Resource SS OU DLC2 Viability Ranking Thread [SEE: Page 105, Post 2618]

Status
Not open for further replies.
to A-

Incredibly strong counter to most physical meta-game threats and capable of running many surprise sets as well. Can easily form a solid defensive core with any separate special tank, or act as a scarf or bulky end-game sweeper.

If you're not running this in any non-HO / thematic team, you're probably making a mistake.
 
Last edited:

Katy

Banned deucer.
:mew:

Mew should definitely rise a subrank; it's one long lasting Spike setter with great utility such as Knock Off, Will-O-Wisp to shut down Leftovers recovery with negating it entirely, and as a help to shut down physical threats altogether. Roost means its can serve this role perfectly well, with making it a Spike setter, which isn't reliant on passive recovery such as Ferrothorn with Leech Seed, meaning it can fullfill that unique role in a longer aspect, which is very valuable on teams. Spikes itself are a great asset to shut down teams even in a short term, as even a layer or two allow to dramatically decrease the ability of incoming wallbreakers, in a battle. Cosmic Power Mew is also used with Stored Power and other coverage options, which in itself is good too on although very specific but good performed teams. The main reason however is its a LONG lasting Spikes setter, which isn't reliant on passive recover to get it going. here is a replay which shows exactly, how well Mew performed here: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-563537

on this line, I want to nominate Buzzwole up too, as it checks a lot of dangerous physical attackers while being a threat in itself offensively with coverage such as Ice Punch, Thunder Punch, Leech Life, Drain Punch, and other coverage moves; Bulk Up + Roost + 2 Attacks sets are also great in its own right. Buzzwole up a subrank! https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-563371

Other Nominations I agree with:
:dragonite: up a subrank
:gastrodon: up a subrank
:tangrowth: up a subrank
:rotom-wash: up a subrank
:tapu bulu: up a subrank

:regieleki: down to C-
 
Last edited:
:garchomp: :heatran: :dragapult: :landorus-therian:

I would argue these three are the truest S tier you can have.

  • Heatran is probably the best pokemon in the tier right now because it can quickly turn a game into 6v5, or at least 75% of the time. It's also very useful to run Heatran with other pokemon that share similar checks, as nearly every single one of heatrans reliable switch ins will be forced to either faint or play out the remainder of the match at sub-50% HP. I think its only flaw with the current meta is that offensive teams are too fast tempo for heatran to get many attempts to shoot its 75% shot.
  • Garchomp is just very threatening, I think the only thing holding it back is the popularity of the metal birds. The defensive sets are excellent at getting key threats into the sub 80% HP range to allow others to ko. For example a U-turn from corviknight [into rocky helmet chomp] putting it under 80% can leave it prone to a clean KO from life orb weavile at +2. A U-turn from 252HP/252Spe boots tapu koko can get it into just enough range for Rillaboom to guarantee the clean ko on grassy glide. A knock off from boots Zeraora makes it suddenly prone to a weavile +2 LO ice shard.
  • Dragapult is predictable, but has diverse options. It's more threatening than heatran against a broader range of teams, however its also significantly more easy to prepare for. Typically you just have to decide which pokemon will be taking a hit, as nearly all of OU can survive 1x shadow ball, even without investments. Most pokemon do not share that luxury with switching in on magma storm.

Most noteably, all 4 of these pokemon have a string of viable movesets which can keep a team guessing. Its also worth noting that 3 of them learn stealth rock, and will frequently carry it.
:slowking:

This pokemon is good, but not S tier good. I think too much hype was around because it does runs its one viable moveset well. Its too predictable, even its Galar variant is less predictable. Very easy to manipulate, and unlike toxapex in previous meta trends, it doesn't blanket check 60-70% of threats.

:volcarona:

I know this really can't be S tier, due to how limited it is at being just 'amazing' on whatever team its on.. however I am having a lot of fun with a 196 HP / 248+ def / 64 Spe set, and another 248 HP / 248+ def / 12 SpD set, some interesting perks:

  • Survives bolt beak from dracozolt
  • Survives +2 knock offs from every relevant knock off user (you need the max bulk set to survive kartana/weavile +2 LO knock off, in bisharps case it outspeeds knock off and survives sucker punch)
  • Survives aqua jets from crawdaunt, urshifu, barraskewda and in some cases azumarill comfortably, banded urshifu maxes at 61.6% damage!
  • Survives EVERY defensive brave bird user comfortably
  • Can switch into all other relevant priority moves not called aqua jet
  • Pairs well with ground types, who bait weak knock off/u turns
  • Pairs well with physical attackers, who bait body press/brave bird/drain punch
  • Pairs well with high pressure teams, where you don't mind switching into a knock off, because stealth rock might not get a chance to come into play
  • pairs well with pokemon that bait steel types

Unfortunately volcarona's flaw of being either amazing in a game, or subpar, does hold it back. However when you invest in a defensive set, you'd be surprised by what it can do!
 
