So this team came about with a challenge from a friend to make a Mono-bug team, and win at least one match with said team. I did. But the team got me thinking about Mega Heracross, who I used as the physical sweeper of the team. It is really terrifying, and with the right support, it can be almost impossible to get around. So scrapping the Bug team, I left the two main components, and built a team around that. So here it is, my Mega Heracross team!
Heracross (M) @ Heracronite
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Pin Missile
- Close Combat
- Bullet Seed
- Rock Blast
While Mega Heracross looks all kinds of derpy, it s actually incredibly terrifying thanks to its gargantuan Attack stat, and wide array of multi-hit moves, which will always hit five times thanks to Skill Link. That being said, before this, I had never used Mega Heracross before, so as the namesake of the team, I have tried to make it as terrifying as possible.
The EV spread is to give Heracross some bulk while keeping it nice and speedy (You'll see what I mean later), while still maximizing its attack. Without a Sword Dance, Mega Heracross' attack, with max investments, and an Adamant Nature, is an incredible 515 (According to Showdown at least).
Now, the moveset is meant to monopolize on Skill Link. STAB, 5 hit Pin Missile is incredibly dangerous, and more accurate than Mega Horn, also allowing Heracross to hit through Substituters with ease. Close Combat is the second STAB move on this list, completely wrecking anything that doesn't resist (And even doing a decent amount of damage to those who do). Bullet Seed is the main coverage move for this set, hitting Water-types such as Azumarill and Rotom-W. Rock Blast is the secondary Coverage move, allowing Heracross to destroy any Flying-type not faster than it (Or that have priority Brave Bird), as well as opposing Bug types. It is also decent against Fire and Ice types as well.
The main problem with this Heracross however, is the fact that A. It isn't the fastest Pokemon in the world. B. 99.9% of the time, Talonflame will completely destroy this guy. C. Gliscor is a dangerous Pokemon that completely walls this set. However, the rest of the team builds around these problems, and actually does a decent job in allowing Heracross to sweep. And with that, here is the rest of them!
Scolipede (M) @ Mental Herb
Ability: Speed Boost
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 20 Def / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
- Protect
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Swords Dance
The other only original member of the Mono-Bug team, Scolipede is a great Baton Passer with access to Speed Boost and Swords Dance. After a couple Speed Boosts, Scolipede can make Heracross an incredibly fast sweeper. And that is exactly what it did in the old team, and this team. The EV spread gives Scolipede enough speed and bulk to take a few hits while it is setting up.
Holding a Mental Herb helps Scolipede not get taunted before it can retreat safely behind a Substitute for the set up. Protect not only allows Scolipede to get a free Speed Boost up, but it also allows Scolipede to scout out what the opponent plans to do.
Now, the only problem with Scolipede here is that fact that both it, and Heracross, share many of the same weaknesses, so it can be a little hard to get a successful pass in without Heracross being smacked in the face with a Super Effective move.
Tyranitar (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
Tyranitar is a great addition to this team as it really helps with Heracross' massive weakness to Talonflame, and Flying-types in general. This is a defensive set, and while I would have loved to run Assault Vest T-Tar, the necessity for Stealth Rocks was to important to run it, so Leftover has taken its place. With 248 HP, and 252 Def, Tyranitar is really tough to take down, and since the Sandstorm is generates raises it Special Defensive, it is a tank from all around.
Now, as stated before, Stealth Rocks is essential for dealing with Talonflame, and if I see one on the Team Preview, Tyranitar has to go out first. Stone Edge is the main STAB move, allowing Tyranitar to check and counter Talonflame every way possible, while Crunch is used as secondary STAB for Psychic types that also threaten both Scolipede and Heracross. Lastly, for coverage we have Earthquake, however I am thinking of replacing it with Ice Beam to help with the problem that is Gliscor.
Greninja (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Ice Beam
- Hydro Pump
- Dark Pulse
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Greninja is a great member of this team thanks to its amazing speed, and the sheer tool boxing ability it has thanks to Protean. Greninja is also essential as it helps deal with Gliscor, which I have stated before, completely walls Heracross. The EVs make Greninja hit hard and fast, while Life Orb gives its attack that little extra oomph needed to get a KO.
