AAA Almost Any Ability

[NToTheN]

I have topped the AAA ladder with an 82.0% GXE after only playing for 4 days, not counting the minimal amount of games I played before the Flutter Mane ban. I went from 1201 Elo to 1634 Elo. Here is the team I used, and how it works:

Proof of Accomplishment

Choice Specs Noivern Bulky Offense


​

The team is similar to the team I recently submitted as a sample. It relies on a lot of defensive Pokemon in order to check the metagame's top threats, but is structured in such a way where it can still be threatening to opponents. Dondozo is a potent physical wall with Fluffy, and can be used as a powerful endgame wincon with Curse. It helps keep things like Great Tusk, Dragonite, and even Iron Hands in check, provided it gets some defense boosts. Noivern is a powerful wallbreaker with Aerilate + Boomburst, and with Choice Specs it can actually rip through most Steel-type Pokemon that would otherwise resist it. Physically Defensive Corviknight, Offensive Kingambit, most Iron Treads, and some Gholdengo are all 2HKOed, and the likelihood of doing so increases with Ting-Lu's Stealth Rock and Spikes support:

Boomburst Noivern Calcs Against Various Steels

252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Gholdengo: 180-213 (57.1 - 67.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gholdengo: 180-213 (47.6 - 56.3%) -- 85.2% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gholdengo: 180-213 (47.6 - 56.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Corviknight: 190-224 (47.6 - 56.1%) -- 83.2% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Corviknight: 190-224 (47.6 - 56.1%) -- 30.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Corviknight: 190-224 (47.6 - 56.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Iron Treads: 224-264 (69.7 - 82.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Iron Treads: 224-264 (58.3 - 68.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Kingambit: 192-226 (56.3 - 66.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Kingambit: 192-226 (47.5 - 55.9%) -- 80.9% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Aerilate Noivern Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Kingambit: 192-226 (47.5 - 55.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

Ting-Lu is also a useful defensive pivot with Regenerator, and serves as a check to Houndstone. Thanks to it's special defense investment, it can take hits like Gengar's Sheer Force Life Orb Focus Blast, Polteageist's boosted Giga Drain, Iron Moth's Fiery Dance and Energy Ball, and almost all of Gholdengo's attacks, barring +2 Modest Life Orb Steel Beam. It can threaten all of these Pokemon with Earthquake or use Whirlwind if need be. Iron Moth serves as another useful defensive piece, and provides a valuable water immunity to the team. It serves as the team's answer to threats like Quaquaval, Kilowattrel, and some Barraskewda, as well as being a great specially defensive wall with its 67% recovery from Morning Sun + Desolate Land. Corviknight with Well-Baked-Body is pretty standard. It runs Brave Bird over Body Press here to threaten Great Tusk and Iron Moth. Specially Defensive Magic Guard Gholdengo is a powerful wallbreaker with Nasty Plot that has great defensive utility with its typing and Recover. Magic Guard allows it to check most Garganacl, and its special defensive investment helps it answer opposing Aerilate Noivern as well as helping it match up better against opposing Gholdengo if needed (even though the team has five billion answers to Gholdengo).

Threatlist​

Regenvest Great Tusk + Garganacl +: Regenvest Great Tusk can easily tank hits from Gholdengo and Iron Moth but it is OHKOed by Aerilate Noivern. However, specially defensive Garganacl walls Noivern. The general strategy to beat this combination is either Toxic Spikes from Iron Moth or forcing Garganacl to use all of its Recover PP, through Noivern's use of Super Fang or otherwise

Iron Hands : Dondozo can tank a +6 Thunder Punch from Iron Hands if it has some defense boosts, and Gholdengo is immune to Drain Punch and deals a significant amount of damage to Iron Hands with Shadow Ball. Still, Belly Drum Iron Hands can run away with the game if played correctly. Thankfully the team makes it difficult for Iron Hands to easily set up a Belly Drum, but it is something to be cautious of.

Houndstone : Choice Scarf Supreme Overlord Houndstone can deal up to 53% to Ting-Lu, if Last Respects is at maximum power. Beating Houndstone usually involves sacrificing multiple team members to regain health on Ting-Lu so it may live another hit. If Dondozo has many defense boosts, it can easily tank a Last Respects.

Polteageist : Focus Sash Polteageist can be very problematic for the team with Shell Smash + Stored Power. However, thanks to Ting-Lu's special defense investment, it can live a boosted Giga Drain and OHKO it back, provided its Focus Sash was broken.

​

I did not save many replays because I didn't know I was going to make this post until about a half hour ago. This is one I saved, though. It features the Regenvest Great Tusk + Garganacl core mentioned in the threatelist. However, Gholdengo used Trick on Iron Moth early in the game to give it a Choice Scarf, and the combination of Defog + Rapid Spin on the opponent's team meant I couldn't get hazards to stay up. Neither one of use could break our opponent's defenses, so what resulted was a 202 turn game that was only resolved by my opponent overpredicting against my Noivern and letting their Great Tusk faint.

Me vs Pogatory2

​

I hope you enjoyed this exploration of the team that got me to #1 on the AAA ladder for the first time. Any feedback or suggestions on the team would be appreciated! Have a good day

 

[BugGoBrrrrrr]

MARRY GO ROUND (Great Tusk) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 152 HP / 104 Def / 252 SpD
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
- Ice Spinner
- Rapid Spin

Everyone seems to be using Assault Vest Regenerator so here’s my set that keeps the physically bulky nature of and uses Assault Vest to grant it great mixed bulk allowing it to never get two shot by Sheer Force Life Orb Gengar Shadow Ball and never be ohkoed by non-damage-boosting-item Aerilate Noivern Boomburst while still devouring physical hits even having a 6.3% chance to survive a banded adamant Aerilate Dragonite Extreme Speed.

