Metagame SS Monotype Metagame Discussion [Isle of Armor]

[Eien]

Hey folks, so the council decided we want to have Dynamax discussions in a separate thread for the sake of tiering organization. You can still talk about Dynamax in this thread as it relates to the metagame as a whole. However, for any tiering discussions and your thoughts on whether it should or shouldn't be banned, we would prefer you to post in this thread instead. Thank you!

 

[Chaitanya]

2 Ideas for sets, I dont know if anyone has put these ideas out there, but here goes

Kommo-o @ Throat Spray
Ability: Soundproof
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Clanging Scales
- Flamethrower
- Clangorous Soul
- Focus Blast

- Throat Spray gives Kommo-o an extra sp att buff after clangorous soul. giving it even more wall breaking potential, maybe even making up the loss of its z-move in the long run, its only a 1 time use item. but it could have uses.



Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Mirror Armor
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Bulk Up
- Body Press
- Roost
- Power Trip

- Ultra bulky, Reliable Recovery and can abuse the boosts it gets in 2 strong moves.
- Downside is the lack of STAB but I think this set makes up for it in the fact its one of the bulkiest set up sweepers around, and is extremely hard to get rid of unless you can take it out early.
- I dont know this because I haven't seen enough of this build, but does the fact body press comes from your defense mean it ignores the burn debuff? if so. this could be a physical sweepers that doesnt care about will-o-wisp


EXTRA addition:
Sylveon @ Throat Spray
Ability: Pixilate
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hyper Voice
- Mystical Fire
- Protect
- Wish

-Sylveon could become another strong user of throat spray, it got mystical fire, which makes up for the hidden power loss and allows it to hit steel types that otherwise could cause issues, pixilate+hyper voice is a tried and true combo. and wish/protect is to provide recovery because of the lack of reliable recovery, it can also be used to heal allies in a pinch. could also test substitute/wish.
-A full attacking set with Shadow Ball and Psychic/Psyshock is also an option but this makes sylveon extremely suceptible to chip damage and damaging status like poison/burn
-Fairy seems molasses slow this gen, the idea behind this set is it being a strong option in a trick room team.

Hey, I think the Kommo set has a lot of potential with screens. There hasn't been a lot of dragon used so far from what I've seen but I'm still extremely fond of Kommo in this new-gen. Would never use focus blast but I've been smacked by the throat spray set in OU and I think that it can have success in mono as well.
Corviknight seems a real handful, especially on steel teams but I agree with maroon in that you want the speed boost as between Power Trip and Brave Bird you're hitting pretty much everything that's threating to steel teams.
Sylveon is just outclassed by too much on fairy such as Gardevoir and Togekiss, and its sole typing doesn't help it.

I'm still kind of new to creating my own sets and this is also my first time posting in the forums so bear with me here, but I've really gotten into Sandaconda since gen 8 started and I wanted to share the sets I've been using because I feel like they've got strong potential when refined. I've had very limited testing done with it but I like what I've seen so far.

Bulky Sweeper(?) Sandaconda
Sandaconda (Sandaconda) @ Leftovers
Ability: Shed Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Adamant Nature
- Earthquake
- Stone Edge
- Coil
- Fire Fang

This is a build I've had success with lately. Earthquake is a powerful STAB move to go along with its 344 attack stat, and Stone Edge and Fire Fang offer great coverage against mons that might otherwise threaten ground type, Stone edge hitting flying types super-effectively and Fire Fang doing strong damage to steel types that resist or are immune to EQ and Stone Edge, particularly Ferrothorn. Even with its strong attack stat, however, Fire Fang only offers a 2hko on Ferrothorn, and Sandaconda still eats a super effective Power Whip in return. But Sandaconda outspeeds Ferrothorn and can use its turn to Coil, providing a much appreciated attack, defense, and accuracy boost for Stone Edge as well. From what I've found, if you can bring Sandaconda in safely and coil, power whip has generally only done around 30% To Sandaconda, and Sandaconda snaps back with what I'm pretty sure is a OHKO from Fire Fang with +1 attack. Thus, I feel like Sandaconda might make a good check to Ferrothorn on Ground, assuming better ones aren't out there. Fire Fang also hits Corviknight hard and Coil lets it keep up with Bulk Up. But Sandaconda fills another niche as well on ground teams. Running Shed Skin gives Ground an unreliable but not non-existant answer to status moves from mons that would otherwise cripple ground teams. Excadrill certainly does not like eating will-o-wisp from pranksters like Sableye and Gastrodon/Hippowdon don't want to get hit with Toxic. While burns would certainly cripple Sandaconda, shed skin can help it take status moves easier and keep going strong. It does not like knock off though, as leftovers is its only form of recovery here. An Adamant Nature lets it hit harder.

RestTalk Sandaconda
(Sandaconda) @ Leftovers
Ability: Shed Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Impish Nature
- Earthquake
- Fire Fang/Stone Edge
- Rest
- Sleep Talk

Now this build was my first try with Sandaconda. I haven't tested it as much since it was my first iteration but it could have some merit to it. With rest as recovery and higher defense it still hits hard and has some bulk behind it to take hits from physical attackers. EQ is ran for STAB, Fire Fang can be ran to hit Ferrothorn hard for a 2hko or Stone Edge can be ran to hit super effectively hit flying types that might try to wall Sandaconda's sleep talk Earthquakes. On top of this, rest allows it to take status much more effectively and wake up sooner with Shed Skin, letting it hit those that would try to burn it better.

I haven't had much time to test these yet, but I'm thinking that it has strong potential and I'm really curious what you guys think about it.

Edit: Slight typo

I tried both these sets and other similar ones and I think the lack of Spdef really hurts it. Along with that ground doesn't have too much space on its teams when you have three spots locked up in Exca, Water pokemon and Hippodown. Trapping helps in a lot of matchups especially when you can Dynamax so Dugtrio is very common. If you use Dugtrio along with hippo, you don't have space for another sole ground type pokemon. I think this type of set can work on sandless ground but I think overall it's just a worse Mudsdale.

---

I haven't played as much as I would've liked to but from what I've seen I think ground is incredibly overrated. The excessive use of water is already a huge deterrent for ground teams, especially when choiced pokemon can switch moves to hit your water immunity for a fuckton. Excadrill is incredible but barring it, ground teams struggle with gardevoir fairy, water obviously, and even Corviknight + Ferro steel teams probably have matchup. Ice is a pretty popular type and with the way Dynamax works it's extremely difficult for types with bad mu's to counterplay as almost any ice pokemon is capable of running through 2-3 ground pokemon at any time. As far as underrated types go I think psychic is really slept on and has a decent matchup vs basically everything other than ghost.
On the topic of Dynamax I'm of the opinion that it's awful for competitive play overall, and that's the case in monotype as well. Any pokemon being able to Dynamax, and being able to lose your choice locks along with the special effects that come with it is just incredibly stupid and inconsistent, forcing you to overly predict almost every turn where it becomes impossible to think in the long term. It makes bad matchups almost unplayable when any pokemon can snowball through 2 or 3 pokemon at any given time. I'll post in the other thread too but these were just quick thoughts

 

[Ninjamage]

Hey guys, just wanted to share a couple sets I've made for grass, one of which is still in the works.

The first set:

Gandalf (Shiftry) (M) @ Expert Belt
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Heat Wave
- Hurricane
- Dark Pulse

I got this idea after reading Juleo's post about Grass earlier in the thread. This set is threatening because it can set its own sun by Dynamaxing, which allows it to take on Steel and Ice very well, two matchups that otherwise are difficult for Grass. Hurricane is for coverage, and provides additional setup opportunities when Dynamaxed. Dark Pulse is your generic STAB. Expert Belt and Life Orb are probably the best items to use with this set, as far as I can see. Shiftry still has mediocre power, which is why setting sun in combination with heat wave and boosted damage from LO or EBelt is important.

