UU Blind Draft I Power Rankings

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Hello and welcome! We're back again with the much-awaited (and a little delayed) power rankings, this time covering the first edition of UnderUsed Blind Draft! We gathered knowledgeable players of each tier to rate every starting player in each pool, average the results, and hopefully land with the most unbiased list possible. Maybe one that's gonna represent end result too? Who knows, Pokémon is a game full of variables to manage, both in and out of games, and even the best can have a negative season sometimes. Having perfect rankings is impossible, and it's especially hard to properly rate newcomers: if you find yourself at the bottom of these lists, please don't feel insulted, as this is done to both deliver an informative but entertaining coverage of what to expect this tournament, and while we may not hit the mark with some of the rankings or things we mention, as long as we're able to produce something nice to read through or that gets a laugh out of you, I'd say these were a success.

A special thanks to the following rankers for contributing in the creation of this article: 691, Accel, Ainzcrad, Amaranth, Ampha, ASKOV, Attribute, awyp, Baddy, BeeOrSomething, Beraldo, BigFatMantis, Bouff, burstbean, Celebiii, Coffy, col49, Concept Everything, corperate n, Corporate Donkey, dawnbuster, dingbat, "dudunsparces", DugZa, Easter Bliss, Estarossa, etern, FadedCharm, Fc, feen, Finchely, frankjosh, Frito, Gastlies, Goldcat, gulch, Hacker, IamLowTier, Ice Yazu, Imperial, innovamania, Isza, Javitu, justdrew, katerina, Killintime, Larry, Lialiabeast, Lily, Lizzie, LpZ, Mac3, Maris Bonibell, Mimilucha, Mister McLovin, Monky25, Mossy Sandwich, NotVeryCake, "Oshawatts", Queen of Bean, pac, Pak, Parpar, Rasche, roxie, SANKE CARP, sasha, Seraphz, Slip, SOMALIA, spell, Taka, ThatOneApple, Tree69420, tko, TyCarter, udongirl, umbry, vesp, violet river, vivalospride, Xiri, YBW, zS, zuzhouwawa.

And finally, a big big thank you to the following people for helping with writing, HTMLing, grammar checking, quality checking and more: BeeOrSomething, BigFatMantis, Bouff, cheru, corperate n, dawnbuster, frankjosh, gulch, KineSquared, Lily, Lumari, Lyssa, Sabelette, spell, and vivalospride!

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1. Meru
2. Mossy sandwhich
3. DugZa
4. Kate
5. Sabella
6. Nat
7. Danny
8. Rasche
9. KM
10. Starbitstorm
11. justdrew
12. etern
13. chait
14. IamLowTier
15. Colin
16. ThatOneApple
17. Azick
18. spell
19. TyCarter
20. Seraphz
21. ulky
22. Tree69420
23. Peum
24. Coffy

The Dudunsparces find themselves leading the pack at #1, and it's not hard to see why. They have a solid foundation, and all three players have played a fair bit of the tier with a varied success rate but undeniable strength. Their most seasoned player and the one who ranked the highest on their team is Mossy Sandwich, the man known for voting Do Not Ban on literally everything, who managed to climb all the way from a sub barely getting play time in UUPL to one of the more notable names the tier has to offer through his meteoric rise the past seven or eight months. He won a Seasonal, he made semifinals of an UULT, he is in playoffs of this current UULT, and he posted good numbers throughout UUSD and UUPL while having a deep run in Open. A list of achievements like that makes one thing clear: he is a winner. If there is one weakness that Mossy Sandwich has that could be to his detriment rather than his benefit, it is his comfortable view on his own building; as has been seen many times, his biggest pitfall as a player and the thing stopping him from winning his games is oftentimes him falling into an exploitable building pattern. Will he conquer this and have another consistent tour? He's grown a lot over the year, so I am inclined to say yes, he will be able to get past that and run through a more inexperienced player pool. He's joined by Sabella, who has been a UU player for eons it feels like but hasn't truly left his mark on it before this year. Le Booty has played a ton of SV UU this year and has been doing quite well for himself in that regard. Good UUPL run, still playing UULT, and his mind for what's good and what isn't is fairly developed, and his play is solid. He is a fairly reliable voice, so his input will be good to have for his teammates as they bounce ideas off one another. Rounding out this squad is Danny, the player with the least experience playing the tier but their strongest player overall, performing well in a host of other lower tiers and not doing all too bad for himself in UU either. With Sabella and Mossy being able to feed his understanding of the tier and let him grow, Danny can have his first standout UU tour. Overall, Accel did a good job on picking who he wanted to play SV, as this team ranked within the top 10 for all three starters, which is a good sign for potential success. As we all very much know by now, though, rankings aren't exactly accurate, and there are quite a few things that could hold these guys back but every player here has high upside, so it'll be truly hard for them to accomplish anything that isn't winning.

The Primarinas find themselves at a modest second place, and, like the Dudunsparces, their SV trio as a whole sits cleanly in the upper echelons of the list with a wealth of experience all-around. Headlining this squad is Meru, who finds himself at the #1 spot after a very impressive UUPL XII run with the Friends. As a player, Meru has long been undervalued by managers as someone worth spending the premium on despite the fact that over the course of his very long tenure (the longest out of any SV starter by far) he's managed to bring together one of the best overall records with a mesmerising 42-21 record to his name. He's been an active presence in the builder since the generation started, and his eye for finding unique ways of both using and accounting for the standard structures will definitely go a long way in a pool full of more inexperienced players and tournament mains. Paired up with Meru is another historically good player in Nat, who is coming off of a year-long UU hiatus after running the show in UUPL XI with a 5-2 record. Obviously, if you're considering raw skill they are the best player in the pool by far, but their ability to catch up to where everyone else is in terms of meta-specific knowledge leaves room for doubt, as they are also someone who prefers to find their own way through things. Good players tend to do well regardless of the situation that they find themselves in, and the hurdle is not insurmountable with the potential support from not only Meru and Lily but etern as well socially. This brings me finally to etern, the lowest-ranked of their SV, who is more known for his SM UU exploits, where he tends to finish with mostly neutral or -1 records. SV UU is not entirely new ground for him, however, as he is currently playing it in the WCoP, where he's sitting at a good 2-1 heading into playoffs, so with the overall chemistry of these three players he can definitely achieve big things. If things go extremely south, which I am doubtful of, they can likely put tko in at some point, as he is a very capable player and has shown flashes of being a carry in the past. This group of players is very well rounded and has the capacity of achieving great things with the amount of playing experience and consistency that's here, but things could also crash and burn as well if Meru can't keep his partners up to par with teams.

