Melmetal [QC 2/2]

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[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With a huge base Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist boosted STAB move in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB move, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets, with even physically defensive Tangrowth being 2HKOd after entry hazards. Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on it. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to attempt to paraflinch down checks like Skarmory or Buzzwole with Double Iron Bash and paralysis. However, Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to also cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and physically defensive Hippowdon. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set, allowing Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users like Skarmory and Tangrowth and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body for using Double Iron Bash, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak effectively. The given EV spread allows it to outspeed uninvested Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, give Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

Melmetal fits best on bulky offense and balance teams, with a preference to the former due to the easier time those archetypes have fitting pivots to aid Melmetal. Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth and defensive Dragonite make for great partners, so consider pairing it with Dragon Dance Mega Altaria, Urshifu-R and Zarude. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc against typical checks to these Pokemon like bulky Grass types and Mega Altaria. Additionally, they allow Melmetal to come in without taking unnecessary chip from other Pokemon, letting it preserve its valuable HP and more easily check Pokemon like Mega Altaria and Nihilego. Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with specially defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. Hazard setters like Swampert, Nihilego, Hippowdon and Skarmory are welcome partners, with their entry hazards allowing Melmetal to 2HKO physically defensive Tangrowth, as well as pressure Skarmory and Rotom-W for Melmetal later.

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Earthquake / Thunder Punch
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks like Rotom-W, Buzzwole and Hippowdon, as well as stall for Leftovers recovery and poison turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, while maintaining an offensive profile, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Earthquake hits Aegislash and other Melmetal, allowing it to act as a decent check and status absorber to the former, but Thunder Punch when combined with Double Iron Bash hits more Pokemon for neutral or better, though this set will struggle to break through typical Thunder Punch targets like Skarmory and it can stall out the remainder with Protect + Toxic anyways. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO and survive non Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, both after Stealth Rock, as well as outspeed uninvested Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into Attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it like pivots to bring it in when it's not very useful defensively, check wallbreakers that might abuse it like Urshifu-R and Rotom-H, and help further chip down Melmetal checks that have been poisoned by Toxic, while said teams enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good to pair with Melmetal. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Pokemon like Mega Altaria and Nihilego that would otherwise overwhelm or threaten Tapu Bulu, while spreading Toxic and breaking down walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Salamence. Additionally, checks to faster Fire types like Moltres and Rotom-H are welcome, so Pokemon like Nihilego, Swampert and Rhyperior are good to pair with Melmetal. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Primarina and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom-W and Rotom-H and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO Tangrowth without Stealth Rock, but without Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body. Assault Vest can improve Melmetal's low Special Defense and allow it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but suffers issues with contact punishing and chip damage from entry hazards like Spikes to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated, and it cannot pressure defensive checks with status moves. Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks. Ice Punch can hit Gligar, who otherwise totally walls Melmetal, but is otherwise hard to fit. Protective Pads can run both statuses on one set to cripple both its sets of defensive checks instead of having to choose between them, but this means dropping one of its coverage moves, forcing it to rely on Double Iron Bash flinches or waiting for Toxic to wear them down.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Melmetal can struggle to break past physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Gligar. The former three can take most Melmetal's attacks and retaliate with super effective moves or Knock Off, respectively. However, they should be aware of status and paraflinches. Gligar is by far the best Melmetal counter, since it's immune to both Thunder Wave and Toxic and can Roost off any damage before Melmetal can attack, avoiding flinches from Double Iron Bash.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-W and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-W. In return, Rotom-W can retaliate with a Will-O-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, specially defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switch-ins, though physically defensive sets will fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish+Protect. Most bulky Water-types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Fire-type Pokemon**: Fire-type Pokemon like Moltres, Rotom-H and Volcanion are problematic for Melmetal to deal with. Rotom-H resists or is immune to every attacking move Melmetal has, cannot be paralyzed, and can threaten Melmetal with Overheat, but is dependant on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery, and Toxic annoys it significantly. While Thunder Punch will take out offensive Moltres with minimal chip damage and do large damage to bulky ones, Moltres is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs. Volcanion cannot safely switch into Earthquake or Thunder Punch, but can threaten Melmetal with its super effective STAB or set up Substitute as Melmetal switches.

**Knock Off and Burn**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. Burn from Scald or Will-o-Wisp from Pokemon Melmetal might check or attempt to beat, such as Calm Mind Primarina and Rotom-Wash respectively, will also weaken it significantly and wear it down. Knock Off and burn is even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set, and both negate this recovery. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego.

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves Pokemon from Mega Altaria and Salamence, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Choice SpecsPrimarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so special attackers need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Buzzwole**: Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from status, but Buzzwole's offensive variants can also take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, while non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to win. It needs to be wary of Thunder Wave for the same reasons as defensive sets, however.


[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Niadev, 282732]]
- Quality checked by: [[Pubo, 535121], [Arishem, 546157]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]
 
Last edited:
Ok, I finally think this is ready for QC. First paragraph of the pads set probably needs to be cut down.
 

Pubo

bom dia
is a Site Content Manageris a Top Social Media Contributoris a Forum Moderatoris a Tiering Contributoris a Contributor to Smogon
AM Check implement what you wish/agree with!:blobthumbsup:
and ye, this first paragraph, other options and checks/counters section must be more objective/concise

The content is good, most of the changes/suggestions I made were to make it clearer/objective without being too long. Good Job!
Add / Remove / Comments

[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With its huge Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist boosted STAB in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets (mention some impressive calcs here like tang being 2hkoed after rocks). Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on Double Iron Bash or (I don't really see a scenario where this happens because DIB causes more than 50%, so I would remove) it. Thunder Punch. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to cripple sweepers that Melmetal can take a hit from, such as Autotomize Celesteela, as well as allow it to attempt to flinch certain checks like? down with Double Iron Bash's 51% effective chance to flinch and paralysis ( i would put this part abt Melm trying to flinch its checks in the first place instead of punishing setup sweepers). Melmetal sometimes has to get lucky with this vs some defensive Pokemon as Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and Hippowdon. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set, thanks to Double Iron Bash being a multi hit contact (this is a bit dex info imo) move and Melmetal's lack of a secondary STAB.It allows Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak, and it is still extremely powerful even without a boosting item. The given EV spread maximises Melmetal’s firepower and allows it to outspeed 0 sSpeed Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, giving Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

(what type of teams melm fits on?) Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth and Dragonite make for great partners. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc. Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and/or weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with Specially Defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. (i would mention some hazard setters since with rocks up melm can easily score 2HKOs against tang and put more pressure on skarmory and rotoms)

