Monotype Melmetal (Steel)

[Rio Vidal]

Steel
========

Melmetal is a frightening wallbreaker on Steel teams thanks to its sky-high Attack stat and its ability in Iron Fist allowing it to be a fearsome wallbreaker. Its great natural bulk allows it to tank a variety of attacks, such as Garchomp's Earthquake, and then dish out massive damage. Iron Fist increases the power of its Double Iron Bash, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch, further improving its wallbreaking prowess. Superpower, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch all allow Melmetal to target various Pokemon that Double Iron Bash isn't as effective against. Even with all these great qualities, its poor Speed means it will usually need to be healthy to tank an attack and do damage, making it more vulnerable to burns and reducing its overall effectiveness. Its special bulk is quite poor, allowing many strong special attackers such as Hydreigon and Nidoking to easily take it out with their super effective STAB attacks. Additionally, Melmetal needs to be carefully added onto Steel teams, as, it is best in matchups that Steel already excels in. Further, between the defensive core and various other options to target weaker matchups, which space is already very limited on Steel teams.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Superpower / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 244 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Double Iron Bash is very powerful and can be used to fish for a flinch. Since Double Iron Bash strikes twice, it can take on many Pokemon with defensive abilities such as Mimikyu and Dragonite, as well as effectively hit Substitute users such as Kyurem. Ice Punch allows Melmetal to hit Flying- and Dragon-type Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Dragonite, and Garchomp. Earthquake allows it to hit Electric-, Poison-, and Steel-type Pokemon for super effective damage such as Alolan Raichu, Toxapex, and Aegislash. Superpower hits Steel-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and other Pokemon such as Rotom-W that can switch into its other attacks. Thunder Punch nails Water- and Flying-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Mantine, and Celesteela. 12 EVs in Speed allow Melmetal to outpace uninvested Toxapex. Melmetal is a powerful wallbreaker; therefore, it is best to bring it in safely to wallbreak. When Melmetal is in battle, most of the time it should attack with Double Iron Bash, unless one of its coverage moves will hit the foe or a predicted switch-in harder.

Magnezone can trap Steel-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Celesteela in Flying teams, allowing Melmetal to fairly easily click Double Iron Bash. The two also form a great wallbreaking core, as Magnezone can break physical walls for Melmetal such as Skarmory, and Melmetal can break past special walls for Magnezone such as Blissey. Aegislash, Celesteela, and Heatran form an immunity core that covers all of Melmetal's weaknesses, which gives it a solid backbone to fall back on. The immunity core can also wear down the opposing team, allowing Melmetal to break through its foes more easily late-game. Ferrothorn helps Melmetal by providing it with a Water resistance, entry hazard support in Spikes or Stealth Rock, and Leech Seed support. Ferrothorn can also break past Pokemon that wall Melmetal such as Swampert and Gastrodon. Excadrill provides an Electric immunity, entry hazard removal with Rapid Spin, and a way to take on Pokemon such as Rotom-W, which would otherwise wall Melmetal, thanks to Mold Breaker Earthquake. Excadrill can also help Melmetal break down shared checks such as Mandibuzz and Swampert with a Swords Dance-boosted attack. Bisharp can take care of Psychic- and Ghost-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Victini and Blacephalon with Sucker Punch. It can also remove items such as Toxapex's Black Sludge, allowing Melmetal to break through foes with more ease.

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

Steel
--------
Melmetal can use Assault Vest to tank strong special attacks such as Choice Specs Hydreigon's Fire Blast while still being able to OHKO it with Superpower. However, Melmetal is noticeably weaker without a Choice Band and Double Iron Bash becomes a roll to OHKO Hydreigon. Melmetal can use Facade over Superpower or Thunder Punch to still hit with significant power while burnt; however, it generally prefers the extra coverage those two moves bring to take on Ferrothorn and Mantine, respectively.

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

Steel
--------
**Super Effective Special Attacks**: Special super effective attacks such as Heatran's Magma Storm, Nidoking's Earth Power, and Thundurus-T's Focus Blast are capable of OHKOing Melmetal. Most of Melmetal's bulk comes from its Defense stat, so it can be worn down by strong special attacks fairly quickly; however, these foes do need to be careful, as Double Iron Bash or a coverage move can do a good chunk of damage to them.

