I'm no one to speak but I'm quite sure that the SubProtect options of Kyurem have been explored for some time, perhaps not seriously but it's been there. There was a PP stall team (double dance registeel and that kind of stuff) someone built some months ago (believe it might have been Heatranator but I don't recall now) with SubProtect DD Spear Kyu. The thing I find with sets like this is that with certain mons with absurd stats such as Kyu, just going for the damage straight away feels better. Kyu DOES have defensive merit and certainly can run SubProtect, but Specs or DD is almost always going to be more effective in fulfilling Kyu's role, which is to make huge damage.
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Metagame SV OU Metagame Discussion v4
- Thread starter TPP
- Start date
I'm no one to speak but I'm quite sure that the SubProtect options of Kyurem have been explored for some time, perhaps not seriously but it's been there. There was a PP stall team (double dance registeel and that kind of stuff) someone built some months ago (believe it might have been Heatranator but I don't recall now) with SubProtect DD Spear Kyu. The thing I find with sets like this is that with certain mons with absurd stats such as Kyu, just going for the damage straight away feels better. Kyu DOES have defensive merit and certainly can run SubProtect, but Specs or DD is almost always going to be more effective in fulfilling Kyu's role, which is to make huge damage.
It's how it catches me off guard that is the problem. Normally that would totally be a 'skill issue' sort of complaint, 'git better at team buildingx', but that power means I need to worry about it, it's powerful both ways so I need to have both sides covered because one bad guess means bye bye, Ice + Ground + Dragon is surprisingly hard to prepare for, and on top of all that, I need to not be blindsided by a random Substitute.
Oh right, and it has teammates I need to worry about. I find Stealth Rock to be more valuable than Spikes at the moment. There are a lot of birds in the sky, Lotix seems to be sprouting out of nowhere for some reason, and if I'm not dedicating my time to it, Rocks is more splashable for my teams. I await any counter arguments, because its not like there's a shortage of spikes. Gliscor, Glim and Sam are absolutely everywhere.
EDIT: And Tera. Ground, Electric, and hen it can be either physical or special at that.
Leng made a great post about I’ve been a huge fan of Sub-Tect Kyu for a long time due to how effortlessly it punishes GargGliscor Balances. While I disagree that Kyurem is broken, I am interested in seeing how Kyurem’s meta will develop moving forward.
Fellow teambuilder FFK peaked with Tera Electric Blast DD Kyu on the ladder. Cool set.
Traditional slow Balances are in a rough spot not cause of Kyurem, but because of how hostile the rest of the meta is towards them. Most offenses are designed to exploit a specific threat and go crazy afterwards. Spike Stacking cores are very limited for Balance, most of them have to run Tusk (which limits the amount of Spikers/Rockers you can easily fit), run some other niche hazard removal (G-Weez), or go Boots Spam meaning they need a good Knock absorber. (Gliscor loses to common Knockers, Skarm/Clef are mediocre and easy to pressure, Tinka is good but is more of a short term response to Knock)
Unfortunately the payoff isn’t there like it was in early 2024. Offense teams overwhelm them too quickly for Spike Stacking to initiate its slow gameplan of getting hazards/knocking boots. Cinderace shot up in popularity and can dance around these teams with partners like Wogre or Kyurem while removing hazards.
The uptick of Encore also just fucks with a lot of Balances, particularly DD Tera Fire Encore Nite which messes up traditional answers like Curse Dozo, Skarm, Molt, and Iron Press Zama. Ghold was no. 1 in usage from this year’s WCOP, and will continue to rise as long as teams still need the compression of a breaker, zama check, steel type, and spinblocker. There’s also no shortage of strong breakers like Waterpon, Darkrai, NP Deo-S, SD Gliscor, Raging Bolt, and the aformentioned Kyurem. Its not to say Balance is just unviable, the faster paced Balances seem to be doing fine, but slower ones are just too exploitable in an aggressive meta, but I’ve been noticing a pattern with the tier.
There was a period during late SPL where Balance was doing amazingly, but from what I got from playing ladder and observing meta trends, is that the playerbase responds more hostilely when the meta leans in a slower, defensive direction, and as such, will find the best option to tearing apart the most common Balance teams, then in response, ppl stop running these balance and play more aggressive builds, then players will start counterteaming the offenses, then players go back to countering the anti-offense with Balance, and the cycle continues. Balance is not gonna be in the shadow forever, it’s just matter of the trends favoring offense atm and innovations on Balance slowly creeping their way into the meta. As older options like Skarmory and Clefable fade out for more consistent options.
Diverting the topic back to OLT, I want to talk about the Top 5 mons I expect to see more of in OLT.
TOP 5 OLT MONS TO LOOK OUT FOR
Number 5: Offensive Tera Blast Lando
Landorus-Therian @ Leftovers/Rocky Helmet/Earth Plate/Choice Scarf/Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Ice
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Smack Down/Stone Edge/Rock Tomb
- Tera Blast
- Stealth Rock/Grass Knot/Taunt/U-Turn/Substitute
Due to how often Gliscor and opposing Landorus come in on it, as well as Moltres, offensive variants of Landorus have been played with on high ladder recently. The ease it has in luring these threats, and more like the rising Sinistcha, makes it an effective wallbreaker at the cost of burning Tera. It has several options to play with via the 4th moveslot and the itemslot. Rocks, G-Knot for Dozo, Taunt to shutdown rock attempts from Lando or Roost attempts for Corv/Skarm, U-Turn to preserve momentum, and Substitute which was a staple option on offensive Lando back in Home/DLC1. Tera Ice also has the benefit of reversing its infamous Ice weakness and threatening the Dragons with immediate dmg. Gliscor, Lando, Moltres, and Sinstcha all serve as stalwarts for physical offensive, but being able to take those out allows mons like Kingambit, Gouging Fire, Zama, and Dragonite to start reigning havoc while also compressing rocks is huge. Good as a lead too with Sash. With the popularity of Lando offense and midground Moltres builds, I expect this set to pop up more.
Number 4: SD Gliscor
Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 244 HP / 36 Def / 228 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake/Knock Off
- Facade
- Protect
The day more players realize this thing trades hard with offense via Tera and great natural bulk is the day people find out Gliscor is broken. Not only is it a wincon not bothered by Moltres, but the decreased usage of Skarm/Corv/Dozo has made the EQ + Facade set much better. Sure Balloon Ghold blanks it, but Ghold isn’t gonna blindly switch into Gliscor without knowledge of if its Knock Off or not. Plus consider that Balloon Ghold will be tasked with switching into Zama or Kyurem which makes preserving Balloon difficult in practice. One of the best partners for Gliscor is Moltres who punishes Tusk for clicking Spinner and Zama, meaning Gliscor is free to click Tera Normal without getting hard punished by Zama. Tera Normal is also just a great defensive typing for Gliscor since all the fighters get punished by Moltres and the mons that carry Fighting coverage don’t OHKO a healthy Gliscor, which isn’t diffuclt for Gliscor to remain in that state with Poison Heal + Protect. Gliscor’s longevity + resistance to chip, status, and hazards, makes it more oppressive to slower Balances than Kyurem, Waterpon, or Darkrai, imo. The reward for Terastilizing Gliscor is much higher than the risk, and the sooner players start going for the win with Gliscor, the sooner Gliscor can be on the radar.
