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I have little doubt that Iron Valiant and Dragapult will become a lot better now if Chien Pao is gone. Azu is still good but it had a niche of switching into Pao, so it definitely won't be as good now.
there's an entire list i could make of pokemon who would benefit immensely from chien-pao's ban. clodsire, ting-lu, garchomp, dragonite, roaring moon, meowscarada, amoonguss, gholdengo, etc. would all appreciate it if chien-pao got removed from the tier. it's honestly kinda crazy how much of the metagame this thing forces out through typing alone, not to mention the many pokemon it cleaves through despite them not being weak to its STABs. cinderace, rotom-W, iron treads, and hatterene to name a few. even physical tanks like corviknight wouldn't want to switch into this thing with hazards up. chien-pao is just absolutely crazy
I know that everyone is focused on Chien-Pao right now with the suspect test, and rightfully so, but in addition to what I said last night about how Espathra feels unhealthy to me, I just wanted to highlight this recent SPL game and what ima said in his win post. Obviously the spotlight should be on Chien-Pao at the moment, but especially after that suspect ends, I hope that Espathra is scrutinized more. I’m also glad that at least some council members like ima and FlamingVictini feel similarly.
I know that everyone is focused on Chien-Pao right now with the suspect test, and rightfully so, but in addition to what I said last night about how Espathra feels unhealthy to me, I just wanted to highlight this recent SPL game and what ima said in his win post. Obviously the spotlight should be on Chien-Pao at the moment, but especially after that suspect ends, I hope that Espathra is scrutinized more. I’m also glad that at least some council members like ima and FlamingVictini feel the similarly.
Very much agree. Espathra does have checks, and that is what tears up the community with their opinion on suspecting it. You can beat it if you bring a check, but the problem is that if you don’t have a great matchup against it, it’s often insurmountable. Espathra isn’t one of those mons you can make up for the matchup later by playing aggressively. If it comes in, and you don’t have a good matchup against it (and whatever Tera type it is), then the game is over. This is not a healthy factor for the game, and Espathra abuses Tera to the fullest.
GXE 80 and 50+ games req is hard as hell for me, lmao. I don't think I'll ever get to that amount. Good luck to those participating.
In other things... Seeing people greedily Terastalize their Protean/Libero mons makes me so happy. It's a whole situation of "Yes, please. Disable your powerful ability for me and make my life easier."
In 99% of games, I will never Terastalize my Protean/Libero user. That 1% came up tonight in-game where I needed it so my Greninja could blow through an opposing Corviknight. Worth it, since I won right after because rocks killed everything else lmao.
GXE 80 and 50+ games req is hard as hell for me, lmao. I don't think I'll ever get to that amount. Good luck to those participating.
In other things... Seeing people greedily Terastalize their Protean/Libero mons makes me so happy. It's a whole situation of "Yes, please. Disable your powerful ability for me and make my life easier."
In 99% of games, I will never Terastalize my Protean/Libero user. That 1% came up tonight in-game where I needed it so my Greninja could blow through an opposing Corviknight. Worth it, since I won right after because rocks killed everything else lmao.
there’s a legitimate case for Tera grass or Tera dark meowscarada. Especially with a choice item, as it can give it end game sweeps or critical OHKOs and 2HKOs.
there’s a legitimate case for Tera grass or Tera dark meowscarada. Especially with a choice item, as it can give it end game sweeps or critical OHKOs and 2HKOs.
Now that CP is likely getting banned from showdown, what’s everyone’s favorite meta set at the moment?
personally I’ve loved the SD + HDB combo right now, since it’s so non committal. The choice band set was amazing until you realized breaking through teams often required committing to the Tera, and so many teams adapted to it too. Options with coming in and out were limited too, and there’s a lot of Pokémon that can hit Chien Pao for 50-75% damage (relevant, after taking hazard damage).
this meant choice band could be limited by good players, giving you the option of only coming in 1-2 times a game, ergo, it wasn’t as potent.
the SD + HDB set is super flexible with lots of options for Tera types.
here’s an example of the Tera ghost tech, Tera ghost prevents from revenging you, allows you to get +4 vs all variants, and has general utility against other miscellaneous checks like great tusk.
