The Many Niche Flying-types of RBY Ubers

By Sabelette. Released:2023/09/07
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The Many Niche Flying-types of RBY Ubers Art

Art by grape tylenol.

Introduction

Many misconceptions surround RBY Ubers. Perhaps the most pervasive idea is that Mewtwo's sheer power creates a constricted metagame with only a few usable Pokémon, but this couldn't be further from the truth. In fact, it's a highly diverse metagame where Pokémon that generally fall flat in OU may find new life. Pokémon like Hypno, Golem, and Sandslash span the breadth of UU to ZU, but all of them find at least a small niche in Ubers. However, these are not our concern today. Rather, we're going to look at a specific set of Ubers niches—the Flying-types. A number of them have some tiny use here, from the more obvious threats like Zapdos and Dragonite to… Aerodactyl, Butterfree, and Golbat?

The basis of all of these niches comes from Mew's typical role in Ubers. Most of the time, it will run a set that includes Swords Dance and Soft-Boiled. This leaves room for only two other moves; usually, Mew will pick two of Earthquake, Body Slam, and Explosion, as this makes for an effective physical sweeper and terrifying check to paralyzed Mewtwo. It might also choose to fit Thunder Wave or Reflect with one of those slots to provide support or check other physical attackers, including opposing Mew. However, several of these combinations come with a glaring flaw—sets lacking Body Slam are entirely walled by Flying-types or forced to use Explosion to get past them, while the Earthquake + Body Slam set can't paralyze Normal / Flying foes, deals disappointing damage unboosted, and has mediocre support capabilities. Flying-types exploit these sets by walling or annoying Mew, and some can outright duel it and win.

What happens if the opposing Mew runs a different set? There are two other main archetypes for Mew sets: Transform Mew and support Mew. Transform Mew runs into problems with most Flying-types, as it generally runs one attacking move at most, if any, and would much rather copy an opposing Mewtwo or Mew than a random bird. Support Mew, which often utilizes Thunder Wave, special attacks, and Explosion, is relatively rare, but most of these sets beat Flying-types, which is one of many reasons these Pokémon are niche.

The logical followup question is: why use some random low-tier Pokémon when Zapdos also walls or duels common Mew sets? Great question! Most of the time, Zapdos is better at this role, but many of the Pokémon we'll be discussing today have moves and typings that let them also check other foes or threaten offensively from oblique angles. Zapdos is certainly terrifying, but the legendary bird has glaring issues with Ground-types and difficulty defeating Mewtwo.

Without further ado, let's look at the more niche fliers and what they can do!

Aerodactyl

Aerodactyl

Unlike in later generations, Aerodactyl is pretty disappointing in RBY, hovering around UU to NU due to its horrible offensive movepool. It doesn't have any STAB moves besides Sky Attack and lacks staples like Rock Slide and Earthquake that it would get in the next few games, so its only real options are Double-Edge, Hyper Beam, and Fire Blast. Ultimately, the late-game fossil ends up being a flop with poor damage and special bulk in a generation where it has to contend with 32 PP Recover and 90% accurate Blizzard.

Despite this, it has a surprising niche in Ubers. Its unique typing lets it wall all physical attacking sets from both Snorlax and Mew, which are the most common sets for both Pokémon. Aerodactyl can catch Explosion and survive, and with Reflect up it becomes really hard to break with physical attacks. Fire Blast has a 30.1% burn rate in RBY, and a burn permanently ruins the ubiquitous all-out attacking Snorlax sets and slowly chips down Mew. It also doesn't care about Reflect or Thunder Wave from Mew at all, giving it perhaps the broadest anti-Mew coverage of any Flying-type. Aerodactyl is the epitome of a stall Pokémon in this tier, seeking to blockade Mew and Snorlax and waste their PP, a stark contrast to its use in later generations.

Unfortunately, it hits like a wet noodle and is setup fodder for Mewtwo; burning Mewtwo just lets it safely boost and sweep without fear of more impactful statuses. It will also eventually be worn down and forced to use Rest, providing even more opportunity for Mewtwo to set up in front of it. Mew is even capable of breaking through it at +6 despite Reflect, given some luck; a couple of well-timed full paralyses are enough for Mew to get through it. Despite these flaws, Aerodactyl is notable for actually seeing occasional tournament play and some success, a feat few of the following Flying-types can claim.

