Pools vs Baddy - :pmd/leafeon::pmd/arbok::pmd/clefairy::pmd/grumpig::pmd/vibrava::pmd/solrock:
Pools vs Sheik - :pmd/persian::pmd/staryu::pmd/emolga::pmd/glaceon::pmd/wormadam-trash::pmd/whiscash:
Pools vs Shing - :pmd/persian::pmd/staryu::pmd/lairon::pmd/raichu::pmd/grumpig::pmd/leavanny:
Quarters vs LpZ - :pmd/persian::pmd/wormadam-trash::pmd/frillish::pmd/simisear::pmd/solrock::pmd/arbok:
Semis vs neomon - :pmd/emolga::pmd/muk::pmd/glaceon::pmd/solrock::pmd/leafeon::pmd/persian:
:bw/vibrava: - At the time of writing this, Vibrava has received more attention and usage compared to around over half a year ago. This is for good reason, as Vibrava's unique Dragon/Ground-typing, access to Levitate, and respectable utility allows it to muster an effective defensive profile versus common threats such as Simisear, Arbok, and Lairon. Earthquake is reliable and strong for STAB, which is all it really needs for an attack as Toxic and U-Turn cover basically everything else. Earth Power is an alternative for a more reliable MU into Coil Arbok and Lairon, but it's largely preference I feel. It goes without saying, but Roost is what keeps Vibrava from being another subpar Eviolite abuser, giving it staying power that can't be easily replicated with its traits. Unlike DPP, I haven't tried playing around with offensive sets because frankly, Eviolite's introduction as an item raises the bar for how strong an offensive Pokémon needs to be to effectively break or clean, which makes me hesitant to give it benefit of the doubt. There's also way better Pokemon that it has to deal with now like Meganium, Walrein, and Solrock that make it p dire to do anything crazy.
:bw/vanilluxe: - Suffers from competition with Glaceon and its equally shallow move pool, relying on Hidden Power for its main form of coverage. This is obviously not ideal, as Ice and any given HP type cannot effectively deal with all of Waters, Steels, and other resists (Grumpig and Munchlax's Thick Fat is also terrible for it). As such, I've went with the route of targeting Steel-types via HP Fire or Ground, depending on the team's weaknesses, and resorting to Normal for the rest. Why Normal? While holding a Normal Gem and using either Explosion or Hyper Beam, Vanilluxe has the ability to completely blast through defensive checks like Staryu, Grumpig, and Muk for the rest of its team. A Life Orb may be desired for the extra power with Ice Beam or Hidden Power, however I'm not fond of it for numerous, small reasons that add up to an overall distaste. This is mostly due to losing the ability to bluff Scarf, which imo can be a big factor when you're trying to land Boom on the correct mon. While niche, Weak Armour can come in handy because of Vanilluxe's fairly decent speed. Vanilluxxe is still a pretty subpar Pokemon at best, but this was one thing that differentiates it from its fellow Ice-types.
Vanilluxe @ Normal Gem
Ability: Weak Armor
EVs: 76 Atk / 180 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Ice Beam
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Explosion
- Hyper Beam
:bw/leavanny: - What has already been said about Leavanny holds true; set-up sets ask for too much to go right that it simply isn't worthwhile. I do think there is a better set that can take better advantage of Leavanny's few benefits over other Grasses, which is as a Choice Bander. The speed tier, base 92, sets it above the crucial base 80 jump point, plus a few other niche mons around 85/90. In addition, a good chunk of common structures are susceptible to the combination of Grass and Bug STAB, such as Meganium, Solrock, Walrein, Grumpig. Using Leafeon as a comparison against the Steels, Leavanny trades a worse Lairon MU for a slightly better Pawniard MU, due to having STAB on X-Scissor. Return is a neutral option to hit Fire, Poison, and some specific Flying types for meaningful damage. The last slot is for super specific Pokémon, which you basically never want to be clicking unless absolutely forced too. Hidden Power Fire and Shadow Claw are your best options to hit Wormadam-Trash and Lampent respectively, although they both can dealt with in other ways. In regard to Wormadam-Trash, there have been a couple teams that utilize Magnemite or Nosepass specifically to remove Worm, which also got me interested in the prospect of using them to benefit Meganium and Leafeon as well. Are they long term viable? Most likely not, but they can serve to be strong catch into someone heavily reliant on Worm-T usage for their Grass checks. While the Stealth Rock weakness is annoying, it also has the positive of bringing Leavanny closer to Swarm range, boosting its X-Scissor damage. It has served me well in both my previous cup runs.
