There's a lot that can be said here, but I'll note that Nuzzle doesn't have the greatest synergy with Trick Room.
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Metagame SV OU Metagame Discussion v2 [Update on Post #5186]
- Thread starter TPP
- Start date
- Status
Sorry, no one has done my summoning ritual that is mentioning volc, i sleep.
___
uh something something free volc, fuck tera, fuck around and find out unbanning OHKO moves.
I’m starting to lean towards “free Volc and keep Tera anyways”. Like maybe we can restrict Tera with Tera Team Preview, but I’m not convinced Volc with Tera is unhealthy enough to be banned, even if I was leaning that way before, and having it gone has made it evident that it actually did positive things for the tier in terms of checking Pokémon like Valiant and Enamorus.
I understand people weren't happy about the quickban, weren't convinced volcarona is broken, and have differing philosophies about what a quickban should be. However, do we really need volcarona for the health of the tier? Are Iron Valiant and Enamorus so overwhelming that we need this controversial moth back in the tier to contain them? IK ival is ranked S and Enam is A+ but imo they should both be A+. Overall, I don't feel like they're any more suffocating than kingambit, pult, bax, garg, sneasler etc. Players are coming up with new and viable ways to check them like colbur glowking, moltres, scizor, Balloon gholdengo, and so on.
I won't be opposed to what seems like the inevitable suspect test for volcarona back down, but it sounds like everybody who likes tera likes the current meta anyway. I can't really form an argument to appeal to the crowd who likes the current meta because I have no idea why they do lol. I'm just not convinced Ival/Enam have become unmanageable. The meta has already adapted to them in a way that doesn't seem to upset most of yall.
In fact he was asked about in the last survey (when will the result go up, though?), I put 5 on it. After Iron Valiant (and well, after Gholdengo, but that is a very unpopular opinion), its probably the most opressing Mon in the meta for me.
I should clarify, I don’t think they’re unmanageable. It’s not like “oh if we don’t unban Volc then those two need the boot for sure” or anything. It’s just gotten noticeably harder to manage them for more offensive teams since Volcarona’s ban, and meanwhile I haven’t observed the tier to be any more balanced for it per se. I just want a Volc suspect to better dissect it I guess
Minor nitpick but wasn't Volc considered a soft-check to Kingambit as well, or am I misremembering the conversation?
(Now here comes my long post on the matter)
I think the ultimate issue is that Volc's Quickban felt very abrupt, and the aftermath of it did not bear out the reasoning a lot of users attribute to a Quick Ban vs Suspect Test as a decision. Volcarona was not considered overwhelmingly broken or tier warping enough to make a suspect redundant, and its removal has been considered to not have had a significant net-positive effect on the tier, if any at all.
The mindset this particular reply also illustrates why I dislike this approach: Even with an immediate retest, Volcarona-in-OU is now the "change" that the burden for Majority is on rather than Volcarona-is-banned, despite all the above factors I mentioned. The most immediate comparison I have to this tiering approach is Calyrex-Shadow in Post-Home Ubers, which was Quickbanned and then given a test to re-enter Ubers because its past performance and the incoming Ubers roster did not suggest it would be healthy.
The context here differs significantly though: Calyrex-S was ALWAYS a controversial presence in the MUCH less ban-prone Ubers metagame after its introduction (this being a tier that twice permitted a literally mandatory Pokemon in Primal Groudon), narrowly avoiding a ban from the tier last gen despite more checks and having fewer options of its own compared to Tera. Volc by comparison has been controversial but never, including this gen, been considered priority 1 for dealing with by the community, and had a significant presence in the Pre-Home Meta AND the Post-Home Meta without being considered worthy of action next to controversial subjects like Chien-Pao, Walking Wake, Zamazenta, and current topics like Kingambit and even Iron Valiant.
And this is likely to make the Suspect Test even more controversial (because it seems clear to me that at least on the forums, there isn't landslide support for Volc to leave OU at least even if there's a majority). If Volcarona's test is done like Calyrex's (i.e. it is tested as "Uber being brought into OU" instead of Zamazenta "unbanned and voting to Ban again") and Unban votes fall within the 41-59% range, there WILL be argument about the approach since 41-59% Unban/Don't Ban would not suffice to RETURN it to OU, but would suffice to KEEP it OU (since that requires the 60% Ban Supermajority), making the deciding factor the controversial Quick Ban that prompted this conversation.
