[OVERVIEW]
Thanks to Tinted Lens making Yanmega's STAB moves a lot more spammable, it can act as an fantastic Choice Specs wallbreaker against bulkier and slower teams. Yanmega also has access to Speed Boost, which makes it a solid sweeper against frailer offensive teams, which generally don't carry the means to properly deal with it defensively nor offensively. Yanmega's typing is pretty bad defensively, however, as it leaves Yanmega weak to common offensive Fire-, Ice-, Electric-, Rock-, and Flying-types like Salazzle, Mega Glalie, Rotom-H, Rhyperior, and Moltres. Its typing also gives it a hefty weakness to Stealth Rock, which cuts away 50% of its health upon switching in.
[SET]
name: Choice Specs
move 1: Bug Buzz
move 2: Air Slash
move 3: U-turn
move 4: Giga Drain
item: Choice Specs
ability: Tinted Lens
nature: Timid
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Bug Buzz is Yanmega's strongest STAB move and does a ton of damage to Pokemon that aren't specially defensive walls. Air Slash is Yanmega's secondary STAB move; while less powerful than Bug Buzz, it offers better coverage, 2HKOes Doublade, and hits Soundproof Kommo-o. U-turn allows Yanmega to take advantage of switches and gain momentum for its team against Pokemon like Moltres, Gigalith, and Porygon2; U-turn can also rack up damage to allow Yanmega to 2HKO certain Pokemon later. Giga Drain lets Yanmega OHKO Rhyperior and 2HKO non-specially defensive Milotic, the latter after Stealth Rock damage. Psychic is able to OHKO both Nidoqueen and offensive Roserade and 2HKO Dragalge, which Yanmega fails to achieve with any other move.
Set Details
========
Maximum Special Attack and Speed investment in conjunction with a Timid nature maximizes Yanmega's offensive potential and allows it to outspeed and threaten Roserade, Kommo-o, Rotom-C, and anything slower. Tinted Lens means Yanmega doesn't have to worry about Pokemon that resist its STAB moves, and when used with Choice Specs, it allows Yanmega to properly wallbreak.
Usage Tips
========
Use Yanmega to punch holes into bulky teams and clear the path for teammates to clean up. This Yanmega set wants to be spamming Bug Buzz, but it may be more beneficial to use Air Slash or Giga Drain when the opponent has certain Pokemon, like Doublade, Kommo-o, and Rhyperior. U-turn should be used minimally and only if Yanmega is forcing a switch and it is beneficial to gain momentum instead of firing off an attack. Prevent Yanmega from switching into Stealth Rock, as this will significantly damage it, putting it in KO range of a lot of attacks.
Team Options
========
Entry hazard removal from Pokemon like Gligar, Rotom-C, and Tsareena is essential, since Yanmega loses around 50% of its health from switching into Stealth Rock. Xatu and Espeon also deserve a mention because they're able to consistently keep hazards off the field thanks to their ability, Magic Bounce. While Yanmega doesn't like getting chipped down by entry hazards itself, it appreciates entry hazards on the opposing side of the field, since Yanmega forces switches into its common answers like Registeel and Porygon2, allowing the entry hazards to chip away at their health. On bulkier teams, Pokemon such as Chesnaught, Mega Steelix, Dragalge, and Bronzong are able to consistently provide hazard support for Yanmega. For more offensive teams, Mega Glalie, Roserade, and Nidoqueen are able to pressure common forms of hazard removal to ensure their hazards stay up on the field. Pokemon like Chesnaught, Rotom-C, and Sigilyph lure in Pokemon that Yanmega can beat; by having these teammates and predicting the opponent to go to their check, Yanmega can potentially get a free switch-in to KO something. Late-game cleaners like Dragon Dance Flygon, Curse Snorlax, Toxicroak, Durant, and Nasty Plot Salazzle can break through the opposing team once Yanmega has made way for them to do so; they're also able to pressure Steel-types for Yanmega. Pokemon that have similar checks to Yanmega, like Necrozma, Gardevoir, Dragalge, and Snorlax, can overwhelm checks that they have in common.
[SET]
name: Speed Boost Sweeper
move 1: Protect
move 2: Bug Buzz
move 3: Air Slash
move 4: Giga Drain
item: Life Orb
ability: Speed Boost
nature: Modest
evs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Protect prevents Yanmega from being damaged, grants it a free Speed boost, and allows it to scout for Z-Moves. Bug Buzz is Yanmega's strongest STAB move, capable of hitting Dark- and Psychic-types like Umbreon, Necrozma, and Cresselia for super effective damage and ignoring Substitute. Air Slash is Yanmega's secondary STAB move and allows it to beat Pokemon like Kommo-o, Bewear, and Decidueye. Giga Drain heals Life Orb damage and lets Yanmega OHKO Rhyperior. Hidden Power Fire can 2HKO Doublade and OHKO Escavalier, which both otherwise wall this set. Psychic can be used to hit Nidoqueen and Dragalge, which can take any other hit from this set and retaliate with a strong move, potentially OHKOing Yanmega. Shadow Ball can be used because it gives Yanmega a good way to hit Doublade and Gardevoir for super effective damage while also offering nice neutral coverage against a lot of Pokemon.
