Substitute Sweeper (LGPE)

Written by Siphonaptera

Behold: one of the most terrifying sets in the whole meta. Two free turns can be all it takes for this set alone to wipe out an entire team. With it tying for fastest Pokemon in the format, only a couple checks who are hard to fit and having Substitute to negate most counterplay beyond praying for luck; this Mega Aerodactyl set is one of the best sets in the format and either it or a variation of it should be at least considered on the majority of teams.

It is not without flaw however, with there being a handful of sets shutting it down alongside the risks of just getting unlucky with Lovely Kiss & Floaty Fall.

This set can be used at pretty much any point in the game so long as you can find an opportunity. It's a fantastic lead, works amazingly as a revenge killer and can take a hit from common Pokemon like Mega Mewtwo X to potentially reverse sweep. Generally it's better to use Substitute before Shell Smash after putting the opponent to sleep, giving a safety net to either put to sleep any Pokemon they bring in or if your opponent stays in and gets a fast wake up.

You can run this on most teams, it's not like this meta has much variation in them to talk about. Ideally it should be used with a plan against its few checks though, Pokemon like Mega Mewtwo X and Melmetal are good partners for that reason.

Running multiple Mega Aerodactyl is in itself a viable teamstyle, ideally when doing this you should always run Shell Smash / Floaty Fall / [Sleep Move], only swapping the 4th move to one of a few options. Sizzly Slide, High Jump Kick and Double Iron Bash are especially notable for these teams due to their good matchups into Melmetal and opposing Mega Aerodactyl.

Melmetal: Great Physical bulk and resisting Floaty Fall makes your damage into Melmetal pitiful, alongside greatly threatening you even behind Substitute via Double Iron Bash. Generally you should Sleep the Melmetal and switch out.

Double Iron Bash Mega Aerodactyl: Has the capabilities to consistently wake up after you sleep it and threatens with Double Iron Bash, also speed ties you which means you often can't consistently put it to sleep. If you have a Melmetal than switch to it but otherwise you still should switch and gamble on good sleep luck.

Zapdos: Zapdos resists you and threatens Buzzy Buzz which always breaks Substitute and will Paralyze if they hit you without a Substitute. Put it to sleep and switch to a Pokémon with a better matchup.