Mega Lucario

This analysis was written by User:charizard8888
* Mega Lucario is a powerful attacker in the 1v1 metagame. With an impressive Attack stat coupled with a compelling ability in Adaptability and a splendid movepool, Mega Lucario has the potential to turn otherwise improbable wins to its favor.
* It's also armed with a good Special Attack stat which enables it to go for a Special Attacking set as well.
* Mega Lucario's high speed lets it outspeed top-tier threats like both Mega Charizard formes, Mega Pinsir, Mega Gardevoir, and Durant, which allows it to fire off its powerful attacks without being forced to endure a great number of attacks from the foe. The only relevant Pokemon that outspeed it are Nagandel, Greninja, Tapu Koko, Mega Lopunny, and Choice Scarf users like Garchomp and Tapu Lele.
* Mega Lucario's powerful Fighting / Steel type STABs provides it effective offensive coverage as well as key resistances to Dragon, Ice, Rock, and Normal which enables it to take on the likes of Kyurem-B, Snorlax, Scarf Porygon-Z, Magearna, Crustle, and Durant. Its Steel typing also provides immunity to Poison which gives it the upper hand against Nihilego and Mega Venusaur.
* It's also equipped with utility moves. Magnet Rise lets it defeat common Ground-type Pokemon like Golem, Donphan, and non Scarf Garchomp, as well as Landorus-T with its Special Attacking set. With some bulk investment, Counter lets it defeat some of its common checks like Dragonite, Scarf Garchomp, and Mega Metagross.
* Mega Lucario's pre-Mega Evolution abilities Inner Focus and Steadfast are also useful which allow it to defeat Jirachi and Togekiss.
* It faces tough competition from other Fighting* as well as Steel-type Pokemon because of them being present in abundance, but it differentiates itself from them thanks to having high Speed, and by acting as a check to different Pokemon which the others might not be able to go against. Mega Heracross takes on Mega Sableye and Mega Slowbro better but loses out to Magearna which Mega Lucario is able to defeat. Mega Blaziken can defeat Greninja but loses out to Psychium Z Tapu Lele which Mega Lucario defeats.
* Sadly, its typing is also calls weak to common offensive types including Fire, Fighting, and Ground which leaves it vulnerable to Pokemon like Scarf Victini, Sawk, and Scarf Garchomp. Moreover, its sub-par bulk doesn't help either in taking other powerful attacks like Gigavolt Havoc from Tapu Koko and Hydro Cannon from Greninja.
* Its physical sets get completely walled by Mega Slowbro and Mega Sableye, while bulky Pokemon such as Primarina, Tapu Fini, Dragonite, and Aegislash are able to take hits from it and retaliate with their moves.
* Despite of having these drawbacks, Mega Lucario is one of the most reliable checks to some of the most used Pokemon in the metagame like Kyurem-B, both Mega Charizard formes (Without Flame Charge), Snorlax, Magearna, and Donphan as well as anti-meta Pokemon like Heatran and Mega Aggron.
=Reversal Engineering=
Lucario-Mega @ Lucarionite
Ability: Inner Focus
EVs: 228 Atk / 28 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Reversal
- Rock Tomb
- Magnet Rise / Swords Dance
==Set Comments==
===Moves===
* Repeated usage of Substitute reduces Mega Lucario's HP and increases Reversal's power. At the same time it safeguards Mega Lucario from Counter and status moves and the Flare Blitz recoil which Mega Charizard X suffers upon breaking Substitute makes Reversal a guaranteed KO even on the bulkiest of Mega Charizard X.
* Reversal is its main damaging move in the set reaching 200 Base Power on low health and, with the Adaptability boost, allows it to KO the likes of Mega Charizard X, Bulky Kyurem-B, Garchomp, Mega Aggron, Snorlax, and most of the time even Latios.
* Rock Tomb acts as a Speed control move which lets Mega Lucario outspeed Pokemon with speed boosting setup moves like Dragon Dance Mega Charizard X. It also lets Mega Lucario OHKO Blacephalon most of the time.
* Magnet Rise is used to allow Mega Lucario to defeat Pokemon that carry super effective Ground-type moves such as Donphan and Golem.
