Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Welcome to Smogon! Take a moment to read the Introduction to Smogon for a run-down on everything Smogon, and make sure you take some time to read the global rules.
The council has voted to quickban Electrify. Considering it was already considered in Gen 7 BH, and facing similar arguments as Belly Drum in terms of uncompetitiveness, we have decided that the addition of a 150 speed self-imposterproof mon to abuse Electrify is unhealthy, especially when the meta has shifted away from Prankster and to a lesser extent priority and more toward FurScales cores.
Nominations for vr after playing some games of dlc2
Darmanitan-gz A -> A+: Access to Glacial Lance is really great for this mon. Being able to hit Helmet Zygarde with a supereffective stab that doesn't give you three rounds of helmet damage is great. Other than that it's still up to its old tricks. I'd probably nominate it to S- but we have Caly-s which can outspeed it, as well as plenty of Scarf users, and it's weak to rocks or much weaker with mguard. Thunderous kick is definitely a move that's been slept on for the nonchoiced sets and I could see it putting in more work. Keep an eye on this one.
Gengar-Mega A- -> b: Mostly made redundant by the presence of Caly-S but this mon does still have a Fairy resistance, letting it switch in to those attacks a few times. It might even deserve lower rank later on. I could see it being used on suicide ghost spam offense with Arc-Ghost and Caly-S though, which is an interesting archetype.
Yveltal A- -> A: Assault Vest sets are really nice for checking Caly-S, which is very common in the meta. You can't ignore it. It also can usually get a Rapid Spin off, and it has stab on useful moves like Beak Blast to punish U-Turners.
Zamac A- -> B+: it cannot avoid the 2hKO from Caly-S so it can't just switch into it. If Caly-S continues to be popular, it can't be your sole special check anymore.
Deoxys-A B+ -> B-: Caly-S has so much more bulk and a better typing, but can't go mixed like Deoxys-A, but I really hate how bad the bulk on Deoxys-A is, and you can play Caly-S a lot more recklessly than it.
Kartana B -> B-: As the meta gets faster, Kartana will experience more and more trouble getting on the field. Its walls such as Arceus-Water and Zyg-C are as popular as ever, and it is outclassed a lot by faster threats such as Darm-GZ and Zacian-C which can check offensive Pokemon which Kartan can't do.
Tyranitar-Mega B- -> B: Another solid check to Caly-S with an Ice Scales set, but it's more easily lured by Fighting moves. One of my teams run Chopel Berry Ttar, which can lure Caly-S and just ohko it with knock off, but I have to admit that's niche. Mbounce isn't too bad either.
Zekrom B- > C: I actually haven't seen much utility for Zekrom since we started playing NDBH. Electric seems to be a really nice coverage option as compared to a STAB option. Drop it because its usage is low and it's slow, not because it's weak or outclassed by something.
Necrozma-U B- -> C: Another casualty of Caly-S, Necro-u wishes it were faster, and Ghost STAB is way more useful than Dragon STAB especially with Steel types running around. I may eat my words if people start running Dragon Energy and it actually puts in work, but it's so weak to U-turns that it probably won't.
Calyrex-Ice Ur -> D: this is a decent wall, if you cover its weaknesses. I would recommend running Fur Coat or Primordial Sea on it, with a Prankster or Fur Coat bulky water to check Zacian-C and Darm-GZ. Glacial Lance coming off 150 Attack is deadly to neutral targets making it a decent tank, but it's weak to burns. Poison Heal with Glacial Lance, Spectral Thief and a protect move might even be useful, but i have yet to try this, because it's slow enough to outslow Core Enforcer, and you don't get the benefit of Heavy Duty Boots's hazard imunity.
Regirock Ur -> D: With its mammoth defense and a free item slot, Regirock can run an effective Fur Coat set that can wall a lot of Darm-GZ, Ho-Oh, Regigigas, Zekrom, and Kyub sets. It's a huge momentum drain though, so I'd only use it if you needed to improof your own teammate as well. It also doesn't have a lot of merits over Arceus-Water, except that you free up your Arceus slot. Make sure you don't forget about Pdon either!
And of course:
Calyrex-S Ur -> A+: With a variety of solid sets such as Speed Boost Tail Glow, Adapt, Psysurge, Tinted Lens, Regenerator, Magic Guard and Mold Breaker and much better bulk than Gengar, there is little doubt that of a high rank. The reason I don't place it in S- is that it's weak to Pursuit trapping, and can't Dynamax to get out of it. Seriously, this thing is great and requires a tons of experimentation.