Last edited:
:blaziken:B- to B/B+

For my first VR post I wanted to nominate Blaziken for a rise, because I think the recent meta trends have really benefited it, namely the rises of :scizor: :weavile: :bisharp:. These are almost guaranteed switch outs, giving blaze a free turn to sd or attack. I personally prefer the adamant lo protect 3 attack set, with flare blitz, cc, and knock off, allowing it to be more consistent and less of a matchup fish. It matches up well against the S-ranked :Slowking: securing the ohko unboosted w knock off, and protect improves the :dragapult: matchup, allowed it to get a second speed boost to outspeed with adamant. Fire chicken still has its issues, most prominently defensive :landorus-therian: and :toxapex:(god I hate that thing), which is why I'm not nomming it to the A ranks. But the recent trends have given blaze significantly better matchups, warranting a rise.

Also disagree with a :moltres: drop, sub pressure set has been seeing significant success recently.
 

Thunder Pwoell

Banned deucer.
ty lol rant will be up tonight or tomorrow. depends on how lit I get at the pregame. honestly this vr is all over the place, however I’m not even mad at the staff lol like no one is challenging them and they dont even get paid for this so first ty staff for doing this even though yall have historically been mid and ignored me but yes I have a lot of thoughts on the state. things are just very inconsistent and go against what the purpose of the vr is
 

Kyo

In Limbo
is a Community Leaderis a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributor
National Dex Leader
:mew:

Mew should definitely rise a subrank; it's one long lasting Spike setter with great utility such as Knock Off, Will-O-Wisp to shut down Leftovers recovery with negating it entirely, and as a help to shut down physical threats altogether. Roost means its can serve this role perfectly well, with making it a Spike setter, which isn't reliant on passive recovery such as Ferrothorn with Leech Seed, meaning it can fullfill that unique role in a longer aspect, which is very valuable on teams. Spikes itself are a great asset to shut down teams even in a short term, as even a layer or two allow to dramatically decrease the ability of incoming wallbreakers, in a battle. Cosmic Power Mew is also used with Stored Power and other coverage options, which in itself is good too on although very specific but good performed teams. The main reason however is its a LONG lasting Spikes setter, which isn't reliant on passive recover to get it going. here is a replay which shows exactly, how well Mew performed here: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-563537
Gonna have to agree that Mew is underrated and underutilized in the meta right now, really nice mon. I also think the taunt stallbreaker Mew deserves a nod as this set is very solid, customizable, and sits on fat teams with ease. Pursuit being removed from the game is crucial as Mew can afford to be more passive and is not obligated to run will-o-wisp on every set as a way of threatening ttar and the like. Opens up a lot of great options like taunt + knock off + seismic toss Mew.
 

ausma

token smogon furry
is a Site Content Manageris a Top Social Media Contributoris a Top Artistis a Member of Senior Staffis a Community Contributoris a Tiering Contributoris a Contributor to Smogonis a Top Team Rater Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus
OU Forum Leader
ty lol rant will be up tonight or tomorrow. depends on how lit I get at the pregame. honestly this vr is all over the place, however I’m not even mad at the staff lol like no one is challenging them and they dont even get paid for this so first ty staff for doing this even though yall have historically been mid and ignored me but yes I have a lot of thoughts on the state. things are just very inconsistent and go against what the purpose of the vr is
no problem, the vr is open to any kind of feedback and thats the whole point of the thread being open for nominations and discussion alike; just keep the insults to a minimum thanks
 
A+ to S

Many a time in generations past and now, heatran has been one of these premier glue pokemon that can easily find a way onto a team, thanks to it's impressive typing offensively and defensively, a fantastic ability, a solid stat spread, and a fantastic ability in flash fire for an extra immunity. Now heatran finds itself in the same old spot and similar to fellow glue mon lando-t he can find himself on virtually any team and pull his weight by countering many of the top threats in the metagame with finesse while being able to spread status, chip damage, taunting steal rock etc. to name a few of the many utility options he brings to the table. With heatran now in an even better position with many of the pokemon, he shuts down now very dangerous and popular such as volcanora, the metallic birds tbh Metalic pokemon in general at this point and with few threats to heatran around in general. Heatran safely finds itself as one of the go-to pokemon that is the cherry on top that allows teams to safely counter many top threats and utility in one neat little package. For these reasons i feel similar to lando-t heatran has earned himself a spot in S tier. Thank you for reading.
 

