GG Godly Gift

Lily

it's in my blood
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UU Leader
Old lady rant incoming I guess but I don't see why we're so banhappy about literally everything that's remotely decent, and tbh a lot of the things that people want to ban aren't all that to begin with. Maybe I just have a different, incorrect view on the meta, but here are my thoughts on why most of the things listed so far are fine. Let's start with Kyogre.

:kyogre:
I think people have some serious unfounded Kyogre paranoia that I can't understand the root cause of. Reasoning like ponch's above just doesn't make sense to me; "people aren't using it because it's prepped for" is like, no, people aren't using it because it isn't good to begin with. Let's do a quick analysis to figure out why.

First off, Kyogre itself. Kyogre is a good Pokemon. It is a Kyogre at the end of the day. It hits hard and is pretty bulky. It's slow but fast enough to deal with defensive mons so it's fine.

Now, the stats it passes. I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, they're bad. It passes great Special Attack which you can pretty much only give to two Pokemon (more on that later), great Special Defense for something like Great Tusk, and then nothing noteworthy at all. 100 HP is decent, 100 Attack sucks, 90 Defense is workable, and then we get to the elephant in the room, 90 Speed.

Godly Gift is a metagame that revolves entirely around Speed tiers. If you are slow, you are bad. That is how it is. When you use Kyogre teams, you are forced into awkward, crappy lines because you have to use bad Choice Scarf users - most of which don't even fit because of Kyogre's shitty Attack stat meaning you can't pass to stuff like HRott or Meowscarada without sacrificing a defensive stat that'd be better used on an actual defensive Pokeon. You can sorta get around this by using Barraskewda or HElectrode in the SpA slot but there's only so much you can do with that and both are pretty bad anyway.

Because Kyogre passes such shit Speed, it fails to act as a good God - despite Kyogre itself being a phenomenal Pokemon, you are putting yourself at a major disadvantage against the rest of the metagame by using it. For this reason it shouldn't be banned; it's closer to being unviable than bannable in my mind.

:zacian-crowned:
This mon is just not that good. The reason it isn't getting used is not due to overprep; it's actually really easy to prepare for it if you don't just ignore it in the builder. A lot of good mons are capable of either permanently stonewalling it (Def slot Clodsire, Dondozo, Skeledirge, super bulky Gholdengo, Moltres), soft checking it and forcing it to switch and thus lose Intrepid Sword (Corviknight, Amoonguss, Alomomola, Landorus-T, Gastrodon, Hippowdon, Zapdos, Volcanion) or can force it out offensively (HElec, various Scarfers like HRott and Sneasler, and Protosynth mons).

The real reason Zacian is meh is that it's an offensive Pokemon that doesn't enable offense that well. Unlike something like Koraidon, which passes an incredible offensive stat alongside really good speed and great defenses, Zacian passes amazing defenses, amazing speed and pretty shitty offenses. Nothing really takes the Attack slot well except HRott and Meowscarada, which is why Zacian teams aren't all that common; you end up reliant on Zacian to break, which is, as established, not very reliable, so in reality it's kinda all on your Speed breaker which is inevitably going to be flawed too.

There's also the issue of Zacian being unable to hold an item and thus succumbing to hazards because you can't slap boots on it and Gholdengo is common. That kinda makes it a lot worse than it otherwise would be. Zacian is on the low end of the best gods to me (a list mostly consisting of Koraidon, Arceus, Eternatus and Zacian). It's good but not rly broken and the fear is hugely misplaced; just don't build teams that skimp on Zacian checks, you have countless options.

:arceus:
This one is a lot to talk about and I don't really feel like doing it so I'll say that I agree with the sentiment that EKiller could be a problem. The rest are fine right now.

:eternatus:
It's barely being used and isn't even worth mentioning atm honestly.

:gholdengo:
Not really a particularly scary thing to deal with imo. It's a key defensive piece that walls a lot of important stuff and it can also go on the offensive if it wants but it doesn't really feel overbearing; it punishes Corv reliant stuff but Corv sucks ass anyway so idk. I think it's fine to keep it on the watchlist but I haven't really seen it be dominant. Even if Ghold goes, get used to Boots spam because that's the gen.

:great tusk:
As far as can be from problematic imo. It's just a good defensive mon, offensive sets aren't really that impressive without Booster Energy to back them up. Bulk Up can get scary but most of the replays I've seen of it doing work have been bc the opponent misplays around it so I'm not sure yet. Please don't get rid of one of the few defensive glues we have.

This meta is fine. I don't really see what all the fuss is about... feels like we're trying to make problems where there are none. Idk.
 

HiZo

我が為に苦しめ。我が為に狂い泣け。我が為に死ね。
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I've been asked to post my thoughts on the meta right now.

:zacian-crowned: On the fine line between broken and not. On one hand its Zacian-Crowned and its monumental 138 spe stat, on the other hand... the biggest problem is the 120 attack Zacian-Hero donates. It cannot be dump slotted due to the technical mechanic forcing post crowned Zacian into 120 attack if slotted there and as a result, it is incredibly rigid on how it functions and donates. Sucks because 120 attack isn't the best given the circumstances of mons that want an atk buff. Also granted, every team feels like it has at least one Zacian-C switchin due to its threat in builder. A mon that is incredibly good, but obnoxiously hard to build with.

:kyogre: Another ever-looming threat in builder, but I think the current state of the meta hasn't been kind to it for the reasons Lily said. Probably gets broken when faster gods get banned

:eternatus: Really scary. 140 HP can infect most bulky setup mons into a demonic presence, notably Hatterene and Gholdengo. It's 145 SpA and 130 Spe donations are great too. While it hasn't been seen much, it is definitely a scary thing to face if unprepared.

:Arceus: Ekiller is probably the most broken thing right now. Super flexible to slot, and has tools to bypass its checks like Facade and Taunt. The CM/DD variants with the different typings are really cool but none feel incredibly overbearing.

:great tusk: Nifty to have when Gholdengo is around. I really can't think of other hazard removal options outside of this and Corviknight, maybe Iron Treads. I feel like it can be kept for now until meta changes make it harder to deal with.

:electrode-hisui: Somehow, incredibly great as a fast pivot akin to Tapu Koko last gen albeit with some concessions here and there. Electric/Grass is really cool given that Great Tusks and Rotom-Wash are almost omnipresent and allows for teams to have a semi-reliable pivot and speed control in SpA. Dragon types suck yeah but honestly who cares when you can just click Volt Switch. I wouldn't mind seeing this go but its cool for what it does right now.
 

Career Ended

Whatever happens, happens
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ponchlake you're welcome.

So I'm not going to sugarcoat things. I like where the Meta is at but I kinda feel like its stuck in sand when this metagame could be a treadmill.
I wasn't a fan of the Tera QB as I feel like GG is a great Metagame that is actually made much more enjoyable by Tera, contrary to a bunch of OM's. I feel like this because the defensive options are as equally great, if not better than the offensive options in the tier right now. I'm looking forward to the resuspect.
I understand the Council wants to look at receivers before making any "hasty decisions" on the gods so I'll start there.

:Gholdengo: needs to gholden go home. Can't believe it's still here and can't believe more people aren't calling for its head. Maybe in Pre home where best HP donation was 100 it was okay but in meta with 120 / 140(!!!!!) hp donations this thing is simply too strong. look at this calc and tell me its gonna be alright:
252 Atk Great Tusk Headlong Rush vs. 252 HP (145 HP) / 252+ Def Gholdengo: 294-348 (59.5 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
You do not want to be on the other side of a gholdengo if you load a team lacking special defense slot great tusk. hazard control in this tier is dire as is and this thing just shuts down all the rest of it. Speed slot is alright, but I really think HP slot Gholdengo just puts a huge strain on whole archtypes because it's forcing half the meta to run boots. I've seen People running speed / defense slot as well, and it fits in spdef too, scarf, specs, hex twave, nasty plot, this thing is just such an enabler with good as gold it has so much set variety and it's too strong. I'd support a quickban.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9godlygift-696133
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9godlygift-696495

:great_tusk:
Lily just said this thing is unproblematic, but she prefaced that statement with "please don't take my babies, I spam them every week". It has a huge monopoly over the spdef slot atm imo, which isn't necessarily unhealthy, but what it does make it look unhealthy is the bulk up stuff.
ex: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9godlygift-698566
otherwise this pokemon still offers an incredible amount of utility and I really don't think it'll last in the tier long term.

