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Resource SV National Dex Monotype Viability Rankings [January 2026]

Water
:swampert:: A+ -> A
I find that Base Swampert is hard to justify outside of non Mega-Swampert Rain builds. Empoleon generally fills the phasing + setting up rocks role better thanks to having reliable recovery, and I find that a particular three-eyed slug tends to be a more favorable elec-immune for Rainless builds.

:gastrodon:: B -> A+/A
Gastrodon is FAR more splashable than B Rank would suggest, and frankly, it's a travesty it's been stuck here for as long as it has. Has some of the most customizable moveslots within the entire type which makes it an omnipresent threat in builder, and is strong into the ever-popular mono Dragon thanks to being able to nail threats such as Hoodra and Garchomp with Earthquake and Ice Beam respectively. The only thing preventing me from being deadset on it being A+ is the fact that it's not super easy to slot on Rain, unlike other A+ tiers.
I demand financial compensation and a written apology to Gastrodon and their family for their placement in B Rank by the end of the year.
:shellos::gastrodon-east::gastrodon::shellos-east:

:crawdaunt:: C -> D/UR
Meet Potential Craw!

Completely outclassed as a sweeper by many mons such as Ogerpon-Wellspring, Manaphy, Mega Gyarados, and Keldeo, and only generally outclassed as a Choice Band wallbreaker and priority user by Urshifu-R. As tempting as Choice Band Adaptability Knock Offs may be, its lack of pivoting (unlike its grizzly fellow wallbreaker) means it completely blanks into many common mons such as Mega Venusaur, Altaria, Lati@s, etc.
Maybe there's some builds where it's actually worth using, but I think Mr. Craw oughta pick up the phone and call the local job center, because he ain't got much going for him in this type.

:toxapex:: A+ -> S
I don't think this ever should've dropped from S Rank if I'm being honest. Water has no auto-includes, but Toxapex is still an incredibly close contender. It remains one of the best blanket checks to the physical side, and threats like Wellspring, Mega Altaria are still as dangerous as ever, making it a hard sell to not run it. Vacuum Wave Kommo-o has been growing in popularity over Taunt or Clangorous Soul, which only continues to boost Pex's viability.
 
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I'm here to discuss Fire's VR as I was laddering with it recently, and broke into the top 10 on the ladder with it. The type is nowhere near its level in SV relative to their respective metas and NDM specifically is not particularly fair to Fire but it's not as I've thought throughout this generation.

Rises

:ninetales: C to A+: Ninetales being so low is implied by the fact that Torkoal is the better sun setter but frankly, just like in SV, Ninetales is and should be the preferred sun setter on this type for basically the same reasons as SV. It's not slow and it has great utility in Healing Wish and Encore, the former being incredibly helpful in bringing back chipped teammates like SD Ceruledge, which leads me into...

:ceruledge: A to A+: Ceruledge is Fire's second best wincon and you'll see that I'm going to propose Zard X and it swap places. But in any case, Ceruledge just helps out a lot in the MUs that Fire struggles against. It's like the best response to Dragon once Arch is chipped, and unironically is great vs Steel because Treads won't be able to OHKO it thanks to Sash and you can set it as setup fodder. Ceruledge is also a better wincon vs Flying than Zard X because it's not killing itself with Flare Blitz and it can 1v1 Dragonite if it gets a boost since it's immune to Extreme Speed.

Drops

:charizard-mega-x: A+ to A: So it was Premonitions that was telling me in a VC a few days ago that NDM Fire did not need to run any mega so I decided to put that to the test and it seems like you really don't. The team I was laddering with had neither Zard X and Zard Y and it lowkey felt better to run. Zard X's issue is that you have to maintain hazards off. Because pre-mega is taking 50% and that's just long to deal with. Which most of the time forces you to run Torkoal, which I think is the worse sun setter rn. It's still Zard X so you can't count it out but I think Ceruledge is a more consistent wincon for the type.

:torkoal: A+ to B: Already kinda stated Ninetales is the superior sun setter.

:iron-moth: A to B: I don't really know why you would want to use Iron Moth when Blaceph and Volc already cover special offence so well. Sure it's a more consistent Z move user than both of them but their typings offensively are just a lot more useful, like Psychic without Boulder will just fold to Blaceph clicking Shadow Ball and Volcarona is Volcarona. No one is really considering Iron Moth at any point in the builder.

