Metagame NP: RU Stage 4: Do My Thang (READ POST #2)

[Choice Banned]

Houndoom and Kingdra are really close to dropping, with the former having around 3.5% usage and the latter having 3.6%. We might get Houndoom in a few days, but we'll probably have to wait for the next tier shifts for Kingdra. That is, assuming its usage doesn't suddenly spike.

(it needs to be ~3.41% or below to drop, fyi.)

 

[tutterydiglett]

houndoom would eat this tier alive qqqq

 

[complete legitimacy]

yea i agree

 

[complete legitimacy]

i mean really its a dog in a dog-eat-dog world

 

[Molk]

so many one lines x.x, i'd like to keep those to a minimum to be honest

As for houndoom and kingdra, as of when i saw the stats, both of them where below 3.5% usage in the 3 month usage stats, so depending on the usage in the next few days they have real chances of dropping (i think?).

Anyways, to steer discussion away from the one liners and everything, i'd like to support New Breed's post in the last page that Choice Scarf Moltres is a pretty good revenge killer at the moment thanks to its sheer power. Of course like any other Moltres set, it needs either Rapid Spin or Defog support to function to its fullest, but if you can provide it with that support it's definitely a stellar choice capable of carrying teams on its back thanks to its revenge killing and pivot abilities.

Aside from just Choice Scarf Moltres itself though, i've been seeing/using a lot of Choice Scarf Moltres with Pursuit support, and i've gotta say it works pretty well. Given Molt's relative lack of safe switchins outside of it, Moltres tends to lure in Slowking like a moth to a flame, and because Moltres has access to U-turn, forcing Slowking in, U-turning out of it with Moltres, and going to a pursuit user such as Spiritomb, Escavalier with speed creep, or drapion can get you the upper hand pretty easily, checkmating Slowking, eliminating it from the match, and thus giving Moltres the ability to spam scarfed Fire Blasts/Hurricanes that much more easily for the rest of the game. This is especially effective when paired with other Pokemon that enjoy slowking being eliminated, such as Swords Dance Cobalion, Calm Mind Delphox, and really any powerful special attacker without a STAB boosted Thunderbolt.

So, does anyone have experience with this kind of team/core? if so, how did it go?

 

[Choice Banned]

so many one lines x.x, i'd like to keep those to a minimum to be honest

As for houndoom and kingdra, as of when i saw the stats, both of them where below 3.5% usage in the 3 month usage stats, so depending on the usage in the next few days they have real chances of dropping (i think?).

Anyways, to steer discussion away from the one liners and everything, i'd like to support New Breed's post in the last page that Choice Scarf Moltres is a pretty good revenge killer at the moment thanks to its sheer power. Of course like any other Moltres set, it needs either Rapid Spin or Defog support to function to its fullest, but if you can provide it with that support it's definitely a stellar choice capable of carrying teams on its back thanks to its revenge killing and pivot abilities.

Aside from just Choice Scarf Moltres itself though, i've been seeing/using a lot of Choice Scarf Moltres with Pursuit support, and i've gotta say it works pretty well. Given Molt's relative lack of safe switchins outside of it, Moltres tends to lure in Slowking like a moth to a flame, and because Moltres has access to U-turn, forcing Slowking in, U-turning out of it with Moltres, and going to a pursuit user such as Spiritomb, Escavalier with speed creep, or drapion can get you the upper hand pretty easily, checkmating Slowking, eliminating it from the match, and thus giving Moltres the ability to spam scarfed Fire Blasts/Hurricanes that much more easily for the rest of the game. This is especially effective when paired with other Pokemon that enjoy slowking being eliminated, such as Swords Dance Cobalion, Calm Mind Delphox, and really any powerful special attacker without a STAB boosted Thunderbolt.

So, does anyone have experience with this kind of team/core? if so, how did it go?

Speaking of slowking, is it still the dominant force it was in BW/BW2 or did it take a hit in viability?

 

[bb skarm]

Speaking of slowking, is it still the dominant force it was in BW/BW2 or did it take a hit in viability?

Have you been here this whole generation? Slowking is now amazing with the introduction of the Assault Vest. It's now the premier special wall in the tier.

 

[Choice Banned]

Have you been here this whole generation? Slowking is now amazing with the introduction of the Assault Vest. It's now the premier special wall in the tier.

I kinda derped on that one, yeah, only major nerf was knock off.

