Is Rock Wrecker a good move?

Question

My Rhyperior knows Rock Wrecker - is it a bad move to have seeing as you need to recharge?

Answer 1

It's hard to say, actually. Because of the recharge turn, your effective power is 75 per turn (on average) per turn. But there are not many other good Rock moves. Stone Edge is very common and one of the best, with 100 power (but a bit less accurate). Head smash is the same power (150) but you get recoil.

However, Rock Slide is the same "effective" power at 75 and it means you can switch out on the next turn if you like, so overall you should go for Rock Slide or Stone Edge.

Note, for other similar moves like Hyper Beam or Giga Impact, there are much better moves you can use, like Return. So never use Hyper Beam*!

*Except for Porygon-Z and Choice Specs/Scarf Keldeo.

Comments

Just my opinion, Hyper Beam is only good if you know you're faster and gonna die after the move, see my Salamence suggestion for an example.

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how about head smash+rock head?

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That is really good on relicanth.

Answer 2

Rock Wrecker consistently sees use on both Crustle and Rhyperior in one format: 1v1. This is because the format necessitates strong STAB moves that are able to OHKO opponents at the beginning of the game; recharge turns don't matter when the game is over immediately. Both Crustle and Rhyperior have the tools to use Rock Wrecker to nuke their opponents: Crustle with Shell Smash and Rhyperior with Choice Band.

Rock Wrecker is otherwise not a good move because its users are slow and prone to losing momentum during the recharge turns.

Crustle (Smogon)
Rhyperior (Smogon)