:arcanine-hisui: B to C: This is also another "what use case" sort of mon for the type where it just kinda exists and putting it in the same tier as Volcanion, who is offering Fire teams a lot more uniquely, doesn't make much sense to me. It hits hard yes, banded or scarfed, or Agility Air Balloon or something, but it doesn't really help Fire in any specific mus other than making Steel a bit easier with Flare Blitz + CC (but Fire shouldn't concern itself with trying to make sure it doesn't lose to steel) and Flying.

:incineroar: D to UR: I'm personally not a fan of ranking pokemon in D unless they really really offer something to the type and if it's not justifiable enough, they should be UR immediately. Incineroar is one of these pokemon. Fire is a very offensively-played type and Incineroar simply does not fit the playstyle at all. It's too slow and while it's not a weak mon by any means, idk why I would specifically think to myself "I'm going to slap Incineroar on my team because it's going to do something better than other Pokemon." Like we don't even have Darmanitan ranked and I would rather use that with Band/Scarf than Incineroar because ik it's going to nuke everything.
 
Alright, time for perhaps one of my silliest takes of all time.

Electric

:ampharos-mega: UR -> D

To preface, yes, we all know it stinks, and at first it seems there's little to no reason to use it over :raging bolt: for a Dragon type. But the few things it has going for it I think are at least worth mentioning.

To start with, Mega Ampharos actually has coverage options. Mainly Focus Blast and Hidden Power. Focus Blast can allow it to smash bulky mons like :melmetal:, :piloswine:, :terapagos:, and :tyranitar: (base or :tyranitar-mega:), as well as mons that can wall Electric/Dragon stab like :ferrothorn:, :excadrill: :iron treads: and :goodra-hisui:. Hidden Power Ice can lead to OHKO's on certain other switchins like :landorus-therian: and :gliscor: without hoping you can simply muscle through these with your Dragon stab.

Secondly, it has access to Toxic, giving it a viable means to damage mons it may have trouble hitting otherwise, like :altaria-mega:, :ting lu: and :hippowdon:.

Lastly, it's ability, Mold Breaker. While generally seeming unremarkable on Mega Ampharos, it can still lead to some neat interactions. Such as being able to Toxic Magic Bounce users like :sableye-mega: and :hatterene: as well as :garganacl:, OHKO :dragonite: and the aforementioned Terapagos by ignoring their abilities, defeat :shedinja: with any move, and ignore :ogerpon-cornerstone: and :skarmory:'s Sturdy. It can even chip away at Electric-immune abilities like :thundurus-therian: or opposing :zeraora:, particularly useful with Volt Switch to get a slow pivot off on a type that's otherwise super fast.

Bit more niche or specific, but you can even choose to not Mega Evolve your Ampharos right away. The main purpose would be to keep your pure Electric typing to take less damage from Dragon, Ice and Fairy moves. This would be especially useful against pokemon like :meowscarada:, :weavile:, :azumarill:, and :lopunny-mega: with Ampharos' base ability Static to maybe get a Paralysis off, particularly when you expect a Triple Axel.

I would also like to point out that Electric's only other ranked Mega Evolution is :manectric-mega:, meaning there isn't much competition to run a different Mega. I'm not going to sit here and act like it's better than Raging Bolt, as the latter still does a number of things better, namely having a priority move, set up in Calm Mind, stronger Dragon stab in Draco Meteor, and being able to hold items like boots or leftovers. But as far as off-beat Mega picks to choose from in the metagame, Mega Ampharos is honestly not that bad, and can even prove more useful than Raging Bolt at times for the unique things it brings to the type. I would even go as far as to say it's the superior pick in the Steel matchup. Electric STAB + Focus Blast coverage hits nearly the entire type super effectively. As was mentioned before, common switchins Steel has for Bolt include Ferrothorn and/or one of Excadrill or Iron Treads, all of which get blown away by Focus Blast off it's 165 special attack, and even :gholdengo: or :scizor-mega: aren't eating Thunderbolt comfortably, especially under Electric terrain. Typically I go with a set of Thunderbolt, Dragon Pulse, Focus Blast and Toxic, but the last slot can be either Hidden Power Ice or Volt Switch.
 