Katy

Banned deucer.
:Tapu Fini: from B+ to A-. Its consistency is enormous stretching from checking Weavile and Urshifu-R, both are two of the most prominent wallbreakers recently, with checking other metagame staples such as Heatran, and shutting down Pokemon such as Blissey, Slowking, Corviknight with its Trick set is just supergood at the moment. Tapu Fini has seen a lot of usage recently with great, consistent usage and also is worth to think about slotting onto teams to check Pokemon such as the aforementioned breakers and its also capable of checking Dragonite, Buzzwole, and Dragapult as well as Hydreigon. This Pokemon carves itself more and more opportunities to go in and cements itself as one of the more consistent checks to them.
Tapu Fini with its Choice Scarf + Trick set can also act as a forme of speed control, which is very valuable at the moment, due to speedy attackers such as Dragapult and Weavile. Moreover Misty Terrain allows it to dismantle the common status spreading with Thunder Wave and Toxic by Melmetal, Landorus-T, and Dragapult. With all of this being said, I strongly believe and think Tapu Fini is very underrated currently, with what it is actually capable of, the wide range of Pokemon it can check and also shut down is immense and Tapu Fini gained a lot more attraction recently on different teams. I think Tapu Fini should rise a subrank, as B+ undersells it of what it does currently with a large aspect and wide range of things it can do and handle pretty consistently.
 

Zneon

uh oh
is a Community Contributoris a Social Media Contributor Alumnusis a Forum Moderator Alumnusis a Smogon Discord Contributor Alumnus
Hi, just nomming stuff based on trends / observations I've been seeing in WCOP


Weavile: A -> A+

Weavile has been absolutely insane recently and is easily one of the most threatening mons in the metagame, this couldn't show more than its consistent dominance in WCOP. Its STAB combo is beyond stupid and hits almost the entire metagame for insane damage after an SD, its complete and utter lack of defensive and offensive counterplay after an SD is pretty huge. Urshifu-R, Tapu Fini and Buzzwole are some of the only Pokemon that can take a hit from it at +2 and nuke it back without being in a completely unfavourable position, the only Pokemon that can outspeed it are Dragapult and Zeraora, and with Adamant only Tornadus-T, which all get dunked by Ice Shard at +2. All these Pokemon have been seeing a bunch of usage in WCOP and Weavile is definitely one of the biggest reasons why, because offensively and defensively, it is extremely hard to actually deal with. It's up there with Urshifu-R for being the most dangerous wallbreaker in the metagame and absolutely deserves to rise.

To represent how dangerous Weavile can be, here's a replay: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-563947


Mew: C+ -> B

I agree with Mew rising, Utility Mew has a lot of variation and can easily be put onto a team depending on what you want. Spikes, Knock Off, Soft-Boiled / Roost, and the last move can be basically anything. Will-O-Wisp, Night Shade, Seismic Toss, U-turn, etc. It's a really customizable Pokemon, Demon Mew, despite being gimmicky and really not all that good, can be very threatening with the right support and win games since you can definitely go more than just recovery on the last slot, Taunt provides more insurance vs stuff like Toxapex for example. Again, I don't think that set is particularly good since its pretty matchup fishy, Spikes Mew on the other hand can play a role on multiple teams and thus I think it's due to rise because of it.


