NU FAQ & Resources
 

Hello user and welcome to the NeverUsed forum! In case you're unaware, NU is the lowest tier available in standard Generation 5 play, just below RU. The Pokemon found here are determined by usage in higher tiers, not their perceived power. This system isn't perfect, and a Pokemon that is too powerful for NU but isn't up to par in RU or higher tiers can slip through the cracks and still end up in NU. Don't worry, though; if a Pokemon is widely considered broken, it will likely be suspected and be voted upon by the NU Senate & rotating council to see if it should be banned and moved to BL3, the NU banlist. Currently, the only Pokemon in BL3 is Jynx.

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Resources

If this is your first time visiting the forum or playing NU, you may want to check out some of the useful reference lists, strategy guides, and older resources we have available:

NU StrategyDex - Here you can find a list of every Pokemon (excepting a few NFEs) that is currently usable in NU, as well as their strategy articles. If you ever have a question on whether or not something can be used in NU, be sure to check here and see for yourself!
NU Speed Tiers - Do you ever find yourself questioning whether or not your +2 Gorebyss will outrun Choice Scarf Sawk? Fear no longer, for here you can find out quickly where your boosted and unboosted Pokemon lie on the Speed depth chart.
Using Sun in NU - Weather is an extraordinarily good strategy in NU and with powerhouses like Exeggutor, Victreebel, and Charizard, you've got an impressive array of sweepers who are ready to blast through your opponent's team after a single turn of setup. Weather teams aren't the easiest to piece together, though, but taking a look at this guide will get you headed off in the right direction!
NU Stats - If for any reason you ever want to go back and track the general trends of the NU metagame, you can check out these threads. NU hasn't been an official tier for too long yet, so we don't even have a full year of stats, but we're almost there!

October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011

np: (now playing) threads - np: threads are the centerpiece of every round of the NU metagame. General discussion of each metagame will usually be found in the np: thread, and a new one is posted after every NU suspect test or after significant changes in the metagame.

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np: NU Stage 7 - Free Bird
np: NU Stage 6 - Black Magic Woman
np: NU Stage 5 - Won't Get Fooled Again
np: NU Stage 4 - Disco Inferno
np: NU Stage 3 - Riders on the Storm
np: NU Stage 2 - Part of Your World
np: NU Stage 1 - Welcome to Heartbreak
np: NU Stage 0 - For What It's Worth
Initial NU Metagame thread (before it became an official metagame!)

NU C&C - If you were ever interested in how the strategy articles get on-site, you can find out here. Articles follow a strict C&C process that you can read more about here. Analyses that will soon be on-site can be found here, meaning you can find updated information before they're released to the strategy guide! If you're interested in earning a badge, this is one of the best places to begin and work towards earning your http://www.smogon.com/media/community/awards/what.png badge!

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Projects

This list will be updated as more guides get put on-site, so stay tuned. We also have a ton of forum projects and I'll be keeping an active index of them here, in case you ever want to look up older variants of them and whatnot! Great posting in these forum projects (and the np: threads listed above) can be rewarded with a http://www.smogon.com/media/communit.../community.png badge if you work hard. :)

Research Weeks / Groups - Research Week began as a way to identify new, interesting threats hidden in the masses of Pokemon that are available in NU. Follow through each RW / RG as they explore new niches for underused Pokemon and occasionally find a diamond in the rough!

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RG 9: Marowak, Pinsir, Miltank, Regice
RG 8: Ampharos, Charizard, Basculin, Murkrow
RG 7: Granbull, Masquerain, Swoobat, Throh
RG 6: Mr. Mime, Mawile, Torkoal, Solrock
RG 5: Lairon, Simipour, Fraxure
RG 4: Gothitelle, Serperior, Exploud, Omanyte
RG 3: Sawsbuck, Articuno, Duosion
RG 2: Magmar, Lapras, Exeggutor
RG 1: Zweilous, Torterra, Eelektross
RW 11: Golbat, Piloswine, Carracosta, Frillish
RW 10: Bastiodon, Rampardos, Glaceon, Leafeon
RW 9: Lampent, Simipour, Eelektross, Beheeyem
RW 8: Tauros, Pinsir, Floatzel, Sneasel
RW 7: Kangaskhan, Arbok, Ampharos, Shelgon
RW 6: Rapidash, Articuno, Kecleon, Stunfisk
RW 5: Emboar, Muk, Meganium, Pelipper
RW 4: Murkrow, Gardevoir, Drifblim, Luxray
RW 3: Shelmet, Lopunny, Cradily, Relicanth
RW 2: Butterfree, Masquerain, Leavanny
RW 1: Staryu, Porygon, Grumpig