Leavanny @ Choice Band
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- X-Scissor
- Leaf Blade
- Return
- Shadow Claw / Hidden Power [Fire]
:bw/whiscash: - Just a fun, one-time nuclear button vs all the Pokemon that would otherwise keep you in check like Grass-types or Pelipper. It still requires chip to secure the KO at +1 vs things like Meganium or Leafen, so you have to work with that in mind. This can be something that breaks open the game for your other team members to power through the rest of the opposing team, like a Scarf Kingler, and Whiscash has the natural bulk to tank most hits on a recharge turn. This spread has Jolly over Adamant just so you can still outpace Emolga and Simisear after a single boost, but Adamant does provide betters odds for the specific purpose of OHKO'ing the Grasses after Rocks. This won't work vs the Grass/Poisons like Gloom or Ivysaur because eviolite is stupid and broken.
Whiscash @ Normal Gem
Ability: Anticipation
EVs: 64 HP / 252 Atk / 192 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Dragon Dance
- Waterfall
- Giga Impact
:bw/luxray: - I've used it on a few teams as an alternative check to Emolga, but it can do more than just that since Intimidate is great in general. I like the ProTox set as always, but pivot sets with Volt Switch have been used here and there by people like skrimps or Shing. I haven't put it into practice yet, but a mixed set seems like it could be pretty neat as a bulky-ish attacker. Quick Attack is just a holdover from DPP, but it might have a few use cases like avoiding being Encored into an Electric move by Raichu or Emolga. The attack is enough to OHKO 252/0 Hp/Def Clef, but many should be running mixed bulk; Tbolt -> Sp is always a confirmed KO no matter the bulk.
Luxray @ Life Orb
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 120 Atk / 172 SpA / 216 Spe
Rash Nature
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Ice]
- Superpower
- Quick Attack
I already mentioned some of them above, but regarding other contentious mons on the lower end of the VR:
:bw/heatmor: - Fire immunity is useful when faced against Simisear, especially Choiced sets. Giga Drain gives it decent staying power and makes it tricky to deal with if you're trying to wear it down via Rocks and its own Life Orb chip. Sucker Punch is the last thing it has over Simi, which can be relevant here and there. I've had it save me a few times vs Scarfers or Emolga/Persian.
:bw/beartic: - I still think that you can (and should) use this outside of rain, whether it's SD or 4 atk. I will say that it does depend on Staryu for spin support, but I think Staryu is perfectly fine to use. Spin is still nice for other strong picks like Simisear or Emolga, so I wouldn't say running spin is a heavy detriment to using Beartic.
:flareon::gloom::cranidos::koffing::raticate::pignite::graveler: - agree with binning these
After years of dodging, I finally played in ZUPL for the first time slotting in... probably my main gen atp? I've started playing it in NU and PU consistently now, so the glove just fit. Regardless, I set a high bar for myself when it comes to team tournaments, and my usual price tag only elevates that desire to do well. I typically lean towards mixing up my selection of Mons to keep myself from getting too cozy with a specific core, which I seem to have accomplished here as no Mon exceeds 2 uses.
W1 vs Ara - :pmd/persian:-:pmd/wailord:-:pmd/wormadam-trash:-:pmd/luxray:-:pmd/diglett:-:pmd/golbat:
Wanted to start off the tour with something clean and reliable, and rode off a core that Quag suggested between Wailord, Luxray, and Worm-T. I rarely, if ever, use Wailord so I was pretty onboard with using something "new" out the gate. A huge nuisance to that core is opposing Luxray, which I was determined to take advantage of with Diglett. To help lure Luxray and ease Diglett's burden, Golbat seemed like an obvious choice; it also offered nice insurance into Mons like HP Fire Carnivine, opposing Persian, and Substitute Arbok, to name a few. Persian and Golbat also provided potential opportunities to lure and trap Steel-types, specifically Lairon as a RP could be dangerous here. Probopass was not much of a concern since I had Shed Shell Worm-T while Mawile could be handled between Luxray and Wailord. There's really not much to add onto this team since it's pretty cookie cutter outside of the Diglett bring, but even that isn't too out of the norm for a team like this.
