Resource SS CAP Viability Rankings (Pre-DLC 2)

[Jho]

art by lyd​

Welcome to the official SS CAP Viability Rankings. In this thread, we as a community will rank every single usable Pokemon into ranks. In this thread, you're encouraged to post your thoughts and opinions on the various Pokemon that are usable in CAP and what rank they should fall under. The general idea of the topic is to rank each Pokemon under "rankings" that go in descending order. Please keep in mind that the viability rankings are only for reference, they should not be treated as a fact or anything more. Keep in mind that this thread will be heavily moderated, so please stay on topic and keep the discussion on relevant Pokemon.

These users make up the viability council and have the final say on what gets moved in the ranking list. It is also their responsibility to gather community input and to make sure discussion remains on topic.

2spoopy4u
againa
Mx
quziel
snake_rattler
-Voltage-

Some general rules we expect everyone to follow are:

• Posts are to follow CAP and Smogon rules; you should all know what is and is not acceptable.
• Be respectful to other users. That means no ad hominem arguments or anything else attacking character.
• Back up all your arguments with evidence where possible, calculations and relevant replays do wonders for supporting nominations.
• Speaking of nominations, we'll be holding all posts that make nominations for unranked Pokemon to a higher standard than other posts. This means high level and relevant replays with solid reasoning. Anything less will be ignored by the ranking team and may be deleted.
• Similarly, any post advocating a change of two ranks or more for an already ranked Pokemon will also be held to a higher standard. We expect high level and relevant replays along with solid reasoning, and anything less may be subject to deletion.
• Lastly, keep your reasoning to the CAP Metagame. A Pokemon's performance in OU or any other official tier is irrelevant and posts using that as reasoning will be moderated.

Below you will find an explanation of each ranking:

rankings

S Rank: Reserved for Pokemon who shape and define the CAP metagame and are a clear-cut above the rest. These Pokemon are typically very powerful offensive threats that are difficult to prepare for or are phenomenal support and defensive threats that provide significant utility or defensive potential, respectively. Also the home of Pokemon who can easily perform multiple roles effectively, increasing their versatility and unpredictability. If the Pokemon in this rank have any flaws, those flaws are thoroughly mitigated by their substantial strengths.

A Rank: Reserved for Pokemon that are fantastic in the CAP metagame, and can sweep, support, or wall significant portions of the metagame. These Pokemon require less support than most others to be used effectively and have few flaws that can easily be overlooked when compared to their positive traits.

B Rank: Reserved for Pokemon that are good in the CAP metagame. These Pokemon have more notable flaws than those above them that affect how they function in the metagame. Their positive traits still outshine their negatives, but they require a bit more team support to bring out their full potential. Their niches are often smaller than those that are in A and S rank, which leads them to face some competition for a teamslot.

C Rank: Reserved for Pokemon that have notable niches in the CAP metagame, but have just as many notable flaws that prevent them from being effective. Pokemon in the C tier often require significant support to be effective. Pokemon from this rank tend to face a lot of competition with the more commonly used Pokemon.

SS CAP Viability Rankings

(In alphabetical order)

S Rank:

Astrolotl
Equilibra
Tomohawk

A Rank:

A+ Rank
Dragapult
Slowking
Mandibuzz
Toxapex
Urshifu
Zeraora

A Rank
Blissey
Hydreigon
Jumbao
Kerfluffle
Pajantom
Volcarona

A- Rank
Alakazam
Amoonguss
Ferrothorn
Krilowatt
Kyurem
Rillaboom
Syclant

B Rank:

B+ Rank
Aegislash
Cawmodore
Cyclohm
Excadrill
Gengar
Hawlucha
Rotom-Heat
Rotom-Wash
Terrakion
Togekiss
Venusaur

B Rank

Corviknight
Hippowdon
Kommo-o
Mollux
Pelipper
Rhyperior
Slowbro
Smokomodo
Tangrowth
Urshifu-R
Weavile

B- Rank
Arghonaut
Azumarill
Bisharp
Chandelure
Chansey
Charizard
Crawdaunt
Crucibelle
Mew
Naviathan
Plasmanta
Primarina
Reuniclus
Tyranitar

C Rank:
Aurumoth
Colossoil
Ditto
Dracozolt
Fidgit
Gastrodon
Jirachi
Kingdra
Magnezone
Necrozma
Necturna
Scizor
Seismitoad
Shedinja
Skarmory
Snorlax
Stratagem
Torkoal

 

[Jho]

Hey party people, whilst the SS CAP meta is still very new we thought it would be a great idea to get a preliminary Viability Rankings up in order to create discussion, see how things change during the early forum tournaments, and serve as a resource for any early projects. Whilst I won't be putting up reasonings for every placement (we'd be here forever if I did), if there are any rankings you feel need explaining, one of us will be sure to expand on why we placed it where we did. I am hoping this thread generates positive discussion and helps drive the metagame forward, and with that, happy VR posting!

