Metagame SM Monotype Metagame Discussion

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Let me just say something about its bulk: it has none. Those 110 defenses may surprise you, but 50 hp leaves it piss poor to anything that isn't a resisted hit. Even something like an Energy Ball from Chandelure will leave it with almost no HP or knock it out completley. Due to this, it isn't switching in on anything besides like, Mega Sableye and Skarmory not carrying Iron head.

I don't know why people are saying Mega Diancie is broken. Without Magearna, Fairy is so much easier to handle because it now only has Fairy to take poison attacks. In my eyes Mega Diancie is just what Rock needed and a lackluster replacement for Magearna.
This is untrue. Yes, 50/110/110 bulk is not the greatest, but it is still viable enough for Diancie to take a hit or two. However, there are 2 issues with this notion. 1. Diancie has methods of improving those defenses with Diamond Storm, Calm Mind, Sand (provided by Hippowdon on Ground, Tyranitar on Dark, or Tyranitar on the same team as Diancie on Rock), or by Klefki with its infamous prankster screens. 2. Diancie has amazing mixed offensive stats that generally allow Diancie to only have to tank one (maybe two) hits in order to take out the opponents Pokemon. Also consider that if Diancie comes in to revenge kill a pokemon before it starts it's sweep, Diancie gets a free 50% chance to double its defense. Also consider Diancie's critical speed tier at 110 which gives it ample opportunity to outspeed and set up on the walls that would normally take it out.

4 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Muk-Alola: 207-244 (50 - 58.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Muk-Alola Poison Jab vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Diancie-Mega: 93-109 (38.5 - 45.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 Atk Muk-Alola Poison Jab vs. +2 0 HP / 0- Def Diancie-Mega: 46-55 (19 - 22.8%) -- possible 5HKO

With that 50% chance to double Diancie's defense, it took Muk's Poison Jab from a 3hko to a 5hko from the standard AV set.

0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 98-116 (40.6 - 48.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 66-78 (27.3 - 32.3%) -- guaranteed 4HKO

While a single calm mind drops Toxapex's Scald down from a 3hko to a 4hko, putting Diancie in a very dangerous position against Poison with a +1 Psychic.

0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 50-60 (20.7 - 24.8%) -- guaranteed 5HKO

Or Diancie could get greedy and set up a second one, falling to around 50% health, but with +2 SpA and SpD, Psychic ohko's everything on Poison, and Nihilego can no longer revenge kill

252 SpA Nihilego Sludge Wave vs. +2 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 72-85 (29.8 - 35.2%) -- 20.2% chance to 3HKO


However, 3 concessions must be made with regard to Diancie's bulk. 1. It's typing is subpar, leaving it majorly vulnerable to pretty much anything carrying a steel move as well as several other weaknesses. 2. With Diamond Storm being such an amazing move, most Diancie's will be running Mixed offenses, meaning that Diancie has to have a - Defensive nature (Generally Hasty, - Def, or Naive, - SpD) which does hurt its bulk. 3. Diancie lacks any good form of recovery, meaning that it has to take hits sparingly as it cannot get its Health back.

As for myself, I am undecided as to whether or not Diancie will be too powerful for this metagame. On paper, it seems like it could be with those dangerous offenses and improvable defenses; however, the metagame has the potential to adapt to its presence. I was apprehensive of Greninja too, but Greninja seems to have found its place in the metagame; maybe Diancie will do the the same.
 

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Diancie's most common counters are ground,water and steel types. Since these types has a lot of common moves, such as eq and iron head, I tried to run some specific calculations to see how it will stand in the metagame. I used most common offensive pokemon that can threathen mega diancie. This list of calculations can go even further, Im pretty sure there are a lot more threats for it.



252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain: 138-164 (57.2 - 68%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain: 152-182 (63 - 75.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain through Reflect with an ally's Aurora Veil: 34-41 (14.1 - 17%) -- possible 9HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery ( This is ridiculous )
+1 252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain: 206-246 (85.4 - 102%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Krookodile: 486-572 (146.8 - 172.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

This is typical scarf krookodile. With the support of tapu bulu, krook can only get some damage on the diancie or get a kill with some luck roll. Nevertheless, diancie can just switch into bulu again.

252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 645-764 (267.6 - 317%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 328-390 (136 - 161.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. +4 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 218-265 (90.4 - 109.9%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 322-382 (133.6 - 158.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 164-195 (68 - 80.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Excadrill: 326-384 (90 - 106%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO

Calced it till +4 to see if it makes any difference, but most likely excadrill will check mega diancie in all aspects. Considering excadrill is ground/steel type, diancie probably wont get any good opportunity to get 3 diamond storm boosts.

252+ Atk Choice Band Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 400-472 (165.9 - 195.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Scizor Bullet Punch vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 204-240 (84.6 - 99.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 300-354 (124.4 - 146.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Scizor: 368-436 (130.9 - 155.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

0 Atk Technician Scizor-Mega Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 340-408 (141 - 169.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 Atk Technician Scizor-Mega Bullet Punch vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 172-208 (71.3 - 86.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Technician Scizor-Mega Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 170-204 (70.5 - 84.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 128 SpD Scizor-Mega: 272-320 (79.3 - 93.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Checked if it can have any advantage versus scizor. Most likely diancie wont get any decent chance to set up +2 defense versus a steel matchup in both fairy and rock teams. Possibly it could set +2 or +4 versus bug matchup but either way it doesnt kill scizor since it has priority.

0 Atk Celesteela Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 480-568 (199.1 - 235.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 Atk Celesteela Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 240-284 (99.5 - 117.8%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela: 110-130 (27.6 - 32.6%) -- 74.6% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Celesteela: 152-180 (38.1 - 45.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

It seems like no matter what happens, celesteela will beat diancie. Might be actually it best counter in the metagame?

252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 432-510 (179.2 - 211.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 216-255 (89.6 - 105.8%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain through Reflect: 107-126 (44.3 - 52.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. +2 0 HP / 0+ Def Diancie-Mega: 198-234 (82.1 - 97%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Mamoswine: 195-231 (54 - 63.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Mamoswine: 271-321 (75 - 88.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery

In ground matchup, diancie will probably wont get any defense up. Homewer it can still benefit from grassy terrain by any luck and manage to live 1 hit. Even then, magearna fails to oneshot jolly mamoswine so its a lost matchup.

0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 108-128 (44.8 - 53.1%) -- 26.2% chance to 2HKO
0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 72-86 (29.8 - 35.6%) -- 25.1% chance to 3HKO
0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 54-66 (22.4 - 27.3%) -- 25.2% chance to 4HKO

+1 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Psychic vs. 252 HP / 64 SpD Toxapex: 242-286 (79.6 - 94%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
+2 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Psychic vs. 252 HP / 64 SpD Toxapex: 322-380 (105.9 - 125%) -- guaranteed OHKO

A calm mind / psychic user mega diancie might threathen poison mono in a dangerous way. After getting 2 boosts, it can 1 shot anything that is in poison teams.

252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 402-474 (166.8 - 196.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 270-318 (112 - 131.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO ( Under Sandstorm / +1 CM )
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 204-240 (84.6 - 99.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 201-237 (83.4 - 98.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 270-318 (112 - 131.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 180-212 (74.6 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 134-162 (55.6 - 67.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 135-159 (56 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Keldeo: 396-468 (122.6 - 144.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Specs Keldeo can beat Diancie easily, but since Diancie can outspeed it with + Speed nature and if that is known, keldeo may rest in peace.
Homewer if its scarf , it might get a kill off diancie only when diancie is unboosted and sandstorm is not active.


252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 254-300 (105.3 - 124.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 168-200 (69.7 - 82.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO ( +1 CM or sandstorm )
252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 127-150 (52.6 - 62.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 84-100 (34.8 - 41.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+3 252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 313-370 (129.8 - 153.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+3 252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 210-247 (87.1 - 102.4%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO

+2 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Manaphy: 363-427 (106.1 - 124.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

In this case diancie needs 2 cm boosts in order to fight with no z raindance manaphy.

My Final Conclusion : Diancie might be a strong pokemon, homewer it heavily relies on the assistance of its teammates in order to fight specific types. It also cant carry all the coverage at once . Possible option being cm / rock polish or psychic , hpfire , diamond storm , moonblast , earth power , it will be weak to some of pokemons I calced above. Diancie mega without hpfire will be just a setup fodder for scizor and such. So I think its perfectly balanced pokemon and it will somehow will fit in the metagame just like greninja.
 
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Diancie's most common counters are ground,water and steel types. Since these types has a lot of common moves, such as eq and iron head, I tried to run some specific calculations to see how it will stand in the metagame. I used most common offensive pokemon that can threathen mega diancie. This list of calculations can go even further, Im pretty sure there are a lot more threats for it.



252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain: 138-164 (57.2 - 68%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain: 152-182 (63 - 75.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain through Reflect with an ally's Aurora Veil: 34-41 (14.1 - 17%) -- possible 9HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery ( This is ridiculous )
+1 252 Atk Krookodile Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain: 206-246 (85.4 - 102%) -- 12.5% chance to OHKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Krookodile: 486-572 (146.8 - 172.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

This is typical scarf krookodile. With the support of tapu bulu, krook can only get some damage on the diancie or get a kill with some luck roll. Nevertheless, diancie can just switch into bulu again.

252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 645-764 (267.6 - 317%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 328-390 (136 - 161.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. +4 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 218-265 (90.4 - 109.9%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 322-382 (133.6 - 158.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 Atk Life Orb Excadrill Iron Head vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 164-195 (68 - 80.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Excadrill: 326-384 (90 - 106%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO

Calced it till +4 to see if it makes any difference, but most likely excadrill will check mega diancie in all aspects. Considering excadrill is ground/steel type, diancie probably wont get any good opportunity to get 3 diamond storm boosts.

252+ Atk Choice Band Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 400-472 (165.9 - 195.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Scizor Bullet Punch vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 204-240 (84.6 - 99.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252+ Atk Choice Band Technician Scizor Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 300-354 (124.4 - 146.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Scizor: 368-436 (130.9 - 155.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

0 Atk Technician Scizor-Mega Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 340-408 (141 - 169.2%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 Atk Technician Scizor-Mega Bullet Punch vs. +2 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 172-208 (71.3 - 86.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
0 Atk Technician Scizor-Mega Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 170-204 (70.5 - 84.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 128 SpD Scizor-Mega: 272-320 (79.3 - 93.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Checked if it can have any advantage versus scizor. Most likely diancie wont get any decent chance to set up +2 defense versus a steel matchup in both fairy and rock teams. Possibly it could set +2 or +4 versus bug matchup but either way it doesnt kill scizor since it has priority.

0 Atk Celesteela Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 480-568 (199.1 - 235.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 Atk Celesteela Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 240-284 (99.5 - 117.8%) -- 93.8% chance to OHKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela: 110-130 (27.6 - 32.6%) -- 74.6% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Celesteela: 152-180 (38.1 - 45.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

It seems like no matter what happens, celesteela will beat magearna. Might be actually it best counter in the metagame?

252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 432-510 (179.2 - 211.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega through Reflect: 216-255 (89.6 - 105.8%) -- 37.5% chance to OHKO
252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega in Grassy Terrain through Reflect: 107-126 (44.3 - 52.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252+ Atk Life Orb Mamoswine Earthquake vs. +2 0 HP / 0+ Def Diancie-Mega: 198-234 (82.1 - 97%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Mamoswine: 195-231 (54 - 63.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Mamoswine: 271-321 (75 - 88.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery

In ground matchup, diancie will probably wont get any defense up. Homewer it can still benefit from grassy terrain by any luck and manage to live 1 hit. Even then, magearna fails to oneshot jolly mamoswine so its a lost matchup.

0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 108-128 (44.8 - 53.1%) -- 26.2% chance to 2HKO
0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 72-86 (29.8 - 35.6%) -- 25.1% chance to 3HKO
0 SpA Toxapex Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 54-66 (22.4 - 27.3%) -- 25.2% chance to 4HKO

+1 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Psychic vs. 252 HP / 64 SpD Toxapex: 242-286 (79.6 - 94%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Black Sludge recovery
+2 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Psychic vs. 252 HP / 64 SpD Toxapex: 322-380 (105.9 - 125%) -- guaranteed OHKO

A calm mind / psychic user mega diancie might threathen poison mono in a dangerous way. After getting 2 boosts, it can 1 shot anything that is in poison teams.

252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 402-474 (166.8 - 196.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 270-318 (112 - 131.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO ( Under Sandstorm / +1 CM )
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 204-240 (84.6 - 99.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Choice Specs Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 201-237 (83.4 - 98.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 270-318 (112 - 131.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 180-212 (74.6 - 87.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. +2 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 134-162 (55.6 - 67.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Keldeo Scald vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 135-159 (56 - 65.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO


252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Keldeo: 396-468 (122.6 - 144.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Specs Keldeo can beat Diancie easily, but since Diancie can outspeed it with + Speed nature and if that is known, keldeo may rest in peace.
Homewer if its scarf , it might get a kill off diancie only when diancie is unboosted and sandstorm is not active.


252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 254-300 (105.3 - 124.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega: 168-200 (69.7 - 82.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO ( +1 CM or sandstorm )
252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 127-150 (52.6 - 62.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 84-100 (34.8 - 41.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
+3 252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 313-370 (129.8 - 153.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
+3 252 SpA Manaphy Surf vs. +1 0 HP / 0- SpD Diancie-Mega through Light Screen: 210-247 (87.1 - 102.4%) -- 18.8% chance to OHKO

+2 252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Manaphy: 363-427 (106.1 - 124.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO

In this case diancie needs 2 cm boosts in order to fight with no z raindance manaphy.

My Final Conclusion : Diancie might be a strong pokemon, homewer it heavily relies on the assistance of its teammates in order to fight specific types. It also cant carry all the coverage at once . Possible option being cm / rock polish or psychic , hpfire , diamond storm , moonblast , earth power , it will be weak to some of pokemons I calced above. Diancie mega without hpfire will be just a setup fodder for scizor and such. So I think its perfectly balanced pokemon and it will somehow will fit in the metagame just like greninja.
I will just beat everyone to the punch, it doesn't mean too much when people simply post useless calcs. For example, Ninetales-Alola does not belong on a Fairy team, so posting a calc including Aurora Veil is irrelevant to the picture.

As for your checks:
- Excadrill usually runs Scarf on Steel, and Band on Ground. And on Ground teams, it is usually Adamant as its speed is doubled due to Hippowdons sand. These calcs are all strange due to that fact. Rarely will you see a neutral-natured Life Orb Excadrill.
- Scizor (I'd venture to say unless your opponent is bad) is ALWAYS technician, thus all of your calcs should be calced with technician on the choice band calcs. And Diancie will never be able to get any sort of advantage on Scizor unless it does have several Diamond Storm boosts, or Band Scizor is locked into another move as Bullet Punch is priority, technician + stab boosted, AND Diancie is 4x weak to it.
- Manaphy on water is almost always ZRain Dance

It seems like no matter what happens, celesteela will beat magearna. Might be actually it best counter in the metagame?
This is for Mega Diancie, not Magearna.

As for your conclusion, you said it yourself, most of Diancie's checks are Water, Steel, or Ground type pokemon. Those are only 3 types out of 18 but what of the other 15 types? I would be more inclined to agree with you if you were show that every type has a solid counter to Diancie that is optimal for the team (this does NOT mean Scarf Hydreigon with Flash Cannon btw). Scizor is most definitely a check to Diancie as, bar HP Fire, it can switch into anything that Diancie has to throw at it. Celesteela is in the same boat. However, with the rest of your checks, they can't reliably switch into Diancie. Krookodile gets ko'd by Moonblast, as does Keldeo, while Manaphy gets 2 shot by it. These are REVENGE KILL checks, at best, not SWITCH INS. If anything, this may be an indication that maybe Diancie is unhealthy for the Meta if it can generally only be revenge killed rather than switched in on.
 

Perish Song

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As for your conclusion, you said it yourself, most of Diancie's checks are Water, Steel, or Ground type pokemon. Those are only 3 types out of 18 but what of the other 15 types? I would be more inclined to agree with you if you were show that every type has a solid counter to Diancie that is optimal for the team (this does NOT mean Scarf Hydreigon with Flash Cannon btw). Scizor is most definitely a check to Diancie as, bar HP Fire, it can switch into anything that Diancie has to throw at it. Celesteela is in the same boat. However, with the rest of your checks, they can't reliably switch into Diancie. Krookodile gets ko'd by Moonblast, as does Keldeo, while Manaphy gets 2 shot by it. These are REVENGE KILL checks, at best, not SWITCH INS. If anything, this may be an indication that maybe Diancie is unhealthy for the Meta if it can generally only be revenge killed rather than switched in on.
Apologies in behalf posting irrevelant / useless calcs. I should've probably posted this for every type and evaluate the situation more carefully. It is my first time posting somewhere and I was a bit nervous. Thanks for the correction.

Normal :

There will be always a scarf ditto to outspeed it. Just posting one basic calc to see it.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 212-250 (87.9 - 103.7%) -- 25% chance to OHKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 212-250 (87.9 - 103.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO after Stealth Rock
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 212-250 (87.9 - 103.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO after 1 layer of Spikes ( If any crazy people uses spikes diggersby or smeargle )

There are chansey and porygon 2 to outstall with recovery moves.