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Thunder Punch / Earthquake
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks (like?) and stall for Leftovers recovery and Toxic turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, unlike the Protective Pads set ( it is usually recommended not make comparisons with other sets since they have different purposes, I would remove this part), while maintaning an offensive profile and differentiates itself from other more defensive Steel-type Pokemon in that it still hits pretty hard, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Double Iron Bash and Thunder Punch hit the most things Pokemon for neutral or better, though Earthquake can be used if Aegislash or other Melmetal are particularly problematic. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO, live unboosted Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rocks, and survive non Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, all after Stealth Rocks, as well as outspeed Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it and enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good partners. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Psychic- and Fairy-type like? Pokemon that would otherwise overwhelm Tapu Bulu, spreads Toxic and breaks walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Dragonite (defensive dnite is kinda bad so find another mon like moltres). Additionally, checks to faster Fire-types like Moltres and Rotom-Heat are welcome, so Pokemon like Mega Altaria, Nihilego, and Swampert are good to pair with Melmetal. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain defensive walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Alakazam, Primarina, and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom forms and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO PhysDef Tangrowth, as well as 2HKOing several resists. However, due to the lack of Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body, and, due to Steel being an easily resisted type, exploited once locked into an attack. Additionally, it’s usually overkill as Protective Pads already is one of the scariest wallbreakers around, and the notable boons of dealing with Rotom forms and Tangrowth can already be achieved via Toxic or Thunder Wave. (since this is an OO is clear that Pads Twave/Toxic reach better results than CB) (suggestion: Choice Band propels Melmetal's damage output to absurd levels, but without Protective Pads it gets easily punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body and get exploited by common Steel resists like Rotom-W once locked into an attack) Acid Armor + Body Press can be an acceptable lategame sweeper that negates some of Melmetal's normal revenge killers, but it is exploitable by special attackers and often struggles much more against its typical checks, especially Moltres and Whirlwind Skarmory, and additionally can struggle with Aegislash. (i would be more concise and just mention that this set struggles against special attackers and it is outclassed by Skarmory. something like: Acid Armor + Body Press can act as a late-game sweeper, but is completely vulnerable to special attackers and struggles with common checks. It also faces competition from Skarmory as it possesses reliable recovery in Roost and better defensive typing) Furthermore, unlike other similar Body Press sweepers, Melmetal has no recovery moves, meaning it is reliant on Leftovers to heal and, as a result, it can be worn down as it tries to sweep. It also faces significant competition with Skarmory as a Body Press sweeper, the latter of which having relaible recovery and a much better defensive typing. Assault Vest allows it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but similarly suffers issues with contact punishing to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated and significantly hampers effectiveness as a wallbreaker, and due to the lack of recovery from the likes of Leftovers, it is ineffective in the long run anyways. Being unable to run a status move is also a massive blow to its ability to wallbreak and punish defensive checks. (just mention briefly that AV is pretty vulnerable to chip damage from things like Spikes and struggles against contact punishing. suggestion: Assault Vest is an option to improve Melmetal's low special bulk making it a more reliable check to Mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but it's very prone to chip damage from Rocky Helmet and Spikes and it can't use status moves to pressure its checks.) Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks.

Checks and Counters
===================
( i would merge and rewrite Skamory, Tang, Hippo, Buzz and Gligar parts into "Physically Defensive Walls" to make this more concise. They basically do the same thing against melm (take its attacks reliable, threaten it with massive damage or punish it with Knock Off))

**Skarmory**: While Thunder Punch has a small chance to 2HKO non Leftovers sets after rocks, Melmetal is by and large walled by Skarmory, avoiding the 2HKO from everything else. It’s worth noting that Thunder Wave plus Double Iron Bash can cause Skarmory some issues, however, and Skarmory needs Body Press to do any appreciable damage back.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-Wash and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-Wash. In return, Rotom-Wash can retaliate with a Will-o-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, Specially Defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switchins, though Physically Defensive sets fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish+Protect. Seismitoad is similar to Swampert in most cases but can threaten to remove Melmetal's item with a Knock Off and takes more from Double Iron Bash (toad is mostly SpD and if you are using it is more for other things than being a melmetal check imo). Most bulky water types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Rotom-Heat**: Rotom-Heat resists or is immune to every move Melmetal has, and can threaten an OHKO on Melmetal with Overheat. All Rotom-Heat really fears from Melmetal is Toxic, which can wear Rotom-Heat down for other teammates. Protect+Toxic sets will annoy it a lot more than usual, however, and Rotom-Heat depends on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery.

**Moltres**: While Thunder Punch will take out offensive sets and do large damage to bulky ones, it is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs, and can Roost if it takes a Thunder Punch on the switch in, temporarily negating its weakness to Thunder Punch (though a particularly brave Melmetal might predict this and go for Earthquake) and healing off the taken damage. Moltres can then retaliate with a Flamethrower or Mystical Fire, either outright killing or doing enough damage that Melmetal is deprived of a bunch of its ability to come in and do damage.
(merge and rewrite these 2 into fire-types) just mention that they can reliable take Melmetal attacks and KO it back. also mention that melm can cripple them with toxic or twave and moltres should be aware of Earthquake if it uses Roost

**Knock Off**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. It's even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego, Tangrowth additionally also checking Melmetal with the Physically Defensive set, and especially Tangrowth that run Rocky Helmet.

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves Pokemon like Alakazam, Mega Altaria and Celesteela run, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast and Primarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so they need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Physically Defensive Tangrowth**: Tangrowth is able to avoid the 2HKO from any attack and retaliate with a Knock Off, especially crippling to Melmetal if Tangrowth is running Rocky Helmet, or alternatively Earthquake or Sleep Powder. Tangrowth must be careful of Toxic, however, and due to Melmetal being faster thanks to Tangrowth often running a -Speed nature, Double Iron Bash can attempt to flinch past it, potentially needing only one flinch after Stealth Rocks or Toxic.

**Physically Defensive Hippowdon**: While it isn't a 100% perfect Double Iron Bash switch in without Leftovers, it is able to comfortably take everything else and retaliate with Earthquake. However, Melmetal may attempt to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash as most Melmetal invest to be faster than it, but Melmetal has to get two flinches in a row to win against a full HP Hippowdon, a roughly 26% chance.

**Buzzwole**: Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from Toxic, while offensive variants can take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, and non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to cheese out a win.

**Gligar**: While incredibly niche, special mention deserves to be given to Gligar, as it is probably the the closest thing to a true long term wall to Melmetal, being immune to both status moves thanks to Immunity and bulky enough to avoid the 2HKO from any move aside from Double Iron Bash after Stealth Rock. It's also faster than Melmetal so it can't even be Double Iron Bash flinched to
death (a pokemon never "die" in battle, it faints) and can continuously Roost until Melmetal runs out of PP.
 