 

[Jordy]

I've been asked about these Pokemon and why they're ranked so high or low a few times, so I figured clearing it up in a post would be useful.


I've been asked why Equilibra's "so low" a few times now. While A is still a solid ranking, Equilibra isn't any higher because it struggles to pick what ability it wants to run in the current metagame. It wants to run Bulletproof to check offensive Fairy-types like Jumbao and Kerfluffle, but it can then be trapped by Dugtrio, which is commonly run with both of them. Equilibra can evade being trapped by Dugtrio with Levitate, but then it's a rather subpar check to the aforementioned Fairy-types.


Jellicent is as high as it is in B+ because it's a solid check to Kerfluffle that can't be trapped by Dugtrio. It also compresses the role of a Water immunity, but it's rather mediocre at that because it's forced to run a specially defensive spread. Jellicent also has some use in blocking Rapid Spin from Pokemon like Tomohawk, and it can be an annoying Pokemon for teams to deal with thanks to Taunt.


Volkraken is as low as it is because the generational shift was not kind to it at all. Because of Dracovish, Pokemon that are immune to Water and resist Fire are everywhere, this has left Volkraken to struggle massively. Not to mention, Volkraken struggles to deal with Dracovish itself as well.

 

[Atha]

Minor changes with little explanations :

from C to C+, or even B-, or even B.
This vr seems very severe against Kitsunoh. This mon certainly dropped in popularity, but it's still a very good scarf user in the Dugrtrio + Fairy metagame.

from C to B- or B.
While having some competition as a bulky water type, Snaelstrom has proven itself as a very solid pick. Stone, electric and flying are very rare currently, which allows the snail to stick around and spread burns and hazards (or spin) forever.

from C to C+ or B-.
Snorlax is doing surprisingly decent right now as a special wall (which is immune to poison) and curse + rest sweeper (with body slam and darkest lariat). Truly slept on (no pun intended).

from C+ to C.
The current metagame is soooo rain proof (jumbao, arghonaut, mollux, ferrothorn) that Barra truly doesn't do shit. If you want some damage, just pick Dracovish.

:krillowatt: from C+ to B-, or B, or even B+.
I don't get why you dropped Krill down, since it still does its job very well. Very hard to deal with in the current metagame. Only problem is dugtrio, but I mean it's not enough to put it in freakin Umbreon and Barraskewda tier.

Major change :


Tell me if I'm wrong, but from what I've seen and played myself, I think Dugtrio and Mollux deserve to be a rank higher than all the other pokémon in the A+ tier. Along with Jumbao, they strongly define the metagame those days. Either put them in S or drop everything else in A+ to A. I would take the first option ; it would make a classy rock paper scizor S rank with Bao beating Dug (unless it's my godlike specs sludge wave set), dug beating Mollux, and Mollux beating Bao.

 

[Jordy]

Jho's busy right now so I'd like to provide some insight on their current rankings and add onto them with my own opinion.

from C to C+, or even B-, or even B.
This vr seems very severe against Kitsunoh. This mon certainly dropped in popularity, but it's still a very good scarf user in the Dugrtrio + Fairy metagame.

I think that the biggest issue with Kitsunoh right now is just the fact that we legitimately don't need to run a Choice Scarf user. Dragapult often provides enough speed control. It's also forced to click U-turn very, very often because it can't really do much against prominent Pokemon such as Rotom-H, Corviknight, and Tomohawk to name a few. On top of that, Kitsunoh's also worn down by Fairy-types like Jumbao and Kerfluffle, and outright loses to Clefable. I could see it rising to C+ or maybe B-, but it's not that good in this metagame.

from C+ to C.
The current metagame is soooo rain proof (jumbao, arghonaut, mollux, ferrothorn) that Barra truly doesn't do shit. If you want some damage, just pick Dracovish.