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Chansey: 216-255 (30.7 - 36.2%) -- 54.5% chance to 3HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Eviolite Chansey: 115-136 (16.3 - 19.3%) -- possible 6HKO

Chansey Seismic Toss vs. 0 HP Diancie-Mega: 100-100 (41.4 - 41.4%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Eviolite Porygon2: 127-150 (33.9 - 40.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Porygon2: 84-100 (22.4 - 26.7%) -- 26.9% chance to 4HKO

0 SpA Porygon2 Ice Beam vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 62-74 (25.7 - 30.7%) -- guaranteed 4HKO ( Bolt does same damage)

The 2 defensive pokemons can switch into it pretty much freely and outstall with recover. Ditto here just revenge kills it with choice scarf set, also threathening diancie in all aspects in terms of boosting. If ditto manages to switch in a boosted mega diancie, it can pretty much sweep the rest of team or get at least 2-3 more pokemons with it.

Flying :

Celesteela. I posted this one's calcs above but reposting here just to show more detailed.

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Celesteela: 159-187 (39.9 - 46.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela: 65-77 (16.3 - 19.3%) -- possible 8HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Celesteela: 110-130 (27.6 - 32.6%) -- 74.6% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Calcs of standart spdef celesteela is above. It can pretty much freely switch into any diancie set and manage to 1 shot it.

0 Atk Celesteela Heavy Slam (120 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 480-568 (199.1 - 235.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Skarmory is not a counter but checking well the non hp fire diancies.

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 248 HP / 252+ Def Skarmory: 93-109 (27.9 - 32.7%) -- guaranteed 4HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Skarmory: 120-141 (36 - 42.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Skarmory: 204-240 (61.2 - 72%) -- guaranteed 2HKO ( Cant switch in)

0 Atk Skarmory Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 268-316 (111.2 - 131.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Dragon :

No dragon type can switch into moonblast / diamond storm freely.


Bug :

All variants ( Bulky , Mega , Band ) scizors proceeds to oneshot diancie with bullet punch . It can also switch into most of its moves freely except for hpfire.

Forretress. This is another soft check that can switch into diancie that doesnt carry hpfire.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Forretress: 174-205 (49.1 - 57.9%) -- 59% chance to 2HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Forretress: 93-109 (26.2 - 30.7%) -- 4% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Forretress: 137-162 (38.7 - 45.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery

4 Atk Forretress Gyro Ball (76 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 280-336 (116.1 - 139.4%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Grass :

Venusaur Mega

Switchs into anything but psychic. Full spdef venusaur fails to get a kill with a giga drain, if you run mixed saur it is a roll for 2 hko.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Psychic vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Venusaur-Mega: 146-174 (40.2 - 47.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Thick Fat Venusaur-Mega: 50-60 (13.7 - 16.5%) -- possible 7HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 248 HP / 252+ SpD Venusaur-Mega: 57-68 (15.7 - 18.7%) -- possible 6HKO
0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 248 HP / 0 Def Venusaur-Mega: 136-162 (37.4 - 44.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Ferrothorn .

No need calcs for this. Both gyro ball and power whip can 1 shot diancie from full hp. Homewer cannot switch into hpfire.

Dark :

Tyranitar . Only pokemon that can actually switch into diancie under specific circumstances that we dont see often in monotype.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Tyranitar in Sand: 162-192 (40 - 47.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO

Ground :

Not doing this since anything can pretty much oneshot diancie in this type.

Dragon :

Goodra can barely switch into mega diancie.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Assault Vest Goodra: 170-204 (44.2 - 53.1%) -- 23.4% chance to 2HKO
0 Atk Goodra Iron Tail vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 268-316 (111.2 - 131.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Ice :

Nothing can switch into mega diancie safely, everything is either OHKO or 2HKO.

Electric :

Only mon to switch in freely is air balloon magnezone if ever it switches into an earth power.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 132 HP / 0 SpD Magnezone: 500-592 (159.2 - 188.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO
252 SpA Magnezone Flash Cannon vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Diancie-Mega: 484-576 (200.8 - 239%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Fairy :

Klefki.

Can pretty much switch in freely, can set up screens easily .

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Klefki: 180-214 (56.6 - 67.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery.
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Klefki through Light Screen: 90-107 (28.3 - 33.6%) -- 98% chance to 4HKO after Leftovers recovery

Unless a player gets a double max roll, klefki is 3HKO in case of a switch. That gives good opportunity to other teammates for a revenge kill.

Mimikyu.

While disguise is active, it can always switch into mega diancie. But cant get any significant damage up .

252 Atk Life Orb Mimikyu Play Rough vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 138-164 (57.2 - 68%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Mimikyu: 195-231 (77.6 - 92%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 0 HP / 4 SpD Mimikyu: 174-205 (69.3 - 81.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

Poison :

Weezing . Immune to earth power, takes low damage from diamond storm / hpfire and moonblast. Cant switch into psychic homewer.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Weezing: 121-143 (36.2 - 42.8%) -- 97.2% chance to 3HKO after Black Sludge recovery
0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 252 HP / 148+ Def Weezing: 111-132 (33.2 - 39.5%) -- 18.7% chance to 3HKO after Black Sludge recovery

No other poison type can switch into diancie without getting 2HKOed.

Fighting :

No fighting pokemon can switch into diancie's moonblast.

Psychic :

Bronzong . Best option for psychic to switch into diancie mega. Gyroball is guaranteed hit, immune to earth power, resists diamond storm, psychic and moonblast.

0 Atk Bronzong Gyro Ball (126 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 456-540 (189.2 - 224%) -- guaranteed OHKO

0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 252 HP / 4 Def Bronzong: 72-84 (21.3 - 24.8%) -- possible 6HKO after Leftovers recovery
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Bronzong: 59-69 (17.4 - 20.4%) -- possible 7HKO after Leftovers recovery

Metagross . Slightly spdef invested metagross can switch into freely with the help of shuca berry and kill it with bullet punch .

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 236 HP / 0 SpD Shuca Berry Metagross: 125-148 (34.7 - 41.1%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 236 HP / 0 SpD Metagross: 250-296 (69.4 - 82.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

96+ Atk Metagross Bullet Punch vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 244-292 (101.2 - 121.1%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Wishpass jirachi.

Capable of tanking earth power and outstall with wishspam and oneshot it with iron head.

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Earth Power vs. 248 HP / 204+ SpD Jirachi: 172-204 (42.6 - 50.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery
0 Atk Jirachi Iron Head vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Diancie-Mega: 316-376 (131.1 - 156%) -- guaranteed OHKO

Wobbufet. Not quite benefical if you go for encore but manages to live every attack of diancie 3HKO.

Fire :

No actual checks on fire for mega diancie. With its raw power diancie can pretty much wreck any fire team with earth power and diamond storm.

Steel :

No need any calcs for this I assume, half of steel types are soft checks to diancie. Celesteela calcs above for flying type.

Ghost :

Nothing in ghost type can freely switch into diancie except for mimikyu. While being outspeed mimikyu cant do any damage to diancie aswell.

Water :

Defensive non mega swampert with couple spdef ivs can switch into diancie's any attack and proceed to kill with earthquake. ( 144 spd )

252 SpA Diancie-Mega Moonblast vs. 252 HP / 144 SpD Swampert: 169-201 (41.8 - 49.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Leftovers recovery


Overall analyze : Dragon Ice Fighting Fire and Ghost doesnt have actual checks and counters for mega diancie. Whatever you throw in might end up dead. Some types doesnt have more than 1 check with no counters.

Due to dual typings, pokemons with steel typing have great chance of checking diancie in other types, such as psychic bug and fairy. Chansey and p2 in normal just walls it without any major worry ( Crit might kill those ) .

It gets completely walled by steel teams.

It doesnt kill more than 1 pokemon in a counter team situation, in grass / ground / water /steel matchups. Might be even used as a setup fodder if getting correct predictions.

Revenge killing :

It has a monstrous 110 speed stat, but anything above 80 speed with scarf is capable of revenge killing it, the types diancie neutrally beats might beat diancie teams back by any luck. There are way too many pokemons in every type being viable scarf / speed boosting users that will manage to kill mega diancie on it own.

My conclusion (again) : Diancie mega is indeed a strong pokemon, can be countered by only several types but it is possible to revenge kill it with pretty much every possible type. I think its current situation is 50-50% , couldnt decide if its broken to be in metagame or it will fit it very well.
 
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Shadow Tag. It's one of the most powerful abilities in the game in spite of belonging to a very small group of rather poorly-statted Pokemon. Shadow Tag has been on many of the best Psychic teams since even last generation, but it's never gotten the full spotlight. I want to share some of my sets and spark some discussion on it. I've always hated Shadow Tag, but this isn't really meant to be that sort of post, for what it's worth.

Each section is prefixed with the Pokemon it's most notable for beating.

[Chansey/Porygon2 with Trick, Lanturn, Toxapex, Mega Venusaur, Heatran, (either Skarmory + Celesteela with Thunderbolt or Seismitoad + Gastrodon with Energy Ball)]
Gothitelle @ Choice Specs
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 212 HP / 252 SpA / 44 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Thunderbolt / Energy Ball
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Trick

This is easily the most splashable set for Gothitelle. It takes on almost all of the main walls that Psychic might want gone. This set is the classic partner for Choice Scarf Victini, as it 100% OHKOes offensive Heatran, allowing Blue Flare to completely sweep Steel. This set also breaks apart the Poison defensive core, if you choose not to use Mega Gallade, as Psychic always OHKOes both Toxapex and Mega Venusaur with Stealth Rock chip, allowing Victini's V-create to wreak havoc. With Energy Ball, this set can trap the main Water immunity on Ground teams, allowing Calm Mind + Iron Defense Mega Slowbro to sweep for free. If you don't need a more specifically designed set, this one will get the job done 9 times out of 10.

Mew @ Mewnium Z
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Psychic
- Focus Blast
- Rock Polish

Deoxys-Speed @ Light Clay
Ability: Pressure
EVs: 248 HP / 8 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Stealth Rock
- Taunt

Alakazam @ Focus Sash
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Def
- Psychic
- Hidden Power [Fire]
- Focus Blast
- Counter

Latias-Mega @ Latiasite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Calm Mind
- Stored Power
- Thunderbolt
- Recover

Victini @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Victory Star
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- V-create
- Bolt Strike
- U-turn
- Blue Flare

Gothitelle @ Choice Specs
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 212 HP / 252 SpA / 44 Spe
Modest Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Thunderbolt
- Hidden Power [Ground]
- Trick


[Alolan Muk, Heracross, physical Dark-types, literally almost anything depending on play]

Wobbuffet @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 252 HP / 148 Def / 108 SpD
Calm Nature
- Counter
- Mirror Coat
- Destiny Bond
- Encore

This is really just the standard Wobbuffet set, but you guys get to see my personal EVs at play. The EV spread is designed to 100% of the time trap and beat Alolan Muk. First, the Defense is low enough that Wobbuffet takes enough damage from a 65-Base Power Knock Off to OHKO with Counter. Importantly, this spread always survives Knock Off -> Knock Off even if the first Knock Off poisons Wobbuffet and Stealth Rock is up. You only need to dodge critical hits when in combination with either the first Knock Off getting a poison or Stealth Rock damage, which gives you 88% chance to beat Alolan Muk when Stealth Rock is up or 95% when it isn't. This set also always survives a +0 Heracross's Megahorn, which is why you should always combine this set with a Jirachi that has an EV spread designed to switch into and U-turn out of Heracross. Outside of these two specific uses, Wobbuffet is also a fantastic support for any setup sweeper thanks to being able to take out most of their checks or give them time to set up with Encore.

Latias-Mega @ Latiasite
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 248 HP / 8 Def / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Ice Beam
- Thunderbolt
- Calm Mind
- Recover

Mew @ Mewnium Z
Ability: Synchronize
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Nasty Plot
- Psychic
- Focus Blast
- Rock Polish

Latios @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psychic
- Trick
- Defog

Victini @ Choice Band
Ability: Victory Star
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- V-create
- Bolt Strike
- U-turn
- Trick

Wobbuffet @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 252 HP / 148 Def / 108 SpD
Calm Nature
- Counter
- Mirror Coat
- Destiny Bond
- Encore

Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 48 Def / 112 SpD / 96 Spe
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Toxic


[Non-offense teams with no Dark-types]
Gothitelle @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 248 HP / 216 Def / 44 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psyshock
- Trick
- Calm Mind
- Rest

This set is actually horrible but it cheeses wins every once in a while when it's not expected or (more usefully) combined with Wobbuffet. The spread is pretty simple. 44 Speed EVs gives it 177 Speed, which you might think is to beat Skarmory, but it's really just so you can Trick Jolly Bisharp the Choice Scarf before being given the business. There's nothing to explain here. Take out all the Dark-types, come in on a wall that can't phaze, and go to town. It's definitely the least useful set (unsurprising, given that it's a sweeper instead of a support trapper), but it still shouldn't be underestimated. One random thing I find interesting to note is that Greninja without Dark Pulse actually doesn't count as a Dark-type and will just lose if Gothitelle's at +6 / +6.

Alakazam-Mega @ Alakazite
Ability: Magic Guard
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psychic
- Dazzling Gleam
- Focus Blast
- Encore

Gothitelle @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 248 HP / 216 Def / 44 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Psyshock
- Trick
- Calm Mind
- Rest

Wobbuffet @ Colbur Berry
Ability: Shadow Tag
EVs: 252 HP / 148 Def / 108 SpD
Calm Nature
- Counter
- Mirror Coat
- Destiny Bond
- Encore

Jirachi @ Leftovers
Ability: Serene Grace
EVs: 252 HP / 48 Def / 112 SpD / 96 Spe
Careful Nature
- Stealth Rock
- Iron Head
- U-turn
- Toxic

Victini @ Choice Scarf
Ability: Victory Star
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- V-create
- Bolt Strike
- U-turn
- Blue Flare

Latios @ Soul Dew
Ability: Levitate
EVs: 252 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Draco Meteor
- Psyshock
- Roost
- Defog


I have a few more special sets but I can't just give away everything I've got. I think Shadow Tag is one of the most powerful elements in Monotype but it's very underutilized and most players outside of tournaments don't see it in action very often. Dare I say give it a try for yourself?
 

Havens

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Simple Question but not a simple answer; If you guys had to rank all the current types on a system from Top to Bottom tier, what would they be and why? I'm mainly asking for the sake of me determining what type I should really take time and explore next other than Dragon and Psychic.
 
Hmm. Not the best judge for this sort of thing, but I'll give it a shot anyway.

Top:
Psychic/Normal/Fairy/Steel/Poison

Good, but flawed:
Ground/Water/Flying/Fire/Bug/Dark/Dragon/Electric/Fighting

Bottom:
Ghost/Grass/Rock/Ice

Obviously, the ones in the middle are the most difficult to judge.

Still, that should give you a general idea of which types are more commonly seen in the metagame as it stands, from my point of view anyway.
 
Simple Question but not a simple answer; If you guys had to rank all the current types on a system from Top to Bottom tier, what would they be and why? I'm mainly asking for the sake of me determining what type I should really take time and explore next other than Dragon and Psychic.
I'll share my viewpoint on your subject
Top:


Middle-high:


Middle:


Middle-low:


Bottom:

Fairy - The new Dragon-type ever since Gen 6 Access to a good number of high-level offensive threats while sharing a decent defensive synergy and coverage between team members.

Flying - Very solid type that has easy time covering its weaknesses. It also has a lot of creativity room, capable of running at least two playstyles viably, such as Balance and Hyper Offense.

Normal - Having one of the bulkiest walls in the metagame weak only to one type, while teamed up with just good offensive partners.

Psychic - Very similar to Flying, it has somewhat better array of offensive threats with slightly higher Speed stats, but Balanced Psychic builds are easier to pressure with powerful supereffective attackers compared to Balanced Flying.

Steel - Probably the most solid (pun unintended) Balance type in the metagame due to great defensive coverage with just very few holes.

Dragon - Brutally strong offense while being able to stand against opposing offense, but lacks good defensive coverage between team members.

Electric - Good offensive type with adequate defensive backbone, but has only one viable build and can get walled or counterswept easily sometimes.

Ground - Similar to Electric, but less strapped on choices and with slightly better matchup against bulkier builds thanks to Gravity and strong Swords Dance users.

Poison - Very tough defensive backbone coupled with enough decent attackers letting it actually prevail against the "natural predators", but is limited in variety department, making it sort of predictable to play against.

Water - Extremely creative, has a plenty of good Pokemon and the most number of working playsyles (Rain, Balance, and Stall), but also has troubles with some common Pokemon in the metagame (namely Tapu twins, Mega Venusaur, Ferrothorn and Kyurem-Black).

Bug - While has a good number of varied offensive threats and can cover its weaknesses well, it can be beaten by hazards too easily as the hazard removers can be not too hard to stop.

Dark - Decent at both offense and defense, but is hurt by popularity of Fairy-types and power creep of Gen 7.

