
[SET]
name: Swords Dance
move 1: Swords Dance
move 2: Return
move 3: Quick Attack
move 4: Close Combat / Stone Edge
item: Pinsirite
ability: Hyper Cutter
nature: Jolly
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Mega Pinsir serves as a rather subpar hyper offense sweeper in National Dex. Aerilate gives it powerful Flying-type STAB and, uniquely, priority moves, allowing it to pressure certain faster Pokemon such as Hawlucha, Greninja, and Serperior. However, it faces heavy competition for the Mega slot on hyper offense teams from Mega Gyarados, Mega Garchomp, and Mega Scizor, which are much better because they bring defensive utility to a team, whereas Mega Pinsir has next to none. It also cannot hit all of the metagame for significant damage at once, as it only has room for one coverage move; Close Combat variants are walled by Zapdos, while Stone Edge variants struggle with Steel-types such as Heatran, Mega Mawile, and Melmetal. It also must run Earthquake to even consider touching Aegislash, which lets Corviknight and Rotom-W wall it completely. Additionally, faster Flying-resistant Pokemon, such as Tapu Koko, Mega Diancie, and Zeraora, halt Mega Pinsir in its tracks. Priority moves from Weavile, Mega Scizor, and Mega Lopunny can mess with it as well. Mega Pinsir's unfortunate Speed tier also leaves it outpaced by several common Pokemon that survive even a +2 Quick Attack; Mega Latias, Kartana, and Choice Scarf Landorus-T, Tapu Lele, and Jirachi all fall into this category. Mega Pinsir's horrible 4x weakness to Stealth Rock also complicates matters, as it can require a lot of support and careful play to get around. These obstacles prevent Mega Pinsir from making progress consistently against many teams in the metagame, making it a poor choice for the vast majority of teams.
Close Combat is the preferred last move in order to hit Steel-types such as Melmetal, Heatran, and Ferrothorn for super effective damage. Stone Edge can be used instead, as it hits Zapdos hard. However, this prevents Mega Pinsir from hitting most Steel-types. Earthquake can be considered, as it allows Mega Pinsir to hit Aegislash while also dealing decent damage to Mega Mawile, Heatran, and Toxapex, but being walled completely by Corviknight and Rotom-W is not preferable. Hyper Cutter is the preferred primary ability, as it blocks Intimidate before Pinsir Mega Evolves. Mega Pinsir is best used on hyper offense teams, where it can work with its teammates to beat down its checks and counters and potentially sweep if the opportunity arises. Teams that have Mega Pinsir should also utilize lead Excadrill in order to best keep Stealth Rock off the field. However, due to the plethora of better options hyper offense teams have available, the insane amount of support from its team that's required, and its inconsistency as a sweeper, it's generally best to stay away from using it. best keep Stealth Rock off the field.
[CREDITS]
- Written by: [[Sputnik, 475916]]
- Quality checked by: [[The Dragon Master, 521275], [adem, 529732]]
- Grammar checked by: [[queez, 229690], [Finland, 517429]]
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