:hawlucha:
unburden go brrrrr, haha. Though seriously, Lucha is one of the best and only good atk receivers right now. Just very strong and bordering on unhealthy, hard to prepare good counterplay for. gholdengo is one of the only things keeping it in check atm.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9godlygift-699877 taunt beats quag here, lucha wins

For the most part the rest of the receivers I think are mostly fine, at least I haven't seen anything absurdly outstanding. As for the gods however, I still think some action can be taken pretty quickly here.

:arceus: I'll start with this one cause he's the bad man. Ekiller having item variance gives it so much flexibility that the other arceus' simply cannot compete with. HDB, Leftovers, Lum, Life orb, silk scarf. Extreme speed, swords dance, taunt, bulk up, facade, shadow claw, flare blitz, earthquake, recover, willo, dual screens. this thing is just by far and away the best god in the metagame. Is it too strong? yes. Would it be balanced long term? no. Would it be ok in a tera meta? Absolutely not. 120 Donations across the board is pretty flexible and can lead to a lot of different team strutctures. would support a QB

:eternatus: this guy is the second biggest problem. eternatus as a pokemon is maybe not the powerhouse that the bikes or ekiller or zacian is, but its donations being so specialized cannot be ignored. I'm not sure eternatus by itself is even that big of an issue, but it enables some stuff to such ridiculous ends.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9godlygift-699265
in this game greybaum and isaiah were scoffing when i said hatt muscles through HP slot heatran. not only does it do so with ease, frankly if sylvi had been a little bit more unlucky with magma storm, hatt could've gone through the rest of the team as well. now imagine this hatterene with screens support ;_;
bulky setup mons like hatt and gholdengo are such scary threats with 140 hp. I haven't yet covered that etern gives a strong 130 base speed and a very respectable 145 base spatk. definitely would support a QB

:zacian_crowned: yea I still think this thing is busted. I think a suspect test is best route for this guy after the other brokens are dealt with though, definitely interested to see other peoples opinions though. So fast and strong, I really don't think this is as "easily manageable" as other people are making it out to be.

:kyogre: is probably fine for now. specs doesn't really have good switchins and scarf being 2fast2strong does funny things sometimes and cm is pretty meh so idk its weirdly good and not good, pretty matchup fishy mon.

:koraidon: this thing is a great mon and is probably fine for now too.

:arceus-ground: :arceus-water: :arceus-fairy: the other arceus forms are probably fine, none are as strong as ekiller.
 
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Gimmicky

You give me chills, I've had it with the drills
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not nearly as qualified as everyone else posting their thoughts but fomo

:zacian-crowned: this thing isn't the best God, stats-wise. It makes up for this by letting you use a Zacian-Crowned on your team. This mon has answers, yes, but there's almost always some way or some avenue for it to muscle past them-- and having answers doesn't mean something isn't broken. Having answers that manage it doesn't mean it's easily answerable. If this thing gets in in the midgame, it's taking something out and making it easier for itself or something like Samurott-H to clean up. If this thing gets a Swords Dance up in the endgame, it's lights-out in most scenarios. Being restricted in your team slot choice isn't enough to balance this thing. 120 attack being a mediocre donation isn't enough to balance this thing-- it still gives solid HP, great defenses and one of the best speed tiers in the game. Plus, it's not like 120 attack is bad, just unimpressive. This thing is restrictive on teambuilding and on play alike, and I'd much like to see it gone. Maybe a suspect is in order, instead of a quick ban, since it's so divisive.

:arceus: :normal-gem: E-Killer is another problem. There's nothing I can say that hasn't been said already. 120 stats across the board make this thing really unpredictable in its' team composition, it has insane item and movepool versatility, it has tools to pass any and all of its' checks. I want to see this gone too.

:arceus: :ground-gem: This isn't as much of a problem as Ekiller, but I do still think there's potential for it to be overbearing as the tier develops. CM/DD are both good, and it has really good offensive coverage for the tier.

:kyogre: it's like Zac-C except if the stats it passed were actually shitty. 100 Attack is nothing better than a dump slot, 100 hp and 90 defense are unremarkable at best, and 90 speed is bad for almost anything. You can make the argument that 90 Speed is good for something like Scarf Volcanion or to let Hatterene outspeed specific threats, but these are niche cases at best and, compared to the broken speed receivers, are easy to play around. 140 Spdef is great, and so is 150 spatk-- until you realize how short the tier is for good SpAtk receivers. Basculegion-F and Skewda are good synergy, but they lose to almost the exact same things as Ogre in most cases, meaning they won't usually make too much progress if you have a solid Ogre check. Kyogre itself is obviously great in the right scenarios-- both Scarf and Specs have their uses as devastating threats, but I find it hard to justify using it. In a meta where the best gods don't pass 130+ speed, it's phenomenal, but the meta is absolutely not kind to it.

:koraidon: this is probably fine but I can definitely see it being a problem down the line. Those stats, the Sun, Orichalcum Pulse being broken, and enabling sun abusers like Brute Bonnet, Lilligant-Hisui and Slither Wing is questionable sometimes. Personally in my top 2 gods in a theoretical post-Arc&Zac-ban meta.

:eternatus: etern is really really clunky. it donates 3 of the best stats in the game, then awkward mediocre defenses. It's fine for now. 130 speed is incredible, no need to expand too much on that. I have nothing to say on this that other people haven't.

I don't have anything new to say on :gholdengo: and :great-tusk: either. Both are solid, potentially broken receivers that I'm personally fine with for the time being. They should probably go soon enough, but for now they're welcome.

:electrode-hisui: am I the only one except based Instruct who thinks this is insane? 150 speed with a Spatk donation is insane, especially with Electric/Grass coverage. It can Volt Switch out of offensive Dragon- and Grass-types, and it can Taunt defensive ones to safely get in something else. Leaf Storm off of this thing would be a completely ridiculous move if not for the 3 of the 5 best gods being Steel/Fairy, Poison/Dragon and Dragon/Fighting. It has basically 0 defensive utility outside of being able to switch into Electric- and Steel- type moves, but it provides so much consistent pivoting, damage, speed control and support anyway. I no longer think it's a 5 on the broken scale, but I do think it is potentially a problem. The fact it's this good while being stuffed by most of the major Gods should say something..
 

Lily

it's in my blood
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UU Leader
Lily just said this thing is unproblematic, but she prefaced that statement with "please don't take my babies, I spam them every week". It has a huge monopoly over the spdef slot atm imo, which isn't necessarily unhealthy, but what it does make it look unhealthy is the bulk up stuff.
ex: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen9godlygift-698566
See it's stuff like this that I was talking about when I said that questionable playing makes it look broken when it's not. No disrespect to BJ but this tusk should have never been a threat when both Tornadus (which granted was low) and Slowking (which was at full) were both able to check it significantly better than their own Tusk could; this wasn't a case of Tusk being broken, just weird plays.

Yes Tusk takes over the spdef slot. Putting your Ground type in spdef is just the natural thing to do (bar Clodsire), so if you're using a Ground type, it goes there, and you're always using a Ground type. The other options aren't as good as Tusk, so it's super common; that doesn't mean it's broken. Also it's the only half decent remover which is part of why it's everywhere. Stuff like this makes it feel like we want to ban things just because they're high in usage sometimes.

@ the "I spam them every week" - I actually haven't used a single Gholdengo. Or Eternatus, or EKiller, or anything I've commented on other than Tusk lol. I'm not sure if the comment was supposed to be a joke or not but it's pretty stupid to say if not. If it was a joke, fair enough, if not then try to make your points w/o snarky comments please
 

UT

Old habits die SCREAMING
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Appeals + C&C Lead
Zamazenta-Crowned is currently not recognized by the Godly Gift mod as a stat passer (but does still recognize it as an Uber for the "one per team" restriction), meaning that any team with it will just use the HP slot as the stat donor. Technically this means you can still use Zama-C in the HP slot as a god, but in any other slot (including Special Attack, where it normally would be) it will fail to pass stats. We do not have an ETA on when this will be fixed, so we recommend not using Zama-C in the meantime (or ever as long as Zacian-Crowned is free, cause why would you).
 
