really like the changes in the latest update n_n
B+ -> B
while it might be strange to see mega altaria so low (compared to where it used to be), this definitely seems appropriate. when it comes to the dragon dance mega altaria variants, teams are much better prepared (and they have been for awhile now lol), so to actually use it you usually end up having to sacrifice something. if you choose to forego refresh / heal bell for earthquake and / or roost for fire blast for optimal coverage, you lack longevity and are susceptible to burns. if you go with those moves, you get walled by pretty much every steel in the game... additionally, the more offensive dragon dance variants can't efficiently check all the stuff mega alt checks on paper (keldeo, electrics, zard-x, etc.) because you get easily overwhelmed. if you go with a set that only has fairy coverage, you sorta get stuck running magnezone to trap annoying steels; the issue here is that magnezone doesn't provide the defensive utility / general glue that other steels like jirachi and mega scizor provide for more offensive / bulky offensive teams. this severely restricts building, and while alt better checks the stuff you want it to check to make up for this, you also have to factor in how prior to mega evolving, alt can't really check a lot of the stuff you want it to due to different typing, shitty defenses, and a SR weakness.
note: i know you don't have to run magnezone with mega alt, but it's definitely appreciated to the point where it's worth mentioning... it isn't something super major!
with the specially offensive sets, you have a few more options with the ability to go a bit bulkier with moves like heal bell and roost or more aggressive with EQ for coverage. however, specially offensive variants face the same problems dragon dance variants face: the more offensive ones struggle to check all the stuff you typically want alt to check & the more defensive / supportive ones are underwhelming offensively... this issue isn't nearly as bad here as it is with dragon dance variants though since you really shouldn't be expecting too much from specially offensive mega alt as an offensive mon on your team rofl.
finally, i really think alt lines up better with the stuff in B rank compared to the stuff in B+. everything in B+ (except maybe hippo and mew imo) is quite a bit better than it; nidoking, tangrowth, amoonguss, kyurem-b, latias, and the recent drops (mega bro and mega venu) are all quite a bit better. in B, you have things like mega aerodactyl, breloom, volc, and gastro: all of which i think are about as good as alt. i'm not comparing any of these things to mega altaria, but i think looking at what is in a certain rank is sorta necessary. simply put: a good chunk of the stuff in B+ is a lot better than alt, and a lot of the stuff in B is closer to being on the same level as alt (compared to the stuff in B+).
i think seeing dragonite next to altaria is really weird though, but whatever.
A- -> A
like mega altaria, it might be strange to some people seeing mega metagross in A-. however, i really just don't think meta is deserving of A rank. yeah it's powerful, bulky, and has a nice movepool. yeah, people have been running double punches on the thing for awhile. these things aren't new though... there haven't really been many changes to warrant a rise for metagross. if anything, the rise in rotom-w and mega scizor hurts mega metagross. furthermore, mega metagross isn't really on the same level as a lot of the pokemon in A rank. it's hard to argue that it isn't one of the more consistent performers in A-, but i think meta fits in better with pokemon like mega latias, mega heracross, terrakion, bisharp, skarmory, and jirachi. looking at A rank, you have some insanely consistent and / or threatening pokemon like mega medicham, zard-x, talonflame, mega sableye, and mega lopunny... is mega metagross really on the same level as these pokemon?
i can really see this one going either way, but i think megagross just fits in a bit better with the stuff in A- than the stuff in A.
A- -> A
while i don't really see thundurus-i as a "staple of offense" as
Koiro. put it, i do think thundurus is a very threatening pokemon that can fit on quite a few offensive builds. yeah, electrics in general struggle with the omnipresent clefable and the sorta recent but not-so-recent rises in mega latias and tyranitar, but like a lot of people have pointed out already, it doesn't really struggle with the same things that these other electrics struggle with. thundurus-i has much better coverage than raikou and mega manectric, and with that comes a bit more unpredictability in what moves it's running. finally, i think thundurus not only stands out as one of the best A- rank pokemon, but it also fits in right at home with pokemon in A like weavile, mega lopunny, azumarill, etc..
i don't really think
too much has changed in thundurus's favor, but i do think this is just an issue of thundurus being placed a bit too low initially in the update to the VR thread lol.
(some other things i want to bring up but don't really have that much to say on:)
A -> A+
heatran is a super splashable, versatile rocker and glue mon that really fits in with a lot of the more staple-y mons in A+ like keldeo, latios, landorus-t, rotom-w, etc.. there seriously isn't too much to say here it's pretty straightforward lol.
A- -> A
previously i really thought bisharp should rise to A rank, but my opinion on that has sorta changed over time (mainly cause the new standards for rankings are sitting with me better now). i think
Koiro. really summarizes why bisharp should stay in A- well
here.
A -> A-
a nom of my own i guess, but i don't really have too much to say :x. now that we've had volcanion to play with for quite awhile, it really seems like it was
somewhat overhyped as this super good glue mon that really fixes a lot of problems in 1 when building a la heatran and stuff. however, volc just really isn't that great. it was a new mon and it sorta got placed highly, but now that we've had it, we can see that this placement wasn't the best. is volc really on the same level as... every pokemon in A rank? honestly i think a lot of pokemon in A- are quite a bit better than volc, but it does fit in nicely with some mons there like gliscor :p.
edit: also why the fuck is roserade still ranked i seriously don't get it this thing is so bad all it has going on is toxic spikes D: