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Resource SV UU DLC 2 Viability Rankings- Update at Post #358

Hi everyone! Due to the gravity of the tier shifts that hit us earlier this month, we decided to revote on the entire VR, to have a new base to restart from going forward. We will now go back to the usual nominations process so please if you think anything should be changing, if you have any UR mon to bring up ranking, or mons to remove, feel free to drop them down below, as well as any questions you may have on these current rankings! As always, I invite you all to join the live vr chat in the UU discord to receive all the updates and to talk about the changes with other people there, as well as members of the ranking council (also the OP is getting updated tomorrow because the sprites were driving me crazy). Here's what has changed:

New Additions:

:weavile: -> A+
:araquanid: -> C

Rises:

:latios: A to A+
:fezandipiti: A- to A
:skarmory: A- to A
:ogerpon: B+ to A-
:zapdos-galar: B+ to A-
:cobalion: B to B+
:mandibuzz: B to B+
:metagross:B to B+
:gardevoir: B- to B
:sandy shocks: B- to B
:sinistcha: B- to B
:chesnaught: C to B-
:clodsire: C to B-
:jirachi: C to B
:salamence: C to B-
:serperior: C to B-
:volcanion: C to B-
:empoleon: UR to C
:thundurus: UR to C


Drops:

:slowking: A+ to A
:rotom-wash: A- to B+
:bellibolt: B+ to B
:hydreigon: B+ to B
:arcanine-hisui: B- to C
:lilligant-hisui: B- to C
:ninetales: B- to C
:venusaur: B- to C
:mimikyu: C to UR
:oricorio-pom-pom: C to UR
:ribombee: C to UR
 
Why did belli drop? sure torn leaving is a hit but when weavile existed in the tier it was quite popular for dealing with it

H-arc seemed to gain usage as a suicide lead, sun breaker, and in general be a better mon or smth

Serperior has no usage to back itself up so a bit odd on that part to even in scl
 
For Metagross, the ability to take on rockpon is what sets it apart at the moment.

For Jirachi I am less certain, but others can probably atest to it
Jirachi is almost definitely due to heatran rising meaning no flame body and also being a counter to Latios is more valuable (and torn t not threatening Knock off constantly is nice)
 
Snagged reqs for the suspect after a prolonged break from mons using the below team and wanted to provide some thoughts on the meta
2birds team pic.png


:jirachi: Have seen some talk on what Jirachi's purpose is. The defensive typing is still excellent, especially in the current meta where things like Ogerpon-C and Latios are as big of threats as they are. I used it on this offensive team as soft switch ins for the below as a scarfer - without a trailblaze, it does a decent job at threatening RockPon with Iron Head or U-Turn.

There are two big reasons, to me, to use this over Metagross: Trick and Healing Wish. Jirachi isn't hitting as hard, but on an offensive team it has a ton of utility in crippling switch-ins with Trick like Skarmory (frees up Zapdos-G and Azu), Mandibuzz (same), or Slowking (for Latios). I am maybe the biggest Healing Wish stan on planet earth and Jirachi is the tier's best user due to its typing/utility/speed tier. Healing Wish rocks on this team because it frees up Choice Band Zapdos-G (who is there to wear down steel types of Latios/Iron Jug) or AV Azumarill (relic set that softens matchup versus Greninja).

:latios: I have long thought this Pokemon is extremely annoying and was a little surprised that it's still kicking it after taking a year long break from UU. I got a lot of mileage out of CM+Recover+Dual STAB sets with Tera Steel - feels like it just takes over versus balance/slower teams and is incredibly punishing to a lot of solid mons on the VR.

:iron-jugulis: This mon feels very awkward to me because of how much strong priority (namely stuff like Weavile and Lokix) can force you out after you've consumed your Booster Energy - you never really want to send it in before it's time to clean, so it can sometimes feel as if you're playing 1 mon down. That said, if you are able to back pocket this thing for late game, I think it's one of the better cleaners in UU. The booster energy speed tier is great and is bolstered by flying/dark/ground coverage. I got a lot of value of of Taunt (rather than something like flamethrower) to help push through stuff that can't meaningfully touch you like Gastrodon, Slowking (which sorta eats Dark Pulse), and Mandibuzz. I rocked with Tera Ground to give a little extra damage against steels like Tinkaton and Cobalion, which has the additional utility of helping dodge thunder wave.

