Resource SS NU Viability Ranking Thread

[turtledoggo1]

Some small noms

--> A
Heliolisk really likes Flygon out of the picture (to no one's surprise at all). It serves great use as a form of speed control, a wallbreaker, or just a great pivoter. It's also a decent ghost resist if you play aggressively and whatnot. Mari explained it well in their post.
--> B+
Flygon not being on every other team is super neat for Garbodor. There's less room than ever for defog shenanigans, with the current hazard removal/deterrents not appreciating a Gunk Shot to the face. Spikes are great, even better when things like Bronzong are running Heatproof. The ability to soft check physical attackers is super great too.

--> B-
Doesn't need too much of an introduction but essentially no Sylveon = big gains. Sirfetch'd is an issue too but it can't really afford to take a Knock Off. Anyways, Scrafty is a decently big threat in the metagame, with huge bulk and many setup opportunities. It appreciates the fact that many teams are using Garbador/Weezing as their fighting answers, meaning Scrafty has an easier time setting up. It has decent longevity too and can be a nuisance to many teams, usually always able to force/make progress.
--> C+/B-
I used to be on the Comfey hate train but recently I've really liking this mon. CM sets can be super potent sometimes especially subseed sets. Oftentimes people will switch their Copperajah or Bronzong in on a Comfey to try and kill it, only to be met with a devastating Leech Seed. A Leech Seed that means Comfey can beat the steels. Obviously it's not the most consistent thing in the world, but is consistent enough to potentially warrant a small rise, imo.

--> C+
I think its utility and overall bulk are good, good enough to warrant a raise. I don't really see it on par with something like Qwilfish, who lacks the bulk and longevity Weezing has. Weezing in my experience can be a great fighting check, status spreader, ghost answer (if you decide to run itemless) and overall physical sponge. Flygon leaving also means you have more room for something like Neutralizing Gas, which can be quite clutch sometimes.

(Fairy) --> UR
I don't think it should be ranked. Poisons are getting better, Bronzong is everywhere (with ID popping up more), fire types are still great as ever, the list goes on. It's not as consistent or effective as the other Silvallys and should drop to reflect that.

 

[Rabia]

I'd move Rotom-C to S right now. It's absurdly effective at consistently generating momentum because nothing in the tier outside of superior offensive pressure prevents it from spamming Volt Switch, and Nasty Plot sets are legitimately some of the most heinous acts against humanity. Beyond Nasty Plot, general utility sets still see solid use and success, and Choice item variants, be it Choice Scarf or Choice Specs, exist and are rather good too.

Sure, you can argue Flygon was never a particularly good answer to Rotom-C because a) it didn't like being burned and b) boosted Leaf Storm straight OHKOed, but it was still the safest Volt Switch deterrent around. It's become such a free move to spam now, and that combined with all the other goodies Rotom-C provides has it, in my eyes, as the definitive best option around.


Tyrantrum should never have risen in the first place. It's still a fairly average wallbreaker all things considered and hasn't demonstrably benefited much at all from Flygon's departure so far. I think the increase in Mudsdale, Bronzong, and even Rhydon usage has continued to hamper it, and it overall offers very little from a teambuilding perspective. Head Smash is 100% a nuclear warhead that can net you great wallbreaking gains, but I can seldom justify Tyrantrum over other wallbreakers like Sirfetch'd, Sylveon, and Starmie that simply offer more overall.


I am... very torn on how to rate Ninjask. It got a fairly high amount of use in NUPL but lacked the success you'd attribute to something people favor in the builder that much (shoutouts Rotom-C), but it still remains probably the deadliest late-game cleaner available, and it still works as an effective countermeasure to hyper offense teams. Maybe B is just right for it? This is definitely one I'd like to see more discourse on.

---

As a general aside, C rank is absolutely filled to the brim and is harming me as a result. While some of these options should surely rise as is (Alolan Raichu, Gigalith, Pincurchin to name a few), I still think we could do with a brief lookover of what's being ranked down there.

I've been rating this Pokemon higher than most others and stand by my claims that it's both worth ranking and currently underranked. The continued high usage of Pokemon like Vaporeon, Rotom-C, and Mudsdale is a huge boon to Alolan Exeggutor, and hell the fact Diancie seldom runs Moonblast right now further aids it. It's at least a B- wallbreaker.

I want to talk about these two together because realistically you'll never see one without the other, but I think Electric Terrain is better with Flygon out of the picture. It hasn't caught on as much as I'd imagined because there is still a plethora of options that slow down the wallbreakers' abilities to... wallbreak. Yet, I still value this offense archetype more now than I did last month and could see it in B-.

Similar to Alolan Exeggutor, I'm on record defending Comfey a fair bit more than the average user. Calm Mind sets do the same thing they did last generation and warrant a ranking of some kind. I'm more partial to placing Comfey in C+ if only because SubSeed sets have more self sufficiency, but I'm not opposed to keeping it in C either. It's still a rather fringe pick.

It's remained a very fringe pick since its ranking, so I don't see any reason to adjust its ranking at all really.

Much like Electric Terrain teams, I find sand builds to be a bit better in this meta, and Gigalith in specific is of course more appreciated now with Salazzle at the top of the food chain. Some sort of rise is warranted.

It's... certainly an option? I don't know, maybe just keep it C because it's really fast and revenge kills Salazzle + slower Talonflame variants.

It has a very specific niche and actually sees use, so yeah keeping it ranked is all good by me.

I'm still not sold on this option at all, but again, very specific niche and actually sees use.

I still appreciate Omastar as an alternative to Blastoise that has the very funny Meteor Beam button. It's far less consistent but is really great at punishing players that try super hard to play around Power Herb Meteor Beam. Definitely worth keeping ranked in my eyes.

Goodbye.

(fairy) I pushed for this to get reranked, but yeah it's not worth it anymore for the reasons turtdog outlined.

(steel) Wasn't worth ranking before we added it back, still isn't now in my eyes. I just can't see a world in which you justify it over Copperajah, Bronzong, or even Escavalier on your team unless you REEEEALLY need to compress a lot of roles into one, at which point I'd probably just rebuild the team.

Yeah, I think we overshot lowering Weezing's rank last update. C+ is a lot more fair.

:) it's certainly an NU-tiered Pokemon!

 

[Mariannabelle]

If you ask me, it deserves a little more credit than a lot of the other stuff in C; the little critter just offers a lot. It’s a pretty devastating CM wincon with Steels removed (and they’re not that hard to chip down), utility sets offer good role compression (fighting check/fog/heal bell) with solid priority options, and it can even choose to lure and break down checks with subseed. It has a poor overall matchup against a lot of high ranks though, so C+ or B- is probably fine.

This is strictly by comparison, but Ninjask is, imo, something to be played around more carefully than other current B ranks. A lot of them are outclassed versions of other mons, whereas Ninjask is an arguable superior option in the roles it fills.

(Steel) I’ll defend Silvally-Steel. The real value of Silvally-Steel is that it’s significantly less of a momentum wrecker than other Steel-types, which find themselves utter bait for many notable wallbreakers, like Sirfetch’d and Golurk. Silvally can take the opportunity to attack or pivot out with U-turn or Parting Shot (<— goated move) in such cases. In exchange, it fulfills the defensive Steel role much less reliably, but that’s okay sometimes on certain offensively-oriented builds. It can also use leftover moveslots to pack moves for relevant mons, like Grass Pledge for Quagsire or Rock Slide for Talonflame. Or, Toxic, ig. At the very least, it has a niche for itself.

 

[Realistic Waters]

C ---> UR (along with half of C ranks struggling "niches")
UR --->C (sike)

Hello it's your favorite Exeggutor hater Realistic Waters. I don't even want Duraludon ranked but at the same time I'm nominating Exeggutor for UNRANK again because I know for a fact Duraludon is much better and that's UR. I'll explain a little bit in detail why you should use Duraludon or any other wallbreaker instead since my last posts weren't good enough. Exeggutor is outclassed by all its counterparts in 95% of situations and the other 5% doesn't warrant it a rank on VR. It certainly doesn't need to rise any further.

Now lets look at Duraludon whom I enjoyed using on ladder.

Duraludon @ Choice Specs
Ability: Heavy Metal
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Flash Cannon
- Dark Pulse
- Thunderbolt

What makes it viable in this metagame?

Choice Specs makes for an effective and viable wall breaker regardless of shifts with a decent blend of utility, bulk, power and speed and fits the criteria for C rank. Specs 2HKO's every NU mon bar Escavalier and Copperajah who still take a sizable chunk from Draco anyway (around 40% to sp def sets)

Replays don't seem to be enforced so I guess you can take my word for it.

vs

Reasons why Duraludon is better than Exeggutor Alola

Duraludon has more defensive utility. I don't expect offensive mons to bring a tonne of utiltiy but Dura can act as hard check and switches in on pokemon without taking huge damage like Talonflame, Vileplume, Rotom Mows leaf storm, Araquanid, Ninjask, Garbodor and Weezing from the top of my head. Some highlights were Eggy has taking advantage of Mudsdale and Vapreon (good thing dura OHKO's Muds and 2HKO's Vaporeon comfortably with thunderbolt) but this is significantly less and Eggy really struggles to switch in to much else (see teambuilder, almost every other mon). In regards to Rotom C, what stops it from using volt switch especially if we have no volt switch block that switches into leaf storm so I don't think that this is that great of a niche here. Your additional bonuses from using Duraldon are SR/U-turn resistance and toxic immunity (toxic spam is pretty wide spread)

Duraludon forces more switches. When we look at 1 v 1 wallbreaker situations, Duraludon will usually force them out because of its speed and typing unlike eggy since they won't be able to ohko first (see starmie, Exploud, specs sylveon, Sirfetch’d, Blastoise, Glastrier, Tyrantrum, Aerodactyl, Golurk, Inteleon, Garbodor and Decidueye for example) this is a HUGE advantage b/c eggy is forced out in all these scenarios leaving your team for face a blow from your opposing teams wallbreakers.

