Does this ghost stand a chance on the board of battle?
As new mechanics get introduced into Pokémon Duel, so too do new aspects of the figures. One such mechanic is Mega Evolution, and its introduction makes for some interesting situations when working across the board. All the megas have unique niches and battling styles, with Mega Sableye being no exception. But is this gem wielding ghost worth a slot on your team? Let’s find out.
Mega Sableye is a dark/ghost Pokémon that is a UX rarity figure. It has a movement of 2 tiles per turn and a miss tile size of 8. The rest of its dial contain white, gold, and purple attacks. Its gold attack is Shadow Sneak, which has a power of 90, a tile size of 32, and has priority. Its white attack is Shadow Beam, which has a power of 110 and has a tile size of 28. In addition, it has the added effect of in the battle opponent’s next battle, that Pokémon’s purple attacks become misses. Its purple attack is Plate Gnawing, which has a three start priority and nullifies the effects of one of the opponent’s in-use plates, and that plate counts as having been used. Mega Sableye can also use two Z-Moves once the Z-gauge is fully charged. It can use Never-ending Nightmare, a white Z-move with a power of 220 that causes all opposing Pokémon on the field spin. Those that spin White Attacks get an MP-1 marker. It can also use Black Hole Eclipse, another white Z-move with a power of 220 that reduces the opponetn’s Z-Move gauge by two thirds of its max value.
Mega Sableye also has a very unique ability called Darkness Crystal. The effect is as follows: This Pokémon is not knocked out by battle damage. This Pokémon is not affected by effects of the battle opponent that would apply any markers to this Pokémon or that would inflict any special conditions on this Pokémon, and any such effects are applied to the battle opponent instead. Your Dark-type Pokémon and Ghost-type Pokémon deal +10 damage.
Now, with all this information on hand, lets head onto the review. Mega Sableye is actually a very common mega evolution to see on teams. Its purple attack, Plate Gnawing, makes it a very popular counter to other mega evolutions, as it’ll end the mega evolution timer early if it lands. This is especially useful when facing off against more powerful mega evolutions like Mega Mewtwo X, which will already be having a hard time countering Mega Sableye due to the typings. But in addition, Mega Sableye’s ability makes it nearly invincible for the turns its active on the board. Any negative effects or battle damage are essentially bounced back at the opponent or completely nullified.
That said, there are ways to get around this. Popular counters to Mega Sableye include Zoroark and Gallade. Zoroark gets access to the move Cross Counter, which, if the battle opponent spins an Attack of 110 damage or higher, causes the battle opponent to be knocked out instead of this Pokémon. This means that Shadow Beam can quickly be turned as a weapon against Mega Sableye’s invincibility if players aren’t careful. Gallade’s ability also allows it to nullify opponent’s abilities, making Mega Sableye’s immunity disappear as well. Moves like Cyclone Kick, Sunsteel Strike, and Moongeist Beam that either force the Pokémon out or ignore abilities are also viable counters. And, if all else fails, you could surround the Mega Sableye, forcibly removing it from the playing field.
All in all, Mega Sableye is a very reliable and versatile mega evolution that would be a great addition to any Pokémon Dueler’s team. Currently, it’s available in a gem pack in the store as well, so be sure to try for your chance to get it while it’s available.
