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

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BT89

go on, take everything
is a Pre-Contributor
tapu koko is not very good. idk why it is better than stuff like tapu lele cause tapu lele does so much damage and almost nothing can counter it. tapu koko does like no damage it is only good with alolan raichu so alolan raichu should be higher than it.
Tapu koko is not a great mon. It is better than a-raichu, but it does not deserve A+, maybe A- would be better for it. A+ is a tier with chomp, melmetal, pult, and kart. I just dont think koko is as good as those pokemon, and fini and lele are def better than them.
Nice arguments. Guess I’ll bite the bait.

First off, the comparison between Lele and Koko is laughable, as they fulfill completely different roles. Tapu Lele is a nuclear wallbreaker with Choice Specs, and a great cleaner with Choice Scarf. Meanwhile, Tapu Koko is intended to act as an offensive pivot that steadily wears down Grounds until it can clean late game. The comparison between Fini and Koko is even more laughable, as Tapu Fini has literally nothing in common with Tapu Koko except being a Tapu. Saying these Pokemon are better is not a valid argument for saying Tapu Koko is not A+ (ignoring the fact that Tapu Koko is indeed better than both of them), and if you really feel that way, nom them up.

Tapu Koko doing no damage is also a heinous take. Koko is intended for mid- to late-game shenanigans, and there, it’s damage output is more than enough to make it extremely threatening to a vast majority of teams. The only Pokemon that reliably beats Tapu Koko is Hippowdon, everything else either crumbles or is steadily worn down over time (Every Ground bar Hippo).

Not to mention, Tapu Koko’s utility is also great, being the fourth fastest mon in the tier is great for maintaining offensive momentum, and supportive options like Toxic and Defog have been majorly experimented with on it. Access to Roost is also a godsend, as it means that it won’t just be worn down by say, Helmet chip after U-Turn or a stray neutral hit.

I know these posts are likely memes considering that both of these users have not made any serious posts in this thread ever. However, I just think that saying Tapu Koko doesn’t deserve A+ or at least A is a radical and generally incorrect take.
 
Tapu koko is not a great mon. It is better than a-raichu, but it does not deserve A+, maybe A- would be better for it. A+ is a tier with chomp, melmetal, pult, and kart. I just dont think koko is as good as those pokemon, and fini and lele are def better than them.
Kokos speed tier is super valuable, being the 4th fastest OU Pokémon. It also has great move set diversity, with great sets like specs, HDB pivot, screens setter and other niche options like life orb and banded. It’s also useful against lando, as it can’t repeatedly switch into it due to stab fairy moves and an unblockable U-turn. Just because Koko doesn’t threaten to 2hko everything in the tier doesn’t mean that it isn’t very threatening.
 

Jakerocks73

Banned deucer.
Kokos speed tier is super valuable, being the 4th fastest OU Pokémon. It also has great move set diversity, with great sets like specs, HDB pivot, screens setter and other niche options like life orb and banded. It’s also useful against lando, as it can’t repeatedly switch into it due to stab fairy moves and an unblockable U-turn. Just because Koko doesn’t threaten to 2hko everything in the tier doesn’t mean that it isn’t very threatening.
1. why not use the fastest pokemon?
2. IDC about screens they are bad
3. You dont need HDB on everything bald man (or woman)
4. Yeah just dont run life orb or banded
5. Spec is ok ig but they are better pokemon to run specs on like pult
6. So many things are good against lando
7. Who needs u-turn when you can just get gud a double
8. You can't eat hits or threaten to 2hko everything so yeah it is bad
 

Lily

wouldn't that be fine, dear
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UU Leader
Built this tier a lot for WCoP, have a few things to say - will mostly just be focusing on my own nominations but I'll mention some others too.

S ranks should imo be:

S:
Landorus-Therian
Weavile

S-:
Heatran
-maybe some others like Clef/Koko/Ferro/Melm-

I don't think Lando has any business dropping like some previous posters have suggested but I do think Weavile deserves to go up one.