OMFL run is over so I will go through my teams from when Home dropped to current state, meta thoughts and future expectations.
Teams
Zacian BO
Yeah this team is like completely ordinary, but it was made before Home came so it was still something new I aimed for. Maybe you can push that Cyclizar was something new but I already advocated for it pre-Home. Enamorus-T eventually evolved to run SubCM or TauntCM but at the time, I wanted Mystical Fire for Corv.
Arceus HO
This one was also made pre-Home, but with Magearna instead of Hatterene. This one is now sadly also just a boring build, though SD Lando-T might be worth something?
Sudowoodo TR
When I say Trick Room is trash in every meta this gen, I say it from experience. While I did get positive results laddering with this and in friedlies, there just isn't any exceptional receiver to wallbreak efficiently (Kingambit and Ursaluna would be very good but sadly they were banned). We need Araquanid and Marowak-A back, to some extent NDW for specially offensive TR teams as well, Magearna god is fake. TR also lacks variety of setters. The unavoidable fact is TR teams are weak to Ghost and Dark due to most setters being Psychic. While Diancie can set no Explosion means you can't get the offensive mons in safely. Last gen we had Teleport Porygon2, now the only thing you can get to offset them is... TR Meowscarada. You can also use Ursaring I guess. If we try to dig for offensive mons for TR then you can maybe go for more unorthodox picks like Sudowoodo in this team, Torkoal or Dudunsparce in SpA, Dragalge in either Atk or SpA, Crabomimable in Atk but they all have glaring problems. Hamurott doesn't help either with Ceaseless Edge bypassing Magic Bounce. Even Caly-I lost High Horsepower cause fsr it got cut from Glastrier wtf? I like STAB CC more than Facade so Hariyama was my choice (also it uilizes donated stats better). Otherwise there isn't much to add, though I can give Earthquake to Sudowoodo maybe without Dragapult. Lagging Tail on Slowking makes sure it moves last even in TR.
Zama-C stall - OUTDATED
Of course I had to join the train of using Zama-C while it was OU. Figured giving it Giratina's HP was the most degenerate thing to do so might as well built a stall team. The team worked fairly well but sometimes Giratina needed to predict a bit against hazard stack to snipe Gholdengo with Shadow Ball and force it out to safely Defog. Team might also have struggled against Arceus-Ground but at the time it didn't pick up steam yet.
Full rain
The fact that Swift Swim was banned didn't mean I would stop building rain. That said, the biggest downside was using Kyogre. You just can't get a truly safe speed control option with Ogre and often times over rely on it to break, which also means trying to preserve it at full HP, and all of that hasn't taken opposing entry hazards and weather into account. Full rain or even part rain isn't all that good either with Koraidon, and finding a good physical attacker for rain is hard when Urshifu-RS is banned. The team did go through some changes, first with Defog Tinted Braviary-H in Speed, then swapped to something I forgot and finally this version. Scizor was chosen after CM Sylveon destroyed this team, and BU Corv cause some Def boosters were also tough. Scizor had to be Thief to threaten Gholdengo.
Dialga-O BO
Bulky Offense usually has a speed control slot but this team went all in with the pure fat and utility to keep them in check, though there's still Harcanine in emergency cases. Speed Hecidueye is like completely unseen atm but I think it's an ok Defogger thanks to Scrappy Triple Arrow letting it threaten Gholdengo, utility in Knock Off and resisting EdgeQuake to check Groundceus. It's also pretty solid defensively against Helectrode and Hamurott so definitely an underused pick. Dialga-O has good defensive values and offensive values but Speed being so important means using it is inherently risky.
Etern Hazard Stack
This was something I came up with after trying to slap both Kleavor and Hamurott on one team. It did perform well though with Dragapult and Miraidon banned Etern can run another item now. Also fairly standard sans the Scream Tail but even that was already a thing pre-Home. Also figured Scarfing the Kleavor was the play for some speed control.
Sawsbuck Sun
This is a completely normal sun team except Sawsbuck, which can kinda do stuff except against Corviknight.
Electric Terrain - OUTDATED
Rip Miraidon, too broken while also enabling all the Quark Drive mons. It theoretically enables Raichu-A but no Rising Voltage is sad. This team functions exactly how you think an ETerrain team should, with no pivot really needed cause Miraidon forced momentum to get a free switch often. Initially Orthworm was Corviknight but Corvi didn't really fit the team between Defog removing ETerrain and could be easily taken advantage of. Orthworm still provides Ground immunity while being very solid defensive wise, with Chople to emergency check Fighting. It ended up being better and helped against Clodsire by countering with its own hazards.
Semistall - OUTDATED
This abomination of Magnezone set was my best bet to make sure Magearna could never do anything before it was banned to Ubers. Against teams without Magearna it was basically a 5v6 but it still somehow worked. Altaria in particular can be a viable Defogger imo in a dump Atk or SpA slot to threaten Gholdengo with EQ/Flamethrower and also has Natural Cure to absorb status or Cloud Nine to combat weather. Outside of that nothing really stands out.
VoltTurn Offense - OUTDATED
Just like the team name suggests, the team aimed to VoltTurn and trap foes in a vortex. Initially Sableye was something else but I changed it after losing to DD Groundceus. Tusk can't pivot but was necessary to keep Clodsire in check and also set Rock. Magnezone traps Corvi which could disrupt the cycle. Overall a more unique style that I was glad to work but I don't think the team can be salvaged after Dragapult ban since it + Helectrode just formed a natural speed control and there isn't anything else unless Barraskewda magically regained Flip Turn. Speaking of which, Sableye is another underrated pick that can fit on offense builds to deter setup and emergencily check foes which I think is super valuable. This also concludes all my early teams where I tried using a different god for every team.
Hax abusing - OUTDATED
I couldn't just stand there and let Instruct prove his evilness superiority so I had to overtake him with this one. Hatterene was there to block Rock for Articuno and Glaceon. With luck (skill) on your side, Glaceon and Articuno shall be unstoppable. Sadly RNG items are banned so all I could do was winning a room tour with it.
Beat Up Offense
Beat Up is one of those archetypes I keep trying to make work in many metas. Ngl this team isn't really good due to Weavile getting hit with the move cut and Rayquaza getting speed crept. That said, Weavile when getting a good position can still do numbers. Volcanion losing Defog is also unfortunate. Landorus-T was basically slotted into SpA cause I couldn't find a better option.
Ghost Hazard Status Spam
This looks rather tame, but I wanted to see how status + hazard spam could go with each other. Ghostceus differentiates itself from the other Ghosts in that it can actually take on Great Tusk. Since it's status spam might as well go full Hex. Speed on Cyclizar and Ting-Lu creeps max base 90.
Weird BO
I had wanted to build around double dance Klefki for a while, basically Magearna lite. However Prankster setup is something really useful to get that initial hit and safely activate Weakness Policy. After filling the defensive core I liked the idea of Rillaboom which eases setup for Klefki and also provides the passive recovery for Ting-Lu. Then when I tried to fill the SpA slot I wanted a Steel with defensive utility that handles CC Zacian as well as takes advantage of Etern's SpA. The end result being Forretress is pretty hilarious in hindsight but it felt pretty natural and actually works like a good option: Giga Drain lets it beat Ting-Lu and Tusk 1v1 and even Lando-T in Grassy Terrain, Volt Switch targets Flying-types like Corviknight and Torn-T, Earth Power is mainly for Zacian-C but is also useful against Clodsire. Boots Sturdy also makes it act like an emergency answer, while Spin was the main role. Giga Drain + Grassy Terrain can even restore Sturdy as well.
Boots Stall
This team was inspired by this. However, taking it into GG was much more challenging. For once, the Ubers presence can severely limit what you can do. There's also no Pex or blob. The team ended up 6-0 due to getting the perfect matchup against HO, but random Stored Power can definitely screw this team over, like Magearna which is immune to both Dragon Tail and Clear Smog. I also didn't run hazard removal so Knock Off would be a big problem. In all honesty I can probably fit Defog on Giratina in place of Will-o-Wisp though that might compromise some mu. Future Sight can also be problematic. The team did have some variants, like with Glowking, or before Miraidon was banned, much more Protect to try to stall out all of its PP. More traditional stall styles probably still thrive more tbh, like hazard stack stall.
Persian balance
I was always a big advocator for Persian. Since Pikachu lost ESpeed, Persian's Silk Scarf Fake Out + Feint is actually stronger than Pika's Fake Out + Quick Attack (even if both Tera as well). While it didn't do much in the game, you could see it easily 2HKO Hamurott and if I had gotten a flinch it would have destroyed Glowking as well. Overall it's somewhat viable imo and does especially well into offense. Obviously it can't do much to Corvi so Magnezone is here, which can also help Caly-I save Glacial Lance's PP.
Glowking Sun
This was a team I considered for OMFL final. I didn't want to make another sun but like it just fits so well with Koraidon even if it's supposed to be centered around Glowking. Zacian-C is pretty inconsistent tbh so I didn't want to use it as god and Koraidon boosts Flamethrower as well. Moltres deals with Enamorus and Zacian-C, can also fish for burn. Heatran was originally Walking Wake but the extra safety net from Heatran was more important.