 

[Eiden]

Eiden's Vine (will probably 'water' this instead of making new post till home releases)


Item: Choice Band
Ability: Tinted Lens
Nature: Jolly
252 Atk / 252 Speed

- Pyromiss
- High Jump Kick
- Any Move (formally gunk shot but fairy type is not common now)
- U-Turn

The Superior

This is the superior Cinderace (Unless you are using Oraculum-P to set up for different Mon). My Gen8 set. Forced out/Killed the dreaded regenerator/poison heal defensive Tapu Fini. High Jump Kick cleanly 2hko Primordial Sea Zapdos. Prankster Toxapex forced to keep recovering. Faster than Psychic Terrain Azelf. Oraculum Pulse Cinderace relies on Pyroballs, once those are either all gone or unusable it basically does diddly squat.

Performs very well, though don't rely on it because you will feel every miss (Sorry, missed 5 Pyroballs in a row once and now it has me treating the move like focus miss). Fur Coat was the only thing preventing this guy from making a return.

Note: Against low defense resistant targets, Oraculum Pyroball will deal 0.1% - 0.5% more damage. Against high defense resistant targets, Tinted Pyroball will deal 0.1% - 1% more damage.

(Clefable 2.0, meatier, bulkier, faster)
Item: leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Nature: Bold
252 HP / 252 Def

- Wish
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam
- Calm

The Devourer of Hope

Going to be frank, wish Iron Hands didn't get banned (saw that coming when furscales went). Why? Because it's a free kill. This is the ultimate hard counter to it. Swap this in and half their hp is gone for nothing. Typically ends the match right there (equivalent of killing Houndstone early) and the rest of the game is just a formality.
Example
Example 2

Wish practically serves as a full restore to any Mon that receives it.

If they have Iron Moth or Gholdengo, they'll have to swap it in immediately if you Calm Mind once or else they risk losing then and there if you get up a second one unpunished or have a wish hanging in the air. You have no SpDef yet Iron Moth only deals 40% (highest roll) with sludge wave at +2 SpDef. Gholdengo needs +3 as it still deals 48% with make-it-rain at +2 SpDef. Gholdengo will likely try to trick you.

On the topic of priority users:
Psychic Surge > Ability That Protects Only 1 Pokemon

Sure Dazzling and Armor Tail stop priority, but that's only for 1 pokemon, and the opponent will see that and simply aim to kill that. If you bring psychic surge however ....

"Psychic Terrain prevented Pokemon X's attack"
"Player X has 120 seconds remaining" <- That's the person with a priority sweeper on their team dying a little on the inside seeing you are going to make their life difficult.

Psychic Terrain protects multiple pokemon and typically goes unchecked because people aren't using terrains this gen. Electric Terrain Sandy Shocks is extremely rare.

Item: Mirror Herb
Ability: Opportunist
Nature: Jolly
252 Atk / 252 Speed

- Raging Bull
- Trailblaze
- Swagger
- Close Combat

The Generous

Tauros treats others how it wishes to be treated, its generosity consistently confusing the enemy's pokemon.

Though originally sitrus berry, I changed its item to mirror herb which let it bypass furcoat and sweep furscale teams. I'll let you discover when your opportunities to set up are, knowledge is power. It doesn't have to sweep however, it also serves as a disruptor as you are able to force a lot of things out with your naturally high attack or screw them over and force them out via boosted confusion.

No really specific calcs for him, just unga bunga. Water fighting is also a great stab combo.

Example
Example 2 (also remember that raging bull ignores screens, a role former belonging to the now banned dragapult)

Tauros has high natural bulk so the only priority that's likely to kill it is Dragonite. Notably though, tinted lens banded first impression from caveman volcarona will do 85% of your health. If unbanded, some defensive investment will allow the first impression to deal under 50%. Often times people will underestimate confusion and sac their win condition.

Item: leftovers
Ability: Scrappy
Nature: Jolly/Impish
252 Atk / 252 Speed
252 Def / 252 Speed
252 HP / 252 Def

- Body Press / Close Combat
- Knock Off
- Rapid Spin
- Stealth Rock / Bulk Up / Ground

The Forgotten

I often see "-ate" ability Great Tusk. People seem to have forgotten this ability was the reason Mega-lopunny was such a menace. The audacity of people who switch their cheeky earth eater gholdengo in on this pokemon persists no more, as this tusk doesn't believe in ghosts ... or hazards ... or hazard setting ghosts ... or ghost setting hazards. Gholdengo is one shotted by both CC always (if it has fluffy, Headlong Rush & EQ oneshot instead); Body Press OHKOs too if Gholdengo does not possess maximum defense. Easily kills and forces most things out after a single rapid spin, especially ghost types. Best set imo.
Example

Item: Choice Specs
Ability: Compound Eyes
Nature: Calm
252 SpA / 252 SpD

- Thunder
- Fire Blast
- Focus Blast
- Blizzard

The Avatar

Goodra gets all the nukes. Never liked No Guard because it makes the opponents have 100% accuracy. While Compound Eyes does have a slight chance for a miss, it's still way better to use for any move that isn't below 70% accuracy. Very simple strategy, switch goodra in to either sponge an attack or predict a switch and then select a nuke. Gets a ton of kills and forces most special attackers that aren't Florges out.