**Steel-resistant Pokemon**: Since Melmetal will mainly be clicking Double Iron Bash, Pokemon that resist Steel and can tank it such as Ferrothorn, Celesteela, and Skarmory are bothersome; however, they do need to be careful of Melmetal's coverage moves such as Superpower and Thunder Punch.

**Burn**: Pokemon capable of inflicting Melmetal with a burn such as Galarian Corsola with Will-O-Wisp and Toxapex with Scald can cripple it, as its only value comes from its monumental Attack stat.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Steel analysis by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Quality checked by: [[Havens, 391540], [Harpp, 320110], [Conflux, 408641]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Milak, 262594], [Finland, 517429]]

 

[Havens]

[OVERVIEW]

Steel
========

- Melmetal is a fantastic wallbreaker on Steel teams, due to its sky-high attack Attack stat, it becomes a fearsome wallbreaker. Its great natural bulk allows it to tank a variety of attacks, then dish out massive damage. (specify certain attacks) Its ability Iron Fist allows its punching moves such as Double Iron Bash, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch to have an extra bit of power, only further improving its wallbreaking prowess. Superpower, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch all allow Melmetal to target various Pokemon that Double Iron Bash isn't as effective against.
- Even with all these great qualities using Melmetal comes with a few downsides, its poor Speed means it will usually need to tank an attack to do damage and as such also becomes more vulnerable to being burnt, reducing its overall effectiveness.
- Additionally, Melmetal needs to be carefully added onto Steel teams, as between the defensive core, and various other options to target different matchups, it makes it difficult to include Melmetal on the team. This is because Melmetal is useful in matchups that Steel already excels in, making it overall less valuable from the jump.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Superpower / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 244 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
- Melmetal is a powerful wallbreaker, it is best to bring in Melmetal safely to wallbreak. When Melmetal is in battle most of the time it should attack with Double Iron Bash, unless one of its coverage moves will hit a target, predicted switch-in, or type that resists Steel better. (reads more as a usage tip than what should be in the moves overview; I'd move it to be the first sentence there)
- Double Iron Bash is Melmetal's most powerful and used attack, against slower targets it can be used to not only do damage but to also fish for a flinch.
- Ice Punch allows it to hit Flying- and Dragon-type Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Dragonite, and Garchomp.
- Earthquake allows it to hit Electric-, Poison-, and Steel-type Pokemon for supereffective damage such as Alolan Raichu, Toxapex, and Aegislash.
- Superpower allows it to hit Steel-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and other Pokemon such as Rotom-W that can switch into its other attacks.
- Thunder Punch allows Melmetal to nail Water- and Flying-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Mantine, and Celesteela.
- 252 Maxiumum Attack investment and an Adamant nature alongside Choice Band allows Melmetal to hit as hard as possible, while 12 Speed is used to allow it to outpace uninvested Toxapex, and the rest is dumped into HP to maximize its overall bulk.

- Magnezone can trap Steel-type Pokemon for Melmetal in different matchups such as Flying, where it can trap Celesteela, then allowing Melmetal to fairly easily click Double Iron Bash or similarly Aegislash in the Ghost matchup. The two also form a great wallbreaking core as Magnezone can break physical walls for Melmetal such as Skarmory and Melmetal can break past special walls for Magnezone such as Blissey.
- Aegislash, Celesteela, and Heatran form an immunity core that covers all of the types weaknesses, this which gives Melmetal a solid backbone to fall back on. The immunity core can also wear down the opposing team allowing Melmetal to break through them better later in the game.
- Ferrothorn helps Melmetal by providing it with Water resistance, hazard support in Spikes or Stealth Rock, and Leech Seed support. Ferrothorn can also break past Pokemon that wall Melmetal such as Swampert.
- Excadrill provides immunity to Electric attacks, provides hazard removal with Rapid Spin, and can take on Pokemon such as Rotom-W thanks to its Mold Breaker Earthquake, which would otherwise wall Melmetal. Excadrill can also break down shared checks with Melmetal, by weakening them with a Swords Dance boosted attack.
- Bisharp can take care of Psychic- and Ghost-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Victini and Blacephalon with Sucker Punch. It can also remove items from Pokemon such as Toxapex's Black Sludge, allowing Melmetal to break through foes with more ease.