Meta thoughts and vote explanation:
So we have gone through some steps from Home.
Initial meta
Well, the first meta is always hectic, even with initial ban wave. We ended up banning Caly-S, Hoopa-U and Ursaluna which should come as no surprise. Last Respects was followed from OU which is pretty much applied across most OM at this point.
:sv/Chien-Pao:
Chien-Pao ended up going to Ubers after getting unanimously freed but for the time it did stay, it didn't actually make much presence. This was due to gods not giving it a substantial boost most of the time. The ones that do in Rayquaza and Caly-I had problems with it. On one side, they helped enable a much more potent physical attacker. But sadly, losing out on the Speed slot was and still is very detrimental for offensive teams. Typing wise, using both limited building a bit due to their lack of defensive utility, though Ray still has some like blocking weather and good enough typing and Caly-I having good Def and SpD but usually can't do much itself to directly switch in. Using it on the dump slot was still a good option, but the increased bulk of the meta limited it more than it liked, giving it less room to set up. Choice Band was a potent breaker but still struggled to make progress against bulky walls like Alomomola and relied on prediction, in addition to requiring removal due to terrible defensive typing.
:sv/Magearna:
Magearna ended up incredibly busted, but we wanted to test the water since it did lose some tools. Turned out the Double Dance set was still way too restricting and potent with its immunity to Dragon Tail and Clear Smog. While there were other sets like TR setter, Specs and utility, Double Dance either in HP or Speed was far and away the best. So busted in fact, that Tanny made it over 1k3 using Eleki god with Magearna.
:sv/Regieleki:
Regieleki was a pretty controversial figure. I personally voted Ban because I assumed Tera would initially stay, which would make Eleki over the top. At the time, Transistor nerf wasn't discovered either so it could never be free in a Tera meta. In a meta without it however, pretty much every team packs a Ground-type, sometimes 2 so even if it were freed, it would be meh at best.
:sv/Urshifu-Rapid-Strike:
Urshifu-RS got banned from OU before it saw much impact. It did become a good Pokemon, especially with dump SpD slot from Eternatus or Rayquaza, but could be hard to fit sometimes with supposed good teammates. Kyogre would pair very well with it in theory except it doesn't want the SpD slot there and HP is usually reserved for another defensive pivot like Rotom. Other slots beside SpA are straight downgrades. A potential breaker with SD + Punching Glove or Scarfer was always welcomed, and it has great bulk for an offense mon. It did hate Clodsire but could pack Ice Punch / Ice Spinner for it still.
:sv/Zamazenta: :sv/Zamazenta-Crowned:
Since OU freed both formes I supported to free it since I thought it couldn't benefit from GG that much. While it did get banned, I still don't think it was too much. Band was an ok breaker with great Speed. which I found to be healthy as it provided an offensive answer to many dangerous threats. The IronPress set was the stronger one imo, but I found without Tera, staying in Fighting was a bad enough downside against threats like Enamorus that it wasn't too much. Zama-C also went to Ubers, though Steel helped it enough that I would still vote Ban.
:sv/chansey: :sv/blissey:
Yeah, no shot we would ever free these.
:sv/iron valiant: :sv/great tusk:
Grouping these 2 together cause they were banned in an effort to prevent teams from becoming purely Mirai/Korai + 4/5 Paradox mons. With more diversity, I predicted that style to be much worse, in addition to Booster Energy staying banned.
:sv/iron hands:
This one however would probably be godlike regardless of Mirai. I still voted DNB cause I wanted to see it in action in the new meta since theorycrafting it was more shaky than others but it would most likely be rebanned. Swords Dance with dual STAB and Ice Punch would probably be best if it were ever legal.
:sv/kingambit:
OU is debating to possibly ban this mon, with an actual Speed? Hell nah
:sv/toxapex:
Defensive Pokemon are traditionally harder to ban compared to offensive ones. Pre-Home, this was a reliable wall in a heavily concentrated meta. With Home, I would like to test it since there are quite a lot of new offensive mons that can break it. Great Tusk, Helectrode, Groundceus, Future Sight support from Glowking or just abusing its general passivity with Taunt/Sub or Hamurott getting Spikes for free. I think having a solid defensive wall that can handle raw power frees up teambuilding more so I think Toxapex's presence would be beneficial even if there are better HP donors now like Giratina. Obviously it might still constrain offensive choices enough, but I think it was uncertain enough to give it a try.
:sv/volcarona:
Ended up a positive presence as a Zacian answer and could also fish for burns to beat physical attackers like Koraidon but sadly gone too soon. Without Tera its weakness was even more pronounced.
:sv/walking wake:
Walking Rex doesn't really benefit much from GG besides the fact that Koraidon is available. Pre-Home that would overcentralize the tier even more, but with more options and better defensive walls this feels easy to unban to me.
:sv/Dragapult:
I voted DNB because to me, it was a positive presence that prevented god from dictating the speed tiers, and its power didn't really come out as over the top with the most spammable move only having 80 BP.
:sv/Miraidon:
Enabling future Paradox Pokemon is already pretty strong when there are Iron Valiant, Moth, Leaves and stuff, but this was just way too strong by itself. The mandatory Ground was shaped by this alone with terrifying power that can even 2HKO WA Clodsire with Specs. This simply couldn't be answered properly unless you ran Ting-Lu on every team. While this was exactly the case pre-Home, there were only 2 gods and fewer overall mons so being forced to use Ting-Lu wasn't exactly too bad. But now with more options, it just can't stay anymore.
  • Tera
Ah yeah, probably the most divisive Pokemon element of all time. I get the concern that in a meta with Ubers Pokemon, Ubers with Tera would be way above the other and unnecessarily constrains teambuilding. However, I personally don't think so. Most Ubers that would be pushed by Tera are arguably already banworthy even without it. This includes Miraidon, Koraidon and to some extent Arceus. I think having Tera allows players to patch holes much easier compared to no Tera and also promotes deeper building and skill ceiling. General example: Your special wall can afford to be used even if it's weak to Water and thus Kyogre provided that it has Tera to take the Water Spout and weaken it. But since it deals with Eternatus and other special attackers well, you can choose to Tera other mons against teams with no Kyogre. Offensive teams can also utilize Tera to prevent priority from running over. Having to run Tera Ghost or Tera Steel to take Espeed from Arceus is not overcentralizing if it can also be used in many other matchups or used in different ways (Also dealing with Breloom and Dragonite with Tera Ghost or utilizing Tera Blast). Ultimately I think the picture for me is similar to that of OU so you can read the thread in Policy Review. Regardless, I wanted to suspect instead of ban -> resuspect because ban -> resuspect only gives 2 weeks Tera experience at best in the suspect test while a suspect whether immediately back then or after a bit could give opportunities to observe Tera GG in high level tour play and active ladder due to Home hype.
Winners and losers from previous meta after Home
Note: not counting banned and unbanned mons since those are obvious.
  • Winners
:koraidon: :miraidon:
Getting Great Tusk and Iron Valiant back is great for them. Miraidon ultimate lost by getting banned but it also had Sneasler and Raichu-A as new toys to entertain it in the time it terrorized the newcomers.
:clodsire: :corviknight: :gastrodon: :gholdengo: :grimmsnarl: :hawlucha: :rotom-wash: :skeledirge: :greninja: :drifblim:
Clodsire got newfound usage to answer Kyogre, Helectrode, Iron Valiant, Goltres, Zacian and even some Arceus formes with the right ability (also Miraidon before it was banned). A rare Ground-type to win even with Great Tusk back.
Corviknight didn't like Koraidon and Miraidon everywhere, but the new meta was less hostile towards it and it also got a new (or old) in Kyogre.
Gastrodon will always be the biggest answer to Kyogre.
Gholdengo likes Hamurott's presence cause it can keep its ally's Spikes, though ironically it hates Hamurott on the other side.
HO is thriving, so Grimm is as well.
Hawlucha got Rillaboom to receive a proper Attack donation.
Washtom switches in against Rayquaza, Zacian, Kyogre and more, whereas it was shaky at dealing with Koraidon. It hates Clodsire, but still a win overall.
Skeledirge gained many victims, including Zacian, Arceus, Hawlucha, Iron Valiant and Sneasler.
Greninja could get more Special Attack from Eternatus, while its Speed is just above Arceus to do its job of speed control.
Drifblim does have an ok niche compared to next to none pre-Home, with its bulk with a Def donation capable of taking hits even from dangerous attackers like Ray and Koraidon. Relying on Strength Sap is shaky at times but still an improvement.
  • Losers
:garganacl: :slowking: :ting-lu: :baxcalibur: :cinderace: :glimmora: :hippowdon: :iron treads: :meowscarada: :slither wing: :torkoal: :breloom: :brute bonnet: :ceruledge: :dachsbun: :gengar: :quaquaval: :sandy shocks: :zoroark-hisui:
Garganacl is sad without Tera.
Slowking now has to compete against its cousin.
Ting-Lu, Hippowdon and Iron Treads now have to compete with Great Tusk.
Baxcalibur has no Tera, now can't be slotted as easily.
Cinderace's 119 Speed was impressive pre-Home, now Arceus's 120 Speed is really a slap in the face.
Glimmora hates Tusk.
Meowscarada is faster than Arceus but overall power creep makes it much harder to break.
Slither wing, Torkoal, Brute Bonnets, Ceruledge and Sandy Shocks aren't as needed in sun teams now.
Breloom finds it hard to break with STAB and its 4mss is worse now. Dual STAB + Rock Tomb misses out on Ghold, Bulldoze misses out on many Flying.
Dachsbun is now unviable when Koraidon is much rarer.
I will miss Gengar's Mean Look Encore set with Tera.
Quaquaval literally vanished. Between Clodsire's rise, Eternatus, Helectrode and the overall power creep, not hard to see why when most offensive mons can hit it super effectively.
Zoroark-Hisui is nowhere to be found. It simply doesn't pack enough utility or damage in this hostile meta.