I don't think this Pokemon is good by any means, but I'd like to provide a slightly different perspective. I think Barraskewda is a legitimately threatening wallbreaker on offense; don't even bother with using it on rain because rain as a whole is bad.

Barraskewda @ Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Waterfall
- Close Combat
- Psychic Fangs
- Poison Jab

This is the set I've been running and there really isn't a lot that can consistently handle it defensively. Ofcourse it struggles to OHKO loads of Pokemon and is very frail itself, meaning that it needs a lot of support, but I think it's fine where it is in C+ right now.

:krillowatt: from C+ to B-, or B, or even B+.
I don't get why you dropped Krill down, since it still does its job very well. Very hard to deal with in the current metagame. Only problem is dugtrio, but I mean it's not enough to put it in freakin Umbreon and Barraskewda tier.

I won't deny that Krilowatt is still pretty threatening, but the biggest issue that I have with it is that it just doesn't really provide any big defensive utility, unlike Rotom-H, Rotom-C, and Cyclohm. I can understand why it should rise to B- or B, but B+ is certainly too high in my opinion.

Tell me if I'm wrong, but from what I've seen and played myself, I think Dugtrio and Mollux deserve to be a rank higher than all the other pokémon in the A+ tier. Along with Jumbao, they strongly define the metagame those days. Either put them in S or drop everything else in A+ to A. I would take the first option ; it would make a classy rock paper scizor S rank with Bao beating Dug (unless it's my godlike specs sludge wave set), dug beating Mollux, and Mollux beating Bao.

You're right, these Pokemon are the two most dominating forces right after Jumbao. I agree Dugtrio should be S rank, but don't think Mollux can really be S rank in a meta that's infested by Dugtrio, as it's trapped so easily, and that really hurts its viability. Mollux can be a very dominating force in matchups without Dugtrio, but the sheer prevalence of Dugtrio prevents it from being S rank.

 

[Jho]

My PC was packed away ready for me to move but I have found my laptop so since Ive been beaten to the punch on replying I would just like to open up discussion on some mons which I have seen more now that the meta has stabilised quite a lot.

-> A-/A
In the wake of Darm's ban, Syclant has really stood out as just doing what Darm did but overall just slightly worse, however, it does have a free Rocks immunity which makes it insanely easy to wear down and pressure checks Such as Rotom-H, Jellicent, and Arghonaut with no drawback U-turns. Syclant also has a pretty uncontested Speed Tier this gen with everything slowing down significantly, with very few Scarfers about and only 1 Pokemon naturally faster than it, which makes Syclant an excellent speed control option for dealing with Pokemon such as Hydreigon, Dugtrio, and Kerfluffle. Despite Dragapult being faster, Syclant can still revenge kill it thanks to Ice Shard, provided it has been chipped a bit. All of this adds up to make Syclant an extremely potent option that I personally underrated as just a worse Darm. Turns out being a worse Darm is still pretty good.

syclant

Syclant @ Choice Band
Ability: Mountaineer
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- U-turn
- Icicle Crash
- Ice Shard
- Earthquake

-> C-/C
Diglett acts as additional support for teams which rely on Dugtrio to remove Pokemon for the likes of Kerfluffle, Jumbao, and Clefable. Diglett has a pretty good speed tier and, using a Focus Sash, can often get off two Screeches before it dies. This allows Choice Band Dugtrio to come in and trap a now -4 Defense Pokemon, allowing it to remove almost anything that can be trapped by Arena Trap. Pairing both Diglett and Dugtrio with Kerfluffle and Jumbao can very consistently remove all of their checks, as well as threaten Pokemon such as Seismitoad, Jumbao, Hippowdon, Pyroak, Clefable etc. Whilst it's inherently pretty niche, I believe it deserves a spot on the VR for the amount of support it can provide to these sorts of teams.

diglett

Diglett @ Focus Sash
Ability: Arena Trap
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Screech
- Earthquake
- Memento
- Substitute / Rock Tomb

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

Ok. Lets pray this post sticks this time.

I agree with Atha about bumping up and
Like Jumbao they shape the meta game and the 3 of them form together an extremely powerful core that also counter each other rock paper scissors style (which is cool but kind of weird).
Therefore, I propose the creation of a S- viability tier and Mollux is move there. Dug might even be worthy of S tier.

Dug is extremely common and like in most other metas where its legal, forces players to consider running a useless item in shed shell, pair extremely well with almost every fairy for a quality offensive core, and is one of the defining Pokemon in the meta.
Also, I know Dugtrio being extremely common and viable decreases Mollux's viability but since its also such a dominating force in the meta, hence why I believe its deserves a spot in S- instead of S.