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

Steel
--------
Facade can be used over Superpower or Thunder Punch allowing Melmetal to still hit with significant power while burnt, however, it generally prefers the extra coverage those two moves bring allowing it to take on Ferrothorn and Mantine respectively.

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

Steel
--------
**Strong Special Attackers**: Most of Melmetal's bulk is in its physical defense, so it can be worn down by strong special attacks fairly quickly, however they do need to be careful, as Double Iron Bash can do a good chunk of damage to them.

**Supereffective Attacks**: Supereffective attacks especially on the special attacking side are capable of OHKO'ing Melmetal such as Choice Specs Volcarona's Fire Blast, Nidoking's Earth Power, and Thundurus-T's Focus Blast.

**Steel-resistant Pokemon**: Since Melmetal will mainly be clicking Double Iron Bash, Pokemon that resist Steel-type attacks such as Ferrothorn and Celesteela will be able to tank the attack, however, they do need to be careful of Melmetal's coverage such as Superpower and Thunder Punch respectively.

**Pokemon capable of burning Melmetal Burn Status**: Pokemon capable of inflicted inflicting Melmetal with a burn such as Galarian Corsola's Will-O-Wisp or Toxapex's Scald can cripple Melmetal, as its only value comes from its monumental attack Attack stat.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Steel analysis by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Quality checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>], [<username2>, <userid2>]]
- Grammar checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>]]

For the purposes of just the initial check or two, I advise that you space out every sentence as its own bullet for clarity. Otherwise, nice work. QC 1/3

 

[Harpp]

[OVERVIEW]

Steel
========

- Melmetal is a fantastic wallbreaker on Steel teams, due to its sky-high Attack stat, it becomes a fearsome wallbreaker. Its great natural bulk allows it to tank a variety of attacks such as Garchomp's Earthquake, then dish out massive damage. Its ability Iron Fist allows its punching moves such as Double Iron Bash, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch to have an extra bit of power, only further improving its wallbreaking prowess. Superpower, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch all allow Melmetal to target various Pokemon that Double Iron Bash isn't as effective against. [In the first line, state together what makes Melmetal truly a fearsome wallbreaker, its high attack stat, great physical bulk combined with its ability iron fist and punching moves like double iron bash, thunder punch and Ice punch make it a threat to watch out for.] Currently what you have is correct but it I would like to see the reason why it is good in the first sentence, later on you may add individual points.
- Even with all these great qualities using Melmetal comes with a few downsides, its poor Speed means it will usually need to tank an attack to do damage and as such also becomes more vulnerable to being burnt, reducing its overall effectiveness. [Remove the part where you say it is vulnerable to burn coz almost every physical attacker has the same case and it is a general problem that physical attackers have], when talking about its speed you can add how it does not remain healthy or wear down quickly since it has to take an attack first to dish out in return.
- Additionally, Melmetal needs to be carefully added onto Steel teams, as between the defensive core, and various other options to target different matchups, it makes it difficult to include Melmetal on the team. This is because Melmetal is useful in matchups that Steel already excels in, making it overall less valuable from the jump.
- Add a point regarding its low sp.def which makes it vulnerable to special attackers as they can dish out massive damage, give notable examples.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Superpower / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 244 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
- Double Iron Bash is Melmetal's most powerful and used attack, against slower targets it can be used to not only do damage but to also fish for a flinch. Talk about it dealing with Pokemon like multiscale Dragonite, Mimikyu and sub users like Kyurem.
- Ice Punch allows it to hit Flying- and Dragon-type Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Dragonite, and Garchomp.
- Earthquake allows it to hit Electric-, Poison-, and Steel-type Pokemon for supereffective damage such as Alolan Raichu, Toxapex, and Aegislash.
- Superpower allows it to hit Steel-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and other Pokemon such as Rotom-W that can switch into its other attacks.
- Thunder Punch allows Melmetal to nail Water- and Flying-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Mantine, and Celesteela.
- Maximum Attack investment and an Adamant nature alongside Choice Band allows Melmetal to hit as hard as possible, while 12 Speed is used to allow it to outpace uninvested Toxapex, and the rest is dumped into HP to maximize its overall bulk.
- Melmetal is a powerful wallbreaker, it is best to bring in Melmetal safely to wallbreak. When Melmetal is in battle most of the time it should attack with Double Iron Bash, unless one of its coverage moves will hit a target, predicted switch-in, or type that resists Steel better.

