro, Earthquake Toxapex and Ice Punch Landorus-T.
add point(s) about defensive use as a spdef steel, and its role in checking psychics/fairies/ices. id elaborate more on its place in the tier as a hard-hitting tank that offers good support with twave/toxic/its defensive use while holding offensive teams together extremely well
. Melmetal's downfall is it not having reliable recovery, with the only recovery Melmetal can get by it self is Leftovers.
some more drawbacks are its vulnerability to contact effects in helmet/barbs (which can be circumvented w pads), being heavily annoyed by the presence of most defensive steels/waters in the tier because of their resistance to DIB and overall resilience, being easily overwhelmed by repeated attacks from something like a kyurem ice beam/lele psychic/weavile knock, and shitty speed + its stab having several amazing resists in the tier making it pretty prediction reliant. double iron bash's pp can often be a limiting factor in matchups vs fatter teams as well. u should compare it to other steels or other phys wallbreakers to give the reader a better picture of what it can do in the tier

[SET}
name: Protective Pads make this normal font size (15)
move 1: Thunder Wave
move 2: Double Iron Bash
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Earthquake
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 112 Spe / 104 Spd / 40HP 40 HP / 252 Atk / 104 SpD / 112 Spe
this formatting stuff just helps a lot when uploading the analysis onsite when it's done

i would introduce the set by describing it as a form of offensive support using both its powerful stab and coverage as well as twave. mention that pads lets u click dib more freely and ignore contact effects from typical counters like helmet buzzwole/pex/corv
. Thunder Wave allows Melmetal to pressure Pokemon easier, such as Skarmory, Corviknight, Toxapex and Buzzwole. Allowing you to be able to Double Iron Bash more freely even when resisted, as with Double Iron Bash its already around a 50% to flinch and when paired with Paralysis its in your favor for them to Paralyze / Flinch.

. Thunder Punch lets you hit Pokemon like Corviknight, Slowbro and Skarmory. And thanks to its Ability, Iron Fist, Thunder Punch base attack get boosted allowing it to do more damage.

. Earthquake lets you hit Heatran. And Toxapex for a tad more then Thunder Punch would.
talk about what the spread does (avoids 2hko from hippo quake, eats magma storm from spdef tran, outspeeds hippo)

add teammates paragraph

[SET]
name: AV Assault Vest don't forget 15 pt font here too
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Ice Punch
move 4: Thunder Punch we'll double check these moves/spread
ability: Iron Fist
item: Assault Vest
nature: Careful
evs: 252 Spd / 128 HP / 116 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

. Assault Vest on Melmetal and its Special Defensive EV investment and lastly its Nature allows it to switch into a lot of special attackers freely, such as Dragapult, Tapu Lele, Tapu Koko, Kyurem and Slowking-Galar.
. Ice Punch lets Melmetal hit Zapdos, Landorus-T, and Garchomp.
. Superpower lets Melmetal hit Steel-types like Ferrothorn, Heatran, and Melmetal.
add tpunch, we'll discuss the spread so u can leave it for now

add teammates paragraph

[SET]
name: Choice Band 15 font size
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Ice Punch / Thunder Punch we will also double check this spread/set
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 224 Spe / 44 Hp

[SET COMMENTS]

. Choice Band with Melmetal can be a deadly combo, paired with its STAB + Ability Double Iron Bash can hit extremely hard versus the entier meta.
. Superpower allows you to hit Steel-types like Ferrothorn, Heatran, and Melmetal.
. Thunder Punch lets Melmetal hit Slowbro, Moltres and Corviknight, whilst Ice Punch lets you hit Zapdos and Landorus Therian.
. 224 Speed allows Melmetal to speed creep Clefable.

