We've all built a team where one of our Pokemon is clearly a cut above the rest, a god among 'mon. The rest of your team your team then follows in service of this deity, even making the ultimate sacrifice and becoming death fodd--err...honorable martyrs, if the need arises. This metagame takes that dynamic to the next level, with a little bit of Monotype-esque fun thrown in.
In this metagame, the Pokemon in your first slot becomes your "god," gaining no extra power but a whole lot of responsibility. This slot ignores the OU banlist, pretty much allowing you to use whatever you want, from PU to Ubers.
The remainder of your team is comprised of "followers," the faithful servants of your god. These Pokemon are limited by the OU banlist, and additionally must share at least one type with their god, as they were created in its image.
Should you fail to protect your god in battle, your entire team will be saddled with an endless Embargo, sealing the use of all held-items. Because of this divine punishment, consider it wise to sacrifice a lowly follower over letting your god collapse.
To sum it up...
Rules:
[Party Slot #1]
Bans: Ubers banlist
Mechanic: Applies constant Embargo effect to the player's team upon fainting
[Party Slots #2-6]
Bans: OU banlist
Restrictions: Must share at least one type with Party Slot #1
[Overall]
Bans: Geomancy
Clauses: OU clauses
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Possible Gods (Ubers):
Remember -- you aren't limited to Ubers Pokemon. There's a whole world of type pairings out there to use! But just for ease of reference, here are all of the Pokemon currently banned from OU and legal in Ubers. Generally, one of these will be your best bet when picking a god.
*Does not impact the type restrictions of the team
**Considered "Uber" with the ability Shadow Tag
***Considered "Uber" while holding Soul Dew
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Q&A:
Q: If my god has to be in the first slot, does that mean I have to lead with it?
A: No, you can choose your lead as usual.
Q: Then how do I know which Pokemon is my opponent's god?
A: The god of either team is always the farthest on the left in team preview.
Q: How can I disguise Zoroark as my god?
A: During team preview, move your god to the sixth slot.
Q: How is this different from Monotype with a weird banlist?
A: Aside from the fainting mechanic, you are not necessarily limited to one type. For example, if I put Ho-Oh in my first slot, the rest of my Pokemon can be any type combination that includes either Fire or Flying: Darmanitan and Honchkrow can be on the same team, in this scenario. However, if Kyogre is my god, only Water type Pokemon can be used.
Q: How do Pokemon that change type work?
A: Only the base form is checked when determining the type restriction of your team. For example, a team with Mega Mewtwo X as its god cannot utilize Keldeo, and a team with Xerneas as its god cannot utilize Mega Altaria.
Q: Do I have to use an Ubers Pokemon as my god?
A: Nope! While players that do so do have an inherent advantage, brave players can use an entirely OU legal team. There are perks to going this route: maybe you want to create a Water + Fairy or Fire + Steel team. No Ubers Pokemon have both these types, so you can use the perfectly viable Azumaril or Heatran as gods instead. Note that the Embargo effect applies no matter what tier your god is.
Q: If a move or ability is banned from OU but legal in Ubers, can I use it for my god?
A: It depends. Shadow Tag, for instance, is only allowed in the god slot and nowhere else. However, team-wide clauses like Baton Pass Clause follow OU, thus Smashpass Smeargle cannot be a god (not that you'd want it to be).
Q: What happens after my god faints?
A: For failing to defend your deity, your entire team will suffer an eternal Embargo. If you forgot how Embargo worked, as it is a very uncommon status effect, all non-Megastone held items will fail to function. As this isn't a primary status effect, you can still be effected by Burn, Poison and everything else. While this definitely puts you at a disadvantage, a smart player can prevail even with the lack of defensive and offensive utility that items provide.
Q: Can I provide you with cool artwork to use as your banner rather that image you stole from the internet?
A: Please do! I'd prefer you send me a PM, but you can also just post it in this thread. If you find something that you didn't make but seems more fitting than my current banner, you can send me that too.
Q: How can I apply to be on the GAF council? What does that entail?
A: If you join the council, mostly you'll be discussing bans, rule changes and viability rankings via PM discussions when the need arises. If you'd like to join, I'm imposing the following restrictions on applications: 1) you must be an active presence in the OM, either through discussion in this thread or promoting and playing it on Showdown, and 2) you must be an active presence in the OM community as a whole, either by having voice in the Other Metas room or managing an OM/OM project of your own. If you fit the above criteria, send me a PM with your application.
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Strategies:
Wish
Heal Bell
Aromatherapy
Wish
Heal Bell
Wish
Healing Wish
Heal Bell
Wish
Heal Bell
Wish
Healing Wish
Heal Bell
Aromatherapy
None!
Wish
Heal Bell
Wish
Heal Bell
Aromatherapy
Heal Bell
Wish
Healing Wish
Heal Bell
Aromatherapy
None!
Wish
Heal Bell
Wish
Healing Wish (+Lunar Dance)
Heal Bell
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy
Wish
Healing Wish (+Lunar Dance)
Heal Bell
Heal Bell
Wish
Healing Wish
Wish
Healing Wish
Heal Bell
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Council:
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Replays:
Resource Posts:
Follower Support Compendium - List of followers that can use support moves like Wish and Defog
Follower Role Compendium (5★) - List of followers that fulfill team roles like Wallbreaker and Pivot
Analysis Posts:
Reshiram
Skarmory
Last edited:
Volcanion
