I guess the hiatus is over, eh? I'm back and so is the Viability Thread (thank you bludz!) Time to get cracking.
Hippowdon A+ -> A
I love this thing. Hippowdon is one of the most reliable walls I've been grateful to ever have the ability to breed. Access to Stealth Rock, phasing, and reliable recovery is what makes it the monster it is. The problem with it, unfortunately, is that it's extremely passive, using Earthquake and the occasional Ice Fang (just in case Garchomp and Gliscor are THAT much of a hassle) to do any true damage unless you run Toxic over Stealth Rock. To make things worse, Hippowdon's Mono Ground-Typing gives is common weaknesses to Water, Grass, and Ice (though with its bulk, Hidden Power is nothing to it).
That's the general sum-up, but where in the meta does this leave the Hungry Hungry Hippo? Looking at what is going around in the meta, what does Hippowdon truly stop dead in its tracks? The first thing that comes to mind for me is a group of Pokemon: Set-Up Sweepers. Thanks to Whirlwind, Hippowdon can usually stop a Pokemon from setting up and heal off any possible damage afterwards. The problem is that there are some that can hit it for Super-Effective damage; Manaphy needs not worry about it thanks to a +3 Scald, Excadrill with Air Balloon not only keeps away from Earthquake but turns the tables with Sandstorm on the field, and Azumarill's bulk with Belly Drum is just scary sometimes. This isn't going through the other Pokemon that can sit there and threaten it like Charizard-X (remember that it doesn't HAVE to Mega-Evolve to boost and can play mind games to survive), Thundurus (because despite what I said about Hidden Power barely scratching it, a +2 one is a different story), and ESPECIALLY Serperior. Each of these Pokemon listed typically find themselves on most teams, giving Hippowdon pressure to keep in the battle. To me, Hippowdon is more of a "blanket check" rather than a specific check to most Pokemon; whereas some Pokemon can be hard checks or even counters to an extremely specific group of Pokemon, this one covers a more broad area and finds itself hurt against some of the rising stars and veterans. It's definitely not as effective as it once was, but it still works as one of the most memorable. This is also not considering the fact that the topping of TankChomp and Landorus-T doesn't do any favors and one doesn't have to prepare very much for Hippowdon, making the drop needed. I feel bad for it, since Hippowdon is a personal favorite, but the time has come.
Raikou A- -> A
The first of the Legendary Beast Trio is definitely one of the finest Electric-Types to be conceived, with good Speed and an equal amount of Special Attack to work off of--not to mention a decent bit of Special Bulk.
The two sets I've personally seen go around are the Choice Specs set and the Calm Mind set. Both have their ups and downs, but generally have a simple goal. Choice Specs is meant to punch holes in the opposition and also act as a quick pivot with Volt Switch when push comes to shove, while Calm Mind is meant for the beast wanting to take advantage of the prey, making it more powerful and bulkier with each boost. The biggest comparisons depend on the sets. Choice Specs is usually compared to Mega Manectric, which definitely gives stiff competition thanks to its higher Speed and naturally higher Special Attack. Manectric's power isn't as high as Choice Specs but it comes with three pros against Raikou: Intimidate, Flamethrower/Overheat, and more Speed...all while not being locked on one move. Raikou's claim to fame is that he doesn't take up a Mega-Evolution, giving more leeway when teambuilding, and that it's slightly more powerful with Specs. Calm Mind's competition comes from multiple Pokemon: Clefable, Keldeo, and the saddest of all, Suicune. These Pokemon have "arguably" better typings to take advantage of the meta much more than Raikou, while also having other qualities that make them more wanted; Clefable has reliable recovery and Magic Guard, making it near-unbreakable, Keldeo has a STAB combination that only Jellicent can laugh at, and Suicune, with Keldeo, have a way to make their opponent weaker: Scald (sure Clefable has Fire Blast, but...that's 10% compared to Scald's 30%). Suicune also has that weird ResTalk set some people use and I never got it, so...whatever. That's a note, I guess.
The biggest question now is such: Is Raikou effective in this meta, more then before, or is it still about the same? I'd argue that Raikou isn't quite ready for the rise just yet--he's close, though. With Pokemon like Ferrothorn out there, it's difficult to get a holding when there is another Electric-Type sweeper that can take it down in one fell swoop. Sorry Raikou, but this isn't your time just yet.
