Introduction to SS Ultra Mix

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Introduction

Ultra Mix is one of the many formats made and played in the OM Mashups Room on PS!, and it's one of the more chaotic ones. Other Metagames, or OMs, are unofficial metas that usually include changes to mechanics, such as Pokémon being able to learn every move that matches their typing. OM Mashups are metas formed from the combination of two or more OMs. Ultra Mix is a combination of Almost Any Ability, Alphabet Cup, Camomons, Mix and Mega, Scalemons, and Tier Shift. Combing six different OMs makes Ultra Mix one of the most confusing formats to learn, but also one of the most fun.

I will quickly outline how Ultra Mix works, since there are a lot of new mechanics. You are able to give your Pokémon any ability in the game, minus a few banned ones; however, if you give it a Mega Stone as well, the ability will be replaced by the one that comes with that Mega Stone upon Mega Evolution. Camomons changes your Pokémon's typing to match the typing of its first two moves; for example, a Mew with Defog and Spikes as its first two moves will become Flying / Ground. Also, the typing from the Camomons mechanic overrides any type changes from Mega Evolution, meaning that stones like Lopunnite will not add Fighting. Scalemons is applied before Tier Shift, bringing a Pokémon's Base Stat Total to 600, and then the relevant Tier Shift boosts are applied. The stat changes upon Mega Evolving are also scaled by the same percent that the original Pokémon's stats were scaled by. For example, a Pichu holding Lucarionite will originally have base 15 Defense, changed to 47 after it is scaled. This is around a 3.1X boost. We then multiply Lucarionite's defense boost of 18 by 3.1, getting 56. We then add 47, 56, and the boost it gets from Tier Shift of 40 to get its final defense stat of 143. Since these calculations can be confusing, you can find the calculator for finding a Pokémon's stats here. All of these stat changes can lead to some huge numbers, but it's important to note that base stats are capped at 255 and floored at 1. Lastly, Pokémon also gain access to all the moves that begin with the same letter as them, such as Vibrava learning V-Create.

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What makes a Pokémon good in Ultra Mix?

With all the different mechanics in play, knowing what Pokémon you should be using can often be confusing. Luckily, similar to the rest of Ultra Mix, once you figure it out, it's very intuitive. The two main things you want to consider are a Pokémon's stats and movepool, specifically what it gains from Alphabet Cup. Take Oranguru, for example; its stats are not the best by any means, but its movepool is fantastic. It learns Nasty Plot, a great setup move, and, thanks to Alphabet Cup, Oblivion Wing, turning it into a threatening sweeper. It can also take advantage of the Camomons mechanic to have STAB Oblivion Wing. In contrast, Kadabra, another great Pokémon, doesn't really benefit from Alphabet Cup. Sure, it gets Astral Barrage and Aura Sphere from its pre-evolution Abra, but the key to its success is its naturally high stats, 255 in both Special Attack and Speed after Mega Evolution, coupled with its already good movepool. The combination of Scalemons and Tier Shift heavily favor Pokémon with low BSTs, so most of the viable Pokémon in Ultra Mix are either LC or NFE. Since the Scalemons mechanic brings everything up to 600 BST, they are not hampered by their low stats and usually get the maximum boost from Tier Shift. Additionally, since Mega Stone boosts are also affected by the Scalemons mechanic, they gain even more from their Mega Stones!

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Metagame Trends

Even after understanding how the mechanics of Ultra Mix work, it is still difficult to find the Pokémon that truly stick out. For example, Haunter is a top Pokémon despite getting almost nothing from the Alphabet Cup mechanics—it relies almost entirely on its natural movepool. However, Pokémon like Vibrava have their viability tied to the powerful moves they learn through Alphabet Cup. Pokémon whose names start with certain letters get access to more powerful moves than others. Pokémon whose names start with S get a large amount of important defensive options such as Soft-Boiled, Scald, Spikes, Stealth Rock, and Spectral Thief alongside many offensive moves. On the other hand, Pokémon whose names start with W now learn very powerful attacking moves such as Wicked Blow and Water Spout. Abilities and Mega Stones, while not as specific to certain Pokémon as moves and stats, are another important factor in deciding whether or not a Pokémon is viable. Abilities that continue to give benefits after Mega Evolution, such as Download and Terrain- or Weather-setting abilities, are commonly seen on offensive Pokémon such as Vibrava and Kadabra. Drizzle, in particular, pairs very well with Swampertite on Water-type Pokémon, allowing them to fully invest in their attacking stats, as Swift Swim outspeeds most non-boosted Pokémon under rain. Lucarionite, Aerodactlyite, and Absolite are also common Mega Stones on offensive Pokémon, providing beneficial abilities and helpful stat boosts. On the other hand, defensive Pokémon also have multiple options for abilities and Mega Stones. Dauntless Shield provides a large defensive boost that also persists after Mega Evolving. Similarly, Pokémon can run immunity abilities such as Water Absorb, Flash Fire, and Lightning Rod, allowing them to more safely switch in.

