Introduction
Hello everyone and welcome to another showcase of a really cool build I enjoyed using that focuses around Metronome Hydreigon since I was determined to make a successful team built around it. For me I really enjoy building around underrated mons that can potentially be threatening or hard to face when supported correctly , and remembered of a time seeing Metronome Hydreigon , but I completely forgot what the set was and decided to for go for Substitute since it allows to beat a lot of mons and get free stacking with Metronome. This team was really fun to use, however , this was one if not my most stressful build to actually make it work considering you have to support Hydreigon a lot, even making two different builds before this which I will discuss why for me they didn't worked well, however, the cool thing was it was build that was experimentation and lots of messing up to make sure it worked well and this version of the team was really fun to use, and the title can also imply that the team started rough and became better as I was working on it. With all that being said let's see more about the team.
Teambuilding Process
The team started off with Metronome Hydreigon being able to switch into Heatran and Ash Greninja, and capable of breaking a lot of mons once behind Substitute and getting free turn to begin stacking with Metronome. Main issue is it requires a lot of support on getting rid of mons that can harass Hydreigon or give it a hard time at being able to do anything.
Zapdos joined soon after Hydreigon being one of the best partners of this Hydreigon being able to handle with Ferrothorn and Celesteela that could annoy Hydreigon if not behind a substitute , and also deals with Mega Lopunny , Mega Scizor , Kartana , and Hawlucha. In return Hydreigon can beat Heatran and Ash Greninja for Zapdos and pressure ground types that don't care much about Zapdos coverage such as Gastrodon and Mega Swampert.
Even though Hydreigon can offensively switch into and pressure Heatran and Ash Greninja I wanted to make sure I don't lose to Ice Beam Ash Greninja and Protect Toxic , so Tapu Fini was added providing a hazard remover to the team and being sufficient on checking Ash Greninja , Heatran , and Hawlucha with the other two teamates. Thanks to Tapu Fini being able to provide defog to the team Zapdos is allowed to run Hidden Power Ice which allows it to hit Landorus-Therian and Garchomp.
Mega Medicham was added next due to it's ability on pressuring of fairy types that annoyed Hydreigon such as Clefable and Tapu Bulu and also deals with Chansey that doesn't care what Hydreigon does to it, in return Hydreigon can get rid of fat psychics such as Mega Slowbro and Reuniclus that wall Medicham, and also enjoys not being status thanks to Misty Terrain support that Tapu Fini provides.
Ferrothorn provided my team a solid rock setter, Tapu koko answer, and a bulky steel type to the team it also is another Ash Greninja answer to the team and helps against the rain matchup for the team.
Landorus-Therian completes the team as a ground type to block Volt Switch from being spammed and as the main form of speed control to the team , also provides momentum with U-turn to bring in teammates and a ground immunity as well.
In-Depth Look
Hydreigon @ Metronome
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 244 SpA / 32 SpD / 232 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Dark Pulse
- Earth Power
- Substitute
- Roost
Hydreigon is a offensive threat that can blow through many teams once it's counters are removed or weaken and can pressure many teams once there dark resist gets removed. Hydreigon can check Ash Greninja , Heatran , Reuniclus, and choice locked Landorus-Therian thanks to it immunities and resistance it has due to its typing.
Dark Pulse is the main choice of stab as it can be used to spam against opposing team when they lack a proper dark resist, while dealing good amount of damage , accurate , and has a chance to flinch. Earth Power is the best way for Hydreigon to not be complete dead weight against a lot of fairy type, but the notable thing it allows Hydreigon to beat Toxapex ,Heatran , Magearna , Mega Mawile , and Tyranitar. Substitute allows Hydreigon to have free Metronome stacking opportunities and also being completely immune on being poisoned or paralyze from status moves, once behind a Substitute it allows it to completely beat Toxapex and wither down any special wall that lacks any form of reliable recovery. Roost provides recovery to Hydreigon whenever he forces a switch to stay healthy in order to check Heatran and Ash Greninja thanks to the evs which allows it to avoid getting 2HKO from Hydro Pump after rocks, while being able to outspeed Kyurem-Black and Tapu Lele.