It feels fallacious/backwards to ask "do we need Volcarona for the health of the tier?" when the question of "is Volcarona itself unhealthy for the tier?" was not considered "yes" enough to remove it and ask if we need to reintroduce it. The burden of proof was on Volc proving it was bad enough to need to leave, now it's on Volc proving it's positive enough to bring down.
The mindset this particular reply also illustrates why I dislike this approach: Even with an immediate retest, Volcarona-in-OU is now the "change" that the burden for Majority is on rather than Volcarona-is-banned, despite all the above factors I mentioned. The most immediate comparison I have to this tiering approach is Calyrex-Shadow in Post-Home Ubers, which was Quickbanned and then given a test to re-enter Ubers because its past performance and the incoming Ubers roster did not suggest it would be healthy.
The context here differs significantly though: Calyrex-S was ALWAYS a controversial presence in the MUCH less ban-prone Ubers metagame after its introduction (this being a tier that twice permitted a literally mandatory Pokemon in Primal Groudon), narrowly avoiding a ban from the tier last gen despite more checks and having fewer options of its own compared to Tera. Volc by comparison has been controversial but never, including this gen, been considered priority 1 for dealing with by the community, and had a significant presence in the Pre-Home Meta AND the Post-Home Meta without being considered worthy of action next to controversial subjects like Chien-Pao, Walking Wake, Zamazenta, and current topics like Kingambit and even Iron Valiant.
And this is likely to make the Suspect Test even more controversial (because it seems clear to me that at least on the forums, there isn't landslide support for Volc to leave OU at least even if there's a majority). If Volcarona's test is done like Calyrex's (i.e. it is tested as "Uber being brought into OU" instead of Zamazenta "unbanned and voting to Ban again") and Unban votes fall within the 41-59% range, there WILL be argument about the approach since 41-59% Unban/Don't Ban would not suffice to RETURN it to OU, but would suffice to KEEP it OU (since that requires the 60% Ban Supermajority), making the deciding factor the controversial Quick Ban that prompted this conversation.
It feels fallacious/backwards to ask "do we need Volcarona for the health of the tier?" when the question of "is Volcarona itself unhealthy for the tier?" was not considered "yes" enough to remove it and ask if we need to reintroduce it. The burden of proof was on Volc proving it was bad enough to need to leave, now it's on Volc proving it's positive enough to bring down.
I don't think its fallacious or backwards at all. It was quickbanned by 7/9 council members, who followed the same exact procedure/rules that they did with every other quickban. If a part of the community disagrees with this quickban, then I think it's perfectly appropriate to prove that there are enough people to override that quickban via a suspect test. I agree and understand that the burden of proof has changed, but I think 7/9 council members voting to quickban something should have at least that much of an effect. I just don't agree with the "it should have never left" idea. If it gets brought back into OU via suspect, cool.
Everybody is out celebrating OU is free of the ugly cat
Chien Pao is a sweet little girl how dare you
It’s not her fault her stats are obscenely broken
Gorillaz: Why Rillaboom Still Succeeds in SV OU
Back with another long analysis + breakdown on underrated mons in the current metagame. This time its the funky monkey Rillaboom.
Competitive History
SS
Being a Gen 8 Pkmn, its history in competitive is shorter than mons like Zapdos or Heatran, but the impact it has made in its debut is difficult to accurately describe if you haven’t played SS OU when it was the latest gen. Rilla didn’t start the generation in OU, in fact it started out in RU. This was because its HA didn’t release til late into the pre-Home metagame, it eventually was able to settle into OU along with Libero Cinder, fulfilling the same role as Bulu did in USUM.
However everything would change with the inclusion of the infamous Grassy Glide in the IoA DLC. Grassy Glide was a priority move under Terrain that can 2HKO even resists like Dragapult. It also wore down the Flying types that it loathed with Knock Off to remove their boots. It also spammed U-Turn to pivot into to mons that threatened the likes of Mandi, Amoonguss, and Corv. The ocassional Superpower 2HKOd Ferro. CB Wood Hammer was a big nuke button that one shot the two big defensive titans, Pex and Clefable. There was also SD sets that could take down even Mandi with enough chip. Rilla’s role in the meta was as a cleaner that also supported its team with Terrain, U-Turn, and Knock.