Duraludon breaks down defensive cores + stall easier. I said this before but how do you expect to break past Sylveon + Heatproof Bronzong? It's been another month where they have high usage (Bronzong is currently our second most used mon 23.893% usage and Sylveon sits at 6th place with 20.116%) We don't have Flygon anymore so majority of them are def Heatproof so it's going to struggle. Fortunately for Duraldon's case, it can smash through both.

TLDR; Eggy is bad please unrank, outclassed by other dragon wallbreakers and even Rotom Mow / celebi for an offensive grass type. LO Synthesis or sleep powder w/e set do not warrant ranking.

 

[Catalisador]

UR -> C/C+​

So, hear me out. Alolan Sandslash is an absolute powerhouse right now, in my opinion. With its solid defensive typing, it is able to switch against common defensive staples such as Vaporeon, Sylveon, Flare Blitz-less Talonflame, Xatu, Mantine and Garbodor with little problem. It is also able to eat hits from the likes of Rotom-Mow, Ninjask, Dragalge and Heliolisk. Furthermore, what makes this little critter stand out is its ability to setup Spikes, one of the most pressure-building strategies in the game.
Moreover, access to utility moves in Rapid Spin, Toxic and Knock Off (which punishes common switch-ins such as Brozong and bulky Fire-types like Arcanine) coupled with dual Ice/Steel STAB to threaten the likes of Diancie, Guzzlord and Vileplume makes it a surprisingly versatile little pokémon.

Replay vs. Mariannabelle's toxic anti-hazard team. Showcases Sandslash-Alola's overall bulky utility: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nu-1370643245-jytcdhx2o0q176i1ci80iknfc6mzxt0pw
Longer replay ahead! High ladder gameplay against sand showcasing Sandslash-Alola's reliability as a bulky spiker and overall annoyance for bulkier builds with its access to Knock Off, Toxic and Rapid Spin: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nu-1371058973-cc1ak73ji8zqq7iud4x6nzur40q4ucppw

UR -> C+​

I've been preaching about the ways of Uxie for weeks now! I went over it extensively on this little post, so check it out, guys! ;)

Dishonourable mentions
kinda trash ngl LOL!

C -> UR
-Fairy C -> UR
-Steel C -> UR
C -> UR

Honourable mentions

A+ -> S-​

I can't help but agree with the majority about how Rotom-Mow has become extremely prevalent with Flygon's departure. However, I have to say that I can't quite place it on S tier just yet. In fact, I don't think any one single pokémon stands out as such a metagame defining presence as Flygon did just yet. I think it'll take a couple more weeks for the meta to settle until we can really see it (but yeah, Rotom feels like the closest one so far).

R-RANK?!
click sprite for importable
​

So, I've been testing out a cool new lure Thievul set which is able to OHKO Guzzlord on the switch with Stakekout-boosted Play Rough. Coupled with Rotom-Mow, it makes for a nasty VoltTurn core. Idk, it's just so funny LOL.
P.S.: definitely better than Zoroark.

 

[Lucario]

I am... very torn on how to rate Ninjask. It got a fairly high amount of use in NUPL but lacked the success you'd attribute to something people favor in the builder that much (shoutouts Rotom-C), but it still remains probably the deadliest late-game cleaner available, and it still works as an effective countermeasure to hyper offense teams. Maybe B is just right for it? This is definitely one I'd like to see more discourse on.

Regarding
As you said yourself, it is deadly and probably the best late game sweeper and has little competition. It has been said by various users in the past few months that it invalidates speed control. With Flygon's departure and the rise of Rotom-C and Passimian as great scarfers, Ninjask has the power to scare them both. As my last nom for Ninjask mentioned, common walls and Stealth Rock users like Copper, Bronzong (non-Rest sets), and Diancie can't handle taking U-turns every turn they are in. Ninjask also handles common wallbreakers like Starmie and Sirfetch'd well. All in all, it is a fantastic Pokemon and definitely deserves to be higher, though I am unsure of how much higher due to the common Talonflame.

B- --> Higher
Goodra was a Pokemon that did not like Scarf Flygon for obvious reasons. Now that it's gone, Goodra has much more potential as a wallbreaker. It handles Rotom-C pretty well and can sponge up a couple hits from Salazzle. Its Speed does hold it back a little, but not much. This thing can finally rise back up to B or B+ like it was when it dropped to NU.

UR --> C+
I used this as a suicide lead for BOTS and it did surprisingly well. Its Speed is what sets it apart from Garbodor and other Spikes users. Its access to Taunt + Destiny Bond also allows it get a KO on something like Blastoise that would otherwise switch-in on it, fail to use Shell Smash, go for Dark Pulse, just to get KOed the next turn with Destiny Bond. This Pokemon deserves somewhat of a mention for its utility.

--> Higher
Last month I laughed at Rhydon because it seemingly was bad. Now? It's a fantastic Pokemon. It can check fast wallbreakers like Salazzle and Ninjask as well as slower wallbreakers and utility Pokemon such as Dragalge and Copperajah. Is it better than Diancie or Mudsdale? No. Does it do things they cannot? Yes. It definitely deserved a B+ ranking.

 

[Pokeslice]

UR —> B-

I hate to say this, but Segetarius was right months ago. I’m LOVING palo in this meta and it’s a fire choice in the builder for the current Flygone meta. It’s one of the best (maybe the best) ID Zong answers we have right now, a Diancie switch in, a great SR setter that scares away Xatu, a hard wall to Heliolisk, and a Ghost type that actually beats both Drap and Guzz because of its reliable recovery in Shore Up and secondary STAB. Oh, and ofc it has really nice stats to back up all these traits. You can even run Toxic variants to bait in Vap. Apologies for no replays atm because I’m currently on mobile out of town, but it really is a great meta pick right now. Just gotta take my word for it.

 

[Rabia]

(so people are aware, slate will be going up on Saturday, so get your posts in before then)

 

[poh]

-> C+/ B-

Been trying some lesser used ground types now that Flygon has left the tier. Palossand is a worthy alternative to the more popular rockers like Bronzong and Mudsdale and offers its fair share of positives. Having immediate recovery in shore up means you don't need to go out of your way to wishpass like you'd do with the other rockers. Most teams are 'poltergeistproof' but often lack a shadow ball switchin, which makes palossand have that extra offensive presence. It fits in the current meta pretty well; checking Drapion with colbur, ironpress bronzong, diancie, heliolisk, tauros, tyrantrum and is also one of the few rockers that can threaten Xatu.

 

[roxie]

Greetings,

After going on a building spree these past few days, I've pretty much battled and/or built all of the playstyles while also coming across two new archetypes; stall and sand. With the departure of Flygon, the viability in many Pokemon changes a lot! On paper, I'm unsure if Rotom-C is broken due to the number of specially defensive and resistant Pokemon we have like Dragalge, Celebi, Decidueye, and Guzzlord and revenge killers in Ninjask, Celebi, Zoroark, and Toxicroak but the thing is, it literally just switches out on all of them and invite a wallbreaker in. Sorry if this is a bit long, enjoy!

Nominations (+)

S- -> S
Bronzong is the best Pokemon in the metagame in my eyes but I somewhat/kinda understand what people are saying about Rotom-C possibly being at S. Electric-types are better and Rotom-C does its job in beating Ground-types, resulting in us using the aforementioned defensive/resistant Pokemon and revenge killers. However, I think Bronzong can be a big threat to the builder as well and it reflects on our community with the rise of things like Palossand (can get Toxic'd but doesn't lose to ID) and Choice Specs Decidueye (can also get Toxic'd). Let's look at the OU Viability Rankings for a quick second, Dragapult is ranked at S because of its ability to use a plethora of viable sets and high-speed tier, and in our case, Bronzong is able to use a number of sets while utilizing its defenses to take on threats like Tyrantrum and Glastrier. This Pokemon is still very customizable for the team or players' needs.