Monky25 and Estarossa, managers of Team Honedge Double, went back to the drawing board after experiencing a sweep show in the semifinals of UUPL this year, with the hope of coming up with an incredibly deep and talented roster. Did they succeed? The rankers sure think so! Headlining the team is former manager main and the butt of many Power Whip Zarude related jokes, KM, who managed to snag a placement of #9 after his recent participation in UULT. He's been more involved with the tier lately, and although he hasn't played all that many games historically, he definitely has the capacity to play solidly, especially since his mind for creative teambuilding is a step ahead most people when he is invested. However, he is not the most well-known user of unconventional team structures on his team. No, that honor goes to starbitstorm, who is playing his first UU tournament since last UUSD. starbitstorm, unlike KM, is a very new face to the community, having only popped up towards the end of Generation 8 through PIA and the ladder; he rose considerably since then, having won SV UU's first Ladder Tournament and making the semifinals of the Circuit Championship. His foray into team tournaments has mostly been forgettable compared to his success in individuals, and the hiatus for such a long period of time on the big stage could potentially lead to some issues, but should he remain in form, he should be fine. Rasche rounds out the trio as another newer face in the community, demolishing the competition with an 8-3 debut last year. He's since fallen off a little bit with a more tempered UUPL XII, only going 2-2 in games he played compared to his 6-2 UUSD IV, but that was likely a one-off occurrence that should be rectified if he familiarizes himself more with this current metagame. Overall, this core has a lot of surprise factor with a trio that can't ever really be predicted as far as team choices go, and that is Team Honedge Double's main strength.

The Sinistchas join the party, finishing up the high end of the pool with a list of players who have all been performing decently to very well in the tier for the past year. DugZa, the teams manager, is their most seasoned player, being one of the more flexible Swiss army knives out there in lower tiers while still posting incredibly solid numbers in every tour. He returns to playing SV after a tier swap with Attribute during the later weeks of UUPL XI, and he was unexpectedly ranked third on the power rankings. He has the skill, the experience, and the knowledge to perform well again, so it's hard to bet against him for another solid performance. Joining him are two newer guys in Apple and IAmLowTier. I'll talk about LowTier first, since his name has a lot more aura, and he is the more notable player of the two. IAmLowTier came onto the scene out of nowhere at the start of this last WCoP and ended up playing solid enough games for team Chile to where they were comfortable with slotting him in two tiebreaks versus very decorated and strong players like pdt and Star. This isn't the underdog story you're expecting to hear, though, as he was swiftly defeated by both; however, the ability to even play on that level at all coupled with the nerves there must be to be in that position makes LowTier's swan song more impressive than what meets the eye. He's new and he's trying to carve out his name, and this tournament is the place to do it for sure. Joining him would be Apple, another newish player on the rise but to a lesser degree. Apple's a decent player, albeit still fairly inexperienced despite having a pretty impressive overall record for someone who started playing like two tours ago. He's primarily a community builder, and his input could be useful to his other teammates, but as far as his own performance goes, it's really heads or tails on how it'll go. Overall, though, he is a solid player and a solid builder, so he should complement the core nicely.

The Guilty Crowns were placed right in the middle as far as placements goes, with them not being good enough to crack into the higher end of the pool but still having enough experienced players and hungry newbies to stand out. The teams main standout player is the recent UU Open finalist Kate. who takes her place at 4th, and it's not hard to see why; she's a very talented player garnering one of the most impressive tournament results throughout the last two generations of playing Ubers, and her quick rise through Open, notably taking down a host of names like robjr, Moutemoute and Mossy Sandwich, shows that she can hang around without much trouble. Speaking for my own personal experience with her, she is not a builder and needs to be fed every week in order to perform, which should not be an issue, since Askov, a player who probably creates 15 teams every day, is right behind her ready to give her what she needs to win. Following Kate is Azick, who has been around for a bit longer playing UU tournaments here and there, notably getting his start on the Sandacondas in UUSD IV, where he would end up becoming their marquee SV player on their championship run. Azick's lone 5-3 is mostly all he has to his name but with him still being in UULT currently he could string together a similar run to his debut tournament. He is another player who'd need Askov's help every week, but that shouldn't be a massive concern. Lastly, we have Peum to round out the Crowns SV. Peum is a player who has been around for a little while and has been on a slow and steady rise after last UUSD; he's an active member of the Discord and an active ladderer and managed to qualify for UULT, where he would have some decent games overall before bowing out. Him being ranked this low is certainly due to his inexperience, and this will be the tournament that tells us what kind of player he is, for better or for worse. I can say that Askov kind of cooked, with high-potential upside all around. but the main thing that I could see hurting the Crowns is just the lack of familiarity with the tier. No one builds at a high level, and SV UU is a tier that demands highly specific teams in order to succeed; Askov likely has to churn these out three times a week, every week, which could lead to some burnout.

New tournament, new VTubers SV core! Bouff and umbry return with mostly the same formula they've had since the genesis of the VTubers franchise: former teammates of the manager duo and new clickers who can benefit greatly from the support of umbry, who is arguably the strongest mind in SV currently. justdrew returns to play for the VTubers after a very quiet UUPL spent sitting mostly on the bench for the Smashers. This time spent on the bench, however, is not truly telling of his abilities as a player, as he has racked up a decent list of accomplishments in the tier, notably including a deep Seasonal run and Circuit Championships appearance. What's left to be desired would be his more than flavorful choice in teams, but if he's more moderated by umbry, then it should be smooth sailing for him. Following up closely behind the creator of UUFPL are two UUFPL standouts! Colin, before playing in the latest UUFPL, was mostly known as an LC player with little experience playing UU. That changed when he went on a tear through the tournament, getting a record of 7-1 and landing himself at a decent spot of fifteenth on the rankings. This is a chance for Colin to prove that his dominant showing in UUFPL was by no means a fluke performance, and with the amount of SV talent surrounding him, it'll be interesting to see which way he falls. Last but not least, the other breakout from UUFPL that the VTubers snatched is Seraphz. Seraphz is another player with no real history playing UU before UUFPL where he, like Colin, dominated, posting a similar record to his teammate of 6-1. His performance is also something that the rankers didn't have much confidence in, placing him close to the bottom of the player pool, but given how he performed in UUFPL and his generally deep bag in other areas of the site along with his manager umbry giving him ideas all throughout, he could definitely surprise people with another great run. As I'm writing this now I also noticed something particularly telling about both of these players UUFPL runs: they had insane streaks. Seraphz lost his first game and proceeded to not lose again; meanwhile, Colin won every single game he played besides his finals game versus olivia. Twins, for sure. umbry and Bouff seemed to have bet on the next generation of potential UU standouts to lead their team to the promised land. Their SV cores tend to do exceptionally well over the course of the regular season time and time again, so one can only expect that these choices will bring more of the same.

