Metagame SM RU - RU Alpha Discussion - Month 2

[phantom]

RU Alpha Info:

Month 1:

Tier List: http://pastebin.com/jQg5ybXw
Ban List: http://pastebin.com/9FBtJmTp

*Mega Gyarados is not RU despite what the stats say, as it was a technical error because it's been OU by usage since the start of the gen

*Tangrowth moved up to OU even though it's listed in the usage stats as if it were in RU range, so it was added to the ban list for clarification

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Month 2:

Tier List: http://pastebin.com/Bc4AFCst
Ban List: http://pastebin.com/Uizm9N2c

*Actual tier changes (so no Salamence, Weavile, etc):

drops:

Gigalith.

rises:

Arcanine,

Alakazam,

Kommo-o,

Ninetales-A,

Flygon,

Mienshao,

Togekiss,

Metagross,

Crobat,

Celebi,

Chandelure,

Klefki,

Absol-Mega,

Swampert.
banned from uu:

Scolipede (Banned in Month 1),

Drizzle (Banned in Month 2), Baton Pass (Banned in Month 1).

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SM RU won't be here for another 4 months or so, but a little early discussion as seen before XY and before ORAS can still be productive until we wait out the time. Do keep this thread relevant to RU only, and avoid discussing things that are very likely not to be in the tier (i.e. most Ultra Beasts) and things that just won't be relevant altogether (Like Air Slash Butterfree and Drill Peck Delibird). As a general rule of thumb, the Pokemon that are in BL2 and that are still in the tier are fair game for discussion.

Z move information:

-https://paste.ee/r/mvJ70
-http://pastebin.com/d5Hed1cw

Relevant Mechanics changes:

-Abilities such as Refrigerate now give a 1.2x boost instead of a 1.3x boost
-Thunder Wave is now 90% accurate and reduces Speed by 1/2 and not 1/4
-Destiny Bond now has a chance to fail if used repeatedly, much like Protect
-Gale Wings now only works if the Pokemon using it is at full health
-Diamond Storm now boosts Defenses by +2
-Confusion nerfed from 50% chance to hit to 33%
-Weak Armor now boosts Speed by +2 in addition to lowering the defense by -1
-Burn damage has been reduced to 1/16 of the user's max HP
-Leech Life now buffed to 80 BP
-Sucker Punch nerfed to 70 BP
-Dark-types are now immune to priority moves used by Prankster
-Mega Evolutions gain their stats and use of abilities at the moment they mega evolve, meaning Mega Banette will have its Speed at the start of the turn it Mega Evolves and can use Prankster turn 1

Relevant new moves for old Pokemon:

-Flygon + Dragon Dance
-Froslass + Will-O-Wisp
-Moltres + Burn Up
-Mantine + Roost (+20 HP)
-Sharpedo + Psychic Fangs
-Diancie + Power Gem
-Pangoro + Bullet Punch

Relevant new abilities for old Pokemon:

-Sandstream Gigalith
-Drought Torkoal
-Drizzle Pelipper
-Slush Rush Beartic

What can RU expect next gen?

-Weather might play an important role next gen given the presence of a good Sandstream user in Gigalith, which doubles up as a good Flying and Fire check with Sand special defense boost and the introduction of Slush Rush for hail (hail version of Swift Swim)
-Introduction of Z moves opens up the door for new strategies to execute supporting win conditions and breaking down defensive cores
-New Alolan forms such as Ninetales, Exeggutor, Marowak, Muk, Raichu and Sandslash
-New Pokemon such as Mimikyu, Silvally, Drampa, Decidueye, Rimbombee, Lycanroc, Turotnator, and Palossand
-Power creep pushing some OU/UU Pokemon and even some mega evolutions down to RU

Feel free to discuss anything else that comes to mind!