A+ -> S
On paper, at first, I was like no way Rotom-C is overpowered in our tier with shit like Dragalge / Decidueye running around but I now recognize the role it plays in the tier. With Flygon gone, the viability in our Ground-types is lowered IMO because literally none of them can survive a Leaf Storm and even something niche like Vibrava is threatened by Nasty Plot sets. Rotom-Mow pressures Ground-types out and positions neighboring breakers like Tyrantrum in with Volt Switch on defensive Pokemon it struggles to get past like Copperajah and Dhelmise. Grass as a typing is really flexible in terms of items you can use like itemless, berries, etc, and overall is nice defensively.
A+ -> S-
With the best Dragon-type gone, more steps in improves, and Dragalge is one of them. Its resistances are good for Electric attacks and on paper, it's like doesn't this just get Volt Switched on like any other resist. Yes, it does but because of its poor speed, it can utilize Flip Turn to position your own teammates. I find Dragalge really good on sand teams also. If we look back at Hail, we will notice that a popular team composition of Alolan Sandslash / Artcovish / Vanilluxe / Aurorus / Decidueye / Dragalge. Dragalge was really popular because of its slow pivoting and access to Toxic Spikes. I made a sand team with Sandslash / Gigalith / Decidueye / Dragalge / Stoutland / Xatu and its role is really outstanding. Enough of weather teams, overall, Dragalge bulk allows it to take on special attacks from Heliolisk and Sylveon, its coverage in Focus Blast and Thunder/Thunderbolt hits Copperajah and Mantine, respectively, and it's just a great slow pivot and spikes absorber for many archetypes. Unsure if this is actually S- worthy but I wanted to acknowledge the role it plays in the metagame. I say that because like "well Dragalge is forced out of fat shit like Bronzong and Copperajah" but Flip Turn does the same thing as Rotom-C in positioning teammates more freely into threats it cannot beat. I'm going to look at its supportive role here tho.
A -> S- / A+
Celebi really appreciates U-turn | First Impression user Flygon out of the tier. Nasty Plot and Choice Scarf sets are pretty heat: Nasty Plot does a great job at breaking defensive Pokemon like Bronzong and Vaporeon, and Choice Scarf is really neat at revenge killing opposing fast shit like (Choice Scarfed: Rotom-C and Passimian). The utilities and supportive moves this Pokemon provides such as Healing Wish, Trick, Stealth Rock, U-turn, and Thunder Wave makes this a really, I mean really customizable Pokemon. Psychic + Fighting coverage is really good, it reminds me of Mega Medicham in SM OU except we don't have to worry about a random Mega Sableye walling our STAB attacks. Also look at this calculation: +2 252 SpA Life Orb Celebi Aura Sphere vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Drapion: 240-283 (85.4 - 100.7%) -- 87.5% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock, smashed right?!

A -> A+
With Flygon gone I see no reason to move this up. The need for Ice Fang to catch Flygon as a lure or "target" is no longer needed and instead, the 4th move can be pretty much anything like Earthquake, Leech Life, Aqua Tail, or even Iron Tail. There is little defensive counterplay that being Mudsdale, Vileplume, and Quagsire, and other stuff like Guzzlord (if it's not using Leech Life). I haven't really made a Drapion team yet so I'm unsure if it's S- yet.
A- -> A
Preparing for this in the builder is quite the task and if you look at a lot of really good SS NU teams, you will notice a really good Poltergeist resistance or itemless Pokemon like Vileplume, Virizion, or Decidueye attempting to switch into this. Notice that I only mentioned Grass-types here but I guess there are other options. Do realize that Golurk can use Heat Crash and pretty much bop them on the switch. It utilizes slow defensive Pokemon, which is a common thing in NU to pose threats to a lot of teams topped off with a fast pivot like Talonflame to bring it back in.
A- -> A
Another Poison-type that benefits from the Flygon ban. It has Low Kick which KOs Mudsdale after a Swords Dance and honestly, unboosted does some really sick damage.
C+ -> B-
Scrafty poses a huge threat versus non-Fairy teams and it could optionally use Iron Head to hit Sylveon and Diancie. I think its Shed Skin does really great at checking Scald and it pretty much just abuses quite a lot of defensive Pokemon. If you use Bulk Up vs Copperajah you are hella bad because it WILL die to Play Rough...anyways promote this guy.
C -> C+ / B-
Really unsure why this was bopped down so far? I find Weezing to be a nice glue for Ground + Poltergeist check and I really suggest trying out Itemless + Taunt. Weezing shouldn't really be compared to Garbodor on who does Spikes better, especially since Levitate is more valid reasoning to use this over Garbodor. Taunt shuts down a lot of defensive stuff like ID Rest Bronzong, Growth Vileplume, and ID/SD Glastrier, all of which Garbodor kinda loses to 1 one 1 unless it's using something cheese-like Haze? But I think Taunt is a better case here.
C -> C+
Magneton has plenty potential in the metagame. I think Magnet Pull can form a lot of great Dragon-Mag cores with lets say Druddigon and Tyrantrum and even Voltturn cores with Ninjask, Passimian, or Xatu. Highly underrated Pokemon IMO.
UR -> B+ / B
Not much to add to this but its Ghost-typing is really nice for checking ID Bronzong and Fighting-types. It has the reliable recovery that the community craves in Ground-types now that Flygon is gone. Keep it short and simple :P
UR -> C+ / C
Shiftry is pretty nice and it pairs well with a Heal Bell user. The set I am referring to is Swords Dance + 3 Atks (STAB). Similar to Celebi, this benefits from First Impression/U-turn user Flygon being gone and Sucker Punch + Knock Off is a really cool thing that Shiftry offers over Decidueye.
UR -> C
Lanturn is cool for dealing with special attackers like Heliolisk and Blastoise while having a colorful range of moves like Ice Beam for Rotom-C and Goodra and Dazzling Gleam as a lure for Guzzlord and Scrafty. I made a team in DLC1 with Ninjask to form a Voltturn core and I feel like the composition of Bronzong + Ninjask + Lanturn is pretty explorable. This is outclassed by Dragalge but STAB Scald is really nice for punishing Ground-types like Mudsdale and Rhydon and Volt Absorb & Water Absorb (use Volt) are such great defensive abilities. Flip turn can also be shut down by opposing Water Absorb abilities from Vaporeon and Jellicent.

On Stall

Was talking to meri berry about stall and honestly, Rotom-C still beats Togedemaru after watching a replay. Nasty Plot Rotom-C + Solid Breaker is pretty good but overall the archetype is pretty good with Quagsire beating setup sweepers like Blastoise and Drapion. Unaware Quagsire is really good and I think it's worth nominating but Togedemaru should more or less just stay unranked until future progress. The nominations below are based on the archetype: stall.
UR -> C+
UR -> UR / C-

On Sand

I think Sand is interesting but quite unexplored. Its not your daily archetype but if Electric terrain gets a nomination with shitmon pincurchin, why shouldn't sand get one xd. SD Sandslash is a great breaker under sand and I feel like its a lot more manageable than our hail abusers (Alolan Sandslash and Arctovish). I am not a fan of Lycanroc but I'd wait a bit on the nomination. Stoutland is also usable on sand but I don't feel like its as good as the core: Sandslash and Gigalitl. The nominations below are based on the archetype: sand.
UR -> C

Nominations (-)
Salazzle S- -> A+ / A
Salazzle has some interesting calculations with its Nasty Plot + 3 Attacks set and according to the usage statistics below, Salazzle doesn't really resemble in the middle of "Always Use (S ranking) and Usually Use (A ranking)". I am aware of how to use Salazzle in NeverUsed, it uses Nasty Plot but it's moreso how effective it is in the current metagame. Flygon is now gone and perhaps you could say that's reasoning to keep it at S- but I still see issues with Salazzle getting past defensive Pokemon like AV Copperajah (needs a boost), Diancie, Heatproof Bronzong, Starmie, and Dragalge. I've never seen this Pokemon "better" than many of the A- rankings like Vaporeon, Talonflame, and Diancie, and that also reflects the viability rankings. Its poor defenses causes it to use Focus Sash but this is still a good mon, offensively.

NUPL Overall Usage Statistics

+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon | Use | Usage % | Win % |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 1 | Flygon | 109 | 59.89% | 49.54% |
| 2 | Copperajah | 65 | 35.71% | 47.69% |
| 3 | Vaporeon | 59 | 32.42% | 54.24% |
| 4 | Talonflame | 58 | 31.87% | 51.72% |
| 5 | Diancie | 56 | 30.77% | 51.79% |
| 6 | Rotom-Mow | 52 | 28.57% | 34.62% |
| 7 | Bronzong | 44 | 24.18% | 38.64% |
| 8 | Sylveon | 36 | 19.78% | 44.44% |
| 9 | Xatu | 34 | 18.68% | 61.76% |
| 10 | Starmie | 28 | 15.38% | 53.57% |
| 11 | Ninjask | 26 | 14.29% | 38.46% |
| 12 | Mudsdale | 25 | 13.74% | 48.00% |
| 12 | Drapion | 25 | 13.74% | 48.00% |
| 14 | Celebi | 24 | 13.19% | 45.83% |
| 15 | Glastrier | 22 | 12.09% | 63.64% |
| 15 | Mantine | 22 | 12.09% | 45.45% |
| 17 | Vileplume | 20 | 10.99% | 55.00% |
| 17 | Arcanine | 20 | 10.99% | 50.00% |
| 19 | Garbodor | 19 | 10.44% | 52.63% |
| 20 | Decidueye | 18 | 9.89% | 61.11% |
| 20 | Golurk | 18 | 9.89% | 55.56% |
| 22 | Dragalge | 17 | 9.34% | 70.59% |
| 22 | Toxicroak | 17 | 9.34% | 47.06% |
| 24 | Sirfetch’d | 16 | 8.79% | 50.00% |
| 25 | Silvally | 15 | 8.24% | 73.33% |
| 26 | Salazzle | 13 | 7.14% | 53.85% |

