Lower-tier Threats in Ubers

By Lotus. Released: 2019/01/28.
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Art by DatHeatmor

Art by DatHeatmor.

Introduction

From a beginner's point of view, Ubers may seem like a tier flooded with cover legendary Pokémon due to their overwhelmingly high base stats and their sheer power. This often entices many people to build teams by only employing Uber Pokémon and avoiding lower-tier Pokémon. While it is true that Pokémon that are in Ubers by tiering make up the largest portion of the metagame, there are plenty of lower-tier Pokémon that are useful. This doesn't refer to a pack of niche Pokémon that barely keep their place in viability rankings. Many Pokémon from OU and even some from lower tiers widely see their use in many Ubers teams, and some of them are even more viable than some of the cover legendary Pokémon.

Ubers has seen a lot of lower-tier Pokémon for generations. Pokémon that are not even imaginable in Ubers today, such as Snorlax, Forretress, Heatran, Bronzong, and Garchomp, were used in past generations to check certain threats or cover important roles. Only a few Pokémon that have been seeing usage from past generations, such as Skarmory and Blissey, still remain viable in Ubers today due to new generations bringing in new threats and changing the metagame's environment. Let's take a closer look at what useful lower-tier Pokémon Ubers has to offer in SM.

Small Titans

Magearna

Magearna

OU uses Magearna in various ways: Shift Gear cleaner, Double Dance sweeper, stallbreaker, and Assault Vest pivot. Magearna's good defensive typing is similarly valued in Ubers, where the pool of checks to Xerneas, Yveltal, and Deoxys-A is quite shallow, but surprisingly, none of the previously mentioned sets see use there. In Ubers, Magearna is still a specially defensive pivot, but it needs Heart Swap to shut down Geomancy Xerneas. Hence, it cannot afford to hold Assault Vest and instead uses Leftovers for consistent recovery or Normalium Z in tandem with Heal Bell for more immediate recovery. While using Magearna this way may make it seem overly passive, Magearna's Fleur Cannon still does its job, OHKOing offensive Yveltal and the rare Darkrai as well as wearing down Primal Groudon to a considerable degree with entry hazards on the field. Despite these benefits, low Speed, lack of offensive presence coming from defensive investment, and quite exploitable defensive typing make Magearna easily preyed on by healthy Ground-types and checked by Steel-types. For this reason, Magearna can't easily generate momentum, as it will have to predict between using Fleur Cannon against incoming Ground-types and switching out against Steel-types by using Volt Switch.

Ferrothorn

Ferrothorn

When it comes to moveset, Ferrothorn functions similarly in Ubers as it does in OU. Its many resistances and immunity to Toxic are always valued, and this is visible from Ferrothorn checking Primal Kyogre and support Arceus formes, which many other Steel-types and special walls struggle to consistently pivot into. Ferrothorn also differentiates itself from other Steel-types with its access to Spikes, which gives it another way to bother the opposing team apart from wearing down switch-ins with Leech Seed and Toxic. With exceptions like Ho-Oh and Mega Sableye, hazard removers on balanced teams struggle to outlast Ferrothorn and keep Spikes away from the field if Ferrothorn manages to consistently switch into resisted attacks, spreads status, and lay down Spikes. Out of all of these traits, being a solid check to Primal Kyogre and a consistent Spikes user contributed the most to Ferrothorn becoming more popular in balanced teams. Though the omnipresence of Primal Groudon and an unfavorable matchup against Shadow Tag users are notable downsides, Ferrothorn is one of the best Steel-types Ubers has to offer.

