Mega Heracross (Revamp) [QC 3/3] [GP 2/2]

[urban]

QC: p2, bludz, Nedor

GP: GatoDelFuego, The Dutch Plumberjack

[OVERVIEW]
Thanks to its monstrous Attack stat backed by two high-Base Power STAB attacks, Mega Heracross is one of the most threatening wallbreakers in the tier. Its wallbreaking power is further enhanced by excellent and powerful coverage options in Rock Blast and Bullet Seed. Though Mega Heracross should primarily be used for its immense power and coverage, it also possesses great bulk and a few useful resistances. These traits give Mega Heracross a decent amount of staying power against slower builds in particular.

However, Mega Heracross's bulk only goes so far, especially when one considers its mediocre Speed and four common weaknesses. Likewise, Mega Heracross is rather easy to revenge kill, especially for more offensively oriented teams. Furthermore, checks such as Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Talonflame are as common as ever, meaning that Mega Heracross sometimes struggles in the current metagame. That being said, Mega Heracross is great at taking advantage of some prominent Pokemon such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Mega Lopunny, making it an excellent choice if one is looking for a bulky wallbreaker with insane power.

[SET]
name: Bulky Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Pin Missile
move 3: Rock Blast
move 4: Substitute / Swords Dance
item: Heracronite
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 136 Atk / 132 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Close Combat is Mega Heracross's strongest Fighting-type STAB attack and severely dents anything that doesn't resist it. Pin Missile is Mega Heracross's secondary STAB move, which hits an impressive 125 Base Power thanks to Skill Link and nets at least neutral damage on Psychic-types that resist Close Combat. Rock Blast also benefits from Skill Link and achieves great coverage alongside Mega Heracross's STAB moves, hitting Flying-types like Talonflame and Tornadus-T super effectively and a few other targets for neutral damage. Substitute is preferred in the last slot to ease prediction and make use of the numerous switches Mega Heracross forces. A second possibility for the final slot is Swords Dance, as it boosts Mega Heracross's power to ridiculous levels while also mitigating the effects of Landorus-T's Intimidate. Bullet Seed is yet a third option whose primary use is to OHKO Azumarill and Quagsire; however, these are 2HKOed by Mega Heracross's Rock Blast and STAB attacks, respectively, making Bullet Seed a generally inferior option.

Set Details
========

Heracronite is the item of choice for the substantial boost in power and bulk it provides. Moxie is the preferred ability before Mega Evolving to nab an Attack boost against a weakened foe or predicted sacrifice, though it can be somewhat unreliable, as Pin Missile, Rock Blast, and Bullet Seed are all rather weak without the guaranteed five hits from Skill Link. The given EV spread has enough Speed investment to outpace uninvested Landorus-T after Mega Evolving. The Attack EVs, paired with an Adamant nature, ensure a 2HKO on standard Magic Guard Clefable with Rock Blast most of the time. The remaining EVs are placed into HP to make use of Mega Heracross's great bulk, allowing it to takes hits from threats such as Bisharp, Mega Lopunny, and Weavile much better.

If speed is not a concern, some EVs may be removed from Speed to reach a few other benchmarks. Specifically, 92 Speed EVs allows Mega Heracross to outpace uninvested Rotom-W, while 56 speed EVs helps it outpace Adamant Azumarill. Any EVs removed from Speed should be placed into Defense, as Mega Heracross's typing makes it more suited to tanking physical hits. A more offensive spread of 252 Atk / 252 Spe with a Jolly nature is an option as well, though it should be noted that Mega Heracross will still be outsped by most offensive threats.

Usage Tips
========

Mega Heracross is best utilized as an early- or mid-game wallbreaker thanks to its impressive power and substantial bulk. In general, you want to get Mega Heracross on the field as often as possible to give it the most wallbreaking opportunities for your late-game cleaner or sweeper. You should bring Mega Heracross in against foes such Choice Scarf Tyranitar or Choice Specs Keldeo that are Choice locked into resisted attacks or defensive Pokemon that cannot do much to it once it is behind a Substitute, such as Amoonguss or Mega Sableye. A slow Volt Switch or U-turn or a predicted double switch are also effective means of getting Mega Heracross onto the field.

Once Mega Heracross is in battle, it is recommended to set up a Substitute only if you need to ease prediction against threats like Talonflame or Tornadus-T. If your opponent lacks threats such as these, firing off either of Mega Heracross's high-powered STAB attacks is generally the better strategy. More specifically, you should be wary of pointlessly wasting Mega Heracross's HP if your opponent lacks switch-ins to either of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks. Lastly, before Mega Evolving, it is possible to net an Attack boost with Moxie, though this strategy is not particularly reliable due the relatively low power of Heracross's moves if Skill Link is not active. On a similar note, forgoing Mega Evolution to keep a bit of extra Speed might prove useful in some scenarios, as Heracross is able to Speed tie threats such as Adamant Bisharp at worst before Mega Evolving.

Team Options
========

Thundurus is excellent partner for Mega Heracross, as it KOes Flying-types such as Talonflame, Tornadus T, and Landorus-T. Thundurus also provides speed control via Prankster Thunder Wave and can remove the items of defensive threats such as Clefable. Rotom-W and Raikou are likewise great partners for their ability to beat Flying-types with the added benefit of being able to bring Mega Heracross in safely with Volt Switch. Similarly, other pivots such as Landorus-T and Jirachi make solid partners as well. Mega Heracross also appreciates Pursuit support, with Assault Vest Metagross in particular being a good partner for its ability to beat and/or trap Latios, Latias, Clefable, and Mega Gardevoir. Tyranitar also deserves a mention for its reliability in trapping even bulky Psychic-types while also beating Talonflame. Glare Serperior is a fantastic offensive partner that can lure in and paralyze threats such as Heatran and Tornadus-T for Mega Heracross. Serperior also does well against certain checks such as Azumarill and Clefable. Finally, bulky Steel-type hazard setters and status users such as Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn are excellent partners because of their defensive synergy with Mega Heracross and their ability to enhance Mega Heracross's wallbreaking abilities with entry hazards and/or status.

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

A Choice Scarf set with Moxie is a decent option that outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame while gaining more power with each KO. However, neither of Heracross's STAB moves are particularly spammable, and thus the set is normally outclassed by Choice Scarf Landorus-T or Choice Scarf Terrakion. Another option is a Guts set using Toxic Orb with Swords Dance for extreme wallbreaking power, but regular Heracross lacks the bulk of its Mega Evolution and is worn down rather easily.

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

**Bulky Pokemon That Resist Mega Heracross's STAB Moves**: Physically defensive variants of Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Clefable all avoid being 2HKOed by Mega Heracross. Landorus-T is primarily a check due to Intimidate and its ability to go one-for-one against Mega Heracross in many scenarios. It also threatens to badly poison Mega Heracross with Toxic or pivot with U-turn into something that can beat Mega Heracross. Gliscor can net a 2HKO on Mega Heracross with an unboosted Acrobatics or attempt to stall out Mega Heracross with a combination of Toxic and Roost. Physically defensive Clefable is perhaps the best check to Mega Heracross, as it avoids the 2HKO from Rock Blast and 2HKOes Mega Heracross with Moonblast in return.

**Fast Revenge Killers**: Numerous common revenge killers such as Mega Alakazam, Mega Manectric, and Life Orb Tornadus-T can come in after Mega Heracross has gotten a KO and retaliate with a super effective move.

**Flying-types**: Tornadus-T, Talonflame, and Mega Pinsir can switch into Mega Heracross's STAB moves and KO with their own Flying-type STAB attack. Skarmory can switch into any move that is not Close Combat, tank a Close Combat, and then KO with Brave Bird or Counter.

**Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Heatran, Mega Charizard Y, and Mega Charizard X are able to stomach one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and OHKO in return with Fire-type STAB moves.

**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types are typically fast enough to outpace Mega Heracross and revenge kill it after it has taken out another Pokemon. However, most of them, such as Latios, Alakazam, and Starmie, have low physical bulk, so they must be wary of switching into Mega Heracross.

**Fairy-types**: Fairies such as Azumarill and Mega Gardevoir resist one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and can either KO it or deal a huge amount of damage in return.