The other set is still a work in progress:

Captain Hook (Dhelmise) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Steelworker
EVs: 252 HP / 128 Def / 128 Spe
Impish Nature
- Anchor Shot
- Rapid Spin
- Power Whip
- Shadow Claw

This is intended to be Grass's hazard removal and spin blocker all in one, and Dhelmise's good natural bulk and high attack stat make it an ideal offensive spinner, albeit a slow one. Dhelmise's triple STAB is very nice for all around coverage, and gets an added bonus with Anchor Shot trapping foes. Heavy Duty Boots are here so it can safely Rapid Spin multiple times in a match. The EV spread here is still a work in progress. The speed allows you to outspeed anything up to uninvested base 55s, and at +1 (after Rapid Spin) outspeed anything up to fully invested adamant Tyranitar. The rest of the EVs I have slapped into HP and Defense just for maximum longevity. If anyone has any ideas on how to improve the spread (I might be missing some important 2hkos for example) I would love to hear them.

 

[Ivi]

After playing several games using Grass, I came to the verdict on some Pokémon:

Vileplume

Rank A or B

With Chrolopyll, you have a good matchup against Fairy and Dark.
With Effect Spore with a more defensive set, it's useful against Fighting, Poison and some Bugs.

Shiftry

Rank S

He can take advantage of the sun by being a physical, special or mixed attacker; has access to two excellent setup moves - Swords Dance and Nasty Plot; and as long as Dynamax is not banned, she can field the sun with Max Flare Heat Wave.

Ferrothorn

Rank S

Only grass Pokémon that learns Stealth Rock and has useful neutralities for Grass (Bug, Flying, Ice and Poison immunity) and a phenomenal bulk.

Appletun

Rank S or A

Thanks to Thick Fat, he can handle Fire Moves with extreme ease. It has very good defensive stats (110 / 80 / 80) and Recover + Leech Seed for longevity. A good defensive Pokémon for monotype grass, although it doesn't have such good coverage; At least you have Earthquake to handle most Fire-types.

Leafeon

Rank A or B

Despite being the fastest Chrlopyll abuser, its coverage is lousy. It's good, but there are some matchups where he doesn't do much. If Return still existed, it would be rank A for sure.

Whimsicott

Rank A

She is the best Sun setter for Chrlopyll-based teams and has good utility with Encore or Taunt + Prankster.
Can beat well against fighting and dark and still has access to U-turn for momentum.

Flapple

Rank B or C

If you can lift Dragon Dance, you can sweep Dragon, Grass and Rock; but the difficulty of setup is high, and it remains slow even after +1.

Dhelmise

Rank B or C

It is a more useful spinner than Tsareena and has a good matchup against Fairy and neutralities useful to Poison and Bug; but thanks to Dynamax, it's hard to use Rapid Spin.

 

[The Black Hippopotas]

Two questions about Ground:
-Everybody is putting Seismitoad as staple. What happened to Gastrodon? I remember previous gen monotypes, there was a 50%, and even there was more Gastrodon usage, but suddenly everybody is forgetting Gastrodon existence. I still think Gastrodon can be better (better recovery, ability increases offensive presence, best defensive stats).
-Is Runerigus viable? I was thinking in a Trick Room Ground team, and Runerigus would have very good synergy with Hippowdon, Rhyperior, and Gastrodon, with DD Flygon/Mamoswine and Excadrill being the answers for the team when TR isn't set.

 

[LuckyPiper]

Two questions about Ground:
-Everybody is putting Seismitoad as staple. What happened to Gastrodon? I remember previous gen monotypes, there was a 50%, and even there was more Gastrodon usage, but suddenly everybody is forgetting Gastrodon existence. I still think Gastrodon can be better (better recovery, ability increases offensive presence, best defensive stats).
-Is Runerigus viable? I was thinking in a Trick Room Ground team, and Runerigus would have very good synergy with Hippowdon, Rhyperior, and Gastrodon, with DD Flygon/Mamoswine and Excadrill being the answers for the team when TR isn't set.

Alright so a few reasons seis is probably better than gastrodon on ground right now.
-Seis is faster, and this is a very offensive meta
-Seis gets better offensive coverage I believe
-Dynamax setup sweepers shatter most walls so bulk is slightly less valued.
-Gastrodon lost toxic which imo makes it less valuable.
Overall it's just a more offensive meta and while I do feel Gastrodon probably works fine, I think it's slightly outclassed at least until dynamax is dealt with (mechanic/mons banned) or pokehome gives it toxic back.
I don't know for sure that 1 is better than the other though for all we know gastrodons higher spa stat could be valuable in some matchups but I think those are some reasons we're seeing more Seis rn.

As for runerigus you should test it out yourself if you're curious about it =D. I'm sure people have experimented with it some but most of the times I've seen it was on ghost and I haven't seen any trick room ground teams so you should give it a go and let us know how you feel about it

 

[HedgeLord]

Morpeko could make for a decent anti water team addition on Dark. Boosting its own speed with a decently strong STAB move thats also super effective without wasting your Dynamax slot is huge. Seed Bomb is also excellent against Seismitoad.
Putting its bulk aside, what heavily neuters Morpeko's potential is Hunger Switch. Suddenly losing your go to SE move against Water is a massive blow and Protect gives your opponent the chance to set up Hazards, switch in Pelipper, Dynamax and break Protect or click Recover on Toxapex.

If this thing had another ability I'd honestly use it regularly, just because Water is that common right now lol

 

[Fírnen]

Hello everyone,
I'd like to talk about one type everyone is snubbing at the moment.
I'm talking about

.

When everyone noticed this type lost its famous and (one of) the bulkiest core (Chansey/Porygon2/Bulky Raptor (CPS)), this type has been neglected.
However, this type gained some good things to compensate the lost of CPS:
- Ditto : In a meta where everyone using Max-moves, and so, boosting moves, Ditto is clearly one of the best answer (it has been proved in OU than it's really strong). Ditto is clearly very strong in this meta.

- Silvally: Last gen, GF wanted to create a small Arceus, they failed, Silvally was clearly bad last gen (even in OM Mono), even Type:Null was better.
So what's changed?
→ Multi-Attack : 90 → 120 BP. The best Normal move ever (Because no recoil (double-edge)).
→ Dynamax: Coupled to Aerial Ace (Max-Fly move is 110BP), it boosts its speed and, in this meta, global speed isn't really high like USUM. So next 1 or 2 Max-Fly, Silvally outspeeds nearly all Pokemon.
These 2 things made him (imo), one of the best sweeper in normal team (and maybe in the meta).
Ps: Crunch to eat Ghost.
Ps2: some calcs:
[Spoil] Max-Normal based.
+2 252 Atk Silk Scarf Silvally Multi-Attack vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Toxapex: 279-328 (91.7 - 107.8%) -- 50% chance to OHKO after Black Sludge recovery
+2 252 Atk Silk Scarf Silvally Multi-Attack vs. 252 HP / 112+ Def Hippowdon: 373-439 (88.8 - 104.5%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Silk Scarf Silvally Multi-Attack vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Tyranitar: 240-282 (59.5 - 69.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
... [/Spoil]

- Indeedee: next the small Arceus, here is the small Tapu lele. Same speed, same ability. With 105 Sp.Atk, played as specs (or scarf), this Pokemon is able to make some holes. Especially with Max-Fire (Mystical fire) against steel by example.

- Obstagoon: Not the best, not the worst, but useful against Ghost which is everywhere in these first weeks.
Facade/Obstruct/Close Combat/Knock Off is a good coverage and 95 speed isn't bad at all.

Some Pokemon are still here and are powerful like:
- Diggersby: No need to explain why.
- Heliolisk: With Rain everywhere, it helps a lot because of Dry Skin and gets a good coverage for this meta.

Some Pokemon lost power in this SS:
- Snorlax: When I saw the loss CPS, I've thought immediately to Snorlax, but the thing is it lost Frustration/Return AND Aguav berry (This berry heals now 33% instead 50%), which is a big nerf to our fat friend. I didn't try the Resttalk set because of Dynamax boosting move pressure.
Edit: Post-dyna ban: With ban, Restalk or Recycle berry is still good but band is a good alternative as it helps a lot against some cases.
- Braviary: Could be the next Bulky Raptor, but GF decided to not see on Earth, so, it can't Roost anymore which make it useful only offensively.
- Drampa: The loss of Roost is terrible, it would have been useful against some types as pivot, defog, roost,... But now is too slow and can't really deals with Dynamax in actual meta.