Other noms I agree with:

to A-
to A
to A-
 
:Tapu Fini: from B+ to A-. Its consistency is enormous stretching from checking Weavile and Urshifu-R, both are two of the most prominent wallbreakers recently, with checking other metagame staples such as Heatran, and shutting down Pokemon such as Blissey, Slowking, Corviknight with its Trick set is just supergood at the moment. Tapu Fini has seen a lot of usage recently with great, consistent usage and also is worth to think about slotting onto teams to check Pokemon such as the aforementioned breakers and its also capable of checking Dragonite, Buzzwole, and Dragapult as well as Hydreigon. This Pokemon carves itself more and more opportunities to go in and cements itself as one of the more consistent checks to them.
Tapu Fini with its Choice Scarf + Trick set can also act as a forme of speed control, which is very valuable at the moment, due to speedy attackers such as Dragapult and Weavile. Moreover Misty Terrain allows it to dismantle the common status spreading with Thunder Wave and Toxic by Melmetal, Landorus-T, and Dragapult. With all of this being said, I strongly believe and think Tapu Fini is very underrated currently, with what it is actually capable of, the wide range of Pokemon it can check and also shut down is immense and Tapu Fini gained a lot more attraction recently on different teams. I think Tapu Fini should rise a subrank, as B+ undersells it of what it does currently with a large aspect and wide range of things it can do and handle pretty consistently.
I would argue Fini is at least an A, as it provides excellent support and offensive pressure, and makes a great lure/bait to weaken some of OU's defensive stalwarts.

It also helps that the offensive dark, water, ice and fighting types, and choice banded knock off pokemon, are trending upwards in usage.

Fini is possibly the best Tapu in the current meta, brings strong support, and there are no clear safe bets to deal with her. since she lures in key threats like ferrothorn, blissey and glow king, whilst crippling them with your choice of knock off, trick or nature's madness (I think any viable set needs at least 1 of those moves in the current meta, otherwise Tapu Fini can lose its ability to soften counter-play rotations.

She also gets taunt, i think thats a very big deal for a pokemon with her typing, stat spread, movepool, and ability!

I really think if you want a defensive pokemon that can force progress in a battle, Fini is in the top 3, since its often worth harrassing a few of the opponents defensive switch ins whilst providing key offensive threats with misty terrain support.

A big flaw with a lot of support pokemon, they can forfeit momentum when they constantly play defensive.. with roosts/softboiled/defogs, etc. This can lead to a loop, where games drag out over 60+ turns whilst teams try to preserve their key switch ins. Fini can really put in work against these types of teams by getting defensive threats to be forced into specific % ranges that can be dealt with by your offensive pokemon.

Tapu Fini surged when its CM + Draining kiss set was pulling weight, it doesn't pull so much weight now with current meta trends, and I think her support sets have more utility right now.

Interesting tidbit, Support Fini has a net favourable match up against almost 75% of the top 20 most used OU pokemon, as of the last stats. The 6 it doesn't have a net favourable match up:
- Ferrothorn
- Rillaboom
- Tapu Koko
- Kartana
- Zapdos
- Tapu Lele

(itself is neutral match up, obviously, so 13 out of 19 it has a favourable matchup)
 
Last edited:

TailGlowVM

Now 100% more demonic
I know you dropped it down last time, but I strongly believe :mandibuzz: should drop from B+ to B. Its usage has plummeted in WCoP Round 1, to the point at which it would drop to UU if we used those stats for the tiering update, and there are several good reasons for it. Firstly, Corviknight checks literally everything Mandibuzz can better than it except Dragapult, and even there Mandibuzz is vulnerable to being worn down into 2HKO range if it switches into too many U-turns. Corviknight is also a far more consistent Defogger considering which are the most common Stealth Rock setters at the moment (Landorus-T, Garchomp, Clefable, Heatran, Hippowdon, Tyranitar.) Mandibuzz also hates the rise of Weavile in particular, and it's a pretty mediocre option for a Dark resist given how much it hates losing Heavy-Duty Boots.
 

Ox the Fox

is a Tiering Contributorwon the 8th Official Ladder Tournamentis a Past SCL Championis a Past WCoP Champion
Smogon Charity Bowl IV Winner
Now that R1 of WCOP is done, I'm going to post on some changes I think should be made. Also I just made a post on both of these so I won't talk about them more but I think it's even more clear now that slowking and toxapex should both be in A+.

Rises

:Tornadus-Therian: --> A+ Tornadus-t is back on top and has been one of the best pokemon during R1. Taunt sets are rising in usage which are extremely hard to deal with defensively. We also see it trying out different coverage moves on utility sets, such as heat wave and sludge wave, which can make it that much more annoying to switch into. The drop was definitely justified last ranking update but now I think it's clear it should be in A+ again.

:Weavile: --> A+ Weavile is probably the best late game cleaner right now, having very little trouble breaking weakened teams at +2. This is a mon which tends to break for itself, as a lot of bulky offense teams will only have Moistshifu or their own weavile as a switch in, both of which can't switch in often during a match. It's also a big deterrence to dragapult spamming shadow ball late game, as oftentimes if weavile can get an SD after pult gets a kill, the game is over.