Ice Beam is the main move for the set, allowing Greninja to take out Gliscor and Landorus, both of which can cause Heracross problems. Hydro Pump is the best Water move to use on this, hitting all manner of Pokemon. Dark Pulse also helps get rid of Psychic types. And finally, Hidden Power Fire, which I have seen it becoming way more common on Greninja these days, allows Greninja to one shot Ferrothorn, and deal with almost all Steel types, except for Heatran.
Goodra (F) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sap Sipper
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Calm Nature
- Dragon Pulse
- Sludge Bomb
- Thunderbolt
- Fire Blast
Why do I keep coming back to Goodra? Almost every team I post on here has Goodra. Well, it is quite simple. Assault Vest Goodra walls all kinds of special threats, and I love it for that. I've stated before how Sap Sipper allows Goodra to switch into predicted Spore or Leech Seeds, and render them completely useless, while easily countering thanks to its wide array of moves. I've also stated before how this EV spread allows Goodra to stay bulky while being able to hit back hard.
Dragon Pulse is the main STAB here, being chosen over Draco Meteor to avoid the Special Attack drop. Sludge Bomb gives Fairy coverage, thanks to Goodra being able to take Moonblasts to the face all day. Thunderbolt also gives some useful Flying and Water Coverage, while Fire Blast allows Goodra to deal with the Grass-types that is switches into to take their Spore and Leech Seed.
Diggersby (M) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Huge Power
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Return
- Earthquake
- Wild Charge
- U-turn
I have seriously underestimated Scarfed Diggersby until now. A powerful Revenge Killer, as well as a Scouter, Diggersby's attack stat combined with Huge Power makes is a force to be reckoned with. The EVs are to allow Diggersby to hit hard and fast, and since Huge Power gives it a buff anyway, Jolly allows Diggersby to be even more speedy.
Return is a great STAB option for Diggersby, and while it isn't super effective on anything, it is very powerful on anything that doesn't resist it. Earthquake is another STAB option, hitting, ironically enough, the Pokemon that resist Return. Wild Charge is an awesome coverage move that hits Water and Flying types, while U-Turn gives Digersby great scouting capabilities.
Heracross (M) @ Heracronite
Ability: Moxie
EVs: 40 HP / 252 Atk / 216 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Pin Missile
- Close Combat
- Bullet Seed
- Rock Blast
While Mega Heracross looks all kinds of derpy, it s actually incredibly terrifying thanks to its gargantuan Attack stat, and wide array of multi-hit moves, which will always hit five times thanks to Skill Link. That being said, before this, I had never used Mega Heracross before, so as the namesake of the team, I have tried to make it as terrifying as possible.
The EV spread is to give Heracross some bulk while keeping it nice and speedy (You'll see what I mean later), while still maximizing its attack. Without a Sword Dance, Mega Heracross' attack, with max investments, and an Adamant Nature, is an incredible 515 (According to Showdown at least).
Now, the moveset is meant to monopolize on Skill Link. STAB, 5 hit Pin Missile is incredibly dangerous, and more accurate than Mega Horn, also allowing Heracross to hit through Substituters with ease. Close Combat is the second STAB move on this list, completely wrecking anything that doesn't resist (And even doing a decent amount of damage to those who do). Bullet Seed is the main coverage move for this set, hitting Water-types such as Azumarill and Rotom-W. Rock Blast is the secondary Coverage move, allowing Heracross to destroy any Flying-type not faster than it (Or that have priority Brave Bird), as well as opposing Bug types. It is also decent against Fire and Ice types as well.
The main problem with this Heracross however, is the fact that A. It isn't the fastest Pokemon in the world. B. 99.9% of the time, Talonflame will completely destroy this guy. C. Gliscor is a dangerous Pokemon that completely walls this set. However, the rest of the team builds around these problems, and actually does a decent job in allowing Heracross to sweep. And with that, here is the rest of them!
Scolipede (M) @ Mental Herb
Ability: Speed Boost
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 20 Def / 240 Spe
Timid Nature
- Protect
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Swords Dance
The other only original member of the Mono-Bug team, Scolipede is a great Baton Passer with access to Speed Boost and Swords Dance. After a couple Speed Boosts, Scolipede can make Heracross an incredibly fast sweeper. And that is exactly what it did in the old team, and this team. The EV spread gives Scolipede enough speed and bulk to take a few hits while it is setting up.
