Salamence

Mega Salamence is one of the most defining non-restricted Pokemon in VGC 2016, boasting sky-high stats that rival those of restricted Pokemon in addition to having solid offensive and supportive presence. Its base 145 Attack and base 120 Special Attack, combined with its boosted Flying-type STAB attacks due to Aerilate, turn it into a fearsome attacker. The number of Pokemon that resist Flying in VGC 2016 is fairly low, making Salamence's assaults difficult to wall. It possesses an extremely high base 120 Speed , outrunning much of the metagame; it notably outruns Mega Rayquaza, serving as a solid check. Mega Salamence also comes with solid physical bulk, having excellent 95 HP / 130 Defense to enable it to take hits from notable physical attackers in the metagame such as Mega Kangaskhan and Talonflame. Immunity to Ground and a resistance to Fire crucially make it a good Primal Groudon check, especially against physical ones. All of this is further bolstered by having Intimidate in its base forme, providing excellent support before it opts to Mega Evolve and unleash its terror. With numerous appealing traits, Mega Salamence is very easy to fit in various team archetypes.

Despite its many compelling qualities, Salamence's special bulk is rather average, and it can take very heavy damage from some of the powerful special attacks that it resists, such as Primal Groudon's Eruption and Primal Kyogre's Origin Pulse or Water Spout. Its crippling weaknesses to Ice, Dragon, and Fairy means that it is often in danger of being swiftly OHKOed, as they are all very common attacking types in VGC 2016. Its amazing Speed can backfire under Trick Room (but don't stop yourself from slapping Mega Salamence on a Trick Room team!), and it lacks a priority attack, making it somewhat vulnerable to Prankster.