Mega Gyarados

Poor Gyarados just can't catch a break. Aside from its extremely short time as the best Water Type attacker before the release of Kyogre, it's always been in the background, dreaming of the day when it can be truly great. Its greatest hope came in the form of this, its Mega Evolution, but even this hope has been dashed.

Players were hoping that mega Gyarados could be a budget Mega Evolution like Pidgey due to its similar buddy-walking distance, but Niantic had other ideas. By making it so expensive to Mega Evolve, they've put Mega Gyarados into a very awkward position: it's outclassed by other Megas within both of its types, and it's also more expensive to use. It's not all bad though; Mega Gyarados generally has the DPS needed on both of its types to be viable for most relevant raids, and its TDO tends to outclass a fair bit of its competition. It's a solid pick for role compression and longevity, but consider your options before going all-in for this sea monster, especially since Mega Tyranitar and Primal Kyogre both exist.....

Best PvE Offensive Moveset

• Waterfall pairs with Hydro Pump to make Mega Gyarados act as a Water Type Mega Evolution
• Aqua Tail* is less useful than Hydro Pump, but can be beneficial in mitigating Mega Gyarados's energy loss.
• Bite and Crunch pair together to make Mega Gyarados a Dark Type attacker
• Dragon Tail* and Outrage can make Mega Gyarados operate as a Dragon Type attacker, but it's lackluster in this capacity.
• Dragon Breath, Dragon Pulse*, and Twister are all outclassed and basically worthless for Mega Gyarados.
• Return has no use on an offensive Gyarados.