Some others Pokemon useful in normal type:
- Unfeazant: The only Pokemon able to heal itself and Defog. Coupled with a good atk and a decent speed, it's fine for the new playstyle of Normal type (Offense). It learns Taunt too which is good to help Normal team.
- Oranguru: Is an option in Trick Room coupled to Nasty Plot + Dynamax.
- Bewear : Helps in some matchups. Good bulk and Max-Fight may make some holes too.
The sub Bulk up is really good, it's a really good set to use and help normal in many situations.
- Dubwool: Rest Talk Cotton Guard Body Press is a really good set to play to counter some types alone.
- Noctowl : lol no. It's still bad.


I'm currently playing a normal team: Unfeazant/Iguolta/Silvally/Ditto/Indeedee/Obstagoon. Really fun to play.
Here are some replays (the level is maybe middle but can't find other people in high ladd):
Against :
Electric: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1018589510
Ghost: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1018597584
Dragon: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1018602368
Steel: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1018606930
Fire: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1018643142
Water: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1018650548

 

[TheJ3estPenguin]

Ability: Chlorophyll

- Hurricane

i'm not much of a monotype player but i think physical shiftry is the way to go in any situation. i saw a real Agency Certified™ set blunder was using in one of his lives that can absolutely bust a hole in teams with sun

Shiftry

Shiftry @ Focus Sash
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Solar Blade
- Throat Chop
- Bounce

this set really takes advantage of dynamax, so u should use it while u can!!!!

 

[Ninjamage]

i'm not much of a monotype player but i think physical shiftry is the way to go in any situation. i saw a real Agency Certified™ set blunder was using in one of his lives that can absolutely bust a hole in teams with sun

Shiftry

Shiftry @ Focus Sash
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Solar Blade
- Throat Chop
- Bounce

this set really takes advantage of dynamax, so u should use it while u can!!!!

I really like that set as well! The reason I was running Special Shiftry was because of its access to Heat Wave and ability to set sun for itself and beat or heavily damage types like Ice, Steel, and Ghost that Grass struggles against in the meta right now.

The other set is still a work in progress:

Captain Hook (Dhelmise) @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Steelworker
EVs: 252 HP / 128 Def / 128 Spe
Impish Nature
- Anchor Shot
- Rapid Spin
- Power Whip
- Shadow Claw

This is intended to be Grass's hazard removal and spin blocker all in one, and Dhelmise's good natural bulk and high attack stat make it an ideal offensive spinner, albeit a slow one. Dhelmise's triple STAB is very nice for all around coverage, and gets an added bonus with Anchor Shot trapping foes. Heavy Duty Boots are here so it can safely Rapid Spin multiple times in a match. The EV spread here is still a work in progress. The speed allows you to outspeed anything up to uninvested base 55s, and at +1 (after Rapid Spin) outspeed anything up to fully invested adamant Tyranitar. The rest of the EVs I have slapped into HP and Defense just for maximum longevity. If anyone has any ideas on how to improve the spread (I might be missing some important 2hkos for example) I would love to hear them.

On a different note, once the calculator was up and running, I ran a good amount of calcs and couldn't find any significant OHKOS or 2HKOS I was missing out on with Dhelmise. 20 Attack investment with a neutral nature does allow Anchor Shot to OHKO Vanilluxe 100% of the time, but because the Ice Cream Cone is faster it will either: A) Set Aurora Veil and survive or B) OHKO Dhelmise with Blizzard. So, not all that useful. I could be missing something though, feel free to tell me if I did.

 

[TheJ3estPenguin]

I really like that set as well! The reason I was running Special Shiftry was because of its access to Heat Wave and ability to set sun for itself and beat or heavily damage types like Ice, Steel, and Ghost that Grass struggles against in the meta right now.

the point was why would u run hurricane, itś got 50% accuracy in sun man. you can defo have a better option than that bro

 

[Ninjamage]

the point was why would u run hurricane, itś got 50% accuracy in sun man. you can defo have a better option than that bro

When Dynamaxed, Max Airstream grants +1 speed. So when the sun runs out, I can still be faster than the majority of opposing Pokemon. Besides, in a matchup where I would use Hurricane regularly over Heat Wave, such as Fighting, I wouldn't be likely to set sun. I believe Shiftry also gets Air Slash, which is an option if you think that sun + Hurricane might overlap in a battle.

 

[Havens]

When Dynamaxed, Max Airstream grants +1 speed. So when the sun runs out, I can still be faster than the majority of opposing Pokemon. Besides, in a matchup where I would use Hurricane regularly over Heat Wave, such as Fighting, I wouldn't be likely to set sun. I believe Shiftry also gets Air Slash, which is an option if you think that sun + Hurricane might overlap in a battle.

Max Airstream feels counter-intuitive on a decently fast mon with a weather abusing ability. You could probably run Heat Rock over Ebelt for consistent weather abuse and something like SolarBeam or Extrasensory > Hurricane for better STAB power and coverage. Assuming you Nasty Plot first, Max Flare with sun for 8 turns via Heat Rock into spam will already make you fast enough to the point where Airstream is trivial; heck I'd even say Extrasensory is better than Hurricane when it comes to Fighting teams since you'd also have access to Max Mindstorm which then blocks off common priority like Vacuum Wave Lucario and Conkeldurr Mach Punch.

 

[Ninjamage]

Max Airstream feels counter-intuitive on a decently fast mon with a weather abusing ability. You could probably run Heat Rock over Ebelt for consistent weather abuse and something like SolarBeam or Extrasensory > Hurricane for better STAB power and coverage. Assuming you Nasty Plot first, Max Flare with sun for 8 turns via Heat Rock into spam will already make you fast enough to the point where Airstream is trivial; heck I'd even say Extrasensory is better than Hurricane when it comes to Fighting teams since you'd also have access to Max Mindstorm which then blocks off common priority like Vacuum Wave Lucario and Conkeldurr Mach Punch.

That sounds like a really good idea actually. I had no idea that the weather rocks worked with Max Moves, which does open a slot for Extrasensory and Max Mindstorm to block priority. I'll definitely try this one out

 

[An Explosion]

Ok, first post here, but I figured I’d throw my hat into the ring regarding the Ground type.

I’ve messed around with Sandaconda. A lot. The only set I see here isn’t taking advantage of the fact that it has access to a new and game-changing ability.

Sand Spit.

Before gen VIII, if your Sand Stream Pokemon fainted, you were out of luck. Now, we have another way to create sandstorms without having 2 Sand Stream users. I’ve been messing around with an Assault Vest set to make up for it’s lack of SpD in my physical copy of Shield (which has worked quite well when coupled with Gigantamax), and was wondering if a set like that could do well here.

Sandaconda-Gmax @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sand Spit
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Earthquake
- Body Press
- Outrage
- Fire Fang

This set is meant to be a defensive wall with emphasis on SpD. The Assault Vest is essential to this set, as the 1.5x bonus is invaluable. Earthquake is the main STAB move, and when Gigantamaxed acts as a better Sand Tomb, allowing you to keep your opponent from switching away from your giant nope rope of death. Outrage is a hard hitting move that works well with it’s other moves. Body press takes advantage of its’ high Def stat, and when Gigantamaxed allows it to boost its’ good Atk stat. Fire Fang is meant to take down Grass and Ice types.

Gen VIII is still relatively new, so I’m trying to contribute as much as I can.

 

[Focus Sashed]

So here's a psychic monotype team I made, I'm not very good at making teams so I would like feedback on it

Indeedee @ Choice Specs
Ability: Psychic Surge
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
- Psychic
- Mystical Fire
- Dazzling Gleam
- Shadow Ball

Hatterene-Gmax (F) @ Leftovers
Ability: Healer
EVs: 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Trick Room
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam
- Shadow Ball

Mew @ Leftovers
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Toxic Spikes
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam

Orbeetle-Gmax @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Swarm
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Sticky Web
- Psychic
- Bug Buzz
- Energy Ball

Mr. Mime-Galar @ Eviolite
Ability: Screen Cleaner
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpA / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Rapid Spin
- Light Screen
- Reflect
- Psychic

Meowstic-F (F) @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Keen Eye
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Thunderbolt
- Shadow Ball
- Future Sight

 

[EternumTagerMain]

Alright so a few reasons seis is probably better than gastrodon on ground right now.
-Seis is faster, and this is a very offensive meta
-Seis gets better offensive coverage I believe
-Dynamax setup sweepers shatter most walls so bulk is slightly less valued.
-Gastrodon lost toxic which imo makes it less valuable.
Overall it's just a more offensive meta and while I do feel Gastrodon probably works fine, I think it's slightly outclassed at least until dynamax is dealt with (mechanic/mons banned) or pokehome gives it toxic back.
I don't know for sure that 1 is better than the other though for all we know gastrodons higher spa stat could be valuable in some matchups but I think those are some reasons we're seeing more Seis rn.

