Resource SS RU Viability Rankings (Crown Tundra)

[gorex]

lei reached out to me about the thread banner, and came up with this masterpiece! thanks once again, and this will now be used as the banner in the OP.

for those who liked the dada gif while it was here, fret not! i'll keep it in hide tags so you can view it whenever you'd like to!​

 

[Aquarius Ghost ❤]

Hlelo, it's Aquarius Ghost here and I'm back with another VR post! Anyway, let's get started.

UR to C-/C
Ninjask's amazing speed tier compelled with its ability, Speed Boost enables it to be a scary revenge killer. Ninjask serves to be a nuisance against offensive cores due to its insane speed making Ninjask hard to revenge kill and its nice attack stat. Also, Ninjask can pivot freely with U-turn because of HDB, however, when running HDB Ninjask you often lose out of being able to run a powerful STAB move like Acrobatics. Ninjask can be a potent sweeper when it gets a Swords Dance up or when the Steel-type has died as seen in a test game vs mac3. Ninjask can take advantage of physical walls by chipping them down and pivoting. Although, while running the HDB set you will lack power and when u run non-item Acro Ninjask you would be forced to have immense hazard control. Overall, Ninjask is a very annoying Pokemon if ur running HO, it's a potent sweeper, and is a great revenge killer. Ninjask still has a lot of flaws because it cant breakthrough teams who have Steel-types, but that can be covered with the right team support. Another replay were ninjask cleans

A- to A (mbe A+, but I prefer A)

Roserade should be A+ imo, it’s far better than anything in A-. Then I see dogass like Xurk in A and rose is a lot better than that so should be higher. Spikes are crazy good and it’s stab combo is surprising tough to handle. A lot of Steel-types get chunked by Leaf Storm (Steelix, Staka, Cobalion) or are spike fodder (Registeel). The last slot is really flexible too, I’ve used Synthesis, Shadow Ball, Leech Seed, and powder moves and they are all effective. Plus it’s an offensive Toge check which is always great. The biggest drawback is you can’t really fit Monke and Vern bothers it too. But if Zydog goes then Rose gets an indirect buff by not needing that ground resist from your grass

Adaam basically said everything p well, also with zydog getting banned it has an easier time setting Spikes. Not much can revenge kill it, good elec check, provides nice utility, reasonable fast and strong asf. I have been starting to run balanced teams and whenever I face it always gets Spikes up so easily it can just switch-in into most of the meta with a breeze and it beats all our good defoggers (bat not included, wears down noivern). Personally, I think it should be in a or a+ ranks.

Tl;dr
Roserade is an insane spiker
Ninjask is a valuable sweeper / revenge killer.

 

[TailGlowVM]

C+ to UR: With Zygarde-10% banned, there's no reason to use Abomasnow over Vanilluxe as a hail setter as Vanilluxe has greater power, speed, and access to Explosion. Abomasnow's Grass typing doesn't help offensively much when Vanilluxe has access to Freeze-Dry to hit Water-types.

 

[zizalith]

hello yes its the resident hail enthusiast

should be unranked yeah, the Thousand Arrows sponge is no longer necessary on hail and that opens up some possibilities for those teams. I don't think it's useful to compare it to Vanilluxe because Abomasnow was just a thing on full hail. Switching into water types is a lot easier to accommodate anyways so this mon is poop. So now that it isn't necessary,

-> C+ or wherever abomasnow would be

this is what I've been running

Aurorus @ Icy Rock
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 252 Def / 236 SpD / 20 Spe
Calm Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Thunder Wave
- Freeze-Dry
- Earth Power

This mon is really just here to compress the Stealth Rocks slot and get hail up. My reasoning for running this is that Abomasnow is now pretty redundant, and Vanilluxe's pure Ice-type sucks for full hail because it has no defensive presence. Meanwhile, Aurorus has some decent role compression and much better bulk/typing, being able to switch into stuff like Salazzle, Noivern, and Togekiss (pray for no aura sphere) to set rocks or spread paralysis. Despite the lack of offensive investment, the typing lets Aurorus check a lot of the removal we have, and none of them can really switch into comfortably so your rocks are pretty safe as long as you play it well. Plus compressing Stealth Rock lets you be a lot more flexible with your other slots which is super nice.

 

[Aquarius Ghost ❤]

HEYA, it's Aquarius Ghost again, with another VR nom. IK YALL ARE GETTING TIRED OF SEEING ME!!!

UR to C
I mean like this shit is so good on Sun, it's an amazing sun abuser bc of its ability; Chlorophyll. Fun fact Ivysaur also has a Weather Ball which enables it to destroy Steel-types ( +2 252 SpA Life Orb Ivysaur Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Registeel in Sun: 333-393 (91.4 - 107.9%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock ). It can serve as a good Togekiss / Electric-type answer which sun usually fails to check. It outclasses plume as a sun abuser since it is able to hit Steel-types, while Vileplume can't, also Vileplume is kinda dogshit chloro user. The only viable answer to ivysaur at +2 is like chandy, but even that can be slowly chipped. Replays: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1305445688 and https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1302275645

set

Ivysaur @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Weather Ball
- Growth
- Sludge Bomb
- Giga Drain

(modest is also an option)

B to B-
This Pokemon is very underwhelming, the only thing good about it is speed. It really fails to live many hits to get an sd up or remove hazards. Also if ur running sd u take hits+killing urself, gg what a good mon.

UR to C
I mean this Poke is p viable rn in the meta. It has coverage to hit Zarude and Steelix with a Body Press. Its ability, Sand Stream, enables it to be a good Togekiss, Toxtricity check, and a natural SpD wall. Gigalith just provides nice utility by being able to set Stealth Rocks and put sand to make Pokemon like Lycanroc sweepers. Yes, it does lack something by not being a Ground-type which basically makes it a soft Electric-type check, while also being outclassed by Rhyperior. It does have some flaws, but that can be covered by its bulk / team support

Ur to C+
Do I seriously need to explain this..... It's just a demon under sun which is its main niche, it can spam Overheat and always claim a kill, nothing lives specs overheat which is absolutely insane. Nice speed stat too. (same replays as ivysaur)

B- to B
Pretty amazing mon rn, it's even better bc everyone is running toxic on their Raikou's. Generally, Golurk doesn't have many ways to come in, but when it does it literally almost always gets a kill, nice coverage. If you're really desperate it can even run Stealth Rocks and Trick so it can wear down switch-in like Tangela and Incineroar. Also, if you need a powerful Ground-type that can blow through teams, Golurk is the best pick, still forces 50/50s vs elecs tho and a fire ass Toxtricity check.

C+ to C or C-
Not much purpose to use Tangela right now, yes it's still a fantastic Zarude check, however with zydog getting banned it's not really needed, since that's what it was mainly used for. It's pretty passive and Zarude is just better than it rn bc it can actually take on elecs and Suicune.

i agree with what both ziza and TailGlowVM said about aboma

B- to C / UR
Expluso clearly stated that this was a theorynom, so I started to test it and this was so bad. LIKE BAD BAD, even on sand it was bad like WHAT?!

B to B-/C+
This Pokemon is pretty hard to build around, fails to do much in a game. Also with Zarude and Incin being in the tier they just limit it to do much. We also have a lot of counterplay to it this time. Its barely even seen, only viable set is like CM and even then it doesnt find much chances to set up.