 

[termi]

pheromosa is strong and fast but frail also walled by doublade so its not broken i think we will see it in ru :)

 

[Mariode]

-With Gigalith having Sand Stream, I can see Sandstorm Teams getting more attention. Stoutland and maybe even Palossand can make good use of it..
-Hail will probably be really good, mostly because of Aurora Veil(imo a great move) and Slush Rush Beartic
-I'm not sure if Flygon will stay in RU. Dragon Dance Flygon seems broken
-Silvally: No, just no. Not in RU.
-Ribombee, Incineroar, Bewear and Crabominable look like decent attackers and Tortunator and Pyukumuku seem to have good tank-qualities. Tortunator cannot get burned and doesn't get hit super effectively by Scald... how awesome is that?
-Lycanrocks moveset looks promising, but his stats do not. Day > Night . It can't really touch steel-types (Brick Break is it's best Option). Day has Sand Rush... Will SD Sand Rush Lycanrock be a thing..? Probably not... Acellerock is a nice move though
-Passimian has potential. It's basically a slower, more bulky Mienshao (without Regen)
-I can see Dhelmise as a really good Rapid Spinner, as it can't be blocked by Ghost Types as easily as other spinner can... Although STAB ANCHOR SHOT seems broken... Seriously... Wtf... 120 Power and Trapping Effect... So good! Looking at it... Delmise will very likely be UU...
-Decidueye is pretty much the same thing, but instead of Rapid Spin it gets Roost... Safe to say that this thing will not be RU
-Drampa definitely has potential. Such a good Movepool!
-If Araquanid will be RU, it will be a GOD! 4 time resistance to fire, unburnable, resists scald, gets double damage on water-type attacks and learns leech life, lunge, infestation and scald. Sadly it lacks recoery and boosting moves.
-Not sure about Mimikyu, Oricorio, Minior, Wishiwashi, Gumshoos and Shiinotic... They could maybe have a small niche. (Or maybe a big one?) [Or they coukd maybe banned?]
-Toucannon will have it's niche. It has suprisingly good coverage and acceptable offensive stats.
-Water Shuriken is now special... but I dunno if it helps Accelgor that much...
-At long last we can say goodbye to Fletchinder. It's pretty much trash now
-Bellossom get's Quiver Dance, so it might even do something in combination with Moonblast and HP Fire, though I doubt it as Ribombee is just way better
-Buzzwole is pretty much just a Rhyperior... A slightly better one... Wouldn't be suprised to see it in RU
-I'm not sure how Z-Move will affect the Meta... I think stall teams will be
slightly less effective than before

 

[Kushalos]

Very nice that you dont absolutely need a flying resist anymore to counter fletchinder since you can just hit it once and it loses its priority, and it cant 100% check your sweeping Virizion anymore with an emergency Acrobatics if there are rocks up. Escavalier now gets a form of healing in Leech Life, so it can opt to no longer run the strong but unreliable Megahorn. Mimikyu, Sylvally, Lycanroc and Turtonator could def be RU staples. I dont think the others mentioned will stay or be that good.

The new burn mechanic is huge. Since it basically means that mons like Venusaur wont be entirely crippled anymore when they switch into Scald, it'll be kinda like not having your leftovers anymore in 6th gen. So BKC and friends wont have to nag again about banning this move.

 

[lighthouses]

Yea the lack of a mandatory fletch check on every team is nice although i really love using fletch myself so the nerf kinda blows.
I'm looking foward to using alolan-raichu though, psychic/electric/fighting sounds like pretty cope coverage with nasty plot and it sits at a very nice speed tier although scarf drapion/sneasel are gonna be a pain for it, but that goes to every psychic type in the tier p much, not that impossible to provide support for(like using offensive colbur slowking + melo or something similar).
Mantine is definitely going to be ou at least from what i've seen so we can't really expect that sadly, although we might be getting some new hazard removal pokemon which is pretty nice.
Also im pretty sure flygons not gonna drop to ru, even if its not as good as i expect it to be, a scrafty in uu kinda situation can very well happen due to hype D:

 

[Lord Death Man]

Dodrio and Alolan Raichu both look interesting and threaten to push speed creep very slightly upwards without being incredibly broken. Potentially getting Noivern back further supports that. Alolan Ninetales may also have a niche, and also sits at a cool speed tier, but it's offensive stats (much like the original Ninetales) are incredibly lackluster to the point I'm not too sure. Lycanroc also might sit here, but honestly I think a rock type that fast and strong might be a little too good (same for Nihlego, but for somewhat different reasons).

