Project The Top 10 Titans of the Gen 7 Monotype Metagame

mushamu

God jihyo
is a Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Former Smogon Metagame Tournament Circuit Champion
approved by Monotype forum mods
adapted from OU and UU's versions


The Top 10 Titans of the Gen 7 Monotype Metagame

With the introduction of the seventh generation of Pokemon comes with many new Pokemon and the introduction of Z-Moves. Many of these newly introduced Pokemon such as Tapu Koko, Greninja, Celesteela, and Tapu Bulu changed the way Monotype as a tier functioned drastically. The big question this thread will try to answer with this thread is, which 10 Pokemon, were the most influential across the entirety of SM Monotype?

From July 31 to August 8, you will nominate Pokemon that will be voted on for the top 10 most influential Pokemon throughout Gen 7. After that, you will all evaluate all the nominations and individually rank the Pokemon from 1-10 by vote. Of course, all the nominations will count as long as they're reasonable and fit the criteria. Keep in mind that we aren't ranking on how good a Pokemon is, we are ranking on how influential the Pokemon has been this generation, and how much of an impact it has had on the metagame itself.

For this project, Pokemon that have been quickbanned are not up for nominations because of the little time they were present in the metagame despite having a huge effect on it. However, you may nominate Pokemon that have been banned via suspect if you feel their metagame impact warrants doing so.

Each individual Pokemon is allowed up to three individual nominations. This is to see other types of approaches people use when describing the overall effect a certain Pokemon has on the entire metagame.

Here's the format as to which your post should follow. Please make sure you follow the format, or I will not be counting your nomination.

Nominating Pokemon

Enter sprite here.

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Explain how the Pokemon effected the metagame as whole, and how the metagame adapted around it. A brief description of which Pokemon it countered and which Pokemon it did well against would be good here as well.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Explain why this Pokemon was used on a team more often then most other Pokemon, and what was it particularly used for? What made it so good at this role?

What caused it to have a significant impact?

What exactly made this Pokemon have such a large impact on the metagame? Was it its stats, ability, useful resistances, amazing synergy, or the ability to sweep most of the metagame very easily? Did a certain Pokemon cause it to become that much better when it was partnered with it?

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

What are the best checks/counters to this Pokemon? How does the metagame adapt to this Pokemon?


Current Nominees:



The Top 10 Titans of the Gen 7 Monotype Metagame:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
:sm/muk-alola:7.
8.
9.
10.


You're allowed to reserve nominations, but make sure to finish them in 24 hours, or they will be back up for grabs! Also, you can only reserve one nomination at a time. This is to make sure that your reservation gets done before you finish another.
 
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mushamu

God jihyo
is a Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Former Smogon Metagame Tournament Circuit Champion
Nominating Greninja



What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Greninja's impact on the SM Monotype metagame was recognized as soon as it was unbanned from ORAS. Water and Dark teams were instantly gifted with an amazing offensive presence that could pretty much beat a lot of types if given the correct form of coverage, and it remains a staple on both types to this day. Its coverage, speed, and its ability in Protean allowed it to counter a wide variety of types, and its speed allowed it to function as one of the best revenge killers in the metagame. Greninja's release was one of the big factors that contributed to Dark rising from mediocre in ORAS to the great type it is right now in SM Monotype, while it made Water teams even more of a threat to deal with.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

In Monotype, Greninja's amazing speed allowed it to establish itself as the best Choice Scarf user and speed control for Water and Dark teams, allowing it to revenge kill threats such as Tapu Koko and other Choice Scarf users such as Latios and Excadrill, while it could pivot out of Pokemon it couldn't beat with U-Turn. Along with this, Greninja's non Choice Scarf sets, namely Expert Belt and Z-Move lures also came into play and were a huge part of its dominance in the SM Monotype metagame, and focused on beating types using its amazing coverage. Although not common, it could also set hazards using Spikes and Toxic Spikes.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Greninja's high Speed stat along with its decent Attack and Special Attack allows it to be an alright offensive threat by itself. This is coupled with Greninja's ability, Protean, which gives it a STAB boost in every attack it uses, covering up for its lackluster offensive stats and worked in conjunction with its amazing movepool. It has a large amount of coverage moves at its disposal, including Ice Beam, Hydro Pump, Hidden Power Fire, Hidden Power Electric, U-Turn, Rock Slide, Dark Pulse, Grass Knot, Low Kick, Gunk Shot, Dig, and Extrasensory, allowing it to run many of them depending on which types it was trying to beat, typically on a non Choice Scarf set. Hidden Power Electric + Grass Knot for Water, Hidden Power Fire for Steel, Ice Beam + Hidden Power Electric for Flying, Grass Knot + Ice Beam for Ground, Z-Dig + Extrasensory for Poison, Dark Pulse for Psychic, the list goes on and on. Both Water and Dark teams had formidable defensive Pokemon that could support Greninja if necessary, as its low bulk meant it had trouble taking strong attacks.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

It's very hard to correctly "adapt" for Greninja in a way, because it's moreso Greninja adapts to the types its trying to beat. Rotom-W's increased usage on Water hurts Expert Belt Greninja as it is able to safetly switch into any of its attacks and pivot into another teammate that can revenge kill it, or threaten to chip it down. However, running Z-Grass Knot Greninja allows Greninja to beat Rotom-W and threaten the rest of its team. Expert Belt Greninja has trouble taking down anything it can't hit super effectively and special walls, so specially bulky Pokemon such as Alolan Muk and Chansey, as well as certain Steel-type Pokemon such as Mega Scizor and Ferrothorn who didn't mind its Hidden Power Electric + Ice Beam + Grass Knot coverage also checked it very well, though they did need to beware of its other coverage options. Expert Belt Greninja is also easily revenge killed by faster Pokemon such as Tapu Koko, Choice Scarf Landorus-T, and Choice Scarf Excadrill as a result of its poor bulk. Choice Scarf Greninja's inability to switch attacks made it harder for it to break past entire teams by itself.
 
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Harpp

No rain, no flowers.
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Nominating : Tapu Bulu



What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

With the introduction of gen7, types like water, Electric, and ground faced a big threat known as Tapu Bulu as it is more than capable of tearing apart such types however Tapu Bulu was not just limited to types it hit supereffectively as its attack stat combined with its ability Grassy Terrain powers-up Grass type moves and this allowed it to function as an effective wallbreaker especially with its Choice Band and Swords Dance set, making it a menace for balance teams where even resisted swicth ins take a ton of damage against it. The metagame has tried to adapt around it by using checks and counters listed below however it still looms around as a big threat as it can take advantage of its good offensive movepool and run techs to beat some of its conventional checks with Swords Dance Rockium Z / Life orb set.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

With its Introduction, Fairy-type teams not only rose to a whole new level of offense where they maintained good match ups vs common metagame types but also it offered defensive utility to the team in the form of its typing, bulk and secondary effect of its ability which weakens Ground-type moves in Grassy Terrain and provides passive recovery, allowing it to have Synergy with Pokemon such as Tapu KoKo, Klefki, and Mega Diancie. On Fairy-type teams it saw the usage of Choice Scarf and Choice Band early on and later as the metagame progressed, Swords Dance sets with Substitute became more common.
On Grass-type teams, Tapu Bulu has emerged as one of the viable Choice Scarf users available to it as its decent offensive movepool combined with its good attack stat allows it to get the job done. Similarly to Fairy teams, Grass-type teams also utilize Swords Dance sets for wallbreaking purposes. Due to Grassy Terrain, Pokemon such as Serperior and Breloom can now not only hit harder but the team also appreciate the 'pseudo leftovers' benefit it provides.