S- -> A+
Sorry to break it to you but the metagame has adjusted to Copperajah's Stone Edge lure for Talonflame / Arcanine pretty quickly. There is plenty of offensive counterplay to Copperajah and defensive options like Heatproof Bronzong, Guzzlord, and Mudsdale. This Pokemon is pretty customizable but I feel like its pure Steel typing wears it down. Because it's grounded, unlike Levitate Bronzong, you are pretty much required to use a Wish passer and a consistent anti-hazard Pokemon so this Pokemon isn't worn down to quickly. I feel like the metagame has really adjusted way more to using Bronzong with Tyrantrum and now Glastrier in the tier and I feel like this should just drop. Dragalge is also another specially defensive Pokemon I could compare with this and I feel like it offers a way better role at doing: beating fairies, providing pivoting, and Toxic Spikes. Its 4 moves often leaves it walled by something random, say you drop Heat Crash for Superpower, you pretty much lose to stuff like Vileplume, Bronzong, and Pain Split Rotom-C and vise versa, you lose versus opposing Copperajahs.
A+ -> A
Glastrier is nice on like Starmie builds but I feel like the metagame has adapted to beating this Pokemon with Hyper Voice Sylveon and Iron Defense Bronzong sets quite commonly. Mudsdale can also use Body Press to break its Sword Dance set and ID is just walled by a lot. I think 3 Attacks HDB or Band are its best sets. Saying that "Glastrier can sub on Vaporeon tho if it runs X Speed" sounds a bit silly to me to keep it in A+ because can't Vaporeon used an affixed spread to break Glastirer aswell (36 Speed maybe?). It sounds like one of those Speed creep situations like analyses.
A- -> B+
I am a tad less crazy about banning Blastoise since the dual-screen ban because the metagame has really adapted to stuff like Vaporeon, Mantine, and soon, Lanturn. Choice Scarf Heliolisk is more valid with Flygon gone and you can honestly chop the U-turn and Toxic-lure-for-Flygon shenanigans. Decidueye / Golurk / Toxicroak (lots of Pokemon in A- are just way better than this thing).
A- -> B+
Mudsdale faces a little bit of competition with Palossand because of its lack of recovery. The NU community is craving a Ground-type with consistent recovery now and that Pokemon happens to be Palossand. Mudsdale still serves its role in checking physical Pokemon like Drapion but its lack of recovery + poor offensive stats often lead it forced out by quite a lot of Pokemon. I also feel like Bronzong is a nice comparison here since they are categorized at "Tyrantrum" checks but Bronzong offers way more utility. I find Mudsdale a little hard to consider for my teams also with Magic Bounce Xatu, Heal Bellers like Vaporeon and Diancie making it look like a clown when it clicks wish and many things like Draco Dragalge, Sub Glastrier, and Decidueye.
B- -> C+
I think Monotype-Liquidation is a tad poor with numerous Water-resistance running around like Dragalge, Vaporeon, and Mantine. Yes, this can outspeed and use Substitute but it's really awkward using versus momentum like Heliolisk(especially this) and Rotom-C which are pretty common. I think this still has a place but just not a B- sadly.
B- -> C+
Hyper Offensive playstyles have fallen off immediately since the Light Clay ban. Vaporeon can pretty much threaten 4/6 Pokemon used on hyper offense that being Blastoise, Salazzle, and Aerodactyl with its basic moveset. The community started using Roar Vaporeon to phaze the cheese Blastoise sets on hyper offense and this archetype has just fallen off. Choice Band Aerodactyl is on the sample sets but it sucks and its awefully outclassed by Tyrantrum as a breaker. Bronzong is also one of the best Pokemon in the tier and ID sets are just way to common for me to consider this in B- still.
Silvally-Fairy C -> UR
Outclassed by Sylveon. The reason this was nominated was because of its niche on screens but it still struggled to break past defensive Pokemon like Mudsdale and Bronzong at the end of the day. It is also outclassed by other Silvally options like Silvally-Steel and Silvally-Ghost. I had a pretty cool Facade set to hit both Vaporeon and Talonflame but Copperajah is going downhill, Bronzong is rising up. A simple Flame Charge isn't breaking past Bronzong.
Omastar C -> UR
One of the comparisons someone made was that Omastar learns Meteor Beam unlike our other Shell Smasher, Blastoise. I find this pretty hard with Assault Vest Copperajah being common and more important, Vaporeon just using Protect + Scald to scout and stall Omastar. "But what about any other matchup without Vaporeon?" Doesn't Blastoise does the same vs every other matchup also (without Vaporeon/Mantine)?

 

[scorbunnys]

Before it gets closed, imma make some noms :3.
Rises:
S- to S
Yo this is probably the best mon of the tier, ID BP sets are just a pain to wall and SR is always neat. Psychic SR might be a thing still as well, not want to nitpick but this thing should rise to S.

A+ to S
Go woosh = Rotom-Mow, this mon has legit 0 reliable counters (Togedemaru might work as a soft-check but not guaranteed, Copp gets volted and wow'd, etc.) and it also saw usage w some sets such as NP Defog so yeah, the best offensive pivot of the tier should be S, again not going to add much else here.

B+ to A
Volt Switch + Hyper Voice is just NASTY and this mon pulls it pretty well, as it basically has 0 switch-ins & it kind of abuses Vapo. It doesnt like to see more Sylv rn tho but it can still Volt Switch on it. As for Quag, just Grass Knot and thats it.

C+ to B-
Decentish pick atm, Mystical Fire + Toxic just puts some pressure on teams which rely on Mantine/Vapo to check it & Hurricane is p powerful. 100 Speed is not good but not bad either, as it outspeeds Mowtom, I find it decent enough to rise to B-.

UR to C
Decent wishpasser with the ability of soft-checking Vaporeon, Sylveon, Rotom-Mow and offering some pivot utility it's cool. I think that C might be a fine place for it imo.

UR to B+
Shadow Ball + Rocks + Toxic looks p nasty to switch into & it offers some neat utility in form to its weird typing + it's ability to check Tyrantrum & some other mons, B+ looks fine as its prob better than Muddy buddy.

C to C+
I just find it as a fine mon with the ability of checking Vaporeon, Sylveon and Mowtom at a lesser extent, double hazzards is neat too bcuz imagine having a Rocker + Spiker in one slot, isn't it nice? Yeah rise it.

UR to C/C+
Destiny Bond + Spikes always has a niche and this mon pulls it pretty decently, as it can also spinblock and run Icy Wind, which is p decent atm for speed control. Shadow Ball on it is p great too, as it has not so many reliable checks, C/C+ is looking fine for it atm.

UR to A-
Should I explain?

A+ to S-/S
I feel unsure but I just find this mon as a rly good glue, Wish is just a stall star because it just has so few weaknesses paired w Quagsire and Specs is just pretty brainless atm. We've also saw sets such as CM Draining Kiss which is neat, prob keep on A+ but just wanted to say how good it was.

C to C+
CM sets are pretty deadly if the fairy resists were removed, as it has a decent speed and the combo of Triage Draining Kiss is p hard to deal with. Defensive sets might work too?

C+ to B-
BU sets are kinda great atm bcuz they can sweep unprepared teams & it can run moves such as Irom head for fairies.

B to A-
THE spiker of the tier, it can poison Xatu w Gunk Shot, set both, Spikes & Toxic Spikes and abuse fairies pretty decently. It also loves the Heatproof > levitate Zong, as now it can threaten Zonger w Spikes + Stomping Tantrum, its good any way tho.

C to C+/B-
The Weez drop shocked me, so now let's fix it, it's kind of the same than Garbo but kind of worse, tho it has rly neat niches in WoW, Pain Split, Neutralizing Gas/Levitate & Taunt, so ye its prob good enough for rise owo.

UR to C
I haven't explored them at all but Shiftry can be a deadly sweeper & Lanturn is just a neat mon, idk at all abt them but they look good enough to C. Aggron is nice as well.

A- to A
What doggo said.

UR to C
It's a decent wallbreaker with decent speed & the ability to tear the common Sylv balances or stalls / Vapo balances, and its nice vs Deci and stuff, C looks fine for it.

Drops:
Just purge Zoroark, Qwiflish (this one to C- prob tho, as it might have a niche somewhere), Silv Fairy and all the bad mons.

A+ to A/A-
Not a bad mon but Quag + Syl is rly hot atm & Flygon is gone, so Vapo has to deal with Mowtom without a rly solid partner and then, I've realized that Sylv stall is harder to abuse than Vapo balance, as Vapo balance often has to rely in Diancie for checking Guzzlord, which is not great atm, tbh I could drop it to A- but A looks fine.

S- to A
Salazzle: Still a solid mon but I find it kinda easy to check with Zonger being way better than Jah and niche grounds seeing an uptick, also, it doesnt love Quag + Sylv > Vapo either, as Vapo was kinda easier to wear down w Sludge Wave + Toxic.
Copperajah: Just find Zong better & it also doesnt make any progress vs Wish Sylv unlike Ferroseed which can Knock Off at least, it just has harsh competition and feel like A is better.

A- to B
I just find this mon awkward, ppl started to catch up on Palo bcuz it has a reliable recovery & Shadow Ball to beat Levitate Zonger, but this mon just gets chipped to easily and it has a little 4MSS, as it wants Smack Down/Rocks/Roar/Toxic/Earthquake/Body Press/Protect even, but u cant fit everything so Earthquake and Toxic r mandatory, so ye let it drop two subranks.

A+ to A-/B+
The bird has dropped out of the ball because it's a rly unreliable check of fighting-types, as its v prone to Knock Off. It also kind of hates Flygon to be gone, as it was a nice mon to pair w Flygon Defog as Talon is kinda wonky at defogging, but simply, meta trends such as ID Heatproof Zong aren't favoring it, let it drop.

A+ to A
What roxiee said.

THE NOM (I have no replays ;-;):
UR to C
Hear me out, Flareon is viable and imma explain why :3.
I appreciate this mon as it can Wishpass while retaining the ability to check mons such as Sylveon, Glastrier, Copperajah, Bronzong (Scorching Sands Flareon looks decent atm), Decidueye and Mowtom, which is super neat atm.
Now, unlike Arca it has Wishpass and Mystical Fire, Flare is simply a good Vapo/Tine lure, as they both get mfired and burned by Sands / Toxic'd.
Now, it has a little 4MSS but it can get outta it, rise it to C imo.