Zapdos @ Leftovers
Ability: Static
EVs: 248 HP / 188 Def / 72 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Discharge
- Heat Wave
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Roost
Zapdos can remove and take hits from a lot of mons that bother Hydreigon while potentially crippling fast threats thanks to Static that make contact with Zapdos.
Thanks to the bulk and typing Zapdos has it can switch into Hawlucha , Tornadus-T, Kartana, Mega Lopunny , Mega Scizor , Z-Fly Landorus-T, and Jirachi. Disharge allows Zapdos to beat Hawlucha and Celesteela while being able to cripple things thanks to its high chance of paralysis against Mega Alakazam , Tyranitar , Heatran , Mega Charizard X , and Volcarona. Heat Wave is able to hit steel types that can don't care much about Discharge being Kartana , Ferrothorn , and Mega Scizor. Hidden Power Ice makes sure that Landorus-T , Garchomp , and Gliscor don't just get a free turn to set up or rocks up. Roost ensures Zapdos can stay healthy throughout battle so it can be healthy on checking Hawlucha , Tornadus-T , and Kartana. 72 Speed Evs allows Zapdos to outspeed Modest Heatran with Bold while allowing it to stay bulky to reliably take hits against Hawlucha , Mega Lopunny , Kartana , and Mega Scizor
Tapu Fini @ Leftovers
Ability: Misty Surge
EVs: 248 HP / 16 Def / 12 SpA / 40 SpD / 192 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Defog
- Moonblast
- Scald
- Taunt
Tapu Fini gives me a more defensive backbone to the team who can remove hazards with Defog and being able to reliably check Heatran , Ash Greninja, Mega Charizard-X , and Volcarona. Moonblast make sures Tapu Fini will have a move to beat against Ash Greninja , Hawlucha , and against dragon types. Scald can potentially burn Tapu Bulu , Flying , and Levitating mons when they switch into Tapu Fini and also the best move to use against Heatran and Volcarona. Taunt is extremely useful as it can shut down passive mons such as Toxapex , Clefable , and Ferrothorn from trying to recover , spread statuses , or spam hazards into the field. Tapu Fini's evs makes it bulky to check Heatran and Ash Greninja with a Calm nature , and live +2 Acrobatics from Hawlucha after rocks. The evs on Special attack makes it so Tapu Fini can 2HKO offensive Heatran with scald, while the rest is on speed so it can outspeed Modest Heatran and Timid Magearna. The Misty Terrain that Tapu Fini provides is notably useful to Mega Medicham since it then will not be able to get burned or paralyze once the terrain is temporary up.
Medicham-Mega @ Medichamite
Ability: Telepathy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fake Out
- High Jump Kick
- Ice Punch
- Zen Headbutt
Mega Medicham can be able to pressure the many fairy types that wanna switch into Hydreigon by wearing them down with its hard hitting moves as well as being relieved with fat psychic types are removed thanks to Hydreigon. Once it mega evolves Medicham receives Pure Power which doubles the attack stat of Mega Medicham making all of its move deal a lot of damage. Fake Out gives Mega Medicham priority that can do chip damage , potentially revenge kill weaken threats , and a free chance to mega evolve with the guaranteed flinch. High Jump Kick is the main fighting stab choice for the immense power it has against those that don't resist it and even doing a good amount to those who do resist. Ice Punch provides good coverage to Mega Medicham which supper effectively hits Mega Latias , Tapu Bulu , Landorus-T, Tornadus-T, and Zapdos. Zen Headbutt is the second stab choice for Mega Medicham , rather than the high critical rate of Psycho Cut, because of the damage Zen Headbutt provides and removing poison types non defense investment Toxapex , Amoongus , and Mega Venusaur.