 

[Mew2]

so many one lines x.x, i'd like to keep those to a minimum to be honest

As for houndoom and kingdra, as of when i saw the stats, both of them where below 3.5% usage in the 3 month usage stats, so depending on the usage in the next few days they have real chances of dropping (i think?).

Anyways, to steer discussion away from the one liners and everything, i'd like to support New Breed's post in the last page that Choice Scarf Moltres is a pretty good revenge killer at the moment thanks to its sheer power. Of course like any other Moltres set, it needs either Rapid Spin or Defog support to function to its fullest, but if you can provide it with that support it's definitely a stellar choice capable of carrying teams on its back thanks to its revenge killing and pivot abilities.

Aside from just Choice Scarf Moltres itself though, i've been seeing/using a lot of Choice Scarf Moltres with Pursuit support, and i've gotta say it works pretty well. Given Molt's relative lack of safe switchins outside of it, Moltres tends to lure in Slowking like a moth to a flame, and because Moltres has access to U-turn, forcing Slowking in, U-turning out of it with Moltres, and going to a pursuit user such as Spiritomb, Escavalier with speed creep, or drapion can get you the upper hand pretty easily, checkmating Slowking, eliminating it from the match, and thus giving Moltres the ability to spam scarfed Fire Blasts/Hurricanes that much more easily for the rest of the game. This is especially effective when paired with other Pokemon that enjoy slowking being eliminated, such as Swords Dance Cobalion, Calm Mind Delphox, and really any powerful special attacker without a STAB boosted Thunderbolt.

So, does anyone have experience with this kind of team/core? if so, how did it go?

Are you seriously asking Complete Legacy to stop with is one lined posts?

Anyways into more serious stuff I have used Scarfed Moltres a lot because it is the best revenge killer to the musketeers who are very popular at the moment. It can also switch into them if they don't go for the Stone Edge/ Volt Switch since Tres resists their STAB moves and it also resist Mach Punch which is arguably the most common priority in the RU meta. Molk already mentioned the main Pursuit trappers in the form of Drapion, Escavalier and Spritiomb but I want to show a pretty original set I found in the PS RU chatroom about a certain forgotten stinky RU Defogger:

Skuntank @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 16 HP / 228 Atk / 252 SpD / 12 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Defog
- Sucker Punch
- Punishment
- Pursuit / Poison Jab

Skuntank is an excellent partner for Moltres because many reasons; first it has Defog which clears Stealth Rocks from the field, something that Moltres has troubles with. Second it can Pursuit trap bulky Psychic types like Slowking, third it lures ground type attacks and Cobalion, two things that Moltres can easily switch into and finally and what makes this set so great is Punishment: a thing I noticed about Scarftres is that it lacks the power that Specs or Life Orb offer and if its locked into something like Flamethrower it is a set up bait for things like CM Cress and CM Reuni and this is when Punishment becomes useful because after a single CM boost he can 2HKO a lot of popular bulky set up sweepers and make Moltres clean easier, the only thing it misses is Gatrodon who I see more and more often in the ladder so having something like Rotom-C or Virizion will make a terrifying offensive core.

Fun calcs:

• 228+ Atk Skuntank Punishment (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Reuniclus: 242-288 (57 - 67.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (Crunch only has a 4% of 2HKO)
• 228+ Atk Skuntank Punishment (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Cresselia: 228-270 (51.3 - 60.8%) -- 91% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (+2 0 SpA Cresselia Moonblast vs. 16 HP / 252 SpD Skuntank: 115-136 (32.7 - 38.7%) -- 6.8% chance to 3HKO after Black Sludge recover)
• 228+ Atk Skuntank Punishment (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 188 Def Meloetta: 278-330 (68.8 - 81.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

And it also shits on Chicken Pass which is getting really popular atm. Also shoutouts to aoemica and CutForBiebarel for the original set, they never post here so I thought I might as well post it.

EDIT: Shoutout to xastify who actually made the set first also not editing Complete Legitimacy's name cause I don't want to

 

[Choice Banned]

And it also shits on Chicken Pass which is getting really popular atm. Also shoutouts to aoemica and CutForBiebarel for the original set, they never post here so I thought I might as well post it.

what's the usual recipient? xatu like when it was broken in NU? or some RU sweeper i'm probably overlooking?

 

[aVocado]

what's the usual recipient? xatu like when it was broken in NU? or some RU sweeper i'm probably overlooking?