:zarude: Extremely curious to see how this thing is moving if/when Ogerpon-C gets canned. Saw a few on ladder (vast majority Choice Scarf, a few Heavy Duty Boots, and one brave soldier running Choice Band). Felt like it always contributed with fast/strong knock off, especially in a tier with heavy reliance on Heavy Duty Boots due to its hazard removal options. I think this mon has pretty tough limitations versus balance/bulkier teams: sure, getting rid of items is great but even if you're hitting the right reads on switches stuff like Skarmory, Mandibuzz, Hydrapple, and Coballion are pains. That said, still a very good Pokemon that belongs in the upper echelon of UU.

:fezandipiti: Maybe it just had a bad matchup into the team I was using but I did not witness this doing anything useful at all. Feels very Potential Man to me and would be curious to hear about others getting some value of of this.

:lokix: i hate u
 
Fezandipiti doesn't seem that strong, I feel like many teams are not adapted to it yet. Pretty nich and mostly usefull in blukier teams that need the typing.

Lokix is still op. It's just that everybody is so used to it now. When you have a counter it's honestly pretty easy to deal with since it only has 1 good set. (honestly Fezandipiti being one of the better counter might even be the reason why it's overated)
 
:yanmega: UR -> C
They say third times the charm right? Anyways, yanmega is even more shiest this meta. Torn gone means one of its biggest opps is no more, while heatran leaving means one less rocker and one less target it needs to dedicate tera to. But anyways, I've done this spiel two times before so search yanmega in this thread alongside my name and read those but TLDR, yanmega is able to brutalise offensive teams due to speed boost+its great power after throat spray, while also helping break defensive cores pretty well. Does have to dedicate tera to beat steels/dirge and does require rocks off most of the timer, but pair it with things that appreciate steels gone (like zarude) and an excadrill lead. Then you will be golden. It was a very crucial part in my suspect run tbh, so I do think it deserves to be ranked. Also sun/rain being more popular is good because yanmega brutalises those playstyles.

Replays:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-2472697429
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-2472215637?p2
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9uu-2470924371

:zapdos galar: A- -> B+
Now, gapdos ain't bad, but compared to the other A- mons idk, it feels worse. Kills itself really quickly and is a fighting type that wants somewhere between fuck and all to do with weavile. Sure, it can take on zarude a bit, but having to concede scarf is not exactly great. Has 2 uses in SCL and a 0% winrate. Stats don't mean much, but I can't lie, I'm feeling its less and less something I wanna use. Still good, just maybe not A- good. No this is not me coping that UU took it away from RU shhh.

:skarmory: A -> A+
Honestly, lets have this conversation. I've been keeping up with SCL, and skarmory so far is third place at 21 uses, and a pretty good 57% winrate. Skarmory just feels like the defacto defensive pokemon in the tier. Physically defensive sets are the best, as they can take on Pokemon such as gapdos, excadrill, weavile etc, while specially defensive sets can check stuff such as latios and hydrapple. Bit on the passive side but even then between bp, bb, wwind, iron defense etc, its not the worst thing in the world. Idk, this just feels so good and I think a small bump is warenteed.

:metagross: B+ -> B
Maybe you could argue to B- and I wouldn't disagree, but with the cornerstone ban, metagross lost a big part of its niche, that being it could switch in and then threaten out cornerstone due to bullet punch. Now its much more awkward to consider on teams due to teambuilding constraints it opens up. Idk, drop this and then check on it later to see if it needs to drop further.

Some rapid fire noms I can't be bothered to explain.