I sincerely doubt Silvally will be an issue. The memories are confirmed to not have accompanying boosts, and it's movepool is lackluster despite it's pretty solid defensive stats. Specific forms will likely have a use (Fairy and Steel stand out defensively, Ground and maybe Fighting or Fire stand out offensively) but I don't see this being a dominant threat. It lacks the coverage to really do much vs prominent defensive threats with SD and there's usually defensive mons with better types. Parting Shot is pretty fantastic for certain sweepers, but Silvally can't really make good use of the new parting shot z-move. The high likelihood we'll get Megalix back, at least for the first few months, further limits it.

I don't see there being a Drizzle mon in RU, Pelipper especially is just way too good with it (and specs Politoed sounds sort of dumb as well). Similarly, I don't see Drought being legal in RU either even if Torkoal is really lackluster; it's such a fantastically strong support ability, and I would love to be able to run something that isn't a Prankster on sun teams.

Gigalith looks SO cool as a support option, especially if we get Noivern back; it's just so bulky with sand stream.

Edit: Didnt want to make a new post for this but I could see Bruxish having a small niche here, because Strong Jaw turns Psychic Fangs into a roughly 127.5 bp attack before stab, and it gets Aqua Jet and also SD.

 

[atomicllamas]

There is a zero percent chance mimikyu will end up being RU. I think it's strong enough to potentially end up as either OU or BL (seriously play with this thing in OU, disguise is retarded).

I expect Talonflame to be RU, and I expect roost, bu, brave bird, and wisp (possibly sub?) with flame body to be pretty good. Abomasnow Beartic will be really good, Abomasnow beats waters and can wear down steels which I believe are the only reliable stops to Beartic.

Also z move parting shot (alola Persian, Pangoro) is really cool and is essentially healing wish without killing your mom to do so, I can see that having some niche in RU.

 

[Kushalos]

Id rather run acrogem on Talonflame in this gen. However, i can agree on Mimikyuu prob staying at least UU. Not sure on Silvally either, maybe some forms will be be in the even lower tiers if they end up tiered differently. Or even Lycanroc could end up UU with access to SD, good speed and great EdqeQuake coverage.

 

[spookysocialist]

Would it be worth using type:Null over sylvally? You lose speed and your item slot in exchange for better defenses. No recovery sucks but it can still work as a bulky pivot imo.

Pallosand is something I could see being RU that's very strong. It resists fighting/rock coverage and has giga drain to hit water types, plus reliable recovery (unless your opponent has torkoal). It might give a niche to shiinotic over venasaur as an earth power switchin.

 

[Miyami~~]

Depending on how the tier shakes up, we might be able to keep Sableye around this time considering things like Persian-A, Absol, Houndoom, Muk-A, and other Sableye will probably be prominent in the tier.

 

[MemesWithDreams]

Very nice that you dont absolutely need a flying resist anymore to counter fletchinder since you can just hit it once and it loses its priority, and it cant 100% check your sweeping Virizion anymore with an emergency Acrobatics if there are rocks up. Escavalier now gets a form of healing in Leech Life, so it can opt to no longer run the strong but unreliable Megahorn. Mimikyu, Sylvally, Lycanroc and Turtonator could def be RU staples. I dont think the others mentioned will stay or be that good.

The new burn mechanic is huge. Since it basically means that mons like Venusaur wont be entirely crippled anymore when they switch into Scald, it'll be kinda like not having your leftovers anymore in 6th gen. So BKC and friends wont have to nag again about banning this move.

Escavalier does not get leech life sadly...

 

[Kushalos]

fuck man, literally the only mon that really needs it, sigh.

 

[bmacbnasty]

As if Honchkrow wasn't a big enough pain for RU for two generations now, it can utilize Flyinium Z in conjunction with Mirror Move to gain +2 Attack immediately. This effect occurs even if Mirror Move fails. Honchkrow would be able to use this relatively easily thanks to the number of switches it can force (think slower Fighting or Grass types, frailer offensive mons, Psychic types, etc) as well as the mindgames that Sucker Punch creates, and with an immediate +2 as well as Moxie Honchkrow can, in theory, spiral out of control very quickly. Generally, Honchkrow needed the opposing team to be weakened before it could get its boost and start cleaning, but now that might not necessarily be the case. The fact that Life Orb is not used also gives Honchkrow some more longevity and the ability to fire off more Brave Birds before going down. With this set, Honchkrow also has the recourse of just using Z-Brave Bird, which has 190 base power before STAB (hits WAY harder than a Life Orb Brave Bird). This can give you the ability to muscle past a bulkier target that may try to stomach the hit and KO back, which gives Honchkrow a degree of versatility and unpredicability in some situations and potentially allows it to start cleaning early. This set is not without flaws of course, the main ones being you're relatively weaker than a Life Orb Krow before a boost, and the Sucker Punch nerf damages your ability to clean on the whole.

