PU Metagame Changes

Introduction

Just like with every other tier, PU's metagame constantly changes. This is largely due to tier changes and bans, but also occasionally due to Pokémon or sets such as Acid Armor Duosion being discovered. For example, Poliwrath moving to NU was huge for the metagame, as it was the most centralizing Pokémon. The shift generally meant Water-, Dark-, and Normal-types such as Floatzel, Mightyena, and Vigoroth got a lot better, along with Pokémon that Poliwrath outshined, such as Politoed. Barbaracle and Carracosta ended up being suspected and banned due to their biggest checks, Poliwrath and Torterra, leaving the tier. This ban meant Pokémon like Kingler and Huntail received less competition and so became more popular and viable, as well as bulkier teams having less strain when teambuilding. For a while, the metagame has been shifting in favor of offensive teams due to an increase in viability of strong wallbreakers such as Stoutland, which defensive teams struggle with. The most recent tiering change was Piloswine going to NU; this made Electric- and Flying-types shoot up in viability, as they lost a very common check, while also increasing the viability of Stunfisk, which faced competition from Piloswine as a bulky Ground-type.

What Has Changed

Normal-type Wallbreakers

A while ago, PU's metagame started to shift towards balanced and slower playstyles, as several balance breakers such as Throh, Kecleon, and Tauros got banned, meaning the playstyles were a lot less restricted and cores like Piloswine + Pelipper and Carracosta + Roselia were a lot harder to break. This prompted a rise in usage of Stoutland, which had no problem running through most slower teams due to its Normal / Fighting coverage along with the ability Scrappy and a huge Attack stat. These teams had to adapt to Stoutland by running defensive Tangela, Metang, or Solrock, its only safe switch-ins. However, offensive teams started to run Dodrio as the primary Normal-type wallbreaker, as it could easily break the three Stoutland counters, as well as having a better matchup versus offensive teams due to its Speed and access to priority in Quick Attack. This really affected the viability of defensive teams that struggled to cover both threats at once. The Carracosta and Barbaracle ban made the two even better, as they are no longer a liability when locking themselves into a Normal-type move, and Dodrio also appreciated Piloswine moving to NU, as that was one of its most common switch-ins and revenge killers with Ice Shard.

Stoutland's main set is Scrappy Choice Band, with Return and Superpower for perfect neutral coverage, as well as Facade to absorb status and Crunch to hit Metang and Solrock or Pursuit to trap threats such as Roselia. A similar set can be used with Sand Rush, except it will always run Crunch, prefer Life Orb, and be paired with Hippopotas to double Stoutland's Speed; however, that set is easier to play around due to its lack of Scrappy. Dodrio runs either a wallbreaker set, with dual STAB moves and Knock Off with Life Orb or Choice Band, or a Choice Scarf set, which functions as a revenge killer.

Setup Sweeper Spam

The premise of "setup sweeper spam" is to use multiple setup sweepers, often in conjunction with Jumpluff, in order to overwhelm the opponent's checks to allow one of the sweepers to clean. Although this sounds like regular hyper offense, it often isn't, as most of these teams will use a defensive backbone due to their weakness to Pokémon like Zebstrika and Floatzel. This strategy had been around for a while, but it gained a lot more popularity after Poliwrath left the tier, as Barbaracle and Carracosta immediately became a lot more centralizing and teams were often relying on Focus Sash Kadabra and defensive checks that mostly lacked recovery to beat those two. Jumpluff is a vital teammate due to it being one of the few Pokémon in the tier that have access to Memento, allowing it to create setup opportunities for Pokémon that lack many, like Barbaracle and Linoone. The best setup sweepers for this style are often ones with ways around priority and Choice Scarf users, such as Linoone and Golduck, as offensive checks do not worry about getting worn down if they can KO the sweeper without taking damage. Since Barbaracle was banned, the playstyle has not been as good as it was, but Huntail and Kingler, which were previously outclassed by Barbaracle, can take its place.

Floatzel

Floatzel is another Pokémon that had always been decent, but lately it has gotten a lot better. For the past few months, Simipour had been the most noticeable offensive Water-type due to its strength (it's stronger with Life Orb than Floatzel is with Choice Specs), along with coverage moves such as Low Kick and Knock Off to hit counters, while also having stronger coverage to hit the main Water check, Poliwrath. With the metagame getting more offensive, Floatzel started to get more popular, as its higher Speed means it can revenge kill big threats such as Jumpluff and Nasty Plot Raichu, and after Poliwrath left the tier and several other metagame changes occurred, Simipour's coverage was a lot less notable and the rise of Carracosta meant Floatzel was much more easily placed on a team to act as a Carracosta stop. At this point the general opinion amongst most PU players was that Floatzel is better, and Simipour became more known as a Choice Scarf user. This is just one of many examples of how the metagame becoming more offensive made Speed very crucial.