Thats is all guys!! Ty for reading this post!
(I didn't add much detail on most of the pokes, however I will edit this when I have more time :P, ignore my shit writing)

 

[LBN]

HEYA, it's Aquarius Ghost again, with another VR nom. IK YALL ARE GETTING TIRED OF SEEING ME!!!
C+ to C or C-
Not much purpose to use Tangela right now, yes it's still a fantastic Zarude check, however with zydog getting banned it's not really needed, since that's what it was mainly used for. It's pretty passive and Zarude is just better than it rn bc it can actually take on elecs and Suicune.

i agree with what both ziza and TailGlowVM said about aboma

Thats is all guys!! Ty for reading this post!
(I didn't add much detail on most of the pokes, however I will edit this when I have more time :P, ignore my shit writing)

Naw we UR'ing the ever living FUCK out of tangela naw naw get this mon out of here. LOOOOL this shit aint doing NOTHING. If i want a niche grass Zarude check i'm gonna use Vileplume, which does other shit like be an actually GOOD soft check to the electrics. (Hard agree with everything else

Anyway i dont really have many noms but i think i can take a solid assumption on one thing

B to B+
I havent tested this but i definitely think the zydog ban helped Flygoat immensely, scarf flygon can function similarly to Zarude as another mon that can force togekiss in and u turn on it, while also providing electric immunity and slightly better bulk, as well as a ground immunity. Can also run DD sets aswell and even a defog specially defensive set to check Raikou. Though i do think Scarf would be the standard, and while i ain't test this yet (I'll edit this when i do) i think this mon can be atleast looked at for a rise.

 

[xoPure]

Back again with a few rises id like to propose

from A to A+/S

Reuni fuckin bangs, I want to put more words into it but I just cant. Reuni runs two main sets that completely invalidate some teams. CM can serve as a late game sweeper or as a removing tool for other threats. Assault Vest in my opinion is another beast in its own. Being able to eat literally every non Specs hit (but you can eat Specs if you're at full lmao) and then smash a switch in is stupid. This thing loses to like 2 mons in the tier.

from B- to B+

Golurk has really impressed me in recent RUPL replays and just laddering with it. It's a very restricting mon right now regarding the Choice Band set. There is very little in the tier that can switch in to a Poltergeist/CC/EQ and threaten it out. To me this mon feels like it forces coin flips on move options and getting the right switch in (unless you run Milotic lmao).

from UR to C

Shiinotic is a super fun option to deal with Raikou/Mienshao/Zarude/Mimikyu/Sharpedo. Not only is it fun, but it gets the job done. Being able to take 25-35% from these mons and threaten a sleep or immediate full heal from Strength Sap makes this mon go a long way.

now for a few drops

from S to A+/A

Zarude is nowhere near the monster that it used to be. Too much in the tier exists that can invalidate all the offensive pressure that it use to slam people with, and if you carefully look at the top 5 mons in the tier, they all molly whop it. Its still a great mon to chip and hack away at its counters for other threats and its overall bulk/utility keeps in the A ranks though.

from B- to UR

I'm borderline convinced this shit got put on the list for memes. It took me 30 seconds to come up with 10-15 mons that blast it while this thing beats like 3. I'm just not a fan.

 

[gorex]

VR Update (Dated 24/3/2021)

Rises:

A -> A+

A -> A+

A- -> A+

A- -> A

A- -> A

A- -> A

A- -> A

B+ -> A

B+ -> A-

B+ -> A-

B+ -> A-

B+ -> A-

B -> A-

B -> B+

B -> B+

B -> B+

B- -> B

B- -> B

B- -> B

B- -> B

B- -> B

B- -> B

C -> C+

Drops:

S -> A+

A -> A-

A -> B+

A- -> B+

A- -> B+

A- -> B+

A- -> B+

A- -> B

B+ -> B

B+ -> B

B+ -> B

B+ -> B

B+ -> B-

B+ -> B-

B+ -> B-

B -> B-

B -> B-

B -> B-

B -> C+

B -> C+

B -> C+

B- -> C+

B- -> C+

C+ -> C

C+ -> C

C+ -> C

C+ -> C

B- -> C-

C+ -> C-

Additions:

UR -> B

UR -> C+

UR -> C

UR -> C

UR -> C-

Removals:

C+ -> UR

C+ -> UR

C- -> UR

Hey guys, massive VR update here because we voted on all the mons in the VR currently, and also added on a few more from the unranked section. If there was a nomination for unranked mons that is not reflected in the update because it was overlooked or because the voting slate had already begun, please do feel free to nominate them again if you strongly feel that they deserve a rank in the metagame, and we will take it into consideration for the next VR update.

 

[Aquarius Ghost ❤]

HEYA, it's Aquarius Ghost again, with another VR nom. IK YALL ARE GETTING TIRED OF SEEING ME!!!

UR to C
I mean like this shit is so good on Sun, it's an amazing sun abuser bc of its ability; Chlorophyll. Fun fact Ivysaur also has a Weather Ball which enables it to destroy Steel-types ( +2 252 SpA Life Orb Ivysaur Weather Ball (100 BP Fire) vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Registeel in Sun: 333-393 (91.4 - 107.9%) -- 81.3% chance to OHKO after Stealth Rock ). It can serve as a good Togekiss / Electric-type answer which sun usually fails to check. It outclasses plume as a sun abuser since it is able to hit Steel-types, while Vileplume can't, also Vileplume is kinda dogshit chloro user. The only viable answer to ivysaur at +2 is like chandy, but even that can be slowly chipped. Replays: https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1305445688 and https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1302275645

set

Ivysaur @ Life Orb
Ability: Chlorophyll
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Weather Ball
- Growth
- Sludge Bomb
- Giga Drain

(modest is also an option)

B to B-
This Pokemon is very underwhelming, the only thing good about it is speed. It really fails to live many hits to get an sd up or remove hazards. Also if ur running sd u take hits+killing urself, gg what a good mon.

UR to C
I mean this Poke is p viable rn in the meta. It has coverage to hit Zarude and Steelix with a Body Press. Its ability, Sand Stream, enables it to be a good Togekiss, Toxtricity check, and a natural SpD wall. Gigalith just provides nice utility by being able to set Stealth Rocks and put sand to make Pokemon like Lycanroc sweepers. Yes, it does lack something by not being a Ground-type which basically makes it a soft Electric-type check, while also being outclassed by Rhyperior. It does have some flaws, but that can be covered by its bulk / team support

Ur to C+
Do I seriously need to explain this..... It's just a demon under sun which is its main niche, it can spam Overheat and always claim a kill, nothing lives specs overheat which is absolutely insane. Nice speed stat too. (same replays as ivysaur)

B- to B
Pretty amazing mon rn, it's even better bc everyone is running toxic on their Raikou's. Generally, Golurk doesn't have many ways to come in, but when it does it literally almost always gets a kill, nice coverage. If you're really desperate it can even run Stealth Rocks and Trick so it can wear down switch-in like Tangela and Incineroar. Also, if you need a powerful Ground-type that can blow through teams, Golurk is the best pick, still forces 50/50s vs elecs tho and a fire ass Toxtricity check.

C+ to C or C-
Not much purpose to use Tangela right now, yes it's still a fantastic Zarude check, however with zydog getting banned it's not really needed, since that's what it was mainly used for. It's pretty passive and Zarude is just better than it rn bc it can actually take on elecs and Suicune.

i agree with what both ziza and TailGlowVM said about aboma

B- to C / UR
Expluso clearly stated that this was a theorynom, so I started to test it and this was so bad. LIKE BAD BAD, even on sand it was bad like WHAT?!

B to B-/C+
This Pokemon is pretty hard to build around, fails to do much in a game. Also with Zarude and Incin being in the tier they just limit it to do much. We also have a lot of counterplay to it this time. Its barely even seen, only viable set is like CM and even then it doesnt find much chances to set up.

Thats is all guys!! Ty for reading this post!
(I didn't add much detail on most of the pokes, however I will edit this when I have more time :P, ignore my shit writing)

Hey guys, it's Aquarius Ghost with anotha vr post... Anotha one. Anyway, the reason I replied to one of my posts is that I think some of these pokes weren't voted on. Other then that time to get started on my VR post.