And a Bonus: an insanely cool set. I have seen a few other people using this, but I still consider myself the originator of it since I didn't see anyone using it before me.
If they hope to use Ho-Oh to check you, just Thunder Cage it and Ho-Oh will be forced to waste a bunch of healing PP, if they don't just die outright because of a misplay. That will let you get your hazards set up later. Steel-types neutral to the move are annoyed by it as well, such as Solgaleo which takes about 20 from it at +0 followed by the trap damage. Stealth Rock is still really useful, if your team is weak to Darm-GZ, since you don't want to let that get a free switchin if you can help it. The best part about Thunder Cage is that, unlike Magma Storm, it has 90% accuracy and 24 pp so you can spam it!
Does anyone think Thunderous Kick could be useful on Kanga-Mega?
Unlike Power-Up Punch, Thunderous Kick impacts the foe, so Topsy-Turvey doesn’t impact Kanga, and does pack decent base power.
It could benefit Extreme Speed, to punish survivors of Nature’s Madness, and ultimately threaten Pokémon weak to Fighting right off the bat. I doubt it would necessary be used over Night Shade / Seismic Toss, but I thought it could be nice as a potential alternative.
These 2 sound absolutely demonic https://pokepast.es/f2c93cde5113f14c
They each have their qualities tho, specs being slow as shit but destroying bulkier teams and scarf doing nothing against bulky teams while tearing apart offense
I think a good happy medium would be Sceptile-Mega. Earlier I mentioned an Adaptability set, now with Dragon’s Maw confirmed at 50%, I would consider that:
This set is completely terrible and should not be used. It relies on Sceptile-Mega always coming in at 100% health, which it probably won't be doing because of entry hazards, and that doesn't even factor in other sources of chip. In addition, having only one of your offensive moves boosted by an ability is simply a bad idea, especially with all the good fairies running around. Being choice locked, it means that every time Sceptile gets a kill or they switch in a fairy on Dragon Energy, they get a free turn. You really don't want to be giving Zacian-C, Xerneas, Arceus-Fairy or Mega Diancie free turns. Also, don't run Spore on Choice sets, because the opponent always burns at least one sleep turn as you switch out, making it far less potent.
But on to more positive news: here are some cool sets I've been using!
This is adapted from the Regenband Necrozma-DM set that a few people tried last gen. The meta is a lot faster now so you really need that 110 speed tier, and you are still slower than neutral Arceus forms, meaning you can get the slower u-Turn pivot on them. Glacial Lance deals about 75 to Fur Coat Zygarde-C, putting it seriously out of commission, and about the same to non-FC Giratina, so catching either of them with it on the switch is great for you. Sunsteel Strike keeps Xerneas honest, and though it doesn't kill, it deals a major chunk. Its solid set of resistances allows Metagross to be able to set up Stealth Rock against much of the meta, and threaten out common bouncers. Because it runs U-Turn, it doesn't fall pray to trapping, which a lot of other Steel-types can't stand.
Defensively, this set has just enough bulk to survive dangerous hits:
252 Atk Choice Band Adaptability Mewtwo-Mega-X Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Metagross-Mega: 310-366 (85.1 - 100.5%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Diancie-Mega V-create vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Metagross-Mega: 272-320 (74.7 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Pixie Plate Pixilate Diancie-Mega Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 252 SpD Metagross-Mega: 142-168 (39 - 46.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
This is one of the better offensive utility sets I've tried. If you can get rid of their Fur Coat walls and Ghost-Types, this mon has potential to methodically break down teams in the late game, but Magic bounce lets it function great during the early game as well. Being an extremely consistent switchin to both Poison Heal Fairies and Regigigas is super nice, as not even the Strength Sappers can do anything against it. It can also hard switch in on many defensive mons such as Giratina, Arceus-Steel, and Eternatus, but try to keep it unburnt. Also, its bulk allows it to survive a single hit from Specs Calyrex-S and remove it with Spectral Thief, letting you emergency check any of the common variants except psysurge Expanding Force ones.