Edit: Also there seems to be a great deal of Mega Stones that are unreleased in SM, and of the ones that are very few belong to Pokemon that historically have made their way to RU. I'm awfully curious if anyone has any information on whether or not we will be able to transfer Mega Stones over via PokeBank, or whether we will have to wait until later Generation VII games for these to be obtainable again. If the latter is true, I'm curious to hear thoughts on how the general absence of Mega Evolution will impact the RU metagame in SM.

 

[phantom]

I complied a list of the mega stones that are released: http://pastebin.com/mH6Cuad1 & mega stones that aren't released: http://pastebin.com/jpuRwHG0

The annoying part is that a lot of the unreleased ones are lower tier Megas, like Abomasnow, Houndoom, Ampharos, Steelix, Camerupt, etcetera. I was kind of looking forward for Mega Ampharos in particular to drop down to RU this gen.

Unless something changes with PokeBank, then it's very likely that the only Mega RU will have is Glalie, which is kind of unfortunate since Ampharos/Abomasnow/Steelix seemed liked interesting prospects in SM, and Glalie doesn't have quite the same fire power it used to with the -ate nerf.

 

[Joe Career]

Goodbye Fletchinder, hello Talonflame.

Edit: on a more serious note, though,
Sand in RU will face the big change of Gigalith as a sand setter. The possible new inclusions in RU for Sand abusers are Lycanroc, Palossand, Minior and Dugtrio-A.
Lycanroc is shit. Probably PU. Stat wise it reminds me of mons like Floatzel a lot, except it doesn't really have decent abilities or any decent coverage.
Palossand might have a niche but since its ability doesn't really give it an immunity it'll probably just be used as a gimmick once in a while. It does have nice recovery in sand, and decent special attack. That's two things Claydol never had. I'm not sure if it'll stay here or drop to NU (claydol took forever to drop), but either way it'll be more of a niche mon than an actual threat.
Minior is fucking terrifying. That's all I can say. I know it might seem Aero outclasses it at first glance, but Minior has an amazing ability that basically allows it to go from Carbink levels to Archeops levels all the while WITH SHELL SMASH. Seriously I cannot emphasize this things potential. You basically come in, Shell Smash for free with that enormous bulk, take a hit, drop the shell and start spamming Acrobatics and EdgeQuake, or maybe Power Gem if that's your thing. I haven't tried it yet but apparently its ability also prevents status, meaning no burns nor paralysis as long as the shell is up. Seriously this thing so broken it might get banned.
Dugtrio-A will not be a simple Dugtrio clone and replacement, but will work on a somewhat similar fashion i.e. fast frail attacker. However, the lack of Arena Trap will mean it won't just simply work as a trapper and will have to probably rely more on sand. I expect it to become an RU staple, I don't think UU will want this thing and I think it's a bit too much for NU due to its defensive typing and decent speed.

Speaking of Alolan forms, more stuff I can imagine dropping:
Golem-A might have some potential with your opponent trying to predict your ability however with the same stats as regular Golem I can't see it being too good.
I don't see Muk-A doing much with competition from Drapion (however it does have special bulk and hp versus physical bulk and speed).
Exeggutor-A actually reminds me of Adaptability Dragalge and has some potential thanks too good attacking stats on both ends, amazing stabs (Draco Meteor, Leaf Storm, Wood Hammer, and Dragon Hammer on a lesser extent too), good coverage and decent enough bulk however it is quite slow, doesn't really have an amazing ability like Dragalge and it does have more weaknesses and less resists, but it does have access to recovery and all in all will be an interesting pokemon to watch for.
Marowak-A is an insane physical wallbreaker with a good immunity (or Rock Head Flare Blitz if you fancy that) that can't get burned. I can see it dropping but I can't see it staying for long.
Sandslash-A won't really be that good in RU with fast fire and fighting types roaming around, maybe in NU it'll find its niche.
Persian-A is interesting with Fur Coat Parting Shot and that speed, however it is quite frail on the special side and lack offensive pressure apart from Foul Play.
Raticate-A is shit.
Raichu-A: I don't know how the Terrain setter will change things but assuming for some reason this thing doesn't get enough usage in OU (but Tapu Koko being OU), I can see it being somewhat decent in RU, it would be the second fastest Psychic type available in lower tiers (the first is Swoobat) and a pretty good one at that with access to Nasty Plot, tons of Electric moves (including Nuzzle for paralysis), Surf, Focus Blast, Grass Knot and others. It might be slower than Jolteon but it can definitely hold on its own. However it is specially weak to Knock Off and dark moves, and to a lesser extent Ghost and Bug as well. A very interesting addition if it happens to drop imo.

