Other Metagames Reassembly Plant (Gen 9 BH, Top 300 on the Ladder, Randomized Little Cup Pokemon Only) and Some Monotype Randomizers (Gen 9 BH, Top 500 on the Ladder)

Onyx Onix 7

Reality is an illusion and gravity is a suggestion
is a Pre-Contributor
The Little Cup Challenge:

Following the completion of the randomizer challenge for NFE and the majority of the Monotypes, I realized that the same challenge was likely achievable with Little Cup Pokémon only. After all, in Balanced Hackmons, one has almost every move and ability at their fingertips. There would be some combination with a fighting chance on the ladder.


The Challenge Rules:

The ruleset for the challenge is as follows:
  1. Every team that is used must be randomly generated and contain only LC Pokémon
  2. The challenge begins with a fresh alt with the prefix RPG ( RPG stands for random Pokemon gauntlet)
  3. Boosting with other teams and forfeiting alts is prohibited
  4. To beat the challenge, one must reach the top 500 on the ladder or higher
Team-building Process:

As with any randomizer, it is simply a matter of rolling until something usable is generated:

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I settled on the above as there are a myriad of useful Pokémon, particularly Bronzor for defense, Grimer and Scorbunny for offense, and Igglybuff for a high HP Imposter.

The Team: (Reassembly Plant):


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Shrieking Cog (Bronzor) @ Eviolite
Ability: Primordial Sea
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk / 0 Spe
- Teleport
- Salt Cure
- Recover
- Topsy-Turvy​

While it is pointless to attempt to wall most of the high BST legendaries of Balanced Hackmons, there is a small subset that can be checked via a Primordial Sea Steel type. Some examples include Eternatus, Mega Sceptile, and Arceus Fairy. Bronzor is the optimal choice Little Cup has for this role as it has the highest bulk out of any LC Steel Type. While 57 HP and 86 defense might not seem like much, when the bulk increase from Eviolite and the resistances Steel offers are factored in, Bronzor can take hits from legendaries that don’t have ways to hit it super effectively. Furthermore, Bronzor has a coveted attack stat of only 24, which enables Bronzor to block Strength Sap from healing the opponent's Pokémon for Scorbunny and Grimmer. Bronzor uses a moveset with the moves: Teleport, Salt Cure, Recover, and Topsy Turvy. Teleport ensures the Bronzor always pivots last to bring any other team member, Salt Cure harasses Imposters that try and come in on Bronzor and provides useful chip damage on anything lacking Covert Cloak, Recover enables it to stay healthy for the duration of the game, and lastly Topsy Turvy enables it to reverse the boosts on pokemon that can’t hit it super-effectively.

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Malignant Furnace (Scorbunny) @ Eviolite
Ability: Desolate Land
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- V-create
- Victory Dance
- Mortal Spin
- Synthesis​

As one transitions from fully evolved Pokémon and legendaries to not fully evolved Pokémon, the loss in wall-breaking power due to low stat totals becomes noticeable. Likewise, as one downgrades further to LC the issue becomes even more severe as the amount of Pokémon with usable offensive stats and typings for Balanced Hackmons decreases even further. However, there is one way remaining to inflict damage to the legends and Ultra Beasts that populate BH, and that is the combination of Desolate Land and V-Create. With the combination of V-Create’s monstrous 180 bp, a 1.5 x damage boost from Desolate Land, and the same type attack bonus, Scorbunny can take large chunks of HP from bulky legends, despite its pitiful attack stat of only 71. Scorbunny uses a moveset composed of V-Create, Victory Dance, Mortal Spin, and Synthesis. V-Create is of course the main source of Scorbunny’s power as stated earlier, Victory Dance enables Scorbunny to outspeed and pushes the damage of V-Create past the OHKO thresholds of a variety of Pokemon, Mortal Spin solves the hazard control problem as the Steel types that can block it can’t take a V-Create, and lastly Synthesis keeps Scorbunny healthy so it can continue to do its job throughout the course of a game. Scorbunny is Imposter-proofed by Bronzor as Primordial Sea in tandem with Bronzor's Steel typing, makes Bronzor immune to all of Scorbunny's moves and chops the recovery of Scorbunny’s Synthesis to ¼ hp. The same is also true in reverse. An Imposter that turns into Bronzor won’t appreciate taking a Desolate Land boosted V-Create.