DROPS
A- to B
Volcanion is pretty bad, it mainly loses to every bulk water in RU except Milo, even when running Sub+Toxic it fails to break thru Seismitoad, Gastrodon, and Suicune (doesn't matter which variant they still pp stall it). I personally find it pretty hard to fit on a team mainly because it does jack shit the whole game. Its main niche is being a defogger because it threatens every single one of our Stealth Rockers, but even then all our Stealth Rockers can force chip onto it with Toxic, Volt Switch, or Rock move. I think it's outclassed by chandy as a Fire-type special attacker, and chandy can actually threaten bulky waters with Toxic+Hex or Energy Ball.

B to C+
I have like, never seen this poke do anything in a game, with Zarude in the tier u have no real reason to use it. I mean sure it has Illusion, but that's a very small niche. I mean, that's why this poke is never seen in RU bc Zarude and Incineroar exist. I might rank it lower, but idk I have never seen it do something valuable or even be used, so my nom might be a bit wrong.

Rises

UR to B- / C+
xoPure said a lot of things that are true abt Tauros in his np post, I would also want to say that Tauros has near-perfect coverage and can threaten any type with either CC, Iron Head/ Throat Chop, Equake, Body Slam. Its speed tier is super nice, enabling it to be a destructive wallbreaker, it outpaces Zarude and Coba making it a good revenge killer to both pokes. I would have a replay of Tauros winning a game, but ofc POOREX (aka gorex, mad respect for using it tho) lost with it :eyes: .Once I get a replay of Tauros winning I will put it here.

B- to B
Why exactly is the mon ranked so low? Zarude doesn't invalidate it, no dark type can viably threaten it since it has Moonblast + CM and is able to run max Hp and Physdef. Its defense is crazy, it can abuse cm, be a viable tr setter, and has reliable recovery. It also is a nice revenge killer to Toxtricity. Like this mon gets no love when it's so fucking good I would honestly put this mon in the B+ ranks, but I would have to get other ppls views on it first. Also Steel-types and Toxic can wall this Poke, but even then u can sub up and CM +6 and stored power to do a huge chunk.

That's gonna be the end of it for today folks. (also this was my 300th post gooo me!!!!! I think my writing wasn't as bad on this one, but idk)

​

 

[Expulso]

Hi guys, I feel like the VR is a bit out of touch with the current RU meta since it has evolved a lot in the past few weeks of RUPL.
Here are my thoughts on rank movements.

Rhyperior: A- -> A
Without a Milotic, I feel like Rhyp is extremely difficult to switch into. Roserade is smashed by EQ, Celebi and Zarude are OHKOed by Megahorn. Gastrodon is the most common water rn due to its splash(water type pun. gimme likes)-ability; it serves as a check to so many Pokemon, such as Raikou, Metagross, Noivern, and a ton of others. Rhyperior punishes this really well. With max Attack, Gastro is 2HKOed (and easily outsped) after only a small amount of chip. They also drop Scald pretty commonly, meaning that it can't do much back to you, so you can force a KO or even set up and win with the rare double dance set. Seismitoad, a water faster than it, usually drops Scald; Golisopod can't take an Edge and is possible to speed-creep on offensive teams that can run near-max Rhyp; Volc can outspeed and KO but doesn't switch into either STAB. Rhyperior is also very useful defensively to check Togekiss, Noivern (and Toxtricity a tiny bit? Raikou if no Scald too) while providing offensive pressure and Rocks. Really good mon, I think it deserves A for sure.

Volcanion: A- -> A
Volcanion is the second-best mon in A- right now, far better than everything besides Rhyp. IMO it would fit well in A rank. Some teams just fold to it extremely hard -- the ones who run into it without Gastro / Seis / Noivern / AV Reun (or stall mons like Umbreon & uncommon ones like Dragalge). Even those 4 are pressured a lot by Toxic + its fairly strong attacks, especially when they are required to check other mons on the Volc user's team. Volc has really good bulk too; if Noivern tries to Draco you, it does a pretty underwhelming amount, and suddenly Noivern is brought into range of a Scarf Shao sweep. Similarly, Zarude can't KO it until it's fairly low. This mon can trade in a lot of these situations due to it being a water without a grass weakness, fire without a water weakness, etc; the untraditional typing + great bulk circumvents a lot of counterplay to fires and waters.

I disagree with Aquarius above; Volc is very useful as an offensive threat to standard balance, and that is its role rather than Defogging.

Gardevoir: B+ -> A-
Specs Garde is an excellent breaker that hits like a truck and has a good speed tier; Metagross gets SBalled, Staka gets Focus Blasted, and p much everything else just gets nuked by the STABs. Scarf Garde is fast, able to pressure out the ever-present Noivern & take on things like Raikou with its good special bulk. It can also do cool techs like Memento, which appeared in @ProDigeZz's RUPL game alongside a Shell Smash Cloyster on a team that didn't look hyper offensive at all. Teleport on Scarf is another cool fourth move (after stabs+trick) that can give you huge momentum. I think this mon has a ton of upside rn and belongs in A- for sure.

Golurk: B -> A- ojr
| 38 | Golurk | 11 | 4.70% | 100.00% |

CB Poltergeist goes brr and the typing is very good against standard tbolt/volt/aura/tox Raikou. This mon is excellent. Even though low Speed tier means you need to build around it a bit, lots of teams have no Ghost resist and get slaughtered. tlenit also used a sick Scarf Golurk that seems genuinely viable due to luring Zarude (via outspeeding it) & being able to cripple something with Trick. Golurk is really good against passive Rockers like Steelix; it also scares Metagross and Staka away from ever clicking SR or Toxic, because if they let in Golurk for free something probably dies. I find this mon very threatening to play against and it should def be A-.

Flygon: B+ -> A-
Another mon whose usage has skyrocketed in recent weeks of RUPL, Flygon has a lot of possible uses & valuable role compression. It gives you a Scarfer + Ground-type, typically, and U-turn can punish Zarude as ground resist very well. Stone Edge, especially if boosted by CB, can ruin seemingly safe switch-ins like Golisopod and Togekiss. It can also run a bulky Defog+Roost set that was a staple in past gens, and other techs like LO Mixed (DPP OU moment...), Dragon Dance, and the aforementioned CB seem really promising. Being a Dragon + Ground can hurt your team against Volcanion sometimes, and it's a somewhat weak scarfer - but if those are the only criticisms A- seems quite appropriate.

Vileplume: A- -> B+
It doesn't see much usage right now, Synth Roserade does a similar job at checking Electrics and is a lot more threatening. Vileplume just gets Volted / Uturned on and then is in range of stuff, and it doesnt provide much team support or do that much back to its switch-ins (and, again, often things just come in on it via volt/uturn). This is reflected by a dismal 25% RUPL winrate over its 12 uses.

Dragalge: B -> B+
I think this mon is pretty good right now. It tends to attract in Gastro pretty well; they are pdef, fooled into thinking they can check it, and then a ~160 EV Modest Draco does 70-75. If they go to their Steel-type, it can either Focus Blast, get Tspikes up, or Flip Turn. Since our Steels don't have recovery, a Draco is devastating to Coba or Steelix (or even a Metagross that needs to check stuff alongside the dragalge), not to mention a Focus Blast. Plenty of scary wallbreakers (like the aforementioned Golurk) appreciate Dragalge pivoting out of Steels and bringing them in. It also has very useful defensive properties, checking Volcanion, Chandelure, Roserade, and Electrics quite well.

tldr; Drag is p strong and useful defensively, Tspikes are underrated and p good rn, and Focus is unexpected but really good on it.

======

LIGHTNING ROUND of stuff I feel should move (but not strongly enough to write about):
A- -> B+
A- -> B+
OR
B+ -> A-
B+ -> A-
B+ -> A-

I feel these 5 have about equal viability, worse than some of A- but better than the rest of B+.