This set is completely terrible and should not be used. It relies on Sceptile-Mega always coming in at 100% health, which it probably won't be doing because of entry hazards, and that doesn't even factor in other sources of chip. In addition, having only one of your offensive moves boosted by an ability is simply a bad idea, especially with all the good fairies running around. Being choice locked, it means that every time Sceptile gets a kill or they switch in a fairy on Dragon Energy, they get a free turn. You really don't want to be giving Zacian-C, Xerneas, Arceus-Fairy or Mega Diancie free turns. Also, don't run Spore on Choice sets, because the opponent always burns at least one sleep turn as you switch out, making it far less potent.
But on to more positive news: here are some cool sets I've been using!
This is adapted from the Regenband Necrozma-DM set that a few people tried last gen. The meta is a lot faster now so you really need that 110 speed tier, and you are still slower than neutral Arceus forms, meaning you can get the slower u-Turn pivot on them. Glacial Lance deals about 75 to Fur Coat Zygarde-C, putting it seriously out of commission, and about the same to non-FC Giratina, so catching either of them with it on the switch is great for you. Sunsteel Strike keeps Xerneas honest, and though it doesn't kill, it deals a major chunk. Its solid set of resistances allows Metagross to be able to set up Stealth Rock against much of the meta, and threaten out common bouncers. Because it runs U-Turn, it doesn't fall pray to trapping, which a lot of other Steel-types can't stand.
Defensively, this set has just enough bulk to survive dangerous hits:
252 Atk Choice Band Adaptability Mewtwo-Mega-X Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Metagross-Mega: 310-366 (85.1 - 100.5%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Diancie-Mega V-create vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Metagross-Mega: 272-320 (74.7 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Pixie Plate Pixilate Diancie-Mega Boomburst vs. 252 HP / 252 SpD Metagross-Mega: 142-168 (39 - 46.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
This is one of the better offensive utility sets I've tried. If you can get rid of their Fur Coat walls and Ghost-Types, this mon has potential to methodically break down teams in the late game, but Magic bounce lets it function great during the early game as well. Being an extremely consistent switchin to both Poison Heal Fairies and Regigigas is super nice, as not even the Strength Sappers can do anything against it. It can also hard switch in on many defensive mons such as Giratina, Arceus-Steel, and Eternatus, but try to keep it unburnt. Also, its bulk allows it to survive a single hit from Specs Calyrex-S and remove it with Spectral Thief, letting you emergency check any of the common variants except psysurge Expanding Force ones.
Hmm... Well, it’s the same Choice item concept Kyogre-P uses, except instead of Primordial Sea, it’s Dragon’s Maw.
Spore is used so it can check threats at any HP, but point taken on only 1 attack being boosted, Clanging Scales can serve as an alternative, and function like Steam Eruption does for Kyogre-P, for consistent damage.
I understand Choice sets could attract walls like Fairy-types.
The same is true for the very Pokémon you cite, as Choice Calyrex-S could be walled by a Dark-type with Pursuit on Expanding Force / Psychic STAB, or by a Normal-type for when it uses Astral Barrage, Moongeist Beam, etc.
It’s also no different than walling Water Spout with a Desolate Land Pokémon coming in like Red Orb Groudon, or Darmanitan-Galar-Z, just as a Fairy could come in on Dragon Energy.
Point being how Dragon Energy offers better coverage than Water, as it breaks the toughest walls in Zygarde-C and Giratina, and of course, like with Kyogre-P, it would be supported by Defog and Rapid Spin, and / or Court Change.
Why would they stay in after getting Spored? That just gives you momentum, and defeats the point of me losing a turn on my switch. Sure, they can burn a Turn, but I am likely sending in a set-up mon, or something to take control with the momentum Sleep affords... in either case I changed it to Clanging Scales.
Neutral sweeping:
252 SpA Choice Specs Dragon's Maw Sceptile-Mega Dragon Energy (150 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Arceus: 379-447 (85.3 - 100.6%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
Wall Breaking:
252 SpA Choice Specs Dragon's Maw Sceptile-Mega Dragon Energy (150 BP) vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Giratina: 506-596 (100.5 - 118.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Dragon's Maw Sceptile-Mega Dragon Energy (150 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Assault Vest Zygarde-Complete: 594-702 (93.3 - 110.3%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Choice Specs Sceptile-Mega Seed Flare vs. 252 HP / 252 SpD Kyogre-Primal: 360-426 (89.1 - 105.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
******
Anyways on to some positive corrections to your suggested sets...
As for your sets, you misspelled V-Create on your Metagross-Mega.