 

[BP]

I honestly just want Prima to come to RU because if it does I swear I'm using it for all my matches.

 

[Lord Death Man]

What's the general opinion on Tsareena atm? And just wondering, what pokemon are expected to rise/drop here from their ranks in previous generations?

Unfortunately too slow to really make use of it's high attack, and it's cool coverage is sort of offset by Virizion having similar. I also think it's grass phys options might suck.

There is a zero percent chance mimikyu will end up being RU. I think it's strong enough to potentially end up as either OU or BL (seriously play with this thing in OU, disguise is retarded).

I expect Talonflame to be RU, and I expect roost, bu, brave bird, and wisp (possibly sub?) with flame body to be pretty good. Abomasnow Beartic will be really good, Abomasnow beats waters and can wear down steels which I believe are the only reliable stops to Beartic.

Also z move parting shot (alola Persian, Pangoro) is really cool and is essentially healing wish without killing your mom to do so, I can see that having some niche in RU.

I don't know about Talonflame sticking around. SubBU, SD (3 attacks or maybe even wisp + both stabs) and band all seem pretty good and 0 speed subbu is faster than +speed base 80s, on top of having great stabs and pretty solid defensive typing. I know it's very weak without a boost but I'm not 100% convinced that it'd be balanced personally.

I also think that even w/the gale wings nerf, it's still a pretty alright offensive ability.

Id rather run acrogem on Talonflame in this gen. However, i can agree on Mimikyuu prob staying at least UU. Not sure on Silvally either, maybe some forms will be be in the even lower tiers if they end up tiered differently. Or even Lycanroc could end up UU with access to SD, good speed and great EdqeQuake coverage.

Have gems been found? Also, Lycanroc doesn't learn Earthquake, which is why I thought we might get it. It's only coverage moves are Brick Break, Fire Fang, Thunder Fang, and Sucker Punch (and I guess Return)

 

[HotFuzzBall]

Ok these are my predictions for the tier...

Rises

• Alomomola - This big Luvdisc has been seen a few times in UU and OU as a bulky Water Cleric. I believe that if it receives more usage, UU may steal Alomomola just like how it stole Gligar and Doublade from RU lol...
• Flygon - Now that it has Dragon Dance, I highly doubt it'll stay in RU since it'd be pretty broken and also UU seems to have big plans for it so it might end up being stolen alongside Alomomola.