Charizard

Charizard

Charizard may be iconic, but it's completely irrelevant in RBY OU and UU, finding a place near the top of NU instead. It's commonly seen as a noob trap in higher tiers and something that roleplayers bring on ladder, mimicking Red's team from later games. Despite this, it too has a cool Ubers niche, but certainly not one that's easy to pull off!

As with other Flying-types, Charizard walls Earthquake + Explosion Mew sets, but it packs a special surprise for Body Slam Mew—Counter. Even at +6, Mew cannot OHKO Charizard, so Mew actually fares worse by boosting! As with Aerodactyl, Charizard also has Fire Blast, making it a massive threat to Mew and Snorlax. Charizard also has access to Swords Dance and Body Slam, meaning Mew can't sit around hoping to stall it with Soft-Boiled or fish for unboosted Body Slam paralysis—a boosted Charizard is more than capable of paralyzing Mew and taking it out, then dealing heavy damage elsewhere. Snorlax doesn't fare much better, as Counter takes off around half its HP and Fire Blast can burn it, after which Charizard can exploit a famous RBY bug by using Swords Dance to cut its Attack even further. Access to Earthquake also means it's a rare Flying-type that isn't walled by Gengar or Rock-types. Charizard's set is highly customizable to meet different threats—an opponent expecting a simple Counter Charizard may run into problems as they switch and learn it has Swords Dance as well!

Of course, Charizard isn't without flaws; a brutal BoltBeam weakness and the risk of burning the wrong target haunt it, and Charizard deals piddling damage to most foes without several boosts. Funnily enough, it's also walled by Aerodactyl, though the fossil can't really do anything back. All in all, it's a fun pick and perhaps the occasional surprise tech, but hardly a mainstay of the tier.

Dodrio

Dodrio

Dodrio fluctuates in viability as a UU threat, but it's also the hardest hitting Normal-type attacker in RBY, tied with Snorlax, and it Speed ties Mew. Its Normal / Flying typing offers immunities to both Body Slam paralysis and Earthquake, but Normal-type STAB is what truly makes it terrifying—it easily 3HKOes Mew with Body Slam and Hyper Beam, whereas Mew only 4HKOes it with Body Slam. It also trades well with Snorlax and is just generally absurdly threatening to any team lacking a firm check. Whereas Mewtwo happily switches into Aerodactyl and Charizard all day, switching into Dodrio is a complete nightmare—the Body Slam + Hyper Beam combination also 3HKOes it, so a single critical hit or full paralysis spells the end of the mutant cat.

Aside from Gengar and Rock-types, which crush it handily, nothing can really stop this bird from terrorizing the opposing team once it gets in; everything is either too frail, too valuable, or liable to lose if paralyzed. Zapdos is about the only other threat that can stop it, and even it takes over 50% from Hyper Beam, so if it takes paralysis on the switch in it stops working as a check. Stopping Dodrio without a Ghost or Rock basically entails praying to your preferred deity that it doesn't paralyze your best excuse for a check on entry, but once you get something like Mewtwo in safely, the bird will be forced to hightail it out.

Unfortunately, the crushing matchup against Rock-types and the omnipresent Gengar are big problems for it. Special attacking Mew variants also bulldoze it most times, as do the uncommon fast Thunder Wave users like Starmie and Jolteon if they can find safe entry, which is no mean feat. Surprise Counter users like Snorlax and Chansey can take it out, though at a heavy cost. It's also outsped and beaten by Tauros and, you guessed it, Aerodactyl.

Mirror Move Users

Fearow Pidgeot

These birds are awful in general, being outclassed by Dodrio in most ways. Fearow at least is a top threat in PU, acting as a discount Dodrio, but Pidgeot is a ZU-level Pokémon at best. They have one thing over Dodrio, though—access to Mirror Move, which is nearly useless in their home tiers but presents a rather funny opportunity in Ubers. They both use the same set with the same goal: switch into Mew, copy its Swords Dances, and beat it up. Both can KO it with +2 Drill Peck / Double-Edge + Hyper Beam, while Mew only 3HKOes at +2. Should Mew keep boosting, +4 Hyper Beam OHKOes it, but its +6 Body Slam fails to KO either Mirror Move user. If this happens, they can even use Agility to sweep afterward! Never mind the sheer implausibility of the opponent failing to realize that you're stealing their boosts, but with STAB—surely they'll be kind enough to feed you all the boosts you need to win!

