Ubers in Singles, Legal in Doubles

By miltankmilk and talkingtree. Art by TeraVolt.
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Art by TeraVolt

Introduction

Ubers is home to some of the most powerful or otherwise game-changing Pokémon that ORAS has to offer. All Pokémon that call Ubers home have been banned from OverUsed for one reason or another, but many of these have not been banned from the Doubles OU metagame. The Doubles and singles OU metagames have shifted quite a bit since the end of XY, a metagame described here, and as a result, the Ubers tier has as well. Many Pokémon deemed broken in ORAS OU have been found to be much more manageable in the Doubles metagame for too many reasons to be spelled out individually.

Big Players

Mega Kangaskhan

From the very beginning of XY, Mega Kangaskhan was clearly a large threat to the rest of OU due to the sheer power behind its ability Parental Bond, solid bulk, and access to a setup move that couldn't even be blocked with Taunt in Power-Up Punch. Parental Bond allowed it to get around Focus Sash users, and a +2 Sucker Punch took out most faster threats, leaving it nearly unable to be revenge killed, and many games amounted to whose Mega Kangaskhan could set up first. After a bit of discussion, it was quickbanned to Ubers.

Similarly to in single battles, Mega Kangaskhan was quickly identified as a powerhouse in Doubles OU. Not only did it bring the same super-strong attacks that it carried in XY OU, but Mega Kangaskhan also stood out due to its access to Fake Out, a highly valued utility move in the Doubles metagame. Its massive immediate power thanks to Parental Bond makes it very threatening to almost any team, while Mega Kangaskhan's flexibility allows it to occupy a slot on many team archetypes, but the omnipresence of Intimidate and its susceptibility to being worn down due to the lack of Protect on its most popular movesets have been enough to keep it in check. Though it has been the subject of two suspect tests, Mega Kangaskhan was spared each time, leaving it free to reign over the tier.

Aegislash

The subject of one of the most controversial suspect tests in XY OU and an eventual retest in ORAS OU, Aegislash was an all-new kind of threat due to its ability Stance Change giving it an incredibly bulky forme as well as an offensive powerhouse of a forme, the two of which it could access interchangeably within the same game. In the end, Aegislash's flexibility and the pressure it applied with the 50/50 situations created by King's Shield were deemed too much for OU.

Access to Wide Guard and a decent set of dual STAB types help Aegislash carve itself a solid place in Doubles OU. However, a variety of factors hold it back from being as threatening as it was in singles play. Its high bulk is slightly less useful due to the potential for double targets and the commonness of Fire-types, and there's far less value placed in King's Shield mindgames when Aegislash has a partner that can be targeted, not to mention in some ways it is inferior to Protect, due to an inability to block status moves. The prevalence of Intimidate and the huge value placed in the support moves in Aegislash's arsenal also pigeonhole it into comparatively few possible sets when considering how many possibilities it had in XY OU.

Hoopa-U

Hoopa-U was the most recent suspect in ORAS OU because of the rise of its Choice Specs set. This made Hoopa-U an incredibly potent wallbreaker, as there were very few, if any, safe switch-ins to it. On top of this, Hoopa-U also had potent Life Orb, Choice Band, and Expert Belt sets, which had different checks and counters. The combination of these things caused Hoopa-U to be banned in its suspect test.

Hoopa-U is a very potent threat in the Doubles metagame, not because of any Choice set, but because of its ability to bypass Protect with its Hyperspace Fury and Hyperspace Hole. This role is unique in the Doubles meta, as it brings, in essence, two powerful, STAB Feint moves that bypass Substitutes as well. Because of the need for Protect in Doubles OU, especially for a frail attacker like Hoopa-U, a Choice set is a lot harder to pull off. Hoopa-U has lately become much more popular on semi-Trick Room teams because of its high-powered attacks, moderately low Speed, and access to Trick Room; this Speed tier makes even a max Speed Hoopa-U easier to pick off outside of Trick Room, but fast Hoopa-U can still be quite threatening under Tailwind or against a slower team.

Mega Gengar

Mega Gengar was incredibly threatening in the OU metagame because of its threatening offensive presence and its access to Shadow Tag. Because of its ability to trap and remove stops for other team members, especially against defensive teams, Mega Gengar was quickbanned from OU.

Mega Gengar serves a very similar role in DOU, but this role is just generally not as valuable. Stall is not viable in Doubles, and with two Pokémon on the field, the idea of trapping and KOing a Pokémon isn't quite as simple as it would be in singles. This ability to trap and pick off foes can still be very useful in some matchups, as Mega Gengar can lock in a favorable matchup for its partner, often giving teammates a better opportunity to set up or collect KOs. Mega Gengar's Speed tier is often a great asset, but because of the various methods of speed control that are prominent in Doubles, it may become a liability once Trick Room is set or simply not as useful when against Pokémon in Tailwind. These speed control methods can be stopped with Taunt, however. While Mega Gengar is certainly a good Pokémon in the Doubles OU metagame, it's simply not as well suited for the Doubles metagame as it is for a singles one.

