- Primary Subject: Pokemon Champions
- Key Update: Mega Hawlucha’s transition into Pokémon Champions introduces a surprising defensive stat spread and the No Guard ability, departing from its traditional Unburden-led offensive role.
- Status: Confirmed
- Last Verified: April 30, 2026
- Quick Answer: Mega Hawlucha in Pokémon Champions features No Guard and defensive stat boosts, forcing a shift from Unburden glass-cannon builds to bulky setup or gimmick strategies.
Hawlucha is gaslighting me, and I think I’m totally fine with that.
Pokemon Legends Z-A was a phenomenal game that not only introduced a new way to play Pokemon, but also revitalized an almost-forgotten mechanic: Mega Evolutions. First introduced in Pokemon X and Y, this limit-break mechanic brought with it an extra layer of decision-making in battles, and a cool superpowered redesign of the Pokemon to top it off. I believe this mechanic was introduced to give unpopular Pokemon a second wind, giving them a chance to shine on the competitive stage. Let’s face it, seeing Garchomp, Sneasler, and Kingambit on rotation does get tiring most of the time.
So imagine the immense joy I felt when Mega Hawlucha was announced for Legends Z-A with a sick design that mirrored one of wrestling’s greats: Rey Mysterio.
I remember transforming into the most annoying Hawlucha fan because I just could not stop talking about it. The implications of his new ability and stat spread literally kept me awake at night, thinking up new strategies and annoying matchups. Pokemon Legends Z-A didn’t have abilities for these Pokemon yet, so the answers to my questions wouldn’t come until Pokemon Champions.
Pokemon Champions is out…and now I don’t know what to feel.
Full disclaimer, I am not a competitive Pokemon player at all. Everything here is coming from an amateur’s analysis of the competitive scene, and coming from someone who’s only ever played single battles. From this background, I always saw Hawlucha as this fast physical sweeper that could decimate a team if you were too hasty with your decisions. Hawlucha had good strength and speed for a fighting type, but what really pushed him over the edge for me was his use of the Unburden ability. This ability makes Hawlucha’s speed skyrocket when he loses or consumes his item, something that could be achieved with a red card, a sitrus berry, or my personal favorite, a focus sash.
I’ve always built Hawlucha as this glass cannon that could tank a single hit, but come back with the speed and might to sweep through your team. So imagine my surprise when, on the release of Pokemon Champions, Mega Hawlucha received extra stat points to its defenses instead of its offenses. To top it all off, Mega Hawlucha received the No Guard ability that ensures none of its attacks miss. An ability that absolutely no one asked to get for Mega Hawlucha because most of his moves didn’t need an accuracy check anyway! It’s like this mega evolution was just some sick joke from Game Freak to taunt me into switching into Basculegion.
But Professor Oak didn’t raise a quitter, and I’m not about to give up on my favorite Pokemon of all time. I didn’t want just to throw a fit (because I already did), and I wanted to give Gamefreak a chance. I was just a casual, so maybe they saw something that I didn’t? Some facet to Mega Hawlucha that I never considered, and now get to shine. I immediately went to YouTube, the place where the best of the best share their strategies, and I found that…they were just using Mega Hawlucha to facilitate gimmicky OHKO strategies.
I felt defeated and frustrated that my favorite Pokemon was reduced to nothing more than a gimmick strategy, but I wasn’t going to take this lying down. Like a toxic relationship, I kept telling myself that I could fix Hawlucha.
And (I think) I did.
For singles battles, the main realization was that nothing much has changed. I wasn’t required to play Mega Hawlucha, and I should stop constraining myself in that circle. If I were going to bring Hawlucha into singles battles, then I could just drop Mega Hawlucha and look for another viable Mega Pokemon to fit in that slot. With my experience in competitive play, I’ve seen that the usual approach of baiting a Focus Sash activation wasn’t going to work. Instead, I would recommend the Sitrus berry to give you just enough bulk to survive and set up a Swords Dance before popping off. As for the moveset, I would recommend High Jump Kick and Acrobatics for some STAB action, Swords Dance for setup, and a coverage move like Poison Jab.
Although I still believe that the No Guard ability given to Hawlucha is a joke made specifically to make me angry, I think the improved defensive bulk adds a lot to the table for Doubles Support. Hawlucha’s speed is middle-ground, meaning it can benefit from Tailwind or Trick Room, allowing for flexibility as soon as you see what you’re up against. The way I approached Mega Hawlucha is to lean into that bulk, opting for Bulk Up to snowball, Drain Punch for some sustain, Flying Press for coverage, and a cover move that depends on the meta.
I’ve wrestled with the idea of Mega Hawlucha for nights on end already, and I still feel like I’m looking at it from the wrong angle. This flexibility and ingenuity when it comes to training your Pokemon is exactly what makes Pokemon addictive to me, and I will definitely keep coming back for more.
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