Number 3: More Cinderace
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero/Blaze
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn
- Sucker Punch/Gunk Shot/Low Kick/Will-O-Wisp
- Court Change
Cinderace Offenses are already trending up in an offensive meta, but I believe it will only rise further in OLT. Cinderace remains relevant no matter the matchup. Most Fire resists in SV OU are either frail or limited to more defensive teams, so most teams use Lando/Tusk as their Cinderace response, but they still take big damage from Pyro, especially with Terastilization. It’s also a fantastic pivot in the meta. If you asked what the best checks to it were, you’d get Mola, Gliscor, Garg, Moltres, Dozo, and Lando, but you’d soon find that all of these can be U-Turn’d on into Waterpon or Sub-Tect Kyurem who immediately threatens all of these. Enabling strong breakers with its pivoting and providing anti-offense utility with Wisp, Court Change, or Sucker is exactly what Cinderace excels at. I expect Cinderace to drop Libero more in favor of Blaze to avoid getting punished by Moltres. I wouldn’t be surprised if during the later half of OLT, Cinderace gets ranked into A+ for being an offensive cornerstone that can bully any matchup.
Number 2: DD Gouging Fire
Gouging Fire @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ground/Dragon/Fairy/Ghost
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 152 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Heat Crash/Flare Blitz
- Earthquake/Dragon Tail/Tera Blast/Dragon Claw/Outrage
- Morning Sun/Dragon Tail/Tera Blast/Burning Bulwark/Stone Edge
(EV spread outspeeds Darkrai at +1)
After the suspect test for G-Fire resulted in DNB, people just stopped talking about it, but can envision that Gouging Fire is gonna start blowing shit up in OLT, just not in the “omg ban it” kind of way. Someone in high ladder was running this mon + NP Deo on an alt and it’s been consistent. Ran into this guy on ladder multiple times and they’re cracked with it. Gouging Fire is one of my favorite mons to use on the ladder. Firstly it has a sick asf design, and having 105/121/93 bulk makes it comparable to Garganacl. This absolute beefcake uses this bulk to get ez Dragon Dance opportunities or rkill Darkrai, Bolt, Gambit, Moth, Val, Waterpon, etc on offensive teams. Being a DD sweeper that’s immune to Burns from Molt/Pult/Cinder is huge and that defensive typing lets it exploit the popular Gholdengo, Cinderace, Iron Crown, Rillaboom, and non-Roar Molt. I wouldn’t even bother with the DD Swipe set because of how long it takes to get going, Booster Attack is the only good G-Fire set. Proto + a DD boost creates big numbers on your screen. The DD set has a ton of options to play with, my favorite being DD Morning Sun with Tera Ground EQ which blows up Molt/Mola cores and can setup boosts on Tusk or Lando. Dragon Tail is a nasty option to punish Roar Zama, Whirlwind Ting, Roar Molt, and Tickle Mola. Tera Fairy Blast crushes Zama/Tusk/Dnite, the only things standing up to Fire + Fairy are Moltres who needs Roar to beat it, Heatran and Volcanion who are niche, and Dondozo who’s mid as hell. Tera Dragon Outrage nukes a bunch of shit and 2HKOs Dozo. Burning Bulwark is more niche, but it punishes Gambit, Libero Cinder, and E-Speed Dnite. Stone Edge is cheeky for Moltres. Once Lando is weakened which can be accomplished with G-Fire’s teammates (Roaring Moon, Kingambit, Zama), then it goes crazy or the inverse since G-Fire can heavily dent most of the common physically defensive responses in the tier. In OLT I expect more G-Fire offenses designed around pressuring Lando/Zama/Tusk and enable a cleanup. This mon is cracked and an opportunity for the rest of the playerbase to remember is arising.
Honorable Mention
Dragonite @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Multiscale
Tera Type: Fire/Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Ice Spinner
- Earthquake
- Thunder Wave
I’ve had games where Dragonite fails to rkill something because they Tera Ghost on E-Speed. So relying on Dnite to rkill everything isn’t ideal when most teams have a Tera Ghoster. I thought of an interesting solution, let me propose to you, T-Wave Dragonite. T-Wave cripples incoming switch ins like Moltres, Mola, Kyurem, Dragapult, Zama, Iron Valiant, Dozo, and Corv for its other teammates to take advantage of. For everything Dnite can’t T-Wave, it smacks them with QuakeSpinner coverage. This also serves as a midground to Tera Ghosters like Valiant. T-Wave is a big deal for Dragonite since it can now provide early game utility and play the part of speed control. The benefits of paralysis are incredible in this meta and no I don’t mean para spam teams like Skymin alluded to early, just para in general. This is made clearer with the number 1 mon that imo will pop off this OLT.
Number 1: Zapdos
Zapdos @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Static
Tera Type: Steel/Grass
EVs: 248 HP / 244 Def / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hurricane
- Volt Switch
- Thunder Wave/Discharge/Weather Ball
- Roost
Zapdos is already respected by the playerbase. Receiving decent usage in high ladder/tournaments and an honest B+ ranking, but if I’m being honest, Zapdos feels like one of those mons that will break out into OU status again. Offense hates fighting Zapdos because it spreads para so easily by being itself. Zapdos is one of the best Zama checks rn while not being passive at all as nothing is running Tera Electric because they’re too busy with the fire chicken. If its not clicking para, its spamming Volt Switch like a mfer. Unless it runs into a Ting/Gliscor, it gets to click this annoying ass move for free because Tusk wants nothing to do with Zapdos and Lando can’t touch it without a rock move. If anything illustrates how good para is within SV OU, its Zapdos.
“But what about Raging Bolt??”
If Raging Bolt is the only thing on offense thats stopping Zapdos from simply clicking T-Wave, then that says everything about its matchup vs offense. Not to mention Zapdos can just Volt Switch out. With Gking it can serve as an effective lure for Gliscor who’s often the only thing stopping Zapdos from spamming Volt Switch.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-2155704547
Zapdos gets two Static procs on Lando/Zama and Volt Switches into Garg, putting it in range of Specs Ghold Tbolt (underrated Ghold set btw).
There was also a Kyu/Zapdos/Cinder/Val team highlighted earlier this month that garnered tons of success but I couldn’t find it on the RMT forums.