(moreso Urshifu but I feel it applies to both) A -> A+
These two saw massive usage as a core. They pair phenomenally together; there really isn't much that can handle an Urshifu backed up by Future Sight, and while this has always been true, these teams have found more success lately by running Tapu Lele instead of a Slowtwin. Its Future Sight is ungodly strong, chunking physdef Slowbro for up to 50%, more than enough for Urshifu to pop it open. They also have really amazing offensive/defensive synergy; Urshifu smashes stuff like Heatran, Ferrothorn, Melmetal etc. while being an okay pivot into Weavile. Tapu Lele drops checks to Urshifu like Toxapex, Dragonite, Buzzwole etc. they're just a really good pair and I think they both deserve A+ at this time.

A- -> A
Blacephalon has seen a lot of usage in WCoP and is something I personally built a ton with to find structures I liked. For the most part, the only Ghost resist in this tier is Weavile; Tyranitar has been picking up a bit and is by far Blace's worst matchup, but you will very often run into a team that has no Shadow Ball resist and is forced to rely on very awkward pivoting to keep the clown in check. I think having two very good sets - Specs, which is one of the most brutal wallbreakers in OU, and Scarf, which devastates offense in similar ways to mons like Scarf Kartana - makes it a pretty versatile thing too, since if you see something like Blace + Kart or even Blace + Weavile at preview, you don't really know what set it's running. I find it's a bit difficult to build with since having next to no defensive utility is tough, and that Speed tier is just oh so frustrating - it's great but being just slower than Kartana is tragic. There are only so many routes you can take with it as a result. That said, it's a really strong Pokemon rn and I feel it's definitely on par with the likes of Zeraora and Volcarona.

A- -> A
Dragonite has a very valuable defensive profile atm, being a great check to stuff like Urshifu, Kartana, Heatran, Volcarona, Volcanion etc. and providing ever-valuable Heal Bell support. It fits phenomenally on those Koko/Ferro/Clef structures that saw a ton of use in WCoP and should rise a rank to reflect that in my opinion. Being so customisable is really great for it; if you need it to run moves to check any of Heatran, Kartana, Landorus, Glowking, Urshifu etc. it can do that thanks to that crazy movepool it has. Just think it's in a great spot.

A -> A-
Fraud Pokemon, just really hard to justify over Tapu Koko most of the time. Extremely minimal defensive utility and tends to fall flat in its sweeping role. Still pretty damn good for Pult-weak teams and smashes Sand like it's nobody's business but I think A- fits it better.

A- -> B+
High risk high reward breaker that's difficult to position and finds itself dying really quickly. Certainly an absolutely enormous threat, but doesn't feel like it's on the level of Volcanion or Victini at all. Too easily checked by stuff like Koko and Slowbro really; yes, they can't handle it long term, but it's not a long term Pokemon and will be dead long before it manages to break them.

B+ -> A
The immortal slug is really good rn even if it's a stupid momentum suck a lot of the time. Has a nasty habit of just 6-0ing teams; being a hard stop to Koko, Blacephalon (kinda), Dragapult, Zapdos etc. is just insane compression atm and it saw a looooooot of wcop usage because of that. Feels sorta par with Toxapex for that bulky water role, maybe a little worse but not enough to be a subrank lower imo.

B+ -> A-
Sand good, Drill's rlly hard to handle for a lot of teams with generally low Corv usage and SpDef Lando being far and away the most common variant, CB Tar is crazy tough to switch into, both should rise

Some other things that I don't feel qualified to flesh out but think they're worth nothing:

- Rain is good atm and should rise but other than Pelipper I don't know what should go up really
- Rillaboom's making somewhat of a resurgence and may be good enough for B+
- Rotom-W is getting crazy high usage and should rise but I don't feel like making an argument for it
- Victini could maaaaaybe rise altho idk how convinced I am. Really nice into a lot of trends like LeleShifu / FerroClef balance, though.
- Melmetal's lowkey broken.

Here's a quick 1am overall VR from me to end this off. Nothing is ordered within its subrank. I left out a lot of things because I don't really care too much about the low ranked stuff that I've never seen or used.

 

blooclipse

formerly Bluecliqse
Tapu koko is not a great mon. It is better than a-raichu, but it does not deserve A+, maybe A- would be better for it. A+ is a tier with chomp, melmetal, pult, and kart. I just dont think koko is as good as those pokemon, and fini and lele are def better than them.
When trying to convince people something is bad when the general consensus is that it's good, you must provide evidence.