Crown Tundra brought in challenging obstacles for Rilla. Tran, Zapdos, Torn, Melm, and Dnite were strong checks to it, even with Knock Off in the equation. Tran and Zappy in particular crippled Rilla on contact via Static/Flame Body. However the biggest check to Rilla was Buzzwole who tolerated Knock Off and healed the pitiful damage from it with Roost. Rilla could tech Acro to lure it, but it would have to sacrifice a moveslot that would go into Knock, Superpower, or U-Turn. The Tapus were back and they overtake its terrain whenever they come in. There was also a new competitor in Kart who hit the Flying types of the tier way harder and did better against the likes of Ferro and Melm. Even with the odds in its favor, Rilla was still able to perform well in this metagame. Rilla gained many enemies but also many new partners. The aforementioned Tran, Melm, and Kart, but also Glowking, Ttar, Blaze, and Victini. It also annoyed offensive styles like HO and Rain. Rilla’s role evolved to be more of a support rather than being just a relentless cleaner. The gorilla’s trademark set late into the generation became a bulky SD set with Drain Punch. The bulk from this set allowed Rilla to set up multiple SD’s against defensive teams. It also helped with threats like SD Chomp and Koko. Rillaboom ended the generation with success after a small dark age, landing in A- tier.
https://pokepast.es/c0297574b12d436f (xray’s Bulky Rilla + Lefties Blaziken BO)
SV
A majority of the OU staples from last gen either were prohibited from entering Paldea’s borders or suffered a cut in their movesets. Weavile lost Knock and T-Axel, Chomp lost Scale Shot, Lando, Pex, and Torn lost Knock, several mons lost Defog, Slowbro lost Teleport, and everything lost Scald (except Volcanion lol). Rilla was not spared. Losing Superpower was pretty bad but the dealbreaker was the loss of Grassy Glide. Without it, Rilla can no longer perform its role as a cleaner which couldn’t be any more unfortunate timing as the meta is much more offense-centric than the previous gen. With that said, Rillaboom has been making a slow resurgence lately, making appearances in WCOP and ladder, but why is that?
Rillaboom’s Niche in SV OU
Sample Utility Set
Rillaboom @ Terrain Extender
Ability: Grassy Surge
EVs: 236 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Spe
Tera Type: Dark/Steel
Adamant Nature
- Drum Beating
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Leech Seed/Taunt
Rilla’s role in the metagame leans much more into the supportive side, utilizing moves like Leech Seed or Taunt while removing items and pivoting like in its hayday. It turns out alot of mons in the tier benefit from G-Terrain, even moreso than SS. A majority of the metagame…
- Appreciates the passive recovery from Terrain
- Appreciates the dmg from EQ being reduced from Terrain
- Appreciates both the passive recovery and the dmg from EQ being reduced from Terrain
- Appreciates the offensive benefits from Terrain
- Appreciates all of the above
Terrain alone propels it from being a generic pure Grass Type to a versatile support that can be fit on HO and BO/Balance. Knock Off is also noticeably rarer than last gen, further solidifying its niche in the metagame.
AV Rilla
Rillaboom @ Assault Vest
Ability: Grassy Surge
Tera Type: Grass/Steel/Water
EVs: 248 HP / 104 Atk / 104 SpD / 52 Spe
Careful Nature
- Knock Off
- U-turn
- Wood Hammer
- Drain Punch
Credits go to BT89 for this set.
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/sv-ou-great-cores.3723774/post-9691880
The purpose of this set is to tank special hits to preserve the HP of its teammates like Glowking, Ting-Lu, Garg, and A-Muk as explained by him. Capable of tanking hits from Pult, Ghold, Enamorus, Wake, CM Valiant, etc. It threatens the team with Knock Off and strong Wood Hammers that get further boosted by Terrain and Tera. The results..
104 Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Enamorus in Grassy Terrain: 198-234 (68.5 - 80.9%) -- 50% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
may vary. Or you can use Tera Steel or Tera Water to cover potential threats like Volcanion or Gholdengo.