Xatu is still a solid recipient yes. Anything else that appreciates atk/spe/def boosts is also a good recipient. The list is wide and long, including virizion drapion druddigon hitmonlee gallade etc.

 

[Choice Banned]

There's a very probable drop (and i can see why, the mon kinda sucks) that no one has said in Gothitelle, as without Shadow Tag, Wobb (even more irrelevant than goth) and Goth itself, have little to no niche in UU or lower, and koko released them into UU, and they surely have less than 3.41% usage.
Goth is probably (as i mentioned) irrelevant in RU, but no one has mentioned that, so I thought I might :)
(or did I get something wrong there, as it was BL before, meaning it gets little to no usage in OU)

 

[CutForBiebarel]

Are you seriously asking Complete Legacy to stop with is one lined posts?

Anyways into more serious stuff I have used Scarfed Moltres a lot because it is the best revenge killer to the musketeers who are very popular at the moment. It can also switch into them if they don't go for the Stone Edge/ Volt Switch since Tres resists their STAB moves and it also resist Mach Punch which is arguably the most common priority in the RU meta. Molk already mentioned the main Pursuit trappers in the form of Drapion, Escavalier and Spritiomb but I want to show a pretty original set I found in the PS RU chatroom about a certain forgotten stinky RU Defogger:

Skuntank @ Black Sludge
Ability: Aftermath
EVs: 16 HP / 228 Atk / 252 SpD / 12 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Defog
- Sucker Punch
- Punishment
- Pursuit / Poison Jab

Skuntank is an excellent partner for Moltres because many reasons; first it has Defog which clears Stealth Rocks from the field, something that Moltres has troubles with. Second it can Pursuit trap bulky Psychic types like Slowking, third it lures ground type attacks and Cobalion, two things that Moltres can easily switch into and finally and what makes this set so great is Punishment: a thing I noticed about Scarftres is that it lacks the power that Specs or Life Orb offer and if its locked into something like Flamethrower it is a set up bait for things like CM Cress and CM Reuni and this is when Punishment becomes useful because after a single CM boost he can 2HKO a lot of popular bulky set up sweepers and make Moltres clean easier, the only thing it misses is Gatrodon who I see more and more often in the ladder so having something like Rotom-C or Virizion will make a terrifying offensive core.

Fun calcs:

• 228+ Atk Skuntank Punishment (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Reuniclus: 242-288 (57 - 67.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (Crunch only has a 4% of 2HKO)
• 228+ Atk Skuntank Punishment (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 172+ Def Cresselia: 228-270 (51.3 - 60.8%) -- 91% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (+2 0 SpA Cresselia Moonblast vs. 16 HP / 252 SpD Skuntank: 115-136 (32.7 - 38.7%) -- 6.8% chance to 3HKO after Black Sludge recover)
• 228+ Atk Skuntank Punishment (100 BP) vs. 252 HP / 188 Def Meloetta: 278-330 (68.8 - 81.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

And it also shits on Chicken Pass which is getting really popular atm. Also shoutouts to aoemica and CutForBiebarel for the original set, they never post here so I thought I might as well post it.

Xastify was the one who actually came up with the original idea, and thank goodness, because it's helped my team a lot

 

[ScraftyIsTheBest]

Honestly Gothitelle really wouldn't make it very far in RU at all. It's severely outclassed as a Psychic-type by things like Meloetta, Delphox, and Reuniclus, and with all the good Psychic-types in RU, Gothitelle wouldn't find much of a niche at all. Its only advantage is probably Competitive, but that's not really a big thing, and most certainly not good enough to save Gothitelle from being horribly outclassed. Beyond that, it's just bad. So unless we discover some revolutionary Gothitelle set that makes waves or Shadow Tag becomes a thing again, Gothitelle will most likely end up in NU by the end of 2014.

Houndoom though looks to be a really strong force in RU if it drops. Mega Houndoom will definitely be a dominant threat in RU, with an NP set that would basically eat everything alive with its power and coverage, not to mention its Speed. Very few Pokemon can reliably take on Houndoom except Rhyperior, and everything else either gets set up on or absolutely wrecked. Mega Houndoom has a lovely Speed tier as well, tying with Cinccino, meaning only Dugtrio and Jolteon outspeed it. Houndoom on its own, if Mega Houndoom gets banned, wouldn't be a bad mon at all. It could run an NP set too, and its coverage would still make it nice. It could also run a mixed trapper set with Sucker Punch, Pursuit, and Crunch, and gives us a nice Dark-type especially with Zoroark gone. Houndoom would definitely impact RU.