And why bother with Metronome on your Zamazenta-C? It takes 6 pp / turns to double your damage, while something like Expert Belt would give you a 20% boost, even when you need to switch moves.
If an attack was super effective, it would take 3 turns of Metronome to match Expert Belt’s damage output, especially with pivot moves letting enemies escape even Anchor Shot, and resetting your boost based on what attack you need to switch to in order to hit them hardest with.
In either case, you eventually need to Shore Up, and your boosts are reset—Metronome also resets to 0, when the foe uses Protect, or switches to an Immunity, like Ghosts vs Thunderous Kick...
Metronome: 1+1.2+1.4 = Expert Belt 1.2 + 1.2 + 1.2
You may as well at least slash Expert Belt, as you are playing with type effectiveness, and are using it to hit for super effective damage, not gradual neutral hits.
Also, if Specs Psychic Surge Expanding Force Calyrex is enough to keep out Zamazenta-C, as you mentioned:
252 SpA Choice Specs Calyrex-Shadow Expanding Force (120 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Zamazenta-Crowned in Psychic Terrain: 253-298 (65.2 - 76.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Then so is Adaptability Astral Barrage:
252 SpA Choice Specs Adaptability Calyrex-Shadow Astral Barrage vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Zamazenta-Crowned: 260-306 (67 - 78.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
————
TLDR:
— Adjusted Sceptile-Mega.
— I Corrected your Metagross set’s error...
—I slashed Expert Belt for your Zamazenta-C set based on how it is meant to be played...
— Sceptile-Mega’s KOs breaks walls, and sweeps teams. #TerrificNotTerrible
I see what your goal is. I would suggest Glacial Lance over Extreme Speed since you are already boosting Speed by a factor of 2-times.
In order to give it an edge over Kyurem-Black, perhaps Photon Geyser over Spectral Thief.
This gives it dual STAB. Heavy-Duty Boots could allow for easier pivoting in, and ensure it doesn’t get worn down by Stealth Rocks.
———————
I would also consider Poison Heal, it would allow it to take advantage of Spectral Thief and boost in the long run, considering it has good bulk, and It serve for sustaining itself without having to replace a coverage move.
______________
Ice and Ground have good coverage together, so I agree with Precipice Blades over Close Combat, etc.
Sadly, none of Ice Rider's best STAB moves make contact and neither does Precipice Blades. If running Glacial Lance and Photon Geyser, its best bet ability wise is either Adaptability or Tinted Lens. One benefit to its very low speed is it usually sets up after Spectral Thief but its bad defensive typing leaves it prone to many common utility moves and entry hazards. Boots are a decent option but something like Magic Guard Life Orb could work too, although it faces competition from DGZ and Kyu-B for each role.
Sadly, none of Ice Rider's best STAB moves make contact and neither does Precipice Blades. If running Glacial Lance and Photon Geyser, its best bet ability wise is either Adaptability or Tinted Lens. One benefit to its very low speed is it usually sets up after Spectral Thief but its bad defensive typing leaves it prone to many common utility moves and entry hazards. Boots are a decent option but something like Magic Guard Life Orb could work too, although it faces competition from DGZ and Kyu-B for each role.
After editing my post above, I kept PH, as it can work to exploit its defensive prowess into sustainability, and further take advantage of the bulkier stat distribution, so it can have that over D-G-Z.
One thing it has over Kyurem-Black is the Dual-STAB not feeling redundant, whereas Dragon-Ice both cover Dragons. Photon Geyser not only breaks Fur Coat, but it has zero drawbacks.
I am glad you agree on including Photon Geyser, for secondary STAB.
First off, I just want everyone to hear the best song of this artist, yet. It truly feels like something you will one day think belongs on the radio. It’s unlike other prior music, and makes me have hope for her future music career.
BH is known for having the option to run nearly any ability and moveset for every Pokemon. The Next Best Thing is a project where participants will create a new set that is not considered to be one of its main sets that has a niche/use in the current metagame.
How does this work?
Every week, a Pokemon will be selected and some of its main sets would be listed and banned. Participants will have up to Friday of each week to submit a set and provide their comments about it. On Saturday and Sunday a vote will be held for the most creative and viable set in the NDBH metagame. The winner of each week will be added to the Hall of Fame in this post.
Important things to note:
- Be creative with your sets! However, it is important to differentiate between a creative set and a gimmicky set. If a set is too gimmicky or situational I may ask the submitter to change their set.