What caused it to have a significant impact?
Tapu Bulu has unparalleled wallbreaking potential combined with the utility it provides to both Fairy and Grass-type teams made it a crucial Pokemon on the team. Decent offensive movepool combined with Swords Dance has made it possible for Tapu Bulu to shred common defensive cores such as that of Normal, Water, Ground, and Poison. Its ability only improves it as a wallbreaker which boosts Grass-type moves and provides it and its teammate with passive recovery for few turns. Tapu Bulu combined with Pokemon such as Azumarill and Tapu Koko has made it hard for Ground and Water type teams to have upperhand against Fairy teams, respectively. The support it gets such as Dual screens, Spikes, pivoting , teammates like Tapu Koko and Mega Daincie that beat or weaken it's checksetc has made it a huge threat to watch out far, on top of all this, it has decent bulk with 70/11/95 defenses which makes it a tad harder to beat when it has move like Horn Leech to replenish its health back.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?
The metagame has adapted around Tapu Bulu by using checks and Counters such as Toxapex with Sludge Bomb, Sap Sipper Azumarill, defensive staraptor, focus Sash Dugtrio with Sludge bomb [early usage], Mega Steelix, Celesteela. fast revenge killer like Greninja, Nihilego, Excadril.

Toxapex with Sludge Bomb can take care of unboosted Tapu Bulu as they run Horn Leech which is a 3HKO against Toxapex and hence Toxapex can beat it with Sludge Bomb However Toxapex fails to beat Tapu Bulu with Woodhammer as it cannot switch in against it. Moreover players have gone a step ahead and used Substitue and Disable set to beat Sludge Bomb Toxapex as seen in tournament.

Staraptor can check Tapu Bulu when its unboosted however it cannot repeatedly switch in against it as it can get word out and boosted Tapu Bulu can beat it with Z moves.

Sap Sipper Azumarill can check Tapu Bulu as its immune to its STAB Grass move and can beat it IF it gets trapped by Whirlpool however Azumarill can be beaten by Swords Dance + Rockium Z set and against Tapu Bulu with Substitute as Azumarill cannot trap it then with Whirlpool and can only use perish song to force it out, here Tapu Bulu can stall out PP of perish song by switching out on the last turn and repeating the same thing again, beating it ulitmately.

Celesteela by far is one of the best checks to it due to its high defenses and STAB heavy slam or Air Slash but as it is with others here too Celesteela must be cautios of Swords Dance and Z move sets.

Mega Steelix is something Ground teams have started using to have good match up against Tapu Bulu as Mega Steelix can not only beat Tapu Bulu with Curse boosts but it also threatens the entire fairy team where if it is left unchecked, can sweep the team. Now for Mega Steelix, Fairy has started using Earth Power Mega Diancie to weaken it as it is 2hko, Tapu Koko can prevent it from using rest with its ability Electric Terrain.

Tapu Bulu due to its middling speed is threatened by faster Pokemon such as Greninja, Nihilego, Victini, Tornadus-T, Excadrill, Zeraora etc.

Bulky steel and Dragon type Pokemon such as Mega Scizor
and Mega Altaria
can set up against it.
 
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Nomming Azumarill

What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Sun and Moon gave Azumarill a powerful new toy with Normalium Z Belly Drum, making the already scary Belly Drum set much more reliable. After getting the Belly Drum off, it could easily plough through unprepared teams with its priority Aqua Jet, while breaking through tougher walls with other coverage moves. This led to many walls with decent base speed, like Mantine and Mega Venusaur, to sacrifice on bulk to speed creep Adamant Azumarill to deal with it after it set up. Later on in the generation, Azumarill started running a Jolly nature with Return/Frustration in order to outspeed these walls to knock them out, though requiring some extra chip due to the drop in power. In response, the walls started running even more speed to combat the change. While Belly Drum Azumarill is no longer the massive threat it once was due to the prevelance of the speed creep, it is still something that every team that does not have natural resists has to take into account for. It has made its mark on the metagame, solidifying 218 as the speed to beat for many walls and some bulkier Pokemon like Mega Scizor and Seismitoad.


In what main roles was Pokemon used?


At the start of the generation, Azumarill could run a Choice Band to be a strong wallbreaker, and with the popularity of normal, knock off was something incredibly valuable that Azumarill brought to the table. However, due to its poor speed, Band sets quickly fell out of the meta in favor for its other sets.

The Generation 7 games also made Azumarill's Perish Trap set legal with Sap Sipper (Whirlpool + Sap Sipper was not possible prior), which gave bulkier water builds an important grass immunity that could dispose of more passive Pokemon like Ferrothorn, Chansey, or even Mega Venusaur.

Of course, there is the Belly Drum set. It is still a staple on fairy teams as it helps in matchups that would otherwise be nigh impossible like poison and steel. As other users of Z moves gain popularity, Azumarill is returning to its roots with a less flashy Sitrus Berry, or even one of the new pinch berries like Iapapa.


What caused it to have a significant impact?

With Normalium Z, Azumarill is essentially guaranteed a Belly Drum as long as it lived a hit, which is rather easy with its decent bulk and screens support. With the ability Huge Power, Belly Drum boosted its attack stat to unparalleled levels, turning a low base power Aqua Jet into an incredibly threatening priority attack. The incredibly powerful defensive core of water teams and offensive staples of fairy teams helps chip opposing checks for Azumarill to be able to sweep late game.

Klefki in particular is an amazing support Pokemon for Azumarill. It can set screens to allow Azumarill to safely get a Belly Drum off, set Spikes to chip down opposing checks, and paralyze faster checks with Thunder Wave.


How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?


As mentioned before, many Pokemon specifically invest in speed to be able to deal with Azumarill.

Azumarill also struggles to deal with faster pokemon that resist or live its boosted Aqua Jet, though it has teammates like Greninja that can easily deal with a lot of them.

In addition, some types like ground and rock have managed to find some rather unconventional Pokemon or methods to deal with Azumarill.

Being forced to run Jolly most of the time now causes a notable drop in damage, allowing certain bulky Pokemon to simply take a hit and neutralise it with haze, status or even ko it.
 
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Namranan

:)))))))))))
Nominating Celesteela

http://play.pokemonshowdown.com/sprites/xyani/celesteela.gif


What effect did this Pokemon have on the metagame?

Celesteela on release was considered by many an extremely powerful and effective wall. Its excellent defensive stats along with its Steel-Flying typing and access to Leech Seed for recovery made it extremely hard to kill. Not only this, but with Beast Boost it could bolster one of its defenses even further if it managed to get a KO. This along with its great movepool in Flamethrower, Heavy Slam, Giga Drain and Air Slash made it able to check any specific threat the team needed neutralized. Celesteela performed very well against most offensive Pokemon that didn't have a super-effective move to hit them with, as it slowly wore them down over time with Leech Seed and they were unable to KO it. This and its access to Toxic made it very hard for even some walls to handle it, as Celesteela could simply wear them down with Toxic damage over time. In order to deal with this titan, some Pokemon had their main role geared to taking it out especially now that the newly added Z-moves gave some Pokemon the additional power they needed to take it out with. Some notable examples are Z-Thunderbolt Nihilego, Icium Z Kyurem (Despite falling out of favor later on), Alolan Golem with Magnet Pull, Gravity Landorus, and many more.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Celesteela's main role was being a general wall. It did this role the best and was still effective with it despite having a large amount of lures made for it. As mentioned before its defensive stats, typing, and access to Toxic and Leech Seed is what made it so hard to KO. It was hard to switch into because of the threat of Toxic, and Leech Seed + Leftovers in tandem with Protect gave Celesteela enough passive recovery to take a few hits with ease, even if they were super-effective.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

What exactly made this Pokemon have such a large impact on the metagame? Was it its stats, ability, useful resistances, amazing synergy, or the ability to sweep most of the metagame very easily? Did a certain Pokemon cause it to become that much better when it was partnered with it?