W2 vs Drud - :pmd/octillery:-:pmd/camerupt:-:pmd/chatot:-:pmd/stantler:-:pmd/banette:-:pmd/probopass:
My hunt for blood had only just begun, but I was facing down toughest opponent I'd have to play all tour by week 2. It's pretty apparent by the Chatot that this was centered around abusing Drud's patterns between most of his teams. One of these was his focus on slower, bulkier style teams. Generally, his teams either had Persian or scarf Phione as the only form of speed control which I sought to abuse HARD. Scarf Banette is the obvious foil to Persian, hoping to throw off Wisp or Pursuit to neuter it for the end game. Trick could also provide assistance in a pinch to cripple a wall or potentially open the way for a setup opportunity. For Phione, I was aiming to force a trade with it via Camerupt or Stantler. Intial team builds had Yache berry > Lum on the Chatot specifically for tanking Ice Beam after Stealth Rocks, but I deemed it too specific and overlapping with other things going on with the team. Lum meant I could wave off a Thunder Wave or Sleep Powder against Ivysaur, Carn, or Wigglytuff (a not unlikely Drud bring), and also protect me from plenty of other secondary effects (Pjab Arbok, Body Slam Dunsparce, Lava Plume Camel, etc). The idea behind Chatot was a fast set-up sweeper + Encore user that could also outpace Vigoroth, an offbeat Drud choice to bully opposing set-up. The only choices were Chatot and Plusle, but Plusle is plagued with 4mss and lacks the ability to easily deal with Luxray. Chatot hits a larger swath of the metagame between Normal-stab and Heat Wave, only missing out on Lunatone. Probo is the only Normal resist that doesn't immediately fold to +2 Heat Wave, whereas stuff like Sableye, Lairon, and Worm-T get smoked. This is the reasoning for Shuca Probo on this team since it trades with opposing Probo or can lure in Lunatone w/ its Flash Cannon. I wanted a fatty lead that had a click for basically any scenario, which Octillery can do (and also be a Water resist lol).
W3 vs missangelic - :pmd/dunsparce:-:pmd/lopunny:-:pmd/phione:-:pmd/crawdaunt:-:pmd/camerupt:-:pmd/lunatone:
Dunsparce is on the borderline of being incredibly broken and stupid if you don't have a Sableye. Rocks are a nice perk which give it some good utility, but the meat and potatoes is STAB, Serene Grace Body Slam and Roost. While 100/70/65 doesn't seem impressive, it is 100% serviceable when you have a 60% chance to Para anything and then Roost until they FP. Lopunny is pretty shaky but just exists to force setup opportunities for Camel and Craw with Switcheroo. Scarf Lunatone is a nice surprise against Persians trying to U-Turn and heavily limits the amount of times Persian can come in again with Rocks up. The 3 Mons mentioned so far are pretty much blanked by Sableye while even Banette poses some difficulty, so I focused on 3 strong attackers that can beat up on them. Craw and Camel deal with either variation of Sableye's sets; between DDing in CM Sab's face or pivoting on Wisp, both situations offer high rewards. Phione is always nice and is the defacto Water check, meant to trade down while still having some offensive potential.
W4 vs Plague - :pmd/persian:-:pmd/phione:-:pmd/golbat:-:pmd/fearow:-:pmd/ivysaur:-:pmd/probopass:
I'm a big Fearow fan because of that crisp 100 base Speed tier, which makes it a nasty CB user. Flying STAB prevents it from being entirely stuffed by Sableye, which can't be said for the other fast Normals like Persian or Raticate. Nasty Plot Golbat was a Mon I've seen others use before with varying sets, so I decided to try my hand at it as a way to lure CB Fearow's checks. With HP Water you hit all of the Rock-types for super effective damage including Lunatone, something HP Ground can't do, and having a stronger hit into Camerupt. Lead Persian was primarily to prevent any Rocks attempt early on, hence being a Taunt set. Scarf Phione is extra speed control incase Persian gets binned early trying to prevent Rocks vs something like Lairon. Ivysaur is to cover Water-types and bulkier Luxray sets, the latter of which my main breakers struggle with. I seldom use Ivysaur so I felt confident in it being used as the sole Luxray check. With Persian, Fearow, and especially Ivysaur, Probo felt like another easy bring to punish Worm-T and other Steels.