As for runerigus you should test it out yourself if you're curious about it =D. I'm sure people have experimented with it some but most of the times I've seen it was on ghost and I haven't seen any trick room ground teams so you should give it a go and let us know how you feel about it

Runerigus can Learn Haze and Will-O to massively cripple Physical Attackers.
That's pretty notable IMO.

 

[mushamu]

It's been nearly a month so I'm gonna drop some stuff in this thread as per usual. I'm going to start off with a few sets I've been enjoying recently while building Monotype.

Specs Dragapult

Dragapult @ Choice Specs
Ability: Clear Body / Inflirtrator
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Thunderbolt
- Flamethrower
- Draco Meteor

Dragapult's one of the best Pokemon in the Monotype metagame right now in my opinion because of its variety of sets and overall consistentcy. As everyone knows, Dragapult's physical coverage is not the best, with Phantom Force being its main Ghost STAB and only useful while Dynamax'ed. Choice Specs Dragapult takes advantage of its greater special coverage to threaten teams, with Draco Meteor being a very powerful nuke and Shadow Ball being spammable, while Flamethrower and Thunderbolt are good coverage options. By playing around with Ghost, I've found that the Steel matchup can actually be pretty tough, mainly if they have Bisharp. Bisharp's Dark typing means its the only Pokemon that can switch into Prankster Sableye comfortably; it doesn't mind losing its Life Orb to Knock Off either because Ghost's offensive threats are frail, so the additional damage for Sucker Punch isn't too crucial. You can Dynamax into Max Flare too, which lets you take Bisharp's Sucker Punch rather nicely, and Dynamax lets you bop things randomly like with other Choice locked Pokemon too.

Otherwise, with Bisharp causing Sableye to no longer be an issue, Ferrothorn's Spikes really softens up Ghost as they don't carry hazard removal, and you eventually lose with a bit of switching. It doesn't care if it gets burned by Galarian Corsola and whatnot because it can just sit there, click Leech Seed, and Spike up. Specs Dragapult is a good way for Ghost teams to have a more reliable out against Steel, particularly ones with Bisharp, because of Steel's general weakness to strong wallbreakers with Fire coverage. Otherwise, its Speed and coverage coupled with a spammable STAB in Shadow Ball as well as a powerful nuke in Draco Meteor allows it to function as a good special wallbreaker. Dragapult's other sets like Choice Band and Light Screen Reflect aren't as good against Steel because Max Phantasm from the former is rather unreliable at breaking Steel, and using the latter set usually means you're supporting a setup sweeper like Polteagiest, which can be hard to set up and gets beaten by Bisharp's Sucker Punch anyways if it doesn't find time to Max Mindstorm, which it probably won't.

Screens Grimmsnarl

Grimmsnarl (M) @ Light Clay
Ability: Prankster
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Taunt
- Thunder Wave
- Light Screen
- Reflect

Fairy's a type I've been taking a liking to in this metagame, shoutouts LuckyPiper for showing me the light. It has a good shot against everything, including Steel which Togekiss along with support can try to beat, and is overall very consistent. This is something Fylkir Pudin and I came up with while building for an untour. Basically with the loss of Klefki on Fairy and offense being dominant, we thought Screens Grimmsnarl could patch up the hole nicely. It can set both Reflect and Light Screen for the rest of the team to take advantage of, which is really good for setup sweepers like Togekiss in particular. Taunt and Thunder Wave are both great for cancelling out recovery, hazards, setup, status, and slowing things down respectively. However, it does force you to give up on offensive Grimmsnarl, and puts the main focus onto setting up with other Pokemon like Togekiss, which I think is fine. Togekiss is such a powerful Dynamax user and a really reliable wincon, that I think having screens support for it is great. Otherwise, it also helps other Pokemon like Hatterene and Mimikyu set up a bit, and Thunder Wave can be useful for crippling the opposing team for your slower Pokemon to take advantage of. Here's the replay of the game and it ended up working nicely: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8monotype-1025217617

General thoughts
For my general thoughts on the metagame so far, it's generally fine. Dynamax is obviously kinda nuts and if it goes the metagame should be more healthy. Since I'm a balance type of guy in Monotype, I've tried out suboptimal things like Water without rain, and it doesn't seem too good from what I've experienced. I tried using some teams with Choice Scarf Rotom-W as the speed control, but there's not much reason to not use rain and Dynamax puts insane pressure on defensive cores anyways, so it's not ideal at all to be running balance Water in this meta. There's also the fact that you have to use Cramorant as a Defogger if you want it which downright sucks. Otherwise, if you're offense, you should be running rain, as pretty much every single offensive Water-type Pokemon enjoys it, namely the Swift Swim users like Drednaw, Barraskewda, and Seismitoad. I feel like balance in general is hard to run in this metagame; Steel is probably the best type to be running balance with because Ferrothorn + Corviknight + Bronzong are actually pretty good Pokemon and form defensive cores that are hard to break with their typings, and the loss of HP Fire and certain Pokemon, restricting Fire coverage a bit. Dark can kinda count as balance I guess and it's okay too. Otherwise, everything's usually not good or offensive.

Another thing I noticed is that I feel like the metagame is also less versatile type wise alongside teambuilding wise compared to SM. There are types like Water, Steel, Ground, Dragon, Fairy, and Ghost that are obviously pretty good in the metagame as it is, types like Dark, Flying, Ice, and Psychic that aren't like amazing but still decent, but there's quite a few types down at the bottom where it's just, they don't have much merit to them in a competitive scene over something that's straight up good. I'm thinking about types that got the short end of the stick when the dex cut hit, such as Electric, Bug, Normal, Grass, Poison, Fighting, and types that are generally bad because they can't beat what's good like Fire and Rock. For this reason I believe that this metagame favors the top types much more than what's at the bottom in higher levels of play, making it altogether more top heavy. Of course I could be wrong as there haven't been any major team tournaments involving SS Monotype, but it's different compared to SM where almost every type was viable in a tournament setting. I'm excited to see PokeHome and unreleased Pokemon gradually being available opening new doors in Monotype teambuilding wise, because with the sametypeclause intact, the metagame wants to be as versatile as it can be.

 

[Ninjamage]

In my possibly naive hope that Dynamax will be banned, I decided to create a more traditional balance Grass team as opposed to the spikes offense I was running, and tested it out on the ladder. In doing so, I realized what a HUGE win Appletun is for Grass. Having something that actually resists fire moves to pair alongside Ferrothorn makes for a hard core to break. Ferrothorn and Appletun cover each other's weaknesses pretty well, and if you choose to run Leech Seed + Protect (as I have done so) on both of them, you can scout choice locked mons very easily. In fact, this might be Grass's only viable way to play around Galarian Darmanitan without setting up a Chlorophyll Sweeper, Dynamaxing, or hoping that a faster scarfer somehow kills the thing. Appletun takes Flare Blitz from G-Darm easily, and Ferrothorn also avoids the 2HKO from Icicle Crash. In this way, it is possible to whittle G-Darm down to be eventually killed, which is very nice. Another thing I noticed is that Appletun, with maximum HP invest and 48 Defense investment, can 1v1 Dracovish. Fishious Rend, even if banded, will do nothing because of a 4x resist, and the 48 defense EVs allow Appletun to avoid the 2HKO from banded Ice Fang. Appletun is also Grass's only reliable switch in to Chandelure, a staple on most Ghost teams running around right now. In fact, Ghost seems to struggle mightily with the duo of Ferrothorn + Appletun. With Ferrothorn's spike support, Ghost doesn't enjoy switching around much, but it may have to in order to gain momentum against this core. Gengar is the only mon that I can think of that can threaten them both with a single set: however, it is often choice locked assuming it does not Dynamax, which limits how well it can function versus this core. I guess my point here is that Appletun has been a huge success for me recently, and could be considered a staple on Grass in the future.