AM Check implement what you wish/agree with!:blobthumbsup:
and ye, this first paragraph, other options and checks/counters section must be more objective/concise

The content is good, most of the changes/suggestions I made were to make it clearer/objective without being too long. Good Job!
Add / Remove / Comments

[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With its huge Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist boosted STAB in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets (mention some impressive calcs here like tang being 2hkoed after rocks). Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on Double Iron Bash or (I don't really see a scenario where this happens because DIB causes more than 50%, so I would remove) it. Thunder Punch. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to cripple sweepers that Melmetal can take a hit from, such as Autotomize Celesteela, as well as allow it to attempt to flinch certain checks like? down with Double Iron Bash's 51% effective chance to flinch and paralysis ( i would put this part abt Melm trying to flinch its checks in the first place instead of punishing setup sweepers). Melmetal sometimes has to get lucky with this vs some defensive Pokemon as Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and Hippowdon. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set, thanks to Double Iron Bash being a multi hit contact (this is a bit dex info imo) move and Melmetal's lack of a secondary STAB.It allows Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak, and it is still extremely powerful even without a boosting item. The given EV spread maximises Melmetal’s firepower and allows it to outspeed 0 sSpeed Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, giving Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

(what type of teams melm fits on?) Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth and Dragonite make for great partners. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc. Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and/or weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with Specially Defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. (i would mention some hazard setters since with rocks up melm can easily score 2HKOs against tang and put more pressure on skarmory and rotoms)

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Thunder Punch / Earthquake
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks (like?) and stall for Leftovers recovery and Toxic turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, unlike the Protective Pads set ( it is usually recommended not make comparisons with other sets since they have different purposes, I would remove this part), while maintaning an offensive profile and differentiates itself from other more defensive Steel-type Pokemon in that it still hits pretty hard, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Double Iron Bash and Thunder Punch hit the most things Pokemon for neutral or better, though Earthquake can be used if Aegislash or other Melmetal are particularly problematic. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO, live unboosted Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rocks, and survive non Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, all after Stealth Rocks, as well as outspeed Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it and enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good partners. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Psychic- and Fairy-type like? Pokemon that would otherwise overwhelm Tapu Bulu, spreads Toxic and breaks walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Dragonite (defensive dnite is kinda bad so find another mon like moltres). Additionally, checks to faster Fire-types like Moltres and Rotom-Heat are welcome, so Pokemon like Mega Altaria, Nihilego, and Swampert are good to pair with Melmetal. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain defensive walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Alakazam, Primarina, and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom forms and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO PhysDef Tangrowth, as well as 2HKOing several resists. However, due to the lack of Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body, and, due to Steel being an easily resisted type, exploited once locked into an attack. Additionally, it’s usually overkill as Protective Pads already is one of the scariest wallbreakers around, and the notable boons of dealing with Rotom forms and Tangrowth can already be achieved via Toxic or Thunder Wave. (since this is an OO is clear that Pads Twave/Toxic reach better results than CB) (suggestion: Choice Band propels Melmetal's damage output to absurd levels, but without Protective Pads it gets easily punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body and get exploited by common Steel resists like Rotom-W once locked into an attack) Acid Armor + Body Press can be an acceptable lategame sweeper that negates some of Melmetal's normal revenge killers, but it is exploitable by special attackers and often struggles much more against its typical checks, especially Moltres and Whirlwind Skarmory, and additionally can struggle with Aegislash. (i would be more concise and just mention that this set struggles against special attackers and it is outclassed by Skarmory. something like: Acid Armor + Body Press can act as a late-game sweeper, but is completely vulnerable to special attackers and struggles with common checks. It also faces competition from Skarmory as it possesses reliable recovery in Roost and better defensive typing) Furthermore, unlike other similar Body Press sweepers, Melmetal has no recovery moves, meaning it is reliant on Leftovers to heal and, as a result, it can be worn down as it tries to sweep. It also faces significant competition with Skarmory as a Body Press sweeper, the latter of which having relaible recovery and a much better defensive typing. Assault Vest allows it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but similarly suffers issues with contact punishing to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated and significantly hampers effectiveness as a wallbreaker, and due to the lack of recovery from the likes of Leftovers, it is ineffective in the long run anyways. Being unable to run a status move is also a massive blow to its ability to wallbreak and punish defensive checks. (just mention briefly that AV is pretty vulnerable to chip damage from things like Spikes and struggles against contact punishing. suggestion: Assault Vest is an option to improve Melmetal's low special bulk making it a more reliable check to Mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but it's very prone to chip damage from Rocky Helmet and Spikes and it can't use status moves to pressure its checks.) Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks.

Checks and Counters
===================
( i would merge and rewrite Skamory, Tang, Hippo, Buzz and Gligar parts into "Physically Defensive Walls" to make this more concise. They basically do the same thing against melm (take its attacks reliable, threaten it with massive damage or punish it with Knock Off))

**Skarmory**: While Thunder Punch has a small chance to 2HKO non Leftovers sets after rocks, Melmetal is by and large walled by Skarmory, avoiding the 2HKO from everything else. It’s worth noting that Thunder Wave plus Double Iron Bash can cause Skarmory some issues, however, and Skarmory needs Body Press to do any appreciable damage back.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-Wash and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-Wash. In return, Rotom-Wash can retaliate with a Will-o-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, Specially Defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switchins, though Physically Defensive sets fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish+Protect. Seismitoad is similar to Swampert in most cases but can threaten to remove Melmetal's item with a Knock Off and takes more from Double Iron Bash (toad is mostly SpD and if you are using it is more for other things than being a melmetal check imo). Most bulky water types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Rotom-Heat**: Rotom-Heat resists or is immune to every move Melmetal has, and can threaten an OHKO on Melmetal with Overheat. All Rotom-Heat really fears from Melmetal is Toxic, which can wear Rotom-Heat down for other teammates. Protect+Toxic sets will annoy it a lot more than usual, however, and Rotom-Heat depends on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery.

**Moltres**: While Thunder Punch will take out offensive sets and do large damage to bulky ones, it is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs, and can Roost if it takes a Thunder Punch on the switch in, temporarily negating its weakness to Thunder Punch (though a particularly brave Melmetal might predict this and go for Earthquake) and healing off the taken damage. Moltres can then retaliate with a Flamethrower or Mystical Fire, either outright killing or doing enough damage that Melmetal is deprived of a bunch of its ability to come in and do damage.
(merge and rewrite these 2 into fire-types) just mention that they can reliable take Melmetal attacks and KO it back. also mention that melm can cripple them with toxic or twave and moltres should be aware of Earthquake if it uses Roost

**Knock Off**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. It's even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego, Tangrowth additionally also checking Melmetal with the Physically Defensive set, and especially Tangrowth that run Rocky Helmet.

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves Pokemon like Alakazam, Mega Altaria and Celesteela run, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast and Primarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so they need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Physically Defensive Tangrowth**: Tangrowth is able to avoid the 2HKO from any attack and retaliate with a Knock Off, especially crippling to Melmetal if Tangrowth is running Rocky Helmet, or alternatively Earthquake or Sleep Powder. Tangrowth must be careful of Toxic, however, and due to Melmetal being faster thanks to Tangrowth often running a -Speed nature, Double Iron Bash can attempt to flinch past it, potentially needing only one flinch after Stealth Rocks or Toxic.