W5 vs Baddy - :pmd/lunatone:-:pmd/arbok:-:pmd/crawdaunt:-:pmd/lairon:-:pmd/whiscash:-:pmd/girafarig:
In the grand scope of things, Lunatone is a pretty ass lead, but it deals with Luxray pretty well and forces Bibarel into a rough spot. I call out these two Mons specifically since Baddy only loaded those two going into the week (and as it turned out, would continue to do in our game). I was expecting some fat build as it's something I commonly attribute with skrimps' building, so I focused on Mons with sets that could beat common checks. Special Whiscash seemed neat for clocking Pelipper and being able to hit Carn a bit better. With Rindo it was the main deterrent for Luxray and potentially let me snag KOs on Seed Bomb Arbok, HP Grass Lunatone, etc. Ebelt Arbok is favorite of mine and with Fire Fang would hopefully bust down any Worm-T cores. I don't particularly like non-CB Lairon, but I figured it was a nice mix-up for abusing Normals so it acted as my Persian check. The Craw set is pretty unique; I just wanted to push some Crunch benchmarks at +1 without being Life Orb, which may put my opponent off on assuming its Banded. Protect > Endure achieves the same results of blocking Fake Out, but without Salac then Endure is generally worse in every way. Scarf Giraffe shores up the back for speed control, with Trick being a valuable option in that aforementioned fat MU.
The last 2 weeks of reg season I slotted into BW and loaded up reuses, so I'll stop it there since they're not related to DPP or bring up anything new. Below are just my shower thoughts/general stances on some Mons that either lacked usage in PL or were, at the time of this initial writing, on the up and coming.
:dp/girafarig: - I didn't bring this specific set to this tour, but I've had numerous games where SubCM Giraffe would either steamroll or force enough KOs where the game was essentially over. Psychic is complimented by Thunderbolt, which is its strongest, reliable attack into neutral targets like Steel- and Dark-types (HP Fighting is not worth using on 2 Atks due to Sableye being immune to both it and STABs). A good example of this in effect is this replay https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen4zu-2442499240-jsed11rb4giwa2dk4x0392k54usv06hpw. Aside from this its prob one of the top 2 scarfers in the tier with Phione, Arbok being a close third. The extra edge in speed is a big reason, but Inner Focus also helps limit counterplay from Persian Fake Out. Mixed can be interesting, physical sets are prob outclassed wholly by Stantler.
:dp/Carnivine: - While Carn is still a central force in the metagame, a hawk-eyed reader may note that I did not bring it once during ZUPL. Frankly, this was not intentional. I am quite fond of Carn and think it can do a lot more than people give it credit for, such as investing into its extremely strong STAB Power Whip. Arguably one of the strongest attacks in the tier with a meaty, effectively 180 BP and Carn's respectable base 100 attack -- it can certainly pack a punch. The only downside is just how many good Grass resists reside in ZU and are on basically every team without even trying, but Return is still a fair click into the frailer ones. SD is the norm when going this route, though I'm interested in seeing Life Orb or CB if they can pull ideal MUs (no Golbat or Poison/Grasses, for example).
:dp/dunsparce: - This Mon is dumb, and I'm surprised it hasn't seen more usage (written 2 years ago). Stealth Rocks, Roost, and 60% Para with STAB Body Slam is nothing to scoff at. Earthquake is sufficient enough at dealing with Steel and Rock-types, although you still have to be wary against things like Lunatone or the very rare Gastly. With investment, it becomes quite bulky to the point where it can stomach Adamant Choice Banded Head Smash from Lairon or Fake Out into Crit Return from standard Silk Scarf Persian, giving it many flexible turns to Roost or click Body Slam willy-nilly. On the topic of its Body Slam, it isn't the strongest in the world, but >50% chance of Paralysis means that you risk being easily crippled and subsequently recovered on until Dunsparce finds the opportune time to KO. While I don't use it as much, SpDef Dunsparce is just as easily an effective roadblock to many of the tiers special attackers that have to run at the threat of an impending paralysis. Dunsparce is of course walked over by Sableye + other ghosts and is a premier target for Trick/Sleep/Encore mons, so it is not invincible as it may seem to someone playing against it for the first time.
:dp/camerupt: - Simultaneously stellar and shit, but usually stellar for me. The set flexibility is for this thing is pretty vast, letting you slot it into a few roles for your team. I usually lean into any direction I need my team to be filled out with, examples being a RP sweeper or a SpDef tank with RestTalk to mess with opposing sleepers and specific ProTox mons. It will require investment for it to be considered bulky, but if Carnivine can do it then so can Camel. It is a solid user of Shuca berry and can use Passho as a lure set to boom on waters, clearing the way for something that appreciates them gone like SD Mawile. Do not let its beefy image fool you -- its natural bulk is equivalent to NFEs like Marshtomp or Pupitar, so it is no stranger to being OHKO'd or 2-shot by things you wouldn't expect.