Zapdos is very easy to splash, providing teams with a deterrent for phsyical attackers, a Ground immune, a pivot, and consistent Zama check. It gives mons like Gholdengo the freedom to run more aggressive sets like Choice Scarf or Choice Specs which shreds through every single mon with Tera Steel MiR besides Bliss and Tera Water Garg. The landscape of SV OU is perfect for Zapdos. With very few things wanting to switch into Zapdos and its prominent matchup against aggressive team styles, I expect Zapdos to start rising up high in response to the trends of SV OU in OLT.
Brace yourself for the Big Bird.
art credit
Fellow teambuilder FFK peaked with Tera Electric Blast DD Kyu on the ladder. Cool set.
Traditional slow Balances are in a rough spot not cause of Kyurem, but because of how hostile the rest of the meta is towards them. Most offenses are designed to exploit a specific threat and go crazy afterwards. Spike Stacking cores are very limited for Balance, most of them have to run Tusk (which limits the amount of Spikers/Rockers you can easily fit), run some other niche hazard removal (G-Weez), or go Boots Spam meaning they need a good Knock absorber. (Gliscor loses to common Knockers, Skarm/Clef are mediocre and easy to pressure, Tinka is good but is more of a short term response to Knock)
Unfortunately the payoff isn’t there like it was in early 2024. Offense teams overwhelm them too quickly for Spike Stacking to initiate its slow gameplan of getting hazards/knocking boots. Cinderace shot up in popularity and can dance around these teams with partners like Wogre or Kyurem while removing hazards.
The uptick of Encore also just fucks with a lot of Balances, particularly DD Tera Fire Encore Nite which messes up traditional answers like Curse Dozo, Skarm, Molt, and Iron Press Zama. Ghold was no. 1 in usage from this year’s WCOP, and will continue to rise as long as teams still need the compression of a breaker, zama check, steel type, and spinblocker. There’s also no shortage of strong breakers like Waterpon, Darkrai, NP Deo-S, SD Gliscor, Raging Bolt, and the aformentioned Kyurem. Its not to say Balance is just unviable, the faster paced Balances seem to be doing fine, but slower ones are just too exploitable in an aggressive meta, but I’ve been noticing a pattern with the tier.
There was a period during late SPL where Balance was doing amazingly, but from what I got from playing ladder and observing meta trends, is that the playerbase responds more hostilely when the meta leans in a slower, defensive direction, and as such, will find the best option to tearing apart the most common Balance teams, then in response, ppl stop running these balance and play more aggressive builds, then players will start counterteaming the offenses, then players go back to countering the anti-offense with Balance, and the cycle continues. Balance is not gonna be in the shadow forever, it’s just matter of the trends favoring offense atm and innovations on Balance slowly creeping their way into the meta. As older options like Skarmory and Clefable fade out for more consistent options.
Diverting the topic back to OLT, I want to talk about the Top 5 mons I expect to see more of in OLT.
TOP 5 OLT MONS TO LOOK OUT FOR
Landorus-Therian @ Leftovers/Rocky Helmet/Earth Plate/Choice Scarf/Focus Sash
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Ice
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Smack Down/Stone Edge/Rock Tomb
- Tera Blast
- Stealth Rock/Grass Knot/Taunt/U-Turn/Substitute
Due to how often Gliscor and opposing Landorus come in on it, as well as Moltres, offensive variants of Landorus have been played with on high ladder recently. The ease it has in luring these threats, and more like the rising Sinistcha, makes it an effective wallbreaker at the cost of burning Tera. It has several options to play with via the 4th moveslot and the itemslot. Rocks, G-Knot for Dozo, Taunt to shutdown rock attempts from Lando or Roost attempts for Corv/Skarm, U-Turn to preserve momentum, and Substitute which was a staple option on offensive Lando back in Home/DLC1. Tera Ice also has the benefit of reversing its infamous Ice weakness and threatening the Dragons with immediate dmg. Gliscor, Lando, Moltres, and Sinstcha all serve as stalwarts for physical offensive, but being able to take those out allows mons like Kingambit, Gouging Fire, Zama, and Dragonite to start reigning havoc while also compressing rocks is huge. Good as a lead too with Sash. With the popularity of Lando offense and midground Moltres builds, I expect this set to pop up more.
Number 4: SD Gliscor
Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 244 HP / 36 Def / 228 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake/Knock Off
- Facade
- Protect
The day more players realize this thing trades hard with offense via Tera and great natural bulk is the day people find out Gliscor is broken. Not only is it a wincon not bothered by Moltres, but the decreased usage of Skarm/Corv/Dozo has made the EQ + Facade set much better. Sure Balloon Ghold blanks it, but Ghold isn’t gonna blindly switch into Gliscor without knowledge of if its Knock Off or not. Plus consider that Balloon Ghold will be tasked with switching into Zama or Kyurem which makes preserving Balloon difficult in practice. One of the best partners for Gliscor is Moltres who punishes Tusk for clicking Spinner and Zama, meaning Gliscor is free to click Tera Normal without getting hard punished by Zama. Tera Normal is also just a great defensive typing for Gliscor since all the fighters get punished by Moltres and the mons that carry Fighting coverage don’t OHKO a healthy Gliscor, which isn’t diffuclt for Gliscor to remain in that state with Poison Heal + Protect. Gliscor’s longevity + resistance to chip, status, and hazards, makes it more oppressive to slower Balances than Kyurem, Waterpon, or Darkrai, imo. The reward for Terastilizing Gliscor is much higher than the risk, and the sooner players start going for the win with Gliscor, the sooner Gliscor can be on the radar.
Number 3: More Cinderace
Cinderace @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Libero/Blaze
Tera Type: Fire
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Pyro Ball
- U-turn
- Sucker Punch/Gunk Shot/Low Kick/Will-O-Wisp
- Court Change
Cinderace Offenses are already trending up in an offensive meta, but I believe it will only rise further in OLT. Cinderace remains relevant no matter the matchup. Most Fire resists in SV OU are either frail or limited to more defensive teams, so most teams use Lando/Tusk as their Cinderace response, but they still take big damage from Pyro, especially with Terastilization. It’s also a fantastic pivot in the meta. If you asked what the best checks to it were, you’d get Mola, Gliscor, Garg, Moltres, Dozo, and Lando, but you’d soon find that all of these can be U-Turn’d on into Waterpon or Sub-Tect Kyurem who immediately threatens all of these. Enabling strong breakers with its pivoting and providing anti-offense utility with Wisp, Court Change, or Sucker is exactly what Cinderace excels at. I expect Cinderace to drop Libero more in favor of Blaze to avoid getting punished by Moltres. I wouldn’t be surprised if during the later half of OLT, Cinderace gets ranked into A+ for being an offensive cornerstone that can bully any matchup.