Its synergy with its teammates on both Flying and Steel helped make some extremely powerful defensive cores, and that alone is a testament to how much of an impact it had on the metagame. Almost every single Flying or Steel team had a Celesteela because it was so good and reliable at its job of walling. Celesteela's success would also help Steel and Flying become very good types, especially Flying as it desperately needed Celesteela to deal with Ice moves and their users, Along with its multitude of resistances and two immunities, Celesteela was simply so over the top at its job that it took the metagame by storm and still is doing so to this day.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

As mentioned before, Celesteela was susceptible to getting lured by certain Pokemon as well as getting trapped by Pokemon like Alolan Golem and Magnezone. Despite having a lot of resistances as well, it had two very common weaknesses in Fire and Electric, and most teams in Monotype had access to one of those weaknesses if not both. It also gets walled by certain pokemon depending on what moves it has, it gets hard walled by Ferrothorn if it doesn't have Flamethrower, and it gets walled by Zapdos if it doesn't carry Toxic. Its also vulnerable to Breloom's Spore and can be stallbroken by many Taunt users like Hydreigon. Overall there were many viable ways to deal with this Pokemon, which is why it hasn't been banned.
 
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Nominating TAPU KOKO

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What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Tapu koko impacted the meta far more than most other pokemon this generation, I'll list off where koko has shown it's dominance and how it has impacted teams,Having access to voltturn with that speed tier is just an annoyance and can make sure you're ahead in Momentum a lot of the time.
Then there's flying/water teams need to run mons capable of outspeeding/revenge killing in some way since koko pretty much claims a kill vs most mons on both types. Then theres The fact that electric is so threatening with electric terrain+overall fast/strong mons makes the type Mid/Highh tier compared to oras and prior where it was almost irrelevant and very low tier.Lastly Teams need to have Koko switchins if they dont want to instalose to fairy+electric which are 2 of the higher tier types in todays metagame.

Explain why this Pokemon was used on a team more often then most other Pokemon, and what was it particularly used for? What made it so good at this role?

Koko is staple on both of it's types due to it's insane speed tier and just overall hard hitting STAB+Electric terrain and having the grass/ice/electric coverage that single handedly can run over water flying and sometimes even ground. The reason Koko is chosen over other mons differs by the type, the reasons being for fairy that Koko is the fastest mon fairy has to offer and with terrain+it's coverage there's no reason to use anything else over Koko when it helps as many Matchups as it does. For Electric Koko is not only fast and hard hitting, but spreading terrain for the rest of the team makes it an irreplacable pokemon in electrics core, It can voltturn around with most of electric having volt switch and abusing terrain making it really hard to actually get ahead and gain pressure over it. Overall just strong and hard to deal with.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Along with all the points Mentioned above on how strong Koko is, I'm going to add all the pokemon that Koko impacts and makes even stronger or that make koko himself stronger,
I'll start with his Electric teammates


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Raichu alola is the first pokemon that benefits from Koko being on the team due to it's ability surge surfer and gaining STAB electric terrain to become a hard hitting Special attacker! Raichu would be next to useless without Koko So he's got Kokos support to thanks for his high viability.

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Zapdos and Rotom-Wash Being his next 2 allies, they provide that sweet sweet ground immunity that Koko and all of electric needs, Also these 2 form as the defensive core for Koko to switch into when in a dangerous spot such as vs M-aero and Landorus-therian!

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Zeraora is the last mon on electric I'd like to point out, koko gives zeraora that electric terrain so that his STAB is even stronger! Meanwhile zeraora gives Koko the physical support to break through pokemon like chansey that Koko could never do by itself.

Next onto his Fairy Team support

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Klefki provides Koko and all of fairy with a very crucial Poison immunity, Plus it can set spikes for koko to clean up after chip damage, and it can set up screens since Koko behind screens is even more dangerous than a Koko without obviously.

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Diancie and Koko help eachother more than I think people realize, they're coverage together as fast special attackers makes the core overall hard to deal with, and Koko also gives diancie access to Nature Power being thunderbolt, which can Ohko celesteela (one of diancies hardest walls) with bulu also giving nature power energy ball. Lastly diancie can carry stealth rocks on the team which Helps Koko sweep after chip as mentioned with spikes.

While these are not all of the pokemon that benefit with having Tapu Koko on the team they are the ones I feel are the easiest to see and Help the most.


How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

I'll include usual Tapu Koko checks and Why they check them
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Tapu bulu- removes terrain and can kill back/inflict chip on it without getting killed, getting rid of electric terrain makes Koko considerably weaker and then lets bulu have it's way getting off a STAB grassy terain horn leech or Possibly substituting and then swords dance/getting off an extra leech.
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Lanturn- Takes virtually no damage from any of kokos moves and can toxic/scald burn back while leftovers heals it. This mon honestly puts the electric vs water matchup in waters favor as electric has a very hard time breaking through this since it also has heal bell for toxic etc.
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Excadrill- able to avoid getting 2kod while ohkoing back with earthquake if it isnt shuca, also the sd steelium set on ground kills koko with ease regardless, overall a mon that both fairy and electric fear.
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Mega aerodactyl- One of the few Pokemon that Outspeed tapu koko without being choice scarfed, can either earthquake for an OHKO or if theres fear of a shuca berry it can Stone edge kill after some chip.
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Ferrothorn- Taking almost no damage from Tapu kokos usual set it can then leech seed/gyro ball/ power whip, or even just set up hazards, Koko cant really break this pokemon unless it's HP fire So this is almost always a safe Koko switchin.

There is obviously other Pokemon that can switch into Koko or revenge kill it but these are common ones used on the types they're on. overall mons faster than koko are a threat for him and things that his go to coverage moves cant hit.
 
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Nominating Muk-Alola
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What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?


Alolan Muk made quite an huge impact to the metagame, especially when everybody figured about it's curse set. Thanks to Alolan Muk's existence, dark and poison are way better in SM then in ORAS as it helped the fairy MU for dark and the psy MU for poison. It is a bulky mon with decent attack not making it too passive and it has a nice ability to let it heal up, but I'll get more into that later. It also has koff to cripple mons and pjab which has a chance to poison. Since this mon was so effective vs fairy, this impacted fairy as now usually all fairy teams will be running clefable or azu with koff, so they have a way to beat it. Another example is gren running groundium z to help beat muk. Basically because of this, you see a lot more koff/taunt mons so that they don't fall prey to muk.

In what main roles was this Pokemon used?