 

[p2]

overview is fine but elaborate on a couple of meta trends relating to weaknesses + strengths (stuff like talonflame and torn-t are very common on the other hand there's a lot of scarftars for hera to take advantage of)

set needs to be in this format:
name: Bulky Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Pin Missile
move 3: Rock Blast
move 4: Substitute / Bullet Seed / Swords Dance
item: Heracronite
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant
evs: 248 HP / 84 Atk / 76 Def / 100 Spe

moves is fine

in set details, mention that going with 252 / 252 jolly ensures you outspeed loom + bish since slower variants are more vulnerable to spore or getting flinched to death because fuck iron head. also speed investment should be put to 92 speed to outspeed 0 speed rotom-w because of rules on speed creep. im also leaning more towards guts over moxie since hera isn't dead weight if it catches a stun spore off amoonguss / tang or some random wisp / scald burn

team options is fine

oo is fine

for c&c:

fire, psychic, and fairy types all need to be split up and i would also add a section for general faster revenge killers like zam / talon / torn / zards etc. and under will-o-wisp, give sableye a little mention in that it can hold off on mega evolving for prankster wisp, but should watch out for giving hera a potential guts boost


nice stuff 1/3

 

[urban]

in set details, mention that going with 252 / 252 jolly ensures you outspeed loom + bish since slower variants are more vulnerable to spore or getting flinched to death because fuck iron head. also speed investment should be put to 92 speed to outspeed 0 speed rotom-w because of rules on speed creep. im also leaning more towards guts over moxie since hera isn't dead weight if it catches a stun spore off amoonguss / tang or some random wisp / scald burn

The reason I chose Moxie over Guts is because the power difference really only comes into play if Mega Heracross gets burned, which you want to avoid at all costs. If you get poisoned or paralyzed, the extra bulk in mega forme seems way more useful to me than the slight boost in power.

For reference:
84+ Atk Guts Heracross Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Keldeo: 300-354 (92.8 - 109.5%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO
84+ Atk Mega Heracross Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Keldeo: 279-328 (86.3 - 101.5%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO

I'll update everything else though.

 

[Punchshroom]

I don't really know why you choose to forgo the jump point granted by 96 Atk EVs. You could easily shift the EVs from Defense to achieve this while still taking the exact same amount from Latios's Psyshock.

84+ Atk Mega Heracross Rock Blast (5 hits) vs. 252 HP / 172 Def Clefable: 190-225 (48.2 - 57.1%) -- approx. 21.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
96+ Atk Mega Heracross Rock Blast (5 hits) vs. 252 HP / 172 Def Clefable: 195-230 (49.4 - 58.3%) -- approx. 61.7% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 SpA Life Orb Latios Psyshock vs. 248 HP / 84 Def Mega Heracross: 283-335 (77.9 - 92.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Life Orb Latios Psyshock vs. 248 HP / 72 Def Mega Heracross: 283-335 (77.9 - 92.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Also Volcanion would be a new target that Jolly MHera would like to outspeed.

 

[Agent Gibbs]

In this case, the jump point isn't all that important since Mega Heracross's Atk stat is so ridiculously high. The extra 4 points in Atk represent a 0.85% increase to Atk, while the 3 extra points in Def represent a 1.06% increase to Def, so it's actually slightly more efficient to leave those points in Def. It's all pretty arbitrary anyway, though. Personally, I'd prefer some more concrete benchmarks myself. For example, having just 80 Atk EVs ensures that Mega Heracross's Close Combat will always 2HKO the standard 248/16+ Bulky Mega Scizor, and it will always OHKO at +2. Then you can move those remaining EVs to Def or something.

80+ Atk Mega Heracross Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 16+ Def Mega Scizor: 172-204 (50.1 - 59.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 80+ Atk Mega Heracross Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 16+ Def Mega Scizor: 343-405 (100 - 118%) -- guaranteed OHKO

You know, something like that.

 

[Punchshroom]

In this case, the jump point isn't all that important since Mega Heracross's Atk stat is so ridiculously high. The extra 4 points in Atk represent a 0.85% increase to Atk, while the 3 extra points in Def represent a 1.06% increase to Def, so it's actually slightly more efficient to leave those points in Def. It's all pretty arbitrary anyway, though. Personally, I'd prefer some more concrete benchmarks myself.

I mean in a meta, actual results matter more than efficiency, so I'm not sure what this is about anyway; you yourself said this is arbitrary. Does it really matter if the Def investment is "more efficient" than the Atk investment if the extra bulk is less relevant than the extra power? The Latios calc showed how the Defense EVs doesn't matter at all.

For example, having just 80 Atk EVs ensures that Mega Heracross's Close Combat will always 2HKO the standard 248/16+ Bulky Mega Scizor, and it will always OHKO at +2. Then you can move those remaining EVs to Def or something.

80+ Atk Mega Heracross Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 16+ Def Mega Scizor: 172-204 (50.1 - 59.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 80+ Atk Mega Heracross Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 16+ Def Mega Scizor: 343-405 (100 - 118%) -- guaranteed OHKO

You know, something like that.

This calc shows why Adamant Mega Heracross shouldn't run less than 80 Atk EVs. However, it doesn't necessarily show why it shouldn't run 96 Atk EVs, or even the 84 Atk EVs in the set either. On the other hand...

• Attack EVs paired with Adamant nature match 252 attack investment with a neutral nature
• Rest of EVs are put into bulk, with some impressive results - being able to survive LO Latios's Psyshock

This is really odd reasoning; it's as if the writer is just trying to match the Attack stats of fully invested Jolly MHera for the sake of it, rather than because the Atk investment helps hit benchmarks / notable KOes or anything (especially since he didn't point anything else out). Then it appears as if he just dumped the remaining investment into Defense and found it happened to survive LO Latios's Psyshock and thus justified it. All I did was point out that the writer here could've been more productive and efficient with his Atk investment, and would still survive the Latios's Psyshock. Hell, does the writer know that Latios's LO Psyshock fails to OHKO Mega Heracross at all?

252 SpA Life Orb Latios Psyshock vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Mega Heracross: 304-359 (83.7 - 98.8%)

Since this is the case, the writer really should come up with new reasoning for the Def investment, or maybe scrap it altogether and rework the spread / reasoning. I'm just saying.

For starters, 120 Atk investment seems like a good place to start, as it cleanly OHKOes standard Ferrothorn, meaning MHera only has to take one round of Iron Barbs (+ Helmet) damage, as opposed to two rounds of it accompanied by two rounds of Leech Seed damage (if Ferrothorn has Protect). It also guarantees MHera gets to keep its Substitute after blocking Leech Seed and not risk Ferrothorn surviving and break the Sub as a last-ditch effort.

 

[urban]

I mean in a meta, actual results matter more than efficiency, so I'm not sure what this is about anyway; you yourself said this is arbitrary. Does it really matter if the Def investment is "more efficient" than the Atk investment if the extra bulk is less relevant than the extra power? The Latios calc showed how the Defense EVs doesn't matter at all.

This calc shows why Adamant Mega Heracross shouldn't run less than 80 Atk EVs. However, it doesn't necessarily show why it shouldn't run 96 Atk EVs, or even the 84 Atk EVs in the set either. On the other hand...
This is really odd reasoning; it's as if the writer is just trying to match the Attack stats of fully invested Jolly MHera for the sake of it, rather than because the Atk investment helps hit benchmarks / notable KOes or anything (especially since he didn't point anything else out). Then it appears as if he just dumped the remaining investment into Defense and found it happened to survive LO Latios's Psyshock and thus justified it. All I did was point out that the writer here could've been more productive and efficient with his Atk investment, and would still survive the Latios's Psyshock. Hell, does the writer know that Latios's LO Psyshock fails to OHKO Mega Heracross at all?

252 SpA Life Orb Latios Psyshock vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Mega Heracross: 304-359 (83.7 - 98.8%)

Since this is the case, the writer really should come up with new reasoning for the Def investment, or maybe scrap it altogether and rework the spread / reasoning. I'm just saying.

For starters, 120 Atk investment seems like a good place to start, as it cleanly OHKOes standard Ferrothorn, meaning MHera only has to take one round of Iron Barbs (+ Helmet) damage, as opposed to two rounds of it accompanied by two rounds of Leech Seed damage (if Ferrothorn has Protect). It also guarantees MHera gets to keep its Substitute after blocking Leech Seed and not risk Ferrothorn surviving and break the Sub as a last-ditch effort.

No need to get so condescending here.