- Justify your set! Show how it stands out compared to the main sets without being outclassed. Show what it does and what niche it holds. Replays are a good way to show your set in action, but keep in mind to have quality replays, not some 1100 replay against a standard tier team.
- Don't change your set after voting has started.
- Don't vote for your own set or persuade others to vote for it.
- You can reserve a set for 24 hours before someone else can take it, be sure to be specific about what set it is going to be.
- Don't submit multiple sets, item alternatives are ok as is the choice between coverage moves but keep the slashes minimum. Ability slashes are discouraged unless it is something minor like Tough Claws vs Adaptability.
- The banned main sets, to not be too confusing, will not have all common options slashed (ex. Magic Guard Mega Mewtwo Y). Use your own judgement to decide if your submitted set is very similar or not compared to the listed set.
- Changing an item or one move of a main set should be avoided, unless the move change significantly alters the use of the set.
- Each week's submissions end at Friday, 11:59 pm EST. Each week's voting will be done on a Google Form (to not clog thread) and end at Sunday, 11:59 pm EST.
Mega Mewtwo Y is the most dominant offensive force in the NDBH metagame thanks to its incredible mixed offenses backed up by a blazing 140 base speed tier. It is capable of running multiple incredibly threatening wallbreaking sets, including both mixed and all special sets. What sets will you come up with for it? Deadline to submit your sets is Friday, October 16th, 11:59 pm EST.
Offensive Mixed Magic Guard
Mewtwo-Mega-Y @ Life Orb
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Hasty / Timid Nature
- Light of Ruin
- Precipice Blades / High Jump Kick
- Photon Geyser / Knock Off
- Volt Tackle / Knock Off
Mixed Sheer Force
Mewtwo-Mega-Y @ Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpA / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Psychic
- Ice Beam / Moonblast
- Earth Power / Focus Blast
- Bolt Strike
The revenge killer that can 1HKO Zacian-C, Zamazenta-C, Mewtwo-Mega-Y, Calyrex-S, and really puts its 151 Speed Tier to use. Depending on the moves you can Improof it with Fur Coat Darm-Z, or another Fur Coat Pokemon.
Also, it's totally better than before thanks to beating Calyrex-S, the newest biggest threat to the metagame.
V-Create: 252 Atk Expert Belt Tough Claws Pheromosa V-create OR Close Combat vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Zamazenta-Crowned: 386-456 (99.4 - 117.5%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
Glacial Lance: 252 Atk Expert Belt Pheromosa Glacial Lance vs. 252 HP / 252 Def Zygarde-Complete: 490-581 (77 - 91.3%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO after 1 layer of Spikes
Wicked Blow: 252 Atk Expert Belt Tough Claws Pheromosa Wicked Blow vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Giratina on a critical hit: 271-319 (53.8 - 63.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery ******************** Eternatus plays nicely with Pheromosa, by racking up damage earlier on to soften up the opponents for the inevitable finishing moves of Pheromosa.
Eternatus @ Black Sludge
Ability: Ice Scales
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shore Up
- Toxic Spikes
- Volt Switch
- Core Enforcer
Let's analyze it, as can pick apart teams, while absorbing hits thanks to Ice Scales. Toxic Spikes and Volt Absorb allows it to support heavy offense (HO) teams, but breaking down walls like Zygarde-C, Giratina, etc. with Poison, and can keep momentum high via its pivoting.
Core Enforcer keeps some Dragons at bay, and can disable abilities by faster Pokemon, including ones that have set-up, such as PHeal Quiver Dance Water Spout Kyogre-P. The goal here is to support a sweep, while removing the options many opposing teams use.
PHeal Xerneas makes a great teammate to pivot to, take Dragon hits, and use Court Change, while Eternatus can take Poison hits, and absorb Toxic Spikes if Magic Bounced.
After some discussion in discord, and extensive testing, this set has served as a great offensive lead, and can immediately pose a threat via Spore, before setting up and handling most foes with near perfect coverage. Focus Sash let's it get to KO on Imposter, thanks to a natural immunity to Spore, and you can Improof with Soundproof + Safety Goggles Pokemon like Zygarde-Complete, which resists Blue Flare.
The National Dex moderation team has decided that this thread will be locked because of repeated low level discussion, inability to stay on-topic, and community members failing to be respectful towards other users.