I think Grass is, once again, being criminally underrated at this point in time in the metagame. With Appletun + Ferrothorn wreaking havoc on Ghost, Grass's natural matchup benefits against Ground and Water, and the hits that Flying and Steel suffered (Rotom can spam Thunderbolt and Volt Switch against Flying due to the losses of Landorus and Gliscor, both types lost Celesteela, and Steel lost Mega Scizor and Heatran), I think that Grass could and will rise up to be a solid anti-meta pick again this generation. Steel struggles against any sort of Fire coverage now, with viable options coming from Silvally or Shiftry, Dragon and Dark have no solid answer to Whimsicott, and everything except Darmanitan on Ice hates Ferrothorn. If Dynamax does end up being banned, that only strengthens Grass's case because Pokemon like Corviknight, Hawlucha, Gyarados, and Togekiss will no longer be able to abuse Max Airstream, and Grass doesn't posses an obvious candidate for Dynamaxing like other types. Furthermore, once Pokemon home is released and Grass gets access to Decidueye, Venusaur, Celebi, and some others, it will only have more options to choose from: Grass could run Balance, Offense, or even Sunny Day with Venusaur (correct me if I'm wrong here) finally being able to run Weather Ball and Chlorophyll simultaneously. All in all, I think Grass will be a solid type once the meta settles down some more.

 

[EternumTagerMain]

After playing a lot this weekend, here are some thoughts I have on the meta right now. I've really been enjoying playing so far.

Bug

Without literally 5 of its main Pokemon, this type is pretty helpless. Also, Sleep Clause's quick return (although possibly temporary) removes the niche Butterfree had.

Highlight Pokemon:

- The addition of Dynamax makes Durant an imposing threat, as it can take advantage of Hustle-boosted attacks without fear of missing. Moreover, with Max Knuckle off of Superpower, it can boost its attack to continue wreaking havoc post-Dynamax. Bug's access to Sticky Web benefits it greatly. Also, it's move pool only got better with the addition of First Impression, a great STAB priority move which is even more helpful in this extremely offensive meta.

- My favorite Sticky Web setter for the type right now with it being able to also set up Stealth Rock

- Shedinja paired with Heavy Duty Boots can be really annoying to kill. It can make some Dynamax Pokemon completely useless (not really, since Max Airstream is super common) and be troublesome for rain. However, it not being able to fully take advantage of choice locked mons because of Dynamax + the popularity of Hail/Sand make it risky.

Besides these, I saw someone using a Substitute Araquanid in a room tour which seemed like an interesting way to beat rain, it hits super hard with Dynamax.

Dark

Dark is at an interesting place right now in the tier. I would say it is one of the better types as it is able to get the edge on some of the more common types like Ghost, Dragon, and Ice. However, it struggles against two of the most effective teams: Swift Swim Water and Sand Ground. Not having a proper Water resist + tyranitar not being able to safely stop Rain causes the team to be easily overwhelmed. The same goes for Ground, where Excadrill not only gets the Sand set up for it from Tyranitar, but can pop the defensive check Mandibuzz with a Max Rockfall after an SD. Besides this, Fairy coverage not being particularly common or threatening also gives the team some flexibility to not run a Pokemon that takes neutral damage from them.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Grimmsnarl is a bit disappointing compared to the expectations, but it still has some practical use in the meta. On Dark, I personally enjoy running a Light Clay Dual Screens set. Prankster Screens is great in this offensive meta because it allows its teammates to take hits better, and can help them set up and win. Another excellent advantage in this meta is having Prankster Thunder Wave. It's a decent way to control a Dynamaxed Pokemon and cripple the opponent. Taunt is also great because it stops the already scarce defoggers, while preventing hazards and set up moves. There's a Bulk Up RestTalk set I've been meaning to try, but I think I might prefer it on Fairy since Utility Grimmsnarl seems to mesh well with Dark's offensive nature.

- Obstagoon is another Pokemon that disappointed, with it not getting Belly Drum + Extremespeed or even Swords Dance. However, it has decent Attack & Speed stats which make it hard to switch into thanks to Guts. It has benefits greatly from being one of the only Pokemon with access to Knock Off. My favorite set right now is Flame Orb Guts with Bulk Up / Knock Off / Facade / Close Combat. When it comes in, it often causes opponents to "pick one" since most types are being nailed by one of the three moves, and very few great defensives answers exist.

- Losing Knock Off and Pursuit has been awful for Weavile, but Dynamax is a good gain. Losing main moves allows it to run Low Kick and get Attack boosts from Max Knuckle.Using Dynamax to no longer be move locked from the Choice item is very helpful.

- Hydreigon gaining Nasty Plot is super dangerous and can be a huge treat for slower team. Thus, it benefits greatly from Thunder Wave spam. It can handle some revenger killers by Dynamaxing or having screens support.

Besides these, Tyranitar & Mandibuzz are some obvious great mons. Both provide great support with Tyranitar being one of the only Stealth Rock users + it has Thunder Wave, and Mandibuzz being amongst the rare Defog users + being an answer to Fighting type attacks. I haven't tried Bisharp yet but I'm sure it's good despite losing Knock Off, because priority is super useful right now.

Dragon

Despite losing some of its main stars (Latios, Latias, Kyurem-Black, Dragonite and Garchomp), Dragon has been competing at a high level in the metagame. It is aided by the dip in Fairy's viability, most of the types also suffering losses, and it received some good gifts. Ice being really popular is however quite bad for Dragon.

Highlight Pokemon:

- When Dragapult's movepool was leaked, this really cool looking Pokemon suddenly seemed kind of average because it lacked proper physical coverage. However, it has shown to be able to overcome that. It has the flexibility to run a few different sets: Dragon Dance, Choice Band, and Choice Specs. All 3 variants put intense pressure on the opponent, especially when Dynamaxed. You could probably even run DD on a Choice Band set because of the lackluster physical moveset. It would be able to get off a DD and break down the opponent while Dynamaxed, then come in at another point and finish of with Choice Band. This is all theoretical though since I haven't tried out sets besides regular DD. Choice Specs is for taking advantage of its better Special movepool. Its amazing Speed, making it the fastest unboosted relevant pokemon in the meta, allows it to run Adamant/Modest sets. As mentioned in the previous section, priority is a great asset right now, so its access to Sucker Punch is great. It might not be a Dragonite Extremespeed, but its very useful in the meta. Dragon Darts is also a really cool signature move.

- Duralduron is my preferred Stealth Rock setter with Garchomp gone. Its decent Speed tier and good Special Attack paired with a nice move pool gives it an offensice presence. It has great Defense too which allows it to take hits too. However it's Special Defense is awful.

- Clangorous Soul is a crazy good move, since it is not only omniboost but stackable omniboost. The HP loss isnt even that much of a downside because Kommo-o gets Drain Punch. Of course, it's not easy to set up once, let alone several times, but in the right situation it can demolish teams. Dynamax helps it as it will get bulk to aid against faster Pokemon. Furthermore, Max Knuckle can boosts its attack.

- I already went over Hydreigon in Dark and it essentially does the same so need to go over that.

Other than these, I've been trying out Dracozolt as a scarfer because Bolt Beak is super good. Haven't given Flapple / Appletun a shot yet. Haxorus and Flygon are some older Dragon-types who are now getting attention since their competition for slots has disappeared.

Electric

Electric has lost most of the great gifts it received in gen 7. Nonetheless, I think it's a pretty decent mid-tier type. With Sticky Webs + one of the fastest Pokemon, Alolan Raichu under Electric Terrain, the type becomes an offensive threat in the metagame. Electric teams can overwhelm the opponent. It should be noted that not having a flying type (bar Rotom-Fan) can pretty much lets Scarf Excadrill solo.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Despite not being relevant in USM Monotype, Vikavolt is super useful in SS. First of all, it gained Sticky Web. Also, it has Levitate as an ability and has good Grass coverage to hit Ground types, something lacking on most Electric types. Sure Galvantula, has Energy Ball too and is faster, but Levitate + the amazing SpA make Vikavolt great.

- Rotom-Wash is a necessary Levitate users, and the safest answer to Sand Rush Excadrill. No Defog or Pain Split sucks for it, but its still a necessary staple for electric teams.

- Toxtricity is a cool Pokemon with some flexibility for its sets. It can competently be a special attacker or a mixed attacker. It has a really strong STAB move with Punk Rock boosted Overdrive. It has a prerty wide movepool. I have seen LO, Choice Specs, and Shift Gear as competent sets. It also functions as a good Dynamaxer because it can boost it's SpA with Max Ooze and set up Electric Terrain.

