Mega Metagross: Has the novelty worn off?

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When ORAS was released, and the Shiny Beldum giveaway was active, I remember seeing loads of Mega Metagross on Battle Spot. And it made sense. Look at the stats of this thing! 150 Defense, 145 Attack, and 110 Speed, not to mention it all totals to 700! But recently I've been seeing it less and less on Battle Spot, despite its great STAB Coverage. Has the novelty worn off?
 
It has, mainly because of its low base power STAB moves, somewhat bad typing, and 3 moveslot syndrome because it really, really wants Protect. Adamant Hammer Arm can't reliably OHKO Kangaskhan, Clefairy can survive Iron Head without Intimidate (example given just to give an idea of how it barely misses out on a lot of OHKOs), it has Aegislash/Heatran/Landorus-T problems, and as a Steel-type for rain+steel teams, it's outclassed by Aegislash.

Hydreigon not being as good right now is also a factor. Hydra+Meta seems like a cool defensive combo until you realize neither wants to be taking too many hits and isn't flexible enough because Metagross really wants to Protect turn 1 and Hydreigon likes to be Choiced. It's weird how something with such high defenses could be considered not bulky.

e: why is this in C&C lol...
 
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When ORAS was released, and the Shiny Beldum giveaway was active, I remember seeing loads of Mega Metagross on Battle Spot. And it made sense. Look at the stats of this thing! 150 Defense, 145 Attack, and 110 Speed, not to mention it all totals to 700! But recently I've been seeing it less and less on Battle Spot, despite its great STAB Coverage. Has the novelty worn off?
I still think its a great mon. But the popularity of things like Heatran/Landorus/Aegislash really hit it hard. It does have a few decent matchups, but nothing really worth writing home about. In almost every case i'd rather use a Mega Mawile.
 
I still think its a great mon. But the popularity of things like Heatran/Landorus/Aegislash really hit it hard. It does have a few decent matchups, but nothing really worth writing home about. In almost every case i'd rather use a Mega Mawile.
I love Mega Mawile to death. It's got incredible typing, and Huge Power makes it a complete savage. But the low HP Stat almost always gives it a need for Trick Room, which personally I feel is a bit tedious.
 
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It has, mainly because of its low base power STAB moves, somewhat bad typing, and 3 moveslot syndrome because it really, really wants Protect. Adamant Hammer Arm can't reliably OHKO Kangaskhan, Clefairy can survive Iron Head without Intimidate (example given just to give an idea of how it barely misses out on a lot of OHKOs), it has Aegislash/Heatran/Landorus-T problems, and as a Steel-type for rain+steel teams, it's outclassed by Aegislash.

Hydreigon not being as good right now is also a factor. Hydra+Meta seems like a cool defensive combo until you realize neither wants to be taking too many hits and isn't flexible enough because Metagross really wants to Protect turn 1 and Hydreigon likes to be Choiced. It's weird how something with such high defenses could be considered not bulky.

e: why is this in C&C lol...
I understand what you're saying about protect, the jump from 70 Speed to 110Speed is pretty significant. In all honesty, I use Mega Metagross mainly as a counter for Mega Salamence, as usual on Dragon/Flying types, Ice Punch OHKO's. And more and more I've been running into Special Mega Salamence, and Metagross with 4HP investment has been able to take both Fire Blast and Flamethrower, on what appeared to be a full special set on Mega Salamence. (Protect, Fire Blast/Flamethrower, Hyper Voice, Draco Meteor)
Also, I almost always choose Meteor Mash over Iron Head.
 
Meteor Mash over Iron Head is trading away one of the few good things about Mega Meta for an inaccurate move in vgc. A 30% chance to skip your opponent's turn far outweighs the <20% chance of a boost.

Not to mention Ice Punch doesn't fix any of Metagross' problems. It still walls Salamence and can 2KO it but still struggles against Bisharp, Aegislash, and Heatran. The only problem Ice punch fixes is letting you beat Landorus and you're probably eating an earthquake anyway
 
I love Mega Mawile to death. It's got incredible typing, and Huge Power makes it a complete savage. But the low HP Stat almost always gives it a need for Trick Room, which personally I feel is a bit tedious.
Imo the Intimidate makes up for how frail it is. Gives it a bit of "unseen" bulk.
 
I love Mega Mawile to death. It's got incredible typing, and Huge Power makes it a complete savage. But the low HP Stat almost always gives it a need for Trick Room, which personally I feel is a bit tedious.
Intimidate + Screens can really help if you're not really into running Trick Room. At the beginning of Gen 6 I used to run it with Screen Support and the longevity was amazing!
 
