Good Eeveening again! As promised, here is the second part of
Eeveeto Viability Ranking Speculation. If someone did not read the first, here is it:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/threa...n-thread-spoilers.3671228/page-3#post-8613605 .
So, lets get this done!
Galarian Slowking (assuming same Stats of Galarian Bro, but with defensive and ofensive Stats flipped. Assuming Regenerator too): B rank. Regenerator is always good and with defensive Stats to back it up, Slowking is ready to check Clefable, Bulu and with an AV, even Naganadel, if it dares to stay in OU. Now, the typing is not really that good, with common weaknesses to Ground, Dark and Ghost on top of the lack of resistances. Still, it at least is inmune to Toxic and another discouragement to Tspikes. The new exclusive move of Galarian Slowking will certainly be useful in balanced and Stall teams to deal damage and drain PPs at the same time.
Electivire: D rank. Unlike Zeraora, it can do high damage to Lando-T and Chomp with Ice Punch. And that it. Lacks power, lacks speed and lacks bulk, its infinite coverage is the only thing going for it. Just like it was released in DPP, its still very bad.
Magmortar: C- rank. Most of the time, you will want to use Heatran, Rotom-H or Volcarona. However, it has better coverage than all of them, and unlike Electivire, it does have the power to back it up, hence the higher ranking. It gained Scorching Sands, so it does not have to risk a miss anymore or use a physical move in order to hit Heatran.
Uxie: C- rank. No Mega Medicham to check in Volturn Teams anymore hinder its niche there. No recovery sucks for such a bulky Mon. The rest of its support movepool is nice though, having Rocks, TW, Trick, Trick Room and Memento, it just can,t fit all of those at once.
Mesprit: D rank. Probably someone can make it work due to its diverse movepool, but that typing still sucks and almost every thing it does, some other Mon does better.
Azelf: C rank. Suicide lead. Faster than Mew, but that is. Unlike Aero, can surprise someone by using Trick, NP, etc.
Dialga and Palkia: Ubers. They gained Body Press and I hope Dialga gains Steel Beam too.
Heatran: A rank. A good moment to retest Arena Trap. Seriously, fuck this thing, the Meta is better without it. As I can,t convince the council to ban it, we will have to learn to deal it in another gen... Heatran lost Z Moves but gained Scorching Sand to burn even more and Body Press to totally destroy trapped Chansey and Blisseys. Now, why don,t I put it in A+ rank or even S? Well, Zygarde exists and I hope it stays in OU to keep this monster at check. Traditional checks like Gyarados, Chomp, Gastro and rain in general are present in the Tier too, so there is counterplay. Boots are an item that allows some of the checks to switch more easily into Tran, so there is that.
Regigigas: C- rank. Gaining Rest (and Protect and Body Press I guess) is huge for this monster. Its really bulky, so without a fight move it will be quite hard to take down. Can,t wait to try it out with a Restalk set + Body Slam + Knock Off.
Giratina (both formes): Uber. Slower but way better Dragapult. It gained POLTERGEIST to basically murder everything that does not resist it.
Cresselia: C rank. Did it have Stored Power before? Not that it matters, it would still be C rank without it. Unlike Uxie, it has Recovery, even though its only Moonlight. Lunar Dance is an amazing move (that probably was boosted this Gen like Healing Wish) and I can see Cresselia with a nice niche on Sun and TR teams (and why not both?). Can also be a CM sweeper, but Reuniclus usually will be better at that. Lack of Pursuit is another benefit Cress got this gen.
Victini: B+ rank. Look, an actual good Scarfer! As always, Victini has 4948394834 ways to murder all your team and now you can,t Pursuit it after sacking one Mon to V Create. Boots sets will probably be viable too, since Victini despised hazards and chip damage in general. No Megas and Z Moves mean Trick is almost always free. I can see a bright future for one of my favourite Mons to use in OU.
Audino: C- rank. Regenerator makes everything viable I guess. Has Wish, Knock, Heal Bell, Healing Wish and Trick Room... but 1 resistance and 0 offensive presence.
Carracosta: D rank. A slower but way bulkier Kabutops with Shell Smash, so it will outspeed some things when the Rain ends. Usually you should just stick to the Kanto fossil though.
Archeops: C rank. I used it last Gen without an item in OU, and it did hit hard. Now, without HP Ice it can,t damage Landorus-T... or can it?