Current meta
The meta right now is ok. There are different archetypes to play with and a good number of mon choices overall. The most common and safest of them all is...
Bulky Offense
Due to most Ubers having at least decent defensive stats BO is always the traditionally go-to choice. With many options and pretty much any god (except Rayquaza, Giratina and Mewtwo) being able to build around, there are myriad options and subarchetypes to go with.
  • Hazard stack :Gholdengo:
Probably the most popular, with Hamurott being flexible and Ceaseless Edge being an insane move when it hits. Gholdengo is the glue obviously and usually accompanied by Tusk for Rock + Spin. A different rocker is possible to give Tusk more freedom, like Arceus, Heatran or Lando-T. Other defensive backbone mons usually are those with offensive pressure like Skeledirge, Moltres and Zapdos. There are a wide choice for offensive mons, like Grassy package, Hoopa, semi-sun, Harcanine. Speed control option is also diverse, Greninja, Helectrode and Meowscarada all fit the bill. A lot of these are pivots or can disrupt item to force hazard damage
  • Sun :koraidon:
Sun is currently a subarchetype of BO. Koraidon and Tusk are a must and Walking Wake is only slightly behind, with Heatran in some cases. After that, it can go more offensive with a Chlorophyll user like Sawsbuck or Scovillain, but a more defensive approach with Clodsire gives a better matchup against Kyogre.
  • Normal BO builds also fare pretty well, with flexible options like Torn-T, Cyclizar, Rotom.
Hyper Offense
  • Screens :Grimmsnarl:
Currently on the rise, Screens HO might turn out to be too strong but it's ok for now. Grimmsnarl enables a log of stuffs to get setup options + they can get stats to avoid revenge kill even after screens wear off. What makes screens tough to deal with is due to their set of mons that aren't usually prepped for. Mewtwo, Polteageist, Maushold, Baxcalibur and some other are practically exclusive to HO, and they can bypass common counterplays, like Baxcalibur breaking Tusk without a Fighting move, Teapot breaking Slowking, Mewtwo breaking Clodsire. I believe teams can adapt to them though, once they are prepped for their effectiveness shouldn't be as high.
  • Hazards :Glimmora:
Not very common, with only ponch and bj really having experiences with it. Goes without saying that Glimmora is a must. Glimmora does need Sludge Wave and Energy Ball, otherwise Hatterene and Tusk would derail the gameplan. Gholdengo is ubiquitous as well to keep these, and Teapot is also useful to spinblock. Mons used in these types of teams rely on Sash or more bulk to set up, like Enamorus and Arceus or Sash Greninja and Cloyster. This is riskier due to the possibility of hazards getting cleared, Ditto and revenge killers having more room.
  • Web :Masquerain:
Web is pretty much nonexistent, especially with Tusk. Web mons are currently atrocious, easily disrupted by Taunt and no safety net if it's cleared or blocked. Web mons also risk giving setup turns, and doing all the work only to face many Ground- immune or Boots mons is just instant loss.
Balance
Balance is mid since it's vulnerable to getting punished, though it can still be serviceable. Clodsire, Corviknight and Alomomola are usually the most common, with bulkier variants opting for extra fat mon like Dondozo. Offensive options are a bit shaky because balance need nuclear options to make using the passive mons worth it. Kyogre and Harcanine are the biggest nukes. More niche stuffs like Regidrago and Ursaring can be considered, but nowhere near consistent overall. Vulnerable to hazard stack, Gholdengo and setup in general is really shaky though. Kyogre with Rain is a small subsection of this, but with extra weakness to weather disruption.
Stall
Stall is more or less Giratina. It's definitely a fish though, since Knock spam, no Heal Bell, blobs or Pex all hurt its viability. Usually has 2 Defoggers in Corv and Giratina, it's still susceptible to prediction and getting worn down over time, though without Miraidon Rest mons have an easier time. Tusk maybe can be fitted in? But running Rest on it without Heal Bell is too problematic. Adding to the fact that Hamurott can just slowly get a positive trade against Corv if it has Knock, stall needs to actually make more aggressive plays before they get overrun. Against HO it can be an instant win though. Pretty much uses all the passive mons like Alomomola, Clodsire, with Dondozo as wincon, or really just PP stall since most teams don't prep for stall. Regen is more necessary to combat recovery nerf, so 2-3 Regen are common, between Slowking, Slowbro and Amoonguss. Ditto is also a choice to deter setup.
Other team styles
These simply can't keep up with the other styles. Offense is the most viable but vulnerable to HO and the lack of solid defensive backbone can be more easily punished, like bj vs ponch even if bj won in the end. VoltTurn struggle to break some common mons like Clodsire, and stuffs like Beat Up have way lower distribution. Trick Room is bad like I said above, the lack of mons and inherent weakness to Ghost and Dark is tough. Snow and Sand have no mon to take advantage of and Weather Ball's distribution was nuked. Psyspam like Instruct used can be taken advantage of too easily when it has to lead Indeedee.
Pokemon that others feel are problematic
:Kyogre:
I pretty much want to echo Lily here. This thing donates bad stats except SpA and Spe, in this offensive meta being a mon that promotes offensive team without the stats to back up for it is just poor. It's still a great mon, but its drawbacks are just too big, and it isn't even guaranteed progress with mons like Clodsire, Alomomola, Rayquaza, Koraidon at least forcing it to predict or just walling it outright.
:zacian-crowned:
Pretty much similar to Kyogre except bad Atk instead of bad Spe. Relying on Zacian and the Speed mon alone to break is questionable. So long as it's prepped for, it won't do much. Even mons that can't beat it 1v1 but can pivot like Glowking can just go to a Scarfer, force it out and render it pitiful for the rest of the game. Getting the jump on most mons except Zacian-C itself and Helectrode is impressive and all, but all the most broken mons in Kingambit, Magearna and Ursaluna are not present. Still great, but I'm not really concerned about it.
:arceus:
I personally don't struggle against this, but I see where others come from. It can opt for 2 moves besides Espeed and SD to choose its answers. LO gets the roll on offensive mons, Leftovers/Lum + Max HP turns passive mons into fodder. Taunt denies recovery, and it can choose between Shadow Claw and Earthquake for coverage. My gripe for it is faster mons that resist Normal can give it problems, but it does have the bulk to handle it sometimes. There are still consistent defensive answers despite not many, like Lefties Dondozo and Body Press Tusk. Opting for EQ may also leaves it walled by Air Balloon, and the 4mss means it can't afford both Taunt and Recover, making it weak to either status or easier to revenge kill. It's still a deadly threat at the end of the day with ability to sweep with just a little chip damage and answers can be difficult to slot in so down the line I can see a suspect for it.
:gholdengo:
I will talk about this below
:great tusk:
This is just a very good utility mon that also has the potential to go offensive. But without Booster Energy, it isn't that impressive offensive wise. As a breaker, Choice Band is a good progress maker but against Flying relies on coverage and midgrounds like Slowking and Torn-T are more than fine. Bulk Up Spin has to give up coverage so this problem is even more pronounced.
:koraidon:
This is the one I see as the most problematic. Speed is only below Zacian and I guess Zamazenta, but its power is along the line of unwallable. STAB + Fire can beat just about anything, with Band Dragon Claw/ Scarf Outrage destroying even Skeledirge (Band Outrage obviously nukes even harder but then Fairy revenge kills for free if 3 turn Outrage). It can also buff Protosynthesis mons to monstrous levels, causing them to dominate sometimes. It's not at the level of Miraidon, but it's close enough that I think it should be suspected in the future.
:hawlucha:
Don't think it's problematic for now, hasn't seen much use.