Example
Example 2

 

[Isaiah]

Iron Hands is banned! ​

	UT	Isaiah	Atha	Quantum Tesseract	DeepFriedMagikarp	Jrdn	Total
Iron Hands	BAN	BAN	BAN	DNB	BAN	BAN	5-1 Ban
Dragonite	BAN	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	1-5 DNB
Houndstone	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	0-6 DNB

To put it simply: There probably isn't a massive surprise to anyone. Belly Drum + Triage sets were especially potent under dual screens, and Iron Hands's already tremendous bulk made revenge killing options fairly limited. There were also defensive sets that made use of abilities like Regenerator, Earth Eater, and Well-Baked Body, which arguably enabled Iron Hands to pick and choose what could and couldn't defeat it.

Tagging Kris for implementation, thanks!

 

[Hera]

Hariyama @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Triage
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
IVs: 30 HP
- Belly Drum
- Drain Punch
- Ice Punch
- Heavy Slam / Earthquake

Here's your Iron hands replacement on Screens HO. Go ham.

In all seriousness though I can totally see Hariyama replacing Iron Hands. STAB Triage Drain Punch, Ice Punch, same coverage options, and even Belly Drum. Biggest downsides are the -20 Attack compared to Iron Hands, the lack of a secondary STAB to help muscle through some threats, and the worse bulk making it harder to setup outside of screens than Iron Hands, but it should still be good enough to be around C Tier when things settle.

 

[Isaiah]

Hariyama @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Triage
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
IVs: 30 HP
- Belly Drum
- Drain Punch
- Ice Punch
- Heavy Slam / Earthquake

Here's your Iron hands replacement on Screens HO. Go ham.

In all seriousness though I can totally see Hariyama replacing Iron Hands. STAB Triage Drain Punch, Ice Punch, same coverage options, and even Belly Drum. Biggest downsides are the -20 Attack compared to Iron Hands, the lack of a secondary STAB to help muscle through some threats, and the worse bulk making it harder to setup outside of screens than Iron Hands, but it should still be good enough to be around C Tier when things settle.

Could even perhaps fit Bullet Punch in there to OHKO Gengar at +6

 

[Uninteleon]

Iron Hands is banned! ​

	UT	Isaiah	Atha	Quantum Tesseract	DeepFriedMagikarp	Jrdn	Total
Iron Hands	BAN	BAN	BAN	DNB	BAN	BAN	5-1 Ban
Dragonite	BAN	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	1-5 DNB
Houndstone	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	DNB	0-6 DNB

To put it simply: There probably isn't a massive surprise to anyone. Belly Drum + Triage sets were especially potent under dual screens, and Iron Hands's already tremendous bulk made revenge killing options fairly limited. There were also defensive sets that made use of abilities like Regenerator, Earth Eater, and Well-Baked Body, which arguably enabled Iron Hands to pick and choose what could and couldn't defeat it.

Tagging Kris for implementation, thanks!

will this ban be in place for the upcoming tournament?

 

[DeepFriedMagikarp]

will this ban be in place for the upcoming tournament?

If referring to the money tour, yes

 

[Uninteleon]

If referring to the money tour, yes

nice to hear

 

[Codename C.A.T]

HELLFIRE / Specs Hatterene Special Offense

Sample submission. Goal here is to work around 3 great special attackers in Specs Hatterene, Substitute Gholdengo, and Scarf Greninja. This team has a particularly favorable matchup against hyper offense teams, as Hatterene's Draining Kiss can seriously threaten Dragonite with heavy chip and allow Garganacl to spam Salt Cure more reliably. Greninja also outspeeds even Surge Surfer Houndstone, allowing it to stop an otherwise game-ending cleaner. However, this team also has a good matchup against balance, as Acid Spray Iron Moth can force heave chip on walls such as Garganacl or opposing Iron Moth. Some pieces of advice/notes for anyone using this team:
- Preserve your Great Tusk and Garganacl well. Chances are, you will need them in the lategame.
- Hatterene can be sacked for big damage on a Dragonite or something, and not much will be lost. There's plenty of special power without it.
- Iron Moth can be a surprisingly effective wincon in the right matchups. Don't be afraid to lure a chipped Tusk with it!
- Knock Off could be a valuable option over Rocks on Tusk. However, I believe Rocks are better for this team, as it really appreciates having them up constantly against all the hazard controllers.
- Calm Mind could be Mystical Fire on Hatterene to actually touch Steels.

 

[antsdownmypants]

I'm going to post this here... seems pretty good at trapping and catching people off guard. roaring moon has a very good stat distribution and very good defenses. I run shed tail to swap out if jaw locking onto a bad matchup, i haven't test other items


Roaring Moon @ Shed Shell
Ability: Stamina
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Jaw Lock
- Body Press
- Roost
- Taunt

 

[Codename C.A.T]

I'm going to post this here... seems pretty good at trapping and catching people off guard. roaring moon has a very good stat distribution and very good defenses. I run shed tail to swap out if jaw locking onto a bad matchup, i haven't test other items


Roaring Moon @ Shed Shell
Ability: Stamina
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Jaw Lock
- Body Press
- Roost
- Taunt

Seems like it could have some pretty great potential. However, I think Body Press is a weird fit here when it’s not very strong. Plus, Roaring Moon’s checks(Hatterene, Garganacl, Great Tusk) don’t particularly care about non-STAB Body Press, even if Stamina gets +1. Maybe you could try max HP with Intimidate/Fluffy over Stamina and Iron Head/Dragon Claw over Body Press. That should serve as a more effective lure to typical Roaring Moon checks. Also consider going Covert Cloak over Shed Shell, that way you can get a Salt Cure immunity and reliably trap Garganacl.