- Magnezone can trap Steel-type Pokemon for Melmetal in different matchups such as Flying, where it can trap Celesteela, then allowing Melmetal to fairly easily click Double Iron Bash or similarly Aegislash in the Ghost matchup. The two also form a great wallbreaking core as Magnezone can break physical walls for Melmetal such as Skarmory and Melmetal can break past special walls for Magnezone such as Blissey. [Sadly, Aegislash cannot be trapped by Magnet Pull due to its ghost typing, so remove that bit please]
- Aegislash, Celesteela, and Heatran form an immunity core that covers all of the types weaknesses, which gives Melmetal a solid backbone to fall back on. The immunity core can also wear down the opposing team allowing Melmetal to break through them better later in the game.
- Ferrothorn helps Melmetal by providing it with Water resistance, hazard support in Spikes or Stealth Rock, and Leech Seed support. Ferrothorn can also break past Pokemon that wall Melmetal such as Swampert. and Gastrodon
- Excadrill provides immunity to Electric attacks, provides hazard removal with Rapid Spin, and can take on Pokemon such as Rotom-W thanks to its Mold Breaker Earthquake, which would otherwise wall Melmetal. Excadrill can also break down shared checks with Melmetal, by weakening them with a Swords Dance boosted attack. [examples of weakening shared checks]
- Bisharp can take care of Psychic- and Ghost-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Victini and Blacephalon with Sucker Punch. It can also remove items from Pokemon such as Toxapex's Black Sludge, allowing Melmetal to break through foes with more ease.

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

Steel
--------
Facade can be used over Superpower or Thunder Punch allowing Melmetal to still hit with significant power while burnt, however, it generally prefers the extra coverage those two moves bring allowing it to take on Ferrothorn and Mantine respectively.

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

Steel
--------
**Strong Special Attackers**: Most of Melmetal's bulk is in its physical defense, so it can be worn down by strong special attacks fairly quickly, however they do need to be careful, as Double Iron Bash can do a good chunk of damage to them.

**Supereffective Attacks**: Supereffective attacks especially on the special attacking side are capable of OHKO'ing Melmetal such as Choice Specs Volcarona's Fire Blast, Nidoking's Earth Power, and Thundurus-T's Focus Blast.

**Steel-resistant Pokemon**: Since Melmetal will mainly be clicking Double Iron Bash, Pokemon that resist Steel-type attacks such as Ferrothorn and Celesteela will be able to tank the attack, however, they do need to be careful of Melmetal's coverage such as Superpower and Thunder Punch respectively. Add Skarmory here since it is more prominent now.

**Burn Status**: Pokemon capable of inflicting Melmetal with a burn such as Galarian Corsola's Will-O-Wisp or Toxapex's Scald can cripple Melmetal, as its only value comes from its monumental Attack stat.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Steel analysis by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Quality checked by: [[Havens, 391540], [Harpp, 320110], [<username3>, <userid3>]]
- Grammar checked by: [[<username1>, <userid1>], [<username2>, <userid2>]]

QC 2/3 Good work!

 

[Conflux]

I'd mention Assault Vest in Other Options as it can surprise opponents by living strong super effective hits such as Fire Blast from Specs Hydreigon and OHKOs it back with Double Iron Bash. You could point out that the power gained from Choice Band is too nice to give up and so AV is inferior.

Melmetal lives nearly any physical super effective hit so you could probably merge the first two in Checks & Counters or something.