Drops

• Florges - This may seem a bit odd however, I believe the addition of Sylveon and the release of Comfey might hurt Florges viability quite a bit. Sylveon already adapted a lot of its roles such as a Wish Passer while Comfey swooped in and might become a more formidable Fairy-type wincon with access to Taunt and priority healing with Triage. Comfey also has similar-ish bulk to Florges too (Florges' is still better). I believe Florges will alter the RU scene quite a bit since a bulky, more viable Fairy type has arrived. Whether it stays in RU is a different story though. This drop also seems like a long shot.
• Vaporeon - If Alomomola does leave, Vaporeon will probably end up dropping. Both of these mons function as Wish Passers but, Vaporeon lacks Regenarator but has Baton Pass instead. Also, UU doesn't like this mon sooo...
• Gardevoir - Gardevoir was very close to dropping in the recent tier shift. Gardevoir's viability is slowly falling in UU with Celebi, Hydreigon and Sylveon running around in the tier. RU could definitely use this offensive beast to poke holes on opposing teams with its Specs set.
• Cloyster - Like Gardevoir, it was close to dropping in the recent tier shift. Not sure what this mon would be like in RU, it would definitely be a strong late-game cleaner though.
• Mega-Ampharos - Electric-types in general in UU have been dropping in viability. Mega-Ampharos just had it worst since the addition of Celebi alongside the release of Mega-Swampert and Sceptile which were its solid checks. It typically isn't worth using Mega-Ampharos since there are better Megas out there in UU. RU would definitely appreciate this mon I would feel. Since the tier is relatively slow, Ampharos's low speed isn't a big deal considering it has a pretty good defensive typing and bulk.
• Sableye - I believe Sableye can come back to RU after the nerfs to Prankster. Sableye's viability is UU is slowly dropping due to the tier's mass offensive pressure (Entei, Conkeldurr, Hydreigon, Krookodile) giving it little to no switch ins. Since RU has many Dark-types, Prankster is easily balanced out.

New Additions

• Tsareena - Tsareena's lackluster speed and bad offensive/defensive typing will probably keep it out from higher tiers. Tsareena has good coverage, HJK for Steels and Play Rough for Dragons, and also access to Rapid Spin which is amazing. 72 Base Speed isn't too bad in RU considering all the relatively slow mons in the tier. Also being immune to priority is really nice.
• Bruxish - A water-type that can check Venusaur and a Psychic-type that can be immune to Sucker Punch is amazing for this tier. Bruxish's speed tier and offensive presence won't match up in UU or OU since there are much better options. The mind games Bruxish can play can be pretty nice since you never know when it will have Dazzling or Strong Jaw.
• Crabominable - A slow, somewhat bulky mon with an amazing offensive typing. Its base speed and not so good defensive typing will probably keep it out of OU/UU respectively. Once again, it can check a lot of the tier's dark and grass types while the lack of fairies will let it shine in RU.
• Comfey - If my prediction on Comfey outclassing Florges is wrong (probably is tbh) then I believe Comfey will find its way into RU. Another powerful fairy-type wincon with priority healing and Draining Kiss while having Taunt to shut down other wincons. Lots of utility coming from this mon paired with its base 100 Speed is really amazing for RU.
• Wishiwashi - It's not so good offensive typing and lackluster movepool will keep it out of OU and it'll be a niche pick in UU most likely. Wishwashi has a strong defensive typing and decent bulk (50/130/135) so it can switch in on a lot of attacks. It doesn't have many options but, it can afford to run a mixed set since it has equally high offenses (140 in both Attack and Special Attack). Low speed isn't a big deal since it is quite bulky already in school form.
• Drampa - For an offensive mon, its low base speed and mediocre bulk (78/85/91) will keep it out of OU and UU respectively. However it might be a niche pick in UU. Anyways, Drampa's base 135 Special Attack is no joke considering it has a very nice movepool (Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Fire Blast, Focus Blast, Thunder Wave, Hurricane) alongside it. It has two great abilities (Sap Sipper and Berserk) it can utilize pretty well too. Its low speed isn't too bad considering since everything is slow and its typing is pretty decent due to the lack of Dragons and Fairies in the tier.
• Mareanie - Since Toxapex is pretty amazing in OU, I can see its pre-evo Mareanie functioning pretty well. 50/62/52 bulk isn't too bad considering its amazing Water/Poison defensive typing, Eviolite and access to 2 forms of recovery (Recover and Regenerator). Mareanie also has all the perks from Toxapex like Scald, Toxic Spikes, Haze, and Venom Drench. It also can punish Knock Off users with Baneful Bunker and there are many Knock Off users in the tier. Overall, Mareanie might be a nice lil' wall for RU.