* Swords Dance is a useful setup move that allows Mega Lucario to even break through walls that resist Reversal, most importantly Mega Venusaur as well as bulky setup Pokemon like Curse Mega Aggron but it comes with the cost of losing to Ground-types like Golem and Donphan.
===Set Details===
* 252 Speed EVs with a Jolly nature lets it outspeed as many Pokemon as possible including Charizard, Non-Choice Scarf Garchomp, Mega Pinsir, Non-Choice Scarf Blacephalon, and Durant. 
* 28 SpD EVs ensure that Mega Lucario survives a Hyper Beam from Modest max Special Attack Porygon-Z.
* The remaining 228 EVs are invested in Atk to enhance Mega Lucario's offensive capability by letting it hit as hard as possible.
* Its calculated HP stat already happens to be an odd number which lets it use Substitute 4 times before capping at 1% to make use of a high base powered Reversal.
* Inner Focus as the pre-mega ability prevents Lucario from flinching which lets it defeat Jirachi. Adaptability boosts Reversal's power after factoring STAB boost to incredibly high levels making Reversal a 400 Base Power move at 3% HP and below.
===Usage Tips===
* It's best to send Mega Lucario to battle if you predict the opponent to send Pokemon that get outsped and cannot stall it away such as both Mega Charizard formes, Magearna, Snorlax, and Donphan. Try to evade matching Mega Lucario against Ghost-types such as Mimikyu, Mega Sableye, Aegislash and other bulky Pokemon like Mega Slowbro, Mega Venusaur, Primarina, and Tapu Fini as they would mostly defeat it.
* Against most Pokemon, start by using Substitute to reduce HP for increasing Reversal's power. If the opposing Pokemon set up with moves such as Dragon Dance to boost their Speed, use Rock Tomb on the following turn to slow them down and then start again with Substitute till Mega Lucario's reaches the least amount of HP it can. If the foe's attacks do not break Substitute on a turn, you may use the more powerful move at that time, Reversal or Rock Tomb.
* Use Rock Tomb as the first move against potential Choice Scarf users such as Porygon-Z to outspeed them on the subsequent turns.
* If you predict Kyurem-B to be Scarfed, start with Rock Tomb; otherwise use Substitute multiple times until Mega Lucario reaches minimum HP and follow up with Reversal. If you're having trouble predicting the Kyurem-B set, it is adviseable to use Magnet Rise as it'll defeat Scarf Kyurem-B with Earth Power and other sets including Choice Specs and Groundium Z as well.
* When matched up against Jirachi, start with Rock Tomb while being in regular forme to avoid flinching and outpace Jirachi. Then mega evolve on the next turn and follow up with Reversal twice to grab the victory.
===Team Options===
* You should go for Magnet Rise in the set over Swords Dance if your team is weak to Golem and Donphan while the inverse should be done if the team lacks a Pokemon capable of defeating Mega Venusaur and Curse Mega Aggron.
* Choice Scarf Porygon-Z equipped with Ice Beam can be paired with Mega Lucario to defeat most of the Pokemon that outspeed it such as Greninja, Tapu Koko, Mega Lopunny, Naganadel, and Scarf Garchomp as well as bulky Pokemon including Zygarde-C and Landorus-T. Concurrently Mega Lucario checks Kyurem-B, Mega Aggron, Magearna, Donphan, and Golem (if carrying Magnet Rise) for Porygon-Z.
* Bulky Mega Charizard Y appreciates Mega Lucario's flair of taking on Mega Charizard X, Heatran, Snorlax, Donphan, and Golem. With Flame Charge equipped, Mega Charizard Y can help it by checking Mega Gyarados, Mimikyu, Landorus-T, Mega Slowbro, Greninja, Tapu Fini, Mega Venusaur, and Mega Mawile which usually defeat Mega Lucario.
* This Mega Lucario set doesn't have any powerful move to hit Ghost-type Pokemon. Taunt Mega Gyarados can take on most of the Ghost-types including Mimikyu, Aegislash, and Mega Sableye. In addition, it also defeats Dragonite, Magnezone, Scarf Garchomp, Sawk, and Choice Scarf Victini which defeat Mega Lucario. At the same time Mega Lucario defeats Mega Charizard Y, Mega Pinsir, Snorlax, Magearna, and Kartana which are common Mega Gyarados checks.