. Slowbro can be a great partner with Choice Band Melmetal, being able to switch into Offensive threats that was mentioned before, but being able to Future Sight and Teleport, so Melmetal can find safer, more reliable wallbreaking opportunities. mention specific targets that fs helps break through (pex, buzzwole, and skarm come to mind immediately)
. Tornadus can be a partner with Melmetal, being able to pivot out with U-Turn on opposing pokemon to gain momentum, what does it specifically pivot on that melm can take advantage of whilst being able to switch into major offensive threats such as Excadrill, Kartana and Landorus-T.

anything other than pivots? what are some offensive teammates that can help it break or benefit from its own breaking abilities

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Melmetal can run a Toxic Protect set which allows it to cripple Slowbro and Zapdos. elaborate. lefties is a super important part of the set and tect helps stall for both toxic damage and lefties healing. u should talk about the near-mandatory pairing w zone when using protox and why it's generally worse than the other sets. u can probably mention life orb too, as well as brave nature + max hp on band, because they exists on the newly relevant TR

Checks and Counters try to keep checks and counters/overview focused on the main sets featured in the analysis, not toxic
====
**Bulky Steel Types** Pokemon like Coriknight or Ferrothorn take hardly and damage from the Toxic & Protect set. Corviknight can switch in easily as Melmetal's only move it can hit it with is Double Iron Bash. Ferrothorn can also easily switch into Melmetal, being able to heal any damage it does with Earthquake with Leech Seed. keep oo sets out of the rest of the analysis. elaborate on why corv/scizor/skarm/ferro are all great at dealing w melm Whilst being able to make non-Protective Pads Melmetal lose 1/4 of its HP if it makes Contact with Ferrothorn, finish this sentence

**Wallbreakers** Offensive threats such as Landorus, Excadrill and Garchomp all pressure Melmetal too switch out. Exacdrill, Landorus and Garchomp being able to threaten it out with Earthquake, whilst Landorus being able to use Intimidate, so you won't be taking as much from Double Iron Bash as you normally would if they stayed in. Whilst these Earthquakes won't normally OHKO it will make Melmetal lose a lot of HP whilst it's a struggle for Melmetal to regain HP back. none of these mons really ever wants to switch in, and melmetal can actually eat EQs from all of them unboosted and hit back extremely hard. if u want to keep this point id rather focus on it being overwhelmed defensively by things its forced to switch into like kyurem beam/pult sball/lele psy

**Burn** Offensive and Defensive Pokemon can shut Melmetal down with a Burn, Like Dragapult can Will-O-Wisp Melmetal, letting them Dragapult being able to do more damage with Hex. Toxapex can potentially burn Melmetal as well, being able to scald and fish for a burn which allows Toxapex to switch in freely and recover on any attack it throws out. as hex pult isnt too common anymore, id just add in the water types section below that scald burns can be threatening to it since waters are the only real burn abusers anymore

**Bulky Water Types** Bulky Water Types such as Slowbro and Swampert can switch into Melmetal. Slowbro can completely wall Melmetal even when statused with toxic. Being able to have the ability Regenerator, good recovery, having rocky Helmet which allows it take take 33% of Melmetal's HP if it makes contact with Double Iron Bash and being able to Burn with Scald. Swampert is also a great switch in to melmetal, being able to force it out with Earthquake. nice to mention gastro and pdef pex here as well

**Contact Move Punishment** Rocky Helmet, Static, Rough Skin, Iron Barbs and Flame Body, can all be a pain for Melmetal's Double Iron Bash hits twice, increasing the rates to get Burned or Paralyzed and taking more Damage from Iron Barbs and Rocky Helmet.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [stareal481219, 481219]]
- Quality checked by: [[airfare, 513717], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]

i started writing this check before i knew the analysis was partially incomplete but thought itd still be helpful to provide feedback on the already done parts and didnt wanna delete what id already put down
additions, comments, removals

 

[Stareal]

airfare

 

[airfare]

View attachment 306840
[Overview]
. Melmetal is amazing in the current OU Metagame thanks to its great bulk and power and resists to many common typings such as Ice, Fairy and Psychic. paired with its signature move Double Iron Bash and its ability Iron Fist, which lets it become one of the biggest Offensive threats in OU.