If Kingdra drops, oh boy it will be good. It is quite a versatile offensive threat, it can run a Swift Swim set, DD, ChestoRest, Specs, or the almighty CritDra. Kingdra will be one heck of a threat, having nice bulk and being able to set up DD effectively, especially with only one weakness, and be able to sweep with Outrage+Waterfall. Specs and Swift Swim sets would be quite scary too (too bad there's no Tornadus to support Kingdra :(), and Hydro Pump and Draco Meteor would be quite the sight. Of course, the almighty CritDra exists, being able to spam Draco Meteors that always crit, it will sting. Kingdra would definitely be a solid mon in RU if it drops, I wouldn't be surprised if it winds up being broken, but since we don't have it as of now we can't really make a judgement lol.

Funny how Kingdra and Houndoom are right next to each other in the Pokedex, lol.

Just a few thoughts on possible drops.

 

[Choice Banned]

Honestly Gothitelle really wouldn't make it very far in RU at all. It's severely outclassed as a Psychic-type by things like Meloetta, Delphox, and Reuniclus, and with all the good Psychic-types in RU, Gothitelle wouldn't find much of a niche at all. Its only advantage is probably Competitive, but that's not really a big thing, and most certainly not good enough to save Gothitelle from being horribly outclassed. Beyond that, it's just bad. So unless we discover some revolutionary Gothitelle set that makes waves or Shadow Tag becomes a thing again, Gothitelle will most likely end up in NU by the end of 2014.

Houndoom though looks to be a really strong force in RU if it drops. Mega Houndoom will definitely be a dominant threat in RU, with an NP set that would basically eat everything alive with its power and coverage, not to mention its Speed. Very few Pokemon can reliably take on Houndoom except Rhyperior, and everything else either gets set up on or absolutely wrecked. Mega Houndoom has a lovely Speed tier as well, tying with Cinccino, meaning only Dugtrio and Jolteon outspeed it. Houndoom on its own, if Mega Houndoom gets banned, wouldn't be a bad mon at all. It could run an NP set too, and its coverage would still make it nice. It could also run a mixed trapper set with Sucker Punch, Pursuit, and Crunch, and gives us a nice Dark-type especially with Zoroark gone. Houndoom would definitely impact RU.

If Kingdra drops, oh boy it will be good. It is quite a versatile offensive threat, it can run a Swift Swim set, DD, ChestoRest, Specs, or the almighty CritDra. Kingdra will be one heck of a threat, having nice bulk and being able to set up DD effectively, especially with only one weakness, and be able to sweep with Outrage+Waterfall. Specs and Swift Swim sets would be quite scary too (too bad there's no Tornadus to support Kingdra :(), and Hydro Pump and Draco Meteor would be quite the sight. Of course, the almighty CritDra exists, being able to spam Draco Meteors that always crit, it will sting. Kingdra would definitely be a solid mon in RU if it drops, I wouldn't be surprised if it winds up being broken, but since we don't have it as of now we can't really make a judgement lol.

Funny how Kingdra and Houndoom are right next to each other in the Pokedex, lol.

Just a few thoughts on possible drops.

Yeah, I mentioned goth wasn't really shaking things up in RU, for some reason I just wanted to mention that in drops
(didn't even mention wobbuffet because who even uses telepathy)

EDIT: since goth and wobb will undeniably be NU, will RU/NU be shaken up whenever koko decides to retest shadow tag? or will it be only available in UU?

 

[Magnemite]

Actually, we won't get Gothitelle at all. OU is taking that.

Also SAVIOR DOG will be strong af in RU, it's not even OHKOed by Adamant Hitmonlee's Mach Punch from full health. SAVIOR DOG will save RU from Doublade, Delphox, Meloetta, and Reuniclus, making it very anti-meta, incredibly strong itself, and a great way to save the tier. FREE SAVIOR DOG (though mega SAVIOR DOG will be broken af and probably be quickbanned, rip)

 

[Choice Banned]

Actually, we won't get Gothitelle at all. OU is taking that.