 

[Jho]

With the holiday bash finished up, we've seen the metagame develop quite a bit so here we are with a VR update:
We've also combined the C and C- ranks due to how little discrepancy there was between the two.

Rises:
A+ to S
A+ to S
A+ to S
A to A+
A to A+
B+ to A-
B to B+
B to B+
B to B+
B- to B
C+ to B-
UR to C

Drops:
A+ to A
B+ to B
B+ to B
B+ to B
B+ to B-
B to B-
B to B-
B to B-
B to B-
B to B-
B to C+
B- to C+
B- to C+
B to C
B to C
C+ to C-
C+ to C
C+ to C
C to UR
C to UR
C to UR
C to UR
C to UR
C to UR
C- to UR
C- to UR
C- to UR
==========================

As we saw in the Holiday Bash tour, Corviknight had an absurdly high usage and win rate due to how splashable it is and how well it matches up to the current meta. Being able to act as a soft check into the common, extremely potent Fairy-types as well as being able to support them by being a slow pivot makes it easily accessible for almost every team to use Corviknight and its excellent utility options in Defog and Taunt allow it to compress multiple roles into one team slot on top of this.


Everyone saw this coming, these two Pokemon warp the current meta so much and are extremely centralising. Mollux is the best check to the potent offensive Fairy-types in Jumbao and Kerfluffle, whilst Dugtrio acts as a way to remove Mollux for said Fairy-types. The meta has centralised around these two so much that Shed Shell Mollux + ways to punish Dugtrio, such as Levitate Equilibra or Trace Jumbao have become increasingly commonplace.

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

A+ to S
A+ to S

B+ to A-
B to B+

Now these are some quality changes I can get behind.
Though Im honestly pretty shocked to see being in S due to scaring the crap out of it which is why I think it should be in S-.
But then again, since S- isn't really a thing here so if I had to choose between A+ or S for , I would go with S.

But I don't get the rise in TTar because my intuitions says the current meta isn't kind to it. With high amounts of fairies (that 95% of the time have Focus Blast) and Dug running around with said fairies, TTar has some big things to worry about.

 

[Atha]

Though Im honestly pretty shocked to see being in S due to scaring the crap out of it which is why I think it should be in S-.
But then again, since S- isn't really a thing here so if I had to choose between A+ or S for , I would go with S.

Everyone just runs Shed Shell on Mollux, which doesn't allow Dug to trap it.
Same for Ttar, even if I'm a bit surprised by its rise as well

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

Everyone just runs Shed Shell on Mollux, which doesn't allow Dug to trap it.
Same for Ttar, even if I'm a bit surprised by its rise as well

But the fact that Mollux and TTar have to run Shed Shell in the first place slightly hurt the viability of both.
Mollux really wants Heavy Duty Boots because of its weakness to SR+Spikes (which is why I go back and forth on mine but I know its an unpopular opinion), TTar wants an item that isn't Shed Shell.

 

[13electrode13]

Can I suggest Chandelure -> B+

Chandelure is one of the best offensive counters to Mollux, not caring about anything from it except getting poisoned and threatening it with Tricking a Choice item or hitting it with psychic. It runs over Jumbao lacking Trace and Corviknight as well as several other prominent threats, and its ghost typing lets it both spinblock and switch out of Dugtrio.

Also Galvantula -> B-/C+

Galvantula is a sticky webber with decent speed that has SE STABs against Snaelstrom, Colossoil, Mandibuzz, and Corviknight. It gets hard countered by Equilibra, but it’s definitely viable.

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

So with the ban of Arena Trap today, is finally gone and should no longer be in S.
But I need some time before posting thoughts on how viability ranks should change.

The only thing I can confidently say is that my is dancing with joy that its greatest fear is gone and it can stop running shed shell.

Edit: TY Jho for removing Dug.

 

[TerrickTerran]

Small note, Diglett is still ranked.