Serperior A- -> A
The demon within this Pokemon, I swear. I wanted this to really be a thing, but...damn. We all know the good points, so I'll just cut to the chase.
Serperior is a bit more difficult to use than some people really like to mention. You definitely can't bring it in against anything healthy...actually, you can't switch Serperior into anything thanks to its frailty. Serperior takes advantage of weakened Pokemon that it can easily outspeed and revenge kill for a quick, easy, and painless +2. Seeing Serperior on a team gives away some of the strategy: your opponent will want to weaken you in order to open a sweep up later. Give caution. It can still be difficult when Serperior's One-Dimensional movepool still has a trick or two up its sleeve. The Hidden Power Type will be a mystery until it's revealed (though most will vouch for Fire), meaning you don't know what to switch in on it yet. Heatran? Ferrothorn/Scizor? Skarmory? Dragonite? This is also not to mention that Serperior has access to Glare, giving it a way to cripple any Pokemon that might switch into it...except Ferrothorn with its access to Gyro Ball. I find myself preparing for it a bit more than before, which would easily constitute a rise on its own, but I'm still on the fence on this one.
Gothitelle B -> B+
I remember when Shadow Tag Gothitelle in Gen 5 could only be Male and there were so many Nicki Minaj/transsexual jokes about it, but...the scary part is that this is a real threat.
Trapping in itself isn't a very fond-of tactic unless you play stall, which is where Gothitelle's strength comes in. Her and Mega Sableye are basically the life support of Stall right now. With that said, does it really constitute a rise? Is it really THAT important of a Pokemon when, in reality, Gothitelle relies on Mega Sableye being around in order to function and that Gothitelle removes specific threats to a stall team? Me, personally? I don't think so. Gothitelle is definitely a threat, but one that can be played around. A smart player can normally detect a Gothitelle switch-in and respond with their own switch-in or VoltTurn followed by a check or counter finding its way in. Speaking of U-Turn, she seems to not particularly enjoy this move, which is odd considering that other trappers don't care for it (MAYBE except Wobbuffet, but whatever coming in is getting hit by Counter anyways). Gothitelle is also pretty slow for the average trapper (Disclaimer: Wobbuffet is NOT the average trapper), getting outsped by other Pokemon. She doesn't even get much Physical Bulk to tank many hits there. Yes, one can argue that she chooses her switch-ins, but again: they can be predicted with a bit of clever thinking. This isn't really a problem with Gothitelle, though; I have played around Magnezones with Choice Band Scizor using U-Turn to avoid the trap and get out on their switch. The same, however, can be said for the trapper. Proper prediction can lead to game-changing plays that lead to victory...or defeat, but this isn't really a pro or con for Gothitelle, but more like a cautionary note if anything. I suppose I'll bring up the fact that Gothitelle technically has no counters since she cherry picks them already, but this is not a Pokemon to normally prepare for, since many teams usually have multiple Pokemon that can remove it from the battle. If it rises, so be it, as the sustaining of an entire playstyle is an impressive feat, but I don't think the teen phase Pokemon is ready yet.
Empoleon B -> B-
What is Empoleon doing in this meta? In all honesty, what can it do? Its typing leaves it open to Electric, Fighting, and Ground-Type attacks, all common in this meta, while its resists don't make up for much. Having a 4x Ice Resist and 2x Rock Resist are nice, though, and stopping Scizor in its tracks is always hilarious, but...that can't be it. To me, Empoleon's claim to fame is not only its typing, giving it ways to stop a few commonfolk around, but also access to Stealth Rock through Tutor, Scald through TM, and Defog through transfer, meaning it can play the role of a Specially Defensive Skarmory without any healing whatsoever. Wait, you wanting a healing move? Tough luck, kiddo. Being on the same rank as other, more reliable Bulky Water-Types like Gastrodon and Quagsire is pretty insulting (and I'll throw Slowking in there, too) since these three check multiple Pokemon, can use Scald to weaken Physical Attackers, AND have access to Recover/Slack Off, the move every wall wants. One can argue that Skarmory has Defog and Stealth Rock, too. Sure, but Skarmory can heal thanks to Roost, which gives it staying power in comparison to the penguin. Let this one drop.