The Dragonairs' SV core at a glance can look promising. They have a hungry spelly c, more motivated than ever to make a dent in this tour, alongside ORAS UU pool mainstay Chaitanya and UULT qualifyer Coffy. spellcaster has a lot to prove this tournament, as she self-purchased for 15k after a middling UUPL full season debut with a 3-4 record and no qualifying for playoffs. With that being said, there cannot be many individuals more hungry for success than she is, and she is bound to drop massive amounts of lines in her journey towards success. This will be the tournament where she can fully bet on herself and prove the doubters wrong. Chaitanya usually makes his rounds in UU tours in oldgen pools that require more depth, starting and generally consistently still being in ORAS. Regardless, he is a capable pilot, despite the shaky record coming from him this past UUPL. He played relatively strongly every game, but his ideas can run rampant. Being creative can definitely be a positive, but we shall see if Chaitanya's ideas end up being put on a leash and he instead is spoonfed by spellcaster, and how that impacts his performance. Coffy is currently in UULT playoffs at a 1-1 record. I personally don't know much about this fellow, but from watching their games, they have surprisingly played relatively well, so there is indeed promise in this slot. I'd say altogether, this SV core has a high ceiling but also a very very low floor. It'll depend on Coffy's adaptation to a UU team tour, Chaitanya's teams, and whether the spellcaster lives up to the 15k managerial pressure or crumbles beneath it.

The Acupuncturists, unfortunately, find themselves at the bottom of these rankings. I will be honest when I say that this SV core is rough. and it certainly did not inspire confidence from rankers. Now, this could entirely be due to Killintime and Cam finding diamonds in the rough that everyone else just could not see, but I digress. The most tenured player on this team would be TyCarter, who has been around for a while at this point and has done just fine in the team tournaments that he has played in. He hasn't had any spectacular performance however, just finishing neutral, coming off the bench and winning a game or two, or finishing negative. Records are not everything, and every tournament is a new sample for potential growth as a player; while this could be the case for TyCarter, it's hard to say. Tree69420, an avid presence in the UU #tournament-discussion channel, finds himself playing SV UU over RBY UU, where he's a more known quantity. Tree qualified for UULT and has been a fairly active ladder player, but besides that he has no footprint in the tier at all. ulky is much the same, if not newer than Tree, but his performance during the qualifying phase of the Ladder Tournament was pretty impressive, and his sets throughout the rounds of Swiss were of decent quality. The biggest thing that I could see negatively affecting ulky is the transition from the ladder to playing in team tournaments, where people are generally stronger players who put more care into what they bring and what they click, and making the change immediately could be awkward. The Acupuncturists are projected to struggle. but there is absolutely a chance that they could succeed. Many teams have been ranked low and surpassed expectations and this could be no exception; do not count these guys out!

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Coming fresh off winning the ubers uu ladder tournament, there is no denying Fc's skill in the Ubers UU metagame. Their amazing record in Ubers also highlights a unique skill they have; navigating a centralized, high-power level metagame is something they've already proven themselves in. They have tournament wins over Leo Justice, Pooshi, SBAP, and more, even when bringing meme-y teams like mono-Dragon and mono-Dark. Fc could almost be called the king of all Ubers tiers, and the number one spot is rightly deserved. Hell, Kine even made an entire youtube video about him.

Frito earned their spot recently on the Ubers UU Council for a good reason. Frito was a big help to Fc in his sweep of the ladder tour, and they got an impressive 5-3 record on UUFPL themselves, the highest record of any Ubers UU player. This record included wins over impressive players like Baddy and Rasche and saw the development of niche Pokémon like Alomomola.

Suzuya is one of the sleeping giants of Ubers UU, which once again tracks with being an Ubers Premier League Champion. While not being very active in the Discord, they have great wins against Imperial, Mada, and Frito. They've innovated with techs like Substitute Sneasler, Urshifu, and Toxapex, and I'm curious what else they'll bring to the table this tournament.

Voted as the best Ubers UU player in UUFPL, Imperial tied Frito with a 5-3 record in the UUFPL; they are one of the most consistent players in the tier and are consistent with many different playstyles, being maybe most known for pushing stall to its absolute peak. Imperial also has been in a slew of other tournaments, including Ubers UU Ladder Tour (Top 8) and Ubers UU Seasonal (ongoing, minimum top 24). They have wins over the likes of Baddy, Rasche, SwordisBored, and I would never count them out against anyone.

Finalist of the Ubers UU Open, Baddy is always capable of snatching victory. While their UUFPL performance may not be as good as those of other players, they still boast wins wins over Imperial, Rasche, Leo Justice, and Dorron. Lacking consistency harmonizes well with some of his team choices; he's pulled up with Ditto stall, Dugtrio, Tera Flying Garganacl, and a LOT of Toxapex. I would bet on Baddy as a wildcard of the tournament.

tko is a complete newcomer to the scene, and I'm very curious what he will bring to the table. The Ubers UU metagame has had time to crystallize significantly since April, and there was not much in the way of changes as we transitioned to the July metagame. Does tko have time to catch up and surpass the people who have been studying it since its inception? Who knows. I'm looking forward to their gameplay for sure though.

Vesp is a newcomer to team tournaments, but they have been one of the pillars of the community for the Ubers UU tier ever since its inception. A council member, a good builder and player, but a newcomer nevertheless. Are they going to struggle in the new environment, or is this tournament going to be a good showcase of their skill? How can another Ubers UU Discord mainer adjust to the competitive Smogon environment?

Finchely is another long-time Ubers UU player that struggled in the competitive scene once we hit the big leagues. Nonetheless, she keeps trying in the Ubers UU seasonal, the Ubers UU ladder tour, and many many more. She has about as much competitive experience in the tier as you could hope, but that's not the same thing as what you might call "fundies". Finchely has recently doubled down on trying to grow her own skill, and I'll certainly be rooting for this crowd favorite.

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SS UU in UUBD is the world of 691, 691. With a solid #1 ranking for this tour, 691 has a lot of hype, and for good reason. While he is at the top of the PRs for his skill in the tier, he also might be at the top because he's quite literally the nicest guy ever as well. He hasn't played SS UU much in these official UU team tours recently but did go 6-2 in the most recent SSPL in SS UU, which was good for the most wins there. But what sets him apart from the rest is his ability to simply make the correct play at the most pivotal time of the game on an extremely consistent basis. This isn't something that's learned through knowledge of the tier, understanding of the interactions, or even general experience. It's just something that some people have and some people don't, and 691 has it. He is going to have himself a great season.

When you think of SS excellence, you think of players like umbry, pdt, Attribute, and kumiko, who have the uncanny ability of setting trends wherever they go with how they build and play the tier. A name that should be up in that conversation though is mncmt. mncmt should be one of those top-caliber names that come to mind, and it's really not that hard at all to see why. If there is one thing this guy can do very consistently and very easily, it is the art of winning incredibly important games for his team at any point in the season. He's played SS for most of its time as the current generation, and he has achieved a lot in it throughout that period ignoring his overall stacked resume; this was all topped over by his performance in UUPL X where he posted a 4-2 record. Now, this may not seem all that convincing; but mind you, this was back when Bo3 was in the tournament, so he naturally had to play against many strong opponents in more than a single game, notably beating pdt twice when he was having an incredibly dominant season himself there too. The point I am trying to illustrate here is that he eats, sleeps, and breathes winning culture, and as long as he takes this tournament seriously there should be no reason for him to not perform well in a pool full of players who just do not have the same top end experience that he brings to the table. His greatest weakness is, unfortunately, himself, though, so only time will tell if this will be another UUPL X-esque tournament for him where he leads his team to the championship or if he'll flail and sink to the bottom of the standings like how his previous UUPL and UUSD campaigns have been.