**Physically Defensive Hippowdon**: While it isn't a 100% perfect Double Iron Bash switch in without Leftovers, it is able to comfortably take everything else and retaliate with Earthquake. However, Melmetal may attempt to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash as most Melmetal invest to be faster than it, but Melmetal has to get two flinches in a row to win against a full HP Hippowdon, a roughly 26% chance.

**Buzzwole**: Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from Toxic, while offensive variants can take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, and non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to cheese out a win.

**Gligar**: While incredibly niche, special mention deserves to be given to Gligar, as it is probably the the closest thing to a true long term wall to Melmetal, being immune to both status moves thanks to Immunity and bulky enough to avoid the 2HKO from any move aside from Double Iron Bash after Stealth Rock. It's also faster than Melmetal so it can't even be Double Iron Bash flinched to
death (a pokemon never "die" in battle, it faints) and can continuously Roost until Melmetal runs out of PP.
Implemented. Due to the fact Buzzwole's offensive set also checks Melmetal, I decided to leave Buzzwole with its own section, as mentioning an offensive mon in a section on phys walls sounded weird, though I focused more on offensive buzz in Buzzwole's section and barely mentioned defensive. I don't know if I agree that defensive Dragonite is a bad set b/c I've never used it (honestly it's the only set I'd run on it right now aside from maybe CB (and even then) b/c lmao offensive ddance), but Salamence is the overall better option for Dragon/Flying Defogging defensive mon that checks Urshi anyways imo, so it's probably the better choice for mon that walls bulu and prot tox melm breaks.
 

Pubo

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1/2. good content, most of the changes are to make certain parts more concise but still explanatory. Make sure to fix all the gp stuff please, i tried to fix most of it. things like bulky offense, physically/specially defensive aren't capitalized, and it's always Rotom-W, not Rotom-Wash. Take a look the grammar standards to fix it before changing it to 1/2. good job :blobthumbsup:

[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With its huge Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist boosted STAB in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets, with even Physically Defensive Tangrowth being 2HKOd if after entry hazards are active. Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on it. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to attempt to paraflinch down normally faster (i wouldn't call skarm and buzz as faster checks honestly, gives a false impression that they run a lot of Speed) checks like Skarmory or Buzzwole with Double Iron Bash's 51% effective chance to flinch and paralysis. Melmetal sometimes has to get lucky with this vs some defensive Pokemon as Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and Hippowdon. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set and allows Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users like Skarmory and Tangrowth and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body for using Double Iron Bash, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak effectively. The given EV spread allows it to outspeed 0 Speed (gives false impression that aegi runs - speed nature or 0 ivs) uninvested Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, giving Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

Melmetal fits best on bulky offense and balance teams, with a preference to the former due to the easier time it has fitting pivots like?? to aid Melmetal. Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth (why these more defensive pokemon would appreciate Melm breaking down walls? change to more offensive examples. also rewrite this because it's ambigous, these walls are Mega Alt and Dnite or they are the teammates that benefit from melm's ability to break walls? could be confusing for new players) and Dragonite make for great partners. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc against who?. Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon you didn't mention these walls being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and/or weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with specially defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. Hazard setters like Skarmory, Swampert, Nihilego and Hippowdon are welcome partners, with their entry hazards allowing Melmetal to 2HKO Physically Defensive Tangrowth, as well as pressure Skarmory and Rotom-W for Melmetal later.

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Thunder Punch / Earthquake
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks like Rotom-W, Buzzwole and Hippowdon, as well as stall for Leftovers recovery and Toxic poison turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, while maintaining an offensive profile, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Double Iron Bash and Thunder Punch hit the most Pokemon for neutral or better, though Earthquake can be used if Aegislash or other Melmetal are particularly problematic. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO, live unboosted Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rock (remember to remove zam if it gets banned), and survive non Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, all after Stealth Rocks, as well as outspeed Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it what options? and enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good to pair with Melmetal. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Pokemon like Mega Altaria and Nihilego that would otherwise overwhelm or threaten Tapu Bulu, spreads Toxic and breaks walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Salamence. Additionally, checks to faster Fire types like Moltres and Rotom-H are welcome, so Pokemon like Mega Altaria, Nihilego, and Swampert are good to pair with Melmetal. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain defensive physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Alakazam, Primarina, and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom-H and Rotom-W forms and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO PhysDef Tangrowth without Stealth Rock, but without Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body. Acid Armor + Body Press can be an acceptable late-game sweeper that negates some of Melmetal's normal revenge killers, but it is easily dealt with by special attackers and it is generally outclassed by Skarmory, who has a better defensive typing and reliable recovery. (kinda unsure abt this set, no one uses it tbh. really want to remove it) Assault Vest can improve Melmetal's low Special Defense and allow it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but suffers issues with contact punishing and chip damage from entry hazards like Spikes to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated, and it cannot pressure defensive checks with status moves. Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks. maybe ice punch to hit gligar?

Checks and Counters
===================

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Despite Melmetal's incredible power, there are some Pokemon capable of weathering a neutral Double Iron Bash and checking Melmetal, though many of them fear Toxic. Skarmory by and large walls Melmetal, with only Thunder Punch 2HKOing after Stealth Rock if Skarmory is not Leftovers, though it needs Body Press to do any appreciable damage back. Tangrowth is able to avoid the 2HKO from any attack if Stealth Rock isn't active and retaliate with a Knock Off, especially crippling to Melmetal if Tangrowth is running Rocky Helmet, or can alternatively hit it with Earthquake or Sleep Powder. While Physically Defensive Hippowdon isn't a 100% perfect Double Iron Bash switch in without Leftovers, it is able to comfortably take everything else and retaliate with Earthquake. Defensive Buzzwole can flat out wall Melmetal aside from Toxic and Thunder Wave + Double Iron Bash flinching. However, Melmetal outspeeds and can attempt to flinch past a few of these defensive walls, such as Tangrowth (as they often run -Speed natures) and Hippowdon, though the number of flinches necessary varies. While incredibly niche, special mention deserves to be given to Gligar, as it is probably the closest thing to a true wall to Melmetal, being immune to both status moves thanks to Immunity, and is only 2HKOd by Double Iron Bash after Stealth Rock. It's also faster than Melmetal so it can't be Double Iron Bash flinched down.