Number 2: DD Gouging Fire
Gouging Fire @ Booster Energy
Ability: Protosynthesis
Tera Type: Ground/Dragon/Fairy/Ghost
EVs: 104 HP / 252 Atk / 152 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Heat Crash/Flare Blitz
- Earthquake/Dragon Tail/Tera Blast/Dragon Claw/Outrage
- Morning Sun/Dragon Tail/Tera Blast/Burning Bulwark/Stone Edge
(EV spread outspeeds Darkrai at +1)
After the suspect test for G-Fire resulted in DNB, people just stopped talking about it, but can envision that Gouging Fire is gonna start blowing shit up in OLT, just not in the “omg ban it” kind of way. Someone in high ladder was running this mon + NP Deo on an alt and it’s been consistent. Ran into this guy on ladder multiple times and they’re cracked with it. Gouging Fire is one of my favorite mons to use on the ladder. Firstly it has a sick asf design, and having 105/121/93 bulk makes it comparable to Garganacl. This absolute beefcake uses this bulk to get ez Dragon Dance opportunities or rkill Darkrai, Bolt, Gambit, Moth, Val, Waterpon, etc on offensive teams. Being a DD sweeper that’s immune to Burns from Molt/Pult/Cinder is huge and that defensive typing lets it exploit the popular Gholdengo, Cinderace, Iron Crown, Rillaboom, and non-Roar Molt. I wouldn’t even bother with the DD Swipe set because of how long it takes to get going, Booster Attack is the only good G-Fire set. Proto + a DD boost creates big numbers on your screen. The DD set has a ton of options to play with, my favorite being DD Morning Sun with Tera Ground EQ which blows up Molt/Mola cores and can setup boosts on Tusk or Lando. Dragon Tail is a nasty option to punish Roar Zama, Whirlwind Ting, Roar Molt, and Tickle Mola. Tera Fairy Blast crushes Zama/Tusk/Dnite, the only things standing up to Fire + Fairy are Moltres who needs Roar to beat it, Heatran and Volcanion who are niche, and Dondozo who’s mid as hell. Tera Dragon Outrage nukes a bunch of shit and 2HKOs Dozo. Burning Bulwark is more niche, but it punishes Gambit, Libero Cinder, and E-Speed Dnite. Stone Edge is cheeky for Moltres. Once Lando is weakened which can be accomplished with G-Fire’s teammates (Roaring Moon, Kingambit, Zama), then it goes crazy or the inverse since G-Fire can heavily dent most of the common physically defensive responses in the tier. In OLT I expect more G-Fire offenses designed around pressuring Lando/Zama/Tusk and enable a cleanup. This mon is cracked and an opportunity for the rest of the playerbase to remember is arising.
Honorable Mention
Dragonite @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Multiscale
Tera Type: Fire/Ground
EVs: 252 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Adamant Nature
- Dragon Dance
- Ice Spinner
- Earthquake
- Thunder Wave
I’ve had games where Dragonite fails to rkill something because they Tera Ghost on E-Speed. So relying on Dnite to rkill everything isn’t ideal when most teams have a Tera Ghoster. I thought of an interesting solution, let me propose to you, T-Wave Dragonite. T-Wave cripples incoming switch ins like Moltres, Mola, Kyurem, Dragapult, Zama, Iron Valiant, Dozo, and Corv for its other teammates to take advantage of. For everything Dnite can’t T-Wave, it smacks them with QuakeSpinner coverage. This also serves as a midground to Tera Ghosters like Valiant. T-Wave is a big deal for Dragonite since it can now provide early game utility and play the part of speed control. The benefits of paralysis are incredible in this meta and no I don’t mean para spam teams like Skymin alluded to early, just para in general. This is made clearer with the number 1 mon that imo will pop off this OLT.
Number 1: Zapdos
Zapdos @ Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Static
Tera Type: Steel/Grass
EVs: 248 HP / 244 Def / 16 Spe
Bold Nature
IVs: 0 Atk
- Hurricane
- Volt Switch
- Thunder Wave/Discharge/Weather Ball
- Roost
Zapdos is already respected by the playerbase. Receiving decent usage in high ladder/tournaments and an honest B+ ranking, but if I’m being honest, Zapdos feels like one of those mons that will break out into OU status again. Offense hates fighting Zapdos because it spreads para so easily by being itself. Zapdos is one of the best Zama checks rn while not being passive at all as nothing is running Tera Electric because they’re too busy with the fire chicken. If its not clicking para, its spamming Volt Switch like a mfer. Unless it runs into a Ting/Gliscor, it gets to click this annoying ass move for free because Tusk wants nothing to do with Zapdos and Lando can’t touch it without a rock move. If anything illustrates how good para is within SV OU, its Zapdos.
“But what about Raging Bolt??”
If Raging Bolt is the only thing on offense thats stopping Zapdos from simply clicking T-Wave, then that says everything about its matchup vs offense. Not to mention Zapdos can just Volt Switch out. With Gking it can serve as an effective lure for Gliscor who’s often the only thing stopping Zapdos from spamming Volt Switch.
https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen9ou-2155704547
Zapdos gets two Static procs on Lando/Zama and Volt Switches into Garg, putting it in range of Specs Ghold Tbolt (underrated Ghold set btw).
There was also a Kyu/Zapdos/Cinder/Val team highlighted earlier this month that garnered tons of success but I couldn’t find it on the RMT forums.
Zapdos is very easy to splash, providing teams with a deterrent for phsyical attackers, a Ground immune, a pivot, and consistent Zama check. It gives mons like Gholdengo the freedom to run more aggressive sets like Choice Scarf or Choice Specs which shreds through every single mon with Tera Steel MiR besides Bliss and Tera Water Garg. The landscape of SV OU is perfect for Zapdos. With very few things wanting to switch into Zapdos and its prominent matchup against aggressive team styles, I expect Zapdos to start rising up high in response to the trends of SV OU in OLT.
Brace yourself for the Big Bird.
Tinted Lens + STAB First Impression hits pretty hard off 102 attack, with STAB Sucker Punch to retain priority outside the first turn. Knock Off and U-Turn are solid utility moves, as well, and Tinted Lens offsets the lack of coverage moves well enough (seriously, Double Edge is the second best).
Really, this isn't a bad damage roll at all for a priority move:
252+ Atk Lokix First Impression vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Tera Normal Mew: 136-162 (39.8 - 47.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
For minor niche utility, Lokix also has a dark resist and just enough uninvested bulk to live a Sucker Punch from +2 Kingambit with 5 fallen from full, which is nice since Knock Off hits slightly harder than First Impression. You live a +2 Sucker at 2 fallen with Black Glasses, which is nice for midgame.
I'm gonna be real, at first I thought Lotixto be some YouTube meme, but I've felt first hand how dangerous it is.