Good work! QC 3/3

 

[Milak]

Add (AC=Add comma, ASC=Add semicolon, AH=Add hyphen)
Remove (RC=Remove comma)
GP 1/2

Mel C > Mel B

[OVERVIEW]

Steel
========

Melmetal is a fantastic wallbreaker on Steel teams,(RC) due thanks to its sky-high Attack stat and its ability in Iron Fist allows ,(AC) allowing it to become a fearsome wallbreaker. Its great natural bulk allows it to tank a variety of attacks such as Garchomp's Earthquake,(RC) and then dish out massive damage. Its ability Iron Fist allows increases the power of its punching moves such as Double Iron Bash, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch to have an extra bit of power, only ,(AC) further improving its wallbreaking prowess. Superpower, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch all allow Melmetal to target various Pokemon that Double Iron Bash isn't as effective against. Even with all these great qualities, using Melmetal comes with a few downsides, its poor Speed means it will usually need to be healthy to tank an attack to and do damage, and as such also becomes making it more vulnerable to being burnt, reducing burns and reducing its overall effectiveness. Additionally, Melmetal needs to be carefully added onto Steel teams, as,(AC) between the defensive core,(RC) and various other options to target different matchups, it makes it difficult to include Melmetal struggles to find a spot on the team. This is because Melmetal is useful in matchups that Steel already excels in, making it overall less valuable from the jump. Melmetal's special bulk is quite poor,(AC) allowing many strong special attackers such as Hydreigon and Nidoking to easily take it out with their super effective and STAB attacks.

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Superpower / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 244 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Double Iron Bash is Melmetal's most powerful and used attack,(RC) against slower targets,(AC) and it also can be used to not only do damage but to also fish for a flinch. Since Double Iron Bash strikes twice,(AC) it can take on many Pokemon with defensive abilities such as Mimikyu and Dragonite, as well as being able to effectively hit Substitute users such as Kyurem. Ice Punch allows it to hit Flying- and Dragon-type Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Dragonite, and Garchomp. Earthquake allows it to hit Electric-, Poison-, and Steel-type Pokemon for supereffective super effective damage such as Alolan Raichu, Toxapex, and Aegislash. Superpower allows it to hit Steel-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and other Pokemon such as Rotom-W that can switch into its other attacks. Thunder Punch allows Melmetal to nail Water- and Flying-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Mantine, and Celesteela. Maximum Attack investment and an Adamant nature alongside Choice Band allows Melmetal to hit as hard as possible, while the 12 EVs in Speed is used to allow it to outpace uninvested Toxapex, and the rest is dumped into HP to maximize its overall bulk. Melmetal is a powerful wallbreaker,(RC) therefore;(ASC) it is best to bring it in Melmetal safely to wallbreak. When Melmetal is in battle,(AC) most of the time it should attack with Double Iron Bash, unless one of its coverage moves will hit a target, a predicted switch-in, or type that resists Steel better a Steel-resistant Pokemon harder.

Magnezone can trap Steel-type Pokemon for Melmetal in different matchups such as Flying, where it can trap Celesteela in Flying teams, then allowing Melmetal to fairly easily click Double Iron Bash. The two also form a great wallbreaking core,(AC) as Magnezone can break physical walls for Melmetal such as Skarmory,(AC) and Melmetal can break past special walls for Magnezone such as Blissey. Aegislash, Celesteela, and Heatran form an immunity core that covers all of the types Melmetal's weaknesses, which gives Melmetal it a solid backbone to fall back on. The immunity core can also wear down the opposing team,(AC) allowing Melmetal to break through them better later in the game its foes more easily late-game. Ferrothorn helps Melmetal by providing it with a Water resistance, entry hazard support in Spikes or Stealth Rock, and Leech Seed support. Ferrothorn can also break past Pokemon that wall Melmetal such as Swampert and Gastrodon. Excadrill provides an Electric immunity to Electric attacks, provides ,(AC) entry hazard removal with Rapid Spin, and it can take on Pokemon such as Rotom-W,(AC) which would otherwise wall Melmetal,(AC) thanks to its Mold Breaker Earthquake,(RC) which would otherwise wall Melmetal. Excadrill can also help Melmetal break down shared checks such as Mandibuzz and Swampert with Melmetal, by weakening them with a Swords Dance-boosted(AH) attack. Bisharp can take care of Psychic- and Ghost-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Victini and Blacephalon with Sucker Punch. It can also remove items from Pokemon such as Toxapex's Black Sludge, allowing Melmetal to break through foes with more ease.

