Is Ampharos or Magnezone better for a BW2 playthrough?

Question

I thought of picking Magnezone because of its stats. However, Ampharos has access to Power Gem, Outrage (the Unova region is full of Dragons so this ought to be good) and Signal Beam (by level up, unlike Magnezone. This move is 2x effective against 2 of the Elite 4).

Answer 1

Magnezone FTW!

Magnezone, stat-wise, is better than Ampharos. Magnezone is, although not much, speedier than Ampharos and amazing both in Sp. Def. and Phys. Def. It also has a stronger Sp. Atk. stat than Amphy so Magnezone's a good Mon to have as a Special-Attacker. Plus, Magnezone learns some decent STABs like Discharge and Flash Cannon through leveling up and Thunder / Thunderbolt through TMs.

For Dragon-types, like how you stated in the last sentence, I think you already have enough coverage with Weavile and Flygon. Both are quick enough to make a move first, I believe. All you need would be Dragon Claw on Flygon and Ice Punch on Weavile. Flygon learns Dragon Claw at level 55, though, so before reaching that level, you'll need to stick with Dragon Tail and/or Dragon Breath for a while. Weavile can learn Ice Punch through move-tutor.

Again, back at the Ampharos - Magnezone case. I'd say that Magnezone's a better Mon to have rather than Ampharos. Here's a set:

Magnezone @ Air Balloon/Anything else
Trait: Sturdy/Any
Nature: Any
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt
- Filler (anything you'd like)
- Tri Attack/Volt Switch/Filler

Replaced the set with mine since the first set I put was a competitive one! Sorry for the inconvenience :]

Comments

it is just for in-game, HP isn't guaranteed, Air Balloon is too difficult to get, HA isn't needed for in-game again. I'll agree with rest of the things.

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You can get Air Balloon from a man in one of Driftveil City's Hotels. Changing held items are also an option if you don't want an Air Balloon, though. (also I'm dum so what's a HA?)

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@kuroyupii well,most carton types will go down to Vaporeon,flygon or weavile .however my main concern was Iris and ghetsis hydreigon.that thing is op

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HA stands for hidden ability.

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@FanPoke Weavile is enough I believe (though if you want more attack power) then you can teach your Weavile Swords Dance. Make two Swords Dance before attacking them Hydreigons (though this could be a really risky move), then Ice Punch them. This might one-shot them or if not, do a load of damage. As long as your Weavile a higher level than their Hydreigons by 4+, you'll be fine I believe.

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Why the heck would you use a competitive set ingame? HP Ice is hard to get, you could get, lets say, HP Electric. I bet the OP wouldn't want to keep catching the mag family until they get one with a HP Ice and Quiet nature. Plus, getting Hidden Abilities ingame is hard, maybe impossible(I forget if you can or if you can't).

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I edited it out! This was my first time actually answering a question so I don't really pay attention about what the sets are intended to be hahah. I hope its a better one now :]

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That was what I was telling :(

Answer 2

Ampharos:

Pros
- Has a decent level up movepool
- Has a ok TM learnset
- Decent stats all round except in speed

Cons
- Most of its good moves are learned late
- Low Speed
- Somewhat bad level up coverage
- Its stats are outclassed in every way by Magnezone, the only thing Ampharos has is better HP, no 4x weakness to ground moves, and a better movepool

Magnezone:

Pros
- Ok level up movepool
- Ok TM movepool
- Great all round stats, except in speed
- Great defensive typing

Cons
- All its good moves are learned late
- Low speed
- 4x weakness to ground
- Bad coverage

Overall: I would pick Magnezone, despite having equal pros and cons. Even though Magnezone's good moves are learned late, its decent attack means it can still use physical moves (Ampharos can though too, and better). It may struggle mid game because of relying on physical attacks, but its stats and usefulness late game make it better than Ampharos, in my opinion. I'm not saying Ampharos isn't good, I just think that Magnezone is better. Here is a moveset for Magnezone.

Magnezone @ Any

-Thunderbolt
-Flash Cannon
-Hidden Power/Tri Attack(if you didn't evolve right away)/Filler if its HP type is bad or overlaps
-Thunder Wave/Filler

I'm gonna put a moveset for Ampharos too, if you use it.

Ampharos @ Any

Thunderbolt
Hidden Power/Filler if HP typing is bad or weak
Thunder Wave
Volt Switch/Filler

I hope I've helped!