Provide your evidence on why it's bad.

Also BT89
the first one is called Jakerocks73fan and the other one is Jakerocks73

They're trolling.
 

Jakerocks73

Banned deucer.
When trying to convince people something is bad when the general consensus is that it's good, you must provide evidence.

Provide your evidence on why it's bad.

Also BT89
the first one is called Jakerocks73fan and the other one is Jakerocks73

They're trolling.
I am not trolling I am friends with Jakerocks73fan. I did provide evidence for why it is not A+ rank, my evidence was that it doesn't do anything that welll, and should not be A+ I never said koko was bad I said it should be A-, which is still very high. Also I am currently playing a game and koko just failed to ohko my pult with a gleam .....
 

Red Raven

I COULD BE BANNED!
Kokos speed tier is super valuable, being the 4th fastest OU Pokémon. It also has great move set diversity, with great sets like specs, HDB pivot, screens setter and other niche options like life orb and banded. It’s also useful against lando, as it can’t repeatedly switch into it due to stab fairy moves and an unblockable U-turn. Just because Koko doesn’t threaten to 2hko everything in the tier doesn’t mean that it isn’t very threatening.
So, who's the third fastest mon? Zera and Pult are top two and isn't Koko the one after them?
 

blooclipse

formerly Bluecliqse
I am not trolling I am friends with Jakerocks73fan. I did provide evidence for why it is not A+ rank, my evidence was that it doesn't do anything that welll, and should not be A+ I never said koko was bad I said it should be A-, which is still very high. Also I am currently playing a game and koko just failed to ohko my pult with a gleam .....
It does many things well. It acts as a fighting check, pivot, etc. You didn't provide any evidence on why it's bad, you just said "yeah this is bad because it is not good"
duh
Provide actual evidence, on WHY it isn't good. not just that "it isn't good because it doesnt do things good"
 
I can't tell if you're trolling.
fine ill answer

Tapu koko is a great mon because it has lots of utility options and a great typing. It has roost,defog, great speed, pretty good strength, and great pivoting options. It's a great mon, and DEFINITELY not lower than alolachu

You've got to be trolling.
This guy is a troll. Do not pay attention to him
 

viivian

OU's sweetheart
is a Tiering Contributor
tapu koko is not very good. idk why it is better than stuff like tapu lele cause tapu lele does so much damage and almost nothing can counter it. tapu koko does like no damage it is only good with alolan raichu so alolan raichu should be higher than it.
nice troll
 

Jakerocks73

Banned deucer.
It does many things well. It acts as a fighting check, pivot, etc. You didn't provide any evidence on why it's bad, you just said "yeah this is bad because it is not good"
duh
Provide actual evidence, on WHY it isn't good. not just that "it isn't good because it doesnt do things good"
Also this is filled with lies. First, it does not act as a fighting check, lemme give you a couple calcs
252+ Atk Guts Conkeldurr Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 195-230 (69.3 - 81.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Choice Band Urshifu-Rapid-Strike Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 168-198 (59.7 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Life Orb Terrakion Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 144-172 (51.2 - 61.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
also, all of these pokemon have a move that can ohko koko. Koko has uses but it is def not a fighting check.
Also, you are saying I need to prove a mon is bad when I am saying it should be A-. To be in A+ a pokemon show be would of the best in the metagame, koko is far from bad, but it is not one of the best.
 
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| Rank | Pokemon | Use | Usage % | Win % |
+ ---- + ------------------ + ---- + ------- + ------- +
| 16 | Tapu Koko | 47 | 12.24% | 63.83% |

looking pretty damn good to me, for sure one of the best
 
Also this is filled with lies. First, it does not act as a fighting check, lemme give you a couple calcs
252+ Atk Guts Conkeldurr Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 195-230 (69.3 - 81.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Choice Band Urshifu-Rapid-Strike Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 168-198 (59.7 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Life Orb Terrakion Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 144-172 (51.2 - 61.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
also, all of these pokemon have a move that can ohko koko. Koko has uses but it is def not a fighting check.
Also, you are saying I need to prove a mon is bad when I am saying it should be A-. To be in A+ a pokemon show be would of the best in the metagame, koko is far from bad, but it is not one of the best.
Even though you're most likely a troll. I'm going to give you the benefit of doubt, and assume you're being serious about your statement.
Being a 'fighting check' doesn't mean said 'check' can aimlessly switch into those types of mon's, but instead can 'OFFENSIVELY' check it .

