Pidgeot Movesets & Competitive Sets

Moves Hurricane is Mega Pidgeot's main STAB move, dealing good damage to neutral targets and having a good chance to confuse the foe. Heat Wave hits Steel-types such as Mega Aggron and Scizor, 2HKOing the former and OHKOing the latter. U-turn keeps up momentum on Mega Pidgeot's defensive checks like Nihilego. Roost gives Mega Pidgeot some form of recovery to heal off Stealth Rock damage. Set Details A standard offensive spread of maximum Speed and Special Attack investment with a Timid nature allows Mega Pidgeot to hit as hard and as fast as possible. Mega Pidgeot's pre-Mega abilities are useless. Pidgeotite allows Pidgeot to Mega Evolve. Usage Tips Hurricane is the move you want to use the most because of the lack of Pokemon resisting it and its high Base Power. Don't attempt to switch Mega Pidgeot in on hits unless it absolutely has to, because it will fall to most decently powerful neutral hits with Stealth Rock up, when it would otherwise survive them. Instead, bring it in when a Pokemon faints or on a Volt Switch or U-turn. Use U-turn on Mega Pidgeot switch-ins, such as Nihilego and Blissey. Mega Pidgeot can survive some neutral hits, such as Cobalion's Close Combat and Mega Beedrill's Poison Jab, so try to keep Mega Pidgeot healthy enough to take these hits if necessary, so it can remove them with Heat Wave and Hurricane, respectively. Make sure that Stealth Rock is removed from the field before sending Mega Pidgeot in, since it despises being worn down, which will prevent it from being able to take neutral hits. Team Options Mega Pidgeot fits best on offensive teams, as its Speed tier and strong STAB attack makes it effective against opposing offensive teams, although it is lacking in the stall matchup because of Blissey. Entry hazard setters such as Rhyperior, Klefki, and Nidoqueen make for good teammates, since they can lay down Stealth Rock, Spikes, and Toxic Spikes to wear down Mega Pidgeot's defensive answers. Electric-type checks such as Amoonguss, Seismitoad, and Mamoswine make for good teammates, as Mega Pidgeot appreciates their ability to sponge attacks from the likes of Mega Manectric. Amoonguss's Spore is able to incapacitate foes to give Mega Pidgeot free turns as well. Rock-type checks such as Cobalion and Swampert are also appreciated as teammates because they can switch in on Rock-types such as Nihilego, Mega Aerodactyl, and Terrakion, which Mega Pidgeot struggles against; Cobalion is also good at dealing with Blissey. Entry hazard removers such as Starmie and Hydreigon fit well on the types of teams that Mega Pidgeot finds itself on; these Pokemon can ensure that Mega Pidgeot is not worn down by Stealth Rock. Dragon-types such as Latias and Hydreigon can switch in on Electric-type moves from the likes of Mega Manectric. They also appreciate Mega Pidgeot's ability to wear down Steel-types such as Mega Aggron and Mega Steelix. U-turn users such as Scizor and Hydreigon can also form a VoltTurn core with Mega Pidgeot to give each other momentum and wear down defensive Pokemon. Powerful wallbreakers such as Terrakion, Crawdaunt, and Scizor make great partners, as they can break through Blissey and the bulky Rock-types like Rhyperior that give Mega Pidgeot issues. They also appreciate being brought in safely via U-turn and benefit from Mega Pidgeot's ability to wear down their defensive checks. Choice Scarf users like Krookodile and Hydreigon are appreciated, as they can revenge kill faster threats such as Mega Aerodactyl, Mega Manectric, and Mega Beedrill, with the former two being able to resist its STAB Hurricane.