Toxapex

Toxapex

Toxapex is commonly found in OU as a specially defensive pivot that can switch into threatening special attackers like Greninja, Magearna, and Volcarona, be a strong check to Clefable and Mega Scizor, and punish various passive Pokémon by spreading status or laying down Toxic Spikes. While it is very rare for Toxapex to run physically defensive investment in OU apart from instances where it intends to check the less common Mega Lopunny, Toxapex is mostly obliged to run such an EV spread in Ubers. Though it has good natural bulk and appropriate typing to pivot into many support Arceus formes and switch into Xerneas's Moonblast, support Arceus formes already struggle to do much to Toxapex, and Geomancy Xerneas can easily defeat Toxapex with a boosted Thunder. Specially defensive Toxapex saw some use with Wacan Berry in early SM, but after Marshadow was banned in OU and found its home in Ubers, physically defensive Toxapex became the most common variant. Toxapex's high physical bulk with investment and Regenerator allow it to be one of the few defensive Pokémon that can pivot into Marshadow and Mega Lucario without being forced to recover and punish their attempt to simply attack by laying down Toxic Spikes. In general, Toxapex is a useful Pokémon for balanced teams or some slower teams that can trouble Pokémon like Arceus-Water and Arceus-Fairy and switch into Fighting-types well. Falling prey to Mega Gengar is disappointing, however, and running Shed Shell to mitigate this downside will make Toxapex more passive against physical threats it pivots into. Toxapex's issue with passivity remains problematic against Facade Mega Salamence and Mega Sableye as well.

Mega Scizor

Mega Scizor

Mega Scizor utilizes its great defensive typing and high physical bulk to check various threats in OU, notably Tapu Bulu, Tyranitar, Kyurem-B, and Kartana. Combined with a strong Bullet Punch to pick off weakened foes and U-turn to generate momentum, Mega Scizor can prove to be useful with the right use. Though Mega Scizor is an all-around solid pick in both OU and Ubers, it has similar downsides in both metagames. Pokémon like Serperior, Tangrowth, and, less commonly, Magearna and Greninja use Hidden Power Fire due to Mega Scizor's shared level of prevalence with Ferrothorn. While this is a non-existent issue in Ubers, there are still "Fire"s that Mega Scizor has to be wary about. Primal Groudon is seen in almost every seriously built team, and Ho-Oh is also common and does not mind Mega Scizor at all. Mega Scizor also cannot check Zygarde and support Arceus formes at the same time, so it must choose between either Curse and being a persistent check to offensive Zygarde variants lacking Dragon Tail or Toxic to punish a switch-in. Predictions with U-turn become more important, as Mega Scizor will have to either use Toxic on Pokémon like Primal Groudon and Yveltal or immediately pivot out of foes like Ferrothorn and Skarmory. A Swords Dance set is also much less effective in Ubers due to the prevalence of said offensive threats and many Pokémon boasting significantly more bulk than the ones in OU. Though Mega Scizor is much less capable in the offensive aspect, it is still a good pivot to many Arceus formes carrying Toxic, a solid check to Ultra Necrozma, and one of the better revenge killers for Xerneas due to Bullet Punch.

Mega Sableye

Mega Sableye

Mega Sableye is one of the most important Pokémon on many stall teams in OU, and it also secures its place on many defensive teams and even some balanced teams in Ubers. Though offensive threats in Ubers are much more powerful, Mega Sableye is still reasonably bulky by Ubers's standards after Mega Evolving, and its good defensive typing forces opponents to directly use an offensive threat to force it out. Gaining Magic Bounce early-game is much easier thanks to Fake Out, and Mega Sableye can easily punish a switch-in with Foul Play or one of the status moves it carries. Apart from almost invalidating passive Pokémon, Mega Sableye also provides utility by handling Ultra Necrozma, Extreme Killer Arceus, and Deoxys-A effectively, though the matchup against the Ultra Necrozma is shaky, as +2 Outrage can bypass it. Though Mega Sableye is a solid Pokémon on its own, it will be reliant on its teammates to patch up its defensive shortcoming against powerful attackers like Primal Groudon and Fairy-types like Xerneas. Pokémon that can help out Mega Sableye, such as Ho-Oh, Lugia, Lunala, and a multitude of support Arceus formes can deal with a large number of Pokémon that threaten Mega Sableye, provide Defog support, and benefit from Mega Sableye's Magic Bounce. Mega Sableye's low Speed will often force it to recover against balanced teams, causing it to run into unfavorable matchup considerably often and potentially put its teammates into a hazardous situation against threats like Swords Dance Primal Groudon, Calm Mind Primal Kyogre, and even Geomancy Xerneas if entry hazards were not removed from the field in advance.