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

Steel
--------
Assault Vest can be used on Melmetal allowing to allow it to tank strong special attacks such as Choice Specs Hydreigon's Fire Blast,(RC) while still being making it able to OHKO it with Superpower. However, Melmetal is noticeably weaker without a Choice Band such as not being able to guareentee an and will not have a guarantee OHKO on Hydreigon with Double Iron Bash, which is now a roll. Facade can be used over Superpower or Thunder Punch allowing Melmetal to still hit with significant power while burnt,(RC) ;(ASC) however, it generally prefers the extra coverage those two moves bring allowing it to take on Ferrothorn and Mantine,(AC) respectively.

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

Steel
--------
**Super Effective Special Attacks**: Special super effective attacks such as Heatran's Magma Storm, Nidoking's Earth Power, and Thundurus-T's Focus Blast are capable of OHKO'ing OHKOing Melmetal such as Heatran's Magma Storm, Nidoking's Earth Power, and Thundurus-T's Focus Blast. Most of Melmetal's bulk is in its physical defense comes from its Defense stat, so it can be worn down by strong special attacks fairly quickly,(RC) ;(ASC) however they ,(AC) these foes do need to be careful, as Double Iron Bash can do a good chunk of damage to them.

**Steel-resistant Pokemon**: Since Melmetal will mainly be clicking Double Iron Bash, Pokemon that resist Steel-type attacks such as Celesteela Ferrothorn, Ferrothorn Celesteela, and Skarmory will be able to tank the attack,(RC) ;(ASC) however, they do need to be careful of Melmetal's coverage moves such as Superpower and Thunder Punch,(AC) respectively.

**Burn Status**: Pokemon capable of inflicting Melmetal with a burn such as Galarian Corsola's Will-O-Wisp or with Will-O-Wisp and Toxapex's with Scald can cripple Melmetal, as its only value comes from its monumental Attack stat.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Steel analysis by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Quality checked by: [[Havens, 391540], [Harpp, 320110], [Conflux, 408641]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Milak, 262594], [<username2>, <userid2>]]

 

[Adeleine]

Add/Fix Remove Comment
(AC)/(RC): Add/Remove Comment

Hide

​

Steel
========

Melmetal is a fantastic frightening (feels a bit conflicting with "usually outcompeted" idea later) wallbreaker on Steel teams thanks to its sky-high Attack stat and its ability in Iron Fist (RC) allowing it to become a fearsome wallbreaker. Its great natural bulk allows it to tank a variety of attacks, (AC) such as Garchomp's Earthquake, and then dish out massive damage. Its ability Iron Fist increases the power of its punching moves such as Double Iron Bash, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch to, further improving its wallbreaking prowess. Superpower, Ice Punch, and Thunder Punch all allow Melmetal to target various Pokemon that Double Iron Bash isn't as effective against. Even with all these great qualities, its poor Speed means it will usually need to be healthy to tank an attack and do damage, making it more vulnerable to burns and reducing its overall effectiveness. Its special bulk is quite poor, allowing many strong special attackers such as Hydreigon and Nidoking to easily take it out with their super effective STAB attacks. Additionally, Melmetal needs to be carefully added onto Steel teams, as, it is best in matchups that Steel already excels in. Further, between the defensive core (RC) and various other options to target different weaker matchups, it struggles to find a spot on the team. This is because Melmetal is useful in matchups that Steel already excels in, making it overall less valuable from the jump. Melmetal's special bulk is quite poor, allowing many strong special attackers such as Hydreigon and Nidoking to easily take it out with their super effective and STAB attacks. space is limited on Steel teams. (you could also reorder this section, but limited poor speed flaw -> broad outcompeted flaw -> limited poor special bulk flaw felt incongruous)