. Its great coverage allows it to overcome a large portion of the metagame, being able to Toxic Slowbro, Earthquake Toxapex and Ice Punch Landorus-T. i would like to see a bit more of a specific emphasis on its tank role and how it performs extremely well offensive in every matchup it's given thanks to the bulk + coverage

add point here about its defensive use as a steel. it deserves a whole sentence rather than just a small mention in point 1

. Melmetal's downfall is it not having reliable recovery, with the only recovery Melmetal can get by it self is Leftovers. And its vulnerability to contact such as Rough Skin, Rocky Helmet, Flame Body, Iron Barbs and Static. would be nice to mention more specific examples here in ferro/pex/corv/whatever

[SET}
name: Pads
move 1: Thunder Wave
move 2: Double Iron Bash
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Earthquake
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature Adamant
evs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 104 SpD / 112 Spe

. Thunder Wave allows Melmetal to pressure Pokemon easier, such as Skarmory, Corviknight, Toxapex and Buzzwole. Allowing you to be able to Double Iron Bash more freely even when resisted, as with Double Iron Bash its already around a 50% to flinch and when paired with Paralysis its in your favor for them to Paralyze / Flinch. talk about why pads is being used here

. Thunder Punch lets you hit Pokemon like Corviknight, Slowbro and Skarmory. And thanks to its Ability, Iron Fist, Thunder Punch base attack get boosted allowing it to do more damage.

. Earthquake lets you hit Heatran. zera probs worth mentioning here as you lose to bu variants without it And Toxapex for a tad more then Thunder Punch would.

. 40 HP + 104 Special Defense allows Melmetal to live Heatran's Magma Storm and avoid a 2HKO from Hippowdons Earthquake.. 112 Speed lets you outspeed Hippowdon.

. A teammate that work well with Melmetal would be Slowbro being able to switch into Melmetal's offensive threats such as Excadrill, Landorus and Garchomp and allowing Melmetal to become more opportunities to break that opposing team with Future Sight.

. Another teammate could be Landorus-T, Melmetal being able to switch into Landorus's Threats such as Kyurem, Arctozolt (in hail) and Tapu Fini.

these are solid examples but giving more would be nice for the reader to help understand the synergy better while building etc

[SET]
name: Assault Vest
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Ice Punch
move 4: Thunder Punch
ability: Iron Fist
item: Assault Vest
nature: Careful
evs: 252 Spd / 128 HP / 116 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]

. Assault Vest on Melmetal and its Special Defensive EV investment and lastly its Nature allows it to switch into a lot of special attackers freely, such as Dragapult, Tapu Lele, Tapu Koko, Kyurem and Slowking-Galar.
. Ice Punch lets Melmetal hit Zapdos, Garchomp and Landorus-T.

. Thunder Punch hits Corviknight, Slowbro, Toxapex and Skarmory.
. Superpower lets Melmetal hit Ferrothorn and Melmetal harder then Earthquake which could be crucial at some point, but would lose some Attack and Defense,
ev spread? if ur unsure (because i am too) we can make a new one in qc

mention here that av melm is largely a glue used on offense meant to hold teams together while offering its own offensive utility. u can change this rain point below to offense in general and elaborate on pivoting partners that help it do its thing
. Not really a singular teammate but Melmetal can work well with Rain teams that are weaker to offensive pokemon such as Tapu Lele, Kyurem and Dragapult, being able to switch into any move these use.

. Clefable can be a good partner with AV Melmetal, being able to heal Melmetal back up thanks to wish as AV Melmetal wouldn't have any healing capabilities due to losing Leftovers.
mention more offensive partners

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Ice Punch / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 224 Spe / 44 Hp

should be jolly w this spread
EVs: 40 HP / 236 Atk / 232 Spe
Jolly Nature

[SET COMMENTS]

. Choice Band with Melmetal can be a deadly combo, paired with its STAB + Ability Double Iron Bash can hit extremely hard versus the entier meta.ws you to hit Ferrothorn. fix formatting here, and emphasize how spammable DIB is thanks to the huge bp + iron fist + flinch chance letting u beat down walls
. Thunder Punch lets Melmetal hit Slowbro, Moltres and Corviknight, whilst Ice Punch lets you hit Zapdos and Landorus Therian.
. 224 Speed allows Melmetal to speed creep Clefable. update according to the above

. Slowbro can be a great partner with Choice Band Melmetal, being able to switch into Offensive threats that was mentioned before, but being able to Future Sight and Teleport, so Melmetal can find safer, more reliable wallbreaking opportunities versus pokemon such as Buzzwole, Skarmory and Toxapex.
. Tornadus can be a partner with Melmetal, being able to pivot out with U-Turn on opposing pokemon to gain momentum, whilst being able to switch into major offensive threats such as Excadrill, Kartana and Landorus-T.