B -> B+ (i was a doub hater. It's pretty good!)

C- -> UR (IM SORRY GUYS. THIS IS HELLA UNVIABLE)

 

[Leni]

Golurk: B -> A- ojr
| 38 | Golurk | 11 | 4.70% | 100.00% |

CB Poltergeist goes brr and the typing is very good against standard tbolt/volt/aura/tox Raikou. This mon is excellent. Even though low Speed tier means you need to build around it a bit, lots of teams have no Ghost resist and get slaughtered. tlenit also used a sick Scarf Golurk that seems genuinely viable due to luring Zarude (via outspeeding it) & being able to cripple something with Trick. Golurk is really good against passive Rockers like Steelix; it also scares Metagross and Staka away from ever clicking SR or Toxic, because if they let in Golurk for free something probably dies. I find this mon very threatening to play against and it should def be A-.

uh oh... Golurk is amazing PU mon (just a while ago it was down there, bcs u guys didnt appreciate its breaking power) and sure, i did use scarf golurk. But in all honesty this is a SM PU set to catch primeapes u-turning into mons that usually OHKO Golurk after free pivot (like Cryogonals, Scyther, Simis, Swanna, Haunter). This was pretty much reasoning to use it few weeks ago in RUPL. You know... to get some nostalgic moments from best Showdown meta ever existing with the old good classic and to see how old good PU stuff works in higher tiers. Do I believe its worth in RU in general to rank higher on VR? OH HELLLL NAW. On its best its niche set that catches random 339's like mienshaos/zarudes and slowers off guard (he-he happened in the game) and especially when they least expects it. Like... I dont think TNunes had a single thought the mienshao will die on that turn, but these things are "once in the life time" -things.

Golurk absolutely appreciates the raw power through band to clean 2hko most stuff (and the "rest" that its otherwise cleanly OHKOing). Altho being such a negative ass about scarf golurk being niche set, I do believe golurk should rise on VR. Altho instead of dropping golurk to humble A-, I think u guys should consider A+, but to be fair, let it fall in comfy A. Golurk is busted as hell banded user and its proven already in RUPL pretty well.

Lets see when UU steals the old good PU mon from you guys, fingers crossed

e: to respond to Mr. Expulso, I still think its best shot is 4atk instead of Trick. Trick could do something, but u appreciate hella lot to catch the random midground switch ins (eg. Volcanion-Zarude-Roserade-Sigilyph). The idea anyway behind the set is to catch random stuff off guard when opponent offensively uturn and u say nawwww, let me control this game. Trick right now pretty much gets gastro/milotic after the set is revealed. Not saying its not worth, but imo we appreciate all the possible coverage to ensure the KO

 

[Expulso]

@ tlenit: yea for sure, i didn’t mean to imply scarf is a primary or common item on golurk, but i thought it illustrated the range of cool things it can do: scarf + trick, or stuff like trick av klutz, even the resist berry rocker sets from bwru.

95%+ of the time it should be banded though, perhaps bringing up other sets detracts from the point that banded golurk wallbreaks like nothing else in the tier. A would be fair but i’m starting with A-, B is absolutely not accurate

 

[GoldCat]

B+ to A
In my opinion, Flygon's sheer splashability alone makes its rise to A-rank more than warranted. It has more usage (currently 14th most used 'mon in RUPL) and found more success than any other 'mon in A-. I think Flygon, alongside Rhyperior and Volcanion, have been proven to be a league above everything in A-. Like expulso pointed out, Flygon isn't bound to the role of a Choice Scarfer and can effectively use many different sets. Flygon being a fast and versatile Ground-type provides invaluable team compression to any team. On its own Flygon won't perform any wonders but it's more of a team player and its main role is to fill holes in the teambuilder.
B to A-
While Virizion hasn't been given many chances to truly shine in RUPL, I still believe that its unique attributes make it one of the tier's top Fighting-types but allegedly the worse out of Cobalion, Mienshao, and Heracross. Virizion has many pros over its competition: great Special Defense and typing, same speed tier as Cobalion, and is an offensive check to threats like Raikou, Sharpedo, and Zarude. It's also quite difficult to switch into Virizion with it having coverage like Air Slash to break Vileplume, which Mienshao struggles with. Only the less common Fighting checks such as Weezing-G, Draglage, and Doublade are solid switch-ins to it. Virizion is also quite versatile and can run sets like Mixed, Swords Dance, and 3 Attacks + Synthesis.
UR to B
Bronzong has some nice qualities over the other Steel-types that make it a great fit on certain builds. The main one is Levitate which makes it a decent check to Flygon, Metagross, and Rhyperior. Bronzong is also the best Roserade counter, as it can't be worn down by Spikes.

Replays:

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-553392
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-553745
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-551762

B to B+Agree
Doublade is slowly on the rise and for good reasons. The current meta is a lot kinder to Doublade and appreciates the high Reuniclus, Roserade, and
Cobalion usage. Doublade also kind of enjoys Incineroar seeing more usage, as it's not a good check in the long run. Also, if you run 140 Speed EVs to outrun Sassy nature Incineroar you only need to catch it once with CC, and then on the second switch you SD and KO with +1 Close Combat. Just don't use Doublade as your Steel-type and it'll put in a good amount of work.
UR to C+ Agree
Screens HO is on the rise and Slurpuff is imo the best Belly Drummer. With Slowbro-G long gone, Slurpuff is just one turn away to sweep the majority of teams. There are only a few 'mons like Metagross, Vileplume, and Doublade that can really handle a +6 Slurpuff with screens up.

Replays:

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-554467
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1306612933-3qr2jgbs2wh0et0mhmmsp4nuen0d3frpw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-548059

UR to C+
Speaking of screens HO, Frolass is one of the many setters. Froslass's great speed tier makes it easy to set up dual screens against most of the tier and a timely Cursed Body can provide free setup opportunities for Froslass's teammates. It also provides Spikes support and other nice support option like Taunt, Icy Wind, and Destiny Bond. In week 5 of RUPL, ProDigeZz used CB Froslass which is decent breaker, as Ice + Ghost coverage is very difficult to switch into and can still provide Spikes, plus Trick or priority in Ice Shard.

Replays:

Screens:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-553302
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-554467
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-554777
CB:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-551645

Other nominations I agree with:
A- to A
A- to A
B+ to A-
A- to B+
B to B+

 

[xoPure]

alright alright round 3 of the Pure tiering shifts

from UR to B
The fishy has been extremely underwhelming in my eyes. It's pretty unfortunate that this dropped here with the abundance of counters like Gastrodon, Noivern, Milotic, Suicune, Seismitoad, and Golisopod (dont get me started on the number of checks). An offensive water just serves almost no purpose in a tier where bulky waters are so powerful and water checks are all over the place. Although weak as a stand alone breaker, Barra is still an excellent Rain breaker which is why i believe in belongs in the same tier as something like Arctozolt (powerful, but in its respected archetype).

now for the rises and drops

RISES

from B to A-
This thing is a fuckin demon. There is absolutely no reason for the best banded mon in the tier to be in the same level as Toxicroak. Golurk is the ultimate breaker right now. STAB Ghost and Ground with fighting/ice coverage is near perfect in this tier. Theres a ton of calcs i can post for CB Poltergeist and EQ but its too much work, just know this thing deletes balance and offense.

from A+ to S
Raikou is king pivot right now. With the evolving meta, Raikou tend to run Toxic instead of one of its two Electric STABs which hey guess what, beats its counters. No one wants to switch their Gastro, Seismitoad, Noivern, Dhelmise, etc. into a Toxic, crippling them for the rest of the game. Raikou's speed tier is what really puts it on top. Being faster than Cobal, Zarude, Mienshao, and other mons of that speed tier is huge. Raikou is just a perfect mon that can you can just splash on any team.