 

[Jordy]

I'm here to make a couple nominations based on the current metagame.

to A- or B+
Offensive Jumbao is really bad without Dugtrio; it's completely walled by the best Pokemon in the metagame, Mollux, which really isn't desirable for a wallbreaker. Choice Scarf Jumbao still has some merit that definitely warrants a ranking in A- or B+, but Jumbao is not as good as it once was.

to S
I know that this isn't a very popular take, but Clefable is amazing right now. Clefable can provide teams with a lot of utility, checking Pokemon like Hydreigon, Dragapult, Conkeldurr, and taking advantage of Pokemon like Arghonaut and Seismitoad. More Calm Mind Clefable have been running Psyshock, which heavily abuses the fact that a lot of people are just slapping Mollux onto teams and think they're fine against Clefable. Ofcourse, it can also run Flamethrower to deal with other checks like Excadrill. Between how much utility Clefable can bring to a team and how good of a wincon it is in the current metagame, I can definitely see Clefable in S rank.

to B
Kerfluffle's five minutes are long gone with the ban on Arena Trap. It's really not that hard to deal with defensively, as Pokemon like Mollux and Bulletproof Equilibra can deal with it quite handily. It can still be useful against specific offensive teams, but it is nowhere near as good as it was, and definitely doesn't belong in A any longer.

to C+
Jellicent isn't quite as useful as it was in the previous metagame; it doesn't really warrant a slot very often and is a relatively mediocre check to Dracovish anyways. However, it still retains a niche as one of the better Equilibra checks.

to B+
Necturna can finally (legally) use Shell Smash again... yay. In all seriousness, Necturna isn't quite as good as I anticipated; it can struggle to find setup opportunities a lot and even then can struggle to get past Mandibuzz, Corviknight, and Hydreigon. However, it can be quite polarizing in a lot of matchups; I believe it merits a ranking in B+.

That's really all I have to say for now, I look forward to the thoughts of other people!

 

[Atha]

100% agree with Jordy.

from A+ to A

Hydreigon struggles in the current metagame with the dominance of Clefable as well as fast threats that can ohko it. It can still kill something when it sets up, but getting the nasty plot going is very hard and risky. Still great though. Also scarf works to an extent.

from A+ to A

Equilibra doesn't like this very bulky meta full of status and knock off. It is often worn down very quickly, and Corviknight walls it (which is not a good omen). Again, it's still great, but not as good as last gen.

Intervert and

Arghonaut is just great in the current metagame, walling an insane amount of threats, knocking off here and there, setting spikes and making your team setup-proof. On the other hand, Seismitoad struggles for the same reasons as Equilibra : worn down slowly. It has very few merits over Arghonaut. The spdef set is pretty good, but not worthy of A imo.

from A- to A, or even A+

Toxapex is in the rise, and walls a huge amount of threats (fairies, aegi, syclant, etc) while also avoiding setup. The departure of Dug helps it a lot obviously. Its merit over argho is mostly walling fairies and being immuned to poison.

 

[Jordy]

I'm doing the update this time around. First of all, I'd like to announce that xavgb has decided to step down from the VR council, thank you for your time! In other news, please welcome quziel to the VR council!

Anyways, here's the update.

Ranking Update

Rises:
Clefable A+ → S
Syclant A- → A
Aurumoth B → B+
Kommo-o B → B+
Bisharp B- → B
Gastrodon B- → B
Mamoswine B- → B
Naviathan B- → B
Pelipper C+ → B-

Kyurem UR → A
Terrakion UR → A
Zeraora UR → A
Jirachi UR → B+
Necturna UR → B+
Keldeo UR → B
Primarina UR → B-
Torkoal UR → C+
Venusaur UR → C+
Darmanitan UR → C
Ninetales-Alola UR → C

Drops:
Jumbao S → A-
Rotom-H A+ → A
Excadrill A → A-
Kerfluffle A → B+
Dracovish B+ → B
Jellicent B+ → C+
Pyroak B+ → B
Sylveon B+ → B
Tyranitar B+ → B
Toxtricity C+ → C
Crucibelle C → UR
Milotic C → UR
Umbreon C → UR
Vaporeon C → UR

I don't want to explain every single change so I'll cover the important ones below.

to S
Clefable is one of the faces of bulkier teams at this point in time; it is perfect glue and can provide those kind of teams with an incredible potential wincon too. Its adaptation to Mollux in the form of Psyshock and its potential other coverage moves have made it very tough to deal with.

to A-
Jumbao has been struggling a little since Arena Trap was banned. The sheer prominence of Mollux has made it very hard for it to reliably break through teams. However, it has still retained a solid niche as a Choice Scarf user and defensive sets are quite promising, which is why it is now A-.

to B+
Similarly to Jumbao, Kerfluffle suffers a lot from the sheer grip of Mollux on the metagame now that Arena Trap is gone. Regardless, it is still a strong offensive pivot that has proven to be quite powerful in Fighting spam cores with Pokemon like Terrakion.

to B+
Hyper offensive teams have been picking up a little usage, and Aurumoth thrives on those, it is rising to reflect that.