Anyway, the spread I have right now is ripped from OU Research Thread and is what is most common in the current metagame as far as I know. I'm guessing the reason the spread creator didn't run more attack is because Mega Heracross is already such a powerhouse. Also, the defensive investment still has about a 70% chance to live LO Latios Psyshock even when rocks are up, though dropping the defensive investment to 72 EVs doesn't change that roll. With that in mind, I do agree that running a bit more attack is probably better, specifically the 96 EVs to have a decent chance at 2HKOing standard MG Clefable. The 120 for Ferrothorn is what I run when I'm not running speed, but there probably isn't much of a need to drop so much bulk to get a guaranteed KO on a single mon. So yeah, I'll update my post with a spread of 248 HP / 96 Atk / 72 Def / 92 Spe.

 

[Agent Gibbs]

I mean in a meta, actual results matter more than efficiency, so I'm not sure what this is about anyway; you yourself said this is arbitrary. Does it really matter if the Def investment is "more efficient" than the Atk investment if the extra bulk is less relevant than the extra power? The Latios calc showed how the Defense EVs doesn't matter at all.

I disagree that the bulk investment is less relevant. 1.06% more bulk is going to have a greater impact on average than 0.85% more power, especially on a Pokemon that's already as ridiculously strong as Mega Heracross. That Latios calc is just one of many examples that just happened to be identical for both spreads. Not every physical hit is going to work out the same way.

252 Atk Choice Band Weavile Icicle Crash vs. 252 HP / 72 Def Mega Heracross: 163-193 (44.7 - 53%) -- 29.7% chance to 2HKO
252 Atk Choice Band Weavile Icicle Crash vs. 252 HP / 84 Def Mega Heracross: 162-192 (44.5 - 52.7%) -- 23% chance to 2HKO

There are also examples where the extra Atk won't seem to matter. It just depends on how the game rounds at the time.

84+ Atk Mega Heracross Pin Missile (5 hits) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Manaphy: 270-320 (79.1 - 93.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
96+ Atk Mega Heracross Pin Missile (5 hits) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Manaphy: 270-320 (79.1 - 93.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

This calc shows why Adamant Mega Heracross shouldn't run less than 80 Atk EVs. However, it doesn't necessarily show why it shouldn't run 96 Atk EVs, or even the 84 Atk EVs in the set either.

There really hasn't been a good reason given for why we should use the other two spreads either. 84 Atk is arbitrary at best, and to be honest, hitting a jump point with 96 Atk doesn't actually mean anything either other than that you have an extra point. That might be a bigger deal if Mega Heracross's Atk stat wasn't so high already.

Based on the rest of your post, you and I seem to be more in agreement than not. A more concrete spread should be found. The 80 Atk EVs that I suggested is just one example, so 120 EVs could work too. Regardless, I think it needs to be a benchmark with a functional purpose rather than, "Here's some Atk EVs because Jolly Mega Heracross hits the same number, and here's some extra Def EVs because why not?"

EDIT: I guess it's fine if you want to stick to the jump point spread. At least that's something resembling a real benchmark, although I'd still personally recommend looking into more optimal spreads.

 

[urban]

EDIT: I guess it's fine if you want to stick to the jump point spread. At least that's something resembling a real benchmark, although I'd still personally recommend looking into more optimal spreads.

I don't think there is a more optimal spread. You need some bulk and you also need attack. Increasing attack anymore beyond 96 EVs and an adamant nature doesn't really do much until you get up to 120 EVs (OHKO on Ferro w/ CC) or 136 EVs (87.5% chance to 2HKO Clef w/ Rock Blast). That's a good amount of bulk removed in order to hit some specific targets that are rarely at full when they stare Hera down anyway. There also aren't really other important OHKOs or 2HKOs that you get from running this much attack, so you are faced with rapidly diminishing returns.

Defensive investment is stuck in the same boat, as the closest benchmark I can find is 140 Def EVs to live LO Latios Psyshock after rocks 100% of the time. There's just not much else you can do, so I think the spread I have now is prolly as good as its gonna get. Certain teams might benefit from other spreads, but I feel like the 248 HP / 96 Atk / 72 Def / 92 Spe spread is going to be best for the generalized nature of an analysis.

And if you need a benchmark, take this one.
252 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Zen Headbutt vs. 248 HP / 72 Def Mega Heracross: 306-362 (84.2 - 99.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

 

[Icing On Da Cake]

For Bullet Seed, could you emphasize that it OHKOs Azumarill, one of the most important if THE most important target of the move and that Mega Hera can now beat a healthy Azu 1v1 without the use of sd or extra damage on the azu? I think Guts is worth a mention, not just for the general ability to punish status users, but for also helping with stuff like Rotom-W, as Mega Hera can't kill it from full with 96 atk evs, even with Bullet Seed. While this situation could be avoided with extra damage on Rotom-W, it's still nice to have if you need the extra power/speed in normal form for something, like Crawdaunt (btw 96 evs in speed allow you to outspeed this pre megaevo, so thats cool and its only 4 extra evs on this current spread so not that much of a sacrifice).

 

[Martin]

Honestly with all of this talk about EV spreads I think its probably a good idea to put a big emphasis on customisation in set details. Currently it just kinda blows over it with a simple "max/max or removing speed for power/bulk" and as such it feels like a much smaller an issue than it actually is considering how un-standardised Heracross is nowadays, and I think doing something similar to the Amoonguss analysis where you list a fair number of different benchmarks (max/max, outpace ada MZor, OHKO Ferrothorn, attack jump point, MMeta Zen, Latios Psyshock after rocks etc.) with explanations as to what to aim to outpace with each of those spreads and saying to experiment to find what works best with your team setup is a much better use of set details for something with no set-in-stone optimal spread like MHeracross has.

 

[urban]

For Bullet Seed, could you emphasize that it OHKOs Azumarill, one of the most important if THE most important target of the move and that Mega Hera can now beat a healthy Azu 1v1 without the use of sd or extra damage on the azu? I think Guts is worth a mention, not just for the general ability to punish status users, but for also helping with stuff like Rotom-W, as Mega Hera can't kill it from full with 96 atk evs, even with Bullet Seed. While this situation could be avoided with extra damage on Rotom-W, it's still nice to have if you need the extra power/speed in normal form for something, like Crawdaunt (btw 96 evs in speed allow you to outspeed this pre megaevo, so thats cool and its only 4 extra evs on this current spread so not that much of a sacrifice).

Yeah, I will definitely specifically mention Azumarill as a target for Bullet Seed when I write everything out. Still not sold on Guts as a statused Heracross is pretty worthless. I get that it helps when burnt, but the only move normal Heracross has that does decent damage is Close Combat. In regards to Crawdaunt, its not a particularly relevant pokemon, so I don't think outspeeding it pre mega should warrant a change in EVs.

That being said, I got a spread from TDK that I modified a bit for speed creep rules. The spread is 240 HP / 136 Atk / 132 Spe with an Adamant nature. It lives Latios's Psyshock and 2HKO's Clefable with Rock Blast 87.5% of the time. I'll also mention the max/max spread and some speed and bulk benchmarks like gamer boy suggested. I was just trying to avoid having too much in one analysis.

 

[Highways]

I'm sorry, I don't play this Metagame too much, but I did some calcs and I see that if you run a Jolly Nature with 216 EVs in Speed Heracross is able to outspeed every single Pokémon with a 252+ with 70 Speed Base or bellow, so Hera can outspeed Volcnion, Bisharp and Breloom. I think that you could emphasize this on the OO.

 

[p2]

the ev spreads currently mentioned are fine. unless 40 hp hits a specific benchmark, i don't see the point in running it, i'd rather have max speed to ensure you speed tie with mega scizor and opposing mega hera at the very worst (which is mentioned in set details)

having too many ev spreads is groan zone anyway, so it's best to avoid needless clutter from them.

 

[bludz]

Set Details

• Be sure to mention the Adamant Nature in the sentence with Atk EVs

Usage Tips

• Can also bring in on double switches or Volt-Turn - preferable to taking damage usually
• Elaborate on when to set up a Sub and when to attack
• I would make a small mention that staying in base form to attain a Moxie boost is a viable strategy, but is not reliable
• Similarly waiting to Mega Evolve to retain a little bit of a speed can be useful in specific situations, although this applies more to 252 Jolly spreads

Team Options

• Take out the first line since it's kind of standalone. This is something more for the overview to be honest.
• Latios since it provides speed and nukes physical walls that threaten Hera. In return Hera can lure Clef and can come in on double switches predicting Dark-types
• Will-O-Wisp Talonflame lures a lot of Heracross' checks and is able to take on stuff like Latios, Torn-T and some Fairy types, while also providing a form of priority for speed control
• Torn-T for Volt-Turn and speed control, also checks Latios

Looks good otherwise, not sure how I feel about Will-O-Wisp in checks and counters since that's sort of a given for any physical attacker. Should probably take that out.

