I've been playing a lot of SwSh BH over the last couple weeks and I think it's a really fun, interesting metagame. Here's some thoughts and observations on the current state of the meta.
The reduced range of viable offensive threats is overall a positive change. In previous generations, there were so many powerful threats which required very specific defensive counterplay that the range of viable defensive cores was pretty limited. The defining trait of effective BH teams was role compression; there was so much to prepare for that you needed every single one of your Pokemon to do as much as possible, which often made it difficult to justify running more niche Pokemon and kinda homogenised the metagame at higher levels. A lot of stuff that got banned might not have been so problematic if there wasn't so much other stuff to deal with. For instance Psychic Surge was overbearing, but that was in large part because it was so hard to fit dedicated counterplay to it onto teams. Games last gen frequently felt like they were decided at team preview by whoever had something that their opponent couldn't deal with, but in SwSh I feel like this isn't the case. This tier is a lot less volatile overall, and teambuilding feels a lot less restricted. Stuff that would've been really busted last gen, like Bolt Beak or Double Iron Bash, feels far more reasonable because it's easier to justify running niche defensive stuff to deal with it.
The only thing in the meta right now that feels clearly unhealthy to me is Shedinja. Heavy-Duty Boots make Shed so hard to pressure and massively loosen the teambuilding restraints that it used to impose. Additionally, lots of the counterplay to it that existed in previous generations is more difficult to fit onto teams. There are fewer good, splashable Ghost-types in this generation, making it harder to find room for an Endeavor switch-in. Pursuit doesn't exist anymore, Sunsteel is largely outclassed by DiB besides hitting Shed and Photon Geyser and Moongeist Beam are worse (their STAB abusers are weaker/less common and they aren't really relevant coverage), and Sand Stream sucks because there's no Shore Up, only 1 decent Rock-type, and its outclassed by Ice Scales anyway. Shed teams at the moment are still very unoptimised, but Shed already places a tremendous amount of pressure on teambuilding. I would like to see it quickbanned if possible, or if not I would like to see it as the first suspect of the new metagame.
Other than that, stuff to consider suspecting in future is Bolt Beak, Double Iron Bash, Shell Smash, and maybe Fishious Rend, but currently I think all of these are fairly manageable. The metagame is still very much in its early stages, and its very possible that my views on this will change as the meta develops.
Dynamaxing is weird and hard to get used to. It's been quickly proven to be pretty broken in most other tiers but it's not so obviously powerful in BH. BH teams already run good anti-setup measures, making the spiraling Dynamax setup sweepers far more manageable. Additionally, stuff in BH is far bulkier than in other tiers and BH mons are already usually running very high BP moves, so Max Moves aren't as dangerous for allowing Pokemon to get through walls they otherwise wouldn't. It's also a really effective defensive measure: I've stopped so many dangerous sweepers and wallbreakers by Dynamaxing something like Melmetal or Rhydon, eating the hit and KOing them in return. One of the biggest impacts of Dynamax is that it makes Imposter-proofing a lot more difficult, but that's overall balanced out by Imposter being worse this gen anyway. Dynamax really threw me off at first, but once I got used to it I've come to the conclusion that it's a healthy addition to the metagame. BH has the defensive tools to handle it and it adds a really interesting dynamic to the tier. The fact that some of the best Pokemon in the metagame can't Dynamax and that BH has no good abusers of the best Dynamax types (Fighting, Poison, Flying) definitely helps.
Imposter being frailer overall has a lot of subtle little impacts on the metagame. It means that you can get away with having your defensive mons not be improofed so well, because Imposter is rarer, runs Scarf a lot more often, and is easier to pressure regardless: letting it heal freely is less of a big deal when it struggles to switch into a lot of wallbreakers without getting 2HKOd. I think a lot of people, myself including, are kinda still building around Imposter as though it's Gen 7. It'll take some time for the meta to truly adapt to a weakened Imposter; this might secretly be one of the most impactful changes from the last generation.