Mimilucha has always been a great SS UU player, though usually getting overshadowed by other great players typically in the pools. This time, Mimilucha finds themselves near the top at #3, putting a spotlight on them and perhaps now endowing them with certain expectations for this tournament. While sometimes their team choices can be a bit off in the tier, they do seem to understand how to win with them. And while they don't really have any recent results in the tour, they had more than enough time playing it back when it was current gen, making UU Ribbon playoffs for the last year of SS UU. They also have likely played countless friendlies with others in this same pool, thus allowing them to be ranked appropriately. Expect a good season, and potentially a great season, from this slot.

Lizzie is perhaps the most passionate SS UU player in the pool, with a breadth of knowledge on all of the interactions probably greater than anyone else's here. She has played SS UU in countless tournaments over the past few years, going a combined 12-6 in UUSD/UUWC/SSPL during that time, as well as 5-2 in the most recent UUFPL. It's hard to find more than a handful of star players to compete with these kinds of results in the tier recently; however while it may seem good, this is unfortunately not quite good enough to be a part of the SS UU VR team, and that's really holding her back here. I've been told by sources in the underground though that Lizzie is hyperfocused and locked in for this tournament, though, and the ceiling here is as high as anyone else's in the pool.

Most people start building their teams with a vague concept. One with a solid anchor either in defensive fortitude or that can set up and win the late game. udongirl starts with Choice Specs, and, more specifically, which Pokémon should be holding the item. Sometimes it will be Salamence. At other times it could be Moltres. More frequently, you may see a Togekiss staring down at you through these spectacles. Some people may think Hydreigon or Primarina are top-tier options for holding the very revered spectacles of choice. But udongirl doesn't need these very "predictable" titans of the tier to hold them (unless she wants multiple Choice Specs mons). A Dragalge is more than enough to satisfy the itch. udongirl is also very good at SS UU, going a combined 4-1 in the tier between the most recent UUFPL and UUSD. A bad UUPL XI performance in the tier (1-5) does add a low floor to a high ceiling, but those were different times and almost two years ago with totally different opponents. udongirl is ready to rise to the occasion and potentially show she can be an SS UU staple.

Taka is pretty good. He's a really cool dude too. Not sure if he's gonna get that many wins here, though—I hope he does, but there's clearly a sharp dropoff once you get to the bottom three players in the pool. While Taka can't really stand up to the level of experience and accolades the those players above him provide, he did get a win in SS UU in the past UUPL against one of the very esteemed members of the SS UU VR team, which means he is capable for sure to beat some of the best. But with a 1-2 UUPL XII record in SS UU, preceded by a 1-2 UUFPL III record in SS UU, he is for sure an underdog in most of these matchups and is going to have to prove some people wrong about his standing here if he's going to have a successful season.

Mac3 is an incredibly good SS RU player who knows the tier very well and has plenty of experience playing it across various team tours. Don't let the most recent 2-4 record in this year's RUPL fool you—he was combined 4-4 in RUPL IX/RUSD II in SS RU when it was current gen, showing that, at the very least, he can stand up with the best and break even. A very good value for sure in the SS RU slot, and it's clear from his involvement in the tier that he has the knowledge to pick apart teams on preview and devise a game plan immediately on the best path to victory. I've never see him play SS UU though.

Javi is ok. There's nothing really wrong with his play. There's just nothing really spectacular about it either. He went 2-4 in the most recent UUFPL in SS UU (with the two wins coming against people who don't really play the tier much) and hasn't really played it in any other UU team tours recently. He also didn't have any kind of success in the tier back when it was current gen, either in team tournaments or individual tournaments. But his play mostly seems fine, and his teams don't strike me as bad—there's just not much reason to rank him highly when there's not much history to go by other than a rather disappointing UUFPL season this year. Now is the perfect time to change that though, right?

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Heading up the pack is Pak (say that five times fast), a name that needs no introduction. While most would expect to see him in ORAS, he knows his way around a variety of tiers, and SM is no exception. In fact, even though some other players in the pool arguably have leaps and bounds more experience than him in the Z-Crystal mines, there's absolutely no dispute that Pak is that guy, with him being unanimously ranked first amongst his peers. Despite having a tour or two that's shown he is indeed mortal, there's very little doubt that Pak can outperform the majority of the pool on playing skill alone.

vivalospride loves SM—and he's good at it too! While it's been a while since he's played it in an official tour capacity, he has plenty of experience from when it was current gen and has been putting up some very respectable records as of late, even going positive for US West in WCoP. Whether or not he's able to play well is no question at all, with the only real worry being that his memory of 2016 may betray him.

Beraldo belongs to an enigmatic class of players who just show up and win. Like those above him, he's unquestionably able to pilot the game at a high level, and his team is fully loaded with the support he needs to ensure he's loading strong teams every week. However, his most recent venture in the tier was in UUFPL, where he went slightly negative, so there is some room for doubt on whether he'll rise to the occasion in a considerably stronger pool.

Little known fact: the woman in the viral Family Feud clip who shouts "We're gonna play, Steve!" was actually channeling Estarossa every time he manages a team tour. Most recently, this landed him a venture in DPP during the most recent UUPL, where he went decently positive. This, coupled with his vast experience in SM UU alongside additional motivation from the manager seat, should be more than enough to push him to a positive record.

Leni's an old face with plenty of knowledge about SM in general, playing its various low tiers in a plethora of tours. Despite this, he has very few official UU tour records to go off of and thus is largely an unknown. Furthermore, his tendency to be rather silent in prep could lead to disaster. Only time will tell how many posts we'll read saying "tlenit1, gg".

Yet another SM everyman, Ampha's made his face known primarily as rising star in RU. Despite this, his high activity and love for low-res cat GIFs have earned him a reputation that's allowed him to break further into the tournament scene as of late, and UU is no exception. However, this does also work to his detriment, as he has much less of a proven record to back him up. He has every chance to perform, but a tough pool could end up putting his scouts on same-day shipping from the bench.

Hacker knows SM, but his UU experience is rather dubious. So much, in fact, that his name isn't even on the records sheet. Furthermore, his support is a bit limited, and he's up against a pool filled with players who can match him in playing skill and dwarf him in knowledge of the tier. He's certainly not entirely out of his depth, but this tour could very realistically be an uphill battle.