Also SAVIOR DOG will be strong af in RU, it's not even OHKOed by Adamant Hitmonlee's Mach Punch from full health. SAVIOR DOG will save RU from Doublade, Delphox, Meloetta, and Reuniclus, making it very anti-meta, incredibly strong itself, and a great way to save the tier. FREE SAVIOR DOG (though mega SAVIOR DOG will be broken af and probably be quickbanned, rip)

normal houndoom is viable, granted it doesn't have the firepower (no pun intended) to break through walls like Mega Houndoom, but I could see Scarf/NP sets working. (IF HOUNDOOMINITE IS BANNED)
However, with Mega Houndoom, doesn't really cost a mega slot either, both of RU's megas suck (banette is decent)

also wait goth is ou?

EDIT: Did it move up from UU/BL (Goth with Shadow Tag is technically BL) like Kyu-B/Lando-I/Scolipede/Medi/Gardevoir/etc.

 

[EonX]

normal houndoom is viable, granted it doesn't have the firepower (no pun intended) to break through walls like Mega Houndoom, but I could see Scarf/NP sets working. (IF HOUNDOOMINITE IS BANNED)
However, with Mega Houndoom, doesn't really cost a mega slot either, both of RU's megas suck (banette is decent)

also wait goth is ou?

EDIT: Did it move up from UU/BL (Goth with Shadow Tag is technically BL) like Kyu-B/Lando-I/Scolipede/Medi/Gardevoir/etc.

Magnemite was saying that Gothitelle will likely move up to OU with the tier shifts due to its usage there.

ScraftyIsTheBest, CritDra does 70% on average to AV Slowking.... don't think I need to say anything more on that lol.

Aside from that though, Houndoom is looking really cool. An offensive check to Meloetta and Doublade is great. It isn't a check to Delphox... it's an outright counter. Immune to both STABs and taking pitiful damage from Grass Knot? Yes please. Oh, and it has STAB Pursuit to checkmate the great fox. Mega Doom will probably be borked af, but fun as hell to use if it's given a 3-7 day test period.

 

[mael]

• Subpassing

With some many bulky strong attackers in this tier, one set or rather strategy I have found very usable and enjoyable is subpassing. Considering how many people use bulky Teams with Combinations of Alomomola + Amoonguss (solid core, no doubt) and other bulky waters together with whatever kind of defensive synergy pokemon, I thought I might as well try and make some use of that. Then I decided to try SubPass Sawsbuck, a set that I loved to use back in BW RU, because it allowed Carracosta and Durant to set up easily and because it was useful at bringing a Threat into the game, that otherwise might have had troubles switching in. I used different Combinations, one of which I really liked was Sawsbuck + CB Rhyperior. I used that while laddering for voting requirements and it is just so easy to pass a sub to something as bulky as Rhyperior and then almost always get a free kill. You set up a sub, the opponent brings in the Moltres or Amoonguss and you pass to Rhyperior on their Sludge Bomb or Flamethrower/Hurrican (note that offensive sets from Moltres break the sub). This almost always guarantees at least one kill. It's also nice to set up a sub on something that tries to status you and when they see, that Sawsbuck might threaten them you pass the sub on a switch, very nice and decent combination.

Sets

a gods nightmare (Rhyperior) (M) @ Choice Band
Ability: Solid Rock
EVs: 160 HP / 252 Atk / 96 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Ice Punch

everydays angel (Sawsbuck) (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Sap Sipper
Happiness: 0
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Baton Pass
- Horn Leech
- Substitute
- Double-Edge

Another Team of mine, that I like to use right now, utilises Leafeon instead of Sawsbuck with Durant or Moltres as possible recipients. Leafeon or Sawsbuck, it's not like it really matters. While Sawsbuck can get a solid Sap Sipper Boost, Leafeon has a lot of bulk and Knock Off, which is very useful in a Doublade Metagame and a solid move overall. It's the same Strategy. Durant with +1 behind a sub is nothing to mess around with, I assure you that, especially because most Grass Pokemon cannot really touch it and break the sub, that almost always means 2 kills.

sets

ashes turn to dust (Moltres) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- U-turn
- Fire Blast
- Hurricane
- Air Slash

clinical execution (Durant) @ Choice Band
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- X-Scissor
- Iron Head
- Superpower
- Sleep Talk

way to find luck (Leafeon) @ Leftovers
Ability: Leaf Guard
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Substitute
- Baton Pass
- Leaf Blade
- Knock Off

There are several other Pokemon that can subpass, some other examples being Jolteon, Durant itself, Xatu or Togetic. It might sound a bit gimmicky or bad, but I assure you, even when the sub is broken before being passed out, it is still a solid way to bring in something frail like Hitmonlee, Sneasel (hype lol) or whatever else doesn't enjoy taking attacks. It's not like Leafeon, Jolteon or whatever are useless Pokemon outside of passing subs, they will still be doing something, even if they cannot pass.