Chansey and Blissey

Chansey
Blissey

Both Chansey's and Blissey's special bulk is at a level where they can be annoyances to even special attackers dwelling in Ubers. This is partially true and partially false in Ubers. While special attackers like Xerneas and support Arceus formes have no way to independently get rid of these blobs in reasonable conditions, Primal Kyogre can overpower them with physical sets or Calm Mind-boosted Water Spout. Yveltal can also be an issue due to many variants commonly using Taunt or Knock Off. There is a very clear line between what Pokémon Chansey and Blissey can check and what Pokémon that they should avoid for their lives. As the blobs are mandated to invest more in Special Defense, and in some instances, fully invest EVs in HP and Special Defense, they will avoid any physical attacker and will only take on special threats that lack Taunt or physical attacks. For Chansey, Shadow Tag trapping is additionally concerning, whereas Blissey can be overloaded quite easily with strong repeated attacks, and Geomancy Xerneas and Calm Mind Kyogre have a good chance to bypass it with entry hazard support.

Less Common Threats

Celesteela

Celesteela

Celesteela's excellent mixed bulk and typing as well as its good level of offensive presence make it one of the best tanks in OU. In Ubers it is capable of at worst blanket checking dangerous threats like Primal Groudon lacking a Fire-type attack and Ultra Necrozma when healthy enough. Celesteela can be an annoyance for certain foes in Ubers as well, as the popular Swords Dance + Stealth Rock Primal Groudon variants and many support Arceus formes struggle to threaten it. Much like Ferrothorn, just about every offensive check to Celesteela is vulnerable to Toxic or Leech Seed damage, so switching into Celesteela is not going to be pleasant. Though Celesteela can carry various moves to surprise its checks, it will mostly stick with a predictable, one-dimensional set due to its required role. Celesteela's first two moveslots are already occupied with Leech Seed, which is needed to heal Celesteela and make switch-ins easier to deal with, and Toxic, which is needed to cripple support Arceus formes and prevent other offensive checks from switching in too liberally. Without Protect, Celesteela can be somewhat easily overpowered by setup sweepers like Necrozma-DM and Double Dance Primal Groudon even with Leech Seed recovery, and Heavy Slam is preferred to pressure Fairy-types. Overly relying on Leech Seed and Toxic to wear down foes can also cause problems against Swords Dance + Morning Sun Necrozma-DM. Celesteela will end up struggling to do much against Steel-types, particularly Ferrothorn, which is immune to both Leech Seed and Toxic, because it has to forgo Flamethrower for more important moves. Substitute variants of Swords Dance Arceus-Ground and Extreme Killer and offensive Zygarde-C's prominence further contributed to Celesteela's decline. Though Celesteela is still a decent Steel-type tank, its effectiveness is becoming more questionable as the number of foes it can reliably check continues to decrease and Ferrothorn is becoming increasingly popular; Ferrothorn can similarly check Arceus formes, is less vulnerable to Shadow Tag trapping, sets Spikes, and also checks dangerous Primal Kyogre.

Cloyster

Cloyster

Cloyster is one of the niche setup sweepers in RU that can seek to punish several unprepared teams. While Shell Smash is enough to give Cloyster a good amount of offensive presence against some Pokémon in Ubers, Cloyster is still easy to defensively check, and any Pokémon with a reasonable amount of bulk can revenge kill it. Despite this, Cloyster is one of the few viable leads remaining for offensive teams. As it can overpower Defog users like Giratina-O, anti-lead many Stealth Rock setters with Rapid Spin, and choose to run Spikes or Toxic Spikes to benefit different teammates, Cloyster is highly valued on teams that desire a lead Pokémon that can lay down these entry hazards without being overly passive against Defog users. Unfortunately, this is the only role that Cloyster can viably fulfill, and it has a very rigid moveset. Some players rarely decide to use niche Liquidation to hit defensive Ho-Oh harder and pressure Necrozma-DM, however.