Unfortunately, Mew can just switch out to prevent Mirror Move, so this strategy relies on exploiting unfamiliarity… and as always, the opponent can switch to Mewtwo, which isn't particularly threatened by unboosted birds, or the classic Gengar or Rhydon, which stonewall these birds, as expected. Fearow does have the advantage of Drill Peck, which actually lets it deal respectable damage to Gengar if it steals a boost, but Pidgeot is fully out of luck. Still, this could catch an inexperienced opponent off guard and really ruin their day, and if Mew wants to throw unboosted Body Slams at the birds, they can spam Mirror Move to copy it; since they're both part Normal-type, they cannot be paralyzed and can hit it back with STAB and paralyze it. Plus, they can mooch off its Soft-Boiled uses to heal off the chip damage!

Butterfree

Butterfree

This is where we truly begin to peer into the abyss. "Butterfree?" you ask incredulously. "Yes, Butterfree," I answer, but with a look that betrays utter weariness. At present, RBY is only "officially" tiered down to PU, where Butterfree is incredibly niche, to put it generously; preliminary ZU testing suggests it's even worse there.

That said, Butterfree is the only Flying-type sleeper in RBY, so it should be immediately clear where this is going. Switch into Mew, force sleep onto something, then be really annoying by fishing for paralysis. It's also faster than Snorlax, Exeggutor, and Chansey, so it can potentially switch into or revenge sleep them. Let me be clear—Butterfree is horrendous. It's obliterated by everything from Mewtwo to Gengar to Rhydon, and no moveset will ever make it do meaningful damage. This is a terrible idea and anyone doing this has either abandoned all hope or is attempting to ritualistically humiliate their hapless opponent. Butterfree may be the most embarrassing Pokémon to lose to on this list; the others all offer some creative way to turn the tables on the opponent, but this is just a really bad Bug that glues together a mockery of a niche out of RBY's silly sleep mechanics. Anyone who pulls this off in a meaningful game should be applauded—and feared—but we haven't quite dug into the deepest holes of viability just yet.

Farfetch'd

Farfetch'd

Oh yes. The pit goes deeper. The funny duck best known for competing in 7U against the likes of Meowth and Ivysaur has a silly Ubers use. Like Dodrio, Farfetch'd has STAB Normal-type attacks, but it also has its choice of either a Double Dance set or an annoying Substitute + Sand Attack combo. After a single Swords Dance, Body Slam becomes very difficult to switch into, even 3HKOing Mewtwo and Mew. Unfortunately, it's still walled by Gengar and Rhydon, and, well… it's Farfetch'd. Your opponent has to be comatose to let this thing set up enough to be a threat, but you'd have to be out of your mind to bring it in the first place. Still, it's possible your opponent passes out from laughter when they see Farfetch'd, so there's a little bit of hope it might get you a win. At least it's not…

Golbat

Golbat

Yes, that's right, Golbat, the godawful filler Pokémon that remains useless all the way down in PU and ZU, actually has a microscopic niche among the gods of RBY. Golbat's niche here is often confused with this being its "best" tier; in reality, it's just so horrendous in every other tier that we all collectively agree to pretend it has a real niche in Ubers. However, it does have one thing going for it: it is incredibly, unfathomably, unquestionably annoying. If the opposing Mew lacks Body Slam, Golbat gets to wall it eternally and use Confuse Ray to catch the switch-in, allowing a teammate to switch in more safely and exploit turns wasted by confusion. Golbat can also harass paralyzed foes with parafusion and Screech, which not only halves Defense but reapplies the paralysis Speed drop, allowing its paralyzed allies to come in against foes that now have a 37.5% chance to act, 1/16th of their original Speed, and halved Defense. Hilariously, this is actually not a terrible strategy against a paralyzed Mewtwo; it's a tough nut to crack, but Golbat can be your nutcracker, or at least soften it up for something like Snorlax. Truly, it is fitting that the annoying Pokémon that harangued us as children, popping up every five seconds in Victory Road, has returned to pester us even in the highest tier of RBY.

A Final Treat

Hearing about these silly niches is all well and good, but watching these often-terrible Pokémon win is even better! To add a little extra information and hilarity, I've gathered a few replays from the recent RBY Ubers ladder demonstrating how a few of these Pokémon can win games. First up, Aerodacytl showcased its walling potential in this game. We've got a couple wins (1, 2) for Golbat to please the crowd, and fan-favorite Charizard also got a flashy win and a more subtle victory. Dodrio showcased what it can do, and in my favorite replay, Fearow got the dream sweep setup before... well, you'll see. I hope you'll enjoy these small showcases of the many ungrounded threats that sometimes sneak into RBY Ubers!

HTML by Kaede.
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