One main reason why this pokemon is so nice on both types is for it's typing. For dark, having a dark/poison mon means you have an easier time dealing with fairy and fighting moves and for Poison, having a dark/poison mon means you have a psychic immunity. Now to get into more detail. For dark, Alo Muk served as a super nice wincon vs fairy as really the only thing that could threaten it was knock from clef/azu(assuming it's berry is active) or diancie. Even still this makes fairy's mu hard vs dark. For example, Muk can just come in freely on klefki and klefki cannot do anything to threaten it so Muk can use it as setup. Muk also serves as a decent wincon vs elec if zera is eliminated beforehand. Muk has also been a blessing for poison. As mentioned before, thanks to it's typing it can safely switch in to mons like the latis, offensive deo s, and meloetta and then be able to trap them with pursuit since they can't really threaten them(for latios you have to watch out for trick though). Poison typically doesn't run curse Muk as much as dark does but even without curse muk is still a great assist to poison. Alo muk helps poison by creating a bulky core being itself, m venu, and pex which can be very annoying for some types. As mentioned above it is a nice special wall for poison and has koff to cripple mons.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

This pokemon had a significant impact for many reasons. It has a fairly good amount of bulk being 105/75/100 and it even sports a 105 atk, making it a bulky and non passive mon., it has access to gluttony, which allows it to use a berry at 50% or less, meaning that it has a decent way to recover up. The typing it was blessed with is useful for both types as I mentioned above. This pokemon also does have good synergy with both types as both types are able to make bulky and effective cores thanks to this mon. It serves as a good late game cleaner once it's checks and counters are eliminated.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

As good as Alo Muk may seem of course there are ways to deal with it

Stallbreakers

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Gliscor is the best example of a stallbreaker to beat Muk. It literally has all the tools it needs to stop it. It depends on the set but usually most sets can stop it. Taunt prevents it from setting up and using recycle, Roost lets it heal, Knock off removes the berry, and EQ is to hit it hard. Only way this mon can lose if it directly switches in on a koff from Muk. Other stallbreakers can include Hydreigon, Heatran, and to an extent, mew.

Toxapex

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Pex doesn't really appreciate when it's item is removed but it's still got what it needs to beat Muk being in haze to reset it's boost, scald to burn it, and recover to heal off damage.

Ground Types and Attacks

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Alo Muk's typing leaves it with one weakness, being ground. However, ground mons and even moves do appear quite frequently. Many Ground types in general, like excadrill, can easily threaten Muk even if it has a curse boost.

Status

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Burn is particularly the most annoying for Muk. If it get's burned it is pretty much doing little damage even if it ends up getting +6. Common examples of burn users include wow users like rotom w and m sab. Scald users like toxapex can also just burn it.

Physical Wallbreakers

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Even if Alo Muk has a way to boost it's defense that certain pokemon can muscle through it before it get's too high like M Gallade, Band Victini, and Band Dragonite.

Overall, this mon is def quite a good mon, supporting both it's types very well. It's def not broken though since it for sure has ways to deal with it.
 
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mushamu

God jihyo
is a Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Former Smogon Metagame Tournament Circuit Champion
Nominating Kommo-O


What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Kommo-O’s effect on the Monotype metagame consists of a threatening setup sweeper that is able to clean many weakened teams and a multitude of types after firing off its custom Z-Move, easily being one of the most threatening setup sweepers in the tier. Both Dragon and Fighting teams received a powerful offensive tool to abuse, although Kommo-O still wasn't enough to put Fighting in relevance in the metagame.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Kommo-O's main role on both of its types were as a sweeper that could sweep a multitude of types by simply popping its Z-Move. Types such as Steel, Water, Poison, Flying, Dark, Ground, Normal, Bug, Grass, Fire, Ice, Rock, even Psychic could have a bit of trouble with Kommo-O if they didn't have Choice Scarf Latias/Latios to revenge kill it. Tldr, Kommo-O was an amazing setup sweeper that could pose a huge threat to pretty much any type other than Fairy if it happened to get off a boost.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Kommo-O’s decent offensive presence combined with its good STABs and coverage make it a potent offensive threat to deal with. This is, of course, supported by Clangerous Soulblaze, its custom Z-Move it received upon the release of USUM. Clangerous Soulblaze’s ability to boost all of Kommo-O’s stats while doing immense damage transforms it from a decent offensive option to an amazing setup sweeper and cleaner in the tier, firing off its Z-Move on slower, weakened Pokemon and proceeding to sweep the rest of the weakened team. Raising its defensive stats made it harder to revenge kill, as faster Pokemon such as Choice Scarf Greninja could no longer beat it reliably if it was healthy enough, and Drain Punch gave it a form of longevity. Kommo-O can also block those looking to remove it by crippling it with status or removing its boosts with a phazing move or Haze with Taunt, proving such methods useless.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

The best way to deal with Kommo-O is to prevent it from firing off its Z-Move, as it is a lackluster threat without it. As a result, Fairy-type Pokemon such as Mega Diancie, Clefable, Azumarill, and Mimikyu easily counter Kommo-O, while opposing Kommo-O and Ditto can also block Kommo-O’s Clangerous Soulblaze with their own Soundproof. Choice Scarf users such as Latios, Greninja, and Hydreigon are also able to revenge kill Kommo-O after firing off its Z-Move, although many Choice Scarf users require chip for that to happen due to the boosts in its defenses. Haze Toxapex with Icium Z has also risen to deal with the offensive behemoth, seeing as Z-Haze allows Toxapex to bypass Kommo-O’s Taunt and remove its boosts effectively.

friendly reminder that each Pokemon is allowed up to 3 individual nominations! I'll put the Pokemon on the nominees whenever you get finished with the nomination.
 
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maroon

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RMT & Mono Leader
Nominating Gothitelle


What effect did Gothitelle have on the metagame? What caused it to have a significant impact?
Gothitelle's effect on the metagame was that it could single handedly be designed for each Psychic team to trap and beat a certain set. Its main sets were Choice Specs and Trick CM Choice Scarf as well as a few others. Lets just talk about trapping for a minute, it prevents the opposing player from being able to switch, and as this is a strategy based game this takes the competitiveness out of it. For example, while theyre are other trappers such as Magnezone, they can only trap one type being Steel, while other Pokemon that are 'Trappers' such as Weavile and Tyranitar with Pursuit only discourage switching, not actually preventing it. This is what made it so unhealthy, the ability to remove a fundamental aspect of the game. Not only was it blessed with one of the best abilities thanks to its coverage, Gothitelle was a prominent trapper for Psychic-type teams that allowed it to run a variety of sets designed to trap certain threats for the Psychic team. This had an over barring affect on Monotype, as teams could not rely on traditional checks to Psychic teams to win as Gothitelle could beat them making the only real types that had a chance was Dark and Ghost. Ghost which should really never be used saw a spike in usage thanks to the presence of both Gothitelle and Mega Medicham, which made it a decent choice in tournaments. Gothitelle was even stronger in USM Monotype because unlike in ORAS, Hoopa-Unbound was quick banned from the metagame, which was a prominent check to this play style. However, Gothitelle even had ways to beat that threat such as using Colbur Berry + Signal Beam, then allowing your own Hoopa-U to win the Psychic mirror. Overall this ability to act as such a versatile trapper made Gothitelle very overcentralizing and omnipresent threat on Psychic teams that allowed them to make a significant impact on the metagame.

In what main roles was Gothitelle used?
Such as the Choice Specs set commonly ran HP Ground alongside Choice Scarf Victini. What this would do is Victini would force the 50/50s against Steel teams with U-turn or V-Create, if they brought in Heatran on a U-turn, Gothitelle could proceed to switch in and remove it from the game. This would allow Victini to without prediction pretty much spam its Fire-type STAB unpunished. Its other main and less specific set was Trick CM, this allowed Gothitelle to very easily come in and beat any fat Pokemon. It would Trick away its Choice Scarf, locking the wall into one move and then it would proceed to setup Calm Mind for free. Status wasn't really a way to beat this set as it carried Rest, making the only real counterplay to this set was supereffective Physical attacks as the others could be beaten. It could also regain its Choice Scarf by using Trick once more right before it would kill the Pokemon. It could also run sets like Colbur Berry + Thunderbolt to trap and kill threats such as Mega Sharpedo etc. The diversity of it being used as a trapper was enormous allowing it to check certain threats to the type, allowing Psychic teams a step up. These were some of the many ways it could act as a trapper for Psychic teams as well as also using this to be able to check threats to the type, meaning Gothitelle found use in nearly every matchup bar Ghost, Dark, and Bug.