PU/NU in RU

• Dodrio - Dodrio got quite a few buffs in Gen 7. Having Base 110 Speed, Swords Dance, and Jump Kick should make it a formidable revenge, late game killer in RU. Dodrio's frailty will probably only keep it as a niche pick in OU and UU so I can see it functioning very well in RU.
• Stoutland/Gigalith - Weather will now be popular in RU lol... Anyways, Stoutland and Gigalith is pretty self-explanatory with Sandstorm + Sand Rush. Stoutland might not stay but, Gigalith is outclassed by Hippowdon and Tyranitar so it'll probably find its home in RU.
• Abomasnow/Beartic - Similarly to Stoutland/Gigalith, this duo functions as a hail sweeper. Beartic has a great offensive presence with Slush Rush plus base 130 Atk and quite a bit of coverage moves such as Aqua Jet and Superpower. Don't see Beartic functioning in OU since pure Ice typing isn't that good and hail is pretty mediocre considering Rain and Sand seem a lot better.
• Bibarel - Oddly enough, Bibarel can function as a great stallbreaker or late game sweeper with its buffs. Having Swords Dance and Aqua Jet alongside its great ability Simple lets Bibarel get to +4 easily. Bibarel also has 2 options for priority (Quick Attack, Aqua Jet) which is also great. I don't see Bibarel functioning in higher tiers since there are better options (Azumarill) but, it will be a scary threat in RU though.

I tried not to include predictions (Talonflame, etc.) that have already been mentioned

edit:added Comfey, Bibarel, Wishiwashi, Flygon, Maerenie and Drampa

 

[phantom]

I'll comment more later, but I think these Pokemon are pretty interesting, yet overlooked:

- Shiinotic

60/80/100 Defenses are pretty mediocre all things considered, but I think Shiinotic has juuust enough to make it work, between reliable recovery, Spore, and having a great defensive typing. It has a lot of interesting options too like Leech Seed, Effect Spore, Thunder Wave, and STAB Moonblast off of a 90 SpA is still pretty good.

252+ Atk Life Orb Reckless Hitmonlee High Jump Kick vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Shiinotic: 143-168 (44.2 - 52%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Its physical bulk is barely passable, but its support movepool will help carry it and make it a decent defensive pick I think. Also Effect Spore + resistance to Knock Off is a great way to punish Knock Off spam. That alone should make it pretty annoying. Strength Sap could be interesting too, it's just a really quirky move so it's hard to say how it will turn out.

- Lycanroc-Day

I'm pretty confident this will end up in RU due to its lack of coverage options that will leave it checked by nearly every Ground and Fighting-type. That said, Swords Dance + Accelerock is still an amazing combination. I don't think this could pull off much else very well, but Swords Dance will have a lot of flexibility due to the presence of Z moves, which Lycanroc seems like great beneficiary of. Z moves can either give it a strong Fire move off of Fire Fang to secure some KOs, or using a Z Rock Move to power up its Accelerock. This seems like a really fun option for offensive teams.

- Passimian

This didn't seem like a very good Pokemon to me at first, but I think it should be a great Scarf Fighting-type and an interesting addition to VoltTurn. Its physical bulk is also fairly good, as can be seen below:

252 Atk Tyrantrum Head Smash vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Passimian: 127-150 (37.2 - 43.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Avoiding the 2HKO from Scarf ttrum's Head Smash is pretty good I think, and it can even comfortably live an Outrage and dodge the 2HKO from any other coverage option! Unfortunately, it doesn't get Knock Off, but between U-turn, Rock Slide, and Close Combat, it should suffice. Receiver seem like a niche ability given that this thing will want to spam U-turn a lot, but I think benefiting and getting a boost from stray Defogs or Intimidates via Defiant would be pretty sweet, and it definitely has the bulk to pull it off.

 

[Laurens]

- Dhelmise
This is a really cool Pkmn, its the first ghost type to get Rapid Spin. It can spinblock and remove hazards at the same time and hit opposing Ghost-types for super effective damage. Shadow Claw isnt that great with only 70 base power but thanks to the ability Steelworker it has 3 STAB's in Steel/Ghost/Grass. Doublade does still block vs Dhelmise. Other potential SM RU Ghost-types will have a hard time versus this spinner.
It also gets a trapping move in Anchor Shot but might be unable to use this in a good way due to its low Speed stat.

- Muk-Alola
Muk definitely got some good buffs this generation, its Alolan form has a nice stab-combo in Dark/Poison. Gets acces to good dark moves in Pursuit and Knock off,
and ofcourse Gunk Shot. With already good defences on the special side I could see an Assault Vest set being good in SM RU, or even a more offensive set. Although its speed is pretty lackluster it does get priority in Shadow Sneak.