- Dracozolt can hit crazy hard (assuming you hit). If it goes first, Bolt Beak + Electric Terrain + Hustle + Choice Band does incredible damage.you can totally forego Band and use Scarf instead but I like having the power since we have Webs anyways. With few hazard removers running around, you can be confident they stay up.

- Pincurchin is not Tapu Koko nor is it Toxapex but its some weird hybrid of the two. As mentioned before, hazard removers are low which makes its ability to set up Toxic Spikes and Spikes really alluring. Furthermore, being able to set up Electric Terrain without having to Dynamax is great support.

Besides this, Raichu-Alola is still a great Pokemon and can still run through teams.

Fairy

Another type that has suffered a huge downfall, losing all its main Pokemon of USUM bar Mimikyu (and Clefable but it lost Softboiled). I think it's still pretty mid-level despite that.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Togekiss is one of the best Dynamax abusers in the game. It is able to Nasty Plot and then boost its Speed with Max Airstream. That paired with Serene Grace increasing its flinches makes it difficult to revenge kill. Even Steel types struggle because it can Max Flare them.

- With weather abusers like Excadrill and Swift Swim users being popular, Trace Choice Scarf Gardevoir is a great revenge killer.

- Magic Bounce is a great ability. Hatterene is also able to take outthe annoying Ferrothorn, even being able to switch into it. It has good coverage + amazing Special Attack so there's no going wrong. Very useful for the steel matchup where nothing bar heatproof Bronzong comes in on Mystical Fire. It's poor Speed can hold it back though.

- I discussed it on Dark, but on Fairy I prefer using an offensive Bulk Up set. I use mono stab. As mentioned many times, Sucker Punch is a good move to have and Grimmsnarl makes good use of it. I am thinking of trying the RestTalk set I mentioned before on Fairy teams.

Besides this, Mimikyu is good as always and Disguise helps against Dynamax. Webs teams with Ribombee are pretty good from what I've seen and tested. Rapidash-Galar is an ok Swords Dance user with good Speed and dual stab moves but isn't particularly impressive.

Fighting

Really haven't used this much but this type is very eh. One of the worst types of the gen, if not the worst.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Hawlucha is a great Dynamax abuser. Unburden + Swords Dance + STAB Max moves that increase its Attack and Speed stats + more bulk make it hard to compete with. It's biggest set back is that it had medicore team support.

Kommo-o is cool but it has to serve as the Stealth Rock setter and Lucario is nice because of Extremespeed. I've seen Toxicroak put in some work too. Overall, this type is gonna be mediocre until the Swords of Justice return.

Fire

Not really much to say about this type, I haven't tried it much but from what I have it's bad.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Charizard can take advantage of Dynamax with Solar Power boosted Max Flare's which can set its own Sun, and boosting its speed with Max Airstream off of the newly acquired Hurricane. Heavy Duty Boots is an amazing item for it.

Torkoal does its usual job and Rotom-Heat can set up screens. The rest of the team is not particularly impressive. Looking forward to Libero Cinderace which might make the type more fun.

Flying

With no Electric Immunities, Flying is forced to run Hyper Offense. The type is actually not as awful as predicted, but still not that impressive. Dynamax is its saving grace. Without Dynamax, it might lose its niche. Heavy Duty boots is a cool iteam to have though. Also, having the best max move as STAB is great.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Never thought I'd be naming Xatu as a top Pokemon for Flying but here we are. Magic Bounce + Dual Screens is great support for the setup sweeper heavy HO Flying. Its good Speed helps it get screens up. It can also cripple things with Thunder Wave and U-turn for pivoting.

- Swoobat's stat increases do twice as much as they normally do which is particularly daunting do to its movepool. It now gets Nasty Plot and it can boosts its speed with Max Airstream. It also has STAB Stored Power which will be super strong after all these boosts.

- Gyarados is one of the Pokemon that really makes Dynamax look like a broken mechanic. After one Dragon Dance, it can already become an unbearable threat by spamming Max Airstream to boost its Speed while getting Moxie Attack boosts from knocking out opponents. It can also set rain with Max Geyser, further increasing the power of its STAB Max Geyser/Waterfall.

- Charizard, Hawlucha and Togekiss are other great abusers which I've already discussed in their respective types.

Besides these, you don't really want to use any of the more Defensive flying types. As for offensive options, Butterfree was fun before Sleep Clause returned. There's other offensive options that can be used to cteam certain types.

Ghost

Ghost is one of the typed thst seems to have benefitted from SS. At the moment, its probably one of the best types due to its many good offensive options and possessing good utility.

Highlight Pokemon:

- What better to mark Ghost's success than the actual Sword & Shield Pokemon. It moght not be able to run Toxic sets anymore, but its a strong threat. I've mostly been running King's Shield + 3 attacks (Iron Head, CC, Shadow Sneak) with Leftovers. There's plenty of variants to try though, including the Weakness Policy Automotize set. It has been banned in the last 2 gens, so it is expected to go again. Personally, I don't see it as much of a threat right now. It really hasn't appeared to be broken, but perhaps Dynamax is the cause of that. It will be interesting to see how it performs with that gone. Right now, I still think it wouldn't be too crazy but there is no telling what would happen.

- Losing Levitate in gen 7 was horrible for Gengar. However, Dynamax and Nasty Plot really benefit it. With Dynamax, it can boost its Special Attack with Max Ooze. I've been using Choice Scarf with Shadow Ball / Sludge Wave / Focus Blast / Dazzling Gleam. However, you could probably forego a coverage move for Nasty Plot. In a situation with no good fast/priority revenge killer or nothing taking advantage of it being locked into Nasty Plot, it can set up and then wreck havoc with dynamax.

- Poltergeist can really be threatening with Shell Smash. A small slip up from the opponent can allow it to get a smash and just tear a team apart. However, it has trouble finding opportunities to smash in this offensive metagame and has very poor coverage.

- I already talked about Dragapult in the Dragon section.

Some defensive Pokemon might be noteworthy but I haven't really tested them so can't speak on them. Shedinja and Jellicent in particular, they could probably form a nice core with Runerigus. Cursola is also a nice utility mon. Froslass is solid for Hyper Offense. Of course, Mimikyu still does its job and can help against Dynamax Pokemon.

Grass

Another type that I haven't really tested much. I just don't see it being too significant in the meta. A lot of its best assets like Venusaur have yet to arrive. Of course, I haven't experimented with it beyond building 1 team so maybe I'm missing some hidden gems. At the moment, I just can't see it act as an anti-meta force like in USUM. It practically gets solo'd by Gyarados so even beating water is shaky. The loss of Mega-Venusaur and Breloom might be too much.

Ground

There's not too much to say about Ground. That is not because it's bad but simply because it hasn't changed much since ORAS. The general idea of the team is the same, it just lacks Garchomp, Landorus/Landorus-Therian and maybe Nidoking. We also can't run the Mega Steelix teams that gained popularity later in USUM.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Not only does it get a metagame where clicking EQ seems to be easy, but it benefits insanely from Dynamax. It is able to set up Swords Dance and then Dynamax to break things with powerful attacks. The bulk helps it keep up the rampage and its STAB max moves increases its defenses making it even harder to revenge kill. It can also Max Rockfall to set its sand up again.

- Seismitoad is a good answer to the popular rain teams.Max Defense is a rising set since most Swift Swimmers struggle to take it out. Another rain answer that I've been trying is a Swift Swim Specs variant (team also running Gastrodon so that there's a water absorber). It's a fun way to reverse sweep, just need to be mindful of Barraskewda (I haven't done any calcs for it). It can Dynamax and break things with Max Overgrowth, Max Ooze for Ludicolo or Max Quake for Toxapex. Besides the water matchup, it's a nice special attacker for this type that lacks a real one.

Besides these, the usual Hippowdon, Mamoswine, Gastrodon, Dugrio are good options. I'm sure something can be done with Diggersby and Flygon too, though I haven't tested them.

Ice

Ice is definitely a lot more popular than before, and possibly better but its very overhyped. It's definitely a good type to use but I'm unsure on it being amongst the top.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Having a built in Choice Band is great for Darmanitan-Galar. This makes running Choice Scarf much easier. If I remember correctly, Gorilla Tactics keeps it locked in even for Max Moves which controls it a bit. It can even use the Zen Mode form because Dynamax helps it fall into that zone without fearing being knocked out.