In this game, the opponent takes a high risk prediction by hard switching in a dragapult to 1 to 1 trade it for a burned CP.
usually this would be a crazy strong payoff, trading dragapult (utility set) for a burned CP (key breaker/sweeper for a slow team) is a very big objective.
however…
fortunately, thanks to Tera ghost, chien pao could force corviknight into trying to PP stall (it’s the rare ID set). of course PP stalling means risking a crit, which did eventually happen, and CP penetrating corviknight meant it broke through the rest of the team.
there’s more perks like dodging sacred sword, here’s a gif from a 1900s game:
in the next replay, you can see how storm zone (amaterus) committed to the Tera dark CP early in the game, and then had no outs in the end game when my ghost Chien pal got its +4 attack.
there’s lots of other techs you can use, here are a few of the fun ones to try:
tera fire - this allows you to beat wisp from , and Tera fairy which is fortunately SpD optimized on most variants. These are all popular checks to the SD + HDB set. has a harder time revenging. Optional terablast will take out kingambit and corviknight.
tera fighting - this allows you to surprise a after sufficiently weakening it through attacks supplemented with hazards and pressure, it’s also a handy way to reliably OHKO through Tera water tusk and other counter techs. Sacred sword also becomes your hardest hitting neutral attack. This is relevant vs bulky , and various other threats.
Tera electric - I haven’t used this one due to it forcing the move terablast, tho have been surprised by it. It cleanly OHKOs corviknight and does heavy damage to dondozo.
What are youflr thoughts on greninja so far?
Do you think that it is going to stay in OU by the end of february or it is going to drop like cinderace is going to do by the end of january?
I’m gonna test defensive RestTalk Gyarados, a classic from gen IV, only with roar replaced with dragon tail due to moveset changes. In theory, it can wall Tusk, Paldean Tauros, and can check non-fairy Dozo, Kingambit and many others
Luxray View attachment 485947 "Luxray is a proud and friendly Pokémon dedicated to helping its friends. Luxray has high inner strength, refusing to give up when committed to a goal. Luxray cares greatly for others and will jump straight into danger without a second thought to save someone" - Bulbapedia
"Being able to finally find a genuine niche for Luxray in OU after multiple generations makes me happier than I could properly articulate; Luxray is awesome" - Morkal
BASE STATS
MIN-MAX STAT RANGE
HP:
80
270 - 364
Attack:
120
220 - 372
Defense:
79
146 - 282
Sp. Atk:
95
175 - 317
Sp. Def:
79
146 - 282
Speed:
70
130 - 262
Abilities:
Rivalry, Intimidate | HA: Guts
Notable Physical + Utility Moves: Body Slam, Crunch, Fire Fang, Ice Fang, Play Rough, Psychic Fangs, Trailblaze, Wild Charge
Luxray's infamy is known by most competitive Pokemon players thanks to its long and unfortunately... well, unfortunate, competitive history. Luxray has always been cursed with specific attributes that left it out to dry in almost every meta's landscape, to the point where it would always end up in the lowest tier or not being able to compete in a lower tier at all. However, despite this, what if I told you that Luxray actually has a solid OU niche in Generation 9? Luxray received some new tools that allow it to succeed in the current meta thanks to this new move access and (looking at older OU generations) a comparatively kinder environment. Luxray is a strong mono-electric type that finally had a much-deserved second wind (arguably first wind) through the addition of Terastallization and Trailblaze to bolster its offensive and defensive capabilities. So let's jump into yet another massive OU niche post and analyze why Luxray finally has room to breathe in OU - the truth may shock you! (Don't worry, I know how shockingly bad my pun was).
Disclaimer: Luxray is tough to properly slot into team builds; as such, I highly recommend looking into OU speed tiers here and memorizing relevant benchmarks along with specific core matchups before you use Luxray on one of your builds (I will explain the speed benchmarks and matchups in this post as well)! Figuring out common switch-ins is critical in this role as well. If you take the time to learn how to best prepare your team to work with Luxray, he can pull off unexpected wonders for your team.
Summarized Advantages of Luxray This is a "too long, didn't read" bullet point list for people who don't want to read through the whole post and want a quick understanding of Luxray's OU benefits.
Luxray benefitted heavily from the addition of Tera, allowing it to act as a tanky Dragon, Dark, Fighting, and sometimes Ground-type lure that helps put its offensive capabilities to work and gives one of its most crucial coverage moves, Play Rough, some much-needed STAB.