• Scarfmoltres

After reading about they hype this set is producing I decided to try it out and I was damn amazed by it. I always knew that it is a good set, it always was, ever since the introduction of Scarf, but somehow it manages to shine even more in the current metagame, with everything being either a bulky water or weak to it. Indeed, it needs Defog or Rapid Spin, but to be honest, with all the Omastar Leads running around you'll be using some way of hazard control anyway in most cases and there are a lot of solid pokemon which can fulfill that role, such as Hitmonlee, Gligar, Golbat or even Sandslash. I made a team with Skuntank, because of the already mentioned pursuit support, that Moltres really really appreciates. Just a solid threat that is relativly easy to fit on teams, despite the rocksweak. Definitely a good way to go in this metagame.

 

[Explorer]

Kingdra has two weaknesses now. Not that Aromatisse wants to take LO Waterfalls. That said, it can be paired with something such as Klinklang to break through Fairies and bait Fire attacks (I will need to try KlingDra if Kingdra does drop). It also makes rain even more viable, and can run a physical DD set alongside Seismitoad/Omastar/Ludicolo running special sets.

As for Houndoom, I'm just going to take a wild guess that Houndoomnite would get quick banned to BL2 since its wall breaking power is absolutely insane. Regardless of this, Houndoom will serve as a fantastic check to Slowking, Delphox, and Doublade.

Houndoom (M) @ Life Orb/Houndoomnite
Trait: Flash Fire (-->Solar Power)
EVs: 4 Atk/252 SpA/252 Spe
Nature: Hasty
-Sucker Punch
-Fire Blast
-Crunch
-Pursuit/Dark Pulse/Hidden Power Ice/Hidden Power Grass

Sucker Punch snipes Delphox.
Fire Blast is the spammable STAB against Doublade, Escavalier, Registeel, and most other things.
Crunch nukes all of the Psychic-types, namely Slowking and Meloetta.
The last slot has options:

• Pursuit can be used to play mind games with opponents that might try to switch out on Houndoom, most notably Psychic and Grass-types.
• Dark Pulse provides a more reliable STAB using Houndoom's higher special attack
• Hidden Power Ice hits Gligar.
• Hidden Power Grass hits Rhyperior, Gastro, and the 4 fully-evolved Water/Rock types legal in RU (Omastar, Kabutops, Barbacle, Carracosta).

 

[aVocado]

This is an extremely underrated threat right now, and overshadowed had by both Accelgor and Omastar. Qwilfish, like the other 2 premier Spikers, is usually used as a suicide lead for HO teams but with an added bonus: it has Toxic Spikes. Toxic Spikes is that good against opposing HO/offense teams lacking a grounded Poison (skuntank/drapion mainly), and really puts a timer on each Pokemon. Additionally, it can also be used with a bulky spread on balance/semi-stall teams thanks to its defensively good typing and its access to Intimidate, checking some threats. Hell, it can even use Scald and act as a check to Doublade with the 30% burn chance, especially seeing as a +1 Shadow Claw (factoring intimidate and SD as you switch Qwilfish in on Doublade) won't do much.

I've been using the suicide lead set with SD Shiftry lately and it's working really nicely, surprised I don't see this as much as the other two Spikers, especially seeing as it has access to Taunt to stop set up and Explosion, to work like Accelgor's Final Gambit and prevent defogging/spinning on it for a turn.

edit: I also forgot to stress how much Qwilfish has an extremely favourable matchup against most other HO leads, including Omastar, Accelgor, and Kricketune. Thanks for reminding me Pearl. lol.

 

[Pearl]

I have some experience on Qwilfish (both Sash and Defensive) too, and I totally back up what Arikado said. Sash Qwilfish walks all over Kricketune and Omastar, while limiting Accelgor's Spikes to 1 single layer. Scald Qwilfish (which is mostly better than Waterfall BTW) also wins against Gligar, Rhyperior, and Omastar. Something like Spikes / Taunt / Scald / Explosion, although Toxic Spikes can also go in if needed. Defensive Qwilfish checks a lot of things and has good synergy with other members of full stall teams, forming Intimidate cores with the likes of Hitmontop in order to wear down Physical Pokemon more easily and receiving Wish support too.