- I haven't seen too many people use Cloyster, but I think it's super good. Aurora Veil allows it to Shell Smash easily and then it can run wild with Dynamax. All 3 of its move can set weather allows it to break apart opposing weather teams (spamming Max Rockfall & Max Hailstorm vs Rain, Max Geyser & Max Hailstorm vs Sand)

- I already discussed what Weavile can do under Dark

Besides these, Ninetales-Alola is great for setting up Hail and Aurora veil, making setting up much easier. Mr.Rime with Heavy Duty Boots or Mr.Mime-Galar seem like a decent Rapid Spinners if you don't want to use Avalugg. The latter seems like a solid Exadrill counter with Body Press, but I haven't tested it. Mamoswine is always good. Froslass can be interesting for hazard stack. I'm looking forward to what the type becomes when the fossils get Slush Rush.

Normal

Yes, Normal is far from what it used to be. However, it is a lot less hopeless than predicted. It is not a great type, but it's not entirely bottom of the barrel either.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Ditto is definitely not overrated. In this offensive metagame, its role as a revenge killer is particularly prominent. It can really punish the opponent for setting up. Also, it can use that set up form and Dynamax to wreck havoc of its own. It is important to remember that Dynamaxing will remove its scarf. Thus, the player needs to be mindful of possible answers to that. Also, the opponent can Dynamax to live Ditto's hit so that needs to be taken in consideration.

- Indeedee can run Specs which allows it to break holes in types like Water and Steel. This is the real Meloetta lite, but with a more useful ability in Psychic Surge.

- Braviary can be quite threatening with Dynamax. Max Airstream boosts its Speed while Max Knuckle boosts its Attack (it gained Close Combat this gen which is nice). It also Bulk Up as other forms of set up and good abilities to take advantage of.

- I personally haven't used Snorlax yet, but have heard that the Curse set is really solid. Definitely something to look into. I can see it being better with less Knock off and phazing.

- I already talked about Obstagoon.

Besides these, Diggersby is still ok tho not great, Heliolisk has some decent offensive presence.

Poison

Here's another type I haven't bothered with much. There's nothing really inspiring about it for me. I've already covered Gengar and Toxtricity so no need to go over them. Toxapex is Toxapex. With no Flying type, Choice Scarf Mold Breaker Excadrill is running through the type.

Psychic

The loss of all its legendary/mythical Pokemon, besides Mew, has definitely hurt Psychic, but luckily the other types also took huge hits. I would still clasify Psychic as a top type.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Reuniclus has always been a threat but now it gains Stored Power which means it can really take advantage of all its set up.

- A good Levitate Pokemon to handle Excadrill in Sand, take some hits and set up Stealth Rocks. it could maybe even be useful for a Trick Room team.

- I still need to use Mew more, but it has a lot of flexibility. It can be a utility mon, a hazard setter or even an offensive dynamaxer (special and physical, personally enjoy physical with DD and Max Knuckle, not really amazing but it's fun). It losing Roost/Softboiled makes utility sets worse tho.

- I already covered Gardevoir, Hatterene and Indeedee.

The fun thing about Psychic is that it can run multiple different offensice styles. It could have Screens on which Swoobat could be dangerous, or Sticky Web with Orbeetle. The type is going to just get better once it gains Jirachi, Celebi and Necrozma.

Rock

This type is just bad. With no Water immunity or good Ground one, it gets demolished by the two of the best teams in the metagame. Sticky Web can't even save it from Swift Swim / Sand Rush. You could probably cheese a win with Webs vs some types ig.

Steel

Losing Heatran is definitely a huge blow, but Steel still manages to remain usable. I think it's a pretty solid mid/high-mid tier type.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Corviknight is a nice bulky Pokemon and Ground immunity. It might not have the utility of Skarmory or Celesteela, but it still serves its purpose well. It has U-turn which is nice for pivoting, can Defog to remove hazards, and Roost to heal up. I've seen some Bulk Up sets that seem interesting, but haven't personally tried it.

- I've already covered Aegislash on Ghost, but I wanna note that another reason it's not as dangerous is that Steel no longer has the immunity core.

- Mold Breaker Scarf Excadrill pretty much solo's a few types and can be dangerous with Dynamax. Since Rapid Spin increases Speed, in the right situation, it could Spin and then Dynamax so that it still has the Scarf speed.

Besides these, Ferrothorn is a great bulky Pokemon that is a bit harder to kill now for some types. Duralduron does a good job as a Special attacker and Lucario is solid. Bronzong is the type's main option to take Fire type attacks.

Water

Water is one of the best types in the metagame, being able to compete in basically every matchup. It's greatest flaw is that it has no real hazard removal besides like Cramorant (lol) or Cloyster. Also, Stall water seems to have been nerfed greatly because it lost a bunch of utility moves.

Highlight Pokemon:

- Toxapex continues as an amazing bulky Pokemon. In fact, it's probably even more annoying to kill except for some setup Dynamax Pokemon.

- It's ability to set up Rain is really useful, and it can slow pivot into a sweeper. Losing Defog is really bad though.

- Electric Immunity,Stealth Rock Setter and Swift Swim Sweeper

- Barraskewda has a great Attack stat paired with a diverse move pool. While Swift Swim, it has an incredible Speed stat that allows it to still function outside of Rain. It can be a good Dynamaxer as it gains boosts from Max Knuckle and set its own rain with Max Geyser without worrying about being too slow.

- The best SD Swift Swim user, and it's Gigantamax form can set up Stealth Rock while attacking. It's big downfall is that its other stab Max Move sets Sand which is counterproductive.

- Can cripple the opponent with Thunder Wave / WoW and pivot with Volt Switch. It can also be more offensive with Choice Scarf.

- Already explained how good it is with Dynamax. Gyarados is just incredible right now.


Araquanid is an option for Sticky Web teams. Cloyster can be a dangerous threat that counters opposing Rain. Ludicolo is another option for Rain teams. I've tried Crawdaunt and Arctovish on Web teams and they are pretty decent. I haven't tried any bulky teams but I'm sure Quagsire, Lanturn (no Heal Bell though so eh), Jellicent can be competent. Water is gonna get even better once Keldeo returns.

Dynamax

I've played devils advocate for Dynamax these last few days, even though I mostly exaggerated just to mess with people. I personally think people are being too hasty with demanding its immediate removal before even trying to play around it. It would suck to get rid of the main mechanic without giving it a proper evaluation. From my personal experiences, Dynamax hasn't been much of a factor in the decision of most games. I think there areways to deal with it in many situations. However, I do agree that some of the options of checking it aren't always the healthiest for the metagame. Dynamaxing is definitely a dangerous strategy that can be problematic. I could lean towards a ban, but I personally think it still needs to be examined further and alternative options need to considered. A proposed one was to remove the Pokemon that are the most dangerous with Dynamax, and then to see if it still causes problems. While that could work, it might become problematic, messy, and overcomplicated. In the end, if it comes down to removing several abusers or removing the mechanic itself, I would favour banning Dynamax. If it would be banned only a few days after the gen begun and without a public discussion I probably wouldnt mind much. I'd just be a bit disappointed that it wasn't fully dissected. Although I do want it to be treated carefully, I also think the issue needs to be addressed promptly. The Dynamax situation should not be drag on for too long because almost no other tier decisions can really confidently be made when we don't know its situation. A metagame without Dynamax would be remarkably different from one without.

TL;DR: I can support an eventual Dynamax ban, I just want it to be done carefully. I also want to see some structured arguments to really solidify the reasoning behind the removal of an integral part of gen 8. Yes, I know Gyarados and others are dominant, but I'd like to see evidence that Dynamax itself is intrinsically unhealthy. Again, I'm not saying I completely think Dynamax is healthy. I'm just not yet entirely convinced since I personally haven't really seen it be totally ridiculous in my games so far with rare exceptions mostly due to matchup. Nonetheless, I hope the issue is being tackled promptly since we shouldn't be stuck in a period of uncertainty for too long. Banning Dynamax creates a whole new metagame, and starting fresh after a couple months would be messy.