If you have any questions with regards to any other changes, feel free to ask me!

 

[13electrode13]

I am once again asking for your financial support for Chandelure -> B+
This time, with more explanation.

Chandelure is a very good mon in CAP, being a spinblocker and a wallbreaker with a very useful typing. This thing destroys Mollux like nothing else. It blocks Rapid Spin, is immune to lava plume/eruption, resists sludge bomb, and can break it with Psychic, Trick it a choice item, or set up Calm Mind. It can also run Choice Scarf, or even set its own Trick Room. It beats nearly every relevant spinner, and it can 2HKO every single mon in the metagame, including Hydreigon, which is the only relevant mon that resists both of Lure’s STABs. It forms an extremely powerful core with Drought Jumbao as well: under sun, Chandelure 2HKOes Mollux with Fire Blast, and OHKOes nearly everything that doesn’t resist it.

Calcs:

Hide

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Psychic vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Mollux: 224-264 (56.8 - 67%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Dry Skin Mollux in Sun: 189-223 (47.9 - 56.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Dry Skin damage

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Psychic vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Arghonaut: 230-272 (55.5 - 65.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Snaelstrom: 300-354 (77.7 - 91.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Snaelstrom: 214-253 (55.4 - 65.5%) -- 98.8% chance to 2HKO after Poison Heal

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Crucibelle: 166-196 (47 - 55.5%) -- 74.2% chance to 2HKO

252 SpA Choice Specs Chandelure Fire Blast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Hydreigon: 159-187 (48.9 - 57.5%) -- 95.7% chance to 2HKO

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

Rises: Clefable A+ → S Syclant A- → A Aurumoth B → B+ Kommo-o B → B+ Bisharp B- → B Gastrodon B- → B Mamoswine B- → B Naviathan B- → B Pelipper C+ → B- Kyurem UR → A Terrakion UR → A Zeraora UR → A Jirachi UR → B+ Necturna UR → B+ Keldeo UR → B Primarina UR → B- Torkoal UR → C+ Venusaur UR → C+ Darmanitan UR → C Ninetales-Alola UR → C Drops: Jumbao S → A- Rotom-H A+ → A Excadrill A → A- Kerfluffle A → B+ Dracovish B+ → B Jellicent B+ → C+ Pyroak B+ → B Sylveon B+ → B Tyranitar B+ → B Toxtricity C+ → C Crucibelle C → UR Milotic C → UR Umbreon C → UR Vaporeon C → UR

Hot damn thats a lot of changes.
I def agree will all of the rises in terms of viability.

Clef is fantastic thanks to Pokemon Home. All of the old moves I was missing (mainly soft-boiled) and getting Unaware back really makes its versatility and adaptability even better. Though I just want to say that running psyshock to beat Mollux is something I used to do with wall breaker style Clef. Glad to see more people are picking it up.

That being said, I disagree with only 1 drop:

to A-

Think Jumbao should be more of A. Yes the lack of Arena Trap means the wall breaker set isn't as good anymore but as said by Jordy, the Defensive set and Choice Scarf set are still quite good. Also, with being really good due to the move pool buffs, Jumbao should be in A due to being the best user of Drought.

There is also another drop I propose:
to A- or B+

Agree with Atha on this one. In a meta with more heavy hitters, knock off + toxic running around, Toad has some serious flaws for the defensive set. Even its niche as being one of the few Pokemon that can use toxic+Entry Hazard is less of a big deal. It has stiff competition from :Argonaught: who has better stats and the move Recover. But, its viability on rain teams is quite good.

 

[Pokemon guy]

From UR to C
I think that Plasmanta should not be UR It beets both Corviknight and Clefable in a 1v1 and has good macthups with Mandibuzz,Tomohawk,Arghonaut, and Jumbao and it can stallbreak with a set of Thunderbolt,Sludge Bomb,Aura Sphere and Taunt

 

[Atha]

From UR (somehow) to B or B+

Incineroar does really well currently as a defensive pivot. The combination of Knock off + Flare blitz + Will-o-wisp is a pain to switch into and provides it with insane utility. Parting shot needs no introduction, great move. Incineroar's lack of recovery is balanced by Heavy-duty-boots as well as Clef's ability to give it a wish. It recently raised in OU, and I see no reason why it should be worse in the CAP metagame. It's a very good check to both ghost and ice, and can pivot pretty flawlessly between the defensive mons of this metagame.