Also, about a previous topic (Moltres + Pursuit Trapper): It doesn't need to be Choice Scarf Moltres, although that is arguably the superior variant for such strategy. Life Orb Moltres' U-turn (which isn't as bad as it sounds) + Spiritomb's Pursuit is a guaranteed 2HKO on Slowking, 3HKO if it decides to stay in, even if Scald burns, that is, considering it is a Assault Vest variant.

And speaking of Assault Vest Slowking, I think people should look further than that. Slowking is such a versatile Pokemon, and with Pokemon using Pursuit (Sneasel, Spiritomb, Escavalier) on the rise to check Cresselia, Reuniclus and other Psychic-types (metagame shifting), a Physically Defensive set (with either Calm Mind or Thunder Wave) is probably an excellent option too, being less susceptible to getting Pursuit trapped and retaining the ability to keep Moltres in check. Choice Specs Slowking is an underrated set (which isn't outclassed by any other Water or Psychic-type) too, surprising switch ins with either its higher damage or Trick. Won't go too in depth on that one since it's been a while since I last used it. It also has Nasty Plot and the ability to go OTR, but I'm yet to try those.

And to end the discussion of popular Pokemon with unconventional sets, I'd like to talk about something that I've only thought about in theory, but could potentially be an amazing win condition for Stall teams or more balanced ones that mostly rely on Toxic Spikes:

Moltres @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 124 Def / 136 Spe
Timid Nature
- Substitute
- Toxic
- Flamethrower
- Roost

Enough Speed for Adamant Hitmonlee, Substitute, Roost, Toxic and Pressure allow you to heavily weaken common Moltres switch ins (except for the underrated Lanturn, since that one has Heal Bell, but even so it can be played around).

Also, I've been testing a lot of other NU Pokemon, including Chatot, Swanna, Slurpuff and Xatu, but I'll go in depth about those next time I write nominations for the RU Viability Ranking thread, so stay tuned I guess. (lol)

 

[Pinkin Lark]

If I could bring up a pokemon that I feel is pathetically underrated, the first thing I would blurt out is "Offensive Whimsicott!" Offensive Whimsi is great in RU for multiple reasons. It has great Dual STABs, is incredibly fast even with a Modest Nature, and has great priority.

Jiggz (Whimsicott) @ Life Orb
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 4 HP / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Nature Power
- Giga Drain
- Moonblast
- Hidden Power [Fire]

This set is, simply put, my favorite thing to use in RU. Giga Drain is great for healing off LO recovery, and Moonblast is your strong, spamming move. Moonblast hits very hard, even coming off of Whimsi's mediocre base 77 Sp. Att stat. HP Fire is here to catch things like Doublade and Escavalier on switchins, as it 2HKOes them both. And one of my favorite things about this mon, Nature Power, is defaulted to Tri-Attack (obviously). But, since Nature Power isn't directly an attack, it is moved up to +1 priority from prankster. I cannot begin to explain how good it feels to kill Fletchinder after rocks, when they think they can safely Acrobatics. I also useit to deal a considerable chunk to sharpedo once it is Faster than me.Other options for this mon include Hurricane as powerful coverage, Memento to make room for setups, or U-Turn to hit things that wall you on their switch-in. I prefer HP Fire to these options though, as otherwise Whimsi gets Hardwalled by Doublade and Escav.

Calc Corner!

252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Hidden Power Fire vs. 212 HP / 0 SpD Eviolite Doublade: 156-185 (50 - 59.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Giga Drain vs. 104 HP / 156 SpD Alomomola: 354-421 (71.2 - 84.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Giga Drain vs. 212 HP / 0 SpD Solid Rock Rhyperior: 597-706 (140.8 - 166.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Nature Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Sharpedo: 179-212 (63.7 - 75.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 236 HP / 0 SpD Druddigon: 343-406 (96.8 - 114.6%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 56 SpD Aromatisse: 164-192 (40.3 - 47.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Rotom-C: 148-175 (61.4 - 72.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Hitmontop: 289-343 (95 - 112.8%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
252+ SpA Life Orb Whimsicott Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Skuntank: 231-274 (56.3 - 66.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery

My god, I never realized it got Nature Power. I've been running a sort of Offensive Utility with Giga/Moonblast/Stun Spore/Encore or Taunt. But now I have to figure out how to fit Nature Power into my wonderful Whimsicott. Yet to find a tier where Whimsi isn't good(I'm guessing Ubers would solve that).