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Moves Hurricane is Mega Pidgeot's strongest STAB move and most spammable attack, only being resisted by Steel-, Rock-, and Electric-types. Heat Wave is a secondary attack that nails defensive and offensive Steel-types such as Ferrothorn and Bisharp, which threaten Normal teams. Roost gives Mega Pidgeot more longevity and allows it to stay in against defensive threats longer. U-turn allows Mega Pidgeot to pivot out of switch-ins such as Heatran and Tyranitar while also gaining momentum. Hidden Power Ground allows Mega Pidgeot to prevent opposing offensive Heatran from safely switching in but prevents it from using one of its more effective moves. Defog provides Normal with a secondary entry hazard remover, which is great for preventing chip damage on the team. Set Details Maximum Special Attack EVs are used to maximize Mega Pidgeot's attacking power. Maximum Speed and a Timid nature are used so Mega Pidgeot can outpace offensive threats such as Mega Gallade, Latios, and Keldeo. No Guard allows Mega Pidgeot to land inaccurate attacks such as Hurricane without fail. Pidgeotite is required for Pidgeot to evolve into Mega Pidgeot, as regular Pidgeot is not viable. Big Pecks is used to prevent foes from dropping Pidgeot's Defense before it Mega Evolves. Usage Tips Primarily use Mega Pidgeot as a revenge killer and cleaner, because it has very poor defenses. Therefore, only switch it in with a double switch, after one of its teammates has fainted, or through a slow U-turn. Use Roost whenever there is a possibility of a free turn to keep Mega Pidgeot healthy. Avoid switching into Stealth Rock unless necessary for an important double switch or sacrifice. Utilize U-turn on switch-ins such as Chansey, Heatran, Zapdos, and Tyranitar to allow strong wallbreakers such as Choice Band Diggersby to come in and to scout the opposing team. Keep in mind that Mega Pidgeot can heavily threaten Steel-, Bug-, and Grass-type teams, so making double switches can seriously tilt the momentum in your favor. Avoid status, mainly poison and paralysis as the former can discourage double switches especially if rocks are up as in conjunction they wear down Mega Pidgeot very quickly and the latter prevents Pidgeot from revenge killing threats. Use Hurricane freely, as it is Mega Pidgeot's most reliable attack with No Guard, and even switch-ins have a chance of being confused. However, be wary, as No Guard also works against Mega Pidgeot, allowing foes to hit it with their own inaccurate attacks. If on the set, utilize Defog whenever Mega Pidgeot has a free turn to prevent teammates such as Porygon2, Chansey, and Staraptor from being chipped by entry hazards. For example, Mega Pidgeot can gain free turns from forcing foes such as Ferrothorn out and can capitalize on the free turn with Defog. Team Options Pokemon like Diggersby synergize well with Mega Pidgeot because it can give them a free switch-in with U-turn. Choice Band Diggersby helps against Electric-, Rock-, and Steel-type teams, which Mega Pidgeot struggles against. Porygon2 can take physical hits from offensive threats such as Choice Scarf Tapu Bulu for Mega Pidgeot and chip defensive threats such as Celesteela into Mega Pidgeot's KO range with Discharge or Thunderbolt. It can also badly poison defensive threats and whittle them into range for Mega Pidgeot to KO later on and paralyze Choice Scarf users with Discharge or Thunder Wave so that Mega Pidgeot can outpace them. Similarly, Chansey can assist in wearing down the opposition with Toxic stall, Stealth Rock, and Seismic Toss for Mega Pidgeot to clean more easily. Thanks to its amazing Special Defense, you can bring it in on foes that threaten Mega Pidgeot like Tapu Koko and Choice Scarf Nihilego. Finally, Chansey can freely switch into status moves with its ability Natural Cure, thus preventing Mega Pidgeot from being inflicted with status. Staraptor acts as a primary Defogger to keep Mega Pidgeot from taking Stealth Rock damage. It can also eliminate Pokemon that threaten Mega Pidgeot like Alolan Muk and bring Mega Pidgeot in freely by means of a slow U-turn. Ditto works as a secondary revenge killer to eliminate setup sweepers that outpace Mega Pidgeot. Pokemon such as Heliolisk can be utilized to form an effective VoltTurn core with Mega Pidgeot to gain momentum on more offensive teams. With Sticky Web support from Smeargle on offensive teams, Mega Pidgeot can outpace the majority of the boosted metagame. Stealth Rock also provides helpful chip damage so that Mega Pidgeot can get more KOs. Porygon-Z can help wear down the opposition with a Z-Conversion set's wallbreakering power to allow Mega Pidgeot to pick up KOs later in the game.