The future
While the meta looks fairly stable, a Tera suspect will definitely happen. What will happen after?
Tera stays banned
Honestly, I don't think much will change. If we assume DLC release in September-October, the only gods on the table (my view, not council's) are Arceus and Koraidon possibly. As for receivers, the only thing that I think stands out as the sore thumb for most people is Gholdengo. It's a good mon, the central piece for hazard stack teams and its value is undeniable. However, is hazard stack team over the top and is it Gholdengo? If anything Hamurott looks more like a problem to me than Gholdengo. Gholdengo only really had 2 games where it truly did good work, bj vs Lily where bj's Specs Ghold applied pressure all game before eventually folding to chip damage and Lily vs Fraise where it NP, got one KO then got revenge killed (albeit it could have done more had Lily clicked MIR the second time). The things it does in theory is kinda tough in a more offensive meta where there are less room to set hazards. The most common remover in Tusk also threatens it, making it an even bigger risk. While it can still have a stranglehold on more defensive builds like stall and balance that relies on Corv for removal, they can still play around it like Boots spam or Gira on stall with Shadow Ball, Corv has U-turn so the Ghold user is at risk. For those hazards to go up, assuming no Ceaseless Edge they might also face Hatterene. So I find it unlikely for Ghold to become a big enough problem. HO saw a rise lately, but as of this post it doesn't really seem outstanding yet.
After that, I think we are good to go until DLC.
Tera is unbanned
Probably fairly similar to banned Tera in terms of actions. Though Arceus and Koraidon will likely be more overwhelming and get yeeted faster. No mon will be unbanned, but I don't see anything that will become overbearing due to Tera. Garganacl will shoot in terms of viability, but may not touch the ban line yet.
Some small stuffs that might be useful during building
:moltres-galar:
Please run TIMID on this. Modest just makes it tie +1 max Speed Arceus and lose to Scarf Etern and Koraidon.
:clodsire:
You might consider running low Speed on this to underspeed Slowking, though if you value hitting Glowking with EQ you can choose not to. Also consider Poison Jab over Toxic to prevent Taunt/Sub/Hatt from making it a sitting duck.
:gholdengo:
Consider running 36 Spe for Tusk.
:heatran:
Run enough Speed for Giratina or Lando-T.
 
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Dr. Phd. BJ

aphasia
is a defending SCL Champion
OMPL Champion
ompl team dump, almost made a video but decided against it

Pre-Home (Outdated)
Week 1 vs gum (W)
:hatterene: :dondozo: :glimmora: :koraidon: :ting-lu: :gholdengo:
My only gen 9 experience was in some uwtt tour where I went 0-2. I didn't understand tera mechanics, and I choked two really good mus because I misused my tera really badly both times. Knowing this, I did not want to lose again with my tera. I just built some anti-hazard stack hazard stack because I felt that would give me a playable mu. There was nothing to scout for me or my opponent, and I'm a big believer in using the strongest possible team week 1 of team tours. I played well and felt more composed than I ever have playing mons, largely because I had no expectations going into this tour (from my perspective)

Week 2 vs Fraise (W)
:rotom-wash: :miraidon: :roaring moon: :greninja: :iron treads: :gholdengo:
I accidentally scouted the wrong French team and tier cooked up a heinous roaring moon set. The idea is you trap ting lu and set up to +6 against it and win thanks to tera flying. Tera flying also helps against first impression and can wall koraidon depending on the circumstances. Additionally, you can possibly set up on passive scream tail sets. Double dance miraidon also kinda 6-0'd the entire scout, so I brought him. I got outplayed with my tera, but I positioned the end game really nicely and squeaked out the win with roaring moon

Post-Home
Week 3 vs Jrdn (W)
:gholdengo: :corviknight: :eternatus: :dragapult: :ting lu: :samurott-hisui:
New meta, so I just built something strong. This team is weak as shit to koraidon, but dude nobody is using koraidon/miraidon in post-home meta w1 LMAO. Just in case tho, I threw haban on etern. I think hp ghold is super broken, especially on etern builds. The spread I have lives banded chien pao crunch and speed creeps uninvested tusk. I think defensive tusk eq does like 40-48, which is honestly nothing if you need to spin block + lefties. I'm not recalcing anything. I kinda just clicked shadow ball this game

Week 4 vs Lily (L)
:corviknight: :meowscarada: :clodsire: :arceus-fairy: :dondozo: :gholdengo:
Last pl when I played Lily, I was 5-0 and she was 4-1. This time around, it felt the same. I liked offensive arc-fairy into her scout, but I opted for flame cause it hit amoonguss even tho I knew it wasn't coming. Unfortunately, she decided to load glowking and hisuian-arcanine. To make matters worse, my team was wayyyy too passive into taunt torn. If my arc was ep or if my clod was pjab, I think the mu would've been significantly better than what it ended up being. I lost, I had a brain fart and forgot about espeed on arcanine. Other than that, I was really happy with my play. I only had a chance because Lily was using inaccurate moves and never clicked overheat with miraidon fsr

Week 5 vs Meta (L)
:tornadus-therian: :arceus: :slowking: :iron treads: :great tusk: :baxcalibur:
I knew Meta used a lot of rotom-wash stuff, and I liked ekiller into his scout. I built something around ekiller + cb bax to pressure skeledirge in case that came. Sadly, I ran into scizor screens. I played okay considering the hand I was dealt, and I kinda forgot bulk up tusk was a thing. This game is not a good example if somebody is attesting to banning tusk, will get into that later. This loss really tilted me, especially considering Meta just loaded no fire resist or speed control or really any good answer to miraidon/koraidon. Additionally, 5/6 mons I used this week I had 0 usage for

Week 6 vs Instruct (W)
:klefki: :greninja: :glimmora: :arceus: :cloyster: :enamorus-therian:
I knew Instruct was gonna cheese since he tried to last pl, so I tried building something against that. Then Fc kinda told me I got 6-0'd by some cm arc, and he was right. So I said screw it and told him to build ho in 20 seconds. He cooked some heat and I won. I think the biggest surprise on this team is that klefki is not spikes, screens, or even trick. Bro thinks he's magearna or something. This was a good reminder for me tho that sometimes you use logic and put thought into mons, and it just doesn't work out. Other times, you just load up something built in under a minute and things go really well