 

[Explorer]

I've been having some fun with this thing:

Spiritomb (M) @ Expert Belt/Leftovers
Trait: Inflitrator
EVs: 248 HP/244 SpD/16 Spe
Nature: Sassy
-Sucker Punch
-Will-o-Wisp
-Snatch
-Shadow Ball

This Spiritomb set is incredibly anti-meta right now, but it takes more skill to use than any conventional set (especially CroTomb). That said, it solely handles four of the big-name threats in the tier: Delphox, Doublade, Meloetta, and Hitmonlee. Here is how it works:

Trait: Lets Spiritomb beat SubBU Braviary and SubCM Meloetta. If being used on a stall/semistall team, Pressure can see some use though
EVs/nature: This is predominately a defensive set. Special defense is maximized since this set spreads burns, effectively doubling Spiritomb's physical defense against burned targets. The HP hits a Stealth Rock number. Speed outspends 8 Spe base 30s.

Sucker Punch: A great staple, picking off frailer offensive threats such as Jolteon and friends. It has decent power even uninvested.
Will-o-Wisp: Burns through substitutes, and handles the common physical attackers in the tier beyond Emboar (which can blast through Spiritomb).
Snatch: Here's where it gets fun. You can steal subs, Recover, Roost, and so forth. It also steals boosts from setup sweepers, including Houndoom if it drops. I don't recommend this set for beginners, as if you mispredict, you can give your opponent a free turn. Knowledge of the metagame and what sets other Pokemon run is important.

Shadow Ball: I use this for a good ol' reliable STAB, hitting much of the metagame neutrally. However, this slot is very flexible. Other thoughts could be…
-Trick: Use a Choice Band or Scarf (switch to Careful nature) and mess with stealers.
-Psychic: Hits Fighting-types more directly; Lee is crippled by Wisp but if you're afraid of Hariyama/Gurdurr this can help a bit.
-HP Fire/Ice/Grass/Ground: I'd advise some SpA investment here, can be used to hit Escavalier/Gligar/Gastro/Rhyperior/Magneton harder than other moves.

Have some fun with this set, get creative, steal Shell Smashes, etc.

 

[EonX]

Gonna talk about a couple of sets on Pokemon I feel are a bit unexplored atm, but are really solid:

Offensive Trick Room Slowking: Trick Room as a whole is really anti-meta right now with all the HO teams flying around as TR teams turn their high Speed against them. Slowking is one of the best setters in the tier as it checks a whole host of Pokemon in RU while having Regenerator to set it up multiple times as needed. And with TR up, OTR Slowking with full coverage is really hard to switch into thanks to its bulk, "high" Speed, and coverage. Really cool set and a playstyle as a whole that I feel is pretty unexplored right now when you have powerhouses, such as MegaSnow, Druddigon, Escavalier, and Reuniclus just waiting to take advantage of the twisted dimensions.

Spikes Lead Qwilfish: This thing is horrendously underrated rn. I have sadly yet to be able to use this myself, but aim used one against me recently and really opened my eyes to it quite a bit. Being able to always inflict serious damage on spinners and Defoggers with Explosion is really nice and Toxic Spikes is damn good atm considering one layer will really cut the lifespan of many Pokemon found on HO teams. The most common spinner in the tier, Sandslash, is grounded and lacks reliable recovery (Soft Sand variants have none at all) thus making it incredibly easy to wear down with TSpikes support.

Weather: Weather in general is something that I feel is pretty unexplored in RU, but it has really good potential, Rain in particular. There are plenty of great weather setters in the tier, such as Uxie, Mesprit, Liepard, Whimsicott, and even Meowstic-M. Whether it's rain or sun, there's plenty of Pokemon in RU that would jump at the chance to abuse it. Rain has the likes of Jolteon, Kabutops, Ludicolo, Moltres (100% accurate Hurricanes!) and Heliolisk at their disposal while Sun teams have even more with the likes of Delphox, Shiftry, Victreebel, Moltres, Emboar, and Sawsbuck. A lot of potential there, but I really feel it hasn't been explored too much as of yet.