Ultra Mix is more favorable to offensive teams at the moment, but defensive teams have the tools needed to prepare for common offensive threats. The two most common types of teams are Sticky Web hyper offense and bulky offense, but these teams generally use similar Pokémon, so it is not difficult to prepare for both. The most important Pokémon for less offensively inclined teams is Ditto. Thanks to its ability, Imposter, it's able to revenge kill threatening offensive Pokémon and eases the burden placed on defensive cores. Likewise, offensive teams need to have ways to beat Ditto, as you do not want to let your team be swept by one of your own Pokémon. Water-types are great defensive Pokémon, as many of the most common wallbreakers are Water- or Fire-types. Fairy is another good defensive typing, as it resists several common offensive types like Fighting, Dark, and Dragon.

Top Threats

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• Vibrava @ Lucarionite
• Ability: Drought
• Shiny: Yes
• EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
• Adamant Nature
• - V-create
• - Thunderous Kick
• - Rock Tomb
• - Earthquake

• Base stats - 50 / 172 / 134/ 134 / 134 / 172
• Mega stats - 50 / 239 / 168 / 182 / 134 / 214

Vibrava is one of the most powerful physical attackers in all of Ultra Mix. Its powerful STAB V-create and Thunderous Kick pair excellently with its solid Speed stat and strong Attack stat. Sun-boosted V-create is so powerful that no offensive Pokémon can safely switch in, while Thunderous Kick threatens would-be switch-ins in Rock-type Pokémon and helps allow Vibrava to wear down its checks such as Spheal. Fast Pokémon with access to pivoting moves such as Elekid, Pichu, and Cutiefly make great partners for Vibrava as it is weak to common moves such as Scald and Oblivion Wing.

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• Oranguru @ Leftovers
• Ability: Triage
• EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpA
• Modest Nature
• IVs: 0 Atk
• - Oblivion Wing
• - Thunderbolt
• - Nasty Plot
• - Energy Ball / Overheat

• Base stats - 90 / 116 / 142 / 154 / 180 / 116

Oranguru is one of the most dangerous sweepers, able to threaten common Pokémon such as Spheal, Vibrava, and Golett. Triage gives Oblivion Wing +3 priority, bypassing its suboptimal Speed. Its STAB moves, Oblivion Wing and Thunderbolt, threaten a large portion of the metagame and provide excellent coverage. Nasty Plot is a great tool, helping it break through the opposing team. Energy Ball hits Pokémon such as Coalossal and Hippopotas, which otherwise wall Oranguru, while Overheat is an alternative that hits the Steel-type Pokémon that resist Oblivion Wing.

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• Kadabra @ Absolite
• Ability: Psychic Surge
• EVs: 56 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 196 Spe
• Timid Nature
• IVs: 0 Atk
• - Psyshock
• - Astral Barrage
• - Aura Sphere
• - Expanding Force

• Base stats - 40 / 94 / 86 / 226 / 148 / 203
• Mega stats - 40 / 125 / 86 / 255 / 148 / 255

Kadabra is one of the best special wallbreakers in Ultra Mix, and for good reason. It has great Speed and Special Attack and access to both Astral Barrage and Expanding Force, two incredibly strong STAB moves that hit most Pokémon for at least neutral damage. Psychic Surge grants it and its teammates a temporary immunity to priority moves, helping greatly against Triage Pokémon such as Oranguru and Zweilous.

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Teambuilding Guide

Some of the most interesting things about Ultra Mix are the variety of viable Pokémon to choose between and how diverse the meta is. This means that balance, bulky offense, and hyper offense are all viable; however, given Ultra Mix's offensive nature, stall teams are hard to use and are mostly untested. Bulky offense tends to be the most consistent playstyle, as its walls are usually able to check the opponent's wallbreakers long enough for its own to win. Ultra Mix allows for quite a bit of diversity in both offensive and defensive Pokémon, but there are multiple threats you must always consider while building. Pokémon such as Haunter, Vibrava, and Kadabra are very threatening without proper checks, and walls such as Spheal, Dartrix, and Blissey can be difficult to break if unaccounted for. A good place to start when building is picking one or two offensive Pokémon to build around and filling out the rest of the team from there. Since teambuilding in Ultra Mix is a little more complicated than in other formats, here is a sample team to get you started:

Sample

This is a bulky offense team that was built by The Dragon Master. It is based around the powerful offensive core of Beat Up Bunnelby and Elekid. Both are very strong wallbreakers that are able to wear down the other's check, allowing Diglett to clean up late-game. The team's defensive backbone is Spheal and Swablu, as they are fantastic blanket checks to most physical and special attackers, respectively. Dartrix rounds out the team, providing much needed entry hazard control and powerful Doom Desire to compliment the team's wallbreakers.

• Replay 1
• Replay 2

These replays illustrate how Bunnelby, Elekid, and Diglett are able to pressure the opposing team, slowly wearing down their checks until the opportunity to sweep arises.

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Closing Thoughts

Now that you understand the basics of Ultra Mix, it's time for you to try it out! Building for it is very fun, and I would recommend you try your hand at it. I would also recommend checking out the Ultra Mix Hub, which has both Sample Teams and a VR to help you become even more acquainted with the tier. Tournaments are also frequently held in the OM Mashups Room on Showdown, where you can also find other interested players who would be happy to answer any additional questions you have.

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