(i needed to cut this down; you don't really need to explain every single outcome. i also removed defensive buzz, i don't think you must mention it here and in the last section; just one is good enough)

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Melmetal have difficulties to break past physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Gligar. The former three can take most Melmetal's attacks and retaliate with super effective moves or Knock Off, respectively. However, they should be aware of status and paraflinches. Gligar is by far the best Melmetal counter, since it's immune to both Thunder Wave and Toxic and can Roost off any damage before Melmetal can attack, avoiding flinches from Double Iron Bash.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-Wash and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-Wash. In return, Rotom-Wash can retaliate with a Will-O-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, Specially Defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switchins, though Physically Defensive sets fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish+Protect. Most bulky water types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Fire-type Pokemon**: Fire-type Pokemon like Moltres, Rotom-H and Infernape Blaziken are problematic for Melmetal to deal with. Rotom-H resists or is immune to every attacking move Melmetal has, cannot be paralyzed, and can threaten Melmetal with Overheat, but is dependant on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery, and Toxic annoys it significantly. While Thunder Punch will take out offensive Moltres with minimal chip damage and do large damage to bulky ones, Moltres is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs. Infernape Blaziken (more viable) cannot switch in, but can threaten Melmetal with its super effective STAB. All three of them are faster than Melmetal too, and so can't be flinched without a paralysis. this is kinda obvious imo, better remove

**Knock Off**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. It's even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego, Tangrowth additionally also checking Melmetal with the Physically Defensive set, and especially Tangrowth that run Rocky Helmet. you already mentioned tang

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves from Pokemon like Alakazam, Mega Altaria and Celesteela run, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast and Primarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so special attackers need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Buzzwole**: As mentioned above, Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from status, but Buzzwole's offensive variants can also take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, while non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to cheese out a win. It needs to be wary of Thunder Wave for the same reasons as defensive sets, however.


[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Niadev, 282732]]
- Quality checked by: [[Pubo, 535121], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]
 
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1/2. good content, most of the changes are to make certain parts more concise but still explanatory. Make sure to fix all the gp stuff please, i tried to fix most of it. things like bulky offense, physically/specially defensive aren't capitalized, and it's always Rotom-W, not Rotom-Wash. Take a look the grammar standards to fix it before changing it to 1/2. good job :blobthumbsup:

[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With its huge Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist boosted STAB in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets, with even Physically Defensive Tangrowth being 2HKOd if after entry hazards are active. Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on it. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to attempt to paraflinch down normally faster (i wouldn't call skarm and buzz as faster checks honestly, gives a false impression that they run a lot of Speed) checks like Skarmory or Buzzwole with Double Iron Bash's 51% effective chance to flinch and paralysis. Melmetal sometimes has to get lucky with this vs some defensive Pokemon as Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and Hippowdon. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set and allows Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users like Skarmory and Tangrowth and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body for using Double Iron Bash, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak effectively. The given EV spread allows it to outspeed 0 Speed (gives false impression that aegi runs - speed nature or 0 ivs) uninvested Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, giving Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

Melmetal fits best on bulky offense and balance teams, with a preference to the former due to the easier time it has fitting pivots like?? to aid Melmetal. Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth (why these more defensive pokemon would appreciate Melm breaking down walls? change to more offensive examples. also rewrite this because it's ambigous, these walls are Mega Alt and Dnite or they are the teammates that benefit from melm's ability to break walls? could be confusing for new players) and Dragonite make for great partners. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc against who?. Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon you didn't mention these walls being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and/or weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with specially defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. Hazard setters like Skarmory, Swampert, Nihilego and Hippowdon are welcome partners, with their entry hazards allowing Melmetal to 2HKO Physically Defensive Tangrowth, as well as pressure Skarmory and Rotom-W for Melmetal later.

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Thunder Punch / Earthquake
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks like Rotom-W, Buzzwole and Hippowdon, as well as stall for Leftovers recovery and Toxic poison turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, while maintaining an offensive profile, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Double Iron Bash and Thunder Punch hit the most Pokemon for neutral or better, though Earthquake can be used if Aegislash or other Melmetal are particularly problematic. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO, live unboosted Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rock (remember to remove zam if it gets banned), and survive non Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, all after Stealth Rocks, as well as outspeed Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it what options? and enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good to pair with Melmetal. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Pokemon like Mega Altaria and Nihilego that would otherwise overwhelm or threaten Tapu Bulu, spreads Toxic and breaks walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Salamence. Additionally, checks to faster Fire types like Moltres and Rotom-H are welcome, so Pokemon like Mega Altaria, Nihilego, and Swampert are good to pair with Melmetal. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain defensive physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Alakazam, Primarina, and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom-H and Rotom-W forms and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO PhysDef Tangrowth without Stealth Rock, but without Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body. Acid Armor + Body Press can be an acceptable late-game sweeper that negates some of Melmetal's normal revenge killers, but it is easily dealt with by special attackers and it is generally outclassed by Skarmory, who has a better defensive typing and reliable recovery. (kinda unsure abt this set, no one uses it tbh. really want to remove it) Assault Vest can improve Melmetal's low Special Defense and allow it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but suffers issues with contact punishing and chip damage from entry hazards like Spikes to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated, and it cannot pressure defensive checks with status moves. Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks. maybe ice punch to hit gligar?

Checks and Counters
===================

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Despite Melmetal's incredible power, there are some Pokemon capable of weathering a neutral Double Iron Bash and checking Melmetal, though many of them fear Toxic. Skarmory by and large walls Melmetal, with only Thunder Punch 2HKOing after Stealth Rock if Skarmory is not Leftovers, though it needs Body Press to do any appreciable damage back. Tangrowth is able to avoid the 2HKO from any attack if Stealth Rock isn't active and retaliate with a Knock Off, especially crippling to Melmetal if Tangrowth is running Rocky Helmet, or can alternatively hit it with Earthquake or Sleep Powder. While Physically Defensive Hippowdon isn't a 100% perfect Double Iron Bash switch in without Leftovers, it is able to comfortably take everything else and retaliate with Earthquake. Defensive Buzzwole can flat out wall Melmetal aside from Toxic and Thunder Wave + Double Iron Bash flinching. However, Melmetal outspeeds and can attempt to flinch past a few of these defensive walls, such as Tangrowth (as they often run -Speed natures) and Hippowdon, though the number of flinches necessary varies. While incredibly niche, special mention deserves to be given to Gligar, as it is probably the closest thing to a true wall to Melmetal, being immune to both status moves thanks to Immunity, and is only 2HKOd by Double Iron Bash after Stealth Rock. It's also faster than Melmetal so it can't be Double Iron Bash flinched down.