QC 2/3

 

[Nedor]

overview

yo. overview looks fairly solid & straightforward, but i'm iffy on just a few things. starting off, speaking about metagame trends in terms of specific sets can be fairly subjective (even with something like scarf t-tar that has been prominent for a while now), but this can easily be remedied by being a bit more general with a few more examples of 'mons it can exploit to fire off a strong atk, set up a sub, whatever the situation may be; tyranitar, bisharp, & excadrill are fine for example. also, it may have been a careless error or something, but m-heracross doesn't really take advantage of various keldeo variants unless its locked into secret sword which is too specific of a situation, so just remove that. also, you can add being capable of setting up a swords dance in the sentence mentioning how its wallbreaking potential can be enhanced.

moveset

for the moveset, i'd certainly only slash substitute and swords dance in that order specifically, with bullet seed just being mentioned in the "move" section. bullet seed is mainly for quagsire / azumarill which both get 2hko'd by pin missle / cc & rock blast respectively. substitute is unquestionably the best last slot for it on the majority of teams as it has a ton of merits, with sd still being a viable option to hit even harder & apply more pressure than it already does. feel free to mention some specific flying types like tornadus-t & talon that rock blast targets. other than that, it looks fine.

set details

with the set details, be sure to mention that the near max investment in hp allows m-heracross to take hits from the likes of m-lopunny, bisharp, weavile, & landorus-t much better, which is one of the reasons the bulky variant is the best set currently.

usage tips

on usage tips, mention a few examples of what specific defensive 'mons it can exploit to get an opportunity to attack, force out which gives you freedom to make your best play, or set up a substitute on (e.g: m-sableye, amoonguss, ferrothorn, quagsire); find as many chances possible to wallbreak which paves the way for your wincon late game.

team options

for team options, i'd personally group together volt switch & u-turns 'mons into the term "pivots" or even "momentum generators," while mentioning they provide m-heracross with more opportunities to come in safely. on that note, i would definitely say remove the "defensive" & "scarf" in front of landorus-t / jirachi respectively due to the fact that other sets of both 'mons work well with m-heracross. i'd add klefki to this section as well because its a form of speed control, offers a fairy / dragon resist which are both capable of revenge killing m-heracross, sets spikes to further increase its wallbreaking potential & weaken checks to the wincon, while also having utility in moves like heal block for example. scarf tyranitar should also be added as another option in the pursuit trapping slot which helps eliminate bulky psychics like mew & starmie more efficiently, while also functioning as a bird check.

other options

looks fine.

checks & counters

most of this section is ready, just a few things need to be said about the bulky 'mons that resist its stabs. landorus-t is a bit shaky because it just gets pressured by rock blast repeatedly while its not capable of doing much back (note this applies to both sub & sd variants). you can still mention it here thanks to intimidate, just add on by saying it can get worn down by it quickly. also, when you say "landorus-t, gliscor, & clefable," just put physically defensive variants of (insert 'mons) in front of it because depending on spreads, these mentioned 'mons can get 2hko'd by rock blast. lastly, you can say gliscor even has the possible acrobatics to nail m-heracross instead of saying earthquake can chip away at it because it will easily take advantage of you in that case.

good work :3

3/3

 

[urban]

Implemented pretty much everything Nedor mentioned.
Took out ScarfTar and replaced with more general pokemon that Hera can take advantage of.
removed BS as a slash, and made SD mention less negative, specifically talking about how it helps mitigate Lando-T's Intimidate.
on team options, i changed the heatran mention to "steel-type hazard setters and status spammers", talk about defensive synergy and how they enhance Hera's wallbreaking abilities.
changed the Lando-T mention a bit. mentioned intimidate as primary concern along with ability to go 1-for-1 against mega heracross, which is a much bigger loss for the player with mega hera. also kept stuff about toxic/pivoting with uturn. fixed glis mention and added acro.

ready for gp. :3

 

[Eien]

amcheck
add
remove
(comments)
AC = Add Comma
RC = Remove Comma

Hide

[OVERVIEW]

Thanks to its monstrous Attack stat backed by two high Base Power STABs attacks, Mega Heracross is one of the most threatening wallbreakers in the tier. Its wallbreaking power is further enhanced by excellent and powerful coverage options in Rock Blast and Bullet Seed. Though Mega Heracross should primarily be used for its immense power and coverage, it also possesses great bulk and a few useful resistances. These traits give Mega Heracross a decent amount of staying power against slower builds in particular.

However, Mega Heracross's bulk only goes so far, especially when one considers its mediocre Speed and four common weaknesses. In turn, Mega Heracross is rather easy to revenge kill, especially for more offensively oriented teams. Furthermore, checks such as Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Talonflame are as common as ever, meaning that Mega Heracross may sometimes struggle in the current metagame. That being said, Mega Heracross is great at taking advantage of some prominent Pokemon such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Mega Lopunny, making it an excellent choice if one is looking for a bulky wallbreaker with insane power.

[SET]
name: Bulky Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Pin Missile
move 3: Rock Blast
move 4: Substitute / Swords Dance
item: Heracronite
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 136 Atk / 132 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Close Combat is Mega Heracross's strongest Fighting-type STAB attack and severely dents anything that doesn't resist it. Pin Missile is Mega Heracross's secondary STAB move, which hits an impressive 125 Base Power thanks to Skill Link and nets at least neutral damage on Psychic-types that resist Close Combat. Rock Blast also benefits from Skill Link and achieves great coverage alongside Mega Heracross's STABs attacks, hitting Flying-types like Talonflame and Tornadus-T super effectively and a few other targets for neutral damage. Substitute is the preferred in the last slot to ease prediction and make use of the numerous switches Mega Heracross forces. A second possibility for the final slot is Swords Dance, as it boosts Mega Heracross's power to ridiculous levels while also mitigating the effects of Landorus-T's Intimidate. Bullet Seed is yet a third option that's whose primary use is to OHKO Azumarill and Quagsire; however, (AC) each both of these is are 2HKO'd 2HKOed by Mega Heracross's STABs and Rock Blast Rock Blast and STAB attacks (Rock Blast to Azumarill, STAB attacks to Quagsire), respectively, making Bullet Seed a generally inferior option.

Set Details
========

Heracronite is the item of choice for the substantial boost in power and bulk it provides. Moxie is the preferred ability before Mega Evolving to nab an Attack boost against a weakened pokemon foe or predicted sack sacrifice (Sack is slang for sacrifice), though it can be somewhat unreliable as Pin Missile, Rock Blast, and Bullet Seed are all rather weak without Skill Link. The given EV spread has enough Speed investment to outpace uninvested Landorus-T after Mega Evolving. The Attack EVs, paired with an Adamant nature, ensure a 2HKO on standard Magic Guard Clefable with Rock Blast 87.5% of the time. (I think you should just say "most of the time") The remaining EVs are placed into HP to make use of Mega Heracross's great bulk, allowing it to takes hits from threats such as Bisharp, Mega Lopunny, and Weavile much better.

If Speed is not a concern, some EVs may be removed from Speed to reach a few other benchmarks. Specifically, 92 Speed EVs allows Mega Heracross to outpaces uninvested Rotom-W, (AC) while 56 Speed EVs helps it outpaces Adamant Azumarill. Any EVs removed from Speed should be placed into Defense as Mega Heracross's typing makes it more suited to tanking physical hits. A more offensive spread of 252 Atk / 252 Spe with a Jolly nature is an option as well, though it should be noted that Mega Heracross will still be outsped by most offensive threats.

Usage Tips
========

Mega Heracross is best utilized as an early- or mid-game wallbreaker thanks to its impressive power and substantial bulk. In general, you want to get Mega Heracross on the field as often as possible to give it the most wallbreaking opportunities for your late-game (Add hyphen) cleaner or sweeper. You should bring Mega Heracross in against foes such as Choice Scarf Tyranitar and Choice Specs Keldeo that are Choice-locked into resisted attacks resists (ScarfTar, Specs Keldeo) or defensive Pokemon that cannot do much to it once it is behind a Substitute, (AC) such as Amoonguss or Mega Sableye (Amoonguss, Mega Sableye). A slow VoltTurn U-turn or Volt Switch or a predicted double switch are also effective means of getting Mega Heracross onto the field.