Solid Contributors

Deoxys-A

All formes of Deoxys are currently banned in ORAS OU, but the most threatening of them all is Deoxys-A. With its sky-high offensive stats and phenomenal Speed tier, Deoxys-A is a great wallbreaker and can even sweep teams due to its great Speed, making it difficult to revenge kill without priority or a fast Choice Scarf user.

Deoxys-A is a very powerful attacker in Doubles OU, and it is very difficult to switch into, as even uninvested attacks do a lot of damage and Psycho Boost can OHKO even neutral targets. Its blistering Speed and immense power make Deoxys-A a great hit-and-run attacker, as it provides immense offensive pressure, but its frailty means it cannot stay on the field for more than a couple of turns. Deoxys-A is the least used of the "big players" in the DOU metagame because it does require a good amount of team support to truly shine. Deoxys-A provides the same role it does in singles but, like most Pokémon in Doubles, it has to run Protect because of the nature of the metagame. With the prevalence of priority moves and the ability to be double attacked, redirection or Fake Out support is very helpful for Deoxys-A to function well and stay around for longer than a couple of turns.

Landorus-I

Landorus-I was a more recent ban from the ORAS OU metagame because of both its ability to sweep teams late-game and its potency as a wallbreaker due to its ability and high Special Attack and even its Attack stat. Coupled with its above average Speed, Landorus-I was deemed unhealthy for the OU metagame and voted to Ubers.

Landorus-I is a very good Pokémon in the Doubles metagame, and its high Special attack stat and diverse movepool make it a great option in Doubles. While Landorus-I is a very powerful special attacker and excels at removing Steel- and Fire-types, its ability to KO neutral targets is limited due to its Speed tier and lack of bulk that leave it susceptible to both attackers that can take a hit and those that outspeed it.

Genesect

In XY OU, Genesect was briefly the face of VoltTurn offense, a team archetype created around building and then keeping momentum until the opponent is overwhelmed. Genesect most commonly ran a Choice Scarf set with its great mixed offenses, decent movepool, and great ability in Download to back those up, but it also had some flexibility with Choice Band, Shift Gear, or Life Orb sets. Many players quickly realized that Genesect was unhealthy for the tier, and, albeit with a fairly close vote, it was banned to Ubers in the first suspect test of XY.

Just as VoltTurn failed to gain traction in Doubles OU, Genesect struggles with the introduction of more opponents and factors. Additionally, with the extremely common Protect allowing opponents to scout Genesect's moves, it must be incredibly careful about attacking the right foe so it isn't left out in the open. Genesect is stuck as a somewhat niche scalpel, a quick and precise remover of threats to its team's success. Sadly, Genesect needs a Choice Scarf in order to successfully do its job of outspeeding and OHKOing Landorus-T and Mega Diancie, among others. This leads to predictability and a tendency to become deadweight after one or two turns on the field.

Blaziken

Blaziken's start in sixth generation OU was somewhat promising; despite it being banned to Ubers in BW, the introduction of Fairy-types and a user of priority Brave Bird, as well as the limiting of sun turns, caused some to rethink whether it was necessarily broken. Unfortunately for the fire chicken, its gaining of Baton Pass and the ease at which it could reach +2 Atk and +1 Speed in one turn were too much for OU, and it was the first Pokémon to be quickbanned.

Doubles is an entirely different story for Blaziken. With the metagame's fast pace, Blaziken has no room in its set for Swords Dance, and in order to pick up OHKOs on big threats such as Mega Kangaskhan and Aegislash, it must use very powerful moves that come with the drawback of dropping its attacking power. This creates a conundrum where Blaziken is at its most threatening on its second turn on the field, after it Protects to get +1 Speed, but outside of that turn is left somewhat vulnerable. It also faces competition from Infernape, which has the advantages of learning Fake Out and Close Combat and far more initial Speed. Still, a useful ability in Speed Boost and solid coverage lead it to be a decent mixed attacker able to pick off threats.

Conclusion

Doubles OU grants many Ubers Pokémon an environment in which they may prosper, free of the threats considered too strong for both single and double battle formats. The list does not stop at the above Pokémon, as others including Darkrai, Mega Mawile, Greninja, and Mega Lucario also find themselves a small niche and have the ability to be used somewhat effectively. Now that you know about the unbanned treasures of Doubles OU, get out there and try them out for yourself!

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