Cya and sry for the low effort lol
Edit: Added some info to the explanations & added noms.

 

[turtledoggo1]

Some last minute thoughts and noms (?)

rises

S- -> S
I think Bronzong is a mon deserving of S rank. It can compress many roles for a team regarding its utility and good typing/resistances. I know for me personally, I always find myself using it just because of its durability and splashability. It's also something that you usually need to prepare for when teambuilding, particularly regarding ID sets (which have seen a surge in usage in the past weeks). It provides so much in builder regarding its wincon potential and overall splashability.

A+ -> S-/S
Everyone is talking about it already, Mowtom is a very potent threat, banworthy for some. It will almost always make progress against the opposing team through almost unblockable volt switches, with the few electric immunities (pikachus) getting taken advantage of by NP. It has good defensive qualities too, and is super customizable. I don't think it should have ever dropped imo

Indifferent about this, wouldn't be opposed to a drop.

A- -> A
I think Guzzlord is a really great Pokemon in the metagame. Its typing is vital for many teams, being able to keep ghosts in check. Knock Off allows it to almost always force progress, which wasn't as great when Flygon was here as it could initially pivot on Guzzlord. It has a colorful movepool allowing it to pick and choose what it wants to beat, eg. heavy slam and special variants.

A- -> A
Many teams simply do not have great switch-ins to Toxicroak, often relying on a steel/ground + Talonflame (which can all easily be bypassed through minor chip). Many faster revenge killers often have to fear a strong Sucker Punch, while special variants can be super deadly too. Its naturally good typing+moves also makes it a great pick vs HO teams. With it being able to make decent progress vs Stall too.

B+ -> A-
Already talked about a ton, definitely should raise.

B ->B
Perhaps this could rise, idk? I used to be on the Goodra hype train but lately I just haven't been feeling it. It relies a lot on hitting its moves to make actual progress, which is also stunted further by the increased Heatproof Bronzong usage and general vulnerability to being pivoted on and hazards. On the contrary, it is also able to tear down many common balance teams, making it hard to find switch-ins. Its bulk is also pretty good for an offensive mon like Goodra, allowing it to take on many special attackers. Honestly not sure about this mon.

Indifferent about this mon but I think B- is a good place for it. It can be really lethal at times, even if it may require a bit of support at times. Generally just a huge nuisance imo

--> C
everytime i try to copy a sprite from serebii it never loads :[
After using sand for quite a bit on ladder and watching others I think Sandslash could potentially deserve a rank. Under sand it doesn't have too many defensive counterplay, with Physical walls such as Mudsdale and Bronzong getting crippled by Knock and taken advantage of by other teammates (such as xatu). It is still very early/unexplored, so ranking Gigalith higher might be a better call. Sand is a solid playstyle and I encourage others to try it out!

replays

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nu-1376969362-13hglq0c7f72675m3bhisywap5xah9tpw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8nu-1376330398-w3njt8ibi2pobivgl19blqleb5vetnkpw

-> C
Solid pick on HO teams. It's able to be pretty effective at setting Stealth Rocks, especially since many teams' hazard deterrent is Xatu. Custap Endeavor is able to be super useful oftentimes. The loss of Flygon meant that there is one less mainstream U-Turner/defogger/punisher that could otherwise block Aggron from its job.

definitely not nomming because meri said to

--> Higher
Already talked about these a bit so won't go into much detail here but I think they all deserve small rises.

drops

S- -> A+
Others have already talked about it, I just don't view Salazzle as an S- rank contender. It's great at making progress/spreading poisons/ being annoying and whatnot, but just doesn't feel S- to me. It's not as splashable as the other Pokemon in my eyes, and is honestly not that difficult to prepare for in my opinion. Its bulk is also super lackluster, making it so you'll need to find other teammates that can cover for it usually. Great mon for sure but not S- worthy

Don't think it should drop but also disagree it should rise. It's a fantastic mon but isn't as great as the other potential S mons imo. It's a great pivot and all but is harder vs common balances with a water immunity, which is quite common. It is pretty bulky but lacks a lot of long-term longevity and is quite slow, which can be an issue at times. I can understand the appeal to rise but I don't see it, for now at least.

A+ -> A-
Slow, awkward to build around, and is generally just not as splashable or great in its job as the other A+ or A ranked Pokemon.

A+ -> A
Might be a bit harsh but I think Vaporeon could potentially warrant a drop. Electrics are in their prime right now and other meta trends like poisons (croak/dragalge) and grass types gaining popularity isn't doing great for it. ID Bronzong is also not a good look for it. Even on stall-type builds it competes for the water slot with Quagsire and the wish slot for Sylveon. It's great on balance but is exploited pretty easily I think. I was pretty high on this mon a couple weeks ago but haven't been so keen recently.

I think Blastoise should stay A rank. I think it's still one of the most threatening sweepers out there, and is something that many teams lack sturdy answers to. The slight rise in terrain teams also helps Blastoise.

B+ -> B
I think Kingdra has seen better days honestly. The issue of needing two turns to set up becomes really apparent in the face of walls like Bronzong, waters etc.. who are able to cripple you with status. The need to wallbreak through Vaporeon balances isn't as important I think, and I think it should drop to reflect that. I also think Mantine should drop. It has decent role compression but besides that, I don't see too much use for it. I don't see it as super splashable nor super great at what it does, it should drop a bit.

B- -> C+
As of right now, I don't think or see it as a B- Pokemon. I haven't seen many replays or people using it successfully, even on ladder. You have decent damage output with Life Orb but you're now weak to hazards and still aren't getting those ohkos/2 hit kos. My opinion will probably shift on this Pokemon in the coming weeks or whatever but right now, I think it should drop.

After using it for a while (in both flygon and post flygon meta) I can say that it's honestly super underrated. It appreciates less use of Vaporeon. It is able to switch in and set up on the tier's fire types (which happens quite frequently), among other things and act as a deadly late-game cleaner/sweeper. Weak Armor is super great too as it allows you to clean many games on the spot, and makes revenge killing that much harder.

(fairy) ,

regarding lanturn, I don't think it should be ranked. Pallosand probably does though, need to test it out more.

 

[Machineae]

->B-

One of the better HO suicide leads, able to utilize a unique set of moves and ability to great effectiveness. Even if you know ahead of time what set the Aggron is running, you're forced to make tough choices that can alter the course of the game drastically.

I already posted the set I like the most here. It's arguable that Endeavor can be used over Head Smash due to the latter being able to miss and Endeavour being guaranteed damage. I do prefer Head Smash just to complete the Aggron suicide and keep up momentum. This also serves to deny Rapid Spin should you actually get your rocks up.

for meri

 

[Meri Berry]

Tiering Update:
There have been a couple changes this time around with the VR. For one, we have brought on S1nn0hC0nfirm3d and roxiee onto the VR council, and shiloh has stepped down. We have also decided to release the voting sheet with every new shift, and that can be found here. Thank you for your patience, and here are the shifts that you can expect.

Rises and Drops

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

Drops:
S- -> A+
A+ ->A
A -> A-
A+ -> A-
B+ -> B
B+ -> B
B+ -> B
B -> B-
C+ -> C
C+ -> C
C -> UR
C -> UR
C -> UR
C -> UR
C -> UR
C -> UR

Rises and Drops with Reasoning

Rises:
S- -> S: Bronzong has become a powerhouse of the NU metagame, being able to wall the unwallable Copperajah with Heatproof sets, as well as becoming a potent sweeper with Iron Defense + Body Press sets often 6-0ing opposing teams. Stealth Rocks sets are still very consistent as well, which is something that cannot be said about its competition.
A+ -> S: Rotom-Mow is a blessing for VoltTurn, outright beating every Electric-immunity in the tier. Even though it has many Grass- and Dragon- types that can wall it and give it grief, every one of these Pokemon can be Volt Switched on into a breaker that takes advantage of them. Due to its meta defining nature, it deserves to be in S.
A- -> A: Exploud has the meta-defining Scrappy Boomburst, which allows it to chip away and 3HKO even most of its bulkiest resists. This, paired with its monstrous coverage moves, makes it a real threat whenever its safely brought in.
A- -> A: Xatu makes up for a lack of solid removal in the tier, beating the most common Stealth Rocks setters, as well as carrying the move Teleport to safely get in slow breakers without them taking damage.
B+ -> A-: Heliolisk is another Electric-type Pokemon that takes advantage of Flygon leaving the tier. Although its pressure against Electric-immunities isn't quite as clear, its secondary STAB move and amazing coverage allows it to pressure most of the tier without much worry. Also notably, Choice Scarf sets outspeed Blastoise at +2, which is a draw for many people.
B+ -> A-: Tauros is one of the fastest breakers in the tier, nearly unwallable between its near-perfect coverage of Close Combat, Throat Chop, and Iron Head to hit most of its checks. Most teams struggle to find a defensive check that's fit to take on Tauros, often resulting to a generic physical wall and hoping not to take too much chip, or simply revenge killing it.
B -> B+: Escavalier has been able to shine a bit more now that the burden of Stealth Rocks is largely lifted off of the Steel-type slot with the recent shift of Flygon. Toxic + Protect sets are very potent and can disrupt many balance cores, and offensive sets are still scary as ever with the pure power and defensive versatility of this Pokemon.
B -> B+: Garbodor has gotten much better now that most of the Defoggers lose to it. Flygon being in the tier was a huge burden, but without it here it is able to set up Spikes much more consistently, and is therefore a better Pokemon.
B -> B+: Goodra carries powerful coverage to force itself past most of its checks. Notably, Iron Tail has recently been used on Expert Belt sets to lure and KO Diancie, one of its most prominent checks. This coverage allows it to fine tune its set to beat almost anything it wants to, making it very dangerous for slower teams.
B -> B+: Ninjask has become a more reliable and common choice of speed control since the shifts, luring in exploitable resists and pivoting on them with U-Turn in order to go into a strong breaker.
B- -> B: Passimian benefits from less focus on Fighting-resists in the builder, allowing it to force openings with its powerful utility moves like Knock Off and U-Turn, as well as luring Talonflame with Rock Slide.
C+ -> B-: Rhydon has seen more usage the past few weeks, most notably as a Ground-type Pokemon with enough offensive pressure to beat Xatu, as well as a good Salazzle check.
C -> C+: Comfey has been seen as a Defog utility Pokemon for the last few months, but it has recently picked up in usage with Calm Mind + Substitute + Leech Seed sets that can give most of its checks a hard time.
C -> C+: VR Council has admitted that we've undershot the viability of Weezing in the last shift. This Pokemon is very good for setting up Toxic Spikes, being a Poison-type that beats most Grounds, and just overall being a solid physical wall.
UR -> B: Quagsire is a Pokemon that we aren't as sure of the viability on, but it solely makes Stall a viable archetype in the tier again, and we've speculated it can be used on normal balances with either Unaware or Water Absorb.
UR -> B-: Palossand is one of the few Pokemon that outright beats Iron Defense + Body Press Bronzong, and it fills a spot for a Ground-type with Recovery that the tier sorely missed. Choiced sets are also niche, but dangerous.
UR -> C: Duraludon is a Pokemon I have very little experience with, but its able to pressure many cores with its coverage while also providing great defensive utility due to its type.
UR -> C: Uxie has shifted between C and UR for many slates, and I don't see this trend changing. Its a potent CM sweeper with its good speed and excellent bulk, but its lack of Special Attack along with its lack of recovery makes it a contentious Pokemon among council.