Once in battle, it is recommended to set up a Substitute if and only if you need to ease prediction against threats like Talonflame or Tornadus-T. If your opponent lacks threats such as these, then firing off either of Mega Heracross's high powered STAB attacks is generally the better strategy. More specifically, you should be wary of pointlessly wasting Mega Heracross's HP if your opponent lacks switch-ins (Add hyphen) to either of Mega Heracross's STABs STAB attacks. Lastly, before Mega Evolving, it is possible to net an Attack boost with Moxie, though this strategy is not particularly reliable for reasons previously stated. On a similar note, forgoing Mega Evolution to keep a bit of extra Speed may prove useful in certain situations.

Team Options
========

Thundurus is an excellent partner for Mega Heracross, as it KOes Flying-types like such as Talonflame, Tornadus T, and Landorus-T. Thundurus also provides speed control via Prankster Thunder Wave and can Knock Off the items of defensive threats like such as Clefable. Rotom-W and Raikou are likewise great partners for their ability to beat Flying-types with the added benefit of being able to bring Mega Heracross in safely with Volt Switch. Similarly, other pivots such as Landorus-T and Jirachi make solid partners as well. Mega Heracross also appreciates Pursuit support, with Assault Vest Metagross in particular being a good partner for its ability to beat and/or trap the Latis Latias, Latios, Clefable, and Mega Gardevoir. Tyranitar also deserves a mention here for its reliability in trapping even bulky Psychic-types while also beating Talonflame. Glare Serperior is a fantastic offensive partner that can lure in and paralyze threats such as Heatran and Tornadus-T for Mega Heracross. Serperior also does well against certain checks like such as Azumarill and Clefable. Finally, bulky Steel-type entry hazard setters and status spammers users such as Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn are excellent partners because of their defensive synergy with Mega Heracross and their ability to enhance Mega Heracross's wallbreaking power with entry hazards and/or status. These Pokemon include Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn.

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

A Choice Scarf set with Moxie is a decent option that outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame while gaining more power with each KO. However, neither of Heracross's STABs moves is are particularly spammable, (AC) and thus the set is normally outclassed by Choice Scarf Landorus-T or Choice Scarf Terrakion. Another potential option is a Guts/Toxic Orb Guts set using Toxic Orb with Swords Dance for extreme wallbreaking power, but Heracross lacks the bulk of its Mega forme Evolution and is worn down rather easily.

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

**Bulky Pokemon that resist its STABS STAB moves**: Physically defensive variants of Landorus-T, Gliscor (Content question: Doesn't standard specially defensive Gliscor also avoid the 2HKO?), and Clefable all avoid being 2HKO'ed (Remove apostrophe) by Mega Heracross. Landorus-T is primarily a check due to Intimidate and its ability to go one-for-one against Mega Heracross in many scenarios. It also threatens to badly poison Mega Heracross with Toxic or pivot with U-turn into something that can beat Mega Heracross with U-Turn. Gliscor can net a 2HKO on Mega Heracross with an unboosted Acrobatics or it may attempt to stall out Mega Heracross with a combination of Toxic and Roost. Physically defensive Clefable is perhaps the best check to Mega Heracross, (AC) as it avoids the 2HKO from Rock Blast and 2HKOes Mega Heracross with Moonblast in return.

**Fast Revenge Killers**: Numerous common revenge killers such as Mega Alakazam, Mega Manectric, and Life Orb (Content question: Does AV Tornadus-T fail to do this?) Tornadus-T can come in after Mega Heracross has gotten a KO and retaliate with a super effective move.

**Flying-types**: Tornadus-T, Talonflame, and Mega Pinsir can switch into Mega Heracross's STABs STAB moves and KO with their own Flying-type STAB attacks. Skarmory can switch into any move that is not Close Combat, tank a Close Combat, then KO with Brave Bird or Counter.

**Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Heatran, Mega Charizard Y, and Mega Charizard X are able to stomach one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and OHKO in return with Fire-type STAB moves.

**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types are typically fast enough to outpace Mega Heracross and revenge kill it after it has taken out another Pokemon. However, most Psychic-types, (AC) such as Latias, Latios, Alakazam, and offensive Starmie, (AC) have low physical bulk, so they must be wary of switching into Mega Heracross. These pokemon include the Latis, both Alakazam formes, and offensive Starmie.

**Fairy-types**: Fairies such as Azumarill and Mega Gardevoir resist one or both of Mega-Heracross's (Remove hyphen) STABs attacks and can either KO or take a huge chunk of HP deal a huge amount of damage in return.

 

[GatoDelFuego]

urban

additional ADD REMOVE COMMENTS

Hide

[OVERVIEW]

Thanks to its monstrous Attack stat backed by two high Base Power STABs attacks, Mega Heracross is one of the most threatening wallbreakers in the tier. Its wallbreaking power is further enhanced by excellent and powerful coverage options in Rock Blast and Bullet Seed. Though Mega Heracross should primarily be used for its immense power and coverage, it also possesses great bulk and a few useful resistances. These traits give Mega Heracross a decent amount of staying power against slower builds in particular.

However, Mega Heracross's bulk only goes so far, especially when one considers its mediocre Speed and four common weaknesses. In turn, Mega Heracross is rather easy to revenge kill, especially for more offensively oriented teams. Furthermore, checks such as Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Talonflame are as common as ever, meaning that Mega Heracross may sometimes struggles "may" is a permission-based move (lmao permission-based move what am I saying) in the current metagame. That being said, Mega Heracross is great at taking advantage of some prominent Pokemon such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Mega Lopunny, making it an excellent choice if one is looking for a bulky wallbreaker with insane power.

[SET]
name: Bulky Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Pin Missile
move 3: Rock Blast
move 4: Substitute / Swords Dance
item: Heracronite
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 136 Atk / 132 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Close Combat is Mega Heracross's strongest Fighting-type STAB attack and severely dents anything that doesn't resist it. Pin Missile is Mega Heracross's secondary STAB move, which hits an impressive 125 Base Power thanks to Skill Link and nets at least neutral damage on Psychic-types that resist Close Combat. Rock Blast also benefits from Skill Link and achieves great coverage alongside Mega Heracross's STABs attacks, hitting Flying-types like Talonflame and Tornadus-T super effectively and a few other targets for neutral damage. Substitute is the preferred in the last slot to ease prediction and make use of the numerous switches Mega Heracross forces. A second possibility for the final slot is Swords Dance, as it boosts Mega Heracross's power to ridiculous levels while also mitigating the effects of Landorus-T's Intimidate. Bullet Seed is yet a third option that's whose primary use is to OHKO Azumarill and Quagsire; however, (AC) each both of these is are 2HKO'd 2HKOed by Mega Heracross's STABs and Rock Blast Rock Blast and STAB attacks (Rock Blast to Azumarill, STAB attacks to Quagsire), respectively, making Bullet Seed a generally inferior option.

Set Details
========

Heracronite is the item of choice for the substantial boost in power and bulk it provides. Moxie is the preferred ability before Mega Evolving to nab an Attack boost against a weakened pokemon foe or predicted sack sacrifice (Sack is slang for sacrifice), though it can be somewhat unreliable as Pin Missile, Rock Blast, and Bullet Seed are all rather weak without Skill Link. The given EV spread has enough Speed investment to outpace uninvested Landorus-T after Mega Evolving. The Attack EVs, paired with an Adamant nature, ensure a 2HKO on standard Magic Guard Clefable with Rock Blast 87.5% of the time. (I think you should just say "most of the time") I think being specific is good! The remaining EVs are placed into HP to make use of Mega Heracross's great bulk, allowing it to takes hits from threats such as Bisharp, Mega Lopunny, and Weavile much better.

If Speed is not a concern, some EVs may correct use of may be removed from Speed to reach a few other benchmarks. Specifically, 92 Speed EVs allows Mega Heracross to outpaces uninvested Rotom-W, (AC) while 56 Speed EVs helps it outpaces Adamant Azumarill. Any EVs removed from Speed should be placed into Defense as Mega Heracross's typing makes it more suited to tanking physical hits. A more offensive spread of 252 Atk / 252 Spe with a Jolly nature is an option as well, though it should be noted that Mega Heracross will still be outsped by most offensive threats.