Moves Hurricane is boosted by STAB and does good damage to anything that doesn't resist it or isn't a special wall. It also has a 30% chance to confuse the foe. Heat Wave hits the Steel-types that resist Hurricane super effectively. It OHKOes Bisharp and Mega Scizor, both of which are threats to Normal teams. Roost provides reliable recovery so that Mega Pidgeot can spam Hurricane for longer. Hidden Power Ground 2HKOes specially defensive Heatran, which would otherwise wall this set completely. Defog can be used to clear the field of entry hazards. However, it should not be used without Roost, as Mega Pidgeot will then find it harder to Defog throughout the match. U-turn allows Mega Pidgeot to scout switch-ins and grab momentum. Set Details The EVs maximize Speed to make the most of Mega Pidgeot's excellent Speed tier and maximize Special Attack to let it hit as hard as possible. As Mega Pidgeot isn't bulky, there is little point investing in bulk. Big Pecks is the least situational of Pidgeot's pre-Mega abilities. However, if you're running Defog, use Keen Eye instead, as Big Pecks is incompatible with Defog. Since Mega Pidgeot will be Mega Evolving as soon as possible anyway, the ability choice is largely immaterial, as No Guard overrides it anyway. Usage Tips Mega Evolve Pidgeot as soon as possible so it can take advantage of the new Speed and power as soon as it can. The extra Speed in particular lets it outrun Mega Gallade. More often than not, throwing around Hurricane is your best bet, as even Pokemon that resist the move have a 30% chance to be confused. Mega Pidgeot can't take hits very well, so when possible, bring it in after a revenge kill or through a slow U-turn. If running Roost, using it whenever a free turn presents itself is recommended to keep Mega Pidgeot's health up, allowing it to spam Hurricane for longer. Against Fighting teams, Mega Pidgeot should be brought in safely as often as possible, as it can 2HKO at worst every Fighting-type and naturally outruns all Pokemon on a Fighting team. U-turn can help Pidgeot Mega Evolve safely, as well as scout switch-ins. This set can perform a number of roles—it can be an early- to mid-game wallbreaker, a late-game cleaner, and a revenge killer due to its high Speed. Mega Pidgeot struggles to beat Stealth Rock setters like Empoleon and Heatran, so finding opportunities to use Defog can be difficult. On the other hand, though, the threat of a perfectly accurate Hurricane can force switches that Mega Pidgeot can take advantage of to use Defog. Mega Pidgeot can use U-turn to pivot out of Pokemon that would otherwise wall it like Zapdos and defensive Heatran (the latter can be 2HKOed with Hidden Power Ground, however). Team Options As Mega Pidgeot struggles against Rock and Electric teams, Diggersby is a great teammate, as it can easily threaten those teams and is the best physical wallbreaker Normal has. The two can form a dual wallbreaking core, removing each other's checks. Chansey and Porygon2 can wall most of the Electric-types Mega Pidgeot struggles with. Chansey can also set up Stealth Rock to help Pidgeot get more KOs. Their presence on your team also lets Mega Pidgeot fire off powerful attacks and then pivot out to safety. Both can also spread Thunder Wave and Toxic to help Mega Pidgeot outrun otherwise faster foes and cripple walls it can't touch, respectively. Staraptor can remove the dreaded Stealth Rock with Defog, freeing up the moveslot for Mega Pidgeot. It can also bring it in safely with a relatively slow U-turn. Mega Pidgeot can work well with other U-turn and Volt Switch users like Diggersby and Heliolisk. They can both also switch in on the Electric-type moves it draws in. Meloetta can wallbreak alongside Mega Pidgeot while also soft checking Fighting-types.

Moves Boomburst is a very spammable STAB move that will 2HKO nearly anything neutral to it and even some frailer Pokemon that resist it. Hurricane is another very powerful STAB move that also has a chance to confuse the foe. Heat Wave is an essential coverage move that allows Mega Pidgeot to hit the Steel-types that would otherwise wall it, besides Heatran. Sing gives Mega Pidgeot free turns and allows it to do something even against Pokemon that would counter it. Hidden Power Ground is an option over Sing in order to KO Heatran after luring it. Set Details Maximum Special Attack and Speed investment and a Timid nature maximize Mega Pidgeot's Speed and Special Attack for the most offensive pressure possible. Putting 4 EVs in Defense instead of HP allows Mega Pidgeot to switch into Stealth Rock four times. Usage Tips Boomburst is very spammable because of its sheer power and thus should be used freely if you are unsure of what to do. Don't let Mega Pidgeot get paralyzed, as its Speed is one of its biggest selling points and prevents it from being outclassed. Mega Pidgeot should not be brought in against anything with a priority move, as it will often get KOed due to its frailty; in this regard, switching it in directly is generally a bad idea. It is better to bring Mega Pidgeot in to revenge kill or off of a teammate's slow U-turn or Volt Switch. Avoid facing Fake Out + Extreme Speed users, as the combination of these two moves completely demolishes Mega Pidgeot. Team Options Terrakion beats most of Mega Pidgeot's checks and counters with its powerful STAB moves, such as Chansey, Zapdos, Tyranitar, and Heatran. Porygon-Z and Mega Pidgeot can wear down each other's checks and counters and allow one or the other to win, with Porygon-Z and Mega Pidgeot overwhelming Rock-types. Users of Volt Switch, U-turn, and Parting Shot such as Raikou, Jolteon, Meloetta, and Sableye give Mega Pidgeot opportunities to get in unharmed and consequently spread more damage. Sylveon is also a good partner to pivot into so that it can wear down foes with its own Boomburst. Mega Pidgeot is worn down pretty quickly by Stealth Rock, so Pokemon that can remove the hazard such as Excadrill, Latias, and Starmie are great team options. Starmie can also remove bulky Rock-types if Mega Pidgeot is not running Hidden Power Ground. Weavile can weaken foes with Knock Off and soft check Thundurus with Icicle Crash.