It's been weird getting used to the way that the relative power level of different types is so much different in this gen than the last. Ice was one of the best and most common coverage types last gen, but it's pretty useless now. Ground, a pretty decent typing last gen, is incredible now both offensively and defensively. I definitely misevaluated a lot of Pokemon at first because I was judging their typings on the standards of the previous generation, particularly Zacian and Golisopod.
Knock Off is really good as a general utility move. Poison Heal is less common, Z-Crystals/Mega Stones/Red Orb don't exist, and there aren't a lot of good dark resists. Knocking off Shedinja's boots make it way easier to deal with, and you can support your own Shedinja by removing opposing Rocky Helmets. The move provides a huge amount of utility and a lot of teams find it difficult to switch into. I've often been just slapping it on my defensive Pokemon when they have a filler slot available and it always puts in work.
Similarly, Spectral Thief is also great. Only really relevant normals are Snorlax and Type:Null and they're usually defensive, and Intrepid Sword/Dynamax means your opponent will often have incidental boosts to nab.
Intrepid Sword is very powerful, but it's far more balanced than I expected. It's very difficult to Imposter-proof, especially with Dynamax in the mix, and gets messed up by Prankster, Spectral Thief, and Unaware. I was concerned at first that this would be broken, but it's definitely not, although it's still probably the best ability for most physical attackers.
Lovely Kiss not existing is lowkey the most blessed thing about this gen, Safety Goggles being legitimate reliable counterplay to sleep is so good.
Thoughts on some individual mons:
Eternatus is very unexplored and has the potential to be one of the best mons in the tier, especially with Zacian-Crowned being nerfed. Its typing and stat spread is so good (literally bulkier than pex) that it can do almost anything, but so far I've mainly seen just defensive sets, Specs, and Sheer Force. I think there's a lot that can be done here and I'm keen to see what kinds of new sets people come up with for it.
Zacian (not crowned) is not as good as I expected. Fairy was an excellent typing last gen, both offensively and defensively, but that's not the case in SwSh. The tier is full of excellent Fairy resists, and I find that my teams have 2 or 3 without even really trying. Its weaknesses to Steel and Poison are both relevant, and its resistances are not as common as they used to be. It's still good of course, just not the metagame-shaping threat that I had imagined. The sets I've tried are Poison Heal, Choice Band Intrepid Sword, Pixilate, and some defensive sets, which all felt good but not outstanding.
Dragapult is super overrated. I was really worried about it at first, seeing that it was a super fast Ghost-type with Revelation Dance and Judgment gone and with very few Ghost resists in the metagame. I initially though of it as like Normgar from last gen but faster and with a smaller range of available counterplay. But I underestimated the impact of its poor offensive stats and lack of versatility: Normgar was so threatening because it also just threatened to 2HKO most of the meta and if you guessed the set wrong you might catch a Specs Adaptability Moongeist. Counters to it not only needed to not get shut down by Entrainment, but also had to have either really good special bulk or a ghost resist. Dragapult on the other hand just doesn't hit particularly hard, meaning the range of Magic Bouncers and Comatose mons that can switch into it is way broader. Even Prankster mons with decent physical bulk can stall it out, and offensive Multi Attack mons like Zekrom are reasonable counterplay to it. Its sets besides Normalise are pretty underwhelming too, again due to its low power. I've played around a bit with a Choice Band Intrepid Sword set and some Imposter-proof Shell Smash sets, but they seem middling at best.
Melmetal is deceptively good and is easily one of the best Pokemon in the tier. He's extremely versatile, obnoxiously bulky, and hits like a truck, making him a really solid glue mon for a lot of different teams. I've had success with Choice Band sets and a range of defensive sets, particularly Flash Fire and Ice Scales. I feel that this mon is very unexplored at the moment as well.
Mewtwo is another Pokemon that I expected to be better than it is, but its speed tier is a bit underwhelming, its poor physical bulk is crippling, and the meta is infested with Steel types and Ice Scales nonsense. I've tried/seen Specs Psychic Surge, Shell Smash sets, Sheer Force, and Poison Heal, and none of them feel that great to me. Maybe someone will figure out a good set for this at some point, but for now I'm not confident in it being more than a niche pick.