Additionally, common switch-ins such as Iron Hands, Garchomp, Great Tusk, and Ting-Lu, along with priority users such as Chien-Pao, are usually taken care of by the one-two combo of Trailblaze and Play Rough (especially when Terastallized).
Luxray received Trailblaze, allowing it to patch its most significant flaw (base 70 speed), which eases the prediction burden that mono-electric attackers often go through in OU, along with providing it a way to thwart common switch-ins by putting them in a range to outspeed and consistently OHKO or 2HKO.
Luxray's strong base 120 Attack, combined with its small but potent coverage movepool, means that most of the meta gets hit super effectively by its attacks resulting in some unexpected holes being blown in the opposing team's cores.
Luxray's access to Intimidate + Assault Vest with workable 80/79/79 bulk means that Luxray can stomach strong attacks in a pinch while boosting its speed and finishing off an opposing threat.
Luxray's offensive and defensive capabilities allow a specific type of role compression that's very hard for a Pokemon to pull off while being tanky with both Defense and Special Defense simultaneously.
Mono-Electric (and when Terastallized, Mono-Fairy) is a solid defensive typing that works well against most of the meta and provides Luxray with a crucial paralysis immunity that Choice Scarf or other Speed-boosting mons wish they could have.
Luxray's primary function is to bait out key threats in OU and surprise them with its double-boosted bulk (both from Intimidate and Assault Vest) while boosting its speed and punching holes in the opponent's team cores. Luxray almost acts like a pseudo-Zeraora but in a more offensively inclined disruptor role with notable differences. What is your first competitive instinct when you sense a strong Electric attack coming your way? Generally (barring commonly known coverage), you'd want to switch to a Ground type or a Bulky Grass type, right? This critical reaction helps Luxray work quite well, as you won't be clicking Luxray's Wild Charge anywhere near as much as you'll be clicking Traiblaze, Play Rough, and Crunch. Let's look at Luxray's EVs, starting with 208 EVs in speed; with this EV allotment and a neutral nature, Luxray's base speed is 228. If you get the +1 from Trailblaze, its base speed becomes 342. Both 228 and 342 are significant benchmarks to hit because of the key threats they outspeed, so let's see what gets outspeed at these two speed tiers.
Speed Tier Comparison
Luxray 228 - Outspeeds (Excluding
):
Amoonguss, Azumarill, Ceruledge (Bulk Up Variant), Clodsire, Corviknight (Needs 236 Speed EVs with a Neutral nature or 156 Speed EVs with Jolly nature to outspeed Luxray; most Corviknights are defensive, so both are rare), Dondozo, Dragonite (Bulky D-Dance Variant), Garganacl, Gholdengo (Nasty Plot Defensive Variant), Great Tusk (Physically Defensive Variant), Grimmsnarl (needs Jolly and 212 Speed EVs to outspeed Luxray, it cannot outspeed Luxray without a Jolly nature), Hatterene, Iron Hands, Kingambit, Rotom-Wash (Defensive Variant), Scizor (Needs 252 EVs with a Neutral nature or 172 Speed with a Jolly nature to outspeed Luxray; generally 252 Speed EVs with Adamant are only used on the offensive Swords Dance variant, not the Banded or Boots variants), Skeledirge, Ting-Lu, Torkoal, Toxapex.
Luxray 342 (+1) - Outspeeds (Excluding
):
Amoonguss, Azumarill, Ceruledge, Clodsire, Corviknight, Dondozo, Dragonite, Garchomp, Garganacl, Gholdengo, Glimmora, Great Tusk, Hatterene, Iron Hands, Iron Moth (Agility Variant pre-boost), Iron Treads (Requires 252 EVs + Jolly nature to speed tie Luxray), Pawmot, Quaquaval, Roaring Moon (All non-Jolly variants), Rotom-Wash, Scizor, Skeledirge, Ting-Lu, Torkoal, Toxapex, Volcarona.