Holding a Mental Herb helps Scolipede not get taunted before it can retreat safely behind a Substitute for the set up. Protect not only allows Scolipede to get a free Speed Boost up, but it also allows Scolipede to scout out what the opponent plans to do.
Now, the only problem with Scolipede here is that fact that both it, and Heracross, share many of the same weaknesses, so it can be a little hard to get a successful pass in without Heracross being smacked in the face with a Super Effective move.
Tyranitar (M) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sand Stream
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 SpD
Impish Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
Tyranitar is a great addition to this team as it really helps with Heracross' massive weakness to Talonflame, and Flying-types in general. This is a defensive set, and while I would have loved to run Assault Vest T-Tar, the necessity for Stealth Rocks was to important to run it, so Leftover has taken its place. With 248 HP, and 252 Def, Tyranitar is really tough to take down, and since the Sandstorm is generates raises it Special Defensive, it is a tank from all around.
Now, as stated before, Stealth Rocks is essential for dealing with Talonflame, and if I see one on the Team Preview, Tyranitar has to go out first. Stone Edge is the main STAB move, allowing Tyranitar to check and counter Talonflame every way possible, while Crunch is used as secondary STAB for Psychic types that also threaten both Scolipede and Heracross. Lastly, for coverage we have Earthquake, however I am thinking of replacing it with Ice Beam to help with the problem that is Gliscor.
Greninja (F) @ Life Orb
Ability: Protean
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Ice Beam
- Hydro Pump
- Dark Pulse
- Hidden Power [Fire]
Greninja is a great member of this team thanks to its amazing speed, and the sheer tool boxing ability it has thanks to Protean. Greninja is also essential as it helps deal with Gliscor, which I have stated before, completely walls Heracross. The EVs make Greninja hit hard and fast, while Life Orb gives its attack that little extra oomph needed to get a KO.
Ice Beam is the main move for the set, allowing Greninja to take out Gliscor and Landorus, both of which can cause Heracross problems. Hydro Pump is the best Water move to use on this, hitting all manner of Pokemon. Dark Pulse also helps get rid of Psychic types. And finally, Hidden Power Fire, which I have seen it becoming way more common on Greninja these days, allows Greninja to one shot Ferrothorn, and deal with almost all Steel types, except for Heatran.
Goodra (F) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sap Sipper
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Calm Nature
- Dragon Pulse
- Sludge Bomb
- Thunderbolt
- Fire Blast
Why do I keep coming back to Goodra? Almost every team I post on here has Goodra. Well, it is quite simple. Assault Vest Goodra walls all kinds of special threats, and I love it for that. I've stated before how Sap Sipper allows Goodra to switch into predicted Spore or Leech Seeds, and render them completely useless, while easily countering thanks to its wide array of moves. I've also stated before how this EV spread allows Goodra to stay bulky while being able to hit back hard.
Dragon Pulse is the main STAB here, being chosen over Draco Meteor to avoid the Special Attack drop. Sludge Bomb gives Fairy coverage, thanks to Goodra being able to take Moonblasts to the face all day. Thunderbolt also gives some useful Flying and Water Coverage, while Fire Blast allows Goodra to deal with the Grass-types that is switches into to take their Spore and Leech Seed.
Diggersby (M) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Huge Power
Shiny: Yes
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Return
- Earthquake
- Wild Charge
- U-turn
I have seriously underestimated Scarfed Diggersby until now. A powerful Revenge Killer, as well as a Scouter, Diggersby's attack stat combined with Huge Power makes is a force to be reckoned with. The EVs are to allow Diggersby to hit hard and fast, and since Huge Power gives it a buff anyway, Jolly allows Diggersby to be even more speedy.
Return is a great STAB option for Diggersby, and while it isn't super effective on anything, it is very powerful on anything that doesn't resist it. Earthquake is another STAB option, hitting, ironically enough, the Pokemon that resist Return. Wild Charge is an awesome coverage move that hits Water and Flying types, while U-Turn gives Digersby great scouting capabilities.