For instance, Weavile makes a great Tornadus check, but there's absolutely no way in hell that Weavile actually switch's into it for free, unless it's going for something like defog, which in that specific situation can proceed to 'offensively' check it. Tapu koko role isn't meant to be a impenetrable fighting type sponge at all. (Though it CAN afford to switch in, if the user has nothing else, if necessary.) It's meant to be an offensive 'pivot' for teams that want to 'OFFENSIVELY' check for said mons. (Two of said mon's you mentioned, aren't even that common.)
You can state that it doesn't belong in A+, but saying it's not a fighting type check at all is just completely wrong.

Was not expecting this to be my first post here lol.
 
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I don't like using Koko too much, but it's defensive value is actually very good. It checks the following Mons:
-Tornadus-T
-Weavile
-Urshifu
-Galarian Zapdos
-Regular Zapdos
-Zeraora (aka the fraud electric)
-Buzzwole
-Every dragon that exists (well, not Dragalge, but who even uses that)
-Fini
-Hawlucha (another fraud Mon)

Yes, almost all of those have coverage and some even are able to KO it from full, but for Koko this can be excused in a way that Mons like Pex, Tran and Zapdos ( all examples of Mons that check lots of things ) can't because of: epic Speed, recovery Move, pivoting move (in fact 2 of them, though I wouldn't run Volt Switch 90% of the time) AND an ability that does things just by Koko being on the field (and some turns after it leaves). This gives a lot of flexibility in how and when you send Koko and also huge splashability, which I do consider the most important part of a Viability of a Mon: just like Lando and Torn, you can use Koko in any Style, from HO to full Stall, this is a trait few Mons posess. Also, when you look at the move pool, you can see Koko has a billion sets:
1. Standard (Tbolt, U-Turn, Gleam, Roost). Can run Boots, LO, Lum Berry, Terrain Extender, Shuca Berry and Rocky Helmet among other items.
2. Bulky special ( EV Spread just to outspeed Weavile, rest in HP and Pdef, Tbolt, Roost, U-Turn and one of Toxic and Gleam). Same items except LO.
3. Bulky physical. Same set as above except Tbolt is now Wild Charge instead. This is my favorite set btw.
4. CM. Same items as set 1. Not a fan of this one due to the huge support it needs, but some people have been successful with it.
5. 4 attacks without Roost. Same items again, though Boots are here the superior and most common item. This has been used on that famous Stall structure of Hippo + Skarm.
6. Taunt + Nature Madness. Enjoy your Lando or Ferro at 34% HP after 2 hits.
7. Screens. Can Taunt the Defogger, U-Turn out or suicide with Wild Charge.
8. Specs. I don't like it due to needing to predict, but if you are good at it, it's devastating.
9. Band. Better than Zeraora at that ( in fact it's better than Zeraora at everything except BU).
10. Scarf, fuck HO and weather teams (well, no, I like weather teams, but still, this
11. Grass Knot in some of the above sets. The rise of Gastro and the existance of Quag, Swamp, Seismitoad and Hippo helps its cause.
12. It learns Defog. Idk how to fit it, since it loses to almost all rockers, but as emergency sack this can work.
13. It also learns Mean Look. Combined with Shuca Berry and Nature Madness this can also be a trade sack in order to help some Mon that struggles with Lando ( if you are dumb enough to use Zeraora, you might as well use another dumb set. Or you can run Specs Regieleki).
14. Iron Defense + CM + Roost + Stored Power. Didn't try this. Yes, no STAB, but unlike shit like the same set but in Reuniclus, no one is going to preserve the Dark Mon vs Koko, so it can work.

So, 7 certified good sets and another 7 fringe ones, but this is still comparable numbers to Lando, Tran, Mew or Clefable.