Set

Incineroar @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Intimidate
EVs: 248 HP / 100 Def / 96 SpD / 64 Spe
Careful Nature
- Flare Blitz
- Knock Off
- Parting Shot
- Will-O-Wisp

Not one of my previous proposals has been implemented. I am aware that I do not hold the truth, and that the whole council has way more experience than I do, but perhaps some explanation is in order. I am going to put those proposals back, because they are still valid in my opinion.

from A+ to A
from A+ to A
Reverse and
from A- to A, or even A+

Edit : I'm aware that Incineroar hasn't been used at all recently, but I truly don't understand why. I've been building with it recently, so we'll see how that evolves soon

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

From UR (somehow) to B or B+

Incineroar does really well currently as a defensive pivot. The combination of Knock off + Flare blitz + Will-o-wisp is a pain to switch into and provides it with insane utility. Parting shot needs no introduction, great move. Incineroar's lack of recovery is balanced by Heavy-duty-boots as well as Clef's ability to give it a wish. It recently raised in OU, and I see no reason why it should be worse in the CAP metagame. It's a very good check to both ghost and ice, and can pivot pretty flawlessly between the defensive mons of this metagame.

Havent seen much of Roar lately in CAP and don't play a lot of OU, but did do some research on it because I thought it was a great example of CAP 27's concept (though its better suited for doubles than singles). When people were discussing dark/fire, was a bit confused at first because Roar exists. Will def consider playtesting it a bit in the future though.

Agree with Pex rise, Argo rise, and Toad drop. Personally think Toad should go down to B+ because it has more issues in the current meta and some of its niches (hazard setter that has toxic and water immunity) now has more competition.

Small edit, not 100% sold on Hyrdra drop. Thanks to Pokémon Home, its regained Roost, Defog, and Taunt which are all excellent moves that give it more depth. Agree the NP set is worse, but now there are new sets to consider its viability.

Don't agree on Equil's drop though but that's mainly due to it being a cornerstone on my team and personal bias. I do agree that more Knock Off users is a bad thing for Equil given how it relies on its item and the rise in some threats that give it a bad time.

Also, your a really really good player whose made it to finals of the Dug Free CAP tourney and your very experienced in CAP.

 

[Jordy]

What's up everyone, the VR council is back with another update rather quickly after the last update, but a lot has changed over the last three weeks, and with the Dugtrio free tournament coming to an end, we felt it was important to update the rankings to reflect the metagame more accurately.

I'd like to note that we've ultimately decided to merge the C ranks, as there's not a significant enough difference in viability to seperate the ranks as of right now. Anyways, here's the update.

Ranking Update

Rises:
Kyurem A → A+
Terrakion A → A+
Toxapex A- → A+
Bisharp B → B+
Mamoswine B → B+
Hawlucha C+ → B-
Mew C+ → B-
Torkoal C+ → B-
Venusaur C+ → B-

Mantine UR → B-
Chandelure UR → C
Cloyster UR → C

Drops:
Mollux S → A
Hydreigon A+ → A
Kerfluffle B+ → B
Reuniclus B+ → B
Rotom-C B+ → C
Caribolt B → C
Fidgit B → C
Pyroak B → C
Sylveon B → UR
Cinderace B- → C
Grimmsnarl B- → C
Gyarados B- → C
Hatterene B- → C
Revenankh B- → C
Barraskewda C+ → UR
Jellicent C+ → UR
Kitsunoh C → UR
Toxtricity C → UR

Once again, I won't discuss absolutely everything but I'll explain some of the changes.