Speaking of YouTube, I finally, honestly see why people joke on YouTube sets. Ran into a very odd one utilizing Espurr (M), Gravity and Flapple. Grav Apple was used. I don't know what it was supposed to accomplish.
Lol and behold, I run into this.
Speaking of YouTube, I finally, honestly see why people joke on YouTube sets. Ran into a very odd one utilizing Espurr (M), Gravity and Flapple. Grav Apple was used. I don't know what it was supposed to accomplish.
Lol and behold, I run into this.
you're telling me that one tera blast ice landorus i ran into on 1600s ladder a few days ago is a legitimately viable set and not just a meme? wild
Dude I ran into this while grinding an alt before for practice, I knew from the onset it had to be something used in a video because it fell apart so fast that it literally can only work on people who aren't vaguely aware of how moves work at all lol.
I've run into a lot of Tera Flying and Tera Ice LandoT's lately, its scary stuff because you're never sure when its utility vs attack now. I've been slotting corv on more to deal with it because its been annoying me immensely.
While it has jackshit for coverage, I've found Terablast Grass actually kinda fucking baller on him. It procs hard enough on a variety of types you get a good secondary coverage move. TB Fire also felt nice just for hitting steels for big number with Choice Band. I feel like there's potential for innovation even if it just wants to hit the big bug move.
Number 4: SD Gliscor
Gliscor @ Toxic Orb
Ability: Poison Heal
Tera Type: Normal
EVs: 244 HP / 36 Def / 228 SpD
Careful Nature
- Swords Dance
- Earthquake/Knock Off
- Facade
- Protect
The day more players realize this thing trades hard with offense via Tera and great natural bulk is the day people find out Gliscor is broken. Not only is it a wincon not bothered by Moltres, but the decreased usage of Skarm/Corv/Dozo has made the EQ + Facade set much better. Sure Balloon Ghold blanks it, but Ghold isn’t gonna blindly switch into Gliscor without knowledge of if its Knock Off or not. Plus consider that Balloon Ghold will be tasked with switching into Zama or Kyurem which makes preserving Balloon difficult in practice. One of the best partners for Gliscor is Moltres who punishes Tusk for clicking Spinner and Zama, meaning Gliscor is free to click Tera Normal without getting hard punished by Zama. Tera Normal is also just a great defensive typing for Gliscor since all the fighters get punished by Moltres and the mons that carry Fighting coverage don’t OHKO a healthy Gliscor, which isn’t diffuclt for Gliscor to remain in that state with Poison Heal + Protect. Gliscor’s longevity + resistance to chip, status, and hazards, makes it more oppressive to slower Balances than Kyurem, Waterpon, or Darkrai, imo. The reward for Terastilizing Gliscor is much higher than the risk, and the sooner players start going for the win with Gliscor, the sooner Gliscor can be on the radar.
I love the rest of the post but I feel it needs mentioning that the consensus among most is SD Gliscor isn’t broken, particularly not in the current meta. At least, that was the prevailing sentiment in the forum the last time it was brought up.
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Word for word exactly what I thought, then I saw the vid. I understand needing to hype up your vids for views, but I find the word OP meaningless on YouTube at this point.
But of a long post. I'm gonna write a bit.about some experiences I've had lately.
I hope people keep posting their experiences with the low tier stars. With the meta as counter picky as it is, mons are able to put in work if they fufulill a bery specific role. I'm still straddling 1500's (what is "officially" considered 'mid' anyway), but simply adding in that Tentacreul set has done wonders towards my team building experience. Having the speed to Flip Turn away from Tusk is golden when it packs so much utility. I wish it had a way to recover health better on it's own.
Morkal makes a lot of sets, but the difference between theirs and some YouTube jumpoff is that they've actually seen to test on on more than wifi, and it's relevant to the meta. We have a D tier now, and it means more than just meme choices, I would like to see that and C filled up more and explored.
Agreed. There's a lot of underrated mons that can fill VERY well versed niches to make their usage respectable. Morkal's been doing an insane amount of work in letting me apply the same ideas to other Mons and discover set ups that work great--I've been using Mandibuzz for example forever now to great success. And it wouldn't have crossed my mind if i just paid sole attention to the A/S tiers alone and didn't give unexplored mons more room to breathe and work with.
Okidogi and Ursaluna (AV) chads... Our team keeps coming and it don't stop coming...
tried it a few months ago, spdef tera ground. its not broken at all. its decent in certain matchups, you can pp stall certain pokemon, but its nowhere near as busted as tera poison cosmic power deo-d. that thing is awful for the opponent and a much better pressure staller. trouble is if youre hitting something for neutral damage, they can setup on you, so your only bet to fully pressure stall this gen is to setup alongside them, ID corv also works well.
The sets that are taking off now are SpAtk and Speed invested so you can get off fast subs and hit hard. SpDef is suboptimal and probably explains it was performing worse than than DeoD for you.
Cosmic Power DeoD is passive taunt fodder that struggles to work in any serious capacity beyond low ladder. It’s just not comparable to offensive SubTect Kyurem. SpA invested Freeze Dry + Earth Power hits practically everything in the tier so nothing is setting up on you. It’s a very strong set and combined with Kyurem’s unpredictability is a compelling reason to keep the mon on the radar.
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I don't know. I feel like Sub/DD is always worse to deal with. Sub/Protect and only special attacking moves sort of just plays into special walls or Encore. Kyurem has always been borderline to me this gen, with the hypothetical tipping point being abusing a combination of sets that just cross the line in being reasonable to try to deal with it. Sub/Protect or even Sub/DD can catch you off guard, but this itself is not something most well built teams couldn't answer.
I find the safest way to play Kurem is to assume and switch in a special wall. If they sub or DD, I know to switch to a physical defense mon and maybe phase them. Most teams either have a strong physical defense backbone, because that's the meta, or they are offensive and have a way to RK even +1 Kyurem if you can break the sub. Fast Encore and phasing are also good for the surprise sets.
To me, the scariest things are the mixed sets since they can often just shred through what teams normally prepare for with Kyurem. But I haven't seen them be too bad overall, at least so far. That said, it does feel like more experimentation has taken place with this mon and it's kinda creeping closer and closer towards that line. While I don't currently lose to Kyurem much, a part of me is starting to wonder if it is only a matter of time with this thing.
This is kinda funny because of the recent discussions on Lando-I and Kyurem highlighting those coverages. Like just recently, I pointed out how good Ground/Flying coverage is. I also made an assertion that T only isn't broken in gen 9 because it can't reliably boost speed. It's almost as if people read that and decided to try it on T. What teams are you seeing it on? Is it like webs where people can make up for the lack of speed? Or are they just using it as a wallbreaker?
1) Volcarona was the set’s main counter and got banned.
2) Rise of Darkrai and Knock Valiant after Volcarona ban to pressure special walls like AV Glowking and Iron Crown.
It’s been known for a while but is now more effective than before.