Bulky Swords Dance
Rillaboom @ Grassy Seed/Lum Berry
Ability: Grassy Surge
Tera Type: Electric/Grass/Ice/Steel/Fire
EVs: 204 HP / 252 Atk / 52 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Wood Hammer
- Knock Off/Drain Punch
- Drain Punch/Tera Blast/Acrobatics
This set aims to return to the late SS metagame with help from Terastilization. Instead of being a cleaner, this set acts more like a wallbreaker and a possible lure on BO/HO. Tera Grass Wood Hammer at +2 trucks through even resists.
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Baxcalibur in Grassy Terrain: 387-456 (104.3 - 122.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Enamorus in Grassy Terrain: 486-572 (168.1 - 197.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Dragapult in Grassy Terrain: 512-603 (161.5 - 190.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 244 Def Slowking-Galar in Grassy Terrain: 333-392 (84.5 - 99.4%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Kingambit in Grassy Terrain: 309-364 (90.6 - 106.7%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo in Grassy Terrain: 379-446 (120.3 - 141.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo in Grassy Terrain: 270-318 (71.4 - 84.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock, Leftovers recovery, and Grassy Terrain recovery
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 104 Def Zapdos in Grassy Terrain: 368-434 (95.8 - 113%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Enamorus in Grassy Terrain: 486-572 (168.1 - 197.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Dragapult in Grassy Terrain: 512-603 (161.5 - 190.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 244 Def Slowking-Galar in Grassy Terrain: 333-392 (84.5 - 99.4%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Kingambit in Grassy Terrain: 309-364 (90.6 - 106.7%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo in Grassy Terrain: 379-446 (120.3 - 141.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo in Grassy Terrain: 270-318 (71.4 - 84.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock, Leftovers recovery, and Grassy Terrain recovery
+2 252+ Atk Tera Grass Rillaboom Wood Hammer vs. 252 HP / 104 Def Zapdos in Grassy Terrain: 368-434 (95.8 - 113%) -- 75% chance to OHKO
For the mons that don’t get OHKO’d by Wood Hammer, you have two other moves to make use of. Acrobatics, Knock Off, Drain Punch are all worthwhile options on it. Rilla also has other options for Tera.
- Tera Electric to set up on Zapdos and Torn.
- Tera Ice to lure and one shot Amoonguss and Flying types while protecting yourself against Bax and Tera Ice Sandy Shocks.
- Tera Steel for generally being a great Tera Type that also synergizes with Grassy Terrain.
- Tera Fire to shield against potential burns from Pult, Skele, and Molt while also letting it lure Amoonguss and Corv.
SD Rilla cripples or KOs threats to open the door for mons like Valiant, Sneasler, Zama, Tusks, and more. This set fits specifically on Screens as it can live hits from Zapdos and Sneasler behind screens. Grassy Seed enchances its decent physical bulk which lets it take hits from Bax even without Reflect up which is a big deal, Lum is another item slot in case of a fortunate Static proc or Wisp from Pult and Washtom.
Verdict
The nerfs to its movepool has not stopped Rillaboom from finding its own place in the SV metagame. Grassy Terrain has kept it relevant regardless of its offensive or defensive capabilities. Its so good that it allowed Arboliva to carve a small niche in the Pre-Home meta. Plenty of OU staples like Kingambit, Sneasler, and Garganacl benefit from the effects of G-Terrain. We will see in the future if Rilla manages to keep up the winning streak or gets Grassy Glide back from DLC.
Teams:
(G-Terrain A-Muk + Band Moon)
https://pokepast.es/1712a11eadebd72e
(Ursa G-Terrain BO)
https://pokepast.es/32e6e826e87162a4
(CM Taunt Enam Grassy Seed Spam)
https://pokepast.es/8d5d40672f7ffd1f
(SD Rilla Screens)
https://pokepast.es/04f0f24536822fca
The nerfs to its movepool has not stopped Rillaboom from finding its own place in the SV metagame. Grassy Terrain has kept it relevant regardless of its offensive or defensive capabilities. Its so good that it allowed Arboliva to carve a small niche in the Pre-Home meta. Plenty of OU staples like Kingambit, Sneasler, and Garganacl benefit from the effects of G-Terrain. We will see in the future if Rilla manages to keep up the winning streak or gets Grassy Glide back from DLC.