 

[Chino_]

sorry im still new to Pokémon and showdown so this is gonna be messy but finally got number 1 on the ladder after constantly getting 2nd then loosing to a 1200 player and dropping to top 400 with this team https://pokepast.es/c0d021d5e4be2d86 built around greninja as it my favourite mon

 

[LordBox]

A Piece On Orichalcum Pulse

I want to talk about Orichalcum Pulse, while not outright advocating for a ban or suspect (although I would FULLY be behind either), I do wish to post a piece to put this more on peoples mind in terms of suspect abilities as I have seen relatively little discussion around OPulse for how much of an issue I believe the ability is.

Before I talk about it however, for those few unaware about Orichalcum Pulse, Orichalcum Pulse is an ability that automatically sets up Sun (1.5x boost to Fire moves) and also gives a 1.333x boost to Attack when under Sun, a comparable attack boost to other abilities like Adaptability, altogether giving a near doubling in power to Fire moves.

The power boost this ability grants automatically is, to say the least, extremely powerful and that is the main crux of the issue I have with the ability due to the things it can force with said power. Neutral walls, even those on the really bulky side cannot at all reliably handle OPulse mons, even as a emergency check at times. As an example, Cinderace can OHKOs Tablet of Ruin Hippowdown with Rocks or slight chip (not a commonly used mon, but an example of a fat neutral wall) with a +2 boost, discounting even any damage boosting items like Life Orb that increases their power even more dramatically and both easily going for 2HKOs with Band sets. Or as a more relevant example, RegenTusk. Bulky resists like Regen Garchomp and GaG Skeleridge aren't reliable defensive options with Orichalcum Pulse serving essentially as a Tinted Lens against these mons, Band variants 2HKO'ing both on the switch and SD variants able to even setup on Skeleridge and OHKO Specially Defensive Chomp. The existence of Fluffy further amplifies the potential effectiveness of these mons, the ability instead of halving damage in reality doing nothing due to the added weakness to Fire, or even doubling the power of Fire moves with the fact Cinderace, the most popular OPulse mon, ignores Fluffy's halved contact damage due to Pyro Ball not being contact.

Of course, these are all calcs and theories, if it's so powerful why don't we see them absolutely devastating the meta? The main answer is Well Baked Body, or well, Fire immunity abilities in general. You have a 10000 BP Fire move boosted by Sun, Life Orb and a +2 but it'll do approximately 0% into a immunity. WBB Ghold, Corv most prominently act as quite solid and common answers to OPulse mons, along with just slapping WBB on almost anything can work as wel, although both OPulse mons actually have the ability to break the most common choices. Of course, there even are answers outside of WBB, most prominently Sandstorm Garg, especially when paired with other bulky teammates, although even this can be broken through again with good play.

So what's the problem? The problem, as I see it, is that Orichalcum Pulse is far too powerful outside of WBB and such puts too much pressure to force an ability like WBB or really solid checks when team building. "Just use WBB" is a common response I see when I bring this up and sure WBB and Sandstorm Garg can really stuff the effectiveness of OPulse (although, again they have options to even beat these) but the sheer power of OPulse outside of them can almost seemingly force these alone on many teams and is an unhealthy presence to account for when team building. Of course these options are already decently popular outside of OPulse, but also in part due to OPulse's power against everything else that they are so prominent and it should be an option to have these really hard checks for just an ability like these, at least imo. You can't really play around them well with fat neutral walls even, barely clinging on as emergency checks if you can't keep the offensive pressure up and even bulky fat resists aren't reliable checks or even emergency checks at times which is kind of absurd to me. Maybe I'm just having a bad ladder experience or being too paranoid. You can try to rely on things like max physdef Chomp as a check to dance around them due to the lower popularity of things like FBlitz Ceru and Band sets (due to WBB and under exploration mainly), but get it a bit too low and well prepare for bad times, more common HDB sets perhaps can be played around better with fatter neutral walls or things like Garganacl but the sheer power of OPulse on neutrals and resists and what that can force I think is just too unhealthy, at least for me. At the very least, can we closely watch the damn ability that can double the power of some moves as well as giving a good boost to the rest, not seeing it on the second slate was very saddening, and maybe perhaps I can dream of using Fire resist as a a half-reliable Fire check one day.

TL;DR Orichalcum Pulse is an immensely powerful ability that fuels an unhealthy dynamic when team building by forcing solid checks to it due to its sheer power imo and should be watched closely, or banned/suspected.