. Lastly, Magnezone is a great partner with CB Melmetal, being able to trap and OHKO pokemon such as Skarmory, Corviknight. and Ferrothorn with an Iron Defense set if you are locked into a move that isntr Superpower.

[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
====
Melmetal can run a Toxic Protect set which allows it to cripple Slowbro and Zapdos, due to the help of Leftovers and Protect allowing melmetal to stall out Zapdos and Slowbro whilst they attack with scald or Heat Wave, though Slowbro can Future Sight + Teleport so Protecting on slowbro isnt very ideal, whilst you can predict a Zapdos's roost whilst it predicts a Protect without much drawback. should also mention that protect misses out on some of the best parts about the other sets - pads' freedom in clicking moves, av's defensive utility, and band's raw power. i also think slide is on the very fringe of relevancy because of shed/zappy usage slightly increasing again. up to u whether or not u want to add it

Checks and Counters
====
**Bulky Steel Types** Pokemon like Coriknight or Ferrothorn take hardly and damage from the Toxic & Protect set. Corviknight can switch in easily as Melmetal's only move it can hit it with is Double Iron Bash. Ferrothorn can also easily switch into Melmetal, being able to heal any damage it does with Earthquake with Leech Seed. Whilst being able to make non protective-pads Melmetal lose 1/4 of its HP if it makes Contact with Ferrothorn,

think u should add a fire-types point here. you can get by without grounds because of how easily they are punished by dib/ice punch but fires (mainly volcarona, but also tran volcanion & victini if pivoted in well) are a big problem for melm

**Wallbreakers** Offensive threats such as Landorus, Excadrill and Garchomp all pressure Melmetal too switch out. Exacdrill, Landorus and Garchomp being able to threaten it out with Earthquake, whilst Landorus being able to use Intimidate, so you won't be taking as much from Double Iron Bash as you normally would if they stayed in. Whilst these Earthquakes won't normally OHKO it will make Melmetal lose a lot of HP whilst it's a struggle for Melmetal to regain HP back.

**Burn** Bulky Water Types such as Slowbro, Swampert, Gastrodon and Toxapex can switch into Melmetal whilst being able to Burn Melmetal. Slowbro can completely wall Melmetal even when statused with toxic. Being able to have the ability Regenerator, good recovery, having rocky Helmet which allows it take take 33% of Melmetal's HP if it makes contact with Double Iron Bash and being able to Burn with Scald. Swampert is also a great switch in to melmetal, being able to force it out with Earthquake whilst being able to get up Stealth Rocks. Gastrodon can switch into Melmetal, though its not very ideal if your not invested into Physical Defense due to Double Iron Bash flinch rate. Toxapex can scout any Melemtal's attacks it uses without much drawback thanks to Regenerator.

**Contact Move Punishment** Rocky Helmet, Static, Rough Skin, Iron Barbs and Flame Body, can all be a pain for Melmetal's Double Iron Bash hits twice, increasing the rates to get Burned or Paralyzed and taking more Damage from Iron Barbs and Rocky Helmet.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [stareal, 481219]]
- Quality checked by: [[airfare, 513717], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1], [username2, userid2]]

1/3 when implemented

 

[pulsar512b]

not in the QC team or anything but it might be worth noting somewhere that 8 pp on dib really annoys it, especially in longer games or in matchups vs pressure pokemon
(Also, a set w something like protect double iron bash twave eq is an option on some teams, especially when paired with Rillaboom or Tapu Bulu, as the recovery is frankly ridiculous- might be worth mentioning in other options, but again I'm not in QC or anything so check with them first)

 

[TailGlowVM]

If you don't know (which I don't think many people do), I think the Assault Vest EV spread you're using is meant to creep Toxapex, and the Attack is for this:
-1 116 Atk Iron Fist Melmetal Ice Punch vs. 0 HP / 8 Def Landorus-Therian: 280-332 (87.7 - 104%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
The bulk is as far as I can tell just a dump, and since no-one runs 8 Def Landorus-T anymore the Attack should probably be dropped to 112 to OHKO 4 Def Landorus-T, unless QC is going to make a new spread.

 

[Clone]

reassigning