How do/did you deal with Gothitelle in Monotype?
There was very limited counterplay to Gothitelle in the Monotype metagame, thanks to its unique presence to act as an offensive or defensive trapper. The main counterplay was to not bring types that are weak to Gothitelle, which sounds crazy because it was. Without bringing certain types such as Ghost, Dark, and or Bug, there was no guarantee that some random Gothitelle set might not cripple your win-condition and cost you the game.

Nominating Mega Medicham


What effect did Mega Medicham have on the metagame? What caused it to have a significant impact?

Mega Medicham similarly to ORAS Monotype simply was too powerful for many types to deal with. Thanks to Huge Power, it is able to 2HKO everything bar Ghost-type Pokemon with its STAB combination was it a very threatening Pokemon in the metagame. On top of this it was blessed as being a priority whore, with all sets running Fake Out and some of them running Bullet Punch, simply being faster than this Pokemon is not enough. On top of its access to good priority moves it also had decent coverage in the Elemental Punches, allowing it to take on certain teams such as Flying with relative ease, being able to dismantle its defensive core with High Jump Kick, Thunder Punch, and Ice Punch. This raw power, access to priority, and good coverage made Mega Medicham an immediate and large threat in Monotype. On top of all that, Mega Medicham had very few defensive countermeasures in Monotype those mainly being Ghost-type Pokemon, which would make it fear clicking its most powerful attack in High Jump Kick, in fear of the recoil. This sparked a surge in the usage of random Ghost-type Pokemon on teams such as Doublade on Steel teams. This is what allowed Mega Medicham to cause such as terror in the metagame and the reason why its was such a huge threat. However, soon after it was released sometime into the first half of MPL 3 it was suspect test and banned from the metagame, making Mega Medicham's reign in the tier short, but nonetheless extremely powerful.

In what main roles was Mega Medicham used?
The only role Mega Medicham played was an offensive wallbreaker and it excelled in this role. Being able to punch holes through pretty much every team with its STAB attacks, BoltBeam, and priority made it very good at this role. Because of the aforementioned, Mega Medicham could easily break past the bulkiest of walls such as Mandibuzz, Toxapex, Celesteela, and Slowbro with relative ease.

How do/did you deal with Mega Medicham in Monotype?
Ghost-type Pokemon allowed you to have a High Jump Kick immunity, making it slightly easier to take on. Specifically Pokemon such as Doublade and Mega Sableye that were either resistant or immune to its STAB attacks, allowed them to effectively wall this massive threat. Other Pokemon such as Ferrothorn and Garchomp could punish Mega Medicham with their contact move punishing abilities, chipping Mega Medicham each time it attacked them. Another way to check it was through the use of Protect, which made it so that High Jump Kick becomes harder to click in terms of not taking recoil damage, however this is fairly shaky and prediction reliant way of checking it. The other way it could possibly be checked was through faster offensive threats that could outspeed and OHKO it such as Keldeo, Tornadus-T, and Latios. However, Mega Medicham's teammates could easily switch into their attacks making them not a secure way to take on Mega Medicham. Overall, Mega Medicham had very little good defensive counterplay and was more easily offensively checked by Pokemon that didn't collapse to Fake Out+Bullet Punch, like Mega Diancie.
 
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Nominating MAGEARNA

188319


What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

People were forced to run clearly suboptimal sets just so this thing didnt take over games and teams. sometimes if the mage got TR off it was "ok what 3 pokemon do I not need" , or if it got a shift gear and started getting soul heart boosts it could be "ok my teams dead gg". Overall just a disgusting Pokemon, it's relevance and how it changed the meta is pretty much obvious due to the fact that it got banned. It was simply too hard for teams to deal with and they had to run whack unviable sets to TRY and not instalose to magearna.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Magearna had multiple roles on both types, it could be an assault vest bulky damage dealer, it could be a setup sweeper with shift gear+Zmove, and it could be trickroom. the one thing all of these did was blow up enemy pokemon. this thing could be bulky, fast, whatever but no matter what it was always hitting like a truck. On both of it's types it could do these things and on some it did even more, for steel it was a nuetral for fighting, for fairy it's a poison immunity. strong either way you look at it.
What caused it to have a significant impact?

Honestly I dont feel like it needed "synergy" with it's teammates. the synergy it gave Fairy was a poison immunity which was desperately needed. and paired with klefki you could have 2! On steel it was a strong special attacker and took fighting nuetral. overall a strong mon That didnt need much support. magearna is the definition of a "one man army". Overall just having access to TR+strong moves and good STAB just made it too much of a threat.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

There isnt a TON of pokemon that super check mag which is part of why it's banned, but let's list a few.

188320

magnezone can usually kill magearna due to trapping and can ohko sets with steelium z, magearna can volt switch out but if you can kill before that/ get momentum out of that play you're not instalosing to mag.

188321

Chansey pretty much counters every SPA mon since it just takes virtually zero from them and can softboiled up +seismec toss to outduel magearna.

188322

Jirachi can also be called a check to mag, bulky rachi takes small amounts of damage and can do things like paraflinching it to death or even just flinching it do death, it could also be a calm mind set to just get bulky enough to kill and with the right coverage can do a ton to fairy/steel respectively. could also be z celebrate.

There's a few more niche sets you could run but here's a few pokemon that can deal with it.
 
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Harpp

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Nominating Toxapex:


What effect did Toxapex have on the metagame?

With the introduction of Gen7, Toxapex quickly cemented itself as one of the best defensive juggernauts in the monotype metagame. Upon its release, types like Poison and Water became more stronger as Toxapex filled in a crucial role on these types and made the types defensive backbone stronger than ever. Toxapex with its godly bulk, a good defensive typing, Regenerator ability, access to recover, Toxic Spikes, Haze etc has made it irreplaceable on both Poison and Water type teams and a headache to deal with for other types. With Toxapex on the team, Poison no longer struggled against threat like Mega Scizor, Mega Pinsir and Mega Charizard Y. Similarly, Water teams got a great neutrality to Grass-type moves as Toxapex made sure Water-type teams are not threatened by Mega Charizard Y and Volcarona in the same manner they did in ORAS. With Toxapex on the teams now, the metagame shifted to bulky offense or balance as Poison and Water-type teams got blessed with a strong defensive core.
Toxapex's good defensive movepool allowed it to play around premier wallbreaker like Choice Band Diggersby where it would use Baneful Bunker to scout and play accordingly. Normal and Bug are no longer hard matchups with Toxapex on the team as Toxic Spikes and reliably recovery allows to consistently set it up. Due to the defensive capabilities the metagame answered to it by running sets which I have listed below that aim to beat Toxapex however Toxapex still is one of the biggest defensive threat due to the synergy it provides and the support it gets from its teammates.

In what main roles was Toxapex used?

Toxapex fills in a crucial element of defensive backbone on both Poison- and Water-type teams. It runs a defensive set however there are some variations within the moveset. Toxapex glued itself on the teams due to the high role compression, utility support, and as a check to various threats. It saw usage for various defensive sets like the Baneful Bunker set, Toxic + Toxic Spikes set, Haze + Toxic Spikes, Sludge Bomb Toxapex on Water teams for threat like Tapu Bulu, Z Haze set for threat like Kommo-o etc. It has some potential to circumvent around its threats for instance, on Rain teams Toxapex was seen sporting a Wacan Berry as item and Sludge Bomb to help weaken / deal with Tapu Koko and Tapu Bulu. Its defensive capabilities are further bolstered due to the move Scald which has a nifty chance to burn the foe, resulting in Physical attackers struggling to take it down as Pokemon such as Excadrill and Landorus-T cannot beat it once burned without boosting.