Drops:
S- -> A+: Salazzle struggles against most bulky Water-types, and also struggles with the rising trend of Rhydon and Quagsire which both completely wall it. This Pokemon is still very good, but we don't believe S- reflects its viability in the metagame anymore.
A+ -> A: Vapereon is a good glue Pokemon, allowing teams to blanket check some threats. However, it is one of the most abusable Pokemon in the tier with the myriad of setup sweepers that use its Scald to it's advantage, and the Pokemon only gets worse with the rise of more Electric-types.
A -> A-: Blastoise also struggles with the trend of bulky Water-types being used to check it, as well as a host of offensive pressure from many common cores. If Blastoise gets hit while setting up, many neutral threats can live a hit and threaten to KO afterwards, making it less potent now that screens isn't as much of a factor.
A+ -> A-: This is a Pokemon that we overshot in the last shift, with most council members agreeing around the A range. However, this is another Pokemon that struggles against Quagsire, and it has fallen off a little since the recent NUPL.
B+ -> B: Arcanine is one of the better Teleport Pokemon, but it struggles with a lot of competition from Pokemon with more utility like Talonflame, and can't break nearly as well as a Pokemon like Salazzle.
B+ -> B: Kingdra has always been potent, but it will always be second place to Blastoise with its primary Focus Energy set, because Agility + Focus Energy takes 2 turns to set up and is always hard to find an opening for, while still not OHKOing all of its primary targets (notably Sylveon).
B+ -> B: Tyrantrum struggles against meta trends of Bronzong and bulky Ground types like Mudsdale, often relying on coverage more often than it feels like a breaker this slow should. Its defensive typing can help versus some particular Pokemon like Talonflame, but overall it ends up being more of a burden due to all of the Pokemon that can seriously damage it.
B -> B-: Machamp has just not been used that much, struggling to find a niche over Sirfetch'd. Guts is a good ability, but Machamp is easily chipped down and there tends to just be much better breakers that offer more defensively.
C+ -> C: Druddigon is a Pokemon that surged in interest with the recent Sheer Force sets that are being used, but now that the hype has died down we've come to accept that its just not that good.
C+ -> C: A water type check that struggles versus Mantine and doesn't want to be burned by Scald, it struggles to find a place in the metagame over the other Grass and Fighting types that do what it wants to better.
C -> UR: Another contentious Pokemon on the VR, this Pokemon is able to break through bulky cores, but struggles a ton with prediction and even getting those breaking opportunities in the first place.
C -> UR: Inteleon just isn't that good anymore. Scarf sets are irrelevant right now, and Focus Energy sets are outdone by Kingdra.
C -> UR: Jellicent works against certain Pokemon, but it always comes at a huge opportunity cost of not using any of the other Water Absorb Pokemon that are able to bring much more to the table.
C -> UR: A Poison-type that struggles versus BOTH of the primary Fighting-types, as well as a bulky water that has no special bulk, which causes it to struggle versus breakers like Salazzle that it shouldn't lose to.
C -> UR: Silvally-Fairy saw a viability rise with Hyper Offense builds that utilize it, but these Hyper Offense builds have fallen out of favour, leaving this Pokemon in a weird spot.
C -> UR: Silvally-Steel is another case of opportunity cost, offering a Defogger while not offering that much bulk or breaking power in return. It can still have decent compression, but its use in doing so comes at a cost that makes building around it difficult.

 

[turtledoggo1]

Potential Discussion Points

S- -> Despite Flygon's departure, Copperajah still struggles slightly to apply its defensive and offensive tools. being outclassed as a rocker by Diancie and others, and as a splashable Steel type by Bronzong. Its more susceptible to more common forms of chip damage than its Steel competition Bronzong is. Often requiring the use of a wish passer to utilize Copperajah to its fullest potential. (which have also been on the decline lately) Some say it runs the meta, while others disagree, saying it is not a Pokemon deserving of a S subranking.

A+ -> Salazzle is a menacing threat to many teams, able to make progress through poison/knock off chip as well as general offensive presence. However, some may say it's not as splashable or effective as people make it out to be. Votes varied between A and S-, making it a discussion worth opening up to the community.

A+ -> A: Its raw power cannot be ignored, however, most teams usually possess some sort of fighting resist, if not multiple. Sirfetch'd doesn't add too much compression or defensive utility to a team, sometimes making it a less splashable pick compared to other Pokemon such as Toxicroak or Passimian. However, its sheer power, access to priority and overall oppressiveness could still warrant it to be an A+ mon.

===============================================================================

A- rank is pretty cluttered and big, making it a discussion point of its own. Below are some Pokemon that were discussed within the VR Council chat

A- -> A: The departure of Flygon means that Mudsdale is often many teams' designated ground type. Able to be a good overall physical sponge and offer decent role compression. It also offers an underrated offensive presence when paired with Choice Band, which has surged in usage recently.Which was previously held back by the high Flygon and Levitate Bronzong usage. It can bring a lot of value to teams, though its susceptibility to Rotom-C and in general 4MSS could hold it back from rising.

A- -> B+: Blastoise was an extremely potent offensive threat when screens were readily available to it. However, the screens nerf has hurt Blastoise quite a bit. Its nature as a one-time sweeper prevents it from utilizing its bulk as much as it'd like to. In addition, the loss of Flygon has indirectly nerfed Blastoise. Increasing the viability of common checks such as electrics, dragons and things like Toxicroak. It's still really dangerous, with a couple wrong turns allowing Blastoise to sweep through teams.

A- -> A: Golurk is one of the scariest wallbreakers in NU, capable of nuking everything if predicted right. It's also a task to prepare for in the builder, with many 'prepared' teams often folding to it, given the right predictions. However, its low speed, overall frailty and prediction reliant nature can prove to be pretty tough.

A- -> A: There have been talks of Guzzlord's ranking for a bit now, warranting a more focused discussion on it among the community. For many teams, its defensive typing is essential to hold off dangerous ghosts, psychics and more. It is usually able to always force progress, being able to cripple everything with Knock Off and or Toxic. Choiced sets are also popping up more frequently now, which are also deadly in their own right. The inability to deal with ID Bronzong effectively as a Dark type is a huge blow, though. With the wrong predictions on common ghost/psychic types leading to devastating consequences for Guzzlord.

A- -> A: Vileplume has steadily been on the rise lately. It has a large toolbox of moves at its disposal, able to cripple or annoy all of its checks. Its defensive typing is also good for warding off dangerous offensive grass types, ghosts, and in general as a good physical sponge. However, it has somewhat shaky recovery, 4MSS and inability to properly check everything it wants to check.

================================================================================

C -> UR/Higher: Similar to A- rank, many consider C rank to be cluttered/oversized. Discussion on any of the mons is appreciated. Below I'll briefly list a few potential raises/unrankings.

C -> C+: The departure of Flygon has opened the door for many Electric Terrain teams. With other common electric resists/immunities often dropping to coverage or Electric Terrain's teammates. However, it's still a very niche playstyle, being quite matchup fishy.

C -> C+: I honestly don't know what to say about this mon but has some neat coverage and offensive capabilities.

C ->: A controversial mon within the Council (?). Uxie has been in-and-out of C rank for a while now. It shines as a CM sweeper, benefitting from terrains, or just as a stand-alone mon. It's a little matchup fishy, however, and can be taken advantage of relatively easily.

C -> UR: Both of these haven't been doing so hot lately. Virizion is a grass type that worries about scald burn, and is generally outclassed as a wallbreaker/sweeper by many other Pokemon. While Zoroark lacks the consistency and need for its ability.