Skarmory

Skarmory

The first image that comes into the mind when seeing Skarmory is a notoriously durable bird with a Steel / Flying typing that can be a serious annoyance for unprepared teams. Though Skarmory currently struggles to find an opportunity to secure its place in OU due to its lasting issues with passivity, its presence is more valued in Ubers. Unlike Celesteela, Skarmory is much harder to overpower with brute force due to its higher physical bulk and access to Roost. Even threats that can overpower Skarmory will have to ensure that Skarmory's Sturdy is not intact in order to avoid getting phazed by Whirlwind. When looking at Skarmory's skimpy base stats, one may think that Arceus formes might have better bulk than Skarmory and they can be more effective blanket checks to physical threats without being overly passive. However, Skarmory's access to Spikes alleviates its problems with passivity to an extent. Skarmory also has an option to evade Shadow Tag trapping with Shed Shell or indirectly punish contact moves with Rocky Helmet. Being a very strong check to the commonly seen Mega Salamence is especially notable, as Mega Salamence can easily force recovery moves from support Arceus formes with Double-Edge or even overpower them with a boosted Facade after getting statused. Physically defensive Skarmory, however, takes pitiful damage from unboosted Mega Salamence, so it can easily switch into and status Mega Salamence without any concern. In addition, Skarmory's immunity to Ground makes it extremely difficult for Necrozma-DM, Ultra Necrozma, Mega Salamence, Arceus-Ground, and Primal Groudon lacking a Fire-type move to bypass it without setting up. If they do set up, these threats also must account for situations where they will be forced to be put on a timer by Toxic or use their valuable Z-Moves to win the duel due to Skarmory's resistances. Despite these impressive traits as a physical wall, Skarmory's usefulness becomes quite questionable when factoring in its passivity and a horrid matchup against Magic Bounce users and common Pokémon like Primal Groudon, Ho-Oh, and almost every special attacker.

Tyranitar

Tyranitar

Tyranitar has a multitude of viable sets in OU thanks to its good offensive typing and solid bulk. Offensive sets include a Choice Band set that focuses on wallbreaking, a Choice Scarf set that can revenge kill a foe, and Dragon Dance sets that dedicate themselves more to sweeping. Bulkier sets running Stealth Rock or sets using Assault Vest are seen as well. While Tyranitar's offensive and defensive attributes are valued in Ubers, Tyranitar will have to run different moves and run specialized sets to be effective. Offensive sets will face difficulties against many teams even with heavy investment in Speed because of how slow Tyranitar is. While OU gives it room to cover this shortcoming with a Choice Scarf set, many Pokémon in Ubers will still outspeed Tyranitar even then; for example, support Arceus formes that typically check Tyranitar still have Speed advantage over it. Tyranitar lacking offensive investment is very passive in Ubers environment, so it will typically rely on Foul Play or status moves to punish foes that switch into it with wrong senses of security.

Mega Venusaur

Mega Venusaur

Mega Venusaur is a sturdy check to Grass-types and Electric-types in OU as well as dangerous threats like Kartana and Ash-Greninja. While Mega Venusaur has an acceptable amount of offensive presence as a tank, it fails to be a popular Mega Stone user in OU. It isn't the best user of a Mega Stone in Ubers either due to Pokémon like Mega Gengar and Mega Salamence being premier choices. However, Mega Venusuar can compress roles as a check to multiple troublesome foes at once; its typing and good bulk enable it to handle Xerneas, Marshadow, and many Primal Kyogre variants. This makes Mega Venusaur a viable pick in some defensive teams, as their common checks to the aforementioned threats are forced to stay healthy, and a single layer of hazards can turn 3HKOs into 2HKOs. Defensive teams' counterplay against Primal Kyogre is also shakier, as Giratina is easily overwhelmed by special variants while Chansey and Blissey have no chance to prevent physical Primal Kyogre from wreaking havoc. Mega Venusaur's Leech Seed also can assist many defensive partners that tend to reactively switch into various Pokémon. However, Mega Venusaur's usefulness in defensive teams can be limited due to its decent-at-best bulk, Synthesis's limited PP, and the increasing number of entry hazard users that can get past through defensive teams' Defog users. Having limited longevity as a defensive Pokémon ends up limiting how useful Mega Venusaur can be in Ubers.

Final Thoughts

Ubers is a diverse tier with Pokémon coming from various places! Why don't you take a break from only using similar legendary Pokémon and try mixing some of these spotlighted Pokémon into your team today?

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