With a Choice Scarf, Adamant nature, and the given EVs, Heracross reaches 396 Speed, which is enough to outspeed max Speed Darkrai and Mewtwo, and OHKO both with Megahorn. This already separates Heracross from Scizor, who can subsequently be smacked by Flamethrower or hit with Dark Void by the faster Mewtwo and Darkrai, respectively. Heracross can also take down many of the most common Ubers with Stealth Rock and Spikes support, such as Dialga, who is guaranteed to be OHKOed by Close Combat after Stealth Rock. Choice Scarf Heracross's main selling point, however, is being able to almost perfectly counter Darkrai thanks to its resistance to Dark Pulse and Focus Blast, ability to absorb sleep with Sleep Talk, and the strength to OHKO it back on a whim.

Close Combat, Megahorn, and Stone Edge are all necessary to achieve 2HKOs on most Uber Pokemon, while the last move depends solely on the player's needs. Sleep Talk allows Heracross to switch in on Darkrai's Dark Void, and KO it no matter what attack is chosen thanks to the Guts boost. However, Sleep Talk can only be used once while holding a Choice item; subsequent uses will cause the move to fail. Night Slash is Heracross's most powerful attack against Giratina-O, although it is still only a 3HKO at best.

To outspeed Deoxys-A and Modest Choice are common, so the choice in losing the power for the Speed is entirely up to the user. Toxic is Heracross's best option against incoming Lugia and Giratina-O, and although it won't do any immediate damage, it will severely hinder both of them for the rest of the match. Finally, Pursuit can hurt Latios, Latias, and Mewtwo as they switch out fearing Megahorn. However, being trapped into a 40 Base Power attack is less than ideal. Heracross's ability, Guts, allows it to take advantage of status, most notably from Toxic Spikes, Blissey's Toxic, and Mewtwo's Will-O-Wisp. The boost from its ability allows Heracross to 2HKO or OHKO all commonly used Pokemon in Ubers with the exception of Giratina-O and Giratina. Keep in mind that, despite this boost, the aforementioned moves and Pokemon tend to appear on stall-based teams and will very likely have either Giratina-O or Giratina as a team member.

Heracross needs Spikes and Stealth Rock support to be a major threat in Ubers. Deoxys leads have access to both Stealth Rock and Spikes, and can often lure in priority users who could otherwise easily revenge kill Heracross. Lugia, Ho-Oh, Giratina-O, and Giratina are often major issues for Heracross, making Darkrai an excellent partner, as it is able to destroy Lugia, Giratina, and Giratina-O with Dark Pulse, although it must be wary of switching into the latter due to its powerful Draco Meteor. Kyogre's bulk, resistance to Fire-type attacks, and ability to Calm Mind in the face of many of the Ubers that threaten Heracross make it a perfect partner for it, as it can eliminate Ho-Oh, Lugia, and Giratina fairly easily. Kyogre's Drizzle also weakens Fire-type attacks for Heracross, allowing it to often survive a hit from the likes of Mewtwo, Choice Scarf Palkia, and Dialga, and retaliate with its powerful Megahorn or Close Combat.

If Heracross is locked into anything but Megahorn, Wobbuffet can annihilate it with Counter. Unfortunately, Wobbuffet can not be countered thanks to Shadow Tag. Mixed attackers such as Dialga and Palkia can often lure in Wobbuffet and destroy it with a combination of their special and physical attacks. Thanks to Dialga's convenient typing, it can check Giratina and Giratina-O as well, while Heracross resists Dialga's weaknesses to Ground and Fighting. Palkia's 4x resistance to Fire- and Water-type moves also allow it to absorb some of the most powerful attacks aimed at Heracross. Wobbuffet makes another fantastic partner to Heracross, as it can not only trap Lugia and kill it with Mirror Coat if it decides to attack, but it can also revenge kill Pokemon with Choice Scarf that can revenge kill Heracross, such as Choice Scarf Dialga or Choice Scarf Palkia. If you opt to use Wobbuffet, another sweeper such as Rayquaza will make an excellent partner to Heracross, cleaning up any Pokemon Heracross failed to finish off.

Almost identical to the Choice Scarf set, but with a key difference in power and bulk. With the HP EVs, Heracross can survive almost any attack and OHKO back with one of its STAB attacks. Unlike the Choice Scarf set, Guts is not a necessity to hit hard, thanks to the boost already given by Choice Band.