What caused Toxapex to have a significant impact?
Toxapex caused a significant impact to the metagame due to various factors combined such as its high defensive stats, typing, Ability combined with access to recover, utility support and Synergy with its teammates. [clickable images]


There are variations in defensive core on Water-type teams but they all have Toxapex. What I have shown here is the most common core right now centered around it.

How do/did you deal with Toxapex in Monotype?

I have listed here how metagame has adapted to Toxapex. Types that do not have supereffective advantage on it on preview have resorted to running sets that aim to beat Toxapex / Water- and Poison-type teams.
Psychium Z Volcarona was seen on Bug teams to beat Toxapex after one Quiver Dance and threaten the rest of the team however on Poison teams this calls for the removal of Alolan Muk and Nihilego which is not easy.
Steel teams came up with two Jirachi sets that can set up and beat Toxapex, one of which is Z Happy Hour set and the other one is Sub Calm Mind set improving the match up for Steel against Poison and Water type teams.
Facade Mega Scizor is something that has seen some usage quite recently as it tries to circumvent Scald burn to beat Toxapex with Facade.
Tail Glow Manaphy with Psychic was used on Water teams to break through the defensive core of Poison type teams.
Offensive steel teams also came up with Metronome Celesteela to prey on the passiveness of Toxapex, allowing it to breaking through it.
wallbreakers like Choice Specs Hydreigon, Choice Band Dragonite, Life OrB Kyurem-B etc can muscle past through Toxapex. Apart from Psychic, Electric and Ground types that threaten it there are also stall breakers that Toxapex struggles against such as Heatranm Gliscor and Hydreigon.
 
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Nominating: Victini



What effect did Victini have on the metagame?

Victini has been a monstrous teammate on both Psychic and Fire for years and it has been no different in USUM Monotype. Previously, Victini only had 2 widely used sets in Choice Scarf and Choice Band. Regardless, with access to the strongest coverage moves in the game in V-Create, Bolt Strike, Blue Flare, Focus Blast, and more paired with its base 100 stats, Victini is no joke and should not be underestimated. With the introduction of Z-Moves, Victini was granted an omni-boost sweeper set in Z-Celebrate. With its choiced sets, it can be a wallbreaker, revenge killer, and a pivot with U-Turn. With its Z-Celebrate set, it can clean teams from the mid-late game. All of these sets makes Victini dangerous for many types/teams if they aren't prepared for at least 2/3 of the sets. Victini stands as one of the best wallbreakers in Monotype for both of its respective types and being a mon that's carefully prepared for in teambuilder.

In what main roles was Victini used?

Victini's role on both Psychic and Fire has always been to punch holes in teams. With its Choice Band set, it's feared for netting 2HKO many walls in Monotype. Its Choice Scarf set being able to sweep and revenge kill for both offensive and balance teams that it's on. Finally, its Z-Celebrate set being a setup sweeper with Stored Power + Searing Shot. Victini's job is to wallbreaker or sweep and it does it wonderfully. Victini is especially good at keeping the opponent in suspense trying to figure out its set before it's too late.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

The fact it has access to V-Create and Bolt Strike makes it powerful along with U-Turn to allow it to pivot out as needed or to scout some switches to setup a 50/50 to make a play. With Z-Celebrate, it not only becomes more deadly on offense, but it receives some extra bulk to prolong its presence and potentially live some revenge kill attempts from froms like Greninja, Nihilego, or Sharpedo (at full HP). Victini is predominately Banded nowadays but the next most used set is Z-Celebrate. Each of these sets are strong in their own regards. Since Victini has great coverage moves and good support from both its types, Victini can just as easily retreat and come back with its choiced sets or come in and sweep with its Celebrate set.

How do/did you deal with Victini in Monotype?

I mainly dealt with Victini with the use of hazards and double switching. Aside from playmaking, there are some mons that can out-space some of Victini's damage. Heatran and Excadrill being one of the switchins on Steel to V-Create and Bolt Strike thanks to Heatran's Flash Fire and Excadrill's Electric immunity, but it's still a 50/50. It can just as easily U-Turn to keep momentum for its team. Gliscor is another mon that can tank a V-Create and revenge kill with Earthquake. Mega Aerodactly to Stone Edge or Pursuit trap it, both Landorus-Therian to revenge kill, Landorus-I to outspeed and kill, Greninja with Scarf/Expert Belt Dark Pulse or Hydro Pump (depending on which type Greninja is on), bulky Swampert.

A combination of walling and/or outspeeding to deal with Victini overall.
 
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mushamu

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Nominating Tapu Bulu


What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Tapu Bulu's introduction to Monotype was one of the huge factors that brought Fairy teams up in viability, due to having another powerful physical offensive option that could run many sets in relative to the rest of the metagame. Grass teams were also blessed with a good physical attacker, capable of benefiting the rest of the team with its Grassy Terrain, boosting Grass-type moves while providing passive recovery and holding the team together by revenge killing faster threats.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

On Fairy, Tapu Bulu had a huge amount of sets it could use, ranging from Choice Band, Choice Scarf and Swords Dance sets, depending on what it was trying to accomplish. On Grass, Tapu Bulu's role was more linear, serving as one of the type's best Choice Scarf users with maybe Choice Band or Swords Dance showing up here and there.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Tapu Bulu had a good Attack stat, allowing it to serve as a formidable offensive threat. Despite its lacking Speed, it also had decent defensive stats, also allowing it to run bulky sets quite well. Its movepool allowed it to run many sets, which it showcased on Fairy throughout time. Choice Band, Choice Scarf, Substitute + Swords Dance + Z-Move/Life Orb/Leftovers were all viable Tapu Bulu sets, with Choice Band and Choice Scarf being popular on Fairy teams earlier on in the metagame. Swords Dance sets with many variations were popularized later on, and could run utility moves such as Disable and Leech Seed to muscle past certain teams. This is of course, coupled with Grassy Terrain, which boosted its team's Grass STAB to powerful levels and provided passive recovery for it and its teammates.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

Kind of depends on the set. Earlier in the generation, many Monotype players ran Baneful Bunker Toxapex, which could avoid the 2hko from Choice Scarf Tapu Bulu's Wood Hammer, and Sludge Wave Mega Swampert, which could outspeed and OHKO Tapu Bulu under rain with minimal chip damage. As Tapu Bulu's sets increased, its checks varied. Many Water teams started carrying Sludge Bomb Toxapex, which stopped Tapu Bulu from setting up Substitute for free, and many Ground teams started running Mega Steelix, which could check Tapu Bulu with its enourmous Defense and Steel typing, while threatening to sweep the rest of the Fairy team. Faster Pokemon such as Greninja, Mega Charizard Y, and Landorus-I easily checked Tapu Bulu due to its middling speed.
 
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twinkay

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Nominating Toxapex



What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Toxapex is and has been the premier defensive Pokemon of the generation. Toxapex's amazing list of defensive attributes include incredible bulk, reliable recovery, Scald, Toxic Spikes, Haze and Regenerator, thus creating an amazingly sturdy defensive wall that cemented itself as a staple on both Water and Poison teams since the beginning of the generation. Because of this, Toxapex has driven a large portion of metagame trends ever since the start of the generation: for example, Psychic Fangs M-Sharpedo, Psychium Z Volcarona, Disable Tapu Bulu, Facade Mega Scizor, and the gradual downfall of Azumarill, to name a few.

As for what Pokemon Toxapex counters, it is more of question of what Pokemon it doesn't counter. Because of Toxapex's wide variety of defensive tools and bulk, it can usually threaten what was usually used to check it. It can check set-up sweepers through Haze, physical attackers through Scald, and weak attackers through Recover spam + Toxic chip. Several types, such as Grass, Steel, Bug, and more niche types like Fire and Fighting often find themselves struggling to break this Pokemon.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?