Fire - Similar case to Bug.

Fighting - Similar to Dragon, but a lot of common types can overpower it offensively, wall it to no end, or both.

Grass - The type is both odd defensively and offensively, making it both wallable and overpowerable easily, but unlike Ice and Rock it actually has a solid defensive core.

Ghost - Not a complete failure, but being relatively slow and with Mega Sableye being the only defensive response to the spam of Knock Off and strong Dark or Ghost moves makes the Ghost Monotype subpar.

Ice - is a disappointingly poor type by itself, being weak to four types (Fire and Fighting coverage is extremely popular, Steel-types are common as well, and Rock weakness means being weak to omnipresent Stealth Rock) and resisting nothing but itself, making almost all defensive Pokemon on Ice Monotype poor while somewhat lacking in offense department to make it up.

Rock - slimilar to Ice, but has better defensive core and is less troubled by hazards. Though, Rock Monotype is slower in general and thus easily gets pressured by a large number of common wallbreakers.

I was quite in doubt on where to place few types either, namely Bug, Electric, Poison, and Water.
 
When you look at the Beginner's Guide I wrote less than half a year ago and notice that barely a majority of the types are A or S, that's exactly why I don't believe a type viability thread is appropriate. The metagame is too fluid and shifts happen too often. Nevertheless, after seeing two rankings I disagreed with and one set of explanations I thought was outright wrong, here's my take on current type viability. The actual rankings are in bold with the leftmost type being the best and the rightmost being the worst in each tier.

S: Fairy, Psychic
- S-rank types have almost no drawback, having at worst neutral matchups against almost every other type. If you want to learn a type and get success, they're the perfect pick for you.
- Fairy is arguably the best type. Tapu Koko + Mega Diancie is disgusting, and then you add in Z-Belly Drum Azumarill supported by Klefki, Tapu Bulu, and Clefable. Its only bad matchups get less and less common as more time goes on. Ironically, thanks to the Magearna ban, one of its worst matchups has almost disappeared and Mega Diancie came in just in time to fill in the role of Poison-killer. The type somehow just keeps finding new ways and innovations to keep itself at the top, and the number of sets all of its Pokemon can use is almost unparalleled, making prediction against properly built teams surprisingly difficult.
- Psychic just has so many good Pokemon that beat so much of the meta. Even Poison, which used to be an almost unwinnable matchup, can be dismantled, and Steel's mini-"downfall" after Magearna's ban has done only good for it. Even Fairy can struggle with handling Psychic. When you look at how many different playstyles can be made and how much versatility every Pokemon on the team has, it's pretty clearly vying for the #1 spot. Depending on how you build it, and you have so many options, Psychic can counter almost any type other than, say, Ghost and maybe Dark.

A: Normal, Water, Ground
- A-rank types take on almost the entire metagame but just don't do it with the consistency that S-rank types do. They do tend to be rather vulnerable to one or two key matchups, but are able to handle them respectably with proper building and play.
- Normal was underrated for a very long time, but I think with Mega Lopunny's release, it's clearly at the top now. With Chansey + Porygon2 forming what might be the best defensive core in the metagame and Diggersby having no switch-ins, it really is what the term "balance" was meant to define. With how many sweepers are commonly used in the current metagame, Ditto shines as the classic answer that can even sweep back and prevents setup wallbreakers from getting through the main core.
- Water has more Pokemon that fight for the six teamslots than even Psychic does. The powerful VinCune + Toxic Spikes combination has been taking on almost all balance teams recently and even allows it to take on teams that Water normally loses to. So long as people don't learn how to handle VinCune, Water will continue to be one of the best types for laddering. Its defensive backbone in Toxapex + Mantine is almost as powerful as the Eviolite core, and Keldeo and Greninja come in as two of the biggest offensive threats around.
- Perhaps surprisingly, Poison isn't my last top type (spoilers: you're going to have to wait even longer to see it). I actually think Ground is a top type right now. It's so hard to argue with Landorus and Excadrill being two of the strongest wallbreakers in the metagame that can even so easily support each other. When you add in the stallbreaking of Gliscor, the wallbreaking of Devastating Drake Garchomp, and the ridiculous trapping of Dugtrio, Ground can take on almost any type, including even Water and Fairy, contrary to popular belief. Defensive cores just fall apart before its many breakers and offense has to handle the Speed of Sand Rush Excadrill. It's got the tools, but execution is not easy.

B: Dragon, Flying, Bug, Steel
- B-rank types are good enough that they can do just fine on the ladder and are not unreasonable at all to bring for their actual strengths in tournaments. That being said, they tend to fall apart against at least a couple common types, which keeps them from joining the higher tiers.
- While Mega Altaria is hardly going to help its bad matchup against Normal, its release and the ban of Magearna has helped Dragon a lot. Dragon has been on the edge of being up there for a long time, and the recent metagame shifts have only really moved types from above to below and below to above. It's the best HO type right now and takes advantage of its incredibly STAB attacks. While it continues struggles a lot with Normal and now has to face the newly released Mega Diancie, its many balance breakers continue to pose a huge threat to the upper echelons of Monotype.
- Flying just cannot seem to catch a break recently. Every new release seems to bring new troubles for the type. Right when Magearna left, Mega Diancie came out and Flying's old nemesis in Mega Latias got released. Even without Magearna, Fairy still has one of the best anti-Flying Pokemon in Tapu Koko. Outside of the S-ranked types, it does fair pretty well, mostly thanks to the stallbreaking force that is SubToxic Zapdos. That being said, it's plagued by the fear of Mew, Porygon-Z, Greninja, and Landorus, among many more, which keeps it from taking its former place at the top.
- I think Bug has always been pretty underrated and it feels like it's been a sleeper type for the entire generation. Many of the best types are weak to Mega Scizor, and while they have their bandage checks to Steel's defensive set, they tend to just fall apart against offensive SD. Volcarona is also at its most powerful, thanks to Z-Moves giving it ways to take on the many Pokemon that used to check it. Then you add in how powerful Sticky Web is against the top types (Fairy, Psychic, and Ground either conveniently decide against having removal or have a very hard time finding an opportunity), and Bug really should be rated higher than many people seem to view it.
- While many would drop Steel's viability after Magearna's ban, I think most wouldn't drop it as far as I have. Steel just doesn't have it anymore. Having a decent matchup against the two S-ranked types is great, though, and Mega Scizor is still the monster sweeper that it has been since last generation. The defensive core just doesn't have it anymore, and without Magearna, HO is going to struggle to have enough power.

C: Dark, Electric, Poison
- C-rank types are still tournament viable, but it's going to be hard to argue for using them on the ladder or for their own strengths. They have much value in countering the better types, but be careful when using them, as they do have quite a few holes in their performance and are hardly anything near consistent.
- Dark's newest problem is its crippling weakness to the new Mega Diancie and Mega Altaria, and it hasn't found a way to address its lack of any legitimate Water resist either. However, Dark is seeing much better days with Magearna out of the metagame, and I think many Steel players are about to remember how ridiculously difficult it was for most types to beat Mega Sableye last generation. It still functions as an amazing counter to Psychic, and it still has one of the better balance teams around. Unfortunately, so long as those two Fairy-type Mega Evolutions and Water are popular, Dark can only go so far.
- Electric has seen better days. Alolan Raichu is no longer the greatly feared threat it once was. However, that's not to say it can't perform anymore. Electric still takes on the types it used to in Steel, Flying, and Water, making it a rather underutilized option these days. I think Electric is exactly what I would call a middling type. It has its uses, performs them well, and does nothing more.
- Poison's fall from grace can mainly be attributed to the release of so many Pokemon that just delete it from existence. PuP + Encore Mega Lopunny, Psychic Mega Diancie, and Mega Gallade are three notable releases that flip Poison's former best matchups. Then you include the fact that a certain someone keeps using Tectonic Rage Greninja on Water (I'm joking but for real Water isn't as good of a matchup as it used to be), and it's a bad look for what used to be inarguably a top tier type. I found it hard to even keep it in the same tier as Dark and Electric, in all honesty.

D: Ghost, Fire, Grass
- D-rank types really just don't have it in them to succeed. The types themselves have something wrong that keeps them from being successful, and while they may have a good matchup here and there, you're almost always better off using something else, even for countering tournament play.
- Ghost is the best Trick Room type and completely annihilates Psychic. Unfortunately, that's about all the good that can be said about Ghost, as it struggles with almost all of the other more powerful types. Its balance defensive core is way too squishy to really do anything but try to stall out other balance cores, and its offensive line is either too slow or too weak to take off.
- Fire almost seems like it should have been better this generation. Torkoal got Drought, Volcarona is stronger than ever, and Mega Charizard X is back. Unfortunately, pretty much every other viable type picked up something great too, and Fire just can't compete when it can't beat certain Pokemon, let alone types. It's got a decent shot at stealing away a win with Mega Charizard X and Volcarona, but outside of that, it's just too one-dimensional and ineffective.
- Grass has always been that type that only ever really beat Fairy and Water, so people think it's got something to do. Unfortunately, even those days are over, what with Mega Diancie's release and VinCune being an absolute menace to take on even with type advantage. Nowadays, Grass doesn't really beat anything at all other than Rock, and when a type's best matchup is Rock, there's a sad, sad future lying ahead.

F: Rock, Fighting, Ice
- F-rank types are just straight up unviable. There is never a reason to use these types unless you want to challenge yourself. They might have a good matchup (if even that).
- Rock pretty much only does one thing right now: cheese a win with Sticky Web + Mega Diancie / Terrakion. Most offense teams that don't happen to carry the most powerful Bullet Punch in the metagame don't have much fun with these two crazy wallbreakers being faster than most of their team. Hilariously, Rock actually does pretty good when you compare it to the two types below it.
- It's a sad day when Fighting can't even beat Rock anymore. When your win condition is to get 3 Iron Head flinches in a row and then magically play so well that Shuckle can never get Sticky Web up... Fighting just can't do much of anything anymore. Keldeo and Breloom are hardly the powerhouses that they were last generation, what with Breloom failing to Spore against Fairy now and Keldeo literally being walled by half the metagame. It can't keep up with the speed of the better offense teams, and it doesn't have the power to break the defensive teams.
- Ice is Ice. It has such a bad defensive typing and most of its Pokemon just have prohibitively poor stats. Kyurem-B can only do so much when its entire team is outright awful. When Aurora Veil is shaking up almost every official tier and Ice is still this bad, I think it's clear that Ice is really just that bad.
 

Havens

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Thank you guys for all of your input! I'll definitely be referring back to this compilation of opinions when I start experimenting. The type that intrigues me when I compare these posts to ladder and tournament play would be Bug. I agree with Eien; while Bug is a solid type, its usage on the ladder and in tour play is that of a bottom tier type from what I have observed. When you look at it; its a hidden gem. I will try to see what I can do with this type and how it can be utilized post-Magearna ban. Again, thank you all for your inputs!
 
With all do respect to Eien's opinion on the metagame, there's a few glaring things I think were either overestimated or underestimated in that preliminary Type VR. A lot of the metagame threats imo are a tad overhyped, and some of them do not completely make or break a type's viability. Here would be how I would organize the current metagame.

(Take note each type is also ordered in the individual ranks, so if a type is at the bottom of A, its on purpose to say it's the bottomline for that particular ranking)

S Rank- Fairy and Psychic

Both of these are undeniably the most adaptable types to use (that being said I agree with Eien on that), and are not very hard to pick up as a beginner. They have access to all of the tools they need to succeed (very viable wallbreakers, fast sweepers, reliable leads, and good defensive pivots). They also can take on majority of the monotype as stated, but this is where I saw a contradiction to Eien's point (primarily when reading S compared to B), Fairy does still have a decent enough hard time against Steel despite losing Magearna, oftentimes you need to run Baribi Clefable to be able to check Mega Scizor w/o getting swept, but it is not terribly difficult to break past that with putting on proper pressure with Tapu Koko and Azumarill especially. It's big issue imo is its a bit stagnant, compared to a lot of other types it limited on other viable options, so 80% of good fairy teams are very much so the same if not strikingly similar.

Psychic, inversely, has tons of viable archetypes that can run almost equally as well, with HO and Balanced being a couple of the most notable ones. I'm gonna bring up the same argument as made above in that Psychic struggling against Dark and Ghost (even more so than Fairy vs Steel) can't be overlooked, especially if they are not D or F ranked types. Needless to say though, its S because overall it has some of the best w/l MU ratios alongside Fairy.

A Rank- Water, Normal, Steel, and Flying

Generally speaking I do agree with the reasoning for Normal and Water (normal for arguably the best defensive core in the game, and water for its sheer versatility), but I feel like Steel and Flying are being quite underrated. Steel, despite losing Magearna, is still a very good Balanced type to run in today's metagame, especially with Fairy being as popular as it is currently. Heatran + Skarm/Celes and/or Ferrothorn as a defensive core can cover a pretty large portion of the metagame, and be able to really abuse hazard stack (something only a few types can really run safely and reliably). It also has Mega Scizor, who is a pretty phenomenal tank and boosting sweeper thanks to its only weakness being Fire, its bulk in general, and how easy it is to press SD to finish a game. Excadrill and/or Magnezone also perform well as scarfers covering underlying weaknesses with Water or Fire decently well. Steel as a type is no longer on the pedestool of S with Magearna gone as one of its best sweeping options and special wallbreaker, but its by no means out of the game.

Flying on the other hand, while Mega Diancie is quite threatening to the type, is still very good thanks to its versatility in mons and multiple very viable archetypes (primarily Balanced being the best, but Semi-Stall and HO proving to be very usable). A lot of people forget that it's not very hard for Skarmory to check it at the cost of losing Brave Bird, you can argue the same by using Celesteela or scarf Lando-T (which admittedly is more soft now than before due to the Diamond Storm buff), but regardless that is not a change that hinder's teambuilding for the type by very much. For instance it has access to one of the ebst Special Wallbreakers and weather checks in the game in Mega Charizard Y, an equally deserving Defensive core especially with the new addition of Mantine, and very strong priority/physical wallbreaking power in Dragonite (which can soft check a very large portion of the meta thanks to multiscale).

B Rank- Dragon, Ground, Electric, Poison, and Bug

This rank I had a few issues with as well. Dragon is a very easy type to reliably spam so long as you don't run into fairy, and it is indeed one of the best purely HO types in the metagame. Altaria being finally released additionally gives the type some much needed support with Heal Bell, and thanks to amazing typing and absurd bulk can find many opportunities to sweep and begin boosting with Dragon Dance.

Ground (surprisingly tbh) I do not think it's as good as last gen. It does indeed have 2 of the most threatening wallbreakers, Landorus-I and Excadrill (Excadrill also proving to be one of the best sweepers additionally), and it has a doable defensive core to work with, but it is a bit more difficult to pick up this generation and it did not adapt to a lot of its new threats quite as well (namely Tapu Bulu, Celesteela, Flynium-Z Gyarados to name a few). Dugtrio is also stupidly overrated, there's very little point in running it (and tbh almost never enough room on your typical Bulky offensive layout), and that's because Ground offensively puts in enough pressure to majority of its switchins to the point where Dugtrio is more or less redundant (the best you'll get out of it is Memento, but w/o wasting your Z-Move on it to break what you need at the cost of losing sash, you get very redundant coverage already covered and in general its very underwheling as a whole). Regardless of that though, its a very usable type with some anti-meta aspects to it that really help it to stay generally adaptable to the current trends (if you want any recommendations from me, I've found Freeze Dry Mamoswine and RP Lando-I very under-prepared for, and can really do some serious damage to teams that don't see it coming).

Though Electric was a tad overhyped at the beginning of gen 7, it still has a very good defensive core, and plenty of offense thanks to the introduction of Electric Terrain abuse and Tapu Koko. In general it has across the board pretty neutral matchups (aside from Dragon and debatably ground)and Alolan Raichu + Tapu Koko is a serious force to be reckoned with for certain.

Poison I also think was underrated. Despite Diancie being quite troublesome for the type, and not a lot of diversity in team layout, its still a very strong contender thanks a a more than solid defensive core and a wide array of coverage (something that in Monotype you stride for, coverage is huge in an arguably linear metagame like this). Even for Diancie, Nihilego has the ability to soft check, and can actually threaten Fairy quite well if you pressure Klefki enough as well. Poison's imo is one of the most well-rounded types, and definitely the most improved when gen 7 came along.

C- Dark, Ghost, Fire

I won't go too much in detail with dark since I'll only be reiterating other arguments about it, but a lot of people don't realize how good Ghost can be, despite the challenge behind it. It had a very doable defensive core (seriously Gourgiest in the mix as well is pretty underrated, Leech Seed and the F/W/G core you get does wonders oftentimes), Mimikyu can be quite dangerous since it can get a free SD at any moment alongside a strong Fairy Z-Move, and Gengar as a scarfer is more than able to clean towards the aldder end of matches due to its coverage, high speed, and usable Special Attack. Offensively Ghost imo is a bit underrated, and can really be used quite well (especially with Psychic how common and used it is currently). Alolan Marowak, additionally, has the ability to completely hard wall Tapu Koko, one of the best mons in the meta arguably, and its absurdly strong as a wallbreaker and SR setter in general.