Although Guts activation isn't necessary to achieve this set's goals, the boost in power will decimate defensive teams without a proper answer to Heracross. If Guts has been activated, Heracross can 2HKO or OHKO every Pokemon commonly used in Ubers with just its STAB moves, with the exception of Ho-Oh and Giratina. Stone Edge OHKOes Ho-Oh and provides a more powerful attack against Giratina-O than Megahorn. Sleep Talk turns Heracross into an excellent check to Darkrai, resisting Dark Pulse and Focus Blast while still being able to attack if hit with Dark Void. Once again, keep in mind that Sleep Talk will only work once as long as Heracross is holding a Choice item. Should one not wish to use Heracross as a sleep absorber, Pursuit is a fine choice. With support from Tickle Wobbuffet, Heracross can remove its greatest counter, Giratina. It takes four Tickles for Heracross to OHKO a switching Giratina with Pursuit, and two Tickles if Guts is activated. Speaking of Guts, Heracross sets itself apart from other Pursuit users, such as Scizor and Tyranitar, as not even Will-O-Wisp can save Giratina's life. Night Slash allows Heracross to 2HKO Giratina-O, something that it can't do with a Choice Scarf.

Stealth Rock is needed like always, giving Heracross a better chance to OHKO Ho-Oh, Rayquaza, and many other Uber Pokemon with proper prediction. Unlike with Choice Scarf, Lugia fails to wall this set, as Heracross is slower and will pierce Lugia with Megahorn as it eliminates its Flying-type via Roost. Kyogre is, once again, a great partner as it can kill Ho-Oh and weaken Fire-type attacks via Drizzle. With Fire-type attacks and Pokemon weakened and/or eliminated, Heracross will more likely not have to contend with one of its major weaknesses. Since Choice Band Heracross lacks speed, faster powerhouses such as Choice Specs Kyogre, Latios, and Life Orb Dialga can OHKO Heracross with their powerful STAB attacks. Choice Scarf Palkia can take on Kyogre's Water Spout and Surf, and hit back hard with Thunder, Draco Meteor, or Spacial Rend. Palkia can also revenge Latios and moderately weakened Dialga.

Heracross should not be the center of a team when using this set. Instead, it should be used merely to help other Pokemon, such as Rayquaza and Groudon, set up instead. After drawing out and killing Lugia with Heracross, these other Pokemon can easily sweep teams with Rock Polish, Swords Dance, or Dragon Dance.

Heracross's most interesting set, and certainly viable if used correctly. The goal is to switch in on something that can't do much, such as Forretress, and proceed to use Substitute. The opponent will likely bring in a much faster Pokemon to break the Substitute, which results in Heracross constantly using Substitute until Salac Berry activates. Assuming Substitute is still intact, Heracross can then Swords Dance and attempt to sweep. Heracross's subbing down to Salac Berry activation also activates the dual effect of Swarm, multiplying Megahorn's power x1.5. Along with STAB, the power of Heracross's Megahorn reaches an effective power level of 270. Follow up with a Swords Dance, then it boosts this number to a whopping 540!

Here are some damage calculations to demonstrate Heracross's power:

Damage Calculations

• +2 Swarm Megahorn vs 32 HP / 0 Def Rayquaza 86.91% - 102.23%
• • +2 Swarm Megahorn vs 252 HP / 32 Def Groudon 102.72% - 121.29%
• +2 Swarm Megahorn vs 252 HP / 64 Def Lugia 104.09% - 122.60%
• +2 Close Combat vs 224 HP / 0 Def Ho-oh 50.61% - 59.90%

252 Speed EVs allows Heracross to outspeed max Speed, Modest Choice Scarf Kyogre after a Salac Berry boost. However, there are several Pokemon capable of outspeeding Heracross after the boost, namely Choice Scarf Pokemon with equal to or greater than 90 base Speed such as Palkia, Dialga, Shaymin-S, Mewtwo, Jirachi, Darkrai, and Timid Kyogre. After the Substitute is broken, Heracross will have no way of stopping priority attacks. With the prevalence of Groudon and Kyogre in Ubers, a mixed Tyranitar is a phenomenal partner, as the weather will likely change later. Tyranitar can lure in Scizor and Fire Blast to OHKO them, as well as take down Giratina-O with Crunch or Pursuit; Rayquaza also falls victim to Ice Beam. Rayquaza, Scizor, and Giratina-O commonly use priority attacks, making Heracross's job much easier with them eliminated.

Wobbuffet, who always pairs well with Heracross, does phenomenally here, trapping and OHKOing most Choice Scarf Pokemon that would outspeed Heracross after a Salac Berry boost. In return, Heracross does an excellent job of taking out Wobbuffet's biggest threats, Darkrai and Taunt + Calm Mind Mewtwo.