:dp/Pelipper: - Its unique typing gives it a nice matchup into most Water-types, the ones lacking Hidden Power Electric of course, but it also stands to be a powerful threat itself. Water + Flying STAB hits everything in the tier for neutral at worst, but you really see how terrifying it is when Life Orb boosted Hydro Pumps start slamming your dedicated SpDef wall for a 2HKO. SpDef Waters and Kecleon are, by my count, the only mons that can reliably switch into Pelipper. Even something as stalwart as bulky Luxray struggles to switch into multiple Hydros. That said, Pelipper can be limited by how much it can break by its Rocks weaknesses and slow speed. Roost and Agility aim to remedy these weaknesses, which they will if not dealt with accordingly. Bulky Pelipper is still quite good as a pivot tool, and it blank checks a ton.
:dp/dewgong: - As much as I like Dewgong, it seems to be underperforming in most cases due to its weakness to Stealth Rocks and overall worse stat line compared to its banned colleagues. There's also stiff competition with Phione, Wailord, and Pelipper as special attacking waters, and Dewgong really only has a few utility moves and Ice STAB to its name. In comparison: Phione has solid bulk across the board, Heal Bell, and its speed makes for an excellent scarfer with its access to U-Turn. Wailord has devasting set variety between SubTox, Choiced Water Spout, and Self-Destruct sets (to say nothing of the Crit-me-not set). As discussed, Pelipper's Flying-type gives it a better edge over Grasses and it has the longevity of Roost to back it up. Encore is Dewgong's main claim to whatever fame it has, because it's just not much of a difference maker in my eyes. I didn't put it into practice, but I theorized of a Modest, Choice Specs Dewgong set that aims to abuse its Ice STAB to the fullest. It joins CB Crawdaunt and Octillery as the only Waters able to OHKO Carnivine, with Dewgong being the fastest and not forced to lock into something like CB X-Scissor. This is all to say that compared to its peers, Dewgong is pretty damn mid. Bona fide lackluster, lacking any major traits to differentiate itself meaningfully. We will still see the occasional use here and there due to solely its access to Encore.
:dp/crawdaunt: - There's a lot that can be said, but its quickest to just say that Crawdaunt has the best set potential x reward payoff. Salac DD can win games on the spot vs many offense teams, especially those that rely on Persian's Fake Out for speed control. Specs, while generally not seen much anymore, is still a great surprise catch into many standard checks. CB is the scariest thing to play against when lacking ways to quickly dispose of it, which many fatter teams lack. Lum DD, or any variation of DD for that matter, is still good as a general late game cleaner depending on your coverage or item. Having a Craw usually it guarantees an automatic CM Sableye check, which I really appreciate it for lol. I like CB best for the immediacy in breaking open the very fat teams that've been popping up here and there.
:dp/sableye: - It's not used often going by the stats, but it certainly should be. It sometimes just wins games on its own, or at least without little support. Calm Mind is hard to deal with after a couple boosts, pending any specific Roar users (though Taunt can flip the MU on these as well). It is our best Normal-type answer since it checks most of them without a second thought, barring lesser used sets like Nasty Plot or Switcheroo Persian. The common Stoss/Wisp set you'd see in other tiers is still serviceable here but has some nasty MUs into stuff like Wailord or Camerupt.
:dp/granbull: - Base 120 Attack Normal-type with varying coverage, great ability, and respectable bulk. Sub, Defensive, and BU are all very potent in their own ways, which makes it a chore to deal with when it first hits the field. Compared to the past, Granbull has certified its spot near the top of the meta game, with plenty of strong showings as an excellent abuser of ParaSpam or bulky offense. The main set that I fear most is the Sub set, as Intimidate lets Granbull set up Subs vs things it otherwise wouldn't be able to, and trying to deal with Granbull behind a Sub is no simple task for most Pokemon. I personally haven't played around with it too much, but I know from watching other players that it consistently puts in hella work. A Quick Feet set could be dangerous with STAB Facade, but the pitiful speed means you're still outsped by stuff like Plusle, Raticate, and obviously Persian.
:dp/lopunny: - I want to like Lopunny because Klutz Switcheroo is a dope tool to have in your kit, which is unique to Lopunny here, but it has a few indirect issues that make it hard for me to consider using. It's the second fast mon in the tier which is nice, so getting Switcheroo off to cripple a target is not hard at all; Encore and Healing Wish are amazing to have for the same reasons. Unfortunately it cannot use all of them with your general attacks as well like Return and Jump Kick, and if you're trying to fit other things like Fake Out, Toxic, or Heal Bell, you experience some heavy 4MSS as a result. I can still see myself using it more in the future, but it faces a ton of competition from our bevy of Normals with their own benefits.