Fire, on the other hand, despite being rather difficult to use on ladder and in tours (largely due to its staggering SR weakness) can be pretty good as an HO type if used properly. Sun, Z-Move Volcarona, and Zard X especially can easily wreck havoc if you play aggressively keep SR off your side (which thanks to Yawn on Torkoal does not make it quite as difficult as it may seem, even though its still not easy). So long as you manage to keep serious offensive pressure and don't run into Dragon, it is usable.

D rank- Fighting, Grass

I'm gonna keep these next 2 sections very brief bc they're undeniably low, but Fighting is no longer one of the worst types thanks to the introduction of Mega Gallade. While its seen better days in ORAS for certain, its still alright as a HO type. This generation in general has not been very favorable towards it, but its not on the level of Rock or Ice anymore.

E/F (I don't exactly get the point of skipping E, this isn't a high school grading system)- Rock, Ice

Both have their niches here and there, but in general I doubt there will be anything that will improve these types anytime soon. Next time though (referring to your Ice argument), you can go into specifics and say what exactly makes it bad besides just saying its a bad defensive type, bc now you can really make that excuse with any type to very varying degrees. Regardless, they're both fun if you want a challenge, but they're excruciatingly hard to find decent MUs for.

Thanks for taking the time to read.

(Will probably do edits later, I'm a bit pressed for time as of rn)
 

maroon

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RMT & Mono Leader
Here are a two key threats that I think have the potential to be suspected and every team should prepare for. What are all your thoughts and opinions on these two pokemon and their impact on the meta?​

Mega Diancie

Diancie-Mega @ Diancite
Ability: Clear Body
EVs: 16 HP / 240 SpA / 252 Spe
Naive Nature
- Diamond Storm
- Moonblast
- Psychic
- Hidden Power [Fire] / Nature Power

Mega Diancie, released with the last wave of the mega pokemon definetly has made a strong impact on the metagame since the day it was released. With new mega mechanics introduced in Gen 7 MDiancie can live up to its full potential running 4 attacks, due to gaining the 110 speed tier upon the turn of Mega Evolution. While Mega Diancie is a fantastic pokemon on rock teams it truly can cause problems and be borderline broken on Fairy teams.

Mega Diancie commonly runs the moveset Diamond Storm, Moonblast, Hidden Power Fire and Psychic. These 4 moves give Diancie perfect coverage only allowing so many things to really be able to check Diancie effectively. Psychic+Diamond Storm absolutely obliterates traditionally one of the types that is used to check Fairy, Poison. With these attacks Diancie is able to 2OHKO all pokemon on poison teams including Alolan-Muk with Diamond Storm. Hidden Power Fire can allow Diancie to 2ohko Skarmory, Ferrothorn and catch Mega Scizor offguard. Moonblast allows MDiancie to easily clean through any type that is weak to fairy. Diamond Storm allows Mega Diancie to easily clean through Flying after Skarmory/Celesteela are gone and Stealth Rocks are up while also being able to beat Ice with ease. Mega Diancie can also abuse Nature Power, due to the terrains Koko and Bulu provide, to break past some of its natural counters such as Celesteela and Gastrodon. Grassy Terrain turns Nature Power to Energy Ball which blows past Gastrodon and Electric Terrain turns Nature Power into Thunderbolt which 2OHKO's AV Celesteela. Mega Diancie can also set rocks for Fairy-type teams quite easily due to the amount of offensive pressure it practically places on every type, however its coverage is more important and not really worth running Stealth Rock on when Clefable is an option.
Colors of calc responding to the moves type
0 Atk Diancie-Mega Diamond Storm vs. 248 HP / 12 Def Muk-Alola: 204-240 (49.3 - 58.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
240 SpA Diancie-Mega Psychic vs. 252 HP / 28 SpD Venusaur-Mega: 192-226 (52.7 - 62%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock
240 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 252 HP / 184+ SpD Ferrothorn: 208-248 (59 - 70.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock and Leftovers recovery
240 SpA Diancie-Mega Hidden Power Fire vs. 248 HP / 212+ SpD Scizor-Mega: 228-272 (66.4 - 79.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

240 SpA Diancie-Mega Nature Power vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Gastrodon in Grassy Terrain: 560-660 (131.4 - 154.9%) -- guaranteed OHKO
240 SpA Diancie-Mega Nature Power vs. 252 HP / 32 SpD Assault Vest Celesteela in Electric Terrain: 220-260 (55.2 - 65.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Stealth Rock

Overall Mega Diancie is extremely hard to wall due to the abundance of coverage attacks it gets and access to Nature Power with 2 different terrains, which allow Mega Diancie to break its natural counters. Mega Diancie is a top tier threat in Monotype and every team should prepare for it.

Shadow Tag

While Gothitelle and Wobbuffett by themselves aren't broken, Shadow Tag is uncompetitive. Pokemon usually can switch around however with Shadow Tag only pokemon with the ability or a Ghost typing can switch out. This means that Gothitelle can remove key threats from the opponents team without them being able to switch. More on what each set these Shadow Tag users can abuse are found on this post, pretty well summarized by Eien. Lets take a Steel team and Goth+Victini for a second. Heatran is how Steel-type teams are able to deal with Victini however with Gothitelle after the Air Balloon is popped, Gothitelle can remove Heatran with Hidden Power Ground. Allowing Victini to then clean sweep Steel, here is a replay of such a battle. Then Wobbuffett traps a completely different way. Many times Poison-type teams rely on Alolan-Muk to act as their Psychic resist however with Counter Wobbuffett can remove Alolan-Muk entirely from the game, leaving that team without a Psychic immunity. Wobbuffett can really remove any threat from a team aside Special Dark type pokemon which are unaffected by Mirror Coat. However with a Colbur Berry Wobbuffett is living any one Dark Special attack and can proceed to click Destiny Bond to try and proceed to remove pokemon like Choice Locked Hydreigon. For these reasons I believe Shadow Tag is a broken element in Monotype.​
 
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After taking some time to think about Shadow Tag and its effect on the metagame, I am beginning to think Gothitelle should be suspect tested.


Shadow Tag is an incredibly good ability that Gothitelle (and Wobbuffet) both gain access to, allowing them to trap and effectively become incredible checks to certain Pokemon. Gothitelle and Wobbuffet each have their different uses, but it's been made clear that Gothitelle has a few clear distinctions.
  • Gothitelle is not passive. Commonly holding a Choice Specs, Gothitelle hits a Special Attack stat of 475 which is more than enough to revenge kill everything that it needs to. Hidden Power Ground from Gothitelle OHKOes many Heatran variants, and specially defensive variants that do live one fail to KO Gothitelle. In the Psychic vs Steel matchup, Gothitelle can eliminate Heatran very easily, which is the only Pokemon that can take on Victini consistently. Another example of its power is power is Grass Knot having a slight chance to OHKO mixed Hippowdon, or Thunderbolt 2HKOing nearly all Celesteela variants. This leads me to my next point.
  • Gothitelle dismantles common defensive cores. Gothitelle gets a fairly colorful movepool. With its STAB Psychic, plus options such as Thunderbolt, Hidden Power Ground, Energy Ball, Shadow Ball, and Grass Knot, it can break down very common walls such as Heatran, Mantine, Skarmory, Toxapex, Rotom-Wash, Pelipper, Gastrodon, Swampert, among others. Not only this, but it can take care of certain offensive threats too. It has a small chance to avoid the 2HKO from Mega Diancie's Moonblast with just a 252/0 spread, and it can OHKO it back with Energy Ball.
  • Gothitelle offers utility. Gothitelle has access to Trick and Thunder Wave, which are both incredibly good moves in combination with Shadow Tag. Trick in particular allows it to permanently cripple the famed Eviolite core, as well as just about every other passive Pokemon. Thunder Wave on the other hand allows it to cripple offensive Pokemon and effectively eliminate them for the rest of the game. Gothitelle's versatility in the amount of things it can take down is insane. It can opt to run a Rest/CM set and set up on passive Pokemon and sweep. It also has access to Trick Room and Heal Bell.
Wobbuffet has more exploitable flaws than Gothitelle does that lead me to think Gothitelle should be under the spotlight instead. Gothitelle has far more versatility in the moves/sets it can run, can eliminate certain defensive and offensive threats with certainty, and can cripple with Trick and Thunder Wave as well. This Pokemon has been overlooked for a while now, so I think a suspect consideration should be in place.
 
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After taking some time to think about Shadow Tag and its effect on the metagame, I am beginning to think Gothitelle should be suspect tested.


Shadow Tag is an incredibly good ability that Gothitelle (and Wobbuffet) both gain access to, allowing them to trap and effectively become incredible checks to certain Pokemon. Gothitelle and Wobbuffet each have their different uses, but it's been made clear that Gothitelle has a few clear distinctions.
  • Gothitelle is not passive. Commonly holding a Choice Specs, Gothitelle hits a Special Attack stat of 475 which is more than enough to revenge kill everything that it needs to. Hidden Power Ground from Gothitelle OHKOes many Heatran variants, and specially defensive variants that do live one fail to KO Gothitelle. In the Psychic vs Steel matchup, Gothitelle can eliminate Heatran very easily, which is the only Pokemon that can take on Victini consistently. Another example of its power is power is Grass Knot having a slight chance to OHKO mixed Hippowdon, or Thunderbolt 2HKOing nearly all Celesteela variants. This leads me to my next point.
  • Gothitelle dismantles common defensive cores. Gothitelle gets a fairly colorful movepool. With its STAB Psychic, plus options such as Thunderbolt, Hidden Power Ground, Energy Ball, Shadow Ball, and Grass Knot, it can break down very common walls such as Heatran, Mantine, Skarmory, Toxapex, Rotom-Wash, Pelipper, Gastrodon, Swampert, among others. Not only this, but it can take care of certain offensive threats too. It has a small chance to avoid the 2HKO from Mega Diancie's Moonblast with just a 252/0 spread, and it can OHKO it back with Energy Ball.
  • Gothitelle offers utility. Gothitelle has access to Trick and Thunder Wave, which are both incredibly good moves in combination with Shadow Tag. Trick in particular allows it to permanently cripple the famed Eviolite core, as well as just about every other passive Pokemon. Thunder Wave on the other hand allows it to cripple offensive Pokemon and effectively eliminate them for the rest of the game. Gothitelle's versatility in the amount of things it can take down is insane. It can opt to run a Rest/CM set and set up on passive Pokemon and sweep. It also has access to Trick Room and Heal Bell.
Wobbuffet has more exploitable flaws than Gothitelle does that lead me to think Gothitelle should be under the spotlight instead. Gothitelle has far more versatility in the moves/sets it can run, can eliminate certain defensive and offensive threats with certainty, and can cripple with Trick and Thunder Wave as well. This Pokemon has been overlooked for a while now, so I think a suspect consideration should be in place.
Respectfully, I completely disagree with that notion. While Gothitelle has quite a remarkable ability at the cost of being an underwhelming mom otherwise, I think you're overestimating how good it is. As of late I've been closely paying attention to OU's current suspect on Dugtrio and how these trapping abilities affect our metagame (as a disclaimer to put out there now, OU is a very different tier from monotype, but i want to point out the key aspects in terms of the effects of trapping they differ with). Here's why I think Gothitelle is actually a healthy part of our metagame:

1. While yes, on paper it can trap whatever it really fancies, it's easier said than done. Haaku you brought up Heatran earlier, which was not a bad point since that's the only thing stopping Victini from sweeping steel entirely. However I think you forgot to realize most variants do run Air Balloon. Where I'm going with this you can't 2KO or OHKO it with HP Ground until it's Air Balloon is popped. That means Magma Storm (The most common variant right now) can actually stall you out (especially if it's the substitute set). There's also the issue that if you trick your specs onto it in order to hit it, you'll in turn get 2KO'd if it kicks itself into Magma Storm (most sets run a lot of Speed, so the likelihood of you tricking a slower one into some other move is disappointingly minimal). Then there's the argument "why can't I just pop the balloon first before sending Gothitelle out?" Even smart players know to save Heatran's Balloon, especially if there's a Gothitelle (it's the only thing that runs any chance of running a Ground STAB, and yea while Victini gets you into a predicting game, the steel player is able to easily wear it down with hazards and abusing Ferrothorn on the U-Turn for recoil damage. If it so happens to lock itself into a V-Create and take it out, the steel player now has the momentum). As for the other mons you mentioned, such as Swampert and Mega Diancie, you are very right in saying so. Bear in mind that does not mean it's explicitly broken, which brings me to my next point.

2. Gothitelle itself can actually prove to be underwhelming at times, and more common psychic teams tend to run other wallbreaker over Gothitelle for more versatility. You can make that argument for Dugtrio on Ground as well (which unlike Gothitelle it traps less notable threats besides Tapu Bulu, which requires it to be locked into Wood Hammar, and Porygon2 for instance), many people tend to run mons such as Mamoswine or Dragonium Z Garchomp over it; on Ground it can be difficult to fit Dugtrio without losing the opportunity to use a more versatile wallbreaker. Gothitelle finds itself in a similar competition. It oftentimes (to a slightly lesser extent) finds itself competing against Double Dance Mew, Specs/Soul Dew Latios, and even Meloetta for a team slot. It's also worth mentioning unlike Dugtrio in OU, it doesn't have even the slightest amount of leverage to run a Z-Move to break certain key mons, it's pretty much confined to the Choice Specs set in order to do so (it would be incredibly silly to run Z-Psychic or something because it's not breaking anything it already wouldnt), which takes me to my final key point.

3. Gothitelle really only runs 1 viable set on most serious teams, which is Choice Specs (any pretty much running the same moves, besides the possible toss up between Tbolt and Energy Ball; Tbolt tends to be much better in most cases). That means it's very predictable on team preview, and it's a lot easier than you're making it out to be to have a game plan of how to tackle Goth in battle. In theory it can pick and choose who exactly it wants to trap, but you can always make doubles if you see an easy switch like that coming, or inversely don't send it out until you truly need it (also easier said than done, i don't want to full-blown theory mon, but my point is it's not hard to get around it).

In my opinion, Gothitelle is actually a very quirky part of our metagame. It's much different than how it was in OU because the nature of monotype makes it a lot more match dependent. In some mu's it can put in serious work, and in others it can be almost completely useless. We are not at a point where Gothitelle overcentralizes our metagame and teams having to run dumb sets in order to win against it, because of the reasons I stated above. I think if anything suspecting it criminally overrates how good it really is.
 
It's surprising how you managed to be wrong on all 3 of your points. I'm going to address them one by one to paint you a clearer picture of why Gothitelle is a broken element in Monotype.

1. While yes, on paper it can trap whatever it really fancies, it's easier said than done. Haaku you brought up Heatran earlier, which was not a bad point since that's the only thing stopping Victini from sweeping steel entirely. However I think you forgot to realize most variants do run Air Balloon. Where I'm going with this you can't 2KO or OHKO it with HP Ground until it's Air Balloon is popped. That means Magma Storm (The most common variant right now) can actually stall you out (especially if it's the substitute set). There's also the issue that if you trick your specs onto it in order to hit it, you'll in turn get 2KO'd if it kicks itself into Magma Storm (most sets run a lot of Speed, so the likelihood of you tricking a slower one into some other move is disappointingly minimal). Then there's the argument "why can't I just pop the balloon first before sending Gothitelle out?" Even smart players know to save Heatran's Balloon, especially if there's a Gothitelle (it's the only thing that runs any chance of running a Ground STAB, and yea while Victini gets you into a predicting game, the steel player is able to easily wear it down with hazards and abusing Ferrothorn on the U-Turn for recoil damage. If it so happens to lock itself into a V-Create and take it out, the steel player now has the momentum). As for the other mons you mentioned, such as Swampert and Mega Diancie, you are very right in saying so. Bear in mind that does not mean it's explicitly broken, which brings me to my next point.
You are understating how easy and efficient it is to trap and eliminate threats with Gothitelle. You bring up Air Balloon Heatran as an example, but Air Balloon is so unreliable and easily assessable in this matchup that it shouldn't even be a point. The Psychic player can simply U-turn out with Victini, or click anything other than Blue Flare/V-Create for that matter, so Air Balloon saving Steel from getting swept by Goth + Victini is a moot point. Also, it can't trap whatever it fancies "on paper", that is literally what it does and what makes it so unhealthy. The opposing player would have to play so magically well to make a double switch every time Gothitelle comes in, and that's not even mentioning Gothitelle's role as a revenge killer, which there is NO counterplay to. The Gothitelle user is NEVER going to bring it out against Heatran while it's Air Balloon is intact, so that point also falls apart. Also, why would anyone ever trick Specs onto Heatran?