NU Viability Ranking - After PK Gaming posted his UU version, our valiant NU members decided it was a great idea and posted a version of our own. This thread serves as a sort of 'power ranking' of the various NU threats, and debates are held frequently over where each Pokemon should be placed. If you're interested in knowing which Pokemon are considered the best of the best by top NU players, check this thread out!

Theorymon Sessions - I created this thread primarily to discuss the "what if" aspect of competitive Pokemon. If you have ever sat back and thought "hmm how good would Pinsir be if it had Megahorn, or what if Rotom-S actually had a decent ability?" then this very well might be the thread for you.

Teambuilding 101 - Started up by MMF, this project serves to help out newer players that struggle a bit with their teambuilding but are really interested in playing NU. As of posting this, there are three different rounds of Teambuilding 101 with different builders and a different theme each round. Check it out if you have a hard time figuring out what works best in NU.

Teambuilding 101: Round 3 - Hyper Offense - Raseri, Annoyer, tennisace
Teambuilding 101: Round 2 - Stall - Django, DTC, EBeast
Teambuilding 101: Round 1 - Offense - FLCL, MMF, Zebraiken

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Frequently Asked Questions

If you are thinking of making a topic that can be answered in a post or two, simply post that here instead, new topics should be for discussion!

What does [move / item / ability] do?
Check the links in this topic before asking. http://www.smogon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3470153
Also read the first post here: http://www.smogon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3471351

Is there going to be a tier under NU?
As of right now, there will be no official tier below NU.

How do bans in higher tiers affect NU?
Outside of Pokemon bans (which clearly aren't going to be allowed in NU), there are three ability or move combination bans that affect NU. Sand Stream and Snow Warning have been banned from UU, so even though Snover and Hippopotas are usable in NU, they cannot have those abilities. Also, RU banned the combination of Shell Smash + Baton Pass; this combination of moves is illegal in NU as well.

More may be added to this list.

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If you're looking to get involved in the NU community, then please come and join us on IRC! #pokemon is now the default chat for discussion, but should #pokemon be currently involved in another discussion, such as UU or cutemons or Kid Icarus, then #neverused can be used instead. You can either follow the Smogon IRC guide for information on how to connect using various clients (located here), or use this link to directly connect to #pokemon by simply entering a username and clicking connect. Use this link to directly connect to #neverused by simply entering a username and clicking connect.

Have fun chatting, and we hope you enjoy NU! If you have any other questions about posting threads in the forum or something that cannot be quickly answered in this thread, please contact one or all of our friendly moderators (Zebraiken, FLCL, DTC, or Raseri).

for reference, the previous SQSA thread.

I HAVE A QUESTION! :D

I want to make sets for Rhydon, Linoone, and Lopunny...but I don't know if I would be EV training them properly/using a decent moveset.

I do NOT play competitively via Wifi, just in the Battle Tower/Battle Subway (almost always for singles). This means I don't switch ever (unless it's very necessary) and supporting moves are not needed unless there is nothing else to fill in a moveslot.

With that in mind, here's what I'm looking at currently but would still REALLY like help on:

Rhydon w/Eviolite
Lightningrod
Stone Edge
Earthquake
Megahorn
Swords Dance/Rock Polish

(For this I'm torn between making it super fast at the cost of power versus slower but bulkier for massive attack. For the former I would pump 252 EVs into ATK but then don't know if any would be good in SPE since I'm not sure where a single Rock Polish would put him compared to the base speed of other Pokemon. For the latter I feel like putting a ton of EVs into his defenses and speed so he can take hits while setting up.)

Linoone w/Salac Berry or Sitrus Berry
Gluttony
Extremespeed
Seed Bomb
Shadow Claw
Bellydrum

(I want to make the classic 'Noone sweeper but I'm not sure how I should go about the EV spread and the nature, such as 252 in both ATK/SPE or a small amount into HP)

Lopunny
Cute Charm
?
?
?
?