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Sulfuric Fleshbag (Grimer-Alola) @ Eviolite
Ability: Simple
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Victory Dance
- Power Trip
- Spirit Shackle
- Strength Sap​

While unfortunately, nothing can match the immediate damage the Scorbunny can offer, there is a way to outdo it in the long term: the combination of Simple, Victory Dance, and Power-Trip. With Simple’s ability to double the effectiveness of the already strong Victory Dance, Grimer can obtain + 2 Attack, +2 Defense, and +2 Speed in a single turn. This in turn quickly propels Power Trips power to astronomical proportions. After a single turn of boosting, Power Trip instantly rises to a bp of 140, and after 2, that doubles to 280. Henceforth, if Grimer isn’t immediately addressed by an opponent, it can spiral out of their control and sweep. Additionally, an Imposter won’t help matters for an opponent as Grimer's bulk and excellent Dark/Poison typing allows it trap the Imposter with Spirit Shackle and Pp stall it to death with Strength Sap. Grimer thus leaves most interactions with an Imposter with maxed-out stats and a fainted Imposter, which usually leads to an instant win.
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Pyrogenic Tumor (Igglybuff) @ Eviolite
Ability: Imposter
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Block
- Recover
- Heal Bell
- Tidy Up​

Igglybuff has the highest HP stat out of any Pokémon I rolled, and the only aspect that matters for an Imposter is HP by virtue of the ability siphoning all the stats and moves off an opponent. Henceforth, Igglybuff is the team’s optimal Imposter user. The ability Imposter greatly helps the team navigate the chaos of the BH ladder by revealing the moves and the abilities of an opponent's Pokemon and stealing utility, etc . . . Igglybuff uses the move the Block to trap opposing Imposters, Recover to heal, Heal Bell to cure status, and Tidy Up to Clear hazards in the rare event it isn’t transformed.
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CSF Extractor (Dewpider) @ Ability Shield
Ability: Prankster
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Careful Nature
- Mortal Spin
- Encore
- Destiny Bond
- Burning Bulwark​

Because the BSTs of Little Cup Pokémon are so low, it is entirely impossible to defend against the vast majority of threats in the Balanced Hackmons metagame. Bronzor can somewhat check a select few threats due to its typing, but for threats like Arceus Ghost, Mega Blaziken, Ash Greninja, etc . . . there is essentially nothing you can do to take hits from them. However, there is still one tool left in the shed, and that is Prankster and Destiny Bond. While priority Destiny Bond can’t wall or reliably switch into the aforementioned threats, it can at least trade with them or threaten a trade to temporarily stop them. The rest of the moves on Dewpider are to squeeze as much utility out of it as possible. Mortal Spin can poison careless threats, Encore can shut down set-up in the event Dewpider doesn’t want to trade, and Burning Bulwark burns physical attackers that get too cocky.

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Scuttling Extremity (Cleffa) @ Focus Sash
Ability: Prankster
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Careful Nature
- Mortal Spin
- Encore
- Destiny Bond
- Burning Bulwark​

Same thing as Dewpider. Just with a Focus Sash instead of an Ability Shield, as Cleffa is OHKOed by everything and Dewpider isn’t. You could put Sash on Dewpider, but then just be prepared to instantly lose to the Entrainment and Normalize combo.


Proof of Peak:

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As can be observed above, the alt I used for the challenge was RPG Onyx Onix, and that alt obtained a laddering peak in the top 300.

Importable:
https://pokepast.es/6601f6fca8b352a8

Replays:
VS Halward’s Spite Team:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2271243021-q0muigfrsanx7re4d3izb9ngnh6jlhppw

VS CSicula’s Weird Offense:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2271189882-vb4zbkcgr76g5k9avimejqmeoqxr0uapw

VS DiorHomie Semi-Stall:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2271170388-zufvjzof6je0c0b59ex0miwnyjczbjgpw

VS simostruoso Sceptile Alakazam Balance:

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2271761263-sxf1jxei1f0buu2pbwgheg10aty8a2dpw

VS August Akira’s hazard-Stack Sample:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2278750371

VS Memegodv2 Ash Greninja Bulky Balance:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2280536174?p2

VS TheChomp Un Imposter Proofed HO:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9balancedhackmons-2282571016-dztplzn1vosvuuf6uiuxqzcq8ifc87bpw?p2


The Monotypes:

The teams for monotype randomizers are trivial to understand, and thus no exposition is necessary. The teams and some additional relevant information is posted below:

The Challenge Rules:

The ruleset for the challenge is as follows:
  1. Every team that is used must be randomly generated and contain only Pokémon of one type
  2. For each attempt, you are allowed to change out your randomized teams, but not switch types
  3. The challenge begins with a fresh alt with the prefix RPG ( RPG stands for random Pokemon gauntlet)
  4. Boosting with other teams and forfeiting alts is prohibited
  5. To beat the challenge, one must reach the top 500 on the ladder or higher
The Teams/Proof of Completion:














Conclusion, Shoutouts, and Artworks:

Conclusion:

Finally, the final chapter of the final book of the rand-poke saga comes to a close. The challenge as of now has been beaten for the lowest tiers of LC and NFE. In addition, all 18 monotypes have also been cleared: 14 of which by myself and the remaining 4 by City and Akira. While of course there are an infinite number of potential randomizers that could be created by combining rulesets, the main randomizers have all been beaten, and so my randpoke sidequest comes to an end.

Shoutouts:

Shoutouts to cityscapes for her very impressive clears of the monotype randomizer for Fairy, Psychic, and Normal. Likewise, massive kudos to Akira 153 for taking on and defeating the challenge for mono-ground.


Artworks:
Bronzor by Cyber Hand:
https://www.deviantart.com/cyber-hand/art/Bronzor-182405189

Scorbunny by Eldrige:
https://www.deviantart.com/eldrige/art/Scorbunny-Painting-819786458

Grimer by Josuah Dunlop:
https://www.deviantart.com/joshuadunlop/art/Grimer-782536249

Igglybuff by Pinkdankk:
https://www.deviantart.com/pinkdankk/art/igglybuff-exorcist-956202959

Dewspider by tsuanimi-dono:
https://www.deviantart.com/tsunami-dono/art/PokeDrawing-Dewpider-669921522

Cleffa by AClockwork Kitten:
https://www.deviantart.com/aclockworkkitten/art/Gastly-and-Cleffa-784653145
 
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I've also decided to add a difficulty tier list to the RMT for the non-existent individuals who'd be interested in such things as technical details on monotype randomizers:

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Explanations (Easy):

Steel
: Steel is the best defensive type in the game and can easily cover its weaknesses with dual types and abilities like Well Baked Body. Steel also gets really good moves like Gigaton Hammer and Sunsteel Strike, and a lot of high bst pokemon like Mega Metagross, Solgaleo, so from an offensive standpoint, it also is shockingly pretty solid. Steel is thus by far the easiest type in the game to randpoke, easier than just rolling 6 mons by a landslide.

Water: While Water isn't optimal defensively due to a lack of good water/steel types, and Salt Cures high usage, it is absolutely insane offensively due to rain. Drizzle + any high bst attackers basically will guarantee a victory on the ladder.

Bug: Bug is shockingly one of the strongest monotypes in Hackmons. Most of the types Bug is weak to are almost completely absent on the ladder. You never see offensive rock in Bh because it is garbage into the Steel types that rule the tier. There are also almost no good flying-type attackers. For Fire types, that is easily addressed by Well-Baked Body. To add to that, you have Bug-Steels, so Mortal Spin is never an issue to handle. From an offensive standpoint, Bug is solid. You have many high BST and high speed Pokémon like Pheromosa, Mega Heracross, Genesect, Mega Scizor, Mega Pinsir, and Mega Beedril to use.

Explanations (Medium):

Fire: While you do have V-Create and Sun, the tier is riddled with Fire resists and Fire Immunities, so you won't have as easy of a time as Water. You also struggle a lot more defensively, as if you aren't careful, you can find yourself overwhelmed by Primal Kyogre, Ash Greninja, and Fur Coat Arceus Water. That being stated, you can still break through these obstacles with some smart teambuilding.

Flying: While Flying struggles from an offensive standpoint, it has a lot of options like Mega Salamence, Celesteela, Corviknight, and Ho-Oh that do well defensively in the tier. As long as you are familiar with how to build defensively, this type isn't too bad.

Poison: While Poison struggles with blocking Mortal Spin and the fact that you have to roll an Alolan-Muk, it is still remarkably solid defensively in the tier. The few weaknesses it does have defensively can also be easily covered for: there's Levitate and Burning Bulwark for Ground and Alolan Muk for Psy types. You can freely spam Toxic Spikes and Toxic Debris without worrying about Imposter, so making progress without as good offensive options isn't overly difficult.

