OU: Pokémon Gyarados Discussion Thread

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~* GYARADOS *~​

Gyarados
Type: Water / Flying
Abilities: Intimidate / Moxie (Hidden)
Stats: 95 / 125 / 79 / 60 / 100 / 81

Mega Gyarados
Type: Water / Dark
Ability: Mold Breaker
Stats: 95 / 155 / 109 / 70 / 130 / 81

Notable moves:

Bite
Ice Fang
Aqua Tail
Dragon Dance

Roar
Taunt
Earthquake
Return
Rest
Payback
Stone Edge
Thunder Wave
Dragon Tail
Sleep Talk
Bounce (BW2 MT)

None

Thoughts:

So, Mega Gyarados is a strange Pokemon that deserves some discussion. At first glance it would seem that the mega evolution is completely pointless. You end up with a worse defensive typing, a seemingly redundant ability, and Bite of all things to compliment your newly found STAB.

But on the other hand... I actually see a lot of potential. Gyarados can play mind games while setting up Dragon Dance boosts. In a flash it can lose its Rock weakness and tank a Thunderbolt with 130 base SpD. That kind of manuevre can allow you to secure an extra DD which is huge. Not only that, the change in typing can give you a bit of flexibility when developing your battle plan. Vanillia Gyarados remains a general check against physical attackers (albeit with no Leftovers), while Mega Gyarados can function as more of a special wall.

The set that peaks my interest the most originates from the 4th generation, back when RestTalk was actually a thing (note that the Sleep Counter no longer resets upon switching out in XY).

Gyarados @ Gyaradosite
Ability: Intimidate
Nature: ?
EVs: Defensively Distributed
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

You can rack up multiple boosts with a well timed form change, and can actually stand a chance against Dry Skin/Water Absorb/Storm Drain Pokemon due to Mold Breaker. Seems like a pretty cool set to me.

For what it's worth, I'm also looking forward to using this in the Battle Maison! Being able to pick and choose your weaks/resists is pretty nifty against AI that doesn't know how to switch out. :Y
 
Mega Gyarados is one of the megas that I was the most excited for. The ease it should have at setting up Dragon Dances is incredible. You can switch in and drop your opponent's attack with Indimidate, and then just Boost up and get a massive stat increase in Special Defense as well as only being 2x weak to Electric. I'm also interested in seeing how the old ResTalk set will perform now that the sleep mechanics are back. The one that was Rest/Sleep Talk/Roar (or dragon tail??)/Waterfall, I loved that set in DPP.

Also I'm curious as to why you think Mold Breaker is a redundant ability. It gave Gyarados a way to consistently beat one of its most common and effective hard counters in Wash Rotom. Earthquake will now hit through levitate scoring you a clean OHKO. Before all you could do was cry and hope for a Waterfall flinch. You also get a way of hitting Hydreigon, Latias, and Latios neutrally without having to rely on the really predictable Bounce (which doesn't get STAB in the mega forme) or Ice Fang (lol).

EDIT: I guess bite hits Latias, Latios, and Celebi harder, but I think EQ poses greater neutral coverage as well as hitting Steel-types for super-effective damage as opposed to neutral damage.
 
Actually, I somehow forgot about Rotom-W completely! My bad.

That teaches me to make these threads while procrastinating at work.
 
Mega-Gyarados is the step-up defensively that regular Gyarados was waiting for all this time. Water-Dark is not too bad of a typing even though it gains a Fighting weakness that is rather unfortunate. The ability to lose its quad-Electric weakness and forego Rapid Spin support with a simple megavolution increases its longevity by leaps and bounds. DDing has never been this easy (except for maybe Dragonite), and the +30 Atk boost makes it all the more threatening. Moreover, it gains the ability to smash Rotom-W, a huge block in the last gen. While there are pros and cons to Mega-Gyarados, it is definitely one of the more impacting megavolutions of the bunch. I definitely look forward to using it.

~AoH
 
Indeed, if you use it correctly, Mega Gyarados is a dangerous opponent. Like Teapot, I'm actually really interesting to see the Rest/Talk set. Only problem I find in that is the nerf on entry hazards, but that isn't enough on its own.
Also, note that Mold Breaker also allows Gyara to hit Gastrodon (at least that's what I remember). This could prove useful, although I dunno how prominent Gastrodon will be now that Rain's nerfed.
 
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