(i needed to cut this down; you don't really need to explain every single outcome. i also removed defensive buzz, i don't think you must mention it here and in the last section; just one is good enough)

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Melmetal have difficulties to break past physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Gligar. The former three can take most Melmetal's attacks and retaliate with super effective moves or Knock Off, respectively. However, they should be aware of status and paraflinches. Gligar is by far the best Melmetal counter, since it's immune to both Thunder Wave and Toxic and can Roost off any damage before Melmetal can attack, avoiding flinches from Double Iron Bash.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-Wash and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-Wash. In return, Rotom-Wash can retaliate with a Will-O-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, Specially Defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switchins, though Physically Defensive sets fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish+Protect. Most bulky water types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Fire-type Pokemon**: Fire-type Pokemon like Moltres, Rotom-H and Infernape Blaziken are problematic for Melmetal to deal with. Rotom-H resists or is immune to every attacking move Melmetal has, cannot be paralyzed, and can threaten Melmetal with Overheat, but is dependant on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery, and Toxic annoys it significantly. While Thunder Punch will take out offensive Moltres with minimal chip damage and do large damage to bulky ones, Moltres is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs. Infernape Blaziken (more viable) cannot switch in, but can threaten Melmetal with its super effective STAB. All three of them are faster than Melmetal too, and so can't be flinched without a paralysis. this is kinda obvious imo, better remove

**Knock Off**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. It's even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego, Tangrowth additionally also checking Melmetal with the Physically Defensive set, and especially Tangrowth that run Rocky Helmet. you already mentioned tang

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves from Pokemon like Alakazam, Mega Altaria and Celesteela run, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast and Primarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so special attackers need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Buzzwole**: As mentioned above, Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from status, but Buzzwole's offensive variants can also take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, while non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to cheese out a win. It needs to be wary of Thunder Wave for the same reasons as defensive sets, however.


[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Niadev, 282732]]
- Quality checked by: [[Pubo, 535121], [username2, userid2]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]
In regards to the section "Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth" this was intended to list the walls Melmetal can break rather than the partners, but it is indeed a bit of a mess gramatically so I added examples of mons that benefit from these being broken to hopefully make this clearer, but am open to just removing the mentions of these mons entirely if it's too gramatically clunky.

That aside, should be implemented.
 
:ss/melmetal:
Add / Remove / Comments
[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With its a huge base Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist-boosted STAB move in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB move, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets, with even Physically Defensive physically defensive Physically defensive isn't capitalised in this case Tangrowth being 2HKOed after entry hazards. Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on it. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to attempt to paraflinch down checks like Skarmory or Buzzwole with Double Iron Bash and paralysis. However, Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to also You still cripple other stuff like Buzzwole with it regardless cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and physically defensive Hippowdon I assume? That set also runs enough Speed to outrun TWave Melm so being able to Tox that is especially important. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set, allowing and allows Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users like Skarmory and Tangrowth and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body for using Double Iron Bash, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak effectively. The given EV spread allows it to outspeed uninvested Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, giving give Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

Melmetal fits best on bulky offense and balance teams, with a preference to the former due to the easier time it has those archetypes have fitting pivots to aid Melmetal. Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth and defensive Dragonite Specify the set here make for great partners, so consider pairing it with Alakazam, Blaziken Dragon Dance Mega Altaria, Urshifu-R, and Zarude. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc against typical checks to these Pokemon like bulky Grass types and Mega Altaria. Mention how these pivots also make it easier for Melmetal to manage its HP and blanket-check stuff like MAltaria since it won't need to take as much damage while trying to get in and wallbreak Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with Specially Defensive specially defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. Hazard setters like Skarmory, Swampert, Nihilego and Hippowdon are welcome partners, with their entry hazards allowing Melmetal to 2HKO Physically Defensive physically defensive Tangrowth, as well as pressure Skarmory and Rotom-W for Melmetal later.

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Thunder Punch / Earthquake Not sure on the move order given that Skarm walls you anyway without TWave and that every Water already gets worn down by ProTox, EQ also lets you act as a status immune Aegislash check which is very useful on most balances.
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks like Rotom-W, Buzzwole and Hippowdon, as well as stall for Leftovers recovery and poison turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, while maintaining an offensive profile, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Double Iron Bash and Thunder Punch hit the most Pokemon for neutral or better Read above for my concern, though Earthquake can be used if Aegislash or other Melmetal are particularly problematic. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO, live unboosted Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rock rip bozo, and survive non-Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, all after Stealth Rock, as well as outspeed uninvested Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into attack Attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it like pivots to bring it in when it's not very useful defensively, check wallbreakers that might abuse it like Urshifu-Rapid-Strike and Keldeo Blaziken, and help further chip down Melmetal checks that have been poisoned by Toxic, while said teams enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good to pair with Melmetal. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Pokemon like Mega Altaria and Nihilego that would otherwise overwhelm or threaten Tapu Bulu, spreads while spreading Toxic and breaks breaking down walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Salamence. Additionally, checks to faster Fire types like Moltres and Rotom-H are welcome, so Pokemon like Mega Altaria You don't really threaten out the Fire-types in return with MAltaria so I'd instead mention Rhyperior, Nihilego, and Swampert are good to pair with Melmetal Mention how these mons can also lay hazards to help wear down the opposition more quickly. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Alakazam, Primarina, and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom-W and Rotom-H and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO Tangrowth without Stealth Rock, but without Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body. Assault Vest can improve Melmetal's low Special Defense and allow it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but suffers issues with contact punishing and chip damage from entry hazards like Spikes to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated, and it cannot pressure defensive checks with status moves. Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks. Ice Punch can hit Gligar, who otherwise totally walls Melmetal, but is hard to fit over Melmetal's other moves.

Mention Double Status Pads Melm somewhere in this section for now.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Melmetal have difficulties can struggle to break past physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Gligar. The former three can take most Melmetal's attacks and retaliate with super effective moves or Knock Off, respectively. However, they should be aware of status and paraflinches. Gligar is by far the best Melmetal counter, since it's immune to both Thunder Wave and Toxic and can Roost off any damage before Melmetal can attack, avoiding flinches from Double Iron Bash.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-W and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-W. In return, Rotom-W can retaliate with a Will-O-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, Specially Defensive specially defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switch-ins, though Physically Defensive physically defensive sets will fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish + Protect. Most bulky water Water-types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Fire-type Pokemon**: Fire-type Pokemon like Moltres, Rotom-H and Blaziken Volcanion are problematic for Melmetal to deal with. Rotom-H resists or is immune to every attacking move Melmetal has, cannot be paralyzed, and can threaten Melmetal with Overheat, but is dependant on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery, and Toxic annoys it significantly. While Thunder Punch will take out offensive Moltres with minimal chip damage and do large damage to bulky ones, Moltres is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs. Blaziken Volcanion cannot safely switch into Earthquake or Thunder Punch, but can threaten Melmetal with its super effective STAB or set up Substitute as Melmetal switches.

**Knock Off**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. It's even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego. Talk about burns from Wisp and Scald as well, since those can also cut into its longevity.

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves Pokemon from Alakazam, Mega Altaria and Celesteela, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast and Choice Specs Primarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so special attackers need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Buzzwole**: Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from status, but Buzzwole's offensive variants can also take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, while non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to win. It needs to be wary of Thunder Wave for the same reasons as defensive sets, however.