Calc MegaDump + Reasoning

252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tablets of Ruin Hippowdon in Sun: 175-207 (41.6 - 49.2%) -- 19.9% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock)

+2 252+ Atk Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Tablets of Ruin Hippowdon in Sun: 402-474 (95.7 - 112.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

+2 252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk in Sun: 432-508 (99.5 - 117%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk in Sun: 280-330 (64.5 - 76%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery (+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk in Sun: 485-573 (111.7 - 132%) -- guaranteed OHKO)

252+ Atk Choice Band Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Garchomp in Sun: 246-290 (58.5 - 69%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252+ Atk Choice Band Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Flare Blitz vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garchomp in Sun: 233-275 (55.4 - 65.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock (252+ Atk Choice Band Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Bitter Blade vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garchomp in Sun: 175-207 (41.6 - 49.2%) -- 20.7% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock) (+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garchomp: 360-424 (85.7 - 100.9%) -- 50% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock)

252 Atk Choice Band Orichalcum Pulse Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garchomp in Sun: 202-238 (48 - 56.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Garchomp in Sun: 189-222 (45 - 52.8%) -- 85.9% chance to 2HKO after Stealth Rock

+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Shadow Sneak vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo: 361-429 (95.5 - 113.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock (How Ceruledge can beat WBB Gholdengo)

+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Orichalcum Pulse Ceruledge Close Combat vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 337-396 (84.4 - 99.2%) -- 75% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock (How Ceruledge can beat WBB Corv, also 2HKOs with Band)

+2 252+ Atk Life Orb Ceruledge Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garganacl: 434-512 (107.4 - 126.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO (How Ceruledge can beat Defensive Sandstream Garg) (252+ Atk Choice Band Ceruledge Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garganacl: 250-296 (61.8 - 73.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery)

8 SpA Skeledirge Hex (65 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Cinderace: 97-115 (32.2 - 38.2%) -- 96.9% chance to 3HKO, +2 252 Atk Orichalcum Pulse Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Skeledirge in Sun: 260-306 (63.2 - 74.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (How Cinderace can beat GaG Skeleridge, can SD up on Skeleridge) (252 Atk Choice Band Orichalcum Pulse Cinderace Pyro Ball vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Skeledirge in Sun: 195-230 (47.4 - 55.9%) -- 82.4% chance to 2HKO)

252 Atk Choice Band Cinderace High Jump Kick vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garganacl: 236-278 (58.4 - 68.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery (How Ace can beat Defensive Sand Stream Garganacl, although teammates can now come in and try to sponge after Sandstorm resets weather) (+2 252 Atk Cinderace High Jump Kick vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Garganacl: 314-370 (77.7 - 91.5%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock)

____________________________________

Well while I'm here, I might as well also post some cool sets I've theory crafted or think are underexplored and also a half-decent team.

Pawmot @ Life Orb
Ability: Tough Claws
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Close Combat
- Volt Switch
- Double Shock
- Grass Knot

Pretty decent offensive mon. 120 BP STABs hurt off a not too bad 115 Atk stat post fur scales, the typing isn't too bad as well, has the ability to pivot spam and can dominate things like Corviknight and lure and blow up RegenTusk with CC into Grass Knot. LO recoil is the main issue so Band may be an option however loses the ability to really deal with Tusk as Tusk can pretty safely scout the choice-lock.

Roaring Moon @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
- U-turn
- Earthquake
- Crunch
- Dragon Tail / Rock Slide

Despite the 139 attack stat, the most usage I've ever got with Roaring Moon is with this set, a defensive set. With 101/109 bulk, Ghost, Fire, Electric and Water resists and U-Turn, Roaring Moon functions honestly as a great sponge and pivot machine while having alright offences uninvested. The resists particularly are quite nice, able to let it solidly check various threats in the meta game like Sandy Shocks, Iron Moth, Greninja and Gholdengo. Fairy types and particularly strong threats like Specs Noivern can pose a decent bit of trouble but are manageable enough, especially given the only real Fairy in the tier is Hatterene which isn't very hard to account for.

Tauros-Paldea-Blaze (M) @ Choice Band
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Fighting
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Raging Bull
- Close Combat
- Earthquake

Not a new set, but certainly a mon worth exploring that is definitely underused. Like other Orichalcum Pulse abusers, it can spit out monstrously powerful Fire type moves, it does lack the ability to Swords Dance or the pivot and speed of Cinderace but it does compensate through its unique access to EQ and STAB CC. Notably allowing FTauros to more easily blow up common checks to OPulse mons, very cleanly 2HKO'ing WBB Corv with CC, an extremely close to OHKO on max Physdef WBB Ghold with EQ and possibility to OHKO Sandstorm Garganacl with CC. Granted this can all require a good amount of prediction, especially on Corv, however the ability to more cleanly beat these common checks to allow it mow through rest of the enemy team is definitely something considering in my eyes.

Great Tusk @ Choice Band
Ability: Orichalcum Pulse
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Fire Fang
- Close Combat
- Headlong Rush
- Knock Off

While I'm not too sure about the potency of offensive Tusk yet against the defensive mons of the meta (mainly since the main defensive mons still haven't really been figured out yet), I did create a set for CB Tusk which I think could be decent. While everything looks fairly standard, Fire Fang stands out as an outlier. Why Fire Fang? One of the few defensive mons I've heard pop up is Fluffy Corviknight of which offensive Tusk would usually have a very tough time breaking without Mold Breaker, however exploiting the quadruple Fire weakness it has, this Tusk set is able to eviscerate and potentially OHKO Fluffy Corv after Rocks. Granted, losing Ice Spinner isn't fun but the defensive options who can exploit this (Altaria) are rare and dislike taking Knock Off anyway.