(Please don't post "lols Switcheroo set hurrr" because I don't want that :P I'm looking for doing damage and possibly crippling them enough to whittle down their HP because of her wimpy attack. She sadly doesn't have access to Swords Dance or Bulk Up, but she DOES have Work Up. Her movepool is quite large and I'm wondering if putting some EVs into SPA would make her viable for a mixer).

If anyone out there could help me I'd REALLY REALLY appreciate it! None of my friends really play Pokemon anymore, and if they do it's seriously so I need your guys' help! :)

First of all, Rhydon is RU, which means it's banned from NU. I would suggest using Golem since it has the same typing and similar stats.

Linoone should use a bulkier spread since it gives it bulk needed to set up. However, if outrunning Haunter is a priority, then a faster spread can be used. Here are both sets:




I can't give you much input on Lopunny because I don't use it, but you should be able to find useful sets for it (along with Golem and other Pokemon you want to use) here.

Whoops, I thought he was NU...my mistake.

I don't want Golem, I want Rhydon =/

The Battle Tower/Subway doesn't care about tiers. I could wind up fighting a Haunter or, more likely, a Gengar. Or Dusclops, Mismagius, etc.

I need a set that is basically overall good, able to take on whatever comes its way.

You've come to the wrong place regarding Battle Subway advice. You would be better off asking in Orange Islands or trying their IRC channel. Questions here should be related to the NU metagame, and as FLCL said, Rhydon is RU - thus not relevant here. As for sets the strategy Pokedex is a good place to start, but is focused on the singles 6v6 metagame, not Battle Subway, so some of the sets may not be ideal. Those sets for Linoone are very solid though, for what its worth.

mabye add the fact that gothitelle was banned in a higher tier to the section?

Just checked out the Orange Island forum, doesn't seem like my questions would be welcomed there either ;_;

The Drought Ban in UU also effects NU, you cannot use Vulpix with Drought.

Every time I try to go onto IRC for #neverused or #pokemon by clicking the links in the OP, they never work. I always get the error message "irc.synirc.net/: Could not resolve hostname." How do I get by this?

This happens to me too. To get around it, enter the username you want to use in the username box, the channel you want to go to in the channel box, and change the IRC channel to SyncIRC in that drop-down box.

lol thanks i couldn't get on irc the other day

I updated this thread and added a few projects under the corresponding section. I'd like this thread to become a massive resource for anyone looking for information about NU, so if you guys have any suggestions for what to add to the OP please let me know!

Although it is dead, I think that adding NU Teambuilding into the OP would be nice because it shows what to use and what not to use in NU which is good for a FAQ (right?).

So Hail has been unbanned in UU. Is it unbanned in our dear NU too?

Not unless Oglemi and Zebraiken decide to let it down

in response to that:
i know snover moved up but if snover ever goes NU will hail be banned or not?

no, because it hasn't been voted to be broken in nu

I have a question regarding the forum in general.
I know that I can't post in here any time I want, so how would I be able to post here doin one of the sections that's on here? NU is my favorite tier, and I want to contribute to the forum.

that is not true. you can post as many times as you want, but make sure whatever you post stays relevant to the thread's topic, and make sure your posts have some kind of reasoning behind it (in the np: thread, you can say x pokemon is good in the current metagame, but why?). if you're making a new thread, it must have a substantial post where it can raise some points for other people to discuss. if you want to start some kind of forum project, it's best to get the approval of one of the NU moderators.

i don't know if this is what you were quite asking for, but hopefully this clears up a few things.

What is "i have a bad team"? We have heard this quite a few times but have little information about what happened. Can somebody explain it to us?

Nobody?

Have we broken some unspoken and unwritten rules?

Where is there a list of the top threats in the NU metagame?

http://www.smogon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3473354 the s and a rank pokemon in this thread can be considered as the top threats in the metagame.

Huh? If you're referring to the guy who labored extensively on his own to alter the stats, then yeah, there's no real need to address the issue. Someone went out of their way to specifically alter the tiers by using low-leveled Pokemon to lose on the ladder many, many times. There was a sort of implied trust that people wouldn't actually take advantage of our usage-based tiering system but someone breached that and did it anyway.

We have addressed this issue and it won't happen again in the future.

Here. It's on the first page of threads, a few below this one.

edit: FLCL sucks donkey nuts