:Urshifu-Rapid-Strike: --> A+ Also already talked about Moistshifu but I think it's no longer a surprise to anyone how good it is. I think it's a top 5 mon in the meta and there's no question it's A+ worthy.

:Hippowdon: --> A- Hippowdon is a fantastic option as the ground rocker on a lot of teams, as it's actually able to check electrics long term as well as check dragapult barring spdf drops. It's been used a lot in WCOP lately and it's clear it should rise.

:Slowking-Galar: --> A- Slowking-g is something that's recently been rising in usage, and for good reason. It's extremely hard to switch into the coverage of fire/ice/poison, only to add in future sight spam which allows other breakers to get past the mons it can't. It's also a great check for CM fini, which has been rising in usage, as well as all kyurem sets.

:Buzzwole: --> A-/A Buzzwole is great right now, with the 3 atk sets not only being hard to switch into, but also serving as great defensive utility. It's one of the only mons that is able to check Moistshifu, weavile, kartana, zeraora, and bisharp all in the same slot. We can see the impact it's had on the tier by all the random aerial ace mons people are running now.

:Tapu Fini: --> A Katy wrote on this well, but yeah, fini should rise.


Falls

:Garchomp: --> A Garchomp is now unfortunately past its prime and it's becoming harder to justify using it on a team. The swords dance set rarely sweeps anymore, not finding many opportunities to set up and is often stopped by lando-t, weavile revenging, unaware clefable, or blocking scale shot with a fairy then killing with something faster. It's also hard to justify the rocks set over hippo or lando-t, as it really doesn't check much well that either of those don't check better. It of course still has some merit, which is why I brought this set to my WCOP game, but I don't think it's worthy of A+ rank anymore.

:Excadrill: --> B/B- Excadrill is horrible right now; it can maybe spin once or twice in a game and somewhat check clef and koko but that's about it. It gets completely walled by so many common defensive mons and struggles putting in any work.
 
:ss/nihilego: to C/C-

Nihilego is a really powerful attacker. It can tear through some of the best Mons in the tier and snowball relatively easily. Not only that, but it is decently bulky on the Special side due to a 109/131 bulk.
+1 252 SpA Nihilego Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Toxapex: 213-252 (70 - 82.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
+1 252 SpA Nihilego Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 88 SpD Corviknight: 298-352 (74.5 - 88%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+1 252 SpA Nihilego Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 128+ SpD Heatran: 222-262 (57.5 - 67.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 SpA Heatran Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Nihilego: 256-304 (71.3 - 84.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+1 252 SpA Nihilego Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Landorus-Therian: 348-411 (91 - 107.5%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO (if the Lando-T has a Scarf, it can outspeed and OHKO with Earthquake)
+2 252 SpA Nihilego Thunderbolt vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Slowking: 260-308 (65.9 - 78.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Dragapult Draco Meteor vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Nihilego: 210-247 (58.4 - 68.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
+2 252 SpA Nihilego Psychic vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Dragapult: 243-287 (76.6 - 90.5%) -- 25% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock
+1 252 SpA Nihilego Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Blissey: 222-262 (31 - 36.6%) -- 71.2% chance to 3HKO
Based on these calcs, the top tier Mons will struggle to switch in after a KO with Meteor Beam, save for Blissey or Chansey. Some weaknesses that hold it back are it's reliance on Meteor Beam, it's bad physical bulk and vulnerability to Scarfed Lando-Ts. Overall, I believe that Nihilego should be on the VR, even if at a low placement.
 
1623131961631.png
B+ to A-/A
Galar Slowking is personally eligible for a raise. Not only has it surged in WCop usage, but excels as a special wall that isn't passive. Unlike the other slowtwins even tho it relies on AV, it's able to withhold a toxic immunity, and greatly pressure CM Fini, and has a harder hitting Future Sight. Also it has great synergy on teams and often pairs well with pokemon like Corviknight which in return can be a superb defensive magnet that can take on the roll of being a blanket check to mons like Rillaboom, Garchomp, and Weavile.