The general state of the tier seems to revolve around 5-6 Mons, which as others have said, you can pretty much bring 100% of the time without any drawbacks. I rate Scyther higher and Dragonair lower than most. I think its speed tier is way too valuable when coupled with SD to not bring to most games, although it does have problem MUs that you need to work around which sits in at 4th. Dragonair is not bad by any means, easily top 6 in the tier at worst and best lead downright, but I see it as the most droppable if you were to slot in something else. Scyther and Parasect are also droppable, but I feel less inclined to do so since they're harder to replace (in the case of Parasect, the reliability of its sleep).
:rs/magmar::rs/primeape::rs/sandslash::rs/scyther::rs/parasect:
Top 3 are very hard to decide, but I think Magmar is my #1 for how well it threatens nearly everything in the tier. Omanyte and Dragonair are firm checks, but Magmar isn't lost without options against them; usually breaking the way for its teammates to pick up the pieces. The most important part about Magmar is its speed tier and ability to prevent Parasect from clicking Spore, something every other "speedster" can't prevent. Primeape does not pack nearly same punch, but it makes up for with better speed and revenge killing prowess. Sandslash is the equivalent to a tank, slamming almost the entire tier with its STAB EQ, with Slide to back it up, and having stellar physical bulk to take on Primeape, Scyther, and Pidgeot. Parasect is genuinely why Sandslash isn't #2 or potentially even #1 for me, solely because Parasect eats EQ without issue and Spores it back. Even with prediction, Sandslash needs a Rock Slide crit to prevent the Spore click. A common route in low tiers is to chip the sleeper into range as it sleeps you, setting you up to easily revenge it with the rest of your time. This means you'd be sacking the sleeping Mon in question, but you cannot do that as easily here vs Parasect due to Mega Drain. As Sandslash is inclined to switch out, this lets Parasect accrue solid damage with Slash or spread further status with Stun Spore or Body Slam. Outside of being great into Sandslash, it also does well into the other physical attackers like Ape and the fliers. Of course, Parasect will never let you down in terms of hitting its sleep move (bar a 1/256 lol) which makes it very consistent to plan with and around -- a trait we shouldn't take for granted.
:rs/dragonair::rs/tentacool::rs/muk:
As mentioned, I think Dnair is easily 6th best on my list and it can't drop any lower than this. The reason I have it this low is mostly because I see it as a jack of all trades, master of none. As a lead it has the most flexible MU into basically anything simply because it has Twave, plus Fire Blast is nice for thwarting Parasect. Tentacool essentially has no switch-ins except itself or a gimmicky water, which makes it an excellent breaker. It dominates Sandslash and rips a heavy chunk off Magmar or Parasect. It is one of the few mons that forces Dragonair to consider Tbolt for a moveslot, otherwise it becomes a liability. Muk is less offensive in nature compared to Tenta but makes up for with better bulk, and Explosion effectively trades with basically anything in the tier bar Rocks. Tbolt threatens Omanyte, so you do have a way to play around that specific MU.
:rs/pidgeot::rs/onix::rs/omanyte::rs/butterfree:
Pidgeot is mostly a lackluster Scyther, but doesn't have the crippling Bug-typing has Scyther getting cleaved by Rock Slide or Fire Blast. STAB Hyper Beam is its best perk, though I suppose Mirror Move can occasionally do something funny. I will likely be standalone here, but I am an Onix truther. When I use one of the Rocks, my main purpose is to not have to worry about Scyther and absorb the occasional Hyper Beam. Makes sense. When I use a rock, I also don't want to feel forced into hasty maneuvers to keep them safe from getting clocked with no way to mitigate a loss on my end. This is something I think Onix benefits over Oma most of the time. Sandslash, Muk, and Tentacool all have one way or another, a good MU into Oma that forces it into some sticky situations, usually with Oma switching out. Even more niche mons like Butterfree and Drowzee like seeing Oma as a potential avenue for throwing out sleep. Oma does have its benefits such as obviously sitting on Magmar's Fire Blast and having a strong Blizzard to throw Parasect's way, but I personally think Onix has more outs for bad situations. It really just comes down to the fast Explosion, which while counterintuitive to what you may want to have a Rock-type for, does give you leeway in dealing with problems depending on the game state. Butterfree can be annoying as semi-fast sleeper, getting the jump on the Poisons, Drowzee, and tying with Dragonair/Tentacool. It's Sandslash MU is risky when trying to pivot in as a good amount will be trying to Rock Slide an incoming Parasect, since its very telegraphed at this point. You'll end up with a Butterfree bean paste if you happen to catch one of those accidentally.