I apologize if stuff are hard to understand / read, or if there's a lot of typos. I wrote the bulk of it standing in public transport yesterday & today. Just tried getting out all of my thoughts, my motivation dropping is super obvious in the later types. Now that the ladder is up, hope a lot of good players are using it so that we can get a better idea of what the tier is looking like. Let's stay active playing on ladder, room tours, friendly bo3s, ... to quickly establish the tier! And let's get some more discussion going, sharing ideas is very important in this phase of a generation. I am especially interested to see our tier leaders and the rest of the council give us their thoughts on the tier right now and on Dynamax.

Runerigus on Ground can Run Will-O-Wisp and Haze to shut down physical attackers especially Gyarados.
The only issue it has is it's lack of reliable recovery.
It's high defense allows it to run a strong Body Press to fight off Ice.

Eject Button Sandaconda is fantastic to set up Excadrill's Sandstorm too

 

[Pabloaram]

Hi...
I will to share my balance Dark Team

https://pokepast.es/417c5966203af987

A defensive core of Tytar-Mandibuzz-Sableye togheter a offensive core of Scarf Hydreigon, AV Grimmsnarl and Gust Obstagoon..

Obtagoon is work great aggainst slower team and as a status absorber.

Grimmsnarl can be Band instead to give more offensive presence

 

[Eien]

In my possibly naive hope that Dynamax will be banned, I decided to create a more traditional balance Grass team as opposed to the spikes offense I was running, and tested it out on the ladder. In doing so, I realized what a HUGE win Appletun is for Grass. Having something that actually resists fire moves to pair alongside Ferrothorn makes for a hard core to break. Ferrothorn and Appletun cover each other's weaknesses pretty well, and if you choose to run Leech Seed + Protect (as I have done so) on both of them, you can scout choice locked mons very easily. In fact, this might be Grass's only viable way to play around Galarian Darmanitan without setting up a Chlorophyll Sweeper, Dynamaxing, or hoping that a faster scarfer somehow kills the thing. Appletun takes Flare Blitz from G-Darm easily, and Ferrothorn also avoids the 2HKO from Icicle Crash. In this way, it is possible to whittle G-Darm down to be eventually killed, which is very nice. Another thing I noticed is that Appletun, with maximum HP invest and 48 Defense investment, can 1v1 Dracovish. Fishious Rend, even if banded, will do nothing because of a 4x resist, and the 48 defense EVs allow Appletun to avoid the 2HKO from banded Ice Fang. Appletun is also Grass's only reliable switch in to Chandelure, a staple on most Ghost teams running around right now. In fact, Ghost seems to struggle mightily with the duo of Ferrothorn + Appletun. With Ferrothorn's spike support, Ghost doesn't enjoy switching around much, but it may have to in order to gain momentum against this core. Gengar is the only mon that I can think of that can threaten them both with a single set: however, it is often choice locked assuming it does not Dynamax, which limits how well it can function versus this core. I guess my point here is that Appletun has been a huge success for me recently, and could be considered a staple on Grass in the future.

I think Grass is, once again, being criminally underrated at this point in time in the metagame. With Appletun + Ferrothorn wreaking havoc on Ghost, Grass's natural matchup benefits against Ground and Water, and the hits that Flying and Steel suffered (Rotom can spam Thunderbolt and Volt Switch against Flying due to the losses of Landorus and Gliscor, both types lost Celesteela, and Steel lost Mega Scizor and Heatran), I think that Grass could and will rise up to be a solid anti-meta pick again this generation. Steel struggles against any sort of Fire coverage now, with viable options coming from Silvally or Shiftry, Dragon and Dark have no solid answer to Whimsicott, and everything except Darmanitan on Ice hates Ferrothorn. If Dynamax does end up being banned, that only strengthens Grass's case because Pokemon like Corviknight, Hawlucha, Gyarados, and Togekiss will no longer be able to abuse Max Airstream, and Grass doesn't posses an obvious candidate for Dynamaxing like other types. Furthermore, once Pokemon home is released and Grass gets access to Decidueye, Venusaur, Celebi, and some others, it will only have more options to choose from: Grass could run Balance, Offense, or even Sunny Day with Venusaur (correct me if I'm wrong here) finally being able to run Weather Ball and Chlorophyll simultaneously. All in all, I think Grass will be a solid type once the meta settles down some more.

Been loving Grass as well, but my team took a completely different approach. I'm not too sold on Appletun yet because I feel like it doesn't really wall much that I don't already have an answer to but I'm definitely going to give it a try too. Instead of him, I was running DD Flapple, which is surprisingly strong? It's a bit inconsistent too but it gives me double Sucker Punch combined with Shiftry, which can be really, really nice for covering up Grass's... not stellar Speed. Speaking of Speed, Choice Scarf Rillaboom has been pretty useful; Tyke was talking about how great its U-turn + Knock Off combination can be versus Psychic, which can actually be annoying due to Psychic Terrain blocking Sucker Punch. I've been using double SubSeed with spdef Ludicolo to check Hydreigon and Whimsicott because it's just so fucking good lmao. SubSeed is just absolutely nasty in this meta and it's especially good with Ferrothorn being able to supply double hazards.

I've been hella enjoying Grass and think it's a really solid type even in Max Airstream meta. For a time, I was even running max def screens Rotom-C, which is a genuinely good answer to like every Max Airstream user. Even without it, though, (had to drop it for Rillaboom sadly), Whimsicott is just great, so I don't find Max Airstream to be the killing blow for Grass that one would expect. I'd definitely give it a try if you haven't yet.

 

[Ninjamage]

Been loving Grass as well, but my team took a completely different approach. I'm not too sold on Appletun yet because I feel like it doesn't really wall much that I don't already have an answer to but I'm definitely going to give it a try too. Instead of him, I was running DD Flapple, which is surprisingly strong? It's a bit inconsistent too but it gives me double Sucker Punch combined with Shiftry, which can be really, really nice for covering up Grass's... not stellar Speed. Speaking of Speed, Choice Scarf Rillaboom has been pretty useful; Tyke was talking about how great its U-turn + Knock Off combination can be versus Psychic, which can actually be annoying due to Psychic Terrain blocking Sucker Punch. I've been using double SubSeed with spdef Ludicolo to check Hydreigon and Whimsicott because it's just so fucking good lmao. SubSeed is just absolutely nasty in this meta and it's especially good with Ferrothorn being able to supply double hazards.

I've been hella enjoying Grass and think it's a really solid type even in Max Airstream meta. For a time, I was even running max def screens Rotom-C, which is a genuinely good answer to like every Max Airstream user. Even without it, though, (had to drop it for Rillaboom sadly), Whimsicott is just great, so I don't find Max Airstream to be the killing blow for Grass that one would expect. I'd definitely give it a try if you haven't yet.

I've been using scarf Rotom and Bulk Up Rillaboom, but I have been toying with the idea of scarf Rillaboom in my head for a while. I'll definitely try it out if I see a decrease in flying teams. At the beginning of the meta I was using sub DD ripen Liechi/Salaca Berry Flapple, but it either didn't have enough speed or attack to work for me, but it is also possible I was using it wrong. I haven't touched Ludicolo yet, but Sub Seed Encore Whimsicott is (in my opinion) going to prove to be great this generation with Dynamax no longer in the fold. I feel like grass is going to be a lot more versatile this generation because of the sheer number of viable options there are, and no clear cut "best" style to use like there was in Gen 7.

 

[CanonGOD]

Hello, I am pretty new to the monotype metagame so I'm trying to see if this steel team is any good.

Corviknight @ Leftovers
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Brave Bird
- Roost
- Bulk Up
- Power Trip

Aegislash @ Weakness Policy
Ability: Stance Change
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Impish Nature
- Shadow Ball
- Iron Head
- Swords Dance
- King's Shield

Ferrothorn @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Iron Barbs
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Atk / 252 Def
Sassy Nature
- Knock Off
- Leech Seed
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave

Duraludon-Gmax @ Assault Vest
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA
Modest Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt
- Solar Beam

Excadrill @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Sand Rush
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Iron Head
- Rock Slide
- Rapid Spin

Durant @ Choice Band
Ability: Hustle
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- First Impression
- X-Scissor
- Superpower
- Rock slide

 

[memomiguel]

Duraludon-Gmax @ Assault Vest
Ability: Light Metal
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpA
Modest Nature
- Draco Meteor
- Flash Cannon
- Thunderbolt
- Solar Beam

dynamax was just banned