Usage Tips
========

Mega Heracross is best utilized as an early- or mid-game wallbreaker thanks to its impressive power and substantial bulk. In general, you want to get Mega Heracross on the field as often as possible to give it the most wallbreaking opportunities for your late-game (Add hyphen) cleaner or sweeper. You should bring Mega Heracross in against foes such as Choice Scarf Tyranitar and Choice Specs Keldeo that are Choice-locked into resisted attacks, (AC) resists (ScarfTar, Specs Keldeo) in my mind "bring it into these, or these", not "bring it into these that are choice-locked into resisted moves or defensive Pokemon" or defensive Pokemon that cannot do much to it once it is behind a Substitute, (AC) such as Amoonguss or Mega Sableye (Amoonguss, Mega Sableye). A slow VoltTurn U-turn or Volt Switch or a predicted double switch are also effective means of getting Mega Heracross onto the field.

Once in battle, it is recommended to set up a Substitute if and only if you need to ease prediction against threats like Talonflame or Tornadus-T. If your opponent lacks threats such as these, then firing off either of Mega Heracross's high-powered STAB attacks is generally the better strategy. More specifically, you should be wary of pointlessly wasting Mega Heracross's HP if your opponent lacks switch-ins (Add hyphen) to either of Mega Heracross's STABs STAB attacks. Lastly, before Mega Evolving, it is possible to net an Attack boost with Moxie, though this strategy is not particularly reliable for reasons previously stated state them again, cause sometimes people just want to jump to "usage tips". On a similar note, forgoing Mega Evolution to keep a bit of extra Speed may might prove useful in certain situations. which ones?

Team Options
========

Thundurus is an excellent partner for Mega Heracross, as it KOes Flying-types like such as Talonflame, Tornadus T, and Landorus-T. Thundurus also provides speed control via Prankster Thunder Wave and can Knock Off the items of defensive threats like such as Clefable. such as and like are not totally right or wrong in all situations! "like" implies there is more to the list. In many situations both are correct but one may imply greater meaning--let the author decide. But, it's also important for authors to know when to use each one. In this case, I think Clefable is not the specific target but one example of many. Thundurus is looking to target specific things that annoy Heracross, so "such as" can fit better. Or maybe I'm wrong and they both should be "like"! Rotom-W and Raikou are likewise great partners for their ability to beat Flying-types with the added benefit of being able to bring Mega Heracross in safely with Volt Switch. Similarly, other pivots such as Landorus-T and Jirachi make solid partners as well. Mega Heracross also appreciates Pursuit support, with Assault Vest Metagross in particular being a good partner for its ability to beat and/or trap the Latis Latias, Latios, Clefable, and Mega Gardevoir. Tyranitar also deserves a mention here for its reliability in trapping even bulky Psychic-types while also beating Talonflame. Glare Serperior is a fantastic offensive partner that can lure in and paralyze threats such as Heatran and Tornadus-T for Mega Heracross. Serperior also does well against certain checks like such as correct usage of "such as" Azumarill and Clefable. Finally, bulky Steel-type entry hazard setters and status spammers users such as Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn are excellent partners because of their defensive synergy with Mega Heracross and their ability to enhance Mega Heracross's wallbreaking power with entry hazards and/or status. These Pokemon include Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn.

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

A Choice Scarf set with Moxie is a decent option that outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame while gaining more power with each KO. However, neither of Heracross's STABs moves is are particularly spammable, (AC) and thus the set is normally outclassed by Choice Scarf Landorus-T or Choice Scarf Terrakion. Another potential option is a Guts/Toxic Orb Guts set using Toxic Orb with Swords Dance for extreme wallbreaking power, but Heracross lacks the bulk of its Mega forme Evolution and is worn down rather easily.

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

**Bulky Pokemon that Resist Mega Heracross's its STABS STAB Moves**: Physically defensive variants of Landorus-T, Gliscor (Content question: Doesn't standard specially defensive Gliscor also avoid the 2HKO?), and Clefable all avoid being 2HKO'ed (Remove apostrophe) by Mega Heracross. Landorus-T is primarily a check due to Intimidate and its ability to go one-for-one against Mega Heracross in many scenarios. It also threatens to badly poison Mega Heracross with Toxic or pivot with U-turn into something that can beat Mega Heracross with U-Turn. Gliscor can net a 2HKO on Mega Heracross with an unboosted Acrobatics or it may might attempt to stall out Mega Heracross with a combination of Toxic and Roost. Physically defensive Clefable is perhaps the best check to Mega Heracross, (AC) as it avoids the 2HKO from Rock Blast and 2HKOes Mega Heracross with Moonblast in return.

**Fast Revenge Killers**: Numerous common revenge killers such as Mega Alakazam, Mega Manectric, and Life Orb (Content question: Does AV Tornadus-T fail to do this?) Tornadus-T can come in after Mega Heracross has gotten a KO and retaliate with a super effective move.

**Flying-types**: Tornadus-T, Talonflame, and Mega Pinsir can switch into Mega Heracross's STABs STAB moves and KO with their own Flying-type STAB attacks. Skarmory can switch into any move that is not Close Combat, tank a Close Combat, then KO with Brave Bird or Counter.

**Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Heatran, Mega Charizard Y, and Mega Charizard X are able to stomach one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and OHKO in return with Fire-type STAB moves.

**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types are typically fast enough to outpace Mega Heracross and revenge kill it after it has taken out another Pokemon. However, most Psychic-types, (AC) such as Latias, Latios, Alakazam, and offensive Starmie, (AC) have low physical bulk, so they must be wary of switching into Mega Heracross. These pokemon include the Latis, both Alakazam formes, and offensive Starmie.

**Fairy-types**: Fairies such as Azumarill and Mega Gardevoir resist one or both of Mega-Heracross's (Remove hyphen) STABs attacks and can either KO or take a huge chunk of HP deal a huge amount of damage in return.

1/2

Great work to you both on this! Good first analysis as well.

 

[Sobi]

AMCHECK​

add remove comments

Hide

[OVERVIEW]

Thanks to its monstrous attack Attack stat backed by two high base power STABs, Base Power STAB moves, Mega Heracross is one of the most threatening wallbreakers in the tier. Its wallbreaking power is further enhanced by excellent and powerful coverage options in Rock Blast and Bullet Seed. Though Although Mega Heracross should primarily be used for its immense power and coverage, it also possesses great bulk and a few useful resistances. These traits give resistances, giving Mega Heracross a decent amount of staying power against slower builds in particular.

However, Mega Heracross's bulk only goes so far, especially when one considers its mediocre speed Speed and four common weaknesses. In turn, Mega Heracross is rather easy to revenge kill, especially for more offensively oriented teams. Furthermore, checks such as Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Talonflame are as common as ever, meaning that Mega Heracross may sometimes struggle in the current metagame. That being said, Mega Heracross is great at taking advantage of some prominent Pokemon such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Mega Lopunny, making it an excellent choice if one is looking for a bulky wallbreaker with insane power.

[SET]
name: Bulky Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Pin Missile
move 3: Rock Blast
move 4: Substitute / Swords Dance
item: Heracronite
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 136 Atk / 132 Spe


[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Close Combat is Mega Heracross's strongest fighting STAB move (Comment: or "Fighting-type STAB move" ) and severely dents anything that doesn't resist it. Pin Missile is Mega Heracross's secondary STAB, STAB move which hits an impressive 125 base power Base Power thanks to Skill Link and nets at least neutral damage on psychic-types Psychic-types that resist Close Combat. Rock Blast also benefits from Skill Link and achieves great coverage alongside Mega Heracross's STABs, STAB moves, hitting flying-types Flying-types like Talonflame and Tornadus-T super effectively and a few other targets for neutral damage. Substitute is the preferred last slot to ease prediction and make use of the numerous switches Mega Heracross forces. A second possibility An alternative for the final slot is Swords Dance, as it boosts Mega Heracross's power to ridiculous levels while also mitigating making up for the (Comment: subjective ) effects of Attack drop from Landorus-T's Intimidate. Bullet Seed is yet a third option that's primary use is to OHKO Azumarill and Quagsire; however however, each both of these them are 2HKOed is 2HKO'd by Mega Heracross's STABs STAB moves and Rock Blast, Blast respectively, making Bullet Seed a generally inferior option.

Set Details
========

Heracronite is the item of choice for the substantial boost in power and bulk it provides. Moxie is the preferred ability before mega evolving Mega Evolving to nab an attack Attack boost against a weakened pokemon or predicted sack, though it can be somewhat unreliable as Pin Missile, Rock Blast, and Bullet Seed are all rather weak without Skill Link. The given EV spread has enough speed Speed investment to outpace univested Landorus-T after mega evolving. Mega Evolving. The attack Attack EVs, paired with an adamant Adamant nature, ensure a 2HKO on standard Magic Guard Clefable with Rock Blast 87.5% most (Comment: 87.5% is too technical imo but up2you ) of the time. The remaining EVs are placed into HP to make use of Mega Heracross's great bulk, allowing it to takes take hits from threats such as Bisharp, Mega Lopunny, and Weavile much better.