:rs/drowzee::rs/weezing::rs/slowpoke:
The Cs are basically just going to be Bs at some point in the future, but I haven't used them much myself or played against them to make a strong assessment for them rn. Weezing is generally outclassed by Muk, but Boom is still a good tool. It has a better Scyther MU as well, with good odds to stomach Slash -> +2 Hyper Beam. Drowzee and Slowpoke are simply too slow, weak, and somewhat frail (physdef/special respectively). Drowzee can find its way into a few guys to throw out Hypnosis, but you'll begin to appreciate Parasect's Spore over time lol. Slowpoke is def worth more than I give it credit for since it's still a Water with a beefy HP stat and Twave, but idk its outsped by Parasect of all things. It has good bulk into Magmar and Non-Tbolt Ape, but Poke looks very scripted in its actions.
:rs/poliwag::rs/lickitung::rs/rhyhorn::rs/charmeleon::rs/flareon:
Poliwag is Hypno roulette that can go for Amne boosts post-sleep. Too many faster mons to actually sweep anything. Lickitung is fat and has good coverage, can maybe move up in the future. Rhyhorn is bad but can RestLoop Primeape (since they don't run Submission) and still counters Scyther/Pidgeot for your team. Outside of that specific endgame, just use one of the other two Rocks. Both of the fires were tossed on last second. idt you'd use them, but fire spam is probably something if utilize all 3 together. Charm is just mini-Magmar whereas Flareon packs a harder punch.
:gs/ariados: ZU Classic Playoffs:gs/magnemite:
Having won both RBY and DPP cup, in addition to a strong BW cup showing, I had nabbed the #1 seed. This secured me a bye through the first week of playoffs, a nice off week as I was concerned with other tours during this time as well.
Quarters vs Sleid (DPP/BW/RBY/ADV/GSC)
DPP -:dunsparce::carnivine::phione::crawdaunt::camerupt::lunatone:
BW -:emolga::ivysaur::beartic::staryu::persian::solrock:
RBY -:magmar::sandslash::muk::parasect::scyther::onix:
ADV -:mightyena::ponyta::grovyle::seaking::magnemite::rhyhorn:
GSC -:ponyta::ariados::charmeleon::aipom::croconaw::diglett:
RBY, DPP, and BW for this week and next were effectively all reuses with minor alterations (such as SD Carn > Lopunny in DPP and giving Ivysaur a 4th move in BW lol). As I didn't play in either of GSC or ADV cup, I knew I had to get to work on familiarizing myself with their metagame post-cup. I was more in tune with ADV since not much has changed, with the exception of the brand new Grovyle and Ivysaur. While I didn't use the latter, I knew immediately that I had to use the gecko. Its stellar speed gives it so much in the way of moveset variety, but I always found myself leaning towards Petaya as a solid endgame cleaner. Rhyhorn was my de facto "Bug" check for Bee and Anorith, which it seems it didn't feel like clocking in for this set. I'm really fond of the sets/spreads for Seaking and Magnemite, albeit Mag didn't come out this game. More on him later. The Seaking doesn't "wall" anything per se, but with HP and some bulk investment it blanket checks a large swath of the general offensive metagame, which RestTalk helps in the way of longer games.
Semi-finals vs czim (RBY/DPP/ADV/BW/GSC)
RBY -:dragonair::primeape::magmar::sandslash::scyther::parasect:
DPP -:banette::persian::girafarig::crawdaunt::camerupt::lunatone:
ADV -:ponyta::mightyena::grovyle::seaking::magnemite::rhyhorn:
BW -:leafeon::arbok::clefairy::grumpig::vibrava::solrock:
GSC -:ivysaur::ariados::charmeleon::aipom::croconaw::ponyta:
I was pretty confident in my ADV team as I didn't reveal Magnemite during my game with sleid, which is one of the key mons of the team, so I decided to load it up again vs czim with a minor change of swapping Pony to the lead position (which is why the paste name is a bit off, I just moved the slots around without making a copy). With assistance from an early para on Mightyena, Magnemite was able to leverage a combination of its excellent typing, workable bulk and innate power to ravage czim's team. While Toxic is an obvious choice for a 3rd move here, I went with Metal Sound to put extra stress and immediate threatening power vs fat, bulky mons. I did not touch on GSC last set, but I will hear to expand upon the differences between the two teams. At least to me, Croconaw and Charmeleon are firmly undroppable due just how damn good they are, with Aipom and Ariados closely behind. While I used Ponyta in all 3 games, as we'll see, this was mostly just personal preference as extra speed insurance for a Belly Drum Charmeleon. I made some role adjustments -- CurseTalk -> Thief Aipom and AoA Pony -> RestTalk -- and added Ivysaur for Sleep and Croco check. I liked HP Psychic since it beats down on a chunk of Razor Leaf resists like Grimer, Ariados, and opposing Ivy. Despite Ariados' set variety, RestTalk provides too much utility as a general, "catch all" check to many of the non-Fire types in the tier. With Psychic, it dominates opposing Poisons and becomes a very solid check to CroMer.