2. Gothitelle itself can actually prove to be underwhelming at times, and more common psychic teams tend to run other wallbreaker over Gothitelle for more versatility. You can make that argument for Dugtrio on Ground as well (which unlike Gothitelle it traps less notable threats besides Tapu Bulu, which requires it to be locked into Wood Hammar, and Porygon2 for instance), many people tend to run mons such as Mamoswine or Dragonium Z Garchomp over it; on Ground it can be difficult to fit Dugtrio without losing the opportunity to use a more versatile wallbreaker. Gothitelle finds itself in a similar competition. It oftentimes (to a slightly lesser extent) finds itself competing against Double Dance Mew, Specs/Soul Dew Latios, and even Meloetta for a team slot. It's also worth mentioning unlike Dugtrio in OU, it doesn't have even the slightest amount of leverage to run a Z-Move to break certain key mons, it's pretty much confined to the Choice Specs set in order to do so (it would be incredibly silly to run Z-Psychic or something because it's not breaking anything it already wouldnt), which takes me to my final key point.
Another mind boggling point you try to make in this post is compare Gothitelle to Dugtrio, which is insane. You point out Dugtrio's flaws for some reason, which have nothing to do with Gothitelle's. The reason Gothitelle stands out from other "wallbreakers" in the tier is because of 1. it's coverage and 2. Shadow Tag. Those two elements allow it to eliminate the vast majority of walls with certainty. Switching is a key element in competitive Pokemon and to say Gothitelle is "quirky" and "healthy" is such a ridiculous thing to say. You can make an argument for it not being broken due to its flaws, but you can't say Gothitelle is not uncompetitive. I don't see how specs -> z move being a better item on it has any bearing on anything whatsoever. Lastly, it does not compete with anything you said, as it usually SHARES a teamslot with those Pokemon you mentioned (bar Meloetta, which isn't that good and CERTAINLY not as good as Gothitelle.) Bringing OU as an example is a bad idea on your part as this is a Monotype discussion thread, but do keep in mind Gothitelle is effectively banned and has been banned from OU.

3. Gothitelle really only runs 1 viable set on most serious teams, which is Choice Specs (any pretty much running the same moves, besides the possible toss up between Tbolt and Energy Ball; Tbolt tends to be much better in most cases). That means it's very predictable on team preview, and it's a lot easier than you're making it out to be to have a game plan of how to tackle Goth in battle. In theory it can pick and choose who exactly it wants to trap, but you can always make doubles if you see an easy switch like that coming, or inversely don't send it out until you truly need it (also easier said than done, i don't want to full-blown theory mon, but my point is it's not hard to get around it).
It's versatility was a distinction that it has from Wobbuffet, as I said in my original post. Choice Specs is the best item for it to run, but that does not mean RestCM or Thunder Wave sets are not common. Once again you're conveniently ignoring Gothitelle's role as a revenge killer, which I repeat, there is NO counterplay to. Making a double switch every time it comes in is also extremely difficult. I will end this post with this. You clearly have not experienced Gothitelle in the modern metagame with the claims you are making, and I suggest you try using Eien 's sample team from earlier in the thread to understand Gothitelle's impact on the metagame a bit better.
 

DoW

formally Death on Wings
I can't say I have a great understanding of the current mono meta, but I was wondering to what extent gothorita would be able to do gothitelle's job were gothitelle banned. For example, it looks like it still beats both Pelipper and Heatran in the situations where Gothitelle beats them:
0 SpA Pelipper Scald vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gothorita in Rain: 142-168 (43.8 - 51.8%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Gothorita Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper: 592-700 (183.2 - 216.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 SpA Heatran Lava Plume vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gothorita: 124-147 (38.2 - 45.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Gothorita Hidden Power Ground vs. 248 HP / 136+ SpD Heatran: 228-272 (59.2 - 70.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

I understand that its lower stats mean it would be more difficult to use, but is there anything that outright stops it from being broken in precisely the same way as gothitelle? For example, is there something important that gothitelle can trap that it can't, or some other set that gothitelle can threaten to run that it can't pull off?
 
I can't say I have a great understanding of the current mono meta, but I was wondering to what extent gothorita would be able to do gothitelle's job were gothitelle banned. For example, it looks like it still beats both Pelipper and Heatran in the situations where Gothitelle beats them:
0 SpA Pelipper Scald vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gothorita in Rain: 142-168 (43.8 - 51.8%) -- 10.9% chance to 2HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Gothorita Thunderbolt vs. 248 HP / 8 SpD Pelipper: 592-700 (183.2 - 216.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO
0 SpA Heatran Lava Plume vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Gothorita: 124-147 (38.2 - 45.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ SpA Choice Specs Gothorita Hidden Power Ground vs. 248 HP / 136+ SpD Heatran: 228-272 (59.2 - 70.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

I understand that its lower stats mean it would be more difficult to use, but is there anything that outright stops it from being broken in precisely the same way as gothitelle? For example, is there something important that gothitelle can trap that it can't, or some other set that gothitelle can threaten to run that it can't pull off?
Hello, you have a very solid point. Gothorita does get rid of the key threats that Gothitelle is known for (Heatran, Pelipper).

There's a few key differences, though. I think a key threat that Gothitelle checks but Gothorita has a bit more trouble doing is Celesteela. This is mostly because Celesteela outspeeds Gothorita (but not Gothitelle) so you would have to sacrifice some bulk in order to run enough speed to outpace it and also uninvested Tyranitar.

Another important difference is the bulk. Part of Gothitelle's shine is that it's just bulky enough to live one hit from an offensive Pokemon and KO it back. Another example is Diancie, as Gothitelle easily lives a Moonblast and OHKOes it back with Energy Ball. Gothitelle can't take Moonblast as well, and it cannot OHKO with Energy Ball unlike its evolution.

It might be easier to just suspect test Shadow Tag entirely, but it should be noted that Gothitelle is the best user of the ability.
 
It's surprising how you managed to be wrong on all 3 of your points. I'm going to address them one by one to paint you a clearer picture of why Gothitelle is a broken element in Monotype.


You are understating how easy and efficient it is to trap and eliminate threats with Gothitelle. You bring up Air Balloon Heatran as an example, but Air Balloon is so unreliable and easily assessable in this matchup that it shouldn't even be a point. The Psychic player can simply U-turn out with Victini, or click anything other than Blue Flare/V-Create for that matter, so Air Balloon saving Steel from getting swept by Goth + Victini is a moot point. Also, it can't trap whatever it fancies "on paper", that is literally what it does and what makes it so unhealthy. The opposing player would have to play so magically well to make a double switch every time Gothitelle comes in, and that's not even mentioning Gothitelle's role as a revenge killer, which there is NO counterplay to. The Gothitelle user is NEVER going to bring it out against Heatran while it's Air Balloon is intact, so that point also falls apart. Also, why would anyone ever trick Specs onto Heatran?



Another mind boggling point you try to make in this post is compare Gothitelle to Dugtrio, which is insane. You point out Dugtrio's flaws for some reason, which have nothing to do with Gothitelle's. The reason Gothitelle stands out from other "wallbreakers" in the tier is because of 1. it's coverage and 2. Shadow Tag. Those two elements allow it to eliminate the vast majority of walls with certainty. Switching is a key element in competitive Pokemon and to say Gothitelle is "quirky" and "healthy" is such a ridiculous thing to say. You can make an argument for it not being broken due to its flaws, but you can't say Gothitelle is not uncompetitive. I don't see how specs -> z move being a better item on it has any bearing on anything whatsoever. Lastly, it does not compete with anything you said, as it usually SHARES a teamslot with those Pokemon you mentioned (bar Meloetta, which isn't that good and CERTAINLY not as good as Gothitelle.) Bringing OU as an example is a bad idea on your part as this is a Monotype discussion thread, but do keep in mind Gothitelle is effectively banned and has been banned from OU.


It's versatility was a distinction that it has from Wobbuffet, as I said in my original post. Choice Specs is the best item for it to run, but that does not mean RestCM or Thunder Wave sets are not common. Once again you're conveniently ignoring Gothitelle's role as a revenge killer, which I repeat, there is NO counterplay to. Making a double switch every time it comes in is also extremely difficult. I will end this post with this. You clearly have not experienced Gothitelle in the modern metagame with the claims you are making, and I suggest you try using Eien 's sample team from earlier in the thread to understand Gothitelle's impact on the metagame a bit better.
It's not a matter of understanding (which you'd be very surprised to hear I actually do have a VERY good understanding as is, you may not agree with my opinion but that's not a lack of intelligence) it's a matter of perspective. You're very right in saying Monotype is different from OU (congrats for reading I even had a disclaimer), that doesn't mean you can't draw specific parallels. If you were actually reading, unlike OU, Monotype is very matchup dependent. That doesn't change that fact for Gothitelle either, if anything its to a further extreme. Just so this isn't a jumbled mess I'll go point by point and clarify why you may have misinterpreted.

Point #1: Air Balloon Heatran is just about as good as it was Gen 6, it temporarily eliminates its 4x Ground weakness at the cost of loss of passive recovery (which many good Steel teams do indeed use). That has very little to do with the fact that in the Psychic matchup it does next to nothing ebsides evade Gothitelle HP ground, its a matter of the rest of Steel's matchups where it plays a lot more work than oftentimes Leftovers can. So I am very right in bringing that up, if in the case some runs leftovers Heatran than yea, it would be a different scenario. It is undoubtably the most reliable Victini check, and yea you can U-Turn to Pop its balloon, but you're dreadfully forgetting that Ferrothorn is is just as easy as a switchin to rack recoil damage (and if its locked in to Blue Flare, yet again you have the momentum on you're side). The reason that's not a risk is because Ferrothorn is not a key wincon in the matchup, the best you can do with it to be completely frank is Leech Seed Defensive Mew or Slowbro, and set up hazards. Also, I feel I need to stress this most, just because it does not have have counterplay does not mean its broken. Theoretically yes it is able top switch in and check whatever the hell it wants, but after that you can potentially lose momentum, which is something to be noted for certain. Monotype is NOT at a point where you need to run stuff like Shed Shell just to avoid getting trapped, and that's actually a great thing. It means it does not control a vast majority of matchups in the metagame, it does however assist quite well, but not to a broken point by any stretch.

Point #2: Dugtrio and Gothitelle are both trappers, and they are not the same Pokemon, once again congrats for actually reading you're so smart. But it is very possible to compare the two because they fill similar roles: they're crafted to trap and check any range of threats you can really choose. While yes they are on two different types and have vastly different coverage, that does not change that fact. That does not mean its uncompetitive either. Just because there isn't counterplay in the moment does not mean there's very smart counterplay afterwards, or preparation in that matter. It means its able to usually successfully trap at the very least 1 threat. I hate to break it to you, but that does not equate to uncompetitiveness. Also, I mentioned Dugtrio's canning ability to use Z moves a lot more successfully because its able to successfully break other walls it otherwise wouldn't with Groundnium-Z, Gothitelle doesn't really share that quality. You are very right in saying that doesn't change that Specs still gets the job done, which is correct, but you fail to realize that it's more predictable.

Point #3: There's a couple glaring problems with Rest CM that tends to make it a tad more unreliable. It's completely useless against Dark types as a whole, and that can completely ruin it. It also has fairly lackluster defense, meaning it can easily be revenge killed majority of the time once specified threat is out (and if you save it until the end of the matchup as a win con, hey good for you, that's how you play the game, but that's not always possible). Making doubles is also not as difficult as you're claiming; if the predictions are pretty obvious, oftentimes you're not running a ton of risk (and yes there's absolutely room to make unpredictable moves, that's the nature of the game).

Additonally:

Based on what's been said, I think if anything Gothitelle adds to our metagame as is. It requires more strategy, and it brings to the table a different way of play, and it does not do so to a point of becoming uncompetitive. I think it actually evokes competitive play and counterplay after the fact if anything. Psychic itself is also not inherently broken by any means, while it is very good and not a hard type to pick up with good risk vs reward, removing Gothitelle from the type does not change that (even though that should not be a reason to ban), and Gothitelle being kept does it make it overly power if at all.

Me having a difference in opinion from you does that equate to my intelligence, and it's pretty offense if anything. You have the right to yours, but I made a counter-claim to make mine because I personally thought a lot of your points were exaggerated (and me personally I thought both of our points had validation at spots). If you want to prove your points yourself I will gladly battle you for replays proving so lol. I'll even go ahead and do the same on my own because Gothitelle is not even close to suspect worthy at this point in the metagame, let alone broken and overcentralizing. Perhaps don't judge a book by its cover and do some research instead of blasting about my own knowledge? Thanks mate.
 
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Dece1t, most of your post is pretty wrong or is just completely misunderstanding what's going on, so please be more receptive of correction when people are trying to help you understand the metagame.
Point #1: Air Balloon Heatran is just about as good as it was Gen 6, it temporarily eliminates its 4x Ground weakness at the cost of loss of passive recovery (which many good Steel teams do indeed use). That has very little to do with the fact that in the Psychic matchup it does next to nothing ebsides evade Gothitelle HP ground, its a matter of the rest of Steel's matchups where it plays a lot more work than oftentimes Leftovers can. So I am very right in bringing that up, if in the case some runs leftovers Heatran than yea, it would be a different scenario. It is undoubtably the most reliable Victini check, and yea you can U-Turn to Pop its balloon, but you're dreadfully forgetting that Ferrothorn is is just as easy as a switchin to rack recoil damage (and if its locked in to Blue Flare, yet again you have the momentum on you're side). The reason that's not a risk is because Ferrothorn is not a key wincon in the matchup, the best you can do with it to be completely frank is Leech Seed Defensive Mew or Slowbro, and set up hazards. Also, I feel I need to stress this most, just because it does not have have counterplay does not mean its broken. Theoretically yes it is able top switch in and check whatever the hell it wants, but after that you can potentially lose momentum, which is something to be noted for certain. Monotype is NOT at a point where you need to run stuff like Shed Shell just to avoid getting trapped, and that's actually a great thing. It means it does not control a vast majority of matchups in the metagame, it does however assist quite well, but not to a broken point by any stretch.
Haakunite was saying Air Balloon is not very easily protected in the Psychic matchup where Victini can very easily choose to use Bolt Strike or U-turn to break it as Heatran switches in on a predicted Fire-type move. That's why Hidden Power Ground coming out of Gothitelle is absolutely a threat and Air Balloon is not going to last long. He's not saying that Air Balloon is bad in other matchups, I think you misread his post.

Either way, the fact is Victini only needs to get the 50/50 right one time. If it U-turns on an incoming Heatran even once, it freely pivots into Gothitelle and the game's over because even a crit doesn't OHKO Gothitelle after Stealth Rock. The "threat" of Ferrothorn switching in to deal 16% is not particularly scary for Victini, and even if Ferrothorn does come in, that's a free switch to another teammate that can handle it very easily. All of the commonly used Mega Evolutions on Psychic teams other than Mega Latias easily beats Ferrothorn with that free switch. They're all threatening enough that you don't have a good switch-in to them either. You mention that Gothitelle loses momentum, but if it loses momentum after trapping and removing Heatran, that is a trade every Psychic player will make every single time. They win the game in exchange for one or two turns of lost momentum. Also, I don't get why you even mentioned Shed Shell. Nobody's suggesting that's a good idea. (Hint: it isn't)

Finally, the biggest problem with this paragraph is here: "just because it does not have counterplay does not mean its broken", which you unfortunately bolded too to make sure nobody would miss it. Do you know what else didn't have reliable counterplay? Zygarde-10% and Zygarde-50%, 8 turns of rain and sand, 8 turns of Electric Terrain, Z-Hypnosis + Nasty Plot Darkrai, and Baton Pass. What do they all have in common? They're all banned. I'm not saying that Shadow Tag is necessarily in the same group as these other elements, but if something doesn't have counterplay, it's a serious concern because that is harmful to skilled play.
Point #2: Dugtrio and Gothitelle are both trappers, and they are not the same Pokemon, once again congrats for actually reading you're so smart. But it is very possible to compare the two because they fill similar roles: they're crafted to trap and check any range of threats you can really choose. While yes they are on two different types and have vastly different coverage, that does not change that fact. That does not mean its uncompetitive either. Just because there isn't counterplay in the moment does not mean there's very smart counterplay afterwards, or preparation in that matter. It means its able to usually successfully trap at the very least 1 threat. I hate to break it to you, but that does not equate to uncompetitiveness. Also, I mentioned Dugtrio's canning ability to use Z moves a lot more successfully because its able to successfully break other walls it otherwise wouldn't with Groundnium-Z, Gothitelle doesn't really share that quality. You are very right in saying that doesn't change that Specs still gets the job done, which is correct, but you fail to realize that it's more predictable.
Comparing Dugtrio to Gothitelle only highlights your lack of metagame knowledge, something Haakunite also pointed out. It goes beyond just saying they're two different Pokemon. They function completely differently and have different uses altogether. They do not fill similar roles at all. Outside of the Colbur Berry set, which is a set you don't address, Gothitelle can serve one of two main roles: wallbreaker / stallbreaker or sweeper. Dugtrio on the other hand serves a completely different purpose. It's a revenge killer that most specifically targets the #1 threat to Ground teams: Tapu Bulu. Since you prefer to only talk about the Choice Specs set, only mentioning the RestCM set in your third point, it's clear that for your purposes, these two Pokemon do completely different things.

