Matchmaking is still a disaster and Holowear is expensive as ever, but at leas🔯t one of my Pokemon Unite prayers got a🃏nswered this week - the newest Attacker Pokemon Duraludon is totally broken. Like, really broken. Lik♛e doing 100k damage without even trying broken. We haven’t seen an OP Attacker like this since Sylveon was added to thꦚe game last year, and if history is any indication, Duraludon supremacy won’t last long. Don’t wait on this one, go play Duraludon while it’s still large and in charge.
I love when new come out of the gate way overtuned. Besides cosmetics, Pokemon are the only type of new content that ever gets added to the game. It should be exciting and meta-changing every time a new Pokemon comes out. The stronger they are, the more of an impact that have on the game - at least until they inevitably get crushed with the nerf hammer. If it’s between a weak, ineffective Pokemon like Trevenant or an out of control monster like Duraludon that can steal objectives and KO entire teams,ജ I&rꦅsquo;ll take Duraludon every time.
Duraludon is a physica💝l Attacker that relies on range and AOE abilities rather than mobility. It fits into a ADC niche and is best compared to Decidueye, but has a far more powerful kit than Decidueye ever had.
The secret to Duraludon’s success - and the first move that will get nerfed - is Dragon Pulse. Dragon Pulse is a charged ability that does damage in a la🌌rge area that grows in size and damage the longer it’s charged. Every time Duraludon deals damage to a Pokemon, either with its basic attack or its other move, the Pokemon becomes marked. When Duralodon activates Dragon Pulse, marked Pokemon take bonus damage based on 🎀the number of times they’ve been marked. If Dragon Pulse knocks out a Pokemon, Its cooldown is reduced by half and Duralodon gets three boosted basic attacks. Additionally, the upgraded version of the move restores Duralodon’s HP on KO.
The damage potential for hitting marked enemies is absurd. Imagine Dragonite’s Hyper Beam, but instead of targeting a single enemy it just hits everyone in the same zip code. It doesn’t have quite the same burst potential as Hyper Beam because it damage𓂃s over time, but it more than makes up for it with extreme range and AOE. Anyone even remotely close to Duraludon will take damage from Dragon Pulse, and lots of it.
Duraludon can turn a team fight in less than a second and execute multiple opponents without needing to aim or put itself in any danger. It has a ton of utlity with Stealth Rock, which it can use to zone out bushes and adds stacks to enemies for a future Drago♔n Puꦿlse, and its Unite Move is yet another massive AOE pain circle. It’s not quite as self-sufficient as something like Lucario or Greedent, but with even a small amount of support from a Defender or Supporter its capable of steamrolling teams pretty easily.
When Sylveon released, its Hyper Voice was so strong that TiMi nerfed it within a matter of days. We could see the same balance change happen just as quickly here, so make sure you play OP Duraludon while you still can. My fav♛orite Pokemon Unite memories are cleaning up with Tsareena and Dragonite when they were overpowered, and I’m having just as much fun making kids cry with Duraludon’s Dragon Pulse. I know it’s only temporary, but that’s what makes it so much fun.