=Physical Predator=
Lucario-Mega @ Lucarionite
Ability: Steadfast
EVs: 212 Atk / 40 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe 
Jolly Nature
- High Jump Kick
- Meteor Mash
- Substitute / Magnet Rise
- Rock Slide
==Set Comments==
===Moves===
* High Jump Kick is Mega Lucario's Fighting STAB and the most powerful move in this set which KOes Kyurem-B, Offensive Mega Charizard X after Flare Blitz recoil, Porygon-Z, Mega Aggron, and Meloetta most of the time.
* Meteor Mash has relatively good accuracy and adds in a whole lot of possibilities to this set as the Steel-type STAB boosted by Adaptability lets it take on Psychium Z Tapu Lele, Mimikyu, Mega Gardevoir, Mega Medicham, and Mega Venusaur. It also has a 20% chance to raise Mega Lucario's Attack stat by 1 stage which can be helpful against Waterium Z Tapu Fini.
* Substitute helps in blocking status moves such as Charm and Sleep Powder from Mega Venusaur, Yawn from Snorlax, Counter and Metal Burst from Mega Ampharos, Crustle, and Mega Aggron, Mega Charizard Y's Blast Burn, taking Z-Moves such as Let's Snuggle Forever from Mimikyu and in increasing the Flare Blitz recoil damage suffered by Mega Charizard X which in turn helps in making High Jump Kick a guaranteed KO on the offensive variant.
* Magnet Rise helps Mega Lucario in defeating Ground-type Pokemon like non-Choice Scarf Garchomp, Landorus-T, Golem, and Donphan.
* Rock Slide hits Mega Charizard Y and Mega Pinsir. It also comes with a flinch chance which can be used against Pokemon like Dragonite, Sawk, Magnezone, Jumpluff, and Primarina Lucario's moves to get a flinch or two before following up with the appropriate STAB as they cannot be OHKOed by any of its moves. It can also be used to break Mimikyu's Disguise for similar reasons.
===Set Details===
*Maximum Speed investment with a Jolly nature allows Mega Lucario to outpace both Mimikyu, Mega Charizard, Mega Pinsir, Jumpluff, and other base 110 and below Speed Pokemon.
* 40 HP investment allows Mega Lucario to always take a combination of Play Rough and Shadow Sneak from Mimimkyu and Hyper Beam from Porygon-Z.
* The remaining 212 Attack EVs strengthen its offensive power enabling it to KO the likes of bulky Kyurem-B, offensive Mega Charizard X after Flare Blitz recoil, Durant, Mega Venusaur, and Meloetta.
* 4 Special Defense EVs make Genesect pick up a physical Attack boost from Download which allows Mega Lucario to take a Flamethrower from Choice Scarf variants.
* Steadfast increases its Speed upon flinching which lets it defeat Jirachi and Togekiss. Adaptability boosts the power of Mega Lucario's STAB moves namely High Jump Kick and Meteor Mash making them much more powerful.
===Usage Tips===
* This set possess instant power along with Steel-type STAB and unlike the SubReversal set, it's capable of defeating Curse Mega Aggron, some Mimikyu, and Psychium Z Tapu Lele.
* Using this set to its full potential is easy, just use the most powerful move against the foe. If all of the moves have the same effectiveness then in most cases, High Jump Kick should be used as it does the most damage.
* Against Pokemon whom Mega Lucario can't OHKO like Magearna, Mega Mawile, and Magnezone keep using Substitute multiple times hoping for their attacks to miss as it would be the only wincon for Mega Lucario.
* While up against Charizard, start with Substitute. If it turns out to be Mega Charizard Y, just use Rock Slide to KO it on the next turn. If It's Mega Charizard X, keep using Substitute until it uses Dragon Dance and then use High Jump Kick to always defeat Offensive Mega Charizard X, although Flame Charge equipped or bulk invested Mega Charizard X can still win.
* Mega Lucario should first use Substitute against potential Counter and Metal Burst users like Crustle and Mega Aggron.
* Do not mega evolve against Jirachi and go for High Jump Kick to pickup the win.