I've run into about 5 in the last week, 2 were running it on webs (With a team built out mons that would naturally threaten out answers for Lando, like Weavile/SPA's etc) and they brought it on phys mons that naturally would switch out due to deterrence. Naturally when I would swap to a mon that either dodges/absorbs EQ or EP it would Tera Flying and smacks whatever it comes in for turbo dmg. Not sure if it was Band or something similar, as the wrong predict meant I lost my last few mons at the time due to being unaware of its set.
The others if I remember right were balance or rain if I recall right? I have a terrible memory so I just remember being gobsmacked as I faced two TB Ice Lando's and lost to both due to being utterly gobsmacked. I definitely remember them being more bulky oriented so Lando was their wallbreaker that came in with the illusion of it being potentially utility and instead used the surprise factor to smack my poor Sini with the full might of TB Flying/Ice.
The discussion on Landorus-T inspires me to share this recent set I’m tinkering with that’s proving to be pretty cool.
Chill Lando (Landorus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Ice
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Earth Power
- Smack Down
- Tera Blast
- U-turn
This set checks a ton of common mons including Raging Bolt, Pult, Iron Moth, Ghold, Gouging Fire, and Zama. Nobody expects the added special bulk from AV. You can Tera Ice to turn the tables on Kyurem or snipe opposite Gliscor, Lando, and Sinistcha. Smack Down is amazing since you bait in things like Moltres, Corviknight, and Skarmory, ground them, and demolish them with Earth Power. You don’t even care about burns from Moltres and Pult since you’re a special attacker. Finally, being an AV user that’s immune to grounded hazards pre-Tera is just awesome.
Overall, this set has been putting in a ton of work for me lately. It’s very helpful in easing the immense pressure on the balance matchup nowadays. Lando’s just chill like that :)
Chill Lando (Landorus-Therian) @ Assault Vest
Ability: Intimidate
Tera Type: Ice
EVs: 252 HP / 4 SpA / 252 Spe
Timid Nature
- Earth Power
- Smack Down
- Tera Blast
- U-turn
This set checks a ton of common mons including Raging Bolt, Pult, Iron Moth, Ghold, Gouging Fire, and Zama. Nobody expects the added special bulk from AV. You can Tera Ice to turn the tables on Kyurem or snipe opposite Gliscor, Lando, and Sinistcha. Smack Down is amazing since you bait in things like Moltres, Corviknight, and Skarmory, ground them, and demolish them with Earth Power. You don’t even care about burns from Moltres and Pult since you’re a special attacker. Finally, being an AV user that’s immune to grounded hazards pre-Tera is just awesome.
Overall, this set has been putting in a ton of work for me lately. It’s very helpful in easing the immense pressure on the balance matchup nowadays. Lando’s just chill like that :)
this is the second time youve said my sets only work on low ladder but ive had wins in the 1700-1800 range with shitters like deo-d, night shade+ knock off isnt taunt fodder you still make progress. i havent seen that new kyurem set running around yet but ill keep an eye out for it
Hello all it is once again time for a shitmon spotlight and today it is one from all the way back in rby
Tentacruel @ Leftovers
Ability: Liquid Ooze
Tera Type: Dark
EVs: 252 HP / 104 Def / 152 Spe
Jolly Nature
- Flip Turn
- Knock Off
- Rapid Spin
- Toxic Spikes
Anyone who's played old gens knows how annoying this guy can be in the right situations and in SV it has a couple neat advantages. The goal of course is utility: spin, knock, pivot etc. Liquid Ooze is the first major key. This means Tentacruel has a very good matchup against one of the most popular spinblockers, Sinistcha. Matcha Gotcha is easily tanked for negative health on Sinistcha, and Strength Sap can straight up OHKO. This can also be good against things like Giga Drain from venusaur or others, Horn Leech from ogerpons, and even the odd drain punch.
EVs here are for outspeeding Tusk, letting you Flip Turn out before they can spin on you or KO with a ground move. This has good synergy with spinblockers of your own, letting you keep up Tspikes and play mindgames with ground immunities. Defence is for matching up against Samurott, who Tentacruel naturally walls and spins on. After a spin you outspeed meaning you can knock, get up tspikes, and continue to spin until they either take you down or switch out, at which point you are likely to be able to spend the rest of the game hazard free. This set also matches up decently well into webs as they really don't like toxic spikes.
Knock is an obvious addition, allowing for progress against easy switch ins like Gholdengo and Dragapult. Also works great against things looking to absorb a status move like Glowking or Alomomola.
I've been having success tagging in Tentacruel with grassy terrain support and something to tank psychic moves like Tinkaton. Hope you give it a try
I just saw this post and seeing this actually makes me think this mon pairs really nicely with Ursaluna. The fact that it can keep Sinistcha low is really huge since Cha is one of the very few Luna "hard counters" that is also decently popular. The nice special defense and water/poison typing means it can also switch into ice beams and Primarinas decently well for Luna too.
Flip and Knock are also very much appreciated support for Luna, potentially getting rid of rocky helmets and flip turn allowing Luna entrance without too much risk of getting knocked or chipped. And Toxic Spikes can cripple Oger-W since no boots, which Luna also wants. I really like this. I sadly don't have much motivation to play right now due to some irl stuff and having more interests in other games but I would love to test this pairing.
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(so this isn't just a shitpost, what do we think about greninja these days? is there any place for it in the modern meta or is it totally washed?)
I like how it makes my Meowscarada set even more relevant, so there's that.
To be serious, I'd think I'd see more of it, but no. Water Shuriken is badass
Imo Greninja is usable but it has some competition with the likes of woger and kyurem so is mostly left in the shadow, won't be too surprised if it's a underrated powerhouse though
Things like gunk shot and some other tech can do well, but some things are just faster than it and scarf sets either kinda feel redundant or power weak
Edit 1: Also Battle Bond really doesn't actually seem viable since you can't get it back again and tox can easily Haze it.
Edit 2: Nvm Battle Bond does have a niche but it's a bit of a MU after testing it on a alt, so it's kind of a so so for me
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I've been using LO tera psn with Sludge Wave and it's nasty. One it gets the BB off you're usually cook most HO sans E-nite but that thing has fallen off hard high ladder. Worst case scenario it forces a tera. If something is low HP your opp gets afraid of BB when it comes in and that usually puts you in a great spot to double out and keep up good pressure. Best used on HO mid to late game with hazards up but you would be surprised at the dmg output, there's some crazy calcs with this mon.
This has been my issue regarding the speed tier in his generation. Meowscarada barely, and I mean barely speed creeps as she should with a choice Scarf, and you'll still lose to surprise Scarf Darkrai.
Shhh, don't let them know. The more people figure it out the worse it'll be for the rest of us.
