[Grammar] Machamp

Discussion in 'LU Analyses' started by Afro Smash, May 21, 2014.

  1. Afro Smash

    Afro Smash Mfw I'm living the Australian dream

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    Machamp [​IMG]
    [​IMG]


    Overview:
    Machamp has always been a stellar pokemon, boasting a huge 130 Atk stat, good 90/80/85 defences and access to the absolutely devastating combination of No Guard and Dynamic Punch. Dynamic Punch's guaranteed Confusion means that any potential Counter has a chance to lose to repeated Confusion hits, making them shaky at best. Knock Off also got an incredible boost this gen, meaning Machamp now has a way to punish any Ghost or Psychic types hoping to come in and sponge a Dynamic Punch. Combine this with Machamp's Stone Edge and Heavy Slam coverage to nail Flying, Bug and Fairy types, and you'll see why effectively countering him is such an incredibly difficult task.

    However Machamp is not without his downsides. He remains very slow at base 55 Speed, being outpaced by virtually all other offensive pokemon in the tier, his No Guard ability is a double edged sword as it means all attacks aimed at him will also always hit, and finally the introduction of Fairy types has meant Machamp has a few more Checks to contend with than usual. Overall though Machamp's power, bulk, coverage and Dynamic Punches make him a force that's very hard to handle in this LU metagame.

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    Assault Vest:
    Machamp (M) @ Assault Vest
    Trait: No Guard
    EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SDef
    Adamant Nature (+Atk, -SAtk)

    - Knock Off
    - Bullet Punch/Heavy Slam
    - Stone Edge
    - Dynamic Punch

    Machamp makes for a great user of Assault Vest due to his naturally high defences and his fantastic coverage with just 4 attacking moves, meaning he does not require Toxic or Bulk Up to get around the majority of LU. Dynamic Punch is a powerful STAB option with the incredible effect of getting guaranteed confusion on everything it hits, which makes it easy to spam and can leave potential Counters open for repeated hits. Stone Edge gives you coverage on Flying and Bug types, is your strongest attack vs. Fire types, and it too benefits greatly from the 100% accuracy given by No Guard. Knock Off allows you nail Ghost and Psychic types, and is also useful in general for removing key items from opposing pokemon. Finally Heavy Slam is used for coverage on Fairy types such as Aromatisse, Whimsicott and Granbull and can for huge damage due to Fairies tending to be very light. Bullet Punch is also a good option to somewhat mitigate Machamp's low Speed and pick of weakened pokemon, though you will be unable to effectively take on Fairy types.

    Guts is a fairly good option to allow you to recklessly switch in to Scalds and not fear Will o Wisps, and can also be used in conjunction with the more powerful Close Combat to really pack a punch. Despite this however it is always incredibly difficult to justify giving up No Guard and Dynamic Punch when it is so effective.

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    Other Options:
    A Lum Berry can be used for to allow you to absorb the odd Burn thrown at you, however it is generally not as useful as the survivability which Assault Vest offers. A Choice Band can make Machamp hit incredibly hard, but it's never recommended to Choice lock a pokemon with coverage as great as Machamp's. A classic Substitute Bulk Up set does still have potential, however with the introduction of Fairies Machamp can no longer have perfect coverage with just 2 moves.

    Ice Punch allows you to OHKO Flygon, beat Gligar 1 on 1, and offers SE coverage on Nidoqueen and Amoonguss. Fire Punch can be used to hit Amoonguss for SE damage, and lands OHKO's on Escavalier and Durant. Earthquake is a good option for hitting Poison types such as Qwilfish, Tentacruel and Nidoqueen for a 2HKO. Power-Up Punch is an interesting option to boost your Attack to frightening levels, however it will force you to give up crucial coverage.

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    Checks/Counters

    Dynamic Punch Confusion and impeccable coverage makes reliably Countering Machamp notoriously difficult, but there are still a handful which will come out on top majority of the time.

    Nidoqueen, Tentacruel and Qwilfish can all take on Machamp's lacking EQ. Physically Defensive Amoonguss can take on sets lacking Fier/Ice Punch and put Machamp to Sleep. Bulky Psychics such as Reuniclus and Slowking can tank the initial Knock Off and recover up, after which Machamp can only 3HKO at best whilst being 2HKO'd by Psychock. Whimsicott, Granbull and Aromatisse are effective Counters to Machamps lacking Heavy Slam. Alomomola and Tangrowth boast massive Physical Defense and are only 4HKO'd by Dynamic Punch, however they will lose to repeated Confusion hits. Finally Xatu, Yangmega and Sigilyph all 4x resist Dynamic Punch, however they all risk hitting themselves in Confusion and dying to a Stone Edge the next turn.
     
    Last edited: Aug 18, 2014
  2. meeps

    meeps Well-Known Member

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    hi

    looks goods, could add specs in oo, it isn't too bad and nice surprise factor for alomomola and tangrowth kinda

    not really too much to cover yeah

    approved
     
  3. Spoovo The Pirate

    Spoovo The Pirate Meep! Article Contributor Article Contributor

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    I dunno about Specs, but Fire Blast definitely wants a mention imo for hitting Tangrowth and other physical walls much harder:

    252+ Atk Machamp Fire Punch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Tangrowth: 148-176 (36.6 - 43.5%) -- 99.1% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
    0 SpA Machamp Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Tangrowth: 192-228 (47.5 - 56.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery

    Unlikely situation, I know (I calc'd vs 252 HP / 252 SAtk Modest for equality's sake), but look at that difference. Uninvested, too.
     
  4. Afro Smash

    Afro Smash Mfw I'm living the Australian dream

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    Backslashed Lum berry, will add in a Specs set but note that it is very gimmicky, and since we're down a qc atm I've started writing it up with 1 approval.
     
  5. Proof

    Proof Well-Known Member

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    You stole my mon... feelings. I only really have two things to say. Primarily I don't really think lum berry is worth slashing as guts assault vest would be better at absorbing status, and overall no guard assault vest would still be way better than lum berry. With sleep being hindered this generation, and assault vest already helping machamp's survivability a lot, I think lum berry's unnecessary. Also, just something to note, I think heavy slam would be better as a coverage move than poison jab. Heavy slam is weaker on granbull, but it provides much heavier damage on aromatisse, which is also more common.

    252+ Atk Machamp Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Aromatisse: 254-300 (62.5 - 73.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

    252+ Atk Machamp Poison Jab vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Aromatisse: 170-202 (41.8 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
     
  6. Afro Smash

    Afro Smash Mfw I'm living the Australian dream

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    Ah yeah Heavy Slam, will put it in over Jab now, and ait ill laeve Lum in OO or set comments,
     
  7. Afro Smash

    Afro Smash Mfw I'm living the Australian dream

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    Writted it up in full I did.