 

[freezai]

No mention of Swellow yet? The thing has potential to be a real beast with a +20 spatk buff along with the addition of Hurricane to its movepool. All of a sudden its a very good cleaner with huge speed stat and reasonable power with Boomburst. Obviously still to early to say anything (might still be nu who knows), but definitely looks cool at first glance.

Swellow @ Choice Specs
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Boomburst
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- U-turn

 

[Laurens]

No mention of Swellow yet? The thing has potential to be a real beast with a +20 spatk buff along with the addition of Hurricane to its movepool. All of a sudden its a very good cleaner with huge speed stat and reasonable power with Boomburst. Obviously still to early to say anything (might still be nu who knows), but definitely looks cool at first glance.

Swellow @ Choice Specs
Ability: Scrappy
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Boomburst
- Hurricane
- Heat Wave
- U-turn

Hurricane + Heat wave is illegal

 

[KFCutman]

Who's excited for Incinaroar?

 

[phantom]

I think these ones are going to be really sweet additions:

- Ribombee

Rimbombee is going to end up a lot better than it looks imo. Having a Speedy Fairy-type is refreshing and is a nice change of pace from the Fairys RU has been accustomed to last gen. Due to its Frailty, I think Rimbombee is better off as a hit-and-run attacker as opposed to a Quiver Dance sweeper, although it does seem like it can pull off Quiver Dance decently since it may be able to customize its EVs by running more bulk to set up. Given how naturally fast it is already, it most likely doesn't even need max Speed to outspeed everything at +1.

Its main appeal imo is a speedy Choice Specs sets. If offensive Whimsicott could work in RU and UU last gen, then Specs Ribombee definitely seems like it would be good due to its higher power and Speed tier. What's nice is that Bug STAB can deal with some of the Fire and Steel-types resistant to Moonblast, like Delphox and Bronzong. A fast Bug Buzz is also nice to have to deal with potential Sub mons. Choice Specs Moonblast is just so spammable in general due to the great coverage it gets, it isn't even lacking in power either:

252 SpA Choice Specs Ribombee Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Eviolite Doublade: 110-129 (34.1 - 40%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

- Drampa

Assuming Goodra doesn't drop next gen, which is unlikely given how close to the cutoff it was all throughout XY, then Drampa should do extremely well in RU as a Choice Specs user. If Goodra does drop, however, I think it will still have a niche due to its access to Calm Mind and Roost. For example, most defensive Fairy-types happen to be special attackers, which Drampa can overpower after one boost:

0 SpA Diancie Moonblast vs. +1 252 HP / 0 SpD Drampa: 150-176 (41.6 - 48.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Thanks to Berserk, it also doesn't have to worry about constant Moonblast drops! Normal STAB with Hyper Voice seems interesting too and is probably the best way to get perfect coverage or near-perfect on this aside from Dragon Pulse + Flamethrower. Drampa also oddly enough gets Glare, which it might be able to make use of if purely defensive sets end up being viable or if it can fit it on CM somehow.

- Araquanid

Despite how hard its Water STABs hit, it is pretty weak elsewhere and isn't too hard to beat if you have a sturdy Water resist, so I can see it ending up in RU which has plenty of those. That said, it should be an amazing Pokemon. Its special defense should also make it a good Fire check as well. I'm not really sure what the best set on this would be since it doesn't quite have enough moves for Choice Band. Maybe a tanky set with Liquidation / Leech Life / Protect / Toxic could end up doing pretty decently since it is really tanky on the special side as exemplified here:

252 SpA Life Orb Jolteon Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Araquanid: 268-320 (78.8 - 94.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

I'm pleasantly surprised with how good Water Bubble is going to make this thing. I think Araquanid is going to perform at its best on bulky offense given what it has to work with. Between nuking offensive attackers with Liquidation, keeping itself healthy with Leech Life, and crippling most of the Pokemon capable of walling it with Toxic, it should assuredly be a top threat in the very likely event it ends up in RU.

 

[Miyami~~]

Lurantis finds itself badly outclassed by Serperior in just about every role it'd want to fulfill in OU. However, in RU it may be better than Servine due to its access to Defog and ability to be a Defogger capable of beating most Rockers while maintaining respectable offensive presence. It can also go Physical or Special with Leaf Storm depending on what your team needs.