Also, Terrain is huge. Terrain makes:
1. Tbolt Pult danger for Pex, Corv and Mandibuzz.
2. Lele, Fini and Boomer temporarily weaker.
3. Zeraora, Alolan Raichu and Regieleki usable.
4. Restalk Mons very hard to use. I like Restalk Swampert, Primarina or Regigigas, well, Koko makes running them harder. Especially Regigigas, which otherwise would have been a really good Mon. OU has fight Mons, Steel Mons and Fini too, but it's Koko the main reason Regigigas isn't used, since all of the others can be worn down, paralyzed by Body Slam or Knocked ( which Koko doesn't care too much about). Seriously, I would be running Regigigas very often if Koko didn't exist.
5. Ground types kinda mandatory. Though they already are due to Volt Switch being a thing.
6. Sleep Powder and Spore Mons having almost 0 use.

So, to sum it up, while Koko is neither too strong, nor too bulky (and that's why I personally don't like to use it a lot) , it's very fast, splashable, versatile, soft checks many Mons and influences what is used and what it's not a lot. I think this is a valid definition for A+ rank.
 

BT89

go on, take everything
is a Pre-Contributor
I am not trolling I am friends with Jakerocks73fan. I did provide evidence for why it is not A+ rank, my evidence was that it doesn't do anything that welll, and should not be A+ I never said koko was bad I said it should be A-, which is still very high. Also I am currently playing a game and koko just failed to ohko my pult with a gleam .....
Also this is filled with lies. First, it does not act as a fighting check, lemme give you a couple calcs
252+ Atk Guts Conkeldurr Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 195-230 (69.3 - 81.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Choice Band Urshifu-Rapid-Strike Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 168-198 (59.7 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 Atk Life Orb Terrakion Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tapu Koko: 144-172 (51.2 - 61.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
also, all of these pokemon have a move that can ohko koko. Koko has uses but it is def not a fighting check.
Also, you are saying I need to prove a mon is bad when I am saying it should be A-. To be in A+ a pokemon show be would of the best in the metagame, koko is far from bad, but it is not one of the best.
These posts and arguments are laughable and, again, awful at concealing the fact that you are a troll. If this isn't a troll, then you genuinely need to learn more about the metagame. Your posts fail to give any convincing reasoning as to why Koko doesn't deserve A+ other than "it does not 2HKO the entire tier lol", which is frankly stupid.

Koko does offensively check pretty much all the Fighting-types of the tier thanks to its ridiculous Speed tier as well as strong enough power to take these Fighting-types down after chip. Speaking of which, that is what Koko does best - applies constant pressure through constant chip damage thanks to its wonderful STAB combination in tandem with a super fast U-Turn.

The statement "it doesn't do anything well" is frankly incorrect. If a mon is good, it has to be doing something well.

Anyways to make this not just me feeding into trolls:

:ss/tyranitar:
B+ -> A-

Tyranitar is an absolute nuke right now. With the uptick in sand usage and viability, Tyranitar is having a great time. CB TTar is the only real set IMO, but damn is it one good set. It has pretty much no reliable switch ins off the top of my head, just due to its sheer power and array of coverage granted by its colorful movepool. In addition, the rise of sand teams, both Drill offense and fat sand balance, have made it clear that the playstyle is at its freshest peak in a long time.

:ss/excadrill:
B+ -> A-

You know how I said sand viability is growing? It's mainly because this guy is such a potent offensive threat right now. It loves the substantial decrease in Corv and physically defensive Landorus-T from previous iterations of the tier, and because of this, a lot of Corv-less teams usually struggle with Excadrill. Not much more I have to say that has not already been said.

:ss/mew:
B+ -> B-

Mew is still bad, nothing has changed from what I previously said about it. Demon Mew is all but dead in this state of the meta, especially with the uptick in Sand teams being pretty annoying for it, as it means it has to deal with even more constant chip damage and pressure from all corners. All other offensive sets are bad, only really useful for luring stuff, which is not nearly enough to give them any consistent potency, especially with those 100/100 offensive stats. I hear people say that Utility Mew is still good, but I have literally never seen that set perform well in practice for almost a year now.
 