+1 4 SpA Archeops Meteor Beam vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Landorus-Therian: 258-304 (67.5 - 79.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery . It can then use Acrobatics to clean the rest of the opposing team later in the battle. Archeops might have bad bulk and a terrible ability, but it at least has both the offensive Stats and the movepool to be a respectable threat in the hands of experienced players.
Cryogonal: D rank. A faster but frailer on the phisical side Articuno. Well, it does remove hazards and outspeed Chomp, so can,t put it in E.
Tornadus-I: D rank. Despite hitting harder, its almost entirely outclassed by the T variant due to the lower speed and lack of Regenerator. If Tornadus-T is banned, I can see this guy having a niche with NP sets on Rain.
Tornadus-T:
S rank, possibly Uber. No, its not for Boots, since in previous Gens Tornadus-T was a very common Knock Off absorber and Pex switch-in. Nasty Plot is the real deal here. With Regenerator and high power moves (Hurricane, Focus Blast and Heat Wave) it can damage the opposing team, tank some moves, switch out and wait its moment to clean. Old sets like AV or just fast pivoting Defoguer are still very viable, giving Tornadus even more versatility. It does have counterplay in the form of Electrics, but only Zapdos and Koko (which might be banned too) have reliable recovery.
Thundurus-I: C rank. As almost every electric, the lack of Hidden Power are very bad news for it. Mixed variants with Defiant are still strong though, and on Rain teams it can use NP + Weatherball to break. Still, Zapdos usually will be the better choice.
Thundurus-T: C rank. Same story here. Trades Speed for actual defensive utility, since the same HP Ice than it can,t use, can,t be used now by other electrics to hit it.
Landorus-I: Uber. Ok, it can,t use HP Ice to kill itself... but no one can use HP Ice to kill it. The rest is the same as in previous gens, nothing changed. It still murders almost all the Meta with its power and huge coverage.
Landorus-T: A+ rank. Lost Z Moves and HP Ice... which means that Lando vs Lando battles are going to be funny. A very good pivoting check in Corviknight appeared to make his life harder. Buzzwole and Tangrowth now don,t fear it, since it won,t be running Fly often. Still, Lando will have a multitude of sets ranging from Defensive Pivot and Scarf to Double Dance and Gravity. Landorus-T will still be one of the best Mons in the Meta, just not as dominating as in last Gen.
Genesect: Uber. I doubted a little about it last Gen, but not this one. The HP Fire loss is a huge improvement for him.
Tyrantrum: B- rank. Band Head Smash will tear appart every team without Rock resists and it has coverage for some of the Rock Resists, meaning the dino will have very few true counters, such as Hippowdon. Now, with that typing switching it into will be hard, hence just B- rank. It gained Close Combat to hit almost all the Steels btw.
Aurorus: C- rank. Hail is love, hail is life. Unfortunately, we have other 3 hail setters to choose from. This one is the only one with Rocks and Thunder Wave though.
Carbink: E rank. Sturdy + TR is the only thing it can do that Diancie can,t. Thats not enough.
Xerneas and Yveltal: Ubers.
Zygarde 100%: Uber too.
Zygarde 10%: C- rank. Higher speed is the only thing it has over the 50% version. Of course, it could rise a little if Zygarde 50% gets banned.
Zygarde 50%: A+ rank. Last Gen I voted it to be banned, but only because I wanted the Meta to change, since I never thought it was broken or unhealthy. There had been too many months without a single Suspect, so I took advantage of the first one that came up. Now, Zygarde lost this Gen the Z Moves, which makes the DD sets (that used Groundium, Steelium and Dragonium Z) much worse. However, HP Ice disappeared too, which makes it easier for Sub Coil sets to boost on walls like Lando and Tangrowth. All in all, I think Zygarde will be a better Mon in SS OU than it was at the time it was banned in SM. Good enough to be banned? I don,t think so. In my opinion, there is enough counterplay both offensively and defensively. Clefable is the most common Mon right now, being a really good check. Slowbro can adapt by using Ice Beam. Hippowdon can use Whirlwind, Tangrowth Grass Knot to break the Sub, Bulu and Boomer are good ground resists in general. Avalugg is better now than in SM due to Boots, gained Icicle Spear too. Buzzwole will be a thing, whether Zygarde is around or not. Dragapult bypasses the Sub thanks to Infiltrator Of course, it can hax its way with Glare... but Togekiss can do the same with Serene Grace and no one wants it banned. So, I think is definetely possible and not very hard to adapt the teambuilding in the Zygarde meta.