Dragon: With the amount of high BST Pokémon in Dragon, it is surprisingly difficult. The reason for that, though, is the prevalence of Fairy, Dragon types, and Steel types. Eternatus will outspeed and steamroll you if you don't have a good answer. Pixilate is an instant loss, as Destiny Bond can't save you. Regenerator Registeel and Steela are also painful to break. That being stated, you still have a lot of mons with high BST's so this isn't the worst type in the world.

Explanations (Difficult):

Ghost: Ghost is strong if you have the correct offensive options. The difficult part is actually rolling enough of them / the right combination, on the same team. You also struggle a lot with Imposter-Proofing and Knock-Off, as you aren't guaranteed an Arceus Ghost or Zoroark-H to deal with said issues.

Electric: Electric has almost no good Mortal Spin answers, so you won't be able to consistently keep hazards up. You will also have to put Magic Guard or Sticky Hold + Covert Cloak on the team so you don't instantly lose to Salt Cure + Mortal Spin. Not to mention, you also have major issues with Mega-Garchomp, as fitting Levitate on top of anti-Mortal / Salt-Cure abilities isn't trivial. Not an easy mono-type.

Rock: I think this goes without saying why this is difficult. When your type has as many common weaknesses as rock and can't break Steel, you know you are in for a rough ride. That being stated, Rock isn't as bad in practice as on paper. You have Sand Stream and a plethora of Rock/Steel types to help with common special attackers and Mortal Spin. For physical attackers, you have Burning Bulwark and Destiny Bond to address them.

Explanations ( Very Difficult):

Dark: This is just Dragon, but even more brutal. You are weak to the common Fairy and Fighting types and have very limited counterplay options to address either. To make matters worse, you don't have the raw BST's of the Dragons, so you struggle to actually do damage to common Fairy Types like Audino and walls.

Grass: Grass is decent defensively, as it has a way to cover its main weaknesses; however, it is still not quite good enough to go full stall. The kicker is, though, unlike Bug, you don't have much you can do offensively. For Grass, you need to specifically roll into Mega Sceptile and Ogerpon Hearthflame. And then on top of that, the rest of your Pokémon must also not be low Bst unusable garbage (and spoiler alert, there are a lot of those for mono-grass). This is easily one of the hardest types to find a serviceable roll for.

Explanations (Insane):

Ice: You struggle in many cases to do damage to the common Steel and Water Types. Not to mention, you have no counterplay to the ever-present Mortal Spin, Salt Cure, and Stone Axe (Alolan Sandslash, believe it or not, just doesn't cut it in BH defensively). Magic Guard and Sticky Hold Strats also won't save you, as you need other abilities like Prankster and Snowwarning / Veil to not lose the game on the spot to common fighting types like Zamazenta and Mega Blaziken. Not to mention the amount of Ice Types with usable bsts like Grass is very limited. Easily one of the hardest / most inconsistent types to attempt.


Fighting: Similar to Dark, you are horrible into Fairys. However, this time you don't have Alolan Muk and Kingambit to save you. Basically, with Fairy types, you have to hope you get them with Destiny Bond, and even that won't work have the time if your opponent has Extreme Speed. This, however, is only the beginning of the difficulty of Fighting as you have no almost no resists and ways to outpace or constest common offensive Pokémon like Mega Alakazam, Eternatus, Garchomp, Ultra Necrozma etc . . and no counterplay to Mortal Spin, Salt Cure and Stone Axe ( You can try with Mega Lucario, but then you gimp its ability to deal with Fairies and get Nuzzled / Salt Cure anyways). Trying to ladder with mono fighting is certainly an experience of all time.

Bonus Explanation ( Asinine):

NFE / LC: While not on the tier list, both of these make even the hardest monotypes look trivial in comparison. The rolls and strats are so specific that it can easily take hours of rolling randomized Pokémon to find a single usable team. (I also had to find said specific strats to begin with, so that also took a lot of laddering and testing as preparation). Then, after you have your team, you have to play nearly perfectly, as the Pokémon you are fighting in many cases will have more than twice your BST. One mistake or wrong trade, and you will instantly lose the game. By far the hardest randomizers.
 
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