DROPS

from B to B-/C+
Raikou, Zarude, Roserade, Xurkitree, Toxtricity, Reuniclus, Volcanion, Arctozolt, Seismitoad, Gastrodon, Dhelmise, Virizion, Sceptile, Raichu-Alola, Milotic, Mantine, Vaporeon, Jellicent, Heracross, Obstagoon, Regidrago, Cryogonal. Do i need to keep going??????

from C+ to UR
Jesus christ this mon blows. Banded Sacred Fire does negative damage to the bulky waters, and the burn chance doesn't even matter to more than half of them. Terrible speed tier as a breaker, most pivots can eat a hit and kill it after. Just not impressive whatsoever.

OTHER AGREEMENTS
B to B+
A- to A
A- to A
B to B+

 

[gorex]

VR Update (Dated 21/4/2021)

Rises:

A- -> A

A- -> A

B+ -> A-

B+ -> A-

B -> B+

Drops:

A+ -> A

A -> A-

A- -> B+

A- -> B+

B -> C

B- -> C

C+ -> C

Additions:

UR -> A-

UR -> B

UR -> B-

UR -> C+

UR -> C+

UR -> C

UR -> C-

We did vote on everything that was mentioned in some capacity on this thread, so if you'd like to see something potentially shift in the next update, please do make a post on it here and we will take it into consideration on the next VR slate, whenever that might be.

 

[Minimizing]

Decidueye to B+​

I am going to guess that this mon was just forgotten about as it has the same trapper niche role as Dhelmise that is a great counter against the many electric and water types in RU. It is a great matchup vs Seismitoad, Milotic, Raikou, Suiccune, and Xurkitree which are all in the top ten of tier usage. It is especially good against the deadly offensive electric types Xurkitree and Raikou both of which don't carry good coverage for Decidueye. Decidueye also has the advantage over Dhelmise of being able to run speed evs to outspeed bulky waters such as suiccune and milotic and can bypass burn by running swords dance or leaf storm. Finally decidueye is a decent counter against stealth rockers such as Cobalion, Metagross, and Rhyperior using a defensive defog set. This allows Decidueye to take hits trap the stealth rocker and get rid of the rocks at the same time.

Xurkitree scarf cleaner calc

252 SpA Xurkitree Dazzling Gleam vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Decidueye: 107-127 (29.8 - 35.3%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Raikou Calm mind calc

+1 252 SpA Raikou Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Decidueye: 100-118 (27.8 - 32.8%) -- 83.5% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Calcs vs Defensive Decidueye
This set outruns stealth rock metagross while also making it a 3 hit KO vs metagross and rhyperior​

Decidueye @ Leftovers
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 252 HP / 48 Atk / 148 Def / 60 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Leaf Blade
- Defog
- Roost
- Spirit Shackle

Metagross
124+ Atk Metagross Meteor Mash vs. 248 HP / 148 Def Decidueye: 160-190 (44.5 - 52.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Cobalion
252 Atk Cobalion Iron Head vs. 248 HP / 148 Def Decidueye: 109-129 (30.3 - 35.9%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Rhyperior
16+ Atk Rhyperior Stone Edge vs. 248 HP / 148 Def Decidueye: 169-201 (47 - 55.9%) -- 21.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery


Sorry if this is sloppy or messy I never really post to forums hope this info can help out the RU metagame.

 

[Yourwelcomethanku]

View attachment 335792
Decidueye to B+​

I am going to guess that this mon was just forgotten about as it has the same trapper niche role as Dhelmise that is a great counter against the many electric and water types in RU. It is a great matchup vs Seismitoad, Milotic, Raikou, Suiccune, and Xurkitree which are all in the top ten of tier usage. It is especially good against the deadly offensive electric types Xurkitree and Raikou both of which don't carry good coverage for Decidueye. Decidueye also has the advantage over Dhelmise of being able to run speed evs to outspeed bulky waters such as suiccune and milotic and can bypass burn by running swords dance or leaf storm. Finally decidueye is a decent counter against stealth rockers such as Cobalion, Metagross, and Rhyperior using a defensive defog set. This allows Decidueye to take hits trap the stealth rocker and get rid of the rocks at the same time.

Xurkitree scarf cleaner calc

252 SpA Xurkitree Dazzling Gleam vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Decidueye: 107-127 (29.8 - 35.3%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Raikou Calm mind calc

+1 252 SpA Raikou Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Decidueye: 100-118 (27.8 - 32.8%) -- 83.5% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Calcs vs Defensive Decidueye
This set outruns stealth rock metagross while also making it a 3 hit KO vs metagross and rhyperior​

Decidueye @ Leftovers
Ability: Overgrow
EVs: 252 HP / 48 Atk / 148 Def / 60 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Leaf Blade
- Defog
- Roost
- Spirit Shackle

Metagross
124+ Atk Metagross Meteor Mash vs. 248 HP / 148 Def Decidueye: 160-190 (44.5 - 52.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

Cobalion
252 Atk Cobalion Iron Head vs. 248 HP / 148 Def Decidueye: 109-129 (30.3 - 35.9%) -- guaranteed 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Rhyperior
16+ Atk Rhyperior Stone Edge vs. 248 HP / 148 Def Decidueye: 169-201 (47 - 55.9%) -- 21.5% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery


Sorry if this is sloppy or messy I never really post to forums hope this info can help out the RU metagame.

Dhelmise's Trapping set is rare, rare is probably generous. the most common set it the offensive Rapid Spin set listed below. Dhelmise's niche is primarily if not entirely as an offensive rapid spinner. Dhelmise won't be both hazard removal and a trapper keep in mind. Dhelmise invites in Togekiss and other Flying-Types meaning it could pull of a successful Trap vs those pokemon.
if you read the first post you would have seen this.
"Should you want to nominate an unranked Pokemon, it will only be ranked if you have at least 3 replays showing the Pokemon being used successfully vs good teams and it must have a distinguishable niche seen in these replays."

Also i think your overlooking how much weaker Decidueye is with Spirit shackle over Poltergeist.

Calcs

48+ Atk Decidueye Spirit Shackle vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Golurk: 254-300 (79.6 - 94%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
48+ Atk Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Golurk: 348-410 (109 - 128.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
48+ Atk Decidueye Spirit Shackle vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Crobat: 127-150 (33.9 - 40.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
48+ Atk Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Crobat: 174-205 (46.5 - 54.8%) -- 62.9% chance to 2HKO
48+ Atk Decidueye Spirit Shackle vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Starmie: 240-284 (91.9 - 108.8%) -- 50% chance to OHKO
48+ Atk Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Togekiss: 151-178 (48.5 - 57.2%) -- 92.6% chance to 2HKO
48+ Atk Decidueye Spirit Shackle vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Togekiss: 109-130 (35 - 41.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

You should ask questions like
is being less crippled by burn enough for a niche? if your running s physical set your crippled hard by burn
Do you need to outspeed Bulky water type Pokemon with a pokemon that can beat them anyways?
in that case what do you want to outspeed?
what Pokemon can Decidueye effectively trap?
What other things could Decidueye do to have a niche? probably something like U-turn or perhaps Swords Dance/Nasty Plot thanks to its higher speed. (though dont get your hopes up.)
where should Decidueye be on the VR relative to other Pokemon on the VR if at all?


-Poltergeist.
-Rapid Spin
-Power Whip
-Synthesis

 

[Cirlo]

I think that Decidueye is genuinely underrated as a whole, while it is probably a subpar hazard remover, its typing and its more than decent special bulk allows him to have an easier time to enter the battlefield and make use of his modest movepool.