:gyarados: C -> B-
:zoroark hisui: C -> B-
:azumarill: C -> B-
:serperior: B- -> B
:reuniclus: C -> UR
 
I haven't posted on forums in like 3 years or something so forgive any loony takes incoming:Smogjynx:I've been non-committal laddering this gen's UU on-and-off since the Hoopa meta, but have toyed around a lot more since a lil before Stonerpon's suspect. I know some find it uncouth to post noms during a suspect test, so I'm hereby abusing my former vr host status to do so anyway cuz I'm bored! I quite enjoy experimenting with the quirks of this gen and think some stuff in these rankings could use updating at this stage of the metagame. I've been closely lurking SCL and suffered plentiful ladder tilts to have barely qualified opinions by now. This will probably be overlong because I'm a yapper. Vaguely ordering these by how much I care:

:slither wing: B+ -> A-
This guy is straight up filthy! BU + Booster Energy + Flame Charge feels pretty incredible and self-sufficient lately, plowing through opposing offenses while retaining a solid matchup into most fat stuff. The typing and offensive profile feel really accessible into Zarude and Ogerpon, most counterplay is incredibly shaky after a turn or two of setup, and it can win BU wars against Zarude and Conk. It frequently feels like you need something like tera Fairy Dirge/Toxapex/Mandy to keep Slither Wing from stealing games, but even those checks need to be kept healthy and face several plausible conditions in which they are no longer safe or even sufficient counterplay. It's frankly shocking how nasty and game-ending this guy can be. I toyed around with bulkier BU sets too to try tightening the Exca and Lokix matchups, but also got high af and tilted into low 1400s after trying this LOL, so I'm unsure if there's merit there. I can see it staying where it is - it could stand to have a sturdier matchup into Excadrill and takes a lot from Lokix's priority even at +1 - but it currently feels very easy to use and optimize on offense while the standard pivot set is still very useful as well. Easily one of the most lethal late-game threats in the tier, is flat out nasty on HO, and can flip entire games on their heads like few other mons in the tier.

:skarmory: A -> A+
Seconding the nom to rise this from A. It's been dominating SCL and simply offers fantastic consistency and utility at this stage. The defensive profile is super valuable in an Exca/Weav/Ogerpon meta, it's a solid phazer into BU Zarude, and its movepool is incredibly malleable. It's really hard not to get consistent value out of Skarmory in a match and its recent results speak for themselves; I reckon it's easily a top 5 mon in this meta. Thanks to my boo thang vivalospride I have also become an HO lead Skarm truther, though that's more of a compounding factor than the main reason I think this should be A+. Truly fantastic pick right now.

:hydrapple: A- -> A
I was frankly shook this thing wasn't at least A when I first checked this thread. It's great into Excadrill/Zarude/most Ogerpons, is fantastic at abusing tera, and is perhaps the single best mon in the tier at consistently forcing trades. Regen + genuinely great damage output is just amazing frankly. Tera can help completely turn the tables on this guy's Latios/Weavile/Gapdos matchups, while it also easily fucks over stuff people tend to fit for most other dragons and grasses, like Skarm/Fez/Tink. I'm tempted to call it a top 10 mon and think the only things truly holding it back from A+ caliber are the presences of Weavile and Latios. Hydrapple is thriving in a post-Tornadus world.

:ogerpon: A- -> A
Basic nom to make in a post-Stonerpon UU, but this thing feels pretty fantastic right now. Ogerpon's pivot set is a top-tier progress maker, especially given its capacity to thwart Zarude setup with Encore. I particularly enjoy LO + SD right now. SD/Ivy Cudgel/Superpower/Spiky Shield does nasty work into most archetypes in spite of its obviously worse consistency than Cornerstone in this role. The simultaneous power and speed boost from tera is ridiculous, essentially relegating your consistent counterplay to Weavile's Ice Shard and offering a ton of utility as speed control against Gren/Latios/+1 Exca. Feels very easy to get value out of and offers a wonderful bundle of utility and threat level.