Ferrothorn @ Leftovers
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 24 Def / 232 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Stealth Rock
- Leech Seed
- Gyro Ball
- Power Whip
Ferrothorn completes the defense backbones to the team providing me a rock setter and main answer to Tapu Koko , it also can check Ash Greninja as well if need be when Tapu Fini and Hydreigon need to be healthy to check something else. Ferrothorn also provides a bulky steel type to the team that can keep Magearna, Tapu Lele , and Mega Alakazam in check , but must be careful with the coverage choices and the sets they can be before switching into them. Leech Seed gives Ferrothorn a way to recovery HP and a useful moves that can wear down the opposing team for those mons that lack a way to recover especially Heatran and Assault Vest Magearna. Gyro Ball is a strong move that punishes fast mons that stay on Ferrothron like Tornadus-T , Tapu Lele , and Mega Alakazam. Power Whip is a required stab on Ferrothorn since it can OHKO Ash Gren and deal a good amount against rain teams. Ferrothorn EVS makes it that Ash Gren does not 3HKO with Dark Pulse with fulll and the rest go to defense which can take a +1 Supersonic Skystrike from Gyarados at full HP.
Landorus-Therian @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Stone Edge
- Knock Off
The number 1 OU titan himself and one of the best scarfers in the tier , Landorus-Therian gives the team speed control and a strong revenge killer than can remove faster threats to team, as well as a ground type to prevent VoltTurn teams from spamming Volt Switch , and another ground immunity to the team. Landorus-Therian can grab momentum with U-Turn and bring in in teammates safely whenever he forces switches. Stone Edge is a strong coverage choice with Landorus-Therian since it also gives him neutral coverage with Earthquake that can hit Tornadus-T , Charizard Y , Volcarona, Gyarados , and opposing Zapdos. Knock Off can punish those that wanna switch into Landorus-Therian such as Celesteela and Assault Vest Tangrowth that don't take much once Landorus is choice locked. I'm running max speed and max attack rather than defense investment since Zapdos and Tapu Fini can handle Hawlucha for Landorus-T, this allows to outspeed Bulky Volcarona at +1 and can revenge kill it with Choice Scarf, this also lets him to outspeed +1 Kommo-o ,Mega Alakazam , Mega Lopunny , and Tapu Koko so that he can revenge kill them or weaken for someone else in the team to finish them.
Threat List
Mega Alakazam by himself can be played around , but when he truly becomes scary is when he gets paired with the Tapu Lele as they both can easily break Tapu Fini and Ferrothorn and Landorus-T cannot get a gaurenteed OHKO again Tapu Lele unless it gets chipped down, so it is important to scout for move and sets , and to make double plays when you know they may be brought in.
Even if I have Hydreigon for Reuniclus it all depends on it's second choice of coverage where it can be seen as a threat since Focus Blast and Signal Beam just bop Hydreigon and can eat up a Dark Pulse once set up and remove Hydreigon , however Double Dance Variants will be completely removed from Hydreigon.
This monster just clicks buttons since with it's coverage and speed it just blows through the entire team the only thing with a chance is Scarf Landorus-T to revenge kill it with Stone Edge , but that has a chance to miss and can remove Landorus once it has taken damage from Stealth Rock.
Sand Rush Excadrill is only becomes a threat if its Normalium since Zapdos can easily wall Steelium Excadrill , otherwise it just gets to bop Zapdos with Giga Impact outspeeds Scarf Landorus-Therian under sandstorm ,and Ferrothron gets 2HKO from Earthquake at +2.