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Steel Council Approved ™️ conversation topic


:aegislash: Aegislash: -> D (both types)

Lets face it. Aegislash is obsolete. Get this guy in D tier where it belongs. Reasons to use this over dengo on either of its types are vanishingly few. Super niche pick almost entirely outclassed by another mon? Yep, D tier time lil bro


:iron crown: Iron Crown: -> B (Steel)

Steel HO is still kinda niche, but it has grown in popularity enough to be considered a real, useful steel archetype. Iron Crown is a menace on HO steel, imo the best screens abuser on the type. It has just enough flexibility to not be predictable, with a couple setup variations being viable: weakness policy double dance (the main one), cm 3a with zmove, ID CM, rare sub cm sets, and 3 attacks worth using (focus blast, stored power, tachyon cutter) that it picks 2 from usually.

I think as an incredibly strong piece on the HO steel archetype, with niche applications on traditional balance steel (specs, av, cm 3a), Iron Crown warrants a B ranking.
 
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One more nom before VR update..

:overqwil: Overqwil (Dark): C -> B

Overqwil separates itself from other poison/darks by having a serious offensive profile and really great utility moveset, allowing it to have a role as a fairy and fighting neutrality with intimidate to force out certain annoying attackers for HO dark without being passive.

Swords Dance + Gunk Shot/Pjab + Crunch/Throat Chop + Taunt/Scale Shot makes for a very useful mon on screens dark specifically. Other similar options like bisharp and hsamu suffer from worse speed and worse typing defensively. While overqwil lacks sucker punch, its gunk shot is turbo strong at +2.

On bulkier teams, Overqwil also has some niche as a physdef mon with intim, spikes, poison spreading, and pain split to help check fighting types in combo with msab. This niche application and strong role on HO dark makes it certainly comparable to something like bisharp or hsamu.
 
Happy new year NDM! New year, new VR slate as per usual :D

First off, thank you all very much for giving valuable input into the Viability Rankings! Some of your nominations got approved by the council and we appreciate your takes on the development of the SV NDM metagame. If your nomination is not in there, don't feel disencouraged to participate in future slates - you can question us why it was not prompted and we may even revise it.

Without further ado:

:ting-lu: A -> A+ - Best hazard setter the type has, sole Elec immune, checks a lot of otherwise problem mons for the type as a whole and more. Its omnipresence on recent Dark builds - fatter or more offensive - justifies its rise.
:weavile: A -> B - Its usage took a hit as :meowscarada: tends to run Triple Axel now to deal with largely the same things it does. Its typing also isn't that great, SD :samurott-hisui: / :bisharp: will almost always give you more value. Also worth noting that no one actually brought it in recent memory.
:archaludon: A+ -> S - Dual Steel-Dragon builds have settled as the build to be beaten in the tier. In a vacuum, Archaludon is the physically defensive glue Dragon needed, acting as a hard stop to physical attackers like :weavile:, :meowscarada:, :altaria-mega: and various others that would otherwise have a much easier time versus the type. Coupled with :goodra-hisui:, they justify why Dragon has been very consistent.
:kommo-o: A -> A+ - We all know how good it is, but its recent mixups are lifting it - and Dragon - a lot higher in terms of value (to the point its competitiveness is rather controversial). Regardless of fourth move choice or ability choice, it's seen nearly everywhere - and for good reason.
:garchomp: A+ -> A - A direct consequence of the two above nominations.
:pawmot: C -> B - Decent physical attacker that has been getting traction as an option for the flex slot. Its Iron Fist-boosted coverage and priority in Mach Punch lets Electric get the upper hand in matchups like Flying, Dark, and to a lesser degree Dragon. (s/o Fixzation)
:ampharos-mega: UR -> D - *sigh* This is actually a... usable Mega. Mold Breaker and coverage makes it have some intriguing matchups going for, but that's really it for now. (what doesn't a well written post do... s/o DimLug)
:raichu-alola: A+ -> A - :regieleki: has been more used lately / is generally better as an abuser. Getting a bit obsolete as teams opt for ground-answering elsewhere.
:rotom-mow: B -> C - Low usage as of late + the consistency of :rotom-wash: has just been much more worth it.