:greninja: B+ -> A-/A
B+ feels like it's underrating this guy's current threat level and offensive utility. The speed tier in particular is fantastic against Latios, specs-boosted Water Shuriken is great for Weavile/+1 Exca/Agility Thundurus, and Battle Bond sets are incredibly lethal in their own right. Gren's been a big beneficiary of Tornadus rising and feels fairly malleable; options on BB sets like Extrasensory and tera Poison are niche but lots of fun. The coverage movepool and speed tier just give Greninja an immense immediate threat level that feels highly misrepresented below the A ranks. It often demands respect on preview and can require multiple slots to adequately handle

:zarude::latios: A+ -> S
I don't know what the culture of S rank noms is these days, but these two feel worthy of at least a discussion on that front. Zarude is an elite progress maker with STAB Knock and a relatively speedy U-turn, arguably the best tera abuser in the entire tier, requires multiple slots to check, and is this tier's mon most capable of entirely stealing games with the BU set. It's fairly malleable and is arguably shaping meta trends like Mandy's bustling SCL usage and the increased usage of various phazers. Latios is the single most offensively threatening mon in the tier and also very malleable. It has taken off rather absurdly after Tornadus' departure and just feels like it's a cut above most everything else in terms of centralization, immediate threat level, self-sufficiency, and the amount of incredibly useful tools at its disposal.

:mimikyu: C -> B-
Maybe an unhinged take with Excadrill being so good, but I really like Mimikyu as of late. It's a super consistent team player on HO. With Red Card and SD, you have a spin blocker/sweeper/physical Fairy/phazer on your team all in one, which is frankly fantastic and a huge building relief. STAB priority can be clutch and I also frankly quite enjoy Destiny Bond in its fourth slot, catching stuff like Tink and Excadrill way off guard. I think this guy thrives quite a bit off of people not knowing what to expect from it.

This is getting long af, so here's some rapid fire stuff I either am iffier on or not as passionate about:
:excadrill: A -> A+: There's a lot of counterplay, but this dude is an immensely consistent spinner, A1 tera user, and can turn the tables against opposing offenses hard at +1. Feels insanely splashable and consistent and has been everywhere in SCL and ladder.

:gardevoir: B -> B+: Feels incredibly easy to get value out of this thing as a scarfer. Healing Wish is amaze, firm offensive pressure as a speed control option is great, Psychic Noise is a broken move. Garde has also popped off in SCL a nonzero amount of times I'm pretty sure.

:metagross: B+ -> B-: SO much less valuable without Stonerpon around. This looks whack in the same rank as Cobalion and Tinkaton nowadays. Jirachi also genuinely feels way better if you want a similar defensive profile for Latios etc.

:toxapex: B- -> B: This thing genuinely sucks ass but is pretty alright lately for phazing Zarude, checking Gren/Lokix/Weavile, can handle BU Slither Wing a lot of the time. Other stuff in B- feels too niche for this to fit alongside them.

:azumarill: C -> B-: BD is filthy and this thing is genuinely rather unexplored in general. Typing offers decent utility into Gren/Weavile/Conk, takes advantage of lots of Keldeo checks, and call me crazy but I think AV has a very small niche in the Latios/Keld/Jugulis matchups.

:conkeldurr: A- -> A: Uncertain about this, but both flame orb and BU are very solid. Mach Punch is excellent in a Gren/Exca/Weav meta while it can match up decently against Zarude in a pinch. Another winner of Tornadus leaving even if it could knock it.

:ninetales::venusaur: C -> B-: Sun has seen sparing usage in SCL and has showcased pretty solid potential. VenuTales is a nasty core that many teams are unprepared for while additionally enabling stuff like Slither Wing and Latios pretty well. Unexplored but def potent af.

:fezandipiti: Keep this at A. It's fairly solid into Gren & Lokix, does alright vs Zarude, makes progress insanely well thanks to Toxic Chain. It's both a consistent pivot and solid enabler of its teammates thanks to spreading poison like an mf. I hate facing this thing 100% of the time.

That's it now I'm done! Apologies for the length of this. If Infernape had 10 extra points in every stat and victory dance it'd be S+. Thanks for reading!
 
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