Jokes aside, it's a great pairing. Both especially go well with Wish support for when they get low, Tentacruel is lower on the wish urgency list but if you can beam it back up it can be a serious hinderance.
Grafaiai | Type: | Morkal OU Analysis |
Introduction Grafaiai is a Generation Nine newcomer with a unique Poison/Normal-type combination shared only with its pre-evolution, Shroodle. Initially, it was overlooked thanks to decidedly mediocre stats beyond its excellent base 110 speed (tied with Ogerpon). However, Grafaiai has several solid aspects working in its favor; its phenomenal Ghost-type immunity and Fairy-type resistance somewhat make up for its lack of bulk (it is also the only Pokemon in OU with this unique defensive synergy). Additionally, Grafaiai has a stellar movepool with a tremendous amount of offensive and (more importantly) support options. | Like Furret, I felt that Grafaiai deserved an OU anthem; so here it is~ | |
Base Stat Total 485 | Base Stats HP - 63 Attack - 95 Defense - 65 Special Attack - 80 Special Defense - 72 Speed - 110 | OU Niche Simplified Fast utility support with unique role compression and favorable meta matchups for offensive teams. |
Abilities Unburden Poison Touch Hidden Ability Prankster | Offensive Movepool Physical Acrobatics, Double-Edge, Facade, Foul Play, Gunk Shot, Knock Off, Low Kick, Poison Jab, Shadow Claw, Skitter Smack, Throat Chop, Trailblaze, U-turn, X-Scissor Special Acid Spray, Sludge Bomb, Sludge Wave, Tera Blast, Venoshock | Support Movepool |
Grafaiai - Recommended Sets Grafaiai @ Heavy-Duty Boots Ability: Poison Touch Tera Type: Fairy EVs: 184 HP / 68 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe Jolly Nature - Gunk Shot - Parting Shot - Encore - Knock Off or Grafaiai @ Heavy-Duty Boots Ability: Prankster Tera Type: Fairy EVs: 184 HP / 68 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe Jolly Nature - Gunk Shot - U-turn - Encore - Knock Off | Grafaiai - Summarized OU Advantages
| Disclaimer Grafaiai is not an easily splashable Pokemon, it is a niche pick for specific offensive teams that require its unique set of abilities and talents. It will underperform if you do not build your team with this in mind. As always, I highly recommend taking a look at the fantastic SV OU Speed Tiers thread written up by Mada along with heading over to SV OU's RMT if you need advice or help building your teams. However, if you build around Grafaiai's uniquely technical points, you'll find that it can often be the crux of your most potent strategies and open the way for your offensive behemoths to piledrive through your opponent's defensive cores. There are two major differentiating factors between the sets I've listed here. Do you want to soften Pokemon's offensive stats without having your pivot move blocked by Dark-type Pokemon? Use the Poison Touch Parting Shot variant Do you want to have the wonderful utility of Prankster Encore while still being able to pivot out of Dark-type Pokemon? Use the Prankster U-turn variant |
EV Analysis - Both Sets | Reasoning |
184 HP / 68 Atk / 4 Def / 252 Spe Stat Total With EV Allotment 313 HP | 243 Attack | 167 Defense | 176 Special Attack | 180 Special Defense | 350 Speed | Having 184 HP EVs specifically allows Grafaiai to survive important benchmark attacks such as 252 Timid Gholdengo's STAB Make It Rain, Ogerpon-Wellspring's 252 Jolly Ivy Cudgel (pre-Tera), and 252 Timid Enamorus's Earth Power (super effective). These additional HP EVs also allow Grafaiai to perform numerous other defensive feats that will be outlined in detail in the Damage Calculation section of this analysis such as comfortably surviving Clodsire's STAB Earthquake (super effective) and Choice Specs Walking Wake's STAB Dragon Pulse/Hydro Steam. Since Grafaiai's base attack is only 95, we can forgo a lot of EV investment since it only needs 68 EVs to hit the specific damage benchmarks with Gunk Shot required for this niche; examples are getting the OHKO on Enamorus, Iron Valiant, and Ogerpon-Wellspring along with getting the 2HKO on Hatterene and Rillaboom (with a small OHKO chance on the latter). With this EV investment alongside Knock Off, Grafaiai additionally gets a 2HKO on potent offensive threats such as Deoxys-Speed and Dragapult. |
Gunk Shot - Damage Calculations (Gunk shot must have at least a 75% chance to reach the respective benchmark to be included in that KO category) | Gunk Shot OHKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Enamorus: 356-422 (123.1 - 146%) -- guaranteed OHKO
68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Iron Valiant: 290-344 (100 - 118.6%) -- guaranteed OHKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Meowscarada: 356-422 (121.5 - 144%) -- guaranteed OHKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Ogerpon-Wellspring: 308-366 (102.3 - 121.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 80 HP / 0 Def Primarina: 342-404 (106.5 - 125.8%) -- guaranteed OHKO Gunk Shot 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 224 HP / 0 Def Cinderace: 169-199 (47.3 - 55.7%) -- 77.3% chance to 2HKO
68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Clefable: 236-278 (59.8 - 70.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Darkrai: 145-172 (51.6 - 61.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Deoxys-Speed: 145-172 (60.1 - 71.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 252 HP / 204+ Def Hatterene: 206-246 (64.7 - 77.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO after Leftovers recovery 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Rillaboom: 288-342 (84.4 - 100.2%) -- 6.3% chance to OHKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Roaring Moon: 177-208 (50.4 - 59.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Samurott-Hisui: 160-189 (49.8 - 58.8%) -- 99.6% chance to 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Weavile: 189-223 (67.2 - 79.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO Gunk Shot 3HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 4 HP / 252 Def Blissey: 262-310 (40.1 - 47.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Kyurem: 145-172 (37 - 43.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 64 HP / 28 Def Raging Bolt: 139-165 (34.1 - 40.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Gunk Shot vs. 12 HP / 0 Def Walking Wake: 144-171 (42.1 - 50%) -- 0.4% chance to 2HKO |
Knock Off - Damage Calculations | Knock Off 68 Atk Grafaiai Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Deoxys-Speed: 158-186 (65.5 - 77.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO
68 Atk Grafaiai Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Dragapult: 182-216 (57.4 - 68.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Gholdengo: 150-178 (47.6 - 56.5%) -- 83.6% chance to 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 0 HP / 0 Def Iron Crown: 144-170 (44.8 - 52.9%) -- 24.6% chance to 2HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 232 Def Latias: 124-148 (34 - 40.6%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 68 Atk Grafaiai Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 252 HP / 16 Def Slowking-Galar: 170-200 (43.1 - 50.7%) -- 3.9% chance to 2HKO |
Defensive Calculations (Both Pre-Tera and Terastallized defensive benchmarks are included here) | Defensive Calculations (Pre-Tera) 0 SpA Clefable Moonblast vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 64-76 (20.4 - 24.2%) -- guaranteed 5HKO