 

[Rabia]

sure, I'll bite

I'm good with keeping Copperajah in S- for now. Although Bronzong has usurped it as the best Steel-type in the tier, with Heatproof sets providing a counter to any Copperajah variant that lacks Earthquake, Assault Vest Copperajah remains one of the best wallbreakers in the tier, provides a good stop to a plethora of special attackers, and is really easy to support. It enables the hell out of Diancie and other Stealth Rock setters like Rhydon and Palossand too, which can be valuable for certain structures.

Similarly, I'm pretty content with Salazzle in A+. It warps teambuilding quite hard, and Focus Sash sets are legitimately demonic, but generally teams are very naturally prepared to contend with it. I think if anything the argument for a rise back to S- (or even to S if you're super high on it) would be based around that fourth moveslot. Between Dragon Pulse, Toxic, and more fringe options like Encore and Overheat, Salazzle can give any solid answer to it headaches.

Despite teams being pretty well equipped to handle Sirfetch'd now compared to previous metagames, I'm still going to say we should keep Sirfetch'd in A+. The fact remains most checks to it are very vulnerable to its coverage and critical hits from Leek sets; really the only common answer that can hold up for long periods of time is Garbodor, and while we have other forms of soft counterplay like Talonflame, Dragalge, and Sylveon that all pose threats to Sirfetch'd, I find its overall potential to still be worth keeping it ranked highly.

I'm definitely on the Mudsdale hype train and think it's more than shown to be worthy of A rank. As it's been stated before, you really aren't shoehorned into a Steel-type Stealth Rock setter anymore, which makes the opportunity cost to using the horse a lot lower. This is compounded by the departure of Flygon, which mandates people look elsewhere for Volt Switch deterrents.

I think dropping to A- was enough to reflect Blastoise's fall in viability. Although dual screens teams are far from a metagame staple nowadays, Blastoise still possesses the raw bulk to safely secure at least one Shell Smash boost, and generally any team that lacks a bulky Water-type will have to play incredibly precisely to prevent it from running roughshod. I'd still say it's a top-three late-game cleaner, so keeping it A- is ideal in my eyes.

Yeah... Golurk is pretty ridiculous LMAO definitely rise it to A. There's maybe two Pokemon in the tier that can avoid a 2HKO from its STAB moves? There's definitely validity to arguments that consider how reliant Golurk is on pivot support to really shine, but I'd note other wallbreakers like Sirfetch'd that suffer from this issue to an even greater degree. It's a matter of give and take, and what Golurk provides to a team is more than enough to justify its shortcomings.

I appreciate what Guzzlord brings to the table defensively, being a good answer to several foes like Rotom-C, Celebi, and Drapion. I find that sometimes the teams you slot Guzzlord onto are sort of forced into being quite slow, which is a major hindrance, but I'd be fine to see it rise to A.

Eh, I'm pretty ambivalent about moving Vileplume up. It's good at taking advantage of a lot of common foes, including Rotom-C, Diancie, and Guzzlord, but I feel at times it just falls short of being a good defensive stop to Pokemon you'd want it to answer, namely Sirfetch'd and Golurk. Poltergeist-proofed sets still don't keep up that well long-term because 1) Golurk Earthquake still maims you and 2) Decidueye can always safely pivot with U-turn, and while stopping them from spamming their strongest move is definitely good, I think the opportunity cost it comes with is a little rough at times.

Same with Vileplume, I'm generally ambivalent about where we rank Electric Terrain teams. I'd be fine with a rise to C+ because I think they're pretty alright overall, but I've honestly seen so little usage of them that it's hard to say.

:shrug: It's fine enough, but again I legitimately have not seen this Pokemon at all.

please stop voting this back onto the VR

I actually have nothing of note to say about either of these.

 

[scorbunnys]

Hiiiii kiddos! Today I'm going to do some noms again, specially a nom which turtle brought as a discussion point. Sorry if it ends up being a bible ;_;
:ss/sirfetch A+ to A/A-
I used to think that this mon was really unhealthy, but right now I just see it worse than before.
Why is this mon worse than before?
1) Teams have been adapting to it, Balances have been adapting to it with trends such as Sylv over Vapo, Toxicroak is on the rise and it actually switches on every Sirfetch'd move bar Brave Bird, Stall is coming back and Golbat's not even that bad rn, imma show some teams as examples just for show how teams have at least, one answer to Sirfetch'd normally.

Big Fat Stall: The core of Golbat + Xatu + Sylveon handles this nearly-perfectly, as Golbat ran some speed for outspeed it and Xatu + Sylveon are well-known to be at v least, soft-checks.
Sirfetch'd Balance: Sylveon + Mantine is my anti-CC core, Palo has Colbur so it switches into Knock Off + CC if no crit ofc (Band is even worse for Sirfetch'd). Rotom-Mow sorta helps as well as Sirfetch'd doesn't like to switch just for get burned.
**Garbo** Balance: Garbodor's a really good Sirfetch'd check and it also has Xatu in the back if it gets worn downed too. Rotom-Mow WoW is again, annoying for it too.
Jask pog: Jask is a rly good soft-check and First Impression switch-in. Sylveon + Toxicroak is also annoying for it too, though they have to watch out for Brave Bird spams but that's stopped by good predictions and Zonger + Palo Colbur.

Now, those are only some examples, but what I want to say with this is that the metagame has been adapting to it with little-to-no-drawbacks, making Sirfetch'd not as hard to deal as it used to be.

2) Choice Band vs Leek
Item thing is actually pretty wack, as it has to choose between being locked into a move but have the 1.5x boost always, or cheese for that boost but at least being able to switch moves + run First Impression / Quick Attack with less drawbacks.
Now, this makes the item slot p hard, as it still has an undesirable drawback with one or other item, as it also lacks a way to keep momentum on their checks too (Sylveon, Xatu, Jask, Garbo, etc.)

3) Middling Speed Tier and Lack of utility (U-Turn, Knock Off, etc.)
The lack of utility has been already mentioned, as while it has a good raw power, it needs a team built around it, as unlike mons such as Toxicroak which has stuff such as Swords Dance for boosting (Sirfetch'd SD is wack), Knock Off utility (clarification: Sirfetch'd learns it but its def not as consistent at this as other users imo), Dry Skin for get a free switch-in on Vapo and a decent speed, or Passimian with Knock Off + U-Turn and Defiant that makes it able to be a decent Scarfer, but Sirfetch'd has not many utility (priority and Knock Off are nice but not much else aside that, tho it's def neat), so it's hard to build around at the long term (I built one team around it, but it was because I had to build an entire team around it) and definitely not an A+ thing, right?

TLDR; It's basically gotten the Vapo syndrome (it was overhyped at some point, but right now the meta has adapted to it) and it has not so many utility, so let's drop it a couple of subranks.

Imma add + stuff later cya

 

[Expulso]

I think A is probably fine for Sirfetchd, though I'm also fine with it staying A+. Agree that balances can handle it well but any team that goes down the "bulky offense" route hates switching into its very strong CC; Talonflame and Garbodor are the only BO mons that are comfortable switching into it once, and sending in Garbodor often means you can't get as much utility out of it as you'd like while Talonflame is at risk of losing its boots. Worth noting that it really appreciates Diancie's support to handle Talonflame, and maybe even needs it to do the job of breaking past Talon reliably; getting Rocks up against Talon and curing Flame Body burns with Heal Bell are both super useful to cripple it. In that vein I can definitely see how it needs support; S probably overstates it, but either of A+ or A is fine with me.

Sirfetch'd has 0 utility

You lost me here, though, since this is definitely not true. Priority is a relevant form of what you call "utility" that is valuable for this metagame. Also, Sirfetch'd gets Knock Off and almost always uses it; I'm not sure why you count Toxicroak but not Sirfetch'd as a Knock Off user.

 

[scorbunnys]

Also, Sirfetch'd gets Knock Off and almost always uses it; I'm not sure why you count Toxicroak but not Sirfetch'd as a Knock Off user.

Thx for catch up on the knock off mistake, mb, that happens when u write the post at 1am (I posted it at 9:39am technically but wrote it at the midnight).
--
Tho my point still stands, it's pretty hard to fit onto teams & I still find Toxicroak better at it. Priority + Knock Off is neat yes, but does it have a distinctive utility which helps it to be at A+? Imo its at the same level than Tox & friends.

 

[SimonBoi]

This is my first time doing noms, so don't be shy if u disagree about it. (Sorry if it's too short for your liking idk what to type.)
to A-

Why am I nomming this down?
It's kinda simple. Xatu's main use is to be a hazard blocker, gaining momentum with Teleport. But if you see the hazard users, they all can threaten it out or chip it for a lot of damage thanks to its mediocre 60/70/70 defenses. Diancie Diamond Storms, Copperajah Heavy Slams and other niche hazard setters like Aerodactyl or Omastar just hit it with their STABs, forcing Xatu to switch out and lose momentum. Other then that, Xatu is pretty weak offensely, only having an ok boosting option in Calm Mind.

 

[Rabia]

This is my first time doing noms, so don't be shy if u disagree about it. (Sorry if it's too short for your liking idk what to type.
to A-

Why am I nomming this down?
It's kinda simple. Xatu's main use is to be a hazard blocker, gaining momentum with Teleport. But if you see the hazard users, they all can threaten it out or chip it for a lot of damage thanks to its mediocre 60/70/70 defenses. Diancie Diamond Storms, Copperajah Heavy Slams and other niche hazard setters like Aerodactyl or Omastar just hit it with their STABs, forcing Xatu to switch out and lose momentum. Other then that, Xatu is pretty weak offensely, only having an ok boosting option in Calm Mind.