Teams:
(G-Terrain A-Muk + Band Moon)
https://pokepast.es/1712a11eadebd72e
(Ursa G-Terrain BO)
https://pokepast.es/32e6e826e87162a4
(CM Taunt Enam Grassy Seed Spam)
https://pokepast.es/8d5d40672f7ffd1f
(SD Rilla Screens)
https://pokepast.es/04f0f24536822fca
Glad to see I have support! I’ll cook something up, if anyone has any ideas for what I should do then feel free to message me!
(I want to hang the disclaimer that I will be describing or trying to explain what may be more extreme takes/positions than I hold myself. Anything said regarding the decision makers themselves rather than the decisions is meant to be an observation or perspective context rather than any judgement on the People involved, as I know this topic is a powder keg).
Where the disagreement arises is that the majority of previous quickban subjects were mons the community was clearly calling for a Quickban of because the overwhelming effect was apparent like Post-Home Chien-Pao, Regieleki, and Magearna. Volcarona was iffy on Community support for a Suspect Test before OR after Home, so jumping from a Suspect to an outright Quickban highlights it as arguably one of the biggest disconnects between a Council decision and the vocal playerbase this generation, which didn't help with WCOP being on the horizon at the time of the announcement giving a very hasty impression to the decision. The Procedure was followed for handling Volc as a Quickban subject, but the disagreement was Volc being a QB topic at that point since the Meta was still in flux from MUCH more broken subjects having just left the tier, another Suspect Subject on the mind in Zama-H, and a lack of visibility for the call to action since Volc was put to QB because of Write-ins rather than a direct question.
The last point feels like where things could have been communicated better, since alongside Volc's 50 write-ins, an even larger number of 200 was given to Terastalization as a mechanic (which is a major factor in Volcarona's Radar presence this gen), and for my personal perspective, I don't know how significantly high 50 Write-ins is for a Pokemon. Is it several times more? Is it a decent bit above the last subject? Is it completely unprecedented for a mon to get several write-ins at all? Is it just slightly above the previous record? This generation has (to its benefit) seen a significant increase in Council transparency and work to communicate plans/decisions, so previous survey results to contextualize Volc would have likely done well to explain what made it stand out: Did any previous subject of action/concern get write-ins initially that led to them being added to the Radar later, if not immediately acted upon? 50 is said to be a large and unprecedented number, which I believe for sure, but how big it is or how far it is from precedent seems like info that would help assuage the backlash from that decision. Going by the survey then also has to acknowledge that a very large number of responders think that the ban needs to be re-addressed, be it an unban-and-Suspect or just quickly getting to the Suspect-back-into-OU action. If nothing else I think this indicates disagreement with the decision to QB Volcarona even if they agree it should be in Ubers, wanting a Suspect Test as a better representation and more fitting process for this particular subject.
I trust the Council's playing ability and obviously assume them to be decently-to-very-well experienced with the Meta when making votes like this. With that stated, I have to acknowledge that "7/9 Council vote should have that much of an effect" as a statement feels like appeal to authority (not an accusation of intent, but to say as presented it may fall into that problem accidentally): if the discontent with the decision to vote and the result of that vote is a crux of the upset, appealing to the Council's position rather than to the reasoning behind their decision (as many of them smartly shared ahead of the vote result posting) in citing the vote does not improve understanding or discussion of the subject, since at the most extreme dissenting views could regard that decision as an overstep/misuse of the authority that is supposed to credit their decision to begin with.
Best I can summarize is that despite the ongoing and all important efforts at communication, this particular incident was a misstep in communicating, whether or not one agrees with the verdict itself. That caused a lot of assumptions or more immediate reactions that allowed the subject to escalate emotionally and in intensity to dangerous levels, likely compunded by the tumultuous nature of current OU and Pokemon releases meaning even the measure to reverse the decision is part of a long list of things to get to regardless of the outcome.
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I’m not SnackWasTaken, but here’s a silly Tyranitar set:
Tyranitar @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sand Stream
Tera Type: Fairy/Ghost (I didn’t think about this, usually you don’t Tera TTar so)
EVs: 100 HP / 104 Atk / 52 SpA / 152 SpD / 100 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Ice Beam
- Crunch
- Stone Edge
- Earthquake
52 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 218-258 (50.2 - 59.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
52 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 218-258 (58.7 - 69.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Kingambit: 172-204 (50.4 - 59.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowking-Galar: 204-240 (51.7 - 60.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after sandstorm damage
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 104 Def Zapdos: 306-362 (79.6 - 94.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after sandstorm damage
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Zapdos: 344-408 (89.5 - 106.2%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
52 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Landorus-Therian: 316-376 (82.7 - 98.4%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock (You also live defensive EQ!)