If speed Speed is not a concern, EVs may be removed from speed it to reach a few other benchmarks. Specifically, 92 speed Speed EVs outpaces allow Heracross to outpace univested uninvested Rotom-W while 56 speed Speed EVs outpaces allow Heracross to outpace adamant Adamant Azumarill. Any All EVs removed from speed Speed should be placed into defense Defense as Mega Heracross's typing makes it more suited to tanking physical hits. A more offensive spread of 252 Atk / 252 Spe (Comment: remaining 4 EVs? ) with a Jolly nature is an option as well, though it should be noted that Mega Heracross will still be outsped by most offensive threats.

Usage Tips
========

Mega Heracross is best utilized as an early- or mid-game wallbreaker thanks to its impressive power and substantial bulk. In general, you want to get Mega Heracross on the field as often as possible to give it the most wallbreaking opportunities for your late game late-game cleaner or sweeper. You should bring Mega Heracross in against Choice-locked resists Pokemon that resist it and are Choice-locked into a move (ScarfTar, Specs Keldeo) or defensive Pokemon that cannot do much to it once it is behind a substitute Substitute (Amoonguss, Mega Sableye). A slow VoltTurn or a predicted double switch are also effective means of getting Mega Heracross onto the field.

Once in battle, it is recommended to set up a substitute Substitute if and only if you need to ease prediction against threats like Talonflame or Tornadus-T. If your opponent lacks threats such as to (Comment: is this what you meant? if not, leave it ) these, then firing off either of Mega Heracross's high powered high-powered STAB attacks is generally the better strategy. More specifically, you should be wary of pointlessly wasting HP if your opponent lacks switch ins switch-ins to either of Mega Heracross's STABs. STAB moves. Lastly, before mega evolving, Mega Evolving, it is possible to net an attack Attack boost with Moxie, though this strategy is not particularly reliable for many reasons previously stated. (Comment: learnt this from Gato: "Analyses aren't required to be read in order like an essay-in fact they're more often read for certain sections" ) On a similar note, forgoing mega evolution Mega Evolving to keep a bit of extra speed Speed may prove useful in certain situations.

Team Options
========

Thundurus is an excellent partner for Mega Heracross, as it KOs flying-types Flying-types like Talonflame, Tornadus T, and Landorus-T. Thundurus also provides speed control via Prankster Thunder Wave and can Knock Off remove (Comment: think this is right cuz I remember TDP changing "can Will-O-Wisp..." to "can burn" ) the items of defensive threats like Clefable. Rotom-W and Raikou are likewise great partners for their ability to beat flying-types Flying-types with the added benefit of being able to bring Mega Heracross in safely with Volt Switch. Similarly, other pivots such as Landorus-T and Jirachi make solid partners as well. Mega Heracross also appreciates Pursuit support, with Assault Vest Metagross in particular being a good partner for its ability to beat and/or and trap the Latis, Latios, Latias, Clefable, and Mega Gardevoir. Tyranitar also deserves a mention here for its reliability in trapping even bulky psychic-types Psychic-types while also beating Talonflame. Glare Serperior is a fantastic offensive partner that can lure in and paralyze threats such as Heatran and Tornadus-T for Mega Heracross. Serperior also does well against certain check checks like Azumarill and Clefable. Finally, bulky steel-type Steel-type hazard setters and status spammers are excellent partners because of their defensive synergy with Mega Heracross and their ability to enhance Mega Heracross's wallbreaking power with hazards and/or and status. These Pokemon include Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn.

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

A Choice Scarf set with Moxie is a decent option that outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame while gaining more power with each KO. OHKO. However, neither of Heracross's STABs STAB moves are is particularly spammable and thus the set is normally outclassed by Scarf Landorus-T or Scarf Terrakion. Another potential option is a Guts/Toxic Guts and Toxic Orb set with Swords Dance for extreme wallbreaking power, but Heracross lacks the bulk of its mega forme Mega Evolution and is worn down rather easily.

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

**Bulky Pokemon that resist its STABS**: STAB moves**: Physically defensive variants of Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Clefable all avoid being 2HKO'ed 2HKOed by Mega Heracross. Landorus-T is primarily a check due to Intimidate and its ability to go one-for-one against Mega Heracross in many scenarios. It also threatens to poison Mega Heracross with Toxic or pivot into something that can beat Mega Heracross with U-Turn U-turn. U-turn. Gliscor can net a 2HKO on Mega Heracross with an unboosted Acrobatics or it may attempt to stall out Mega Heracross with a combination of Toxic and Roost. Clefable is perhaps the best check to Mega Heracross as it avoids the 2HKO from Rock Blast and 2HKOs 2HKOes Mega Heracross with Moonblast in return.

**Fast Revenge Killers**: Numerous common revenge killers such as Mega Alakazam, Mega Manectric, and Life Orb Tornadus-T can come in after Mega Heracross has gotten a KO and retaliate with a super effective move.

**Flying-Types**: **Flying-types**: Tornadus-T, Talonflame, and Mega Pinsir can switch into Mega Heracross's STABs STAB moves and KO with their own flying-type Flying-type STAB moves. STAB. Skarmory can switch into any move that is not bar Close Combat, tank a it Close Combat, then KO with Brave Bird or Counter.

**Fire-Types**: **Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Heatran, Mega Charizard Y, and Mega Charizard X are able to stomach one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and OHKO in return with their Fire STAB. STAB moves.

**Psychic-Types**: **Psychic-types**: Psychic-types are typically fast enough to outpace Mega Heracross and revenge kill it after it has taken out another Pokemon. pokemon. However, most psychic-types Psychic-types have low physical bulk, so they must be wary of switching into Mega Heracross. These pokemon Pokemon include the Latis, Latios, Latias, both Alakazam formes, and offensive Starmie.

**Fairy-Types**: **Fairy-types**: Fairies such as Azumarill and Mega Gardevoir resist one or both of Mega-Heracross's STABs Mega Heracross's STAB moves and can either KO or take a huge chunk of its of HP in return.

edit: mfw double sniped

 

[urban]

Uhh, not totally sure what I should do here, but I think I'm going to implement Eien's changes for GP 1 since he was the first to post.

However, I will be doing this right now if GatoDelFuego or Sobi wants to give me my second check in like 15-20 minutes.

 

[GatoDelFuego]

implement my check alone; it includes eien. But also include sobi's catch of "Knock Off" in team options!

 

[urban]

All right. I have implemented GatoDelFuego's check in its entirety.

I'll go through the few content comments as well.

• Ended up implementing Eien's suggestion for Rock Blast KO against Clefable. I agree that being specific is good, but the calc itself is shaky because there is a lot more variability in rolls when there are 5 hits.
• I know the Usage Tips section is a bit clunky. I didn't mention any specific pokemon in my initial write-up, but that change was implemented in a QC check. I think your help has made it considerably better though.
• Standard SpDef Gliscor does avoid the 2HKO from Rock Blast, but not really sure how to change the wording there without it becoming super awkward. However, SpDef Gliscor has a difficult time beating Heracross because it takes ~65% minimum from Pin Missile on the Roost.
• Last, AV Torn can also get the KO on Mega Heracross, but it's not really a revenge killer - it's more of a pivot. I know this is pretty arbitrary, so I'm fine with removing "Life Orb" if that's wanted in next check.

 

[Lumari]

easiest and most foolproof way to implement checks: click reply -> remove reds -> address comments -> deformat blues using the Tx button in the upper left corner -> copypaste the finished thing into the OP

nicely written indeed~

remove add / fix (comments); (AC=add comma; RC=remove comma; SC=semicolon)
GP 2/2

check

[OVERVIEW]
Thanks to its monstrous Attack stat backed by two high-Base (AH) Power STAB attacks, Mega Heracross is one of the most threatening wallbreakers in the tier. Its wallbreaking power is further enhanced by excellent and powerful coverage options in Rock Blast and Bullet Seed. Though Mega Heracross should primarily be used for its immense power and coverage, it also possesses great bulk and a few useful resistances. These traits give Mega Heracross a decent amount of staying power against slower builds in particular.