This difference is further noted by the impact that each Pokemon has on even the exact matchups they're used for. Dugtrio can very well trap Fairy's Tapu Bulu, but the game is still not won. The threat of Azumarill looms as always, and Mega Diancie is still a threat in spite of its weakness to Ground. On the other hand, Gothitelle breaks open the game and all but wins it off the back of one play. Taking out Heatran means Victini just wins. Taking out Gastrodon / Seismitoad means Mega Slowbro just wins. Taking out Chansey and Porygon2 means there's no defensive core to stop Mew or the chosen Mega Evolution. Gothitelle is punishing in a way Dugtrio is not. Dugtrio levels out the field and takes on specific threats that are putting pressure on the Ground team. Gothitelle removes the barriers to victory and directly fulfills the win condition.

By the way, all of the rest of this paragraph is just really strange. The Groundium Z stuff is completely irrelevant to Monotype. Ironically, you talked about how Monotype is different from OU but then bring in an OU set that has no relevance whatsoever in Monotype. Groundium Z has never and probably will never be used in Monotype because it means Dugtrio can't actually do the one thing it's meant to do: check Tapu Bulu. Calling Gothitelle more predictable because it can use Choice Specs is incredibly wrong. First, it has three main sets that are all viable and can all throw you off completely if you misstep. The Colbur Berry and Choice Specs sets are so interchangeable that it's impossible to actually guess from Team Preview, but I guess it's fair you can predict the Rest CM set coming based on what Mega Evolution supports it. Either way, what even is the point in calling Gothitelle predictable? Does knowing its gameplan change the fact you need to outplay it time after time? The fact that if you misplay even once after outplaying it even five or six times straight, you can still automatically just lose?

Point #3: There's a couple glaring problems with Rest CM that tends to make it a tad more unreliable. It's completely useless against Dark types as a whole, and that can completely ruin it. It also has fairly lackluster defense, meaning it can easily be revenge killed majority of the time once specified threat is out (and if you save it until the end of the matchup as a win con, hey good for you, that's how you play the game, but that's not always possible). Making doubles is also not as difficult as you're claiming; if the predictions are pretty obvious, oftentimes you're not running a ton of risk (and yes there's absolutely room to make unpredictable moves, that's the nature of the game).
I think this is just not understanding what Rest CM does and how Monotype works. Sometimes, your Pokemon is going to be useless in certain matchups. Is Mega Scizor useful against Fire? No. Is Double Dance Mew useful against teams with Mega Sableye? Absolutely not. Some of the best Pokemon in this metagame are utterly useless against certain types, and that's completely okay. That doesn't make them "unreliable". The fact that Rest CM can come in on almost any team that doesn't have a Dark-type and threaten to win at any moment is horrific. While I personally say I think the set is bad above in a previous post, that's because I believe other Gothitelle sets are better. This set is still powerful and is a top threat to all teams that aren't straight up offense. Making one double or maybe two is perhaps not so difficult. The fact is that playing against Gothitelle isn't a matter of one or two but a matter of five, six, or possibly even more.

Based on what's been said, I think if anything Gothitelle adds to our metagame as is. It requires more strategy, and it brings to the table a different way of play, and it does not do so to a point of becoming uncompetitive. I think it actually evokes competitive play and counterplay after the fact if anything. Psychic itself is also not inherently broken by any means, while it is very good and not a hard type to pick up with good risk vs reward, removing Gothitelle from the type does not change that (even though that should not be a reason to ban), and Gothitelle being kept does it make it overly power if at all.
You're free to think what you want, but does it really require more strategy? It puts an insane burden on the opposing player to play to a level far higher than the Gothitelle user. As I've said before, one misplay against Gothitelle costs you the game. Misplaying with Gothitelle means you can switch it out and try again later a few more times.

For what it's worth, I also don't understand why you chose to screenshot the third part of the tiering philosophy when it isn't applicable to this case at all.

I really do appreciate how much you try to contribute to these discussions, but time and time again, your posts just don't show any understanding of Monotype. In fact, these posts not only make very controversial claims but even passive aggressively snipe at users trying to help you out. I'll ask you again to please try to be more familiar with Monotype and learn how the metagame works before posting.
 

Havens

WGI World Champion
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A new trailer for Pokemon Ultra Sun/Moon was released today with new details on the new game. From there the information competitively is as follows:

-UB Burst is a Ghost/Fire type;
-UB Assembly is a Rock/Steel type, and
-A brand new UB revealed in the trailer, UB Adhesive, is a pure Poison type
-UB Burst has a new move called "Mind Blown" which judging by the trailer is similar to EF Floette's move Light of Ruin, as it takes half the damage dealt to the opponent in recoil. For now, UB Burst is the only mon known with this move to our knowledge.

While we have no current information on their stats yet, I can't wait to see how these mons may shake up the metagame! Any thoughts on the new information?

Video Link:
 

Perish Song

flaunt
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UB Burst : It seems like both fire and ghost teams earning a very powerful nuker. If it comes with good stats, it will be a good pokemon to use in both teams.
UB Assembly : This seems like another bastiodon at the moment until we see more details about the pokemon.
UB Adhesive : At this point , poison doesnt need additional mons as it can make very good teams. Unless adhesive > nihilego, not expecting this to have a lot of uses.
 

mushamu

God jihyo
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UB-BURST


This Pokemon is as ugly as shit.
I think that UB-Burst will be more of a glass cannon Ultra Beast. It's skinny body and explosive "head" suggests that it will be more of an offensive Pokemon, with little or no defensive stats. I don't see this Pokemon making a huge splash on either Ghost or Fire, as Ghost already has Alolan Marowak and usually cannot give up another teamslot for Burst, and on Fire the Ghost coverage is rarely needed. It's color palette suggests that it may get some cool moves that it can abuse on both types, such as Dazzling Gleam, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, or even Giga Drain. It would really blow if this Pokemon turns out to be a physical attacker, as I don't see many coverage options outside of Flare Blitz or maybe Leech life due to its lack of fists or hands. It could maybe act as a Scarfer due to its seemingly high glass cannon nature, with a nice Ghost typing to avoid priority attacks such as Mach Punch or ExtremeSpeed.

Hoping this Pokemon will turn out to be useless since I really appreciate not having a dancing candy cane as a staple on Ghost teams, kinda ruins the mood that Ghost teams usually have with their darker colors.

moving on

UB-ASSEMBLY


Really thought this Pokemon was Ghost :(

Definitely a more defensive Ultra Beast. Unlike Guzzlord, which has massive HP, I think this Pokemon will have high defense stats, and nearly no HP to soak up damage. You know how it goes with Ultra Beasts and their irregular and usually inconvinient stats. I don't think that Assembly will become relevant on either Steel or Rock, with Mega Diancie and Fighting coverage making a huge impact on the metagame. The Rock/Steel typing will hold it back from becoming a sucessfull wall because of how common Fighting and Ground coverage are in this metagame. The only thing I may see Assembly doing on Rock is maybe checking non-superpower Mega Scizor if it gets Flamethrower, and that's about it.

looks like this thing is going into the guzzlord pile

Last but not least,

http://data:image/jpeg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAkGBxAKCQgNDQsQEBAICgoKCgkJChsIFQ0WIB0iIiAdHx8kKDQsJCYxJx8fLTEtMT4wLi4zIyszODMtNzQuLisBCgoKDg0OFhAQFSsdFxkrKy0tLS8tLS0tLS8uLS03LS03LTctLS0rLS0tLzc3LS8rLS03LSstLS0rNysrKysrK//AABEIAH8AzgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xAAbAAACAwEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAEBQIDBgEAB//EAEAQAAIBAgQDBwEGBAQEBwAAAAECAwARBBIhMQVBUQYTImFxgZGhFCMyscHwFUJS8Qei0eFzgpKyFiQzNENicv/EABsBAAIDAQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIDAQQFAAYH/8QAKREAAQQBBQACAgICAwAAAAAAAQACAxEEEiExQVEFEyJhcYEUsSMykf/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8ASFqiXqtnqpnr6JSwg5XGSoGah2eq2eupTqV7yVWZKHZ6rL1FKQ5Ek5qlBhO8uWNgBQYnK7e9aTs+gky3TOHFip/l8xSpX6BaIG1m5EbMQATroRQzsVJB0I3Br6aeEwYfxkhRa5EhFVcM7P4biWNcKwIRQZXUhrA8h5mqxzmgEkbBGLJ2WG4HwWfimI7nDpcgZpHbQIOpNa5/8K5hFH/5xO8kcJ3YjLLcmw10PqbVpYpcF2daVMOheSYjvFz5iumlzyGu1PeC8Z+14fFY54ikfDo5sodwwdrXJHoNL/8A2PSsjJ+WeXH6zQCsRxA8r4RiuDTQ4/FYRspfCSGOR0a66HcH9mmsfBcOoXNmYi1/HlB6+1HT44zzSO1s8pu7AbnzPP3qN7j3qtP8pNJQBoAf+lKI3NLRdm+KR8JQjDwKM+rM7ZyPQnak3aiSPi+IeeVmBtl0YWUDoLUFK/4vLXehgSQddvrVRuRI1+sOOr1CbCzmOwhgky3uDqj2y5hQ5FP8XEJky801VqVS4VkNjbyI2NepwM9szQHH8xz+1wKFFeBq7ujUSlaNrrUQa6FJ5Vbh4s0iKdmNrmtjF2ReaNDHYhVzHXf0pUkzWVZXWsSAdvpXSDrptX0ODsZGIBJIhRityjHNY1yPhCRAqFVg38zrqBSf8xh43XElfO1BJAHPYUbFw2R1Bta/lWhn4dBFI7ZguXWyDn5VBuIQsoBLAKfDl0vRfcSNgutTsvU+1RMSH+cj2zUOTUSTVot/azw9XSYYcpPYihZImHn5irArHYH4qBJFCP5RarVXcs17Lt/y1W8DAEkbC+9HRxs2u3m1G4SBWlw8bWvPLHFmbYXIFz5a1m5PykMNgEF3gVuHGkf1QQGM4HPhMWmHmis7CJwisHBBAI1Fxsa2/G8F/A+GwtDCztiU1mV8wjNvKpf4jTCHjQMbAiTDYdwUIsCLi2noKQYntBPLCMOXZgxsIrDU1jO+XdIWgtuuR6rf+JRIBSXDTyT4iM4iSQx94DImcqWF9QPyrTYaaaeWT7DEY1fwlID3CAbam9ievPyoHDcMXQyXJOvdhioH6mmkV0VVR3UIMqokpQAdAAdKfLHNk0XU1vgVvHw2t3eb/hQk4S0TffYhCSbtHCS7ge4OvmRTt+MleCYnBQD7vuniTMncyAk3NyCQSbk20OvtScNYjQ+InxZTYnpfrRGDxIglJdc0cy5J0C5/Q259D5HypTsBgaS02QtFsUX/AF00D32saWysbG/QiiEnuBTDtPwtYGWfDkGHF3IytnCvuQD0O/qDSGCUBtayXgtJBWRPAYnlpRUr3+arDV1mzH1qthqaG0ksXHXmPipK6kBXUEdTyrhOUa/zAi9UFf7UQeWmwd0JYqcXhAAWjN7C5U8hQNqa5SNRVLwK5/pJ300Nb2B8qANEx/gpboz0gV0IPQ3rd9kO1BjtB3RJOitfNasrh+Hhm8cmg/o51oOHSjB5jAq3y2uyh/fWm5nyWOW6QNR/S5sbj+k67a9rTFGMPFGudxaR2Gawtyr54eIz2I757E3sWo/iyNiJmkP4nN3U+Ee1L/sr3/D9auYBhfECz+/UD7BVTzuwALk+pqBJ6/WiDhHHL4NVMhXcVfAHSDUvoGNwMDqMi920YdmyqZQdzb5PxaheE8QWB/HBG4YWOdRUF4iROo0IW+qc789ak+Amcq0cDuJ87IyDPax1vbavHw/MGKMtlt98b8LPwInufpc6u7K07doMJHE5XDoWfXIIxva2p5ViOIYlJJXdYgpJvkS9hVc5aN2UkqUNmjcFSDVAIZ9T7is5/wAhK4nSaB6telbDGANrI7VizEjX46UfwZVM5lcZhhrFY2tZmN7A+QsT7CgWQcqM4ZYLJrtJqOmg/wB67Cb9swB45VyEgOvxE8fkzPDKwUF7xs0aBBtcX9LGh8BCEHeP+JxoW8Nh09aJ4ine4dRf8MsJBtm3IB+hNRSFf6QT/U4zn61ujFa2YvA6FI3fk6zyiY5Adjfloc1FYKI4iYRhrWXO7f0i/wCZ5e/SlksUdiTGtxtZQpJ5WNFcKlGEmjYmwOdZHJNgD68gQParD3ODTXKdDWsB3Cf8XjVMJGFFhDLHkA2F7jX5PvSjNXuM8XMqZYlOTvI7kgZpLMDpc6DTnQcWKVyQDqN0YFCPY60OPbQQ7vdNynNL/wATwF3HQmWKRFfL3jByCM4JGxtyPK45aVlJARIRaxBysByINiPmtYXvSHicI7yYrvnDWHh5CqHyUbdIkAo3RVCZuoA+IRJSpseuhq8XPnUcJh3xc0MMSF5MQ4jjjG5J9dvWiePcPPCcZJhmnSUxInePCDZHIuVudyDpf8tqxwSVWLKQeIcEa8iBoOfT1rhjdY43aN1VyVjkkjKByN7Eix9q+gYXgEf/AIdDQMGklWHGMzMFLEC5OuwAJHLl7g4vBQNwuDJie9mdo2bAhu9BLECwW24J5XOh9ntjscpLtjwsXmqQIYG42G9PO1/CP4ZicIhjCfaMFh5QqWUMwFmNuVyCeW9Iw973HsKUTRpHoXhE38uo3tURI8fX0vV+HmykA+xruJTN+9DUat1xjXA4fnc16x5/lQkqbldCvIV2HEm1ix053qxj5UkLrYaS3RBw3RIFzYb9OdRbDk7qfiupLaxOvXrVoxPRz6EbVt4/zQ4lH9qu/FPRRMGEkiUyeEZCPA3jJJOgtsfStrgMeiQx5Sq+FLpbutTyt60JwzhkeIlMJY5BH3kishQqb6D8tadScCUKgjnPgY5RJdgAdPOvCS5LXUCaKuDAY123iXcQ4ZBjJBJKvisA0kbZMwHXr+dZniXBgkq/Z2MiyF9Lax2OxPPTnpzrZngTIhtIr2fMLjISfW1QPAmuSrotyhYDY29r/WltyA3tNEBHazPBuFESF54wUjFsrNlub8x0333qziyquLkKqoDpG9o1yC9rH8vrTDuiZpF+1KndSGMLKSoa3PmLUDxeHLGsm5gY94wkDgqbAkWAvYgddL1pfHZIZkNJOx2TWwlrtV2gsQ14j/8AqM/UV7N+yahIQY5Adihvbe1uVbt+yMShDHEjK41aVcxUeZO9etlnDK25TdbAQHmge1hgc0n/AAxf3P8AoPzqy/7NS4hgfseLkUfgmGeJultCPbS3karpjHBwtG4aSuTH/wBMdZBb2ufyBrssayAZl2/C34SvmDuKpeQd4viHgve55kWA9bE1deiG9qFWJTGVVzdWsEktqD0P6Hn+Yk8TSTuEW+bIrKCGINt7bgWtrtpRjr3l0/rHivsB1P6UVGFiWy7nVpDux6mkzQCZukmhdqKvZOuxsMfCFmmZBLPjE7rC4hDmEB1uLEAgnUk87W05rOKcCWKPic7jvnmDyQq3iK3JJJ6kA39j5Uw4JhXxUYCtbu5JJczbXIsNfZv3aruOscEkBlAs0ieKM59AQSSN7AX+QNyBXlcuQMyPqjOwPCTlQnUNJoULWJOIneNUzlUwCyIsQTQXNyCLg31t+lG4JJmQyqkinDsCJI8HPigCADcMkbAW9aVYviYfi2MK5DFisY7I7vkUXNgSeQ2N+Vr1rf8AEHi8eKw8EODEbGCQpK+DYSqSbAAMN7XO3hHtWtq/EBvPapFg73WZ7WcUbiU+Dd2JOHwWHhYnkwBufK5v9KTRPY2PsTTiePK0gy6OxYBlykg7HXXanfDuzME+AYtdpp43eJwxQRnkLc9etZUszQT4nFwY0WspJGwGa1xvpyqDTNl56c77VteB9llSNvttywayxxyZRa2hJGpv+lA8R7ISxxTyxurohd1juVYINj0J8vLTpQCZpPKH72EkWsmshJvf3qTw94CRYEbjrUHjy12OW3tTNXiYKVOdo/3oasGI0G1ckmzE6aHlVAAubj0tRalBC+5ZLEG2trFudq6LjS+vl4qHGJGuvyKmuJH9xXjPzQ6/2rCWFvPleolz+zXhMDvboNKkH2/IeGuDnDpEHn1KYuHSr3lsQR3jFjlTf3vepLgmQEd3HIG0bvAVJFtuYpqHXr9a6XVQxLaKCxZvCAOtOGS/xNE3SwfEeHPg82aMiB7hXzB+68iRy6H9n6N2Y4yuIwGEWRhnMKAkkWY2+L0rXicDA/eprpZmy+twaSTSJgmJw8iPC5v9mRxmiJP8ovqNdtxyvtXqcL5KSUCOZhBHBoowxkv4uNeHwpj2i4aJDJGDYo3eQP8A0m2l/LWx8qSwcFZiO9kAHNISWJ9yBb4o6Liay+NGEiEWPdnMyHpb9NxTLhmLVZM7REhfwh7fNr/nW02QgEA7FbJhDYQ4jW5orbtW8O7ML9mYpAoLNp3i6sOZJOtZztDwN+HsjLlCzsVEWfNlO9x5DmOVbjE9pooIWco3gGxtqelfPuMcVfG4hppSBfwxoNkW+g8/M9abjlxdd0Fj/ZkWQ8UCbo9IdLRqQN2N2bmxqEkmnW5sANya5hlbESBIULm9iV2X1Owp/BwHImYyXkYAWK5VXqBob+untS8/5aHGbp1AuPAUl4HHKZcLxC4LCL9zIbr3jOkfegm3UcrAa+9KT2jeTjWEZYEYxoMLGJmNonfQsDsNCBqNRca0ZixNFhpMsxISM5ozGGzADYdK5xTspFgH4dMJTnmEcrrIcvdsGQMxN9AQx9CRryrzOABLK6V253SpnktFck7pb217AyYcvPh0MkQjeSRoo1QxkAk3VQABpfQUqw3DIbYaOVisKywfaHR8pCXBYgjUG19R1r6QZ+JLg8QGiilKs8aYeRcxlS9tSDbUHp7cq+f/AMGxWIxTYaGJSyL3skEM3emIEkAEnkCLbk7V6CGRoa4O8VR7SDYT6LgrDB4VlRJVMULiOwUi4B2Oh5V4z5HAsyFQA0boVK+x9KIwEiQxQxtinR4I0jkRnLgECxtcbXHKr8TIXjNsVDJ3alwk8Ql1A5WIsa8i6V2og+q6Y2uAsINsYquS3JQM18wHr0omDFBrgMPwXYKQ2hoDCYCTEIHVlIvYh5CpNh1+edTl4bLDqEKlrXaMBgAPTT8qYXN4vdIfiC9ku4j2Ww8qSGJjG7EFM751vzvuQDWGlw9iRzQkac63WIlkJszkZdR92Yv36UOqAqD9nQ+POcqhje++g1NPZI4DfdcI3tHFoXs92Zw+IwYkmZy89wgQ5BGNgdtTz6eVewvYe7zjES2UN9wYrOXFzqf3zp0MblVTkZCuhVl0A8uQq98cpC319a77nepBbJe17oki3+mWuE2/tXf2K8zG23pZqySEm1zOdfzHhrolb42INRANul/+apDlry2BriB4uBPq8ZiL6etzXjJe4ZdGUgg+K9+VeLb61Ev736cveuDR4p1V2lU/CitzBNYDaKa7geh3HvegGlkicLKhUsbK4OdW9D+hsadYnGiNioF23ZWbKAPM2NB4R/4hPmcBY8KAxjDZrk9TpcaH20516z4qfN2LhcfpWhiCWRwHRUcBwpwJJgv/ALk5wL5SBy+dT8Uv4ZJK0id9ipEjcWvGEYqSdCbg6cvLStbBiEmDhHDBTkbIdqxYd0kkRkzKqm5jXMQAbEEcwDv67VqvY17X6jpvvzxbGWPqY3QaHq00nA45bCXE4iQCxyNIIhf2AtV0XBcGhFsODY3Heu2IB9bk39NqXcHxucd0WzWXNC98116X5kflbzpoGPzy6V4vLOVHIY3yHb97ELAlnfqOoklMIyiKFUBQuiqiBQB5CrDlNtb9B+GlYlbpz51YJz0+lZboiTdpYkB6V/EXVcNOcwHgIuQWtfTYane+nSm3FuFwcfQMMQpiwKJH3iAtlOhYXuLGwW4NxYjS9qzTSlpGJlMaxNHFmeMTK5JBII0Ox1sQbZuujFe0TYzCp4EQ4uOE4oRAqCVZ1Nr7XCjQ3sNLnQ1v4LP8bHMjjzumhwrftaOXER47C4rD4SbJNJhysZdWw5S4IBFxfkdR0pN2U4DNwjiOIkxUyPn4ciq0YLFVQ7HQXNiPil0uLMUkOITfCk94BzQ7/FgfYjnTviuKgxKSTT4uSBWwoweHMEjLmkcHkoJc3AsLEabG9XMXJM8ZNU7xSCDv4lojYpHnUMcozE2bW2tDYrhyyRsBEgbKQjZcuU8jpVmDxbNGO9iZHU5XSVDCeoNjqLgg+9EiQaWry0j5GPN8gpglIKW4PhISNcxYOQc7xyFLm5/1or7NIt8mLkFxb7wiXWiQ67Wt/lrthyPyaE5LrsqfuKSY6CZsRAGlR/EMrtGIgNdjbflRRwzZ7nCI38pGHmyXHWxvqNfmmBUX2968EI2v7UwZZAGykTHsJTNCt1zYedBcq+VBNy0sRalMhjzssZZV3S9wfO+p51rVLC+u+wI1oWDBCKeaXcz/AIkfUA+VOZmDtG2dvioBtyIuegqQI6a/9VVMfMel81QD2Gn0FKBWRqRAF72I9OdVkkbjfy3qAYnYfNTBPMDXmTRhdqtSBB5AcrAm9eCgX8P+auX9OnrXg2w5+uUCu3UgrK8SxWWbG38JVyMpPKwAPxY0JhpAQPNcjWOXMOh6iiu1OGyYpZLC2JTXKNLjQ39iPg1TguAyyYSKWKRTnMn3TsUIAJAsbWO2xt617jFzomY0ReaBAH9rTjlDWg3SIgxLwtmjcAlcpzLnBHpVcBDyEucxu7s7bknc+VU/w3E2bNFkCqWZ3kWygczYk/ShcJMykjLmaQgBVJYk8gKvsyYJLIIIHKd9+ptXYC03BMLHdpAvijd4ywJUMCAbkbXsbX3Nrm5psba7dPKhuHYYw4eNWOtiz22zE3NvQm1ElQLfka8FmSNkmcRxZpZMjrca4UQ9r/FhUcVi1ggklfRY1zGw38vU1cE+m1v9qzva/EHJBADq/wB/JYlSANB9b/FBjw/bKGe/6QDZRsvEpEdJ+7VYxJOrSBWL3ICoDvoQL7C5J6U4wGGXDQpGpvluS72uxO5OlIezHDCzDEvoEv3K2yhyQQT5Wv771qBDzuPQmrnyErbETD+Lf9onOJAXM3p01rO8beeJowFvDw8iWGVFH3TEi19b6EAC2wt61pREfL5rP9ocfJgZQAqtHxGB4ZUlXOCRvbUWNiOfLyofjH6ZgL5Clp94TbBY1sUhxGlsS5eNb6qo0APmABer++YdelKuy05lwcl2H3cpjVFOiqFFgPKm2Xfy13y1Vy2/8z79KhxJOxXVnPPpuKmMSRz586ry/u9dvblvVbQD0u1Edq1MZ/Y1cuKvz+aBuNK6Da9vqKAxNPSISEdo77Rrvvz61YJwfb3pcJCPfyrquf7UBhCISqjIG/eWpojKNPpVmY6V3vL9fbSuDiqwH7UBGba/3qYS9vjbWpM+m505dKh3oHvtYmiBKLYKRiN9vjxV3Jb8Q09MtqrBNwep+Ksv1HuDUglSK8S/jnDftcCqlg0bh0dyVFtiCQD/AHAonC4cwQQRj/4o0TMRvYWvVhJuCPyr2Y30N/I1Y+95jEZP4g2ApLiRXSE45L3fD8WTbWPIWv1Nv1pZ2Y4bltiJF/HpCGuuUc29+Xl60+7y+lhqNiK8jn9NNL1YjynxwujaK1HcomyU0j1TI30971S+JC7nbyq1nvcDmOdIeKozA25edV2Ns0hFFHz8XijViZQMoJNxtQ+N4Th8RwROI/ajPNHioEx5jcOqAkXQADQgEG/meotmcDiosNjsPJi0MkaMxKDW5G1xzF9bU3l49DJwKLBxPfEYnFPjceO5KeIksdTobeEC3IWraxYRFG5/o5T2tbR9TWLjWHUKquAFGVRY2UeQq8Y6F9pF15h/0NYQmvW86zzjg9oCxfQUkB2II8rUp7VxLJw+RibGJ0kjNzqdrfBNZVMS8f4ZGFujGif4oZGw8eJkJiadA5F7jcaWpkGOWytIPBCENN1afdlIWjgJeNlGLPewPIpQSgAAkEjWxH1FPio0+tUce40owvCBAU7jAuuHmhMRDhiMqZSdLcj522FyPRSq6hgTZgCNKj5GIiUu6dupezSrSm/nyFRPh6/91WBhY769a5If2TWeCbSzwqSL1IC1S/SvHXnUnhQAoEDWqyh/d6JWO3TXnXVPX6UFlTpX/9k=