===Team Options===
* Mega Lucario set is one of the best counter to Kyurem-Black, Snorlax, and Mega Charizard Y. Pokemon weak to the aforementioned threats benefit having it in their team. Mega Venusaur is one such Pokemon and forms a great team option for Mega Lucario since it can take on most of the Sturdy Pokemon like Magnezone and Golem; bulky Pokemon such as Primarina, Tapu Fini, Mega Slowbro, and Aegislash; offensive threats including Sawk, Greninja, Tapu Koko, Mega Lopunny, and Choice Scarf Garchomp. In return, Mega Lucario checks Kyurem-B, Mega Charizard Y, Curse Mimikyu, Psychium Z Tapu Lele, Choice Specs Porygon-Z, and Mega Pinsir which can be troublesome for Mega Venusaur.
* 248 HP / 76 Def / 132 SpD bulk invested Choice Band Hoopa-Unbound is an interesting option which can defeat Mega Charizard Y, Mega Metagross, Special Tapu Koko, Greninja, Scarf Garchomp, Primarina, and Naganadel. In Hoopa-Unbound's support, Mega Lucario can take on Snorlax, Mimikyu, Kartana, Golem (If carrying Magnet Rise), and Mega Aggron.
=The Special Stormbringer=
Lucario-Mega @ Lucarionite
Ability: Steadfast
EVs: 212 SpA / 40 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe 
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Focus Blast
- Flash Cannon
- Substitute
- Magnet Rise
==Set Comments==
===Moves===
* Adaptability boosted Focus Blast is Mega Lucario's most powerful attack which deals heavy damage being capable of KOing Bulky Kyurem-B, Snorlax, bulky Mega Charizard X, and mostly Mega Mawile though it also comes with a 30% chance of missing.
* Flash Cannon is a reliable Steel-type STAB which hits Fairy-types like Mega Gardevoir and Tapu Lele super effectively and other Pokemon that resist or are immune to Focus Blast like Mega Venusaur, Mimikyu, and Landorus-T.
* Substitute helps in defeating Bulky Mega Charizard X by increasing recoil damage, taking Mimikyu's Let's Snuggle Forever, and blocking Sleep moves from Mega Venusaur and Snorlax. It also increases Mega Lucario's chances of winning against Pokemon that use moves with imperfect accuracy and aren't OHKOed by Mega Lucario such as Magearna and Magnezone. With repeated usage of Substitute the foe's attacks would only break Mega Lucario's Substitute and with 4 hits required to break 4 Substitutes, Mega Lucario can hope for them to miss once while breaking the Substitute and can then 2HKO them while they try to break Substitute.
* Magnet Rise provides immunity to Ground-type attacks, letting it defeat Non-Choice Scarf Garchomp, Landorus-T, Golem, and Donphan.
===Set Details===
* Maximum Speed investment with a Timid nature lets it outspeed Kartana, Durant, Mimikyu, and Charizard and enables it to fire off its Attacks while taking the least number of hits possible.
* 40 HP investment allow Mega Lucario to always take a combination of Play Rough and Shadow Sneak from Mimimkyu and Hyper Beam from Porygon-Z.
* 212 Special Attack investment provides Mega Lucario the much needed firepower required to hit as hard as possible and take on Pokemon such as Mega Sableye, Bulky Mega Charizard X, and also having a high chance of defeating Mega Mawile.
* 4 Special Defense investment forces Genesect to pick up physical attack boost from Download which helps Mega Lucario in surviving a Flamethrower from it most of the time.
* Steadfast raises Mega Lucario's speed by 1 stage when it gets flinched which allows it to defeat Jirachi and Togekiss. Adaptability amplifies the power of its STAB moves Focus Blast and Flash Cannon making them even more lethal with boosted 240 and 160 Base Power respectively.
===Usage Tips===
* The special set is not much anticipated by the opponents since it's comparatively less used so make use of its surprise factor as it can defeat Pokemon like Mega Mawile, Landorus-T and Mega Sableye most of the time while its other sets can't. However, Mega Lucario trades away guaranteed win against Mega Charizard Y as it can survive 2 Focus Blast hits and turn the match into mind games with the amount of Substitutes required.
* While up against Mega Charizard X, keep using Substitute until they use Dragon Dance to increase Flare Blitz's recoil damage in order to pick up the victory up against bulky variants as well.
* When matched up against Dragonite, use Magnet Rise as it is Mega Lucario's best hope of winning.
* Refrain from Mega Evolving against Jirachi and Togekiss until it gets a Steadfast speed boost and while being in the regular forme click on the appropriate STAB move.