Last but not least, we have Nightingales, a relatively unknown face in the SM UU scene. So new, in fact, that there's hardly any data to be found on her at all. Despite this, her high activity in the UU Discord seems to have caught more than a few eyes, and if this motivation can translate into solid builds and solid lines, her breakout season could very realistically be well on its way this UUBD.

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For probably the lowest price she's been, and the lowest price she'll ever be in these tours, umbry is sliding in at a ridiculously small 15k to play ORAS. While her objective experience in ORAS isn't as vast as Killintime's or dingbat's, she's undoubtedly regarded as one of the best UU players right now. She's certainly no stranger to the tier either, as she played it in last year's UUPL and also has some experience playing it in the UU Invitational two years ago as well. From a managerial role, she's also supported her ORAS players (well, player) to success in past team tours. Couple this with the support of Pak, a player who knows ORAS more than anyone, and you have a fearsome combination that will be hard to best for many.

The oldest face in this pool, dingbat has been a consistent force to be reckoned with in ORAS. Long gone are the days where he was considered to be the luckiest player alive; he's been consistently putting up solid numbers every tour he's played as of late. Alongside this, he has his own unique spin on the tier, bringing sets and teams that are reminiscent of how things were during current gen, while also maintaining a level-headedness in the builder that prevents it from backfiring on him often. This is a quality that not many people have, and while ORAS is one of the few tiers that have been seeing constant small developments over the past few years, it's a trait that makes him difficult to prepare for.

Another boomer of boomers, and another builder who doesn't follow conventional standards, Killintime returns to ORAS to put up big numbers once again. While he was originally said to be self-buying for current gen gameplay, he decided to stick to his roots, which will most likely lead to a better record. While his UUPL this year wasn't as eye opening as his one in 2023, he had still used some underrated threats such as Mega Ampharos and Chandelure that otherwise rarely, if ever, see play. This is his first time in a true leadership role, and doing so in the tier where he's shined the most will be a great boon to both him and his team.

Despite stating that he wouldn't be available for a few weeks of the tournament, Attribute went for an absurdly high price, being the most expensive player on the Dragonairs and one of the highest-priced of the tournament. However, this is very well worth it, as he's undoubtedly one of the defining players of SS right now, consistently performing to a high level whenever he plays. That's what I should be writing right now; however, spell wants her players to go fuck themselves, so here we are. Attribute is looking to make his mark in another generation after dominating the SS pool since the generation ended almost two years ago. While this is new ground for him, he's shown that he can pick up metagames without much trouble, as shown through his performances in SS OU and numerous SS lower tiers. There aren't any 6% Scald burns or Heavy-Duty Boots here, so it absolutely won't be as comfortable in practice, but skill in this game is always transferable across generations, and his ability to pull through when needed will make him a valuable asset.

Following an impressive UUPL victory as a first-time UU manager, a man who's played basically every oldgen at this point is returning as a player to continue off his recent success. While there may be a worry for whether he'll show up for his games or not, and it remains to be seen whether he'll build his own teams or rely on the help of his managers, col is someone who knows what he's doing through and through. He almost always goes for a high price in auction, much to his chagrin, but he has a wealth of knowledge that can be a blessing for both him and his teammates.

A player who got his start in ORAS almost a decade ago, shiloh is someone who was known for his proficiency in NU and RU for many years. UU, on the other hand, is a new field for him, especially in its current state where many things have changed since the gen ended. With that being said, don't let his low placing fool you—he's managed to do very well in a number of tiers, both in official and unofficial tournaments. He was originally ranked low in last year's UUPL, and I even questioned why he wasn't in last place, but he blew out the competition both times he played ADV UU, being the winning player in the tier both times. He has stiff competition ahead of him, but he's more than capable of stepping up to formats he's not experienced in.

Ainzcrad is a somewhat new face to the tier looking to break into the next level. He first made his debut in ORAS UU for UUFPL, notching himself the second best record at an impressive 5-3. However, the rest of his experience seems to be within Ubers, so it may be a little difficult for him to truly transition into a pool with hardened veterans. To his benefit, he does have the help of vivalospride, who was one of his few losses, so he'll have one of the biggest tryhards in history lending a hand. If he can bring his gameplay to a higher level, he may be able to give some evidence that his recent success was no fluke.

Fathiryxi is our last player on the list, who has a similar story to Ainzcrad. They appeared for the first time in ORAS UU during UUFPL this year, coming in with no prior experience. Unfortunately, their record was not as spectacular, which leaves expectations low for them. Their support seems to be found in their managers, who have kept up with the tier historically, so not all hope is lost for them. Regardless, they'll have to be put up to the test to see whether they can hold their own against a strong player pool like this.

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Coming into this tournament as one of the few truly experienced oldgen players, LpZ finds himself ranked unanimously in the #1 slot following an absurdly dominant 9-0 UUPL finish. While he was in DPP in that tournament rather than BW, it really should not come as a surprise to see him here regardless; for a long time now, LpZ has found himself at the top of oldgen pools and consistently does well no matter where he's slotted, particularly in ADV through BW. BW is probably his least worn generation of the three, but in an overall weaker pool than what we're used to, on top of the ever-useful support provided by teammate choolio, he's still the clear favorite and is set up for yet another high-ranking season.

GoldCat, for someone ranked so high, has fairly limited experience in BW UU compared to some of the other players in this pool. In the last UUPL he didn't get to play it, and in general he has not played it in team tournaments much at all; however, he does have a BW UU Cup win under his belt, which is more of a claim than most others in this pool can make. Winning an individual tournament is no easy feat, especially in a tier one isn't familiar with, so it seems fairly likely that there's a bit more to GoldCat's BW knowledge than we think. Even if not, he'll have manager Accel and teammate Corperate n to help him out. Expect success here if GoldCat can channel that Cup-winning energy into this UUBD.

SOMALIA, put simply, has more experience in BW UU than all seven of the other players in this pool combined. You could probably double that number and it'd still be true. He likely has higher highs than all of them too, but that comes with the severe cost of lower lows; SOMALIA has been known to dip in and out of the Smogon scene depending on how things are going for him at any given point, and that proves to be the biggest risk here. While there's no doubt that he will be able to take down any opponent in this pool on a good day, the question is just how many good days he will be able to have before a bad one claims the Dragonairs' BW slot for good.

Bouncing in and out of BW has been a common theme for McLovin in these recent UU tournaments, and this one seems no different. McLovin isn't known to be a BW powerhouse, per se, but he has consistently put up decent results in the tier and knows his way around it, which actually gives him a fairly significant edge on others in this pool in terms of experience. Between strong ability to play and win, a good arsenal of teams, and building from himself, teammate col49, and manager Lily, it seems likely that Mister McLovin will put up a solid showing for the Primarinas' BW slot.