What are some thoughts about using it in a Dual Mega team with Megazard Y, Mega Salamence, or something else?
Using a dual mega team is completely possible, however it is not what it was in the 14 seaso . It can still be pulled of though, and preferably with one Pokemon that can work non-mega, but that is by no means a necessity. Also this is more suited for the VGC 15 Simple Questions thread, there is no reason to bring this up in a thread for discussing Mega Metagross.
 
Using a dual mega team is completely possible, however it is not what it was in the 14 seaso . It can still be pulled of though, and preferably with one Pokemon that can work non-mega, but that is by no means a necessity. Also this is more suited for the VGC 15 Simple Questions thread, there is no reason to bring this up in a thread for discussing Mega Metagross.
To be honest, Mega Metagross is a pretty good team member to those Mega Evolutions that deter Gardevoir. The RMT on my sign showcases a pretty OK Mega Metagross dual mega, which primary mega was Venusaur. Lots of options to look around.
 

FloristtheBudew

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I had a discussion with some members elsewhere a week or so ago about Mega Metagross. So I will talk about some points that we bought up in the conversation.

  • The things Metagross once out sped with 252 jolly are no where near as relevant as they once were in the metagame.
Fact is Terrakion has seen diminished useage. Something that Metagross dealt with perfectly. In fact a lot of the Base 101-110 tier have really dropped off in useage. So a max speed Metagross could be less useful. So running adamant with a mix of speed and bulk was an idea we approached. It deals better with the meta this way and still keeps the redeeming values it has.

  • Gardevoir team archetypes has seen increased usage with the western side of the world.
Which Metagross deals with comfortable since Metagross teams should have ways to stop trick room and then run through these kinds of teams. Ideal partners are generally Thundurus and Hydreigion since they help with a lot of issue with Metagross deals with.

The team needs to beat opposing Steel-Types and Fire/ Ground types. Blaziken and Milotic both help with match ups against the things Metagross fails to match up to such as Mega Kangaskhan, Landorus-Therian and Incarnate, Aegislash and Heatran.

  • Weather teams are something Metagross teams need to aware of and have ways to deal with them.
For me I think a weather setter helps so I would go Tyranitar. As it helps with Sun and Rain match ups well. It also deals with opposing Thundurus since they can paralyze your team and hinder your speed and major offense. I like Lum since it deals with match ups better such as Trick Room etc.
 
To be completely honest i think that metagross is a pretty good mon in this metagame.Allthough it has a flaw that holds it back and unfavorable match up against most of the top threats it still can beat quite a few.For example:Amoonguss,Garde,MVenu,MMence(Thats if carrying ice punch),Thundurus(if lucky).
 
To be completely honest i think that metagross is a pretty good mon in this metagame.Allthough it has a flaw that holds it back and unfavorable match up against most of the top threats it still can beat quite a few.For example:Amoonguss,Garde,MVenu,MMence(Thats if carrying ice punch),Thundurus(if lucky).
Carrying Ice Punch won't really help it against M-Venusaur. Zen Headbutt does the job much better (due to Thick Fat). Venusaur's not going to do a lot back to it anyway (unless its carrying Earthquake for reasons beyond my comprehension).

Metagross can work as a mega, but it's problem is that it requires a lot more support to work than other megas in the format do. For example, Mega Salamence at least reinforces its bulk with Intimidate pre-mega and Mega Venusaur has enough bulk, recovery and a good enough ability to function fairly independantly. I would say about Mega Kanga, but that topics done to death by now.

The other problem is has is the odd coverage provided by its STAB moves. Not having a lot of super effective type matchups against other Pokemon in the format really hurts its chances of scoring KOs, especially when its so vulnerable to intimidate and burns.
 
Carrying Ice Punch won't really help it against M-Venusaur. Zen Headbutt does the job much better (due to Thick Fat). Venusaur's not going to do a lot back to it anyway (unless its carrying Earthquake for reasons beyond my comprehension).

Metagross can work as a mega, but it's problem is that it requires a lot more support to work than other megas in the format do. For example, Mega Salamence at least reinforces its bulk with Intimidate pre-mega and Mega Venusaur has enough bulk, recovery and a good enough ability to function fairly independantly. I would say about Mega Kanga, but that topics done to death by now.

The other problem is has is the odd coverage provided by its STAB moves. Not having a lot of super effective type matchups against other Pokemon in the format really hurts its chances of scoring KOs, especially when its so vulnerable to intimidate and burns.
I meant ice punch for mence and Thundurus not for MVenu.What you said of being outclassed it is kind of true but it can still be a deadly threat to much of the Meta.It has EQ(Which it doesnt use),Ice Punch,Thunder punch.It does have some coverage
 
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