Replays
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-960015600
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-960277515
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-961027313
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7ou-961049197
The Trial and Error
: this version of the team was the very first version of a team that involved around Metrenome Hydreigon and Mega Mawile to remove the fat things that didn't care about the move choice Hydreigon had and did really well for me until Ferrothorn and Celesteela where annoying to deal to switch into since they could easily spam Leech Seed and begin wearing down everything in my team, and I really needed Thunder Punch on Mega Mawile since Skarmory usage was increasing during OLT so Ferrothorn was able to beat Mawile. Another problem was that Tornadus-T wasn't bulky enough to reliably be able to take hits against Kartana and also needing to run Taunt instead of Defog since Toxapex was able to spread statuses and Toxic Spikes for free. After messing around with this version I was willing to improve my matchup against all those things and also improving against my Psychic matchup. 
: This version almost came close on being the main team since I shut down Toxic Spikes , Ferrothorn , and Celesteela along with a better matchup against Mega Alakazam and Tapu Lele, but one thing I noticed after using it for a while that it was rather slow despite having Choice Scarf User and Priority , but otherwise anything that was really fast such as Mega Medicham or Lopunny they just used there speed to pressure this team a lot. Another problem with this version of the team was that Rain destroyed this team rather easily considering it also was spammed during OLT with things like Ice Beam Ash Greninja and Psychic Manaphy easily capable of removing Amoongus. This led me to think think about and instead of focusing around both Mega Mawile and Hydreigon why not just focus around Hydreigon and support around it that way it can work which led to the team I have present to you all today.Conclusion
This team was really fun to use and something that will be able to catch off many teams off guard with the unexpected Hydreigon set that people expect it to be. It was also truly a challenge for me to build which really made me question on what was I gonna do to make this particular set work and it's been doing really well. This team will of course have it's disadvantages against certain things especially after a misplay that can affect the end game scenario, but this is truly something I hope that people will enjoy playing around with the team and if you have any suggestions feel free to recommend any changes as it will be nice to hear what you think can improve this team. Thank you all for your time to be looking at one of my teams and hope you all have good day.
AGENT003HEADEDSOLIDSNAKE
>
: Mega Medicham isn't something I would use on regular bulky offenses or balances due to how frail it is. While yes, it synergizes with Hydreigon pretty well, Mega Lopunny does pair with it well too and in a pretty similar way, and I believe that Mega Lopunny is a superior choice on your team because it improves your matchup vs offense a lot and can act as a late-game cleaner.
>
: I plan to make your team faster and more offensive, and obviously it will come at the cost of your defensive backbone. Rotom-W here doesn't just replace Zapdos but more like packs it and Tapu Fini together: Rotom-W acts as a Flying resist, Heatran and Grounds check, and a Defogger. I am aware that this change worsens your matchup vs stuff like Kartana and Volcarona but I think the change of team style will give you a room to aggressively outplay said threats.
>
: since you have Rotom-W instead of Zapdos and Tapu Fini, the team has a free slot. I decided to fulfill it with Protean Greninja which provides you with Spikes, enabling Hydreigon and Mega Lopunny pressure fat teams more, and lures Fairy-types and hits them with Gunk Shot, opening a way to clean up for Mega Lopunny. I mentioned in my previous rate that I prefer non-Z-Move Greninja; your team is an exception. Since I want to keep Metronome on Hydreigon and there aren't any more possible Z-Move users, Greninja would make a good use of it. I opted for Poisonium Z which cleanly OHKOes standard Tapu Fini and non-fully physically invested Clefable, which is very helpful for both Mega Lopunny and Hydreigon.
: in order to somewhat fix your stall matchup, I suggest you to replace Substitute in favor of Taunt on Hydreigon. Taunt will allow you to shut down recovery and status moves from passive Pokémon like Toxapex and Chansey, and in conjunction with Roost will make your Hydreigon able to break past them.
: Zapdos is gone now, so your Kartana matchup is just terrible right now. To ensure that Kartana won't run all over you, I would give your Landorus-T Hidden Power Fire instead of Knock Off. HP Fire also can surprise and weaken Mega Scizor.
: using Thunder Wave over Gyro Ball on your Ferrothorn not only improves your matchup vs offense further but most notably gives you a bit more countermeasures to stuff like Volcarona and Mega Alakazam.