104 Atk Tyranitar Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo: 254-300 (80.6 - 95.2%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
104 Atk Tyranitar Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo: 180-212 (47.6 - 56%) -- 81.3% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Volcanion: 258-306 (85.7 - 101.6%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 384-452 (99.4 - 117%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Hatterene: 118-139 (37.1 - 43.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after sandstorm damage and Leftovers recovery
52 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Great Tusk: 218-258 (58.7 - 69.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Kingambit: 172-204 (50.4 - 59.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Slowking-Galar: 204-240 (51.7 - 60.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after sandstorm damage
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 104 Def Zapdos: 306-362 (79.6 - 94.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after sandstorm damage
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Zapdos: 344-408 (89.5 - 106.2%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
52 SpA Tyranitar Ice Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Landorus-Therian: 316-376 (82.7 - 98.4%) -- 68.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock (You also live defensive EQ!)
104 Atk Tyranitar Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo: 254-300 (80.6 - 95.2%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
104 Atk Tyranitar Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo: 180-212 (47.6 - 56%) -- 81.3% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Volcanion: 258-306 (85.7 - 101.6%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Earthquake vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Heatran: 384-452 (99.4 - 117%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
104 Atk Tyranitar Stone Edge vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Hatterene: 118-139 (37.1 - 43.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after sandstorm damage and Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Hatterene Draining Kiss vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 56-68 (15.3 - 18.5%) -- possible 6HKO
252 SpA Heatran Earth Power vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 78-92 (21.3 - 25.1%) -- 0% chance to 4HKO
252+ SpA Volcanion Steam Eruption vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 152-182 (41.5 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Gholdengo Shadow Ball vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 25-30 (6.8 - 8.1%) -- possibly the worst move ever
252 SpA Gholdengo Make It Rain vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 152-182 (41.5 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Zapdos Thunderbolt vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 55-66 (15 - 18%) -- possible 6HKO
0 SpA Slowking-Galar Sludge Bomb vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 21-24 (5.7 - 6.5%) -- possibly the worst move ever
0 Atk Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 102 HP / 0- Def Tyranitar: 306-362 (83.6 - 98.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Valiant Moonblast vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 168-200 (45.9 - 54.6%) -- 58.6% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Valiant Aura Sphere vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 288-340 (78.6 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Iron Valiant Focus Blast vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 288-340 (78.6 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
And so on and so forth.
252 SpA Heatran Earth Power vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 78-92 (21.3 - 25.1%) -- 0% chance to 4HKO
252+ SpA Volcanion Steam Eruption vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 152-182 (41.5 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Gholdengo Shadow Ball vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 25-30 (6.8 - 8.1%) -- possibly the worst move ever
252 SpA Gholdengo Make It Rain vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 152-182 (41.5 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Zapdos Thunderbolt vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 55-66 (15 - 18%) -- possible 6HKO
0 SpA Slowking-Galar Sludge Bomb vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 21-24 (5.7 - 6.5%) -- possibly the worst move ever
0 Atk Landorus-Therian Earthquake vs. 102 HP / 0- Def Tyranitar: 306-362 (83.6 - 98.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Valiant Moonblast vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 168-200 (45.9 - 54.6%) -- 58.6% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Valiant Aura Sphere vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 288-340 (78.6 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Iron Valiant Focus Blast vs. 102 HP / 152 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 288-340 (78.6 - 92.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
And so on and so forth.
I can agree that a misstep in communication occurred, I was also a little surprised that volcarona was voted on at that point. Like you say though, 4 members had already given their thoughts on volcarona and pretty clearly expressed they don't believe its good for the tier. I appeal to authority as a shortcut for that discussion, because it already happened and went nowhere. I think volcarona should stay in ubers for reasons already stated, and many disagree for reasons already stated.
As far as the overstep/misuse of authority is concerned, keep in mind that the last survey on qualified responses showed a 3.7/5 on zama-h and 3/5 on watershifu. If the council had perfectly responded to community sentiment, they might have quickbanned zama-h and suspected watershifu. However, they had their own thoughts and decided to suspect zama-h and quickban watershifu instead. I believe this to be the better decision, and I don't mind if the council uses their better judgement sometimes. I think most people are overall quite happy to not deal with busted watershifu and keep zama-h in the tier, despite them technically overstepping their authority.