What I think is the best set for Decidueye right now is the Choice Band set, in a similar fashion to Choice Band Golurk. While Golurk does a similar job but mostly better: hitting harder, having better coverage and preventing the Volt Switches, Decidueye preserves some of his qualities while having a better speed tier (I think that outspeeding Defensive Togekiss variants is particularly nice since banded Poltergeist is a clean 2hko), access to U-Turn and priority and being a decent Water and Grass Check (I would add that Decidueye has also a sort of surprise effect since it is kinda an uncommon pokemon and figuring out its set from the preview can be difficult, but this is probably a kinda shaky reason). I must note that although Decidueye can have some niche over Golurk, Golurk still have better times against most of Decidueye checks and counters (defensive steels like Stakataka, Registeel and Steelix can eat up some Poltergeist and they don't get forced out fearing an EQ, while Incineroar and Bewear, and to some extent Snorlax, can tank every Decidueye attack with ease) while also being able to get into the battlefield easier thanks to the electric immunity.

Here's the set I've been using lately:

Decidueye @ Choice Band
Ability: Long Reach (Overgrow can be more useful in certain specific situations, Long Reach is okish to avoid recoil dmg from RH users if you are spamming U-Turn, but both of his abilities are kinda meh since Poltergeist is contactless anyway)
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Leaf Blade
- Poltergeist
- U-turn
- Shadow Sneak

Here are some quick calcs to prove its offensive prowess:

Hide

252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye U-turn vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Zarude: 420-496 (119.6 - 141.3%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Zarude: 123-146 (35 - 41.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Togekiss: 201-237 (53.7 - 63.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Noivern: 310-366 (99.6 - 117.6%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO

252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Crobat: 310-366 (82.8 - 97.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Vileplume: 207-244 (58.4 - 68.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery

252+ Atk Choice Band Decidueye Poltergeist (110 BP) vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Cobalion: 207-244 (64 - 75.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

and are are some replays:
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1329720161-2rz0na1vilvmun0gb2q3xhs0aexx2onpw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1329692172-xiaw1l81co1lvsb7ap3oozwug8lhx6jpw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1330008826-1wv3bj0qdpzu2wudsd3i0d38wv4gmrdpw

Considering all of this I would say it may deserve at least C+ rank, B- at best, since it has some niche similarly to other pokemons in that rank

Would also like to say that Poltergeist is a huge buff to physical ghosts this gen, having such a powerful move on a godly offensive type like ghost give room to little counterplay defensively, moreso if the ghost Pokemons are packing other hard hitting coverage moves, but this is probably a topic for another discussion.

 

[Expulso]

i find that decidueye struggles due to its lack of switch-in opportunities; rocks + ice beam from gastro/milo is a 2HKO, and unlike golurk you get volt switched on by the elecs (and arent tbolt immune). It also misses golurk’s ability to immediately threaten steels with a super effective attack, which grants it a lot more opportunities (a steel is on nearly every team)

The surprise factor is a valid point, there’s a decent chance i’d assume it is specs at preview (based on what it used to run in ru / the other breakers it is paired with). uturn / brave bird are also cool points over dhelmise.

i find it important to point out the reasons golurk is better, but in my opinion decid could def be ranked in C+ or C. I’m definitely curious to see any replays people have with it

 

[LBN]

Aight this one is a mon I've been trying out for a bit and honestly I found decent success with it and do think it deserves to rise at least 1 rank, and arguably two.

C -> C+/B-
This mon is actually really nice in this meta. With the swarm of Gastrodon, this pokemon has prime entry and just enough of each stats to be a strong and honestly hard to switch into threat for the tier. Personally i think Veil is bad, set is trash and is better off clicking buttons. In specific,
These buttons

Abomasnow @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Snow Warning
EVs: 52 HP / 252 SpA / 204 Spe
Modest Nature
- Blizzard
- Leaf Storm
- Earth Power
- Ice Shard

This set hits alot of the common staples of the tier really hard, such as Togekiss, Gastrodon, Metagross, and Raikou. Finding entry on mons the tier is infatuated with right now such as the afro mentioned Gastro, Milotic, and serves as a soft check to Xurkitree at high health. Of course, it cant break pokemon like incineroar and Metagross immidiately, but between leftovers being nullified by hail, and a smart EP on the switch puts it in range for the next one most of the time. Pokemon that can switch in fairly easily such as P2 and Snorlax, are vulnerable to both Hazards and hail chip, so its not impossible a task to put them in range of 2 blizzards or blizzard + leaf storm, and focus blast can be put on it, but the ability to nuke metagross and chandelure switchins i find is far superior.

The best thing it does for offense in particular, is provide a solid failsafe for weather teams, as cutting off their weather is a prime way to beat them. It's rain matchup in particular is excellent as it switches into politoed for free practically all the time, while its not scared of keys switching into it the following turn thanks to earth power. It also lets raikou run weather ball Ice which is cool too. Swords dance exists too but i havent tested that, but i feel like it'd be worse. Also Replays showing it off below here.

Replays

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1335201921-u1uuls3bgv34ihl1uaeud3224m8kg1tpw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1335206033-h1g93mp9vpv14nmfmqcxkhdxbwv5ucupw (Ignore the togekiss play on turn 32)

Other side noms.

B -> B+
This being in the rank as Celebi is actually a hate crime. This pokemon is faster than a lot of common mons that aren't even slow like Zarude, Flygon and Roserade. Its also a nice soft check to Zarude, while at +2 really having nothing that can really take a hit, while also being yet another soft check to electric types, which i can never have enough of, and much like cobalion is living Darkest Lariat deterrent, which is cool aswell. Seriously though look at all the A ranks and look back at an SD virizion and tell me this thing still belongs in the same rank as suicune.

B- -> C+/C
Checks VR. S rank togekiss hm? Interesting. Checks usage stats. First place? Intriguing. DROP THIS LMFAOOO get it outta here. Walled by fairy the pokemon sucking in a tier run by Togekiss the Don father get me outta here i'd rather use Celebi and im a known celebi hater.

C -> UR
What does this even do. Anything it beats is losing to Darm and darm beating more than this anyway. Find me a team weak to entei that aint weak to darm please. I promise yall if i wanted to use E speed I'd just use Arcanine, and im not even kidding bro. We got some real worthless mons sitting pretty in a place they dont deserve to be and this is a PRIME example. Another prime example...

C+ to UR
Shiinotic, Vileplume, Virizion, Abomasnow, Celebi, Roserade, Dhelmise, Zarude. Ya'll got a WHOLE VR full of grasses that do a good role and we still keeping this? shoulda been gone since Zydog left but ykno. Anything i want this to do i got other grasses to do it better. ESPECIALLY Shiitonic, since yall wanted a grass that hard checks Barraskewda yea? Well here ya go! Checking only Rhyperior well should not give this lump of trash a VR spot, otherwise lemme call for Emolga to C+ since it checks Xurkitree, and hard walls Raikou with a ground immunity! ...wait i might be onto something here.. put this thing in the dump or atleast a rank lower LMAO. BRO IT LOSES TO SUICUNE COME ONNNN.

Also not a VR choice but lemme talk bout one thing here while im at it.

We all know Zarude is 98.2% going to rise to UU next shift and while ik its like 2 months away and all that but uhh... the moment it does we gotta be quickbanning this thing LMAOO. Zarude been really the only thing keeping this from running train on this tier and honestly yea nothing in the tier beating this besides Umbreon P2 and lax and i REALLY don't think thats anywhere near enought to make this thing managable atall. Unless UU decides they dont want chansey anymore please dont give us chansey oh my GOD dont give us chansey. i don't think the tea pot should be given even a MOMENT to remain should those July shifts take Zarude from us.

 

[Yourwelcomethanku]

B- -> C+/C
Checks VR. S rank togekiss hm? Interesting. Checks usage stats. First place? Intriguing. DROP THIS LMFAOOO get it outta here. Walled by fairy the pokemon sucking in a tier run by Togekiss the Don father get me outta here i'd rather use Celebi and im a known celebi hater.