Luxray with 208 Speed EVs outpaces most of the slower metagame and, at +1 outspeeds anything with base 105 or less speed (and also outspeeds some notable sets of Pokemon with a higher speed tier that don't max out EVs). This is why you will almost always want to click Trailblaze first so that your opponent's switch-in has a high chance of becoming setup fodder, as Trailblaze simultaneously boosts Luxray's speed while breaking Focus Sash and Multiscale along with putting certain Pokemon into KO range. Additionally, you'll want to avoid Terastallizing until the specific threat you wish to lure has switched into your Luxray. Terastallizing on the predicted switch itself will often cause a double switch that can leave you at a strategic disadvantage.
I must double-stress this point, as it's vital for Luxray's playstyle success. 90% of the time, you will want to use Trailblaze first before any other move; this is especially true if you suspect your opponent will switch Pokemon due to a bad matchup.
Offensive Capabilities
So what can it do with this speed? Simple, Luxray can heavily chunk, or OHKO, some very potent OU threats. This wouldn't be possible with Luxray's base 120 Attack and powerful coverage options in Play Rough and Crunch. Let's start with Trailblaze damage chip calculations followed by Play Rough calculations before Luxray is terastallized to give a pre-tera baseline (usually early-mid game after a Trailblaze on the predicted switch).
Trailblaze Damage Calculations (For Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 116 HP / 0 Def Azumarill (Band): 136-162 (36.7 - 43.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Azumarill (Assault Vest): 136-162 (33.6 - 40%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Chien-Pao: 68-81 (22.5 - 26.9%) -- 36.4% chance to 4HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Dondozo: 102-120 (20.2 - 23.8%) -- possible 6HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Garchomp (Hazard Phaze): 60-71 (14.2 - 16.9%) -- possible 6HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Garchomp (Swords Dance): 60-71 (16.8 - 19.8%) -- possible 7HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Great Tusk (Offensive): 90-108 (24.2 - 29.1%) -- 99.3% chance to 4HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk (Physically Defensive): 68-82 (15.6 - 18.8%) -- possible 8HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 200 HP / 180+ Def Quaquaval: 102-120 (28.2 - 33.2%) -- 89.2% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Quaquaval: 136-162 (43.7 - 52%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Rotom-Wash (Scarf Trick): 108-128 (35.5 - 42.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Rotom-Wash (Physically Defensive): 78-94 (25.6 - 30.9%) -- 3.4% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Trailblaze vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Ting-Lu: 94-112 (18.2 - 21.7%) -- possible 7HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Breloom: 246-290 (94.2 - 111.1%) -- 62.5% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Chien-Pao: 246-290 (81.7 - 96.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult: 260-306 (82 - 96.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (Almost Always OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Multiscale Dragonite (Offensive Dragon Dance): 107-126 (33.1 - 39%) -- 99.9% chance to 3HKO (once Multiscale is broken, Play Rough will almost always knock out Dragonite from this damage range)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 144 HP / 0 Def Multiscale Dragonite (Bulky Dragon Dance): 107-126 (29.8 - 35%) -- 16% chance to 3HKO (once Multiscale is broken, Play Rough has a good chance to knock out Dragonite from this damage range)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Garchomp: 214-252 (50.9 - 60%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Garchomp: 214-252 (59.9 - 70.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Great Tusk: 162-192 (43.6 - 51.7%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO (2HKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk: 122-144 (28.1 - 33.1%) -- 84.3% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery (Slight chance for 2HKO and guaranteed 3HKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Grimmsnarl: 288-340 (73 - 86.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 56 HP / 252 Def Iron Hands (Choice Band): 154-182 (33.2 - 39.3%) -- 100% chance to 3HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Iron Hands (Swords Dance): 192-226 (42.7 - 50.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery (Strong 2HKO chance with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Iron Valiant: 222-262 (76.8 - 90.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Meowscarada: 272-322 (92.8 - 109.8%) -- 56.3% chance to OHKO(OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Pawmot (Utility): 272-322 (79 - 93.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Pawmot (Offensive): 272-320 (96.7 - 113.8%) -- 75% chance to OHKO(OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 200 HP / 180+ Def Quaquaval: 182-216 (50.4 - 59.8%) -- 83.6% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (2HKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Quaquaval: 244-288 (78.4 - 92.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (Strong chance to OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon: 540-636 (130.4 - 153.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
Quite a few potent Pokemon don't like to take a Play Rough, especially with hazard or Trailblaze-damage chip. This is why Play Rough is far more valuable as a base move than Wild Charge is, along with the lack of Wild Charge recoil. While some pre-Tera options can be shaky without Chip, multiple post-Tera options (especially Pokemon you intend to lure) are no longer safe once Luxray has terastallized.