Set Details
========
Maximum Special Attack and Speed investment in conjunction with a Modest nature maximizes Yanmega's offensive potential; there's no reason to run a Timid nature, since Speed Boost will consistently make Yanmega faster. Speed Boost allows Yanmega to outspeed the whole unboosted tier after just one activation and as well as some of the boosted tier like Choice Scarf Gardevoir if it hasn't copied Speed Boost. Life Orb provides Yanmega with a major power boost, allowing it to OHKO or 2HKO a large portion of the tier.
Usage Tips
========
Yanmega should be used as a wincon against frailer, more offensively oriented teams and can also be used as a late-game cleaner against bulkier teams. Use Protect to get a free Speed boost whenever attempting to sweep with Yanmega unless it is against Pokemon like Feraligatr and Doublade because they might use the free turn to set up. Try to keep Yanmega healthy early-game, only bringing it in whenever it can revenge kill a weakened Pokemon. Prevent Yanmega from switching in to Stealth Rock, as this will significantly damage it, putting it in KO range of a lot of attacks, even its own Life Orb recoil if it has to fire off five attacks. Yanmega has trouble taking even neutral hits because of its rather lacking defensive stats, so prevent it from taking too much unnecessary damage.
Team Options
========
Entry hazard removal from Pokemon like Gligar, Tsareena, and Rotom-C is mandatory with Yanmega due to its Stealth Rock weakness. Yanmega may not like entry hazards on its own side of the field, but it definitely likes to have them on the opposing side of the field, especially Spikes, since they allow Yanmega to pick up quite a few KOs that it otherwise just misses out on. Pokemon like Mega Steelix, Chesnaught, Mega Glalie, and Dragalge are capable of setting up entry hazards for Yanmega. Nidoqueen and Salazzle are able to beat a lot of Yanmega's common answers in Doublade, Florges, and Registeel; Nidoqueen can also set up Stealth Rock, aiding Yanmega with sweeping. Wallbreakers like Swords Dance Feraligatr, Choice Band Zygarde-10%, and Choice Band Snorlax can weaken the opposing team for Yanmega and allow it to sweep more easily. Pokemon that can set up hail or sand like Abomasnow and Gigalith are excellent teammates because they negate Leftovers recovery from checks to Yanmega, potentially allowing it to break through them.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Ancient Power can be used to allow Yanmega to OHKO Moltres, but it doesn't offer much else, and Yanmega doesn't really have a moveslot for it on either of its sets. Tailwind can be used on Yanmega's Choice Specs set instead of U-turn or Giga Drain to support its team, but it's a rather poor option because U-turn and Giga Drain offer more utility in most cases.
Checks and Counters
===================
**Specially Defensive Walls**: Porygon2, Florges, Diancie, and Gigalith can wall Yanmega with ease and cripple it with Toxic and stall it out of health. Diancie and Gigalith can even OHKO Yanmega with their STAB moves.
**Stealth Rock**: Stealth Rock cuts 50% of Yanmega's HP, putting it in KO range of a lot of attacks. Common Stealth Rock setters like Diancie, Gigalith, and Registeel can even set up Stealth Rock on Yanmega.
**Snorlax**: Due to Snorlax's solid Special Defense stat, it's capable of taking any one hit from Yanmega and, if running Curse, setting up on it. Choice Band Snorlax can also threaten to OHKO Yanmega with Double-Edge.
**Steel-types**: Steel-types such as Registeel and Escavalier can absorb most hits from Speed Boost Yanmega, but they have to be wary of Hidden Power Fire and tend to struggle with the Choice Specs set a lot more. Registeel deserves its own special mention because of its ability to take hits from the Choice Specs set as well as the Speed Boost set, but its lack of reliable recovery means it gets worn down rather quickly.
**Defensive Moltres**: Moltres is capable of stopping Choice Specs Yanmega from spamming Bug Buzz and can take most hits Yanmega can throw at it thanks to its solid natural bulk and typing. In return, it can threaten Yanmega with Flamethrower, though it does have to be wary of Air Slash and the rare Ancient Power, which can 2HKO and OHKO it respectively.
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