Our second honorific in a row goes to MrAldo, who has played a decent amount of BW over the years and historically done fine. Unlike many of the players here, MrAldo is perfectly capable of building and piloting his own teams, which is always a boon in an oldgen pool; if managers Estarossa and Monky25 can convince him to break his pact to never use Togekiss, that could prove to be a difference maker. While MrAldo is lacking in any superstar performances, for a low price tag of 3.5k you can't really go wrong here with what is decidedly a middle-of-the-pack BW slot, so there's a lot of value and potential upside here for the Doublades.

Last UUFPL, I tuned into my teammate's BW game, and she was playing against roxie. While I had provided her with a team that I felt was solid against most threats in the metagame, I had failed to account for the double-freezing, triple-critting, Substituting Regice that roxie had brought against her. Not a day has gone by that I haven't thought about that.

That kind of creativity can be intensely dangerous in BW UU, both for the opponent and for roxie themselves. Sometimes you'll load up something crazy like a Dragon Dance Altaria and run into no Steel-type and just Outrage everything, and other times you'll get lost in the sauce and convince yourself that Duosion is the new big thing before getting promptly dismembered by a Weavile. roxie's season will ride or die on whatever crazy bullshit they come up with and decide to bring; if it hits, there is a lot of upside here, and if it doesn't, they may find themselves at the very bottom of the standings.

Corporate Donkey, referred to affectionately as Gonkey by many, displaying his status as the GOAT for all to see, is unfortunately a touch lacking in experience in these tournaments. He subbed in and played a couple of BW games in UUPL last year, managing a win in one of them with the power of God and Krookodile on his side. Should his trustworthy Krookodile Shady put up more all-star performances, it's possible that Gonkey will supersede this ranking and bring home a few wins for the Crowns. If not, it's not all lost, as teammate 18k Slip can attempt to pick up the slack and put up a record befitting of his suspiciously Larry-shaped price tag.

It's not often that you see someone pop up in the UU Discord who actually thinks BW UU is a good tier, but sometimes these things surprise you. In this case, that surprise is violet river, a zoomer ADV player who came out of what I can only assume is a Jimothy Cool subscription feed and found herself drawn to the wonderful mayhem of BW UU. While she's probably more enthusiastic to play the tier than everyone else in this pool combined, we do unfortunately lack results for her; I'm not sure I've seen her play the tier before despite how much she likes to talk about it. While I'm personally hoping that she can nab some wins, because I'm also one of the few psychopaths that enjoy BW UU, I have to temper my expectations until she manages to do so. Best of luck though!

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It's highly debated as to whether this is a good or an awful namechange for Frank “On Josh” Josh. What isn't as disputed, however, is that he's the best player in the tier for this tournament, as he was almost universally ranked as the #1 player. One of the few who aren't afraid to go outside of the known frameworks that have plagued the tier for the past couple of years, he's put up solid records over the past two UUPLs, being one of the defining players for the Sisters, and being a big part of his team's DPPPL success as a manager. While he could still be considered a little new compared to players like fatty and Thiago Nunes (neither of whom is playing in this tournament), he arguably has the most experience compared to the rest of the pool, which is filled with players who are either recently making names for themselves or straying away from the gen as a whole.

Burstbean first made his entry into DPP UU with a decent performance in UUWC in 2021. However, he really showed what he's made of this year, with a ridiculous 13-2 between UUFPL and DPPPL. Like frankjosh, he also tries to put his own spin on the metagame into practice, using sets such as Lopunny and mixed Arcanine that seldom see usage otherwise. Not many people are willing to be creative in DPP, especially in recent memory, so if he can keep up this level of play, he may be able to cement himself as a household name for the years to come.

Xiri is a household name for SM UU in these tournaments, as he plays it pretty much every single tour. However, with Estarossa continuing on the sage path of playing every oldgen recently, Xiri finds himself out of his usual sphere in DPP. He's no stranger to the tier as seen by his participation in the most recent DPPPL. To add to this, he also has a solid support system from both new and old-school players alike between the aforementioned manager and a long-time veteran in Heysup. If Xiri can maintain the consistency that he's known for in his home tier, he should put up a strong showing for the Chronicles.

As someone who's becoming more of a mainstay for the UU community over the past year, corperate n is somewhat of a multigen hero. He's had a few decent showings in his time, as seen by his entry in the playoffs for UULT and UU Classic. DPP seems to be his strong suit, as he made finals of the DPP Cup last year and notched himself an impressive victory over Amukamara. This is his first season as an oldgen starter, and he should be able to put up a good record given his past experience, even if it is a little on the fresher side.

Another player who is basically brand new to the scene, Easter Bliss has been mostly found on the bench for the past year, subbing in here and there, and could also be considered a tournament discussion main in the UU discord. However, unlike most yappers, they've been a positive contribution to the teams they've been on, having a 3-2 record between this year's UUPL and DPPPL. As a 3k sub and a new face to tours, that's perfectly fine, and this tour will put the learning they've used to practice—hopefully it works in their favor.

I should be mean to feen in this writing off of virtue that he PMed me not once, but TWICE before auctions just going “get me for this uu team tour”, unlike quite literally every single person who's messaged me over the years as a player looking to be bought. Anyway, after taking a hiatus for a couple of years, feen is back on the scene and playing many different tours to get back into the swing of things. Among the tiers he's played is this one, but with an 0-4 record, things aren't looking so hot for him. He's known to be a capable player, but if he struggles to that extent in one tour, it might be hard to have faith in him for another.

The third and final player on the list to be considered a true zoomer, Queen of Bean has mostly had her focus on SV and ADV in her time playing, but lands herself in DPP… presumably because there weren't many other options, as it wasn't even listed in her signup post. Her only experience with DPP is an 0-2 record in the past UUPL—she didn't have much support there, but it's not as if she has much here either, save for her managers potentially throwing her scraps from past tournaments. With her lack of tenure as a whole, she'll have to work hard in order to stand with the more experienced players here.

A first-timer in UU team tours, awyp doesn't seem to have much experience with DPP UU, at least not in the modern era. Not much is known about them as a whole, but they have a 2010 joindate… I guess that's not a bad thing. If there's one thing that helps them a lot, it's that they have the support of LpZ, who just recently put up the UUPL performance of a lifetime, so there shouldn't be any worries in the building department. This means that their performance will depend heavily on how fast they can integrate themselves with DPP, and with expectations being low for them, they at least have the benefit of not having much in the way of pressure on them either.

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Unanimously ranked first by every player in the field, Heysup is back to play ADV for the millionth time and will probably end up farming for the millionth time. He's known for never following any building conventions, dropping Kangaskhan more than any player who's played the tier in the past few years, but evidently it's been working out for him due to his dominance. He's put up big numbers for many tours now, and his recent UUPL record of 3-4 should be viewed more as an outlier than anything else. Despite his tendency to tilt in the game chat at varying degrees of luck, it doesn't put much of a damper on his playing ability, as he's managed to pull games out of thin air in the past. With a pool that has many players unfamiliar with the tier, beating Heysup might be almost as difficult as scheduling with him for anyone working a 9-5.