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Breloom: 368-434 (140.9 - 166.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Chien-Pao: 368-434 (122.2 - 144.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult: 390-458 (123 - 144.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Multiscale Dragonite: 160-189 (49.5 - 58.5%) -- 98.8% chance to 2HKO (OHKO with Multiscale broken Chip, Dragonite cannot switch in)
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 144 HP / 0 Def Multiscale Dragonite: 160-189 (44.5 - 52.6%) -- 19.9% chance to 2HKO (Strong chance to OHKO with Multiscale broken Chip, Dragonite cannot switch in)
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Garchomp: 320-378 (76.1 - 90%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (Strong chance to OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Garchomp: 320-378 (89.6 - 105.8%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO(OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Great Tusk: 242-288 (65.2 - 77.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO (Strong chance to OHKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Great Tusk: 182-216 (41.9 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery (2HKO with Chip)
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Grimmsnarl: 432-510 (109.6 - 129.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 56 HP / 252 Def Iron Hands: 230-272 (49.6 - 58.7%) -- 99.6% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Iron Hands: 288-338 (64.1 - 75.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Iron Valiant: 332-392 (114.8 - 135.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Meowscarada: 408-482 (139.2 - 164.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Pawmot: 408-482 (118.6 - 140.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 200 HP / 180+ Def Quaquaval: 272-324 (75.3 - 89.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Quaquaval: 366-432 (117.6 - 138.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon: 808-952 (195.1 - 229.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Tera Fairy Luxray Play Rough vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Ting-Lu: 252-296 (49 - 57.5%) -- 56.3% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery (2HKO with Chip)
Tera Fairy Play Rough is downright dangerous, as not many teams in OU have an answer for strong Physical Fairy STAB attacks, especially when that attack is Play Rough. Next up, we have Crunch, which is extremely helpful for the Pokemon that commonly resist Fairy-type attacks and carries a potent chance to drop the opponent's Defense -1, meaning that sometimes specific threats like Defensive Nasty Plot Gholdengo have to risk getting KO'd or switch out.
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Ceruledge (Swords Dance): 218-258 (74.9 - 88.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Ceruledge (Bulk Up): 218-258 (61.5 - 72.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult: 230-272 (72.5 - 85.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo: 190-224 (60.3 - 71.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo: 136-160 (35.9 - 42.3%) -- 92.4% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. -1 252 HP / 252+ Def Gholdengo: 204-240 (53.9 - 63.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Skeledirge: 180-214 (43.7 - 52%) -- 11.7% chance to 2HKO
252+ Atk Luxray Crunch vs. -1 248 HP / 0 Def Skeledirge: 272-322 (66.1 - 78.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
While Wild Charge will not be used as commonly as your coverage moves, it's still quite helpful for certain threats that it nails super effectively. So lastly, let's look at some STAB Wild Charge super effective calculations as there aren't many times it will be using Wild Charge compared to Play Rough or Crunch.
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 116 HP / 0 Def Azumarill: 368-434 (99.4 - 117.2%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Azumarill: 368-434 (91 - 107.4%) -- 43.8% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 212-252 (53.1 - 63.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Dondozo: 270-320 (53.5 - 63.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 200 HP / 180+ Def Quaquaval (Bulk Up): 272-324 (75.3 - 89.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Quaquaval (Swords Dance): 366-432 (117.6 - 138.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Luxray Wild Charge vs. 252 HP / 192+ Def Toxapex: 170-204 (55.9 - 67.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
Defensive Capabilities
So we've now established that Luxray can severely dent most of the OU metagame, so what about its defensive profile? With a small investment of 48 Defense EVs combined with Luxray's useful Intimidate ability + the Assault Vest item, Luxray can stomach some unexpectedly powerful attacks both pre-Tera and post-Tera. Mono-Electric only has one weakness, Ground-type attacks, while Mono-Fairy only has weaknesses to Poison and Steel-type attacks. Additionally, Mono-Fairy has useful resistances to Bug, Dark, and Fighting, along with Mono-Electric's useful resistances to Electric, Flying, and Steel-type attacks. So let's take a look at Luxray's pre-Tera Electric typing first to see just what kinds of hits it can withstand on both the physical and special side.