UB-ADHESIVE

Looks Celebi's toxic cousin

Adhesive looks like it will be the odd one out of all the Ultra Beasts. I think that it may even have a different stat total, maybe being one of those fetus Pokemon that hit 100 in each stat. Adhesive looks like the odd one out because in the trailer it is seen on the opposing team's side, rather than being a wild encounter. Maybe Adhesive is an artificial Ultra Beast?

Now, Adhesive will need something big going for it, whether it be its stats or movepool if it wants to get usage, as having a pure Poison typing does not provide any extra STAB or resists a Poison team could look for (knowing that Poison teams rely on balance).

Pretty cute though

I'm very excited to see how Burst will turn out, but Assembly looks like a lost clause and Adhesive looks like it will be so-so as an ultra beast.

My thoughts on the new UBs
 


UB-BURST


This Pokemon is as ugly as shit.
I think that UB-Burst will be more of a glass cannon Ultra Beast. It's skinny body and explosive "head" suggests that it will be more of an offensive Pokemon, with little or no defensive stats. I don't see this Pokemon making a huge splash on either Ghost or Fire, as Ghost already has Alolan Marowak and usually cannot give up another teamslot for Burst, and on Fire the Ghost coverage is rarely needed. It's color palette suggests that it may get some cool moves that it can abuse on both types, such as Dazzling Gleam, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, or even Giga Drain. It would really blow if this Pokemon turns out to be a physical attacker, as I don't see many coverage options outside of Flare Blitz or maybe Leech life due to its lack of fists or hands. It could maybe act as a Scarfer due to its seemingly high glass cannon nature, with a nice Ghost typing to avoid priority attacks such as Mach Punch or ExtremeSpeed.

Hoping this Pokemon will turn out to be useless since I really appreciate not having a dancing candy cane as a staple on Ghost teams, kinda ruins the mood that Ghost teams usually have with their darker colors.

moving on

UB-ASSEMBLY


Really thought this Pokemon was Ghost :(

Definitely a more defensive Ultra Beast. Unlike Guzzlord, which has massive HP, I think this Pokemon will have high defense stats, and nearly no HP to soak up damage. You know how it goes with Ultra Beasts and their irregular and usually inconvinient stats. I don't think that Assembly will become relevant on either Steel or Rock, with Mega Diancie and Fighting coverage making a huge impact on the metagame. The Rock/Steel typing will hold it back from becoming a sucessfull wall because of how common Fighting and Ground coverage are in this metagame. The only thing I may see Assembly doing on Rock is maybe checking non-superpower Mega Scizor if it gets Flamethrower, and that's about it.