C -> UR
What does this even do. Anything it beats is losing to Darm and darm beating more than this anyway. Find me a team weak to entei that aint weak to darm please. I promise yall if i wanted to use E speed I'd just use Arcanine, and im not even kidding bro. We got some real worthless mons sitting pretty in a place they dont deserve to be and this is a PRIME example. Another prime example...

C+ to UR
Shiinotic, Vileplume, Virizion, Abomasnow, Celebi, Roserade, Dhelmise, Zarude. Ya'll got a WHOLE VR full of grasses that do a good role and we still keeping this? shoulda been gone since Zydog left but ykno. Anything i want this to do i got other grasses to do it better. ESPECIALLY Shiitonic, since yall wanted a grass that hard checks Barraskewda yea? Well here ya go! Checking only Rhyperior well should not give this lump of trash a VR spot, otherwise lemme call for Emolga to C+ since it checks Xurkitree, and hard walls Raikou with a ground immunity! ...wait i might be onto something here.. put this thing in the dump or atleast a rank lower LMAO. BRO IT LOSES TO SUICUNE COME ONNNN.

Regidrago beats Togekiss with Dragon Dance Thunder Fang its niche is literally abusing Togekiss as a common fairy-type. you could probably come up with a different reason for it to drop.


Tangela also has knock off which is useful as most of its grass-type competition lacks item removal. also it isnt steel weak like Shiinotic. allowing itself to effectively thwart them with Knock Off. Shiinotic can also lose to Iron Tail Bulk Up Zarude which has popped up in RUPL on screens and Tangela could atleast Knock Off its Weakness Policy in this case making it easier for other teammates to handle because it will likely lose vs screens Zarude.I am aware Vileplume has Corrosive Gas but is still lacking some of tangela's other traits like Regenerater its bulk and lack of a psychic weakness. so to say its ONLY good for Rhyperior is a stretch.


UR Entei though i wont fight this.

EDIT: While Shiinotic does live + 1 Iron Tail its way of thwarting Zarude is Moonblast which does not kill and could activate a Weakness Policy. Also Bulk Up has 32PP and Strength Sap 16 so you can't even spam sap to beat it. at best you can Stall out screens turns for another teammate to check it.

Calcs

+1 252 Atk Zarude Iron Tail vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Shiinotic: 258-304 (79.6 - 93.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

 

[LBN]

Regidrago beats Togekiss with Dragon Dance Thunder Fang its niche is literally abusing Togekiss as a common fairy-type. you could probably come up with a different reason for it to drop.


Tangela also has knock off which is useful as most of its grass-type competition lacks item removal. also it isnt steel weak like Shiinotic. allowing itself to effectively thwart them with Knock Off. Shiinotic can also lose to Iron Tail Bulk Up Zarude which has popped up in RUPL on screens and Tangela could atleast Knock Off its Weakness Policy in this case making it easier for other teammates to handle because it will likely lose vs screens Zarude.I am aware Vileplume has Corrosive Gas but is still lacking some of tangela's other traits like Regenerater its bulk and lack of a psychic weakness. so to say its ONLY good for Rhyperior is a stretch.


UR Entei though i wont fight this.

EDIT: While Shiinotic does live + 1 Iron Tail its way of thwarting Zarude is Moonblast which does not kill and could activate a Weakness Policy. Also Bulk Up has 32PP and Strength Sap 16 so you can't even spam sap to beat it. at best you can Stall out screens turns for another teammate to check it.

Calcs

+1 252 Atk Zarude Iron Tail vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Shiinotic: 258-304 (79.6 - 93.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Aight lemme elaborate on why even with that set Regidrago continues to be bad. For starters, we all agree Regidrago above all else wants to do one thing. Button mash dragon moves. Sure this set beats togekiss fairly handily, but when youve dedicated 3 of your slots for the best mon, and now you lose to Steels hard instead, I'm even less scared of that than i would be just a specs one. The moment i see thunder fang you know what im doing? Im going HARD metagross to swallow these buttons it's gonna be clicking and doing the same with ALL my steel types not named lucario (and bronzong cuz it aint gonn break sub) Steelix is the worst case, and helmet cobalion isnt great either. It honestly just feels like its dropping whats its supposed to do just to do one thing and thats not always something its even able to do so like... why bother. Don't even get me started on any fairy but Togekiss btw, Diancie in particular. Oh its also terrible vs HO with Slurpuff so thats fun too. Because what we really need on our teams in a tier with a potential look at banning screens for being busted is a mon that invites in one of the most terrifying they have to offer.

As for Tangela... On the topic of BU Iron tail Zarude HO's, Vileplume can do the job better on beating that. even ignoring the screens part since you just sap it till they are gone, and can corrosive gas the WP in the meantime, and also it isnt scared as much of Iron Tail defense drops ruining its day as Shiinotic is. Also Vileplume's psychic weakness isnt really a big downside comparing to tangela because Tangela aint beating any of them either. Metagross usually will toxic or rocks in its face and Toxic is a death sentence for Tangela aswell since it doesnt learn aromatherpy like Vileplume can anyway. Indeedee nukes, Gardevoir nukes, Reuniclus nukes and sets up in your face, cresselia subs and sets up in your face, Xatu cockblocks and teleports in a volcanion or sumthin, Celebi isnt beating you but you arent beating it either and if its like NP psychic yea you lose to it anyway. Also scared of trick. If i could give it ANYTHING is that its nice vs Golurk but uhh... yea even ol tangy here has a chance to die to 2 polters after rocks from full (It's 2% but you get the idea its not safe) My biggest gripe is it gets u turned, volted and flip turned on all day on most of the things grasses are meant to handle. Zarude is good enough to where it doesnt care + hard to wear down often, Vileplume punishes u turns with risk of effect spore, Virizion isnt made to do it but its checking raikou better than Tangela anyway, since as ive said toxic'd and then volted on all game for free. and if its subcm forget about it. Celebi remains buns, Roserade hard checks Raikou and sets spikes so even if it cant check things the game it can still make progress for you by forcing a fog if you have knockers on hand. Abomasnow and Shiftry arent meant to be tanks so im not even finna mention them. And Dhelmise spins for crying out loud. It also has knock too so dhelm once again ain't special. (It just never uses it cuz its better off spin stab synthesis) but you get the idea. Knock isnt a saving grace of a reason to use this mon.

I'd sooner use Mowtom since that thing is a volter that threatens the immunities with either trick or just leaf storm, like i seriously don't see anything valuable bout this mon besides checking Rhyperior and maybe golurk, and that can potentially trick you anyway, OR HEAT CRASH like dawg please drop this thing im begging here.

 

[GoldCat]

B+ to C+ / C Disagree
Regidrago should absolutely not drop, especially now with dual screens HO at its peak.

Sure this set beats togekiss fairly handily, but when youve dedicated 3 of your slots for the best mon, and now you lose to Steels hard instead, I'm even less scared of that than i would be just a specs one. The moment i see thunder fang you know what im doing? Im going HARD metagross to swallow these buttons it's gonna be clicking and doing the same with ALL my steel types not named lucario (and bronzong cuz it aint gonn break sub) Steelix is the worst case, and helmet cobalion isnt great either.