There are all kinds of interesting weird defensive Pokemon that would have never been viable last gen, but which find a place in the meta now due to the tier's lower overall power level and the restricted range of offensive threats. Pokemon like Torkoal, Mandibuzz, Golisopod, Celebi, Hippowdon, Silvally, Snorlax, and Mantine are all viable options, and I think that's really cool.
Some sets that I like:
Zekrom @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Bolt Beak
- Knock Off / Dragon Darts
- Shift Gear
- Spore / Will-o-Wisp
This is one of the most dangerous Zekrom sets, as it beats Imposter and can wear down Fur Coat mons over the course of the game, which is what a lot of teams rely on to beat Zekrom normally. It has a pretty easy time setting up due to its surprising bulk and ability to force switches and it beats a lot of Pranksters through Spore + Knock. This gets way worse if Ferrothorn gets more popular (which it should, Ferro is so good atm).
le fish (Barraskewda) @ Choice Band
Ability: Intrepid Sword / Drizzle / Primordial Sea
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Fishious Rend
- Bolt Beak / Sunsteel Strike
- U-turn
- Earthquake / Sunsteel Strike
Thank god Barraskewda is slower than Zacian and Zamazenta. There's a lot of options for coverage on this mon, but it doesn't really matter that much: the only important move here is that first one. Skewda is stupid fast and really difficult to switch into, but it unfortunately falls just a couple points short of the dogs and dies to just about anything. Intrepid Sword is very difficult to Imposter-proof also. This set loves rain support.
Solgaleo @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Intrepid Sword
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- U-turn
- Photon Geyser
- Earthquake / V-Create
- Double Iron Bash
I've also been using Scarf Solgaleo, and I really love it, it's an excellent set. After some experimentation I've come to believe that this is the best build for it. The extra power from Intrepid Sword > Adaptability lets you hit a number of important power benchmarks, particularly OHKOing Melmetal and opposing Solgaleo with V-Create, guaranteeing the OHKO on Zamazenta with Photon Geyser, and OHKOing Dragapult with Double Iron Bash after Stealth Rock. This set can be difficult to Imposter-proof: with Earthquake I've used Prankster Corviknight and with V-Create I used Flash Fire Melmetal.
Zeraora @ Choice Band
Ability: Intrepid Sword
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Bolt Beak
- Earthquake / Fishious Rend
- Sunsteel Strike / Fishious Rend
- U-turn / Fishious Rend
Zeraora is super underrated and I've barely seen anyone using it on ladder. This outspeeds everything relevant except Zacian-C and hits dummy hard. Really fun mon but suffers from people preparing so hard for Zekrom because it loses to all the same stuff.
Corviknight @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Volt Absorb
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD
Relaxed Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
- Volt Switch
- Anchor Shot
- Recover
- Spectral Thief / Filler
Everyone falls for this. Every single one of the dozens of times I have brought this in against a Zekrom they have instantly clicked the funny yellow move and gotten trapped for it. This is also a great check for a bunch of other random mons, a good improof for your own Zekrom/Zeraora, and a slow pivoter that can still trap Imposter.
I'm glad Psychic Surge was unbanned (although it's weird that this was not announced on this thread at all), and I think it's perfectly balanced at the moment. Later, once the metagame has settled down, I hope we can reconsider some other things on the banlist which are not obviously broken anymore, particularly Contrary (Fleur Cannon and Psycho Boost don't exist, no abusers on the level of MMY/MMX/Mega Ray) and Moody (doesn't boost evasion anymore, still struggles hard against Imposter, Prankster, Spectral Thief).
I'm having a lot of fun with the tier so far! It's balanced, dynamic, pretty fast-paced, and really rewards experimentation and tight teambuilding. Keen to work on resources for this metagame once it all shakes out.
, and so you can go 2nd on the turn you Shell Smash, letting you dodge some Spectral Thief attacks, and ultimately preserve your bulk as they hit you before -1 Def and -1 SpD.