A lot of the changes to the VR this time around were centered around HO as it's taking a more concrete form in the metagame.

to A
As the metagame is evolving, Mollux is falling off a little as utility sets are starting to fit worse into the metagame due to Calm Mind Clefable's prevelance. On top of that, it's facing increased competition from Toxapex.

to B+
Bisharp has proven to be a vital part of hyper offensive teams at this point; it's really good at punishing Defog and is a very useful tool against Pokemon like Dragapult which are quite annoying for hyper offensive teams to deal with.

to B-
To combat the usage of Bisharp on hyper offensive teams, people have started to run Hawlucha more on hyper offensive teams in response to it. It's ofcourse an excellent abuser of Spikes as well and benefits a lot from the fact that Clefable are generally favoring specially defensive EV spreads right now.

to C
Gyarados hasn't managed to gain much traction since the Dynamax ban. It's really obscure right now and we've decided to drop it to C to reflect that.

to C
Trick Room teams have overtime proven that they're really not all that good, and Fidgit's an overall worse entry hazard lead than Mew is. Double screen teams with Grimmsnarl have also taken a backseat.

to C
Although their niche is quite useful in theory, Rotom-C and Caribolt's niches are not valued much in practice. Their complete lack of defensive utility and the fact that much better wallbreakers exist in the current metagame are why they've really fallen off.

to UR
This shouldn't really be a surprise to anyone, just use Clefable.

 

[Orig Stall Guy]

to A
As the metagame is evolving, Mollux is falling off a little as utility sets are starting to fit worse into the metagame due to Calm Mind Clefable's prevelance. On top of that, it's facing increased competition from Toxapex.

This is a sad day for mah boi. I personally think that the utility set is still strong, but based on CAP tourney stats, I do see where VR council is coming from.

Torkoal C+ → B- Venusaur C+ → B-

Now these are changes I can get behind. After Atha made a strong case for sun teams in his Jumbao + Chandelure Core, I decided to take some time and look at Sun teams and the buffed Venusaur.

Sun is lowkey a pain to hold off if it gets the ball rolling. Look Atha, Sun is getting the respect it deserves. ​

Mew C+ → B

Another change I support. With Mew getting soft-boiled back (among other moves), its ability to support team goes beyond diet Deoxys-S.

 

[Jordy]

Hey everyone, we're really trying to keep the resources as up-to-date as possible, as there's potentially more to come soon!

Ranking Update

Rises:
Tomohawk A → A+
Jirachi B+ → A-
Pajantom B → B+
Reuniclus B → B+
Mew B- → B+
Cawmodore C → B-
Chandelure C → B
Smokomodo C → B+
Snorlax C → B-
Necrozma UR → B-
Salazzle UR → C

Drops:
Corviknight S → A+
Aegislash A+ → A
Aurumoth B+ → B
Kommo-o B+ → B
Stratagem B+ → B
Keldeo B → C
Mantine B- → C
Pelipper B- → C
Primarina B- → C
Sigilyph B- → C
Dracozolt C → UR
Fidgit C → UR
Ninetales-Alola C → UR
Revenankh C → UR
Xatu C → UR

As per usual, I'll talk about some of the notable rises and drops.


Tomohawk's really proven just how consistent of a Pokemon it is over the past couple of weeks. It's great at compressing the role of a Stealth Rock setter or Rapid Spin user, and easily one of the best checks to Pokemon like Conkeldurr, Colossoil, and potentially even Terrakion. Beyond that, it's also got the option to bypass checks such as Aegislash and Corviknight with Heat Wave, ultimately giving it that little push it needed to rise to A+.


Sun teams, Terrakion, and Toxapex have risen to prominence, and Aegislash has been dropping in usage, so Reuniclus happens to be a great anti-meta pick right now. On top of that, it has the potential to get past checks such as Equilibra, Excadrill, and Mandibuzz depending on the coverage you run. Reuniclus is overall a very useful and threatening Pokemon and we didn't feel like B rank reflected upon that properly.


Speaking of sun teams, Chandelure is one of the best Pokemon on those teams; it's really threatening under sun, without really any proper checks. A stark rise from C to B is reflecting that.


This is a really drastic rise, but Smokomodo is incredibly good right now. It's insanely threatening to the typical Clefable balance teams and can cripple the very few checks that it does have with Toxic.


Necrozma has been starting to pop up on hyper offensive teams as a Speed boosting sweeper with Weakness Policy. Although it is quite dependant on being hit super effectively to get going, Necrozma often baits out a super effective move from Pokemon like Mandibuzz and Arghonaut, as it can't really be dealt with otherwise either.


Although it just rose, Aurumoth's now seeing some competition from Necrozma on hyper offensive teams and we felt a drop was warranted to reflect that.


Keldeo has really struggled since the Arena Trap metagame; it struggles to deal with Mollux and Toxapex, some of the most prominent Pokemon in the metagame, and isn't even that great as a Choice Scarf user against more offensively oriented teams because Necturna exists. The rise of Reuniclus doesn't do it any favors either.