Defensive Calculations (Electric, Before Terastallization)
Physical Moves (-1 Intimidate):
-1 252 Atk Sword of Ruin Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 135-159 (44.8 - 52.8%) -- 22.3% chance to 2HKO
-1 252 Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Chien-Pao Icicle Crash vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 202-238 (67.1 - 79%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
-1 0 Atk Corviknight Brave Bird vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 44-52 (14.6 - 17.2%) -- possible 6HKO
-1 0 Atk Dondozo Liquidation vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 70-84 (23.2 - 27.9%) -- 78.6% chance to 4HKO
4 Def Dondozo Body Press vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 75-89 (24.9 - 29.5%) -- 100% chance to 4HKO
252+ Def Dondozo Body Press vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 101-119 (33.5 - 39.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Dragapult Dragon Darts (2 hits) vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 194-230 (64.4 - 76.4%) -- approx. 2HKO
4 Def Garganacl Body Press vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 83-98 (27.5 - 32.5%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
-1 0 Atk Garganacl Salt Cure vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 33-40 (10.9 - 13.2%) -- guaranteed 5HKO after Salt Cure
-1 116+ Atk Iron Hands Drain Punch vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 100-118 (33.2 - 39.2%) -- 99.8% chance to 3HKO
-1 4 Atk Iron Valiant Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 124-147 (41.1 - 48.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Iron Valiant Psyshock vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 95-112 (31.5 - 37.2%) -- 83.2% chance to 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Valiant Psyshock vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 141-167 (46.8 - 55.4%) -- 74.2% chance to 2HKO
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 62-73 (20.5 - 24.2%) -- guaranteed 5HKO
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Scizor U-turn vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 144-171 (47.8 - 56.8%) -- 88.3% chance to 2HKO
-1 252+ Atk Choice Band Scizor Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 164-194 (54.4 - 64.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
-1 0 Atk Ting-Lu Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Luxray: 180-212 (59.8 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
Special Moves:
252 SpA Choice Specs Dragapult Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 133-157 (44.1 - 52.1%) -- 14.8% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Gholdengo Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 109-129 (36.2 - 42.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Gholdengo Make It Rain vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 81-96 (26.9 - 31.8%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Gholdengo Make It Rain vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 121-143 (40.1 - 47.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Gholdengo Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 162-192 (53.8 - 63.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Glimmora Sludge Wave vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 127-150 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Glimmora Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 160-190 (53.1 - 63.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Glimmora Sludge Wave vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 189-223 (62.7 - 74%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Glimmora Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 238-282 (79 - 93.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 SpA Hatterene Psychic vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 103-123 (34.2 - 40.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Iron Moth Sludge Wave vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 133-157 (44.1 - 52.1%) -- 14.8% chance to 2HKO
252 SpA Iron Moth Flamethrower vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 127-150 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Iron Valiant Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 118-141 (39.2 - 46.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Iron Valiant Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 178-211 (59.1 - 70%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
8 SpA Skeledirge Torch Song vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 76-91 (25.2 - 30.2%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
0 SpA Volcarona Fiery Dance vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Luxray: 91-108 (30.2 - 35.8%) -- 34.9% chance to 3HKO
So what happens when Luxray switches to being a Fairy type with Terastallization? Not only does it become immune to Dragon-type moves, but it can now stomach hits that it previously could not handle reliably, especially with Intimidate.
Defensive Calculations (Fairy, Terastallized)
252 Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Chien-Pao Sucker Punch vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 123-146 (40.8 - 48.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
-1 252 Atk Choice Band Sword of Ruin Chien-Pao Sucker Punch vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 83-98 (27.5 - 32.5%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
252+ Atk Dragonite Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 141-166 (46.8 - 55.1%) -- 69.5% chance to 2HKO
-1 252+ Atk Dragonite Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 94-111 (31.2 - 36.8%) -- 74.2% chance to 3HKO
252 Atk Great Tusk Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 113-133 (37.5 - 44.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
-1 252 Atk Great Tusk Close Combat vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 75-89 (24.9 - 29.5%) -- 100% chance to 4HKO
0 Atk Ting-Lu Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 135-159 (44.8 - 52.8%) -- 22.3% chance to 2HKO
-1 0 Atk Ting-Lu Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 48 Def Tera Fairy Luxray: 90-106 (29.9 - 35.2%) -- 20.1% chance to 3HKO
Team Support Options
Spore
Spore allows Luxray critical switch-in opportunities, especially in the early game, where you generally don't want to terastallize if you can help it. I highly recommend Amoonguss for this specific Spore role as Regenerator keeps it healthy throughout the match, allowing more opportunities to open the floor for Luxray.