Week 7 vs ponchlake (W)
:tornadus-therian: :heatran: :eternatus: :greninja: :great tusk: :lilligant-hisui:
I loved rocks heatran, hisui lilligant, and sludge bomb etern (for hatt) into ponchlake's scout. The team just came together and flowed nicely, had a classic fwg core. I didn't even paste this in my team chat or test with it, so my teammates would've been pissed if I lost LOL. I ran into cheese (again), but ponch misplayed really badly and I won. If the lilligant was sash, this mu would've been 10 times easier. The smallest adjustments in the builder can make such drastic changes when it comes to mu

Semis vs tlenit (W)
:zapdos: :eternatus: :slither wing: :greninja: :great tusk: :gholdengo:
Last gen before etern got banned, I felt most comfortable using etern god. The stat distribution is amazing, and etern in itself is very sufficient. I pushed my luck a little because I have a tendency to use these types of builds, but luckily it payed off. I made sure what I brought loaded well into the tyrantrums scout. I didn't play my best, but I did not have to overextend and I knew that. It felt relieving playing against balance again

Finals vs Meta (W)
:gholdengo: :maushold: :grimmsnarl: :weavile: :great tusk: :rayquaza:
I had no idea what to expect for finals from Meta, and I knew my scout was pretty linear with my balances. I decided that for finals, I was going to use maushold ho. Took awhile for me to get a base I was happy with, but eventually I landed on this. Ray was originally dd, but I got scared of dondozo 6-0'ing me so I changed it to draco last second. Meta loaded pretty much a carbon copy of the balance Lily used to beat me, but with modifications to fit Koraidon because Miraidon got banned. The game was awesome, and I would still say that even if I lost. We both got a few doubles right, and the game came down to the last turn. Overall proud of my finals performance, even if there were a couple turns I wanted back (mainly the endure ghold sequence)

Meta Thoughts
I probably won't touch oms until next ompl if I decide to sign up, but I figured I'd drop meta thoughts since that appears to be a talking point rn.

:kyogre:
No shot people think this needs to be banned atm

:zacian:
I think this is similar to kyogre in the sense that the team structures just feel janky because of the stat distribution you are forced to deal with. However, the one thing zacian has that kyogre does not is speed. I think with scarfers, ghold, corv, slowking in the defense slot, the unaware users, and some others (helmet alomomola, rotoms, great tusk lives hit, heat wave torn, sashers, gods etc.) zacian is fine in the tier as it is. The nerf to intrepid sword and its overall stats makes this mon much easier to handle than at any point last gen. However, this is still a zacian

:arceus:
Ekiller is annoying for sure, but gen 9 does not lack ghosts, unaware users, and fighting types. Arceus is not something you lead with and 6-0 a team with, ekiller has never been that. Ekiller is historically one of, if not the best revenge killer/cleaner this game has to offer. Ekiller accels late game when everything is chipped and you can live a hit and sd -> espeed spam. It's hard for me to currently say ekiller is broken when great tusk and gholdengo are really splashable, and there are still other means of counterplay such as corv, dirge, dozo, fighting types, taunt torn pressure, using your own god, status, and so on. I can build a team that handles kyogre without consciously thinking about checking it. With ekiller, I can't quite say the same. I think ekiller is fine where it is right now, but depending on meta trends and other factors I can see ekiller becoming problematic. The one thing keeping ekiller in the tier for me is primarily 4mss

:gholdengo:
I think gholdengo is kinda broken because of what certain sets can do in the hazard game, primarily pdef in hp and balloon in speed. You have tools to beat pretty much everything thanks to essentially perfect coverage, an amazing defensive typing, and access to moves such as nasty plot, recover, and trick. A good example of this is Clodsire. Clodsire is supposed to be able to beat setup ghold as it has unaware (if you opt for that) and high hp + spdef stats. Balloon gholdengo eliminates that completely. Gholdengo could also beat that with receiving hp and running pdef, or through trick + recover outlasting it (as I did in week 1 against gum). The other thing is that ting lu usage is now binned thanks to great tusk returning and miraidon being banned. One of the best ways of handling ghold pre-home is pretty much non-existent thanks to meta shifts. I used ghold in 6/8 teams I built (not inlcuding Fc's), and it came with good results.

:great tusk:
Great role compressor, not passive, and he still has to keep bad spdef or okayish speed depending on what you boost. Let's not act like he can sd, tera, and use booster energy. This is a donphan on steroids. In no world should this be banned rn, it does an amazing job at what it does and is not unhealthy in any way. If you want this banned, you probably want lando banned from ou

:koraidon:
Scarf is really good, but I think the tier can handle it. Bulkier setup variants got nuked cause of tera ban. SD and banded sets might push this thing over the edge, but I don't think people have experimented with those comps enough quite yet to ban it because of that. The stat distribution is really solid for a physical attacker, which makes me want to keep koraidon in the tier that much more. If the skill ceiling of the tier increases, I can see koraidon being problematic

:grimmsnarl:
From testing with screens a little bit, I don't think screens are broken. A lot of my immediate reaction was ptsd from gen 8 stab where every game was screens or cinderace. I also did run into cheese for like an entire month straight in ompl, which didn't make matters any better. For the time being, I don't think screens are really an issue. You can run into random taunters/phasers/unaware/stronger offensive stuff that kinda just bullies you. There are still good speed control options such as scarf koraidon, ekiller, ray, first impression lowkix/slither, etc.

:maushold:
This might be a hot take, but I firmly believe maushold should be banned. Is it the best mon in the tier? Absolutely not. Do you have to go out of your way to use an attack god to use a maushold team? Yes, yes you do. You can even revenge kill this thing with scarfers and prio still. It even hates rocky helmet! HOWEVER, I do not think this mon is very healthy for the tier. Banning maushold would be similar to banning king's rock in my eyes. Population Bomb is simply too strong and threatens stuff out and bullies through resists way too easily. I've won a few tests games off lead just thanks to threatening to one shot a rotom turn 1, or just clicking tidy up on rocks. I beat a rocky helmet great tusk because 6 rocky helmet hits weren't enough to kill maushold. It even has beat up to go through ghosts as seen in ompl semis. The speed is really good. It could be better. But when does a team have 6 mons that outspeed, let alone 6 mons that threaten to ohko? This mon doesnt feel broken, but the interactions it forces with tidy up and just raw population bomb aren't healthy. Like why should it kill max hp heatran from 65 on turn 11. Maybe others disagree, but this mon is so obnoxious and it doesn't really benefit the tier in any way. It's just an accentuated matchup fish that forces unhealthy interactions even if it can't sweep, because the speed + power + coverage is just enough

Conclusion
The tier is good as it is rn, I wouldn't get too banhappy because it might cause a ripple effect. While there are some things that I think would benefit the tier, my opinions alone don't constitute good tiering policy and I acknowledge my biases. At the end of the day, people draw lines at different things and value building differently. Ultimately, you are gonna have to prep for some things in the builder, that's a fact. You can't ban everything you can't prep for lol... I would let the tier develop more, as the tier is still shifting from miraidon meta. If it were up to me, I would probably ban maushold and leave the tier as it is. I don't see how that negatively affects the meta
 
:normal gem:
Terastallization has been unbanned
KrisLilylonghiep341senkoTPP
TerastallizationUnbanUnbanUnbanUnbanUnban
With Seasonal coming up, we were split on when to hold a suspect test. We couldn't decide whether to make it overlap with Seasonal while unbanning it to see its full effect during tour games or complete it before the tour starts. However, with DLC announced to be released on September 13th, a suspect test doesn't seem ideal anymore, as if Tera ends up not getting banned, the meta will only last for a very short amount of time before changing completely. In addition, Godly Gift ladder might not be active enough, so a suspect test doesn't seem very feasible. As such, we've decided to decide the generational mechanic's fate with a council vote, and we unanimously decided to unban Terastallization.

We hope this change will help regain some interest in the format. For clarity, Terastallization will stay free after DLC comes out and we will decide the timing of a Terastallization suspect once we assess it there.
 

ponchlake

cult of personality cult leader
:SS/Arceus-Ghost:
Arceus-Ghost @ Spooky Plate
Ability: Multitype
Tera Type: Poison
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Judgment
- Recover
- Imprison

Never lose an Arceus 1v1 again with this simple trick!