Why are people supporting the gastrodon rise? I do not understand what is does in this offensive meta being so passive.
My opinion: Gastrodon is currently popular, because it compresses two invaluable defensive roles for a team: a ground type, and a Pokémon that is completely immune to water. Water really started picking up as an offensive typing a while ago, because of how good it is against :Landorus-Therian: and :Heatran:, and because there are very few Pokémon in the tier´s top ranks that resist it, let alone are immune to it. Thanks to its typing and Storm Drain, it does really well against Water-, Electric- and Fire-based offensive Pokémon, all of which are popular offensive typings. Recover gives it longevity and its access to the rare Clear Smog allows it to also counter bulky set-up Pokémon such as Calm Mind Clefable, Calm Mind Tapu Fini and Volcarona. It also has just enough bulk to win against the ghost types one-on-one as well. It is by no means perfect (I think there are few Pokémon as vulnerable to Toxic as this one), but it does what it can do really well.

Here´s a replay from the World Cup that I think shows its strengths and weaknesses really well: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-632825

It holds the defensive framework of its team together magnificently - up until it gets poisoned, at which point everything starts to fall apart. Its user still wins the battle by successfully PP-stalling the opposing Heatran with Clefable and Tornadus, though.
 
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View attachment 432238
No ordering within tiers. Weathers are represented by the setters. Ninetales-Alola also does screens, so it's much better than the rest. I left off a lot of the gimmicky junk, but I'm sure there are some glaring omissions. Anything on stall is B. Just replace C with a "Niche" category already. Just shift everything down and call my S- "A+" if you get too triggered.

The most important adjustments I want to see are:
Move Up: :garchomp::MELMETAL::bLACEPHALON::Tapu-lele::blissey::Polteageist:

Move Down: :Landorus-Therian::Tapu-Koko::Buzzwole:(defensive):Zeraora::Slowking-Galar:
Zarude, Kanto-Molt, Rachi, Blissey, and Toge above G-King and Buzzwole.:pikuh:

Would like an explanation
 
Lowkey am not a huge fan of glowking in the current meta. It just doesn’t check much effectively rn. Most special attackers in the tier either have super effective stab (Pult,Blace, Goltres), or commonly run knock off (torn, Fini) to the point where it feels like deadweight against most teams. It can check Heatran and koko, but koko can just pivot on it and Heatran wins the 1v1 if Glowking is not running earthquake.
 
View attachment 432238
No ordering within tiers. Weathers are represented by the setters. Ninetales-Alola also does screens, so it's much better than the rest. I left off a lot of the gimmicky junk, but I'm sure there are some glaring omissions. Anything on stall is B. Just replace C with a "Niche" category already. Just shift everything down and call my S- "A+" if you get too triggered.

The most important adjustments I want to see are:
Move Up: :garchomp::MELMETAL::bLACEPHALON::Tapu-lele::blissey::Polteageist:

Move Down: :Landorus-Therian::Tapu-Koko::Buzzwole:(defensive):Zeraora::Slowking-Galar:
Most of these noms are not correct according to the current meta but still I would like you to explain most noms so that I get a idea of your list.
 
Built this tier a lot for WCoP, have a few things to say - will mostly just be focusing on my own nominations but I'll mention some others too.

S ranks should imo be:

S:
Landorus-Therian
Weavile

S-:
Heatran
-maybe some others like Clef/Koko/Ferro/Melm-

I don't think Lando has any business dropping like some previous posters have suggested but I do think Weavile deserves to go up one.

(moreso Urshifu but I feel it applies to both) A -> A+
These two saw massive usage as a core. They pair phenomenally together; there really isn't much that can handle an Urshifu backed up by Future Sight, and while this has always been true, these teams have found more success lately by running Tapu Lele instead of a Slowtwin. Its Future Sight is ungodly strong, chunking physdef Slowbro for up to 50%, more than enough for Urshifu to pop it open. They also have really amazing offensive/defensive synergy; Urshifu smashes stuff like Heatran, Ferrothorn, Melmetal etc. while being an okay pivot into Weavile. Tapu Lele drops checks to Urshifu like Toxapex, Dragonite, Buzzwole etc. they're just a really good pair and I think they both deserve A+ at this time.