Wish Passing
Wish passing allows Luxray to remain healthy throughout the match and is generally a great idea for quite a few team compositions to begin with. Scream Tail is arguably all around more useful than Alomomola, but Alomomola's physical bulk and mono-water typing have their uses as well (along with a much higher HP stat).
Rapid Spin or Magic Bounce
Luxray does not appreciate hazard damage or hazard status, so a Pokemon to either spin away or bounce back hazards is greatly appreciated. Great Tusk and Iron Treads are both phenomenal spinners, while Hatterene is the de-facto Magic Bounce user in the tier. What you choose depends on your individual team composition.
Conclusion
Luxray is a flawed Pokemon, but this is the first generation of OU where I can confidently recommend its niche as a role-compressing lure, thanks to the new tools that it got. Generation 9's meta has been very kind to many older Pokemon, thanks to the boon of terastallization. Luxray is another one of those Pokemon who have been given a new competitive edge in life. If you play to Luxray's strengths and support it properly, you'll find that our shockingly spiky boi is a worthy addition to your properly built team!
Edit #1: Fixed grammatical / formatting issues + added dividing images I forgot to add
Edit #2: Fixed broken image
weavile if it didn't rely on night slash for STAB:
no, seriously, without knock off this pokemon is just sad. night slash from the SD set can't even 2HKO skeledirge (assuming it's physically defensive to be fair) and it gets walled by every other physical tank. i'm hoping it regains knock off soon because this poor thing is just so helpless without it. just look at how bad its damage output is:
+2 252 Atk Weavile Ice Spinner vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Corviknight: 172-204 (43 - 51%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
+2 252 Atk Weavile Night Slash vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Unaware Skeledirge: 156-186 (37.8 - 45.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+2 252 Atk Weavile Night Slash vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Unaware Dondozo: 72-85 (14.2 - 16.8%) -- possible 6HKO
+2 252 Atk Weavile Ice Spinner vs. 252 HP / 228+ Def Garganacl: 151-178 (37.3 - 44%) -- 100% chance to 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
you could show these calcs to someone in early/mid-2022 and they'd probably lose their minds
I’ve now seen Tera ghost and Tera rock volcanona (haven’t used them tho). Have even seen a focus sash Tera bug with swarm and Psychic terrain support
seems like ghost permits the 2hko on skeledirge whilst also dealing with ceruledge and dragapult, preventing e speed revenging and having a strong neural hit.
rock appears to be a tech that deals with the aforementioned dirge whilst 2hkoing all dragonite variants? Unsure what else it does
Tera bug gives you OHKOs on the offensive meta I’m guessing? Psychic terrain + psychic covers toxapex too, and if it’s 252 SpA then bold toxapex will be OHKOd
Usage doesn't necessarily something is unhealthy. The debate about Espathra itself explains the issue, the bird is just a coin flip, it just wins or losses on the match up, that is the aspect considered unhealthy with it. More than it being OP, is the feeling of it being a "luck" (match up) reliant on strategy, similar to OHKO moves. But of course it is a bit more complex than it, but that is the general feeling for Espartha, based on what I have read.
sometimes usage does not affect viability, yeah. for instance, gastrodon was RU by usage last generation yet is seen as a fantastic pokemon, being ranked A- on the SS OU viability rankings. in ORAS, cofagrigus has carved a strong niche for itself by virtue of its solid bulk and utility moves coupled with an interesting defensive typing and is seen as an A rank pokemon on the ORAS OU viability rankings. and these are just a few examples i listed, there are countless instances of the tiering system not accurately reflect a pokemon's strengths in a higher power level
Usage doesn't necessarily something is unhealthy. The debate about Espathra itself explains the issue, the bird is just a coin flip, it just wins or losses on the match up, that is the aspect considered unhealthy with it. More than it being OP, is the feeling of it being a "luck" (match up) reliant on strategy, similar to OHKO moves. But of course it is a bit more complex than it, but that is the general feeling for Espartha, based on what I have read.