1623132232812.png
A- to A
Imho, I disagree fully with the drop of Hydreigon last slate. Despite Hydreigon showing itself to fold to faster threats like Tapu Koko, Tornadus, and Weavile. One it has a great advantage in checking both Heatran and Slowking, via roost and it's typing, these are two top tier meta relevant threats and I think it's worth mentioning that. Two it's able to tank both two prominent moves in the metagame being Knock and EQ(immune to EQ). Three even do it may look like it has a FMSS on NP sets it can usually do fine with just NP / Dark (or) Draco / EP / Roost or opt for another great set in Draco / Flash / Superpower / Roost. This allows it to lure in Blissey and OHKO Tyranitar, while still being to 2HKO Clefable. Overall I think Hydreigon still fits A rank.

1623132803625.png
A+ to S-
Not sure if it should be S tier rn, but S- seems fitting enough to me if not just a midground between the A+ and S tier. I genuinely feel like taking on CM Clef can be a burden. Yes there is options like Haze, and Heatran(which can even carry Heavy Slam, nice tactic.) and pokemon that can threaten it before a boost but the problem mainly just revolves around Clef being what it is. A fairy types with lot's of tools, something that is great at accomplishing it's role, and Magic Guard.

Other noms I agree with:
1623133052451.png
B+ to A-
1623133123472.png
A to A+
 

Attachments

Finchinator

-OUTL
is a Tournament Directoris a Top Social Media Contributoris a Community Leaderis a Community Contributoris a Smogon Discord Contributoris a Top Tiering Contributoris a Contributor to Smogonis a Top Smogon Media Contributoris a Top Dedicated Tournament Hostis a Senior Staff Member Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Past WCoP Championis the defending OU Circuit Championis a Two-Time Former Old Generation Tournament Circuit Champion
OU Leader
Tapu Fini should not only rise to A-, but to A.

It is the premier check to Weavile and Urshifu-R that fits on a wide array of team archetypes. Calm Mind Tapu Fini is surging in popularity, Choice Scarf is better than ever on offense, and we are beginning to experience a revival of the Whirlpool set as well.

Tapu Fini’s set mix coupled with its defensive presence and Misty Terrain support offer a very unique and practical set of qualities for teams to take advantage of. This niche lands it squarely in A for me right now.
 
Hey just came across the VR and thought I'd leave my thoughts about the S Ranks and potential ones


:dragapult:
Dragapult is absolutely S Rank worthy and it's good that it's ranked in there. I don't believe it's broken, at the very least right now. Maybe it'll turn out to be too restricting once we've figured out optimized cores, sets and ev-spreads but that lies within the future. My opinion on it is that it's a metadefining pokemon which is strong and versatile but also able to keep certain offensive threats and/or sweepers in check which is a healthy addition to teambuilding and the metagame in general.

:Landorus-therian:
Lando-T is great. For sure rightfully ranked in S-tier. Plenty of viable sets and strategic move options as well as ev spreads that help tank certain threats. It's ability to glue together teams and help out teammates by allowing mid-ground plays or getting them in safely is unrivaled. Even if you're ev'ing fully into bulk it still hits about everything for good damage. The other way round you're still moderately bulky even if you're running a fully offensive stats. Just great all around.

:Slowking:
While I think Slowking is super good and helps a ton I don't necessarily think it offers as much as the two above. Though, Future Sight + Port allows for incredibly potent breaking strategies and it's general bulk + port really nicely glues teams together, it's definitly a top tier pokemon. I'd personally think it fits more into A+, same rank as Corvi which would make a ton of sense considering they have a lot of overlapping traits.

:heatran:
Personally I believe Heatran should be ranked in S together with pult and lando. It's amazing, it adds so much to a team. It's strong and versatile, not only in movesets but also in items and ev spreads. It's actually pretty fast considering the metagame and it enables it's teampartners really well by trapping pokemon like slowking or (non-shed) toxapex. Most switchins don't appreciate toxic and it checks/counters a bunch of threatening sweepers simply due to it's amazing typing, volc being the prime example.

:garchomp:
Don't really care whether Garchomp would get ranked in S or A+ but I do think it's the fourth best pokemon in the tier (below lando pult tran). It does have defensive sets and supportive options but SD Scale shot is just that good. Leftovers and Life Orb are both good items on it, Life Orb especially is great to power through fat teams or to hit unaware clef hard on switchin which then opens up a sweep. Don't need to elaborate on Lefties. Personally I'd like to see it in S Rank but as the lowest of the 4, I think it's an accurate depiction of the metagame and Garchomp's strength


I think OU is in a great state currently and it's super fun as well as rewarding to play and build.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 1, Guests: 3)

Top