:rotom-heat::xurkitree: D -> UR - We found out these have no real niche whatsoever. SM really turns 10 years now!
:gallade: D -> C - AV sets are pretty good into trouble mus (psy/fairy) and have some use, mainly freeing :iron hands: to opt for a breaking set.
(thanks TTK for the massive amount of nominations!)
:ceruledge: A -> A+ - This is, indeed, Fire's most consistent physical wincon thanks to its well-rounded coverage, which lets it sweep against almost any team if given the window to setup.
:cinderace: A -> A+ - The variety of roles Cinderace can perform (Scarf revenge killer, Normalium Z wallbreaker, Court Change + Boots utility, among others) should give it a rise here as these make it a very easy-to-slap Pokemon on any Fire build.
:ninetales: C -> B - Healing Wish and Encore utility has made it rise in popularity among users as an alternative Sun setter.
:blacephalon: A+ -> A - While still excellent of a 'mon on its own, :iron moth:'s higher Speed stat, better coverage, and ability to retain offensive momentum with U-turn has given Blace a competition for the premier Scarf slot on the type.
:torkoal: A+ -> A - Ninetales's traction justifies the slight drop here, although its consistency is still valued slightly more (for now...)
:arcanine-hisui::skeledirge: B -> C - A bad defensive typing (in the case of the former) and more niche use-cases ultimately makes these not as good as the other B ranked Pokemon.
:dragonite: A -> A+ - The offensive and defensive package it provides in a single slot (thanks to Multiscale, a good typing, and excellent coverage options) have made it a very popular pick in successful Flying builds as of late.
:corviknight: A -> A+ - It's back as one of Flying's best hazard removers thanks to its coveted access to U-turn, which allows it to be slotted on a variety of teams much more easily than (most of) its competitors (and to flee from :gholdengo: lul). Its results should make it share a spot with :celesteela: as the premier Steels on the type.
:charizard-mega-y: A -> A+ - Metagame shifts to bulkier builds favor its rise, as its immediate power is very welcome for Flying teams to break thru them.
:iron jugulis: D -> C - Recent success shows it's not worthy of being stuck in the bottom tier, as its decent Speed and great coverage lets it run choiced sets well enough.
:moltres-galar: A+ -> A - Not as consistent of a pick as the other A+ ranks as it almost mandates a team built around it (which by no means makes it bad; it's still one of the type's scariest wincons), and its drop in usage reflects that.
:aerodactyl-mega: A+ -> A - Basically the inverse of what made :charizard-mega-y: rise.
:pecharunt: B -> A - Bulky NP sets make it scary as a wallbreaker, primarily because it and :gholdengo: break down shared checks very well. Another consequence of the bulkier metagame trend.
:banette-mega: D -> C - Decent wallbreaker HO teams enjoy using; makes sense to be paired with its partner :sableye: (i hate Bka Onon and style.css for making that team)
:froslass: C -> D - Screens > Spikes.
:basculegion: D -> UR - :basculegion-f: is strictly better (and it's not even that good).
:ogerpon-wellspring: B -> A - While it is the inferior Ogerpon form in the matchups Grass hates, Wet Wellpon's higher consistency in neutral-to-good matchups have been giving it a lot more attention on Grass teams.
:hydrapple: B -> A - Its defensive and offensive utility (be it on NP or AV sets) makes it a lot more slappable on Grass teams nowadays; especially as a partner to :ogerpon-wellspring:.
:garchomp-mega: A -> A+ - Has definitely found its place over the few last months as a key piece to Sand Ground teams, mostly because of its unparalleled immediate wallbreaking potential and above average bulk even when uninvested.
:clodsire: S -> A+ - Not as meta-defining as before due to :gastrodon: still being a viable Water immunity in certain teamcomps.
:steelix-mega: B -> C - Has disappeared off the face of the Earth (pun intended) for quite a while now (and even if it didn't, the metagame shifts aren't doing it any favors as of late).
:cloyster: B -> A - Its matchup-saving capabilities with the SS set have been valuable for the type as of late, making it compete with :cetitan: better for the sweeper slot as Ice shifts to more offensive structures.
:sandslash-alola: B -> A - Fastest available spinner, decent revenge killer, and, like :cinderace:, huge set versatility between SD, hazard-setting and more. It's the catalyzer of HO Ice for a reason.
:articuno: A -> B - Fatter Ice builds took a deep dive after the type lost what made them good in the first place (:baxcalibur: and :icy rock:), and while :piloswine: is still a great option in HO teams, this is not.
:iron crown: B -> A - We've seen what it is capable of; its results makes the rise speak for itself, forcing the whole metagame to adapt to it.
:iron leaves: C -> B - Despite the lack of :celebi:'s defensive utility, Leaves's more aggressive approach to matchups such as Water and Ground makes it much more efficient offensively, warranting the promotion.
:omastar: B -> A - Lord Helix's Shell Smash-sweeping antics are back in full force, threatening types like Dragon and Ground like nothing else on the type after :shuckle:'s Webs have been laid down.
:tyranitar-mega: UR -> D - *sigh* This really is the slate of bringing Megas back to life... Jokes aside, DD sets do have a small niche over the other two Mega Evolutions and DD :tyranitar:, namely outspeeding things like Scarf :sneasler: and :meowscarada: after a boost and factoring Webs. Still a very fringe mon but... I guess it's alright here. (s/o Bows)
:excadrill: A -> A+ - Yes, we did drop this last slate... only for it to pop up a lot more in recent memory as an alternative to :iron treads: that's more powerful and far more dangerous to walls thanks to Mold Breaker Toxic. So... back where it may belong I guess?
:ferrothorn: A+ -> A - :goodra-hisui: teams have been more popular as of late and are more consistent into steel breakers. While Ferro is excellent, a drop warrants its situation right now.
(awesome nominations by JesskyKhemically)
:gastrodon: B -> A - It's the most durable out of the Electric immunities, which is a boon for rainless / bulkier Water teams.
:crawdaunt: C -> D - Might be entirely fired out from the job soon, as Potential Craw faces a lot more competition in the wallbreaking department. Its sheer power is the sole reason to use it as of now, which isn't speaking much.