Finals vs Zpice (BW/RBY/DPP)
BW -:leafeon::emolga::solrock::persian::arbok::glaceon:
RBY -:muk::magmar::sandslash::primeape::parasect::scyther:
DPP -:luxray::dunsparce::dewgong::sableye::ivysaur::phione:
The BW team is a rehash of my ZUWC team vs Neomon, but removing a lot of the flair for a more standardized approach. Volt Switch and Encore > U-Turn and Knock Off for Emolga, opting for a bulkier Solrock spread, and changing the Leafeon to be less fishy. While Normal Gem is standard quo, past experiences taught me that an aggressive Solrock Wisp on a Leafeon SD can cause the team to quickly flounder into it long-term. Arbok was initially a Muk, which is where you can see opposing Solrock becoming a problem very quickly on this type of team. That said, I still wanted Water Gem Arbok to wash Solrock as a lure for Emolga and Persian. The DPP team is def a change of pace for me, but I had to lock it down since it'd have to be one of my anchor slots this series. The Luxray was directly ripped from Drud's ZUPL W2 team vs me, aiming to catch out opposing Luxray with a meaty HP Ground. As I mentioned earlier, I am not the greatest fan of Dewgong, but I specifically wanted its Encore here to ward off opposing set up, specifically for opposing CM Sab as I lacked a strong answer to it. Ivysaur's role was to compress a Tspike absorber and a DD Whiscash/Crawdaunt check into 1 slot. Ivy's better speed tier is why I selected it over Gloom, Leaf Storm being a nice bonus for extra power. A last-minute call by Drud had me using Taunt > Substitute on Sableye, used for the same reasons as Dewgong in the hopes of stifling opposing set up while blocking slower status.
While we did not play GSC or ADV, I had prepped these slots the most due to Zpice's stronger stance in them, so here they are.
GSC -:aipom::ariados::croconaw::onix::charmeleon::ponyta:
ADV -:meditite::mightyena::ariados::seaking::corsola::tropius:
In regard to the GSC team, the Charmeleon set is aiming for the most flexibility it can offer offensively. Fire Blast, HP Grass, and Rock Slide hits everything in the tier for neutral at worst, with Seismic Toss acting as the perfect mid-ground click for any forced switches you can expect to see. With the increased bulk across the board, Stoss will consistently do a large chunk of damage compared to clicking a weak Hidden Power or Rock Slide on an incorrect prediction. If you're a mindreader, obviously you don't need it, but it alleviates some of the guesswork. The ADV team is comprised of a few breakers and setup mons, with some priority insurance from CB Medi. Corsola can bust open a hole against a stubborn defensive team at a moment's notice with Boom, giving you another option to clear the way for your sweepers. If you're gonna use Cors, you're gonna need Tropius or something similar to not get automatically folded by opposing Meditite and Cubone.
I'm very happy for having finally won a Classic, but I know I wouldn't be able to name everyone whose helped me since my initial dive into old gens. Just know that I really appreciate being able to play the same game with y'all. Sorry for no adv or gsc blurb again, I don't have much to say aside from what I've already said. Adv shifts and mantine ban were both positives changes. GSC has some cool set diversity so I'll prob be playing it a bit more. ADV still has some annoying SD sweepers that can clock you if you slip up too much (or have your Rhyhorn get crit 3 times in a row), but I do enjoy the EV optimization aspect to it much more than other tiers. As I've mentioned in other posts, something like this was supposed to have gone up around 2 years ago -- I've tried my best to revisit things I'd written back then to keep it updated for now, but things may have slipped by. For a reference point, I originally wrote the BW Leavanny section as a response to this post by zause. god damn, time flies. With all that said, keep playing old gens! Arrivederci!
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