[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Niadev, 282732]]
- Quality checked by: [[Pubo, 535121], [Arishem, 546157]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]

Couldn't spot much else that needed to be changed this time around, nice work. 2/2 when implemented.
 
:ss/melmetal:
Add / Remove / Comments
[SET]
name: Protective Pads Wallbreaker
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Earthquake
move 3: Thunder Punch
move 4: Thunder Wave / Toxic
item: Protective Pads
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
With its a huge base Attack stat, extremely powerful Iron Fist-boosted STAB move in Double Iron Bash and solid coverage, Melmetal is an extremely powerful wallbreaker that can at times be difficult for teams to deal with offensively, thanks to its enormous natural physical bulk and few weaknesses. Notably, its physical bulk allows it to stomach even rather powerful super effective physical hits, such as Choice Band Krookodile's Earthquake. Double Iron Bash is by far Melmetal’s best STAB move, 2HKOing at worst all but the most bulky neutral targets, with even Physically Defensive physically defensive Physically defensive isn't capitalised in this case Tangrowth being 2HKOed after entry hazards. Earthquake hits opposing Melmetal, Aegislash, and Mega Manectric, as well as OHKOing Zeraora that may try to pivot on it. Thunder Punch deals with most Double Iron Bash resistant Pokemon Earthquake does not already, namely Urshifu-R, Skarmory, Slowking, Moltres and Celesteela. Finally, Thunder Wave allows it to attempt to paraflinch down checks like Skarmory or Buzzwole with Double Iron Bash and paralysis. However, Double Iron Bash has only 8 PP, meaning even if it does flinch past a check, it may not have enough Double Iron Bashes to still be effective against everything else. Thunder Wave can, however, be replaced with Toxic in order to also You still cripple other stuff like Buzzwole with it regardless cripple and weaken Thunder Wave immune checks such as Rotom-W, Rotom-H, Swampert, and physically defensive Hippowdon I assume? That set also runs enough Speed to outrun TWave Melm so being able to Tox that is especially important. Protective Pads is the only worthwhile item on this set, allowing and allows Melmetal to avoid being punished by the myriad of Rocky Helmet users like Skarmory and Tangrowth and contact punishing abilities like Moltres's Flame Body for using Double Iron Bash, keeping it alive for much longer while allowing it to still wallbreak effectively. The given EV spread allows it to outspeed uninvested Aegislash, hitting it with an Earthquake before it can attack or use Substitute. It also lets Melmetal outspeed Hippowdon and Rhyperior, stopping them from hitting Melmetal with an Earthquake before Melmetal can clobber them and, in the former's case, giving give Melmetal a chance to flinch it down with Double Iron Bash.

Melmetal fits best on bulky offense and balance teams, with a preference to the former due to the easier time it has those archetypes have fitting pivots to aid Melmetal. Teammates that benefit from Melmetal’s ability to break down walls like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss, Slowking, Assault Vest Tangrowth and defensive Dragonite Specify the set here make for great partners, so consider pairing it with Alakazam, Blaziken Dragon Dance Mega Altaria, Urshifu-R, and Zarude. Melmetal itself greatly appreciates pivot move users like Rotom-W, Scizor, Zeraora, Rotom-H and Swampert, as they help Melmetal get in and start wreaking havoc against typical checks to these Pokemon like bulky Grass types and Mega Altaria. Mention how these pivots also make it easier for Melmetal to manage its HP and blanket-check stuff like MAltaria since it won't need to take as much damage while trying to get in and wallbreak Special mention is given to Zeraora, who can get Melmetal in more frequently on many of the aforementioned walls of the tier thanks to Volt Switch and several of those Pokemon being common checks to Zeraora. It also threatens Skarmory, can lure and weaken Swampert with Grass Knot for Melmetal, and can threaten Pokemon that may revenge kill Melmetal such as Urshifu-R, Moltres, Primarina and Keldeo. Sweepers such as Mega Altaria and Salamence also enjoy these walls being weakened. Melmetal appreciates teammates who can deal with faster special attackers, so Pokemon like Slowking, Amoonguss, and Assault Vest Tangrowth are good options. Slowking in particular deals with almost every relevant Fire-type, and can use Teleport to get Melmetal in safely, with Specially Defensive specially defensive sets additionally pivoting on Choice Specs Primarina. Hazard setters like Skarmory, Swampert, Nihilego and Hippowdon are welcome partners, with their entry hazards allowing Melmetal to 2HKO Physically Defensive physically defensive Tangrowth, as well as pressure Skarmory and Rotom-W for Melmetal later.

[SET]
name: Protect + Toxic
move 1: Protect
move 2: Toxic
move 3: Double Iron Bash
move 4: Thunder Punch / Earthquake Not sure on the move order given that Skarm walls you anyway without TWave and that every Water already gets worn down by ProTox, EQ also lets you act as a status immune Aegislash check which is very useful on most balances.
item: Leftovers
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Careful
evs: 32 HP / 116 Atk / 252 SpD / 108 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
This set is more focused on using Melmetal to check things defensively, crippling defensive checks and increasing its longevity, while still being quite powerful. Protect + Toxic allows it to cripple certain checks like Rotom-W, Buzzwole and Hippowdon, as well as stall for Leftovers recovery and poison turns, giving Melmetal significantly more longevity and somewhat offsetting its weakness to Rocky Helmet and contact punishing abilities, but not completely. Notably, it can act as a check to Mega Altaria, taking every move comfortably, while maintaining an offensive profile, unlike Skarmory or Celesteela. Double Iron Bash and Thunder Punch hit the most Pokemon for neutral or better Read above for my concern, though Earthquake can be used if Aegislash or other Melmetal are particularly problematic. The given EV spread allows it to survive mixed Dragon Dance Mega Altaria's Fire Blast as a 3HKO, live unboosted Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast after Stealth Rock rip bozo, and survive non-Life Orb Offensive Buzzwole's Close Combat, all after Stealth Rock, as well as outspeed uninvested Hippowdon, with the remaining EVs put into attack Attack to maximise Melmetal's firepower.