Chi-Yu @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic / Will-O-Wisp / Flare Blitz
- Dark Pulse
- Fire Blast
- Nasty Plot

I remember this thing being nasty even before in a FurScales meta yet no one seems to be using it even when we're in a meta without Ice Scales which seems like a shame given the raw output this thing can have, especially under Sun set by OPulse, even having the ability to go mixed although I doubt to much good effect anymore. While offensive Iron Moth is also popular and another option, this thing gets Nasty Plot and Dark STAB in comparison (as well as Wisp) which can be nice and lets it smash through things like Specially Defensive Garg with decent play and Vessel of Ruin Clodsire.

Rotom-Wash @ Life Orb / Choice Scarf / Choice Specs
Ability: Hadron Engine
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch
- Thunderbolt
- Hydro Pump
- Nasty Plot / Will-o-Wisp

An old set dug up from the grave but I think is pretty decent. Essentially acts like Sandy Shocks 2.0 (they're similar enough I ran this set over the LO Sandy Shocks below in a team to close effect), while having a bit less power and speed it does however have good power with its boosted Electric moves while also having Hydro Pump and Nasty Plot / Wisp over Sandy Shocks. The Water STAB is probably the most noticeable for being able to more readily deal with Ground types like Ting-Lu and RegenVest Tusk. While I like LO + NP personally, choice items are also decent options and I'd like to say better than Shocks tbh because of Washtom's less risky Water STAB and Wisp / Trick.

Tinkaton (F) @ Life Orb / Leftovers
Ability: Tinted Lens / Steelworker
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 252 Spe (HP could potentially be used on Sub Lefties sets)
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Gigaton Hammer
- Play Rough
- Knock Off / Protect / Substitute / Thunder Wave / Stealth Rock

With Fur Coat gone, Tinkaton sounds like it might just have some potential as an offensive breaker on some teams. Tinted Lens allows it OHKO Corviknight with a +2 LO Gigaton Hammer while Steelworker allows for Tinkaton to OHKO RegenTusk at +2 LO, notably. Substitute and lefties could also be used to try to prevent pivot into an offensive mon to deal with Tinkaton. Gigaton Hammer also isn't a contact move (apparently) and so ignores Fluffy which is interesting.

For those interested as well, post Iron Hands ban team(s) that's half decent-ish.
/

Credit to Giagantic for the base team which I modified these teams from

Both teams are based around pivot spam into Shocks mainly as well as Ceruledge for the second team. The first team I've tested much more and it's decent against a good chunk of teams. Sandy Shocks can really rip and tear and RegenVest Moon is a very nice mon and pairs up with WBB Ghold decently well to handle Hatterene and Specs Noivern (SpD investment is probably better for Ghold) while Greninja can spam pivot, clean up weakened cores and such (PrimSea is probably better, especially with OPulse Cinderace). Cinderace I put it in there as Hazard Stack proved ultra annoying to play against and Ace's Court Change can be really nice against this teams while also baiting in Shocks targets in its WBB walls and Garganacl. First team really can struggle against teams with good Shocks checks though like RegenVest Roaring Moon and Toadscruel as nearly all the offensive breaking power is with Sandy Shocks.

The second team I can't say too much as I haven't tested it too much but it attempts to try to solve this by adding another very potent breaker within the mix that can exploit the turn spam well. You do lose immediate speed on that team though but I haven't found it too important with your defensive options. WBB Tusk is there because I need a WBB mon and more reliable hazard control. Scream Tail is here mainly for its nice Wish support and can help versus some offensive setup mons outside of Hands, but could be replaced. Both teams can kinda struggle with a properly enabled Bax as well but then again 90% of the meta does sooo I'll just take that loss.

Now that my dump is done, hopefully some found some usage of out these sets and teams and with some good luck I've convinced some others to start hating on OPulse as well (and also start abusing it).

 

[BugGoBrrrrrr]

The Regenerator Great Tusk super set

Great Tusk @ Heavy-Duty Boots / Leftovers / Rocky Helmet / Utility Umbrella / Coba Berry / Eject Button / Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 240 HP / 120 Def / 108 SpD / 40 Spe OR 240 HP / 8 Def / 108 SpD / 152 Spe OR 216 HP / 96 Def / 44 SpD / 152 Spe OR 216 HP / 72 Def / 44 SpD / 176 Spe OR 152 HP / 104 Def / 252 SpD OR 244 HP / 16 Def / 248 SpD
Impish / Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Knock Off
- Bulk Up / Taunt / Ice Spinner / Stealth Rock / Rapid Spin / Body Press / Rock Slide
- Bulk Up / Taunt / Ice Spinner / Stealth Rock / Rapid Spin / Body Press / Rock Slide

Reasoning for this monstrosity

Someone on showdown I was playing said “all I see is regenerator great tusk, it only does one thing.” So that gave me an idea. I have a lot of Regenerator Great Tusk sets so why not compile them all into one big super set, and that’s exactly what I did. The set above you is a compilation of all the Regenerator Great Tusk sets I have created, used on ladder, and seen success with. Below there will be sectioned off descriptions describing the item choices, then move choices, then EV choices as the item dictates the moves which dictates the EV set, at least in my experience.

Descriptions

Items

Starting from the top…
Boots is for hazard damage/effects prevention.
Leftovers is for passive recovery alongside regen.
Helmet is for contact punishing and chip.
Umbrella is for helping pivot in on O-Pulse users while also making it so you can stay in on Quaq and knock off its scarf/band making it easier to handle. Also let’s you eat fire moves from things such as chi-yu, moth, and volc if they are dland.
Coba is because dnite is a bastard. Also live non-specs noivern boom.
Eject is for punishing corv spamming uturn to get in big breaker. Also just really helpful for getting in breakers.
AV is for if you want better mixed defense or wanna go full AV.