true, but you'd think it would be used more for something that was effectively an instant win button combined with cyclizar, starred on one of the first big popular ladder-topping teams, and even got a post from finch saying "this thing takes no skill". my point is, even though people talked a lot about espathra, it didn't get the usage to crack ou, and that surprised a lot of people. some people are expecting cinderace to drop to uu, presumably in part because people aren't talking much about cinderace. i'm just saying to not count your chickens before they hatch
I experimented a little with a defensive gardevoir that supports the team with furure sigh.
It is a fun gimmic.
Too bad he only recovery option gives her only 25% health.
Bulk up tusk is a great set. Also gz on getting reqs that fast.
So obviously pao is broken and I'll write smth up about that in the suspect folder but to be honest I realized just a couple of days ago, despite ranking it a 3 on the survey, that Garg is actually just below pao in terms of brokenness and should get banned. With covert cloak becoming common this has fallen on a lot of people's radar but I think the debacle with cloak misses the point on this mon's viability.
Garg is frankly overtuned. Salt cure is the best move in the game flat out, especially on a fat mon. Dealing 12% per turn normally is already really good as well as dealing regular damage, meaning with garg's good attack that flying types just get chunked by it. However, hitting water and steels, 2 of the best defensive types in the game, for 25%/turn guaranteed is insane. Steels and waters are very commonly part of defensive structures in teams, and being able to wear down these mons that much is just too good imo. If this was all Garg had it might be fine, but Garg's kit is busted too. It gets recover, amazing bulk and a great stat distribution, and it has an amazing ability. Not being able to status Garg makes it much more difficult to wear down. You can't threaten it out with poisons, and you can't at least chip it coming in with wisp or put it to sleep. This makes garg great at just absorbing attacks and makes it much easier to come in on the field and start clicking salt cure on everything. If it was forced out by Great Tusk, maybe it'd be fine; rock is a subpar type and would let it be exploited a bit more easily. But the worst part about it can just be improved entirely thanks to tera. Now this mon gets everything; a godtier move that can force progress much harder than any mon that fat should be able to do, amazing bulk, an amazing defensive type in fairy, and an ability so good it both can't be statused and resists ghost (because why not). It also is no longer forced out by grounds, actually forcing out great tusk now because even with lefties, once it's tera fairy Garg can just stay in on Tusk and wait out the chip on Tusk, which can't really do anything against it. It can knock it, admittedly which is nice, but Garg is now extremely hard to force out and wear down because fairy only being weak to poison and steel is just too nice, and steel types can't come in on it.
Covert Cloak seems to be better than it actually is here. Really, the only thing that can reliable run cloak to force out Garg is gholdengo, because the other mons you'd want it on, like pex, dozo, and corv, either are very vulnerable to being knocked off by Tusk, the best mon in the game, or just don't do anything to it because it can't be statused. Cloak gholdengo, cloak garganacl (itself!!!) and amoonguss are the only real checks this has, and I'm not that sold on Amoonguss. Meowscarada can offensively check Tera-water, but is liable to get protected on to be scouted and switched out if its banded. This form of counterplay is extremely limiting. This is incredibly restricting on teambuilding and I'd argue deeply unhealthy. Garganacl is just too overtuned to remain OU. Hopefully we get a suspect immediately after pao and this thing can go to ubers lmao
Oh man, do they not know? No one tell them, lmao.
Edit: Also, if you DO go for reqs, are you required to run Chien-Pao on your team? Or just play to get the reqs?
from revenging you, allows you to get +4 vs all 
variants, and has general utility against other miscellaneous checks like great tusk.
, 
and Tera fairy 
which is fortunately SpD optimized on most variants. These are all popular checks to the SD + HDB set. 
has a harder time revenging. Optional terablast will take out kingambit and corviknight.
after sufficiently weakening it through attacks supplemented with hazards and pressure, it’s also a handy way to reliably OHKO through Tera water tusk and other counter techs. Sacred sword also becomes your hardest hitting neutral attack. This is relevant vs bulky 
and various other threats.