The only other player in this pool who's a familiar face, Parpar's been on a bit of a downturn after a meteoric start to his ADV career. He went 3-4 in his last UUPL playing the tier, and had shifted to SV during the last UU Snake, where he hadn't done much better. That being said, he's still shown ability to clutch in high stakes situations, and has brought some interesting teams here and there, which is always a boon. With the playerbase being as fresh as it is, expectations are high for Parpar, and it's likely that he'll meet them.

The highest ranked player after the only two mainstays in the tier is a player who's only played two games of it. Isza, aka “BIG OD”, is someone who has a wealth of experience in many different formats—he's made playoffs of Smogon Classic and Smogon Tour recently and is also passionate about National Dex and Monotype. This doesn't mean he'll fit into playing ADV UU for a full season with no questions asked, but he's a more than capable player, and he has a decent support network in Queen of Bean and avarice. If he can find his groove quickly, then he should be able to give a strong performance for the Primarinas.

The writeup for Larry I had in mind is… basically the same as the one above, except he's had one game in the tier that I can find instead of two. However, he did win that game, and it was against Isza, so that probably counts for something. Larry's had a history playing GSC and DPP UU over the years, so putting him in another tier that rewards patience isn't a bad idea. He's more than willing to bring disgusting teams, and that can bode well into newer players for ADV. Translating that style into ADV is a little difficult given how devastating crits can be, but a player like him can weather through it and flip games in his favor.

More known for his impressive records in other tiers recently, zS is entering this tier as yet another newcomer. ADV is a bit weird to be playing for the first time for most people, but he's currently 4-2 in ADV RU for RUGL, so he at the very least isn't unfamiliar with how the gen works. That being said, RU is a very differently paced tier from UU, so while the skill he has is certainly transferable, he may still get caught off guard by random techs if they appear. If he takes the time to understand the tier's sequences, then he should be able to fit in just like he does for the billion other tiers he's played.

If you could believe it, we finally have someone on this list who's a dedicated ADV main again. Goldmason has been a rising star as of late, sporting a 4-2 record in ADV NU for NUPL and clutching the recent ADVPL finals for his team. He's in a similar position as zS in this regard, as he hopes to translate his success from a neighboring ADV tier into this tournament. Beyond this, he also has a lot of experience in the ADV field as a narrator, being a commentator for Revival Tournaments, so that can help with his sense for the game. With his dabbling in other tiers and the support of other ADV UUers in Bouff and Pak, mason has a high ceiling to succeed here.

Having a somewhat similar tier trajectory to Larry due to his experience in GSC and DPP over the years, innovamania is coming off a decent season this UUPL. Unlike every other player on this list barring Heysup, he actually has tenure dating back to the ancient times where Kangaskhan rarely ran Rest and Hypno was a top 5 Pokémon in the tier, as he played a few games of ADV in 2016's UUPL. He also had the best record in UUFPL, so despite the drastic difference in pace, it won't be as if he has no idea what he's doing. While he's ranked very low on this list and can have some wacky games here and there, don't let this placement fool you. His time playing the game may very well come in handy against a field filled with people looking to get their feet wet.

Very little is known about FadedCharm, who isn't faded love, or TeamCharm. They're currently managing the ongoing MFPL, but they have a very, very recent joindate and will be debuting in UU team tours here. This is compounded by the lack of support from their team, as none of their teammates or managers have any evident success in ADV. While it's not a very intricate tier to learn, they're on their own here, so it may be difficult for them to make a name for themselves here.

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dawnbuster managed to be ranked #1 by every single player in the pool. He is simply one of the greatest GSC UU player of all time, being largely responsible for numerous potent innovations and popularizing entire archetypes and consistently coming back tour after tour with incredible passion. Despite a perhaps somewhat disappointing (though certainly not bad at all) 4-4 UUPL, his 9-1 GSCPL IV still speaks volumes along with his other prior UU tour records. He certainly proved that he hasn't missed a step with his recent victory in the UU Open in GSC Slam. Even just his massively greater experience over other competitors, especially in UUPL, should provide a strong advantage. dawnbuster will almost certainly thrive in this tournament, especially with less competition and nerves compared to UUPL.

A prominent UU player across several different generations of UU, BigFatMantis ranks second in this pool. BigFatMantis has dabbled in a couple of GSC UU tournaments to decent results. As an example, he reached the finals of the recent GSC UU Slam. Known for his innovative, sometimes crackpot teams and sets (Mud Slap Girafarig says hello), Mantis is certainly an unpredictable opponent who will keep the other GSC UU players on their toes. He also has input on his builds from LpZ and innovamania. Mantis is very likely to put in a good performance this tournament.

SANKE CARP is back for another round of GSC UU after UUPL. Unfortunately, his UUPL may not have gone exactly as desired, as he only went 3-4, but it seems he is back to prove himself a truly worthy competitor with his newfound experience surrounded by strong players. He will certainly benefit from the overall weaker pool and reduced stakes and stress, and people on his team could assist him. In the meantime between UUPL and now, SANKE CARP (who was locked out of GSC) supported mkizzy, who otherwise might have struggled, to a decent 4-5 record and even a UUFPL championship title. SANKE CARP also has an overall very respectable pedigree in various other GSC lower tiers, being a GSC Slam II finalist, and has gleamed knowledge from other strong GSC UU players like dawnbuster and MrSoup. Despite his inconsistencies, he should excel and maybe even stake his claim as the next big thing in GSC.

GSC lower tier enthusiast BeeOrSomething ranks fourth in this GSC UU pool. Bee is not as invested in GSC UU as in GSC NU, but he has played the tier a decent bit in tournaments in like UUFPL and GSC Slam. He has also picked up a lot of knowledge from highly experienced GSC UU players, such as dawnbuster and pp's splash town. Bee could struggle a bit with teambuilding and just generally focusing in this tournament, but he is likely to put up a decent to great performance in this tour. He also has two people to help him out with teambuilding in cheru and Bouff.

Katerina does not play UU too often, being much more known for her success in Ubers, but she still poses a dangerous threat in GSC UU. Namely, she showed up in UUFPL IV with a 5-3 record, along with additional success in limited games across the past two years, including victories over dawnbuster and Mystras in GSCPL IV playoffs. Her team choice is consistently strong, her play is inconsistent but overall still solid, and she isn't afraid to bring offbeat choices to surprise her opponent. What holds her back is mostly limited experience, as except for UUFPL IV she has really only played at most three GSC UU games at a time in a single team tour before this; however, she is definitely a noteworthy competitor this tournament.

While Celebiii has been less active recently in terms of playing GSC UU himself, he is still consistently active in discussions with the tier and was largely responsible for building the teams that helped propel crying to a 4-1 record in GSC in UUPL XII. His teams and ideas are often novel, even strange at times, but his passion is greater than almost anyone, and crying's UUPL success proves that offbeat decisions can still produce strong results with great piloting; however, whether Celebiii will follow up and succeed this tournament remains to be seen.

