Been messing around on the ladder for a hot minute today and I've got some early spicy takes. I'll start with sets I've been using the most frequently.
Enamorus
Enamorus @ Leftovers
Ability: Contrary
Tera Type: Ground
EVs: 4 Atk / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
Hasty Nature
- Superpower
- Earth Power
- Moonblast
- Mystical Fire
My favorite set to use in OU right now, no question about it. Enamorus is really anti-meta right now and Superpower with Contrary just preys on half of the threats running around. Corviknight is setup fodder, the Defense buffs really take things to another level. STAB Moonblast + STAB Tera Ground Earth Power + Mystical Fire with Superpower is damn near perfectly tailored for this meta. Also, Kingambit has become approximately 0% worrying for me since I started using this set.
Kleavor + Samurott (I run them together)
Samurott-Hisui @ Leftovers
Ability: Sharpness
Tera Type: Fairy
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Ceaseless Edge
- Protect
- Sacred Sword
- Razor Shell
Kleavor @ Assault Vest
Ability: Sharpness
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Stone Axe
- U-turn
- Night Slash
- Close Combat
I run these two together and they contribute so much natural offensive pressure that it can just cause the opponent to melt under repeated blows + hazard damage. Samurott-H's Ceaseless Edge is one of the most spammable moves in the game and Sharpness makes up for its general lack of power. Leftovers + Protect with three moves is what I prefer atm. Kleavor's Stone Axe rips, and makes Rocks setting feel more viable now. Both complement each other very well. Tera Fire is for niche situations where you need to resist key hits and Assault Vest also helps with this.
Sneasler
Sneasler @ Red Card
Ability: Unburden
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Swords Dance
- Dire Claw
- Close Combat
- Acrobatics
Red Card with Unburden puts your opponent in a very precarious position and can, in certain situations, make getting a Swords Dance up way easier. Dire Claw is broken, Close Combat with Acrobatics is stupid too. This mon is stupid, I love it. Probably the most powerful thing in OU atm IMO.
Zamazenta-Crowned
Zamazenta-Crowned @ Rusted Shield
Ability: Dauntless Shield
Tera Type: Flying
EVs: 44 HP / 252 Atk / 212 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Howl
- Behemoth Bash
- Body Press
- Trailblaze
Zama-Hero is kinda eh right now comparatively, but Crowned is just kinda dumb in some cases. Howl + Trailblaze with STAB Behemoth Bash and STAB Body Press is easy to get off if you've taken care of stuff like Volcarona. Another really fun mon but I don't see it staying (I see Zama-Hero staying though)
Lilligant-Hisui is pretty fun, Victory Dance + Sleep Powder is nasty, but having only two attack slots with that kind of setup really stings. In all honesty I've been running Leaf Blade with Ice Spinner to get the drop on certain threats rather than just running its two STABS. Feels like a strong UU or UUBL Pokemon with a solid place in OU.
Shockingly (hah) overhyped, Regieleki is very easy to handle. I'm not seeing any of the hullabaloos about this thing, even with Tera. Enamorus is a great lure with the Tera-Ground set I mentioned above. My opinion might change once we figure out fully what's broken and what isn't, but as of right now I'm not feeling the hype vibe.
I feel like the physical sets on Hoopa-U are going to be the most deadly in this meta - STAB Hyperspace Fury is kind of insane.
A bit underwhelming, but bulky sets are quite good on Tornadus-T. I've found that it's especially vicious on rain teams with Assault Vest. Don't run offensively inclined Torn-T unless you want to be disappointed IMO.
Ursuluna hits like a truck and has plenty of options - one thing I've been saying all gen is that this is the first time since Gen 3 that I truly feel like Normal typing is insane defensively. Being immune to the negative effects of Burn is great too, not to mention movepool. Do I think it's banworthy? No, not even close, but it's still a great mon.
I'm split on this one - on one hand, Urshifu-RS has a lot of really annoying qualities but I haven't really had issues handling it. Most of the time you know exactly what it's going to do, so it feels a bit one-dimensional, despite being a very strong dimension.
I hate it with every fiber of my being.
Chien-Pao is another Pokemon that feels really underwhelming. Zama-C and Zama-H along with a few other new threats just sit on this thing day and night. I think it's fine in OU, as the pressure it exerts feels very lackluster at the moment.
Pretty underwhelming as well, although it definitely has some pretty significant uses; I'm looking forward to seeing how it evolves as the tier settles. Tera Grass Heatran is pretty fire though.
"Arcanine-Hisui used Head Smash
Arcanine-Hisui missed!"
Incredibly underrated - I cannot even begin to explain how much this thing can snowball with Chilling Neigh. Really great Pokemon that handles quite a few potent OU threats nicely. Tera also helps with its defensive-typing woes as well. I really hope people start seeing the potential in Glastrier and how it's far better in SV OU than SS OU IMO.
I really want to like Hisui-Goodra more, but the physical fighting-type weakness really bugs me. Definitely a good defensive mon but you have to support it. It feels like a jack of all dragons - but Steel / Dragon as a typing with those stats does carry it pretty hard if you keep it healthy to the mid-late game.
Great offensive synergy and can sit on most Zama variants - fun mon, Volcanion is good right now.
Underwhelming but definitely has a good niche, it's just overshadowed by Zama-C right now. I think it'll be a solid A- or A tier OU mon once the dust settles in the meta a fair bit.
This is the first generation where I've seen Lando-T basically kinda just... exist. It feels overshadowed by Great Tusk, and more often than not I just capitalize on Intimidate rather than be affected by it. Great glue but, I'm not feeling Lando-T as much right now.
Great mon before, still a great mon now. Moltres-G has a problem of either feeling like deadweight or being a team staple, so it's very mixed. Better overall than last gen though IMO.
It exists.
Not really feeling it either, also just kind of exists.