===Team Options===
* Archeops equipped with Choice Band OHKOes Dragonite, both Mega Charizard formes, Primarina, Tapu Fini, Mega Blastoise, Mega Heracross, and Meloetta which can defeat Mega Lucario while Mega Lucario can scare Archeops' checks as it can defeat the likes of Kyurem-B, Golem, Mega Tyranitar, Crustle, and Mega Aggron.
* Semi-bulky Mega Charizard X can defeat Mega Lopunny, Tapu Koko, Dragonite, Mega Metagross, Sawk, Magnezone, Magearna, Mega Charizard Y, and Scarf Victini which threaten Mega Lucario. Simultaneously, Mega Lucario checks Kyurem-B, Snorlax, Chansey, Golem, Psychium Z Tapu Lele, Landorus-T, and Archeops which threaten Mega Charizard X.
* Groundium Z Garchomp checks Zygarde-C, Tapu Koko, Magearna, and Mew which threaten Mega Lucario while the Aura Pokemon can take on Kyurem-B, Choice Scarf Porygon-Z, bulky Tapu Lele, Landorus-T, Donphan, and Choice Scarf Genesect for supporting Garchomp.
=Strategy Comments=
==Other Options==
* A bulky set with an EV spread of 248 HP / 252 Def / 8 Atk with an Impish nature and the moves Counter, Bullet Punch, High Jump Kick, and Meteor Mash can be used to lure in and defeat some of its common checks like Scarf Garchomp, Physical Dragonite, Mega Metagross, Physical Tapu Koko, and Mega Mawile.
* Close Combat can be used in place of High Jump Kick for having a move with perfect accuracy in the Physical Predator set but it reduces Mega Lucario's power and chance of defeating Garchomp, Mega Charizard X, and Meloetta.
* Thunder Punch is another option which can be used to defeat Mega Gyarados that anticipate a Fighting-type STAB incoming and may not mega evolve and attack straightaway but Mega Lucario finds it tough to make room for it. Similarly, Hidden Power Electric on the Special Attacking set helps in achieving the same goal.
* Endure can be used instead of Substitute on the SubReversal set to reach the lowest possible HP and at the same time take on a Hydro Cannon from Greninja but it is not recommended as Pokemon with Speed-boosting up moves like Dragon Dance and others whose attacks do not bring it down to low HP would be able to defeat it.
* Dark Pulse can be used over Magnet Rise in the Special Attacking set to hit Mega Slowbro and the combination of Dark Pulse and Substitute makes the Aegislash matchup equally favorable for either side which otherwise was always won by Aegislash. It can also be used against Pokemon that Mega Lucario cannot OHKO like Mega Metagross, Magearna, Sawk, Magnezone, and Meloetta to get a flinch or two and then follow up with the appropriate STAB to secure the KO.
* Nasty Plot can be used in the Special Attacking set in place of Substitute to defeat Mega Sableye more reliably at the cost of being vulnerable to Mimikyu, status moves, and losing out to bulky Mega Charizard X.
==Checks and Counters==
* Bulky Pokemon: Defensive Pokemon like Mega Slowbro and Zygarde-C can take multiple hits from Mega Lucario with ease and either outstall or KO it with their own moves. Bulky Offensive Pokemon like Mega Metagross, Mega Heracross, Aegislash, and Dragonite can take any attack from Mega Lucario and KO back with their own moves.
* Powerful Fast Attackers: Naganadel, Greninja, Tapu Koko, Mega Lopunny, and Choice Scarf users like Garchomp and Victini outspeed Mega Lucario and are able to OHKO it with their powerful attacks before Mega Lucario gets a chance to retaliate.
* Water-types: Most of the Water-type Pokemon in the tier like Greninja, Mega Gyarados, Primarina, and Tapu Fini defeat Mega Lucario as they either outspeed or tank a hit and KO it.
* Flame Charge: Although Mega Lucario is a good check to both Mega Charizard formes, but it loses if they have have Flame Charge in their moveset.
* Selective Sturdy Pokemon: Magnezone and Sawk can take one hit from Mega Lucario and OHKO back with their STAB moves. Golem with Fire Punch, though rare, can also take out the SubReversal Mega Lucario set despite having Magnet Rise
Category:Analyses