Metagame SV Monotype Metagame Discussion [Indigo Disk]

[Tuff Tuff]

It's really cool to see, the matchup data, and how - overall - the meta is rather balanced. A lot of Matchups, are fairly balanced, with only a few being straight up unwinnable. Because of that, it’s important to be careful about how this data is interpreted. The results reflect averages across many games and team variations, not fixed or deterministic matchups.

I think one of the best examples would be Water, due to its different Options. Water can run Rain, Stall or Rainless balance, HO etc. which all (should) have a bit of different Type Matchups. While Rain for example should have a better Matchup vs Fire for example - stall and rainless should struggle a bit more against Volc/Ogerpon under Sun.
And those examples can be made for a lot of different typings - not about the overall playstyle, but running specific mons to deal with specific matchups better.

Even traditionally "bad" matchups can often be adapted to or played around - for example, positioning and set choices can easily turn something like Fighting vs Fairy into a very manageable game rather than a hard loss. This is also why breaking matchups down to individual Pokemon can be misleading, so be a bit careful with that (not seeing what you said is wrong, but it feels a bit oversimplified at times)

With that being said, i dont think that this data should be used to (solely) to justify tiering decisions or bans. I think its the opposite - it shows more that the meta is actually pretty balanced where most types have viable paths to success and where differences are often small enough to be overcome through preparation and play.

(And its really cool, that we now have access to this matchup chart too (https://www.smogon.com/stats/2026-03/monotype/matchupcharts/ ))

 

[Yoii]

As an Ice-type player, here's my opinion:

Is "Fire" really -1 against Ice? -3 would be the most obvious. Even Ogerpon Heartflame, which should be "neutral," can take down half your team single-handedly. It's fast, and its ability is annoying. Not to mention Ceruledge Volcarona, and especially Heatran, which can withstand boosted Cloyster's attacks. It's definitely not a good matchup. -3 would be very fair.
Fairy and Ghost should have the advantage against Ice. With Fairy, you have to deal with Primarina and Hatterene, which are very bulky, an Iron Valiant that hits you with STAB, and Flutter Mane, which outspeeds your entire team. I definitely think -2 would be fair. Ghost, on the other hand, Flutter Mane, Gholdengo, and Ceruledge will give you trouble, but the real problem is that Ghost-type Pokémon are very tanky, especially if the opponent is smart. You can beat a Ghost-type player if they're foolish, if they waste Flutter Mane, and don't use Pecharunt's defense or Gholdengo effectively, but I think it's still quite difficult, as they could easily turn the game around.
It's known that Steel and Bug, if they have Scizor, can only forfeit. Even without Scizor, they have plenty of ways to hit you. Fighting-types are difficult; I wouldn't consider a -1. Alolan Ninetales can't charge against the entire Fighting team; they're fast. Sneasler should be defeated using mind games (for example, Sandslash under snow) even without it on the enemy team. Okidogi is very bulky. Rapid-Strike Urshifu is the worst threat: you can't predict its set (Scarf or Swords Dance), it's fast, difficult to take down, and can do a lot of damage with critical hits.

Vs. Normal: Blissey + Porygon2 + Hisuian Zoroark are a pain. Therapagos with Flamethrower is incredibly durable, even against a boosted Cloyster. And if you manage to boost your own, Ditto will finish the job. Winning against Normal-types is tough; I don't think it's a normal difficulty level.

Vs: Psychic: As long as Iron Boulder and Bronzong are still in play, the matchup is difficult, especially if you don't bring Avalugg. If you don't bring Avalugg and decide to bring Sandslash instead, the match will be even harder.

I don't want you to take my opinion as absolute; feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. I'm only basing this on my experience using Ice, my favorite type in this generation. Thanks for your understanding.

 

[TheKart017]

As an Ice-type player, here's my opinion:

Is "Fire" really -1 against Ice? -3 would be the most obvious. Even Ogerpon Heartflame, which should be "neutral," can take down half your team single-handedly. It's fast, and its ability is annoying. Not to mention Ceruledge Volcarona, and especially Heatran, which can withstand boosted Cloyster's attacks. It's definitely not a good matchup. -3 would be very fair.
Fairy and Ghost should have the advantage against Ice. With Fairy, you have to deal with Primarina and Hatterene, which are very bulky, an Iron Valiant that hits you with STAB, and Flutter Mane, which outspeeds your entire team. I definitely think -2 would be fair. Ghost, on the other hand, Flutter Mane, Gholdengo, and Ceruledge will give you trouble, but the real problem is that Ghost-type Pokémon are very tanky, especially if the opponent is smart. You can beat a Ghost-type player if they're foolish, if they waste Flutter Mane, and don't use Pecharunt's defense or Gholdengo effectively, but I think it's still quite difficult, as they could easily turn the game around.
It's known that Steel and Bug, if they have Scizor, can only forfeit. Even without Scizor, they have plenty of ways to hit you. Fighting-types are difficult; I wouldn't consider a -1. Alolan Ninetales can't charge against the entire Fighting team; they're fast. Sneasler should be defeated using mind games (for example, Sandslash under snow) even without it on the enemy team. Okidogi is very bulky. Rapid-Strike Urshifu is the worst threat: you can't predict its set (Scarf or Swords Dance), it's fast, difficult to take down, and can do a lot of damage with critical hits.

Vs. Normal: Blissey + Porygon2 + Hisuian Zoroark are a pain. Therapagos with Flamethrower is incredibly durable, even against a boosted Cloyster. And if you manage to boost your own, Ditto will finish the job. Winning against Normal-types is tough; I don't think it's a normal difficulty level.

Vs: Psychic: As long as Iron Boulder and Bronzong are still in play, the matchup is difficult, especially if you don't bring Avalugg. If you don't bring Avalugg and decide to bring Sandslash instead, the match will be even harder.

I don't want you to take my opinion as absolute; feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. I'm only basing this on my experience using Ice, my favorite type in this generation. Thanks for your understanding.

What MU chart are you referring to. Because in the official chart at 1630, fire vs ice is at 31.976%. By my standard, that is a -2 percentage.