What realistically will happen is Regidrago DD once on the switch, DD again with Reflect up, and then proceed to plow through your Metagross and any other Steel-type not named Doublade. Regidrago will just Sub and DD to +3 vs Steelix, and Stakataka has only a 3.7% chance to 3HKO with Reflect up, so Regidrago can get to +3 (if you DD on the switch) and beat it. Regidrago has a strong and defined niche on HO teams that no other 'mon can truly compete with, and that's Regidrago's efficiency at breaking the bulkiest of Steel-types and exploiting high Togekiss usage. Weakening certain Steel-types like Metagross and Cobalion can actually be a hassle for screens teams, as they'll be kept in the back to not lose to the likes of Slurpuff and Linoone, and 'mons like DD Necrozma that can easily weaken Metagross and Cobalion aren't the ones they want to go up against. The only really big downside with Regidrago is that you can't run Weezing-G alongside it and the uptick in Diancie usage does hurt, but Togekiss is still outrageously more common with a 36.91% usage rate in RUPL compared to Diancie's 6.38%. Regidrago is to be respected and feared whenever you load up any Togekiss team.

Calcs:

+2 252+ Atk Dragon's Maw Regidrago Outrage vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Metagross: 214-252 (58.7 - 69.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

252+ Atk Metagross Meteor Mash vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Regidrago through Reflect: 144-170 (26.6 - 31.4%) -- 22.6% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

+1 252+ Atk Dragon's Maw Regidrago Outrage vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Cobalion: 162-191 (50.1 - 59.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

+3 252+ Atk Dragon's Maw Regidrago Outrage vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Steelix: 182-214 (51.4 - 60.4%) -- 91% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

4 Atk Steelix Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Regidrago through Reflect: 81-96 (14.9 - 17.7%) -- possible 9HKO after Leftovers recovery

+3 252+ Atk Dragon's Maw Regidrago Outrage vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Stakataka: 173-204 (53 - 62.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery

0 Atk Stakataka Gyro Ball (150 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Regidrago through Reflect: 177-208 (32.7 - 38.4%) -- 3.7% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

+1 252+ Atk Regidrago Thunder Fang vs. 248 HP / 8 Def Togekiss: 202-238 (54.1 - 63.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Togekiss Air Slash vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Regidrago through Light Screen: 99-117 (18.2 - 21.6%) -- possible 7HKO after Leftovers recovery

C+ to UR Disagree
Knock + Regenerator, near impossible to switch into, further utility in Sleep / Stun / Leech, best switch-in to Golurk, and checks many more threats like Zarude, Barraskweda, and Xurkitree.

B- to B+ / A-
Polteageist is ridiculous and busted behind dual screens and with Misty Terrain support. This thing beats every Ghost resist except Umbreon and Porygon2. Any team with Zarude outright loses to Strength Sap + Cursed Body and only Incineroar has any hope to deal with it but needs to stall out Misty Terrain turns and not be weakened by DD Necrozma before trying to take this demon on. Weezing-G will always give it a free setup opportunity. By far the scariest threat on any dual screens HO.

Set:

Polteageist @ White Herb
Ability: Cursed Body
EVs: 88 Def / 196 SpA / 224 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Shell Smash
- Shadow Ball
- Giga Drain
- Strength Sap

UR to C+
Ribombee is the most common Sticky Web setter and Webs HO is currently a very strong playstyle with a good showing in RUPL.

Replays:

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-555164
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/smogtours-gen8ru-553302
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1310689620

 

[xoPure]

alright alright round 4

from B- to A-

After reading GoldCats' post I was a little skeptical of this thing at first, but after some building and testing with other players, I'm on the Polteageist hype train. This mon literally 6-0s any team that has Zarude or Incineroar as their ghost resist. Scroll up to see Golds set because it has literally changed this mon from ass to amazing. G-Weezing also can cover this mons only real weakness. I would post replays but ive unfortunately lost them, so heres the team.
- - - - -

from UR to C+/B-

SET

Magneton @ Eviolite
Ability: Magnet Pull
EVs: 180 HP / 252 SpA / 76 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Magnet Rise
- Metal Sound
- Steel Beam
- Thunderbolt

In a heavy Volt-Turn meta that were in right now, Steel removal is pretty essential. I will go in depth into this set i made here in a NP Post later today, (will link this text when its done) but Magneton beats literally every single Steel in the tier (except CB or Scarf Metagross), opening up options for other mons that would otherwise have issues with Steels.

from B to B+

Im actually not a big fan of this mon, but its finally found a spot in the meta game, and it does its role fantastically. G-Weezings role in HO is irreplaceable, yes its main role in HO is to die while setting up an Extender boosted Misty Terrain, but this mons movepool allows for a ton of options to make the most out of the sac. Whether its Taunting a defensive mon to allow setup or using Destiny Bond to take one with you, G-Weezing just does what needs to be done for HO.

 

[Yourwelcomethanku]

Rises
UR to C(wherever lyca is if lyca don't rise)
Gigalith is necessary to the functioning of Sand Lycanroc. Outside of this role it is generally outclassed by Diancie whom is overall superior with its Fairy-typing or Rhyperior who is far more threatening. Gigalith isn't a deadweight pokemon it does check Chandelure and Toxtricity counters most Togekiss and counters Noivern.

Replays and Set

https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1343181737 Screens may get banned but lyca's ability to revenge kill so many frailer offensive pokemon vs offensive teams is super valuble and gigalith enables it.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1345500085
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1342304643-eiib1no45e7je9qv908fqaeu3c0kl9fpw
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8ru-1345580138

Gigalith @ Smooth Rock
Ability: Sand Stream
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 SpD
Careful Nature
- Rock Slide
- Stealth Rock
- Superpower
- Rest

C- to C I just think sand is better than rain honestly that is why i want it to rise.I mean it when i say i think sand is better than rain more so principle of rain being very bad in my eyes.

A- to A This pokemon is fantastic within the metagame. Currently i think defensive sets are very good being a reliable check/counter to Rhyperior, Raikou, and Darmanitan isn't very easy to come by. its ability to thwart pretty much every Stealth rock and Spikes setter makes it a reliable Defog User to. Now Flygon is also pretty impressive offensively DD sets can threaten to sweep games or break holes in the opposing team and are generally tough to handle between EQ SE and Outrage. Personally i have like LO roost variants with no DD. the power boost from LO and longjevity of roost can make Flygon a check to the electrics and Rhyperior that can turn them into a wall breaking opportunity. LO STAB Earthquake isn't weak

B To B+ A counter to Cobalion and Reuniclus i find highly valuable but doublade is also threatening with its Swords Dance it can do afterwards. I also feel Toxic Doublade is underated. yes it wants wish support but we have quite a few good options for that in the metagame mainly Sylveon and Togekiss.

B to B+ Very good wish support and Mienshao counter. a counter to Mienshao is hard to come by as Mienshao will pretty much never run Poison Jab Sylveon can counter it. it also makes good teammates with Crobat and Talonflame which covers for Pjab as coverage if they actually have it. Great defensive teammate with Incineroar and definitely better than most if not all of B tier with Celebi, Virizon, and suicune in it.

A+ to S. I feel Raikou is the among the best pokemon in the metagame along with Togekiss. it very much shapes the metagame and is very difficult to handle in general. Grass-types like Roserade and Vileplume arent actually reliable answer because CM sets can blow right past it. Gastrodon and Seis are really the only 2 pokemon capable of safely checking all sets. CM sets can even afford to run Toxic on them to hit gastro and toad. Raikou is able to pretty effortlessly keep momentum for its team as most volt switch blockers are threatened by it except gastrodon and seismitoad. Raikou is absolutely metagame defining i feel on the same level of Togekiss as it has few reliable answers and can adapt to just about all its checks and counters

Drops
B to C+This pokemon is very bad the metagame is incredibly hostile to it and it has competition from Milotic.

A- to B+ I find Registeel generally competing with several amazing Steel-types within the metagame and general isnt much worth running over the others. Even Steelix provides an overall better check to xurkitree thanks to its Ground typing. I don't see registeel as any better than Steelix in terms if viability.

C to C- this thing is terrible i can literally not think of a good reason to use it.
Guzzlord is unviable i tried

EDIT forgot to post the gigalith set i used i added it
EDIT the first replay had the wrong giga set shame to was the best replay.