Lialiabeast is slowly becoming a regular in GSC UU tournaments. He ranks seventh in the pool primarily due to struggles in past tournaments. Lialiabeast has played in quite a few tournaments, ranging from ALTPL to the most recent UUPL. He didn't do particularly well in most of them. Lialiabeast has historically struggled with keeping focus and nerves in longer games. Some of his team choices have also been questionable. Lialiabeast does seem determined to improve and has been doing a bit better as of late, though. It is perfectly possible for him to have a breakout tournament this time around and go positive. He has played vs several of the people in this pool before, so he might know the tricks to beating them. He is helped in this regard by the weaker pool than some of the previous GSC UU tours, such as UUPL.

Concept Everything lands at the bottom of the pool, likely because he has the lowest amount of experience in this pool. Concept has played a couple of metagames in the past and picked up GSC UU for the most recent UUFPL. This appears to have been the only tournament he has played. In this tour he went 2-5. The 2-5 was primarily due to wacky team choices, and he doesn't appear to have much support in this tournament. He seemed to struggle with keeping his focus during the UUFPL games. With this pool looking stronger than UUFPL was, it'll probably be tricky for Concept to put up a great performance. He could surprise the world though, you never know.

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Near-universally ranked at the top of the pool, Ice Yazu is a strong contender for best RBY UU player of all time. His accomplishments include a 7-2 record on the way to a UUFPL III victory, a 3-1 run in ALTPL I, and an RBYPL III victory along with a decorated streak of great individual placements, including 1st place finishes in RBY Grand Slam I, the first RBY UU Lower Tiers Circuit Tournament, and RBY UU Open I. His experience alone gives him a big advantage over most of his competitors, and those who have faced him in a match can attest to his adaptability and ability to read his opponents. While he's taken a bit of a break from the tier, the rankings make it clear that none of his competitors are underestimating him, and he gets an added bonus in the form of support from Sabelette, a decorated UU player herself. Even in a tier known for volatility, Yazu can be expected to make every single week difficult for whichever team has the misfortune of facing him.

Amaranth has returned to grace UU with a strategic mind honed by years upon years of RBY experience. Tied for second in this ranking, Amaranth proved doubters wrong in UUSD IV, finishing with a solid 4-3 record; while this may not sound particularly impressive, this was the second best record in a rather difficult pool. Notably, Amaranth has been playing RBY for longer than most of the remaining pool combined; while he may not enter quite as many UU tournaments as others here, his intuition is unmatched, and he can be trusted to find ways to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. He may also benefit from support from Fc, who is certainly no slouch in RBY UU. Amaranth continues the tradition of top RBY OU players showing that they can compete at a high level in lower tiers, and some of his old-school takes on the metagame may confound his less seasoned opponents.

An unfortunate snub during UUSD IV, Melbelle is easily one of the most threatening RBY UU players around despite slipping under the radar more than once. Her most recent team tournament outings were a 3-3 in ALTPL II and a dominant 6-1 in RBYPL IV, but perhaps most impressive is her grasp of teambuilding. More than once, she has pioneered a core or moveset that quickly went on to become a metagame standard, including reviving Agility Dragonite even after AgiliWrap was banned and bringing Persian back into focus as a threat. Her play is just as solid as her building and won't provide many openings to exploit, so her opponents will have to study her carefully to keep up. While the broader UnderUsed community has not always correctly identified her strength, this may just be the breakout tournament that puts her on the map for those who don't keep a close eye on RBY.

Cake has been a constant presence in just about every single RBY tournament across every tier since she first got into the generation. She most recently topped the pool in UUFPL IV with a 6-3 record and a win in finals, though her team unfortunately didn't close out the victory; prior to that, she made finals of the second RBY UU Lower Tiers Circuit tournament. She's previously put up a 3-2 record in ALTPL II and an unfortunate 1-3 in UUSD IV, but this also shows an upward trajectory in her results over time. Despite this, she was one of the most variably ranked players in the pool, and it's understandable why—she faced less experienced opponents in her best runs, and her outlook on the metagame tends to shift drastically on a whim. That said, if her results continue to improve, she will undoubtedly silence those putting her on the lower end of the rankings. She also has support from Tree69420, though it's difficult to predict if their styles will mesh or if she'll operate alone for this tournament, especially with Tree focusing on SV UU.

Randbats fiend turned multi-tier threat YBW was ranked everywhere between 2nd and 7th by his peers, an admittedly confusing range of rankings given his excellent performances in other lower tiers, solid runs in UU individuals, and his solid 4-4 team tournament debut on the way to a UUSD IV victory. Though he has stronger results in other lower tiers, one has to assume that his perpetual low rankings are more a result of unfamiliarity than disrespect, and he certainly has the potential to upset any of his higher-ranked peers; he's shown time and again that he can hold his own even against more experienced foes. While the mystery of what YBW stands for has recently been solved, "Yes, Big Wins" is still a good fit for this perennial contender, and his opponents would be wise to take him seriously.

Gastlies is a new face in UU team tournaments, debuting in UUFPL IV with a solid 4-3 finish. Not much can be said about her experience in RBY UU, as she has only recently started giving it serious attention, but she has had consistent, strong results in OU and PU, and she's known to be diligent in practicing and scouting. She's no stranger to unorthodox picks like Nidoking, but she manages to make these oddball picks sound somewhat reasonable when she's dissecting her opponent's tendencies, and she will likely pull out a surprise or two over the course of UUBD as well. At worst, she'll create some very interesting games to watch, but if her scouting is on point, she may just obliterate someone with a random ZU Pokémon, and it certainly speaks to the quality of the pool to see such a strong player ranked 6th.

Maris's first team tournament ever was UUFPL IV, and she admirably fought past first-tournament jitters to a 3-4 record, which was actually the fourth best record of the pool thanks to several teams having trouble and rotating through starters. Despite this rocky start, she played an inordinate number of practice games with both her fellow competitors and her supports, Sabelette and juoea, so she rapidly improved as a player, beating both Gastlies and NotVeryCake toward the end of the tournament. Another creative builder, Maris is certainly still finding her footing and building a reputation, so it's no surprise to see her ranked toward the bottom of the pool, but anyone paying attention has noticed her rapid improvement. Will this be her breakout tournament or does she need a little more time to develop? We'll see shortly.

pac recently returned to RBY after a long hiatus, putting up a 2-3 record in UUFPL IV while splitting starts with Cao Jie. It's not surprising to see him placed last given he was mostly inactive for nearly two years, only playing occasional non-UU tournaments in that timeframe, but this is RBY UU, and he's played the tier before and after said hiatus. It will be up to him to prove that rankers underestimated him, but it's a very attainable goal, and he's proved that he's invested in performing well by frequently practicing with other competitors. He's much more likely to get a full seven-game stretch to show his abilities in this tournament, so he may be able to turn some heads here.

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