However, Mega Heracross's bulk only goes so far, especially when one considers its mediocre Speed and four common weaknesses. Likewise, Mega Heracross is rather easy to revenge kill, especially for more offensively oriented teams. Furthermore, checks such as Tornadus-T, Landorus-T, and Talonflame are as common as ever, meaning that Mega Heracross sometimes struggles in the current metagame. That being said, Mega Heracross is great at taking advantage of some prominent Pokemon such as Bisharp, Tyranitar, and Mega Lopunny, making it an excellent choice if one is looking for a bulky wallbreaker with insane power.

[SET]
name: Bulky Wallbreaker
move 1: Close Combat
move 2: Pin Missile
move 3: Rock Blast
move 4: Substitute / Swords Dance
item: Heracronite
ability: Moxie
nature: Adamant
evs: 240 HP / 136 Atk / 132 Spe

[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========

Close Combat is Mega Heracross's strongest Fighting-type STAB attack and severely dents anything that doesn't resist it. Pin Missile is Mega Heracross's secondary STAB move, which hits an impressive 125 Base Power thanks to Skill Link and nets at least neutral damage on Psychic-types that resist Close Combat. Rock Blast also benefits from Skill Link and achieves great coverage alongside Mega Heracross's STAB moves, hitting Flying-types like Talonflame and Tornadus-T super effectively and a few other targets for neutral damage. Substitute is preferred in the last slot to ease prediction and make use of the numerous switches Mega Heracross forces. A second possibility for the final slot is Swords Dance, as it boosts Mega Heracross's power to ridiculous levels while also mitigating the effects of Landorus-T's Intimidate. Bullet Seed is yet a third option whose primary use is to OHKO Azumarill and Quagsire; however, both of these are 2HKOed by Mega Heracross's Rock Blast and STAB attacks, respectively, making Bullet Seed a generally inferior option.

Set Details
========

Heracronite is the item of choice for the substantial boost in power and bulk it provides. Moxie is the preferred ability before Mega Evolving to nab an attack boost against a weakened foe or predicted sacrifice, though it can be somewhat unreliable, (AC) as Pin Missile, Rock Blast, and Bullet Seed are all rather weak without the guaranteed five hits from Skill Link. The given EV spread has enough Speed investment to outpace uninvested Landorus-T after Mega Evolving. The Attack EVs, paired with an Adamant nature, ensure a 2HKO on standard Magic Guard Clefable with Rock Blast most of the time. The remaining EVs are placed into HP to make use of Mega Heracross's great bulk, allowing it to takes hits from threats such as Bisharp, Mega Lopunny, and Weavile much better.

If speed is not a concern, some EVs may be removed from Speed to reach a few other benchmarks. Specifically, 92 Speed EVs allows Mega Heracross to outpace uninvested Rotom-W, while 56 speed EVs helps it outpace Adamant Azumarill. Any EVs removed from Speed should be placed into Defense, (AC) as Mega Heracross's typing makes it more suited to tanking physical hits. A more offensive spread of 252 Atk / 252 Spe with a Jolly nature is an option as well, though it should be noted that Mega Heracross will still be outsped by most offensive threats.

Usage Tips
========

Mega Heracross is best utilized as an early- or mid-game wallbreaker thanks to its impressive power and substantial bulk. In general, you want to get Mega Heracross on the field as often as possible to give it the most wallbreaking opportunities for your late-game cleaner or sweeper. You should bring Mega Heracross in against foes such Choice Scarf Tyranitar or Choice Specs Keldeo that are Choice locked (RH) into resisted attacks or defensive Pokemon that cannot do much to it once it is behind a Substitute, such as Amoonguss or Mega Sableye. A slow Volt Switch or U-turn or a predicted double switch are also effective means of getting Mega Heracross onto the field.

Once Mega Heracross is in battle, it is recommended to set up a Substitute if and only if you need to ease prediction against threats like Talonflame or Tornadus-T. If your opponent lacks threats such as these, then firing off either of Mega Heracross's high-powered STAB attacks is generally the better strategy. More specifically, you should be wary of pointlessly wasting Mega Heracross's HP if your opponent lacks switch-ins to either of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks. Lastly, before Mega Evolving, it is possible to net an Attack boost with Moxie, though this strategy is not particularly reliable due the relatively low power of Mega Heracross's moves if Skill Link is not active. On a similar note, forgoing Mega Evolution to keep a bit of extra Speed might prove useful in some scenarios, as Mega Heracross is able to Speed tie threats such as Adamant Bisharp at worst before Mega Evolving.

Team Options
========

Thundurus is excellent partner for Mega Heracross, as it KOes Flying-types such as Talonflame, Tornadus T, and Landorus-T. Thundurus also provides speed control via Prankster Thunder Wave and can remove the items of defensive threats such as Clefable. Rotom-W and Raikou are likewise great partners for their ability to beat Flying-types with the added benefit of being able to bring Mega Heracross in safely with Volt Switch. Similarly, other pivots such as Landorus-T and Jirachi make solid partners as well. Mega Heracross also appreciates Pursuit support, with Assault Vest Metagross in particular being a good partner for its ability to beat and/or trap Latios, Latias, Clefable, and Mega Gardevoir. Tyranitar also deserves a mention here for its reliability in trapping even bulky Psychic-types while also beating Talonflame. Glare Serperior is a fantastic offensive partner that can lure in and paralyze threats such as Heatran and Tornadus-T for Mega Heracross. Serperior also does well against certain checks such as Azumarill and Clefable. Finally, bulky Steel-type hazard setters and status users such as Heatran, Klefki, and Ferrothorn are excellent partners because of their defensive synergy with Mega Heracross and their ability to enhance Mega Heracross's wallbreaking power with entry hazards and/or status.

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

A Choice Scarf set with Moxie is a decent option that outspeeds the entire unboosted metagame while gaining more power with each KO. However, neither of Heracross's STAB moves are particularly spammable, and thus the set is normally outclassed by Choice Scarf Landorus-T or Choice Scarf Terrakion. Another potential option is a Guts set using Toxic Orb with Swords Dance for extreme wallbreaking power, but regular Heracross lacks the bulk of its Mega Evolution and is worn down rather easily.

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

**Bulky Pokemon That Resist Mega Heracross's STAB Moves**: Physically defensive variants of Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Clefable all avoid being 2HKOed by Mega Heracross. Landorus-T is primarily a check due to Intimidate and its ability to go one-for-one against Mega Heracross in many scenarios. It also threatens to badly poison Mega Heracross with Toxic or pivot with U-turn into something that can beat Mega Heracross. Gliscor can net a 2HKO on Mega Heracross with an unboosted Acrobatics or it may attempt to stall out Mega Heracross with a combination of Toxic and Roost. Physically defensive Clefable is perhaps the best check to Mega Heracross, as it avoids the 2HKO from Rock Blast and 2HKOes Mega Heracross with Moonblast in return.

**Fast Revenge Killers**: Numerous common revenge killers such as Mega Alakazam, Mega Manectric, and Life Orb (yeah, it really can go either way. keeping LO stresses that LO Torn is the only revenge killing set and that all other (relevant) sets are no revenge killers. if that's a nuance you want to preserve then keep it, otherwise remove it, but neither is wrong / suboptimal per se imo) Tornadus-T can come in after Mega Heracross has gotten a KO and retaliate with a super effective move.

**Flying-types**: Tornadus-T, Talonflame, and Mega Pinsir can switch into Mega Heracross's STAB moves and KO with their own Flying-type STAB attack. Skarmory can switch into any move that is not Close Combat, tank a Close Combat, and then KO with Brave Bird or Counter.

**Fire-types**: Fire-types such as Heatran, Mega Charizard Y, and Mega Charizard X are able to stomach one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and OHKO in return with Fire-type STAB moves.

**Psychic-types**: Psychic-types are typically fast enough to outpace Mega Heracross and revenge kill it after it has taken out another Pokemon. However, most Psychic-types of them, such as Latios, Alakazam, and Starmie, have low physical bulk, so they must be wary of switching into Mega Heracross.

**Fairy-types**: Fairies such as Azumarill and Mega Gardevoir resist one or both of Mega Heracross's STAB attacks and can either KO it or deal a huge amount of damage in return.

 

[urban]

easiest and most foolproof way to implement checks: click reply -> remove reds -> address comments -> deformat blues using the Tx button in the upper left corner -> copypaste the finished thing into the OP

nicely written indeed~

Implemented. Also, thanks for the tip about implementing GP changes. Kinda feel like a dummy for not realizing that on my own and wasting like 30 minutes on the first one, but at least now I know.

Hootie / TDK

This is ready for upload. :3