You may now keep posting ranking suggestions, as we're going through all of them in the next slate!
 
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After checking out the VR for Poison, I have elected to nominate some rises and drops of my own since the lower tiers in particular are looking a little strange to me.

Poison

:weezing-galar: A -> A+
I think yet another rise is necessary for this guy in the current NDM climate. As it stands, Dragon is THE type to beat in the meta and not running this guy sacrifices a truckload of advantages in that matchup. Galarian Weezing blanks :garchomp: and :altaria-mega:, while severely restricting mons like :roaring-moon: and :kommo-o:. On top of that, being a Fairy-Type allows this to shine in the Dark matchup. Most notably, it's able to hit :sableye-mega: for super effective damage, which is otherwise generally impossible for Poison to do. These are all very good anti-meta advantages to have given the relative popularity of types like Dark and Dragon, which I believe makes it a tad better than its counterpart as for right now.

:crobat: A+ -> A
Now before I get a bunch of oldheads yelling at me about how good Infiltrator Toxic is, I want to make it known that I am not bashing on this mon. In fact I think it's still quite good, but I believe that the current meta is a tad more kind to Weezing, as I explained above. I just think the fact that Weezing generally performs better currently warrants a drop for Crobat, as they fill the same general role on Poison as Ground-Immune Defoggers.

:drapion:, :slowbro-galar: D -> UR
To put it bluntly, these are nothingburgers. There is no good reason to ever slot these on a team over something else like :slowking-galar:, :muk-alola: or :overqwil:, which I think warrants a boot from the rankings. (You would genuinely rather run :skuntank: over :drapion: any day LOL)

:glimmora:, :munkidori: C -> D
Much like the ones above, these guys are outclassed by something else on the type, however these two at least have a little bit to offer. Glimmora is vastly outclassed by :nihilego: as an offensive rocks setter, but it does still differentiate itself with its Corrosion ability. Munkidori is outclassed by :nidoking: as a special wallbreaker, but it does still have colorful enough coverage to set itself apart. Put simply these two are bad, but they aren't quite bad enough to drop entirely as they do still offer something.

:dragalge: UR -> D
Now this one is definitely a more out-there nomination, but I do genuinely think this mon has a place on Poison despite usually being a Dragon thing. Firstly, Poison doesn't typically have as many options for slow pivots as it would like. It's usually :slowking-galar: or nothing, but Dragalge changes that with its access to Flip Turn. Additionally, its secondary Dragon typing grants it some nice defensive utility on the type, since usually the only Fire resist is :toxapex:. On the topic of :toxapex: and :slowking-galar:, typically these two have to choose whether or not to run Toxic Spikes over another advantageous move. Toxic Spikes can be a huge boon to have on any team in this format, as many types tend to be unprepared for it. Dragalge however, doesn't need to choose whether or not to run it, as it always does anyway. Another noteworthy advantage to Dragalge is its higher damage output in comparison to :slowking-galar:. Adaptability Draco Meteor hits neutral targets hard almost all the time, and it also packs useful coverage in Hydro Pump.

I do hope these can be considered next slate, as I did put a decent bit of thought into these nominations!
- Toad
 
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