[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Double Iron Bash
move 2: Ice Punch
move 3: Earthquake
move 4: Superpower / Thunder Punch
item: Choice Band
ability: Iron Fist
nature: Adamant
evs: 244 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Double Iron Bash is Melmetal's most powerful and used attack against slower targets, and it also very powerful and can be used to fish for a flinch. Since Double Iron Bash strikes twice, it can take on many Pokemon with defensive abilities such as Mimikyu and Dragonite, as well as being able to effectively hit Substitute users such as Kyurem. Ice Punch allows it Melmetal to hit Flying- and Dragon-type Pokemon such as Landorus-T, Dragonite, and Garchomp. Earthquake allows it to hit Electric-, Poison-, and Steel-type Pokemon for super effective damage such as Alolan Raichu, Toxapex, and Aegislash. Superpower allows it to hits Steel-type Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and other Pokemon such as Rotom-W that can switch into its other attacks. Thunder Punch allows Melmetal to nails Water- and Flying-type Pokemon such as Slowbro, Mantine, and Celesteela. Maximum Attack investment and an Adamant nature alongside Choice Band allows Melmetal to hit as hard as possible, while the 12 EVs in Speed allow it Melmetal to outpace uninvested Toxapex, and the rest is dumped into HP to maximize its overall bulk. Melmetal is a powerful wallbreaker; therefore, (moved semicolon and added comma) it is best to bring it in safely to wallbreak. When Melmetal is in battle, most of the time it should attack with Double Iron Bash, unless one of its coverage moves will hit a target, the foe or a predicted switch-in, or a Steel-resistant Pokemon harder.

Magnezone can trap Steel-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Celesteela in Flying teams, then allowing Melmetal to fairly easily click Double Iron Bash. The two also form a great wallbreaking core, as Magnezone can break physical walls for Melmetal such as Skarmory, and Melmetal can break past special walls for Magnezone such as Blissey. Aegislash, Celesteela, and Heatran form an immunity core that covers all of Melmetal's weaknesses, which gives it a solid backbone to fall back on. The immunity core can also wear down the opposing team, allowing Melmetal to break through its foes more easily late-game. Ferrothorn helps Melmetal by providing it with a Water resistance, entry hazard support in Spikes or Stealth Rock, and Leech Seed support. Ferrothorn can also break past Pokemon that wall Melmetal such as Swampert and Gastrodon. Excadrill provides an Electric immunity, entry hazard removal with Rapid Spin, and it can a way to take on Pokemon such as Rotom-W, which would otherwise wall Melmetal, thanks to Mold Breaker Earthquake. Excadrill can also help Melmetal break down shared checks such as Mandibuzz and Swampert with a Swords Dance-boosted attack. Bisharp can take care of Psychic- and Ghost-type Pokemon for Melmetal such as Victini and Blacephalon with Sucker Punch. It can also remove items such as Toxapex's Black Sludge, allowing Melmetal to break through foes with more ease.

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

Steel
--------
Assault Vest can be used on Melmetal to allow it Melmetal can use Assault Vest to tank strong special attacks such as Choice Specs Hydreigon's Fire Blast while still making it being able to OHKO it with Superpower. However, Melmetal is noticeably weaker without a Choice Band and will not have a guaranteed OHKO on Hydreigon with Double Iron Bash, which is now a roll. Facade can be used Double Iron Bash becomes a roll to OHKO Hydreigon. Melmetal can use Facade over Superpower or Thunder Punch to still hit with significant power while burnt; however, it generally prefers the extra coverage those two moves bring to take on Ferrothorn and Mantine, respectively.

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

Steel
--------
**Super Effective Special Attacks**: Special super effective attacks such as Heatran's Magma Storm, Nidoking's Earth Power, and Thundurus-T's Focus Blast are capable of OHKOing Melmetal. Most of Melmetal's bulk comes from its Defense stat, so it can be worn down by strong special attacks fairly quickly; however, these foes do need to be careful, as Double Iron Bash or a coverage move (bc tran. You could also do like "many of these foes do need...") can do a good chunk of damage to them.

**Steel-resistant Pokemon**: Since Melmetal will mainly be clicking Double Iron Bash, Pokemon that resist Steel-type attacks Steel and can tank it such as Ferrothorn, Celesteela, and Skarmory will be able to tank the attack are bothersome; however, they do need to be careful of Melmetal's coverage moves such as Superpower and Thunder Punch, respectively.

**Burn Status**: Pokemon capable of inflicting Melmetal with a burn such as Galarian Corsola with Will-O-Wisp and Toxapex with Scald can cripple Melmetal it, as its only value comes from its monumental Attack stat.

[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Steel analysis by: [[maroon, 305839]]
- Quality checked by: [[Havens, 391540], [Harpp, 320110], [Conflux, 408641]]
- Grammar checked by: [[Milak, 262594], [Finland, 517429]]

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