Ultimately, it's fine for ou council to have their authority, and it's fine for the rest of us to check that authority via community surveys and suspect tests. Not gonna draw a more direct comparison to real life government because that would be cringe.
So with the first month over and the big OU to UU shift. Imma open a discussion. Which mons that dropped to UU do you think will make a return to OU by August?
My unsustantiated predictions:
and 
My unsustantiated predictions:
and
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Good post. Even without Grassy Glide, which more than likely will come back, Rillaboom does have plenty of support options anyways. Like you can’t go wrong with honorary Tapu in this meta.
insane team, ice spinner tusk is a little problematic but still awesome
So with the first month over and the big OU to UU shift. Imma open a discussion. Which mons that dropped to UU do you think will make a return to UU by August?
My unsustantiated predictions:
I agree with meow and skele but torn feels kinda cheeks right now. It has no move that actually feels good to click other than uturn lol. I’d rather run zapdos 100% of the time since it has better bulk, typing, and a move that actually hits
I feel like Torn-T is really mediocre right now and the VR definitely reflects this since it's very low-ranked right now; it's very strong after a Nasty Plot and has some decent coverage alongside a good Speed tier, but it's overly dependent on getting that Nasty Plot off in the first place, which is an absolutely monumental task given that everything either outspeeds it after a turn of setup or OHKOs it on the turn it gets a Nasty Plot off.
Like, it's not total garbage, but it's heavily pigeonholed into that Nasty Plot set right now because it lost Defog and Knock Off for the time being and as such doesn't really have any sort of utility or support options. Torn-T this gen has kinda devolved into the mon you specifically have to run support for, as opposed to being the support mon itself, and that just makes it impossible to justify on many teams right now. If I want a Flying-type with valuable defensive utility I'd just slap Zapdos on a team. A Flying-type setup sweeper with more than respectable bulk that can terrorize offense? That'd be Tera Flying Kingambit.
That being said, I feel like Tornadus-T always starts a new generation in a rough spot and then bounces back and becomes a top 5-10 mon by the end of the generation. It could very easily bounce back this gen with a favorable metagame shift (or those datamined unnamed TMs potentially including Knock/Defog, but we don't know so there's no point speculating beyond that) and excel, but right now I just don't see a reason for this mon to see serious, widespread OU usage.
Like, it's not total garbage, but it's heavily pigeonholed into that Nasty Plot set right now because it lost Defog and Knock Off for the time being and as such doesn't really have any sort of utility or support options. Torn-T this gen has kinda devolved into the mon you specifically have to run support for, as opposed to being the support mon itself, and that just makes it impossible to justify on many teams right now. If I want a Flying-type with valuable defensive utility I'd just slap Zapdos on a team. A Flying-type setup sweeper with more than respectable bulk that can terrorize offense? That'd be Tera Flying Kingambit.
That being said, I feel like Tornadus-T always starts a new generation in a rough spot and then bounces back and becomes a top 5-10 mon by the end of the generation. It could very easily bounce back this gen with a favorable metagame shift (or those datamined unnamed TMs potentially including Knock/Defog, but we don't know so there's no point speculating beyond that) and excel, but right now I just don't see a reason for this mon to see serious, widespread OU usage.
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Boots pivot set can kinda work despite not having a whole lotta utility because Regen is OP. Grass Knot lets it reliably snipe a lotta mons like Tusks, Garg, Samur-H, etc. It's speed tier is still good, so it can work as a solid revenge killer vs some key threats like Gholdengo.
I foresee Torn forgoing boots in favor of other item. Rh + Tera could let it emergency check a few mons like Gambit.
Try modest tera flying with specs or life orb. 2hkos most of the tier and can get it on tiers most popular mon in great tusk.
So with the first month over and the big OU to UU shift. Imma open a discussion. Which mons that dropped to UU do you think will make a return to OU by August?
My unsustantiated predictions:
Meow's days of glory are probably over but I'm confident Skeledirge will rise. It's defensive profile, statline, move pool and ability are all incredibly solid and if anything it will get kicked to UUBL if it doesnt rise by usage.
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