Toxapex @ Black Sludge
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Scald / Sludge Bomb
- Recover
- Toxic Spikes / Toxic / Sludge Bomb
- Haze / Baneful Bunker


The typical tried-and-true defensive set. Although this set has consistently remained the most popular and successful throughout the entirety of SM, the set did undergo several changes throughout the course of the generation. Sludge Bomb started to gain a lot of popularity on Water later on for its ability to beat Tapu Bulu and pressure Fairy and Grass better in general. Haze has also outclassed Baneful Bunker pretty heavily for a slot by the end of the generation, making Baneful Bunker a mostly obscure move to see. Otherwise, there is not much to say about this set, because it is self-explanatory. Use Scald to fish for burns, Toxic Spikes to pressure switch-ins, and Haze to not fall victim to set-up sweepers.




Toxapex @ Icium Z
Ability: Regenerator
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 SpD
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Haze
- Recover
- Toxic Spikes / Toxic / Sludge Bomb
- Scald / Sludge Bomb


This is a newer set that helps bypass common stallbreakers that would usually threaten out Toxapex. Z-Haze allows Pex to do two key things: Haze through Taunt against set-up sweepers like Keldeo and fully recover its HP, which can be very useful if a sweeper or wallbreaker gets out of hand. The primary downside to this set, is of course, that if takes up a Z slot for the team, but for teams that don’t have one, it is certainly a viable option.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

There were several reasons Toxapex was able to stand out as a defensive Pokemon. Here are a few:
  • Reliable recovery + Regenerator. Access to both Recover and Regenerator made Toxapex extremely durable and able to easily last the whole match if played right. Regenerator is especially useful in the defensive cores Toxapex forms, because it can easily pivot out into another defensive Pokemon and pivot back in if Pex needs to gain health without choosing a move.
  • Good defensive movepool. While it would be exaggerating to say that Toxapex's movepool is anything special, it certainly is good enough to become a very good defensive Pokemon. Scald is probably the best "defensive" attack in the game and can result in very easily burning the opponent when combined with Toxapex's durability. Toxic Spikes is great to pressure opposing teams that don't appreciate being worn down and has great synergy with set-up sweepers like Suicune or Curse Alolan Muk that appreciate not having to directly attack the opponent. Haze is amazing for a defensive Pokemon because it prevents Toxapex from being set-up bait and can easily prevent a sweep from a Kommo-o, Porygon-Z, Jirachi, etc. if played right.
  • Ability to form great defensive cores. Although Toxapex is good on its own, the defensive cores it is able to form on its respective types are downright amazing. The infamous Poison defensive core of Mega Venusaur / Toxapex / Alolan Muk transformed the type from a middling position in ORAS to a top type in SM. Toxapex is also the reason Balance Water is so dominant in the SM metagame, because it forms great cores with virtually every defensive Pokemon: Mantine, Swampert, Rotom-Wash, Lanturn, and more!
How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

  • Psychic-types.
Psychic-types, such as Jirachi on Steel, Meloetta on Normal, Latios on Dragon, and Mew on Psychic are able to pressure Toxapex with their high-power STAB Psychic attacks. These are usually the most consistent answers to Toxapex because they usually don't fear Scald damage or burns and don't need to set up to deal enough damage to it. However, Toxapex can pressure these switch-ins by setting up Toxic Spikes.
  • Ground-types.
Ground-types, such as the Landos, Diggersby, and Nidoking, can reliably break through Toxapex and threaten it out. Mainly, they have to be wary of Scald, since it could affect their damage output pretty heavily if they decide to switch into it.

  • Substitute / Taunt Sweepers.
Pokemon that run Substitute or Taunt, such as SubCM Jirachi, SubDisable Tapu Bulu, Suicune, and CM + Taunt Keldeo can easily take advantage of Toxapex's week damage output and beat it one-on-one.

  • Super-Effective Coverage.
Pokemon who run super-effectice Psychic (and the rare Ground) coverage can usually beat Toxapex or use surprise factor to overwhelm it. Toxapex is usually the main cause of these types of lures, which is why they commonly are used to take care of Pex (as well as some other Pokemon such as Mega Venusaur) if the team would struggle with it otherwise.
 
Nominating : Deoxys-Speed




What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

In gen7, types like Water, Flying and Poison rose in usage owing to the introduction of meta-altering pokemon like Celesteela, Toxapex and Alolan-Muk. Especially the latter which usually trapped your scarfer in latios/latias and made it easier for a pokemon like nihilego or nidoking to take down your walls without the fear of getting ruthlessly revenge killed.
>This is where Deoxys-speed comes in, it essentially comes packing a choice scarf with its stellar speed and its coverage is second to none in this speed tier. Depending on what you want to achieve this pokemon can essentially counterteam some of the biggest and most common types used in the gen7monotype metagame which made the Psychic type a lot more fun to use as it almost felt like a gamble every time you lock in a team with Deoxys-Speed. On the other hand it can be used as suicide lead very much like Aerodactyl is used on flying. Not too forget it packs the powerful Psycho Boost (only 2nd to Prismatic Laser and Z moves) which still makes using deoxys-speed worthwhile even when you mispredict the matchup. Usual items used on it are Focus Sash, Life Orb or PsychiumZ.
>>I believe it has eased a lot of casual players into more competitive battling as deoxys-speed's sets are simple, easy to use and rather straight forward while still having a pretty darn good chance of winning games.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

As a suicide lead it does the simple job of denying opposing hazards, setting your own and getting off a powerful Psycho Boost before dying. It can also be a paint to kill as not all teams carry priority and scarfers with speed above base 104. It could sets\ up screens and hazards, giving a pokemon like victini, latias, jirachi an easier time to set up and go for a quick sweep.
As I have previously discussed this Pokemon can do it all on offensive side, for example Water ( Energy Ball, Thunderbolt and Punch), Flying ( Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Rock Slide, Ice and Thunder Punch), Steel ( Fire Punch, Superpower, Stomping Tantrum) and Normal(Knock Off, Superpower).
I have not tried for all types but I would not be surprised if it had the coverage to counter every single type. While it also gets Extreme Speed, I doubt Deoxys-SPEED has much use for it.

What caused it to have a significant impact?
It has stopped the tyranny of Toxapex and Celesteela and gave more options on Psychic Monotype. Pokemon like Victini and Latios are often in 50/50 guessing games with these pokemon, however with deoxys-speed can totally eliminate this situation. Fantastic offensive movepool combined with Nasty Plot and Life Orb has made it possible for Deoxys-Speed to shred common defensive cores such as that of Flying, Water, Ground, and Steel. It's great natural speed also gives you the upperhand in matches against offensive types such as Dragon, Electric and Fairy(without mimikyu). Its bulk is often assumed to be paper thin but it has respectable 50/90/90 defenses which for example allow it to take a banded Extreme Speed from a Dragonite after rocks.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?
Deoxys-Speed still struggles massively against bulky dark types such as Alolan-Muk and Mega Sableye which you generally cannot dent unless your opponent lets you set up ridiculously. It can be revenged by powerful scarfers such as Latios, Greninja and his usual teammate Sharpedo. After a few Life Orb HP drops, it gets revengable by priority users like Mega Scizor or Mimikyu.


You require support from teammates such as Victini or Mega Gallade and Latios for Alolan-Muk and Mega Sableye respectively. Knock off is usually the usual best scenario you will see for a Deoxys-Speed vs Alolan-Muk matchup but in most cases you will just be set up fodder as you probably will not be able to dent them.
Mega Sableye walls you through and through, like with Alolan-Muk you might be set up fodder for the Calm Mind Set and the best you can realistically do is switch out or hit it as hard as possible and hope a teammate revenges.