Moves Hurricane is Mega Pidgeot's STAB move and its most spammable move; its reasonable 30% chance to inflict confusion on its target is a useful bonus. Heat Wave allows Mega Pidgeot to OHKO Scizor and Ferrothorn, as well as hit a whole slew of other Steel-types super effectively. Pidgeot's base 101 Speed is good but somewhat middling before it Mega Evolves; therefore, Protect is a useful choice for safely acquiring the Speed boost that allows Mega Pidgeot to outpace Pokemon such as non-Choice Scarf Garchomp, Terrakion, Mega Gallade, Mega Metagross, and Raikou. U-turn is another solid scouting option here, as non-Mega Pidgeot's Speed tier is good enough for it to not need Protect against a lot of threats; U-turn allows Pidgeot to scout for counters switching in and answer accordingly, maintaining your team's momentum. Substitute is similar to Protect in that it shields Pidgeot from most offensive attacks and status moves, but it differentiates itself with a potentially longer-lasting effect; it also has good synergy with the confusion from Hurricane's secondary effect. Lastly, Hidden Power Ice is a useful move for exploiting Mega Pidgeot's Speed tier and high Special Attack to heavily damage threats such as Garchomp, Landorus-T, Gliscor, and Mega Salamence. Roost is a useful move that can be used in either the third or fourth slot; however, running Pidgeot without Hidden Power Ice means that it cannot perform its niche of checking Gliscor, Landorus-T, and Mega Salamence quite as effectively, whereas losing Protect can make Pidgeot vulnerable to Pokemon such as Garchomp and Terrakion on the turn it Mega Evolves. Recovery is also not much of a priority for Pidgeot in Battle Spot Singles, where its frailty and the fast-paced nature of the format can limit the opportunities that Pidgeot has to heal itself. Set Details Mega Pidgeot's base 121 Speed is a valuable benchmark to have in a format where most of the relevant threats are base 100 Speed or faster; therefore, a Timid nature and 252 Speed EVs are essential in order to outspeed and KO dangerous threats such as Mega Salamence and Mega Lucario. 252 Special Attack EVs make Pidgeot's attacks as strong as possible, leaving the last 4 EVs to go into Defense or Special Defense. Usage Tips Mega Pidgeot beats a very specific number of threats and needs support for another specific group of threats. No Guard Hurricane and Heat Wave give it a solid matchup against Grass-types and Fighting-types such as Mega Venusaur, Serperior, weakened Conkeldurr, and Mega Lucario, and Hidden Power Ice gives it Dragon-slaying utility with its fantastic Speed tier—on the other hand, these three moves are completely walled by Pokemon such as Chansey, Tyranitar, Rotom-W, and Heatran. No Guard also allows Mega Pidgeot to completely bypass any and all evasion changes, completely nullifying Minimize strategies as a threat to your team. However, it also bestows perfect accuracy upon moves used by the opponent, making users of inaccurate moves such as Thunder and Stone Edge and OHKO moves such as Horn Drill and Sheer Cold very scary to face. Team Options Mega Pidgeot is a powerful attacker, but its shallow movepool makes it very predictable and easy to stop. Hurricane spam helps a lot versus its checks if Mega Pidgeot gets the confusion, but Mega Pidgeot will often find itself being forced out by a Tyranitar, Heatran, or Rotom-W, all of which are very common thanks to the ubiquity of Talonflame. As such, it's highly recommended that you come prepared with answers to these Pokemon to allow Pidgeot to have a much better time. Ground-types and Fighting-types are the best catch-all answers to these three Pokemon: Mold Breaker Excadrill's Earthquake can weaken them sufficiently for them to be picked off by Mega Pidgeot's Hurricane; Assault Vest Conkeldurr can throw out Drain Punches and Mach Punches while being able to absorb Rotom-W and Heatran's status moves with Guts and throw out Guts-boosted attacks in return; Landorus-T and Garchomp exacerbate Pidgeot's Ice weakness considerably but are still worth consideration for their powerful Earthquakes and other utilities; and Dugtrio is a niche, but decent, option for trapping and removing Tyranitar, Heatran, and grounded Electric-types such as Raikou.

The first two moves run off STAB, it just depends on if you want more power or not. The last two moves are up to you. Toxic can help bring enemies into KO range later in the match, Mirror Move can be a nice surprise, and Steel Wing and Hidden Power Ground can be good against Rock-types on switch ins. Steel Wing keeps your DVs maxed and hits Aerodactyl, but Hidden Power Ground has perfect accuracy and hits Magneton and other Steel-types harder, as well as the Rock / Water types (Omastar, Kabutops, Corsola). Just remember that Return hits other Electric-types not named Magneton harder than Hidden Power Ground.