Is Melmetal viable in Gen 8 OU?

Melmetal is ranked #13 in Gen 8 OU with 18.11% usage according to Smogon May 2026 - Jul 2026 data.

What beats Melmetal in Gen 8 OU?

Corviknight has the strongest conservative score in this observed May 2026 - Jul 2026 sample. The target was knocked out or switched out in 61.0% of 77.85650388083891 relevant encounters. Standard error is 7.8 points. Sets and switch conditions can change the result.

How are Melmetal matchup checks ranked in Gen 8 OU?

They are ranked by p minus four standard errors. Here, p is the observed fraction of relevant encounters where Melmetal was knocked out or switched out. This is not a set-specific battle guarantee.

Melmetal counters

Gen 8 OU · Sorted by p − 4 standard errors · Smogon source period May 2026 - Jul 2026 · Generated 2026-08-05

#0809 Melmetal

Steel

USAGE 18.1% #13

BASE STATS

HP 135

ATK 143

DEF 143

SPA 80

SPD 65

SPE 34

BST600

TYPE MATCHUPS

2×

FireFightingGround

½×

NormalGrassIceFlyingPsychicBugRockDragonSteelFairy

0×

Poison

Moves

Double Iron Bash 100.0% Thunder Punch 64.4% Superpower 51.5% Protect 50.5% Earthquake 50.2% Toxic 42.5% Ice Punch 22.6% Thunder Wave 9.1%

Items

Leftovers 66.4% Assault Vest 16.7% Protective Pads 8.8% Choice Band 6.8% Custap Berry 0.6% Occa Berry 0.4% Life Orb 0.1% Chople Berry 0.1%

Common Teammates

Landorus-Therian57.4%

Urshifu-Rapid-Strike30.1%

Tornadus-Therian24.4%

Zapdos23.5%

Browse Gen 8 OU teams using Melmetal →

Explore Melmetal + Corviknight teams 30 score Explore Melmetal + Landorus-Therian teams -4 score Explore Melmetal + Ferrothorn teams -5 score Explore Melmetal + Clefable teams -9 score Explore Melmetal + Toxapex teams -13 score Explore Melmetal + Tornadus-Therian teams -16 score

Leading observed checks

Open a matchup for a separate set-based damage estimate, or browse uploaded teams with both Pokémon.

Team core to explore

Melmetal + Landorus-Therian 57.4% teammate usage Explore teams →

Checks & Counters

Observed target KO or switch rate is upstream p: the fraction of relevant encounters where the target was knocked out or switched out. Standard error is upstream d. The conservative score is p − 4d. These ladder observations do not prove a set-specific counter.

How to read this table

Use encounter count and standard error to judge the sample. Damage estimates below use inferred sets and remain separate from the observed ladder metric.

# Checker Encounters Conservative score Target KO or switch rate

Corviknight

FlyingSteel DEFENSIVE CHECK View matchup

77.857

29.8

61.0% Standard error 7.80 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Iron Fist Melmetal Thunder Punch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 162-192 (40.5 - 48%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

View Corviknight counters → Teams with Corviknight →

Landorus-Therian

GroundFlying SOFT CHECK View matchup

48.345

-4.5

34.1% Standard error 9.63 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Melmetal: 288-338 (60.7 - 71.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

View Landorus-Therian counters → Teams with Landorus-Therian →

Ferrothorn

GrassSteel SOFT CHECK View matchup

24.71

-4.8

33.0% Standard error 9.46 points

DAMAGE CALC

0 Def Ferrothorn Body Press vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Melmetal: 108-128 (22.7 - 27%) -- possible 5HKO

View Ferrothorn counters → Teams with Ferrothorn →

Clefable

Fairy SOFT CHECK View matchup

102.658

-9.2

5.9% Standard error 3.76 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Melmetal: 64-76 (13.5 - 16%)

View Clefable counters → Teams with Clefable →

Toxapex

PoisonWater SOFT CHECK View matchup

21.932

-13.4

21.9% Standard error 8.82 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Toxapex Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Melmetal: 54-64 (11.3 - 13.5%) -- possible 8HKO

View Toxapex counters → Teams with Toxapex →

Tornadus-Therian

Flying SOFT CHECK View matchup

21.449

-16.0

11.0% Standard error 6.75 points

DAMAGE CALC

252+ Atk Tornadus-Therian Superpower vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Melmetal: 176-208 (37.1 - 43.8%) -- 99.9% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

View Tornadus-Therian counters → Teams with Tornadus-Therian →

Ranked #13 with 18.11% usage. Sorted by conservative score.