Teammates that appreciate a defensive check to Mega Altaria and Nihilego that can still put out some damage appreciate this set. It fits best on balance and bulky offense teams as those teams have the most options to support it like pivots to bring it in when it's not very useful defensively, check wallbreakers that might abuse it like Urshifu-Rapid-Strike and Keldeo Blaziken, and help further chip down Melmetal checks that have been poisoned by Toxic, while said teams enjoy the role compression this set can provide while not being passive. Pokemon that deal with strong Fighting-type wallbreakers are great partners, making Amoonguss, Mega Altaria, Salamence and Tapu Bulu good to pair with Melmetal. In particular, Tapu Bulu's Grassy Terrain pairs very well with this set, making Melmetal far harder to take down with Earthquakes from the likes of Krookodile and Swampert. This lets Melmetal stall them out with Toxic more, as well as giving it an additional source of passive recovery. In return, Melmetal covers common Pokemon like Mega Altaria and Nihilego that would otherwise overwhelm or threaten Tapu Bulu, spreads while spreading Toxic and breaks breaking down walls that trouble Tapu Bulu like Mega Altaria, Amoonguss and Salamence. Additionally, checks to faster Fire types like Moltres and Rotom-H are welcome, so Pokemon like Mega Altaria You don't really threaten out the Fire-types in return with MAltaria so I'd instead mention Rhyperior, Nihilego, and Swampert are good to pair with Melmetal Mention how these mons can also lay hazards to help wear down the opposition more quickly. Finally, while Melmetal can cripple many of them with Toxic, it does still appreciate Pokemon that deal with certain physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Buzzwole, so partners like Alakazam, Primarina, and Moltres can go a long way.


[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============

Choice Band propels Melmetal’s damage output to absurd heights, allowing Superpower to 2HKO both Rotom-W and Rotom-H and its Double Iron Bash to 2HKO Tangrowth without Stealth Rock, but without Protective Pads, this set is extremely prone to being punished by Rocky Helmet and Flame Body. Assault Vest can improve Melmetal's low Special Defense and allow it to come in more comfortably on mixed Mega Altaria and Dragon Dance Salamence, but suffers issues with contact punishing and chip damage from entry hazards like Spikes to the point where the additional bulk is usually negated, and it cannot pressure defensive checks with status moves. Combine all this with the rather small list of additional relevant 2HKOs avoided and the fact it survives the attacks without Assault Vest anyways, it simply isn’t worth it, and Protect + Toxic sets are generally preferred due to their improved longevity and ability to cripple checks. Ice Punch can hit Gligar, who otherwise totally walls Melmetal, but is hard to fit over Melmetal's other moves.

Mention Double Status Pads Melm somewhere in this section for now.

Checks and Counters
===================

**Physically Defensive Walls**: Melmetal have difficulties can struggle to break past physical walls like Skarmory, Tangrowth, Hippowdon, and Gligar. The former three can take most Melmetal's attacks and retaliate with super effective moves or Knock Off, respectively. However, they should be aware of status and paraflinches. Gligar is by far the best Melmetal counter, since it's immune to both Thunder Wave and Toxic and can Roost off any damage before Melmetal can attack, avoiding flinches from Double Iron Bash.

**Bulky Water-types**: Rotom-W and Swampert resist Melmetal’s Double Iron Bash, and resist/are immune to all of Melmetal’s coverage options bar Thunder Punch and Earthquake respectively, which does middling damage to Rotom-W. In return, Rotom-W can retaliate with a Will-O-Wisp or do a decent chunk with Hydro Pump, and Swampert can do a large chunk of damage with Earthquake. However, Specially Defensive specially defensive Swampert still takes a fair amount of damage from Double Iron Bash, meaning it will be worn down quickly over repeated switch-ins, though Physically Defensive physically defensive sets will fare much better. Alomomola eats every hit as a 2HKO and can retaliate with Scald or a Knock Off, threatening a burn or removing Melmetal's rather crucial item respectively, and heal off chip damage with Regenerator or Wish + Protect. Most bulky water Water-types fear Toxic, however, and some will struggle significantly more with Protect+Toxic Melmetal.

**Fire-type Pokemon**: Fire-type Pokemon like Moltres, Rotom-H and Blaziken Volcanion are problematic for Melmetal to deal with. Rotom-H resists or is immune to every attacking move Melmetal has, cannot be paralyzed, and can threaten Melmetal with Overheat, but is dependant on the unreliable Pain Split for recovery, and Toxic annoys it significantly. While Thunder Punch will take out offensive Moltres with minimal chip damage and do large damage to bulky ones, Moltres is perfectly capable of taking every other move Melmetal runs. Blaziken Volcanion cannot safely switch into Earthquake or Thunder Punch, but can threaten Melmetal with its super effective STAB or set up Substitute as Melmetal switches.

**Knock Off**: Melmetal is highly reliant on its item regardless of set, meaning Knock Off can be crippling to Melmetal. For instance, if it loses Protective Pads while there is a Rocky Helmet Pokemon or other contact punishers are still alive, Double Iron Bash becomes a risky move to click and Moltres becomes a much more intimidating switch in to Melmetal. It's even more crippling to Protect + Toxic Melmetal as the recovery Leftovers provides is crucial to the set. Notable Knock Off users include Tangrowth, Scizor, Zeraora and Nihilego. Talk about burns from Wisp and Scald as well, since those can also cut into its longevity.

**Faster Special Attackers**: While Melmetal's physical bulk is incredible, its special bulk is overall average, leaving it vulnerable to revenge killing by the likes of Moltres, Rotom-Heat, Primarina and Mega Manectric. It is also weak to some common coverage moves Pokemon from Alakazam, Mega Altaria and Celesteela, so these Pokemon can do in a pinch too. However, Protect+Toxic Melmetal can sometimes cause problems as it is bulky enough to survive most of these attacks, like Life Orb Alakazam's Focus Blast and Choice Specs Primarina's Hydro Pump, and retaliate in a pinch, so special attackers need to be careful if they run into that set.

**Buzzwole**: Defensive Buzzwole sets are able to flat out wall Melmetal aside from status, but Buzzwole's offensive variants can also take any one hit and retaliate with a Close Combat, with Life Orb Buzzwole's Close Combat standing out as one of the few physical moves able to OHKO Melmetal, while non Life Orb Buzzwole only need minimal chip to OHKO anyways. It's also faster than Melmetal, meaning Melmetal cannot rely on Double Iron Bash flinches to win. It needs to be wary of Thunder Wave for the same reasons as defensive sets, however.


[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Niadev, 282732]]
- Quality checked by: [[Pubo, 535121], [Arishem, 546157]]
- Grammar checked by: [[username1, userid1]]

Couldn't spot much else that needed to be changed this time around, nice work. 2/2 when implemented.
Implemented. After some discussion on Discord, we decided to make the Knock Off section into "Knock Off and Burn", and I changed the contents of it accordingly. In the teammates section of ProTox Melmetal, I opted to replace Blaziken with Rotom-Heat instead of Keldeo, as it's simply more relevant and honestly fits better into the context of that section than Blaziken did, given Nihilego also checks Rotom-Heat.

Also rejigged the order of hazard setters in pads melm's second paragraph to more reflect current meta, and replaced Celesteela with Salamence in the section on faster special attackers, given pretty much every Melmetal set here outspeeds SpDef Celesteela (the most common set). That bit was written when the only Celesteela worth running was AutoSteela, which simply isn't true anymore.
 
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