Unlike Latias, Latios can actually OHKO Non-Lead Deoxys-Speed with a descent roll on the Draco Meteor(81.3% chance to OHKO).
The average scarf Greninja carries U-Turn and potentially Dark Pulse both which easily revenge Deoxys-Speed.
Mega Sharpedo is undeniably a massive threat to all psychic teams and it is a tad unfortunate that Deoxys-Speed is just outsped by Max Speed +1 Mega Sharpedo, however if you manage to calculate and confirm that they are Adamant-natured Deoxys-Speed can still save you!


While it is true that Deoxys-Speed learns Fire Punch, it is not commonly used owing to the presence of Victini and so it can give way to Mega Scizor to get a free Swords Dance in and prepare to sweep.
Psychic has a rough time with Mimikyu and with it's natural special bulk it can easily set up all over you and clean your team or knock you out with a Shadow Sneak.
 

mushamu

God jihyo
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Nominating Mantine


What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Mantine's effect on the metagame consists of a good special wall and Defogger on both Water and Flying teams. Many Pokemon ran coverage to specifically hit Mantine with its rise to relevance, although it is less common in Monotype to this day. On Water teams, it was able to provide a Ground immunity and Grass neutrality, allowing it to check threats such as Choice locked Excadrill, Celebi, and switch into Mega Venusaur. On Flying, its Water typing, coupled with Water Absorb and its phenomenal bulk allowed it to check huge threats such as Choice Specs Hydreigon, Choice Scarf Greninja, and Azumarill for the team, making it a good option on both types.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Mantine's main role on both types was as a Defog user and special wall. Using its bulk, defensive typing, and access to reliable recovery, Mantine is capable of fitting easily into defensive cores on both types. It could also function as a Haze user, allowing it to check Pokemon such as Azumarill, Refresh Mega Latias, and other setup sweepers by nullifying their boosts.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Mantine's good defensive typing and ability in Water Absorb, coupled with its access to Defog, made Mantine a good option on both types. Balanced Flying teams generally liked carrying two Defog users because of the type's weakness to Stealth Rock, and Mantine easily took up one of them. Alongside all of these good traits, Mantine's access to reliable recovery in Roost is what mainly caused it to soar in relevance from what it was in ORAS: bad.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

Most of the metagame dealt with Mantine by running coverage to hit it, mostly Electric-type coverage. Thunderbolt Nidoking, along with Hidden Power Electric Mega Charizard Y, Greninja and Volcarona were all used to adapt to this Pokemon's presence in the metagame. Alongisde this, stallbreakers such as Hydreigon and Mew also dealt with Mantine very well. Some Pokemon such as Keldeo and Kommo-O also ran Taunt in order to prevent Mantine from using Haze against their boosts. Much like any other wall, Mantine also hates status conditions, namely Toxic.
 
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mushamu

God jihyo
is a Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Former Smogon Metagame Tournament Circuit Champion
Nominating Zeraora


What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Zeraora came to the surface on Electric as an amazing physical attacker after it was introduced. Before, the type had to rely on suboptimal physical attackers such as Thundurus and Alolan Golem to break down types such as Normal. Zeraora brought a faster physical attacker to the table, making the type less reliant on Electric Terrain for breaking, while itself could outspeed faster threats to Electric such as Mega Lopunny. Zeraora's introduction was one of the main points that made Electric a much better type than what it was in ORAS.
In what main roles was Pokemon used?

Zeraora was initially used as a Choice Band user that was capable of wallbreaking off of the bat when it was released. Bulk Up sets were explored, but never really caught on when it was first introduced. However, time flew by and Z-Bounce sets came into play, which allows Zeraora to take on bulky Grass-type Pokemon such as Mega Venusaur and Tapu Bulu, while serving as a threatening setup sweeper.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Zeraora's blazing Speed combined with its good Attack stat allows it to be a potent physical threat. Its good coverage options in Knock Off, Bounce, and Close Combat further supports this, and Zeraora itself synergizes with the rest of the Electric team quite well. Pokemon such as Tapu Koko and Alolan Raichu help Zeraora by easily breaking through Pokemon such as Gliscor and Swampert that would otherwise check it, while Zeraora beats specially Pokemon for the rest of the team such as Chansey and Alolan Muk. Tapu Koko supported it with its Electric Terrain, and the entire Electric team could bring it in safely with Volt Switch pivoting.
How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

Ground-type Pokemon such as Swampert, Hippowdon, and Gliscor were generally good stops to Zeraora. Because of its lackluster bulk, Zeraora is also easily revenge killed by faster Choice Scarf users such as Latios, Nihilego, and Terrakion.

BuLaiDeng please finish your submission
 
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Nominating Heatran

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What effect did Pokemon have on the metagame?

Heatran's effect on the metagame comes in the form of being an unquestioned staple on steel. It's role as the universal fire check has allowed steel to be a top type since gen 4. Fire types have been forced to adapt to it if they want to break steel's impressive defensive core. Variations of steel have warped the metagame in their own way, but none of them would work without Heatran.

In what main roles was Pokemon used?
Again, Heatran is used on steel as the universal fire check, making it the most important staple on the type, as no other pokemon can do its job. It is also used as a check to some of the scariest walls in the tier, including celesteela and chansey. Without Heatran, steel would be forced to sack a pokemon every time band Victini or specs fire blast Hydreigon came in, and would need to run bad pokemon in order to have a chance in the metagame. On fire it is used as an all around good Pokemon that can check walls like chansey with Taunt + Magma storm. Heatran's role on fire is far less important in this nomination, so I will be covering it less.

What caused it to have a significant impact?

Heatran's ability flash fire, along with the important typing of steel/fire, gave it the tools it needed to become a staple in our metagame. Unlike other top types, steel has only one pokemon that can reliably fill this role. This makes its impact far greater than a Pokemon like Swampert on water. Many matchups are completely defined by "how long does Heatran live", and will end if heatran dies. These matchups can include Psychic, Bug, Steel, Dragon, Dark, and Fire. This is due to the ability of choiced attackers with fire moves being able to 5-0 steel without heatran present, as the defensive cores of steel heavily lean on Heatran to take fire type moves.

How do/did you deal with this Pokemon in Monotype?

Common Adaptations:
Charcoal/FiriumZ Victini, Focus Blast Mega Charizard Y, Hidden Power Ground Volcarona, Earth Power Kyurem-B, Stone Edge Heatran, Rock Tomb Garchomp

For the most part, Heatran is not hard to deal with for most types. Its weaknesses to water, fighting, and especially ground make it rather easy to break through. Heatrans lack of recovery allows to to be worn down, so even pokemon like band Victini will eventually kill it with prediction bolt strikes. This in no way takes away from heatran's importance on steel, as the type would completely fall off without its presence.
 
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mushamu

God jihyo
is a Tutor Alumnusis a Site Content Manager Alumnusis a Community Leader Alumnusis a Community Contributor Alumnusis a Top Tiering Contributor Alumnusis a Contributor Alumnusis a Smogon Media Contributor Alumnusis a Battle Simulator Moderator Alumnusis a Former Smogon Metagame Tournament Circuit Champion
Now, voting shall begin. Here’s how voting will work: you will vote for one pokemon from the list of nominees for that particular place. Each two or three days, we will move on to the next most influential.

Greninja
Celesteela
Tapu Koko
Alolan Muk
Magearna
Tapu Bulu
Victini
Azumarill
Toxapex
Kommo-O
Gothitelle
Deoxys-S
Medicham-Mega
Mantine
Zeraora
Heatran


My vote for #1 goes to Toxapex.
 

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