Moves

Once again starting from the top…
Earthquake is a required.
Knock is a required
Bulk Up is for if you wanna be able to setup and become even fatter and stronger on the physical side.
Taunt is to prevent defog/taunt/haze/rocks/recover/whirl/chilly reception/setup/wisp/etc.
Ice spinner is for if you wanna hit dnite and noivern and chomp better/harder.
Stealth Rocks are Stealth Rocks, I’ve said enough.
Rapid Spin is because Tusk is the only good form of removal aside from Corv.
Body Press is if you want fighting STAB.
Rock Slide is for if you wanna hit dnite, noivern, volc, and ee moth all at the same time.

EV choices

Starting from the top yet again…
The first spread outpaces base 60 neutral nature while living specs Hadron Engine Gengar Shadow Ball with the rest in phys bulk
Next set does those same calcs but more speed to outpace Cinder and Roaring at +1 (Rapid spin).
This next set drops special bulk for better phys bulk while still hitting the speed calc of the last set and living deso/specs flamethrower from timid moth.
Next one does same spdef calc as one above but hits enough to outpace noivern at +1 (Rapid Spin and should really only be used on sets with Rapid + Ice Spinner).
This next set is for a mixed defense AV set where it is never 2 shot by SFLO Gengar Shadow Ball while maximizing physical bulk.
The last set is for a full on AV set and is never ohkoed by timid dland specs moth overheat after rocks. This is also the only set that should be careful nature all other ones should be impish.

 

[CrazyLasagna]

Wanted some feedback on my new team. Focus is on each mon being really bulky while still having significant firepower. Wanted to see where I could optimize it (including the names) and also ask, does this count as a stall team?

Arby's V3

Spicy Roast Beef (Skeledirge) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Earth Eater
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 240 Def / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Torch Song
- Hex
- Will-O-Wisp
- Slack Off

Chicken Tenders (Farigiraf) @ Leftovers
Ability: Unaware
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Thunder Wave
- Wish
- Protect

Roast Beef (Gholdengo) @ Leftovers
Ability: Well-Baked Body
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 244 HP / 188 Def / 68 SpD / 8 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Recover
- Nasty Plot
- Substitute

Steakhouse Ribeye (Great Tusk) @ Leftovers
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 236 HP / 252 Def / 20 Spe
Impish Nature
- Body Press
- Knock Off
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock

Spicy Wings (Iron Moth) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Vessel of Ruin
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 HP / 244 SpD / 12 Spe
Calm Nature
- Fiery Dance
- Discharge
- Morning Sun
- U-turn

Boneless Wings (Dragonite) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Delta Stream
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 HP / 236 SpD / 20 Spe
Careful Nature
- Extreme Speed
- Dragon Claw
- Dragon Tail
- Roost

 

[Sandy Master]

Goodra-Hisui @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator / Earth Eater
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 224 Def / 32 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunder / Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Draco Meteor
- Chilling Water


Goodra Hisui isn't available to play, but we can do some theorymonning around. Normally Goodra has no form of recovery so Regenerator and Earth Eater really work wonders. Earth Eater removes a major weakness and adds a form of recovery. Regenerator is great because it just needs to switch to heal right back up. Thunder with 32 Sp. Atk can 2HKO Corvikinights with max HP and no investment in Sp. Def (It doesn't run Fire Blast or Flamethrower because Well Baked Body is more common than Motor Drive, Volt Absorb, or Lightning Rod). Draco is just STAB and can hurt against other Dragons while being able to take neutral hits from Dragon Types. Flash Cannon is more STAB. Chilling Water reduces enemy physical attackers attack stat and pretty much forces a switch.

 

[Isaiah]

Goodra-Hisui @ Assault Vest
Ability: Regenerator / Earth Eater
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 224 Def / 32 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunder / Thunderbolt
- Flash Cannon
- Draco Meteor
- Chilling Water


Goodra Hisui isn't available to play, but we can do some theorymoning around. Normally Goodra has no form of recovery so Regenerator and Earth Eater really work wonders. Earth Eater removes a major weakness and adds a form of recovery. Regenerator is great because it just needs to switch to heal right back up. Thunder with 32 Sp. Atk can 2HKO Corvikinights with max HP and without max Sp. Def (It doesn't run Fire Blast or Flamethrower because Well Baked Body is more common than Motor Drive, Volt Absorb, or Lightning Rod). Draco is just STAB and can hurt against other Dragons while being able to take neutral hits from Dragon Types. Flash Cannon is more STAB. Chilling Water reduces enemy physical attackers attack stat and pretty much forces a switch.