Floatzel is best used as a special attacker due to its strong STAB move in Hydro Pump and alright coverage. Both Life Orb and Choice Specs are very viable options, the former allowing Floatzel to change moves and run support moves such as Taunt and the latter making Floatzel stronger while letting it cripple threats with Switcheroo. Recently, the Choice Band set has had a rise in popularity, as the increase in Floatzel's usage has prompted the usage of Pokémon such as Politoed and Roselia, which get 2HKOed by Choice Band-boosted Return and Ice Punch, respectively.

The Decline Of Fire-types

Not long ago Fire-types were amazing in PU, mainly Ninetales and Rapidash, but others such as Simisear and Monferno were also very viable. Ninetales was mostly used as a Nasty Plot sweeper, and it being nearly uncounterable was a big reason for the metagame becoming a lot more offensive. Rapidash served as a fast revenge killer as well as a solid Fire- and Grass-type check. The metagame becoming more offensive was a big blow to Ninetales, which had a much nicer matchup versus defensive teams. However, what hurt the two the most was Poliwrath leaving the tier. It greatly increased the viability of other Water-types like Simipour and Floatzel, which could both outspeed and OHKO Ninetales, with Floatzel outspeeding Rapidash as well. Also, with Barbaracle and Carracosta being more threatening, Rapidash was forced to drop a coverage move to use Will-O-Wisp so they could not set up on it. The metagame becoming more offensive also decreased the viability of every Defog user, all of which now struggle to Defog Stealth Rock away, so Fire-types find it difficult to stay healthy throughout the match.

Both Rapidash and Ninetales have had to adapt their moveset to keep up with the metagame. Rapidash often prefers Will-O-Wisp over the previously standard Drill Run, as Drill Run targets such as Ninetales have become rarer, whereas checks that dislike burns such as Relicanth and Golem have increased in usage. Ninetales almost never runs Life Orb anymore, instead preferring either Passho Berry to stop the many Water-types from running through it or Leftovers, which would be paired with Substitute, also to try to prevent the increased number of faster Pokémon from revenge killing it.

Bulky Setup Sweepers

Although the metagame has become more offensive, slow setup sweepers, particularly Bulk Up Vigoroth and Calm Mind Duosion, have become better. Vigoroth was most commonly known for its ability as a stallbreaker, as most defensive teams had no way to deal with a bulky Pokémon with a fast Taunt; however, recently it has been a big threat to offensive teams. This is partially because two common checks to it, Pawniard and Poliwrath, left the tier, but also because stronger special attackers that could beat Vigoroth were replaced by weaker ones, for example Raichu by Zebstrika and Simipour by Floatzel. Duosion's increase in usage has been more surprising, as although Pawniard left the tier, checks such as Grumpig have increased in usage. A big reason as to why Duosion has become more popular is its ability to take advantage of passive Pokémon such as Tangela, which have become more common to try to check wallbreakers such as Stoutland. Duosion also has the ability to outlast many Psychic-type checks such as Metang and Vullaby, and its immunity to entry hazards and ability to pressure Roselia really helps balanced teams.

Both Pokémon have also recently been 'innovated'. Vigoroth used to always run Taunt along with Bulk Up, Slack Off, and a Normal-type STAB move, but Substitute is now standard. Substitute means Vigoroth is no longer vulnerable to status coming from attacking moves like Scald and Sludge Bomb, and it also blocks weaker Knock Offs such as Tangela's. Duosion used to run Calm Mind, Recover, Psyshock, and Signal Beam, but now it sometimes opts for Acid Armor over the latter move, which provides it with a better matchup versus physical attackers such as Dodrio and Stoutland. Though the lack of coverage can be crippling against Dark- and Psychic-types, it can still outstall certain ones like Life Orb Mightyena and Metang.

Looking Ahead

The next tier shift is expected to be big; Primeape, Cryogonal, Bouffalant, Pawniard, and Gorebyss are all expected to drop. This would make drastic changes to the tier, as many of those Pokémon provide something the tier lacks; for example, Primeape would be the fastest out of the three viable Fighting-types, and Cryogonal would be the only offensive Rapid Spin user and one of three offensive Ice-types. Both Pawniard and Bouffalant were defining forces when they were previously in PU, but now that some of their checks such as Poliwrath and Carracosta are no longer here, they are bound to make an even huger impact.

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