Smogon-style thing for Mega Typhlosion

Haven’t done one of these for a while, here goes.

Mega Typhlosion makes a return to Insurgence, still possessing many of the positive traits that made it a powerhouse in ZO. A great ability in Hubris, a powerful attack in Eruption, and a massive 160 base Sp Atk, coupled with a speedy base 125 Speed, means that Mega Typhlosion has the power to rip apart enemy teams that are unprepared to face it. Hubris lets it snowball and make it even more difficult to kill off, and few teams are prepared to switch in on a full HP Eruption to begin with.

However, Typhlosion suffers from a few critical flaws, chief among which is a horrible movepool, which limits much of its coverage options and forcing it to rely on Hidden Power to get by, and leaving it walled by a number of Pokemon. Furthermore, while a full power Eruption is no doubt dangerous, especially with a Hubris boost, being worn down easily by entry hazards and priority moves such as Sucker Punch and Aqua Jet leave it struggling to maintain its HP high enough for Eruption to be at its most effective. It also faces extremely stiff competition from the other Fire types in its tier, all of which offer some degree of utility compared to Typhlosion and have considerably better movepools.

Despite these failings, Typhlosion is not a Pokemon to be underestimated. Letting it snowball is a very dangerous task, one that may result in a total party kill. At the same time, however, one should also consider its shortcomings when adding it to a team.

Final Verdict: BL2, could be UU or RU depending on feedback.

Set 1: I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire

Nature: Timid EV: 4 Def/252 SpA/252 Spe Item: Typhlosionite

  • Eruption
  • Fire Blast
  • Hidden Power Grass/Ice
  • Focus Blast

Eruption is a powerful attack that reaches a base 150 power at full health and can rip apart anything that doesn’t resist it. Fire Blast is the more consistent option, allowing Typhlosion to still have a Fire-type STAB to fall back on at low health, and should be used when health is down to 73% or lower. Hidden Power Grass is used to hit Pokemon that attempt to switch into Eruption or Fire Blast, such as Swampert, Suicune, or Aerodactyl. Focus Blast is used primarily against the other Fire types in the tier, such as Arcanine and Entei, but can also be used against the Dragon types such as Hydreigon and Haxorus. HP Ice can be used to get more purchase against Flying and Dragon types, but leaves it vulnerable to Water types.

Other options:

Typhlosion doesn’t have a lot at its disposal, as a vast majority of its best moves are Physical. Extrasensory can be used to get past Chandelure and Moltres, which otherwise wall it off comfortably, but it struggles to fit the move into its slots. A Sunny Day + Solar Beam combo can be considered, but the extra setup time required, coupled with the removal of coverage, leave it very vulnerable.

Checks and Counters:

Fire Types: Barring the rare Extrasensory, Chandelure is capable of easily switching into anything Typhlosion can throw at it, and force it out with the threat of a powerful Shadow Ball. Moltres is just as effective, resisting every single move Typhlosion has bar HP Ice. To a lesser extent, Arcanine, Darmanitan and Entei are also good checks, but the three of them have to watch out for Focus Blast, and Entei, Darmanitan and Intimidate-variant Arcanine cannot tank too many full power Eruptions.

Faster Pokemon: Pokemon such as Mega Beedrill, Mega Aerodactyl and Mega Sceptile, are capable of outspeeding Mega Typhlosion, and giving it no shortage of trouble in smacking it around. Most Pokemon with a Choice Scarf also qualify, as they can come in and proceed to either revenge kill Typhlosion, or weaken it badly. Key examples of this include Haxorus, Hydreigon, and Krookodile.

Status: Typhlosion hates status with a passion. Paralysis effectively turns it into dead weight, while Toxic cuts into Eruption’s power and the longetivity of Typhlosion’s sweep. Klefki and Whimsicott are especially good at this, as they can use Prankster to outspeed Typhlosion and status it, even if they wind up OHKO’d by an Eruption shortly afterwards.

Priority: No Typhlosion will ever be able to easily deal with priority moves, as not only do they deal damage but also cut into Eruption’s power, giving it a much harder time than required to kill off its opponents. A weakness to Aqua Jet is especially troubling.

Water types: Most Water types have the bulk required to tank at least one of Typhlosion’s hits, and can proceed to dent it heavily or OHKO it outright. Swampert and Suicune are outstanding examples of bulky mons that can deal with Typhlosion relatively easily. Other pokemon, such as Crawdaunt and Feraligatr, are also capable of denting Typhlosion with their moves, especially Aqua Jet. However, with the possible exception of Suicune, none of them can handle HP Grass, especially Swampert, and Crawdaunt runs the risk of being OHKO’d by Focus Blast and is not considered a safe switch in otherwise.

Special Walls: Blissey is a surefire counter to an unboosted Typhlosion, and even when boosted can comfortably take most of its attacks bar Focus Blast. Goodra also stands out as a check, being resistant to everything bar Focus Blast and HP Ice. Cresselia is a lesser variant, but is still capable of holding Typhlosion back.

Let me know what you guys think. Suggestions, deletions, possible tier shifts, all are welcome.

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