We generally try to avoid starting theorymonning until we're certain of release date + are much closer to said date so as not to derail current metagame talk, but this is a cool set (maybe with a couple of changes)! Maybe keep it in the back shelf until we actually get into that discussion :P

 

[pikachubrew]

Roaring Moon @ Assault Vest
Ability: Serene Grace
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Impish Nature
- Body Slam
- Earthquake
- U-turn
- Bite

My completely degenerate bulky serene grace roaring moon for you all
please try her out , lives everything para kills so much and everything is equake weak

Rotom-Wash @ Leftovers
Ability: Earth Eater
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Thunder Wave
- Volt Switch
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt

a Rotom set that Truly does WORK dont fix what aint broken

 

[Turtlek]

That isn’t viable. But maybe ok the low ladd?
Chien-Pao @ Choice Band
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bite
- Icicle Crash

 

[Codename C.A.T]

That isn’t viable. But maybe ok the low ladd?
Chien-Pao @ Choice Band
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bite
- Icicle Crash

Fully aware this is a meme set, but I don’t see much of a reason to use Bite here. Icicle Crash already hits everything for 60% flinches. If you want real comedy, run Crunch. Those defense drops proc way more often than they should.

 

[Uninteleon]

Woohoo! A team that can get me to top 5 without furscales!

proof

Also submitting this for a sample team:

Scream Tail @ Leftovers
Ability: Pixilate
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Protect
- Calm Mind
- Wish
- Boomburst

Bulky setup sweeper, puts dents in Corviknight and Kingambit, sits on Corv... or pretty much anything too fat for its own good. Also a great blanket wall and scouter with wishtect.

Ting-Lu @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 HP / 176 Def / 80 SpD
Impish Nature
IVs: 29 Spe
- Earthquake
- Ruination
- Spikes
- Whirlwind

Other fat blanket wall. However very frightened by the increase of water types in the meta. Sets hazards, chips stuff, forces others out, just your basic Ting-Lu. EVs are to underspeed Corv by 1 to EQ it when it roosts and to outspeed other Ting-Lus that may be running a relaxed nature over an impish nature.

Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Well-Baked Body
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Atk / 252 SpD
Sassy Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- U-turn
- Brave Bird
- Defog
- Roost

Final fat blanket wall I promise. Swallows hits from Volcarona, Cinderace, and Iron Moth (although moths seem to be running discharge now, so good luck). Hazard removal, pivoter. Y'know, standard Corv stuff.

Greninja @ Choice Specs
Ability: Beads of Ruin
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Hydro Pump
- U-turn
- Ice Beam
- Dark Pulse

The fastest offensive threat of the team. Can 2hko SpDef Corv with Hydro Pump, only really scared of mons that can revenge kill it. Also scared of regenvest which is becoming REALLY popular for some reason, not sure why.

Gholdengo @ Covert Cloak
Ability: Earth Eater
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpA
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Recover
- Nasty Plot
- Make It Rain
- Shadow Ball

I lied. There's another blanket wall. Earth Eater Gholdengo serves as a counter to pretty much all Great Tusks, Baxcaliburs, and Dragonites that would otherwise make this team shit its pants. Covert Cloak is a very handy item that allows Ghold to also hard counter Garganacl, who would also give this team a hard time.

Slither Wing @ Choice Band
Ability: Tinted Lens
Tera Type: Bug
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- First Impression
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Flare Blitz

Finally, the best moth. Was originally Jolly, however, after it failed to OHKO a Noivern with FImp, I swapped to Adamant, which I can say was definitely the better choice as it gives Slither Wing higher damage output and turns many almost-OHKOs into straight up OHKOs. Great FImper, chunks Ghold, DNite, Corv, the rising Vaporeon, Toxapex, Great Tusk, and many more. Also this teams main way of killing Meowscarada and Noivern, so keep it healthy with Scream Tail lest you get low on health.

 

[BugGoBrrrrrr]

Have you ever been using regenerator Great Tusk and ran into a matchup where you would’ve loved to have choice band. Or a matchup where you are using banded and you wish you had the defensive utility of bulk up regenerator. Well do I have the set for you!!

Great Tusk @ Choice Band
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 216 HP / 200 Atk / 44 SpD / 48 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Close Combat
- Headlong Rush
- Knock Off
- Bulk Up / Ice Spinner
This set combines the absurdness of regen Tusk and the brokeness of banded Tusk into one set. If you don’t think you will face knock tusk (for whatever reason) you can go ice spinner ig but that’s lame.

There’s also this set

IN THE SAND (Roaring Moon) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Regenerator
Tera Type: Dragon
EVs: 12 HP / 252 Atk / 136 SpD / 108 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Throat Chop
- Earthquake
- Dragon Claw
- U-turn
EV spread outspeeds jolly bax by 1 and lives mglo timid steel beam from gholdengo after rocks.

Have you ever wanted a fire type that doesn’t need mold breaker to hit Corviknight for super effective damage (wbb)? Well then might I offer you rotom-heat.

Rotom-Heat @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
Tera Type: Electric
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Volt Switch / Discharge
- Overheat
- Will-O-Wisp
- Nasty Plot

 

[heavenleyturnip]

In a meta with so many spidops - we really need magic bounce to be reintroduced to AAA.

 

[Isaiah]

In a meta with so many spidops - we really need magic bounce to be reintroduced to AAA.

Magic Bounce or not, it can never be overstated how easily Spidops can be countered. More specifically, Great Tusk is arguably a good fit on any team and counterleads Spidops (they can never get up Prankster Webs against Rapid Spin).

More serious answer though: We don't unban or ban abilities just to nerf or buff a playstyle; we wouldn't say "Spidops's Sticky Web is a problem, so let's unban Magic Bounce". If this was really the case, then we'd quickban or suspect test Spidops. Not gonna leak anything about a Magic Bounce re-suspect, but reasoning for unbanning it should be because we believe it isn't broken in the context of the meta--not just to counter any playstyles we don't like playing against :P hope that clears things up