0 Atk Clodsire Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 240-284 (76.6 - 90.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252+ Def Corviknight Body Press vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 117-138 (37.3 - 44%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 252 SpA Darkrai Dark Pulse vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 177-208 (56.5 - 66.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 SpA Darkrai Ice Beam vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 132-156 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 252 SpA Darkrai Sludge Bomb vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 66-78 (21 - 24.9%) -- guaranteed 5HKO 76 Atk Dragapult Dragon Darts (2 hits) vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 192-228 (61.3 - 72.8%) -- approx. 2HKO 252 SpA Enamorus Earth Power vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 264-312 (84.3 - 99.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 SpA Enamorus Moonblast vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 105-123 (33.5 - 39.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 0 Atk Garganacl Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 204-240 (65.1 - 76.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 SpA Gholdengo Make It Rain vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 262-309 (83.7 - 98.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 SpA Glimmora Earth Power vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 258-304 (82.4 - 97.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252+ Atk Gouging Fire Flare Blitz vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 279-328 (89.1 - 104.7%) -- 31.3% chance to OHKO 252 SpA Iron Valiant Moonblast vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 96-114 (30.6 - 36.4%) -- 56.1% chance to 3HKO 252 Atk Wellspring Mask Ogerpon-Wellspring Ivy Cudgel vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 262-309 (83.7 - 98.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252+ SpA Primarina Moonblast vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 110-129 (35.1 - 41.2%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 252+ SpA Primarina Psychic Noise vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 232-274 (74.1 - 87.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252+ SpA Protosynthesis Raging Bolt Thunderclap vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 223-264 (71.2 - 84.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252+ Atk Choice Band Rillaboom Grassy Glide vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai in Grassy Terrain: 132-156 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO after Grassy Terrain recovery 252 Atk Sharpness Samurott-Hisui Ceaseless Edge vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 196-232 (62.6 - 74.1%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 160+ Def Skarmory Body Press vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 135-159 (43.1 - 50.7%) -- 3.1% chance to 2HKO 0 SpA Slowking-Galar Sludge Bomb vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 69-81 (22 - 25.8%) -- 3.8% chance to 4HKO 244 SpA Choice Specs Walking Wake Hydro Steam vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 249-294 (79.5 - 93.9%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 244 SpA Choice Specs Walking Wake Dragon Pulse vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Grafaiai: 264-312 (84.3 - 99.6%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 Atk Weavile Triple Axel (120 BP) (3 hits) vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 265-315 (84.6 - 100.6%) -- approx. 6.3% chance to OHKO +1 88 Def Zamazenta Body Press vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Grafaiai: 222-262 (70.9 - 83.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO Defensive Calculations (Terastallized) 0 Atk Clodsire Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 120-142 (38.3 - 45.3%) -- guaranteed 3HKO
252+ Def Corviknight Body Press vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 58-69 (18.5 - 22%) -- possible 5HKO 252 SpA Darkrai Dark Pulse vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 88-104 (28.1 - 33.2%) -- guaranteed 4HKO 252 SpA Dragapult Hex (65 BP) vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 117-138 (37.3 - 44%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 252 SpA Enamorus Earth Power vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 132-156 (42.1 - 49.8%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 0 Atk Garganacl Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 102-120 (32.5 - 38.3%) -- 98.2% chance to 3HKO 252 SpA Glimmora Earth Power vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 129-152 (41.2 - 48.5%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 252+ Atk Gouging Fire Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 155-183 (49.5 - 58.4%) -- 98.8% chance to 2HKO 0 SpA Hatterene Psyshock vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 159-187 (50.7 - 59.7%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 Atk Iron Valiant Close Combat vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 138-163 (44 - 52%) -- 15.6% chance to 2HKO 252 Atk Iron Valiant Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 75-88 (23.9 - 28.1%) -- 94.1% chance to 4HKO 252+ SpA Primarina Psychic Noise vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 116-137 (37 - 43.7%) -- guaranteed 3HKO 252 Atk Protosynthesis Roaring Moon Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 210-248 (67 - 79.2%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 Atk Protosynthesis Roaring Moon Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 153-180 (48.8 - 57.5%) -- 95.7% chance to 2HKO 252 Atk Sharpness Samurott-Hisui Ceaseless Edge vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 98-116 (31.3 - 37%) -- 78.2% chance to 3HKO 160+ Def Skarmory Body Press vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 67-79 (21.4 - 25.2%) -- 0.1% chance to 4HKO 0 SpA Slowking-Galar Future Sight vs. 184 HP / 0 SpD Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 184-217 (58.7 - 69.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 0 Atk Ting-Lu Earthquake vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 165-195 (52.7 - 62.3%) -- guaranteed 2HKO 252 Atk Weavile Knock Off (97.5 BP) vs. 184 HP / 4 Def Tera Fairy Grafaiai: 105-125 (33.5 - 39.9%) -- guaranteed 3HKO |
 Grafaiai Partners |
 Darkrai's potent offensive presence and phenomenal speed pair well together with Grafaiai, as Grafaiai often allows Darkrai to come in more safely + Grafaiai threatens one of Darkrai's biggest annoyances - Clefable, potentially freeing up a moveslot on your Darkrai for a non-Sludge Bomb coverage move for specific threats.  Great Tusk's Ground/Fighting-type combination is the single most synergistic type combination that Grafaiai could ask for. Great Tusk appreciates Grafaiai's Parting Shot softening up incoming special attacks in addition to Grafaiai absorbing Toxic Spikes from Glimmora.  Moltres's physical bulk sets are phenomenal at punishing incoming physical attacks thrown towards Grafaiai such as Zamazenta's Body Press in addition to baiting Ground-type moves from Pokemon such as Landorus-Therian.  Zamazenta is OU's resident glue and is wonderfully synergistic with Grafaiai, as it can handle the likes of Pokemon such as Kingambit with ease with its powerful STAB Body Press. |
Conclusion |
Grafaiai is woefully underexplored as a Pokemon in practically all SV competitive tiers, let alone OU. It has unique, phenomenal traits that can open up holes in your opponent's cores in ways that no other Pokemon can. Poison and Normal is a unique and deadly type combination that resulted in a support movepool that's not only specifically tailored to handle some of the OU meta's biggest issues, but can also blank some of the meta's most robust attacks or even flat-out bait them. Pick up a graffiti can with Grafaiai and decorate your offensive squad with its specialized talents! Post Analysis Note Since Grafaiai is a Pokemon designed around an art medium (an incredibly underrated aesthetic overall), I figured that my OU analysis would be the best post to test out my new table-based OU analysis format. I hope you all like it! It's a lot easier for me to get out longform analysis posts utilizing this format and I feel like it will be quite a bit easier to read with all the information compartmentalized as it is in this new post format. |
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