A- -> A
Blacephalon has seen a lot of usage in WCoP and is something I personally built a ton with to find structures I liked. For the most part, the only Ghost resist in this tier is Weavile; Tyranitar has been picking up a bit and is by far Blace's worst matchup, but you will very often run into a team that has no Shadow Ball resist and is forced to rely on very awkward pivoting to keep the clown in check. I think having two very good sets - Specs, which is one of the most brutal wallbreakers in OU, and Scarf, which devastates offense in similar ways to mons like Scarf Kartana - makes it a pretty versatile thing too, since if you see something like Blace + Kart or even Blace + Weavile at preview, you don't really know what set it's running. I find it's a bit difficult to build with since having next to no defensive utility is tough, and that Speed tier is just oh so frustrating - it's great but being just slower than Kartana is tragic. There are only so many routes you can take with it as a result. That said, it's a really strong Pokemon rn and I feel it's definitely on par with the likes of Zeraora and Volcarona.

A- -> A
Dragonite has a very valuable defensive profile atm, being a great check to stuff like Urshifu, Kartana, Heatran, Volcarona, Volcanion etc. and providing ever-valuable Heal Bell support. It fits phenomenally on those Koko/Ferro/Clef structures that saw a ton of use in WCoP and should rise a rank to reflect that in my opinion. Being so customisable is really great for it; if you need it to run moves to check any of Heatran, Kartana, Landorus, Glowking, Urshifu etc. it can do that thanks to that crazy movepool it has. Just think it's in a great spot.

A -> A-
Fraud Pokemon, just really hard to justify over Tapu Koko most of the time. Extremely minimal defensive utility and tends to fall flat in its sweeping role. Still pretty damn good for Pult-weak teams and smashes Sand like it's nobody's business but I think A- fits it better.

A- -> B+
High risk high reward breaker that's difficult to position and finds itself dying really quickly. Certainly an absolutely enormous threat, but doesn't feel like it's on the level of Volcanion or Victini at all. Too easily checked by stuff like Koko and Slowbro really; yes, they can't handle it long term, but it's not a long term Pokemon and will be dead long before it manages to break them.

B+ -> A
The immortal slug is really good rn even if it's a stupid momentum suck a lot of the time. Has a nasty habit of just 6-0ing teams; being a hard stop to Koko, Blacephalon (kinda), Dragapult, Zapdos etc. is just insane compression atm and it saw a looooooot of wcop usage because of that. Feels sorta par with Toxapex for that bulky water role, maybe a little worse but not enough to be a subrank lower imo.

B+ -> A-
Sand good, Drill's rlly hard to handle for a lot of teams with generally low Corv usage and SpDef Lando being far and away the most common variant, CB Tar is crazy tough to switch into, both should rise

Some other things that I don't feel qualified to flesh out but think they're worth nothing:

- Rain is good atm and should rise but other than Pelipper I don't know what should go up really
- Rillaboom's making somewhat of a resurgence and may be good enough for B+
- Rotom-W is getting crazy high usage and should rise but I don't feel like making an argument for it
- Victini could maaaaaybe rise altho idk how convinced I am. Really nice into a lot of trends like LeleShifu / FerroClef balance, though.
- Melmetal's lowkey broken.

Here's a quick 1am overall VR from me to end this off. Nothing is ordered within its subrank. I left out a lot of things because I don't really care too much about the low ranked stuff that I've never seen or used.

How come Nido dropped a subrank? With his amazing power and coverage (yet limited speed) he's great against defence, would love to hear your reasoning.
 
Lowkey am not a huge fan of glowking in the current meta. It just doesn’t check much effectively rn. Most special attackers in the tier either have super effective stab (Pult,Blace, Goltres), or commonly run knock off (torn, Fini) to the point where it feels like deadweight against most teams. It can check Heatran and koko, but koko can just pivot on it and Heatran wins the 1v1 if Glowking is not running earthquake.
I think Slowking-Galar borders a bit on being an anti-meta Pokémon in the current metagame. It´s not as good in its traditional defensive blanket check role, but it´s pretty good at abusing the current popularity of Clefable and Tapu Koko, using them to spread around status with Sludge Bomb and Scald or supporting its own team with Future Sight. It´s still deceptively strong and offensively it is a good deal more fearsome than its Kantonian cousins.

Here a replay where I think it did really well: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ou-631375
 
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