:SV/Arceus-Fighting:
Arceus-Fighting @ Fist Plate
Ability: Multitype
Tera Type: Psychic
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Judgment
- Recover
- Stored Power

Also SP stonks look to be rising with Tera unban.
 
Can someone explain why my Ting Lu's SpDef stat is different?
Playing Godly Gift with Shield-Dog as my God and for some reason Ting Lu hasn't got it's SpDef,
is this a bug or am I big stupid?

1692470562663.png
 

UT

Old habits die SCREAMING
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Appeals + C&C Lead
Zamazenta-Crowned is currently not recognized by the Godly Gift mod as a stat passer (but does still recognize it as an Uber for the "one per team" restriction), meaning that any team with it will just use the HP slot as the stat donor. Technically this means you can still use Zama-C in the HP slot as a god, but in any other slot (including Special Attack, where it normally would be) it will fail to pass stats. We do not have an ETA on when this will be fixed, so we recommend not using Zama-C in the meantime (or ever as long as Zacian-Crowned is free, cause why would you).
Can someone explain why my Ting Lu's SpDef stat is different?
Playing Godly Gift with Shield-Dog as my God and for some reason Ting Lu hasn't got it's SpDef,
is this a bug or am I big stupid?

View attachment 544366
You’re not stupid, this is a known bug. It thinks whatever is in your HP slot is the god.
 
Decided to try making a sun team.

1693937465862.png(God)
Groudon @ Heat Rock
Ability: Drought
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Body Press
- Stealth Rock
- Will-O-Wisp
100/150/140/90/90
Very bulky, meant to stay alive and keep sun and rocks up. appreciates occasional wish support. Occupies slot 6 because I couldn't find anything very helpful to do with it's speed. has 336 attack even uninvested so don't underestimate that earthquake.

1693933902256.png(HP)
Rotom-Heat @ Leftovers
Ability: Levitate
Tera Type: Steel
EVs: 124 HP / 252 SpA / 132 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Overheat
- Will-O-Wisp
- Volt Switch
- Hex
100/65/107/105/107/86
Bulky pivot that hits hard. The speed EVs are kinda arbitrary, I was matching the speed of a Breloom with 252 speed, as I find that's extremely consistent for outspeeding basically anything uninvested without wasting too much investment. It also happens to outspeed Hisuian Goodra, in case you wanted that.

1693934121126.png(Atk)
Lilligant-Hisui (F) @ Choice Band
Ability: Chlorophyll
Tera Type: Grass
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Solar Blade
- Close Combat
- Ice Spinner
- Leaf Blade
70/150/75/50/75/105
Very self explanatory. 150 base attack with 120+ BP choice boosted stab, and Chlorophyll boosted speed (618 speed to be specific). Get it in safely (shouldn't be too hard with the pivots on this team) and it will sweep all but the tankiest of teams.

1693934389052.png(Def)
Slither Wing @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk
Adamant Nature
- Low Kick
- Morning Sun
- U-turn
- First Impression
85/135/140/85/105/81
Another bulky pivot, now with way more bulk. First Impression can revenge kill fast threats if Lilligant cannot, especially since Protosynthesis boosts it's attack to 540. If that doesn't work it can probably live a hit with it's 85/140/105 bulk and kill with U-turn. Morning sun provides healing, and Low kick hits Gods hard since they tend to be very heavy.



1693935377906.png(SpA)
Scream Tail @ Throat Spray
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Boomburst
- Dazzling Gleam
- Wish
115/65/99/100/115/111
Good stats all around. Fast, Bulky, after 1 CM and throat spray's activation can hit hard with boomburst. Also provides healing for Groudon and Tusk.

1693937250730.png(SpD)
Great Tusk @ Assault Vest
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Adamant Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Knock Off
- Earthquake
- Play Rough
115/131/131/53/90/87
The Great Tusk you know and love, now with special bulk! hardly needs healing, it can get wish from scream tail once or twice in a game and it's set.
 
Hello everyone, with DLC now live on PS, GG council discussed how to proceed with the new meta. We don't see anything new that comes out as hilariously broken yet, so we voted to unban stuffs instead. And the results are:
KrisLilylonghiep341senkoResult
Blissey:blissey:AbstainStay bannedUnbanStay bannedStay banned
Calyrex-Shadow:calyrex-shadow:Stay bannedStay bannedStay bannedStay bannedStay banned
Chansey:chansey:AbstainStay bannedUnbanStay bannedStay banned
Dragapult:dragapult:UnbanUnbanUnbanUnbanUnban
Hoopa-Unbound:hoopa-unbound:UnbanUnbanUnbanUnbanUnban
Iron Hands:iron hands:UnbanUnbanUnbanUnbanUnban
Kingambit:kingambit:UnbanStay bannedUnbanUnbanUnban
Miraidon:miraidon:UnbanUnbanUnbanStay bannedUnban
Toxapex:toxapex:UnbanUnbanUnbanStay bannedUnban
Ursaluna:ursaluna:UnbanStay bannedUnbanUnbanUnban
Zamazenta:zamazenta:UnbanUnbanUnbanUnbanUnban
Swift Swim:mantine:Stay bannedStay bannedUnbanStay bannedStay banned
Booster Energy:booster energy:AbstainUnbanUnbanUnbanUnban
And with that, Dragapult, Hoopa-Unbound, Iron Hands, Kingambit, Miraidon, Toxapex, Ursaluna, Zamazenta and Booster Energy have been unbanned!
Of course, these come with a watchlist, including everything that has been unbanned and also: Baxcalibur, Dondozo, Crawdaunt and Alomomola. We will look closely as we proceed with the new meta and ban/reban stuffs as necessary. If you think something else not on this list deserves a spot as well, please tell us!
Hope you will enjoy this new meta! Have fun on ladder and in Seasonal as well!
 
:sv/Ursaluna:
Ursaluna has been unanimously banned from Godly Gift!
Ursaluna was never given a chance in the metagame, and in the short time it stayed it showed just how destructive it can be. Just like in standard play, the combination of Facade and Headlong Rush is lethal, however when it's able to get a Speed donation, all of its weaknesses such as vulnerability to chip damage, being prone to revenge kill or forced to take damage before attacking no longer apply as much. The rare answers that can take Facade and Headlong Rush, such as Corviknight, Drifblim and Orthworm can still fall to its coverage moves, mostly Crunch and Fire Punch. Some Pokemon with raw bulk like HP-donated Terastallized Toxapex can repeatedly take unboosted hits, but it has access to Swords Dance to even circumvent this, essentially leaving no counter to it. Offensive counterplay against it is not easy either, with its great bulk allowing it to live many neutral hits at high health. All of these prove to be too much, and as such it has been banned! Note that Ursaluna-Blood Moon is not banned, only this base forme.
 
alomomola has no counterplay because any minor chip done will be healed off instantly with flip turn + regenerator. This thing can have more bulk than giratina after a def/spdef donation and it also has a better typing which it can further enhance by terastallizing into a steel or a dragon type.
 

Gimmicky

You give me chills, I've had it with the drills
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sooo

:sv/ursaluna-bloodmoon:

she banned too

basically just ursaluna but special attacker and can do tera fighting for vacuum wave stab also has recovery :-3
soccer-hug.gif



So it's not a one-liner, Ogerpon-W looks insane. Basically can receive anything except Spatk and be insane, can play both offense and defense, can be either a cleaner or sweeper, a wall or a bulky wincon, it's really solid in this meta. Grass/Water is solid defensive typing, not great but its enough to give it good setup opportunities against gods like Arc-Ground, Groudon, Mewtwo, and Kyogre, or receivers like Crawdaunt, Helectrode, Tusk and Manaphy, depending on what stat it gets.

Ogerpon-Wellspring (F) @ Wellspring Mask
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Ivy Cudgel
- Power Whip
- Play Rough

Ogerpon-Wellspring (F) @ Wellspring Mask
Ability: Water Absorb
Tera Type: Water
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Synthesis
- Knock Off
- U-turn / Ivy Cudgel
- Spikes / Taunt / Leech Seed
 
should we unban zacian-c in battle form? (for real)
zacian does not have a lot of viability rn since it has low speed and low atk compared to the other legendaries that can use paradox to increase speed and dmg
 

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