Diancie: C rank. Nice chek for dangerous threats such as Volcarona and Galarian Moltres. Has a decent movepool, gaining Mystical Fire, Body Press, Meteor Beam and Misty Explosion this gen. If it had recovery, it could have been a really good Mon, instead of a niche one as it is now.
Volcanion: B rank. Boots are a nice improvement for this big threat. It also gained Body Press, so the pink blob can,t switch as well into it as before. Still hard to fit into teams, but that is why its B rank and not higher.
Tapu Koko: A+ rank, possibly Uber. Rising Voltage made this a huge threat. It also gained CC, Play Rough and Misty Explosion for Screen Sets. Very few Mons can switch into all his moves, however it will still need prediction to actually sweep. Right now I think it will be too much for OU, but I might very well be wrong on this one.
Tapu Lele: Uber. No doubts on this one. 2HKOs literally all the Meta with some move. Didn,t gain Mystical Fire, but doesn,t even need it with Expanding Force being so ridicoulosly strong. Still has coverage for every Steel out there, while all darks die to Moonblast. Skuntank and Drapion are included there, while Alolan Muk won,t be released yet.
Tapu Bulu: A+ rank. I don,t think Play Rough is an improvement, though it will have some use. Grassy Glide and CC however are another story. Bulu will be better than Boomer, but not outclassing it, since our Monkey is faster and has U-Turn, Knock Off and Acrobatics to distinguish from the legend. They can be used together to form Grass SPAM cores, with Boomer being banded and Bulu a SD sweeper.
Tapu Fini: B rank. Was nerfed due to Defog removing its own Terrain now. Knock Off SPAM hurts it too, though the lack of Megas and Z Moves make Trick easier to use. Flip Turn and Misty Explosion are nice moves it gained, so it can still be used as a Defoguer in Volturn teams, just nos as good as before.
Nihilego: C+ rank. I liked this a Specs user in SM. And probably will still like it, though now its worse due to losing Hidden Power. Can,t OHKO either Lando or Scizor anymore. On the other hand, it still checks flying types and breaks teams without Rock resists, being the best special Rock in the Meta. Meteor Beam can be an option on HO teams.
Buzzwole: B+ rank. Urshifu, Zygarde, Landorus-T, Kartana, Garchomp, Bulu... it checks so many things with that weird defensive typing. Without Z Moves, breaking Buzzwole becomes way harder this Gen.
Pheromosa: Uber. Nothing changed.
Xurkitree: C+ rank. Lost HP Ice and Z Moves, but due to Teleport being a thing, switching it in becomes easier. Still a very hard to use Mon.
Celesteela: C rank. Defensively its outclassed by Corviknight, besides having Leech Seed. However, that typing its still amazing and it can be used with Band, Specs or Automize offensively. There is still hope for Celesteela.
Kartana: A rank. Losing Z Moves has been both a curse and a blessing for this Ultra Beast. Granted, it can,t break Zapdos anymore with Z Giga Impact (or even Band Return, which it also lost), but those Band Knock Offs will damage everything harder than in SM. SD and Defog sets will still be viable and Kartana now won,t have to fear random HP Fires from Hippowdon or Ferrothorn, which is a plus.
Guzzlord: D rank. Only avoids the E rank because that HP and Movepool is hard to ignore.
Naganadel: A+ rank, possibly Uber. Clearly worse than last Gen. Can,t break Heatran nearly as easily without Dragonium Z. Are we going to use Heatran in every team to avoid losing to this, though? Its Hydreigon (which is very hard to counter currently) but better and harder to Revenge Kill.
Stakataka: C+ rank. Another Mon that needed Z Moves to succeed in OU. Not everything is lost, though, since it gained both Heat Crash and Body Press, powerful moves that take advantage of its enourmous weight and Defense. I can see it working.
Blacephalon: B+ rank. Like Kartana, losing Z Moves helped it as much as hurted. Now it can cripple switch-ins with Trick. Solarbeam (with Power Herb) and Scorching Sands are notable moves it gained, among with Boots and lack of Pursuit. Checking this clown will be way harder than in SM.
Calyrex: E rank. Almost no information is known, but since Celebi with that typing, decent stats and huge movepool is C-/D rank in my head, this one is unlikely to be better, so it goes to E. Totally deserved rank for such an abomination.
Thats all, hopefully you have enjoyed my Eeveeto Viability Ranking Speculation, the next edition is going to be when DPP remakes come out. Enjoy the meta until then!