looks like this thing is going into the guzzlord pile

Last but not least,

http://data:image/jpeg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAkGBxAKCQgNDQsQEBAICgoKCgkJChsIFQ0WIB0iIiAdHx8kKDQsJCYxJx8fLTEtMT4wLi4zIyszODMtNzQuLisBCgoKDg0OFhAQFSsdFxkrKy0tLS8tLS0tLS8uLS03LS03LTctLS0rLS0tLzc3LS8rLS03LSstLS0rNysrKysrK//AABEIAH8AzgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xAAbAAACAwEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAEBQIDBgEAB//EAEAQAAIBAgQDBwEGBAQEBwAAAAECAwARBBIhMQVBUQYTImFxgZGhFCMyscHwFUJS8Qei0eFzgpKyFiQzNENicv/EABsBAAIDAQEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIDAQQFAAYH/8QAKREAAQQBBQACAgICAwAAAAAAAQACAxEEEiExQVEFEyJhcYEUsSMykf/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8ASFqiXqtnqpnr6JSwg5XGSoGah2eq2eupTqV7yVWZKHZ6rL1FKQ5Ek5qlBhO8uWNgBQYnK7e9aTs+gky3TOHFip/l8xSpX6BaIG1m5EbMQATroRQzsVJB0I3Br6aeEwYfxkhRa5EhFVcM7P4biWNcKwIRQZXUhrA8h5mqxzmgEkbBGLJ2WG4HwWfimI7nDpcgZpHbQIOpNa5/8K5hFH/5xO8kcJ3YjLLcmw10PqbVpYpcF2daVMOheSYjvFz5iumlzyGu1PeC8Z+14fFY54ikfDo5sodwwdrXJHoNL/8A2PSsjJ+WeXH6zQCsRxA8r4RiuDTQ4/FYRspfCSGOR0a66HcH9mmsfBcOoXNmYi1/HlB6+1HT44zzSO1s8pu7AbnzPP3qN7j3qtP8pNJQBoAf+lKI3NLRdm+KR8JQjDwKM+rM7ZyPQnak3aiSPi+IeeVmBtl0YWUDoLUFK/4vLXehgSQddvrVRuRI1+sOOr1CbCzmOwhgky3uDqj2y5hQ5FP8XEJky801VqVS4VkNjbyI2NepwM9szQHH8xz+1wKFFeBq7ujUSlaNrrUQa6FJ5Vbh4s0iKdmNrmtjF2ReaNDHYhVzHXf0pUkzWVZXWsSAdvpXSDrptX0ODsZGIBJIhRityjHNY1yPhCRAqFVg38zrqBSf8xh43XElfO1BJAHPYUbFw2R1Bta/lWhn4dBFI7ZguXWyDn5VBuIQsoBLAKfDl0vRfcSNgutTsvU+1RMSH+cj2zUOTUSTVot/azw9XSYYcpPYihZImHn5irArHYH4qBJFCP5RarVXcs17Lt/y1W8DAEkbC+9HRxs2u3m1G4SBWlw8bWvPLHFmbYXIFz5a1m5PykMNgEF3gVuHGkf1QQGM4HPhMWmHmis7CJwisHBBAI1Fxsa2/G8F/A+GwtDCztiU1mV8wjNvKpf4jTCHjQMbAiTDYdwUIsCLi2noKQYntBPLCMOXZgxsIrDU1jO+XdIWgtuuR6rf+JRIBSXDTyT4iM4iSQx94DImcqWF9QPyrTYaaaeWT7DEY1fwlID3CAbam9ievPyoHDcMXQyXJOvdhioH6mmkV0VVR3UIMqokpQAdAAdKfLHNk0XU1vgVvHw2t3eb/hQk4S0TffYhCSbtHCS7ge4OvmRTt+MleCYnBQD7vuniTMncyAk3NyCQSbk20OvtScNYjQ+InxZTYnpfrRGDxIglJdc0cy5J0C5/Q259D5HypTsBgaS02QtFsUX/AF00D32saWysbG/QiiEnuBTDtPwtYGWfDkGHF3IytnCvuQD0O/qDSGCUBtayXgtJBWRPAYnlpRUr3+arDV1mzH1qthqaG0ksXHXmPipK6kBXUEdTyrhOUa/zAi9UFf7UQeWmwd0JYqcXhAAWjN7C5U8hQNqa5SNRVLwK5/pJ300Nb2B8qANEx/gpboz0gV0IPQ3rd9kO1BjtB3RJOitfNasrh+Hhm8cmg/o51oOHSjB5jAq3y2uyh/fWm5nyWOW6QNR/S5sbj+k67a9rTFGMPFGudxaR2Gawtyr54eIz2I757E3sWo/iyNiJmkP4nN3U+Ee1L/sr3/D9auYBhfECz+/UD7BVTzuwALk+pqBJ6/WiDhHHL4NVMhXcVfAHSDUvoGNwMDqMi920YdmyqZQdzb5PxaheE8QWB/HBG4YWOdRUF4iROo0IW+qc789ak+Amcq0cDuJ87IyDPax1vbavHw/MGKMtlt98b8LPwInufpc6u7K07doMJHE5XDoWfXIIxva2p5ViOIYlJJXdYgpJvkS9hVc5aN2UkqUNmjcFSDVAIZ9T7is5/wAhK4nSaB6telbDGANrI7VizEjX46UfwZVM5lcZhhrFY2tZmN7A+QsT7CgWQcqM4ZYLJrtJqOmg/wB67Cb9swB45VyEgOvxE8fkzPDKwUF7xs0aBBtcX9LGh8BCEHeP+JxoW8Nh09aJ4ine4dRf8MsJBtm3IB+hNRSFf6QT/U4zn61ujFa2YvA6FI3fk6zyiY5Adjfloc1FYKI4iYRhrWXO7f0i/wCZ5e/SlksUdiTGtxtZQpJ5WNFcKlGEmjYmwOdZHJNgD68gQParD3ODTXKdDWsB3Cf8XjVMJGFFhDLHkA2F7jX5PvSjNXuM8XMqZYlOTvI7kgZpLMDpc6DTnQcWKVyQDqN0YFCPY60OPbQQ7vdNynNL/wATwF3HQmWKRFfL3jByCM4JGxtyPK45aVlJARIRaxBysByINiPmtYXvSHicI7yYrvnDWHh5CqHyUbdIkAo3RVCZuoA+IRJSpseuhq8XPnUcJh3xc0MMSF5MQ4jjjG5J9dvWiePcPPCcZJhmnSUxInePCDZHIuVudyDpf8tqxwSVWLKQeIcEa8iBoOfT1rhjdY43aN1VyVjkkjKByN7Eix9q+gYXgEf/AIdDQMGklWHGMzMFLEC5OuwAJHLl7g4vBQNwuDJie9mdo2bAhu9BLECwW24J5XOh9ntjscpLtjwsXmqQIYG42G9PO1/CP4ZicIhjCfaMFh5QqWUMwFmNuVyCeW9Iw973HsKUTRpHoXhE38uo3tURI8fX0vV+HmykA+xruJTN+9DUat1xjXA4fnc16x5/lQkqbldCvIV2HEm1ix053qxj5UkLrYaS3RBw3RIFzYb9OdRbDk7qfiupLaxOvXrVoxPRz6EbVt4/zQ4lH9qu/FPRRMGEkiUyeEZCPA3jJJOgtsfStrgMeiQx5Sq+FLpbutTyt60JwzhkeIlMJY5BH3kishQqb6D8tadScCUKgjnPgY5RJdgAdPOvCS5LXUCaKuDAY123iXcQ4ZBjJBJKvisA0kbZMwHXr+dZniXBgkq/Z2MiyF9Lax2OxPPTnpzrZngTIhtIr2fMLjISfW1QPAmuSrotyhYDY29r/WltyA3tNEBHazPBuFESF54wUjFsrNlub8x0333qziyquLkKqoDpG9o1yC9rH8vrTDuiZpF+1KndSGMLKSoa3PmLUDxeHLGsm5gY94wkDgqbAkWAvYgddL1pfHZIZkNJOx2TWwlrtV2gsQ14j/8AqM/UV7N+yahIQY5Adihvbe1uVbt+yMShDHEjK41aVcxUeZO9etlnDK25TdbAQHmge1hgc0n/AAxf3P8AoPzqy/7NS4hgfseLkUfgmGeJultCPbS3karpjHBwtG4aSuTH/wBMdZBb2ufyBrssayAZl2/C34SvmDuKpeQd4viHgve55kWA9bE1deiG9qFWJTGVVzdWsEktqD0P6Hn+Yk8TSTuEW+bIrKCGINt7bgWtrtpRjr3l0/rHivsB1P6UVGFiWy7nVpDux6mkzQCZukmhdqKvZOuxsMfCFmmZBLPjE7rC4hDmEB1uLEAgnUk87W05rOKcCWKPic7jvnmDyQq3iK3JJJ6kA39j5Uw4JhXxUYCtbu5JJczbXIsNfZv3aruOscEkBlAs0ieKM59AQSSN7AX+QNyBXlcuQMyPqjOwPCTlQnUNJoULWJOIneNUzlUwCyIsQTQXNyCLg31t+lG4JJmQyqkinDsCJI8HPigCADcMkbAW9aVYviYfi2MK5DFisY7I7vkUXNgSeQ2N+Vr1rf8AEHi8eKw8EODEbGCQpK+DYSqSbAAMN7XO3hHtWtq/EBvPapFg73WZ7WcUbiU+Dd2JOHwWHhYnkwBufK5v9KTRPY2PsTTiePK0gy6OxYBlykg7HXXanfDuzME+AYtdpp43eJwxQRnkLc9etZUszQT4nFwY0WspJGwGa1xvpyqDTNl56c77VteB9llSNvttywayxxyZRa2hJGpv+lA8R7ISxxTyxurohd1juVYINj0J8vLTpQCZpPKH72EkWsmshJvf3qTw94CRYEbjrUHjy12OW3tTNXiYKVOdo/3oasGI0G1ckmzE6aHlVAAubj0tRalBC+5ZLEG2trFudq6LjS+vl4qHGJGuvyKmuJH9xXjPzQ6/2rCWFvPleolz+zXhMDvboNKkH2/IeGuDnDpEHn1KYuHSr3lsQR3jFjlTf3vepLgmQEd3HIG0bvAVJFtuYpqHXr9a6XVQxLaKCxZvCAOtOGS/xNE3SwfEeHPg82aMiB7hXzB+68iRy6H9n6N2Y4yuIwGEWRhnMKAkkWY2+L0rXicDA/eprpZmy+twaSTSJgmJw8iPC5v9mRxmiJP8ovqNdtxyvtXqcL5KSUCOZhBHBoowxkv4uNeHwpj2i4aJDJGDYo3eQP8A0m2l/LWx8qSwcFZiO9kAHNISWJ9yBb4o6Liay+NGEiEWPdnMyHpb9NxTLhmLVZM7REhfwh7fNr/nW02QgEA7FbJhDYQ4jW5orbtW8O7ML9mYpAoLNp3i6sOZJOtZztDwN+HsjLlCzsVEWfNlO9x5DmOVbjE9pooIWco3gGxtqelfPuMcVfG4hppSBfwxoNkW+g8/M9abjlxdd0Fj/ZkWQ8UCbo9IdLRqQN2N2bmxqEkmnW5sANya5hlbESBIULm9iV2X1Owp/BwHImYyXkYAWK5VXqBob+untS8/5aHGbp1AuPAUl4HHKZcLxC4LCL9zIbr3jOkfegm3UcrAa+9KT2jeTjWEZYEYxoMLGJmNonfQsDsNCBqNRca0ZixNFhpMsxISM5ozGGzADYdK5xTspFgH4dMJTnmEcrrIcvdsGQMxN9AQx9CRryrzOABLK6V253SpnktFck7pb217AyYcvPh0MkQjeSRoo1QxkAk3VQABpfQUqw3DIbYaOVisKywfaHR8pCXBYgjUG19R1r6QZ+JLg8QGiilKs8aYeRcxlS9tSDbUHp7cq+f/AMGxWIxTYaGJSyL3skEM3emIEkAEnkCLbk7V6CGRoa4O8VR7SDYT6LgrDB4VlRJVMULiOwUi4B2Oh5V4z5HAsyFQA0boVK+x9KIwEiQxQxtinR4I0jkRnLgECxtcbXHKr8TIXjNsVDJ3alwk8Ql1A5WIsa8i6V2og+q6Y2uAsINsYquS3JQM18wHr0omDFBrgMPwXYKQ2hoDCYCTEIHVlIvYh5CpNh1+edTl4bLDqEKlrXaMBgAPTT8qYXN4vdIfiC9ku4j2Ww8qSGJjG7EFM751vzvuQDWGlw9iRzQkac63WIlkJszkZdR92Yv36UOqAqD9nQ+POcqhje++g1NPZI4DfdcI3tHFoXs92Zw+IwYkmZy89wgQ5BGNgdtTz6eVewvYe7zjES2UN9wYrOXFzqf3zp0MblVTkZCuhVl0A8uQq98cpC319a77nepBbJe17oki3+mWuE2/tXf2K8zG23pZqySEm1zOdfzHhrolb42INRANul/+apDlry2BriB4uBPq8ZiL6etzXjJe4ZdGUgg+K9+VeLb61Ev736cveuDR4p1V2lU/CitzBNYDaKa7geh3HvegGlkicLKhUsbK4OdW9D+hsadYnGiNioF23ZWbKAPM2NB4R/4hPmcBY8KAxjDZrk9TpcaH20516z4qfN2LhcfpWhiCWRwHRUcBwpwJJgv/ALk5wL5SBy+dT8Uv4ZJK0id9ipEjcWvGEYqSdCbg6cvLStbBiEmDhHDBTkbIdqxYd0kkRkzKqm5jXMQAbEEcwDv67VqvY17X6jpvvzxbGWPqY3QaHq00nA45bCXE4iQCxyNIIhf2AtV0XBcGhFsODY3Heu2IB9bk39NqXcHxucd0WzWXNC98116X5kflbzpoGPzy6V4vLOVHIY3yHb97ELAlnfqOoklMIyiKFUBQuiqiBQB5CrDlNtb9B+GlYlbpz51YJz0+lZboiTdpYkB6V/EXVcNOcwHgIuQWtfTYane+nSm3FuFwcfQMMQpiwKJH3iAtlOhYXuLGwW4NxYjS9qzTSlpGJlMaxNHFmeMTK5JBII0Ox1sQbZuujFe0TYzCp4EQ4uOE4oRAqCVZ1Nr7XCjQ3sNLnQ1v4LP8bHMjjzumhwrftaOXER47C4rD4SbJNJhysZdWw5S4IBFxfkdR0pN2U4DNwjiOIkxUyPn4ciq0YLFVQ7HQXNiPil0uLMUkOITfCk94BzQ7/FgfYjnTviuKgxKSTT4uSBWwoweHMEjLmkcHkoJc3AsLEabG9XMXJM8ZNU7xSCDv4lojYpHnUMcozE2bW2tDYrhyyRsBEgbKQjZcuU8jpVmDxbNGO9iZHU5XSVDCeoNjqLgg+9EiQaWry0j5GPN8gpglIKW4PhISNcxYOQc7xyFLm5/1or7NIt8mLkFxb7wiXWiQ67Wt/lrthyPyaE5LrsqfuKSY6CZsRAGlR/EMrtGIgNdjbflRRwzZ7nCI38pGHmyXHWxvqNfmmBUX2968EI2v7UwZZAGykTHsJTNCt1zYedBcq+VBNy0sRalMhjzssZZV3S9wfO+p51rVLC+u+wI1oWDBCKeaXcz/AIkfUA+VOZmDtG2dvioBtyIuegqQI6a/9VVMfMel81QD2Gn0FKBWRqRAF72I9OdVkkbjfy3qAYnYfNTBPMDXmTRhdqtSBB5AcrAm9eCgX8P+auX9OnrXg2w5+uUCu3UgrK8SxWWbG38JVyMpPKwAPxY0JhpAQPNcjWOXMOh6iiu1OGyYpZLC2JTXKNLjQ39iPg1TguAyyYSKWKRTnMn3TsUIAJAsbWO2xt617jFzomY0ReaBAH9rTjlDWg3SIgxLwtmjcAlcpzLnBHpVcBDyEucxu7s7bknc+VU/w3E2bNFkCqWZ3kWygczYk/ShcJMykjLmaQgBVJYk8gKvsyYJLIIIHKd9+ptXYC03BMLHdpAvijd4ywJUMCAbkbXsbX3Nrm5psba7dPKhuHYYw4eNWOtiz22zE3NvQm1ElQLfka8FmSNkmcRxZpZMjrca4UQ9r/FhUcVi1ggklfRY1zGw38vU1cE+m1v9qzva/EHJBADq/wB/JYlSANB9b/FBjw/bKGe/6QDZRsvEpEdJ+7VYxJOrSBWL3ICoDvoQL7C5J6U4wGGXDQpGpvluS72uxO5OlIezHDCzDEvoEv3K2yhyQQT5Wv771qBDzuPQmrnyErbETD+Lf9onOJAXM3p01rO8beeJowFvDw8iWGVFH3TEi19b6EAC2wt61pREfL5rP9ocfJgZQAqtHxGB4ZUlXOCRvbUWNiOfLyofjH6ZgL5Clp94TbBY1sUhxGlsS5eNb6qo0APmABer++YdelKuy05lwcl2H3cpjVFOiqFFgPKm2Xfy13y1Vy2/8z79KhxJOxXVnPPpuKmMSRz586ry/u9dvblvVbQD0u1Edq1MZ/Y1cuKvz+aBuNK6Da9vqKAxNPSISEdo77Rrvvz61YJwfb3pcJCPfyrquf7UBhCISqjIG/eWpojKNPpVmY6V3vL9fbSuDiqwH7UBGba/3qYS9vjbWpM+m505dKh3oHvtYmiBKLYKRiN9vjxV3Jb8Q09MtqrBNwep+Ksv1HuDUglSK8S/jnDftcCqlg0bh0dyVFtiCQD/AHAonC4cwQQRj/4o0TMRvYWvVhJuCPyr2Y30N/I1Y+95jEZP4g2ApLiRXSE45L3fD8WTbWPIWv1Nv1pZ2Y4bltiJF/HpCGuuUc29+Xl60+7y+lhqNiK8jn9NNL1YjynxwujaK1HcomyU0j1TI30971S+JC7nbyq1nvcDmOdIeKozA25edV2Ns0hFFHz8XijViZQMoJNxtQ+N4Th8RwROI/ajPNHioEx5jcOqAkXQADQgEG/meotmcDiosNjsPJi0MkaMxKDW5G1xzF9bU3l49DJwKLBxPfEYnFPjceO5KeIksdTobeEC3IWraxYRFG5/o5T2tbR9TWLjWHUKquAFGVRY2UeQq8Y6F9pF15h/0NYQmvW86zzjg9oCxfQUkB2II8rUp7VxLJw+RibGJ0kjNzqdrfBNZVMS8f4ZGFujGif4oZGw8eJkJiadA5F7jcaWpkGOWytIPBCENN1afdlIWjgJeNlGLPewPIpQSgAAkEjWxH1FPio0+tUce40owvCBAU7jAuuHmhMRDhiMqZSdLcj522FyPRSq6hgTZgCNKj5GIiUu6dupezSrSm/nyFRPh6/91WBhY769a5If2TWeCbSzwqSL1IC1S/SvHXnUnhQAoEDWqyh/d6JWO3TXnXVPX6UFlTpX/9k=


UB-ADHESIVE

Looks Celebi's toxic cousin

Adhesive looks like it will be the odd one out of all the Ultra Beasts. I think that it may even have a different stat total, maybe being one of those fetus Pokemon that hit 100 in each stat. Adhesive looks like the odd one out because in the trailer it is seen on the opposing team's side, rather than being a wild encounter. Maybe Adhesive is an artificial Ultra Beast?

Now, Adhesive will need something big going for it, whether it be its stats or movepool if it wants to get usage, as having a pure Poison typing does not provide any extra STAB or resists a Poison team could look for (knowing that Poison teams rely on balance).

Pretty cute though

I'm very excited to see how Burst will turn out, but Assembly looks like a lost clause and Adhesive looks like it will be so-so as an ultra beast.

My thoughts on the new UBs
Isn't this still entirely theorymons at this point?

I don't think it's productive to try and speak to their potential impact on the metagame when all we know about them is their typing.
 
So question: How is any given type supposed to beat Toxapex without having a designated mon to kill it? On normal, what's supposed to kill it? On fighting what's supposed to kill it? Water? etc.
This thing's fucking broke.
 
Lugia Proto
Normal - Choice Band Diggersby OHKOes it every time.

Fire - Victini, Volcanion are both solid answers to it with Bolt Strike and Earth Power, respectively.

Water - Greninja with Extrasensory beats it reliably, and Vincune can PP stall it.

Grass - Tapu Bulu pressures it offensively, and it tends to lose in most 1v1 matchups thanks to Leech Seed.

Electric - Nearly every single Electric Pokemon can beat Toxapex 1v1.

Ice - Ninetales as well as Kyurem-Black both beat it reliably thanks to Freeze Dry and Fusion Bolt.

Fighting - Mega Gallade reliably 2HKOes Toxapex. Breloom reliably puts it to sleep and sets up on Water.

Poison - Nidoking and Nidoqueen both reliably beat Toxapex.

Ground - Nearly every Ground Pokemon can beat Toxapex 1v1.

Flying - Landorus, Landorus-Therian, Choice Band Dragonite generally deal with Toxapex.

Psychic - Gothitelle traps and beats it, and Psychic generally wins against it due to its super effective STAB.

Bug - Galvantula reliably beats it. Pex is pretty good in this matchup but Bug definitely has counterplay to it.

Rock - Pex can’t switch into Mega Diancie, and it can bounce it’s Toxic Spikes on the switch-in.

Ghost - Mega Sableye can take on it 1v1, as Toxapex can only Scald while Sableye can knock its item and allow a teammate to pick it off more easily.

Dragon - Dragonite, Kyurem-Black, Latios all check it reliably.

Dark - Mega Sableye as mentioned before. Extrasensory Greninja also checks it.

Steel - Heatran pressures it with Magma Storm and Taunt. Magnezone beats it.

Fairy - Tapu Bulu and Tapu Koko can both beat it 1v1.

Sorry if I’m missing some checks on some types, it’s pretty early in the morning :P

Edit: all of these mons are very standard on these types and serve a far bigger purpose than just beating Toxapex.
 
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