Outside of niche hazard setters like Palossand and Swords Dance Rhydon that still don't see heavy usage, Xatu is really effective at blocking hazards from damn near all the setters. Even the two you mentioned don't really beat it that reliably; Diancie Diamond Storm can be stalled out by Roost, and Copperajah isn't strong enough to get by Xatu and will just slowly KO itself to Xatu's Rocky Helmet. Other hazard setters like Bronzong, Mudsdale, and Garbodor are really trivially stopped. You also neglect to mention how great of an enabler Xatu is for Focus Sash Salazzle and how effectively it stops Iron Defense + Body Press Bronzong in addition to Teleport being great support for frail breakers like Sirfetch'd and Guzzlord that feast versus common Xatu switch-ins. It certainly should not be dropping.

e: I think it's worth noting too that even into matchups against a Stealth Rock setter that handily beats it, it still retains a lot of value. Much of Magic Bounce's use comes not from actually blocking hazards but from the threat of doing so. Simply having a Xatu on your team forces the hazards game to change for your opponent and causes them to have to try to aggressively take down Xatu or win coinflip plays on whether it actually tries to block Stealth Rock from going up or not.

 

[Expulso]

I think Groundvally is definitely good right now and should be ranked, I would personally put it around B rank but I can see it a bit lower initially.

Silvally-Ground's niche is being a ground-type faster than Rotom-Mow, which tremendously helps against the Volt Switch spam that is so common right now. It can be either a super strong pivot with U-turn to wear down walls like Vaporeon, or it can be a late-game sweeper with Flame Charge. I've only used Flame Charge, so maybe others (I know daniYSB has used this mon) can talk about it with U-turn in more detail.

When sweeping, it has a ton of power. OnArceus called it a knockoff DD Flygon in stours during battle of the week rofl but one thing that's really cool is that a) you boost to +2 not +1 and b) you have 120BP Multi Attack rather than 100BP EQ. This lets you seriously threaten walls like Vaporeon that DD Flygon had to boost a few times against; for instance, Vaporeon takes 67-79% from +2 Multi Attack if it is using 252 HP / 252+ Def, and it often runs more SpDef instead. Not KOing Rotom-Mow with +2 Flame Charge is unfortunate, but it's definitely possible to get that chip over the course of a game. It has early and mid-game utility due to its typing and can sweep late-game, becoming faster than almost all scarfers; I think that makes it really good right now.

Here's some replays:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8nu-570941 <- Vs Earthworm, NU Homefield finals
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8nu-571562 <- Vs Osh, Zomog tour finals
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8nu-571734 <- Vs blunder, NU Battle of the week

Here's the set I use and an importable of the team i've been using it on:

sd flame charge silvground

Silvally-Ground @ Ground Memory
Ability: RKS System
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Swords Dance
- Multi-Attack
- Rock Slide
- Flame Charge

team: https://pokepast.es/0fe33520bd64971c

 

[Darkortex]

I am going to talk about a criminally underrated pokemon that gets far better with the departure of flygon: Gigalith

C -> B/B+

Gigalith is able to check a large number of special attackers and support pokemon in the metagame such as dragalge, espeon, exploud, garbodor, goodra, heliolisk, ninjask, salazzle, sylveon, talonflame, xatu, and zoroark. Rather than relying on status or stalling them out, it is able to threaten them directly with its rock stab + earthquake coverage while tanking their attacks with ease due to its excellent all around bulk. The only two pokemon that could shrug off its rock blast + earthquake + toxic combination while not being forced to recover were flygon and bronzong. Of these, only flygon could remove stealth rock. With the departure of flygon, that only leaves the passive bronzong, who lacks recovery and often gets overwhelmed checking other threats such as vileplume, rotom-C, and vaporeon, often losing its item or getting burned in the process.

Furthermore, with the departure of flygon, Gigalith is now able to beat or outlast every form of hazard removal in the tier. The flying types like talonflame and mantine get shredded due to stab rock blast, while the grasses take at least neutral damage and have poor recovery, all the while getting chipped by sandstorm.

Gigalith differentiates itself from its main competition, Diancie, in a few ways. First, its ability sand stream adds a layer of passive damage that afflicts a large portion of of the NU tier. Second, its extra bulk on both ends of the spectrum allows it to live crucial damage thresholds, such as avoiding a 2hko from exploud's specs surf after stealth rock and guaranteed avoiding a OHKO from tyrantrum's choice band head smash from full. Third, its ability to efficiently run ground type coverage and toxic allows it to cover a large portion of would-be switchins such as drapion, toxicroak, etc. Fourth, sandstorm damage combined with toxic and stab rock blast allows it to beat or swiftly outlast every form of hazard removal in the tier.

With these advantages in mind, I nominate Gigalith to rise from C to B/B+ at the very least. While I will not argue for dedicated sand teams (since those face a lot of issues), Gigalith as a pokemon itself is quite excellent in the tier, easily warranting a far higher placement than such niche picks as duraludon or palossand.

 

[GXE]

I wanted to talk about two mons that aren't currently on the VR, someone feel free to tell me if I should be posting this somewhere else.

- What this thing offers over generally to be considered better grasses like plume is role compression. Like plume you have a cleric, but this mon also has access to regen and spin. Ghosts are relatively uncommon in the tier, and common ones like golurk already lose to Elde's stab. Other rockers like Mudsdale/Diancie will have trouble maintaing rocks vs Elde. Even more important than being a great cleric and spinner, this mon had access to regen. Whereas plume and other grasses are incredibly prone to being chipped by rotom's volt switch throughout the course of a game, eldegoss will always be able to fully recover after it switches out. This is where its last move pollen puff comes in, being able to actually threaten metagame staples like celebi and mowtom. Finally, my preffered way to run this has been itemless, to shut out many band variants of golurk. Unlike plume, it isn't scared out by EQ. Other moves like heat crash/ice punch can generally be scouted for. Running eldegoss over something like Vileplume means you'll need another fight check, but NU has many good poison types to consider (i.e garb, dragalge, weezing, or fairies such as sylv).

Eldegoss
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 124 Def / 132 SpD
Bold Nature
- Rapid Spin
- Pollen Puff
- Giga Drain
- Aromatherapy

Has had success for me high ladd, EVs are subject to change.

Haunter is an incredibly underrated threat in my opinion. One thing I noticed after playing golurk is that ghost stab is nearly uncontested in NU, and any checks that were commonly used were primarily physD. Haunter not only has a very good speed tier for NU (317), but can spam shadow ball throughout the course of a game. Anything that shadow ball does not hit is subject to dying to Haunter's coverage. Sludge wave/bomb hits fairies incredibly hard, as well as most of the metagame. One of sludge wave's best checks, and likely NU's best pokemon, bronzong, often cannot afford to switchin. Other coverage like dazzling gleam and tbolt/thunder manage to handle remaining checks like guzzlord and vaporeon. Despite being incredibly frail, haunter manages to find its way into games. Gunk shot from garbodor is barely a 4hko because of Haunter's 4* resist, and Sylveon's hyper voice is not even a 2hko. It also finds its way in vs passive grass and ground mons, such as vileplume, and many variants of mudsdale/quag. Other times it gets in is on predicted healing turns, or just via other moves such as uturn/teleport/volt. For me, it has felt like an incredibly underrated metagame threat.

Haunter @ Choice Specs
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shadow Ball
- Sludge Wave
- Thunderbolt/Thunder
- Dazzling Gleam

I recently managed to cross 1700 on ladd with these two mons, as well as a few others that I believe may be considered niche. Idrc where/if they're put on the VR at all, but I believe they both have genuine places in NU rn.

 

[Corthius]

C /C+
Yes, it is time to return to the og voltfish. (You're too young if you don't know where that comes from).
Lanturn provides useful rolecompression, acting as a check to offensive Water types like Blastoise and Inteleon and to Electric types not named Rotom-C (I guess that only counts for Heliolisk and Alolan Raichu). It is a solid compression between Rotom-C's "unblockable Volt Switch" (I guess you can block this via Quagsire tho) which makes it a great slow bulky pivot and Vaporeon in checking those Water types while keeping offensive momentum. It also has a great support movepool in Heal Bell, Toxic, Thunder Wave, Discharge and Scald, making it not as passive as its offensive stats might make it look like. I think it mostly excels in VoltTurn teams that appreciate its role compression and clearic support that can also take advantage of it pivoting out versus Grass and Dragon types. Which brings me to good partners. What I have founds best for it are either strong physical pivotslike Scyther and Archeops that also keep up offensive momentum and pressuring the switchins or simply paired with a strong Ice type like Glastrier, Sneasel or Froslass which offensively threaten all of the common switchins.
While all of this sounds very positive Lanturn does bring its flaws which holds it back from being higher nommed (ranked). The biggest issue is that how passive it is. With only uninvested 76 base SpA it can have trouble scaring out pokemon like Mudsdale with full HP or Vaporeon, especially if you opted for Heal Bell over Toxic. Also, while its typing grants it some useful resistances, it struggles with coverage like Power Whip on Copperajah and even with investment its physical defense is really lacking which makes it vulnerable against almost all physical attacker (expect like Talonflame) so it requires support to patch this weakness up. Another downside is the fact that it lacks reliable recovery. Volt Absorb and Leftovers + Protect are its main form of recovery it gets from itself and on VoltTurn teams Wish support usually doesn't fit as easily because it gives up a lot of momentum. That makes Lanturn easily chipped if you get forced in a lot and don't get the chance to retake offensive momentum.
I think Lanturn still deserves to be ranked.
bonus: here is a team featuring it https://pokepast.es/0b2417e62613b3be